Shadows Over CHS

Sunset Shimmer

The rest of the day continued much like the morning did. Things were quiet, almost unnervingly so, and she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something about the school's atmosphere that she was missing. Even the rugby players were keeping their heads down. Whenever she did catch sight of them, she couldn't help but notice they were uneasy, and almost at each other's throats.

Before the start of her second to last class of the day, Sunset took a chance to check MyStable on her phone. If she couldn't glean anything from hallway chatter, eavesdropping, or from Snips and Snails, it was a decent fallback option for intel gathering. That was when she came to the discovery that there was another incident suspected to be related to the attack at Crystal Prep. Apparently someone had been attacked and torn apart in the middle of committing an undisclosed crime, and the media quoted a cop commenting, "No person or animal could have done this..." Somehow, she didn't imagine that the police intended for that to be heard by a member of the press.

It was in the middle of that class that Sunset received a surprising email. Snips and Snails finally turned up some leads regarding previous parties. They'd gotten the names of four girls who had been to 'parties' run by Score's gang last year: Allie Embic, Shine Song, Silver Script, and Party Thyme. They were names that Sunset recognised from past years, but now that she thought about it, she hadn't seen or heard about any of them in a while. Given Snails' findings, it made sense. All of the girls listed had transferred to different schools elsewhere in the district.

Shine and Thyme had both been pretty social students, but rather unremarkable. The former was a member of the school choir, while the latter had been the head of the school baking club. Allie and Silver, on the other hand, had been competitors for the highest chemistry scores in the school, and had been on Sunset's observation list until they transferred out suddenly last year. Hell, Allie Embic was a name she recognised from back home, belonging to an alchemist she'd gone to Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns with.

Interestingly, Snails had used enough forethought to give her the email addresses for three of the four girls. He couldn't get the last one, but only because Allie told him that Silver Script was currently in a psychiatric hospital, and didn't want any of the negativity of CHS to risk ruining what progress she'd made. It was bad enough that those animals had done this to numerous girls, but how many of them had suffered enough psychological damage that they had to be admitted to a mental health facility? It was possible that some might have been even worse off than Silver—some that might have killed themselves.

I refuse to recognise Score's group as a school team any longer, and by tomorrow, nobody at Canterlot High School will.

Between classes, she sent an anonymous email to the three. Rather than name any one of them in the subject line, however, she remembered what Micro Chips had told her about sending out mass emails. Unless you wanted everyone to know who had received an email, use the 'Blind carbon copy' feature. So, out of respect for the privacy of the three girls, she set the account's own email address as the primary recipient, and filled the provided email addresses into the Bcc field.

To: CHSTorchOfJustice@cantermail.net
Subject: Victims of CHS Rugby Team

You do not know me, but I know of your plight. The rugby team of Canterlot High has victimised several young women at parties over recent years, and it is high time that they are stopped. You, like many, may never have gotten justice for what they did to you. I have, however acquired evidence implicating the team in a conspiracy to cover up their actions and silence someone following their most recent victim publicly accusing them of sexual assault. It is the sort of evidence that the police cannot ignore. This evidence will be disseminated to the school, the PTA, the press, and the police later tonight, but in order to emphasise that this is a repeated pattern of behaviour, I wish to include the names of other victims. Principal Celestia will have no choice but to expel their group, and Score's father cannot save them this time. If I have your permission—if you will stand alongside their newest victim—you will be named a previous victim of this group in the email, and more victims may be willing to come forward.

It is time you all see justice.

The final class of the day went by with no sign of Jinx Charm. It was probably for the best, since the gossip mongers in the ladies' locker room were already speculating about Friday and her absence. Most of it was wild speculation, although a fashionista—Rarity, Sunset remembered her name was—was probably the closest in her guess... that the appearance of police on Friday was related to the blow-up in the cafeteria on Wednesday.

"If what the poor dear claimed in the cafeteria was true," the fair-skinned young woman had said, "then that's probably related to why the police showed up on Friday. If so... I so owe her an apology."

