Sunset's human world origin

Anzhong’s home office

Date: June 1st, time: 5:30 am

*Anzhong’s perspective*

“So, how does that sound?”, Anzhong asked his sister over the phone.

“That sounds great. I just wish it wasn’t like this.”, Ryoko said sadly.

“I know.”

“I’ll email Brigid the details once we figure them out.”

“That sounds good. Emi was also wondering if Minerva and Anura could come.”

Ryoko was silent for a long moment before answering. “I’ll talk to Oda about it.”

“Thank you. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Good bye”

Anzhong hung up the phone then got up and laid down on the bed. He just stayed there for a while. He called off work, so time wasn’t an issue. Kiba climbed into bed next to Anzhong and put her head on his chest. Anzhong ran his hand through her short coat, and the tears started to flow. He could protect his family from Storm, Platinum Wood, and even an enraged alicorn, but he couldn’t protect them from this. He failed as a parent, but he couldn’t give up. He had to be there for Sunset. He had to be strong for her.

There was a nock on the door. Anzhong stopped the tears and tried his best to clean up his face before answering. The massive wall of heat made it clear it was Brigid. She always ran hot. She made it impossible to be cold at night. Her smell blessed his nose as she passed by him and entered the room. Anzhong closed the door, and Brigid sat on the bed. He joined her, and she pulled him into a hug. He could feel her distress as he returned the hug.

She lifted his head up and removed his glasses. “Ya’ve been crying.”

Anzhong took her hands in one of his, as best as he could considering how massive they are, and ran his free hand across her face. He could feel lines of dried up tears. “So have you.”

She put her head to his, and her tears began to flow again. “Ah failed as a mother n’ a daughte’. Ah couldn’t protect ‘er. Mo clan will die with me.”

Anzhong started crying again in response to his wife’s crying. “Your bloodline may die with you, but the spirit of the Mac Carthaigh clan will live on through Sunset and Anura and every student you teach compassion and understanding to.”

“Dat only makes me feel partially better.”

“I know. I feel the same, but we can’t give up. Sunset still needs us. We have to be strong for them.”

The two stayed in each other’s arms as they cried. Kiba stuck her head in between them. She was so innocent. All she knew was that they were sad but couldn’t understand why. Maybe she could smell the cancer, maybe not.

“Did ya talk ta Ryoko?”

“Yes, she’s putting things together.”

“Dat’s good.” Brigid pulled back and wiped her tears. “Ah’m gettin’ hungry. Are ya?”

“Yes”

The two of them got up and headed down to the kitchen. Emi wouldn’t likely be hungry or even up yet, and it’d be more likely for frogs to rain from the sky than for Sunset to be up anywhere near this hour of her own accord. That just left the two of them and their animals. They made a simple breakfast and sat down to eat but were interrupted by Anzhong’s phone. It played Dad’s message tone. Anzhong brought it up to his ear to listen to the message then pressed play on the read out.

//Tempest Shadow is awake.// The human wannabe voice said.

“Anzhong?”, Brigid asked worriedly. He didn’t know how she could read him so well. Then again, they have been married for a decade.

“Tempest Shadow is awake.”

Moonshine’s bar

Date: June 2nd, time: 7:00 am

*Jiraiya’s perspective*

“Shit, man, I can’t even imagine.”, Jamal said.

Jiraiya sat slumped over the bar. He didn’t have anything alcoholic. He didn’t dare, as much as he wanted to. “Ironic, I gain one grandchild just before I lose another. The universe has a fucked up sense of humor.”, he said bitterly.

Jamal patted Jiraiya on the shoulder. The bar was sparsely populated with only a few other night shift workers being there and, thus, was very quiet. As a result, they were all paying attention to Jiraiya’s story. He could feel all their eyes on him. He doesn’t have his kids’ abilities, but he was still human and could feel when he was being watched.

Jiraiya heard someone get up and walk over to him. To be polite, he sat up straight and looked the man in the eye. He was your average looking slightly overweight guy with a full beard. His clothes didn’t give much indication as to what he did. “God works in mysterious ways.”, he said as if that was supposed to comfort Jiraiya or be some profound piece of advice.

“Shut the fuck up, man.”, Jamal said angrily. “This isn’t some grand plan of God’s. This is a dying kid. Save this crap for church.”

“Well, excuse me for trying to help.”, the man said indignantly.

“You’re not helping.”, Jiraiya said bluntly.

The man huffed and went back to his seat.

Jiraiya and Jamal turned back to each other and shook their heads. Jiraiya paid his tab and left. Rush hour had begun, so the streets were packed with cars. He got back to his apartment, made some food, and collapsed into bed. His mind was filled with too many scenarios of what might happen in the coming months, and a depressing realization came to him. Sunset would likely be the only thing keeping Brigid and Anzhong from killing themselves. The girls are their world. Jiraiya can still remember what Anzhong said to Emi when she was born. “I’m going to make the world better for you.” Jiraiya grabbed his phone and called up Anzhong.

“Hello”

“Anzhong, remember, Sunset needs you, especially now.”

Anzhong was quiet for a moment as he undoubtedly heard the urgency and tinge of fear in his voice. “I know. We both know.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Jiraiya hung up, and his stomach now wished he hadn’t eaten. “Why does the universe hate my family so much?”

