“She Didn’t Use the Memory Stone on You.”
Sunset and the others had no idea where to find Wallflower Blush, but instinct told Sunset that she’d be in the parking lot. So that’s where the group headed first. And there she was: the girl in the striped sweater was getting ready to leave school...but she froze when Sunset’s voice called out, “Wallflower, stop! Wait!”
She whirled around to face seven girls and one dog. “What the...how did you get out? How do you...I erased your memories!”
“You actually forgot about someone...you forgot to use the Memory Stone on him!” Sunset’s voice was triumphant as she held up Spike, who wagged his tail and smirked at Wallflower.
“And you seriously didn’t think we’d confront someone with the ability to erase memories without a backup plan, did you?” Sugarcoat asked with a raised eyebrow. “We’re smarter than you think.”
“We told some other friends about what was going on,” Lemon Zest explained with a wry smile. Sour Sweet smirked. “And it doesn’t matter how many times you erase our memories...because they’ll find you and stop you if we can’t.”
Sunset Shimmer stepped closer to the green-haired girl. “Wallflower, listen, I’m so sorry for everything...I used to be just like you. I was popular, but I was lonely.”
“I am NOTHING like you, and I am NOT lonely, because I have PLANTS!” Wallflower shouted. She blinked. “That...sounded less lonely in my head...I wanted to teach you a lesson by erasing your friends’ good memories of you! But...you still found people to help you! What if I erase THEIR memories of you, too?!” Wallflower held up the Memory Stone and pointed it at the Shadowbolts, Spike, and Juniper Montage. “What if I erase their memories of Canterlot High altogether?! They won’t remember this place! They won’t remember anything about the Friendship Games! And everyone at Canterlot High STILL won’t remember anything about you! You’ll be alone!” The Memory Stone glowed and a beam of energy shot itself from Wallflower’s hands and soared towards the targets. Everyone gasped as Sunset leapt in between her allies and the magical stream.
“NO!” She shouted. “I ruined so many people’s friendships in the past...and I’d rather lose my memories than risk my friends losing the friends they have now!” She dropped to her knees after the magic made contact, and everyone stared in horror at what happened next. She cried out in pain and alarm as her forehead glowed. What looked like an old-fashioned movie reel with pictures of Applejack floated out and towards the Memory Stone. It was followed by a similar one, only with images of Pinkie Pie. Everyone watched in horror as Sunset’s memories of everyone at Canterlot High were drained away...including those of a purple equine that could only be Princess Twilight Sparkle. She turned towards the girls and dog who had helped her in her time of need and reached towards them, as if touching them would keep her memories intact. “Please, please, don’t forget about me or each other!” She cried out as the last of her memories, those of the Shadowbolts, Juniper Montage, and Spike, were stolen. The Memory Stone stopped glowing as it absorbed the last of the intended thoughts. Sunset collapsed to the ground. After a few moments, she stood on her palms and knees, her stance like that of a pony’s, and looked around, confused. “Where...where am I? This isn’t Canterlot! Princess Celestia?” She noticed her body and began to panic. “What’s happened to me? Somepony, help me, please!”
There was a shocked, tense silence. Sunset’s friends were at a loss for words, and Wallflower seemed to be regretting what she had just done. Juniper Montage was the first to approach the former pony. “We’re your friends.”
“You may not remember who we are…” Sugarcoat started.
“But you’ve done so much for us,” Indigo Zap interrupted.
“You’ve saved our lives!” Lemon Zest chimed in.
“And you’ve taught us so much about magic and friendship,” Sunny Flare said.
“And we’ll never forget these lessons...and we’ll never abandon you…” Sour Sweet added.
“Because you’re our friend!” The girls exclaimed together.