That was certainly true; the exchange between the two that first day of school happened right in front of her, although it wasn't the most heinous thing slung at the girl. Honestly, it was sort of tame compared to all the rumours and sexual harassment. Besides, Rarity wasn't exactly difficult to guide around by the nose in the first place. Her entire friend group fell apart after the Freshman Fair with just a few spoofed texts, emails, and misdirection.

An errant thought kept flitting back to the forefront of her mind as she drove home to drop off most of her things. What was the reason I broke their group up for in the first place? Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Apple... jack. She was sure that's what that name was. It couldn't have just been because their group ignored the rigid clique system Sunset had decided to enforce. Of the five of them, three were stand-outs among the community, and popular within their own rights. Not only could they prop each other up while together, but they could easily unite the school if they put their minds together. Besides, Rarity served as actual competition for the title Princess of the Fall Formal. Why was I even so hung up on that in the first place? Princess of a popularity contest was a far cry from being an alicorn princess.

Princess Celestia said that I should take responsibility and make amends, and if there's something I'm responsible for... it's that.

Sugarcube Corner was the go-to after school hangout for Canterlot High students. Prices were good, and the food was even better. Even in her Queen Bitch role, Sunset couldn't deny that the Cakes made incredible baked goods. For all the trouble she caused at the school, or even some of their part-timers, she never involved their business in any of her schemes.

Perched in a booth furthest from the entrance, she was mostly out of sight, but still able to track the comings and goings in the café. Between the chocolate shake she ordered, and the email she had to send out, she had no shortage of things to do while she waited for Flash. Although homework was something she wasn't ignoring, it was hardly the most pressing matter with everything that had started up.

By Celestia, if that isn't a strange thought. Looking at her academics as something she could put aside was something entirely foreign to the former pony. At CSGU, and again for the first five years spent in the human world, Sunset had treated her academic excellence as an extension of her 'place at the top'. She wanted to show everypony, and then later everybody, that she was at the top of the food chain socially and academically. Even if she didn't see herself fall under the geek, nerd, or bookworm category, her knowledge and studies had been a big part of her life. Even if she was trying to fix what she broke with her experiment, it didn't feel right to put it all on the back-burner.

Being a better pony was hard.

By the time five thirty rolled around, Sunset received the emails she'd been expecting. The first two, from Shine Song and Allie Embic, consented to being named in her killing blow against Score's group. Party Thyme's email demanded she be left alone and not be contacted again over the matter. Finally, Micro Chips sent her a list of email addresses for her to send her exposé to. After plugging the entire list into the Bcc field, alongside some news media tip-off addresses, Sunset gave the email one final look-over.

To: CHSTorchOfJustice@cantermail.net
Subject: Crimes of the Canterlot High Rugby Team

It has come to my attention that, in recent years, Canterlot High has become host to something cancerous. It is no longer a safe place for young women, if the growing numbers of female students transferring away is any indicator—six last year, four the year prior, and only two the year before that. One could blame drama, or the division rife through the school, and while that may be a compounding factor, it is not the root of the problem. No, that seat of honour goes to the CHS rape rugby team.

Under invitation to exclusive, hushed up parties so secret that even the nosiest CHS student body members can barely verify the existence of, young women—some of whom lack any sort of support in their lives—are lured in. Oft they are met with promises that they won't be the only girls there, only to find the opposite true. They are then drugged, sexually assaulted, cleaned, and sent home. If they try to speak out, they are gaslit, discredited, or threatened with photographs and/or violence.

These animals do what they do because they see themselves as untouchable. The team captain, Score, is the son of one Lt. Even Playing Field of the Canterlot PD. If they are close to getting caught, dearest daddy makes all the problems go away. After all, who better to protect the scum of the earth from the police than an oath-breaking police officer?

That is what has been happening with their most recent victim, Jinx Charm. On the first day of school, they set out several rumours inferring her to be sexually promiscuous. When she wasn't immediately cowed into silence, when she publicly accused the team of what they had done, they left her a heinous, disgusting threat of further harm and exposure.

