The Other Sunset Shimmer

by Jerec the Ascendant

Said Than Done

Sunset Shimmer stamped her hoof, the sound echoing through her bedroom. It had been hours since she discovered the illusion spell, and all she managed to do in that time was produce an impressive light show and give herself a headache. She was pleased at least to learn that the sparks which flew from her horn were not actually flammable, for if they were her bedroom and surely this wing of the castle would be charred.

It seemed magic was going to be much more difficult than she had thought. She was getting the hang of telekinesis - surprisingly, as casting even the simplest spells in her new book caused her great migraines. She massaged her temples, recovering from her last attempt to perform the illusion spell. She decided to try cooling off with an easier spell, and once again her horn lit up. She focused on an old scroll, enveloping it in her magical aura and lifting it from her desk. The scroll shook and buzzed, louder and louder, until the aura flickered out and the scroll fell back to the desk.

"This spell is just supposed to remove the dust from an object!” Sunset cried. “Why is it so difficult!"

She read the instructions for casting the spell again, certain there were no steps she skipped. It was such a simple thing, and she couldn’t do it. Her cheeks blushed and she threw herself on her bed. Sunset wanted to cast the illusion spell; she couldn’t help but feel like she was supposed to find it. Maybe Celestia meant it to be a special assignment - a test. Why else would such an advanced spell be in a book for beginners?

Sunset sighed. At least back home school work made sense. Math, science, whatever. She always excelled. Back at home, magic was just a fantasy - the sleight of hand of a show magician, special effects in movies, a power commonly found in stories. "Fantasy now seems to be my reality,” Sunset groaned. “I’m sure many girls my age dream of things like this. Now I'm living it, and I want out. That's the worst part. I can't get out." She rolled onto her side and clutched a pillow close, trying to suppress the pain in her chest.

The book glowed teal and it closed. She was done with magic for the day, done with the day itself. She couldn’t think of anything else to do, and her appetite seemed to have disappeared. Her blankets untucked themselves and fluttered out from under her, then came to rest upon her. Between the bedding and dark thoughts of failure, Sunset forced herself to fall asleep.

---

Sunset was in her old bedroom with a notebook in her lap and a pencil in her hand. All over the open page she found drawings of strange creatures. They seemed to be ponies, and though she couldn’t place them, she found them and the scenes they were depicted in to be oddly familiar.

She set the notebook on her bed and left her room to find her parents. She felt they had to be somewhere, but as she searched, the walls of her home began to melt away. Everything transformed until Sunset was standing in a hallway in Canterlot Castle. Once again, she had a feeling that she knew this hallway. Unable to place it, though, she began exploring, her soft feet barely making a sound on the floor.

Eventually she came to a door that was slightly taller than she was. Something inside her told her to go through it, but she fought the urge and turned away, bumping into a pony in a maid outfit. The pony looked up at her, as it only came up to her thigh.

"Aren't you going to go in?" the pony asked with a smile. "There's a surprise in there I think you'll like!"

Sunset stared at the pony for a moment, her mouth open and eyes wide in confusion. Slowly, she turned back to the door. She wrapped her fingers around the cold handle and pulled. The room inside was too dark to see, but Sunset stepped inside anyway. As soon as she did, the door slammed shut behind her.

“What? No!” Sunset cried, turning back. She clawed at the darkness behind her, but couldn’t find the door again. “Let me out!”

“Welcome home, Sunset,” said a dreadfully familiar voice.

Sunset looked back to see the pony from the scenes in the notebook, only very different. She wasn't heartbroken and crying - quite the opposite. This pony glared at her with malicious glee in her smile.

"You know, I just can't wait for all the terrible things I'm going to do to your world," the other Sunset said. "But first, I need to take care of one little problem. You." Her horn lit up, and Sunset watched as her counterpart grew bigger and bigger. But then she realized that the other Sunset wasn’t the one changing - she was. "I've always wanted a fun little toy like you."

"No!" Sunset screamed again as she ran from her giant counterpart, but to no avail.

---

Celestia was wandering around the castle, her thoughts drifting with her. Her day of politics was over, and she had plenty of time to worry about her new student. “Two students,” she sighed. “One born a pony, and one turned into one. One with an enormous capacity for magic, one with otherworldly knowledge not even Starswirl contained. One completely independent, without a wish for company. And one lonely, but without the confidence to engage in a new social protocol. One a bookworm, the other hands-on, and both equally intelligent.”

The Princess stopped in the hall of stained glass windows. She looked from portrait to portrait. “The question is, who will be ready? No, the real question is, am I a good enough teacher to get them ready? Will this new curriculum have better results, or will I lose another student? Am I prepared for that possibility? Am I prepared for the consequences should I fail again?"

She continued on, leaving the windows behind. Still lost in her musings, Celestia only snapped to reality when she passed the door of her former student, and new student as well. The Princess knew Sunset would be here practicing the spells she had picked out for her. But she feared that if she was struggling to keep her emotions in check, her student might be in this pain, too. So, after a brief moment of hesitation, she knocked on the door.

"Sunset Shimmer, may I come in?" Celestia asked, waiting, listening intently. There was no reply - not a sound. Celestia knocked again, repeating her question. There was no answer, at first, but the answer that came was one that Celestia hadn't expected at all. It was a scream of fear. The door found a new resting place on the other side of the room as Celestia charged toward the source of the scream. She saw Sunset Shimmer curled up, shivering under her blanket, sobbing.

Celestia looked down at her student, and tears filled her eyes as well. Gently, she lay next to her and covered her shaking body with a wing.

Comments

[MythrilMoth]

She was getting the hoof of telekinesis

There is no need whatsoever to ponify the expression "getting the hang of" something. It has nothing to do with hands. Trying to ponify it just looks REALLY stupid.

[Jerec the Ascendant]

6769757 Changed, that one was my editor, and I should have taken a little more time editing her edit.

[ferret]

for if they were her bedroom

for if they were, her bedroom