When Sunset awakes after a spell meant for the guards escorting her out exploded in her face, she finds herself in an Equestria that wasn't the same Equestria she knew.
[An AU where Sunset Shimmer never went through the mirror. The mirror portal didn't exist, and neither did the humans.]
When Sunset woke up to find herself in some part of Equestria she's never been before, she had originally planned to drive all the ponies apart in this place and gain more power to show Celestia that she's strong enough to be an Alicorn. But she didn't need to; all the ponies were already fighting with one another.
"Darn you, Celestia! Darn you to Tartarus!" Sunset cursed as she was being escorted out of the castle after Celestia removed her from her position as her personal student. Rage filled her as her horn lit up with a bright glow, engulfing everything in its radius.
"Ooohhh... My head... What happened...?" Sunset moaned in pain at the sharp pain in her head as she pushed herself up. Looking around, she realised that she was in Equestria, but not in Canterlot. "What the-? Where am I?" She couldn't recognise a single pony around.
"I've never seen you around before." Sunset jumped back at the new timid voice, almost barely a whisper. "S-Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."
"You did not startle me!" Sunset barked as her pride got the better of her. The other pony, a yellow Pegasus, just gave a timid shriek and shrunk back, hiding her face behind her mane.
"I-I'm sorry!" She whimpered as Sunset just sighed.
"Whatever. Where is this place?"
"T-This is Ponyville."
"Ponyville, huh?" Sunset looked around the place again. She remembered Celestia having mentioned it before. Celestia said this place was full of smiles and laughter and everypony got along. Maybe it's time Celestia check her sources. This is nothing like what I was told! Sunset thought to herself. All she could see were bickering ponies everywhere. Everypony just looked angry at one another. And to be honest? Sunset didn’t really like all the hostility in the air. The frowns and glares on everypony’s face made them look unapproachable and unfriendly. Even the most handsome stallion and the most beautiful mare there had their faces marred by their ugly frowns and angry glares. In just the few minutes since Sunset awoke to this place, some fights have already broken out. No, Sunset really didn’t like it at all. “Doesn’t look like a nice place to be at all.”
“It used to be.” The timid pony looked down sadly. “Everypony used to be cheerful and friendly to one another.” Sunset looked in surprise to her.
“What happened then?” The other pony just looked down.
“W-Why don’t we go to my house and I’ll tell you the rest. I’m Fluttershy, by the way.”
“Sunset Shimmer.” Sunset just shrugged as she followed Fluttershy back to her humble little home.
“It started out between 2 of my friends, Applejack and Rainbow Dash.” Fluttershy began sadly. “We were all best friends, and Applejack and Rainbow Dash always had a sort of friendly rivalry going on.” She paused before adding softly, “I don’t like it when they fight though.”
“Rivals are nothing new where I’m from. You either win against your competitors or you lose what you have. It’s simple. Only the strongest will ever survive!” Sunset growled as Fluttershy seemed to cower at her tone.
“That doesn’t sound like a very nice place.” She whimpered.
“Speak for yourself.” Sunset snapped at her. “So, what happened between them?”
“Right. Um… Well, Applejack needed help at her farm. She had an apple sale going on, and Rainbow Dash promised to help with all of her friends and even the Wonderbolts, which she’s a part of.” Sunset nodded with a confused frown on her face.
“Uh-huh. What’s the problem then?”
“Rainbow Dash didn’t show up.” Fluttershy’s ears drooped. “So Applejack got angry and wouldn’t speak to her since. But then, Rainbow Dash insisted that she had turned up as promised and nopony was there. She was really angry about being embarrassed in front of everypony like that, especially since she idolises the Wonderbolts, and claimed that Applejack lied about the apple sale in order to humiliate her.” Sunset just shrugged.
“Meh. It’s no big deal. In a city like mine, you get used to it. Some ponies resort to tricks like those to fool their competitors and come out on top. It’s a fairly common tactic if you want your competitors out of your way.” Fluttershy frowned at that.
“That really doesn’t sound nice at all.” She sighed before continuing. “I tried to get them to talk to one another, because it just didn’t make any sense. Everypony knows Applejack just can’t lie, and Rainbow Dash isn’t one to just abandon her friends like that. But both of them just got angrier.” Fluttershy seemed on the verge of tears at that.
“I…see. Well, maybe they were both just pretending.”
“What?” Sunset shrugged.
“You know, maybe Applejack is capable of lying after all, and just made it seem like she couldn’t so that everypony would believe anything she says since they think that she can’t lie. And maybe Rainbow Dash made it seem like she would never abandon a friend so she could gather more ponies to be on her side whenever a disagreement like this comes up. In every disagreement, the side with the most supporters is usually the side everypony believes.”
“Applejack and Rainbow Dash would never do something like that!” Fluttershy scolded, her wings flaring up. Sunset just rolled her eyes.
“It is a possibility. You’re just being gullible.”
“No, I’m not.” Fluttershy’s tone was angry, but her voice remained soft as ever. Yet, tears rolled down her muzzle as she sported an unusual glare on her face. “They weren’t even competing over anything! Applejack just needed help, and Rainbow Dash offered that help. They didn’t have a motive to gain an edge over the other at all.”
“They would have a motive if they were competing on who can sell the most apples.”
“Which wouldn’t exist if one didn’t show up. Sweet Apple Acres is the only farm in Ponyville which everypony buys from. Rainbow Dash didn’t even have apples to sell.” Sunset frowned.
“Ok, you got me there. That does seem strange.” She put a hoof to her muzzle. “Got any ideas of what could’ve compelled them to do this to each other?” Fluttershy shook her head.
“No. I asked Pinkie Pie about it, but she just made things worse.” Sunset tilted her head in curiosity.
“How so?”
“She suggested that a party would cheer everypony up, and because it was only between the two of them, I suggested a small party just within us would do. She didn’t heed my advice, and threw a huge party that attracted the attention of nearly the whole of Ponyville and the loud noises startled the poor animals. I had to go comfort all of them.” Fluttershy’s ears drooped again as she recounted the memory. “I, uh, I got angry at her, and she blew up back at me, screaming that Rarity told her that I told her that I wanted flamboyant costumes for the two of them in a huge party so that everypony would laugh and forget about being angry. She then accused me of not having told her that I wanted a big party and not a small party because it was going to be two separate parties, the bigger one of which she said I wasn’t going to invite her to. And I said I didn’t ask for anything like that, and Rarity insisted that I did.” Her voice shook and her eyes watered anew as she spoke. “And then from there, everything just…blew up. Everypony started arguing and now…”
“So that’s what led to this, huh.” Sunset gave a low hum. “Say, have you spoken to any of them since the big fight?” Fluttershy shook her head ‘no’. “Then let’s go clarify some things.”
“So, this Rarity, she said you wanted costumes for a big party but you don’t remember any conversation like that?” Fluttershy shook her head in response. “Then who exactly did she hear it from?”
“I don’t know.” Fluttershy said softly, lowering her head to the ground. “I didn’t get to ask her about it.” She said before stopping in front of a building which read ‘Carousel Boutique’.
“A boutique, huh? Well, time to get some answers, then.” Sunset said as she entered the shop.
“Welcome, darling~!” Rarity greeted cheerfully, only for her expression to change instantly after seeing Fluttershy, who hide behind Sunset. “Well, hello there. You must be new here. I take it that you’ve already met Fluttershy, but don’t be fooled by her name. That girl sure can be mean when she wants to be.”
“Oh, I don’t want to be mean.” Fluttershy whimpered softly. Sunset just stepped forward.
“Yeah, I heard the story from Fluttershy, but I want to hear your side of the story too. So, what happened, from your point of view?” Rarity harrumphed.
“It’s really quite simple, actually. I was just working in my boutique when Sweetie Belle -that’s my younger sister- came in and told me that she ran into dear Flutttershy over here. She told me that Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were planning a party to get Rainbow Dash and Applejack make up and asked for my help, and I thought ‘of course, well why not’, all that fighting was getting me so stressed that I couldn’t get enough of my much needed beauty rest anyway. But on that day, Fluttershy just threw my generosity right back at my face by saying that she didn’t ask for any of this.”
“I didn’t meet Sweetie Belle at all that day.” Fluttershy spoke up in confusion. “And Pinkie Pie told me that you told her that you needed these costumes for a big party, which made Pinkie Pie believe that there were two parties and I wasn’t inviting her to the bigger one.” Rarity’s expression turned confused at that.
“I never told anypony that I was working on these costumes -it would be a nightmare if anypony finds out that I made such silly costumes- and certainly not on a big party.” Sunset just sighed.
“Alright, first confusion. Now let’s go find this Pinkie Pie then.”
“Everypony loves parties, so of course I was upset that I wasn’t getting invited to the bigger one.” Pinkie started as the four of them sat down in Sugarcube Corner to talk things out. “And then, I thought, since Fluttershy wasn’t going to invite me to the bigger party, I should just make this smaller one a big party too! After all, two big parties are better than one small party! Parties always make ponies smile, and I love making ponies smile!”
“That big party startled nearly all the animals in Ponyville.” Fluttershy said with an annoyed look.
“And yet you were going to throw another bigger party too!” Pinkie retorted as Sunset just sighed.
“Ok, enough. Pinkie Pie, you said you heard about this big party from Rarity, who told you she was making costumes for it?” Pinkie nodded.
“Uh-huh! Well, not Rarity. I actually heard it from Sweetie Belle! She said Rarity’s so busy nowadays, and when I asked with what, she told me you were making costumes for this big party Fluttershy wanted and-”
“I can assure you, darling, that I most certainly did not tell anypony what I was working on.” Rarity interrupted. “I have no idea why Sweetie Belle would tell you that, since I didn’t exactly tell her anything as well.”
“But it’s clear this Sweetie Belle is involved in the conflict between you three.” Sunset pointed out.
“That’s true. I’m so sorry, Fluttershy. I should’ve clarified with you before just blindly believing Sweetie like that. I will make sure that girl is properly scolded for spreading lies. That is an absolutely un-ladylike thing to do! And I must apologise to you too, Pinkie, for the trouble she’s caused you.” Pinkie shook her head.
“It’s ok. And I’m sorry, Fluttershy. I shouldn’t have just thrown a big party like that and scared all the animals. That was inconsiderate of me.” Fluttershy just gave both of them a gentle smile.
“I forgive both of you. You didn’t know the truth. And I’m sorry too, for just getting angry like that.”
“Apology accepted, darling. Although, you must allow me to make it up to you.” Rarity said as Pinkie gave a cheer and pulled both of them into a hug.
“Yippee! I’m so happy we’ve made up and are friends again!” Sunset smiled to them before frowning.
“I still don’t understand how she was involved in the fight between Applejack and Rainbow Dash, though.”
“Well, I hate to drag any more ponies into this mess, but Sweetie is very close friends with Applebloom and Scootaloo. It’s possible that they might have something to do with this too.” Rarity mentioned as Sunset just tilted her head.
“Who?”
“Applebloom’s Applejack’s younger sister, and Scoolatoo’s Rainbow Dash’s younger sister figure! She idolises Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie piped up.
“Well, if they were the line of communication between the two, and both lied like Sweetie Belle did, then that would explain why those two are fighting.” Sunset said. “I guess, only one way to find out.”
“You know, you have a point.” Rainbow Dash said thoughtfully. “Scoots was the one who told me that Applebloom told her to tell me that the Apple Sale was going to be delayed by a week.”
“I most certainly did not say that to Applebloom and the Apple Sale was definitely not delayed either.” Applejack said. From a distance far enough such that the two had enough privacy to talk, Rarity, Pinkie and Fluttershy smiled at seeing their two friends share a hug.
“Ooooo~ Hugs! Hugs are always good!” Pinkie explained as Rainbow Dash and Applejack came up to them.
“Hey, girls. Sorry to make y’all worry like that, but Dash and I talked it out and we’re cool now.” Fluttershy nodded to it.
“That’s good.” She said softly. “I hate seeing you fight.”
“Aw, don’t worry, Shy! That won’t happen again!” Rainbow Dash comforted with a pat on her back before turning to Sunset. “Your name is Sunset Shimmer, right?” Sunset nodded.
“And from what I gather, you’re Rainbow Dash, aren’t you?” Rainbow Dash grinned.
“Right on! I just wanted to thank you for what you did for us. That was really awesome of you, and we were just strangers too! So thanks a lot!” A series of ‘thanks’ chorused from the girls before her, which just made Sunset smiled a little.
