Friendship is Magic and Magic is Eternal
Friendship is Magic and Magic is Eternal
Sunset sniffed, trying to hide the tears that threatened to leak out of the corners of her eyes. This was it. Graduation. Both a day to look forward to, and to dread. The ceremony was over, and party had finally died, leaving the six girls sitting on the school stage, looking out at the streamers and confetti that lay upon the silent gym floor.
“I can't believe it's finally over.” Pinkie sighed. She smiled, though her smile was tired, and worn. “I wish I could have every moment back.”
“Ah' know what'cha sayin' sugarcube.” Applejack nodded. She'd changed out of her black gown, back into her usual duds. It only seemed fitting. “Remember when we first met?”
“How could I forget?” Rainbow Dash laughed. She grinned at the others. “I was playing soccer, being awesome as usual.”
“Oh, please dearie.” Rarity rolled her eyes. “We already know how 'awesome', 'amazing', 'stupendous', 'cool' and 'bombtastic' you are.” The young lady made quotation marks with her fingers with every word that RD had used to describe herself in the past.
“You forgot hot and epic, but I'll forgive you for that.” Dash smiled.
“I remember.” Fluttershy. “I was with Rainbow, watching her from the stands when she kicked the ball a little too hard-”
“Which I totally meant to do.”
“And it hit Applejack in the back.”
Applejack laughed. “Yeah, Ah' remember. Ah' was so dang upset, I'd kicked it back hitin' ya' in the chest.”
Rainbow laughed, then rubbed her chest. “Yeah, that hurt.”
All the girls laughed.
“Hey, girls?” Sunset slipped off the stage. “I've got a little something special for us, as a final goodbye to Canterlot High.”
“That sounds like fun.” Pinkie grinned. “Is it soda?”
“Close.” Sunset opened up a cooler that the others hadn't noticed before. She pulled out six bottles, one for each. “It's a drink I made. I've been practicing for weeks to get it just right. It's only fitting that we have it before...” She looked around the empty school, her heart in her throat, trying not to let her emotions overwhelm her.
“Ah' understand.” Applejack put a hand on her shoulder. “It's hard to say goodbye to it all.”
Rarity, in lady like fashion, pushed herself off the stage and walked a slow circle around the dead space. “Yes.” She sighed. I quite agree.” She let tear blink out of her own eye, sniffing herself. “I think this is the final goodbye for us.”
“But...But...” Pinkie's lips trembled as she thought of all the things she so wanted to do with her friends before this moment. “I...I just can't say g-g-goodbye...”
They all looked at the room around them. Still. Silent. They all knew how this would end.
“I know.” Fluttershy sniffled meekly. “But at least we have this last time. This last time together.”
Rainbow chuckled. “Aw Pinkie, you knew this day was coming.” She took a bottle that Sunset Shimmer had offered them. “How bout this? We all tell about our favorite memory before we call it the end. Eh?”
They all nodded, opening up the offered beverage and took a long pull from the bottles. The sparkling orange tickled their throats on its way down.
“Phew!” AJ smiled. “That sure is tasty. Alrigh' Ah'll go first.” The farm girl thought for a moment. “Remember that time that the ball was wrecked, anh' so we fixed 'er up with the help of the whole school?”
“Almost the everyone.” Sunset reminded her, taking a sip of her drink. “I really wish I could take that back. It looked like fun.”
“Oh it was,” Pinkie smiled despite her sadness. “But you weren't always a party pooper. I liked how when the sirens had us pinned down and you sang that wicked solo and like, totally, kicked their butts.” The pink haired girl giggled snorted, and sighed. “That was a good one.”
“So were the outfits~” Rarity signed. “Oh, do you girls remember when we had that school play, and I fell behind schedule?”
“Oh yes.” Fluttershy smiled sadly. “We all pitched in, and the play was so loved, they asked us to also preform it in the Town's Theater.”
