Princes Twilight arrived at the Apple farm just in time for lunch, and found herself invited whether she wanted to or not. Not that she didn’t want to, it’s just that the questions she needed to ask were bound to dredge up some old memories best left where they were.
“Granny, I actually came here on an important matter,” Twilight explained as AJ was heaping food onto Twilight’s plate. “Afraid this was never a social visit. I need to know what you know about a Pippin Apple and Dusk Shimmer.”
Granny looked at Twilight in much the same way a startled deer looks at an oncoming truck, and it was Big Mac who spoke up first.
“Um, Twilight, what did you need to know about Aunt Pippin?”
“Aunt? I have an Aunt Pippin?” Applejack interjected.
“Had,” Granny offered. “Ran off with a big unicorn who fancied himself an earth pony. You were too little to remember her being you were just a baby at the time.”
For Twilight this news had created more questions than answers. Sunset was younger than she was, but Applejack was older by quite a bit which suggested that Sunset should also be older. After all, Applejack had been running the farm for several years prior to Twilight coming to Ponyville. Rarity was the next oldest, just don't tell her that. Both fillies were all but done with school when they'd been blessed with little sisters. And in AJ's case, that also meant losing her parents, getting shipped off to Manehatten, getting her cutie mark late in life, and returning home to work the farm.
“I think Dusty was half earth pony,” Big Mac offered. “I kin remember how big he was. Bigger than any normal unicorn, bigger than a good deal of earth ponies.”
“Dusty was a big light golden roan with the most startling blue eyes I’d ever seen. Whenever he looked at me it was like he was looking right through ta my soul,” Granny offered softly. And I could see the effect he had on my little Pippin.”
“Aunt Pippin was so fun ta be around,” Big Mac offered softly. Big Mac, who was normally so quiet and reserved certainly had plenty to say now. How much of his outward demeanor was due to the scars on his soul Twilight could not be sure. “So bright, so full of life.”
“He’s a magic pony, Pippin would say,” Granny said quietly. “I forbid him to come back. I forbid her to see him again. I told her flat out that she was going to marry a proper Earth pony, en that she wasn’t going to get any say in the matter. It was already decided.”
“Granny?!” Applejack protested. She knew Granny could be stubborn but this admission had shocked her. "How could you?"
“My damn stubborn pride. My damn Earth pony ways. Tradition. That's how. I wanted everything my way. That's how it was for me with my father. Tradition. Everything had to be his way and no arguing. Not like I had much of a choice. I’d had a marriage broker, just like how it was arranged for me, set up a match and never once considered what Pippin might actually want,” Granny went on. “She was in love en I too darn stubborn to see it. Naturally, I tried to get her back but the law said she was legally an adult. The only way I could get her back was to accept her choices.”
“Am I to assume you didn’t?” Twilight asked.
“If I’d have known what sort of work he did I’d have been even more again’ it!” Granny shot back.
“Work? What was he doing?” Twilight asked.
“I hired a private detective to track down my Pippin and bring her back,” Granny explained. “About two weeks later he returned my money. Told me Dusty was tied up with an organization known as the White Tower and gave me back the retainer I’d paid him.”
“The White Tower?” Twilight asked. Sure, she’d heard of the organization. They were rumored to be a branch of the Surcingle Home Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division that had been set up to look like a private enterprise. Not even Celestia would know who the field agents were. This way if anything went wrong she would be able to honestly say she knew nothing about them.
“I tried again and asked the West Wind Agency to track down my Pippin, but no news except rumors that Dusty had passed into the north,” Granny offered softly as Big Mac got up and went over to her. “I put out more inquiries, offered money, heard rumors from the south, but no word of them there. Each inquiry eating up more time. More years went by. Around the time Apple Bloom was born, Pippin was found in the Avalon river. She was resting in a boat that had been swamped. Resting, but never waking. A Stallion named Coaltsun came to me and asked me if I was happy? Happy?! How could I be happy? And then he told me that my inquiries had been Pippin’s undoing. In my desire to get my daughter back I’d unwittingly put a price on her head. She’d been running from those very ponies, all trying to collect on the bounty I’d been offering to bring her back.
“And Dusty just sort of vanished a few months later so I hear. Rumors said his horn had been found split in two.” Tears began to well up in Granny’s eyes. “Pippin was living in Canterlot. She’d fled and attempted to cross the river above Canterlot Falls. It was a small maintenance boat on a line. Somehow the line that kept the boat from going downstream was cut. The ponies who’d gone after her claimed that she did it herself. Without the line that kept it from going with the current, her boat was swept away. Over the falls, she went over the falls, forced under, and only after she’d been under far too long did it let her go. If I had just left well enough alone. If I’d just let her have her stallion she’d still be alive.”
“Why did I never know about any of this?” Applejack asked as Big Mack put a foreleg around Granny to give her a hug.
“You were too young to know her.” Granny offered as she quietly wept. "En the only reason I went along with letting yer folks marry is that she was at least an Earth pony. That and so Grand Pear could eat crow. And yes, I am ashamed of myself. Ashamed of the way I behaved. My poor Pip, if only I'd just let her have her stallion."