Anura’s room

Date: same day, time: 8:00 am

*Anura’s perspective*

Anura laid in her bed, staring up at her ceiling. She’d known Emi might die soon, but now, she absolutely was going to die, and it was only in four months. She was going to lose her best friend. Her stomach was in knots, and not even Lupa, her stuffed wolf, could ease it.

Anura got a knock at her door, and as much as she wanted to pretend she didn’t exist, she knew that her mom would get worried and come in anyways. “Yeah”

Mom opened the door and stuck her head in. “Hey, breakfast is ready.”

“I’m not hungry. My stomach doesn’t feel well.”

“Oh” Mom came in and sat on the bed. “Do you have any other symptoms?”

“I just don’t feel good. I’d like to stay in bed for a while.”

“Okay” Mom got up and left.

Anura pulled Lupa closer and turned onto her side. She closed her eyes, but it wasn’t sleep she was after. She wanted to just forget this was happening.

Some time later, Mom stuck her head back in, without knocking. “Are you feeling well enough to go over to Brigid’s?”

“No, I don’t want to give Emi whatever I have.”

“Okay” Mom left again.

Anura never felt weaker. Equestria has access to powerful magics that could cure just about everything while they were losing theirs. It wasn’t fair. They shouldn’t be magicless like this, and Emi shouldn’t be sick.

Katon family basement

Date: June 3rd, time: 11:00 pm

*Anzhong’s perspective*

“Man, I don’t even have words.”, Daiki said.

Anzhong didn’t answer that and just put his glass down on the table. They were drinking some cheap scotch that tastes more like lava than anything else. Sure, they were still kinda friends but not expensive alcohol level friends or even cheap booze and a porch level friends. It was weird. On one hand, he felt like Daiki could understand him in a way that not even Brigid could, but on the other, Daiki reminded him of the time he was the worst version of himself. Maybe that’s why he was still in contact with him.

“We do need to discuss things like Sunset’s protection detail.”, Daiki continued.

“Yes, Sunset has mentioned she’d like it removed.”

“The only person that knows she has any connection to you is currently in a hospital bed, under armed guard by both the police and us, and will soon be transferred to a cell. Unless, she passed that info along.”

“Which she likely did, and there are still Storm goons on the loose.”

“Do you believe that she’s unsafe?”

Anzhong thought about that. All they have is Sunset’s physical description, which isn’t enough to easily find her but does make an attack of opportunity possible. Though, they don’t know what her relation to the rest of them is. Sunset can’t bring weapons to school. Even a simple weighted chain got himself in trouble at school back in the day, and that was pre-Columbine. She does have her shuko, but they’re as close quarters as it gets. She does take her walk alongside other kids but lives further away than most walking kids, so there are far fewer during the start of her walk, but Storm isn’t careful enough, especially the dumb, low level goons, for the Katons to take full advantage of witnesses. Them attacking Emi at the park, with Anura right next to her and many more kids not far away, and Brigid at the college, during lunch, proves it. Sunset is a fast runner, but that means little against a gun or car, unless she can out maneuver them. Given all the fences, she could get out of sight relatively quickly, but they aren’t bulletproof shields.

“Monitor their movements. It’s too early to predict how they’re going to react. We’ll have this discussion again closer to the end of the summer.”, Anzhong finally said.

“That is a fair assessment.” Daiki downed the rest of his drink with an audible gulp and cringe from burning alcohol and slammed the glass down on the table. “I guess we’ll speak again in August.”

Daiki got up and left the basement, leaving Anzhong alone with the two glasses and bottle of bad liquor. He poured himself another glass and downed it before putting away the scotch and taking the glasses to the kitchen sink.

“What are you doing up so late?”, Anzhong asked Sunset, who stood next to the sink.

“Did you dismiss my protection detail?”, Sunset asked bluntly.

“No”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s too early. We don’t know how Storm will react, and they know what you look like. As a former general, you should understand this.”

Sunset didn’t say anything and stomped back to her room.

All the memories of a general stuffed inside the mind of a fourteen year old. That can’t be good for her.

Emi’s room

Date: June 5th, time: 10:00 am

*Emi’s perspective*

Emi sat at her desk, working on one of her books. It was an English book that had crossword games that you filled out with the provided word key along with other stuff to teach the definition of the words. She really liked the crosswords part. Puzzles are fun.

Her door opened, and Emi spun around to look at who it was. Dad walked in and up to her with a book in his hand. Emi had it drilled into her head not to leave stuff out on her floor ever since she was old enough to put away her own things because Dad wouldn’t be able to see them and could either break whatever was left out or get hurt; Mom has a habit of looking down at where her feet were gonna go, so that’s not such an issue for her. He doesn’t use his cane inside for both their safety and because he knows the layout well, and using his abilities 24/7 will cause burnout, meaning everyone needs to help keep walkways clear.

“What are you doing?”, Dad asked.

“Homework”

“I admire your dedication, but wouldn’t you prefer to spend this time relaxing?”

“Anura’s still unwell, Sunset’s not handling it well, and I’d prefer to keep my mind busy.”

“I see. Has she expressed her feelings to you?”

“No. She’s all walled up, and the only thing I could read from her is a lot of anger. She’s barely even spent any time with me.”

“I see.” Dad lifted up the book for Emi to see, but she couldn’t read the title. It’s in braille. “Would you like me to read you a story?”

