The Two Between

~~~~The Next Day~~~~

Oh, the thrill! She hadn’t been in the air, free to feel it flying past her, in so long she’d almost forgotten how liberating it was. Up in the clouds, sitting in the Canterlot chariot, she could almost lose her apprehensions for what awaited her in the town below. Almost. She had been a student of Princess Celestia, just as Twilight Sparkle was now. It wasn’t so impossible to think Sparkle had made this exact same trip once. Probably not under these circumstances though, Sunset couldn’t help thinking to herself, losing the exhilaration that was flight in a chariot at the thought of facing her one time foe. She forgave you though, Sunset she convinced herself. She won’t have gone back on her word.

And before she continue to overthink just what one scenario or another would mean, her transport began its quite rapid descent. Rooftops were whizzing past her eyes as said orbs darted this way and that to take in her new environment. It was not at all what she had been expecting. This… this was a peasant’s village! Since when did students to the Princess go into exile, educational or not, in towns built out of mud and hay and surrounded by farmland? Sunset could feel the mild panic rising in her chest; a panic she did not like in the slightest. But no matter how many mental control exercises she tried, the panic continued to spread. It carried her out of the chariot, ignored the guards completely, widened her eyes, and forced her to gaze around at her surroundings.

She had been expecting… well, she wasn’t quite sure what she had been expecting, but it certainly had not been an Earth pony settlement. How could she learn anything at all here? How had Sparkle? Was she really as brilliant as that; to teach herself magic in an Earth pony town? With all of the thoughts buzzing through her head, and her eyes seeing half-familiar faces all around her, she almost flashed past a particular set of six faces she would know anywhere. Oh, sweet Celestia help me, she thought, the panic rising to new heights. All of them?

It was like nothing had changed from those last few weeks of school. Minus the library being carved out of a tree of all things. They stood in a loose group by the entrance, chatting and laughing at the occasional joke, right in the same places they always were. Dash was leaning against the wall next to the door, as too-cool-for-school as ever and with the whipcord lean look of a born athlete. Right next to her, trying to keep herself small and failing miserably was Fluttershy, and by Celestia’s mane even her usual animal friends looked exactly the same. A little further from the door, Rarity arched a foreleg as gracefully as the one she’d known had lifted a hand and gave off a rich chuckle that echoed memories of many a fitting session for her latest fashion design.

Right next to her, Applejack stood with her hat and a quiet smile on her face and all the same unmovable solidness and dependability that practically rolled off her in waves. That left… “Hey, she’s here everypony!” came a bright, gasping, unmistakable voice. With a blur of speed, a pair of incomparably bright blue eyes filled her entire vision, and a smile fit to brighten up the entire world crossed the face of Pinkie Pie. If not for usually having had the same thing happen almost everyday for years, Sunset was sure she would have fallen back in shock.

“C’mon silly filly!” Pinkie couldn’t contain herself. “I know your name, and you know my name, and everypony else who’s here, but I still wanna hear what you sound like. It’s not fair for my other self to get to and not me!” Her voice came in the same rapidfire way as her counterpart. Utterly unstoppable. Heavens, she thought faintly. They could be twins.

“I… My name’s Sunset Shimmer, but you already knew that like you said,” Sunset answered, feeling the tightness in her chest beginning to loosen with the familiar antics of Pinkie. The sadness and pain she’d felt as they had parted back at Canterlot High slowly ebbed away from somewhere in the pit of her stomach, and for just a moment… she could feel a stab of hope.

“Oh, come closer, darling,” Rarity insisted, joining Pinkie and motioning for Sunset to come with her into the library. “Twilight never described you as a shy one, so why don’t you come on inside to see her. She’s working on something at the moment I believe.”

“If Princess Celestia and Twilight trust ya’ve gone good,” Applejack said, “I don’ see no reason ta not consider ya part o’ the family.” Sunset found herself almost carried into the library by four unexpectedly welcoming pairs of hooves (Fluttershy trying to stay out of the limelight and opting for opening the door for them). Similar didn’t even begin to describe these ponies. They’re identical! Sunset marveled. I… I haven’t lost them at all.

