Hello, Clark. I have a special mission for you. Why yes, it is of the utmost importance. There’s a young lady on Earth who is in serious trouble. At exactly 9:47 p.m., she’s going to consider taking away God’s most precious gift. She needs to know just how much she would be missed and that she’s truly not alone. It’s your time to shine and put all that training to the test. Yes, if you are successful, you will become certified, that I can promise you. But first, you must first learn about this girl, all she has been through, the struggles she faces, and those she has come to love. Don’t worry, we have time. You’ll still be meeting her right on schedule.
Her name is Sunset Shimmer.
The streets of Canterlot we alite with Christmas lights as people hurried up and down the sidewalks, no doubt heading into one of the many shops in search of presents for their friends and family. Friendly greetings of, “Merry Christmas,” and, “Happy Holidays,” echoed from the store patrons as they exited with their arms ladened with bags. Snow was lightly falling onto the already white landscape, making the whole street look like the front of a Christmas card. The joys of the holiday were spreading like wildfire all throughout the area, and everyone showed the Christmas spirit.
All but one.
Sunset Shimmer was mum to the sounds, smells, and colors around her as she trudged down the sidewalk, having just left her apartment, eyes on her feet and hands in her coat pockets. Anyone who would take a closer look at her would know instantly that something was very wrong. Her eyes were bloodshot, her cheeks were stained with dried tears, and her face was as pale as a ghost. A cold feeling that had nothing to do with the weather had filled her up, and if asked, Sunset would be able to tell what it was. Loneliness, depression, hopelessness; these were just a few of the words that could only begin to describe how she was feeling.
It had been a week since she felt the warm, loving feeling of her old friends. Their faces flashed in her mind as she listed them off. Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy. These five were supposed to be there for her. Ever since the Battle of the Bands, it really seemed that they had truly forgiven her for her old ways and had accepted her as one of their friends. And for a while, everything was perfect.
And then, Anon-a-Miss showed up. This mysterious MyStable account had popped up out of nowhere, and started posting embarrassing secrets about her friends. More and more posts appeared every day, making the girls the laughing stock of the school. Sunset didn’t know what to think of it, and corresponded with Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria via her magical book about the goings on, hoping that the truth would be revealed soon. But what happened next, Sunset would’ve never predicted, and the thought still sent a shock of pain through her mind.
“YER Anon-a-Miss, Sunset!”
“Don’t lie to us! We know it’s you!”
“How could you do that to us?”
“We thought you were our friend!”
“Never talk to us again, snake!”
Their voices still rang in Sunset’s head, making her choke up a fresh batch of hot tears. Did their friendship really mean that little to them? Couldn’t they see it in her eyes, how innocent she was? Were they even her real friends at all? They had left her all alone, on her knees and begging for them to believe her. They abandoned her. They broke her. They never even cared! And it only got worse after that. Anon-a-Miss started posting other peoples’ secrets online as well. Friendships were broken, allies turned to enemies, and only one person was given all the blame; Sunset. Day after day she suffered through the verbal abuse and death threats given to her by the same people whom she had gotten along with a week ago. Every night, Sunset would go home, cry into her pillow, and write to Twilight, telling her how alone she felt, and she didn’t know just how much longer she could-
Sunset’s recollection was suddenly interrupted by something hard and rough hitting the side of her head, making her vision go blurry as she crumbled to her knees. Sunset felt something hot trickle down her cheek which she quickly realized was blood. Looking up, she felt her vision steady as she saw a buff figure across the street, looking directly at her, holding a rock, and laughing cruelly.
“Go die in a ditch, Anon-a-Miss!” shouted the tough, female voice before running down the street and disappearing from view. Sunset knew immediately who it was; Gilda. She had been looking for an excuse to attack Sunset ever since Anon-a-Miss posted how she had a habit of sucking her thumb when she was nervous.
Wiping the blood from her head, Sunset made to stand up again, but was stopped by another figure in front of her. This one, Sunset didn’t recognize.
“Are you alright?” asked the random lady. “Do you need me to call an ambulance? That mark looks pretty bad. Maybe I should- hey! Where are you going?”
Sunset had gotten up and sped across the street and towards the empty park, not looking back at the stranger calling out to her, nor letting them see her tears. When she reached the park, she took the small path that led into a patch of dense trees. The only thing that was up that direction was a small clearing with a bridge that overlooked a lake. What was a perfect place to hike and picnic during the summer would certainly be completely deserted, and where Sunset could be alone, even if she didn’t want to.
