Unfinished Story Settings with Sunset Shimmer

by SamRose

The Death of Sunset Shimmer - Chapter 1

Author's Note:

The warning for this is at the top of the last chapter. Things only get sad and depressing down here, so read at your own caution.

Chapter 1: Waking up is never the same

An infinite dark void surrounded her. She wasn't quite sure when she realized she was there, but once part of her was aware of it, she recognized the emptiness around her. A vast ocean of nothing that just floated around her, her being floating along with it in whatever direction it chose to coast.

Her mind was a muddled mess of blurs and confusion. Her senses were like mud; thick and slippery, sloshing about and never reaching a coherent state. Was she tumbling? Was she flying? Perhaps falling? Which way was up and which was down? She had no internal compass to guide her, she only floated. She wasn't even sure if she was alive or just existing, she at least had enough cognition to have feelings, but were they even thoughts? She couldn't be sure.

She didn't even know how much time had pass, or if time could pass. It could have been minutes or it could have been days before something changed, but ultimately something did change.

There was a light.

A dim light in the distance that steadily grew brighter as the void seemed to move away from it, or perhaps she was just moving closer to it. Whatever was happening, it drew closer to her, and it's radiance seemed to warm her. Though she was sure there was no heat, a warmth pulsated from inside her being.

The light took a shape as it drew ever neared, a tall being that stood on four legs, a head towering over her and a hair that flowed through existence as if wind existed there. It's presence drew close enough that if she knew how she could reach out and touch it, it towering over her in a heavenly radiance.

It felt caring and nurturing, perhaps even motherly. She felt safe with the light, wanting to never leave it's side. Her senses slowly grew clarity as she stayed by it's side. However she had managed to end up here, she no longer wished for things to change anymore. She would be there with the light of the tall figure who showed her such benevolence, and she would bask in their glory for as long as she could perceive.

The radiant being lowered it's head, and gently brushed the end of it's snout against her. More warmth, a gentle pleasure, she wanted to touch it. She reached out, lumpy limbs reaching out to hug. No fingers or toes, just tubes that extended from her body, wanting to reach out, to be held, to be loved. An eternal bliss of being together.

Her senses twitched, and in the distance something else changed. Not a sight, but a sound. An echo of sound that repeated and then stopped. Her senses focused in on it, trying to make it out. It came again, more clearly this time. She recognized the sound, as one she had heard before.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

It sounded so far away, but every time it sounded again it drew closer. The sound grew louder, as if it was calling to her. But she didn't want to go to the sound, she wanted to stay here with the benevolent figure. Their radiance would care for her for the rest of eternity.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

The sound grew more frantic, and she wished for it to go away. She felt anger begin to rise inside of her, knowing the sound was going to take her happiness away from her.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

The unthinkable began to happen. The radiant figure began to recede. The rapping sound grew louder and the figure that brought her warmth retreated. She tried to call out, to keep it there, to stay with her forever. But the being was leaving. And in it's place was the knocking.

KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.

It grew so loud it sounded like it hurt. She could feel herself hurtling towards the sound now, as if the void had suddenly gained a presence and her being was rushing through it. Her consciousness was returning to her as she hurdled through the darkness.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Why? Why did she have to be separated from that warmth? That gentle caress? She could have been happy, she could have been free. What was so important that she had to be drawn away from that wonderful bliss?

“SUNSET, OPEN UP!”

Sunset's eyes opened wide and a sharp gasp of air filled her lungs. She lurched forward into a sitting position as her dark apartment came into view. She took several sharp, raspy breathes as she felt her heart beating against her chest. Her eyes looked up at her front door, a loud banging repeatedly coming from it.

Had it all been a dream? A nightmare she had after she collapsed in her house for some reason? If that was the case, the world had a sick sense of cosmic humor. She reached up her hand and pressed against the spot knife had cut her, but finding no knife wound. Touching her chest several times to make sure, she let out a sigh of relief knowing the wound had indeed, been a dream.

The sound of her phone ringing caught her attention next. Looking down she could see it lying next to her, buzzing and ringing with the words 'Rainbow Dash' lit up on the screen.

“Sunset, I can hear your phone! If you don't answer the door in ten seconds I'm BREAKING IT DOWN!” The clear furious voice of Rainbow Dash yelled from the other side of the door. Sunset let out a sigh of relief as she stood up and dusted off her shirt.

“Sorry Dash, just give me a moment.” Sunset called out, making sure she was steady on her feet. For having been passed out just a moment ago, she was surprisingly stable on her feet at that moment. She took a step forward when Dash's voiced called out again.

