I Don't Need Magic

by Undome Tinwe

Chapter 18: Origin Stories

Sunset couldn't remember the last time the future had looked so bright to her.

As she stepped into the entrance of the restaurant with Twilight by her side, she had to resist the urge to prance about in joy – which would've been incredibly awkward given her current form. Happiness and hope bubbled up inside of her, and for the first time in years, she felt a small sense of contentment, as if a hole in her heart had finally been filled.

Despite their harrowing encounter with Adagio, the past few hours after that had been some of the happiest of her life. After their little make-out session, they'd spent the rest of the afternoon in the lab, trying to figure out what it was that Adagio had done with the cloverbloom's magic.

From the designs of the spare medallions, it looked like she was catalyzing a spell to tear a hole in the Veil Between Worlds, which, duh, of course she was. Sunset would need some time to puzzle out the exact nature of the spell that this artifact was meant to catalyze, and she was looking forward to doing so with Twilight by her side.

It was fascinating and wonderful how much and how little things had changed after Twilight had agreed to be her girlfriend. They still worked amazingly well together, bouncing ideas off each other to come up with novel theories neither would've thought of alone. Twilight was her usual brilliant self too, taking to this type of magic like a duck to water, and quickly reaching a level where she could make meaningful – if rudimentary – contributions to the discussion with her newfound magical knowledge and her advanced training in the sciences.

This wasn't surprising to Sunset, of course; the past week had already shown her that they were a near-perfect match intellectually. What was different, though, was how they acted outside of the technical stuff.

Sunset found herself standing closer to Twilight, allowing her eyes to dwell on the lush curves of her body and the beautiful lines of her face a little more than she had before. Twilight seemed to notice the attention, and Sunset knew she had returned the favor several times when she was focusing on something else.

And the smiles and looks they shared were a little warmer, even if they were a little more nervous too, and the old tension of unresolved feelings that had hung in the room was replaced by a newer blanket of tentative hope and a desire to indulge in their newly-transformed relationship, tempered with fear of overstepping their bounds.

For now, they kept it at coy looks and the occasional hand-holding, but Sunset wanted to experience more, and she was pretty sure that Twilight felt the same way. Still, there wasn't any need to rush things, and the two of them had spent a very fun afternoon in the lab, even if they hadn't been as physically close as Sunset would have liked.

At around six, Sunset had decided to take a break from the analysis and had asked Twilight if she wanted to grab dinner with her. While the word "date" hadn't been mentioned by either of them, it was obvious that their first dinner together as a couple was going to be a pretty big deal. Sunset knew this was going to be more than just dinner, and had picked the perfect place for it: a nice little bistro located near the outskirts of Canterlot, surrounded by a thin copse of trees.

As they drove towards the restaurant, they had continued their conversation on Adagio's plans, though without the reference sketches on hand, it was hard to make any more progress. Still, that wasn't enough to dampen her enthusiasm as they stepped into the restaurant and allowed the hostess to lead them to their seats, located in a nice, cozy corner by the windows that provided a beautiful view of the forest to the east of them.

"I don't remember this place being a restaurant the last time I was in Canterlot," Twilight remarked as she perused the menu.

"It wasn't" Sunset explained, setting down her own menu. "It used to be an outdoor gear store. The owner bought this place when it went out of business a couple years after you left and decided to turn it into this cozy little bistro in the woods that's still close enough to the city to be convenient. I was actually at the grand opening of this place; Rarity and I celebrated my getting out of jail and turning over a new leaf by coming here."

Sunset smiled at the memory. "We liked the symbolism – going to the grand opening of a place that failed and got reborn as something new and different. Since then, I've been here a few more times: the day Starlight and I founded Equinox Labs, our first patent deal, the opening of our first corporate lab. It's sort of turned into a place to celebrate new beginnings for me." Sunset felt a hint of trepidation as she spoke those last words – she hoped Twilight wouldn't find it too sentimental.

Of course, she didn't have to worry. Twilight returned Sunset's smile with one of her own. "Well, I can certainly see why you brought me here, and I'm honored you think that starting a relationship with me is such a major thing. Let's hope that it turns out as well as your previous endeavours."

"I'm willing to work just as hard to make sure that happens," Sunset said. "I'm not going to let you go again."

"I'm not running anywhere this time either," Twilight replied softly. "I made a mistake last time, and I won't do that again."

Before Sunset could comment, the waiter arrived to take their orders. Sunset and Twilight paused their conversation to make their decisions and as soon as the waiter left, Twilight turned to face Sunset, speaking quickly before Sunset could resume their previous topic. "So, I've always wondered about the history of Equinox labs." Her words were spoken hastily, coming out rushed and almost babbling.

Still, Twilight continued. "I know you told me what inspired you to found it, but there's a big difference between wanting to found a research lab and becoming CEO of one of the leaders in scientific and technological advancements. How did you two start?"

Recognizing that Twilight didn't want to dwell on her abandonment, Sunset allowed the conversation to shift without comment. "It definitely wasn't easy, even with all advantages I got. I had a few ideas on how to turn some of Equestria's science into inventions that could work in this world, but I needed a place to develop and test my ideas. Not to mention all the legal, financial, and other stuff you need for starting a company and dealing with stuff like patents and contracts.

"Oh, and most of my money went to my little two-year world trip, and without magic, I couldn't transmute anymore lead into gold or gems for a quick buck." Sunset smiled ruefully as she remembered the moment she had realized that her past foolishness might have ended her hopes of starting a new life before they had even begun.

