Make My Way Back Home

by TempestDash

Chapter 1: The Dawn

The Previous Night…

“At last!” said Sunset as she held the crown in her hands, holding it up before Twilight Sparkle and her crazy friends. They had gotten in her way every single time possible, but in the end the winner was her. Standing in the courtyard of the school before Twilight’s friends, she was finally victorious.

She could feel the energy coming off the crown flowing in waves. “More power than I could ever imagine!” she said as she placed it gently on her head.

The crown flared up and exploded in magical energy. The power flooded down over Sunset Shimmer’s body and instantly invaded every pore in her skin, seeping deep into her bones and then igniting her nerves as it coursed through her veins.

It burned!

The pain was more intense than anything she’d ever experienced before and it came at her from every direction. Her own nervous system was melting and she could feel it peeling away from her brain as everything that held her together slaked away like the scales of a snake.

W-what’s happening? Sunset wanted to cry out but her jaw was locked as the energy dominated her body. She could no longer move other than shudder from the waves of pain that was still pummelling her. Nothing was right. She had all the magical energy in the world!

But she couldn’t control it.

The world shrunk away, leaving her in darkness. Everything she was feeling stopped and was replaced with numbness. She didn’t even think she was still at the school anymore.

“Hello?” Sunset said, now finding her body under her control once more. Still she saw nothing, felt nothing.

“What’s happening to me?” she asked to the darkness.

“You took what was not yours.”

Sunset spun to find the source of the voice and froze when she saw her.

Celestia. Not the principal but the princess. She stepped out from the shadows in all her alicorn glory, forged from the purest white with her swiftly flowing pastel hair. She looked down at her.

Sunset frowned. “It was supposed to be mine, you kept it from me.”

“You were not ready for it,” came a familiar voice. Sunset turned to see Twilight as an alicorn princess approach from the shadows.

Seeing those purple wings just further enraged Sunset.

“You!” said Sunset. “You’re think you’re so much better than me? You don’t do anything without help!”

“A pony cannot stand alone,” said Celestia. She tipped her head down to be eye to eye with Sunset. “Harmony can only be achieved by working with others in friendship.”

“I don’t need others,” said Sunset sharply. She clenched her fist at the gall of these two to challenge her when she possessed the Element of Magic now.

“You do,” said a third voice from yet another direction. Princess Luna emerged from between Celestia and Twilight. The blackness seemed to cling to her leaving her cast in shadow where the alicorns to either side seemed bathed in light.

“So it takes all of you to stop me?” asked Sunset. She grinned. “I’m feeling better by the minute.”

“Even under the best circumstances,” replied Luna. “One pony cannot achieve what twenty can.”

“Magic is no substitute for friendship,” said Twilight.

“It’s gotten me here,” said Sunset.

“But here it ends,” said an older, male voice. Sunset didn’t recognize it at all even as it continued. “Eventually the magic consumes you, even if you learn to control it, the price it asks is costly.”

Sunset stared in the direction of the words as a pony appeared, completing the circle around her. The fourth voice belonged to a unicorn with a long white beard, a long cape, and a brimmed hat with bells dangling from it.

Sunset’s mouth hung open and her fury was briefly forgotten. “Star Swirl the Bearded?” She looked between the new pony and the alicorns around her. None of them were surprised. They all had their gazes fixed on her.

“Wait,” said Sunset with a frown. “What is this? Where am I?”

“You are here, with us,” said Celestia.

“Part of us now,” said Luna.

“Part of Harmony,” said Twilight.

“I-I’m inside the Element of Magic?” asked Sunset. Her eyes widened.

“No,” said Star Swirl. “Your mind is being sheltered here. It could not withstand the intensity of the magic and broke.”

“Broke?” asked Sunset softly. Her gut twisted tightly. “I’m broken?”

“Magic is not what people think it is,” said Luna. “It is not a mindless, faceless energy to be harnessed or left to evaporate. It is living inertia, with direction and purpose. In great volumes it must be shared to be harnessed or it will corrode the being it is possessed by.”

“It wore my body down quicker than any spell, aging me four times faster than I expected,” said Star Swirl. “I had to give it up or perish.”

“Together with my sister, we thought we could bear the load safely, though only at a fraction of the power it possessed,” said Celestia.

“However, it fed the darkest corners of my mind until I forgot who I was,” said Luna.