When Sunset got to the clearing, she skidded to a halt on the bridge, huffing and puffing, and leaned over the railing to look down at the glistening surface of the lake. It was a decent-sized lake that covered about 40 yards, and Sunset knew from experience that the depth was perfect for swimming. Instantly, and without her being able to control it, her mind shifted to a memory of her and the others spending a warm, summer’s afternoon here a few months after the Battle of the Bands. Sunset could vividly remember her, Pinkie, Rainbow, and Applejack splashing happily in the water as Rarity sunbathed on the bank and Fluttershy picked flowers near the bridge. Sunset sighed and forced the happy memory from her head. Any more of that, and she would certainly start sobbing again. Those days were gone. Now, she had no one, and the thought made Sunset’s insides turn to lead.
As she stood there on the bridge, the side of her head still throbbing and heart filled with despair and betrayal, Sunset looked down at the water again. It wasn’t even frozen over yet, but no doubt that it would still be freezing to be in. Just then, a single thought crossed her mind; something that she would’ve never considered before, but with nothing else in her life, it felt like the perfect thought. It would be so simple. It was definitely deep enough. She had nothing else in this world, and no one would even miss her, not even her old friends. Yes, why not? It wouldn’t take long for her body to go into shock, and it might even be quick and painless. Anything would be better than what she had to go through. There was no more need for discussion; Sunset made up her mind right there. Taking one more glance around to make sure no one could stop her, she started to climb over the railing, and was just about to let go when-
SPLASH!
Sunset stopped immediately, looking at the spot of agitated water. It almost looked like something had just fallen in; no, jumped in. But there was nothing else around. Even in the dark, the light of the briefly exposed moon would’ve lit up the entire area. Then, Sunset heard a voice calling from the water.
“Help! Somebody please help me!”
Sunset looked again, and saw a man in the lake, thrashing around, trying to stay above the surface.
“Hold on!” Sunset called as she ripped off her jacket and leapt off the bridge into the lake. Sunset was right; it was freezing, but she didn’t have time to think about that at the moment. She quickly swam up to the man who continued to thrash wildly, put her arm tightly around his waist, and dragged him towards the bank. When she finally flopped both her and the man onto the solid blanket of snow at the water’s edge, the realization of how cold she was overtook her senses. Teeth chattering, she looked at the guy, who was thankfully still breathing and shivering just as much as she was. Sunset got up, retrieved her jacket, came back, and snuggly wrapped it around the guy. Then, with the strength that only stress-filled endorphins could grant her while being so cold, she helped the man to his feet and started to lead him back down the path and towards civilization.
A stop in at the nearly-empty diner down the street was just what Sunset needed. The owner was more than willing to give her and the guy some fresh towels to dry themselves off with. The weird thing that Sunset noticed as they dried off was the mystery man. He had just faced a near-death experience, and yet, he seemed perfectly content as he brushed the towels over his damp body. He didn’t say a word, though he was smiling as if he had just finished a nice, relaxing dip. Sunset almost felt unnerved, but then she also noticed how inhumanly handsome he was. It was almost like there was something about him that made Sunset, despite being weirded out by his contentment, feel lighter when around him.
After getting as dry as they could, Sunset bought the two of them hot chocolate, and they sat in a booth near the window. Sunset watched the guy some more as he looked out the window and sighed happily. He then took a sip from his mug and licked his lips.
“This is so good,” he finally said. Sunset was surprised at how soothing his voice was. “I remember the last time I had hot chocolate this good.”
“When was that?” Sunset asked.
“Central Park, Manehattan, December 21, 1904.”
Sunset blinked stupidly. Did he just say 1904? The guy said it so nonchalantly too, like he was just commenting about the weather.
“Um…” Sunset said, deciding just to overlook that statement, “so...what exactly were you doing in the park around this time of night? And how did you fall in the lake?”
“Oh I didn’t fall in,” the guy answered. “I jumped in to save you.”
Sunset blinked again. She was starting to get a little confused. “You...didn’t save me. I saved you.”
