Finally the girls grew tired, and washed their faces, and brushed their teeth, and had final drinks of water, and crawled into their sleeping bags to rest. They were exhausted, and soon all seven of them were sleeping hard.
Sunset’s sleeping bag was right next to Twilight’s. The two of them had fallen asleep last, chatting amiably late into the night. To Sunset’s surprise, it was she who was awakened to sounds of distress.
Disoriented at first, since she was used to sleeping in her own bed in her own room instead of down in the TV room, she looked around for what had disturbed her and realized it was Twilight, moaning and rolling restlessly. She paused, not sure what to do. She suspected Twilight was having a nightmare, but she didn’t know if she should wake Twilight up, or wait for her to wake up on her own. She seemed to recall that her friends, and Celestia and Luna, had generally comforted her after she had woken up on her own, and so she started to prepare to embrace Twilight as soon as she awakened. However, Twilight did awaken at just that moment, sitting up with a gasp and a whimper. She was panting.
“Twilight? Are you ok?” Sunset asked with concern.
Twilight experienced her own moment of disorientation, but she was getting to know Sunset’s voice well enough at this point that she quickly realized where she was, and that she was safe. She tried to slow her breathing.
“Another nightmare,” she said quietly.
“Another? You’ve been having them a lot?”
“Yes. Ever since I fought Tirek.”
“You haven’t told us much about that. Maybe you need to talk about it. When I was having nightmares after the Fall Formal, Celestia, Luna, and the girls insisted that I tell them about them. It always helped.”
“Maybe I do,” Twilight mused thoughtfully.
Sunset just waited patiently, putting a hand on Twilight’s shoulder. Twilight didn’t say anything for a while, as she tried to calm down. She did manage to put one of her hands over Sunset’s. Finally, she spoke.
“He was a bad one,” Twilight said at first, shaking her head.
“The others weren’t bad?” Sunset asked, skeptically. “I know I was bad.”
“Not like Tirek, Sunset. He was more powerful, more ruthless, and more amoral than any opponent I’ve ever faced. And I had to face him alone.”
“Alone!?” Sunset nearly cried, before realizing she might wake the others. “Alone?” she whispered again incredulously.
“Let’s go up to the kitchen – that way we can talk without worrying about waking anyone else up.”
As silently as they could, the two young women shimmied out of their sleeping bags and padded up to the kitchen. Twilight leaned against the counter, folding her arms. Sunset stood close to her, looking concerned.
“It was Celestia’s plan,” Twilight began.
Sunset just listened.
“Tirek…he had the power to drain the magic from other creatures. All of it. He could drain ponies even of their Cutie Marks.”
Sunset gasped. In Equestria, there were few crimes more heinous than messing with a pony’s Cutie Mark.
“Yes, it’s true. And he had grown strong, very quickly. You see, Discord was helping him.”
“Discord!” Sunset hissed angrily.
“Yes, he was free, you know. Celestia was trying to reform him.”
Sunset paused. “Reform him? Wow, seriously? How do you reform chaos incarnate?”
“Very carefully.”
“Huh. Well, I guess I can’t be pointing any fingers, now can I?” Sunset mused.
“I think you have a point, though, Sunset,” Twilight said. “Discord was an enemy of harmony for thousands of years. You were only off the rails for a fraction of that time. I think there is certainly a matter of degree here. Anyway, Celestia sent him after Tirek, because he alone could sense when Tirek drained magic from someone. It seemed logical, though I was quite skeptical that Discord was reformed enough to trust with a job of this importance. Turns out…I was right.”
Sunset’s head fell a little. She certainly understood what it was not to be trusted, and to have others doubt one’s intentions. She realized she had already been hoping for Discord to be completely reformed, and that she was disappointed that he hadn’t been.
Twilight sensed this. “Hey. That’s not the end of the story,” she said, with a tiny twinkle in her eye. Sunset took a deep breath, and kept listening.
“Well, Celestia realized that any one of us, herself included, was not strong enough to face Tirek alone. And she also realized that if he could drain the magic of any princess, even me – the youngest and therefore probably the weakest – he would be unstoppable, even by the other three facing him together. So, she made a choice.”
Sunset listened, bracing herself.
“Tirek didn’t know about one of the princesses. Guess which one.”
Sunset swallowed. “You. It must have been you.”
“Yes. I was so new that he had never heard of me. Celestia figured that would give me the element of surprise. So, she did the only logical thing. She, and Luna, and Cadence, all gave their magical power to me.”