Sunset felt suddenly lost and adrift. There was no plan for this situation. “What- what’s happened to me?”

Twilight’s horn glowed and a wedge of the darkness brightened, showing the courtyard of Canterlot High School. There was chaos. A giant winged demon was floating above the ground fighting Twilight Sparkle and her human friends, while a mindless zombie army of students and teachers marched just beyond.

The demon shared Sunset’s hair and skin, and was colored like her cutie mark.

“No,” Sunset turned away but found the image followed her eyes. “Not that’s not me!”

“She is what you saw yourself as,” said Star Swirl. “Given form by the magic inside of us.”

“Stop it!” said Sunset.

“She is who commands us now,” said Celestia. “You as well.”

“No!” insisted Sunset.

“This is what you said you wanted,” said Twilight. “The tyrant to threaten Equestria.”

“I wanted to stop the tyrant!” said Sunset.

“That’s not what you told me,” said Celestia. “When you left two years ago.”

“I was just angry!” said Sunset. “You were holding me back!”

“I was only trying to protect you from this,” said Celestia.

“I didn’t understand!” shouted Sunset. “I’m not this… thing! I’m a pony!”

“How long did you let yourself be angry,” asked Luna. “How long did that rage fester inside of you until it was the size of that demon?”

“I only wanted more!” asked Sunset.

“But you didn’t deserve it,” said Twilight. “Power without discipline leads to corruption. Disharmony. Your ambition took you to the crown and it is your ambition that rules the magic now.”

“What else could I have done?” Sunset fell to her knees and pushed her palms against her eyes. “I’m not-- I don’t want to be a demon! I don’t want this!”

She felt a gentle touch on her shoulder and she looked up to see Twilight, now in human form, looking down on her. She reached out and gently wiped away the tears on her cheeks.

“You need to open your heart to others,” said human Twilight. “Only then will you find the strength to tame your demon.”

“No one cares about me,” said Sunset hoarsely. “Ever since I was a foal. They all leave in the end. It -- it hurts. It’s hopeless.”

“Driving them away won’t make that better,” said human Twilight. “You will get hurt sometimes, but if you’ve done your part, those you have cared for will come back to help you through it. And you will all get stronger as a result.” She smiled. “You just have to believe in it.”

“Though harmony,” said Luna.

“Through friendship,” said Celestia.

“And you need not ever be alone again,” said Star Swirl.

Twilight helped Sunset to her feet again. She pointed out towards the scene in the courtyard. Below, Twilight and her friends were holding hands and glowing with brilliant light. They were connected, magically, to the crown on the demon Sunset Shimmer’s head. Somehow they were winning against an Element of Harmony.

“I can’t stop her,” said Sunset.

“She is you. Take back your body,” said Luna. “Make a choice to turn away from the the things the demon feeds on. Give up this ambition.”

“Show us you understand your mistake,” said Celestia. “That you are willing to take a different path. Do so and we will give you an opportunity to fix this.”

Twilight squeezed her shoulder. “And have faith. The rest will come in time.”

In the scene in the courtyard, a spiral of rainbows flew into the sky and then shot out like a cannon towards the demon Sunset.

“Now!” shouted Star Swirl as the light struck the demon and everything, even the darkness in this quazi-reality, turned white.

*** ( MLP )***

Morning…

The dawn always came too early for Sunset Shimmer on the weekends, especially ones where she was up so late the night before. She had gotten used to rising with the sun to help get her to school on time (and relying on some wind-up clocks during the winter) that she found it impossible to get back to sleep once she realized what time and what day it was.

With a groan she pulled herself out of her bed at her foster parents’ house and started hunting for clothes to wear. It wasn’t until she gathered up her things then reached for her door and noticed the latch still closed that she remembered how she went to bed the previous night.

She walked slowly back to the mirror near the foot of her bed. She looked terrible. Her hair was a yellow nest, her face was streaked from her tears, and she just couldn’t figure out how to make any expression other than a half frown.

She considered simply saying in her room until she died of hunger.

The smell of eggs and pancakes wafting through the cracks in the door made that an incredibly unpleasant thought. She hadn’t gotten a chance to eat last night with all the fuss, and was starting to feel pains in her stomach. She didn’t have the fortitude to starve herself.

