Chapters Sunset’s muscles burned as she skidded across the ground, her outfit in tatters, but still somehow covering her private parts. Glancing around the battlefield, Sunset narrowed her eyes. Her friends were in bad shape, Applejack and Rainbow were down for the count, Fluttershy was...well, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie was busy assisting Rarity with shielding the students of Crystal Prep and Canterlot high from the onslaught of dark energy beams.
“Oh?” A mocking voice said from above, “Giving up already?”
“Not on your life.” Sunset said defiantly, glancing up at the mocking voice. Midnight Sparkle hovered in the sky, glowing rings of magic around her eyes as ethereal wings kept her aloft. Her skin a dark blue, her purple dress swaying in the breeze. Sunset noted that, if she changed the angle of her head slightly, she could probably see up her enemy’s skirt.
“...Wait, what?”
Regardless of her opponent's unmentionables, it didn’t change the fact Sunset was on the ropes, she needed something to tip the scales in her favor, something that could change the game, something, anything! She just needed...needed....
Looking around, Sunset saw Rainbow rise to her knees, trying to get Applejack up, who was regaining her composure bit by bit, Fluttershy was moving towards the more injured students, providing medical aid as well as moving them away from the tear to Equestria, Pinkie Pie was providing moral support with a charming face, and Rarity was giving it her all to keep the shield up, even at the cost of her own life. Slowly, oh so slowly, something in Sunset’s mind clicked. Looking down at the ground in front of her, she saw the dark blue medallion that was once used to steal and contain magic, now cracked, but hummed with life.
“That’s it…” She muttered to herself, understanding filling her mind. Darting her eyes upward, Sunset took a deep breath, and snatched the trinket off the ground, “Twilight!” She called, getting her aggressor's attention, “I know what you’re going through, I’ve been where you are! When I put on the magic crown, it overwhelmed me! Just like what the magic’s doing to you! Please, let me help you!”
“And what could you possibly help me with?” Midnight sneered, “I have all the magic I need! And there’s even more down there!” Her violet eyes darting greedily to the open hole in the ground, which opened up to a world of unknown possibilities for the magic user, “And if I could have all that, what use would I have for you?!” She demanded.
“No, you don’t understand, magic doesn’t come from just power! You need more than that!” Holding up the magic stealing medallion in the air, Sunset began to rise in the air, golden magic beginning to surround her, “True magic comes from the bonds we share! From Kindness, Loyalty, Generosity, Honesty, Laughter!” As she counted down each of the five virtues, the red and yellow hair girl held the medallion skyward, and from her friends, from each of them, came a beam of magic, each one met at the crossroads that was the magic amulet. Soon enough, a ball of white magic, pure as can be, soon hovered above Sunset Shimmer. It’s size large enough to engulf the younger girl five times over.
“Let me show you, Twilight.”
Raising both hands up into the air, the orb of pure magic slowly descended into Sunset, whose hair was starting to stand on end, causing it spike upwards. Brimming with power, Sunset began to absorb the energy into herself. As she did, the wind itself shook from the power, the windows to Canterlot high were shattered from the sheer force that was coming out from the ball of pure power. As it came down over the girl, it began to turn in color, where it was once white, it was beginning to become a beautiful golden yellow. It became the sun, in magical form. As bright and as unyielding as the human inside it, who took a deep breath, and yelled.
As she did, the school itself was forced back by at least two feet from the sheer power she was putting out, people, objects, animals, there were no expectations. Even Midnight Sparkle was forced back from the shearing winds that surrounded Sunset Shimmer. As the orb turned all the brighter, the villainous was forced to shield her eyes to block out the light. Thankfully though, soon enough, the light show ended, and Midnight could see again, and what she saw took her breath away.
“The magic of friendship.”
Hovering in the sky as her equal, floated Sunset Shimmer, her hair now standing permanently on end, a glowing horn sticking out of her head, a red mark connected between her eyes. Glowing wings sprouted from her back, and the dress she wore made her look like an angel in human form.
Charging up two spells in her hands, Sunset fired them both at the ground in front of her, and the tear in the world was mended as she sketched the edges of the tear. The wound in reality was amended, and Sunset, once a nightmare, now a daydream, was its healer.
Growling in anger, Midnight charged up a spell in her left hand, and hurled herself through the air at Sunset, who met her charge with her own.
The resulting clash burned the air as the school took even more punishment than before. Both of them were forced back from the force of the clash, and sharing a look, they glared at each other before disappearing in a blinding flash of light.
The remaining students, some of whom finally let their guard down, only had a moment to catch their breath as a thunderous sound reverberated throughout the area. Glancing around, the students saw, if only for a moment, the image of the two girls engaged in hand to hand combat, but it was gone as quickly as it came. Looking around, the students saw what was happening. Happening as quick as a flash, the two deities were engaged in combat as they teleported around the school. Trading blows, ruining their outfits, and making the ground shatter with each movement.
