Sunset: Siren of the Equine River

by Feather Flyer

Chapters

Savior
Straightening things out
Everything changes in one night
Of books and truth(Music)
Back to Equestria(Music)
Rule No.1: Avoid water
Siren 101
Three stories at once
Miss you, baby
Fake Affairs, Schemes, and Broken Hearts
Lights! Camera! Jacket?!(Music)
Twilight the animatronic(Music)
Change of the tide(Unscripted w/ Music)
Song of Three
Tricks up her sleeves(NOW WITH MUSIC)
Reunite(Unscripted w/ music)
Regret-Part 1(Unscripted w/ music)
Regret-Part 2
Moonlit Night(Music)
Siren Song(Music)
REM sleep(Music)
Plans to be made(Unscripted)
Motives unseen
Thesis, theories, and calculations - Part 1
Thesis, theories, and Calculations - Part 2(Music)
Adagio v.2.0...that's her, right?
Thoughts of princesses
Adagio gets chased(Unscripted)
Poisonous(Unscripted)
Uncertainty(Unscripted)
Dangerous Waters
Finale's Beginning
Broken Hearts(Unscripted w/ Music)
Midnight Blue: Discorded Twilight
Main 6 versus the Sirens
Chaos of the night
A kiss
White Roses - Epilogue(Music)

Savior

Talking, yelling, shouting, crying, mumbling, cursing...

That's everything Twilight hears before she can open her eyes.

Is she alive?

That sounded like Pinkamena.

I don't know, but whatever we do, don't upset the monster.

That voice had to Applejack's.

There were many voices around her that she did not recognize. Twilight was awake but then again maybe she was asleep. Her eyes would not open. Where was she? What were all these people doing around her? What monster was Applejack talking about?

Slowly, she felt the hazy feeling of heaviness lift up from her eyelids and she opened them. The people around her gasped as she blinked and rubbed her eyes. Twilight slowly sat up. She felt exhausted and soaking wet, yet she was warm. When her vision cleared she saw her friends standing away from her a distance and the random people she heard.

It was dark outside and it seemed the whole town was there crowded around her. She turned her head stiffly toward the water. The Equine River...

Then she remembered.

"Where's Sunset?" Twilight asked her friends hoarsely. Her throat felt gritty with salt.

"Don't...move..." Rainbow Dash hissed.

She pointed a finger at Twilight's legs.

Twilight felt something slither across her lap and looked down. Bright yellow scales on a serpent-like creature were moving across her. The people there screamed and Twilight's friends shrieked her name. But Twilight wasn't afraid. She felt the creature unwrap itself from around her and it uncoiled before her.

It was magnificent. A beautiful monster with wings folded at its side. With a yellow body and wild mane of red and yellow, it shined in the moonlight. It had a gentle face, all except for the long scar trailing over its left eye. Lovely green eyes peered back at Twilight and she smiled.

This was no enemy.

"Sunset..." she whispered.

Twilight stretched her arms out for. The Siren moved forward and placed it's muzzle in her hands. Twilight pressed her nose against the creature's nose and closed her eyes. A sudden beam of light shot up from the Siren and everyone flinched. The massive claws became small arms, the long body shrank to that of a short waist, and the tail became legs. The large muzzle of the Siren transformed into the soft featured face of Sunset Shimmer.

Her hoodie, shirt and jeans reappeared, but in the same state they had been before. The back of her sweater was ripped and she was soaked all over.

Now holding Sunset's face close to hers, Twilight opened her eyes and was greeted by a smiling girl. Full of happiness and overwhelming love, Twilight leaned forward and kissed her. Everything around them disintegrated in their minds as they felt the warm sensation of emotion travel through them.

The people there were shocked and most of all, the Main 5, ~~Brian~~ Flash Sentry, and Celestia, who stood off to the side watching. Sunset took Twilight's hands into her own as she felt her heart beat with pure love. Twilight was hers. She was hers now.

Twilight broke away from the small kiss and hugged her. Sunset had saved her and she knew it.

And she loved her for it.

***

This...This was not how things were supposed to turn out.

Celestia stood beside a tree as she watched her daughter and Twilight kiss. How did this happen? Nothing was making any sense. Why was Twilight so determined to come here as to defy her and disappear? How did Sunset become a Siren? All the shards of their necklaces were gathered and collected. They lay in the artifact chamber back in Equestria, next to the case that held the vial of dark magic.

How could there have been a shard left?

Celestia bit her lip. She had sent Sunset Shimmer here to get away from all the magic so she could be safe and live a life without it. It seems that despite her efforts, magic has come to her daughter another way.

Damn it.

She shouldn't have erased the Equestrian gene in Sunset. But if she didn't, Sunset would still have had magic when she got here. But now because she had no magic in her at all, when she grabbed the red shard, her body instantly took its power. Sunset Shimmer was now a Siren, one of the worst creatures to exist.

This was not good.

Celestia sighed. There had to be a way she could get rid of the shard...What did Twilight say about the Sirens that were there before? That they wore necklaces? If Celestia could destroy the necklace--

Wait.

Sunset wore none.

This wasn't good. Breaking the necklace was the only solution she knew to ridding a Siren's powers. It had been so long ago that Starswirl the Bearded had banished the previous Sirens that she couldn't remember if there was anything he said that could break the spell.

Celestia frowned.

She had no choice but to find a way somehow.

The ruler of Equestria stepped away from the tree and walked down toward the crowd. She pushed people aside to get to the front. When they were in view, she called their names.

"Twilight, Sunset."

The two girls turned to see the tall woman standing before them.

"Principal Celestia?" Sunset mumbled.

She shook her head.

"No, Sunset. It's me, your mother," she said gently.

The girl's eyes grew wide and she stood up. "Is it really? Princess Celestia..?"

Celestia embraced Sunset and sighed. "It's me."

Twilight watched with rigid fear. Oh no. It was princess Celestia! How did she get here? A month hadn't even passed for the portal to open. But wait...Sunset set off the universe's balance when she changed into a Siren. When that happened, the mirror probably opened and...

Either way, it didn't work to her advantage.

Twilight was afraid of what Celestia would say. She could be dethroned, or banned from Canterlot, or even worse, have her Equestrian gene taken away as well. The girl trembled as she watched Sunset and Celestia hug.

Twilight turned away.

No, this is a dream.

A terrible dream...

When she turned her head back, Celestia was looking dead at her.

Author's Note

Hello! Part two of my Sunlight series has been released as promised. I hope you liked this first chapter.

Straightening things out

Twilight, Celestia, Sunset, Flash and the Main 6 end up sitting in Sunset's living room an hour later. There is a lot of tension in the air and it affects everyone there. Still tired and exhausted from the crazy events that unfolded, Sunset leaned against Twilight. Twilight looked at the floor as she felt Celestia's eyes fall upon her.

"We need an explanation," Rainbow Dash said outright. "Ever since Sunset magically got a scar on her face, she turned all psycho. Then when Twilight came around this whole big accident happened and Sunset was hospitalized. Now this? Sunset was doing whatever that was in the water and turned into a raging serpent, and now we find out that you two have a thing for one another and that Principal Celestia is Sunset's mom?!?!"

"S-She's not the principal. She's the princess of Equestria," Sunset clarified.

"Now we got TWO princesses from some far off world?! What is going on here?!" Rainbow cried.

Celestia glanced at Twilight, who was staring down at the floor still. "Twilight will be able to explain everything."

Damn it.

Twilight bit her lip. She had not told her friends anything that happened. They were completely clueless. It was easy to see how everything seemed so random and sudden to the eyes of those without the knowledge of knowing.

"W-Well, you see..." she began shakily.

She told them about the night that started it all and the Main 5 and ~~Brian~~ Flash Sentry were all immediately transfixed.(Like so many of my dear readers! :twilightsmile: )

Twilight told them of how she felt upset about the whole thing and, rather fearfully, how she went through Celestia's things to learn more about Sunset and find a way to get to that world. Celestia listened with her mouth pinched shut. All these things she heard Twilight say that broke laws in Equestria stunned her. She wasn't sure what to think.

Twilight had been her star student and was awarded the position of princesshood. With all these illegal acts, she should be dethroned immediately.

Twilight continued to tell them about the accident in the bathroom and what happened to Sunset mentally. She also told them that Sunset had roughed her up a little(which made Sunset feel very uncomfortable), and how they made amends right after that. The story of what went on between them continued through the incident of Sunset's first therapy session to the walk in the park to the late night conversation they had. Even though two of those things she told them the Main 5 and Flash were aware of, it was more for Celestia.

Twilight paused a second and decided to tell them of the fight that never happened, which shocked everyone. Twilight had turned back time and saved Sunset from something she'd deeply regret.

When Twilight finished everyone was silent.

Flash leaned against the wall and stared at the ceiling in thought. Rarity just sat with her mouth open and Applejack and Rainbow pinched themselves. Was this for real?

"So...Sunset's not evil anymore..?" Pinkamena asked slowly.

Twilight smiled. "No, Pinkie. She's good."

The girl stared before a smile etched itself across her face. Almost immediately her hair puffed up into its curly state and her skin tone lightened. Pinkie Pie was back.

Fluttershy cleared her throat a little and asked," So, uh, how did you two...you know...get together?"

Sunset and Twilight were speechless. Embarrassment was as plain as day on their faces. Sunset coughed uncomfortably.

"Uhhhhh..." she mumbled. "It just happened..?"

"Mmm hmm," Applejack snorted. She didn't believe that.

"Is there something wrong with that?" Sunset muttered.

Applejack shrugged. "Just doesn't sit with me."

Celestia cleared her throat and everyone turned to her.

Twilight felt scared and afraid.

"I think Twilight and I need to have a talk. Where can we go to discuss this matter privately," she said flatly.

"...The upstairs bedroom...Twilight can show you where it is..." Sunset whispered.

Celestia nodded and stood up. Twilight feebly got up and led the way upstairs. This wasn't going to be good.

***

Twilight and Celestia stood before each other. No words were being exchanged. It was just all tension.

"Twilight," Celestia said.

"Y-Yes, princess Celestia?" Twilight whispered hoarsely.

"What were you thinking?" she asked. "What were you thinking to go as far as defy me?"

Twilight stood still looking at the floor. She didn't answer.

"I need an answer, Twilight. Why did you do it?"

Twilight's throat went dry. She wanted to answer her but she couldn't.

Why?

Because she herself didn't know the answer.

Why had she done the things she did? I mean, it would be easy to say that she was upset and wanted to make things right, but somehow that wasn't true. Going over to the human world wasn't because she wanted to settle things. There was something else...Something she wasn't processing. She was drawn here by an invisible force.

And it had nothing to do with being a good person.

Was it just Sunset Shimmer herself?

Was she just the whole reason of her wanting to cross through the sporadic portal, risk dethronement, lose her life, everything?

But that couldn't be it, could it?

Twilight had no feelings for her before she came across that book.

If she were the sun and her the moon...

Seeing as Twilight didn't have an answer Celestia sighed. "Just tell me this. You knew that what you were doing would cause a problem and yet you did it anyway. Did you do this because you thought my action was unjust?"

Twilight looked up at the princess. Celestia wasn't angry. She was just disappointed. All the fear rushed out of her and was replaced by guilt.

"Yes," she answered.

It was the only answer that seemed to fit.

Celestia nodded. "I see..."

She ran a hand through her hair.

"If you thought you were to be dethroned, you don't have to worry about it. I just need you to come back to Equestria and make it so everyone knows you're fine. People make mistakes. If I dethroned you, it would be hypocritical of me to do so. I had my own sister sent off to the moon for a thousand years and never had her denounced.

"Just understand that...I forgive you."

Twilight was frozen to the floor. She was forgiven. After all the problems she might have caused her, she was forgiven.

Princess Celestia smiled lopsidedly and Twilight returned it.

They were on good terms again.

That was better than anything.

Author's Note

No words said, peeps.

Everything changes in one night

A shiver rushed over her spine, a tingling sensation ran over her body.

The necklace. She could feel it.

Standing in the cool night air, she let the feeling of its distant power make her blood rush. It was there, the magic of the Siren necklace, but it was weak. Peering over Canterlot, she tried to source where it was coming from.

Adagio Dazzle stood on a hill overlooking the town along with her two sisters. Aria closed her eyes and sighed.

"Do you feel it?" Adagio asked her.

Aria nodded and kept her eyes closed contently.

Sonata smiled happily and jumped up and down. "There's magic! I feel it! It's here!"

Adagio smirked and scanned the place around them. "Yes...And not only is it magic...it's Siren magic."

Aria clucked her tongue. She opened her eyes and sneered. "At last we can get our magic back. All we have to do is find it and take back our powers. I'm tired of living without power."

Adagio nodded. "Yes, I feel the same way."

Aria took a step down the hill. "Lets go find it."

The leader stopped her from continuing.

"Not now, Aria. We'll start first thing tomorrow. It's best we get rested up before we proceed to find the source of Siren magic. Can you feel how weak it is? There's no telling where it could be. And since we no longer have power, our judgment of where it could be may be off. Just wait. Until tomorrow, girls...

"Until tomorrow..."

Adagio turned away and headed down the other side of the hill away from Canterlot. Sonata followed after her gaily and Aria hesitated. She glanced back at the town and squinted.

Its presence was too good to ignore, but Adagio was right.

She licked her lips and turned to follow the two other girls. They will have their power back soon and it will be glorious.

***

Twilight and Celestia walked downstairs only to find the Main 5 harassing Sunset. Flash just stood to the side watching. To Twilight it seemed that they were getting along now that they knew the whole story. Pinkie Pie bounced around Sunset making kissy faces.

"Aw, you and Twili are a couple!" she gushed.

Sunset looked like she wanted to punch her. "Yeah, yeah..."

Pinkie Pie kept bouncing around as the others teased her.

"I knew so, too! That day in the park I couldn't ignore it. You were looking at Twilight like she was the world to you, darling!" Rarity said.

Sunset sputtered. Of course Rarity would see that! Her eye for detail was unmistakably sharp. "Y-You know, it's pretty late. Don't you guys feel tired? I know I do. Yawn! Ok, get out!"

Sunset shooed them out her front door and locked it. She slumped against the door and noticed Twilight and Celestia watching from the stairs. Sunset paused. From the look of Twilight's content face nothing terrible happened. But she still remained cautious. Celestia wasn't easy to read expression wise.

Twilight skipped down the rest of the steps and hugged Sunset. "It's alright. There's nothing to be tense about."

Sunset sighed and returned the hug still looking at her foster mother.

Celestia slowly stepped down and crossed her arms. "Twilight and I have to return to Equestria for a while. With her absence, the people of Equestria have lost their minds. Once the commotion is settled, we will return and deal with this new circumstance."

Sunset blinked.

"What will I do while you two are gone?"

The ruler tilted her head. "Just stay put. If anything happens, make sure you contact us. I believe you all message one another through the friendship journals?"

Twilight turned and nodded.

The girl with the flaming hair was not at all content with this answer. She was a Siren now. What if something drastic were to happen?

"Would there be...by any chance, a way for me to come with you?"

Celestia hesitated. This was not an expected question. She looked at her and shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but now that you're a Siren, I can't replace your Equestrian gene. If I were to lift the spell I cast upon the portal to allow you entrance to Equestria, you'd come out on the other side as a monster to the eyes of the ponies. It's just too risky."

Sunset nodded slowly.

"When will you two leave?"

"I'm thinking tomorrow morning. The sudden surge of power you caused here set off a Magical Imbalance. This world was never meant to have magic. That is the reason why the portal went sporadic in the first place. Now, since you caused another imbalance, the portal should be open for at least a day because it reversed the effects of the first imbalance..."

Celestia sighed and scratched her head.

"It's confusing to me, this illogical yet logical explanation for things..."

Sunset understood what she meant though, since she was her student before. The portal would be open for some time due to the power surge. As for the whole science behind it opening, lets just say it's like fighting fire with fire.

She looked at the girl who was still in her arms. Twilight looked very relieved about everything. She buried her face into the crook of the older girl's neck.

"I was so worried when I saw it was you in the river. When I dove in and found you all this weird stuff started happening and I got so scared..."

Sunset rested her chin on the girl's head.

"It's ok. I'm fine now."

Celestia cleared her throat and the two of them separated awkwardly.

"No, no. You two were ok. It's just I never imagined this happening. This odd couple of yours," the ruler said.

The two of them glanced at each other. They, too, didn't see either of them being together. Celestia stretched her arms and yawned.

"Well, I need to be back in Equestria before my subjects think I vanished. I'll let them know you're alright, Twilight."

Sunset moved from the door and the woman opened it. The cool night air rushed in and made them shiver. They said their goodbyes and closed the door, leaving just Twilight and Sunset alone in the house.

Author's Note

No, they aren't about to do anything so don't get your hopes up. Nasty people...

Of books and truth(Music)

Author's Note

So, me and my 'soulmate' were having an 'argument' over PM and it went on forever! It was about one thing and then it became about her being on drugs, and then Nicholas Cage got involved, and then I accused her of cheating on me with a moose blah blah blah. It was really bizarre. I lost, too.

That 'argument' of ours actually inspired this chapter so enjoy.

Of books and truth(Music)

Sunset grimaced as she looked in the mirror at her back. It was bruised somewhat. Those wings were pretty cool but they left some massive markings of red skin. She touched her skin with her finger and regretted it. It stung like crazy. Biting her lip, she rummaged around for some ointment in the bathroom cabinet.

It had been a long night and she was tired. DEAD TIRED.

She found the ointment and unscrewed the cap.

Damned thoughts! That's what caused this whole thing! She was being perverted and now she got a bruised back...But then again, if she hadn't thought that way, she wouldn't have gone running and fallen into the Equine River. If that didn't happen, she would have never found the shard and caused a wacky light show. And then Twilight wouldn't have gone in after her and she wouldn't have been able to save her...

Then they wouldn't have kissed.

Sunset sighed. There were pros and cons to the whole thing, probably more cons than anything, but she got Twilight out of it. Sunset reached back to apply the medicine and found that it was too awkward to do it. Her arms didn't bend backward like a horse's. She sniffed. This sucked.

She kept at it, which was pretty stupid. When she did get some on her back she stung the crap out of herself. A curse word flew out of her mouth faster than she could think about it.

She threw the ointment onto the counter. Screw it. She'll be able to tough through the pain. Sunset bent over the sink and turned the faucet on. Splashing water on her face, she felt better. Sunset dried her face and walked out the bathroom into her room. Twilight sat on the bed reading a book she found vaguely familiar.

"What book are you reading?"

Twilight took a second to look up as she scanned the page. "If she were the sun and her the moon.

Sunset paused. Wait a minute...

"The book about Red Rose and Blue Belle?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes. Have you read this before?"

Sunset rolled her eyes. "I tried to."

The princess tilted her head quizzically. "How come you didn't finish it?"

Sunset crawled in bed beside her.

"I just didn't like it..."

Her face was blushing as she recalled the afternoon she found it. Her thoughts had went crazy then and she denied any feelings for Twilight. She had thought it random that she was thinking of her. But she had to admit, Blue Belle did remind her of the girl.

"Why are you blushing?" Twilight asked.

"I'm not blushing," she told her and pulled the covers up over her face.

Twilight looked at her knowingly.

"Yes, you are. You're covering your face. Are you blushing because you actually read this book all the way through and don't want to admit it?"

"No! I didn't read the stupid book all the way. Only the prologue, ok?" Sunset grumbled.

Sunset had felt so warm thinking about Twilight that afternoon. It was the first time she ever felt fuzzy inside thinking about someone. She couldn't believe that she was in a relationship with Twilight right now...Thoughts about the times she would daydream of her beloved came into her mind and her face reddened some more.

This only made Twilight think that Sunset was lying about the book.

"You read it and you loved it, didn't you. Your face is getting redder by the second."

"How can you even tell if all I'm doing is blushing?" Sunset snapped crankily.

Twilight smiled. "Because no one gets that flustered over a book!"

"OH MY GOD," Sunset howled.

She turned over in the bed and covered her ears. This girl and that dumb book! She wasn't achieving anything by talking about it. She just wanted to go to sleep...

Twilight chuckled and leaned over to lay on Sunset's shoulder.

"It's ok to admit it. Romance stories are nice to read every once in a while. If you're afraid it'll make you look like a softie, I'm not judging."

OH MY GOD!

What in the world?! How is this conversation even existing?! Sunset was exhausted and a bit aggravated about the whole thing. She had a long night and wanted to sleep. But with Twilight teasing her it was impossible.

"I'm not a softie... she grumbled.

She felt a kiss planted on her cheek and she smiled dreamily. Sunset glanced back at Twilight, who raised an eyebrow.

"Sure..."

"Whatever," Sunset said as she turned to snuggle beside the girl. "You get on my nerves."

Twilight yawned and shifted.

"What a nice thing to say. I was expecting more of an 'I Love You'."

"No, because then I'd be a softie," Sunset whispered as she buried her face into Twilight's hair.

Twilight just rolled her eyes and sighed. Slowly, sleep crept up on them and they rested after a night full of drama and strange events. The book Twilight had laid on the table beside the bed. Little did they know that it was that story that brung them together.

*I know this may be a bad chapter but I got really distracted and I was rushing to get this done. I'm sorry.*

Back to Equestria(Music)

Author's Note

Ok, because the last chapter was, in my opinion, bad, I'm making this one better.

Back to Equestria(Music)

Running toward the portal, the two girls found themselves out of breath. It was the next morning and they were still a little sleepy from everything the night before. At the base of the Horse Statue in front of CHS, princess Celestia stood there waiting. She watched the two of them run up to her and greeted them.

"Have a nice sleep?"

"Somewhat," Sunset told her.

Twilight clutched the saddle bag she had by her side and sighed. Surely it would be a mess when she would go over to Equestria. Her friends would be upset with her more than likely and her people would demand an explanation. Students walked around them into the school. Some of them pointed at Sunset and talked loudly to their friends.

Sunset groaned. Practically the whole town had been there to see the phenomenon.

Celestia put her hand through the statue's side, making it look like a magic trick. "Come on, Twilight. The portal's open. When everything in Equestria calms down, we'll return to see what we can do in Sunset's case."

The girl nodded and turned to Sunset. The fiery haired girl stood there looking oddly at them. It hurt her to see that Twilight was leaving. Even the fact that Celestia had to go hurt. In just one night, she felt closer to her mother and finally had someone she could share a lifetime with. And in just a few short hours later, they had to go.

She reached for Twilight's hand and grasped it. Looking into her eyes, she could see Twilight felt the same way. They stared at each other for a long time. What was there to say? Neither of them had words. Somehow, it felt like they would be torn away from each other.

But that can't happen, right?

They were only together for one night. It was only natural for them to feel this way. Nothing bad would happen...

Sunset just let go of her hand and smiled.

"See you, Blue Belle."

Twilight was relieved at this invitation to be happy instead of anxious. Just seeing the smile made her feel a lot more relaxed.

"Same to you, Red Rose."

She turned to follow Celestia in through the portal. Just as she crossed into Equestria she caught a glimpse of Sunset's face looking at her longingly. She closed her eyes. It was alright. Nothing would happen. When she felt herself transform, she opened her eyes again and saw that she was in the library back in Equestria.

"Twilight!"

Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy swarmed her and hugged her.

"We missed you!" Rarity said.

"You should've told us you were going over there to sort out a mess!" Pinkie Pie squeaked.

Rainbow Dash flew over them.

"Princess Celestia told us the whole thing. You could've just told us that there was another bad guy to tackle over there."

Twilight glanced at the ruler, who winked. This made her feel better. Celestia had made up a story to save her from any embarrassment and shame. She felt happy to be back home. Glancing down at her hoof, she held a small locket. Inside were the pictures of Sunset's parents. She was given it when Sunset took hold of her hand.

This locket, now fixed, was something she knew was very special to Sunset. And Twilight knew that she was special to her.

***

Adagio, Sonata, and Aria walked away from the ratty place they called home. It was an old place abandoned years ago. Walking toward Canterlot, they tried to track down the weak signal of the Siren magic. It was difficult with it being so feeble and them not having their magic. After a while, Aria became annoyed.

"We should've gone out the night before. This would've probably been easier."

The three of them were in Canterlot's market square.

"Aria, you know why we couldn't. It wouldn't have made this easier," Adagio said to her. She sat down at a table in front of a restaurant. Aria sat down across fro her and sighed.

"How do we even know it's in Canterlot? The power level is so low I can hardly sense it," Aria mumbled.

"It has to be. If it's from the necklaces there's no way it could have traveled out of this place," Adagio told her.

She watched Sonata bounce around joyfully looking at all the fruits and vegetable stands. That girl could be as springy as a rabbit sometimes.

"This is ridiculous. When they broke, we should have just picked them up and taken them. Then, we could find some way to restore its power," the Aria said.

"How? How would we have been able to restore its power? Gluing it back together isn't a solution to everything."

"That's not what I meant! I know glue doesn't help. It's just so frustrating--"

Aria paused. She studied the leader. Adagio was still watching Sonata looking at food. There was something odd about her. She wasn't at all hype about this like she was. Like she was distracted, thinking of something else that occupied the space in her mind.

"Why are you so calm about the whole thing?" she asked.

Adagio looked back at Aria and frowned.

