A Novel In A Sea Of Magazines
Chasing Someday
“To fall in love with someone's thoughts―the most intimate, splendid romance.”
―Sanober Khan
~
“Whatcha readin’ there, Sunny?”
A sea of pink flooded Sunset Shimmer’s vision. With a super speed rivaling that granted by Dash’s geode, Sunset yanked her phone away. “N-nothing!” She looked up to see her friends staring at her around the cafeteria table. “Um, what?” She gave a half-hearted chuckle. “D-do I have something on my face?”
Pinkie grabbed Sunset’s face, examining it from all angles. “Nope! Not this time!”
Sunset rubbed at her cheeks as they snapped back into place. “Uh, thanks, Pinkie.” After poking at her lunch, she realized that everyone was still staring at her. “Um, am I missing something?”
The six other girls shared a glance. Then, Rarity shot a… Well, grin wasn’t quite the right word Sunset had in mind. Smirk wasn’t either. In any case, whatever stretched across her face was so self-satisfied that it made the “Great and Powerful” Trixie seem humble by comparison.
“Oh, nothing at all, darling.” Rarity leaned on one elbow, cradling her face in her hand. “It’s just that you seem rather… preoccupied with your phone lately.”
Sunset slipped her phone into a pocket of her jeans. “Ohh, y’know, just checking the, uh—”
The news? Nope, no one was going to buy that right now. Social media? Well, considering that all but one of Sunset’s most important connections were right beside her, that wouldn’t suffice either. There must have been something one of the girls had sent recently. Something that would serve as a decent excuse...
“—The pics Fluttershy sent us last night! Fr-from the animal shelter!” Holding back a triumphant smirk, Sunset breathed in an inward sigh of relief. The perfect explanation! Who could resist staring at such adorable pictures for hours on end?
Fluttershy tapped her shoulder. “Um, Sunset?”
“Yes, Fluttershy?”
“I sent those pictures last week.”
In an instant, Sunset’s smirk dissipated, immediately replaced with a paper-thin grin. “O-o-oh yeah! Th-that’s right! Th-that’s what I meant!” Laughing, she added with a wave of her hand, “Still! All those cuuuuute puppies and kittens? They’re distracting enough for a whole week and then some! Heh, heh, heh!”
Another shared glance passed between Sunset’s friends. Like before, Rarity was the first to break it.
Beneath Rarity’s gaze, Sunset was beginning to feel like an ant under a magnifying glass. And not just any ant. An ant who had gotten trapped outside under the warm, spring sun, scurrying across rolling hills of grass and blooming flowers as she made her way to—
“H-hey, guys.”
Seven pairs of eyes shifted to the new arrival. Without missing a beat, Sunset moved her backpack from its holding place beside her on the cafeteria bench. “Hey, Wallflower!”
Taking the offered seat, Wallflower Blush set her lunch tray down. “You don’t always have to save me a spot, you know,” she said, returning Sunset’s smile with a small one of her own.
“Oh, but of course we do, Wallflower dear,” Rarity piped up from across the table, a jovial grin on her face. “It’s always nice seeing you.”
Applejack gave a firm nod. “An’ yer always welcome to join us! Right, gals?”
A chorus of affirmations followed.
Although this exchange was one that had played out before, none of the girls at the table seemed to tire of it. Especially Sunset. She gave her own nod, locking eyes with Wallflower as their friends echoed the sentiment.
Averting her gaze, a light blush tinged Wallflower’s green cheeks pink. Barely audible over the cafeteria chatter, she replied, “Th-thanks, everyone.”
Sunset once read that it took far fewer muscles to smile than it did to laugh. Regardless of how the math panned out, she knew that she must have been getting a thorough workout today.
“Oooh, no problem, Wally! Wait! Can I call you Wally? It’s a super cute nickname! And I th—oooh, wait! Before I forget...” In a flash and flurry, Pinkie Pie grabbed her backpack, then withdrew a massive, pink-frosted cupcake from its innards. The treat sailed towards Wallflower, flipping in mid-air before landing upright next to her sandwich and chips. “Since you weren’t here last week when I made a bunch, I saved this one just for you!”
Her blush burning crimson, Wallflower looked up from the dessert to the excited girl bouncing in her seat. “You’re too kind. A-all of you.” Once she had offered a timid smile to the others, her eyes drifted back to Sunset. “Sorry I missed out last time. I needed to work on the garden some more.”
“No problem,” Fluttershy said. “We understand that your garden comes first.”
“Th-thanks.” Wallflower nodded Fluttershy’s way before she turned back to Sunset. “I didn’t mean to avoid you.”
“Don’t worry. I know.” Sunset beamed. “No need to apologize.”
