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Chapter 01 (Twilight's Test)1,916 words
Chapter 02 (Spike's Scheme)3,521 words
Chapter 03 (Moon Whiplash)3,666 words
Chapter 04 (This Night Shall Last Forever!)4,773 words
Chapter 05 (Humans and Hash Brownies)5,015 words

Chapter 05 (Humans and Hash Brownies)

Sunlight shone through the guest room window of Canterlot palace, shining right in the eyes of Twilight Sparkle and stirring her from her sleep. Spike awoke as Twilight got out of bed and stretched her wings.

“Morning Twilight.” Spike yawned. “So, what’s on the agenda for today? Are we heading back to Ponyville this morning?”

“Not this morning, Spike.” Twilight responded as she headed to the mirror. “We have a meeting with a guest from Appleloosa at breakfast this morning, so we’d better get ready.” She said as she levitated a brush to her mane.

“’Kay. Did the princesses say who this mystery guest is?”

“All she said was that the guest was a mare, but I assume she’s probably an official of some sort.” Twilight answered as she set the brush down. “Are you ready for breakfast, Spike?”

“Yep, let’s go!” Spike called out as he opened the door to the hallway.

The two of them walked down the hall for several minutes before coming across Princess Celestia as she walked out of her room.

“Good morning, Princess Celestia.” Twilight called out. “How are you this morning?”

“Oh, good morning, Twilight. I’m fine; I was just listening to some music before going down for breakfast.”

“Oh, may I ask what you were listening to?” Twilight inquired as the three walked towards the dining hall. Celestia was about to respond, but Spike cut her off.

“It was probably some of that classical stuff that you hear at the opera or some such.”

“Actually Spike, I was listening to ‘The Touch’ and ‘Dare’ by Standing Bush.” At Celestia’s response, Twilight’s jaw nearly dropped. “What’s wrong, Twilight? Are you surprised by what my favourite genre of music is?”

“Um… Just a little, Princess.” Twilight answered with a nervous chuckle as they had reached the dining hall door. As the door opened, Twilight saw that Luna was already seated and enjoying a salad. She was about to greet Luna when she saw who was sitting to Luna’s right and was stunned. Sitting next to the blue alicorn was a unicorn that she thought she would likely never see again. Though her eyes were sunken in and she so sickly thin that Twilight could see her ribs, there was no mistaking the orange mare before her.

“Sunset Shimmer!” Twilight called out.

Sunset looked up from the grape juice she was drinking to see the two staring at her. “Well, I guess it’s time for our little meeting to start.” She said as she slowly got out of her chair.

“What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be back in that other world.” Spike said to the approaching unicorn.

“You’re damn right I should.” She replied to the now confused drake.

“Huh? Why’s she agreeing with me?”

“Princess Celestia,” Twilight looked up towards her former mentor. “What’s going on? Why is Sunset Shimmer here?”

“That I can answer, Twilight.” Celestia said as she moved past Twilight and towards Sunset. “This is not the Sunset Shimmer you knew. She is the Sunset Shimmer of the world you visited.”

Twilight looked towards Sunset with shock. “Whoa. The does make some sense. Spike and I did encounter counterparts to several ponies we know, and Pinkie mentioned a girl who could have been my counterpart, so it seems possible that there would be a Sunset Shimmer. But how did she get here?”

“Well Twi-” Celestia spoke before Sunset raised her hoof.

“I’d like to handle this, your highness. It is my life story, and after all the crap I’ve been through, I think I should at least be the one to tell it.”

“Very well, Sunset Shimmer.” Celestia said with a nod. “Proceed.”

“Alright.” Sunset then sighed. “I don’t think I could ever forget that day. You guys may want to grab some chairs, this story isn’t exactly short.” Celestia, Twilight and Spike sat the table before Sunset began her story.

“It was the Friday before spring break; I was a ward of the state so I had a house all to myself. My day at school went pretty normal until near the end. I was asked to bring sports equipment to the storage shed because what’s his name was sick.

Anyhow, when I went to the shed, I felt someone tap me on the shoulder. I turned around and saw a girl who looked exactly like me. She said, “Hello, Sunset Shimmer.” And she then put a cloth to my face. I guess she stole some chloroform or something because things very quickly went dark.

