Chapter 61: Confronting Rainbow Dash
As Sunset finally made her way back to the main castle, the only thing she could think about was how this upcoming meeting with Rainbow Dash and the rest of the council would go. She was still unsure if anypony would end up taking Rainbow's side, but felt comfortable in knowing that at the very least, Twilight and Starlight would be supportive of her. Pinkie was likely another one as well, given how she had technically already known Sunset in the human world for quite some time, albeit secretly. As for everypony else, they could still very easily go with either side, though Sunset felt that her consecutive sessions in getting to know them all better would've made them willing to support her as well. Stopping Madame Cinch's tyranny over Rarity, as well as giving Applejack the golden opportunity to visit her dying grandmother, just to name a few.
Despite hoping that a majority of the ponies attending this meeting would have her back, Sunset primarily wanted this as a means of convincing Rainbow to talk things out, heart to hoof. In fact, Sunset still feared the possibility of everypony taking her own side, but as a result of doing so, ganging up on Rainbow to the point of making ultimatums. Although Rainbow herself had done just this by ditching Sunset back in Cloudsdale, Sunset still felt like it'd be wrong for everypony else to do the same, even if it meant teaching Rainbow a lesson by giving her a taste of her own medicine. As such, Sunset's empathy and compassion for all her new friends kept her encouraged to do her best in making a fair compromise so that everypony would be satisfied, coming out of the meeting. Up until the accusation toward Indigo Zap, Sunset remembered how well she had initially hit things off with meeting Rainbow officially for the first time, motivating her to potentially save this severed friendship at all costs.
Shortly before coming back to Canterlot, Sunset also reflected what Celestia had told her in regards to the citrine crystals she had found from that giant rock, thanks to Maud. Even if Rainbow would end up forgiving her after sorting everything through, Sunset admittedly believed the timing would've felt awkward. She still had a good amount of time to explore Equestria further, before it was time to return to the Human World and attend her graduation at CHS. Regardless, her adoptive mother's advice had persuaded Sunset to do just that, in the sense of giving all her new friends a crystal to symbolize their friendship and connections toward one another, including Rainbow. If Rainbow were to reject this gift, Sunset knew she would have to simply accept it and move on, but would keep the consideration for who to give that final crystal to.
For the time being, Sunset knew that she definitely wanted to give crystals to both Twilight and Starlight, whom she considered special friends for everything they've done for her over the course of this entire journey. Regardless, what she would eventually end up doing with the crystals seemed inconsequential for now, as it was obvious that Sunset needed to save her energy and maintain professionalism when confronting Rainbow for this dispute. Sunset trotted over to the same main castle she was at earlier this morning, and noticed that Max Steele was nearby with a small puppy, watching the entrance like he did during Twilight's coronation. Recalling that she ended on good terms with the stallion, Sunset went over to the castle to prepare herself for the meeting, but was surprisingly stopped by Max again, albeit for a different reason.
"Ah, it's you again, Sunset." Max said, stopping Sunset from going through the doors.
"Hey there." Sunset acknowledged, happy in recalling that she managed to change the security stallion for the better. "Have things been going well for you?"
"Yeah, for sure." Max nodded. "You put me on the right path when you encouraged me to take security one step at a time, it's always much more appreciated as an art that can not be rushed. I just wanted to stop you real quick and let you know something. Firstly, I'm once again very sorry for my previous behavior which resulted in you missing out on Princess Twilight's coronation."
"Oh, that's all right." Sunset understood. "You were just doing your job, and given the circumstances, I can certainly forgive a small little misunderstanding. You didn't really know who I was, so I wouldn't blame you. Plus, you definitely treated me a lot more fairly than Sour Sweet did, so I was definitely happy we ended things off on a positive note."
"Thank you very much." Max replied. "Speaking of which, that's the other thing I wanted to check in with you about. Since you had convinced Princess Twilight to allow me in keeping my job here in Canterlot, I felt like returning the kindness by making certain that you'll never have to worry about anything like that ever again. I went ahead and spread a good word about you to every royal guard in Canterlot, and they all mutually agreed to my terms, especially now that Sour Sweet is gone. Even without Princess Twilight around, from now on, you are welcome anywhere, anytime here in Canterlot, Sunset. I'll make sure of it, even if it means chastising my colleagues for being disobedient."
