Sunset Shimmer’s world twisted about, but it bent her less and less with every passing moment. Finally, it stopped just enough where Sunset could move on her own. She put her hoof—no, that changed into a foot somewhere along the line—forward.
Her foot hit concrete. At that, she planted her other foot on the concrete as well and looked up. She saw a black sky that faded into blue and, near the far-off horizon, red. A few stars poked their way through, and with each moment, more and more appeared out of hiding.
Her eyes drifted downward to find a sizable building arcing around her. The faded red bricks rose up higher than most buildings in Equestria. Canterlot High, in its own way, resembled a palace.
“And we were able to repair our float right in time for the parade,” a voice said. It sounded like Fluttershy.
Sunset’s eyes centered on the front steps. Several lanterns lit the features on several individuals. Several individuals that she recognized. Her best friends. While most sat on the steps, two of them sat on folding chairs that faced the center of their circle. She could see what looked like flat boxes lying around but could not tell what they were.
But at the very top of their circle, to her surprise, sat Principal Celestia who she shifted in her seat and smiled. “Well, I am very pleased to hear that, I’m sure Sunset would be happy to know you recovered.”
At once, five of them slumped in their seats. “Yeah…” Pinkie Pie said, voicing it for them.
Sunset chuckled to herself and stepped forward. “Hey, everyone,” she greeted.
The six humans before her whirled around in their seats. After a moment of taking her in, they shot to their feet. “Sunset!” they cried in unison.
“You came back!” Rarity exclaimed.
Sunset blushed. “Yeah, yeah. Sorry, I didn’t mean to be gone so long. It’s just… some things came up and I really had to take care of them.”
Rainbow Dash laughed. “And here we were thinking about heading home for the night.”
Sunset frowned. “Huh?”
“Well,” Fluttershy said, “we’ve been here for a few hours already.”
“Sorry, Sunny,” Pinkie Pie said, pointing to a box on the ground, “pizza’s already cold.”
Sunset’s eyes drifted down to the boxes on the ground and she noticed the label emblazoned across their surfaces. …Right.
She shook her head, “What are all of you doing here? I thought being on the grounds at night was against the rules?”
“Which is why I am here,” Celestia said as she leaned against the handrail. “This has been a difficult time for all of us, but especially for you six. And they… they have come here practically every night for the past few days hoping that you might show up. And I can’t and won’t say no to that.”
Sunset held a hand to her mouth to hide her chuckle. But the red in her face gave her away.
“So, Sunset,” Rainbow Dash asked, “what all held you up so long?”
There was the question. Sunset grinned. “I was… on a very interesting adventure.”
“Yeah?
“We learned a lot about what happened. Actually, we kinda… sorta… shaped it. Really hard.”
They met Sunset with confused frowns and raised eyebrows.
“I mean,” Sunset continued, “time travel got involved… and… parallel worlds got involved… It was confusing at times. But we were there in those days leading up to Twilight going down.”
Rarity, after exchanging glances with the others, said, “So… you changed the past?”
Sunset shook her head. “No, it’s like… we were always a part of it. Is, was, will be.”
“Soooooooo,” Pinkie Pie began, “what? What actually happened then?”
Sunset felt a smile spread across her face. The smile showed her teeth, and behind those teeth, she tried and failed to stifle her giggles. With each moment, she lost more of her control, and her laughter grew in volume.
“Sunset Shimmer?” Celestia asked with a concerned tone.
Sunset beamed at them as her giggling continued.
Fluttershy gasped. “No way!” she exclaimed, pointing straight at her. “You can’t possibly say…”
Sunset nodded. “I can!”
Rarity’s eyes widened and she gasped. “Are you say—are you saying what I think you’re saying!?”
“We figured it out. We made it happen. She’s doing fine.” Sunset giggled. “She says ‘Hi,’ by the way.”
The humans before her jumped for joy and shouted all sorts of exclamations and cheers before finding the girl closest to them and scooping them into an embrace. All except Rainbow Dash who sprang up higher than Sunset thought possible and punched the air, and Celestia who stood with her arms crossed and with a grin spread across her face.
“That’s amazing!” Rarity shouted.
“Yay!” Fluttershy exclaimed.
Applejack broke her hug first and turned to Sunset. “That’s mighty swell! Ya gotta tell us all about it!”
“I’d be happy to tell you all about it,” Sunset said as she cracked a smile. “Just… not right now though. It’s a really long story and I’m—” she wiped away a baggy feeling in her eyes, “—about ready to pass out in my bed…”
“And,” Celestia interjected, “it is very late. So I’m going to have to lock the front doors up now.” She pointed to all the boxes and lanterns on the ground. “Set all of this in my truck,” she instructed with a knowing smile. “I’ll take care of it.”
The girls nodded and picked up several items and hauled them across the lawn. At that point, Sunset noticed the line of cars parked on the curbside. While she recognized the station wagons and compact cars, the pickup truck was unfamiliar. She headed in that direction with the folding chairs.
One by one, the six of them set the items into the back of the pickup and then gathered on the sidewalk.
Sunset turned to face them. “I can’t wait to catch up with all of you. I’ve… got so much to say. And I’m sure a lot has happened here too. I learned so much these past few days and I…” She looked between each of them, all of whom looked back at her with smiles on their faces. “I’ve missed all of you so much. It’s so good to be home with you girls again.”
And with that, her five friends drew toward her and took her into one large group hug. As they took her, Sunset could feel a warmth within herself, one which, somehow, she knew had been there all along.
As they broke, Sunset looked to the sky. “So… I might sleep in. Does three-ish tomorrow at the café sound good to everyone?”
They met her with a flurry of nods, “Uh-huh”s, and “Mm-hmm”s.
Sunset looked up as Principal Celestia approached them once more. Celestia paused as she noticed Sunset’s glance.
Sunset’s friends followed suit and looked up as well.
Celestia shook her head. “It would be unprofessional,” she asserted.
“Technically, so is this. Please,” Sunset pleaded, “we’ll buy, even. It’s the least we can do for tonight, I think.”
Even behind a stoic frown, Sunset could spot the twinkle in Celestia’s eye. “I’ll think about it,” Celestia replied. “You girls have a good night.”
“You too!” they all replied in unison.
As Celestia climbed inside her truck, Sunset turned to her friends. “I’m going to go get some shut-eye. See all of you tomorrow!”
The rest of them broke and responded with “Goodnight!”s of their own and then headed their separate ways.
Sunset watched as each of them filed into their cars (or, in Rarity’s case, hopped into Applejack’s car). With the roar of their engines, her friends pulled out and drove around corners, disappearing for the night.
Sunset turned her gaze toward the reds on the horizon. The picturesque glow of the ever-receding blue and red calmed her with its serenity. As a nightly wind blew through her hair, as a cool howl brushed past her, she knew that nothing could cut it. It was there just like on any other night. And just like it would be on nights to come.
After all, the full, lively twilight above her had to mean only one thing. Sunset Shimmer knew that much.