That same tiny smile reappeared. Breaking their held gaze, Wallflower peeled the wrapper off Pinkie’s cupcake, then gave it a hesitant bite. “Oh, wow.” She directed that smile at Pinkie Pie, who was grinning from ear to ear. “That’s really good. Thank you!”
“You’re welcome!” A burst of confetti exploded above the table. “Silly Wally! What are friends for?”
Watching Wallflower finally relax beside her, enjoying both her cupcake and the company, Sunset almost forgot it was rude to stare. After one last glance, she shifted her attention back to the rest of her friends. “So, how was everyone’s weekend?”
Brilliant blue skies dotted with wisps of gray-and purple clouds greeted Sunset as she exited Canterlot High. Crowds of students scrambled past her, some to cars, some to buses, others on foot as they journeyed home. Instead of following, she weaved her way towards that endless horizon, heading into the small thicket of woods at the edge of the school. Above the forest, the Canterlot Mountains loomed in the distance, their peaks dotted with noble conifers in all shades of green.
Conifer. Now that was a word she never would have known until recently.
What had once been a dark grove of trees was now the home of a thriving, sprawling garden. Since the Memory Stone incident, the Gardening Club had grown from one and unknown, to four and mildly talked about. Sunset had offered to help Wallflower advertise it more, even discussing some flyer ideas with Rarity and Pinkie Pie. However, Wallflower seemed content to have her own little niche in the school and the world—as long as she wasn’t occupying it alone.
If Sunset had her way, Wallflower would never have to worry about being forgotten again.
Dappled sunlight cast over her leather jacket. As she ventured through the trees, Sunset found her heartbeat accelerating far too quickly for a casual stroll. One of her hands drifted to the phone in her pocket, playing with the volume buttons on the side.
Emerging from the path, Sunset stopped in her tracks. While it was far from the first time she had seen this, she always needed a moment to savor it all.
The centerpiece of Wallflower’s garden had expanded far beyond its initial design. Flowers in shades of oranges and reds—Gaillardia, if Sunset remembered right—joined the blue and yellow daisies on the stone steps. The pink boughs of astilbe in the middle had grown taller, reaching even further towards the skies. The perimeter of the garden had widened to accommodate many new inhabitants. Under Wallflower’s watchful eye, the club had added, amongst other plants: purple irises; golden marigolds; red and white chrysanthemums; several bonsai in charming pots; and, last but not least, sunflowers. These last flowers were just beginning to grow, but would become tall and strong in time, Wallflower had told her.
Once she had finished marveling at the garden, Sunset approached the students huddled by the centerpiece. Though the others seemed more animated, Wallflower was all smiles.
“Hey guys!” Sunset called out, waving.
Wallflower’s eyes met hers first. The gentle smile she already wore brightened, rivaling the rays illuminating her little garden. “Sunset!” She practically tripped as she rushed over to join her.
Laying a hand on Wallflower’s shoulder, Sunset held her steady. “Whoa now! Don’t get too excited! It’s just me,” she said, giggling. Once Wallflower was stable—if a bit embarrassed—Sunset turned to other club members. “Sorry, was I interrupting something?”
“Oh, no! Not at all.” Roseluck shook her head. “We just finished up for the day.”
“Yeah, we’re gonna go check out Sandalwood’s new car!” Derpy beamed towards him, then asked Sunset and Wallflower, “You two wanna come with?”
Both girls shared a knowing glance.
“W-well, actually—”
“That’s really nice, but—”
“Suit yourselves!” Sandalwood held up a faded black keyfob. “It’s not a Westfalia, but I’m still proud of it!” He held out a fist towards Wallflower and Sunset. “Catch you guys later!”
Following an uneasy smile and a hesitant chuckle, Wallflower gave him a light fist-bump. Sunset held back a chuckle of her own at the sight, then gave him a formidable bump back. Sandalwood winked at her, then headed off with Derpy and Roseluck in tow.
Once they were alone, Sunset reached for her phone. Despite the thick canopy of trees blocking most of the sunlight, several beads of sweat found their way down her forehead and neck. “So, I was wanting to ask you about something. If you’re not too busy, of course.”
“Sure!” Wallflower gestured towards a row of bushes with purple flowers. “I need to add a bit more fertilizer to these lilacs, but I’m still listening.”
Stealing a moment to steel herself, Sunset just nodded.
While Wallflower grabbed a box of fertilizer, a rake, and a pair of gardening gloves from the small toolshed at the rear of the garden, Sunset pulled her phone from her pocket. She tapped on the device, then brought up a website in her “Frequently Visited” tab. Idly flicking the screen back and forth, she waited. Other than the distant roar of a car engine, the garden was silent. Peaceful.
