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Chapter 25,347 words

Chapter 2

The girls watched at Pinkie Pie made her way over to Sunset Shimmer, who was still leaning on a broom near the pile of debris that her rampage had caused. Snips and Snails were working on a section of rubble as far away from Sunset Shimmer as possible, and seemed to be ignoring the ex-demon.

At first, it seemed like Pinkie might as well be talking to a brick wall as Sunset, for all the attention she seemed to be paying the pink haired girl, but slowly, little by little, Sunset Shimmer started to glance at Pinkie, paying her more attention as Pinkie's antics got increasingly energetic.

"You think maybe Pinkie's wearing her down?" Applejack wondered outloud.

"Looks like it to me." Rainbow Dash agreed, finding herself caught up in the moment in spite of herself.

"Oh! Was that a smile?" Rarity said with a widening grin of her own.

Indeed, for a moment, Sunset Shimmer did seem to smile wanly at Pinkie, which caused the party girl to jump up and down in excitement.

"That's a good sign, isn't it?" Fluttershy said cautiously.

But Sunset's smile faded quickly, and she turned away from Pinkie, who seemed to deflate at the rejection. Pinkie soon rallied, saying something cheerfully to Sunset Shimmer before racing off.

"What is she up to, do you reckon?" Applejack asked curiously. No one answered, but before too long Pinkie returned, carrying a pair of shovels and another broom.

Dropping all but one shovel, Pinkie started working alongside Sunset Shimmer with a vengeance.

Applejack blinked, then nodded, rolling up her sleeves. "Now that looks like a good idea."

Rainbow Dash groaned. "Don't tell me you think we should help her clean that mess up?"

Rarity shrugged. "Well, as much as I dislike getting my hands dirty, Twilight did ask us to look out for her."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Seriously? She made that mess. She might as well clean it up."

Fluttershy moved in front of Rainbow Dash and looked her in the eyes with wide, sad eyes. "Rainbow Dash... how can we show Sunset Shimmer what real friendship is like if we're not willing to help her when she most needs us?"

Rainbow Dash sighed. "Fine... fine."

Applejack and Rarity were already picking up a shovel and a broom respectively, and Fluttershy was turning to join them. Rainbow Dash shook her head and raced ahead to join her friends.

**********************

They'd gotten to a rocky start, but from that night onward, Sunset Shimmer had been utterly changed. She wasn't very good at being a friend, but she sincerely desired to make a change. Not that there weren't a lot of stumbles along the way.

*********************

"Don't touch me!"

Applejack looked up, frowning, from where she had been sitting outside, waiting for Big Mac to pull their truck around to pick her up in front of the school at the sound of Flash Sentry yelling. He sounded angry and upset, and Applejack quickly realized why. Sunset Shimmer was standing several feet away from him, one hand slightly outstretched, as if she had been reaching toward him.

"Just... stay away from me, OK?" Flash said, still looking upset, but the anger was fading from his tone, and, turning on his heels, he walked away quickly, glancing back over his shoulder once, presumably to make sure Sunset Shimmer wasn't following him.

Applejack wrinkled her nose, then started over. It had been several weeks since the Fall Formal incident, and things had seemed to settle down pretty quickly afterwards. Sunset had mostly kept to herself at school, and mostly the students had simply avoided her, outside of Applejack herself, Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy, who all were making the effort to spend some time with the girl.

Rainbow Dash had remained, mostly, suspicious and aloof, but knowing how stubborn the Rainbow-haired girl was, none of them pushed it.

"Are you alright, Sugarcube?" Applejack said cautiously as she approached.

"Not really." Sunset admitted with a sigh. "Everyone is still scared of me. I suppose I should be grateful that everyone hasn't decided to lynch me... but sometimes I think that might be better. At least then it'd be over."

Applejack frowned and shook her head, putting one strong hand on the other girl's shoulder. "Don't say stuff like that. People will turn around, eventually. And in the meantime, you got us!"

Sunset gave her a small smile. "And I appreciate it. Although I can't help but feel a bit like a charity case. I mean... you five have more reason then anyone to dislike me. I don't know why you're willing to put up with me."

