//------------------------------// // June 8: Welcome Home // Story: Seven Days in Sunny June, Book III // by Shinzakura //------------------------------// If there was one thing that could describe Sunset right now, “jittery” would be that word. Right now the girl was practically vibrating enough to set off the San Andreas Fault, and more importantly was acting like a long-lost twin of Pinkie Pie. “Sunny!” Octavia snarled in a mock-angry tone. “Calm down, would you?” “I can’t help it,” the flame-haired girl replied. “I’m just…I dunno, nervous.” “You act as though you’ve never had to wait for someone to come back before.” Sunset rolled her eyes. “That’s because I’ve never had to wait for someone to come back before, remember?” Embarrassed by her comment, Octavia turned away. Evening, however, stepped in. Patting Sunset on the shoulder, he said, “Yeah, it never gets any easier than this, believe me. I remember a few times when my brothers and I used to wait for Dad to come back from various business trips he went on. And between the first time and the hundredth time, it sticks with you. Even when you’re perpetually at an airport like Ballad and I are, there’s still something about waiting for your loved ones that never gets easier. But you know what?” he asked, turning her around to look into her eyes and give her a comforting smile, “It’s not any easier being on that plane waiting to come back to you.” “Really?” A light of hope flashed in Sunset’s cyan eyes. “Sunny! Tavi!” What happened next was the kind of thing usually only seen with romantic comedies in mind. A teenager, her long, plum-hued hair trailing past her as she ran with gleeful abandon, tackled two other girls, who had just realized something had changed. As the trio clattered to the ground, both Sunset and Octavia felt themselves squeezed tighter to the jubilant music of Twilight’s hyper-excited squeals. “I missed you two sooooo much!” Twilight cooed, various passersby in the airport looking at the trio and wondering what was going on, even as Twilight unabashedly continued to embrace both Sunset and Octavia while the three remained splayed on the terminal’s floor. Sunset didn’t know how to describe any of it, but everything she’d been through up until now made this moment perfect: seeing Twilight’s clear, bright eyes once more, the smile on her face genuine and her personality back to normal. It made all of her fears, troubles and willingness to sacrifice everything for the girl she considered her sister to be worth every bit. Giving Twilight a wide, smile, Sunset embraced Twilight back and said in a genuinely joyful tone, “Welcome home, sis.” “Twily, would you mind letting them get up?” a voice, caught in the middle of a laugh, said. Sunset looked up and saw Velvet standing there, mirth in her eyes. “I’d give you a hello hug, Sunny,” the matriarch said warmly, “but you’re a bit tied up.” At that note, Twilight let go of Sunset and the latter responded immediately, hugging the remainder of her returning family, Spike included – though, of course, he complained about it. “Oh, you have no idea how much I missed you guys!” she said as she hugged Velvet and Night in turn. “Sunny, you’re acting like you haven’t seen us in forever,” Night said, embracing his foster daughter. “We’ve only been gone a week.” “Trust me, it really feels more like two,” Sunset replied. “But it’s good to have you all home…? Say, where’s Shiny and Cady?” “They’re staying an extra week so he can meet the rest of extended family,” Velvet explained. “Besides, that way Armonia can probably spend the week talking Cady into nixing some of my suggestions,” the matriarch grumbled. “There, there, dear – I don’t think Cady would do that,” he told her, patting her lovingly on the shoulder. “Well, I don’t want to stay here forever, so let’s go get our bags and go home then we can go to a restaurant somewhere and eat.” Evening looked at his brother, impishness in his eyes. “So, what, Bucca? Maggiano’s?” It was Spike that answered. “Anywhere but Italian – I’m totally pizza’d out!” Hours later, they were at the Chinese Room in downtown Canterlot, with the conversation in full swing. Sunset excitedly listened to her family and their adventures in Italy and was already feeling somewhat down that she hadn’t gone. But that paled in comparison to seeing her family sitting right at the table from her, something she cherished more than anything. And right now, Velvet was regaling everyone with a tale of woe: “And so there Shiny was, trying to remember what little Italian Cady had taught him, and neither she nor Armonia were around at the moment. So he decides at that point to start speaking in Spanish, never mind the fact that the museum tour guide spoke English!” Everyone at the table started laughing, and to Sunset, it was the sweetest sound she’d ever heard. “And the moment our tour guide spoke English, you should’ve seen the look on his face, especially since that was the moment that Cady came back!” Sunset’s phone suddenly chirped as a text came in, and without even looking, she knew who it was. Yes, she’s back, Sunset texted back to Pinkie. Less than a second later, the response came in: Can I say hi? She’s not answering my texts. She didn’t take her phone, Sunset replied back, and she probably left it back at home to charge. Then pass her your phone so I can say hi! Pinkie, later, okay? Sunset typed, her fingers moving a little faster due to her irritation. Pinkie was one of her closest friends, but seriously, was it so wrong that she wanted to spend time with just her family? Oh, okay, the response came back a second later. I’ll be right there, then! Sunset wondered for a split-second what Pinkie meant until she heard a voice behind her. “Hi guys!” Sunset turned around to see Pinkie