“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaghhhhhhhhh!”
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaghhhhhhhhh!”
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagghhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”
“Miss Shimmer, are you okay in there?” a guard yelled from behind the door.
I shoved a hoof in the mouth of whatever this thing was and said, “Yes, I’m fine, just a nightmare!”
“Are you sure? I thought I heard another—”
“You didn’t, now beat it!”
A beat of silence. “Very well, Miss Sunset.” His boots echoed off the halls until he had returned to his station.
I pulled my hoof out of my doppelganger’s mouth and wiped it on her coat before pinning her to the floor. “Okay, who the heck are you?” My horn was already charging, despite the headache it was giving me.
“I’m Sunset Shimmer,” she said earnestly.
“No, I’m Sunset Shimmer. Now, tell me who you really are before I blow you to kingdom come!”
Her eyes widened, and she tried to shy away. “Please don’t! I really am Sunset Shimmer—same as you! We’re both Sunset!”
My magic dispersed, mostly because I couldn’t keep it focused for very long. I looked incredulously at her. “What do you mean we’re both Sunset?”
She placed a hoof on my chest, and quickly retracted it when I growled like a junkyard dog. “We’re two halves of the same pony. At least, I think we are. What do you remember from last night?”
“Lots of magic and frustration. Then something hit me.”
She smiled. Seeing my face with that bright smile looked very, very wrong. “Me too!” She acted like it was the happiest news in the world. “Only, I fell on top of something! Quick, what did you do for your fourteenth birthday?”
“Ate cake with Celestia and went to a Wonderbolts derby,” I said slowly.
“Oh my gosh, me too! See? We have the same memories, and we look the same, so we must both be Sunset Shimmer!”
I shook my head. “That doesn’t make any sense! There can’t be two of me!” I paused as a new possibility struck me. “Changeling!”
“Change-wha?”
I picked up the impostor with my magic and flung her across the room. She hit the wall with a loud smack and slid down it, groaning in pain. She wasn’t the only one.
“Ow!” I shouted, a sudden pain flaring up in my back at the precise moment the other Sunset had hit the wall. Adding to my back pain was the throbbing headache. Both the pain and seeing the other me only made me even angrier. “Go away!” I shot a blast of energy at her. The moment it struck her chest, a burning sensation burst across mine, and I doubled over in pain.
“Stop doing that, you’re making me feel worse,” the doppelganger shouted.
What the heck is going on? Every time I hit her, I feel it too! I glanced upwards. “Do you… have a splitting headache?”
“Yeeeeeeess!” she moaned.
Oh no. Oh sweet Celestia, no. I felt every attack I threw at her, and she had a headache like me. We both looked the same, we both had the same memories. It was then that I saw her cutie mark. Instead of being colored in two shades, it was all yellow. I forced myself over to the mirror and looked at my own.
It was all red.
“Oh sweet Celestia, please no!”
“Hey, what happened to your cutie mark? Hey, what happened to my cutie mark? Huh, you know if I didn’t know any better, it kind leaves the impression that we’re like, two halves of the same pony.”
My head slowly rotated toward her. “That’s exactly what it means, you idiot,” I said through gritted teeth.
“Oh.”
My mind raced, trying to piece together how this had transpired. The spell from last night had said it would double my potential and balance my yin and yang. Was this what it meant? Had I managed to split myself in two?
The other one wandered closer. “So, does that make us twins?”
“No it doesn’t!” I yelled.
“I think it does!” she sang.
Oh no, this is not happening. I shook my head and snarled, “You were an accident. There is no way we are going to be twins or anything of the sort. Now get back inside me!”
She blinked. “Are you coming on to me?”
“Oh sweet sun, I’m going to kill you.”
“That isn’t a nice thing to say.” She pouted for a moment, then perked up. “Hey, I know, I bet you’re just hungry! I’m hungry, so you must be too! It’s a twin thing—”
“We’re not twins!”
“—so let’s go get breakfast!”’ She skipped for the door.
I leapt and tackled her to the ground. “No!” I shouted. “If Celestia sees this she’ll know that we… I’ve been into the forbidden section of the library.”
“Oh yeah, we did do that.”
“I did that. You don’t really exist! The point is, she can’t see you!” I climbed off her and started pacing back and forth. The spell had managed to split us into two separate halves. And judging by that state of things, we seemed to be polar opposites in terms of characteristics. That explained why I was feeling even angrier than normal. It didn’t explain why she was an idiot!
She stared out the window, smiling at the bird song. “It’s a pretty day today.”
