'The End.'

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Sunset sighed and glanced at her clock. It read 3:48 am. Pretty much everyone else in the city was in bed, and the other apartments around her were silent. So, she sat in her bedroom, at her desk, simply staring at the blank paper. She sniffled quietly and began to write.

Dear AppleJack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie.
I would like to start this note out by saying that I am sorry for any and all pain I have caused you five throughout the years. I was a horrible bitch, but I've changed. You guys could never know how much I regret my actions. They will forever haunt me. It's funny, really. I knew I had changed, and I thought you guys knew it too. But, this Anon-A-Miss has ruined that. Now I know that I was just a burden and you guys couldn't wait to get rid of me. That's why after the first thing that could give you five any doubt happened, you cut me off. Like a flower. I felt I was blooming with the help from you guys, but now you've cut off my stem. And just like a flower, I feel that I am slowly dying. How could you do that to me? After everything we've done, after everything I've done, you just turned on me like that? If you guys truly respected me as your equal, we could have talked about this. I could have explained myself and we could have worked through this together. But no, it went straight to, 'You're not welcome here!' 'yeah, get out!' 'secret stealer!', and possibly the worst of all. 'You're not our friend!'. Wow. You guys knew about my past, you knew my secrets. You knew how after I left Equestria, I almost killed myself. You knew that there have been so many days that I feel like I'm dead. That I still struggle to fall asleep and to force myself up in the mornings to face the day. And you cut me off so easily. Did you want me to do this? Probably. Hell, it's what the whole school wants. I'm sorry that I didn't prove myself to you enough to make you trust me. I'm sorry if this note doesn't make much sense, I'm not in the best places right now. I'm just so...isolated. I had you five, and now I have no body. I can't take it anymore. I hate this feeling. I despise this feeling. I hate walking through the halls and feeling everybody look at me. I hate going places alone. I hate this constant silence. I guess I should wrap this up now. But before I go, I have one final question. This is mostly for AppleJack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash. Now that we know the truth, how did you three confront your sisters? Did you guys yell at them? Did you kick them out? Well, no, I didn't expect you to. After all, they are your family. Did you give them a small punishment and then hold them and say you loved them, that it would be okay? Why did they get a small punishment? Was it because they were crying? Did I not cry enough for you? Was falling to my knees and sobbing, begging you, on MULTIPLE OCCASIONS, not enough tears for you? I guess I really am worthless to you. After this, I only ask you all of one thing. The next time Twilight shows up and asks where I am, tell her. Don't sugar-coat it. Tell her what you all did. Now it is time for my story to finish. Goodbye to everyone I once thought of as a friend.

The End.

~Sunset Shimmer
***
Sunset woke up spluttering. It took her a moment for her eyes to adjust, though things still looked blurry. She recognized her shower curtain. the cold water was running into her eyes, making it even harder to see.
"Sunset!? Are you awake? Sunset!" She heard someone's voice from behind her. It sounded familiar. She glanced down and saw a tan arm wrapped around her waist.
"It's not working! Try again!" shrieked a hysteric voice. She felt a finger slip into her mouth and down her throat. At the same time, the arm around her waist flexed. These combined caused her to lean forward and wretch, everything washing down the drain in front of her. Everything. Even the pills she had taken. In a moment, she realized what had happened and panicked. She flailed about for a moment and saw more blurry shapes enter the room.
"N-No!" she sobbed, tears falling already. "No! Don't! Please. Please just let me go! No, please, I don't want this, please!" she cried, leaning forward and hugging herself tightly around the arms. She saw and heard the other people in the room crowd around the tub. With one final "please" from Sunset, she fell unconscious again.
***
Next time Sunset woke, she heard the steady hum of electricity all around her. A light was directly above her head, and it made her flinch and groan. She felt sick and nauseous. A hand tentatively touched hers and she jolted lightly, straining to lift her head up. Her eyes were met by wide, scared, sad green ones.
"Sunset," AppleJack sighed. She heard rustling all around her and knew that the other girls had all sat up. Sunset swallowed thickly, feeling more tears prick at her eyes.
"Why?" she croaked after a minute. AppleJack looked at the others, confusion clear on her face.
"Why what, Sugarcube?"
Sunset wasn't sure why, but the fact that AppleJack called her Sugarcube made her angry. After everything she had said and done, she dared to call her such an endearing title? Sunset grit her teeth and clenched her fist, glaring at the light above.
"Why didn't you let me die?" she hissed. The tension in the room could've been cut with a knife. She didn't have to look at them to know they wore looks of horror, staring at each other in shock.
"Sunset, dear, I-"
"No!" she growled, cutting off Rarity. "Don't call me that. Do not call me dear"
Rarity looked hurt but closed her mouth and stared at her palms. No one spoke for a while until Pinkie let out a small sob from her corner.
"Sunset, I'm so sorry" she whispered. Sunset rolled her eye to watch her. Pinkie seemed duller, and sat in a ball in her chair. Her hair was flat, and was falling in long ribbons around her. Her face was flushed and she was shaking as she now openly sobbed.
"Please Sunset, we're all sorry. Please forgive us" came Rainbow Dash's gravelly voice next. She met Sunset's eye and shuddered at the deadness of it. It was dull, swimming in pools of pain and sorrow. She gave no response.
"We're sorry Sunset. You don't have to forgive us, but please just know that we all love you so, so much" came Fluttershys shaky voice. The others nodded in agreement.
Sunset just sighed and went back to staring at the ceiling.
"Please leave."
"Sunset, 'ah-"
"Leave. Now."
Four of them got up, seeing the swift nod AppleJack gave them and walked out the door. Sunset refused to look at or speak to Applejack. Finally, AppleJack sighed and stood, letting go of Sunsets hand.
"I love you." was all she said before crossing the small room and closing the door softly behind her, leaning her forehead against its cool surface and finally allowing some of her tears to escape. Before she left, she could swear she heard sobbing from the other side.

