//------------------------------// // 13 - Causality // Story: Feedback // by RQK //------------------------------// A cloudless night allowed the moon to take precedence over the land of Equestria. While dull compared to previous nights, the white ball in the sky shone with a still-impressive ferocity. A sheet of stagnant air complimented it, leading to an overall stillness that few appreciated. A low rumble rose from the ground. The earth vibrated, sending reverberations throughout the trees, through the plains, and finally into buildings. The tremors grew in intensity; water sloshed about within their basins and bell towers hummed as their metallic bells resonated. The residents of Ponyville rushed out of their homes. They glanced around with worried expressions as they wiped the slumber from their eyes. Neighbor turned to neighbor and fledgling rumors spread about. Was it a monster? An earthquake? The citizens of Canterlot cried out as a pillar of light erupted from the mountaintop. The incomprehensible energy radiating off the beam blew through their manes and even caused some to lose their balance. It bent the very air around it and, to a degree, it even pulled on the city below. In one of the northern parts of Equestria, a dark and bulky stallion silently watched the light show on the horizon. He stroked his hoof through the hairs on his chin and hummed to himself. The citizens of the Crystal Empire also looked up at the light on the horizon but with wonder. Their coats shimmered and sparkled as they soaked it in. Their ruling couple did much of the same from a balcony on the Crystal Palace. The end of the pillar reached into the heavens. It surpassed Cloudsdale in height and only stretched higher from there. The light grew in strength and blinded those below. The roar crescendoed and the shaking grew to a point where wall decorations dropped to the floors below. In a small village in the middle of nowhere, two griffons watched the beam rise up and up. They quietly spoke in their native languages, just like several other griffons nearby. Just as it looked like the beam would reach the moon, the tip exploded with a loud bang. A large set of star-shapes appeared in the sky: one monolithic, purple star-like figure with five white companion stars. The constellation eclipsed the moon, covering the land in a warming, lavender-colored glow. In Canterlot, two alicorn sisters appeared on one of the castle’s balconies. They looked toward the blazing stars above them. The younger looked to the older as the latter considered a large stack of paper that had appeared in her fireplace. The older then glanced back up toward the symbol with a smile on her face. In the city below, a unicorn stallion and unicorn mare rushed into each other’s embrace at the mere sight of the mark. They shouted out of joy as tears fell from their eyes. Amidst a collection of tents near the base of the Crystal Mountains, an earth pony adjusted his glasses once and hummed to himself. His students sat in fascination, throwing around hypotheses on what it could mean. Out on the open sea, a salty sea-dog and a mermare looked up toward the symbol in front of the moon and let out a hearty laugh. In the Badlands, a changeling queen snorted at the sight. She whirled around and stomped back through an opening in the hive. The pillar of light flashed once before it pulled the star out of the sky and receded into the mountain. The rumbling dwindled down to a light shiver and then faded into the night altogether. The mountain spoke no more, and Equestria fell silent. High above the plain, a single floating figure looked down upon the mountaintop. He considered what had just happened and smiled, baring his fang. “Well well well, it’s about time,” Discord the draconequus said with a chuckle before downing another handful of popcorn. Sunset Shimmer knew only darkness. She could feel a pulsating sensation within her chest, and she soon figured that out to be a beating heart. That at least told her that she wasn’t dead. She tried to move around but couldn’t tell if her body was reacting to her commands. Did she have a body? In her darkness, having a body had no meaning. But wait, again, she had a heartbeat. So she had a body. It just would not obey. But when it came down to it, she could not find any energy to move said theoretical body. She was drained, just like the night that she had crawled out of a crater. Feeling returned to where her eyes were supposed to be, and she opened them. Her blurred vision faded into a large, hemispherical room with dozens of symbols on the walls and floor. But where she remembered red, a cool purple glow lit the area. The air nipped at her coat but did not bite like a chill nor burn like a warmth. She blinked once and craned her neck to see five ponies (who appeared much closer to how she remembered them than they were before) and a dragon on the floor behind her. They lay sprawled out every which way. She could see some paleness in their coats and, for a moment, she worried. But they breathed, and that gave her some relief. With a smile, Sunset rolled over to face the center of the room. Like the others, Twilight Sparkle lay on the floor, perfectly still as she slept, save for the steady heave as she breathed. Sunset chuckled at the sight. Sunset wiped some of the drowsiness from her face and when she looked next, Twilight’s eyes had popped open. Rather, Twilight stared at her. Her face remained expressionless, but the smallest twinkle in Twilight’s eyes spoke to her. Sunset grunted. She tried to lift herself to her