With a heavy sigh breath, she dug around her dresser for some makeup remover wipes and cleaned herself up as best as she could, pulled a painful brush through her wild hair, and then opened the latch on her door and stepped out.

She found her foster father, Auburn Storm, in the kitchen cooking. He was the primary chef in the house, Sea Spray being much more inclined towards fixing things around the house than donning the apron and manning the fry pan. He had his short brown hair slicked back and was wearing a checkered red and black shirt with blue jeans and boots. What Sunset knew to be his cutie mark, a maple leaf with a white cloud, was on his wristwatch.

“Good morning, Sunset,” said Auburn with a smile. He was a morning person.

“Hey,” said Sunset, keeping her eyes locked on the crackling frying pan.

“Would you like some pancakes before you go?” he asked.

Sunset tried to be nonchalant and shrugged. “I need a shower. Can I take one here?”

Auburn turned from a griddle with three cooking pancakes on it to look at Sunset. “You’re always welcome to.”

Sunset was momentarily taken aback. “Even after,” she started, but then stopped herself. There was no point in protesting. “All right.”

“I’ll keep some food warm for you,” said Auburn as he turned back to his cooking.

Sunset left quickly and swept into the bathroom, closing the door firmly behind her. She quickly began her process for cleaning up while her mind tried to decipher what was going on with Auburn. He was not typically very talkative with her, at least not when he didn’t have to be. He was an industrial engineer and worked night shifts, which meant he had every reason to cross paths with the late-arriving Sunset, but rarely did. Sunset always assumed that meant he was avoiding her. So offering breakfast was kind of out of the ordinary.

The only explanation that Sunset could divine was that he was supposed to get something from her, or tell her something unpleasant and he was using breakfast to make it feel less awkward. Which was of course a wasted effort, since she was now even more weary about interacting with him. Perhaps she should just run out the front door when she was done.

But no, she didn’t really have a plan for today. No plans to fulfill, no mission to accomplish. No school to go to since it was Saturday. She had the rest of the next three years to fill her time and it was looking awfully empty. Having a strange conversation with Auburn might not be fun, but it was something better than being bored for thirty moons.

Sunset emerged from the bathroom and found Auburn sitting at the kitchen table eating quietly while reading a magazine. He looked up as Sunset approached and motioned towards an empty seat with a plate in front of it. She noiselessly sat and helped herself to some pancakes.

It was a full three minutes of silent eating before Auburn looked up from his reading and turned her way.

“Do you have plans for today?” asked Auburn.

Sunset considered her options. She shrugged in response.

“I need to run some errands today,” he said. “Do you want to come with me?”

“No,” Sunset said instinctively. She winced afterwards. What else was she going to do? “What kind of errands?”

“Taking clothes over to the shelter, grocery shopping, visiting my father,” said Auburn. “I can drop you off wherever afterwards. Should be just past one.”

Sunset didn’t find any part of that appealing, except the part where she was dropped off anywhere she wanted. Though she figured she could get wherever in less time than waiting for Auburn to finish his errands.

“Couldn’t you drop me off first and then do all that stuff after?” asked Sunset.

“I could,” said Auburn, but offered no follow-up.

Sunset was forced to ask. “Okay, can you please drop me off first?”

Auburn pushed his plate aside and leaned his arms on the table. “Can you answer me a question?”

Sunset sighed. “Okay, I’ll bite.”

“What do you plan to do after high school?” asked Auburn.

Sunset stared and frowned even deeper. “I really can’t answer that.”

“Why not?” asked Auburn.

“Because,” Sunset struggled to come up with a response. “I didn’t expect to be here after last night.”

“Where did you think you’d be?” asked Auburn, his brow furrowed.

Sunset turned her head towards the window. “I don’t know, not here.”

“Did you expect to go to jail after yesterday or something more,” he trailed off for a moment, then finished. “Permanent?”

Sunset frowned for a second then quickly looked back at Auburn. “No! I--I wasn’t trying to... and I wasn’t trying to get arrested either.”

“What were you trying to do then?” asked Auburn.

“I wanted to—no. You just wouldn’t understand, you don’t know where I’m from.”

“You could tell me,” said Auburn.

Sunset shook her head and then stood up. “No, I think I’ll take the bus.” She picked up her bundle of clothes and personal cleaning supplies and headed back to her room. Auburn said nothing, and simply watched her go.