“Oh-ho,” the guy chuckled softly. “You think you saved me, but I jumped in because you were going to jump in. I knew that if you saw someone else in trouble, you would forget about attempted suicide and do the right thing, cause that’s the kind of person you’ve become, Sunset.”
Now Sunset was getting nervous. It was one thing to spout nonsense about being alive in 1904 and saying backwards statements, but how on earth did he know she was thinking about suicide? Could there have been someone watching her the whole time and seeing her about to jump? And even then, how did he know her name? She had never met this man in her whole life, and yet he addressed her like an old friend. And still, the guy didn’t even seem fazed at all by his comments.
“Do I...know you?” she asked shakily.
“No,” the guy answered simply. “But I know you, Sunset. Well, the important things about you. How you were born in Equestria and came here when you were spiritually lost. You rose to power but lost it all. And then, like the phoenix, you rose again, but this time, in friendship and love. And then this whole Anon-a-Miss thing happened, and-”
“Ok,” Sunset snapped as she started to lose her composure. How in blazes did he know she was from Equestria, and what did he know about Anon-a-Miss, or what she was going through? Now Sunset was getting mad, especially with how nonchalantly this guy was talking about it. “I don’t know who you are, but you have no right to talk-”
“Oh I’m so sorry!” the guy interrupted as he slapped a hand to his forehead. “Where are my manners? I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Clark Ablebody; G.A.I.T.”
“G.A.I.T.?” Sunset repeated with a raised eyebrow
“It’s my title,” Clark responded. “It stands for Guardian Angel in Training.”
Dead silence filled the already empty diner. Not even the distant sounds of shoppers outside seemed to register to Sunset, for her anger and frustration had halted for a moment, giving way to utter confusion. It took maybe a minute to process what was said before Sunset came to two possible conclusions; either this guy had suffered head trauma from the water, or he was just insane.
“Yeah right,” Sunset finally replied with an unbelieving smirk, “And I’m the Masked Matterhorn. If you’re an ‘angel,’ then where are your wings?”
“I don’t have them yet,” Clark answered, still not seeming to register how crazy he sounded. “That’s why I’m still in training. But with your help,” he pointed at Sunset, “I’ll be able to finally get my wings! Will you help me?”
Sunset scoffed and looked away, still smirking. “Yeah, sure, whatever.” It seemed that the insane theory was more possible. “What do you need me to do? Ring a bell for you?”
Clark chuckled humorously and replied, “No, no, nothing like that. I just need you to understand something.”
“Yeah? And what’s that?” Sunset asked.
“That you are still loved!”
With that one statement, it was as if a furious fire ignited in Sunset. The smirk immediately disappeared and her humorous disbelief had turned into a rage against this person that Sunset barely knew.
“Ok, listen, you!” Sunset snapped, her fists and teeth clenched as she glared at the stranger. “I don’t know if you’re sick, or delusional, or just insane, but don’t talk to me about what you don’t understand!” As she scolded him, Clark didn’t look angry or affronted, but calm and collected. He didn’t even seem to be taken aback how Sunset was talking to him. He just looked back with a thoughtful expression. When Sunset finished, he paused for a moment before speaking in a caring tone, as if talking to a sick friend in the hospital.
“I know you think you are alone, but it’s not true,” he said. “You aren’t the only one who’s hurting right now. Your friends are too, and, believe it or not, they still need you. They still care about you, Sunset.”
“SHUT UP!”
All other patrons turned abruptly as Sunset slammed a fist down on the table, causing both their mugs to shake slightly. Sunset didn’t care though. Her fury and sorrow were rapidly building at the hollow words of this crazy man. She didn’t want to hear how much her “friends” still cared about her. She didn’t want to hear that they were hurting too, and even if they were, well then it served them right! And even still, Clark wasn’t showing any form of hostility towards Sunset. It was as if Sunset was waiting for him to lash out at her too. She wanted him to give her a reason to punch him, but he was staying just as calm as ever.
“You still have a purpose on this earth, Sunset Shimmer,” Clark continued, making Sunset look taken aback. “I understand what you’re feeling, but killing yourself isn’t going to solve anything.”
Sunset, while still frustrated, calmed down a bit before answering bitterly, “You don’t know anything of what I’m feeling.”
