Shining's eyes fluttered open. He looked around, unsure of his surroundings. Yesterday's memories came flooding back to him. He sighed and looked to his right, towards the window in their room; the curtains were pulled, but the early morning light was able to peek through. Shining gazed over at his sister to find her still asleep, and still on the far edge of the bed.

Twilight twitched slightly, unconscious yet reacting to movements around her. In typical childlike fashion, she did not groggily wake up but instead her eyes flew open and she sat up, looking around. "B-Big brother? Where are we... oh, yeah..." the memories suddenly began to come back to her, and she yawned. "What... what are we going to do today, Shining Armor?"

Shining looked over at Twilight.
"Well, we are totally out of money, so I need to look for a job, and use today's earnings to feed and house us for another night... hopefully it will pay well enough that I can put some back every day and save it. As for food, you packed your saddlebags with some, didn't ya?"

Twilight nodded. "J-Just a little, you can have some if you want."

Shining got up and flipped open Twilight's saddlebag. He took provisions for them both and sat back down on the bed. They decided to just have their meager breakfast in the hotel room.

"Take the rest for lunch, I’ll figure something out for myself. But we have to check out of the hotel, so gather your things and we will set out," Shining told his sister.

Twilight put as much as she could into her bags, looking around to see if there was anything in the room she could take with her. She took a small washcloth from the bathroom and a bottle of water, then followed her brother out of the hotel room. Shining Armor walked up to the reception desk. The same mare was working again. He told her they were leaving and returned the key to her. She thanked them and bid them good day.

"I'll be good today, brother." she said cheerfully. "I'll stay out of the way and look for things for us to use. When you get back, we'll have so much!" She smiled up at him, trying to find some way to return to the innocence they had just a few days prior.

Shining looked down at his sister, not sure what she meant.
"Well, okay. But aren't you going back to school today?" He asked the purple filly.

Twilight shook her head. "I need to help you! I have to do something for you..." She walked out of the hotel room with him. "I won't steal anything, I just want to find stuff for us."

“Well, what do you mean ‘find stuff for us?’ I mean, of course we could use it, but where are you going to find it?”

Twilight shrugged. "I could look through what ponies throw away, in the garbage, isn't that a good idea, big brother?"

"Yeah that would be a good idea... I mean, if that's okay with you."

Twilight smiled. "Of course, big brother, I want to make you happy!" She hugged him, burying her face in his mane. "Promise me you'll be careful again today, please?"

"Of course, I'm just going job hunting; it's you that needs to be careful..." he told her as they walked towards the town square.

Twilight walked with him, looking at the ponies who ran around the fountain, played with each other, went to work, went home - they had no idea what they took for granted. She was jealous of them. "I'll be okay big brother, I promise."

"Well, okay. I need to go find a job. I'll see you this evening, Twilight," he said as he started walking down one of the many streets that branched off from the town square.

Twilight stood there, waving farewell to her brother, then turned down the street, looking for dark, empty, forgotten places, which aren't easy to find. She decided her best bet was to leave the center of town and go off to the outskirts. She trotted back down the road, looking left and right. As she neared the edge of town, she found a dumpster overflowing with garbage. She quickly attempted to scale it, using a pile of boxes beside it to aid in her climb. As she leaned over, however, she accidentally fell into the giant canister. Rubbing her head, she began to search for bits of food and clothing they could use.

Shining looked around at the different shops as he walked through the town, going into all the shops that had a 'help wanted' sign in the window. He inquired about jobs but was getting nowhere. Either the job required some specialized skill, or, since he was obviously a minor the owner wanted a parents permission; which of course, he could not provide.

After the tenth shop with no luck in getting a job, Shining noticed a group of guards around an information board on the corner of the street.

"I guess I'll never be like them..." Shining sighed to himself, remembering how he was to set off for cadet school in a matter of weeks.

"Well, oughtta get back to work, sun-ass gets pissed when we slack off." One of the guards said with a huff.

