"How Would You Describe It?"
Twilight was sitting on the steps in front of Canterlot High, inspecting the ruined wondercolt statue that had been in perfect condition just a day ago. Luckily, all the marble shrapnel was cleaned up and the only sign of destruction was the two hooves that connected the statue to the stone platform. Besides that, Canterlot High appeared like not a magical bolt had struck it.
"I wonder if the janitors receive extra for these situations," she muttered to herself.
With the evening sun's light, she started reading the opened book in her lap. Her eyes skimmed the words quickly, not taking their meaning in the slightest. Her mind was elsewhere. Magic. Equestria. A whole world of the unknown. She gritted her teeth. The memories of last night kept picking at her. The experience of all that magic at her fingertips. Or were they claws? Her digits tapped impatiently on her leg. She felt restless as she struggled to keep her mind off such things. The book before her was no help.
"Ugh! Stop thinking about it!"
Her soft yelling did nothing but stir her dog, who was sleeping on the steps beside her, but was now wide awake. He was about to say something, but she silenced him with a quick upward finger. The last thing she needed was to be reminded once again of the magic that surrounded her.
"C'mon, Twilight. I think you should just accept it now," Spike told her flatly.
She slowly turned her head to him, adjusting her thick glasses with the awkward movement. "I know. I know. It's just that, before all of this, I thought I knew this world. Now it seems like I've barely scratched the surface of knowledge."
"Well, maybe now you can discover so much more than anyone else has," Spike said encouragingly.
Twilight sighed and rubbed her eyes. "You don't understand. After I unleashed the magic, I saw everything. A whole world that no one knows about. Well, at least no humans besides this school. I feel like researching it all and sharing my findings with the world...but I know that such magic should be kept secret." She paused before shaking her head. "Holding a whole other universe under a sheet seems wrong. However, after my magic incident....After I saw it all. No, it should not be shared. But it was so-"
"Amazing?"
Twilight was startled to find Sunset Shimmer smiling kindly behind her. The red and yellow haired girl then sat next to her with a friendly demeanor. Spike became excited and jumped onto her lap, panting with joy. Sunset giggled and patted him twice on the head. Despite the cute scene, Twilight kept her eyes away from her new friend.
"How long have you been listening?" she asked without moving her eyes.
"Not long. I just got done with helping Miss Cheerilee sort out the M-section of the library. I think Snips and Snails decided it would be fun to mess it up. Those two are such dorks." Sunset then looked at Twilight awkwardly. "Um...So what brings you here?"
"My transfer hasn't been completed yet and I rather not spend another night near Crystal Prep. So I just felt...inclined to visit this place. Just spend an evening on these steps and try to forget what happened here last night. Doesn't seem to be working."
"Pfft, you'll never forget it," Sunset nodded. "You can't forget something like that. It's life-changing."
Twilight turned her head to her. "It felt amazing..."
"I know right? When I transformed into a raging she-demon, it felt awesome. Painful at first, but then terrific. Like the whole world could be yours. Like you're unstoppable."
Twilight lowered her head. "I should feel terrible for thinking that becoming an evil magic creature was great."
"Naw. That'd be lying. Don't try to convince yourself that you didn't enjoy it," Sunset told her as she rubbed Spike's belly.
"Huh? Why not?"
"Because that's pointless. It isn't about you feeling bad, it's about you knowing what you could have done. I was a terrible person when I arrived here. I was awful before I was blasted by the rainbows of friendship. Unlike you, I knew what I was doing. Well, mostly. Magic is my forte in Equestria. I used to feel regretful after the Fall Formal. It kept pestering me day and night. If I were you, I would try to stop the regret first, because it's in the past now. You can't change what you've done, why feel bad about it? Just make sure it never happens again."
"I guess that makes sense. I do hope it never happens again. I'm not entirely sure I would see reason twice. Once the magic changed me, I saw everything! My mind was flooded by the science behind Equestrian magic." She started to smile with enthusiasm. "So much information! So much raw knowledge! I learned twice as much from those long seconds than I did in three years at Crystal Prep!"
"I was flooded with knowledge too. Though it was the magic of Harmony and friendship. The crown I placed on my head was an Element of Harmony and thus it gave me all that it knew. It was a lot to take in and it showed me how I was using the Element improperly. I ignored it of course, until it backfired on me. But, I digress."
Twilight ignored her. "I saw visions of pony goddesses lifting the heavens. Sun and moon were equals in the sky! I saw-"
"Twilight?" Spike interrupted.
"Oh, sorry..."
"Like I was saying," Sunset continued, "all that knowledge really affects the mind. I thought I could take over a nation with mind controlled high schoolers. How dumb is that? I was completely mad!"
"I thought I could dissect a whole world for magic," Twilight said with a wave of her hand as if she still wielded dark powers.
