Sunset Shimmer stood on the sidewalk, staring at the same poster on the wall that she had been looking at for the past twenty minutes. Her legs were getting tired, and her impatience was growing. She had agreed to meet Rainbow Dash in front of the soccer field half an hour earlier, and there were still no signs of her friend. She looked down the road that went back into town; the street curved downwards as the hill that she was on descended; still no sign of RD. She looked the other way, were the street ascended straightly and more steeply; still no sign of her. Finally she stared back at the poster.
“Azure ice” the poster read. Beneath the lightning-fonted blue letters, a picture of Sonata Dusk playing the guitar towered over the hour of the concert and price of admission. Sunset had promised her she would come to the concert, after all, she was a member of her magical demon rehabilitation program… the only member in fact. Sunset had encouraged her to form a band after she split from Adagio and Aria, since she showed ability to compose music… even though she couldn’t sing at all anymore. The band had taken off and now they were having their own little concert on a public soccer field this evening. Sunset had agreed to come, as much as she didn’t want to do so alone.
]However, almost all her friends had proven difficult to recruit. Pinkie had to work until late for a pastry delivery, Fluttershy had to catch up on homework during the weekend, AJ had to babysit her sister, and Rarity had straight out said she had heard Sonata practice, and didn’t want to suffer it anymore. Only Rainbow had agreed to come with her… if she ever showed up. Sunset kept staring at the poster.
“I'll say hi to Sonata at the beginning of the concert and leave early” she thought. “I don’t really feel like-”
-Are they any good?- A voice behind her interrupted her thoughts. When she looked behind her she found a woman standing not two feet away from her, looking at the poster.
-Oh? Um- Yes!- She mumbled. -A friend of mine is the guitarist, and also writes some of the songs. They’re good for a high school band.-
The woman seemed unimpressed. She stared blankly at the poster, like she was seeing through Sunset. Her eyes were palish yellow, even paler when compared to her golden yellow skin, and she had deep dark black hair, which she kept held upwards in a tidy knot. She was young, but her stern expression made her look older than she was. -Good for a high school band.- She mocked. -Do they go by that, or is that just the best compliment you can give them?- She smirked, and then pierced her eyes through Sunset.
Sunset went from startled to annoyed in a second. -I ment they are good. I do like what they play.- She said coldly. -But it’s probably not for someone…- she felt her thigh shake and knew that had to be Rainbow calling. She grabbed her phone and saw it was only a text. Forgetting about the rude woman, she turned around to open the message.
*********
Prctice wus ruffGna go hmsry 4 da concert*********
Sunset held a frustrated groan. She wanted to complain, but she could forecast a snarky comment from the woman if she said anything. Instead she stored her cellphone away in her pocket and took a deep breath.
-I think I’m going- the woman said, not exactly talking to Sunset. -Do you think there will be a place to sit or is it going to be on the field?- Silence followed for a couple of seconds. Sunset knew better than to ignore her elders (a lesson princes Celestia had made very clear once upon a time) but she could not help but to want to ignore the woman and just go home. Yet, she would stay, for Sonata; and yet the woman stood in silence, looking at the poster, waiting for Sunset’s answer. Sunset finally gave in; she was going nowhere.
-It’s on the field- she said plainly.-On that little stage over there… but I guess you could always sit on the benches if you’re not up to this kind of concerts.- Sunset would have to spend the night alone on that field, she could already feel the tedium of waiting getting over her.
-It’s not that I’m not… up for these kinds of events, it’s just I can’t really stand for too long.- Said the woman, as she slammed the tip of her cane against the asphalt. That’s when Sunset noticed the woman was leaning over a walking stick, black as her pants, and decorated with a golden plate handle. -Do you know where I can buy a ticket?-
Sunset nearly felt like apologizing to the woman after seeing her cane, but decided that would sound silly or unconvincing, so she just answered as briefly as she could. -They sold them at school, so you can’t really buy any now. You’ll have to wait for Sonata to come and set up her stand.- The woman just looked at the poster for a moment.