“Yes, please.”, Emi said with a big grin.

Dad sat down on the floor, and Emi crawled onto his lap. The book didn’t have any pictures, and Emi couldn’t read braille or even tell if it was English or Japanese braille, but she still liked being cuddled. Dad’s not a living furnace like Mom, but cuddles are cuddles.

“What’s the book?”, Emi asked.

“Journey to The West”

“That’s the story Grandpa is named after, right?”

“No, that’s The Tale of The Gallant Jiraiya. I can read you that one another time.”

“Yes, please.”

Dad nodded and started reading. As he read, Emi heard a name that sounded familiar, Monkey King Son Goku.

“Dad, isn’t Goku an anime character?”

“Journey to The West is a very popular story, and people tend to pull from older stories when making their own. Even The Power Ponies are loosely based on an old TV show my sister used to watch. It was called Sūpāhōsuhīrō Sentai, which translates to ‘Super Horse Hero Squadron’, and yes, the name is basically in English. English was considered hip and cool back then, and I guess still kinda is. Anyway, that show was partially inspired by an old story from the Sengoku period.”

“Ooh, I wanna hear that story.”, Emi said excitedly.

Dad closed the book and set it down on the ground before starting the story. “Well, the story goes that, near the end of the Sengoku period, a daimyo and his army were chasing down a kitsune that had tried to bewitch him. The search took months, but they never found her.”

“Of course they didn’t. We’re too crafty.”, Emi said indignantly.

“Yes, we are.”, Dad said with a smile. “However, they did find another yokai, which they quickly wished they hadn’t done. It was humanoid with long, green hair that it could use to grab and crush, like an octopus; dark purple skin; a crazed smile that would even make the bravest of warriors falter; green and red eyes that constantly leaked black blood that burned away at the skin of whoever it touched; and a haunting laugh that would stay in the head of whoever heard it.”

“That sounds like the Mane-iac but a lot scarier.”

“That’s who the character’s based on. Though, her Sūpāhōsuhīrō Sentai counterpart is much closer to her original depiction. That damn laugh used to give me nightmares.”

“Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever heard you swear before. She must have been scary.”

“Very, but I can now appreciate the voice actress’ skill. Back to the story, it attacked the daimyo and his army, crushing them to death and throwing their corpses around with its hair. The carnage was only stopped by the appearance of six humanoid, horse-like yokai.”

“The Power Ponies!”

“Yes. The six horse yokai battled the green haired yokai, giving the daimyo and his army their chance to escape, but before they were out of range, the daimyo drew his bow and shot the green haired yokai, killing it. And that’s the story.”

“How, who knew a kids show could come from something so dark.”

“Jus’ wait until ya learn about da original stories Gisney movies are based on.”, Mom said.

Emi looked past Dad to see Mom in the doorway. “What do ya mean?”

“Let’s jus’ say dat wha’s considered suitable f’r children has changed a lot in da last couple hundred years. Anzhong, mind if Ah steal ‘er f’r a bit? Ah would like ta discuss something with ‘er n’ Sunset.”

Dad picked Emi up as he stood and handed her off to Mom. “I’ll finish reading you the story later.”

“Thank you” Mom took Emi and started down the hall.

“What do ya wanna talk about?”, Emi asked.

“Ah need yer opinion on somethin’.”

Sunset’s room

Date: same day, time: 11:00 am

*Sunset’s perspective*

Anzhong was with Emi, Brigid was in the green house, and Anura was home sick, just like the last two days. The house was quiet, except for Sunset’s beating of her punching bag. It wasn’t about training or exercise. She just needed something to take her anger out on. She punched and punched, even as her knuckles turned red. Not even the pain from that made her stop. What did finally get her to stop was a knock at her door.

“Sunset, c’n ya come out ‘ere?”, Brigid asked from the other side of the door.

Sunset gave herself a second to breathe before heading out. Brigid was sitting on the couch and had Emi on her knee. She patted the spot next to her, so Sunset took the seat.

“So, Ah was called- Sunset, wha’ happened ta yer hands?”, Brigid asked.

Sunset hid her hands behind her back out of reflex. “I was just punching my punching bag and over did it.”

“Dat’s an understatement. Are ya okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Okay. So, Ah was called by one a’ mo colleagues, n’ he mentioned dat Dr. Tenure is puttin’ togethe’ an expeditionary party ta try n’ solve da Bluefaun disappearance.”

“Ooh! I heard of that!”, Emi exclaimed excitedly.

“Well, I don’t.”, Sunset said.

“An entire town up in the mountains suddenly disappeared back in the seventeen hundreds. They didn’t even take their guns with them. There’s a whole subreadit dedicated to it.”

“Dat ‘bout sums it up. Dr. Tenure wants me ta come since Ah’m an anthropologist, but Ah wanted ta talk it over with you two before Ah gave mo answer.”

“You should do it!”, Emi said. “I so want to see this mystery solved. How long will you be gone?”

“Jus’ a couple days.”

“Then go. Oh, take a lot of pictures for me.”

“Okay, Ah will.”, Brigid said with a wary smile then turned to Sunset. “Now, for why Ah called ya out. Given da oddness a’ da case, Ah think dere might be a magical element to it.”

“So, you want me ta come because of my expertise in magic.”, Sunset said.

