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From Extravagant Endings To Bitter Beginnings3,976 words
The Start Of Something New4,251 words
Work To Be Done6,038 words
Family Ties And Pinkie Pies8,979 words
Wild Wednesday4,436 words
Magical Metempsychosis6,493 words
The Method In Magic3,400 words
Manhattan March2,800 words

Manhattan March

“It’ll be nice to get away from the farm for a while.” I look up from my book and at Applejack with a questioning eyebrow raised.

“I thought you loved the farm.” I say.

“I do, don’t get me wrong. But you need a break from even the things you love.” Applejack replies. I think on that for a moment. I suppose it’s true, I feel as if I know it personally.

Images of a mirror and Princess Celestia come to mind. I shake the thoughts away as I realize my eyes are tearing up.

“Yeah, I guess.” I say, holding my book higher. I glare at the blurry words scornfully and wait for my emotions to calm down. I take a deep breath and stand up. “I need to use the restroom.” I tell her, making my way to the back of the plane, where the restrooms are. As I finish up in the washroom, I stare at my image in the flimsy piece of plastic that barely passes as a mirror. Gone is that vengeful visage that I remember seeing in my reflection, and now here is Sunset Shimmer. Just Sunset Shimmer, in all her average glory.

“You’re not really average, are you? You magical freak of nature.” I grimace at the thought and look down at my hand. No scar tissue or anything, philomena’s tears had completely healed it. It was… uncanny. Having magic again, that is. I remember what it felt like, kind of, but I’m still not used to it. That, and I still can’t control it at all.

And that girl… Equestrian, maybe? She knows too much, and might actually know more than me. She has to be an equestrian, how could a human know all of that. And the Alicorn amulet! It all just isn’t adding up! Upon hearing a knock at the door I sigh and relinquish the bathroom to the next person. My eyes come face to face with the large black shades of a familiar face.

“Vinyl?” I ask in surprise. She seems to jump a bit as well, likewise shocked by meeting each other on a plane. She seems to grimace a bit and I flinch back.

“Shimmer.” she replies curtly. I flinch back and turn away from her slightly. She kind of motions to the bathroom behind me and I just nod slightly before exiting. I know that all the students of CHS have a right to hate me, doesn’t make their animosity any better.

“Hey, Sunset, did you have anything you wanted to do in Manhattan?” Applejack asks me as I return.

“Uh, no, not really. I’m just kind of a passenger.” I answer kinda halfheartedly, though seeing Manhattan is honestly a great opportunity that I’m very thankful for.

“Okay then. You want to hear the plans we got so far?” Applejack asks.

“Sure, whatever.” I say, plopping down in my aisle seat next to fluttershy. Rarity is sitting by the window on the other side of fluttershy. Rainbow is sitting by the other window, not paying attention to the conversation, with Applejack in the middle seat and Pinkie.

“Well, When we land, primarily we’ll eat some, but then we have to get Rarity to her competition. But tomorrow We’ll head to the salon to get our hair done, then we’ve got some time before our dinner reservation.”

“Oh! Speaking of, I had a surprise for you girls for after the dinner I reserved~.” Rarity says in a sing-song voice. She ruffles around her bag for a few moments before pulling out 6 tickets. “I got us all tickets for the hit musical showing at the premier performance center on broadway!” Rarity says with a wide grin.

“You can’t possibly mean Maid of the Mountain! That show has been sold out everywhere for a month!” Fluttershy gasps.

“I can. I do.” Rarity replies.

“How did you manage that Rares?” Applejack asks in shock.

“Yeah, Maid of the Mountains was sold out for a reason! It’s the most popular musical this year!” Rainbow dash speaks up. I glance at her and quirk an eyebrow. I had no idea Rainbow Dash could even remotely be interested in musicals. She notices my stare and shoots me a glare that only loses power because of her blush.

“I happened to have a very exclusive contract with the director of the play, and I helped with a number of the costumes. So… I pulled a few strings and managed to get us all in!” Rarity squeals excitedly. I roll my eyes and turn away, everyone else is so excited. I mean, I guess I should be really grateful to Rarity, bringing me here and all. On this expensive trip to Manhattan…

Speaking of, Rarity really is something. At such a young age she owns her own business and is even handling custom orders from producers in the entertainment industry. She’s already very well off for herself, and I… I’m just a squatter in some rundown abandoned house. I sigh, something that doesn’t go unnoticed by Fluttershy. She offers me a friendly smile and I actually manage to smile back.

“Well, gee, Rarity. That’s so kind of you!” Applejack responds. “And you know, the night after that, my Aunt invited us all to dinner!” Huh, Manhattan isn’t a farming city. It’s hard to imagine an apple that doesn’t farm. I wonder what they’re like?

“Hey, Dashie! Doesn’t your-” Pinkie starts, only to be interrupted by Rainbow herself.

“Nope.”

“But-” Pinkie tries to interject, earning her a glare from Rainbow.

