Finishing her drawing, Sunset scanned it on her computer to make copies of it. Grabbing a stray folder on her desk, she put all the copies and the original in it and set off for the mall.
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Waiting at their favorite table in the food court, Twilight, Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Applejack speculated on what Sunset had in store.
Pinkie Pie was the first to speak. "You don't suppose someone from her dark past ambushed her last night, put her in a magical coma and is coming to kill us, do you?!"
Everyone at the table stared at her.
"Oookay." said Rainbow Dash, breaking the silence between them. "Setting that aside...I think she got a sweet new guitar and she's gonna show it to us!"
"I think she woulda told us that by now." Said Applejack.
"Indeed." said Rarity. "It's important enough to her to have us all gather here at the mall, so it must be something fabulous!"
"Whatever it is, I don't know whether I should be nervous or not." Said Fluttershy.
"I doubt you have any reason to be nervous, Fluttershy." said Twilight.
"Oh, Twilight. I always find a reason to be nervous." said Fluttershy.
Everyone stared at Fluttershy for a moment, then everyone laughed.
"I knew I'd find you guys here!" Sunset said as she approached the table. Everyone got up and hugged her. "You guys won't believe what I've been through. Y'know. Aside from the fever.
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"And that's what happened." Sunset said as she finished telling them about her dreams. She took in the reactions of her friends. Twilight and Applejack's eyes were wide with awe and their jaws had dropped. Rarity and Fluttershy had their hands to their mouths, tears forming in their eyes. Rainbow Dash had a look of confusion on her face. Pinkie Pie looked like she was on the verge of bawling. Silence followed for what seemed like an eternity. Sunset smiled. "I know, it's a lot to take in. And I was there."
Applejack spoke first. "You're right...I don't believe it. Both us and our...'Equestrian counterparts'? In the same place?"
"I like the idea of the weekend sleepover!" Said Pinkie.
"How long would your journey, or quest, or whatever take?" asked Rainbow Dash.
Sunset sighed. "Honestly, I don't know. It could take any length of time."
"When will you leave?" asked Fluttershy.
"Probably today. This sounds too important to just put off." Said Sunset.
Twilight looked at Sunset with concern. "Your...destiny?"
Sunset nodded. "That's all that I know. I wasn't given any further explanation. But that's fairly typical of Princess Celestia."
"Sunset, darling. Will there be any way to contact you if we need you?" Asked Rarity.
Sunset frowned. "I don't think so, but worst case scenario I suppose you could make your way to Equestria to try to reach me." She started to tear up. "Before I go, I just wanted to show you all...this." Sunset opened her folder and gave each of her friends a drawing. They all looked at their drawings, and slowly began to tear up themselves.
"Are those...who I think they are?" said Applejack.
Sunset smiled. "Yes."
"This...is...awesome." said Rainbow Dash, unable to hide the quavering in her voice.
"I've...I've never seen anything like it." Rarity said, wiping away a tear.
All Fluttershy could manage was a very quiet "Oh, my..."
Twilight sniffled. "It's the most beautiful drawing I've ever seen."
Pinkie Pie could barely contain her tears.
Sunset looked at the original drawing she made as she started to shed tears.
The picture she had drawn was a picture of herself, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Twilight, and Pinkie holding the hooves of their Equestrian counterparts in a pose similar to the one that Princess Twilight and the girls held when they battled her during the Fall Formal. Hearts were dotted all over the picture. In the center of the heart formation were the words "Friendship is Magic". Directly below the heart formation were the words "I love you all!"
Choking up, Sunset said "I call this 'The Best of Both Worlds.'"
Unable to hold back any longer, Pinkie Pie rushed toward Sunset and hugged her tightly, bawling uncontrollably. Despite her sobbing, she managed to choke out "Oh, Sunset Shimmer. I love you too! We all do!"
This was all it took to push Sunset over the edge. Hugging Pinkie tightly, she burst into tears, barely able to stand. Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, Twilight and Rainbow Dash all rushed over and joined in the hug, shedding tears of their own. A few minutes later, they all calmed down. Looking at each other with fondness, they gave one last tight group hug. Suddenly, Sunset's geode activated without being touched.
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Sunset saw Rarity looking longingly at a silhouette in the distance. Sunset thought it looked familiar, but it was too fuzzy to make out.
Blinking, Sunset then saw Applejack bolting awake in bed, covered in sweat. She'd never seen Applejack so terrified.
Blinking again, Sunset suddenly found herself in Rainbow Dash's room, watching her play guitar and slowly break down into tears, clutching the instrument.
After another blink, she was right next to Fluttershy, screaming in what appeared to be frustration.
Startled, she blinked again only to see Twilight reading a book, but she looked nervous. Afraid even.
Blinking one last time, Sunset saw Pinkie Pie covering herself in whipped cream.
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Sunset gasped. Back to reality, she looked at her friends. They looked back at her, concern on their faces. "What...just happened?" she said.
"Your geode activated on its own...interesting." said Twilight. "How did that happen when we haven't been overusing our magic?"
Sunset shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe it has something to do with this whole quest-destiny thing I need to complete." Suddenly, her bag began to vibrate. "The book!" Sunset opened her bag and took out the book.
Sunset, you have got to come to Equestria. I found a book that I missed in the restricted section of the Canterlot Library! It belonged to Clover the Clever, but the pages are all blank!
"I think that's my cue to head out. Want to see me off?" said Sunset.
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Arriving at Canterlot High, the seven friends walked up to the portal.
"Stay safe out there, sugarcube!" said Applejack.
"We believe in you!" said Fluttershy.
"Kick that quest in the ass and show it who's boss!" said Rainbow Dash.
"Take all the time you need, darling!" said Rarity.
Pinkie Pie handed Sunset a cupcake. "For the road!" she said.
"We hope your quest is successful!" said Twilight.
"You can count on it." Sunset said with a grin.
Twilight, Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Applejack looked at one another and nodded. "We all agree to the idea of the weekend sleepover. It'll be fun!" she smiled.
"I look forward to it." said Sunset. "See you guys later!" she said as she slowly passed through the portal.
As they all said their goodbyes, they remained completely unaware that the events they set in motion would change their very lives forever.
End of Book 1 of Not Just Any Old Day