Once Wallflower was done gathering her tools, Sunset cleared her throat. “So, last week, Dash was bragging about someone having written… Uh, fanfiction about her?”
The rake gripped tightly in her hands, Wallflower froze. Her copper eyes widened as she stared at Sunset in disbelief. “Fanfiction? But… Rainbow Dash is, um… a real person.”
“I know, right? It doesn’t really make any sense. I guess she found the stories after Googling herself.” Sunset rolled her eyes. “Doesn’t surprise me that she does that on a regular basis. Though, after taking a look at these stories…” A smirk curled across her lips. “I kinda have a suspicion that Dash might know the author.”
Wallflower fidgeted with the rake. “What makes you say that?”
“Well, for one, the author of these stories is named…” Sunset finished with a loud snort, “‘Spectrum Blaze’. And for two, all they write about is Dash saving the day from some big bad before getting all the guys…” Trailing off, Sunset added with a wiggle of her eyebrows, “And girls.”
“O-oh.” It might have just been a trick of the light, but Sunset thought that Wallflower flushed scarlet at that last word. “That’s, uh, nice. G-good for her, I guess.”
Sunset snickered. “Right? But anyway…” This time, she looked down at her phone with a quizzical brow. “After Dash showed us this website, I got kinda curious. Before I figured out who’s been writing these stories about Dash—probably—” she added with a playful roll of her eyes— “I wondered if someone wrote stories about the rest of us.”
The rake dug deep into the soil. “R-right…”
“And that’s when I found… Uh…” Sunset squinted at the screen. “Stories written by someone named… ‘Neniu Grava’?”
More raking.
At her silence, Sunset tried again. “Er, ‘knee-new-grav-a’? I think I’m saying it right? Sorry, I don’t recognize the language.” Watching as Wallflower churned the soil, Sunset continued, “But anyway, this person has not only been writing stories about me, but about... us. Like...” Now the sun was getting to her again. “You and me.”
Somehow, Sunset heard Wallflower gulp. “Oh, uh… R-r-really?” She leaned the rake against a tree, then grabbed the box of fertilizer.
“Nothing bad!” Sunset raised both hands. “But…” With a chuckle, she scrolled down her phone’s screen. A line of links dotted with green checkmarks and yellow stars greeted her. “These stories are pretty much all, uh, romance.”
The box of fertilizer shook in Wallflower’s hands. “... Someone’s… shipping us?”
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “‘Shipping’?”
“Uh!” Wallflower squeezed the box. Bits of white, green, and blue fertilizer sprinkled on the ground. “N-n-nevermind.”
Sunset raised her other eyebrow, but chose not to pry further. “Anyway, I was wondering if you had seen the stories before. Or might have any idea who Neniu Grava is.”
Silence stretched between them as Wallflower chewed on her lower lip, staring down at the dirt. Then, she set the box of fertilizer back down and grabbed the rake with considerable force. “Probably some weirdo,” she muttered, turning back to the lilacs.
Frowning, Sunset tucked her phone away. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel awkward.” Tacking on a chuckle, she added, “I know this is all kinda weird.”
“Yeah…” Wallflower stirred the fertilized soil. “Weird.”
Sunset flinched. “A-anyway, I should probably get going.” She took a step back. “Um, see you at lunch tomorrow?”
Finished with her task, Wallflower gave a stiff nod and a noncommittal grunt. She neglected to look Sunset’s way as she gathered her tools and put them back in the shed.
Instead of trying to persuade her further, Sunset held back. Although there were some discussions she never grew tired of, she could tell she had already exhausted Wallflower on this one.
Sunlight waned as dusk drew near. Tomorrow would be better.
A gentle breeze awakened the leaves in the trees above. Sunset made her way through the grove, taking care not to rustle the grass too much. While she had become pretty adept at sneaking around as a pony, as a human, she wasn’t quite as light on her feet.
Nevertheless, her stealth proved fruitful. As she entered the garden, she saw Wallflower sitting on the grass beside a group of new flowers still in their pots. Her back turned to Sunset, she hummed as she worked, digging holes for the fresh arrivals.
“Hey, Wallflower.”
Wallflower almost jumped. Their eyes met for a brief glance before Wallflower turned back to her plants. “Hey, Sunset,” she mumbled.
Mindful of where she stepped, Sunset sat on the grass beside Wallflower and her latest project. “What are you planting this time?”
“Celosias.”
“Hmm…” With a delicate touch, Sunset stroked the pink, cone-like petals of the strange plant. “They’re really soft.”
Wallflower shrugged. “They’re nicknamed ‘woolflowers’ for a reason.”
“Wallflower planting woolflowers, huh?” Grinning, Sunset cocked an eyebrow. “Makes sense to me.”