hooves, only to have them fall out beneath her. Instead, Sunset crawled, dragging herself across the floor. She used her magic to help lift herself up and ease her work. Even then, her trek was slow. Even when she slid forward, Twilight seemed no closer. But unlike before, Sunset felt okay with that. They didn’t have minutes or hours like before, but years. Lifetimes. Sunset went until she joined Twilight in the center of the room. At that point, she flopped onto her side with an exhausted sigh. “Hey, Twilight,” she said. Twilight’s expression remained unchanged. “I… never thought I’d see you again,” Sunset continued. “In the flesh, I mean. I’m so glad you’re back. You did it. You beat the Nameless.” The corners of Twilight’s mouth managed to curve into a grin. Sunset chuckled. “Whoever thought we’d be here, huh?” she mused. Twilight tried to lift her head so that she could see over Sunset, anxious to see the rest of her friends. Sunset looked over her withers. “They’re alright. I think we’re all a little low on energy right now,” she said before she looked Twilight in the eye. “Especially you, huh?” Twilight nodded. Sunset smiled. “There’s no rush.” Twilight groaned and lifted a hoof off the floor. She extended it, stretched it even, before she let it fall to the ground in front of Sunset. Twilight retained her intent stare. Sunset considered it for a moment and reached out with her own hoof. She found she had to move closer just for it to reach and strained to shift forward. Their hooves connected and held firm. Twilight smiled and looked up at her. Sunset could see the twinkle in her eyes; she looked like she was about to cry out of sheer joy. Sunset, in response, held on even tighter. “You’re welcome. Anything for you.” With a smile, Twilight closed her eyes once more and drifted back into her unconscious. Sunset’s heart swelled within her chest. She smiled to herself and closed her eyes as well, content to welcome the sandmare back. She had one last thought before she disappeared once more: We did it. * * * Sunset’s hooves dug into the ground as she trotted along. The crystal walls had since changed back into dirt ones and a few mining tools lay here and there. Long, unlit torches jutted out of the walls at frequent intervals. She looked over her withers at the weary souls behind her. The six of them shuffled (or, in Rainbow Dash’s case, flew) along, letting out occasional yawns as they went. They traveled close together, neck to neck. Sunset smiled as Fluttershy listed several things that she planned to do when they returned to Ponyville. Rarity soon followed. Finally, Sunset looked at the figure straddled across her back. Twilight remained asleep, unaware of what conversations occurred behind them. A light appeared at the end of the tunnel. Sunset straightened up as they approached it, gaining a noticeable length in her stride. “We’re almost there,” she announced. Rainbow Dash rubbed her eyes. “No kidding? It looks a little bright out there.” “Probably because we’ve been in the dark so long,” Rarity replied. Sunset laughed. “Yeah. We sure have.” They drew closer and closer and the light, in turn, grew brighter. When they finally reached the mouth of the cave, they all had to shield their eyes. The sun’s rays caressed them, splashing color into their coats. It peeked out from the edge of the horizon, initiating a dance with the cool and increasingly blue sky. Sunset beamed. “Twilight,” she said. “Twilight.” She did not stir. “Twilight, look,” she said, using her magic to shake Twilight. “It’s morning already.” Twilight blinked once before she looked up as well. She stared into the sky, centering on the bright ball above. As a light wind blew through her mane and tickled her coat, Twilight took a long whiff of the air. With a happy sigh, Twilight fell against Sunset’s back again and returned to a blissful rest. The other six sprinted past them and plowed their way into a group of ponies that had been standing at the far end of the site. “Princess Celestia!” several of them cried at once. Celestia smiled. “My little ponies, how good it is to see all of you,” she said. She looked through each of them and then raised an eyebrow. “But whatever are all of you doing here?” All at once, they looked back to Sunset who crept toward them with a blush on her face. She, in turn, motioned to the mare on her back. The guards gasped in unison before they shot glances at each other for breaking protocol. Princess Celestia failed to notice through her own wide-eyed expression. “By the stars…” she half-whispered. Twilight looked up once, and with a weak smile, waved back. Celestia stared for a long while. She placed a hoof over her mouth in an attempt to control her breath, and her mane seemed to freeze in place. Her eyes drifted from the mare on Sunset’s back to someplace far above the mountain and back again. “Could it be?” she wheezed. “Yepperoni!