Episode 135: Family Matters
Episode 135: Family Matters
There couldn’t be any denying that there was a harsh truth staring Sunset Shimmer and her friends in the face; the Zero Division was both a threat to everything they held dear, and one too powerful to overcome as they were. The encounter with Medley had proven that much. Regardless of how any of them felt about the particulars of what Hell was or why the Zero Division had made it, none of that would matter if they couldn’t confront Zero Division directly. They needed more power, and more allies. The peace talks Discord wanted to host might give them a route to allies, and Sunset felt confident she could count on Twilight and Adagio. So that still left a final, if sizable power gap to close.
Medley had taken the pendants. Pendants Sunset knew with certainty now were tied directly to the Elements of Harmony. She still had that lingering sensation, somewhere resonating in her soul, that the pendants had wanted to be taken. It was still difficult to pin the feeling down, but Sunset just had this quiet, sure notion that the pendants would play their part when the time came. But that didn’t mean that looking for other ways to close the power gap shouldn’t be pursued in the here and now, and with that thought in mind she turned a searching look towards Discord and pointed at the empty glass cylinder that had once held the Hogyoku.
“So Discord, should I ask about that, or is this something you want to hold off on?”
Picking up on her meaning immediately, Discord flashed a smirk and made a sweeping gesture to all of them, “I was considering keeping it as a surprise for later, but since you ask...”
He reached into the deep folds of his wide sleeve and pulled out a smooth, black case, about the size of a small Christmas present you might put a gift card in. It was carved with the stylized skull image that Discord had used for the ward passes he’d given the girls. Everyone peered at the case curiously as Discord opened it up. A very faint, soft light of glittering blue and white cascaded out of the case, illuminating the faces that peered within.
“Oh my, what manner of jewel is that?” asked Rarity, then her eyes instantly narrowed, “Wait! I’ve seen this before!”
“We all have,” said Sunset, “Back beneath Hitsuyo-Aku. Embedded in Starlight Glimmer’s chest.”
Pinkie Pie’s eyes lit up, “Ooooh, it’s a Holdyourcoup!”
Pinkamena gave her an unamused look, “You mangled that on purpose.”
“Only a little,” Pinkie replied with a giggle.
“The correct term is ‘Hogyoku’,” said Sunset, while Clover looked on with open-mouthed amazement at the gleaming, perfect sphere sitting inside the case’s dark velvet interior.
“Queen above, Captain Starswirl thought all the data on that project was gone! I thought Starlight Glimmer was the only one with a functioning model! You’re telling me you’ve been building another this whole time!?”
Discord rubbed at his ear, looking at her sidelong, “Please, Third Seat Clover, no need to shout. Of course I’ve been working on a replacement for what Starlight stole. I knew it’d likely become a necessary counter, if not to Starlight, then eventually to any graver threat that poked its head out. Zero Division, for example.”
“Wait, if this shiny little ball is so awesome then why didn’t you bring it to Camp Everfree and use it to thrash that Medley chick?” asked Rainbow Dash, pointing at the jewel, “Would save us a heap of trouble we’re in right now!”
“Easy, Miss Dash. This Hogyoku is not quite like the incomplete version Starlight stole, then finished on her own by fusing with it. This one I designed to work with a specific style of soul, ones infused with magic. I can’t get any personal use out of it. Only you girls, whose souls are bathed in Equestria’s magic, could synchronize with this particular Hogyoku. And it’s not something that will likely be done swiftly or easily. Even if I’d brought it to Camp Everfree, it would’ve done no good, and probably been taken by Medley alongside those pendants.”
“Smart thinkin’, then, keepin’ it hidden,” said Applejack, glancing at Sunset, “Ya look like ya already knew ‘bout this.”
“Yeah, Discord told me about it the same time he told me about Starlight Glimmer,” Sunset said, “It wasn’t finished, then. I’m guessing it is now?”
Discord held up a finger, “Not entirely. It’s as finished as I can make it, but completing it is something you girls will need to do on your own.”
“How do we do that?” asked Sunset.
“Simply keep it on your person for now,” Discord said, removing the Hogyoku and holding it out to her, “Like I told you before you went to Soul Society, the Hogyoku breaks down the barriers between souls, and amplifies the ability of those souls to draw energy from other sources. It’s how Starlight gained Hollow powers, or infected others with Hollow powers. It’s likely how she intends to absorb magic while in Equestria. This Hogyoku is a bit different. Rather than absorb power from any source, it will amplify the power draw from souls connected to it, possibly to a greater degree than Starlight’s, if not as versatile.”
“In other words,” said Rarity, “Rather than steal power from anywhere, it boosts power from those who are already willing to bond?”
“In essence. Be they Quincy, Soul Reaper, Hollow, magical pony, natural human or Fullbringer, this Hogyoku should let you form spiritual connections with them and amplify the power draw from it. But even I can’t say the exact nature this power draw will take, or how long it will take to form. I may have created this little shining wish ball, but it’s been impossible to gauge the details of its effects without... er... test subjects.”
“Oh? So we’re the guinea pigs?” Rainbow Dash said, chuckling under her breath, “Hey if it helps make us stronger, I’ll settle for being a test subject. So, what? Does Sunset just carry it in her back pocket and we wait for the fireworks to happen?”
“More or less,” Discord said with a cheeky smile, “I suppose I could work it into a piece of jewelry or something, but aesthetics are not my strong suit.”
“Leave that to me,” Rarity said, eyes gleaming, “Sunset, give me a day or two and I’ll have something quite simply smashing for you to wear that in!”
“I don’t know if that’s a great idea, Rarity, not that I don’t have confidence in your fashion skills,” Sunset said as she took the Hogyoku in a ginger hand and looked it over. The gem’s perfectly smooth surface shone with a swirl of dancing inner lights that were near hypnotic. It was cool to the touch, and when she probed it with her spiritual senses, she felt as if her very reiryoku was somehow falling into a vast ocean. She shook her head, “I probably shouldn’t flash this around. If Zero Division is keeping an eye on us, they might swoop in the second they realize we have this.”
“An excellent point,” Discord said, “Fortunately this Hogyoku doesn’t output any spiritual pressure, so a casual examination shouldn’t reveal it. Just keep it somewhere not obvious. A pocket, or jacket, or-”
Sunset shrugged and nestled it into her cleavage, out of sight. Discord raised an eyebrow.
“...Or there, I suppose.”
“Trust me, it’s not going anywhere,” Sunset said, and Rainbow Dash let out a hefty snicker while Applejack looked away in embarrassment.
“Nice move, Sunset,” said Rainbow Dash, “Not a move I could pull off, sadly.”
“I could!” shouted Pinkie, raising her hand and waving it about.
“Err, what’s it matter who could do it?” said Applejack, “We ain’t comparin’ sizes here!”
“Umm, n-not to question your choice Sunset, but are you sure it won’t fall out?” asked Fluttershy, not quite as red faced as Applejack, but a tad on the rosey side as she asked her question with genuine concern.
“Yes, during a fight things get quite hectic. Be a shame if it, erm... came flying out,” mentioned Rarity.
“It’ll do for now,” said Sunset, “You can still make something to hold it in, Rarity, just need to make sure it’s something I can still keep hidden.”
“No trouble at all, Sunset. Just leave it to me.”
Sunset looked back to Discord. While the Hogyoku came as a pleasant surprise, one she’d suspected was coming when she’d seen it out of it’s cylinder, she still had another thing to ask Discord. “Okay, so we’ve got a possible trump card to play, which is cool. But what else do we have to work with? You’re still the most knowledgeable guy we know about this stuff, Discord. You must have known a fight with Zero Division was on the horizon. What else can we do to prepare?”
“In the time we have?” he said, holding his hands out, “Aside from gathering allies, your best course of action is to push your current powers as far as you can through more rigorous training. I’m sadly out of ‘magic bullets’ to make that easier. The Hogyoku will do what it does best if you girls just act... like yourselves. Follow what your instincts say is best. There’s no telling how long it will be before you’ll have to fight again, so we’re limited in how we can plan.”
Sunset thought about that for a second, “Well, everyone’s completed their Fullbrings, but I’m pretty sure there’s plenty more to learn about how they work.”
“I’ll say,” said Rarity, “My Court of the Generous Rose feels as if it has countless possible ways I could use it. I can scarcely imagine the possibilities, and I bet I could learn all sorts of interesting ways to use it if I have a week or two to experiment.”
“Court of the Generous Rose?” said Rainbow Dash, “Somehow that name totally fits you, Rares. Hey AJ, what’s yours called? Didn’t get a chance to ask while we were all kicking butt back there.”
“Oh, um, Honest Heart Regalia,” said Applejack, hiding her blushing face partially by shading it with her stetson, “Kinda a mouthful fer my taste, but I don’t mind it.”