"I thought that was going to be the end of my dreams until I got back on my feet and found some kind of job that would give me the chance to save up." Her smile turned more genuine as she recalled what had happened next. "I should've remembered what good friends I had.

"When I told Rarity about my money problems, she said she'd bankroll me on the spot. She'd founded Carousel right after we graduated and somehow managed to get it in a pretty good place while also taking night classes, so she had some money to spare. She was going to use it to open up a second store, but when I told her what I wanted to do, she gave the money to me instead."

"Really? Just like that?" Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow. "I know she's generous, but that seems a bit over the top, even for her."

"She got some equity in the company in return, so it was more like an investment than just charity. Still, considering how much we needed that money, she could have asked for a much bigger share in Equinox, and she even let us buy her stake in the company back a few years later even though our company was still growing. So yeah, she got her initial capital back and more, but she could've made a lot more money from us."

Sunset paused to take a sip of water before speaking again. "I really don't know what I would've done without her. And it's more than just the money, although that definitely helped a lot. Rarity was the one who was always there for me. Even after everything I did, she welcomed me back with open arms and helped me patch things up with the rest of the girls. And when things got tough, she was always there with an encouraging word or a relaxing spa date."

At this point, the sommelier arrived with a bottle and two wine glasses, expertly uncorking the bottle and pouring its contents into the glasses. Sunset swirled the clear, yellow-gold liquid around the rim of the glass and breathed deeply, taking in the smell of the subtle floral accents blended fluidly into the wine, before thanking the sommelier. As he left the table, Sunset raised the glass for a proper sip, but Twilight interrupted her.

"Are you sure both of us should be drinking?" she asked, one hand hovering around her own glass. "One of us needs to drive us home."

"Don't worry about it," Sunset said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "I'll call Gear Shift and tell him to drive us back, and I'll get someone to pick up the car in the morning."

"Gear Shift?"

"My personal driver," Sunset replied.

"You have a personal driver?" Twilight asked, sounding surprised.

"Of course," Sunset replied, a little confused herself. "Why wouldn't I have one?"

"Right." Twilight pressed a hand to her forehead. "I forgot about you being one of the richest women in Canterlot and all that for a moment. The past week's just felt like a little slice of the past, back when we were teenagers."

"It has, hasn't it?" Sunset took a sip of her wine, taking a moment to savor its sweetness. "It's like living in a little bubble. I haven't even driven that car in years. Usually, I just get Gear Shift to drive me around, but I wanted to keep things quiet for now. And if I do want to go out on my own, I'll just take the motorcycle."

"You still have that motorcycle?" Sunset resisted the urge to chuckle at the disapproval dripping from Twilight's voice.

"Not the same one that I had in high school; I upgraded after it started having engine problems." Sunset smirked slightly, unable to hold back her amusement. "I was going to offer to drive us around on that, but I figured you probably hadn't changed since the last time you rode with me, and I didn't really want to deal with you screaming your lungs out every time we had to go somewhere."

"Well excuse me for having some sense of self-preservation," Twilight replied with a huff. "I'm sure you're aware of the traffic statistics involving fatal accidents with motorcycles."

Sunset shrugged. "I've read the studies, but sometimes you just want to feel the wind on your face while you weave through traffic. Besides, after I gave up smoking, I decided I was going to keep at least one dangerous lifestyle choice to keep things interesting."

Twilight had raised her glass to her lips and was just about to drink, but as soon as Sunset said her last sentence she set down the glass with a little too much force, the intoxicating liquid sloshing about slightly from the sudden motion. "Wait, when did you take up smoking? And why?"

"It was before I met you, back when I first arrived in this world. I thought it looked cool, and I was going for the whole 'bad girl' persona, so I figured 'why not?' Besides, I was planning on ascending and becoming an alicorn, so I didn't really care about health risks since, y'know, I thought I was going to be immortal." Sunset barked out a harsh laugh, her earlier good humor fading. "I was such an idiot back then."

"If it makes you feel any better, most teenagers go through a phase where they think they're immortal and invincible." Twilight's eyes twinkled with mirth. "You just took it a little further."

By the heavens, Twilight was amazing sometimes. Sunset felt the weight on her heart fade at her words. "Good thing I had friends to knock some sense into me. You know, at first I was pissed that the portal sent me back as a high schooler, but if it weren't for that, I would never have met the girls, and I'd probably still be an evil bitch. And of course, if I hadn't gone to Canterlot High, I wouldn't have met you."

"Yes, that was very fortunate for the both of us," Twilight said. "There are days when I wonder if destiny exists and if it brought us together. I know most scientists don't subscribe to such concepts, but then again, they also don't believe in magic either, and the chances of the two of us finding each other given that we come from different universes are beyond astronomical."

"Fate and destiny are things philosophers have argued over since the first divination spells were invented," Sunset said. "Ley Place and Immanent Canter both wrote a bunch of treatises on it, trying to reconcile the existence of prophecy with free will, and the only thing they managed was to come up with a body of work to torture students with in Intro to Philosophy courses."

She shrugged. "Personally, I never cared about that debate. Maybe things happen because it's fate, maybe things happen because of the choices we make; either way, there's nothing I'd change about how I act, so why does it matter? Besides, Ley Place's books on demon summoning were a lot more interesting."

Twilight grinned. "I can see how the prospect of learning to summon demons would attract you more than debating philosophy. I guess you're right, though: it doesn't matter in the end if fate exists or not, since we'd still do the same thing anyways."

