RingRingRing... RingRingRing… RingRi-
“Hello,” Sunset Shimmer asks into the phone’s receiver, feeling the need to stay awake.
“Good morning, Miss Sunset Shimmer,” the chippy voice on the other end says. “This is the front desk with your wake up call. Breakfast is going on now.”
“Thank you.” She moves the phone away from her ear and lays the phone receiver down with the rest of the console.
Sunset sits up and stretches her back and arms. After doing so, she feels ready to attack the day. But first, she should open those curtains. It’s pretty dark in her hotel room. And after that, she should take a shower, get dressed, then breakfast.
Getting out of bed and walking to the window, she draws the curtains open letting the sunlight into the window.
Sunset unfortunately was taken aback by the brightness and took a moment to regain her vision. Her eyes need to adjust to the light of day. After doing so, she sees that she is overlooking a magnificent city filled with life and adventure.
“Sunset Shimmer, welcome to Philadelphia.” It’s summer vacation for the teen and she has graduated from Canterlot High in June with her bandmates. Deciding to spoil herself, she planned a solo trip to Philadelphia.
Sure she would love to invite her friends, but she has been with them almost every day during summer and she was with her friends on a roadtrip to Miami in July. Not to mention she and her bandmates are all going to the same college this fall. This little trip is for some well deserved Sunset time, and she was going to enjoy it herself.
After gazing at the city via her high level hotel room, she felt ready to see what the city had to offer.
“But first, a shower, then breakfast.”
After putting on her shoes and looking over herself in the mirror, she was ready. She had on a black tank top, blue denim shorts that grip her thighs and black trainer sneakers. Over her shoulder is a matching handbag that Rarity made for her
“Alrighty Sunset, let’s get some breakfast and get this day rolling.” She has already formulated an attack plan for her first day. First on her list, she’s going to go to the Philadelphia Museum of art, then lunch, enjoy some quiet time by Penn’s Landing (it was an hour’s walk, but it gives her the opportunity to enjoy the city), dinner at the Italian grill that is only a twelve minute walk from the landing and then back to the hotel.
After checking her pockets and inside her handbag to see if she has everything , she exits her hotel room and goes down to the lobby.
She walks by the front desk and the receptionist greets her with a smile.
“Sleep well?” he asks.
“Very,” Sunset replies. “Breakfast any good here, uhh…” she trails off for a second to look at the receptionist’s name tag. “...Phil?” Appropriate name. A guy named Phil living and working in the city of Philly.
“The very best,” he answers with certainty. “Go ahead and get some food in your belly. And grab as much as you want, it’s complimentary.” This guy is too much of a morning person, Sunset can tell. That beaming smile, chippy tone to his voice, he’s like a less hyper version of Pinkie Pie. Yet, Sunset can’t help but simile. His positivity is contagious. This man must be real good at his job.
“Alright, I’ll get some.” She walks over to the breakfast area. One part, which is to her left side, is where the other hotel guests are congregating to eat. To her right, is the breakfast buffet. She can smell the variety of foods it has to offer. Ranging from waffles to bacon to fruits, to all other sorts of smells assaulting her nose. Sunset can hear her belly rumble and she figures it’s time to get some food.
She found an open table and sat down, placing what she got from the buffet on the table. What lays in front of Sunset Shimmer is a warm and delicious looking waffle topped with strawberries and maple syrup, plus a plate full of eggs, bacon, grits and sausage, a small cup of peach yogurt and a tall glass of apple juice. She’s very hungry and dives right in.
As she eats, she checks her phone for to see what her friends have been up too. She goes to her social media accounts and sees AJ and Rainbow Dash beat Big Mac and Flash at basket ball yesterday, Fluttershy is booked at the shelter, and Pinkie, Rarity and Twilight are planning the Cake’s twenty five year anniversary party.
After logging off her social media, her phone buzzes with a text from Pinkie Pie, reading: “How’s Philly?”