“Oh! Oh! C’mon Mena, let’s pose!” said Pinkie Pie, grabbing Pinkamena and all but dragging her doppelganger into a position where they were back to back, Pinkie holding her arms crossed with her hands in an awkward position with middle and ring finger held down while the pinkie, thumb, and index finger pointed outward. Anyone who’d ever seen a particular cartoon about a high-school student using moon powers to face the forces of evil would’ve recognized the pose. Pinkamena just sort of stood there, doing a far less enthused version of the pose with flat eyes.
“Aaaaand me and Mena make up the Laughter of Madness!” Pinkie Pie said, “In the name of comedy, we shall punish you!”
“I think I’m going back inside, Pinkie. Call me when you need some violence done,” Pinkamena said, and melted into a thick, pink mist that flowed into Pinkie Pie.
“Aww, she won’t admit it, but she likes it. But I guess I’ll put on my serious face now,” said Pinkie Pie, patting her cheeks like someone trying to shake themselves awake. It was almost as if her demeanor rebalanced itself to something more level once Pinkamena went inside her, and Pinkie Pie looked to Fluttershy, “So don’t keep us in suspense. You know the name of yours too, right?”
Fluttershy perked up and smiled, eyes closing in pleasure, “Oh, it’s Kind Bodhisattva.”
“Ah, like the episode title,” Pinkie Pie said, nodding sagely, to which Fluttershy cocked her head.
“Huh?”
“Nevermind,” said Pinkie, “So Discord, we going to go see our families now? I can’t wait to give my sisters a big ol’ hug and let them know me and Mena are alright.”
“Assuming you girls feel ready for it,” Discord said, giving a meaningful look towards Rarity. She went very still for a moment, and the room went quiet as everyone looked towards her with sympathetic patience as Rarity took a few seconds to get her thoughts in order.
“I... suppose I am ready,” Rarity said, voice not quite shaking, but far from steady, “I may need some help explaining to my parents and Sweetie Belle just what my situation is and what my options are. I do ask everyone to pre-emptively forgive any hysterics that ensue.”
“Good Lord, Rarity, ya oughta know by now we got yer back, no matter what,” said Applejack, which was fast followed by affirming nods from the others.
With that, the group exited Discord’s lab, which he took a moment to re-establish the wards upon after they were back down the stairs. On the store’s bottom floor Discord led the way towards the hall with the hatchway down into the training area that lay underground. Before they got there, Sunset saw that up ahead both Captain Celestia and Captain Sweet Cider were waiting for them. Upon Sweet Cider’s face was an expression like a low burning fire, with an angered scowl that only partially dropped when she saw them approaching. Celestia had a quiet, but wary air about her. The reason for the tension between them became evident as Sweet Cider looked to Discord for a second, then to Applejack.
“He tell ya’ll the truth?”
Applejack came to a stop, and all the girls felt it. A contained but sparking hot aura of reiatsu stemming from Sweet Cider. She was keeping her spirit pressure in check, but it was raging on the inside, spilling out in a haphazard wave that almost felt like walking into a wall.
“Yeah,” Applejack said, “Guessin’ ya just heard ‘bout Zero Division’s horse-hockey, too?”
“I told her,” Celestia said, uncertainty pooling in her eyes as she looked away from them, “And Discord only told me what Ditzy Doo discovered a very short time after you all arrived, so I’m... still processing things.”
“Processin’, huh?” Sweet Cider said, “Ain’t nothin’ to it! All o’ Soul Society’s been taken fer fools! Our whole dang job’s just one big con job!”
“I’m not certain everyone will see it that way,” Celestia said, “I’m not certain how I see it, yet. This is a lot to take in, and without any of Zero Division present to explain themselves, it’s difficult to determine just what the truth is.”
“Don’t hand me that bullcrap, Celestia!” Sweet Cider snapped, “Use yer dang head! Ain’t no reason ta make a’ place like that Hell unless yer tryin’ ta make sure ya can get rid o’ folk who go against ya.”
“I am not disputing it’s questionable, but without knowing Zero Division’s reasons I don’t want to leap to conclusions,” Celestia replied, crossing her arms and frowning in deep thought, “Beyond that, this information has the potential to fracture the Gotei 13. We saw how fragile the relationship between the Divisions was simply from the pressure of my and Luna’s arrest. Imagine how much worse it might be when this becomes known in Seireitei? Depending on how Captain Commander Scorpan handles things, we could end up with a conflict that makes the chaos Starlight Glimmer’s plot caused look like nothing by comparison.”
“And yet the truth has to come out, one way or another, “ Sunset said, drawing the attention of both Captains as she walked forward to stand in front of them. She gave Celestia an understanding look, holding out her hands, “Look I hear what you’re saying. Believe me the last thing I want is Soul Reapers fighting each other. But what Discord and Ditzy uncovered... it's the truth, and every single Soul Reaper who’s taken up a Zanpaktou in this war deserves to know the score. They deserve the chance to choose for themselves what they want to fight for, whether they’re cool or not with what Zero Division is doing. Uncomfortable as the truth is, it’s better than not knowing, right?”
Sunset wasn’t fearful that Captain Celestia would ever actually support the Zero Division, really. At this point she felt like she probably knew this Celestia better than the one back in Equestria whom she hadn’t seen in years. Whether as her school’s principal or as a Captain of the Gotei 13, Sunset had come to know Captain Celestia as a truly caring and courageous individual, one who was always willing to put others before herself. If she was hesitant now, Sunset imagined it was only because Celestia had been a Soul Reaper for so long that it was hard to imagine that the foundational principles of Soul Society were, at least in part, built on manipulation and lies. It was a lot to take in, and although Sunset didn’t doubt Celestia would choose right when it came down to it, it made sense that decision might take some time.
Celestia’s face released a bit of it’s tension, offering Sunset a proud smile as she said, “You’re right. The truth should be made available, so everyone has the chance to know what they’re fighting for. I just want to find the right time and way to do it, and I hope you understand why I’m worried about how the Captain Commander is going to react to learning the truth. He worked in the Soul Palace before the formation of the Gotei 13. I... I don’t even wish to say this, but there’s a small chance he might already know the truth and just has kept it to himself.”
“You think he’s in on it?” Sweet Cider asked, and Celestia shook her head, hard.
“No. No I don’t believe he would willingly deceive us if he knew the whole truth. Perhaps he just has had suspicions. Partial information he couldn’t act on.”
“Celestia, he might’ve trained you n’ yer sister, but that don’t make him a’ infallible saint,” Sweet Cider said, “Ya best prepare yerself, just n’ case this does go sideways.”
A bit of fire appeared in Celestia’s eyes, “I’m well aware the Captain Commander is not perfect. But he is a man of honor, whose wisdom has guided the Gotei 13 through harrowing times centuries before you picked up a Zanpaktou. I ask you do not doubt him. I... shall not.”
“Hmph,” Sweet Cider wore a sour look, but said no more. Discord quickly stepped in, clapping his hands and edging past the pair of fuming Captains like a man trying to sneak past a pair of sleeping dragons.
“Well perhaps we can shelve this delightful conversation for now. Captain Celestia, you’re entirely welcome to enjoying any of my humble abodes accommodations, be it kitchen, bath, or bedroom. I’m taking these girls down for a long overdue chat with their loved ones. Captain Sweet Cider, I do believe this would be an ideal opportunity for the Apple family to fully reconvene. Well, fully minus one, but that’s being worked on, isn’t it?”
“How n’ flamin’ tarnation do ya know ‘bout Hard...” Sweet Cider cut herself off, glancing at Applejack.
“Didn’t say nothin’, ma, got my word on it,” said Applejack.
Sunset and the other girls all exchanged confused looks, wondering just what they were talking about. Suddenly Pinkie Pie’s eyes lit up and she raised a hand, “Oh is this about that guy with the really long, red hair who I think was an Arrancar, and Grogar like totally did something nasty to him involving that shiny red orb thingy that Adagio took after I nabbed it first? Oh, and the other Sunset.”
“Other... Sunset?” Sunset asked, feeling a distinct sense of vertigo as she came to the conclusion that things were about to get yet more complicated. She also noticed Celestia abruptly tense up as well, which only further mounted Sunset’s confusion as Pinkie Pie and Applejack started talking over one another.
“Yup! I saw this girl with Applejack and her dad who looked just like you-”
“-look hun ya shouldn’t be sayin’ nothin’ ‘bout that fer now, an’ hold up on the dad front, too! I ain’t ready ta-”
“-and she had this huge lava sword, which was pretty nifty. Wait, what do you mean we can’t talk about your dad? Pretty sure I heard you call him-”
“Pipe down, both ya’ll!” said Sweet Cider with an anvil of a tone that could only be described as a ‘mom voice’, which got both Pinkie and Applejack to snap their mouths closed on pure daughter instinct. Even Pinkie knew the ‘mom voice’, even if Cloudy used it rarely. Sweet Cider looked at both of them for a moment to make sure they took her meaning and weren’t about to speak up again, then she turned her gaze to Sunset Shimmer, hefting out a deep sigh.
