The streets of Ponyville were, thankfully, still empty, save for a few other early birds. Tempest made her way past the familiar market stalls, towards the only pink building in the town. She placed a hoof upon the door and pushed it open, spotting, much to her surprise, the two exact ponies she was looking for standing inside.
“So then I was like frosting!? You can’t be that sweet!” Pinkie burst into laughter. And so did Applejack. So much so that they didn’t even notice Tempest trotting in.
“Excuse me.”
“Oh!” Pinkie snapped out of her laughing fit in an instant. “Hi there, Fizzle! You’re early for breakfast today!”
“Actually… I’m not here for breakfast.”
“Oh?” Pinkie swung her hoof forward, staring at the watch tied around it. “A little early for lunch too…”
“No, Pinkie, that’s not—”
“So what’cha here for?” Applejack asked, leaning against the countertop.
“I’m actually here to ask if either of you would be willing to trade locations for Hearthfire?”
“O-oh!” Applejack’s eyes grew wide. And they quickly darted away. “I mean, I-I can’t. I’m sorry. It’s just, a bunch of things came up and now I have to go to The Dragon Lands cause… Ember and all and—”
“Well, hey! If you really want my invitation, I can always trade with you! I can go Mount Aris whenever I want!” Pinkie said cheerfully.
“R-really!?” Tempest remarked in loud surprise. “G-great, I—”
Applejack shot Pinkie a fierce, daggered glare, follow by a slight nudge with her elbow onto Pinkie’s shoulder.
“What?” Pinkie muttered. Applejack gave another, larger stare. And Pinkie finally opened her mouth. “Ohhh, right.”
“‘Oh right’ what?” Tempest asked hesitantly.
“Nothing!” Pinkie shouted with a grin. “And I just realized something came up so I can’t swap!”
“What!?” Tempest screamed. “But you just said yes!”
“I know but… no.”
Tempest had to attempt to release her anger with her gritted teeth instead of discharging the latent magic in her horn. “What’re you talking about!? Why are you two acting so weird!?”
“W-we ain’t acting weird!” Applejack said in the least convincing tone she could have chosen.
“Hahahahaha yup! Not weird!” Pinkie waved her hooves in front of her in an exaggerated motion.
Tempest mind began to whirl for an explanation. It spun and spun through all the possibilities. Until she reached one single conclusion. “...Does this have something to do with Sunset?”
“What? That’s a load of bullhockey! This ain’t got nothing’ to do with Sunset Shimmer!”
Tempest took one firm step forward. Her horn began to spark. “What did she put you two up to?”
“N-nothing!” Applejack replied swiftly. Tempest moved up to her, causing her to give an audible gulp.
“She told you to avoid me?”
“No!” Pinkie answered.
“Told you to… not talk to me?”
“No!” Applejack replied.
“Told you… not to swap with me?”
Silence.
Tempest’s eyes opened wide in realization. Her shattered horn was sparking fully now, uncontrolled magic arching between the peaks. The rage had boiled over and her vision was covered with red. She slammed her hooves firmly upon the ground, sending Applejack and Pinkie backwards with its force.
Sunset Shimmer. You are going to regret ever crossing Tempest Shadow. She marched out the door, uncontrolled anger resonating with every step she took. Her eyes were blind to everything except the castle. And all the sounds around her echoed heavily. Like a bull, Tempest huffed and growled, before charging straight towards her destination.
“Ugh.” Applejack groaned. “Why do all y’all keep askin’ the Element of Honesty to lie!?”
The castle doors laid open, as if inviting Tempest into them. Not like it would’ve mattered. It simply saved her the trouble of blasting it open. She stomped up the steps. Eyes narrowed. Eyebrows arched together. And she made her way down the hallway. The familiar sights only stoked the fire in her. And when she laid eyes upon her bedroom door, she quickly punched it as hard as she could, shattering the hinges and drawing a shocked yelp from inside.
Tempest slowed her steps, punctuating each one with a word and a stomp that echoed through the room. “You. Betrayed. My. Trust.”
“What’re you—”
“I would choose your words very carefully, Shimmer.” Tempest circled Sunset like a predator watching its prey. “You are on razor thin ice.”
Sunset met Tempest’s fierce stare with an equally furious one of her own. “I can’t let you run away from your past like that.”
Tempest leapt towards Sunset, inches away from her face. “And who are you to tell me how I should approach my past?” she said through gritted teeth. “I am the only one who lived it. Not you!”
“No, but I lived through something similar. And if you don’t—”
Tempest gave a loud, guttural groan as she turned away. “Would you stop trying to relate your past with mine!?” she shouted. “It didn’t help me then and it’s not helping me now!” When no words came from behind her, she spun back around, only to be met with the shocked, shimmering eyes of Sunset. “Oh what? Can’t take a little truth?”
