> Glowing Embers
>  by Sun Aura
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Through Dimensions
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                It hurt. Everything hurt. Sure, nothing was physically wrong, even a transformation and a rough landing on a stuffed backpack was barely enough to register. Yet she still felt like crying, like screaming until her voice gave out.

                	It was not physical pain, but emotional. Something that hurt so much that it became an ache across her body. It was why Sunset Shimmer had run, even with no idea where she was going. Because it hurt too much. It hurt to be in that castle, to be in that city. It hurt to be in that world.

                But the thing that hurt most of all? The thing that made her want to cry? Everything Sunset had ever done, had been for Her. Every spell she’d learned, every time she pushed her family away, every time she fought some noble that dared to suggest she wasn’t capable, even breaking into the Restricted sections of the Library to find new spells to learn. All of it was for Celestia.

                Not the ‘Princess’, in a way. No, Sunset had known Princess Celestia since she was ten, since the day she earned her Cutie Mark. But there was a difference, between ‘Princess’ and ‘Celestia’. ‘Princess’ had been the invincible goddess, the mare that raised the Sun and defeated evil, always with a calm, neutral smile. ‘Celestia’, was a pony, a real pony like anyone else. One who had been through things and had a lot of her own sadness.

                Despite wanting to forget, Sunset remembered the first time she saw ‘Celestia’, the event that led her here, sobbing in the autumn air in a world without Magic.

On the Hearth’s Warming Eve after becoming her student, the duo had taken stroll through the gardens, admiring how beautiful the snow looked in the Moonlight. Sunset wandered near the hedge maze, and stopped at the base of a statue. She had planned to climb it and hide before jumping out at her, but as she put her hoof on its surface, she heard Celestia shout.

                “Sunset don’t!”

                Sunset reluctantly stepped down, looking at the statue. It looked old, but still very sturdy if not ridiculous. Some sort of unrecognizable Chimera singing dramatically. 

                “It’s a statue?” Sunset protested. “If I’d broken it you’d fix it like the vase!”

                Celestia didn’t answer. Sunset tried to ask, but the thought died the moment she saw her face. It was soft, sad, perhaps a bit nostalgic. She looked near tears. Turning away from the statue, she gave the same look to the Moon. It was ten seconds at most, before she turned to her. 

                “Yes, it’s a statue,” The Princess smiled. “But just because I can fix it doesn’t mean you should break it.”

                At the time, Sunset had been too shocked to question it. But every day after, she strived to see Celestia again. She didn’t want to see her sad, but she had wanted to be someone to trust, someone she could talk to. A-a friend, perhaps. Sunset didn’t have any friends, just her brother really, but neither did Celestia.

                Since that day, she’d done anything to see ‘Celestia’ again. To learn about her, and perhaps help make her not as sad. Yet the Princess remained. After years of trying, of doing everything she could think of to impress her, to make her like her, to maybe get even a glimpse of ‘Celestia’ again, nothing had worked. Sure, she said she was proud, but it wasn’t right. There was no care in the words, not like Mom and Dad, not like Lance or Philomena. Even the other Royals sounded like they cared more.

                And that was the problem wasn’t it? Sunset was not Royal, and without that, there would always be a need for ‘the Princess’. But what if she wasn’t? Was there some way to become a princess? Sure, she could marry a Royal, yet it wouldn’t be the same. Besides, her only options there were the mare not interested in her, or a guy. No, she’d have to do it herself.

                It had been nearly four years since she started this. It took almost damn four years for her to break. She had grown desperate, frustrated, and resorted to things she never thought she would. Dark magic was terrifying, but it was the only thing left for her to learn. Maybe it would give her answers, maybe she’d control it so well that Celestia would recognize her as worthy, maybe it contained the spell to make her a princess herself.

                Of course it backfired. What did she expect? If Celestia could not bring herself to care for a thirteen year old filly, why would Dark Magic do anything? Sunset didn’t help. She lost it, she screamed at her, wanting to know why she wasn’t worthy of being loved, why Celestia couldn’t just make her a princess so that they’d be equals? She’d probably be a better Princess. At least she knew how to care about someone.

                She cared, far too much. She cared so much that it hurt. And once it hurt too much, she stopped caring. It was nearly night by the time Sunset wandered away from the statue. She didn’t know what she was or where she was, but she couldn’t care.

                Numbly, she passed by the Ponies. No, they weren’t Ponies, but they acted like Ponies. Maybe, when everything wasn’t so numb, she’d figure out what they were. There were too many shops here that reminded her of home, of Canterlot. Too many not-ponies too.

                She stopped once, staring at a group as they passed. The tallest looked almost like that other princess, Cadence, but she didn’t recognize the three behind her. They had to be younger than Sunset, assuming these creatures aged similarly. One was pink, and the other two were mint-colored twins. One of the twins, the one with her mane tied back, stared back at her. She almost looked familiar, but she couldn’t place why.

                All too soon, the quartet had passed.  Sunset kept moving. She reached some sort of station near a park. The sign said it was a ‘bus station’, but she didn’t know what a ‘bus’ was exactly. It looked like a bigger version of the small trains she’d seen on the way.

                The park right now was more interesting. She didn’t know if the shops around her took Bits and Gems, much less how much a hotel room would cost. But it was still warm enough that she’d be fine on a bench. Not ideal, but until she figured out this world, she had to have something.

                As she settled on a bench, she looked back to the ‘bus station’ once more. There was someone there now. No, it was just a reflection. After all, it looked just like her, in this new form. Same face, same eyes, same red and gold mane in the same style.

                Deciding she must be tired if she thought her reflection was a not-Pony, she lay down on the bench. It was uncomfortable as expected, but she was thankful that the outfit she had come in wearing had a thick jacket. Maybe whatever Magic gave her the clothes knew what she’d need.

                It took forever to fall asleep, so long that she started crying again. But a part of her didn’t want to wake up. She want to go back in time, back to when she had just turned ten, and refuse the Princess’s offer to be her student. Maybe then, she wouldn’t care.
> Home
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                It had been a few days, maybe a week. But Sunset found solutions to most of her problems. The first of which had been knowledge. It was easy enough to find a public library, and thankfully they had the same language.

                Still, those machines scared her. They were…. Odd. She’d never seen anything like it. ‘Computers’. Apparently they were relatively new to this society because one of the not-Ponies, Humans as she would learn, had said that she was ‘glad to see a young girl like you reading a book instead of having your face glued to one of them computers!’. Sunset left when she started ranting about Hellfire.

                She had tried putting off messing with them, but after realizing that a lot of the books looked out of date, her curiosity got the better of her. It seemed simple enough, as she watched the other library patrons use them. Just move the thing on the side to move the arrow on the screen, and push the buttons with letters to write. ‘Click’ the button on the screen, and it would give you information about anything you wrote in. There was a spell like that, back in Equestria, used in Libraries to find the books by title. But this seemed to have more than just books.

                The first thing she looked up was her location. As this was ‘Canterlot Public Library’, it seemed like this city had the same name as her own. Some places on the surrounding map looked familiar, even if it was in name only. After that, she looked up the currency.

                She’d already learned that the backpack she brought with her contained everything she had in Hammerspace before she leaped through the portal. It was mostly just her wallet, quite a sizable amount considering she never spent any of it, and two books including her Journal. Hopefully she could still use her money instead of trying to find a job for now.

                ‘Dollars’, made of some kind of paper, and ‘Coins’ made of various metals. No mention of Bits or Jewels. Did they not have gold or silver or gems here? Trying again just in case, she asked the ‘computer’ what the exchange rate for gold was. The numbers made her backpack feel heavier. That couldn’t be real, right? She refreshed the page, seeing the same numbers. She checked silver next, which was lower but still a fair amount.

                Well. That answered a lot of her problems. She just had to find a place to sell her Bits and Jewels. She spent as much time as possible learning about everything else, about what a ‘Human’ was and what to expect from this new body. Of course, library computers seemed to have a time limit. Perhaps she should see if she could get one of her own, after getting a place to stay of course.





                Another day, another adventure. The shop she’d gone to had been quite fair, and thankfully didn’t ask questions about where her Bits had come from, other than a joke about pirate treasure. She’d only had to sell a few of them to get what sounded like a decent number for a house and some furniture, and perhaps a month or so of bills.

                She was looking at a few big houses. Sure, she didn’t need a large space, but hey, if she had to be in this Dimension without Magic, she might as well have her own mini-castle. She found one that was just perfect in a neighborhood right near the park and the portal. Two floors, Four bedrooms, three bath, and apparently a large kitchen. And lucky her, it seemed like the realtor was finishing up a tour.

                There were two people, and Sunset was quickly getting better at guessing gender and age of ‘Humans’. The man was blue and a good bit older, hair that had once been a deep purple was now graying. The woman, on the other hoof, or hand as the case may be, looked to be around her mother’s age. She was light gray with purple and white striped hair and blue eyes.

                “Hey,” Sunset called, quickly making her way up to them. “Are you the realtor?”

                “That’d be me,” the man said. “Just call me Howie, alright? This your kid? Because this is a great place for kids. Local schools are pretty good and-”

                “No,” the woman answered, tilting her head in confusion. “You look a little familiar though…”

                “Don’t know you,” Sunset shrugged and turned to the man. “So, I’m looking to buy a house. This one seemed nice and since you’re here, I’d like to see what I can do.”

                “Now wait a moment-“ the woman began before Howie cut her off.

                “Come on kid,” Howie laughed. “You can’t be more than, what, twelve?”

                “I’m thirteen, actually,” she said, reaching into her backpack. “Now, I had planned to make a cash offer today, and I really like this house.”

                The two adults stared at the stack of cash in her hand. She stifled a smile at how dumbstruck they looked. Thankfully, Sunset had already crafted a response to his next question.

                “How’s a kid like you come up with that much cash?” Howie asked.

                “Internet,” Sunset said casually. “I’m young, but I’m quite the programmer. Did some jobs for some big companies, and now I have a career to use and fend for myself. Totally emancipated from my parents, by the way, so no need to worry about them coming down to sign!”

                “Boy,” he let out a whistle. “Well, I think we can work something out then.”

                “Hold on,” the woman said. “You can’t just waltz in here and snatch up a house. There are other buyers that-“

                “Miss, with all due respect,” Sunset began. “It sounded like he was still trying to convince you, which means you haven’t solidly picked this house. I, however, have picked it and have the money on hand to do so. Again, all due respect, but please butt out.”

                “Well, sorry Mrs. Velvet,” Howie laughed. “She’s got a point there. But don’t worry, I have a few more places I can show you. Can’t promise they’ll all be like this one, but they’ll be pretty good.”

                Sunset stepped back and let them talk for a while. After a few moments, Velvet left still frustrated and Howie took Sunset aside to talk over the deal.

                Of course, Sunset had prepared for this as well. After all, she had no paperwork to prove she existed, and while she’d be considered about a year and a half shy of adulthood in Equestria, here she’d have to wait until she was eighteen. Thankfully, Howie was the kind of guy who got picked on as a kid.

She gave him a story about how she was moving because all the kids at her old school were really mean. They kept trying to be her friend just to get to her hard earned money while spreading rumors behind her back.  Some rumors even got the cops involved! Of course she didn’t want anyone from back then to know where she was, since that’s why she was moving in the first place.

                It wasn’t a lie, technically. So many of the Nobles back at CSFGU had been like that, and she definitely never wanted to see them again. Thankfully, after hearing the story and being given a bit extra cash for himself, he agreed to help her out and use a fake name on the contracts. As long as she paid her bills on time, there wouldn’t be a problem.

                All too soon, Sunset had a home. She gleefully looked around everywhere. It was mostly empty, except for kitchen and bathroom appliances. Still, it was hers. And the best part? It had a pool!  





                This world was not completely without Magic. Or at least, Sunset wasn’t without Magic.

                Sunset could still feel it, a soft tingling in her fingertips. Yet the problem was trying to grasp said Magic. As a Unicorn, she had channeled it through her horn, which her Human body did not have.

                But without her horn, it was like trying to eat soup with a fork. She tried channeling Magic through other body parts, like her hands, but it wasn’t working either. Magic or Human, her body didn’t have a ‘Magical Pathway’.

                It wasn’t a literal pathway, as she’d learned. But each type of Pony used magic, and their bodies were naturally built for that. It’s why a Unicorn or Earth Pony couldn’t just buy a set of prosthetic wings and fly around. The mechanism hooks into a Pony’s magic to move, but Unicorns and Earth Ponies didn’t have any flight-related Magic, so the wings would just sit there.

                Humans did not seem to have any magic they could access, no natural ways to channel it through the body. At least, not in the same way she could channel Magic through her horn. Sunset was starting to get fed up with trying.

                As a last attempt, she picked up one of the jewels from her stash. It was a pink diamond, and fit comfortably in her hand. Despite the fact that it would have gotten her a lot of money if she sold it, she kept this one. She’d probably sell this one last.

                Gems were also Magic Conduits, like her horn. A Unicorn could channel Magic through them to add power to their spell, or they could be Enchanted to do certain tasks. She hoped maybe she could get something to happen.

                Sunset attempted to channel her Magic through the Diamond, frowning as nothing happened. She pushed it, tried any way possible to manipulate her Magic through it, yet it seemed like without her horn she couldn’t. Within a minute she was ready to chuck the Diamond at a wall.