Notes from a Princess

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The next time the door opened, a nurse walked in. Sunset remained curled on her side, staring out the window. She had been given a ground floor room, which made her snort. The nurse slowly checked over everything. She glanced at Sunset and frowned in worry. She jotted out a few notes before clearing her throat. When Sunset didn't move, she did it slightly louder. Still no response. Finally, the nurse crossed to the other side of the bed and crouched to look at Sunsets face. Sunset finally made eye contact with her and the two just stared at eachother for a moment. The nurse smiled.
"How are you feeling today?" she asked kindly. Sunset sighed and slowly pushed herself into a sitting position.
"I'm fine. When can I leave?" she asked flatly. The nurse smiled, standing.
"Not for a little while, I'm afraid. We have to keep you here for observation and you need to finish purging the pills you took from your system. Then, we'll decide where you'll go." she said with a small smile. Sunset blinked.
"What do you mean where I'll go?" she asked, glaring at the nurse.
"Well, we need to see if you're...stable or not."
She gaped at the nurse for a second. She hadn't even considered that they might put her in a long-term hospital. She cursed in her head and huffed, crossing her arms. The nurse smiled again before leaving. Sunset groaned.
***
Sunset stood at the doors of the hospital. She was finally leaving. They had only kept her there for about two weeks, but it had felt like forever. They had finally deemed her safe. She smiled one last time at her nurses before turning and walking out the doors. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, enjoying the feeling of freedom. Her smile dissapeared the moment she saw Applejack. She was sitting on a bench in the park across the street. She jumped up when she saw her and ran across the road. Sunset hugged herself tightly and took off at a brisk pace down the street. She could hear Applejack yelling for her but she didn't stop. Applejack finally caught up to her and grabbed her forearm. Sunset, without thinking, swiftly threw her off and swung behind her, pinning her arms. Applejack yelped in surprise. Sunset, realising what she had done, shakily let go and backed away. Finally, she crossed her arms and turned, continuing on her way home.
"Don't touch me. Just leave me alone" she called behind her. She sighed a little when she heard the footsteps retreating. That relief lasted up until she saw Applejack dive out from a bush, cutting off her path. Sunset took a step back and Applejack held out her hands.
"W-Wait!" she pleaded. Sunset stopped for a moment before scolding herself and continuing on her way.
***
She slid the key into her door before shoving it open. It swung open into...nothing. Sunset sighed in relief. She had been worried Pinkie would've tried to throw some type of a party, but was relieved that she hadn't. Sunset walked into the main room, kicking the door shut behind her. It was, for the most part, as she remembered. A few things had been cleaned. Clean blankets were folded on her couch. Any perishable foods she had left out had been put neatly into her refridgerator. Sunset sighed. After everything she had gone through today, she was tired. She stretched, feeling her back pop. She made her way to her bedroom and lied down, falling asleep almost immediately.
***
She woke up to a strange buzzing sound. She reached for her phone, but that wasn't the one buzzing. Groaning, she forced herself up and made her way to her closet. Inside was the culprit. She grabbed the flashing book and flipped it open. Blinking a few times, she began to grope in the darkness. Her book. It was vibrating loudly, flashing golden light across the room. Sunset rubed her eyes and climbed back into bed, the book tucked neatly under her arm. She leaned over and flicked on her light before cracking open the book and reading the latest entry.
Are you okay? Holy shit, Sunset! I just... I don't know what to say. Are you okay? Wait, what am I saying? You just tried to kill yourself, for Celestia's sake! Of course you're not okay! Oh gods oh gods. I'm so sorry that I wasn't there for you. I'm so sorry that I was never there for you. Oh gods please forgive me.
Sunset blinked, her eyes trailing up the page to the entry before that one. It was from her side, but it was in Fluttershy's cramped writing. It read:
Sunset just tried to kill herself. Please help her. We messed up. We messed up bad. We...we broke her. I'm sorry. Please help her. She's in the hospital now. Please.
Sunset clenched her jaw. They had found her book, which meant that they had gone through her things. She sighed and read the next few entries, all from Twilight.
Sunset? Please, please respond. Let me know that you're okay. Please please please be okay. I wouldn't be able to take it if you're not.

Please gods please, let her be okay

Please

The last entries were all a few days apart. Sunset sighed and grabbed a pen from her bed side table. She let it hover above the page before pressing it down and writing, shakily.
Dear Twilight. No, you're right. I'm not okay. Physically, I am. But mentally? No. I'm just tired. Tired of having to prove myself constantly, tired of having to make myself seem worthy, tired of this life. I am tired. And please don't blame yourself. You did everything you could have. None of this is your fault. I... I miss home. I miss my old bed and town. I miss the grass and the ponies. I even miss hooves! I miss you, too. I'm sorry. Please don't worry too much.
With that, she closed the book and held her palm to the logo on the front until it gave a small vibration. She set it down and turned off her light, lying down. She fell asleep easily.

