I Promise
Sunset Shimmer stared at the roof of her room. The covers were off, but a weight pressed her deep into the mattress. A beast whose teeth were bared.
Part of being able to survive against a monster was knowing what it was. This monster that ate at her was 365 days of fear, disease, and financial hardship. She wasn’t afraid to speak its name, or speak of it in metaphor like others were. Coronavirus.
She sat up in bed and grabbed her laptop. She opened it and logged in to check her bank statement again. She opened, as if hoping for some sort of miracle.
With a grimace she closed the tab and laid back down.
Months of social isolation. Months of scrimping, saving, and trying to just get by. Months of mental anguish. And for what?
She opened a new tab to myBook to check on her friends, just to feel like she was still somehow connected with them. She scrolled down her feed, seeing Applejack show her new toned muscles. Twilight showing off the new language she learned. Rainbow Dash had new guitar solos she was nailing.
The post read: “At least I did something constructive in this terrible year.”
Sunset felt the teeth on her throat. She couldn’t distract herself with fluff to avoid the questions anymore.
What had she done this year?
She closed the laptop again, laying back down. The clock ticked by on her wall. There were no get-togethers. There was no celebration. It was a year of silence. Of counting what blessings you still had.
What did she still have?
Would normal ever come back?
And even if it did… was this how she reacted to hardship? By shutting down?
A police siren rang out against the silent city air and bashed against her windows. A few silent pops that echoed through the night.
Her phone buzzed.
A warmth spread through her chest. Maybe that was one of her friends. Any of them. Maybe even Wallflower. Anyone.
She pulled it and scrolled to her text messages. Another spam text that wanted money ‘to deal with those political extremists.’ A bucket of ice water chilled her soul as she reported and blocked the number.
“What am I even doing?” she whispered.
She opened myBook out of habit. At the top of her feed was a multicolored meme with a kitten licking her paws.
You will be okay. You don’t have a choice.
“As if,” she whispered to herself. “Anyone could end it if they wanted to.”
She paused.
Did she really just say that? Again?
Bitter bile rose in her throat. She set her laptop aside and rubbed her face in her hands.
“What the fuck is wrong with me,” she mumbled.
She pulled the computer closer and sighed. This was one too many times.
She opened a new tab.
“Sometimes I think about hurting myself.”
She paused after typing the query into her search engine. Did she really have a problem? Depression was pretty much normal this year. Heck, scientists were guessing that the long term effects of this would last for decades.
She deleted her words. She was being crazy. Sure, she had the occasional bad thought, but she would never do anything about it. Then typed a new message.
“Will things ever go back to normal?”
And hit enter.
22 million results returned back, and at the very top was a simple article.
No, things aren’t going back to normal. But that’s okay.
“Well, that’s a little on the nose,” she mumbled.
She clicked it and her screen was bathed in white with black text.
If you clicked this, you’re feeling just like I did a month ago. You aren’t alone.
Sunset folded her legs on her bed and leaned forward to read.
This year has been hard for every single person in our world. And it’s undeniable that its effects are going to be felt for years to come. Even with a light at the end of the tunnel, and normalcy once again seeming in our grasps, there will inevitably be people who look back on this year with pride. Perhaps they felt like they accomplished a new skill. Perhaps they defeated an inner demon.
But that isn’t who this is written for.
Sunset felt borderline uncomfortable with the text she was reading. The writer seemed to be speaking to her almost directly. Was this what a mental break felt like? How many other people read this and felt the same sort of emotional connection to it’s words?
Maybe the writer was just pretentious.
I’m writing this for the person who is reading this because they’re struggling and need help. If I could send money or food to each person who needed it, I would. But I confess that I’m not doing too hot myself. Writing doesn’t exactly pay well.
Sunset hovered her mouse on the close button. Was this some sort of pleading for money?
But this isn’t about me. This is about you. And if you’re reading this, I want to tell you that you accomplished the greatest thing of all in this year. Survive.
Sunset froze, and moved her hand from the trackpad, to the down arrow to keep reading.
