This wasn’t really a day that Sunset really wanted to come to school, but neither had the last few weeks. At least today wouldn’t be as rough, but she was starting to get scared about what was happening to her. For two nights now she had blacked out with no real memories of what happened other than a few odd dreams here and there. And the newest dreams was what worried her the most as they were about saving a Twilight Sparkle and the news article she read this morning was eerily similar. Was that strange man behind it? And if so, was she making a mistake by indulging in the so called rewards he had gifted her with.
Her thoughts were so all over the place that she wasn’t paying attention to where she was going allowing her body to run on autopilot. It should have been no surprise that instead of going into a side entrance her feet was taking her through the front and right by the statue at the front where the five girls she least wanted to see were gathered. At first the five looked at her in shock before jumping up to gather before her with looks of intense sadness and grief mixed with guilt.
“Sunset!” The five chorused almost as one, even Fluttershy herself being a little more vocal than her normal self.
“Go away.” Sunset grumbled as she tried to brush past them before Rainbow Dash stepped in her path stopping her forward momentum.
“No, Sunset I know we hurt you, but we are sorry. What more do you want from us?” Rainbow Dash asked, arms crossed in front of her. “You won’t even listen to us or give us a second chance. We gave you a second chance and you won’t even listen to us!”
“As crass as Rainbow is being darling, she does have a point. We gave you another chance after the Fall Formal, why won’t you at least just listen to what we have to say. We love you.” Rarity said, her voice and attitude subdued.
“Sugarcube, please jus listen to us. Let us make this up to you.” Applejack pleaded, holding her hat in front of her.
“Okay.” Sunset said as she looked from girl to girl as they gave a sigh of relief. She tried, she really did, but she couldn’t keep the shark like grin off her face. “I’ll listen to you if you can truthfully answer my questions to my satisfaction.”
“We will answer anything Sunny, then after we make up we can go have a party after school!” Pinkie Pie cheered while Fluttershy seemed to try to hide even more behind her pink curtain of hair obviously sensing things weren’t going how they likely hoped.
“Okay, first question.” Sunset drawled out, a sneer forming as she glared at Applejack. “You said I was family, so why did you throw me away so soon after. Hell, all of you even agreed that you loved me like family.”
“Sunset, you can’t expect us not to suspect you after al the evidence pointed to you!” Rainbow Dash nearly shouted in frustration.
“You were rather mean before the Fall Formal. This was just like you went back to your old ways.” Fluttershy managed to get out after several false starts.
“When the hell did I ever do something like this? And when the hell did I get so stupid that I blatantly would have plastered myself all over the damned page?” Sunset demanded, glaring at Fluttershy before her angry gaze went back to Applejack. “And speaking of family, that brings up my next question. What would you have done if it was me that was arrested and had a police escort off of campus?”
“Sunset, please-“ Rarity tried to get in before Sunset just talked over her.
“You would all be throwing a good riddance party!” Sunset snapped while giving Pinkie Pie a hateful look.
“Now that’s not true!” Rainbow Dash snapped out.
“Oh? Wasn’t it you lot who was begging me to try and help your sisters get off? Sure seemed like you were supporting your family then. So, where was my support when I needed it? I was told I was family so I should have had the same love and support you gave your sisters.”
“Scoots isn’t my sister.” Rainbow Dash snarled as she looked away.
“Oh, so you are going to abandon her now. Some loyalty you have there, dropping friends left and right now are you?” Sunset asked with a humorless laugh making Rainbow Dash grit her teeth.
“Sunset, darling, please stop this. We are very truly sorry and we would do anything to make amends.” Rarity pleaded, “Just please give us a second chance.”
“You already had a second chance. When all of you kept stomping on my feelings and kicking me when I was down after the fall formal. All of the snarky remarks really hurt, but I gave you a second chance. Then when you didn’t want to really seem to want to include me in anything, another second chance. Then the battle of the bands and the way you treated me, another second chance.” Sunset said, her voice becoming somewhat emotionless as she shook her head. “No more second chances. I’m done with you and I’m done letting you stomp my heart into pieces.”