Sunset’s geode necklace started to glow with a magical energy. That energy grew brighter and larger until it surrounded her, Juniper Montage, and the Shadowbolts. Spike watched in awe as the glowing girls underwent a magical transformation that gave them new wardrobes, traded their normal ears for adorable pony ones, and grew their hair until they all had tail-like extensions. Indigo Zap and Sunny Flare even sprouted Pegasus wings, and a larger pair of majestic wings appeared on Sunset’s back. The Shadowbolts and Juniper Montage glanced at each other, then nodded in agreement. The seven girls floated up above Wallflower and joined hands...Sunset, who was in the middle of the girls, in between Indigo Zap and Juniper Montage, hesitated, still confused. But something in the eyes of these girls reassured her and gave her the confidence...so she placed her hands in theirs. Multicolored beams of light projected from the bodies of the floating girls, soared towards Sunset’s necklace, and then charged at the Memory Stone, which Wallflower struggled to hold in her hands. But the colorful beams of energy were too strong, and as the Stone cracked, she was knocked backwards, safe from the magic as it destroyed her beloved possession. And as the Memory Stone crumbled, countless stolen memories flew out. Spike watched as some of them headed to the Shadowbolts and Juniper Montage and a large number of them were returned to Sunset Shimmer. When it was all over, the girls floated to the ground and landed in not-so-graceful positions.
“Sunset Shimmer! Are you okay?” Spike ran up to his friend, who had her eyes closed as she massaged her temples.
The girl opened a green eye. “Spike…?” Her eyes widened and an overjoyed grin spread across her face as she looked at her six friends. “Girls!”
“Sunset Shimmer!” They pulled her into a large group hug. Nothing else needed to be said; they were all just so happy to have their memories back.
The moment was interrupted when a familiar truck pulled into the school’s parking lot. It came to a stop and six familiar passengers ran up to Sunset Shimmer. “We remember everything now!” Rainbow Dash said.
“Sunset Shimmer...we’re so, so sorry…” Fluttershy added.
“Yeah, you should be,” Sour Sweet muttered. Indigo Zap not-so-lightly punched her shoulder. “Ow! I mean...it’ll all be water under the bridge soon~”
“I say we just forgive and FORGET!” Lemon Zest shouted as she raised her hand for a high five. Everyone left her hanging. “...too soon...or just not funny…?”
“...both…” Juniper admitted with a smile.
“Ah. Darn.”
Sunset turned to her Canterlot friends. “It’s okay. I’m just glad to have everything back to normal.” She held up her arms, and the girls embraced her.
“Twilight.” Sugarcoat’s voice interrupted the moment, but caught the attention of the purple girl with glasses. “We wanted to talk to you about the Friendship Games.”
“Well, what happened before that, actually,” Lemon Zest corrected.
Sunny Flare cleared her throat. “We never apologized for how we treated you back then, did we?” Twilight didn’t answer, and her former classmate continued with, “Well, that’s just it. We’re…”
“Twilight, we’re really sorry!” Indigo blurted as she pulled Twilight out of the Canterlot embrace and pulled her into a hug. Lemon Zest, Sour Sweet, Sunny Flare, and Sugarcoat also joined the hug.
“Even if we weren’t exactly mean to you...we weren’t exactly nice to you, either,” Lemon said. “And...well, there’s not much else to it. We’re really, really sorry. And we hope that you can forgive us.”
Twilight melted in the arms of her former classmates. “That’s all I ever wanted to hear...and I didn’t realize that until now.” She pulled away and smiled. “It’s okay.”
Juniper Montage and Sunset Shimmer stood away from the two groups, somewhat awkwardly. Then the blue-haired girl nudged her companion. “Look.” She pointed a few feet away, where Wallflower sat alone, her knees hugged to her chest, and a small fragment of the destroyed Memory Stone in her hand. As Sunset and Juniper approached her, the other eleven girls stopped hugging and celebrating and walked to join them.
Wallflower didn’t turn around to look at any of them, but she spoke when Sunset was right behind her. “I’m so ashamed. When I first found the Memory Stone, I only erased little things...awkward hellos, literally any public speaking…”
“We’ve all had moments that we wish we could erase,” Juniper interrupted as she knelt down and placed a hand on Wallflower’s shoulder. She looked at Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle. “Believe me, you’re not the only one. I know how it feels.”
Spike placed a paw on Wallflower’s leg, and when she looked at him, he added, “Sometimes we can all feel a little invisible. But the popularity of other people shouldn’t define how we feel about ourselves!”
Juniper smiled. “And I know what it’s like to have resentment towards people with more popularity...it didn’t make me happy. It just made me miserable.”
Wallflower wiped her eyes on the back of her sleeve. “If you’re saying that how I feel about myself is the most important thing...then it’s the worst thing in the world for me.” She bowed her head to hide her teary eyes. “I feel like a monster. And...I’d rather feel invisible than be remembered as a villain.”
