Every action taken is like dropping a pebble in a pond, creating ripples that extend ever outward. Every choice has consequences, good and bad... Putting on a Crown may have changed Sunset Shimmer's life...but it also Changed two worlds...
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Well duh, to a pony like Sunset humans are obsessed with sex. It's a case of Sunset's pony brain not knowing how to handle human hormones. Since Equestria is a land for children, it makes sense that they are not sex freaks. It's an extreme case of body dysphoria.
Ok, now I want a "Sunset Shimmer is a horse" compilation, like this one:
(Yeah, been watching She-Ra lately)
Mmm, y'know, I was wondering if you'd use "victim of assault" in her backstory. I her reaction stemming more from the alienness of her body instead is something I've not seen explored before.
I picture Cadance making this sound:
What I really want now though is for Twilight to find out her girlfriend is a unicorn~
Did human Cadance even show up again after Friendship Games?
Sunset's breakdown was really heart-wrenching. And the cross wiring between her pony mind and human brain makes for some really good drama, especially since she probably comes from a species that undergoes heat cycles rather than being receptive all the time.
But what makes this whole chapter so heartwarming for me is that throughout her panic and confusion, one of the reasons she pulled away was that she was worried about hurting Twilight. Even in the heat of passion, Twilight safety comes first.
This was some really good stuff. I really liked how freely Sunset was displaying her differences, and yet it still all came out in such a way that Cadance took it all just as "confused teenager going through their first time." In her own mind, Sunset was talking about the differences between ponies and humans, and all Cadance heard was a young girl who had never had the sexuality spectrum (or desire in general) explained to her comparing herself to "normal" and coming up short. And both of their interpretations of the talk were correct.
Heck, Sunset cultural dysphoria in the heat of the moment, as it were, and subsequently talking it over with Twilight and Cadance, is still gratuitous Sunlight in a way. And as I remain fascinated by this exploration of pony on Earth, as opposed to human in Equestria, I certainly take it as such, and enjoy it as same.
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Eh, certainly that's why the show never really went into those subjects. But from a "extrapolate to the real world" point of view, it's a completely believable take on "what if there was a fully sapient species with a seasonal cycle rather than a menstrual cycle." They would just have a far different view on sex than humans do. Of course, humans would have a very different take if it hadn't gotten mixed up in religion a few thousand years ago, but that's a different issue altogether.
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Argent brought up some good points that I want to echo--its not that Equestria is a "world of/for children" in this story. While I understand a lot of the "Out of Character"/Meta reasons for things being portrayed the way they are in the show, I prefer to look at what we are presented with and ask the question "How would a real culture/species/society evolve with these things as part of it?" In this story, its not that everything is g-rated in Equestria--elsewise, where would baby ponies come from?--but more that you're looking at a sentient species that developed not just with a rapidly different body plan than humans, but also with none of the religious, historical, cultural, or biological imperatives that led to the modern society we possess in the "Western World."
Does Sunset have some body dysphoria? Yes, but not as much as you might think. She's had five years to adjust to a good bit of it, from hands to a bipedal stance to a flat face to breasts to a lack of inherent magic. She's adapted rather well, and has learned to "pass" as human in most situations. What's tripping her now is a mixture of things, some of which is body dysphoria in regards to adolescent human sexual urges, but a greater part of which is actually a type of culture shock, in an area where there is a great deal of room for vast differences between the two species--and its this culture shock which is actually exacerbating the species/body dysphoria.
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*grins* look, half of my thought process in writing Sunset is what parts of her instinctive behaviors are pony ones that she doesnt think to actively control or cant actively control. Even things that are completely explainable to human eyes sometimes have their origin in equine body language. ...That, and the idea of "Sunset Shimmer does horsey things" is hilarious to me. (And She-Ra was amazing. Did my Child-of-the-80s Heart good to watch it.)
...Yeah, no. As I said in the author's note for an earlier chapter, Sexual Assault is a kind of touchy subject, and I don't like the idea of it being a "throw away" plot device the way most media handles it, with female response falling into one of like three "tropes" appropriate. At the same time, I also recognize the unfortunate reality that most women, even in first world countries, will at some point, encounter a person (usually male, but not always) who thinks they can take personal liberties. I do my best to address it realistically, with various characters having different responses to the matter (Sparky actually has some impending things that involve how she has been handling what happened to her back in the early chapters, things that will continue all the way through arc 2.) In Sunset's case, she is more likely to respond to attempts with fury and aggression, and she's taken steps to learn to defend herself, something that is particularly effective against most teenage males who might try to get grabby.