“Precisely.”

“Sounds interesting. I would like that.”

“Good. Now, Ah got somethin’ fun f’r us ta do.”

“Yay!”, Emi yelled.

Minerva’s house

Date: June 8th, time: 12:00 pm

*Minerva’s perspective*

The clock hit 12, so Minerva got up from her chair and headed up to the kitchen. Anura had, once again, said that she wasn’t feeling well, but she was always hungry by now. Minerva made enough food for them both then went to go get her up. Anura drudged out of her room and to the table. She ate her food in silence then went straight back to her room. She hadn’t left the house or showered since they got the news. Minerva was worried but didn’t know how to approach the situation. Maybe I should make her shower. She should feel better clean. She put that thought away for now and headed back down to the basement.

Surprisingly enough, or maybe not, she felt rather numb about everything. It was similar to how she felt after her parents became addicts and she became homeless. Her emotions would eventually come back and would likely come back as anger, just like they had the last times, and then guilt and sadness. Growing into adulthood in such an unstable environment clearly fucked with her ability to process strong emotions. At least she could focus.

Emi’s room

Date: same day, time: 6:00 pm

*Emi’s perspective*

Emi held Tomiju close to her as she laid in bed. She had her homework propped up against the railing of her bed. She wasn’t going to let something as trivial as being exhausted stop her from getting it done.

Mom came in and began petting Emi’s hair. “Ya know ya don’t have ta do that if ya don’t want to.”

“I’m not gonna let something as pesky as cancer stop me, and I don’t want to be behind when I prove the doctors wrong and beat this thing.”

Mom tried, and failed miserably, to hold back a grin. “Dat is da most Asian thin’ Ah think ya eve’ said.”

“Well, I am an Asian, not a B-sian.”, Emi said indignantly.

Mom slammed her forehead into the railing as she tried to stifle her laughter. Emi liked making her laugh. “Heh, okay, heh, jus’ go easy. Rest is very important for beating cancer, especially now.” Mom lifted her head back up and rubbed the part that got slammed. “Wait, where’d ya even learn dat?”

“I know, and online. Do you know when Anura’s going to get better? I miss ‘er.”

“Ah don’t know. Ah’ll check in with Minerva tomorrow. Do ya feel up ta food?”

“Not really.”

“Do ya want a cookie?”

“Yeah”

Mom bent down to retrieve the bag of cookies and CBD oil. She had mentioned something about THC, but Emi didn’t really understand it other than it helped her eat, and that’s all she cared about. Mom prepped the cookie and gave it to Emi. “We’ll save ya some food.”

Mom left, and Emi wolfed down the cookie. She tried to get back to work but fell asleep. Some hours later, she woke up, and the cookie had kicked in. She got up and helped Tomiju off the bed then headed down to the kitchen. It was dark, but she knew her own house well enough to get around. She just did what Dad did and kept one hand on something at all times it was possible.

Down in the kitchen, Emi got her stool to get the leftovers from the fridge. The docs said the cancer and chemo stunted her growth, so she wasn’t the size she should’ve been, but that didn’t pose a problem to her. She knew how to get around at her size. The microwave was on the counter, so all she needed was her stool to reach it. She pulled out the food, grabbed a fork, and sat down. She gave Tomiju bits of her food as she ate. She wasn’t able to eat much, but anything was better than nothing. She put what she didn’t eat back then headed back upstairs. She grabbed Tomiju and climbed back up her ladder and went back to sleep.

Minerva’s house

Date: June 9th, time: 8:00 am

*Brigid’s perspective*

Brigid stood on Minerva’s front step and knocked on her door. Minerva answered quickly and gave Brigid a happy smile but a confused look. “Hey, is everything okay?” Brigid raised an eyebrow at her, and Minerva shook her head. “Right, wrong question.”

“Ah’m ‘ere ta check on Anura. Ah might be able ta figure out wha’s wrong, or at least say if she needs ta see an MD.” Minerva nodded and let Brigid in. Brigid headed to Anura’s room where she was asleep in her bed. Her room was painted the same clay red as the rest of the house. Her bed was snuggled in the corner of the outside wall with her closet being close to the foot of it, and she had a desk under the window and dresser on the other side of the room.

Brigid grabbed the chair from Anura’s desk and sat down next to her bed. “Anura”, Brigid said as she gently shook her awake.

Anura slowly woke up and groggily and confusedly looked up at Brigid. “Aunt Brigid, wha’ are you doing here?”

“Ah’m ‘ere ta check on ya, as a doctor. How are ya doin’?”

“I’m fine.”

“Dat’s a lie. Ye’re barely eatin’, barely out a’ yer room, n’ yer mum’s needin’ ta force ya ta shower. Ya ain’t well. Tell me what’s wrong.”, Brigid said firmly.

“My stomach just doesn’t feel good.”

“Dat’s it? Any othe’ symptoms?”

“No”

Brigid got an idea as to what was happening but wanted to be safe and rule out a couple more lethal possibilities. She pulled her blankets back and pressed down on her appendix. “Does it hurt more when Ah press ‘ere?”

“No”, Anura said with a shake of her head.

Brigid then pressed down on Anura’s actual stomach. “Here?”

“No”

Brigid moved her hand to another spot on Anura’s abdomen. “Here?”

