What I Got

by Gpizano

Well Life Is (Too Short)

It took about a minute for the wave of emotion inside of Sunset to settle and she took a few more minutes to eat her ice cream and talk a bit with Jackie. The topics chosen were not of anything in particular. How their band would kill tomorrow, Jackie wondering if she should change the name of the band yet again since her magic form was more dragon than pony, and wondering what two Twilights and Spikes would be talking about right now. Jackie opted for 'magic nerd stuff' and Sunset... yeah, she couldn't deny that's probably what the Twilights would be talking about.

Now that she had composed herself and didn't look as if she had been crying, she headed back towards the hotel, tossing her empty cup in a nearby trashcan.

"Hey, how about I come with this time?"

Glancing over her shoulder as Jackie followed after her and tossed her cup into the same trashcan, Sunset seemed a bit hesitant.

"I don't know..."

"Look, I'll admit that thing with Dash is probably going to make things super awkward if I go up there. But I'm going to be bored as fuck waiting for you in the car waiting for this thing to wrap up who knows when."

"How sensitive of you."

Despite the snark from her girlfriend, Jackie just grinned and shrugged before picking up her pace so that she could walk in step with the other.

"Hey, least I tell you what's up. But really Sunshine, you came down upset. I want to be there for you. Cause friends or not, if they make you start crying again I ain't gonna stand for that!"

As dorky as the attempted machismo was, a small part of Sunset couldn't help but be a little touched knowing Jackie was ready to jump in if something went bad for her. Granted this was often problematic since the guitarist tended not to think things through, but Sunset was just going to cut off her train of thought there so that the sentiment would still be endearing.

The elevator ride up was much quicker with her girlfriend but Sunset started dragging her feet and seemed to freeze in place for a moment as she just stared at the door. Behind which would be her friends who undoubtedly got at least most of the story about what just happened from a saddened Rainbow Dash.

"... fuck they're going to be mad at me."

"So?"

Feeling Jackie's hand slip into her's, the interlocking of their fingers helped bring some comfort as the guitarist's hand gave a light squeeze.

"Sunshine, being friends doesn't mean you always gotta' be happy and things are always going to be peaceful. Shit happens. Misunderstandings, hurt feelings, anger... but if you're real friends then you can work through it and get back to just doing stuff. If they can't be understanding and let you get this off your chest and they want to be butt hurt about it, then fuck 'em."

Taking a deep breath, Sunset raised her hand and knocked on the door, not having to wait too long until Pinkie Pie opened it, her already slightly deflated hair losing more bounce when she saw who it was.

"Hi guys..."

"Hi. Pinkie can we come in please?"

Stepping back, Jackie and Sunset entered the room and came upon quite the downer of a sight. Rainbow Dash was sitting on one of the two beds, back to the door with Fluttershy gently rubbing the athlete's back. Rarity and Applejack seemed somber as well, the fashionista fidgeting nervously on the other bed when she saw Sunset and the farmer just leaning against the wall, arms crossed as she watched the couple enter. Pinkie Pie would move past them and sat on the bed with Rarity, tugging lightly at her fingers and staring down at the floor.

That silence that had descended after she spoke to Rainbow Dash seemed to have made quite a nice little home for itself and was busy choosing paint swatches for it's breakfast nook as no one in the room uttered a word. It really seemed to be getting on Jackie's nerves a bit, the guitarist's gaze flitting from here to there as she waited for someone, anyone to get this conversation rolling.

"... okay, can we all just start with the fact you're all fucking this up right now?"

That caused all eyes in the room to turn to Jackie, most of the stares either confused or surprised, with the exception of Sunset who was shooting her girlfriend a deadpan stare.

"What? You all know I'm right. This is not normal. Well, or at least to me it isn't. Yeah there's delicate situations but you're acting like there's eggshells everywhere! I mean, how's that saying go? Break a few eggs to make scrambled eggs? I mean, when you take me, Tino and Poppy, we are upfront about shit! Well, most of the time depending on the situation, but still! Sunshine, I know you don't want to be mean or anything but they're big fucking girls! And they can either put on their big girl doc martins and deal with it or they can suck and be all 'woe is me' about it when it's not about them!"

Just when it seemed silence tried to regain control of it's new domain, a little levity helped keep them free thanks to Rarity.

"Ugh. Doc martins, really?"

The seamstress wrinkled her nose at the thought as Sunset looked over to her and raised a brow.

"Hey, I'm saving up for a pair myself."

"Oh... well, they are a celebrated icon of the um, grunge culture I believe it was called. They do tend to be quite fetching."