Soon enough though, Sunset appeared. Thrown back, Sunset’s heeled feet skidded across the ground. Trying to brake, Sunset threw out a hand in front of her. Slowly grinding to a halt in front of the school’s entrance, Sunset looked upwards. The remaining student’s eyes followed her, and there, in the sky, was Midnight Sparkle.
Holding up a purple spell in her hands, she smiled manically, “Goodbye, Sunset Shimmer!” Grasping the spell with hands, she began to charge it, glowing brighter and deadlier with each second.
Undeterred, Sunset cupped her hands back, and whispered something softly. A soft glow emerged in her hands, and she began to raise her voice, “Ka….me….ha….me….”
“DIE!” Midnight yelled.
“HAAAAAA!” Sunset roared.
Throwing their arms out in front of them, the two sent out twin beams of unimaginable power, lighting up the darkened sky from the shine of their beams.
When the two beams met, there was a thunderous clash, flattening the surrounding countryside and sending chunks of rocks everywhere. For a moment, the two were deadlocked, neither able to get the upper hand on the other, but then, slowly but surely, Midnight’s dark purple beam was overriding Sunset’s golden beam. Grinning like a lunatic, Midnight put more and more force behind the attack.
But then…
“Kiao….Ken…”
“....Uh, what was that?” Midnight asked.
“Times….”
“Times?”
“FOUR!”
“Eh?”
Like someone had loaded four more bullets into a chamber, Sunset’s beam quadrupled in strength. Smashing through Midnight’s beam with fearsome speed and was soon on the magical teen like a lonely girl at prom night.
“That’s not fair…”
“No no no nono noonoonoooooo!” Midnight shrieked as the beam encroached on her, eventually consuming her in its fearsome embrace. Closing her eyes, she waited for sunlit death.
But it never came.
Daring to open her eyes, Midnight saw Sunset Shimmer hovering opposite of her, hand outstretched. They were in a white room, with no ceiling or ground. There was nothing else, no one else. Just them, and only them.
“....Why? ” Was the only thing she could ask, “Why didn’t you…”
“I know you.” Sunset responded, “Because...I was once you. Let me show you a better way.”
Looking at the offered hand, Midnight sparkle, closed her eyes, and took it. A warmth filled her being, and she smiled.
The white column the clash had created disappeared, and from it, two girls emerged. Locked in each other’s embrace, their clothing was ragged and torn, Twilight’s hair was loose, her glasses gone, and Sunset was looking little better herself. Their faces cut and bruised, but nevertheless, they looked happy.
Looking around, Twilight cringed at the destruction the two had brought, “...Did I do all of this? I...I didn’t mean too...”
“It’s okay.” Sunset said warmly, “Going from my own experience, they’ll forgive you.”
Smiling softly at each other, Twilight slowly perked her head upward, staring into Sunset’s eyes, and Sunset gently lowered in head into Twilight's, and then their lips-
“Now hold on there sugar cube!”
Adjusting my glasses and trying to ignore the burning sensation in my cheeks, I wasn’t able to look in Sunset’s direction as we sat in the music room. In fact, my knees looked more interesting, yes, much more interesting. Rainbow Dash looked up from her stacks of paper she was reading off of, looking mildly surprised as Applejack stared her down.
“Now, I ain’t got no problem with you making a story off your own flights of fancy, but don’t cha think that makin them kiss is a bit much?” The farmer pressed, hands at her hips with an annoyed expression.
“I kinda liked it…” Fluttershy admitted weakly from the side, “Not the fighting part, but the making up part...though the kiss was…”
“Yeah, haaa…” The athlete rubbed the back of her rainbow colored hair nervously, “I just thought it kinda...fit, you know?”
Applejack raised an eyebrow in response.
“....Rarity suggested it.” Rainbow admitted sheepishly.
Glancing over at the violet haired teen who was sitting on a piano, she huffed indignantly and crossed her arms, “Well, every good story needs a hint of romance, don’t you agree?”
“Yeah, but why Twilight and Sunset?” Applejack asked.
Rolling her eyes like it was the most obvious thing in the world, Rarity placed a hand on her chin and explained, “Because dear, just look at them! One’s outgoing and brave, the other’s bookish and timid. The setting sun and the Moon’s peak! Why, Sunset, Twilight, they’re practically the same name! Not to mention their color schemes are parallels of each other! Why, I’d say you two were made to act as counterpoints, why wouldn’t they like each other?” Well, she’s not wrong, sort of.
“Because they’re not fictional characters Rare.” Applejack countered. Inwardly, I thanked the farmer for being a voice of reason and common sense.
“Um, by Rarity’s logic, wouldn’t you two be a good couple then?” Fluttershy asked innocently.
The sudden silence in the room was so thick you could’ve cut it with the metaphorical knife, that is, until, Rainbow started laughing her head off.
“HAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAOHGODMYSIDESHAHAHAHAHA!”
Blushing and crossing her arms, Fluttershy huffed, “It was just a thought.” She muttered.