Applejack nodded. "We've seen you at your worst, I reckon... which is why I can say with complete honesty that I can see how much you've changed since then. You ain't out to fool anyone no more... you're really trying to be a better person. And that tells me something about you."

Sunset raised an eyebrow. "What is that?"

Applejack gave her a genuine smile. "It tells me that you're someone I'm glad to count as a friend. It takes gumption to be able to turn your back on your old life to make yourself into something better... but I think you've got what it takes."

Sunset Shimmer shook her head. "I just... I just couldn't go back to the way I was. I was a monster... and I very nearly ended up becoming something even worse."

Applejack patted her on the shoulder again. "Well you ain't one now, and we'll make sure you stay on the straight and narrow...." she flushed slightly. "Er... cause that's what friends do."

Sunset Shimmer smiled back at her. "I guess so. Thanks, Applejack."

Just then, Big Mac pulled around the corner in the family pickup, distracting Applejack away from their conversation for a moment. When she'd turned back, Sunset Shimmer had wiped her eyes and composed herself.

"See you on Monday?" Sunset Shimmer asked with a tremulous smile.

"Hmmph." Applejack glanced from the truck to Sunset, then back at the truck. "Hey Big Mac!"

Big Mac rolled down the window to the drivers side. "Eeyup?"

"You reckon we could use some extra help at the farm this weekend?" she jerked her head toward Sunset Shimmer noticeably.

Big Mac blinked, then shrugged. "Eeyup?"

Applejack grinned and turned back to Sunset Shimmer. "Why don't you come over to the farm a spell? A little country living might do you good, and like Big Mac says, we could always use another hand."

Sunset hesitated, then shrugged. "Sure. Why not?"

*********************

Rainbow Dash was jogging through the trees at Sweet Apple Acres around midday the next day. She liked heading through the farm. Not only were the rows of apple trees good for shade during her run, she liked to be able to grab a snack on the go... Applejack sometimes gave her a hard time about it, but it's not like there weren't thousands more apples, right?

It also gave her an opportunity to spend some time with the farm girl. Rainbow Dash didn't like to admit it, but Applejack was one of the few girls in school who could keep up with her athletically. While she wasn't on any sports teams, during gym Applejack was her only real competition... and if there was one thing Rainbow Dash liked, it was a good competition. So long as she still won, anyway.

She kept her eyes open as she jogged, hoping to spot Applejack among the trees, and was soon rewarded... although the sight of her friend came with a sour note. Applejack was there all right, but she was walking along side Sunset Shimmer. The two girls were walking side by side, carrying baskets of apples in the direction of the barn, and chatting away like they were best friends.

Rainbow Dash slowed, then stopped, her nose twitching. On one hand, she felt kind of bad that she hadn't really put any real effort into keeping an eye on Sunset Shimmer like Twilight had asked... but her friends seemed to doing that job well enough. Personally, she still didn't trust her... who knew for sure what she was scheming?

Still, she had come all this way looking for Applejack, and turning away now seemed like a waste of a perfectly good afternoon. It was tempting to turn around, regardless, but before she could make up her mind, Applejack spotted her.

"Hey there Rainbow Dash!" the farm girl called cheerfully. "Come to help with the chores around the farm?"

Rainbow Dash winced. She'd come expecting Applejack to already be done with her farm chores for the day, wanting to hang out and have fun, not pick apples or slop pigs... but before she could think of an excuse, she noticed Applejack was grinning.

"Just kidding," Applejack told her. "We're just about done anyway. Come on down to the farm with us. Granny Smith should have lunch ready any time now."

Rainbow Dash perked up at that. "Granny Smith is making lunch? Great! I could use a bite after my workout."

"Well, come on then," Applejack led the way back towards the main part of the farm, and Rainbow Dash moved in to walk besides her friend.

They walked in silence for half a minute before Sunset Shimmer finally spoke up. "Er... hey there, Rainbow Dash."

Rainbow Dash grunted in response. "Hey."

Applejack looked from one to the other, not quite sure how to break the ice. "Hey... Sunset, you were telling me about your world, right? Where you and Twilight came from?"

Rainbow Dash found herself interested despite herself. "Hey yeah. You came from Twilight's world, right? What's it like there?"

Sunset Shimmer hesitated before answering. "Well... it's surprisingly similar in a lot of ways... and really different in a lot of others."

