Chapter Six: Pandemonium, Promotions and Preparations
“Whirl, where did I put my mailmare hat?” Derpy asked as she frantically searched around their home.
“On your head dear!” Whirl called out from the kitchen.
Derpy put her hooves on her head and felt her hat. “Oh thank goodness! I thought that I had lost it!”
Whirl walked out of the kitchen with a plate of eggs and pancakes. “Here’s your breakfast, sit down and relax for a moment before you go to work. You are always so high-strung in the morning.”
Derpy sat down with a content sigh. “I am not always so high-strung, it’s just that today is the day whether or not I get the promotion.”
“You have it in the bag; I have no doubt about that.” Whirl said confidently.
“I hope your confidence isn’t misplaced.”
“It would never be in the wrong place if my confidence is in you.”
Derpy gave Whirl a smirk. “Okay mister suck up, that’s enough for one morning.”
“What? I thought I was on a pretty good roll.” Whirl said with a chuckle.
Derpy shook her head and took a bite out of her pancakes. She smiled and continued to eat as Whirl tidied up around the house a bit. Sunny walked into the room with a smile. “Good morning everypony.” He said happily.
“Good morning Sunny, are you ready to get a job today?” Whirl asked with a smile.
“Yup, I have a good feeling about that weather analyst position.”
“How about this, if we all bring home good news today we get to have a party! We can all bring home something that will make the party that much better!” Derpy suggested as she finished her breakfast.
“It sounds like a good idea, Whirl are you in?”
“You betcha!”
“Then it is settled, we will all bring home good news and great party stuffs! I have to go now, otherwise I will be late. Bye honey.” Derpy said as she gave Whirl a quick kiss goodbye before running out the door.
Whirl stood up and stretched. “Well, I have no other reason to be here right now. Let’s go get some breakfast at that sandwich restaurant near the library.”
“Sounds good to me, are you buying?”
“Sure thing, but then we need to go to Town Hall to get our jobs.” Whirl said as he walked out the door with Sunny following close behind. Whirl looked up to the sky and saw the clouds in disarray. The crazy checkered pattern shocked both Sunny and Whirl as they stood there with their jaws practically on the ground. “What the…?”
“Wow, I didn’t think that it would be this bad without us. Look at that! Rain over there, snow over there and it is baking over there! We have to do something!”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa… let’s let this play out. At the end of the day there will need to be some serious math done to fix everything. I say we wait for that moment and show them what we can do, together.”
“Done, we just have to avoid this crazy weather until then.”
“I hope Derpy doesn’t have too bad of a day.”
Whirl and Sunny walked into town and everypony seemed to be a bit depressed. One of them bumped into Sunny randomly. “Oh, sorry about that.” Sunny said apologetically.
“Why don’t you just watch where you’re going?!” the pony replied angrily before continuing onward.
“Okay, something is going on around here that I can’t quite put my hoof on.” Whirl said as he tapped a hoof on his chin.
Suddenly Fluttershy popped up behind them and blew a party blower. “Hooray…” she shouted halfheartedly.
Whirl and Sunny’s jaws were dropped once again and they were completely speechless as Fluttershy tried her hardest to make them smile. After only a short while she gave up and moved along her merry way. Whirl shook his head and snapped back into reality. “Did… no that’s impossible… let’s… let’s keep going.”
They walked past Carousel Boutique and noticed the windows were boarded up. Whirl peeked inside and knocked on the door. “Go away! Ahm havin’ a hard time here!”
“Applejack is that you? What are you doing in Rarity’s shop with the windows boarded up huh?” Whirl asked in a concerned tone.
“What do ya mean Rarity’s shop? This is mah shop! Now get goin’!” Applejack replied angrily.
Sunny put a hoof on Whirl shoulder and pulled him away while he was shaking his head. “Let’s see if we can find Twilight, maybe she can give us some answers.”
Whirl was stunned beyond belief about what was going on. He just followed along with Sunny as they walked to the library. When they arrived they saw a note on the door. Whirl ran up to it and read it aloud. “Out due to friendship emergency! We have to find her so we can help, now!” Whirl said as he started to run towards Fluttershy’s cottage. Sunny followed along behind him and they both took to the skies to save time.
When they arrived at Fluttershy’s cottage they noticed a bunch of animals inside chowing down on some salad and nuts. Whirl knocked on the door and Angel answered it with a squeak. “Hello little guy, do you know where Fluttershy went?”
Angel bunny nodded and started to make some gestures to try and explain what was going on. He pointed to his haunches and started to switch two acorns around on the floor. They both tapped a hoof on their chins at the same time. “What do you think he is trying to say to us?” Sunny asked Whirl.
“Something about them trading nuts with their flanks.” Whirl deduced.
Angel shook his head and pointed to Whirl’s cutie mark, then over to Sunny’s. Then he ran in place and put his paw above his eyes like he was searching for something.
“They are looking for their cutie marks?” Sunny asked curiously.
“No… their cutie marks have been switched and they are looking for a way to fix it!” Whirl explained. “Fluttershy had Pinkie’s cutie mark this morning, didn’t you see it?”
“I wasn’t looking at her flanks; I was too busy trying to figure out what she was trying to do.”
“We have to find them! Which way did they go little buddy?” Whirl asked Angel. Angel pointed the way and the two pegasi took off. As they flew they saw that the sky was being cleared up by a rainbow. “That must be Rainbow Dash! Let’s hurry!”
“We can’t catch up to her! She’s too fast!”
Whirl ignored him and tried to follow the best he could. However they could not keep up with the rainbow maned pony as they flew along. Then she was gone, just like that. “Darn it! Where’d she go?!” Whirl groaned in agony.
Sunny looked around but he couldn’t find where she landed. “I don’t know! Where would they be heading next?!”
“Well, if Rainbow had Fluttershy’s cutie mark then they must have come here to help Rainbow get her cutie mark back… Who was the one with Rainbow Dash’s cutie mark?”
“They only one who could have done the clouds the way they were would be a unicorn, either Twilight or Rarity. Since Twilight seems to be the one helping to fix everything it must mean they are heading to Rarity’s shop.”
Whirl took off quickly and Sunny followed behind swiftly. When they got there the ponies had already left. Whirl landed heavily and ran to the door and knocked desperately. “Whirl, I don’t think they are here.” Sunny said as he looked around.
Whirl stomped a hoof in frustration. “The one time I might be able to help and I can’t find them!”
“Whirl, it seems like they are doing fine on their own… maybe we can just sit this one out and catch up to them later.”
Whirl let out a sigh and sat down. “I just want to be able to help my friends…”
“This won’t be the only chance, you know that. Come on, let’s go get something to eat already.” Sunny said as he picked Whirl up.
Whirl nodded with a frown and started to follow Sunny to the nearest restaurant. When they got there it was completely empty. Whirl walked inside and looked around. “Hello, is anypony here?” he called out.
Sunny looked around but saw no pony around. “Okay, now I am confused… Where is everypony?”
A few streets down everypony was partying in a parade that was celebrating Pinkie’s return. Whirl and Sunny sat down at one of the tables and laid their heads down on it. “I give up… today has been a disaster and we have wasted so much time running around town for nothing. Now we can’t even get lunch… can things get worse?” Whirl asked sadly.
“Want to just go to Town Hall and get our jobs?” Sunny asked with a half-smile.
Whirl lifted his head and nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.” He said as he stood up and flapped his wings lazily.
Sunny followed behind him at a slow pace as they flew. They reached Town Hall without incident and walked inside. It was surprisingly busy compared to the rest of the town. They walked into the weather department, which was in a frenzy, and walked up to the pony organizing everything. “Hello Storm, got your hooves full I see.” Whirl said with a grin.
“You don’t say?! We have to get this situation fixed if we are going to get back on schedule! But no pony here can figure out what to do!” Storm, a dark grey pegasi shouted over the frenzy.
Sunny and Whirl both looked at each other and smiled before turning back to Storm. “If you want, we can take it from here. But I would like the weather analyst job back, for both me and my brother here.”
“Deal! Just get this place in order for the love of Celestia!” Storm shouted angrily.