Mourning

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Applebloom looked up from her phone when she heard her door open and gulped. AppleJack was leaning casually against her door frame, hat low and hiding her face. Applebloom quickly lowered her phone and smiled nervously at her sister.
"H-Hiya, Sis. What's up?" she questioned, heart thudding. AppleJack sighed and walked slowly into the room and sat hard in the desk chair. The two sat in silence for a few moments before AppleJack looked up. Applebloom swallowed down a gasp when she saw her sister's face in detail. Her face was pale, hair matted and messy. Her eyes were dark and dull, tear trails marking clean spots in her dirty cheeks. Applebloom had seen her sister happy. Angry. Scared. But this? She had never seen her sister so sad. After a few more tense moments, AppleJack spoke.
"Do you even know how badly you've fucked up?"
She had never cursed. AppleJack, even when furious, had never, ever, cursed at anyone. Especially not her little sister. Applebloom made a small squawking noise of surprise, but didn't say anything. Slowly, she nodded.
"No, you don't. My god, Bloom. What did you three think you could gain from this? You understand that we could all be charged with attempted murder?"
Applebloom stood, scrambling to get her feet on the floor.
"B-But we never hurt anyone! We never touched anyone! No one got physically hurt!" She cried, trying desperately to justify herself. AppleJack just watched her through a daze.
"You don't know. Gods, how do you not know?" AppleJack lamented, placing her head in her hands. Applebloom paled slightly.
"K-Know what? Sis? What do I not know?"
AppleJack looked up, and she looked so tired.
"Sunset tried to kill herself"
Applebloom completely paled and staggered backwards, like she had been hit. Her back hit the door handle to her closet and she whimpered in pain and fell to the floor, drawing her knees close. Her breathing came in sharp, ragged breaths. What? No. AppleJack had to be wrong. She just had to! They just wanted to have fun, not to take it that far!
"B-But we never wrote nothin about her!" Applebloom managed to gasp out between breaths.
"Bloom, before we found out it was you three, who did everyone think was writing those awful things? We-we all thought she was goin' back to her old ways. The girls and I thought she was using us and we said some... we said awful things, Bloom."
Now AppleJack was crying too, hands covering her face in an attempt to muffle her sobs.
"Oh god... AppleJack.. and You and her.. I'm so sorry" Applebloom cried, tears streaming.
And so the two stayed like that, on opposite sides of the room, both crying for things they could not take back.
*******
Fluttershy and Pinkie sat on the floor of Rainbow Dash's bedroom in silence.
"I-I feel terrible" Fluttershy finally said, retreating further into her thick green sweater. Pinkie nodded her agreement.
"Every time I think about it, I feel like I've eaten too many cupcakes and the sugary frosting is making me sick" She said, arms wrapping around her stomach.
"The animals won't talk to me much anymore" Fluttersy mourned, tears already beginning to form in her large green eyes. "I-It's like they know what I did and now they just scurry away whenever I try to start a conversation"
"I know how you feel. Pound and Pumpkin barely play with me. They just glare at me and cry whenever I come close. I heard them telling Mrs. Cake once that they didn't like playing with me anymore. Do you think that the news has spread even down to the grade schoolers?" Pinkie asked, also feeling tears building. Fluttershy didn't answer, as she was now sobbing quietly into the collar of her sweater. Pinkie leaned over and pulled her close, the two crying into each others shoulders. They heard the shower in the next room turn off and the familiar noise of Rainbow Dash stepping out. They stayed as they were, unable to leave the comfort they were receiving. Finally, the bathroom door opened and Dash stepped out wearing a baggy t-shirt and sweat pants while pressing a towel to her hair.
Her eyes landed on the two girls.
"Woah, guys, what's wrong?" She questioned, tossing her towel aside and crouching next to them. She barely caught Fluttershy whimper "S-Sunset" and she stood, crossing away from them.
"Come on guys, you're still upset about that?" She asked as she looked in her mirror, careful to not let them see her face.
"How can you be so cruel?" Pinkie snarled. Dash whipped around, unused to such hatred coming from the girl.
"Yeah! We pushed her to suicide, Dash, and you act like it's nothing! You've already gotten over it!" Fluttershy cried. Rainbow Dash glowered.
"I'm not 'over it'! I just realize that there's nothing that we can do about it now, and that there's much better things we can use our energy on than crying about it!"
Fluttershy stood and Rainbow took a step back, unused to her forceful presence. Instead of saying anything though, she simply helped Pinkie up and walked out of the room, down the stairs, and out the front door. They didn't come back.
"R-Rainbow?" Scootaloo asked from her bedroom door, nervous for her sister.
"Get out!" Rainbow Dash cried and slammed her door, breathing hard. Rage was pouring through her veins and she heard Scootalloo yelp and scamper away from her room and back to her own bedroom. Rainbow Dash grit her teeth and crossed to her desk, grabbing the small picture frame of her and the girls. She had thought it might help calm her down, but it just increased her rage. With a shout, she threw it at the ground and it shattered, glass and plastic skittering across her hard wood floor. She flung herself onto the bed and buried her face in the pillow, pounding her fists into the bedding and sobbing. She had messed up so bad. The one thing she really wanted and needed to do was the one thing she couldn't do. So, she let her emotions flow out of her and into her pillow, which muffled her screams and sobs alike until she finally fell asleep.
*******
Rarity lifted her head from her sketch book and blinked tiredly. Her blurry eyes took a moment to read the number on her alarm clock. 8:37 pm. She cursed and stood from her desk, taking a moment to stretch and take in her surroundings. Her usually clean and organized bedroom was filled with paper plates and crushed energy drink cans. She would usually never think of touching an energy drink, but she hadn't been sleeping well. And by that, she had been lucky to get an hour a day. She didn't like sleeping anymore. Every night, she saw the same thing. Sunset, cold and lifeless, lying on her bed with empty pill bottles around her. So, Rarity would work herself to exhaustion and crash, then do it all over again. There was a timid knocking at her door.

"R-Rarity? Mommy says dinner is ready" Sweetie Belle called out. Rarity just gave her the same response she gave her every other day.

"I'm not hungry, go away!"
She heard Sweetie sigh and walk away from her door before she picked up her cellphone and pressed the home button. There were
numerous texts, but she only responded to one.

The Girls
7:28 pm
AppleJack: Girls, we need to do something.
Fluttershy: I agree
Pinkie: Me too
AppleJack: Dash? Rarity?