Sunset places her syrupy fork down so she can use both thumbs to reply.
“Still at the hotel getting some breaky. Gonna go to the art museum when I’m done.” Sunset clicks the send button and Pinkie replys in a matter of seconds.
“When you get there, can you do a Rocky pose pic? I’m sure Rainbow Dash will get a kick out of that.” Sunset can’t help but chuckle a little.
“Sure thing! I’ll send it to all of you guys. Heck, I’ll post it on my Instatoo.”
“Cool! Got to get back to planning the Cake’s party. Take care now.”
Sunset puts her phone away and gets back to eating her breakfast. She brings her attention to the TV, which is showing the news, and sees that the current story is about the city’s football team.
“Coach Peterson,” the anchor says, “is gearing up for tomorrow’s preseason opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He has told our news team ‘I have nothing but confidence in our team. We have acquired many great players, Sam Bradford is feeling confident, our rookies are full of energy, we’re ready to work’.”
“You think Peterson will do justice to the team?” Sunset overhears a man next to her table, talking to, presumably, his friend.
“Well, Peterson made some decent decisions when it came to drafting and signing players,” the friend says. “I just hope we do better this year than last year.”
“Frigging Chip Kelly.” Sunset was not too well versed in sports. She’d pick up a little lingo from Rainbow Dash and Applejack, but it just wasn’t much of her forte.
Patting her tummy, Sunset feels full and satisfied. The food was well-made and delicious. She’s glad she is spending the week here. She get’s to enjoy this type of breakfast for six more mornings. But now, she must get on with her quest of exploring Philadelphia.
“Alright Sunset, off to the museum.” Getting up, she takes hold of her trash and disposes the items in the waste bin. She heads to the main entrance of the hotel and checks one more time to see if she has everything.
After a thorough search and confirming she has all of her belongings she exits the hotel into the city.
Stepping out, she sees people walking up and down the sidewalk all chattering on their phones or with others, cars driving around, the typical city buzz. She pulls out her phone again and holds her home button to get the personal assistant’s attention. “Directions to the Philadelphia Museum of Art from my location,” Sunset requests. A circle in the middle of her phone’s screen is telling her that the personal assistant is processing her request.
“Here are the directions to the Philadelphia museum of art. It is only twenty minutes away,” the virtual assistant says. Sunset skims over the directions a couple of times. Seeing that it isn’t too hard to get there, she makes her way.
As she walks, she takes in the scenery of Philadelphia. The buildings to the people on the street. She thought it’d be more crowded, but it doesn’t seem that way. She wants to capture these moments, so she opens the camera application on her phone and decides to take a few pics.
Left and right, Sunset takes as many pics as she can. Pictures ranging from glorious views, to the silly selfies with statues and local landmarks.
After a good twenty minute walk, she reaches her destination, The Philadelphia Museum of Art.
“Need a pic for RD,” she mutters to herself. She quickly jogs up the staircase, feeling like Rocky, until she reaches the top. Turning around, she sees the amazing view of the courtyard.
Just looking at the view is amazing enough. Now it’s time for the picture. “Excuse me,” Sunset calls to an older looking gentleman, getting his attention. “Can you help me out with something?” Grinning, the older man walks over the Sunset.
“What can I help you with ma’am?” he asks politely.
“Can you get a photo of me in front of the museum. Doing it for a friend.”
“Sure thing.” Sunset hands the man her phone and she backs up a little for good distance between the two. She spreads her legs a little and lifts her arms up, both hands in fists. The gentleman holding Sunset's phone horizontally can’t help but let out a chuckle. Not a surprise someone would do the Rocky pose in front of the museum.
He presses the button. A few flashes came from the back side of the phone and the picture has been captured. He hands Sunset’s phone back to her to see the result. She looks at the picture and can’t help but grin to herself with the end result.
“It’s perfect,” she says. “Thanks a bundle.”
“No problem. Enjoy the museum.” The man turns around and walks away from the building.