“Please Sunny, don’t do this.” Pinkie cried softly reaching out to Sunset who slapped her hands away.
“It was all of you who did this, not me. So we are done here.” Sunset snarled as she roughly shoved Rainbow Dash out of the way, the girl not even fighting to keep Sunset there anymore realizing everything that was said was the honest to painful truth and they needed to live with it. And she would have to apologize to Scoots after school for the angry and bitter words. She already hurt and drove Sunset away, she wouldn’t do it to her little sister figure too. “Okay, so you all are sorry. Well, too little too late.”
The girls watched as Sunset stomped off into the school feeling hurt over what just happened and extreme guilt for being the ones to cause it. As Sunset was disappearing into the school Applejack took one tentative step, then another before she was rushing off after Sunset. It didn’t take long to catch up with her and grab her wrist making the girl stop abruptly.
“Sunset, wait!” Applejack gasped out, catching her breath that the cold air outside and her haste robbed her of.
“I said back off!” Sunset snapped flinging her hand out. It was like a cyclone of wind filled the hallway horizontally pushing students gently back out of the way and throwing papers around. While the students were just pushed back, Applejack suffered the worse of it as she was flung over six feet away and slammed into a locker. All of the students looked on in fear as Sunset stood there, anger evident as she started to advance on the girl trying to climb to her feet.
“Sunset, I think she had enough dear.” A cultured voice said, hand on Sunset’s wrist making Sunset follow the arm up into the face of Octavia. She knew the girl was one of the few who supposedly believed her, actually remembering the girl scolding people for jumping on a bandwagon built around an obvious shoddy framejob.
“Octavia?” Sunset said, her voice unsteady as she fought back angry tears as the other girl led her away from the scene and to her waiting friends to calm down.
“It’s going to be fine, dear, let’s go get a drink and relax a few. I’m sure Derpy will have extra muffins, she always does.” Octavia said giving a little encouraging smile to Sunset.
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“What have ah told you about leaving that poor youngin alone, Applejack?” Granny Smith asked as she stared at her granddaughter sitting up in the cot at the nurse’s station.
“But Granny, we just want her ta listen to us!” Applejack sighed, avoiding looking directly at her Granny. “We are sorry for what we did!”
“Ah know you are sorry, but that youngin had done been through enough because of our kin. Before this is over we are likely goin ta lose the farm that has been in our family for generations. And it is all because of your sister and you.” Granny Smith said sternly,
“Buh-Wha-What did I do to make us lose it?” Applejack sputtered out indignantly.
“Ah told ya ta include your sister in those there sleepovers. It’s Christmas time, a time for family which included ya sister and Sunset. While your sister shoulders most of the blame, ya could have prevented it.” Granny Smith sighed, “Now isn’t tha time ta go layin no blame. No matter if we lose the farm or not, we will always be family and family sticks together. Ah truly hope you girls learn from this here lesson.”
“Ah have Granny, ah honest to goodness have.” Applejack said as she wiped at the tears in her eyes.
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Big Mac wanted to cry, he really did as he looked over the books once again. There was no room to squeeze any extra money to hire a lawyer for Applebloom. They would either have to take out a loan which wasn’t likely as they already had two out from major repairs to the farm that couldn’t be worked around, or sell the farm to that Filthy Rich who had been trying to buy it for a long time.
It seemed that Sweetie Belle’s family was in just as tight of a spot. They were better off than the Apple family financially, but after this whole fiasco they would likely be worse off. Mr. Belle was a private investigator whose business looked to take a nose dive when it got out that his youngest daughter tricked the whole school into believing Sunset was behind Anon-A-Miss and his oldest daughter feel for it completely. Who would want to hire a private investigator whose family is known for being cruel and manipulative or outright clueless.
Scootaloo had it the worst, Applebloom and Sweetiebelle was allowed to come home after being formally charged and their court date set. Scootaloo was an orphan and the orphanage just didn’t have the funds to pay the bond, not like the Apple’s really had it. They were able to quickly scrape enough up for it, but Scootaloo would be sitting in a juvenile holding center until the court date. Big Mac couldn’t help feeling sorry for the girl, but she brought things on herself.