                It was then that she felt the stone become warm in her hand. It wasn’t too hot to hold, but it was definitely warmer than her hand. Feeling the Magic, she found a fire spell. That was strange. She hadn’t tried to use a fire spell, she hadn’t been that specific.

                The stranger thing was as she stared longer, the spell changed. Now, the Diamond held a wind spell. Cautiously, she tried to cast it. She was blasted by a gust of warm air, and smiled all the same.

                Anger and Curiosity. She seemed to get a reaction out of Emotional Magic. Odd, but it was something she could work with.  She still had a  little bit of Equestria, a little bit of home.
> Vesta
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Interdimensional Counterparts.

                Why did it take her so long to think of that? In Sunset’s defense, she hadn’t met anyone she’d known. Surely not her parents or Lance, and especially not the Princess. She had seen that woman who looked like Cadence, but she wasn’t sure if it was coincidence or if that had been her Counterpart. But anyone else she would have known would have been in school somewhere, probably ‘Crystal Prep’, considering what she’d heard of it.

It took her long enough to buy some furniture, a computer, an ‘internet setup’, and a handful of different outfits to wear since Humans had to wear clothes. Weird, but practical considering the lack of their own coat. She’d been, unfortunately, looking up if this world had any Ponies and was slightly disturbed to find these ‘Horses’ that were so pony-like yet almost monstrous when compared, and definitely not a Sapient Being. Anyway, there had been a link to a website of videos.

                There, right in the ‘trending’ category, had been Sapphire Shores. Music videos, sort of like a concert but in moving picture form. And most of the songs were just so the same. Sure, they had a few differences. While Equestria and this world used the same language, language had evolved differently. No references to magic or hooves or tails. Though Humans didn’t technically have ‘Cutie Marks’, they all wore accessories or patterns that looked like one. And this ‘Sapphire Shores’ had one just like the one in Equestria.

                She looked up a few other celebrities, finding much of the same as she did with Sapphire. Even the Daring Do series seemed to exist. She couldn’t find reference of a ‘Princess Celestia’ though. That was odd, but considering how this world’s Sun and Moon worked, perhaps there was no need for a Sun Princess.

                When she went searching for the Wonderbolts, she got something a bit more local. The school nearby, the one where the Portal home would be, was ‘home of the Wondercolts’. One page showed a recent article from the school’s newspaper. ‘Captain Spitfire vows to lead Canterlot High’s Wondercolts to Victory against the Crystal Prep Shadowbolts in the upcoming Friendship Games!’. 

                What a name, ‘Friendship Games’. Almost sounds like something the Princess would have come up with. She did notice something. Farther down in the article. An oh so familiar name.

                ‘”This will be our year!” says Spitfire. “It’s been a tough few years, having not won since Captain Celestia was still here. I was just a Freshman back then, but I remember how she led the Wondercolts to victory. And we will do it again! I have plans, and we’ll beat them this year!”’

                Sunset frowned. Doing the math in her head, that would make this world’s Princess around twenty. Odd, but she guessed that a world without Magic would not have Immortals. Captain of a sports team seemed like such a downgrade from Princess.

                It was then that she did something she would regret. Without thinking, she typed her mother’s name into the search. ‘Sunset Silk’ gave quite a few results, her novels being very popular, and very similar to those in the other world. Of course, there were videos too, dramatic readings of her ‘bad’ work, purposely terrible with phrases like ‘galloping abs’ and ‘she was on him like a piranha on a corndog’.

                Her father’s name had fewer results, or at least actual results as ‘Daylight’ was a word, but most that brought up the man were just occasional mentions in articles about scientific experiments. He had been a Royal Mage back home, which was basically a Magic Scientist. It fit fairly well.

                She couldn’t find anything on ‘Gleaming Lance’, but she found her name. Well, a little more than her name, as Humans had something called a ‘family name’. Ponies hadn’t needed one, but some referred to themselves by a collective, like she’d heard of ‘the Apple Family’. Her name was in an article as well, with a picture of her face smiling into the camera.

                ‘Sunset Shimmer Vesta, age 13, missing. There are no signs of struggle, but missing items and an open window indicate that she might have run away. If anyone has any information on her, please call the number below. Her family is very worried.’

                She felt sick. That had to be what her parents, her real parents, were going through. She wondered what the Princess had told them, when she ran through the portal. It was the one thing that she felt remorse for, not regret. Leaving them behind, without explanation, without a way to know she was alright. What kind of Hell was that?

                For a brief moment, she wondered if she could find their Counterparts. She could pretend to be their Sunset, but with some form of amnesia. She could see her parents and her brother, and they would be happy.

                She shut that idea down almost immediately. They weren’t her family. They might look like them, act like them, but they weren’t her family. They could never be her family. And she’d never be their daughter. It would be just a cruel reminder of what she’d done.

                Closing the laptop, she lay on her bed and cried again.





                Time became a bit fuzzy, with no schedule to think of. She looked up textbooks online, seeing what history a girl her age should know and reading extensively. It was quite different from Equestria’s, almost sounding like a storybook as she read it.

                Culture was a little harder. While music and books were fairly similar, there were shows and movies. And even some books that would never work in Equestria, just due to the presence of Magic. For example, the one about the boy who finds out he has Magic and goes to Wizard School would make no sense in a world of Unicorns. 

                As time passed, she vaguely noticed October, this world’s tradition of ‘Halloween’ being so close yet so far from Nightmare Night. Really, you just had to take out the connection to Nightmare Moon, and it’d be fine. She hadn’t participated, mostly because she decided she’d rather look up the cultural aspects of the holiday. But partly because she had absentmindedly wondered if Lance was going to the Guard’s party again. She couldn’t think straight after that.

                However, when November slipped into December, she noticed. This world had a few holidays, most with similar themes of togetherness and hope. But the one closest to Hearth’s Warming was Christmas. Everything from the tree to Santa, though this Santa had a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer instead of being a flying Reindeer himself. Though they had far different origins, Christmas’s being much more ‘religious’, they even had similar stories. A Christmas Carol was very familiar to a Hearth’s Warming Tail, other than a lack of Wendigos.

                It hurt more, seeing a holiday so close to home, one celebrating Family, but no way to see her family. Still, while it was stupid, she bought them gifts. A necklace for her mother, a book on this world’s science that her father would find facinating, treats for Philomena, and for Lance she bought an ironic shirt. Hopefully if she ever saw him again the shirt would fit a Pony.

                As the holiday passed, she tried not to cry as she watched the holiday specials. Eventually, she gave in, singing the Heath’s Warming Carol to herself. 

"The Fire of Friendship lives in our hearts, as long as it burns we cannot drift apart..."

She wondered if that were true, now so far apart. She'd pushed them away for so long, chasing after Celestia, and now she was in a world without them. She still loved them, but had her own fire gone out? She felt it there, warm and barely flickering through the distance, but did they feel the same?
> Enrollment
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It took nearly a year before Sunset felt confident enough to go into this society. Well, she’d gone out into the city often, usually to buy food or something she realized she needed. But she refused to just sit in her house all day. Some kids might like that, but Sunset liked activities, even if they were part of a school system. 

So for the first year, she studied as she had been. She learned enough about humans, how they work, what their culture is, parts of their history. And she definitely spent time working on the dexterity of her new hands, even giving in and buying a tv and game system to practice finger control. She probably knew more about Humans than a normal Human her age would. And the biggest test was a school. 

Getting in was tricky, but she used the same trick she had to get the house. Half-truths and money and the name ‘Sunset Shimmer Hestia’, since she had to come up with a last name that wouldn’t get attention, but still played to her own tastes for dramatic inside jokes. She didn’t like lying, but she was pretty sure telling the truth would have gotten her put away in some sort of asylum, or perhaps experimented on. 

She really needed to stop watching some of those shows. 

When signing up, she had looked to what grade she ‘should’ be in. Technically, by age, she should be in eighth grade. But she’d been out of any sort of school for nearly a year. Shrugging, she decided to opt for one grade younger, picking up where she technically left off. 

Of course, some classes were easier. Math was simple, as she’d learned much of it before. ‘English’ was just reading and comprehension, along with grammar, so that was simple. Read the book, answer the question, follow the rules. 
Science got trickier. It seemed to be similar to Equestria in so many ways, except for the lack of Magic. True, she had learned a lot about how this world functions without Magic, but she still sometimes found herself putting answers like ‘Rain comes because Pegasai schedule it’. 

Social Studies was definitely her worst subject. While she’d looked up history and some legal processes, it was still very new to her. And there was an unreality to it, as if it was just a story. She’d absentmindedly mentioned that to a classmate once, and the girl had agreed, saying it was probably because the history was so long ago. Not the same, but at least she wasn’t completely nuts. 

Gym was also a bad subject. She was still getting used to running on two legs, at least without being terrified of falling over. She’d found that she walked better in shoes with high heels, as the way she walked was a little similar to her Pony anatomy even if it was still on two legs, but most gym teachers made her put on more ‘sensible’ shoes. And there were times when she instinctively tried to stop a ball flying at her with a Levitation or Shield spell. That ended painfully. 

Computer class was interesting, if a little confusing. Then there was her Art class. She’d picked it to help get a better grasp on hands, being steady. She’d never known Art had so many rules, but she liked drawing. Sometimes, she’d try to recreate scenes from Equestria. The teacher always complimented her on her ‘imagination’. 

That was a bit existential. By the end of the year, Sunset began to wonder if maybe it had been her imagination. Maybe she was Sunset Shimmer Vesta, and she’d hit her head and forgot most of her life, replacing it with Unicorns. 

Of course, it didn’t explain the jewels. Magical Gems and Crystals didn’t seem to exist in this world, but she’d found a few spells she could use through them. But that only meant Magic existed, but it said nothing of Equestria.

For that, there was her Journal. The Princess had made it for her, when she became her student. It was designed as a pair, a message written in one would appear in the other. 

“So you can always reach me,” the Princess had said. “Even if I’m on the other side of the world, you can still talk to me.”

“What if you’re in some sort of Princess Meeting?” Sunset asked. 

“Well,” she chuckled. “There is a reason I disguised it as a journal.”

As much as Sunset hated the journal and everything it stood for, she kept it. She read it over and over, to remind herself that it was real. To remind her of everything that had happened, of why she’d come here in the first place. 





Middle school passed fairly easily. Some parts were harder than others, but still she managed to get good grades. She even managed to become decently liked. Sunset wouldn’t exactly say she had friends, as none of them cared about her or talked to her outside of school. Then again, it wasn't like she'd tried that hard. 

She hadn’t been the ‘nicest’, she’d admit that, but she wasn’t going out of her way to be rude. Still, she’d been called ‘charming’ more than once before. It probably helped that she seemed to be fairly pretty, for this world’s ideas of beauty. No wonder they liked her, even if they didn’t fully care about her.

Putting that thought away for now, Sunset looked over her options. High School was quickly approaching, and she had to decide on which school to go to. Since she didn’t want to leave the city, there were two options: Crystal Prep, or Canterlot High. 

Crystal Prep seemed like a much better school. Classes where she could push herself, access to better facilities, and they had the highest test scores. Their reputation would help her go anywhere. Not to mention the fact that, despite Captain Spitfire’s promises, Crystal Prep had won the Friendship games for the past few years. 

Hell, her lack of documentation might not matter if a school like that had a record of her attending. yet that was the problem, wasn’t it? A school like Crystal Prep would probably look further than two years worth of Middle School records. 
But there were other problems with Crystal Prep. Their standards. Sunset could meet the scores they like, so it wasn’t the staff she was afraid of. It was their students. Perhaps she was judging unfairly, but a place like Crystal Prep would have people like the Ponies in her past. The Nobles at CSFGU that would suck up to her while trying to ruin her behind her back. She never wanted to deal with them again. 

Canterlot High, on the other hand, wasn’t as nice as Crystal Prep, and there was a chance that the Princess’s Counterpart could show up for a visit. But it was still better than Crystal Prep, and perhaps more relaxed on records. And most importantly, the Portal was there. 

With little hesitation, she filled out the paperwork.
> Fair
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                Canterlot High was strange. Instead of a standard Orientation, they had the ‘Freshman Fair’. Several of the school clubs met up before school started and created a little Fairground with small tents and little games to show off their clubs.

                Sunset had wandered for a while, trying not to pick at the “Hi! I’m a Freshman, my name is:” sticker on her coat. It wasn’t long before she got thirsty. Thankfully, there were a few food stands. Walking up to one with apples on it, she looked over the menu. Both people inside, one a freshman like herself, greeted her and she waved back.

                She was vaguely aware of someone walking up behind her, especially as the pair greeted someone again. Yet she froze when hearing her.

                “Hello there,” the Princess’s voice said. “So, what do we have this year?”

                Sunset whipped around, terror shaking her. There was a woman, taller than any she’d seen. She was white, with long hair in several colors, and a Sun pin on the lapel of her jacket. And stars, her eyes. Those same violet eyes that showed nothing, never a hint of her thoughts or emotions other than one snowy night.

                Yet those eyes were not looking at her.

                “We have the usual,” the girl behind the counter smiled. “Juice, fritters, everything Apple!”