Whirl let out a loud whistle and everypony stopped what they were doing. “Alright! I need everypony to pay attention! My brother and I are going to take it from here but we need your help first! We need this month’s weather reports here, this week’s here and today’s here! We also need all of this year’s weather so far placed here!”
Once Whirl was done getting things in order they got to work filing, sorting and analyzing what had happened. It was just past sundown when they finished, but they managed to sort it out and submit tomorrow’s weather report to Storm. Storm took the report and shook their hooves. “Thank you, thank you so much! This would have taken us months to fix. How did you manage to do it in five hours?”
“Years of experience, you just gained the two best weather analysts in the business.” Whirl said happily.
“Well, it’s good to have you back. And I never caught your name new comer.” Storm said with a smile.
“Sunny Plains sir, just call me Sunny.” Sunny said as he shook Storm’s hoof again.
“Sunny it is, welcome to the weather team. Now if you will excuse me, I am going to head out for home.” Storm said as he punched out. “I expect you two here bright and early tomorrow; you know when work starts Whirl.”
Whirl gave him a nod and they followed Storm out. They waved goodbye to Storm before they spotted Twilight with her friends and Princess Celestia down the street. They quickly rushed down the street and caught them just as they we all about to go their separate ways. They skidded to a halt and gasped in awe at Twilight who seemed to have grown a pair of new wings. “Twilight! You have wings!”
“I can already tell I am going to hear that a lot.” Twilight said with a giggle.
“Twilight is a princess now! Isn’t that great?!” Pinkie Pie shouted happily as she threw confetti over Whirl and Sunny.
“The coronation will be tomorrow if you two want to come. It will be in Canterlot.”
Whirl looked to Sunny who shook his head. “You have a wedding to plan Whirl, you can’t go.” Sunny said sadly.
“You’re right; tell me how it goes Sunny.” Whirl said with a nod.
“I’m afraid I am going to have to ask Sunny to remain here as well. Ponies from the Crystal Empire will be there and I don’t want a riot to happen on such a momentous occasion.” Celestia said calmly.
Sunny lowered his head. “Right…”
“Hey, don’t you worry bud. We still have the party at home, remember?” Whirl said as he patted Sunny on the back.
Sunny perked up a bit. “We forgot to get something to make the party even more fun.” He said with a chuckle.
Whirl looked around at all the closed shops. “Well, we can bring ourselves. What could be more fun than that?”
“Hey! I can help you out! I carry party stuff around all the time!” Pinkie said happily as she bounced over to them. “Here’s some streamers, cupcakes, party hats, party blowers and some party balloons!” she said as she shoved all the items into their hooves.
“And if yall stop by the farm I can get you some of our reserved cider.” Applejack said with a smile.
“I can go get that for you in a flash!” Rainbow Dash said as she took off towards Sweet Apple Acres.
Whirl let out a chuckle. “This is terrible… I spend all day trying to find you all to help you out and you end up helping me again in the end. One of these times I am going to be able to pay you all back for all the help you have given me.”
“You were trying to help us today? Why didn’t we see you at all?” Rarity asked with a frown.
“Well, we only started to figure out what was wrong when we got to Fluttershy’s cottage and a bunny explained what was going on, then we saw Rainbow Dash clearing the sky but we lost her, then when we tried to get lunch no pony was around like they had all just vanished, then we gave up and went to Town Hall to get our jobs as weather analysts which we did but we spent five hours working and we never got a chance to eat.” Whirl explained and both his and Sunny’s stomach growled loudly causing them both to blush.
“Well, I am sure your party guests wouldn’t mind if you ate a couple of the cupcakes before you got to your party.” Twilight said with a giggle.
Sunny nodded in agreement and took a cupcake from the box Pinkie had given them. Whirl set down the party supplies and took one as well. They clinked them together like drinking glasses and said, “To Princess Twilight Sparkle!” before taking a bite.
The rest of them gave a small giggle just as Rainbow Dash came back carrying a barrel of cider. “Here you go! Brought to you by the rainbow express!” she said as she set it down in front of Whirl and Sunny.
“Thanks Rainbow Dash. Thank you all for everything. Twilight, I am so happy for you, we are all so happy for you.” Sunny said happily.
Whirl nodded in agreement. “We are going to party all night long to celebrate your new status as princess!”
“Thank you both; you have been very noble friends to all of us. We would have never been able to do what we did if it hadn’t been for you.” Twilight said happily.
Whirl nodded and started to pick up the party supplies while Sunny picked up the barrel of cider. “Well, we are off! Have fun in Canterlot!” Whirl said happily as he took off gently. Sunny followed behind and they started to fly home.
“Twilight is a princess! That is crazy awesome!” Sunny shouted in joy.
“I know right?! I can’t wait to tell Derpy!” They soon arrived home and opened the door swiftly. “Derpy! We are home with wonderful news!”
Derpy trotted into the room wearing a party hat. “I have wonderful new too! I got my promotion! I am now a senior package coordinator!”
Whirl hugged Derpy and picked her up off the ground. “That’s great! Sunny and I got our jobs and Twilight Sparkle is an alicorn princess now!”
“Yay! What did you bring for the party?!” Derpy asked excitedly.
Sunny set down the barrel of cider. “We brought cider from Applejack and tons of party supplies complements of Pinkie Pie!” he said excitedly as he moved to barrel of cider to be poured.
“Woo hoo! Cider! Pour me a cup of that!” Derpy said as she ran to the kitchen and ran back with four mugs.
“Why did you grab four mugs?” Whirl asked curiously.
“Two for me, one for each of you.” Derpy said as she filled two mugs and downed one in a single gulp. “Woooooooo!”
“Wow, Derpy you sure do know how to party.” Whirl said as he filled his first mug and took a sip.
Sunny blew a party blower and laughed. “A whole barrel of cider, this can’t end well.”
“I think it’s alcoholic…” Whirl said as he took another sip. “Yup, we are going to be so drunk at the end of this.”
Derpy had already filled a third mug and was blushing a bit. “Ah ha ha ha! This is so much fun!”
“You should take it slow; we are going to be partying all night.” Whirl said with a chuckle.
Derpy blew a party blower and chowed down on a cupcake. “No slowing down tonight! Let’s turn on some jams!” Derpy said as she threw a record on the player. A slow cello song started to play and Derpy was jamming to it like it was heavy metal.
“Derpy, what are you doing?” Whirl asked as he started to laugh.
Sunny moved the needle and rock music started to play and Derpy slowed down as if she was swaying to the cello. Sunny couldn’t help but laugh as she switched her movements so perfectly.
“Dance with me Whirl!” Derpy said as she grabbed Whirl’s neck and pulled him into the center of the room. Whirl smiled and started to dance with Derpy while Sunny poured a second glass of cider. “Hey, don’t drink all of that! I want more!” Derpy said as she left Whirl and drank another mug as fast as she could.
“Derpy, you are drinking too much too fast!” Whirl said with a laugh as he took another drink.
“Who wants to have a drinking contest?!” Derpy shouted suddenly.
“I am so in! Sunny, are you in?” Whirl asked with a smile.
“No way, you two get hammered.” Sunny said with a laugh. “I can be the judge though!” Sunny said as he set the barrel closer to Whirl and Derpy.
“Alright, whoever can drink the most before passing out is the winner!” Derpy announced as Sunny pour the first drinks. “GO!” she shouted as they both took their mugs. They both emptied them as Sunny scrambled to fill two more. In a flash they had downed three mugs at about the same rate. Sunny was laughing uncontrollably as he filled the mugs and hoofed them off to be drunk swiftly. “Gawna geve up yet?” Derpy asked in a slurred tone.
“Nu uh! I got this!” Whirl said as he downed another. “Yu nawt gonna beat me!”
Derpy started to sway side to side as she drunk another mug. Sunny tried to fill their mugs again but the barrel was empty. “Well, I guess it is a tie. The barrel is empty.”
“NO! We can’t be out! I loved the taste!” Whirl said drunkenly.
“I know whar yu ken taste more!” Derpy shouted as she jumped over the table and kissed Whirl deeply.
