“Thank you! Thank you!” Flash and his band took another bow as the rapturous applause filled the gym. The time was nearing midnight, and the group had just played their final number. Already a number of students, exhausted from dancing, had left for the evening, but the majority of the soon-to-graduate class still remained. Flash scanned the room and found the girls he was looking for, gathering in the back and clearly getting ready to depart. “Now, I’ve been getting song requests all night. I think I’m owed a request of my own.” He pointed at the group and a stagehand obediently shined a spotlight in their direction. “Girls?”

Sunset Shimmer, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie all looked towards the stage in surprise.

Flash smiled and bowed. “Before tonight ends, I’d like to request one last performance of the Rainbooms.”

The audience roared at the idea, and the girls happily made their way to the stage. They waved and laughed as Flash’s crew helped them don the instruments and together they faced the crowd.

It hit them at once that this might very well be the last time they’d be standing here. Tonight, there weren’t any evil villains to do battle with, no other bands to compete against… It was just them, standing before a crowd of their peers who were now cheering and chanting “RAINBOOMS! RAINBOOMS!” in unison.

Sunset Shimmer looked back at her dearest friends, happy to see she wasn’t the only one getting misty-eyed. “One for the road?”

Applejack focused on tuning her bass so no one could see her tears. “What’s the song?”

Sunset thought about it, weighing her options. She spied the evening’s chaperones in the back and smiled. “Principal Celestia?”

The tall woman waved, her white faced tinged red for some strange reason.

“I apologize in advance. I know we’ve tried to keep things clean tonight…” She cut her eyes back at a giggling Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. “Mostly clean, anyway. But we’ve got a song we’ve only ever performed for ourselves, and we’d like to play it now for all of you.” She gripped the mic and smiled in embarrassment. “Hope you don’t mind the language.”

“What is she going to do? Expel you?” Vice-Principal Luna shouted across the gym. “Go for it!”

Celestia only nodded as she took another huge drink of clearly-spiked punch.

Sunset grinned and looked back at the girls. “Alright, let’s do this.”

Rainbow Dash winked and began plucking at the strings. The first few notes were so familiar to the group that the nostalgia nearly made them collapse sobbing right then and there. How many times had they practiced with this song? How many times had they sung it while hanging out?

How many more times would they have the chance to?

Sunset quickly wiped her eyes and again faced the crowd.

“We could just go home right now,

Or maybe we could stick around,

For just one more drink, oh yeah.

Get another bottle out.

Let’s shoot the shit,

Sit back down,

For just one more drink, oh yeah…”

The crowd quieted and began to sway to the melody. The other girls came in with their instruments in perfect time, a testament to how many times they’d played this song together.

“Here's to us.

Here's to love.

All the times

That we fucked up.

Here's to you.

Fill the glass.

Cause the last few days

Have kicked my ass!

So let’s give ‘em hell.

Wish everybody well.

Here's to us.

Here's to us.”

The Rainbooms played and the audience swayed. Lyra and Bon Bon held each other close, slowly dancing to the song. Maud and Trixie simply stood and embraced one another.

“Here's to all that we kissed,

And to all that we missed.

To the biggest mistakes,

That we just wouldn’t trade.

To us breaking up,

Without us breaking down.

To whatever's come our way…”

Sunset Shimmer grabbed the mic in both hands as the music reached its peak. She was openly crying now, a slave to the emotions swirling inside her.

“Here's to us!

Here's to love!

All the times

That we messed up!

Here's to you!

Fill the glass!

Cause the last few years

Have kicked my ass!

If they give you hell…”

An old villainous smirk crossed the orange girl’s face as she pointed a finger into the crowd.

“Tell ‘em to go fuck themselves!”

The audience of young adults exploded in cheers and laughter as the girls swung into the final part of the song. Sunset turned back and smiled at her openly weeping friends. The last lines were directed at them and them alone.

“Here's to us.

Yeah, here's to us.”

The song ended and the crowd roared in approval, but the six girls on stage paid them no mind. They dropped their instruments and came together in an enormous group hug.

Luna clapped politely before looking over at her sloshed sister. “Well, would you consider this year’s prom to be a success? Think there’ll be some stories to tell?

Celestia, who had been clapping and whooping along with the crowd, quickly regained her composure as best as she was able and cleared her throat. “Oh, I don’t doubt it. I must say, I am a touch disappointed.”

“Why?”

Celestia looked up at the ceiling. “Because the building’s still standing.”

The sisters laughed and held each other as the noise died down and the teens began to depart. Prom was over, and now it was time to prepare for graduation. In just a few days, a new chapter in their life would begin. The party had been a nice distraction, but now there were other things to deal with. They filed out slowly, some alone and some in pairs. Within an hour, the gym was practically empty.

But up on the stage, six extraordinary young women with a bond that few could ever understand remained, holding each other close and wishing desperately that the night never had to end.

Author's Note