Being silent for long enough, Pinkie Pie finally spoke up, “Well, I liked it! Especially the lasers and the fighting! Say,” She turned her hyperactive attention towards me, “Can you two do that normally?” She asked.
“Not at all Pinkie.” Sunset said from behind me, “When we absorbed the magic from the amulet, we got a power boost from it. I might be able to do something similar when we pony up, but I don’t think I’ll be throwing around any Kamehameha’s any time soon.”
“Aww…” Pinkie moaned, deflating like a balloon.
“Anyway,” Sunset spoke up, forcing false bravado into her voice, “What did you think, Twilight?”
Pushing my glasses up, I said quietly: “It...needs some work.”
“What do you mean?” Sunset asked gently.
Swallowing down the lump in my throat, I continued, “Well, ignoring the grammar and syntax errors, some things in this story just don’t make any sense.” What story that was, was Rainbow Dash’s rendition of the friendship games, it was true to life, for the most part, but I swear she was watching Japanese cartoons as she was writing it. Truth be told, I was surprised when she came forward with this, I hadn’t pegged her as a writer, and to be honest, I’m still not sure if I do. Looking up at the heaving Rainbow Dash, I gave her a meek stare, “For starters, you said the school building was moved back two feet or so right?”
Regaining some of her composer, she nodded.
Gaining some courage, I continued, “Well, since the school is a two-story building is made out of solid brick, not counting all the facilities and added weight of appliances and such, it would have taken at least approximately two-“
“English, Twi.” Rainbow interrupted rudely. When she did, my train of thought had a sudden derail and went flying off the tracks and into a stack of conveniently placed lit dynamite. Needless to say, the resulting explosion was spectacular.
“Uh, well, that is, umm…” I stumbled and tripped in my words.
From my side, Spike, my magical talking dog, I can’t believe I just thought that, rolled his eyes, “If Twilight was releasing enough newtons of force, then how would the students still be alive?”
“….Eh?” Rainbow asked dumbly.
Nodding in thanks to Spike for the moment’s pause, I took over, “Well, the human body can only take about five G’s worth, and if something was able to push the school back, it would’ve been like a brick wall slamming into them five times over. But in your story, the students were completely fine. I mean, I could buy Sunset and myself surviving, and even Rarity and her shield…thing, you never explained that, by the way, but a normal person….” I shook my head.
To my surprise, instead of being rebuked, Rainbow just looked down at her stack of papers and narrowed her eyes, “I…see, thanks Twi.” She nodded at me, and I smiled slightly in reply. Giving Sunset a glance, she nodded warmly, as if congratulating me. Inwardly, I pumped an imaginary fist, score one for the bookworm!
My elation was cut short as the bell rang, signifying the end of the lunch period and the start of the next period. Picking up my stuff, I opened my back pack wide enough for Spike to jump in, who did so with ease. As we shuffled out of the music room, we were stopped by the sight of a very tall women with a warm smile, “Oh hello everyone.” Principal Celestia greeted, raising a hand in hello.
“Hey Prince, did you like the story I gave you?” Rainbow Dash spoke up suddenly, completely catching me, and the rest, by surprise.
“You gave it to the Principal?” Fluttershy asked.
Rainbow nodded, completely ignoring the heavy stares she was getting. No, not ignoring, that implies she was at least aware of them, she was completely oblivious to them, “Well, I figured the best way to get feedback was to give it to people I trust. And the Principal was pretty high on the list.” She said like it was the most obvious thing in the world, and to be fair, to her, it probably was.
“And what a wonderful story it was!” Oh, please Principal Celestia, I’ve only been a student here for a few weeks, and while I did destroy your statue, I don’t think I deserve any more embarrassment, “I especially liked the part where Sunset and Twilight ki-“
“Celestia!” Sunset shrieked as I slunk backwards, face completely red.
Welcome to my world, crazy, yet ever so humble.
The last bell of the day rang, and I took it as my cue to leave the building of Canterlot High on my own terms. My face still felt flush from the...well, I wouldn’t call what happened a “conversation,” it was more or less just Celestia teasing me and Sunset over Rainbow Dash’s story. It took a minute or two for her to settle down from laughing at both mine and Sunset’s flustered reactions, but I’m guessing it was mostly Sunset she was having fun with. I swear, those two are like mother and daughter.
As I exited the building into the courtyard, waving good bye at my little clique of friends, a slight rumble from back caught my attention, and soon enough, the purple head of my dog jumped out of my bag, poking over my shoulder, “Gah, you know I can’t breathe in there Twilight.”
“Then why do you keep jumping in then?” I asked in return.
“You’d get lonely without me.” Spike replied confidently. Well, he wasn’t wrong.