Rainbow Dash blinked at that, getting annoyed. "Well, that doesn't tell us anything."

Sunset Shimmer blushed. "Well... what do you want to know?"

Applejack spoke up. "So... were you a pony too?"

Sunset Shimmer nodded. "Yes. A unicorn, actually."

Rainbow Dash blinked. "Like... with a horn?"

Sunset Shimmer smiled slightly. "That's right. Growing right out of the middle of my forehead. It's kind of weird not having one, to be honest."

Applejack whistled. "Boy howdy, I can imagine that must be a mite strange."

Rainbow Dash frowned. "Wait... how can you be a pony AND a unicorn?"

Sunset Shimmer blinked. "Er..."

Applejack looked thoughtful. "Well, I did kinda always picture unicorns being part horse... not pony..." she shook her head. "But that's all myths and fairy tails. So unicorns are ponies where you come from?"

Sunset Shimmer blinked again. "Er... yes." she rubbed her nose, looking like she was trying to figure out how to explain. "Actually, there are three different kinds of ponies. There are unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies... but we're all ponies."

Applejack and Rainbow Dash nodded, comprehension dawning. "Oh..." they said together.

"And there's magic there?" Applejack said.

Sunset Shimmer nodded. "Yes. All kinds. Actually, that's one of the big differences. Here you use technology for everything, but in Equestria, we mostly use magic."

Rainbow Dash whistled. "That sounds pretty cool. Is magic cool?"

Sunset Shimmer laughed. "I certainly think so. I used to be really good at it. I was even Princess Celestia's personal student."

Applejack blinked. "PRINCESS Celestia?"

Sunset Shimmer chuckled nervously and put a hand behind her head. "You know what I said about a lot being similar?"

Applejack blinked. "So Pinkie was right?"

Rainbow Dash's eyes went wide. "Wait... Pinkie was right?"

Sunset Shimmer looked confused. "Right about what?"

Applejack wrinkled her nose. "Well, Pinkie thinks that there are duplicates of everyone that lives... er... here, over there. Apparently she met our world's version of Twilight a while back before Princess Twilight came here..."

Sunset Shimmer blinked. "Oh!" she nodded. "Yes. I think she might be right about that. I'm not sure about everyone... but there are two Celestias. The one here is the Principal of Canterlot High School... the one in my world is the Princess of the Sun... and she rules our world from the capital city... which happens to be called Canterlot."

Applejack blinked. "OK... that's pretty strange."

Sunset Shimmer nodded fervently. "You're telling me! I spend years studying under the Princess... only to find another version of her here! I was really worried she'd followed me at first, till I realized that Principal Celestia didn't have any idea who I was."

Applejack nodded. "Must have been weird."

Sunset Shimmer nodded. "It was... although in a way it was kind of comforting too. Even though I was a stranger here, I sort of knew some people here already."

Rainbow Dash moved in closer. "Hey... does that mean there are other versions of all of us over there too?"

Sunset Shimmer hesitated. "Yes. You, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy all exist on the other side of the portal."

Rainbow Dash blinked. "Whoa," she grinned. "Am I just as cool on the other side?"

Applejack interrupted. "How about you? Is there another you running around as well?"

Sunset slowly nodded. "She's in college, actually. I looked her up after I figured out how to use a computer."

Applejack blinked. "College? How come? Wouldn't she be the same age you are?"

Sunset hesitated. "Well... she is... we are... kind of..." she coughed. "Well... er... we're both kind of geniuses. I was Princess Celestia's personal student in Equestria... and trust me, that was a big deal... and I guess the me here skipped a bunch of grades and got into college early."

Applejack nodded slowly. "That makes sense, I reckon. So how come you ain't on the honor roll?"

Sunset Shimmer chuckled slightly. "Well... I do alright, but there is so much that is different here. I mean... I had to start from scratch when it came to a lot of the classes. History, science... gym."

Rainbow Dash blinked. "Wait... they don't have gym class in Eques... er... what do you call it?"

"Equestria." Sunset corrected. "And we had gym... or physical education, but it's a lot tougher than you'd think, learning how to use an entirely different body. I got pretty bad scores in gym my first year here."

