The school hallway was quiet, almost eerily so, and empty. Sunset was used to such things after long summers and mercifully short breaks in classes, but now, it seemed far less pleasant than before. Now, this feeling of being alone was worrisome, almost as if…
“Well, aren’t we all merry and bright?”
The ground beneath her shook and a gash formed in the floor as she scrambled to get to one side. It was all for naught as the ground gave way beneath her feet and she fell. Thankfully, she managed to gain a grip on the floor, and most of her upper body was out of the hole, so she could pull herself out…
“And where do you think you’re going?”
She felt a pull on her legs, and she inched backwards into the hole, scrambling to maintain her hold. She turned back to see her all-too-familiar foe, the monster that she’d allowed herself to become, had grabbed hold of her legs and was pulling her into the raging inferno below. “Let go! I’m no monster!”
The she-demon cackled. “Really? Then where are your so-called friends?”
Sunset’s grip slipped, and she started to be pulled in…
“We’re right here!” Rarity’s hand wrapped tight around Sunset’s own as the fashionista cried out, “Hold tight, darling! We’re with you!”
Applejack’s call was loud and clear as she took hold of Sunset’s free hand. “Each an’ every one ‘a us!”
Indeed it was so, and Sunset beamed as she saw all of her friends, from the girls and their siblings, biological or otherwise, to Pinkie and Applejack’s relatives to Celestia and Luna and Zecora, even Lyra and Sweetie Drops, arrayed before her and forming human chains as they held tight to her hands and refused to let go. Spike was even among them, lumps of coal in his draconic claws being crushed and turned into diamonds that he threw at the demon grabbing hold of her legs. Only one friend was conspicuous by her absence…
The demon seemed to notice this, and cackled. “Oh dear, seems you’re all out of friends. Where oh where has our dear princess gone?”
The ceiling seemed to open up and peel back, light streaming in from above and the gentle beating of wings reaching Sunset’s ears. Twin bolts of magic blew past her, and the demon’s angered and surprised screams clearly answered her own question. Sunset looked back to see her darker self’s wings frozen solid in ice, the demon’s face contorted in rage, which prompted a smirk. “You were saying?”
“This doesn’t matter! You’re still a monster, whether you believe it or not, and…!”
The demon was interrupted as an amber hoof smashed directly into her face, breaking some of her fanged teeth and causing her to loosen her grip. Sunset wriggled a booted foot free and kicked her off the other one, sending the monster falling into the fiery pit below and finally allowing her to climb free.
The crevasse sealed beneath her, and triumphant cheers sounded all around. Hugs were shared, and Sunset turned and smiled in joy upon the two ponies among them. One was Twilight, of course, but the other was a pegasus mare, slightly older than the princess but very familiar, especially with her crimson and yellow mane and cyan eyes. The pegasus smiled as she remarked, “Shows what she knows. My big sister isn’t a monster.”
Sunset grinned and took the mare into a warm hug. “Thank you, Runnie.”
-
Sunset awoke from her dream with a smile on her face, and the soft sounds of her friends still snoozing around her. She sat up and looked about her to see her gathered friends, Applejack and Rarity nestled underneath blankets while Pinkie, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were inside of sleeping bags, and the smile never once left her face. It faded slightly as she saw the snowfall that had accumulated outside, as well as the fact that it had continued throughout the night. The way things looked, it would probably continue for the rest of the day as well. Clearly, the trio behind Anon-A-Miss was going to have a lot of work ahead of them.
She was surprised that she was the first up, doubly so that she’d slept so soundly after the story she’d relayed from Twilight through her journal. The Elements of Harmony returned from whence they came, a mysterious chest produced in their place, and Discord right at the heart of everything. Just as she’d weathered a small, personal storm, Equestria looked as though it might not be ready for the next one to come.
Sunset shook her head. Twilight, Spike and everypony back in Equestria would be fine, and the young princess had already asked for her help with the chest. Granted, she probably knew just as much as Twilight did herself, but it didn’t hurt to have a second set of eyes going over research. She just hoped that she was up to the task.