standing right there, a huge smile on her face. Sunset tried hard not to facepalm. “You did not just—” “Uh-huh!” she said, waving her aunt and uncle over. “Pound and Pumpkin are at a friend’s place, so we thought we’d go out for dinner tonight!” Pinkie then whispered off-handedly to Sunny, “Sssh! Secretly, Minnie’s babysitting, but the twins don’t need to know that!” She then returned to her normal chirpy voice and proceeded to bear hug Twilight from behind. “Hi! Miss me?” “I can’t if I’m not breathing!” Twilight, caught off-guard from having been surprised from behind, gasped. “Oh, sorry! Hi, Tavi!” Another quick hug followed. “Hi, Mr. Light, hi Mrs. Velvet, hi Mr. Sonnet, hi Mrs. Ballad and, oh, yeah, Spike, too!” “Hello, Pinkie,” Night responded, then looked at Cup and Carrot. “Hello, Cup, Carrot. Care to join us? We just got here ourselves.” “We wouldn’t want to be a both—” Cup began but immediately stopped as Evening signaled for a waiter to connect another table for the new arrivals. As the waiters scrambled to meet the need, Cup smiled. “In that case, thank you all; we’d love to. I understand you just came back from Italy?” Velvet nodded. “In fact, we were just discussing that. I think you would love the place if you ever got the chance to go there. I think in particular you would’ve loved some of the recipes we came across, Cup.” “Really?” While the adults focused on their part of the conversation, Twilight scooted over a bit so Pinkie could sit next to her. “So, how was Italy?” she asked. “I….” Twilight suddenly quieted down, and the three teens around her leaned in. “I…uh….” “Look, Twily, you don’t have to talk about this if you don’t want to,” Octavia said, placing a gentle hand on her cousin’s own. “I’m fine,” she replied. “It’s just….” “Just?” Pinkie asked. “Just…well, it was….” Twilight looked as though she struggled with words to describe it. “It was…nice.” “Nice? That’s all you’re going to say?” Octavia cried. “Tavi, please, just let her finish,” Sunset replied. She then turned to Twilight and said, “Take all the time you need, Twily. We’re listening.” A soft smile came over the plum-haired girl’s face as she said, “Thanks, Sunny.” She closed her eyes, focused, and then began. “I spent most of it asleep, to be honest. Cady and I did some shopping, and we got to see some of the sites and museums. Also got to see Shiny fail at trying to speak to the locals and the food was great, though I am a little Italianed out right now.” “Well, I think you’re at the right place to have that problem solved,” the waitress said as she started passing out the menus. Hours later and great dinner and conversation afterwards, they’d returned home. Everyone went to bed early, since they had to get adjusted to the massive shift in time zones, and after hugging each of them goodnight – Spike included – Sunset stayed up just long enough to do her homework, and then clambered into bed herself. It felt great to be back in her own room, though she’d have to go over her aunt and uncle’s tomorrow to get her stuff from the spare bedroom. But now, twenty minutes after she’d gone to bed, she felt the loneliness creep in. I’m by myself for twenty minutes and I already feel alone, all because I haven’t seen my family in one – or two, maybe – weeks. I went through hell for them…and I’d do it all again. She raised her hand into the air, looking at it from a distance of an arm’s length. I’m comfortable now. I’m comfortable both as a pony and as a human, though I’ll probably spend the rest of my days as the latter. But now that they were back and Twilight was okay…she had to tell them the truth. She loved them and they were her family, so they would understand, right? Yeah, understand that even now, I’m still lying to them and that I’m not even human. Hell, that if some cartoons like Family Guy are correct, I’m probably the family pet. I have to tell them, she decided. Even if they hate me and never want to see me again, I have to tell them. I love them and I owe them that much. Although…if I never see them again…. Her eyes began to sting with the precursor of tears at that thought. It was interrupted, however, by a knock on the door. Instantly, Sunset’s heart soared. She didn’t have to ask who it was. She didn’t even have to tell Twilight to open it. Sure enough, Twilight stood there at the door. “Thought you could use some company,” she said with a smile. In response, Sunset just scooted over, then patted the empty spot on the bed. Twilight immediately crawled in, snuggling next to Sunset. “You know, I thought about you a lot while we were gone,” Twilight said to the flame-haired girl. “Really? Thought you were asleep?” Twilight turned and looked at the ceiling. “Most of it, yeah. And I was so afraid of that…thing coming to get me in my dreams. But then the first night, I closed my eyes and was about to be attacked again…and then you showed up in my dreams.” “I did?” Twilight’s smile was wide as she nodded. “And then you shouted at the thing, ‘You’re not going to touch my sister ever again!’ and then you pulled out an orange lightsaber—” “An orange lightsaber? I thought there were only red, green and blue ones?” “Hey, dream, remember? Anyway, you fought the thing to a standstill in my dream, and then you went over to me, hugged me and promised me that you would always protect me.” Twilight closed her eyes in peace as she added, “And then every time I went to sleep after that, I had the same dream, and it would always end the same, until the last night.” “The last night?” Sunset asked, curious. That had been when she laid the final spell pattern, and instead of taking an hour, Nimble Nebula’s Nonpareil Nightmare Nullifier had only taken a split-second to cast…and without even needing charge gems, either. “Yeah. The last night, instead of pulling out your lightsaber, you just pointed your hands at the thing and…I know this is going to sound funny, but you threw a hadōken and lit the thing on fire until it burned away into nothing. And then you….” Twilight suddenly blushed. “I what?” “You…kissed me on the forehead and said that it was the duty of older sisters to look out for the younger, and that I needed to sleep it off. And then I woke up, and I felt, well…refreshed. Does that make sense?” Sunset gave Twilight a long, understanding smile before saying, “Twily, you never make any sense.” “Gee, thanks.” “Yeah.” A second later, Sunset spoke again. “Uh, Twily?” “Yes?” “I….” You’ll lose her if you tell her the truth, Sunset’s conscience spoke. Sunset was absolutely sure that wasn’t going to be the case, right? She and Twilight were sisters, a pair, part of this family, right? Until she finds out you’re no different in shape than the unicorn plushie you gave her. “Er…nevermind,” Sunset replied. Instead, the flame-haired girl bent over and gave Twilight a kiss on the forehead. “Now go do what I said and get some sleep, okay?” “Hey, I’m fine. And besides, that was just the dream you, not the real you.” “Well, the real me’s saying it now, okay?” Twilight smiled. “Okay, if you insist.” She yawned, and then yawned a barely-audible “Night,” before cuddling up closer to Sunset and falling asleep. Sunset reached over and pulled Twilight closer to her. Twilight, who was sixteen years old and still acted like she was eight, with sleepovers and doing innocent things that seemed borderline incestuous to anyone else. Twilight, who was honest and sincere with how she felt and acted, treating Sunset with nothing less than love and friendship since the first day. Twilight, who acknowledged Sunset as a sister before Sunset herself had come to the realization. Twilight, who Sunset had gone back to her birthworld to defend, and would do so again, even if Celestia had genuinely wanted to kill her; thankfully, that had not been the case. But even if it meant that Sunset would have to face the full wrath of an enraged goddess, there would be no hesitation, even if it meant sacrificing herself. After all, that had been the situation as she had known it when she dared enter Cavalcanti’s mirror back to her world of origin. And she wouldn’t pause at doing it again if needed. Sunset reached over and pulled Twilight closer, and whispered, “I love you, sis.” Then, comfortable, both sisters fell asleep. The following day, Sunset and Rainbow were at summer school, and chatting as they waited for their next class to start. “So, how’s Twily?” Rainbow asked. “She’s doing okay,” Sunset chirped with a beaming smile. “She’s back to normal. She’ll be at the barbeque we’re having over at Flutters’. She brought us all a bunch of stuff from Italy – wouldn’t even let me have mine until then, because she wanted it to be a surprise.” “Really?” A curious look came over Rainbow’s face. “Now I have to wonder what she got us. Maybe she got us jerseys from ACF Fiorentina? They’re the main soccer team there.” Sunset rolled her eyes. “You have soccer on the brain, Rainbow.” “Hey, can you blame me? I am the best soccer player that ever lived, you know.” “I thought that was Pele.” “He was okay, but I’m sure he didn’t have my style.” “Rainbow, I’m from another world where nobody knows what soccer is. Given that I know about him, maybe that’s an indicator that you might be a little out of your league on this?” “Naaah, I got this,” Rainbow said, coolly. Sunset couldn’t help but laugh at that. Ego uber alles, that was Rainbow, for sure. Funny that her otherworldly equivalent was just as bad, but then again, Sunset knew that her Rainbow would probably not have a single clue about what cloudball was. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. So what’s your next class?” Rainbow groaned. “World History with Mr. Kibbitz. You?” “Uh…Algebra 2 with his kid.” Though there was no family resemblance, everyone knew that Ms. Raven, the algebra and calculus teacher, was the daughter of Mr. Kibbitz. Ms. Raven had decided to teach in Equestria County once she got her degree in education, and had the luck of the draw working at the same school where her father was still a teacher and where she’d once been a student herself. “Sunny! Oh thank God I found you!” Lyra shouted as she rushed up, running like crazy. “I totally forgot my homework! Can I copy yours?” Sunset blinked. “Uh, Lyra, for one, class starts in ten minutes. Second, ‘forgot your homework’? You never forget your homework!” “Yeah! You might get all the questions wrong, but you never forget your homework!” Rainbow laughed while withstanding a glare from the teenage musician. “Seriously, Lyra, Rainbow’s right,” Sunset replied. “So what really happened?” Lyra blushed. “Would it be wrong to say that Bonnie spent the weekend with me because my parents were out of town?” Both girls looked at the celeste-and-ivory haired girl wide-eyed, and she grinned. “She might’ve been mad at first, Sunny, but now we can’t thank you enough for all that Sweetie Drop business.” “Uh, Lyra you—” “Moaned like the Haunted Mansion down in Disneyland,” Lyra said softly, her blush coming to the fore again. “I…I didn’t need to hear that,” Rainbow said. “I’m…uh…I gotta go to class.” Lyra looked at Sunset. “Please?” “Wait…didn’t Bonnie break her hand?” “I’m…not going to get into that.” Sunset rolled her eyes. “I don’t want to know,” she said, reaching for her homework. “You’ve got five minutes.” Two women with chiffon-hued hair sat at the breakfast table, idly chatting and almost looking like a literal portrayal of somebody talking to themselves. The third member of their family had decided he was sleeping in this morning and so his bowl of Trix sat untouched, awaiting the