> Rising of the Sun > by Starlight Comet > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chaos in the Cafeteria > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- October 14th 2010, 12:30pm To a majority of the student of Canterlot High School, it was to be a normal lunch break in the cafeteria. But to Sunrise and his gang of cronies outside the cafeteria, it was just the right time to terrorize their fellow classmates. Sunrise grinned devilishly at his friends Iron Will, Gilda, Snips, Snails, Trixie, and his girlfriend Sunset Shimmer. “So we all know what to do today, right,” Sunrise stated, “We don’t want another incident like last time to happen.” As he said this, he shot a dirty look at Gilda as though what happened was her fault. Gilda shot back, “Hey, don’t blame me for the fact that the hall monitors caught me and I had to spend the next few days in detention.” “In any case,” Sunrise continued, talking as if he hadn't heard Gilda, “we’re doing this in order to get some money and start a food fight in the process. If the hall monitors come barging in, you each go to the designated routes I've set up for you all. Everybody remember where they need to go?” After everyone nodded, Sunrise said, “Good; now let’s get ready.” For as long as anyone could remember, Sunrise and his gang were the baddest group of juvenile delinquents in the history of Canterlot High School. Sunrise, alone, had been sent to detention so many times that his count was in the double digits. Sunset Shimmer was even worse; many students considered her to be Sunrise in the form of a female. As the group was getting to cause trouble in the cafeteria, Sunset Shimmer walked up to him with her fiendish looks. “Let’s go cause some mayhem, big troublemaker.” Sunrise smiled and said, “You know it, little troublemaker.” Their lips then locked together, which prompted Trixie to stick out her tongue in disgust and state, “Oh get a room, you two.” Both Sunset and Sunrise shot daggers at Trixie as they broke apart. “Alright everybody, let’s do this” said Sunrise. Sunrise and his friends burst through the cafeteria and started to take money away from the students. One student in particular, whose name was Flash Sentry, stood up to Sunrise and said, “There’s no way that you’re going to take my money, Sunrise. You think you and your friends can just…walk…around…and…” These last few words trailed off as Flash saw Iron Will standing behind Sunrise and looking as he was ready to start punching. Flash gulped and handed Sunrise his money. “Thanks Flash,” said Sunrise with a smirk on his face, “Always nice to do business with you.” Just then, the doors to the cafeteria burst open to reveal the school’s hall monitors, led by none other than Shining Armor. “Sunrise!” Shining Armor yelled. “Give up; there’s nowhere else for you to run.” As Armor and the other hall monitors moved in closer, Sunrise laughed and said, “Keep telling yourself that, Armor. Trixie, NOW!” At this, Trixie took a small pouch out of her pocket and threw it on the ground. Instantly, a cloud of black smoke erupted and covered the entire cafeteria. As the smoke settled, Shining Armor saw Sunrise and his friends running away. "STOP THEM!" yelled Shining Armor. “Get going and don’t let them catch you!” cried Sunrise. As his friends ran off in different directions, Sunrise suddenly tripped over a trick wire. The next thing he knew, he was enclosed in a net that was hung up by a metal cord. Sunrise opened his eyes and saw the entire student body staring at him with the deepest loathing in their eyes. Somebody pushed through the crowd to see what the commotion was. Sunrise realized with dissatisfaction that it was Principal Celestia. The two of them began to glare at each other with the utmost annoyance. “I see you tried to stir up more problems again…son” “How very observant of you…mother” > Crime and Punishment > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- October 14th, 2010 1:00pm As Sunrise sat in Principal Celestia’s office, he looked around and noticed some items that were familiar to him. He saw the slingshot that he had used to fire tomatoes at the Garden Club, the rope that he had used to give Gizmo an ultra-wedgie up the flagpole, and the bottle of hot sauce that he put into the cafeteria food that sent five students to the nurse’s office. Sunrise smiled as he relived the glory days of his time here at the high school. Just then, Principal Celestia walked and slammed a file with Sunrise’s name on her table. “What am I going to do with you?” asked Celestia. As usual, Sunrise said nothing, which allowed Celestia to speak some more. “I have done everything to make sure you behave yourself, Sunrise. I have set up psychiatric appointments for you to find out why you act this way. I have even sent you to the school therapist to talk to you about these issues. However, none of them seem to work.” More silence came from Sunrise. He did care what his mother had to say; he had heard it all before. To him, this conversation was just like any of the others. Principal Celestia continued, “Fortunately, I know just the perfect punishment to give to you.” At this, Sunrise said in a very rude tone, “Then tell me, oh dearest mother. How do you plan on punishing me?” Celestia said “Firstly, you are forbidden from seeing your friends at all. I have assigned certain hall monitors and teachers to watch you wherever you go so that you will not be seen talking or hanging out with them.” Sunrise rolled his eyes; as if that’s going to teach me a lesson he thought. Celestia continued “Secondly, you are to attend an extra-curricular activity…of my choosing.” It was then that Sunrise gulped. He was aware that his mother knew which extra-curricular activities his friends took part in. Seeing the shocked look on Sunrise’s face, Celestia smiled and said, “The extra-curricular activity that I have chosen for you is…Glee club.” Ah man, thought Sunrise, Why did this have to happen to me? > A Rather Unfriendly Welcome > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- October 15th, 2010 3:00pm As Sunrise walked to the choir room, he began to dread the possibility of any of his friends finding out that he was to be part of the glee club as his punishment. The students who attended the glee club were some of the most unpopular students in the school. As he stood outside the door to the choir room, Sunrise felt that his life was over. With a heavy sigh, he opened the door to the choir room. When Sunrise looked inside, he was dumbfounded at what he saw. There were musicians that sat in the corner with guitars, a drum set, and a variety of other instruments. There was even a grand piano in the center of the room. As he entered the room, Sunrise saw that fifteen pairs of eyes were staring at him, fourteen of which were gazed at him in a hateful look. “Welcome!” one of the ponies said. Sunrise looked and saw a woman with blue hair wearing a top hat that was encrusted with diamonds. This must be the teacher Sunrise thought. His thoughts