Daring Do sighed as she sat at the coffee table at home, nearly a week since the murder of Rover Smith, and there were no leads to be had. Nothing about the case was fitting together, the teenagers they had brought in for questioning all had solid alibi's and possessed no motive to commit the crime, let alone any evidence pointing them out as the murderers besides happening to be in the area. The DNA results on the hair sample and the droplets of saliva weren’t expected back for a few days, thus leaving her with no leads and a case that didn’t sit right with her whatsoever. She just felt like there was something missing, a few key pieces of the puzzle she hasn’t found yet. Sighing, she rubbed her forehead trying to calm the small migraine forming in her head, she decides to take a look over her notes and data she was able to get about him and the crime.

From what the coroner filed, Rover Smith died due to a massive amount of blood loss. He was stabbed three times in the back in the middle of the shop, once owned by a local florist enthusiast before she ended up getting a new place to do business. He died a somewhat quick death, with him barely able to put up a struggle let alone stay standing up. The only bits of evidence within the room was 3 drops of saliva and a single strand of blue hair.

The victim, Rover Smith, was 17 years of age the middle child of 3 brothers, Fido and Spot Smith. Family says that he was rough around the edges, but held love for his family, particularly for his younger brother Spot. He was enrolled in the same school as her younger sister, Canterlot High School, where he was relatively average in grade leaning towards D’s and the occasional C’s than anything else. The puzzling thing is that besides being part of the Diamond Dog gang Rover hadn’t seemed to make any enemies, especially any that would want him dead. What could the motive have been, why would they attack Rover, and what would they do next. Those were just some of the questions that lingered in her mind.

Yet as time passed she found herself looking more and more towards CHS, something in her gut told her answers could be found if she started digging into the happenings of the school. Sighing to herself, she slowly got up to make herself a new cup of coffee. The nights since Thursday night hadn’t been kind to her, and since the school was closed she couldn’t do much paper shuffling... Suddenly an idea came to her, upon checking the clock on her desk she smiled softly as she got up quickly and made her way towards the living room. There on the couch sat her little sister Ditzy Doo, still experiencing the hurtles of high school life and the roller coaster of emotions that is being a teenager. What Daring wouldn’t do to be a teenager again and not have to worry about working yet, this thought caused her to chuckle softly gaining her sisters attention as she muted the TV.

“Hey sis, mind if we have a little chat? I mean if your busy that’s alright, buuuuuut… I can always say it’s official police business. Which it kinda is and kinda is big sister moment. So take your pick.” Daring said with a tired smile, waiting for permission to continue.

Ditzy looked at her sister confused, normally she was extremely playful and wouldn’t ask to have a chat, she’d just do. So for something to change her demeanor, something serious must be on the menu. Turning the TV off completely Ditzy turned her entire attention to Daring, gently patting the side of the couch next to her for them to talk.

Daring took this as a good sign and took a seat next to her, sighing softly as she felt her entire body get hit by the comforting sensation of the couch, her one true bed and technical lover if she was being honest with herself. Dreading the conversation to come she decided it would be best to approach it like any other big sister “We’re a family of badasses!” talk.

“So I take it you heard about what happened to one of the student today?” She asks trying to keep a calm exterior in the face of worry for her little sister.

“Y-yeah, it was announced at the assemble last week, just before during first period… Everyone was really shocked by it from what I saw.” She says honestly and hesitantly, looking down at her hands as if they were foreign objects to her, meant to be studied and examined.

“Yeah, that… Ditzy I was hoping you could possibly help your older sis out. Specifically I need information on his relationships at school… did he have any enemies to speak of, or was anyone holding a grudge?” She asks equally hesitant, not wishing to push her sister into anything she didn’t want to do.

“Well… while I don’t think he had any enemies, everyone kinda knew he and a Russian girl named Gilda had sort of a rivalry between them.” Ditzy said mulling over her answer. “Though it never got serious enough to warrant staff intervention…” She finishes, looking up to her sister as she sees her taking notes.