“Sheesh! Could you at least give the newbie some breathing room guys?” intoned the voice of Twilight’s pet, Spike. Or, wait, was he a dog or some similar creature here? No! That was ridiculous, he could speak after all. Sunset’s friends parted at Spike’s words, and she almost let her jaw fall down at the sight of a dragon. Young or not, what is Twilight Sparkle thinking? He breathes fire, and she lives in a bucking tree!

Nopony seemed bothered by this, least of all Spike himself, who only arched a single eyebrow upon seeing Sunset for the first time. “Huh, well, least your not as bland looking as Trixie.” He turned toward the only visible flight of stairs and yelled, “Twi, Whatshername’s here!” It was hard to ignore the fact that, dragon or not, he sounded like the most stereotypical little brother in history.

“Well, why didn’t you tell me sooner!” Twilight Sparkle’s voice blared down from some unknown room, followed briskly by the lavender unicorn herself. No, unicorn was wrong, she was… Sunset let her jaw truly hang open, and she felt she was more than justified. She’s… she’s… she’s an… alicorn!?

“Oh,” Twilight Sparkle giggled self-consciously. “Yeah, I’m still getting used to it myself, Sunset. The ride here was okay, right?” She sounded quietly self assured, a far cry from the righteousness of their last encounter or the nervous uncertainty of their first. Here, she was princess of all she surveyed, and it showed in the confidence with which she carried herself.

“You’re an alicorn,” Sunset could not help but state flatly. Somehow, saying it publicly made it easier to grasp. “I guess… never mind,” she trailed off, rubbing at her leg with a hoof. She had been a sight to behold with the power of Harmony surrounding her in the night sky outside the school, but as a normal pony (at least as normal as an alicorn could be) Sunset found her appearance to be nothing shy of beautiful. A natural beauty that fit her somehow, like she was meant to carry those wings, her confidence, and the lithe body of a pony.

“Hey… waitaminit…” Spike the dragon was scratching at his chin as she continued to absorb the monumental shock that was the sudden confirmation that all of her former ambitions had been possible, and that Twilight had not merely accomplished them… but had done so in apparent grand style. “You’re…. AHHH!” Spike’s sudden yell shocked her out of that thought as he scrambled behind Twilight with a scamper that was actually quite reminiscent of a dog’s. “Twilight, she’s… she’s…” He pointed a claw at her shakily, sending a sinking feeling into her gut…

Twilight’s voice came out firmly, hitting the room like a gavel against a lecturn. “She’s reformed, Spike. She wouldn’t have come to Princess Celestia if she hadn’t bettered herself. And she deserves a second chance.” A brief glow of bright violet magic dragged the dragon out from behind Twilight’s legs, and she fixed him with a stern look. “So keep it civil and apologize, or else no more comic books.”

“You don’t have to… I mean I wasn’t the best of ponies back then,” Sunset tried to intervene, but Twilight was apparently determined to have Spike behave according her standards. Spike nodded once, gulping and turning back toward her with a tentative smile. “So… um…” Sunset hesitated, rubbing at her foreleg again before offering it to him with a little smile. “I’m sorry I… treated you unkindly. Um… No hard feelings?”

The words came out incredibly lame to her ears, but they seemed to give Spike a little more life. He reached out and shook her hoof, the feeling of his scaly paw a little odd against her hoof.

“I guess. You’re not the worst villain we’ve forgiven around these parts.” While that was hardly praise, it seemed to cheer the little guy up quite a bit. “I mean, heck. You’re positively normal by comparison. At least you’re not-”

“Oh Fluttershy~!” a voice, positively dripping with smug arrogance and a self assurance that would have put even her at her worst to shame, drifted into the room as a… something that she could not immediately identify floated inside on a cloud of pink fluffy stuff. “Fluttershy, my dear! You promised we were going to meet for luncheon! Oh! And who is this?” He placed his lion’s paw upon his chest, his strange yellow eyes agleam.

