"Diane?" Twilight asked, looking between Sunset 'Magical Girl' Shimmer and Pinkie 'Might as well be magical too' Pie.
"Shimmy?" Coco asked as well, tilting her head at the scene.
"Diane!" Sunny exclaimed as she raised both of her arms.
"Shimmy!" Pinkie Pie did the same, and before anyone could say 'wait, what's actually happening?', the two embraced each other in a very tight, tearful hug.
A round of 'd'awwwing' ensued, even if the context of the scene eluded them for a moment. Rainbow Dash was the first one to shake her head and ask the most important question. "Wait, what the heck is actually going on?"
Everyone, aside from Pinkie Pie and Sunny, started looking at each other, shrugging and asking each other the exact same question. In the middle of all this, the two were still tightly locked in a hug.
"I thought you were just a dream!" Sunny said in between her tears.
"And I thought you were an imaginary friend, like many others!" Pinkie replied.
"I mean, look at you!" Sunny released the hug to take a better look at her entire body. "You're all... corporeal, and grown up and... and your hair is so puffy!" She patted Pinkie's bouncy hair.
"And you're a superhero now! Like, how cool is that?!"
"Very cool! It's a lot of fun!"
"I know, I've been there and done that!"
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot!" And then the two shared a laugh together.
Sunny Flare raised a hand. "No, can we please have some context now?" Pause. "The twelve of us left feel a bit left out." As she said, everyone else nodded and turned to the duo. The two turned to the group, smiling brightly as they rushed with an explanation.
"So, that time I went into a coma?" Sunny asked, not missing a beat despite the topic. "It was when we were going 'back' from Canterlot City, where my parents were visiting my relatives, except it was about some age old feud, I don't know nor care, so instead of watching them argue with each other, I went to see the neighborhood..."
"...which is when I first saw her!" Pinkie continued. "I was feeling down and I needed a friend to talk to, so I did!"
"You wouldn't believe just how shy she was!" Sunny added, making Pinkie Pie blush, while making the others raise an eyebrow. "Her hair was all smooth, long and clean, and she was stuttering like crazy!"
A few brains exploded.
Pinkie giggled while scratching her cheek. "Yeah, I was a sad kid back in the day. I got over it!"
Sunny laughed. "It all makes sense now! Everything was real! I didn't make anything up!" She took a deep breath and started piecing together everything. "That dream was just recent memories that I thought were all made up because nurses told me it was just a shock reaction after losing my parents!" She crossed her arms and pouted. "Thanks for nothing, Nurse Sweet Heart. Sweet Heart, hah!"
Sci-Twi raised a hand. "Why are you calling her Pinkie Pie Diane?"
"Because that's my middle name!" Pinkie Pie answered instead. "Pinkamena Diane Pie! Kids in kindergarten used to tease me about my first name, so I went by Diane! I got over it!"
Sunny gasped as she approached Pinkie. "Ohmygosh, Diane, I never called! I was so busy with, uhm, being an orphan, and I was told it wasn't real and I was too young to research it, and when I was old enough to use it I searched for any Diane in Canterlot, but..."
"That's okay Shimmy!" She patted her old/new friend. "When you weren't calling for so long, I made a temper tantrum so big, my parents took me to a child psychiatrist and he convinced me that life isn't that bad, that I shouldn't be bothered by what those boys were saying because they probably liked me and didn't know how to tell me that (turns out one of them DID have a crush on me!) and that instead of imagining friends I should go out and meet new people and become friends with them, so I did!" She paused for a moment. "Also, my hair went puffy for some reason!"
"Yeah, that's all so cute and touching. But," Sour Sweet said with a sweet smile, which quickly soured into a frown "how in the world are you remembering it NOW, while she!" Pointing at Sunset 'Not Shimmy'. "Was right there! FOR YEARS! How did you not connect the dots for so long!?"
Pinkie Pie blinked a few times, then shrugged. "Because they're two completely different people, duh!" She explained. "This is Sunset Shimmer, and this is Shimmy. I mean Sunny... Sunny Shimmy! Totally not the same person!" She smiled brightly.
Shimmy snorted, then leaned over to Pinkie Pie. "For the record, you're the only one allowed to call me that!"
Sour Sweet blinked a few times. "B-bu-but..."
Sunny Flare nodded. "She's not wrong. Somehow."
Rarity added. "Pinkie Pie was the first one among us to figure out Pri-Twi wasn't from this earth, so..."
Sour Sweet raised a finger and opened her mouth, then groaned loudly and slammed the table with her forehead, while Sugarcoat gave her a few much needed gentle 'there, there' pats on the head. Then everyone (except Sugarcoat) started laughing and even Sour Sweet couldn't help but join in after initial breakdown.
Rarity sighed. "Well, I have to give it to Pinkie Pie, when it comes to plot twists out of nowhere, she is second to nobody!"
Coco nodded. "Uh-huh."
"I was worried when we found out Sunny was in CP, but in the end," she continued, looking at the adorable duo of long lost childhood friends talking and giggling at each other "this turned out better than I could have imagined. Those two look so adorable together!"
Coco hummed to herself. "Yeah, they're precious... together..."
After a few minutes of blissful happiness, however...
"Uhm, girls!" Lemon Zest pointed at the large TV screen, which until this point was muted, but she found a remote to bring the sound back just in time for the emergency news announcement. It was a live feed, showing a female reporter in front of a huge crowd outdoors.