Jinx is not their only victim. Finders contracted through a third party have uncovered four victims from the previous year. Two of them, Shine Song and Allie Embic, both former CHS students, have consented to being named. One wished to be left alone, and the last could not be reached. Given her situation, she can hardly be blamed. Some of these victims no longer attend CHS, but it is doubtful that they were the only ones. How many remain quiet, afraid to speak out?

Don't take my word for it. Enclosed in this email is an audio recording from Friday afternoon following the involvement of the police. In it you will hear confirmation of the existence of explicit pictures having been taken of the victim, the identity of the individual responsible for leaving threats of harm and exposure, and various instances of criminal conspiracy implicating not only the members of this group of individuals, but a police lieutenant as well.

Before the recording device failed, as indicated by the end of the recording, it is worth noting that one of the involved parties stated that they could 'make it all go away'. While it is only speculation on my part, rumour has it that Ms. Charm was attacked on Saturday night, and has not been seen by her peers since then. Given all that has happened thus far, is it so far a stretch to assume that they attempted to make good on their threat?

How, then, can these animals be allowed to remain at CHS, and in the CPD? How can they be allowed to walk free? It is my assertion that they can't. I am passing the torch of justice to all of you now. If you or somebody you know has been victimised by the rugby team, do not be intimidated away from seeking help. Talk to the police if you can, but if that is too much too soon, bring your plight to a teacher, your guidance counsellor, or a member of administrative staff that you trust.

Make being called a Wondercolt something to be proud of once more.

Rather than immediately send the email out, Sunset thought it better to make it appear that she was otherwise occupied. Although she knew it to be the right thing to do, a layer of plausible deniability wouldn't hurt. If people knew for certain she was the one to send out the email, they might begin to assume that this was some sort of stunt to remove someone that had slighted her, and question the veracity. That was what led her to schedule the email to send out ten minutes from now, and it was why her own personal email address would be receiving a copy.

Putting away her laptop, she cast a glance at the young woman at the register. Except for her uniform and her eyes, Pinkie Pie certainly lived up to her name. She was just as lively as her pink locks were curly, even when working. It was almost as if she didn't care that her closest friends since middle school were not a part of her life any longer. Again, that feeling of guilt, and the desire to fix her wrongs flared up.

It wouldn't be long until the rush kicked in, and Sugar Cube Corner switched over to a more restaurant-style service, with Mrs. Cake at the till while Pinkie acted the role of the waitress, collecting orders from groups or newcomers. That'd be the perfect opportunity to not only put out a tip, but also slip her a little note. Fetching a pen and a scrap of paper from her bag, Sunset quickly penned out a message.

Have you ever thought about how suspicious it was that your friend group broke up like it did? Have you ever thought there had to be something more to it? Would Fluttershy of all people really ask for a raucous party for her shelter's fundraiser? What would prevent Rarity from volunteering her help in decorating at all of those school functions? What sort of break-up in communication could convince Applejack and Rainbow Dash both that the other cancelled for the bake sale? Take this as a tip to take a closer look at everything. Someone wanted you all apart; it's just a matter of looking at how they did it and why they did it, and the truth should be in your hands. It's not too late to take back what you've lost.

At first glance, the note was merely some advice in order to get the girl talking to her friends once more. However there were several faint pen marks on the page that at first glance merely seemed to be accidental, until one noticed that they were all beneath letters. Sunset knew she needed to make it right, but coming right out and admitting fault might just come off as some cruel joke intended to cause more drama. It would result in the opposite of what she intended.

That was where the hidden message came in. If Pinkie got everyone talking, and showed them the note, they might see the obvious answer to the question of "Who did it?" highlighted by the tip in your hands. With an even closer look, they would see the message for what it was: an expression of her guilt and an apology. It was hard for Sunset to admit to herself that she was wrong, never mind admitting that to others.