“THAT'S IT! I'm coming in!” Dash yelled, the sound of her grabbing the doorknob sounded and with a click, the door easily opened having never been locked.

“...Huh, I thought I would've locked that.” Sunset scratched her cheek in surprise as the figure of her multicolored friend came into view. “Sorry about that Dash, I guess I passed out when I got ho-”

“Sunset?” Dash called out into the dark apartment as if calling for her. Sunset blinked in confusion.

“Yes, Dash?” Sunset asked, though it seemed as if Dash's eyes weren't looking directly at her. They looked down towards the ground, the color draining from her face. Sunset pursed her lips confused, unsure of what exactly she was looking at, before Dash ran forward.

“Whoa!” Sunset cried, reflexively raising her arms to meet the athlete into a hugging embrace. That wasn't what happened though. When Sunset's arms came down to wrap around Dash, the athletic teen simply phased right through her, as if she wasn't there at all.

Sunset's eyes widened in shock, suddenly confused at what just happened. She stood there for a second before Dash's cries brought her attention. “SUNSET! OH MY GOD SUNSET, WAKE UP!”

Sunset slowly turned from where she was standing, feeling her heart fall into her gut. Dash was kneeling on the ground, reaching out in front of her, and was shaking a cold, dead body.

Dash, seeing no response from the girl and realizing how cold she felt, quickly looked at her phone and dialed as fast as she could. Her breathing was already turning ragged and tears were streaming down her face.

“MY FRIEND'S BEEN STABBED!” Dash cried into the phone, trying to suppress her sobbing to be coherent, “I came to check on her at her house and her door was unlocked and she's laying here in a pool of her own blood!”

Sunset backed away, unable to believe what was happening. Her legs gave out from under her and she stared in horror at the scene playing out before her.

It hadn't been a dream. She really had been attacked last night. She'd been killed last night.

So what did that mean she was now? Was she a ghost? She had to be a ghost. She wasn't in her body, Rainbow Dash had phased right through her, and that was clearly her dead body lying on the ground in front of her.

Dash was in hysteric sobbing, grabbing hold of her body's shirt and begging for her to wake up. But she was awake. And she was sitting behind Dash right that moment.

“Dash...” Sunset croaked the words out herself, feeling tears stream down her own face. Sunset raised a hand up to her face and felt the wet tears. Trying to distract herself from the shock of the scene in front of her, her mind thought about what she was feeling at that very moment.

Her tears felt real. She was crying. Her heart was hammering away at her chest. She was taking in deep, raggedy breathes. She could feel her carpet on her exposed skin. She was in the same clothes as the body that was before Dash right now.

What did it all mean? Sunset had no understanding of ghosts, for all she knew they were just a myth, stories told to foals to scare them or to adults looking to feel alive again. They didn't actually exist did they?

Well, she had to start being a believer if she was going to start being one.

Sunset looked down at the floor, trying to distract herself from Dash's sobbing. Her hand was touching the floor, she could feel it. She pressed down harder, and watched as her hand phased through the floor. Panic struck her and she pulled it back up, examining her hand and seeing that it was fine.

She was definitely not amongst the living anymore. It seemed if she chose to phase through something she could, but otherwise her form wouldn't phase through something. The mental image of her phasing through the planet and resting in a core of hot magma and iron made her gut churn. She shook her head to banish the thought, if that was going to happen she would've fallen there already.

The sound of sirens caught Sunset's attention, turning her head to look out her apartment's front door. In very short order, two police cars and an ambulance had showed. Uniformed officers and paramedics quickly made their way into the house, an officer cupping his hands against Dash's shoulders and leading her out of the house while the paramedics did a quick survey of her body.

It didn't even take thirty seconds to determine she was long gone.

Finding the strength to stand, Sunset slowly got to her feet, using the wall as support. Her legs were shaky, but she could stand. The paramedics quickly took to work sealing off the area for investigation, one pulling out a camera and starting to take pictures. Sunset's stomach couldn't handle the site of the people treating her body like a crime scene, even if it was, so she shakily made her way outside.

Stepping outside, Sunset could tell the air was cold but she didn't sense it the same way as when she was alive. Even though there was a layer of fresh snow on the ground she wasn't cold. She expected to see the hot mist of her breath in the air, but as a ghost she probably wasn't actually breathing anyway. The only indication she got that the air was cold was a sharp crisp sensation as she breathed in, more like she was tasting the air than she was breathing.

