• Published 11th May 2014
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The Shimmer of Magic - Hakuno



Sunset Shimmer is stuck again in the human world. Struggling with the consequences of her actions, she must redeem herself with the help of five girls and a very interested magician.

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15. Tough Crowd

Chapter 15. Tough Crowd.

Sunset lazily scrabbled random words on her notebook. English class was, in the human world, the most boring thing that could have happened to her; even more so than Professor Doodle’s History lessons, and that guy was dull as a rock. It wasn’t because Cheerilee was a bad teacher, but because Sunset had already gotten a certificate back in Equestria, ten years ago. She knew everything about her language, and although she was still getting used to human mannerisms, there wasn’t anything she didn’t know that would be in the lessons of this high school.

So, basically, she was bored. The wall clock still marked five full minutes before the day’s classes ended. She let out a frustrated sigh once again, partly because of her boredom, and partly because paper wad number six hundred and twenty-seven happened to fall on her right eyebrow.

She shoved the wad off her table and began scribbling some more. At this point, she was just writing every third word Cheerilee said. Once upon a time, she would have never let her own work look as miserable, but the constant nightmares and the students’ payback had tired her mind too much to care.

She noticed that the number of paper wads and elastic bands thrown at her were progressively lessening as time passed. Either they were getting tired of it, or they had something else planned for her. She couldn’t help but wonder just how much they hated her. Would they keep annoying her the whole month? Would they plan one big payback that would make things even? The thought sent shivers through her spine. Teenagers could get real dangerous if they got together against one single target.

That was actually the biggest reason she had separated them in small groups when she ruled the school. If they had teamed up in more than ten people at a time against her, she wouldn’t have won the dance’s crowns, not even once.

As the class came to an end, Sunset hurried her things inside her backpack. It was the last class of the day, and she only had one hour to get to the gym and get things ready for Trixie’s show. Once the bell rang, she stood up, but before she even took one step away from her seat, Cheerilee cleared her throat.

“Sunset, may I have a word with you for a moment?”

Sunset pulled a weird pout, a mixture of disgust, worry, mistrust, and hurry. She didn’t respond, but didn’t move from her seat either. Her classmates just got out of the classroom, glancing mocking stares at her every now and then.

It took a full minute for the classroom to be cleared, leaving just Sunset and Cheerilee inside. Sunset moved from side to side, waiting for the conversation to be already over.

“Are you feeling alright?” Sunset rolled her eyes. Of course she wanted to play counselor. “You’ve been acting weird today.”

“I’m fine,” Sunset deadpanned.

Cheerilee crossed her arms in front of her. “Sunset, you know you can talk to me about anything, right?”

“Hey, I really need to get going. If I’m not in trouble, then I’m leaving.” She hadn’t meant to sound so rude, but she did need to get to the gym as fast as she could.

Cheerilee sighed in defeat. “Very well, you might-”

But Sunset was already gone.

Sunset felt bad for that. Even during her days as ruler of the school, she had never been rude to the teachers. Mostly to always be on their good side, but still. Nevertheless, she had to operate the special effects in Trixie’s show, and she had to make sure everything went smoothly. She didn’t have time for petty speeches.

“Hey, Sunset!” An all too familiar voice called from behind.

Sunset groaned and turned around. Twilight was at a safe distance from her, and wore a sheepish expression. “What?”

“Uh, well…” Twilight shuffled her feet nervously. “You got out from Biology class before listening to what the professor had to say…” Sunset crossed her arms and started to tap her fingers impatiently. “Ah, uh, ok… So, we have to make a team research by next week’s thursday… And I’m your teammate.”

Sunset arched an eyebrow. It was true that they shared two classes, she had seen Twilight sitting at least three or four seats away from her. Incidentally, those were the classes where less paper wads were thrown at her, for some reason. Her mouth formed a twisted pout as she processed Twilight’s last sentence.

“Sorry,” she said.

Twilight gave her a nervous chuckle. “W-why are you apologizing?”

