//------------------------------//
// 23: Empathy Burgers 
// Story: Shining Together 
// by Bookish Delight 
//------------------------------//

After leading Starlight up a single flight of stairs, and along the short length of a hallway, Sunset opened a door.

The lights were already on, revealing a cozy, sparsely-decorated bedroom that still held the basic comforts of home: a dresser, a queen-mattress bed, a computer, television, a sofa, a nightstand, a framed picture of her friends laying atop said nightstand, and a separate framed solo picture of Twilight Sparkle. (Sunset remembered it had taken a while to get the lighting just right so there'd be no glare bouncing off of Twilight's glasses—but the results had been worth it.) A few small posters of her favorite video games dotted the room, along with a poster of her favorite pop duo on the west wall. 

As usual, Sunset was feeling more relaxed in here already. She only hoped it would help Starlight, too. 

"And here we are," Sunset said. "When you first showed up at the portal looking to be in a not-so-great mindset, this was the first place I thought of to take us if we needed it. Even so, I wasn't sure if we really would, but as time went on..." She slouched into a sheepish shrug. "Yeah."

"Sunset—" Starlight began, but Sunset cut her off with a raised hand.

"I swear to Celestia, if I'm about to hear an apology, I'm throwing you back through the portal right now." Sunset smirked. "Might even use the island one."

Starlight clamped up.

Sunset led Starlight around the room in a slow walk. "I'm doing a lot better than I used to since my defeat. Emotionally, I mean. But regardless of what the Elements of Harmony might want out of me, I still need to retreat to my own quiet sanctuaries sometimes. Only Twilight knows about this place, so she can call me if there's an emergency. But otherwise... no one bothers me out here, and there are plenty of places around where I can recharge if I don't feel like just doing so indoors."

"That's... a good idea, actually. I could use someplace like that back home," Starlight said.

"Try setting one up, yeah. Anyway, bathroom's behind us on the right, sofa's a pull-out, there's extra pajamas in the closet, and we're not far from clothes stores and a supermarket, so we can grab you some more things in the morning. Unless you wanna wear my outfits, since I'm pretty sure we're the same size thanks Equestrian magic mirror," she finished with a slanted smile. 

Starlight slanted back. "I mean, I could just go pony-style." 

Sunset laughed. "Trust me, I've wanted to sometimes. But here, that'll get you arrested."

Starlight breathed an over-dramatic sigh. "I suppose we'll burn that bridge when we come to it," she said. "But seriously, this room is incredible."

"Huh. I always thought it was pretty humble, myself," Sunset said. "But it is mine. And yours while you need it. Which makes it perfect right now. Also..." Sunset pointed to the coffee table in front of the sofa, whereupon which sat several still-warm veggie burgers, along with several bottles of spring water, and the two cocktails they had ordered earlier. "Mama Z's a health nut. Surprised she went this lax—must be because you're here. I was eating almost nothing but kale and spinach salads when I was working for her. Think this'll work for your hunger?"

Sunset caught Starlight licking the slightest amount of drool from the corner of her lips. "Oh, yeah," she said. "This'll definitely work."