After a rather emotional day a Fluttershy’s home, on the following day, Sunset visited Pinkie Pie’s house. It was…interesting, to say the least. It was obvious that Pinkie’s family didn’t exactly seem like the type to put up lights and decorations, if anything it was the bare minimum. However, this little visit did give Sunset a chance to meet Pinkie’s other two sisters, the younger twins, Limestone Pie and Marble Pie.
Limestone was quite the aggressive girl, dressed up in steel toed boots, wearing fingerless gloves, a sleeveless leather jacket, and a pair of gray jeans to match her tank top. Marble was more reserved, wearing a gray dress tied at her waist by a simple black belt. As she spent the day at the Pie Family home, their emotions ranged on a spectrum. Limestone was aggressive, Marble was practically as shy as Flutteshy, Maud was…neutral, and Pinkie was on the extreme side.
It’s like all those emotions from her sisters were forwarded all to Pinkie Pie, thought Sunset.
Despite their somewhat monotone lifestyle, the Pie Family did smile and have fun with each other during this time, and Pinkie Pie made sure her family smiled a lot.
After spending time at Pinkie’s, the following day had at Rainbow Dash’s house. Of course, having Rainbow’s parents know about her identity as Unicorn made her visit less awkward. She was surprised at how welcoming they were, Sunset always saw Rainbow’s parents as a couple of laid back and go with the flow type of people but were strict when it was warranted. So, she halfway thought that they would be a little mad that she got their daughter embroiled in something dangerous.
“Oh, Sunset, don’t worry about it,” said Windy.
“Our Rainbow Dash would’ve found some way to get into this kind of craziness even if you weren’t Unicorn,” said Bow.
“Besides, it’s just one more thing to add into the Rainbow Dash Hall of Fame!” Windy exclaimed.
“Wait, what?” Sunset asked with intrigue.
Rainbow Dash groaned loudly, “Mom, Dad, pleeeeeaasse don’t!”
Her pleas fell on deaf ears Windy Whistles dragged Sunset by the wrist all the way down the hall. They stood before a mahogany wooden door, and Windy gestured to open it. Sunset looked down the hall at the approaching Rainbow Dash and her father, the former shooting her a pleading, and threatening glare to not open the door. Sunset then opened the door.
As soon as she did, the sound of a heavenly choir played in the back ground. Sunset walked in and looked upon not only the various trophies that Rainbow had amassed over her years of playing sports, but also mementos from life events. Pictures that documented her first-time walking, her first time eating solid food, playing on the preschool playground. Making her first friend, Fluttershy and Gilda appeared in a few of those early childhood pictures. And then there were the more embarrassing ones of her first time, ahem, using the bathroom, a bronzed diaper to commemorate her transition to big girl underwear.
There was even a bronzed training bra. To say Rainbow’s parents were proud of their child would be the understatement of the century, not only where they proud, they were almost fans of their daughter. And tucked away in a small corner of the room was a spot that had a picture of Rainbow as Kamen Rider Nasca, Sunset looked at Rainbow Dash with a glare as she gestured to the picture.
“They were asking for a picture of me in my gear ever since I first transformed, so I did…” Rainbow explained.
“Sorry, it’s our fault; we had planned on making this the center piece of the room, our little girl a superhero!” Bow gushed.
“But we do have an explanation in case anyone asks, we can just say that Dashie’s really into cosplay!” Windy explained.
“I’m pretty sure no one’s going to see this room if Rainbow has anything to say about it.”
Rainbow mouthed something to the degree of, “Damn right no one’s seeing this room!”
“So, I see a lot of things in here, but…” Sunset expression turned sinister. “You guys wouldn’t happen to have something a little more recent, would you?”
Windy slid next to Sunset and whispered. “Actually – although we hid them in here – we do have something called ‘Rainbow’s FWD’.”
Rainbow Dash’s face changed from a cyan blue, to a crimson red in less than ten seconds upon hearing that. “W-W-WHA-WHA-WHAT?!”
“Guessing it was an especially eventful to keep a memento,” Sunset commented.
“Oh, it was, in fact she–!”
Windy was cut off as Rainbow practically zoomed into the room and covered her mother’s mouth to prevent her from saying anything. “No, of all the things in here, you are NOT telling her about that!”
“I’m definitely going to make that my mission of the day, finding that little treasure and the story behind it,” Sunset teased as she smirked at her friend.
“You do, and trust me, there’s going to be a lot signs posted that say, ‘Missing: Sunset Shimmer’!”
***____________<U>____________***
It was the day before Christmas Eve, and Sunset’s journey was nearly done. Her second to last stay was at the house of her guardians, Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna. To say Celestia was happy to see Sunset was an understatement, the moment she arrived, the tall woman embraced Sunset tightly, reminding Sunset of Pinkie and Applejack’s vice hugs.
Once inside she found Luna at the couch, watching a Christmas themed movie, and of course she showed her lax self here as she wore only a baggy t-shirt that said “Ho! Ho! Ho!” A pair of socks with red and white stripes around the toes and green, and from what Sunset could tell, Luna was wearing a pair of pajama short shorts that were decorated with the same color pattern as her socks.
Luna glanced towards the door and smiled a she waved at her. “Sunset Shimmer, glad you could join us this year.”
Celestia groaned in annoyance. “I told you she was coming over, and you still haven’t changed out of that?”
Luna blew a raspberry as she said, “Please, we’re not at school, Tia, we don’t always have to dress proper, especially when it’s in our own house, and I’m wearing my holiday lounging outfit.”
“If you can call it that,” Celestia whispered in a harsh tone.
“Sunset doesn’t seem to mind.” Luna gave Sunset a coy look. “Do you, Sunset? If this makes you at all uncomfortable I suppose I could slip into something else.”
“N-No, don’t change! I mean, it’s your house, so don’t change anything on my occasion,” said Sunset, blushing for some unknown reason.
Luna smiled as she hopped off the couch and slung an arm over Sunset’s shoulders as she brought her into a hug. “See, Tia, Sunset doesn’t mind! Besides, we’re supposed to be treating her like family, and it would be an insult to change up the dynamic and make her feel as if she’s not considered family.”
Hugging! Too close to chest! She’s hot! Sorry, Twilight!
Celestia rolled her eyes at Luna’s logic, as annoying as it was, her younger sister did have a point. “Fine, guess I’ll just kick off my pants and wear a damn tank top all day!”
“Whoo-hoo! That’s right, Tia, let your hair down!” Luna goaded.
“Not happening.”
“You’re no fun,” Luna accused as she stuck her tongue out at her big sister. “Well, I need to change anyway, I’m going out. And, Sunset, you’re coming with me.”
Celestia shook her head in confusion as she watched her little sister go up the stairs. “But she just got here?”
“Yes, being a part of a family means being dragged about to places,” Luna stated as she vanished upstairs.
Celestia released a sigh as she turned to Sunset. “I’m sorry; she can be a handful sometimes. The authoritarian you’re used to at school is in actuality quite the immature woman when she’s at home.”
“I heard that!”
Sunset chuckled at their sisterly banter. “No worries, it’s refreshing to see, and it makes me wonder if the Celestia and Luna in my world banter like this sometimes.”
“Yes, about that, you said when you used to live in your home world, you only saw me around, what happened to Luna? Was she away during that time?” Celestia asked.
Sunset looked away for a minute, not quite sure how to tell this story. But she knew that at some point this was bridge that was going to be crossed. So, Sunset told the story of Princess Luna’s descent into darkness, her thousand-year banishment, her return as Nightmare Moon, and her eventual redemption.
“I see…guess even in another world I tend to overlook certain things when it comes to family,” said Celestia.
