//------------------------------//
// St. Elsewhere 
// Story: Dream Requiem 
// by FieryRecovery2 
//------------------------------//

Sunset Shimmer was crying heavily. 

Flash bit the inside of his cheek as he rubbed circles into her back gently, cognizant of Nurse Redheart's concerned gaze. No doubt that she was considering of calling the counselor or even the principals to deal with this situation. It wasn't a situation that either of them was used to handling at all. Sunset was considered one of the more level-headed members of the group so to see her lose control like this was disconcerting and uncomfortable new territory to handle. But he focused helping her during her time of distress to make up for the time where he didn't do it before. 

Simply put, she was a hot mess. Her face was blotched and stained with dry tear tracks while her eyes were red, bloodshot, tear-filled, and puffy. Her hair was disheveled and sticking to her face in clumps. Her breathing was heavy, hot, and gasping akin to a fish. Her jacket was slipping off and Flash caught a faint, sickly, yellow glow shining underneath the bandages. At a closer inspection, it looked like it was pus. But he knew that pus couldn't glow like that. Was it Windigo wound pus? Did pus like that even exist? Well, if it was from Equestria, maybe. He'd have to ask Twilight about that. Suddenly, Sunset grew quiet and she was looking straight at the wall. 

"Hey," Flash asked tentatively. "How are you feeling?" 

"I...I feel odd," Sunset replied in a far-off voice. "Real odd. I also feel sick to my stomach and my head's pounding like mad." 

"Yikes," Flash grimaced. "Sounds like that wound on your shoulder is causing more problems again. Are you sure that there isn't anything that we can do? There's gotta be some medicine or something that can help with your symptoms."

There was no reply. Flash raised an eyebrow as Sunset stared down at her hands. Her eyes were cloudy, dazed. They darted from one hand to the other as if she was seeing them for the first time. He briefly wondered if she had the same reaction to them when she came to Canterlot High for the first time. She took in a couple of deep breaths before turning to Flash, still a little dazed but smiling at him. But it looked off-putting, strange, and he shrank back a little.  

"Flash," She asked sweetly. "Why are you flinching away from me?" She leaned forward. "Are you scared of me?" 

"Scared," Flash leaned forward to meet her eyes. "No. Of course not. It's just that you're acting strangely right now. You look like you're out of it. And the wound on your shoulder is glowing, too. Something's wrong here. I want to help you in any way that I can." 

"You don't have to, you know." 

That statement was blunt and yet delivered without malice that Flash blinked from the whiplash of it all. He was slack-jawed and stared as Sunset continued to smile at him sweetly. He gulped as the air around him turned thick with tension. Now, he knew that the wound was affecting her mind somehow. What would Twilight do in a situation like this, he wondered. Flash's fists clenched as he steeled his courage. 

"Yes, I do. What makes you say that, Sunset?" 

"I know what the others think of me, Flash," Sunset continued gently. "I'm not blind, you know. I know that the pain that I've inflicted on this world is not light. I know that many others, including you, have grudges against me and want to inflict cruel, tortuous revenge on me for what I've done. The Rainbooms turn a blind eye on me because they are part of the people that I've hurt. The crimes that I am guilty of in this world are great in number. Perhaps that why Pinkie looked through my phone just earlier today." 

"...I'm sorry, she did what now?" 

"But that's what happens when you're the former queen bee of Canterlot High School. In one single action, your actions and your words and everything else become meaningless to everyone else because they just. can't. let. go. It's their right, isn't it? After all, they have a right to extract vengeance on those who hurt others, right? But now, I have a solution that will make all of Canterlot High happy. I will make you, Twilight, the Rainbooms, and everyone else at Canterlot High School!" 

"And what would that be?" 

"I will erase myself from this world." 





In the band room, there was nothing but silence. Pinkie was sitting on a metal chair with hair straightened and sulking while Twilight paced back and forth, trying to handle both the information given to her and her own emotions. Anon-a-Miss. They took advantage on everyone's hatred on Sunset as well as their willingness to dish out dirty secrets on people that they had hatred for. It was the perfect catalyst to induce hatred and suffering for a long time. And the fact that it worked on CHS was, to say the least, very disappointing. 

"Okay, Pinkie, let's recap so that I get my facts straight," Twilight stopped and turned to face Pinkie, eyes devoid of emotion. "The photos that were first up on the Anon-a-Miss profile were from Sunset's phone during the sleepover. Not to mention a posting of Applejack's nickname. Then, when the profile was made known to everyone, then came the influx of secrets from many online profiles that are flooding the profile even as we speak right now. And, so far, the only person that is a suspect... is Sunset Shimmer. Did I get everything or did I miss anything?" 

"No," Pinkie sighed heavily. "You got everything." 

"Alright," Twilight paused to take a deep breath. "Okay." 