"Happy to hear, thanks for looking out for me, sir." Sunset smiled. "I'm also glad that you're taking your job one step at a time now, you've definitely shown that you've kept your promise."
"Indeed." Max acknowledged, before holding his pet puppy tenderly. "Well, it was good seeing you again, miss. Please proceed into the castle and give Princess Twilight my regards."
Sunset nodded and did just that, relieved in now knowing that she no longer had to worry about any royal guards holding her back. Although this felt like a well deserved victory after what had happened the day she was trying to reach Twilight's coronation, Sunset still had to cross her metaphorical hooves that the same could be said for this upcoming meeting with Rainbow too. Sunset admittedly also felt a bit of déjà vu, in the sense that she had just come out of an unexpected encounter with Max Steele, shortly before having a big meeting with the pony counterparts of her human friends.
After trotting through the same hallways where Max had chased her, Sunset eventually found herself in the middle of a central room with a large table and many seats, along with all her new pony friends. Sunset looked around the room and saw Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow sitting on one side, while Twilight, Starlight, Spike, and Applejack sat on the other. There was an empty seat on the latter side, located in the middle, which was presumably reserved for Sunset. Seeing this, Sunset began making her way over to her seat, as everyone began taking notice of this, especially Rainbow. As Sunset took her seat, she immediately saw the way Rainbow was glaring at her, pouting and making it clear that she really didn't want to be here. This was to be expected, after what Twilight had described earlier, and since everypony was now here, Sunset nodded to Twilight, who realized it was now her cue to initiate the meeting.
"Thank you for coming by on such short notice, everyone." Twilight acknowledged the seven other ponies and dragon sitting in the room together. "I know I made it a proposal back at my coronation that we would all meet together again once a moon, but as you all know by now, there's unfortunately been a critical friendship dispute between Sunset and Rainbow Dash. I see the importance of resolving things between the two as one of our top priorities, now that we're all here and accounted for. Of course, we may see this as an unofficial court hearing, where both sides will be given a fair chance to defend themselves, and by the end, everyone will cast a vote that will go toward what action will be taken against the losing side. Have I made myself clear?"
Everyone in the room nodded, knowing how serious the situation must've been, and only just after a majority of them had officially met Sunset for the first time. They might've had distrust in Sunset after she had stolen Twilight's crown back then, but after truly meeting and getting to know her these past couple of days, they all definitely saw her as an absolute angel who would take a bullet for them. As for Rainbow Dash, although they've all certainly known her longer, it also meant that they've had to put up with rather problematic experiences with the pegasus from time to time, which already made them want to lean more toward Sunset's side, even before hearing what the dispute was truly about. However, they still wanted to give Rainbow the benefit of the doubt, knowing that they shouldn't be biased until they got the full extent of the story.
"Very good then." Twilight nodded. "So now that I've established the rules, we might as well get started. Since Sunset's our guest, and she's already shared a little bit of what happened, I think it's only fair that she goes first."
"Nuh-uh!" Rainbow interjected. "How come she gets to go first when I'm very clearly the victim here? I thought you were a princess of friendship, not favoritism!"
"If that's what she wants, then it's fine, Twilight." Sunset sighed. "Let her go first."
"Very well then, Rainbow." Twilight rolled her eyes at Rainbow's childishness. "Go on ahead."
"Thank you." Rainbow said with confidence, before sharing her side of the story. "So I was at the Wonderbolt's academy, doing some training with my new apprentice, Indigo Zap. Then Sunset dropped by to hang with me for a bit, but as soon as Indigo came by, Sunset just started acting like a bully to her for no real reason! She insulted her, belittled her, and worst of all, accused her of being a filthy thief without any evidence. It hurt Indigo so bad that she quit being my apprentice, which hurt me very much! It made me believe that she hadn't changed one bit ever since the days where she stole Twilight's crown! I mean, seriously! Coming between me and my apprentice, along with being a bully who called her a thief despite the fact she was a thief too? Hence why I believe she should be punished for her actions!"
"...Is that all you have to say on the matter?" Twilight said, already having a good feeling that Rainbow had definitely stretched the truth or taken things out of proportion.