“I said no.” she whispers menacingly. Pinkie just pouts in response and Applejack looks between them confusedly. Fluttershy seems to stiffen up beside me and my mind is drawn to an incident from the day before. Nudging Fluttershy gently I get her attention and lean over to her.

“What’s up with Rainbow?” I ask, motioning to the rainbow haired girl currently looking out the window disinterestedly. Rarity takes notice and pays attention as well, assumedly also out of the loop.

“Um… Well…” Fluttershy cringes slightly, realizing the scrutiny she’s under. “She has some… family problems.” she finishes lamely.

“Family problems?” I ask questioningly.

“Is this about her father?” Rarity asks quietly, so as to not let Rainbow hear.

“I uh… Really shouldn’t say.” Fluttershy squeaks quietly.

“Her father?” I ask Rarity. Rarity glances at Rainbow briefly before turning back to me.

“Rainbow’s parents split when she was younger, she stays with her mother. I know that her mother remarried, but… I don’t think I’ve ever heard Rainbow talk about her father.” Rarity clarifies.

“Well, Fluttershy seems to know,” I point out. Fluttershy squeaks once more and cowers a bit.

“I’ve known Rainbow longer than anyone else.” she explains.

“But you won’t tell us?” I say, expecting the answer already.

“It’s not my place.” she responds meekly.

“Of course dear, I won’t pry. I’m sure Rainbow will talk about it when she’s ready. If she’s ready.” Rarity assures Fluttershy, laying a hand on her shoulder. I just turn to Rainbow Dash, trying to puzzle out what might have happened. Maybe he just left? But she knows where he lives assumedly. How? And why? If she truly has no intention of interacting with him, she surely wouldn’t know where he is, right?

“Girls, We’re almost there!” Pinkie says excitedly, leaning over both applejack and Rainbow dash to get a look at the city below us. I turn to Rarity’s window to get a better view. I lean towards the window with Fluttershy and Rarity and look outside at the magnificent buildings that reach high towards the sky. The sun glints off the numerous amounts of windows that cover almost all of the skyscrapers, shimmering and shining throughout the city. Truly a bustling city of achievement and a testament to it’s splendor.

“Girls, welcome to Manhattan.” Rarity says softly. Nobody replies, too busy looking over the city.

/~~~~~~~/

“Wow, this city is amazing.” Fluttershy laments before taking a bite of her salad. I nod in agreement, it sure is.

“It sure is. I come here every once in awhile for inspiration and it never ceases to amaze me.” Rarity says with a dreamy sigh.

“You make this trip often?” I ask in surprise.

“But of course! I have many clients here. Most of them actually come to visit me in Ponyville for custom made outfits for their special occasions.” Rarity says, continuing to amaze me at her popularity.

I take this into account as I look at everyone in this city, bustling about. The cars whizzing by, and the traffic hectic in the midday sun. It’s such a busy city, and everyone seems so hurried and frantic. Busy with whatever today's chores happen to be I imagine.

It's kind of... Disconcerting.

"Sunset, what do you think of the city?" Rarity asks. I turn to look at her and find all eyes on me.

"It's okay." I shrug, turning back to looking out the window. Men and Women, all with places to be, things to do... They all seem so sure of their destinations.

"Hey, Rarity, what time is your competition?" I ask suddenly.

"3 O'clock. Why do you ask, Darling?"

"Well, according to that clock, it's 2:30. You don't even have your, er... clothes." I say, waving my hand absentmindedly.

"2:30? How can that be, my watch..." she stares at her watch before pulling out her phone. Her eye's go wide in panic at the sight before smacking herself in the forehead. "Timezones! Oh dear. How could I be so foolish." She berates herself. I just roll my eyes and shove another bite of sald into my mouth.

"Relax, Rares. We've got thirty minutes, that's plenty of time to swing by the hotel." Applejack reassures her.

"Oh, Applejack. Sweet, naive, Applejack. You have no Idea how bad Manehatten traffic is do you?" Rarity motions towards the streets outside the cafe and Applejack smiles nervously. With a gulp I look at the rest of my salad, it'd be a shame to waste it.

"Well then we better leave soon." I say to Rarity before shoving an unreasonable amount of salad into my mouth. Rarity nods affirmatively, forgetting her own meal in favor of her competition.

"To the Competition!" Rarity yells, causing everyone in the cafe to look at her. She blushes good naturedly, and proceeds to hurry out of the cafe.

/~~~~~~~/

"Wow, Manhatten is amazing," Pinkie Pie beams as we make our way back to our hotel room. After ensuring that Rarity got to her competition me and the girls had taken to exploring what the city had to offer, which seemed to consist of a lot of walking and window shopping. To be fair, it wasn't that bad. It is a nice city, and it seems to have plenty to offer in terms of variety. Everything just happens to be `out of my budget` as it were. Not that it's a very huge budget at all.

"You can say that again, Pinkie." Fluttershy says, nodding in agreement.