When I woke up, I was in a dark box with some air holes in it. I when I stuck my head out of the box, I saw that I was in an old-fashioned looking town full of gryphons.”

“Whoa, hold up!” Spike shouted as he made a time-out gesture. “Hold the heck did you end up in the gryphon kingdom?”

“I don’t know, I guess she mailed me their or somethin’.” Sunset somewhat angrily replied.

“But that would mean that she knocked you out, put you in a box, went back through the mirror to Equestria, took it to the post office, had it shipped, and then got back into the palace and through the mirror again without being caught by any of the guard. How the hay is that possible?” He said as he glared at her.

“How the hell should I know? All I know is that bitch knocked me out and made me deal with all this horseshit!” Sunset exclaimed before Twilight cut in.

“Could you please not swear in front of Spike, he is a child.” At this, Sunset rolled her eyes.

““Yeah yeah, sure. Either way, I kinda figured that she slipped past you guys because Equestria had really crappy security.”

“… Really?” He said flatly.

“Yeah. I figured it would explain how I got where I was and why most bakeries here don’t seem to lock their doors at night.”

“Wait, what?!” Twilight shouted.

“Hey, if the choice is either eating out of a dumpster or stealing the day-old donuts from a bakery with an unlocked door, what would you do?” Sunset retorted.

“Err… I guess you were in a really bad situation… Anyhow, could you please continue your story?” Twilight asked.

“Sure. Anyhow, when I found out that I was now some freaky horse with an butt tattoo in town full of gryphons, I did what anyone would do in a situation like that.”

Spike spoke with a raised eyebrow. “You ran away while screaming like a lunatic?”

Sunset stared at him with her eyes half-lidded. “I would probably punch you if that wasn’t completely accurate.”

Celestia decided to speak up. “Sunset, please don’t threaten the baby dragon with violence. Remember, I did summon you here so we could try to help you.”

Sunset looked down and sighed. “You’re right, princess. Sorry ‘bout that. In my defense, wouldn’t you run away if a gryphon then started chasing you while shouting something like, ‘Orangefarben Einhorn, halt! Sie haben Ihre Beutel von Pony-Münzen in der Box!’? I know I would.” Luna nodded solemnly before speaking.

“It probably wouldn’t have been as bad if thou were as familiar with the gryphon tongue as I.”

“Tell me about it.” Celestia interrupted. “Oh, that reminds me, Luna. They should finish installing the soundproofing on your room before the ambassador arrives later this afternoon.” She said with a wink.

“Ha ha. Ha ha dear sister. Please, Sunset Shimmer, continue to regale us with your tale.”

“Sure thing, Princess Luna. Since then, I’ve basically been wandering around this world, scavenging for food and looking for a half-decent shelter while trying to get used to this stupid unicorn body.”

“Oh… I know that finding food and shelter would be very difficult for somepony in your situation, but being a unicorn instead of your previous species couldn’t have been that horrible, right?” Twilight asked nervously as Sunset started to glare at her.

“Are you friggin’ kidding me? Being a unicorn sucks! Especially at the beginning, since I had to relearn how to walk, I’ve got a ridiculous tattoo on my butt, I get this dumb horn stuck in nearly everything, I get extremely hot and bothered every six months, and these hooves are the absolute worst appendages ever! I can’t pick up or hold things like I used to, forcing me to learn how to use a disgusting tasting pencil with my mouth, I given myself tons of bruises whenever I tried to facepalm, which is often due all the insanity here, and having hooves makes it next to impossible is to mastur-”

“There’s a child here!” Twilight shouted while pointing to Spike. Sunset blushed as she realized what she almost said.

“Err… next to impossible to… mast…er the piano. Yeah, I just can’t stand the fact I can’t play with a piano anymore, and just as I mastered Beethoven’s sixth symphony. Heh heh… heh…” She chuckled nervously as her eyes shifted back and forth. Spike just rolled his eyes.

“Please, I know what you really mean by ‘master the piano’.” Spike air-quoted. “Twilight’s not exactly quiet when she gives herself a ‘private recital’.”