Looking around she could see Dash sitting in the side seat of a police car, her legs sitting out of the car as she sobbed into her hands. A policeman had grabbed an extra jacket and draped it around her shoulders, doing his best to comfort the crying teen. A few of the other officers had already set up a perimeter, securing the crime scene from anyone going in or out. At least one was going over to the neighbors who had peaked out of their own apartments in curiosity, likely asking them if they had seen or heard anything.

Sunset had seen who'd killed her. She'd never be able to forget her face. Those vicious blue eyes would give her nightmares... If ghosts even needed to sleep. Uncertain of what to do, she slowly walked over to Dash, looking to her friend for some familiar comfort, even if Dash couldn't see her.

“Take a deep breathe.” The officer next to her said, rubbing Dash's back as she was still racked with shuddering sobs. Sunset looked him up and down, noticing his white skin and blue hair. She felt like he was familiar, but for the life of her she couldn't think of any time she'd seen him before. “If you can tell me, when was the last time you got in contact with your friend?”

“F-Friday...” Dash choked out, wiping her face as she stared down at the cold asphalt. “S-She had been with us a-at Sugarcube Corner...” She took a shuddering breath, squeezing her eyes shut and pressed her face into her palms. “She went home... To work on an essay due tomorrow... S-she was supposed to hang out with us yesterday and today... But she didn't answer our calls or texts yesterday... I c-came over to check on her b-because I was worried a-and...” Dash hiccuped, unable to continue.

“I know this isn't easy,” The officer said, rubbing Dash's back in support, “That gives us a good time-frame, thank you. Go ahead and let it all out.”

“Due tomorrow...” Sunset whispered to herself, crossing her arms as she thought about Dash's words. That meant it was Sunday. Judging by the position of the sun, it was still early morning on Sunday too. That meant she had died Friday night, and it took all of Saturday for her to appear in whatever form she was taking now.

Even in Equestria, having been dead for that long meant they were gone for good. Necromancy magic did exist, Sunset had looked into it, but it was illegal for a reason. All it did was animate a corpse, there was no mind or soul in the body of the resurrected. Nor did it re-active any of the organs in the body, all necromancy did was give you shambling meat and bone puppet to control. And if you were just going to make puppets, a golem made of rocks or gems was a far more powerful and reliable tool than a decomposing body.

But, at the same time, she'd never read any scientific articles about ghosts that followed any sort of grounding in reality either. The only theory that stood any grounds was that a ghost could come about as being the manifestation of left-over magic in a pony's body escaping, taking a temporary physical construct, before dissipating into the ether like magic does.

“Wait...” Sunset said in realization to that. Her hands quickly snapped up to her head and felt around where her ears should normally be, only to find they weren't there. She quickly reached up higher and found her ears had found their home on top of her head, they'd also become much more pointy and thin than before. Sunset then quickly reached behind her, grabbed her hair and pulled it in front of her. As she thought, her hair was lengthened by the addition of a tail sprouting out of it.

“Oh sweet Celestia, I'm a construct of magic.” Sunset felt her legs getting weak again. Her mind returned to her dying moments, wishing, begging, pleading to not let that be her death. Feeling a deep rooted determination to not let that be her final moments. That she would live.

The magic inside of her, however it worked in this weird world, must have turned those thoughts into taking her conscious mind or soul and expelled it from her body and maintained it in this form.

Did that mean she was on a life line? In Equestria magic had a limit to how much of it you could use before you exhausted yourself and needed time to replenish it. While none of her friends had ponied up long enough for a stress test, she was fairly certain it wouldn't vary that much here. Magic had a time limit before it needed to be recharged, and she'd always had a body where her magic would be stored. Once her magic was used up, would she vanish because she no longer had a construct keeping her in this world?

Panic inducing thoughts filled her mind as she clutched her chest. Not only had she already died once, but was she at risk of dying again? How long would she have? Was the only thing she could do now was stand around and view the world around her? Was there no way to pass on the information she knew to the people or authorities who needed it? Even if she could, would there be any way to return to the living?

This wasn't something she'd been expecting, this wasn't something she'd ever planned or prepared for. She needed answers to what was going on with her, but testing her limits and boundaries could also potentially end her life all that quicker. Hell, panicking could be speeding up the process and she wouldn't even know it!

“Calm down Sunset, just... Calm down...” Sunset spoke to herself, taking in very deep breaths, trying to calm herself. “Panicking will get you nowhere... You need to calm down and approach this rationally... Even if this is the most irrational situation you will ever have in your life.” Sunset sassed herself.