Sunny rolled over laughing. When he stopped laughing he looked at Derpy and Whirl and notice they were out cold. He shook his head and lifted them to their bed. Whirl woke up when he felt himself being moved. “I dun need chew to curry meh ta beeeeeed…” he said as he passed out again. Sunny placed them in bed and walked out to the den to enjoy the rest of the cupcakes alone.
“Heeeeey… Whirl… Shunny’s gone… want ta hev a leetle fun?” Derpy asked as she poked Whirl.
Whirl stirred a bit. “Am alamana…” he said before he tanked yet again.
Derpy kissed him anyway and cuddled up against him. “Looksh lek you er gonna wait til we ah murried…” she said as she too passed out.
Sunny was cleaning up the remains of the party when a knock came from the door. “Who could that be at this time of night?” Sunny asked as he walked to the door and opened it. “Hello?” he said as he looked around. When he didn’t see anypony he searched the porch to see if they left a note or something along those lines. He spotted a small box sitting on the porch with a note on top of it. Sunny picked it up and looked around to see if there was any sign of movement, when he saw nothing again he picked up the package and walked back inside.
He set the box down on the table and finished cleaning up the party before sitting down to open it. The note on top of it seemed short and simple as he picked it up and read it.
Dear Sunny,
I have misjudged you severely and I apologize for my words and actions against you. My accusations were unfounded and I should have known better given the choices made by Whirl. Please accept this ROCK as a token of my appreciation. It is half of the rock that you gave me before the trial.
Sincerely,
Princess Luna.
Sunny opened the box and inside was half a diamond cut in the shape of a heart. He took it out of the box and looked into it. It was as clear as glass and ten times as beautiful. “That rock was a diamond?” Sunny thought with a chuckle. He stared at the diamond for a moment longer, its glow seemed to irradiate from the diamond as he held it.
“Hello?” a voice sounded as the diamond glowed even brighter.
Sunny gasped and dropped the diamond onto the table. He cautiously poked it a couple of times. “Hello? Is there somepony trapped in there?” Sunny asked as he poked the diamond a few more time.
“Uh, no? This is Luna.” The voice said with a giggle.
“Luna? How… what… why?” Sunny asked rapidly.
“Look into the diamond again.”
Sunny picked up the diamond and looked into it. He saw Luna standing in her room with a smile. “Whoa, this is so cool.”
“Turn the diamond to the flat part and hold it away from your face so I can see more than just your one eye.” Luna said with a giggle.
Sunny did as he was told and turned to the flat portion of the diamond. He could see Luna as if he was looking through a small window. “I don’t understand, why give this to me? I figured you would want Whirl to have it.”
Luna shook her head with a frown. “While I did offend Whirl I figured he would forgive me more easily than you would given your history. I mean… Sorry, I unintentionally insulted you again… Stupid, stupid, stupid…” she said as she tapped a hoof on her forehead. “Please do not take what I am saying seriously. I mean, take the apology seriously. I just want to convey how I feel without messing up…”
“Princess Luna, it’s okay. Really, just calm down for a moment and take a deep breath. I am not mad at you and I had forgiven you the moment I lost my horn.”
Luna blushed a bit and took a deep breath. “Alright, here is why I sent the diamond to you; I wanted you to see the coronation. Tomorrow at noon it will begin and I will be wearing the diamond so that you can see everything that is going on. The three of you will have to sit right next to each other but at least you will be able to see it.”
“Whirl and Derpy might have a bit of a headache after tonight and I am sure that they are probably going to be closing all official offices on this momentous occasion so I am sure that we will all be able to see.”
“Indeed, everything will be closed for tomorrow’s celebration. Wait, what did you mean Derpy and Whirl will have a headache? Did they get hurt?”
Sunny let out a loud laugh. “No, no, no! They had a drinking contest that put both of them in bed. It was very entertaining.”
“A testament to your true differences.”
“What do you mean?”
“You seem to be just fine while Whirl is in bed because he drank too much.”
Sunny’s eyes widened. “Wow, I guess you are right. It’s a good thing that we didn’t have this drinking contest before the trial; otherwise I might be in prison right now.”
Luna nodded. “Best not to think of that now, the trial has finished and you are free to go.”
Sunny nodded in agreement. “It’s hard not to feel a little guilty though, like it was all my fault…” he said a bit sadly.
“You know better though right? It wasn’t your fault at all.” Luna said with a giggle.
“What’s so funny?” Sunny asked curiously.
“I never thought I would see you the way I do now, as a pony that is truly remorseful of the actions of another pony. That is a testament to your similarities; you both feel so much sorrow over what occurred.” Luna said in a soft voice.
Sunny nodded again in agreement. “I can see you feel sorrow for what you did too, as Nightmare Moon I mean.”
“Indeed I do, I guess we both owe Twilight Sparkle for giving us a second chance at life.”
“Well, we are both going to show her how much we appreciate it tomorrow when we unite in celebration of all her achievements.”
Luna smiled softly. “You know, I haven’t been able to talk to anypony like this since Whirl and Flare came to Canterlot for a tea cup.”
“I was so nervous that day…” Sunny said quietly.
Luna’s ears perked up. “Oh, you were there… I forgot that nothing had happened yet.”
“It’s okay; it’s good to know you have been thinking of me.” Sunny said with a wink.
“It’s good to know you haven’t lost your sense of humor. You always know how to make me laugh.” Luna said with a giggle.
“You should see me when I am actually trying to make you laugh.” Sunny said with a chuckle.
Luna giggled some more and sighed contently. “I am so glad you gave me this rock, it has brightened my night so much more and we can talk more at night now without sending letters.”
“I should have sent you a random rock I picked up earlier. Had I known it was a diamond I would have sent another rock with some gold in it.”
“Gold huh? Trying to buy me are you?” Luna asked slyly.
Sunny blushed and put his ears down. “That is not what I meant at all.” He said shyly.
“No need to be modest, I know how you feel about me.” Luna said with a wink.
Sunny was blushing even more now. “Right, I was there when Whirl told you how I felt about you. Well… how do you feel about me as I am now?”
Luna was taken off guard by the sudden question, especially since she had been in control just a moment ago. Her blush intensity matched Sunny’s as she thought of what to say. “Well… I feel… uh…”
“Wait, you actually like me don’t you?” Sunny asked in surprise.
“I guess I never really stopped liking you… I mean, you are Whirl Wind in your own special way and since he was my friend that would make you my friend too… But… something about you… I don’t know…”
Sunny was getting confused now. “So… you don’t like me?”
“No! I mean yes! I mean! Augh! I love…” Luna said with an awkward pause.
Sunny looked away for a moment and tried to grasp the situation. “Wow… I never would have expected that… I thought you kind of hated me…
“I only hated Sombra. Well… and you… for a little while… when I didn’t understand…”
Sunny chuckled nervously and kept his eyes off of the diamond. “That’s okay. I guess I hated you too… against my will… I don’t think I could ever hate again after all the hate I felt while I was under Sombra’s control. This has gotten really, really awkward huh?”
“Just a little bit.”
There was a long awkward silence after that as they sat there looking in different directions. Sunny finally broke the silence with a loud sigh. “Look, Luna… you let me know how you felt already and how we could never be together…”
“Actually, I have regretted those words ever since I said them… but I couldn’t take them back after Whirl found Derpy… I actually put a lot of distance between me and him so that I didn’t do anything foolish.”
“Like pour your soul to him…?”
“Something like that… I didn’t want to say how much I really loved him, how much he meant to me, how he made every night the best night I have had in over a thousand years, how every time I saw him in his dreams without me knowing made me feel like I had lost so much…”
“He felt the same way… until he found Derpy… she filled that void quite well… but I still have that void, that regret. If I would have persisted, would anything have been different?” Sunny asked as he looked back at the diamond.
Luna nodded her head slowly. “Best keep that between you and me.”
“I can’t believe it… this is crazy, so crazy…” Sunny set the diamond down and put his fore hooves on either side of it. He moved his head down so that Luna could see his face and he took a deep breath. “I love you Luna.” He said extremely fast.
