Phoenix

“So you honestly want me to believe that Sonata was the one who picked the lock?” Fireside said as she looked up at Aria in the passenger seat, a knowing smirk slowly spreading across her face.

“Um, yes?” Aria shifted around so she could look back at the girl, flashing an annoyed look when she saw her sister’s grin. “I’m being serious here, Glow! Sonata’s the one who picked the lock!”

“Is Aria telling the truth, Sona?” Fireside asked as she leaned over and bumped her head against Sonata’s, the pale blue girl cuddling in close to the amber skinned girl.

“Damn it, Sonny! You better tell her the fucking truth!”

“As adorable as it is to watch Aria try to dance around the truth, I have a question that I’d like you to answer, Fireside.” Adagio’s eyes flicked up to the rearview mirror, taking in the sight of Fireside laughing as she ruffled the top of Sonata’s head.

“Oh? What is it, Addy?” Fireside chuckled as Sonata stuck her tongue out at the amber skinned girl.

“What was with that comment about the four of us being from a world populated by talking horses?” the car came to a stop at the crimson light, allowing Adagio to join Aria in looking back at the two girls sitting in the back seat, a bemused look on her features.

“That?” Fireside gave a small laugh as she pulled Sonata close. “I dunno, honestly. Maybe it was because of those videos? Like, they all had horse ears and long ponytails, three of them even had wings!”

“Yeah, I definitely don’t remember that happening.” Aria rolled her eyes as she nudged Adagio gently. “If they were horses what would that make us?”

“Hmmm…” Fireside paused and stroked her chin for a moment, before erupting into a fit of giggles. “I got it! Hippocamps! I could totally see the three of you as hippocamps!”

“Seriously…?” Adagio gave a very dead look before turning back around and returning to the wheel. “And what would that make you?”

“Oh! A unicorn! You know, a horse with a horn! Andandand! And I use it to cast magic!” Fireside’s face started to reddened from lack of air thanks to her constant laughter, the girl doubling over and starting to cough.

“Wouldn’t that be something.” Aria said, giving Adagio a worried look as she returned to her seat, shifting around in it unsteadily.

“Are you alright?” Sonata whispered carefully to Fireside, leaning in close to the gasping girl.

“Yeah…” Fireside replied, finally catching her breath as she looked across at the pale blue girl, smile etched across her face. “Yeah, I’m fine, Sona. Er… what’s with the look?”

“Are you sure you’re feeling okay? Did that bump on your head from that fall do something?” Sonata’s inquisitive magenta eyes seemed to be drilling into Fireside, the girl shifting around, feeling slightly uneasy.

“Yeah, I am.”

“Then why would you bring up those things?”

“What things?” Fireside looked carefully at Sonata, a look of bemusement spreading across her visage. “Do you mean that horse comment? It was just a joke, Sona, honest! Why does it matter so much? Could it be we are aliens from another world inhabited by talking horses and mythological beings?”

“That’d be something if we were, right?” Sonata gave one of her patented smiles as she looked at Fireside, the car returning to motion as the four sisters made their way home.

***

The rest of the day passed without much more action, but Fireside made sure to text Octavia and her other three friends to make sure nothing bad had happened to them. She paused after putting her phone done on the edge of the kitchen island, looking over at Sonata as the girl continued to work on the nights supper.

“A stirfry, huh?” Fireside said as she walked over to observe her sister in what seemed to be her natural element. “Are you sure you three are going to be fine without some sort of meat in there?”

“It’s not like we can’t skip meat every once in a while, silly!” Sonata said as she returned the large black wok to the stovetop, turning about and booping her the nose of her sister delicately. “What do you think we are? Sharks?”

“Ha! You’d definitely be a blue shark! Those things look so adorable!” Fireside let out a small bark of laughter, only to have it increase when she noticed Sonata starting to blush. “See! Your blushing at the mere mention of it!”

“Well what about Adagio and Aria, then? Or yourself even!” Sonata waved her spatula between the two of them, hoping to distract Fireside continuing on with her rant.

“Well Aria is simple! She’d be a hammerhead!” Fireside chuckled as as leaned back against the counter, raising her hand to her chin in thought. “She definitely seem the type of person to just ram through the obstacles in front of her.”

“Oh that’s nice!” the pigtail wearing girl shouted out as she entered the kitchen, wiping away the last of the oil stains on her face with a well used rag. “I feel insulted, Glow, that you think so little of me!”

“Well if it makes you feel any worse, Addy would obviously be a megalodon, seeing as she seems to always be in charge, no matter where she is.” Fireside laughed as Aria flipped her off, the purple girl heading over to the sink to clean her hands.