Not too long after she put her pen away, the bells above the main entrance to the café alerted Sunset to the arrival of her ex, and then she noticed that the owner was now behind the register. Pinkie quickly met the boy, and was probably asking if needed anything before he seated himself. Not long after, he started making his way over to her table, forcing Sunset to quickly retrieve forty dollars from her wallet, roll the note up in it, and slip it into her jacket pocket.

Folding her hands on the table in front of her, she waited until Flash seated himself on the other side of the table from her. In fact, she waited until he spoke to meet his eyes. "Sunset," he said simply, a tone of annoyance present in his voice. "What was it that was so important that you couldn't just talk over the phone?"

Steeling herself, Sunset took a deep breath, but just as she was about to speak, a pink menace with impeccable timing showed up. "Can I get you two anything? Muffins, donuts, shakes, or cake?"

Weakly, Sunset nodded. "A refill of my shake and a plate of brownies, please," she answered, earning a somewhat startled look from Pinkie and Flash both. Turning to her ex, Sunset quickly added, "I asked you to meet me, so food's on me."

"A strawberry shake and a chocolate glazed doughnut. Thanks, Pinkie." When the waitress took Sunset's empty glass and merrily skipped off, he returned his attention to Sunset. Flash no longer looked as frustrated with her; if anything, he seemed amused. "Please, huh? That's new."

Even if she never felt the same way about him that he felt about her, the tone he would always take when he teased her never failed to get a blush out of Sunset—even now. "With everything that's been going on," she started, leaving the actual cause up to his own speculation, "I've been forced to take a look at all I've done and what I've become." Forcing herself to look at her hands, she continued. "I've finally realised that I'm not a good person—hell, I was bordering on evil—and that I don't want that to be my only legacy. I don't simply want to be known as 'the girl that broke the entire school into cliques' and forever voted 'biggest meanie' in the yearbook when it's not even a category."

She paused as Pinkie Pie returned with a tray holding the plate of brownies, the two shakes, and Flash's doughnut. When the plate of brownies was set before her, Sunset pushed it to the middle of the table to indicate it was to split. "Thanks, Pinkie," Sunset idly said as she considered her next words. Again, she couldn't help but notice how they reacted to her being polite. Once Pinkie went back to doing her thing, Sunset shook her head. "I realised just how much I've hurt people, and how much my actions may have indirectly harmed more. I—"

Just then, she was interrupted by the sound of several notification chimes going off simultaneously in the cafe. Everyone in the café had gotten the email. She made a show of fetching her phone from her purse as Flash retrieved his own from his pocket. As she schooled her expression to be one of shock, as she opened the email, she heard Flash's surprised remark. "Holy shit..."

For a few moments, the entire joint was quiet as everyone, even Mrs. Cake and Pinkie, looked at their phones. Shock and disgust was voiced all around, and even Flash looked sick. "I didn't realise it was that bad," he quietly said to himself as he continued to read. Then, someone began to play the audio file on their phone at max volume, and everyone went quiet to listen. At the end of it, Flash muttered, "God, I hope she's okay," as the air filled with cries of outrage.

Once things calmed down, Sunset put her phone away and once more found herself unable to face him. She found her eyes misting slightly as she stuffed a brownie into her mouth. "I can't help but wonder how many girls that were hurt by those guys had no friends to turn to because of the divide I created," she whimpered as fresh pangs of guilt washed over her. "I hurt a lot of people... I hurt you, and I didn't even consider what you might have been going through that you couldn't tell me about..."

Flash shocked her by reaching out and putting his hand atop hers. "Sunset, what are you...?"

She looked up, and admitted, "The MP3 player you gave me for Hea—for Christmas that time. I never realised just how much of the music on it was depressing until recently." Weakly, she pulled his hand out from beneath his and sipped at her shake. "Were you... I mean... did you ever have feelings of wanting to... when we were together?"

This was clearly not the Sunset Shimmer the young man was used to. The confidence and the sense of superiority she was infamous for was gone. Hell, she was clearly having trouble putting into words what was going through her head when normally she could string together cutting comments or convince almost anyone that she was in the right. Sitting across from him, there was instead a young woman who seemed to have far too much empathy and the weight of her sins was now eating her alive.