                “Hm,” the woman thought. “How about any strudel?”

                “Coming right up!”she chirped.

                Sunset stared, trembling, wondering if she should just run. She still had a chance, while she talked with the two. Then those eyes turned to her, but she saw no recognition in them. Not that she expected any, but there was still nothing.

                “Hello to you too,” the woman smiled. “You’re one of my Freshmen, aren’t you?”

                Sunset nodded, but her internal monologue was just the word ‘fuck’ on loop.

                “Nice to meet you,” she said, peering at the nametag. “Sunset. I know you’ll have a wonderful time here. You’ll do amazing things, I just know it!”

                “You’ll do amazing things, I just know it!”

Nodding again, Sunset wondered if she was doing it on purpose. Why pretend? Why not just drag her back to Equestria and be done with it? Why was she walking away?

                “Yeah, she kinda has that effect on people.”

                Sunset jumped, looking back at the two at the counter. The girl was orange with blonde hair, and a Freshman Nametag that said ‘Applejack’. The guy was red with orange-ish hair and no nametag.

                “You, uh,” Sunset swallowed. “You know her?”

                “Not really,” Applejack shrugged. “I’ve been helping out at the family stands for years, whenever we do some kind of catering thing, so I’ve seen her around a few times. But she just got to be our Principal this year.”

                “Principal?” Sunset parroted.

                “Yep,” she nodded. “She’s been making rounds and helping set up all day. I’ve heard some good comments about her though.  See, apparently she was a student here a while ago, even before Mac here was a freshman.”

                ‘Mac’ nodded silently.

                “Anyway,” Applejack continued. “People are saying that CHS went downhill after Celestia left. Now that she’s back as Principal, everyone’s sure our School’s going to be better than ever!”

                “I’m sure it will be,” she nodded.

                “So, what can I get you?” she grinned.

                Sunset blanked for a moment, having forgotten that she was there for. The two of them snickered as she remembered and ordered a drink. She left quickly, almost bumping into a woman nearly as tall as the one before but colored in blues, and a pink Freshman.

                She thought over her choices. That woman was not the Princess. She was the Princess’s Counterpart. And she was now Principal of this school. Could she handle that? Could she handle being so close to someone so like the Princess?

                Once more, she was broken out of her concentration by a voice.

                “Hey! Fire hair!”

                Sunset looked around, wondering if they were talking to her.

                “Yeah! You! In the dumb jacket!”

                She whirled around, ready to berate whoever was calling at her. Oddly enough, the voice came from a Dunk Tank. Sitting upon the ‘dunk zone’ was a freshman, blue with a rainbow for hair and grinning like mad.

                “Bet you can’t hit me!” she shouted, sticking her tongue out. 

                So that was it. Jeering at people so they’d get mad and waste money trying to dunk her. Pretty brilliant, actually. Of course, still pretty crude. She noticed another freshman, yellow with pink hair, trying to tell her to stop.

                “Bet I can!” Sunset jeered back, handing her money to the student running the booth.

                As she checked the weight of the ball in her hand, the rainbow-haired girl continued to toss insults. Taking aim at the target, she reeled her arm back. Then she missed.

                It hadn’t really been her fault. But she saw her again. The Principal. It was just her hair out of the corner of her eye, but it was enough to make her shake. By the time Sunset realized, the ball was spinning wildly toward a group.

                Thankfully, the ball managed to only hit the pink one’s drink, sending juice all over the blue woman and the girl from the Apple stand.

                Without thinking, Sunset ran. She wanted to get as far away from the Principal as possible. Slipping back into what she’d been thinking about before the girl’s taunts, she wondered if she could do this. If just a glimpse of the Principal was enough to send her into a panic, could she handle four years with her?

                Maybe it wasn’t too late to transfer to Crystal Prep. Maybe it wasn’t too late to transfer anywhere. She could always pack her things and hop on a bus to another city. Then again, the portal would be opening soon. She could go back through and make a mad dash down the halls until she made it somewhere she could teleport.

                No, Equestria would be worse. Even if the Princess didn’t want to track her down, the temptation would be too much. The temptation to see her family again, to try and get through to Celestia again. She couldn’t, no, she wouldn’t. She refused to.

                “Are you okay?”

                Sunset jumped, shaken out of her thoughts for the fourth time that night. There was a hand on her shoulder, and without looking up she knew who it belonged to.

                “Sorry to startle you,” the Principal said. “I hope I didn’t scare you too much at the apple stand.”

                “N-no,” Sunset managed to get out. “You just reminded me… you’re a little intimidating. But in a good way!”

                “I’ve been told that a few times, don’t worry,” she laughed. “Let me make it up to you. How about some of our lovely Wondercolt accessories?”

                Before she could answer, the Principal led her to a stand. This one sold shirts and sweaters with the school’s name and logo. But the most popular item seemed to be a set of headbands and belts, mimicking Pony ears and tails. If Sunset hadn’t been so focused on the Principal, she might’ve laughed.

                And then there was the girl running the stand, another Freshman. She was beautiful, white skin nearly glowing, purple hair styled perfectly into place, and eyes so blue she thought they might actually be sapphires. Between the Principal and the cute girl smiling at her, Sunset doubted she’d be able to form a coherent sentence.

                “Hello again, Principal Celestia,” the girl greeted before turning to Sunset. “And hello to you as well.”

                “Hello again to you too, miss Rarity,” the Principal smiled. “Sorry to return so soon, but I ran into miss Sunset here. I might have accidently scared her a bit too much.”

                Don’t tell her that! She’s pretty!

                “Thank you for the compliment, darling,” Rarity laughed a little. “However, sorry to say I already have an interest in someone.”

                “I-I said that out loud didn’t I?” Sunset sighed, hanging her head.

                “Yes, you did,” the Principal smiled, holding out a twenty. “Miss Rarity, do you think you could get us a headband?”

                “Sure,” she nodded. “Although, I need to get more change from the back. Hold on just a moment please!”

                Sunset dared to look up as Rarity walked away. And now, she was left alone with the Principal. She couldn’t meet her eyes. Though she knew it wasn’t her, she still seemed to know too much.

                “I’m sorry if I scared you,” the Principal said. “And for telling miss Rarity.”

                “It’s alright,” Sunset nodded.

                “You started to say I reminded you of someone,” she said. “Can you tell me who?”

                “I….”she stopped, cursing  how much she felt tricked right back into ‘Celestia’. “She was a teacher, almost a second mom. She taught me everything, gave anything item I asked for, but she never gave me the one thing I’d ever wanted. One day we fought and I stopped talking to her. You just… you look and sound a lot like her.”

                “I’m sorry for that,” she said. “I hope you let me prove that I can be me and not her. If I may ask, what is it she never gave you?”

                “Her,” she answered. “I knew her for nearly four years, but I never knew who she really was. Her smiles never met her eyes, and even when she was reprimanding me she never seemed angry or disappointed. The only time I saw any true emotion from her, it was  few seconds of sadness. I wanted to know her, to know what made her sad, and to fix it, but I ended up leaving her.”

                “I’m sorry for that as well,” she nodded. “Perhaps she will one day realize how much she screwed up, and you’ll be able to talk to her again.”

                Sunset nodded. But as she did, she noticed something. Just like the Princess, the Principal had the same tone. A smile that never met her eyes, and a calm neutrality. Yet, that last sentence, something had shifted. This wasn’t the Princess or the Principal, this was Celestia. And just like that snowy night, Sunset saw a sadness in her eyes.

                “A-are you okay?” Sunset asked, hating that she was falling into the trap again.

                “I’m fine,” Celestia said with a sad smile. “You remind me of someone too. Oh, and one last thing before miss Rarity comes back.”

                “What?” she asked.

                “Go for it,” she smirked. “I know exactly who she’s interested in, and let’s just say that my sort-of-nephew isn’t interested in girls. Or boys for that matter.”

                ‘Sort-of-nephew’? Had she meant Blueblood’s Counterpart? Maybe since she was only in her twenties here she couldn’t have a real nephew? But then how would they be related or not related? While Sunset tried to puzzle that out, Rarity came back. Soon, both girls were confused as Celestia told her to keep the change and walked off.

                “Oh, right,” Rarity said, being the first to come to her senses. “Here’s your headband and belt!”

                “Ah, thanks,” Sunset nodded.

                She slipped the headband on, now laughing at the irony as she left. Still, it reminded her of the many things she missed about being a Pony. Human ears weren’t as good, and she couldn’t move them, and her back always felt a bit ‘empty’ without a tail. Who knew she would one day miss her ears?

                Of course, she wondered. On one hand, Celestia had helped her, had calmed her. But on the other, was it starting all over again? Would she be looking for the ‘Celestia’ in ‘the Principal’ until she couldn’t take anymore?

On yet a third hand, she stopped to wonder where was she getting all these metaphorical hands, but she wondered if this could be different. This was a Counterpart, and maybe, just maybe, she would not lock away who she was.

                As she headed to the stage area, she decided to make her judgment. Would the woman making her welcome speech be ‘the Principal’ or ‘Celestia’? Sitting back, she watched the woman walk to the microphone.

                “Welcome everyone, to the Freshman Fair!” the Principal said. “I’m proud to be here with our Canterlot Wondercolts. I hope you all will have a wonderful time here at Canterlot High, and that you get the best experience you possibly can. I just know you’re all going to be great students!”

                “But above all,” Celestia said, “This year is about reformation. Not just for the school, though I do plan to get your grades up, but for us as people. This year, and for as long as I am your principal, this school will be about fixing mistakes, about becoming a better person than you started as, even if you started out pretty great.”

                “Now,” the Principal smiled. “Let’s have a cheer for an incredible upcoming year of learning!”

                Surprisingly, that speech did get a cheer. Perhaps because it was short compared to what Sunset knew the Princess to have done. But that’s just it. This is not the Princess.

                No, Sunset was not going to be making the same mistake again. She didn’t have to. As she made one last round around the games, she smiled at the thought. There was no ‘Principal’ and ‘Celestia’, not really. Sure, ‘the Principal’ has to come out sometimes, she is an authority figure after all. And Sunset would probably never get close to her because of that. Yet she could still see ‘Celestia’ come through.

                “Hey!”

                She wasn’t exactly ‘shaken out of her thoughts’ this time, but it did get her attention. The person who had called out to her was a pink girl with far too much hair on her head. She practically bounced her way over.

                “Can you do me a favor?” the girl asked. “See, my friends really want to take a group picture, but there’s five of us plus Principal Celestia and Miss Luna and none of our arms are long enough to get all of us in frame, so can you take our picture?”

                “Sure,” Sunset shrugged.

                She watched the group of them. It was odd. Applejack, Rarity, the tall blue woman whose name was probably Luna, and the two girls from the dunk tank. Everyone she had met that night. Remembering the incident with the ball, she debated about apologizing for the juice splash. In the end, it didn’t seem to bother them, so she just took the pictures before handing the girl her phone back.

                “Thanks!” she chirped. “I’m Pinkie Pie, by the way! Want to come with us? Not sure what we’re doing, but I’m sure we can find something with a group of new friends!”

                “I’m Sunset,” she replied. “And, uh, sorry, but I need to get home. It’s been kind of a day, you know?”

                “Alright,” she nodded. “But you’re still coming to school, right? We can hang out then!”

                “I-I’ll see you around,” she smiled.

                A part of her wanted to go with them, but it wasn’t a lie. Not really. She really wanted to go home and sleep and process everything. It was going to be a long few years.
> The First Crown
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                The Fall Formal was an… interesting event. It was almost like the Grand Galloping Gala, except not as fancy or stuck up. And she hoped something like this would happen at the Gala. It was a bit of a trainwreck, actually. But a beautiful trainwreck you couldn’t help but watch.

                It had been those five girls again. Oh, there’d definitely been full on chaos afterward, but it started with them. The rainbow haired one had spent her time chatting with the Coach, who happened to be the old captain from that article Sunset had found, trying to talk up her own skills. It sort of worked, until her enthusiastic air kick managed to hit another student in the face.

                Applejack and Rarity sort of worked in tandem, accidently of course. Applejack had been simple, just going far overboard when helping her family do the catering. Rarity was the one who had invited herself as Blueblood’s date. The upperclassmen had very little interest, and seemed to be purposely trying to make her hate him instead of telling her. It worked. And she shoved him into the buffet table, launching food into the crowd and getting a blue stain on the skirt of Sunset’s white dress. Stupid frosting.

                Pinkie and one of her other friends, a girl with blue hair and sunglasses, hacked into the music system. It definitely livened up the party, but maybe they shouldn’t have played ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’. While Sunset thought the song was actually pretty catchy, something about it sent the crowd nuts.

                Then there was the yellow one. Poor girl had been dragged here, but her anxiety seemed to have gotten the best of her by the end. The less said about that the better.

                It was definitely a fun night, craziness aside. Just like in Middle School, people had liked her. She still didn’t really have ‘friends’, but it felt like everyone knew her name. Even most of the upperclassmen would talk to her, which only made her more popular with the Freshmen, wondering ‘how did you do that?!’.

                It was nice. Nice to be liked, to have people be nice to you, without planning your downfall or expecting something. Okay, a few of the upperclassmen guys had seemed to want more, but she turned them down with just that smile. That ‘sorry, I’m new here and I want to make sure I have everything planned out before I think about a date’ smile.