Ugh, she reminds me of Cadence. My train of thought came crashing to a hault. All those stupid happy thoughts I had been trying to think last night—those are what make her up! She is literally the yin to my yang! I looked at her again, humming to herself. So this is what I’m like without all the good parts to me? Maybe I should just leave her out of me.
I shook my head. There could only be one Sunset! She had to go, one way or another. Hurting her apparently hurt me too—which completely sucked! So killing her was out… probably. That meant, we would just have to fuse back together.
Joy.
“Okay, listen up, Replica.”
She turned from the window and frowned. “My name’s Sunset Shimmer.”
I strutted forward, laughing mirthlessly. “Oh no. My name is Sunset Shimmer. You’re Replica.”
“But we split in half. That makes me Sunset just as much as you!”
“No; You’re just all the parts I could live without, but because there can’t be two of us running around, I’m going to have to take you back. So you’re Replica. Be lucky I haven’t named you ’Stupid’!”
She frowned deeper. “Was I always this mean?”
“Yes, and now, I’m enjoying every second of it,” I said with a sneer. “Now—”
“Can I at least be called Shimmer?”
I flicked her nose, ignoring the pain in mine. “Stop interrupting me. Now, I’m going to look for a spell that will put us back together. You sit and wait quietly while I do, got it?”
She sat down and crossed her hooves, puffing her cheeks out like a filly. “I’ll only do it if you call me Shimmer.”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine, you can be Shimmer.”
“Yaaay!” She jumped up and hugged me around the neck. “Thanks, twinny!”
I locked up at the physical contact. “If you don’t let go of me, I’ll just turn you into a pile of ash.”
“Won’t that hurt you—”
“Ash!”
She let go and sat on the ground again.
After wiping the contamination off, I walked over to my bed and picked the book up. Logically, a reverse spell would be on the next page, so I decided to start there. If it wasn’t, then I was going to spend the next several days translating ancient words and putting up with my disgustingly cheerful ‘twin.’
No, this is not going to be a thing. I’m getting rid of her as soon as possible.
If all else failed, I could just ship her to Saddle Arabia.
I hadn’t even gotten through the page title before there was a knock on my door. “Miss Shimmer, it is almost time for your lesson with the Princess.”
“Crap!” I yelled.
“Yaay!” Shimmer cheered, heading for the door.
“No!” I blasted her in the shoulder, regretting it the second it made contact. I gripped my own and seethed, muttering curses under my breath.
“What was that?” the guard asked.
“Nothing!” I shouted over Shimmer’s whimpering. “Just… talking to myself.”
“Very well. Would you like an escort to the Princess’ chambers?”
“Do you think I’m some stupid foal? I can find her room by myself, thank you very much.”
I could hear his discontent grumble from my bed. “Very well.”
Ignoring the ache in my shoulder, I climbed off the bed and approached Shimmer, who was massaging her own bruise. “You have anger issues,” she whined.
“And you’re an idiot, and the sky is blue. Now that we’re done pointing out the obvious, I need you to do something for me.”
“What?”
I pointed to the spot she was sitting on. “Do not move. At all. Until I get back from my lesson.”
She stuck her bottom lip out. “How come you get to go?”
“Because, again, you’re an idiot.”
“Am not!”
“As much as I’d love to point out all the reasons why, I’m already going to be late. You’re staying here.”
Her stomach chose to rumble at that moment. “But I’m hungry!”
I turned to the door. “Then I’ll eat something on the way back. It’ll probably fill you up too. Probably.”
“But—”
I rounded on her. “Stay in this room! I mean it!”
Her eyes were wide and watery, but she bowed her head and muttered, “Okay.”
“Good girl.” I approached the door, then froze and looked back at my cutie mark. “Crap, that’s a dead giveaway that something’s up.”
Shimmer sat up and waved her hoof. “Oh, oh! I can fix it!” She bit her tongue and put on a face of intense concentration. Her horn lit up, and five seconds later, a paintbrush, a small jar of yellow paint, and a piece of paper came in through the window.
She clapped her hooves together in delight, then set to work. She cut a design of half our cutie mark in the paper, then held it over my flank. She then took the paint and paintbrush and splattered yellow all over the paper. When she peeled it away, My cutie mark looked almost normal. She did it to the other side and said, “Ta-da!”
“Hmm.” I closely examined it in the mirror. It was passable, as long as nopony looked too close. I nodded my head and pulled the door open a crack. “If you think you’re getting a thank you, you’re sorely mistaken.”