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed as she danced around. “We totally did! It was a long fight and we fought hard and then we kinda didn’t fight but then we did this real hard thinking stuff and then whoosh,” she said, arching a hoof through the air, “we kinda did it.” Rarity nodded. “We did. Although really, Twilight helped us a lot along the way.” Celestia blinked. “Twilight… helped you with this?” Rarity giggled. “It’s… complicated.” “Short version is yes,” Sunset added. Celestia threw her head back and laughed. Her loud giggles echoed off the mountainside and could likely be heard in the city below. Her guards looked up at her in questioning. “Princess?” one of them asked out of concern. Celestia wiped a tear from her eyes. “Oh my goodness. I guess I should have known this was happening all along. I mean, after that spectacle last night…” Applejack frowned. “Spectacle?” “We”—Celestia motioned to her guards—“were preparing to mount an expedition into the cave, in light of the magical surge last night,” Princess Celestia said. And then she smiled as she peered over at Twilight. “But I can see that is no longer necessary.” Spike crossed his arms. “Yeah, but, we should probably still make sure she’s okay and everything.” Celestia nodded. “Yes, I agree. We should get her to Canterlot General. Come, my little ponies.” * * * Sunset’s attention drifted back and forth between Twilight and the nurse watching her. The nurse, for his part, ran down a list on the clipboard floating in front of him. The heart monitor on the wall beeped in a constant rhythm while several numbers underneath went to statistics that Sunset had never studied. The others sat around the edges of the room, each well out of the way while the nurse went about his checks. Rarity washed some dirt off her face using a sink on the wall. Rainbow Dash sat with a hoof against the window, staring out at the afternoon sun. The other four sat in the corner where they talked in hushed whispers (with the exception of Pinkie Pie whose voice trumped the others). Nurse Heartbeat took a quick glance at the papers underneath before he nodded. “Well,” he said, “it looks like most everything checks out. Vitals are fine, brain function is normal. She’s very low on her nutrient levels and we will need to take a couple of days to correct that.” “But she’ll be okay though, right?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Well, after… what… happened…” the nurse said as he read off the clipboard, hints of disbelief in his voice, “there isn’t anything that we did not expect. All things considering, she looks really good. I expect we’ll be able to discharge her within two or three days tops.” “Wonderful, absolutely wonderful,” Rarity said. “Thank you so much.” The nurse flared his horn and used his magic to slot the clipboard back onto the front of the bed. “You’re welcome. All she needs is a little bit of rest right now, so don’t all of you visit for too long, okay?” “You got it, doc,” Rainbow Dash said. That’s a nurse, Sunset thought. Nurse Heartbeat kept his smile as he exited the room and turned down the hall. Sunset lay back against the wall and sighed. She looked around the varnished wooden padding on the walls, the painting of a tree just next to the door, and the crystal-clear windows. She had imagined it to be sterile (and it probably was), but this felt warm. She felt composed and relaxed. She felt like she had a clear head. Despite the hospital gown, Twilight appeared just she had at any other time. She slept with a foal-like smile spread across her face as she clutched an extra pillow to her chest. Sunset nodded to herself. Things are going to go back to normal, huh? Pinkie Pie scooted across the room and draped herself over the edge of the bed. The others giggled in response, even as Pinkie Pie batted at Twilight’s mane. Spike’s hands met Rarity’s hooves as they watched, and the two, even though their attention remained on Twilight, grew a shade redder in response. Applejack hid her belly-throttled laughter behind her hat. She grabbed a hold of her cushion to keep her balance. Rainbow Dash reclined against the windowsill and let out a long yawn, letting her eyes stray back toward the clear blue skies above. Fluttershy smiled. She smiled the sort of smile that lit the room. Not too big, but not too small. A smile just right, one that could not have possibly been broken within that moment. Twilight remained blissfully asleep. She let out a moan as she shifted in the bed. Sunset felt fuzzy inside just from watching all of it. A world with Twilight Sparkle. That was her new reality. How things were meant to be. Sunset scratched at an itch behind her ear. But… it’s not completely over yet. We have our Twilight, but… She looked at Twilight and frowned. There are other worlds below ours that don’t yet. She crossed her forelegs. I have to go make sure they can get The Answer and get theirs back too. Sunset looked up. “Spike?” she asked. Spike looked over. “What?” “You sent The Answer to the princess, right?” Spike raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, I did. Did it right before you did that spell.” Sunset stood up and sidled toward the door. “Okay, okay. I’m going to go put it you-know-where.” Spike nodded and turned his attention back to the mare in the bed. “Alright, you go ahead and do that.” Sunset took one last look at Twilight and bit her lip. “I guess I’ll see you all later,” she said. “Are you heading home afterward?” Spike asked. Sunset nodded in response. “Yeah. I’m catching the afternoon train.” He regarded her for a moment before he grinned. “Okay. See ya later.” The others looked up and smiled. Sunset looked over to Twilight one last time as a wide grin spread across her face. She almost did not want to go. No, she did not want to go. But somehow, she had every reason to go too. Twilight was with her friends. Because things were how they were meant to be. Sunset hummed to herself and then stepped out of the room. She only managed a few steps before a pair of unicorns rounded a corner in front of her. They charged straight at her. Sunset flinched and then recoiled entirely, but then the pair moved off to the side as if to get by. Sunset frowned. Hey, I remember those two. She