"Wow, Manhatten is-" Pinkie sentence is cut short by a blue hand obstructing her mouth. She frowns at Rainbow, or I assume she does, through the hand.

"Not Literally," Rainbow starts, pointing at Pinkie with a warning stare, "It's just an expression." she says, removing her hand. Pinkie looks at her in thought for a few seconds before Rainbow turns away.

"-Amazing," Pinkie finishes, turning away as Rainbow whips her head back at her. She whistles innocently, not making eye contact. Rainbow just sighs defeatedly.

"I wonder when Rarity is getting back," Applejack pipes up, causing us all to stop and think.

"I don't recall helping her back from the competition in her plans. I'm sure she's got another means of getting back." Applejack says, causing most of us to shrug and continue to the room. Finding the door, I reach into my pocket and find the room key. I'm about to put the roomkey into the door when I stop. Theres a sound coming from the room. Faint and even sobbing for a couple moments, and then...

Talking.

It's soft, but it's definitely Talking. I recognize Rarity's voice as the one talking, but who could she be talking to. I don't want to interrupt her if she's on the phone.

"Uh, Sunset? You gonna open up the door?" Applejack asks nervously. I look back at her blankly before shaking my head, then pressing my ear to the door.

"...Don't know what I'm going to do. I can't show my dresses now!" Rarity exclaims softly. There's a moment of silence. I start to take it as evidence that she is talking on the phone, but then I hear another voice.

"Your friends would help you, you know that, right?" the voice says tentatively. I pause at the new voice, frowning lightly as I try to put a face to the voice. I know her from somewhere, but where. and why would someone I know be in Manehattan? It's not Vinyl.

"I suppose I do know that, but I can't just ask them to create an entire line of clothes." Rarity replies gently. I hear a shifting in the bed as someone gets up.

"Sure you can. I'd even help you, Rarity." The voice says comfortingly.

"You?" Rarity laughs softly, the laugh only slightly tinged with sorrow. "But, no offense Darling, I hardly know you. I don't even know your name." Rarity says, sniffling a bit. I hear the bed creak as someone else gets up from the bed.

"Yes, me, and I'm sure your friends would be more than willing to help. Isn't that right?" I hear the other voice say before the door swings inwards. I find myself face to face with *her*.

"You." I say, narrowing my eyes. It's obvious why I know the voice now, it's the same girl with the poem, and the alicorn amulet. I could only imagine that us meeting here is not happenstance. Meeting in our hotel room miles from the mirror and Canterlot High.

"Hello, Sunset." She says softly, warmly even. As if greeting an old friend. "Girls," She nods to all the girls behind us, all of which are looking from me to the girl curiously.

"Don't know her my ass." Rainbow scoffs, folding her arms.

"Rainbow, language." Applejack says offhandedly, seemingly trying to figure out how she feels about this girl in front of us. Frankly, I'm not sure how to feel about her myself. She seemed to be comforting Rarity from whatever it is that's bothering her, but also she stalked us to a whole 'nother town for some reason.

"Starlet, Starlet Mint. A pleasure," The girl says, sticking her hand out abruptly. I look at it hesitantly before tentatively shaking it.

"How did you know we were here?" I ask her evenly.

"Why, all the noise of course. I assumed you all were waiting for an invitation in when it went quiet." She answers softly, her smile burning into me. I didn't like it, it felt... Weird. I can't trust someone like this, it's just too... off.

"What's wrong, Rarity?" Fluttershy asks, stepping into the room and walking up to Rarity. Rarity wipes her eye gently and looks at her friend thankfully. Rarity talks to the girls about the competition, and one Suri Polomare or something. However, I can't pay attention, my eyes are on Starlet. She notices and smiles my way before slowly making her way towards me, I narrow my eyes accusingly at her approach.

"What are you doing here?" I hiss venomously. "Did you follow us?" I ask accusingly.

"Of course," she says, almost taken aback by the insinuation it could be anything else. "And what I'm doing here is helping." She looks over at Rarity, recounting what happened at the competition and smiles before turning back to me. She frowns slightly before lightening up and reaching out a finger. Touching me on the nose she makes a boop noise, "You don't wear a frown well Sunset." She giggles playfully. Turning away from me she turns to Rarity just as she finishes her story.

"I need your help, girls. If you'd give it." Rarity asks.

"Of course, Rares, whatever you need." Applejack says earnestly.

"Yeah, we can get it done like nothing," Rainbow says, pumping her fists.

"I'd love to help," Starlet offers, turning towards me. Everyone follows her gaze expectantly. I sigh as I realize I don't really have a choice. Rarity's generosity is the reason I'm here, I owe her this much.

"Of course I'll help, Rarity." I tell her exhaustedly. "What needs to be done?"

"Oh, thank you girls! Here, I'll get my stuff!" Rarity explains. I sigh once more. I can tell that it's going to be a long night.

Author's Note:

not dead. or something. more updates soon hopefully. When I'm not being stupid.

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