Looking at the courtyard of the school, I was once again stumped by the sheer normality of it. If you hadn’t been there, you’d never had guessed that the school had been a battleground for the fate of two universes between magical girls. Apparently though, it wasn’t the first time it happened, so I guess the students were used to it at this point. How and why were questions that currently eluded me, but I was sure I’d find the answer at some point. My thoughts were once again drifting to the lone statue base in the center of the front lawn, once, it held up a statue of a marble horse, rearing up bravely, as if heading for battle. It’s gone now, destroyed by...well, myself, in a magic induced rampage. Amazingly enough, there was no damage bill to my family from the school board, or local government officials showing up at my house, demanding I come with them into Area 51 where they would perform all kinds of experiments on my body. I’ve seen enough science fiction movies to know what they did, I don’t want to be probed.
...Ahem, anyway, what really drew my attention wasn’t the remains of the statue, but the base. In one of the walls, specifically, the one facing the school, was a portal to another land, the land Sunset came from. The magical world of Equestria.
A place ruled by talking ponies.
….I still can’t believe it, it sounded like a Saturday morning cartoon for little girls, but my dog was now talking in human tongue, so I guess I’m not the best to judge alternate universes. As I approached the portal, I raised a hand towards the entrance and pressed against it. True to form, it shimmered and ripples were formed from the pressure I put on it. It was still active, still on, still...passable. It would be so easy, to cross over. To see a land where the laws of physics could be bent and twisted, where the periodic table was your plaything, and the doorway was right here. All I had to do was apply a little more pressure and-
“Unlike you, I can have everything I want!”
My hand snapped back, and I reeled away from the portal as if it could hurt me.
“You okay Twilight?” Spike asked, concern written all over his doggy face.
“Just fine Spike.” I whispered back in a strained voice. In a sign of concern, or maybe reassurment, he licked my cheek. It was easy to forget, but my dog may be a talking dog, but he was still my dog. Smiling softly at him, I patted him on the head and walked around the portal, trying to ignore the temptation of going through it.
I didn’t need it; I didn’t want it.
At least that’s what I keep telling myself.
Shaking my head, I turned my head to the left and the right, checking for traffic as I crossed the street and onto the bus stop. I didn’t have a ride back in the afternoon, Cadance was busy, what, with being the dean and all and Shiny was the coach of the football team at Crystal Prep. My home wasn’t close enough for walking to be a valid option, so that left only one thing left to. The dreaded thing called...Public transport.
Luckily for me though, I have a bus pass. Pulling out a lavender phone from my bag, I opened the traffic app and checked the bus schedule. See, I programmed this app personally at my computer at home to give me a feed on the local traffic conditions and update periodically, also it can give me live coverage of anything newsworthy that happens in my current zip code. So far, I’ve only gotten twitter updates about people named “Cake” and their baby twins. It was strange, I don’t even own a twitter account....or any kind of account for that matter.
Ah, right, the bus thing. Checking the feed, I discovered, much to my dismay, that I would have to wait a few more minutes for the bus to arrive. It was being held up by a small time traffic accident off the nearest highway. Apparently, two girls were caught racing and almost crashed in the process. I didn’t see the names as I scanned, but I caught a “Lightning” and a “Gil” in the file. Either someone had a really fast and strange car, or someone really liked Final Fantasy. Anyway, that left me having nothing to do to pass the time while I waited for the bus.
Looking around, I tried to find something interesting to think about while the bus came. The clouds were...cloudy, and the sky was...blue. A nice, comforting blue.
“....I’m bored.” I said aloud and to no one.
“Don’tcha have a book Twi?” Spike asked.
Glancing back at him, I set my backpack down and rummaged around. Spike, being a dear as always, hopped out and started to help me look. I hate to say it, but my backpack was an irredeemable mess. I had my math book next to my art book, my art pens were next to my work pencils, and to top it all off, my hairbrush was next to my calculator!
The horror was almost too much to bear.
But, as before, and as today, my number one assistant pulled through, “Found it Twi!” To prove his point, Spike brushed aside the aforementioned objects and pulled out in his little mouth my copy of Ancient Myths and Mysteries.
“Thanks Spike.” I said, taking the book from him and wiping off the dog slobber.
“Why did you check that book out anyways?” My little doggy asked. I turned to him, squinting my eyes as I thought of a response.
“Well...you see…”
“You think that by study these, you’ll find a connection between this world, and Sunset’s.” Darn it! He could read me like an open book! “Twilight, I can read you like an open book.”
And he’s a mind reader too, wonderful.
“It’s just, I want to know so much more about magic, and it would explain so much about the past.” I murmured, “Like, how people thought of dragons and unicorns! I mean, could you imagine if someone came through the portal before the school was founded? Like in ancient Greece, it would explain why people made stories about people who could cast magic and rode winged beasts into battle!” Turning to him, I expected him to bask in the glory of my intelligence, but instead, all he did was roll his eyes.
“Riggghtt, I’m pretty sure people would notice magic pony people Twi.” I scowled at him, he smirked back, “You know you love me.”
“....I do. Come here.” Without a second thought, Spike leapt into my arms and started to lick my face affectionately.