-I have nothing better to do anyway.- She sighed. -I’ll just wait here.- She limped silently to the nearby bus stop, and sat on the bench. Sunset noticed it was the woman’s right leg that limped, not too much, but enough to make the woman use her cane for support.
Sunset felt weird, a little guilty about dismissing a handicapped woman, a little silly for wanting to apologize for her attitude, and pretty frustrated at her friend. She grabbed her phone again and leaned against the wall.**********Come on RD!I’m already here. It’s gonna be fun!**********The answer came back five minutes later.**********I’m beat.I think I might have strained a muscle.Sorry Sunset**********
Sunset groaned in frustration, but finally gave up. She was going to the concert alone. She thought about leaving, but that would be like betraying Sonata; yet, she was beginning to dread the wait. Some of the people that were coming to the concert were friends of the bandmembers, people from CHS that Sunset knew just a little, or others that she had bullied before. By this point in her life most people in town had heard about her deeds at the fall formal, and the incident against the dazzlings was too fresh on people's minds to redeem her, so she knew a lot of people who would still glare at her, talk behind her back, or look away when she came by. She didn’t want to face any of those things alone, not again. Just thinking about it was starting to give her a headache.
She pulled out her headphones and connected them to her cell phone. “They might not even notice I’m there.” She thought. “I hope they don’t.”
-Hey Sunset!- A high pitched voice woke Sunset up. She had dozed off listening to music against the soccer field fence. As she opened her eyes she saw Sonata standing in front of her, with a nervous smile on her face. -So glad you came! You seem to be the only one…- She glanced over to the entrance of the soccer field, now open. Sonata had set up a table with a poster of the concert pinned to it, and a box with tickets.
“Just in case she needs to charge for admission” Sunset thought as she got up. “I sure hope someone buys any tickets, although…” She looked at the bus stop; the irritating woman was still sitting on it, reading a book, her cane resting on the back of the bench. Then she realized the three of them were alone. “Still alone, and the concert is half an hour away.”-I wouldn't had missed it- Sunset said reassuringly. -Where’s the rest of the band?--On their way with the instruments and some of the audience. Most of their friends are coming to fill the crowd, so I figured I would go ahead and come by myself. I didn’t expect to find one of my friends waiting already!- She smiled warmly and Sunset felt a strange kind of pride come over her. Sonata was the first friend she had made by herself, and the first person outside the Rainbooms to call her a friend. She smiled back.-Like I said, I wouldn’t have missed it.- She repeated. Then they heard an engine approaching and saw a van come up the hill, park itself next to the bus stop, and a small crowd step out. Some of them were members of Sonata’s band, along with their instruments and some equipment, the others, a surprisingly large number considering the size of the van, were CHS students. They laughed, joked around, complained about the crowded ride on the van, and some of them whispered between themselves after they saw Sonata and Summer. This was common at this point, and was still slowly changing after the Battle of the Bands, but Summer noticed it was getting to Sonata, as she cringed at some of the looks some of them were giving the two. -Would you like me to take over the ticket table?- She proposed, knowing she could take on the task and their classmate's attitudes better than Sonata.-That would be a great help.- Sonata sighed. She placed her hand over Sunset’s shoulder gently. -Thanks.- She said, then seemed to remember something. -My guitar! I think I left it at the… Oh, never mind!- One of the bandmates was holding her guitar and beckoning at her shyly. -Gotta go, I still have to get ready for the show, but thanks a lot for helping out!- She ran off.Sunset sat on the ticket table and started checking everyone for their entrances. Most of them had bought them after either Sonata, Sunset, or any of the band members had pestered them to do so, but even so, most of them seemed excited about the concert. Sunset didn’t think working the ticket stand would be so bad… until Flash Sentry showed up.Sunset looked at him and cringed, but tried to cover it. Flash didn’t seem too eager to see her either, he looked away as he approached the ticket table and handled the entrance shyly at Sunset. The transaction was made quickly and awkwardly, with no words, like most of them, but infinitely more uncomfortable. Sunset just didn’t know how to act near Flash more than around most people. Each time she saw him it reminded her of how she was not too long ago; and although she felt like apologizing to him sometimes, that apology seemed to be the most difficult to come up with. “I’m sorry for using you to become popular? I’m sorry for pretending I cared about you? I’m sorry for making you care about me? That doesn’t feel like nearly enough…” The thought darted through her head as she took care of the remaining tickets. When all the kids were inside the field Sunset set off to close the stand, when suddenly one last person approached the table. Sunset looked up and saw the gold-skinned woman staring down at her with her piercing eyes.