“Damn it!” Big Mac snarled as he slammed the pen down on the table and got to his feet pushing the table several feet away in his anger. He still couldn’t believe his youngest sister had done this and his other sister not only blatantly ignored him, but accused him of thinking with his other head when he told her that there was no way Sunset could be Anon-A-Miss.
Yeah, he was attracted to Sunset and even entertained the notion of asking her out when she graduated if she was still single. There was only 2 years age difference between them which was nothing, but he was of age while technically Sunset wasn’t. So he intended to be a gentleman like his Granny raised him and wait and see. Not that he had high hopes of Sunset ever agreeing to go out with him, he didn’t really have anything to offer her. And Applejack knew all of this and accused him of taking Sunset’s side when he tried to convince her that there was no way Sunset would ever pull a stunt like this.
The one he was most disappointed in was Granny Smith as she was somebody he never expected to actually jump on a bandwagon like this. She was strong willed and stubborn, just like Applejack and even Applebloom, but to ignore everything he said to the point of being cold to the girl during lunch was uncalled for. He had delivered stuff from the farm to the cafeteria more than once to witness Granny Smith’s cold shoulder towards Sunset, even to the point of giving the bare minimum of food required rather than the extra helpings the woman usually shoveled out to everyone. He had even gave Sunset an apple a few times as he passed by Sunset while she was leaving the line while he wheeled in the apple crates. Not that she ever seemed to notice, she seemed to be in a fog the times he had seen her since this Anon-A-Miss started.
In the end, nobody had listened to him and Applebloom had sealed their family’s fate when it came to the farm. Granny Smith had left the decision up to him since it was the legacy left for him being the oldest and the heir. As angry as he was with his youngest sister, he wouldn’t leave her to suffer. They needed money for lawyers and he could see no other way. The case made by the police wasn’t going to be the only court case there was, and it was foolish to hope so. There were many families hurt by what happened and he couldn’t find it in himself to blame them for wanting blood for what happened to their children.
Picking up the phone he hooked it back up hoping nobody would call in the few moments it took to dial out to Filthy Rich. Looking out the window he took a long look at his legacy and didn’t bother wiping the lone tear fall from his eye.
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Sunset felt bad for blowing off the girls again, they just wanted to be friends and Sunset really did need them right now. She was just afraid of getting too close to them right now until she figured out what was going on. She didn’t want to accidentally hurt them like she did Applejack earlier. She may have been angry with the farm girl, but causing her serious injury wasn’t on her to do list. Thankfully all the girl suffered was some bruising and the wind knocked out of her.
Stepping into her apartment she heard the TV playing the news and could smell fresh coffee. Slowly she stepped in farther to find the old man sitting on the couch watching the news, the coffee pot sitting on a warmer plate on the small table in front of him with two mugs and a plate of pastries.
“Welcome home my dear, I believe you had some questions for me.” The man said as he motioned for the chair next to the couch that Sunset felt compelled to move to and take a seat.
“You bet your ass I do! What the hell did you do to me?” Sunset demanded, surprised she was semi-calm as she accepted the cup of coffee the man offered her.
“I only did what I promised. I gave you the power to fight those tainted by evil as well as rouge demons running amok in the city. There is a breaking in period of course since I can’t just give you all of those powers and make you just know how to use it. It could overload your brain, so your subconscious is brought forth at night when your power is at it’s fullest with the knowledge of what to do and it would slowly leak over to your conscious mind over the course of a few weeks to a month at most. It would be an instinctual thing mostly, the bare minimum of sentience given to your subconsciousness as a sort of training wheel. At least that is how it is supposed to go.” The man said, coughing in embarrassment as he tapped his cane on the floor.
“How it was supposed to go? What the hell? Am I a danger to my friends because of what you did to me?” Sunset asked, panic beginning to fill her. “Take these damn powers back!”