Sunset’s eyes went wide. She gasped. “Oh my. Twilight. What must that have been like? I didn’t even know that was possible!”
“Neither did I,” said Twilight grimly. “But it was. I felt like I was going to explode. I couldn’t control the power – not at first. It kept leaking it out, causing incredible things to happen. The worst part, though, was…”
Sunset smiled gently at her, trying to be supportive.
“Celestia commanded me not to tell my friends. She said that if Tirek got to them first, and learned what she had done, Tirek might be able to devise some kind of strategy against me.”
“Oh, Twi!” Sunset commiserated.
“She was right. In terms of pure logic, anyway. The hard thing is – somehow, I knew she was actually wrong. But I didn’t have the courage to tell her. I…I’m so new to this princess thing, Sunset. I couldn’t imagine that I knew better than Celestia about anything – let alone an ancient threat to all Equestria!”
“Don’t blame yourself for that! I would have done the same thing. Twilight,” said Sunset, earnestly, “if there’s one thing I’ve learned lately, it’s that you can only do your best. You can’t know or plan for everything!”
Twilight smiled ruefully. “But that’s kinda my thing. Planning for everything.”
Sunset couldn’t control herself. She laughed, giving Twilight a knowing look.
Twilight smiled again, but this time with genuine mirth. She could see that Sunset understood. She continued, but seriously again.
“Well, I ran into the girls, but I had to send them away. That…was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.”
Sunset had stopped laughing.
“I kept trying to harness the power. I even had to raise the sun. That went well,” Twilight said sarcastically. Sunset looked at her in wonder.
“Somehow Tirek found out about me. I guess Discord told him. He came to Ponyville for me. I’ve never been that scared before. He attacked and I fell back. I just wanted to learn more about him, you know? Well, I fell back to my house – the Golden Oak Library. That’s where Spike and I had been living ever since Celestia sent us to Ponyville. There was a telescope on the observation level, and I teleported there to try to observe Tirek. Logical, right?”
“Eminently,” Sunset agreed.
“Well, Tirek wasn’t fooled. As soon as I looked into the telescope I saw that he’d launched a huge fireball – no, a powerball – no, I don’t know what it was – straight at me! I grabbed my owl friend and leapt from the observation deck and the Library exploded under me. Nothing was left. He turned it into a hole in the ground.”
Sunset was speechless for a time. “All those books…” she breathed at last, horrified.
Twilight’s eyes filled with tears. “I knew you’d understand, Sunset! But worse than that, he’d nearly killed Owlowicious!”
“And you!” Sunset said angrily. She found herself wishing this Tirek was still around, so she could give him a piece of her mind, unrealistic as that was.
“Yes. And me. And…well, I’m not entirely sure what the exact trigger was, Sunset, but that was when I…I snapped.”
Sunset’s mouth was a thin line.
“I thought I knew what anger was. I thought I knew what fury was. But Sunset…I don’t even know what to call what I felt. And what made it worse was that I saw other ponies running from Ponyville in terror. My ponies, Sunset! My friends! Ponies that I was supposed to protect. Ponies that Celestia loved. And so I just acted. No plan. No flashcards or notes.” Twilight swallowed. “I shot this…thing…at him, Sunset. From my horn. It was like the heart of a star. And that’s how our battle began.”
Sunset’s eyes were wide. She didn’t say anything.
“We…fought without holding anything back. It was so scary, Sunset. I never want to feel like that again! I was so angry! I was out of control!” Tears were falling from Twilight’s wide eyes now. Sunset rushed to her and held her.
“We…leveled mountains. Ripped entire plains to shreds! I…never wanted that kind of power!” Twilight cried. “And I was all alone! No one to help me! The fate of all Equestria on my shoulders!” Twilight dissolved into sobs.
Sunset just held her and rocked her. “It’s ok. It’s ok,” she said softly. “You were just trying to save them. To save them all.”
“And I couldn’t overcome him! I think…I think I was starting to maybe get an edge, and that’s when he played his ace card. He had my friends. Our friends, Sunset. Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow, Pinkie, and Spike. I mean, I know you don’t know the pony versions of the girls, but, in a way you do. He even had Discord. He’d betrayed Discord, and taken his magic too. He gave me a choice. I had to give him all my magic, or he’d kill them all.”
Sunset was crying now too.
“I had no choice. I couldn’t let him kill them.”
“Of course not, sweetheart. Of course not.”
“So, I let him take it. All my magic. All of Celestia’s, and Luna’s, and Cadence’s. I thought I’d failed. Failed them all.”
“But you hadn’t. You’re still here. You must have won. How? How did you win?”