A half-hearted chuckle was her sole reply.
Sunset took off her backpack and set it beside her. “Missed you in the cafeteria today,” she said quietly, running a hand across the cool grass.
Another shrug. “Needed to check on the garden.”
“I… see.” Sunset looked around. “Where’s Sandalwood and the others?”
Without looking up from the celosia, Wallflower replied, “I told them I got everything covered here. Not that they’d be sticking around long. Sandalwood wanted to show off his car again.” She rolled her eyes. “Going joyriding isn’t my idea of fun.”
“Oh, I dunno...” Sunset tapped her fingers on the ground. “I always liked the idea of going on a road trip. Haven’t really had a chance to explore this world yet.”
“You’re not missing much.” A third shrug. “Think I’d rather be a magic pony some days.”
I could take you there, Sunset wanted to reply, but held her tongue. Not yet. Time to pull the reins. Pun intended.
The sounds of the Earth being disturbed followed for several minutes. Sunset played with a blade of grass, far more words swirling in her head than in her pocket. Yesterday hadn’t gone according to plan. Maybe today wasn’t the right time either. Things had been going so well before… Perhaps it was better to just leave everything as it was.
Then again, Sunset never solved any problems in her life by avoiding them.
Suppressing a nervous sigh, Sunset pulled her phone from the pocket of her leather jacket. “So… you know those stories I was telling you about yesterday?”
From the corner of her eye, Sunset saw Wallflower freeze in mid-dig. Before Wallflower had a chance to turn to stone, Sunset added with a lilting chuckle, “You know what’s the funniest thing about all of this?”
After a long pause, Wallflower answered through a strained voice, “What’s that?”
“These stories are actually… pretty good.” Even though Wallflower was still looking away from her, Sunset couldn’t help but smile. “I mean, I’m not really sure how much fanfiction you’ve read, but I hadn’t read any at all before this. I’ve heard it’s usually pretty bad. Like, really bad. Which is why I hadn’t read any. But this? This author clearly knows what they’re doing.”
At last, Wallflower faced her. “W-well… that’s… nice, at least.” She fiddled with the trowel in her hands. “Uh, I guess.”
A few more taps, and Sunset was reading over the long list of stories she had saved. “Y’know… This writer really gets us, I feel like. Personality-wise, it’s near perfect. Almost like they know us.”
As Sunset looked up from the screen, Wallflower still appeared incapable of meeting her gaze. She rocked the trowel back and forth over a fresh mound of dirt, making little rivets in the ground.
“If you don’t mind… I was actually, uh…”
As Sunset chewed on her lower lip, her heart gave a painful lurch. The thunder against her ribs reminded her of how long this was taking. Beating around the bush never worked for her in the past. Might as well play the card hard and fast. That always seemed to work for Trixie… even when she pulled the Jack of Spades instead of the Deuce of Hearts.
“I was thinking I could link the stories to you? S-so you can see what I mean. Or maybe I could even, uh… read you one?”
This time, when Wallflower reacted, it was… unique. Whereas before, she radiated discomfort—or maybe fear—at any mention of these strange stories, right now, when she looked to Sunset, the expression in her eyes was one of… intrigue?
“No one’s read anything out loud to me before.” Setting the trowel down, Wallflower wrung her hands together. “W-well, not counting reading books out loud in class. Not since I was a little kid,” she added, her eyes darting around, as if recalling something long lost.
“I haven’t read anything out loud since I was a fi—kid either.” Sunset offered an uneasy smile. “Maybe this could be kinda fun?”
“Well…” Wallflower rubbed at her nape. The corners of her mouth twitched into a smile just as uncertain as Sunset’s. “N-no harm in trying, right?”
At those words, Sunset held back the greatest temptation to whoop, fist-pump, or both. Instead, she let the widest, toothiest grin spread across her fool face. She let it hang there for a few moments, then hid it by staring down at her phone.
Across from her, Sunset caught a glimpse of pink springing to Wallflower’s cheeks.
After clearing her throat, Sunset let loose a breath she had been holding all day. “Alright.” Her eyes flicked up from her phone to meet Wallflower’s. “You ready?”
“... Do you mind if I keep working while you read?”
Sunset’s smile could only widen. “Of course! Go right ahead!”
When Wallflower picked up her trowel, Sunset finally began. Truth be told, she was eager for Wallflower’s distraction. It had never been easy to read aloud when someone was staring directly at her.
Especially when the story was this good.
And when her listener was this memorable.
“So… What do you think?”
Dusk was on the horizon now, shades of orange, yellow, and red tangling with the blues. The celosias had long been planted, along with the various other tasks Wallflower had completed. More fertilizing, more watering, trimming leaves and checking soil and organizing tools in the gardening shed. All the while, Sunset narrated the first story she had read from this wonderful author on this strange website. She did her best to be as eloquent and entertaining as possible as she read aloud.