"Yeah." Rainbow replied. "So, if you could all just vote in my favor and rightfully punish Sunset like the filthy donkey she is, then I'll-"
"Hold on, Rainbow." Twilight said, sternly. "We haven't even heard Sunset's side of the story yet, and that comment you just made was completely uncalled for. You need to apologize to Sunset right now."
"For what!?" Rainbow snapped. "All I said was that she should be punished for coming between me and Indigo-"
"I think she meant you callin' her a filthy donkey, Sugarcube." Applejack chimed in, rather unamused.
"Hmph, fine then." Rainbow huffed, before apologizing in an insincere tone. "I apologize, Sunset."
"I guess that's the closest we'll get for the time being." Twilight sighed in frustration, knowing now that Rainbow's behavior had grown even worse than she truly imagined. "Well, now that Rainbow's given her side of the story, could we get some feedback, please?"
"That... don't sound like Sunset at all, Rainbow." Applejack defended her unicorn friend. "And knowin' your track record of being dishonest before, I don't really know that I'd believe ya' when claimin' she acted like a bully to yer' apprentice for no reason."
"I second that." Fluttershy agreed. "I might be 'mean' and assertive to other ponies, but it's definitely always for a legitimate reason, like that mare who tried to scam me on the train the other day."
"I've gotten to know Sunset for quite some time in both worlds." Starlight added. "I don't know that I really believe you. Sunset would never do anything like that."
"Even if I were to believe Sunset was mean to this Indigo Zap, I'm sure she had her reasons to do so." Rarity speculated. "After all, I can definitely say with certainty that Sunset was more than justified in helping me and Miss Valencia expose our former boss, the abusive Madame of Manehattan."
"I agree too." Pinkie said in an unusually serious tone, unlike her usual self. "Dashie, I'm always willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, but now I can't help but feel like you're coming up with lies and exaggerations in an attempt for us to take your side. Don't you think it's hard for us to do just that, if you're actively insulting poor Sunset and throwing her under the wagon?"
"Well... if she deserved it, then it's justified too!" Rainbow continued to stand her ground. "Plus, what are you talking about, Pinkie? Just when exactly have I lied to you or steered you the wrong way?"
"I dunno..." Pinkie began reminding Dash of her past wrongdoings. "How about when you lied straight to my face about liking the pies I worked so hard on to commemorate special occasions, as it turned out you just threw them away? I still sometimes wonder if you used your laser eyes to destroy them like some evil pie-hater!"
"Come on, Pinkie!" Rainbow rolled her eyes. "I figured you'd be past that now, after what I did to make things right between us! Okay, fine, so I lied one time, big deal. What's your point?"
"You're really gonna deny your track record in being a dishonest cheater, now?" Applejack added on. "What about the time you cheated in numerous events during the Iron Pony competition, and especially the Running of the Leaves? Plus, Applebloom might've also told me a thing or two about how ya' implied I couldn't do anything to help her get a cutie mark."
"That little rat!" Rainbow frowned. "I help her, and this is the thanks I get?"
"That's not the point, you obviously shouldn't be saying nasty things behind somepony's back!" Rarity said. "But I also recall you doing so even when they WERE around! In fact, how about the time where we all went to stop a giant dragon from breathing smoke all over Equestria, and you couldn't even have faith in poor Fluttershy to get the job done? Instead, you just kicked the poor dragon in the face, that sure worked out, didn't it?"
"Unfortunately, I have to agree with Rarity, Dash." Fluttershy nodded. "When you kept insisting I was useless on that journey, I felt very insecure, to where it even caused me to lose confidence in standing up for myself for quite some time, even after I had convinced that dragon to leave and sleep somewhere else."
"Agh, give me a break!" Rainbow snapped. "You girls are seriously going to bring up stuff that happened a million years ago!? Plus, I thought that we all had to learn our own lessons after making critical mistakes that may or may not have hurt our friendship together!"
"Well, that wasn't really something you ever corrected, or for that matter, apologized to Fluttershy about." Rarity reminded. "But fine, if you want a more recent example, what do you have to say for yourself when it came to not acting mature and civil when you were told you wouldn't be coaching the School of Friendship's buckball team?"
"Hey, I still learned my lesson at the end, and helped the cheerleading team do great with their routine, didn't I?" Rainbow continued defending herself.
