Sunset Shimmer is the daughter of the Sun and the cleverest pony of her age. Yet still she craves more.
For in her sleep and waking hours, Sunset dreams of flight. Every day she longs for the skies she deserved, cursed to be beyond her reach, for it is everything she has ever wanted.
Then along comes a stranger from a faraway land, with rose-coloured wings and love in her heart, and all Sunset wanted to know was how she lived her dream and flew where she could only run.
Meanwhile, Mi Amore Cadenza dreams of a garden wreathed in stardust, with the legacy of a long-forgotten realm shouldered upon her, and her alone...
Set before Season 1.
A standalone piece in the Spectrum-verse. TV Tropes page here!
A story in three acts. Each act is completed first before being published. Chapters in each act published every three days.
Featured from 3/2/2023 to 4/2/2023, reaching the #4 spot. Featured again on 6/2/2023 and 9/2/2023.
Edited by VoxAdam, proofread by skysayl, EileenSaysHi, and Gay For Gadot
Cover drawn by my good friend Grace 
Ko-Fi page, leave a tip if you feel like it!
Readers are in for a treat with this one. This story was such a joy to read. You should be immensely proud of your characterization and style, especially how you write the alicorns. All of them are such a delight in your works. And your pre-mirror Sunset is just... perfect.
Thanks again for letting me help with this.
This was quite a pleasure to pre-read, and these opening chapters do an outstanding job setting up your version of Sunset and Celestia's relationship and giving a deeper dive into a character we've only briefly seen in your other work. A must-read for fans of Sunset, Celestia, Cadance, and pre-FiM stories.
This is already so good! There being no alternate universe tag scares me, though. Between First Hoof Account and this... I just wanna see a happy ending :(
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And thank you for the help, Gadot
Glad you enjoyed it, above all!
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Aw shucks, I try! Thanks for the help, and happy you've enjoyed it
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I'm so sorry.
Stick around. The ride goes on.
I can already tell how much I'm going to love this. Great start!
> No Alternate Universe tag
god fucking damn it, why must you do me like this...
Dammit, everyone seem so sweet. Celestia and Sunset, Cadance, even Kibitz!
*Deep sight*
we're in for a world of pain are we...
Well, buckle up. It's gonna be a ride...
Was this title inspired by the song "Sogno di Volare" by Christopher Tin for Civilisation IV?
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This is the second fic I've seen that ships these two during the time period where they logically would have met, and the other was even more explicit about what the lack of tag meant.
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This one, is it ?
- MLP: FiM
- MLP: Comic
- Romance
- Tragedy
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You're damn right it was!
What I especially like about your work, Sledge, aside from the wondrous prose and fairy tale-like universality, are the little hints you provide that connect one to another, without necessitating that the reader have read both. For instance, I think this chapter contained connections to your previous works with Cadence, which I unfortunately haven't read, but I also sense possible connections with your Sunset and Wallflower stories, which I have read.
This makes accessing your work easy, but also invites the curious to seek out your other work in a more natural manner than may be given by series or sequels. I look forward to more!
The moon shines brightly over the sea, the wind and waves the source of the soothing rocking motion of the ship that sails this calm patch of the ocean.
Gazing through a window, we can see a man, the light of the moon matched by the 2 lamps illuminating his room. Garbed in a blue Doric chiton, he sits at a desk, his eyes poring over a map of the western Mediterranean. Gently grabbing a stylus, he dips it in a pot of ink and marks a path with a metal scale, using the Island of Corsica as a reference point.
The door behind him opens and a young woman enters the room, dressed in only a woolen white shift. She comes to his side and glances at the map, smiling.
“You’re plotting a new course again aren’t you?
The man turns to look at her, his eyes gleaming with the spirit of adventure and discovery.
”The currents before us are ever changing. We must adapt and press forward if we are to see our journey’s end.” He gestures to the new path he has just drawn, though his words indicate he is speaking of more than just that.
The woman’s eyes once more glance down to look at the map before settling back on his face.
”And how will we know when we get there?
The man just smiles.
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Yup. No AU tags.
Make of that what you will, but do enjoy the ride, heh.
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Ah, I see y'all are cultured
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I should note that I'd considered making this an extension to said Cadance story, The Rose of Florentina, but I figure it deserved its own place. I won't be marking this as a sequel as well for exactly the reasons you mentioned, because I am of the belief that it should work just fine on it's own.
And there's more to come, of course, huzzah!
Sledge casually making another masterpiece
will track
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I actually only learned of it from Peter Hollens' cover of it haha
Sunset Shimmer, intimidator of alicorns.
Excellent chapter. The intrigue builds.
Is this going to be a romance?
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I didn't tag this as romance so...
Will this story follow the timeline told in your Wallflower story? They seemed to be a perfect match. While pre-mirror Sunset stories are not uncommon，your story enjoys a unique beauty.
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Why wouldn't it?
Sunset is already starting to get a little nasty. I fucking knew this was gonna happen...
There's the reference
And so we meet one more important figure in our little tale, one whose dialogue feels strangely... familiar... (spoiler for chapter)
cdn-img.fimfiction.net/story/wyuk-1617502459-490655-full
An excellent end to Act I that uses its connections to another Sledge tale both to build and then subvert expectations. Well done.
Luna, what are you playing at...?
I was about to groan from second hand embarrassment when I saw what Sunset was about to do, but I'm glad that ended up not happening. The use of parallel character context between her and Cadenza was an especially wonderful touch.
And a lovely dedication, too. Ninja was also someone who got me into your work initially. It's fitting that should be the case, that this chapter should be dedicated to him and his review, and that in this chapter I sensed a lot of connections to your previous work that I have read. Not to wax poetic, but there's something appropriate in such a pattern of coincidences - a holiness of shared experiences, I think.
And I might be mistaken, but the lavender scent... For some reason I drew a connection to your G5 story, but I don't remember if it featured at all in there?
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I also loved itty-bitty Blush.
This is some great stuff! The presentation of Sunset as Celestia's adopted daughter, her reactions to Cadance, and Cadance herself as an inexperienced foreign pony are all really interesting, and you're great at setting the mood.
Finally got around to reading it—haven't been in the mood for reading much lately.
I can feel the pieces gathering together. The revelation of Cadenza being an orphan to Sunset was expertly timed. Excited to see more.
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But of course.
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Whatever Luna does best. Being mysterious
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It is, without a doubt, the crucial moment for the entire Act. We all know that Sunset's greatest virtue is empathy, yet I don't think it's something she developed later in life.
She may be prickly, but deep down Sunset Shimmer has always had a good heart. I refuse to believe that she was in any way a bully before she went through the mirror, Celestia wouldn't have let that fly and wouldn't have kept her as her student for so long.
As for the lavender, well, I do like recurring motifs of love-scents.
And last of all, here's to Ninja. May he rest in peace, always.
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That was a good story goodluck with the rest of it.
This was a great first act and i enjoyed reading it. I like that Celestia adopted Sunset and its nice to see Sunset and Cadance having this kinship as they realise they were both orphans.
I look forward to reading more.