A letter home

by Verzeih Turncoat

Dear Princess...

"Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle,

"I want to share a story with you. It might take me a while to write it down, so please don´t write back before I end it. You will know when I end it because I have to ask a favor from you.

"Last week our mutal friends and I met at their favourite corner bistro. You may remember it from the time we prepared against the sirens. Applejack was complaining that day about business she had to participate in.

"I don´t know how Applejack acts in Equestria, but I assume she never tries to back away from reponsibility either. You see, she had lost her bass before the Dazzlings showed up. In order to get it back, she had to make a deal with, how she called them, "shady mountebanks". So she had to work off a dept put upon her shoulders. It seems that over time it has chiped away her pride and started to break her.

Don´t worry, she is fine. Apparently, the owner of the shop forced her to work as a mascot while wearing a giant banana-suit to attract customers for months. As Applejack kept complaining, she dropped the names of the owners of the shop.

"It was stupid, but as soon as I heard whom she was bitching about, we got caught up in argument. You see, I used to know them as ponies. I told her she is unfair against Flim and Flam. I learned long time ago that not all ponies i knew back in Equestria and their human counterpart are the same. Still, just to hear Applejack insulting them felt like she was attacking me personally.

"Even writing this is hard, but I owe them for where and, more importantly, who I am today. How was it for you, Twilight, the day you were choosen to become Princess Celestia's personal protege. It was overwhelming, was it not? Like climbing up the hill and felt proud to accomplished your goal just to be rewarded with a scary giant mountain in your face. At least that´s how I had felt. I was so discouraged by all the stuff I thought I would never be able to understand. Flim and Flam where always there for me.

"So I insisted that I could bail Applejack out because she was unable to negotiate on their terms. We went to the shop together, all of us. We stood in front of the entrance and the girls were staring at me as I started to doubt my decision. Applejack tried to calm me, saying that she just had to work a little while to pay her bass - that it was okay if I back off. I knew better; she had mentioned earlier that she had to work a full year for them. This would not be all. If these world's Flim and Flam are like the Equestria's, they would jump at any chance to make her work even longer.

"The reason was not that I did not feel confident to free her from the agreement, but rather I was scared how they would react if they see me for the very first time.

"There I was, standing between the girls whom thought I would already know the shop owner - at least one of them hoping for me to succeed - and the door that separated me from people that I used to know closer than Celestia. You know the tension, right, Twilight?
When you came here the first time and noticed your friends are living here as well, you must know the strange feeling that you should be connected but at the same time you are just a stranger. You didn't know what they had done to this point. You didn´t share any memories.

"I admit my hand was shaking as I reached to the handle of the door. Suddenly, the door was pulled from the inside. There he stood in front of me, tall, slender, and sporting a mustache. Flam. He looked at us and ask us to politely to move away from the door so customers could enter the 'Flim Flam Brothers Everything Under the Sun Emporium'.

"I had expected some sort of reaction to me. Angry, surprised, sad, confused, anything. But nothing. "Girl." He called me "girl" when he asked me directly to either come in or go with my friends.
"Twilight, it seems like I was never born in the human world. My big brothers did not recognize me. Sunset Shimmer has never existed. They never taught the young filly to see and embrace opportunities. I did so many stupid things because I have seen the opportunity to do so. The black magic archive, the mirror, stealing your crown...

"It´s not all bad. I got Applejack out of the jam by appealing to my brothers' attraction for business occasions. The Rainbooms are having their first concert next month. Flim and Flam were with open arms when I told them that Applejack was part of the band that won the battle of the bands at the Canterlot High. I explained them that they could let them preform in their shop on a weekend which would easily attract students of our high school- young customers that will tell their families about the shop (and of course would be willing to pay a small fee.) I also got a part-time job at the 'Flim Flam Brothers Everything Under the Sun Emporium'.

"Princess Twilight Sparkle, would you be so kind if you ever meet two tall yellow unicorn stallions with red manes and white highlights that have apple cutiemarks that look like the same apple split 1/4 and 3/4... could you tell them, that I miss them, but I have found a opportunity I simply can´t slip by.

"Your friend Sunset Shimmer."

Sunset put the pen away but before she could close the book, more characters appeared under her text. Twilight read the message while she had written it.

"Dear Sunset Shimmer..."

Comments

[diablo4000]

Now that a twist. The Film Flan brothers are Sunset's elder brothers.
Honestly they aren't evil just greedy, when they first appeared, they tried to do buiness with AppleJack's family thou they were asking too much, if they had worked things out both sides would made alot of bits.

The second time they appeared they were now coning ponies with a fake miracle tonic, and convinced Apple Jack to lie for them.
Now the episode when they first came everyone was at fault, in one of the fan fics I read on this site, it was addressed. Celestia came to the farm herself and chewed out the entire family for betting land SHE GAVE to the Apple Clan.
She also wanted to have a stern talk to the brothers as well, oh she also made Apple Jack rewrite her letter or friendship lesson.

Can their be a sequel to this one shot Sunset learning how her brothers had become greedy but how also the Apple Clan screwed up as well and got chewed out by thier mentor?
She could send a letter addressed to her brothers and chew them out in the letter to get them back on the straight and narrow again.

[Verzeih Turncoat]

6183696
Right now I am busy with transferring my better attempts to write in english from my G+ to here.
That comes with some editing.
After that maybe.

But don´t forget Sunset was the one who saw some pictures of Twilight playing soccer and used them to frame her.
Not sure how much she is okay with tactics that her brothers are using is...

[diablo4000]

Yes and she did that when she was the Alpha Bitch who didn't care who she hurt at the time, to get what she wanted.
The sad thing about the Film Flan brothers is they are very very smart and know good buiness, but they use it to try and cheat ponies rather then run a honest buiness.

[Verzeih Turncoat]

6185267
I can describe them with one word: Opportunist
Their intelligence and their attitude just work great as (EQG1) Sunset Shimmer´s siblings.
In EQG2 is Sunset no longer relying on this methods but lost a lot of confidence in herself.

Would be interesting to write an inner conflict of Sunset about her brothers...

[diablo4000]

Nothing wrong being a Opportunist I support it, but if it done in the right way, to me they choose the easy way thou not always the best way.
I like the idea of Sunset following that path, but in way it helps not just her but others like the band and those who are hiring them.
Like they dd with the Human versions of her brothers, maybe they come to see her as the sister they never had, on why her counter part was never born...miscarriage?

Be a tender sad moment they fess they almost had a little sister but their mother got ill or was in a accident and sadly lost the baby.

[EchoWing]

Not a bad story, but it needs editing. Lots of typos here.

[Verzeih Turncoat]

6190968
... That is the only one of my fanfics (so far) that had gotten through editing by an American proofreader.

[SusieBeeca]

6183696

in one of the fan fics I read on this site, it was addressed. Celestia came to the farm herself and chewed out the entire family for betting land SHE GAVE to the Apple Clan.

Do you happen to remember what fic that was?

Anyway---interesting story. I can see a lot of potential here with the can of worms you opened. Good job.