Luna giggled and looked back at him. “I love you too Sunny. Maybe the night after the coronation we can get together for a while?”
“I’ll be here.” Sunny said as he let out a big sigh of relief. “I’ll try not to mess things up.”
“I am sure you will be fine. Maybe you should go get some rest though, you look tired.”
“Will I see you in my dreams?”
“Of course, now get to be so we can continue to talk.” Luna said with a giggle.
Sunny smiled and trotted to his bedroom, but he was stopped in the hall by a hoof on his back. Sunny turned around and saw Whirl holding him. “I don’t regret being with Derpy, not for one second… but you… you keep hold of Luna and I know she is in good hooves.” Whirl said a bit slurred.
Sunny nodded and helped Whirl back to his bed before heading off to his own. Sunny laid down slowly and let out a content sigh as his head rested on the pillows. He felt a hoof on his face and he opened his eyes widely. “Keep hold of Luna…” Whirl said drunkenly as he rubbed Sunny’s face.
Sunny let out a small laugh and took Whirl back to his bed. “Don’t worry Whirl, I will not let her go.” Sunny said softly as he heaved Whirl into bed. He tucked Whirl in so tightly that he would not be able to get his blankets undone again in his drunken state. “Goodnight Whirl.” Sunny said softly as he walked out of the room and back to his yet again. He hopped up onto the bed and quickly fell asleep.
****
Sunny found himself in the castle in Luna’s quarters. He looked around and saw Luna standing on the balcony. “Hello Luna, I am finally here.” Sunny said with a chuckle.
“I was worried you were having troubles sleeping because of what I said.” Luna admitted with a blush.
“No it wasn’t anything you said, it was Whirl drunkenly overhearing us and giving me advice.” Sunny said with a small laugh. “Then he went into my room when I tried to get to sleep and rubbed my face softly. Funniest thing I have seen in a long time.” He started to break down laughing at this point as he mockingly rubbed Luna’s face the same way Whirl rubbed his.
Luna started to laugh too and put her fore hoof on his. “I am glad you were able to get him to sleep again. Would you like to go on a flight around Canterlot?”
“That sounds nice; I can make sure that you see all the hot spots, even though you probably know them all.” Sunny said happily.
Luna smiled and took off to the sky and flew over the city with Sunny right behind. Luna’s horn started to glow and the streets were filled with all kinds of ponies. “This is what Canterlot will look like tomorrow. Everypony that follows a princess of Equestria will rejoice in celebration. The days that follow will be busier than they have ever been, but the nights will be calm and quiet… as usual.”
“I love calm nights; they let me be at peace with myself given all that I have done. The first night Whirl brought me back I snuck out and sat on a cloud staring at the stars all night long. The moon that night was new that night; I missed seeing it.”
“The moon is the most beautiful thing in the sky at night.”
“Except for when you are in the sky at night.” Sunny said with a wink.
Luna let out a giggle. “Oh you, you always have to correct me.”
“Only when you are wrong, which is not often. You seem to sell yourself short sometimes you know?”
“You put me on a pedestal so high you may not be able to reach me.”
“That’s what the wings are for.”
“What wings?” Luna said with a wink.
Sunny looked back and saw his wings were gone and he started to plummet from the sky. He let out a loud scream as he fell and just before he hit the ground Luna caught him with her fore hooves. Sunny was breathing quite heavily as she flew upwards again. “That… was not funny…”
All Luna could do was laugh at his terror. “You forget that this is a dream and you cannot be hurt right?”
“I do now! But while you are falling all you can think of is ‘oh my gosh I am going to die!’” Sunny shouted in frustration.
Luna laughed a little bit more before landing on a cloud with him. “I’m sorry I scared you Sunny, but you really shouldn’t compliment me so much.”
“I am only telling the truth.” Sunny said with a cheesy grin.
“I am already blushing, what more do you want?”
“You…” Sunny said as he kissed her cheek.
“You are quite the little charmer aren’t you?” Luna asked as she was bathed in the bright blue moonlight. She leaned in and kissed him squarely on the lips.
Sunny’s eyes snapped open widely as he accepted the unexpected kiss. After taking a moment to register what was going on he managed to return her affection. When the kiss ended Sunny fell on his back with a dopey grin on his face. “Wow…”
Luna tapped him on the forehead but he didn’t even make any more movements. “Sunny, are you okay?” Luna asked in concern.
“Wow…” he responded in a dazed voice.
Luna giggled and laid down next to him. She let out a content sigh and nuzzled Sunny’s neck. “You’re silly sometimes, did you know that?”
Sunny nodded slowly. “Wow…” he said stupidly.
Luna bumped his nose and shook him a little bit. “Better now?”
Sunny chuckled and nodded as she shook him. “I am here again if you are asking that, but I am not sure I could be better than this.”
Luna giggled. “I am sure there will come a time when you feel better, but that will be in a long time. Speaking of time, guess what time it is.”
“Uhh… Midnight?”
“Try… morning…” her voice echoed as everything started to fade.
“I’ll see you again tonight!” Sunny shouted before waking with a jolt.
****
Sunny rolled out of bed with a disappointed moan. He walked to Whirl and Derpy’s room and found them still in bed at eight o’clock in the morning. Suddenly he came up with the best prank ever and shook the bed violently. “WHIRL, DERPY! You over slept! You are late for work on your first day!”
Whirl and Derpy both jolted up and fell out of bed with a loud thunk. Sunny stood back as they both tried to get ready. Derpy put her uniform on backwards and fell on the floor stuck, while Whirl tripped over her and fell on the floor next to her. Derpy struggled as hard as she could but her legs were trapped in her uniform. Whirl stood up and tried to help but was so hung over that he was just making it worse. “Whirl, stop! You aren’t helping! Just let me figure this out!”
Whirl took a step back and stumbled and fell on his flank. “Ow!” he exclaimed as he held his fore hooves to his head.
Derpy shook around and finally realized she couldn’t get free on her own. She sighed and went limp. “Whirl, help me out of this please…”
Whirl moaned in pain and rolled over. “We are so late for work… our first day is ruined and you are laughing Sunny?!”
Sunny was rolling on the floor laughing so hard his ribs were aching. “Did you two forget that there is a princess being crowned today?! There is no work!”
Derpy and Whirl froze where they were and blushed. “Right…” Whirl said as he helped Derpy out of her uniform.
Derpy stretched a little before sitting down on the bed holding her head with her fore hooves. “I guess we went a little over board last night…”
“Just a little… wait… what happened last night?” Whirl asked in a confused tone. “I remember dancing… drinking a little… on wait… the contest… who won that?”
“You both lost!” Sunny said as he continued his laughing fit.
“STOP LAUGHING! It is making my head hurt!” Derpy yelled as she threw a pillow at Sunny.
Sunny took the pillow in the face and started to calm down a little. “Sorry, it’s just what you two did made all of the not drinking worth it.”
Whirl stood up and sat down next to Derpy and hugged her. “We have been tricked Derpy…” he said as he swayed side to side gently.
“I know… how do we get him back?” Derpy asked in a whisper.
“Good timing…” Whirl whispered back. “So Sunny, who were you talking to last night?”
“Princess Luna sent me a gift that we can use to watch the coronation at noon. We are going to have to squish together to be able to see, but it is better than not watching it at all.”
“Sounds like a plan. Sunny, go make breakfast.” Derpy said as she shooed him out with a hoof.
Sunny chuckled and walked to the kitchen to make breakfast. Whirl stood up and started to hum as he searched around the room for something. Derpy laid down on her back and looked up at the ceiling as Whirl bopped her nose every now and then as he looked around. “What are you doing?” Derpy asked with a giggle as Whirl bopped her for the third time.
“Looking foooooor… this!” Whirl said as he pulled out a small bottle. “My last bottle of hangover remedy… You can have it.”
Derpy shook her head. “Nu uh, it’s yours. You found it.”
Whirl shrugged. “I thought you might say that. I am going to help Sunny with breakfast, you just relax.” he said as he walked out of the room with the bottle in hoof.
“He wasn’t very insistent.” Derpy thought in an annoyed tone.
