A Shadow of Myself

Charlotte Martinez got out of the jeep and stood aside as three armed guards kept weapons trained on what looked like an earth pony filly with a red mane. She thought it was excessive. A Dreamwarden contract held Bursa. That should be enough.

"Why an earth pony filly?" she asked the monster.

The filly glared at her from the door of the jeep. "There's less of me at the moment, so something small with four limbs instead of six makes up for my missing stump of a leg."

Charlotte held up a wing. "Before you get out, do you think you could shift to a unicorn and one that isn't black?"

"I'm not here to perform tricks for you," Bursa growled with a surprisingly menacing voice for a filly.

"Well…I am giving you over as property, and the fact you're currently black-furred makes that feel problematic," Charlotte explained. "Being an earth pony might make it worse. Plus, you look like you are trying too hard to be edgy."

Bursa glared harder at her but cracked a grin. "I think I'll keep this form."

Charlotte rolled her eyes as she turned towards the mansion. "Whatever. Here comes my dear twin now."

Arachne approached them, unescorted, wearing a business suit. Her sister waved a wing at them in an annoyed fashion. "Let's get this over with. I don't need the guards. The thing isn't going to attack me. If it somehow managed to break its contract to do so, it happens to be a bug, and it would learn instantly I'm the last pony a bug wants to attack."

"I don't think you are allowed to use your bug-controlling powers on her," Charlotte said as her sister reached them.

"I can in defense. The wardens can't fuss about me defending myself," Arachne replied as she stopped beside her. She looked Bursa over and used her wing to pull her vape pen out of her suit pocket as she did.

Arachne took a draw from her vape and let it out. Charlotte took a few steps back– she was from Skytree, so she had spent time in hookah bars and partaken while there, but she preferred to limit her exposure to that stuff to those places.

"Well, I suppose the form of a filly works well enough," Arachne said after a few seconds. "Do you think you can age yourself up to preteen or young teen? You'll be spending time with my daughter, who is a preteen, and it would be easier if she weren't having to physically look down on you."

"You're putting her with Madison?!" Charlotte growled. "What the hell, Abigail!"

Arachne gave her a cross look. "Pulling my birth name out and not even using Abby, how quaint. A Dreamwarden contract holds the beast; she's no danger to my daughter. Madison's bodyguards tend to chafe her. You and I both know how grating it was to have them following us around everywhere growing up. I'm not leaving my daughter unguarded, and I needed something for this thing to do."

Charlotte looked her over. "How stiff a contract did the Marshmallow write up for you? I figured you'd try to make maximum use out of Bursa."

"The Marshmallow's lawyers draw those contracts up, not her. She just binds it. Rebecca wouldn't know what wording to use," Arachne scoffed. "Anyway, it's a very stiff contract, and to dissuade me from trying to find loopholes, they had Moses visit me."

"That colt that Mom used to visit that they had locked up in the ward for dangerous magic outside of town?" Charlotte asked in confusion.

"That was years ago; he's a grown stallion now," Arachne sighed. She then took another draw of her vape before continuing. "He's a very nervous fellow, a lot like Mom. Also, just like Mom, he can be very intimidating despite his nervous demeanor. He's also the guy they got to replace her."

Charlotte resisted the urge to laugh. "Someone intimidated you? I've got to meet this guy."

Arachne shrugged as if uncomfortable. "I'm sure the thought of someone putting me in my place just makes you giddy with joy, little sis, but he's unnatural. If you want to meet him, he runs a mortuary on the edge of town. Go visit, have fun. Be sure to scare him. I'm sure the experience will be all the better for it."

"When are you ever going to stop bragging about how Mama was eager to kick your nasty flank out of her womb half a minute before me?" Charlotte asked, still amused that someone had made her twin uneasy. "I might go visit him, just to give him my congratulations. I won't try to scare the guy. I'm not a bully, unlike someone I won't name."

Her sister's mouth quivered, and Charlotte knew Arachne was resisting a sneer. "But don't mistake me. I would love to mutilate this bug. Not only to figure out how it ticks but also because it got Mom trapped in another universe. You might think I don't care about that, but I care about my parents, unlike somepony I won't name who who took off to join the army and changed her last name to get away from us."

"You're so close to me mauling you," Charlotte growled.

"Oh, the big mean soldier is going to attack me; whatever shall I do?" Arachne said dramatically and batted her styled eyelashes. "Get over yourself. You might be military, but you were never good enough to take me in a fight, and you never will be."

Charlotte spread her wings threateningly. "I took you down plenty of times. You must have gotten amnesia because I walloped you so hard."

"I'm sensing some sibling rivalry between my captors. This is fun to watch," Bursa said. She had shifted form to look a little older sometime while they were talking.

Charlotte gave the bug a dirty look but turned that look back at her sister. "Don't you ever accuse me of not caring about the family again. Just because I didn't want to be in their shadow doesn't mean I don't love my family…even you. I know Mama, Tempest, and Moon must be worried sick about Mom, but I have faith that Grandmare will figure out how to get Mom home. Grandmare always figures something out. She'll get everyone home."