“From what Princess Twilight tells me, they’re closer than ever now. I’m pretty sure they’d be like you two are now, albeit without the whole royal title and dealing with international politics,” said Sunset.
Luna came back downstairs, wearing a midnight blue sweater, black jean pants, and a navy-blue coat. “Come along, Sunset!”
Celestia shrugged and nodded for Sunset to go with Luna. With little else to do, Sunset followed Luna into her car and the two drove out. Sunset felt a little awkward, she had never spent any real time alone with Luna, the incident with Sombra was the most time the two had spent talking to each other. Sunset twiddled her thumbs as she continued to watch the scenery pass by, realizing she really didn’t know where they were going.
“Um, Luna, where exactly are we going?” Sunset asked.
“Hmm, well, with the money have saved up, was thinking of taking you out to a nice restaurant, buy you something nice, and celebrate your turning eighteen at a nice hotel, just the two of us,” said Luna with a wiggle of her brow.
Sunset’s eye twitched, heart racing as she suddenly found her hand searching for the door handle. Sure, the car was moving at about sixty miles-per-hour in a busy street, but Sunset was fairly sure she could survive a tumble on the highway, provided she fell the right way and her healing factor worked overtime.
Luna, after watching Sunset squirm in her seat, began laughing loudly. “Hahahahahaha, oh, oh man, the look on your face! I knew that’d get you!”
Sunset’s face became red in both embarrassment and anger that she fell for such a trick. “That wasn’t funny!”
“Please, Sunset, we both know between the two of us, you’d surely kick my ass up and down this highway with ease if I ever tried something like that. Plus, I would never think of doing such thing and destroying what you have with Twilight Sparkle. You both are my favorite couple, just don’t let the other students know that,” said Luna.
“I’m so getting you back for that.”
***____________<U>____________***
About twenty minutes later Luna drove them to Canterlot City Mall, and as expected it was swamped with people all trying to finish up their Christmas shopping before it was too late.
“Wow,” said Sunset.
“Is this your first time being inside the mall during the holidays?” Luna asked.
“Yeah…”
Luna chuckled. “You should see it tomorrow, if you think it’s packed now, this whole building will be bursting at the seams.”
Sunset decided to stick close to Luna, normally she’d be able to navigate the mall, but with all these people she was afraid she’d get swept away. “So, I take it we’re here to do some shopping?”
“Indeed, I wanted to get Tia something, and while we’re here I didn’t know if wanted to get anyone anything, so I thought this would be a good chance for you,” Luna explained.
“Well…I don’t really have that much, in all honesty I’d love to get them all something, but I can’t,” said Sunset.
Just then Luna thumped through her wallet and produced a credit card; she then placed it in Sunset’s hand and made sure she had a good grip on it. “There’s just enough on this one to get a nice gift for one person.”
“I-I can’t, this you’re money!”
“It’s mine to give out, plus, I trust you, you are family now.”
Sunset looked at the credit card as she frowned. “All my friends, and even you two, have been giving me such a wonderful gift for the past six days now…how can I choose just one?”
“If I may make a suggestion, I don’t think your friends would argue that there’s a least one special someone in your life that deserves a gift from you, and you’ll be seeing her tomorrow.”
Sunset smiled and nodded as she understood.
Both women picked up a directory and exchanged phone numbers so that they may call and text photos of the gifts they thought would be good. With a plan set, Luna and Sunset diverged and went on the hunt. Twenty minutes passed, and Sunset was no closer to knowing what exactly a good gift for Twilight would be. She stopped by the bookstore, knowing Twilight with a good book would always make her smile, but then she thought on it harder.
No, I can buy her a book any day of the week. A Christmas gift needs to be special, especially since she’s your girlfriend, Shimmer!
After that she perused the electronics shop, there were a number of nice looking laptop computers, the latest models at that. But then Sunset saw the price tags and her face went pale.
Yeah, there’s no way Luna would let me charge this onto the card, she’d probably wring my neck!
With that thought shot, Sunset moved on. She was becoming a little frustrated; buying a gift for one person shouldn’t be this hard. It was Twilight, she didn’t want much, and what she did want she practically invented in her little workshop. Now that I think about it, she could probably make a faster and more advanced computer at home if she wanted to…actually, I’m sure she already has one.
Sunset sat on a bench as she growled in frustration at herself for not being able to think of a good gift for her girlfriend. Just then, Sunset’s phone went off, she swiped the screen and looked to see a text from Luna that read, {Sunset, do think this is a little too bold for Tia?}
What followed next was a picture of some lingerie that made Sunset’s face burn bright red, replying quickly with, {Why would you show me that?! I just – no!}
{Oh well, I was hoping to help Sister with her lack of a love life. She really has uninteresting taste in her underwear, so I decided to add a bit a flare to her selection, but judging by your response, I can surmise that will be her reaction as well. Back to the drawing board. 😉}
Sunset groaned, “I swear, she gets a kick out of teasing me.”
“Shopping not going so well?”
Sunset looked to her left and saw a woman sitting there. She had a white leather coat on, her complexion was a light-pink color, with maroon colored eyes, and curly strawberry hair, and her ears were adorned with festive jingle bell earrings. She seemed to be a fairly young woman, if Sunset had to guess, around mid to late twenties. She had a kindly, almost motherly smile to her as she looked upon Sunset.
“You could say that, sorry if I was disturbing you, Miss.”
“Not at all, and you can call me Bori, dear.”
Sunset smiled at Bori, but then went back to lamenting her lack of ideas for finding a gift for her girlfriend.
“If you don’t mind me saying, you seem a bit down,” said Bori.
“Just stressing about a gift…I want to get a good one for my girlfriend, she’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me and she makes me happy! I just want to get her something special that shows her how special she is to me…you know?” Sunset explained.
Bori nodded sagely as she listened to Sunset’s dilemma. “Hmm, it can be a stressful; you want to show the one you love just how much you love them, and how much they mean to you. But how can there be a gift, any material item, which could sum up all those feelings?”
Sunset smiled as she said, “Sounds like you’ve had experience with this kind of thing.”
“More than I’d care to admit to, dear. But I can tell you that you’re overthinking it.” Bori noted the confused look on her face and explained, “Love between two people is a priceless gift, and sometimes we can get so wrapped up in thinking of the perfect gift that people often overlook the one simple thing.”
Sunset turned fully to Bori. “And that is?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
Sunset blinked. “It doesn’t matter…?”
“You’d be surprised how something as simple as a piece of costume jewelry, or an action, can have so much more meaning than the most expensive or lavish gifts. What matters are the memories and feelings that person experiences upon receiving it that makes even a simple gift have so much more meaning than biggest diamond ring, although, it doesn’t hurt to give your paramour one,” Bori explained with a wink.
Sunset felt her frustration and anxiety begin to quickly fade away. Bori was right, Sunset didn’t need to get something overly expensive, what mattered was the presence she put into her present, not the amount of money. Sunset stood up from the bench, her confidence renewed as an idea formed in her head of what she wanted to get Twilight. “Thank you, Miss Bori.”
“Not a problem, Sunset.”
The amber girl began to bolt towards the destination she had in mind but halted when she was halfway away from the bench. Wait…I never told her my name…How did she–? Sunset quickly turned around and saw Bori wave at her before she disappeared in a wisp of glowing pink light. “I should uh…yeah…”
Sunset continued her light jog to her destination, making it to a jewelry shop where she saw something that caught her eye. But when she got there, the item was gone. Sunset walked up to one of the clerks and asked, “Excuse me, Sir, there was a piece of jewelry in that display case, did you have any more in the back possibly?”