Right now, however, she didn’t feel quite ready to go back to sleep. It was her first real Christmas morning, after all, and she didn’t want to sleep through it any more than she already had.
She carefully got to her feet and put on her slippers, then grabbed a few things from her backpack and carefully made her way out of Applejack’s room. She slowly closed the door behind her and made her way downstairs with light footsteps, then found her way to the living room. The tree rested before her with decorations in place and lights turned off. They’d be back on once everyone was up and opening presents, of course, but she wasn’t in a rush. As much as she enjoyed not being alone, she did enjoy a little solitude.
Without another second’s thought, she looked to her gathered things; her sketchbook, the bundle of letters that Twilight had given her a few days previous, and the newest of her various possessions, an unexpected gift in the form of an MP3 player, loaded with a number of songs that she’d only begun to listen to.
“You had to insist on listening to it on the drive out here, didn’t you Pinkie?”
Sunset was glad it had come with a set of earbuds, and she carefully placed one in her right ear before plugging it into the player and turning the device on. After a few seconds of thumbing through the playlist, she found the track she was looking for, and let it play.
Her music going, she turned her attention to the letters. Some had been opened and their contents read, while the rest remained undamaged. She carefully selected the next to have come to her and opened the envelope, unfurling the letter inside and reading it over, then reading it again. It was less because of the penponyship of the letter’s author, and more because she felt like she needed to read it twice, if only to make up for missing it the first time.
She sighed as she finished her second read through and the song finished. She stopped the player before it could continue to the next track, closed her eyes, and smiled.
“Sunset?” She emerged from her reverie and turned to find Apple Bloom and her friends nearby. “What’re you doin’ up?”
“Didn’t want to go back to sleep, and wanted a little quiet to catch up on some reading.” Sunset slipped the earbud from her ear and asked, “Trying to sneak a peek at your presents?”
The three shrugged as Sweetie Belle admitted, “Maybe. Can we join you?”
“Sure.” The girls sat down with her on the couch. “I remember, every Hearth’s Warming morning, I’d wake up early. Kept on hoping my parents would get up, and I’d be able to open up all the presents Santa brought me.”
“Equestria has a Santa Claus?” Scootaloo looked at her with disbelief. “Okay, that’s too weird. Why would a pony ride a sleigh pulled by reindeer?”
“My world’s Santa doesn’t ride a sleigh pulled by reindeer. He is a reindeer. He leads an entire team of reindeer who deliver presents to all the good little children all across the world.” A shrug, and Sunset amended, “So the stories go.”
The four laughed among themselves until Apple Bloom looked up at her curiously. “So, do ya ever miss it? Equestria an’ all that magic, ah mean.”
Sunset smiled sadly and admitted, “Every day. It’s better now that I have regular contact and all, but if I could go back, if only for a little while, I would. As much damage as I caused here, I still left plenty behind back home that I want to fix if I can.” She held up her bundle of letters and amended, “Not as much as I thought, thankfully.” At the girls’ curious looks, she explained, “You heard me mention my cousin, right? My mom had a fraternal twin sister, one I didn’t know about until after my parents died and she took me in. But she had a family of her own, including a daughter named Sunrunner. She and I were practically identical, except for her being a pegasus.” She sighed and explained, “Runnie embraced me immediately, thought of me as a big sister, but I pushed her away. The last time I saw her before I started attending the School for Gifted Unicorns, I yelled at her and left her in tears.” She regarded the bundle and explained, “But once a month, every month afterwards, I’d get a letter from her in the mail. I threw them away, but Princess Celestia saved them, and Twilight got them to me a couple days ago. ”
“So, she didn’t hate you?”
The smile grew warmer. “No. Her first letter said otherwise, that she knew I was just mad about things. But she could forgive me yelling at her, because that’s what family did. Forgive.” She thumbed the bundle and added, “And she kept on sending me letters, telling me about everything she did and all that happened to her, and asking me how things were in Canterlot.” A grin formed on Sunset’s face as she added, “I haven’t read all of them yet, but I think my surrogate little sister went and found herself a coltfriend.”