“No problem at all. Honestly, all of these could’ve been avoided if you girls just talked to one another.” They had sheepish grins on their faces.
“Yeah…guess we had to learn that the hard way.” Rainbow Dash chuckled before straightening up, her face solemn. “Speaking of talk, I have a certain squirt to talk to.” Rarity and Applejack sported similar frowns on their faces.
“Oh, right. And that reminds me, us as well.” Fluttershy had an unusual frown on her face, as did Pinkie.
“I have to say, I’m mighty disappointed in you, Bloom.” Applejack said crossly. Applebloom shrunk back at her gaze.
“What were you thinking, Scoots?” Rainbow Dash frowned. “Why’d you wanna break us up like that?” Scootaloo hung her head.
“I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash. It was just a prank!”
“A prank? Was turning the whole Ponyville against one another your idea of a prank?” Fluttershy asked.
“We didn’t mean to take it this far!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed.
“If that’s the case, why didn’t you own up to the prank before it got this far? That is simply unacceptable for a lady, Sweetie!” Rarity said as Sweetie looked down.
“I know. I’m sorry, Rarity. And I’m sorry to you too, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie.” Applebloom looked down as well.
“I’m sorry, Applejack.” Applejack just sighed.
“It’s alright, sugarcube. Just don’t do this again, ok?”
“I forgive you too, Sweetie.” Rarity said, giving Sweetie a hug.
“Don’t do that again, Squirt.” Rainbow Dash sighed as well, placing a wing over Scootaloo. Sunset just watched them with a smile before a thought suddenly came to mind, making her frown.
“What’s wrong, Sunset? You’re frowning!” Pinkie mentioned as everypony looked to her.
“No, I was just thinking, Pinkie. With this hostility in Ponyville going on, why didn’t Princess Celestia step in?” The ponies shared looks. “I mean, she’s never one to leave things like this. If there was a problem, especially one this big, she’d step in to fix in.”
“What are you talking about, sugarcube?” Applejack asked as she walked up to Sunset, a confused look on her face. “There aren’t any Princesses. Princess Celestia is just a myth.”
“That can’t be right.” Sunset said to herself as she dashed around Ponyville.
“Sunset, wait!” she could hear Pinkie yelling after her, but she ignored it.
“Hey, Sunset! Wait up! What’s the big deal?” Rainbow Dash asked as she flew beside her.
“Dash, I need you to lead me to the nearest library! Now!” Sunset said, so firmly that Rainbow Dash could only nod and lead her to a large tree. While Sunset ran in, Rainbow Dash u-turned to let the other girls know that Sunset was in the Golden Oak Library.
“Darling, why’d you suddenly run off like that?” Rarity asked as she struggled to catch her breath. Sunset already had several books held in her magic and she was busy flipping through all the books.
“Sunset?” Fluttershy asked softly.
“Found it!” Sunset’s sudden exclamation made all of them jump back before they approached her cautiously. Sunset held a book in front of her, speed reading through it. “That isn’t right.” She muttered as she closed the book, her expression one of disbelief.
“What isn’t right, Sunny?” Pinkie asked. Sunset turned to them.
“The Legend of Nightmare Moon.” Sunset swallowed hardly before she continued. “It said that there were once 2 Alicorn Princesses, who were sisters. The older sister held the power to raise the Sun, while the younger sister raised the Moon. The younger sister, jealous of all the attention the older sister got from the other ponies and feeling neglected by everypony, gave in to dark magic and became a being known as Nightmare Moon. After a harsh battle, the older sister used the Elements of Harmony to banish her to the moon, leaving the older sister with the responsibility of raising the sun and the moon in her sister’s absence. However, filled with guilt and remorse, the older sister fled and disappeared, never to be seen again.”
“Yeah, what’s wrong about it?” Applejack asked.
“But that’s not right.” Sunset spluttered. “I’ve read about that legend so many times as a filly, and none of it ever stated what happened to the older sister! It only said that the younger sister was banished to the moon and stops there! It never said anything about the older sister being left to raise the sun and… the moon…” Realisation flickered in Sunset’s eyes as her eyes widened in horror. “Princess Celestia…”
“What?” Sunset looked to them.
“What’s the myth behind Princess Celestia?” She asked as she started to browse through several books again, stopping when she found the book she needed. It was book she’d never seen before, titled ‘The Legend of Alicorn Princesses’. Reading it, she shook her head in disbelief. “What is going on? When ponies ascend to become Alicorns, they are crowned Princesses as a sign of their achievements. Long ago, a pair of Alicorn sisters once ruled over Equestria. Princess Celestia was a kind and gentle mare, known for being welcoming and forgiving, bringing the warmth of the Sun to the ponies. Princess Luna was a mare not seen by many, but she guarded the Dream Realm, protecting ponies from nightmares and bringing peace of Night to the ponies. Both rulers of Equestria disappeared in the battle with Nightmare Moon and were never seen again. They were the very last Alicorns ever known.” Sunset closed the book with a frown. “But how does that even make any sense?”
“There hasn’t been another Alicorn in nearly a thousand moons, darling.” Rarity said. “They’re simply myths. They aren’t real.” Sunset shook her head.
“No, Rarity. They are real. Girls, I really don’t wanna freak, but the Legend of Nightmare Moon states that a thousand moons after her banishment, Nightmare Moon will return to bring eternal night to Equestria, and I have a feeling we will bear witness to it.” They shared looks again before Rainbow Dash flew up to her.
“Alright, but how do we prove that the myths are real?”
“Dash, look outside. What’s in the sky?”
“Uh… a Sun?” Pinkie said as she glanced out of the window. Sunset nodded.
“Exactly. If they are really myths, then why is there a Sun in the sky? Who is raising it? And the Moon? Does the moon exist? How about the night?” Fluttershy nodded.
“It exists.” She added softly.
“Right. So who raises the Sun? And who raises the Moon?” Sunset sighed. “I haven’t told you this, but from what I gathered, this isn’t the same Equestria I came from. In the Equestria I came from, Princess Celestia is an actual Alicorn Princess who rules over Equestria in Canterlot Castle and raises the Sun and the Moon. The fact that the Sun and the Moon are still being raised in this world is proof that she exists.”
“Ok, but what about Nightmare Moon? How do we prove that she exists? Does she exist in your world?” Rarity asked.
“No, at least, not that I know of. But if the legends are true, then Princess Luna is Princess Celestia’s younger sister, who was banished to the Moon after her bitterness transformed her into Nightmare Moon. That would explain why there are no Princesses currently ruling over Equestria in this world. Princess Celestia disappeared after feeling guilty about banishing her younger sister to the moon, and Princess Luna is currently on the moon.”
“So…Nightmare Moon is really going to come back?” Fluttershy whimpered.
“Yeah, but we’re in luck.” Sunset confirmed. “If my calculations are right, we won’t be meeting her anytime soon.” She said as everypony heaved a sigh of relief. “Which gives us time to fix this mess in Ponyville. Anypony with me?” She said, giving all of them knowing looks as they smiled.
“Count us in!”
“They didn’t even ask us why.” Sweetie Belle sulked as she levitated a rock around in the air. The three fillies were gathered in their clubhouse late at night.
“I know!” Applebloom threw her hooves up in the air in exasperation. “I’m sorry, oh I forgive you, and then nothing!”
“Yeah, and then the new pony runs off and they all go chasing after her!” Scootaloo scowled. “Maybe we should run away too…”
“Nah, I have a better idea, Scootaloo!” Applebloom said, the three of them gathering into a circle. “I say we frame her and chase her out!”
“That’s a good idea, Bloom! I know how we’re gonna do it.” Sweetie said as she whispered to them.
“You’re real wicked, Sweetie. That’s awesome!” Scootaloo exclaimed. “And we can break everypony else up while we’re at it! That’ll serve them right!” As the three continued to discuss their plan, it almost seemed like the mare on the moon was sporting an evil smirk.
It had been just a little over a month since Sunset arrived in this world. During her time here, she had gotten along well with the Mane 5 and together, they were able to return Ponyville to its former state, where everypony were friendly and cheerful. Sunset also shared with them stories of her world and confessed to them how she had been before ending up in this world. To her surprise, her newfound friends not only believed her, but they also assured her that they would still be her friends.
“But…I was a horrible pony!” Sunset exclaimed, aghast.
“Yeah, but just because you were once that pony doesn’t mean you’re that pony now.” Rainbow Dash said, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“But-”
“There are no buts, darling. All that matters is that you’ve changed. You’re are no longer that pony from before.” Rarity assured her.
“Yeah, you even helped to bring the smiles back to everypony in Ponyville!” Pinkie cheered loudly.
“I’m sure that if you show remorse for your actions, I wouldn’t mind being your friend even if you had bullied me before.” Fluttershy said.
“Yeah! So long as you’re honest, I’d be willing to give you a second chance too!” Every single one of her arguments were shot down as soon as she brought them up. Eventually, Sunset gave in and smiled to her friends.
“Thanks, girls. That really means a lot to me.”
Recalling the memory, Sunset smiled as she looked at the books around her. After fixing the mess in Ponyville, she moved into Golden Oak Library, where she pulled several all-nighters to read all the books and gain as much knowledge as she could about the new world she was in. She chuckled to herself when she remembered how her friends often had to come over just to pull her out of her new home for a change in scenery. It didn’t bother her, she did always love to learn things hands-on. She helped Applejack at her farm, Rarity at her Boutique, Fluttershy with her animals, Pinkie at Sugarcube Corner, and Rainbow Dash always loved to show off her new tricks to her. She gave them advice on how to do certain things more efficiently, especially Applejack whom she had to admit was quite the workaholic, and pointed out certain things dos and don’ts to Rainbow Dash so she wouldn’t injure herself while performing her tricks, knowing the pegasus’ recklessness at times.
“SUNSET!” The sound made her jump up, startled, before she opened the door to a frantic Pinkie.
“Uh, what’s wrong, Pinkie?” Pinkie’s eyes watered as she held up a small cannon.
“My party cannon’s ruined! Without it, parties wouldn’t be much fun at all…” Sunset frowned at seeing Pinkie so down.
“Don’t worry, Pinkie. Let me check it out for a bit.” She said as she examined the Party Cannon. After a while, she stepped back with a confident smile and her horn lit up. “And…done.” She nodded at her work before turning to Pinkie. “Give it a try now.” Pinkie did as told and instantly lit up when the cannon worked perfectly, leaving a seemingly endless amount of confetti floating down.
“You’re the best, Sunset! Thanks!” Pinkie gave her a tight hug before bouncing off, Sunset only shaking her head at her before picking up all the confetti with her magic and disposing of them. Stretching, she decided to go on a short walk, only to run into problems after problems. It seemed like everypony had a few of their items damaged and Sunset did her best to help them out wherever she could with her magic and her knowledge of how things work. She even managed to improve the ponies’ bonds with one another by handing off items she couldn’t fix to those who could, such as Rainbow Dash’s Tank slippers, or Rarity’s dresses. Determined to find out who was up to no good, they gathered together at Applejack’s farm, only to find Applejack in an extremely foul mood.
“Hey, uh, AJ, what’s up?” Applejack growled.
“I woke up this morning to find ALL the animals out of their enclosures! It took me all day to get them back in and organised again.” Sunset put a hoof to her face thoughtfully.
“Hm… Who would do such a thing?” Applejack frowned as she took something out of her saddlebag.
“I don’t know, but I found this near one of the pens.” She said as she placed a few strands of red hair on the ground. Rarity jumped at that.
“Oh, me too! I found these stuck on the dress that was destroyed.” She said as she placed a few orange fur on the ground next to the hair.
“My slippers had orange fur on them too.” Rainbow Dash said.
“The wrecked birdhouse had yellow hair too.” Fluttershy added.
“I don’t know about any fur or hair, but the flowers on the wheels of my party cannon were replaced by a sun.” Pinkie said.
“Red and yellow hair, orange fur, and a sun?” Sunset looked down at herself. “But… Then...that just leaves…” Sunset shrunk back as her friends’ gazes turned to her.
“Not to mention you’re probably the only pony that didn’t have anything destroyed.” Applejack pointed out. Sunset’s ears drooped.
“But I…I didn’t do it! I promise! You have to believe me! I-I…I wouldn’t do anything like this! I had nothing to gain from it!” Her words grew more frantic as she stepped back with every step they took forward.