The older gentleman walked off into the back; about five minutes later he reemerged, shaking his head in the negative. “Sorry, Miss, that appeared to be our last piece. If you wish, I can search our database and see if there’s another store that may have it in stock?”
Sunset thought about it, but she didn’t really have much time, and she didn’t want to keep Luna out hunting down a gift that may be on the other side of town. “Nah, that’s okay, thank you.”
With disappointment in her heart, Sunset began walking out of the store, taking up her phone in order to dial Luna that she was done and would meet up with her Vice Principal. However, that thought was derailed when someone snatched up her cellphone in one swift motion. Sunset blinked for a second and realized that her phone was gone from her grip; she looked around and noticed that there was a girl; she couldn’t be more than fourteen years old. She had curly grass green hair with curly bangs, but flowed at the back, a sandy complexion, and green freckles adorning her face. She was wearing a pair of denim suspenders, with a striped shirt, and a red bow with a jingle bell on it.
“Wait, what?! Give me back my phone!” Sunset demanded.
“Sorry, I can’t really let you call Luna yet, Sunset. She’s in the middle of getting Celestia’s gift, and I’d rather you not interrupt her,” the girl stated.
Sunset blinked and started to become cautious, she never told this girl her name, and how did she know who she was going to call? “Have we met before, ‘cause you seem to know me and someone else I know too.”
The girl wagged her finger back and forth and “tsked” with each wag. “Sunny, Sunny, don’t even try it.”
“Try what?”
“You’re going to try and lunge at me and then I’m going to start running down that way towards the food court, where you’ll end getting covered in every condiment known to food, and eventually get tired before I offer a wet towel to you in a gesture of goodwill and kindness. But given that it’s almost Christmas, and because I’d rather you not go back home smelling like that food court, why don’t we skip all the hijinks and get down to brass tacks.”
The girl walked up opened one side of Sunset’s jacket and slipped her phone into the pocket. “The name’s Alice, by the way.”
Alice reached behind her back and produced a slender, rectangular gift box, as she opened up the right side of Sunset’s jacket and placed the item in it. “What…What are you doing, what is that for?”
“That’s something for later, and don’t open it until – eh – about midnight on Christmas Eve, but this is because this will be my only chance!” She then reached up and gave Sunset a peck on the cheek, making the amber girl blush as she took a step back in surprise.
“Heh, heh, you’re cute now, but trust me, you’re going to be hot when you get older.” The girl began to walk away but looked over her shoulder as she smiled. “Oh, and don’t worry about that gift for Twilight, check your right hand.”
Sunset looked down at her hand, and found herself cupping a small gift box. Sunset saw that it had a crease, indicating the box could be opened without messing up the decoration. Carefully she opened it up and gasped when she saw it. “Wait how did you–?!” When Sunset looked up to question Alice, she was gone. “What…the hell…is going on?”
The fiery haired girl suddenly felt someone place a hand on her shoulder and call her name, “Sunset?”
“GAH!” Sunset whirled around and almost entered a fighting stance. That is until she realized that it was Luna.
The older women looked upon Sunset a little surprised at her jumpy reaction. “Are you alright?”
Sunset shook her head and ran a hand through her long hair. “I think so…I guess I was a little stressed about getting a gift and I think I was seeing things…”
“Hmm, yes, as lovely as the holidays are, it can be stressful for some people.” Luna draped a comforting arm over the young girl’s shoulders and smiled at her. “Well, it looks like you’re done with your shopping and I’m done with mine. What say we head back home and enjoy Tia’s home cooking, and afterwards I can school you in the fine art of video games.”
A smirk crossed lips at the challenge. “Don’t think just because I’m a pony from another dimension that you have the advantage, you forget who I hang around with.”
“Ha, amateurs, allow me to show you who rules the cyber world,” Luna scoffed.
Luna and Sunset walked off, heading for the exit, but the whole time she couldn’t stop thinking about what had just happened. The woman, Bori, who gave her advice, then there was Alice, the girl who seemed to know exactly what Sunset was looking for, and what she was going to do. Not to mention, the old woman from back at the Apple Farm, Aurora, who led her to the old pine tree.
“Um, Luna, have you ever heard of…I don’t know…spirits of Christmas that come in threes?” Sunset asked.
Luna hummed as she thought. “Well, there is a story called A Christmas Carol, about a miserly old man who despised Christmas and those who celebrated it. Until the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future came to him one night and showed him the error of his ways.”
“Oh, so it’s similar to A Hearth’s Warming Tale!”
“Is that a story from your world?” Luna asked with intrigue.
“Yeah, it is.”
Luna grinned at the confirmation. “Oh, you must tell it when we get home, and then after I’ll school you.”
Sunset chuckled and agreed to tell the tale, but with that information, she was worried. If those three were anything like the ghosts of the two stories, did that mean that Sunset had not learned her lesson? Was the Spirit of Christmas about to hand down its own punishment for trying to celebrate her day of birth and the holiday itself?
I really hope that’s not the case…
***____________<U>____________***
Twilight paced the living room as she tried to contain her nerves but was doing a terrible job at doing it. Her brother and Cadance were sitting in the living room as well, watching the poor girl wear a groove into the floor at her continuous pacing.
“How long as she been at that?” Shining asked.
“I’d say about thirty minutes or so,” Cadance answered.
“Eh, that’s nothing, I’ve seen her go at least an hour and a half,” Spike added.
Velvet and Night Light walked into the room and saw their daughter pacing, while not uncommon; it was starting to become a bit overdone.
Velvet walked into the path of her daughter’s pacing, causing Twilight bump into her and stop the cycle from repeating. “It’s going to be okay, there’s no need to go Twily-nanas, over Sunset’s spending her Christmas/birthday with us.”
Twilight blushed. “I am not going ‘Twily-nanas’!”
Everyone raised an eyebrow at that denial.
“Okay, maybe a little Twily-nanas…But, can you blame me? I just want things to go perfect for Sunset, she’s been willfully avoiding celebrating her birthday, and has been alone these past few years for the holidays, I just want her feel like she’s truly loved and a part of a family,” said Twilight.
Night Light smiled at his daughter as he said, “Twilight, from what I’ve heard and seen that girl is definitely well loved by you, your friends, and others. And as far as we’re concerned, Sunset Shimmer is a part of this family. And not just because she’s your girlfriend, although it did help a bit”
“Honey,” Velvet groaned as she rolled her eyes.
Just then the doorbell rang, and Twilight jumped like a cat that was startled. She quickly composed herself and raced to the front door, after making sure her clothes were tidy, Twilight opened the door and saw her lover, Sunset Shimmer.
“Merry Christmas, Twilight,” said Sunset.
“Merry Christmas, Sunset,” Twilight replied.
Twilight looked over Sunset’s shoulder and saw that her bike was parked in the driveway, noting how cold it was as she crossed her arms. “We really need to look into getting you a car, riding that bike is not good for your health in cold weather.”
“Yeah, but that’s if I was a normal human.”
“Well, maybe I want you to have a car so that I can enjoy a ride that doesn’t blow my skirt up,” Twilight commented.
Sunset smirked. “Oh, now I get it. You just want me to get one because you want to break in the backseat.”
Twilight’s face lit up red as the implication set in. “T-T-That’s not what I meant!”
Sunset made her way in and gave Twilight a pinch on the cheek. “You’re cute when you’re flustered.”
Twilight pouted for a moment but let go as she closed the door and ushered her girlfriend into her living room. Cadance hopped up from the couch and gave Sunset a big hug as she practically smushed her face against her own. “Happy day-before-your-birthday, Sunset! I’m glad you want to spend it with us.”
“Thanks, Cadance,” Sunset struggled to say before the cheerful woman released her. “I’m just happy you all are allowing me, I was afraid I was going to intrude on some family time.”