8:42 pm
Rarity: I'm sorry, Girls. I was asleep. Yes, we need to do something.

She turned her phone off before walking slowly around her room a few times, stretching her legs, before taking her original seat again and burying herself in her school work until her alarm went off and she had to get ready for school.

First Day

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Sunset groaned as she woke up. She grabbed her phone off of her night stand and turned off the alarm before swinging her legs off of the side of her bed. She cringed as her feet touched the cold, bare wooden floor. She padded across the room and into the bathroom where she slowly brushed her teeth and combed through her mess of hair. She splashed some cold water onto her face and toweled it off. She left the light on as she left the room and made her way down the hall and to her kitchen. She poured herself a small bowl of cereal and sat on her couch, scrolling through her phone. She opened her messages, instantly deleting all of the new ones and opening the last one.

The name read "Doctor Shine" and she typed down all of her symptoms for that morning, how she was feeling, and what she'd eaten. She was forced to report to them every morning, or else they'd send someone to check up on her. She set down her phone and stood, moving to place her now empty bowl in the sink. She grabbed her pill sorter and opened the one labeled with a large "M". She dumped a few pills into her hand and swung her head back, popping them into her mouth and taking a long drink from her water. She cringed at the medicine taste as she walked back into her bedroom to finish getting ready for school.
***

Sunset sighed as she pulled into her school parking lot. Anxiety pooled in the pit of her stomach making her feel like she would shatter at any moment. She had shown up early in hopes of avoiding the majority of the other students while on her way to class. It actually worked, for the most part. She only got a few stares in the halls from the other kids who showed up early. She made her way to her first class, Calculus. The door was still locked, and the room was dark. She sighed as she crossed to the opposite end of the hallway and sat down on the floor, pulling out her phone. She had a single text message from Dr.Shine. She opened it and scanned the message.

"That's great to hear, Sunset! Don't forget to take your other medications with a full lunch. Also, don't forget about our appointment on Saturday!"

"Sunset?" a voice called out from the end of the hall. Her head snapped up from her phone. Her calculus teacher stood at the end of the hall, hands on her mouth and eyes brimming with tears. "I-I, You didn't show up to class and I just thought you were sick, because you had been acting weird the day before and then I heard the rumors, that you had... but I didn't believe them! I mean, I didn't think that it was even possible for you to have, but then I got the email and I knew they were true and I-I just- oh god Sunset!" she cried as she slowly sank to her knees, sobbing into her hands.

"Ms. Abbott," Sunset had jumped to her feet and rushed forward to wrap her arms around her teacher. "Ms. Abbott I'm so sorry. I- I didn't think that... I'm sorry. It's okay, I'm here now so please calm down, okay?" Sunset hadn't even thought of Ms. Abbott before... everything. Ms. Abbott had been one of the few people who had always believed in her. She never thought for a second that Sunset was AnonAMiss. She was one of the few Sunset would truly miss.

She held her trembling teacher as a few of her own tears escaped. The guilt was back in full force, churning and roiling in her core. Ms. Abbott clung to her until her sobs slowed to just a few trickling tears moving quietly down her face. She took a deep breath and pulled back, grabbing Sunset's face and cupping it in her hands.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again, understood?" She asked Sunset, a bit of teacher voice coming through. Sunset nodded and she sighed, pulling her into another loose hug. "I was so scared, Sunset." was all she said before pulling away again. She stood and offered Sunset a hand up, which she took gratefully. Ms. Abbott moved to unlock the door to her classroom while Sunset snatched up her bag. She entered the room behind her teacher and smiled at the familiar room.

She moved to walk back to her old seat in the back corner, but Ms. Abbott cleared her throat and Sunset turned. An extra chair was pulled up across from her at the main desk. She sat in it and looked at her teacher.

"What happened, Sunset?" she asked with a hoarse voice. Sunset sighed and sat back in the chair, staring up at the ceiling as she wasn't able to look at her teachers broken face anymore. She sat in the silence and took a few minutes to gather her thoughts before speaking.

"You remember the Anon-A-Miss incident a few months back, right?" she asked. Ms. Abbott nodded back, a sour look crossing her face. "Well, most of the students assumed that I had been the one behind everything. Even... even my best friends" She took a shuddering breath, trying to put a cap over her emotions. She'd been telling the same story to doctors for weeks, so why couldn't she do it now? "I have... had thoughts of suicide before. But, my friends helped. I had people who I'd hurt if I were to... leave. And I just couldn't stand to think about it. And then we had a big fight and they made it pretty clear we weren't by any means 'friends' anymore" She breathed deeply, trying to stop the stray tears. Ms. Abbott reached across the desk and handed her a few tissues, which she accepted thankfully. She took a moment to wipe her eyes and blow her nose before continuing. "I was alone and back to where I'd been before, except I didn't have my shields up like I had before. It hurt. It hurt so bad."

Ms. Abbott took her hand and squeezed gently. "You don't need to go on with what happened next." Sunset nodded and swallowed thickly. Her throat felt dry and her heart felt heavy. The morning bell rang and both jumped up. Sunset stood and thanked her teacher before making her way back to her seat. She got looks and whispers when others walked in, but she refused to look up. She kept her eyes firmly glued on her phone screen, an unreadable expression on her face. She couldn't have been more relieved when class started.
***

Sunset wandered around her schools halls, trying to find an abandoned place to eat at. She had walked into the cafeteria and it had seemed that every pair of eyes was on her. They probably were. She turned and walked steadily from the room, tremors moving through her body when she'd gotten far enough away. She eventually found a chair that had been pulled into the hall and sat, pulling a small bag out of her backpack. Inside was a sandwich, a bottle of water, and a small plastic container holding a few bright pills. She looked around to make sure she was alone before dumping them into her palm and popping them into her mouth. She swallowed them with a swig of her water before ripping into her sandwich. She was starving. She finished it quickly and stood, crossing to the end of the hallway to throw the plastic bags into the trash bin located there. She made her way back to her chair and sat, pulling out her phone and scrolling through some news article. She twitched her head up when she heard feet approaching. A lot of them.