"I've been thinking...Why is it that we feel the magic now and not before? Why is it that it suddenly decides to show itself, this magic? Something must've happened to make it so...But what?"

Aria blinked. This was true. She hadn't thought of it like that. Why was this magic just now coming up?

"I...don't know..."

Adagio shifted in her seat and tapped her fingers on the table's surface, humming in thought. Sonata came over smiling brightly and showed them the free taco sample she got from one of the stands.

"It's so delicious! You have to try some!"

Sonata stuffed her face with the yummy taco and licked her fingers. "MMMMMMM!"

Aria frowned and scoffed. "Tacos? Really, Sonata? Tacos??"

They started arguing and Adagio ignored them. She had an idea why magic sprouted out of no where. But she wasn't certain...She needed more time to think.

Rule No.1: Avoid water

Author's Note

Sorry, peeps! This chapter was supposed to have been out yesterday. I'm sorry. Also, today is a Snow Day! I have no school! Expect LOTS of chapters!

Rule No.1: Avoid water

Sunset had been talked about all day. People wouldn't stop asking her the same questions.

"Are you a she demon?"

"No."

"Are you some kind of mermaid?"

"No."

"You're a water snake!"

"I wouldn't say that necessarily..."

"Are you and Twilight together?"

"...Look it up."

See? These questions have been asked more than a dozen times. Now, it was time for P.E. and today, it was swimming. Sunset felt abandoned. It was bad enough she felt sad that Twilight had to go, but now people were treating her like some kind of circus freak, pointing at her and talking loudly like she couldn't hear the words they said.

She stood on the sidelines in her CHS uniform swimwear. It was a blue one piece with yellow stripes on the sides. Right on her chest was a horseshoe with a "W" behind it. Go Wondercolts...If they'd ever get back together. Sunset felt guilty every time she wore her swimwear. It reminded her of the soccer team she destroyed eight months ago.

But it should be ok. Rainbow Dash and Spitfire had a meeting with the former soccer players and will go to Principal Celestia to get the club running again by the following week. No one really blames her anymore since she's become better. However, she still has a hater.

Trixie Lulamoon.

From what Sunset heard from Twilight about the fight that never happened, she steered clear of her. As far as her not getting into an argument with her, that was very slim. Sunset had a smart mouth and she wasn't afraid to shoot back at someone. She couldn't help it now. Back when she was the queen, it was necessary to have a sharp tongue.

Also it had to do with her pride, which was still high and showing.

Lyra, Octavia, Vinyl, and Bon Bon stood beside Sunset as the boys swam.

"Is it true?" Lyra whispered to her.

Octavia shot her a warning look.

Sunset frowned as she watched ~~Brian~~, Soarin, and Big Macintosh zip through the water. She had a watch in her hand and was supposed to be timing Big Mac.

"Which one? Me being a mermaid, water snake, or a she demon? I already was a demon once so I guess that doesn't count," she said flatly.

Big Macintosh was gaining on Soarin in the 20 meter swim. They were just reaching halfway and Flash was ahead of them. Bon Bon bit her lip and cleared her throat.

"So...what...are you?"

Sunset said nothing. She kept her mouth shut and focused on the race. 00 :14:16 was on the watch. They were pretty fast for amateurs. Seeing as how she wasn't in the mood they stayed quiet. Big Macintosh came in third at 00:22:98.

"Girls' swim!" the P.E. teacher yelled.

Sunset walked over to Big Macintosh with a towel and told him his time.

"Well I'll be damned. I'll try my hardest next time," he said to her.

Sunset grinned and patted his back.

"I'm sure you'll do well."

The good thing about him was that he was humble all the way. Applejack was humble, too, but sometimes her honesty rings too true. Sunset preferred her brother's company than hers sometimes. He didn't even seem to mind that she was some crazy water creature person now. He didn't bother ask.

"Yo, Miss Sunshine! Don't start two-timing now!"

It was Rainbow Dash. She waved at her from the diving area. Sunset shot her a nasty look and the girl chuckled. She knew well that Sunset did not like him like that.

"Racers, diving position!" the P.E. teacher cried.

There was Rainbow, Vinyl, Spitfire, and Lightning Dust participating as racers in this first round.

"Time!" the coach screamed.

That meant those who had the watches should get ready to start them when the whistle blew.

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFTTTTTTTTTTT!!!

The swimmers dove into the water quickly and those with the watches clicked the buttons. Sunset had handed hers over to Octavia, who was timing Vinyl. She watched with her and Big Macintosh as the race went on. It was a heated battle between all four girls; all of them bobbing ahead in short bursts of energy, trying to out-swim the other.

Everyone watched in awe as they powered on.

"Ten bucks Rainbow beats Vinyl," Big Mac challenged Octavia.

"You're on," she said.

People started rooting for their potential winning racer. It was very interesting to Sunset and she watched with just as much enthusiasm as the next person. But suddenly, things went blurry.

It all happened so fast.

One moment, she was standing there watching the race, and the next she was underwater. Sunset heard screams coming from Octavia; she was shocked. Through the water, Sunset could see Trixie standing in her place looking concerned ever so fakely.

That bitch!

Suddenly, things went in slow motion. The air that escaped her mouth slowed and danced around her. The swimmers at the other end stopped in mid-action and continued on like turtles. Sunset felt at ease somehow. The fact that she had no air to breath didn't at all make her feel the need to surface for it. It was just like when she fell in the Equine River. Everything so calm, so peaceful.

The water called out to her.

Join us.

Embrace it.

Join what? Embrace what? Sunset was feeling a bit numb, her mind slowing down.

Join the water.

Embrace your inner Siren.

What the hell?! No! No!

Just as fast as she thought that she felt her lungs swell with water. The slow manner of things suddenly hastened to normal pace and she was sinking. None of this was making any sense. When she denied accepting her inner Siren, it left her to drown. But if she were to accept it...

This shard she possessed...It was evil.

Panicking, she tried to swim up to breath. But the water seemed to be holding her down. This was bad. She was going to drown. Technically again, she supposed.

Sunset felt herself losing consciousness. Out the corner of her right eye, she saw someone dive in. It was Big Macintosh. He darted toward her and grabbed her by the waist. Pulling her up, he swam her to the surface. They splashed up above the water and Sunset gasped. All the students were gathered around the edge of the pool, waiting.

And she knew what they were waiting for. They wanted to see if she'd transform. Well, no, bitches!

Sunset was out of it. She had too much water in her system and she felt her eyelids weighing down. Big Mac pulled her to the edge and with Flash's help, got her up onto the concrete floor around the indoor swimming pool.

Sunset was knocked out.

If she didn't get the water out of her lungs fast, she would die. Rainbow Dash panicked along with Lyra, Bon Bon, Octavia, and Vinyl. What were they going to do?

"CPR! SHE NEEDS CPR!!!!" Lightning Dust yelled.

"But none of us knows how to do that!!!" Soarin cried.

Sunset's face was slowly being drained of its color.

The P.E. teacher had gone and stepped out to his office. He was the only one who knew and if they had raced to get him, it would be too late. While everyone panicked, Big Macintosh pumped the unconscious girl's chest five times. He pinched her nose and tilted her head back. Taking a deep breath, he leaned forward and performed CPR.

Siren 101

*Real quick, I made up a lot of stuff here since the internet wasn't telling me much about Sirens so yeah. Some of it is true, some of it made up.*

Twilight buried her nose in her books. It was during the whole huge celebration Pinkie Pie threw in, well, celebration of her coming back. Everypony in Equestria was there and it was going on for hours. Twilight was not at all interested in the party and had escaped when she saw the chance. She wanted to research the Sirens. She needed to know for Sunset's sake.

Reading from the many books she had on them she completely drowned out the booming sounds of music coming from the castle courtyard. Of course, with her basic knowledge on the Sirens already, she came across some things she knew already.

Sirens are any of several aquatic beings that of the Sirenidae family in Northern Equestrian waters. Their nesting grounds are mainly in the Equine Sea, the Mareiterranean Sea , and the Alicorn Ocean. They have external gills, small forelimbs, and no hind legs. Just a tail. The more Mythical approach was that a Siren was one of a female group of creatures that lured stallions to their deaths in the water.

Trying to see Sunset do that made her feel hot and angry. The image in her head was not at all nice to her, as it was Sunset seducing a stallion. Well! That's not happening! She shook her head and read on.

2b. noun; a female who sings with enchanting sweetness.

Sunset's voice was not at all sweet or enchanting. It had a loud soulful ring to it that would fill your heart up with warmth. No sugar, all spice. Fluttershy would make a better Siren than her in that aspect.

Twilight tilted her head as she read the pages of her book.

Sirens feed off a multitude of things from souls to emotions. It all depends on the type of Siren. As stated before, there are several types. Each species has a certain characteristic and behavior that differentiates it from the Sirenidae family.

SOUL SIRENS

One of the most common type of Siren, this particular creature feeds off of souls. Through singing, it sucks its prey dry of its inner life force, leaving the carcass behind. Averaging about 3,000 corpses by shorelines every year, it's not an accurate estimate. Many of the corpses are taken in by underwater creatures as food. There are definitely a lot more dead than being accounted for due to this fact.

Soul Sirens are the basis for all anatomical sketches and descriptions in textbooks. They are the first Sirens to ever appear, descending from Salamanders from the Everfree forest. The first ever recorded sighting of a Soul Siren was in 736 B.L. (B.L. Means Before Luna, referring to before her 1,000 year banishment to the moon). Soul Siren territory lingers around the mouth of the Mareiterranean Sea near Saddle Arabia's coast line.

MERMARE SIRENS

Recognized as mares with fins, they often cause destructive ends to the lives of sailor ponies. Voices as light as the great pony heaven above and faces as gentle as the waves, they entrance sailors. Not causing the damage themselves to the ships the sailors stand upon, they do, however, cause them to sink. By singing sweet words of encouragement to jump in and join them, they lure sailors into the water only to be mauled to death.

Those who do not follow the others into the water are told to steer the ship toward the rocks with songs of sweet melodies. There is not an accurate count of how many die of Mermare encounters due to other reasons of death at sea(dehydration, lack of sleep, food deprivation, etc.) They were discovered around 698 B.L.

Twilight paused.

These two types of Sirens she needed to think. Was Sunset either one of these? She didn't think so. Sunset had not turned into a mermare, or rather mermaid. Nor did she seem to be a Soul Siren. She looked like one, yes, but the problem was that she had wings. Wings was not something Soul Sirens had.

She moved on.

SEAHORSE SIRENS

This type of Siren is often mistaken as regular ponies among modern Equestrians. With the same features as normal ponies, they fit well into society. However, there are ways to identify them from Equestrians. They come as earth ponies always and tend to have sharp, pointed ears. On their 'flank' is a generic symbol. Usually they are sea related. A common Siren 'cutie mark' is a fish.

Unlike its Soul Siren and Mermare kin, Seahorse Sirens do not feed off of ponies. Their way of feeding is through the water. Seahorse Sirens cannot be dry for more than 4 hours. They often are seen swimming in water. If a Seahorse Siren is not near an open body of water, however, they usually will have bottled water with them to drink.

Seahorse Sirens are very friendly and can learn the ways of modern Equestrians very easily. Speaking the language does not come very naturally, so they are often perceived as being slow. Seahorses have been around since 701 B.L.

DRACONNEQI HYBRID SIRENS

These Draconneqi hybrids are the descendants of both the Salamander and ancient Draconneqi. Appearing to be much like Soul Sirens, they are generally mistaken as such by creaturologists(that's not a real thing, but lets just say it is. It's Equestria). What distinguishes them are the large wings they possess and the long manes. Most Sirens do not have long manes. It is believed that they appear during full moons and bask in the light as a source of food. Not much is known about these mysterious creatures since they hide away.

Whether or not they are an aquatic type of Siren species is debatable. Presumably, they were around by 541B.L.

This spiked Twilight's interest. Not much was known of this type. And they had wings and long manes, much like what she saw Sunset become. Sunset could easily be on e of them. Randomly, an image of Discord and Sunset came into her head. What if Discord was Sunset's father?

No! Oh my god!

Twilight glanced down at the locket she wore around her neck. Obviously, she was a pony before she was a human and now a Siren. Discord is not at all related to her.

So far, she got through four different types of Sirens. She decided to take a break from all this studying. The others would wonder where she went after drifting off from the obscenely loud party outside. Twilight reluctantly closed the book and walked out the library with Sirens on her mind.

Author's Note

So, pertaining to my readers. In the Group "Sunset Shimmer", there is a blogging thing called #FebFIMFanficLove that one of the members posted up. Because it's the month of Love and whatnot, Piquo Pie, the member who had posted it, would like peeps to share something they love about MLP that they normally wouldn't share. It's like a confession.

I suggest you guys do it and post what you like about MLP and how you got into it and all that jazz. Some peeps might even inspire you to create wonderful literature like this one. Who knows? You could be the next TheNewYorkBrony if you try! I'll leave the link below for those of you who want to share a blog and see the guidelines.

http://www.fimfiction.net/group/199035/sunset-shimmer/thread/152740/fun-event-for-february-febfimfanficlove

Three stories at once

Author's Note

Three stories at once

Sunset coughed up water and gasped. She was dizzy and couldn't comprehend what was happening. All she knew was that there were a lot of blurry looking people looming over her and muffled shouting. She felt out of breath and weak, something that angered her almost immediately. She did not like to feel weak and vulnerable.

She felt someone tap her shoulder and lift her head up. A boy with freckles helped her sit up and he patted her back. Instantly, she hacked up loads of water. Her ears popped and she heard them ring from the pressure of water being in them. People jumped back in shock as the water came spitting out her mouth.

"Sunset Shimmer!" she sort of heard Rainbow Dash call.

Sunset would've responded but she got an odd taste in her mouth. A taste she knew was acid from her stomach. She choked and clamped her hands over her mouth. Everyone stood back as Big Macintosh helped to her feet and rushed her to the bathroom.

Throwing up.

That's all she did for five minutes straight. And she didn't even eat breakfast that morning. Outside the girls' bathroom in the indoor pool, Applejack's brother waited patiently, not at all alarmed by what was happening. Vinyl and Lyra stood beside him anxiously while the others went to fetch the P.E. teacher.

"That was amazing, Big Mac!" Rainbow Dash told him gratefully. "You saved her life!"

The boy nodded and grinned humbly.

"Don't think it too heroic. You would've done the same if you knew CPR."

Rainbow colored slightly. "Y-Yeah, you're right."

Flash sighed as he tried to process what was going on here. He and Soarin were shaken up by the whole thing. Sunset had been out for nearly a whole minute before Mac got her to breath. That minute could've been the deciding moment of her being alive and dead. It scared the hell out of them.

Sunset came teetering out the bathroom and Mac took hold of her arm. She needed rest and something warm to wear was his immediate thought as he felt her cold skin brush his hand. Octavia came in with the P.E. teacher. Their coach was looking pale and lost. He could lose his job for this.

"What's going on?!" he yelled, his voice slightly shaky.

Octavia pointed to Sunset and Big Macintosh. "Sunset nearly drowned, but Big Macintosh saved her!"

The P.E. teacher went white in the face completely. This was bad.

"Bring her to the nurse's office. Young man, you'll be rewarded."

He hurried them out of the indoor pool area and dismissed class early. No one was paying any attention to the fact that it was Trixie who caused the whole thing...

***

Adagio sensed it.

It was wavering in short burst of energy.

It was the magic. The power and energy was struggling to become stronger. But it faltered and became weak again, a small reminder in the back of her head making its presence noticeable only at a glance. Aria and Sonata stopped their arguing and tilted their heads in the direction of the pulsing magic.

It was too short of a burst to know exactly where it was coming from.

Aria gritted her teeth and stomped her foot on the pavement.

"It's as if it's mocking us!"

Sonata frowned slightly. She didn't like this game the magic seemed to be playing.

Adagio didn't say anything. She squinted her eyes and hummed. She felt it coming from a certain place...but she wasn't sure if she was correct. It definitely was somewhere there.

"Lets go home," she announced and stood up.

"What?!" Aria cried in outrage.

She stood up abruptly and the chair teetered behind her.

"Didn't you just feel that power? We can go and follow it!"

"That power faltered. We're back at square one, Aria," Adagio told her calmly.

"We should've moved faster!" she yelled.

Adagio stared at her for a long time. Aria had a short temper, but never with her. To see her going crazy over this made Adagio realize how power hungry she was. She was deprived of it and wanted it back more than anything. This was foolish of her. Adagio slapped her in the face.

Both Aria and Sonata stood there stunned.

"You're being stupid. The last time we had power, it was taken away from us. You should be grateful that your life wasn't taken as well. We have to be careful about how we get it back. We can't just stumble blindly into whatever may have it. Besides, it could involve those girls..."

As soon as she said that it sprouted an idea in her head. Those girls...That's it.

She hesitated before turning to head home.

"Lets go."

Sonata slowly followed and Aria stayed back a little before trudging behind. This wasn't an thing for her to get over. She wanted power. But Adagio was stalling. Fire set in her eyes, she watched their leader walk ahead, drilling holes into the back of her head angrily.

***

Twilight skimmed through her books three hours later and sighed. There were Serpent Sirens, Transylvanian Sirens, and Tartarian Sirens, all of whom she was certain Sunset was not. She frowned. This was hard. She could see that Sunset could most likely be a Draconneqi Hybrid Siren, but wasn't sure. Not much was known about them.

Twilight read more about them and found that it was all repetitive, some sources even plagiarized from another. Sirens can sing, live in the water, feed on souls and/or emotion, other stuff. She was just about to close the book when she saw the word 'jewel'. Snapping the book back open she leaned forward wide eyed.

JEWELS

Every Siren has a jewel on their neck. If this jewel were to be removed, the Siren will lose its ability to feed and die. Every jewel is color coded to its specific classification of Siren:

Blue signifies the Serpent Sirens

Purple signifies the Mermare Sirens

Red signifies the Draconneqi Hybrid Sirens

Green signifies the Soul Sirens

Orange signifies the Seahorse Sirens

Turquoise signifies the Transylvanian Sirens

Yellow signifies the Tartarian Sirens

*See page 984

Twilight was right! Sunset was the most mysterious one of them all, the Draconneqi Hybrid Siren. So that means Adagio and the others were once those creatures as well. Twilight noticed small writing at the bottom of the chart. Squinting, she read the words.

*See page 984

Curious, she turned the pages all the way to the designated page and glanced at it. It was more about the jewels, of course.

Once a jewel is separated from the Siren all magical properties from the creature are immediately stored into the jewel. If the jewel were to be broken in the process, the power is to be divided between each shard. Creaturologists have found evidence of it being a sport of earlier ponies to kill Sirens for their precious life giving source. Seeing it as valuable to their pockets, they hunted them down. The jewels would be crushed into fine powder and served in wine to royal families to symbolize their strength.

In this process, however, early Equestrians had become aware of the jewels' magical properties.

Ponylore states that there was once a mare who came across a group of sailors jumping and fussing by the coast of the Alicorn Ocean at night. She asked them what was wrong and saw that they were arguing over who gets what fraction of the treasured jewel. The mare, who had never seen such a beautiful thing, reached out to touch it while they weren't looking. Suddenly, the power of the jewel's shard surged out and attached itself to her.

One moment, she was a pony. The next, a Siren. In absolute surprise and fear, the sailors ran away and the mare disappeared into the ocean. Legend says, she was last seen by that ocean shore. But there have been claims that some have seen a mare slip into the water and turn into the enchanting creature and vanish. The Siren turned mare has now been named the Demi Siren.

Whether or not this ponylore is true, it is indeed a possible thing. Creaturologists have found that normal Sirens can only live with a complete jewel. When the jewel is fractured, the Sirens tended to die. However, the shards showed strong pulses of energy whenever a living organism came close to it and a sort of magnetic field was created between the two. This, the Creaturologists theorize, could indicate the strange occurrence that a fractured jewel could possibly attach itself to another organism.

Twilight paused.

A shard attaching itself to something other than a Siren...Wasn't that what that shard did with Sunset? Was Sunset a Demi Siren? Twilight turned through the book in search of anything pertaining to a Demi Siren. But she found nothing. There was absolutely nothing on Demi Sirens...

So now she figured out what type of Siren her companion was, and that happened to be the most mysterious type of them all. And now she's finding out she's half Siren? So she technically is still a human??

First, Sunset Shimmer was a unicorn.

Then a she demon.

Then she became a human.

Now she's half Siren?!

What the hell was up with her changing species?!?! Was she going to become a Griffon next?!?!?!?!?! Twilight huffed and slammed the book shut. Great. Now how was she supposed to help Sunset Shimmer? She was back to square one. She doesn't know a thing about anything.

Leaning back against the clutter of books around her she hoped Sunset was doing well.

Miss you, baby

Author's Note

Thanks to a certain FIMFiction person, I was unable to release this chapter as yesterday's second one, so blame her! It was too embarrassing to.

Miss you, baby

Whatever she needed, he got it.

Whenever she needed him, he was there.

If she wanted something to eat or drink or some blanket, he fetched it for her.

It was afterschool and Big Macintosh had walked her home earlier and decided to stay with her there. Sunset didn't mind one bit. She needed someone to help her out. She was weak from all the water she inhaled and in constant want of some ice cream. Besides, he had been there before with Applejack. The girls had had a party there once and he joined in. He was like the big brother she never had.

Sunset was laying in bed groaning into her pillow for the boy to come up and get her some more ice cream. She was having a crazy stomach ache from eating all that ice cream, but she felt so sad and angry that she wanted more. Even though it upset her stomach. Big Macintosh came in and glanced at the empty bowl beside her bed.

"That's the tenth bowl. You'll have to lay off on the eatin' Sunset," he said with his slow southern drawl.

"Please?" she asked through her pillow.

Ice cream, just like whip cream, was her comfort food. Only she ate it when she was having a bad day instead of when she had a bad dream.

"Nope," he told her.

"Pleeasssee??" she groaned.

"Sorry, sugarcube."

Sunset turned in her bed groggily and whimpered.

"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaasssssssssssssssssssssseeeeeeeeeeeeeee??????????????????"

Big Mac shook his head and took the bowl into one of his large hands.

"No. Shucks, you can be as whinny as Applebloom sometimes..."

Big Mac walked away with the bowl. The girl pouted as she lay in her bundle of blankets. She really should stop eating that though. She was going to have to find a way to burn off those extra calories...

In a childish manner, she punched the space beside her in the bed. This was a bad day. She was frail due to the events of earlier and hated the fact that she wasn't stronger. She never liked being someone who had very little strength, so when times of sickness came and caused her to be that way, she hated every moment of it.

Looking down at the indentation she left beside her in the memory foam bed, she thought of Twilight. She imagined Twilight laying next to her smiling. Sunset's stomach twisted angrily and she groaned. She wished she was here. Twilight would comfort her and make her feel better. Why was it that after only it just being hours after she left, stuff was dropping down the toilet?

To think that she would suffer without her made things all the more worse.

Twilight's face smiled at her and she could hear her whisper sweet things.

You're an amazing person, Sunset. You truly are.

Big Macintosh came in and studied Sunset's face. She looked distant in memory. Her brows came over her eyes in thought and she was looking off into space. He decided to leave her to her thoughts and silently crept away from the door.

"You can go home now," Sunset whispered.

This took him by surprise and he paused.

"But you need help, don't you?" he asked.

She shook her head and sighed.

"I'm alright now. Thank you, Big Macintosh."

The boy stood where he was for a few more seconds not sure if he should leave or not.

"I'll call you if there's anything else," she told him.

That seemed to satisfy him and so he nodded. Saying goodbye, he left the room and ran downstairs toward the front door. Sunset trudged to the top of the stair and watched as he walked out. When she heard the door close and his footsteps clatter down the steps, Sunset sighed.

Sliding down the wall, she felt a lump in her throat. Just thinking about Twilight and that she wasn't there made her feel depressed...

An Angel in disguise, Twilight had once said to her.

You're an angel in disguise. One day, your light will shine upon the others for all to see how radiant you are.

The words sank into her like knives, only making the absence of her presence more noticeable. She could see her. Twilight. Her beloved Twilight...

Tears fell down her cheeks as she thought of the sweet girl. She knew this would happen. That's why she told Big Mac to leave. She didn't want him to see her cry. She wanted Twilight to be there so badly. She wanted to be able to touch her and talk to her. To feel comforted by her, to be loved by her...

But no.

She was in Equestria for who knows how long that will be.

She was desperate for her. She wanted to hug and kiss her. Sunset hadn't realized how deeply she loved her until now. It was unbearable to be away from her. With everything that happened that day she was sure nothing else could go wrong. Twilight was away and she needed to talk to her.

The journal.

Sunset got to her feet and went downstairs. She fumbled around and looked for it. It was the only way she could communicate with her. Searching everywhere, she found it under a pile of boxes. Sunset found a pen and sat down on the couch. She opened it and glanced at all the words they had exchanged on the pages. Twilight's elegant handwriting was sweeping across the pages; long in paragraphs and lengthy advice on little things Sunset had asked pertaining to Friendship.

Believe in yourself. If you don't have faith within your own person, you can never reach your full potential. Without believing, you can't move forward. Always have faith, Sunset. Without it, there's no hope.

Sunset's eyes skimmed over this line and she sighed. She had to believe. But this time, not in herself. But in fate. She needed to hope that they would be together again in due time and her loneliness would melt away.