“Nice guy,” she utters. “Alright, let’s see what this place has to offer.”
After a few hours in the museum, she feels that she has had enough and she should get some lunch. The museum was amazing. Beautiful paintings and sculptures. Fluttershy would have enjoyed the nature paintings. Especially that Claude Monet piece. It was a simple yet beautiful painting. Rarity would also get a kick out of this place. The vibrant colors, the elegant and gracy feel of the portraits, it’s right up her alley.
Thought’s aside, her belly is rumbling again and it requires food. Seeing she didn’t have a definite idea on where to go to eat, she figures she should ask around to see what’s close and good on her wallet. She notices an elderly couple entering the museum. Sunset figures to ask them.
“Excuse me.” The couple stop walking and see Sunset approach them. “Hi, I’m not from around here. Do you guys know a good place to eat that’s near here and not heavy on the wallet.”
“Oh, where you from dearie?” The elderly woman asks gently.
“A small town a couple of states south from here.”
“Welcome to Philly!” The elderly man exclaims. “You know, there’s a real good pizzeria that’s only fifteen minutes or so away from here.”
“What’s it called?”
“Pizzaria Vetri. Been going there for years, can’t go wrong with it.”
“You can’t,” the woman says, agreeing with her husband. Sunset mumbles the place a couple times to herself until she has the name memorized.
“Thank you two. I appreciate it.” The couple nods and proceed to enter the museum. Sunset pulls her cellphone out and gets the personal assistant’s attention. “Directions to Pizzeria Vetri from the Philadelphia Museum of Art.” The assistant takes a couple of moments to process and load her request.
“Here are the directions to the Pizzeria Vetri,” it says. Just like earlier, the directions seem fairly simple.
After memorizing the directions to follow, she makes her merry way to the Pizzeria. Taking more pictures on the way.
By the time she arrives, she over looks the place. The sign is at the corner of the business, being big and red with white letters. The restaurant on the outside is mostly windows looking in while bricks frame them. She also notices a few tables outside incase the inside is crowded.
Sunset peaks inside and it doesn’t look terribly packed. Stomach growling once again, she goes inside. The warm atmosphere and the smell of italian goodness fill her nose with delight.
“Hi, welcome to Pizzeria Vetri,” a male greeter in a black shirt and glasses says. “How many in your party?”
“Just me,” Sunset replies. The greeter grabs a menu from the side of the podium where other menus are held.
“This way please.” He leads her to an set of seats in the back, all aligned in front of where the pizza is made. Not only can she eat there, she can see her meal being made.
“Sweet,” she whispers. The greeter sets her menu down in the middle of the table top and Sunset sits down.
“Your server will be here shortly.”
“Thank you.” Sunset brings her attention to the menu and looks over what they have to offer. Many choices of pizza, salads and other things. She notices the many drinks they have to offer, but most are alcoholic. Sunset doesn’t drink alcohol, so she’ll just have water.
“Hi, welcome to Pizzeria Vetri,” a female voice says next to her. “My name is Olive and I’ll be your server for today!” Her face is very welcoming and happy, ready to help a customer. “Would you like something to drink?”
“Just water please,” Susnet asks politely. The waitress nods at her request and smiles back at her.
“No problem.” She walks away to fill out her request for water. Sunset brings her attention back to the menu. The item that seems to be calling out for her the most is the pepperoni pizza. She glances up from her menu for a moment to see what the bakers in front of her are doing. She sees one spreading out dough and then layer some sauce on it. Another baker is pulling a fresh pie out of the oven, it steaming warm. Sunset can smell the tomato and cheese aroma from the fresh pizza. It is an amazing smell making her stomach want it more.
“Here you are,” the waitress says, coming back to Sunset with her glass of water. She places it next to her with a satisfying thump.
“Thanks!”
“Have you decided what you’re going to order?”