“With my friends, of course,” said Twilight, her breath hitching a little. “The way I would have won in the beginning, if I’d only trusted my instincts.”
Sunset smiled. “Tell me,” she breathed.
“It was Discord who figured it out. You see, over the last month, each of us had had to do something hard. Something that tested our bond with our Element. Rainbow’s Loyalty was tested, Fluttershy’s Kindness, etc. And in each case, we’d been given an object that represented our faithfulness to our Element, as a memento, or something. All of us had been tested, and had passed the test, except me. Well, when I gave up my magic to save my friends, apparently that was my test. And I passed. The memento was a necklace that Tirek had given to Discord as a symbol of his ‘loyalty’. Well, Discord gave it to me, with a very heartfelt apology for betraying us. You would have approved, Sunset,” said Twilight earnestly, with genuine affection. “I wish you had been there. He…it would have helped him.”
Sunset managed a somewhat rueful smile.
“Anyway, Applejack realized that we each had an object representing our faithfulness to our Element. So, we rushed as fast as we could to the Tree of Harmony.”
“The Tree of Harmony? IT’S REAL?! I thought it was only a legend!”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Sunset. I should have explained about the Tree!”
“Oh, uh…don’t worry Twilight…” said Sunset, not wanting to interrupt.
“Lemme tell you about it later, ok? For now, suffice it to say that the Tree is real, and it had recently produced this box with six keyholes.”
Sunset understood instantly. “No way!” she said with excitement.
Twilight permitted herself a proud smile. “Yes! And then we had six objects! As we held each object up to the box, each one turned into a key! They fit into the keyholes, and then the box opened. And then…then it got crazy.”
“Oh yeah?” Sunset asked playfully.
“Yeah! I mean, we powered up. Like nothing I’d ever experienced before. It was the Rainbow Wave squared or something. Tirek was toast. We smoked him. It wasn’t even a contest. Boy, that felt good!” Twilight said, shaking her head with wide eyes and a smug smile.
Sunset exulted with a laugh. “That is so cool! I wish I could have seen it!”
Twilight turned to Sunset with a smile. “But you have, Sunset.”
Sunset paused. “Erm…huh?”
“The thing we just did to the Sirens…it was pretty close. Maybe not exactly as powerful, but definitely in the same ballpark. Like, 95% or something. Trust me, I know.”
Sunset’s mouth was an “o”.
“Yeah – you should be very proud, Sunset. And, as I said earlier today, it was including you that made it so strong.”
Sunset was quiet for a few moments. Then, she simply said, “Wow.” Twilight was still smiling at her. Sunset, however, was confused. “But Twilight, it sounds like you won. Big. Like you totally defeated him. Why are you having nightmares?”
It was Twilight’s turn to be quiet for a few moments. “I think it was that I had to face him alone, at first. And the anger, and being out of control. It frightened me, Sunset. I don’t ever want to be that alone again. And I don’t ever want to be that angry again. I…it felt like I was…losing myself.”
Sunset didn’t respond right away. At last, she said, “Well, I understand the losing yourself part. I’ve lost myself too, but not in a good way. ”
Twilight was instantly sensitive. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, but…I guess I’ve always wondered…” Twilight paused, looking almost apologetic, “…what it was like for you when you were…you know…”
“A ten foot tall fire demon?”
“Yeah…that…”
Sunset thought for a moment. “Obviously, it’s something I never want to experience again. Twilight, I need to tell you something, and I’m going to ask you to believe me. It’ll sound like I’m trying to make what I did seem…not as bad, or something, but that’s not it. It’s complicated.”
Twilight put a hand on each of Sunset’s shoulders. “Sunset, if I haven’t been clear already, let me be totally, abundantly clear now. Not only have I completely forgiven you, but I trust you now. With my life,” Twilight said, looking directly into Sunset’s eyes.
Sunset smiled broadly and wiped away a tear. “Thanks…I have to admit – hearing you say that…I can’t put into words what it means to me.”
Twilight smiled back and rubbed Sunset’s upper arm.
“Ok, here goes,” Sunset continued, emboldened by Twilight’s trust. “I’m going to promise you something. I never, ever, planned to try to physically harm you, let alone…do away with you. If I had been willing to do that, I would have just done something leading up to the Fall Formal. The truth is, Twilight, turning into that demon was not part of the plan. I had no idea that was going to happen.”
Twilight just listened.