-So? Are there any tickets left?- She asked plainly. Yet Sunset could sense the sarcasm in her tone.-Barely- She responded similarly. -We got quite a crowd. Are you sure you want to spend your night with a bunch of high schoolers in a concert?--No, I’m not sure.- The woman laughed. -But I already waited, and have nothing better to do tonight. If it’s all the same to you, I’ll be staying, at least for the opening number.-Reluctantly, Sunset sold her a ticket and the woman walked in, leaning on her cane and sniffing the place like it reeked. Sunset just couldn’t shake the feeling there was something off about the woman, or about her just showing up when she did, but she just couldn’t put her finger on it. She waited a couple more minutes for anyone else to arrive. Then waited some more, until she heard that the concert had started, after the first couple of songs one of the band member's friends came by and offered to cover for her at the table.She took the offer and went to stand in the back of the small crowd. The concert was, surprisingly, starting to warm up. Sonata’s band, The Flavorfull Resonance, played mostly hard rock covers, and an occasional original song. But although she had encouraged Sonata to write and play (not sing, never sing) her songs, Sunset still prefered their versions of popular songs than their original work.Sonata noticed Summer in the back of the crowd and smiled at her. They were in the middle of fixing the lead singer’s microphone, which had stopped working at the end of the last song.-Hey everybody, how's it going?!- Sonata yelled through the microphone, as though she was in a stadium full of people instead of a public soccer field in front of a couple dozen teens. -Are we rocking or what?!- The crowd’s reaction was courteous at best, but Sonata didn’t seem to care. -The next song is a favourite of ours. And I know many of you love it too, so here it is! “Empathy for a Trickster”!- She then started playing, without realizing the singer was not ready yet and made him rush to connect his new microphone and get ready for the first verse.Sunset chuckled, but instantly started singing along to the lyrics. Sonata had made the commentary specially for her, she knew, and she was grateful for it. She loved that song, and had actually encouraged Sonata to play it with her the first time she found out Sonata could play the guitar. At that time she thought Sonata might join the Rainbooms, or that the both of them would start a band together, but soon enough the boys in her new band noticed Sonata was a great guitarist and asked her (and only her) to join them. Sonata almost refused but Sunset insisted that Sonata joined the group and made new friends for her own sake, after all, if Sunset was her only friend that might not change easily in CHS.The band reached the chorus and Sunset finally let herself go into the music. All her worries about other people, about coming alone, even about meeting Flash here, all took a second seat and she listened to the music intensely. She loved the song, started singing louder and more strongly; her fingers even mimicked the movements they would have done had she been playing the guitar at that point. She closed her eyes and sang the next verse, feeling the energy and melancholy of the song deep inside her. When she opened her eyes she saw most of the crowd was as immersed in the song as she was, dancing and singing along with the band, everyone was into it, except Sonata, who stared at Sunset with worry.Sunset stared back at her in confusion and saw Sonata started gesturing with her head, like she was trying to shake something off, and she kept looking upwards, at her forehead or… “Oh no..”Sunset raised her hands and touched the top of her head, there they were, her pony ears, standing straight up and twitching to the music. She looked at her back and found her hair had grown as well. Now she noticed that, aside from the people who were still busy listening to the song, there were others who were staring back at her, some with amazement, some with fear, some with disgust. People still hadn’t made their mind of what magic meant in this place; where in Equestria magic was