“Yeah, I’m thinking on hav-”
“ATTENTION PIZZERIA VETRI CUSTOMERS!!” A loud voice from the front of the restaurant proclaims. All eyes and heads move to the source to see a bold, dark skinned man wearing a green sports jersey with the number ‘86’ on it in white letters. Next to him was a slightly slimmer man with a black jersey with white numbers saying ‘91’. “I’m sure most of you know tomorrow is the start of preseason!”
“LET’S GO BIRDS!!” A woman, who looks a little tipsy, shouts from a nearby table.
“And to celebrate, I feel like spoiling everyone here! Everyone’s meals are on me and my friend today! Drinks too!”
“Seriously?” A guy, with his family, asks loudly. Sunset can’t believe someone will pay for her meal. Not just her but the entire restaurant?
“Let me answer your question with a question: Are the Eagles gonna dominate this year?” The restaurant is in an uproar full of ‘yeahs’ and ‘yes’s’. Everyone shouting and cheering. Chants ranging from: ‘Fly Eagles Fly’, ‘Let’s go to work’, and other things that don’t make much sense for Sunset Shimmer. But someone is willing to pay for her meal, so she has that going for her.
She taps the shoulder of her waitress, who is also in the mix of the cheering inside the restaurant. “I’ll have the pepperoni pie!” She tries to say over the uproar. “And it’ll be on those guy’s tab!”
“Whoo, that was good,” Sunset says, satisfied. She wipes away any pizza sauce that she has got on the corner of her mouth. The chaotic support of the city’s sport’s team has subsided and everyone has been more than grateful for the two men who payed for everyone’s meal. Everyone has taken pictures with those two, thanked them, and all that. Except Sunset. She’ll make sure to thank them when she leaves.
“Everything to your satisfaction?” Olive asks, walking up to her.
“Very much! Compliments to the chef!”
“Your welcome,” the baker on the other side of Sunset says. She can’t help but smile at his remark.
“The two gentlemen earlier are taking care of your tab, so you are all set.”
“Thank you very much Olive.” Sunset pulls out a five dollar bill from her handbag and gives it to the waitress. “Here you are. For your hard work.”
“Thank you very much!” Olive takes the tip and slides it into her pocket. “Have a great day.”
“You too!” As the waitress goes to another table, Sunset Shimmer makes her way to the table where the two men, who payed for everyone, are sitting. She sees them click their beer glasses together for a toast. “Excuse me,” she says to get their attention, which it does. “Hey thank you very much for paying for my pizza.”
“No problem,” they skinny one of the duo says.
“Mind if I get a quick pic with you guys.” In that moment, the two strike poses. One where his hands are put together to make a triangle and the other one does a sideways peace sign. “You guys were prepared.” The two quickly snicker from her remark. She pulls out her phone and crouches in front ot the two. She holds out her arms and angles her phone so she can get herself and the other two guys.
Seeing that everyone is in the pic, and smiling too, she snaps a crystal clear photo. She brings her phone close to her and sees that it is great! “Mind if I post this to Instagram?”
“Go for it!” The two chorus. Sunset brings her attention back to her phone and uploads her picture.
“Excited for preseason?” The larger man says.
“Oh I’m not from here. Just taking a vacation.”
“Where you from?” The other one asks. “Hopefully not Dallas.” That is one thing Sunset did pick up from Rainbow Dash and Applejack, there is this mutual hate for the city of Dallas. Sunset never understood why, but that seems to be the case when it comes to football.
“No. I’m from a small town a couple states south of here.”
“Ah, alright. Fan of any football team?”
“Actually, sports isn’t too much of my forte. But I respect it and it’s fans.”
“Well thank you.” While she’s here, maybe she can ask them a quick question about Penn’s Landing.
“You wouldn’t happen to know a way to Penn’s Landing would you?” The skinny one look to his friend. Guess he didn’t have an answer.