“Aww.” Sweetie Belle grew a bubbly smile. “I bet they were cute together.”
“Almost like you and Button Mash?” Scootaloo teased.
The smile faded as a blush took form on the other girl’s face. “That’s totally different, and besides, that’s probably been shot down in flames after all this.”
“No kiddin’. So much fer us bein’ popular.”
Sunset laughed. “Take it from personal experience, popularity is overrated.”
The three looked up at her in surprise, and Apple Bloom queried, “But you did everythin’ you could to get popular.”
“That’s because I wanted power, and the two are synonymous in a high school. But I knew it wouldn’t last forever. I didn’t know it would end the way it did, though.” Sunset sighed and then offered, “But if it makes you three feel any better, somewhere in there with all the jealousy and hate, you were worried about your big sisters. It got out of hand, but you were still trying to help them. Those who know you and like you, real friends and loved ones? They’ll see that, understand it and forgive you. Probably a lot sooner than the rest of the school will forgive me for all I did.”
Apple Bloom gently wrapped her hand around Sunset’s and held tight. “They will. We’ve forgiven ya, after all.”
Sunset smiled and nodded. “Yeah, you have.” She gently wrapped her arms around the three and held them close, glad for the warmth they offered. “Thanks girls.”
“So, now that we’re friends, can you tell us more ‘bout this Hearth’s Warmin’ thing?” The young farmgirl looked at Sunset curiously as she added, “Somethin’ tells me it don’t have a little baby Jesus pony bein’ born in a manger somewhere.”
Sunset shook her head. “No. Hearth’s Warming has the trappings of Christmas, and it’s all about families and coming together to celebrate, but it’s origins are with the birth of our nation more than the birth of a savior.”
“So it’s like Christmas and the Fourth of July put together.”
Sunset laughed at Scootaloo’s summation. “Yeah, only no fireworks or barbecues.” She sighed and continued, “Anyway, it dates back to the pre-classical era of pony history, right around the same time the human race was working its way towards the end of the Early Middle Ages. Back then, things were very different. Relations between the three great pony tribes were stable, but tense. No one side was totally to blame, but most agree that the unicorns and pegasi were the biggest part of the problem, save for a few ponies too proud to be sensible and historical revisionist idiots.” At Apple Bloom’s snicker, she added, “Yeah, we’ve got ‘em in Equestria too.”
“Figures. Anyway, you wanna explain a little?”
“Well, for starters, you need to understand that things work a little differently in my world. The weather is controlled, mostly by pegasi, while the sun and moon are raised and lowered by magic. Back then, the unicorns did it.” Sunset rolled her eyes as she explained, “They claimed that all of them were needed to do it, but the truth was, they only needed a dozen or so for the job. But both tribes were able to use that as a means of extorting food out of the earth ponies, whose magic leaned more towards raw physical strength and farming. They weren’t enslaved or anything, but there wasn’t much they could do about it with the other tribes, and all three sides resented one another for one thing or another.” She shrugged and added, “But peace was kept, at least until a terrible cold came upon the ancient pony lands. The pegasi couldn’t do anything about it, and neither could the unicorns, and once food ran out, tensions mounted until all three tribes each struck out to find new lands for themselves.”
Sweetie Belle tilted her head curiously. “Did they?”
“Yeah, but they all found the exact same land, and once they started fighting over who claimed it first, the terrible cold came upon them again, and they were forced to seek shelter. But the fighting continued, and many of the ponies, including the leaders of the three tribes, soon found themselves frozen over and encased in ice, and it was then that the survivors discovered the cause of the terrible cold.” Sunset paused for dramatic effect and whispered, “The windigoes.”
“The things you and Twilight talked about?” At the flame-haired girl’s nod, Scootaloo asked, “What are they exactly?”
“Beings of frost and ice that create cold wherever they go and feed upon hatred and conflict. The long-simmering tensions among my ancestors attracted them to the ancient ponies, and the more the conflict grew, the greater the cold became, until all of the three tribes risked being frozen forever.”