Somehow the sass helped more than telling herself to calm down.

“Do you know if your friend has any family we can get in contact with?” The officer spoke up, Sunset's thoughts getting distracted by him. Dash quietly shook her head, taking another deep breath.

“She never... Talked about family.” Dash moved her hands to just below her shoulders and squeezed them tight as she stared at the ground, “The only one who'd know is Principal Celestia... You should ask her...”

“We will, thank you.” The officer said comfortingly, “Is there anything I can get you right now? Some coffee or cocoa?”

Dash shivered a bit, closing her eyes and pulling the jacket tighter around her shoulders as she thought for a moment, before she opened them in realization. A look of dread followed next, before she shook her head and curled up into a ball tighter.

“I-If you can...” Dash's breathing was shuddering once again, fresh tears pouring down her cheeks, “S-Sunset had a brown b-book with... With a sun on the cover.” Dash's breath caught in her throat, her voice croaking as she forced them out, “I-It was so important to her... C-Can you get it for me? I-It should be in her room...”

The officer frowned at the request, thinking it over. “I'll have one of my guys check to make sure it's not evidence first. If it's not I'll bring it over right away.” The officer nodded before standing up and walking towards the apartment, leaving Dash by herself for a moment.

Sunset stared at her friend, her heart breaking at the site of Dash curled up in the front seat of the police car alone, mourning the loss of one of her best friends. Sunset bit her bottom lip, unsure of what she could do, if there even was anything she could do. She slowly stepped closer to the shaking athlete, before getting down onto her knees and looking up at Dash's sobbing face.

“Hey Dash... Things will be okay...” Sunset spoke up, lifting her hands and gently placing them on Dash's knees. If Dash could feel or hear her, she didn't react in a way that made it apparent. “I... I know this isn't easy...” Sunset felt her own voice started to choke, tears welling in her eyes, “But... I'm going to fix this... Somehow, someway, I will. So... Please...” Sunset squeezed Dash's knee harder as the tears began to spill down her own cheeks, “Be strong for me... I don't know what'll happen to me if you or the others break...”

The only response Dash gave was another sharp sob as the tears continued to cascade down her face. Sunset stared at her crying friend's face for a moment longer, before lowering her head and closing her eyes, letting her own tears cascade down her face.

“Sunset...” Dash croaked, Sunset's eyes snapping open and looking into her face. “I'm... I'm so sorry...” Dash shook her head, “I should... Have been a better friend...”

“Dash... Dash no...” Sunset squeezed her knee again, trying to comfort her from beyond, “You were an amazing friend, better than anyone could have asked for. Please don't say you weren't...” Sunset's heart caught in her throat as she looked at her friend.

Dash remained quiet, the only sounds coming from her sobs. Sunset let out a mournful sigh, realizing there really wasn't anything she could do for her friend at that moment. The sound of light crunching snow caught Sunset's attention again and she turned to see the officer returning, her journal firmly in his hands. Sunset's face twisted into uncomfortable uncertainty knowing what Dash intended to do with it.

As the officer got close Sunset stood up from Dash's side and stepped back to watch. The officer went over to Dash's side and held out the book for her. Dash looked at it surprised, lifted her shaking her hands and grabbed it before hugging it to her chest.

“It seems the intruder never entered her room, and we took a quick look inside of it but couldn't really make out what it was saying. We'll want to make some photo copies of it at the station just in-case it has any clues inside as to why someone would attack your friend, but we doubt there will be any physical evidence on it. It mostly looked like she was writing letters to herself though. Was she writing a book of some kind?” The officer asked curiously. Dash's grip on the book tightened.

“Something like that...” Dash mumbled under her breath.

“Well, either way I need you to come with me to the station for now. Nothing bad, we just need to take fingerprints and get the full story of what happened down on paper, alright?” Dash didn't speak up, only nodding in response. The officer smiled and gently patted her on the back. The officer quickly informed his others of what he was doing before moving around to the drivers side of the car.

Not wanting to be left behind at a crime scene that she couldn't do anything with, Sunset walked over to the police car and hesitated for a moment. She swallowed her nerves and phased herself through the backside passenger door, finding herself now inside the police car with her friend and the officer. Feeling the cushion of the seat beneath her as she sat down, wondering if her spirit form would be carried with the car. Her question was quickly confirmed as the car slowly backed up out of the apartment parking lot and began making it's way to downtown.