As Twilight finished speaking, the first course of their meal arrived. Twilight and Sunset had both opted for a salad to start with, and Sunset felt her earlier hunger returning as she took in the faintly acidic scent of the vinaigrette used to season the delicate greens on her plate. Their conversation paused for a few moments as they both dug in, silence resting comfortably between them save for the clanking of metal against porcelain.

After the first few bites, Twilight spoke up again, asking Sunset to continue her story about the history of Equinox Labs. Sunset obliged, telling Twilight about the ups and downs of building a company from the ground up.

It was a story she'd told a thousand times in various forms; after all, as a woman who'd gone from being nobody to being the owner of a company worth over a billion dollars, there were many people who were interested in how she'd done it.

Time and time again, she'd shared the tales of her successes and failures with fellow entrepreneurs during social events, discussed the process of developing her ideas into ground-breaking new technologies with researchers and academics, and even given inspirational speeches about the hard work and perseverance she had put into the Equinox as part of many a keynote addresses.

This was nothing like all those events.

In all her other tellings, she'd always had to hide the source of her inspiration, claiming some lucky epiphany or astute observational and deductive skills instead of telling the truth: that many of her novel insights came from a combination of her magical knowledge and advancements made by Equestrians that she had learned about in her studies.

Not that she hadn't been tempted just to see the responses, but she knew better than to give in to those urges. With Twilight, though, she could finally tell the true story of how she built up Equinox Labs to where it was today.

When she told her old friend about her first invention – the biaxial astrolabe, a navigational device that had now become a standard tool used in all major naval vessels – she didn't have to recite the story she'd made up about walking through the forests at night and seeing the alignment of one set of trees with the stars and how that led her to the geometric breakthroughs needed to rederive the coordinate system; she could just say that she'd learned how to build one as part of the first-year curriculum at Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns.

Likewise, she didn't need to pretend that the delay in releasing her company's discovery of a cure for a rare autoimmune disease was due to ethical concerns rather than the fact that she'd jumped the gun and hadn't figured out how to synthesize the active ingredient without magic.

Granted, there were a few other people with whom she could share her secrets – the five very special women who had saved her from her own darkness, for example. But none of them had the technical knowledge or interest that Twilight possessed, and most of them would've probably fallen asleep by now if she'd talked to them like this.

Not Twilight. The scientist listened to her story in rapt attention, only interrupting to ask her to expand on some technical detail or other. There was no chance she was getting bored or just humoring Sunset; Twilight's eyes sparkled with curiosity as she listened intently to Sunset, a beautiful shine that lit up her whole face. Sunset felt a warmth blossom in her heart as she shared her secrets with her girlfriend.

As Sunset spoke, however, she also felt an odd sense of trepidation build up within herself. So much of the genius that others had credited her with had come from the deception that her inventions were her own, and not lifted from memories of her classes. Without the lies to protect her, Sunset felt naked and vulnerable sitting in front of Twilight.

How would she react to the fact that her company was built on knowledge taken from others without permission? Obviously, Twilight already knew the source of her creations, but it was one thing to know that fact and another to have a detailed description of where she stole all her research from. After all, she was a scientist, and plagiarism was anathema to those types.

"…and after we got the contract with Jet Set Enterprises to replace the engines on their planes, we had enough cash to buy the whole building our office was in," Sunset said, wrapping up her story. "That's when things stabilized for us and our growth really took off, until Equinox became the company you see today." She gazed into Twilight's eyes, looking for signs of disapproval or disappointment, her whole body tensed up in dread of how she would respond.

"That’s one hell of a story," Twilight said softly, returning Sunset's gaze with one of wonder and awe. "It's incredible what you've managed to achieve with your life. You must be so proud of yourself."

Sunset shrugged, feeling some of the tension wash away. "I definitely have my moments. It does feel good to look back and see how far I've come since I got here sometimes, but other times I feel like a fraud standing up there taking all the credit for my 'genius.' All I did was copy some ideas from Equestria and make a few changes to them."

Twilight snorted. "You were able to transform technologies between different laws of reality, across multiple fields of study. If that doesn't make you a genius, then I don't know what does. Yes, you didn't come up with the original ideas, but what is research if not innovating from past achievements of others? Believe me, your intellect is a peer of mine, which definitely means you're brilliant."

"But not necessarily humble, it seems," Sunset teased, taking one final bite of her salad and savouring the lingering aroma of the greens mixed with the heady scent of the wine.

Across the table, Twilight took a sip of her own wine, her first course long since finished. "I've found that false modesty is dishonest and a disservice to both oneself and others. As long as you aren't being arrogant about it, I think you should take pride in all you've accomplished."

"Don't worry, I know when to indulge in my pride," Sunset replied. "A girl's got to have her vices, after all, and there's no way I was ever going to give that one up. Good to see that you're more confident in yourself, though; I remember how shy you used to be in high school."

"I wasn't actually that bad." Twilight looked a bit sheepish as she spoke. "Sure, I was socially awkward, but I knew I was smart and I wasn't afraid to show it. My behaviour was just different when I was around you. We spent most of our time together working on magic, where you were the domain expert and I didn’t know anything, so it was natural that I would defer to you. Not to mention, I was still dealing with my crush. In hindsight, I do wish I could have acted more naturally around you."

"In the grand scheme of things, that's probably a minor thing to regret."

"Yeah." Twilight chuckled softly at Sunset's words, a warm sound that lit up the space between them. "Heh, I guess we've lived some pretty interesting lives, haven't we?"

"We sure have." Sunset raised up her glass. "I can't say I wouldn't have it any other way, but all things considered, I'm pretty happy with where I am right now." As she spoke the words, Sunset realized with surprise that she truly believed them. Despite all she had lost, she had also gained so much.