                So she danced and talked and socialized. It was so normal. For a moment, she wasn’t the Interdimensional Unicorn trying to fit into a new world and a new life. She was just her, she was Sunset Shimmer, and she loved it.

                Well into the night, Principal Celestia turned down the music and walked on stage. She looked the same as ever, but she did have that bemused smile.

                “Despite a few hiccups in the night,” Celestia said, pausing for laughter. “This has been one of the best Fall Formals I’ve seen at Canterlot High!”

                Best she’s seen? Sunset would pay to hear how this was less Chaotic than any of the Fall Formals from Celestia’s time as a student.

                “Now, for the event most of you have been waiting for,” Celestia announced. “The winner of this year’s Fall Formal Crown. Your Princess of the year is…. Sunset Shimmer!”

                Sunset stared in disbelief. She-she’d actually won? How the actual Hell? She’d entered as a joke! Because what Freshman could win the Fall Formal crown? She’d even laughed about it with one of the Seniors!

                Someone took her hand and dragged her up to the stage. She couldn’t even hear anything over the shock. All she managed to do was smile and say thank you over and over.

                Even after the shock wore off, she felt like dancing more. People liked her. They actually liked her enough for a Freshman to win the Fall Formal. And you know what? She liked when people liked her. If felt wonderful.
> Dates and Dreams
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                As Sunset Shimmer sat in the cafeteria, coming down from the high of winning the Fall Formal Crown, she pondered the event. She liked having people like her. So what should she do to keep them liking her?

                Obviously keep socializing. True, sports events and pep rallies and even the dance weren’t really her ‘thing’. But the more she showed up, the more they’d like her. Clubs wouldn’t hurt either, as long as they’re ‘good’ clubs.

                She debated joining a sports team, as they seemed to get plenty of attention, but that definitely wasn’t her thing. Even though she was much better in Gym than when she’d started, she didn’t think she could handle long-term organized sports.

                Oddly enough, the idea she came up with was ‘a Boyfriend’. Mostly because the unobtainable was what people chased after. She knew that one from experience. But it also made her look a bit more likable, as if to say ‘well, someone definitely likes you’. And while she hated it, this world didn’t like gay people as much as Equestria. A Boyfriend would deter any chance of someone thinking she was gay. Not that they’d be wrong, but it would lose some of those who liked her.

                The question was who? She wanted to find a guy who was nice enough to be around, but respectful of being a fake boyfriend. She didn’t want to string anyone along, and she definitely didn’t want to actually be romantic with a guy. But where would she find a guy like that?

                Sighing into her sandwich, she decided to put that aside for now. Instead, she listened in on the table behind her. Teenagers had some of the most fascinating, if not hilarious, conversations.

                “I had the weirdest dream last night,” the one said.

                “Was it the Pegasus dream again?” a second asked.

                “Of course it was the Pegasus dream!” a third said.

                “Shut it Thunder!” the second said.

                “Okay, but this one was very new?” the first one said. “So, not only was I a Pegasus, but I was some sort of Pegasus Knight?”

                “Pegasus Knight? Really?” Thunder laughed.

                “Come on, I’m being serious!” he insisted. “That wasn’t the weird part though. The weird part was Principal Celestia was in it.”

                “So, was it one of ‘those’ dreams?” the second asked. “Please, enlighten me about your feelings for our Principal!”

                “Don’t be gross, Brawly!” Thunder said.

                “Hey, he’s the one dreaming about the Principal!” Brawly defended.

                “It wasn’t that kind of dream,” the first groaned, clearly used to these antics. “I mean, she was a horse too!”

                “See!” Thunder said.

                “But it was kind of a person,” Brawly said. “Maybe your subconscious is telling you you’re a furry.”

                “I’m not a fucking furry!” the first guy insisted. “Listen, I’m trying to tell you the weird part! She wasn’t just a Pegasus like I am in the dreams. She was a Pegasus with a Unicorn horn, and considering the crown she looked like Queen of all horses!”

                Sunset choked on her sandwich. Despite coughing up cheese and bread, she tried to fathom what she’d heard. She subtly turned to look at the group, wondering what kind of person could manage to dream something like that.

                The person in question was a Freshman, like her. He was close to her height, orange with blue hair that he hadn’t quite gotten the hang of styling yet, as it kind of stuck up in every direction in an almost comical fashion. It kind of reminded her of Silver Lining, after she had finished up with her storms.

Then again, perhaps the other him was a Pegasus. It seemed impossible, that someone could dream about their Other Self. But just those details seemed too much of a coincidence.

But the more she thought , the more she wanted to know. Sunset had no real contact with Equestria. She wasn’t sure if her journal could reach across Dimensions, and even if it did, the only Pony she could reach was the Princess. And the portal…

She’d tested out the portal. It took three years to open up, around the time of the Fall Formal. Of course, she had wondered why the Formal hadn’t happened the day she came through. Doing the math, she realized it had been open Tuesday to Thursday the year she came through. This past year, it was the Saturday to Monday before the Formal. She guessed that the next time it opened would be a Wednesday to Friday, probably during the Fall Formal itself.

So it would be three more years until she could use it again. But, if this kid could give her even the barest of connections…. Just… He said the Pegasus was some kind of Knight, so probably a Guard. At the very least, he might see some of the bigger news. But there was a chance, if Lance was still a Guard, maybe he’d dream of him.





                Flash Sentry was sweet, almost too kind but not a pushover. He was also a lot like Sunset, in a way. Charming, easy to like. And while he wasn’t anywhere near Sunset’s type, she would admit that he was fairly cute. Though, unlike Sunset, he did have a few friends he was with a lot. Which made it very hard to get him alone.

                They had a few classes together, but she rarely got a chance to talk to him. Eventually, after classes had let out, she decided to just go for it. Sunset ran after him.

                “Hey!” Sunset called.

                Thankfully, he stopped and waved. His two friends, whose names she’d learned to be ‘Brawly Beats’ and ‘Thunderbass’ stopped with him.

                “Hi, uh, Sunset, right?” Flash said.

                “Yeah,” Sunset nodded. “Can I- can I talk to you about something?”

                “Sure?” he tilted his head a bit.

                “I mean, alone,” she glanced over his shoulder, looking at his friends watching.

                “Someone’s lucky,” Brawly grinned. “More like getting-“

                He was cut off by a swift kick to the shin from Thunder. Flash glared at the both of them, but turned back when Sunset grabbed his hand.

                “Please,” Sunset pleaded.

                “Yeah,” Flash nodded. “You have a spot in mind?”

Brawly opened his mouth to make another comment, only to swear at another kick to the shin.

“I didn’t even say anything that time!” Brawly complained.

“You were about to,” Thunder shrugged.

As the two boys devolved into bickering, Sunset took the chance and dragged Flash off. They ran through the remaining students, ducking under the arms of Seniors. It took a minute before she found a spot behind the school, away from the buses and cars. Away from the portal, because though it was closed, she felt like it was judging her. 

Sunset let go of his hand, and hesitated. She didn’t want to lie to him, but she couldn’t exactly tell him ‘I need you to date me so people will like me and also so I can have some contact with my home dimension’. But she had to make sure he knew exactly what to expect, so she created a story that would do just that.

“I-I’m sorry to drag you into this,” Sunset began. “But I just… My parents found out I’m gay and are threatening to kick me out, so can you pretend to be my boyfriend so they don’t?”

“I….” Flash trailed off a bit. “I’m sorry that’s happening. I’d like to help, but what am I supposed to do exactly?”

                “Just- I don’t know,” she shook her head, everything screaming at her to back out. “Stars, this was dumb. I should just-“

                “Hey, I didn’t say I wouldn’t help,” he said, smiling softly. “I just wanted to know what the plan actually was.”

                “To pretend,” she said. “Just do what couples are supposed to do, I guess? Be seen together, call each other pet names and do cheesy flirting, go on ‘dates’. You don’t have to do much, you don’t even have to fake kiss me, but just let people think we’re together. And if you find someone you want to date for real, you can as long as it’s you doing the breaking up!”

                “That’s not a bad plan,” he nodded. “But I have to ask, why me? There’s a lot of guys in the school, and we haven’t really talked that much.”

                “Well, yeah, I could’ve tried anyone,” she said. “But how many would agree to be a fake boyfriend? Some might’ve outed me to everyone else, some might’ve tried to turn the fake relationship into something real. I don’t know you well, but you seem really nice and I trust you more than I trust some others.”

                “Fair enough, I guess,” he said. “So, want to hang out at the park and learn enough about each other to fake a relationship?”

                “I like the way you think,” she laughed.
> Goldie and Bramble
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                Two teens ran through the falling leaves, laughing as they passed pumpkins and ‘haunted houses’. Sunset wondered if she could manage to use her cloak to catch the wind and lift off the ground. Instead, she grabbed Flash’s hat and sped off, laughing as he chased her.

                Once Flash got his hat back, he led the way to one of the homes near the park. It was something Sunset would call ‘cute’. One floor, but decently sized, a porch to hang out in on cooler days. Of course, it was decorated with the standard lights and cobwebs and fake tombstones of Halloween.

                “I’m back!” Flash called as he walked through the door.

`               “Welcome home!” a female voice called back. “I’ll be right there!”

                While Sunset took in the various Halloween décor, so much like Nightmare Night décor, a woman entered from what looked like a kitchen. The woman was already in costume, some sort of ghostly bride. She might’ve had brown skin but the makeup made her look a good deal paler. However, her golden hair and eyes were still visible. 

                “Hello, Ma’am,” Sunset greeted.

                She internally cringed at the over-formality, but tried to stay smiling. Of course, she failed due to Flash’s snickering.

                “Hello to you too,” the woman chirped. “You must be the Sunset Shimmer I’ve heard so much about!”

                “That’s me,” Sunset nodded, wondering how much Flash had said.

                “Well, I’m Golden Note,” she said. “Flash said you two are going around for the holiday?”

                “Brawly and Thunder too,” Flash added.

                “We just have to pick up our extra costume pieces,” Sunset said. “School rules banned any ‘weapons’, even fake ones.”

                “Hm…” Golden gave a playful smirk at Flash. “You sure that’s the only reason you brought your girlfriend over? I know those props are in your room after all...”

                “Goldie no!” Flash exclaimed, quickly turning the color of Sunset’s hair.

                It was Sunset’s turn to snicker. Thankfully, Flash dragged her down a hallway before she could recover and think of a witty response. But he wasn’t quick enough.

                “Well, if you kids change your mind….” Golden teased.

                “Goldie no!” Flash repeated.

                Sunset sat down on the edge of the bed, still laughing. Flash’s room was what one expected from a teenage boy. Messy, but thankfully not disgusting. Electronics against one wall, bookshelves against another, a closet taking up the third.

                “Sorry about Goldie,” Flash sighed, still red.

                “It’s fine, and funny,” Sunset said. “So, uh, okay this is going to sound weird, but is she an older sister or a stepmom?”

                “Huh?” he blinked.

                “I thought she was your mom, but you call her by her name,” she elaborated.

                “Oh,” he glanced away. “Well, neither, actually. She’s, uh, a foster mom. Soon to be adoptive mom, once the legal stuff goes through.”

                “Oh,” she said, feeling the mirth drop out of the room. “Sorry for asking but-“

                “You were curious,” he shrugged. “It’s okay. Goldie and Bramble, that’s her husband, they’re great. Best I’ve had, though from stories I’ve heard I’ve been pretty lucky overall.”

                “You were with other foster parents before?” she asked automatically.

                “Yeah,” he nodded, searching the closet for costume pieces. “I’ve been with them for the past few years, which is why they’re making this permanent, but I’ve been in ‘the system’ for, wow, it’s been about a decade now.”

                “Is it bad if I ask how you ended up in ‘the system’ in the first place?” she asked.

                “You can,” he said. “But you won’t get an answer.”

                Sunset tilted her head, asking but not asking. Flash stayed quiet, handing her the prop she asked him to stash. It was a ‘magic staff’, to complete her Steampunk Sorceress costume. She might’ve cheated a little and used a glow spell on some crystals to make it light up.

Flash had a fake sword, which completed the pirate captain look very nicely. But instead of swinging it around like usual, he was using the reflective ‘blade’ as a mirror. Frowning, he reached up and rubbed the small scar above his right eye.

“Sorry,” Sunset said. “I probably shouldn’t ask.”

“It’s not that,” Flash said. “It’s just that I have no idea what happened.”

“How can you have no idea?” she asked. “Ten years ago would make you five at the time. I remember things from when I was five.”

“Exactly,” he said, pointing with the sword for emphasis. “I don’t remember. My first memory is being five and waking up in the hospital with a concussion. Obviously something happened, but probably not anything that you’d tell a five year old with amnesia. I asked Golden and Bramble about it, but apparently that stuff’s sealed.”

“That’s… suspicious at best,” she frowned.

“Trust me, I’d like to know,” he shrugged. “But I think I’ll have to stick to wild speculation, so I’ve kind of accepted it. Lately I’ve been putting my money on a Mafia hit.”

“Mafia hit, really?” she raised an eyebrow.

“Well I had to make it plausible,” he said. “Who knows, maybe I’ll be the protagonist in a movie. With Magic and fighting evil and romancing a princess.”