looked at them as they slid past her; a blue-coated stallion and a grey-coated mare. The two unicorns dove into the door that she had just come out of. A batch of cries erupted from within a moment later, among them a “My baby girl! My baby’s girl’s alive!” from what had to be the stallion. And through a pause, a subdued reply of “Mom… Dad…” rang out to her. “Oh, Twilight!” Sunset smiled. Her chest swelled, and she could not suppress the giggle that brushed past her lips. At that, she continued onward. And yet, in those endless halls, Sunset heard only her hoofsteps. They echoed throughout the hall for only her to hear. * * * Sunset entered the tower, letting the door creak shut behind her. She fetched the stack of papers out of her otherwise-packed saddlebag and looked over them once. She flipped through the pages of The Answer once while the rest of her magic lay her saddlebag next to the door. She looked around the room. For the past five days, it had been her home once more. For the past five days, Sunset had relived days long past. Years, even. For once since arriving, Sunset could focus on the tower without drawing herself back to Twilight. She could focus on the memories of what had once been her home. Sunset looked over toward the living room where several cushions lay strewn about. She smiled as she imagined six ponies, a dragon, and a crystal ball all huddled around a card game on the floor. And then she imagined another scene where the eight had posed for a picture, where that picture then sent itself across time and space. Sunset blinked. That had all happened the day before. With a worried frown, Sunset ascended the stairs into the study area and levitated The Answer onto the desk. Sunset looked at the hourglass, the one spot she had always gone to. Sunset again smiled as she imagined six ponies, a dragon, and a crystal ball huddled next to it as they bounced ideas off of a chalkboard. And then she imagined them as they argued over the origins of a book. That had been a few days ago. She furrowed her brow. Somehow, as she looked, any memory she could think of was with them. Everywhere she looked, she could see them. She could hear them as they talked, laughed, cried, and slept. Today, the tower seemed quiet, like a ghost of its former self. Something was definitely missing. Six somethings, in fact. Sunset shook her head and instead strolled over to where the crystal ball sat on the floor. “Twilight?” she called. “Can you hear me?” For a moment the ball remained silent. And then, “Huh? Yes? Sunset?” “Hey.” “Hi.” “I just came from the hospital,” Sunset said. “I know, I saw,” Twilight’s voice replied. Sunset strolled over to the window. She looked across the rest of the grounds, and then her eyes glided up the magnificent towers of the main castle. She considered their shining contours and their perfect curves. “Maybe I left a little too fast,” Sunset mused. The voice in the ball did not respond. “Anyway,” Sunset continued with a shake of her head, “I’ve been thinking a lot about it and I’m pretty sure of what all you did last night.” “Oh?” Twilight’s voice asked. “The burn mark downstairs made us think that only one pony time traveled in when in fact it was two. I time traveled first, leaving the initial mark. Then you time traveled, using my mark to mask your entry. “I imagine that you immediately grabbed the cloak off the hook so that nopony would see you. You then went upstairs, looked at the map to remember how to get to the chamber, and then teleported to the door. You opened the door for yourself while setting the crystal ball up so that we… well… your world’s version of us could later find you in the crystal ball.” Sunset shrugged, “Because none of this would have ever happened if I hadn’t spotted you in the crystal ball that first night.” Twilight’s voice laughed. “Yeah, that’s exactly what I did. How did you figure it out?” “The note was found map-side up instead of note-side up like you had left it just after writing it. I knew somepony had turned it over. Cloak is obvious because you had to conceal your identity. Both of those place you in the tower at some point.” “Okay, that’s pretty smart. But how did you know it was that specific spot?” “Princess Celestia saw a bright flash of light come from the tower that night. You know, the kind of light that a time spell produces.” “Really? That’s interesting.” “And nowhere else in the tower had burn marks.” The crystal ball went silent. And then, “I can see why you were Celestia’s star pupil once!” Sunset laughed as she turned around to face the hourglass. She used her magic to lift the top off the apparatus just like she had several days prior. After leaning the lid against the golden frame, Sunset ran her eyes down the glass, catching her reflection among its curves. “I just wonder though,” she said as she levitated The Answer over to herself, “what are you doing in Canterlot anyway? I thought you would be home by now.” Sunset could imagine the nod on the other side of the crystal ball. “That’s right. I’ve spent the last few days in Ponyville just trying to settle myself back in. I mean, when I wasn’t watching you all and the mess that I caused. But… yesterday, the girls had to talk to the princess and insisted that I come with, except they locked me in this tower with my family while they went and talked.” Sunset grinned. So, they will bring Twilight back here nine days from now, huh? she thought. “I will be honest, I was a little bit irked by all that, but now I understand what all of them were doing. They were making sure that I closed