The Tale of Two Suns

by CroakerGamer

Shining Brighter

Only one week had passed since their arrival, and Sunset was learning at an alarming rate. Since their escape from the closet in the Canterlot Castle, Reggie tasked himself to hone Sunset’s new skills.

They stayed far from Canterlot, near the Everfree Forest in fact. Reggie could travel to Ponyville for supplies and Sunset could practice her magic without drawing too much attention. A very strategic camp site.

Reggie was a great teacher with all of the right characteristics. “With age comes wisdom” they say, and he had a lot of both. He could explain things in terms Sunset could understand, like how to fly. It was funny though, he wasn’t a Pegasus, but he knew exactly how it felt to fly, mechanics and all.

Reggie was patient, not getting overly frustrated with Sunset when she complained or lacked focus in her practices. Yet he didn’t baby Sunset, giving in to every demand she made. A well balanced pony, to say the least.

One of the only problems Sunset had was believing she could raise the sun. Reggie said that the potential was in her and in theory the exercises helped, but it would never compare to actually raising the sun.

Sunset’s sanity snapped back like a rubber band. What did she care? She wasn’t going to raise the sun. She had friends to return to! How could she even forget such a huge detail of her life in a week?

Reggie, she thought. Again the old stallion’s plan was decoded. Through strenuous training, Sunset’s primary goal was improvement, not survival until the opening of the portal.

She couldn’t deny it though. She felt a certain familiarity as a pony. Her human body had limitations, where as her filly form flowed with energy and freedom. Becoming an alicorn, to put it simply, increased her senses even further, as if a lingering sense of euphoria existed at all times.

She still had twenty three more days to live as a pony. She couldn’t lie, she would enjoy them. But she would have enjoyed her friends company more.

* * *

Something unexpected took place in the second week of training. A Timber Wolf attacked the camp site. Sunset thought she could handle it, but was thrown off by the wolf’s agility. It gave Sunset shivers just recalling it.

The Timber Wolf had pounced on Sunset, pinning her to the ground. She was paralyzed by fear and couldn’t focus to repel the beast with her magic. The wolf opened its maw, ready to sink its fangs into her orange hide. Sap dripped like drool and it’s breath smelt of manure.

Reggie came to the rescue, firing a strong burst of condensed light to stun the creature. Blinded, the Timber Wolf ran in the direction of the Everfree Forest. Sunset was to shaken to move for a very long time.

After that brawl, Reggie decided to begin teaching Sunset how to battle with magic. Sparring was the only way to further Sunset’s magical abilities. She didn’t have any objections after that little episode. To Sunset, it felt like another form of magical usage all together. Instead of being calm and collected you had to be aggressive and forceful. Reggie explained that having an overall grasp of magic can tie the concepts all together and make her well rounded.

Sunset had learned so much from Reggie in such a little time. He reminded Sunset of her friends back in the Human World. She actually started considering to stay. She knew she could return at any point, but that wasn’t her. She wasn’t meant to live the life of another animal, no one should. She could always visit her friends every thirty days, right? That would be nice.

She wondered if other pony’s could teach her even more than Reggie could. Her friends in the Human World had taught her about friendship, but was there something else that other’s could teach her? Reggie had taught her only the basics of flight. Could a Pegasus teach her move techniques and tricks?

She still had a few more days to make a decision. Nothing was set in stone, but with ever passing day, Equestria started to bring back fond memories of when Sunset was Princess Celestia’s apprentice. And with every fond memory returning to her, the memories of the human world faded.

* * *

Reggie came back from Ponyville today with train tickets to return the Canterlot. “We leave in the morning, Dearie. Are you ready?”

Susnet had learned how to read Reggie now, instead of the other way around. His question was rhetorical. He knew his training had been effective from the confidence Sunset expressed. Also, buying the tickets before asking her gave her only one answer.

It was hard to believe twenty seven days had already passed. The end of the fourth week would be tomorrow. Nerves started to plague Sunset. She doubted herself and started to worry what would come from her accusation.

The Princess could do anything from admitting her guilt to banishing her to the moon. On top of that, what would she do afterwards. In her mind, she knew that Equestria was her home, but could she leave her friends? Was it selfish of her not to return, even if she visited?

Sunset had previously thought she was incapable of raising the sun and was going to let Princess Celestia continue her destiny. All Sunset wanted was the truth. After all that had occurred though, she felt capable. Reggie had done a fantastic job at training her into a princess.

Tomorrow was judgment day for Sunset. She knew the importance of it. Destinies were to be put on the line. Friendships rested in the result. One princess would be leaving tomorrow, and Sunset was determined to try her hardest so that princess wasn’t going to end up being her.