“Or how bout the time that Fluttershy helped out the pet sanctuary?” Applejack laughed. “An' all them rabbits decided to stampede?”
Rainbow Dash laughed hard. “And there were those three girls who nearly fainted! What did they keep yelling?”
“'The horror!'” Rarity quoted, giggling herself.
The laughter died after a few minutes. They all took another drink, looking around the lifeless gym.
“H-hey. Let's walk the halls. Just...one last time.” Rainbow offered, the melancholy of their final departure weighing on her.
They all nodded, making their way out of the gym. The halls were empty of any students. They walked in silence, minds reflecting on the wall posters and banners that were hanging around the school. It would be so hard to leave it behind. All the good memories, all the bad.
“Do you think anyone will miss us?” Pinkie asked, looking at the announcement of senior graduation.
“How can they?” Rainbow laughed. “We made such an impression, it'd be at least a century for the school to forget about us.”
They all nodded.
Applejack put a hand on the locker to steady herself. “Whoa. Why don't we, ya' know, go back to the gym. Ah' need to sit down.”
Sunset gave a small smile, taking AJ's arm. “Yeah. Let's.”
The walk back to the gym was more difficult than they remembered it to be in the past. Their legs started to ache a little, and their breaths became shallow. Finally, they leaned back against the stage.
“I don't want to go...” Pinkie cried. “We had too much fun here. There's so much we haven't done. I'm not ready to leave.”
“Shhhhh,” Fluttershy hugged her. “I...Know how you feel...but we have to go...”
“Yeah.” Rainbow said. She coughed for a minute. “Yeah...It sucks...that it has to end this way.”
AJ held her hand. “But...We're...Together.”
Sunset Shimmer felt a collective sigh as her friends gave their last breath. She struggled to sit up, just to see them one last time, all cuddling together. Sadly, she looked around the gymnasium, seeing the body of every student who drank from the punch bowl they'd put out. Every last one, from Principle Celestia to Snails had a drink still in hand.
Sunset smiled weakly. “I'll see you all again.” She sniffed. “And we'll never leave each other....” She felt her body go numb as the poison in the drink she made finally took hold of her. She fell back, slowly closing her eyes, whispering with her last breath. “Friendship is forever.”
The police showed up at the school the next morning, due to the amount of missing persons report of graduates who never came home from the graduation party the night before. They were horrified to find every student, teacher and staff of the school in the gymnasium, dead. A quick search of the scene revealed only a slip of paper that read the following:
I'm sorry for the trouble we caused you, but you understand, right? These are my friends. They were going to leave after graduation. We were going to grow old and die, alone, without our friends. I'm sorry it had to be done this way, but it's for the best. We're going to a special place, where we can play and be young forever. You understand right? I hope you do.
Sunset Shimmer
P.S. Friendship is Magic, and Magic is Eternal.
Author's Note
Messed up? Yeah, but I just couldn't let the idea pass me up. I needed to write something.
Fading Dreams or Forgotten Memories?
Author's Note
A little explanation why this chapter is here. While the original fic was dark and creepy, I've had a long time to think about it. I've decided to add this chapter to add another layer to it all. It might take away some, but I'm hoping that it will add for you, what it did for me.
Enjoy.
Fading Dreams or Forgotten Memories?
Sunset Shimmer woke with a gasp, as if it was the first breath she’d ever taken in her life. Her head shot right off her arms that she’d been using as a pillow, looking around wildly. What had happened? It had been after the graduation party and, and, the memory of it was slipping, mixed in with the dull rumble that was the cafeteria. She blinked at the five sets of eyes watching her. It seemed that Pinkie Pie was telling another one of her jokes when Sunset had gasped, ruining the punchline.
“Not quite the response I was looking for,” Pinkie put a finger to her chin, tapping it as she watched her friend try to calm down from hyperventilating. “Buuuuuuut, it works!”