Though it was a means to an end, she loved her job, being a leader and playing politics with others to build up her company. Using her power to help people gave her a sense of satisfaction she'd never had when she'd pursued ascension. And now, she had Twilight, a gorgeous woman with a brilliant mind and an admirable strength of heart whom she could see as an equal.

Twelve years ago, she would never have thought that this would've been possible, and she gave thanks once again for having friends to pull her from the darkness.

Twilight raised her glass towards Sunset with a bright smile. "A toast then, to interesting and happy lives."

Sunset raised her own glass in kind, the last remnants of the crimson liquid within sloshing about as their glasses tapped lightly against one another with a quiet tinkling. "To interesting and happy lives, now and forever."

She downed the last of the wine before setting her glass down and grabbing the bottle on the table. She poured out a stream of the amber liquid to refill her glass. "So, we've spent a lot of time talking about me. How about you, Professor Sparkle? What kind of interesting life have you led?" Sunset leaned forward slightly, eager to hear more about her girlfriend's past.

Twilight shrugged. "My story isn't anything as remarkable as yours. After high school, I went to Hayvard for my undergraduate education. I published my first paper that summer on boundary conditions for the wave equation in infinite-dimensional space waveguides under the supervision of Professor Clear and spent my sophomore year in her lab refining the experimental setup for the detection of group delays in heterogeneous lattices, which led to my second paper on minimum-phase configurations. After that, I spent most of my time looking into the electromagnetic properties of–"

"–I don't need to hear you read out your CV," Sunset interjected with a shake of her head. "I've already read all of your publications; I want to know more about you, not just your research."

"Well, I – wait, you've read all of my publications?" Twilight's annoyed expression at being interrupted quickly shifted to surprise, and Sunset realized that she'd slipped up. "A lot of them aren't even relevant to your work."

"I mean, you're one of the top physicists in the world and the work you've done is revolutionary. I wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything important." Sunset felt a sense of guilt pressing against her conscience at the half-truth.

Deciding that she didn't want to deceive her girlfriend on their first date, she kept talking. "And I really wanted to know what you'd been up to. Ever since I got Equinox off the ground and in a good place, I've kind of been keeping tabs on you. Not in a creepy way or anything!" Sunset spoke hastily, not wanting Twilight to get the wrong impression. "But I was curious as to how your life turned out, and I guess some part of me always hoped that I'd get to talk to you again one day."

"Oh," Twilight looked slightly uncomfortable. "I, ah, spent most of my time trying to avoid anything to do with Equinox. I guess I wasn't ready to see you again." She smiled wanly. "Good thing you took matters out of my hands, huh?"

"I definitely don't regret coming to you." Sunset looked straight into Twilight's uncertain eyes. For a moment, they just sat there, basking in the mutual affection that permeated the silence.

And then the moment passed, and Sunset spoke again, the former casualness returning to her tone. "So, tell me, how were things at Hayvard? I've heard some pretty wild stories about stuff the students got into."

Twilight rolled her eyes at Sunset. "Yes, I was a total party girl who was attending dorm-wide orgies every weekend," she said, a deadpan expression on her face and in her voice.

"Hey, you never know, right?" Sunset asked as she grinned at Twilight's response. "And besides, we got up to some pretty crazy stuff back in Canterlot High."

"And most of the time, that was due to either magic, Rainbow Dash, or Pinkie Pie," Twilight replied as she finished her own glass of wine. "And you, on occasion," she added with a disapproving stare. "Don't think I haven't forgotten about you taking up motorcycle racing over spring break."

"Dash was egging me on!" Sunset protested. "Besides, we had magical safety measures in place so it wasn't that dangerous. But seriously, you didn't get up to any antics in college?"

"I did not." Twilight's voice turned somber as she spoke. "College wasn't a very good time for me. Are you sure you want to hear my story? It's not a very pleasant one."

"Neither was mine," Sunset pointed out, "and I want to know all about your life, the good times and the bad. I want to know what made you the amazing woman you are today."

"Fine." Twilight picked up her fork and began absentmindedly poking at the last remnants of her salad. "After what happened, I withdrew from the world as you might expect. I cut off all contact with the girls and wouldn't answer any of their calls. I didn't want to talk to anyone, didn't want to be reminded of you or magic. I threw myself into my studies, spending the summer before my freshman year reading through all the textbooks for the courses I'd be taking in the fall. When classes started, I aced all of them, despite taking on a heavier course load.

"It shouldn't have been surprising, of course. Studying was literally all I did. All day, every day. I didn't hang out, didn't talk to anyone, didn't make any new friends." Twilight smiled ruefully. "I spent more time talking to the professors than with my fellow students. I was just so scared of making new friends, of the possibility that things could become catastrophic once again. It was easier to bury myself in my studies, in the books that couldn't hurt me.

"When Professor Clear offered me the summer research position, I jumped on it, devoting my entire life to it just as I had done for my studies. I was a prodigy, and she recognized that, pushing me further and further and driving me to new heights. By the time I graduated a year early, I had achieved an academic record that rivaled some doctoral students."

A storm of emotion raged in Twilight's eyes as she stared at Sunset with an unreadable expression gracing her face. "At the time, I told myself I was happy devoting my life to my studies. And I don't think that's entirely a lie; I loved science, and I still do. The thrill of learning, of making new discoveries, of designing that perfect experiment or figuring out a difficult proof, there's nothing quite like it."

"But you were alone," Sunset said softly, knowing where Twilight was going with her story. "You didn’t have anyone there for you."