young child’s eventual predation. “So your barbeque is tonight?” Posey asked. Fluttershy nodded. “Rainbow said she’ll be over right after summer school to help me get ready for it…though….” Posey recognized the pause in her daughter’s words. “Though?” she echoed. “Do…do you think that the grill will hurt the birds and the squirrels?” the teen asked, nervously looking out the kitchen window to the backyard of the house; a copse of dawn redwood saplings sat by the perimeter fence; beyond that were a variety of other trees, all of which were host to the native fauna. “Won’t smoke get in—” A smile came onto Posey’s face. “Dear, we have a gas grill.” “So?” “Gas grills don’t smoke as much as charcoal ones do. I mean, they still do, don’t get me wrong, but they’re not as, er, smoky.” “Oh. I didn’t know that about gas grills.” “Yes, it was something I picked up from your father.” As the words tumbled out of her mouth, Posey’s mind filled with nostalgia; she’d been scarcely older when she’d met the man she’d fallen in love with and given her two wonderful children to cherish. And even though it was years since he’d played a regular role in their lives, the bittersweet memories at least ranged far more on the sweet side than the bitter. Meanwhile, Fluttershy went over her list. “Let’s see: I still need to make another run to the store to get enough stuff…I wonder if I should wait until Rainbow arrives, or….” She looked back at her mother. “Did you want me to make that pasta salad you like?” “As much as I would love it, I’m probably going to have to work late that night due to complications with Mrs. Mix’s case. Just save me something and I’ll eat as soon as I get home. Also, did you want me to call Mrs. Spice and see if Angel can stay over there?” Fluttershy smiled. “We have it covered, Mom: Twily and Sunny are bringing their younger brother with them. I’m sure Angel and Spike will get along…and if not, then we’ll just put them in front of a videogame system and that should keep them busy.” “That’s good, dear, though I hope that you’ll keep them away from the violent content. I’d hate to make a bad impression on your friends.” “It’s okay Mom, everything will be fine,” Fluttershy insisted. “It’s mostly just going to be me and the girls welcoming Twily back from her vacation in Italy. Besides, Sunny says she could use the comfort after everything that’s happened to her.” “I recall that. Is she okay?” Posey asked. “I don’t know – she only got back yesterday. I think Pinkie’s talked to her since but it sounds like Twily’s not being very talkative about it.” “Yes, sounds like another young woman I know,” the matron said archly. When Fluttershy looked at Posey, the latter sighed and added, “You know what I’m talking about, sweetie.” The look on the teen’s face went from confused to reluctant. “This is something I need to figure out for myself, Mother,” she insisted. “Dear, it wasn’t all that long ago that you were telling me regularly about the bully who harassed you and your friends, and that all she really needed in the end was someone to care about her. And now Sunset’s one of your closest friends, right?” Fluttershy nodded, and Posey continued. “That’s what friends are for: to always help you when you needed it. The others were there when you were being bullied by Sunset, you were all there during this past year for Sunset, and I guarantee all your friends will be there for you if you talk to them about your issues with your father.” The look on Fluttershy’s face was one of hesitation. “Mom, I—” “Trust me on this – older, wiser, you know? And it’s not like I haven’t been through your issue before. Did I ever tell you about how my friends were when I met your father?” “No, I don’t think so.” In fact, that was true; while Posey had pretty much covered just about every detail regarding her premarital years with Fluttershy’s father, how Posey’s friends reacted was a new wrinkle in the tapestry. “Well, you know how your grandparents reacted – your grandfather wanted to kill him, while your grandmother was afraid I was going to go off and ditch medical school. Thankfully, cooler heads in the form of my friends intervened. Redheart was always there for me, while Majesty and Brightstar insisted that if he was what I really wanted – what my heart cried out for – then it was my responsibility to choose it and make it work. And all of that led to you and Angel, and I wouldn’t change a thing in the world,” she said as she embraced Fluttershy. “You two are my life, and I love you both.” “Thanks, Mom.” A thoughtful look crossed Fluttershy’s features. “So you think I should tell my friends?” “Without a doubt,” Posey replied, nodding. “You have wonderful friends and far better ties to them than I did to mine when I was your age. Truthfully, I’m a little envious of your little tight-knit group.” “They’ll hate me for it.” “No they won’t…and if some reason they do, they don’t deserve to be your friends.” Fluttershy closed her eyes as if in thought, as if considering all the ramifications. “Okay,” she finally said. “I…really don’t feel comfortable about it, but if you think it’s for the best….” “Trust me, sweetie: your friends will help you through this. It’s just like your father once said, ‘Friends are who you sail with, hail with and end up in jail wit—’” Fluttershy looked choleric. “I did not need that image!” And as Posey just giggled in response, Fluttershy gave her mother an annoyed stare until she just sighed and picked up the dishes from the breakfast table. “Are you sure about this?” Fleur asked as she looked at Coco. To say she was concerned was an understatement: Coco, even though now a teenager, was still somewhat of a naïve young girl, and Fleur always felt it was her business to look out for her boyfriend’s sister. As she