“Sweet Celestia! I’ve never seen trees this tall in my life!”
Sunset couldn’t help but chuckle to herself as she took in the childlike wonder the Pillar had in her eyes. It was strange enough seeing a legend come to life, much less for her to act like an actual, normal pony.
Then again, she herself was just a normal unicorn. And in this world, an equally normal girl. If she didn’t pay attention to the glowing geodes she and the others had.
She smiled as she saw Meadowbrook scurry from one plant to another, taking a close look at the leaves, petals, and stems of each and every one with the intensity she’d expect from a healer. Wallflower kept close to her as she quietly explained to her what each plant was, not a single guide book in sight.
Looks like Meadowbrook wasn’t the only one who warmed up to something, she mused to herself.
She only wished she had that kind of bond with Meadowbrook.
She had seen how close Wallflower had grown to the healer. While she took pride in the fact that they were able to warm up to each other, it only made it that much more apparent how alone Sunset was.
Sunset was usually the one the girls turned to when something happened. She was usually the first one to come to someone else’s aid, to come up with the answers, to come up with the plans.
Just like Meadowbrook.
In a way, they shared that commonality she’d find out, as they both traded stories about their adventures.
But for all intents and purposes, they were both complete strangers to each other. Meadowbrook was a legend in her own right, a Pillar of Harmony, a paragon of kindness. Combined with her age, she deserved the same respect as the Princesses themselves. She was just a simple unicorn.
Simply put, Meadowbrook was someone she talked up to, not someone she could talk to.
It wasn’t the same for Wallflower. Sunset had done so much for her, and she knew Wallflower was willing to help her in a heartbeat. With the bond they created, Sunset felt she could talk to her about anything.
But she couldn’t begin to understand the responsibilities she had as an Element of Harmony, the pressure it caused.
The decisions she needed to make, the sheer guilt it all caused.
Watching Meadowbrook and Wallflower’s joy only made it much more apparent how cold and desolate her spot was.
“Good to see Wallflower wamin’ up to another person,” Applejack said as she walked up from behind her. “It’s great seein’ her make new friends with other people besides us, ‘specially someone who shares the same interests as her.”
“Speak for yourself, darling!” Rarity exclaimed. “I can’t believe I’ve forgotten how… rugged all this is!”
Sunset rolled her eyes. All of her friends pitched in the moment they heard about Sunset’s plans. Applejack provided the camping equipment, Rainbow Dash helped pick out hiking boots with Rarity, who also provided them with clothes, Fluttershy provided them with some guidebooks on the fauna, Twilight provided her orienteering skills from the scouts, and Pinkie Pie provided the snacks. All of them were excited at another chance to hang out with the newly arrived Equestrian as well as take a break from studying for finals.
Sunset, you are a young woman with such potential. I would hate to see any of it wasted. Images of a disappointed Celestia flashed through her mind.
Sunset quickly shook her head and shoved the memory back into the abyss. They were out camping, this was a time to relax, to bond.
Despite all of that, there was a tiny whisper, counting down the days.
“Sunset?” A voice derailed her train of thought. “Are you okay?”
Sunset followed the voice back to Twilight, map and compass in her hand, and eyebrows knitted in concern. Sunset nodded quickly. “Yeah, I’m fine, just thinking about some things.” She looked further behind Twilight, the rest of the group was catching up, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were paired up, as the former tried to pull the latter away from the draw of the many animals around the park, and Pinkie was… well she was being Pinkie, she brought up the rear with a spring in her step and invited herself into Rainbow and Fluttershy’s group.
She looked back at Twilight. “How good are we doing on time?”
Twilight looked back down on the map, tracing the steps they took and comparing it to the time listed on her watch as she traced the path further to the site. “We’re making good time so far. With any luck we should be there by noon.”
Sunset nodded. “That’s good, then we could use the rest of the time to set up, then relax.”
Twilight grinned. “Sounds like a plan.” Twilight looked back at the rest of the group. “Although, we might want to take a bit of a water break first. It’s been an hour or so since we started, and we don’t want to tire ourselves out.”
Sunset hummed, then she turned to the rest of the girls. “Alright! We’re almost there! We’ll just take a little breather here, then keep moving!” The rest of the girls nodded in understanding, as they broke off into their own groups to talk to each other.
As Sunset took a seat and unscrewed the cap from her bottle of water, she looked over to find Meadowbrook and Wallflower, sitting next to each other as they pointed out the various plants next to them with every sip they took.
She was happy for Wallflower, she really was. But there wasn’t any denying she felt some sort of twinge seeing them close together. Some pull to join in.
But for now, she had a group to take care of, and so she looked back to the rest of the girls as she checked her phone.
Sunset sighed in content as the last of the three tents were set up. They’d all agreed on sleeping arrangements before they got to the campsite, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow were going to sleep in one tent; Applejack, Rarity, and Twilight were sleeping in the other tent.