"Shh... they say she can hear everything, you never know what freaky magic those alicorns are working on. Did you hear about that guy that spoke out against her during one of her meetings?" One of the other guards said in a hushed voice.

The first guard raised an eyebrow. "No, what happened?"

"Apparently his head was found on a pike the next morning," The second guard said.

"No shit...? Damn..." He said as the group started to walk away.

Twilight sat there, pulling out scraps and items, stuffing them in her bag. At the bottom of the dumpster, she found several fresh blades of hay, as well as apple cores, which, though dirty, smelled okay to her. She also looked for cloth to use as a blanket for her and Shining Armor tonight. Unfortunately, she couldn't find any in the dumpster, and so crawled out with her saddle bag full of food.

It wasn't long before she found another dumpster, which she immediately dove into in search of more food or clothing. At the bottom of the giant metal container, she found a ripped, filthy, grey dress, which she threw over herself. The fabric wasn't particularly thick, but it would at least keep her somewhat warm. When she tried to climb out, however, she bumped against the lid, and it slammed shut, trapping her inside.

Twilight panicked. She pressed against the heavy lid and the sides as hard as she could, but she could find no way out. She considered yelling for help, but she was supposed to stay hidden today, lest the green come by and take her back to the school. After several hours, she stopped trying, and opened her saddlebag to nibble on what she had salvaged.

As she ate her food, she heard voices outside. Deep, male voices.

"Quit slackin', it's almost sunset and we still haven't found the Sparkle kids!"

"Look, I doubt they came this far from Canterlot already, this seems pointless."

"Yeah, well, their folks are offering a huge reward, doesn't that motivate you?"

"Not really. I know someone else will find them first."

"Pfft, you give up too easily."

The voices trailed off, and Twilight stayed in the dumpster, shaking. They were hunting for them. They would be found soon. She struggled not to cry.

Once the guards moved away from the board. Shining walked up to it, looking to see if there were job listings. What he saw though, struck a pang of fear deep within his heart.

Missing: Sparkle children

Twilight and Shining Armor

Reward for their return.

The wheat-colored paper read in bold, black ink. it had a picture of them each under the title with contact information of their house in Canterlot. Shining looked around before ripping the piece of paper off the board. He ducked his head and turned back to where he and Twilight had agreed to meet that evening.

"I have to let her know about this before somepony spots her..." he said under his breath as he ducked in and out of back alleys, trying to take the most roundabout route possible to get to the meeting point without being seen.

Twilight dared not move, despite the awful smell inside the dumpster. It did occur to her that she would have to find a way out at some point. She had a sudden image of her being dumped into a garbage compactor, which refueled her desire to leave. She climbed back up to the top and pressed against the lid with all her might. She managed to open it just a crack, allowing her to get a breath of fresh air as well as a view of her surroundings. It was sunset, and there were only a few ponies in the streets. She tried to lift the lid up more, but she fell back, causing the lid to close with a bang. She gasped, hoping she wasn't heard. "Oh no... what will I do?" she said to herself.

Shining made it back to the meeting point and Twilight was nowhere to be found. He knew that she was always punctual; if she wasn't there on time it meant something was wrong. He headed off in the direction Twilight had gone that morning. As he went down the back alleys he softly started to call for his little sister.

"Twilight, Twilight!" he quietly yelled.

Twilight was curled up in the bottom of the dumpster, half asleep, when she heard her brother's voice calling for her. "H-Here!" she choked. "Big brother! Where are you?! I'm in here!" She banged against the side of the dumpster to try to get his attention.

Shining ran over the dumpster and strained his magic against the heavy lid, slowly flipping it up. He looked down to find his dirty sister, he plucked her out of the garbage with his fore hooves.

"How did you get in there?!" He said as put her on the ground.

Twilight panted. "N-Never mind that! I overheard the guards, they're looking for us, Shining Armor! Mom and dad sent them after us! What are we gonna do?"