“I would hope that it was not a jab at my weight.” Adagio announced her presence just as Aria started the water flowing into the kitchen sink, the puffy mass of orange curls following the girl diligently.

“I couldn’t make a jab at your weight, Addy.” Fireside winked playfully as her smile widened. “Your hips would stop me before I could get to you.”

Howls of hyena-like laughter exploded from Aria as the girl spun around to point a finger at Adagio, the girl doubling over as she slapped a hand against her jeans. Sonata returned to cooking as she struggled to try and hide her own giggles of amusement, tears starting to build in her eyes as her cheeks continued to swell larger. Fireside just shot finger guns at her sister, her thumbs moving up and down in time with the rise and fall of her eyebrows and the winking of her eye.

“Well what would that make you, then?” Adagio scowled playfully as she walked over towards the amber girl, purposefully swaying her abundant hips more than usual, only to stop in front of Fireside and deliver a punishing hip check.

“S-simple!” Fireside choked out, holding onto her lower abdomen as she reeled against the counter. “A tiger shark! But, like, with a cool stripe pattern like my hair!”

“Ohmygod!” Sonata squealed as she spun about and grabbed hold of her sister, nuzzling against the taller girl’s cheek. “You would be totally adorable!!!”

“I think badass would be a more proper description…” Fireside muttered as she rolled her eyes, but not before giving the girl a tight hug and returning her to her cooking.

“You know, I always thought that narwhals were cute, y’know?” Sonata pondered as she started to stir around the rice and veggies in the wok. “In, like, a really derpy way, right? They seem like they should totally be royalty right!”

“They’re pretty much the unicorn of the ocean, more or less.” agreed Fireside, the girl nodding slightly before winking at Adagio as the girl moved towards the fridge.

“Yeah, but, like, derpy!” Sonata spun around, a large glob of rice, sauce, and veggie flinging itself from the wok in her grasp and towards Adagio, only to splat lewdly against the face of the fridge.

“So what you’re saying, then,” Adagio turned around, a half amused, half annoyed look on her face. “Is that you’re a narwhal?”

“Nuh uh!” Sonata stuck her tongue out at the more mature sister. “You’re a narwhal!”

***

“Adagioooo…!” Sonata whined as the four girls got out of the head sisters car, her awkward movements were jerky and slow. “Why did you spank me so haaaaard…?”

Adagio sighed, rubbing her face in her her hand as she shut the driver side door, giving the key fob in her hand a press and receiving a small series of beeps from the vehicle in response.

Aria was too busy cackling to close her door, the purple girl doubling over as she tried to catch her breath in between fits of howling laughter while leaning against the passenger side of car’s hood.

Fireside merely rolled her eyes as she leaned forward to close her sister’s door after shutting her own, before making her way around to the otherside of the car to assist Sonata.

“C’mon, Sona.” Fireside said to the girl as she gently patted Sonata across her back. “Why don’t I carry you to home room? Would that make you feel better?”

“Can you carry me like a princess!” the girl squealed as she spun around to face Fireside, seemingly not injured or sore at all as she stared with puppy dog eyes that were just brimming with hope.

Fireside chuckled before snapping forward like a viper and hoisting her sister up in her arms, the girl squeeking with giggles and laughter as she wrapped an arm around the back of Fireside’s neck, her legs dangling off the crook of the taller girl’s elbow.

“Must you really pamper her so much?” Adagio groaned as she watched the event happen, facepalming even harder as an embarrassed blush started to build on her face.

“Hey now,” Fireside shot back, giving a playful smirk as she looked down at her sister. “I wasn’t the one who decided to use a wooden spoon last night, Adagio.”

“Yeah!” Sonata stuck her tongue out at the mass of orange curls before erupting into more laughter as Fireside started carrying her towards the entrance of the school.

“Come on, you two!” she called back over her shoulder, turning around slightly. “You don’t want to be late, right?”

Adagio and Aria started to plod after their sisters, the two of them grumbling and Adagio thanking whatever god or gods there were in this world that no one was around to overhear their earlier conversation.

They caught up to Fireside and Sonata upon leaving the school’s student parking lot, the giggling pair of girls having stopped at the gateway into the school grounds as they waited for their lagging sisters.

“So, anyone got anything special for today?” Fireside asked as the quartet slowly melded into the stream of other students making their way towards the large, imposing academy. Students along the way paused when they realized Fireside was carrying her sister, some of them whispering to to each other behind the amber girl’s back, only to stop when Aria turned around and growled at them.

“Tests, quizzes, and more prep for all of the exams at the end of the month.” Aria groaned as she returned to facing forward having just finished growling away another group of whispering students.