Her pen hovered over the blank page as she thought. Sunset had a million things to write, a million words to pour her heart out. Lines of sweet poetry and sorrow all spelled out in her mind, she could write just about anything. But when she placed the pen on the page, no words came spilling out. Sunset grimaced and wiped the tears in her eyes. How could she not have anything to say?

Her heart was swelling with emotion and she needed to let Twilight know she was there and still thought about her. Her vision blurred as fresh tears came burning at the corner of her eyes. She wanted to say something but there was so much to say...That's when she just wrote three simple words.

Miss you, baby.

Fake Affairs, Schemes, and Broken Hearts

Second chances aren't always good. This is what Sunset learned unfortunately from trying to go back to school like nothing happened. She was chancing that it would better than the day before. Wrong.

It was worse.

"Did you drown?"

"Idiot."

"Is it true Big Macintosh saved you?"

"Yes. Leave me alone."

"Are you and Big Macintosh together?"

"NO! Hey, aren't you the same person who asked me if Twilight and I were an item? Get lost!"

Dumbass questions up and down the alleyway. Again.

Sunset trumped through the school's halls aggravated as all get out. It wasn't any better when Big Macintosh came to her and asked how she was doing. People crowded around as if it were some kind of special moment. In rage, Sunset thrashed out at the crowd with her arms flailing.

"GET OUT OF HERE!!!!!!!"

Big Mac took her arm and shook his head.

"You shouldn't try to hurt others. You'll get yourself suspended."

She was about ready to bite his head off. He wasn't making it look any better by doing that. Now everyone was sure to think they were together when it really was just a matter of saving her life. It wasn't his fault. It was the others who were to blame for putting all this pressure on her. She wished she hadn't come to school.

All day long it was full of people whose mouths were forever a-running with questions and gossip.

It was only later that day during lunch that Sunset could get a break. She and the Main 5, ~~Brian~~ Flash, and Big Mac were in the practice room hiding out with Sunset. The girl slouched in her chair grudgingly and frowned. The girls just shook their heads.

"This is agony. This sucks!" Sunset complained.

Applejack chuckled. " We hear you. It's the weirdest thing having random folk walk up to me and ask about you and my big brother."

Rainbow Dash grinned lopsidedly.

"You and Big Mac together? I told you no two-timing, Miss Sunshine. And here you are being a little cheat!"

Sunset glared at her. "You are the worst adrenaline junkie I've ever known."

"Whoa, now. Lets not start dishing out insults," Big Mac said calmly.

Rarity shook her head at all this.

"This is horrible, darling. Unfortunately, we can't help you escape the rumors..."

Groaning, the girl slumped on the table.

Flash leaned against the wall strumming his guitar absentmindedly. He had been quiet about the whole thing ever since that night she transformed. He couldn't believe that Twilight and Sunset were together. How could that have happened? Twilight before was showing so much interest in him and then all of a sudden he got the shock of his life when he saw them kiss.

What the hell was up with that?!

Flash had liked her and now he was confused. He heard the whole story and now knows the two of them bonded over something so crazy. He could never have a deep relationship like the one he knew they had together. He's seen them before on days when he and the girls were convinced Sunset was still evil.

They laughed, talked, giggled, smiled; they did everything with each other. Anyone who didn't know them would've thought they were the best of friends and had known each other for years. The whole thing took him by surprise. It was even weirder to think it was his ex-girlfriend that beat him to who he thought would be his new girlfriend.

Glancing over at the others as they discussed ways to help Sunset, he sighed. Girls will forever be mysterious to him.

Pinkie Pie slammed a drumstick on the floor tom and scared the crap out of everyone.

"I know how to get the rumors to subside!"

"I say! You sure do know how to get everyone' attention," Rarity grumbled as she pulled on her ear. It had popped from the sudden burst of noise.

"Tell us, Pinkie," Fluttershy said.

The pink girl twirled a drumstick around with her fingers and grinned. She sat on the throne in front of her drums and pounded out a beat on the bass drum.

"The way to make the rumors subside is as easy as pie! First off, we all need to recognize the rumors."

They waited for her to continue.

"We all know everyone thinks Sunset and Big Mac are together due to some awesome life saving techniques Big Mac pulled. Honestly, that's just silly. I mean, he was only trying to save her from her doom. But anyway, that's one rumor. The other one is that people think she's some kind of water horse or something. That, is an easy one. Just say yes. I mean, if you were a she demon once before, then it's likely you're some magical being!"

Pinkie started rhythmically tap a steady four-four beat on the snare.

"Ok, you suggested a solution to one problem, but what about the other?" Fluttershy asked.

Pinkie giggled.

"Just say yes to that one, too."

Sunset shot up out of her chair.

"NO!!!!!!"

Rainbow Dash burst out laughing.

"Really?! Say yes to them dating?!?! Hilarious!!!"

She bent down and laughed some more.

"What would they be? SunMac? Shimmertosh?? Big Macset?!?!"

Rarity, Flash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Big Macintosh, and Applejack all grimaced at these really bad shipping names. Like, they were REALLY BAD.

Sunset grabbed her collar and shook her like a baby rattle.

"You shut the hell up! This is not funny!"

"Calm it, people!" Flash told them. "You have to think about it. If this is the only way to relieve the pressure of rumors, then do it!"

Sunset glared at him.

"No way! I'm not standing for this! We are not an item!"

Flash frowned. "Yes, I know. But it's not for real. It's just to make the people here calm down about the whole thing."

"No! I happen to be loyal to the person I care about! I don't care that this is fake!" Sunset howled.

He slapped a hand over his forehead. She was as stubborn as a mule.

Big Macintosh frowned slightly.

"I only think of Sunset here as a sister."

Pinkie Pie performed some fast paradiddles on the drums and tilted her head.

"Just think of it as an acting class! Every student being your audience and the school your stage. Rarity is the queen of drama! She can help you!"

Almost instantly, Rarity popped up.

"I will teach you two to be wonderful lovers! Eh, wonderful fake lovers!"

Big Macintosh and Sunset frowned. They knew that they would not be able to escape what was to come next.

Author's Note

Yo! SilentStrike43, an active reader of this here fic, has released a new story called A Sunlight Story. Check it out. The link is right below.

http://www.fimfiction.net/story/246049/a-sunlight-story

Lights! Camera! Jacket?!(Music)

Author's Note

Sunny Macintosh!!!! :rainbowlaugh: Gotta love Big Mac and ketchup-and-mustard Sunset Shimmer!

Lights! Camera! Jacket?!(Music)

Sunset and Big Macintosh stood in the practice room awkwardly. Rarity kicked everyone out so she could have a special 'Theater Session' with them. All they knew was that it wasn't going to end well.

"Sunset, darling! You need to be affectionate! Passionate! Eternally grateful to him for saving your life!" Rarity told her.

Sunset frowned. Why was it that she had to be friends with her? This was utterly ridiculous and she was not in the mood for any of what was in store for her.

She just stood there not moving or saying a word. What was the point of this?

Rarity, who had changed into some extravagant ensemble for this 'Theater Session' looked up at Big Macintosh and covered his eyes.

"Imagine, Big Mac, having this lovely, sassy girl as yours to keep. A girl so full of fire that you can't help but feel overwhelmed every time you look at her! She can entrance you with her voice! Uh, literally and figuratively, I guess...Ahem! A person so fabulous that she lights up your life with happiness and love! Sunset Shimmer, your destined one!!"

She waited for the boy to register these thoughts into his mind. She turned him toward the said girl and removed her hands.

At first Big Macintosh smiled at Sunset and Rarity was excited. She thought she had done it! But then he said," Hiya, little sis."

It had not worked.

Sunset waved at him and said," Hi, Mac."

Rarity groaned. This was bad. They had been in there for over an hour and nothing was progressing. She sat down and pouted. What was she going to do with these two? Neither of them budged an inch when it came to pretending to like each other. All they were ever doing was making small remarks like 'big brother' and 'little sis'. That was it.

Sunset was reluctant to call Big Macintosh her boyfriend when Rarity had tried to get them to call each other nice names like Sweetums and honey. That had failed miserably with Sunset calling her a bitch out of anger. Of course she didn't mean it. It was just her temper. But it still hurt Rarity's feelings nonetheless.

The drama queen sighed. " Tell each other things about the other that you like."

She was sure it would go down in flames but to her surprise, Sunset participated.

"You're very nice, Big Mac. Nicer than I'll ever try to be."

The boy nodded. " You're very loyal. It takes a real devoted person to stick to their loved one's side even in times of separation."

They got to talking casually about the things they liked and Rarity bit her lip excitedly. This was it! She would finally succeed in making the best fake couple there ever was at CHS! She could see it all! Sunset clinging to the hardy farmboy's arm smiling happily as she and Big Mac chuckle sweetly. Big Mac would grin with pleasure as he stood tall and strong by his flaming hot girlfriend. Oh, the wonders!

Rarity would watch from a distance as the two are surrounded by adoring students, all equally in awe and jealous of the unlikely couple. It would be a sensation! An achievement! A miracle! If only they would cooperate...

Sunset laughed at Big Mac when he told her about what the other boys said to him earlier. Big Mac's buddies had thought he and Sunset were a couple for real and had slapped him on the back.

"'Good catch! You got yourself a little mermaid!' they said," Big Mac told her. "'Can you hook me up with one of your sister's friends next time?'"

Sunset smiled happily. "Yeah? And who did they want you to hook them up with?"

The boy scratched his head.

"Old Thunderlane and Soarin have their eyes on Rainbow Dash. Says she's a good match. I think she's more suited with Soarin than Thunderlane, though."

"Same. Thunderlane's too much of a chicken in my opinion," Sunset added.

"And you know that fellow Bulk Biceps? He thinks Fluttershy's a real cutie," Macintosh told her.

Sunset was surprised.

"Whoa, really? Bulk Biceps and Fluttershy?? That's really weird!"

"Maybe a little weirder than us," the boy said and they laughed.

Rarity could see it! They were bonding! Bonding was good!! Yes!!!!!!

Sunset crossed her arms and shook her head.

"You know, Fluttershy's actually looking at you, Mac."

This surprised both Rarity and Big Macintosh. To Rarity it was a bad luck charm. If Sunset suggested another girl, the cowboy's attention wouldn't be on her and the act will fall apart!

"NO! NO! NO! Stay away from the subject of others liking one of you!" Rarity cried.

"Oh, it's not going to harm anyone. I want to know what Sunset's got to say," Big Mac told her in his low voice.

Sunset shrugged.

"There's no harm in telling him that. After all, Fluttershy is more of his type than me."

DUH DUH DUH DUH!! NO!!! STAY ON TOPIC!!!!!" Rarity called out.

Ignoring her the girl with the fiery hair kept talking about Fluttershy.

"You know, she's very sweet and kind. With you being just as quiet and humble as she is, I can see you two making a cute couple. And the shipping name isn't terrible like ours, too. FlutterMac is definitely better than...whatever Rainbow was trying to make out of our names."

"NONONONONONO!" Rarity yelled.

"She needs someone who will stick up for her and you're just the man, Mac! With your hardworking attitude and strength you and Fluttershy will be the best together!"

Sunset gave the boy a playful punch on the shoulder and he smiled.

"Well, she is adorable and all..." he mumbled.

"Aw, see? Perfect," Sunset told him.

The boy grinned and chuckled.

"But ya know, Bulk Biceps is a pretty good friend of mine and it would just be too cruel to ice him out like that."

The Demi-Siren nodded in understanding. "I see. Well aren't you sweet."

Rarity sighed with great relief. Big Mac couldn't pay much attention to her friend with his friend in the middle of it. Good grief. This was really hard working with these two...

"Ok! Lets keep on with this Theater Session!"

***

It was another hour later that Rarity saw how hopeless everything was. Neither of them were willing to be the romantic actor and actress she wanted them to be. The lights. The camera. The action. All down the drain...These two were no stars. They were a bunch of duds. Background characters in a movie. Just there to fill up the empty space on the stage.

In frustration, Rarity stood before them.

"You have not reached the level of enthusiasm I need you to be at! Your eyes are too dull and filled with the boring colors of everyday life! Your posture is too sad and wimpy for that of an actor and actress! Your voices the wrong pitch and as slow as ever!"

She stamped her foot down and put her hands on her hips. She stared pointedly at Sunset and sniffed.

"You need to be more lively! Strut like you used to! Walk the way you did when you were queen of CHS! Swing those hips! Sway your arms! Arch your back in the enormous pride you still have!!!"

Sunset blinked.

"Isn't that a bit over the top?"

"Over the top?!Over the top?!?! You're Sunset Shimmer! Bad girl of CHS!!!It never was 'Over the Top' when you used to do it!!" Rarity yelled.

" Well, damn," Sunset muttered, someone's a bit 'Over the Top'..."

Rarity turned to Big Macintosh and pointed at his arms.

"You see those huge muscles of yours? They don't flex by themselves! Show them off! You're a man now!! Looking strong is everything to a guy's status!!!"

Big Mac looked scared and he stiffly stood where he was not quite sure what he was supposed to do.

"Get rid of that hunch in your back! No one wanted the Hunchback of Notre Dame and no will want you if you're just like him!!!"

He straightened his back the best he could. It wasn't his fault he slouched a little. He always was bending down and hauling things on the farm. Rarity pushed his back up with her foot and he swallowed uncomfortably. What was up with Rarity?! At first she seemed level headed but now...She was just being very weird.

"I'm bailing out of this shit hole!" Sunset called out bluntly.

She turned and went toward the door. The boy decided to follow, glad to escape the weirdo with the foot on his back.

"The Theater Session isn't over!" Rarity called.

"Yeah it is!" Sunset shouted. "This is dumb!"

As they were leaving, Big Mac noticed a black clothing item had fallen out of Rarity's bag. He picked it up and looked at it. It was leather and small, definitely not Rarity's style. Looking at it better he recognized the design to be very unique.

Wait a second.

He glanced at Sunset, who was struggling with the door. It wouldn't open for whatever reason.

Looking down at the jacket he realized that there was something different about her. Sunset was wearing a black sweater instead of her jacket.

"Hey, Sunset. Is this yours?"

The girl looked away from the door she was getting ready to bust down and looked at the jacket in his hand. Her eyes widened and she gasped. Her signature jacket!

She snatched it out of his hand and examined it. It was perfect! All the little rips and tears and snags were sewn back together and repaired. It was a miracle!

"OH MY GOD! WHERE DID YOU FIND IT?!?!"

He pointed to the floor.

"It was right there is all," he told her.

Sunset smiled brightly and jumped up and hugged him.

"Thanks for giving me my jacket!"

He had no idea what was going on but he appreciated being appreciated so he smiled and hugged her back.

"No problem, Sunset."

When she let go of him, he kicked the door and turned the knob. The door swung open normally and they walked out happily. Glad to be out of there and alive.

Rarity was smiling graciously and clasped her hands together as a tear trailed down her cheek.

"I have done it! I created the perfect fake couple!"

And it was thanks to the signature jacket that she saw the small display of affection.

Twilight the animatronic(Music)

Author's Note

Before you read this, understand that some of the words you may get confused by. Please note that Twilight is not a robot and that she is real in this chapter. She is only moving and acting much like one so the comparisons are incorporated in describing her movements and behavior.

Twilight the animatronic(Music)

Twilight sat in her guest bedroom at Celestia's palace staring at the three words printed in her journal. Three words just scrawled on the paper shouting desperation.

Miss you, baby

Twilight tried to swallow the lump in her throat. She had received the message last night and had nothing to write back to her. She still didn't. Twilight missed Sunset badly and needed to be with her.

Somehow, she knew the words were more than what they said. It wasn't written in the neat and quick way Sunset always wrote. It was written heavily, as if by burden and sorrow. The way the pen stroke broke off abruptly on the end of the last word made Twilight's chest ache as her heart squeezed.

Sunset missed her a lot.

Just then, a knock came at her door and before she could answer it, her friends came piling in. They paused when they saw the pony before them. She didn't look like the happy mare they had known before she left. There were bags under her eyes, a sign of having had a sleepless night. Her coat was frazzled and unkempt. Her mane was a mess and her expression dead.

She changed.

Before she left for the other world she was as friendly and nice as they knew her to be. There was always a smile on her face as bright as the sun. Her eyes would be a-light with wonderment of what the new day would bring. With quick strides, she travelled through the journeys they faced with unspoken amounts of determination.

That's the mare they knew. Princess Twilight Sparkle, Saint of Friendship.

But now...

She was a foreigner, trudging through a world she didn't quite belong in. A mysterious nopony whose eyes everypony avoided. No more was she the high standing princess of Equestria. She was lost, yet she was found.

"Twilight," Fluttershy whispered.

She timidly flapped toward her with her fragile wings.

"Is everything...alright?"

The princess stared down at her journal not saying a word. As Fluttershy grew closer she could see she was reading three words over and over again.

"...Miss...you..." she read aloud softly and in much confusion.

Twilight snapped the book shut and startled the poor Pegasus. Turning to her friends she sighed.

"Anything you need? I'm busy."

Pinkie Pie bit her lip. She would cheer her up but the dead stare Twilight had was too much.

"We just want to spend time with you i-is all, darling," Rarity spoke. "Ever since you left last night's party, you shut yourself up in this room of yours..."

Her eyes drifted up toward the ceiling and the walls. It was dull and grey. The very color of depression. The curtains weren't pulled back and left the room darker than it should be. Pleased to have found something useful to do, Rarity went about opening the curtains.

Rainbow Dash stepped up toward Twilight.

"You sure do seem out of sorts..."

And here comes her blatant mouth asking the question that's on everypony's minds.

"You're happy you're back home, right?"

Twilight smiled(barely) and said," Of course, Rainbow Dash. It's always wonderful to be around my friends."

Something was off about the way she sounded. It sounded happy, yes. But it was more of a recording than anything. No real emotion was put into her voice. It was as if she were a doll with a wind up string. You yank the cord and she spits out a worthless catchphrase that no matter how many times you hear it play, should make you smile.

It was creepy.

She was more of an animatronic than a real live pony. She moved robotically and barely blinked as she told them the pre-recorded message with glassy eyes and a false smile, her mouth moving and voice lip synching to the jingle of a merry voice.

Her friends were quiet as they studied her. Her mind seemed to have drifted off elsewhere and left her body to move mindlessly through life. Applejack noticed the necklace on Twilight's neck and pointed.

"That sure looks nice. What pictures are in it?"

"There of Sunset's parents," Twilight told her flatly.

They waited for her to continue on, but when they saw she wasn't going to keep talking they tried to get her to keep going.

"So, uh, Sunset's parents? Why is that?" Applejack asked.

"It was a locket Sunset valued and she gave it to me," Twilight responded.

She stared at them watchfully with her unblinking eyes, cameras verring as it zoomed in and analyzed them. Scanning for nothing in particular.

"Why did she give it to you?" Applejack asked carefully and slowly keeping one eye on her and another on the floor.

"Because she loves me," Twilight told her.

Everyone froze. Loves her? Such a strong word for a friendship. The word 'care' would've been a more suitable word to place instead of 'love.' Because she cares about me was what they would expect.

Applejack decided to move on from that and went on.

"That's a very nice gift she gave you. She's a very good person..."

"Yes. I should know more than others," the animatronic answered.

More creep factor.

Rainbow Dash frowned.

"What do you mean 'I should know more than others'? And this 'because she loves me' stuff...What happened when you were over there?"

Twilight gazed at them blankly.

"Sunset and I are together."

This shocked them so badly that it left their mouths open.

"Y-You and Sunset are together?? How..." Pinkie Pie whispered.

"How did that happen?!" Rainbow Dash asked, taking the words right out of Pinkie's mouth.

"Fate," Twilight told them. She turned stiffly to her books and sat down with precise movements. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to work."

She opened up her journal and stared at the three words on the page.

The ponies left the room quietly and didn't return at all that day. Twilight didn't belong there anymore. Her life there ended as soon as she stepped onto the ground of the other world. Twilight didn't belong in Equestria anymore. Her life was meaningless.

She belonged in the other world.

Right by Sunset Shimmer's side.

Change of the tide(Unscripted w/ Music)

Celestia stood in front of the glass case in the artifact room. She stared at the red shards of the Siren jewels and sighed. How could she have missed that one shard? How could she? Now her daughter was one of the worst creatures in all of the universe. The consequences, she knew, were to be severe.

How was it that things always went wrong with those she cared for? Like her sister. Luna had become a deranged monster and she had had to banish her to the moon. It was not easy to send away someone she cared for. It was bad enough that she was immortal. Being immortal had its own casualties. Like watching loved ones grow old and die. Great heroes and legends of Equestria had lived to their full potential and eventually passed away. And Celestia couldn't do a thing about it.

She frowned as she looked at the bewitched treasure. This was terrible.

There had to be a way to get rid of the magic inside these shards. But how? Starswirl the Bearded once made a theory that destroying one of the shards magical properties destroyed all of the other pieces' power. But if she did get rid of the power inside one, it wouldn't do anything but cause problems. Why? Because Sunset still had one of the pieces that made her a Siren.

And what happens to a Siren when they lose power in their jewel?

They die.

She can't have Sunset die. That was her daughter and Twilight's beloved(and not to mention the main character of this series*cough, cough* We wouldn't want that now would we.) Celestia thought harder on the situation. How could she remove the shard from Sunset? It wasn't at all visible like that of a regular Siren's jewel. It was somewhere within the girl's being...

She could perform major surgery.

But that's stupid. Why would she cut her open if she had no idea where it was inside her?

She'd definitely have to use magic to remove it from her...Celestia needed answers. But there weren't any to her problem. She moved away from the case and glanced at the case that held the vial of dark magic that Sunset had poisoned the crown with.

Wait.

Poison.

An idea ran through her head. If she were to poison the jewel shards with the dark magic, the fragment inside Sunset would be poisoned as well since whatever happened to one happened to all, in theory. Celestia was able to remove evil magic from objects with her alicorn magic. If she were to remove the now corrupted magic from the shard, she could take away its power without discarding the fragment inside Sunset. And there won't be a chance she would die without the magic because the power of the jewel itself would not be destroyed, only removed. And Celestia would transfer the magic back inside the vial...

The princess looked at the vial.

This seemed like the solution. But poisoning it...

Sunset could become extremely ill during the process and even...

Celestia flinched at the thought of her lying on the ground staring up at the sky, unblinking. Twilight would fall to her knees and cry herself to death, forever scared by her dearest before her. Lifeless. A burial would take place and white flowers as pure as the love Sunset and Twilight shared would lay on her grave. They would be a bright beacon of light on a day so dark...

A twinge in Celestia's heart came and she looked down at her hooves.

This seemed like the only possible way to rid the girl of her cursed identity. But it could also rid the girl herself. Thinking of all the times she had witnessed the deaths of fallen heroes and those close to her like Clover the Clever, Starswirl the Bearded, even her own parents...It all was so sad. The only difference was that it would be her fault if Sunset were to die.

She had to tell Twilight about this. But she knew she would never allow that. Not if it harmed her. Twilight would fight her way around it, looking desperately for a way to go about removing the charm without her being hurt. But somehow, Celestia had the feeling that this was the only way.

The vial waited before her, a cure and a poison at the same time. A cure to Sunset's Siren problem. A poison in itself. It was a choice between fates. Either she took the vial and chanced the death of her daughter for the riddance of a creature, or she leave the vial and let Sunset deal with a life of hell.

Why was this such a big deal, you ask. Why can't Celestia just leave Sunset as a Siren? Well, it isn't as simple as what you may think. Sirens, as you know, devour souls and emotions from others around them. From what Celestia knew, the Dazzlings devoured emotions of rage. But there was something she knew that no one else did...

It was centuries ago.

Long before the time of Luna's Banishment. Way back when Sirens were first being discovered. It was around 610 B.L. A mare had seen a group of sailors arguing over a fractured jewel. A part of it attached itself to her and she became known as the Demi-Siren. An old ponylore is what everyone thought then. But one night when Celestia was out strolling her gardens, she saw her.

A magnificent creature of gold and white. Wings as large as a dragon's and dark eyes like those of an eagle, she knew it was the mare by the sea. She had a pony's body, but it was tall and long like hers. With a tail of a snake and the mane of a lion, the Siren sat upon the hedges and before her was a stallion. He stood before her entranced.

He was a fine breed of horse, with a thick coat and healthy body. Celestia stood there, shocked by the presence of the Siren and colt. If she moved in to save him, she wouldn't know the knowledge she possessed to this day. It was an odd sight to see this bizarre creature there with him. Out of no where, the Siren leaned forward and kissed the stallion. Almost immediately the color ran out of him and he stood there stiffly.

A bright and ghostly figure came up from the stallion and the Siren absorbed it greedily. When she pulled away, the stallion fell dead on his side. It was such a shock to Celestia that she couldn't move from fear and surprise. The Demi-Siren flew away and was never seen again by Celestia. She had the stallion's body taken in and identified. The colt that had died was the used-to-be mare's fiancé.

The next morning, six dead bodies were reported to her. All of them were in close relation to the mare. They were all her family. Even a small foal died that day. Celestia had Starswirl track the demon through the trail of bodies and he discovered that the victims were all people the mare cared for.