Velvet waved her hand in dismissal of the thought, “Sunset, please, at this point, if you didn’t spend this day with us, I’d be insulted. It’s a special day for more than one reason, and we’re happy to celebrate it with you in our home.”
“That’s for sure, especially now that you’re with our little Twily, we have to subject her to all the standard embarrassing parenting clichés. Honey, do we have that scrapbook of Twilight when she was a baby?” Night Light asked.
“Oh, here we go,” Shining chuckled.
“Remember when they did that with you, Shiny?” Cadance asked.
Shining Armor’s face grew red as he put on a serious face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Twilight on the other hand was groaning loudly. “Please don’t!”
Sunset patted her girlfriend on the shoulder. “C’mon, Sparky, it can’t be that bad. I mean, it’s not like they have you naked posing on a bearskin rug with your butt sticking up in the air or……” Twilight’s face was burning a bright shade of red, Shining Armor and Cadance had a devious smirk on their faces, and Twilight’s parents were doing all they could stifle their laughter. “Nooooo…!”
“Yes,” Velvet chirped.
“Bring it out, now!” Sunset declared.
“Sunset Shimmer!” Twilight scolded.
The redhead chuckled as moved out of the way of her nerdy girlfriend trying to tackle her. “C’mon, babe, I’m sure you look adorable! And it’ll give me a reference for what that may look like down the road.”
Twilight’s eye twitched. “That’s it! I’m throwing myself out from my window upstairs!”
“Okay, put on a jacket though, it’s cold,” Shining suggested.
Cadance frowned and swatted him on the arm as she said, “Shiny, please!”
“What? There’s thick snow outside, Dad and I haven’t shoveled it so even if you do, it’ll be like landing on a pillow.”
“Found it!” Night Light announced.
Twilight grabbed a blanket from the couch, found a vacant spot on it and cocooned herself in it in order to hide her from the embarrassment that was to come. Sunset shook her head as she smiled at Twilight’s overreaction to the whole thing; she then motioned for Velvet to give her the album. Velvet handed it over and Sunset went and sat next to the lump that was her nerdy lover.
“Twilight~”
“No.”
“C’mon, Sparky, just come out and rip the Band-Aid off,” said Sunset.
Twilight curled in tighter. “No, you’ll just laugh, they’re embarrassing!”
Sunset reached out and found where Twilight’s head was and began stroking that spot gently. “Twi, I’m not going to laugh……Okay, I might laugh, but Twi, you know I love you no matter what. Embarrassing quirks and all, it’s not like I don’t have my own share.”
“Oh yeah, name one,” Twilight dared.
Sunset sighed and leaned in close as to not allow the others to overhear. “When I first came to this world and I was hungry, I used to sneak off and tried to eat flowers and grass from around the school.” Twilight peeked from under the blanket, so Sunset continued. “One day I left my home naked because I wasn’t used to wearing clothes every day and ended up flashing some random guy.”
Twilight gave a snort of laughter under the blanket.
Sunset smiled a bit more and then added, “I talked to a horse for at least thirty minutes before I realized she didn’t understand a word I said!”
Finally, Twilight emerged from her cocoon. “Okay, I get it; I’m not the only one who has some embarrassing moments.”
“Good, so there’s nothing wrong with this. Velvet, show that picture!”
“On it!” Velvet answered.
Twilight groaned and resumed her hiding in the blanket cocoon.
***____________<U>____________***
The day was filled with the Sparkle Family, Cadance, and Sunset, doing family activities. One was going to a fancy little restaurant that served holiday foods; another was heading to a theater that was showing holiday movies on the big screen. Sunset had already seen some of them at Celestia and Luna’s house, but seeing them with the large family and on the big screen was a different experience. The family then spent some time at the local ice rink; of course they all paired off. Cadance and Shining Armor, even Velvet and Night Light were naturals as they glided across the ice, each couple keeping their respective significant other close.
Sunset on the other hand, was not as skillful. Despite all her abilities, it would seem that the former unicorn had found her match when it came to ice skating. In contrast, Twilight was a natural, moving across the rink as she came to a stop before her lover at the entrance.
“I-I don’t know about this, Twilight,” Sunset stammered.
“You’ll be fine, just put one foot in front of the other.”
Sunset carefully took a step onto the ice, the blade of her skate making contact with the ice as she put some weight on it and balanced it. She then took another step forward but began to lose her balance. Thankfully, Twilight caught her before that happened, which also made Sunset cling to Twilight like a scared cat. “O-Okay, I-I don’t think skating and I are good friends!”
“Sunset, this is probably the one time I’ll ever say this, but don’t overthink it. Take my hands,” Twilight instructed.
The amber girl cautiously placed her gloved hands into Twilight’s, the lavender girl slowly moved away, allowing their arms to extend. Twilight began to move, pulling Sunset along as they both glided across the ice, Sunset watched Twilight’s footwork, taking note of how she moved and pivoted her weight with each stroke of the blade. Sunset tried mimicking those movements, and for the most part they worked, but it was clear that there was a major skill gap Sunset ended up almost faceplanting a few times.
“Looks like there’s at least one sport thing I’m better at than you,” Twilight commented.
“Hey, I bow to the master right now, b-but I will admit…this is kinda fun,” said Sunset.
The young couple continued to skate around the ring, listening to the music that played overhead. Velvet and Night Light watched on as their two children skated with their special someone, and a tear came to Velvet’s eyes as she said, “My children are all growing up so fast.”
“Oh, honey, we knew this day would come,” said Night Light.
“I know…I’m just really happy that our son found a woman who appreciates and loves him, even before he was a cop, she cared about him and even his nerdy interests,” said Velvet.
“Indeed, and let’s face it, we both figured Twilight would go on to win Nobel Prizes, but would end up isolated with no friends or someone she cared about. Now look at her, I’ve never seen her so happy, she has many friends, and a girl that loves her dearly, what more could we wish for our children?” Night Light asked.
Velvet squeezed her husband’s hand a little as she smiled, “As far as I’m concerned, this is the best Christmas Present……Now only if Shiny would hurry up and give me a grandchild to spoil already! At this rate, Twilight’s going to be the one to give me a grandchild before him! Adopted or donor, either way, I want one!”
Both siblings sneezed at the exact same time.
“You okay, Shiny?”
“Catching a cold, Sparky?”
“Nah, nose just itched, I guess,” Shining answered.
“That or someone was talking about us behind our backs,” said Twilight.
Shining Armor and Twilight Sparkle both gave a deadpan stare towards their parents who only waved at them happily.
“Grandchildren?” Twilight asked.
Shining sighed, “Grandchildren…”
***____________<U>____________***
The night was upon them, and the Sparkle family was now at their last destination, White Tail Park. There was to be a big tree lighting ceremony, and everyone was invited, hot chocolate and warm gingerbread men cookies were served throughout the evening as the people gathered to watch the big Christmas tree light up the night.
Sunset sat on a bench, looking into her cup of hot chocolate as the marshmallows swirled about. As warm and fun as the past few days have been, Sunset still couldn’t shake the lingering feeling that those three people she met in the past few days meant something. If they were indeed spirits, did that mean that they had come to punish Sunset for her past deeds? They certainly didn’t look threatening…but then again, what better way to catch your prey off guard? A kindly old lady, a motherly woman, and a precocious young teen girl, yep, that would be one way.
So deep in her thoughts, Sunset hadn’t noticed that Twilight had sat next to her. Twilight stared at Sunset for a minute, noticing how hard she was looking into her hot chocolate, as if it held the answer to a question she was pondering in her mind.
“Um, Sunset, it’s going to get cold if you don’t drink it,” said Twilight.