There was a cry of, “Aww,” before I slipped through and shut the door behind me. I took a deep breath and tried to compose myself for my coming audience with Celestia. Yet every time I thought of her, I was reminded of every little thing she did that annoyed me. Even the way she breathed was irritating.
“Keep it together, Sunset. Just get through this so we can get rid of Shimmer, put the book back, and forget this all ever happened.”
I swallowed my disdain and marched ahead. There was a sinking feeling in my stomach that told me it was going to be a long day.
Yes. This is a thing I needed in my life.
You have my interest. Please continue.
Dear god, it's like Sunset and Pinkie fucked, and out came Shimmer.
Per our Skype chat~
I've been wanting a story based on that picture. But to get one from Albinocorn? This makes me very happy.
I'm almost half disappointed that Sunset didn't suggest Vesper when the Replica bit came up. Though it's probably for the best; such an allusion would've been too blatant.
I am laughing my freaking ass off right now. The promise of moar Sunset from you is good enough, but this is simply hilarious. Reminds me of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (I should know, I've ripped off that episode too :p). Being this is pre-show time, I cannot help but wonder how you'll take this; if it'll fill in canon blanks and lead up to it, or if it'll go down its own divergence.
And if nothing else, now that there's two Sunsets, you and I don't have to share. I call dibs on the moody one.
This is a great story so far, can't wait to read more!
Hah, her name was almost Replica. I see what you did there.
Nice. A duplicate that's the exact opposite of you left in an empty room to her own devices. Yeah, that can't backfire at all.
Hope the next chapter is soon.
"Ash!" "Replica!"
I loves Tales of the Abyss, too.
This amuses me greatly.
More, please!
This is so awesome!
Is it wrong of me to hope that you never stop writing Sunset stories?
... So... The Pinkie Pie of Sunset Shimmer, except she can't defy physics.
Or can she?
*Reads story description*
*Mildly interested*
*Reads Author name*
*Instant fave*
Now, let's read...
*Finished reading story*
*Not regretting instant fave*
*Unfaves and faves again*
*Waits for more*
Rage is not going to be able to keep this up.
I would like a chapter from Joy's perspective.
Huzzah! The Sunset has been doubled!
Shimmer is kind of a doormat isn't she?
Oh, this is going to be hilarious! I'm so ready for the next chapter.
So... if both of them feel pain in the same place, at the same time, do they feel even more pain?
If they both went to an ice cream parlor at the end of the week would it be Sun Daze Sundae Sunday?
6346550 Sunset only has two dominant emotions?
Pretty curious how the spell works. It sounds like both Sunsets are supposed to be equal halves of the same pony, but so far the story makes it feel like Meanset is the original but missing her more pleasant qualities while Niceset is a magical construct given those traits.
I'm also very curious as to how Cadence with react to a friendly Sunset.
I need to review this story tomorrow ^__^
The premise of this story reminds me of Calvin and Hobbes. For that alone I'll favorite this story and read it to completion.
Oh my gosh XDXD.
Like with the last chapter, It was fun seeing you play around with SoT a little. The same way that Sunset isn't Vesper Radiance, it's definitely fair to say that Shimmer isn't SoT's adorkable protagonist. As kind as she was, she wasn't THIS nice; Shimmer is much more like Pinkie Pie than anypony else. Funny enough, I can hardly tell much difference in Sunset with or without her .
I don't really know if there's a whole lot I can comment on. There's intentionally not many threads with this story and the chapter was really just hilarious bantering between the two :3. It's kind of like "Firebird Dahlia" in that regard, but this one is meant to be funny and that one is meant to be sad. It was fun to go through, and I wonder if Sunset will actually learn a friendship lesson from all this when Shimmer probably starts to be more like the kind pony that Celestia and Cadence want her to be. More likely than not, Sunset will just get another headache .
I don't know how much you'll update this story, but it'll be fun to read whenever you get the chance .
This needs updates!!
And it was on this day, with this line, that I knew, this was going to be glorious.
I have a feeling that coming back together will be a more zen thing then Sunset thinks. That heavy feeling when she was sell casting make think about how friendship is magic.
Okay, I was already enjoying this story, but that line elevated it. This is going to be awesome.
HiddenMaster out.
I love this story!
I saw this coming. Laughed anyway.
Love Angry!Shimmer's solution here. I can certainly see Sunset coming up with the "Garfield" solution to obnoxious cute things.
The red marked is Sunset and the yellow is Shimmer so names match their personality splits!