Sunset looked away. “For being paired up with me. I’m not stupid, I know you don’t like me.”

There was a moment of silence before Twilight answered. “It’s true that I still have mixed feelings about you… But I know you’re not the same girl. I can’t dislike you just for how you look like.”

“Yes, you can,” Sunset replied. “But it doesn’t matter. Just text me what I have to do. I’ll give you my part of the research later. But now I have to go.” She turned around and started to walk away.

“Wait! I don’t have your phone number!”

“Use your head!” Sunset yelled and hurried her pace. She knew that this Twilight was completely different from the pony princess, and she had nothing to do with her problems. And yet, Sunset couldn’t help but frown when she was nearby. And that only made Sunset feel worse.

Think of something nice. Sunset commanded to herself. She tried to think on Equestria; tried to picture herself there, sitting underneath a willow’s shadow, reading her favorite book. She tried to remember the feeling of the soothing breeze of autumn playing restlessly with her mane. She smiled. That thought alone helped her ease her emotions.

She couldn’t wait for the thirty moons cycle to be over.

“Oof!”

Sunset knew she had bumped into someone, but her brain was slow to erase the image of Equestria from her mind to let her see who was in front of her. She stepped back cautiously. The minty-green skinned girl was slowly stroking her forehead. Sunset’s heart jumped and her stomach fell.

If someone in Canterlot High had a secret Sunset could exploit, that person was on her list, and she’d always remember them. Even now, two weeks after she had given up her bad ways, Sunset still knew the faces and secrets of nearly every student in the school. This girl, however, wore a face that rang some bells in Sunset’s mind, and yet, her name and secret were blurry lines.

Sunset just couldn’t put a name to this girl, and yet, she felt really bad. Maybe she had done something terrible to her in the past. That was the only logical explanation. Sunset decided, then, that she had to apologize. Even if it was just for the bumping, an apology was still an apology, right?

“Uh, sorry,” Sunset said. She didn’t know why that word still felt odd. Maybe she hadn’t apologized enough.

The girl shot her eyes open and glared up at Sunset.

In the two weeks after the Fall Formal, Sunset had become used the hatred stares. Even Rainbow Dash had tried to dig a hole in her head. But this girl was different. There was a fire of pure rage burning in her eyes, looking like an enraged lion ready to bounce.

Sunset gulped and stepped back some more. The girl gritted her teeth, but otherwise said nothing as she walked past Sunset. She did, however, push Sunset with her shoulder with enough force to take her off balance.

That was a whole new level of hatred, Sunset thought. To make matters worse, the students in the hallway had witnessed someone shoving her off without any sort of consequence. Sunset shuddered at the thought of the students getting more physical with their payback.

Just one more month. She thought as she tried to keep her cool, and decided to get to the gym as fast as she could.

But just as she was about to get to the gym’s door, another voiced called her name. Sunset sighed in defeat as she turned around. “Hey.”

“I know you’re in a hurry,” Rarity said, “so I won’t take much time from you.” Sunset didn’t say anything, but her gaze told Rarity that she had to be somewhere else. Rarity cleared her throat. “I just want to tell you that the girls and I will be at the show. I know you’ll be backstage the whole time, but know that you have our full support.”

“Shouldn’t you be telling that to Trixie?”

“I already did. We are in history class together, after all,” Rarity answered, making Sunset scrunch her nose slightly. “That said, I wish you two luck.”

Sunset snorted, but offered Rarity a weak smile. “No, Rarity. You don’t wish luck to someone you want to triumph. You wish them success.”

Rarity put her hands on her hips and smiled warmly at Sunset. “Then, I wish you success. We’ll be in the third row of seats.”

“Got it.” And with that, Sunset entered the gym and closed the door behind her. Once again, she felt bad for being so rude at Rarity, but she really needed to hurry.

Trixie had already arrived, and she had already set up the decorations; black curtains covered the walls; the stage had big purple ribbons that created a frame around it; up on the ceiling, there were phosphorescent stars and moons that helped hide the structure of Trixie’s final trick.