"No," he said in a voice so firm that it startled her. "I'll admit I had issues with depression and self-image in elementary school, but even at your worst, you didn't make me feel that way." Finally seeming comfortable around her, he let out a chuckle. "I'll admit, there were times where you would make me depressed, or feel like I was less of a man... and I was worried you were gonna take 'wearing the pants in the relationship' to the literal level..." With a shake of his head, he ate his doughnut and a brownie as he considered his next words. "But no, I never wanted to kill myself while I was with you."

Her shoulders slumped and she tilted her head back to look up at the ceiling. "I'm sorry I was such a bitch, Flash," she managed to get out after a moment of silence. Forcing herself to cheer up, she entertained his concern about the pants. "Although, with some foundation, some padding, and a wig, you would look pretty cute in one of those Crystal Prep uniforms."

"No, absolutely not!" he quickly interjected with a bark of laughter. That was quickly followed up with a sigh. "You know, I missed stuff like this," he admitted as she finally managed to stop her eyes from watering. "I know we'll never have that kind of relationship again, but I wouldn't say no to being friends."

She started to smile, but then that smile fell into a frown. "I'm not sure I'd deserve it," she remarked, only half-joking. "Could you do me a favour, though?" He leaned forward in interest. "After seeing everything in that email, and everything we heard, could you try and get the guys to give Jinx Charm some space if... no, when she comes back? A police officer who spoke to me yesterday said she was attacked and pretty shaken up, so the last thing I want is some idiot who didn't get the memo to make a pass at her and stress her out. She needs a friend... not teenage boys being teenage boys."

He nodded, finishing his own shake and snacking on another brownie. "I'll see what I can do," he agreed, rising up from his seat. Flash started to walk away, but paused, looking back at her. "Oh, and Sunset? I'm sure people wouldn't be against being your friend if they saw this side of you more."

The part of her mind still wired for dominance and control was disgusted by the idea, and promptly informed Sunset that doing so would show weakness and likely invite retaliation; meanwhile the growing part of her that embraced the empathy found the idea to be a nice one. Despite herself, she finally allowed herself something approaching a genuine smile. She found herself waving goodbye to her ex... Or is he my friend?

Once he was gone, she pulled out the exact change for the food and signalled to Pinkie Pie that she was ready to pay. When the young woman brought over the cheque, she handed her the cash. To her surprise, Pinkie began to walk off once more. Was I really so awful that she doesn't even expect a tip from me? That was quickly halted when grabbed the young woman by her wrist.

The pink waitress looked down at her with more than a little bit of fear, and that didn't end when she saw the amused smile on Sunset's face. "You forgot your tip," Sunset said plainly as she removed the rolled up cash from her jacket pocket and slid it into a pocket on the young woman's apron. She couldn't stop herself from giggling at the confounded expression on Pinkie Pie's face as she got up from her seat and began to leave. Maybe being nice isn't so bad.

Jinx Charm

If her parents could see her now, she wondered what they'd think. How upset would they be seeing their daughter on her second straight day of not eating, just sitting on her bed in nothing but her underwear and a cami, and watching tokusatsu for the nineteenth straight hour? Would Mom tell her to get a hold of herself and set her up with an appointment with a counsellor? Would Dad try to distract her by talking with her about the latest series she was watching, immersing himself in the one hobby the two had shared?

"You can't keep doing this to yourself," that voice in her head whispered. Ever since she'd been attacked on Saturday night, that voice would occasionally speak to her. At times, it seemed almost helpful, like reminding her to drink water and go to the bathroom. Other times, it begged her to let it loose so that it could enact bloody vengeance on those who wronged her. "You are no prey animal, Jinx, and you need to stop acting like you are."