“Being a ghost really makes no sense...” Sunset grumbled to herself as the car quickly drove off.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Dash complied with everything the officers asked of her at the station. One officer quickly took her fingerprints while another made a full copy of every page of Sunset's journal that had writing on it. Dash recited the story of when she last saw Sunset, what she'd been up to all Saturday, and why she decided to check in on Sunset that morning. The police station was all very formal and straight forward, though most of the officers were very understanding to Dash's somber responses.

It was all over relatively quickly and the officers offered to give Dash a ride home if she wanted. However, Dash asked if they could drop her off in the front of her school and they agreed with her request, the school being not that long of a trip from the station.

Sunset stayed with Dash the entire time, unsure of what else she could do. She didn't want to wander too far and lose track of her friend, but at the same time all of her attempts to interact had failed. She had performed some tests while at the police station while waiting for Dash to finish. The first thing she had tried was to lift pencils and paper, but even those relatively light-weight objects merely phased through her hands. She tried harder to nudge one of the officers, but it was the same transparent results as before.

Out of curiosity, and having seen too many movies, she had even tried to possess one of the officers. She sat down in a chair that someone was already occupying and tried to mimic their movements and 'become' them. The result was nothing more than her feeling silly being phased inside of someone else's body.

The drive to the school only filled her with frustration at that point. What was the point of being around if there was nothing she could? She wasn't ready to give up just yet, but her morale had hit a huge low point.

The cop car came to a stop in front of Canterlot High School, Dash stepping out of the car. Sunset quickly followed before the car took off once more, looking up at the quiet school. With it being Sunday, it was likely no one was at school but the janitorial staff that day. Dash took a deep breath and walked forward, walking to the front of the Canterlot High statue and stared at her reflection that formed the portal.

...The portal! Sunset quickly ran in front of it, looking at the white reflective surface. Her own reflection was missing, but perhaps she could cross through. Magic on this side made no sense to her, but if she could get to Equestria then she could use magic that she knew exactly how it worked.

She reached up her hand, but hesitated for a moment. Would she make it through the barrier okay like this? When she had a body the magic portal would reconstruct her on the other side safely, but the actual tunnel was a magical construct of it's own. For all she knew she could be consumed by the portal's magic and simply end up becoming a part of it, or just being torn to pieces and evaporating into the void once more.

“It's worth the risk...” Sunset affirmed to herself. She was dead in this world, and she was only alive... Existing because of her magic. If she died in the portal, nothing would change anyway. But if she made it through, then maybe there was something she could do.

With a deep breath to calm her nerves, she walked forward and pressed against the portal, shifting through. The expected sensation of swirling magic and rushing through an ethereal plane never came as she continued to walk forward. Her vision had simply been blocked out and when it came back, she saw the view of the houses across the street from Canterlot High. Turning around, the familiar horse statue continued to stand tall behind her, and Sunset let out a sigh.

“Of course it wouldn't be that easy...” She mumbled to herself, before slowly walking around the statue to where Dash was again. Dash moved her hand away from Sunset's journal, having finished writing inside of it. Closing the book, she held it to her chest as she pulled out her phone and began to text.

“Must be getting everyone together...” Sunset mumbled to herself, not certain if she was ready for what was going to happen next. Her heart was already crushed from having seen Rainbow Dash wracked with sobs and grief like she'd never seen before, she wasn't sure if she could watch all seven of her friends go through the same thing as well.

Princess Twilight was the first to arrive, stepping out of the portal and seeing Dash's dour face as she adjusted the scarf around her neck, still clutching the journal to her chest.

“Rainbow Dash, what's happened? You said it was an emergency.” Twilight asked, before looking around. “Where's Sunset?”

“That's...” Dash started, but shifted uncomfortably, staring at the ground. “...I need to tell everyone at once... I'm sorry, can you wait for them to get here?”

“...Alright...” Twilight hesitantly agreed, her eyes drawing down to the book Dash was clutching so tightly to her chest. There was a sinking feeling in the Princess's gut, but she waited quietly.

One by one, all of Sunset's friends began to arrive. Applejack had arrived next, with Fluttershy not far behind her. Pinkie had bounded in with her usual energy, but upon seeing the somber mood before her began to feel herself deflate. Human Twilight arrived next, her hesitation more apparent than the others as she stood nervously next to her Equestrian counterpart. Rarity was the last to arrive, her rushing over to them with several apologies.

“Well... Everyone's here...” Dash muttered only loud enough for everyone to hear, though it wasn't hard since no one had spoken a word in a while.