When Whirl walked into the kitchen Sunny had already finished making fruit salads with apple juice. “Sunny, which one is Derpy’s?” Whirl asked with a grin.
Sunny pointed to the third tray of food. “That one, why do you ask?” Sunny asked curiously.
Whirl held up the bottle of hangover remedy. “Last bottle, Derpy wanted me to have it but you know me.” He said as he poured the bottle into her apple juice.
“Nice, well it is all ready to be served up. Go ahead and get Derpy into the den and I can show you the cool gift Luna sent me.”
Soon they were all assembled in the den enjoying their breakfasts. “This is really good Sunny, it seems to be helping me feel better this morning.” Derpy said happily.
Whirl chuckled a little before putting a hoof to his head in pain. “What is this gift that you wanted us to see?”
Sunny pulled a small cloth off of the table and revealed the shimmering diamond. “Voila!” he said happily.
“It’s a diamond? How is that going to let us watch the coronation?” Derpy inquired.
Sunny set his tray aside and picked up the diamond. He held it in front of Derpy’s face and she saw the castle’s interior. “Do you see everypony getting ready for the coronation?” Sunny asked with a smile.
“I do! That is so cool! We have a great overhead view of everything!” Derpy said excitedly.
Whirl groaned and held his head. “Awesome, but do you need to yell about it?” he asked with a chuckle.
“I thought you took that hangover remedy, looks like it didn’t work at all.” Derpy said as she finished off her apple juice.
“It worked perfectly, you seem just fine.” Sunny said with a chuckle as he returned to his salad.
“Whirl took the remedy, not me.” Derpy said plainly.
“I poured it into your apple juice Derpy and you yourself said that you felt better right?” Whirl noted.
Derpy held up a hoof to say something, but instead pick up her glass and looked at it. “Being tricked two times in one morning… You two are in for quite a ride of revenge.”
“Hey, my trick was in your best interest. I was being nice.” Whirl said defiantly.
“That is why my revenge against you might be nice as well.” Derpy said with a wink.
“Revenge? I did not see that coming from a mile away at all.” Sunny said with a laugh.
“Hello? Sunny, are you there?” Luna’s voice sounded in the room.
Sunny moved the diamond in front of his face. “Yes Luna, I am here.”
“Is Whirl and Derpy there too?”
“Yup, you sound a little stressed out, what’s wrong?”
“Celestia has told me that I cannot have the diamond present during coronation for security reason… I tried to convince her otherwise but she was adamant about it.”
“Awwww, no fair…” Derpy said sadly.
“I’m sorry, I will come and see you all personally when I can and tell you how it was…”
“It’s okay Luna, we understand. We will see you again when we can, have fun.” Sunny said as he set down the diamond on the table.
Everypony was quiet until they finished their breakfasts. “Well, this is unfortunate. What do you all want to do today?” Whirl asked as he pushed his tray aside.
“We might be the only three in town today… do you just want to see what it is like to do all sort of crazy things around town?” Sunny suggested.
“What kind of crazy stuff?” Derpy asked as she moved her tray aside as well.
“Well, we can leave notes on everypony’s door telling them that while they were gone a parasprite infestation that ate all their furniture.”
“That’s mean Sunny; we should just rig all of their doors with water buckets.” Whirl suggested with a smirk.
“You two are terrible; we should decorate the streets for hearts and hooves day even though it is almost October.” Derpy suggested happily.
“What? That would be way to much work. Why don’t we just write funny messages in the sky with clouds?”
“Whirl, that would take just as much work. How about we do something nice for this town huh? I mean, this town has been good to us. We should pay them back somehow.”
Whirl and Derpy both nodded in agreement. “You’re right, what do you suggest?”
“We have one day to get everything done but I think we can count on having most of the night. Whirl, you go to Sweet Apple Acres and get as many chores done as possible. Derpy, I want you to make sure the skies stay clear so that the weather teams don’t have to come back to a mess. I’ll walk around town and clean as much as I can until it shines. Are we all in agreement?”
Whirl nodded and Derpy stood up and cheered. “Let’s do this!”
With that, they all headed out the door to do their assigned work. Whirl arrived at Sweet Apple Acres decently quick and saw something, or somepony rather, that he didn’t expect. Big Macintosh was hauling a load of apples to their apple cellar when Whirl walked up to him. “Hey, why aren’t you at the coronation?”
“Well, somepony had to tend to the fields today even though Twilight is becoming a princess.” Big Mac said with a chuckle.
“Well, I was going to do that for you while you were out of town… do you want some help at least?”
“You were gonna tend our fields while we were gone? That’s mighty neighborly of ya, ah would be happy to receive some help from such a good pony.”
“Well, I don’t want to take credit for this when it was Sunny’s idea. He said that we should all do something to help out the town while everypony is gone, so we are going around town doing what we can. Derpy is clearing the skies, Sunny is cleaning up the town and tidying our friend’s houses and I am here to help you out. So what do you have for me?”
“Well, we just recently raised the barn and finished it up mighty quickly. But we haven’t painted it yet so you can help me with that.”
Whirl nodded with a smile and followed Big Macintosh to their new barn. Awaiting them was plenty of buckets of paint and several brushes. “I am guessing you were going to do this as a family.”
“Eeyup, but since they are all in Canterlot I was just going to get it done on mah own. But now that you are here that won’t take me so long, go ahead and grab a brush and start at your own pace. Ah would appreciate you gettin the high areas so I don’t have ta get the ladder out.”
“Sure thing.” Whirl said as he picked up a paint bucket up with one of his fore hooves and the paintbrush with his mouth and flew up to the top of the barn to start painting. “Ah aven ainted eh a yong time. Ish is goin to be fun.”
Big Macintosh chuckled a bit. “That’s a good thing, work should always be fun.”
****
Derpy flew high above town kicking the clouds to puffy little pieces with a giggle.
“Maybe I should switch to a weather pony job, this is kind of fun!” she thought happily as she kicked out cloud after another. She stopped for a moment and looked around town; it was so deserted, almost like a ghost town. Something caught her eye though and she smiled widely. “HEEEEY SUNNY!” she yelled as she flew down towards Sunny.
Sunny was cleaning the windows on the library as Derpy flew down. “Hey Derpy! How is it going?”
“Great! Check out the skies!” Derpy said excitedly.
Sunny looked up and all around him. “They look great, except for one or two clouds over there. Oh hey, do me a favor and pull one of those clouds over here so I can refill my bucket of water please.”
“Sure thing.” Derpy said as she took off to grab the nearest cloud. She brought it over to Sunny and placed it over his head and started to jump on it, soaking him thoroughly.
“Ahhhh! It’s so cold!” Sunny shouted as he fluttered his now wet wings and tried to run away.
Derpy wasn’t going to let up as she chased him around the library with an evil smile. “REVENGE!” she shouted with a laugh.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Please stop! It is so cold!” Sunny pleaded.
Derpy stopped the cloud from raining and filled his bucket to the brim. “There you go, all filled.” She said as if nothing had happened.
Sunny was shivering where he stood and nodded. “Th-thanks…”
“No problem, just let me know if you need more.” Derpy said as she busted the cloud.
“Su-sure thing.” Sunny said as he shook and continued to clean the library.
Satisfied with her work Derpy flew away to continue to bust clouds. “Don’t derp with Derpy!” she thought happily as she got back to work.
Meanwhile, Sunny managed to finish up his work at the library. As he was walking to Fluttershy’s cottage to see if he could do anything to help he ran into a tan unicorn with a sleek brown mane. “Oh my, I am so sorry about that! I didn’t expect anypony to be here… Whim?”
The tan unicorn regained his composure. “Have we met? You look somewhat familiar.”
Sunny suddenly remembered that ‘Sunny’ had never met him. “Oh, uh no. I do believe you know my friend Whirl Wind, he told me a bit about the adventures your two have had.”
“Ah yes, Whirl is quite the pegasi. Big for his species, kind of like you my fine fellow. Not the bravest pony when it comes to the Everfree Forest if I recall correctly. Poor bastard ran himself right into a poisoned thorn bush that made it to where I had to carry him out of there.”