Sunset walked up to the stage, where Trixie was sitting and putting on her performance boots, purple with blue moons and yellow stars, and very thick platforms. “Sorry I’m late.” Sunset felt like she was apologizing too much today.

“It’s ok, Sunny,” Trixie said, standing up. “What matters is that you get the panel ready. It takes you ten minutes, no?” Sunset nodded. “Then that gives us about twenty minutes of spare time to kill the nervousness.”

Sunset couldn’t help but grin. She wouldn’t have problems admitting she was nervous, if it meant she could use it as an excuse to make out with Trixie.

It was weird, now that she thought about it. She wasn’t really sure why she liked being with Trixie so much. Perhaps because she hadn’t been directly involved in the whole pony princess ordeal, and, unlike the other girls, she hadn’t promised anyone to try and befriend her. She had said so herself, she’d been crushing on Sunset for quite some time before the Fall Formal.

Sunset walked backstage and to the control panel for the special effects, and she did so swinging her hips with a confidence she thought she had lost. Looking back would ruin her display, so she could only hope that Trixie was looking at her.

She positioned in front of the panel and turned it on. She had to make sure the buttons and levers responded properly. Unfortunately, she couldn’t rush this process, or else she could inadvertently sabotage the show. Once she made sure it worked properly, she practically bounced to the stage. Trixie was making sure her attire didn’t create obstacles for her tricks.

It was an interesting sight, Sunset thought. Trixie was using a pastel lavender corset with blue laces and a moderate amount of sequin, a knee-length lavender skirt with black stitching and yellow decorations, platform purple boots with moons and stars, a lavender cape with moons and stars sewed everywhere that fastened by the neck with a gem-shaped hook, and a lavender pointy hat with the same design as her cape.

Trixie had her back turned to Sunset. Sunset grinned and took advantage of this, bouncing at her prey and giving her girlfriend a very tight hug from behind.

“Ahg! Sunset, be careful!” Trixie cried, barely maintaining her balance.

Sunset had successfully trapped both of Trixie’s arms in her embrace. “Come on, Trix, you can’t just ask the impossible.”

Trixie wiggled her body in a failed attempt to free herself. She sighed in defeat, bending her arms upwards to touch Sunset’s. “You’re impossible.”

“You like me that way,” Sunset hummed, her nose brushing against Trixie’s hat. She remembered Flash trying to hug her like this once, just as she was doing with Trixie now, and she had struck him in the stomach with her elbow.

Trixie leaned back her head, careful not to accidentally hit Sunset. “And I know you like me too.”

