Prologue - Home for the Holidays
Dear Princess Twilight,
I know this is kind of short notice, but I was wondering if I could come to Equestria for the holidays. You see, the winter break is starting, but all the girls are going to be out of town. This would have been the first holiday I had friends, so I was kind of looking forward to spending it with them. In my previous years here I spent the holidays digging up dirt on others, scheming, and stealing from collection bins (Ugh, I was horrible). But this year I want things to be different! So, since the girls are out of town, I thought it might be a good chance to come home for a visit.
Also, these last few months have made me realize how much enjoyment I denied myself for so long. I honestly, can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a Hearth’s Warming celebration. Heck, the last time I was back in Equestria, I didn’t even take the time to appreciate being there. Of course, I was a bit distracted with all the treason I was busy committing (sorry again). But I’m different now, and I know I can finally appreciate the holidays.
Of course, given that I WAS committing treason on my last visit, not to mention how horrible I was before I fled through the mirror the first time, I’d understand if I’m not allowed to return. Just thought I’d ask.
Your friend,
Sunset Shimmer
---
Dear Sunset,
Of course, you can spend the holidays here! I don’t know if you had any place, in particular, you wanted to go, but you’re more than welcome to join us for Hearth’s Warming, here in the castle! I hosted a big event last year, so this year I get to sit back and relax (comparatively speaking).
Also, you can stop feeling so guilty. As far as I’m concerned, you’ve more than made up for what you did in the past. You’re a completely different pony now! I’m proud of how far you’ve come. And if the girls are having their own out-of-town holidays, there’s no reason why you should be left behind to mope around!
Just let me know when you’re planning on coming over. I’ll have the portal open and be ready to meet you. ^_^
Your friend,
Twilight
P.S. You don’t have to call me “Princess”
---
Great! Could you have it open tonight? At say 8 pm?
-S
---
8 pm?
Tonight?
As in today!?
AS IN THIS DAY RIGHT NOW!?
---
Uhhh… yes? Is that a problem?
---
Problem!?
No! No problem at all! You can count on me to have everything ready. I’ll see you tonight Sunset, but I’m afraid I have to go now. I just remembered I have a lot to get ready! Nothing to do with your visit!
Just some standard items we’re out of for a casual holiday:
-White doves,
-Red carpet,
-A band.
You know totally normal Princess-y things. HAHAHA!
Your friend,
-Princess of Friendship: Twilight Sparkle of Equestria
---
Whoa! Twilight calm down! What’s with the full title? Do not go to any trouble for me! Also, PLEASE don’t get those three items! I’m not some visiting dignitary. In fact, I’m basically a fugitive!
Which reminds me, please don’t tell Princess Celestia about my visit. I’m just not ready to meet her.
Twilight?
Twilight!?
---
Hey Sunset, It’s Spike
---
Oh! Hey Spike. What’s going on over there?
---
Nothing too terrible, Twilight’s just… overpreparing for your visit. As I write this, she’s rounding up all the rugs in the castle and taking them outside for a beating. She’s also telling me to make a checklist of things that need to be done before your visit. Item 1 is: ‘Make a checklist of things that need to be done before Sunset Shimmer’s visit.’
---
Why is she going to so much trouble? Please tell me you aren’t actually writing that down.
---
It’s okay, I’m not. The castle is perfectly clean as it is. It’s just that this is your first visit and she wants to make a good impression. She thinks that, because you lived in Princess Celestia’s castle for several years, your standards are ridiculously high and she’s working herself into a frenzy to try to meet them.
---
Spike, I lived in an abandoned factory for my first few years here. Even if you work to make the castle dirty, I’ll still be floored. I’m afraid to ask but, aside from the rugs, just what does she think needs cleaning so bad?
---
…Well, I just looked into the library and saw her dusting, not only the books but the pages in the books as well.
---
Oh, come on! How would the pages inside a closed book even get dusty? Can you please stop her? If I walk through that portal and am welcomed by a red carpet, a flock of doves, a band, and a library full of dustless books, I will die of embarrassment.