"Twilight, she's gone back to mean Sunset Shimmer again," Pinkie Pie retorted. "She's the one who posted those pictures on Mystable! She's the one who posted Applejack's nickname and Rarity's photos and Rainbow Dash's papers and the secrets!" She gritted her teeth. "Everyone's at each other's throats again and it's all because of her! Everyone knows that she's guilty!" 

"I see," Twilight mused. "Pinkie, if that's the case, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure." 

"After accusing Sunset Shimmer of being Anon-a-Miss, has the situation improved in any way, shape, or form?" 

"What do you mean?" 

"Well, let's look at the facts here. If Sunset Shimmer was guilty as everyone says, then surely she wouldn't be blatant to oust herself as the main culprit, first and foremost. She would put the blame on someone else like Fluttershy, Rarity, or even me! Even still, it wouldn't work anyway because everyone's caught on to her tricks by now and would at least give a second once over on this situation if she were behind this! Why would she risk everything that she worked hard for all for something real petty like this?" 

"But let's push that aside for now. Ever since you girls accused Sunset of being Anon-a-Miss, has any improvement be made to the situation whatsoever? Has the tension decreased in Canterlot High whatsoever? Have relationships been maintained, have rivals made peace with each other, and has the magic of friendship withstood even this setback? Or is it the opposite?" 

Pinkie swallowed the lump in her throat as she turned to look away. No, the situation did not improve whatsoever. Not even when everyone ousted Sunset did the situation improve at all. But that would be easily excused as Sunset not owning up for her crimes, right? Pinkie bit her lip. Now, she wasn't sure. Twilight, for her part, wanted to go easy on her. She and the other Rainbooms were still new to the world. But they were also at the age to know that actions had consequences. Better to stop this behavior before their behavior gets them into worse trouble. 

"Now, as for your actions against Sunset, you girls were mad at Sunset for circumstantial evidence. You didn't bother to take her side of the story at all, first off. Secondly, you aired out that dirty laundry in front of a large crowd of students instead of doing so privately, and after leaving her to fend for herself, you continued to isolate her and attack her with such aggressive comments. What's more is that, due to Sunset's accounts, you tried to look into her search history without her noticing. Tell me, Pinkie, how are your actions no different from Sunset's actions before the Fall Formal?" 

"We didn't blackmail anyone! We didn't lie to the principals or teachers about anything!" 

"That's true, but you isolated her and attacked her passive-aggressively. You'd inadvertently instigated everyone against her and left her without anything to defend herself with. You're an Element of Harmony, Pinkie, the Element of Laughter. You're supposed to be teaching her the magic of friendship. That magic also means giving her the benefit of the doubt like friends, best friends, would. Or do you want to repeat the same mistakes that you girls made the first time?" 

Pinkie whimpered and sunk down in the chair, hurt at the accusation. Why couldn't Twilight see that she wasn't the bad guy here? Her friends were being attacked by Anon-a-Miss and Twilight was here, getting angry at her. Was this how Sunset felt, a crushing sense of helplessness? No, Sunset was stronger than that, right? She was the former queen bee of CHS. She was, for most people, a juggernaut of strength, resolve, and pride. 

"I thought that you girls would learn from both the Fall Formal and the Battle of the Bands. Instead, you're making the same mistake again and again. If, by some chance, there's another crisis like this, will you still be blaming Sunset even after all this time?" She sighed and rubbed her temples, a tell-tale sign of a headache forming. "Listen, Pinkie, we don't have much time." She rubbed her temples. "We need to clear Sunset's name as soon as possible. It's clear that whoever's behind Anon-a-Miss is reveling in their victory." She then narrowed her eyes. "And we will find them, with or without the others' help." 





"You want to what?" 

"It's not what I want, Flash. It's what this world needs. And what they need is for me to be erased." 

Flash stared, open-mouthed, in horror. He turned to Nurse Redheart, who covered her mouth and stared in equal horror. A soft sound of the minute hand ticking was the only one in the room. Erase herself from this world? She wasn't being serious about that, was she? No, this had to be the effect of the wound. He bit his lip as he saw Nurse Redheart slink out of vision. A deep breath and he turned to the girl, who was still smiling at him as if she were in a daze. 

"Sunset, you shouldn't-" 

"Why not," She asked calmly. "It's what everyone wants. I know that. You, the Rainbooms, everyone in CHS. Even Twilight is thinking that deep down in her heart. And why not? Wouldn't it be better for everyone if I did disappear? They wouldn't get hurt anymore. They'll be free, they'll be free, they'll be..." 

"No, they won't," Flash vehemently retorted. "They won't be free or happy! You want to know why, Sunset? Because they will have to live with the fact that they've erased a person from this world, as you put it. Erasing a person from this world carries a heavy sentence both with the law and on a person's conscience! And if you did that, then they'd feel guilty forever!" Flash's tongue tasted acidic and burden weighed on his gut. "Sunset, please, you have to snap out of this! It's the wound, right?" His eyes darted to her face, which dripped heavy beads of sweat. "The wound must be affecting you somehow!" 

"And if it's not?" 

"If it's not, then..." 