Sunset leaned forward to look directly at Trixie’s eyes and noticed that they were at the same eye level. “I guess I do like you... a little.” Trixie snickered. “You said we have twenty minutes for ourselves, right?” Trixie only hummed an agreement. “Cool.” She shifted a little to get more comfortable and pulled in for a kiss.

~~~~~~~~

The gym’s doors opened, and Sunset jerked her head in surprise. She was sitting on the stage, with her back against the wall. Trixie was right next to her, with a leg tangled with Sunset’s and her head resting on her chest.

She snickered at Sunset’s sudden reaction. “Good thing the stage’s curtain is down,” she said. Her left hand held Sunset’s upon her stomach; their fingers intertwined. “Otherwise, they would see a very embarrassing scene.”

Sunset blushed. Trixie relished on the sight. She didn’t know Sunset was able to wear a cute blush.

“Anyway.” Sunset shifted and slowly stood up. “We gotta get ready.”

Trixie followed suit, smiling at Sunset’s awkward attitude. She walked to the center of the stage, and did one last check to her attire, making sure everything was in place.

Meanwhile, Sunset walked to the side and watched the seats through a small opening in the curtain. Principal Celestia was standing next to the door, leading the teachers inside. It was easy to see how excited she was for attending a magic show for free. The teachers didn’t look as excited, but they certainly looked like they were looking forward to it.

At some point, Sunset saw Pinkie Pie bouncing inside, being followed by the rest of the crew. They sat in the third row, just as Rarity had told her. Sunset drifted her eyes to the entrance just in time to see Vice Principal Luna being followed by Flim and Flam. She smiled and leaned back.

The top of the hour quickly approached. “Five minutes, Trix,” Sunset called as she walked backstage. “The brothers are here, so do your best.”

Trixie gave her a reassuring smile. Sunset knew she was ready. Both of them were ready. This was going to be one heck of a magic show.

They waited a couple of minutes, giving the crowd time to sit down. Trixie sighed slow and heavily before looking back at Sunset, who offered her a thumbs up and a confident grin. It was time.

“Ladies and Gentlemen!” Trixie announced, and Sunset turned off the lights. The crowd immediately went silent. “Be prepared to be amazed by the most magnificent illusions known by mankind!” As she spoke, the curtain went up, slowly revealing the stage, all the while, smoke coming through. “Behold the mesmerizing magic by The Great and Powerful Trixie!”

Trixie was spreading out her arms as three lights illuminated her. The crowd applauded, and Trixie turned at them. She quickly spotted the brothers at the first row, right in front of her, and she grinned.

“I will not delay the show and go straight to the magic!” She produced a deck of cards out of nowhere and showed it to the audience. Sunset’s eyes sparkled, she was lucky that she didn’t have to operate more than two buttons during one of her favorite performances.

There was the sound of someone coughing. Sunset frowned, but Trixie did say that it was to be expected.

“It seems that you aren’t amused by this!” Trixie stated, her smile never leaving her face. “I suppose it is so common for magicians to do card tricks, it gets boring, right?” She saw one of the brothers arc an eyebrow. “Then, I will not bore you with this!” She said and dropped the cards to the floor.

That earned a silent response, and Trixie smirked. She showed her other hand as another deck magically appeared on it. “Huh, this is new!” Trixie exaggerated a surprised tone. She dropped the cards, and once again, another deck appeared in her other hand. “It appears that my cards don’t want to go.” By this point, the crowd had their attention completely on Trixie. Even Pinkie Pie, who was at the edge of her chair, was quietly waiting for Trixie to do the next move.

Trixie put her free hand on her hip, showing the cards on the other. She started to drop one by one just as a song started to play. The cards fell at the rythm of the song, and when the hand was empty, Trixie showed her other hand, once again filled with cards. As the song began increasing its tempo, Trixie started to dance, dropping the cards in perfect synchrony. At some point, she showed both hands empty, but after a quick turn, they were again filled with cards.