“Tell me about it…” Adagio sighed as she grabbed the door for her sisters, nodding to each as they made their way into the warm confines of the school. “I feel bad for Fireside, to be totally honest.”

“Really? Why?” the girl looked at her sister’s, mock pain spread across her face.

“Well you diiid kinda just show up at, like, major exam time.” Sonata said, poking the girl’s cheek. “And you weren’t here for anything that we covered.”

“Yeah, but I already seem to know all of it.” Fireside chuckled as she poked Sonata back. “I’m actually really looking forward to these tests, if I can be totally honest.”

“Wow.” Fireside paused as she looked back at Aria, the girl smirking as she shook her head. “You sound just like Sparkle.”

“What? Tests are fun!”

“Well you seem to be getting desert from the cafeteria constantly so I think you may be just a little bit biased.” Adagio said, smiling as Fireside rolled her eyes, unable to keep a smile from coming to her face.

“What can I say, Twilight keeps turning them down.” she shrugged as she returned to carrying Sonata through the school and towards their shared homeroom.

“I honestly miss the fact that she used to share them with us.” Aria said, a glum look flashing over her face for a moment.

“More like you mooched them off of her.” Fireside said, hip checking her sister playfully, forcing Aria to spin around to avoid running into other students.

“Eh hem. May I talk with you for a moment, Miss Glow.”

The four sisters all paused and turned in perfect synchronization, stopping when they saw just who it was that was addressing them. She was a tall, pale woman with hair consisting of a variety of different streaks of magenta, each a different shade or hue. A neutral blue coat, it’s collar popped up sat comfortably on her willowy frame, a shimmering red jewel prominent at the base of her neck. Dark blue shoes with minor heels lead to magenta leggings that flowed up to a knee length dark blue skirt the same shade as her shoes.

“I would also appreciate if you would put Miss Dusk down.” Principal Cinch said cooly, her eyes narrowing slightly even as her visage remained neutral.

“Oh, sure! Are you okay to walk on your own, Sonata?” Fireside asked as she put her sister down slowly, the girl gently getting to her feet and taking a steady stance before nodding in response.

“Thanksies!” Sonata said as she delivered a small kiss to her sisters cheek, Fireside chuckling as the girl pulled away. “So whatcha need ta talk to her about, Missus Principal Lady?”

“That is a personal matter for just her and myself.” Cinch responded after rolling her eyes at the bubbly girl’s display. “I have already informed Dean Cadance that she shall be late for Homeroom, but that does not encompass the three of you as well, so I suggest you head on your way. If you would follow me, Miss Glow.”

Fireside shrugged as she looked back at her sisters, each of them sharing different looks of worry before waving as they started to head off to class. The teen quickly caught up to the woman, who just came up to the amber chin of Fireside in her heels. The woman refused to talk as she wove her way through the school, the seas of students instantly backing away to grant her passage. Teachers themselves seemed to do the same, though some did it out of what seemed to be unease, while others nodded in familiarity.

“In here, please.” Principal Cinch finally said as the two of them approached the personal office of the woman on the top floor of the school, Cinch opening the door as she motioned for Fireside to enter. The girl nodded and made her way in, pausing just inside to look around as she waited for her guide.

A small, wiry man sat at a desk just in front of another door, this one massive as it stared at Fireside, causing her to quickly glance around the rest of the room. Trophies, awards, commendations, all sorts of things dedicated to Cinch and/or Crystal Prep adorned the walls, even more than what sat in the cases that littered the school’s halls. The balding man looked up for a moment to see what the noise was, only to shoot back down to whatever he was doing when he noticed Cinch enter the room.

“We are not to be disturbed, is that understood?” Cinch said coldly as she entered the room, the harshness of her tone obviously directed at the man who sat at the desk, who nodded rapidly in response as she passed. “In here, Miss Glow.”

Fireside nodded as she started towards the now open door, light glaring through the window that now faced her through the open door. Cinch followed immediately after Fireside, shutting the door behind the two of them with a resounding ‘Thud’! She made her way towards what was obviously her desk, a needlessly tall chair sat facing Fireside, as well as a pair of chairs that sat in front of the desk, each a dark leather and covered in ornate metalwork.

“Please, have a seat.” Cinch instructed as she reached her chair, motioning for Fireside to join her at the table. The girl nodded once again, looking around the room in silence. Even more awards covered the walls, as well certificates and diplomas for all sorts of degrees. Fireside slowly rounded one of the chairs, slowly seating herself upon it.

“So how has your time at Crystal Prep Academy been so far?” Cinch sat down, leaning forward slightly as she steepled her fingers in front of her self, carefully watching Fireside as she awaited the girl’s response.