After that night she spent in that interview room—"Until you're willing to tell us what really happened and not some monster fairytale,"—she was beginning to doubt her own sanity. Every waking moment since then, it felt like something was watching her. Even when she knew she was alone in the police station showers, she felt like she wasn't alone... like there was something or someone lurking in the shadows, no matter how small those shadows were.

Then there was the voice... She had already tired of hearing it. Intellectually, she knew what an internal monologue was, but this didn't seem to be anything like it, even if it used her own voice. She actually found the use of violence to be abhorrent, and yet the voice wouldn't stop talking about it. Oh, it tried to hide behind getting justice for what was done, but she could feel the lust for blood in its words; it craved violence for the sake of violence.

In the interview room, when she was left alone covered in blood for six hours at Even Playing Field's orders, the voice started insisting that she 'let it hunt and feed on these corrupt cops.' She had to talk it down, if for no other reason than she was scared and alone, pointing out that not all of the police were responsible for Lieutenant Field's actions. Even if she hated the man for what his son did to her, and for trying to intimidate her, she didn't want unrelated parties getting hurt. When Officer Armour showed up with Officer Breeze, it only reaffirmed that good people would be harmed if she let the voice have its way.

At least it cares about my well-being.

It made far more sense that her mind couldn't cope with everything that'd been building up since she woke up after the party; witnessing another human getting mauled by an animal, even if he was attacking her was just too much for her good-natured heart to handle. The darkness doesn't just become solid and attack people, right? The shadows don't speak to you.

Wasn't it far more likely that it was a manifestation of her rage conjured by her fracturing psyche? Her mind went and compartmentalised all her rage and hurt, and it grew and it grew, until finally it took on a mind of its own. It was much more reasonable to believe one's self to be crazy than it was to believe in talking shadows that eat people.

"Oh please, I'm not merely some talking shadow," came the expected scoff. It always had an answer ready whenever she got distracted from the shows her father got her hooked on so long ago and began questioning her sanity. "Also, I will only accept so much insolence. Do not 'fuck around and find out.'"

Closing the video app on the computer connected to the TV, she couldn't help but speak out loud when she took the bait. "Then what are you?" she sarcastically inquired. "Do you even actually know what you are?"

The voice did not respond right away. There was even this prickle at the back of her mind that she couldn't explain. "I suppose that you could say that I am analogous to the 'Imagin' of your 'Kamen Rider Den-O'," it answered after a time. "Except instead of going to your past and wrecking the timeline for my own purposes, I carve out your justice in the now. Put another way, I am a manifestation of magic and rage. The more you allow me to act, the more powerful I become. The more powerful I become, the more I can do for you. If you must call me something, call me a shade."

Jinx frowned and glanced over at the clock. It was after seven in the evening now, and if she didn't eat anything soon, she'd be moving onto her third full day of no food. Was it really worth it to sit here dissociating and arguing with herself for days on end? My grades are just going to suffer, even if most of my teachers would give me excused absences.

"All you've shown me is that you have access to my memories," she retorted as she finally decided she should just check her email for forwarded homework. After that, a shower was in order, and then she'd finally go out for food. "You couldn't do that if you were some external entity merely leeching off my rage. Even if you could read surface thoughts, I haven't thought about that series since I watched it with Dad in middle school."

Apparently pushed to its limits of patience, the newly minted Shade let out a snarl, and there was something akin to a door slamming inside her head. With a sigh, Jinx grabbed her wireless keyboard and navigated to her email. As expected, Ms. Cheerilee's newest English assignment was there, alongside the well-wishes and math homework from Mrs. Harshwhinny. Not only that, but there was also a message from Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna asking her to contact them if she was intending to take an extended break while she recovered.

That said, there was something rather unexpected in the inbox. There was an email from Lyra, which wasn't all that unusual given that the girl was one of her tarot reading customers. However, Lyra didn't usually forward her stuff; not even the 'If you don't forward this to ten people, your cat will die in seven days,' crud that some people fall for. What's all this then?

From: luvheartstrings96@cantermail.net
Subject: FWD: Crimes of the Canterlot High Rugby Team

Holy crap, Jinx. Have you seen this!?