“Huh? But... Sunset's not here.” Fluttershy spoke up, looking around. “Shouldn't we wait for her too?”

“Yeah, ya'll said you were going to check on her this morning.” Applejack spoke, narrowing her eyes at the athlete, “So where is she Dash?”

Sunset grimaced as she watched her circle of friends. She knew the bombshell was coming and she wasn't sure she wanted to be around to watch it. Pinkie fidgeted in her spot, raising a hand to rub the other one. She looked like she had wanted to jump in and tell a lighthearted joke, but something held her back. It was likely even she could tell this wasn't a situation to be joking around.

“She's...” Dash's voice hitched, and she lowered her head. “She's not coming...”

“Um, darling, what exactly do you mean 'she's not coming'?” Rarity asked confused.

“It means she's not coming anymore Rarity!” Dash's voice snapped back, causing Rarity to take a step back in shock. “She... She can't come anymore... She's... Never...” Dash's voice died out as her shoulders began to shake. Everyone grew quiet, looking around at each other before Princess Twilight walked up to Dash, putting a hand on her shoulder.

“Dash... You need to tell us what happened.” She explained calmly, everyone giving a short nod in agreement. Dash's shoulders tensed up, she squeezed the book tight to her chest, and she finally spoke up in a raspy voice.

“I went to see if Sunset was... Was at her house this morning...” Dash began, trying to control her breathing, “I knocked but... She didn't answer. I called her phone and I... I heard...” Dash sniffed, raising a hand up to face and wiping it, “I heard her phone going off in her room so... I figured she had to be home...

“I checked her door and... It was unlocked.” Dash's knuckles were slowly turning white as she squeezed the book harder, “And... And on the floor... Sunset... Sunset was...” Dash couldn't continue, her voice was breaking into sobs again as the tears rolled down her cheeks yet again.

A gasp escaped from Fluttershy as she covered her mouth in shock. Rarity's face fell in disbelief. You could see Pinkie's heart breaking. Applejack didn't want to believe what her ears were hearing. Princess Twilight took a step back, her body starting to shake as the news sunk in. Human Twilight already had tears welling up in her eyes.

And unheard by all seven of the girls, Sunset suppressed a sob as she covered her mouth. Her stomach churned, and she turned her back to her friends, shaking as she heard the news spread between them.

“W-What...” Princess Twilight spoke up, her voice shaking, “What happened to her!?” Sunset fell to her knees, holding her body as she listened to the grief in her friend's voice.

“I don't know...” Dash croaked out. “She was in... In a pool of her own b-blood...” Dash hiccuped, “The police said she was stabbed... But I don't know by who...”

Sunset wanted to vomit, though it seemed she couldn't as a ghost. She knew the news had been coming and she thought she had braced herself for it, but hearing Dash break the news to everyone was breaking her heart.

“No... Oh my god no...” Human Twilight whispered, covering her face in her hands. That was all Sunset could take, she got up to her feet and ran around to the side of the school building, getting herself away from the scene of grief. She looked back at her friends, still reeling from the news as she put her back to the wall.

This was too much. She couldn't handle this. Why couldn't her magic have sealed the wound? Or called for help sooner? Or kept her alive until Dash had found her? Instead all it had done was leave her in this stupid ghost form that couldn't do anything, and now she had to watch her friends suffer through their grief and there was nothing she could do about it.

She fell into a curled up ball, burying her face into her knees and covering her head. Why was this happening to her? To all of them? None of them had deserved this. They hadn't done anything to anyone.

“This isn't personal sweetie,” That sickening voice spoke again, the vision of those blue eyes staring into hers. “But I hear you're the little leader of that... Rainbow blast thing that keeps happening. And I can't have you getting in my way.”

“That's right...” Sunset whispered to herself, lifting her head up to look at the sky. “She killed me to stop all of us from using our magic on her...” Sunset lowered her head, looking at her open hand. “...That means she's planning to do something... Something big... And she needed me out of the way to do it.” Sunset squeezed her hand into a firm fist.

“I don't know how... But I'm going to find a way to stop her. I have to...” Sunset grit her teeth. “She's going to pay for what she's done to us.”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

At some point, Sunset found herself in Rarity's car as she drove towards her house. Sunset hadn't paid attention to most of their conversation, finding it too hard to bear, but at some point they had all agreed to spend the night together and Rarity's house was closest. Rainbow Dash was sitting in the front seat, still clutching on to the journal as if letting go of it would mean letting Sunset go forever. Princess Twilight was in the backseat, staring at the ground as Rarity drove.