"So... you heard too, huh?" Shining said looking down at the ground. "Well, we are going to have to stay out of places where we will be easily recognized, and it would be great to find a cloak or something to wear to hide your face... I suppose we could try to move to a town further from Canterlot where the word hasn't spread of our escape yet... but there would be some problems we would have to overcome..."

Twilight frowned, hugging her brother. "We'll be okay, won't we? I just... I'm scared big brother. I'm so scared."

"Yes, we will be okay... we just have to lay low. Let's try to find some cloaks, to hide. And; I think we should take the train to the next town over.." He said.

Twilight blinked. "Oh!" She opened her saddle bag and produced the long, tattered dress she found in the dumpster. "Will this work for a cloak?" She threw it over herself, covering her entire body.

"hmmm... perhaps, just need to find a way to cover your face... as for me, I’ll find something tonight, I suppose. We will leave as soon as possible, I just have to... 'collect' the money first." He said looking down the alley in the direction he had come.

Twilight pulled the fabric around her and moved back into a corner of the alley. "I'll wait for you here... please be careful big brother."

"Well, its just now getting dark... i have to wait until it’s fully nighttime... let's set up somewhere for us to sleep here... We-we can't go back to the hotel; I'm sorry, Twiley." He looked around the alley trying to figure out how to make a bed or shelter for themselves. "I'll stay with you until you fall asleep tonight, then... I'll get the money we need tonight and we can leave in the morning."

Twilight's lip trembled. "Y-You're going to leave me here? Alone?! No big brother, y-you can't! Please don't leave me!"

"Shh... He said, embracing his sister, hugging her close to his chest. Okay Twilight... I'll stay with you all night. I'll find the money tomorrow.." He lied, plotting how to slip away from his sister once she fell asleep without waking her.

Twilight smiled up at him. "Thanks big brother, I knew you wouldn't leave me." She laid back against a wall, behind the dumpster, and wrapped the dress under her as well, forming a makeshift bed and blanket. "Oh... there's not much room for you..."

"It's fine, Twilight..." He said softly, laying down beside his sister. He hugged her, pulling her in tight as they lay on the ground together. He nuzzled her hair,trying to comfort her in such a dire situation.

"I'm sorry,Twilight, for all of this... But, tomorrow will be better." Shining whispered into her ear. He closed his eyes and began to breath slow and steady, feigning sleep. He waited until he felt her do the same, her little chest bobbing up and down as she tried to catch up on some sleep.

“Twilight...” He whispered under his breath, opening his eyes and pulling his head back to look at the filly. He waited for a moment. No response. She was indeed asleep. Shining very carefully began to scoot away from his sister, being as quiet as possible. He stood, looking down at his sleeping sister.

“I’m sorry Twilight..." Shining said as he turned his back on his sleeping sister. He threw on his saddlebags, after unloading them of the meager supplies he had packed before they had set out; mostly camping supplies, matches, a survival knife, not much they could use in the city. He slowly crept away from Twilight, walking down the alley towards some of the vendor stands.

Shining stepped into deserted area of the town set up for vendors to show their wares. He quietly looked around at the stands.

“Must be really trusting around here...” He whispered to himself, seeing one of the vendors had simply covered their produce with a tarp for the night, weighed down be a few rocks. “They call this security?”

Shining made note of the unprotected food and looked around the stalls for lock boxes, or anything where he could find the money for the train tickets. He found nothing. He walked back to the stall with the tarp.

Shining glanced around. Not a soul in sight. He redirected his glare at the tarp.

'What am I doing?' He asked himself, staring at the tarp, contemplating his actions. 'There has to be a better way...' he thought, turning away from the tarp.

“I'm hungry, big brother.” Twilight's voice echoed in his mind. Shining shook his head. Trying to rid himself of the pit in his stomach; the guilt of not being able to take care of her.

'I have no choice....' He turned back. He kicked two of the rocks off the tarp, and flipped it back, revealing a pile of Apples. Shining stuffed his right saddlebag with apples and then snapped it shut.

Shining once again looked around, and once again saw no one.