She walked from one side of the stage to the other, progressively looking more concerned as the cards just kept magically appearing in her hands. And she was always dropping them at the beat of the song. There was a moment -Sunset’s favorite-, where Trixie dropped the entire decks thrice, along with three explosive notes of the song. Trixie spun, walked, and jumped, dropping more and more cards to the floor. And just as the song had lasted two third parts, the cards that started to appear in Trixie’s hands were of various colors. Green, blue, and red. It looked like a kaleidoscopic waterfall of cards.

Finally, when the song reached its final crescendo, Trixie spread her arms at the sides of her body as the last cards fell. The song ended, and the crowd erupted in applause and cheers. Trixie walked to the edge of the stage, inspecting her hands to make sure that cards didn’t keep appearing unwillingly and tilted her head guiltily. “Finally, we can commence the show for real!”

Sunset bit her lower lip. She wanted to be in the audience to see the show in all its glory, but she had to operate the special effects such as lighting, sound, and smoke. She had to pay close attention to the keywords, and thus was unable to actually see the illusions. Of course, she had seen them a lot of times, but she knew, deep down, that a rehearsal wasn’t the same as the real deal.

She could hear the crowd applauding every time Trixie amazed them with one of her illusions: Making dozens of fish appear out of nowhere, transforming water into coins, holding a pigeon on her hands and cloning it in plain sight, burning down a red candle and making a bouquet of roses appear from the ashes… Sunset had seen those tricks many times, she knew how they were done, and yet, she wanted to be in the audience to watch them one more time.

“Thank you! Thank you all!” Trixie yelled, and Sunset grinned from ear to ear. At last! “It is time to end this show! But worry not, as The Great and Powerful Trixie shall amaze you one more time!”

Trixie unhooked her cape and threw it to the other side of the stage. “And now! For my last illusion!” Sunset pressed some buttons, and dry ice started to ease its way through the floor, creating a mist at the audience’s feet. “Behold Trixie’s most great and most powerful illusion!” She clapped her hands once and spread her arms at the sides of her body.

This was it, Sunset didn’t have to press more buttons or pull more levers. Her last role consisted on closing the curtain after the trick. She cautiously jogged to the side of the stage, making sure to hide herself while also getting a good view of Trixie’s masterpiece, and her illusion too.

The lights went dim, except for the spotlight pointing at Trixie. She smiled at the crowd and began lifting her body. At first, it looked like she was just tiptoeing, but sooner than later, her body left the floor. She raised slow enough to let the illusion sink, but not so much that it’d bore the audience. “Levitation!” Trixie yelled cheerfully.

Sunset blinked. She knew how the trick worked, she could easily spot the wire and the mechanism, but she chose not to do so. She just looked at Trixie, who was effectively levitating, reminding her of Princess Celestia’s Summer Sun Celebration. The pose was pretty similar, but Trixie did not have wings, and that made it even more amazing.

Trixie didn’t let the audience cheer yet, and she started to move forward, floating above their head while spinning around and deliberately moving her legs and arms. She looked like she was dancing in the air. Sunset held her breath in anticipation when Trixie started to return to the stage.

Trixie was relishing on the clapping and cheering, but she was not done yet. When she was above the stage’s edge, she leaned down -as if bowing to the audience- and reached her toes for just one second before doing a backflip in mid air and falling elegantly at the center of the stage, just to bow once again.

The crowd erupted with cheers and applause as Trixie took her final bow. Sunset could only smile and did her best to blend into the background, not wanting to steal any of the attention Trixie was basking in. She counted to five and pulled the rope that would close the stage’s curtain. To her surprise, the audience kept cheering well after the curtain was down.

“Bravo!” Sunset said while clapping. “That was pretty good.”

Trixie sighed and turned around to look at Sunset with a nervous smile. “Yeah… I guess it was…”

Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Come on, Trix, don’t belittle yourself.”

Trixie paused for a moment. “You are the worst…” Sunset kept smiling, and Trixie couldn’t help but grin too. She walked up to her girlfriend and gave her a tight hug. “Thanks for being here.”

Sunset returned the embrace. “Well, it was this, or detention.” Trixie chuckled. Sunset decided to give her a quick kiss before stepping back. “Let’s see how well you did.”