Sunset would have thought the creature, despite its tone, to be a little on playful side had it not asked about her. It’s eyes hadn’t changed, and neither had its stance or, anything else. But a shiver ran down her spine nonetheless, and she swore there was a malignant magic on the words it spoke.

“Oh, my! I’m so sorry you had to come find me,” Fluttershy apologized to the amalgamation of animal parts, her voice smothered in the gentleness that Sunset had come to expect from her. “Twilight just need our help to welcome Sunset Shimmer into town.”

“Uh huh,” the beast replied. “Discord, Master of Chaos and Spirit of Disharmony at your service, Sunset Shimmer,” it continued, holding out a talon markedly sharper than Spike’s. For an instant, Sunset could have sworn she saw a gleam of speculation in the creature’s eye. Some combination of anticipation and sinister plotting.

“Oh no ya don’t!” Rainbow Dash darted in between Sunset and Discord’s outstretched limb. “Don’t be gettin’ any bright ideas. It’s gonna be hard enough without you messin’ with her head.”

“Discord!” Fluttershy perked up, taking Dash’s side. “Why would you play such a mean trick? I have a mind to not have our luncheon at all if Rainbow was right.” Sunset wasn’t exactly sure what the problem was, but to see Fluttershy actually take a stand… it must have been pretty serious.

“Ladies, ladies, I meant no harm,” the Discord creature answered, throwing up both forelimbs in innocence. “Besides, I don’t need to work my magic on her. There’s plenty in there without my help.”

“Alright you! That’s enough!” Rainbow bellowed at him, grabbing hold of one of those limbs and tugging on it with a fierce look on her face. “Fluttershy, I’m coming with you. Can’t be lettin’ this one of my sight for a while.”

“No, it’s okay Rainbow, I can handle him. Right?” Her last word was directed to Discord, and so thinly veiled a threat that Sunset had to blink twice before she was sure she wasn’t seeing somepony else. But when the three of them vanished out the door and Fluttershy wasn’t among the remaining ponies, she had to assume it had indeed been her.

Rarity tossed her mane elegantly, giving a decisive little sniff. “Well, I’m certainly glad somepony can handle him. Don’t mind Discord, darling. He’s dangerous, but we’ve got his number.” She arched an eyebrow at the doorway the trio had exited through, then gave a little tsk. “At any rate, my boutique is on the west side of town, and it’s impossible to miss.” She gave Sunset a cheerful, quiet smile. “Don’t hesitate to drop by if you need some help fitting in, dear. Goodness knows Twilight needed it.” The way she said that with a sly grin at Twilight, and the way Twilight just rolled her eyes and smiled sheepishly told Sunset it had to have been quite the scene. “I’ll be working on my newest designs for the big show in Manehatten. Ta Ta for now, darling!”

Rarity trotted out of the library with a graceful sweep of her much coiffed mane, with Applejack tilting her hat with a smile. “I’ve got a bucket fulla work myself, even though I hate to cut and run so quickly.” She eyeballed Pinkie Pie, who was scribbling something down on a fairly massive roll of parchment.

Pinkie just grinned at Applejack. “We’ll have our big party on Sunday. Tomorrow is the twins’ birthdays, and I’m committed to attend. Don’t worry, AJ - I’ll make sure you’re not too busy to come.” She winked cheekily and rolled up the parchment, pausing only to give Sunset a huge and fluffy hug that smelled oddly of strawberries. “Welcome to Ponyville, Sunset! I hope you’ll like it here as much as Canterlot.” Something about the way she’d said that…. something about how she’d phrased ‘Canterlot’ made Sunset stare after her for a moment as she bounced happily out the door. Could she have meant…. No, that would be silly. Even if it would be entirely in character for Pinkie Pie.

Applejack tilted her hat at Sunset with a smile of her own and trotted out. Just like Applejack to not need words to deliver the message she intended to give. For a brief, blush inducing moment, Sunset wondered what Big Macintosh might look like in this universe, but she banished the thought before it could form anything more than a moment of whimsy. The last thing she needed was to get tied up with a stallion on her first day back.

Of course, that left her alone… with Twilight Sparkle, the Alicorn Princess, and a whole lot of other confusing feelings. But she turned resolutely and put on her very best smile. She wasn’t going to let a little twinge get in the way of her learning… and it was so very like Celestia to put her in the hooves of living proof of her own hopes and dreams come true.

Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad, after all.