“Can’t wait for that,” she smiled. “Want to throw in interdimensional travel and Unicorns while you’re at it?”

“You know, I do dream about being a Pegasus a lot,” he said. “Maybe you’re on to something.”

While she was joking, Sunset debated on telling him the truth. While they might not get into ‘magical adventures’, she wanted him to know about her, the real her. She could easily prove it, her Gems being enough to prove Magic. But that would include telling him that she lied to get him around her.

Before she could decide, there was a knock on the door.

“You two ready?” Golden Note asked. “Your friends are waiting outside!”

“Yeah, we’re good!” Flash called. “Ready, Sunset?”

“Y-yeah,” Sunset nodded, following him out the door.

“Worried about being ‘too old for trick-or-treating’?” he asked. “Don’t worry. Most of Canterlot’s nice about kids of all ages, even adults, still going around. As long as you’re in costume, you can get candy.”

“I bet you know the best houses too,” she said.

“No, but we have the internet now,” he replied, waving his phone. “There’s a MyStable group where you can post what address is giving away the best stuff, or which to stay away from.”

“Ah, internet,” she shook her head. “It has so many uses.”
> More Complicated than Kart Racing
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                “I think I definitely dodged a bullet, not going to Crystal Prep,” Sunset laughed, unlocking her door. “They should rename it from ‘Friendship Games’ to ‘Thunderdome Deathmatch’

                “I’d heard the rumors, but I didn’t think they were that bad,” Flash said. “I wouldn’t mind being beaten by them if they didn’t gloat about it.”

                “Look on the bright side,” she said, flopping on the couch. “We got to see Rainbow Dash leap out of the stands to kick a Shadowbolt in the shin.”

                “Dodgeball, the deadliest sport,” he said. “Think you’ll compete when we’re in Senior Year?”

                “Who knows,” she shrugged. “So, which game do you want to play? I have a few different Mario Karts.”

                When there wasn’t an answer, she looked over to him. Flash seemed to be inspecting the room, almost like he was listening, waiting to hear something. Eventually, he noticed her looking at him.

                “Where are your parents?” Flash asked.

                “Not here at the moment,” Sunset, answered, cursing herself for having to think up another lie. “They go on business trips a lot, so it’s usually just me. But they’ll be sorry they didn’t get a chance to meet you!”

                “But that….” He frowned, looking away for a moment. “So, who’s the Daring Do fan?”

                “Huh?” she followed his glance to the bookshelves in the living room. “Oh, well, all of us really. But mostly me.”

                “I just don’t know many people who’d display them in the living room,” he said, picking up one of them.

                “We used to have signed first editions,” she explained. “That’s the kind of books to display, but I left them…. We lost them when we moved here. I managed to find them online, but we haven’t gotten around to getting them signed yet. But the shelf felt empty without them, so they’re still here.”

                As he put the book back on the shelf, Sunset popped in one of the games. She wondered what he was thinking of, and a part of her was paranoid that he’d somehow figured it all out. That maybe she’d made too many jokes to herself, or said too many things that a normal teen wouldn’t. But he didn’t say anything about that.

                “You play as Rosalina?” Flash asked.

                “Yeah,” Sunset nodded, turning her attention back to the game. “I like the large karts and bikes better, and she’s prettiest out of the large characters so….”

                “What, Waluigi’s not your type?” he teased.

                “You already know my type,” she said.

                “Fair enough,” he shrugged, choosing his own character and kart. “Then again I- hey! Don’t you dare start us on Rainbow Road!”

                “Too late,” she smirked. “Should’ve said something earlier!”

                She stuck out her tongue while Flash hunkered down into ‘serious game’ mode. Despite the protest, and some minor shoving, he didn’t do too bad, coming in second place. Of course, Sunset was still in first.

                “Think they’ll have a Mario Kart contest in the Friendship Games?” Sunset asked.

                “I think it’s more of a Mario Party thing,” Flash said. “Longer competition, and they’ll definitely start throwing punches.”

                “As if they don’t already?” she laughed. “Think the whole ‘fangirling’ thing will be the same if you win at Mario Party Seriously, did you see everyone around High Kick during the pep rally?”

                “Ugh, yeah,” he made a face. “I don’t get it. Sure he’s a good soccer player, but does everyone have to go nuts?”

                “They think he’s cute,” she shrugged. “I guess he is, if you’re into guys.”

                “Not really,” he mumbled.

                Sunset gave him a look and set down her controller. He stared back, head tilted as if he didn’t notice what he said.

                “Something you wish to share?” Sunset prompted.

                “No?” Flash answered.

                “You just said High Kick isn’t cute,” she said. “Not even in the ‘I’m not into guys so he’s not cute’ way like I did but regular ‘guys are cute but he’s not’ way.”

                “Well if I’m not into guys I obviously don’t think he’s cute,” he defended, a bit too adamantly.

                “Which is what I said,” she nodded. “Except you disagreed.”

                “Then I-“ he stopped and frowned. “Damn it Sunset! What do you want me to say?”

                “Okay, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t actually want to,” she said, a bit softer. “But hey, you’re talking to me here. I’m not going to judge you if you like guys.”

                Instead of answering, Flash curled up on his side of the couch. His knees were at his chest, the forgotten controller hanging limply in his hand as he rested his head in his arms. He stared at the tv, watching the playback of their race, but not really registering it.

                “I-I definitely like girls,” Flash said, more to himself than her. “I know I like girls. But I just…. Sometimes…. I don’t know.”

                “Okay with me,” Sunset shrugged. “I, personally, only like girls. But if you like both, that’s fine with me.”

                At her comment, his head shot up and he stared at her. The expression on his face was some combination of shock, confusion, and hope. It took a moment for that to click in Sunset’s brain, but once it did, she just stared back.

                “Oh. My. Stars,” Sunset whispered. “You-you didn’t know that was a….”

                “That’s an actual thing?” Flash asked, still in disbelief.

                “That is absolutely a thing!” she exclaimed. “There’s plenty of people who… okay, you know what? I’m getting my laptop. I’m going old-school research paper on this thing, because holy fuck you need to know this stuff!”

                “Wait, I’m still stuck on the ‘this is normal’ part,” he said. “If the idea of liking girls and guys is too complicated for me, do you really think a research paper will help?”

                “You’re right, I think you work better with powerpoints,” she nodded. “But okay, I’ll admit, sexuality and gender and all that is a whole bunch of fuckery, though not as complicated as when you more than just.... not as complicated as choosing your main on Mario Kart. Anyway, let me chug an energy drink and give me twenty minutes to work up some basics on the complicated stuff. Trust me, you’ll feel a lot better about your life when you have answers!”

                “Yeah, but-“ he tried to protest.

                Unfortunately, Sunset was already at the fridge and half-way through a drink.
> Summer Fun and Winter Doubt
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                Sunset hadn’t thought about it, but they didn’t really need to hang out over Summer Break. They barely saw any of their classmates in summer, so there was no one to impress. She could’ve told Flash ‘you’re probably sick of fake-dating me, so how about you do whatever for the Summer and I’ll tell my ‘parents’ you go to camp’?’.

                But she didn’t. She kept hanging out with him. Sometimes they would hang out with Brawly and Thunder too, but Brawly did actually have a summer camp to go to and Thunder’s family liked to go on vacations. So a lot of times, it was just the two of them.

                They did everything a pair of teens liked to do, having carefree summer fun. Some days were spent in their own gaming tournaments or movie marathons. Others they went to the park. A few times they just wandered through downtown, finding little shops that had the best trinkets, things that Flash speculated could be the key to some Magical Destiny while Sunset was just reminded of home.

One of the most interesting things was learning to drive. Sunset had some difficulty when it came to the paperwork to get her learner’s permit, but once she knew what she needed to fake, a concentrated burst of Trust from one of her pendants was enough to make the people at the DMV believe her paperwork.

After that, it was just the terror of learning. Goldie and Bramble offered to help her, taking turns between teaching her and Flash.  But Sunset still didn’t quite trust cars. They were like small, personal trains, which was convenient, but the lack of room and the fact that it wasn’t on set tracks was a bit unnerving to her.

However, what she really found cool were the motorcycles. She hadn’t paid much attention to them before, but Bramble had one. One time he offered her a ride home on it, and after that she was hooked. It took her enough time to walk to her front door to decide she wanted one, and immediately sprinted back to ask Bramble to teach her how to ride it.

Bramble had given a hearty chuckle and agreed on one condition: it had to be a surprise for Flash and Goldie. That worked for her. Riding a motorcycle, with the wind rushing past her, it made her wonder if that's what flying was really like. She'd have to ask a Pegasus.

It was all worth it by the end of summer. As soon as she was able to, she bought her own motorcycle. Of course, Flash and Goldie were expecting her to come up in a car, and she cackled at their faces when she rode up in front of their house. Bramble grinned with false innocence when they asked how, but it lasted all of a minute before Goldie rolled her eyes and smiled, telling Sunset how proud they were. 

The last event of the summer was a trip with Flash, Thunder, and Brawly. It was a typical teen thing, going to a beach and having a bonfire and just camping. It was weird to camp on a beach, but other than the sand everywhere it was just them having fun.

They didn’t have to pretend to be anything else here. No one played the ‘happy couple’, or the ‘cool teen’, or anything else. Sunset didn’t even pretend to be a normal Human. She didn’t tell them the truth, that would be far too difficult, but she didn’t think of it. She was just her, just Sunset Shimmer. Unicorn, Human, it didn’t matter here. 

                Eventually, school started up again. But Sunset did not go back to pretending. Sure, she and Flash still let people think of them as a couple, and neither discussed the technical terms, but they were them.

                Somehow, it didn’t hit her just yet. The moment Sunset realized it all, was her second time as Princess of the Fall Formal. She realized that, for the first time in so long, she felt happy and loved.

                If only it were real. If only it wasn’t based on a lie. Everything they cared about wasn’t her, but the Human she pretended to be.   





                The cold was a bit refreshing. As much as Sunset liked having some sort of structure, school was exhausting. But for now, she didn’t have to think about class for two weeks.

                She gripped the crystals in her pockets, the fire spell in them warming her hands. Strange, how fingers could get so cold. More than once she debated giving one to Flash, but she’d have to explain why a large gem was giving off so much heat.

                “Hey,” Flash said, breaking her out of her thoughts. “Are… are your parents going to be home for Christmas?”

                “I don’t know,” Sunset answered, keeping the lie. “Probably not.”

                “Well, if they don’t,” he began. “You can spend the day with us. You know, me, Goldie, and Bramble.”

                “I wouldn’t want to impose…” she trailed off. Technically imposing was all she was doing with them.

                “You won’t be,” he said. “Trust me they’d love to have you over.”

                “I’ll think about it,” she said. “At the very least I’ll try and stop by.”

                At home, Sunset debated with herself. Should she go, should she celebrate with them? But it felt like too much. Not just because it felt wrong to celebrate a holiday of togetherness when their relationship was built on lies, or that she wouldn’t want to be missing her real family while playing ‘the girlfriend’ for Goldie and Bramble.

                It was because Christmas was their holiday, not hers. Despite the similarities in tradition and theme of togetherness, the holidays came from two different places. It didn’t feel right to celebrate something that meant nothing to her, but it also felt wrong to pretend to celebrate it while celebrating her own holiday instead.

                She did stop by, for a little bit, bringing gifts and a plate of cookies. But she refused to stay for more than an hour. It hurt a bit, to disappoint them. But making them happy would have hurt more.  Because it could never be real.
> The Past Still Haunts
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                While Canterlot High wasn’t like Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, it did have its fair share of jerks and bullies, people who ruined others just for the fun of it. Sunset hadn’t liked them, but she stayed away from them and they thankfully stayed away from her. These people went only for those they saw as ‘lesser’ than themselves, and Sunset was either ‘on their level’ or ‘above it’ here.

It wasn’t like CSFGU where she was younger, and didn’t have their money. Not that she’d been ‘poor’, with a bestselling author for a mom and a Royal Mage for a dad, but she wasn’t the same rich as the Nobility who paid their way into the school.

Here, she was smart, pretty, in their age group, and charming enough to be popular. And there were very few students with rich or powerful enough families to be considered ‘above’ like those back home. Sunset didn’t ‘get it’, but as long as they left her alone, she was fine.

Still, there were some who tried, thinking they were better than everyone. Sunset didn’t ignore them, but a quick rebuff usually shut them down. Sometimes, they thought she was like them, tried to get her to help them hurt people for no reason, or to help them break the rules. She’d put her foot down at that, but this time she didn’t get the chance.

“So, how’d you do so well on the test?” a new transfer student had asked her.

“I studied,” Sunset shrugged, continuing to put books in her locker.

“But you’re too pretty to study!” the girl said. “Pretty girls don’t have to be smart.”

“Well, I am,” she said. “Because people are more than tropes. And I like doing things, even if that’s homework, it’s something to do.”

“Doing things, you say,” the girl mused with a smile. “I see. So care to give some tips?”

“Open a book for once?” she raised an eyebrow.

“Not that,” the girl rolled her eyes. “I meant about Mr. Birch. Seriously, what did it take?”

                “What did what take?” she demanded.