"Oh right. Pony." Rainbow Dash looked at Sunset Shimmer as if expecting her to suddenly grow a tail. "So... when you say pony, you mean four hooves, eats grass... that kind of pony?"

Sunset waggled a hand to indicate ambivalence. "Sort of. Four hooves, yes. Hands took quite a while to get used to! We can eat grass, although we don't just graze from a field or anything!" she sighed. "I miss the food from my world. Daffodil sandwiches... hay fries..."

Rainbow Dash looked skeptical. "Hay Fries? Seriously?"

Sunset shrugged. "Don't get me wrong... fries made from potatoes aren't bad either... but apparently humans can't digest most types of grass. It came as a bit of a shock to me, honestly... I got pretty sick a few times while I was trying to adjust."

Applejack spoke up. "How are you doing now? With the food and all I mean."

Sunset Shimmer shrugged. "I got used to things eventually. And don't get me wrong, I do like the food here... well, some of it. It was just kind of a difficult period of adjustment."

Rainbow Dash shook her head. "Hay fries," she turned back to Sunset Shimmer, looking interested. "So... pegasi can fly, right?"

They'd reached the house, and Granny Smith popped her head out the front door. "Lunch is ready!" she announced cheerfully.

Sunset Shimmer hesitated. "Er... why don't we pick this up after lunch?"

Rainbow Dash glanced at Granny Smith, who was looking at the three of them with a calculating interest, then sighed. "OK. After lunch."

*************************

Lunch had been quiet. Each of them had a lot on their minds, but Applejack and Rainbow Dash couldn't figure out how to ask about all the things they wanted to know while Granny Smith, Big Mac and Applebloom (who glared at Sunset Shimmer the entire time) were listening in.

As they finished eating, Applejack spoke up. "Hey... why don't we go see the rest of the girls today?"

Rainbow Dash grinned. "Sure. Sugarcube Corner?"

Applejack looked thoughtful. "How about someplace a bit more private... so we can talk some more."

Sunset Shimmer grinned slowly. "You're going to be grilling me about Equestria for the rest of the day, aren't you."

Applejack hesitated. "Er... I guess we're being kind of rude, huh?"

Sunset Shimmer shook her head. "No, that's OK. You've all been really nice to me. I don't mind."

Rainbow Dash blushed slightly, and Sunset Shimmer looked at her. "Don't feel bad about not spending a lot of time with me, Rainbow Dash. I'm just glad you don't hate me after everything that happened."

Rainbow Dash looked torn. "Well... I don't. Hate you, I mean."

Sunset Shimmer smiled wanly at her. "I'm glad."

Rainbow Dash suddenly punched her in the shoulder. "You're alright, Sunset Shimmer. I'm sorry I haven't hung out with you more."

Sunset Shimmer blinked. "Really?"

Rainbow Dash nodded easily. "Yeah. I wasn't sure about you after everything that happened... but... I guess you really are trying to be a better person now, huh?"

Sunset Shimmer nodded firmly. "I am. I'm not really sure how... but I know I don't want to be the person I was before."

Rainbow Dash grinned and threw an arm around her shoulder. "Well, stick with us, kid."

Sunset Shimmer chuckled. "I'm pretty sure I'm older than you, Rainbow Dash."

*********************

In the end, they'd ended up at Pinkie Pie's house. Pinkie's parents were well used to the effervescent girl having friends over, and they didn't blink when she told them she'd be having a sleep over with her friends.

Fluttershy and Rarity were already at Pinkie's by the time Sunset, Applejack and Rainbow Dash arrived, and, once they'd settled into Pinkie's room and gotten into pajamas, the girls quickly shared everything that Sunset Shimmer had already explained, with Sunset Shimmer offering the occasional correction.

"And they have pegasi there!" Rainbow Dash enthused for the third or forth time. "That's what the other me is, right?"

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "And how do you figure that, partner?"

Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Because I got wings... duh. Princess Twilight and Fluttershy are pegasi too, right?"

Sunset Shimmer blinked. "Well, the other you and the other Fluttershy are pegasi, yes. Twilight is an alicorn."

Applejack blinked. "An ali-what now?"