"Being alone was never a problem for me," Twilight replied, setting down her fork. "Before I went to Canterlot High I never interacted with others much. I had my books to read, and I didn't think that I could need other people to make my life complete. I didn't even have a friend until I met you girls, and even then, I still liked spending some time alone. So it's not like I was stranger to being by myself.

"But this time, it was different. Turns out, there a difference between having the option of being alone and existing in a state of what is essentially self-imposed exile. And there's a difference between being alone and not knowing how great it is having friends, and being alone while burdened with that knowledge. For the first time in my life, I was lonely, and that sucked."

Twilight lips turned up in a sad smirk. "Of course, being the wonderfully well-adjusted and emotionally-mature student I was, I decided that the solution to the problem was to get even deeper into my studies. I spent basically every waking hour reading or doing work in the lab, and my academic performance skyrocketed as a result. Work made the pain of loss bearable, and the accolades I received served as a poor but passable substitute for the support of friends.

"It wasn't until I started my graduate studies that things got better. Unlike you, there wasn't one big moment where I realized what was wrong with my life and made a commitment to change it; over time, I slowly got better at distancing myself from the past. After all, most teenagers go through some rough phases in high school and mature out of it. I just had a little more baggage than average.

"It helped that I was surrounded by other academics who were more than happy to talk about science and nothing else. I started talking to other people again, getting involved in collaborative projects and the like, and life went back to normal. Or at least, as normal as it could get for an introverted prodigy."

"Did you ever make any new friends?" Sunset asked.

"Not really," Twilight replied. "I had acquaintances and colleagues and research partners, and I did talk about things other than research with them, but our relationships were nowhere near what you'd call friendships, and definitely nothing like what we had in high school. The closest thing I had to a friend was probably Moondancer, but that's only because we can both talk endlessly about our work and our offices are side-by-side."

"The two of you have done some really great work in exploring the properties of nanoscale metamaterials," Sunset said, recalling some of the papers she had read on the subject. "Every survey in the field basically starts and ends with your names."

"Yeah, we've done a lot of good work together. Moondancer was actually asking me to help her expand her quantum tunneling paper to the microscale regime before you showed up in my office."

"Really?" Sunset leaned forward, her voice rising slightly in excitement. "That'd be huge! If you could obtain the same results at that scale, you'd revolutionize the field and probably pick up a Noble Prize in the process."

"I turned her down," Twilight said flatly. "Told her to go talk to Minuette instead."

"Why?" Sunset asked, surprised. "Her field is mostly statistical physics, right? That's useful, but not as much as the stuff you know about metamaterials."

"Because we solved the problem fifteen years ago," Twilight replied, "and I didn't want to dwell on those memories any more than I had to."

"We did?" Sunset paused to think for a moment, sifting through her memories. "Oh, right. The teleportation lattice." Then the rest of Twilight's sentence hit her. "You really turned it down because of me?"

"I may have matured, but I still hadn't gotten over what had happened all those years ago," Twilight said simply. "I tried my best to avoid anything that would make me think about us."

"I'd say I was sorry again, but at this point I think you know how much I wish I could change things," Sunset said, doing her best to quash her guilt. She didn't want to start a relationship feeling beholden to Twilight for her past wrongdoings – that wouldn't end well for either of them.

"It's fine," Twilight waved her hand dismissively. "I already forgave you, remember? I wasn't telling you all this to make you feel bad – I did it because you asked me to."

"And I'm glad you did," Sunset said sincerely. "Now we both know each others' stories, and we can move on." Neither of them had lived an easy life, and both of them had been hurt by their past, but they had moved on and become stronger people from it, and all that mattered to Sunset was the courageous, intelligent, and beautiful woman sitting in front of her now.

Twilight nodded in agreement. "Yes, we can. Our past is done, and now for the first time I can really look forward to the future."

"Same here." Sunset and Twilight allowed the conversation to pause as the busboy took their plates away. "So, speaking of the teleportation lattice, I wonder how much of its functionality we could copy from it without using magic?"

"Hmm… the biggest problem would be the non-locality of the spellforms." Sunset took a moment to appreciate the thoughtful look on Twilight's face. It was the look of a brilliant mind trying to unravel the secret of the universe, and Sunset could stare at it for hours. "I don't think you could recreate the necessary forcing functions with any kind of wave phenomenon, which is a problem. On the other hand, there are other options like…"

As Twilight spoke, Sunset did her best to focus on the conversation, brainstorming new ideas with her while they waited for the second course to arrive. By the time it did, they had already ironed out a few different design ideas that Sunset was eager to try out in the lab, preferably with Twilight.

Idly, the thought of spending the rest of her days working side-by-side with the scientist resurfaced in her mind, and she felt a warm fuzzy feeling spread through her body at the thought.

The rest of the dinner passed by in a blur of science and stories, the couple alternating between sharing tales of their past exploits and discussing the cutting-edge research being done in their respective fields. It was the most fun that Sunset could remember having in years, and when the time came for them to leave, Sunset found herself wishing she could cast a Time Stop spell to prevent the date from ending.

"One of these days, you're going to have to let me pay for dinner," Twilight said as they stood by the curb, waiting for their ride.

"It's no big deal," Sunset said with a shrug. "I've got more money than I know what to do with, to be honest." A sleek black car pulled up in front of them, and Sunset greeted Gear Shift before opening the door and beckoning for Twilight to enter.

"Still, next time I'm paying," Twilight grumbled as she climbed into the car.

