Chapter Six

9 Hours 59 Minutes Until Execution

Twilight leaned back in her seat processing everything I had just told her. Once she had it all figured out, she opened her eyes and spoke. “So… Shimmer paid you to come and smoke with her… Talk about an odd turn of events… I wasn’t expecting you to have any interaction with Shimmer at all prior to her murder let alone something like this…”

I shrugged. “There’s more to it than that though… I didn’t exactly know the kind of trouble I was getting into when I got involved with Shimmer, to be honest…”

“Trouble?” Twilight blinked. “From my perspective, it looks like you were the source of trouble, wouldn’t you say?”

I chuckled and nodded. “I suppose that is partially true, but no… There was trouble in it for me as well…”

“Naturally, I’m assuming your two siren… Accomplices didn’t approve of you spending the night with her?” Twilight tilted her head.

“I didn’t tell those idiots, are you nuts?” I smirked.

She sighed and nodded. “I figured as much, I suppose… Still, it’s pretty strange that you’d even go along with it in the first place…”

I shrugged. “I needed the money, and it was the fastest way to sell everything I had, so I went with it. A means to an end if you will…”

“What kind of person was Shimmer back then?” Twilight leaned in with interest.

Several words floated to the surface of my mind, many different ways to describe that girl, but only one actually came out of my mouth. “Enigmatic.”

“Sounds about right… I take it she was secretive back then?” Twilight asked.

I nodded. “She had bigger trust issues than me sometimes. That house remained empty for a reason, she didn’t trust anyone. I guess in the past people tried to steal her fortune from under her nose, people in her own family…”

“That’s terrible…” Twilight frowned. “Money really can make people do some terrible things sadly…”

“Not Shimmer though… That girl wouldn’t hurt a fly… She was kind to a fault when you got to know her…” I pointed out.

“Shy of her parents in that incident that is…” Twilight pointed out.

Shrugging, I replied. “I actually didn’t even know about that until after the fact.”

“Really?” Twilight blinked in surprise.

“Yeah, Shimmer didn’t exactly like talking about stuff like that. Also, I wasn’t particularly interested in such a subject as you’ll find out later…” I explained.

“Now you’ve got me curious…” Twilight smiled devilishly.

“First you have to do something for me before I’ll continue…” I grinned.

I could hear an audible gulp in Twilight’s throat as she shakily responded. “W-what…?”

“You have to tell me something you’ve never told anyone before.” I crossed my hooves as I sat there smiling at the Princess, taking a little pleasure in making her feel slightly uncomfortable.

“Something… I’ve never told anyone before…?” Twilight blinked.

I nodded. “Yeah, I’m here pouring my heart out, I’d like to hear a little more about you. I think that’s fair isn’t it?”

Twilight sighed and rolled her eyes. “Well… My first kiss was with a guy named Fall Leaves… I was in third grade…”

“Nah, I want something juicier… Give me a time when Ms. Perfect Twilight Sparkle screwed up big time…” I grinned.

Another sigh escaped Twilight as she closed her eyes and spoke. “Okay… One time in middle school when I was sort of trying to get this clique of girls to like me… I may have participated in a prank on the teacher that went bad…”

“Teacher’s pet actually turned to the dark side then?” I asked with glee.

She nodded. “Yeah… we put a potion in her coffee that was supposed to temporarily turn her into a frog in the middle of a lecture, but it didn’t work at first. We thought that maybe it was just a dud…”

“It wasn’t though, was it?” I smirked as I leaned in with interest.

Twilight shook her head. “Turns out Yarn String had the mixture wrong and instead it was a slow acting vomit inducer… So we got to this assembly where my teacher was speaking…”

“Oh boy! I can see where this is going!” I giggled.

“It… Actually is a lot worse than you think…” Twilight blushed, looking away in shame.

“Do go on then!” I nodded contently.

“So… Mid-speech she throws up all over the Principal standing next to her… I thought that was the worst…” Twilight shuddered as she remembered.

“But the worst was yet to come wasn’t it?” I asked.

