“She Didn’t Use the Memory Stone on You.”
About an hour later, two cars pulled up to Sunset Shimmer’s apartment building. Sunset and Indigo, who had been watching from Sunset’s window, ran down to greet the visitors. The first car carried four girls. Three of them jumped out of the car and ran up to Indigo Zap: a beauty with a lavender pixie cut, a stoic student with silver pigtails, and a rocker with hair that looked like it had been dyed with lemon and lime juice. The driver followed her friends, her pink ponytail dancing behind her as she ran up.
“We came because we were promised snacks!” Lemon Zest said as she squeezed Indigo in a hug.
“Lemon Zest!” The sole occupant of the other car called out as she joined the group. She was trying to act shocked and appalled, but she couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her mouth. “Come on, be serious!” Juniper Montage continued as she gave Sunset Shimmer a small hug. “We’re not here for snacks...we’re here because of…” She lowered her voice. “The you know…”
“You can say it,” Sugarcoat droned. “Magic. We’re here about magic.”
“Let’s go inside,” Sunset said. “We can talk about it in there...and yes, I have some snacks,” she added with a playful punch to Lemon Zest’s shoulder. She led her guests to the side entrance of her apartment building, where they hopped in the elevator, moved four floors up, and walked to the seventh door on the right side of the hall, which they entered and were greeted by…
Spike wagged his tail a little at the sight of the Shadowbolts, but the girl with glasses and blue ponytails caused him to growl. “Juniper Montage? What’s she doing here?!”
Sunset held up her hands, calming him down. “Didn’t Twilight tell you? We’re friends with her now!” She snapped her fingers as she realized… “Wait...you weren’t there at the mall when it happened...well, it’s a long story. You can ask Twilight to tell you all about it later…” She glanced at the girls. “Just...make yourselves at home. I’ll get some snacks.” She headed towards her little kitchen area as the Shadowbolts and Juniper Montage sat down on the couch and chairs in front of Sunset’s TV.
“So...I know that the music video money that we won was used to fund our awesome Spring Break party,” Indigo Zap called to Sunset. “But what did you guys do with your share of the money?”
“They donated their portion to the staff at Camp Everfree for renovations. And they’re totally thankful for that!” Juniper added.
“Have you seen them recently?” Sunset called from the kitchen, surprise evident in her voice.
“Gloriosa Daisy and Timber Spruce are my cousins,” Juniper Montage said with a small smile. “I see them a lot. Oh! They told me to say hi to you!”
“Then they know what’s going on?” Sunset set a tray carrying the promised snacks on her coffee table: glasses of lemonade, a bowl of popcorn, and salsa and chips.
“About as much as we know,” Juniper said as she gestured to herself and the four new Shadowbolts.
“Which is pretty much nothing,” Sour Sweet grumbled.
Indigo Zap and Sunset Shimmer looked at each other.
“You explain!” Indigo shouted as she lunged for the bowl of popcorn.
One explanation later…
The Shadowbolts (sans Indigo Zap) sat as still as statues, their pupils the size of pinpricks. Juniper Montage giggled, and Indigo glanced at her wristwatch.
“And their minds will no longer be blown in three...two...one...and…”
“Well...alright then,” Sunny Flare said as she cleared her throat. “There’s work to be done...where do we begin?”
“I mean, can you think of anyone who hates you enough to do this?” Lemon Zest asked.
“If you go back far enough...everyone,” Sunset sighed.
“But out everyone, who would be the most likely to have magic at their disposal?” Sunny Flare mused.
“I don’t know…”
“Wow, what a helpful answer!” Sour Sweet chirped. Sugarcoat and Lemon Zest had Sunset’s freshman yearbook opened. They flipped through the pages, their lips pursed in thought.
Juniper Montage twisted a lock of blue hair around her finger with one hand. Her other hand held her cell phone, which she had been using to text Gloriosa. “Gloriosa Daisy said that when she discovered the magic at Camp Everfree, it appeared as a colorful wisp in the sky. She followed it to a cave...and that’s where she found the geodes."