“To be honest,” he starts off, “from here I don’t know. I know it’ll take some time if you walk.” Sunset can always use her phone to see how to get there anyway. She had a feeling it would take some time to get there.
“Alright. Thank you guys so much for taking care of my meal today. I guess uhh… go Eagles!” she exclaims weakly while doing a weak fist pump.
“Sounding like a philly gal already.” Sunset giggles at his remark. His friend does too. Bidding them good day, she leaves the pizza establishment and ends up on the sidewalk once again. Just like the last couple of times, she get’s the personal assistant of her smartphone to lead her to where she wants to go.
It’s a long walk to get to Penn’s Landing from where she is now, but it’ll be worth her while. Sure she could just take a cab, but if she walks, she’ll get to see more of the city. Plus it’s better on the wallet and it's good exercise.
After looking over the directions, she starts her journey to Penn’s Landing. She doesn’t really want to do much while she’s there. Sunset just wants to sit down and enjoy the scenery.
Sunset delves deeper into Philadelphia. The many houses, buildings, stores and others are quite astonishing to look at, for good reason. She snaps pictures every so often to capture the city on her phone. Every once in awhile, she’ll record a brief video of her walking or talking in a terrible australian accent and commentate on everything around her like it’s a safari.
“Crikey, we are almost done here on Callowhill Street and we are about to approach 19th Street,” Sunset says in that terrible accent. “I don’t know what twists and turns may be upon me, but I’ll be ready. Like how a lion prepares to pounce the gazelle.” It’s safe to say that Sunset is having too much fun. Sure she’s making a fool of herself, but she’s having a good time. So much of a good time, it catches a passerby’s interest.
“Excuse me!” a young man behind Sunsets calls. Sunset’s attention is caught and turns around to see a fair looking man in a leather jacket, jeans and converse. Sunset isn’t sure what this guy wants. She had her hand on top of her handbag incase she needs to grab her pepper spray. “Hey, I’ve been trying to get rid of a ticket. I don’t want it anymore and I’m trying to find someone who will take it.”
“A ticket for what?” Her curiosity is really piqued by this man and this talk of a ticket. Still, her guard is up in case this guy is up to any funny business. The man goes into his back pocket and pulls out a thick piece of green and white paper with rough edges.
“Ticket for the preseason game tomorrow. Something came up where I work at and I can’t go to the game. Almost all the people I asked if they wanted a ticket to the game are already going or have other plans.” More of this Eagles business. This city must really love their football.
Now Sunset is very reluctant. A complete stranger, who she has never seen in her entire life, is offering her a ticket to a football game. Football, or sports in general, isn’t really her cup of tea. This guy isn’t really being shady or mysterious, he seems very upfront about it. Yet, she shouldn’t be deceived by him.
“What’s the catch?” Sunset asks with some edge to her voice.
“No catch. I give you the ticket, you go to the game, and that’s it.” Sunset takes a good, hard look into his eyes. She may not be like her friend, Applejack, who is notorious for picking out other people's lies, but she can tell if someone is being genuine or not. She looks down at the ticket for a moment. To her it seems like a legit ticket.
“How do I know I’m not being punked here?” Sunset has to make sure this guy is legit. It’s not very common for someone to just give away stuff for big events.
“Do I look like a guy who would do that to someone?” To be honest, he doesn’t. Just off first impressions, the young man is upfront and acting very genuine. Sports may not be a favorite of Sunset’s, but she can’t just spend her time in Philly just shopping and eating, she should indulge in more of the city’s past times.
After thinking over everything, she delivers her verdict. “Alright, I’ll take the ticket off your hands. Might as well see what the big fuss is over this whole ‘Eagles’ brewhaha.”
“You not from here?”
“Out of state. And no, I’m not from Dallas in case if you’re wondering. I may not know much about football, but that is something I have picked up.”
“Good. Would hate to give this to a Cowboys fan. Can’t stand those guys.” The young man just shakes his head disapprovingly. “Anyway, you’ll enjoy yourself. By the way, make sure you get some crabby fries. They are to die for.” He extends his hand and Sunset takes the firm paper. She inspects it for a moment and places it in her hand bag.