Later, forward a few hundred years, four cases of Demi-Sirens were reported. And all of them had one type of victim. Their loved ones. They fed on the souls of those that they loved and took strength from their love.

Celestia stared at the vial.

If she were to let the cursed fragment root itself within Sunset, there would be a great deal of death. And the first victim would undoubtedly be Twilight Sparkle. She couldn't let that happen. Her only option was to take the vial and poison the jewel.

But she had to do it without either of them knowing.

It was painful that she had to do this, but she had no choice.

Celestia walked toward the glass case and opened it. Taking out the poison, she glanced at the shards.

I'm sorry, Sunset Shimmer. I'm sorry, Twilight Sparkle. But I have to.

I have to.

Author's Note

This randomly popped inside my head. For the longest time, I wasn't sure how they would get the Siren out of Sunset. Well bam! My mind works wonders, folks!

Song of Three

Author's Note

I had to go back all the way to Three stories at once because I forgot what happened. I'm sorry to those of you that are Dazzling fans. I know it can get really aggravating when you're reading the story because of certain characters but they just aren't in the storyline for a long time. I'm sorry.

To refresh your old brain cells, I have placed an excerpt from that chapter so you won't be all like "Duh..."

Song of Three

Adagio sensed it.

It was wavering in short burst of energy.

It was the magic. The power and energy was struggling to become stronger. But it faltered and became weak again, a small reminder in the back of her head making its presence noticeable only at a glance. Aria and Sonata stopped their arguing and tilted their heads in the direction of the pulsing magic.

It was too short of a burst to know exactly where it was coming from.

Aria gritted her teeth and stomped her foot on the pavement.

"It's as if it's mocking us!"

Sonata frowned slightly. She didn't like this game the magic seemed to be playing.

Adagio didn't say anything. She squinted her eyes and hummed. She felt it coming from a certain place...but she wasn't sure if she was correct. It definitely was somewhere there.

"Lets go home," she announced and stood up.

"What?!" Aria cried in outrage.

She stood up abruptly and the chair teetered behind her.

"Didn't you just feel that power? We can go and follow it!"

"That power faltered. We're back at square one, Aria," Adagio told her calmly.

"We should've moved faster!" she yelled.

Adagio stared at her for a long time. Aria had a short temper, but never with her. To see her going crazy over this made Adagio realize how power hungry she was. She was deprived of it and wanted it back more than anything. This was foolish of her. Adagio slapped her in the face.

Both Aria and Sonata stood there stunned.

"You're being stupid. The last time we had power, it was taken away from us. You should be grateful that your life wasn't taken as well. We have to be careful about how we get it back. We can't just stumble blindly into whatever may have it. Besides, it could involve those girls..."

As soon as she said that it sprouted an idea in her head. Those girls...That's it.

She hesitated before turning to head home.

"Lets go."

Sonata slowly followed and Aria stayed back a little before trudging behind. This wasn't an thing for her to get over. She wanted power. But Adagio was stalling. Fire set in her eyes, she watched their leader walk ahead, drilling holes into the back of her head angrily.

Excerpt from 'Three stories at once'

***

She took a step inside the building. Taking in a deep breath, she smelled the air around them. It was peaceful there. No disturbance. No fury. No pent up emotions.

It had been a while since Adagio had stepped into CHS with the girls. With everything so orderly around them, it was as if the events of their appearance at the school never happened. Peering around the halls, she saw that no one was paying them any mind. Like they were regular students at CHS. The oddity of that rubbed Adagio and Aria the wrong way.

Sonata, however, wasn't paying any attention to the atmosphere, but the posters on the walls.

"Oh my gosh! Look Dagi! Ari! Valentine's Day is coming up! Ooh, and there's a dance!!!"

She pointed to a pink flyer that hung on the wall looking as adorable as a Valentine poster should be.

"Sonata!" Aria snapped. "We aren't here for that!"

Sonata dumbly looked at the picture of two hearts together.

"...What is Valentine's Day..?"

Aria smacked her forehead and groaned.

"Valentine's Day is when you go out of your way to show love to someone you care about."

Sonata looked at her like she knew the answers to life itself.

"Ooh, sharing love? Like this?"

She grabbed Aria and hugged her tightly. Aria squeaked and struggled to get out of her clutches.

"No, you box of rocks!!!"

Sonata and Aria continued on with their weird thing while Adagio glanced down the halls, ignoring them. She frowned and narrowed her eyes. Something was fishy...The usual ruckus of the halls and students seemed very low key. She may have not been there for sometime, but she knew when things weren't going the way they normally do.

And speaking of fishy.

Just then the door down the hall opened up and out came Sunset with Big Mac. The girl was freaking out and holding her hand protectively. There were goggles in her hair. The boy calmly walked her down the hall without looking to see the three Sirens and passed them.

"Ah, I'm going to die!!!" Sunset cried.

"No, you're not. It's just a small chemical burn," Big Mac told her.

"Chemical burn my ass! This shit hurts! I want--no! I demand to see a doctor!!!" she yelled.

Sighing, the boy took her hand gingerly and kept her from moving too much.

"The burn is minor. You do know that the chemical you burned yourself with isn't going to cause you any mutations. It's not like some show on TV where you turn into Superwoman or anything."

"Why would I want to turn into that when I'm a Siren?!" Sunset grunted.

Siren.

The word hit Adagio like a bullet. The feeling of the weak magic came from Sunset and Adagio felt warm with the familiarity of the power. Aria and Sonata seemed to have noticed as well. Their heads whirred around like robots when they heard Sunset's loud mouth say the magic word.

Siren...

Sunset Shimmer was a Siren now.

It didn't matter how she became a Siren or when. All that mattered to them was that they found it. They found the magic they so desperately wanted. And it was Sunset Shimmer who had it. Adagio knew it would be quite an interesting event trying to get the jewel.

But it seemed too easy.

So easy it was boring.

With Sunset right down the hall, fussing to who they assumed was her boyfriend, it was an easy catch. It sent a thrilling chill down Adagio's spine. This feeling of easy success she knew all too well. It wouldn't be easy. And that's what made it seem fun.

She could play this game of chance and the probability of power could be there.

In the end, if she won or lost, she would take it back.

She was sure of it.

Tricks up her sleeves(NOW WITH MUSIC)

Author's Note

I HAVE AN APOLOGY TO MAKE! I'm sorry that I'm disrupting the comments section with nonsense. I've just been in a very bad mood these past few days. I promise to stop annoying you, SilentStrike43, with the garbage. Again, apologies.

EDIT: Many peeps were all disappointed I didn't have this song on here so here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aC3YRSv0w1k

Tricks up her sleeves(NOW WITH MUSIC)

Sunset frowned as the nurse bandaged her hand. She really hated everything that was going on lately. It seemed like absolute agony without Twilight. She had no idea why things had changed so drastically since she left. Big Macintosh waited in the doorway so he could go back to class when she was done there. Sunset was a handful. He didn't know how Twilight could handle such a fiery girl.

Calmly, Sunset watched the nurse finish bandaging her wound.

The nurse looked up and smiled at her. "You're all better. Did you take your afternoon pill, Sunset Shimmer?"

Right. The medicine. Sunset shook her head and was given a pill. She swallowed it dry and sighed. Having to swallow pills for the rest of your life was not very fun. She got up from the chair and looked at her 'boyfriend' apologetically. He just nodded and tilted his head toward the door. They walked out and were met by three people standing there.

"Long time no see, Sunset Shimmer," Adagio said evilly.

They shocked the both of them so badly that they cried out in surprise. Big Macintosh stumbled back a little as Sunset bumped into him. Their eyes were wide with recognition.

"You!" Sunset gasped.

The Dazzlings! What were they doing there?! She thought they were gone once they ran off the last time she saw them. What could they be here for?? It was just so out of the blue to see the three of them appear before her. Sunset gritted her teeth and stood her ground. Whatever it is they came back for, she was going to fight.

Adagio smirked at her.

"I see you're doing well. Glad to see us, aren't you?"

"Bitch!" was all Sunset could utter.

Adagio looked a little stunned at this.

"Whoa, what happened to you being good? Oh, is it because your friends didn't reform you well enough? That's a shame..."

"You shut the hell up," Sunset grunted and she balled her hands into fists.

Big Macintosh eyed the girls narrowly. This was a fight he didn't want to take part in but if things got out of hand he would step in in due time.

"What're you here for?" the flaming girl growled.

Adagio looked up to the ceiling as if thinking. Tapping her chin she hummed.

"I don't know...magic perhaps? A certain type of power? One that...you have."

Sunset stood back in surprise. How could she know that she had a Siren jewel shard? There wasn't any indication...Her mind clicked to that night she transformed. They more than likely saw the blast of light. She quickly changed her expression back to its guarded look. But it was too late. They had seen her look change from anger to surprise. She had their power.

"You know, the magic seems to be very weak coming from you..." Adagio muttered. She glanced at Sunset's neck. Unfortunately, for her she couldn't see it with the collar hiked up the way it was.

She's hiding the necklace.

Sunset watched her eyes and knew what she was looking for. Adagio and the other two thought she had all the pieces of the necklace. They had no idea that she only had one fragment...

" You want your power back from me," Sunset said flatly.

"Why yes, Ms. Einstein. I thought I just told you that," Adagio mumbled with irritation.

Sunset smirked.

"Well, how would you get it back?"

This question was something neither Big Mac nor the Sirens were expecting. Aria and Sonata exchanged looks of uncertainty and glanced at their leader to see what she'd say. Adagio frowned.

"By removing the necklace, of course. Or, if you want to do it the easy way and remove it yourself..."

"Not happening," she told her.

Adagio's eye twitched. She was getting quite aggravated with Sunset Shimmer. But she did know that it would be a hard game to play.

"Ok, why don't we make a deal? You have two weeks to give us the necklace. If you don't give it to us by the end of the second week, we'll come back and take it by force."

Aria stood there wide eyed and mouth open at this deal she made. What? Why didn't she just take the necklace right now? It would be so much easier!

Sunset tilted her head. It sounded pretty legit. But she knew there were to be some traps involved. Either way she would do it. She needed to get in contact with Celestia and Twilight first before anything happened. Besides, she had them tied around her finger...

"Deal."

Adagio grinned and turned without saying a word. She walked away and the other two followed; one of them happy, the other shocked. They parted ways as though nothing big just happened. It was stunning to Aria what just went on before her eyes. Two weeks? Now Adagio really was stalling!

But Adagio knew what she was doing.

She had tricks up her sleeves and they were certain to get the jewel in due time. The two weeks was just a diversion to make her seem overly generous with her time. Sunset was bound to try to use the power of her jewel and make it stronger. The stronger it got, the better. Sunset wouldn't be able to handle the power. She'd go crazy and her friends would have to take the jewel from her. Then it would be an easy steal to take it back and use the jewel to track down the other jewels.

It was just that simple and none of them would have to do a thing but wait. Power was not something that was very easy to control, especially Siren magic. It was the strongest form of magic next to Alicorn magic. There was no way she could handle it.

But what Adagio didn't know was that Sunset had her own plans. She thought she had the full necklace? Idiot. Sunset would hide the fact that she didn't have all the pieces for that time and when they would come to get it, they would look like fools trying to get something they couldn't. In the meantime, Sunset would plan a way to get rid of them once and for all with Twilight and her mother.

Both of them had tricks up their sleeves.

But neither knew that the game they were playing had different rules than the ones they set.

Reunite(Unscripted w/ music)

Author's Note

Sunset: Siren of the Equine River is ranked 35,498th on Fimfiction. It is the 15,001st longest story and can be found in 109 bookshelves, being tracked by 47 users

This is this story's statistics. Amazing! The prequel has even better ratings and statistics than this one!

If she were the sun and her the moon is ranked 26,772nd on Fimfiction. It is the 7,198th longest story and can be found in 178 bookshelves, being tracked by 64 users

Also, I have music!

I chose this specifically because the reunion of Sunset and Twilight is supposed to be sweet, but Celestia looks upon it with dread and so this song will sound a bit odd at times. Just think of it as Celestia's presence as she thinks of what's to come.

Reunite(Unscripted w/ music)

Twilight and Celestia stood before the mirror and sighed. Twilight was eager to leave the place she was behind and enter the other world. Celestia could see this and felt a twinge of guilt.

I'm sorry, Twilight...

The princess looked back at the Main 5, who seemed a bit spooked by Twilight's eagerness. She smiled at them reassuringly.

"I leave you girls in charge of Twilight's position as princess of Friendship. My little sister will be here to raise the sun and moon while I'm gone and take care of my duties. We won't be gone long. We just have to make sure everything is in order."

The ponies nodded sweetly and smiled back.

"See you, Twilight," Fluttershy whispered.

The mare nodded back and faced the portal ready to jump through at Celestia's go.

The ruler of Equestria looked to the portal and frowned. It will be hard to see how this all will turn out. She was glad for the life Sunset had made for herself, even if it did come in a way that surprised her. She didn't want to end it because of this mess...Straightening neck and standing tall she sighed.

"Come on, Twilight. Time we go."

The girl gladly shot through the portal and Celestia followed her, scared of what may occur.

***

Walking toward her home, Sunset thought of Twilight. She had been gone, really, only for two days. But it felt like forever. She missed her to the point that she would do anything to see her again. Just waiting was painful. She sighed as she walked home alone. The sky was a soft orange and was full of cotton candy clouds the color pink. Small song birds chirped as they flew around her to their homes. A slight breeze came and ruffled her hair.

It was just like that afternoon that started it all.

So beautiful was the sky and wonderful was the feeling of the small breeze...Only, instead of her hating Twilight, she loved her. She thought of the sky's depiction of her fall and Twilight's rise a sweet thing. Twilight was there, whether or not she could see her or touch her. She was there after the sunset died away and the sad color of night set in. When all seemed to hard to bare, Twilight's star shined as a beacon of hope in a world so dark.

No longer did it upset her to watch the sunset. It was always a pleasure to wait for her star to shine above her. Sunset looked up and smiled. The soft orange deepened into a red now. The breeze swirled around her and brought the smell of fall...

Fall.

August Fall.

Memories of her mother came back to her as she watched the sky's colors fade. August had always enjoyed walking at this time of year with her when she was a filly. Her mother would talk to her about how the leaves danced around them, twirling with excitement. Like ballerinas leaping around joyfully...Her father, Solar Flare, would give her a ride and run through the mounds of leaves to make them fly in the enchanting dance her mother found so nice.

They'd laugh as the breeze made them flutter gently in the air.

You're Shimmering, my darling.

Words she could not forget coming from her father as they laughed in the Autumn breeze without a care in the world.

"Shimmering," Sunset whispered.

"Shimmering indeed," a soft voice said behind her.

The girl turned around and saw Twilight, smiling at her. Her hair flowed in the wind. The glow of the sun's rays softened her face. Twilight, being the cool shade of night, looked unreal in the rays of light that came from the setting sun. Sunset stood there without saying a word. Was she really here? Was Twilight before her?

It was when Twilight stepped forward and brushed her cheek with her thumb that she realized she was real. She also realized she was crying, too. Sunset grabbed her by the waist and pressed her lips against Twilight's. A warm feeling ran through her as she kissed the girl. Celestia stood by a tree, reminded of the night she first came to that world.

It was beautiful how they came together in such harmony. It was a time where it wasn't quite day and wasn't quite night. A time where two different entities came together in a way that was so nice. So wonderful. Much so like Twilight and Sunset as they held one another in a passionate kiss. It was such a scene. So emotional and gorgeous...

Celestia felt a pit in her stomach. This love of theirs would have to end soon. Sunset wasn't the monster she would become. But in due time she will evolve. Sunset stood strong with her arms around Twilight. A reflection of those with strength and courage. A symbol of bravery touched with the feminine features of a woman. It was odd how she looked so mighty yet soft.

Twilight was small and gentle compared to her companion. The way her leg lifted slightly as she leaned in to kiss Sunset and how her hands rested on the girl's shoulders made her look all the more frail and kind. A sweet touch to compliment Sunset's femininity. Celestia couldn't think of a pair that was so different but fit so well.

The sun and the moon they were. Like water and fire. A similar comparison to yin and yang or the phoenix and dragon; forever together in a bond that could never be broken.

Twilight and Sunset were smiling at each other now. Their noses pressed against the other's and foreheads touching. Sunset held a locket between two fingers and rubbed it gently with her thumb. Celestia was struck with the remembrance of her parents. Her parents had gotten together in a similar way. Celestia remembered it bright as day the day Solar proposed to August. It was under an oak tree in a fall like this one. He was so certain he'd get her hoof in marriage.

It was in his eyes. August had cried and kissed the stallion. After that they were lost in each other's eyes. Celestia had watched it happen from a distance. Solar was a close friend of hers. He, in fact was the captain of her Royal Guard before Shining Armor.

So many memories.

So many beautiful things.

Yet there was one curse that tainted it all.

She wanted them to savior this moment before the worst was to come. It was the best she could do for them. The best she could.

*Author's Note: I REALLY WANT SOMEONE TO DRAW THIS SCENE SO BADLY! IT'S JUST SO NICE! I DON'T TRUST MYSELF TO DO IT BECAUSE I KNOW I'LL JACK IT UP. SO BEAUTIFUL THIS CHAPTER...

Regret-Part 1(Unscripted w/ music)

Turn this up loud. The volume is very quiet!

The gentle winds of an Autumn evening brushed their faces as they smiled. Sunset and Twilight were walking side by side toward Sunset's home. The older girl held onto the younger girl's hand as if afraid she'd run away. Merrily, Twilight pulled Sunset along and kicked some leaves around by her feet. Sunset smiled and chuckled.

Celestia followed, allowing them their distance just thinking about what she had done to taint this beautiful bond. It flashed in her head and she closed her eyes. She was to relive this moment the rest of her immortal life. She just knew it. Two girls so happy together, despite it being out of the norm for the same gender to be with each other. Both so different it's mind blowing how loving they are to one another. Connected by the most outrageous things that could ever happen to someone...

Again, the regretful thing flashed in her mind, destroying the image of pure happiness.

It replayed in her mind over and over again like a record.

Celestia was back at the palace with the vial levitating above the jewel. She stared down at it with deep intensity. The fragments shined up at her, daring her. Evil as the jewels was it seemed ironic to spill poisonous dark magic over it. She kept looking at the glowing pieces. So promising, they were, to bring its owner power. So alluring, it was, to grant any desire of its beholder. Celestia grimaced and had the vial float directly above the treasure.

This thing was a curse. It didn't promise a good fortune of any kind. It hurt those around it and Celestia needed to get rid of it. She opened the vial and its contents spilled out in ghostly whips of green. She focused her energy on making it go toward the jewels. But somehow the shards were causing it to bounce off some kind of force field. This surprised Celestia. She had no idea this thing had a defense mechanism.

She frowned and used her magic on the jewels. It was a strong barrier they had. Celestia used her magic to break it, sweating as she did so. Siren magic only being just below hers in strength did not make it an easy thing to fight with. Once she broke the force field she hurriedly directed the dark magic into the jewels. As the green smoke filled the pieces, they glowed a bright red and hummed.

It was a piercing ring that could've easily broke glass. Celestia flinched as she shielded her ears from the horrible sound. The ringing became louder until all the magic was absorbed into the fragments. Then it went quiet. The pieces became a dark red, the color of blood and no longer shined. A shade of the blood that was to run cold if things didn't turn out the way she hoped...

Looking at the two girls as they watched some squirrels chase one another was painful. She knew that what she had done would effect them badly. A nightmarish heaven this all turned out to be. It was the peak of beauty; the climax before things drop to shit. This was just too much.

What would Solar Flare have done about this?

He would've had a rage and stormed off, trying to hide his suffering tears. He would go to August for comfort on the whole matter. His level headed wife would be too stunned at the possibility of their daughter dying before she was meant to. The thought would press down heavily on the both of them, burdening their peaceful composure to that of depression. It would kill them to see their daughter smile, unaware of what lay ahead.

Celestia sighed slowly.

All of this was just too much. If she didn't do this, Twilight and others would be dead and Sunset would suffer. If she did go through this, like she planned to do, Sunset could die and then Twilight would suffer.

Guilt.

Sunset laughed and held her companion close to her. Twilight smiled and leaned back to rest her head on her shoulder. Celestia looked away. An agonizing image flashed before her eyes. Sunset was falling to the ground. Her strength all gone as well as her life. Hitting the ground below her, the girl felt no pain. Blood trailed from the side of her scarred eye; the eye gone and leaving nothing but an empty bloody hole. Bad things gone worse it represented. The color of her skin pale and rid of the blush she always had on her cheeks...

An arrow through her heart. Betrayal. From Celestia whom she trusted. Dark red blood pouring out of her oh so slowly, thick with sorrow and pain. Sunset had claws stained with sin. Stained with the blood of Twilight. Her lover gone and buried away to be forgotten.

Ashes.

Ring around the rosie,

a pocket full of posies.

Ashes, ashes,

we all fall down.

Sunset was the 'rosie'. People gathered around her in a circle and mourned her. Red Rose Celestia recalled, that was what Twilight had called Sunset before they left to Equestria.

Ring around the rosie.

Posy. A flower symbolizing mourning to those that have died.

A pocket full of posies.

Life gone from Sunset's body. Everything done and nonexistent. The meaning of her life gone up in flames and becoming nothing. So meaningless...So useless...

Ashes, ashes.

In the end, it's just apart of life. Death waits above the heads of those who are alive and times its strike to end what made you matter in the world. What made you important.

We all fall down.

Tears streamed down Celestia's face. Twilight and Sunset went on smiling blissfully. They were ignorant to what was to happen. Celestia wished things hadn't gone the way they had. None of this would plague her mind with sadness. Everything would be ok.

It would be fine.

Sunset would make it and so would Twilight.

She had to believe because she was dying inside.

Author's Note

I always thought Ring around the Rosie, that innocent nursery rhyme actually described the death of a soldier. When a soldier in the army dies, their living comrades wear posies in their pockets, a symbol of mourning. Ashes represents the person. Once the person dies, they are like ash. A dark matter that once was a thing, but now is nothing. And the ring around the rosie part of the nursery rhyme tells you the kind of flowers they use at funerals. A wreath of white roses is usually placed on the coffin of the deceased soldier. But it actually is about the plague.

Regret-Part 2

Just seeing the other girl was a blessing. Curled up together, Sunset and Twilight laid on the bed and hugged. Celestia let them have this day before the real talk would happen. It was better this way anyhow.

***

Sonata smiled as she hopped around the grass outside, chasing an imaginary bird. It was getting dark out and the sun was setting. Adagio watched the girl play in the grass. She was a simpleton but she loved her nonetheless. Aria, on the other hand was busy sulking by the stream near their abandoned home. She was skipping stones and watching them plunk into the water.

Much like their life was compared to that skipping stone. Just as the stone skimmed the water just barely and hopped up from the water's surface, they were able to escape certain consequences by just a hot second and keep on advancing to the next thing. It was after so many of these lucky breaks that they finally were caught and the punishment weighed heavily on them. Much like the rock sinking to the bottom.

Aria tossed a stone lazily and it only skipped twice. She swore under her breath and picked up another stone.

Adagio kept watching, wondering what Aria thought of her. Adagio knew for a long time that she wanted to be the lead. Adagio would've given her the chance to show herself worthy, but she was too headstrong. Always acting on impulse and not reason, she flung herself blindly into situations that she had no idea how to control.

If only Aria knew how to be a better leader would she let her have a chance.

One skip.

Two skips.

Three skips.

Plunk!

The sky was getting to be even darker now, yet they stayed out. Adagio closed her eyes and thought back. Way back to a time when they were little. It was around 751 B.L. As a young Draconeqi Hybrid, she and her sisters wandered the mountains of Equestria searching for a place to belong. When they were born, neither of their parents were there. All that remained of their trace was blood on the cave wall they were born in and nothing else.

Not quite understanding the way of the world, they wandered into pony villages and were run out by defending stallions. It wasn't exactly a life you'd call fun. Always having to hide from those that want to harm you. Fleeing from ponies that don't understand what you are and are afraid. It was when they got older that they found a way to live without having to run away.

When they had been banished to this world by Starswirl was when their life had gotten better, actually. Here, they learned how to fit in without people constantly being scared. With this advantage, they learned to use their powers and fed off the rage of those around them. Everything was ok, except that they couldn't use extensive amounts of magic or they'd run their jewels dry of it.

When they had found the Equestrian magic, they were given all the power they could ever want. But now that their jewels were completely broken...

No power.

And Adagio knew it was taking a terrible toll on her sisters. Looking down at her arm she nudged the sleeve of the sweater she was wearing to reveal the red part of her skin. Rubbing it slightly she saw the skin come off as red ash and crumble, falling into the grass. She pulled her sleeve up and sighed.

They were dying.

They were falling to ash without their power. It happened ever so slowly but it was still happening. Adagio sighed again and looked to Sonata. Her little sister had come to her just last night crying about how her skin was turning to dust even more. It pained her to think they couldn't go on without their power. Now that they no longer were the owners of the jewels and were now claimed by Sunset, they were crumbling away.

That night Sunset found the jewel shard, the fragment binded itself with her life force, never to be removed unless taken from her and attached to another life force. Once it did that, the power no longer was connected to the Sirens and they began to die. That was the way of the Sirens. Death comes at the lose of power.