were proven correct as the woman came toward and shook his hand, saying “I’m the director of the glee club, Sapphire Stone. You must be Sunrise. Word down the hallway is that you've created a bit of a nasty reputation for yourself.” “Great,” thought Sunrise, “As if I didn't feel awkward enough being here with these people looking at me in a bad way.” “Well honey,” Sapphire Stone continued “the glee club can help you with your problems. How about I introduce you to everyone?” “Sure” said Sunrise, with a somewhat hesitant tone in his voice. “Great!” exclaimed Sapphire Stone, “Counting you, we have six males and six females in our club. Your fellow male classmates are Big Macintosh, Caramel, Soarin, Flash Sentry, and Doctor Whooves.” The pony named Doctor Whooves stood up and said, “Well, technically, it’s just The Doctor.” “OK,” said Sunrise with a bit of confusion in his voice. “And here,” continued Sapphire Stone, “are your female classmates. These are Bon Bon, Lyra, Octavia, Vinyl Scratch, Derpy Hooves, and…” She paused for a second and looked around as if she was looking for someone. Sunrise then noticed a lone chair between Bon Bon and Octavia. Sapphire Stone then said, “Does anyone know where…” Just then, the door burst open to reveal a girl with bluish hair wearing a purple, leather coat and wearing a necklace with a red jewel attached to it. “Sorry I’m late, Ms. Stone. I had to finish writing my assignment for English, and I had lost track of time.” Ms. Stone smiled and said, “That’s quite alright dear. We haven’t even started singing yet. I’d like to introduce you to our newest student Sunrise.” The girl smiled and stuck out her hand for Sunrise to shake. “Hi,” she said, “My name is Sonata. I think you’re really going to like it here.” “Thanks.” said Sunrise. As the lesson continued on, Sunrise began to see why Principal Celestia assigned him to this class. All of the other club members worked together with singing and helped each other out when they needed help. But the one thing that blew Sunrise away was when Sonata sang in front of the whole club. She sang so beautifully that it was almost angelic. Sunrise had never heard someone sing like her before. Soon enough, Ms. Stone announced that the meeting was over and everyone could go home. “See you soon, Sunrise.” Sonata called over the other members. Sunrise turned to Sonata and gave a small smile toward her. As he walked toward his car, he felt that he liked Sonata, as a possible friend. Just as he was about to get into his car, Sunrise turned around and came face to face with Flash Sentry. Judging from the look on his face, Flash wasn't there to say hi. “So,” said Flash, “you think that just because you’re part of the glee club now, people will forgive you for what you've done?” Sunrise felt a little bit uneasy as he stated “Well no, but…” “Well you’re wrong!” Flash yelled, “No matter how you try to be friends with anybody, you can’t fool me. To me, you’re still a bully who delights in picking on people.” Sunrise didn't know what to say. For the first time in his life, he was at a loss for words. Flash then started to walk away from Sunrise, but turned around and said, “I’m warning you now, Sunrise. You so much as hurt any of my friends in the glee club, I’ll make sure you regret it for the rest of your days.” As Flash walked away, Sunrise just stood there facing a sad realization. Although Ms. Stone and Sonata were willing to accept him, the same could not be said for the rest of the group. > Changes > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- November 15th, 2010 12:30pm A month had passed after Sunrise had attended his first glee club meeting. He had already started to develop a friendship with Sonata and was starting to become accepted by a few people in the club. On this particular day, Sunrise entered the cafeteria with his bag lunch in hand and sat down next to Sunrise and the rest of the glee club. “So Sunrise,” said Sonata, “do you plan on singing any songs at all during glee club?” “Well,” Sunrise said, “I think I found…” However, he didn’t get the chance to say what he found. At that moment, an arm was wrapped around him. Sunrise looked up to see that the arm belonged to Sunset Shimmer. “Hey, sweetie,” Sunset Shimmer said, “Haven’t seen you in a long time. How about we leave these losers and go have some real fun.” “Actually, Sunset Shimmer,” said Sunrise, “I was actually talking to these guys. Maybe some other time?” At first, Sunset looked angry and disgusted by Sunrise’s rejection. After a few moments though, she seemed calm and relaxed. “Fine,” she said, “perhaps later, then.” However, when she sat down at her table with Iron Will, Snips, Snails, Gilda, and Trixie, she was livid. “What does that idiot think he is?” She said through gritted teeth, “Saying that to me in front of those losers! No matter, I know how to deal with him.” “How do you plan on doing that?” Iron Will asked. Sunset Shimmer looked at Iron Will with a sly smile. “Funny you should ask, Iron Will,” she said, “because you’re going to be part of it.” ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… Caramel was cleaning out his locker and getting ready for his least favorite class: P.E. He didn’t like because of fear of sweat and getting dirty; he had helped his friends Big Macintosh and Applejack countless times at Sweet Apple Acres. His dislike for P.E. came from the fact that he was weak in strength. “Ah well,” he thought, “might as well get it done and over with.” As he closed the door to his locker, Caramel suddenly felt as though someone was behind him. He turned around and came face to face with Iron Will. Caramel gulped in his throat. “Say Caramel; we’re good buddies, right?” said Iron Will in a mischevious tone of voice. “I-I guess so, Iron Will.” Caramel said with a sense of nervousness in his voice. “And do you know what friends do for each other?” asked Iron Will, “They let each other borrow stuff. So how about you lend me some money for tomorrow’s lunch?” Not wanting to start a fight, Caramel reached for his wallet. Before he could grab it, he felt like rebelling against his tormentor. For years, he had bullied by others because of his weak physique. This time, he was not going to be intimidated by Iron Will. “Sorry, Iron Will. You’re not my friend; you’re just a bully. And there is no way in hell that I’m gonna--*ugh*” Caramel didn’t get to finish his sentence, as Iron Will had decided to swing his fist into his stomach. Will then picked up Caramel and started pummeling him in the face. All Caramel could do was close his eyes and wait for it to be over. Just then, Caramel felt Iron Will’s grip loosen. Weakly, he opened his eyes and saw someone sitting on top of Iron Will with one knee on each of Iron Will’s arm. The student turned his head to Caramel, who saw that it was Sunrise. “You okay, Caramel?” Sunrise asked with concern. “I’m good.” said Caramel in a raspy voice. “Just hang on; I’ll take care of you in a second.” Sunrise stated before turning his attentions to Iron