---
I will in a few minutes. If she’s left alone for a bit, she should unwind enough to be open to reason. I’ve found that if you try stopping her too soon, she becomes even more manic. Don’t worry about the first three items, but I’m afraid the library is already a lost cause. She’s currently speculating on what sorting method you’d be most fond of and making a chart to help her narrow down choices.
---
Spike, when I’ve died, don’t let her go overboard with my funeral. In fact, just toss me into a ditch and let the elements take me. Facedown please, I don’t want anyone to see my mortified expression.
---
Wel- Oh Ponyfeathers! I just heard Starlight get home! Twilight’s excessive over-preparedness is only matched by Starlight’s tendency to solve every problem with some ridiculously over-the-top magic! I need to go before she gets pulled into Twilight’s cleaning spree. I just hope she doesn’t enchant the brooms again.
---
Enchanted brooms? Why’s that bad?
---
Nothing stopped them.
Not my ax.
Not my fire.
They just kept coming.
So many buckets of water.
---
Uhhh…Spike?
---
Sorry! Just a really bad memory. Anyway, come by at 8 tonight. I’ll see you then Sunset!
-Spike
---
See you then, Spike.
As she finished reading the most recent entry, Sunset Shimmer closed the journal that bore her cutie mark on the cover. The wind whipped at her fiery red and yellow hair, tossing it from one side to the other and leaving it a frazzled mess. The cold of the night brought a red tint to her amber cheeks. Her leather jacket provided less protection than she needed from the weather, but her winter coat had been stolen a few days ago. She shrugged, tugging on the strap of her bag, trying to get it to settle into a more comfortable position. She turned her attention to the base of the Wondercolts statue that guarded the entrance to Canterlot High. Her silhouette, cast by the light of the school’s front door, stood directly before her as she gazed at the stone surface containing the portal to Equestria.
She reached out to touch it. Cold stone greeted her palm. She quickly pulled her hand back, jammed it into her jacket pocket and pulled out her phone to check the time; 7:57 pm.
Should she write to let Twilight know that she was here or just wait for the agreed-upon time? What if Twilight had forgotten? What if the mirror broke? No, Twilight would’ve told her if something like that happened, right?
She needed to calm down. Twilight was her friend so… wait. Was Twilight her friend? Twilight had certainly said she was her friend but, as the Princess of Friendship, isn’t she supposed to be everyone’s friend by default? Did Sunset really matter to Twilight, or was she no different from anyone else in her eyes? Just another face in the crowd. Nothing more than a blip in Twilight’s now-immortal life. Just like she had been to Princess Celestia.
Sunset shuffled around nervously, her cyan eyes glancing into the darkness that surrounded her, as though she expected some kind of monster to come leaping from the shadows. As increasingly dark thoughts began to coil around Sunset’s mind, a voice cut through the silence of the night.
“Please calm down Sunset Shimmer. You’re going on vacation, not to the gallows,” spoke a calm but not unfriendly voice.
“Sorry, Vice-Principal Luna. You’re right, and I am excited to be able to spend some time back home! I guess I’m just…nervous.” Sunset’s voice trailed off as she looked over her shoulder into the void of the night, but all she saw was more darkness and snow.
“Sunset.” Sunset’s attention returned to Luna. The vice principal was half a head taller than Sunset. She wore an army green wool coat that was not too big, a messenger bag rested at her side with the strap securely positioned on the opposite shoulder, and her midnight blue hair was pulled into a tail to avoid the fate Sunset’s was experiencing. She stood relaxed, her arms crossed lazily in front of her chest, and despite the dark night (or perhaps because of it) she looked completely at ease. “There’s no one out there, Sunset. Even if there was, that’s why I’m here with you. You’re perfectly safe. You also have nothing to be nervous about. Princess Twilight will be happy to see you,” Luna assured Sunset.
