New Beginnings in an Old House.
Equestria Girls: A Nightmare in Canterlot
By Flash Frame
Sunset Shimmer grit her teeth, as if school hadn’t been enough hell that day, the flame haired teen and arrived ‘home’ to find said dwelling in ruins. Of course, home to Sunset Shimmer, for the past several years, had been an old, abandoned factory on the outskirts of Canterlot. Thankfully, she’d had enough mind to stash her monetary funds elsewhere, and had some backup jewels she could pawn in the off chance, she didn’t have enough, but now... now she was homeless.
“Could be worse, I guess.” she muttered to herself, kicking a pebble. Her feet had simply taken to walking, and she’d simply followed them, allowing them to take her wherever, away from the wreckage. She’d made her way back into town, oblivious to just where she’d ended up, when she looked up, an old, boarded up house sat parked between two rather decently kept homes. Out front, an aging, rusted tricycle sat, the tassels that had once hung from the handlebars gone, only the small nubs that they had hung from remained. Posted in the front yard, a rather simple “For Sale By Owner” sign.
The prior unicorn’s head tilted, as if taking in the home. It was old, decrepit, but seemed as though it would be fairly easy to fix, the green paint was pealing heavily from the door and window shutters. But it was a two story number. Complete with what looked like an attic, and possibly a basement if the windows at the foundation were correct. The numbers on the building were in horrible disrepair, but Sunset was able to make out the order and what the numbers were. “1428....” she looked around, the 4 way stop wasn’t that far from her. And she caught the street name. “Elm, huh... well I guess it wouldn’t hurt to at least check into it...” she took down the number into her phone, before dialing another number.
A voice answered, rough, with a bit of a break to it. “Hello?”
“Hey Dash, it’s Sunset, look, normally I wouldn’t bother you but uh, I just had kinda a disaster happen, and well, you said if I ever needed anything, I, need a place to crash, even if it’s just a couple of days.” Sunset grimaced. She'd just made friends of the girls, and really only just started proving herself after the fall formal fiasco. But the girls had assured her, that they were there for her should she ever need help. And she knew just how loyal Dash was for her friends.
“Sunny? Yo what happened, I mean, uh, yeah, you can TOTALLY come over and hang for a couple of days, Dad’s out of town anyway for a meeting so it’ll just be us.”
“Thanks, I’ll, explain when I get there, just, thanks a ton Dash, I seriously owe you.” Hanging up the phone, Sunset steeled herself, as she dialed the number that had been posted on the for sale sign... What did she have to loose after all?
Rainbow Dash didn’t have friends over often. And it showed. Her room was littered with sports trophies along the wall, it’s floor however, was a mess of clothes, sports equipment, and video games and comics. Adorning it’s own shelf, was a set of “Daring Do” books, in near pristine condition. Save for having been read, and more than a few of them signed by A.K. Yearling when Rainbow Dash had attended a book signing a few years ago when the author had visited Canterlot, Illinois.
“Sorry about the mess, but I wasn’t exactly expecting company..” the rainbow haired teen admitted.
Chuckling a bit as Sunset shook her head. “It’s cool, compared to where I’ve been living since I got here.” she sighs. “Which is why I’m here Dash... I’m homeless right now, at least for a couple of days.” she admitted.
Rainbow Dash took a moment to pick her jaw off the floor. “Homeless, as in, no home... What the fuck happened Sunny?” she asked, sitting on the bed and motioning for her reformed friend to sit down, whcih Sunset did, taking off her jacket and sitting it between them.
“When I first came to Canterlot through the portal... I didn’t have anything Dash, at all... outside of the clothes on my back, which magically appeared, and a backpack that my saddlebags had transformed into, inside, were a few gems to get me by, but, I didn’t have enough at the time to really look for any shelter outside of the abandoned factory I found. It had running water and all, so, I didn’t complain, but, well, apparently it ended up slated for demolition because, well... here I am.”
Dash just sat there, slack jawed for a moment, before she had the good sense to shut her jaw before running a hand through her multi colored locks. “That, kinda fucking sucks, sorry Sunny. So uh, what the hell is your plan now?”
Sunset Shimmer gave a gentle shrug of the shoulders. “Look for a new place, thankfully, after I found my place totaled, I started just kinda wondering around. Found a place that’s kinda, insanely cheap, $5000 and it’s mine, and well, frankly, that’s easy money. So I figured I’d meet the seller tomorrow, and discuss payment and all, and get a walk through... see if there’s anything wrong with the place other than needing to get utilities turned on... and go from there.
“Hey, I know if I was in trouble, I’d want my friends to be willing to help.”