*** ( MLP ) ***

The quiet of Sunset’s room at the office building had previously been a comfort, especially on the weekends. She could sit quietly, think to herself, stare out the large windows, pluck away at the refurbished guitar in the corner, and just lose herself in her grand plan to earn her place back in Equestria. All of that was hollow now and she found the silence to be increasingly overbearing. The stillness meant she was alone, and she was starting to understand exactly what that meant for her future.

There were no shortages of people trying to force their ways onto her life, to her surprise. None of them, however, really knew who she was or what she cared about. And none of them were going to be there for her in a year. Celestia was just the principal of CHS and she wouldn’t matter next year. Her foster parents were keeping her around for a check and she would age out of the foster program next year as well. Even Twilight’s stupid friends would be off to whatever colleges or careers they had planned for after next year.

Which left Sunset alone, with nothing but an abandoned office and attached perfume bottling floor to comfort her. She wondered what would happen to her then. Would she even make it to thirty moons?

“Stop pitying yourself.”

Sunset nearly literally jumped out of her skin. Instead she spun around and then stared at the inexplicable sight before her. A pony was in her room. Not just any pony, either.

“Star Swirl?” asked Sunset, unable to believe her eyes and hoping for some other confirmation. “H-How is this even possible?”

Star Swirl the Bearded -- hat, cape and, well, beard included -- walked casually around the room, gracefully stepping around every stack of notes and fallen book. He looked at the dozens of texts lined up on the shelves and nodded appreciably. “I admire your dedication to learning, even in this crazy world.”

“You can’t be real,” concluded Sunset. She placed her hands on either side of her head “I’m losing my mind.”

Star Swirl shook his head. “You already lost your mind, this is what recovery looks like.”

Sunset closed her eyes. He wasn’t real. There was no objective way he could be real. So if he wasn’t real -- and assuming she wasn’t going insane -- what was going on?

“Harmony,” she said as she opened her eyes. “You’re from the Elements of Harmony.”

“Closer,” said Star Swirl. He walked over to the windows and peeked his head between the curtains covering the large windows. “Such a fascinating world. I wish I’d had time to explore it, but with so little magic I couldn't risk leaving the portal unattended.”

“Okay, we need some ground rules here,” said Sunset. “Talking to me in my room is mildly annoying but if people in this world see me talking to a pony they would think I’m crazy and talking to myself.”

Star Swirl turned and stared at Sunset dead on. “You are talking to yourself,” he said. “I’m not a manifestation, I’m what remains of all the knowledge and energy you took into yourself from the Element of Magic.”

“So I am crazy,” said Sunset. “You could have at least lied to me.”

“You aren’t crazy, but there are so few people who have ever used the Elements of Harmony, there aren’t easy words to explain it,” said Star Swirl. “For better or for worse, you are part of Harmony now, and all who have come before and those that come after will be connected to you. This... is not something human brains are apparently well equipped to handle.”

“I think that’s the case for magic in general,” commented Sunset. “If you’re part of my mind, how do you know things I don’t?”

“I am an echo of the Elements of Harmony, an impression that was left in your mind,” said Star Swirl. “As penance.”

Sunset blinked. “Penance? Are you my jailor, then?”

“Quite the opposite,” said Star Swirl. “While my motivations were purer than yours, I too abused the Elements of Harmony, and they stole from me what little youth I had left. I gave them up to the Tree of Harmony and directed Celestia and Luna to them in the hopes they would be better equipped than I was to handle the magic. They were not, as it turns out, but those that came after were.”

Sunset shook her head. “I still don’t understand.”

“I am here to help you,” said Star Swirl. “As an apology for the damage we did to your mind that turned you into a demon, however briefly.”

“You copied yourself into my brain and now you want to be my councilor? Couldn’t you have just fixed me instead?” asked Sunset.

“That would not be proper. It was your desires that drove the magic to create the demon. To remove or change your intentions would be to change who you are. It is not the Harmonious way.”

“Then, what? I never get to be alone for the rest of my life.”

“Not the rest of your life,” said Star Swirl. “This world makes it hard to sustain myself, and eventually I will fade. This is only temporary. I hope to help you in the time I have.”

Sunset sighed then sat down in the chair by her desk. “You might have been better off just changing my mind. There’s nothing you can do.”