As he did, the bus came up from behind me and slowed to a stop with a churn. Smiling, he hopped into my bag and I carried him onto the bus. Showing the driver my bus pass, I made my way there to the back and sat down.
In retrospect, I really should’ve seen who I sat down next to.
“Hello Twilight Sparkle.”
Turning my head, a twin tailed head of pure white greeted me. Staring at me from behind blue glasses, my former classmate Sugarcoat kept an impassioned face as she looked at me.
“H-hi Sugarcoat.” I stuttered. I hadn’t spoken to anyone at Crystal Prep ever since I left, there were a lot of bad memories there, and I really didn’t want to face the wrath of my former classmates. Especially Sugarcoat, she didn’t have the best way with words after all.
“How are you, Twilight Sparkle?” She asked.
“I’m f-fine. How are things at Crystal Prep?” I asked in return. Of course, I, more than anyone else, should have been aware of Sugarcoat’s true calling in life; a one girl filibuster.
“Ever since the friendship games, Principal Cinch has dedicated herself to “restoring” Crystal Prep’s reputation. As such, she has ordered the curriculum to be doubled and our punishments for failing to be more severe. Students who fall behind are now expected to take remedial classes on top of whatever classes they’re currently taking. The sports teams now have double the practice time, and the facility is being worked ragged. The top students in science, minus you, are now being asked to study the elements of magic. Cinch herself has gotten little, if any, sleep. I suspect she now lives in her office.”
At that onslaught of words, I could only blink and say in reply, “You’re kidding.”
In response, Sugarcoat just looked at me like I was the dumbest person on the planet. And, in a way, I suppose I was, “Right, stupid question.” I muttered, “But, what do you mean studying magic? There’s no way she could understand how it works!”
“Do you understand how it works?” Sugarcoat asked.
“.....” I couldn’t respond, “The Magic of Friendship”, that’s what Sunset called it, constantly eluded me. It sounded so simple and yet so damnably infuriating. I wanted to ask Sunset to explain it better, but while she understood how it worked back in her...pony world, it seemed here, it was completely random and unusable. Even….pony me couldn’t any advice on the subject when she came through the portal after some “time traveling” stuff in her world. It seemed no one really could use it, save for those six girls.
And, in a way, me, I guess.
“If you can’t figure it out, Cinch won’t either.” Sugarcoat said, misinterpreting my thoughts but snapping me out of my funk.
“I hope you’re right…” I sat back in my seat, taking care to place my bag on my lap. Trying to process this new information about my old principal, I spent most of the bus ride back in silence.
Closing the door to my room, I breathed a sigh of relief and plopped down on my bed, my muscles aching from the day, but while my body was a mess, my mind made Napoleon's march into Russia look organized. Thankfully though, Spike, bless him, jumped up next to me and trotted around in a circle before coming to a rest near my arm. Smiling, I petted his fluffy head and forced my arms to a push up position.
“No time for rest Twilight. You got work to do.” I muttered, making my tired body operate despite its protests that I wasn’t using it for its intended purpose, thus rendering the warranty invalid. Well, too bad I told my body, I had stuff to do. My bones creaked as I sat down at my desk, my laptop humming gently with its screen pitch black. Hitting the power button, I opened up a drawer while the machine powered up, taking out a screwdriver, I took out my most recent project and started fiddling with it.
“Twilight,” Spike said from behind me, “That’s…”
Looking down at the device in my hand, I sighed, I knew this was coming eventually, “Yes Spike. It’s the EM detector.” The purple, medallion like device that played such a large part in the catastrophe that made me drunk with power was now resting in the palm of my hand, no larger than my palm itself. It was currently turned off, and the latch that connected the upper and lower parts was broken. Not to mention it’s internal power core was disrupted, so, for the time being, it was pretty much a fancy looking paper weight.
“That thing caused a lot of trouble for you and the others.” Spike said, “I thought it was lost after you, uh, you…”
“I managed to snatch it when no one was looking, besides, it’s mine anyway. Not like I stole it or anything.” I replied, a faint light caught my eye, my laptop had finally powered up. Entering in my password, I went back to fixing the latch on the device.
“What made you keep it? I can’t imagine you having a lot of fond memories of it.” I paused as Spike said that, he was right. During the Friendship Games, the whole mess could have been avoided if I hadn’t made it and brought it along with me. But, that’s just playing the blame game, I was the responsible for what happened, this trinket was just a tool, in the end.
“It’s too useful.” I explained, “It’d take me forever to make another, not only that, but magic from Sunset’s world isn’t going to just stop because the Friendship games are over. The prototype I have doesn’t work as well as this one did.” Turning around, I saw Spike’s disapproving stare, “Uh, but, I’ll be more careful this time. Detection only.” I supplied weakly, “I’ll even add in a kill-switch in case it tries to absorbing thing again.”
Spike muttered something, but he relented, “What are you working on anyway? You don’t have any big projects coming up.”