common and useful, here it was strange, sometimes cool, sometimes feared, but mostly odd. And it made Sunset feel odd when she was being watched like this, exposed; and alone.She took a step back, the music felt distant now, and unfamiliar, she just wanted to run away or make the people stop staring. Some of them were ignoring her now, others were pointing out her transformation to their friends. Before anyone else could notice, she retreated away from the crowd, away from the stage, back towards the far end of the benches… until she noticed there was someone sitting there already, a black haired woman, with a golden-headed cane sitting on her lap, and a piercing look in her eyes; a look that was fixed on Sunset Shimmer, and analyzed her strangely.Sunset almost ran away; she couldn’t tell where she felt more uncomfortable, but then she realized that her transformation had passed, and that the song had ended as well. She looked back at the stage, where Sonata was looking at her with concern. “Suck it up.” She thought. “For Sonata’s sake. And ignore the creepy lady.” She went back towards the crowd, but stayed farther away this time. Most of the teens were already enjoying the next song, (as much as they could, being one of Sonata’s “works in progress”); only Flash still looked at Sunset when she came back, although he clumsily pretended not to. Sunset felt naked, embarrassed, and angry. She looked back at the benches and saw the woman still looking at her, although discreetly this time, with the slightest hint of a grin under her lips.Sunset breathed deeply. Just a couple of songs more, that’s all it would take. It was a short concert anyway; just not short enough.
After the last song Sunset waited for Sonata near the fields fence. She took a while to come since she was talking to the other members of the band and their friends, but Sunset was glad to see she was fitting in just fine, even mingling with some of the band memebers friends. Finally she broke off from the group, met Sunset near the fence and greeted her with a hug. She asked if Sunset was ok, and Sunset reassured she was fine, although she still felt a little nervous about her involuntary transformation: she congratulated Sonata.-Thank you! I’m so glad you made it.- She squealed. -Actually the guys just told me they’re having a party to celebrate at Trixie’s. Wanna come?-Sunset could see the excitement on Sonata’s eyes, but the idea of going to a party, without her other friends, were Flash would be, and at Trixie’s house, made her cringe. She didn’t feel ready to face a crowd like that yet, and she feared she was not really invited.-Sorry, I’ll pass- She said. -But have fun though! You deserve to celebrate.- Sonata was disappointed, it showed, but she did not complain and left with the rest of the band on the same van they had come in.As Sunset came out of the field and into the street she saw the van leave downhill, towards the town center, and her bus, leaving uphill, leaving her behind. She ran shortly, but there was no point, it was gone. “Beautiful” Then a voice came behind her, just like it had a couple of hours ago.-Missed the bus?- The odd woman stood six feet behind her, standing over her cane with a smug smile on her face. Sunset wasn’t even going to answer to that: she shrugged and started walking uphill without a word. -Well don't just ignore your elders!- Her voice was stern, commanding, Sunset froze on her tracks and looked back carefully. The woman walked her ways slowly. -I needed that bus too, so I’m guessing we are neighbors. So, are you gonna walk an old lady home?-“Sure! This night couldn’t get any worse anyway.” -Okay, sure.- The woman couldn’t be older than forty, maybe way younger, but her cane and her attitude made her look older. Still, Sunset figured she could walk home just fine. “What do you have against me anyway?” She thought as she walked with the woman up the sidewalk. It might have been that the woman was just morbidly curious about her transformation: many people in town knew about the magic that went on at CHS, but most of them hadn’t seen it and were curious about it. Sunset had already been interrogated by the cops, the parent association, most people she knew in town… “And now here she goes...” The woman walked beside her, in silence for a while, until she stopped at the top of the hill.-I know you must be tired of me by now, but wait a moment please, my leg is getting tired.- The woman sat on a bench on the edge of a park. She left her cane on the side and rubbed her right thigh slowly.-Don’t worry- Sunset sighed, she sat down on the opposite side of the bench and stared at the street. “Just a couple more blocks.” She thought. “Man… being nice takes a lot of patience.”-Have you always been able to transform like that?