"She was in here, guys, I swear! I just saw her throw something away!" a familiar raspy voice drifted through the hall.

"Well, she coulda moved now, couldn't she?" Came another familiar and agitated voice.

"Yeesh, AJ, calm down" replied the first. They were getting nearer now.

Sunset's breath hitched in her throat, anxiety coursing through her. Air felt too thick to pass through her lungs as she sat there, frozen in fear. Five girls rounded the corner and all stopped in unison. They stared at Sunset. Sunset stared back at them.

"Sunset, I-" were the only things out of Rarity's mouth before Sunset jumped up. She grabbed her bag and ran down the hall. She could her footsteps and shouts coming after her as she made her way down the twist of dull brown carpet and beige walls. She made her way to the back exit of the school and flung the doors open. The footsteps had stopped at the school, but she didn't. She tore down sidewalks, leaving leaves floating behind her. She didn't stop. She couldn't stop. She was flying.
***
She slammed the door behind her and fell against it, heaving. She knew she shouldn't have exerted her body like that, but she didn't care. In her panic, all she could think of was getting out and getting out fast. She made her way to her bedroom and dug in her mess of blankets until her hand hit something solid. She pulled the book out and sat down had on her floor. Her hand searched her pockets frantically for a pen before writing.

You said I should come visit you in Equestria one day. Does that offer still stand?

She closed the book and sent the message, sighing. She stood after a few minutes and made her way to the kitchen. She really needed some water.

Secrets Cause Tension.

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Sunset sat alone in the darkness of her bedroom. Her breathing was shallow but calm. She wasn't crying, for she had no more tears to shed. She had two notes clutched in her grip. She was shocked out of her stupor as an alarm on her phone went off. She jumped up and wiped at the dampness lingering under her eyes before reaching for her phone to shut off the incessant ringing. She stood and crossed around the bed where a few bags were stored. She heaved them onto her back with a groan. She folded the notes separately and sealed them with a small piece of tape. She then pocketed her phone and quickly left her apartment, keys in hand.
***

It was early on a Saturday morning, and fog clung heavily to the pavement. Sunset's breath plumed in front of her. It was too cold for early March. Nevertheless, she pressed on. She made her way to the school. Just the sight of it made bile crawl up her throat and anxiety pool inside of her. Too many bad memories were here, and they all flickered through her brain.

The first time she'd come, thrown out of the portal and onto the cold cement, now trapped alone in a new body.
All of the different ways she'd blackmailed people. All of the times she'd hurt people. The memory of being corrupted by the crown stung, and the memory of being hit by the elements was tearing into her skin, ripping her from her. Her hands ached as she saw herself replacing each and every brick. She remembered Twilight, how happy she'd been, and then watched as she'd stolen magic from all of her... friends. Her friends. The shouts tore their way through her mind. She wasn't welcome. She wasn't their friend. Not their friend. Not their friend not their friend not their frien-

She broke out of her trance at the sound of the portal lighting up behind her. She glanced at the rippling magic covering the marble. It called to her, but she still had something she needed to do. She steeled her shoulders and walked away from the portal, climbing up the stairs to the front doors. She reached in her pocket and plucked out the key ring. She separated them until she found the right one and inserted it into the door. She jiggled it a few times and it unlocked. She smiled, glad they hadn't changed the locks.

When she'd had to rebuild the front of the school, the janitor didn't want to show up on the weekends to let her in. He'd tossed her the key ring, and when she asked why he'd given her all of them, he'd simply responded with 'you say you've changed? Show us.' That had stuck with her. He'd never asked for the keys back and every time she'd tried to give them back, he'd make up some excuse and leave before she could give them back. Every time she left them in the janitors closet, they always found their way back to her desk when she'd walk into class the next day. She was thankful she'd had them now. She roamed the half lit halls until she found her way to her calculus class. She crouched down and slid the first note under the door.

It had just been a simple thank you for everything she'd done for the past years. For believing in her. For helping her. She'd left a generic $50 gift card inside. It was all she had. The next place she went was to AJ's locker. She knew the combo, but she instead opted to slide the folded sticky note through the slits in the upper half. She crossed the hall to the janitors closet and hung up the keys one last time. She wouldn't be there to get them back. Her last destination in the school was the Principals office. This one wasn't going to be slid under the door. She unlocked the door and walked inside. It was a modest and tidy office. She didn't go through anything, but instead just set the folded note in the center of the desk. With her final task done, she made her way swiftly out of the office and out of the school.

The doors locked automatically, so she didn't need to worry about leaving them open all weekend. She heard them click shut behind her and she hesitated a moment, hand on the cold metal. She rested her head against the glass and said her final goodbyes to the school. Despite all the terrible memories, she had some good ones here too. She remembered laughing so hard at lunch with her friends that she'd almost thrown up. Convincing the librarians to let her stay late to study and having the entire library to herself. Exciting debates in her English class. The times she'd fallen asleep at a library table, crowded with books and her friends. All of the lunches spent outside, eating in the sunshine and sitting on the grassy hills.

She sighed and stepped away from the door. She was finished. As she walked away, she had the strangest sense of lifting. It was like some chain that had been holding her here, to all of the bad memories and misery, had been severed. She was leaving everything she'd called home for the past five years behind, and she couldn't be happier about it. A simple sense of happiness filled her. For the first time in a long time, she felt simply...okay. Not overwhelmingly happy, but she was okay with all of the bad things. She'd done what she could and she was leaving them behind.

