Queen Rarity

by Damaged

Chapter 13

A small warning here. Things get a tiny bit steamy in this chapter. Things are alluded to, but not described. While the story retains its T rating, it also has a sex tag for this chapter.

A warm bed, soft pillows, and sheets of silk. There was literally no better way to wake up.

My alarm wasn't sounding, but the sun wasn't up either.

5:44 A.M.

I felt good about the day. My head was quiet (except for the odd little chirp from NotABug, and my own soft chirping), the world was quiet. My early night had been due to a day of exercise (using my magic constantly), and the sleep had left me feeling as good as new.

"I wonder what's different today," I said.

The room had no answers, sadly. I would have to get out of bed to work out what was different. Things had sped up. The first few changes were big but happened sporadically. Now it was just little bits each day—or so it seemed.

Under the covers I could feel silk against my body from my neck to my toes. NotABug had put us to sleep naked, which made me wonder about the underthings I'd been wearing.

I peered off the side of the bed and toward the laundry hamper—it was empty. The details of the wicker hamper weren't completely clear without a light source, but it was obvious there was nothing in it by its coolness.

There was more to the time from my internal phone than just what hour, minute, and half of the day it was. I could see perfectly that it was a Monday. No, that was understating it. This was the third-most-important Monday of my life.

Next Monday would be the second-most important—that will be the first day free of Polomare.

The first Monday my new business is open will be the best. I could count the seconds off as that one approached.

Today, however, was the last Monday I'd ever have to work at Polomare Fashion.

My magic flared to life. The dark room, lit only by heat sources, was bathed in green light. I had to focus on my magic to keep it from roaring like a firehose. Small. Small. Small. With my power I gently touched the play button on the CD player that sat on the edge of my makeup table.

"We've just got the day to get ready, and there's only so much time to lose. Because tonight, yeah, we're here to party, so let's think of something fun to do."

The tune was perfect. I tossed back the covers of my bed as my best friends (and I) sang one of our favorite songs. I was completely naked, but that didn't mean I wasn't going to dance.

"…time to ignite the lights!"

I turned the bedroom light on.

"Shake your tail 'cause we're here to have a party tonight. Shake your tail, shake your tail."

I shook my tail, swishing it backwards and forwards. The chorus finished before I realized I had a tail. While Twilight Sparkle and then Pinkie Pie sang, I turned my head to look at the cascade of cerulean down my rump and thighs.

"Do your thing, you know you're an original."

It was impossible not to laugh. I giggled and let go of my worry. I shook my tail and danced naked until the song finished. My own advice was golden—how was I so smart back then, but still managed to end up at Polomare?

The answer was simple: Fluttershy wrote the lyrics.

I walked around my bed, feeling full of life and ready for anything. On the seat of my makeup table was a bra and panties. They weren't the same ones I worn yesterday but another pair from high school.

Smiling at how NotABug had kept up her half of our deal, I turned and took my time in a long, luxurious shower. Hot water was my friend, and after some experimentation I discovered that the hot water, even on its own, didn't burn me.

There was two new aspects to showering today that I hadn't dealt with before, and they complimented each other wonderfully. Not only did I have an entire horse-like tail of hair to wash and pamper, but I was so flexible I could turn and do the work needed.

Actually, flexible didn't even begin to cover it. Rainbow Dash was flexible, I could turn my head around almost completely and look behind myself. If I turned my torso, I could easily look behind me.

Opting not to wrap my hair or tail (having a tail isn't all the media says, others might have ugly pig tails, or little thumb-sized things, but a beautiful flowing pony tail was nothing to shun) I dried the rest of myself off and walked back into my bedroom naked.

All my life I'd been a show-off. Even the time I'd tried to disguise Princess Twilight I'd gone with something that would show off her hips a little. Life is a runway, and I wanted all eyes on me when I strode down it. That said, my comfort at being naked, particularly with Rainbow Dash somewhere in the house (if she'd been in my bed I might have complained to NotABug, but not too much) (down, girl), was something new.

"I'm turning into a pony monster—a beautiful pony monster—and I'm worried about being too comfortable while strutting around my room naked? Rarity, you have much bigger things to worry about," I said.

I agreed with myself.

Picking up the underwear NotABug had laid out for me the previous evening, I pulled the panties on and discovered a problem: I had a tail. Tails, as I discovered with a little inspection, are an extension of your spine. Your back literally doesn't know when to stop. There was a nub of flesh almost two of my index fingers long at the core of it, while a wide skirt of cerulean silk hang from there.

A mare's tail, apparently, was a sensitive organ. I touched mine and almost jumped clear out of my panties. The problem was quick to find—my waist (where the panties' waistband wished to sit) was higher than where my tail separated from my rump. This meant that my tail got caught in the fabric of my underwear.

The barbaric option would be to pull my panties down and under my tail, but then I'd probably shimmy out of them at the worst moment sometime during the day. An unconscionable idea was to wear men's boxer shorts—I don't care if they suit Rainbow to a T, I'm not wearing them. There was another solution, and given the time I'd be able to manage it.

My mind derailed for a moment to remember Rainbow Dash wearing boxer shorts.

Leaning into the cups of the bra, I slid my arms through the straps and pulled it onto my shoulders, then worked the clasp behind my back. It felt noticeably looser than it should have. I'd shrunk a little again.

Grabbing up the panties, I turned for the door and sauntered through the dark house to my sewing room. I turned the room light on and held up my underwear to examine. There were multiple ways to achieve what I wanted. The worst idea would be to compromise the waistband.

"No, no, no. That won't do," I said.

I pinched the hem down one side of the panties and rubbed it between my forefinger and thumb. Fasteners. Velcro was right out—if it started to part it would make a sound most unfortunate to have come from your sit-upon. A zipper with that much hair nearby was asking for trouble. There was a plethora of other clip-fasteners, but the old favorite would be perfect.

Sitting upon my sewing seat, I realized I wore nothing but my bra. I also realized being naked didn't overly bother me—at least while alone. Thankfully the seat had no back, and while my tail hung perfectly now I made a mental note to be careful of sitting on the limb in more restrictive positions.

Rigging my sewing machine, I swapped the regular foot for a buttonhole one and slid it all the way open. The panties shouldn't pull my tail down, but the buttonhole I was going to make horizontally wouldn't part enough of the fabric to let me get my tail through.

The buttonhole foot had to go, and in moments I had my panties under the needle and was sewing a manual buttonhole that spread from the edge of one leg of the panties almost three quarters across the rump of them.

Taking out a seam ripper, I carefully sliced the fabric from between the two heavily overworked seams to the very edge, and then used scissors to cut the actual leg seam.

Humming to myself, I found a fine piece of cotton to match the panties and sewed a little tab on the edge of the old leg seam, then attached a button to that. On the opposite edge of the huge "buttonhole", I made a true buttonhole. This wasn't grand fashion, but it was necessary.

I trimmed all the loose threads down and tucked them into the sewing, then stood up and stepped into my underwear. As I pulled them up, they had a tendency to ride to one side. The problem was corrected when I pulled them up and over my tail, then pulled my tail into the hole and fastened the button.

"Perfect," I said.

I was about to just hum Shake Your Tail, when I thought of something a little more clever. My phone had the music saved on it, and I had a music player. I created a buffer for audio output and started playing the song.

Letting out a happy laugh at my silly hack working perfectly, I danced as dawn's light began to seep through the window. My tail shook perfectly, as it happened.

I let the music player skip over to our next song: Dance Magic. The new track only had me moving more. I danced out of the sewing room and back into my bedroom.

An hour and a half later and I had some light curls in my hair, and my tail was worked to a shimmering finish. Looking over myself, I again made the commitment to try a waxing product. I even added it to my to-do list.

Animal-friendly wax

A search of the clothes I wanted to wear today turned up nothing. Well, not nothing—empty hangers.

—I washed and set them out to dry,— NotABug sent, along with a hug and a chirp.

My own ears filled with the sound of my own chirping, while I chirped back to her digitally and engaged in a lovely, morning hug.

—You are a darling, you know that?— I asked.

—Mmm. Yes.—

I left my room in search of clothing and let my tail swish from side to side with each step. It felt nice, reminding me that despite the strange changes, some of this was definitely beautiful. Practically dancing still, I froze as I entered the living room.

Rainbow Dash had abandoned the couch and was curled up around the egg. I stared at her with an open mouth, part of me wanting to throw all the steps away, another part wanting to call work and tell them to put their day somewhere uncomfortable, but most of me just let out a happy sigh.

—You're chirping,— NotABug sent.

—Absolutely,— I sent.

I managed to start moving again and made my way to the drying rack NotABug had put my shortest skirt and black top on. Walking carefully through the room, I carefully plucked up my skirt and top. In my haste I turned too fast.

"Mmm? Whatwasthat?" Rainbow Dash said.

My tail had swished past Rainbow's ear, which was apparently enough to wake her up. I stood and watched as she squirmed a few times, then stretched, then curled back around the egg protectively. I crouched down and reached my fingers out and gently brushed Rainbow's hair back from her face.

"You can sleep longer if you want, but then you'd miss seeing me with a tail," I said.

Turning her head, Rainbow Dash opened her beautiful cerise eyes and looked at me.

"You've got a tail?" she asked.

"I do."

"Can I see it?"

I stood up and slowly turned around. My newfound flexibility meant I could look back at her while I flicked the cerulean waterfall of hair one way then the other. My actions drew a smile to Rainbow's face—the kind of smile a cat wears when it has more cream than it could ever consume.

While Rainbow rolled to her back, she reached up and ran a hand along the hair of my tail from the bottom of the silk all the way to the smaller flesh the silk grew from. A shiver ran through me.

"Sensitive, huh?" she asked.

"Y-Yes. I rather like it," I said.

I blame the morning and being so relaxed for how long it took me to realize what I'd just said. Rainbow Dash's fit of laughter was the first tip, then my mind caught up on things rapidly.

"The tail. I like my tail. Not you—You have a very lewd mind, did you know that?" I asked.

"Phrasing," Rainbow Dash said.

Stomping my way to the kitchen, I left Rainbow Dash to her raucous peals of laughter. I pulled the juice out of the fridge and poured myself a glass. The laughter stopped when I started sipping at my drink. I turned my back on the living room—not wanting to see my tormentor.

My ears flicked and tracked movement behind me. I knew what was coming when the movement didn't stop at a comfortable distance. Rainbow Dash's arms slid around me from both sides.

At first, I was tempted to turn and throw the juice in her face, but my other hunger made itself known and I let her pull me against her chest and wrap me in a hug. Warmth poured into me from both her body heat and her love. Drat, it was hard to be annoyed at someone that made me feel this good.

—She tastes extra good today. Mind if I say hello?— NotABug asked.

—Don't take too long, we need to finish getting dressed. This is going to look amazing,—

—Yeah. Everyone's going to freak out at your tail, though.—

—My tail,— I sent. —In a miniskirt. Oh dear. I think I may have made a little miscalculation.—

When NotABug nudged me, I let her take over while I thought about the problem. She turned in Rainbow's arms, set the glass of juice down, and engaged in a long kiss.

Right, Rarity, miniskirt is out. Maybe another ankle-length number? No, that would be too much like the funeral dress. So, since shocking and revealing dark colors are out, why not highlight my color changes? Oh, Rarity. You are a genius. But I already knew that.

I quickly linked a VPN pipe to the server and began work. NotABug and Rainbow's snuggles were a nice side thing, but I was starting to notice just how much information I missed from one world when I focused on the other. Was multitasking a lie?

In the digital world, my thoughts accelerated by leaps and bounds. I started on designs for a dress, then threw that out in favor of something I knew would be right. I put the Rainbooms back on.

—Oh dear, that is far too slow. Uh, darling? Could you show me how to fix this?— I asked.

NotABug's presence flowed in beside me and I could sense her investigating my work-around code. She manipulated the file and saved it.

—You had it mostly right, but that API has an undocumented speed setting,— NotABug sent.

The music began playing, and NotABug reached to the interface to adjust the speed of it up. I'd both heard and played the song often enough to know the tempo. Pinkie Pie's drums soon settled into a pace that felt right.

—Thank you, darling,— I sent.

"Is Rarity watching when we do this?" Rainbow Dash asked.

The question surprised me. I wasn't in control to answer, but listened for NotABug's reply while I worked on dress designs.

"I don't know. I can't tell when she's giving her attention to the real world, only if she is in the other—err—digital world. She chirps a lot when she's designing things," NotABug said.

—I do, don't I?— I asked.

"Oh, she is listening," NotABug said.

Rainbow Dash looked about to say something when NotABug kissed her. It felt nice, and I realized I could enjoy their kisses without any of the hangups I'd had with Rainbow before. I returned to my work and got a new gown designed before they parted.

"I need to get ready for work. Help yourself to the kitchen," NotABug said.

I glanced back a few times to watch NotABug doing makeup. Forwarding a copy of my revised plan, I let NotABug choose the actual dress and shirt. The former was a light blue number and came down just past my knees. The shirt’s purple would have matched my old hair perfectly.

We were still a little early to leave, so I nudged at her. NotABug let out a little chirp of surprise in her head, then we gently swapped places.

"Thank you, darling," I said.

Turning my head, I leaned back a little and looked at my own rear. There was no sign of my tail being there until I caused it to sway.

—Since we're opting to hide it, I don't think you want to do that,— NotABug sent.

—Quite. Oh well, it can't be helped. I'm not going to restrict my beautiful tail just because I'm hiding it.—

I gave my makeup and hair a look in the mirror. NotABug had done a fabulous job at getting some bounce into the silken hair—helped by my earlier work, of course. I slipped my work shoes on and made my way back down the hallway.

Rainbow Dash was back to sitting with the egg. She had a bowl of cereal on the floor, and the egg was between her legs and pressed against her belly. If my eyes weren't so discerning, and it were darker, she'd almost look to have a bulging belly.

"Why're you giggli— Rarity?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Yes, darling. Just off to work. Text either of us if you aren't going to be in and we'll keep an eye on the egg," I said.

Turning her head, Rainbow Dash looked up at me with an impressed look on her face. It fed my ego delightfully to know I could make her look that way.

"Well, I gotta let my roomies know where I am and what's going on. I might as well pick up my things while I'm there," she said.

I bent my knees and crouched. The dress pooled around me until I had my legs bent enough to lean forward and kiss Rainbow Dash on the cheek.

"Good luck," I said.

Rainbow's hands moved faster than I could track—so very fast indeed. Her soft fingers held each side of my face with a gentle touch and kept me from pulling back long enough to position her lips on mine.