Sunset blinked. A tear trailed down her cheek. “Truth? Don’t talk about truth. You don’t want to admit to yourself the reason you’re so afraid to go back is because you don’t think you’ve changed.”
Tempest felt a dagger being driven, then twisted, in her heart. She could feel the same emotions that fed her through her time with the Storm King, now drive her words. “You don’t get it, do you!?” Tempest shouted. Sunset winced. “Then let me spell it out for you. This isn’t about just ‘facing my past’ as you keep making it seem. It isn’t just ‘seeing, talking and smiling’ at them! This isn’t about who I’ve become, it’s about what I did. The things I did under the Storm King’s rule won’t just go away. Forgiveness won’t just be given by the family I abandoned.”
“And you think hiding out here for the rest of your life, having nightmares is going to fix that!? It won’t! I know!”
“Stop saying ‘I know’, Sunset! You don’t know. You don’t know anything!” screamed Tempest. “And what makes you think visiting, getting rejected then abandoned will make my nightmares disappear, huh? What makes you think it wouldn’t only make them worse!”
“It won’t!” Sunset stomped both of her forehooves to the floor, her horn, too, had began to glow a faint teal. “Why won’t you just listen to me!? Why won’t you just trust me!?”
“Because you keep going behind my back!” Tempest’s horn started sparking as she advanced with thunderous steps, making full use of her height to loom over Sunset. “Because you convinced our friends to lie to me!” Sunset shrunk away, but Tempest continued advancement. “When I thought I found someone that I could confide in, you stab me in the back!”
Even when Sunset backed herself against a wall, Tempest advanced. She only stopped when she was looking down at Sunset quivering before her. “This is why I didn’t trust anyone!” As Sunset flinched away from the screamed accusations, Tempest narrowed her eyes and leaned her head in closer. She lowered her tone, replacing the fire of her anger with a voice of pure ice. “And maybe I shouldn’t have trusted you either.”
That line was followed only by the ticking of the clock. And the labored pants of both mares. Tempest’s eyes widened when what she had said caught up to her, while Sunset merely stared down.
“I… thought you changed,” Sunset muttered. “Maybe… I was wrong.”
The words quickly stomped out any remorse Tempest had felt. “You were… wrong? Well, then I’m sorry. I’m sorry for not having magical rainbow beams solve all my problems for me!” The words left Tempest’s mouth faster than her mind, or heart, could catch up to. “I’m sorry I don’t have some magical artifact that allows me to wipe away my past. I’m sorry I have to actually deal with my problems!”
Tempest waited for a reply, but was met only with a sniff. “Guess what, Sunset. There will always be creatures out there that hate what I did. I know that. And when I think of the ponies in Wintertide hating me. My family hating me. It devastates me. Because I know I can’t blame them. I. Deserve. It. And no amount of ‘friendship’ will ever change that! So stop trying to go behind my back and forcing me to go to Wintertide! Cause it will never happen.”
The few seconds of silence that passed between the two felt like minutes. Tempest had no more words to say. Her mind blank. Each tick of the clock faded a little of Tempest’s rage away. And when enough has vanished, she dropped her tense shoulders.
“You never changed, Tempest,” Sunset muttered before sprinting out the door, tears dripping down to the floor as she ran. Tempest didn’t move a muscle. Instead, she kept her eyes locked onto the window, and the snow that was falling outside.
“Sunset!?” Twilight exclaimed from the doorway. “Tempest, what—”
“Sparkle. Leave.”
“Tempest, I’m not—”
“I. Said. Leave!”
There was a moment of pause. Then a patter of hoofsteps that soon disappeared into silence. And, as the red in her vision began to clear, Tempest felt the loneliness creep up on her.
And a tear trailed down her face.
She was not surprised to see the snow-capped houses and frosted waters when she opened her eyes. If anything, she had almost expected it. However, what did surprise her was the warm feeling of sunlight upon her coat. And the bright, cerulean sky that hung above. She glanced around at the ponies that paced upon the streets, shrinking herself down as much as possible as she trotted by them. But not a single one paid her any heed. Their conversations, muffled and indecipherable, continued on without pause. Even as Tempest paced inches from them, staring intently at their faces.
She didn’t know where she was going, but felt compelled to continue trotting. She passed by the shops, the districts and the streets that swirled and connected in ways that was surprisingly familiar to her. The next landmark that caught her eye was a large house that arched over an entire street.
And a trio of foals that ran under it.