She nodded. “So then the sight of it made some of the kids in the audience start throwing up, and then throwing up on each other started making it worse… Before I knew it half the school was throwing up on everyone…”

I almost fell out of my chair laughing when I heard her story. “Oh man! That’s hilarious! Who would have guessed that Twilight Sparkle actually had done something like that!?”

Composing myself, I wiped my eyes after the laughter subsided. “That is… Most amusing, Twilight…”

“Yeah… It wasn’t so amusing for me… I still feel guilty about it…” Twilight rubbed her neck.

I gave a dismissive hoof gesture toward the Princess. “Don’t, it was a prank, and it’s so far in the past now that I’m sure you’re the only one that remembers…”

“Oh, I’m pretty sure some of my old classmates are probably still laughing about that one…” Twilight shook her head.

“Still, it was a good prank though, you should be proud, you got almost the entire school!” I pointed out.

“I guess if you look at it that way…” Twilight sighed.

“Cheer up… Now… You’ve amused me, so I guess I can tell you more of the story…” I said.

Twilight instantly perked back up as she adjusted herself in her seat, ready and eager to hear more of what happened to me prior to Shimmer’s murder. I blinked as I watched her sit there with bated breath. “Sheesh… Eager much?”

“I’m invested now; I sort of have to hear how this ends… I’m the kind of pony who once I start a story, I’m in for the whole ride…” Twilight explained.

“I guess that’s what makes you such a bookworm…” I shrugged.

She nodded in response. “So what happened next? After you got home from your time with Shimmer that is?”

“Well… I think it might be wise to skip ahead a few days… Right about when…”

A few days passed after my little “get together” with Shimmer, if you wanted to call it that. No, I don’t want to know what you’d call it, Twilight. Anyway, things stayed relatively normal for a little while after that, but I came home from a day at the mall with shopping bags clenched in my hand as I stepped into the living room of our shared apartment.

Aria and Sonata sat there conversing as Aria worked her way through a cigarette. I was still a little miffed at her for her commentary a few days back, but at that point, my annoyance with her has simmered a bit and I was starting to return to my regular level of ire with her.

Sonata was showing off a bracelet she had acquired as I walked in. I overheard part of the conversation.

“So, basically he bought it for me because he was hoping to wow me enough to go on a date with him… Isn’t it cute!?” Sonata spoke as she showed off her wrist.

Spying the bracelet, I rolled my eyes. When I had grown the shopping addiction that I had, I had become very familiar with fine jewelry, name brand clothing, and identifying counterfeits or cheap knockoffs. It was clear that this bracelet was nothing more than steel brushed to look like silver, probably only worth around $75 at most, $90 at best. I shook my head over how stupid she was.

“You know that if you keep accepting stuff from him, he’s going to eventually expect something in return, Sonata… Remember, we don’t have our powers to charm people out of their stuff without expecting things from us…” Aria reminded as she pointed her two fingers at Sonata.

Sonata frowned but nodded. “Yeah, but I sort of… Miss being able to get people to get me nice things, you know? At least with flirting with them, I can get… Some stuff… It’s not the same as having powers, but it’s close… I mean we’re all still super hot at least!” She seemed to cheer up by the time she reached the end of that statement.

She wasn’t incorrect though, we all were still very young and irresistible looking. Shut up, I am not being vain. It was the truth, Sonata had the kind of tits that would make a man drool, Aria had the ass that would make them beg, and I had the attitude that always made them come crawling back for more. Together we were the kind of women that men dreamed of getting a chance at, however, our place was always to tease but never deliver.

Without our voices though, we were stuck to relying on our looks to get what we desired, which definitely took more tact and effort.

“You’re clearly not flirting very well if all he bought you was that cheap trash…” I spoke up as I set my bags down and placed my hands on my hips.

“Oh look… It’s the bitch… When did you walk in? I don’t recall ordering our fun spoiled for at least another hour…” Aria sarcastically commented with a slight smirk.

Rolling my eyes, I did my best to ignore her comment and not punch her in the face. Realistically, that second part got harder and harder with every passing day.

“I like it though…” Sonata frowned.

“Sonata, if you’re going to flirt your way into getting stuff at least aim higher than someone who can’t get you a real silver bracelet…” I rolled my eyes once more.