Sunset took a few deep breaths to gather herself, then gave Luna a small smile and nod. “I know. I really can’t thank you enough for all this.”
“I’ve been where you are right now. Maybe with less interdimensional pony-magic, but otherwise the same situation. Trust me, we’ll get you through this.” Luna’s voice conveyed understanding, sorrow, anger, and concern. It was a voice Sunset had recently found an unexpected amount of support from.
Luna checked her phone, then walked up to Sunset and spun her around to face the stone base. “3…2…1”. A ripple of silver light danced across the surface of the stone before fading. Sunset reached out with her free hand and once more touched the base. This time her hand didn’t press against the solid stone but something more… magical. “Princess Twilight certainly is prompt,” Luna smirked.
“She really is.” Sunset, now visibly more relaxed with the portal active, held out her journal for Luna to take. “Remember, if you need to get in contact with me, just write in the journal. What you write in it will appear in Twilight’s and vice-versa. It’ll also glow and vibrate when there’s a new message.”
Luna rolled her eyes and gave an exasperated sigh. “Yes, Miss Shimmer, we’ve been over this. You told me this morning before class, in the office during lunch, as I drove you home after school, when I picked you up 15 minutes ago, and here we are yet again! I am familiar with the basic concept of Instant Messaging, whether magical or not. I’m a Millennial, we were born in the Internet,” She said with a smug pride as she stored the journal in her bag.
Sunset’s eyes narrowed, then she gave a teasing smirk. “I thought you were born in a dark room with a computer screen, no windows, black hair-dye, and way too much eyeliner.”
Luna froze.
Sunset smiled as she stroked her chin, eyes cast upward. “What was it you called yourself back then?”
Luna’s eyes went wide, her irises shrunk to pinpricks.
“Oh yeah!” Sunset snapped her fingers. “Nightmare Moon!”
Luna’s eyebrows rocketed off her face. “THAT WAS JUST A PHASE!” She shouted, her cheeks turning a shade of violet that had nothing to do with the cold.
“One that lasted 5 years~” Sunset sang with mocking delight.
Luna’s eyes narrowed and she coughed. “Well, I grew out of it and am now the responsible adult you see before you,” she said, indicating herself with a dignified sweep of her arm.
“Weeeeellllll, according to Principal Celestia, while you may have ditched the black hair-dye and eyeliner, you still live in a dark room, with a computer screen and no windows.”
“Now listen here yo-“
“Also, let’s be real. Your wardrobe went from black to dark blue. You didn’t really grow that much out of it,” Sunset snarked, interrupting Luna.
“Ok Miss Shimme-“
“And! I’ve heard about your late-night gaming sessions,” Sunset whispered; eyes alight with glee.
Luna glared back at her. “Just what did my sister tell you?”
Principal Celestia sat down in her favorite chair. She took a sip of her tea and opened her book. Before she could settle in, the tranquility of her evening was disturbed by an, unfortunately not surprising noise.
“PIECE OF ROTTING FILTH! YOU DARE STAND BETWEEN ME AND THE GARGOYLES!”
Celestia sighed. Maybe if she ignored it, it would go away.
“YOU THINK THE FACT THAT THERE ARE TWO OF YOU MATTERS TO ME!? DON’T YOU KNOW WHO I AM?? I AM NIGHTMARE MOON!”
Apparently not. Celestia closed her book with a sigh. She could see it was going to be one of those nights. She stood up and walked down the hall toward the source of the racket.
“HA! Now that I have dispatched the NPCs let us see how well you do. You claim to have a duty to guard this bell? Well, I have a duty of my own, TO DESTROY YOU!”
Celestia slowly turned the handle and peeked around the door. Inside a darkened room, controller in hand, hair pulled back into a tail and a headset upon her head, sat her sister, the vice-principal of Canterlot High. Luna stared furiously at a massive screen before her. A wild predatory grin on her face.