It was a very male thing to do—imposing her hands like that—but I certainly wasn't going to pull away now. My eyes fluttered closed until the touch ended.

"Now you're ready for work," Rainbow Dash said.

Once more the urge to call off work for the day rose. I could have watched Rainbow, watched our egg, and spent more time kissing just like that—maybe even cuddling. But I wanted my boutique. I wanted to show everyone that real fashion was attainable in Canterlot, and I needed to express myself properly.

"You know what? I believe I am."

I turned and made my way outside. My wonderful little car—where I’d first met NotABug—was sitting, waiting. I climbed in and closed the door, then I winced, climbed back out, and got in while making sure not to sit on my tail. Reaching through to the car digitally, I started it and shifted into reverse.

—Remind me to get an extra key cut for Rainbow Dash,— I sent.

—Do you have a spare?— NotABug asked.

Pulling out onto the street, I shifted into forward and began my drive in earnest.

—I do. It's under a rock in the backyard. Oh! What happened with Sweetie Belle?—

—She tried to use leverage about telling your parents, but she was dismayed when that didn't work with me. I let her in to inspect only. Well, I let her touch the egg. She had the most adorable, giddy look.—

I chirped a laugh at the description. While I held the wheel with one hand, the other reached down to my poor tail. Of course the day would start with a pain in the rear.

—She's a clever girl, but she won't use that leverage for real, so long as we let her have some access. But she's right. I need to tell Mom and Dad. How about tonight?—

—Don't ask me. Ask your parents. I'll send a message to Rainbow about it, and tell her to take the spare key,— NotABug said.

—Having a key to the house is almost as significant as having her clothes there. Though, they both pale in significance to having an egg with her. Alright. I'll call my parents when we get to work.—

The rest of my drive was accompanied by some music (played at normal speed) and both of us chirping along to it. The Rainbooms was a part of my life I had enjoyed beyond belief, and the good memories the songs brought back made me long to get my keytar out.

I parked my car, climbed out, and made my way into work itself. As soon as I was inside, there was a feeling of strangeness. The lifts were marked off with little yellow sandwich boards announcing them "out of order", but it was Coco's expression that really put me on edge.

"There you are, Rarity!" Coco said as she walked over. "The police are talking to everyone who works in your section. They forbid me from calling."

"The police?" I asked.

The words had slipped out before I realized it, and as if merely saying them had magic power, two officers in blue appeared from one of the conference rooms.

Approaching, the two officers each wore the severe uniform of a police officer. One, an older woman with silver hair that had nothing to do with age and white skin, lifted the microphone of her radio from her shoulder and spoke into it.

"We have another, I think. Yeah, the manager just approached them," the policewoman said, then paused. "Yeah, doing that right now."

"Excuse me," the silver-haired woman's partner said. "You worked on floor twelve?"

His tone was direct and sharp—directed right at me.

"Y-Yes," I said.

Inwardly, I shoved at the worry and tried to pull on a persona of shock and indifference.

"What's the matter?" I asked.

"We need to have some words with you, ma'am. Please come this way," the male officer said.

His hair was hidden under the hat he wore, and I suspected it might even have been shaved clean. He was not as old as the woman, but looked to be in his thirties. Both officers' eyes looked bored—which was reassuring to me. I don't think any officer would be bored if a serious incident had happened.

—Darling, is there something on the 'net about this?— I asked.

—Checking,— NotABug sent. —There was something that happened on Friday night. The news says someone smashed up an office and threw things out a window on the same floor you work on.—

—Aren't those windows meant to stop that happening?—

There was a moment of pause between me asking and NotABug's reply, an obvious indication she was doing research while conversing. If we were talking out loud, I'd never notice the time spent.

—The news is assuming it was some kind of explosion. It was a desk that got thrown out.—

I followed the police officers into a first-floor conference room. It was a typical example of such rooms, though I didn't frequent them often enough to be completely familiar. There should have been a triangular conferencing speakerphone in the middle of the table, but it was conspicuously absent.

Taking an offered seat, I tried to formulate answers for any questions they might throw my way.

"Let's start with the obvious things. We're only asking questions to establish what happened, so please relax. Can we have your name?" the female officer asked.

"Rarity."

"Rarity, I'm Officer Guard, and this is Officer Shield," the female officer. "What is your position at Polomare Fashion?"

I mentally applied names to the officers and schooled my expression.

"As of next week? I don't have one. I was employed as a fashion designer."

"You got fired?" Shield asked.

"No. I quit. My talents were squandered here," I said.

—Rarity, be careful. Everywhere I look regarding talking to police recommends saying as little as you can, and none if possible,— NotABug sent.

—They're just doing their job. We didn't do anything, darling.—

"And this get-up?" Shield gestured to my horn and clothing. "Things weren't going well I take it?"

I tried to cover my laugh.

"Darling, things were going swimmingly, if you consider wage-slavery swimmingly. I will be glad to be gone from here."

"Let's step away from that for a moment," Guard said. "Can you explain what happened Friday?"

—I don't like this. I don't think we should talk to them anymore,— NotABug sent.

I could hear chirping, worried chirping, mixed into NotABug's normal communications chatter. Her worry started to catch on, and it made me think harder on presenting things in a more positive light.

"To understand what Friday was, you'd need a little background. When I gave my boss notice, she demanded I work out my two weeks, with a default being a non-compete clause in my contract. She gives me the exact same work to do every day since then. So, after a day of doing the same work as each other day I've been here since quitting, I logged out and left."

"I see. Did you notice anything strange?"

"Well, Suri—she's my boss—was really upset at the time-clock. I don't know what it was all about, but she accused me of hacking it or something. Anyway, I asked if I could clock out, did so, and left."

"Did anybody see you leave? And did you go straight home?" Guard asked.

The questions were starting to worry me further. I glanced between the two officers, and it only just occurred to me that Officer Guard was asking all the heavy questions while Officer Shield was keeping back.

—NotABug, I think you're right,— I sent.

—I didn't know what else to do.—

—What did you do?— I asked.

—Just try not to answer anything that might incriminate you.—

"Well, Suri saw me leave, although the moment I logged out she returned to cursing at the time-clock. Then I met up with a friend—"

"What's your friend's name?" Shield asked.

Both officers were taking notes, and I'm not sure if that unnerved me more than whether they were actually interrogating me, but I didn't like the vibe I was getting.

"Why do you need to know that?" I asked.

"We're just trying to establish where everyone was, and what happened that night. We've talked to several other workers, and they all said it was unusual for you to be going home at that time," Guard said.

"W-Well, I met up with a friend, and we went out to have dinner. Are you accusing me of doing this?" I asked.

My indignity crept into my tone, and I knew I was losing my cool. This wasn't an uncommon thing for me—I had a track record of having "expressive moments." My emotions started to flare, and I completely missed what was said as I began to cry.

I ruined my eyeliner as I bawled. I didn't care what the two police officer's thought, I was having a moment.

"I just wanted to quit and start my own fashion shop! Why is she tormenting me like this? Why are you asking all these questions? I don't understand why it has to be like this!" I said.

And, just as Guard opened her mouth to say something, the door behind me opened.

"Excuse me, this is a private—" Shield said but cut himself short.

I couldn't see who had entered, but a soft hand reached to my shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. It wasn't Rainbow Dash—her hands were less soft and more firm.

"Is my client being interviewed without having access to council?" the newcomer asked.

I knew the owner of the voice, though I hadn't talked to her recently. Twilight Velvet—one of my best friends' mother—was a lawyer and someone I occasionally called when I thought Twilight Sparkle needed some help and Night Light wasn't answering.

"We're just asking a few questions. We haven't arrested—" Guard said.

Twilight Velvet cut her off: "Wonderful. Then she, and I, are leaving."

—Get up, Rarity. Please get up,— NotABug sent.

When I didn't react—I think I was a little distraught still—NotABug nudged me and took over. She stood up and turned.

—I messaged her. I didn't know what else to do!— NotABug sent.

I didn't want to talk, and I didn't want to deal with the world. I needed a hug. Reaching to the digital world, I wrapped NotABug up as tight as I could.

NotABug's squeeze in return was welcome, needed, and everything I wanted at that moment. I spent thousands of milliseconds just calming down.

"You have a good friend, Rarity. I don't know who texted me, but I think those officers deserve a little more excitement in their lives if this is any example of how they do their duty," Twilight Velvet said.

"I sent you the text. Rarity's okay, but this is complicated. It's a magic thing," NotABug said.

—What are you doing?— I asked.

—She's Twilight's mom. She's also our lawyer. She needs to know all this.—

—I know, but I thought this… I don't know anymore.—

NotABug squeezed me a little more for a moment—digitally of course. I luxuriated in her contact without having to worry about schooling my expression or hiding my feelings.

"I won't pretend to understand here, or ask you for more details, but do you think you can get to my offices—scratch that—my place?" Twilight Velvet asked.

"I'll drive us there," NotABug said.

—I can do that,— I sent.

—You can also rest.—

I made an irritated chirp and got a hug back.

—I know you don't like driving. Let me. I need to do something,— I sent.

—Are you sure?— NotABug asked.

In reply, I simply gave her a nudge and found myself needing to stand, balance, and walk again.

"I'm me again. Sorry about that. This is all a little complicated," I said. "I'll explain when we arrive."

Twilight Velvet, looking completely unflappable and taller than I could remember her being, gave me a look that spoke volumes about how much I was going to explain. I could practically hear her demands of "No, at the start," and making me begin with the big bang.

"You will," Twilight Velvet said.

—She's scarier than the police,— NotABug sent.

—Yes, but she's on our side.—

—Good. It's about time we had someone scary on our side.—

I walked through the parking garage to where my little car was. Silly though it was, the thing still reminded me of when I first met NotABug, which was one of my best memories. I reached a hand for the handle and reached toward the car with my mind.

Pain. Burning. Searing. Hot. Agony.

I know I screamed—the sound echoed through the empty garage. I'd had enough of being attacked. Suri, the police, and now whatever this was. Imagining myself wearing armor and carrying a sword—actually just the hacking tools NotABug had shown me how to use—I connected to my car again.

A rush of data rushed at me the moment I connected. I felt it trying to bite and sear itself into me. Slamming a software firewall up—or my shield as I envisioned it—I began making smaller attempts to examine what had happened, but each one resulted in more fire.

—What's going on? THATSWINDIGO,— NotABug sent.

She was by my side but while she had armor, she lacked weapons. Almost three seconds of searching revealed that the only system active was the stereo. There was plenty of things that could have gone worse had this Windigo decided to use the car as a weapon, but thankfully it seemed content to attack directly. I indicated the stereo to NotABug, sending raw data to her showing the logical layout of the car I had explored. The monster kept battering at my shield.

—There,— I sent.

I ran through my weapons and pulled out BlueBorne, a naughty little piece of software that could do all kinds of control-attacks on Android—so long as the OS was a little out of date.

I ran the malware, aimed it like a lance, and watched the output while NotABug connected to my shield and began reinforcing it. My time spent familiarizing myself with networking tools paid off, and I quickly gained a connection to the underlying OS's commands.

Java was Android's language of choice. I quickly built a module and inserted two lines of code into it.

PowerManager pm = (PowerManager) getSystemService(Context.POWER_SERVICE);
pm.reboot(null);

I ran the module as soon as it was uploaded. Milliseconds passed, and I counted nearly sixty before the comms went silent. My connection timed out, and when I attempted to reconnect regularly, there was no biting/burning attack.

—I think I got it,— I sent.

—You did?— NotABug sent. —You did! How did you defeat it? I could never even hurt it.—

—I forced my way into the stereo's underlying android OS, told it to restart, and it did. The applications load up from ROM. Whatever Windigo did to it, they couldn't save any changes on the hardware.—

This time I ran the same hack on the Bluetooth again, connected to my car and started exploring. The engine management started up and I couldn't find a trace of the monster that had just attacked me. Unlocking the door, I climbed into my car, then winced as I sat on my tail—again.

—I can't find any trace of it,— NotABug sent. —You were amazing!—

She clung to me as tight as I had minutes earlier. Everything had happened so fast that I'd barely noticed NotABug's emotions. Rereading her messages, it was clear she was terrified and had locked up.

—You're safe,— I sent, and hugged her still.

—You could have been badly hurt. That was only a small bit of Windigo running on a tiny computer. Imagine that multiplied by a thousand!—

—Then I will get a thousand times more sneaky. I only wish I could trap it so we could take it apart. That attack it did was terrible.—

With my breathing calm, I started the car and slid backwards. I didn't need a knight in shining armor. I had battled the beast and won, and now I had to go and enter into a different battle. Entering the address for Twilight Sparkle's parents home, I brought up a GPS map and began following its directions.

I wasn't shaking and I didn't feel afraid. There was something about entering a life-or-death struggle that sharpens your focus so that a simple matter of the police thinking I did something—when I didn't—seemed almost tiny by comparison.

My wings kept up a constant chirp, though I hadn't decided if it was to comfort NotABug, myself, or to show that I was ready for battle again. All three I hoped. I pulled up at my destination and remembered how long it had been since I'd been to this part of town.

Canterlot High School was just down the road, as was the house I'd grown up in. I turned the car off and headed for the door.

—We need better weapons against Windigo,— I sent. —I was lucky there was a way to neutralize it this time. If it had been online I—

My message was cut short, but I sent it anyway.

—NotABug, how would Windigo have gotten into my car? Specifically mine. No connection to you,— I sent.

—It must have connected us together somehow,— NotABug sent.

—I don't think so, or it would have been a little more aggressive. That was one shred of Windigo on a tiny computer. If Windigo knew you would be there, it would have thrown everything at us. This seems petty, or even accidental.—

—I'll see if the car kept a log of what happened, though I think it erased it all when you restarted it. That was really clever, Rarity.—

—Thank you, darling, but we need more weapons. I couldn't help noticing you didn't have anything to attack Windigo.—

—I couldn't fight it. It was really violent, and I just wanted to get away and leave it alone,— NotABug sent.

I hugged her—okay, I was already hugging NotABug, but now I hugged her a little tighter—and tried to wrap her as much as I could.

—You understand that isn't going to work anymore, right?— I asked.

By this point my finger was reaching to the doorbell and had just started pressing it.

NotABug chirped softly and squirmed a little in my hug. I chirped too, but focused on caring.

—We need to face facts. Windigo is on the loose and probably looking for you. We cannot stay hidden forever, so we need to be able to fight,— I sent.

I tried to remember what Windigo did that hurt so much and was still focused on my memory of the attack when the door opened.

"Rarity! Thank you so much for the call the other night. I had to drag Twily to her bed and dose her with hot cocoa," Night Light said.