“Now, since I figure yer owed a bit o’ explanation, an’ I don’t want no muddying the waters here, yes... there’s a gal who looks like ya, sounds like ya, but ain’t ya. She was at Everfree, and is part o’ the Fourth Espada’s crew,” Sweet Cider paused, as if coming to a decision, then said more softly, “My husband’s crew. He’s the Fourth Espada.”
“...Holy shit,” Rainbow Dash blurted, her face immediately reddening as the others looked at her and she threw up a hand, “What? That pretty much sums it up, doesn’t it?”
“Yes, but still Rainbow, language,” Rarity said, shaking her head before looking at Applejack, “Did you just find out about this at Everfree?”
“Yeah,” Applejack didn’t look back at any of them, instead fixing her eyes on the floor, “Didn’t know when it’d be best ta tell you gals, and still kinda sortin’ it out in my own head. Me n’ ma... we fought him. He didn’t fully remember us ‘till we knocked some sense inta his head.”
“Seems like an Apple Family tradition at this point,” Sweet Cider said, then glanced at Celestia, “An’ ya better understand that I’m trustin’ ya ta keep this under wraps ‘till I can figure what ta do. Hard Nail ain’t my enemy by a long shot, even if he’s still kickin’ his feet up at a homestead in Las Noches. He’s got a sorta surrogate family o’ his own back there, includin’ this Sunset lookalike who he’s adopted. Far as I can tell, he’s workin’ with that Adagio woman and don’t hold any serious loyalty ta the rest o’ that Espada bunch.”
“I see,” Celestia said, casting a flickering look towards Sunset before looking back at Sweet Cider, “If he truly remembers who he was in life, then that would certainly change matters. I can withhold passing this information along to the Captain Commander for now, Captain Sweet Cider, but I recommend you do so yourself sooner rather than later. There’s no way to prevent your husband from being treated as an enemy combatant as long as he’s with the forces of Las Noches. Adagio faces a similar problem, even if I have plenty of reason to believe she doesn’t pose a direct threat to Soul Society or the living world.”
“I get what yer sayin’, an’ we’ll talk more on it later, but fer now I need ta sort out a’ few things myself ‘fore I try n’ involve the big-wigs in Seireitei,'' Sweet Cider said. Sunset, unable to contain her curiosity further, spoke up.
“Did your husband tell you who this girl who looks like me actually is? I mean, other than someone he adopted?”
“Didn’t get no details, other than she goes by ‘Fenice’, an’ Hard Nail adopted her alongside a buncho o’ other Arrancar orphans.”
“She’s an Arrancar?”
“Nah, she was human, near as I could tell,” said Sweet Cider, “An’ that sword o’ hers she wielded, that thing was a Fullbring. Don’t got no explanation fer where she got that power or where she came from, sorry ta say.”
“Alright, so does anybody have any answers here?” Sunset asked, first looking at Discord, then at Celestia, her eyes searching. “Celestia, do you know who this girl is?”
“I may, but please understand I can’t provide much in the way of answers myself,” Celestia replied with an uncertain frown, “In fact, the thing that baffles me is likely the same information you yourself already know; that being that the human girl named Sunset Shimmer supposedly died some years before you arrived from Equestria.”
“Oh my, now that I think about it, I don’t believe any of us ever actually asked where Sunset’s human counterpart might be,” Fluttershy said in clear surprise, “It never even occurred to me.”
“I kind of thought to ask every now and again,” admitted Rarity, “But it never did seem all that important. Wherever she was, it wasn’t in Canterlot City, or at least not at Canterlot High School.”
“But you do know something, don’t you?” pressed Sunset to Celestia, “I can tell.”
“I do,” Celestia said, “Although I don’t know if it will provide any answers. You see, Sunset Shimmer did live in this city, with her mother at a bookstore many years ago. The bookstore burned down in a rather terrible fire, and as far as anyone knew both mother and daughter were killed in the blaze. That said, the reason I know about the fire is because at the same time there was a Hollow incursion in the city that my Lieutenant and my sister’s Lieutenant put down, and it was suspected Hollow activity might have caused the fire.”
“So... what, a body was never found?” Sunset asked, “I mean, if both the human me and her mom died, wouldn’t you Soul Reapers have found their souls or something? Wouldn’t the police have found bodies?”
“No souls were found,” Celestia said, “The assumption of Flash Sentry and Cheerilee was that the Hollows devoured the victim’s souls before they arrived in time to purify them. I believe in the police report the fire was said to have burned hot enough to render any remains to ash, which was why no bodies were found in the store’s remains.”
Sunset thought about that for a second, then asked, “Out of curiosity, what was the mother’s name? And was there ever any record of the other Sunset’s father?”
“No record of the father, but the mother’s name was Stellar Flare.”
“Does that ring any bells, Sunset?” asked Rainbow Dash, and Sunset tried not to look too bothered, despite feeling an old familiar itch in her chest, an certain loneliness that she’d long put behind her but had never fully gone away.
“Um, well, not really,” she said, “I never felt the need to tell you guys, but I kind of never knew my parents. I was put up for adoption when I was barely a year old, and came up through Equestria’s orphanage system. I never got adopted, but by the time I was old enough to be on my own I got into Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, and I never looked back. Never really wanted to go looking for my parents. I mean, if they didn’t want me, they didn’t want me. Didn’t figure it was worth the effort to find them...”
It was a very old, bitter anger, stemming from a wound a young filly had from years of wondering why a mother and father might give up their foal. Chances were some of that bitterness had played a role in how she’d started to see Princess Celestia as a mother figure, but also had gotten angry and rebellious when she’d felt that Celestia was holding her back, or worse, didn’t want her. Running off through a magical mirror had probably been partially fueled by the pain of feeling rejected again. Sunset Shimmer hadn’t thought about these feelings in a long time. She was in a much better place now, mentally and emotionally, with her friends and a new purpose in life.
Now she had to wonder what her human counterpart’s life had been like. No father, apparently, but a mother; Stellar Flare. Had she been happy, growing up with a mother? And what had happened at that bookstore? Had Hollows attacked, perhaps sensing some latent Fullbringer power in the human Sunset Shimmer, and that led to a fire breaking out in the store? And how had the human Sunset ended up in Hueco Mundo to be adopted by Applejack’s Hollowfied father?
Then Discord broke in, speaking in a sudden, intense voice, “Stellar Flare, you said? Interesting. This incident must have flown under my radar.”
“What are you talking about?” Celestia asked, and Discord stroked his beard.
“Just that the name Stellar Flare isn’t unknown to me. You recall Starlight Glimmer’s issues with Soul Society began with her best friend, Sunburst, was killed in a Hollow attack and subsequently was consigned to Jigoku?”
“I do,” Celestia said, “But I don’t see how that connects?”
“Stellar Flare was the name of Sunburst’s mother.”
“Wait... wait wait wait, hold up,” Sunset said, shaking her hands in front of her, “That doesn’t make sense! Stellar Flare can’t be my, I mean human me’s mother and Sunburst’s! Didn’t he die way before that fire at the bookstore?”
“Indeed he did,” Discord said, “But that hardly means anything. You see, at the time I didn’t particularly pay attention to Sunburst’s family. He was just a friend to Starlight Glimmer, not a person of particular interest. He had no powers, no latent abilities, and my focus was on Hitsuyo-Aku and Xcution. So my information on his family was minimal. I knew his mother’s name only as a passing tidbit. I never even looked up why there was no father. I assumed she was a divorcee. I also never looked into his three year old sister.”
“Sister... hell,” Sunset ran a hand across her face, taking a deep breath, “A three year old sister. She probably barely even remembers she had a brother who died.”
“And after losing a son I imagine Stellar Flare wasn’t eager to tell her very young daughter about what happened to him while dealing with her own grief,” Discord added, “Probably simply focused all her attention on running the bookstore she owned, and the human Sunset Shimmer would have grown up not truly knowing anything about what happened to the brother she barely remembered having.”
“Oh my God!” Pinkie Pie shouted, “Doesn’t this mean that Sunset is Starlight Glimmer’s... uhhhhh... wait, what does this make them?”
“Nothing, Pinkie,” Rainbow Dash said, “It’s just a weirdo coincidence that human Sunset is the sibling of the dude who’s death freaked out Starlight and sent her on a ‘F the Soul Society’ rampage. Doubt the two would even recognize each other if they saw each other now.”
Sunset was in agreement with Rainbow Dash, although her own feelings on the matter were a bit more complicated by the nagging wonder of whether or not she and her human counterpart shared the same parental history. Was there a Stellar Flare back in Equestria who had given her up for adoption all those years ago? She knew the Equestrian Starlight Glimmer was friends with Princess Twilight, at least. She’d never thought to ask about that Starlight’s background beyond the tidbits Twilight had told her concerning the cutie mark stealing and time travel incidents. Wait, hadn’t there also been a Sunburst who’d been tied to all that?
Did she have a brother back in Equestria she’d never met?
No, that couldn’t be the case. Here in the human world Sunburst was the older one instead of Sunset, but... what if the reverse was true in Equestria? Could Stellar Flare have had Sunset at an early age, put Sunset in that orphanage, then later on had another foal?