Everyone is tired right now. You aren’t the only one who is exhausted. And having the occasional dark thought is normal. If they persist, I suggest talking to a professional. There are cheap options online for those who need it. But as we approach the holidays, and more and more people are stuck inside their homes for much longer than they ever would have known, I just want you to know that you matter to someone. Someone out there loves you. And there’s people out there who will love you that you haven’t even met yet.
Sunset felt her body shake a little.
So, for the sake of yourself, and all of the people who are struggling right now. You are important. And I’m so excited for the amazing, beautiful future that's ahead for you. And I hope that reminding you that great things are still to come, is enough a Christmas Present for you, dear reader.
Sunset closed her laptop and laid back down once more.
“Things will get better,” Sunset said to herself.
She thought of what would happen in a few months when the girls would be able to get together again, and she couldn’t help but smile. Surely Pinkie was thinking of the best darn joke possible for when everyone got in the room again.
Maybe that’s what she could do. She could come up with the best possible plan once it’s safe for everyone to get together again.
And with a gentle smile, she closed her eyes. The exhaustion took her much quicker than she could have possibly guessed, but for the first night in months, good dreams were awaiting her.
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- Holy · 5.5k words · 121 5 · 1.8k views
- Mockingbirb · 2.6k words · 21 16 · 1k views
- Petrichord · 3.2k words · 57 2 · 638 views
- Mockingbirb · 2.9k words · 27 4 · 459 views
- Gay For Gadot · 1.9k words · 93 4 · 1.7k views
- PapierSam · 2.9k words · 30 0 · 1.1k views
- Newtimestonight · 1.6k words · 29 0 · 669 views
- Rune Soldier Dan · 2k words · 80 1 · 542 views
Stats
Page generated in 0.122 seconds
Total duration
800 users online
649,934 hits today, 2,280,440 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Curse you and your ability to make me feel hope things will be better!
But seriously, I NEEDED this and didn't know until I read it, thank you and best of luck to all of us who are surviving this.
Good.
I'm actually having to spend my winter break alone, and that included my birthday (already) and will include Easter and other holidays from today onward. I won't get to see my family, and especially my cats, until summer. They're stuck in a part of the state that has been in total lockdown for months, and I'm safe on a university campus.
I haven't seen them since August.
I really am glad to have this story, Priest. Thank you.
If only.
There is no better time than Christmas to look for happiness AND hope.
all y'all thinkin 2021's gonna be better are deluding yourselves
at the least, the first 3 months of next year are still gonna be subsumed by this damnable pandemic, and even then the aftershocks are gonna be felt the rest of the year
also, the pandemic's the least of our worries, as the political part of things has been burning down worse than the rest of it
edit: go ahead and keep downvoting me, and while you're at it be thankful there's even a site to downvote me on
because in a year and a half, there might not even be a site to do so, with the way the damned politicians and their corporate overlords are going
The sentiment is greatly appreciated.
I did my own take on this with my story Holiday Masking 😷
This was a wonderful story that you shared with everyone and I enjoyed it greatly. Especially with the message you delivered in this. Thank you for writing this as it has giving me a little inspiration and I hope you are doing well.
Merry Christmas and Good Luck Flutterpriest.
10595964
I'm sorry that you've lost hope so badly. Happy Hearth's Warming, and I hope things get better for you.
A message I think we all needed to some extent. Thank you for it.
10595964
Who hurt you?
It's always disappointing to me watching people lower their expectations. It's likewise disappointing when people prioritize coping over resilience.
What is normal?
10596549
A shared delusion.
10596601
As a second generation immigrant, I never have and will never be normal.
10595964
I suppose those that want 2021 to be better (myself included) is because we’re just hoping. Whether it's false hope or not, at least it's something.
10596548
Genuine question - what's the difference between coping and resilience? (And how can we prioritize the latter?)
10596366
lotta things, seasonal depression being one of them
Things can get better. But only if we work for it. Only if we fight for it. But without hope, there is no reason to fight. No reason to try.
10595964
See the issue is people aren't downvoting you to drown you out or because you're wrong or whatever, it's because you're kinda bieng a dick (or were, if you've changed since you made that comment, I unno, just like.. maybe don't tell a bunch of people looking for hope in a self-aware manner (in which they know it's somewhat a delusion but don't really want to think about it because it's soul-crushing) that it's all hopeless? I'm trying to word this as politely as possible but I get the feeling you'll be offended no matter what I say here.)