That left Wallflower, Meadowbrook, and Sunset with their own tent.
With everything settled and stowed away, the girls had some time left to themselves to take in the great outdoors. Rarity was enjoying a romance novel as she laid out on an ornate red fainting couch; Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie, and Fluttershy decided to go on a little hike to a nearby waterfall.
As for Wallflower and Meadowbrook, Sunset watched as they walked off on their own hike to do some plant spotting. She smiled as Wallflower pointed out plants to Meadowbrook, each of them taking their time along the beaten path.
“I’m surprised you didn’t go along with them.” Twilight said as she sat next to Sunset, trail mix in hand as she offered it to her.
Sunset reached out and took a handful from the bag. “I’m just feeling a little tired from hiking and setting the camp up.”
Twilight nodded. “I get it. Hikes were pretty tiring for me as well when I did them.” She stretched out against the tree and let out a yawn. “It was nice of you to plan out this little camping trip for us, goddess knows we needed it.”
Sunset hummed in agreement as she took another handful of trail mix.
“So...” Twilight began. “Have you decided on what to do when all of this is over?”
Sunset chuckled and sighed. “Go home, take a shower, hang out with Wallflower and Meadowbrook, then call it a night.” Despite the goodhearted answer, Sunset could still feel Twilight’s look pierce through her being. Twilight, both Twilights, could see right through her.
“Sunset, you know that’s not what I meant,” Twilight said, frowning in concern.
“I thought the reason we were doing this was to avoid our troubles for a little bit.”
Twilight nodded. “I know, it’s just… Well, you’ve seemed a little out of it for the past few weeks. A few of the girls are starting to worry.” Twilight held out the bag of trail mix again. “Penny for your thoughts?”
Sunset paused, thinking for a few moments before she reached for another handful, she froze, lowering her hand moments later. “I’m sorry Twilight, but it’s not that simple.” She looked back down to her hiking boots. “There’s just so much going on right now, I’d just like some time to myself to think about it more. That’s all.”
Twilight frowned, but nodded. “Alright.” She took another handful of trail mix and popped it in her mouth. The silence between them providing a lull before she looked back to Sunset. “Just promise me that you’ll talk to someone once you’re ready.”
Sunset faced her again, and held out a pinkie. “Promise.”
Twilight smirked, hooking her pinkie onto Sunset’s. “Pinkie Promise?”
“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Sunset mimed slapping a cupcake to her eye.
It was midnight as Sunset frightfully gasped, sitting up from her bed. The first thing she noticed were hooves. Light amber hooves.
Her hooves. Her eyes widened, as she quickly took stock of the situation. She quickly looked around the room, and right away the differences were noticeable.
There were shelves of books surrounding her, in front of her was a writing desk with beakers of different liquids. To her left was a large window with a giant hourglass in the middle.
A loud banging startled her, coming from the door, growing louder and louder until she heard the door shatter into tiny splinters. She quickly ran down the stairs, only to come face-to-face with a group of silhouettes, two alicorns in the front: the one on the left was taller than her companion to the right. Behind them were more shadows, most human, all of them glowing with eyes of white.
Right then and there her mind was telling her to run, but try as she might, her limbs refused to move an inch, and a myriad of inky black tendrils exploded from the taller mare and grabbed her by the hooves.
Sunset Shimmer!!! The mare’s voice boomed. You must pay for the crimes for which you commited!
“I-I’ve turned a good leaf!” Sunset yelled back. “I saw the-ack!” Sunset felt the tendrils wrap around her neck and tighten.
Did you really think your deeds would protect you from my wrath? You of all ponies should know such deeds cannot be so easily forgiven! The shadows inched closer and closer to Sunset, boxing her in against a wall, even then they continued to lunge closer, and closer, until the taller mare pounced.
Sunset’s screams pierced the air as the darkness consumed her.
Sunset jolted from her sleeping bag with a loud scream. She panted as her heart raced a mile a minute and she felt the clammy chill of sweat as she unzipped her bag. She quickly looked down, a familiar pair of amber hands took the place of hooves.
Quickly, she pinched herself, only to receive pain in response.
She sighed in relief as she took some deep breaths, taking a look around her.
Instead of being surrounded by bookshelves, Sunset was surrounded by the more intimate nylon confines of a tent. A look to her immediate right was Wallflower, nestled between herself, and Meadowbrook. None of them seemed to have been awakened by her screams.
She sighed, drew her phone out to check the time. 5:00 AM brightly shone on the screen. So much for sleep, I guess.
Carefully, and quietly, Sunset climbed out of her sleeping bag, then crawled her way to the entrance, careful not to wake either of her bedmates up. She picked up her hiking boots, quietly unzipped the tent flap, then crawled out.
The walk to the cliffside was a short one. The flashlight from her phone lit her way as she walked up the pathway that led up to it. By the time she reached the summit, daylight was already starting to seep in, though the star of the show was yet to arrive.