“It doesn’t have to be like that,” Sunset said. She lifted Wallflower’s chin and looked directly into her eyes. “I’m sorry, too, Wallflower. I stopped being mean, but I realize now that I wasn’t exactly nice to you, either. Everyone matters, Wallflower, no matter how invisible they may feel.” She looked at Juniper Montage, Spike, and her Shadowbolt and Canterlot school friends. “And with friends, you don’t have to feel invisible anymore.” She stepped away from Wallflower, but kept a hand extended as an offer of friendship. Wallflower blushed, hesitated, then placed her hand in Sunset’s. The fire-haired girl pulled the green-haired gardener into a warm hug, welcoming her as her newest friend.
Later, at Sunset Shimmer’s apartment…
“So that’s basically what happened,” Indigo Zap finished. She looked at Sunset’s open laptop, where a video chat was in process with a young woman with hair the color of raspberries. Juniper Montage and the other Shadowbolts were also there, content smiles on their faces.
“What do you think, Gloriosa?” Juniper asked.
“I think that I’m glad everything’s back to normal!” The woman on the screen said with a laugh. “And I’m glad I was able to help you girls! Hopefully there won’t be any magical catastrophes soon!”
“I don’t know,” Indigo said with a sheepish grin. “I kinda miss my wings!”
She and the others laughed, and the call ended not too long after that. “There’s one thing I don’t understand, though,” Sugarcoat admitted.
“What’s that?” Sunset asked.
“That.” The Shadowbolt pointed to Sunset’s geode, which had been placed on a coffee table. Earlier today, the geode hung on a chain, like the necklaces Sunset’s Canterlot friends wore.
But during the magical confrontation with Wallflower, it had transformed into a gem on a tiara.
Sunset shrugged. She was just as confused as the others. “I don’t know why, but I have a feeling someone else might know…”
Okay I'm gonna be honest, I'm kinda disappointed with how this turned out in the end. This was an interesting idea. What if Spike still remembered Sunset and consequently other people who Wallflower overlooked? Lots of potential for the events of the special to unfold differently.
But ultimately the inclusion of Spike, Juniper and the Shadowbolts doesn't really seem to have changed anything. Beyond replacing the roles of Trixie and the Rainbooms in the conclusion, the line of events and the final confrontation with Wallflower are still the same right down to the timing of it, even with them figuring out Wallflower's involvement in this early and having half a dozen people to back Sunset up on her story.
The Geode turning into a tiara seems to be the only actual change now.
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Thanks for your feedback! And...well, I recommend sticking around for the epilogue, it may be a bit more surprising and different than this chapter turned out to be!
......Did that thing just become the Element of Magic for their dimension? And no Trixie, Nocti sad, so sad.
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*covers your face* ShhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...
Not the Element of Magic...you'll see.
...you guys really like Trixie, huh? XD Maybe I'll put her in the epilogue!
Huh, I was kinda expecting for Spike to jump at Wallflower, snatch the Memory Stone from her hands, and Wallflower just chases him. Then, Spike shouted: "Winona! Angel! Down and out pass batter, 24! HUT!"
Then, the pets just play a game of keep away and football with Wallflower, before they decided to just smash the stone.
Wallflower: “Careful! You’ll break it!”
Spike: “Guys! It’s okay! Just break the stone!”
*Angel throws the stone away*
Wallflower: “NOOOOOOO!!!!”
Oh well. All's well that ends well.
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*lightly glares and calmly removes hand from face*Okay, understood on that one. I do like the idea of Trixie coming into it then for the epilogue! And sorry if my guessing story skills hit too close at times. I predict and at times suggest things that many have decided to use in the end for more than one story. Seriously, it has me a bit of a reputation as a good beta cause I can predict what the intent is at times. Exceptions are crazy out of the blue plot twists from the stadium three cities over.-LOL
The one alternate ending of Sunset going to Crystal Prep just seems mean to the Rainbooms. If they could only remember the bad parts of Sunset it would only be bitchy of Sunset to hold to much against them. The only thing that works slightly to this would be them refusing to believe the other witnesses. That ending would be better as a safety net of Sunset's if they failed to stop Wallflower on time.