Sunny blushed as he remembered what Whim was talking about. “Well, I think that he is a bit more brave now…”
“I’m sorry, I never asked you for your name.”
“Sunny, Sunny Plains. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Sunny said as he held out a hoof to shake.
“Ah yes, I thought you looked familiar. You are Whirl’s double aren’t you? I fought against you personally in the war didn’t you know? You and your little recon team caught us off guard and you tried your hardest to make sure we didn’t get back, but we held you off pretty well didn’t we?”
Sunny was blushing the whole time he was talking. “I’d rather not talk about what I didn’t have control over, especially the war.”
“Oh, my apologies. The war has been a sensitive topic for everypony. I would imagine you are having quite a few regrets over what you were forced to do huh? What was the worst thing that you did anyway? I mean, I killed so many of shadow ponies while I was in command of my unit, but I can only imagine what kind of atrocities you did wh—“
“I killed my entire family and then tried to kill Whirl Wind and all of his friends.” Sunny said with a flat tone.
Whim left his mouth open for a moment before speaking again. “I’m… sorry… I pried a little bit too much on that one…”
“Whim, it’s okay… let’s switch topics… uhhh… Whirl is getting married to Derpy.”
“He is?! That is great! Do they have their wedding planned yet? I could help them with that! I helped plan…”
“Sonic Flare and Air Mail’s wedding, I know. No, they have not planned much. Whirl is at Sweet Apple Acres if you want to talk to him about it.” Sunny said as he silently prayed that Whim would agree with him.
“I think I will do that, thanks for the information Sunny. Have a nice day and what not.” Whim said as he started to trot to Sweet Apple Acres.
Sunny let out a sigh of relief as he continued to work around town. “Just when I thought I wouldn’t have to talk about… that… again, somepony has to remind me of what I was.” He thought as he stopped at Fluttershy’s cottage. When he knocked on the door he was greeted by the same bunny that had helped them find the six before. “Well hello again little buddy, I don’t think I properly thanked you for all the help you gave Whirl and I. Thanks, is there anything I could do around here that could help Fluttershy out?”
Angel nodded and waved for Sunny to come inside. He hopped over to an empty bowl and pointed at it before making a gesture like he was eating something.
“You want something to eat little guy? Okay, I don’t see the harm in that. What do you want?”
Angel pulled out a book of salads and turned the pages to the right one before pointing to a glorious celery leaning tower.
“Oh my, that does seem like quite the challenge. Fluttershy won’t get mad at me for doing this right?”
Angel shrugged and shook his head.
“Well, if she asks I will tell her I owed you one. Now where does she keep her celery?” Sunny asked as he trotted to the kitchen. He swiftly got to work as he opened the cabinet holding Flutterhy’s fruits and vegetables, sticking one piece of celery to another with peanut butter as instructed. When it was finished it looked just like the picture, except for the fact that the picture looked like it was supposed to while Sunny’s looked like a bunch of celery stuck together with peanut butter.
Angel bunny fell on the floor laughing as he beheld the masterpiece of food that was in front of him.
“I’m sorry little buddy, I tried my best… I can try again if you…” Sunny started before he heard a munching sound.
Angel had already started to eat with a cute little smile on his face.
“Perfect, now I will clean up a bit around here.” Sunny said happily as he got to work. He only stopped for a moment when he heard a squeak and a clatter in the kitchen. He dropped everything he was doing and ran into the kitchen to find the celery all over the place. “What happened little buddy?”
Angel made a series of movements of him grabbing a piece of celery, then screaming in terror, and then making a crashing motion.
“You pulled out one from the bottom and it came crashing down on top of you? That’s terrible, now you are covered in peanut butter… I have never helped a bunny with a bath before but I can if you would like.”
With a nod Angel jumped up onto the counter and turned on the water to the sink.
****
“So, now that the barn is done being painted what do you want to do next?” Whirl asked with a smile as he took a sip of the apple juice Big Macintosh had gotten him.
“Ah think you have done enough to help me round here. Why don’t yall help somepony else with their work?”
“Well… I want to help you out as much as I can and…”
“Whirl! Hey Whirl Wind!” Whim called out as he ran up to the pair of ponies. “Hey, I ran into your double just a moment ago and he told me I could find you here. Why didn’t you tell me that you were getting married huh? I figured that I would be the second pony you told after Flare.”
“Hello Whim, I haven’t gotten around to telling every pony yet… Also, why are you here and not at the coronation?”
“I was going to go, but I decided to take the day off to rest and take in the silence of the town.”
“Ah’ll just get out of your way. Whirl, thanks for the help paintin’ the barn.” Big Macintosh said as he walked towards his next chore.
“No problem Big Macintosh, if you need more help you know where to find me.”
“So anyway, I figured I would help you with your wedding preparations.” Whim said happily.
Whirl’s expression perked up at Whim’s offer. “You are going to help me with my wedding? That would be great!”
“It’s settled then, firstly, where is the wedding going to be?”
“Here in Ponyville.”
“Right, where in Ponyville?”
“Well… Why not under the same tree Sonic Flare and Air Mail? That is a lovely place next to the lake and it has a bit of meaning for both of us.”
“Oh really? What significance does it have for you?”
“If I tell you, you can’t tell Sonic… he might take it wrong.”
“I promise.”
“Okay, I assume Sonic told you how he got his cutie mark, right?”
“Yes he did.”
“I saw the whole thing, the race against that bully, the crash, everything. After that day I flew to that tree and thought about that pony that crashed through the tree and straight into the ground. He inspired me to try skydiving out and it gained me my cutie mark. I never even introduced myself to Sonic when I lived in Cloudsdale, I was too shy… but I owe him a lot for inspiring me to get my own cutie mark.”
“Why would Sonic misunderstand that?”
“Because, after he crashed I didn’t help him… I didn’t defend him from the bullies or anything like that at all…”
“I am sure he…”
“Wouldn’t care at all because we are like brothers.” Sonic Flare suddenly interrupted.
Both Whirl and Whim jumped at his sudden appearance. “Flare! Wh-what are you doing here?”
“The foals are feeling a bit under the weather so we couldn’t go to the coronation. I was out trying to get some medicine but everywhere is closed. Do you have anything that might help?”
“Wait, so you don’t mind that I didn’t help you when you crashed?”
“Of course I don’t, I didn’t know you and you didn’t know me. It’s all good. But that isn’t important right now, do either of you have any medicine for my foals?”
“I have some, just in case you decided to bring them over for a visit and they got sick or something.” Whirl said with a smile.
“Sweet, I heard you two talking about wedding plans so I will let you two get to it.”
“Alright, the medicine is in my bathroom in the top drawer under the sink.” Whirl said as Flare took off.
“That was a bit awkward.” Whim stated with a neutral tone. “Anyway, let’s go get a bunch of things done for your wedding.”
“Ummm, Flare just said that everything is closed.”
“Doesn’t mean I can’t get the wedding stuff from my basement to get freshened up, come on.” Whim said happily as he started to trot to his home.
Whirl flapped his wings a followed along in a small hover. “Alright, this should be fun.”
“Indeed so, maybe we can get the old gang together for a game of hoofball like we did for Flare’s bachelor party.”
“Uhh, you mean the one where Flare and I kept the ball in the air the entire time so you and Thunder couldn’t get it?”
“Psh, this time it won’t be so unfair.”
“Let’s do the math on that one, at the most we can count on you, me, Flare and Sunny coming to the bachelor party ever since Thunder got his career going.”
“Three pegasi… great, this ought to be a fair match.”
“We can always agree on no wings, but you would have to content with me or Sunny kicking the ball through the net because we are too strong.”
“Riiight… maybe we can play some golf instead.”
Whirl laughed a bit. “That sounds much better.”
****
“Augh! No! Stay still! AHHHH! Stop it with the hose!” Sunny said with a laugh as Angel chased him around the kitchen with the water hose. “You are making such a mess! Ahh! HA HA! Now who has the hose huh?!” Sunny said as he managed to snatch the hose away. He chased Angel around the kitchen a bit before the hose suddenly turned off. Sunny peeked down the end of the hose to see if there was a jam, but he was greeted with a face full of water.