and Fancy had been an item since junior high, she’d very much watched Coco grow up, and in many ways felt that Coco was the younger sister she never had, seeing as Fleur was an only child. “I’m fine. But thanks for worrying about me, Fleur!” Coco replied, a huge smile on her face. “It’s the least I can do, Coco! I was just…well, I’m meeting some friends here for brunch myself, and since you needed a ride, I….” “Yes, and I heard Fancy beg you to take me,” the younger girl replied with a tease. Fleur gave an askance look at Coco. “You are just way too precocious for your age, you know that?” As the pair approached the maître d’, Crackle waved to Coco for come over; she was with a slightly older girl with her lavender hair done up in a stylish manner. Both had smiles on their face and based on that, Coco figured that the other girl was Crackle’s older half-sister, Suri Polomare. “Well, that’s my table over there,” Coco said to both the host and Fleur, “so that should be fine.” “Okay, if you’re sure….” The tone in Fleur’s voice was one of uncertainty, but Coco merely thought it to be the older girl’s pseudo-big sis instincts kicking in again. “I’ll be fine. Crackle’s my best friend and I’m sure she wouldn’t steer me wrong. Besides, it’s not like she’s going to hurt me.” With that, Coco waved farewell to Fleur, walking towards the table with the other two girls. That’s what I’m afraid of, Coco, Fleur thought to herself as the maître d’ led the teen to her own table. Now was not the time to face down Suri, even though Fleur had verbally tussled with her over various issues prior; instead, now was the time to make her own stand and hope that she was doing the right thing for her legacy at Zacherle. She would face Suri much later. After a few seconds, the host led Fleur to a small table by the window, where Champagne sat. She was sipping from a glass of sparkling water and admiring the outdoor garden the view afforded. As Fleur sat, Champagne looked at her and smile. “Well, running a little late, Fleur?” Fleur groaned; seemingly an out-of-character reaction for the refined girl, but Champagne was her best friend and one of the few people she had no problem letting her hair down around. “Suri Polomare’s up to something, Chammie, and she has Coco involved somehow.” “Coco? Why on Earth would she even bother with someone the likes of Suri? Seriously, I have never met a bitch any crazier than Suri Polomare. The girl’s all ‘I’m fucking a senator’s son, so that’s the next step before world domination!’” Like Fleur, Champagne was more than happy to be less guarded around her best friend, and a casual onlooker would have been surprised to see the two uncouth ladies that just happened to look like the recently-graduated chaste and proper divas of Zacherle Academy. “Well, if what your plan is, I think we’ll have someone to put her and her clique in their place,” Fleur said, grinning as she picked up the menu. “But are you sure we can do it?” “I don’t see why not. After all, the position of school diva is hardly conventional. It’s not a part of the student council, and yet at the same time, it holds just as much authority. Basically, it was a way of neutralizing the concept of the school queen bee and harnessing it for good. Half the things that we got away with as divas we couldn’t do at other schools, because the equivalent concept is a radically different beast.” Fleur let out an appreciative whistle. “Well, you were always the smart one of us.” Champagne rolled her eyes. “Says the girl who had just as high grades as me. Anyway, I did some researching and found that it doesn’t always have to go to a senior; the position can go to whomever the outgoing divas find to be qualified replacements, so long as the school agrees.” “If we choose anyone other than seniors, they’re going to think we’re holding a grudge,” Fleur pointed out. “Nope, history is on our side. Back in 1965, in order to show support for school desegregation, the two divas at the time, Summer Sunshine and Placid Night, made two incoming black girls the school divas. They had it hard, according to reports, but in the end, Honey Lemonade and Blazing Comet became some of the most beloved and respected divas in the history of the sch—” “Wait – Mrs. Lemonade was a diva?” Fleur looked at her friend with surprise; the school principal was chubby, squat and reminded the teen model more of her grandmother than a diva. “Yes. And in fact, I happened to run into her yesterday at the mall and floated my plan to her. She likes the idea.” “Well, honestly, I can’t think of anybody better to fill the job. I certainly wouldn’t want someone like Suri Polomare or Vain Looks to be a diva.” “Then it’s settled,” Champagne said with a grin. “Now all we have to do is just talk to Twilight and Octavia and see if they’ll accept.” “Thanks for joining us!” Suri said cheerfully to Coco as she walked up to the table. “Crackle was just telling me about her wonderful friend and I felt extremely bad for not meeting you before, so please, accept my apologies.” “Oh, no, thank you for inviting me!” Coco replied as she sat down. “Crackle has told me time and time again about her big sister and I feel bad myself that we’ve never met. Anyway, I’m Coco Pommel!” “And I’m Suri Polomare! Pleasure to meet you!” Suri’s voice was cloyingly sweet, charming and clearly refined. Coco smiled; if she was anything like Crackle, she would be a wonderful friend and a person to rely on. “So, sis says that you don’t have anyone chosen as a Senior Sister for Freshman Week yet?” Coco shook her head. “No. Nobody’s approached me, and that means either I’ll be left in the general pool, or nobody will want me at all.” For Coco, having had both Fleur and her own mother attend Zacherle, she’d heard the stories about Freshman