“Ya alright there, sugarcube?” asked Applejack, “We didn’t mean ta toss nothin’ heavy on yer shoulders there, hun, but figured ya might’ve wanted ta know ‘bout Fenice at least.”
“Y-yeah,” Sunset said, clearing her head with a quick shake, “Looks like everyone’s got a complicated family situation, doesn’t it? I’m kind of glad just to know the human me is still alive, and hey, sounds like your dad is doing alright by her. Kind of makes you two like sisters, doesn’t it?”
Applejack quirked a small smile, “Here’s hopin’. She was a’ bit standoffish, but didn’t seem like a bad gal ta me, an’ she clearly cares ‘bout pa, so that counts fer a lot. ‘Course got myself plenty o’ sisterly pals right here, too.”
“Awww, you’re going to make us drown in sap if you keep talking like that,” Rainbow Dash said, elbowing Applejack, “And hey, now you and me can swap stories about kicking our parent’s butts in a fight. I want to hear all about how your old man fights. Did he have any cool special moves?”
“Dang it Dash, it ain’t like I was takin’ notes while tryin’ not ta get stabbed by my own pa,” groused Applejack.
Discord cleared his throat loudly to get everyone’s attention, “Perhaps we should move on down to the training area, unless anyone else has any sudden revelations or deep personal secrets to reveal and discuss?”
“I... think we’re good on that for now,” said Sunset, followed by murmured agreements from the rest gathered. Celestia excused herself, claiming the need for some fresh air, which Sunset didn’t doubt. Celestia’s face wore the heavy lines of someone who now had a lot on their mind, and Sunset could well imagine the elder Soul Reaper wanted some time and clear air to start sorting things out. Sunset felt similar. A part of her considered skipping out on the family reunion down below to just go find a soft bed to pass out in. But she wanted to be there for her friends, especially Rarity, who still had the daunting task ahead of explaining her death to her own family.
Sunset couldn’t afford to check out now when her friends would need all the emotional support she could muster for them.
They filed down the stairs into the expansive training area. Sunset took in the sight of the wide open field of rocky terrain and quickly took note of the huge oriental styled pavilion that had been added to the area. Reminiscent of a large, outdoor Shinto shrine, the pavilion was surrounded by low shingled walls with a line of bright red torii gates leading into a smoothly paved central area, half the size of a football field. A few cherry blossom trees lined the sides, with an elegantly carved pond situated on the left side of the pavilion, while towards the back a few steps led up to a surrounding wooden walkway and a small, two-story pagoda roofed building.
“Charming,” said Rarity, “I could imagine a little tea shop fitting in quite nicely.”
“No tea shop, but there is a small kitchen in back of the building where I can brew up a pot,” mentioned Discord, “I mostly set this up just so everyone had a place to gather that doesn’t crowd the shop upstairs. This will also suit my needs for the peace talks, assuming Scorpan and Sombra are forward thinking enough to accept the offer.”
“Guess we’ll find out,” said Sunset as they approached the pavilion, passing through the torii gates. Upon getting closer she could see that a number of long, finally varnished tables covered in white clothes had been set up in the center area, three in total, with softly cushioned wood chairs. Some food and drink had already been laid out on the tables, and given the size of the crowd there, Sunset could see why.
Sunset was familiar with most of her friend’s family members, but even so it took her a few seconds to account for all of them. With everyone together it was over twenty people occupying the pavilion, and with Sunset and her friend’s arrival it shot up closer to thirty. Somehow she had never fully grasped just how many people had now become involved in all this, and it struck her now that Discord may well have had reasons for inviting all of them here besides just letting her friends catch up with their families.
Indeed, when she cast a sidelong glance at him, Discord had a patient, calculating look on his face. Not scheming, per se, but it was as if, with their arrival, he was pleased at seeing the pieces of a puzzle come together.
Their arrival was immediately noticed by those gathered. There was a hushed moment of mutual awkward silence as the girls who had gone through so much in such a short span of time now looked upon family members who in some cases had only just learned the truth of what the young ladies had endured.
It was Rainbow Dash’s father who shattered the silence with a whooping, baritone, “Dashie!” as he barreled forward.
Bow Hothoof was not a small man, but a broad chested teddy bear of a fellow, a little extra emphasis on the “bear” portion. He shared his daughter’s light blue skin, although his had a slight duskier shade, and one glance was enough to see where Rainbow had gotten her namesake hair color from, for he sported the same rainbow locks in a competently trimmed short cut. He wore simple workman’s clothes, with long khaki pants and a beige flannel shirt and vest combo that seemed to scream “hardware shop employee”. Dash had enough time to blink in surprise, throw her hands up in mild defense, before being crushed in a hug that left her eyes bulging and her breath gasping.
“D-dad, c’mon man, not in front of my friends!”
He was literally cheek nuzzling her as she scrambled to free herself, “What do you expect, kiddo!? After hearing everything I’ve heard I’m so glad to see you alive that I’m stuck between grounding you for life and wanting to make your favorite peanut butter and banana sandwiches for you for a week straight! Why didn’t you tell me you were a bonafide super hero!? Do you have any idea how many pictures I could’ve taken to pin up on the Dashie Wall of Fame?”
“No! D-don’t even bring that up! Arrgh, daaaaad, let me goooooo!”
“Just one more squeeze,” Bow said, hugging his daughter so tight it might have either readjusted her spine, or broken ribs, it was hard to tell what that cracking sound was. But he did put her down and had the presence of mind to take a step back and blush slightly as his own parental enthusiasm, “Anyway, sorry about that, Dashie. Just had to get that out of my system, first things first.”
“Appreciate the positive reinforcement, dad, but next time can we not do that in front of... you know, everyone?” Rainbow asked, looking askance at both her friends and the rest of the families that were walking up as well.
“Best you learn ta appreciate yer pa’s love, kid,” said Granny Smith with a weight in both her voice in eyes that could only come from aged experience as she gazed upon Sweet Cider, “ ‘Cause ya never know when yer loved ones won’t be ‘round no more fer ya ta appreciate.”
Sweet Cider visibly swallowed, suddenly looking shaky as the massive woman approached her mother. The Apple Family matron barely came up to Sweet Cider’s chest, once the two women were standing face to face. Sweet Cider’s lips trembled a bit as she looked between Granny Smith, then at Applebloom and Big Mac as they came up behind Granny.
“Ma...” Sweet Cider said, clearly having trouble saying anything else.
Granny Smith closed her eyes with a nod of simple understanding and said, “It’s alright, hayseed. Ya don’t gotta hold back on my account. Ain’t like I’m gonna...”
The last was said with a hitch in her voice, tears already spilling forth as Granny Smith wrapped her arms around her daughter for the first time since losing her eight years ago. Despite her mother’s words, it was clear Sweet Cider was trying to hold herself together in that moment, possibly having replayed this occasion a thousand times in her mind since regaining her memories. While she didn’t fully let her tears flow, she did have a distinct wetness in her eyes as she held Granny Smith tight, then looked at Applebloom and Big Mac.
Applebloom had already had some time to acclimate to seeing her mother in the flesh, or at least the spiritual equivalent thereof, but she was still a young girl who’d spent many years dreaming of parents she couldn’t properly remember. But if Applebloom was tearing up, Big Mac looked ready to have a full breakdown. Sure, he’d been told about his mother by this point, but that was a completely different thing than seeing her standing right in front of him. As the oldest of the Apple siblings, his memories of Sweet Cider were also the clearest. Also, in some ways, his wounds upon losing his parents cut deepest, because not only did he partially blame himself for not being able to do more to save his parents, he never felt like he’d lived up to their ideals after they were gone. It had been Applejack who’d really taken over as the heart of the family. All he’d done was handle the physical end of things, retreating into his own silence for the most part.
Now he was looking at his mother again, and only saw depthless love in her eyes for him and the family. It was enough to make the burly farm boy lose his composure and before he knew it he was bawling and hugging both her and Granny Smith. He felt Sweet Cider’s hand tousled his hair as she smiled at him.
“Now now, Big Mac, no need ta be hollerin’ like that. I’m here. And dang, Granny, what’ve ya been feedin’ my boy? He’s near tall as me!”
“Don’t go lookin’ at me, girl, I've been feedin’ ‘em all the same. He’s just got yer bean sprout genes in ‘im. Won’t surprise me if Applebloom shoots up there, too.”
Applejack had swung around to stand next to Applebloom, kneeling down to put a hand around her sister’s shoulders, “Ya wanna go join in the family hug?”
Applebloom wiped a tear from her face and shook her head, “Naw, I like my breathin’ room, an’ Big Mac looks like he’s needing the hugs more n’ me. But... maybe later?”
As the Apples were hugging it out, Pinkie Pie bounced over to her family with an enthusiastic wave, “Heya fam! What’s cooking?”
“What’s cooking, she asks?” Limestone said, shaking her head and putting on a rueful smile as she started counting things off on her fingers, “City on fire, us attacked by Hollows, you and your friends in crazy levels of danger, Maud turns her rock into boxing gloves, and the house gets smashed up again. So overall, kind of an average day.”