“No”

Brigid moved her hand again and pressed on another spot. “Here?”

“No”

Brigid pulled Anura’s blankets back up then got up and grabbed the thermometer from the bathroom. “Have ya had anythin’ ta eat or drink recently?”, she asked as she re-entered the room and retook her seat.

“No”

Brigid put the thermometer in her mouth and felt her forehead. The thermometer beeped, and Brigid took it out. It showed a temperature of 98.6, completely normal. “Ya don’t seem sick. Are ya coughin’ or sneezin’ at all?”

“No”

“Are ya feelin’ stressed ‘bout Emi’s condition?”

Anura didn’t say anything and rolled over in bed.

“She misses you, n’ ya both look like ya need each othe’.”

Anura curled up into the fetal position and remained silent.

“Please, Anura, we c’n’t jus’ hide like dis, not now.”

“I’m scared.”, Anura squeaked out.

“We all are, but we c’n’t let our fear keep us from our loved ones.”

Anura pulled her covers over her head, so Brigid took that as her cue to leave. She took the thermometer back to the bathroom, cleaned it, and put it back. Minerva sat at the dinner table, and Brigid joined her.

“How is she?”, Minerva asked.

“Stressed n’ scared. Given da lack a’ change f’r ove’ a week, Ah think ‘er stomach issues are caused by da stress a’ da situation.”

“Makes sense. What should we do?”

“Both a’ ya come ove’ f’r dinne’. Da girls need each othe’.”

Minerva nodded. “Agreed”

Anura’s room

Date: same day, time: 5:30 pm

*Anura’s perspective*

The sound of her door opening caused Anura to look over her shoulder to her visitor. Mom came inside and pulled Anura’s blankets off, causing her to curl up to try and preserve heat.

“Time to get up. We’re heading over to Brigid’s for dinner, and you need to shower.”

“No, I’m not feeling well.”

“No, you’re coming. You’re not contagious, so get up.”, Mom said softly but sternly.

Anura grabbed her blankets and covered herself back up.

“No, you’re not doing this.” Mom pulled Anura’s blankets back off and pulled her out of bed and dragged her to the bathroom.

“But Mom.”, Anura whined.

“No ‘but’s. This is for your own good.” Mom stripped them both down and got them both in. The sensitive parts of Mom’s legs were protected by a silicate covering that kept them safe from rain and debris, so she didn’t have to take them off. If they were taking a bath, that’d be a different story.

At this point, Anura knew she lost so began washing herself. Once Mom deemed them clean, she pulled them out and dried Anura off before wrapping herself in a towel.

“Go get dressed, a fresh set.”, Mom ordered.

Anura sulked back to her room and got on a clean set of clothes. Mom soon came in, completely dressed, and waited for Anura to finish getting ready. As soon as her shoes were on, Mom corralled Anura out of the house and to Aunt Brigid’s. Uncle Anzhong was in the kitchen, and Aunt Brigid was coming out of the bathroom, wearing her gardening clothes.

“Hey, Anura.”, Aunt Brigid said with a big smile. “Emi’s in ‘er room. She’d really like ta see ya.”

A mixture of emotions made Anura feel unwell again, but she was able to come to some sort of consensus. She headed upstairs and to Emi’s room. Emi and Sunset were doing a puzzle on the floor. As soon Emi saw her, she jumped up and ran to hug her. The emotions that Anura’s been feeling for the past week broke to the surface, and she sobbed uncontrollably into Emi’s shoulder as she hugged her back.

“I’ll leave you two alone.”, Sunset said as she left.

“I’m sorry. I’m so scared.”, Anura sobbed.

“I’m scared too.”, Emi said quietly. She guided Anura to the floor and petted her hair as she cried.

“I-I don’t w-want you to di-ie.”

“Well, I’m not gonna. Ah’m gonna prove those doctors wrong. I’m too stubborn ta die.”, Emi said indignantly.

“Don’t joke about this, please.”

“I’m sorry. I’ll stop.”

Sunset’s room

Date: June 11th, time: 10:00 am

*Sunset’s perspective*

Sunset laid in bed, staring up at her ceiling. She felt so helpless, even with her plan. She was so fucking angry. She couldn’t beat up what was trying to kill her sister or scar it off. “Spitfire, if there was ever a time I needed you. What would I want you to do if I were in Emi’s place?” I wouldn’t want you to lock yourself away. I’d want you to spend time with me. “Ugh” Sunset dragged her hands down her face. They were sore and inflamed from her relentless punching.

She was pulled from her moping by a call from Flash. She stared at her phone for a second or two as she decided on whether or not she wanted to answer. She decided to pick up but couldn’t keep her growl out of her voice. “Hey”

“Hey, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. What do you want?”

“Um, I was hoping we could hang out this weekend. We haven’t seen each other for a while.”

“No, I’ve got other things to do.”

Flash didn’t say anything for a while, and Sunset was about to hang up, only stopping when he spoke again. “What’s wrong? Something’s clearly bothering you.”

“I don’t wanna talk about it.”, Sunset said tersely before hanging up. She put her phone on silent and got up out of bed. Anzhong was at work. As much as he wanted to spend every moment with them, the city needed him, and they needed the money. Brigid’s with Minerva, the both of them processing everything. Sunset marched up to Emi’s room where Anura and Emi were putting together a puzzle. Sunset scooped Emi up and slung her over her shoulder.