Sunset sat next to Twilight as Rarity drove, not wanting to leave her friend's side but knowing that there still wasn't anything she could do for them. She was right there, sitting next to her best friend, and yet she couldn't reach out and comfort her. The tears on her face were meant for her, and yet she was there to witness them.

Watching her friends grief but being unable to help them was like torture for Sunset. If an afterlife did exist, she wasn't against some form of punishment for everything she had done in her life, but this was too much. She wouldn't wish these feelings on anyone.

It wasn't long before the car pulled into Rarity's driveway and the girls slowly unloaded, Pinkie's car not far behind them. Entering the house, Rarity's parents were a bit surprised at the sudden slumber party, but Rarity managed to explain to them what had happened. With the dour mood spread further, her parents helped make sure everyone had a comfortable place to sleep for the night and offered comforting food, though no one was hungry.

Sunset made her way to Rarity's room and sat on her bed, watching her friends prepare sleeping bags and change into spare pajamas one by one. In a sick way, Sunset found the whole site a bit amusing. The girls loved slumber parties, and it almost looked like they were setting up for one.

But there was no excitement, no joy, no sharing of gossip or stories or preparing to play video games. There was only the occasional voice speaking up about where to set a sleeping bag or where the pajamas were or that they were going to get a glass of water.

A slumber party fit for a ghost. Sunset could feel the irony.

No one had shared a word in at least half an hour now, and Sunset found herself laying on the bed looking up at the ceiling. The girls were sitting around various parts of the room now and she wasn't sure what to do. She thought sticking close to them would bring her some kind of comfort, after all she couldn't bear the thought of being away from them while like this, but the silence was drilling into her brain now and she wished for someone to say something.

“It just... Doesn't feel real...” The voice that ended up cutting through the silence was, surprisingly, Fluttershy's. “She's... She's really gone?” She had her knees hugged against her chest, staring down at the floor.

“I saw her with my own eyes...” Rainbow Dash replied, “I wish I hadn't... I know I'm going to see her again in my sleep...” Tears welled up, “I don't want to remember her like... Like that...”

“This ain't easy for any of us...” Applejack spoke up somberly. Out of all the girls, she seemed to be holding up the best. “The most we can do right now is be here for each other. If anyone wants to say anythin', or needs a shoulder to cry on, no one in this room is going to blame ya.” Applejack shook her head, leaning back against the wall and looking up at the ceiling, “Losing those close to us... It ain't a feeling you lose no matter how many years pass...”

“But this...” Princess Twilight spoke up next, her voice hitching as she held her head in her hands, “This wasn't supposed to happen! She was doing so well here! She was making friends, she was living a happy life, she was doing what she always wanted to do!” The Princess tried to suppress a sob, her shoulders shaking. “Who would do this!? Who would just take her from us like this!?”

“Ah wish ah knew Twi...” Applejack let out a despondent sigh, raising a fist and slamming it into her open palm. “If ah got my hands on them, they'd wish for death before ah was done with them.”

“Barbaric.” Rarity commented, letting out a sniff before wiping at her eyes with a handkerchief, “...But I doubt I'd even try and stop you. Whoever they are, how dare they...” She squeezed the cloth tightly in her hand.

“I've only been to a funeral once before...” It was Pinkie this time who spoke, “When I was too young to really understand what dying meant, I went to my Grammy Pie's funeral. I asked Mom and Dad why everyone looked so sad if they were all together to celebrate Grammy's life... Dad just squeezed my shoulder and said 'We miss her, so right now we are silent to remember her.' ...I remember as a kid those words didn't sit well with me. After all, if I wasn't here, I would want everyone I loved to throw me a farewell party, and to keep being happy long after I left...” Pinkie grimaced, before squeezing her eyes shut and lowering her head, “...But I finally understand what he meant... Partying is the last thing I feel like doing right now. I just want Sunny back...”

“I wish I could come back too Pinkie...” Sunset muttered to herself, closing her eyes as she continued to lay on the bed, listening to the grief riddled words of her friends.

“I wouldn't be here at all if it weren't for Sunset...” Human Twilight spoke, taking off her glasses and resting them on the floor next to her. “Princess Twilight would've never come here and I would've just continued to be rivals with you all. I probably would've cost Crystal Prep the Friendship Games, and that would've thrown my life into turmoil...” She shook her head, wiping at her eyes. “Sunset was the one who showed me that there was more to life than science and research projects...”