Will. “Alright, you dumb oaf. Who told you to attack Caramel? And don’t play dumb with me; I know you’re too idiotic to think on your own. Now who gave the order?” “N-Nobody told me to; I-I did it on my own accord.” insisted Iron Will. “Wrong answer.” said Sunrise through gritted teeth. As he spoke, he dug his knee into Iron Will’s arm. Iron Will wince as the knee pressed hard against his muscle. “Now,” Sunrise said angrily, “I’m going to count to three. If I don’t get an answer from you, you’re going to be left with a broken arm. One…Two…THR-” “IT WAS SUNSET SHIMMER!!!” Iron Will cried out, unable to take the pain any longer. “She told me to attack one of the glee club members to make you knew to not mess with her!!!” Sunrise lifted himself off of Iron Will, who clutched his arm and curled up on the floor. “Tell Sunset Shimmer to leave me and the rest of the glee club members alone. And,” said Sunrise as he stood over Iron Will, “if I catch you following her orders again, I’ll make you sorry.” Iron Will nodded and ran down the hall, still clutching his arm and bawling like a baby. Sunrise then turned his attention to Caramel, who had a swollen check and two black eyes. “Sorry you had to see that.” Sunrise said. “It’s alright,” Caramel insisted, “thanks for saving me.” Sunrise smiled and said, “No problem. Come on; I’ll take you to the nurse.” As Sunrise lifted Caramel up and helped him to the nurse’s office, he said “Well, look on the bright side.” “What’s that?” Caramel asked. “At least you get to miss P.E.” Caramel smiled; at least there was something good about this day. > Ends and Beginnings > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- December 14, 2010 11:50pm Sunrise was walking down the hall with a worried look on his face. He had scheduled to meet with a certain someone and hoped that nobody else would see them together and get the wrong idea. He was deep in thought when he came face-to-face with a certain yellow and red haired girl. As they stood facing each other, a deep loathing began to brew inside Sunrise. "You know why I wanted to speak with you, right?" Sunrise asked. Sunset Shimmer gave Sunrise an annoyed look. "Well, I can't see why you would want to speak with me. We haven't spoken to each other since October." "Listen, Shimmer," Sunrise began, "You can say mean things to me, threaten me, or even try to cause harm to me. But when you do any of those things to my fellow glee members, then its not cool. They're my friends, Sunset, and you will do well to show them respect." "Your friends?!" Sunset said as she laughed at this statement. "You really think they're your friends? Please, the only person you're fooling is yourself." Sunset then got into Sunrise's face and said, "Listen Sunrise, you may try to make friends, but deep down, you're the same bully that everyone fears and hates. You were a bully then and you're a bully now. There's no way you can ever change." After what she had just said, Sunrise was almost tempted to slap Sunset across the face. However, he resisted, knowing full well that performing that action would prove that Sunset was right. "Well," said Sunrise, "that's where you and I are different. As for us, we...are...done." Their conversation over, Sunrise and Sunset turned around and headed in opposite directions, not looking back. Sunrise was so furious with Sunset that he didn't know where he was going and accidentally bumped into someone. As he was snapped back to reality, he realized that he had bumped into Sonata, who was rubbing her forehead. "Oh Sonata, I am so sorry; are you hurt?" Sunrise asked. "I'm fine," Sonata replied, "how are you; you look upset." "I got into a fight with someone. Not physically," he added hastily, as Sonata had taken the opportunity to cover her mouth in shock. "It was more of a verbal fight. It was with someone I thought I cared about dearly." Sonata nodded and said, "I kinda know how you feel." "You do?" Sunrise asked with a raised eyebrow. "Yeah," Sonata replied, "It's the last Tuesday before the holiday break and the cafeteria isn't serving tacos! This has got to be the worst Tuesday in the history of all Tuesdays!" At this, Sunrise couldn't help but smile at Sonata's comment. He could always count on Sonata to brighten up his day, no matter what bad things happened. "Well," said Sunrise with a sly grin on his face, "let's see what they're serving today. Maybe we might be able to make a holiday-style taco." At this statement, Sonata's eyes widened like dinner plates and her mouth formed into a toothy grin. "WELL, WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?!" she cried out, "LET'S GO!!!" As Sonata dragged Sunrise to the cafeteria, Sunrise couldn't help but laugh as he felt a giant load being taken off his shoulders. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The rest of the day went great for Sunrise. He was given no homework for the holiday break and The Doctor promised him that he would get an entire tour of the weird phone booth that The Doctor and Derpy arrived to school in. At 3:00pm, Sunrise entered the choir room where he was greeted by everyone in the room. Since his first meeting with the glee club, he had become friends with all of the members. Even Flash Sentry started to respect Sunrise after hearing about what he did for Caramel back in November. As he took his leather jacket off, Sunrise suddenly got the feeling that he was being watched. He turned around and saw that everyone was gawking at him. "What?" he asked. "Nothing," said Derpy, "it's just that we never knew how buff you were." Sunrise looked down at his arms and understood what she meant. He smiled and begun to explain. Back in September, he had started to do daily workouts. By November, he had developed muscles big enough to rival Mark Wahlberg. None of the other glee club members had seen his muscles because he had always worn a leather jacket. As he lay back in his chair, waiting for Ms. Stone, Sunrise couldn't help but overhear Vinyl and Bon Bon talking about him. "Man, I'd totally date him if he weren't a guy." he heard Vinyl say. "I know what you mean," Bon Bon whispered, "that's one piece of candy I'd like to bite into." Both Vinyl and Bon Bon giggled at that last comment, but were quickly silent when they each received glares from Octavia and Lyra. Just then, the door opened and in walked Ms. Stone, wearing a dress made of diamonds in red and green, most likely as a way to commemorate the holiday season. "Alright class," said in her usual jazzy voice, "since this is our last glee club meeting before the holiday break, I think we should sing Christmas Carols! So who wants to go first?" Flash then took the opportunity to say, "How about Sunrise and Sonata perform a duet together?" While the rest of the glee club expressed their interest, Sonata and Sunrise looked at each other nervously. They had never sung together, let alone a duet. "Um, sure." Sunrise and Sonata said in almost perfect unison. As they walked toward the center of the room, Sunrise whispered in Sonata's ear, "I don't know which duet to choose." "Don't worry," Sonata whispered back, "I've got the perfect one." After song was over, the whole glee club stood up and cheered for them. Before they even knew it, Sonata and Sunrise had embraced each other in a hug. They suddenly pulled away from each with brick-red faces. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- When glee club ended, everyone gathered their things and began to head home for the holiday break. "We'll see you on the 22nd, Sunrise!" Derpy called out as she and The Doctor headed for the door. "Sure thing, Derpy." Sunrise called out. "By the way, what's you're physical address?" "Oh don't worry about that." replied The Doctor, "We'll bring ourselves and the Tardis to your house." "Ok." said Sunrise, even though he was a bit confused about how the two of them were going to carry that heavy thing all the way to his house. As he begun to pack up his things, he noticed that he and Sonata were the only two left in the choir room. Nervously, Sunrise walked over to Sonata and said, "Hey Sotana, I want to give you an early Christmas present. I hope you like it." Sonata unwrapped her Christmas present; it was a velvet hoodie sweatshirt. "I bought it because I noticed that you were cold these past few days and..." "Sunrise," Sonata said in astonishment, "this is perfect. It's even in my favorite color; thank you!" She then looked at him and said, "I guess this means that you've earned your Christmas present." "Sonata," Sunrise began, "You don't have to give me anyth-" He couldn't finish his sentence, for he had felt two things that belonged to Sonata that touched his face: two of her fingers placed on his chin and her lips as she gave him a kiss on the cheek. As her lips parted from his cheek, Sonata smiled and said "Happy Holidays, Sunrise." She then grabbed her backpack and walked out the door, leaving Sunrise all alone in the choir room. Sunrise touched the cheek where Sonata had kissed him and said "You too, Sonata." As he said this, a small smile formed on his face; the loathing toward Sunset Shimmer had been replaced with something warm and pleasant. Three months was all it took, he thought. That's all it took for me to love you, Sonata. > A Weird Start to the School Year > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- September 7, 2012, 7:50am As Sunrise stood in front of the school, he couldn't believe what he had accomplished during his sophomore year at Canterlot High School. After his freshman year, not only did he remain an avid member of the glee club, but he also donated his time at the local animal shelter with a girl named Fluttershy and became both captain and quarterback of the football team. Besides all of these extra-curricular activities, his grades had improved dramatically and he was accepted by almost everyone in the entire school. The only ones that didn't accept him were Snips, Snails, Trixie, and Sunset Shimmer, but that didn't bother Sunrise. The only thing that bugged Sunrise about the past three years was that he never told Sonata about his true feelings toward her. There had been moments at glee club when they would dance close together when the song required it, but that was about it. But today it would be different. Today, Sunrise thought to himself, I'm finally going to tell Sonata what I really feel about her. However, throughout the entire day, Sonata was nowhere to be found. She wasn't even in the first glee club meeting of the new school year. Worried, Sunrise went to Principal Celestia's office to find out what happened to her. "Mom," Sunrise asked, "Do you know where Sonata is? She wasn't at school today." Celestia reassured her son by saying "I'm sure she's fine, Sunrise. She probably got the flu or something." __________________________________________________________________________________ November 15, 2013, 12:00pm However, by the time two months had passed since the beginning of the school year, Sunrise was sure that Sonata didn't have the flu. As he sat at his usual table in the cafeteria looking glum, the other glee club members tried to cheer him up. "Don't worry about it Sunrise," said The Doctor. "I'm sure she's fine." "Yeah," added Flash, "She must be busy with other stuff. She come back soon." Sunrise opened his mouth to speak, but instead of words coming out, all that exited was, "ah-Ah-AH-AHCHOOOOOOOOO!!!" "Man, Sunrise, you don't look so hot," Vinyl said, "Looks like you got a cold. You ought to see the nurse." "I'b fine, really." Sunrise said in a stuffed up voice. "Nurse's office, NOW!" Flash retaliated, pointing his finger toward the door to the cafeteria. __________________________________________________________________________________ Sure enough, Sunrise had a high fever and was sent home to recover. As he recovered, Sunrise was wondering what was happening at the school. One night, he heard a distant boom off in the distance, close to where the school was. As Sunrise steadily rose up to see what it was, he saw nothing but streetlamps. Thinking nothing of it, Sunrise settled down in bed and went to sleep. __________________________________________________________________________________ November 20, 2013, 8:00am After five days of staying at home with a cold, Sunrise was well enough to head back to school. As he walked toward the building, he noticed some very strange things about it. First, there was a construction crew working on filling what looked like a giant crater in the school courtyard. Second, there was also a giant hole where the front doors to the school used to be. What the heck happened to the place when I was gone? he thought. As he walked into the main hall, however, his thought was almost immediately answered when he ran into Flash and the rest of the glee club members. "SUNRISE!!" Flash cried out. "You wouldn't believe what's happened these past few days." __________________________________________________________________________________ After everything was explained to Sunrise, he stated "So, let me get this straight. You're telling me that a girl named Twilight Sparkle came through a portal from another world to ours to win the Fall Formal and retrieve her crown. While she was doing this, she became friends with the Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Apple Dash of our world. Meanwhile, Sunset Shimmer got a hold of the crown and turned into a winged beast that not only destroyed the main entrance to the school, but also turned every student into mindless zombies. But, through some weird form of 'magic', this Twilight was able to defeat Sunset Shimmer and create that crater in the courtyard. Twilight was then given her crown and returned to her world, and Sunset is now reformed and trying to make amends. Is that it?" "Eeyup." said Big Mac. Sunrise looked at his friends silently with a look of doubt on his face, which was broken when he said, "Yeah, um...excuse me while I call the men in white coats to pick you all up in order for you to get checked on." "I know it sounds