“Hmmm, has anything else happened lately. Even if not directly pertaining to him.” She asks noting down the rivalry and possible love interest between the two. She internally chuckled to herself, she maybe a detective, but she still loved to make pairings.

She seems to physically gulp as her eyes widen in what looks to be fear. This alarms Daring as she broke from her mental thoughts to completely focus on her sister once more, falling more into protective sister mode and less detective mode. Though there was little difference in the two.

Ditzy opened her mouth several times, each time wondering if she should talk to her about Anon-A-Miss. In the past the adults and faculty had merely brushed it aside as if it didn’t matter, which had hurt many students and caused them to lash out in that pain and anger. Yet, if she couldn’t at least trust her sister, then who could she trust. Deciding she’d take a leap of faith she took a deep breathe, steadying her nerves.

“Uh, sis, d-do you know the social media website called Mystable?” She asks feeling her chest tighten in worry and anticipation for Daring’s response to what she would say. Especially about the secrets leaked about her specifically.

“Well yeah, I don’t know who doesn’t. Though I don’t really use my account at all, just kinda have it to have it.” She says shrugging her shoulders as she wonders where she’s going with this. She then asks. “Why do you ask sis? Someone bothering you?”

“W-well… there’s this profile account called Anon-A-Miss, on this profile the person has been posting everyone’s secrets for the world to see… I... They…” She starts to tear up as she tries to continue. “They have caused a lot of p-people to start fighting and hurting each other… breaking friendships and partners in the process…” She says hugging her sister tightly as she lightly sobs into her shoulder.

Daring surprised by this, she quickly wraps her sister into a tight loving embrace. “Just let it all out… but as soon as your done I want to know… what did they post?” She says leaving no room for arguments as she worked to comfort her crying sister, whispering the occasional sweet nothings to help sooth her.

As time moved on, Ditzy found herself slowly calming down enough to notice she had dampened her sisters shoulder immensely. After finishing she looked up to her sister. “Sorry… it’s just been a hard week sis.” She says nervous about how her sister might react to her secret she kept even from her. “Anon-A-Miss posted a picture… of my girlfriends and I… kissing on a date.” She says looking up to her shyly and slightly hopeful her sister would understand.

Daring looked at her in surprise before saying with a shit-eating grin. “Damn sis, how much action are we talking, when did it start?” She asks, curious to know of her sisters conquests she’s been apparently hiding from her, before growing serious and asking. “Do you need me to “talk” to them?”

Ditzy blushed softly as she finds herself laughing softly at her sister’s antics. “N-no, they’ve been great to me… You actually know them, their Vinyl and Octavia, and to answer your second question remember when we got snowed in last winter at Octavia’s mountain lodge? That’s when…” She says bashfully as she rubbed the back of her neck. “Anyway, the important thing was that we weren’t ready to go public… Vinyl and Octavia umm… Well they have a lot of baggage at home their relationship would draw up, and I was kinda scared to come out…” She says growing more and more hesitant as she spoke about what had happened.

Daring, having calmed down from her sisterly pride, started to gently stroke her back, hoping to comfort her. “Don’t worry sis, take all the time you need.” She says as silence soon follows.

The silence that hung in the air wasn’t one of awkwardness, but neither was it peaceful, it was a tense silence that oppressed the occupants of the room. Minutes passed before Ditzy said anything, she seemed ready to go to end this conversation.

“It’s only been getting worse, from Monday night to Friday several hours after the assembly, they’ve been posting more and more secrets… with really mean and demeaning comments...” She says feeling relieved to finally get these problems off of her chest and feeling as if she could speak to her sister so freely.

Daring sighed before asking the most obvious question. “Do you know whose account it is?” Daring thought maybe if she could question them, they might be able to give her some sort of information, at least point her in the right directions… And it wouldn’t hurt to give them a piece of her mind for hurting her little sister.