Just as she said those words, she heard the sound of footsteps growing closer. The Flim Flam brothers had come backstage, being closely followed by Principal Celestia, who was utterly unable to hide the excitement and her weird-looking goofy smile.

“Girls, let me be the first to congratulate you!” Celestia said, smiling brightly. “You two did an amazing job!”

“Yes, yes,” Flim stepped forward and looked at Trixie. “Trixie! Trixie, Trixie, Trixie! I bet you already know what we’re going to say!”

“But if not,” Flam continued, casually playing with his mustache, “then let us tell you!”

“It was amazing!” The two of them said at the same time.

Trixie did her best not to cower nervously, and instead chose to puff her chest proudly and put the back of her hands on her hips. “Was there ever any doubt?”

Flam grinned. “You demonstrated that you have the ability you claimed!”

“This show of yours was incredible! Therefore, we will be glad to discuss the terms of our partnership!” Flim claimed.

“Before that, of course, we’d like to reiterate our thanks to the beautiful principal for letting the show be held here!” Flam said, looking directly at Celestia.

Celestia only gave him a reassuring smile. “As much as I’d like to, I don’t think I can allow it anymore. At least, not this year.”

“We totally understand,” Flim replied. He looked at Trixie. “Well, we must be going for now.”

“But first,” Flam interjected, “let’s arrange a meeting to sign the contract.”

“Uh, contract?” Trixie asked with a nervous chuckle.

Sunset reached her shoulder and gave her a gentle squeeze. “Don’t worry, Trix. I’ll make sure they don’t try to play it on you.” She gave the brothers a smug smile.

The brothers shared a chuckle. “That’s why we like you so much, Sunset!” Flam said. “Anyway! How about this Saturday at our Emporium?”

“Sure,” Trixie answered.

“Excellent!” Flim clapped his hands once. “See you there at midday!”

When Trixie nodded in agreement, the brothers bid their goodbyes and walked away. Principal excused herself when she saw a group of friends walking backstage.

“That was amazing!” Pinkie yelled, bouncing up to Trixie and placing her hands upon her shoulders. “It was even more betterer than watching the rehearsal! It was incredibly fantastic!”

“Although grammatically incorrect,” Rarity said, offering a small smile at Trixie, “I agree with Pinkie Pie.”

Applejack only crossed her arms and smiled friendly. “Ah reckon ‘twas somethin’ to behold.”

“It was lovely,” Fluttershy said, although nobody seemed to hear her.

Rainbow looked away, but couldn’t hide her smile. “It was a’aight.”

Twilight cleared her throat. “I do believe that the optical illusions you performed were absolutely delightful.” She blushed when everybody looked at her. “I mean… I liked it.”

Trixie smiled at them. “Thanks.”

“I’ll do my best to go to any other performance you make!” Pinkie said with a grin almost too big for her face. “I can’t promise I’ll go to all of them, because you are totally going to perform worldwide! And I don’t think I can save enough money to follow you everywhere! But every time you perform here in Canterlot, I’ll go! Except if I can’t go for any unexpected event! Then I won’t be able to go! But otherwise, I’ll definitely go!”

Trixie stepped back, not able to remember everything Pinkie said, but still getting the general idea. “Thank you.”

Pinkie leaned back and gave her a sad frown. “And also, I’m sorry.”

Trixie took a second to process that. “What?”

“I said I’m sorry,” Pinkie answered. “I told everyone at school you were performing, but nobody showed up! Well, the teachers and we and those two men did.” That made Sunset arc an eyebrow. Rarity and Applejack tried to reach Pinkie to get her to shut up, but they were too late. “I’m pretty sure I sent messages to everyone saying that you were doing a Magic Show, and that Sunset was helping ya!” She hummed. “Maybe they didn’t send properly?”

Everyone, except for Pinkie, reflexively turned to look at Sunset, who was pale and wore a guilty expression.

Trixie stepped in her direction. “Sunset-”

“Don’t say it,” Sunset put her arm in the space between them, not wanting to look her way. “I don’t want to hear that.”

“Well, you’re gonna hear it anyway!” Rainbow yelled. “It’s not your fault!”

Sunset looked up to her with an incredulous gaze. “Really? Of all people, you are going to pull the supportive card?”

Rainbow closed her arms and snarled at Sunset. “I’m not always hotheaded, you know!”

“Rainbow is right,” Rarity spoke up. “You did nothing wrong! It is them who missed a splendid show!”

“Yes, because of me,” Sunset deadpanned. She then leaned on a wall and looked down. “I’m sorry, Trix. I ruined your first performance.”