Sunset snapped out of her thoughts and finally noticed that she wasn’t sitting alone. “Oh, sorry, I was deep in thought…” Sunset quickly took a swig of her beverage, and instantly regretted it as she found the drink to still be quite hot. “Ow, ow, Eh urnt meh ung.”
Twilight giggled a little as she watched Sunset fan her tongue, sticking it out so that the cold air would sooth it. After that, Sunset took more cautious sips of her drink, but Twilight could tell her girlfriend was still pondering something. “Sunset, what’s wrong? You look like you expect something bad to happen.”
Sunset went silent for a moment as she stared at the pavement. “I don’t know…I know you said I deserve to celebrate tomorrow, that I deserve to be surrounded by those who love and care about me…but I wonder if there’s something else that doesn’t believe that.”
Twilight sighed heavily, she loved Sunset, but sometimes her own self-loathing was exhausting. “Sunset, I love you, our friends love you! Heck, even the me in Equestria and the pony versions of our friends care about you! Yes, you’ve done some bad things, but that doesn’t have to define you, you’ve rose up above all those things and have become someone spectacular! Someone, I am proud and happy to call my girlfriend!”
The nerdy girl took her right hand and gently turned Sunset’s head to face her, and then touched her forehead to Sunset’s. “So, stop beating yourself up for things in the past, learn from them, accept the present, and embrace the future. Because all I want…is a future with you, I will never regret becoming your friend, and I definitely will never ever regret being your girlfriend.”
Sunset began to sniffle as a lump formed in her throat, her face breaking out into a great big smile as said, “Dammit, Sparky, it’s freezing out here, you’re going to make my eyes ice shut…”
Twilight smiled and carefully wiped Sunset’s eyes to prevent any ice from forming, although Twilight had to point out that even at the temperatures right now, there was no possible way for Sunset’s tears to instantly freeze to the point of preventing her eyes from opening, to which Sunset retorted by saying, “Egghead”.
With her spirits lifted, Sunset walked with Twilight to the gathering place of where everyone crowded to see the tree lighting. Apparently, it was a big enough thing that the mayor of Canterlot City came out to perform the ceremony. She was an older woman, with a sandy complexion, blue sapphire eyes, a gray hair, and a pair of glasses that rested upon her face.
“Welcome one and all, to our annual tree lighting ceremony. As your mayor, it is, as always, my honor and privilege to start off this joyous time of year this way, and now, everyone, let’s count it down. TEN!”
“NINE!”
“EIGHT!”
“SEVEN!”
“SIX!”
“FIVE!”
“FOUR!”
“THREE!”
“TWO!”
“ONE!”
The mayor hit the switch and the tree, and every other subsequent decoration around the area, lit up, shining its light and piercing the darkness of the night. The tall, ten-foot tree glittered with an array of multicolored lights, ending with a big white star at the top off the tree. Sunset looked around at all the happy faces, and then she looked at Twilight’s and their eyes met, this was a magical moment, perfect in every way. Both girls drifted closer to each other, eyes closing as they prepared to give the other a kiss.
“MERRY CHRISTMAS!”
…At least, until that happened.
Everyone gasped in fright as something flew overhead. The object rushed back and forth a few times before finally stopping over the Christmas tree. Hovering over the tree was a sleigh, colored black and red, with a green snowflake on the side, and in the back was a large burlap sack that was bulging with unknown contents. At the head of the sleigh were reindeer, four in total, each one had black fur with a dark gray underbelly that covered part of their muzzles. Their antlers were jagged and sharp, eyes blazing purple, and their hooves were covered with armored shoes.
Standing from the driver’s seat was a large man, dressed in a dark red Santa suit, the white parts of the suit were pitch black, his leather belt buckle had the image of a Christmas tree super imposed over a skull. The only thing with white coloring was the man’s long, ratty beard and mustache, which hid rows of sharp teeth, dark green skin, and eyes that blazed orange.
“Look at you all, happy and celebrating, what naughty people you all are! Goodwill is punished, and the wicked are rewarded, this will not stand! And who better to correct this injustice than me!” The man announced.
Shining Armor quickly shifted gears as he broke away from his family and summoned his Driver and Gaia Memory.
< TRIGGER! >
“Henshin!”
> TRIGGER! <
In a matter of seconds, Shining transformed into Kamen Rider Trigger, he immediately jumped up on the stage, keeping his Chrome Magnum trained on the figure as the mayor’s protection detail got her away. “Who or what are you?!”
The being grinned wickedly as he said, “Who am I?! I am Santa Claws! A rebel with a cause!” Santa Claws reached into his bag and pulled out two gifts. “I’ll punish you all and give you a fright!” The monster Santa threw the gifts overboard as he shouted, “NOW HAVE HORRIBLE CHRISTMAS NIGHT!”
Trigger didn’t give them time to hit as he fired at both of the packages. The moment his laser bolts hit the packages, they exploded into big bang of brightly colored flames, like fireworks with a destructive kick to them. The unjolly fat man released maniacal laughter into the air as he pulled more gifts and began throwing them off indiscriminately.
“EVERYBODY, CLEAR THE AREA!” Trigger ordered as he took out the Gatling Memory.
< GATLING! >
|^| GATLING! ARMED! |^|
The Chrome Magnum transformed into its Gatling Gun form, allowing Trigger to fire into the air and sweep the open space as the presents fell and exploded. Everybody on the ground was scrambling about, running in any direction that would get them away from the crazed Santa monster.
Twilight just stared up at the demented man in the flying sleigh, as she did; she took out her cellphone and decided to do a video call. After about twenty seconds, Starlight Glimmer answered the phone.
[Twilight, what’s wrong, you look a little miffed.]
“Oh, I don’t know, maybe it has to do with THAT!”
Twilight turned her phone around, showing Santa Claws causing all sorts of mayhem. [What in the name of all things holy is that thing?!]
Twilight turned the phone around to face herself. “Wait, you didn’t release another Gaia Memory?!”
[No! I gave the whole staff holiday vacation! Even the underground lab staff is off! I’m not even at the building, I’m at home! There’s no possible way that – OH! Oh no…]
Sunset entered and asked, “‘Oh no’ what?”
Starlight looked nervous as she spoke, [Well…a few days ago, the Emerald Mountain reacted and spat out something that zoomed off out of the cavern. We tried tracking it down, but no such luck, I figured it had left the city…and it seems I was right…]
Sunset slapped her forehead. “And you waited until now to tell us?!”
[I didn’t want to ruin your holiday and birthday with something like this! I was going to handle it since it was most likely going to hinder my plans!] Starlight sighed. [Regardless, I’ll join the battle soon.]
Sunset looked up at Santa Claws, and then to Starlight. “No, it’s fine, we can handle this.”
[Sorry…]
Before Starlight signed off, Sunset showed a small smile as she said, “Have a Merry Christmas, Starlight.”
With that established, Sunset knew that this Dopant may just be some hapless civilian who was corrupted by the rogue Gaia Memory, or someone who was truly out to ruin the holiday cheer. Either way, Santa Claws had to be stopped, unfortunately, there were very few places where Sunset could transform, or there was no way she wouldn’t get spotted with such scarce cover. That is until she spotted the giant Christmas tree. The only ones around there was Trigger and Santa Claws, with a confident smirk, Sunset dashed for the tree.
Trigger continued to blast all the gifts that rained from the sky, but that limited Trigger as to how to counterattack. Sunset ran as fast as she could, passing by Trigger for as their gazes locked. Trigger understood what Sunset was going to do as he provided cover fire for her to change.