“N-no… but everyone seems t-to think it was a girl… called Sunset Shimmer…” She says looking up to Daring with tired eyes. “Though, I’m not sure if I believe them or not...” She says looking unsure about it.

“Do you happen to know where I could find this Sunset Shimmer?...” She asks deciding it might pay to give this Sunset a visit, if for nothing else, to see if she couldn’t get some more information.

“N-no not really, but I’ve seen her walking in the direction of the Suburban area, near where the rich families like to stay…” She says hugging her sister tightly.

“Thanks Ditzy, I’ll make sure to keep that in mind… You wouldn’t mind holding down the fort tomorrow while I head out to do some looking around? Kinda have to check on this new information.” She asks still worried for her little sister.

Ditzy nods, the heavy talk having sapped her of any energy to stay awake for any longer than necessary. As fell into slumber Daring could only smirk at how peaceful she seemed, with her strange ability to sleep anywhere no matter the position.

“Just another thing you pick up from dad, though you’ve got mom’s eyes.” Daring muses to herself, being the only one of the the 3 kids to actually look like her father slightly. She gently picks Ditzy up and pulls her to her bedroom, gently laying her to sleep on her master bed. As she went to leave though, she found Ditzy and pulled her into a tight embrace. Chuckling to herself she decided to not fight it and just laid down next to her, work could come in the morning.

Sunset shivered slightly, her body shuddering involuntarily from the sudden change of temperature, from frigid cold of winter to the tropical warmth of her home. As her body slowly became adjusted to the temperature, she started to make her way through the building, the only sound being her footsteps against the hard wood flooring and the silent drops of tears from holding in the pain. Yet she knew that she needed to hold it in till she was safe in the confines of her room, soon she’d be near the staircase though that would take her to the second level the sound of heels clacking against the floor resonated throughout the grand archways of the manor. Stiffening up she paused in her attempt to go up the stairs, as a woman of 38 walked towards her with a bored expression. Her posture was straight as an arrow, her body language was conserved, and her eyes shone with no love for her “daughter” and only the barest of acknowledgment.

"Ah, Miss Shimmer, you have finally returned." she said, her voice betraying no feelings "I want you to prepare yourself for the Spoon’s annual masquerade ball. We'll be leaving in two hours sharp." She pauses for a moment, her bored expression momentarily shifting into a grimace "And have the other one prepare as well. You're both expected at this event." Without another word, she turns and walks away, her heels clicking on the floor, the air silent as if transfixed by the woman’s aura of authority.

Only when the sound of her heels tapping on the floorboards were gone did Sunset feel the ability to breathe, her heart thumping slightly in pain and anxiety. As silent as a mouse, Sunset made her way upstairs to her room. Upon entering she saw her sister sitting there, staring off into the adjacent room, quickly turning her head to the door upon hearing it squeak open. Sunset didn’t need to ask what she was looking at, she knew, and it caused her pain to think that she was at that point once more.

“Hey Sunset, how was your day? Did you talk to those jerks?…” She asks, her beautiful red and yellow hair flowing softly down to the just her neck, her hair cut shorter than Sunset’s to differentiate the two of them. While the more skittish of the two, she was just as protective of her sister as Sunset was of her.

“Same as before unfortunately Sunrise… Sadly it seems Anon-A-Miss has won, and well… I lost.” She says sounding almost as if she’s given up, before suddenly brightening up. “But at least I have you, and you have me sis.” She says rushing up and pulling her into a tight loving embrace. “Besides I’m sure there are other places we could make friends. Heard there was a academy nearby, it wouldn’t be hard to try and start fresh there...”

Sunrise looked to her sister, seemingly indecisive on what to do or say. Eventually, after sometime she must have thought of what she wanted to say. “Well... no matter what, I’ll follow you Sunset… No matter the cost.” She says smiling softly as Sunset gently breaks the hug.