“Sunset Shimmer.” Before she knew it, they had formed a circle around her. She curled up, afraid of what they would do to her. Of all the possibilities running through her mind, the last thing she expected was a group hug.
“Wha-What?”
“Oh, silly you! How could you ever think we’d doubt you?” Pinkie said as she ruffled her mane.
“What? B-But…everything you found pointed to me!”
“Yeah, which clearly only means one thing. Somepony’s out there framing you for these misdeeds.” Applejack nodded.
“We may have only known you for a while, Sunset, but even we know you’re not this sloppy.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.
“That’s right, darling. It just doesn’t seem like you.” Rarity said.
“Don’t worry, we’ll help you find the real culprits. That’s what friends are for.” Fluttershy said. Sunset couldn’t help but tear up as she listened to them.
“Aww…guys, I don’t…I don’t know what to say…” She wiped her tears away as she returned the hug. “Thank you. You’re the best friends ever.”
“But who would do something like this?” Applejack frowned as she pulled away from the group hug.
“To do this much damage over a few days…” Fluttershy looked down.
“Say, anypony knows how this pony managed to leave hair and fur around, but not leave their own?” Pinkie asked.
“They must’ve done it from a distance, so I’m guessing they could’ve used magic.” Rainbow Dash suggested.
“That’s a possibility, darling. If that’s the case, that’ll be easy for us.” Rarity said as Sunset nodded.
“Rarity’s right. If this pony really used magic, then we can just trace the magic back to the caster.” She said, pointing her horn at the bunch of hair and fur on the ground as her horn lit up. A frown quickly grew on her face as she looked to Rarity, whose actions mimicked hers. “Rares? Do you think it’s a mistake?”
“Why? What’s the problem?” Rainbow Dash asked. Rarity just sighed as she broke off her magic.
“Darling, I’m afraid we’re going to have to have another talk with our younger sisters.”
They had expected the three little fillies to be repentant. Instead, once confronted, the three fillies just grew angry.
“So we caused the damage! So what?!” Applebloom screamed. “It’s not like you’ve ever cared about what we do anyway!”
“What the hay do you mean by that, sugarcube? Of course I care!”
“Yeah, only when it concerns other ponies.” Sweetie scoffed, which made Rarity gasp loudly.
“Sweetie Belle! That’s no way for a lady to speak!”
“I don’t care. You only ever come to us when other ponies are involved! It’s never just about us!” Sweetie yelled before turning away.
“My parents are almost never around.” Scootaloo said bitterly. “That’s why I was happy when you said we’d be sisters. I thought we’d get to spend more time together, but you don’t care at all! Even when we broke you up, you still kept to yourselves, as if we didn’t exist!”
“You mean that wasn’t just a prank? You did that intentionally?” Applejack asked.
“Yeah! And if you had just cared more for us and asked us why, you’d find that our stories wouldn’t have made any sense and you’d find out the real reason why we did it!” Applebloom snapped. “But nooo, the new pony runs away and all of you just gave chase immediately!” She threw her hooves up into the air in exasperation and huffed.
“If we had done the same, you’d just leave us be! How can you still say you’re our sisters when you don’t even care for us?” Sweetie screamed. “I hate you! I hate all of you!”
“Sweeite Belle, that’s enough!” Rarity chided but Sweetie paid her no heed. Sunset’s eyes widened as she watched them, noticing the trail of dark magic floating around the three fillies. Are they already corrupted? Or not yet? I have to stop them before it consumes them completely! She thought to herself as she stepped forward.
“Why do you care more for her than us?” Scootaloo asked, angry tears in her eyes. “We’re your own sisters! She’s just an outsider!” The three fillies glared to Sunset, the pure hatred in their eyes making her flinch back. “We’re been here all our lives and we’ve never been able to get along with anypony else other than ourselves! So how does it make any sense that you just came not long ago and you’re already so popular with everypony?!”
“C’mon, Scoots, you just gotta go talk to them, that’s all. It’s not that hard.” Rainbow Dash said.
“Easy for you to say! But nopony has ever paid any attention to us either! Why should they? We’re just 3 blank flanked little fillies!” Sweetie said. “If you had cared more for us, you’d notice our struggle!”
“Is that why you broke up the rest of Ponyville as well?” Fluttershy asked.
“It was infuriating.” Applebloom spat bitterly. “They were all so cheerful and friendly. They were so trusting of one another. Well, the only ponies we could trust were ourselves! It was so unfair! So we made them feel how we felt all these years!”
“And anyway, we were fine, y’know?” Scootaloo said. “We were fine even if we had to be by ourselves!” She directed her glare to Sunset. “But then you came, and as if it wasn’t enough that you managed to get along with everypony which we couldn’t manage to do, you started to steal our sisters away from us! We’ve been with them for so much longer, and yet, they spend more time than they do with us! How is that fair?!”
“So you aimed to frame her and get her casted out of our group, or even out of Ponyville, because you were jealous of her.” Pinkie summarised.
“Not like it worked anyway.” Applebloom grumbled as she kicked a pebble. Sunset found herself speechless. The three fillies’ angry eyes reflected her own, back when she had still been Celestia’s student.
“Look here, you little-!”
“Dash, wait.” Everypony looked to Sunset, who approached the three fillies. “You know, we’re not so different.” She said as she sat down in front of them. “I envy you. At least you have sisters who care for you. Maybe it wasn’t enough to you, but it’s plenty to me. After all, the reason they’re here, disciplining you, shows that they care for you and don’t want you to do anything that isn’t right.” The three fillies looked past her at their sisters and their ears folded back as they realised the truth in her words. “I never had anything like that.” At that, they looked to her in surprise.
“You didn’t? Wait, do you mean…?” Sunset just chuckled.
“Right, I guess I never did tell you much about myself, huh. Alright, sit down and prepare yourselves, ‘cause this is gonna be one Tartarus of a story.” She said as even her friends settled down to listen. “Well, I come from another Equestria. In this Equestria, Celestia is a princess well loved and respected by all. To be able to even just see her close up was a dream a little orphan like me could only dream of.” The Crusaders’ eyes widened at that fact.
“You were an orphan?” Scootaloo squeaked out as Sunset nodded.
“Yup, a dirty and starving little filly living in the busy streets of Canterlot.”
“W-What happened to your parents?” Sweetie asked softly.
“I never knew them.” Sunset said, a sad smile on her face. “Whether they loved me or not, whether they had wanted me or not, I have no idea, even until now.” She then shook her head, shaking off the thoughts. “Anyway, for a filly my age to be out on the streets like that was unacceptable, so it wasn’t long before somepony alerted the local orphanage and I was taken in as the newest addition. That didn’t mean my life became better though.”
“Why?” Applebloom asked curiously as Sunset sighed.
“I had an unnaturally high amount of magic for a filly my age. I could use magic far more efficiently than any unicorn fillies my age, and sadly, it was the reason my life at the orphanage was so miserable. Everypony there, even the adults that were supposed to care for me, shunned me like their lives depended on it. I was so stressed out that I developed a fever, and nothing worked. With how much pain I was in and nopony comforting me, combined with my high fever, I guess it was to be expected that my magic would be unstable. All I remembered after that was the feeling of magic building up in my horn and then, I lost control. By the time I regained my consciousness, the part of the orphanage I was in was in ashes, everypony was huddled together on the far end of the orphanage and they were all looking at me with fear and a hint of loathing in their eyes.”
“That’s horrible…” Fluttershy gasped softly.
“But this is where things began to look up for me. I was on the verge of tears at how everypony was looking at me. I was confused at what happened. And I was terrified at the thought that I might have harmed somepony with the destruction I caused. And I still felt terrible from my fever. But then, I felt somepony place their hoof on my back comfortingly, and a soft gentle voice spoke to me, telling me that it wasn’t my fault. I looked up to see who it was and it was a dream come true, for lo and behold, Princess Celestia stood there dressed in full regalia, smiling kindly down at me.”
“You met the princess?!” Scootaloo leapt to her hooves.
“Yup!” Sunset gave her a wink as the listening ponies all have their mouths agape at what they heard. “I was scared at first though. My magical outburst was so impactful that the princess herself came down to investigate. As a little filly who caused the damage, you can tell how terrified I was. I thought she was here to lock me up or something.” She chuckled. “But then, she assured me that nopony was hurt, and that she came because she was impressed by the amount of magic I possess and therefore wish to take me in as her personal student.”
“No way! That’s awesome!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed in shock as Sunset nodded.
“I can assure you, I was just as shocked when she told me that. And so, she brought me back to the castle to live with her. I guess you can kind of say that she technically adopted me.”
“Adopted, by a princess? How fabulous, darling!” Rarity sighed dreamily.
“Yeah, I was overwhelmed at first. Everything was so different from what I had ever known. The princess made sure I received the best care from her own personal doctor, Twilight Velvet, and stayed by my side so I would feel secure. Thanks to her care, I quickly recovered. Once I was feeling better, Celestia pointed out that I had gained my cutie mark from that magical outburst.”
“You got your cutie mark during that magical outburst?” Pinkie asked as Sunset nodded.
“I’m not sure what it represents, but the princess had a theory for that. She told me that during my magical outburst, I had casted all kinds of magic which is apparently the reason the orphanage hadn’t been completely burnt down. She said that my cutie mark represents a lot of things. Perhaps it could be a sign of my strong magic. The flames could be my passion and drive to achieve. The lighter and darker parts could represent how I have two paths before me, the path of good or evil. The yin-yang symbol in the middle probably represents a balance.” Sunset shrugged. “Whatever it represented, I didn’t care much about it back then. All I cared about was how similar it looked to Celestia’s cutie mark.”
“Oh yeah, the Legend of Alicorns Princesses did show Princess Celestia’s cutie mark as a sun and Princess Luna’s as a moon.” Applejack mentioned. “I bet you were giddy about that, since you admired her so much.” Sunset nodded with a chuckle.
“You bet. I was elated. I thought I was destined for great things, maybe even good enough to one day become her successor. Sadly, I let that get to my head and that led to my downfall.” Sunset frowned. “In one day, I went from a nopony orphan to Princess Celestia’s personal student with a cutie mark similar to hers. I studied magic whenever I could and didn’t care for anything else. I became arrogant and selfish. Everypony was not worth my time. Everything I did was for myself. Celestia tried to correct my behaviour by showing me a mirror that would supposedly show me my destiny. Unfortunately, the stupid mirror decided to show me as an Alicorn and dumb me became even worse than before. I even started demanding that Celestia make me an Alicorn and accused her of denying me of my destiny when she refused, saying that I wasn’t ready. Angry, I tried to study the forbidden magic in hopes of achieving what I wanted, and of course, Celestia found out. She was furious and removed me as her personal student. She got guards to escort me out, but obviously, I wasn’t going to go without a fight. I casted a spell, and then there was a bright glow, and I found myself here.” She sighed as she looked to the Crusaders. “I understand how you feel. I pushed everypony away and didn’t bother getting along with anypony. And while getting adopted by a princess was great and all at first, the princess never had any time for me. Admittedly, I kind of saw her as my mother, but the princess probably didn’t think of me as a daughter. She always made sure to keep the distant between us and although I was just a little filly who had never been loved before, even though I loved her so much, there just wasn’t any signs that she loved me. I’ve never even heard her say the word ‘love’ to me before. That was part of why I wanted to be a princess too. I wanted her to acknowledge me, and maybe if I became a princess, I thought she would finally love me back, that I would finally be worthy of her love.” She blinked back tears, ignoring her friends’ and the Crusaders’ concerned gazes. “Anyway, my point is, I really do understand how you feel, and I’m sorry I made you feel as though I was stealing your sisters away from you and made you feel unloved by them. I hope you can forgive me for that.” They shook their heads.
“No, you’re not in the wrong! We’re the ones who should be sorry!” Applebloom said.
“We shouldn’t have just hated everypony just because things didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to!” Sweetie said.
“And it was wrong of us to destroy other ponies’ belongings and to frame you for it!” Scootaloo said as the three of them hugged her.
“We’re sorry, Sunset.” Sunset just smiled at them and held them close.
“GROUP HUG!!!” Pinkie yelled as Sunset instantly became sandwiched in one of the tightest group hugs she had ever been in.
“PINKIE! I CAN’T BREATHE!” She barely managed to yell out, heaving a sigh of relief as the group hug quickly dissipated. “Anyway, I believe some sisterly talk is due.” She said, nodding to Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash, while gesturing to the Crusaders. The 3 pairs of sisters stepped towards one another.