Sunset stood once more in front of the almost rotting visage of the house, the front had overgrown with vines, but as she stood there waiting, a cold shiver shot up her spine, despite the leather coat.
“I could swear that I sense something in that place… but what? There’s no obvious magical energy’s in the area, and it doesn’t seem like there’s anyone here.”
“Excuse me, miss Sunset Shimmer?” The voice was old, and tired sounding as the teen ghasped out, turning to face the newcomer.
“Oh goodness dear, I didn’t mean to scare you.” The old woman standing before Sunset offered. She had an almost etheral feel to her, a white shawl draped over her shoulders, and an almost white tinge to her otherwise pale blue skin. Other than her dark lavender hair, she could be pegged as a much older Trixie Lulumoon.
“It’s ok, I just, was lost in thought is all.” Sunset replied, extending a hand to the elder, who shook it gently. “I assume you’re the person I spoke with earlier on the phone, what was it Miss…”
“Miss Lavender, Lavender Dreams.” she looked the girl over, nodding a bit. “I was shocked to hear someone wanted to buy the old place… I take it you’re not from around here?” curiosity laced her voice.
“No, not originally anyway, I moved from California a few years ago, the place I was staying at kinda, well didn’t work out, and I figured it was time for a change of pace.” a lie, Sunset would admit, but the woman didn’t need to know the circumstances.
“Oh, well of course then.” The woman spoke, relief flooding her voice as she lead Sunset into the home.
The complete walkthrough had taken an hour. The house was almost fully furnished, as if they had been afraid to even touch anything in the home. A two story home with basement and boiler room under, a large backyard, the woman offered it up for five thousand, which would include the first month’s utility’s.
A quick trip down to a local pawn shop she’d gotten into contact with early on in her life in the human world, and Sunset had the money for a couple of smaller gem’s from Equestria, and a new house. A call to the others, and the six friends were all together at Sunset’s new home.
“Ah reckon she’s gonna need a new coat of paint at least, so I brought a few buckets along.” Applejack said as she hopped out of the truck after pulling in front of the old place, blinking a bit. “Hey...aint this tha…” she never got to finish as Pinkie Pie bounced up.
“The most amazing house ever! Sunny has her own place!” she practically squealed as she jumped past Fluttershy who looked up at the place, and bit her lower lip, for all the world looking like she wanted to just vanish into her own bangs.
“It’s… nice.” she said softly as she glanced at Sunset, who was getting the vacuum out of the back of Applejack’s truck.
“I know it’s not much, but it’s mine… and there’s actually enough rooms in the house that we could all stay comfortably and in our own rooms if we wanted.” she smiled. “A bit of elbow grease and this place will be like a second home for all of us.”
Rarity coughed lightly. “Well, I suppose it DOES have a bit of an elegance to it, despite it’s current ahem… distress.”
Applejack nodded. “Eeyup, ah think it’ll look darn good after we give it a once over.” She walked past and towards the front yard with a ladder under one arm and paint cans in the other. “Now then why don’t we all spread out and get to work?!”
In the depths of Hell, a pair of old, yellow eyes opened behind burnt, red flesh. Dingy yellow teeth shown behind old, leathery lips. “I smell… teenagers.” the old, raspy voice breathed out before chuckling a bit…
It was October, or at least that’s what it felt like, the veil between this plane, and that of the human world, was thin. And he could feel them, in HIS house. Or well, as close as he was going to get. “Canterlot… a few towns over from dear, old Springwood but… well, every town, has an Elm Street.”
With that, the clinking sound of metal on metal sounded, as the being known as Freddy Krueger raised his claws to his shoulder, with his free hand, he settled the fedora into place on his burnt, bald head, and smiled, looking up. “Now, to make em remember what FEAR TASTES LIKE!”
A distinctly feminine laugh echoed through the chamber. One that seemed to come from all around, as the very shadows that danced around the flames pooled and took shape behind Freddy. Who smirked as slender arms wrapped around him, and hair that rivaled that of galaxy’s pooled around his red and green sweater covered torso. “Oh no, my prince of dream, we’ll make them remember.” The being known as Nightmare Moon cooed into his ear as she slinked around past him. “After all, what better way to get at that bitch Celestia, than to kill one of her prized students.” With a wave of her hand, the shadow’s formed into a screen that made it easy to see the teens working on the house as she smirked. “She...is mine.” she said, pointing a very elegantly clawed finger at the fiery haired teen. “You can have the rest darling but she...is...MINE.” her eyes flashed with a fire all their own as Freddy smirked, two nightmares, ready for a return to the top.