It was out of desperation that they were going to fight for this power. And they needed it fast.

Ring around the rosie,

a pocket full of posies.

Ashes, ashes,

we all fall down.

Author's Note

I'm sorry if this chapter was boring. I needed to put in a filler to give me time to think. I'm still thinking about Reunite and Regret. It's very sad...It was so sad it stumped me for a little about how to cheer the mood so I decided to move on from them to the Sirens.

Moonlit Night(Music)

Author's Note

Moonlit Night(Music)

Twilight wakes to the sound of tossing and turning beside her. She glances over her shoulder to see Sunset on her side with her back facing her. Glancing at the clock beside the bed she sighed.

2:34 a.m.

Usually she'd be up and at it at this time doing some royal chore in Equestria, but right now...Dead as a doorknob. She had stayed up all night with Sunset telling each other how much they missed one another and talked about a future together. It was a lovely chat, full of warmth and happy thoughts. Sunset turned again in her sleep. Her companion sighed again and buried her face in the sheets. It was too early to wake her up.

But Sunset kept tossing and turning.

This went on for some time before Twilight got a bit irritated. Sunset was a heavy sleeper. She was a raging lion if you woke her up before she wanted to be awake. Glancing at her, Twilight decided to risk it and wake her up. She probably was having a bad dream or something. Shaking her, Twilight called out her name.

"Hey, Sunset. Wake up."

The girl groaned and kept her face smashed in the pillow. She was still asleep and moved slightly. Twilight continued to shake her.

"Sunset."

The girl made a noise and it wasn't a sleeping noise. It sounded as if she was in pain. In instinctive worry, Twilight turned her over and went wide eyed at what she saw. Sunset was hot red in the face and sweating. Her eyes were shut tight and her breathing was heavy. Sunset was ill and very much so.

Twilight shook her violently and called for Celestia. The woman shot upstairs. She had fallen asleep downstairs. Once she came into the room and saw Sunset, a ghostly look came across her face. Horrified, she stepped back into the hall still staring.

"Princess Celestia! I need you to get a rag and soak it in cool water!" Twilight said to her.

She was in a panic. Spike had gotten like this before with high fevers, but seeing Sunset this way...Chills ran down her spin. Something was horribly off by the way Sunset's face flushed. It was too straining. Her eyes clamped shut in reluctance to open, as if something was forcing them to stay that way. Her breathing was fast and husky; she seemed to not be breathing yet she was.

All this made Twilight deathly scared. She heard Celestia's footsteps storm back into the room and she held out a wet rag. Snatching it, she placed it on Sunset's forehead. The Sunset immediately opened her eyes and startled Twilight. Sunset jolted to an upright position and flung herself out of bed. Speeding past Celestia, she shot downstairs. Twilight was so stunned she couldn't move.

Those eyes.

Those eyes weren't Sunset's. They weren't the warm, mischievous eyes she knew. They were cold and alien. Instead of the gorgeous green eyes Twilight had come to love, they were...alien. The green in them seemed to have gone just as dull as the blind eye. The pupils were sharp and cutting, ready to steal your soul. As crazed as a wild stallion, they zipped around in search of what was not there.

Something was definitely wrong.

A loud bang came from downstairs and Twilight knew Sunset had went outside of the house. She jumped off of the bed and ran downstairs to chase her. Celestia followed, lost and spooked by the whole thing. As soon as she ran out, the cold night air hit her skin and she shivered. Twilight could see Sunset running down toward the park.

She followed, unsure of what cased this sudden burst of energy. She was very scared. As the grass crunched beneath her feet and her heart raced, Twilight had to wonder what it was that caused this. Before her she could see Sunset running ahead, hair flapping behind her...not looking back as Twilight's voice called to her in this dark hour. All that lit their way was the moonlight of the full moon.

A mysterious time of darkness it is. How the full moon lights the black sky, casting shadows on everything below. A time of deep suspense that leaves you wondering what could be lurking in the dark right beside you or before you or even behind...Twilight turned to see Celestia following not to far away. Her footsteps were inaudible to the human ear. Her glowing hair swayed softly behind her, her face as pale as chalk.

Nothing was certain.

Twilight felt her eyes tear up. She was very much afraid for Sunset. She wasn't sure what it was that caused her to do this strange thing. And her eyes...Twilight was afraid that she was gone. Gone to the jewel that possessed her. They were heading away from the park and now Twilight could see where Sunset was heading.

The Equine River.

She truly was lost. The fragment had seized her. Sunset was no longer human at this point. She was a Siren, the magic and power of the enchanting jewel taking her soul onto a ride of wild dreams. Having lost sight of everything before her, she runs to the river in quick strides. Eyes only on the cold waters she will soon be enveloped by. Twilight was crying now. She wouldn't lose Sunset to this overwhelming power.

They came upon the soft sand bank of the river, Twilight and Celestia had. But by that point, Sunset was already in the water. Panting and deathly fearful, Twilight cried out to the girl.

"SUNSET!!!!!!!!"

It was cold out, but Twilight didn't notice. She was hot and tired from the running. Celestia stood beside her and scanned the water wildly. There was no sign of her. It was as if she hadn't went into the water at all. Twilight shouted and screamed until her throat was sore and she no longer had a voice. All in the meanwhile looking for her. Twilight ran into the water knee deep and was about to go in and search for her when Celestia snatched her back.

"No! What are you thinking?!"

"S-Sunset!!!She's...she's..." Twilight argued hoarsely.

Tears streamed down her face and she hiccupped with deep sobs. Her eyes were full of sorrow and pain. She was lost. Without Sunset, her life was done. She needed her. Her other half was what the fiery girl was. Twilight was crying hard. She struggled against Celestia's arm to go out to the water to find the other girl that disappeared beneath its surface. Screaming hoarse words and shouting unheard cries...

Celestia had nothing to say but just cried along with her. Never had she ever experienced anything this extreme. In this dark night, she held her former student and listened to the agonizing sound of Twilight. All that was there to watch was the moon, high on it's throne ignoring this scene of desperation.

Sunset was gone.

The poison had not worked.

It had not worked.

Siren Song(Music)

Author's Note

Siren Song(Music)

It was just like that.

Everything went quiet.

Twilight could no longer bare that Sunset had gone below the water, never to return and fell silent. Celestia still held her against the black painted sky and they said nothing. The ruler was shocked. Only after the jewel had touched her just two nights ago, she was changed. Changed into the killing monster she so desperately wanted to get rid of. She should've poured the poison on the jewel sooner.

Now she lost Sunset. The daughter she had adopted to protect. The girl who captured Twilight's heart. The one who mattered most at the moment. She was gone in the water. Everything was still and nothing moved. The only thing moving were the tears on their cheeks travelling down their chins in a slow and sad pace.

Both of them stayed where they were and let the cold night air brush their cheeks. The moon loomed in the air as if waiting to see what would happen next...Then it clicked.

Moonlight.

It is believed Draconeqi Hybrids feed off of moonlight. This came to Twilight's head and she sniffed. Now that she realized Sunset's purpose here it still didn't change a thing. Twilight wanted her back...

Suddenly, a huge splash occurred and out came a large creature. It broke the surface with such tremendous force it scared them. A long serpent like creature with wings burst into the air. A mane of fiery hair and eyes of green, skin of pale orange and wings as dark as the night...Twilight stared at the beautiful Siren fly into the sky and enchant her. It glistened under the moonlight and destroyed any thoughts of Sunset having gone.

Both of them were stunned, but Twilight was on her feet in a split second.

The Draconeqi Hybrid flew up and stayed in the air motionless.

"SUNSET SHIMMER!!!!!" Twilight somehow yelled. It was as if all the soreness escaped her throat.

The Draconeqi immediately looked to her and its eyes flashed dangerously. A loud growl sounded through the air that could've easily destroyed anyone's ear drums. Immediately, Celestia knew this was bad. Those vicious, predatory eyes weren't signs of good will. The ruler stood up and grabbed Twilight's arm.

"Stand back!"

Just as she pulled Twilight away, the Draconeqi flew past them in such a way that it seemed as if it never came by them. The only thing that was for sure that it flew at her was the stir of air and cut that appeared on Twilight's arm. The Siren growled and roared as it missed its target. Flying back up into the night sky, it circled back and aimed toward them.

Celestia's eyes widened and she pulled Twilight away in fright. This Siren was after them. Twilight was shocked and couldn't walk right. Sunset was trying to hurt her. The magnificent beast howled and crooked its neck as it came back from attempting to get them. Sunset let out her claws, long and sharp. Her eyes were glowing with malice and her teeth gleamed at them, purely white. But ready to be stained by the blood of the two mortals before it.

Twilight couldn't believe it.

Finding her voice, despite the painful crackle of her throat from previous yelling, the princess called out to her.

"Sunset, it's me!"

The Draconeqi Hybrid snarled and charged at her. It narrowly missed her and Twilight stumbled back into Celestia.

"Talking to her won't work. She's possessed," Celestia whispered.

Twilight ignored her and kept shouting out. "Sunset, you have to stop! It's me, Twilight!"

Fierce as ever, the monster screams and sudden trails of light came from within the being and transformed it. The long muzzle became a small nose. The large vicious eyes of white became smaller. The mane of fire became a head full of hair and there in the sky was Sunset. Her eyes bright with white light and the magic swirling out around her. Her wings stayed flapping good and strong.

Twilight and Celestia froze. What was to happen?

And then, they heard it.

Sunset took in a deep breath and opened her mouth. Her voice came ringing out loud and true. It made everything stop in time and stay frozen. A lovely tune came flowing from her lungs, one that neither of them had ever heard. One so beautiful and enchanting...Twilight stared and felt numb. It was a wordless song, one so unique and hypnotizing. Her voice came out in blissful breaths of effortless song. Twilight kept her eyes on Sunset and felt her soul rise.

It was a peaceful feeling. Like she felt at ease. Like everything in life was fulfilled...Sunset came down from the sky and continued to let the entrancing sound travel from her mouth. She came to Twilight and looked her in the eyes. The girl kept staring lazily. Celestia shook her head and realized what was going on. Sunset was hypnotizing her. She was about to kiss her and steal her soul away.

The woman bit her lip and strained her herself to move. In truth, the song was so beautiful that it even got her in a trance for some time. She struggled to move away. Sunset was humming now and had her hands on Twilight's cheeks, rubbing them with her thumbs. The princess stood there not moving or blinking. She was completely gone at this point. The swirls of magical light that had once transformed Sunset into the creature she is now twisted around them, ready to strike and pick the girl's soul out at Sunset's command.

Celestia closed her eyes and tried to conjure up any magic she might have inside her. But she could feel nothing. The power around her seemed to be blocking out any of Celestia's with an unpredictable amount of force. That same force field effect she had encountered when poisoning the jewel.

Sunset was leaning toward Twilight now.

Celestia felt her heart skip and tied with all her might to move and stop what was about to happen. But she couldn't. This energy was stopping her, quite ironically. It laid a heavy hand on her and all she could do was watch.

Her lips came closer.

And closer.

Just the tiniest space between...

The ruler closed her eyes. This was it. She had failed the both of them and let the monster inside her daughter take control. Nothing would help them now. All was lost. The only thing she could do now was watch. After this nightmare ends, she would have to put an end to Sunset's life to save others from the horrid death Twilight faced. She could see them. White beacons of light glowing on the back of her eyelids. White roses on a casket. blood on Sunset's claws. A hole in her eye and an arrow through her heart.

She waited for it to end.

But instead she heard the sweet song stop and heard choking. She opened her eyes and saw that Sunset fell to her knees before Twilight and was clutching her throat. Her wings began to disappear and the light vanished. Twilight stood there and blinked. She stared at Sunset a little before she processed what was going on. Immediately, she bent down and grabbed Sunset's shoulders.

"Sunset!"

The fiery headed girl looked at her and kept coughing. Her eyes were no longer white with an overwhelming amount of power. They were the green both Celestia and Twilight knew them to be. Without warning, Celestia felt herself collapse into the sand. The straining powers of the magic had gone away.

Sunset kept hacking until a long wisp of dark green smoke came out of her mouth and floated into the air before disappearing. The poisonous magic. It had saved Twilight. It kicked in and stopped the jewel from its evil ways. Twilight held Sunset close to her and cried. Sunset leaned against her weakly, not knowing the slightest clue what came over her. She had a ghostly look on her face; she was scared of what she was about to do.

Sunset eyed the long bleeding cut on Twilight's arm and began to cry as well.

She had hurt her.

Sunset already was turning into a monster. She already was.

REM sleep(Music)

Author's Note

Sorry, everyone. This chapter was supposed to be out yesterday, but life happened. Hope you enjoy this because I'm planning to release more chapters to make up for the usual two chapters a day that I wasn't able to supply due to school.

REM sleep(Music)

Twilight stayed with Sunset as the morning light crept into the house. They returned and none of them could sleep. Sunset shakily laid her head under Twilight's chin. She shivered from the water and the thought of what she was about to do to Twilight. She was fearful of herself and afraid of what she was capable of. Sunset so desperately wanted Twilight to leave her and stay away, but she followed loyally and stayed by her.

Celestia leaned against the doorframe and watched the two of them rock back and forth slowly under the covers as they held one another protectively, like the danger was not one of them. This was bad. After one incident, they were traumatized. This couldn't go on much longer before the whole thing fell apart.

Twilight quietly hummed the song she heard Sunset sing and it sent chills down Celestia's spin. That was the song of her funeral. The one that would play over and over like a broken record until it completely fell apart. It was a song she would have died listening to. Sunset closed her eyes, seeing the significance of it. Twilight was humming it as a way to tell her that everything was alright without words. To tell her that the song she heard was nothing more than a tune and couldn't harm her.

Appreciating this comfort, she sighed and felt the girl's hand brush her hair. It was soft and warm in contrast to the rough, gritty sand they had collapsed upon earlier and the cold water she felt on her back then. It was a small reminder that she mattered. Twilight's fingers threaded through her hair and went through the damp curls, untangling them.

All was well.

Nothing was wrong.

Everything would be ok.

It was a miracle that Sunset topped before she killed her. It truly was. There had to be a reason as to why she stopped, but Twilight did not know the answer. However, Celestia knew well why her life had not ended that night.

***

Princess Luna looked up to the sky as she raised the sun. It was early morning and her sister had been gone for only a day. But something felt wrong. She watched the sun rise to its rightful position in the sky. Something felt eerie. The morning air was brisk and filled with untold secrets. Despite the sun being out, the air was still cool. But it was autumn getting close to winter.

Luna ignored this feeling and watched as the first of the ponies rose and went about their morning routine. It wasn't until thirty minutes later that Luna saw ponies walking the streets of Canterlot to jobs and run errands. It was a place she rather preferred. A world where everyone had a place in life. Somepony was the carpenter, somepony was the mail mare, and another was the weather control officer...

It made Luna feel at ease. She felt as though everyone was being orderly and constructive with their time. No need to worry about anything big happening. No need to feel at odds with the cool morning. The sun was up, ponies were out, and everything was fine. No worries...

Luna decided to rest.

Her eyes were heavy with fatigue. She usually didn't stay up to long for morning to rise. Celestia and Luna usually rose and set their respective objects of duty and Luna would be out sleeping in her room the whole day. Being princess of the night meant your work was at night. She wondered how Celestia managed to raise and set the moon and sun without her all those years.

Sighing contently, she closed her eyes and entered a dream she herself could not control.

Celestia was running, her hair flying out behind her and legs pumping as she moved silently over the grass. Celestia wasn't a pony, but a human. She was barefoot and in some pajamas. Luna's mind eye watched her older sister run across the damp ground heading toward the full moon.

So full of questions was she that Celestia would be out at this time. Judging from the position of the moon, it was early morning. Around 2am, similar to the time there. It was common for the ponies of Equestria to be out bright and early, but humans..? Especially since they required more sleep? It became apparent that Celestia was following someone.

Someone who was as dark as the night herself with long dark purple hair and lavender skin...Twilight Sparkle. She was heading toward a river...Luna saw a flash of red and yellow hair. But it disappeared almost immediately. This was real. Luna knew so. Her ability to enter the minds of sleeping ponies was functioning in a new way she's never known it to. She was able to connect with the mind of her sister and see through her eyes what was happening.

Twilight cried out and screamed to the object that had flashed in Luna's mind eye. Sunset Shimmer was what she was calling...So the fast blur was Celestia's former former student. Celestia caught up with Twilight on the sandy bank of the river. But by then, Sunset had gone. Twilight kept crying out her name and started to tremble. Her face was streaked with tears. Celestia stared out at the rippling water under the moonlight and said nothing.

This is all my fault

Celestia's thoughts. Luna could hear them...

I should've poisoned it sooner. Or none of this would've happened.

Luna felt very confused. Poison? Celestia would never do that. She'd never purposefully cause harm to anyone...So what was this about poisoning sooner? Luna felt suspicious. Celestia had only told her that she and Twilight were to be leaving for a while. She never did tell her what it was they were leaving for. That explained the funny feeling she felt in the air. The brisk morning full of untold secrets just floating by, waiting for it to be snatched and read for all to know.

It was a long time full of screaming and crying and staring. Twilight had gone slightly hoarse by it all and Celestia was motionless. Her mind was empty after those two thoughts. The suspenseful feeling of the cold autumn morning and dark atmosphere made things worse. There was bound to be a sudden event...

Without warning, a huge Siren burst through the water's surface and sent a chilling roar in the air. Luna felt frightened and watched helplessly as her sister dodged its attacks dragging Twilight with her. When it changed into Sunset Shimmer, Luna knew all the answers somehow. They were before her so openly as Celestia's mind flung her thoughts around in a jumble. A web of information.

She watched as Sunset tried to take her soul and Celestia could only stand motionless. Then, the coughing. Seeing the dark magic flow from her mouth as she coughed, Luna knew her sister poisoned the jewel inside her. Everything from there was just too much to bare.

Luna jerked awake at the herald's touch. It was already 6am. She was tired and restless at the same time. The herald glanced out the window.

"Your majesty, your royal duties as the temporary supreme ruler of Equestria need to be fulfilled as of this morning."

Luna sighed. It was a great wonder how Celestia did all this. She nodded and got up. Walking out of her room she had more information than she was willing to have about what was going on in the other world.

Plans to be made(Unscripted)

Red as the blood to be shed, her skin peeled more and more. Adagio sighed and pulled her sleeves up over her palms and walked away from the place the Sirens called home. She headed toward Canterlot and went into a hair salon. Handing a photo to the lady she jutted her chin out.

"Make my hair look like hers."

She promptly sat down in the chair and the lady stared at the picture and then her hair. With Adagio's puffy hair, it would definitely take a while. She sighed and took out some scissors. She'd have to cut her hair in order to make it look the way the girl in the picture's hair looked.

"I have to cut this in order to uhm, make your hair look the same as hers," the lady said.

Adagio flicked her wrist.

"Do it, I don't care. As long as my hair looks exactly like hers."

She glanced at a shelf of hair dye and saw the color she needed. Snatching it, she jabbed it into the woman's hand.

"And while you're at it, dye my hair."

She sat back down and let the woman stare at her via reflection of the mirror. Adagio smirked. She could see that the lady would do it anyway, even if she thought she was crazy. She was going to get paid so she better do it. The woman slowly got to work and cut off extensive lengths of Adagio's hair and got a flat iron heating up on the counter. She sighed as she went about the whole thing.

The former Siren sat and let her do her work. She was smiling to herself. Sunset had a big surprise coming her way. And oh would it affect her. Affect her enough to make her lose control of the jewel's power.

***

Sunset sat down quietly with Twilight and Celestia in Sugarcube Corner. It was early afternoon and Celestia thought it would be best if she brought the girls out to get something sweet to break the solemn mood. At the moment Twilight was sipping a milkshake and Celestia was picking at a cupcake. She didn't quite figure out how to use her fingers yet. Sunset looked down at the coffee she had. The cream slowly sank down into the brown drink and made swirls of white in her cup. She stirred it and let the coffee and cream combine.

"There's something I need to tell you," she whispered.

Twilight and Celestia both raised their heads to this. Sunset hadn't said anything all day. They looked at her and waited for her to continue. Sunset continued to stir her now cold coffee.

"Before you came here...the Dazzlings approached me."

Twilight's eyes went wide.

"The Dazzlings??"

Sunset nodded. "Adagio and her sisters found that I had the jewel with me. They made a deal with me, that in two weeks I had to give it up to them or they'd get it by force..."

Celestia paled and stopped messing with her cupcake. Twilight bit down on her straw and frowned.

"But how could we do that?" Twilight asked.

"They think that I have the whole jewel. That I have a necklace. Not a fragment," Sunset explained. "They'll be in for a surprise when they find out I don't have a necklace to give them."

Celestia nodded stiffly. This was smart of her to do. But that only made it apparent that she needed to remove the piece sooner than later. Twilight pushed her shake away from her and tapped her chin.

"Two weeks is awfully generous. They might try to pull something off to make the deadline sooner than not. I read in a book that Sirens die without their jewels. Which is all the more reason that the Sirens would try to do something sneaky."

Sunset tasted her coffee and grimaced. Bits of coffee bean scrapped her throat and went in between her teeth. She took a napkin from the napkin container and spit the pieces into it in disgust. Cold coffee was not the best when you don't make sure to stir it well enough.

"Exactly what I was thinking."

Celestia sighed and poked her cupcake.

"Well, we need to come up with something to prevent anything disastrous from happening."

They sat there thinking for a while before Pinkie Pie came over to see how they were doing.

"Hey, guys! Enjoying yourselves?"

"As much as we can," Twilight told her as she sipped her milkshake.

Pinkie tapped the table and pointed to Celestia's cupcake.

"Are you not going to eat it?"

Celestia shook her head and as soon as she had done that Pinkie shoved the thing in her mouth and ate it gleefully.

"Mmm! Delicious! Nothing like cupcakes!" she tried to say through her mouth full of baked good.

Sunset just shook her head at this and kept thinking about what to do. Celestia just watched Pinkie Pie in slight horror and amusement.

"Cupcake-ology. The wonderful science behind baking yummy goodness," Pinkie Pie sighed as she walked away.

Suddenly, something clicked in Twilight's mind.

"That's it!"

Both Sunset and the ruler looked at her and were eager to hear her thoughts.

"Cupcake-ology! That made me think that we need to study you, Sunset! If we study you in your Siren form, we can find strengths and weaknesses and find ways to guard yourself from any attacks the Dazzlings might throw at us! That way, when the time comes to face the Dazzlings, we'll have learned enough about Sirens to maybe even get rid of the jewel somehow!"

Sunset nodded but then shook her head.

"But without the jewel, I can't live."

"We'll find a way around that. I know we can," Twilight told her in determination.

Celestia sighed and nodded.

"Yeah, we can find a way...Certainly."

A 'way' was already in progress.

Motives unseen

Sonata had seen it all. She had seen everything that happened that night. The night of the Fire Siren she called it. Sonata had been playing around and wandered off near the river and saw the whole thing. She went back and told the other two what had happened and Adagio suddenly got up and left them.

Aria was pissed when Adagio said only she could do this task she was off to do. Right now, the both of them were waiting for their oldest sister to return. It was getting to be mid afternoon and she still hadn't returned.

"What could she be doing that takes hours to complete?" Aria growled as she plopped down on the couch. "This is supposed to be something we all work together on! Not a one man job..."

Sonata sat across from her on the floor.

"...I think I know what she's doing."

Aria perked up and leaned forward.

"Tell me."

Sonata opened her mouth and then closed it. Shaking her head, she said," If I did that it would ruin the plan."

Aria just stared at her in disbelief. She wasn't going to tell her?

"How would you telling me ruin the plan? This is supposed to be a joint effort."

Sonata shook her head again.

"If she tells us, then there would be a chance we could interfere and screw things up."

"Then how is it you know?!?!" Aria yelled.

The girl on the floor pouted.

"Because I used my brain and pretended to be Adagio."

Aria frowned. This was so dumb. Pretending to be Adagio was not something that could tell you her plans. So, it was just a wild guess Sonata was just pulling out her butt.

Aria just sighed and waited for Adagio to come home and explain herself. All this was really idiotic. With them dying slowly, playing games was the last thing she wanted to do. Sonata swatted at a ball under the table and started playing around with it. Aria sniffed and watched the girl. What would Sonata know anyway? She was very slow to catch up. There wasn't a single chance that what she was thinking would even be right.

Sonata had always been a very slow thinker...that is, ever since that accident.

Long ago, while the three sisters roamed Equestria in search of a home, there was a little Draconnequs wandering the woods. They had found him moping around and looking sad. Curiously, they went over to him. He looked like them slightly...

Similar wings somewhat odd appearance.

Sonata had went up to him and asked who it was and scared the little Draconnequs. The creature said its name was Discord, the Lord of Chaos. At first they laughed because it was too ridiculous. But they later became friends and came to like his company. The four of them travelled Equestria in search of home. But one day, Discord and Aria got into an argument and he got so angry that he lashed out at her. Aria had dodged it and Discord ended up hitting Sonata.

Sonata fell from the mountain, hitting multitudes of rocks and boulders. Luckily she used her wings to land soft enough where she wouldn't have died. When they came down to see how she was, Sonata was bruised and sore all over. They came to realize that she became slow and childish from the hard fall. Aria screamed at Discord and he left them and never came back.