But yes, Sunset likes to be in control. Her body doing things she doesnt want it to, or that arent in her control are upsetting, and in this case, there is another side to what's going, on...but that's next week's chapter. Bruhahahah.
...That is an accurate representation of the sound Cadence makes. I feel like Sunset is eventually going to develop a 'squeal scale' based on the different people she knows.
Keep waiting. There's a lot to go before Twilight discovers the truth. >:}
And...No, I dont think we see human Cady after the third movie. She's mentioned in...Dance Magic, I think, in passing.
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Yup. So much for her to slog through, as a pony living as a human, and its really messing with her head. And I'm glad you liked the fluffy "Don't want to hurt Twilight" bit. That was super important to the character, and again, is something that will be delved into in subsequent chapters. :} Brace yourself for internal drama!!!!
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I wanted Sunset to share what she could, but she's so used to framing things in a human context that its almost second nature at this point. She does slip up a few times, talking about how human bodies are disgusting, or mentioning her "hide" instead of "skin" but...as I've learned, people tend to pass off little things like that as "eccentricities" rather than red flags. Especially for Cadence, who has some experience with folks who are on the "wrong" side of "normal" in their sexuality, romance, or what have you.
:} I'm glad though, that you're enjoying the "Sunset Culture Shock" dilemma. Buckle up now, you're in for a ride!
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I wanted to mention but forgot at first:
I like this method of Luna working out some aggression, finding equilibrium again through kicking some teenager butt in shooters amuses me.
I absolutely enjoy these two. Your portayl of Sunset is so interesting because of how different she is from what we see in the show. One of the things that always annoyed me from the animation was not once did Sunset ever refer to herself as a pony or unicorn. I always found that wrong because it was so key to get identity. She had to have been a powerful unicorn to be celestia's student. I'm sure it was discussed with her friends off screen, but that really bothered me.
I'm also pleased by Cadence being there to help both girls. I've never personally been in the situation where I feel so 'wrong' in my own body, but according to my sister, who is trans, it is a horrible, depressing, and frustrating feeling. Body conscious turned up to 11. Most people have a few things they don't like about themselves, but what Sunset feels? Just, ouch. Thanks again.
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I fully support the Headcanon of "Gamer Luna," and there's a measure of extreme catharsis involved in the gratuitous violence of a shooter, be it online or single player. Given that I am familiar with the stress of educators in the public education system (My mother was a teacher for years and is now a school librarian), I feel like an admin at a high school needs an outlet, especially when they are the school disciplinarian like Luna is.
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Honestly, I see the way I'm writing her as a progression of what we see in the Equestria Girls stuff--I've taken her original villain personality, her unsure, guilt ridden RR personality, and the more confident Sunset of the later specials as all part of who she really is, and worked out with her origins--being a powerful magic user, being a unicorn, living in a palace, growing up in a magical society, etc--to fill in the blanks in her psychology. In time, Rubicon's Sunset will be the confident young woman we see in Legend of Everfree and later specials, but she has to walk that path first, and its not easy or short. You dont just magically become a new person overnight, and a lot of the first three story arcs will be about Sunset's growth as a person, while she will always be recognizable as Sunset Shimmer.
Straight up? Dysphoria sucks. (I once described it as "Imagine you're wearing a set of clothing, and you hate it. It doesn't fit right, it pinches in weird places, and you hate how it makes you look and how people act about it. Everyone always says how good the outfit looks on you, and how you should appreciate it because its a wonderful outfit suited to you--they can't seem to understand how awful you feel wearing it, and if you try to tell them, they judge you for it. More than that, you COULD go get a different outfit, but they all have to be in the same style, and they will all pinch and bother you in the same way. You know, instinctively, if you could just put on a different outfit in a different style, you'd be happy and comfortable, but that's so much easier said than done.") Even if one doesn't have the "standard" kind of dysphoria, its a nightmare. In fact, from a personal perspective, its actually worse, because at least if you have the "standard" kind, you've got a label and the ability to say "Gee, there are other people like me." When you've got something that isn't on the books, and you've never heard of anyone with something similar, on top of feeling like you're trapped in your own skin, you get this sense of isolation and alienation...that you can't really talk about it with anyone because no one is going to really understand, and you're likely to catch flak from BOTH sides of the "argument." I noted in one of the other comments, while a portion of it is "crap, I'm in the wrong body," that feeling is exacerbated by the social and cultural conflict between Sunset's native culture (ponies), and the one she's trying to blend into (humans.) Like with a lot of the other serious subjects that get touched on in this story, I hope I'm doing the entire concept some measure of justice that both projects a level of realism, and allows the readers to understand it, even if its something they've never experienced for themselves.
This reminds me of She-Ra