//------------------------------// // Volume I - Chapter 6: A Night Visit and a Phone Call // Story: Equestria Girls: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 // by sonicfan05 //------------------------------// Apple Bloom sighed as she was lying on her bed in her bedroom. The talk she had with Applejack improved her mood somewhat and she was no longer upset from their fight during breakfast. However, that doesn't change their decision or reduce Apple Bloom's punishment for her actions the other night, and is still grounded for the summer; preventing her from hanging out with her best friends.  Luckily, she still had access to her cell phone, so at least she could still communicate with them. Apple Bloom opened up her cell phone and then opened a group chat with her friends. Her group chat was originally reserved for the Canterlot Movie Club members, which were herself, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. As time passed, they got two more members of their club, which were their former tormentors, now friends, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.  Apple Bloom began to type the first message to her group chat before posting it. Appleseed101: Sup girls? As soon as Apple Bloom posted her text, several other texts were posted immediately afterward. Scoota101: Hey Apple Bloom! Silvey112: Hi Apple Bloom! StarSong101: Everything ok at home? DiamondDazzle112: Yeah, we couldn't reach u earlier Appleseed101: Ah'm fine Appleseed101: Mah sis and Ah had a big fight this morning StarSong101: Oh no DiamondDazzle112: Was it bad? Appleseed101: Yeah. But don't worry Appleseed101: We cooled down and talked a while ago Appleseed101: We're good now Appleseed101: Ah'm still grounded though 😮‍💨 StarSong101: Yeah… me too StarSong101: Rarity won't let me stream the Amphibiland in my room. 🙄 Scoota101: I feel ya Scoota101: My aunts won't let me watch the Owl Hut 😑 DiamondDazzle112: You three think you had it rough? DiamondDazzle112: Before I was punished, I was forced to listen to my mom's lecture about how hanging out with those "insignificant low lives" won't get me anywhere and instead I should socialize with our kind in order to move up in the world! 🙄 Appleseed101: …she's talking about "us", isn't she? 🤨 StarSong101: who else!? 😑   Scoota101: Her FACE is an insignificant low life! 😆 Silvey112: lol 🤣 DiamondDazzle112: Hey! Watch it! DiamondDazzle112: That's my mom you're talking about! 😠 Silvey112: Sorry, Tiara 🥺 Scoota101: Yeah, sorry DT. 😕 Scoota101: But no offense, but ur mom made me so mad 😤 Scoota101: She's the one who caused this mess in the first place 😡 StarSong101: Yeah. And she wasn't punished for leaving everyone behind 😒 Silvey112: I hate to say this, but they're right DT Silvey112: She made our lives unbearable this school year 😖 DiamondDazzle112: No, I get it DiamondDazzle112: Ur not wrong, and she has been awful as of late 😒 DiamondDazzle112: But despite that… she's still my mom 🫤 Appleseed101: We get it DT Appleseed101: She's still ur family and Ah respect dat StarSong101: Still doesn't change that we're grounded 😑 Silvey112: Not me! Silvey112: I'm a good girl! 😇 Scoota101: 🙄🙄🙄 Appleseed101: In any case, the school is closed due to repairs, but the graduation ceremony is delayed until further notice  Appleseed101: Even so, we're banned from attending the event as punishment for the party 😞 Scoota101: This stinks! Scoota101: I want to see Rainbow Dash and the others graduate 😞 Appleseed101: It does stink, but Ah think it's 4 the best  Appleseed101: Everyone hates us for burning our school and ruining the graduation 😔 DiamondDazzle112: We don't hate you girls ❤ Silvey112: Much DiamondDazzle112: SILVER! Silvey112: They didn't just ruin the seniors' year, DT. They ruined OUR year too! Silvey112: All because of their dumb scheme 😠 Scoota101: We're in this chat 2 u no! 😠 Appleseed101: No Scoots… she's right Appleseed101: Applejack said we should've thought about our plans b4 we do it.  Appleseed101: It never crossed our minds that we'd cause a fire 😓 Silvey112: And who thought bringing those animals to the party was a good idea? 🤨 Appleseed101: It was part of the deal with Angel Bunny to help DT get the codes from her mom Silvey112: You made a deal with Fluttershy’s rabbit!? 🤯 DiamondDazzle112: Silver was right. It wasn’t smart to bring those animals to the party Appleseed101: In hindsight… yeah, it wasn't 😓 Appleseed101: Even Fluttershy was mad at us for wat we did 😨 Silvey112: Fluttershy!? The girl who is usually afraid of her own shadow was mad? 