//------------------------------// // (Re) beginning // Story: Where no Sunset has been before // by FieryUnicorn42 //------------------------------// "I'm sorry, Sunset, but what are you saying it's impossible. I had tea with Fluttershy just yesterday." "Your 'yesterday', happened about thirty years ago, Twilight. Why I would lie to you about it, about anything?" Twilight stays silent for some seconds thinking about the story Sunset told her. She looks to Dawn, the pony Sunset that Sunset said it's called Sunrise, and Hal, the robot, who also is the spaceship computer. "I'll be honest, Sunset, it's hard to me to believe that all that you told me happened, but I have no reason to think that you are lying to me so... yeah, I believe you, even all this being the most unbelievable thing that I ever heard." "Thanks." "But..." "But?" "What about Sunrise?" If what you told is true, she was supposed to return to her universe once the harmony device was activated." "About it, miss Sparkle" Dawn began to talk, "our theory it's that something happened to her that caused Sunrise to be erased from existence. So even if her universe has been restored, she doesn't belong there anymore, probably. That is the reason why she stays here with us." "Mm," Twilight puts her left hoof on the chin and thought for some seconds. "Starlight and I have discussed sometimes the nature of space-time and reality, you know, because of all that different worlds that we saw when she tried to stop the sonic rainboom. Are they real? Did we destroy these worlds while going back in time, or did we just jump through timelines and all these realities still exist in the multiverse, unaffected by our actions? If what you are telling me it's true, so the multiverse it's real and these worlds can be reached." "I thought that we already had established that the multiverse is real. You even told me about that time when you and the girls helped Celestia deal with the mirror world evil Celestia and Luna." "Yeah, but that was different. The mirrors have to be set with precise multiversal coordinates, and Starswirl only knows a dozen or a little more. But your ship, Sunset, seems to be able to reach any imaginable world, Twilight really did an amazing job building Harmony one, I have to congrats her." "It would be a bit difficult." "What do you mean?" asked Twilight seeing a sad smile on Sunset's face. "She died almost seven years ago." Twilight stays silent, trying to process. From her point of view, she and Twilight have talked just a couple of days ago, and now she knows that her friend is dead for seven years. After a minute or so, she talks again. "She was happy in the end? Did she suffer?" Asked Twilight looking to the table, unable to meet Sunset's eyes. When her eyes began to water, she felt Sunset hugging her "She was smiling at the end. She said: It's not a goodbye, just a see you later." "Sunset?" "Yes?" "The portal is probably working, so I'd like to go with you, to say my farewells to her." "Sounds good. The girls probably will like to see you again, too. HAL" "Harmony One it's ready for launching right now and can reach Earth in ten days." "Good. Dawn, Sunrise, Twilight, and I will go through the mirror." They go to the portal room, and meanwhile, outside the castle, the Harmony One began to fly and disappeared into the sky. Once they are in front of the mirror, Sunset kneels and touches Sunrise's shoulder "You will feel a little weird, but don't worry, Auntie Twi and I will be here." she said using her right hand to fix Sunrise's hair. "Auntie Twi?" asked Twilight raising an eyebrow. "I'll explain later" replied Sunset with a dismissive hand As expected, after they cross the portal, Sunrise took a human form, she now looks like a nine to ten years old Sunset. She tries to stand on all fours but Sunset takes her hand and makes her stand. "It will take some time to you will get used to walks on two feet. For now, hold my hand." Turning her head to look at Twilight, Sunset noticed that she still appears to be a girl in her twenties. "Well, seems that the portal didn't notice the time missing too, you and Dawn seem to have the same age." "I guess so" Said Twilight looking briefly at her body and clothes. With Dawn and Sunset holding Sunrise's hands they started to walk. "So, you still live in the same house?" "No, it's Dawn's apartment now." "And where are you living now?" "Pinkie and I bought a two-story house about thirty minutes walking from the school." "You and Pinkie? Wow, I never knew that you are that close" "Yeah, a lot of things happen in thirty years" "Speaking on her, where she is? I was expecting that she would pop out of nowhere and greet us." Sunset stopped and Twilight knew something was wrong. Before she could ask something Dawn began to talk. "Mom and my brother Igneous died three years ago in a car accident." "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Sunset puts a hand on Twilight's shoulder. "It's ok, you didn't have how to know it." Twilight sits on the sidewalk and wipes some tears from her eyes with her right hand. "It isn't fair, I've lost two friends and couldn't even say goodbye." "Twilight, it's that ya?" The group turns their heads and saw Applejack leaving her truck. The farmer pulls Twilight closer and hugs her tightly. "Ah can't believe that you're after all these years!" "It's good to be back" Twilight said hugging back and whipping her tears. Applejack looks to Sunset. "I guess you are behind this, right?" "Yeah. Why don't call the others and we meet on the Sugar Cube corner?" About half an hour later, Twilight sees Fluttershy and Rarity entering. "It's really you, darling?" "Yes. where is Rainbow?" "About that," Fluttershy began to speak, "she's on Vanhoover with the basketball team, but when I said that you're back, she said that will take the first flight possible to here, but probably she will only arrive tomorrow morning" "Care to explain how we could forget about Twilight?" asked Rarity. "And weren't you two on a mission in space, Sunset?" Fluttershy asked "Yeah, Applejack already asked me this, but I prefer to talk with all of you together." Sunrise pulls Dawn's sleeve and whispers something in her big sister's ear. "I'll take her to the restroom" said Down leaving the table with Sunrise. "Oh, ok", replied Sunset. "Why don't you begin explaining who is this little girl, who looks a lot like you." said Applejack after Dawn and Sunrise left. "Well, it's a quite long story..." Sunset tells her friends all that happened since she and Dawn go on a mission with the Harmony One, and after she finishes, the table stays silent for some seconds. "I'll be honest with ya, Sunset, that was the strangest thing that you ever told us." "I know how you feel, Applejack, I didn't believe too when Sunset first told me this." "Oh, but I do believe her, Twi." "You do?" Twilight asked surprised. "Mm." Said Fluttershy. "Yes, darling, we believe Sunset, she never lied to us." "And that was not the first unbelievable thing that ever happened with us." Said Fluttershy "Look, Twi, we know Sunset for more than thirty years, so we have no reason to think that she would lie to us now, especially about something so important." Applejack said "Yeah, I guess you are right girls. It's that is hard for me to believe that I lost three decades of your lives, heck I couldn't even say goodbye to Twilight and Pinkie." "If you want, Twi, I can drive you there." "Thanks, Applejack." "I'll go too and say hi to mom," said Dawn returning from the restroom with Sunrise "I have to tell her that we came back safe, and almost whole." "Well, what are we waiting for?" asked Rarity.