“Thank you very much,” Sunset says appreciatively.
“Not a problem.” The young man’s face goes stiff for a second and feels his right pocket. Sunset assumes his phone’s vibrating. Reaching in, the young man pulls his phone out and slides his thumb across the screen to answer it. “Hey boss… I told you I’ll be there.” He places his hand on the bottom part of his phone and whispers to Sunset: “Take care now.” He takes his hand away from the device and turns around. “I told you, I got the regional and Lace is doing local…” The young man makes his way down the street, opposite of the direction Sunset was originally going.
“Well…” Sunset lets out as she continues on to Penn's Landing.
After seeing the view of Penn’s Landing and having an amazing dinner at an italian grill, Sunset came back to the hotel via cab. She was too tired to walk back herself and the fee wasn’t much which was good for her.
With the TV on the local news and cozy under the covers of her hotel bad, Sunset keeps staring at the ticket that was given to her earlier. It looks and feels legitimate, but she isn’t sure if she feels scammed or not. She’d hate to go to the stadium and be told that it’s a fake.
But if it is legit, the print says her seat is in section 101. Sunset did some research and her seat is right on the fifty yard line. Right in the middle.
“Let’s hope I’m not bamboozled.” Sunset thinks aloud. “Hey what time does the game start?” Going to her phone, she opens the web browser and types in: “What time does the Eagles game start?” With the somewhat slow hotel wifi, she finds that the game starts at one o’clock in the afternoon.
“As you can see Jim, fans are already camping outside for preseason to start,” a male news reporter from the TV says. “All of us here in Philadelphia have been ready for the Eagles since the end of January, but these guys behind me here...” The reporter stops for a moments as the crowd behind him cheer ecstatically, “...they can’t wait any longer.” He turns to his right to see a woman in her thirties. “Ma’am, what are you looking forward to this season?”
“Carson Wentz,definitely,” she says. “He has what the team needs. Bradford was decent last year, I have a bad feeling about him this year, so Wentz is our guy.” The reporter nods and looks back to the camera.
“A lot of pressure is being put on the rookie from North Dakota State. I have a feeling he’ll make us proud. I’m Brian Taff, Channel Six, Action News. Back to you Jim.” The TV cuts to an elderly, male, news anchor in a news studio.
“Thank you Brian,” the elder news anchor says. “Coming up, why a company's tables are-” Sunset takes hold of the remote and turns off the TV. She should get some sleep. It’s getting late and she’ll need enough energy for the game tomorrow.
Sunset’s phone alarm is buzzing off abruptly. The drowsy teenager, face buried in pillows, groggily lifts her head up and silences her phone with a touch of a button. With the phone still in her grasp, she reads the time on it, saying that it is nine in the morning.
“Good. Got plenty of rest, breakfast is still going on, and the game is at seven. Plenty of time… I think.” She gets out of bed and stretches her body to loosen it up her joints and muscles.
After her body feels nice and loose, she hops in the shower real quick and gets dressed. She wants to dress more comfortably today and make sure it’s light clothing since it’s supposed to be a hot and humid day.
Going over what she brought in her suitcase, she goes for a pink, nylon tank top and some black running shorts and some comfy black sneakers. She also can’t forget her sunglasses and her handbag too.
Looking over herself in the mirror, she’s quite satisfied with how she looks. If only she had something that coordinates with the team colors.
“Oh well,” she thinks.
Checking the time on her phone, Sunset sees she still has two hours to kill before the game starts. So for an hour, she just stays in her room to chill out before she should leave. If there is anything Sunset knows about any sort of event, is that you should get there early before it starts to get crowded.
During her hour, Sunset uses her phone to do some research on the Eagles players. She studies what positions they are, what they do, what their record is. She spent a lot of time studying the rookie quarterback, Carson Wentz.