The last time she’d heard or told a story aloud—not counting the dry, stilted books assigned by various CHS teachers over the years—she’d been sitting beside a Princess. Beside a being who could raise the sun and moon.
Sitting in Wallflower’s tranquil garden, her words interrupted by little more than the occasional songbird or chirping cricket, she felt more joy in reading this silly fanfiction than she had reading the classics in an alicorn’s lap.
“That story was…” Seated next to Sunset, Wallflower curled her fingers in her silky green hair. “K-kinda sweet, actually.” With a sheepish smile, she added after a brief pause, “Sorry if that’s weird.”
“No, that’s not weird. After all...” Giggling, Sunset added, “I mean… Besides the, er, romantic stuff—” she tried, unsuccessfully, not to blush—“I would say that Neniu Grava captured our personalities really well.”
Instead of replying, Wallflower ran her fingers across the grass.
Looking down, Sunset watched her fingers dance. “And the writing itself is really good. Like, I’m not an English professor or anything, but it definitely flows. No errors, really nice to read… Plus, the story just starts right in the middle of the… exciting part, I guess? I’m not sure what to call it—”
“‘In media res’.”
“Uh, what?”
Ceasing her fidgeting, Wallflower laid her hand down on the grass. “It’s Latin for ‘in the midst of things,’” she explained, looking up at Sunset. “It means the story starts right at the action, instead of the exposition. Like Hamlet does.”
“... Oh.” While Sunset hadn’t exactly been a model student, especially in her earlier years, she couldn’t imagine completely forgetting a concept like that. Scratching at her temple, she mused, “I must have missed that in English class.” She moved her hand beside Wallflower’s. “We had that together freshman year, didn’t we?”
Wallflower tugged at the sleeves of her sweater. “Yeah.” She set her hand back down on the grass. “You sat a couple rows ahead of me.”
“Well…” Using slow, deliberate motions, Sunset laid her hand on top of Wallflower’s. “I’m sorry I didn’t pay more attention back then. To the lecture, or to you.”
To Sunset’s surprise—and elation—Wallflower didn’t flinch from her touch. Instead, she glanced down at their hands, smiling, before peering up at the changing skies. “It’s getting late, but… Do you think you could… come back tomorrow after school? A-and read me another?”
“Of course. After all, we have a lot of stories to get through,” Sunset replied, almost a little too quickly.
If Sunset was rushing the pacing, Wallflower didn’t seem to share in the sentiment. The smile that followed told Sunset that her words had just the right rhythm.
They sat like that for a little while, their hands clammy but comfortable, as the skies shifted above them.
A new routine soon fell into place.
The day after that first story reading, Sunset’s newest friend returned to their cafeteria table. Although Wallflower had missed out on pizza day that week, she didn’t miss the next one. Nor the next. Instead of stopping by once a week at most, she made an appearance at lunch almost every day.
Seeing Wallflower accept her place at the table, even if she spent most of her time there picking at her tray or chatting with Fluttershy—caretakers of both flora and fauna had a few things in common—was a blessing. While it had taken longer than Sunset would have wanted for this sight to become commonplace, it was welcome all the same. Despite not being fond of cliches, she knew there was truth in one: Good things did come to those who waited.
If Wallflower’s acceptance of the girls’ friendship and inclusion was a treasure, the real prize was the time Sunset and Wallflower shared in the garden.
Soon, the Gardening Club secured a fresh round of funding from Principal Luna. Every day, Wallflower had something new to plant. Most days, Derpy, Roseluck, and Sandalwood helped out as they usually did. Sunset wouldn’t read while they were around, choosing to keep this budding tradition between herself and Wallflower.
Sometimes, Wallflower would send the others on their way early. She would say it was because she wanted to finish something herself, or because she didn’t want to keep the others from hanging out—despite their continued invitations—but Sunset didn’t quite believe her.
Normally, Sunset wasn’t fond of lying. However, even Applejack would have looked the other way at this, she reckoned.
When it was just the two of them, Sunset would sit down on a comfy patch of grass, pull out her phone, and select something to read to Wallflower. Sometimes she worked as Sunset read. Other times, she sat on the grass beside or across from her, engrossed in the story.
Even as the days turned to weeks, they continued this little ritual. Neniu Grava had quite the catalog. At first, Sunset had worried that she would run out of stories. However, as time marched on, she noticed new stories popping up. They were a bit short, often no more than a few thousand words, but they were just as good as the others.
In addition to these standalone tales, there was another story that was being added to as well. A longer one. If Sunset were being honest, she considered this one to be the author’s best work. Not that she had anything truly negative to say about the rest of their writing.