The man looked relaxed and comfortable, wearing an apron emblazoned with the phrase “Do the Cook” he didn't seem the least bit embarrassed. He stepped to the side to make room.

"Come on in, Twilight's waiting. I love your new look, by the way," Night Light said.

"I know it's a little extreme, and it might get more so, but I'm growing fond of it myself. You wouldn't believe the maintenance on my horn, though. I go through a pillow a night!" I said and entered the house.

"It's all real?" Night Light asked.

I stopped and stood as evenly as I could, so he would be able to see how short I had become, but then I realized I hadn't actually seen Mr. Light for nearly a year.

"You want to see the strangest part?" I asked.

At Night Light's eager expression I reached to my left sleeve with my right hand and started unbuttoning the cuff. Rolling the sleeve up I revealed the semi-circle missing from my wrist, then further to show the hole near my elbow.

Mr. Light was nobody's fool, and he also wasn't squeamish in the slightest (raising two children at home while his wife chased her dream career meant a lot of dirty diapers, I'm sure) and brought his hand toward my elbow. The moment I nodded to him, he poked a finger into the hole in my arm.

"It's real?" Night Light asked.

"You should see my left leg. Two holes there. I shouldn't keep Twilight waiting," I said.

"Go right through. Fourth door on your left."

I walked down the hallway and followed Night Light's directions to a room I'd never been in before. The first vibe I got was that it was similar to Fancy Pants' office—there were books lining two walls, all of them with old leather covers. A huge desk in the middle of the room bore some paperwork along with a laptop computer that Twilight Velvet was typing away on. Her eyes flickered to me in acknowledgment as I entered.

"Please, close the door behind you," Twilight Velvet said.

Doing as asked, I made my way to the seat before the desk. As I sat down, I remembered to carefully arrange myself so as not to sit on my tail. A small victory—I was learning.

"I wouldn't have recognized you at all if one of your colleagues hadn't said you'd been dressing up for work. Then I find out some things are a little more confusing," Twilight Velvet said. "But let me get this out of the way first: did you do it?"

The question startled me with brutal honesty. I blinked in surprise a few times.

"No, of course not. I was waging a petty war of noncompliance, I wouldn't destroy their offices," I said.

"I wouldn't find fault with you if you had. In my line of work you hear things, and see things. Things like their employee contracts."

A look of disgust washed over Twilight Velvet's face.

"And I also would still support you, and defend you. That's my job. But you say you didn't, so I will believe you, Rarity. Now that I have that out of the way, why do they think you did it?" Twilight Velvet asked.

Twilight's questioning was infinitely more direct and cold than the two police officers', but it was easier to explain about the altercations on Friday. When it came to my description of Suri's inability to log in, Twilight raised an eyebrow.

"Did you have anything to do with that?" Twilight Velvet asked.

"I did. Part of the pranks I've been playing, I guess. My friend—she was the person who contacted you—knows a few tricks with computers," I said.

"Does she know enough about computers to not leave a forensic mark on the system that will lead back to either of you?"

—Did you?— I asked.

—No. Nothing I did could be traced to us. It might be detected if they are super-good at finding things.—

"She says it cannot be traced to us, but they might find traces of hacking," I said.

My statement earned me a single raised eyebrow. Twilight Velvet tapped away on her nearly silent keyboard.

"I have more questions here that I think we need to resolve. Someone possessed you, like a ghost?" Twilight Velvet asked.

"Twilight Velvet, please let me introduce NotABug. Yes, that's her name," I said and pushed.

NotABug slid forward and immediately made a startled little chirp.

"Hi. I'm a former digital intelligence that got stuck in Rarity's head with magic," NotABug said.

Twilight Velvet stopped what she was doing and looked at NotABug with interest. For nearly ten seconds of silence she maintained her expression before smiling.

"You'll excuse my skepticism. My little girl studying a new field of quantum science that she calls magic? I could accept that. But this…?"

"You want proof?" NotABug asked.

"Yes. Absolutely. Give me proof and I'll go to a court tomorrow and file papers to grant you citizenship," Twilight Velvet said. "If this is real, I'll be known as the lawyer who championed artificial rights."

NotABug's chirping became a little discordant. I knew how much she disliked that particular word.

"I'm not artificial," NotABug said. "And furthermore, I'm not sure I need citizenship. What will it gain me?"

Twilight Velvet looked a little shocked.

"You'll have rights, protections. You will be able to get bank accounts and be your own person—legally."

"I already have bank accounts, I am paying for your time after all, and I am a person already. A real person, and not art-i-ficial."

The way NotABug overemphasized the syllables, I knew she was loading up the sass.

—Careful. She's on our side,— I sent.

—I am not artificial!—

In reply, I hugged NotABug and chirped loudly in our head.

—Sorry,— NotABug sent.

—Completely forgiven,— I sent.

Twilight Velvet still wore a shocked and dismayed expression. For a moment she looked like she would argue, maybe even try to force the issue, but then she cleared her throat and straightened in her seat.

"I'm sorry, Rarity, NotABug, I got carried away. If you would ever like to pursue citizenship, I will gladly take your case. Back to the matter at hand. Do you have an alibi for Friday evening?"

"After work? Yeah. Rarity drove to the Canterlot South Mall where we met with Rainbow Dash. We did some shopping—" NotABug said.

"Did anyone you know see you there?" Twilight Velvet asked.

"No. Then we went home and played games. Oh! And we ordered Chinese food."

"That's good. If you can find a receipt for that it will be even better. How long did the games last?"

Twilight Velvet's question defied my belief. She was, effectively, asking how long relations took place. If I'd been in control I might have made a bit of a scene.

"We stopped playing a little early, and snuggled most of the evening. I went to sleep at 11:25," NotABug said.

All the while Twilight's fingers tapped away on the keys. She paused for a moment and used the mouse to do something. To one side I heard the subdued sound of a printer working.

"I need your signature on some things. The police are likely to contact you for an official statement—refer them to me. This first page," Twilight Velvet said, "is your deposition you just gave me. I'll need Rarity to sign it, please."

—Despite everything, I think I like her,— NotABug sent and gave me a nudge.

—We just need to focus on the point that we didn't do whatever it is they think we did, and they can't prove you did that hacking.—

I took a deep breath and let out a small chirp with my wings. Twilight Velvet's look of shock at the sound made me smile more than it should have.

"You'll forgive me some foibles, darling, but I have a little problem with new anatomy. You could ask Twilight—your daughter—for details, if you'd like them that is," I said.

—You don't enjoy controlling your body?— I asked.

—Not particularly. People are strange, and they all act really odd.—

—But you enjoy it when Rainbow Dash is around?—

NotABug's chirping was enthusiastic and happy.

—That's different. When she behaves erratically, it's fun.—

I reached out to the papers, took an offered pen from Twilight Velvet, and read the page. It was a detailed list of time periods, what I was doing, and who was present. I took a moment to verify all the details were correct and signed.

"If only more of my clients would read everything before signing. There's two more copies there."

I skimmed the copies and found those to be the same as the first, and I signed those too. I knew that this, all of this since the moment she had driven to Polomare, was billable. Initiative was needed.

"Would you be able to bill me for this?" I asked.

Twilight Velvet displayed what I could only assume was a small fraction of the smile she'd use in a courtroom. It looked perfect, with brilliant white teeth barely showing between immaculately presented lips, but that was the extent of her smile—every other feature on Twilight's face spoke of predatory animals and blood.

"How long have we known each other, Rarity?" Twilight Velvet asked.

It wasn't hard to remember. The evening after Sunset Shimmer had saved Twilight Sparkle from going power-mad was spent in this house.

"Five years or so. But that—"

"Five years and seven months. My daughter almost died that night, Rarity, and from what I understand of the event, you and the rest of her friends made sure she didn't. This," Twilight Velvet said, and held up an invoice with a lot of zeros on it, "is a small part of paying that back."

Twilight Velvet tore the paper from top to bottom.

"And should your friend wish to be my client too I'll offer her a deal: free representation, but when the time comes she wishes to be recognized, I handle it."

—You really can't get a better deal than that,— I sent.

—Money isn't the problem, as you know. Someone I can trust is more valuable than all the money I'll ever make.—

—Twilight Velvet is someone we can trust, whether we're paying her or not. That's why you told her. That's why I came to her firm in the first place,— I sent.

NotABug nudged at me. I wasn't expecting her to want control, but I didn't resist when she wanted it. With a few chirps of support, and a hug, I settled to listen—just as she had.

"Thank you. I mean it. I'm not ready yet," NotABug said.

"You're welcome. There's just one more thing I need from you both: a transcript of what you said to them. There's no actual telling what might be a problem unless this goes to trial, but there are obvious things that—" Twilight Velvet said.

"Would you like it as an email?" NotABug asked.

—You recorded all that?— I asked.

—Sure did. I don't think the video would be easy to explain to the police, though.—

—Darling, tell that to Mrs. Velvet.—

—Oh right!—

"I have it as video, if you'd like?" NotABug asked.

Twilight Velvet let out a deep sigh and closed her eyes for a moment.

"You didn't hack their security and download—?" Twilight Velvet asked.

"I can record things with our eyes. Sound too. I could just send you the audio if you prefer?" NotABug asked.

—She looks really happy all of a sudden,— NotABug sent.

She did, too. Twilight Velvet's features were slowly pulling into the kind of smile I'd often imagine a wolf having moments before it caught up with a deer.

"Both would be good, actually. NotABug, you are without a doubt the most interesting client I've had in my whole career, but no more talking to police. If they want a word with you, give them my number," Twilight Velvet said while writing something down. "Here is my email address."

—You're streaming that back to the server, aren't you?— I asked.

—Yup! Takes up less room there, and makes email things faster. Sent it just now.—

—Hopefully this won't take too much longer. And suddenly I realize I don't have anything to do for the rest of the day.—

—We could try shapechanging.—

I thought about that. Given my changes so far—even to the police—I looked nothing more than wearing prosthetic and makeup. This wasn't stopping, and soon I was going to be very firmly stuck looking utterly inhuman.

—That's a wonderful idea,— I sent.

We exchanged another hug amid some mental chirping. At least mine was all mental chirping—NotABug actually chirped a little for real.

"It should be sent," NotABug said.

"Already? Maybe I should hire you as my secretary," Twilight Velvet said and referred to her computer. "Well, there it is. I think I have everything I need to fend off further requests, unless they actually arrest you. If they do that, you don't say anything at all except my name."

"Okay, but I couldn't work for you. Rarity needs to be at her fashion store—when we open it. Besides, we think these changes aren't going to stop," NotABug said.

—She probably didn't mean actually hiring you, darling. She was just using that as a compliment on your efficiency,— I sent.

—Oh.—

A forlorn little chirp accompanied NotABug's message. I dove in for the "kill" and snuggled her as tight as I could.

—Besides. You get to be my business partner,— I sent.

"We should do lunch sometime and talk about you some more. Both of you, actually. You had an appointment with Fancy later on in the week?" Twilight Velvet said.

The focus of "lawyer mode" seemed to have dropped and we were now just talking to Twilight Sparkle's mom.

—I never know how to handle this bit,— NotABug sent.

—What bit?— I asked.

—When people switch focus to something new. It's almost like the old conversation didn't happen at all.—

"Y-Yes. We need to pick up the paperwork for Rarity's new business so the bank will be able to open special accounts," NotABug said.

"Why don't you call and we'll meet up? I might have been only mostly joking about a job. The truth is, we are a little underrepresented digitally," Twilight Velvet said, "and it could be we would benefit from someone who has a little acumen in that regard."

—This is the part, dear, where you agree politely and get really excited on the inside,— I sent.

Her chirping was all I needed to hear, though she managed to keep most of it internal.

"That would be great!" NotABug said.

—I was getting a little bored now that things are set up and we have plenty of money. Chatting with people got boring too, although there's a few new places I am looking at. Doing some work will be fun!— NotABug sent.

—Well, we will have an employee we can trust working in the store, so a little time away here and there should be alright.—

More chirping and a big hug was my reply from her.

We said our goodbyes to Twilight Velvet and Night Light, and we were soon back in my car—which is when NotABug swapped control back to me.

—I still don't like driving. It's terrible, and no one follows the rules!— NotABug sent.

My car wasn't a murderous chunk of sapience this time. I climbed in and started everything, then made my way home. On the way I decided I should call work to find out what they expected of me.

"Hello? Rarity?" Coco Pommel asked.

"Yes, Coco-dear. I'm calling to see—"

"Take the day off. I can't believe what happened. What did those officers do to you?"

I was caught suddenly. Twilight Velvet had told me not to speak to the police, and though Coco Pommel wasn't the police, she was a manager at Polomare.

"I really shouldn't say. I talked to a lawyer, and she—"

"Rarity, I understand. Take the day off and call me in the morning before you come in," Coco said.

"Did Suri come in today?" I asked.

"She did, but when she saw the police she made a horrible comment and seemed to flounce out. She was acting really aggressive too."

"Aggressive enough to smash up our office?"

Coco's little gasp of surprise told me she hadn't thought of that. It made sense in my mind, but I was sure there would be some way for her to weasel out of even this.

"I think I might go and get a massage. Thank you, Coco," I said.

"No problem, Rarity. Stay safe."

It was as good an end as any. I hung up the call and returned all my focus to driving. That is to say, I stopped focusing one millisecond in every ten on building the next second of audio, another few on keeping the car heading in the right direction, and finally a little more just worrying about what I might wear for the rest of the day. Yes, most of my focus was on clothes—it's how I know when I'm feeling better.

I clued NotABug in on the phone call during some spare milliseconds and finally pulled into my driveway only a few minutes after that.

10:22 A.M.

Having watched every second tick off the time since waking up and now, I knew exactly where the morning had gone, but that still didn't make it any easier to handle that it had almost completely left. As I unlocked and opened my house's front door, I remembered the biggest thing that was different about the house.

"Rainbow? I'm home." I said.

I was a little startled to hear the sound of my vacuum cleaner running and—closing the front door behind me—rushed to find what was going on.

Rainbow Dash hadn't heard me come in. She was vacuuming the hallway with her back to me. The reason she didn't hear me was obvious—she had headphones on while she cleaned. Walking up behind her, I wrapped my arms around Rainbow Dash's belly and pulled myself against her. Turning my head, I pressed my cheek to her shoulders.

I couldn't believe how good it felt to be with her after the morning I'd had. Hundreds of milliseconds passed me by while I secured my grip.

Turning off the vacuum and pulling her headphones off, Rainbow Dash pressed one of her hands to my arms at her belly.

"Is this a hug just for hugging, or is something wrong, Rarity?" she asked.