Sunset managed to duck under the tree, she scanned the area, but no one was around, and the thick branches obscured her from any prying eyes. With a nod, Sunset summoned her Uni-Driver and Unicorn Memory.
< UNICORN! >
“Henshin!”
> UNICORN! <
A flash of turquoise light erupted from under the tree, catching the attention of Santa Claws. He raised his right hand and prepared to chuck a present in that direction, but was stopped when Unicorn appeared behind him, gripping his wrist to prevent him from tossing the glorified bomb.
“You know, you’re not being a very good Santa, you’re supposed be a jolly soul,” said Unicorn.
“Oh, ho, ho! But I am being a good Santa! I’ve let everyone skate by for too long, and now I’m here to correct that mistake!” Santa Claws’ eyes glowed as he looked at Unicorn directly. “I and see I have quite the naughty child standing before me, eh, Sunset Shimmer?!”
Unicorn released her grip in shock, upon doing so; Santa Claws reached back and swiped his clawed nails across Unicorn’s chest armor. Sparks flew from her as she was tossed back by the strength of his attack. Unicorn landed on his sack of presents, but she wasn’t given much time to recover as Santa Claws jumped up and stood over Unicorn, grabbing her by arm and then tossing her overboard.
The magical hero descended at a rapid pace, but thankfully used her teleportation spell to land on her feet. Trigger ran up to her side, his weapon trained on the Santa monster. “Hey, you alright?”
“He…He knew my name…!”
“Wait, what, how?!” Trigger asked.
“The answer is quite simple.” Santa Claws’ sleigh lowered until it hovered five feet off the ground. Santa jumped off and landed with a thud and a crunch of the snow as he stood to his full height. “That’s because Santa knows the names of all the naughty and nice kids of the world! Like you, Shining Armor.”
Trigger shrugged. “Big deal, you know my name, everybody knows I’m Trigger.”
Santa Claws stroked his beard as chuckled. “Ho, ho, that’s true. But, I don’t think anybody knows that you recently sent a letter addressed to me, saying how you wanted me to and I quote, ‘Overlook Sunset Shimmer’s past misdeeds’ and ‘She has a good heart and loves my sister dearly, so please give her the gift of a good Christmas.”
Trigger stiffened at hearing that, prompting Unicorn to glance in his direction. Although his helmet obscured it, Unicorn could see the signs that Santa Claws was not lying.
“Trigger…?”
“You…I mean…don’t make me say it, you get it, right?” Trigger asked in a pleading tone.
If it wasn’t for the fact that they were engaged with a Dopant Santa, Unicorn would have hugged the big lug.
“Yes, and for asking for something as selfless as that, I will spare you and your family any harm this night. However…I cannot – will not – overlook this child’s misdeeds upon the people here in this realm! I may not have much authority in Equestria, but that does not mean my eyes are blind to what happens there! So, I will give you the punishment you so righteously deserve!”
Santa Claws brought his hands together, at the center of his palms a lump of coal formed, and in a matter of seconds that lump was set ablaze with burning crimson flames. The Dopant Santa lunched the burning coal straight for Unicorn, but at the last second, she dodged it, allowing the coal to hit the ground behind her, instantly evaporating the snow and leaving a three-foot-wide crater.
Trigger fired his Chrome Magnum at Santa Claws, but the Dopant merely changed form. The villain’s body transformed into burning ash that zipped about the battlefield as Trigger continued to try and hit him. Unicorn focused her magic, watching Santa Claws’ movements carefully. At that moment, she cast a spell, creating a barrier wall in front of the wisp of ashes, stopping him in his tracks. But Unicorn wasn’t done; she expanded the wall, turning it into a spherical barrier that completely trapped him.
Santa Claws returned to his normal form, growling as he pounded at the barrier. “You dare detain me?! Do you have any idea how many presents I have to deliver after I’m through with you?!”
“Considering the way you’re acting right now, trust me, I’m doing every good boy and girl in the world a favor!” Unicorn stated. “Trigger, fire off a Max Drive attack while I got him!”
Santa Claws smirked. “You seem to have forgotten something.”
Suddenly, the wild snorting and growls of the demon reindeer magnified as they four beasts pulled the sleigh, moving at such a fast pace that Trigger didn’t have time to dodge. Armored hooves and sharp antlers struck Trigger, sending him flying into the air as sparks flew of his armor, ending with him lying in the snow.
“TRIGGER!”
Santa Claws surrounded his forearms in burning coals as he struck the sphere with all his might, shattering it into pieces. The Dopant transformed into burning ash as he zoomed straight for Unicorn. Once upon her, Santa Claws entered and exited his ash form, striking Unicorn from all sides as she struggled to defend herself.
“This is for that filly you dunked in the fountain!”
A fierce right hook struck her in the head.
“This is for setting that fire construct on your fellow students just for a laugh!”
Another fierce blow came from the side, hitting Unicorn in the ribs.
“This is for tormenting every young boy and girl who crossed your path in this world!”
Santa Claws remerged and gave Unicorn a knee strike to the gut, making her hunch over.
“And this is for scorning all those who showed you kindness and love!”
The Dopant Santa brought both hands up, the coal merged together until if formed a burning hammer. Santa Claws brought down that burning hammer causing a massive explosion that sent Unicorn into the air, only to fall back down with a mighty crash as a crater formed from the impact.
Unicorn just lied there, the beating was bad, but the words Santa Claws spoke hurt worse. But then Sunset remembered, the days she had spent with her friends, the words exchanged with Twilight, all of it resonated within her, soothing the pain and anxiety of her past. The words of the three mystery women also echoed in her mind, the words they spoke, they held just as much weight as those spoken of by her friends and lover.
Santa Claws stood at the edge of the crater, his wicked grin split his face as he looked down at the beaten hero. “Now, Sunset Shimmer, any last words?”
Unicorn pulled herself up, getting into a sitting position as she panted. “Yeah…I’m sorry.”
Santa Claws raised an eyebrow in confusion. “An apology will not save you now, a good effort, but pointless.”
Unicorn managed to stand to her full height as she looked at Santa Claws. “No, I’m apologizing to my friends, and those I love. I’ve been continuously blaming myself for my past, I need to learn to accept that I did bad things, and learn from the experiences of the past. I must learn to accept the present, that this is the person I am today, and to work towards a future that I can be proud of, one where I am surrounded by friends and loved ones!”
The heroine took a fighting stance as her horn glowed. “So, come at me all you want, I’ll take all that punishment, and then I’ll set you free from that Gaia Memory! And that will be my present to you!”
A bright flash of light emanated from Unicorn’s right hand, blinding both Santa Claws and Unicorn. The light began to dim as Unicorn felt something in her hand, and when it finally went out, she found herself holding the mysterious rectangular gift Alice gave her at the mall.
“Say, what time is it?” Unicorn asked.
Santa Claws, strangely, obliged the question as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a watch, flipping open the latch he read, “It’s midnight.”
Unicorn tore the box open and revealed the present, A Gaia Memory. It was colored green and red, with an “M” symbol that was made of sparkling stars. “Well then, happy birthday to me!”
< MIRACULOUS! >
{< MIRACULOUS! MIMETIC DRIVE! >}
A starry “M” formed behind Unicorn, the starry energy wrapped around her, changing Unicorn into a new Mimetic Form. Red armor plates formed over forearms and shins. A white color formed within the inner leg and thigh, going up her stomach to form a big heart, and continuing up her neck and stopping around where the face plate was. At the center of the heart was an outline of a five-pointed star. The green of the armor became a deeper, sparkling green color, with whimsical swirls that ended with a four-pointed star.