It was all Aria's fault that Sonata was a bit doofy.

The girl before her smiled and tossed the ball away from her. Sonata wasn't always the Derpy Hooves of the Dazzlings. Or the silly Pinkie Pie of villains. She was once a normal person. But it was Aria's fault that she wasn't. Aria glanced at a clock on the wall and saw that it was getting close to late afternoon. Adagio still hadn't come back and she was getting antsy.

This girl was getting on her nerves.

Was she trying to get the necklace for her own? But that couldn't be. Adagio could be very mean to them but she never excluded them from anything that would benefit them as a whole. So why did it seem as though she were trying to go solo? All this wasn't adding up. But nothing seemed to be adding up.

Like how Adagio seemed to be holding back when faced with the chance of retrieving the jewel right then and there. It was just too easy to just grab it. It was way too easy. But Adagio didn't take her chance. It was obvious that the opportunity was there but she just didn't even make a move.

The only way she would find out about these things were if she waited for her to come home and confronted her. It was the only thing at the moment she could do.

Why were you going off on your own?

What's going on where you are hesitant to take opportunity?

Where have you been?

Keeping these questions in mind, she waited impatiently for Adagio's return.

Thesis, theories, and calculations - Part 1

Standing now at an open field away from Canterlot and the river, Sunset looked to the sky. It was getting colder as winter drew near. Twilight brushed her hair down and snatched the pieces of paper that decided to fly away. It was slightly breezy where they were. Twilight brushed her hand over the cover of the huge book she had and showed it to Sunset.

"This is the book I used to research on Sirens."

She opened it and turned to the page where she could identify the seven types of Sirens.

"Here, it says that there are several types of Sirens. The one you are is a Draconneqi Hybrid."

Sunset frowned against the wind that whisked around her.

"What can Draconneqi Hybrids do?"

Twilight bit her lip and let her eyes skim over the page.

DRACONNEQI HYBRID SIRENS

These Draconneqi hybrids are the descendants of both the Salamander and ancient Draconneqi. Appearing to be much like Soul Sirens, they are generally mistaken as such by creaturologists(that's not a real thing, but lets just say it is. It's Equestria). What distinguishes them are the large wings they possess and the long manes. Most Sirens do not have long manes. It is believed that they appear during full moons and bask in the light as a source of food. Not much is known about these mysterious creatures since they hide away.

Whether or not they are an aquatic type of Siren species is debatable. Presumably, they were around by 541B.L.

Sunset looked over the page and jutted her chin out in disbelief. The author of this thing made a whole stupidly large book on Sirens...but had no clue as to what Draconneqi Hybrids even eat. She sighed and crossed her arms against the cold air. Her frustration was starting to build.

"So...I'm a Draconneqi Hybrid. But this guy doesn't even know what we do. What's the whole point of bringing this thing if it isn't going to be of any use?"

Twilight practically flipped the whole book on its side as she let the pages fall very close to the end of the book. Skimming the pages, she squinted and scanned the words for something that she had her mind set on finding.

"Ah. Here it is."

Sunset leaned over and looked at what she was pointing at.

Once a jewel is separated from the Siren all magical properties from the creature are immediately stored into the jewel. If the jewel were to be broken in the process, the power is to be divided between each shard. Creaturologists have found evidence of it being a sport of earlier ponies to kill Sirens for their precious life giving source. Seeing it as valuable to their pockets, they hunted them down. The jewels would be crushed into fine powder and served in wine to royal families to symbolize their strength.

In this process, however, early Equestrians had become aware of the jewels' magical properties.

Ponylore states that there was once a mare who came across a group of sailors jumping and fussing by the coast of the Alicorn Ocean at night. She asked them what was wrong and saw that they were arguing over who gets what fraction of the treasured jewel. The mare, who had never seen such a beautiful thing, reached out to touch it while they weren't looking. Suddenly, the power of the jewel's shard surged out and attached itself to her.

One moment, she was a pony. The next, a Siren. In absolute surprise and fear, the sailors ran away and the mare disappeared into the ocean. Legend says, she was last seen by that ocean shore. But there have been claims that some have seen a mare slip into the water and turn into the enchanting creature and vanish. The Siren turned mare has now been named the Demi Siren.

Whether or not this ponylore is true, it is indeed a possible thing. Creaturologists have found that normal Sirens can only live with a complete jewel. When the jewel is fractured, the Sirens tended to die. However, the shards showed strong pulses of energy whenever a living organism came close to it and a sort of magnetic field was created between the two. This, the Creaturologists theorize, could indicate the strange occurrence that a fractured jewel could possibly attach itself to another organism.

Reading the last part Sunset's eyes widened. She raised a hand to her arm and rubbed it as she processed what she read.

"This could be what happened to me...So..."

She glanced down at her hands.

"I'm a...Demi Siren?"

Twilight tilted her head and frowned.

"I believe so. And there isn't much information on that either. So, we're going to see what you can do and I'll record it. That way I have data and can track your strengths and weaknesses. So when the Sirens come to retrieve the jewel, we'll be ready."

Sunset looked out over the field they stood in and felt the wind pierce through her jacket. They were there to do research.

Sunset turned back to her and nodded.

"Let day one of the study start."

Author's Note

This one is a bit short, yes. But bare with me. The real action won't be here until whenever. They're still in the middle of figuring things out.

Thesis, theories, and Calculations - Part 2(Music)

Author's Note

Thesis, theories, and Calculations - Part 2(Music)

Twilight spread her papers out and scribbled down some quick notes. She glanced up at her subject and continued to write. Sunset stood there not knowing what to do and waiting while she was shivering in the autumn wind. Without warning, Twilight came up to her and pulled out measuring tape, making notes of her height, arm length, legs, and even her three sizes...If you know what I mean.

Sunset watched her pull at her arms and stretch the tape all the way across and write stuff down. This was Twilight Sparkle at work. When she finished she sighed and shuffled the papers together full of her measurements.

"What'd you need to measure me for?"

"Just in case something happens where some part of you changes. I need to know everything in order to make accurate calculations," Twilight told her.

Celestia stood a ways back and watched.

"Ok. So lets go over what we do know so far," Twilight said.

Sunset nodded and looked to the sky again. The fluffy clouds indicated a fair day.

"We know that Draconneqi Hybrids are in fact an aquatic species of Siren. We also know that you are attracted to the water by moonlight," Twilight mumbled as she wrote it down.

Her thoughts trailed back to the night before and she shuddered. They also knew that Sunset fed on souls, gathering from what she was about to do to her that night. Sunset's face twisted and the princess could tell she was thinking about it, too. It was wasn't Sunset's fault. They would find a way to get rid of this evil magic inside her.

Silently, she wrote down 'soul eater' in small print on the paper.

Celestia looked on over the girls as they talked about possibilities of her abilities. She knew more about Demi Sirens then she would like to know. All of the information was dreadful. Too dreadful that it would cause them to lose hope. So she kept quiet on it and let them do their work and find out new things that were old news to her. She just hoped they didn't discover the worst of it all. The fact that it wasn't just souls they ate, but souls of their loved ones.

Celestia stood with her fists clenched. She knew she had some magical ability due to the magical imbalance of this world and any moment Sunset seemed to be ready to feast on Twilight, she had just the right spell on her tongue.

Succuberus Omega.

It was Pony Greek for 'Surrendering End'. A spell that would instantly destroy any attacking evil. A blast so powerful no remnant would be found of that organism. Celestia didn't want to use this form of violent magic but if the situation called for it, she would.

"Close your eyes and try to focus all your energy in bringing up your Siren magic," Twilight told her.

She stood next to her and took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She opened one to see if Sunset was following her lead and the girl hastily followed.

"Ignore everything around you. Everything but my voice," Twilight said. "In order to focus you must put all your energy and thought into the one task you are to do. Conjure up your magic. "

Sunset stood there and tried with all her might to concentrate. It was so hard to do so with the wind nipping at her ears and the chill of it biting her arms and legs. And she was very aware of Celestia watching her. It was like she could feel the heat of her eyes on her whole body as they scanned and analyzed the scene before them. Twilight noticed Sunset was having a hard time and told her to open her eyes.

The girl sighed and frowned. She forgot that Sunset hadn't been in possession of power for a long time and so it didn't come quite as naturally to use power anymore.

Twilight told Sunset to stand back. And she did.

Twilight stood up straight and took a deep breath.

"You think of the task at hand. You think of the purpose of you performing the assignment. What would happen if you completed it? What would happen if you didn't? Would it be good? Or bad? Or would it only be a disappointment to yourself?"

Sunset listened to her quiet voice and felt calm. It was if she were meditating.

Twilight took another deep breath and hummed.

"Once you have your focus on it, you place your energy into doing what is needed to be done..."

Slowly, but not unnoticeable, a wisp of pink magic came from Twilight's hands and became stronger steadily. It was a shock to both Sunset and Celestia. Both of them knew she was an alicorn, of course, but not that she could use magic here. But then again, Twilight reversed time to prevent a fight that never happened...

The girl opened her eyes and raised her hands. She looked to a large rock that jutted out from the ground and pointed a finger at it. The pink magic moved away from her finger to the rock and surrounded it in its embrace. Twilight tilted her finger up and the rock lifted out of the ground.

After a few seconds of letting it hang in the air, she put it back down and the power disappeared.

She turned to Sunset and nodded.

"You see how it's done?"

The girl nodded dumbly and went forward to where she was.

You've got this Sunset. You can do this.

Sunset stood beside Twilight and closed her eyes.

Ok, you've got this. Just think about bringing up magic. And maybe even lifting up that same rock Twilight did. Come on...

She felt a small tingle at the edge of her fingers. She sighed and continued to think.

If I do this, it'll prove I have control over the situation and can ice those bitches when they come for the 'necklace'. If I don't, everything will fall to hell. Just think of how happy we would be if this horrid thing were to be rid of. Then I wouldn't have to live under pressure and I could be with Twilight as long as I live.

Comforting thoughts came to her and increased the zapping feeling in her hands. She felt in control and was focused. She opened her eyes and was surprised to see red and yellow slivers of light magic dance around her from her hands. She was momentarily distracted and so the magic died down some.

"Keep your head straight," Twilight called.

Sunset took a deep breath and focused. She raised a hand to the rock and let her magic flow to it. When it was enveloped in the power she whispered one word.

"Shimmering."

Adagio v.2.0...that's her, right?

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Thoughts of princesses

Pieces of rock flew everywhere and the three of them had to dodge the hazardous things. It took them all by surprise that the rock had been destroyed. Twilight looked at Sunset with wide eyes and was at a loss for words. None of them had been expecting this result to take place. Sunset was going to simply lift the rock up and set it down.

Well.

That was a bust.

Literally.

Celestia was the first to speak.

"That magic was too powerful to lift the rock up. You need to learn to control the amount of energy you place in something."

Twilight bobbed her head up and down at this like a bobble head. Her eyes were wide. That rock she blew up was almost the size of a small boulder.

"Why don't we take a break?" Sunset suggested.

All of them were a bit to jumpy from that to continue. Twilight scrambled over to her papers and shoved them under a piece of rock that was everywhere. Celestia picked up the rocks and grabbed a blanket from a picnic basket Twilight had brought along with her books. They were going to have a picnic in the field. Sunset sat on the checkered blanket and took out a few napkins and bottled water. She handed some to the others.

They graciously took them and sat down with her. Taking sandwiches from the basket, they ate quietly. Twilight was glancing up at the clouds and day dreamed some.

I wonder how life would be after this whole thing subsides?

She imagined that the heavy atmosphere surrounding the whole thing would be lighter and happier. That the sun would shine brightly. A vivid sky of blue and white clouds as fluffy as cotton. Everyone would be rejoicing in glee that the whole ordeal was over. Sunset would be smiling; radiant and more beautiful than any other. The sad eyes and scared manner would be whisked away as a new day came. There would be no Sirens to worry about or messed up events taking place. Everything would be back to how it should be. This world without magic and creatures that should never have existed.

But then if it were to be the way it should be...then Sunset, Celestia, and she would not be here. The Dazzlings wouldn't have touched the soil of this world many moons ago. Her human friends would never have met her. And worst of all...

She wouldn't have met Sunset.

Without this world being corrupted by magic, she would never have come here and found the one she would love to spend the rest of her days with. Sunset would still be in the cellar area of the palace, just reading away at books she's read millions of times before, knowing there was a world out there to explore but not being able to.

Twilight would have continued on with her life, not knowing the mare existed...

Twilight just sighed and stared off into space. Life wouldn't be as enjoyable if she didn't meet Sunset. It also wouldn't be so complicated. There were pros and cons to everything.

Sunset finished her lunch and studied Twilight's far away look. It was very enchanting how beautiful she looked. She was the one for her alright. Sunset smiled as she watched her. Celestia watched the both of them and shook her head. This relationship would have to break soon unfortunately due to the jewel. She didn't want to break it now, but when it was obvious it wouldn't survive this ordeal she would.

"Um, let's get back to work you two," she said.

The two snapped out of their trances and nodded. The whole day was filled with helping Sunset control her power. The fiery girl blew up about two dozen rocks before she finally was able to lift up something without it immediately destroying. Twilight and Sunset laughed and had a great time doing strenuous work that would have made them tired. But seeing as they were together, it was pretty clear they gave each other the motivation to keep going.

Their former teacher watched and realized how much the two of them had grown since the first time she met them. Neither of them were the little girls with wild fascinations and curiosities anymore. The small frame and innocent little faces were gone and replaced by maturing features of young adulthood. No longer was the simple minded pleasures in small things like butterflies and flowers. Everything had changed and they were beyond that.

Yet, in Celestia's mind, they were the small fillies she taught years ago. One a princess, one a former student. As much as she hoped things wouldn't get hard for them, she made them hard herself, as ironic as irony can get. Twilight let a stem of magic travel from her hands and slither its way into a small pond of water near them. With her magic, she lifted the liquid into the air and amazed Sunset.

She shaped it into a bunny, a dragon, and into a pony. Twilight was explaining to her that with deep concentration, she can change things into what she willed them into. Sunset nodded and kept watching with wonder in her eyes.

"You try," Twilight said.

Sunset bit her lip and closed her eyes. Slowly, magic came flowing from inside her into her hands and she raised them toward the water. She attempted to lift the water up and hold it, but it splashed down and made them wet. Twilight laughed in surprise when the water sprayed them. She bent down and scooped up some water and splashed it at her.

Seeing this as a game, Sunset sprayed her companion with water and Twilight screamed. Just like that, work had turned into play. Now they were running around knee deep in water soaking each other and laughing and shrieking. They had turned into the small fillies Celestia knew to still be there and she smiled.

Days were simpler in the past of childhood.

No worries.

Just laughter and joy.

But in the end, children never are children for very long.

Adagio gets chased(Unscripted)

A whole day.

A whole day.

Aria and Sonata were worried. Adagio never left the house this long before. And they were sure it had all to do with the mysterious plan she had set up. Aria was more aggravated than anything and Sonata was more calm.

" I wasn't expecting this to happen, really. But I can see why Adagio isn't home," Sonata mumbled.

Aria stared at her crazily.

"So you think she didn't just abandon us? You think she's out fulfilling a plan so all of s could be happy?! If she was, she would have told us!!"

Sonata shook her head. "No, if she told us, we could ruin it. It's only a matter of mixing her up with someone else."

Aria's eyebrows shot up at this.

"Mixing her up with someone else??"

Instantly, the younger sister covered her mouth and gasped.

"I didn't say that."

Aria didn't even try to argue with her. This was all a huge mess. Sonata knew! And before she thought this girl was bluffing out her butt. She actually knew what Adagio was doing... She knew if she were to push it, Sonata would shut up and keep her lips clamped. Adagio must've made her promise to secrecy or something.

Sonata could see what was going through her head and gulped.

"I never was told anything, Ari! Adagio just up and left! I just happened to figure it out..."

Aria kicked the couch and snarled at the girl to shut up. She whimpered and backed away. Aria had enough of this. She was tired of being left in the shadows. What was going on where even Sonata of all people got it, except for her? Why was it that she was always left out to dry on stuff like this??

In rage, she flung the front door open and stormed off toward Canterlot. She was going to find Adagio. And when she did, she was going to let hell break loose.

***

Rarity met Adagio and gave her brand new clothes. The same crisp skirt, shirt, shoes, and socks that the girl she was impersonating wears. Rarity smiled at her and nodded a hello.

"Good morning, darling. How are you? How did the date go?"

She was giggling and a small 'squee' came out of her lips. Adagio grimaced and placed an odd smile on her lips.

"Gr-Great. We, uh...enjoyed the night to (gag) ourselves..."

Rarity squealed and Adagio covered her ears. The fashionista jumped up and down, clapping her hands.

"Ooh! Tell me ALL about it, darling! I want to know! I want to know!"

Shit!

Adagio looked down at the clothes in her hands. She came for what she needed and now she needed to bail. Bail before this girl tries to destroy her disguise...She looked all around her for a way to escape. She was deep inside the mall and the only places to go were the stores around her. Rarity reached out for her hand.

"Come on, lets talk in the shop."

Adagio sprang back and turned to run.

"Uhh...You can get the details from the other person! Girl! Lady! Dah!!"

The girl shot away from her with the clothes and rushed through the morning crowd of people there. Rarity called out but she continued on her way to a bathroom to change. Anywhere away from that girl was good enough for her! Adagio scrambled toward a restroom near the food court and changed into the skirt, shirt, shoes, and socks that was given to her. She glanced in the mirror and felt satisfied. Putting the clothes she just took off in a drawstring bag, she walked out and headed toward the exit.

But what she found there was sure to surprise her.

While walking she saw the wretched girls that caused this whole thing to spin out of control: The Main 5. Rarity was with them chattering loudly and excitedly. Pinkie Pie looked about ready to explode with joy and the others looked in awe of what was coming out the diva's mouth. ~~Brian~~ Flash Sentry and Big Mac were with them as well listening.

Flash looked a bit sour about what he was hearing while Big Mac looked plenty pleased. Pinkie Pie saw her looking that way and screamed.

"There she is!"

Adagio sighed and dashed off. That one girl told them about the fake 'date' she had with her 'beloved'. Goddammit. She heard them call out to her and she just ignored it.

"Hey! Where are you going?!" Flash cried.

Adagio heard footsteps coming after her and she panicked. This punk dude was about to chase her and pummel her down like a football player! At least her wasn't the real buff guy with the freckled face because that would cause some major damage.

"Flash! What're you doing?! What's gotten into you?!" Applejack howled after him.

She broke into a run and the others followed. None of them knew what was going on but whatever it was, they were going to find out. It was a messed up chase. Bumping into people was common in this run and shouting people was just as common. Adagio needed to get out of there and fast. She ducked into stores and swooped around corners.

Flash was on her tail and was hard to shake off. Eventually mall security was called and came zipping at the running teens on their Segways. The girls dropped off into the crowd to keep from getting spotted and Big Mac pretended to have been running to the restroom. But Flash was still on her.

An idea came to mind when the Segway guys called on their megaphones to slow down.

"Help! Get away from me!" Adagio dried in her girliest cry.

Flash was swarmed by the mall cops once they saw the boy was probably going to harm her.

Adagio got away scot-free and escaped the mall. Immediately, she headed toward the motel she was staying at in the meantime, glad that the mall chase was over.

Poisonous(Unscripted)

For the next week, Sunset had improved on her powers. But she also seemed to be getting oddly weak. She was getting better with magic but her health began to decline. Strange wisps of black magic kept being hacked up by her and Twilight began to worry. It was only a week before she would face the Sirens. Slowly but surely, the girl's shoulders drooped as the week went on and her body ached more and more.

Celestia watched her and refrained herself from using her magic to stop the poison. If she did it, Sunset would go berserk with power. If she were to try to remove the magic before the dark power of Sunset's own evil intentions got a chance to really take root, she'd kill her. This was not easy not saying a word, but having to watch your daughter die in front of your eyes slowly.

Twilight grew more and more anxious for her as the days went by and tried everything she could to treat this illness. But she didn't know it was something she couldn't solve. Sunset coughed beside her right now in bed with Twilight wringing her hands. It was a sight she didn't want to see. Looking out the window, she watched the rain fall outside. It was freezing rain that fell, making the roads slushy with ice. It was a miserable dark sky. The clouds blocked the sun from shining through and warming the cold air.

Sunset sat up and struggled to her feet.

"Lay down, Sunset. You're ill," Twilight said and placed a hand on her shoulder.

The girl pushed her hand away and got up looking pale and feeble.

"No. I will be fine. I need to get ready for when we encounter the Sirens," she told her.

The girl was a living reflection of her mother. Her pale skin and faint eyes reminded Celestia so much of August. Sunset's small nose and gentle features were a ghostly striking image of her. But the fiercely determined look and red hair was just like Solar. For her to look like them both all so suddenly made Celestia's heart quench. It was a wonder how at this time when death loomed so close that she looked like them. And that they happened to be dead themselves.

Sunset and Twilight had a small quarrel about her declining health and how she should be resting. Sunset insisted she be up and improve her skills, but Twilight was worried sick about her. In the end, Sunset's stubbornness won out and the girl moved past Twilight. The princess followed, fearful of anything that might happen.

Celestia just stayed behind knowing that whether or not she rested Sunset's condition would only decline.

***

Standing on the roofed porch, Sunset leaned on the rail hours after she practiced. She was getting better, that's for sure. But Twilight made her stop. The girl was sick with worry and looked as if she'd be ill herself. And Sunset didn't want that to happen. It was still raining that frozen slush outside, the icy chill of it making the hair on her arms rise. The ruler of Equestria was inside puzzling something out. She had told them she needed more time to think on the situation.

Twilight, on the other hand, panicked when she realized the pills Sunset took for her emotional mood swings ran out and hurried off in this weather to get them to prevent her from doing anything stupid. She entrusted Celestia with the task of keeping Sunset calm while she was gone. Well, that was working mighty fine since the ruler locked herself up in the guest room.

Sunset looked out and strained her eyes to see past the falling slush. Everything was foggy looking and there wasn't much to see really. She wasn't out there to see the 'fantastic view', of course. Her nerves were crashing down on her. She was worried that she might fail in keeping the Sirens away from the jewel and end up dead. She was also scared that they might hurt Twilight.

Anything could happen.

Anything.

The girl was gripping the rail so hard that her knuckles turned white. She needed her medicine and right now. Sunset squinted and glanced around. The rain hadn't lessened and the range of sight was still limited. As far as she knew, Twilight wasn't anywhere near. She wished she had a pill to pop. She knew that she was going to do something messed up and it didn't help that she couldn't see from one eye.

Just as Sunset was just about to have a mental breakdown, she saw something flash in the rain. It was orange, like, well, an orange. A raincoat. Overcome by curiosity, the girl stepped as close as she could get to the steps leading to the sidewalk without getting dumped on by rain and stared. That orange raincoat looked awfully like hers...Just like the one Twilight borrowed from her before she ran out to get the medicine...

It clicked in her mind that that had to be her.

Without thinking, Sunset ran out from under the roofed porch and into the rain. Immediately she was drenched from top to bottom in icy water/slush. She shivered hard but kept going toward the orange thing she saw.

"Twilight!"

When she called out her name, the girl began to move away, the distinctive color of her raincoat fading.

Maybe she heard me and is looking around to find me.

It was extremely hard to see anything in this weather so that answer was pretty logical in her mind. Sunset jogged in the direction of where the girl walked toward.

"Twilight, I'm right here!"

The girl in the coat sopped and kept her back to her. Sunset walked as casually as being very cold, wet, and in dire need of medication permitted and reached out to her.

"Hey."

Her hand was outstretched before her when it happened.

The girl in the orange coat whipped around and sliced her hand with a butcher knife. Sunset let out a cry of astonishment and pain. The falling ice water almost instantly got into the cut and burned it. Sunset was too stunned to see the second attack. The knife came swiping through her shoulder and another cry of agonizing pain came up from the fiery girl. It cut through her jacket and dark red blood seeped through the fabric and was washed down her front by watery ice.

The third attack was dodged narrowly and this time, the butcher knife was angled to go straight through her heart. Sunset, in a panic, tried to focus her magic energy on the assailant. This couldn't be Twilight. Not at all. She tried to focus on the person but was in constant need of having to dodge that her focus was broken way before she could gather her energy.

Sunset slipped and fell on the ground from the slick sidewalk and looked up at the assailant. They were advancing slowly with the knife dripping with cold water. This gave Sunset the time she needed to use her power. In a quick blast, she sent a shock wave of energy at the person. The girl stumbled back and the hood fell off. Sunset stared in horror at who it was.

It was Twilight.

She was standing there looking down at her evilly. Her face seemed to morph under the rain but Sunset couldn't quite tell from the hard foggy rainfall and nor did she care about that. It was the fact that it was Twilight that made her go numb all over. The girl turned and dashed away. And Sunset laid on the ground.

Weak.

Shocked.

And about ready to die.

Author's Note

What do you think? Like the chapter or what?

Uncertainty(Unscripted)

Sonata and Aria couldn't believe it. Adagio seemed to have ditched them and had no intentions on coming back. Even Sonata was sure she wouldn't. Her theory on Adagio's plan must have been a total wild guess. Aria stalked the city of Canterlot everyday and sometimes at night to find their sister who had suddenly disappeared. She wanted to give her a piece of her mind.