"Fine." Sunset climbed in on the other side and fastened her seatbelt before giving Gear Shift the signal to go. She then shut off the intercom, leaving the two of them to talk in private. "I have to say, this has got to be the best date I've ever been on."

"I agree, but then again, this is also my first date, so my statement doesn't exactly hold much weight," Twilight replied.

"Really, you've never been on a date before?" Sunset asked.

"Are you surprised?" Twilight let out a sharp chuckle. "I told you I was a shut-in who didn’t have any friends and didn't interact with anyone outside of research. How exactly was I supposed to find a date?"

"You're hot and you're brilliant to the point of being a prodigy with a very impressive list of achievements. I'm surprised you didn't have guys and girls lined up to ask you out," Sunset replied simply. "Not that most of them would have a chance with you, but I can't imagine that no one ever tried." Celestia above, she actually found herself getting slightly offended on Twilight's behalf. As glad she was that Twilight had been single and thus eligible to date her, Sunset felt a twinge of annoyance that no one else seemed to have realized how amazing she was.

"Flattery aside, I did have a couple people ask me out," Twilight admitted. "But I was still dealing with some emotional issues and withdrawing from the world, and I honestly couldn't see myself having a long-term relationship with them, so I turned them down. There was never really anyone who clicked with me like you did. Even though we were just teenagers, I remembered what it was like to have that kind of connection with someone, and I couldn't settle for less."

Twilight's eyes flashed with humor. "I guess you ruined me for other potential dates." The look in her eyes grew inquisitive as she redirected her question back at Sunset. "So, how about you? Your mention of this being the best date implies other romantic dalliances. What's your love life been like since graduation?"

"Eh, not that much better than yours, to be honest. I mean, there were always people who were interested in my shares in Equinox, if nothing else, but I'm good enough at reading people to avoid those relationships. Rarity tried to set me up on a few dates, and they were nice enough, but it was always tough. Most of them were kinda intimidated by the whole 'founder of a billion-dollar company' thing, and even if they weren't, there was always the secrets about my origins and magic that meant that I basically had to lie through most of my first dates."

Sunset glanced out the window, watching the darkened streets pass by in a blur. "Like you said, there was never anyone who clicked with me like you did. Maybe it was because I wasn't opening myself up to others enough, but the end result was still the same. I never made it past the third date with anyone."

"That's unfortunate, but I'm glad you held out for me," Twilight replied. "And I'm glad I waited for you too."

The car pulled up to the entrance of Twilight's hotel. Silently, the two of them climbed out of the car, Sunset circling around to stand beside Twilight in front of the doors.

Twilight turned to face Sunset. "Well, I don't know about you, but I have to say, this has been one hell of a day."

"What, you mean you don't spend most of your days fighting evil mages with the power of love and then going out on a dinner date with your teenage crush?" Sunset asked with feigned surprised.

"You know, in another universe, that might not be too farfetched to imagine," Twilight said dryly. "But seriously, outside of that whole encounter with Adagio, I had a lot of fun with you today, especially on our date."

"Me too," Sunset replied. It was funny how little difference there had been between their date and their other meals shared together before hooking up. They'd simply spent the night as good friends, exchanging stories and talking research, but this time without hiding their feelings for one another. And Sunset wouldn't have had it any other way. "So, what are your plans for tomorrow?"

"Rarity's booked a fitting for me in the morning for the dress she's making me wear at the Exhibition. You're welcome to tag along if you want."

"We just had our first date, and you're inviting me to see you naked?" Sunset asked in a teasing voice. "My, my, I didn't realize how forward you were, Professor Sparkle."

Twilight's cheeks turned a delightful shade of red ad she gently slapped Sunset's arm. "Behave, or you're never going to see me naked."

"No, no, anything but that!" Sunset laughed as she spoke with false panic. "But seriously, Rarity booked me for the afternoon, so I might see if we can move around the time and get it all done at once. Then I can go visit Sonata and Aria in the afternoon."

"You know where they are?"

"Yeah, they wandered around a bit before settling back near Canterlot. They've been reformed for years, but they still might know something about where Adagio is."

"I'll come with you. Unless you have any objections." Twilight's tone sent an unspoken challenge to Sunset, daring her to say no.

"No, that's fine," Sunset replied. "It'll be good to have a second set of eyes there. You might catch something I miss."

"It's a date, then," Twilight said. The two of them stood in silence for a few moments, the cool autumn wind whispering between them. Their eyes met, and Sunset saw a fire that she knew was mirrored in her own gaze.

Not wanting to ruin the moment with words, Sunset leaned in, capturing Twilight's mouth with her own. The kiss was short and sweet, nothing like the passionate embrace they had shared before the date, but it was wonderful all the same.

Regretfully, they eventually pulled apart, taking a few more seconds to gaze longingly into each others' eyes. "Do you maybe want to come up with me for a bit?" Twilight asked shakily.

"Umm, I know I've been teasing you a bit here and there," Sunset said, trying to remain tactful, "but I think it’s still a little early for that. I wouldn't want to move too fast and mess things up."

"What?" Twilight's eyes widened in shock as her blush returned. "No, nothing like that! I meant that we could go to my room and talk! Only talking, nothing else! Well, maybe a little something else if we want, but not what you're talking about." Twilight's voice lowered as she regained control of her embarrassment. "I was just having too good of a time with you and didn't want it to end."

"I don't want it to end either, but I've got to update Starlight on our progress and work out what that thing that Adagio made actually does. I need to talk to Rarity about rescheduling too. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

Sunset was about to lean over for another kiss, but Twilight spoke first. "Wait, I don't have a car. I left it at your place, remember?"