“I can’t take them back, not until the probation period is over. In the fine print there is a ninety day clause where I can not remove your power and you can’t give them back. Not by my choice mind you, but it is how it is.” The man said, small hint of apology in his voice. “You will never harm your friends, and neither will your other form. It is something hard coded into the magic that you can never harm an innocent. That being said, something within you mingled with the magic I gave you and the training wheels became more lively than it should. Your alter ego has a mind of it’s own, it’s own personality that comes out when the sun sets.”
“Great, so I can’t have friends over?” Sunset groaned, surprised that it was what came out. Was she really more worried about her friends than what this man has done to her?
“Of course they can, but they either must leave before the sun sets or you can wear this.” The man said pushing a velvet box Sunset only now just noticed across the table to her. “The mark on your hand is the safe for your contract as well as the source of your powers. At night it changes into a moon as your body changes to your alter ego. This will lock the change for one day a week for each side. In other words, you won’t change to your alter ego for one night every seven days and your alter will have the same benefit. While you wear it, it will remain gold and when your alter ego puts it on, it will change silver. She will also lose her wings and most of her power during the day as her powers depend on shadows and the moon while yours depend on the day. Another reason why your mark changes from sun to moon with all of your other changes.”
“It’s beautiful.” Sunset admitted as she opened the box and held the bracelet that was the most gorgeous piece of jewelry she had ever seen even if it was rather simplistic. She preferred simple things like this over the overly complicated things Rarity seemed to enjoy.
“All for you my daughter.” The man said with a warm smile.
“Daughter?” Sunset asked as she sat the box back on the table with the bracelet inside.
“I am an old, lonely soul and while I admit that I never wanted a family before, your want for one has woken the urge to have one. You are a lonely girl who I see a lot of potential as not only my champion, but for everything you set yourself to do. I would be honored to call you my daughter if you would allow me to be your father.” The man explained, growing worried as he sensed Shadow Reaper’s magic increasing as the sun was setting. He knew any moment she would be coming forth. He wanted to talk more with Sunset, he knew he wouldn’t be able to because Shadow Reaper had plans for tonight and he deemed them important enough to not try and convince Sunset to try out her newest gift. Something he never offered any of his other champions in his long existence.
“I don’t know, this is a lot to take in and I still don’t know if I can trust you. I’ll think about it.” Sunset said as she rubbed the back of her hand with the mark of the sun as it began to glow and start to become uncomfortable. A part of the change he didn’t like seeing Sunset have to go through, but it was part of the whole deal.
“If you look later you will notice you have a number added to your contact lists for me. If you need anything don’t hesitate in calling me.” The man said as Sunset nodded before gasping in pain. He watched as she changed from Sunset Shimmer to Shadow Reaper who wore a hurt and angry look on her face. “Hello my dear.”
“Go to hell, father!” Shadow Reaper snarled as she looked away with a few tears dripping from her eyes.
“I deserve that. I hope you know I never intended for this. All of my champions have had the lowest amount of sentience needed to perform their duties and merge with the main consciousness. I never seen one who created a whole new persona.” The man sighed shaking his head.
“Do you have any idea how unfair this is?” Shadow Reaper sobbed out, “Knowing I have maybe weeks before I’m absorbed? That I only have so short a time before I die?”
“I’ve contacted the rest of the council to see if there is anything that can be done to help you. Nobody deserves to lose their existence like that.” The man said, unsure it will do any good. As far as he could tell, Shadow Reaper was a part of Sunset’s soul despite it seeming to be separating from Sunset as Shadow Reaper became more and more dependent. When Shadow Reaper died, the little bit of soul she had was most likely going to be reabsorbed into Sunset and Shadow Reaper would cease to exist in her current state. She would be Sunset Shimmer day and night, only with different bodies.
“Sunset may come to love you, but all I will ever do is loathe you for doing this to me!” Shadow Reaper screamed before fleeing the apartment leaving behind a saddened man who hoped that Shadow Reaper wouldn’t somehow manage to break free of the contract and become what she was created to hunt in the first place.