“Oh my gosh, Maud’s got Fullbring too!? Show me!” Pinkie cried, grinning from ear to ear. Maud slowly tilted her head at Pinkie, blinking once with slow deliberation.
“Boulder’s tired,” Maud said, “So he’s taking a nap. Where’s Pinkamena?”
“Right here,” Pinkie said, tapping her head and rattling it like a game of Boggle, upon which her expression shifted to a shark-like smile, but one tempered by less crazy in her eyes and more a comforting fondness, “Me and Pinks are room sharing again. Before you all ask, trust us, it’s for the better. I can still hop out to hang, but we’re going to be spending more head-time together from now on.”
Marble and Limestone shared concerned looks at one another, but Maud simply said, “Okay. That’s good, if you’re both happy with it.”
“Are you sure you’re both alright, dears?” asked Cloudy Quartz, who stepped forward alongside her husband, “We heard from Mister Discord that you and your friends faced some significant dangers today.”
“No worries, me and Mena are just fine! Better than ever, even!” said Pinkie as she resumed control, “We got to prank the same super-grumpy guts who was ordering around that big ol’ jerk Grand Fisher, and we definitely messed up some of his plans. Oh, then we fought a really angry plant lady! Hey, there she is over there! Hi angry plant lady! Remember me!?”
Seated at one of the tables was Gaia Everfree, sitting next to a very uneasy and awkward looking Timber. Gaia, upon hearing Pinkie, slowly looked over with a deadpan expression. While Pinkie kept waving at her Gaia slowly looked away and whispered something to Timber which made him give a nervous laugh and wave back to Pinkie Pie.
“She’s kind of weird,” Pinkie said, “But I think she likes us.”
“She hasn’t spoken much since she and that poor confused looking boy arrived,” Igneous said, “Although I did try to converse with them a bit.”
“I say leave them be,” Limestone said, “We’ve got enough weirdness going on already. Mom, you going to tell Pinkie about Discord’s offer.”
“Let’s leave that for later, daughter,” said Cloudy, “I truly just want us all to sit down together for a bit and enjoy being together. The future can be discussed in due time.”
A similar conversation was taking place between Fluttershy and her family not far away as all of them sat down around a different table. Both of her parents had taken one of Fluttershy’s hands, as if just confirming to themselves that their daughter really was there and alright.
“Everything’s been so scary,” Soft Spoken admitted, “Just sitting here, wondering if you were going to be okay, sweetie. I still can’t believe you didn’t tell us anything.”
“I know, right!?” shouted Zephyr Breeze, “Sis, how the heck did you keep something like this on the down low!? I mean, I could’ve made so many vlogs about this by now! I’d be taking pictures of this place but that crazy lady, Screwsomething, took my freakin’ phone! Can you believe that!?”
“Now Zephyr, it’s not polite to shout,” said Fluttershy’s father, “Let’s remember to use our indoor voices.”
“Dad, did you forget the part where the city got attacked by freaky ghost monsters today!? And the part where Flutters is some kind of ghost hunting mutant!? And so was mom!?”
“Zephyr Breeze, calm down,” Fluttershy said, not raising her voice a single octave, but immediately arresting her little brother’s attention, whereupon she cleared her throat politely and continued, “I understand it’s been a stressful situation for you, mom, and dad. I apologize for not telling you all the truth sooner, but I hope you understand I had good reason not to. My friends and I became involved in dangerous circumstances, much of which was beyond our control. We kept that from you in order to protect you.”
“Yeah... well... it’s still pretty messed up, sis,” Zephyr groused under his breath, but quieted down and sulked in his chair.
“It has been a lot to process,” Soft Spoken admitted, her eyes still filled with loving care for her children, but barely hiding her anxiety and fear, “I still don’t fully understand it, especially my own involvement. This whole ‘Xcution’ business sounds so strange to me. I mean, it does explain a few odd gaps in my memory, but to think I forgot a whole part of my life where I... well, it’s all so hard to believe.”
“It’ll be okay, mom,” Fluttershy said, squeezing her mother’s hand and patting the top of it, “Scary as it all seems now, I’ll make sure nothing bad happens to any of you.”
By now Bow Hothoof and Rainbow Dash had moved to their own corner of the pavilion, where they could talk a bit more privately under one of the cherry blossom trees. Bow wore his nerves clearly on his sleeve as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head and asked, “So, uh... I hear you met your mom.”
“Yeah... yeah I did,” Rainbow Dash said, “Wasn’t much of a conversation between all the lightning and explosions, but I got the jist of why she left us. You seriously didn’t know any of this, did you?”
“Honey, your mom up and left one day without any word to me outside of a very sloppily written letter that boiled down to ‘I got to take care of some things, look after Dashie for me, oh and I love you’.” Bow said, sighing heavily, “I’ve spent years wondering what ‘some things’ were, doing my best to take care of you, and convincing myself Firefly meant the last part of the letter.”
There was the fresh pain of an old wound reopened in his voice, and Rainbow Dash had the presence of mind to lean against her father a bit and put an arm around his shoulders in a half-hug, “Hey, I can at least attest to the fact that you did awesome on the looking after me. You’re smothering sometimes, but still straight up best dad in my book. As for mom, well, she did have her reasons. Still trying to suss out in my own head whether or not they were good ones or not. Discord tell you anything about that?”
“Not much,” Bow replied with a troubled look, “And what little he did tell me only made me more confused. So Firefly’s hooked up with some lady named Starlight, and they’re causing problems? That’s about all I’ve heard so far.”
“Yeeeeah, this might take awhile to explain,” Rainbow Dash said, “And I’m not better at explaining it than mom was, so cut me some slack if this doesn’t totally make sense the first time around.”
“Hey, I got time, kiddo, so lay it on me,” Bow said, taking a seat on the ground at the base of the tree, with Rainbow Dash doing the same. As if as an afterthought, Bow snapped his fingers and added, “Oh, before I forget, your aunt Windy says ‘hi’.”
“Holy cow, is aunt Windy back in town?” Rainbow Dash perked up, but her father shook his head.
“Nope, she just rang me up from the east coast to do some catch up. Happened just before the city went bonkers with all those Hollow things attacking. She was just reminiscing with me about old times with Firefly when we were younger, and then got to asking how you were doing,” Bow said, with a rather deeper and fonder smile on his face than Dash was used to seeing on her father. He even looked a tad heated around the cheeks, which raised some flags in Rainbow’s mind.
Her dad and her mom’s sister? Well, after being gone so many years, she guessed her mom didn’t really have a claim anymore, and if it made her dad happy, well... aunt Windy Whistles was a pretty cool lady, even if Rainbow Dash hadn’t seen her in a good long while.
“Well, that’s awesome, dad. Let aunt Windy know I’m doing great. Just maaaaybe hold off on telling her about the part where me and my pals are cool monster-busting heroes for now.”
He let off a dry chuckle, “Going to be hard not to brag about how amazing my daughter is, but I’ll try to restrain myself, for your sake.”
Sunset had localized herself at the table in the center area of the pavilion, joined by Clover and Discord. Clover appeared to be content pouring herself a drink from a pitcher of what Sunset assumed was lemonade, although with Discord she wondered if it wasn’t some kind of specially concocted spirit-based drink. All this time and she still hadn’t worked up the courage to try and the ‘candies’ he supposedly sold from his shop upstairs. Come to think of it, she couldn’t recall any instance in which the man had a legitimate customer. Even knowing the shop was mostly just a front, she still assumed he kept his weird products around to sell to someone.
Discord, as if reading her mind, smiled sidelong at her and said, “Most of my clientele don’t come to the shop directly. I run more of a delivery service than anything else.”
“Can’t be that big of a clientele if I’ve never seen any of them,” Sunset noted.
“You’d be surprised,” Discord responded, “The world is a big place, Sunset Shimmer, and even with all you have experienced and seen, you still haven’t seen all there truly is out there. The war may involve the largest and most active factions, but there are dozens if not hundreds of people hidden between the cracks who just keep their heads down during all this, or are just dealing with local issues of their own. Try going to London sometime.”
She gave him an odd look but didn’t comment further. Although something about mentioning London sparked in her brain. Wasn’t one of the students at Canterlot High an overseas transfer student from London? Octavia? Sunset shook her head, distracted from her thoughts by the sight of Scootaloo excitedly chatting it up down at the other end of the table with two women Sunset didn’t recognize, both of whom looked to be in their middle years. Sunset restrained herself from actively probing out with her spirit senses, out of politeness, but even so she could sense something off about their spiritual pressure. Whoever they were, they, along with Scootaloo, weren’t quite what they appeared to be.
“They some of your customers, too?” she asked Discord quietly, and he slightly dipped his head so his eyes were shaded by his hat.
“Lofty and Holiday do sometimes seek an item or two from the shop, although it's Holiday’s younger brother and his wife who are my more regular customers. They travel a lot, and are always in need of a few handy tools for their jobs.”