Week, and she wasn’t sure what was worse: being selected from the general pool, or being outright forgotten. In the former case, it meant that any old senior could pick you and generally all the nastiest pranks done to freshmen were as a result of that; in the latter case, being left out entirely was practically a social death sentence, which according to her mother meant that you were pretty much a pariah for the rest of your freshman year and had to do something pretty outstanding in order to “redeem” yourself in your sophomore year. “Well, we wouldn’t want that, would we, sis?” Crackle asked Suri, giving her sister the bambi-eyes. That was Crackle, somehow in complete admiration of her sister and looking out for Coco at the same time. “No, I have to admit, that would be unfair to both of you. After all, I’m hoping to be announced as one of the school divas the first day of class, and I have high hopes that you two will become divas once you reach your senior year. But that can’t happen if Coco’s left down in the pits, shall we say.” A thoughtful look crossed the older girl’s face. “So, here’s what I’m going to do: I’m going to take you under my wing for senior week…but….” “But?” Coco asked, curious. “But…you will have to start working for me, starting tomorrow. The reason for that is because…well, let’s be honest: The sooner we establish you’re with me, the sooner no other seniors will pick on you and will definitely ensure that you won’t end up in the general pool or ignored. And while I might have to have you do some arduous things,” Suri pointed out, “I can assure you that I won’t ask you to do anything that I wouldn’t ask Crackle.” “What about me?” Crackle asked. “I’ll have to contact one of my friends and ask them to do the same for you,” Suri replied, “but I’ll make sure you’re taken care of, little sister. Wouldn’t want you to end up in the wrong hands, right?” Suri punctuated the last with a wink and Crackle practically swooned from her older sister’s attentions. “So we’re good?” Coco asked. “No, we’re definitely not good,” Suri replied. “It’s much better than that.” “Hi, thanks for coming!” Fluttershy said to Sunset, Twilight, Octavia and Spike as they stood at the door. Twilight carried something in her hands that looked like a potato salad, while Sunset carried a much larger bag. “Thanks for having us, Flutters!” Sunset said to her friend. “No, the pleasure is all mine,” the chiffon-haired girl replied. “And you didn’t have to bring anything, Twily – this is your party, after all.” “I didn’t – it was actually Sunny who made it,” the plum-haired teen replied. “She insisted tha—” Sunset, for her part, blushed. “I just didn’t want you to get stuck with all the cooking, Fluttershy.” “I appreciate the sentiment, but Rainbow’s in charge of the grilling right now, and Pinkie and AJ came over to help me make the side dishes,” Fluttershy replied. “Rarity should be here in a couple of minutes with all the drinks.” “Well, in the meanwhile, Sunny and I can help all you need; we just need to deposit Spike somewhere and ensure Twily keeps out of the kitchen before something blows up,” Octavia said with a grin. “TAVI!” Twilight snarled, followed by quick laughter from Octavia and Sunset. Fluttershy, for her part, giggled briefly while giving Twilight a sympathetic look, then turned to Spike. “Um, Spike, if you’ll follow me, I’ll lead you to the den, where Angel’s got the games set up. Just please remember, he’s hearing impaired, so make sure you write anything down if you want to talk to him, okay?” She reached into her pocket and handed the boy a small pad and pen. “Be on your best behavior, squirt,” Sunset warned. “If we find out you and Angel were fighting….” “Hey, I’ll just kick his a….” He paused when he realized who was standing in front of him. “Uh, I’m sure we’ll work it out.” “He’ll be alright, I’m sure,” Fluttershy said in Spike’s defense. “Kitchen is right over there, and I’ll be right back.” With that, she beckoned Spike to follow, while the three other girls walked over towards the kitchen. As they walked in, they found Applejack and Pinkie, hard at work. “Heya!” Pinkie cried out the moment she saw her friends. “I’m making a rainbow velvet cake for tonight. It’s like a red velvet cake, but has all the colors of the rainbow in it. Something that Uncle Carrot came up with and I’m giving it a shot!” “Sounds good,” Octavia replied. “Heya, AJ.” “Heya, yerself. As fer me, Ah’m makin’ th’ special Apple family cornbread recipe. Y’all gonna love it!” Sunset tried not to laugh at that; the night she and the pony version of Applejack were tossing back mugs of cider back at the Apple family farm, she’d tried to foist cornbread off on her that time as well, giving pretty much the same answer – that it had been a treasured Apple family recipe dating back to her great-great-grandfather Cortland Apple or something like that. “Lemme guess,” Sunset said, “old family recipe?” “Yeah, mah great-great-grandpa Cortland Apple made it when he set up Sweet Apple Acres back in Heavener,” Applejack said with a tone of seriousness. “Ah know Pa misses that place terrible – maybe not Ma so much, as’n she’s from here, originally – but at least Uncle Stayman was able t’ take it over, instead.” She shook her head and smiled. “Y’know, maybe Ah oughta have mah cousin Braeburn come over one day. Ah hear he’s single, an’ one o’ ya gals might just catch his eye.” “Thanks, but no,” Octavia replied. “After what happened earlier this year, I’m definitely staying clear of dating for the time being.” Though she said nothing, Twilight nodded furiously. Sunset’s face remained expressionless. Pinkie tsked at Applejack and said, “Hey, I understand that! Anyway, Twily, you’re the star attraction here! Go ahead and go on out and sit and we’ll