ridiculous, Sunrise," Flash explained, "but that's the truth and nothing more." Sunrise looked at his friends. Even though he still was uncertain about what they had said, he had learned to believe them when they were serious. This, obviously, was one of those moments. "So," Sunrise continued, "Sunset is trying to make amends?" "Yeah she is," said Lyra. "But I don't believe she is." Sunrise nodded and said, "I don't blame you; I've never been able to forgive her after what she did to Caramel." The rest of the glee club members nodded in unison. As they headed off to their first class, Sunrise looked to Flash and said, "Well, I guess a lot of weird stuff happens when I'm not here. But hey, this year couldn't possibly get any weirder, right?" > A Startling Surprise > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- March 22, 2013, 12:00pm A few months had passed since the infamous incident with Sunset Shimmer. Although she was trying to show the school that she was changing for the better, nobody acknowledged this except her new friends Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie. Unfortunately for Sunset, even Sunrise didn't acknowledge her; every time she tried to talk to him, Sunrise would either walk faster or look away from her in order to avoid eye contact. Talking to Sunset Shimmer wasn't the number one priority to Sunrise; the entire school was getting ready for the upcoming musical showcase. "Are you going to enter the musical showcase, Sunrise?" Soarin' asked over lunch. "Naw," Sunrise said, "I've got a ton of homework, plus I have to get ready for the upcoming school play." "I think you would be great in the showcase." Vinyl chimed in. "Your singing is..." But what Vinyl thought about Sunrise's singing, he never found out. At that moment, a strange song started to come from an unknown source. Not only that, but a strange, green mist had swept around the floor. As the singing continued, Sunrise started to notice that most of the students were arguing with each other, mostly about the musical showcase. When the singing and mist died down, the arguing still continued. Sunrise looked around and saw that some of the students that were arguing included Octavia, Lyra, Bon Bon, Derpy, and Flash. He then looked to Vinyl, Soarin', Caramel, Big Mac, and The Doctor and saw that each of them shared the same puzzled look he had on his own face. "What's going on with everyone?" Caramel asked. "Where did that singing come from, and why aren't we arguing?" "It seems like we're not the only ones." Soarin' stated, "Look over there." The rest turned to where he was pointing and saw that he was right. Not only were they not affected by the singing, but Sunset Shimmer and her friends weren't as well. Confused, Sunrise said, "I'm going to find out where that singing came from. The rest of you try to calm down the rest of the students as best as you can." This proved to be difficult, as most of the student body were blocking any sort of view. Finally, after weaving in and out of the paths of most students, Sunrise saw something that shocked him to the core. What he saw was a trio of girls, each with a sinister look on their faces. The girl in the center, presumably the leader of the pack, had orange and yellow hair and was wearing a purple dress with black boots. The girl to the right of her had purple and seaweed-green hair and was wearing a green vest with purple pants. And the third girl looked exactly like... SONATA?!?!?! thought Sunrise. But before he could call her name, The Doctor burst through the crowd of angry students, looking as though he was out of breath. "Sunrise," he said, "We've got to get out of here; things are starting to get ugly." Sunrise nodded; it was starting to get hectic in the cafeteria. He and The Doctor meet up with Soarin', Vinyl, Caramel, and Big Mac at the entrance of the cafeteria. As they ran out the facility, Sunrise couldn't seem to shake off the worrying thoughts in his head. Why, Sonata? he thought. Why did you decide to come back after all these months? Why are you with those girls? What aren't you telling me? > The Truth Comes Out > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- March 22, 2013, 3:00pm As Ms. Stone walked into the choir room, she was shocked to find that only six of the glee club members were in attendance. "Where is everybody else?" she asked. "They're arguing with each other," Soarin' replied, "along with everyone else in the school." "Not only that," Caramel added, "but Sonata is back! Although, she does look and act differently than from the girl we know." Sunrise wasn't paying much attention; his mind was still wrapped around the fact that Sonata was back at school. "What if," he chimed in, "Sonata and those two girls had something to do with the green mist and why everyone is arguing with one another." The Doctor than chose that moment to chime in and state "Well, that explains it then. The girls are obviously sirens." This answer, however, was greeted by raised eyebrows from everyone. "Si-what?!" exclaimed Vinyl. "Didn't any of you learn about Greek mythology?" The Doctor asked with a tone of surprise. "Yeah; when we were eight!" said Sunrise. The Doctor then gave a sigh and said "Well, to recap, sirens are dangerous yet beautiful creatures, portrayed as women, who lure nearby sailors with their enchanting music and voices to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their islands. Some say that sirens need to control people and feed off their energy in order to remain immortal. Without energy, a siren would become mortal and would age properly." Sunrise couldn't believe it; he had known Sonata for three years and never would have guessed that she was, in reality, a mythological creature. "But how the heck were they able to control all of the students like that?" Soarin' asked. "Sonata was a member of our club for three years and we didn't feel controlled." "The absorption must vary depending on how many sirens are in each room." The Doctor explained. "Even though we didn't feel anything, it is quite possible that Sonata was absorbing energy from all of us." At this, Sunrise felt something inside him break; it was his heart. If what The Doctor had said was true, perhaps the club members were not Sonata's friends, but just a meal to her. Sapphire Stone turned to The Doctor and asked, "Is there any way to defeat them so your friends can come back to their senses?" The Doctor thought for a second and said "The only way sirens can be defeated is if someone were to destroy their jewels by singing." "That's it, then." Sunrise said in an angry voice, "We'll have to enter into the battle of the bands." Sunrise then turned to Big Mac and said, "Big Mac, go done to the auditorium and sign us up for the competition." Big Mac replied with a simple "Eeyup" and ran toward the auditorium. Sunrise then turned to the rest of the club members with a stern look on his face. "Alright everyone," he said, "let's go save our friends." > Sadness and Auditions > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- April 15, 2013, 3:30pm "Oh god," Caramel said, "It's like listening to that Clefairy character singing in that Random Encounters video." Sunrise, Vinyl, Soarin', Big Mac, Caramel, and The Doctor were in the auditorium waiting to get up on stage. Auditions were being held for the Battle of the Bands and so far, only the Dazzlings, Flash's band The Canterlot Wondercolts, The Cutie Mark Crusaders, the Lunamoons, Octavia, and the Rainbooms moved on to compete against each other. Snips and Snails were singing a rap song, or at least trying to sing a rap song, as everyone in the auditorium, including Vice Principal Luna and Principal Celestia, had covered their ears. "Thank you, Snips and Snails." Luna said as the song ended, "That was...um...a magnificent effort. The next to perform is a band that combines rock n' roll and techno music. Please welcome to the stage, the Cloudsdales!!" Sunrise and his friends walked up on stage in front of the entire school. As they were getting into their spots, Sunrise said, "Let's go for the first song we practiced." After receiving a nod from everyone, he turned to Soarin' and said "HIT IT!!!" After the song ended, Sunrise looked to the crowd and surprised to see everyone wearing a look of shock on their faces. The Doctor whispered, "Were we really that bad?" Almost immediately, there was a deafening roar from the crowd as they stood up and applauded. "My goodness!!" Sunrise heard Principal Celestia say, "that was amazing; I'd say that this band has earned a spot in the Battle of the Bands." Smiling, the Cloudsdales exited the stage and meet up with the other winners of the auditions. As they walked backstage, Sunrise could have sworn he heard somebody say, "Great job, Sunrise!" He turned and saw that it was Sonata who had called out. Upon noticing her, Sunrise continued to walk past and went out into the hallway. "Sunrise," Sonata said as she followed him, "wait; I can explain." "Okay then," Sunrise said with anger in his voice, "explain why you decided to keep your secret about being a siren a secret. Also, how about telling me who those other girls are. And while we're at it, why don't you tell me how good it felt to consume all of our energy at glee club." Sonata stepped back, looking hurt as she said, "Sunrise, I felt that if I told you and the rest of the glee club who I really was, you would outcast me." Sunrise showed no emotion as she continued. "Second, those two girls are Adagio Dazzle and Aria Blaze; I met them last summer. And," she continued, "I never absorbed any energy from either you or my other friends." "Well how could I know that?" Sunrise asked as he got in Sonata's face. Sonata opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Sunrise was right; there was no way for him to know whether or not she was telling the truth. "Exactly," said Sunrise in a disappointed tone. "Do me a favor, Sonata; just don't talk to me during the whole competition." As he started to walk away from Sonata, an even upsetting thought entered his head. If she could manipulate feelings, he thought, How do I know if I even love her? Sunrise shook that thought out of his head and walked away. As she watched Sunrise walk away, Sonata buried her hands in her face so as to hide both her sadness and her tears. > Betrayal and Horror > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- April 30, 2013, 4:30pm Sunrise wasn't sure how to feel at that moment. On one hand, he was happy that the Cloudsdales were in the quarter finals of the Battle of the Bands. They had beaten the Cutie Mark Crusaders with their song Sure Fire Winners, and had beaten The Background Girls (which was composed of Lyra, Bon Bon, and Derpy) with their song If I Had You. More importantly, they, along with some help from the Rainbooms, were able to break the spell that was placed on Derpy, Bon Bon, Lyra, and Octavia. On the other hand, however, he felt upset and worried that his band's next opponent was the Harmony Trio, Flash's band. Not only that, but Flash had acted very hostile toward Sunrise and the rest of the group ever since he was brainwashed. Personally, to Sunrise, Flash was getting on his last nerve. "Sunrise, you okay?" Big Mac's words brought Sunrise back to reality. "I'm fine, Big Mac." Sunrise assured him. "Just a little nervous." "I don't blame you." Derpy chimed in, "I mean, you're going up against Flash and his band, the highlight of past musical showcases. And if you beat them, you'll be going up against the Dazzlings, the favorites to win the competition. Also, if you guys lose, you'll be out of the competition and-" "Thanks, Derpy." interrupted The Doctor in a tone that signaled Derpy to stop talking. "We kinda already know the stakes here." Sunrise gulped as Vice Principal Luna announced for them to come on stage "Alright, you guys." he said, "Let's get it over with." As they walked on stage, Sunrise saw the Harmony Trio walk on as well. He waved to Flash, but received a look of utmost loathing from him. Sunrise and Flash then both turned to their respective band mates and said "Hit it!!" (Cloudsdales) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac2134eg5Gs (The Harmony Trio) After each band had sung their songs, they starred at the judges for their decisions. "My sister and I," Vice Principal Luna began, "to give the spot in the semi-finals to...The Harmony Trio!!!" As the students cheered for Flash's band, the Cloudsdales sadly started to pack up their equipment. Sunrise was the saddest; the band had failed to break the spell that was upon their friends. Now the only way to return order to the school was for the Rainbooms to defeat the Dazzlings. As they were leaving the stage, Sunrise could hear Flash taunting them. "Well it's about time their pathetic leader faced reality. No matter how great of a singer he is, he can never amount to anything. No wonder Sunset Shimmer dumped him." At this, Sunrise could no longer hold his tongue. He whirled around and yelled, "AT LEAST I DIDN'T GET BRAINWASHED TWICE IN A ROW!!! It was probably easy for Sunset and the Dazzlings to control you, since that brain of yours is too weak to resist any temptation!" As Sunrise turned around to meet with the band, he felt something bounce off the back of his head and land on the stage. Messaging the back of his neck, he looked down and saw that it was a apple. He turned around and saw Flash standing on one foot like he was in a throwing position. Sunrise snapped; before Flash could have time to react, Sunrise had sprinted across the stage and tackled Flash to the ground. What happened next would go down as one of the most brutal fights in the high school's history. Sunrise and Flash kept exchanging punches and kicks towards each other for about a good three minutes. Finally, Sunrise gained the upper hand and had both hands squeezing on Flash's throat. "HOW ABOUT NOW, HUH?" yelled Sunrise in an enraged voice, "YOU GOT ANYTHING SMART TO SAY NOW, TOUGH GUY?" "Sunrise, stop!" a voice rang out, "You're going to kill