Clark just sighed softly and leaned on the table. “Let’s see, you’re feeling disheartened and confused as to why this Anon-a-Miss had to pop up now of all times, as well as feeling affronted that they are framing you. You feel betrayed and broken-hearted that your five friends turned against you so easily and didn’t even listen to your pleas of innocence. You’re emotionally tired of the verbal abuse you’re receiving at school, and afraid that someone is going to assault you or actually try and kill you. You feel more alone than ever, even writing to Twilight Sparkle isn’t keeping your spirits up anymore, and you feel that the only way for you to put these feelings to rest is to take your own life. Now,” he looked back at Sunset, “do I exaggerate, or do I paint a pretty good picture?”
Sunset stared open-mouthed at Clark. As it turns out, she was feeling exactly all those things, right down to the last detail! If she wasn’t so angry or depressed, she would’ve thought it very impressive. If he kept this up, Sunset would soon run out of excuses as to why this man was off his rocker and would have to accept the impossibility that he might really be an angel.
After a short moment of silence, where all Sunset could do was open and close her mouth several times, she finally grunted, “What’s your point?”
“My point is that you aren’t alone!” Clark responded. “You shouldn’t give up on your friends so easily!”
The heat started to rise again in Sunset as she snapped, “They gave up on me, so why-”
“I’m not saying that what they did was right,” Clark intervened. “They should have believed you from the start! But are you saying that you haven’t done or said things you regretted later due to strong emotions?” Sunset opened her mouth again, but no arguments came to mind, so she stayed silent.
“Extreme emotions lead to extreme reactions,” Clark continued calmly. “Your friends are hurting as well, which is why they need you,” he pointed at Sunset, who suddenly looked taken aback, “now, more than ever! This friendship of yours is worth fighting for! Don’t let this ordeal stop you from trying to win them back!”
“They don’t want me back!” Sunset spat. She was tired of this stranger spouting random nonsense about a situation he knew nothing about, no matter how much it looked like he did. “They said what they meant, and it’s not worth it anymore! Nobody would care if I had jumped in that lake!” She pointed out the window towards the park. “No one would care if I were dead!”
“Hey now,” Clark said, now looking worried, “you shouldn’t say stuff like that! I won’t get my wings with that attitude.”
“Well it’s true!” Sunset retorted. “Everyone would just move on like nothing happened, the whole Anon-a-Miss thing would end, and my so-called friends wouldn’t even care.”
“Sunset-”
“Just leave me alone, will you!?”
Silence passed over the booth yet again, with the only sounds coming from outside. Clark didn’t say anything, but looked disappointed. Sunset didn’t care though. She said what she meant, and nothing was going to change her mind. Looking for something else to do, Sunset took another sip of her hot chocolate, which had turned lukewarm during the argument. Meanwhile, Clark sighed, leaned back in his seat, and looked away with a hand under his chin, as if in deep thought. When he spoke again, he was almost whispering and wasn’t even addressing Sunset. It looked like he was talking to himself. Just barely, Sunset could hear what he was mumbling.
“This is gonna be harder than I thought.” There was a slight pause, and then Clark looked up toward the ceiling and said, “What do you think I should do?” Another pause. “You think that could work?” He glanced at Sunset, who was looking back with both eyebrows raised in confusion. “Hmmm…”
Sunset, feeling a little bit awkward, looked back out the window. How much time had passed since her suicidal revolation? It seemed like so long ago. Sunset started thinking about the others again. Could it be that Clark really did have a point? She had said before how her friends were like family now, and a life without them in it was not worth living. Should she be fighting to earn back their trust? But then another thought crept in. There was nothing to earn back! She did nothing wrong, and yet they were treating her like a criminal! Like every good thing before didn’t even happen! No, she firmly thought. Extreme situation or not, they should’ve known that she wouldn’t do something like this.
“So,” Clark’s voice had snapped Sunset out of her train of thought, and she looked back at him. “You really think no one would care if you just killed yourself? That your friends wouldn’t bat an eye at it?”
“Did I stutter?” Sunset asked, realizing too late that she sounded rather rude, but at this point, she didn’t care much. “Yes! You want me to make it official? Fine! I wish I had jumped in that lake! I wish I was dead!”
She expected Clark to look startled that she would say something so bold, but the most he did was take a deep breath and stand up slowly.
“Well alright then,” he said, and before Sunset could even begin to think of a response, Clark clapped his hands together once. Strangely enough, the sound seemed to echo all around them, as if they were in an empty church. Everything went quiet for a few seconds, and then the surrounding sounds returned. Sunset, while curious about Clark’s actions, didn’t seem to register the oddity of what had just happened.