“Look at me,” Trixie ordered, and Sunset complied, although very slowly. Trixie was frowning. “This was not my first performance. This was just a mere staged show. I only cared for two people to show up, and they did. All the other seats could have been empty, for all I care!” She walked up to Sunset, stopping mere inches away from her. “I wanted to impress the brothers, and I did it. I don’t care if a bunch of teenagers are so immature they decided to miss my splendid show over a stupid grudge. It’s their loss, not mine.”

Sunset looked away, and Trixie could catch a slight glimpse of a pout. “You’re just saying that. But we know the truth.” She sighed. Her next words came as a very low mutter. “Maybe I should leave you alone.”

Trixie pressed her fists so tight, her knuckles became white. She breathed deeply a couple of times before speaking up. “Sunset, look at me.”

Once again, Sunset complied. This time, however, instead of saying anything, Trixie seized the back of Sunset’s head and pulled her in a kiss. It was only a press of lips, but the message was strong. The girls gasped in surprise, but didn’t say a word. Trixie leaned back just a little and stared directly at Sunset’s eyes. “If, and only if, I ever think you are to blame for something bad that happens, then you’ll be allowed to break up with me. And trust me, you’ll know if that’s the case. Understood?”

Sunset’s mouth was a thin line; her eyes full of surprise. Trixie was blushing furiously while wearing an embarrassed frown, and Sunset’s mind clicked. It must have taken every ounce of Trixie’s courage to have outed herself like that, and she had done it just to get her point across. Sunset couldn’t help but feel guiltier; she had ruined Trixie’s first performance, and she had also forced her to get out of the closet in front of the girls. She knew she was being a bother to Trixie, but, at least this time, she chose not to say it aloud.

She nodded and looked down. “Fine.”

“Wait,” Rainbow said, and Trixie did a little jump backwards. “You two are dating?”

“Looks like it,” Applejack confirmed while adjusting her hat.

Pinkie grabbed her chin in a confused manner. “Wait, it was a secret?”

Rarity rolled her eyes at Pinkie before looking at Sunset. “Although I must admit I suspected something, it still comes as a surprise.”

Trixie’s blush was growing so much, Sunset feared she would overheat. “Can you guys keep it a secret?” Sunset hurried. “We, uh, we don’t want to make it public just yet.”

“No prob,” AJ said, “what’re friends for?”

“Yeah. We’re totally gonna tease you two, though,” Rainbow stated with a devious smile.

“If that’s the case,” Sunset replied, “then I’ll make remarks on your hair.” Rainbow frowned, but remained silent. Sunset smiled at her victory as her eyes trailed to Twilight, who was staring at her with an unreadable gaze. “What?”

Twilight blinked. “Uh… nothing.” She looked away.

“That doesn’t sound like nothing,” Sunset insisted.

With a heavy sigh, Twilight turned to look at Sunset. “It’s just… weird… Sunset had, like, five boyfriends…” She looked down. “I’m sorry, I keep comparing you.”

“Well, that’s a good thing,” Trixie said, and everyone looked at her. “The more you compare them, the easier it’ll be for you to put them apart. I think that’s how parents work when they have twins.”

“Or triplets,” Fluttershy mentioned.

“I guess you’re right,” Twilight replied with a small smile.

Rarity stepped forward. “Oh, come on! You seriously think I will just accept this as it is?” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “You have to tell us how did it happen! Who asked whom? Have you had dates? We should go to Sugarcube Corner so you can tell us everything!”

“Uh, Rares?” Applejack placed a hand on Rarity’s shoulder. “Dontcha also wanna read their diaries?”

Rarity blushed. “Sorry.”

Sunset gave a look at Trixie, who just smiled. “I suppose we can tell you some of it,” Trixie offered. “But not today, I’m really tired, and I wanna go home for today.”

“Oh! We’re going hiking at AJ’s farm tomorrow!” Pinkie said, bouncing on her toes. “You can come with us too!”

Applejack made a thoughtful face. “Ah s’ppose Big Mac’s truck can fit the eight of us.”

“Yeah about that…” Sunset said, giving the girls a guilty smile. “I kind of have detention tomorrow, so I can’t go.”

“Say what?” Applejack asked.

Sunset ducked her head. “You know, for destroying the school’s entrance… Principal Celestia deemed that detention was the only thing she could punish me with.”

“Punishment is such a strong word,” Trixie said, “How about ‘penalization’?”

Sunset rolled her eyes. “Patata, potato…”

Author's Note:

And it's done!

For the curious souls out there, here's what Trixie's card trick looked like... more or less:

Clickity.