"We still would've expected better from you, especially for somepony who's part of the Wonderbolts." Twilight spoke up. "And although that may be true for the cheerleading squad, have you forgotten that after my team lost to Princess Celestia's during the buckball match, you didn't even feel like commending the actual game's team participants for their efforts? Heck, they actually ended up resigning for future buckball sessions. When questioned why, one anonymous complaint form claimed that a certain rainbow-maned pegasus ruined the experience for them."
"They... ended up quitting buckball?" Rainbow said with surprise. "I did admittedly wonder why we suddenly scrapped buckball tournaments at the school, but I'm sure that complaint was just because they were jealous I wasn't there to coach them. Where are you girls going with all of these recaps? It's like 'Pick on Dash Day' or something!"
"You're sitting here complaining about Sunset being a bully when you've also insulted her and done all those other awful things." Twilight glared at Rainbow with disappointment. "And the point of all this is to remind you of everything you've done before, to help you understand that you've honestly been the most problematic friend in our group. We've admittedly always been far too lenient and kind to say anything, but after what you did with Sunset, that's where we draw the line. Plus, the list goes on and on, I can still think of many other examples! I still remember you making Princess Luna feel insecure about herself on Nightmare Night when you scared ponies away in her presence!"
"Need I also remind you of the time when you were pulling all sorts of malicious pranks on everypony, and we all had to pretend to be cookie crazed zombies just to teach you a lesson?" Spike recalled. "If you had actually listened to us when we told you to stop being a prankster, it would've been a lot simpler."
"Although I haven't really had many instances where I was around to see you being dishonest, I recall hearing you still did some pretty rotten things, Dash." Starlight continued adding to the list. "For example, I've heard reports that you snuck into the Cloudsdale weather factory and posed as an employee in a silly attempt to prevent your pet tortoise from hibernating. You could've hurt everypony who worked at the factory by overloading the lab, and not to mention, potentially suffocating the ponies below when you created that abnormally large sheet of snow."
"Oh, I'M the one who should be ashamed of potentially hurting other ponies!?" Rainbow scoffed. "Says the pony who enslaved villages and nearly caused the destruction of Equestria by going back in time and making sure I never did the first Sonic Rainboom-"
"NO!" Starlight slammed her hooves on the table in pure frustration, as her horn began leaking a spell she was tempted to cast. "Don't you even try pinning that on me now, we're way past that incident at this point, and this meeting isn't even about THAT! After hearing all these awful things you've done to everypony, and now Sunset too, I'm beginning to question why we're all friends with you! I SHOULD JUST BLAST YOU WITH MAGIC LIKE I DID WITH TRIXIE WHEN SHE WAS BEING AN ANNOYING! LITTLE!"
Rainbow and everypony else sitting at the table instinctively widened their eyes in shock, before quickly ducking down to put themselves out of harm's way, in case Starlight was far gone from controlling herself.
"Starlight... please calm down." Spike tried his best to deescalate the situation, before everypony begun to emerge back up from the table, as they all heard Starlight taking deep breaths upon hearing Spike's words.
"I... I'm sorry, everypony." Starlight began coming back to reality and ceased her horn from casting magic to attack Rainbow, before sitting back down, calmly. "I still have a habit of bottling up my anger, and I'm not proud of it."
"Thanks for getting things under control, Spike." Twilight smiled. "And don't worry, Starlight. I think your anger toward Rainbow at this point is also very much justified."
"Yeah, after hearing what she's done with everypony else in the past, and even with my bestie, Sunset, I just lost control for a second there." Starlight acknowledged.
"And just what have I done to Sunset, exactly?" Rainbow huffed, although now rather afraid of Starlight.
"Well, let's just say she's already told Starlight and I a pretty good extent of what really happened." Twilight replied. "Since Sunset's been honest with us all the way, and I've already seen sufficient evidence of her telling the truth, to say that you haven't done anything wrong to Sunset is about as correct as claiming the atomic number of lead is 87."
"Evidence?" Rainbow said with skepticism. "Please, what kind of evidence could you possibly have against me?"
"Well, does a certain hot air balloon ring a bell to you?" Twilight raised an eyebrow. "But now that we've all said our piece regarding your side of the story, it's now Sunset's turn. Sunset, please go on ahead."
"Thanks, Twilight." Sunset nodded, as she began sharing things from her perspective.