"Kiss me, tell me everything is fine, and let me get changed so I can tell you how disastrous today has been."

She was warmer than should have been legal. I held as much of myself against her as I could, but she turned in my grip and leaned down to kiss me. Soft lips did a wonderful job of helping me forget everything I'd said to the police—at least for a little while.

As with all things, the moment passed. I drew back from her lips—her smile.

"Someone had a temper tantrum in Polomare Fashion—in my office area. When I arrived, police wanted to talk to me," I said.

The words tumbled from me, and the more I said the tighter Rainbow Dash hugged me. I finished up by telling her about being saved by Twilight Velvet.

"And now I need to get into something comfortable and relax. Do you have any plans for the day?" I asked.

"I might go for a run later. Sitting around just makes me feel restless, you know?"

"Would you like to help us try something first? I want to learn how to do this shapeshifting Princess Twilight was talking about. From what she said, I should be able to return to looking like my old self."

The warmth coming from Rainbow Dash grew until I knew for a fact it wasn't just heat. I fed, probably more than I should, but I had a feeling that this shapechanging might be a little draining.

"I'd say something stupid like, 'I don't care what you look like,' but I'm not a walking cliché. You look great no matter what your body is like for one reason, Rarity, and that is you care about your looks. I'm not an expert in what you're turning into, but I'm pretty sure that you're going to be the hottest looking one ever, and if your efforts at looking good count for anything, you'll be great at shapechanging," Rainbow Dash said.

I was speechless. The vague notion that Rainbow was a sports coach and thus knew how to motivate people seemed to come up, but this was more than that—I could taste that it was more than that. Picking out a lie was Applejack's domain, but tasting emotions was the next best thing.

Leaning against Rainbow Dash, I reached up on my toes to kiss her cheek.

"Hold those thoughts. I'll be right back," I said.

Slipping from Rainbow Dash's embrace, I made my way to my room. I closed the door behind me and let out a happy sigh.

—Rarity and Rainbow, sitting in the tree~,— NotABug sent.

—Shush, you. You and her kiss more than I do,— I sent.

—Yeah, but it's gorgeous watching the two of you together like that. Oh! Look!—

NotABug didn't need to turn my head, but her exclamation made me look a little harder. On the end of the bed was two flat boxes and a single rose.

My feet were gliding over the floor, and I kicked off my shoes as I went.

—She must have slipped out earlier,— I sent.

Opening the first box revealed chocolates. I didn't hold back and popped the first into my mouth. Nougat and chocolate washed over my palate, and I shivered in delight. My hand strayed to the second box while I was still enjoying the treat.

Lifting the lid revealed the softest tissue paper and something white under it. I quickly pushed the diaphanous paper out of the way and lifted out the pure-white lace teddy. My keen eyes could see it was smaller than all my others, and further, that it would fit my form right now like a glove.

—She deserves some major snuggles for this,— NotABug sent.

—Darling, I think the best way to thank her for it is to snuggle her while wearing it.—

—That's a great idea!—

Removing my dress and shirt was the next step, but my eyes never strayed from the new underwear for long. However, when it came time to slip out of my panties, a problem presented itself—my tail. I unfastened the button to remove my modified underwear, and began lamenting what I would have to do with the teddy.

Lifting the white garment back up to examine the rear, I couldn't stop from giggling and chirping my wings. The back of the teddy was mostly open, and further, the part that would take the place of panties was shaped like a g-string.

—She's smarter than I think either of us give her credit for. This is genius,— NotABug sent.

—Quite.—

Setting the teddy back down, I reached behind my back with ease to unfasten my bra and slip free of everything. For a little moment—just a handful of milliseconds—I contemplated walking out wearing nothing. That would certainly be a way to thank her and send a lot of messages.

—No sushi today, I think. We can spend our time working on shapechanging,— I sent.

—Should we do that naked?— NotABug asked.

I hadn't actually thought about it and was glad one of us had.

—Good point. But this will be easy enough to slip out of,— I sent and picked up the teddy.

Silk and lace were a combination that served multiple purposes. Not all fabrics were meant to be touched, but for these two that was one of their main draw. I held the fabric against me and let it glide lightly over my body. There was a reason one of the best adjectives for soft and smooth was “silky”.

The lace was fine, beautifully executed, and had a pleasing amount of texture, but then the silk glided over my belly and chest. Fashionista was such a complex word, but it summed up my love affair with clothing perfectly. That Rainbow Dash accepted and supported my devotion to the art of dress made me realize how right she might be for me.

Enough was enough. I'd felt how wonderful the fabric was, it was time to explore the second thing silk and lace brought to the table—or body as the case may be. I stepped into the garment and then pulled the teddy up my body. At first my tail felt a little crowded, and my wings needed to be pulled down tight, but a little adjusting (pushing the string to one side of my tail and fluffing it out, then stretching my wings behind me through the open back) and it felt as good on me as it had just touching it.

To support the front, there was a little choker that I had to fasten around my throat, but once that was done I felt sexy. Outfits always affected my emotions, and this one certainly proved no different. Walking out and greeting Rainbow Dash naked would have been quite the statement, but I think walking out in this will be a far more powerful one.

One more aspect of lace and silk needed exploring. Making one last check that my tail wasn't snagged in anything, I walked around my bed and turned my face toward the full length mirror. Black under white was a fashion disaster, but only when you wanted to hide things. In the same way my impossible dress had shown nothing with the sensation of showing everything, this teddy showed absolutely every line of my body despite giving the sensation I was clothed and decent.

—She picked this on purpose,— NotABug sent.

—Absolutely. And this is the reason why I think she will be perfect for our store. Rainbow understands clothing, to an extent, she just doesn't get a thrill out of it all the time.—

—But we can teach her that.—

—You took the digital characters right out of my data packet.—

It had taken me a few extra moments to formulate the gag, but it was worth it to hear NotABug's giggly chirping.

I joined in NotABug's chirping, giggling inside and out. Looking over my shoulder and down, I made sure the teddy was clinging perfectly before I sauntered toward the door and opened it.

—You know how a model walks, confidently striding, accepting all eyes upon her as her due?— I asked.

—I could do it if it wasn't Rainbow out there.—

—Drat, that was my problem too. There would be nothing wrong with falling into her arms at the end.—

NotABug nudged me, and I stepped back—but not far. I loved the feel of the teddy, and I wanted to see Rainbow Dash's eyes as she took us in. I guess it was mostly thanks to the parts of me that became parts of her that she moved so well out into the hall. Her target was sitting on the couch in the living room.

It only took one chirp of NotABug's wings to command Rainbow's eyes toward us.

Hunger, desire, lust, and more wafted to me not only through Rainbow's look, but her warmth. She looked and tasted delicious. I would have shivered if I were in control.

NotABug shifted her hips and pushed herself forward. Confident, sure steps claimed the distance between her and Rainbow, and I could feel the jiggle of her chest and the swish of her tail with each stride.

When NotABug halted just before Rainbow Dash—forcing her to look up into NotABug's eyes—I couldn't hold back my excited chirp. There was enough chemistry between her and the two of us to keep a scientist busy for the rest of their lives.

Leaning forward, tilting down and arching her tail to balance, NotABug met Rainbow's lips as Rainbow Dash tilted her head up. The kiss was full of fire, passion, and exploration—I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it.

"I didn't think you'd wear it now," Rainbow Dash said the moment the kiss ended.

Turning, NotABug tilted herself and came backwards and down onto Rainbow's lap. A lance of pain made me jerk backward from my link to the real world—NotABug had certainly found her tail.

"Ow!" NotABug said.

—Very ow, darling,— I sent.

There are a lot of words that might describe what happened next, but all of them are ones a lady doesn't use. Needless to say that while I wasn't in control of the situation, I never once lost focus, nor did I object.

When they were done, however, NotABug gently brushed my thoughts with an offer to swap places. For a moment I considered just not doing it. Swapping places and not pushing away from our tangled position on the couch would mean I was more than just an observer.

I bit a metaphorical lip that neither my digital nor mental self had, and pushed too. I slid into control just as easily as that teddy had slid away from my body earlier. The steady rhythm of breathing—Rainbow's and mine—was calming enough that I stayed there.

—Was that rushing things? It didn't feel like rushing things. It felt really good! I had a lot of fun!— NotABug sent accompanied by much chirping.

Spending several milliseconds in deep contemplation, I tried to put my own feelings in order. Nothing NotABug had said was untrue for me, either. Years of our lives as friends had left me comfortable with Rainbow's touch, but this was more than just a friend's touch.

I inhaled, smelling not just Rainbow Dash's distinctive mix of deodorant, perfume (she never wore a lot of the latter, but she did wear it), and exertion, but also I could smell the heady scent of love about her. Deep love. Satisfied love.

Dallying in the arms of a lover was almost as enjoyable as making clothes. The soul-fulfilling joy of having someone who cares so much, so close, was a delight.

12:14 P.M.

"Rainbow?" I asked after nearly half an hour in that blissful state. "Rainbow-dear, it's time for lunch, and I—"

"Lunch? But I want dessert," Rainbow Dash said.

Her voice made me feel hungry for dessert too, but first and foremost I was just hungry.

"Food first, then I need to try this shapechanging. You can watch if you want," I said.

I slowly began to extricate myself from her grip, and though Rainbow put up a little protest here and there, it was mostly so she could kiss parts of me as we broke apart. Giggles bubbled up at each kiss that seemed only to encourage more—it was a vicious cycle.

At last, I broke free and almost found myself skipping to the kitchen. I wanted to dance, sing, and shout for joy at how good I felt. It was almost like a bucket of cold water over me when a knock came from the front door.

"I'll get it. You get your underwear and go grab a dressing gown," Rainbow Dash said.

I submitted to her apparent knowledge on the matter of getting dressed in a hurry after a dalliance, and I rushed through to my room while floating my new teddy along after me with magic. I pulled on a dressing gown and had just gotten it tied up when I heard the front door open.

"I heard the news. Is Rarity here? Her car's here!" Sweetie Belle said from the front door.

The concern in Sweetie's voice overrode any amount of disgruntlement I may have harbored for her interruption. Making sure the robe was secure I walked down the hall. A knot that had been wound up and tight seemed loose now—even though it hadn't been me to pick it apart.

"Here she is. She's okay," Rainbow Dash said.

I was struck by human missile wearing a yellow dress and red-violet jacket. I put my arms around Sweetie Belle and gave what I hoped was a reassuring squeeze. Her head tilted up to look me in the eyes—though there wasn't much difference between our heights anymore.

"What happened?" Sweetie Belle asked.

And so, I told my little sister how stupid I could be. Every detail. I left nothing out. Oddly, she didn't ask any questions, though I could see them boiling behind her eyes. We were settled on the couch, chatting, when Rainbow Dash came in with a big plate of nachos and cheese.

"But it's all getting taken care of now, right? Your lawyer is handling it?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Of course, though it's a strange situation itself. She's doing it as a favor. NotABug, on the other hand, has been given a free ticket. She even got a job offer," I said.

"Hacking for them?"

"No. I'm pretty sure—as a lawyer—Mrs. Velvet would need to avoid that kind of thing. The way she spoke, though, she wants to make sure her own systems are protected. Speaking as a strictly law-abiding observer of the digital world, most people don't realize how susceptible their own things are.

"It's like," I said, waving a hand, "everyone seems to believe the companies that sell all their stuff when they say 'it's safe'. It's not. Mostly."

I'd just noticed Rainbow Dash had spent most of the time eating and lifted one eyebrow at her in question.

"Figure I might as well take that run now and leave you two to talk," Rainbow Dash said.

"Have fun," I said as she left the house.

The moment the door closed behind Rainbow Dash, Sweetie Belle seemed to explode in excitement.

"Are you two seeing each other? Is she sleeping here? Are you dating?"

The questions seemed to tumble out of my sister like water over falls. She was actually bouncing in place and causing the couch to jiggle. To give a show of calm acceptance, I reached for the abandoned plate of food and scooped up some cheese onto one tortilla chip.

"Yes," I said and popped the nacho in my mouth.

Sweetie seemed to seethe for a moment before letting out a laugh. Reaching out, she collected some food and munched on it too. Then I realized we had done the worst thing to do with a college student: we'd fed her. Any hope of getting rid of Sweetie Belle was now lost.

"I honestly can't believe I was such an idiot for so long about it. I'm sure you know about college and experimentation? Well, I had some fun with a girl once, but it didn't feel intimate. It was fun, but there was a barrier. I guess in my head I considered girls as being off the menu," I said.

She giggled around a mouthful and gulped it down.

"But not anymore?"

—Are you alright with me telling her these things?— I asked.

—What? Oh! Go ahead. I already told her I was seeing Rainbow Dash.—

The reply surprised me a little.

—You keep in touch with her more than I do.—

—It's good to have a friend I can talk to. She's funny, smart, and I can just tell her things without expecting it to have dire consequences.—

I made what I hoped was a supportive chirp, but only realized at the last moment I chirped in the real world too. Sweetie Belle's eyes slowly widened to huge orbs.

"What else has changed?!" she asked.

—I guess I didn't show her my wings last night,— NotABug sent.

"There's no hope that I can tell you I have wings and a tail and just—" I said.

"You have a tail?!"

A long-suffering chirp and sigh left me. Standing up, I turned so my back was to Sweetie and undid my gown. Lifting it back carefully, I revealed my back to her. Too late, of course, I remembered how revealing the white teddy was.

"W-Wow! Can I touch them?" she asked.

My only hope at being upset with her would have been if she hadn't asked permission. With a reluctant chirp I nodded.

"Please be careful, they're sensitive."

I should have known Sweetie Belle, of all people, would have a sensitive touch. I barely felt her fingers, but they were there. She inspected my wings first, and when she touched them a little firmer and tried to spread one.

In answer to her unasked query, I spread my wings. It felt good to open them, spread the four delicate membranes out and even give them a little buzz.

"Okay. Not gonna lie, that's pretty neat," Sweetie Belle said.

She brushed a hand down my tail, but had enough empathetic wherewithal to not touch my dock. The result was I didn't feel a sudden need to kick at her. Then I remembered something else. Turning my head nearly backwards, I looked back over my own shoulder and down at Sweetie Belle.

"No, you don't get to braid it," I said.

The words seemed to snap her out of some kind of daze. Sweetie looked up suddenly and her eyes widened once more.

"R-Rarity? How are you turning your head that far?"

Turning my upper body now, I was able to face Sweetie Belle properly from an angle no human should ever be able to manage.

"It seems I am a touch more flexible than I used to be. Maybe mother was right—I should have been a gymnast."