On the sides of the helmet two antlers grew, both were three pointed and colored silver. Around Unicorn’s neck, a red velvet cape formed, with white fur edges, the inside of was different, it appeared as if a brightly lit starry night was sewn into the fabric. When the starlight finally faded and now Unicorn was in her newest Mimetic Form.
“Unicorn: Miracle Star!”
Santa Claws’ eye twitched at this latest development. “A festive wardrobe change won’t save you!”
“Oh man, if I had a bit for every single bad guy who said that, I’d be a rich mare.” Unicorn entered a fighting stance. “But right now, I’ll settle for getting you back to normal.”
Santa Claws summoned a giant burning coal overhead; he then jumped into the air and chucked it straight at Unicorn. The empowered heroine pressed down on her hip port twice, flared her cape, and wrapped herself in it. The burning ember struck the crater where Unicorn was at and exploded, sending a shockwave that shorted out all the lights and knocked down the giant Christmas tree. Santa Claws’ sleigh arrived in time to catch him, and there he stood, looking down at his handy work as he smiled sinisterly. However, that smile faded when he noticed there was a large red bag sitting in the middle of the crater.
\\ INIFINTY BAG! //
The bag opened up, and slowly revealed Unicorn as the bag morphed back into her red cape. “Yeah, apparently the inside of the cape has its own pocket dimension, and the outside is pretty durable to attacks. Go figure.”
Santa Claws growled in anger as he took the reins of his sleigh whipped them once, making the four demon bucks charge forward at ramming speed. Unicorn chuckled as her horn lit up, and in the next second, she disappeared. Santa Claws pulled upon the reins and made the sleigh fly straight up before leveling off. The Dopant glanced about, trying to see where Unicorn would pop up.
Unicorn did reappear, but it was several feet above Santa Claws’ position. The magical hero went into free fall as she pressed down once on the left hip port.
\ MISTILTEINN! /
Vines of green light formed in Unicorn’s right hand, coiling together until they gave off a flash, and formed a sword. The hilt was woven tightly together by vines of mistletoe, while the blade was made of a polished metal that glowed white. Santa Claws looked up and watched as his foe was heading right for him. The Dopant quickly used his power to form an ax made of burning coals, just in time for the two blades to crash into each other. The shockwave generated from the clash pushed Unicorn back up and made Santa Claws’ sleigh shake and rattle.
Santa Claws believed that Unicorn would fall, and he’d catch her off guard. The plan wouldn’t get the chance to be enacted as Unicorn’s body became outlined with a shimmering aura, allowing her to float in midair. Upon further inspection, it seemed the cause for this new flight ability was the antlers as they were glowing brightly to match the aura surrounding Unicorn. With this new discovery, Unicorn charged in with her sword, but Santa Claws was not having any of it. The Dopant Santa transformed into burning ash and headed for her, Unicorn flew at the ash stream and slashed at it. Santa Claws was forced to reenter into his solid state as he crossed blades with Unicorn.
Santa Claws broke off and came around to attack her from the back. However, Unicorn’s antlers began to blink and in response Unicorn flipped around and blocked Santa Claws’ attack. The two of them continued in this fashion for about a minute, trading blows in the air as two streaks of evergreen and crimson collided with each strike.
The two separated with Santa Claws returning to his sleigh, huffing from the effort of fighting Unicorn. The magical Rider was tired too, but she persevered, the longer she fought this man, the more she was starting to think the impossible. “If you are who I think you may be, then I need to end this before it gets any later.”
“Finally, something we agree on! I’ve been wasting too much time with you, and I have a very busy night ahead of me! So, let’s wrap this up!” Santa Claws announced.
Unicorn flew high into air, and Santa Claws followed after her in the sleigh. Higher and higher the two ascended until they broke through the snow heavy clouds and into the clear skies above, the numerous twinkling stars and full moon shined in the night sky as the two beings readied for their final attack. Santa Claws’ sleigh began to shine with dark energy, each of the demonic reindeers’ eyes glowed as Santa Claws himself raged as the nucleus of this power.
Unicorn took out the Miraculous Memory and placed it into her right hip port.
>} MIRACULOUS! MAXIMUM DRIVE! {<
Unicorn’s whole body began to sparkle with twinkling lights as she extended her right arm up and pointed to the heavens. “It’s time to restore harmony!”
Santa Claws whipped the reins and made his reindeer charge for Unicorn, their speed and combined power turned the sleigh into a dark meteor that was careening straight for the Rider. But at that moment, Unicorn’s body changed into a reindeer light construct. The new form began to dash towards Santa Claws, leaving a trail of sparkling stars in its wake.
The construct proved to be the faster of the two, as the Unicorn-Reindeer construct began to fly circles around Santa Claws, each pass left behind twinkling stars that seemed to form a line. The construct moved faster, crisscrossing the lines, moving up, around, and over. Santa Claws didn’t know which way to go, Unicorn was moving too fast to intercept.
After one final pass, the trail of twinkling stars expanded and combined together to form a perfect sphere that completely surrounded Santa Claws. The construct flew up higher until it was over the ball, changing back into Unicorn Miracle Star. The energy from the construct gathered around Unicorn’s right foot as she dove down for a Rider Kick. When she hit the sphere, it changed colors into that of the evergreen color of Unicorn’s transformation. Every single star that made up the sphere descended upon Santa Claws all at once.
“Oh…sugarplums…”
Several sparkling lights of gold, green, and red went off at the same time, ending with a massive explosion of sparkling evergreen light that lit up the sky. Unicorn reappeared on the ground, but the attack was not done yet. With a wave of her hand, she pointed to the sky to pronounce the name of the attack, which was simply called…
“MIRACLE!”
From the explosion, the evergreen stars spread out through the area, surrounding all the trees and stands that were damaged during the battle. All at once the damage was fixed, as if nothing had ever happened. Trigger was caught up in a whirlwind of those stars and was completely healed and standing.
“Uh…what just happened?” Trigger asked in confusion.
The stars seemed to be swirling around something large, bringing it down from the sky and setting it upon the ground. When the stars blinked out of existence, Trigger and Unicorn gasped at what they saw. There, in a bright red and gold colored sleigh, with four brown furred reindeer, and sporting a red suit and white beard, was Santa Claus, although, the jolly man seemed knocked out.
“That can’t really be…him, can it?”
“I’m a magical talking unicorn from a parallel dimension, and we fight monsters with supernaturally powered USB sticks. Yeah, at this point, I’m not ruling out anything,” said Unicorn as she approached the sleeping old man. “Hey…um, Santa, you alright?”
The old man in the sleigh groaned as he came to, shaking his head to dispel the fogginess that surrounded it. When he looked to his left, the old man spotted Trigger and Unicorn blinked, and then looked down at his hand. All three looked to his gloved hand and noticed a strange Gaia Memory; it had the rib design of a T1, along with the smoothness of a T2. The symbol at the center was that of “C” with black fiery design. After a moment the Gaia Memory shattered in his hand and the pieces evaporated into nothingness.
“Oh, oh my, what have I done?”
“Is it…really you? The Santa Claus?” Unicorn asked.
“Unfortunately, child, I am…and I have done a great disservice to you all…” Santa hung his head in lament. “Please, forgive me. I was not of my right mind when I spoke of all those things…”
Unicorn sighed. “Well, it’s not like you were wrong.”
“But the same is also true, that you have become so much more than your past, Sunset,” Santa explained. “You saved me from that accursed device.”
“Yeah, exactly how did you do that? I’ve never seen you use that before.”
“Yeah, that’s thanks to us.”
Unicorn, Santa, and Trigger turned around. The magical hero gasped as she saw the three women she had met these past few days. “Y-You’re–!”
“Aurora,” the old woman announced.
“Bori,” the young woman spoke.
“Alice,” the young girl exclaimed.