“Hey, what gives?”, Emi said.

“It’s play time. That’s what.”, Sunset answered.

Emi started chuckling, and Sunset heard Anura get up and follow them as she carried Emi back to her room. Sunset plopped Emi down on her couch then walked over to her game collection.

“Okay, what do you wanna play?”

“A racing game.”, Emi cheered happily as Anura climbed up on the couch next to her.

Sunset picked a game, set it up, and then grabbed each of them controllers and sat down.

“Prepare to get schooled.”, Emi said once she got her controller.

Anura rolled her eyes as she was handed her controller. “We’ll see.”

“You’re still really angry.”, Emi said to Sunset.

“Remember when I told you that I don’t like feeling helpless?”

“Oh, yeah.”

Katon family backyard

Date: June 13th, time: 2:00 pm

*Brigid’s perspective*

Brigid, with sturdy gloves on, gingerly worked around and parted the thorny brambles in order to get to the blackberries. Sunset was entertaining the girls inside, and with Anura and Emi having been reunited, Brigid was feeling a bit better but still felt… bad, for lack of a better word. Blackberries are one of Emi’s favorite foods, and gardening normally made her feel better. It reminded her of her childhood, helping her family in the fields and taunting Clodagh with earthworms she’d find.

Memories of better times, both before Emi got sick and of her own childhood, brought tears to Brigid’s eyes. The pain of that kind of loss doesn’t go away, and it likes to hit at random, typically during times of quiet reflection. A smell or sound or some random little thing will trigger a memory, and Brigid would have to keep herself from crying in public, but in the solitude of her plants, she could let herself feel without someone trying to comfort her, telling her not to cry, or give her odd looks.

With a couple full bowls, Brigid cleaned herself up. She needs to be strong for the kids. She picked up the bowls and brought them into the kitchen. She took one of the bowls and headed over to Sunset’s room. After a knock and a “come in” from Sunset, Brigid brought the bowl over to Sunset’s coffee table where the girls all sat around.

“Ah thought ya lot might like some blackberries.” Brigid placed the bowl on the table, and the girls dug in.

“Thanks, Mom.”, Sunset and Emi said.

“Thanks, Aunt Brigid.”, Anura said.

Brigid gave them a smile then went back to the kitchen. She grabbed some pastry Anzhong had made earlier and a pie tin, turned on the oven, then began making the blackberries into filling. Once the filling was done and the pie was put together, Brigid popped into the oven then headed upstairs to change out of her work clothes and shower. Once she was clean and in lounging clothes, she headed back down to the kitchen, and standing with her face practically pressed up against the door of the oven was Emi.

Brigid raised an eyebrow at the situation but knew her daughter well enough to figure it out. She crept up behind her, but of course, Emi knew she was there. She looked back at her mother with a smile. Brigid smiled down at her little fox cub, picked her up, and turned the light inside the oven on.

“That looks good.”, Emi said.

“Dat’s good ‘cause Ah’m makin’ it f’r ya.”

“Yaaay”

“Ya do have ta share it.”

“Ahh, poo. Okay, I’m ready to go back to playing.”

Brigid put Emi down, and she walked back to Sunset’s room. Brigid just played on her phone for the remainder of the short time the pie had left. She pulled the pie out when the timer went off and placed it on the stove to cool. Ailbhe hopped onto the counter, and Brigid glared at her while reaching for one of the many spray bottles strategically placed around the house. Ailbhe stopped in her tracks, looked at the bottle, then up at Brigid. “Ya know Ah’ll do it.”, Brigid said in a mildly threatening tone. Ailbhe lightly swished her tail, so Brigid picked up and aimed the spray bottle. That got Ailbhe off the counter. Brigid grabbed a pot from the cupboard and used it to cover the pie. “Little turd.”

It was still early, and the girls were entertaining themselves, so Brigid decided to watch some TV until it was time to pick up Anzhong. At least, that was the idea. Just as she was getting settled in, Emi came back, followed by Tomiju, and climbed on her lap.

“Ah thought ya were playin’ with yer siste’.”

“I was, but now, I wanna be with you.”

Sunset and Anura soon also came out and sat around Brigid. That wasn’t surprising given that, as much as they love each other, they aren’t exactly friends. Brigid changed the show to something more colorful and brought Emi up to cuddle her. At least they’re being quiet. Once it hit 4:45, Brigid got up, putting Emi on her beanbag, and put the pie in the fridge then headed to the door.

“Hey, are you going shopping?”, Emi asked as Brigid got her boots on.

“No, jus’ pickin’ up yer fathe’.” Brigid headed out to the car and hurried to the prosecutor’s office before rush hour starts. Anzhong was waiting on the sidewalk, and Brigid pulled up as close to him as parking spaces would allow. She rolled down her window and stuck her head out. “Over here!”, she called out.

Kiba led Anzhong to the car, and the two of them hopped in. “How was your day?”, Anzhong asked as Brigid started driving.

“It was good. Yours?”

“The same. Chihuahua man is up to his usual antics.”

“How has he not gotten fired yet?”

“For all his huff and puff, DA Hooves has little actual bite. Other than that, I don’t know.”

