Part I: Moon of Remorse || Chapter 6: The Second Day (Equine Persuasion)
Sunset limped painfully and groggily into the hallway. The sounds of breakfast being prepared filtered up the stairs, as did various smells – some of which she was comfortable with and some of which she was not. Her heart, which had been slightly buoyed up by the thought of food, sank. What if they don’t have anything I can eat? she wondered. Having slowly descended the stairs on her bottom, wincing the whole way, she stopped at the door to the kitchen to find Celestia working over the sink. A glance to her left found Luna in the eat-in area, putting the final touches on a table setting for three.
“Hello?” she asked timidly.
Celestia turned around and smiled warmly. Luna smiled too as she sat down at the table. “Good morning, Sunset. Why don’t you go and sit down? We are just about ready to eat. Are you hungry at all?”
Sunset nodded shyly. Feeling very uncomfortable, she limped across the kitchen toward the table. Celestia was at her arm in an instant as Luna rose to pull out a chair. “Is the pain bad today?” Celestia asked, concern clearly showing on her face.
Sunset looked up at her and nodded. “Well, the doctor predicted that,” Celestia observed. “The good news is that if today is the worst day things will start to get better soon. We’ll give you some medicine at breakfast. Can you make it on your own?”
In response Sunset looked back down, and with a look of determination, she crossed the rest of the kitchen and grabbed on to the back of the chair Luna had pulled out. She did, however, let Luna and Celestia help her sit down. She breathed a sigh of relief and Luna helped her push her chair in. Then Luna and Celestia each took a seat. Celestia was to Sunset’s right, and Luna was to her left.
Celestia said a simple and brief blessing, and then started to pass the dishes around. “You might find that our Sunday morning breakfast is perhaps not the healthiest possible. We take a break from eating healthy once a week – life gets too grey if you don’t get to have a treat sometimes.”
Sunset took the first dish. She opened it to find bacon inside. She covered it quickly and passed it to Luna, hoping no one had noticed. She fought a slightly nauseated feeling. The next dish was no help as it contained sausage. This time she could not conceal her nausea – plus she turned green.
“Oh, sweetie, what’s the matter?” asked Celestia solicitously. “Not a fan of bacon or sausage? I promise we’ll find something you like.”
Sunset looked at Celestia, then to Luna, then back to Celestia. It was clear she was extremely nervous about something. She tried to speak, but couldn’t find the right words. Celestia reached over and put her hand over Sunset’s. “It’s ok. Just tell us. You’re safe here. No one is upset with you.”
Sunset still had trouble getting it out. “Well, it’s just that…well…I’m…<frustrated sound>…well…I’m…kind of a vegetarian,” she finally said and looked down at her feet.
Celestia froze. To her credit, she managed to turn an even paler shade of white than usual. Her eyes widened in mortification. There were a few seconds of silence, which Luna used to wage a losing war against breaking out in an amused smile.
“Of course you are darling,” Celestia said a bit louder than usual, as if she was chastising herself. “Whatever can I have been thinking?”
Luna did not quite snigger. Sunset had not noticed. She said, clearly feeling as though she had committed a major social offense, “I’m sorry. I should probably eat whatever you put in front of me. I’ll…”
But Celestia cut her off, scowling at her sister as she did so. “Certainly not. You are going through quite enough without having to also deal with a major, and probably gastronomically unacceptable, dietary change. I suppose in Equestria you knew some…pigs. Perhaps personally?” Celestia mused uncomfortably, raising her eyebrows. Luna was trying very hard not to laugh out loud at this point.
Sunset could only give Celestia a pained look. Luna, who now had tears of mirth leaking out of the corners of her eyes, smiled broadly at Sunset and apologized. “You must forgive us, my dear. You are our first resident of an…equine persuasion.” She finally gave in and started to laugh in earnest.
Celestia looked at her sister indignantly, but this only caused Luna to laugh harder. In spite of herself, Sunset found Luna’s merriment, and Celestia’s consternation, infectious. First the corners of her lips began to turn up, then she smiled, then she chuckled. “Equine persuasion!” she echoed, causing Luna to become nearly hysterical.
As soon as Celestia saw Sunset start to smile, she relaxed. She allowed herself to chuckle as well, as she could clearly see there was some humor in the situation. As Luna started to bring herself under control, she turned back to Sunset. “I do apologize, Sunset.” She thought for a moment. “Do you drink milk? Perhaps some cereal would do.”
