Glimglam doth Flimflam the Green Man(5)

>Be Anon
>After today, Metal Head will be fully operational.
>After today, Starlight Glimmer will never doubt you being her ‘friend’ until its too late.
>The consequences should this fail will be dire.
>You must get never before seen results.
>This…
>This is your Final Mission.
>(Make us proud, Anon.)
>First time in a long, long time, you dawn something other than your Hardsuit.
>Today, you put on the suit you wore back when you first came to Equestria.
>A simple, everyday, black suit.
>A classy red tie.
>Black brogues.
>You take what feels like your first steps out of your house.
>Operation Diamond Stank is:GO!

>Be Starlight Glimmer
>Your stomach is rumbling for food.
>Food is for ponies who don’t doubt their friends and burn bridges in the same day.
>You’ll eat when you’ve earned it.
>You see ponies around town, but they might as well as be paper dolls.
>Faceless and everywhere.
>The smell of baked goods wafting from Sugar Cube Corner is like sour rot.
>But you need something to keep you going.
>You didn’t eat anything after Cheeki Breeki’s yesterday.
>Coffee.
>Coffee can keep you going.
>You can stop for some coffee.
>But no cream or sugar.
>…
>Okay, you can have cream, but no sugar.
>Sweet things are wasted on bad ponies.
>You are a bad pony.
>No sweets.
“Blech…”
>Bitter, very bitter.

>Be Anon
>Following the information your Auspex is giving, Starlight is somewhere in the area.
>”Hey, Mr.Green-thing…”
>You whip around, Graviton Projector in hand, you see standing behind you…!
>… Some pony you don’t recognize.
>You have extensive profiles on every pony in Ponyville.
>Okay, thats not true.
>But you remember the general colors and cutiemarks of the residents here.
>There are no black/teal ponies that look like they’re made of polished plastic who live here.
>You have seen some weird things in your time here.
>You recall a time when Tirek used to turn ponies into dragons using corrupting dust.
>Those were weird times.
>”You, uh, speak?”
>Maybe?
>(Just think of this as practice. New Pony, new start.)
“Mi nombre es Anónimo. Mi casa está en fuego, cómo está el baño?”
>WHEN DID YOU LEARN SPANISH!?
>You slap yourself.
“Uhh, I mean, I am be Anonymous. Do you how do?”
>You can’t even talk like a person.
>This mission’s a failure before it even started.
>Cyanide pill is in your right-upper molar.
>She’s chuckling.
>SHE DARE LAUGH AT YOUR— wait, thats good.
>You can make this work.
>”Okay, so… what are you?”
“Me hummin, er, I’mma human. Alien. I’m an Alien Human.”
>”Never heard of such a thing.”
“One of a kind, localized to this… strangely high-traffic, Podunk town.”
>She’s smiling.
>Either your charm is still as sharp as ever or you are on the receiving end of pity.
>Pity is good.
>Pity lowers guards.
>”So you live here, or…?”
“Something like that.”
>(Whats her name?)
“Uhh, didn’t catch a name from ya.”
>You recognize that look.
>Thats the ‘you weren’t supposed to realize that’ face.
>”H-Hesperus.”
>Why do you know that word?
“Neat name.”
>”Yeah, my mom’s really proud of it. I —uh, I gotta go. I’ll see you around… Yeah.”
“Oh, okay… See you around?”
>Be Starlight
>You have retreated to your room back in the empty, cold, crystal castle.
>You saw Trixie when you were drinking your 7th cup of coffee.
>You didn’t want a confrontation.
>You teleported away.
>Back here.
>With your blanket over your head, you shut out the world.
>All is quiet.
>Lonely and Quiet.
>You nearly jump out of your skin when there’s a knock at your bedroom door.
>”Hey… It’s, uh, me… Can I come in?”
>Oh you are not ready for this.
“Who’s there?”
>”Gandalf the Ultraviolet, can’t you tell by my robe and wizard hat?”
>Anon.
>It’s Anon.
>”Look, uh, Starlight… I need to… Shut up, I’m getting there… Starlight, we need to talk. Okay?”
>No.
>Nothing is okay.
“Stay out… I don’t talk to might-be-villains.”
>”You don’t… Glimmer, you nearly destroyed Equestria because some rando decided to break up your little cult. A cult YOU started because the neighbor kid you hung out with got chosen for some private school. You WERE a Villain.”
“Yeah, well, at least I owned up to it! I didn’t keep it secret!”
>What’re you saying?
>Anon opens the door and steps in.
>”You told those ponies you were taking their talent away because being different would lead to fractured friendships and animosity. Oh yeah, you didn’t keep secrets, you just told them you were crippling them for their benefit. What a great moral high ground to take.”
>You teleport Anon out of your room and close the door.
>”Zapping me to Sweet Apple Acres isn’t gonna make me give up. We will talk about… something… not sure what, but by the Great Googly Moogly, we will talk about it.”
“How… how did you get back here so fast?”
>”Cybernetic enhancements. Now why are you calling me a ‘might-be-villain?’ What have I done to make you doubt my intentions?”
>Because I don’t know if I can trust you.
“Why did you trick me into thinking you were my friend?”
>There’s no direct response, just angry whispers.
>”Okay… For the record, I never deceived you. I was always up front with my intentions. You, for whatever reason, got it in your head that I was your friend.”
>Now that you think about it, there really isn’t anything to suggest otherwise.
>He was always doing these dangerous things, setting up traps, dishing out these elaborate scenarios where ponies could get seriously hurt if they weren’t dealt with.
>You…
>You are a fool.
>But then why is he here?
>What about the note?
“…You said you believed in me. You implied there might even be Love…”
>More whispered curses at someone else.
“Who are you talking to? A henchpony?”
>”When have you ever seen me with minions? This has been, and always be, a solo operation. Relying on others was never really my thing.”
>Thats…
>Thats sad.
“Why are you here?”
>”Thought I’d try my hand at being the man you thought I was… Truth is, this villain thing isn’t as easy as I thought it’d be… It’s really… Lonely.”
>You open the door.
“…This is your first and last chance Anon… Screw this up and… I don’t know.”