him." As he felt a pair of hands grab his arm, Sunrise lifted it and smacked the person who was trying to break up the fight. A sudden gasp from the crowd caused Sunrise to turn to see who had tried to stop him. He realized, to his horror, that it was Sonata, who was holding a hand to her cheek and had tears in her eyes. As he was brought back to reality, Sunrise soon remembered that he still had one hand on Flash's throat. He let go, allowing Flash to cough and gasp for air. Sunrise looked down at his hands and saw that they were stained with the blood of both him and Flash. He turned to to Sonata, who was looking at him with disbelief. "W-What...are...y-you?" she asked shakily. "I don't know." Sunrise replied, still shocked about what he had just done. Ashamed, Sunrise ran off the stage to avoid the gazes of the shocked students. He ran off the school grounds, and continued to run home. As he ran, he kept repeating the same thought in his mind. whathaveidonewhathaveidonewhathaveidone.... > Reconciliation > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- May 2, 2013, 6:00pm As Sunrise looked up at the stars while lying on the roof, he still couldn't believe what he just did a few days ago. He had tried to kill Flash Sentry, one of his best friends, and had struck Sonata across the face. Not only that, but it all happened in front of the entire school. He hadn't been to any of his classes since then; he couldn't bear to show his face around the school after what happened. Fortunately, Celestia understood; she had posted him as "ill". She knew that he needed to figure things out on his own. As he looked at the setting sun, Starlight began to sing. Alone in this house again tonight I got the TV on, the sound turned down and a bottle of wine There's pictures of you and I on the walls around me The way that it was and could have been surrounds me I'll never get over you walkin' away I've never been the kind to ever let my feelings show And I thought that bein' strong meant never losin' your self-control But I'm just drunk enough to let go of my pain To hell with my pride, let it fall like rain From my eyes Tonight I...wanna... Before he could finish the chorus, however, Starlight covered his face in his hands to prevent anyone from seeing the tears. "Hey," a voice close to called out, "mind if I join you?" Sunrise whirled around and saw Sunset Shimmer leaning against the brick chimney. Normally, Sunrise would have told her to go away, but he felt like he needed to talk to someone right now, friend or foe. He patted down on the section of the roof that was next to him, indicating where she could sit. She obliged, and they sat in silence for five minutes. Finally, Sunrise decided to break the ice. "You were right, Sunset," he stated quietly, "You were right these past three years. No matter how I try to make friends, I'll still be a bully that everyone fears. I can never change." Sunset looked at him with a sad look and said, "Sunrise, when I said those things, I wasn't really the nicest person in the school. The truth is, I was jealous of you back then." Sunrise turned to her with complete surprise etched on his face. Sunset continued, "You looked like you belonged to a group that would accept you. You had friends with whom you could trust with your life. All I had for friends were Snips and Snails, and I didn't even consider them to be companions. You were having the time of your life while I was scheming to ruin it. I'm the one who should be sorry for instilling that thought in your head." Sunrise couldn't find words to describe what he was hearing; Sunset Shimmer, his ex- and formally one of the meanest girls at school was apologizing. "The truth is," Sunset said with a smile, "your friends are very lucky to have you in their group. And Sonata is a very lucky girl to know you. I'm sure they would be willing to accept you no matter who you are." "Yeah," Sunrise replied, "if they'll forgive me for what I did on Wednesday." Sunset looked toward him and said, "Well, you know there's only one way to find out." Sunrise knew what she was saying; he would have to go back up on stage after the Battle of the Bands and address an entire apology to the entire school. Even though he wasn't great at public speaking, he could see no other option. Sunrise then extended his arm out and beckoned Sunset to come closer. As he rested his arm on her shoulder, Sunrise felt warmth and relaxation from Sunset. It made him realize that even if the rest of the school would reject him, she would still be there to help him back up. Smiling, Sunrise said "Sunset...thanks." "You're welcome." she replied. > Apologizes and Endings > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- May 9, 2013, 8:00pm Sunrise stood backstage, nervous about how the students would react when they saw him. He watched as the Dazzlings were defeated by the Rainbooms and Sunset Shimmer. As he watched his fellow students regain their senses, he saw Celestia standing behind him. "Are you sure about this?" she asked with concern. "I have to, Mom," Sunrise replied, "If I don't, I wouldn't be able to live with myself over this." Celestia then turned him around and said, "Before you go out there, I just want you to know how proud I am of you. Over these past few years, I've seen you grow into a very mature, young man. A mother couldn't ask for a better son." Sunrise then took this opportunity to wrap his mother in a long embrace and said, "I love you, Mom. No matter what happens in life, I will always be your son." As soon as the crowd died down, Sunrise walked on stage. As he made his way to the center, he took a microphone and began his speech. "Hi, I'm pretty sure you all know why I'm up here. First, I want to apologize to the entire student body who saw the incident last week. I don't blame any of you if you hate me for it, but I want to make it perfectly clear that I will do whatever it takes to earn your trust back." When this response was met with silence, Sunrise continued, "Second, I want to apologize to the glee club members, especially Flash. I want him to personally know that I would never intend to hurt him in any way, shape or form." At this, Sunrise heard footsteps as someone walked onto the stage. He turned to his left and saw Flash, who had a few cuts and bruises on his face. The two of them then stood foot to foot, face to face. Sunrise closed his eyes, waiting for Flash's response. Suddenly, he felt two arms wrap around him. He opened his eyes and saw that Flash was hugging him. As he pulled away, Sunrise saw that Flash was smiling from ear to ear. Sunrise smiled back and pulled Flash in for another hug, which was meet by the cheers of the crowd. As he and Flash separated, Sunrise returned to his speech. "Now," he continued, "there is another part of my speech that I need to say to a certain someone. I'd like to call forth Sonata Dusk to the stage." Almost immediately, Sonata came from stage right and nervously walked up to Sunrise. Sunrise then turned away from the crowd and