• Published 4th May 2016
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Cheer Princess - MythrilMoth



After following Sunset Shimmer through the portal and becoming stuck in the human world, Princess Celestia struggles to adapt while blocking Sunset's ambitions with her own popularity.

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Book One, Prologue (Side Sunset)

Sunset smirked as she glanced over her shoulder to see her mentor brought up short by a strange metal carriage. Laughing, she sprinted off into the night; adrenaline and the thrill of having put one over on her mentor heightened her senses and awareness of her new body, making her able to adjust to the strange bipedal movement and the massive shift in her center of gravity far more easily than she rationally knew she should have.

She also wasn't paying anywhere near as close attention to where she was going as she should have. A loud screech and a blaring horn were her only warning before something struck her painfully and she found herself sprawled on the hard, unforgiving pavement.

Harsh, unnatural light swam over Sunset. She heard more noise, followed by shouting. She tried to focus through the pain and forced herself to look up, squinting against the harsh light that was coming from somewhere close.

"Are—are you alright?" a male voice asked. Groaning, she looked up. A silhouette hovered over her, swimming around the edges of her pain-filled, blurry vision. She realized her eyes were filling with tears and squeezed them shut against the blinding light and hot pain. Then, she heard a loud, startled gasp, followed by the same voice yelling her name in a surprised tone, then a barely intelligible burst of murmuring that sounded as though it came from miles away:

"Oh god, oh god, oh god...yes, I need an ambulance at the corner of Thiessen and Haber, I just hit a girl with my car and I think it's my runaway daughter...yes...thank you, oh god..."

The light didn't seem as bright anymore, but Sunset's eyes refused to open.

"Hang on honey, oh god, I'm sorry...Sunset, just hang on..."

* * * * *

"—but really, I have to say this is the damnedest way I've ever seen a runaway case solve itself."

Sunset slowly blinked her eyes open against a harsh white glare. She heard something beeping softly from her left side. She felt a firm, thin mattress underneath her back, and a thin sheet and blanket covering her.

Everything hurt...but also didn't hurt at the same time, as a sort of dull numbness filled her veins, slowly ebbing away to be replaced by a throbbing pain.

She groaned, and whoever was talking stopped.

"Sunset? Honey, are you alright? How are you feeling?" a soft, female voice said.

A voice Sunset recognized.

"M-Mom?" she croaked out. Her mouth was dry, and her lips were chapped. "C-can I have some water?"

"Of course, honey." A few seconds passed before a cup was pressed to her lips. Cool water flowed slowly into her parched mouth; she swallowed gratefully. Once the cup was pulled away, she lifted her head, opening her eyes fully, and looked around.

It was a hospital room, that much she knew.

But the four beings looking at her weren't ponies.

"What the...?" She sat up and looked around, scanning the unfamiliar faces—two of which had familiar features she hadn't seen in a very long time.

There was a woman with dusk-purple skin and long, braided dusty rose hair. Her eyes were deep purple pools full of sadness and worry, as well as a muted hope. Tear tracks marred her face. She wore a black pullover sweater and faded white capri pants, as well as beige flats. Beside her stood a man with dark orange skin, short, wavy bright golden hair, and round wire-rimmed glasses that magnified deep blue eyes. He was tall, with a lean build and a square jaw, and wore a sweater-vest and jeans with penny loafers.

"Mr. Sunrise," one of the other men in the room said in a gruff tone, "you understand that I'll need to ask your daughter some questions." This man had grey skin, a stiff brush of golden hair, and wore a blue uniform with a golden badge over the left breast pocket.

'Mr. Sunrise' sighed heavily. "Is that really necessary, Officer?" he asked. "Haven't we been through enough?"

"Sir, your daughter ran away from home two years ago," the officer said curtly. "I'm sorry, but I do have to obtain as much information for my report as possible."

"I'd rather you not interrogate this child until she's had time to recover," the other man said. He was thin, with pale blue skin and short, curly white hair, and wore a white coat over blue medical scrubs. "She's lucky she didn't sustain more serious injuries, but she's going to need to stay at least two days while we run some tests. Also, because she ran away from home and has been missing for two years, we need to evaluate her for trauma."

The officer frowned, but nodded, flipping the notebook he held closed. "She's not to be discharged without notifying the police," he said.

"I know the procedure, Sergeant."

The sergeant shifted awkwardly, then nodded stiffly to the other two occupants of the room. "Sir, Ma'am." He turned and left the room.

"How is she, Doctor? Really?" the woman asked again.

"She cracked two ribs and there was some internal bleeding, but you lucked out. Our best surgical resident was on call when she was brought in. There was some pretty severe bruising of her left breast. That's going to be tender for a while. Other than that, she mostly sustained minor scrapes and contusions." The doctor shook his head. "Damn lucky if you ask me. We'll need to run some tests and keep her on IV pain medication and antibiotics for about twenty-four hours, then have the staff psychiatrist visit her. After that, as far as I'm concerned, you can take her home, but that really depends on what the psychiatrist and the police say." He looked at her, frowning. "You're in a mess of trouble, young lady."

"Oh, don't say things like that," the woman said. "We're just happy to have her back, and...and we're going to make sure she stays. Right, Sunset?" That sharp tone and the stern, scolding look on the woman's face, plus her familiar voice, clinched it.

Against all odds, this was her mother, Sunset Satin.

Which meant the man with the glasses and the golden hair was...

"Dad?" Sunset croaked.

"I'm here, Sunset," Desert Sunrise said, rushing over to her side and taking her hand in his. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there, oh god you must've been coming back home to us, please tell me you were coming back home, please..."

Despite the numbing effects of whatever painkillers they had pumped into her, the general confusion over the situation, and the mild delirium induced by the very strange similarities rapidly unfolding between this world and her own, Sunset's sharp mind and keen sense of an opportunity told her that this was a situation she could turn to her own advantage.

"Dad," she said in a choked tone, squeezing his hand. "I...Mom...I missed..." She choked out a sob, squeezing her eyes tightly shut. The tears leaking out were not entirely feigned—even with the drugs, she was still in a lot of pain, and she hadn't seen her parents in five years.

"I'm sorry," she said. "Whatever I said, whatever I did, I'm sorry. I was s-so wrong a-and...so s-stupid..."

"It's okay, honey," Satin said soothingly. "It's okay. Rest now. We can talk later."

Sunset nodded sleepily as the doctor injected something into her IV. The last thing she saw before foggy dreams took her were the hopeful faces of her parents...

...or rather, the parents of a stranger with her face.