🤨 Appleseed101: Yes. Appleseed101: And trust us! You do NOT want to make her mad. 😱 StarSong101: I can vouch for that StarSong101: She's scary when she's mad! 😨 Scoota101: Only when someone messed with her animal friends 😨 Silvey112: 😮 Silvey112: …noted 😶 DiamondDazzle112: Anyway, just hang in there girls DiamondDazzle112: At least you all won’t be grounded forever   Scoota101: Yeah… just the whole summer 😮‍💨   StarSong101: It could've been worse DiamondDazzle112: As I said, just hang in there and things will get better Appleseed101: We'll see… Silvey112: Seriously, you made a deal with a rabbit!? 😯😦😵‍💫 Apple Bloom sighed as she stared at her phone. While Silver Spoon's words stung her, she knew that she deserved it. Applejack was right about earlier; her and her friends' actions ruined things for everyone, including her classmates like Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. Apple Bloom made a mental note to think more carefully before she came up with another harebrained scheme. Just as Apple Bloom was about to put her phone down, she received another few texts from her app. Apple Bloom checked on her phone again and to her surprise, it was directed to her instead in the group chat. On top of that, the person who messaged her was from Diamond Tiara. Nervous, but also curious, Apple Bloom opened up Diamond's messages to read them. DiamondDazzle112: I mean wat I said earlier   DiamondDazzle112: I don't hate u Apple Bloom   DiamondDazzle112: I know u had good intentions when u and the girls executed the plan DiamondDazzle112: …even if it was a stupid plan 🙄 DiamondDazzle112: I'm here if you ever want to talk 🙂❤ Apple Bloom smiled as she typed her reply. Appleseed101: Thanks, DT. Appleseed101: That means a lot coming from you! 😊 DiamondDazzle112: Anytime 😉 DiamondDazzle112: I gotta go DiamondDazzle112: Mom is making me listen to her lectures again 😑🙄 DiamondDazzle112: See u later! 😉 Apple Bloom chuckled. It was still crazy to think that she and Diamond Tiara used to be enemies. She remembered since grade school that Diamond would taunt and look down on her constantly for being poor and different from all the other kids. After Apple Bloom meets two of her best friends, Diamond torments her further once she has Silver on her side.  This would go on for years even at the start of High School until after the Battle of the Bands when Apple Bloom noticed something different from her former bully's eyes that she never thought she’d see. Her sadness and loneliness. It took a while to get Diamond to open up to her. When she did, it was revealed that Diamond was always pressured and constantly controlled by her mother, never becoming the person she wanted to be as a result. Of course, while this doesn't excuse all the years of teasing from Diamond Tiara, Apple Bloom did feel sympathy for the rich girl for dealing with a mother like Spoiled. Despite her friends' doubts, Apple Bloom decided to help Diamond Tiara to change her ways. After Diamond finally stood up against her mother, she became a much better person and eventually befriended the CMCs.  Even though Apple Bloom and her friends forgave her, Diamond still tried to make up to them for all her bullying to this day. Apple Bloom suspected that Diamond was trying to make up with her most of all for tormenting her the longest. But Diamond becoming nicer and being her friend was more than enough for Apple Bloom. Diamond even helped her many times without question, including helping her get her mother's password to her office. While Apple Bloom appreciated Diamond for always helping her right off the bat, she couldn’t help but wonder if there was more than a reason for Diamond to be more friendly with her. Apple Bloom shrugged. Probably because she’s still too guilty for being mean to me. Ah’ll have to talk to her about this the next time Ah see her. Apple Bloom was snapped out of her thoughts when she suddenly heard some loud knocks, causing her to jump slightly and nearly drop her phone. She quickly turned towards the source of the noise and was surprised to see none other than Sonic, who was knocking on her bedroom window. Without hesitation, Apple Bloom hopped off her bed and rushed towards her window to open it. "Hey there, lil' sis!" Sonic greeted with a quick wave and a wink. "Sonic!" Apple Bloom