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence, and once they got home, Anzhong started making dinner. The girls hadn’t moved from where Brigid left them, and it can take up to 30 minutes to get back from the prosecutor’s office during rush hour. Bette’ dan ‘em burnin’ da house down. Brigid pulled the pie out of the fridge to warm up, spending too long trying to find a spot it’d be safe from kid, cat, dog, and blind adult. “If it’s safe from cat, it’s not safe from kid. If it’s safe from kid, it’s not safe from blind adult. If it’s safe from blind adult, it’s not safe from dog.”, she mumbled to herself. She ultimately put it on the part of the counter Anzhong used the least and put the pot back over it then knocked on it to let Anzhong know it was there. He nodded, so Brigid went to sit with the girls. Ailbhe had taken her spot on the couch, so Brigid scooped her up and retook her seat, and Emi climbed back up onto Brigid’s lap.

After about an hour, it was time for dinner, and Minerva had come over. It was the usual affair, meat, vegetables, and tofu. Kitsunes apparently have a thing for tofu.

“Blackberry pie! Blackberry pie!”, Emi chanted as the adults took the plates to the sink.

“Give us a minute.”, Brigid said. They got the plates soaking, then Brigid got the pie plated. “Who wants deirs heated?”

“I do!”, Emi said excitedly.

“Sure”, Sunset said tiredly.

“I’m good with room temp.”, Anura said.

Both Anzhong and Minerva just shrugged their shoulders.

“And he complains about me not bein’ picky enough.”, Brigid said under her breath as she handed Anura, Minerva, and Anzhong their slices and heated up Emi’s, Sunset’s, and her own.

“Well, you rarely cook, so I have to deal with your lack of pickiness more often.”, Anzhong countered.

“Damn fox ears.” Brigid got done heating up the pies and handing them out and retook her seat at the head of the table, next to Emi and Anura. Once she picked up her fork, everyone began eating with Emi practically smashing her face into her slice. “Emi, y’re makin’ a mess.” Brigid grabbed a napkin and Emi’s face and began cleaning her up. As she did so, she got a good look at the now slender face that used to be plump and squishy and the dark bags under her eyes. No matter what they did or what they fed her, Emi just never had the same energy or liveliness she once did. Yet, despite all that, her eyes still shone their radiant gold, filled with love and boundless excitement, and Brigid saw her baby girl, her brave little girl with an inconquerable fighting spirit. She’s had nightmares where those golden eyes no longer shined, and they were coming true.

“Mom, you’re crying.”

Brigid wiped the forming tears from her eyes. “Eh, so Ah am.” As much as she wanted to play it off, the emotions that had been building finally came out, and Brigid pulled Emi in closely and began sobbing uncontrollably. Minerva and Anura jumped up and hugged Brigid. Brigid heard Sunset heaving through her teeth and looked up to see her, head down on the table and shaking. “Sunset, come ‘ere.”

Sunset pulled herself out of her seat, her head still down, and joined in the hug. Anzhong got up and came over as well, wrapping his little arms around them. Tears were coming out from under his glasses. Brigid’s arms were already full with their daughters, so the best she could do for him was nuzzle his neck. Dis isn’t right. No child deserves dis. Brigid couldn’t help but think of Cara and Roisin and how scared they must’ve been. How scared must Emi be?

Canterlot City Jail

Date: June 14th, time: 10:00 am

*Tempest’s perspective*

Tempest laid in her bed, dressed in the finest orange jump the city of Canterlot offered. She was pissed. There was a guard near the exit of the cell block that Tempest wished she could rip the head off of. If only she had both her arms, but she’s still waiting for her replacement. Getting new prosthetics is slow as fuck.

Tempest was pulled out of her daydreaming of brutally ripping up everyone here by a guard tapping on her cell door. “Your lawyer’s here ta see ya. Stand against the wall with your hands above your head.”, the guard said.

“Hand, singular.”, Tempest said while waving her stump at him. The guard gave her an unamused look. Tempest climbed out of bed and stood against the back wall with her arms above her head. The guard came in and put the Hobble Restraint Device on her. Since she was missing an arm, handcuffs won’t work on her. The Hobble Restraint Device works by chaining her arms to a belt secured around her waist. Her right arm’s secured by cuffing her above the elbow.

The guard led her out of the cell block and to a room that looked like your standard police interview or interrogation room. Tempest’s lawyer, Hank Lawscroll, sat on the other side of the table. He was a boring looking white man with purple hair and dark purple eyes. He has no direct affiliation to Storm, but still, he lacked any sort of moral compass. He didn’t get into law for any self-righteous crap. He has an ego large enough to suffocate him in this room if it had physical form, and he always had to prove to everybody that he was right. Even with his massive ego, he’s highly intelligent, especially in the self-preservation department. Those traits came together to create a lawyer that would stoop to any low to win, which is exactly what she needed now.

The guard sat Tempest down in the chair and chained her to the table via the metal loop attached to her belt. The two of them were left alone and only had cameras with no sound watching them. They could talk about anything, and whatever they said, the state couldn’t legally know it.

“Is Eric alive?”, Tempest immediately asked.

“No, the explosion lodged some debris into his neck. He bled out in the alley.”

“Shit, he’s not getting me out of here. What do we do from here?”

“Well, the only thing they have connecting you to Eric is that you were there when the bomb went off. That’s not enough to put you away.”