This was the very first time Adagio had left them on their own and to be honest, Aria was frightened. She may not show it but she worried deeply for the missing girl. She practically raised them in place of their parents as they grew up and did so for nearly five thousand years before they grew to teenhood. Before, Aria had not considered how lucky she was to have her but now that she was gone, she wished she were back.

Aria had always dreamed of being the one in charge. Adagio had always been the one to tell them what to do and she had hated it. Following orders and carrying out chores was not her style and still isn't. But she'd rather do that and have her sister back than not. Searching every corner and every crack, she surveyed the city like a radar; sending out a signal to find the object of want.

It wasn't easy. Aria could feel her ankles roll as she walked and she stepped carefully in the rain. Her ankles were so close to falling apart that she might as well forget walking for the rest of what remained of their lives. The only thing supporting her was the bone that was being gnawed at by the ash of doom. No longer was the tissue and veins of the girl's lower leg. It was all bone.

Sonata was taking a hit as well. Aria had to restrict her from her activities because of what they saw happen. Sonata was playing around in the yard when she bent down to pick up a stick. When she stood up, however, she discovered to her horror, that her fingers fell to dust and the stick lay on the ground now covered in bluish ash. Not only was her hand going, her knee had a wide hole in it. Because of her excessive jumping, her knees wore out the fastest.

Aria forced her thoughts to stay on the task at hand as she trudged through the streets. There was nothing out there. Just nothing...

Except for a flash of orange, but that was gone before she knew it.

***

~~Brian~~ Flash stared up at the ceiling in SugarCube Corner. The girls were helping the Cakes close up shop and clean.

"With this awful rain we won't have any costumers today," Mrs. Cake said sadly. "Thank you, girls, for coming over and helping us close the bakery."

Just then, she heard a baby cry and Mr. Cake call for this wife.

"Oh, just a sec," the woman said and hurried out of the room.

Applejack took off her hat, placed it on the end of the broom she had, and tipped the thing over to fall and lean against the wall. She sat down in a chair backwards with her chest pressed against the back of her chair.

"Well I'll be. This rain sure ain't common here in Canterlot."

Fluttershy nodded and Rainbow Dash stuck her tongue out in disgust.

"This punk weather is icky! It's causing me to lose out on some soccer practice. It's still the soccer season and we've got one more game coming up on Saturday!"

Rarity sighed and scratched her head.

"We haven't heard anything from our friend..."

"Not since she got me arrested by the mall security," Flash said bitterly.

The boy leaned against the wall and stared at the ceiling. Big Macintosh, who was standing beside Fluttershy looked down at his feet. everyone was silent. None of them could believe that she had done something so cruel. It wasn't like her to do nasty things like that.

"Maybe she was in a hurry," Pinkie Pie suggested. "Yeah! She was in a hurry to go and meet her loved one!"

Applejack frowned.

"I don't think that's it at all, Pinkie. If she had gone on a dinner date with her that night before she wouldn't be in a hurry. She'd just be a bit shy and hesitant after all that romancing."

"Well...Maybe it was a second date! They could've been celebrating an anniversary!" Pinkie suggested again cheerfully.

"Nah, I'm not buying it," Rainbow told her casually as she sat down. "Anniversary for what? Being together for a month and some days?"

Pinkie Pie nodded defensively.

"That could be it!"

Rarity tilted her head.

"Yes, it is something some couples do, celebrating a month together. But I honestly don't see Sunset and Twilight doing that. And if they do, it would've been celebrated the night before that day a week ago. It wouldn't be all too practical to have a dinner date and then the next day have an outing when it was clear the dinner date was in honor of that. It'd be overdoing it."

Pinkie Pie frowned and pouted. "I was just trying to lighten the mood."

Fluttershy smiled understandingly.

"We know, Pinkie, but none of us can really see the logic in your thinking...since most of it is illogical." She quietly added. "No offense."

Flash groaned and stood up from his slouching position and looked at them all.

"I just don't get it! Why would she even do that and not even come to apologize? Like what's up with that??I got arrested and interrogated for TWO DAYS because of that!"

"They thought you after her aggressively," Big Mac said.

Flash stared at him in disbelief.

"You of all people should know I wasn't after her to 'attack' her."

Big Mac sighed and rubbed his neck.

"I've got to admit. The way you were running after her looked like you were wanting blood."

The boy stomped his foot and stormed over to Big Mac. He grabbed his collar and yanked him.

"I'd NEVER do that to her! I'd never try to hurt her. I thought you were my best friend, Big Mac. What happened to friendship? What, isn't friendship magic? Or are you too wrapped up in your new girlfriend Fluttershy to help a brother out," he said accusingly.

This infuriated the farm boy and he towered over Flash. With a big rough hand, he grabbed Flash's shirt and bared his teeth.

"Take that back, boy."

Fluttershy went pale in alarm and Rainbow Dash and Applejack pulled them apart.

"What's the matter with you?! You know better than to do that to one another!" Applejack growled. "Look, I think this whole thing that happened LAST WEEK, emphasis on LAST WEEK, folks, has gotten to our heads. It was a small thing. It may seem like a big deal to some but looking at it from the outside it's not so big. Now why don't we just let it go and try to forget about it."

But even as she said it, Applejack knew the stiff atmosphere would hang around a long time.

***

"Sunset!"

The said girl whirled around in fear and regretted it. Her shoulder stung at the feeling of the ice in its cut. The rain had died down and she could see the house not to far away.

"Sunset!"

She stayed on the ground, rigid with a terrible feeling of the girl that was to find her. In the corner of her good eye, she saw an orange coat. She was dead now. Twilight ran up to her in absolute fear and knelt down beside her.

"Sunset! Oh dear Celestia, you were supposed to be watching her!"

Sunset saw her mother coming toward them in fear. Twilight touched her shoulder and Sunset cried out.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!!!!"

Both Twilight and Celestia jumped back in surprise. It was then that they realized her shoulder was cut and bleeding. Sunset had a crazed look in her eyes. Celestia motioned to Twilight to get the medicine she just got. Once a pill was in her hand, she shoved it down Sunset's throat.

"Swallow."

Sunset fought her a little but Celestia's strength was superior.

"Swallow," she repeated.

Sunset swallowed the pill dry and felt her nerves numb down. She had a more level headed way of thinking now. The girl looked to Twilight and raised her bloody hand, slowly pointing at her.

"Twilight...she...she stabbed me. She--You caused this."

Author's Note

This story's wrapping up soon. So yeah.

Dangerous Waters

Twilight stood there stunned. She was on the verge of tears. How could she be the one to cause her harm? She was out getting her medication. There was no way she could have hurt Sunset. Yet, the girl on the ground was certain and watched her with an untrusting eye.

She stabbed me.

Twilight stood before her in utter speechlessness. Celestia helped Sunset to her feet and glanced at the both of them.

"Lets get inside and get you warmed up first before we proceed..."

***

As Sunset dried off and tended to her wounds, Twilight and Celestia waited in the back living room and huddled around the fireplace. It was clear that it was Celestia's fault for not watching over her. From the cuts they saw on Sunset's shoulder and hand, the assailant meant for Sunset to be hurt. They were deep and cut quite cleanly with a practiced hand. They weren't jagged cuts from somebody who was fumbling around.

The fire crackled in the fireplace and the two of them communicated silently through their eyes. They knew something was up...Celestia was the first to speak.

"I'm sorry, Twilight. I didn't mean for any of this to happen."

The girl nodded slowly.

"I-I know. But you really shouldn't have kept yourself locked up in that room knowing Sunset was here feeling unwell." Twilight was too worn out to yell, but the anger in her voice was evident. None of this was making her feel better. First, Sunset was getting sick and she tried everything to heal her. But nothing worked. Now Sunset is hurt and refuses to see either one of them.

Worst of all, Sunset says it was Twilight who had done it.

Celestia could see that she was going through all these things in her mind and sighed.

"There's...something I need to tell you."

Twilight looked up at Celestia and waited for her to continue. The woman swallowed guiltily and looked down at her hands. She didn't want to tell her this but she needed to.

"The reason why Sunset is...sick..is because of me."

Twilight stared at her.

What?

"Princess Celestia, that doesn't make any sense. You weren't ever sick to begin--"

"I poisoned her," Celestia interrupted.

Everything went cold inside the room, even the fire seemed to have died down and chilled its warmth. Twilight looked into Celestia's eyes. They were bone chillingly stern, not a bit of laughter in them saying 'I'm just kidding'. Her voice had been a bullet that slammed into her chest. It held utmost seriousness in her tone. Nothing about anything was funny or silly in the slightest.

"You...what..?" Twilight whispered.

Celestia stared her in the eyes. "I poisoned Sunset Shimmer."

Another bullet hit her.

"B-But...how? Why?? Are you just making this all up because this isn't funny," Twilight said as her voice went from disbelief to panic.

"To tell you the whole truth, Sunset was poisoned before we came back here," Celestia told her. She looked into the flickering flames. "The dark magic in that vial in the artifact chamber. The magic Sunset herself created to corrupt the crown. That's the poison."

Twilight's mind was jumbled. none of this was connecting. Celestia herself seemed to be trying to dodge around telling her the whole story.

"T-Tell me. How did you...poison her with her own magic?" Twilight barely said. She was shaking and didn't understand what was going on.

"The dark magic she had placed in the crown I had removed. It's so destructive that it nearly rid your crown of its pure magic. Because there was no way to remove the shard without Sunset dying I decided that attacking it with poison would do the trick. Starswirl the Bearded once theorized that whatever happened to one shard happened to all fragments. By poisoning the pieces I had in the artifact chamber, the dark magic took root in Sunset's as well..."

Celestia drew in a long, shaky breath before continuing.

"It wouldn't destroy the magic in the jewel, just corrupt it. Since Sunset has a deep connection to you and truly and honestly is trying to be good, the dark magic is hurting her instead of turning her evil. It was never given to her to harm her, don't get me wrong. It was to corrupt the jewel so I can remove its power and place it back into the vial."

Twilight was just sitting there feeling numb.

"You're the one who caused Sunset this pain..."

Celestia said nothing.

The girl looked up at her with watery eyes and dashed upstairs. Leaving Celestia to stare into the fire, knowing that her life lit up in flames.

Finale's Beginning

Author's Note

I would like to take a moment to thank everyone so far for reading this story. I'm pretty sure some of you are a bit surprised by all the drama that happened in the last three chapters. Well...if you look back you'll understand it. I don't want to spoil anything or whatever but later on, I'll be posting a blog on why stuff went down the way it did. But after this story is done.

Finale's Beginning

Everything was falling to shit.

There's no need to explain how.

It just was.

- Sunset Shimmer

***

There was no one to trust. No one. Not Twilight, or Celestia, or the Main 5. Everyone had begun to isolate themselves and show sides of them that no one knew existed. Sunset looked down at her hand. It was bandaged and still bleed from the cut she received. How could Twilight have done this to her and deny it in front of her face? Why would she even do that? Sunset loved her. She would have protected her from anything that would harm her and cherish her to the end of her days...

She just couldn't believe it.

And to hear from her that Celestia is the reason she was weak. That some kind of poison was put into the jewel so the ruler could remove it...Likely story. For all she knew Twilight could be lying but she could be telling the truth. To think that all the warm things she's said to her, the "I love you's" and "You're the one for me" could be all lies hurt more than anything in the world.

Those innocent violet eyes and enchanting smile were all fake...Sunset couldn't take this anymore. This was all a trap that she fell victim to. Celestia and Twilight had always been working against her. And she felt a fool for falling for it all.

The Sirens were bound to try to take the jewel from her and if Twilight and Celestia were working with them, they were sure to know that Sunset only had a fragment. Not a necklace. She was sure to die if she lost this last battle. Sunset had seen the Main 5. They were uptight and untrusting. They must've known something. But just kept it from her.

Avoiding everyone was almost impossible, but she had to do it. As the days went by, she felt herself getting weaker and weaker. But she kept pushing herself to become stronger and stronger. She must embrace this power of hers. She must.

Or she'd die trying.

***

Adagio cringed painfully as she felt her skin peel and crumble. She hadn't seen her sisters in a week and she knew they were falling apart. She had to finish this quickly. She knew in only a matter of days she'd be dead. Sunset must go down. Now or never. And Adagio chose now. Swiftly, the girl went to the mirror in the bathroom of her motel room. There, she saw a gaping hole in her cheek and frowned. She needed to cover that up before she did anything else.

Her habit of scratching her cheek had come to bite her. Adagio could see her teeth from inside the open wound. The Siren sighed and pulled up her shirt. She dug her fingernails into her side and slowly skin began to rip off. She watched the tissue tear and the blood flow from it. It didn't matter to her. The skin was going to deteriorate anyway so nothing was a surprise. With one hard yank, the skin ripped from her side and lay in her hand, a bloody mess.

Blood was on the floor and running down her arm. But it didn't bother her. The jewel was her life source, not this useless red liquid that slowly ran down from the gash and stained her skirt. Adagio ran water over the bit of skin she just removed and washed it off. The flesh was untouched by the deteriorating and crumbling fate as her face and wrists were. It was going to be her temporary fix for this mess.

Taking adhesive glue, she applied it to the underside of the piece and then placed it carefully on her face where the hole was. Once it was on, she made sure to make the ends flatten against her face to look as natural as possible. Then, she set to putting on makeup. Covering up everything in foundation and blush. Once she was done, you couldn't tell that one side of her face wasn't right. She smiled.

She looked just like the girl.

Just like her.

Changing into the duplicate clothing of the girl she was impersonating, she said to herself in the mirror," Good morning, new me. We have lots to do today, don't you think?"

Her imitation was perfect. The right tone and pitch. Adagio glanced at the bed and lifted the mattress. Underneath it was her weapon of choice. She cleaned it off with a paper towel and grinned. She walked to the door and opened it. Hiding the weapon under the coat she had, she walked out the motel. It was time she faced Sunset and got rid of her.

But the timing had to be just right. At night when the sky was dark and the moon loomed over them mysteriously. That was when the jewel's power would be strongest. That's when it'll be the best time to attack her. Surely the magnificent amount of power will destroy the girl and it'll be an easy grab, this necklace.

It was getting dark and all she needed to do was wait...

Broken Hearts(Unscripted w/ Music)

Author's Note

Ok, that last chapter was craptastic. This one should be a lot better. I don't remember if I used this music for a chapter before this one. If I had, please let me know.

Broken Hearts(Unscripted w/ Music)

There was a loud bang outside.

It was extremely dark outside and nothing could be seen. Sunset jolted awake and cringed at the pain in her shoulder. She carefully cradled her wounded shoulder and peered outside the window. She couldn't see anything. She sighed. It was nothing. Just a noise. Sunset went back to bed and laid down. She was very aware of the empty space beside her. Ever since that incident last week, Twilight and Sunset had gotten into countless arguments.

Both of them had yelled at the top of their lungs screaming words they knew they'd regret. Just like that, their relationship had fell in an instant. And who's fault was it? Neither took blame. They just knew that what they once had was over. Remembering the times she and Twilight would lay in bed and whisper to each other sweet words was painful. Sunset clutched the sheet close to her and closed her eyes. Nothing was the same anymore.

Every night she felt empty knowing she had no one to hold so she could sleep the night away. Replays of the last time she saw Twilight came back into her head and she couldn't stop it from coming.

Sunset stood by the front door of the house glaring at Twilight. The girl before her had tears in her eyes and was trying to hold them back.

"You are so horrible! Why is it that I'm the one to blame for everything?! I never hurt you!" Twilight cried.

"You did hurt me! It's because of you that I can't trust anyone, much less you," Sunset snarled.

Twilight swallowed to keep herself from bursting into tears.

"But I didn't! I keep telling you that. I would never have hurt you!"

Sunset stared at her. She did not believe anything that came out of her mouth. Twilight stood there struggling to make her believe her. She frantically searched the other girl's eyes for signs of change. Anything that told her that Sunset still loved her. A shining smile, a mischievous glint in her eye, a soft red hue of blush on her cheek...But there was nothing. She was the same as when Twilight first met her.

A girl who could care less about someone's feelings and more about her own well-being. Just a person without emotion; a robot. Sunset glowered at her fiercely. Hate was there in her eyes. Twilight could see it clearly and it was a deep sense of hatred. Twilight felt all the energy in her drain from her body as this realization dawned on her. Sunset didn't love her anymore.

She fell to her knees and started to cry. Swiftly, Sunset grabbed her and dragged her out of the house. Celestia was outside looking depressed. She, too, had been rejected. Sunset slammed the door and locked it shut. Outside she could hear Twilight crying over the rain that soaked the two. Sunset clenched her fists and stiffly walked away from the door. The rain was hard and cold outside. Celestia pulled Twilight to her feet and turned away from the house.

Looking back one more time, she sighed and half carried half dragged Twilight away as she cried desperately for Sunset. All of this was just too much to bare. Sunset watched them leave slowly from a window and felt herself weaken. She just shut out two of the most important people in her life. But it was all for the better...

Right?

***

Twilight lay awake in bed. She was at Applejack's along with all her other friends. The lights were out but everyone knew the other was awake. Everyone was quiet as they thought back on everything. It was Pinkie Pie who broke the silence.

"Twilight...why did you do that?"

The said girl turned to face where Pinkie would be. It was dark and none of them could see.

"What are you talking about?"

She heard a sleeping bag shift in the dark.

"At the mall. You got Flash arrested by the mall security. Why did you do that?"

Twilight paused. What was this about a mall? She hadn't been there for a long time.

"I wasn't at the mall. What are you going on about, Pinkie?"

This time it was Applejack who spoke.

"You were. Just about near two weeks ago now. You saw us and then ran away. Flash started going Usain Bolt and so we followed. You know."

But Twilight didn't know. She remained silent and thought it over. How could she and Pinkie Pie claim she was at the mall when the last time was almost a whole month ago? And why would she get Flash arrested? She'd never do that to him. This didn't make any sense. Sensing that she seemed to not know what they were talking about, Rarity turned on the lamp. All of the girls sat up and blinked and squinted.

Twilight looked at them all and frowned.

"What are you talking about? I haven't been to the mall in a while."

Rarity crossed her arms.

"What do you mean? You came by the Beautique for an extra pair of your clothes."

"What?"

"Yes, darling. You came by and I noticed you had grown a few sizes up from what I remembered. I had all these fabulous dresses for you to try on and it was such a pity you couldn't try them. I had Fluttershy wear them, but they were specifically tailored to you so it wasn't as magnificent as I hoped."

She didn't remember any of this.

"But...I never asked for a new pair of clothing. The only thing I asked you to redesign was Sunset's leather jacket."

Fluttershy glanced at Rarity and back at Twilight looking baffled.

"But you were running in the mall and caused a big commotion. you screamed to make Flash go away and the Segway men got him. You should apologize to him. He was quite upset about it."

Twilight was getting slightly aggravated. What was going on? This was just as confusing as when Sunset blamed her on causing her the cuts in her hand and shoulder. She had screamed at her, claiming that she tried to murder her.

"But I never--What is this? Some kind of game??" Twilight sighed.

"That's what we should be asking you," Rainbow Dash told her. "You know you did something wrong so just say sorry. What's so hard about that?"

"But I--Gah, what is going on here?! First, Sunset's saying I tried to murder her in the rain and now you all are saying I got Flash arrested. Don't tell me this is some kind of sick game the six of you are playing!"

This new information surprised them.

"What? Sunset accused you of murder? Tell us what happened," Pinkie Pie said.

Twilight spilled the beans on the whole thing and told them of all the arguments and ruined relationship. About everything that happened starting from the time she found her and the last time they had seen each other. She even told them about Celestia's poisoning her.

Everyone was quiet when she finished. Something was definitely wrong here. Rarity stood up and grabbed her measuring tape.

"Come, Twilight. Let me measure you."

"Measuring isn't going to help us, Rarity," Applejack said.

But Twilight stood up and let the girl measure her.

"Just as I thought. Your measurements have been reduced to the same ones I originally had in my book. The girl I measured at the mall had wider hips, more weight, and more of a chest. She also had makeup on and her eyes...At first I thought they were contacts but now..."

Rarity frowned and shook her head.

"The makeup was what made me assume you and Sunset had a dinner date."

"Dinner date?" Twilight repeated.

Rarity nodded.

"Twilight. You've been impersonated. Someone has stolen your identity and is out to destroy your life."

Midnight Blue: Discorded Twilight

Author's Note

Ever get annoyed when you forget one tiny detail and have to restart something all over? Yeah, well, I had to do that.

Three times.

Midnight Blue: Discorded Twilight

Standing in the rain with an orange coat stood Adagio. She peered up at Sunset's house with a bloodthirsty look. It was time. It was time to retrieve what she's been needing for a long time. The girl brandished the knife in her hand with ease. It had a nice fit in her hand. The ridges were perfectly made as if specifically designed for her. The rain fell over her hood and she smiled. Taking in a deep breath she smelt death in the air.

It was time for Sunset to die.

She stepped out from the shadows and made her way toward the house. The wet earth squished beneath her feet and she imagined it to be blood that she was stepping in. Oh, how wonderful that would be...Slowly, she made her way to the steps and reached for the doorknob. It was locked. Glancing around she saw a flower pot. Grabbing it, she threw it at the side of the house.

BANG!

Adagio ducked behind some bushes and waited. When no one came to the door she tried something else. Finding a rock, she pitched it up toward a window. The glass broke and the curtains rushed out to meet the rain. They fluttered under the wet tears of the sky and were pounded down on by the water. A dog barked and within seconds Adagio heard the door open and she stood to the side out of sight. Slowly, Sunset appeared peeking out from the doorframe. Her tired eyes scanned the area warily.

To Adagio's glee she did not notice her standing right beside her at the door. But the girl froze. She stood there stiffly and did not move. That was a bad decision.

***

A smell so pungent came drifting to her nose. Sunset stood there in the cold air wondering what it was. It was so disgusting. Like death seemed to loom over her. In fact, it was the smell of rotten flesh. She paused. Her dog Rascal sniffed around at her feet and growled. There was something there. Something was outside of her house. It was apparent from the busted window upstairs but she had expected to have scared the person off when she threw the door open.

Sunset felt something cold touch her neck and she shivered. It felt sharp and dug into her skin.

"Hello," a voice all too familiar said and Sunset immediately turned her head, feeling a warm liquid ooze from where the cold object was on her neck.

There before her was Twilight. Her eyes were crazed and cheerful. She was smiling and wearing an orange raincoat. But the smile was so creepy. An artificial one placed on her face as if everything was going on just dandy-like. Looking at her reminded Sunset of a doll. Glassy eyes stared back, seeming to look through her yet right at her. A painted smile plastered to her face, forever showing fake joy. Her face was clear of any marks and perfect. Usually this would be something Sunset liked but not now.

Not when she had a knife to her neck.

Without thinking, Sunset yelled," Rascal!"

The huge golden retriever lunged at Twilight and she fell back as the dog bit her in the leg. Sunset ran away from the house and headed off blindly to wherever would keep her safe from the girl. There was so much rain that she couldn't see where she was going. As long as she could get some distance from Twilight...Sunset heard a loud whine and whimper and she stopped.

"Rascal!"

The big dog cried out in agony and his moaning bark began to wind down as if his breath was leaving him. In the distance, she saw an orange coat. Twilight was coming toward her limping and holding up a bloody knife. She had that same look of complete innocence. Like she just didn't kill her dog. Sunset bit her tongue and whispered an apology and quick prayer to Rascal before shooting off. It was a choice between life and death, and she chose life. She knew she would regret sacrificing Rascal for it.

She ran down the street and shot past the closed stores of Canterlot. It was stupid to bother and try to find a place to hide here. The shops were locked and closed and she'd only be wasting time. She saw herself running past SugarCube Corner. That means she was somewhere close to the park. If she headed there she could probably shake her off since the park's so open and the rain was there to hide her.

Speeding up, she went into the direction of her designated area of choice. she was shivering from the cold air and fear. Though she was more convinced it as from fear more than anything. When had she fallen in love with a killer?! This was all so strange. Why did Twilight try to murder her? And then deny it? Sunset saw her face and yet the girl said it wasn't true.

Sunset felt the wet grass under her bare feet and sprinted across it as she felt the ground sucking at her heels. With all this rain the earth was soft and could easily give in to her weight. Sunset was afraid that if she stood in one spot too long she would be sucked in and never return. It was a stupid thought but with all that's happening, it seemed quite logical to her. The pound of her feet slackened as she felt herself give out. She should be far enough away from Twilight to have lost her.

Sunset looked around her and panted. It was painfully loud here. The rain seemed to have gotten louder. If anything snuck up on her, she would have absolutely no idea. She waited. Standing there like an open target was the worst thing to do. But she had no choice. If she kept moving, she might run into her. But if she stayed still she might run into her. Either way, death was a possibility. The ground sunk down a bit as the water in it pressed to the surface and slushed around her toes. Everything was going by so fast but so low.

Her heart pounded in her ear.

The rain beat down on her.

And Twilight stood behind her holding a knife and smelling of rotten flesh.

Main 6 versus the Sirens

A loud shrieking scream broke the calm silence of the night.

Twilight and the girls were in the kitchen talking quietly when they heard it. And Twilight knew instantly who it was. She rushed to the door and flung it open. Applejack grabbed her arm and spun her around.