Celestia looked to the screen. Atop some stone fantasy tower, with the light of a full moon as the backdrop, in the shade of an enormous bell, her sister fought two grey colored humans. One wielded a mace and shield, the other held a preposterously huge sword. Luna’s character held a long lance as she rolled and expertly moved just out of range of their strikes. According to the health bar, Luna had either; not gotten hit at all, or somehow healed herself during the fight. The other two were not so well off; both were down to their last bit of health.
As they fought, Luna's opponents continuously attempted to surround her, with little success. Luna faced the one with the mace and shield, moving into and quickly backstepping out of their range to bait their attacks, and rolling to the side now and then, to dodge the massive sword swings from the other.
The one with the sword suddenly stopped their attack and moved offscreen. Luna instantly rolled after them to attack. The camera followed Luna as she rushed the specter, who had knelt upon the ground and was holding a shimmering golden chime. She buried her lance in their back, lifted them into the air, and slammed them face-first into the ground.
“Feeble cursed one! You thought you could match me, Awsm Dash? NOW YOU WILL ROT IN A FETID GRAVE!”
Luna spun around and dodged the attack of the other. With a quick series of button presses her lance was gone and she now held a sword in one hand and a tiny dagger in the other. Her expression was almost bored as she walked up to the other specter and lazily batted their attack away with the tiny dagger, causing them to stumble and fall to the ground. She then leaned in and plunged her sword into their chest.
“Suck it Applesoul! Remember this fight little bell guards, for it was your last. From this moment forth, THE NIGHT WILL LAST FOREVER!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”
Celestia positioned her head an inch from her cackling sister’s face. “Well done Sister!” She cheered in her ear.
“WAAAIIIIHHH!” Luna fell clean out of her chair with a shriek of terror.
“You know Nightmare Moon,” Sunset began, obviously struggling to keep from bursting out laughing, “I wonder how many students go home to play video games thinking they’re safe from you for another day. If only they knew they couldn’t escape you there either.”
Luna closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and calmly placed both her hands upon Sunset’s shoulders. “Sunset Shimmer…” Luna began, but then blinked, remembering something. “Ah yes, give me your phone.” She held out her hand.
“What? Why?” Sunset asked, confused.
“It’s not often you get to go home. I won’t have you spend your break with your nose in a phone,” Luna said in a mock-lecturing voice. “Now give!” She commanded, as though she were demanding a tennis ball from a dog.
“I don’t want to hear that from an internet hermit like you,” Sunset grumbled. Nonetheless, she fished around in her pocket and dropped her phone into Luna’s hand. “The Pin is 1408. I’ve got it on airplane mode right now for obvious reasons, but please don’t eat up my mobile data.”
“Now Sunset, why would an Internet Hermit like myself intentionally use up all your data for the month, mess up your playlists, and install a bunch of pointless apps that bog down your phone?” Luna asked innocently as she slipped the phone into her pocket. “Ok, now that that is taken care of.” Luna once more placed her hands on Sunset’s shoulders and inhaled. “Sunset Shimmer,” A warm smile broke across Luna’s face. “I’ll keep what we’ve discussed in confidence, and while my sister and I will be here for you, I do want you to consider opening up to Princess Twilight as well.” Sunset averted her eyes and nodded weakly. “Now, have a wonderful break. I promise by the time you come back, me and Tia will have resolved this.”
Sunset felt a real smile spread across her face as she looked at Luna. “Thank you, Vice-Principal Luna. Have a Merry Christmas.” Sunset cheerfully turned toward the portal. But when she tried to take a step forward, she couldn’t. One of Luna’s hands was still gripping her left shoulder, like a vice.
“One. More. Thing. Sun-set Shimmer.” Something in Luna's eerily calm voice sent a chill up Sunset's spine and told her, she was in trouble. She stared longingly at the portal. Safety, a mere two feet away.
“Yes, vice-principal Luna?” Sunset asked innocently without turning around. The portal was so tantalizingly close. How strong was Luna? Perhaps, if Sunset threw all her weight forward at once, she could escape before meeting her fate.