“That is simply not true,” said Star Swirl, stepping up to the desk and getting briefly distracted by the pictures and tokens neatly lined up on it. “And I would at least advise you not to lose hope. There are always opportunities coming.”

“Yeah, things I’m sure to screw up somehow,” said Sunset. She slumped in her seat. “Or go insane and turn into some raging… she-demon.”

“I understand why you feel that way,” said Star Swirl patiently. “It is a thought borne from your recent failures. But you have within you great power and passion, as well as courage. Your duty, now, is to turn that energy towards others.”

“Saying that is easy,” said Sunset. “Doing it isn’t. I’m not good at that. I’m not good at... tolerating other people.”

“Then let us start small,” said Star Swirl. He stood tall and tipped his head back so it looked like he was looking down his nose at Sunset. He was still quite little compared to her and he failed to inspire much confidence. “You must let yourself care for people, including your parents.”

“My foster parents are useless,” said Sunset.

“And you are raging she-demon,” said Star Swirl with a smirk. “If you wish others to look past your problems, you must be willing to look past the problems of others. And your foster parents are not useless, they just have not yet been of use yet. That can change.” He rose a brow. “That should change.”

Sunset leaned forward onto the desk and wrung her hands gently. “It sounds like a great deal of work.”

Star Swirl walked up to the other side of the desk. “Then it’s a good thing you don’t have any plans.”

Sunset looked up at him. “And you won’t go away until, what, you run out of juice?”

“Assuming you stay here and don’t encounter the Elements of Harmony again,” said Star Swirl. “Yes, eventually I will fade. Probably within the year.”

“And if instead I just ignore you?” asked Sunset.

“That is your choice,” said Star Swirl with a shrug. “I don’t want to make your life any worse than it is. But if you really want to change, if you are really sorry for what you did, then I would at least listen.”

Sunset spun in her chair and looked out the window and rested her hands on the arms of the chair. “I suppose I can listen.”

Star Swirl walked around the desk so Sunset could still see him. “Then listen to your foster father. What do you want?”

Sunset closed her eyes. What did she want?

*** ( MLP ) ***

Years Earlier…

Sunset Shimmer found Princess Celestia in the throne room staring into a crystal mirror that she had never seen before. It was tall and beautiful and seemed equal parts carved and grown from sparkling crystal.

“My precious student,” said Celestia, turning around. She smiled in that banal way that she always did. Sunset Shimmer wondered if there was any genuine happiness behind it anymore. It rarely seemed to leave her face. “I have a project for you.”

Sunset Shimmer’s eyes widened. “A project?” she asked. “Are we finally going to do something about Nightmare Moon’s near return?” She could hardly believe it! Would Celestia relent just as Sunset started to believe it was futile?

“Not yet,” said Celestia kindly.

Sunset Shimmer groaned.

“Look at this,” Celestia continued. “Do you recognize it from your studies?”

Sunset Shimmer frowned and quickly looked over the tall mirror. “Not really,” she said. “It’s made of crystal, but doesn’t have any crest marks except for…” she trailed off and leaned in to study a small impression in the corner of the frame. “Is that Star Swirl the Bearded’s mark?”

“Indeed,” said Celestia. “This is one of a number of special mirrors created by Star Swirl over the last thousand years. It has many properties, some more magnificent than others.” She stepped to the side and motioned towards the silvery surface with her head. “I wish you to look upon its surface and see what it shows you.”

Sunset Shimmer walked slowly up to the mirror. “What am I supposed to see?” The surface turned cloudy as she looked directly into it.

“As any mirror would do, it shows you a reflection of who you are,” said Celestia. “Or who you need to be.”

As Sunset Shimmer looked into the mirror, she saw the clouds begin to part and burning rays of sunlight fill the vision. The light was swirling and burst through the gray in red and dark orange, just as in the setting sun.

“When I was still a new Princess,” said Celestia from behind her. “Star Swirl showed me a mirror, and I saw…” she paused. “I saw the hard decisions that a Princess must make, and what kind of leader I needed to be to make them.”

“You saw Nightmare Moon?” asked Sunset Shimmer idly. The image in the mirror was clearing and a silhouette of a pony was appearing in the center of the swirling light.

“No,” said Celestia. “I saw a ruler of a distant land, who was kind and good, charming and wonderful, and admired by all.”