This made Applejack snicker softly, her head tilted down so that her stetson hid her eyes. There was a moment's hesitation before Fluttershy turned around on the bed, still sitting next to Rainbow Dash but facing Sunset and Jackie now, sitting on her knees as the nervous girl managed to bring about a question on everyone's mind.

"Does... does this mean um... that you still haven't forgiven us?"

Sunset seemed to give this some thought for a brief moment.

"... no. It's not that. I meant what I said after the Friendship Games, life is way too short to just hold onto a grudge and I wanted to put the Anon-A-Miss thing behind me."

However, Sunset crossed her arms, gaze hardening slightly as she looked between the five of them.

"That didn't mean, however, that I wasn't still angry. I mean, can you guys even understand how much it hurt when you abandoned me like that? It just... never felt as if you got that no matter how much you apologized to me. And I thought that I could just forget about it but when Dash brought up all that 'what ifs', it just boiled up fresh as if it had happened yesterday."

She had already said what she needed to Rainbow Dash, so her gaze shifted one by one, starting with Applejack and ending with Pinkie Pie as she spoke.

"Can you imagine how it felt? When someone who had offered you a chance to spend the holidays in a warm home surrounded by friends, snatching that away from you? I know what I did in the past was bad Applejack, but did you really think I'd be so spiteful and ungrateful as to throw that back into your face by spreading an embarrassing secret? And Fluttershy, I know I tortured you for years but I thought out of all of you, you'd be kind enough to give me the benefit of the doubt. And I guess I shouldn't of been too surprised, Rarity, that you'd be more concerned with damage control than to stand by my side! And Pinkie Pie, you calling me a secret stealer? That's a compliment when you compare it to being a fake friend!"

If she hadn't been holding Jackie's hand the entire time, then she really would have gone off on a tear. It was scary how much they could effect her, that much was clear. Which made it all the more gut wrenching for the five when they saw how much their friendship had truly meant to Sunset Shimmer. Tears slipped down Fluttershy's face, Rarity looked on the verge and Pinkie Pie had totally deflated. Seeing the five in various states of distraught made Sunset feel guilty for a moment but she knew it had to be done. If they ever wanted to be friends again then exorcising her demons like this was necessary.

With silence moved back in and crashing on the couch, Sunset struggled to find something to say, but instead it was Pinkie Pie who spoke up.

"I'm sorry... I really am. I'm really, really, really sorry... I, I don't know how many times I have to say it before you don't hate me any more but I mean it! I'm really super duper sorry!"

Before a round of apologies could be offered, Sunset raised her hand to cut them off short.

"I don't hate you guys. Maybe I did for a little while after I left to get away from all of that, but I don't anymore. But I've had plenty of time to think about this and I want to give you guys another chance. I'm trusting you guys to not fuck up this time, alright?"

"Yeah. Ah think we gotcha'. Second time 'round we're gonna be better friends."

As nice as it was to hear the determination in Applejack's voice, Rarity could not help but voice a concern.

"Things... really will not be the same anymore, will they?"

"No... but hopefully they'll be a lot better this time around."

The soft smile from Sunset seemed to be encouraging for them, a bit of hope seeming to be regained in all except for Rainbow Dash, who had kept her back to Sunset the entire time.

"Dash. I know it hurts but come on. It's not the end of the world."

Then Sunset's smile turned a bit mischievous.

"If you need a pick me up I'm sure Adagio wouldn't mind coming over..."

Sunset's smile broadened seeing Rainbow Dash's back stiffen, she swore she could see the athlete's ears burning a bit. When she got a good look at Rainbow Dash's face, Fluttershy's soft giggle set off the others one by one as soft, gentle chuckles and titters, which only made Dash groan softly and hide her face in her hands. It was small, but that levity was a jump start that would allow all of their spirits the start to rise.

---

After that, it was best decided that it had been a long night so Jackie and Sunset parted ways. As they drove through the streets on the way home, Sunset felt tired. But in a good way. It was almost as if a large weight had been taken off of her shoulders and she felt able to truly relax for the first time in a long time.

Jackie for her part was happy and felt even happier every time she glanced over at her girlfriend and saw that content smile on her face and that happy look in her eye. Things had finally been settled, her Sunshine was happy and all was right with the world.

Well, at least they were until they got home and found both sets of Twilights and Spikes on the bed. Apparently Equestria Spike (who Jackie was now going to refer to as D. Spike cause you know, he was actually supposed to be a dragon) was trying to teach regular talking dog Spike (who she would simply call Spike) more words and broaden his education.