Shining set back to twilight, wanting to drop off the apples, so she would at least have breakfast if he wasn't back by the time she woke up.

He pulled the coin purse from his left saddle bad and opened it, he had only a few bits left, not near enough for a train ticket.

“Those are some nice looking saddlebags you got there...” A gruff voice came from behind Shining as he walked down the alley.

“Wha-?” Shining spun around confronting the voice.

A frazzled looking brown earth stallion materialized out of the shadows behind Shining Armor. He wore a brown cloak with a drawstring keeping it fastened at his neck.

“I said, those are some good looking saddlebags...” He repeated, showing genuine interest, taking a step forward.

Shining remained silent still holding the coin purse in his hoof at his chest, he looked down at it before levitating it back into his left saddlebag. He backed away.

“Where ya going? I just wanna TALK.” He emphasized the last word, at the same time pulling a crude blade from an unseen pocket in the cloak.

Shining bumped into a wall. He was cornered, the way he had come was blocked by the stallion, he looked to his left, the path he had to go down to get back to Twilight.

“Don't even think about running...” The pony warned, centering himself between the paths of escape for shining, not giving him a safe way to get away.

“Why don't yall just put down them fancy saddlebags and we all walk away from this without a scratch?” He instructed, waving the knife around.

Shining swallowed hard. But said nothing.

“I know you are with your sister...She's a cute little thing. Now, you'll do what I say, or I'll make sure she never wakes up.” He threatened Shining with a menacing voice.

Shining unfastened his saddlebags and slowly put them on the ground. Grinding his teeth together, his rage boiling inside him from the threat on Twilight. He took a few steps towards the pony, so the saddlebags were behind him.

The greedy stallion was reckless. He approached Shining's left side without waiting for him to move away from the saddlebags, almost completely ignoring the white stallion as a potential threat.

The hoof with the blade hung loosely at his side, Shining watched it steadily bob in line with the stallion's walking as he got closer to Shining Armor.

The stallion didn't take his eyes off the saddlebags as he approached, his greed made him oblivious to his surroundings.

Shining's heart pounded as the brown pony was a mere yard away from him, his breath was heavy and the adrenaline made the seconds pass like minutes. His eye's were wide and nostrils flared, his muscles tense, ready to spring into action as soon as the opportunity presented itself.

As the Brown stallion passed dangerously close to shining, he shot him a glance, challenging him. As the stallion broke his fast gaze with shining, Shining could feel it, the moment had arrived.

Shining brought his left hoof up with adrenaline-enhanced speed, landing a crushing blow to the brown stallion's throat. Shining reared back and side stepped to his right, before bringing his right forehoof to the jaw of the dazed pony.

The brown stallion's head smashed against the the brick wall of the alley. The blade dropped to the cobblestone ground with a soft clink.

Shining didn't stop there, though... He stood over the stallion who slumped to the ground. 'I'll make sure she never wakes up.' His threat echoed in Shining head. The white colt's jaw clenched and his teeth gritted against one another. His anger boiled over.

Shining reared up again, this time his hooves right next to each other. He put all his strength and weight into his fore hooves; bringing them down onto the stallion's head. There was dull thump as his hooves connected, follow by a groan from the unconscious stallion.

The white colt repeated his action, this time acquiring a sound that was similar to a window cracking. A gurgle escaped the ponies throat. Shining hit a third time, finally getting a loud crack from the skull of the stallion.

Shining backed up from the still, silent, black mass of pony laying in the dark corner of the back alley. The only sound was the Shining's heavy breathing. Shining looked around not sure what to do, he decided to strap on his saddlebags once more.

Once they were secure, shining looked at the brown stallion. He hadn't moved. Shining cautiously approached him. He saw the stallion was not moving, he gingerly removed the brown ponies cloak, wrapping it around himself, inside the cloak he found a coin purse with more bits then he expected.

Shining walked back to Where he had left Twilight, and found her safe and sound. He walked up to his sister and nudged her.

“Twilight.... wake up.”

Author's Note

i want this shit to get featured, help me out.