Sunset Shimmer’s eyes widened as she recognized her mane on the figure, as well as the glowing horn and what looked to be a shining crown.

“And I saw the great personal sacrifice he made to keep the darkness away from his empire,” Celestia said softly. “The choice every ruler must make to put their kingdom above their own happiness.”

The figure in the mirror brightened as the rays of light around her turned to a burning fire. Sunset Shimmer could see herself, bathed in light, with a determined expression, and a glowing crown upon her brow. She also wore red and gold armor and had an elegant silver spear hanging in a holster off the left side of her flank. Then, the fire coalesced onto her back and formed two brilliant wings that stretched up behind her. The light blazed brightly, so bright Sunset Shimmer had to squint to see, then quickly burned out and turned black, obscuring the image entirely.

Then her pale reflection returned, showing Celestria standing behind her, looking almost as if she were about to cry.

“What did you see?” asked Celestia stiffly.

Sunset Shimmer turned and looked up at Celestia with the same determined expression she saw in the vision in the mirror. “I saw myself,” she said. “As an alicorn princess.”

Celestia smiled. “That’s great,” she said. “I knew you had potential. By pursuing friendship and harmony, you can earn your place as--”

“No,” Sunset Shimmer shook her head. “I saw a warrior! A powerful alicorn crusader that stood alone against the dying light bearing wings of fire.”

Celestia was briefly speechless. “Perhaps this was a vision to be taken as a warning--”

“I must know how this mirror works,” said Sunset Shimmer. She glanced back at the artifact, which was back to being a regular mirror. “And how alicorns are made. Is it power or skill? Is it bestowed or taken? How did your niece become one?”

“Sunset Shimmer,” warned Celestia. “Please slow down.”

“This is what you wanted, isn’t it?” asked Sunset Shimmer, stepping forward. “You showed me my destiny!”

“The mirror’s lessons are not so straightforward,” said Celestia. “They must be interpreted.”

Sunset Shimmer growled. “I can’t believe this! You wanted me to see this, but then when it shows me something you didn’t like I’m supposed to forget?”

“Not forget, my precious student--” started Celestia.

“No, I get it,” Sunset Shimmer turned away from Celestia and started walking towards the door. “I need to surround myself with random people and just hope our troubles go away with the power of happy thoughts.”

“Please wait, Sunset Shimmer,” called out Celestia. “This is not what I wished to teach you.”

Just before she reached the door, Sunset Shimmer looked back at her teacher. “If this is you after learning about making hard decisions, I can’t even imagine how worthless you were before looking into that mirror.”

With a curt puff of breath, Sunset Shimmer flung open the doors with her magic and left the throne room. She scowled all the way back to the school rooms and then slammed and locked her door behind her. She looked at the piles of books and scrolls around her room with regret.

“So much wasted time,” she said. Then she walked to her chest and opened it gently. The floor board was much higher than it was when she was just a little filly, but nobody even seemed to notice. Just like they never noticed her taking books from the restricted wings, or noticed her sneaking into the dark magic archives.

Lifting the floorboard in the chest, she pulled out the six books hidden down there, all branded with a black sun, indicating they came from the restricted archives. One of them also bore the mark of Star Swirl. That was the one she laid out on the bed and opened.

“Tell me about this mirror,” said Sunset Shimmer under her breath. She turned the pages slowly, scanning every word and picture.

*** ( MLP ) ***

The Present...

The Monday after a demon destroys your school is always somewhat of an ambiguous event. At least, Pinkie Pie believed that to be the case, she had very little previous demon experience to base that around. Like, none. No demon experience at all.

“How much do you think they’ll have fixed?” asked Rarity as she walked on the sidewalk beside Pinkie Pie on the way to school.

“All of it,” said Pinkie.

Rarity arched an eyebrow. “Really.”

“Really dealie,” said Pinkie.

“How could they have done that in two days?” asked Rarity.

“Dunno,” shrugged Pinkie.

Rarity considered asking saner people for their opinions. Fortunately they were about to cross paths with Fluttershy, who was at least more grounded if possibly no better informed.

They turned the corner and spotted Fluttershy in the spot in front of her house where that she normally waited for them. Today, though, she was talking with someone and wasn’t waving down the block. As they got closer, Rarity realized who was the person she was talking to.