smiled, hugging the blue hedgehog quickly. She released her hug and looked at her friend with concern. "Not dat Ah'm complainin', but what are ya doing here? Won't ya get in trouble?" "What? Can't a hedgehog come to see his little sister?" Sonic teased. Apple Bloom blushed. Shortly after the battle with Robotnik, the Equestria Girls and the CMCs took him in as an honorary family member. Even the CMCs took him in as their honorary older brother, which the blue hedgehog happily accepted. Since then, Sonic would often visit the CMCs, including Apple Bloom at every opportunity and they all grew closer like they were his siblings all his life. "You know dat we're practically the same ages, right?" Apple Bloom stated. "Details!" Sonic smirked before pointing at himself. "Anyway, you don't need to worry. I'm faster than the speed of sound! I'll be back before they even notice!" Apple Bloom shook her head with a smirk. "Yeah well, don't get too cocky, 'big bro'! We're both in enough trouble as is! And Ah just made up with mah sister after our fight this morning." "Oh yeah! I heard from Equestrian Girl that you nearly burned down the school! How'd you do that?" Sonic asked. "Nothing much to say," Apple Bloom shrugged with a sigh. "After that 'Devil Lady' took away the party for the seniors, mah friends and Ah tried to throw them a secret party they deserved, but then it backfired… big time! Thankfully, no one is hurt, but mah friends and Ah are grounded fer the summer." "Oof, that's rough buddy!" said Sonic with a look of sympathy. "I argued with the Equestria Girl myself about being "responsible" after I stopped a robbery." He shook his head. "I mean, how is stopping a robbery not considered responsible?" "Well, ya did flood part of that town," Apple Boom pointed out. "Ah don't think that's responsible if ya ask me." Sonic huffed. "Why is everyone so uptight about that? It's not like I summoned an angry Godzilla-sized water God to flood the city on purpose!" "...that's oddly specific," Apple Bloom blinked before shaking her head. "Applejack said that we should think about our plans before we act on them because our decisions will affect us as well as others around us." She frowned. "But a part of me thinks that AJ was just being a worrywart and wouldn't stop watching over me because Ah'm a 'kid' to her." "Yeah, I hear ya," Sonic's eye rolled as he leaned on Apple Bloom's window sill. "Both Equestrian Girl and Brainiac treated me like I'm a kid despite that I'm trying to be a hero. Older sisters, am I right?" Apple Bloom cocked an eyebrow. "You considered Sunset and Twilight as your sisters?" Sonic hesitated for a moment. "Well… I considered them more like my best friends than sisters, but they're still like family to me now." "Yeah, Ah get dat," Apple Bloom nodded. "But Ah always thought those two, especially Sunset Shimmer as more like your–" "SO, you got any plans for the summer?" Sonic interrupted suddenly. Apple Bloom cocked her eyebrow at Sonic’s strange behavior involving Sunset, but she chose to let that topic go for now. "Well, other than farm work… Ah can't have any plans since me, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo are grounded for the summer." Sonic frowned. "Oh dang! That's a harsh punishment, don't you think?" "Well, considering that we nearly burned the school down, it's what we deserved," Apple Bloom sighed dejectedly. "Still… Ah just wish we could do something fun instead of being stuck with chores all summer." Sonic grinned. "Don't fret, Apple Sister! We'll find a way to bring the fun to your summer!" Apple Bloom cocked an eyebrow. "And how'd we do that? Our sisters, especially AJ, are super strict when it comes to sticking to our punishments!" "Leave that to me!" Sonic winked, pointing at himself.  Suddenly, they both heard a vehicle pulling into the driveway, belonging to AJ's old pickup truck.  