“She was a dear friend to us all.” Fluttershy mumbled, though everyone heard her just fine. A series of nods and agreements circled the room.

“...Wait... Who is handling the funeral?” Applejack asked, suddenly realizing one of the elephants in the room.

“Probably Celestia.” Dash replied, looking down at the journal in her hands. “I told the police to talk to her about anything relating to Sunset, so it's likely that she's going to handle everything from here...” Dash shook her head, “We should go to school tomorrow just to talk with her. I don't think anyone will blame us for skipping the rest of the day though...”

“Oh no... Celestia...” Princess Twilight gasped, putting a hand to her mouth, her eyes quickly filling with fear. “What am I going to tell her!? How do I even tell her!? She's never going to forgive herself for this, oh no no no no no!” The Princess shook her head and curled up into a tighter ball, shaking with realization that not only had she lost one of her best friends, but that she had to deliver this news to her mentor who she knew still cared very deeply for her former student.

Applejack got up from where she was sitting, walked over to her scared friend, sat down next to her and pulled her into a gentle embrace. “Let's take things one step at a time, Twi...” Applejack said in a soothing voice, gently squeezing her shoulder. “We'll think of something for that later, just... We need this moment for us.”

Princess Twilight leaned into Applejack and let out her sobs, crying into her friend's shoulder as Applejack closed her eyes.

“We should all get some rest while we can...” Rarity quietly suggested, “The news has tired all of us out. We can start to figure out what comes next in the morning.”

“You're probably right.” Fluttershy agreed, “It's just going to be hard to get any sleep...”

“Some of us more than others.” Dash grimaced, “Is... It alright if I share the bed with someone? I don't want to sleep alone tonight...”

“I don't mind.” Pinkie spoke up, “I could probably use extra hugs while falling asleep anyway.”

“I have no objections, the bed is all yours.” Rarity nodded, getting off her bed and heading for one of the spread out sleeping bags.

“Maybe we'll all get lucky and when we wake up, we'll find out this has all been one bad dream...” Human Twilight mumbled, shaking her head.

“Wouldn't that be nice...” Applejack sighed quietly. Princess Twilight was finally starting to calm down, the idea of sleep sounding good to her too now.

“I'll get the lights.” Fluttershy spoke up, slowly standing from her spot and walking to the wall. With a quick flick of the switch, the room went dim and everyone began to shuffle towards their respective sleeping spots. All of them curled up together in the dark room, eyes closed, and slowly but surely sleep over came all of them.

All of them, except for the ghostly apparition of Sunset Shimmer who still lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Fresh tears were spilled down the sides of her face once more. At some point she had wanted to get up and walk out of the room, just to not listen to their breaking hearts for a moment, but she found her energy lacking and she had laid there the whole time.

The only sound Sunset could hear now was the quiet breathing of her friends as they fell into their restless slumber. She realized then that she had stopped hearing the sound of her heartbeat in her chest as well, combined with the fact that she was beginning to feel incredibly drowsy. She closed her eyes and reached up to her face to wipe at her tears, only to find that her face felt dry already.

Opening her eyes she looked at her hand, only to find that she could see the ceiling through it. Most of her arm was already transparent, her fingers slowly disappearing into the ether.

“So that's all the time I had huh?” Sunset murmured quietly, resting her disappearing hand on her stomach. “There wasn't anything I could have done, so I guess I appreciate having these last few minutes with me friends...” Sunset thought that when this moment had come she would've found herself to be panicking, but instead she just felt lethargic and empty.

Maybe all of her emotions up until then were just part of the construct her magic had made, to mimic functions of her body as she had in living. With her energy diminishing rapidly though, it wasn't able to maintain them and she was fading into non-existence.

“Still... I wish I could've at least said goodbye...” Sunset quietly remarked as she closed her eyes, letting the emptiness begin to consume her. The darkness quickly overtook her, and the world faded away from her senses.

Comments

[Shadow Hero]

And then Joshy came and told her she can be part of The Game.
This one is sad, but is was good.

[kul]

I really want this story to be a reality, man. This hits me in all the sad spots

[RoboRed]

[CastASpellLiana]

I just found this! It's dark, but I really think it's capable of a pretty great ending that could be both happy and sad ;3;
Are you going to continue this? I am so intrigued and it felt like such a shame to just leave it this way.
I would be happy to help in any way I can. But if you're not willing or don't have time to continue, that's fine too. ;v;

[Sunset_Shimmer83]

I hope you continue this one too