“I don’t.” I agreed, “Here, I’ll show you.”
With speed fitting for a dog of his type, Spike jumped up onto my lap. As the computer finally finished booting up, I loaded up a program called; Magical Anomalies Triangulation Software.
“What’s this thing do?” Spike asked.
I smiled, “Well, for starters, I made it to cross reference electromagnetic waves and-”
“English, Twi.”
“It….reads magical signatures and can locate them.” I muttered, the wind taken out of my sails.
“It’s okay Twi, if you explain it to Sunset, I’m sure she’ll get it.” Spike consoled. Well, at least he had a point there. As the app loaded, a map of the city opened up, showing everything in a one hundred mile radius. The highways were highlighted and named appropriately, special locations such as the school had their own little blip. Other landmarks were likewise marked, like the public library.
“Neat.” Spike said, “What else can it do?”
Smirking, I hit a button appropriately labeled Scan . The screen pulsed, and a radar that wouldn’t be out of place on a submarine showed up on the center of the screen. A small dial rotated around in a 360 degree circle, swiping over the city and making several more turns. Soon enough, and to my own surprise, a small blip appeared on the radar, near Canterlot High itself in fact. That itself wasn’t strange, the school has been the centerpiece for most magical events and whatnot, but this one was small and on the move. Compared to the portal, which was larger but static. Because, you know, it was in a statue.
“What the…” Moving the mouse over it, I quickly typed a few commands on the keyboard. This was insane, a magical signature, this early? I hadn’t expected anything to show up for a few weeks really, but this was a interesting new development. If magic was showing up around the school this quickly then… I shuddered with excitement, “This could be my chance, come on, what is it? A new arrival from the other world? A tear in the fabric of reality? Some three headed beast that only I can stop?” The screen soon showed me a live feed from the school’s security cameras.
Spike shot me a dirty look, and I smiled sheepishly. Ignoring his glare, I quickly filtered through the cameras, the black and white feed playing hell with my poor vision, but sure enough, I found my source of magical energy.
Sunset Shimmer’s smiling face shown through the cameras, lighting up my room even through the computer. She was apparently laughing at something off-screen, and I felt heat rise to my face as I watched.
Spike and I shared a look, then he promptly burst out laughing, “Congrats Twi! You’re really watching the sun set huh? Hey, what will Rarity think when I tell her you made a Sunset stalking machine?”
“....Oh, shut up.” I muttered, closing the app.
Author's Note
Thanks to everyone who liked and commented on this story!
As much as I hate to say it, my magical detection system was more or less useless at the moment, no matter how much I looked, there was only two sources of magic in the tristate area, Sunset Shimmer, and the portal. So, unless I wanted to be arrested for stalking, and for, you know, hacking into federal security systems, I sighed and closed the tab. Leaning back in my chair, absentmindedly petting Spike as I did, I turned my head towards the roof of my room. The dusty air giving the place a stale odor, as you might imagine, my room is a complete mess. Books were scattered all over, the floor was particularly unseeable due to the sheer mishmash of clothes, discarded chip bags, coffee cups, and general trash littered the room, so much so that it was hard to even find a patch of carpet through all the mess. If I had OCD, I’d imagine that this much chaos would probably send me into a coma and the only way to revive me would be to organize everything, which would probably take the better part of two months, unless of course, you had magic.
Magic, huh.
If you had told me two weeks ago that magic exists, I would’ve thought you were an escapee from a mental institute, and if you had told me that I would be friends with a magical pony turned human, I definitely would’ve started walking in the other direction very quickly. It was just so...strange, magic. I said it before and I’ll say it again, the “Magic of Friendship” was infuriating. No matter which way I went about it, I couldn’t make heads or tails of it. From a scientist’s perspective, it was completely mind boggling. The wings Rainbow Dash grew shouldn’t allow for flight like, the tails they grew during practice shouldn’t exist at all, and when Sunset transforms….It’s just, wow, it was as if the laws of physics didn’t apply to her. She once told me that she was the student of a very powerful, and pardon the term, mage in her old world. She didn’t tell me the name, I think, she said it was a Princess Celestia or something, but, I dunno. Princess were usually third in command in a Monarchy, after the prince, and before the prince, came the king and queen, and if my theory about doubles was correct, I really couldn’t see Principal Celestia as anything less than the queen of the land...Unless, did the princess have the same name as the queen? That would make more sense.
Oh yeah, back to Sunset. Compared to the others, she doesn’t transform as often, in fact, I’ve only seen her transform once aside from the Friendship Games, and that was during band practice. From what I could understood, they would “pony up” (Ugh, really?) when they “showed their truest selves.” From what little I understood of philosophy, I imagine they transform when their “spirits” or, I.E; their “elements” are properly alight. In other words, when they reach a mental, or perhaps physical threshold, they transform. Of course, that’s just a theory, I would need more data before I could make a proper analyzation. But still, when they transformed, it was sight to see.