She walked confidently towards the portal. The colors swirled before her. She could sense the magic coming from it. She'd missed that feeling. It embraced her willingly, like welcoming an old friend. It recognized her as a being of magic. She was just about to step into the portal when a sound snatched her attention away.

"Sunset?"

The voice was timid and unsure. Sunset glanced towards it and stopped. Twilight, this world's Twilight was standing a few yards away. She was bundled in a sweater and scarf. Pens stuck out of her pockets and notebooks weighed down her arms. Spike sat behind her, peering around her legs. Sunset took a few steps back and she felt the pull of the magic lessen slightly.

"Twilight. What are you doing here?" she asked, adjusting her bags. Twilight swallowed and held her notebooks a little higher and gesturing to the portal.

"The portal hasn't been active for months. I guessed it would light up today, so I came early in hopes of getting here to observe it in private..." she trailed off, eyes wandering to the rippling magic. Sunset smiled.

"Of course you were. I'm sorry, I was just about to leave" she said with a tight grin. Twilight glanced between her, the portal, and her loaded bags. Her violet eyes shone with understanding.

"Are you... are you going through the portal?" she asked in bewilderment. "No no no, you can't do that! We don't know what'll happen, or where it goes! You could be trapped or killed, or or o-" She stammered as she quickly shuffled through her notes. Sunset cut her off with a raised hand.

"It's okay, Twilight. I... I know where it goes, so don't worry" she confessed. She had been staring at the ground and glanced up. Twilight glared at her, confusion and anger mixing on her face.

"You knew?" she took a step towards Sunset. "You knew and you never told me? This portal and what it does has been my life for years!" She threw her notebook on the ground. Spike whimpered.

"uuh, Twilight..." he whined. Twilight ignored him.

"You saw what my desire for this knowledge did to me, and you still never told me?" She was screaming now, face red with anger. Sunset just stood there and took it. She wasn't sure what else she could do. She stared at the ground between them. A few tears dripped down her face, trickling off of her nose. She was strong. She could take this. That didn't mean it didn't really hurt. While she was staring at the ground, she heard a few footsteps approaching. She glanced up and the breath left her body in one fell swoop. She took a few steps back and turned, combing a hand through her hair.

"Sweet Celestia, this is just great." she snarled. She felt like someone was driving a knife into her gut and twisting. "What do you five want? What, all of you just coming to yell at me now?" She glared at them, looking like a cornered animal. AppleJack stepped up, holding up her hands.

"Just calm down, Sunset. Twilight messaged us a few minutes ago, saying she saw you coming out of the school" she held up her phone and Sunset scanned the message.

"What? So you all came here to... what, exactly?" she stepped away when AppleJack tried to place a hand on her shoulder. Twilight spoke up.

"Hold on a second, we're not finished yet. You never told me. Why?" she questioned, still angry. Rarity stepped forward.

"Told you what?" she asked gently, placing a hand on her arm. Twilight shrugged her off angrily and Rarity pulled back as if she'd been hit. Fluttershy gripped her pale hand and squeezed it comfortingly. "She- she's from.. from there" she spat with disgust, pointing at the portal. Sunset glared at her, defense building a wall in her chest.

"There is my home. My real home" Sunset hissed, taking a step towards the portal. Before she could get too close to it though, a pink hand shot out from the crowd and wrapped around her forearm. She looked up and met the owners shimmering blue eyes.

"Don't leave us, Sunny. Please." whispered Pinkie. Her hair just barely held a wave. Sunset felt some of her anger seeping away. She let her arm slip out of the grasp until she was barely gripping her fingertips. She looked around the circle of girls. Some of the gazes were angry, some were sad, but only one was desperate. She tugged on Pinkie and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Goodbye, Pinkie" she whispered. And before any of them could register what was going on, Sunset slipped through the portal.

Through the portal

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Swirls of color popped before Sunset’s eyes as her body was stretched through the portal. She would’ve screamed from the pain if she could have. No air entered her lungs and her muscles refused to act on her commands. All she could do was endure, comforted by the thought that it would end soon.

After what felt to her like hours, Sunset finally felt something solid. She forced her eyelids open, instantly regretting it as the bright light burned her over sensitive eyes. She endured a burning in her chest before she remembered she had to breathe, and each pull and push that had once come without thought felt like torture. Minutes passed of her lying there, wherever there was, breathing.
She very, very slowly opened her eyes again and saw fields of shimmering blues and purples. The ground below her was hard and cold, but she wasn’t able to feel the discomfort through the agony in her muscles. She slowly let her eyes close once more, focusing on a small beat in the ground growing steadily louder. It sounded oddly familiar. It took her far too long to recognize them as hooves.
She forced her eyes open to see a few vaguely equine shaped blobs approach, the middle being a bright pink. Their voices reached her ears, though they sounded muffled and caused an intense ringing. She couldn’t even consider trying to respond. The best she could do was groan at them. The voices grew louder and more urgent and she whimpered, wishing to simply cease her existence. Her entire body felt as though it was on fire, and she had yet to realize that wasn’t normal.
Finally, she felt something grab her and hoist her limp form into the air. That got a response. The screams that wouldn’t come before loosed themselves from her throat. Celestials above, was movement supposed to hurt that much? Startled, the guard that had grabbed her with his magic faultered and she flopped back onto the ground, eyes shimmering and chest heaving. Urgent voices pierced her head, the ringing growing continuously more intense. After... well, Sunset wasn’t sure how long, a new sensation broke through the pain. It was... relief. A cool sensation moved slowly across her skin and into her muscles. Slowly, ever so slowly, her entire body relaxed. Tears welled in her eyes from the sheer relief and she didn’t have the will power to stop them. With the pain gone, her mind slipped back to the folds of unconsciousness.