“Easy for you to say… You just buy whatever you want… You don’t need to charm it out of people anymore…” Aria pointed out with a grunt.

“Oh can it, you miserable ungrateful cunt. In case you haven’t noticed, I kept a roof over our heads, didn’t I? I am keeping us alive out here aren’t I?” I pointed out.

It was the truth as well, were it not for me flirting with the landlord when we first lost our powers into giving us time to find jobs so we could pay the rent, rather than just brainwashing him into letting us stay for free, we would have likely been thrown out on the street long ago.

“Yeah, you’re also the reason why we’re in this mess in the first place… You got too big of an ego, and Starswirl cut you down and now we’re stuck here… Oh, and you lost our magic too thanks to your stupid plan…” Aria reminded.

It was as if this girl kept a record of all my failures ready to recall them at a moment’s notice. Again, resisting the urge to punch her in the face was getting harder all the time.

“That’s no way to show appreciation toward your leader…” I grunted as I turned my nose away from her.

A chuckle escaped Aria. “Why would I do that?”

“Because of this…” I grinned before tossing her one of the bags.

Blinking, Aria caught it in her lap and grunted as it landed. Curiously she peered inside and began to remove some of the items. “What the-“

“I checked all your sizes over the past few days and made sure to get the right sizes… Everything should fit.” I grinned, eager to see the smug look on Aria’s face wiped clean.

Aria held up a purple bra from the bag and whistled as she examined it and then the matching panties that went with it. She began to dig through the various pieces of clothing and jewelry, admiring each item longingly before looking over at me with confusion. Sonata was practically speechless at that point.

Reaching down once more, I picked up another bag and tossed it to Sonata. “I got you a few things too.”

Looking into the bag eagerly, Sonata gasped as she pulled out an attractive and expensive charm bracelet, eyeing the price tag with awe. How much was it? Somewhere around $1,500 or something… I don’t know how much that translates into bits, Twilight… It’s a lot of money, let’s put it that way.

As she held the bracelet she ripped the one on her wrist off and tossed it aside. “To hell with that thing, this bracelet is a thousand times better!”

Aria paused before looking over at me once more with a suspicious look. “What’s your angle?”

“Angle?” I raised a brow.

“You’ve never gotten anything for us before, and after our conversation the other day it sounded like you could give less of a shit about us…” Aria sneered, her suspicion clearly growing greater and greater with each passing second.

I scoffed and looked away from her. “I didn’t want to hear you bitch some more about how I have all this money and you have nothing… I know you well enough to know you’ll never stop whining until I cave… Consider it benevolence on my part…”

Aria’s expression softened just a hair as she heard that, but not wanting to sound like I did something out of the kindness of my heart, I decided to divulge further.

“Besides, you two are sirens… You’re supposed to be insanely attractive and desirable to men… I can’t have you both walking around looking like common street trash, it’s not becoming of our kind… Not to mention, I’m your leader so I’m supposed to look out for you, right?” I said.

“You’re the best leader ever!” Sonata clapped her hands together before digging through her bag of various goodies that I had gotten her, all items that complimented her figure flawlessly if I say so myself.

Aria was rendered speechless, and I was standing there with a smug grin on my face ready to rub her nose in it. I couldn’t wait to make her begrudgingly show appreciation toward me and my benevolence, but then something happened that I would have never expected in a million years, especially coming from Aria.

The siren looked up at me and nodded. “Thanks, Adagio…”

“Thanks?” I raised a brow, trying to figure her out.

“Yeah… I guess sometimes I forget that you do look out for us… I mean don’t get me wrong, I disagree with your methods a lot, and a lot of the time you’re kind of an insufferable bitch, and I definitely question whether or not you care if we’re alive or dead but like…” She looked at the bag and then back at me. “This is genuinely nice of you… It’s the first time I’ve seen you do something that showed you cared about us at all…”

I grunted and looked away. “Yeah… Well… I only did it to stop you from whining and stuff… Honest…”

I expected her to take back her thanks, but she didn’t. Instead, a small smile came to her face, a smile to me that suggested she didn’t believe that I was merely trying to get her to shut up. “Alright, if you say so…”

Part of me wanted to scream that she had me all wrong and that I couldn’t care less if she fell into a ditch, that she was merely an ally to help cover my bases and nothing more, but instead, I was distracted by Sonata suddenly showering me with praise. The annoyingly bubbly girl leaped off the couch and pulled me into a hug which I resisted and fought to get out of.