“Twilight?” Applejack asked as she looked at her friend. Applejack’s face was ashen.
“Sunset,” Twilight offered.
“Sunset?” Applejack pressed, not understanding.
“Sunset Shimmer. This has to do with Sunset Shimmer and I probably shouldn't say any more until I know more.”
Applejack’s eyes grew wide as realization struck.
“I need to go,” Twilight stated. “I am so sorry, I need to go. I need to talk to Princess Celestia right away.”
“Twilight, what’s going on?” Applejack asked.
“I’ll explain later,” Twilight offered as she got up from the table and hurried out the door.
“Sunset Shimmer?” Granny asked quietly. She remembered the name of the filly Princess Celestia had taken in. At the time she had only been mildly interested because the filly’s name had reminded her of Dusk. Granny remembered that a Sunset Shimmer had been taken in by Princess Celestia around the same time that Pippin had died, and adopted by a Platinum family. Granny had had no reason to remark on the news and figured the filly some relation of Dusty’s family her grief clouding her thinking it had never registered that Dusty's family was Pippin. Nor did Granny know just how high up the Platinum family was knowing nothing of Unicorn history. But now, now she could not help but wonder. Why would Twilight be asking about Dusk and Pippin? Why now after all these years? And then it hit her, Sunset was her grand filly.
Back in the human world Sunset and Dusty have moved on to the local mall with Philomena moving to Sunset’s shoulders shortly after entering the store. First stop, the suitcase store, followed by hitting one shop after another. The trio gathered a fair amount of attention. Granted that even though it was a school day, there were only a couple of weeks to the big winter holiday observances and there was a fair number of people about.
“Are you sure about this?” Sunset asked.
“Just think of it as me making up for lost time. Besides, everyone should have new clothing at least once in their life.”
“Some of this is kind of expensive though,” Sunset protested.
“So don’t pick out the super expensive stuff,” Dusty offered with a smile. “And keep in mind this is just an emergency shopping trip. Maybe pick out a couple of nice things, but I’d say stick to the basics until we can get settled.”
“Hello, can I help you?” asked a light canary yellow woman with pale violet hair and a name tag that said, Lily.
“Replacement shopping, I’m afraid,” Dusty offered.
“You, um, didn’t lose your home, did you? Fire? Eviction? No not eviction. Not with a phoenix on your shoulder.”
“Vandals trashed my apartment,” Sunset offered. “Landlady would love to have me back but it could be weeks before the place is livable again. You know about…” Sunset cast a glance at Philomena.
“Oh, yes, there is a lady from the Akkadian Archipelago who stops in from time to time. Sometimes her bird will just sort of pop in. Darnedest thing. I’m to understand that most of the inhabitants live on the main island of Eques. By any chance might you be an Equestrian?”
“What?” Sunset asked. Never in her life did she think anyone in this world would ask if she was an Equestrian.
“The people of Akkadia who live on the isle of Eques call themselves Equestrians. Although, most people who aren’t in the know refer to the islanders as Akkadians.”
“I kind of lived there when I was really little,” Sunset offered.
“So were you visiting Canterlot?”
“I kind of live here,”
“I’m the one visiting. I was originally just here for the holidays, but I’ve been given an assignment in the area and will be needing a place of my own,” Dusty offered. “Names Shimmer, Dusk Shimmer.”
“As in the singer?” Somehow Lily was more dazzled by Dusty than she was Philomina.
“Eee, yup, that’d be me. This here is my daughter, Sunset.”
“Wow, hang on, assignment?”
“I ain’t famous enough to live off royalties and endless tours have kept me away from my daughter far too long. Time I took a break,” Dusty explained. “Oh, I’ll keep writing songs. Better money than just singing them anyway. And who knows, maybe I’ll do some performances while I’m here in town.”
“Oh, I’d love to get a heads up if you do.”
“Can’t really make any promises, but I’ll keep you in mind.”
“Hey, um, any chance…” Sunset began as she offered up a blouse. She wanted to know if there was something like it in her size.
“Oh, you don’t want that, it doesn’t suit you at all,” Lily offered.
“I just figured it’s something Rarity would pick out.”
“Say no more, and you aren’t Rarity. Yes, I know who you are talking about. You are not Rarity. You need to do you.”
A moment later Sunset found herself being directed to various racks as Lilly picked out things, and to Sunset’s surprise and delight, any time she seemed hesitant about something it’d be put back and something else would get picked out. It was a surprise, even welcomed change from Rarity’s pushy fashion advice.
“Here, try these on, and anytime you don’t feel comfortable with something we will try something else,” Lily offered as Sunset was directed to a fitting room.
“One thing though, Rarity always says that I’ll look darling in something she picks out?” Sunset asked as she got Philomina onto her hand so she could offer her over to Dusty.
“Not if you aren’t comfortable with what you are wearing,” Lily explained as Philomina hopped over to Dusty followed by climbing up his arm to his shoulder. “When a person isn’t happy with what they are wearing it will always show in their body language and I want you to be happy with your purchases.”
“That actually makes a lot of sense,” Sunset remarked as she went into the fitting room.
“Oh, en I just remembered, you are going to need Crystal Prep Uniforms,” Dusty called.