“I am aware that my sister may choose to share… amusing anecdotes about me with you from time to time. I do not blame you for enjoying them, Sunset Shimmer. But to wave them so boldly in my face is just foolishness.” The voice was steady, containing only the slightest hint of aggression, a promise of things yet to come.
Sunset nodded. “You’re right, I crossed a line. How about a week of detention when I get back to teach me respect?” Sunset hoped this offering would be enough to placate the Nightmare behind her.
“I’m afraid we are way past that, Sunset Shimmer.”
She was screwed. “Vice-principal Luna, if I don’t hurry Twilight might close the portal.” A note of panic rose in Sunset’s voice.
“I doubt Princess Twilight will close the portal after only five minutes has passed. Worry not, Sunset Shimmer, this will only take a moment.” Sunset was becoming unnerved by Luna continuously using her full name, dragging out each syllable with malevolent intent. Just what was she planning to do to her!?
“In my defense. I would like to point out that it was principal Celestia who shared these stories with me. Even though she knew I’d been under a great deal of stress lately and was not in any condition to practice discretion.” Sunset desperately threw Celestia under the Lunar bus, hoping it would spare her from the vice-principals' wrath.
A slight hint of amusement entered Luna’s voice. “Oh, rest assured, she will share your fate as soon as I get home. Now turn around Sunset Shimmer. It is time.”
Sunset shut her eyes before she turned to face the firing squad. She stood there with her face scrunched up as she braced for the onslaught. She saw only darkness. She felt Luna’s grip on her shoulder. She knew that she was facing her. She knew that just an arm’s length away was the most feared person in Canterlot High, maybe the entire city.
Then, something unexpected happened. Sunset felt the grip on her shoulder relax. This might be her chance! She knew the portal was directly behind her. If she threw herself backward while Luna’s grip was this light, she would fall into it and be transported away to safety. She could escape!
“pfft-ahahahahahah” Luna’s sudden laugh interrupted Sunset’s escape plans. Oddly, it wasn’t the cold laugh of one about to strike their enemy down, but the warm, loving laugh of a grown-up catching a child with their hand in the cookie jar. “Oh Sunset, I’m kidding. Go have a wonderful time okay?” Luna let go of her shoulder entirely. The tension was gone. Relief flooded her body as Sunset released a breath she had been holding and opened her eyes.
“I am sorry vice-principal Lu-” Sunset’s voice died in her mouth as her eyes registered what was in front of her.
Upon Luna’s face was the evilest expression of triumph Sunset had ever seen. Held aloft by her left arm, the size of a snowman’s head, was a massive wad of snow. Luna had only one thing to say. “Fooled you.” Pure diabolical glee, crammed into every letter.
Sunset stared at the seemingly impossible mound of snow in Luna’s hand. A slew of questions shot through her head. How was it holding its shape when it clearly wasn’t packed? How did Luna pick that up without Sunset noticing?? How did she gather that much snow so quickly with just one hand??? So many thoughts wanted to reach the surface and express themselves, but only one got close to escaping Sunset’s lips. “Oh, Fu-”
Splat!
A rush of snow smashed into Sunset’s face, filling her mouth, getting in her nose, smothering her swear, and leaving her sight in darkness once more. The snow, somehow, held its shape as it covered the entirety of Sunset’s face. She felt the pressure of Luna’s hand on the other side of her new snow mask.
“Language” was the last thing Sunset heard before she was pushed backward and sent tumbling into the portal.
9:37 pm - Canterlot City
Splat!
Principal Celestia jerked awake with a gasp. She leaped blindly to her feet, as her bed was suddenly way too cold for comfort! She spluttered as her hands worked frantically to clear the semi-frozen powder from her face.
She heard her bedroom door slam shut, followed by the sound of quickly retreating footfalls, and a laugh she’d know even in her half-asleep state.
Celestia’s eyes snapped open with a molten fury as she grabbed a clump of snow from the pile on her bed and tore from the room.
