30 moons have passed, and Sunset Shimmer sets on her way home. She's confused and upset, and she can only pray for a chance to prove her worth in Equestrian society once more. She receives so much more than that.

Season 5 and all but the first of the Equestria Girls movies are not canon to this story.

Warning: This is, in fact, a SunLight or Sunset x Twilight ship fic. If that bothers you, please don't read this.

Featured! 17/5/14

After the Battle of the Bands, Sunset Shimmer struggles to find middle ground between the person she wants to be and the person others at school expect her to be. Thankfully, Twilight Sparkle is a good listener and has enough patience for the both of them. [Post Rainbow Rocks, one-shot] [Slight Sunset Shimmer x Twilight Sparkle]

7/7/2016: Now with cover art designed by the very generous Novel-Idea! Thank you so much!

Canterlot High School has just let out for summer break, and it's Sunset's first since the disaster that was the Fall Formal. With guilt of her past actions, worries of mending her relationship with those back home, and homesickness plaguing her mind, Sunset contacts Twilight Sparkle for the first time since the events of the Battle of the Bands, seeking to truly return home for the first time in years.

However, when she arrives back home, things quickly take a turn for the dramatic. With strange happenings going unusually unreported in the heart of Canterlot and a mysteriously familiar figure only Sunset and Twilight seem to notice, her return home may turn out to be much more eventful than she could have ever bargained for.

After a magical experiment gone wrong, Twilight Sparkle has gone missing. After a dog bearing a striking resemblence to the nerd girl comes along, Sunset is left with only one possible conclusion: Twilight's become a dog!

Pinkie is determined to make this Christmas the best one Sunset has ever had and she has a certain pony princess who can help.

Warning:Contains Rarijack, Flutterdash, and a whole lot of Sunlight

Sunset has something she needs to tell Twilight Sparkle, but she just can't get the words out. It shouldn't be hard, yet she's finding it impossible.

All it is is four little words.

The last day of school has all but come and gone. Rainbow and the others have left to prepare the holidays with their families, leaving Sunset all by herself. Ready to spend another Christmas alone, Sunset exits CHS only to be greeted by a familiar face. Someone that comes bearing a gift Sunset never thought she'd receive.

In fact, it might just be the most important gift of Sunset's life.

This story was featured on the front page of FiMFiction on the 25th of December, rising to 1st on the feature box on the 26th of December.

Cover art is done by baekgup

Cover edit (adding the words and editing so it look like a story cover) gifted to me on Christmas by Novel Idea

Edit (26/12/2016): In my haste to get this ready by Christmas, I neglected to mention that Warming A Hearth in Another World by Flutterpriest was one of the inspirations behind this tale. I always try to give credits where they're due but this one slipped through the cracks, sorry!

Twilight Sparkle knows they’re lucky, and she’s not stupid. All her human counterpart wants is to try and understand how the magic works. But she’s in love, and as logical as she tries to be, she can’t handle a human version of herself being around her girlfriend Sunset all of the times she can’t be.

7/7/2016: Now with cover art designed by the very generous Novel-Idea! Thank you so much!

It's morning in the human world, and Sunset wants to show Twilight something before the sun comes up.

6/20/2016: Now with cover art designed by the very generous Novel-Idea! Thank you so much!

Twilight needed to work on that counter spell. The fate of the whole world depended on it. So yea, she had to stay up all night if that's what it took. She went for a snack, but Pinkie Pie really didn't have that much of a variety, so she just sat down and stared at a blank paper. And then Sunset woke up. Maybe she could help Twilight with the spell. Or... since everybody else was sleeping...

Rated 'Teen' just in case...
What should have happened after the scene in Rainbow Rocks...
Yes, there is a picture in here. It actually inspired the story when I got a bit stumped on it.