Sunset nodded, “Oh yes, we certainly do consume dairy products. We love ice cream and milk and even butter. Even eggs are ok.”
Celestia sighed in relief. “And don’t worry,” Sunset continued. “The pigs and things like that in Equestria aren’t intelligent. But we definitely don’t eat them. Aside from ponies being herbivores, most farm animals just hit too close to home. I think it would be like humans eating monkeys.”
“Yes,” agreed Celestia, “that does not sound appetizing; though I am sure there are a few places where it is done. Let me get you some cereal and milk. Is 2% ok? And how about Captain Crunch?”
Sunset smiled again. “Captain Crunch?” she asked skeptically.
“As I may have mentioned, my dear, on Sundays we loosen the dietary guidelines considerably. The fact, however, that your principal and vice principal eat Captain Crunch at all will remain classified,” said Celestia meaningfully.
Sunset had not stopped smiling. “Captain Crunch would be fantastic. And your secret is safe with me.”
After breakfast, Celestia had yet another bombshell to drop on Sunset – albeit a good one. “We’re going shopping!”
“We are?” she asked in confusion. She was feeling a bit better with some food in her stomach and some ibuprofen kicking in. It really did help a lot.
“Of course!” Luna cried. “You need stuff. Lots of stuff!”
“I…do?”
“Yes, Sunset,” said Celestia. “I know this is a big adjustment for you, but just think! You have a home now, and a room of your own. Where were you planning on doing your homework? Do you even like your bedding? How many outfits do you actually have? And how old are those boots? And do you plan on using Luna’s toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, and soap for the rest of your time here?”
“Uhhhhh…I guess…not?”
“Not,” Celestia confirmed. “Oh, this is going to be so much fun!” She actually rubbed her hands together. Luna grinned at her hugely.
Sunset could not believe it, breaking into a bemused smile. The two older women were acting almost like teenagers. She was realizing that being family to them meant she would see sides of them that the other students at school would never see. It was unnerving, but interesting and amusing too.
“We’re leaving as soon as possible,” said Luna intensely. “So go get dressed and get ready. There’s no time to lose!”
The ibuprofen helped enough that Sunset was able to get around on her crutches with minimal pain. The main problem was the fatigue and weakness. Every ten or fifteen minutes she just had to stop and rest for a while. Celestia and Luna were wonderful – they had not had any issue with the breaks. In fact, to Sunset’s amazement, they always seemed to let her rest in a perfect location to make decisions.
It was bewildering. In the interest of efficiency, they had decided to go to a huge all-in-one store and were rampaging from one department to the next. It was not long before Sunset had chosen a desk and chair, a lamp for her desk, office supplies, a dresser/mirror combo, a couple pieces of surprisingly decent wall art, new bedding, and her own set of toiletries and makeup. In each case she generally tried to select the least expensive option, but Celestia and Luna would have none of it. Sunset, unable to lie, was forced to be honest about which option she liked best, which was promptly added to the cart or, if too large, taken to the cash register area by a member of the store’s staff. Celestia and Luna even teased her by asking her to select one or more stuffed animals. To humor them, she settled on a plushie of a purple unicorn that bore a striking (and slightly disconcerting) resemblance to Twilight.
Next was clothing. Celestia and Luna led her around to the various sections as she picked out tops, bottoms, skirts, socks, pajamas, a bathrobe, a winter jacket, a winter hat, gloves, an umbrella, boots, shoes, a purse, a couple nice dresses for more formal occasions, and assorted foundational garments. Then she was propelled into a changing room with Luna, who helped her to try each thing on. If something didn’t fit, or didn’t look good, Luna took it back out to Celestia, who either went and got a different size, or got a totally different option.
There were a few tears here and there, of course. Not only was Sunset overwhelmed, but she certainly didn’t think she deserved any of this. Plus it had been over two and half years since she had lived in anything but relative poverty. Celestia and Luna were very gentle, and gave her time to compose herself with plenty of hugs whenever Sunset broke down.
It was nearly noon when they finally arrived at the cash register. The clerk rang up the total, which ended up being some distance into four figure territory. Sunset’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. “Are you sure about all this?” she asked Celestia, astounded.