“LUUUUNNNNNNAAAAAA!!! IT’S A SCHOOL NIGHT!” Celestia’s roar was matched only by the cackling of her insane and soon-to-be-dead sister.
“THE NIGHT WILL LAST FOREVER!”
This is the first thing I've published here. I hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you think in the comments below. 
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This is great. I love the dynamic you have with Luna and Sunset here, Sunset’s such a tease and easily knows how to get on Luna’s last nerve
i hope you do more with them two.
Oh god, this is hilarious.
But...what's this thing Celestia and Luna need to resolve?
Oh lord, is this Anon-a-miss?
10127435
Glad you liked it. Luna's a really fun character to write, there'll be plenty of her down the line.
10128134
Can’t wait!
10127946
You have no idea how happy I am to hear the humor lands well. Sometimes when you're editing and doing rewrites and rereads you can start to doubt if it'll be funny to the reader or not.
But as for Anon-A-Miss, I have no idea what you could be talking about.
This is a story about Hearth's Warming. 
Okay, so this is set post Friendship Games at least, with Twilight mentioning Starlight. All I have really for when it's set.
I still feel this is going to devolve into another story with a certain pile of horsehit comic that this fandom refuses to let die.
Because people are just that stupid apparently. I hope this doesn't.
10129275
Actually I shifted the timeline just a smidge cause I liked Starlight's character and wanted to use her. It happens somewhere in season 6 on the fim side and between Rainbow Rocks and Friendship games on the EG side.
Worry not tho, this is a tale about Hearth's Warming and fun times. Also, it takes place almost exclusively in Equestria to set your mind at ease.
I hope you enjoy it
10129291
That helps for sure. Not sold yet on the messing with the timeline, but I can change my mind. It doesn't hurt the story for sure.
Now I feel old. Millenials are meant to be kids, not adults with responsibilities!!!
10182910
I know that feel bro
Ah, Dark Souls 2. Dash, you should've used Outcry.
10188177
Ah Im so glad someone noticed which game. I love Dark Souls 2 it's so much fun.
I see someone's been reading Madverse Sunset Shimmer. She isn't perfect copy here, but this is something that crosses universes it seems.
Something though DEMANDS an explanation. I love moving Sunset's return to Equestria in Season 6 instead of later like Hasbro did. But WHY did you have to move the Friendship Games back? I can't see it changing anything story wise to leave it where it belongs.
10240375
Thank you for reading, I'm glad you're liking it so far
I am a fan of the MADverse, so there may be a few traits of that Sunset I borrow because I think they work well with her character.
As for the timelines, I was always bummed out that they waited so long to allow Sunset to begin visiting Equestria and that's one of the things I wanted to modify in my story.
Like, considering that Twilight gave the portal an On/Off switch and Sunset can just write to her to ask if she can come over at any time, there's no real reason why she wouldn't at least consider popping over every now and then.
Also, there is a story-based reason that Frozen Hearth occurs before Friendship Games, we just haven't quite reached it yet.
Thank you again for reading.
Aren't they on Christmas break now?
10313318
That certainly is the impression Sunset is giving Twilight.
Celestia isn't a "Principle", she's a "Principal". She might have principles, but they are not her.
10334835
Whoops, good catch
I'm pretty sure Luna and Celestia are too old to Millenialls proper that is I think they are over 40, Celestia definitely a Gen Xer Luna a Xennial(Gen X brith date, millenial attitude born between 75 and 85). They just strike me as growing up With the internet rather than ON it which is the real difference between Xennial and Millenial Xennials grew up with VHS tapes and dial up still being a thing Millenials pretty much always knew DVDs and high speed internet
10515997
Does no one remember the majestic laserdisc
Funny
🤭🤭🤭
That's grim
We never grow up, we just learn how to act in public.
Sunset's confidence needs an adjustment
For Harth's warming?
I had to think about this and it occurred to me that Harth's Warming is also the celebration of peace between the pony tribes.
So I guess it kind of works even if it is a joke.