In fact, other than commentary about interesting details or insights she noticed while reading, the only constructive critique she offered had been on one of the older works. Although she was no literary critic—far less than Wallflower, with her apparent knowledge of more technical terms than just in media res—even she could tell it was a bit rushed.
Pacing was every writer’s bane, Sunset remembered reading somewhere. Though her narration was getting better, she still didn’t consider herself a writer. Not like Neniu Grava, at least. The idea of crafting compelling conflicts and satisfying resolutions out of thin air was beyond her. Even if she was writing about her own world... Even if that world was occupied by familiar figures… She didn’t quite trust herself to be true to their characters.
… Or to how she wanted things to unfold.
Good thing there was someone out there who did.
Sunset’s concept of time had transformed when she first came through the mirror. The new world had been strange enough for her back then. Its untended celestial bodies and clockwork seasons only added to the innate weirdness and contradiction of it all. Such a shift had taken some getting used to before she felt stable in this crazy place.
Sunset thought she had moved past that.
Maybe, as her physics class had suggested, time was relative here. Time dilation. That was the term. Maybe that explained how, over the course of a few weeks, she felt as if something had changed between herself and Wallflower.
On top of everything else Sunset had been doing—or tried to do—to give Wallflower the feeling of inclusion and acceptance she so utterly deserved, she had been trying to get to know her. Truly get to know her. The reason why was one she didn’t quite want to acknowledge yet… even if the card had been sticking out of her sleeve the whole time.
Even Trixie could have identified that one correctly on the first try.
Out of everything, it was the sharing of these stories that seemed to spark that change. That began to bridge that chasm between them. That chasm—which had seemed to exist even when Sunset sat beside Wallflower, her hand atop hers—felt narrower now. Whether it was on a hard cafeteria bench or in the garden that Wallflower had created herself, Sunset felt closer to her.
Like she was getting to know Wallflower through knowing Neniu Grava.
Like she was falling for her through another person’s words.
… Like she had known she was, from the moment she started reading.
Life was strange, Sunset knew. It was only through a series of strange events—some fortunate, some not so much—that she had come to this world, to this place, to her friends.
To this garden.
Everything was connected in some way. Whether by roots or circumstance, nothing here could subsist on its own.
Perhaps it was fitting, then, that it happened on a perfect spring day. Nary a cloud in their sky, nor a breeze in their hair, could be found on that day—that most fateful of days—when Sunset did the impossible:
She found something wrong with Neniu Grava’s writing.
“Hmm.” Tapping on her phone’s screen, Sunset parsed over the opening to the latest chapter of Neniu Grava’s longest story. Seated on the grass, her arms were drawn over her chest, her brow knit into a tight furrow. She hadn’t started reading; something was… off.
Sitting across from her, Wallflower turned away from the Canterbury bell plant she had been fertilizing. “What’s wrong? Lose connection or something?”
Looking up from her phone, Sunset offered her an apologetic smile. “Oh, no, it’s fine. Sorry. This chapter just has way more grammar issues than usual.” She glanced back at her phone, laughing. “Like, Grava’s stories are usually spotless, but they used the wrong form of ‘their’ right in the opening paragraph!” She shook her head. “I know my grammar isn’t the best—as Princess Twilight is all too happy to point out at times—” she groaned—“but even I caught that mistake! If it was the only one, I could understand a simple typo, but it just gets worse from there! Not even halfway down the page, they totally misspelled—”
Wallflower snorted. “Ugh! Gimme a break!” Crossing her arms over her chest, she spat, “It was, like, two in the morning and I just wanted to finish the damn ch—”
The smack of Wallflower covering her mouth with her hand echoed through the woods.
In the distance, Sunset could hear Sandalwood’s car start up. The others had just left.
Perfect timing.
In Wallflower’s widened eyes, Sunset saw nothing but pure, unbridled panic.
Two things happened. First, Sunset’s idiot brain finally snapped the pieces of the puzzle—which she had long suspected fit together, but didn’t want to ruin, if she were wrong—into place. And second…
Wallflower got up.
Whether she intended to run or not, Sunset wasn’t going to take a chance.
“W-wait!” Sunset rose to her knees, grabbing Wallflower’s hand.
Wallflower froze.
Her fingers still tangled in Sunset’s own.
“Please… Sit down.” Using a magic far beyond Equestria, Sunset conjured a smile. “L-let’s talk about this, okay?”
When Wallflower looked at her, the dread Sunset saw in her eyes struck her straight to the core. On instinct, Sunset balked, as if she’d been slapped. Wallflower must have seen her reaction, for her eyes widened as she cringed, almost recoiling.
But she didn't let go of her hand.