“You are supposed to be cleaning, not making more of a mess!” Derpy said with a giggle from the window. “Clean this up quickly and meet me outside, I have to ask you for some help.”
Sunny chuckled and started to mop up the huge mess that he and Angel had made in the kitchen. Angel helped a little bit by picking up random pieces of food that had fallen to the floor. When they were finished Sunny trotted outside to see Derpy talking to a bird that was sitting on her hoof as she held it up for the bird.
“What did you need help with?” Sunny asked with a smile.
“Well, Whirl is always doing sweet romantic things for me and I want to do something for him. So what I need from you is… well you know what he likes the most so…”
“I have the perfect thing for him. Follow me and I will explain.” Sunny said as he started to trot back to town.
Derpy followed along happily. “Thank you so much, I was having a hard time deciding on what to do for him.”
“You went to the right pony, I know him way better than anypony else. Now then, Whirl used to be a very closed pony so there is not much that will make him stop and look. Now don’t get me wrong, it is not that he isn’t observant, it is just that he has seen it all. Until today that is. Whirl never thought he would be in a relationship like this, ever, so we have to do something exciting and unexpected. There is one place just outside Ponyville I am sure Whirl has been avoiding, but it is the most important spot in the world for me… I mean him…”
“Really? Where would that be?”
“There is a willow tree near a lake not too far away from Ponyville where his entire life changed.”
“His entire life changed? How?”
“Weeeeelll… IsawFlarecrashintoatreeafteraraceagainstbulliesandwedidn’tdoanythingtohelpandwehavenevertoldhimbutheinspiredmetogetmycutiemark.” Sunny replied extremely fast.
“Whoa, what? You saw Flare crash into a tree and that inspired you to get your cutie mark? How does that work out?”
“It wasn’t the crash, it was what Flare was doing. He dropped straight down to that tree without hesitation and without blinking. It was so bold, so brave… when I tried it I loved it so much!”
“Awesome, that is twice today that I have heard that story, but you called me bold and brave.” Flare suddenly interrupted from behind them making them both jump in fright.
“Flare! What are you doing here?!” Sunny asked in a surprised tone.
“Well, I was just coming back from Whirl’s place with this bottle of baby medicine when I saw you two walking together. So I decided to drop in and say hello.”
“You could have said hello from in front of us!” Derpy said as she smacked Flare upside the head.
Flare rubbed his head with a wince of pain. “Ouch… you hit just as hard as Air does… What is with mailmares and smack strength?”
“Just follow through.” Derpy said as she raised her hoof to smack again making Flare flinch. She put her hoof down with a giggle. “Just kidding Flare.”
Flare chuckled a bit. “Well, I guess I will be off before you change your mind. It was nice running into you two despite to smack to the head.” Flare said as he took off for home.
Derpy and Sunny casually continued to walk towards their destination. “Flare scared the heck out of me. I wonder why Whirl told Flare about that day we saw him crash.”
“Flare must have manipulated him into telling him.” Derpy said with a giggle. “Whirl can be easy to manipulate sometimes.”
“I am not… I mean… he is not.” Sunny said with a chuckle as he corrected himself.
“I bet you I can get you to look back at me.”
“I bet you can’t.”
“How much do you want to bet?”
“Fifty bits.”
“Deal.” Derpy said confidently.
Sunny let out a chuckle. “She will never get me to…” suddenly he heard something thud onto the ground that made him jump in fright. He quickly turned around to see Derpy on the ground with her eyes closed. “Oh my gosh! Derpy are you okay?!” Sunny said as he held up Derpy’s head.
Derpy smiled and gently tapped her hoof on Sunny’s face. “Really fine now that I am fifty bits richer.”
Sunny dropped Derpy and bashed his head against the nearest tree leaving an indent. “I… fail… so… much…” he said as he bashed his head against the tree some more.
Derpy started to laugh uncontrollably as she rolled on the ground. “Too easy! Way too easy!”
Sunny hit his head one more time and left it against the tree. “I can’t believe I fell for that! I am a gullible fool!”
“Aww, Sunny you aren’t that gullible, you are just a very kind pony who doesn’t assume anything. You prefer making sure that you are right so that you learn.”
“No, I am just too trusting! Maybe I shouldn’t trust anypony anymore! I should just go back to the forest and stay away from everypony!” Sunny yelled angrily as he kicked the tree.
Derpy grew a bit concerned as Sunny grew even angrier. “Sunny, it was just a joke…”
“A joke?! A JOKE?! I AM EVERYPONY’S PUNCHLINE NOW?!”
“No, Sunny I…” Derpy said softly as she started to back away.
Sunny’s face suddenly brightened up and he let out a laugh. “You should see the look on your face! Priceless!” he said as his laugh grew louder.
“Alright, I deserve that one.” Derpy said with a smirk as she walked up to him. “We are even now though, so stop it… you scared me.”
“That was the point.” Sunny said as he started to trot along with a bounce in his step.
Derpy followed along with a smile. “You just taught me something important about Whirl you know. Now I know not to fall for any fake anger tricks.”
“Well, he might not try that. I only did it because I have a different past that makes fake anger work well.”
“I see… I will still keep my guard up though.”
“I can tell you right now that he will never get angry at you. He might get angry at other things, maybe, but never angry at you.”
“I am sure if I tried I can get him angry if I wanted him to.”
“No, you would just make him sad because the first thing he would assume is that he did something to make you stop loving him.”
“Really? Is he that sensitive about it?”
Sunny stopped in his tracks and sighed. “Listen, I may be his brother but he would murder me without hesitation if I did anything to hurt you. If the princesses suddenly wanted your eyes back the way they were Whirl would tell them to change his also. If you got sick and you were stuck in bed he would serve your every need even if it seemed ridiculous to him. He would travel the world to find you the best kind of tea if you asked him to. There is nothing in this world that would stop him from keeping you safe and happy.” He said with a half-smile.
Derpy wiped a tear away from her eye. “Wow… that is so sweet.” She said as more tears poured from her eyes.
Suddenly Sunny felt himself being tackled to the ground. He tried to turn over to see who it was but he was being held down firmly. Sunny heard Derpy gasp and try to say something but a voice drowned over hers. “What did you do to her to make her cry?!” Whirl yelled angrily.
Sunny let out a sigh and didn’t struggle. “I was just telling her that you would do what you are doing now if anypony ever tried to hurt her.”
“Whirl, he wasn’t being mean. He just told me how much you loved me and it just made me feel so good that it made me cry, that’s all.” Derpy said as she moved Whirl off of Sunny.
Whirl was blushing intensely. “Oppse… Sunny I’m sorry… I just… well you know…”
Sunny got up and dusted himself off. “It’s alright, but trust me when I say I would never intentionally make Derpy cry. I didn’t even mean to do it accidently, I just told her what I knew.”
“Still, I acted without thinking. Just let me know if I can make it up to you.” Whirl said sincerely.
“What are the odds of us all being here at this tree?” Flare suddenly asked making everypony there jump.
Air looked around at all the ponies with a smile. “What are you all doing at our favorite picnic spot?” she said as the foals cooed.
“Well, Whirl and I were planning his wedding and where he wanted it to take place.” Whim said with a smile.
“Sunny was showing me the tree that Whirl finds inspiring.” Derpy said with a giggle as she played with the foals in their holders. “They are so cute!”
“Well, we didn’t bring enough food for everypony but we would enjoy the company.” Flare said kindly as he took the picnic basket off of his back.
Air had unstrapped the foals and the started to run around playing. “Now you two stay by the tree at all times!” she called out as they were playing. “Derpy, could you keep an eye on those two for me while Flare and I set up the picnic?”
“No problem! I love little foals!” Derpy said happily as she started to play with the foals.
Whirl walked over to Derpy and laid down on the grass near her while she played. Sunny walked over to Whim with a smile. “So he picked here huh? This is where I would have chosen also.”
“Well, I could have guessed that. We just got done getting out all of the wedding supplies we used at Flare’s wedding and cleaning them up. I think this is going to be as wonderful as the last wedding.”