“We’re sorry for everything we did. We’ll be sure to apologise to the other ponies later too.” The Crusaders said as their sisters gave approving nods.
“We’ll come with you. This is partially our fault for having neglected you so much.” Rarity said, hugging Sweetie Belle.
“You’re not mad at me?” Sweetie asked as Rarity shook her head.
“Not anymore. I love you, Sweetie.” Sweetie squeezed her tearful eyes shut as she returned the hug.
“I-I love you too, Rarity.” Applejack looked to Applebloom.
“You’re my precious family, Bloom. I want you to know that the next time you want my attention, all you gotta do is ask, alright?” Applebloom nodded as she shared a warm embrace with Applejack.
“I know. I’m really sorry, Applejack.”
“I forgive you, Bloom. And I’m sorry too.” Rainbow Dash crossed her hooves.
“No way am I going to do something so sappy!” She huffed before looking to Scootaloo. “But I’m sorry for not being the sister you need, Scoots.” Scootaloo just smiled to her.
“And I’m sorry for being such a terrible sister too.” Rainbow Dash just grinned as she ruffled her mane.
“Nah, you’re the most awesome sister I ever had, squirt.” Scootaloo’s grin matched hers as she fixed her ruffled mane.
Sunset sighed as she stared down at the geode held in the air with her magic.
FLASHBACK
Sunset smiled as she watched the 3 pairs of sisters apologising to one another. Her smile widened when the trail of dark magic that had been floating around the Crusaders began to shy away from them. Her smile however, turned into a look of confusion, matching her friends, when the dark magic suddenly gathered in a spiral motion, before there was a sudden flash that temporarily blinded them. When their vision cleared, the dark magic had been replaced by 6 geodes, of different colours, floating in the air. The geodes turned in a circular motion before lining up, side by side, and then floating down to them. Sunset observed each of the geodes and which pony they went to.
Yellow to Fluttershy.
Orange to Applejack.
Blue to Rainbow Dash.
White to Rarity.
Pink to Pinkie Pie.
And finally, the red geode floated down towards herself. There was a flash again, and when they looked down, they realised that the geodes had transformed into a necklace, taking on a more spherical shape, each sphere with their cutie mark embedded in it.
END OF FLASHBACK
They had mixed reactions to the geodes. Rarity had been elated and immediately wanted to head back to her boutique to design costumes that would go well with the geodes. Pinkie and Fluttershy admitted that they didn’t know what happened but they didn’t think it was anything bad. Rainbow Dash and Applejack were indifferent to it, saying that they didn’t mind it as long as it didn’t get in their way. The Crusaders just looked at the geodes in awe.
As for Sunset, as soon as she got home that day, she began to research on what the geodes could be, only to hit dead ends. With no other lead, she took a more hands-on approach, running several analysis spells on it, testing its capabilities and anything she could think of. Eventually, with the help of her friends, she did manage to figure out a portion of what it could do. Fluttershy told her that whenever the geode glowed, she could communicate with the animals a lot better. Applejack mentioned how she could lift the same heavy objects that leave Big Mac panting all by herself without even breaking a sweat whenever she wore the geode. Rainbow Dash told her how she was able to fly at high speed for a longer period of time while wearing the geode. Rarity also gushed to her about how she had been searching for gems to use in her clothes when her geode glowed and all the hidden gems around her had glowed along, revealing their locations. Pinkie had excitedly bounced to her to tell her how she had exploded sprinkles and cupcakes at a recent party she threw and how it brought smiles to so many ponies. The only reasonable conclusion Sunset could derive from that was that the geodes somehow or another boosted their talents and/or abilities.
Which brings her to her next mystery. What does the geodes do for her? She wasn’t sure what her cutie mark meant, so what’s her talent? Her abilities? Was it her strong magic? Would the geode boost her magic? Sunset gave a frown as she waved the geode around in the air, before wearing it and casting some simple spells. No, her magic didn’t seem particularly any stronger. So what does the geode do for her? She let out a loud groan as she collapsed onto her bed, staring out of the window up at the sky. What are these supposed to do for me? Where did they come from? Why were they given to us? Her gaze shifted to the full moon in the sky. Nightmare Moon, huh… On the longest day of the year... Seems like it won’t be long before we meet Princess Luna. She then turned over on her bed, a worried frown on her face. I sure hope there won’t be any problems…
“Not another step.”Sunset looked around, seeing herself in an unfamiliar place. Turning around, she saw a dark blue Alicorn walking out from two thrones.
“Who are you?” Sunset asked as the Alicorn just ignored her.
“Did you really expect me to sit idly by while they all basked in your precious light?” Sunset only felt confusion at what the Alicorn was saying. “There can only be one princess in Equestria, and that princess…will be ME!” She commanded in a loud voice with her eyes glowing, as she stomped down, destroying part of the floor, as well the wall behind her, revealing the Sun. She then raised her hooves and the Moon rose at her command, covering the Sun. Sunset gasped as she stepped back upon witnessing the sight.
“A Solar Eclipse…” She whispered as dark magic trailed down, spiralling around the Alicorn, eventually consuming her. And when the darkness dispersed, where the Alicorn once stood, another being now replaced her. “Nightmare Moon…” Nightmare Moon laughed evilly as Sunset could only watch on in shock.
NO! Sunset flinched, shutting her eyes tightly as a voice yowled out in her head. Stop! What’s happening? This isn’t…This isn’t what I wanted! STOP!!!
Sunset shot up with a loud gasp. “T-That was…when Princess Luna turned into Nightmare Moon?” She took a deep breath to calm herself before frowning. “She didn’t…She didn’t seem like she had intended to turn into Nightmare Moon at all.” She tilted her head in confusion as she looked out of the window at the moon, where she could make out the shape of a mare. “But why did I see that?” An orange light below her caught her attention as she looked down to see her geode glowing. “Wait…was that…from this geode?” She looked up at the mare in the moon again, wishing to test her theory out. “Show me what happened that night, on the night Princess Luna was banished to the moon.” She commanded, closing her eyes. Her geode glowed brighter and she reopened her eyes which were now glowing completely white.
The castle around her was now wrecked, and before her, stood Nightmare Moon. Behind her, stood…
“Princess Celestia!” Sunset gasped before shrinking back, as if it were on instinct. She had wronged her mentor and had yet to apologise to her. Seeing her again like this, even if it was just a vision, still made her nervous.
“Luna! I will not fight you!” Celestia said as she folded her wings. “You must lower the Moon! It is your duty!” Nightmare Moon merely scoffed.
“Luna? I am…NIGHTMARE MOON! I have but one royal duty now; TO DESTROY YOU!!!” She roared as she shot a beam at Celestia, who dodge the attack and took to the skies. “And where do you think you’re going?” Sunset could only watch helplessly as Nightmare Moon gave chase, chasing Celestia around in the sky, before eventually shooting her down.
“Princess Celestia!” Sunset yelled in concern when she ran up to Celestia. “Princess Celestia? You’re ok…right?” She sat down next to Celestia’s limp form and reached out a hoof hesitantly, afraid of confirming her fear. The instant her hoof made contact with Celestia, her eyes flashed white again.
Images flashed through her mind, as did voices. She saw little foals playing in the sun. She saw ponies sing nothing but praise for the sun. She saw ponies being friendly and cheerful to Celestia as she walked around town. Where did I go wrong? Celestia’s voice rang out, voicing her thoughts in the current moment.
Sunset shook her head as she stepped back from Celestia. It didn’t take long for her to realise that she had seen Celestia’s memories, of what she had thought was a happy time, where nothing could go wrong. But Sunset knew better. She had seen, in those memories, something that Celestia had missed all those years ago.
Shuffling caught Sunset’s attention as she looked up to see Celestia standing up.
“Princess Celestia… You’re alright!” She heaved a sigh of relief, but not for long, as Celestia glared up at Nightmare Moon flying around in the sky. “Princess Celestia?”
“Oh, dear Sister. I am sorry!” Celestia said, as she turned her head to the ground a short distance from her. But you have given me no choice…but to use these.” Her horn lit up, as did a patch of the ground, which lifted up to reveal 5 familiar looking geodes.
“Aren’t those…?” Sunset looked down to the geode hanging around her neck, frowning as she remembered the crystal-like appearance they had when they first appeared, comparing it with the one she was seeing on the pedestal. “But those look bigger…more complete, somehow.” Celestia spread her wings and flew up onto the pedestal, her horn lighting up. A 6th star-shaped geode appeared from within the pedestal, joining the 5 other geodes. 6 geodes? What could they mean? And where have I seen that before? Sunset gasped as realisation dawned on her. “The Elements of Harmony…” She whispered to herself in disbelief, before looking down again to the geode. “Are these the remnants of the Elements of Harmony then? But why did they appear now? And why us?” She didn’t have time to dwell on it further, for Celestia, levitating the 6 Elements of Harmony in a ring around her, flew back up to where Nightmare Moon was cackling at what she had presumed to be her victory. Sunset shook her head. No… It can’t be… For a brief moment, as she gazed up at Celestia, her eyes flashed white again.
Dear Sister…forgive me.
She returned to her sense just in time to see Celestia firing the Elements of Harmony at Nightmare Moon, tears streaming down her face. Sunset could only watch on in helplessness and pity, as the Elements of Harmony easily overpowered Nightmare Moon, banishing her to the moon, where the mare in the moon took shape.
Sunset snapped back into the real world with tears streaming down her face.Shaking her head as she fully regained her bearings, she wiped away her tear and offered a sad look up at the moon. “Don’t worry, Princess Luna. My friends and I will find a way to save you. For sure.” She said as she rolled over to go back to sleep, not noticing the geode’s soft blinking. Elsewhere in Ponyville, 5 other geodes were blinking as well, as though they were communicating with one another.
“So, what are we gonna do today?” Rainbow Dash asked as she flew in the air excitedly.
“We could have some fun with the animals.” Fluttershy suggested.
“Or throw a party!” Pinkie added.
“Or we can even try out some of my new designs!” Rarity said. Sunset just sighed as she turned around to face her friends.
“Girls, listen.” They turned to her curiously. “If my calculations are correct, then tonight will be the night Nightmare Moon returns.”
“Are you absolutely sure about that, darling?” Rarity asked worriedly as Sunset nodded.
“I’m sure. Keep your geodes on with you at all times. It’ll come in handy when we’re fighting her.” They looked down at their geodes.
“You sure this will help, Sunset? I mean, yeah, the geodes boost our talents and abilities a little, but is it even possible for us to defeat her?” Rainbow Dash said.
“I agree, Nightmare Moon is an Alicorn, you know? She’s a combination of all 3 tribes of ponies!” Sunset nodded.
“I know. We can’t take her on alone, but we can take her on together.” Her friends just looked uncertainly at her.
“Are you really sure this will work out?” Fluttershy asked timidly as Sunset shrugged.
“I don’t know for sure, but I’m sure we’ll figure something out together. We’ve always solved problems together, and this won’t be any different. As long as we have each other, we’ll be ok.” They shared looks before looking to Sunset and nodding, confident smiles appearing on their faces. This is why Celestia wanted me to make friends, isn’t it? Sunset thought as she looked on at her friends with pride.Their geodes begin to glow softly, enveloping them in a soft glow as well.
Friendship…is magic.
Nightfall came, and 6 ponies remained awake in the Golden Oak Library, chatting with one another. Sunset stared out of the window at the Moon again and sighed.
“Loosen up, Sunny!” Pinkie said as she bounced to Sunset’s side with a cup of hot chocolate. Sunset smiled gratefully at her.
“Thanks, Pinkie. I’m just…worried.” Sunset said as she looked out of the window again. “I mean, what if I’m wrong and she attacks tomorrow when we’re all tired because we stayed up tonight? It’ll be my fault then.”
“Nopony will blame you for that, sugarcube.” Applejack reassured her as she came over with the rest.
“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash agreed as she flew to Sunset. “The safety of Ponyville isn’t your responsibility, Sunset.” Sunset’s ears drooped.
“I know. I just…”
“Why don’t we take turns then?” Fluttershy suggested. “This way, all of us can get rest, and we’ll be ready even if she comes tomorrow.” She paused for a while as she shrunk back timidly. “I hope she never comes.” Sunset smiled gratefully to her.