Physics reared its ugly head once more, time dilating in the sunlit grove as Wallflower, still clinging to Sunset, sat down on the grass beside her.
“Th-thank you,” Sunset said, her fingers entwined with Wallflower’s own.
When Wallflower pulled away, Sunset ached.
“Y-you’re welcome,” Wallflower mumbled, drawing her knees up to her chest. She buried her face in her sweater, her arms crossed over her knees.
Though it was no Memory Stone, Sunset's phone felt like a lead weight in the pocket of her jeans. Dragging them both down, lengthening the chasm between them. The distance that she had worked so hard to overcome expanded by the second.
This was it. No more time to waste. Sunset may have inadvertently played a card she wanted to keep close to her chest, but she had played it nonetheless. The chips were down.
“I… had a feeling it was you,” Sunset began.
The slightest gap appeared between Wallflower’s sweater and her face. Not large enough for Sunset to discern her reaction, but enough that she knew she was listening.
“Just… There were a lot of details.” Sunset ran a hand across the grass, slipping blades between her outstretched fingers. “Stuff about the Memory Stone. Things that reminded me of conversations we had. Inside jokes.” She glanced towards the vast garden. “A-and a lot of flower stuff, too. Like, very specific flower stuff. I had to look up the names of a lot of the plants, and what they mean, symbolically. Though, back where I come from,” Sunset said, unable to hold back a giggle, “most of them just mean lunch.”
“L-lunch?” Wallflower raised her head. “Oh, right… Horses.”
“Ponies,” Sunset corrected. “And, uh, don’t tell anyone, but…” She darted her eyes around the grove, then raised a hand to her lips, as if spilling a scandalous secret. “The first day I was here, I may have eaten all the pink clover out of someone’s lawn.”
What started as a snicker became a giggle. Then, a full-on laugh. Tears ran down Wallflower’s cheeks as she clutched her sides, falling into hysterics.
Soon, Sunset was laughing too. Both at the ridiculous mental image of her past self on all fours, chewing clover out of some cranky old man’s yard… And at Wallflower, who was practically losing it, her merry laugh the most beautiful sound she’d heard in a long time.
They came to their senses after some time, a few giggles escaping here and there. They sat beside each other, wiping the last tears of mirth from their eyes, calm—if somewhat uneasy—smiles wicking away the tension from only moments before.
“So…” Wallflower laid both her hands on the grass, bracing herself against the mighty Earth as she looked to Sunset. “You knew this whole time?”
“Well…” Sunset ran her fingers through a lock of her hair. “I didn’t exactly know. Like I said, I had a hunch. But I didn’t want to say anything, just in case I was wrong.” She clasped her hands together in her lap. “If I have a choice between staying friends with you and keeping this a secret, or not being friends at all and telling you, I’ll always take the former.”
Wallflower ran her palm over the grass. The blades swayed beneath her touch. “Me too.”
Although Sunset’s mind raced ahead, she held back. Instead, she sat in content silence, watching as Wallflower ran her hands over the grass.
Then, in a voice near a whisper, Wallflower said, “Wait…” Her gorgeous copper eyes locked on Sunset’s own. This time, there was no stutter in her words, nor any fruitless fidgeting. “You said something about a secret. What do you mean? Is this about the stories?”
With one question, their roles switched. While Wallflower looked at Sunset in anticipation, Sunset avoided her eyes. She focused once more on the garden, taking in the mystery and majesty of the creation before her. So many colors, twirling and swirling and churning together. A rainbow of radiance and beauty.
None of it matched what met her when she finally drew in a deep breath.
“No, Wallflower. I meant…” Sunset hated how fast her heart hammered. How shaky her breath came. How every muscle in her body tensed and coiled as she allowed the words to flow through her. “I meant that I, uh, like you. As in, uh… Romantically.”
Wallflower didn’t respond. Her expression seemed… blank. Unreadable.
Regardless, Sunset locked her eyes on Wallflower’s, willing herself to be strong. To be bold. To just do this, like she had done so many things before. She had faced might and magic far beyond her own several times over; she had redeemed herself from the literal demon she had become. Why was this so hard?
Maybe because she knew what was on the line. What “Neniu Grava” really meant.
“I know it’s… strange, isn’t it?” Sunset rubbed at her nape, laughing at her own foolishness. Both at the situation—and at how hard she was making it for herself. “Like, um, English class aside… I really only met you less than a month ago. I shouldn’t like you this much.” She took in another elusive breath, her fingers tracing the outline of her phone in her jeans pocket. Then, she turned back to her, the fire in her eyes burning its way down her face. “B-but I do. I didn’t mean for it to happen, but it did. It happened before the stories, but they definitely… helped.”