“What a cutie,” she thinks to herself. She also spent a lot of time looking at the Running Back super star, Darren Sproles. She has seen a few of his highlights and man and this guy can run!
Sunset checks the time again and see’s her hour is up. She should call for a cab to take her to the stadium.
She heads back downstairs and asks if there are any cab services available to the front desk receptionist. A female one this time.
“Sure we do!” she says. She goes to a nearby drawer and draws a few cab cards. The receptionist hands them to Sunset and she just grabs a random one and calls them up. They say they will be there in ten minutes, so Sunset just stays in the lobby in that time.
Right on the dot, a well-dressed gentleman in his thirties arrives at the hotel, looking for Sunset Shimmer. She presents herself to the cab driver and he asks where she is going.
“To the Eagles stadium… Lincoln Financial I think it’s called.”
“Oh, going to see the game?” Sunset nods. “Go birds! Alright, let's get you there before it gets crowded.”
“Alright, that’ll be fifteen dollars,” the cab driver says, looking back to Sunset from his driver's seat. The teen nods and hands the driver the exact amount. “Alright, enjoy the game!”
“Thank you very much.” Sunset steps out of the cab and gawks at the sight infront of her. A sea of green, balck and white surrounding an enormous stadium, loud conversations and chants are occurring, it’s a sight like no other.
“Let’s just get inside,” Sunset mumbles to herself. She goes through the enormous crowd of people, scooching her way to the entry point.
But before she could actually get in the stadium, she has to go through security. She waits in line for a few minutes and gets up the security guard. “How are you doing today?” he asks gruff yet polite.
“I’m doing good.”
“Arms out and feet apart please.” She does as instructed and the security guard does a quick pat down of her. Just incase she has any weapons or anything dangerous on her. Though she doesn’t, Sunset knows it is only precautionary. “I just need to check your handbag too ma’am.” Nodding once again, she opens her handbag, ticket inside, and the guard inspects it and gives her the okay. “Alright, just go up the steps and someone will ask for your ticket. Just present it to him and he’ll give you further instructions.”
Sunset nods her head follows the security guy’s instructions. As she walks up the stairs, she can hear the crowd noise getting louder and louder.
Sunset is in for a real treat.
After getting some food (crabby fries included), Sunet plops herself down her her seat, getting a good view of the field. Sunset has clear vision of both end zones and it looks like she’s within earshot of the Eagles players, if she shouts at the very top of her lungs that is.
“Nice seats,” she utters to herself, then popping a crabby fry into her mouth. “Mmm!”
“Excuse me! Pardon me! Sorry,” Sunset turns to her left to see a young couple, trying to make it to their seats, each holding a big cup of beer. They plop down next to Sunset, the girl closer to her, and they look at each other and smile.
“Hi,” the Sunset says.
“Yo””’sup,” the two respond.
They bring their attention back to the center of the field and see both teams practicing. In almost an instant, she sees a green jersey that says “Wentz” on the back over an “11”.
“There he is!” Sunset thinks. She sees Wentz doing a couple practice throws with his teammates. She also takes note that the rest of the team is warming up for the preseason opener against the Buccaneers.
Though she is not too into sports, she does feel a little excited being in the stadium. She can’t help but smile at being here and she noticed her little athlete crush too. That may also have something to do with this positive vibe she’s feeling.
Sunset looks to the other side of the field and sees the team in white jerseys with black sleeves and red numbers. They are gearing up and getting ready as well. They look like they will put in a lot of heart.
After ten more minutes of warming up, both teams retreat to their sidelines and the announcer comes on the speaker.
“Ladies and gentlemen, to honor America, please rise and remove your hats for our national anthem!” Following protocol, Sunset stands up, puts her food on the seat and then places her hand over her her heart, and so does everyone else who is present in the stadium. A large flag is being rolled out by fifty Eagles season ticket members police members with rifles stand at attention behind a dark skinned woman wearing an Eagles jersey with a one on it. “Here to sing our national anthem, special guest, Jessy Kyle!”