“The Gift Givers of the Grove!”
Upon this declaration, all three women shined with a combined light, transforming into reindeer, but not normal ones. Aurora was a mint green color, with her right antler missing a piece, and wearing a shawl held at the center by a jingle bell. Bori was a pink reindeer with medium seized antlers and sported her jingle bell earrings. And the youngest of the group, Alice, had small antlers and wore a red bow with a jingle bell at the center. It was unmistakable that these three hailed from Equestria.
“B-B-But you – you’re – FROM EQUESTRIA?!” Unicorn exclaimed.
Alice floated over and booped Unicorn on the nose of her helmet. “Yep, told ya that present would come in handy.”
Suddenly, Unicorn changed back into her default form, and the Miraculous Memory dissolved into shimmering sparkles.
“You see, Aurora sees gifts of the past, Alice sees gifts of the future, and I just live in the moment,” Bori explained.
“Yeah, like how I saw something was going to happen to the big guy over there, and that the only one who could save him was Sunset,” said Alice. “But I also saw that you were still full of self-doubt and other junk.”
Unicorn recalled the words said to her by Santa Claws. “And that’s why you all were giving me advice when we met each other?”
Bori nodded. “Indeed, that device gave Santa the power to weigh down the hearts of others with all the negative things they’ve done in their lives, magnifying them to the point where they lose the will to fight and accept their fate. Alice can see even bad gifts, so to counteract that, we decided to try and give you as much encouragement as we could to try and overcome your past.”
Aurora floated over to Unicorn and patted her on the helmet. “And it’s a good thing ya did; otherwise that little doohickey wouldn’t have worked. It was a special Memory, one that could only work if you believed in yourself.”
“Wait, how are you guys here in our world if you’re from Sunset’s?” Trigger asked.
“Oh, well that’s simple Shining Armor,” Santa answered. “The Gift Givers and I share a connection to Earth and Equestria, I can peer into their world and them into ours, and sometimes we can crossover into each other’s worlds from time to time to help out.”
Alice flew around to the front of the sleigh and said, “On that note, you better get going if you’re going to finish up before the nights over! And before you ask, yes, we’ll lend you a hoof!”
All three of the Gift Givers used their magic to lift he sleigh, and gave it a little of their energy. Santa Claus gave a hearty “Ho, ho, ho!” before snapping the reins and having the sleigh take off.
“Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!” Santa declared.
“And Happy Hearths Warming!” Aurora, Bori, and Alice added.
With that, they zoomed into the night, leaving Trigger and Unicorn to watch as an aurora borealis formed in the night sky above Canterlot City.
Trigger crossed his arms as he looked up at the lights and said, “Happy Birthday.”
Unicorn smiled under helmet and replied, “Merry Christmas.”
***____________<U>____________***
Sunset slept like a log that night, along with Shining Armor, actually most of the family did. So it was a late start for the whole family. A feast was had, and Sunset and Shining Armor ate like a couple of starving beasts.
“She has quite the healthy appetite,” Night Light commented.
“Daddy!” Twilight hissed in embarrassment.
“My, maybe I should have made more,” said Velvet.
After their meal was had, the family gathered in the living room and began opening presents. Cadance wondered where her gift was, but was assured by Shining Armor that it would come after everyone got there’s. With that, Cadance gave Shining his present, a limited edition, Crisis Comic: Jade Guard, very rare. When asked how she procured such an item, she simply said, “Let’s just say that the owner at the Comic Shop was no match for my wiles.” By that, Cadance merely gave the clerk the flirty bat of the eyes a cute giggle.
Velvet received a writing quill, a finely made one with a brass handle and tip, the feather itself was black and sheened in the light. The gift was from Night Light, knowing his wife had a signature when writing her signature on important work she was working on for her writer or writers. It often involved her signing her name with old ink dipped pens, and Velvet had her eye on that one for a while now. Night was given a new telescope, he may work in the Canterlot Observatory, but sometimes he’d like to stargaze for fun. Even Spike wasn’t left out on the festivities, having received a new collar, and a nice new chew toy.
Now we came to the “main event” as the adults in the room were joking. Sunset found the gift that Alice had given her, before that night, Sunset wasn’t sure about the gift itself, but then there was that thing at the park and Sunset became more confident that she knew what it was. Twilight received the gift and slowly opened it, inside was an emerald crystal charm of a unicorn.
“I know it’s cheesy…corny even…and if you want to take it back, then I’d completely understand,” said Sunset.
Twilight giggled as she reached for her present and gave it to Sunset. Curious, Sunset opened the box and her jaw dropped. “When I saw it…I was worried it would be offensive, possibly corny and cheesy, but now…”
Sunset saw an identical crystal charm in her present box and not too long after, both girls went into a fit of laughter at how this came about. Neither one wasted placing the charm bracelet on the other girls’ wrist; the careful manner in which they did it would have given the impression that the two were exchanging engagement rings. Cadance and Velvet couldn’t contain their squeals of delight at seeing this exchange.
“Oh, can we please start planning for their wedding?!” Velvet asked.
“I call brides maid!” Cadance added.
Sunset and Twilight both blushed, and as if answering her prayers, Sunset’s cellphone rang allowing for the excuse to leave and take the call. When Sunset went into the kitchen she looked at the caller ID and froze for a moment before answering. “Hello, Starlight.”
[Happy Birthday, Sunset Shimmer. I heard your eighteen, officially an adult.]
“Heh, you offering to take me to a fancy hotel or something? Sorry, but that part of my life is saved for Twilight, but you come in at a close second,” Sunset teased.
[Ha, ha, guess that’s your loss. I had a fabulous night of wine, luxury, and debauchery planned for your turning legal.]
Sunset chuckled at their teasing, but her face grew a little somber as she said, “Hey, sorry for…for thinking that you were the one who caused that incident.”
[Sunset, considering the nature of our relationship, I don’t blame you or Twilight for your suspicion. That being said, I hope you don’t think I didn’t get you anything.]
Sunset blinked. “W-What?? You really didn’t have to…”
[Well, too bad, I did. Although, what I have can’t be given to you right away, it’ll take a little more time to finish up, but I promise your belated present will be worth the wait. For now, enjoy your day, and I’m happy that you’re surrounded by people who love and cherish you.]
Sunset took a moment to remember, these last seven days spent with each of her friends’ families, being treated as family, and finally, being welcomed as family by them. The amber girl peeked around the corner of the kitchen and smiled as she watched the Sparkle Family continue their merry making, with Twilight waving Sunset down to come and join them. Sunset smiled and went back into the kitchen for a moment.
“Thank you, and Merry Christmas Starlight,” said Sunset.
[Happy birthday, Sunset.]
After all her past scheming, her straying from the correct path, defying her mentor, making others miserable, and then falling low only to rise again into a better person and a better pony. This year had shown Sunset that she didn’t have to be alone anymore, that her past no longer defined her, if anything, it helped to mold her into the best version of herself. Friends, family, and a lover, what more could she ask for?
“AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!”
Sunset turned the corner and looked back into the living room, their, on one knee, was Shining Armor, and in his hands was a diamond engagement ring. The scream from earlier was apparently Cadance screaming in joy and jumping up and down like a five-year-old.
“Will you marry me?” Shining Armor asked.
“YES! YES! YES!” Cadance fiercely hugged Shining Armor and kissed him again and again. She then turned to Twilight and Sunset, who had just entered the room. “YOU TWO!” Cadance pointed at both girls, “You’re both my bride maids! And I am NOT taking no for an answer!”
Of all the things that the girls could’ve said at that moment, and of all the things Night Light and Velvet could’ve said, they all only had one thing to say. “It’s about damn time!”