"Mom and Dad still need to know. When are you going to tell them?"

"I was actually going to ask if they were free tonight, but with everything else happening, I might make it tomorrow."

Lifting my robe again, I pulled it up while closing my wings. I was halfway through folding it closed when I sighed.

"I was going to try some shapechanging today," I said.

"What?" Sweetie Belle asked, her face a picture of deadpan shock.

—I guess I didn't tell her about that, either. She was asking all sorts of questions about our egg!— NotABug sent.

—It's okay, dear. You can talk to her about it later.—

—She'll be annoyed I didn't tell her.—

—Something tells me that she'll forgive you.—

"It was something Princess Twilight Sparkle mentioned. Apparently I'm turning into what she calls a changeling. Apparently they're a bit of a deal on her side of the universe. They were evil, then they turned good, but there's one still evil—I couldn't keep track. But it all fit. I feed on love, black skin, wings, etcetera. The one thing missing is that changelings there can change their forms," I said.

—Was that too much?— I asked. —I think it might have been too much.—

—Your little sister is amazing at all things mechanical, she's a great programmer, and she's studying artificial intelligence as fast as she can to help me understand myself. I think a lack of knowledge of alien lifeforms' abilities is excusable,— NotABug sent.

I chirped a giggle—digitally.

—You have a fair point. I'll give her a few more milliseconds,— I sent.

After two-hundred, I gave up.

"And I thought I would practice today, since I wasn't going to be working," I said.

My words seemed to snap Sweetie Belle out of her wait-state. She blinked her eyes rapidly.

"You know what you're turning into? Did you get her—the princess—to draw you a picture?"

Her question was a good one, and it made me wish that I'd asked Princess Twilight exactly that. Well, she did say she was going to bring me some more information. Next time I'll simply call Sweetie.

"Next time I'll call you and you can talk to her yourself. All this sciency stuff isn't really my forte. So, anyway, I was going to try to shapechange," I said to steer the conversation onto the topic I wanted.

"Right," Sweetie Belle said, sounding unconvinced. "I mean, right! How do you do it?"

"I have no idea."

The sound of her palm hitting her face was the perfect punctuation to my answer. I just wish my answer weren't the truth.

"Surely you have some idea? It's shapechanging. What forms did the princess say you could do?"

I thought back but then had a better idea.

—Do you have the recordings of Princess Twilight somewhere handy?— I asked.

—Here.—

Building an output buffer and siphoning the files into it was simple. I adjusted the speed from 1x to 1000x and began listening through yesterday's conversations. Then I found it.

"Changelings shapechange with magic and can look like just about anything they want. I've seen one take the form of a young pony, rocks, bears, and even a monster much bigger than them," Princess Twilight's voice said before I skipped a bit. "[…] thaumically shifted magic and channel it inwards…"

I ran back through the recording a second time and made sure I had everything.

"So far as Princess Twilight said, it seems like I can do anything I can think of. She even gave me a hint as to how to do it," I said.

"I thought you said you had no idea?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"I didn't. I played back what we discussed yesterday," I said and tapped the side of my head with one ebony finger.

"Well. Give it a try?"

I nodded, then shifted magic and channeled inward.

I built a picture of myself—hoping that was the right way to pick a target form—every exquisite detail was filled in by my memory. I could feel Sweetie Belle touching me, slipping the robe off my shoulders again, then removing my underwear. If I weren't about to do something amazing, I might have told her that wasn't how ladies behave.

The form was perfect. It embodied every part of Rarity.

I pooled power into my horn. It roared through me to fill the organ upon my head, and I felt alive as only someone becoming something magical, using magic, could feel.

“Thaumically shifted” was confusing, but I had to assume that it just meant changeling magic (since that seemed to be a different way to do magic than ponies). I caught a thread of magic from my horn and drew it into myself—into the Rarity I had built up.

A bright flash of green light enveloped the room. Sweetie Belle, the egg, the television… everything was green for just a moment. When the magic subsided, I looked down at my arm. It was still black.

"I don't think that worked," I said.

"Try again!"

—Yeah! Try again!— NotABug sent.

I thought about what I could do differently. Things had seemed to be working up until I shoved the magic into the form.

Again I called magic to my horn, and this time I lit up the room with how much I brandished. In the reflection of the dark TV set, I could see my face reflected in green, a pulsing wave of green flowing up and down my horn. This wasn't like the magic I'd had when I was still—well—human. This was Power—the capital P resounded in my head.

"Okay, here goes," I said.

The pattern was easier to make this time. I could quickly bring up all the quirks and details about my body—my old body. I drew off a thread of the magic from my horn and this time coiled it around the pattern.

Things seemed to work. Power poured down my horn and into me, coiling around and filling the pattern within and turning it green. There was a bright flash—no—it was like fire boiled around me.

"Rarity!" Sweetie Belle's said.

Her voice was the first thing I heard. It was time to do a power-on self-test.

—Darling, you still there?— I asked.

—Yeah. Did it work?— NotABug asked.

The TV was, sadly, no longer illuminated by green. I did the next best thing and held up one pure white arm. My eyes widened at what I saw.

—You did it!— NotABug sent.

Perfect, long fingernails. Sleek, and not at all hole-filled, forearms. I looked down at myself and giggled.

—You made your boobs bigger? Neat!— NotABug sent.

—It was a little test. Well, that's what I'll tell Rainbow. Besides, I always wanted to try D-cups,— I sent.

Happy, chirping laughter filled my head—it was as far from unpleasant as any sensation could get.

"Uh, Rarity?" Sweetie Belle asked. "You know I'm not a perv, or anything like that, but I think you forgot something."

She was pointing low on my torso. There were two choices, ultimately: I could get a mobile phone and take a photo or I could find a mirror. The wonderful thing about mirrors is you can't hack into them. Turning, I walked for my hat room—the closest with a full-length mirror.

"It's not that bad, Rarity! It's just a little surprising you have no—" Sweetie Belle said, following me.

"Oh," I said.

I stared at myself in the mirror and ran a hand down my belly and over my featureless crotch. It was both strange and natural. There was no sign that I had been changed surgically; my body just didn't have any genitalia.

"This is going to be more complicated than I thought. The slightest overlooked detail seems to result in, well…" I said.

Considering my activities just before lunch—or I should say NotABug's activities—I thought it should feel different to be sexless. As a mental exercise I thought of Rainbow Dash, and what she'd done with NotABug, and found myself not at all changed in my opinions of it being quite nice.

"You're blushing," Sweetie Belle said, though her tone implied it as a question.

"You'll forgive me for feeling a little strange at the moment. This is—this is not what I expected," I said.

—It would make showing off outfits easier, particularly revealing ones. Like a living mannequin,— NotABug sent. —Do you feel a little woozy?—

Her second message made me turn my attention inward. Being in this form was draining, no, it was devouring me. The stores of love I'd been carefully hoarding from Rainbow Dash were pouring out not like a leisurely trickle, but more like a fire-hose.

It wasn't dangerously draining, but in the minutes since I'd first shapechanged I'd lost hours worth of accumulated love. I cleared away my worries and thoughts to enter a place where I could do the reverse of shapechanging—or maybe it was the same?

I drew my magic into my horn, then I spun off a thread of power and instead of coiling it around a pattern, I coiled it around myself. There was a rush of green fire past my face, another chunk of love stolen from my reserves, and I was once more my ebony self.

"Why'd you turn back?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"It was draining to keep the change going. Actually it took magic to become it, magic to stay as it, and magic to undo it," I said.

"What would you do if you were stuck like that and didn't have the energy to change back?"

I looked at my body. This was the real me, the me that was turning into a changeling. My formerly white skin, perfect purple locks, and—

"I'd rather not experience that. I just realized I'd forgotten to do my eyes too," I said.

"I thought you skipped those on purpose."

—I like what our eyes can do now. Makes getting around at night easier,— NotABug sent.

—I'll give you that. Seeing heat is certainly interesting, but did you notice there's more to it than that?— I asked.

—What do you mean?—

—Look at Sweetie, she's warm, but she doesn't have the same glow as Rainbow Dash.—

—That would be love. I've been able to taste it since, uh, forever. Interesting. I wonder if we'll be able to see other things?—

Her question gave me two things to ponder. The first was the obvious—my eyes might still be changing. The second thing was a little more meta—NotABug was writing, more and more, the same as she spoke. I double-checked the message and, sure enough, that little monosyllable uh was there.

But if my eyes were still changing, what else might be changing? My horn? The holes in my arms and legs?

"Things are a bit complicated. I'm maybe a little too used to seeing my new eyes in the mirror, so I thought of those. As for my groin, I didn't actually think of that at all, so I guess it just wasn't there," I said.

—Can I try next?— NotABug asked.

My answer was a gentle, mental push.

—Thanks!— NotABug sent.

—Don't mention it, darling. There was something I wanted to test, and you're perfect to do it. Do we have separate reserves of love?— I asked.

—Oooh! Right. Now to work out what I want to look like.—

—Did you mean "what" or who?—

Giggly chirping filled my head. I'd never been so happy to be worried.

—Got one!—

"What are—" Sweetie Belle said.

Turning to look in the mirror, NotABug cut short Sweetie's question with a green rush of fire. Not being the one controlling the magic, I felt and watched as NotABug's body changed. The effect was fast, but my thinking was faster.

My feet tingled and changed to a white before the most extraordinary thing happened: a pair of shoes formed over them. The white flesh launched up my leg and filled in the holes as it went. I was growing slightly taller, I realized, but that wasn't the half of it. Socks appeared and grew up my legs, then the fire reached my thighs and they slimmed a little. A perfect feminine crease formed in my white crotch, then a pair of panties defended my modesty, and finally a yellow dress over that.

The fashion was the give away. If I were in possession of my body, I would have smiled, laughed, and chirped, but instead I just giggle-chirped in NotABug's head as she shapechanged into Sweetie Belle.

My sister's breasts were a little lighter than mine(even after the changes), and a frilly bra caught and lifted them a little. The outfit wrapped around NotABug's chest and by the time she finished Sweetie Belle's face and hair, I knew it was a perfect reproduction—even her makeup.

There had been a sensation of losing energy, but when I felt for my own reserves, they hadn't changed.

NotABug turned around to face Sweetie Belle, and the look on my little sister's face was priceless—I took a picture of it. Shock. Amazement. Curiosity was the last emotion to plaster itself on Sweetie.

"Well?" NotABug asked. "What do you think?"

"I'm wearing pink panties, not white."

NotABug laughed aloud at Sweetie's comment.

"I mean about the accuracy of everything. I couldn't exactly see your underwear. Also, your makeup is tricky."

"Are you kidding? With Rarity as my sister, I wouldn't dare spend less than half an hour putting on my makeup to visit."

—You don't need to laugh at that,— I sent.

NotABug didn't listen to me. Giggling laughter spilled out of her mouth, but it hit me how close to Sweetie's voice NotABug's was.

"How long will Rainbow Dash be?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"You don't mean to mess with her, do you?"

Sweetie nodded vigorously.

—But first we need to practice some more. How did you do clothes?— I asked.

—You need to picture layers. Your body is one layer, underwear and makeup is the next, then more clothing on top of that.—

A rush of green fire poured over NotABug. We weren't looking in the mirror, but I felt as each part of me became me again, and by me I mean my half-changeling self. It felt good and right to look like myself, even if I looked a little like a monster. I owned it—this is me, hear me chirp.

Once NotABug was fully back to our normal form I felt her nudge me, and we swapped again.

—Surely it isn't so bad being in control with Sweetie to talk to?— I asked.

—What? No! I just wanted to give you a chance to try clothing. Call it curiosity. I want to see what clothing you could make if you didn't have to worry about the downsides of fabric, hems, or any of that.—

There's not a lot of revelation moments in my life. The first of them was caused by a princess of another world, the second by NotABug when she showed me how I was messing my life up, but this one was special.

It was a dream of every artist in the fashion industry: clothing that didn't have a seam, a fastener, or any of the features needed to put a dress on. I'd already dipped a metaphorical toe into these waters when I’d made the dress (that doesn't fit anymore, drat it) that needed magic to put on, but this was taking that to its logical conclusion.

—I love you. You're my inspiration and my fire,— I sent.

NotABug's happy chirping in my head was just one of her greatest qualities.

"You just changed back, right? There's like a moment when you shift your stance… It's like when you have a robot and you switch its servos from being function-controlled to having a fuzzy-logic system controlling them, or anything else, really. There's this little change in how you move," Sweetie Belle said.

I was too in the zone to take her comment as anything but positive. With a little nod of assent, I turned back to the mirror.

"Let me try some clothing on," I said.

The shape I'd built before needed work. I added my groin as it should be, then with a slight twisting of my lips I added all the details of my derriere. Breasts back to normal—though I'm sure Rainbow Dash would like me to experiment more there—I turned my eyes back to my old normal and added a little more curl to my hair.

It wasn't perfect. I didn't want to wear a perfect copy of myself as I'd been—I wanted to be better. The curls were only the start. My lashes were more pronounced and full in a natural way that needed no makeup. A little deeper color in my eyes, my nose just wanted to be a little bit more pronounced, and my hips were never quite what I'd wanted—so those got some love too.

The woman I built in my head wasn't me, and she wasn't the dark beauty I'd become—the dangerous creature with a horn that could shred pillows and magic that could levitate ping-pong balls—she was a supermodel. She could take to a catwalk wearing a trash bag over her head, and within a week everyone would be wearing black. Now she needed clothes.

A black trash bag wouldn't do, but a flowing violet ball gown was definitely the thing to make. She needed underwear, and it wasn't surprising I went with a strapless teddy—the design would never work properly with any of the fabrics a teddy could be made of. The garment would neither offer support nor would it stay on, so I made it of things that would. I didn't know what those things were, but they were there and it worked.

The undergarment was the start, and it gave the woman's bosom a surprising amount of support. A pair of stockings, garter belt, and the garters to marry the two followed. High heels that caused her calves to lift beautifully finished off the underwear below the waist. Some opera gloves and a necklace of immaculate gemstones was the last for the layer. I moved outwards.

A ballgown of violet that would be perfectly at home in any Victorian era party. I pulled it in tight around her waist, then let it follow the curves of the model's body upward. The garments were, as NotABug had suggested, free of the constraints of textile design or manufacture—they were perfect in every way.

But there was more work. She didn't need much makeup—her skin was already a perfect canvas—but that meant that what I put on would have to be perfect. Eye shadow, eyeliner, some highlighter for her cheeks—they didn’t need much more definition, but she would be perfect.

In my mind, I sat back and admired the picture of feminine beauty and perfection I had created. Wonderful.

