A State of Unrest

by Story blossom

Chapter 4

The two teen girls exited the brick apartment building and entered the darkened streets. A cold chill saturated the air as they made their way towards Canterlot High School. Sunset shivered and Twilight held Spike closely whether for his benefit or hers, neither knew. Her dampened hair felt almost frozen.

“So how’ve the girls been?” Twilight managed through chattering teeth.

“They’ve been great, though we’ve all been missing you. How have things been back…” home, or can I even call it that? She cleared her throat and tried to clear her thoughts, “in Equestria.”

Noticing her friend’s discomfort, Twilight gave a small smile and said, “Other than the constant royal responsibilities it’s been fun. I’ve actually taken on my first student, but that’s a story for another time. Not to pry or anything, but have you told anyone else about the nightmares?”

Sunset shook her head, “No. I didn’t want to say anything to anyone until I had talked to you about them.”

Sunset looked as far as her limited line of vision would allow. Beyond the crest of the next cement covered hill lay their destination. She mentally sighed from relief.

Some shudder filled strides later, the two girls had arrived at the base of the Canterlot High wondercolt statue. Placing Spike back onto the ground, Twilight observed her obviously nervous friend.

“Are you ready, Sunset?” Twilight Sparkle tried.

Sunset thought it over for a few moments, her already numb extremities buzzing with uneasy energy. A huge knot had formed deep in her stomach and she felt ready to turn and run back to the safety of her apartment, but she knew that if she did, the nightmares would never stop and time may run out for her friends and herself.

She grit her teeth and tried to convince herself that she was making the right decision.

“I would have to return eventually. I couldn’t let it weigh on my conscious that I could have prevented some disaster but didn’t because I was too scared to go back to Equestria,” she argued internally.

Tightening her hands into fists inside her jacket pockets, Sunset concluded, “I’m ready.”

Twilight gave her a small reassuring smile and started into the portal. Spike also gave her a look of sympathy and followed behind the princess.

Sunset Shimmer closed her eyes tightly and released a short breath into the chill filled air. Taking a final look at the high school that stood behind her, she entered the portal. She was swallowed into the base of the statue, and within seconds the presence of two teens was unapparent.

The light amber girl’s eyes burst open as her body was sucked into a multicolored twisting channel. Her previously chill ridden face warmed. She felt her body alter, a feeling she had only experienced a few times before. The space around her appeared infinite, but a tight sensation covered her entire existence. This strange occurrence continued until she felt the tension around her snap. Her body was shoved out of the exit of the portal, the entrance to Equestria, her former home.

Sunset lifted her head that now rested on a crystal floor to asses her condition. Her vision was still a bit blurred and all of the reflective surfaces that surrounded her only made it harder to determine her location.

“We moved the mirror to the, er, my castle. I still haven’t gotten used to saying that,” a voice Sunset made out to be Twilight’s said.

Her body felt heavier yet it was almost like learning to ride a bike, it was something you never forgot. She quickly pulled herself up onto all four hooves. She noticed that the mirror now had a few upgrades, machines connected by wires. The leather jacket she pulled on in her apartment still clang to her now sweating torso. Her face grew red at the sudden and extreme change in temperature. Testing out her regained magic, an aqua glow surrounded the zipper as she removed the jacket.

“I can put that away for you,” Twilight offered.

“T-thanks,” Sunset struggled to form words. She lifted the clothing item in her magic’s grasp towards her friend. Twilight carefully transferred it into her aura and the jacket abruptly vanished followed by a whoosh sound.

Spike’s clawed foot tapped against the floor at a tedious pace. Sunset observed the small green and purple dragon, his expression no less than bored.

Sunset said nothing, dreading leaving the security of the small machine filled room provided. However, she knew time was a sensitive matter, and no amount of fear was going to keep her from protecting her friends.

“Where to now?” Sunset managed.

“Well, we should make our way to the Canterlot Palace. I guess traveling by carriage would be the quickest way to get both of us there,” Princess Twilight contemplated.

“Both of us? What did she mean by that?” Sunset thought to herself before noting Twilight’s lavender pair of wings.

A pang of regret echoed through Sunset’s mind as she saw them, “That could’ve been me,” she couldn’t help but think to herself. Sunset quickly shook the thought out of her brain “No, now is not the time for that.”

“Okay,” she finally replied.

The three then left the small room and walked through several corridors before coming to a stop in a room that held a table and several chairs, each displaying a different cutie mark at its head.

“You two stay here, I’ll go speak some of the guards and get them to prepare the carriage,” Twilight said.

Nodding her head, Sunset sank into one of the chairs. Exhaustion along with anxiety numbed her mind. She felt like a pile of mush, only held together by her body’s limitations. Her aqua eyes scanned the room in attempts to distract herself. The reoccurring theme of blue crystal in various shades was preserved in this room as well.