~~~~~~~~~

The swift sunset plunged the land into an inky purple darkness that settled like a thick blanket over the tiny town of Ponyville. Twilight had spent most of the past hours since Sunset’s arrival obsessing over the minutiae, as though she too was nervous to address the lessons that were to come. There had been the usual paperwork to sign (Sunset was expert in it, since the human world seemed to have an obsession with it), and a new room to move into with all of the various knick knacks and possessions she’d left behind all those years ago. It had been amazing to find her old posters and notebooks otherwise undisturbed in the chest of goods… and Twilight had also left a fairly impressive pile of scrolls carefully tucked into one of the nooks of her new room and had encouraged her to read them when she had spare moments. Mealtime was apparently pretty eclectic around the library, but Sunset was sure she could adjust.

Now with a full stomach of the dragon’s actually decent cooking and nothing pressing into her head or chest anymore, Sunset found herself able to actually relax a bit. She flopped down on her new bed, sighing at the softness of good Equestrian made down stuffing. She could make it. She would make it. And she’d have ponies around who would want to help her. How far a cry that was from her first stint as Princess Celestia’s student. But even if she was determined to be a better mare this time around, she still retained old habits: like reading before bed. And really, she couldn’t think of anything better to read than the scrolls Twilight had set aside for her.

They were all identical in style, each in the same pure white vellum bound by a red ribbon and a golden wax seal. The very first scroll, filed in Royal Canterlot Library style as was expected from Celestia’s student, was a set of instructions from Princess Celestia... ”...And I have an even more essential task for you to complete. Make some friends!” The words echoed through her head, a reminder of a meeting that now felt so very long ago, where Celestia had commanded her to do the very same thing… and in her arrogance, she’d dismissed it as being unimportant. One by one, as she drew down the scrolls and read through them, a pattern began to emerge. One of a pony not unlike herself, one obsessed with learning everything she could about magic but not understanding the value of friendship, or at least not at first. Each scroll was scented with a faint hint of maple and chalk dust.

It was definitely a different smell, but not unpleasant. In fact, Sunset found she actually enjoyed opening each scroll to be… Wait! Pay attention. The way she smells isn’t even important. Sunset harrumphed and rolled onto her stomach, tucking her hooves under her chest. She screwed up her eyes to focus on the words scrawled onto the page, forcing her brain to absorb the very real wisdom. Only, her brain seemed to not care about Twilight’s words as much as it did about the cute way she made ‘s’. “Arrrrgh! No!” she growled, planting her face into the parchment. It was delightfully crinkled, and Twilight Sparkle’s scent flooded up her nose. Some part of her nodded in extremely satisfied approval, the part previously interested only in reading quite effectively being stamped into non-existence. “Oh…” Sunset cooed to herself. “Is this what your mane would smell like?”

It was a slow sort of burn, one she didn’t immediately understand until old memories tickled at the back of her mind. She slowly closed her eyes and called to mind the sight of Twilight perched confidently and powerfully upon her staircase. That subtle smile, that blinding intelligence burning behind a pair of beautiful eyes. The memory of how when nopony else would have believed in her, she had done so without so much as a moment of hesitation… The candle burned low next to her bed as she shifted a little, pushing still vaguely unfamiliar hooves down between her legs and recalling an old shivery sensation. It was so unlike being human, so much more… intense as she felt the tip of her firm hoof find her little button and a gasp escaping her lips out into the parchment.

Almost without her conscious will, her hoof began to twirl… slowly, teasingly. She began jerking her hoof against her clit every so often, a small squeak escaping her lips each time and thoughts of Twilight flooding her mind’s eye. No… stop it… she’s going to be your teacher… Sunset’s critical mind urged in one last desperate gambit. Come on, get… it… cum…” Her hoof was circling her sweet spot more vigorously now, and while that was giving her so much to moan about, so much Twilight to imagine, she had to get into a better position. She rolled onto her back, spreading her hind legs and letting her sex scent mix tantalizingly with the Sparkle smell on the parchment.

It was going to be impossible to reign in her imagination at this point, so she simply gave into the wonderful sensations. It rolled through her like a wave of electric magic, sending her eyes closed again as she summoned up visions of Twilight again, unable to deny the attraction of the power she wielded. Not merely a unicorn, but an Alicorn, possessed of powers far beyond that of mere mortal ponies. She felt her hoof moving faster at the thought of it, the ripples of pleasure coming quicker with every stroke as her mind filled with visions of the princess atop her on the bed, pressing her lips to Sunset’s forcefully and grinding against her body. The sweet sound of her voice moaning in happiness in a perfect counterpoint to her own, the smell of her silky mane enveloping her…

Her hoof slipped down into her desperate, wet lips, and she thought of Twilight forcing her horn into her folds. She pulled her hoof in and out, muttering, begging for Twilight to taste her. Her second hoof joined the first, playing with her clit as she ground her hoof into her marehood harder and faster. The seconds of blissful pleasure mounted until both her body and mind gave in, and her hips bucked with the spasms of orgasm. She wanted to scream, but managed to keep her lips tight as she rode out her high… panting with spent exhilaration as the images of so domineering a Twilight faded.