Sunset reported the same details she had told Twilight of everything that had happened that day, including what really happened with Indigo and her destroying the hot air balloon, how Derpy had gotten fired from her job thanks to a thief, and how this thief was described as an orange pegasus. Sunset then began sharing details on why specifically she began to grow suspicious of Indigo, but still nobly admitted that she herself had made a mistake by jumping to conclusions too quickly. Since the real orange pegasus thief she had encountered earlier wasn't really relevant to this current meeting's topic, Sunset decided to not bring that up for now, as she began finishing up letting everypony know where she was coming from when it all happened, leading to that fallout.
"So... she really 'bullied' your apprentice for no reason at all?" Applejack said with a blank expression.
"As I had figured, she clearly had her own reasons to do so!" Rarity interjected. "Especially since Indigo was also wearing what was reported to have been stolen."
"Not to mention, Indigo didn't really make a good first impression by doing a hit and run." Fluttershy added. "I don't blame Sunset for thinking she was up to no good. I would've maybe assumed she was flying away that fast because she was carrying stolen items."
"Yeah, especially if my best muffin customer also reported that this mysterious thief was an orange pegasus." Pinkie analyzed. "I know practically everypony in Equestria, and in my experience, I admittedly haven't met many orange pegasai, especially with that particular shade of orange."
"And think about it, really." Starlight joined in defending Sunset. "Is it not reasonable for Sunset to believe that somepony who was flying that fast, committed a legitimately serious act of vandalism, wore the same reported stolen items, and was an orange pegasus, was the culprit? She might've jumped to conclusions, but she was trying to help the mailmare after she got fired from her job!"
"That's right." Twilight fully agreed with everypony that had spoken up after Sunset had said her piece. "Sunset was trying her best in putting Derpy's needs before her own and bringing a rotten criminal to justice. Which, in this case, Indigo is still very much a criminal for vandalizing my hot air balloon and flying off without as much as an apology or compensation. What were you defending, Rainbow? A silly Wonderbolt apprentice who's clearly a bad influence on you, given what she ended up doing?"
"I admit, I may be a drama queen from time to time, but even I say that Indigo mare definitely overreacted." Rarity insisted.
"Yeah, it almost sounded like you gave Sunset an ultimatum over practically nothing." Pinkie moped. "For shame, Dashie. For shame."
"Not to mention you ended up ditching her in Cloudsdale over this nonsense." Fluttershy added. "What were you thinking, I wouldn't even do something like that with my brother, Zephyr."
"This sadly don't surprise me, especially given how we've all had pretty problematic experiences with you, Rainbow." Applejack sighed. "I'm sadly beginning to agree with what Starlight said earlier, in questionin' why we're friends with you."
"If Sunset became a literal she-demon, and I was responsible for nearly wiping out all of Equestria, yet we both have more overall respect from everypony else than you do now, I think that's really saying something." Starlight glared at Rainbow.
"And you must've forgotten, that it was my Sonic Rainboom that made it so we all united and became legendary heroes here in Equestria." Rainbow boasted. "So I'm awesome and should clearly be the one everypony sides with."
"It may be true how your Sonic Rainboom brought us all together..." Twilight began, meeting Rainbow halfway. "But as for that being a justification as to why we should have your back, and not Sunset's... I'm afraid you're sadly mistaken. You've absolutely done far more wrong than Sunset did, and even then, Sunset's still willing to give you an apology for it, if you simply admit to your mistakes and own up to them!"
"That's right." Sunset nodded her head, but still a little saddened by how everypony had really ganged up on Rainbow, just as she had feared. "Look, Rainbow, I know things ended really badly between us that day, but I can assure you that I didn't mean for things to blow up like that. I genuinely care for all my friends, and would do anything for you all, even if it means coming at my expense."
"Friend?" Rainbow scoffed. "Don't call me your friend, you've done nothing so far to justify labeling me that way! And besides, since I've known everyone else here longer than you, it's clear that you're going to be the one who gets punished!"
"We'll see, Rainbow." Twilight glared. "So, like I've said at the beginning, both sides have shared their perspectives on what happened, and everypony's already given some feedback in regards to specifics. Now that that's done, it's time for the council of friendship to cast a vote. After listening to Rainbow Dash's story, please raise your hoof or arm if you vote in favor of her."