“SPIKE!” Twilight screamed as her face became the same shade of red as half of Sunset’s mane. Celestia levitated Luna’s bottle of wine to herself and started to chug it.

“Sister, is that really necessary?” Luna asked as Celestia had polished off the bottle.

“Luna, there are certain things I do not need nor want to remember, talks of my formers students’ masturbatorial habits are one of them.” After two minutes of silence, save for the sound of Celestia downing another bottle of wine, Twilight restarted the conversation.

“So… Princess Celestia, how did you find out about Sunset Shimmer being in Appleloosa?” She asked.

“A former member of the guard recognised her. He was one of the guards that our Sunset Shimmer had knocked out on her way to the magic mirror and he remembered that she was declared missing after that. Once I received his letter, I contacted her through the mail and arranged our meeting.” Celestia then turned her attention to her guest.

“As for you Sunset Shimmer, I apologize for what has happened to you due to my former student. Alas, the portal to world won’t be open again for at least two years. However, I would be more than willing to provide you with a place of residence and arrange remedial magic lessons for you.” This brought a smile to Sunset’s face.

“Thank you, your highness. Besides, I don’t really have much interest in return to my world.” This made Twilight’s eyebrow rise.

“And why’s that, Sunset?”

“Well I was kind of a loner for the most part, I knew some people, but I didn’t really know them if you catch my drift. Also, I’ve gotten used to being a unicorn for the most part. Sure, I may not like that I’ll never have a chicken and bacon sandwich ever again, but I’m starting to become comfortable in this form and I think that it’ll be kinda fun to learn magic. I think the only thing I would miss is some my stuff, there’s nothing in this world that’s quite like it.”

“You do have a fair point there; I’ve seen that your world’s technology is much different from ours.” Twilight scratched her chin as an idea came to her. “Say Sunset, I think I know of a way to get for you to get your things back.” Sunset’s eyes widen at Twilight’s statement before a large grin came to her face.

“I’m listening.” Sunset leaned closer as Twilight pulled the time band out.

“This band allows the wearer to travel back in time without affecting the timeline. You just wear it, picture the time that you want to go back to, and then press the gem in the centre, and you’ll be controlling your past self. Once you’re in the past, you just have to press the button again to return to the present. You should be able to bring back whatever you can carry with you.” Twilight then floated the glowing band onto Sunset’s foreleg.

“Y-you’re… really letting use this time travel device?” She asked as she stared at the band in disbelief.

“Yes. It may be my only one, but I could make another without too much hassle, and I think you currently need it more than I do.”

“Thank you Twilight, but before I get something for me, I want to get something for you.” Sunset Shimmer than pressed her hoof against the gem and made a bright flash.

Sunset saw that she hadn’t moved from her seat, but that Twilight had brought the time band out of her bag, despite it currently being attached to her wrist.

“This band allows the wearer to travel back in time without affecting the timeline. You just wear it, picture the time that you want to go back to, and then press the gem in the centre, and you’ll be controlling your past self. Once you’re in the past, you just have to press the button again to return to the present. You should be able to bring back whatever you can carry with you.” As Twilight levitated the glowing band towards Sunset, she held up her other foreleg.

“Thanks Twilight, I’ll make sure that you get both rings soon.” She said as she attached the second band to her leg.

“Wait, wha-?”

“Bye!” Sunset then pressed her hoof on the gem once more.

“I’m back!” Sunset called out as to the confused crowd in the dining room.

“And where did you go exactly?” Celestia asked as one of the kitchen staff brought her a menu.

“I just went back a minute in time to bring Twilight this!” Sunset said as she used her mouth to take the second band off and tossed it to Twilight, who caught it just before it hit her snout.

“Did… Did you just use time travel to get me another time band?” She inquired as she blankly stared at the band before her.

“Uh-huh, I figured you would like a spare one. Oh hey, Twilight, I’ve got a question. Say I somehow went through the portal to Equestria and back to my home world, where would I end up?”

“Well, you would end up in front of the base of the statue by the Canterlot High entrance. Why did want to know that?”

“Oh, no reason. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some stuff to get.” A look of wicked glee crossed Sunset’s face as she pressed the button once more, vanishing in a bright flash.