“What was that?” she asked.
“You got your wish,” Clark responded nonchalantly. “You’re dead.”
Ok, Sunset thought, this guy was off his rocker. Did he really think that he could just clap his hands and grant her wish? Did this guy think himself a genie? Smirking slightly, Sunset scoffed, “Is that so? Then tell me, Mr. Angel, why am I still here?”
“Well your spirit may still be here,” Clark said calmly, “but your body is frozen at the bottom of that lake. Right now, you’re nothing more than a ghost.”
That was enough for Sunset. Chuckling humorlessly, she sat up. “Ok, well this has been quite the experience, but I think it’s time to get back to the real world, where real things happen. So I’ll just finish my hot cho-” Sunset looked down at the table, but found that her mug had vanished. The coaster was gone too. In fact, it looked like no one had touched the table at all.
Hey!” Sunset snapped. “Where did my drink go?” She glanced back up at Clark, assuming he had taken it, but he just looked at her with an unchanged expression. Sunset couldn’t help that his mug was gone too.
“You didn’t order any hot chocolate.” Clark replied.
“Yes I did!” Sunset snapped again. “You think I wouldn’t know what I did and didn’t do?” She then angrily stood up and, seeing an approaching waiter, waved him down. “Hey, did someone pick up my drink?” Strangely enough, even though he was only a few feet from her, the waiter didn’t acknowledge her. He didn’t even look at her. Getting more and more frustrated, Sunset stepped right into the guy’s path. “Hey! I’m talking to-”
But whatever Sunset was going to say was lost as the waiter walked right up to her, and then through her! Sunset gasped and looked around just as the guy passed through her and carried on, as if she wasn’t even there. But she had to be there, right? She was standing right in the middle of the diner, clear as day. Starting to panic, Sunset went to the next booth, where a couple was talking and laughing, and shouted, “EXCUSE ME!”
No response. Sunset reached out to grab the lady’s arm, but her hand just phased through it. She started swiping at the arm, but she might as well have been trying to grab air. All the while, Clark watched her calmly, and when Sunset gave up on getting their attention, he spoke again.
“You’re dead, Sunset. They can’t see, hear, or touch you. You’re just a spirit.”
Backing away from the booth, Sunset felt like she was starting to hyperventilate. All of the evidence was leaning towards Clark being right; she was actually dead.
“No!” she said in a cracked voice more to herself than Clark. “No, this is just a dream! I gotta wake up!” In a desperate act, Sunset pinched her arm, but no pain came to her. “C’mon, wake up!” She started to slap herself, but once again, she felt no pain. No matter what she tried to hurt herself, she didn’t feel anything. Instinctively, she reached up to where the rock had hit her head, but there was no pain and no signs of blood. Still desperate, Sunset tried to think of an excuse, but nothing came to her. No person could pull off a trick like this, she wasn’t hallucinating, and she definitely wasn’t dreaming. That only left one alternative. Slowly, eyes wide with shock, Sunset turned back to Clark, who was still watching her as still as could be.
“Who are you?” she asked nervously.
“I keep telling you, Sunset,” Clark repeated. “I’m your guardian angel. I was sent down here to talk you out of suicide and remind you of how much you’re still needed and that your friendships are worth fighting for. You didn’t listen to me the first time, so I’m showing you what your world would be like if you had killed yourself.”
There was a short moment of silence as Sunset took in what Clark had just said. He had said it before, but Sunset didn’t have any reason to believe he wasn’t crazy. Now however? She was slowly being forced to think otherwise.
Taking a couple slow, calming breaths, Sunset said, “O-ok. Let’s just say for a minute that I do believe you. What happens now?”
“Now?” Clark said, a small smile stretching across his face. “Now we check out the world around us. Your school, your friends, and what they’re up to.” He stood up and walked over to Sunset’s side. “Let’s see just how your death has affected everyone around you.”
“Do we, like, wait?” Sunset asked.
Clark hummed softly then shook his head. “Seems like a time-waster. Might be best if we just skip ahead a bit.”
Then, without any warning, Clark clapped his hands again, and everything started to spin. The diner disappeared, and Sunset and Clark were enveloped by speeding colors and sounds.