- The question was blunt, but then again, most things about the woman were. Sunset was a little startled, considered whether to answer the question or not, and then decided she had nothing to lose by now.-Not really, not until recently actually.- She admitted.-Figures, if you had any experience with it you wouldn’t transform unwillingly.- The woman said matter-of factly. -So, do you know what triggers it?--Not really. Music I guess. It happens when I play guitar too.--That’s highly unlikely. You’re probably confused about the trigger and relate it to music only.-The pretentious tone the woman used made Sunset flash with anger. -What would you know about it anyway?!- She shot back angrily. -I’m telling you I transform when I play music, and you’re just being insufferable about it! What’s your…?- Sunset was getting more irritated by the minute, and now the woman was just ignoring her and reaching to the ground, as if she was looking for something< that made it worse. Sunset got up, anger burning inside. She was about to walk away when she saw the woman held a beetle on her hand, holding it out as if to show it. Then the beetle flashed, like it exploded into a small bright cloud, and Sunset could see the white smoke come to shape, slowly becoming a ghostly image of the beetle, floating on top of it’s corpse.Sunset froze, staring at the dead beetle, it’s ghost, and the face of the woman, unblinking, serene. “Magic. Real magic! But there’s no transformation… what is she?” The ghostly beetle floated clumsily over the woman’s hand, moving it’s legs and opening its wings as if trying to stabilize. The woman smiled. -I’m telling you, music might have to do something with your transformation, but it’s not the trigger, just a ritual.- She toyed with the dead beetle for a moment, then a dark aura covered the insect and it started moving again. -Most magic takes a ritual to be summoned, but the trigger is something simpler, yet, more difficult to define.- The ghost beetle flew over Sunset’s head and was lost in the night, while it’s body crawled straight out of the woman’s hand and fell to the ground. The woman placed her left hand over the beetle, then raised her right hand and took a deep breath: a white flash came down from the sky, into the woman’s raised hand, through her chest and into the beetle, that suddenly jumped to life and ran for the grass. -So? Do you know what triggers it?-Sunset stood, stupefied, taking in what she had just seen. Then forced herself to speak, if anything to fill the dead air. -You can do magic?- “Brilliant”The woman was not amused. -I asked first.- She said, standing up and picking up her cane. -Come on, let’s talk on the way home.--I don’t know what triggers it- Sunset said as she walked beside the woman. -But how can you use magic?--I don’t seem like a sorcerer to you?- Sunset almost answered that, but the woman laughed out loud and suddenly she realized she was joking. -I once knew my way around magic. Now I can barely do what I showed you back there.- She paused for a couple of slow limped steps and then smiled melancholically. -To be honest that beetle was too big, I barely made it.--I used to use magic as well… Well, I guess I do now too, but I can’t do anything like that, not at will at least.- Sunset admitted. It felt strange talking about magic with someone again: not since she met Twilight Sparkle at CHS had she known another magic user in this world.-I knew you were one of the girls that can use magic in this town.- The woman said, keeping her gaze up front. -I was really surprised to find out there was not only magic in this place, but so close to me too. So you’ll understand why I was interested in the concert tonight: I was actually expecting more of your friends to come over but in the end you didn’t disappoint.-“I was expecting some of them to come too.” -You could’ve just shown me your magic before. I thought you were…--An annoying stalker?- She laughed. Then she stopped on the corner of a street. -I’m no good with people anyway. But I’d like to talk magic with you again. My house is the fifth down on this street, the one with the sun on the fence.- Sunset looked over the street but it was too dark to make out any specific houses. Yet, she nodded. -Come by tomorrow if you’d like. We can have tea.- She gave Sunset a little nod, and then left down the street.Sunset rushed home, her mind rushing about what she had seen that night. And as soon as she entered her room she looked for an old book that she kept on her bedside. She opened it and started writing. Dear Princess Twilight.
I met someone today. A woman who can use magic in this world. She’s quite odd, but I’m excited to talk magic to someone on this side of the book for once. Have you ever met someone who gives you a bad first impression but turns out to have something in common with you that you didn’t expect? Well… aside from me.
Your friend.
Sunset Shimmer.