196
Canterlot High School
Near the Portal
4:52 p.m.
Thankfully for Sunset, her friends were waiting by the statue.
The colors of the multiverse lingered in her vision, eventually fading as she set foot on familiar solid concrete once again. Just feeling her boots against that ground, smelling the residue of a freshly-cut lawn, and hearing the chorus of friendly gasps was enough to ease her worrisome heart. Her eyes fluttered open, the blinding rays of the falling sunlight almost blinding her. She flinched against it, raising a hand and not a hoof to block out those afternoon rays. Sunset’s narrowed eyes slowly widened. Her jaw fell, as did her hand.
Standing before her in a clustered pack of uncertain glances, stunned stares, and frozen postures, her best friends met Sunset’s astounded expression with mixtures of their own. Applejack rested her hands on her hips, lips pursing as a weak exhale left her nose. Rarity’s own hand rose up to shield her mouth. Fluttershy looked as if she was about to cry, her face breaking at the mere sight of her long-lost friend. Pinkie Pie popped out from cover behind Fluttershy, her jaw falling wide open, eyes as large as dinner plates. Rainbow Dash crossed her arms, clear frustration evident on her expression with the risen brow.
Sunset knew exactly why she was frustrated. And she could hardly do a thing to defend herself from it. She had her reasons, but even Sunset didn’t know if she was strong enough to bring them up, to face the tribulations ahead like she knew she needed to. Amending her wrongs always seemed so much easier in her head, outside of reality where that pain was real. Yet seeing her friends standing before her—after not seeing them for five years—did not seem to hurt as much. Not nearly as much as it did to see Twilight Sparkle staring intensely at her. She and Spike resting in her arms, each of them holding that same intensity, that same confusion, that same pain.
That same betrayal.
Seeing that—seeing all of them—elicited the tears from Sunset Shimmer, the woman rushing forth and impacting the closest friends she could reach. They were Twilight and Rainbow. Momentarily stunned by Sunset’s actions, the two eventually turned to one another and did nothing. After hearing the subtle weeps from Sunset, feeling her tremble between them, both Twilight and Rainbow eventually embraced her just as well. Something had happened on the other side, in the pony world, that was beyond their understanding, beyond anything Sunset could have explained in her earlier letter. The time to understand Sunset’s reasonings would come. But right there, right then, more than ever, their friend needed them. She needed them just to be with her.
So, they did. Everyone else joined in comforting Sunset Shimmer, hugging the fiery-haired woman in a bundle of shielding arms. Her heart ached to feel them all against her, her friends finding the strength to give her comfort when she deserved none of it. It made Sunset love them all the more, being with her at her lowest, accepting her at her worst, ultimately making her the best part of her herself. They were her foundations, her strengthening anchors to everything she had come to believe about friendship. There was nothing more that Sunset wanted than to rebuild those foundations.
It all began with an apology.
Sunset hugged them back, whimpering, “I’m so sorry… for breaking my promise. For not contacting you. There was a disruption in the magic; the connection between our worlds severed! I… I-I-I wasn’t able to get Twilight’s messages in time. I thought… I-I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t know why you didn’t send any messages. I didn’t know…”
“It’s okay, Sunset,” Twilight whispered in return. Spike patted and rubbed Sunset’s hair. Despite everything that had happened, despite the rapid explanation Sunset tried to give them, she was still their friend. She still managed to come home. And she was still hurting. That meant more to them than any nagging qualms they may have still had with her.
Twilight, especially, felt that, holding Sunset gingerly while gazing off onto the clean face of the statue. Her brow furrowed, voice arising in curiosity. “A disruption between our worlds… Guess that explains it. Partially… some of it.”
“What severed our worlds?” Fluttershy weakly asked, her eyes rising to turn to each of her friends. None of them had the answer.
All eyes fell back to Sunset. Still holding onto Twilight and Rainbow, Sunset could feel their eyes peering at her, expecting the answer only she had. Closing her eyes, sniffling softly, she said, “If only I had known… maybe I could have worked to fix it. Maybe I should have sent a message… but even then, you would have never known. I was just so focused on Equestria, with everypony there. All the suffering… all the damage… I just couldn’t turn away from that. Not when they needed me for so long…”
Her friends practically flinched back when she mentioned the suffering and the damage, all of them seemingly understanding that it was just the tip of the iceberg. There was so much more buried deep under the pain in Sunset’s voice. So much more she had to answer for. So much she probably didn’t have the strength to explain. It showed when their hug ended, leaving just Sunset standing awkwardly in front of them, her hand rubbing her opposite arm, eyes refusing to rise in order to connect with theirs. Somehow, she found that strength. Somehow, she did it, and met their eyes.