“It’s, uh… It’s been pretty good so far?” Fireside gave a nervous chuckle to go with the equally nervous smile she wore as she rubbed the back of her head, thoughts and ideas shooting through her head like a runaway lightning bolt through water.

“That is good to hear.” the woman gave a warm smile, devoid of any actual warmth and camaraderie, the corners of her mouth slowly rising up before she started to lean back in her chair, her fingers remaining steepled as she did so. “You see, I have heard certain… rumours, shall we call them, about you, and I was hoping to hear your side of them.”

“Rumours? What sort of rumours? Good things I’m hoping!” Fireside smiled warmly as she shifted carefully in her seat, dread threatening to break through as she thought back to Suri’s threat. Surely the girl didn’t have enough sway to do something like this!

“Well why don’t we start with last Monday. I heard you had a little altercation with Strong Arm, the star quarterback of our football team.” Cinch’s eyes were laser focused on Fireside, seeming to record every detail of the girl and her actions.

“Strong Arm? Oh! You mean the boy that stormed past me, shoved me, and called me a cripple?” Fireside recounted the details as confidently as she could, hoping to convince the Principal of her innocence should something have been said against her. “Yeah, I remember now. Heh, I just asked him to watch where he was going, was all. Well, maybe a little more heated than that, but I mean, I was in crutches still, right? He should have been a little bit more careful around me was all.”

“And what about later that day, in gym class? Everyone in your class said that performed a rather miraculous feat of strength.” Fireside noticed just how much Cinch’s eyes narrowed as she continued her inquisition of the girl’s first week.

“Well, the cast had gotten wet previously, see, so it was already compromised as far as rigidity went, and-”

“But that still doesn’t explain why you would challenge one of the top linebackers in the country to one of those silly arm wrestles with that injured arm, especially after just how damaged it had been.” Cinch cut off Fireside without a second thought, staring the girl down from between her long, willowy digits.

“Well I guess I just wanted to prove a point?” Fireside’s smile faltered as she continued to lock eyes with the woman.

“Surely shattering a side table wasn’t necessary to prove a point though?”

“Ah, that, heh… Well maybe it was a little rickety? I didn’t expect it to shatter like that, honest!”

“And then there’s the matter regarding the wall on the first floor, where a boy said that you flung him against it with enough force to dent it, causing over one thousand dollars in damages.” Cinch remained leaning back, her eyes narrowing to mere slivers of visible organ.

“Okay, now that one obviously shouldn’t have a grain of merit!” Fireside started to laugh slightly. “Does it look like I can fling someone with enough force to do that? Besides, he was bullying Twilight, apparently he-”

“And what about the rest of the week? If things are to believed, mayhaps it is you who is the bully?” the woman instantly returned to leaning forward, a smile spreading across her face as if she were a spider looking at her freshly caught prey. “And then to top it off, Miss Polomare came to me yesterday with reports that you and your sister, Miss Dusk, assaulted her and three of her friends in the women’s washroom nearest the Home Ec classroom.”

“Now that is one that I can personally confirm is a lie! They stole Sonata’s locket!” the fiery haired said firmly as she shot to her feet, her hands slamming onto the desk as her smile vanished.

“Well Miss Polomare had some rather shocking images on her phone as proof of the situation.” the woman watched as Fireside fumed, her cold smile growing.

“Photos, huh? Well I think I got something better.” a look of confidence slowly made its’ way across the girl’s face, Fireside thanking the sky above that she was wise enough to put her phone voice recorder as she was entering the girl’s washroom that day. “Here, take a listen.”

Fireside put the phone down on the desk, facing it towards Cinch as she pressed play. An exact verbal recollection of that encounter started to play, albeit slightly muffled as a result of being in the girl’s skirt pocket at the time, but it was proof nonetheless, causing the girl’s smile to widen further across her face, only to be replaced by sheepishness once the more colourful language she had said started to emerge.

“Well, it seems that there is some truth to your statement.” Cinch said as she sat back into her chair, Fireside scrambling to end the recording before it reached the part of Sonata talking down on Cinch. “I shall forget about it as well, then. However, that is not our main business here.”

“It’s not?” Fireside was confused as she awkwardly returned to sitting in her chair. What else was there to talk about?

“It is in regards to your past, so to speak. You see, I do understand that you are recovering from amnesia, though it seems that nothing has come of it yet, correct?”

“Well, I mean, I guess not? I don’t remember anything about my past, but I remember… things? Like, I remember all the answers to all these tests and worksheets I’ve done, but I don’t recall actually when I studied them.” Fireside scratched her head as she tried to explain her situation, only to pause when she noticed the bemused look on the older woman’s face. “Er… What’s with the look?”