Sunset Shimmer felt groggy as she woke up. As she started to stretch her arm, she noticed not only the golden band on her arm, but she once again had hands. She quickly realised that she wasn’t dreaming about her old home again, but that Twilight’s band had brought her back to her home world. Sunset couldn’t hold back the joy she felt as she leapt from her bed and gave a shout of victory.

“YES!” However, she soon regretted that as didn’t remember how to stand as a human and consequently fell on her face.

“… Note to self… I’ve got to re-adjust to the old control scheme…”

After two hours of relearning to walk, showering, getting dressed and devising a plan, Sunset Shimmer had made her way back to her old school. As she got close, she saw a girl with poofy pink hair standing near the entrance and holding a serving tray with some desserts that she couldn’t make out. When the pink girl spotted Sunset approaching, she started hopping up and down while waving both arms.

“Hiya Sunset!” She happily screamed before running up to Sunset.

“Oh… uhh… Hi there… um…” Crap, what the hell’s her name… “Pink… y?” As she nervously smiled, the snack carrying girl started to grin like the Cheshire cat.

“Alright, you finally remembered my name! So Sunset, would you like to try some of the delicious treats that I’ve made?” Sunset looked down at the tray that Pinkie was carrying, seeing that her desserts appeared to be brownies.

“Uh… Pinkie, isn’t it a little early to have brownies?”

“Normally, it would be, but these are a special brownie recipe that I got from Flax Seed and Wheat Grass that make them just perfect for breakfast. I know that they're the bestest brownies ever because when I tried one, I ending up eating that whole batch. After buying the special ingredient from them, I decide that best thing to do is make a batch and share them with my fellow students. I’m selling them for fifty cents each to cover the cost of the ingredients. So, are you now interested in trying one of my hash brownies?” She asked with a happy smile, not noticing the shocked look on Sunset’s face.

“Pinky, why do you think that selling hash brownies in the front of the school is a good idea?” Pinkie chuckled in response.

“Well what student wouldn’t like a brownie that you can eat at breakfast like a hash brown? Why else would they be called hash brownies if they not brownies for breakfast? That’s what the herbs in them are for!” Sunset stared slack-jawed at what the grinning girl had said before she started to chuckle at what Pinkie had said. After regaining her composure, she purchased eighteen of the treats and stored them in her backpack. As Sunset started to head to the entrance, Pinkie walked backwards in front of her.

“Say Sunset, think we can hang out this weekend?”

“Sorry Pinky, but I won't be around then.”

“Why? Are you heading out of town for spring break?”

“Something like that, Pinky. Something like that.”

As the school day drew close to an end, things started to play out in an eerily familiar way to Sunset as she traversed down the hall.

She'll be coming round that corner in 3… 2… 1…

As her count reached zero, Vice-principal Luna had just rounded the corner in front of her, barely avoiding bumping into Sunset.

“Ah, Sunset Shimmer, I wast hoping to encounter thee. I wouldst like to requesteth a favor.”

“Uhh, Vice-principal Luna…” Sunset ask confusedly. “Why are you talking like you just came out of a renaissance festival?” Luna blushed in embarrassment before scratching the back of her neck and replying.

“Ah, forgiveth me for mine antiquated tongue. I wast assisting that drama club and I sort of fell into the zone as it were. At any rate, I just received a call from Coach Hondo Flanks that their bat-boy, Verdant Range, was sick and the baseball team and he forgot to put any of their equipment away before they went for pizza. Would you please put their equipment away in the shed, please? I would get it myself, but I have an appointment at the spa… uh… I mean I have an appointment with the uh… spaaaace program! Yes, I have an appointment with the space program. I’m needed for… deep… lunar surface analysis. Yes, that’s it.”

Wow, her lie is even crappier the second time around. Oh well, might as well have fun on my last day here.

“Sure thing, Vice-principal Luna. I’ll take care of the bats and whatnot. Oh, speaking of the moon, did you hear that it looks like there’s going to be a huge super moon really soon?” Luna eyebrow rose as she handed Sunset the keys to the shed.

“Really? No, I hadn't.”