“Wait, if these things feed offa hate an’ fightin’, why freeze up all the ponies?” Apple Bloom turned curious as she asked, “Don’t make much sense ta kill yer food source.”
Sunset shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know. The windigoes were never definitively seen again after all this happened, and nopony knows if they were actual creatures or spirits or something conjured up by an outside force. We’ll probably never know for certain. Anyway, with their rulers and most of their number frozen in ice, the survivors banded together and realized that despite their differences, they had plenty in common, including not liking the folks in charge. And the same thing that your sisters and Twilight used to save me ended up saving them; the magic of friendship. Whether they were destroyed or simply driven away, nopony’s certain, but like I said, the windigoes were never seen again.”
“Just as long as they didn’t end up here. What happened next?”
“Well, the remaining ponies kept themselves going until the cold faded by talking, singing, and generally being friendly with one another. Stories were spread, laughs were shared, and the same songs they sung then are sung today in Equestria as winter carols.” Sunset smiled as her thoughts drifted back to happier times, the Heart Carol racing through her mind as if she was hearing it performed live by the Royal Choir in Canterlot. “Over time, those who had been trapped in ice were freed, safe and sound, and they emerged from the cave and vowed to avoid anything like that happening again. That vow led very shortly thereafter to the founding of Equestria.” A sigh, and she added, “They learned their lesson. Hopefully, the same one that we all should have learned by now.”
“That hatred and distrust ain’t worth it, ‘cuz they’ll just end up destroyin’ us.” The young farmgirl sighed. “So, is that why you forgave us and our sisters so quick? Why ya don’t hate us fer hurtin’ ya?”
Sunset shrugged. “I won’t deny it, it did hurt. And I can’t forget that it happened. But hate you for all of it? No.” She turned somber as she added, “But this is still going to hurt for a while.” She managed a small smile as she amended, “But we’ll all be okay. Including me.”
“Just gotta learn from this.” A pair of arms found themselves wrapped around her waist, and Sunset looked to find Sweetie Belle hugging her tight. She gently hugged the young girl in return as she was asked, “So, is there more to the story? What happened next?”
“Well, a lot happened next. That was only the beginning. America didn’t become what it is today just because the Declaration of Independence was signed.”
Scootaloo snorted. “Yeah, we had to fight a war first.”
“Well yes, but we avoided that part and skipped right to something like the Constitutional Conference.” Sunset grinned and explained, “Not long after all of that happened, the three greater tribes tried to come to an agreement about who would rule them. The old system didn’t work, and every idea that came along either caused more trouble than it solved or risked bigger problems. Then, they consulted one of the greatest unicorn wizards known to pony history, Star Swirl the Bearded.”
“That’s the fella who made those magic mirrors!”
“Bingo. He suggested that they reach out to the fourth pony tribe, the alicorns. Given that they have traits of all three of the other tribes, it was met with near-unanimous approval, and Star Swirl personally led a party to the alicorns’ city, my world’s Canterlot, where they met two young mares who they felt best showed the qualities they sought for Equestria’s future rulers. They were a pair of sisters, one light gray with a pink mane that was just starting to take on streaks of blue and turquoise, and the other dark blue with a light blue mane.” She grinned and added, “I only found out this part a little bit ago, but I’ve met them. Their names were Celestia and Luna.”
The girls looked at her like she’d just grown a second head, and Sweetie Belle asked, “Wait, you’re not saying…?” She turned horror-struck as Sunset nodded, and wondered aloud, “How old does that make our Celestia and Luna?”
“This world’s Celestia is in her mid-forties at the oldest. Not everything is an exact parallel; your counterparts are a lot younger than you three, for example.”
“Still, you said Princess Celestia’s still around today, so does that mean she’s immortal?”
“Her and Princess Luna. They formed a bond with my world’s sun and moon and took over the task of raising and lowering them during the first year of their rule. Doing so rejuvenates them and maintains their youth.” Sunset grinned and noted, “They even earned their cutie marks at the same time.”
“And that’s another question. What’s a cutie mark?”