                “Seducing him for a grade,” the girl elaborated in a more hushed tone. “Doesn’t seem too difficult, he seems the type that would sleep with a student. Wonder how many-“

                The next thing Sunset knew, the girl was on the floor and her hand was throbbing in pain and  burning rage beneath her skin. She connected the dots as one teacher led her to the office and the girl was sent to the nurse. Thankfully, she didn’t have to deal with Principal Celestia.

                However, Vice Principal Luna was an enigma all her own.  Her existence was a puzzle to Sunset, but one she couldn’t solve. Luna’s closeness to Principal Celestia, the Moon theme in all of her clothes, her demeanor as Equal to the Principal instead of just being a Vice Principal. Everything about her told Sunset that this was the Counterpart of the mare from the stories, Nightmare Moon. Except for the fact that Nightmare, and Luna, had never appeared. Perhaps that is why Celestia looked so sad at the sight of the Moon.

                But for now, Sunset tried to focus on her as any other Human. Luna was not a Princess, but a Vice Principal. One with a cold stare so much like the Princess’s, but so different. It was a stare of authority, yet she could still see the disappointment in her expression. 

                “Miss Shimmer,” the VP began, keeping her voice neutral. “Would you care to tell me why you assaulted another student?”

                “What do you want me to say?” Sunset replied. “She was awful. And I don’t say that lightly. You should keep an eye on her, because she’ll probably try something else while she’s here.”

                “I will keep an eye on students that have shown they need it,” she said. “What makes you think she needs it?”

                “Because she was….” She trailed off.

                If she said it, then it could happen again. That wasn’t fair to anyone, but if she didn’t, worse could happen. But could she trust the Vice Principal? Could she trust Luna? There wasn’t a Counterpart to give her an idea. Then again, Luna was not her Counterpart, and deserved her own chance.

                “She was what?” Luna asked.

                “She was looking for tips to seduce a teacher for test scores,” Sunset said. “That’s why I punched her.”

                “That is… Unexpected,” she said, surprise quite visible. “Before we continue, I must ask, why did she ask you?”

                “Because she thinks I did,” she said. “But I haven’t. She just thinks that I couldn’t have possibly been smart enough to pass a test, even though all the answers are in the book. Whether or not the books are accurate because they’re out of date is another question, but the test questions come from there.”

                “And you believe she deserved to be hit for that?” she questioned. “Why not report it?”

                “Report what exactly?” she asked. “Firstly, hitting her was spur of the moment, not something I planned on. Secondly, do you know what happened last time someone suggested that my grades were fabricated like that?

“Fair enough, you don’t,” She continued, not giving a chance for Luna to interrupt. “But it reached the faculty before I even knew about the rumors, and the teacher was put under investigation. Even with me insisting that nothing happened, and no other students coming forward to say it happened to them, the parents still tried to get him fired. The only reason he wasn’t was because Pri- because someone the parents liked to suck up to took my side.”

“So yeah, I hit her,” she sank back in her chair. “Because it just reminded me of that. And I didn’t want Mr. Birch to go through that Hellscape.”

“Language,” Luna automatically chastised. “However, you do have a point. Not for punching her, but for what would happen. By law, we do have to investigate. But considering your testimony, we can keep this quiet and ask directly.”

“That said,” she continued. “You still did hit a student, and there needs to be some sort of punishment. Given that you reported a potential crime in progress, I believe we can call that Community Service and go with two days of detention instead of suspension.”

“Thank you,” Sunset nodded, knowing better than to fight that. “Can I go back to class now?”

“Yes,” she nodded, writing her a pass. “And I will be dropping by the nurse’s office, so I suggest you avoid its occupant.”

She nodded again and headed out the door. Sunset wasn’t sure she was able to breathe until she was back in class. Flash tried to ask what happened, but she didn’t want to tell him here.

She waited until they made it to her place again. He wasn’t sure how to react, but Sunset didn’t care. She just hugged him close and tried not to cry.

“I didn’t want to ruin someone else’s life,” she said. “I’m sorry. I know I’m not the best person. But I don’t want… I don’t want that.”

Once more, she wanted to tell him everything. Not just that she lied to him about everything, but about Equestria and why she left. He deserved to know, and she knew he’d believe her.  Even if he never forgave her for lying to him.

But she couldn’t, because it would hurt him. She knew she’d have to tell him eventually, either when he figured it out or when she broke and couldn’t stand it anymore. Yet some irrational part of her thought that maybe if she just kept from saying anything, she’d never have to hurt him.

The only thing she did was apologize over and over, hoping it would get through. That it would be enough.  





                They made it back to Flash’s place after a particularly disastrous basketball game. Not that their players were a disaster. But when the college student that had been shadowing the retiring theatre teacher decided to give a grand finale to his prank war with the principals, well, there were a few literal and metaphorical explosions.

                The duo relaxed in Flash’s room, exhausted from even processing the Gym incident. Instead, they talked of anything else.

                “Oh, I forgot to mention,” Flash began. “You wanted me to tell you about any more Pegasus dreams.”

                “Yeah, they’re interesting,” Sunset said. “So, what now? Capture any villains?”

                “No, but there was a guy that reminded me of you,” he said.

                “What did he look like?” she asked, bolting to attention.

                “Well, at first, weird,” he said. “I thought it was just because it’s a dream so all the ponies in armor looked the same because of that. But apparently their armor is magic and makes them look the same.”

                “Magical uniforms,” she shrugged, pretending to guess. “Wait, you don’t look like them?”

                “Maybe because I’m dreaming?” he suggested. “Anyway, this guy, this Unicorn, at first he was all gray and blue except for the scar on his cheek, but then he took the helmet of and he changed. He was yellow with orange hair that had a silver streak, and eyes just like yours. That’s what made me think of you.”

                “Anything else?” she asked, her heart tight in her chest.

                “Uh well,” he began, turning a little red. “I think he was flirting with me? Not really sure it I was into that since he’s some kind of horse, but if he were a person….”

                Sunset didn’t hear the rest of his comment. That was Lance, it had to be. While it wasn’t much, she was glad he was okay. Of course, it made her want to know more. How’d he get the scar on his cheek? When did he get switched to the Lunar Guard? And most importantly, was he being generically flirty or had he lost interest in the Unicorn he’d been in love when she’d left?

                In the end, it didn’t matter too much. Lance was okay, he was alive. And that was all she could really hope for.
> A Band of Matchmakers
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                With the end of the school year fast approaching, the upperclassmen had started going nuts with what Sunset liked to call ‘Prom Fever’. All any upperclassmen could talk about was finding their dress and their date and what limo they should use. Of course, the Freshmen and Sophmores paid no mind.

“Why do they call it the ‘Spring Fling’?” Flash asked.

                “Probably to match ‘Fall Formal’,” Brawly said through a mouthful of chips.

                “I think he meant ‘why don’t they call it Prom like everyone else?” Thunder said.

                “Because CHS is Extra like that,” Sunset answered, posing dramatically for effect.

                “Good point,” Flash agreed.

                “So, you two planning on going next year?” Brawly asked. “Or you could try and sneak in this year, but that seems more trouble than it’s worth. Then again, the whole thing does.”

                “What, not one for prom season?” Sunset teased.

                “Not all of us have a date you know,” he stuck his tongue out at her. “Thunder, back me up here. You wouldn’t go to prom unless you had a date.”

                “Yeah, a date would be nice,” Thunder answered, somewhat distracted.

                Focusing closer, Sunset saw what had him distracted. She smiled at the way Thunder had glanced to Flash when a date was mentioned. She smiled wider when he noticed her looking at him.

                He looked a bit terrified. Sunset under stood. After all, she was ‘the girlfriend’. But still, with that same smirk, she gave a small nod to him and lightly jerked her head in Flash’s direction. Thunder’s face turned red and he buried his head in his hands.

                “Any idea what they’re on about” Brawley asked.

                “Nope,” Flash answered.

                Sunset rolled her eyes, but smiled to herself at the idea. Perhaps she could play matchmaker.





                Summer vacation had started perfectly. Sunset and Flash hung out, driving around wherever. Most days they’d take Sunset’s motorcycle, but if Brawley and Thunder happened to be along, they’d take the car Flash had gotten. Even if Sunset and Brawly teased him about his choice of decals.

                She’d spend time at Flash’s house a lot. Goldie and Bramble were wonderful people. They’d taught Sunset to play guitar and piano, and she questioned why she never tried it when learning how to work fingers.

                Flash got the idea to start a band. After all, both he and Sunset could play guitar, Thunder was on bass, Brawly was epic with drums, and the four of them were decent singers. Why shouldn’t they start a band? The real question was band names.

                “It should be a pun on one of our names,” Brawly said. “What about ‘Flash Drive’?”

                “That’s the best pun you could come up with?” Thunder raised an eyebrow.

                “Come on, man,” he groaned, flopping onto the couch. “Flash’s the guitar guy so he’ll get the attention anyway, and there’s not a lot of puns I can think of with ‘Flash’ in it that don’t involve a dick joke!”

                “Besides, it doesn’t fit our aesthetic,” Sunset said. “’Flash Drive’ would be good if we were a bunch of nerds.”

                “I’m with Sunset on this one,” Flash said. “She’s the closest thing to a nerd we have so..”

                “Hey!” she pouted.

                “Remind me what you got on your final exam scores?” he teased.

                “What about ‘Thunder Flash’?” Brawly suggested, ignoring their bickering. “That sounds more badass.”

                “It only uses half the band members though,” Flash said.

                “And it sounds like a fanfic thing,” Sunset said. “You know, ‘ship names’ and all that.”

                It probably didn’t help that she gave Thunder a smirk when saying that. The poor boy got so flustered that even Brawly managed to catch on. Brawly raised an eyebrow at Sunset, before glancing between the other two. She only shrugged and nodded, while he joined her in an almost maniacal grin.

                “Come on,” Brawly said, getting up and putting an arm around Thunder. “I think it’s a great name. Sure, it’s little fanfic-y, but come on. It’s a badass name.”

                “You know, it’s starting to grow on me,” Sunset added, sliding up to his other side. “Sounds like a great idea. Really, I say we ask and see how it goes. Can’t hurt to try, right?”

"I am going to murder you both," Thunder whispered. 

                “I feel like I’m missing something,” Flash sighed.

                Sunset and Brawly both shared a look, trying not to laugh. That was another thing she’d learned about Flash.  His obliviousness was an enigma of sorts. So often he was the first to spot something, see the little details and put puzzles together, not to mention his reaction time. Yet there were moments like this where no amount of not-so-subtle hints could get things across.

                And while both knew they could probably save a good bit of hassle later on, Sunset and Brawly also knew that you’re not supposed to be blunt here.

                “Nope,” Sunset shrugged. “You’re not missing anything other than a nice band name.”

                “Let’s- let’s just pick an actual name!” Thunder insisted. “No more name play!”

                “Fine,” Brawly conceded. “Still don’t think we’ll come up with a better name.”

                Before anyone could think of a suggestion for another idea, four phones rang at once. If it had been only three, then Sunset might not have questioned it. However, there were only five people who she knew had her number, and three of them were in this room.

                “What kind of text is that?” Sunset frowned, looking at the unnamed number.

                “A weird one,” Flash agreed.

                “It’s Pinkie,” Brawly said, already messaging back.

                “Pinkie like Pinkie Pie?” Thunder asked.

                “Yep,” he nodded.

                “How does she have my number?” Sunset wondered.

                “Or mine?” Flash added.

                “She has everyone’s number,” Brawly shrugged. “Honestly, when it comes to Pinkie, the less you question it the better.”

                “Okay, but what does her text mean?” Sunset asked, programming the number into her phone to prevent future confusion.

                “She says it’s a band name suggestion,” he answered.

                “How does she even know we’re-?” Flash began, before stopping and rubbing his face in exasperation. “You know what? Never mind.”

                “Okay, but ‘Knights of Dawn’?” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Not to be self centered, but shouldn’t it at least be ‘Knights of Sunset’ or something, considering me?”

                “What happened to no more nameplay?” Thunder sighed.

                “Maybe it’s ironic?” Brawly said.

                “Or someone told her about Flash’s Pegasus dreams,” Sunset muttered.

                “Kind of hope not,” Flash said. “But honestly, it’s kind of the best suggestion yet.”

                “So, are we actually using that as the name?” Brawly asked, waving his phone. “Because Pinkie thinks we are and is planning to celebrate that once we have our first actual performance. And by that I mean she’s asked me if we could play for a party she’s putting together at the end of the summer that would probably be good for telling people we’re doing this so...”
> Replaced
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                The rest of Summer went as expected. Just like the last one, Sunset spent her time with them and just did things a normal teen would. There were days when Equestria would not cross her mind, when the strangeness of this world didn’t feel as strange.

But just before it ended, Flash told her about another one of his ‘Pegasus Dreams’, about news from Equestria. It was a little vague, but it was enough. Sunset held it together, long enough for Flash to leave. As soon as he was gone, she broke down.

                Sunset had not only been replaced, she had been outdone. She had expected to be replaced eventually. Hell, she knew she wasn’t the first Unicorn to be the Princess’s student. But it seemed like it might have happened almost immediately after she left.

                She was fine with that, but then there was the story of how Vice Principal Luna finally ‘appeared in his dreams’. The return of Nightmare Moon, quickly put to a stop by the Princess’s student and the Elements of Harmony. Sunset’s Replacement was the Element of Magic, Savior of Equestria, and probably a whole bunch of other titles.

