Sunset Shimmer awoke, feeling her face planted firmly in the dirt ground. She tried wiggling her fingers and toes, but felt nothing. Kinda had a feeling. she thought. She pushed herself off the ground with her newly reacquired hooves, and observed her surroundings. She observed the tall, blue castle she had seen from the portal. Yep. Definitely Twilight's Castle.
For the first time in what felt like an eternity, she could sense real, Equestrian magic. Not magic that had not belonged in the world, magic that was a natural part of the environment. It was in everything, from the weather generated by the Pegasi, to the way the plant grew thanks to the Earth ponies. Sure, Sunset loved her life at Canterlot High, but this was unquestionably Sunset's first home.
These feelings were short lived, however. Sunset had the sensation that she was being starred at, being judged. Sure enough, she turned around, and several ponies were looking at the orange Unicorn who pretty much fell from the sky. Then again, this was Ponyville. They've probably seen weirder things fall from the sky. Like pies. Or frogs. Or three more ponies. Wait what?
Sunset looked behind her, seeing three ponies in the same position she was in not one minute ago. She waved the onlookers away, who surprisingly obliged. She walked to towards the ponies, and noticed some scarily familiar details. One was yellow, with a poofy orange mane. Another was blue, with a blue mane tied in a ponytail. The last was a light purple, with dark purple hair split into two ends. No...it can't be...
"Oof..." groaned the yellow pony.
Sunset knew that voice all to well. "The Sirens!" she yelled. Sunset was taken aback by her own comment, however. These ponies looked and sounded like the Sirens, but they weren't Sirens...
All three of them got up, and the yellow one spook again. "Great, you're here too. No matter. Girls, let's show her wha...Ah!" The yellow one turned to see her sisters. "Aria! Sonata! What happened?"
"I...I don't know, Adagio." Sonata said, looking at her new hooves.
"We're...We're ponies!" yelled Aria in a scared tone.
"No...no no no no..." Adagio ran to a nearby fountain, and stared at her reflection. Sure enough, she saw the face of a pony staring back at her. The other two followed, sharing their partner's look of fears.
"We're...we're so ugly!"
"We use to be beautiful...Our pendants!" The three each went to their neck's, frantically searching for any sign of jewelry.
"Are...you guys, okay?"
"...You..." Adagio turned slowly, and faced the Unicorn, a look of sheer rage burned in her eyes. "This is all your fault!"
"What are you talking about?" Sunset had noticed some peculiar details on the Dazzlings. For one thing, despite never having been ponies, they had cutie marks. They also had featherless, fin-like wings that glistened in the sun.
"If YOU hadn't destroyed our pendants, we would still have magic! We would still have our beautiful forms! All because YOU and your FRIENDS wouldn't LET US FEED!" Sonata and Aria backed away from their partner. Never before had they seen her so angry, not even at Star Swirl the Bearded.
"...Really? You're really gonna pretend you guys were the victims in that scenario?" Perhaps sarcasm wasn't the best idea in this situation. Adagio came charging at Sunset, only being stopped by Sonata and Aria.
Adagio began to scream hysterically. "We've! Lost! Our! Magic!" She began to cry into Aria's hoofs. "This is worse than that other world."
"There, there Adagio." Aria was comforting her fellow Dazzling.
"Yeah. Besides, it's not all bad!' Adagio was looking at Sonata now. "Now we don't have to sing to eat. We can eat normal food now..."
*SMACK*
A crimson, hoof-shaped mark was now on Sonata's cheek. Adagio looked at Sonata, her own teammate, with utter contempt. Aria backed away from both, looking completely shocked. Adagio walked away from the others, and sat by the fountain, hanging her head in shame.
Sonata began to form tears in her eyes, rubbing her new bruise with her hoof. Aria was now comforting her. Sunset was a little confused. Sure, she had hit rock bottom before, just like these girls now, but that was different. Then again, do these girls deserve a second chance, just like she got? The light had reflected on the wings, shining seven bright, familiar colors, and Sunset knew what to do. She walked towards them.
"Here." Sunset took Sonata's hoof. "I'm sure Princess Twilight has some ice for that. Come with me."
Aria grabbed Sonata's other hoof. "And just WHY should we trust you?"
"Cause it's been a thousand years, and no one in Equestria probably knows who you guys are." Sunset said with a raised eyebrow.
"...Just piling on the sarcasm today, aren't we?"
-
The four ponies were roaming the halls of the castle, Sunset dragging Adagio by the tail with her magic.