She squeezed me tightly as I tried to pry her off, surprisingly, Sonata is actually pretty strong. “Thank you, Dagi! You’re the best!”

“I told you to stop calling me Dagi! Second of all, get the fuck off of me!” I hissed.

“But you’re the best!” She giggled as she pulled me closer.

After a few more seconds of struggling, I managed to pry her off and catch my breath. “Fuck… Why don’t you go hug Aria? You know I hate that shit, Sonata…”

“You’re such a booty head sometimes…” Sonata pouted as she crossed her arms in front of her, causing her impressive chest to squish together and create a more alluring image for any man who would see.

“Whatever…” I rolled my eyes.

“Seriously though, thanks, Adagio…” Aria spoke again.

“Well… You should thank me more often…” I pointed out with my hands on my hips.

She was about to speak but was interrupted by the sound of my phone ringing. Blinking, I answered it and spoke up. “Hello?”

The voice of Shimmer rang in my ear, causing my eyes to widen as I heard her. “Hey, Dagi… What you up to?”

I had to play it cool, I was right in front of the other two sirens of my group, I couldn’t make it obvious that I was talking to the human counterpart of the girl who helped defeat us and lose our magic.

“Not much… How did you get this number?” I asked, trying to play it cool as Aria and Sonata stared at me.

“Not important, you busy?” She asked.

“About to be, I’m heading out to work…” I stated.

Sonata and Aria’s expressions implied they were becoming more and more curious.

“Work sucks, come hang out!” Shimmer insisted.

“Yeah, well I can’t, sorry…” I replied with a roll of my eyes. I wondered if this girl had any sense of work ethic.

“I’ll buy you out of your shift! Bring whatever you were going to sell and I’ll pay for it again!” She groaned in protest.

“I’ll be there soon…” I responded.

“See you soon, Dagi!” She giggled before I hung up with a sigh.

The other two sirens sat there with curious looks, waiting for me to explain who was calling me. Quickly, I thought of a believable lie. “Co-worker was wondering if I could pick him up something on my way to work…”

“How’d he get your number?” Aria asked with a raised brow.

She squinted in suspicion but decided not to call me out on it. “Alright… So you’re heading out now then?”

I nodded. “Yeah… Don’t wait up for me, probably going to be a long shift today…”

“Alright… Be careful!” Sonata waved at me as I headed toward the door, still trying to understand how Sunset Shimmer got my phone number, but also trying to keep my cool so as to not raise more questions.

9 Hours 40 Minutes Until Execution

“You actually got gifts for the other two sirens?” Twilight asked with a raised brow.

I hated how she framed it like that; implying that I would waste my time and effort buying gifts for those two rejects.

“No, I told you… I got them stuff so Aria would stop whining. You haven’t heard her whine, it’s super fucking annoying. She will keep going until she gets what she wants, and I figured it was faster to get it over with than try to put up with it. You underestimate how seriously annoying those two can be…” I crossed my hooves and looked away with a huff.

Twilight smirked, which told me she didn’t believe me, but she refrained from comment.

“So how did Shimmer get your number anyway? I don’t recall you mentioning you gave it to her…” Twilight blinked as she sat in thought.

My attention came back to Twilight as I uncrossed my hooves and nodded. “That’s because I didn’t give it to her.”

I yawned and stretched as I looked over at the only clock visible to me. “Fuck… We’ve been here for over five hours now…”

“Time flies when you’re having fun…” Twilight shrugged.

“I don’t know if I’d constitute this as ‘fun’, Twilight Sparkle…” I rolled my eyes.

“I don’t know… I’m having fun listening to your story anyway…” She replied.

“You would too…” I smirked in delight.

“Just the kind of mare I am…” Twilight winked at me.

It was too true of a statement as well. Twilight was the kind of mare who would sit through the story of a dying mare from start to finish, eating up every detail and acting as if it were just another tale of adventure. She listened with the same excitement and enjoyment that she would reading a Daring Do book.