“Not quite, a few months ago, I was sent out to abduct a little girl, the daughter of a local prosecutor. I didn’t manage to get her, and there was another girl with her and her mother. All three of them could identify me and tell the jury what I did.”

Hank narrowed his eyes at Tempest. “You’re an idiot.”

“I didn’t exactly anticipate us getting bombed, none of us did.”, Tempest said with a growl.

“Whatever.”, Hank said dismissively. “Look, your men have either been arrested, put in the hospital, run for the hills, or gone off and formed smaller street gangs. Unless the store has CCTV, your best bet is to deny any affiliation with Storm, deny trying to kidnap the kid, and wait this out. Once you’re found innocent, you can go do whatever you want, but for now, don’t talk to anyone other than me. That includes any of your old goons. And keep your violent machinations to yourself.”

“Alright, I can do that.”

“I highly doubt that.”, he said with a sneer.

“You’re lucky I’m handcuffed.”

“My point exactly.” Hank stood up, walked to the door, and pounded loudly on it. “We’re done here.”

Hank was let out, and then a guard came to take Tempest back to her cell. As soon as I get out of here, people are going to end up dead.

Bargain-mart

Date: June 17th, time: 9:15 am

*Sunset’s perspective*

Sunset drudged after Brigid as she entered the Bargain-mart. I should not be up this early. It’s summer. She’d been woken up a couple hours earlier and had to come with Brigid as she drove Anzhong to work. At least Brigid wasn’t ambling around the store. She took them straight to the camping section.

“What are we even here for?”, Sunset asked tiredly, wishing she was home, in bed.

“Ah figured we should get a bigge’ tent since we’ll be spendin’ more time in it n’ won’t be hikin’, n’ we’re low on bullets.”

“And this involves me because?”

“Sigh, Ah jus’ figured y’d like ta have some input inta da tent.”

“It’s a tent. It’s metal, plastic, and cloth meant ta keep the hot air in and the cold air out. I don’t care about the color.”

“Ah also plan on gettin’ us some cots. Ah’d assume dat’s somethin’ y’d want ta have input in.”

“Fiiine”

Brigid grabbed a six person tent, meaning it could hold six people if they all played human tetris and had zero fucks to give about personal space. She put in the cart, and they started looking at cots only to realize Brigid would likely have to buy hers online. None of them were long enough, and the sturdiest ones were only graded for 200 lbs. Would an extra forty cause it to instantly collapse or just shorten its life expectancy?

“Y’d think with this place’s average clientele that they would carry stuff rated for three hundred pounds.”, Sunset commented.

“Do ya think dat people dat heavy would even go campin’?”

“Good point.” Thanks to her more average proportions, Sunset was able to pick out a suitable one for her. “Anything else?”

“Ya want anythin’ ta make it easier?”

“Maybe some camping chairs.”

“Okay”

They looked at the camping chairs, and Sunset found one that was called a zero gravity chair. What, is it weightless? Sunset looked over the packaging and saw that it was a reclining type chair that used the person’s own weight to do so, and it could support up to three hundred pounds.

“Hey, Mom, look at this.”

Brigid looked at what Sunset held and nodded approvingly. “Yeah, dat looks good.” She added a couple to the cart then turned back to Sunset. “Anythin’ else?”

“I can’t think of anything.”

“Okay, let’s get goin’ den. We c’n always come back if we need ta.”

With that, they grabbed some bullets then headed to check out and left. When they got home, Brigid put their new camping stuff up in the rafters with all the other stuff of similar nature. They headed inside, and Brigid headed downstairs with the bullets. Sunset was too awake to go back to sleep but too tired to really do anything. It was one of the most annoying states to be in. You were too tired to do anything productive but also not tired enough to remedy the situation. She went to her room, laid on her couch, and turned on the TV. She watched without any real interest, just using it to keep her mind occupied as she waited to be tired enough to go back to bed. Even with the TV, her mind wandered to places she really wished it didn’t. Nobody ever warned me how much being a big sister could hurt.

Katon family garage

Date: June 28th, time: 9:00 pm

*Brigid’s perspective*

Brigid stood at the boot of the car, surrounded by all the stuff they needed to take with them. On top of their camping stuff, they also had stuff that’d be needed for the investigation. It wasn’t so much that it all wouldn’t easily fit. She did get this car intending on having a large family. The problem was trying to make sure the sensitive equipment wouldn’t get damaged on the drive up the mountain back roads.

“Whatcha doin’?”, Emi asked.

Brigid leaned around the car to see her. “N’ wha’ are ya doin’ out ‘ere?”

“I want to spend time with you.”

“Okay, come ‘ere.”

Emi scurried over and looked over all the stuff. “What’s this?”

“Stuff for da trip.”

“Do you think da people a’ Bluefaun really ran off ta make a whole new underground civilization and are now mole people?”

“Ah find dat very unlikely.”

“Do you think it had anything to do with Equestria?”

“Maybe, Ah really don’t know though. It could’ve been jus’ about anythin’.”

“What will happen if you do figure out what happened?”

“Ah dunno, probably become famous. Ah might even be able ta write a book. But in all likelihood, we won’t figure it out. It’s been three hundred years.”

“Oh”

“Yeah. Now, it’s gettin’ late. Go ta bed.”

Emi grumbled her annoyance but headed off. That left Brigid alone to get back to sorting out the car.