“Me too, but we have to be prepared for anything. Great idea though, Fluttershy. Let’s take turns. I’ll go first, you girls go get some rest.”
“Promise you’ll call at the first sign of trouble?” Rainbow Dash asked as Sunset nodded.
“Don’t worry, wouldn’t want you girls to miss any of the fun.” They smirked to one another and shared a high-hoof before Rainbow Dash joined the rest while Sunset looked back out of the window.
“Darling, I have a feeling something’s not quite right.” Rarity said as she shook Sunset awake.
“What is it, Rares? Did Nightmare Moon appear?” Sunset yawned.
“AH! NIGHTMARE MOON? WHERE?” Pinkie jumped up awake, startling the rest, who shot awake as well.
“Calm down! My barrier’s still fine!” Applejack looked to her.
“You set up a barrier? Around the whole of Ponyville?” Sunset grinned sheepishly.
“It was a precaution. Anyway, what’s wrong, Rarity?” Rarity frowned.
“What’s wrong, is that we’ve already done 3 full rotations.” She said as she walked out of the library, the rest following her.
“3 full rotations? But…that shouldn’t possible, right?” Sunset frowned in confusion as well. “Was the night ever this long?”
“Uh… Is anypony seeing what I’m seeing?” They all turned to Applejack, who was staring up at the sky.
“What is it, Applejack?” They all followed her gaze to the moon and gasped loudly.
“No way. The-” Sunset was cut off by Pinkie’s screaming.
“THE MARE IN THE MOON IS MISSING!!!” Pinkie screamed.
“Calm down, Pinkie Pie! Are you trying to make everypony panic?” Sunset hissed as she gestured to the rest of the ponies in Ponyville, who had woken up expecting day and came out of their houses to see what had happened when they saw that it was still night.
“No.” Pinkie drooped her ears and Sunset sighed.
“We need to have a plan. If the mare in the moon is missing, it can only mean Nightmare Moon’s no longer up there.”
“But if she’s not up there, then where is she?” Rarity asked. Sunset frowned.
“I have no ide-” She flinched, eyes widening.
“Sunset? What’s wrong?” Pinkie asked as they all looked to her worriedly.
“She’s here.” Sunset whispered.
“What?” They tilted their heads.
“My barrier’s down.” Sunset gulped as she looked to them. “Nightmare Moon’s here.” As if on cue, a shadow loomed overhead, making all of them look up in the sky. In front of the moon, with her wings flared out, was a dark alicorn, who cackled at the sight of everypony cowering in fear below her.
“IT’S NIGHTMARE MOON!!!”
Sunset groaned as she slowly pushed herself up and took in her surroundings. Ponies were screaming and running around frantically everywhere. It took her merely a few seconds to remember what had happened and she let out a groan at how stupid she had been. She had been so worried about whether Nightmare Moon would appear or not that she forgot about forming a plan in case she actually did appear. With no plan in mind and in a brief fit of panic and desperation mixed with recklessness and determination to protect the other ponies, Sunset had charged at her with every spell she knew, yet her efforts were in vain. Her friends had tried to help her, but they were merely fleas in comparison to Nightmare Moon, who shrugged them off easily.
“We need to stop her.” She looked to her friends, who were all slowly recovering from being thrown about by Nightmare Moon and getting up as well. “We’re the only ones who can save her!”
“Save her? Are you-” Rarity’s exclamation was cut off by a certain rainbow-haired pony who spoke her mind.
“ARE YOU CRAZY?!” Sunset gave Rainbow Dash an annoyed look as she rubbed her ears.
“No need to shout, Dash. I can hear you just fine. And no, I am not crazy.”
“Oh really?” Rainbow Dash crossed her hooves. “BECAUSE I THINK YOU’RE NUTS!”
“Rainbow Dash!” Sunset gave her a growl as she rubbed her ears again.
“I’m with Dash on this one, sugarcube. Whatever could’ve possessed you to think we can ‘save Nightmare Moon’?” Applejack asked. “Does she even need saving?”
“Yeah! I mean, she did just bring eternal night to Equestria, you know! And like, she’s super strong and evil! What makes you think we even stand a chance against her?” Pinkie asked.
“Not alone, but together, we can.” At her friends’ looks, Sunset sighed. “Look, girls, I know it sounds crazy and far-fetched, but I believe these geodes came to us for a reason.” She said, gesturing to the necklace hanging around their neck. “I have reason to believe that they might be remnants of the Elements of Harmony.”
“The Elements of Harmony?” Fluttershy asked as Sunset nodded.
“There are various legends in Equestria, and the Elements of Harmony were harnessed to deal with the worst threats. It’s largely the same in this world as it was in my world, but Tirek, Sombra, Discord and Nightmare Moon were all stopped by the magic from the Elements of Harmony. It’s considered one of the strongest magic ever!” She looked up at the sky where Nightmare Moon was hovering above them. “And it’s our only hope against her.” Her friends shared looks before looking back to her.
“If you’re gonna do this no matter what, then we’re coming along!” Rainbow Dash said, flying to her.
“I sure hope you’re right about this, sugarcube.” Applejack said as they all walked to her side, Sunset giving them a tearful smile.
“Thanks. You girls are the best friends ever.” She said before looking up to Nightmare Moon determinedly. “Hey, Nightmare Moon!” Nightmare Moon looked down at her and cackled as she flew down, looming over her with her wings flared out in an attempt to intimidate her.
“What’s wrong, you little foal? Do you really think you can stop me? Such foolishness! The night…will last forever!” Sunset glared at her defiantly.
“Not if we stop you.” Nightmare Moon growled as she bent down to meet Sunset’s eyes.
“And what makes you think you can? A thousand moons ago, Celestia couldn’t defeat me without the help of the Elements of Harmony, and where are the Elements now?” She taunted. “I’ve already searched the old castle, and they were not there.” Sunset just smirked.
“Of course they weren’t there. They’re right here.” She said as her friends stood by her side, their geodes glowing. “There’s a reason these geodes came to us that day. And that’s because that was the day that we discovered the true meaning of the Elements of Harmony and what they represented.” She said as she turned to her friends.
“What?” Nightmare Moon frowned.
“When we were trying to fix the damage caused by the Crusaders, Applejack was the one who told the truth to the ponies whose belongings were beyond repair, even if the truth wasn’t what they wanted to hear. And so, Applejack represents the Element of Honesty.” Applejack smiled proudly as her necklace floated up in front of her.
“Even when her own belongings had been damaged, Fluttershy remained kind and compassionate to the other ponies, some of whom had even lashed out at us in their own anger. She represents the Element of Kindness.” Fluttershy smiled, but cowered under the glow of her geode when it floated in front of her.
“Pinkie Pie threw a party as soon as her party cannon was fixed to raise the mood of the other ponies and bring laughter to the ponies, quelling their hurt and anger over their damaged belongings. So, Pinkie represents the Element of Laughter.” Pinkie gave a cheer and bounced excitedly as her geode floated in front of her.
“In a crisis like that, even if it was small, nopony would’ve even thought about giving to other ponies. Rarity, who used whatever she could salvage from her own damaged belongings to repair the other ponies’ belongings, represents the Element of Generosity.” Rarity gave a smile when she recalled how much her gifts had meant to the other ponies she had helped as she watched her geode glowing before her.
“When you have your own belongings to fix, not many would’ve been able to put aside their own feelings for others like Rainbow Dash did when she heard her friends in distress over their damaged belongings and came over immediately to see what she could do to help. A pony like that who chose her friends over her own interests is surely the pony most suited to represent the Element of Loyalty.” Rainbow Dash nodded and flared her wings out confidently as her geode floated in front of her.
“It was because of the spirits of these 5 ponies that we were able to overcome all the challenges that we’ve faced.” Sunset finished as Nightmare Moon narrowed her eyes at her.
“You seem to be forgetting something, you little foal.” She gave a loud evil laugh. “You still don’t have the 6th Element.”
“You’re right. We don’t.” Sunset said. Nightmare Moon just cackled.
“All that high talk, and yet, you admit that you don’t have all the Elements of Harmony required to stop me!”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Nightmare Moon.” She smiled as she looked back to her friends. “I have my friends with me. And when those Elements are ignited by the spark that resides in our hearts, it creates the 6th Element; the Element of Magic.” As she said that, a star-shaped geode appeared above them. All 6 ponies floated up into the sky along with their geodes, casting a dark shadow over Nightmare Moon, who could only watch on in horror at her impending doom. They pointed their muzzles towards Sunset and their geodes projected beams of light in various colours into her back. The beams came together to form a bright white glow behind Sunset, who closed her eyes as she felt the magic filling her. Her horn grew longer, as did wings of pure yellow energy burst forth from her back. “True magic comes from Honesty, Loyalty, Laughter, Generosity, and Kindness! And this creates the most powerful magic of all; the Magic of Friendship.” She said as she levitated the Element of Magic in front of her.
“No! NOOO!!!” From the combined light of the Elements, a rainbow beam shot towards Nightmare Moon, engulfing her in a rainbow spiral within seconds. As Sunset’s eyes flashed white, the resulting flash engulfed all of them.
“Oohh…my head!” Rainbow Dash groaned as the rest began to stir.
“Everypony ok?” Applejack asked as she checked all of them.
“I think so. What was that?” Fluttershy said.
“I’m not sure. But I think we did it, girls.” Sunset said as she looked up at the sky to see that the moon had lowered and the sun now shone brightly in the sky. “That was the power of the Elements of Harmony. We couldn’t have unleashed it without letting true friendship into our hearts.” She looked over to where Nightmare Moon was, smiling when she saw a dark blue alicorn with an ethereal mane and tail on the ground. “And I think we might be able to help another pony do the same.”
“Is that…Princess Luna?” Rarity asked as Sunset nodded, walking over to the Alicorn.
“While I don’t represent any of the Elements of Harmony, I do have a geode of my own.” She said as she got down next to Luna and levitated her geode to show her. Luna just kept silent, listening as Sunset spoke. “I’m not entirely sure if this is even an Element, but it does grant me some unique powers of my own.” She smiled compassionately to Luna.
“How were you able to wield the Element of Magic even though you’re not its Bearer?” She asked in confusion.
“Because Friendship is Magic, and I wielded it with the help of my friends. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to do it at all. My friends have taught me many things since I came here, and I’d like to do the same for you.” She said, smiling to her friends before looking back to Luna. “You and I aren’t very different. A few nights ago, I was able to use the power of this geode and view into the past to witness your banishment as well as Celestia’s memories. In those memories, while Celestia wondered what went wrong, I saw what she hadn’t noticed. I saw ponies who relished in the sun’s embrace, yet shunned the peace of night. I saw ponies who watched Celestia’s every move with a sense of admiration, yet paid no heed to you as if you didn’t exist. I saw an alicorn that didn’t get the same love and respect from her subjects as her sister did.” Luna looked down at Sunset’s words. “I saw a pony who was brushed off when she confided in the one pony she thought would be on her side about her trouble. I saw in you the same pony that I was before, Princess Luna, and I understand you. Sometimes, to be a friend, a little empathy is needed.” She said as she stood up and held out a hoof to her. “Take my hoof, and let me show you that there’s another way, just like my friends have done for me.” Luna looked away, only to see the 5 ponies who had helped to defeat her giving her hopeful looks. Looking back to Sunset and seeing her hopeful eyes, she finally gave in and took the hoof offered to her, allowing Sunset to help her up.
“I’m so sorry.” Sunset nodded.
“And I forgive you.”
“Us too.” Pinkie said as they gathered around Luna and Sunset. Sunset smiled gratefully to them before turning to the crowd of ponies who have witnessed the defeat of Nightmare Moon.
“Listen, everypony.” All the ponies of Ponyville turned their attention to her as she spoke. “Princess Luna, while it was under the influence of dark magic, had placed fear in everypony’s heart for a thousand moons. And then finally, on the thousandth moon tonight, she, as Nightmare Moon, brought on eternal night and terrorised us while she watched us scatter like mere pests, taking pleasure in listening to our frantic screams.” Behind her, Luna hung her head in shame. “However, I want you to know that she hadn’t intended for this to happen.”
“I don’t want to do something like this! Somepony, stop me! I don’t want this!”