“Yep,” Sunset then started to run towards the exit. “But you can prevent by not eating all of your sister’s cake!” Sunset shouted before slamming the door behind her, barely muffling Luna angry shout.

Sunset was soon heading to the equipment shed, moving slowly due to her backpack, the bag full of bats in one hand and another bat in the other. Once she was standing in front of the shed, she set the bag down and started to fish for the keys. Before she could find the keys, a figure silently approached her from behind and tapped her on the shoulder.

“Hello, Suns-”

*THWACK*

Sunset had quickly spun around and smacked her Equestrian counterpart in the head with her bat, knocking her unconscious.

“I was ready for you this time, bitch!” She said before tossing the bat aside. “Now, let’s see if you’ve got anything to compensate me.” After digging through her doppelgänger’s pockets, she found a bag full of gold coins.

“Aw, you brought some Bits with you. These would probably be just enough for a nice lunch and dinner in your world…” She happily said before her tone became bitter. “Or enough to ship a large parcel.” She tossed the bag into the air before catching it in her other hand. “I figure I could make more use of these by pawning ‘em.” Sunset stuff the bag into her backpack and taking out a large garbage bag.

“Now, it’s time to send you home.”

Sunset strained to carry the heavy garbage bag to the front of the school. At the rate she was going, it was going to be sunset by the time Sunset sent Sunset through the portal.

“Hey! Do you need a hand?” Sunset heard a girl’s voice call out. She then saw an athletic teen with light blue skin and storm gray hair run up to her.

“Sure, I need to carry this bag to the statue in front of the school.” The girl lifted up the dragging end of the bag and started to carry it. “Thanks for helping me, miss…”

“The name’s Twister, and I’m glad to help. What’s your name?”

“Sunset Shimmer. Now let’s get going.” She said with a smile. After a couple minutes of silently carrying the bag, Twister piped up.

“Say Sunset, what’s in this bag?”

“An evil unicorn.” Twister gave Sunset a half-lidded glare, her piercing red eyes seemingly looking into her very soul.

“Did you have some of those brownies that Pinkie was selling earlier?”

“Oh I’m completely somber and serious. There’s an evil unicorn in this back that we're going to toss into the portal that’s on the statue in front of the school.”

“O… kay… Whatever you say.” Sunset rolled her eyes at Twister’s reply before notice that they had arrived at the statue.

“Alright, are you ready to toss it?” In response, Twister sighed.

“Sure, whatever.”

“Alright, here we go. On the count of three.” The girls then started to swing the bag. “One, two, three!” The pair tossed the bag, which smacked against the base of the statue. “Crap, the portal’s got to be on one of the other sides.” Sunset ran over to the bag and started to it drag around. As the bag was being pulled, Twister heard a groan come from inside it.

“S-S-Sunset… What the hell’s in the bag?”

“Ugh… I told you, an evil unicorn.” Sunset groaned as she lifted the bag up. Using the last of her strength, she tossed the bag towards the statue. To Twister’s shock, instead of crashing into the side like last time, it vanished in a flash of light. Twister’s continued to stare as in disbelief while Sunset pulled a hammer out of her backpack that she used to smash against the top of the statue’s base. After a large chunk broke off, Sunset placed her hand against the base. A grin broke out across her face.

“Yes, the portal’s closed. That unicorn’s not going to mess with the me of this timeline ever again!” Sunset replaced the hammer in her backpack before going up to Twister. “Thanks for the help, Twister. I'm about to go on a bit of a shopping spree, y’wanna come with?” Twister shook her head to bring herself back to reality.

“Uhh… no thanks, Sunset. I promised my friend Rune that we'd do our homework at Arcane’s house. Sorry.”

“No problem. Bye Twister!” Sunset called before she headed off towards the local pawn shop.

A bright flash filled the dining hall of Canterlot palace on Sunset Shimmer’s return. Twilight was somewhat surprised by she had brought back with her, she held a very large garbage bag with her teeth, headphones around her neck and a backpack with what Twilight believed was a device called a CD player clipped on to one of the straps.

“So Sunset, what exactly did you do?” Twilight asked as Sunset started to open the garbage bag.