“Sunset,” Celestia said, as Luna presided over the loading of their shopping carts, “to be perfectly honest, Luna and I had both hoped to have children of our own by now, but it hasn’t worked out that way. We have some nieces and nephews, of course, but we don’t see them very often. We have a very comfortable life, and we enjoy spending money on each other, but it is a rare privilege and a joy to spend some money on someone else. You truly are a part of our family now, and, frankly, you’re just going to have to get used to getting spoiled a bit.”
“You don’t think I’m spoiled enough already?” Sunset asked, completely seriously.
“Not in the way that you mean. You’ve clearly been living a very hard life in many ways, Sunset, but no daughter of mine is going to keep living like that. Did you think we were going to make you sleep on the couch? Go to school in worn out old clothes? You didn’t even have a winter jacket!” Celestia put a hand on Sunset’s shoulder. “You have a lot to learn about how to treat others. One of the best ways to learn will be to watch, and accept, how we treat you.”
Sunset smiled a little then. “Ok. I’ll try. And thank you. Thank you both!” she said a little more loudly, making sure Luna heard her too. Luna grinned back.
“You are very welcome,” Celestia said warmly. “Now let’s go get lunch. We need to be fortified, because this afternoon the real fun begins!”
After a nice, long, relaxing lunch (which had the added benefit of allowing Sunset to rest and recover some of her limited strength), the three women headed for a nearby mall. Sunset had no idea what was going on. When she asked, she was told to ‘wait and see’, and that ‘it was a surprise’.
The first stop was a cell phone store. Sunset was prevailed upon to select a very nice smartphone, which was then added to the family package that Celestia and Luna had with their current carrier. To Sunset’s surprise, she almost immediately began receiving texts from Pinkie, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow, and Fluttershy. Confused, she raised an eyebrow to Celestia.
“I may have given them your new number already,” she said airily.
Next was the electronics store. Again, Sunset had no idea what to expect, but in short order she had been endowed with a new, high quality laptop computer. She was totally amazed. She had always used the school computers before, but now that wouldn’t be necessary. It was a new world in more ways than one.
Celestia and Luna still seemed as excited as they had been in the morning. “I think that’s enough for today,” Celestia said with satisfaction.
“Right you are, Tia. Now, a quick stop at your old place, Sunset, then let’s get home and get you all moved in and set up!” said Luna cheerily.
This was the depressing part of the day. Sunset soon found herself in bitterly familiar surroundings, as Celestia’s car came to a stop next to the abandoned warehouse in which Sunset had squatted for over two years. She found that she didn’t have the emotional strength to go in herself, so Luna volunteered. Sunset gave her the specific instructions necessary to find her guitar, amp, and sheet music – usually she had kept them hidden in case the warehouse got ransacked while she was at school.
It was only a few minutes until Luna came back out of the warehouse carrying a familiar looking light blue and white guitar and little black amp. The sheet music was tucked under her arm. Sunset felt her spirits lift slightly as Luna got back into the car, putting the amp under her feet and the guitar across her lap. It was the only place she could put it as the rest of the back seat and the trunk were completely taken up by packages and bags. Luna gave Sunset a winning smile as she clicked her seatbelt into place. “It’s a really nice one, Sunset!” she said. “Maybe you’ll let me take it for a spin every now and then?”
“Of course,” Sunset answered with a lopsided smile. “I’m just glad it was still there.”
“You’d hidden it very well.”
Celestia started to pull out of the parking lot. Sunset found, to her surprise, that she was craning her neck to see the warehouse one final time as they started back toward the other side of town. She put her hands on the window as she pressed her face against it to watch it for as long as she could before it was out of sight.
“It’s complicated, isn’t it?” Luna said quietly from the back of the car. Sunset’s face fell and she slumped back into her seat. “It was a hard and lonely place to live, but it was your home, for a time.”
Sunset’s lower lip screwed itself up as she nodded and fought tears. She gripped the armrest tightly. Celestia reached over and covered her hand with her own. After a moment Sunset regained her composure enough to speak, though her voice was tight. “It was the first shelter I found the night I came here. It was raining, and it was so cold. I know it was a dump, but it kept me dry, and once I found an old mattress and some blankets, it even kept me kind of warm.”
“That was what, March, April, 2011?” Celestia asked.
“March.”
“Yes,” Celestia mused. “that was an unusually chilly spring.”
Upon their arrival at the townhouse, Sunset was taken inside and made to rest on her bed while everything was moved in and set up. It took some time, of course, but as evening approached her new bedding was on the bed, her desk and dresser were set up, the wall art was hung, her new clothes had populated the dresser and closet, and her toiletries were in the shower and medicine cabinet in the bathroom.