The sight of them stopped Tempest’s heart cold. If their green, yellow and cyan coats didn’t strike the memory back into her, the yellow ball they were holding in their magical grasp certainly did. They sped straight through Tempest, causing her body to waver like a ghost. She kept her eyes locked upon them as they galloped into the distance, vanishing from view.
If they’re here. That means… Tempest turned back to the arched building and dashed underneath, pushing as much energy into her hooves as she possibly could. The buildings whizzed by in a blur, and soon, so did the trees as she raced up the winding forest path. Upon ascending halfway up the hill, she spotted her. The purple foal with the red, mohawk mane.
And the shattered horn.
She ran past her, leaning down in an attempt to meet her tearful eyes. “Turn back. Please,” she begged. But her pleas fell upon deaf ears. The foal continued trotting, straight through Tempest like she was nothing more than a projection, and towards the dark forest upon the hill. Tempest galloped to catch up. “You need to turn back! To go home!” She attempted to place her hooves upon the foal, but they simply dissolved into her upon touch. “Please. Please… don’t make this mistake.”
Tempest’s words got softer. And softer still. Until her voice was nothing more than a whimper. But still the echo of hoofsteps upon the dirt continued, fading away until she could no longer catch the sound. Tempest collapsed to the ground, hooves over her eyes as she began to sob. But when the heat of the sun instantly vanished, she turned her head up.
The once sunny sky had returned to the all too familiar dark purple of night. The village was visibly vacant once more, and the iced river glittered with moonlight.
“L-Luna?” Tempest whispered.
“Yes?” Tempest swung around, spotting Luna emerging from the forest in a pale blue glow.
“Thank you.”
Luna nodded. stepped aside and peered at Wintertide. “I simply followed the dream that was radiating the most troubled emotion. And once more, it happened to be yours.” She turned to Tempest, who provided no rebuttal. “It is stronger than last night. I assume things have not gone well for you and Sunset?”
“There is no ‘me and Sunset’ anymore.”
“Is it truly that bad?”
Tempest gave a hesitant nod.
“Well, I wouldn’t write you two off just yet. In my one thousand years of ruling this domain, I have seen relationships stand up to some quite… how shall I say… brutal moments. Perhaps there’s a way to patch things up.”
“I’m not sure I want to.” The speed at which Tempest replied shocked her as much as it did Luna. She drew a breath. “She betrayed my trust. And I said some… terrible things to her.” She sighed. “I thought we were the couple that could avoid all of this. But maybe I was foolish to think that I could be with her, when I could barely understand friendship.”
“Fizzle.” Luna extended a wing, pulling her close. “Relationships are not simple. Nor are they easy. A testament to how strong one is is not a lack of conflict. Quite the contrary. It’s how many it has endured and still manages to carry on.”
Tempest bowed her head. “I think this fight might have broken us.”
Luna shot her a subtle smile. “Well, there is a still a lot of night left. And it appears you need the rest. So I shan’t wake you.” Tempest gave an odd, questioning glare to Luna, who stared up at the moon. “And I think you have had enough nightmares, wouldn’t you agree?”
Her brows still furrowed, Tempest gave a cautious nod. Luna laughed and waved her hoof at her surroundings, vanishing the forest, Wintertide and any accompanying scenery to dust.
“Now, close your eyes.”
Tempest did as she was told and before she knew it, her thoughts went blank.
“Come on, Fizz. You can’t sleep our date away.”
Tempest’s eyes drowsily fluttered open, and she was immediately met with Sunset’s face peering down at her. She placed a hoof upon the birch tree and pushed herself upright, scrunching the picnic mat as she did so. The distinct smell of blooming spring flowers intertwined with food wafted to her nose and made her stomach growl. Sunset giggled at the noise, much to Tempest’s embarrassment. She looked around hastily, wondering if any other pony heard it. But luckily, the other ponies in Ponyville park were scattered away from them, leaving them in a tranquil corner on their own.
Sunset nestled into Tempest’s lap, a single grape in her mouth. Tempest gazed down, raising an unimpressed eyebrow, to which Sunset rolled her eyes.
“Oh come on!” Sunset said, the words muffled through the fruit. Tempest merely shook her head with a smirk, leaning her muzzle down and plucking the grape from her mouth. Just as she had predicted, Sunset leapt up, locking her lips with Tempest’s.
Tempest melted into the embrace, but broke away when the grape exploded between their kiss, sending a spray of juice onto both of them. With no support, Sunset collapsed back onto the mat, laughing uncontrollably, while Tempest coughed and spluttered.
“We are never doing that again!”.
“Are you kidding, Fizzle? That was amazing.”
“Ugh,” Tempest groaned. “I’m going to have to get used to you calling me that, aren’t I?”