"Yeah, I'm the one who's the reason the rest of you are heroes, and we've been through many adventures before, so who's with me?" Rainbow closed her eyes and reiterated words similar to her human counterpart during the spring break cruise, before raising her own hoof.
Awkward silence filled the air, as Rainbow then opened her eyes for a second. To her horror, absolutely nopony else had voted for her, including Spike. They all mostly just glared at her with dirty looks, and especially getting tired of her obnoxious ego at this point. Rainbow gulped at this, but figured that maybe everyone was just toying with her.
"Come on now, nopony else is voting for me?" Rainbow smiled, nervously. "You're all pulling my leg, right?"
"Right then, I think that's enough of a window to cast our votes." Twilight continued the trial. "Now that Rainbow's side is finished, please raise your hoof or arm if you vote in Sunset's favor."
Almost instantaneously, Twilight, Starlight, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, and Spike all raised their hoof or arm, making it absolutely clear that they would all much rather stick by Sunset's side. The only one at the meeting who didn't vote for either side was Sunset herself, not because she didn't want to come across as arrogant, but because she didn't have the heart to pick a side. It wasn't immediately clear to Sunset, but because of this, she had a sense of empathy that everyone else at the meeting lacked. The kind of empathy that would help her understand that as obnoxious and unreasonable Rainbow was being during this meeting, the pegasus was now getting completely ganged up on, and becoming the same thing Sunset once was herself, completely alone.
"Well, I did notice that Sunset didn't vote for herself." Twilight noted. "Very humble of her, but it's very obvious now that the verdict is unanimous. Rainbow Dash, as the leader of the council of friendship, you are hereby suspended from the council for an indefinite period of time, and you will also be relieved of your teaching privileges at the School of Friendship. Instead, you will now have to take classes on friendship until you can learn how to take responsibility and professionalism correctly. Your behavior today absolutely exemplifies that we've all been far too lenient with you over the years, and you need to be taught a real lesson. In fact, what you did with Sunset was the straw that broke the pony's back for us. She's the main reason that we decided to hold this meeting and let you know that your behavior will no longer be tolerated."
"Sunset...!" Rainbow growled lowly, now feeling like it was all Sunset's fault that she was now the one being punished, before getting up from her seat, ready to dive into the unicorn. "I AM GOING TO DESTROY YOU-"
"I don't think so!" Starlight anticipated this sudden attack, and quickly used her magic to restrain the mentally unstable pegasus.
"LET ME GO!!!" Rainbow demanded.
"Not a chance." Starlight continued holding Rainbow in place. "There's a lot of things I want to say to you at this point, but all I can say is, you'll be begging to travel back in time if you even so much as scratch Sunset!"
"It really is a shame too, Rainbow." Twilight sighed in disappointment. "If you had handled things professionally like Sunset did, then we might've given you more leeway. But no, the fact that you're the only one who voted for yourself, it certainly speaks for itself. I really thought you were the element of loyalty. What even are you loyal to at this point? Your..."
"Ego?" Applejack suggested.
"Being a poor sport." Fluttershy frowned.
"And a big baby." Rarity added.
"Even I can't believe how childish you've been during this meeting, Dashie." Pinkie sighed. "And that's coming from me, the self-proclaimed out-of-control party animal."
"How can you all side with that filthy donkey who stole Twilight's crown!?" Rainbow continued expressing her displeasure. "I'm disgusted with you all!"
"That's it, Rainbow Dash!" Twilight flung her wings up to express her disapproval. "I'm going to start adding additional punishments to your sentence if you keep this up. Starlight, don't even bother releasing Rainbow until she gives Sunset a legitimate apology for not only the Cloudsdale incident, but being persistently rude throughout this entire meeting."
"You don't need to tell me twice, Twilight." Starlight agreed, as she adjusted her magic to have an even tighter grip on the pegasus.
"Well speaking of apologies..." Sunset went up to the immobilized Rainbow Dash and began to do her part in the deal. "Rainbow, I'm sorry for falsely accusing your apprentice for being a thief, and that everypony here has turned on you."
"Sunset, I definitely appreciate your humbleness." Twilight nodded. "But you don't need to apologize for that second thing. Rainbow has very clearly brought that on herself."
"I know, but..." Sunset continued to display her empathetic philosophy. "I still feel bad for her, since it seems like she's now all alone."