"An alicorn," Sunset explained. "A pony with traits of all three of the other types of ponies, Earth ponies, Unicorn, and Pegasus. That's why she's a princess..." she frowned. "Or maybe she's a princess because she's an alicorn? I'm not quite sure HOW she did it, but Twilight was originally a unicorn, but she somehow managed to ascend and transform into an alicorn... and now she's a princess."

Rarity interrupted. "Ascend? You make it sound like she's turned into a god or something!"

Sunset chuckled nervously. "Well, that's not quite it... but alicorns are extremely rare... and they're all very powerful. When I left Equestria, there were only two of them... Princess Celestia, and a new alicorn named Cadence... I believe."

Fluttershy blinked. "That does sound rare. But Twilight's one now?"

Sunset Shimmer nodded slowly. "From what I've learned, since I've been gone, Princess Celestia took on Twilight as her new student, and Twilight somehow managed what I never did. She became an alicorn. I always assumed Celestia was grooming me to be her successor, and I knew that it was possible to turn a pony into an alicorn. Cadence was a pegasus... Twilight was a unicorn like me. When I found out, I demanded that she turn me into an alicorn right away. I thought that no one else deserved it like I did... I was pretty arrogant about it, really."

Fluttershy put a hand on her shoulder. "There there... you know better now. You're not that person anymore."

Sunset Shimmer sighed. "No... but apparently I was never the pony I thought I was either. Twilight ascended through the power of friendship... something I never considered to be real. I was a fool. I thought that personal power... ambition and knowledge was all that it took, but I realize now I could never have done what she did." she shook her head. "Twilight is Celestia's true student. I failed her... I failed everyone in Equestria through my greed."

Fluttershy looked at the others for a moment, as if trying to figure out how to ask them something, then simply hugged the flame haired girl. "There there..."

Sunset sighed and let Fluttershy hold her. It was nice... and she had been feeling more than a little depressed. Again.

Rarity and Pinkie Pie joined the hug, and Sunset Shimmer started to blush, but she didn't move, letting them envelop her in their arms.

"I'm not sure what I did to deserve friends like you..." Sunset Shimmer said softly. "But thank you."

"Aww. We love you Sunset!" Pinkie Pie said happily.

"I wouldn't go that far." Rainbow Dash said with a snort, then shrugged. "But we're here for you, OK?" She tentatively put out a hand to pat Sunset's shoulder, but Pinkie abruptly snagged her and dragged her into the group hug.

"I reckon you might not deserve us... but I don't think any of us did anything worth having such great friends..." Applejack said with a smile, joining the circle and squeezing all the other girls hard.

After a while, when they'd broken apart, Pinkie went to check to see if their pizza had arrived yet, and Rainbow Dash found herself asking the question she'd been trying to work her way around toward from the start.

"So... the other me can fly?"

Sunset nodded. "Most pegasi can. From what I was able to find out, you're supposed to be a pretty great flier in Equestria. You did something called a Sonic Rainboom... a stunt that nopony living has ever managed to perform."

Rainbow Dash's eyes lit up. "That sounds AWESOME! What's it like?"

Sunset frowned. "I actually don't know."

Rainbow Dash was instantly annoyed. "What do you mean you don't know?"

Sunset looked sheepish. "Well... I didn't have a whole lot of time in Equestria, you know? I was there for about half a day before I figured out what was happening, and came up with my plan to steal Twilight's crown. The portal only opens for three days every thirty moons, so I've kind of been out of the loop on what's happening there. When I went back this last time, I was really only interested in Twilight... how she'd somehow managed to become an alicorn. I thought it was because of the element of magic... which is why I stole it."

Sunset sighed. "I can't believe I was so stupid! Of COURSE the Element of Magic would corrupt me if I tried to force it like that! Obviously Twilight's bond with it is far deeper than mine... and the... magic of friendship she was talking about... well, I ignored what little I heard about it at the time, but I think that's why she can use the Element of Magic without being corrupted. I think that's how she ascended. The power of friendship. It really does have incredible power."

Rarity looked worried. "Sunset... dear. Is that why you want to be friends with us? Because it'll make you more powerful?"

Sunset lowered her head. "I... I don't know. I'd like to say that all I want is to be friends... and I know that you can't fake friendship. The power that Twilight tapped into isn't false or forced. It's pure. So... maybe I do want to find that power for myself. But I think I want it for the right reasons now..."