"It's exhilarating to say the least. You won't ever forget that feeling. I'll say this, you'll be tempted by the feeling."
"I'll remember the guilt then..."
"Yes. Remember the guilt. The amazing feeling that comes with such magic is nothing compared to what you feel afterwards. All my sins, all those I've hurt, every tear that I help make will never leave me. I don't punish myself by keeping those horrid memories, but instead use them to break any temptations."
"Seems like a heavy burden..." Twilight sighed.
Sunset rested a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Not at all. Twilight, you have friends now. Keep them and nothing will be heavy, I promise. They'll share some of the weight. It's what friends do. Don't worry, they've already forgiven you, just like they've forgiven me. And I was a jerk to them before I even transformed. You got it lucky as the one who was forced into something you didn't want."
"No, I did what I did on purpose. Principal Cinch started it, but I wanted to use the magic too. Not for the Friendship Games of course. I felt like I was making a grand discovery for science. I kinda did too."
"It doesn't matter. All that's in the past. Your past is not today. It doesn't define you. You now know the power you can wield, but you won't wield it. Princess Celestia told me a long time ago that it was having all the power in the world and still not abusing it that was the first step to wisdom. I know that I can go steal some Equestrian artifact and bring it back here and become all-powerful again, but I won't. I'm better than that now. Besides, I think after one failed try at ruling the world, I would make a better plan."
Twilight couldn't help but giggle at Sunset's sense of humor. "Huh, never thought about it like that."
"After some weeks, you really start to reflect on your life's story. I'm still a student at this whole 'friendship' thing, but that's fine. I think life is a lot about being a student. You learn, discover, and realize something new every day. It'll never end. I know we both love learning new things, even if we go through a magical mishap."
The sun was setting low on the horizon and their daylight was running out. Spike stretched in Sunset's lap before running over to Twilight's backpack and snuggling himself into its largest compartment. Seeing the dog stretch made Sunset do the same.
"Aw, well, good talk, Twilight. I know it will still take some time to adjust to this newly discovered world. Just keep your spirits up and know that you have real friends now."
"And my counterpart is a pony princess of friendship," Twilight added.
"Exactly," Sunset laughed.
Sunset stood up and began to walk towards her car. Twilight hesitated before yelling for her to stop.
"Hey, one last thing..."
"Yeah?" Sunset asked expectantly.
"This may be a dumb question...but would I have, you know, won with my power?"
"You mean like defeat everyone and rule the world after a grand magical battle?"
"Not quite like that, but yeah," Twilight said bashfully.
"Heck no." Sunset said simply. "You would have been kicked into Tartarus before you could finish a geometry problem. The Princesses would have defeated you so fast. Just be glad I got to you first."
This answer left Twilight stunned. Tartarus? No, she shouldn't even start thinking about that stuff. So instead she just smiled and rubbed the back of her neck nervously.
Sunset laughed with a roll of her eye. "Just kidding. If I didn't save you, they would have. They've got a knack for it."
"Then I guess you didn't worry about me destroying too much stuff?"
"Nah, I helped you because I knew you would be in the worst for it. I stopped you before it became you."
"Thanks."
"For what?" Sunset asked with a shrug. "I just did what I thought was right."
"No, for just being here, now. You sound like a wise leader. I've never heard another teenager speak like you do. You seem so experienced with all of this."
"I'm not." Sunset blushed. "I've just had more than a few good role models in my life. I wish I listened to them sooner, but there's nothing stopping me from listening to them now."
"Well, as of right now, you're my role model."
"Thanks. It means a lot to me. I uh....should start going now. My car's lights aren't the brightest."
Twilight packed her books and nodded. "I understand."
Sunset waved a hand goodbye and ran off to her car. With the last rays of sunlight, Twilight packed her book and swung her backpack over her shoulders. The statue was still as destroyed as ever, but the fact that it was there no longer upset her. It was in the past now. The amazing feeling she had when she transformed was just a feeling. There was no true value beyond that. All she could do now was move on, just like Sunset did before her. Heck, maybe this will just turn into a joke for me to laugh at in the future? That hope lifted her heart and she headed towards home. Just like the journey home was long, the journey to moving past all this was even longer, but she was not alone, and that would make all the difference.
"So what was that all about?" Spike asked from the backpack.
Twilight thought a moment before answering. "We all have troubles in our lives, Spike. Some great, some small. But the guilt remains the same, no matter what. But it's not about how much guilt you feel, it's about how you use it to guide yourself into being a better person. It's harsh, I know, but it's much more favorable than the alternative. I understand it now...And it all becomes so much easier when you have friends to fight back the regret and the pain. Spike, I understand it all now."
~
Author's Note
-Cheers for That!