"Let's see...this one?" Sunset opened the door to her right, only to be met with broomsticks falling on her head.
"Ugh, don't you know your way around this place?"
"Look, I've only been in like one room of this castle. I'm only slightly less lost than you guys are." Sunset opened another door, and found the kitchen. "Ah ha!"
"Ya know, for a castle of friendship, this place is really dark." said Sonata, still rubbing her bruise.
"Here you go." Sunset handed Sonata some ice cubes in wrapped in a towel.
"Thanks."
"Don't think that just because you did this means we're friends now!" Aria said, coming in between the two.
"Sure, whatever. Now, I know the portal back to Canterlot High is around here somewhere. You guys can come along with me if..."
"Of course there's a catch." exclaimed Aria.
"I was gonna say if you wanted too. You really think I would force you guys into doing something you don't want, like being my friend?"
"Ya know, that brings up a good question. Just why are you being friends with us?" asked Sonata.
"Well, cause as much as I kinda hate to admit it, I was like you guys in a lot of ways. Trapped in a body that's not your true form, having lost all control you once had, AND not having magic to fix anything. I was given a second chance, so I may as well give you all the same curtsey." Sunset said, smiling at the Dazzlings.
"Uh. What's this thing I'm feeling in my chest?" asked Aria.
"Pretty sure that's joy that isn't caused by the suffering of others."
"Oh. It's weird." The three ponies shared a laugh, while Adagio continued to sulk.
-
"And that's when Gloriosa took the geodes, and became the true Gaea Everfree." Sunset said to Aria and Sonata, as they entered the library.
"Guess Equestrian magic just has a thing for damaged teenage girls, doesn't it?" joked Aria.
"Hey, look! It's Star Swirl's portal!" exclaimed Sonata. This made Adagio perk her head up slightly.
"Wait, so Star Swirl the Bearded actually used this portal against you guys?"
"Pretty much. He used some kind of weird, Siren sucking spell on us to send us away."
"That reminds me. I've never read or heard of any other Sirens besides you guys. And you guys have cutie marks, even though you never had to earn them. Plus those wings. What's up with that?"
"Well, ya see..." Sonata stopped, and stared blankly. "Huh, you know, I don't really remember either. You?"
"Beats me. Earliest memory I have was singing for Vanhoover way back when." Aria said as she shrugged.
"Huh. So you guys don't remember anything from your past? Not your families? Other Sirens? Heck, were you guys even born with those amulets?" The two Dazzlings could only shake their heads.
"Guess we really have been gone a thousand years, huh?" said Sonata.
"Well, maybe we can find out some other day. For now, let's head back to the other world. I'm sure my friends are worried sick." The three galloped to the mirror, with Adagio still being dragged. When Sunset placed her hoof on the mirror, it did not phase through as it should. No matter how hard she pushed, she could not go through.
"Well, I guess there's this now." said Aria.
"Nononononononono!" said Sunset as she desperately tried again and again to get to the other side. "Why!?"
"Think it has something to do with the portals that brought us here?" chimed in Sonata to bring Sunset back to reality.
Sunset let out a sigh. "That's probably it. My friends couldn't go through those portals, but all four of us could. There has to be some reason why though..."
"Shot in the dark, maybe it's because that's not our world?"
Sunset was taken aback by Aria's comment. It was a thought that had always been in her mind, but never could she bring herself to admit it. For all the things she's done, all the good, all the bad, and all the friendships, that world ISN'T hers. Heck, there was probably a Sunset Shimmer in that world being confused for her all the time.
Sunset was just at a loss for words. She froze. Sonata and Aria looked at each other uneasily, with Sonata needing to break the silence.
"Hey! That book is vibrating!" Sunset's attention turned to her former teacher's journal, the entire reason her and her friends even won against the Sirens. She levitated it towards herself, and examined the new messages inside.
Princess Twilight you got to help us! Sunset's gone and we don't know what to do and we think we might be in Equestria but we can't go there and...
The message was still being transcribed from the Rainbooms. Sunset grabbed a nearby quill. "Guess I better calm them down." she wrote her message.
A loud creek ran throughout the entire castle, no doubt the sound of the large doors opening.
"Looks like Princess Twilight's back. Maybe she can make heads or tails of this whole mess."
"WE'RE ALL DOOMED!" yelled Aria and Sonata at the same time.
"What? Why?"
"Oops. Sorry. Guess whenever we hear 'Princess', our first instinct is to freak out." said Sonata, rubbing the back of her head playfully.