The white glow faded from everypony’s eyes as they snapped out of the telepathic flash Sunset had shared with them. “I know forgiveness isn’t easy, after all that she had done.” She continued. “But all I ask is that you give her a chance.” The ponies of Ponyville looked to one another, murmuring amongst themselves, looking unsure. “Please. Give her a chance to show that she can be a better pony.” The ponies looked at Sunset and her friends, who were all giving them pleading looks, and nodded. It was like a weight lifted off her shoulders in that moment as Sunset gave all of them an appreciative smile.
“Thank you, all of you.”
With the daybreak after the eventful long night, all the town ponies returned to their daily routine while Sunset stayed behind with Luna to enlighten her on what had happened while she was gone.
“And yeah, that’s what happened while you were banished to the moon, as far as I know.”
“Hm… And what happened to your wings? I could’ve sworn you had wings when you were wielding the Elements.” Sunset shrugged again.
“I’m not really sure. But it doesn’t matter, I’m pretty sure that’s just a one-time thing.” She said, waving her hoof dismissively. “Nothing to worry about.”
“I see…” Sunset looked to her curiously.
“What are you going to do now?” Luna raised a hoof thoughtfully.
“I suppose I might go back to Canterlot, however I am not sure if they will need me. After all, from what you told me, Equestria has been without a ruler for a thousand moons and it is still standing.” Sunset looked down.
“You know, Princess Luna? I think Celestia is still alive, somewhere out there. I mean, the fact that the sun and moon were still being raised is proof, right?” Luna nodded.
“Indeed, she is. I can still sense her magic.”
“Yeah, so I was wondering… Are you going to search for her?”
“Yes, and I will bring her back. It is time we put our differences behind us. We were meant to rule together, after all.” Sunset nodded.
“Oh…would you like to stay for a while before you go? You don’t have to though. I mean, no pressure or anything, right?” Luna looked at Sunset’s hopeful smile and smiled softly.
Since the Nightmare Moon incident 3 days ago, Luna has been staying with Sunset in the Golden Oak Library. Sunset avoided being home in the day, during which the night Alicorn rested to recuperate from turning back from Nightmare Moon behind a barrier Sunset had set up to block out disturbances. She only returned at night to sleep, while Luna would be out exploring Equestria, probably to catch up on everything she had missed out on. Ever since figuring out that Luna was Celestia’s sister, Sunset had wanted to talk to her, especially since she was the only pony who knew Celestia other than her in this world. But that would require her to explain how she knew Celestia, which meant that she would have to reveal her past to Luna. She could always lie about it, but it wouldn’t feel right. She wasn’t her past self who lied to get her way anymore. No, she would do this tonight, and she would do it right. No lying, no playing down her misdeeds. It’s time for her to face her past and move on. After all, her past is not today.
“P-Princess Luna? Are you awake?” She asked as she peeked into the room, only to see Luna standing in the middle of the library.
“Yes, I am. Just Luna is fine.” Luna said as she turned to her. “You came at a good time, Sunset Shimmer. I was hoping to speak with you.”
“Speak? With me? About what?” Sunset asked as she hesitantly trotted inside. Luna seemed hesitant for a while before she spoke again.
“Well, to begin with, I suppose it would be nice to get to know you better.” Sunset stared for a while before chuckling.
“Funny, I was gonna talk to you about the same thing.” She said as she walked over and sat down, Luna doing the same. “I guess I should start from the beginning. I’m not sure if you realised, but I’m actually from another world, just like this one, except Celestia never fled after banishing you to the moon and instead stayed behind to rule over Equestria from the Canterlot Castle. That’s where I’m from.” Luna seemed intrigued by that.
“Hm… Interesting. I suppose this castle doesn’t exist here then, since the old castle still stood on the night I was banished. I assume Celestia in your world must have built this new castle you speak of after our fight, considering what it did to the old castle.” Luna grimaced at that.
“That’s where the Elements of Harmony were, right? The old castle… Did you see it when you went to look for the Elements?” Sunset asked curiously.
“I saw what remained of it.” Luna’s reply made Sunset laugh. With that, the tension lifted and Sunset suddenly felt a lot more comfortable with Luna, even if she had been intimidated just seconds ago. “It just occurred to me that since your world’s Celestia didn’t flee after the battle, you must be the only other pony here who has possibly met her other than me.” Sunset nodded.
“I did. In fact, I was a filly she took in as her personal student after my magical outburst during a fever left the orphanage in ruins. I lived with her in the castle since, and I knew things about her that other ponies wouldn’t know.”
“Like her secret cake stash?” Luna guessed with an amused smirk, Sunset’s grin matching hers.
“And how the Sun Princess isn’t a morning pony.” Luna laughed.
“Indeed, she isn’t. I always had to wake her to raise the sun after lowering the moon before I went to bed and it was a nightmare.” Sunset chuckled.
“Tell me about it. As an active little filly, I recall jumping on her to wake her because I wanted to watch her raise the sun and she didn’t even budge!” They both laughed at that. Little by little, Sunset opened up to Luna about her past, not missing out a single misdeed she had done, while at the same time sharing about their memories, especially those of the pony who connected them. Luna frowned as she listened to Sunset’s recollections of what had driven her to this world.
“Leave it to my sister to be so oblivious to the longing of another, especially those closest to her. You are practically her adopted daughter, and she’s the only pony who can remain blind to that fact and not treat you as such!” Sunset nodded sullenly.
“I know! I mean, she literally did the same to you, and she still didn’t learn her lesson with me.” She looked down dejectedly. “But still, she’s not to blame for what I did. Sure, her actions influenced my thoughts, but ultimately, I was the one who chose to act on them.” Luna nodded as she draped a wing over Sunset comfortingly.
“We have both done terrible things, Sunset Shimmer, and we cannot pretend we didn’t.” Sunset nodded as she hung her head in shame. “However, things that are past are best left in the past. Don’t dwell on what ifs and what could be, and instead, learn from past misdeeds to redeem yourself in the present. Forgiveness comes not just from others, but from oneself as well. You’ll have to learn how to forgive yourself in order to truly move on.” Sunset teared up as she listened to Luna.
“Ok. I’ll try.” She sniffled as she wiped a tear away. “I’m kinda scared about meeting Celestia too.” She confessed with a sigh. “I mean, what if she doesn’t forgive me?”
“I assure you, she will.” Luna smiled reassuringly. “My sister is anything but unforgiving. And besides, you haven’t done anything to the Celestia here. I think that if you two meet, it will do you both good to talk to one another. I’m not sure if this might be too much to ask, but perhaps you can help my sister learn to forgive herself and get her to come home. After all, isn’t that how you befriended those three little fillies and I? Sometimes, to be a friend, a little empathy is needed, right?” She said with a wink. Sunset smiled softly.
“I wonder if I would’ve turned out a better pony had I met you back then. If I had somepony to talk to who understands me like you do, maybe I wouldn’t have done what I did.” Luna gave her a look.
“What did I just say about dwelling on what ifs and what could be?” Sunset chuckled.
“Right. Of course, Princess.” She said, giving her an exaggerated bow, making Luna laugh.
“Think, Sunset, if we had not gone through what we did, we wouldn’t understand each other so well, would we?”
“That’s true.” Sunset grinned. “You know, if an Element of Forgiveness exists, I think you’d be a pretty good match.”
“I think that would suit you more. Although, hearing about your achievements here, I believe the Element of Empathy would be a better match.” Sunset chuckled.
“That’d be interesting. Who knows, it might even be what my geode represents if it exists.”
“If it exists.” Luna’s smile was mysterious in a way Sunset couldn’t describe, but before she could ponder further, Luna stood up.
“Where are you going?” Sunset asked. Luna looked to her.
“I have imposed on you for longer than I should have. I wanted to bring you with me, but I understand now that you still have a purpose here, as do I. It’s time I return home.”
“You’re going back to Canterlot?” Luna paused for a while before nodding.
“More accurately, you could say I’m going to my sister’s side.” Sunset nodded in understanding.
“I see. Well, if you ever find Celestia, will you let me know?” Luna smiled at her past her shoulder as she walked to the door.
“Of course.” She spread her wings, ready to take flight. “It was nice getting to know a niece I never knew of.”
“Not to mention from another world.” Sunset chuckled, stopping to think for a while before adding, “Next time you stop by, I’ll tell you more about Princess Cadance. She is technically your adopted niece too after all.” Luna merely chuckled softly.
After all the chaos with the Crusaders and Nightmare Moon, peace seemed to finally have returned to the humble little town of Ponyville. But Sunset wore a frown on her face in contrast to the smiles surrounding her.
“I understand now that you still have a purpose here.”
No matter how hard she thought about it, she just couldn’t make any sense out of the Moon Princess’s words. What exactly did Luna mean by that? What purpose do I still have here?
“Loosen up, Sunny!” Sunset nearly jumped out of her skin when Pinkie suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
“Gah, Pinkie! Where did you even come from?!” Pinkie just grinned.
“My Pinkie Sense told me that somepony was feeling down, so I came to turn that frown upside down!” Sunset just shook her head.
“Of course, never question the Pinkie Sense. Or Pinkie Pie in general.” Pinkie just giggled as their friends trotted up to join them.
“No kidding. So, what’s on your mind, Sunset?” Sunset couldn’t help the small smile on her face as she looked to her friends.
“Oh, it’s nothing much, girls.”
“Are you thinking about your own world?” Fluttershy asked curiously.
“My own world?” Sunset was surprised when Fluttershy brought that topic up. She hadn’t thought of her world for a while now, not since her talk with Luna a few nights ago. “Now that you mentioned it, I still haven’t figured out how I got to this world. Everything after I casted that spell is a blank.”
“Do you ever think of going back?” Rarity asked.
“I…actually haven’t given that much thought at all.”
“Well, aren’t you going to go back then? After all, your work here is done, isn’t it?” Pinkie asked.
“H-Huh? What do you mean, Pinkie?”
“Oh, I get it.” Rainbow Dash said as she flew down to Sunset’s side. “I mean, think about it! Everything here was a mess until you came in and solved all of our problems! Isn’t it too much of a coincidence?” Sunset raised a brow at her.
“Pretty sure it’s just a coincidence, Dash. Besides, I couldn’t have solved all the problems without you girls.”
“And we wouldn’t have helped you if you hadn’t managed to solve our own little fight.” Applejack said. “By yourself.” She added as an afterthought.
“That was one time, AJ. And I didn’t even do much. All I did was point out loopholes you didn’t consider because you were busy ignoring one another rather than talking it out.”
“I say it still counts!” Rainbow Dash said, doing a somersault in the air. “You were a stranger and you didn’t have a reason to help us, but you did anyway! Isn’t it like you were sent here to fix our mess?”
“Yeah! So it’s like, now that everything is peaceful and everypony have smiles on their faces, Sunset has fulfilled her purpose!” Sunset’s eyes widened at the word Pinkie said.
“My purpose…?” She frowned, putting her hoof to her muzzle thoughtfully before looking to the girls. “Girls! Before Luna left, she said something that I still can’t understand.”
“What is it, darling?” Rarity asked, their curiosity piqued.
“She told me that I still have a purpose here.” Confusion was evident on their faces as they took in her words.
“So…does that mean there’s still a problem that you haven’t fixed, which is why you can’t go back to your own world yet?” Applejack asked.
“Maybe…?” Sunset shrugged. “But hey, for all you know, there could be a way for me to go back, we just have to find out how!”
“You were sent here for a reason, Sunny. You’re gonna need a reason to be sent back!” Pinkie chirped. All was silent for a while as everypony stared at Pinkie.
“…How does Pinkie seem to make sense and not make sense at the same time?” Sunset asked as she groaned, putting a hoof to her head as she shook her head. “No- Nevermind. First rule in any world; never question Pinkie Pie.” All of them broke out in laughter at that.
“Still, sugarcube, do you want to go back?” Sunset looked to her. In her head, all kinds of thoughts were running through, while her friends just remained silent. After what seemed like an eternity, Sunset finally sighed.
“Part of me wants to go back. I mean, I have you girls here, and you’re the best friends I ever had. You’re pretty much even my family, and this place is probably my home now too! But…” Sunset looked down. “But it wouldn’t be the same. Here, I have friends and a place to call home. Back in my world though, I have a city where many ponies hate me, and I face the possibility of incurring the wrath of the strongest pony in Equestria. And yet, is it bad that I still want to go back? I want to go back and apologise to all the ponies I’ve wronged. I want to go back and start over again as a new pony. I want to go back and show them that I’ve changed, that I’m a better pony. I want to go back and…see Princess Celestia- my Princess Celestia- again. I owe her so much. But…”
“Hey, Sunset, listen!” She looked to Dash, who crossed her hooves. “If that’s what you want, then do it! No matter what you decide to do from here on, you know we’ll always support you, even if we aren’t physically there.” She smiled confidently as she flew down to meet Sunset’s eyes. “Trust us, we won’t abandon one of our own.”