join you later, okay?” “You sure you don’t need a hand with anything?” Octavia asked. “Well…I’m fine, but I’m sure Fluttershy could use a hand with something, right?” the cheerleader said to the musician as Fluttershy entered the kitchen. “Actually, um, if you don’t mind, Tavi, I probably could use the assist,” Fluttershy asked. “I still have to make the baked beans and some other stuff, but if you don’t mind….” “No, I’m not the best in the kitchen, but I don’t mind at all,” Octavia said, going over to the counter to wash her hands. Meanwhile, both Twilight and Sunset walked outside, where Rainbow was fiddling around with a spatula. “Hookin’ shit up!” she said with a grin, briefly waving at both newcomers. “Burnin’ some flesh, planning to make it nice and juicy!” “Hate to break it to you, Chef Chargrilled,” Sunset replied with a snicker, “but I don’t see anything on the grill there.” “That’s because I’m smoking the wood,” Rainbow said in a faux-authoritative tone. “Anyone who’s anyone knows that a good smoke is vital to any successful grilling operation!” Twilight giggled. “Been watching the Food Network, Rainbow?” The rainbow-haired teen shrugged. “Hey, there was nothing good on Cartoon Network or ESPN, the Hub was showing that Care Bears crap and who in their right mind watches MTV?” “Well, I’ll have you know that I think there are much better things to be done with one’s time than television,” a voice said. The three turned back to the door and saw Rarity standing there, grocery bags in hand. Setting down the bags on the picnic table, she went over and hugged Twilight. “It’s good to see you back, dear. You know we all missed you.” “Thanks,” Twilight blushed. “When you have a chance, I’d love to hear about how Italy was. I’m positively envious of your travel,” Rarity told her. “The only place I’ve ever been is to my grandparents’ place in Rhode Island. I’d love to travel someday.” “I think you’d like Florence,” Twilight replied. “Well, maybe that or Milan – both are big fashion meccas, I’m told.” “Sounds nice,” Rarity said. “And I’m glad at least one of my friends is interested in the finer cultures, unlike some ruffians I know,” she added teasingly to Rainbow. “What was that, Rares? You wanted the extra-raw?” “At least that way I’d know it was spared from that mess you refer to as cooking!” “Girls, now don’t fight,” Fluttershy said as she carried the chicken and burgers out; she looked as though she felt uncomfortable doing so. “I know you’re just joking around, but this night is for Twily and we should enjoy each other’s company, ne?” Rainbow blinked once. “Oh, you did just not—” Fluttershy smiled sweetly. 「レインボーをどうするか？」 Rainbow blinked once. Twice. Then groaned. “I hate it when you do that.” “So, are you free for dinner tonight?” Sable’s voice sounded over the speaker of the cellphone. “Well, I was planning to stay home and just do paperwork….” Celestia replied…which was, admittedly, the extent of her itinerary for the evening. “Why, did you have something in mind?” “Well, I just happened to have to grade some homework myself,” Sable replied, “and I just happened to have found the best pizza in the universe just off the corner of Redding Drive and Shasta View Avenue.” Celestia smiled; she knew a bribe when she heard it. Fortunately, said bribe also came with a cute enough tush. “Best pizza in the world? You do remember I’m originally from Italy, right?” “So sue me. It beats the Pizza Hut on Fort Benning.” She could practically hear the laughter in his voice. “So, anyway, we on, or what? What kind do you like?” Celestia thought about the lunch she’d had with him and then the dinner she’d had with him over at Sombra’s place a few days back. Sable was definitely nice to be around, and he genuinely didn’t care about her age, not that she really showed it. And for some reason, she felt there could be something more to this. Granted, when she was about his age she didn’t care for the kind of cocky machismo he displayed; they probably would’ve ended up at loggerheads at that point. But age had given her enough of a maturity to deal with that kind of attitude, expertise to ameliorate it… …and enough years to realize she wasn’t getting any younger and he had a really cute butt. “Sure. Whatever kind of pizza’s fine,” she said. “I’ve got beer and wine at my place, so unless you want anything else, I think we’re covered for drinks. Eight sound good?” “Sure. See you tonight, then!” “Bye!” Clicking off the phone, Celestia made a mental note to leave work early that night. She had a ton of things to do at home to make sure she had company that wasn’t family or friends, and maybe if it worked out for the best, maybe there would be something more. “Oh, man, I don’t think I could eat another bite!” Sunset said, hours and pounds of food later. The eight girls sat around the picnic table in the backyard, halfway in a food coma; at a smaller side table, both Angel and Spike were asleep, both victims of postprandial somnolence. “I’ll say this much, Rainbow: you really know how to work your way around a grill.” From the position of her face buried in her arms on the table, the athlete gingerly raised a thumb into the air, then with some effort, manage to sit up, leaning back in the chair. “Ugh, I swear I’m gonna hafta run a marathon or two to burn all this off.” “Hey, maybe you can work out the calories just like I do!” As was expected, Pinkie had already burnt off her calories with the insane metabolism she had. “Sorry, Pinks, but cheerleading ain’t a real sport.” “Oh sure it is!” “No, it’s not.” “Yes it is!” “No, Pinkie, it’s not!” “Yes it is!” “Pinkie!” “Yes it is yes it is yes it is!” she chirped gloriously before whispering an aside to Applejack, “This is fun! We should argue more often!” The hyper cotton-candy-haired