“Well the first thing I did was relearn how to walk on two legs. After that, I caught the other Sunset and made sure she wouldn't be a problem ever again.”

“Sunset,” Celestia piped in, “Please tell me that your counterpart is alive.”

“Relax, she’s alive.” Celestia sighed in relief at this, not hearing her mutter. “At least the last time I checked she was.”

“And how are you certain that she won’t present a problem in your world again?” Luna inquired as Sunset dragged a wagon full of otherworldly technology out of the bag.

“Easy, I smashed the portal with a hammer. Anyway, after that, I went on a shopping spree, bought a ton of electronics, games and DVDs, pigged out at KFS, packed up whatever I could into this wagon and came back here.”

“It seems like you had quite the full day, Sunset. Tell me, what exactly have brought to our world?” Celestia asked as she eyed the collection of strange devices.

“I'll tell you, but first…” Sunset turned her head around, opened her backpack and pulled out a tray full of brownies in cling wrap that she placed on the table. “I brought you some special brownies from my world. The girl that made them, Pinky, said that these are a special kind of brownie that’s meant to be eaten at breakfast.”

“Thank you for the treats, Sunset. I'll probably have one later.” Twilight said as Celestia and Luna both tried some of thee foreign delicacies. “So, you were going to tell us what you brought.”

“Well I brought a couple of TVs, my movie collection, a couple of Blu-ray players, a pair of laptops, a 3DS, an Xbox 360 and some games for them. I figure I'll be to get everything in Arkham City once I figure out this magic stuff. Oh, I also brought my CD player and some discs so can listen to music while I'm here. I bought some spares of almost everything so your scientists can reverse-engineer something, along with a book called, ‘A Beginner’s guide to Electronics’ by Electric Sky.”

“Thank you Sunset, I’m everypony will be able to benefit from every we could learn from these. May I examine your CD player?”

“Sorry, but I've only got the one right now and I was really hoping to listen to the CD I put in it, it’s one that got recalled from store shelves.”

“Really, why would they do that?” Twilight asked as she tilted her head.

“Eh, some BS reason. The government said that the CD was made by some guys to take over the world or something. But seriously, who ever heard people trying to take over the world by singing? While that may be possible here, I know it would never happen in my world.”

“Pfftt… Ha hahah ha!” Sunset and Twilight looked towards the source of the laughter, seeing Luna giggling like mad as Celestia was stuffing her face with the remaining brownies.

“I'm guessing that Luna agrees with me. So Twilight, want me to show you what some of this tech can do before you turn it over some scientists?”

“I would love to once I have some breakfast.” Twilight said as she and Spike opened their menus.

“’Kay, I'll see you guys later. I’ll be in my guest room.” Sunset replied as she wrapped the end of her tail on the wagon’s handle and pushed the headphones onto her ears. As she walked down the hall, Twilight could hear her singing along with her CD.

“We’re Cold Slither; you'll be joining us soon.” Once Sunset couldn't be heard anymore, Spike tapped on Twilight’s shoulder.

“So, I guess we won't be back in Ponyville until tomorrow, right?”

“I think so, Spike. I would really like to learn about some of that technology. At any rate, one we're back, I'll be sure to tell Rarity, Applejack and Fluttershy all about the time band. I’m sure that when they use it, they'll use it much more responsibly than Pinkie and Rainbow did.”

“GUARDS!” Celestia shouted in the Royal Canterlot Voice. “BRING ME ALL OF THE CAKES!!!”

In her cottage in Ponyville, Fluttershy had just set a kettle on top her stove and was about to start it when a knock came from her door.
She soon opened the door and saw her friends, Pinkie and Rainbow Dash, standing before her.

“Good morning Pinkie, Rainbow, what brings you here this early?” She asked as Rainbow Dash leaned in close.

“Well Fluttershy, there’s a little thing me and Pinkie would like you to help us with.” She said as a huge grin crossed her and her pink companion’s faces.

Author's Note:

Twister, Rune and Arcane Bolt are all the OCs of one of my editors, Dark Dienen. You can read about them in his story, The Rising of the Brothers of Light and Dark.

Also, KFS stands for Kentucky Fried Scootaloo. Feel free to comment about whatever you want to.

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