the loop.” The voice in the ball paused, and then added, “Plus they also wanted to do what they were going to do before this whole mess. So I’m going to Don Giofilly later tonight.” “Yeah, and in doing so, you passed two obstacles that I thought were impossible.” The ball considered it. “Which are?” Twilight’s voice asked. “That there’s no way to travel between the worlds.” “Hmmmm. You’re right. There’s no way to travel between the worlds. But then I remembered that the worlds act a lot alike. So I figured that if I did something in my world, then it would happen in their world too. It was just a matter of figuring out what.” “Right. But you chose time travel. So secondly, you managed to time travel despite the once-per-lifetime rule.” “I remember that rule too. And then I realized that, having died and come back, I technically started a new lifetime and thus wasn’t bound by the once-per-lifetime rule. So I could use it again.” Sunset shook her head. “Which that is… really smart. You’re a genius, Twilight.” “I knew, in that moment, that I could do it. That my job… was to travel back in time and open that door… so that I could receive The Answer from you and be saved.” Twilight’s voice giggled. “I screamed. I about gave Cadance a heart attack. You should have seen it!” “Ha. I bet you scared them pretty good.” “I did! You should have seen them when I found The Answer in the hourglass, too.” “Which,” Sunset said as she held up the stack of papers, “I’m about to make possible.” “Which your world’s version of me will find… and then they’ll do what I did. Although... I do wonder how much locality the loop has. I mean, I would think this wouldn’t happen wherever we first published The Answer.” “Yeah, they’d do things very differently I guess.” Sunset shrugged. “But buck that. Not my problem.” “Same could be said about whatever world started with no information. Or whatever is below that. I wonder what they did.” “Buck that.” “Maybe I’ll look into this in the coming months. This concept of the infinite is so fascinating!” Sunset half-snorted, half-chuckled. “Well, have fun with that.” “Anyway, before you put that into the hourglass… I actually have one last page to send to you.” Sunset raised an eyebrow. One last page? We… are missing a page? She nodded and summoned over a quill and a new sheet of paper. “Okay, okay, I’m ready to copy it down.” Sunset flared her horn as the crystal ball let out a shriek. An image formed in front of her and she took a moment to glance at the image within. To her surprise, the page contained not numbers or equations like she expected but, rather, plain text. A cover page, she realized. The Answer Written by Sunset Shimmer Co-written by Twilight Sparkle Data collection by Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Spike This one-time-use spell is the product of several realities’ worth of work and represents the love of close friends who went above and beyond for one dear to them Sunset blushed as she copied her own name down from the image before her. I… they gave me top billing. It’s like they… attributed this… to me. Her smile grew wider and wider with each name that she took down, and by the time she reached the summary, Sunset beamed with pride. She wiped away a few tears as she completed her work and held it up to really drink it in. She took the completed copy and bound it to the stack. After that, she placed the stack of papers into the basin and lifted the lid back onto the top of the hourglass. She then used her hoof to flip the hourglass over. “It’s done,” Sunset announced. Sunset hummed as she watched the sand trickle down between the chambers. The grains, so fine that she could not distinguish one from another, flowed past each other on their way to the bottom. A small mound appeared on top of the papers and soon enough, the papers disappeared entirely into the sand. “Sunset…” Twilight’s voice quivered, “I have a… confession to make.” Sunset hummed absentmindedly. “I’ve had a lot of time to think about it since I came back. And I’ve made a huge mistake. You can’t tell anypony else, okay?” Sunset blinked and looked up toward the ceiling. “…Okay?” Twilight’s voice sucked in a breath. “Rainbow Dash was right. She said that we could have used the Rainbow Power to defeat the Nameless. It would have worked. I know it would have worked.” Sunset swallowed. No way… Can that be right? she thought. “I underestimated friendship,” Twilight’s voice continued. “Even though it has helped us through so many things before, I got so scared… I… It clouded my judgment. This whole mess really is my fault.” Sunset shook her head. “It would have worked?” “It would have worked.” Sunset felt her eyes drag themselves to the floor. A shiver overtook her and her whole body felt numb. The past few days of heartache and sadness had happened because Twilight had clouded judgment? Sunset grabbed at her head and tried to force it out. But the thought clung to her head. The despair came rushing back. The anguish, the sorrow. And the joy. She paused. What was joy doing there? What was determination doing there? What was hope doing there? What were the other six doing there? As she thought about it, everything else was there because the other six were there. Because it should have been an awful time. But, thanks to them, it had not been so much. They had given her positive things during a negative time, and she had done the same for them. Sure, the days had been filled with despair and anguish and sorrow, but they had given each other joy and hope and reasons to stay determined. None of that would