//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: The Sun Sets in the East // by Deathscar //------------------------------// A beautiful melody rang throughout Rarity’s home, which was quickly interrupted by Pinkie’s high-pitched singing. “I’ll get it!” The pink-haired girl bounced along towards the door, twisting the knob and pulling it open. At the doorway stood Sunset Shimmer who smiled towards Pinkie. “Hi Pinkie! Sorry I’m late. Had trouble fitting everything I wanted into the luggage.” She gestured to the black bag she was carrying on her back, which looked as if it was about to explode any moment. “No worries! Come on in! The rest of the girls are here!” Pinkie walked back inside, sitting down at the dining table as she took a sip from her can of soda. Sunset moved behind her, closing the door lightly. When she turned towards the kitchen, she was blasted with a chorus of greetings. “Hey there Sunset!” The other girls simultaneously addressed her. “Morning girls!” Sunset greeted cheerfully, setting down her bags and taking the only empty seat beside Rarity. “Hope I didn’t hold you all here for too long.” “Nah,” Rainbow swiftly dismissed Sunset’s statement, her eyes focused intently on her portable gaming device. “If anything you came right on time!” “Thanks again for inviting me to the lodge trip!” Sunset spoke with a smile on her face. “Oh don’t mention it.” Rarity flicked her wrist at Sunset as she used her other hand to pick up her cup of tea, taking a soft sip. "These three days are sure to be the most enjoyable days you'll have!" “What better way to spend summer vacation than to take a trip to a remote mountain area in our own lodge where there are no defences to protect us from a random bear attack?” Pinkie ended her rapid-fire speech with a large grin, causing the others to immediately cease their activities to give her a blank stare. “Did you say bears?” Fluttershy asked, having directed all of her attention from her private notebook where she wrote all her songs. “Oh I hope so! Bears are lovely animals!” This time the blank stares were directed towards Fluttershy. Who, upon seeing that she had somehow managed to grab the gaze of her friends, quietly sunk down into her seat, lifting her book upwards to obscure her blush. Applejack shook her head slightly, taking a crunch of the apple in her right palm. “Well, our lodge won’t be remote, that’s one thing ah’m sure of!” “That’s right.” Rarity nodded. “Our lodge is merely one of many that’ll be there. So no worries about it being alone.” “That’s good.” Sunset sighed softly. “And no bears right?” “Nope.” Rainbow smirked as she set her device on the table. “Plus if a bear does show up, I’ll beat him with a ha! And a ho! And a hiya!” She dotted each yell with a martial arts move, or at least, what she thought was a martial arts move. “Rainbow!” Fluttershy placed her book downwards, giving a stern stare to her friend. “Don’t you dare! Bears are harmless if they know you aren’t going to pose a threat to them!” Taking her seat, Rainbow rolled her eyes. “I was only joking, Fluttershy!” Causing the worried girl to release a sigh, whether it was of relief or exhaustion was anyone’s guess. “Okay kids, get your bags, we’re going off!” Rarity’s mother spoke as she poked her head into the kitchen. “Finally!” Rainbow shouted, grabbing her bag and doing an athletic hop off the table, garnering a sharp roll of Applejack’s eyes. Sunset stood up calmly, grabbing her bag once more as she walked towards the main door. “Thanks for taking us up to the lodge, Miss Crumbles.” “Oh it’s no problem at all!” Cookie Crumbles replied with a large grin, one that Sunset thought could almost compete with Pinkie Pie! Well, almost. Sunset giggled to herself as she exited the house. The others followed suit, mimicking Sunset’s actions of placing her bag in the trunk of the car before getting into it. Rarity, however, was a little slower as she lugged her four suitcases forward. The others merely turned around to stare in awe. “R-Rarity, we aren’t even going camping. This is a lodge. Meaning it has facilities?” Applejack tried to reason with the struggling girl, but knew it was of no use. “Oh please, do they provide the proper shampoo for my hair? Or how about my body? How about the toothbrush! I can’t use some… some free and public toothbrush to brush my perfect teeth!” Rarity shivered at the thought. Rainbow slammed her palms into her face, getting out of the car and rushing to help Rarity carry two of the luggages. “Let me help.” She offered with a smile. Or we’ll be stuck here till the end of winter. “Oh thank you kindly Rainbow Dash,” Rarity grinned as they forced the bags into any empty spaces they could find, just barely managing to close the top of the trunk down before they squeezed into the vehicle. “You girls ready?” Rarity’s father asked, grasping the wheels. “Yes Mr Flanks!” The girls answered as the car started to speed off towards the mountains in the distance.