Sunset hesitated to ask just what those ‘jobs’ might be that required regular shopping at Discord’s place combined with constant travel. He gave her a mysterious smile at her look and added, “Don’t fret, you’ll learn more about them soon enough, but let’s just wait and see how the next few days pan out first.”
Sunset couldn’t argue with that logic, and was distracted from further questions as her eye caught sight of Rarity and her family.
`They had gathered away from the rest of the group, Rarity leading them towards the steps leading to the pavilions one interior section. There she stood rigid backed and slightly wide eyed as her parents hugged her and her sister happily grinned at her.
“Rarity! I saw what you did during that fight with the big tree monster. That huge, amazing looking knight suit was yours, wasn’t it?” Sweetie Belle said, beaming.
“Oh my, you saw that? I confess it was something of a rush job,” Rarity said, but her conversational tone was halting and strung with tension, “I wasn’t sure how well it would work when I did it, and didn’t have time to really refine the process or add any real flair to the design. But, be that as it may, we did manage to... prevail.”
“I’ve been worried past sick about you, dear,” said Cookie Crumbles, examining Rarity up and down as if she was looking for so much as a scratch on her daughter’s body, “You better believe I gave that Discord fellow a piece of my mind about keeping all of this secret from us! There’s certainly going to be no more of that, you can bet your patootie on that.”
“Mother, please, Mister Discord had sound reasons for that and honestly even if he hadn’t I still wouldn’t have wanted any of you to know,” Rarity defended brusquely, but couldn't quite meet her parent’s eyes, “After all, it was just too dangerous. Even early on, the Hollows targeted all of you.”
Magnum patted his daughter with a hefty hand on her shoulder, “Yup he told us all about that. Crazy stuff, kid. And here I thought we lived in such a nice neighborhood, and now it’s got ghost problems. Still sounds like you know how to handle yourself, if Sweetie Belle’s raving is anything to go by.”
“And now that I’ve got powers too, I’ll be able to help out,” said Sweetie Belle, “I mean, as long as you help train me, Rarity. You will, right?”
Cookie Crumbles eyed her youngest child with a slight bite to her inner lip, “Now I want both of you girls to hold your horses a little. I understand there’s no sticking the cat back into the bag, but you all need to take this slow. This isn’t a game. Powers or not, you’re still my precious little girls and I don’t want either of you throwing yourselves into dangerous situations all willy nilly.”
“But mom, it’s not like we’ve got a choice,” said Sweetie Belle, “Stuff like this is going to keep happening whether we like it or not.”
“That may be so, but that’s no excuse for tossing caution to the wind. Now, Rarity may be old enough and experienced enough with this nasty business to handle herself, but you, young lady, are not getting into any more shenanigans with your friends!” Cookie Crumbles said firmly, “I’ll be taking Discord up on his offer to restore my memories, and if there’s any danger to be dealt with, I’ll look into it myself.”
Rarity gave her mother a surprised look, “You’ll be getting your memories back? And that means your Fullbring as well...”
“Of course,” Cookie Crumbles said, “I’m not going to sit around like a lump while my family is in the middle of what is effectively a war zone. No way, no how. Honey, I’m terrified of you being caught up in all this, but you’ve done your own thing since you were old enough to get into my makeup kit, and neither I or your father have ever had any luck stopping you once you’ve got a mind to do something. So I won’t tell you not to keep doing what you’ve been doing, because you’ll do it anyway. But I sure as butter on toast won’t just watch if there’s anything I can do to keep you safe.”
A painful wince crossed Rarity’s face with almost each of her mother’s sentences, as if they were lances right to the heart of her. The pure motherly concern in Cookie Crumble’s voice was an unrelenting tidal wave, breaking up the rocky shore of Rarity’s defenses. She knew she had to say something, but damned if the words weren’t coming easily. But she tried to drag them out, regardless, because her family deserved to know, and this wasn’t about to get less painful the longer she waited.
“Mother, I... I truly am thankful for you, you know? You and father, and Sweetie Belle. I couldn’t imagine being blessed with a better family. I know that you’d do anything you could to protect me, even unlock old memories and abilities you’d hardly understand to dive headfirst into the dangers my friends and I have been facing. That’s why it’s so, so hard to tell all of you what I have to.”
Something in her tone must have gotten across more than her words, because her mother gave her a very strange look, the kind that matched the quirky twitch she’d gotten any time she’d sensed something wrong. Her father may have been a bit slower on the uptake, but even he gained a stiffness to his features as his daughter’s tone sank in. Only Sweetie Belle remained unaware, not catching onto the shift in the conversation’s tone as she waved a hand at Rarity.
“Jeez Rarity, don’t get all mushy on us. I think it’ll be cool to see mom get her powers back! We can be like a whole family team of heroes. Oh, you could make matching costumes for us-”
“Sweetie Belle,” Rarity knelt down in front of her sister, resting a hand on her sister’s shoulder, “Nothing would make me happier being able to do something simple like that, but it might not be possible, depending on how things go with me.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Rarity,” Cookie Crumbles whispered, “What’s wrong? What haven’t you told us yet?”
Rarity stood back up, and lacking precise words to fit past the constricting tightness in her throat, she opted to simply show them. She’d still been using her Fullbring to wear a lighter form of her usual crimson battle dress, keeping the soul chain in her chest covered by a thin crystal breastplate. She removed a portion of that plating, the crystal reshaping so a hole opened wide enough to expose the broken chain of metal that was attached to her chest.
Confusion was plain on all her family member’s faces, Sweetie Belle scratching her head, “What the heck is that?”
“A spirit chain,” Rarity said, suddenly feeling numbly removed from herself. “It’s what keeps a person’s soul attached to their body.”
“That’s weird,” her sister said, “Why’s yours broken then?”
“Why can we see it?” her father asked, more pointedly, while her mother had gone deathly silent, staring at the chain.
“Well you see that’s... that’s because I don’t really have a body at the moment,” Rarity managed to say, a sort of hollow roaring in her ears as her blood pressure skyrocketed. Which was stupid, she thought, because if she was dead she really shouldn’t have to deal with having blood pressure, but she wasn’t the one who decided how spirit bodies worked. “And I, um, imagine the reason you can see me has to do with Mister Discord, although don’t ask me how. Sweetie Belle is spiritually sensitive, and I assume mother is too, but as for you father I can’t say for-”
Her mother abruptly moved, grabbing Rarity by the shoulders with both hands, halting Rarity’s words as effectively as if she’d simply clicked a mute button. Her mother was shaking, and there was a frightful intensity glowing in her eyes as she looked straight at Rarity.
“Tell me that this is some kind of mistake,” her mother said, “Or that it’s part of some strange power that only temporarily separated you from your body, honey.”
“I’m sorry,” Rarity said, “I’m sorry, mother. I can’t. There’s no trick or mistake. I just... don’t have a body anymore. Believe me, my friends and I checked before we left Everfree. It’s gone.”
“Then what am I looking at!? What am I touching!?” her mother demanded.
“My soul, mother. Just my soul. Which as it turns out can be pretty physical when it comes right down to it,” Rarity managed to say, but words were getting harder by the second, “It’s not as bad as it seems. Mister Discord says he can possibly arrange a replacement-”
“Replacement!? This isn't a damned pair of clothes we’re talking about here! What happened!?”
As her mother began to reach shrieking levels of volume Magnum stepped in to put his surprisingly strong arms around her and pull Cookie Crumbles away from Rarity, “H-honeybunch, let’s just simmer down here.”
“Simmer down!? Are you listening to what she’s saying, Magnum!? She’s trying to tell us that she’s... that our baby girl is...”
Cookie Crumbles wasn’t able to get the last word out and ended up stuck between either wanting to break free of her husband's grip, or just clutch onto him like a life preserver in the midst of the ocean. Sweetie Belle was finally starting to grasp what was happening and her own youthful eyes turned into wide pools of wavering denial.
“H-hold on. You don’t actually mean that you’re...?” Sweetie Belle wasn’t able to get the last word out any easier than Cookie Crumbles could. Rarity looked into her younger sister’s depthless eyes and couldn’t just leave her or the rest of her family trembling in confusion or denial any longer. It was time to just bite the bullet and say it.
“Dead,” she said, letting the word leave her like her last breath, “I’m sorry. I am, by all technical definitions of the term, dead.”
Cookie Crumbles shook as if struck by a blow, while Sweetie Belle’s eyes simply started to gloss over with tears as her mouth trembled soundlessly. Her father’s face was a grim mask as he slowly croaked out, “How?”
“I... would prefer to spare you the details,” Rarity said, “The short version is that I made a mistake. I was trying to protect my friend, Twilight Sparkle. You remember her, yes? Intelligent girl, purple skin, wears glasses? A-at any rate, some individuals were trying to kill her, and I went off by myself to try to stop them. That was the mistake, going by myself, not the part where I wanted to protect Twilight. It left my back exposed. The wound would’ve probably been fatal, even if I hadn’t completed my Fullbring right then and there, but that certainly didn’t help, what with the exploding. Sweetie Belle, do remember that, when training your own Fullbring. Don’t complete it without someone around to contain the release of power. I didn’t have much choice at the time, but... well that explosion is probably why we couldn't find my body when my friends and I looked for it.”