Sunset’s head was spinning, and for a few minutes she just stared at her new room and blinked. Celestia and Luna were down in the kitchen getting dinner. It was the first time Sunset had been alone for many hours. To her surprise, she didn’t feel terrified. Overwhelmed, astonished, bewildered, disoriented – yes, but not afraid. She didn’t fully understand why she wasn’t afraid, but she suspected it had to do with the clear goodwill and affection that Celestia and Luna were showering her with.
She looked around. The lamp on her bedside table cast a warm, welcoming glow about her room. The two new pictures on her wall made her feel safe – the one on the right was a large painting of a countryside that bore an uncanny resemblance to the view from Canterlot Castle, and one on the left was a large painting of a setting sun, whose rays reminded her of her own Cutie Mark. On her desk sat her new computer, now in sleep mode, next to her pretty new pink and white desk lamp. On the other side of her bed, the desk, lamp, and setting sun picture were reflected in the large oval mirror affixed to the back of her dresser. Out in the hallway more warm lamplight from a small end table on the landing helped make the townhouse seem even more cheerful as the fall evening began to cloak it in darkness. The final, most comforting touch, was that she could hear pots, pans and plates clanking in the kitchen down the stairs, interspersed with the voices of her adopted mother and aunt as they conferred about dinner. She just shook her head in amazement.
“Sunset! I have one more surprise for you tonight!” Celestia’s voice suddenly came up the stairs. Sunset braced herself – as happy as the day had been, she didn’t have much left in terms of emotional reserve. But it turned out she had nothing to worry about.
Footsteps came up the stairs, and she saw Celestia turn the corner around the banister, followed by someone who Sunset couldn’t make out. Celestia came into her room and stood aside to reveal Rarity.
“Rarity!” Sunset exclaimed with what little energy she had.
Rarity felt her heart swell. Sunset’s smile had been small and wan, but it had clearly been heartfelt. “Hello, darling,” she said warmly, returning Sunset’s smile.
“But what are you doing here? Tomorrow’s a school day.”
“Not for me!” said Rarity enigmatically.
“Sunset,” said Celestia. “Rarity is going to stay the night, and then she’s going to hang out here with you tomorrow.”
“I’m…not going to school?” Sunset asked in confusion.
“No. You are in too much pain, and too weak, to go back to school so soon. There are other reasons to stay home for while as well, but we won’t get into them right now,” Celestia answered.
“Ok…it will be nice to spend the day with Rarity, but how can she stay with me?”
“Each of your friends will be spending a day and night of the week with you. I’m afraid Luna and I can’t take an extended absence from school – at least not on such short notice. Plus, there is some damage control to do, as you might suspect.” Sunset hung her head. “But mainly, we don’t want you to have to be home alone all day.”
Sunset looked up. “Celestia…I promise…I’m not thinking about…ending it all. I couldn’t do that to you, or Luna, or the girls.”
“It’s not just that,” said Rarity, “though it’s nice to know that you’re at least feeling like there’s hope. Mostly, we just want someone to be with you so that you won’t feel lonely, and in case you have trouble with the stairs, or walking, or something like that. What if you fell and had trouble getting up, or hurt your knee again by accident? No, we need to take care of you. That’s all,” Rarity finished with an encouraging smile.
“Oh. Well, when you put it that way, I guess it does make sense. Though I hate to be a burden.”
“You’re not a burden,” said Celestia firmly. “We enjoy helping you to recover. And it’s fun to watch you change, too.”
Sunset blushed furiously and looked away.
Rarity decided to help change the subject, as her newest friend was clearly embarrassed. “Sunset, darling, your room looks positively fabulous! Won’t you give me the grand tour?”
Celestia chuckled. “I’ll leave you two girls to it. Dinner’s in half an hour.”
Darkness. Pain. Exhaustion. Sorrow. No, not again! Please, not again! Once again Sunset pushed herself to her hands and knees. Once again she crawled slowly up the side of the crater, scraping and cutting herself as she slipped. But this time was different. No incensed princess stood over her, weighing her actions and finding them lacking. No sign of Twilight’s friends. In fact, no one at all. A deep sense of foreboding crept over her.
She reached the edge of the crater and looked over. Then she understood. No, not this! Anything but this! A horrifying vision greeted her eyes. Lying, completely still, on the ground in front of her was the body of Twilight Sparkle. A cold wind gently blew through her indigo hair. The lifeless forms of her friends surrounded her.