"It's definitely all her fault that she now has nopony supporting her, don't you worry about that." Starlight assured. "It seems as if her obsession with the Wonderbolts and silly apprentices has become her undoing. It's pushing all her friends away, yet she doesn't seem to care. I still remember when she implied I was a bad pony simply because I never heard of the Wonderbolts."
"Well, duh!" Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Besides, you're already a bad pony for a variety of other reasons!"
"You wanna say that again to my face?" Starlight glared back at Rainbow, before using her magic to squeeze the pegasus even tighter. "Go ahead, I dare you."
"Agh, okay, okay, I'm sorry!" Rainbow finally conceded defeat, feeling like her well being was more important than her stubborn pride.
"For?" Twilight crossed her hooves and awaited a response from Rainbow explaining why she was sorry.
"I'm sorry for not caring about my apprentice wrecking Twilight's hot air balloon, ditching Sunset in Cloudsdale, and acting like a spoiled, entitled brat during this meeting!"
"And do you mean this apology?" Twilight wanted to be certain of the validity.
"Better yet, if I release you after you're done, are you going to attempt to hurt Sunset again?" Starlight narrowed her eyes. "Because if you do, I won't be as nice as before."
"Yes, I really really mean it, and I promise you won't have to worry about that anymore." Rainbow tried desperately to save herself. "But if you want me to be honest, fine. I still don't like Sunset since I'm now in trouble because of her, but I'll stay put because I'm afraid of Starlight."
"...Fair enough." Starlight nodded, before finally releasing Rainbow from her magic, which plopped the limp pegasus on the table.
As Rainbow went back over to her chair to take a seat, she still crossed her hooves in annoyance over losing this argument with the very same ponies and dragon she had known for years now. How was it that they all loved and respected some random unicorn, whom to her own knowledge, was only mainly known to steal Twilight's crown back then? Whatever was the case, it was definitely clear now that none of them had really considered her a friend anymore, especially after they had all expressed her disgust in her for a variety of different incidents in the past.
"Wait, before this meeting wraps up for good, I think I should still give Rainbow a gift as an olive branch, a symbol of peace, if you will." Sunset then spoke up, thinking that it was time to stick to her last resort, as far as having one final option to perhaps let Rainbow come to terms with her somewhere along the way.
"A present, for me?" Rainbow said, with both bitterness and surprise. "I have no idea what you have that I could possibly want."
"You'll see soon enough." Sunset built up, thinking that giving Rainbow one of these citrines could still be a form of progress, despite knowing now that the meeting only shifted toward her own side. "I found a group of beautiful, orange gems that could certainly be used to make a friendship bracelet. I wanted to give you one."
"Hmm, perhaps if Rainbow decides to accept this gift, it may or may not persuade me to give her a lighter sentence on her punishments." Twilight proposed.
"Alright, I guess that's a good idea, Twilight." Sunset agreed, before going over to grab her saddlebag.
"And just how in Equestria were you able to afford jewelry like that?" Rainbow questioned. "You stole them, didn't you? Just like you stole Twilight's crown back then!"
"Rainbow!" Twilight raised her wings in absolute disapproval. "You are like, this close right now to getting thrown into the Canterlot dungeon! Need I remind you that being the accomplice of a pony who did a hit and run is also punishable?"
"Look, Rainbow." Sunset sighed, now with a hint of frustration. "I get that you still don't like me, nor trust me. But I'm anything but a thief now. In fact, a friend helped me get these, and since there were enough crystals to give everypony on the council one, I just decided it'd be a nice way for us all to connect and express our friendship with one another. Well... until you decide to have a change of heart toward me, of course."
"As if!" Rainbow scoffed. "If there's anything I hate more than being friends with somepony who got me in trouble, it's wearing frilly jewels that make me lose style points! I wouldn't even want to wear something like that even if I did somehow consider you my friend!"
"Well, at the very least, just have a look at these crystals before you decide that you already dislike them!" Sunset insisted, before finally opening her saddlebag to show everypony the contents inside.