have been possible without them, huh? she thought to herself. Sunset half-snorted, half laughed. “Now I know I messed up,” she muttered. With a sigh, she turned back to the crystal ball and stared at it intently. “What?” She messed with her curled mane and her eyes shifted about as she thought. With each moment, her mouth curled more into a grin. “Hey, Twilight?” she finally asked. “Yes?” Sunset sucked in a breath. “Before the funeral… we all got to talking and they told me about this friendship diary that all of you put together. That’s a thing, right?” “Yes. I usually keep it in the castle library back home. Though I have it with me right now. I’ve gone through some of it over the past few days. Sunset smiled before she headed over toward the desk. She grabbed one more piece of parchment and set her quill against it. “Well, I was going to wait until I got to the portal to write this, but… maybe I should write something now.” Twilight’s voice hummed. “You’re… going to make a diary entry?” “Yeah.” There was a pause. And then, “Okay.” Sunset began writing, dictating as she wrote. “Dear Diary, “Once upon a time, I learned that the magic of friendship doesn't just exist in Equestria, but everywhere. That you can seek it out, or you can be alone. “I was taught that friendship is everywhere, but never could I have seen it more prominently than this past week. The spark of friendship transcends all borders. Whether separated by a few miles, a few days, or maybe even a few worlds, if you look for it, you will find it. “And maybe that’s all you need. “At first, I didn’t look for it because I did not think I would gain it. Likewise, a wise pony that I know didn’t look for it at first because she was afraid to lose it. But in the end, we looked for it and found what we needed. “The best of friends can help each other get through troubled times. They’ll share the burden of your hurt even if they feel the exact same way, and maybe that makes it that much easier. You can count on your friends to help you find a way through. “Because no matter the circumstances, wonderful things happen when you reach out or let yourself be reached. “Yours truly, “Sunset Shimmer” Sunset set the quill down and looked over her writing. After a once-over, she gave herself a satisfied nod and levitated the crystal ball over. “That…” Twilight’s voice said, “is a good entry. I think… I should try to learn from that.” Sunset smirked. “Are you reading all of that from your own copy?” she asked. “I was.” “You will be.” Their laughter echoed off the walls into parts of the tower unknown. “I should mention that a couple words were changed in my version,” Twilight’s voice said. “Just another example of world divergence, I guess.” Sunset trotted down the stairs with both ball and paper behind her. She slid her diary draft into her saddlebag and then lifted the whole thing onto her back. She then nodded to herself. “I really want to tell the others goodbye. I wish I had done that at the hospital…” “Well… Let me see...” The crystal ball didn’t answer for a moment. Sunset could not tell what Twilight was doing in a world several days into the future. Sunset opened the doors to the tower. She looked back once and levitated the crystal ball onto one of the cushions. “Okay. I just checked to see if the others were still at the hospital in your world. So, if you said something, I didn’t hear you,” Twilight’s voice said. “And?” “I couldn’t find them. It… looks like they left.” Sunset’s eyes fell to the floor. “…O-oh,” she stammered. “But… don’t worry about it too much, okay?” Sunset stared back into the empty tower. Even with the bright white and blue palette that looked back at her, even with the cushions that littered the floor, even with all the books upstairs—more than most ponies could want—the tower felt empty. And it was her fault. “Sure...” Sunset croaked after a few moments. “Thanks for checking for me.” “You’re welcome.” Sunset stepped into the doorway but paused. She turned. “And, before I forget… I’ve been hoping that I might be able to say this to you. And I think now is the best time to do it.” She grinned. “Happy birthday, Twilight. Or, birthdays. However you want to call it.” Twilight’s voice giggled. “Thanks, Sunset. It means a lot to me. Tell everyone at Canterlot High that I said, ‘Hi.’” With a nod, Sunset turned outward once more and slunk through the doorframe. Her magic grabbed a hold of the double doors and pulled them closed. The double doors locked with a click, and after one last longing look, Sunset descended the staircase. * * * Canterlot’s train station was a building that Sunset could swear was halfway made out of windows. She trotted inside and slid into the ticket line. As the ponies in front of her conducted their business, her eyes glued themselves to the clock on the wall, watching it tick on. Finally, she reached the front. The stallion behind the counter looked at her from behind his thick spectacles and pulled at his half-greying beard. “How can I help you today?” he asked with a worn and tired voice. Sunset used her magic to fish her bits out from her saddlebag and tossed them onto the counter. “One-way to Ponyville, please…” “One-way to Ponyville,” he echoed as he scooped the bits into a register. The stallion reached under the counter and slapped a train ticket onto the countertop. “Your train leaves in about two hours. You will want to be here at the station at least thirty minutes before it arrives.” Sunset nodded. “Thanks.” “Have a wonderful day and hope you have a safe trip!” the stallion said with a smile. Sunset