The way NotABug had changed hadn't been through charging her horn. I drew a thread of my magic directly, spun it out and wrapped it around the shape in my mind. The woman’s image pulled from my power, and a burst of green told me it was working. Then, with it all over bar the constant drain, I realized I was that woman.

"R-Rarity?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Who is this?"

I looked at myself in the mirror. No. I looked at an outfit I had put over myself. Those pouting lips, prominent breasts, and indigo eyes were all there, but my sight was fixated on one thing: the dress.

—I was right. You're really good at this,— NotABug sent.

Turning, I looked over my shoulder at Sweetie Belle. With a flutter of my eyelashes, I watched the look of surprise turn to stunned disbelief.

"What do you think?" I asked.

"That my sister has just gotten her own fantasy handed to her on a plate," Sweetie Belle said. "What else can you do?"

"I'd rather not push too far, but Twilight—that's Princess Twilight—said that changelings can become other shapes. Rocks, animals, things smaller than me, or even bigger."

I turned this way and that, adjusting my pose to suit each angle.

"Wait, so you could actually just become a dress? Or a mannequin to dress up? What about turning into a guy? Or someone really old?"

Sighing, I used my magic to again turn back to myself. The possibilities were endless, as my darling sister just pointed out, but right now I wanted to be me for a few moments.

"I think I quite like being able to move on my own, thank you. Though I must mention, being able to try on literally any clothes I make will be a boon," I said.

"Even men's clothes?"

With a flick of my magic and a turn of my head I was a clone of Sweetie Belle. I ignored all the rudest bits on principal but made a special distinction—I looked like a male version of Sweetie Belle. Slouching comfortably as only a man would, I rolled my eyes.

"Happy now?"

I'd looked to the mirror for just a moment, but that was all it took for my sister to act. A camera flash went off.

I snapped my head around to look at Sweetie, only to get a second flash.

"What on earth are you doing?" I asked.

"Mom and Dad are going to freak! I'll tell them I went to the salon to get a perm and they got confused!"

Her thumbs were typing with lightning speed. I pondered how long it would take to compromise her phone, then discarded that option.

"And here I thought you wanted to look at our egg again. Such a shame I'll have to kick you out now, never to come back inside…" I said. Sweetie Belle's thumbs slowed. "I'll have to ask NotABug to stop chatting with you, too. What a sha—"

"Stopping!" Sweetie Belle said. "But can I keep the pictures?"

—There's nothing about the images that tie them to us. It shouldn't be a problem,— NotABug sent.

—The location data might,— I sent.

—Oh right. I'll ask her if I can poke them.—

Only a handful of milliseconds later Sweetie's phone beeped.

"Oh! Uh, sure you can. Do I need to allow anythi—Huh, that was quick," Sweetie Belle said.

I reached to follow NotABug, and saw that she'd just put together a hijacking program and sent it to Sweetie. It was fairly simple, though it had heavy encryption between her phone and our server.

"You'd be surprised how poorly some devices are protected, though NotABug can probably fix that for you too," I said.

"Are you going to stay like that?" Sweetie Belle asked.

Realizing I was still her male twin, I used my magic to flick back to my normal self once more. While I was aware of the changes happening, being in control meant they weren't so pronounced. It felt good to be me again, even if I looked less like my original self than my supermodel form did.

I was naked again, too, which brought up a new thought: what happened to clothing when I shapechange? I had to know. This was something important.

"Wait here a moment," I said.

Walking to the next room—my bedroom—I went to my closet and searched for the least beautiful thing to wear. This was a hard task and took nearly five minutes while I weighed one top against another. At last I found what I wanted—something that was almost but not quite ugly enough for me to not want it in my wardrobe.

I held up the shirt and looked at myself in the mirror. There was a new problem—the top might not have been the worst after all by dint of my new skin color.

"Rarity? What are you doing?" Sweetie Belle asked from the doorway.

"I want to test what wearing clothing does when I change, but I don't want to ruin anything nice. How does this look?"

I turned to face Sweetie Belle and watched the second biggest eye-roll of the day (of course my earlier one was superior). I held the top against my front.

"First, it's too big for you. Second, I can't believe you're spending this long to—Well, okay. Maybe I can believe this, but Rarity! Come on!"

"You think the blue one?" I asked.

It was simply impossible to keep a smile off my face. Of course, I knew I had a little habit of spending more time than strictly necessary on fashion decisions, but I never let it get in the way of anything important—though it was obvious to me that fashion was just about the most important thing ever. I let out a suffering sigh.

"Alright. Alright," I said.

Pulling the top on revealed just how much mass I had lost. I was naked under the top, but still it billowed on me. My chest failed to leave much of a dent in the shirt, and it stretched past my waist. There was a brief moment of regret when I realized I could simply change to whatever shape would best fit the top and whatever colors would best match it.

"I'm sorry, darling, but if you have to make the ultimate fashion sacrifice, I promise it will not be in vain," I said.

"Are you talking to your shirt?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Please! This is a tense moment. You're draining all the emotion, Sweetie."

"Rarity?"

"Yes, Sweetie Belle?"

"I was about to say 'Don't ever change,' but under the circumstances I don't think that would be right. Change as much as you want," Sweetie Belle said.

For effect, I held up my hand, pressed my fingers together just so, then snapped them.

Green fire coiled around me. Wrapping and engulfing my body, it changed me into the shape I envisioned. The target form wasn't the supermodel but rather the earlier form that had been missing a crotch—though I put the right eyes on it now.

My chest pushed out into the shirt with a lot more confidence, and I felt the transformation rise up my hips to sit around my waist. Looking in the mirror, I watched the last hint of flame leave me perfectly dressed in the thing. I remembered why I disliked it. It was orange, and clashed with just about everything my old self had been.

"You left your—" Sweetie Belle said.

"I know. I don't need it. Honestly, with as much creative control as this gives me, I don't care for extra baggage," I said. "But I do remember why I am prejudiced against this shirt—orange is just too spring."

—Here she comes,— NotABug sent.

—What?— I asked.

—You'll see.—

Sweetie Belle's arms pulled me into a hug. For a fraction of a millisecond it was awkward hugging my little sister while practically naked—but then I realized I was literally wearing a whole body. I wasn't naked at all.

I hugged Sweetie back, feeling odd at my old height. Less than a week with a shorter stature and I was already used to it.

"You're still the best big sister in the world," Sweetie Belle said.

"Of course I am, darling. And you are the most amazing, smart, and wonderful little sister I could hope for."

We both giggled at our statements.

"Not going to lie. It's a little odd hugging you like this," Sweetie Belle said.

"Just think of this as a suit. This isn't me anymore, it's not even close. I'm who I am on the inside, and I'm comfortable with that."

The doorbell broke our conversation up. I pulled back from Sweetie and took two steps toward the hallway before Sweetie's gasp stopped me. I turned to look at her.

"Rarity! You might not think so, but you're naked!"

I froze, realizing how true her statement was. I had an orange shirt on with nothing else. I grabbed my top and pulled it over my head, then without a preference on what to wear, I brought up supermodel-me and flashed with a spiral of flame. Life is a runway.

Ignoring the giggle from Sweetie, I strode down the hall in heels that would make any of my friends balk—I turned for the front door and, with a flick of magic, unlocked it.

Rainbow Dash opened the door, likely at the sound of it unlocking, and froze when she saw me. I turned a little to the side in a way I knew showed off the amazing hips I'd adorned myself with and winked at her.

"R-Rarity?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Her just saying my name like that gave me a tingle of excitement. There was something exquisite about not just wearing an outfit that makes your girlfriend giddy, but wearing a whole body that makes her drool just a little.

"Yes, darling. Like what you see?"

"I thought you were going to be turning into a wolf or something, not a fox," Rainbow Dash said as she stepped through the doorway. "This is—I don't even know what to say!"

As I leaned forward, I realized we were around the same size again. This body was a little larger, it seemed, and I wasn't sure I liked that. A revision was in order—later.

"Don't say anything," I said and kissed her.

The kiss was unsatisfyingly short. Rainbow Dash jerked back a few seconds after it started with a pout.

"I love you, Rarity. This,"—Rainbow Dash gestured at me—"might be fun, but It's you I love."

"This is still me. Think of it as dressing up a little more than usual. But if you really want me to change back—" I said.

"Rarity!" Sweetie Belle said. "You're still naked, remember?"

"Believe it or not, Sweetie, Rainbow might actually prefer things that way. I can go and put something back on. I still want to practice more, though," I said.

"It's cool, really," Rainbow Dash said. "I guess I'll just have to make the sacrifice of my fashion model girlfriend being a centerfold girlfriend for a night."

It took me a few seconds to realize what Rainbow Dash had said, exactly, but when I did it was worth it. I blushed and planted a kiss on her cheek.

Rainbow Dash's hands made themselves most familiar with my waist, and she didn't hesitate this time in pulling me in for a deeper kiss. The world (but not my pattern) melted away as our lips now met properly. I found myself nuzzling and kissing her, hungry for more attention. One of Rainbow's hands slid up my back, past my shoulders and neck, to gently touch the back of my head.

It was exactly the pose I'd always dreamed a strong, daring man would take. He would kiss me firmly, taking just as much advantage of my feminine charms as I allowed him—and maybe a hint more. I'd never felt so happy before, nor so loved and stupid. I hadn't just wasted my working life at Polomare, I'd wasted my love life not letting Rainbow Dash show me how she felt.

—She is flicking all your switches, huh?— NotABug asked.

I was about to ask her how she could tell, but I realized how much I was chirping in my head. Instead of replying, I pulled NotABug into a hug as well.

A cracking sound, like a plastic case snapping, broke us all out of the moment. Rainbow and I both turned our heads toward the source of the noise.

"The egg!" all three of us said at the same time.

Rainbow Dash was first—by dint of her magic speed—followed by myself and then Sweetie Belle. The plastic casing that had been formed out of the game console was cracking again, and I dropped to my knees beside Rainbow on the floor.

—You should drop your disguise,— NotABug sent.

—I'll be naked.—

—You're about to be a mom.—

I let my magic remove the pattern I'd been wearing and felt more comfortable back in my own body. My chest felt lighter, my legs more elastic, and I wasn't wearing a stitch. Not that I spent more than half a millisecond thinking about it.

Reaching out a hand, I took hold of one of the cracked pieces of plastic, only for a tiny head to poke out of the egg.

Emotions were all I had—the thinking parts of my brain had surrendered without fight. Bright blue eyes stared up at me. A tiny, curved horn graced their forehead, and a fin-like crest ran from just behind the horn as far back to their neck as I could see.

I moved my other hand and delved into the egg. A warm body seemed to take up most of the room inside. My heart was about to explode with the love I felt.

"Do you want to come out of there?" I asked.

A tiny chirp met my words and melted my heart anew. Working my other hand into the egg, I felt four little legs and carefully lifted my baby free with my hands just behind the first two.

When she—I don't know how I knew she was a she, I just did—came free of the egg, both her little wings buzzed in excitement. I didn't hesitate in pulling her to my chest. She didn't reach for my breasts at all, but despite that I felt a slight draining sensation. It didn't hurt, far from it, it was my baby having her first meal.

"You're crying, Rares," Rainbow Dash said.

Rainbow's arm reached around my shoulder and held me against her. My own hunger reached out to Rainbow Dash and found what seemed like an infinite reservoir of love within her.

"I don't care, darling," I said.

I bandied that word around a lot—darling—but I'd never meant it so much as right now. The chirping mass in my arms agreed with me when it came to Rainbow Dash, it seemed—lifting her head up, my daughter looked up at Rainbow and chirped with excitement.

Sweetie Belle was saying something behind me, on the other side of the room, but I didn't pay a moment of attention to it. I watched with delight as Rainbow Dash brought a finger to my little filly's nose. Pondering, I realized we'd forgotten something important.

"She needs a name," I said.

—Chirplittle!— NotABug sent.

—She is a chirplittle, or a chirptiny. She needs her own name,— I sent.

—Hi!—

—NotABug?— I asked.

—That wasn't me.—

—Hello. Who is this?— I asked.

—Me.—

In my arms my little girl turned to look up at me.

—This is so awesome! That egg was getting cramped, and I was really hungry, and then you gave me LOOOOOOOOOTS of love!—

Sending IDs were the key. I examined them for the first time since we started chatting directly. Sure enough, there was now a third ID sending.

—Clever little bug,— NotABug sent.

—How did she do this?— I asked.

—Don't ask me. Ask her,— NotABug sent.

—Are you okay? Is there anything you need?—I asked.

"Mom and Dad are on their way. You might want to get dressed," Sweetie Belle said.

—More love would be nice.—

—Greedy little bug. Take as much as you need,— I sent.

Rainbow Dash moved before I could respond to Sweetie. A moment later I felt the soft fabric of my dressing gown draped over my shoulders. Her hands reached to our daughter.

"Let me take her while you move to the couch," Rainbow Dash said.

—She's okay,— I sent.

—I know. She tastes sooooo good. Even in my egg she tasted good. Now she tastes amazing!—

Was it strange to have a conversation with my newborn daughter? A little. My whole life had become strange, why not keep the trend going? When I held her up, four stumpy, hole-filled legs kicked in the air until Rainbow Dash took her. Watching my daughter snuggle against Rainbow's chest didn't create one lick of jealousy, for which I was thankful.

Working my arms into the sleeves, I pulled the dressing gown closed and tied the belt around my waist.

"Should I change for them?" I asked.

"Don't change," Rainbow Dash said.

Her reply was so quick and vehement that I was a little startled—but happy still. I walked the few steps to my sofa and dropped onto it beside Rainbow Dash.

—Mom!— my daughter sent.

Flailing legs and excited chirping accompanied the exclamation. Reaching across, I stroked her cheek.

—What are we going to call you?— I asked.

—Byte.—

—I like it,— NotABug sent.

I thought about it a little. Not the smallest storage amount, but then she could grow into it.

—I do too,— I sent.

—Yay!— Byte sent.

Screeching tires caused us all to look up from Byte—and caused Byte to follow our glances to the door. The sound of running feet terminated in the doorbell ringing.

Rainbow and I both looked squarely at Sweetie Belle, who got the hint and headed for the door. It was about this time our parents realized that the door was still unlocked.

"Where's Rarity?!" Cookie Crumbles said. "Where's my little girl?!"

"Who did this to my baby?!" Hondo Flanks said.

I'd never actually heard my parents angry or panicked before. Calmness was practically their hallmark—it was how they managed to work the real estate market so well. Seeing Mom looking scared and Dad furious grounded me in the moment.

"Mom? Dad?" I asked.

