Twilight found her job to be relatively simple. All she had to do was point the finger. It was relatively low-risk compared to the other jobs Sunset had her lackeys run.

The only thing that complicated Twilight’s job was herself. She’d been a librarian, so acts of extreme violence were still only fairy tales to her. On the occasions where Sunset told her to tag along for someone’s beating, she’d wince in fear of what she was about to see.

But she tagged along every time. Each and every time thinking that what she was doing was wrong, inhumane. Wasn’t much she could do, anyway.

Twilight wandered through the halls of the prison, with no particular destination in mind. She found it fascinating that a place meant to confine could be so large. Some days, even after the months that she’d been here, she felt as if she could simply walk out of the door. If only she could find it.

A small spark clicked in her mind, sending a few quick thoughts through her brain. She started thinking about the outside world. How badly did she want to feel fresh air in her lungs, be surrounded by the people and things that she loved, rather than the bleak gray walls of the prison? She felt like sobbing, screaming, something that would get this feeling out, but clenched her teeth and gripped the palms of her hand violently. Rainbow would suck it up. Twilight would have to learn to as well.

“That’s a scary face you have on you.” Twilight looked up at a man. Not a normal guard, he was dressed in a suit. She almost immediately fixed her face back to looking just troubled. Then she smiled.

“Sorry,” she put her hand on her stomach and rubbed it around for effect. “I’m just… a little off today. I’ll be fine.” The man still looked skeptical. His green eyes pierced Twilight’s and seemed to be asking her stomach directly whether or not it was alright. Twilight looked at his chest and found a name tag on his suit. After a few seconds, though, he turned away and waved his hand.

“Take yourself to the infirmary, then.” He walked down the hallway and turned a bend. She took a shaky breath. Having come face to face with the new Assistant Warden wasn’t something she was very pleased about doing. Soarin hadn’t done anything to hinder Sunset and Twilight’s investigations so far, and Sunset had been careful enough to make sure nothing would lead back to her, but Twilight still felt as though he knew what was going on in her head.

She shook her head and kept walking.

She was scheduled for an exercise period that she seldom attended. Strength wasn’t really her strong suit. She walked over to the gym anyway. Upon opening the door, she was blasted with the smell of sweat and determination. For a few seconds, people focused on her but returned to their workouts after seeing that it was nothing to be worried about.

Twilight scanned the room, looking for anyone she knew. Her eyes locked onto a certain woman. Tall, muscular, and slightly agitated, it seemed, was the girl that Twilight collided with on her first day. The blood ran from her face, and her eyes were making it exceedingly difficult to look away.

“If you’re interested, I could introduce you to her,” Twilight snapped out of her daze, turning to her face to the person who spoke to her.

“Uh, no,” stuttered Twilight. She’d been here long enough to know how to act around most, but there was something about the calm, beautiful smile Rarity was giving her that told her entire body to get out of the vicinity right now. Twilight tried to walk away, but Rarity was already ahead of her, still with the same smile.

“What’s wrong? Where are you going in such a hurry?” Twilight backed up, running into the wall and allowing the woman to stand over her. She chuckled deviously, backing off of her captured prey. “I didn’t mean to startle you much. I just want to talk.”

“I don’t have anything to talk about,” said Twilight.

“Oh please, Darling,” she said, waving her hand dismissively. “We have plenty to talk about. Most definitely.” She took Twilight’s hands and led her over to a certain machine. It had a bar, and pulling down on it would pull up the weight. Rarity didn’t seem too interested in that, though. She led Twilight behind it, where fewer eyes were about.

“W-why are we over here?” asked Twilight. The only exit from this enclosed space was through Rarity, which Twilight didn’t like. Either that or jumping over the machine and causing a ruckus.

“I just wanted to talk to you in private,” she said, letting go of Twilight’s hand. “I wanted to see Sunset’s new right-hand man up close.”

If Twilight’s blood didn’t decide to hit the floor, it sure did now. Her hands got clammy, and she could feel every bead of sweat.

“Oh, calm yourself, darling,” said Rarity, waving her hand dismissively again. “I’m not here to kill you. If I wanted to do it, you’d be dead already.”

“Yeah…” said Twilight with a shaky breath. “I figured…”

“So, why pull you over?” Rarity leaned back on the machine. “I need you to work for me.”

“What?” asked Twilight. “Why would I help you?”