slunk toward one of the windows and tossed her saddlebag against it before taking a seat herself. Her eyes drifted toward the drop-off a few yards past the tracks and Sunset saw the vista beyond. Her eyes glazed across the plains below, tracking a small stream that meandered through the landscape. And then she followed it back up before going over its length a third time. And she let her mind wander. She let it wander to the last few days. She let it wander to thoughts of those who had been with her through them. She wanted to see them one more time. She wanted to tell them goodbye. She wanted more time with them. She wanted to feel what she had felt when she was with them. This time, Sunset knew what she wanted. * * * “Sunset.” The word went in one ear and out the other. “Sunset!” Somepony is calling my name? She blinked. “Sunset Shimmer!” Sunset whirled around to find Rainbow Dash leaning in dangerously close to her face. Rainbow Dash snorted and stood up. “It’s like you’re deaf or something.” Sunset scrambled to her hooves. She looked past Rainbow Dash to find the other five nearly staring at her with half-smirks. “Oh! I…!” she said, turning red. “You’re here! I thought you’d have gone back to Twilight by now.” “Well of course we’d like to be with Twilight,” Rarity said, “but we have all the time in the world for her. You, on the other hoof, are more important right now.” Sunset recoiled against the glass, looking between their bright, smiling faces. She then chuckled under her breath and wrapped a hoof around her own foreleg. “I um… I left that hospital without properly saying goodbye properly and…” “What?” Applejack asked. “Did ya think that we weren’t gunna see ya off?” Sunset blinked. Seeing me off? She rubbed the back of her head. “I guess I didn’t. I forgot all about it. I’m not very good with these kinds of things yet.” Spike laughed. “That’s why I asked you if you were leaving later, so that we could meet you here.” “We wouldn’t miss it for the world!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed. Sunset turned red and let out a relieved giggle, not letting up even as she wiped a tear from her eye. “You all are the best.” “Attention passengers,” echoed a voice throughout the station, “the train from Hollow Shades will arrive in the station momentarily with continuing service to Ponyville and Las Pegasus. All customers embarking to those locations should gather their belongings and make their way onto the platform.” Sunset levitated her saddlebag onto her back. “That’s me.” Fluttershy stepped toward the sliding glass doors. “Should we all head out there then?” Sunset nodded and started for the door. A flurry of gasps enveloped the building as several ponies dropped to the floor. Sunset looked up to see what could cause such a reaction and spotted Princess Celestia standing in the doorway to the station. An older stallion, dressed in a tailored red coat, stood by her side, using his magic to steal a glance at his pocket watch. Celestia searched for a moment before locking her gaze on Sunset. She smiled and glided forward. Sunset turned to the other six. “I’ll meet you all out on the platform, okay?” Her friends nodded with a flurry of affirmative hums as they stepped through the doors and out onto the platform. Sunset turned back toward the princess as the latter approached her. She bowed. “Princess.” Celestia leaned forward, “You do not have to bow to me, Sunset,” she said with a smile. Sunset climbed back onto all fours. “What are you doing here?” “I heard that you might be leaving. I thought I should see you off.” “Well, I’m glad you came,” Sunset said with a chuckle. “Although I also came here…” Celestia said, clearing her throat, “to see if you’d be willing to spend an extra day here in Canterlot.” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “An extra day?” Celestia motioned with her head toward the five ponies and dragon out on the platform. “They told me some of the details. They said that you had a lot to do with what has happened. So… I had planned on holding a ceremony in celebration of your efforts.” “A ceremony just for me…?” Celestia nodded. “Of course.” Sunset looked back out onto the platform. A ceremony just for me... she thought. But then her eyes fell on the six. As they talked about something that Sunset could only guess at, even in their equine forms, they reminded her of the people waiting for her back home. Sunset held up a hoof. “I appreciate that, Princess, but… I don’t think that’s possible.” “Oh?” “I really have to get home to my friends at Canterlot High. I’m sure they are so worried about me.” She kicked at the floor. “I’ve been away from them for nearly six days and I never even told them I was still here.” Celestia paused for a moment as she thought those words over. Her wings rustled at her sides as she looked down to Sunset. And then she smiled and nodded. “I understand. You must miss them very much.” “I do.” Celestia chuckled. “Well,” she said, drawing up, “Twilight was right about you. I’m so glad.” Sunset blinked. “About what?” she asked. “You’ve really changed.” Sunset smiled. “Thanks. But I’ve still got a long ways to go.” “Perhaps.” Sunset sighed and rubbed the moisture from her eyes. “And, really, I’m still pretty worn out.” “It has been a very long ordeal for all of us. But I suppose it has been especially long for you,” Celestia said. She looked out the window and drew her own eyes toward the orange glows of the sky and her setting sun. “And, in a few short hours, you will be home with your friends again, safe and sound.” Sunset looked