starred at Sonata. "Sonata," he stated, "You have to believe me when I say that I am both truly and deeply sorry about what I did to you. I would never hurt you like that; I would have died before I could lay a hand on you." As he was about to wrap up his speech, a thought clicked into his head. He decided right then and there that he was going to spill it. "Also," he continued, "there's something I want to say to you..." Meanwhile backstage, Luna and Celestia were giving each other puzzled looks. "Was this part of his original speech?" Luna asked. "No." replied Celestia. As they pondered this, Sunrise continued with his confession. "It's something I should have told you when I first met you. The thing is,....I love you, Sonata Dusk. I have always have and I always will." Sunrise looked down to see that Sonata had a surprised look on her face and wasn't responding. Sunrise began to fear that he had broken her. Suddenly, Sonata jumped toward Sunrise, wrapped her arms around his neck, and connected her lips with his. Sunrise was taken by surprise, but then started kissing her back. After 10 seconds, their lips parted and Sonata greeted him with a loving smile. "I love you, too." she said. As soon as she said this, Sunrise smiled and hugged her tightly. Almost on cue, a roar came from the crowd as the entire school cheered for the new couple. The members of the glee club rushed over to Sonata and Sunrise, each expressing their congratulations. As Sunrise looked around at his peers, his friends, and his love, he couldn't help but shed a few tear. It's weird, he thought, how one bad event can turn out to be the start of something great for someone. Suddenly, a pink-haired girl came out of nowhere and wrapped both Sonata and Sunrise into a massive hug. "LET'S PARTY!!!" she cried out. "What should we sing?" Flash asked. After thinking for a moment, Sunrise said, "I think I know the perfect song. Twilight, could you give us a hand?" "Sure." Twilight said. With a aura glowing around her, Flash's, Caramel's, Big Mac's, Sunrise's, Soarin's, Vinyl's, Lyra's, and The Doctor's clothes changed to white tuxedos. In addition, Twilight's, Applejack's, Cherilee's, Sonata's, Rainbow Dash's, Octavia's, Bon Bon's, and Derpy's dresses changed into 50s style clothes. Sunrise then grabbed the microphone and began to sing to a cheering crowd. Four years you think for sure That’s all you've got to endure All the total dicks All the stuck up chicks So superficial, so immature Then when you graduate You take a look around and you say HEY WAIT This is the same as where I just came from I thought it was over Aw that’s just great The whole damn world is just as obsessed With who‘s the best dressed and who‘s having sex, Who‘s got the money, who gets the honeys, Who‘s kinda cute and who‘s just a mess And you still don’t have the right look And you don’t have the right friends Nothing changes but the faces, the names, and the trends High school never ends Check out the popular kids You’ll never guess what Jessica did How did Mary Kate lose all that weight And Katie had a baby so I guess Tom’s straight And the only thing that matters Is climbing up that social ladder Still care about your hair and the car you drive Doesn't matter if you’re sixteen or thirty-five Reese Witherspoon, She’s the prom queen Bill Gates, Captain of the chess team Jack Black, the clown Brad Pitt, the quarterback I've seen it all before I want my money back The whole damn world is just as obsessed With who’s the best dressed and who’s having sex, Who’s in the clubs and who’s on the drugs, Who’s throwing up before they digest And you still don’t have the right look And you don’t have the right friends And you’re still listen to the same shit you did back then High school never ends High school never ends The whole damn world is just as obsessed With who‘s the best dressed and who‘s having sex, Who‘s got the money, who gets the honeys, Who‘s kinda cute and who‘s just a mess And I still don’t have the right look And I still have the same three friends And I’m pretty much the same as I was back then High school never ends High school never ends High school never ends Here we go again > Epilogue > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- September 7, 2039, 7:20am Twenty-five years later... The school bus was waiting at the end of the road to pick up the students for their first day of high school. A husband and wife were walking with their daughter and son toward the station. As they approached the bus, the father looked to his son with a smile on his face. "Well Dusk Shine," he said, "today you start high school. It's a pretty big step in a young man's life." "Yeah," replied his sister. "Going from super-wedgie to ultra-wedgie is a big step, indeed." "Cappella!!!" Sonata exclaimed, "Don't say such horrible things to your brother." As Cappella laughed, Sunrise shook his head and sighed. Out of his two children, she inherited his sass. Suddenly, Dusk Shine cried out, "There they are!!" The rest of the family turned to see what he was looking at. They then saw a man with blue, slick hair and his family waving to them. "I was thinking that we wouldn't find you." Flash exclaimed. "It's always great to see you." said Twilight Sparkle as she walked over and gave both Sunrise and Sonata a hug. While Sonata was talking with Flash and Twilight, Dusk Shine turned to his father and asked, "Dad, can I talk to you in private?" Sunrise nodded; he knew where this was going. He had anticipated this ever since Dusk Shine graduated from Junior High this past June. When they were out of ear shot, Dusk Shine asked, "What if I don't end up making friends here? What if, for the rest of my high school years, I become a loner?" Sunrise smiled; out of his two children, Dusk had inherited both Sonata's and Sunrise's kindness. "Dusk Shine," he said, "you are a very special person. You will be able to make friends no matter what the situation. Personally, I think you should join a school club that involves what you're good at. You might even make friends that share the same interests as you." Dusk looked up at his father and asked, "Do you really think that would work? How do you know that joining a club will be good for me?" Sunrise smiled and whispered, "because I was in the glee club at your age. How do you think I meet your mom and Uncle Flash?" Smiling, Dusk packed up his things and walked onto the bus. As he sat down in a empty seat next to a boy with rainbow-colored hair, he looked out the window and waved to his parents. As they returned the gesture, Sunrise called out, "now remember, don't get into trouble too early in the school year; you don't want to make a bad name for yourself towards Principal Shimmer." Nodding, Dusk smiled and called out, "Bye, mom. Bye, dad." As they watched the bus leave for the high school, Sonata turned to Sunrise and smiled affectionately. "He'll be fine." she said. As he watched the bus disappear over the hill, Sunrise returned Sonata's smile. "Yeah," he replied, "I know he will." End