Sparky was completely focused on Twilight, enraptured as the princess of harmony was clearly in the middle of explaining some sort of magical theory that had theories and maths and oh god Jackie could already feel her eyes starting to roll into the back of her head! Thankfully Sunset had the idea to cough loudly and gain their attention. While Sparky gave a slightly nervous smile, Twilight's smile was as bright as the sun after taking one look at Sunset.

"Feeling better?"

"Yeah. Much better. Hey Twilight, is it alright if you and Spike let me have the room? I need to talk to Sparky here. You too Jackie."

While surprised and a bit confused, Twilight nodded before collecting D. Spike and exiting, Jackie leaving as well after giving a groan and a whine about being locked out of her room again. Once the door was shut, Sunset moved over to the bed and sat down before removing her boots, seeming oblivious to Sparky's current state of worrying to the point of actually starting to break out into a sweat. Once Sunset had made herself more comfortable, she swung her legs up onto the mattress and leaned back with a soft sigh as she placed her hands on her stomach.

"Much better. How've you been liking Los Pegasus so far?"

"U-Um, it's nice. I've never been to the west coast before, it's really um... different. Not in a bad way! I mean, it all looks nice where you live!"

"Yeah, it kinda took a little getting used to for me when I first got here, but it definitely grows on you. Sort of like a fungus."

Chuckling at her own joke and glancing over, she could see that Sparky was starting to relax some.

"... you know, I never got around to apologizing to you."

"... wait, WHAT?"

"Yeah, for when I confronted you at the Friendship Games after the plants thing. I could have handled that better instead of scaring you like I did. Probably could of saved a lot of trouble if I explained things better instead of just demanded you hand your stuff over."

"That's... that's too... Sunset, you can't mean that! I mean, there's nice and then there's being way too nice!"

"I know, my girlfriend must be rubbing off on me."

"B-But-! But my actions lead to Chrysalis getting that magic! She hurt our friends and she almost killed you and everything would of been-would of been-! I mean, I don't know what she would of done afterwards but it was all my fault and I'm SO SORRY!"

Just when it seemed like the human Twilight was ready to hyperventilate as she thought over every single horrible scenario in her head, Sunset sat up and placed her hands on the girl's shoulders, slowly getting her to calm down.

"Twilight. You fucked up. Just like how I fucked up on how I handled the situation when dealing with you. It happens. You didn't intend for Chrysalis to get power or to turn into a raging she-demon yourself. What you did, you did because you saw good people suffering."

"B-But... but if I'd known why Chrysalis was there and what happened with Anon-A-Miss-!"

"You still would have helped."

The way Sunset said that in a tone that was so matter of fact quieted the bespectacled girl as she stared, confused and waiting for Sunset to explain.

"You and the Equestrian Twilight might be different in a lot of ways but there's still key similarities. And the one thing I know for sure is that when good people are suffering you can't just stand idly by, you want to help. Your intentions were good, the execution just missed the mark."

Such a compliment made Sparky blush slightly, averting her gaze but not feeling completely better just yet.

"I'm sorry..."

"Hey, you're not the one who blew open a hole in my chest. Plus I got better. So it's fine."

After a few moments, Sparky raised her head, giving a half-hearted smile and a nod. Not completely over the guilt but Sunset knew it was a start.

"By the by, you were talking about magic with Princess Twilight, right? It's been awhile since I studied Equestrian magic but it sounded like the Trotscovi Conversion of Magic theory, am I right?"

"Oh! Um, yes. We were discussing what we saw yesterday, with Jackie's and Rainbow's slightly altered 'Pony Mode' forms as she tells me you and the others call it. We were trying to figure out an explanation as to why they were different from before when it seemed to be the usual light magic that caused it instead of dark or any other type of magic. So far we have two of the best possible hypotheses. One being that due to the root magic being Equestrian magic and by possibly having a slow conversion process as it adapts to this world, it only gave a sort of 'baseline' look when you or the others powered up, assigning the typical traits of Equestrians such as the ears, pony tails, and wings if it feels the subject would be close in design to pegasi in Equestria. Yet as it adapts and grows, there will be those that will not have a 'baseline look' and their true Equestrian selves will emerge. Meaning that while it is confirmed that Rainbow Dash in Equestria is indeed a Pegasus, the Jackie of Equestria may in fact be a dragon."

This caused Sunset to blink, her silence making the human Twilight adjust her glasses nervously until the red-head spoke up.