"I'll pick you up," Sunset replied. "How does nine o'clock sound?"

"Sounds good. I'll be waiting for you then. Good night, Sunset." Twilight leaned forward and placed a quick kiss on Sunset's lips.

"Good night, Twilight," Sunset said, feeling slightly off-kilter at the sudden intimacy. Now that she thought about it, this was the first kiss Twilight had initiated since they'd been trapped in the memory spell.

Twilight grinned and walked off towards the hotel. Sunset stayed until her purple form disappeared behind the doors before returning to the car and telling Gear Shift to drive her home. The whole ride back, she wore a goofy grin on her face.

It had been way too long since she'd enjoyed herself with someone like that, and she couldn't wait to experience it all again tomorrow with her new girlfriend. And the day after that. And the day after that. A whole future had opened up in her mind's eye, and the endless possibilities of joy and love made her heart soar.

It wouldn't be easy, of course. Sunset still remembered all the challenges separating them. They would need to talk about their differing beliefs one day and come to an agreement, but that was a problem for another day. And who knew, maybe one day she really would bring Twilight over to her way of thinking – the curious scientist had spent most of the evening discussing the finer points of recreating magic with science, after all. Maybe things would work out for the better.

The car stopped in front her apartment complex, and she thanked her driver before returning to her suite. Once there, she called Rarity and confirmed that it would be okay to move her fitting to the morning with Twilight. Rarity took the change in stride, not asking any questions, and Sunset didn't volunteer any details. She would need to talk to Twilight about how best to reveal their relationship to everyone.

That done, she fired up her computer and sent out a video call to Starlight. A few seconds later, her face appeared on her screen. "There you are," she said, sounding annoyed. "I've worried sick about you all day. First I get a message saying that you've found the source of the magic and are going to investigate, and then a few hours later you tell me that you've run into an ancient monster and that I should leverage out contacts at the CPD to keep an eye out for her.

"I did what you said, by the way," Starlight added, returning to a more businesslike tone. "The CPD thinks that Adagio is a mentally unstable woman who needs help before she hurts herself or someone else with her delusions."

"That's as good a story as any," Sunset said. "Thanks, Starlight."

"Back to the matter at hand." Starlight's voice raised as she turned her glare back on Sunset. "You disappeared for a few hours after letting me know that you had defeated Adagio, and now you call me out of nowhere and act like nothing happened. Where were you all evening? I was worried that another complication had arisen."

"Sorry," Sunset said, appropriately chastised. "I didn't realize how that might have looked to you. Things have just been a little crazy."

"I can imagine," Starlight said with sympathy. "So, what happened? How did you end up fighting Adagio?"

Sunset gave Starlight a more detailed summary of how they'd found the warehouse, the confrontation with Adagio there, and the aftermath when she'd vanished. Again, she left out the part about love magic, only mentioning that Twilight managed to break the spell and redirect the magical energies away from the circle. That moment where they had tapped into the power of their feelings for another had been so intimate that Sunset wanted to keep it private from everyone, even her co-founder.

"…And after we grabbed everything that looked important, Twilight and I went to get dinner. Sorry about keeping you in the dark again." Sunset met the intense gaze of the woman on the other side of the screen.

"I see," Starlight said curtly. "So will Professor Sparkle be returning to Hayvard now that her part in this endeavor has been played?"

Sunset chose to ignore the hopeful note in her voice. "Not yet. I'm still hoping to leverage her expertise to help me puzzle out whatever Adagio has planned, and she's staying here until the Exhibition anyways."

"She's attending the Exhibition?" Starlight tried to keep her voice indifferent and professional, but Sunset could sense the strain beneath it.

"Yeah. Rarity invited her at the welcome party last night, and she said yes."

"She seems to have integrated back into your circle of friends quite quickly," Starlight noted with disapproval. "You've been spending an awful lot of time with her outside of tracking down the journal's thief."

"Is that a problem?" Sunset asked bluntly.

"That depends," Starlight replied. "Do you still remember why you founded Equinox Labs? What this company really stands for?"

Sunset glared at Starlight. "Of course I remember," she said hotly, "I've spent fifteen years fighting to bring magic back into this world. I'm not going to give up on it."

"Really? Then why are you hanging out with someone who is diametrically opposed to our ultimate goal?" The accusation was plain in Starlight's equally heated words. "Someone who ruined your chance of reaching your dream fifteen years ago and nearly took it away from you forever?"

"I told you, it's complicated. We were just teenagers and we acted out of emotion. It's different now."

"Oh? So does that mean Professor Sparkle is on board with our plans?" Starlight raised an eyebrow as she waited for Sunset's answer.

"Well, no," Sunset admitted before quickly adding, "but I'm working on it! Twilight's brilliant; she'll come around. She's already gotten over a lot of her prejudices against magic – just today, we made a major breakthrough in developing a teleportation lattice. Can you imagine everything we could do with her on our side? All the advances we could make in developing magical technologies for both worlds? I just need to convince her to see things our way."

"And you're sure you can do this?" Starlight asked sceptically. "What if the opposite happens? What if she poisons your mind with her own beliefs?"

"That won't happen," Sunset said firmly. "Like I said, she's already starting to come around. Just give it time."

"And if there isn't enough time?" Starlight pressed. "What happens if she comes into direct opposition with our plans? Will you act against her?" Sunset hesitated for just a moment before answering, but that was all the shrewd negotiator needed. "See? She's a danger to all of us. You know how important our work is; we can't afford to let your feelings destroy everything we've built."