“Is that what happened to you?” Sugarcoat asked.
Juniper Montage shook her head. “No...well...all I know is, I picked up the mirror...and after a few seconds, I realized that there was something strange about it…”
“You two didn’t go looking for magic, like Twilight did,” Sugarcoat reasoned. “Magic found you.”
“And this helps us...how?” Sour Sweet asked.
“It doesn’t,” Lemon Zest scowled, and Indigo Zap slumped over.
“This is hopeless! We’ll never find out who it is!” Juniper Montage was peering over Lemon Zest’s shoulder at the pages of the yearbook...and suddenly, her eyes lit up.
“It’s her.” She pointed to a picture. “It’s got to be her.” Everyone crowded around the book and stared at the suspect: a green-haired girl with a face full of freckles. Her name, according to the yearbook, was Wallflower Blush.
“What makes you think it’s her?” Sugarcoat asked.
Juniper Montage looked down at the ground. “When I found the magic...I felt like my chance to shine had been stolen by Sunset and her friends. I felt...invisible, and I would have done anything to get noticed. When I found the magic mirror, I saw it as an opportunity for both...and Sunset Shimmer, you said that you brought magic into our world because you felt like you had been robbed of an opportunity, right?”
“Well...more or less,” Sunset shrugged.
Sugarcoat’s eyes lit up. “And Twilight Sparkle unleashed the magic after years of feeling like nothing…” The other Shadowbolts looked away, guilt and remorse present on their faces.
“Wallflower Blush?” Sunset looked at the other girls to get a reading on what they thought. “Do you really think it could be her? I mean, I never really picked on her when I was...well, a bully...”
"That's just it," Juniper continued. She gestured at the picture, titled "Gardening Club". Wallflower was the only one in the picture. And she looked so alone and sad... "She's the kind of person who I feel like would use this power to do the things I wanted to do...I see a lot of myself in her."
"She kind of reminds me of Twilight from when she was in our classes," Indigo said. "She was just really, really quiet and...lonely, I guess..." She sighed. "I feel like we didn't apologize enough for how we treated her."
Sugarcoat shrugged and cleared her throat, bringing the girls back to the more pressing matter. “Well, Wallflower IS a lead, and that’s better than nothing. I say we go for it.”
“Agreed,” Sunny Flare nodded, and the others murmured in agreement.
“Hey, random subject change, but…” Spike cleared his throat, and everyone turned their attention to the purple dog. “Can someone give me a ride back to my home? I’m sure Twilight’s going to want me home when she gets back…”
“I’ll do it,” Sugarcoat said with an exasperated sigh, but her stoic expression melted a little when she took Spike into her arms. Everyone knew she had a soft spot for animals.
“Hey, that book is glowing,” Sunny Flare said as she pointed at Sunset Shimmer’s magical journal. “Is that...the...Princess Twilight Sparkle…” She cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, I’m still wrapping my head around this,” she said as Sunset opened her book.
“It seems so weird that everyone has a pony counterpart who is identical in every physical, mental, and emotional aspect...except for Twilight Sparkle. I mean, if she’s nearsighted and wears glasses, shouldn’t her counterpart be nearsighted and wear glasses?” Sugarcoat pointed out.
“It’s almost like the glasses are a tool used by some unknown force to distinguish the two because the unknown force thinks the rest of the world is too stupid to tell them apart unless they look different,” Sour Sweet muttered. Everyone (except for Sunset, who had her face buried in the book) stared at her. “I mean...I’m sure there’s a reason for why that is~” She said in a cordial tone. “Is everything okay, Sunset Sweetie~?”
Sunset Shimmer shook her head.
“What’s wrong?” Lemon Zest and the others moved closer, concerned.
Sunset looked up. “We’ve got a problem…”