Rarity looked thoughtful. "What are the right reasons, do you think?"

Sunset hesitated before she spoke again. "The power of friendship helped you protect Twilight... and it saved me. It brought Snips and Snails back to themselves as well, and all the students I'd mesmerized. A power like that isn't something you can use for personal gain. It's a power to protect... to heal. I think it's what Princess Celestia wanted me to understand the whole time. And... maybe someday, I can use it to be the pony the Princess wanted me to be."

Rarity hugged her again. "I think those are excellent reasons to be friends, Sunset. I'd be proud to help you with that."

Sunset hugged her back, starting to cry a little. "I don't think I'll ever be really worthy of your friendship... but I can't tell you how much I appreciate you offering it to me, especially after all I've done. You're a good person, Rarity. All of you are."

*******************

After a while, and after some pizza, everyone was getting ready for bed, but Fluttershy thought of another question. "What do you know about the rest of us? Our other selves in Equestria, I mean?"

Sunset shook her head. "Not a lot. I know that you're all friends there. You and Princess Twilight. And I know you're all supposed to have saved the world or something. A couple times, I think. I'm not sure what else...."

"Saved the world?!?" the girls all shouted at once.

"Apparently..." Sunset Shimmer said with a helpless expression. "I honestly didn't have a lot of time, so I didn't find out a whole bunch of details. I think you were all there in the Crystal Empire when I went through the mirror though."

"The Crystal Empire?" Rarity exclaimed. "What is that?"

"Apparently it's this lost city... it's way up north, I think, although I'm actually not positive. Somehow it reappeared after being... gone for a thousand years or something. I'm not exactly sure of the details," Sunset said, looking frustrated. "I really missed a lot while I was gone. I do know that Twilight was there in for some sort of Princess Summit when I arrived, and you all accompanied her. Apparently there are actually four alicorns now. A pony called Princess Luna was supposed to be there as well... she's supposed to be Celestia's long lost sister."

Applejack blinked. "You mean she's the other version of Vice-Principal Luna?"

Sunset nodded. "She must be. She wasn't around when I was living in Equestria though. From what I found out, she'd tried to rebel against her sister, and was banished to the moon for a thousand years."

Applejack raised an eyebrow dubiously. "A thousand years. What, did she get early parole or something?"

Sunset shook her head. "No... I believe she actually was trapped on the moon for a thousand years, and she'd just gotten back. Twilight and... well, all of you apparently reformed her somehow after she got back."

Applejack looked confused. "Wait... that doesn't make any sense. Vice Principal Luna and Principle Celestia are sisters, so that part I get... but what's this thousand years malarkey?"

Sunset Shimmer hesitated, then decided to explain. "Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are immortal. Or at least pretty close to it. Princess Celestia has ruled Equestria for over a thousand years now."

Applejack blinked. "Yer joking."

Sunset Shimmer shook her head. "Nope. I'm telling you the truth."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "OK... say that you are fer a second... and I'm not saying I'm doubting yer word... but how does that work?"

Sunset Shimmer blinked. "I... well, it just does! Alicorns live a really... really long time! At least Celestia has... and Luna as well."

Applejack nodded. "Sure... but if that's so... how come our Celestia and Luna aren't... I don't know, a thousand years old too?"

Sunset Shimmer blinked. "Er..."

Applejack shook her head as she continued. "Cause people here in our world don't live that long. But you said that everyone here has another one of themselves over there... including Celestia and Luna. But they can't be the same, since our Principal and Vice-Principal can't be more than, what, thirty or forty."

Sunset Shimmer blinked. "Huh," she scratched her head. "That is weird. Are you sure they're not any older than that?"

Applejack shook her head. "Humans aren't immortal. We live fer maybe a hundred years... tops."

Pinkie Pie suddenly spoke up. "Unless..." she trailed off, making her voice sound all mysterious. "Unless they're really immortal witches who found the secret to eternal life a long, long, long, long... really long time ago and they've been pretending to get old and die every few decades and then showing up someplace new and pretending to be young again over and over!"

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Sure Pinkie... that's GOTTA be it."

Pinkie nodded sagely. "I know, right? Sometimes I scare myself."

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