Such as when Rainbow Dash transformed during the friendship games to save her friends, and me, or when Fluttershy is showing almost saint like kindness to others. Pinkie when she was making everyone happy, Applejack when she was truly honest and trustworthy, I haven’t seen Rarity’s, but perhaps when she’s being generous?
Sunset on the other hand….That one time she transformed, it was like watching, well, the sun-set. When the light hits just right, the world becomes something else in its presence. I believe the correct term would be “Magical Hour.” Beautiful, and somehow, a little sad. She also carried herself a little differently from the others when she transformed, the rest would be giddy, as if they just had a massive intake of sugar, or in Pinkie Pie’s case, her morning breakfast. But in Sunset’s case, it was like she was used to the feeling, and at the same time, she also didn’t….enjoy it. I’m not sure why, though, I guess the power she absorbed to fight me was far greater than what happened naturally to her, and anything that was lesser in comparison just...meh.
“Twilight? Are in there?”
My musings were cut off as a gentle knock rapped against the wooden door to my room. Judging by the voice, it was my former babysitter and all-time best friend, Dean Cadance.
“I’m here.” I called back.
Opening the door and letting herself in, I was once again reminded of what kind of life Cadance lead. Contrary to popular belief, she wasn’t some all-powerful princess who lived in the lap of luxury, she was human, and more often than once, I saw the toll her life took on her. This, sadly, was one of those times. She had bags under her eyes, there was a slight slouch in her demeanor, and she looked like she had just ran a marathon, despite this though, I’ve never seen her eyes lose that spark of kindness I’ve come to cherish over the years.
As she looked around my dirty room, a thought, or rather, a memory struck me. Sugarcoat had said that Cinch was making Crystal Prep an utter hell for the students, so was Cadance’s current condition because of that?
Well, make that another reason to dislike Cinch, and add that to the list!
Yes, I have a list of reasons to dislike Cinch, had it ever since the Friendship Games and I’ve been adding to it ever since.
“Cadance, are you alright?” I asked.
Shaking her head, as I knew she would, Cadance just smiled, “Oh, I’m fine Twi. Just give me a good night’s sleep and I’ll be right as rain!” I was about to protest that rain was never right, as it was always in a constant state of flux and change, and you know, wet, but then she opened window curtain to my room.
Light flooded my room, and I shielded my poorly developed eyes with my arm, the light! It burns!
Obviously bemused by my suffering, Cadance let out a little giggle, “Really Twilight, you’ve got to stop hanging out in dark rooms all the time, people might start thinking you’re a vampire.”
Needless to say, the correlations between my name and that book series brought me no end of grief, I don’t care if the guy’s hot, vampires don't sparkle!
…..Wait, if I was a vampire, would I sparkle? I mean, it’s in my name so...Maybe?
Oblivious to my internal dilemma, Cadance made her way over to me, as she did, Spike was stirred back to the waking world and yawned loudly.
“Good afternoon Cadance…” He said, still half asleep.
To her credit, Cadance was proving great at handling now recurring events in my life, but to be frank, I guess after the friendship games where two super powered teenagers battled for the fate of the….universe? Multiverse? Either one really, but I guess compared to that, a talking dog just wasn’t that impressive. Smiling, she gently rubbed Spike’s head, “Good afternoon Spike.” She said, then looked at me, “You know, if you had told me two weeks ago that Spike could talk, I would’ve sent you to a shrink.”
I rolled my eyes, “Oh, trust me, I would’ve gone there myself if I did.”
“Speaking of, how’s Canterlot High?” Cadance asked, “Have you made any new friends?”
For the first time in my life, I actually had a legitimate answer to her question: “Yeah! There’s Pinkie Pie who’s super energetic and happy, I swear she’s always laughing Rarity’s always so generous, Rainbow Dash is probably the most loyal person I’ve met, and Applejack is always so honest and nice.” That was probably a run on sentence but I don’t care, “Oh, but Fluttershy is easily the kindest out of them all, she’s really good with animals. Sunset is just wow, she’s like, smart, probably smarter than me in some areas and really-” My rambling was cut off when Cadance placed a finger to my lips.
“As much as I enjoy hearing about those five girls and your crush,” Wait, what? “I meant, have you made any other friends besides those six?”
“Oh….ummm….” So much for having a legitimate answer, “Uh, let’s see….There’s uh….Oh! Derpy! I mean Ditzy! I mean…Muffins?” What was that girl’s actual name, again? No, really, I honestly don’t know. I’ve heard be called so many things, it’s confusing as heck, “She’s nice, kinda bubbly though, she hangs out with this doctor guy a lot though. Oh, there’s this one girl I kinda like, her names Vinyl, I think she’s a DJ, or something.”
“Oh? Have you spoken to her?” Cadance asked.
And here comes the awkward bit, “Oh, ummm….I haven’t heard her talk, at all.” I slumped my shoulders, “I think she’s mute.”