Her family was silent for a time, and indeed quite a bit of conversation around the pavilion had ceased. One by one Rarity’s friends had come up to stand nearby, starting with Sunset Shimmer, with the others filing in behind her. Discord had walked up as well, maintaining a solemn look as he watched the proceedings.
Cookie Crumbles closed her eyes tightly for a second, raw pain churning about her face, before she patted her husband’s chest and stepped away from him, now looking with a blazing glint in her eyes as she said, “Who did it?”
“That’s not important, mother,” Rarity said, but Cookie Crumbles bristled at that.
“How is it not important!? I want to know what slimy bastard hurt my little girl! If you don’t tell me, I’ll... I’ll...” Cookie Crumbles stumbled at that part, since grounding Rarity kind of didn’t have the same impact it might have previously had as threat, so she finally settled on, “I’ll find out myself.”
Rarity sighed, shaking her head, “Mother, I’m only saying it’s not important because the person responsible has already been... dealt with. Both of them. I killed one myself, and the other I have on good authority from Twilight won’t be a threat to anyone, likely ever again.”
Cookie Crumbles blinked at that, murmuring, “You... got one of them?”
“Yes, mother,” there was no pride or satisfaction in Rarity’s voice, simply stating the facts of the matter. She hadn’t killed Hoity Toity because of what he’d done, but because it had been the only path he’d left her to stop him from doing it again to someone else. As for Sapphire Shores, Rarity had gotten enough of a look at that woman’s mental state after fighting Twilight to understand that Sapphire may have gotten off worse than Hoity Toity did, despite still being ‘alive’. As far as Rarity was concerned, there was no vengeance left to take, nor any point in considering the matter further. She certainly didn’t want any of her family getting such notions in their head. “The people who did this to me are not a factor any more, so please put them from your mind.”
“But, but... but wait, what’s supposed to happen now?” Sweetie Belle asked in a voice hitched with a squeaking hiccup of choked sorrow, “What happens to you?”
Rarity glanced past her family to Discord, “That’s still something I’m working out.”
“A ‘replacement’, you said?” Magnum asked, also glancing back at Discord, “Just how would that work?”
“Perhaps that would be best to discuss in a more private setting,” Discord said, keeping his voice soothingly neutral, “Believe me, I understand that you want a solution, and I am willing to try to deliver one, but there will be complications and considerations aplenty for that. For now it’s best that you all take some time to let your thoughts settle. Especially considering we have another set of hefty matters to discuss that involve everyone present.”
Cookie Crumbles turned towards him, looking close to snapping, but her eyes took in the sight of everyone else in the pavilion, and even past her grief she seemed to realize this wasn’t the best time or place for hysterics. She visibly took a hold of herself and said, “You’d better believe we’re going to be talking about this, Discord. You have a lot of responsibility for what our children have been put through, and if anyone owes my daughter right now, it’s you. So don’t think for a second I won’t be collecting on that debt. But fine, you want to talk about other things, then do it. Just remember, whatever your big plans are, they have risks and prices, and my family's already paid for some of it.”
With that she stalked over to one of the tables and sat down, head in her hands, clearly emotionally tapped out. Her husband soon joined her, sitting next to her and wrapping arms around her shoulders as she cried into her hands silently. Sweetie Belle still looked shell shocked as she looked between Rarity and her parents, with Rarity just nodding and whispering, “Go on, Sweetie, have a seat. We’ll talk more soon, just the two of us.”
As Sweetie Belle went to sit down she found that Applebloom and Scootaloo were there waiting for her, offering their own quiet words of comfort.
Rarity took a deep breath and went to go sit down as well, and passed by her friends, who all gathered close to give her supporting nods and somber smiles.
“Well... that was painfully difficult,” Rarity said in a quiet voice.
“You did what you had to, and did it well, Rarity,” said Sunset, “The hardest part is over now.”
“Perhaps,” Rarity said, managing a rough smile that didn’t really touch her eyes as she watched Discord take up a spot at the head of the three sets of tables, and the families of all her friends began to take up seats. In Rarity’s mind she suddenly started to see the gathering as less an informal grouping of their families, and more of a gathering of... forces.
Her friends saw it too, each of them in turn looking about as they sat down, most of them near their families. It was a collection numbering several dozen, over half of whom had developed potent spirit powers, or were in the process of starting to. One of them was a Soul Reaper Captain, and the other a reborn Arrancar fused with a Fullbringer human soul. If one counted Discord and Ditzy Doo among the gathered company, then the gathering in that pavilion represented a combined force that would potentially be a match for any faction of the spirit war, be it the Gotei 13, the ten Espada, or the mighty Quincy Vandenreich.
“Or perhaps,” Rarity finished, looking with concern at her friends, “The hard part is only just getting started."
Much talk, much feels. There's quite a bit of importance covered here, especially set up for the future. Admittedly a part of me wanted to do something a bit more weighty for Discord giving Sunset the Hogyoku, but somehow it just fits his style to not make that big a deal of it, as if he knew there was no point putting on a show in front of these girls anymore. Then there's the bit concerning Sunset's parentage, both pony and human. That goes back to the early part of the story, and only now had the opening to bring it up. Then there's just the handling of all the families conversing with the girls, doing some much needed catch up. And of final note, there's a very tiny reference to Kubo' Bleach spin-off, Burn the Witch. While it's something I'm still working on, I've been toying with an idea of how to incorporate it, at least in a peripheral sense, to Friendship Souls, with a certain musical duo taking on the equivalent roles of Noel and Ninny... but that's for another time and place.
On a totally unrelated note, I came across this video not so long ago, and wanted to share it, as it's one of the better bits of Bleach content I've seen in awhile:
And with that out of the way, thank you all once again for reading, and hope you all had a good time with this chapter. As always I appreciate any and all questions, comments, or critiques you have. 'Till next time!
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Spin-off?
Also is Starlight’s philosophy “I Just need enough power to win!”?
Smart to sprinkle in some comedy to cut through the tension. I was not expecting Sunset's family to be relevant to the story either. Anyhow, if there's no mother-daughter training montage later I'll be very disappointed. Whether or not Maud and the CMC will join in is less certain.
I never really thought about Sunset's family, though I suppose it was a loose end that needed answering. I have a feeling human Stellar may have become a Hollow herself, perhaps eventually being overwhelmed by grief at the fate of her son, but saving her daughter and taking her to Hueco Mundo, leaving her in a manner which mirrors the way Pony Sunset was left in Canterlot?
On the Equestrian end, I can only imagine it was an unplanned pregnancy, she was on her own (possibly poor) and simply had no faith in her ability to raise a child. It's the only explanation I can think of for why an Equestrian mother would ever abandon her child. Perhaps her circumstances were simply better when she had Sunburst, or she couldn't stomach the idea of abandoning another child. I don't know but I'd very much like to hear her side of the story on both ends of the mirror.
And I come back to a thought I had back when Fenice was first introduced. Did Starlight attempt to recruit her friend's younger sister to her cause? Was it her who brought about the awakening of Fenice's Fullbring and did she in some way cause the accident that burned down her home?
I hope we get back to Equestria some time soon though. I mean really the only things left to adress are seeing Ember reunited with Torch, what's going to be done with the "seed" removed from Hard Nail and Thorax's meeting with Luna. I predict one or two chapters before we switch back to Equestria?
Long review but I had a lot to say here, great work as always and I can't wait for the next chapter.
10721078
Seems like a reasonable philosophy, considering her true enemy. Quite shortsighted in the grand scheme, but reasonable on an individual mortal's timescale.
I didn't know Burn the Witch is related to Bleach. Guess I know what to watch next, thanks.
Ok, I have to ask. Consideing how Rarity Fullbring works, has she been running around with the liquified remains of her body as armor?
I could see that being a big help to Discord when he is making her a new body, since that would mean he can give her a perfectly compatible one.
10721658
It would be more accurate to say that with her Fullbring becoming fully evolved, it's capable of using the blood of her spirit body as part of the catalyst for forming crystal constructs now, although it's not impossible trace amounts of her physical body combined with it at the moment the Fullbring became complete.
Damn, emotional deep cuts all over the place and the proverbial bombshells of Sunsets heritage in spades.
I’ve only read this story once so I might have forgotten, but was it ever explained why the girls don’t need an object for their fullbrings?
Wait, how can Sweet Cider have died eighteen years ago if Applebloom is barely in her teens?
There are some potential options for Rarity. Season one of Bleach explains that if a person's soul chain is completely broken it is impossible for them to return to their bodies; however, they can put the soul into another body like when Yuichi's soul was put in a cockateel. Discord still has Adagio's body on ice, and it is still alive, so maybe Rarity's soul can be put in Adagio's body. Normal gigais are made out of reish, however, Urahara made a special type of gigai that isn't made of reishi and instead devours the users reishi over time, eventually transforming that person into a human, so maybe Discord can make a gigai like this for Rarity to allow her to return to her normal life at the cost of losing all of her powers. The story could also use both of these ideas, going with the first one first so that she can continue to fight with her friends, and then going with the second at the end of the story.