out the window as well. “Yeah…” she trailed off. The telltale rumble of an oncoming locomotive shook the walls and a loud whistle sounded from outside. The mishmash of steam and the in-and-out of hydraulics grew louder as the engine pulled into view. Several carriages behind it ground to a halt as they lined up with the station’s platform. “I wish…” Sunset started. “Hmmmm?” “I wish I could have spent more time catching up with you. There’re so many things I want to tell you about. All the things that I’ve learned ever since I found friendship, all the things that I’ve experienced. …And all the things that I’ve missed after I ran away.” Celestia looked on as several ponies stepped off the train. At the same time, several more ponies filed out of the sliding door to meet the new arrivals. Bits of laughter and cheer rose up as ponies reunited. She glanced down at the stallion to her side. “Kibitz?” The stallion drew a notepad out of his coat pocket and scribbled something down. “I’ll take care of things here, Princess. Do as you wish.” Celestia smiled and then sauntered over to the ticket counter. The ponies in line edged away as she approached, allowing her to pass and approach the attendant. “One ticket to Ponyville, if you please.” The stallion behind the counter stood at his full height. “Of course, Princess Celestia!” Celestia smiled and turned back to Sunset. “I would be more than happy to listen to all of it on the way there. That is if you’d like,” she said with a wink. A smile spread across Sunset’s face faster than she could move it herself. “That would be great.” Nodding, Celestia stepped through the sliding glass doors and out onto the platform. Sunset (and, a fair distance behind them, Kibitz as well) followed. Celestia stopped at the entrance to the car and turned. “I will find a seat for the two of us.” Sunset nodded. “See you in a second.” As Princess Celestia boarded the train and disappeared into the car, Kibitz strolled up to the conductor and whispered into his ear. The conductor considered it, checked his watch, and then nodded. Sunset turned to the six behind her. She looked into each of their eyes and blushed. “Well… it’s been a blast,” she said. “This is it.” “These past few days sure’ve been somethin’,” Applejack said with a smirk. “They sure have!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “That was… fun? But… let’s not do that again.” The seven of them laughed in response to that. “Well, we all won in the end, didn’t we?” Pinkie Pie said, looking around. “We did, and I’m tired,” Spike said. “Anyway, we sure appreciate all that ya did,” Applejack said with a tip of her hat. “We owe ya.” “This was all you,” Rainbow Dash added. Sunset frowned. “No, it wasn’t,” she replied. Rarity stepped forward. “Sunset Shimmer… You were the one that kept us going, even when we… doubted you. You were the one that figured out these other worlds and how they worked. You figured out those nasty contradictions and set us all on the right path. My, you were the one that found Twilight to begin with.” She motioned to the other five. “I think I speak for all of us when I say that we don’t know where we would be without you. You… have given us our lives back.” Fluttershy nodded and smiled. “Thanks, Sunset. For everything that you did for Twilight.” Sunset held up a hoof. “Please, girls. You give me way too much credit. I could not have done with without all of you,” she said, placing a hoof to her chest. She let her head hang, and for some moments, she stared at the platform’s wooden floor. “You made me feel like I had a place in this world again,” she said. “You girls… you all went to the ends of the world for Twilight.” Sunset pointed to herself and laughed. “I just sat in a tower and wrote stuff.” The others giggled along. Sunset turned. “And Spike, you saw me go to a dark place, and you picked me right back up. You helped me with so many things and…” She shook her head and chuckled. “Twilight couldn’t ask for a better assistant.” Spike beamed and beat a fist against his chest. Sunset could feel some water welling up in her eyes. “I think it’s all of you that helped me the most. I am… so happy that I got to meet all of you. And I’m going to miss all of you.” The train let out a long whistle that made them jump. They looked over to the conductor who remained on the platform. He met their stares and rolled his hooves in a “wrap it up” motion. “I have to go, I guess,” Sunset muttered. She looked back toward the five ponies and a dragon, all of whom smiled back at her. Six individuals with whom she had made friends with. These friends of Equestria. Her friends. “But, after all, I’m just a portal away.” Sunset took a breath as she thought about her next words and she eventually grinned. “This isn’t goodbye; it’s just goodbye until next time!” The six swarmed her, scooping her up in a multi-faceted embrace. Their forelegs locked together and their voices mingled as they let forth several well-wishes and compliments and many, many other things in between. Sunset grabbed onto them as well, wishing that she never had to let go. All at once, the seven broke. Sunset turned and stepped into the train car. After one last wave to them, she too, like Celestia before her, disappeared into the car. The train’s engine let out another whistle and lurched forward. The rhythmic sound of steam as it pushed and pulled bellowed up as it shot smoke into the air. The train gained speed and as it did it drew farther and farther away. Finally, the train disappeared around the corner, bound for someplace far beyond the city.