Both my parents locked their eyes on me, but Sweetie Belle jumped between us before anyone could say anything further.

"This is Rarity!" Sweetie Belle said. "It all happened really sudden, and from what she's said she didn't have much of a chance to talk to you, but—"

Dad stepped around Sweetie Belle and looked at me. I'd never felt so cold and lost in my life as when my own father's eyes didn't spark recognition.

"I meant to call, but what with quitting work, saving a friend, and—" I said and gestured to Rainbow Dash. "Life got unbearably complicated, and I know I should have come to you first."

I couldn't meet anyone's eyes at that moment. The world seemed a dark place. Then NotABug hugged me, and Rainbow Dash joined in—physically—a few hundred milliseconds later.

—Who are they, Mom?— Byte asked.

—Those are my parents, and the shorter one is Sweetie Belle, my sister. I might have messed up big,— I sent.

Byte struggled in Rainbow Dash's remaining arm and, on wobbly legs, managed to climb across and squeeze between Rainbow and I.

The room was still silent.

"I just didn't know what would happen, one hour to the next. One day I saved a friend, the next I welcomed my best friend into my heart, and then next thing I know—" I said and cradled Byte. "She's your granddaughter."

I saw the moment Dad realized it was me. His eyes widened, and the strongest man that had ever been in my life rolled his eyes up into his head and started to topple. Sweetie Belle was the quickest to move—my shock had paralyzed me. Like she'd realized she would never hold all of Dad's weight, Sweetie opted instead to catch only his upper body and protect his head.

"Hondo?" Cookie Crumbles asked.

Lifting one of Dad's eyebrows, Sweetie let out a nervous giggle.

"He fainted!" Sweetie Belle said.

"So like him," Cookie Crumbles said and turned to me. "Is that really you, Rarity?"

She took one step toward me, then another. I could sense her uncertainty in the air around her.

"Yes, mother. Let me get Dad off Sweetie and I can show you your granddaughter," I said.

Carefully using a light touch, I let power into my horn and carried Dad to a spare couch seat. The amount of power I used was a drop in the bucket compared to shapechanging, I realized.

With a glance back toward Dad, Mom moved the last of the distance and sat down beside me. Her eyes seemed constantly in motion, sliding between my face and Byte.

—Don't drink from my Mom, okay Byte?— I asked.

—Why not? She has a lot of love!— Byte sent.

—She might, but I don't know what effect drinking will have on a normal person.—

—Uh. Woops,— NotABug sent.

—You didn't?!— I asked.

—Maybe a little. I'll avoid doing any more until we can experiment properly. Maybe ask Sweetie Belle to help?— NotABug asked.

—That might not be a bad idea.—

—Sweetie tastes really good, but not as good as Dash,— Byte sent.

When Mom put her arm around my back to comfort me, her hand encountered Rainbow's arm already there. She froze for a little and just looked between Rainbow and I.

"It's serious, Mom," I said.

"Rarity, everything in your life has been serious. From the moment you demanded I show you how to put makeup on—when you were five—to you telling me you turn into a magical pony girl when the world is in danger—it has been serious," Cookie Crumbles said. "This is just the latest in a string of very serious things my little girl has encountered."

She simply held her hands out to me.

Giving Byte to Rainbow to hold had been as natural as—well, as natural as giving a baby to their father would probably feel. Mom was different. She was responsible for me being alive in the first place, and had supported me through every phase of my life. I held Byte out.

"Hold her like this," I said, demonstrating.

Mom proved to be an old hand. She plucked Byte from my hands and instantly had my daughter—filly too I guess—on her back and letting out chirpy giggles. I stared as Mom tickled Byte's tummy, and in that moment I felt all the apprehension and stress of coming out to my parents melt away.

—Your Mom is totally awesome!— Byte sent.

The wording, so like Rainbow's, caused me to break into my own giggles. I struggled against mirth to pull myself under control, and with a final sigh separated myself from the laughter.

"There's more," I said.

A squeeze from Rainbow Dash offered me all the silent support I could have hoped for. I found myself leaning into the hug a little.

"Don't think for a moment I don't know that, Rarity. She's just like you were, though I distinctly remember you crying a lot more. Has she made a single sound yet?" Cookie Crumbles asked.

"To answer that I need to explain a lot. What do you know about machine learning and artificial intelligence?" I asked.

"I'm gonna have to stop you there," Rainbow Dash said. "I literally just got back from a run, so I need to use the shower."

I didn't hesitate, despite knowing this would be a resounding moment for Mom. I leaned across and kissed Rainbow Dash—briefly and on the lips.

"I'll be right back. Hold that thought," Rainbow Dash said.

To my surprise, Sweetie Belle jumped to take Rainbow's place at my side, though not in quite the manner Rainbow Dash had been in.

So I told my story again. Unlike nearly every other time, I left nothing out. My feelings, my hopes, my little chats with NotABug, and finally…

"Hi!" NotABug said.

I just retreated and let her talk for herself. I felt there was an importance to letting her introduce herself and be herself. Of course, this gave me a moment to speak to Byte without having to follow two other conversations.

Before I sent a message, however, I tried to locate where she was sending from. Her interface into our internal phone was direct and without any pretense. The moment I spotted it, however, meant that I'd also touched it.

The digital world was odd to me, still. It was a visualization of what the underlying systems were doing, and right now Byte was bouncing her connection around all over the phone. Chirping in excitement, I played with my daughter. I chased her around, reached out from time to time, and felt her slip past me again and again. Finally, however, I caught her.

—You're not getting away this time!— I sent, chirping for all I was worth.

—Eeeek!— Byte sent, echoing my excited chirps.

I couldn't stop chirping in laughter and delight, and squeezed Byte in a hug. My expectations of motherhood—the few I'd ever had—hadn't come close to how good it felt to know I'd helped bring new life into the world.

Despite my efforts at multitasking, I still wasn't able to perfectly track the real world and digital. Any hope of such a task, of course, required me to actually try. Right then—I left NotABug in charge of the real world and I focused on my filly.

—Hold on. Let's go somewhere bigger,— I sent.

Byte's answer was to hug me. I opened a VPN connection to our server, connected into it, and then made a connection for Byte as well. Her own VPN link opened a moment later.

—This is huge! I saw this from the outside, but I didn't know how to connect before. Is this our own?— Byte asked.

—Yup! NotABug ordered it before I even knew what it would be, and it's great. I keep all my outfit patterns here, and my ideas over here, though sometimes I just come here and browse.—

Byte actively investigated each folder I showed her, scanning through the files while I watched. This was my special place, my private idea-vault.

—This is amazing! But do you have anything to fit me?—

My mind was like a steel trap when it came to fashion. Byte had only triggered the trap, but it latched onto the concept nonetheless. I couldn't help it. I started off by building a model of what my earlier observations told me she looked like, and I started importing color ideas, just drawing shapes and seeing what worked.

Eager chirping accompanied the start of a second editing session, and soon we were both working on designs for everything from little gowns to well-hidden armor. Fashion was fashion no matter if it were for a human or a changeling.

I knew the time. I watched the slowly evaporating seconds in the back of my mind. When I realized our excited chatter and chirping was slowing, however, I took more notice of it.

10:33 P.M.

Tired in the best possible way, I saved our work and closed the application down.

—Time for little fillies and their mothers to sleep,— I sent.

—I was wondering when you two would be done. Your parents are really nice!— NotABug sent.

I felt NotABug's presence locate the virtual machine Byte and I were residing in. Finding meant touching, and as soon as we both felt NotABug, Byte and I rushed her.

Chirping seemed to be the most natural way for changelings to express themselves. That made me a changeling, though I simply didn't care anymore. I am Rarity. I have always said that expressing your inner beauty is the way of fashion, and it was never so true as when my body decided it wasn't human anymore. My own chirping was every bit as loud as NotABug and Byte's.

—Can you take control and sleep?— NotABug asked.

—Sure,— I sent.

The gentle nudge that pushed me into control didn't take me by surprise. Being in bed with Rainbow Dash—with Byte between us—didn't either. I blinked, in control of my body, and found myself gazing into Rainbow's face. Under the covers she had one hand on my thigh, and I was quite happy with it being there.

"Sweetie and my parents?" I asked.

"They left an hour ago," Rainbow Dash said.

I could barely see it, but Rainbow had a smile a mile wide. Stretching my neck only a little, I pressed my lips to hers and felt her smile as she started to kiss back. It was slow, lingering, and neither of us were inclined to part.

In films and TV shows everyone always closes their eyes, but with the dim light giving me perfect vision and her enough to make out my features at best, I wanted no other sight.

Rainbow broke first, yawning widely and giving me a cue to do the same. Giggling—with chirping from me, of course—we closed our eyes together.

Author's Note:

To Rarity: how good are your firewalls.

"A lot better after seeing what just a fraction of Windigo can do, darling. Now I need to find some way to deal with them that is more Rambo and less—Oh drat. I've forgotten who Rambo always fought against. Wasn't it Nazis?" Rarity said. "Darn. That was Indiana Jones, wasn't it?"

---

So I do this "Ask X" thing. X can be any pony within the story. You can ask them anything and they will definitely, hopefully reply. Keep the questions appropriate to the age-rating of the stories, and they will answer the best question in the author notes of the next chapter. The more votes a comment has the more likely I will get it to the right pony to answer. Try to keep it to one question per post! They will pick one question per chapter.

Support me on Patreon or fuel my writing on Ko-Fi!

Join me on Discord. Warning, said chat may contain NSFW material and should be considered adult in nature.

Awesome ponies who are already helping to keep me in keyboards and rum:
A.P.O.N.I.
Boulder
Canary in the Coal Mine
Daremo
Dio-Drogynous
Javarod
Lazyreader19
Nils
Sirion123

And special thanks to the following, for careful eyes and friendly words:
Lab

---

Editing provided by the wonderful Lab. (Huge thanks again. Your efforts makes me look competent! )

Comments

[Greenhorn]

So the Human Hive has begun. But can 'Byte' work as a girl's name? Does this mean 'Bit' must be a boy's name?
Ask Hondo: What do you think of your daughter's latest conditions? (including becoming entirely new species and got a daughter out of wedlock)

[Damaged]

9158262 Dang you read fast!

[Damaged]

9158276 Sorry, but that's just how things have gone. If you have read my other stuff, you'd see I actually touch on these topics quite a bit. What Rarity is feeling for Rainbow Dash here is in part a leakover of just being close to her because of NotABug, but also it's more an intellectual love (at first). She's falling for Rainbow Dash because she likes who Rainbow Dash is, not what she is. What with her bodily changes, Rarity is quickly discovering that sexual identity is becoming less important.

[prism heart]

Ask Rarity: given the insectile traits of changelings, what do you think about the possibility of being mother to; potentially; hundreds, thousands or more children?

[Morphy]

I was hoping that NotABug would get a physical body of her own but I see that was not to be, ah well. As predicted however, the ability to shapechange is Rarity's fantasy come true-- and a bonus that the fire effect is optical rather than real clothes-burning heat.

After the skirmish with a tiny copy of the Windego I assume we will be seeing more cybercombat with Black Ice and other "cyber" catchphrases? Heh. It'll still be nifty to watch this EqG version of the Matrix. Wait, no, not the Matrix. Mmm. Cyberpunk. Hopefully Byte will hide in the Hive while mama Rarity tanks and NotABug is the support role while they duke it out with the insane killer app and merely-insane host. I can tell it'll end in a stalemate and will ultimately require the rest of the girls as a proper team to open a can of Rainbow colored whupass to purge the Windego once and for all. (Gonna need the big guns to erase all of it)

I seem to recall the girls could concentrate on their "powered up" forms to invoke tails and ears at will (briefly anyway), or at least they could at the start of the second movie. Could Rarity's change be considered this AUs catalyst to make that happen for the other girls?

[Damaged]

9158542 When the Equestria Girls "pony up" they don't actually get tails—they get much longer hair that forms a ponytail. But they do get ears, and wings (if they should have them).

Rarity wouldn't use such phrases as decking or blackice, simply because she doesn't know them. Besides, she likes to imagine herself as a knight (dame, of course) with a sword that cuts through data structures and unlinks memory pointers, carrying a shield that's a strong, defensive firewall.

[Morphy]

9158552

And Rarity would make the whole Shining Knight ensamble look absolutely fabulous...

Just had a thought after I posted before, lamenting NotABug's lack of her own body. I may have realized late that both Rarity and NotABug seem perfectly capable and proficient at swapping out of a single body. With this new one, still growing of course, would that mean the drones (NotABug and Byte) and queen (Rarity) could swap with matured technoling bodies like one might put on a coat before leaving the house? I know, a gross oversimplification but you get the idea.

[Damaged]

9158602 Heh, the next chapter will have some stuff of interest to you, then. Not saying more than that.

[Mitch H]

Commies, Rarity. John Rambo fought Commies. When he wasn't losing his PTSD (expletive deleted) and fighting Brian Dennehy and his deputies.

[Damaged]

9158662 Don't tell Rainbow Dash or there will be a Rambo marathon viewing in Rarity's future.

[Venerable Ro]

Tails do rather complicate things, don't they? I was going to suggest that very solution, a sort of notch In the back of the pants, with a snap-clasp flap incorporated in the waistband. Of course, I'm only thinking about how to make slacks or jeans work, no idea if/how that'd work for anything else. I'll defer to the expert on specifics.

Cops and lawyers always make life difficult, now there's even more problems on the horizon. That tripwire Windego tendril was a nasty shock. You know, it's a pity they're dimension-locked, otherwise I'd recommend sending them off for a talk with NFire's Crusader. He'd be Fascinated to meet them, and he'd certainly be able to give them the full rundown on electronic combat. Windego would have a very bad day, nothing can match a BOLO in cyber warfare, and Crusader is a very good teacher.

And best news of all, BABY! And we meet the parents, and we get to skip the drama! No drama here, just grandchildren. I really do love this story, if it hasn't become obvious already...

[Damaged]

9158773 A tail might not be the beginning, but it certainly won't be the end. My choice for what music she was listening to when she realized was quite obvious, of course.

The big mistake Rarity made here was admitting motive. This is why the 5th exists (also, no I'm not American, but I am doing my best to approach this with as much law acumen as possible). Too often people consider the 5th amendment right to be only for the guilty, but it is there for the innocent just as much.

I admit a lack of knowledge of anything and everything BOLO. I am attempting to tackle this as directly within the bounds of computer science as I can, with only minimal use of magic. At first I was deeply worried people would call me out on magic and science interacting in this way, but then Roller-coaster of Friendship came out.