In regards to the other alternate ending, I am very glad that you didn't go for it. If you did that then this story would have been a near complete waste. While I enjoyed the use of the Shadowbolts and other past characters into more Equestria Girls stuff, that ending would have made them pointless to the plot while also robbing Trixie of some character development.
Also, I think you could have handled the introduction of the Shadowbolts better. If you used the story's original premise of Spike/animals remembering Sunset and including the range limit you put in for the stone, Spike could have gone to the Shadowbolts and asked for help instead of having Indigo just randomly appearing in a scene she wasn't in in the movie.
Another thing I think could have been focused on more is Twilight. She is the one with the least amount of baggage towards Sunset so scenes of her trying to investigate what's going on with Sunset, Spike, and the dozens of pictures floating around would have been appreciated.
And seeing as that you already ruled out Sunset's geode becoming an Element of Magic, I've got nothing.
Wonder how Twilight (pony) will react to the new crown.
Also, why doesn't Sunset recognize it?
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Hey, if Diamond Tiara can do it, so can Sunset. XD
Also, hey, who says she's gonna wear it all the time? XD
I really loved this climactic bit. I liked seeing the Shadowbolts and Juniper get magic of their own in helping Sunset.
Also, I think that doing the ending the way you did was good. Sunset is a forgiving character. Having her resent the Rainbooms (for something that was truly out of their control) would have broken the story. Having her accept them back when their memories were restored was perfect.
And also, Sunset's necklace is now an Element of Harmony? I guess? XD Cool!
My guess is it's the Element of Heart (or equivalent.)
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Not Heart, but that's not a bad idea! Keep in mind, one of the show's writers has confirmed that Sunset Shimmer is the Seventh Element of Harmony for the human world!
Nicely done. Think you might be up to doing a story where Twilight Sparkle of the Pony Realm comes with Sunset to try and solve the mystery?
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Thanks for reminding me! I forgot! And I LOVE your suggestion about the necklace, I might just do that in the epilogue~
Also, I just checked the transcripts on the MLP wiki and found the one for "Movie Magic". Yeah, um, hello?! If I had a magical necklace like the ones the girls had, I would ALWAYS leave the house with it! I would NEVER leave it behind! *cradles my school ring* Don't worry, my precious, Mommy will ALWAYS keep you safe...Mommy's confidence comes from YOU... *Gollum face*
...I need to go to bed.
Bit of a letdown that the conclusion was pretty much the same as it was in the show. One of the main perks of these canon shakeups is seeing how things could have gone differently, so this felt a bit lazy.
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Thanks for your feedback! Stay tuned for the epilogue tomorrow, I'm going to shake things up one last time!
I’ve often wondered what Element Sunset would be. I have seen her Element being Compassion, Forgiveness,and various other things. My thought was because of the whole Phoenix wing thing in the My Past Is Not Today video and the sort of Phoenix vibe I got from Friendship Games and her Daydream Shimmer form, it would be something like Rebirth.
Honestly, I just wish they would make Sunset an alicorn already. I know that she probably doesn’t feel like she deserves it, but she has done so much in trying to redeem herself for her past actions, that she has to have earned her wings by now. Unless they plan to make a 4th EQ movie (not sure if Forgotten Friendship counts or not) where they explain where all this random Equestrian magic is coming from and she somehow earns during the course of it.
Anyway, enough of my crazy rambling.....
Interesting chapter. Not sure how I feel about the Shadowbolts taking the place of the Human 6, but I’m interested in seeing what I guess is the Epilogue and how all this is all wrapped up.
She's definitely an alicorn now.
The Shadowbolts pony up!? I didn't see that coming at all!
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I’ve always thought it should be confidence. It’s the opposite side of the arrogance/ambition that she was know for before being lasered and she kind of embodies it by being both confident in herself and in her friends.
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If it were up to me, she'd be an Alicorn following the events of "Friendship Games", and Human Twilight wouldn't have Alicorn wings. I was REALLY excited for "Legend of Everfree" because the toys seemed to suggest that Sunset would have wings in her transformation...and when it didn't come true, I "left" the fandom. XD
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The writer, Ishi Russel, said that her element is Empathy, which sort of makes sense, given her powers.
I kind of expected something different to come from this. But so far, it's just a copy of Forgotten Friendship with different names. That's pretty disappointing, honestly. Hopefully the epilogue saves this.
This isn't too different from what happened in canon, so there honestly isn't much to say.