“I’m sorry,” she told them and really meant it. “I’m sorry for staying away for so long. For…”
“A week,” Rarity interrupted. Sunset stared at her, breathless and awestruck. Rarity smiled sadly. “Give or take a few… months.”
Sunset could feel her heart turn icy-cold before falling into the deepest portion of her stomach, drowning it with that same infectious revelation.
“A few months?” Sunset breathed. She backed away, almost feeling nauseous. She stumbled on her own two feet, like she had completely forgotten how to walk. For how long she was gone, her friends found it odd that Sunset was already failing to recall basic motor function of humans, despite having done so with ease for years prior. For how long she was really gone, the sensation was not only unnatural for her, but completely and utterly mind-shattering. Twilight reached out and gripped her shoulder, keeping her steady.
Though Sunset appeared to be stuck in an existential crisis, Rainbow Dash stepped forward and clarified, “Yeah, you missed the entire summer. Probably having too much fun in pony land without us.”
Applejack elbowed her.
Rubbing her side, Rainbow tried to glare back at her but realized it was fruitless, realizing quickly that the look of panic and confusion in Sunset’s expression meant more than they could understand. Starting again, Rainbow clarified slowly and more carefully, “College is gonna start next week, Sunset. We were so worried you were gonna miss the first day like you missed orientation. We looked everywhere. Principal Celestia even said the school’s security cameras never caught anything with the statue. You just… never came back.”
Pinkie slipped forward, past Rainbow so she was standing directly in front of Sunset. She said, “But after Twilight got your message, we all came home to… well… you know… welcome you back.”
Pinkie tried to laugh it off, only succeeded in chuckling awkwardly. The situation did not really offer her many options. Her friend looked absolutely shell-shocked. Her breath was trembling. She had seen and experienced things none of her friends could fully understand, not without her help. When she turned back to them, Sunset finally noticed that her friends had shrunk—no, she had grown a few inches taller. They didn’t seem to notice, and if they did, they just wrote it off as her boots offering those extra inches. Sunset knew otherwise.
She knew so much more. Managing to breathe at least, Sunset stared back to the ground, feeling the edges of her vision beginning to blur as her mind tried to process the situation. In the end, all she could really say were her own slipping thoughts, those grave words that breathed, “But… it’s been years…”
“Years?” Twilight asked, astounded. The reactions from the rest of her friends were accurate to say the least, just as dumbfounded, shocked, and confused as Sunset was. They all stared at the portal, Twilight especially furrowing her hardened brow to it. Moments before gazing back to Sunset. “What happened in there?”
Sunset maintained her consciousness. Just enough for her to lift her eyes to them. She couldn’t say a thing, not able to find the strength to do so. Not right then. But they needed to know. Them, out of anyone else, deserved to know everything.
“Looks like you got a bit of a story to tell,” Spike said, pointing his paw to her.
Sunset followed the paw to where it pointed, her eyes dropping just over her chest. From the slim necklace, Sunset finally noticed that her Element of Harmony had transformed. It had returned to the same geode she had left with. Her trembling fingers rose and caressed the stone gently, washing over the intricate and beautiful sun design on its face. It shimmered under the afternoon light, that light glowing in Sunset’s glistening, tear-filled eyes. She had almost expected one of her friends to point out the golden necklace, to bring attention to the Element of Harmony she left Equestria with. Instead, everything went back to normal, as it should have.
Leaving just her and the nearly limitless memories left to tell the story instead.
Sunset smiled sadly, still holding that geode. Still holding that memory. “You could say that.”
Well, it all started with a man in a cave and a box of scraps...
10216247
She’s got one heck of a story to tell with them🤩 about the heroes she met
Great chapter!
So what happens in the last few chapters coming up? A set for Far From Home? A teaser for Grogar and Season 9?
10220289
I hope it’s season 9 since they still have Clint and the other heroes there and the villains are still alive
Oh, she does have a story for all of you, Spike, believe me she does...
only 4 chapters left i hope it involves a time skip to the future to see grown up twilight with her student luster dawn
Sunset’s return and reunion is bittersweet. While they are happy to see her, they are also a little upset that she has been gone for long without a word, even if it wasn’t five years in the human world, like it was in Equestria.
Exactly how much time had passed in the human world? At the start of the story, when Sunset first went to Equestria, what year were the girls in high school? The first few specials gave me the indication that they were Seniors; but the last few shorts and specials that came out after, showed they were still in school, making them seem like Juniors.