"So what you're saying is, because it was Equestrian magic used by ponies, the reason Jackie started off with a 'Pony Mode' was because it was too weak and inflexible to register any other sort of species from my world and instead stuck her with the pony equivalent until it became more flexible and became stronger."

"Basically. We figure things like tattoos and armor were a sort of flourish added based on the person's subconscious. However this also leads to our second hypothesis. We think as the magic grows and evolves, adapting to being used by humans, perhaps the change is totally subconscious on Jackie or Rainbow Dash's part. Jackie's transformation being more dragon-like could have nothing to do with Equestria, her Equestrian form may in fact be a pegasus as first thought by her earlier transformations. Yet as Equestrian magic becomes more "human magic", the form Jackie took on last night could simply be because she equates dragons to power but still wants to be herself, with a bit of 90s fashion in terms of tattoo thrown in. Twilight has given this credit since, as far as we know, you are not an Alicorn yet your form at the Friendship Games had a horn and wings. It simply could of been the magic creating a form that in your subconscious was very powerful."

As Sunset mulled it over, both ideas had strengths and weaknesses to the argument and neither could be proven just yet. Still, not a bad place to start when trying to figure out what was going on magic-wise in this world.

"... have you thought about where you're going to go to college after Crystal Prep?"

The question seemed to come completely out of left field for Sparky, the girl needing to take a moment to process the question.

"Um. Well, I know with my grades I could get into just about anywhere and I have been considering many options. Why?"

"Well... if you still want to study magic and you're not committed to any one place, how do you feel about coming here to Los Pegasus? All of my studies when I go to college will be geared to studying magic as well and how it's affecting this world. On your own you've done an amazing amount of research studying magic, you even made a device that finds and collects it. I think between the both of us we could figure out what's going on. But if you don't want to come to Los Pegasus, at the very least I'd still like to work with you no matter where you go. Even if it's just comparing notes and bouncing ideas off of each other. What do you say?"

To have the girl she had effectively screwed over in her pursuit of knowledge smile and offer a partnership like this... Sparky just didn't know what to say! However, a broad, genuine smile came over her face and an excited twinkle in her eye as she eagerly nodded her head.

"Yes! Yes yes yes yes yes! I mean, um, I don't know about Los Pegasus, I'll have to research the colleges here to see if any suit my needs, but I'd love to work with you on this!"

The excitement appeared to be too much as the human soon pounced and gave Sunset a big hug! The red-head giggled softly and pat the top of Twilight's head, a soft smile on her face.

Things were definitely looking up.

Author's Note:

Yeah I don't know nothing about science, so I just Equestrianized a smarty guy's name and stuff. XD

But yeah, SECOND HUGE DRAMA HURDLE JUMPED! Will there be a third? Will Rainbow Dash recover? Will Adagio start hitting on EVERYONE?!?!?

STAY TUNED!

Comments

[thexat]

7591805 Aaah. I was going by the "Chekhov's gun" principle for Aria and Dash there. But if you're intrigued, it's a start! :P

[diablo4000]

glad things were settled better, now they face the future a bit bette, and twilight or Sparky will or may go to College with Sunset....College....YEAH..nothing going to go wrong...Maybe thinsg will go Right?!

[CSC]

Great work as always! Great to see things looking up for Sunset and the Rainbooms, and I wonder how the Equestrian magic will start to affect everyone involved, and I sure hope the queen of sluts seduction keeps going, and I actually can imagine Celestia having quite the bikini body,

[Gpizano]

7592138 Oh the plans for college if I decide to start a second arc.

7592158 Yeah, there is definitely two possibilities for explaining how the magic is working.

But the bottom line is shit is gonna get cray-cray. XD

[CSC]

7592183 That sounds fantastic!

[Eternal Sunset]

7591805 I almost forgot to ask, What about Discord's reaction to Celestia's bikini hotness?

[Gpizano]

7592331 Must we ask? Very well. Discord?

Discord: *busy building a sand castle with working sand drawbridge and sand water fountain in the courtyard for the sand crab family*

I see, good to know your thoughts Discord!

[Crepusculo]

About time Sunset got things off her chest but now that only leaves the CMC.

I probably wouldn't have forgiven them if it were me or if I've been in a similar situation. As a angry and wise internet cartoon squirrel once said:

If your 'friends' they don't have your back then they can suck on your sac. - Foamy the Squirrel.

[pinkfloydpig]

"While it is confirmed that Rainbow Dash in Equestria is indeed a Pegasus, the Jackie of Equestria may in fact be a dragon."

Sunset ~ "But Jackie's...She's not a dog."

[RBronyReader446]

7844090 no but at times she can be a bitch