The room had faded into a dim darkness that was broken only by a few faint rays of moonlight streaming through the window. A gentle warmth rested in her body, now loose and relaxed against the bedcovers, her breathing even and slow. Everything was quiet and cool, and she stared at the ceiling trying to wrestle with the conflicting and confusing thoughts that her little moment of pleasure had produced. What was it about the princess that created such a fierce... lust? It was inexplicable. She barely knew her, barely knew anything about her, and yet… yet those words in those letters that created just the barest glimpse was enough to grab hold of her heart and shake it firmly. As her breathing returned to normal, she carefully re-rolled the now much wrinkled and partially wet scroll and replaced it on the shelf gingerly. She turned toward her chest and focused for a moment, tugging a thick little book bound in golden yellow and fiery red silk out of it, rummaging a bottle of ink and a quill from the little desk in the room. She needed to think about this carefully, and she had found the best way to work her way through a problem was to make some good lists about it.

She hoped she had enough room in the journal for this one though.

~~~~~~

Morning in Ponyville shimmered, and Twilight was as glad as ever that Spike had gotten much better at fixing breakfast. Today, she couldn’t have any distractions from her primary job of taking up Sunset Shimmer’s education. Fortunately, the coffee smelled wonderful and the pancakes were sizzling nicely. One cup of Pony Joe later, and she felt ready to face the day. “Geeze, Twilight. Drink that a little slower, wouldya?” Spike muttered, looking just a little concerned as she downed the bitter beverage.

Twilight paid him no mind though, unrolling the list she’d constructed before bed last night and examining it thoroughly. Lets see. Best way to get to the heart of the matter is to trot her about town and expose her to the insanity of Ponyville. So. Cutie Mark Crusaders, Davenport, Sugarcube Corner… Oh! Granny Smith, of course. She tapped her chin with her hoof, descending deep into thought. Who else might help. Maybe I could get Zecora to rhyme at her for a while. Or even better, I’ll send a letter to Trixie. The thought of exposing Sunset Shimmer to Trixie was so incredibly amusing that she actually gave off a little giggle.

“What’s so funny?” Sunset asked cautiously, and Twilight snapped out of her study to blink up at the mare. She had to admit that Sunset was much better looking as a pony than a human. For starters, her mane was far more controlled and a lot less bushy, and it just kind of… fit better. It was hard to explain, but she liked it. Given how she was manipulating her fork as Spike laid down a plate of fresh pancakes in front of both of them, she was getting easily back into the swing of magic too.

Twilight shook the cobwebs from her head and gave off her best relaxed smile. “Just had a thought. There’s a particular unicorn who you really ought to meet. She had a counterpart back in the school, but here she’s…” Twilight waved her hoof airily. It was impossible to truly describe Trixie in comparison to the other universe. Actually, it was impossible to easily describe Trixie at all. “Well, unique. Anyway, we’re going to give you a little walk about town and introduce you to some of the important locals. See how much you’ve learned with our friends.”

To her credit, Sunset didn’t look much perturbed by that. Twilight had been worried she was going to be overly focused on the study of magic rather than the much more vital skills of friendship that Twilight was certain Celestia had sent her here to learn. “Princess? I don’t want to sound rude, but isn’t it difficult for you, as an alicorn, to live with Earth ponies in a town so… out of touch with magic?” Sunset cut in, once again interrupting Twilight’s woolgathering.

Twilight considered the… implications of that question for a few moments before slowly answering. “Well… I’ll admit, when I first came to Ponyville I wasn’t entirely enthusiastic about the idea. But this is more than just a town of Earth ponies, as I quickly came to learn.” She pressed her hooves together, taking a hearty bite of her breakfast before continuing. “There’s actually a pretty strong community of pegasi and unicorns here. Ponyville’s got a lot of hidden facets to it, especially given how close we are to the Everfree Forest.”

Twilight took another bite of the pancakes, wondering how much detail she should go into about what had been happening to the forest over the last few years and deciding that could wait for a later time. “But that’s all the more reason to show you around town.” She felt a cheery little grin cross her face, as a thought quickly occurred to her. “Besides, we’ll be able to handle a few errands in the process, and it’s always good to be efficient about these things!”

“I knew Ponyville was a sort of crossroads town, but I didn’t think it would have anything other than merchants living in it. Does the weather team do okay at least? I like the clear sky this morning, but are we just lucky?” Sunset’s voice was a touch uncertain as she glanced out the window, a forkful of syrupy pancake hanging just above her plate.

Twilight stifled a laugh as she mopped up the last of the syrup and devoured her treat with relish. “Cloudsdale sends new weather managers here to learn the ropes before sending them on to Manehatten and Baltimare. Our team needs to wrestle with the rogue weather from the Everfree, in addition to all of our other needs. The Apple Family demands the very best for their orchards, after all.”

“So, it’s just… amateurs?” Sunset replied, almost whimpering as she said it.

Twilight did laugh then, giggling brightly at the look of horror on Sunset’s face. “Oh, Celestia, no! Like I said, they send their managers to learn with our teams. Rainbow Dash actually has a doctorate from Cloudsdale Academy in advanced weather mechanics.” That had been a complete shock to Twilight when Dash had let it slip during a party a few years ago. Rainbow Dash - a doctorate! Oh what a world, that hath such wonders in it. “Trust me. They’ve got one of the best records in Equestria when it comes to good weather service.”

“So, that’s what Rainbow does here? Pretty impressive,” Sunset said, smiling at the thought of somepony as skilled as Rainbow taking care of the clouds. “I”m sorry for panicking there for a bit. You have no idea what it’s like in the other world where there is no weather control.” She gave off a little shudder of fear and shook her mane out. “Not fun.”

Twilight had to think it wouldn’t be. Rogue weather was a massive problem this close to the Everfree, and she couldn’t imagine how the human world managed without weather control. Then again, they did manage to have any number of other technical wonders, so perhaps that was a part of the tradeoff. Examining her empty plate, she blew out a breath. She was stalling. “Right. Well, I’m going to get another cup of coffee and go get my bags, and we’ll head out.” She hopped off her chair and gave Sunset a big smile. “We’ve got a long day ahead of us.”