“Alright, we should probably get ready for this masquerade ball mom is sending us, lest we incur her wrath. I don’t mind it much, but you need to eat more, especially with how little they feed you to begin with.” She says looking her sister over, her body visibly leaner than Sunset’s own body.

Sunrise just nods with her soft smile, Sunset takes a moment to head into the bathroom to ready herself. Once Sunrise was sure her sister couldn’t hear her through the closed door she turned to the adjacent room, in it was a chair, table, a few pages of a book she had been writing, and connected to the ceiling was a noose. She smiles at it before shaking her head.

“Not today, old friend… not today, maybe… maybe life is worth living for a few more days.” She says before heading towards the closet to put together a decent dress, preferring an old Victorian style to Sunset’s more leather biker punk rock look. Sunrise sighed in relief, enjoying the feeling of the soft silk fabric rub against her body, the dress was basic in design, meant for elegance and to flow freely while also showing off just enough to entice onlookers.

When Sunset exited the bathroom, she was wearing a more formal dress meant for a business woman than a high school student, her hair pulled back into a pony tail. “You look nice sis, maybe today’s the day we get mom’s approval?” Sunset says with a smile, causing Sunrise to blush softly at the compliment.

“Y-you really think so? I’ve been working really hard to get her to notice me…” She says looking herself over, her teal dress flowing to just above her ankles.

“Yeah sis, besides you still have me.” She says gently as she looks her over. “Would you like me to work a bit on your makeup?” She asks curiously.

“Well I wouldn’t mind some help, I’ve never been the best at doing my own makeup.” She says blushing softly in embarrassment. “Then when your done I’ll do yours, I don’t think either of us will ever be able to do our own makeup.” She says with a giggle of her own.

The car pulled in to the Spoon manor, it was an old mansion, having been with the family for generations since the family came over from Europe during the Colonial era, which the design of the manor showed. With it’s white marble columns and decorated roof, it screamed that a rich family resided in there. As they entered the extravagant entrance they were greeted by one of the servants, he was a tall man with lanky arms, a tight suit, and balding head. His tone was that of a bored gentleman who had been there since as long as he could remember.

Sunset and her family handed him their coats that had previously been protecting them from the snowy weather just after he’d uttered. “May I take your coats.” Sunset could only hold in a chuckle at how cliched and over-the-top Silver Spoon’s family seemed to be going this year.

As they entered the ballroom they were greeted by Dashing Spoon and his family Miracle Fork and Silver Spoon. Dashing went immediately to Sunset’s father, they were business rival’s along with Filthy Rich, and loved to hang out ignoring their spawn, well mostly… Filthy Rich seems like a good father at least, actually spending time with his daughter when he could.

“Nova Flare, it’s wonderful to see you again, my friend.” Dashing says pulling Sunset’s father into a hug, the men removing their masks, Nova’s was that of a mighty lion, and Dashing’s was a day of the dead mask. He seemed to be incredibly proud of his family’s long Hispanic ancestry, constantly bringing it up whenever he can in public.

While the men of the families were happy to see the other and enjoyed the others company, the mothers were a different matter. Sunset’s mother still wore her bored, calculating expression, eyeing the decor of the manor in all of it’s detail.

"Miracle, darling, so good to see you again. And I gotta say, I love what you did with the old place, really shows off, what you're all about. Hope your hubby didn't mind the expenses though." She says her voice was that of sweetened words that made Sunset and Sunrise shudder slightly in fear, taking a moment to actually look at the older woman.

“Ahh, Firecracker Silvertongue, how lovely of you to stop by. I do hope you had an easy enough time getting here. I know how hard it must be having to get all your things in order.” She says in a sickeningly sweet manner that nearly made Sunset and her sister gag internally.

Of course they worked hard to keep their composure around mother, they wanted to make her proud, even if the woman’s word choice had struck a chord.