                But that wasn’t what hurt most. What hurt most is the fact that she couldn’t really say she had been replaced as the Princess’s student, because the new girl was not ‘the Princess’s’ student, she was Celestia’s.

                Why was this mare worthy of seeing Celestia, of knowing her and being her friend? What did she have that Sunset didn’t? Sunset had tried, over and over, to get even the barest glimpse of Celestia, yet this mare was granted that so easily. Why?

                Sunset asked herself why over and over. She cried, maybe harder than she had the night she left. The only thing to keep her from screaming was the idea of waking the neighbors. Many poor coping mechanisms ran through her head. She was too young to buy a drink, and while her nails dug into her skin, she couldn’t bring herself to attempt any self-harm.

                She wasn’t sure when she stopped crying, when her pain lessened from intense stabbing to a dull throb. It still killed her, but she could at least think. She could plan.

                If…. If she managed to go home, managed to get the Element of Magic for herself, maybe she could get everything she had once wanted. That was it, wasn’t it? She hadn’t used the Element of Magic, that’s what made this other mare ‘better’, the only differences she could find. If she could do what her replacement had done, would Celestia talk to her, care for her?

                She had a chance, one chance, to get everything she’d ever wanted. But was it worth giving up the life she’d made here? Flash, Goldie and Bramble, Brawly and Thunder, even just the other students at CHS that could be friends if she tried. If she was able to go home, she wouldn’t see them again. At least not for years.

                The answer came from doubts. The doubts she had about these friendships, despite what happiness they gave her. None of them, not even Flash, knew the real Sunset Shimmer. It wasn’t like she had faked everything, as if she didn’t care about them. Because she did.

                But how could they know her if she had to keep so much from them? She could never tell them ‘I’m a Unicorn from another Dimension’. She justified it over and over. She had to lie because who would believe that? Because it would unravel the things she did lie about, both for protection and to get what she’d wanted, and that could force them away more than going home could. And if she kept up the lie, could she really call them friends?

                But Celestia… while she hesitated to go back, to even hope that she could have what she’d longed for, she wouldn’t have to hide anything from her. She could tell Celestia about this world, about her life, and about little things that she could never tell anyone here just because it involved Magic. She could have a real friend in Celestia, if only she could figure out how.  





                Sunset had a plan. When the portal opened, she was to go to Equestria, take the Element of Magic, and bring it back here. She’d debated about whether to bring it back or not, but in the end, it seemed like a better option. She didn’t know how long it would take get the Element of Magic to work, if she could put it on and have it instantly work or if she needed to ‘convince’ it to let her use it. No one would expect someone from another dimension, so she’d have all the time she needs while they search Equestria.

                The only problem was making sure no one here could keep her from using the Element of Magic. While Humans didn’t know about it, there was a chance that the Elements were bonded with the Souls of those who wield them. If so, their Counterpart’s Souls might be enough to interfere.

                To keep that from happening, she had to stop them from being together. Technically there were many ways to stop them, but some of the more definite options were…. Nothing she wanted to do. So she just had to separate them from one another, get them to stop talking to each other.

                She didn’t want to do that. Maybe if they had been terrible, she wouldn’t have cared. But these girls, well, she hadn’t found her Replacement’s Counterpart. But thanks to her new theatre teacher’s shenanigans, she figured out the other five.

                While they weren’t close, she liked them well enough. Fluttershy was sweet, and scary when pissed off. Applejack was blunt and stubborn, but she was the definition of ‘Southern Hospitality’. Rarity was an oddity. She fit a lot of tropes for the stuck-up-bitch, but always helped others. And Rainbow Dash was entertaining and overall fun, even if her ego could get bit on her nerves.

                And then there was Pinkie Pie. Pinkie was the one Sunset knew best of the group, but not through anything specific other than their recent time in Theatre. Pinkie just liked being friends with everyone, with knowing things about everyone. And sometimes knowing too much. There were things she said sometimes that made Sunset wonder if she knew about Equestria, about what she really was. More than once Sunset had wondered if she should tell her, and there were many times where she slipped and replied with something too Equestrian.  

                She didn’t want to break them up. But she had to. If she wanted any chance, she had to. Even her third year as Fall Formal Princess didn’t make her as happy as it had in the years before, despite Flash trying to make her laugh and mess up the picture. She couldn’t be truly happy in a world where no one knew her.
> Descent
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                Breaking them up might be harder than she thought. They had each other, so she’d need to do it all at once to make sure no one talked to one another and helped them make up. But they had more than just themselves. All of them seemed to have their own circle of friends outside of this one. She’d have to convince them that keeping the group separated was for the best.

                Some were easier. Rarity’s Popular friends and Rainbow’s sport teams already had some tension, one hated for being ‘prissy’ and the other for being ‘violent’, but the hippies and theatre people both seemed chill with everyone.

                Sunset realized it was getting complicated. But…. Every time she thought of quitting, she remembered how it felt. She remembered the pain and betrayal she felt, having never known ‘Celestia’, but she also remembered the night that sent her down this path.

                If she could have that again, it would be worth it. Even so, it hurt to do. 

                Sunset put off actually engaging in the rest of the plan for a while. She tried once, lifting Pinkie’s phone and sending an email to Rarity. But it made her feel sick. She put off doing it again for months.

                But with bigger and bigger things happening back in Equestria, Flash was getting more and more significant glimpses into his other self’s life. She heard of Discord’s defeat, of Changelings invading Canterlot, and of an Empire made of Crystal.

                She started up again when his dreams told of Discord’s reformation, becoming a ‘force for good’ or something like that. She’d expected that, seeing as his Human Counterpart was now her theatre teacher, but it pushed her to try again. 

                “Here comes my messenger!” Sunset spoke. “How now, mad spirit? What night-“

                Sunset was cut off, choking on pink hair.

                “Pinkie, move!” Sunset coughed, shoving the pink girl off her ‘throne’.

                “Sorry Sunny!” Pinkie giggled from her newfound place on the floor. “My hair kind of does what it wants.”

                “Ugh,” she groaned, looking out into the seats. “Hey Discord, think you have twenty headbands back stage? Or maybe a pair of clippers?”

                “No, but there is a bandsaw,” Discord mused. “I’m kidding. Please don’t use the bandsaw.”

                “She has a point on headbands!” Pinkie chirped. “Think we can work that into the costume? Wouldn’t antlers be cool!”

                “Yeah,” Sunset muttered. “Choke me with hair or stab me with antlers. I think I’ll take the quick death.”

                As the two ignored her comment and wandered backstage to look for headbands, Sunset wandered offstage to a water fountain. Pinkie’s phone was, for lack of a better word, adorable. And far too easy to get with how their characters were supposed to interact.

                Sunset pulled herself together, sending more emails and matching syntax. She had to. She didn’t have anything left. If she didn’t do this now, it would be another three years. As soon as she was done, she deleted the sent messages and put the phone on the floor upstage. Pinkie thought it just fell out of her pocket.

                Some things she had to do she hated more. She needed to be able to do things, to be able to talk people into doing things, and the only way to do that was blackmail.

                Still, there were lines she wouldn’t cross. She wouldn’t threaten people with personal things, like their family life or hidden sexuality. But the knowledge that one of the techies was getting their spending money by writing others’ assignments? That was fair game.

                She needed to get others to fight. Getting others to break the five up, basically. Causing rumors and ‘pranks’ that made fights between groups of people. And nothing that could trace back to her.

                Fluttershy’s phone was easy to get. She always left it in her gym locker, and it was far too easy to pick the lock. A quick message to Pinkie about a large party at the same time and place at a silent auction, and the rest would do itself.

                On the other hand, getting Applejack's phone was near impossible. Finally, Sunset gave up and ended up ‘accidentally’ spilling a soda on her. She apologized, and tried to apologize in advance for everything, but took her phone all the same.

                Just as she’d been wondering who and what to message, one came in from Rainbow Dash.

                “Hey, when’s the bake sale thing again?”

                Looking through the messages to find the date, Sunset smiled at her luck. She texted back, trying her best to match Applejack’s syntax as well, and told her the day after the bake sale. Then, she deleted the messages and turned the phone in to ‘lost and found’.





                By the time the Spring Fling came around, Sunset was furious. That mare, her Replacement, had done more. She’d become a Princess. Celestia made her an Alicorn, an equal to her in all ways. This mare got gifted with everything Sunset had wanted, everything she fought for and was denied for being somehow ‘unworthy’.

                Why? What did this mare do differently? Why was she so special that Celestia would give her anything and everything? Or was Sunset worth so little to her?

                Sunset tried to be happy again, tried to give up on a mare who’d never loved her. Princess of the Fall Formal had done nothing, so maybe the Spring Fling would. She couldn’t be ‘Queen’ this year, as she was still a Junior, but ‘Princess’ should surely work?

                She did everything, but it tipped her over the edge when Rarity ran against her. She knew this Rarity was not her Counterpart, but she didn’t care. All five of them were a part of this, were the mares that Celestia loved so much more than her.

                She didn’t care about trying to keep things ‘fixable’ anymore. She hated them, and everything they took from her. She wanted them out of her life, away from her, and so she slipped into sabotage. No one could prove what she did, but as the only person to gain from Rarity dropping out of the contest, she was blamed anyway.

                She didn’t care. She didn’t care that they’d started to whisper, started to claim that her Fall Formal wins were sabotage as well. It didn’t matter if they hated her, she would have everything as soon as the portal opened again.

                It hurt that Flash didn’t defend her, but he didn’t accuse her either. It probably didn’t help that she hadn’t denied anything, even if she didn’t confess.
> Burnout
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                Summer break was worse than before. Sunset and Flash still hung out, but she stayed home more often. She told him that she was trying to push him and Thunder into a relationship, since they obviously liked one another, so they should hang out instead. He didn’t deny it, but he did try to hang out with her.

                It hurt to do that. It hurt to push him away. But if she was going to do this, if her plan worked, she would be going back to Equestria. And yes, perhaps she could take him with her; tell him the truth and show him the world that he thought was a dream. But that would mean leaving Goldie and Bramble and Brawly and Thunder. Maybe she could find a way to bring all five, but what about their friends and family?

She couldn’t bring everyone, and she didn’t want to make him choose between staying with them or not seeing them for at least three years. Instead, she’d make the choice for him. But she’d tell him, tell him everything before she left. And maybe he wouldn’t believe her, but maybe she’d come back in another three years and it would be just like before, a few days of visiting every couple years. Maybe she could have everything.

                But by the time the beginning of Senior Year came around, Sunset was trying to balance everything. She knew she was snapping at others more often, and especially at those girls. The only solace she had was that it had worked.

They stopped talking over Summer break, the months apart giving things time to fester, and now they barely interacted. Even if she hadn’t sent a direct message, either their own fighting or siding with other friends on their conflicts had driven them apart.

She had been careful. There were no online messages to track, no recordings thanks to an EMP made from a crystal, and even if someone said ‘she blackmailed me into doing this’, there was no proof. She even had copies of her blackmail material hidden and protected. No one could hack her laptop or phone and get rid of what she had if there were copies in flash drives hidden around town.

But she hadn’t been careful enough. Somehow, somewhere, she slipped up. Flash knew now, and he didn’t like it.

They fought. It was more than petty arguments, this was screaming and yelling and crying hot tears. It was the kind of fight that could ruin people.

“Just tell me why!” Flash demanded.

“Because I have to!” Sunset screamed back.

“Why?” he yelled, slamming his fist into the table. “What the hell is so important that you’d bully and blackmail people?”

“I-I can’t tell you,” she answered, her voice quieting a little. “Not yet. Not until I actually…..”

“Is it worth this?” he asked. “Is it worth hurting everyone?”

She hesitated. She didn’t want to hurt people, she didn’t want to ruin them. She was sure she could use the Element of Magic, that she could prove her worth, and gain everything her Replacement and those five had. But if these few people had to fight one another, just for a little while, was it worth it all to get the love she’d wanted for so long? She hated it, but she’d made her decision.

“Yes,” Sunset answered. “I’m sorry, but I have to.”

“Fuck this,” Flash replied. “I’m out.”

“What do you mean you’re out?” she asked.

“If this is what you want to do, I want no part of it,” he said, heading to the door. “So I’m done. Done with whatever our relationship is. Both the fake parts and anything that might be fake. I don’t even know if I can trust any of it!”

“Flash-“ she started, her hands shaking.

“Don’t,” he cut her off. “Don’t you dare. Whatever it is you want out of this, it isn’t worth it. And I’m not going to go down with the ship. Until you find a way to fix this, I don’t want to even talk to you. You’re not what I thought.”

“Flash please,” she cried. “Just-just don’t tell Goldie and Bramble about this.”

“Why shouldn’t I?” he asked.

“Because I didn’t want you guys to get hurt,” she said.

“Too late for that,” he said. “You’re hurting everyone else, for reasons you won’t even bother to explain! I won’t tell them, but it sure feels like you wanted to hurt us too. And right now, I can't trust that you ever cared about any of us.”

She tried to protest, but the door slammed shut. There was a half-second of shock before she broke, before she was sobbing on the floor. It hurt, just as much as everything else, but it was so different. This wasn’t a pain that burned her from within.