“I can’t wait to see it. Hey, do you want to swim for a while, the lake is calling to me right now.”
Whim shook his head. “No thank you, I would rather just relax for a little while before heading home to tend to my rock farm.”
Sunny shrugged. “Suit yourself, I am going to do a crazy dive from that cloud.” He said as he took off.
Whirl watched as Derpy played with the little foals with joy. He always imagined that he would a good father but he never thought he would ever get the chance because of how shy he was. Derpy looked over to Whirl with a smile. “You going to play too or just watch?”
“I think I will just watch. I am a bit big to play with foals…” Whirl said nervously.
“Just be gentle and you will be fine. Do you two want to play with Whirl?” Derpy asked the foals in a funny tone. The little foals clopped their hooves on the floor happily and laughed. “See, they want to hang out with uncle Whirl.”
“Actually, he is more like their godfather; if he wants to be a godfather that is.” Flare said happily.
Whirl nodded happily. “Of course! I would be honored to be their godfather.”
“Great! That settles that then, come on babies let’s get some food.” Flare said as he picked up his foals and flew over to their picnic blanket.
“Hey Whirl! Come on up here!” Sunny shouted from his cloud.
Whirl looked at Derpy who nodded in approval before he took off to see what Sunny wanted. “What’s up Sunny?” he asked as he settled down on the cloud next to him.
“This is the first time we have two divers that know the exact same moves, we need to do… the epic dive!”
“What?! We haven’t even practiced that!”
“We both know what to do though! Come on, I’ll take the left if you get the right!”
Whirl thought about it for a moment. “Alright, but if something goes wrong you are going to be the one strangled by Derpy.”
“Deal. Alright, one… two… three!”
Both Whirl and Sunny jumped off the cloud and spiraled into a helix at each other’s back. They touched back to back as they hit the water and they both pulled up quickly funneling water behind them as they surfaced. When the water fell behind them they landed at the edge of the lake and hoof bumped.
“That was awesome! I can’t believe it worked!” Sunny said happily.
The little foals were cheering and laughing happily and everypony else was clapping. “Way to go you two!” Derpy cheered happily as she jumped into a hug with Whirl. Whirl hugged her back and held her tightly as he jumped backwards into the lake. He gave her a quick kiss before swimming up to the surface with her.
Derpy bopped him on the head gently. “I didn’t say I wanted to swim Whirl.” She said playfully as she splashed him.
Whirl laughed. “You didn’t say you didn’t want to swim.”
“Fair enough, now I am going to dunk you.” Derpy said as she jumped on Whirl and held him under the water.
Whirl smirked because he knew exactly what to do. He slowly released bubbles from his nose as she held him under and stopped when she let him go. Water was his training ground as he had practiced his helix moves under it for a while in Manehatten and the most important thing he learned was how to hold his breath under water for quite a while. He floated face down in the water for two minutes before Derpy started to poke him.
“Whirl? Whirl stop joking…” she said as she shook him a bit.
Sunny was holding his hooves over his mouth as Flare ran into the water to help Whirl to shore. Derpy was starting to panic as they struggled to pull him onto the shore. Whirl was waiting for Derpy to perform CPR and was going to use the opportunity to make it up to Derpy with a kiss. When he felt a pair of lips meet his he wrapped his hooves around her head and kissed her deeply, or so he thought. He heard Sunny laughing ridiculously hard and he opened his eyes to see Flare struggling to get away. Whirl shoved him off and started to scream, as did Flare. Flare ran over to his picnic basket and pulled out an apple juice and started to swish it around in his mouth while everypony else was laughing. Whirl dunked his head into the lake and started to swash it around wildly. Sunny was almost out of breath as he heaved to breath after laughing so hard. Whirl pulled his head out of the water and started to scream even more.
Derpy gently floated over to Whirl and gave him a deep passionate kiss. Whirl calmed down rather quickly and snapped out of it to return her kiss. “Awww, that is so sweet… come here Flare.” Air said as she pulled him into a kiss also.
Whim and Sunny looked at each other and shook their heads. “Well, I am off. See you all… oh never mind…” he said as he was ignored by the ponies making out in front of him. “Sunny, let them know I went home. It was nice being able to talk to somepony about the war from the other side of the fence.”
Sunny let out a grunt. “Listen, Whim… I really hate talking about the war at all so… can we please never talk about it again… ever.”
Whim’s expression turned to worry. “Oh, I am sorry. I didn’t realize it was a sensitive topic.”
Sunny slammed his hoof down. “Didn’t realize it?! Sombra made me KILL my family! What part of that wouldn’t make you think that it wasn’t a sensitive topic?!”
Whim backed down a bit. “Right… well… I’m sorry about all this… I didn’t mean any offence or anything.”
Sunny sighed and put a hoof to his forehead. “Look… I am not really mad at you. Just… thinking about what happened after I keep working to get it out of my mind doesn’t make me happy. I can barely decide if I am still friends with anypony. I know Whirl is my friend, as is Derpy but… I can’t help but think that everypony else thinks I am a different pony entirely.”
“Well, I guess I know you as well as I do Whirl… I suppose that we are friends.” Whim said with a smile.
“Well, at least I have one. Thanks Whim.” Sunny said as he put out a hoof to shake.
“Quite.” Whim said as he shook Sunny’s hoof. “I’ll just be off then. Have a great day.” He said as he trotted off to home.
Sunny waved goodbye to Whim and then turned his attention to the others who had, at last, stopped making out. They were, however, cuddling and nuzzling one another as they sat there and basked in the sun. “I think I’ll… get back to work then.” Sunny said to see if he would get a response. When they didn’t respond at all he simply shrugged and took off to the sky to continue his work. He soon found himself at Sugar Cube corner wiping the windows inside and out humming a tune as he scrubbed. “This may be work, but it is quite fun.” He thought to himself as he flew up to the next window.
“Just when I thought you couldn’t get any worse…” a feminine voice echoed in Sunny’s head.
Sunny stopped scrubbing and looked around. “Hello? Is anypony there?” he asked loudly as he hovered in front of the window.
“What, you don’t recognize my voice? I am a bit upset about that. Turn around so we can talk face to face.”
Sunny turned around and looked at the window. In place of his reflection was a dark grey unicorn mare with red glowing eyes. “Who are you?”
“I? I am your friend remember? Or has that part of you been lost General?”
Sunny’s heart skipped a beat. “What did you call me?”
“Surely you remember your prestigious title of general under the command of King Sombra. I assume you do. You never made our little rendezvous we had planned after you escaped the mind of that wretched pegasus. I can’t believe you pushed me out so easily.”
Sunny had no idea what she was talking about, but he knew that if she followed Sombra she would be dangerous. “What rendezvous are you talking about? Where were we going to meet?”
“What have they done to you? You think that changing your coat and mane, then getting rid of the greatest gift Sombra ever gave you would change who you really are? You are wrong; you are still under his control, therefore… I COMMAND YOU OBEY ME!” the mare shouted as her horn started to glow.
Sunny’s head felt like it was splitting open and he fell to the ground. The mare’s eyes started to glow with more intensity and her voice boomed inside of Sunny’s head. “Stop! What are you doing?!”
“Accept your fate! You are Sombra’s minion and nothing more!”
Sunny was starting to feel weak as he struggled to maintain control. “I… AM… NOT… GOING… BACK!” he shouted as he started to stand.
The mare’s horn lit up with more intensity and Sunny was forced to his knees. “There, there… it will all be over soon…”
“NO! NOOOOO!” Sunny yelling in a darker tone.
Whirl had left Derpy and the other in order to help Sunny clean up. As he flew over town he saw Sunny kneeling in front of Sugar Cube Corner. He swooped down and as he got closer he could tell something was wrong as he saw Sunny fall to his side writhing on the ground. “Sunny!” Whirl shouted in panic as a red circle formed under Sunny.
“WHIRL! NO! AUGH! HELP! SOMBRA! AHHHHHH!” Sunny shouted before he vanished in a blinding red light.
Whirl landed where Sunny was just a moment ago and dug at the ground. “Sunny! Sunny! No! Please Celestia no!” he yelled frantically.