Sunset shook away the last bits of her anxiety, knowing that they had arrived at the crux of the matter. What had started all of this. Not just this conversation, but what had bridged the gap between them. If nothing else, she longed to convey that. To communicate just how much Wallflower’s writing had meant to her. What she had seen, and felt, and understood—perhaps for the first time in a long while—like nothing else.
“When I read your stories… I felt like I was reading about you. I mean, I was reading about myself too, of course,” Sunset clarified, “b-because I was in them, but… It was kind of like… Peeking into your mind, I guess? Learning how you see the world. The things you’ve felt. The things you hope for. And I suppose…” Sunset cursed under her breath. “Gah! There’s no sense in just dancing around it, is there?”
Slowly, gently, carefully, Sunset inched her hand towards Wallflower’s on the grass. The other girl had been silent this entire time, hooked on her every word, her expression betraying none of what Sunset knew must have been storming beneath the surface. She made no motion to resist as Sunset approached. Still, Sunset hesitated from touching her fully, resting her hand right beside Wallflower’s.
“I already knew I liked you, but from getting to know you this way…” Sunset heaved a sigh. “I knew I was falling for you. Because everything I learned about you—whether from reading your work, or reading to you, or just talking to you—told me that this was the right feeling…” Sunset’s eyes fell to the ground. “Even if it came at the wrong time.”
Silence.
Then, a quiet, almost trembling voice made her look up.
“Why…” Wallflower stared right into Sunset. “Why is it the wrong time?”
“W-well…” Sunset looked back down at their hands. Neither had moved. “Everything just happened with the Memory Stone, and you starting the Gardening Club, and meeting my friends… It’s a lot. It’s a lot all at once. I don’t want to rush you.”
“Oh, Sunset…” Wallflower burst into another round of giggles. “And here I thought you were reading my stories!”
Sunset looked back up. “Wh-what…?” Whether it was due to the adrenaline, her confusion, or something else, she couldn’t help but blurt, “Wh-what’s so funny?”
As she calmed down, Wallflower shook her head. “Oh, Sunset, it’s just—” She wiped another tear from her eye. Sunset hadn’t thought she was laughing that hard, but she’d been mistaken before. “If there’s one common thread in all of my stories…”
Wallflower reached over, closing the distance between them as she laid her hand down on top of the other girl’s.
“... It’s that Wallflower has always wanted to be with Sunset.”
The warmth of the smile that spread across Wallflower’s freckled cheeks was more than enough to send her entire garden into bloom during winter. Sunset knew that, if they were back in Equestria, Wallflower’s special talent would have been creating the most beautiful garden anypony had ever seen. In the right light, there was no end, nor limit, to the immense depth of her own magic.
In that moment, as Sunset intertwined her fingers with Wallflower’s own, Sunset felt something similar spark within her.
“Always, huh?” Sunset smirked. “So… You had a crush on me before all of this? Before we talked?”
“Before the Memory Stone.” Wallflower looked down at their connection. “I barely passed ninth-grade English because I was too busy staring at you.”
“Really?” Sunset scoffed. “Could’ve fooled me with all your talk about ‘in media res’ and ‘pacing’ and themes…”
Wallflower rolled her eyes. “Well, I didn’t learn that stuff in class. I learned most of that from writing online over the years.”
“Oh, so I’m not your first obsession?”
Wallflower blushed. “I-I wouldn’t call it an obsession…”
“I’m just teasing you,” Sunset assured with a smile. “But what I meant to ask is, this isn’t the first time you’ve written stories like that?”
Wallflower shook her head.
“Really, now?” Sunset scooted closer to her, then pulled her phone from her pocket with her free hand. “Mind linking me so we can read them?”
“What about the chapter you started to read earlier?”
Sunset chuckled, shaking her head as a wry grin sprung to her lips. “Oh, no. You’re not getting out of editing that easily.”
Though she huffed, Wallflower responded in kind with a teasing smile of her own. “Fine, fine. But when I have a chance to fix it, you’re reading that chapter next, okay?”
“Of course. Now…” Sunset nodded towards her phone. “Today’s selection, if you please, Iu Grava?”
Wallflower snorted. “Don’t call me th—wait.” She was the one to tilt her head this time. “Iu Grava? But that means—”
“I looked it up?”
“Well, yes, but it also means...” Wallflower trailed off, her cheeks darkening in realization.
“The opposite of ‘neniu grava’. Which is what you are, Wallflower.” Giving Wallflower’s hand a squeeze, Sunset added with kind eyes and a patient smile, “Even if you can’t see it right now, I hope you do someday.”
Holding their shared gaze for just one moment longer, Wallflower leaned against Sunset’s shoulder. “I think… maybe I already do.”