The opening of the large doors grasped Sunset’s attention. Twilight poked her head through and motioned for Sunset to follow behind her. Sunset did so, trailing behind the alicorn to the final set of doors between the inner walls of the castle and the outside land of Equestria. She gulped, and tailed Twilight through the grand exit.

The dim light of dawn greeted the two ponies. Two stoic looking guard ponies were attached to a golden chariot with large wings protruding from its sides. Spike quickly hoped onto the cushioned seat beside the already seated Princess of Friendship. Sunset reluctantly sat and the armored guard ponies started off.

For the light amber unicorn, the entire ride to Canterlot was a blur of colors. Her sleep deprived mind performed poorly at processing information. It took all of the willpower she could muster to keep from dozing off. She currently gazed out at the slowly rising sun, remembering her previous mentor who was undoubtedly responsible for its ascent. A question suddenly popped into her head, and she graciously accepted the distraction.

“So am I right in assuming that Princess Luna already knows that we’re coming?” she questioned Twilight.

“Absolutely!” the lavender alicorn suddenly adopted a defensive tone, “I actually had Spike send the princesses a letter to let them know before leaving to see you.”

“You’re telling me you knew that I would agree to come with you before you had even asked me about it?” Sunset raised an eyebrow.

The princess of friendship smirked and straightened her posture. At this, Sunset couldn’t help but notice how wise and mature the alicorn appeared, a look that she had only seen before in Princess Celestia.

“How?” Sunset asked.

“How what?” Twilight replied.

“How did you know that I would say yes? After all, the chances that somepony with my past would return to what could be considered the scene of the crime are very slim.”

Twilight smiled yet again, “I knew because it’s you we’re talking about. Sunset Shimmer would never run away from saving her friends, even if it meant she had to face her own dreads.”

Sunset did not reply, not knowing how to do so. She let the words her friend had just uttered sink in.

“How is it possible that she has so much confidence in me when I don’t even have that much confidence in myself? Is she right? I would do anything to keep them safe, and I guess that includes this absolutely insane thing that I’m doing right now,” she thought.

Her half-opened eyes trailed to see the Canterlot Castle rising into view. A nervous shiver ran down her spine, partially awakening her.

“There it is,” she whispered just as Spike said the same thing at a louder volume.

Their descent was quick, and the golden chariot landed before the guarded drawbridge entrance. Sunset drank in the scenery, having been years since she had seen it last. She exited the cart, and attempted to swallow the large knot that had formed in her throat at their arrival. Her stomach did somersaults as she inched towards the home she once knew.

Smile warm, with a graceful gait, Princess Twilight approached the bowing guards and relayed to them their reason for arrival. With a stern nod of approval, the three entered the castle walls.

Sunset hesitantly brushed away her thoughts of making a break for it as they crossed over the grassy courtyard. She attempted to subside her nervous sleep deprived ideas by replacing them with calming ones.

“Princess Luna will fix this. She’ll fix this and everything will be fine again. I will go back through the portal and rejoin the girls at CHS and all will be right in the world. After all, that’s where I belong, not here in Equestria, but there with my best friends. Maybe all of this crazy stuff had to happen for me to figure out where I was meant to be,” she guessed in her thoughts.

They entered a set of doors to a long, ornately decorated hallway. Expensive, silk curtains draped across the tall glass windowpanes. These decorations were engraved in Sunset’s memory. They arrived at a set of doors, ones that she remembered to be the ones in which would allow you to enter the throne room, a room Sunset was extremely hesitant to pass into.

“Sunset,” Twilight turned to face her unicorn friend, “I just wanted to tell you before we do this, that I believe in you. I know that you may not believe in yourself right now, and that this is most likely going to be very difficult for you, but I have complete faith that Princess Celestia will see that you are a completely different pony, or human, I guess, than before. And I know that this probably didn’t help you too much but I just felt like I had to tell you”

Twilight’s speech was cut short as Sunset hugged her royal friend yet again. She knew that such a display of affection could be considered improper in a public place like they were in, but she had no cares as to what any other pony thought at that moment. Finally, the two ponies released their grips from around each other’s necks and faced the entryway to the throne room.

“Let’s do this,” Spike proclaimed as he shoved the heavily decorated doors open.

Sunset swallowed hard, and followed closely after Twilight Sparkle and Spike. She dared to look toward the throne and, to her already formed assumption, was confirmed of her former mentor and Princess of Equestria, Celestia’s presence sitting atop the stairs in a lush looking throne. The guards once again bowed to her friend, the Princess of friendship who led her towards where Princess Celestia sat.

A genuine smile formed on the face of Princess Celestia, “Good morning, Princess Twilight sparkle, Spike, and,” Sunset could have sworn she heard a small catch in the royal alicorn’s voice “Sunset Shimmer. It’s so wonderful to see you all.”

For no apparent reason at all, tears brimmed in Sunset’s eyes and she struggled to hold them there.