Flash bit his lip at that possibility. It wasn't one that he wanted to consider, but he supposed that if that was a possibility she wanted him to consider, then he would consider it. It's true that the wound was glowing so much, but Sunset was also a girl, a girl with emotions and thoughts and the potential to break under pressure like any other ordinary person. But Flash was a teenager. A teenager who did not have the expert psychological advice to aid Sunset. But he did have friendship advice that, give or take, could be useful. He took a deep breath. 

"If it's not, then the things that I said before still hold true. Sunset, your life matters here. I...I...I'm real sorry that you've been feeling this way. I know that saying sorry won't undo the bullying, the taunts, the utter apathy shown by me and the others." He gulped and clasped her hands together with his in determination. "I promise you, Sunset. I promise we will catch the real culprits behind Anon-a-Miss and we will get you the amount of help that you need. I know that it sounds like an empty thing right now but I promise that I will help you! I promise, I promise, I promise!" 

Sunset stared at him through shiny, glassy eyes. It was as if she was seeing him for the first time. Flash's eyes darted back to the wound, whose glow was decreasing dramatically. Flash's face lit up with joy as the wound finally stopped glowing. But at the very next second, his face turned into horror as her eyes rolled up in the back of her head and she collapsed on the bed. For a moment, Flash couldn't move a muscle. It was as if someone froze him with some sort of spell. Then, he checked her if she was breathing and if her pulse was alright. Her breathing was there and so was her pulse, but it moved rapidly. 

"Sunset," He mumbled. "Sunset, please wake up! Please! Please! Please wake up!" 

There was no reply, which made him frantic. What happened? What was going on? Why couldn't he fix this? Why?! He buried his face in his hands. What could he possibly do in this situation? A soft hand squeezed his shoulder gently and he turned to see Twilight giving him a soft grimace with Pinkie trailing behind. He looked at Twilight and then at Sunset with no words. At the soft footsteps of the nurse approaching them, he finally found his voice. 

"What's going on, Twilight? Just a minute ago, Sunset...she...she..." 

"Easy, Flash, easy," Twilight gave him a gentle one-armed hug. "First, let's have Nurse Redheart take over from here. We'll go to the band room. Then, you can tell us what happened from there. Come on. Let's go." 





"Oh...Oh my Celestia." 

This time, it was Twilight's turn to sink down in the chair. The air was thick and heavy with tension within the band room. No single soul uttered a sound. Twilight buried her face in her hands, Pinkie's mouth was covered by one hand, and Flash ran a hand through his hair. It was quite the bombshell and nobody knew how to break the silence. Finally, Flash turned to Pinkie, a sad expression on his face. He couldn't hold malice for Pinkie no matter how hard he tried. Sunset didn't need anymore of the malice and vitriol that haunted her life recently. 

"Pinkie, we have to know," Flash started. "You looked through Sunset's phone, right? What did you find?" 

"I...I found," Pinkie stammered before taking a deep breath. "I found searches for m-mental health illnesses. Various ones. It was a search history for depression, mood disorders, schizophrenia. I...I...I thought she was faking it...B...But I didn't think...I, I, I..." She trailed off, her face wet with tears. "I...I just thought that..." 

"Easy now," Twilight regained her composure. "We have to be calm for Sunset. Let's focus on the wound on her shoulder. It was glowing a sickly yellow color, right, Flash?" At Flash's nod, she continued. "I looked up in the books that talked about the Windigos at length." Her eyes were burning with determination. "This isn't any ordinary Windigo attack." 

"What do we do?" Flash asked uneasily. 

"We must ask Sunset of what happened that night," Twilight replied. "And I know it won't be easy to ask her that right away. But we have to ask her whenever she's ready to talk." She sighed as she rubbed her temples once more. 

"Alright."

Both Pinkie and Flash nodded, but that didn't dispell much of the tension in the air. Of course, there was not much that they could do about the situation for now. Indeed, all they could do was wait for Sunset to wake up. Flash opted to go first as his stomach was twisted and tied into knots in this room. He bit his lip as he made his way back into the nurse's office again. At the scent of diluted disinfectant, it just made his nausea accentuate even more. 

"Flash?" 

Flash held his breath as he slowly made his way towards Sunset's bed. Sunset definitely looked better. Her face wasn't pale, her eyes were clear, and she looked at Flash with a questioning stare. It was as if the last couple of hours could be erased in a second. But Flash couldn't forget so easily. No, he could never forget. He just smiled at Sunset as he sat down next to her, his heart hammering in his chest. 

"I'm glad you're feeling better, Sunset," Flash smiled. "You scared me earlier." 

"Sorry about that," Sunset gave a weak smile back. "I know that puking in the hallway would make anybody scared. As well as going off on a whole tirade."  

"No," Flash retorted mildly, frowning. "I'm talking about how you were talking about disappearing earlier and how you were tired of it all. Don't you remember?" 

"...I don't think that was me..." 

"What?" 

"I don't think that was me. I think that was someone else, Flash."