Perhaps in a way, Twilight Sparkle was far too pure to be a princess, she was too innocent, too naive. There wasn’t a chance that she understood how relentlessly cruel the world could be. Sure she was able to decide that I had to be put to death, but did she have more decisions like that in her? Was she going to be able to carry out the duties of being a princess? I was doubtful.

I blinked and decided to probe the subject. “What’s it like being a princess?”

Twilight twitched for a moment before tilting her head. “That’s… And odd question… Coming from you…”

I shrugged. “I was curious…”

Twilight placed a hoof on her chin and thought, probably wanting to give some wise-sounding answer that was befitting a member of royalty, but instead she offered a shrug and far more simple words.

“It’s tough…”

“Really detailed response there…” I sarcastically remarked.

“Sorry, I wish there was a more profound way of saying it, but the reality is… being a princess is very difficult… I won’t lie, making decisions that determine the life of another pony are not easy to make, but I have to follow them through with conviction.” She paused before continuing. “I recognized a long time ago that I’d eventually have to make decisions that were not going to make me popular… And decisions that I personally would not like…”

“Is this one of those?” I asked.

Twilight closed her eyes. “You’re wondering if I am doubting my choice to put you to death then?”

“It’s not like me knowing will change anything, my death was agreed upon by the royal family… Even if your opinion swayed… It’s too late to change my conviction, right?” I asked with a raised brow.

Twilight, as expected, nodded in agreement. “Yes… However, that being said… My mind is still made up… Adagio Dazzle, you are going to be put to death for all you’ve done and while I am interested in hearing more of your story… It won’t change that fate. I believe I’ve made the right choice…”

Sighing, I ran a hoof through my long mane and nodded. “Yeah, I figured as much. I mean truthfully, I never expected a sob story to change your mind anyway… Nor spare me from my fate, I was just curious if your thoughts about me had changed… Guess not…”

“I never said that…” Twilight stated boldly.

I blinked and leaned in. “What’re you saying?”

“Just… Keep telling the story… I need to process my thoughts anyway…” Twilight smirked.

Just when one thinks that Twilight Sparkle is a mere ditz who was simple and easy to read, she finds a way to surprise you.

“I guess we’ll get to the part where I arrive at Shimmer’s place…” I shrugged.

A few bus rides and punching in a passcode at the gate that Shimmer texted me later, and I was standing at the front door to Shimmer’s estate. Again, I have to comment on how absolutely lavish the place was. The rich sure feel the need to have a lot of excess, this house was so big that you could probably house all of Ponyville in it.

I reached for the door only to find it unlocked. That made sense as it was doubtful that many would get past the front gate anyway, plus Shimmer was expecting me.

Entering the foyer, I nearly jumped at the sound of a dog barking. No, I’m not afraid of some stupid dog, Twilight.

This was definitely the famous “Moon” that Shimmer mentioned. I had read a bit about dogs in the human world and knew enough that they needed to smell you to get a feel for you before they would trust you. Leaning down, I slowly offered my hand. The creature extended its snout and whiffed my fingers a few times before giving them a gentle lick and an approving bark.

“Thanks for the vote of confidence… Now… Mind showing me where Sunset is?” I asked, crossing my arms.

He merely sat there wagging his tail. No Twilight, I wasn’t legitimately expecting a dog to be able to understand me!

“Okay… Let’s try this… Take me to your master!” I commanded with a stern tone.

He barked again, this time he came to a stand and started heading up the stairs. Shrugging, I figured there was nothing to lose by following him, so I gave chase and followed the canine to the second floor. He made his way down a long hallway decorated in fine art and portraits.

I stopped to examine one on the wall of Shimmer herself. She was wearing some kind of formal white dress, flowing in the wind as she looked over a cliffside. The girl in the painting was far younger, but she looked just as elegant. Her red hair was a splash of warm color that danced well with the cooler colors of the scenery and her outfit. I wondered what kind of person she must have been like back then. What kind of child was Sunset Shimmer?