~~~~~~

Sunset Shimmer was not a pony for dramatizing her own discomfort. She thought it was plain stupid to waste good energy exaggerating when one could just sit and rest for a bit instead. But, after walking around Ponyville for a day with Princess Twilight (she handled herself so… serenely), Sunset wanted nothing more than to lock herself in her room and puff out breaths like she had run several miles from hungry timberwolves. Well, maybe not breathe ridiculously, but she certainly felt a need to lock the door to her room.

She hadn’t met a bad soul in a single one of the town’s citizens, pegasi, unicorn, and Earth pony alike. In fact, all of them had been more than interested in making her feel part of the community, offering a free spa here or a bakers dozen of cupcakes there. Sunset knew the details of the Elements of Harmony unlike most ponies, but she had never seen a whole settlement live so completely with Harmony and simultaneously be completely unaware of it.

But at the same time, there were parts of Ponyville’s residents that made Sunset shiver with disgust. None of them were normal, and she was pretty certain a few were not only below her standards, but outright… vile. Aloe and Lotus (that’s what she thought their names were) were too close in appearance to not be sisters, but… Sunset knew enough about body language to know they didn’t just run their business together.

And true, Sunset knew she was looking at the most extreme scenario, but all of them seemed to have something wrong with them underneath their Harmony. She couldn’t make sense of it, and quite frankly, didn’t exactly want to try. You’re not really a shining example of goodness yourself, an unwelcome voice said.

“I don’t want to dislike them”, Sunset said aloud to herself. “And they aren’t all bad. I just…”

They’re not worthy of you, huh? the voice said. That’s pretty brazen.

“No… I, yes… they,” she stammered. “Why can’t I just like somepony despite their faults? she sighed defeatedly, resting her head on a pillow. “Or why can’t there at least be somepony who -”

“Sunset, are you okay in here?” Princess Twilight's voice cut through her thoughts, thick with concern and worry as it echoed through the library. Several thuds hit the floor by the door, and the sound of hooves clambering up the stairs followed. “Sunset?” the voice called again, and for a moment Sunset contemplated not answering it. The last thing she needed was… “Sunset, it’s okay. You did really well today.” Princess Twilight’s voice was soft through the door, almost gentle. “C’mon, I’d like to talk.”

“About what? Can’t I just think a bit to myself if I did alright?” Sunset asked tentatively, realizing before even all the words had left her mouth that it wouldn’t fly.