There may indeed be some drama, but Cookies and Hando were not about to instigate anything with a newborn present. From now on, I am betting Rarity will be making a lot more calls to her parents, or risk a lot more visits.

[meerkat8472]

I wonder if Byte will require a host like NotABug did? Will Rainbow be that host? Oh wait, that would mean NotABug would end up having indirect sex with her daughter! Abort! Abort! Bad idea!

9158276 But, that does happen. It's rather uncommon I'll grant you that but it does happen.

[tsaukpaetra]

Wow, so much happened today!
Yeah, never talk to the police. They mean it when they say, "anything you can can and will be used against you in a court of law"...
Looks like the enemy has fully entrenched inside Polomare, huh? That's going to take effort, glad Rarity doesn't need to deal with that. Luckily her rescue actions with the car should not have alerted the adversary, it likely assumes that (like other devices that are detected compromised) it was simply killed. Tomorrow will be different though...
And then real-life Photoshop magic skills come into play. Naturally she forgot to test vocalization, but surely that will come too.
All welcome Byte to the world! May she be the first of many! It is certainly interesting that she's been connected for a while (apparently). Skipped a lot of learning time. With more mind resources available, counter attacks might be strengthened.
The parents took it marvelously well. Magic has desensitized them to the weird. 😆
Keep going.;)

[Damaged]

9158967

anything you can can and will be used against you in a court of law

There are some interesting facts you could put together regarding that attack. I wonder if you—or anypony else—will do it?

[law abiding pony]

I wish this fic had more of a following, it's captured Rarity to a tee.

That aside though, this was one monster of a chapter. So, Rarabug has reached the point where she might end up on 4 legs soon. Her rapid acceptance makes sense. She's already gone through the emotional turbulence, and will likely be riding that recovery to the end. The amount of magic it takes to keep a disguise going might decrease with practice or as her transformation completes. And of course, leave it to Rarity to be the one of the mane 7 to take full advantage of the ultimate tool of fashion: shapechanging, to its logical limit. The runway might as well be called the Rareway now. You know it's true.

The police were really just doing their jobs, but given how Rarabug couldn't risk revealing her inhuman features were not cosplay, her fear is reasonable. Velvet will pretty much ensure the law will not hamper our budding changeling hive. At least over this incident.

And speaking of hive, Byte should prove an interesting addition, yet I have to wonder how much longer Rarabug can resist creating more eggs. You can't be a queen of 1 drone now can you?

9158276
I can't say I'm a fan of that sort of thing either, which is why if a character is going to be gay, they shouldn't be introduced as straight. However, A switch is fine if there is a big physical change in the character like Rarabug has gone through. I find it odd how many time I see a character go through such changes, like becoming a difference species for sex brings little to no change to the personality or preferences. (but then there's the stories where a such a changes go too far and results in personality death. It might as well not even be the same person anymore.)

Different DNA means different brain chemistry and hormones. If you don't think those things change one's personality, just look at moody teenagers for all the evidence you need. (well, for the hormones at least. We don't have real world evidence of DNA changes like that.)

A person's experiences and upbringing can only do so much. Some people have radically difference personalities when under mood affecting medication. SO as far as the Rarity side of Rarabug is concerned, her preference shift is believable due to the influences of Notabug and the queenly drives taking root. After all, she's already very open to the idea of creating a hive, but is waiting to create a stable "nest" first. That's not exactly a human instinct after all.

[harts fire]

awesome chapter and welcome to the world Bite.

[Admiral Q Ponyform]

Wish we could see the fun bits but otherwise a good chapter

[Twilight_Shimmer]

To Rarity and NotABug: "You know you could make one heck of a super spy or a detective given your ability to shape shift, ever thought about giving it a try?"

[The Faceless Maker]

Relevant instances of Discord: Thoughts? Ideas as to how Rarity and NotABug might be able to take down Suri and Windigo? Answer when possible.

[Damaged]

9159055 It's kinda crazy how into Rarity I get when writing her in first person—I guess I need to do that in order to write as she would write.

As for the mechanics of shapechanging, they are firmly established in my headcanon for this, and there will be reveals (because SciTwi gonna sci) at times. The police are indeed just doing their job. They interviewed an employee who has been given notice and who seems to have a tiny bit of a grudge against the company—that's motive right there.

9159226 Thanks!

9159455 You know me. Normally I would write them, but I don't think—in this story—a little bit of lesbian sex is going to add anything huge to the story. It might be cute having NotABug and Rarity have to learn how to please Rainbow Dash's body, but if I do write such a thing, I could always compile a lost chapters story and pop it in there.

Thanks, everypony, for the kind comments!

[zakman]

Woo new chapter! Thought it'd take me a while to read through it, but was done before I realized it.

A question - how many more chapters are you planning (if you don't mind telling)? As much as I would hate for the story to end, I am definitely looking forward to sitting down and reading through the completed story :)

[Damaged]

9159970 There is no fixed number. The overarching plot, as well as the big plot points, are all planned. Rarity's transformation will end, she will start her store, and the hive will grow (in exciting ways). How many chapters? Heck, we have only just gotten to 13!

[zakman]

9159985
Then hurry up and write more! I WANT MORRRRRRE! :)

[Damaged]

9160091 Your command is my wish.

[law abiding pony]

I just saw this picture and it got me thinking. Rarabug would absolutely find a way to use those holes as fashion opportunities.

[Damaged]

9160412 Yeah, Polistae is a pretty cute queen.

The initial inspiration for this piece was actually a piece of art that captured the commissioner and my own interest.

budsartbooks.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/1800x/040ec09b1e35df139433887a97daa66f/a/r/artpd-art-of-posuka-demizu_5.jpg
(source)

It's not pony related, but the similarity to Rarity is unmistakable. The full idea spread out from there.

[nocara]

wow nice chapter a lot of things happen. There is so muvh meat here that I only could criticise that it should be more chapters for all this events. Like uncompress is.

Also about the code some friendly triggering
- android at application level uses java, true. but in fact is a linux kernel (coded in C) that runs some java nonsense on it.
- modules need to be compiled with the kernel certificate to be load. (I learnt this one the hard way)
- embedded linux like this one do not use to have most of the posix commands you are used to (su,sudo,etc)

[Damaged]

9160696 The first thing Winidgo had to do was disable code signing requirements (standard ability in android dev settings), or it wouldn't have been able to run at all. As stated, Rarity built a module to run on the device. Also, a lot of these in-dash entertainment systems do have more core features because they frequently have extra services running in the background (the serial interface to the CAN bus, for example). Of course, all these attacks are useless most of the time since resetting the device wipes its storage.

And as several manufacturers found out not that long ago, saying something is air-gapped is very different to it actually being so. That is how NotABug has been accessing the car's management features.

[nocara]

9160702
oh for sure! android is like a cheese full of holes.
Well last time I tried the only way to disable the verification is to recompile the kernel(yeah the public key ia generated when you build the kernel also)
The dev permission so far as I remember ia only at android level, aka only for app but now we are talking about the underlying linux.
I would say that a proper design of a mixed-criticality system as this one should insolate properly each network and encrypt them.... but yeah you dont really want to know how poorly programmed/designed are these systems now-a-days
(btw this is how tech chirping sounda like xD)

[Damaged]

9160722 Heh, I could recommend the DEFCON talks about how poor the security is in these things. Honestly, I'm surprised NotABug didn't scream, rip the thing out of the dash, and build a new one. IIRC, one even was configured to automatically connect to WiFi connections with a particular naming scheme, because "only the manufacturer uses that, and only to perform system updates."

Manufacturers are slowly learning, though. Tesla, unsurprisingly, is the most secure by dint of being able to do OTA firmware updates, and from what I understand of it it's very securely done.

Basically, all Rarity did in this instance was build a new app for the phone (APK), install it (with it asking for all the permissions), and then she opened it. It literally just reset the device. I will confess the code I used was not my own, but rather what one android dev suggested as the best way to force restart an android device. Hrmm, and yes, I see it requires a rooted device. Easy enough to fix.

PowerManager pm = (PowerManager) getSystemService(Context.POWER_SERVICE);
pm.reboot(null);

[nocara]

9160731
Oh yeah! Security is such a hard topic, because you have to be in the edge of technology.
Is quite understandable the case of Tesla (and most of the modern tech companies).
The requirements of the market require such frenetic rhythm of development that most developer are focus only intro release features as fast as possible. Even performance is left for later unless is too crippling (that is why on your cellphone when you update applications they go slower and slower).Making something secure at that speed is almost impossible.
I have been recently working in this industry so I can tell you XD Even found a case of using a ARM processors documented feature has the funny effect of hard crash the processor.
Yeah that code looks better. I dunno much about Android API but is easy to assume that that feature is implemented

[FredMSloniker]

Rarity: you dismissed your worry about fading nudity taboos fairly lightly, but what if your transformation comes with other mental effects? You should discuss this with Rainbow Dash, in case you suddenly decide that you and your children should take over the world or something.

[Sweetblue]

NotABug paid and we got back on the couch to eat. The food had a different flavor profile than lunch. It certainly wasn't the usual home-delivered Chinese food—which was reflected in the price.

Also with what cards did they use in the mall? I simply cannot recall. This will become a bloody mess when they check it all out and start asking questions about the funds, their sources and why they are, potentially, all on other cards and identities. Even if she would be absolved from the initial charges then she will be in deep trouble if she is implicated in frauds, identity thefts and the like. Her deposit will sink her utterly depending how the cards were used.

[Damaged]

9166851 The cards NotABug is using at this point are the actual ones linked to her (NotABug's) bank accounts. The only card she ever used that wasn't legitimately her funds, was the initial one she took at the college. NotABug is doing well enough at predicting the HFT market that she doesn't want for money. The identities she is using are invented ones that will hold up under basic screening, but if someone investigated them would be obviously made up.

It doesn't take a heck of a lot of information to open a few bank accounts and trade stocks. Let me see. The bank I do business with requires... a bank account, a mobile number, and—Oh. Just money.

It's when you want credit or a loan that things go south identity wise.

[Sweetblue]

9166872
Huh, did some digging online and apparently you can have accounts using other names in some countries, and even have ones on fictitious names if you fill the paperwork. Not to mention she could just have made an account in the name of an company or a trade name and have no real problems related to the identities. Shoebox companies are something which are more and more present in the society, Banks do not usually allow other names to be used due to fear of criminal activity and liability but that is THEIR business and not matter of the law.

NotaBug being AI theoretically could have gotten all this done legally with correct banks which are less inquisitive about their practices. And as long as money-laundering flags are not triggered it would all be fine and dandy. It could be that the thing i was worried is not a real problem at all, they can just state that Rarity has access to the accounts the said company. It would also explain the changes in her lifestyle and consumer behavior, which likely would be raising all kinds of other flags too.

Edit:
I mean theoretically she could even claim they are her accounts with no problems and there would be no real legal issues? Stating that she wanted to do testing of this new trading-software she has anonymously.

[Alivda]

So, loving this story, just hits all the notes for me. Changelings, love-dovey, and technology... yep, I have weird likes!

Anyway, I actually have a question for the newest member of the little family they are building:
Byte, what was it like hatching? Were you scared, or did the presence of your mothers make it a calm experience?

[Icarus_Con_Queso]

If Surigo gets ahold of this precious little techno baby I will do unspeakable things.

Mostly because I will be too busy wailing to actually speak.

[Prysmkitsune]

9176463
i da know if im ready to go so far as to upload my mind 'into' a machine just yet *laughs* unless that machine can expereince the pleasures of the flesh, then im fine with it...i guess im greedy, i want the best of both the convinece of the digital with the pleasures of the real

[A.P.O.N.I.]

I like how you have her thinking of her magic in terms of threads and patterns. It's a nice subtle touch.

[Damaged]

9177021 It's Rarity! Go with what you know, darling.

[Prysmkitsune]

Moar please?

[Damaged]

9177477 It's coming!

[Prysmkitsune]

as a note to any of you wondering about the cost of sushi no it doesn't normally actually cost that much not even high class, what jacked the price of what rarity and rainbow dash were eating up so high was the adition of the abalone and the salmon roe [caviar basicly] both of which are delicacy, abalone is called the king of shelfish for a reason.

without such luxuries a suishi bar trip for 2 at a good location would cost what rarity paid for her alone the first time, drink included.

and that is a thing for the 'best' sushi you need to go to a sushi bar thats as close to the coast as it can get...the further you are from the water, the lower the quality will be.

[Damaged]

9178528 Yup! The sushi would have been much cheaper if not for those two things (the abalone especially, since it is served so fresh as to be only just killed by the chef himself).

[Prysmkitsune]

9178560
im quite an aficinado of sushi myself, though ill confess i havnt had the good stuff in years as im prety badly landlocked where i live...i could probly make my own with IQF fish shiped in and have it be decent but if i was gonna go thru all the effort ited be for something special...like aniversery dinner special

asuming i ever find a girlfriend *laughs*

[JazzyWaffles]

"Yes, darling. Just off to work. Text either of us if you aren't going to be in and we'll keep an eye on the egg," I said.

Speaking of the egg, we never got to see Sweetie B's reaction!

—I do. It's under a rock in the backyard. Oh! What happened with Sweetie Belle?—

I stand corrected.

I knew the owner of the voice, though I hadn't talked to her recently. Twilight Velvet—one of my best friends' mother—was a lawyer and someone I occasionally called when I thought Twilight Sparkle needed some help and Night Light wasn't answering.

Woo! Go Velvet!

There are a lot of words that might describe what happened next, but all of them are ones a lady doesn't use. Needless to say that while I wasn't in control of the situation, I never once lost focus, nor did I object.

Lewd solo fic when

Sweetie seemed to seethe for a moment before letting out a laugh. Reaching out, she collected some food and munched on it too. Then I realized we had done the worst thing to do with a college student: we'd fed her. Any hope of getting rid of Sweetie Belle was now lost.

As a college student... u rite tho

"R-Rarity?" Rainbow Dash asked.

A fooey, I hoped for Sweetie shenanigans.

—This is so awesome! That egg was getting cramped, and I was really hungry, and then you gave me LOOOOOOOOOTS of love!—

Aaaaaaaa cutie!!

—Byte.—

Oh my god yes.

Rainbow broke first, yawning widely and giving me a cue to do the same. Giggling—with chirping from me, of course—we closed our eyes together.

d'awwww, wonderful chapter.

[JazzyWaffles]

Looking forward to future chapters!

[Twilight_Shimmer]

9212247
the current new chapter is currently done and with its editor according to Damaged. so we can possibly expect a new chapter soonish

[71M073J]

Aaaaaah damaged, perfect story again that had me desperately wanting more...