Well this feel a lot like my story,
Maybe be I’ll read this for New Years as well
10595964
Get help. Go talk to someone. Someone other then the people who tell you these things. Ask yourself, am I only getting information from people who believe the same things I do? If so, try looking up information that says otherwise. Don't just discard it, don't just accept it. Look into it. Treat information you do believe in the same way. Where does it come from? What is it based on? What do other people think of it? If there is contradicting information ask the same questions there.
Beware of the trap where you only hear one side all the time because you only interact with people who believe the same thing you do. Cheers mate.
Congratulations to all of us who survived
Happy Frieza Day!
This is 100% not okay. Don't you use my Sunset as your mouthpiece.
Sunset is a really weird choice to use as a mouthpiece for this story, because she's in a very unique situation; she can go through the mirror back to Equestria. No pandemic, friends like Twilight and Starlight and Philomena, deep connections with two of the rulers of the land for anything she wants, and carbon-copies of her human friends. And before you say, "She'd be leaving her real friends behind!" remember that the story already said "it was a year of silence, no get-togethers, no celebrations". She has a convenient option within walking distance to drastically improve her life at no cost and nothing lost, even if it's only until the nebulous condition of "things going back to the way they were".
10641557
But what about those she still keeps in touch with online, and also the risk of bringing the virus to equestria, while I'd expect her to stay safe you never know, and better safe than sorry
10648633
The story indicates that she doesn't keep in touch with anyone, though. To keep from bringing it to Equestria, aside from her already having been isolated for months, she could quarantine herself after going through the mirror. Plus, Twilight and Cadence are both able to cast the 'health bubble' spell from the episode where Discord got sick, and it proved able to keep illnesses, viruses, and bacteria from crossing through it. Ponies also have HAZMAT suits in several episodes.
10648875
True, however I just think that despite all these precautions people should be aware that these aren’t 100% effective, just very effective the safest way to not spread a virus would be to not go to anyone
10649242
But they are. The incubation time for covid-19 is known, and there have been procedures in place for months that safely prevent it from spreading. The only times it has spread under those conditions were when there wasn't enough PPE available, people ignored measures for their own convenience, or the routine of it made people sloppy. One VIP crossing over into Equestria where they have even more measures to prevent the spread of disease is not going to run into those possibilities. You're over-inflating this with fear and uncertainty.
10649412
Yeah, she could go there but earth is her home now, even if she doesn’t meet with her friends, she still lives there like it’s her home, even though they’re separated they still are all friends as I doubt she’d sleep easy knowing she left her friends
10649435
I'm sorry, but did you miss the part in this story where Sunset was considering suicide as a result of the conditions around her and her social isolation? The part where she felt trapped in awful circumstances that were driving her to thoughts of self-harm, even though she has a perfect solution available in the form of the portal to Equestria? I feel like you're forgetting what the actual point was.
For some of us, this pandemic is the worst thing that could ever happen to us, for a myriad of reasons. One of those reasons is the fact that there are many people not taking it seriously, and making things worse for everyone else. I'd say many people who haven't learned a new skill, or improved themself in some way or another, but... simply tried to survive... are valid, and justified. People cope with things differently, that's a fact of life. I'll be coming out of this pandemic as a different person (in more than one way) than I went into it. I made a personal transition to be a more authentic version of myself. Not only that, but I managed to learn a few smaller skills that make up a bigger one. But I couldn't have done that without support from my friends and my chosen family. Not everyone has that support, or even the energy to reach out to the people they need to, because of fear or anxiety or even depression, like in Sunset's case.
Greetings. Your reading has been completed and can be found here. I hope you enjoy.
There is a review of this story at the Reviewer's Mansion. Spoiler: Wonderful, uplifting story we all needed to hear this past... uh, 2 years.
I despise that this story remains relevant at this point in time.
11118121
preach
Thanks, Priest…I very much needed to read this today. It helps more than you know.
Thank you.