Sunset rolled her eyes. Apple Bloom asking that question was only a matter of time. “You got a good look at Twilight’s flank, right? Did you see the symbol on it?”
“Yeah. It looked like the one she had on her skirt when she was human.”
She nodded at Sweetie Belle’s remark. “That was her cutie mark. With rare exceptions, no two ponies share the same one. A pony earns them once they realize for themselves the things that make them unique, as well as the talents and skills that help make them who they are.” Sunset gestured to her pajama top and the symbol upon it and explained, “Mine is this, and represents my passion and ambition to succeed, develop my magical talents and achieve my goals. It helps that fire and heat-based spells were something of a forte for me back in Equestria.” She looked between them and added, “They might’ve come together through different circumstances to the three of you, but your counterparts are still figuring out who they are and what they want to do with their lives. Just like you are. That’s why they call themselves the Cutie Mark Crusaders.”
“Wow.” Scootaloo grinned. “I like it. Sounds like a cool name for a rock band.”
“So, will they earn their marks?” Apple Bloom turned worried as she asked, “Ah mean, everypony gets ‘em eventually, right?”
“The only ponies I’ve heard of who are full grown and haven’t earned their marks all had some sort of severe mental handicap, or aren’t genuine ponies in the first place. The three of them are real ponies, and are all of sound mind, so they’ll earn them sooner or later.” A thought occurred to her, and she wondered aloud, “Ooh, there’s a thought. How soon between them getting their marks and the three of you having something like them on your clothes?”
“Hey, just as long as it’s something awesome, I hope I get it immediately. Like a lightning bolt or something.”
“Just so long as they aren’t all exactly identical or somethin’.”
Sunset shrugged. “Like I said, that’s rare. I’ve only heard about it with stories related to the Order of Gallopfrey, and I’ve got no way of confirming those.”
“Well, you can tell us those later. Right now, I’ve got one more question.” Sweetie Belle looked to her eagerly and asked, “Twilight’s an alicorn, right?”
“Yeah, but she was born a unicorn like me. She ascended later in life, not too long before everything happened at the Fall Formal.”
“Can any pony become an alicorn then?”
“No. We think that they need to have alicorn ancestry, along with other factors. I was hoping that Twilight’s Element of Harmony would let me ascend, but obviously that didn’t happen.”
“So, does that mean you can’t…?”
Sunset smiled. “Actually, I still have a chance at it. Better now than I did before the Fall Formal, anyway.”
“Far better, darling.” Sunset felt a comforting hand upon her shoulder, and she turned to find that the rest of her friends were up and awake as Rarity amended, “And when it happens, it will be a beautiful moment indeed. And well worth the wait.”
“Thanks. How long have you been up?”
“Long enough to see somethin’ that took way too long to happen.” Applejack looked to her little sister and asked, “Not scared no more?”
“Nah. No sense in bein’ scared of a friend.”
Applejack laughed. “Good.” She leaned down and gently kissed her little sister’s forehead. “That means you’ve learned your lesson.”
Apple Bloom leaned back with a hopeful expression and asked, “So, ya’ll’ve forgiven us?”
A nod. “Yep.”
She smiled happily, and then asked, “So, presents now?”
The elder sister smirked. “Eeenope.”
-
Everyone else awoke soon afterwards, and once Rarity had finished getting herself presentable, all were gathered in the living room to properly begin the day’s festivities. Sunset still found herself surrounded by her young new friends, and she wasn’t complaining in the slightest.
“Alright everyone, let’s simmer down some.” Granny Smith chuckled softly as she looked over the gathering of young’uns and was suddenly reminded of the last Apple Family Reunion. This was smaller, but no less happy or boisterous. “Now then, we got us a tradition in our family. Newest member gets to open their presents first.”
Sunset grinned and looked to the youngest member of the Apple family proper. “That’s you, Apple Bloom.”
The young farmgirl laughed. “Granny said the newest member a’ the family, Sunset, not the youngest.”
“Indeed she did.” Rarity passed over a small gift bag and explained, “Aside from the girls, we each collaborated on these to varying degrees. I do hope you like them. This one is mostly from me, though Fluttershy provided some assistance.”