This made Apple Bloom nervous. "Uh oh! That sounds like AJ is back from Sweet Shoppe!" "Then that means Equestrian Girl and Brainiac are heading back home as well!" Sonic turned away from the window, but not before waving. "My cue to leave! See ya, Apple Sister!" "See ya, Sonic!" Apple Bloom waved back. "And… thanks for visiting!" With a smile, Sonic fully turned and hopped off the roof. As soon as he landed, Sonic used his super speed to run through Sweet Apple Acres as fast as the wind toward home. As Sonic ran through the farm, however, he failed to notice the same mysterious figure from Seaddle City, who was hiding from within the trees, spying and tailing on the blue hedgehog. Back at the Sparkles household, both Sunset and Twilight returned home after hanging out with their friends. As soon as they returned, they immediately headed into the kitchen to make a video call to Vice Principal Luna with Sunset’s phone. Both girls took a seat at the table as Sunset took out her phone. "Are you sure Vice Principal Luna won't mind if we call her? I don't want to be a bother." Twilight asked in concern. "It'll be fine, Twi!" Sunset assured. "She gives me her number whenever there are any updates on Equestrian Magic. I'm sure that she doesn't mind we're calling her about Rosette's idea for our graduation ceremony." Sunset selected Vice Principal Luna from her contact list to begin the video call. The two girls waited for a moment, watching the phone icon while the phone rang, hoping for their Vice Principal to pick up. Eventually, the phone icon on Sunset’s cell screen changed to the face of their Vice Principal Luna in a dark blue room, assumed to be her bedroom. "Hello?" Vice Principal Luna answered. "Hey, Luna! It's Sunset and Twilight!" Sunset replied, turning her phone slightly for her friend to appear on camera. "Oh, hello Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle," Luna greeted as her eyes darted between them and something else off-screen. "Not that I mind talking to you two, but you both were interrupting an important business." Both Sunset and Twilight cocked their eyebrows in confusion and curiosity. "What kind of business?" Sunset asked. Luna grunted for a moment, clearly struggling with something before her eyes turned back to Sunset again. "It's… nothing to be concerned abo–" Suddenly, they heard a loud dud sound, followed by some type of failing music, which the girls assumed was coming from Luna's TV. Luna let out a frustrated groan. "Aw, dang it! Now I had to fight that boss all over again!" The girls winced at this, realizing that they may have interrupted their Vice Principal’s gaming session and Luna lost the game as a result. "Sorry, Luna," Sunset apologized. "We could've waited for tomorrow, but then we figured we had to tell you right away." Luna sighed, turning off her game before facing the girls. "Well, since now you both got my attention… I'm all ears." Sunset cleared her throat and decided to get right to the point. "Well, is the graduation ceremony and party still canceled for the time being?" "Officially, yes. But if our building didn't get repaired on time, then we may have to skip them altogether," Luna replied before tilting to the side. "Why'd you ask?" "Well, Twilight here proposed an idea that may help solve our problem," Sunset explained, gesturing towards Twilight who blushed due to the attention. "She received a phone call from her favorite astrophysicist that she met at the Canterlot Celestial Society Member Social some time ago." "I see,” Luna hummed. “Not that I’m not happy for her, but what does this have to do with solving our problem?" Sunset grinned. "Well this lady heard of our situation and knew our… "good deeds", so she offered to fund our graduation and party and have them take place at Hoofolulu, Hoovaii." "Really?" said Luna, her expression became curious. "That's awfully generous of her. Just who was this astrophysicist that Twilight talked to? “It was Rosette Nebula,” Sunset revealed. Luna’s eyes widened. “Rosette? The Rosette?” Twilight blinked, surprised by Luna’s reaction. “Do you know her, Luna?” "…you could say that," Luna responded slowly before she gazed at Sunset with a stern look. "Do you mind if I have her number so that I can speak to her myself?" "Um… sure," Sunset replied, confused by Luna’s request. "I was gonna give it to you anyway." Sunset proceeded to have Twilight send Rosette’s phone number to Vice Principal Luna by text. After Luna received the number Luna nodded in gratitude. "Thanks you two. I'll call you both back as soon as I'm done talking to her." With that, Luna ended the video call, leaving the two alone. The two blinked at Sunset’s phone screen for a moment in silence. Sunset eventually faced Twilight, addressing what was on their minds since before Luna hung up on them. "Twilight… did you know that Luna and Rosette knew each other?" Twilight shook her head. "No… this is news to me.” She tapped her chin in thought. “Perhaps they're once colleagues?" "Possibly," Sunset shrugged before furrowing her brows in worry. "But the only thing that's on my mind right now is if Luna will accept Rosette's offer for our graduation trip." "She has to!" Twilight exclaimed. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime offer by a famous astrophysicist for the whole school trip! Who wouldn't want to go on a free Hoovaii trip?" "I would love to take that trip as much as the next gal, but this wouldn't matter if Luna didn't approve,” Sunset sighed, crossing her arms. “Nothing we can do right now except to wait and hope for the best.” “I know, and I hate it!” Twilight moaned. “It's bad enough that there's a possibility that this trip may not happen, but waiting for an answer regardless is flat-out torture!” “I hear you, Twi. But again, we must be patient.” Sunset shrugged. “And who knows? If they knew each other, maybe there's a chance that Luna would say yes.” “Yeah… a slim chance!” Twilight muttered. Before Sunset could respond, they heard the front door shut from the other room. The girls quickly walked out of the kitchen just in time to see Sonic, who was trying to quietly sneak back to his room upstairs. Unamused by this, Sunset loudly cleared her throat for the blue hedgehog to hear her. "Ah-hem!" Sonic froze mid-way up the stairs and slowly turned around. He nearly winced when he saw both Twilight and Sunset staring at him. Twilight had a calm and patient expression, but her eyes told him to explain his whereabouts. Sunset, however, had an annoyed expression while crossing her arms and tapping her foot as if she silently said to him 'I'm waiting.' "Oh! Hey, Brainiac… and Equestria Girl!" Sonic greeted sheepishly. "Sonic… where have you been?" Sunset pressed in a stern tone. "Oh, I was… taking a walk," Sonic fibbed nervously. Sunset narrowed her eyes. "Sonic–" "I didn't do any hero stuff!" Sonic raised both her palms in defense. "I was paying a visit to Apple Bloom. I swear!" Sunset sighed, rubbing one of her temples to prevent a headache. "Sonic… you know she and her friends are grounded right? And quite frankly, you're still in trouble for sneaking out the other night!" Sonic huffed. "Oh, c'mon! It was only a quick visit! And I figured I could help cheer her up after everything that happened." Sunset was about to scold Sonic some more, but Twilight interjected. "Sunset was right, Sonic. You shouldn’t even be out right now after what happened at Seaddle! But since you're only helping a friend, we'll overlook this just this once… only if you promise not to go out again for a while." Sonic sighed, rolling his eyes. "All right, fine… no more going out for the time being." "And that includes heroing!" Sunset added sternly. "We talked about this." "I won't! Jeez!" Sonic stomped his way up the stairs to his room, muttering the whole way. "I wonder if Masked Matter-Horn ever dealt with this!" "And it's also way past your bedtime!" Sunset called up. "You better be in bed, young man!" "Yes, mom!" Sonic remarked sarcastically before disappearing up the attic. Sunset stared blankly after hearing Sonic’s remark. Even after Sonic left the area, her mind went elsewhere as she once again revisited her old memories with her former mentor. But Princess! Do I have to be in a classroom with these ponies? You must, my little pony. While you are brilliant with your magic skills and mind, your social skills are lacking. It is important to be with other ponies to learn about humility and also to make friends with them. But I don’t need other ponies! All I need is you! I'm sorry, Sunset, but my decision is final! Now go to bed. You need to be at the School for Gifted Unicorns first thing tomorrow morning! Whatever, mom! Sunset cringed from the memory of her young bratty self. Ugh! Now I know how she feels when she deals with me. Why am I so stubborn? "Sunset?" Sunset snapped out her thoughts as she turned to Twilight who was giving her a look of concern. "Is everything okay? You were quiet for a while." Sunset was silent for a moment before she looked away with a sigh. "Sorry. I was just thinking about Celestia." Twilight tilted her head. "Principal Celestia?" Sunset shook her head. "No… the other Celestia. "...Oh!" Twilight's eyes widened in understanding before her expression became confused. "But… I thought she forgave you." "She did," said Sunset. "And I'm happy that she forgave me! But…" "But?" "But a small part of me