There was a distinct pause beyond the door, then a much more firm tone. “Sunset, you know what I want to talk about. But if you really want me to leave you alone…” There was a veiled sort of threat there. Princess Twilight would probably leave her alone if she demanded it, but that wouldn’t be the end of the conversation. Not by a longshot.

Sunset debated it with herself for only a few seconds. It would be better to get it out of the way. Not let things stew. She knew how badly that usually ended. She got up off her bed, eased her way to the door, and swung it open. “Yeah… what’d I screw up on?” she asked, looking rather purposefully into the floorboards.

Princess Twilight stood there with an odd sort of look. Something between pride and frustration. “You did really well all day, but there were times when it looked like you just couldn’t wait to get away from some ponies.” The princess somehow slipped past her, obviously not intending to get shut out of the conversation by a door in her face. “You looked so… angry and scared sometimes. I was worried for you.” There was no sign of anger or mistrust in her. Only genuine, heartfelt concern.

“Well, you don’t have to worry about me being angry,” Sunset replied, trying alleviate any anxiety she might have been causing the princess. “I mean, those spa ponies are sisters, right?”

Princess Twilight blinked at her for a moment before speaking tentatively. “Well, yes. They’re twins, actually, though I honestly don’t know much about them beyond that. Rarity knows them better than I do.”

“Blegh! You do see the way they look at each other?” Sunset couldn’t help but mention.

Princess Twilight stared at her for another moment, and Sunset could have sworn she could see the tiny gears turning over in her mind as she did so. “I… what?” she half blurted, her eyebrows retreating up into her mane. “What in the name of Star Swirl’s beard are you talking about?”

“Are… you can’t be serious?” Sunset replied flatly, and when Princess Twilight only barely nodded in response, she nearly facehooved before continuing on, “Well they obviously… you know… Okay, if you’ve got siblings, you love them, but you’re not attracted to them! That’s for special someponies who are powerful, and confident. Like you… You’re a princess, and you were a successful student to Princess Celestia, and you’re always so calm and collected… and… I’m… I like that a lot.”

The tension inside her faded a little as she got into it, a little voice in the back of her head starting to yell… but being drowned out by the rest of her mind. “I mean, seriously! Look at you!” Sunset brandished her hooves at Princess Twilight, feeling the words carrying her away. “You’re practically perfect! What am I supposed to do about that? How can I live up to that!? Every time you were talking today, you were so intelligent and witty, and everypony in town absolutely loves you! Absolutely nothing got to you, not even those annoying little fillies with the capes!” She stomped her hooves against the ground, not noticing the awkward silence the princess had fallen into. “I mean, how do you do that? Not even mentioning that tight flank, those gorgeous eyes, that beautiful laugh, your graceful walk, that sexy way you smile-”

Sunset stopped midword as she realized what she’d been saying. “I… um…” Sunset stumbled over the words, Princess Twilight’s eyes had gone as wide as saucer plates, and she looked just as lost for words. Panic began to take over as the weight of what she’d been saying hit her like a proverbial ton of bricks. I need to get out of here. Fast! The door. No. Window. No! TELEPORT! Sunset concentrated her power into her horn and felt the world spin around her for a fraction of a second before feeling the cool earth of the lawn outside the library.

She wanted to be able to go back in time, clamp her hooves over her mouth. Stop herself from looking like a complete idiot. She knew things had been too good to be true. Of course something had to go wrong. Why couldn’t you have kept your mouth shut! She wanted to cry, vent a little. If she had kept herself under control, she might still have had a shot of a normal relationship with the princess. But even that was down the drain now.

Or… not. It was a longshot; no, more than a longshot. It was so farfetched, Sunset knew she would probably end up only making her situation worse. But really, after so stupidly incinerating her chances, she wasn’t sure her situation could get any worse. Please know about this stuff, please for the love of Celestia, everything else fits, so this has to… She tore off away from the library in the direction of the one shop she and Princess Twilight had not stopped by during their jaunt through town: Carousel Boutique.

~~~~~

Twilight stared at the empty space where a nearly raving Sunset Shimmer had stood mere moments before. It took her a few minutes to fully absorb the potential meaning of the words that had poured out of her mouth, and even now Twilight was having a tough time deciding if she was either reading too far into it, or… “Spike!” she called out, turning on her rear hoof and quickly trotting down the stairs. “I need you to send a letter to Celestia for me in a few minutes!”

There was nopony else in the world she could trust with this sort of deficiency in her education, after all.