It was difficult to imagine a human Sunset Shimmer living in this house as a child with two loving and adoring parents. Then again for someone like me, it was difficult to imagine a functional family unit at all. The part where her parents were taken from her, I could at least partially relate to that, albeit for completely different reasons. Also, I more or less hated my father, whereas Shimmer likely had great affections for her’s.

Once I had taken my mind off of the painting, I continued to follow the dog to a door that he sat down next to and let out another bark.

“In there, huh?” I asked gesturing toward the door.

Naturally, he didn’t answer, he just continued to sit there wagging his tail. What an oddly well-behaved dog.

Shrugging, I opened the door and stepped inside, noting that the dog stayed right where he was. I surmised that this was a room that he was forbidden from entering, which likely meant I shouldn’t have been in there as well, but I didn’t put much thought beyond that into it. Upon stepping inside, I could see why though.

The entire place looked like some kind of science lab, similar to the one at Canterlot High, but far more advanced with far more expensive equipment lying about. Most of the items were completely foreign to me, given that I was from Equestria, but no doubt, all of it looked like it was intended for more extreme research. This was the kind of research hub that any scientist would dream of. I didn’t know much about the machines in there, but I would wager they cost in the millions. Huh? Oh for the love of… Come on, Twilight I can’t spend the entire story describing the lab! Don’t you have your own lab that you can gawk at? Honestly, I don’t remember most of it, and most of the machines were too difficult to determine what they do.

On a wall behind a desk in the back was a whiteboard with some kind of complex math problem. I placed a hand on my chin as I examined it, trying to figure out what it was getting at. It took me a good few minutes before I finally started to work it out.

I stepped forward and picked up a marker and began to scribble in what I believed to be the answer. No, I am not a nerd like you, Twilight! I just happen to be very good at math, thank you! Why? I spent a lot of time reading when I was younger… Back then books were pretty much the only source of entertainment and I wasn’t permitted to play with other kids.

Stepping back from the board, I examined the entire equation, blinking as I was certain that I recognized it before. “Where have I seen this before…?” I thought out loud.

As I examined the problem, I actually found the numbers swirling in my head and before I knew it, I was picking up a marker and scribbling down an answer. Before I even had a chance to check my work, a familiar voice came from behind me.

“Hey, I don’t usually let anyone in here…” Shimmer’s tone seemed a bit annoyed, but she softened up as she approached in her white lab coat over her normal attire of attractive alternative clothing.

She blinked as she looked at the equation. “That’s… Correct actually… How did you…?”

I shrugged. “Dunno… I’ve always been good with numbers, I suppose?”

Squinting she examined my work and nodded approvingly. “Remarkable… May I ask you to take a crack at another one?”

I could only shrug a second time, not knowing what else to say and figuring that I had nothing to lose.. “Sure… I guess?”

Quickly, Shimmer found an empty space on the board and snapped the cap off of a marker. With haste, she scribbled down a problem with clean handwriting. I stood back and watched, looking over the problem with a hand on my chin as I thought it out. Within a matter of minutes, I stepped forward and jotted down the answer then placed the cap back on my marker and nodded. “I believe… That is correct?”

Shimmer blinked as she saw my answer nodding as she crossed her arms and a smirk appeared on her face. “Well, well, well… Adagio Dazzle the drug pusher has other talents… A bigger picture is painted…”

“I’m good with numbers and equations, I needed to be when I studied ma-“ I cut myself off, realizing that telling her about magic was likely not a good idea, instead I finished the sentence another way. “Errr… Math in school… During the short time, I did go… that is…”

It was a half-truth, I actually did only attend school for a short time… Short time being only a few days during the battle of the bands. Oh, shush, it’s not a technicality, Twilight! The reality was that I was taught at home by my mother until I was a young child, then from there, I had to teach myself. I studied magic all the time to try and understand it, I was obsessed with how to utilize it to the best of my ability and how to gain the most magic.

Due to this, I found myself exceptional at equations and math, but sadly in most of my plans, those skills never really translated well. The best they ended up doing for me was learning how to master my powers or how to find the largest sources of magic to absorb. There weren’t exactly a lot of job opening for magical sirens as math teachers in Equestria, or the human world. Oh please, don’t give me that “a mind going to waste is a crime” shtick, Twilight…

Sometimes though when I was in the bathroom I played a few math-related games on my phone though. In another world, or maybe one where I wasn’t born a siren, I probably could have been a mathematician or some kind of magic researcher.