“Well, I think I may have a lead on some of your past.” Cinch gave an almost convincing warm smile as she started to type on the keyboard of her computer. “What do you know about Canterlot High School?”

“Well apparently I studied there for a few years, and then left.” Fireside watched as the woman continued to type away without sparing a glance at her keyboard or screen. “I’ve also been spending some time with some girl’s that were friends of mine there.”

“Have they told you anything about maybe why you left? Maybe something about a certain… scandal that is has been occurring there since last month” Cinch’s smile took on a malicious overtone as she looked over at her screen.

“No, they haven’t told me anything about why I left, but they did mention that there has been a rather large cyber-bullying incident occurring at the moment.” Fireside’s confusion continued to mount as she sat there. What was Cinch going on about with this? Was she trying to hint at something?

“Have you looked into it at all?” Fireside shook her head, eyes watching the woman wearily. “Well why don’t I show you what has been happening so far.”

Fireside watched as the woman turned the computer screen around so they both could see what was on the screen. It had an internet browser of some sort open, with the page logged into a social media site called MyStable. There was a long stream of images, videos, and text based posts, all of them with some sort of hateful message or embarrassing fact, as well as replies from people cursing the owner of the page and threatening them. But that wasn’t the part that caught Fireside’s eye.

The user profile carried a stylized image of somebody with amber skin and and a very recognizable red and yellow streaked hairstyle, albeit much longer than what the girl looking at the image currently had.

“A bit strange, is it not.” Cinch said, looking back at the screen. “It is the account of somebody going by the pseudonym ‘Anon-A-Miss’, yet they use an image that bears a strikingly remarkable resemblance to you, Miss Glow.”

Fireside didn’t comment, her attention focussed more on some of the other features on the page, such as the yellow, purple, and orange striping that matched the skirt she was found in. Not only that, but some of the students were calling Anon-A-Miss a particularly recognizable name.

“...Sunset… Shimmer…?” Fireside looked over at Cinch as she said the name aloud, her mind starting to whir with thought. “The people posting threats on Anon-A-Miss’ account, whom I’m guessing are CHS students, believe that this ‘Sunset Shimmer’ is behind all of this?”

“Indeed it would seem, but I have more reason to bring this up, as you see I believe it may have a link to your past, at least in regards to your time at Canterlot High School leading up to your enrollment at this academy.”

“Oh?” Fireside did her best to feign interest in the subject, all sorts of alarms starting to blare to life.

“I was visiting Celestia and Luna, the Principal and Vice Principal respectively of Canterlot High School, over the weekend in regards to the upcoming Friendship Games event. While I was at the school, however, I observed a most peculiar set of portraits.”

Fireside watched silently as the woman retrieved her phone from the confines of her desk, moving her finger across the screen in a peculiar pattern before resting the digit on the button near the bottom of the device. The phone brightened to life as the woman tapped on one of the many icons on the screen, before tapping a few more times and handing the device to Fireside.

“You see, near their offices are the photographs of the students who won the right to wear the crown of the Fall Formal. There are three in particular that I think you would be interested in.”

Fireside delicately swiped a finger across the screen, passing through a set of photographs showing the students who won the crown, starting with some unrecognizable students at first, but then…

“Sunset Shimmer…” she whispered as she froze, taking in the portrait before her. It was an amber skinned girl with striking aquamarine eyes, and long, curled hair of crimson and gold. But it was in a terrible state compared to the earlier pictures, with threats and drawings all over its surface, yet the girl sat there delicately holding onto the crown, a small smile on her face.

The second image was the same, but the amber skinned had a more aggressive stance, a dark smirk on her face as she pointed to the crown on her head. Or at least what Fireside assumed was the crown, as the top of the photo had been torn away, people having coloured in even more of the blank space with threats and hateful words.

The third image was the most shocking yet, with the girl appearing to give a maniacal laugh as she gave a power crazy pose. There were all sorts of scribbles over the image, like large red x’s covering her eyes, a snake tongue, even batlike wings behind her.

“They really seem to thinks her, huh?” Fireside said after taking a moment to compose herself, gaze passing up towards Cinch, the woman giving a very slight nod. “So why did you feel that I should see this?”

“Well besides the fact that she looks extremely similar to you, there is one last fact that you should know.” the woman resumed her cold smile. “Sunset Shimmer was last seen on a day that you should know well.”

“Thursday, December eighteenth…” Fireside finished quietly as she looked back down at the photograph of the mad looking girl. "What is it that you hoped to achieve by bringing this to my attention?"

Cinch's smile widened.