believes… that I still blew it," Sunset said solemnly. "She took me in when I was alone in the orphanage, believing that she sensed something great and compassion within me. But I became arrogant, and never took any of her lessons to heart. And I even kept demanding her to make me a princess despite her telling me that I wasn't ready. And after we argued, I fled into this world, but not before telling her that she made the biggest mistake." Sunset sighed, closing her eyes sadly. "But in reality… I was the one who made a mistake. It only took Princess Twilight and our friends to slap some sense into me. But even after I apologized… I knew that it was too late to make things up with her." Twilight shook her head. "Sunset… you know that's not true. It's never too late for you to reconnect with her. I'm sure she also wanted to reconnect with you too?" "But if she also wanted to reconnect with me… then why didn’t she talk to me?" Sunset asked in a broken tone with a sniff. "The last time I ever talked to her is when I needed her help when you–"  Sunset paused, hugging herself. "When you guys… lost memories of me." Twilight felt her chest tight. Despite that it was all Wallflower's doing with the memory stone, Twilight felt guilty for what she said and how she acted toward Sunset when she didn't believe her that they're friends. Even after Sunset assured her that she forgave her and didn't blame her for what happened, Twilight still felt bad for ditching her until the last moment when Sunset sacrificed her own memories. She also felt her heart hurt after hearing Sunset’s broken tone. Twilight always hated seeing her friends hurt, but she hated seeing Sunset hurt the most. Slowly, Twilight moved closer to Sunset and gently hugged her side. "Oh, Sunset…" Twilight spoke quietly. "I'm so sorry for not being there for you that time when you needed us the most." Sunset sniffed, leaning into Twilight’s neck. "But it's not your fault, Twilight. You lost the memory of me, so you couldn't have known." "Even so, I should not have been so mean to you when you needed our help… with or without our memories," Twilight said soothingly, hugging Sunset tighter. "As to why your mentor hasn't been talking to you since then… I'm not sure myself. If she cared about you as you said, then maybe she has her own reasons for not reaching out to you. Not to make an excuse for her, but I think that's the only explanation I can think of." Sunset frowned. What other reason for her mentor not talking to her? Sunset could only think of her mentor feeling ashamed and disappointed in her former pupil for being a failure. While Sunset has no regrets about coming to this world since she eventually found friends of her own, she wishes the way she last spoke to her mentor ended differently. Even as Sunset felt guilt and remorse, there was also another emotion Sunset felt within herself toward her mentor. But not in a positive way. Suddenly, the girls jumped when they heard a ringtone coming from Twilight’s phone. When they looked at each other, they immediately blushed due to their closeness, causing Twilight to release the hug. "Um, sorry! I'll get this!" Twilight coughed in embarrassment as she took out her cell phone to answer it. "H-hello!" "Twilight! It's me again!" Twilight’s eyes lit up, her embarrassment with Sunset forgotten. "Oh, Rosette! How can I help you?" "You already did!" Rosette replied. "Thanks to you, I finally talked to your Vice Principal and we had a long discussion about my proposal." "Hang on a second," said Twilight with a confused look. "I thought Vice Principal Luna would be the one to call us back." "Your Vice Principal was caught up with something, so I assisted in breaking the news to you," Rosette explained. "Oh, I see!" Twilight nodded. "So what's the verdict?" Twilight then became nervous, assuming the worst. "Wait, don't tell me… Luna shot down your proposal!" She then sighed in disappointment. "That's probably why you called instead of Luna! I knew I shouldn't keep my hopes–" "Hold on, Twilight!" Rosette interrupted. "You didn't let me finish." Twilight blinked. "Oh?" "Your Vice Principal and I talked. It took a while for me to convince her… but she is now on board!" Twilight gasped, excitement slowly emerged in her features. "You mean–" "Yep! Pack your bags, you and your classmates are going to Hoovaii!" "Yes!" Twilight cheered loudly, slightly startled Sunset in the progress. Twilight then proceeded to skip all around Sunset in excitement, cheering all the while. "Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes…" Amused by her friend’s cute display, Sunset crossed her arms with a smirk. "I take that this is all good news?" Twilight immediately stopped her cheering and skipping before facing her friend with a blush. "Um… yes," Twilight responded sheepishly. "Oh, is your friend there? Will you put me on speaker?" Rosette requested. Twilight heard Rosette’s request and switched her phone on speaker for Sunset to hear.  "As I mentioned to Twilight, Luna and I talked and she finally allowed us to take our trip to Hoovaii for your graduation." "That's great!" Sunset smiled. "So when's the date?" "...Tomorrow." Both Twilight and Sunset's eyes widened by Rosette's answer. "Wait? Tomorrow!?" Twilight exclaimed in shock. "Yeah, isn't this too sudden?" Sunset inquired. "Yes, I know. I apologize for this to be so sudden," Rosette responded. "But it is the only date I can make it happen, hence why I wanted to discuss it with your Vice Principal so we can forward this post haste, including updating the staff and students' families." Twilight hummed. "Well… I guess that makes sense, but won't it be difficult to book a flight to Hoovaii in a short time?" "Leave that to your Vice Principal and I. We'll take care of that," Rosette assured. "The only thing you girls need to focus on is to pack everything up for the trip." "We'll do that right now!" Sunset grinned. "Thank you so much for all of this, Rosette!" "You can thank me when you arrive in Hoovaii," said Rosette. "Anyway, I got to go. I'll call you in the morning for updates. Goodnight you two!" "Goodnight!" Twilight and Sunset chorused before Twilight hung up her phone. There was silence for a moment between the two girls. A second later, both of them let out loud happy shrieks and then hugged each other, hopping up and down in excitement. "I don't believe it… we're actually going!" Twilight exclaimed happily. "I know! This trip is going to be amazing!" Sunset gushed with a huge grin. The two stopped hopping after they fully processed what just happened. "We gonna start packing!" Twilight stated anxiously. "We gotta tell our friends!" Sunset added, just as anxious. "I'll go tell Cadance and Shining Armor the news and you can tell our friends!" Twilight stated. Sunset nodded. "Done!" The two proceeded to go both ways to begin the trip, but then Twilight stopped and called out to Sunset. "Oh by the way… is there anyone from Equestria you want to invite?" Sunset paused and turned towards her friend with a continued expression. "Invite?" Twilight played with her hair. "Well, graduation from high school is going to be a huge event. Usually, we bring our families for the occasion." Sunset glanced away with a downcast look. "I… I don't know. You know that I'm essentially alone with no family." Twilight shook her head. "That's not true. What about Princess Celestia?" Sunset frowned at the mention of her former mentor, furrowing her brows. "It's… still complicated between us. Besides, I'm not quite comfortable inviting her right now." Twilight frowned. She felt that there was some other kind of issue with Sunset’s mentor that Sunset was not mentioning to her. Despite wanting to help, Twilight decided to drop that topic for now to focus on the topic at hand. "All right, you don't have to invite her," said Twilight. "But I still think that you're not completely alone in Equestria. Is there someone over there you know who cares about you and wants to see you graduate?" Sunset opened her mouth to speak. "Not even a friend?" Twilight added. Sunset paused, thinking silently for a moment.  While she wasn't as close to her former mentor as she used to be, there was somepony else in Equestria who was always there for her since they first met. Aside from her best friends in this world, she owned everything for where she is today and is forever grateful for leading her to a greater path, all thanks to her dear friend. And Sunset wanted her to see what kind of person she has become now. "Actually…" Sunset trailed off as she glanced towards their dining room table where her certain magical journal was located. "There is one friend I had in mind." Somewhere outside the Sparkle household, the same mysterious figure from Sweet Apple Acres was spying on the two teens through the window, hiding in the bushes from the darkness.