10721170
It's possible that Sunburst's parents were so set on sending him to Celestia's school because they had heard that Sunset was there and were planning on finding her and becoming a family again, but she had already gone through the portal by the time they got there. Maybe the reason Sunburst was so set into his studies that he never contacted Starlight was because he was trying to figure out where his sister had gone and how he could find her. Also, since Fullbringers get their powers because their mothers were attacked by Hollows before they were born, this would mean that human world Sunburst was a Fullbringer as well.
10722470
The Equestrian magic the girls came into contact with during the events of the films, mixed with the spiritual abilities that were already there (their Fullbrings) enhancing them and turning them into something distinct from regular Fullbrings (multiple characters even make note of their reiatsu having a distinc feel from regular Fullbrings). Thus they can use their Element of Harmony trait as the catalyst rather than a physical item.
It's a typo, she died EIGHT years ago, but Vex accidently wrote eighteen.
It's possible sure but with Sunburst being younger than Sunset in Equestria and with the events there being a mirror to those in the human world, it's likely that Sunburst didn't even know he had a sister (as human Sunset/Fenice didn't know she had a brother. It's hard to say for sure until we get Stellar's side of the story.
Not necessarily, a Fullbringer is formed when a PREGNANT woman is attacked by a Hollow whle they are with child, because the Hollow's spiritual energy latches onto the unborn child, granting them abilities. It would only apply to that one child.
For both siblings to be Fullbringers, either Stellar herself would have to be one (thus the kids would inherit powers from their mother ala the Rainboom's siblings) or she would have to have been attacked during each of the two pregnancies separately. Not impossible sure but we'll just have to wait and see on that front.
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10722659
Fixed the typo. This is why writing at 3AM while dead tired is not always recommended.
Thanks for another excellent chapter
Awesome story. One of the best I’ve read on this site. I never knew I needed an EQG/Bleach crossover in my life until I started reading this story. 🔥
Just hoping everything turns out okay for Rarity at the moment. 😭
10730187
I already read it.
In fact, it is due to SAPR than i am here in the first place, I am not much of a fan of MLP, but SAPR had made me a huge fan of Sunset shimmer stories, and I had read many of them here, where she is in XCOM, Naruto, obviously yours, and also Sundowner.
10732416
Yeah, it's make sense.
Clover had stopped being even a equal of the girls in the middle of the arc of the rescue of Celestia and Luna (the last moment when she could compare on one vs one was when the girls had fought hurricane together) so even if without her Zanpakuto she is stronger than a average lieutenant (which is more than good) she would likely have at best a level the same as Sunset with her Shikai even with her own Bankai.
It's just sad really, but it's the fate of the protagonists who aren't in the chosen ones category in shonen, the fact than Clover is still powerful even without her Zanpakuto and not useless is already good, it's just than i would had liked to see her being around the same level.
10732456
Well in this case, it's less about her not being one of the "chosen ones" and more that she simply doesn't have the benefit of Equestrian magic (like the rainbooms, Twilight and Adagio do) allowing her to get stronger at a much faster rate than normal characters. I mean that's why the Rainbooms were able to overtake her in the first place.
Sure it would be nice if she could keep pace with them throughout the whole story as she is effectively one of the group now (just like Rukia was for Ichigo and co) but it simply wouldn't work within the context of the story. It's an unfortunate thing but that's the way the Cookie Crumbles.
10732490
Chosen ones was the only term I have, and it's mostly for define it about how the girls follow a patern about some of the protagonists becoming stronger than the others ones.
As long as she stay useful and is not utterly stomp by them on their easy mode (for example, Sunset cannot beat her without the Shikai, and even with, it is a even fight if Clover use Bankai) It is fine.
But really, Clover need, no, deserve at least the Bankai, and to still have some relevance as a protagonist, she deserve to be more than the Piccolo of the team.
When I first started reading stories of Sunset Shimmer (I am not that much a fan of MLP, I am only interest in Sunset shimmer shenanigans with a human form) I didn't really wanted to read stories of the Main 7, however, not only your story made me accept the idea, but it made me accept AU crossover who had the equestria girls universe far more mixed with the other universe than simply the Main 7 or just Sunset, congratulations.
My only "problems" with the story are nitpicks, only because I would had love to see some things happens in a different way, for example, I wanted a fight between Lament in Resureccion (I just prefer the name Lament, sue me) and sweet Cider in Bankai, as well as one between Sunset and Adagio with fire vs water (although this one might happens) but except that, I have no problems.
This story was wonderful, my only problem mostly came from the context rather than the story itself, with the rise of power, I really don't like the Spirit queen and division Zero part of it, I was quite satisfied with the 10 Espadas, the 13 captains and the 26 high ranked Quincy (I don't remember their exact title) but it is something taken from Bleach, so it is not your fault.
My only other issue was the names, but then again, it's the fault of the universe (this time MLP) , not yours.
What is the order of power ?
Also, in terms of physical strength, technic and spiritual/magic level, who is the strongest between Adagio and Sunset ? Although since Adagio have a kind of elemental advantage, it would not be so simple).
Is Sunset Shikai (and therefore Bankai) twice as powerful since she have the power taken from both ?
Among the Main 7, who is the strongest and what is the order between them ?
How clover strength is compared to each one of them currently (so without her Zanpakuto) and if she were to have it again now (so with simply the fact of having a Zanpakuto, which is useful for physical fighting, and the boost bring by the Shikai)?
Also, do Gaw have a sort of secret semi-crush for Di Roy and it's why she is acting like that ? Because I kinda felt than it was something like that even before they became Arrancar, and I want to know if it's just me who Ship too much.
10732581
I plan on doing an updated power tier list soon, so it's clearer where all the characters stand. In general, between Adagio and Sunset, they're very evenly matched. Adagio probably has a slight advantage in terms of physical strength and durability, but Sunset has a slight advantage in speed. They share similar versatility in their powers, being pretty strong in both melee and ranged options. Their water and fire powers are pretty much direct counters to each other, and they have similar levels of spiritual power to throw around so it'd be hard for either one of them to overcome the other through simple force. A fight between those two would be a very close call and really come down to witch one managed to out think the other.
Do you mean is Sunset's Zanpaktou more powerful due to having two spirits? Technically speaking, yes, although it's not as simple as it being twice as powerful so much as it gains a bit of a larger reiatsu pool to work with and increased versatility due to being able to draw abilities from two different spirits. Most Zanpaktou only really have one focused power set, where Sunset's has a wider range, still based around the fire element, but with a decent bit more options than most Zanpaktou.
As for the order of power between the main group of girls, that's a tough one. Sunset is generally a bit stronger than the other girls, but not by an overwhelming amount, and any one of them could still potentially beat her if she wasn't careful. As for the other five, their powers are so individually unique that fights between them would more or less be a bit of a rock-paper-scissor kind of deal. They're all about equal in terms of overall power, but each also has areas they excel in. Rainbow Dash obviously has the speed advantage, even over Sunset. Applejack is the physically strongest, and probably the toughest. Rarity has the most tactical versatility and skill. Fluttershy's power has the most impressive reiatsu and is great at debilitating opponents. Pinkie Pie's powers are the most unpredictable, and are the wildcard of the group.
Although since you said Mane 7 I wonder if you were including Twilight in that mix? She'd certainly a powerhouse on her own, and all things considered easily matches Sunset and Adagio at this point, although that's largely thanks to the power boost when letting Midnight take the reins. Her Schrift gives her a heck of a wide array of options in a fight alongside the pure adaptability of magic.
Clover does lag a bit behind by about a solid tier, but all things considered she's still pretty impressive by Soul Reaper standards. With Kido alone she might not beat any of the other girls, but she'd give them a decent fight. With Chikshiki back in her hands, she'd be closer if not quite at the girl's level, but by the measure of Soul Reapers she'd be a solid candidate for possibly becoming a Captain in the future. She'd still need to learn Bankai for that, but in terms of reiatsu and skill she's at the standards other Captains would look for to groom a successor.
It's less a crush and more that as time has passed, Di Roy has gradually grown in Gaw's eyes from a weaker individual she had to keep an eye out for, to an equal she can rely on and trust. The potential for a relationship is there, although Gaw isn't exactly what one would call the "romantic" type.
I just thought of it, but what if Sunset had done a GT Goku ?
What does i mean with that ? I talk of Sunset having the powerful object into her body, like GT goku had "ate" a dragon ball during the final fight with I Shenron.
11103237
Hadn't even really considered that as a possibility, and what effect it might have, if any, is purely a matter of speculation that I don't believe I can really elaborate on much.
I like this part. Shows that family is also about bonds you forge through your life. For now AB and SC are more of strangers and will need some bonding time.