Sunset took the bag and reached inside, then slowly pulled out its contents. Her eyes lit up as she laughed. “Oh, you didn’t!” In her hands was a homemade stuffed animal, a plush unicorn made in her natural form’s likeness down to its cutie mark. “Thank you both!” She brought its snout up to her nose and grinned. “I shall call you, ‘Mini-Me’.”
Pinkie giggled. “It’s funny again! Me next!” She handed over a box and explained, “It’s not so much one big thing as a bunch of little things.”
The box was opened, and Sunset looked inside to find a number of sealed DVDs within as Rainbow Dash explained, “We figured even a bookworm like you would want to unwind with a movie every once in a while, so we all picked out something for you. Two movies or movie collections each.”
Sunset picked up the first pair of films and read out the titles. “Okay, I’m guessing ‘A Fistful of Dollars’ is from Applejack, and ‘Godzilla’…”
“That’s me too, darlin’. And that’s got both the original Japanese version an’ the American one with Raymond Burr.” The farmgirl gave a nervous chuckle. “Blame mah Cousin Fuji.”
Sunset smirked and set the pair aside as she produced the next set. “‘Gone with the Wind’ and ‘The Big Sleep’.” She looked to Rarity and wondered, “No ‘Casablanca’?”
“And deny you Bogey and Bacall, dear?”
A laugh, and the next pair was produced. “‘Princess Mononoke’ and ‘The Lion King’.”
Fluttershy smiled. “Both are modern classics.”
“‘Iron Man’ and ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’.”
“Yeah, word of advice? Don’t bother with the fourth Indy flick. Spielberg and Lucas definitely shouldn’t have.”
“Okay, these are from Pinkie then. ‘A Night at the Opera’ and… ‘Tremors’.” Sunset looked at Pinkie and asked, “A horror movie?”
“Horror-comedy!”
“One that showed very good research regarding geology,” Maud deadpanned. “That set has the first four films in it. All are worth watching.”
Big McIntosh nodded solemnly. “Eeyup.” He then looked to the younger girls and firmly said, “No watchin’ ‘till you’re all fifteen.”
A chorus of protest went up, which prompted some chuckles as Sunset put the DVDs back into the larger box. “Thanks. I guess now I need to get something to play these with.”
“Like we’d leave you hanging.” Rainbow Dash handed over a larger wrapped box. Sunset freed it from its wrapping to reveal her next gift. “It’s a portable Blu-Ray player. Maud chipped in for the cost. Best part is you can hook it up to the TV you have in your apartment. All you need is an HDMI cable.” She gave an apologetic smile and added, “That isn’t included, though.”
“They’re easily found at low prices in most electronics stores, however,” Maud explained.
Sunset smiled. “Won’t be hard to get one then.”
As Sunset set aside that gift, another gift bag found its way to her. “This one is from me, but Rarity helped out with it.” Fluttershy smiled hopefully as she added, “I hope that you like it, but if you don’t, I understand.”
The bag was opened, and Sunset pulled out its contents to reveal a hand-knitted sweater, mostly magenta in color but with the familiar design of her cutie mark included in red and gold, slightly brighter than how it normally appeared but otherwise identical. “I love it!” She then shook the sweater out, slipped it on and happily remarked, “And it fits perfectly. Thank you both.”
“And here’s the last one. Had some help from Maud and Pinkie on it.” Applejack handed over a hatbox and explained, “Ah know, it’s a little lackin’ in creativity, but there’s worse things, right?”
Sunset opened the hatbox to reveal a Stetson, white in color and with an upward curve at the sides of the brim. What really struck her was the decoration on the band about the crown. As she examined it, Maud explained, “Pinkie told us that your birthday was in August. The birthstones for that month are peridot and onyx.” Indeed, the band was decorated with a number of the glittering olive green gemstones, with the front occupied by a carefully carved recreation of her cutie mark. “We cheated slightly and used red and yellow sardonyx for the representation of your mark.”