Sunset regained her composure and gazed coolly at her second-in-command. "Equinox Labs is my company, and I will stand by it." She put every ounce of authority she had into her voice. "My loyalty to our cause is beyond question. I'll get Twilight on our side, and if she doesn't see the light in time, then she'll be left behind in the shadows as we move forward."

"Fine," Starlight grumbled. "I'm not happy about it, but I can see you're dead set on this. Just don't let all your friendship crap get in the way of doing what's right. The fate of the world is worth more than a few burned bridges."

"Noted," Sunset said, still maintaining her air of command. "Now, is there anything else we need to discuss."

"Nothing urgent," Starlight replied. "I've sent a summary of the day's event to your email already to peruse at your leisure."

"Thanks. I'm going to go to the lab and see if I can get some more progress done on figuring out Adagio's plans. Call me if any crisis pops up."

"Of course. Good night, Sunset."

"Good night, Starlight." Sunset turned her webcam off and allowed her head to slump against the back of her chair with a light thump. She suddenly felt exhausted, the adrenaline and ecstasy of the day finally wearing off and leaving her aware of just how drained she was. The reminder of the great ideological gulf between her and Twilight didn't help matters.

They would have to talk about it one day, and likely soon, with them closing in on Adagio. But hopefully she'd be able to sway Twilight more to her side before that happened – as she had said to Starlight, Twilight would be an invaluable ally in the fight to bring magic back into this world.

The idea of spending her days side-by-side with the beautiful scientist sent a jolt of happiness through her brain, and Sunset stood up with a renewed sense of vigor. She grabbed her notebook and pen and headed towards the door to the elevator, intent on stopping Adagio, convincing Twilight to join her cause, and bringing magic into the world.

After fifteen years to hardship and pain, she was finally going to have her happy ending. And nobody was going to stop her.

Author's Note:

Finally finished all the edits/rewrites for this fic, so I'm going to switch to a semi-weekly updated schedule since I don't need a backlog anymore.

Comments

[Glitter Hamburger]

We still know little about Starlight. Is she just jealous or actually concerned about Sunset's well-being? I'm also waiting for that betrayal with the second glowing moss sample to become relevant... But for now, things are cute.

Also, yay for more frequent updates!

[Shadow_Wolf]

I'm not totally sure I trust this version of Starlight... Me thinks she doth protest a tad too much.

[Boltstrike58]

I'm gonna go out on a limb here, and guess that Starlight's evil.

[livinthelife]

Damn it, Sunset. Things were getting all nice and fluffy and you just had to follow it up by sounding like a Bond villain. And I don’t like you hanging around with that Glimmer girl, she’s a bad influence on you.

[MEGA LM ShiroHige Pony]

Starlight is giving me REALLY BAD waves here...

Is she going to eventually make an alliance with Adagio at Sunset´s back to bring magic in her own terms? maybe

What makes me sad is that Sunset avoid to tell her about her new relationship with Twilight, but now I can't wait for the next chapter

This part alone is what makes crystal clear that Starlight could be even more selfish that Sunset was 15 years ago

"That depends," Starlight replied. "Do you still remember why you founded Equinox Labs? What this company really stands for?"

Sunset glared at Starlight. "Of course I remember," she said hotly, "I've spent fifteen years fighting to bring magic back into this world. I'm not going to give up on it."

"Really? Then why are you hanging out with someone who is diametrically opposed to our ultimate goal?" The accusation was plain in Starlight's equally heated words. "Someone who ruined your chance of reaching your dream fifteen years ago and nearly took it away from you forever?"

"I told you, it's complicated. We were just teenagers and we acted out of emotion. It's different now."

"Oh? So does that mean Professor Sparkle is on board with our plans?" Starlight raised an eyebrow as she waited for Sunset's answer.

"Well, no," Sunset admitted before quickly adding, "but I'm working on it! Twilight's brilliant; she'll come around. She's already gotten over a lot of her prejudices against magic – just today, we made a major breakthrough in developing a teleportation lattice. Can you imagine everything we could do with her on our side? All the advances we could make in developing magical technologies for both worlds? I just need to convince her to see things our way."

"And you're sure you can do this?" Starlight asked sceptically. "What if the opposite happens? What if she poisons your mind with her own beliefs?"

"That won't happen," Sunset said firmly. "Like I said, she's already starting to come around. Just give it time."

"And if there isn't enough time?" Starlight pressed. "What happens if she comes into direct opposition with our plans? Will you act against her?" Sunset hesitated for just a moment before answering, but that was all the shrewd negotiator needed. "See? She's a danger to all of us. You know how important our work is; we can't afford to let your feelings destroy everything we've built."

Sunset regained her composure and gazed coolly at her second-in-command. "Equinox Labs is my company, and I will stand by it." She put every ounce of authority she had into her voice. "My loyalty to our cause is beyond question. I'll get Twilight on our side, and if she doesn't see the light in time, then she'll be left behind in the shadows as we move forward."

"Fine," Starlight grumbled. "I'm not happy about it, but I can see you're dead set on this. Just don't let all your friendship crap get in the way of doing what's right. The fate of the world is worth more than a few burned bridges."

[Tsuguri]

Does anyone else have a feeling of foreboding that this conversation was recorded and that Twilight's going to see Sunset in total boss mode at the most inopportune time?

Just me? Hopefully it's just me. It'll be interesting to see how Starlight tries to either help or hurt this relationship though.

[Ri2]

I want Sunny to have a happy ending too. I just hope the cost isn't too high.

[ScisetShimmerEvan]

I hope starlight gets twilights trust eventually