Everypony in the room gasped upon looking at the inside of Sunset's saddlebag, and it was particularly Applejack who showed the most emotion and shock. Sunset initially assumed they were all mostly speechless at how beautiful the citrines looked, but after a few moments, she began to realize these were actually reactions of horror, not astonishment. Not understanding what was going on, she simply sat back in her chair, rather confused at what could possibly be causing this unexpected reaction. A few moments later, Applejack spoke up, now with tears in her eyes.
"Sunset..." Applejack said, still rather shocked. "Tell me this ain't what I think it is!"
"What's wrong, AJ?" Sunset asked, attempting to make sense of things.
Sunset then did the most logical thing and took a look at the inside of her saddlebag herself, and this time, her own eyes widened in horror just as much as everypony else in the room. It was the apple-shaped red ruby necklace Granny Smith had passed down to Applejack, shortly before her passing. Although recalling that the orange pegasus back at The Tasty Treat had somehow gotten ahold of it, Sunset most certainly had no clue as to how it could've gotten into her saddlebag. Twilight had mentioned Fluttershy and Applejack had lost valuable items, and would become late to this meeting because of it. This must've been what was keeping Applejack from coming, and Sunset thankfully had gotten confirmation from Lily that it was the same one that was stolen.
Sunset then remembered the thief had randomly made that necklace disappear when the child protective service ponies had arrived, and it was speculated that she must've hidden it somewhere around the restaurant, but her own saddlebag was definitely the last place she would've expected. That pegasus was not only a thief and abusive mother, but a conniving framer who planted evidence on her to make her look guilty. This was exactly what Lily had attempted to warn Sunset of, but the unicorn had unfortunately realized this far too late.
"Aha!" Rainbow pointed at Sunset, thinking that she had somehow found a new legitimate reason as to why everyone at the meeting should no longer side with the unicorn. "I knew she was still a thief, Applejack mentioned something about this earlier! So it was Sunset who had stolen that necklace Granny Smith had passed down to her!"
Sunset then looked to everyone, still staring at this unexpected turn of events with complete shock. She had no idea what was going to happen now, but figured that getting punished would certainly be the least of her worries. Instead, she winced at this oncoming feeling of sadness, as far as getting framed, and now potentially losing all of her new friends. Would they all suddenly turn on her as well, even after everything they've been through together lately, akin to that whole Anon-A-Miss incident back at CHS? Sunset continued sitting back in her chair in shock and fear, hoping that even if she lost a majority of these ponies as her friends, at the very least, Twilight and Starlight would still stick by her side all the way, and not simply drop her into the ocean like an anchor...
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Oh man….is Rainbow Dash in love with Indigo Zap or something? She is…her behavior was even worse than what I expected. I mean, it’s one thing to accuse her back then, but THIS?! I am extremely disappointed in her right now.
Also, please for the love of Celestia and Luna, PLEASE, let the other ponies, especially Applejack (I understand that she’s in mourning) be much more level headed than Rainbow Dash PLEASE!!! Do NOT let this turn into another Anon a Miss!!! That is the last thing we need right now!! (Also, you just had to mention that shitty Anon a Miss comic, huh?)
Oh dear, I foresee three possibilities following this chapter.
1. Sunset immediately gets accused and imprisoned.
2. Twilight gives her a chance to explain.
3. Sunset, being the humble pony she is, calmly surrenders until she can be given a fair trial or something like that.
Whatever happens, I hope it’ll lead to a good outcome.
I hope things turn out alright for Sunset and that she can be allowed to explain everything. Keep me posted for any updates on this story. I would hate if something bad were to happen to her and everyone else around her. And I also hope that both Twilight and Starlight still support her after the next chapter comes out.
11560320
I would prefer the second option.
11560259
I would say she is in love with her pride.
How very kind of him.
https://m.Can't argue there.
I thought Trixie was her bestie?
Saw that coming a mile away.
As bad as that punishment may be, what she did was indeed wrong, which aLao means it'll be quite sometime til everyone gets her trust again.
Oh shit!
This sure was quite a cliffhanger I bet not many saw coming.
Y'know, all I'm hearing from Rainbow is "ME! ME! ME!"
Like, seriously, Rainbow, would it kill you to not think of yourself for once?! Ego the size of a whale is right...
I'm still hoping the others will still hear Sunset out, because, of course, Rainbow was gonna jump immediately to 'Sunset's a thief'.
Also,
What is Pinkie, chopped liver?
11560520
You can't have more than one bestie?