“Oh, we carry their uniforms too,” Lily offered, and a short time later sunset was leaving with a pair of blue jeans, a gray and white horizontal striped top, white pants, a blue top, a black skirt, a black sweater, a yellow blouse with a vermilion cardigan, and three Crystal Prep Uniforms one of which she chose to wear. With her old leather jacket as shabby as it was over the uniform, and Philomena was back on Sunset’s shoulder.
They stopped at a few other places buying the occasional item along with needed undergarments. Everything went into the suitcase. That is until they stopped at the music store.
“Wait, you’re going to buy me a new guitar?”
“Don’t see why not. Not like I expect you to get your old one back. Leastwise not in one piece.”
Dusty picked out an acoustic guitar, strummed a few cords, and then sang, “Whatcha gonna do when the crick runs dry, whatcha gonna do when it is gone?”
“You know, that sounds suspiciously like ‘What you ganna do when she says goodbye,” Sunset offered with just a hint of cheek.
“It is. Just different words. Never hurts to warm up a room with a bit of lampoonery,” he offered with a big smile. “Now go on, and pick out a guitar.”
Sunset looked over the guitars and then picked out an Epipone(e-pi-po-ney) Pro-1 Dreadnought Acoustic vintage-styled guitar with a sunburst finish on the face. It even featured a built-in pickup for plugging into an amp. And it was just under two hundred dollars.
“You sure about that one?” Dusty asked as Sunset sat across from him on a stool that was available and he picked out a stool for himself. “Sign says ‘Never, under any circumstances, play Stairway to Heaven, Smoke on the Water, Layla, or Eruption.’”
“Something tells me they hate hearing those songs over and over,” Sunset replied as she adjusted the tuning. “Might be best to stay clear of the more popular songs altogether. Not like that hasn’t been my bread and butter.” she looked up at him with a smile.
“Been there, done that. When performing at a small venue everyone wants to hear their favorites. The downside is the need for permission if yer anyone even remotely famous. Heck, the greedy lawyers will even go after churches that are barely scraping by.”
“So you give them a parody.”
“Give them a parody, but never the whole thing.” Sunset gets a mischievous smile, casts a glance at the store clerk, and plays the first three cords of ‘Smoke on the water’.
“Now that’s downright mean-spirited,” Dusty comments as Sunset cracks up.
“But the look on his face!” Sunset offered. Sunset took a moment to collect herself, and then started on the basic cords for Sia’s Rainbow.
“No, God no!” Called the store clerk. “Phoenix or not.”
This time it was Dusty who started laughing.
“Aww, come on!” Sunset protested. She couldn't help but laugh on realizing that the song was one of those that got overplayed over and over and seldom very well. “I know, I’ve got a song I’ve been working on.”
Sunset started strumming the guitar. “It’s alright, ya, I’m walking right beside you. I feel the way, feel the way that you do, too…”
Dusty had no trouble picking up on the melody and joined in with the guitar he had in hand.
When the song ended they were momentarily surprised by the applause of a crowd that had gathered. Well, it was the holidays and the mall did have a fair amount of people milling about.
“Oh carry me back to the lone prairie…” Dusty began to sing as he started up a new song. Sunset took but a moment to join him. When Dusty finished he started singing, “All day I faced the barren waste without a taste of water…”
“Cool water,” Dusty and Sunset sang with the store clerk echoing water.
When they’d finished that song the clerk picked up one of the guitars and lead them in a rock medley of popular songs.
“Dusty Shimmer never thought I’d get to jam with a big star like you,” the clerk stated a short time later. “Sunset, what are you doing hanging out with Dusty Shimmer?”
“Dad, this is Paul Lester,” Sunset offered.
“Not the famous Les Paul… dad?!” The clerk offered along with a startled question and a double-take.
Sunset busts up laughing again.
“He’s your dad?”
“Kind of sort of, like we have the same last name and the evidence would suggest the possibility, it’s complicated,” Sunset offered with a big smile on her face.
“Wow. Small world. Say can I get you some strings for that beat-up old guitar of yours?”
“How about you give me a deal on this guitar and a few things to go with it?” Sunset asked. "My old guitar got stolen and they trashed my apartment."
“I'll be sure to put the word out in case anyone tries to fence it. And that one is on sale.” He turned to Dusty, “Mr Shimmer, you weren’t interested in that guitar were you?”
“Well, you see, the usual drill, whenever I show up in a music store, is I end up signing one of the guitars.”
“Ah, hang on.” Paul offered, got up, and headed for the back.
A moment later a loud “What?!” came from the back of the store. “That’s Dusty Shimmer you were slacking off with?!”
“I thought you said you weren’t a big star?” Sunset asked.
“I said I wasn’t big enough to live off the royalties. That and I ain’t so big I’m going to get mobbed when I’m out and about.”
Sunset just gave him a puzzled look. Dusty just gave her a curious smile. A smile that switched to concern when his cell phone rang. The manager approached, but dusty was on the phone now.
“Afraid we are going to have to cut this short,” Dusty offered apologetically, and a short time later they were on their way with all of Sunset’s new things to include one new guitar.