***

Floating. Sunset was floating. She could feel herself rising back to her body before even remembering she had a body. All at once, the weight hit her and she felt the mass of her limbs like lead. Her head swam as she cracked her eyes open. She blinked a few times as the ceiling above came into focus. She heard rustling around her and she attempted to lift her head, but was only able to twitch upwards and fall back, a groan escaping her throat.

“Sunset?”

Sunset took a deep breath and forced her head up, eyes scanning the room. Purple and pink sat beside her.

“Oh, let me move these up for you!” The same voice as before said. Sunset felt the pillows shift behind her and sighed as her head rested against them once more. She focused on the lavender pony leaning over her. She was so familiar.

“T-Twilight?”
Pink eyes flashed before her. Sad and worried, but hopeful. Twilight smiled at her.

“Hi, Sunny.”

Sunset breathed deeply.

“Where am I? Wh-what is this?”
A small gasp from the other side. Sunset’s head swiveled to the other side. A pink mare sat in a stool. Her tri-toned hair fell in loose curls over her... oh. Wings. Wings and a horn. Basic knowledge came back and Sunset realized this was a new princess. She would’ve bowed if she were able to, but could only manage a weak nod.
“You’re in the Crystal Empire, my kingdom. It lies on the northern edge of Equestria.” The pink alicorn explained kindly. Sunset nodded, trying to conjure a mental map of the nation and failing.
Twilight smiled fondly at the unicorn and gently pulled her into a hug, wings folding around Sunset’s back.
“Welcome home, Sunny”
Unable to find the words to respond, Sunset turned her head towards a breeze tickling at her cheek. She stared out the open window. Although she didn’t recognize any of the surrounding town, she watched as the ponies far below went about their days. Birds sang and chased each others silhouettes across the sun. The sun... Her sun... tears welled in Sunset’s eyes again and she slumped back into the pillows.
“O-oh...” a tear trickled down the curve of her muzzle. Twilight placed a hoof against Sunset’s shoulder and she looked down at it, following it back to the face of its owner.
“You should get some rest. Coming through the portal really did a toll on you. After you feel ready, we can head back to Cant-“
Twilight was cut off as Sunset suddenly began to stand. She shot a worried glance at Cadance who merely shrugged before helping to make sure Sunset didn’t tumble head first into the Crystal.
“I’m perfectly fine. I’m completely ready. Please, I can handle a train ride” sunset pleaded. Before Twilight could answer however, Cadance lightly cleared her throat. Both mares turned to look at her.
“I’m very sorry, but I’m afraid I must take my leave now. Unfortunately, running a kingdom leaves one with very little free time” Cadance stood, wings ruffling slightly. She walked around the bed to stand beside Twilight, using her wing to pull her into a hug. “Welcome home, Sunset Shimmer.”
Sunset instantly dropped into an awkward bow from her perch on the bed.
“Thank you, Princess”
Both Cadnace and Twilight chuckled, the former casually waving a pink hoof at Sunset. “Please, just call me Cadance. I look forward to seeing you again.” She turned and left the room, flanked by two previously unnoticed guards. Sunset took note of two more guards standing at attention on the other side of the room. She looked questioningly back at Twilight who sighed and sat on the cold crystal again. “Those are my personal guards. These come with quite the price” she bitterly smiled, half spreading her large wings. Sunset nodded in understanding before looking back at the guards. The first looked just as sunset would’ve expected. An amber Pegasus mare clad in golden armor, a small spear tucked below one of her wings. The other, however, looked far different from any guard- or pony, for that matter- that Sunset had ever seen. She had cool gray skin and purple armor. A red, curly mane fell across her shoulders and two ivory horns sprouted from behind her ears. Leathery bats wings were tucked at her sides and a long, serpentine tail swayed slowly behind her. Slitted emerald eyes flared at her, and Sunset gulped.
Twilight loudly cleared her throat and the guard went pink, gaze shifting to the floor. Sunset looked back at Twilight.
“Are you absolutely sure you’re ready? It’s reallly no trouble to stay here and rest for another day...” she trailed off. Sunset looked at her and smiled, nodding. She was finally going home.

Safe Travels

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Sunset Shimmer sat on the plush seat of the train, staring wide eyed out the window. Twilight had decided she was too fragile to be teleported all the way back to Canterlot. Upon this decision, a royal train compartment was prepared. Sunset had to admit, being friends with a princess had its perks. Speaking of Twilight, Sunset heard her giggle lightly from beside her.

Sunset turned and saw her whispering quietly to the guard from before. The guards eyes shot to Sunset's and her demeanor quickly shifted. She stood stiffly, face blank. Twilight tilted her head before turning back to Sunset and rolling her eyes. She leaned in and whispered something to the guard, who flashed a small smile before trotting away.

Twilight shifted back closer to Sunset and smiled.

"I get the feeling she doesn't like me..." Sunset trailed awkwardly. Twilight laughed lightly.

"She doesn't really like most ponies. Don't let her get to you." She chuckled again and glanced out the window past Sunset. The white landscape rolled past, only broken up by the occasional splatter of dead trees. "I haven't taken the train in so long. I can fly most places, and since my ascension I've become powerful enough to teleport whenever I need to."

She took note of Sunset's apologetic expression and smiled. "I've missed it, though. There's not much that tops sitting on a peaceful train going through the ever picturesque tundra with a warm cup of cocoa and a good book." She smiled fondly at the memory before sighing, wings sagging at her sides. "Now I'm flanked by guards near everywhere I go, and I can't even talk to most of the ponies I run into." She leaned back in her seat, disgruntled.

Sunset gently placed her hoof on Twilight's shoulder and gave her a small smile. Twilight smiled back before standing and shaking out her wings. "Well, it's going to be at least another half-day before we get to Canterlot. I'm going to go and do some boring princess work in the study. Feel free to explore the cart, and don't hesitate to get me if you need anything."