“Oh….Well,” Cadance was taken aback, but recovered quickly enough, “Well, it’s good to see that you’re going out more.”
“Yeah….” A spark went off in my head, and I found a way to reorganize the conversation to my favor, “Oh, I met Sugarcoat on the bus today.”
Cadance’s eyes widened slightly, oh so slightly, “Really? How did it go?”
“Well, she was straightforward as ever,” Blunt was more like it, but it worked for me this time, “But she said that Cinch was trying to study magic, do you know anything about that?”
“Oh.” That was all she said, just….oh. Not to mention her eyes were shifting around, as if trying to come up with an answer to a question she much rather avoid, like when I asked her why she and Shining were studying biology.
Seriously, they’re grown adults, why would they need to study biology? Was it an entrance test to some fancy college? I wanna take it then, Everton wasn’t really high on my list of priorities anymore, but it was still good to plan for the future.
Finally, after a few seconds of panicking, she sighed, “Listen Twilight, you don’t need to worry about Crystal Prep, okay?” Cadance placed a hand on my shoulder, “Everything is going to be just fine.”
….Why did you feel the need to say that if it wasn’t fine?
With one last parting rub on the head, Cadance exited the room, giving me one last look before she shut the door.
Spike and I looked at each other.
“You’re planning to go to Crystal Prep huh?” Spike asked.
“....Just a little.” I admitted.
“You know you’re not a student there anymore Twi,” Spike pointed out, “You can’t just walk in.”
He had a point, I couldn’t just walk in willy nilly. But I knew the school better than anyone, and this time though, I got the feeling I would need some help with this one.
“You know Twi, when you said that you needed help breaking into Crystal Prep over the phone, I didn’t think you meant breaking into Crystal Prep. ”
I blinked, “What did you think I meant?”
Rainbow Dash groaned and rubbed her face, next to her, Pinkie Pie bounced up and down in place before raising her hand as if we were in the classroom, which was ridiculous, we were in Sugarcube Corner, “Ooo ooo! Didja think that she meant sneaking into the store after hours so you could raid the candy storage?” She asked, sending a look of longing to what I assume to be the backroom.
“....Don’t you work here?” I asked.
“Only on the weekends.” Pinkie nodded.
“Anyway Rainbow shook her head, turning her attention back to me, Rainbow Dash crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat, “Listen Twi, I’m all for teaching those snotty two-shoes a lesson in soccer and everything, but what makes you think we’re going to help you break in?”
I tilted my head, confused, “Didn’t you two already do this?”
Rainbow blinked in surprise, “Huh?”
“Well, it’s just…” I twiddled my thumbs, “I heard rumors about a rainbow haired girl and a party girl spying on the soccer team before the Friendship Games happened, and when I met you two I just sorta figured…”
Rainbow spent a few seconds staring at me, then pressed her hand firmly against her face.
“Makes perfect sense to me.” Pinkie chirped.
I nodded to Pinkie before turning my attention back to Rainbow, “So...Will you help me?”
Rainbow spared a few good seconds looking at me, then sighed, “Alright, but just you know, the last time it was to spy on Crystal Prep, not to break in.”
“Noted.” I said, then breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time though, a feeling of nervousness welled up in my chest, if I went through with this, I’d be breaking into my old school. That place where only the academically strong could survive, never once giving a thought about those whose talents lie elsewhere and belittling anyone they could. Especially that….Ugh, Sour Sweet.
I’m not a bad person, I like to think so at least, and while I’m grateful for when she stuck up for me when Cinch tried to worm her way out, Sour Sweet was, for the lack of a better term, an extremely unlikeable person. Her frequent mood swings constantly freaked me out back at Crystal Prep, and her demeaning attitude to….well, everyone, made her a terror throughout the school. Sure, the other Shadowbolts had their faults, Sugarcoat’s inability to understand tact being one of them, and Lemon Zest being the only one I even remotely liked out of the group, but still, at least none of them were so destructively bipolar like she was.
Hopefully, with any luck, I would never see her ever again, I mean, really, what are the chances?
I blinked as a thought struck me, and quickly did the math in my head just to be sure. Let’s see, if I take in the circumference of the city limits, estimate the total populace, add in the time frame before graduation and calculate the total number of days in school counting breaks and I get-
“Oh, hey, look, it’s Twilight Sparkle. How pleasant .”
You know, there are times when I wasn’t such a bookworm or so caught up in my own thoughts, I might have been able to hide if I heard the door open and listened to the all too familiar scoff. Turning around, my breath caught in my throat, and my blood ran cold.
There was Sour Sweet, standing in the doorway, flanked by Sunny Flare and the aforementioned Lemon Zest.
Oh, how bloody wonderful.
Author's Note
Dead? Not likely.
Hello everyone who liked and favorited this fic, but good news, it's still alive! I don't know when I'll be updating this next, but hopefully sometime soon. Anyway, still working on my drawing skills, still very hard, but getting there.
See you all next time.