“I don’t mind.” Sunset laughed and placed the hat upon her head with a smile. She turned to Applejack and asked, in her best approximation of the farmgirl’s twang, “Well partnah, how do ah look?”
Applejack smirked. “First off, that there’s the worst accent ah’ve ever heard.” She then grinned and amended, “But you look good as a white hat.”
“I feel good as one too.” She looked about at her friends and smiled. “Thank you, all of you. These are better than the ones I gave out, anyway.”
“Hardly, darling. Your gifts were stupendous.”
“And there’s still another one that we’ve got to thank you for.” Applejack got to her feet and said, “All ya’ll keep on with the gift givin’. Ah gotta get a couple things from mah room.”
They did as requested of them, and gifts were handed out to everyone else. Apple Bloom eyed her unwrapped gift uneasily before she quietly looked to Sunset and asked, “Sunset, don’t take this the wrong way, but was it easy? Bein’ a bully?”
“For me?” A shrug. “Not really easy, but not hard either. I thought a bit too highly of myself back in Equestria even before I came here, and stepping through that portal and finding myself in another world, filled with beings that clearly weren’t ponies, well, it was easy to de-equinize everyone.” Sunset sighed and admitted, “Believe me, as much as it hurt, I needed something like the Fall Formal to wake me up to what I’d become.”
“Kinda scary how easy it is to be one, though.” Scootaloo looked up from her new helmet, one side emblazoned with Rainbow Dash’s personal touch and the other left blank for the one she’d decide upon. “Especially when it was so easy getting away with it.”
“Yeah, especially if fighting back makes you a bully too.”
“Whoa, you stop that right now!” Rainbow Dash sat up at Sweetie Belle’s comment and declared, “Fighting back against a bully doesn’t make you a bully! Us and Twilight weren’t bullies just because we stood up to Sunset at the Fall Formal, were we?”
“Well, no, but…”
“But nothing! You’ve got every right to stand up and protect yourself, or someone you care about, if someone else is giving you trouble!” The athlete crossed her arms and added, “Trouble is a lot of folks nowadays think that someone fighting back is in the wrong. I’m all for getting along and playing nice, but sometimes, you gotta drop the hammer down, or the jerks will think they can get away with murder.”
“The trouble is that a lot of people have trouble figuring out who to punish. The smart bullies know how to protect themselves.” Fluttershy looked to Sunset and shamefully noted, “Like doing what they do where it can’t be seen.”
“Or in the presence of someone who doesn’t care.” Sunset lifted up her bundle of letters and added, “Bullies are in Equestria too; Runnie had to deal with one of her own who never got punished. She and that coltfriend of hers tried to do something about her, but things only got worse.”
“Guess things ain’t too diff’rent between here an’ Equestria then.” Granny Smith looked to her grandson and noted, “Ah remember this mess Big Mac got inta few years back. Fella had it comin’, even admitted to it after everythin’ was said an’ done, but he still got in trouble fer it.”
Sunset looked to Big McIntosh in surprise. “Wait, someone tried to bully you? Really?”
“He wasn’t so much bullied as the other guy let his mouth run away with him.” Heads turned to Maud as she explained, “I was a witness. He had it coming.”
A triumphant cry sounded from elsewhere in the house, and Big Mac chuckled. “Ah’ll tell ya the details later.”
Footsteps sounded as Applejack returned from her bedroom with what looked like a guitar case in one hand and Sunset’s new cell phone in the other. Pinkie noticed and cried, “Oooh! What’s this for?”
“Call it an experiment.” The farmgirl tossed the phone to its owner and asked, “Sunset, you said you felt yer magic comin’ on when you were singin’, right?”
“Yeah, but I didn’t feel it again when I was singing a couple days ago.”
“And I sing all the time, and I don’t feel any magic coming on!”
“Well, ah got me a theory. Feel free to punch holes in it if’n ya think ah might be wrong ‘bout somethin’.” Applejack set the case down on a nearby table and explained, “That first time, you were feelin’ pretty good, right? Still happy an’ hopeful after that week with all a’ us?”