As she read the forwarded text and listened to the included audio, a gamut of emotions ran through Jinx. First and foremost, she felt her anger towards those boys surge, earning a dark chuckle from the Shade. Next was vindication and a bit of relief. Whoever sent this email had nailed the bastards to the wall by their balls, and even Lieutenant Field wouldn't be getting away. She was thankful for them, but at the same time, she wished they'd done this before the boys assaulted her.

Yet that wasn't all she felt. It left... she didn't exactly know how to describe it. Cold? Hurt? Even though she was glad those monsters would get what was coming to them, whoever did the digging to the information included in the email hadn't cared enough to ask her opinion on being named, especially given that it specifically didn't arrive in her mailbox by their design. Who knew just how many people this had been sent to?

With a groan, she threw aside her keyboard and rose from her bed. A wave of dizziness washed over her due to how low her blood glucose probably was from lack of eating. Soon... I'll eat soon, she thought to herself as her stomach let out a long growl of complaint. Slowly, she grabbed a towel and made her way through the dark trailer until she was in her bathroom.

Unable to help herself, Jinx found her attention drawn to her reflection while the hot water heater did its thing. Dark bags hung beneath her eyes, and her hair normally well-kept silver hair was tangled and greasy. Anger welled up inside her, and she fought the sudden urge to smash the mirror. "I should have let that guy kill me," she hissed, as she saw the scared girl looking back. "Nobody could ever love damaged goods like me." Tears began to spill down her cheeks as she took her spare pair of glasses off. As she shut her eyes to stem the flow of tears, she set the glasses don on the edge of the sink. "That's all I was to those boys once they were done with me... little more than an ugly used up whore... Filthy... Unclean..."

"You don't seriously believe that, do you?" asked the Shade, sounding more behind her than inside her head. When Jinx opened her eyes once more, she saw a blurry shadowy form standing behind her in the mirror. A glance to her back showed it wasn't there, but it nonetheless remained in her reflection. "I mean, yeah, right now you're kind of a mess, but when you take care of yourself, you're selling yourself short." In her reflection, she could see what appeared to be an arm thrown over her shoulder, and she could almost feel like something was touching her. "You're prettier than you give yourself credit for, and if you had even an ounce of confidence in yourself, you'd be sexy. Then people wouldn't just look at you with pity."

Ignoring the Shade, she stepped into the now warm shower and began to clean herself. It did nothing to stop the now very chatty mental aberration, of course. Even as she washed her hair, it was still talking. "Studies have shown that the psychological trauma brought on by sexual assault can have a severe impact not only on your mental health, but your physical health as well," it said in a matter-of-fact voice. "You're a perfect example. You aren't eating, you've hardly slept at all since the party, and you're an emotional train wreck. I'm actually impressed by how you seem to ping-pong between apathy, hate, self-loathing and heightened fear with ease. Hell, you've even been dissociating and smoking just trying to numb it all."

As she rinsed her hair, she couldn't help but snipe back. "Well aren't you the scholarly little brain parasite," she spat, turning her blurry gaze to the shadow reflected on the sliding glass door of her shower. "You know a surprising amount about things that I certainly never read into."

The Shade just gave off the motion of a shrug. "My previous host was an even bigger bookworm than you," it replied casually. "Too rooted in science, though. A lot weaker-willed. Got what she wanted and hated every bit of it." Somehow, she could tell that it was smiling at her. "Not you, though; more open-minded." There was a dark laugh as it faded from view. "You and me? We could get a lot done if we work together... and when I'm done, you won't even recognise the world."

"That's what I'm afraid of..."

Its voice seemed to wander off, growing distant. "I'm just saying, don't let what those boys did define and control you," it whispered. "Own your sexuality... Own yourself. Be the you that you want the rest of the world to see, rather than the one they're made to see." One last haunting laugh filled the shower as she began scrubbing roughly at her body. "We'll destroy anything that gets in the way of reclaiming control of your life."