And Rainbow said they were getting ready to go to college. If they were Juniors, then Sunset was gone for at least a year; if they were Seniors, then it was just a few months, like Rarity indicated.
Sorry for rambling. I’m going by the assumption that, since we’re only four chapters away from the end, this is the last chapter that we’ll see Sunset, thus leaving us having to imagine how her telling her story to the girls will go over.
Of course, if you do give us another Sunset chapter, that would be great.
Another good chapter, JD!
A reunion both saddening and gladdening. I cant wait for her explanation.
Yes it's quite a story.
One might even say it's... marvellous.
Going to hell for that pun but it was worth it.
Time must’ve move differently between worlds of equestria girls and equestria. At least Sunset didn’t miss much. And even as humans counterparts, there are something’s to the mane six that will never change. Only four more chapters to go, make the final one as the last problem, with added avengers stories
10216247
I hope luster dawn meets hawkeye in the end
Would the ponies be considered as aliens in same manner to Asgardians and Guardians of the Galaxy?
They don't know all the hell, and the biggest sigh of relief Sunset went through on Earth.
10220492
Dude, not everything goes your way.
10220431
honestly, it was perfect for this story.
So it’s only been a couple of months since Sunset has been gone to the humane six. I figured since you’ve established the time shift near the beginning of the story. Though interestingly it seems like Sunset still aged up in the human world. I wonder how old she is now?
And begins the tale of the largest genocide in recorded history
10220252 Might be going a little TOO far back.
10220289 A little somethin' somethin'.
10220310 They might need to sit down for this one.
10220362 The way I saw it, I think in the first EQG movie Sunset was crowned princess of the ball for three years in a row if I'm not mistaken, making the first EQG movie take place in her Senior year. If we assume every following movie and special up to Forgotten Friendship all occur in her Senior year, then the summer break Sunset left on would be their last one until college. That's the way I see it, at least.
10220429 I'll leave it up to the imagination.
10220431 Oh, but it was beautiful.
10220459 I stated in chapter 88 that time moves differently between the dimensions.
10220522 eh, maybe.
10220840 Five years older, so early twenties. Poor girl missed the best years of her life.
10221362 And an unforgettable adventure.
10221974
Yeah, I see it that way, too. In the first special, when I saw those three pictures of Sunset wearing the crown, I also got the impression that she and the others were Seniors. But then Hasbro eventually made the timeline a little screwy.
Eh, whatever. As far as I’m concerned, the girls were Seniors, therefore Sunset was gone for only a few months.
Thanks for clearing that up, JD.
10221974
Well......ok
10221974
To be fair, it’s been a while for some of us to remember that chapter. But I did reminded them about the time goes different thing. But still at least she didn’t miss much
And here I go being two days late this time. Anyway, good chapter and good reason why her friends don't care that much. Although this pauses a question, why did time change from going way faster in EQG than in normal Equestria to the opposite ?
I'd say there are three options:
1-Celestia is a fricking liar.
2-Thanos somehow messed when destroying the stones (or maybe not even at that time) the very space continuum of the main universe and this inverted the time fluctuation between both dimensions.
3-Same thing but it's the Avengers that did it when going back in time
(4-Celestia comes from southern France and likes exaggerating things too much)
I don't think this'll be answered since Sunset won't come back to normal world for the rest of the story so it's up to our imagination I guess ? Well that's ok, I like have room to theorize when a story ends, even if I love having a cannon answer !
Oh and of course there's the option that I misunderstood something and that makes me appear extremely dumb, that's also possible.
Anyway, has always, kudos for that chapter !
10222687 Not sure I understand the question. I just kept it to time moving slower in the EQG dimension compared to Equus.
10223594
Was sunset shimmer in Thor’s funeral 🤔
10223594
Well then it was option 5, I misunderstood something. I had the memory that last time we heard, time went faster in the EQG dimension which would mean that something changed at some point for the opposite to be the case now. But visibly I was wrong.
10223861 Yes.
So close to the end friends.
Wow, I bet it felt like a journey.
I so loved reading the viewpoints of Sunset and her friends in her own dimension.
Hey Prime you hadn’t updated in a while, everything ok?
10232138 Been really busy this past week. I'll try updating this weekend.
Now I wonder how would "Far from home" go. Would Twilight have a role in this adventure, and at what level?
10235439 I need to toughen these kids up.
Well, that works out for Sunset. Turns out she was only gone for the entire Summer. Still a few months but not years away like she spent in Equestria. Now she attend college with her friends. Boy, does she have a story to tell them.
11453815
JDPrime and I discussed that Sunset uses her memory magic to share with her friends.