Flicker

by Red Hood

Prologue [Last Glances]

Alright, Shimmer. Just breathe in … and out. In … and out. You’re gonna be fine. You’re gonna go back to Equestria, back to home. You’re gonna see Princess Celestia for the first time in forever since being an over confident doofus and she’s totally not going to turn into Nightmare Sun and murder you the second you and Twilight come through the porta-

“-unset!” a voice calls. “You ok? You’re looking pretty nervous there, and panicking is usually my thing.”

I chuckle at that, standing outside in a calm summer afternoon breeze, which, mind you, is completely unlike yours truly at the moment. The slight wind present rustles my hair, swatting a good few strands across face. Some of the blown locks end up stuck in my mouth, because of course that would happen. I spit them out before replying.

“Yeah.” Pausing for a brief moment before continuing, I nervously crack my knuckles against my jacket sleeves. “Yeah, I’m fine Twilight. Just a bit … nervous is all. I mean, it’s just been so long since I’ve been to Equestria, back to … well, home. And I guess I’m just a liiittle on edge about seeing Princess Celestia again, much less meeting her. I’ve got no idea how that reunion’s gonna go or if she’s forgiven me or if she even wants me back or-”

A purple hand finds its way onto my shaking shoulders, interrupting my panicked ramblings.

“Sunset, she helped set this whole thing up with me for you. She wouldn’t have done that if she didn’t want you back, but you don’t have to go if you don’t want to. We can just hang out at your place or something, and I’ll tell Celestia to call it off for now. I’m sure she’ll understand.”

Ugh, man, why does she have to be such a good friend?

I turn my head to look at her, lips parting to sigh outwardly. “No, Twilight. I’ve needed this for a long time. And besides, you came out all this way from Equestria just to see me out and back home. Heck, you even arranged a whole homecoming dinner party thing for me! It’s the least I can do after all you’ve done for me, no matter how nervous I might be.”

At that, she sighs and smiles sadly at me, just as I knew she would. It’s funny, despite how long it’s been since we’ve really talked face to face, we can still pretty much read each other like a book, which I’m sure she’s totally fine with considering she’s … well … ya know.

The hand lifts, rests against her side, then falls still before she responds. “Alright, Sunset. If you say you’re alright, I’ll believe you. But don’t have my signature Twilight breakdowns when we get there alright?”

I giggle again, but, not really knowing what to say after, an awkward silence settles between us for a moment, allowing for only the sounds around us to be heard. I relish in the moment for a while, listening to the sounds of chirping birds, rustling leaves, and even the milling about of people across the street, knowing that soon enough, there would be only the sounds of the Canterlot Castle and it’s inhabitants to comfort me.

Eventually, though, my brief period of respite ended. “So, uh …” Twilight awkwardly scratched the back of her head for a moment, staring at me with that signature goofy smile of hers. “You ready?”

I sucked in the last few breaths on Earth I’d have for a while. “Yeah, Twilight. I’m ready.”

As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I steeled myself, looking to Twilight for some sense of composure before stepping forward. As the sun set on the dawn of the earth around me, colours of red, orange, and yellow dancing in mixed hues across the sky, I took another step towards the portal, the sounds of my footsteps echoing off the concrete below. I continued to move forward, and before I knew it, I stood in front of the statue, feeling the cool of the shadow cast by it above me.

Before I stepped forward again, I looked back to Earth one last time, taking in the front of the currently vacant Canterlot High School, now out for summer break, before turning again to Twilight. She looked at me questioningly, wearing a look as if to ask me if I was really ready for this. In response to a wordless question, I wordlessly answered, nodding, and turned again to the portal, stepping forward one final time.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The first thing I felt was the ground giving out from below me, sending my mind into a panic mode before the vertigo set in, only exacerbating my freaked out brain. The next thing I felt was my face smashing against a polished floor and wind rushing out from my throat.

“Oof!”

I lied there for a moment, rubbing a forehoof against my forehead, feeling the early throbs of a headache setting in. I was about to try and stand up before the familiar voice of Twilight called out to me, sounding rather frantic.

“Sunset, are you ok?! You hit your head really hard there!”

I groaned, pushing myself up on my hooves before replying, my voice coming out as more of a breathy wheeze more than anything. “Uuuungh, yeah, Twilight. I’m … huff ... fine. Head hurts a bit, though? Might need something for that later …”

I was about to fall down again before a purple blur rushed to my side, standing me up with it’s forehooves. Eventually my vision cleared enough for me to see it, recognizing the face of Twilight Sparkle.

“I’ve never had that bad a reaction to coming through the portal. Even when I came through the ... last time.” I sighed the last words out with a grimace, letting guilt etch into my face as the memories of the Fall Formal came flooding back.

Twilight, noticing my distress, pulled me into a one hoof hug. “Sunset, it’s fine. You’ve changed. I’ve forgiven you, Celestia's forgiven you. But ... as for the other thing? I have no idea. My only guess is that your distress just got the better of you.”

“Yeah, I guess so. Anyways, uh …” I trailed off, scraping my hoof against the reflective marble floor, not really wanting to know the answer to my question. “When are we going to meet with Princess Celestia, exactly?”

From the right of us, a door opened.

I froze.

“Oh. Now’s when.”

Author's Note:

Hey, everybody. Hope you enjoyed the first part of the fic here. It's my first time attempting to write fanfiction in a long time, so I'd appreciate as much feedback as possible!

Stay tuned for the next part, where I'm sure a certain goddess and her old protege will have a very emotional conversation.

Comments

[Czar_Yoshi]

Oh hey, it's been a long time since I've seen any new Princess Twi/Sunset. And it's pretty decent, too. Not too much to go off of, yet, but it also does a good job avoiding some common warning signs. Grammar isn't spotless, but it's much, much better than I usually see for first/derusting stories.

Please keep this up. I'll be watching.

[Soufriere]

This is a nice little story, especially for a first (or first-in-a-long-time). The description is enticing. I look forward to seeing more of what you have planned, and more work from you in general.

[Pete_Bagheera]

Stay tuned for the next part, where I'm sure a certain goddess and her old protege will have a very emotional conversation.

Well, I'm staying tuned!

[narusakufan]

This sounds really good. I can't wait for more.

[BenRG]

A bit on the short side. You needed to either have more prologue (Sunset contacting Twilight about going back and her farewells with her friends) or more in the Castle of Friendship (disapproving!Starlight Glimmer or running into Captain Flash Sentry who, understandably, treats her as a security risk).

As matters stand, this chapter is hard-pressed to tempt people back for the next instalment.

[Composer99]

As the sun set on the dawn of the earth around me,

Say again?

Good start.

[Dave Bryant]

There’s some tense trouble—it starts out in present tense, then abruptly switches to past tense mid-stream—and a few wording quirks here and there, but you’re off to a promising start.