Arachne took another draw from her vape then put her vape pen away. "Whatever. I was fine with them being off-world. It gave me space to stretch my wings with them gone, something even you could appreciate, but I don't want either of them to end up lost or dead. I could care less about Grandmare's little doppelganger or the rest. Let them all die; I don't care. Just as long as Mom is safe."

"How do you sleep with yourself each day?" Charlotte asked with a shake of her head.

"I sleep with my husband, something you wouldn't understand, little sis," Arachne said scornfully. Arachne looked at Bursa. "Come along, insect—time to introduce you to my daughter. The job is simple– keep her company, keep her out of my mane while I'm working, and keep her safe. I'm sure even a second-rate shapeshifter can manage that. Moses says he will have the information you want within a few days. Don't worry about that."

Bursa finally left the jeep. "I hope she's more charming than you two. I'm coming."

Madison sat in her room, carefully dripping some water from a syringe into her injured squirrel's mouth. Well, it wasn't her squirrel, it was a wild animal, but she was still taking care of it until its leg healed. She was glad her dad was letting her do this. Her mom probably didn't know she was tending a wild animal since she still hadn't gotten to tell her mom her cutie mark story, but her mom probably wouldn't mind her keeping it. Her mom was an important and busy mare; she didn't have time to worry about Madison tending a squirrel.

She set the syringe down. "There you go. We need to make sure you are getting plenty of food and water while you're healing. I don't want you to lose too much weight before winter. My book said it should be better in a few weeks as long as you keep eating and drinking."

The squirrel just lay there. He wasn't resistant to her efforts to feed him, but there was no sign he understood her. It wasn't like her mom and bugs. Although talking to bugs might be a stretch for what her mom did. What her mom did was more like overriding the insects' and arachnids' tiny little brains. Some of the spiders seemed to show her mom genuine affection, or at least, what counted for love from a spider, but it wasn't like Miss Fluttershy and animals. She felt a slight twang of envy thinking about what Miss Fluttershy could do. Still, animals did seem more trusting of her compared to how they responded to most other people, so she couldn't complain.

Her mom said she was getting a present today. It was probably going to be a spider. Her mom's first thought when it came to animals was always spiders. She didn't mind a spider, but she have liked a puppy, a kitten, a bird, or something exotic like a ferret or a sugar glider better. She always secretly wanted a sugar glider. They were sooo cute! They were costly pets and required a lot of dedication to take care of, but her parents were wealthy, and she had a cutie mark for taking care of animals. Maybe if she thought of the right way to plead her case, they would get her one. Her mom couldn't have her walking around with any ordinary pet. Madison was the daughter of Arachne, granddaughter of Phobia Remedy, great-granddaughter of Sunset Blessing, the grand-niece of Wild Growth, the grand-niece of the current Mistress of Wabash Manor, and she was also supposedly the descendent of southern aristocrats, and the triple-great-granddaughter of the first female mayor in Arkansas (whatever that last one was worth); she could not be seen as common, and her pets should reflect that.

It sounded like an excellent argument to convince her mom. Her last report card was straight A's again; maybe she should bring that up. No, straight A's was an expectation. Her mom would say she shouldn't get a reward for maintaining minimum expectations. It was best not to mention school at all. Her mom would say a pet like that would take away time from her studies. If she didn't make at least salutatorian when she graduated high school, her mom would be…displeased.

There was a knock at her door, and she did a quick hop. She looked at the tiny squirrel and cursed to herself. Shit! Her mom was going to see it. Her mom was going to tell her to get rid of it!

"Coming!" she yelled right before pulling a sheet from her bed to drape over the squirrel. That should be alright, she hoped.

With that done, she went to her door, straightened out her mane, adjusted her posture, and opened the door.

Her mom was standing there with an unfamiliar earth pony filly behind her.

"What was that commotion, and did I hear you curse?" her mom asked, giving her a raised eyebrow.

Madison winced. She didn't think she had said that word out loud. "No…it was nothing."

Her mom snorted. "That second part of the question was rhetorical, dear. My hearing is impeccable. I don't care if you use such language in private, but watch random tongue slips. Your speaking reflects on me, and I don't want people to hear you say such words. A lady should always have full control of her tongue. Do I make myself clear?"

Madison bowed her head. "Yes, mom, ma'am."

Her mom eyed the sheet. "Oh, and that's just the most lazy way of hiding something I have ever seen." She sniffed. "I don't smell any cocaine or anything similar, so I don't care what it is. You should be smarter than to think hiding something that way would work. I won't try to find out what it is, be it alcohol, porn, vape, marijuana, or whatever else along that line you're scared of me seeing under that sheet. Let your father worry about such tiresome contraband. At least you're showing some nerve. You could stand to develop a tiny rebellious streak within limits. You're far too docile a filly. Our tribe is not docile, and docile people get dominated."

Madison took a deep breath and smiled, pointing a wing at the filly behind her mother. "Um…who is she?"

"This is Bursa," her mom announced, stepping aside. "She's your present."

Madison gaped at the pair. "You can't give me a pony for a present!"