“Dash is right.” Sunset looked over to Fluttershy, who smiled reassuringly to her. “We’re your friends, Sunset, and we really care about you. So if you want to go back to your world, we won’t stop you.”
“Fluttershy’s right, darling!” Rarity said as she walked to Sunset’s side. “My only request is that you won’t ever forget us.” Sunset offered her a smile at that.
“Never. Not when you’ve been so kind to me.” Her eyes trailed down to her geode. “And especially not when we have something unique connecting us.” No sooner had she finished speaking that she was pulled into the tightest hug that only one pony could achieve.
“P-Pinkie! Too tight!” Pinkie just pulled away without the slightest hinge of remorse on her face. Instead, she wore a large grin on her face.
“Remember to smile, ok? Smiles can turn a bad situation into a happy memory! So even if you leave someday, you’ll look back and find yourself smiling when you remember us and everything we did together, even during bad times!” Sunset smiled.
“I’ll keep that in mind, Pinkie.” Pinkie finally released her from her hold as Applejack walked up to her.
“An Apple never forgets family, and you’re part of my family, Sunset. Nopony can replace you, and nopony can replace us either. But if you do ever leave someday, promise us you’ll make friends.”
“AJ, I-”
“Pinkie promise us!” Applejack urged. “Swear you’ll make new friends, no matter where you go!”
“C-Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Sunset nervously recited as she made a cross motion across her chest and put her hoof to her eye.
“Good.” Applejack nodded in satisfaction. “Make sure you make new friends who are just as irreplaceable as us.”
With her friends’ support, Sunset felt a weight being lifted off her shoulders. However, she still didn’t have an answer for what her purpose is and she still had no idea how to go back to her world. Not to mention, the peace and quiet is starting to unsettle her somehow. It’s peaceful. Sunset thought to herself as her eyes darted to her left, where she could see ponies happily chatting with one another. Too peaceful. Her eyes darted to the right, where some ponies were sharing a drink. Shaking her head, she let out a deep sigh.
“C’mon, snap out of it, Sunset. Calm down. I’m sure everything’s fine.” She drew several deep breaths. What if this peace and quiet is just a ruse to make me let my guard down before something big happens? It’s not foreshadowing something, is it? She looked around again, only to see the same peacefulness and tranquillity from a few seconds ago. Ok, this is ridiculous. Nothing’s going to happen. Stop being so paranoid, Sunset Shimmer! Everything’s fi- A loud rumble in the distance made Sunset let out a loud groan as she planted her face into the ground. “Called it.” She mumbled before running over to find out the problem.
When Sunset arrived at the scene, she wasn’t expecting to find a scared purple pony cowering in the midst of a fighting crowd. She seemed to be the only pony in her right mind, so Sunset naturally chose to approach her for answers.
“What’s going on here?” She asked as the pony looked up at her with tears in her eyes, hidden behind a pair of thick glasses.
“I…I’m sorry! I-I just wanted a friend…” Sunset raised an eyebrow.
“Elaborate?”
“I-I just wanted a friend, but I didn’t know how to make one. So I thought that if I secretly caused a problem and then came in to fix it, all the ponies would want to be my friend. I casted a Want It, Need It spell on that doll and now everypony’s enchanted by it!” Sunset rubbed her head with a long groan.
“And what exactly made you think that was a good idea? Do you know how dangerous the Want It, Need It spell is?” A part of her wanted to be angry at the pony for disrupting the peace. But another part of her reminded her of her past, when she had tried to research forbidden magic behind Celestia’s back, even though thinking back now, it was a terrible idea. It was the same situation here. A terrible idea that had seemed like a good idea to get what was wanted, until it spirals out of control. Guess this is how Celestia felt when she found out what I did. She grimaced as her horn lit up. Luckily, she knew just the spell to reverse the effects, and soon everypony was returning back to their daily lives, leaving the discarded doll on the ground. The pony before her looked down in shame, her eyes watering.
“I’m so sorry… I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”
“Don’t worry. I understand.” Sunset offered an empathetic smile. “And going by my own experiences, they’ll forgive you.” She helped the pony up. “So, what’s your name? My name’s Sunset Shimmer.”
“I’m Twilight Sparkle.” Twilight replied shyly as Sunset smiled.
“Great. Nice to meet you, Twilight. Look, I understand that you want friends, and you must’ve been really lonely and desperate to have casted a Want It, Need It spell for it, but that’s not the right way to do it.” Twilight nodded.
“I know that now. I’m sorry. I’ll just leave and never come back.” Sunset shook her head.
“Nope, you’re coming with me.” She said as she used her magic to levitate Twilight in the air and shot her a large grin. “You said you wanted friends, right? I have some ponies I’d like you to meet. Let me show you there’s another way, just like they did for me!”
What exactly is my purpose here? Sunset couldn’t help but wonder. What am I missing? She frowned as she paced around in her home. There’s got to be something I’m not seeing. She sighed as she looked up at the sky, as if her answers would be there somehow. Unconsciously, her eyes shifted to the sun.
I’m a horrible pony. Sunset looked behind her to see Celestia curled up on the ground, her face buried in her hooves as she sobbed.
“Princess Celestia?” Sunset asked as she walked up to her, placing a hoof on her. Instantly, her eyes flashed white as her geode glowed.
How could I have done that? To my own sister! How could I have just banished my own sister to the moon for a thousand moons? I don’t deserve to be a princess. Luna… Oh, my sweet Luna… You were never to blame. I was the pony who had driven you away from me. I was the pony who had been so blinded, being in the spotlight, that I chose to turn a blind eye to your suffering. I was the pony who was never there for you when I was supposed to be. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. Those three words seemed to repeat forever and Sunset could hear the haunting echo in her head even when Celestia stood up.
“Princess Celestia?” Sunset shook her head, trying to regain her bearings as she snapped back from the empathy flash. Celestia looked to the moon in the sky as tears streamed down her muzzle.
“Luna… How can I rule over my subjects when I couldn’t even save my own sister?” She hung her head in shame. “When you return in a thousand moons, you should be the one to take my place as princess of Equestria.” She looked back up to the mare in the moon. “You were right, Luna. There can only be one princess in Equestria, and that princess…should be you.” Spreading her wings, Celestia took to the skies and disappeared into the distance.
“Ugh…” Sunset blinked, finding herself back in the library. “I wish it wouldn’t be so sudden sometimes.” She groaned as she looked back to the sun. “So that’s what she thought on the night she banished Luna, huh.”
“Perhaps you can help my sister learn to forgive herself and get her to come home.” Luna’s words sounded out in her head as she shot the sun an exasperated look.
“Are you kidding me? That’s my purpose that I still have yet to fulfil?”
“Hey, Sunny! Figured something out?” Sunset nearly hit the ceiling when Pinkie’s voice sounded out of nowhere.
“Gah! Pinkie, seriously, where did you come from and why do you always seem to appear out of nowhere?!” She complained as she looked to her side, only to find all of her friends gathered. “Wait, where did all of you come from too? Since when have you been here?”
“Since a while ago, while you were doing that empathy flash of yours.” Applejack replied.
“Our geodes started to blink, and we thought you might have been in trouble or something, so we rushed over!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
“Are you ok, Sunset?” Fluttershy asked in concern.
“I-I’m fine. Thanks, girls. Sorry to worry you.” They smiled in relief.
“Don’t worry about it. So, what was all that about, darling?” Rarity asked curiously.
“I just had a vision of Princess Celestia after she had banished Princess Luna, or technically, Nightmare Moon, to the moon.”
“Oh… Are you going to find her then?” Fluttershy asked. Sunset nodded hesitantly.
“I think so. I mean, that’s probably the purpose Luna was referring to, right? I…I don’t know, actually.” Sunset sighed. “I mean, I am kinda worried about her since, you know, she was my mentor and all. Luna seems to think that I can help this Celestia learn to forgive herself, and it’s something that I’m most likely gonna have to do myself, but I’m not sure if I’m capable of doing that.”
“Of course you can, Sunny!” Pinkie chirped. “You were close to her in your world, weren’t you?”
“That’s the thing, Pinkie. This Celestia isn’t the same Celestia I know. And I was really terrible to the Celestia from my world! I’m nervous to even look at her, even if she’s just a lookalike! Plus, she’s not the Celestia from my world. She doesn’t even know me!”
“But if anypony could understand what she’s going through now, I reckon it’d be you.” She looked to Applejack. “You, or Princess Luna. You’ve both done things you regret, and Princess Celestia is probably feeling the same way now as you two did before.”
“And you’re really good at fixing problems! You fixed the problems in Ponyville and helped the Crusaders and Princess Luna to see the error of their ways. You’ve even helped Twilight make friends! You’re the best pony to talk to Princess Celestia!” Rainbow Dash reassured her. “And besides, we’ll always be on your side, even when we’re not physically there, remember? You’ll be fine.” She said, placing a hoof on Sunset’s back.
“And don’t forget that we genuinely care for you.” Fluttershy joined in as she placed another reassuring hoof on Sunset’s back. One by one, the rest of her friends followed suit.
“Besides, darling, we’re connected by our geodes. If you ever feel down, just remember us!” Rarity said.
“And all the times we spent together and everything we did together, even the bad times!” Pinkie added. “Oh, and remember to smile! Smiles can turn a bad situation into a happy memory!”
“You’ll always be a part of my, no, our family, Sunset. And an Apple never forgets family, even those long gone. Don’t you forget us either, sugarcube.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” Sunset wiped a tear away. “Thanks, everypony.”
“Oh, and Sunset.” She looked to Fluttershy curiously.
“When you find Princess Celestia, talk to her about your problems too. She may not be the pony from your world, but she is essentially still the same pony. You may get some answers.”
“She’s right, sugarcube.” Applejack said. “Take this chance to talk to Princess Celestia. She may not be the same pony you know, but she’s probably the only pony who understands the reason your Celestia treated you the way she did.”
“You didn’t get to talk to your Celestia properly before, right? Being a princess must’ve kept her busy.” Rarity said. “You fixed our problems. Now, it’s time for you to fix yours, darling. Take all the time you need with Princess Celestia.”
“I guess you’re right.” Sunset looked down for a while, before looking up with a determined look in her eyes. “Yeah, I’m gonna go find Princess Celestia and talk to her.” She turned to her friends. “Really, thanks, girls.” She really was lucky to have friends like them.
“I’m going to miss you so much! Don’t ever forget us, Sunset!” Fluttershy hugged her.
“You know I won’t, Shy.”
“Don’t forget your Pinkie Promise!” Sunset smirked.
“Not for the life of me. I won’t question how, but I know you will find a way to travel across worlds to find me if I ever do break my Pinkie Promise.”
“Yup!” At Pinkie’s confident reply, all of them could only laugh.
“Probably should’ve thought about where she could be first before just leaving like that.” Sunset rolled her eyes at herself as she marked off an area on a map of Equestria with a cross. She did consider contacting Luna when she first set off, but she had no idea where to find her, especially since Canterlot Castle didn’t even exist in this world. She sighed as she looked over the cross-filled map again, scanning for any areas she might have missed out. “Just where can one pony hide in all of Equestria and not be seen by anypony else? It’s got to be in some place where nopony would go...” Her eyes travelled to a location on the map as she muttered to herself. “A place hidden and obscured enough that nopony would find it… A place familiar to her, but not to others.” She frowned as she circled a location that fit her descriptions on the map. It was a place she had skipped over after the Nightmare Moon incident, seeing as how Nightmare Moon already went there. But what if she returned after sensing Luna’s return? A little voice in the back of her head asked. Just…what if she had gone back, hoping to catch even a glimpse of the sister she hadn’t seen in a thousand moons? Sunset sighed. “Well, nothing to lose. It’s my only lead for now.”
“She’s not here.” Sunset frowned as she stood in the middle of the Castle of Two Sisters. “But where else could she be then?” She let out a groan of frustration as she looked up to the sun through the hole in the ceiling caused by Nightmare Moon.