It was cold, terrifying, like winter frost blasting through her Soul until her fingertips went numb. And in so many ways, that was worse. The only thing that kept her together was hope that once she got what she wanted, she could fix it.

“It isn’t that I never cared,” Sunset sobbed. “It was that I cared too much.”





                She had begun to hate them. Those five had cost her everything. Their Counterparts had Celestia, and now when she tried to get that back, they had taken anything she had left. She didn’t hold back her comments, her insults. They were the only ones she crossed the line with, using any foothold she had against them to hurt them worse than she felt.

                She avoided Flash, just like he asked. It took a day for rumors to start about what had happened, and all of them painted her as the bitch. She couldn’t blame them. She couldn’t even blame Flash for leaving her. She knew what she was doing, even if she had her reasons. But it would be okay, she could fix it, once the portal opened. 

                She wondered if she should even bother fixing it. She didn’t care about those five. Even if she did, Flash would still hate her. She wondered if she even could fix it, if it was too far- If she were too far gone. 

It was too late to go back now. Her only hope at any sort of happiness was to get the Element of Magic.
> Ashes
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                The portal was open, and she had stepped through. It felt almost weird to be a pony again, but it felt so normal at the same time. She took up a candlestick and flipped it in her magic. She missed it, oh so much.

                It was odd, feeling the magic thrum through the crystal under her hooves. She knew the mirror was in the Crystal Empire now, that the Replacement had taken a trip here at just the right time. The memory of that ‘dream’ sent a shard of ice through her heart, but she pushed forward.





                That hadn’t gone as planned. She’d forgotten about the Student’s Familiar, and the stupid Dragon had tripped her up on her escape. Not to mention the Element getting flung through the portal. She’d followed it only seconds after, but it was too late. Someone had already picked it up and brought it to the Principal.

                Getting it back was going to be a pain. The Principal refused to hand it over, saying they were going to use it as the Fall Formal crown. Sunset had screamed at her, calling it blatant theft. The crown belonged to her, and she had no right to claim it as ‘school property’.

                “Come on now, Miss Shimmer,” the Principal said. “We had yet to get the crown, and now we have one. Considering you’re running unopposed anyway, you’ll get it back. It just gets to be on display for a few days.”

                She debated about actually calling the cops, but not only did she have no ‘proof’ that it was hers, but it was hard to get the cops involved with her lack of records. Even a burst of Magic Emotion wouldn’t help on that front.

                Instead, she decided to take out her frustration on the girl who, upon seeing something drop on the ground, didn’t bother to ask anyone if it was theirs before giving it to the Principal. Of course it was one of the five. Even if they didn’t know what they were doing, they somehow managed to try and stop her.

                “I’m really sorry,” Fluttershy had said. “I-I just found it, and- and I thought I should give it to her. I didn’t know you had dropped it.”

                “Well I did!” Sunset barely reined in the need to scream. “And I was about to get it before you swooped in and ruined everything! You shouldn’t pick up things that don’t belong to you!”

                “It doesn’t really belong to you either,” she muttered.

                Did this girl really have the audacity to say it wasn’t hers? Yes, technically it wasn’t yet, but that wasn’t the point. This girl knew nothing of Magic, so why she believed it wasn’t hers was beyond Sunset’s imagination. She hated it, and her.

                “Excuse me?!” Sunset started, preparing to rant.

                “N-nothing,” Fluttershy backed down.

                “That’s what I thought,” she glared. “It’s as good as mine, and you know it. You really are pathetic. It’s no wonder your best friends are stray animals.”

                “How dare you speak to her that way?”

                Sunset had whirled around, a glare already aimed at the source of the voice. It was a girl, around her age and colored in various purples. The girl had no trace of fear, unlike what she’d grown used to seeing in the other students. And it drove her nuts. 

                “What did you say?” Sunset demanded, furiously stalking through the hall.

                “I said, ‘How dare you speak to her that way?’!” the girl repeated, heading to her as well.

                Sunset glared at her. She looked a bit familiar, though she couldn’t place it. Still, something about her was off, something that felt right and wrong at the same time. But she decided it didn’t matter. She was so close, and one new student trying to ‘play hero’ wasn't important

                “You must new here,” Sunset shrugged, tracing a finger along the girl’s face before walking down the hall. “I can speak to anyone any way I want.

                She left, glaring at the rest of the students who stood by and watched. They were just as bad as she was, really. But at least new girl, as irrationally angry as she made Sunset feel, had tried something. Those kids just hid themselves away and watched.





                She’d gone to the gym just to antagonize those two. They deserved it, they were just as bad as Fluttershy. Broken up or not, that whole group wouldn’t stop. Especially since Pinkie helped the ‘new girl’ sign up to be Fall Formal Princess.

                It was then that she recognized ‘Twilight Sparkle’, her Replacement. So she waited, knowing that sooner or later she’d go somewhere alone. Of course it had to be the one hallway with lights that always flickered, but a part of Sunset found it beautifully dramatic.

                “Should’ve known Princess Celestia would send her ‘prized pupil’ here after my crown,” Sunset said, before adding a joke, “And her little dog, too.”

                “It’s my crown,” Twilight growled.

                “Whatever,” she shrugged, knowing how little there was to fear. “This is just a minor setback for me. You don’t know the first thing about this place, and I already rule it.”

                “If that’s so,” she began, “why do you even need my crown? You went to an awful lot of trouble to switch it with the one that belongs here.”

                “Pop quiz,” she chirped. “What happens when you bring an Element of Harmony to an Alternate World?”

                Twilight didn’t answer. Sunset was mostly using that question as a joke, but also a test. She wondered what this girl could come up with, or to see if the Princess had told her. She was curious to see the way this girl thought, to see if it was different than her own conclusions. Yet, there was no answer.

                This girl couldn’t even offer a guess. She couldn’t even bring forth some panic-fueled answer of Summoning Eldritch Monstrosities and Lovecraftian Horrors. Yet she had somehow been given everything Sunset was denied. It made her want to scream, but instead she laughed. Because it was the only way she could keep from crying.

                “You don’t know? Seriously?” Sunset laughed. “And you’re supposed to be Princess Celestia’s star student? Then again, what were the chances she’d find somepony as bright as me to take under her wing after I decided to leave Equestria? Bit embarrassing that you were the best she could do.”

                With a growl the Dragon-turned-Dog poked his head out of the girl's backpack, and she glared once more. He was a part of this, but she’d give him a little bit of a break, being a kid and all. Maybe some actual advice, though she wouldn’t hesitate to add more insults to the girl who got everything she never deserved.

                “I’d keep an eye on your mutt,” Sunset said. “Hate for him to be taken away from you.”

                “Is that a threat?” the ex-Dragon asked.

                “Of course not,” she said, quickly shushing him as he tried to bark. “But I’d cut down on the chatter if I were you. Don’t want everyone to know you don’t belong here, now would you? You want to be Princess here? Please, you don’t know the first thing about fitting in.”

                Sunset walked off, but that last comment stuck with her. No, Twilight didn’t know anything about ‘fitting in’. But neither had she for a time. If Sunset had managed to charm her way to being Fall Formal Princess in her Freshman year, than this girl could possibly manage to be just charming enough to win. Especially the girl who had somehow gotten to Celestia.

                There were other tactics for that, specifically two Freshmen that loved to follow her around and do what she said. Really, it was almost ridiculous how they latched on to her, but as long as they did what she wanted, she didn’t care that they followed her around.





                Nothing had worked. This girl had not only gotten her group back together, but cast off both the smear campaign and the sabotage frame up. She even got Flash on her side, though his interest was far more romantic than the one he’d had with Sunset. Why? Why did everyone love her so much?

                Sunset resorted to more drastic measures, having the Freshmen grab her dog and threatening the portal with a hammer. But even that hadn’t worked. Twilight just refused, saying she’d rather stay here than go home. She believed that Sunset being happy was somehow worse than whatever magical monster would pop up in Equestria. Sure, she’d been a bitch, but had the Princess really told her she was that bad?

                Did the Princess really believe she was that bad? That if she were happy and loved she would be worse than any terror that could attack Equestria? She shook with rage, hearing of how the Princess truly felt.

                It burned worse than before. She had trusted the Princess, but it was all a lie. It had always been a lie, hadn’t it? She’d only ever taken from her, withholding the only thing she wanted while freely giving it to others. She’d abandoned her, kicked her out, let her run off into another world alone. It was cruel, and she felt tears begging to start as she heard those girls talk of how she’d never been worth anything. Of how ‘Twilight’ was.

                “You are so awesome!”

                “I can’t believe you were going to do that for us!”

                “It’s no wonder you’re a real live princess!”

                “Oh, yes, she’s so very special!” Sunset screamed.

                With that she snapped, tackling Twilight. She didn’t care anymore. There was nothing left. Her last chance was slipping away, or maybe it already had. But she was done trying to hold back, she cared so much that she stopped caring.





                It hurt. Sunset thought she knew this pain, the pain of Emotions so strong they became physical. But this was literal. The moment she put the crown on her head, it blasted through her. She felt her body being ripped and twisted and burned, but it was barely anything compared to the rest.

                Some of it was what she had felt, everything she had felt the moment the Princess left her. Betrayal, like everything she deserved was being held from her, like she had been tricked into searching for something that wasn’t there until she was kicked out, until she was left scared and alone and crying.

                But she also felt the choices she had made. Lies she told to get what she wanted, every time she tried to hurt those she thought deserved it, because they had withheld something she never truly had. Everything she did that ruined what happiness she made, because she was so sure she could fix it.

                “I am your princess now, and you will be loyal to me!”

                That wasn’t her. The Demon she saw was not the real her. It was everything she felt, intensified into a monster. It was what she was when she no longer cared for anyone, and while part of her screamed that no, there were still those to care about, she couldn’t feel it through the pain of everything that had been taken from her.

                “I want Equestria!”

                She had never wanted Equestria. She never wanted to rule. She knew she got lost, trying to be a Princess so ‘Celestia’ would talk to her, and that desire reawakened when her Replacement got that so easily.

                What was left, but everything to take? Power was all that was left. The Princess had never cared about her, these girls were worth more than she was, and she had pushed away everyone else that wanted to care about her.

“She needs to be dealt with!”

 	She hated them, oh stars did she hate everything they represented, everything she’d never been given. Everything she'd wanted. 

Yet her Magic shifted as she cast it. Some small part of her knew how far this was, how much pain was caused by this Magic. She hesitated, because as much as she hated them, she didn’t want to hurt them.
> Spark
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                There was a white void, almost like a pocket dimension constructed of Magic. The void itself felt calming, nice, but she wasn’t sure. All of her other emotions surrounded her. Anger and jealousy and sadness and fear, it felt like red-hot knives boring into her skin. She cried, because she never wanted this, because she wanted this to stop.

                There was a purple hoof in her vision, and an aura of emotion with a simple message: “Let me help you. Let me show you there’s another way.” The feeling was so sincere, she couldn’t help but believe her.

                Sunset took the hoof in her own, surprised to see she had hooves at the moment. And the void cut out.





                Everything hurt, but at least it was physical. Her back burned, and she was at the bottom of a crater. And some things she understood.

                She understood how much she fucked up. For a while, she was happy. She had managed to lie her way into friends, she had some people she thought of as a family, people she cared about and who cared about her. Even if the beginning was a lie, it had felt real, and she threw it away chasing old dreams of a mare that had never loved her.

                She understood why the Element of Magic had reacted the way it did. Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, Loyalty, and Kindness, the other Elements. The Princess took those from her, but she had gained them back, and threw them away again before doing the same to others.

For a moment, she remembered the Fire of Friendship from the Hearth’s Warming story. She’d tried for so long to light her own, and had smothered the glowing embers in favor of something that would never light.

Now she had no clue how to fix it now.

                But she never understood. Why was she so unworthy in the first place? She’ll admit she screwed up, she made terrible choices, but all of it was just because she wanted one mare to care about her. So why…?

                “Tonight, you’ve shown everyone who you really are. You’ve shown them what is in your heart.”

                Gasping apologies through sobs, she took in those words. She’d become everything she’d felt, everything she’d done. And she had no idea why she deserved to feel this way.

                Still, the girl, the mare, Twilight, offered her a hand.

                “The Magic of Friendship doesn’t just exist in Equestria. It’s everywhere. You can seek it out, or you can forever be alone. The choice is yours.”

                She had sought out friendship. That’s what brought her here. Was she doing something wrong? What was she doing wrong?

                “All I’ve ever done is drive everyone apart,” Sunset choked out the words. “I don’t know the first thing about Friendship.”

                “I bet they can teach you.”

                The five girls she’d hated. Sure, they could. But why would they? They should hate her. And she wouldn’t blame them. She wouldn’t blame them if the moment Twilight went home, they dropped her, or worse.

                The one pony she wanted to care about her never had, and she made everyone else hate her trying to change that. She couldn’t see a way out, a way forward. Even stubborn determination didn’t want her to keep going.

                Yet… she remembered the white void, created from the Elements. Everything she had felt, but also what they had felt, what they had offered. That in itself was a Spark. It was small, and she didn’t quite trust it yet, refusing to give hope that it would stay.

But it was a Spark all the same.