"Thank you, princess" Sunset said with a smirk. Twilight squinted at her and stuck out her tongue before exiting the small compartment and turning right out the door. Sunset sighed and rubbed at her now heavy eyes. She stood up shakily and slowly stretched, slowly becoming familiar with how her new (old?) body needed to be stretched. After spending a solid five minutes just relishing the feeling of stretching her tense muscles. She glanced out the window one last time before turning to the sliding door.

She froze, not exactly sure of how to open it. She glanced upwards at her horn. She remembered being able to fulfill such great magical feats, but now she couldn't remember exactly how. She squinted her eyes and focused on the door opening. The pressure at the base of her horn was growing, but nothing was happening. Sunset took a deep breath and closed her eyes, trying to feel for her store of magic. She could feel a spark deep inside, but was unable to will it forward.

Huffing indignantly, she instead lifted her hoof to the handle and carefully pulled it open. Sighing, she walked through and allowed it to slide shut behind her. Turning right, she trotted down the short corridor. It opened to the rest of the train car. Everything was some variant of purple, blue, or pink. Sunset cast her gaze around the room.

It was a large, L-shaped room. There was a small bar area tucked in the corner with all of the necessities for a kitchen. On the other side of the bar was a small table with a few soft looking pillows scattered around it. Across the cart was a leisure area. Shelves were laden with books and small love seats and plush cushions were scattered about. A gas fireplace was across from the shelves, but it wasn't turned on. The wall between them was taken up by a large window, curtains pushed aside.

A large set of doors was the only thing that broke up the room she was in and the rest of the cart. They were a midnight blue with small gems inlaid into the wood. Twilight's own cutiemark was painted over it. Sunset was tempted to go inside, but decided against it. This must have been the study Twilight had mentioned, and for some reason Sunset decided going uninvited into a room with potentially highly important political documents wasn't the best idea.

She turned back to the room before her and crossed to the fireplace. After examining it for a moment, she found a small switch on top and pressed it with a hoof. She heard the quiet hiss of gas and turned back to the pillows. She took the corner of the closest one in her mouth and slowly tugged it a bit closer to the fire. A moment later, beautiful blue flames sprung to life and she smiled, curling up on the pillow.

The warmth radiating around her and the sky outside slowly growing darker, Sunset slipped into a peaceful sleep.

Sunset awoke later to the sounds of voices. She slowly lifted her head and gazed towards the sound. Twilight was walking out of the room from before, seemingly arguing with the same guard as before. The mare sighed and nodded before trotting away and through the doors to the other carts. Twilight stared after her for a moment before shaking her head. She crossed the room to the bar in the corner and grabbed a few things from the mini fridge tucked under the counter.

Sunset stood and stretched contently, yawning. Twilight's head whipped towards the sound and she smiled at the yellow mare.

"Sleep well?" she asked innocently enough, but Sunset could hear the laughter in her voice. Her hair must've looked an absolute wreck. And yet, she couldn't bring herself to care. Instead, she rubbed her eyes lightly and nodded, trotting over to stand at the opposite side of the bar from Twilight.

"Hungry?" She asked, magic pulling an extra plate from the cabinet. Sunset nodded again.

"Do you have any fruit?" She asked lightly. Twilight nodded again before ducking to look in the fridge.

"Oranges okay?" She asked. Sunset nodded before verbally responding when she remembered Twilight couldn't see her. Twilight re-emerged with a large orange held in her magic. It floated beside her and began to perfectly peel itself as she grabbed a few bottles and glasses from around her.

Sunset felt jealousy spark in her at Twilight's effortless magic. Not that any of the tasks were particularly, hard, but there were simply a lot of them happening at once. Sunset nearly got a headache just watching it.

The now pristine orange wedges laid themselves on the plate before it was nudged before Sunset, who smiled thankfully. She angled her hooves to be able to carefully balance an orange slice before her and guide it into her mouth. She chewed happily at the sweet cold juice. Twilight took a sip of her drink and watched Sunset skeptically.

"Wha?" Sunset asked through her mouth of pulp. Twilight squinted at her for a second, head tilted slightly.

"Why are you eating like that? Why aren't you using your magic?" She asked, genuine confusion on her face. Sunset shrugged self consciously.

"I haven't been able to use my magic yet. It doesn't seem to want to cooperate." She weakly laughed, but the sound died in her throat. Twilight blinked at her again before closing her eyes and nodding.

"Well, it may just be taking a while due to how long you were in the portal for. However, it should return soon."

Sunset nodded, comforted by her words. She was about to speak before a guard walked in. It was the same one she'd seen at the castle. The blue Pegasus who hadn't glared daggers at her. Twilight looked at her expectantly, and she dipped into a quick bow.

"We're arriving at Canterlot, your Highness." she said, turning and leaving again at Twilight's nod.

Twilight looked at Sunset and smiled. "You ready?" she asked, wings twitching. Sunset only smiled back.

"You know, I didn't know you were serious about the crowds." Sunset coughed up a piece of confetti.

"It's normally not that bad in Canterlot." Twilight smiled as they trotted through the halls of the castle. Sunset rolled her eyes.

Anxiety pooled in the pit of Sunset's stomach. The castle was practically the same as she remembered, save for the new stained windows. Despite how long it had been since she last walked these halls, she remembered clearly where they lead. She shouldn't have been surprised. Sunset took a deep breath as they rounded the last corner. At Twilight's appearance, the guards all dropped into low bows.

"At ease" She said in a surprisingly confident tone. The guards stood again and Twilight walked forward. She stopped for a moment and looked back at Sunset, a question in her eyes. Sunset gulped and nodded.

Twilight's horn lit up and she slowly pushed open the Throne room doors.