"We're broadcasting live in front of the Mayor's office, where a group of five armed assailants took over the building and took nine hostages, including Mayor Silver Scroll herself. The witnesses say they are armed with military grade assault rifles, and are highly trained! They have yet to make any demands. The police has surrounded the building and are trying to negotiate for the safety of the hostages. But the people outside the Mayor's Office, as well as most of you viewers behind the television screens, are asking one question: will Magical Girl Sunny be here, now that we need her the most?"
Sunset gasped. "Oh no, we have to do something! Sunny, do you-... Sunny?" They looked around the place, but Sunset Shimmer's doppelganger was nowhere to be found.
Back on the broadcast, a few people materialized in right next to the news crew, one of which they identified as the Mayor. Shortly after, a few more people appeared, each stumbling on their feet and barely keeping their balance.
"That's all nine hostages! Are we getting this on camera? ...perfect! All right, good. Ladies and gentlemen, this is a miracle! It seems like our prayers were answered! Everyone is safe outside, but what about the terro-"
She stopped when a sudden, loud noise of broken glass spooked her. The camera aimed at the front windows of the building, from where one of the masked terrorists fell out of, growling from pain, already being apprehended by the police. Next they heard various gunshot sounds from the inside, until everything went silent. A few moments later, the front door opened, and one of the terrorist came out of it, unarmed, unmasked and shaken, holding his hands up and falling on his knees. As the police arrested him, the camera pointed at the rooftop, where a familiar, fabulously dressed superheroine was already posing.
"Don't worry citizens of Canterlot City, Magical Girl Sunny will always be there to protect you!" She loudly announced. "You're welcome everyone, just pay no attention to the broken statue. I'm sorry, collateral damage, I tried my best, I hope it wasn't too expensive, just, uhm, it was destroyed by a grenade, just for your information..." she laughed sheepishly "well, gotta go. Sun'ya!" And she disappeared in thin air, leaving the cheering crowds behind her, as well as a reporter on her way to getting a prize for a material of the year.
Back in the restaurant, the thirteen girls were still staring wide-eyed at the screen, when Sunny, back in her all black and beret getup, slowly walked back to her seat and grabbed what was left of her drink and sipped it. She noticed all the stares were gathering on her. "What?" She asked, just barely stopping herself from bursting into laughter. "Did I miss something?"
"Woooo, you go girl!" Pinkie Pie jumped up to her. "Team Sunny: one, team bad guys, still zero! Yay!" The two high fived, while the rest of the table nodded in approval and admiration.
"I have to give her that," Rarity turned to Coco "she certainly does not lack skill nor style! Although that last part is mostly thanks to you, right?" She got no answer. In fact, Coco didn't even look at her. "Miss Pommel?"
Coco jumped slightly when hearing her name. "Wha-oh, sorry, I, uh... I got distracted, what were you talking about?"
Rarity raised an eyebrow, then turned to where Coco's gaze was previously, then turned back to Coco with a smile. "Nothing. It's not important."
Coco nodded and looked back at her roommate. And Pinkie Pie. Together. She sighed and went back to her soda quietly.
***
"Is that a best day ever or the best day ever!?" Sunny exclaimed as the door to her room closed behind her.
Coco shrugged, but felt strangely at ease, now that it was just the two of them again. "I don't know, is it?"
Sunny put a finger to her chin, thinking out loud. "Let's see... my doppelganger, who is a magical unicorn from the land of ponies, is totally not trying to kill me, I met a childhood friend I always thought didn't exist... oh, and I totally rescued the Mayor while beating up five skilled mercenaries! Yep, this is the BEST. DAY. EVER!" She masaged her back. "Minus the back pains and scars from yesterday, but meh."
Coco smiled weakly. "If you say so... you looked like you and Pinkie Pie were getting along."
Sunny snorted. "Well, she is a girl from my dreams, haha. And we have a decade of catching up to do, so yeah, that's not the last we've seen from Diane."
Coco nodded and turned away. "I see."
"Also, apparently she has three sisters, not two. I always thought it was just two, but then again, they're all grey and my mind is fuzzy on the details."
"Mhm."
"Sunset said her parties were amazing, I can't wait to see for myself! If other Rainbooms are to be believed, we should expect at least one 'We have a new hero in town' and one 'Real Imaginary Friends Reunion', unless she combined them into one giant combo party."
"Mhm."
Sunny raised an eyebrow as she looked at the back of her little friend. "And she lives in a sky castle with twenty maids and two butlers, one of which is a dog with bunny ears."
"Mhm."
Sunny sighed deeply, then extended her hand forward and quickly materialized a can of ice cold soda, then gently attacked Coco's cheek.
"EEEEK!" Coco jumped and turned to her, equally angry and shocked. "WHY DO YOU KEEP ON DOING THIS?!"
Sunny interrupted her by placing a finger on her lips. "You're jealous."
Coco opened, then closed her mouth. "I-I don't know what-"
"It's true that I wanted to see Diane for years and that she's amazing and I'm looking forward to hanging out with her. But," she handed her the can she assaulted her with earlier "you're still my number one!" She said, before leaving towards the toilet. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a lot of Soda inside of me that needs disposing!"
Coco frowned. But only slightly. "You're disgusting!"
"But I'm sexy, so you'll forgive me!" She said, closing the door behind her.
Coco blinked. Then blinked again, as her cheeks started burning like two little suns (now there's an appropriate metaphor!), as she looked at the ice cold can. It was a soda from a 'No.1' brand, cherry pineapple. Her favorite.
She smiled. You're right. I forgive you.