teen did not see her friend facepalm at the moment. However, she did say, “Okay, now that we got the food out of the way, why don’t we eat dessert?” “Good idea,” Fluttershy agreed, standing up. “I’ll go get more plates and cutlery.” “I have a better idea,” Twilight said as she got up from her chair. “While Pinkie goes and gets the cake and plates, why don’t I get the gifts that I got for all of you?” “Hey, I’ll help with the plates,” Octavia said, as she rose from her own chair. “Okay with you, Pinkie?” “Okie davi Tavi!” was Pinkie’s reply, and the three teens went into the house. As the trio departed, Rarity was the one to speak. “Sunset, please…don’t minimize this: how is she doing and what can we do to help? I know that neither Octavia or I no longer need the counseling for the incident back then, but given Twilight’s, ahem, ‘sensitivity’, I would imagine that….” Sunset raised her hand to gently silence Rarity. “The parentals and I talked this morning. Twily’s going to go through counselling for the rest of the summer, just to make sure everything will be okay. But as for the spells, they seem to be holding, and I need to send a note to Princess Twilight as soon as I can, if only to know what else to look for.” Sunset gave her friends a sober look. “I failed her once…I’m never going to do that again.” “Dear, you didn’t fai—” Rarity’s words were suddenly drowned out by Octavia’s shout of “No fucking way!” “What’s going on?” Rainbow asked. “Dunno, but Ah think we should check,” Applejack replied, though that was solved a second later by Octavia walking out with a FedEx envelope, a grin on her face. “Hey, girls, check this shit out!” Octavia said, while Fluttershy frantically tried to grab the letter out of the musician’s face. “Looks like Fluttershy got a letter from her dad.” “Um, can I have that back, please?” Fluttershy said, looking really anxious. She kept grabbing, only to have Octavia pull it away from her. “Tavi, please!” The look in Fluttershy’s face was getting angry. Rainbow looked annoyed. “Hey, not cool, Tavi! Give her the thing okay?” “Not until you hear the secret that Flutters has been keeping from us!” Rarity’s eyes brightened. “Secret? Fluttershy, darling, have you been holding out on me?” The fashionista batted her eyes and pouted, hoping for a reaction. “Um, Rarity, it’s that…well, it’s that, um….” Sunset immediately noticed that Fluttershy was both acting like her pony counterpart…but yet there was an undercurrent of anger, one that she’d never seen in her friend before. “Tavi, give her the letter, okay?” Sunset insisted. “No, you gotta hear this!” At this point, Octavia held Fluttershy at arms’ length and read the letter: The area suddenly went quiet as Octavia handed the letter back to Fluttershy. The silence was punctuated a second later as Fluttershy slapped Octavia. “Flutters, what the hell?” Octavia cried, shocked. “How…how could you?” Tears began to stream from Fluttershy’s blue eyes. “I thought…I thought you were my friend, Tavi!” “I am, but…what the fuck?” At this point, Twilight came out with the gifts, seeing everyone stunned, Octavia rubbing her cheek and Fluttershy looking completely heartbroken. “Uh, did I miss something?” “Yeah, only Tavi fuckin’ up royally,” Applejack replied. “Whut on Earth were ya thinkin’, Tav?” Octavia looked as though she was suddenly confused. “I…I wasn’t—” Rainbow snarled, “No fucking shit you weren’t!” Rarity then spoke up. “Fluttershy, dear, I understand you’ve never had a good relationship with your father, but…if he’s trying to make amends, wouldn’t it be best if you tried?” Tears openly streaming down her face, Fluttershy shook her head. “You don’t understand! What he did to me! What he did to Angel? How the hell can I forgive that?” “What did he do?” “He abandoned us! He wanted the Goddamn rockstar life more than he wanted us! He wanted to be all-fucking-mighty Discord before anything else!” The shouting was enough to wake up both Angel and Spike. A pause. Two. Then suddenly, Rainbow’s voice broke the silence: “Wait…did you just say your dad is Discord? As in the fucking most awesome rocker there is?” “NO!” Fluttershy shouted. “I SAID HE WAS DISCORD, A COWARDLY, PATHETIC EXCUSE FOR A FATHER WHO RAN OUT ON HIS FAMILY BECAUSE FAME WAS MORE IMPORTANT THAN US!” Fluttershy’s feet collapsed under her and she fell to the patio deck, crying. Immediately, Angel ran to her side to comfort his big sister, staring angrily at them all. “Hey, that’s funny!” Pinkie said, as if expecting this to be a joke. When a few seconds more went by and it suddenly became obvious that it wasn’t humor, Pinkie’s mood – and hair – seemed to deflate almost instantly. She moved over to Fluttershy to administer a hug, but Angel, not really knowing what was going on, swatted the teen away angrily. “I think I’d best stay to straighten things out,” Rarity said. “I think I’d better straighten out Tavi’s face,” Rainbow said angrily as she launched herself out of the chair, the plastic piece of furniture clattering on the deck. “You have some explaining to do,” she accused, punctuating her statement by punching a fist in her other hand. “Hey, Rainbow, that ain’t gonna help,” Applejack retorted, but then turned to Sunset and said, “Ah think y'all best get goin’, a’fer this gets worse. We’ll straighten this out an’ Ah’ll call ya later tonight, Sunny.” She then turned her anger on Octavia and said, “An' Ah think ya best think of a way t’ apologize to Fluttershy fer all this.” “But I didn’t… I didn’t….” Octavia seemed completely at a loss for words, as if she still had no idea of what was going on. “Yeah,” Sunset agreed with Applejack in a toneless voice. “I’m sorry for what happened.” “Not yer fault, sugarcube,” the blonde said in sober tones. “But we’ll straighten this out. Ah hope.”