“Because I can help you as well. Because I’m very powerful within these walls.” For the first time since she’d seen her, her smile dropped, replaced with a cold stare. “Or simply because I can make your life living hell, even worse than death.” To prove her point, the large woman from before got up from her position and looked down on Twilight from over the machine before going about her business.

“I-I can’t help you,” said Twilight, with a shaky breath. “Nothing I do can help you.”

“I think you can. You whisper into Sunset’s ear,” Rarity returned her smile to her face. “So all I’m asking is that you whisper into my ear as well.” Twilights heart was beating as if trying to jump out of her chest. She couldn't mess this up.

“T-Tell me something first,” said Twilight, daring to step up to Rarity. “If you tell me, I will help you.”

“You have no power here,” said Rarity. “But sure. As a gift. What is your question?”

“Who killed Rainbow?” Rarity paused for a moment and looked at Twilight with eyes of pity. She shook her head slowly before turning away from her.

“Come now,” said Rarity. “You already know the answer.”

“Are you feeling alright?” Twilight rubbed her eyes, trying to remove all the thoughts that clouded her mind right then. Twilight was starting to realize how difficult it was talking to a friend about problems you couldn’t tell them. “You look like you wrestled with a bear in your bed.”

“Well, that’s not too far off,” said Twilight. “If you could characterize stress as an animal, I think a bear would be perfect.”

“You’re stressed out,” repeated Celestia, her smile fading. “Are you sure you’re feeling alright? Seriously?”

“Yeah, yeah,” said Twilight, waving her worry away. Celestia didn’t believe her for a second, as it showed all over her face. “What am I going to do? I was dealt a bad hand. It’s just something I have to work through.” Celestia sighed sadly, then put her hands on the table. “Celestia… remember that time I went ‘missing’ for a week?” Celestia rubbed her thumbs together.

“Yes, I do remember…” she said. “But—”

“And all that happened was that you accidentally deleted the message I sent you?” Celestia sighed again, this time in defeat. “You worry too much Celestia. You’ll end up stressing yourself out if you continue on like this.”

“Okay. Okay, I understand.” Celestia grabbed Twilight’s hands in her own and met Twilight’s eyes. “But, if you ever need me, or need a shoulder to cry on, you won’t hesitate to tell me, right?” Twilight laughed and brought her and Celestia’s hands together.

“Always.”

She knew that she couldn’t keep that promise. And somewhere in her heart, Celestia knew as well.

Twilight walked up to Sunset, who was sitting down at her table eating her breakfast. Sunset said hello with a glance and stirred when Twilight sat down with her. She continued eating her breakfast while Twilight began to dig into hers.

“How is everything?” asked Sunset, attempting to make simple conversation.

“Rarity approached me yesterday,” blurted out Twilight. Sunset stopped eating. “She asked me to join her, and I told her I would.” Sunset looked up at her fully. The two shared a glance for a bit before Sunset put her fork down and laced her fingers together.

“I can’t believe that worked,” said Sunset, a smile creeping on her face. “So Rarity is really that weak, huh? A few of her guys get fucked up, and now she’s clamoring to get even.”

“I-It’s not that she’s weak,” said Twilight. “I made myself too appealing to give up.”

“Yeah,” said Sunset, getting back to her meal. “Good job, Sparkle. Now we know what information she knows, and when she knows it.” Twilight sighed, trying to relieve the stress she was feeling. She’d be squeezing herself between these two very powerful women and that wasn’t something she was really looking forward to. If Rarity even for a second suspected that Twilight was lying or double-crossing her, she could be killed off.

But something was bugging her and it had been for a while. She didn't feel like she was a proper right-hand to Sunset unless she got her questions answered.

“Hey, Sunset?” Twilight called. Sunset looked up from her meal. She was happy. Now was as good of a time to ask as any.

“Hmm?” she hummed, food still in her mouth.

“How did you meet Rainbow Dash?” Sunset swallowed her food, her shoulders slumped, and she angled her head downwards. She sighed heavily, shaking her head as if she was remorseful.

“It’s a long story,” said Sunset, looking up at Twilight again. “And not a happy one either.”

“That’s fine,” said Twilight, forcing her sadness down into the deepest part of her heart. “I have all morning.”

Author's Note

Sorry for the lack of content in this chapter and also for the lack of content I've been putting out. I've just been in a slump recently, and Dark Souls 3 has been taking over my mind.

I have been thinking about writing a crossover piece between Dark Souls and MLP. That should be fun to write.