“Yeah.” Understanding lit up Sunset’s face as she realized aloud, “You’re thinking there was an emotional connection. I was feeling positive, and that helped to activate the magic.”
“Exactly.”
Sunset rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “That might explain it.” She looked to Pinkie and continued, “As for your magic not coming on, that’s probably because you’ve got so little of it compared to me. I was born with it; the five of you were imbued with it just a few months ago. The magic in you may or may not have grown since then, but any reserves you have are small compared to mine.”
“Figured as much, so ah was thinkin’ that maybe we need us somethin’ to boost it. Maybe even an extra medium ta work it through.”
Scootaloo looked at Sunset with disbelief. “Why would you want to talk to the dead to use your magic?”
Sunset laughed. “You’re misinterpreting. A medium, in this case, is the means by which something is sent out. Television, radio and newspapers are each considered a medium because they all send out information or entertainment.”
“An’ singin’ ain’t the only way we’ve got to make music.” Applejack opened the case to reveal a bass guitar, her initials monogrammed upon the strap, and slung it over her shoulders. “Ponies back in Equestria express their magic through their hooves, horns ‘n wings. We don’t got those, but seein’ as our magic’s tied to music…”
“You’re going to use a musical instrument instead as a means to channel it.” The cowgirl nodded, and Sunset held up her phone and asked, “So why toss me my new phone?”
“This is an experiment, ain’t it? Ain’t gonna do much good if’n we don’t document it fer posterity, and besides, Twilight’s gonna want to see it fer herself.” Applejack checked over her instrument and quickly tuned it, then added, “Best case, ah’ll pony up just like we did at the Fall Formal. Worst case, well, ah know how to play ‘Blue Christmas’ on this. Ready?”
Sunset got the camera working and started recording. “All set, AJ. Light it up.”
With a confident grin, Applejack began strumming her instrument with her fingers and improvised a short, fun solo with her instrument. As the playing continued, Sunset began to feel the hairs on the back of her neck stick up, and sense something she hadn’t felt since the Fall Formal as a soft glow began to form over her friend with every movement of the bass’ strings.
The rest of their friends stood up in amazement, hopeful smiles and grins forming upon their faces as Applejack continued, finally finishing off her playing with a quick slap of her strings as her magic was at last unleashed in a bright flash of light. Her human ears were replaced with pony ones, and her hair grew out to include a braided ponytail. Sunset could barely tell because of the flash, and it became clearer as the light subsided, but her bass had changed as well, and was now decorated with designs of apples and curls. “Woo nelly that felt good!”
Assorted cheers rang out as Sunset ended the recording, and Apple Bloom rushed up and hugged her big sister from one side. “That was amazin’! You got yer magic back!”
“Ah never lost it, sugar cube.” She strummed a few more chords, and then gave her little sister a high-five. She then gently reached up and prodded one ear with her hand and asked, “But this ain’t permanent, right?”
“No. Something tells me that you girls only stayed transformed like that for so long because Twilight’s crown was generating enough ambient magic to maintain the change. You should be back to normal in a minute or so.”
“I don’t care how long it lasts – this is awesome!” Rainbow Dash groaned and added, “I just wish I’d done it first!”
Applejack smirked. “Can’t be first at everythin’ every time, Dashie.”
Sweetie Belle grinned and looked up at Sunset happily. “And this is all because of you. What monster could do something this amazing?” She turned somber as she admitted, "I kinda wish Twilight and Spike were here to see it, though."
Sunset grinned and produced her sketchbook. "They are here." She then opened it to a sketch of the two in their natural Equestrian forms, both with happy smiles upon their faces and waving. "If only in spirit."
Sweetie Belle pulled Sunset into a tight embrace and smiled. “Happy Hearth’s Warming, Sunset.”
The other two Crusaders-to-be did the same, and Sunset smiled back and drew them in close. “Merry Christmas, Sweetie Belle.”
An arm wrapped around each of them from behind, and Pinkie Pie observed, “And God bless us, every one!” Those gathered groaned and laughed at the cliché, and she added, “What? Someone had to say it!”