Sunset looked around and found clearing with a comfortable tree to sit against. She made a beeline to the tree and sat down, enjoying the view the spot provided of the forest below, left to her own thoughts.
Some rustling in the bushes proved otherwise.
Sunset tensed, and she looked in the direction of the rustling, a chill ran up her spine as she gripped her geode, hoping it could provide some modicum of protection against wherever was coming her way.
What she was met with were cyan eyes, surrounded by a face with a darker shade of blue.
Sunset relaxed and sighed in relief, “Meadowbrook! Oh thank goddess it’s you! I thought you were a bear or something.” Her eyes widened in realization. “Wait, how did you know where to find me? I thought everyone was asleep.”
“Most of ‘em were, you woke me up,” the healer said simply.
Sunset felt herself tense again. “Did I say something in my sleep?”
Meadowbrook raised her hands. “Only heard your screamin’. That’s all.” She nodded over to where Sunset was sitting. “Mind if I sat next to ya?”
Sunset shook her head, relaxing slightly as Meadowbrook gently made her way over and slid down the trunk to sit next to her. They both sat in relative silence for a while, watching the birds wake up on the horizon.
“So… how’s the human world treating you so far?” Sunset asked, breaking the ice.
There was some more silence, Sunset understood. She had a hard time processing everything when she first came here as well.
“It’s… different,” Meadowbrook started. “In some ways, it looks like Equestria, but the differences are so… jarring.”
“You can say that again.”
Meadowbrook paused for a moment. “I think that’s why it was so easy to adjust to life here.”
Sunset looked at Meadowbrook in surprise. “Hmm?”
Meadowbrook stared back at Sunset in stunned silence before her gaze returned to her bare feet as she dug her toe into the dirt. “You’ve gotta understand, Sunset, I was gone for over a thousand years. A lot of the things I knew and loved are long gone.” She looked back up at the treeline. “Goin’ home, goin’ to some of the places I used to know, they all changed a lot, but the memories are still there. Sometimes it seems like they come to life if you think back hard enough.”
“I get it. Princess Twilight told me about the times she spent with Luna trying to get her accustomed to modern Equestria.”
Meadowbrook nodded. “Still, Luna’s the diarch of Equestria, she’s lived as long as Celestia. She’s had much more experience seeing the way things changed in Equestria for thousands of years.” She looked back to Sunset. “She still has family she knows intimately, I don’t.”
“At least you don’t have to worry about protecting Equestria anymore, right?” Sunset replied. “With Twilight and the Elements protecting harmony in Equestria, you have more time to yourself.” Sunset pointed out, sighing shortly after. “And you don’t have to deal with the weight of an entire world on your shoulders.”
Another pregnant pause. “It was nice, at first… but it hurts little by little, as it works its way on in.”
Meadowbrook clasped her hand with Sunset’s. “I had my work as a healer to keep me busy, but eventually you start to realize that even if you stop completely what you’re doing, the world keeps goin’ on without you.”
Meadowbrook squeezed Sunset’s hand. “You start to feel alone, useless. Even if you work twice as hard to help as many ponies as possible, at the end of the day you know that somepony out there would eventually replace you. And the world would just keep on movin’.” She sighed, “You eventually feel like you just don’t belong.”
“How?” Sunset asked. “How would you know that you belonged?”
“When you know you’re not replaceable.” Meadowbrook answered promptly. “When you know that everyone around you loves you and values you. When you know no one else can leave the impact you leave behind.”
Sunset stared out over the cliff as the sun began to peak out above the horizon. Minute by minute, a sense of clarity began to grow in her heart, tranquility. As memories flashed by, memories with the school, memories with the girls.
Memories with Wallflower.
At that moment it dawned on her. Sunset finally understood. At that moment, Sunset knew what she had to do.
She just had one more question to ask.
“Meadowbrook?”
“Yes dear?”
Sunset flushed. “Do… Do you think ponies can change? Could they even recognize change?”
A few minutes went by, before Meadowbrook had her answer. “Everypony changes at some point in their lives, Sunset. If the ponies around you really do value you, and I know they do, I believe they can recognize that.”
Sunset’s shoulders relaxed, and she felt herself lean into Meadowbrook as they both watched a new day start. “Thank you…” Sunset said. “For everything.”
Meadowbrook’s thumb stroked the back of her hand. “Thank you Sunset, for helpin’ me find the answers.”
From the edge of camp, Sunset looked over the site, watching as the rest of the girls enjoyed their breakfast. She, Wallflower, and Meadowbrook had already finished before then. Looking back at the two, the pull she felt towards them felt stronger than ever, more tempting, now that she felt clarity.
Sunset watched as they leaned in and planned their route for one more hike before they went home.
She checked her phone again. Just three more hours before they were supposed to pack up.
Satisfied, she slipped her phone back in her pocket as she made her way to the pair. ‘Hey guys! Mind if I come along?”