Shimmer grinned at my explanation. “Did you go to college?”

“I didn’t even finish high school…” I rolled my eyes.

She frowned at that response. “A shame… Your mind is going to waste… Adagio Dazzle… You’re a genius…”

“I… I am…?” I blinked, this was the first time that anyone had actually praised me for my intelligence. Most of the compliments I was used to receiving were about how attractive I was, and usually because the person giving the compliment was under the influence of my power.

She nodded. “No doubt about it, you’re a regular math wizard.”

To be fair, I had a good few centuries to practice and learn, so it wasn’t entirely fair to say I was a “wizard” at math. Anyone who had thousands of years to practice something was naturally going to be better than the average person, but I wondered if I was any good compared to other sirens. It was hard to say since meeting other sirens was rare back in Equestria, and I knew that Aria and Sonata were hardly any bright. Those two couldn’t do long division I bet, let alone solve complex logic problems.

“Yeah, but I suck at virtually everything else… I don’t know anything about history, or anything like that…” I shrugged.

She shook her head and placed a hand on my shoulder, leading me out of the room. “Doesn’t matter. Being a genius isn’t about knowing things, it’s about how well or easily you understand when you’re taught…”

“I guess… Can we talk about something else though?” I asked as she lead us toward another room where she let us both inside. Peering around, it was easy to tell that we were now in some kind of bedroom.

“Sure, but why?” She asked as she wandered toward the back of the room and removed her lab coat, hanging it on the back of a door to what I assumed was a bathroom attached to her bedroom.

I crossed my arms defensively. “I just… Don’t like talking about myself a lot…”

“Why not? You’re smart and sexy, those are good qualities,” she complimented.

I chuckled at her remark. “Yeah right… If I’m so smart why do I hate my life and why am I still a pathetic drug dealer and not doing something more meaningful with my time?”

She shrugged. “Maybe the opportunity hasn’t presented itself yet? Most people don’t get to utilize their talents until they are given the chance.”

“Either way, it doesn’t matter… I don’t really like getting this much praise… It feels… unnatural…” I shuddered at the thought.

Shimmer frowned. “I take it your parents weren’t that supportive?”

“One was… the other… He was dead to be even before he actually died…” I sneered, remembering my father with a light growl in my voice.

Naturally, she hadn’t a clue what I was talking about, but she tried to act as though she understood. “I’m sorry to hear… Nothing is worse than feeling like family isn’t behind you… What about your friends?”

I scoffed and looked away, my arms still crossed. “I have no friends…”

“I thought you lived with some roommates?” She asked.

“I would never consider those two morons my friends… They’re minions if anything…” I replied curtly.

“So no friends?” Shimmer asked.

“No.”

She grinned and nodded. “Me neither… I’ve never been good at making them… I’ve always had a bad temper…”

“You? I find that hard to believe…” I responded with a raised brow.

She giggled and nodded again. “It’s true. I’m high a lot of the time these days, or just coming off of a high so I’ve mellowed out. I had a horrible temper myself… What’s your reason for not making friends?”

“Friends are stupid and pointless… All they’ll do is stab you in the back when it’s most convenient for them…” I sneered.

She had the look of a woman who wanted to pry deeper but clearly understood that she was treading on unsafe grounds and decided to change the subject. “Not much of a people’s person then?”

“No.”

She smiled. “That’s fine, I’m better in small settings myself, and I have a lot of patience.”

“Evidently…” I rolled my eyes.

“Lighten up, there isn’t any judgment here, promise.” She winked.

Something about that wink set me at ease slightly. I lowered my guard and let my arms fall to my sides as I nodded in agreement. “Yeah… Okay…”

“Trust me, I’m not in a position to judge you,” she replied.

My brow rose. “Even though I’m a drug dealer?”

She shrugged. “Who am I to judge that? I buy from you. Plus, I recognize that we all have our own vices and we sometimes need that little pick-me-up. The world is filling with bad, sometimes we need to get a little ‘good’ inside of us, right?”