“Well, if you want more of this.” Sunset gestured to her muzzle.
“In that case, I suppose I could get used to it.” Tempest smirked. “For your sake.”
“Yup.” Sunset winked. “For my sake.”
Tempest rose from the bed with euphoria in her heart. However, that feeling quickly faded when she glanced to the other side of the two-pony bed and found it empty. As reality begun to set in, so did the memory of yesterday, and the crushing sadness that came with it. But that didn’t stop small flashes of the picnic to cross her mind every few seconds. And every time it did, it chased away the sadness for just a fleeting moment and, unknowingly, brought a smile to Tempest’s face.
She didn’t know what to do at first. A million possibilities ran through her mind, but none were the clear choice. Nor the right one. But when she caught sight upon the bedroom door, which had been smashed off its hinges, she shut her eyes. For she knew there was only one thing left to do.
Flinging the sheets to the side, she trotted down towards the main kitchen. She started off at a jog, but the closer she got to her destination, the slower her steps became. Until they were nothing more than miniscule movements. But she still made it past the kitchen doors, and her eyes were immediately drawn to the mare sitting silently at the main table.
Tempest wondered if Sunset could hear her racing heart as she pulled up a chair and sat down across her. Sunset’s eyes closed, but she didn’t move another muscle. She sat still, eyes locked upon the cup of coffee in her hooves. The air around them begged for a word to be said to break the crushing silence. Tempest wanted to oblige, but found no voice could escape past her throat.
“...S-so,” Sunset started. “Where do we go from here?”
The directness of the question stunned Tempest, and it took several seconds for her to regain her composure. “Where can we go?”
Sunset swirled the spoon in her drink with her magic. “Well. We only have two ways. We either keep going. Or…”
Tempest placed her hooves upon her face and shut her eyes in thought. She didn’t give a swift reply. She couldn’t. There were moments in her life when she knew a single word, a single action could define her for the rest of her life. The last time such a choice presented itself was diving to intercept the Storm King’s obsidian orb. Back then, she wished she had the luxury of time.
And yet now, she didn’t know what to do with it.
Her mind whirled through the events of the last week. But it constantly returned to the picnic. And the joy she felt in that moment. Tempest drew a deep, audible breath before lowering her hooves, granting her full sight of the mare with the troubled look across her.
“If you want to, then… let’s…” Sunset finally turned up, meeting Tempest’s eyes. “Let’s keep going.”
A tiny smile wormed its way to Sunset’s face. And Tempest couldn’t help but return the gesture. “Alright.”
“But we should address the elephant in the room first.” Tempest’s forehead began to sweat. “I’m... sorry for what I said.”
Sunset turned away and shook her head. “You were right in a way. I thought the best way to help you through this was to just… try to relate your situation with mine. I mean, that’s how I solved a few of my friendship issues. But now I see that all it did was make it seem like I was belittling what you were going through, so I’m sorry too.”
“Even if I was right, that was no way to get it through to you. I should’ve talked to you before, told you how I feel.” Tempest scoffed. “Ironically, my fear of hurting you made me do nothing but end up hurting you.”
“Heh, that’s funny,” said Sunset. “I was just about to say the same thing about forcing you to go back. Just because I could face my past that quickly, doesn’t mean everyone can. I betrayed your trust.” She paused. “And now I’m willing to do whatever it takes to earn it back.”
“Thank you. I mean that.” Tempest smiled. Wide this time. “I’ve spent my whole life alone… and wanting to be alone. I’m still trying to get used to us. But… I want to get better. And I’m going to try to be. That is my promise.”
“I know,” Sunset muttered.
And so the two sat once more in silence for a few seconds. Tempest’s heart was still beating fast, though not in nervousness. But in relief and joy. And if Sunset’s expression was anything to go by, she was doing the same thing as well.
“If you aren’t ready, I can do Hearthfire on my own.”
“I…” Tempest wanted to give a ‘yes’, or even a ‘no’. But found neither to be a hundred percent truthful. So instead, she said, “I will think about it.”
Sunset nodded understandingly. “Well, we depart tomorrow.”
“Then I shall let you know tonight.”
“That’s all I can ask for.”
Tempest returned to her hooves. “Now, I have somepony else I need to apologize to.”
Sunset giggled and nodded. “She’s in the library. As usual.”
Tempest turned to leave. But at the doorway, Sunset’s voice called out to her. “And Fizz?”
“Hm?”
“We should go on a picnic again sometime.”
Tempest stared at Sunset in shock. And when Sunset saw Tempest’s expression, she too, reacted with surprise. But the two expressions quickly melted into one of understanding at what had transpired over the night.
And with a smile and a nod, Tempest answered, “I’d like that.”