Her mom snorted again. "I'll have you know that a century ago, every little girl wanted a pony for a present, and don't tell me what I can and cannot do. Bursa isn't a pony anyway. She's my property, and I'm giving her to you to be your new playmate and bodyguard."

This was confusing."Property? Bodyguard? Her? Is she an android or something?"

"Or something," her mom muttered. She glared at Bursa. "Bursa, you're to treat my daughter nicely and keep her safe. My contract makes it clear I can rip you apart if you harm anyone in my household, so mind yours and don't cross me."

"I'm not going to hurt the filly," Bursa said with a roll of her eyes. "I don't hurt kids."

Her mom smiled and nodded. "Good." She then looked back at Madison. "Now, I have to go attend to some business that I had to neglect to give you your present. Bursa can sleep in the room across the hall when you go to bed. I'll be attending your cute-ceañera tonight."

Madison wanted to argue more that she couldn't get a pony as a gift, but she knew a dismissal when she heard one, and her mom would get angry if she were kept away from work too long. "Alright. Well, um, thank you for the gift. I love you."

Her mom gave her a light kiss on the head. "I love you too and don't say, um. It makes you sound stupid. I'll see you tonight."

As her mom turned to go, she stopped and took a long sniff. "I recognize that smell now. Young mare, put that thing in a cage! It could be rabid. Use your head!"

And with that said, her mom walked away.

"Your mom's a real charmer," Bursa said once Madison's mom was out of earshot.

Madison sighed before walking over to the sheet and removing it from the squirrel. She double-checked to see if the small animal was okay. It had fallen asleep but seemed okay.

"At least she let me keep my squirrel," she said, then glanced back at Bursa. "So…are you really not a pony, or was she just saying that?"

"I'm not a pony. I'm a shapeshifting insect called a changeling," Bursa answered, watching her intently for a reaction.

Madison sat down and groaned. "A bug. Of course, my mom got me a bug! It's always bugs with her!"

Bursa blinked. "You believe me– I can tell. You're taking the news well."

Madison gave a small flap of her wings. "My mom is into some weird sh- weird stuff, and my extended family is a freak show. I believe it. I mean, my great-great-aunt had some younger version of herself walking around during her funeral that got murdered by care bears with guns a short while back, and I was having a conversation with a bipedal elephant and some other time-displaced family members the same day it happened like it was just normal. In this family, you just accept whatever weird thing comes along and keep your mouth shut. They should rename us the Addams family."

Bursa entered the room and shut the door. "I think I met some of them. The elephant is really annoying, and that Charlotte girl is more annoying than anybody. The centaur girl is okay, I guess, and your grandma."

"You met all of them in Equestria?" Madison asked.

"Technically, we were all on a mission together," Bursa said. "I shouldn't talk about it, especially not with a filly."

Madison looked her new bodyguard over. "How old are you? You know, a grown adult pretending to be a filly to spend time with another filly is creepy. I think it might be a crime."

Bursa walked over and nudged the squirrel. The small animal chittered in fear, and Bursa withdrew her hoof.

"Not sure," Bursa answered. "I hope to find out soon if that annoying fat pegasus, The Marshmallow, keeps up her end of the deal and finds out for me."

Madison grinned. "I like her. She visits me sometimes in my dreams. She says she can tell when a filly needs a friend. She turns into a filly and plays with me and talks to me about stuff." She looked down, and her smile faded. "It gets lonely here. I used to have Christine; she's like my second or third cousin…I think…she's my mom's cousin, but my age, so whatever that is for me. Now she's over a thousand miles away."

She kicked at her bed. "Now my mom decides to pity me by getting me a fake filly friend to act as a bodyguard. Thanks, Mom. Wish she had gotten me a sugar glider."

Bursa came over and looked around. "She loves you, I can tell, even if she's bad at it, and you love her. I'm glad. I thought I was going to be starving here when I saw her. I don't take it directly. Chrysalis thinks I'm stupid and weak for not doing that, but I can feed off the crumbs just by being nearby."

Madison shivered. "You eat love?"

"Yeah," Bursa said, looking again at the squirrel. "But I don't steal it from you. I could, but I don't. I've hurt ponies before, but not like that. That feels too personal. Wounds are more basic, more normal. I'm not smart. I can't explain it. I just don't want to hurt people that way. Even killing seems nicer. I'd rather be hungry."

Madison looked slant-eyed at her. "You know, if you were saying all that to a kid from any normal family, they'd be freaked out. I still wish I'd gotten a sugar glider instead; no offense. I shouldn't say that. Grandma said that is telling people they don't have a right to be offended when they have every right, just because you don't want them to be. I'm sorry."

Bursa chuckled. "You're nicer than your mom. What's a sugar glider? Maybe I can be one."

Madison's eyes went wide. "You can turn into a sugar glider and be my sugar glider?"

The shape-changer got close to her and whispered conspiratorially. "If you love sugar gliders that much, I'll gladly do it– free buffet for me, and I can keep close to you without being so obvious you've got a bodyguard. Win-win all-around."

Madison practically dragged Bursa to her computer. "I've got videos!"