"What in tarnations are you doing?!" she half yelled half whispered.

"That was Sunset! She's out there!" Twilight told her.

Applejack snatched a coat off the rack and handed it to her.

"Well, you aren't about you rush out in that rain without a dang coat. Put it on, I'm coming with you," the cowgirl said.

Rainbow Dash took some of the coats and tossed them at the others and they all put them on. Big Mac and Celestia came running downstairs looking startled. The ruler immediately joined the girls in getting ready to go.

"Where you girls going at a time like this? You're awfully loud."

"Sorry, Big Mac," Fluttershy said." But we have to go."

And with that the Main 6 rushed out the door into the rain.

***

It had been two weeks and it was time for Sunset to give up the jewel. Sonata and Aria covered up as best as they could to keep themselves dry. Any drop of water would wash away their crumbling skin. They headed toward Canterlot and looked around as much as they could for Adagio. She had been gone a long time and they had just about lost hope in finding her. If she really went solo, then they'd have to be on their own.

They made their way to the city with haste and found themselves lost in the downpour. Where would Sunset be? They needed to find out where so they could retrieve the jewel. Just then, a flurry of girls ran past them and they heard a scream in the distance. The group was headed toward the cry. Sonata squinted at them and recognized the hat on top of one of them.

"Aria, it's those girls! The Rainbooms!"

The both of them decided to run after them.

In the distance they could make out something orange.

"SUNSET!!!" Twilight cried.

Celestia looked ahead and saw that there was something wrong. She summoned up her magic and stood back in a threatening stance.

"Leave her alone!" she cried.

This made the others stop running and stare at what was ahead of them. Sunset was being held by the neck with a knife pointed to her heart. She looked very weak and could barely stand. She coughed and a large amount of black smoke came from her mouth. The girl holding her was wearing an orange coat and had long hair with purple and pink streaks in it. Her face was a lavender hue and a smile was plastered to her face oh so fake-like. Violet eyes shined back at them with a look of excitement. Everyone froze.

They were looking at Twilight.

But Twilight was there with them! Celestia gritted her teeth. "Who are you?!"

The girl that held Sunset tilted her head.

"Princess Celestia! It's Twilight!"

"But you can't be! I am Twilight!"

The girl turned to see where the voice came from and gasped. She bared her teeth and pressed the knife to Sunset's chest, making her grimace.

"She's an imposter! Kill her!"

Celestia balled her hands up into fists and narrowed her eyes. This girl clutching Sunset was not Twilight. There was no way it could be...The rain died down and everything was quiet. The chill in the air lingered and stung Sunset's wet skin as it bit her, trying to make her feel colder. A strong smell of blood and rotted skin drifted in the air and made everyone wrinkle their noses. Rainbow Dash turned and bent over, throwing up. The smell was horridly strong.

Sunset was barely conscious as she coughed and emitted black smoke. No one moved. Everyone just watched the other closely...

Without warning, everyone sprung to life. Applejack and Rainbow Dash charged at 'Twilight' and tackled her down. The butcher knife was smacked out of her hands and rested in the soggy grass. Twilight rushed to pull Sunset back from them with the help of Rarity. With a good punch, Applejack slammed the true imposter in the face. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy dashed away from it and kept a good distance from the scene. Aria and Sonata just stood there motionless.

'Twilight' kicked the two girls off of her and stood up. She glanced around for the knife. When she saw the glint of it she lunged for it.

"Rainbow! Get her!" Applejack cried.

The girl ran and performed a kick that would most definitely have shot a soccer ball into the goal. That is, if it were a game. 'Twilight' shrieked and shoved her away, giving her time to grab the knife. When she whipped around to face Rainbow Dash, everyone gasped. On one side of her face they could see the yellow skin that was the girl's true tone. One of her eyes were a bright pink color. She had been wearing contacts and lost one.

"Adagio?!"

The girls all whipped around to see Aria and Sonata sanding there dumbly, staring at the imposter. The girl smiled wickedly and saw her chance. With this moment of distraction, she jumped at Rainbow Dash and stabbed her in the arm. Rainbow Dash screamed in pain and cried out for help.

"AAAHHHHHHHH! HELP!!!!!"

Blood spurted from the wound as Adagio twisted the knife around in it. She laughed as the agonizing screams came roaring from the girl beneath her. Applejack shot over there and punched the shit out of her. Landing a good roundhouse on her head, she raged on with all the strength in her being. Celestia, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy all crowded around Rainbow Dash, who was losing large amounts of blood.

"Stand back. I'm going to have to heal her," Celestia warned.

With the power she had summoned, she shot a beam of it into Rainbow Dash who cried out in pain. Twilight was screaming at Sunset to be conscious, not even aware of what was going on. Rarity was panicking. Aria and Sonata were fighting Applejack to get her off of Adagio... Adagio was trying to kill the cowgirl with her bloody weapon...Twilight was shrieking and screaming to get Sunset to wake up from her ill state...Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Celestia were all around Rainbow Dash as the ruler hastily tried to heal her...

And in the middle of this battle, Rarity was there scared for her life as well as everyone else's.

Author's Note

Still mind blown about who Adagio is impersonating? Are you a bit baffled as to why? Click the link below to my blog post and find out.

Sunset: Siren of the Equine River - Impersonation#1

Chaos of the night

They stood there exhausted and ready to lung at the other at any move. There was a large pool of blood on the ground. The red liquid ran down their legs and necks as they stood. Twilight laid stiffly by Sunset. She was looking down in a way that her bangs shadowed her face. Sunset was on the ground lying on her back, head on Twilight's lap. There was something off about the whole thing...Adagio and her sisters glared at them as they stood back warily.

They had been fighting for a long time and none of them were backing down. Adagio gritted her teeth and barked out to them," Give me the necklace!"

No one moved. Celestia stiffened. This wouldn't go down too well. There was no necklace. She glanced at the girls. Their faces were hard and bruised. Rainbow Dash stood there beside Rarity holding her arm. Celestia had done her best to heal her wound. With red streaks on their faces and ripped clothes, none of them looked like the same girls she knew. They all had grown up ten years in just this one night. The girly smiles and laughter was erased from them and instead was replaced with deep scowls and cold eyes. They had passed by their innocence and faced the challenge ahead of them with maturity.

This night was going to change everything.

Seeing that none of them made a move to get the necklace, Adagio shifted her position, causing the girls to hold up their fists and get into a running stance. Adagio sniffed. The makeup on her face was streaked and looked awful on her face. Where she had placed an extra layer of skin it peeled and the stench of death was strong and evidently coming from her face and open body cavity in the side of her abdomen. Her arms were scratched and red with blood and dust. The red liquid was honestly the only thing gluing her skin together as it dried in thick clumps.

Aria's ankles were all bone. One of the bones were cracked from a hard blow and she needed Sonata's support to hold her up. They were crumbling faster than ever now. Sonata lost one hand and all her skin n her left knee. Both of them were missing eyes and bits of hair was falling from their heads. They looked like real life zombies.

Adagio, Twilight's doppleganger, was looking more and more like a dead thing than anything. She pointed to Sunset and growled," The necklace! Give it to me!"

Twilight looked up and stared at her.

"You. You were the one at the mall."

Adagio smiled evilly.

"Yes. But this has nothing to do with what I want so hand it over."

"You," Twilight whispered, "were the one who broke Sunset's trust in me. You're the one who destroyed our relationship. With that knife."

She raised a shaky finger to the one in Adagio's hand.

"The blood of my friends and Sunset is on that blade..."

Twilight's voice was deathly quiet as she spoke.

Sonata and Aria sensed something terrible was going to happen. They glanced at their sister and looked back at Twilight. They should back down. Right now. Sonata tugged at Adagio's sleeve with her 'good' hand, but it completely deteriorated. Aria opened her mouth to speak but her lower jaw fell off and hit the ground in a puff of ash. Adagio smirked.

"And your blood is about to be on this here blade as well."

In a sudden burst of motion, she charged at her with the knife raised up high.

"SINCE IT SEEMS TO MATTER TO YOU SO MUCH!!!!!"

All at once, Pinkie Pie, with her little gizmos, and Fluttershy, with a rabid-like Angel bunny, shot forward with their fists balled up along with Rarity, who was using her sewing needles and scissors as weapons. Applejack, with a rope, and Rainbow Dash, with a soccer ball, both ran forward. Celestia raised her hands to perform Succuberus Omega, the spell that would destroy an object in an instant. All the action was built up to rid Adagio...

But suddenly a strong current of magic rushed from Twilight and everyone was flung backward. The power was so strong that Aria and Sonata let out screams and shielded themselves from it. But it was too late. Their arms and legs and faces disappeared in the burst of magic and were gone.

"NO! ARIA! SONATA!" Adagio yelled.

Everything was gone. Not even a speck of dust was left behind. It was as if the two never existed. Adagio stared at where they once were in horror. But how could they have just...died? Their necklaces...The girl turned to Twilight and glared at her, murder being the only thing that consumed her.

"YOU KILLED THEM!!!"

Twilight looked at her with eyes glowing with the magic she welded.

"They were already dead."

Adagio shook so much with anger that they could see the dust fall from her like pepper being sprinkled over eggs.

"THEY WERE NOT! THEY WERE ALIVE!!!!"

The Main 5 reassembled in a circle around Adagio and stood there, ready to kick her dusty ass. Celestia frowned at the whole thing and waited for the right time...the right time to use the spell.

Twilight shook her head at Adagio and continued monotonously.

"Their necklaces were corrupted by poisonous magic. Since they were weaker than you, the jewels were weaker, and so, they were destined to die sooner than you. I only did them a favor. By getting rid of their bodies, their souls were released. Their jewels were destroyed already. They just couldn't escape their bodies."

Adagio stared at her wide eyed.

"B-Bullshit! How could you know that they were dead?! Huh?!?! I'm in the same state they were!"

"You aren't dead," Twilight said as she raised her hands. "If you were, Sunset would be dead."

And with that, she shot a beam of magic at her.

Author's Note

Click this link below to see hints that were distributed throughout the story to lead those who have Rarity's eye for detail into seeing Adagio was impersonating Twilight. This is part 2.

Sunset: Siren of the Equine River - Impersonation#2

Also, those of you that read SilentStrike43's story, A Sunlight Story, know that he will be updating sometime with multiple chapters so don't you worry. If you are interested in seeing this story, click this link.

A Sunlight Story

A kiss

A beam of magic shot through Adagio's chest and she cried out. It spread throughout her body like water rushing through a river. The Siren gritted her teeth and took a shaky step toward Twilight.

"You think you can kill me? Not it you kill your beloved first."

Twilight shot another beam at her and this one went through her arm. Adagio yelped and bit her tongue. She let a creepy smile come across her face.

"This isn't going to do a thing. Kill her and you'll have me in a pile of ash. Do it, Twilight! Or are you scared to?!"

Rarity took a step forward ready to knock the zombie thing down when Celestia put out a hand. Adagio kept talking with absolute pleasure as her body deteriorated slowly.

"I saw that Sunset has no necklace. That explains why the power of the jewel was so low when I first sensed it. I will admit, you had me fooled this whole time. But it was a very stupid thing not to have a necklace. You see, Demi Sirens are destructive, more so than any kind of Siren."

She looked to Twilight.

"You more than others should know, Twilight."

She looked around to see if anyone was following. They looked irritated and pissed. This brought a good cackle. Twilight shot another beam and her laugh was cut short. Adagio grimaced.

"Feeling a bit...dead yet?" Twilight asked bitterly.

"N-No...just a bit uncomfortable from this..." Adagio told her with a lopsided smile. "Death isn't as close as you would like it to be, Twi."

She chuckled and continued.

"Well, my dear sister, Sonata told me what happened two weeks ago with you and Sunset. She called it The Night of the Fire Siren. And I have to admit it...Sunset almost had you on your death bed!"

She laughed and Twilight felt rage come over her. Adagio was talking about the night of the full moon when Sunset had turned into a Siren and nearly killed her. It wasn't funny. At all. Adagio sneered.

"I don't know how you still love her after that. Love is blind, and you obviously were quite blinded by it to not see how quick your life was about to end."

Furious, Twilight increased the level of magic that tore through Adagio and the girl groaned. But that didn't stop her from talking smack. Celestia went to Sunset and began the process of removing the jewel shard.

"And I found it quite amusing that you and Sunny weren't in the same house tonight. Oh, don't tell me you two had a falling out! Was it because of me playing cosplay and nearly stabbing her? Oh no! She thought it was you, didn't she!"

Adagio laughed.

"Well! It's pretty obvious Sunset is not very loyal to you, Twilight."

Twilight hesitated before blasting a hole through her leg.

"You're curious! Well, I'll tell you! If she loved you so very much, why didn't she trust you when you said it wasn't you who cut her hand and shoulder? Why did all her trust immediately fall away to the point where you two weren't getting along? How come she didn't try to look further for clues that it could disprove that it was you?? Did she REALLY believe it was you and leave it at that?"

Twilight stood there for a moment and thought on it. It was true that Sunset immediately became vicious and untrusting...But there was a reason! Her life was so difficult that she couldn't help but feel that way...But...Did she still love her? Sunset didn't try to make amends for a whole week. She just kicked her and Celestia out and stopped talking to them...

"NO! DON'T LISTEN TO HER, TWILIGHT!" Pinkie Pie screamed.

"She's only trying to turn you against Sunset!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

Adagio was laughing very hard. It was clear any signs of sanity were erased. But suddenly she stopped and started coughing. A thick cloud of smoke was coming from her mouth and her eyes widened. The poison. the jewel was completely corrupted. They heard someone cry out and a burst of magic sparked. It was Celestia. She was flung back from Sunset and was on the ground.

The ruler grimaced and shouted," It's too late! The poison has taken over! I can't remove the jewel without killing her!"

Sunset was on the ground (still unconscious from some chapters ago, mind you). Her body jerked and twitched and the black smoke of dark magic came from her mouth and surrounded her. Twilight immediately ran to her.

"No! Twilight! If the smoke touches you, you will die!!!" Celestia screamed.

"B-But Sunset..." Twilight uttered.

"Let her go," Celestia said regretfully. "She's gone..."

Twilight stood in between Adagio and Sunset, both hacking up deadly smoke and dying. The Main 5 and Celestia backed away and were screaming to Twilight to move away. The princess stood staring at Sunset. The girl was someone she cared about. Even if she had many flaws in her character. She remembered her radiant smile and sweet words. The way she wrapped her arms around her and would kiss her good morning once upon a time ago. How her protectiveness of her made her feel loved...even if Sunset may not love her anymore, Twilight knew she still loved her.

With one last glance at her friends and respected former teacher, she whispered two words.

"I'm sorry."

They knew instantly what Twilight was going to do.

"NO!!!!!!!!"

Twilight ran to Sunset and was wrapped in dark magic. She could feel it grabbing at her, trying to claw her and take it in its grip. Pain surged through her body and pulsed as if it were her heartbeat. Twilight began to cough and black smoke entered her mouth and nostrils, choking her. Outside of the thick cloud she could hear her friends screaming. She ignored their cries and bent down next to Sunset. If Sunset would have to die, she didn't want that. Twilight leaned close to Sunset and kissed her.

Immediately, Twilight felt her soul being sucked from her body and going into Sunset. Her vision blurred as a brilliant white light came shining through the cloud of black. Her life was slipping away...The last thing she saw before she closed her eyes was Sunset's eyes opening.

Author's Note

I'm just really terrible, aren't I.

White Roses - Epilogue(Music)

Author's Note

White Roses - Epilogue(Music)

All of them stood over a black casket in the cemetery in silence. No one said a word about what had happened three nights ago.

It was a funeral.

That much should be clear.

Rainbow Dash leaned against Applejack for support from her wound and cried silently next to her. Applejack looked down at her feet and held her hat in one hand over her heart trying to think of happier times. But all she could do was weep beside Rainbow. Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie all sobbed against Big Macintosh, who tried to comfort them and stay as dry-eyed as he could. ~~Brian~~ Flash Sentry gritted his teeth and gripped the edge of the open casket, holding back tears.

If only...

It was when Celestia came forward and cleared her throat that the spell of silence was broken. The sky was gloomy and grey above them and the cold air rustled the leaves in the trees. Everyone huddled in their coats of black and whispered small prayers.

"This...how..." Flash croaked. He was speaking to Celestia.

The woman sighed and took out a locket from inside her pocket.

"It was the Siren Curse..."

"B-But, Twilight wasn't a Siren," Flash uttered in sudden frustration.

He yanked at his tie and rumpled his black suit jacket.

"She may not have been a Siren...but love made her do it," Celestia whispered.

Flash bit his tongue and took a deep breath. All of this was just too unbelievable. The Main 5 had broke the news to him just two days ago and he still couldn't believe it. Even after seeing Twilight's body inside the casket. He just didn't know what to do or think. The whole debacle with 'Twilight' landing him a two-day arrest was all cleared away in his mind when they explained it was Adagio pretending to be her. The last time he actually saw her was when he and the Main 5 were telling her not to be friends with Sunset. A whole two months ago. And he regretted every single word.

"Twilight..." Flash whispered. "Why? The both of us could have been happy. If only you saw that..."

Rainbow Dash grabbed his collar and glared at him.

"How DARE you say that at her grave. What is wrong with you?!"

Flash swallowed and shook his head.

"I only said it because I loved her just as much as Sunset did. I just needed to say it..."

Celestia sighed and bit her lip. She raised the locket up and looked at the pictures inside. Autumn Fall and Solar Flare smiled back at her. Tears threatened to fog her vision.

"I'm so sorry..."

Celestia leaned over the casket's side and opened Twilight's hand. She placed it inside of her cold palm and closed her stiff fingers around it. Then, she moved Sunset's hand over hers and sighed.

Both Sunset and Twilight lay inside the casket, having died that night.

Twilight and Sunset both faced each other and were curled at the legs and waist as if they were merely just sleeping. Twilight's head was tucked under Sunset's chin and her nose touched the older girl's neck. An easy look of peace had passed over both of their faces and stayed there as they entered an endless sleep. It was so endearing how they held one another yet so sad. Celestia had them positioned that way purposefully.

That day when Twilight and Sunset were reunited. It was a day that she would never forget. How they held each other so gently and kissed one another so gingerly...Thinking back to that day made her smile. They had been in love and everything was perfect for them. Her mind went back to it.

The girl turned around and saw Twilight, smiling at her. Her hair flowed in the wind. The glow of the sun's rays softened her face. Twilight, being the cool shade of night, looked unreal in the rays of light that came from the setting sun. Sunset stood there without saying a word. Was she really here? Was Twilight before her?

It was when Twilight stepped forward and brushed her cheek with her thumb that she realized she was real. She also realized she was crying, too. Sunset grabbed her by the waist and pressed her lips against Twilight's. A warm feeling ran through her as she kissed the girl. Celestia stood by a tree, reminded of the night she first came to that world.

It was beautiful how they came together in such harmony. It was a time where it wasn't quite day and wasn't quite night. A time where two different entities came together in a way that was so nice. So wonderful. Much so like Twilight and Sunset as they held one another in a passionate kiss. It was such a scene. So emotional and gorgeous...

Celestia felt a pit in her stomach. This love of theirs would have to end soon. Sunset wasn't the monster she would become. But in due time she will evolve. Sunset stood strong with her arms around Twilight. A reflection of those with strength and courage. A symbol of bravery touched with the feminine features of a woman. It was odd how she looked so mighty yet soft.

Twilight was small and gentle compared to her companion. The way her leg lifted slightly as she leaned in to kiss Sunset and how her hands rested on the girl's shoulders made her look all the more frail and kind. A sweet touch to compliment Sunset's femininity. Celestia couldn't think of a pair that was so different but fit so well.

The sun and the moon they were. Like water and fire. A similar comparison to yin and yang or the phoenix and dragon; forever together in a bond that could never be broken.

Excerpt from the chapter Reunite

Flash sighed and stood next to Celestia.

"How did Sunset..."

"Die?" Celestia finished.

The boy nodded stiffly.

"She was given a second chance at life when Twilight gave her her soul. But Sunset didn't want to live. Not if it meant living without Twilight. She was screaming and crying and saying how much she regretted ever doubting her and that she never meant for their relationship to end without being able to apologize..."

Celestia looked down at her hands.

"So she took her own life away..."

Flash mouthed the words, but it seemed as though he said it outright.

Suicide.

"So...how did Twilight give Sunset her soul?" the boy asked.

"You sure do ask a lot of questions," Celestia remarked. "She gave it away by a kiss."

Flash waited for her to continue.

"That's how her soul was taken. Demi Sirens feed on the souls of loved ones and the only way to do that is by kissing them..."

Celestia felt restless.

"This is all my fault. And I need to change it all so none of this ever happened."

***

That night, Celestia visited the newly made grave of Sunset and Twilight. The gravestone was marble with their names clearly written on it. The ruler had so much regret that she couldn't stand it. She needed to pay for this. She needed to. Celestia raised her hands to the sky and let her magic flow through her.

Many thoughts came rushing through her head as she summoned up her powers. Thoughts of the many times she had betrayed Twilight and Sunset. Thoughts of Equestria being left to chaos when Twilight went missing. How she caused this whole mess...All of this could've been avoided if Celestia just forgave Sunset the first time she saw her in the artifact chamber. None of this would have happened.

But it was too late. She couldn't reverse time that far back...But she would reverse it to the night of their deaths.

In an instant she was shot forward into a dark night in the park. Around her, she saw the girls all standing around Adagio as Twilight blast through her with magic. Celestia could see herself trying to extract the jewel's power from Sunset. Celestia stepped toward her when a deep voice spoke over her shoulder.

"It won't work."

Celestia wiped around to see a tall man in a cloak, completely ambiguous in shape and his face covered by shadow. Celestia looked back to see if anyone else heard him but it seemed they hadn't.

"No one can hear or see me. No one can hear or see you either," the mysterious man said.

"Who are you?" the woman barked.

Celestia could feel a smile was gleaming at her from under the hood.

"Just someone who is interested in helping you solve this...ordeal."

The ruler narrowed her eyes.

"This is none of your business."

She turned and took a step toward herself who was still trying to take the magic out of Sunset.

"What if I told you that no matter how much power you use, the girl will always end up dead?" the man called.

She paused and looked back at him suspiciously.

"And how would you know?"

The man took off his hood to reveal a head of ink black hair and eyes of green, purple, and red. Purple trails of smoke traveled from the corners of his eyes and a silver crown rested across his brow.

"King Sombra," Celestia whispered.

He chuckled and nodded.

"And so I am, my dear..."

The king snapped his fingers and a long paper appeared.

"I'm here to make a deal..."

Celestia frowned as she watched him. A sudden bang occurred and before they knew it, Celestia's past self was flying through her stomach as if passing through nothing.

""It's too late! The poison has completely taken over!" she yelled.

The present Celestia watched in horror as the whole thing unfolded. In just 30 seconds, everything was over. Twilight was dead and Sunset was alive and screaming. She struggled against the grip of her friends. In the end, she won out and grabbed for the knife Adagio left behind. Sunset stabbed herself in the heart and died a slow death. King Sombra sighed and smiled.

"This deal I'm going to make with you will ensure your precious daughter and her beloved a life to have after this night. But of course, there's a price..."

Celestia stared at him, looking very shocked and depressed from having to watch the deaths happen a second time.

"Tell me. What's the price?"

King Sombra smiled.

"Your life, your majesty."

"And if I do that, you'll come and take over Equestria, won't you," Celestia growled.

The king shook his head.

"Oh no. I don't want Equestria anymore. I have my own place to call home now..."

He pushed the floating paper in front of her.

"All you have to do is sign it..."

Carefully, Celestia read the paper and sighed. A pen appeared beside her and she took it. But she hesitated. Signing this would meant that she wouldn't live anymore. And she was the ruler of Equestria. Without her, the world could fall apart. Her subjects might panic and those who were never loyal would commit the crime of anarchy and completely destroy the unity of the world she worked so hard to keep in ultimate harmony. But wait. Luna and Cadence and now Twilight would be there, along with the elements of Harmony.

Harmony.

The Main 6 could do it. But there was one thing. None of them, except her sister, were immortal. And when they passed, only Luna would be left to control the kingdom and things could turn for the worse. Celestia sighed.

"What's wrong? You scared? I would be too..." King Sombra whispered.

She glared at him and waved the pen at him.

"I'll only sign if you promise to let me write out a will and have my wishes fulfilled when I'm gone."

Sombra grinned and chuckled.

"As you wish."

A scroll appeared before her and she wrote down everything she wanted written. When she finished, Sombra read over it and chuckled.

"Very smart to add that bit about me being unable to claim the throne."

"You promised," Celestia said.

The king nodded.

"Indeed I did. But I'm speaking the truth when I say I have a place of my own and do not want Equestria any longer..."

He gestured to the paper and she signed it.

In an instant, both the will and paper vanished and King Sombra snapped his fingers.

"Where is this place of yours, Sombra?" Celestia asked.

"I'm about to show you," he said.

And they were whisked away in a burst of magic.

YO! SO I WANT YOU TO CLICK THIS LINK BECAUSE IT LEADS TO THE WONDERFUL THING CALLED A THIRD BOOK!

Afterstory: Third Book