I sensed that you have returned but you have yet to come and see me. I don’t blame you. You have every right to be angry at me. I won’t even hope for your forgiveness. I don’t deserve it, after what I did. But if you do ever come, Luna, even if it’s to enact your revenge, I will be waiting here, in this place that only you and I know of…
Sunset shook her head as the empathy flash faded away. As soon as she regained her bearings, she face-hoofed with a deep sigh. A place where nopony else knows of. Of course. How could I forget that place existed? She sighed again as she stood up and made her way down the destroyed hallway.
“And… Boom.” She stared, deadpanned, as the secret passage revealed itself. “Yup, looks exactly like the one in Canterlot.” She commented as she walked down the stairs until she finally reached a door. Her horn lit up with a red glow as the doors swung open, and her breath instantly hitched at the sight of the white alicorn sitting in the middle of the room. The alicorn stirred when she heard the sound and lifted her head slightly.
“…Luna?”
“Do I look like a dark blue alicorn who can raise the moon to you?” Sunset said as she revealed herself from the shadows. Celestia stood up fully and her wings flared out.
“Who are you?” She narrowed her eyes. “And how do you know this place? The only ponies who knows this place exists are Luna and I!” Sunset rolled her eyes.
“You have the exact replica of this place in Canterlot Castle. Guess not even a new castle could separate you from your beloved secret cake stash.” Celestia fought off the blush she felt was coming out of embarrassment.
“That doesn’t answer my question of who you are. What do you want from me?”
“Long story. First of all, my name is Sunset Shimmer. I came from another world.” Celestia’s expression turned into confusion at that as she folded her wings.
“Another world?” Sunset nodded.
“Yes, another Equestria, much like this one. In my world, Alicorns are not just some myths and Princess Celestia rules over all the ponies, raising the sun and the moon each day and night. Under her rule, the kingdom flourished, and she taught the ponies to treasure their bonds. She was a pony well beloved by all, and everypony looked to her whenever they had problems.” Celestia looked away.
“No. That’s impossible. I’m not fit to rule.” Her eyes watered. “I couldn’t even save my own sister. How can I be expected to protect my subjects?” Sunset let out a loud sigh as she planted her rump down next to Celestia. Her friends were right. Celestia really was the same as her.
“Trust me, if anypony could understand what you’re going through now, it’d be me. I wasn’t a good pony back in my world.” She confessed. “Yet, when I came to this world, I suddenly find myself having to fix problems everywhere. At first, I didn’t think I’d be able to do it. After all, in my world, I was a pony who caused problems, and here, they expect me to fix them? Hah! Yeah, right, fat chance.” She scoffed before her gaze softened. “And yet, believe it or not, I did. Though it wasn’t on my own. My friends helped me out. They seemed to think that I did majority of the work though, even though I kept telling them that I wouldn’t have been able to do it without them.” She crossed her hooves with a harrumph.
“You are a lucky pony to have such good friends.” Celestia smiled softly. “Perhaps, if I had friends of my own as well, I might’ve been able to save my sister.”
“That sounds weird, considering in my world, it was you who was constantly urging me to go make friends.” Sunset said. “But I guess I can understand why. Must’ve been hard for a princess to make a friend who would be able to look past her title and see her for who she really is.” Celestia chuckled softly.
“That’s very accurate.” She looked up at the ceiling, a faraway gaze in her eyes as memories from the past surfaced. “Everypony who tried to befriend us were only after the benefits that come with being a friend of a princess. We turned them all away. After many of such cases, we eventually stopped looking for friends. Friends would only hold us back. We decided we didn’t need such burdens. We were fine on our own.”
“Oh horseapples.” Sunset muttered a curse under her breath. “That’s like, almost exactly what I said when I was still a selfish stuck up pony in my world.”
“Is that so? You and I certainly share more similarities than I thought we would have, for being two strangers.” Sunset grinned.
“Tell me about it.” Celestia offered a small smile before the faraway look returned to her eyes.
“And yet, after centuries of being on our own, Luna began to seek relationships again. She yearned for the love and respect of her subjects, and she often wondered if she would be able to find a pony who would see her as a friend and not a princess. I didn’t have any faith that would happen. I was simply content to rule, for our relationships with other ponies to remain strictly professional.” She looked down in shame. “I was so intent on loving all of our subjects equally that I failed to realise that I was neglecting my own sister. I didn’t even realise that our subjects didn’t give her the same respect and love they gave me. She felt all alone in the world, and abandoned by the one pony who should’ve been by her side. It was my fault she gave in to her hatred and became Nightmare Moon. As Nightmare Moon, she had no restraints about her true feelings. She bore her heart to me, and even then, I turned her away. I could only think about stupid things like duty and responsibility, rather than my own sister. It was only after she was gone that I finally saw how wrong I was and how alone I really was.”
“That’s similar to the Celestia from my world.” Celestia looked down to meet Sunset’s eyes. “Even when you were fighting Nightmare Moon and your life was at risk, you put the kingdom above all else. You made your choices based on what’s best for the kingdom. As a princess, I’d say you’re more than fit to rule. But as far as personal relationships go, you can’t manage them to save your life.” Sunset’s words were blunt, but Celestia could find no fault in them. She was merely speaking the truth. “Let me tell you about my world.”
Celestia listened in awe as Sunset spoke of a different Equestria where she ruled as Princess and everything seemed perfect. Unfortunately, her awe was short-lived, giving way to horror as Sunset began to talk about her past, from how she had been an orphaned filly up to the events that led to her arriving in this world.
“So not only have I failed Luna as a sister, I’ve also failed you as a mother.” Celestia’s eyes were sad as she spoke. Sunset’s eyes widened.
“A…A mother?” Celestia tilted her head.
“Was that not what I was to you in that world? From what I gathered, in that world, you’re my adopted daughter, are you not?” Sunset blinked.
“N-Not officially. I mean, you took me in, but only as your personal student.” Celestia frowned.
“That’s ridiculous. I wouldn’t have introduced my secret cake stash to anypony, student or not, and if I really did share it with you, it could only be because you’re a pony I trust and care a lot for.” Sunset looked down.
“You never said anything like that to me.” She said softly.
“And I should have.” Celestia said as she gently lifted Sunset’s head with her hoof. “There were many things that the Celestia you know did wrong, things she could’ve done right but didn’t. And I must apologise to you for that, Sunset Shimmer. Counterpart or not, it was inexcusable for me to have done that to you.” Sunset shut her eyes tightly as all her hurt and sorrow from her past returned.
“Then why did you do that to me?” She asked softly. “Why did you take me in, but didn’t spend any time with me outside of lessons? Why did you allow Princess Cadance to call you ‘Auntie’, but wouldn’t allow me to address you by anything other than ‘Princess’ or ‘Celestia’? Why did you readily give hugs to other ponies, but flinched away every time I tried to hug you? Why did you keep the distance between us even when you could see so clearly that I wanted you by my side? Was it because I wasn’t strong enough? Was it because I wasn’t a Princess? Was I not worthy of your love, your attention, your time? If I wasn’t worth anything to you, then why did you take me in and planted false hope in me that there was at least one pony who honestly cared about me?” Celestia felt herself tear up as the pony who had seemed far more mature than her suddenly turned into a little filly who had grown up lacking love from the pony she needed it from the most.
“I’m not her, so I can’t be entirely sure. But listen to me, Sunset.” She said as she pulled Sunset into a warm hug. “If she’s me, then the only reason I could think of for why she would treat you so strictly was because she saw that you were becoming the pony she once was, the pony who didn’t treasure friendship and lost everything as a result, and she didn’t want that same tragic fate to befall you. And I believe she had wanted and tried to do the right thing, but she was too scared.”
“Scared?” Sunset sniffled as she pulled back, looking up at Celestia. “Of what?” Celestia’s smile turned saddened.
“Of growing too close to you, and then losing you.” Sunset’s eyes widened as she began to understand.
“Just like how you lost Princess Luna?” Celestia nodded.
“It’s said that time heals all wounds, but unfortunately, a thousand moons apart only served to deepen my wounds.” She looked up, a tear escaping her closed eyes. “The new castle in your world was most likely an attempt to move on and forget, rather than being a replacement for the old damaged one. I tried to move on and forget as well, a thousand moons ago.” Sunset listened as Celestia spoke, draping her wing over her. “Luna had always been there in my life. I couldn’t talk about any part of my past without mentioning her. When I lost her that night, it felt like I lost a part of me as well. I was confused and lost without her, and I was hurting from what I did to her. For the first few decades after I fled, I couldn’t bear to even think of her. Everything hurt, and there were times when I went days, perhaps even weeks, just not thinking about anything at all. I was just wandering around aimlessly. And then, one night, as I was raising the moon…”
FLASHBACK
Celestia stared at the giant burning orb in the sky with dulled eyes. It was routine, her body just moved on its own.
Raise the sun. Wait. Lower the sun. Raise the moon. Wait. Lower the moon.
“You must lower the Moon! It is your duty!”Celestia gasped as she stepped back.
“W-What was that?” It sounded so familiar… Who was I talking to? Her eyes widened as she looked up at the moon she had just raised, a duty that once belonged to another. How could I have forgotten? Her eyes watered, her gaze softening as she kept it fixated on the moon. Luna…
END OF FLASHBACK
“It was the reason I came back.” She admitted. “We Alicorns live long lives. Even if it was only for a second, the fact is that I had forgotten about Luna.” Tears welled up anew in her eyes. “The thought of forgetting her, a pony who had been by my side since as long as I could remember, terrified me so much that before I knew it, I was flying back here at full speed. And then, from there, I only continued to spiral downwards, unable to pull myself up. I grew desperate and started to obsessively try various different ways to bring Luna back. I even tried to use the Elements of Harmony to bring her back, but I could no longer wield the elements.” She hung her head in shame. “When I realised that it was hopeless, I lost my mind. In my grief and despair, I stomped on the Elements and even crushed them with my teeth until they were nothing more than particles. I screamed and cried for days. The grief and guilt I felt was just too much for me to bear. And at some point, I considered…” Sunset nodded in understanding, catching on quickly to what she was implying.
“I understand. I was the same way too, for a while after I was old enough to understand that I didn’t have any parents like the other ponies. I was miserable and felt unwanted. Being taken into the orphanage only to meet such treatment just made things worse. I felt like I was all alone in the world and then I started to feel as if my life l was meaningless. I was alive for nothing and the orphanage was just wasting their time and efforts on a burden like me. I thought the world would be better without me. So I…” Sunset clamped her mouth shut, closing her eyes as she drew in a deep breath to compose herself. “It was one of the darkest times in my life.” Celestia bit her lips.
“How did- How did you get over it?” She asked softly. “What changed?” Sunset offered her a small smile.
“I met you, or rather, Princess Celestia.” Celestia looked at her in shock.
“The Princess? B-But I thought meeting her only made things worse!” Sunset shook her head.
“She was the first pony to ever show genuine care and concern for me. She showed me the little joys in life, like cakes.” She winked at that, making Celestia slip up a small chuckle. “She helped me believe that life was worth living, and that I was not a burden. Even if she did make mistakes in how she raised me afterwards, it doesn’t change the fact that she saved my life in more ways than one. It was because of her that I met her, Princess Cadance, and everypony in this world; my friends, Princess Luna, and you. Princess Luna was right. There’s no point in dwelling on what ifs and what could be. I shouldn’t lament the past. My past is not today. It doesn’t define me.” She stood up, turning to face Celestia. Her eyes were more refined now, no longer hiding uncertainty behind them. “But my past made me who I am today. And I don’t hate the pony I became, despite the mistakes I’ve made.” Celestia found herself staring up at the renewed pony, while she herself remained lying on the floor.
“You’re an amazing pony, Sunset.” She said when she found her voice. “Even after going through such harsh experiences, you’re still able to pick yourself up.” She looked down. “I wish I can say I don’t hate the pony I became like you, but I do.” Her voice was soft and broken as she fought back tears. “I hate the pony I am now. I hate what I did to Luna. I hate that I abandoned my subjects. I hate that I ran away from my responsibilities. I even hate what I did to you in another world. I hate everything I did.” She buried her muzzle in her hooves as she sobbed. “I just wanted Luna back. I didn’t care for anything else, and I hate that part of me too.”
“Well, sometimes, what you want isn’t what you need.” She looked up to see Sunset smiling gently at her. “Alicorn and Princess status aside, you’re a pony too, just like the rest of us.” Sunset’s geode was glowing, encasing her with a soft orange glow as she held out a hoof out to her. “And sometimes, all we need is a friend.”