“Come on,” said Rarity urgently, as she grabbed Pinkie’s wrist and pulled her at a faster pace. She wasn’t sure what was happening, but no one was going to corner Fluttershy when she was alone.

As they nearly ran forward, they saw Sunset Shimmer talking animatedly with her hands while Fluttershy looked at her with a mixture of wide-eyed surprise and anxious hand wringing. Whatever was going on, Fluttershy was not comfortable with it. That was sign enough for Rarity.

“Hey! Get away!” shouted Rarity once they were a dozen steps off. She watched Sunset’s head jerk in her direction then step backwards slightly. Rarity quickly inserted herself between Sunset and Fluttershy while Pinkie stood slightly to her left and behind her.

Rarity waved a finger at Sunset Shimmer. “Don’t get any ideas, I’m not going to let you push her around anymore.”

Sunset looked at the finger pointed at her. “Really. That’s, uh, great?”

“Gooooooood morning, Sunset!” said Pinkie in a cheerful manner. She appeared entirely oblivious to Rarity’s concerns about Fluttershy’s safety.

“’Morning,” said Sunset in response to Pinkie. She nodded slightly in the pink-haired girl’s direction. Then her eyes traveled back to Rarity. “I don’t know what you think is happening but you need to cool down.”

“Ooh, don’t be coy with me,” said Rarity. “We all know what kind of person you are.”

Sunset looked away with a frown. “Yeah, I know.” She adjusted her jacket as she studied the pavement.

“Um, Rarity?” said Fluttershy.

“It’s okay, we’re here now,” said Rarity.

“Yup, and before we were over there!” said Pinkie, pointing back the way they came. Rarity resisted the urge to slap her forehead.

“N-no, I don’t think she was doing anything bad,” said Fluttershy.

“You don’t have to be afraid to speak out,” said Rarity. “We’ll keep you safe.”

“Um, that’s not quite it,” said Fluttershy.

“We don’t have magical powers anymore, but I’m sure we can be protect you,” said Pinkie Pie.

“I’m sure you can,” said Fluttershy. “But—“

“I’m sure she’s scheming something already,” said Rarity, her eyes still on Sunset.

“Not really,” said Sunset, looking slowly back towards the trio of girls.

“A likely story,” said Rarity. “I’m surprised you’re even coming back to school. Does Principal Celestia know?”

“She kind of—“ started Sunset.

“Well, we’ll make sure she knows,” said Rarity.

“Rarity,” said Fluttershy. “She might just—“

“We’ll keep her away, Fluttershy,” said Rarity with a wave of her hand. “She won’t hurt—“

“Will you let her talk!” said Sunset loudly, interrupting Rarity and raising her voice far louder than even the heated conversation had already been.

Rarity blinked and looked a little appalled that she was just scolded. But she looked towards Fluttershy stiffly.

“S-She was just,” Fluttershy spoke so softly her words were quickly vanishing.

“What?” asked Pinkie, leaning in so close her ear was practically in Fluttershy’s face.

Fluttershy swallowed and then spoke slightly louder. “She was just asking a question.”

Rarity was back to frowning. She turned her gaze towards Sunset. “What question?”

Sunset sighed. She closed her eyes briefly and nodded twice. Then she shook her head. Then she whispered something that sounded like “I know” under her breath. Then she opened her eyes again and looked at Rarity directly.

“I was just asking for help making friends,” said Sunset.

Rarity’s mouth hung slightly open.

Sunset continued. “Twilight said you were good at that sort of thing, and, well, frankly.” She breathed. “I’m not.”

Pinkie smiled and jumped over to grab Sunset’s arm. She hooked her own arm around the other girl’s and cheered. “Absoluuuuutely we can help! Right girls?”

Fluttershy made a small smile and nodded.

Rarity just looked Sunset up and down grimly.

“If you want,” said Rarity. Her eyes narrowed. “But I’m not promising any results.” She turned and walked off in the direction of the school.

“Wow,” said Pinkie. “Well, she’ll cheer up once we get you some friends and prove you’re on the level. You are on the level, right?” She nodded to herself. Then she put her hands up in the air. “Let’s go!” She started marching behind Rarity.

Fluttershy nodded again and then followed. Sunset just sighed.

“Yeah,” she said to no one at all. Then she followed behind the girls.