Sunset put a hand to her chest, as if trying to will it back into it’s usual pitter patter rhythm. What was the dream? It seemed so important, so scary, but…
“You okay Sugar Cube?” AJ asked, worry on her face. “Ya’ look like a horse that’s been spooked by a rattler.”
Rainbow Dash deadpanned. “Nice one AJ. In cause you have forgotten,” She pointed with a spoon, which still had some jello on it at Sunset. “Sunset is a horse.”
“Pony.” Fluttershy corrected. “There’s a few fundamental differences between ponies and horses. For example-”
“I don’t think RD was insinuating that Sunset was a species she’s not.” Rarity cut in, heading off any lectures on animal species before her friend could get started. If allowed to, Fluttershy could spend the entire lunch period telling you the subtle differences between rabbits and hares. Which she had done before. Several times in fact.
“I’m fine.” Sunset breathed out, once again bringing all attention back to her. “I just had a really bizarre dream.”
“Like that one time you told use about some gray pony,” Rainbow over emphasized the word ‘pony’ while giving Fluttershy an annoyed look. “Became a princess of muffin’s or something? Because that was a really weird one.”
“Not my fault I was craving muffins before bed time.” Sunset blushed, subconsciously hugging her middle. “And you know that eating carbs before you go to bed is bad for you!” She looked away moodily, adding under her breath. “It all goes to my waist.”
Rarity came to her rescue, before Rainbow Dash could say something. No matter what that girl ate, she stayed as skinny as a rail. “So, what was this dream, Darling? With the way you woke up, I’m assuming it wasn’t pleasant.”
“That’s the thing,” Sunset answered, leaning her forehead against her hands, closing her eyes tight as she massaged her temples. “I can’t remember. We all were there, and I think we were having a party after graduation, but...” She sighed and looked at all of them. “I have no idea how it ended.”
There was a moment of silence, until Rainbow broke it. “Probably everyone died from drinking the koolaid.”
Both Applejack and Rainbow Dash laughed, leaving the rest of the table in the dark of the dark humored joke.
“Dangit, RD!” Applejack slapped the table, still chuckling. “Ah’ just knew that helpin’ ya sneak into that movie was a bad idea!”
“I know, right?” RD winked, nudging her with an elbow. “And it was all over orange koolaid, eh?”
“Som’it’ like that.” AJ nodded. “An’ the whole school died or som’it the likes.”
Sunset slumped back into her seat. “So, I’m getting upset because I had a dream of a movie that you two told us about?”
Both girls stopped laughing, suddenly confused. “We never told you about that.” Rainbow told her.
Again, silence rolled across the table.
“Pffffff,” Pinkie made a silly face, instantly causing the others to crack up. “This is silly girls, we’re talking all doomy and gloomy because Sunset’s moody because of a loony dream.”
“I think you’re reaching on that one Pinkie.” Fluttershy remarked.
“You think so too? Ah well, it was the best I could do on the spot,” She shrugged. “But the point is we’re here and about to have more fun, cause the day is only half over.”
Sunset agreed that there was some wisdom in Pinkie’s logic.
“Besides,” Pinkie winked as the end of lunch bell rang. “If it really happened, I bet you wouldn’t remember it.”
The other girls got up, starting to clear their trays, leaving Sunset and Pinkie at the table alone.
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Silly Sunset Shimmer,” Pinkie smiled, lifting her soda for a toast. “You wouldn’t remember it, because you’d be way too busy having fun with us! After all, Friendship is Magic, and Magic is Eternal.”
Sunset froze. Those words. They sounded so familiar. And yet…
She lifted her own bottle, clinking it to her friends. “Thanks Pinkie.”
“No problem!” And with that her over sugarfied friend zipped after her other friends, leaving Sunset to sip at her beverage. Tiny bubbles burned her tongue as the strong orange taste manifested itself.
“Orange soda,” Sunset murmured to herself, a memory of the dream at at the tip of her tongue. After another sip, she set the bottle down and shrugged, running off to join her friends.