Somehow Sunset climbed out of the crater. She crawled to Twilight’s body, and sobbing with despair, she gently slid her arms under Twilight’s shoulders and head and cradled her to her chest. Never had she felt such sorrow, not even when the Rainbow Wave had forced her to face all her wicked deeds and her loneliness.
Suddenly she felt a hot wind strike her back, accompanied by the sound of flapping. Slowly, unwillingly, she raised her head and looked behind her. As she had dreaded, her demon form hovered in the air behind her, smiling tauntingly.
“You know who killed them, don’t you, Sunset?” the dark thing asked. Sunset shook her head violently, pleading with the demon not to say it. “Yes! WE killed them! YOU killed them!”
“NOOOOOOO!!” Sunset wailed. “Take me! Take my life instead of theirs! Please!” she screamed at the crimson sky.
She did not realize she had cried the last part aloud. But Rarity certainly did. Knowing Sunset had had another nightmare, she leapt out of the cot and wrapped her arms around Sunset, who was bawling inconsolably.
“Shh, shh, darling, it was only a nightmare. It wasn’t real. I promise,” she said softly.
Celestia and Luna burst in, looking concerned. They quickly understood what had happened, and both of them sat down on the bed close to Sunset. They let Rarity do the holding – it was her turn. Rarity smiled at them, appreciating the support.
It took a while for Sunset to calm down this time. The pure horror of dreaming of Twilight and her friends dead was not easy to shake.
Rarity just waited. As her crying slowed, Rarity gently asked, “Can you tell us about it, darling? It will help. Don’t try to carry the pain alone.”
Sunset looked up at her sadly. “You were dead. All of you. I had killed you! And the demon was taunting me…Oh Rarity!” She buried her face in Rarity’s shoulder. “I couldn’t bear it!”
Rarity sighed heavily as Celestia’s and Luna’s faces fell. “Oh darling. How perfectly awful,” she commiserated. She waited a few moments, then said, “But I’m not dead, Sunset. I’m alive. I’m all right. We all are.”
Sunset looked up at her, searching her eyes. Rarity smiled back. She took Sunset’s hand and put it on her neck. “Here. Feel my pulse. It’s ok, sweetheart. Everything is all right.”
This actually helped Sunset quite a bit. She collapsed even further against Rarity, sighing with relief. The others relaxed as well. The worst part of the crisis appeared to be passing. Once again they let Sunset rest for a few moments. Then Celestia spoke up.
“You said something at the end of the dream, Sunset.”
“I did?”
“Yes, we all heard it. Do you remember what it was?” Celestia asked.
Sunset thought for a moment. “No, I don’t remember clearly. I was…beside myself I guess.”
“No one blames you for that. This is not a test. But I want to tell you what you said, because it is important.”
Sunset took a deep breath. “Ok,” she agreed.
“You said, Take me. Take my life instead of theirs.”
Sunset just stared for a few seconds. Then: “I said that? I said that?”
“Yes,” confirmed Celestia simply.
Sunset considered this.
“The demon wouldn’t say that, would she?” Luna pointed out.
Sunset considered this too. She looked amazed.
“She wouldn’t have. No way. You aren’t the demon, Sunset. Not anymore,” said Rarity, shaking her head.
Realization dawned on Sunset. She broke into a smile – a true smile, free of fear for the time being. Her eyelids immediately began to droop.
“Back to sleep, sweet girl,” said Rarity affectionately. “Hush now, go back to sleep.”
Sunset was out again in less than a minute. And this time, she slept a deep, peaceful, dreamless sleep until morning.
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Oh my god she's so childish
Correction, they're both children.
Wonder if she will call it Twilight.
This moment is too precious. Kinda sad, yet beautiful <3
Oh damn the part where rarity let sunset feel her pulse was so sweet
What in the world? This is a stage direction or something. This has no place in a novel.
So you decided to not have her go back to school. Looking forward to the one-on-one time with each of her new friends.
That, that nightmare was the worse one out of the ones she's had so far. Ugh! "shudder"
9593087
Yeah, that's the worst one.
lol, I happen to love captain crunch as well. If my parents got me a box I'd consume it under a week. I really enjoy the many different variations. Well all except 1 I tried that made my stomach upset. But other than that I still enjoy that cereal.
Never thought I'd ever see those two that excited.