“I thought all that was going to happen was that I was going to get access to my magic again, and then I could advance any plan I wanted. That transformation was a total surprise. And it was actually…extremely painful. It’s the worst physical pain I’ve ever experienced – even the Rainbow Wave didn’t hurt like that. I’ve even got scars. You can see them some time, if you want.”
Twilight looked at Sunset compassionately, still rubbing her arm.
“When the transformation was complete, Twilight, I am pretty sure I lost my mind. All my desires and plans and, frankly, evil, were magnified and released from any…sense of restraint. The power felt incredible – I won’t lie about that, but I understand a bit of what you mean about losing yourself – losing control. I was controlled, Twilight. I was enslaved by my most base desires, and, as you know, I didn’t hold anything back.”
Twilight was silent. Then: “I sure wish you hadn’t had to go through that. Or what came next. I wish we could have found another way.”
“I wouldn’t have listened, Twi. I needed the Rainbow Wave. Every second of it. I’ve already told this to the other girls – when it hit me, a different amount of time passed for me than for you all.”
Twilight nodded unhappily. “I suspected as much. There was no other good explanation for how…immediately and totally sorry you were. And I’d already seen the same thing happen to Princess Luna.”
“She came to me, you know. In my dreams, about a week and a half after the Fall Formal.”
Twilight’s eyes widened. “Wow. She really is amazing.”
“Yes, somehow she crossed between the two worlds without using the portal. Maybe the dream world is a bridge between all the worlds. Who knows? Anyway, she didn’t have much time, but she was really sweet and told me she understood what I was going through. She said she’d been Rainbowed too, and that she’d had to face and experience all the pain she’d caused to others, and had to face the emptiness of her own heart. It helped a lot – to know that she understood.”
“I’m so glad she did that for you. She’s more like her sister than she is willing to admit.”
Sunset smiled. “It helped also to get, well, personal attention from a princess. It…helped me to begin to see myself again as someone who could be valued. Who others could, and even wanted, to care about. And she told me…that her sister was one of them.”
Twilight smiled again. “I’m sure that did help. I can hardly wait to see Celestia’s face when I tell her how much you’ve changed, and what a heroic thing you did.”
Sunset looked out the window a bit wistfully.
Twilight correctly interpreted Sunset’s expression as one of regretful longing. “You know,” she said gently, “now that we can open the portal at will, you could come back for a visit. You could see her. I know she’d love to see you. She’ll forgive you, Sunset. She’s been so worried about you.”
Sunset’s eyes flicked back to Twilight’s. “I’m…just not quite ready for that, Twi. I think I will be one day, but…not yet.”
Twilight looked carefully at Sunset’s face. “I won’t push you. But when you’re ready, it’ll be good for both of you.”
“I’m sure you’re right. Just…give me a little more time.”
Twilight kept looking at her for a moment, then decided she needed to say a little more. “You know, you really showed us something tonight. You showed us you really were Celestia’s student, and that you learned a lot from her. You rose to the challenge and kept your head under pressure. You taught me a few things this time around, Sunset.”
Sunset blushed a little bit, looking down at the ground, but didn’t respond.
“It’s nice – having a friend who understands what it’s like to be her personal student,” Twilight continued. “As much as I love the girls here, and my friends back home, it’s something I can’t completely share with them. In fact, until this whole thing started, I didn’t even know she’d taken another student in the last few hundred years.”
Sunset looked back up at Twilight, but still didn’t know how to respond.
Twilight decided to give her some time – she could see that Sunset was still uncertain, even ambivalent about how to feel about her time as Princess Celestia’s student. “My bad – we’re getting off topic. You were going to tell me something. Something important,” she prompted softly, with an encouraging look.
Sunset shook herself out of whatever zone she had been in. “Right. Ok. The point of this was – I wanted to explain to you that I was out of my mind when I was the demon. But I don’t view that as…making what I did as the demon less bad. It was my fault that that happened to me, Twilight – I brought it on myself. And so, I have to take responsibility for what I did while I was the demon. But I wanted you to know that, when I was in my right mind, as horrible as I was back then, I hadn’t planned to physically hurt you or the girls. I…don’t know if that helps any. But I wanted you to know.”
Twilight thought for a moment. “It does help. You know, I’m starting to think the whole demon transformation thing was part of the Elements’ plan, if there is such a thing.”
“To show me what was in my heart, like you said?” Sunset sighed. “Maybe so.”
“But that’s not what’s in your heart anymore, Sunset.”
Sunset smiled. “I’m…starting to believe that.”
“Just ‘starting to’, huh? You know what I think? I think you need more of this…” Twilight said, and hugged Sunset again, for a long time.