“I guess… I never would have pictured you so… practical…” I replied as I sat down on her bed, noting how soft it was. Rich people could afford all the luxuries, so it was barely a surprise, I wouldn’t have been shocked if I was told it was made from the feathers of endangered birds.

The redhead smiled as she sat next to me nodding, getting a bit uncomfortably close. “I’ve always considered myself an opportunist. If you can make a situation more favorable, always go for it when the pros outweigh the cons.”

“Wise words…” I mumbled.

“So… Tell me more about you, Dagi… What makes you tick?” She grinned as she leaned in with interest.

Up that close, I could see her chapstick had made her lips glisten in the light, but I looked away and tried to focus on something else rather than examining the face of my mortal enemy plastered onto another girl.

“Power,” I said plainly.

“So you like to feel powerful?” She asked, not even pointing out that my answer was peculiar.

“Yes.”

She paused and thought about it before leaning closer. “What about power makes you feel good?”

That was an odd question, one I had never been asked before. I actually took a moment to answer. “I… Well…” I closed my eyes and remembered what it felt like to be utterly powerless. What it felt like to watch my mother burn alive and not be able to do a damn thing about it. I remembered what it felt like when my amulet shattered because of Sunset Shimmer and her friends, the other Sunset Shimmer that is.

The feeling of being powerless was the worst. It was the single most terrible feeling that I had ever experienced. It was a feeling that I was still partially going through, and one that I wanted to stop and never feel again.

“I hate feeling powerless…” I responded, locking my answer in, confident that that was indeed the worst feeling I had ever experienced. Of everything I had ever felt, that was the feeling that stuck with me the most, no matter how much time had passed, I always remembered what it was like.

“Don’t we all?” She shrugged.

“It’s different… It’s the worst thing… Standing there unable to do anything… At the total mercy of others… I hate that feeling more than anything in the entire world… I would do anything to never experience it again…” I rambled as I stared at the floor.

She didn’t say anything, instead, she wrapped her arms around me and leaned in to embrace me. Normally, if this were Sonata, I’d be prying her off and telling her not to touch me, but this was… It was different. I could sense a genuine caring, not just a “here’s a hug, now feel better and stop whining” sense that I ordinarily got from Sonata. Shimmer actually was listening and she was starting to feel what I was feeling, and she wanted that feeling to stop inside me as well.

It was a very… Odd thing, but I closed my eyes and allowed her to continue her hug, not daring to interrupt it. Without thought, my hand gravitated toward her and rested in her hair as I let her lean and hold me, feeling like it was more to bring herself comfort than me.

Her soft voice rang in my ears as I heard only a single sentence uttered. “I’m sorry.”

9 Hours 22 Minutes Until Execution

“Were you and Shimmer close? I’m starting to get the vibe that the two of you were friends at some point…” Twilight asked with a raised brow and a curious tone.

“Not at first… I spent a lot of our first encounters trying not to tell her anything that could be used against me…” I replied.

“So you two did become friends then… How did that friendship end in murder?” Twilight asked, her brow raised further now.

I sighed and rolled my eyes at her impatience. “It’s called patience, Twilight, try having some. We’ll get there in due time.”

“Sorry… It’s just this is quite an unexpected turn in this story… I was expecting you and her to become mortal enemies or something by now… Some kind of explanation of why you killed her…” Twilight pointed out.

Grumbling, I shook my head. “In case you forgot, she wasn’t the intended target, the other Sunset was…”

Twilight blinked as her memory was jogged. “Oh yeah, that’s right! Surely though you knew by trying to kill Sunset that killing Shimmer would be a necessity though… It’s not like she would have let you get away with it once she found out… She likely would have done what Sunset did and teamed up with her friends to take you out…”

“I’m well aware, Twilight…” I groaned in annoyance.

“Then why?” She asked.

“How about you let me keep telling the story and you’ll find out? We’re not even at the most screwed up part yet… The part that changed my life…” I answered.

“Oh? What’s so crazy about the next part?” She asked.

I smirked as I recalled the events in my head. “I think it’ll be obvious when it happens.”

Author's Note

Where do you think this is going?

Who knows.

Special thanks to the readers. You guys rock!