“Well, I just felt they needed to get some cultured air. See what it’s like to be in flashy upper class home” Firecracker counters with a small smirk. “Of course, if I wanted that we could have just gone to see Spoiled Milk, and her family.” She says shrugging her shoulders, keeping up the appearance of enjoying the company of the woman.

With that both families entered the ballroom, where the rest of the guests awaited. The night played out the same as it normally would have, with Sunset and Sunrise being shone off to the guests as their well-behaved and polite daughters. Though multiple times throughout the night, Sunset noticed the second glances of Silver Spoon towards her direction, constantly whispering towards Diamond Tiara. By the time they were set to leave, Sunset and Sunrise were both exhausted from having to deal with such large groups of people… none of them truly caring about anything, but their vices and money that they flitter away on useless trinkets and material items.

It was only when they had gotten into the car did the masks their parents had put on for public display, fade away. Nova Flare just kept his eyes on the road, not even acknowledging his wife, of whom he had been married to for over 18 loveless years. Likewise she kept her ice cold eyes, that shone like the moon, fixated on the various buildings they passed by, picking out each one they collectively owned and their worth. It was no secret to Sunset that her “parents” never wanted children… much less to be together. If it hadn’t been for their social standing, and the demands of society, she’s sure they wouldn’t be together. Both a different individual in mind that they would see on occasion when they thought they could get away with it.

Though they never did count on Sunset learning about their dirty secret. Though she would have preferred in a less graphic way than how she had original learned of it. Her father had a golf instructor he’d have visit, through one of these visit’s Sunset came across them, and learned to never use the love-seat in the 3rd living room. Though his relationship was much healthier than her mother’s, a truly sadistic and dominative side that enjoyed pushing the limits of her partners till they give out. Sunset had the displeasure of witnessing one such case, and she had decided that day she would take it to her grave.

The drive soon came to an end, and with it the overbearing silence that had captivated the the family of four, Sunset and Sunrise were the first out, both quick to open the doors for their parents. For this was the moment, the moment where hopefully their parents would recognize them. This was something Sunset had been working hard for since Sunset’s redemption, and for Sunrise since before Sunset had been part of the family. However, when their parents left the car, there were no words said, no praise, or even acknowledgment that they existed. Sunset took a step back from this, though the pain she felt was nothing compared to what Sunrise was going through.

Tears brimmed at her eyes, her body stiff as her hope seemed to die away. The only thing that stopped her from breaking down was the fact their parents were still there, though when the father left mother turned towards them. Her posture was serious and her expression seemed unchanged from the car ride, though Sunset could tell there was a difference. She stopped before both of them giving a small nod.

“Miss Shimmer, you and the other did adequate, continue to do so for future rewards.” She says giving them both a gentle pat on the shoulder before turning and leaving the two sisters alone with nothing but their thoughts.

Sunset looked to her sister worried, hoping that she would be alright. Instead what she found was Sunrise giving a small wary smile as she gently held the shoulder her mother touched.

“She… She touched my shoulder…” She says, tears once of sadness now replaced with tears of joy.

Sunset on the other hand looked worried for her sister, gently pulling her into what she hopes is a comforting embrace. Eventually, Sunrise started to calm down, falling asleep into Sunset’s arms. Gently taking her away to their room, Sunset laid her down onto their bed.

“Sleep tight, my dear sister, soon we will be free from this hellhole. Our parents will love us, and we won’t have to deal with CHS anymore…I’ll be back, I just need to take care of somethings.” She whispers to her sister, kissing her forehead, before heading out the room.

Taking with her a thick jacket that looked like it had seen better days and too much sentimental value for Sunset to get rid of, and a dark blue journal, she made her way out of the house.

Author's Note

This chapter was created by Me, Sar Meister

editted and inspired by work with the Meister Tungul, the magnificient Snowflake Dissonance, and the fantastic Demegor.

I hope ya'll enjoy this chapter as much as I did making it. Even if it did take long time, thanks to college and other things getting in the way.