Youtube Video
This woman has a very beautiful and powerful voice. Her song is full of patriotism and the proudness of being an american. Sunset can’t help but feel moved at her performance. She thinks that this Jessy Kyle has a much better voice than any of her bandmates.
The song ends and the crowd adores her singing. Sunset loved her performance so much, she’s whistling, jumping, clapping, the whole nine yards.
The large american flag is being folded up and everyone who was on the field is clearing up for the game. Everyone starts to sit down and Sunset follows the crowd, making sure to pick up her food before she sits down. Last thing she needs is crabby fries on her butt.
It only takes five minutes until the referees go the center of the field and the quarterbacks from each team meet center field and shakes hands. She notices the Buccaneers have four quarterbacks and the Eagles have three. For the eagles, Sunset sees, from right to left, number ten, number seven and then number eleven. She instantly recognizes Carson Wentz’s jersey as eleven. She can barely make out ‘Bradford’ on the seven jersey and ‘Daniel’ on the ten jersey. She can’t really make out the Buccaneers jerseys since she is on the Eagles side and they are covering the Buccaneers quarterbacks.
A coin is tossed in the air and it lands on the ground. It’s the Eagles choice and they pick to receive on the left side of the field. The quarterbacks from each team shake hands once more and jog back to their sidelines.
Both teams are going over plays to start the first quarter. Sunset can barely hear the coaches telling players what they need to do and how they need to execute it.
She can’t deny that the atmosphere is exciting and she cannot deny the excitement is catching up to her. And kick off hasn’t even happened yet! ‘This is gonna be interesting,’ she thinks.
By the end of the first quarter, the score is seven to six. The Buccaneers were able to block a field goal and gain possession of the ball for the next quarter.
By this point Sunset has gone back for crabby fries three times, because they are too darn good. But she’s going to cut back on them for the rest of the game, for the sake of her thighs and wallet. But despite her love of these crabby fries and going back to get more, she has barely taken her eyes off the field. The passion and energy the players from each side are putting out in their plays is an astonishing sight. The support from their fans and each other is unlike anything she has seen. The way everyone connects is almost more than friendship, it’s like family.
The second quarter is now under way with Buccaneers having possession of the ball and are thirty three yards from the end zone. The crowd erupts in vigorous cheers, all in hopes of preventing the opposing team from gaining another yard. Sunset can’t help but get caught up in the excitement, hoping the other team doesn’t get any farther. Mostly because she wants to see Carson Wentz on the field, but at the same time, she want’s her “bae’s” team to win.
The players line up and Tampa Bay’s team is getting ready. The Eagles are all set, ready to defend, determination gleaming in their eyes. The quarterback hikes the football and a frenzy of tackles ensure. The quarterback is trying to find an opening, but the Eagles defense is strong. He doesn't see it coming, but the quarterback has a huge player with a ‘91’ jersey charging him. The next thing he knows, he’s tackled to the ground and loses the ball.
Sunset hops out of her seat and shouts “GET IT!! GET IT!! GET IT!!” It’s recovered by an Eagles player and he makes his way down the field as if his life depends on it. The Canterlot teen is going insane. “KEEP GOING!!” she repeatedly shouts while flailing her arms. He doesn't keep going until he is pushed offsides on the forty five yard line of scoring position. Sunset claps her hands a few times in appreciation of what she got.
The defensive team comes off the field and the offense come on. Now, for most to the game, Carson Wentz has been the main QB and Sunset Shimmer can’t get enough of it. By just looking at him, he has the passion to play. He makes it look easy. “LET’S GO CARSON BABE!!”
Said quarterback heard what the teen just said and turned around to face the stands to look at Sunset. A little surprised Carson Wentz heard what she said, she blushes a out of embarrassment, but still stays poised. “Make it good!” she says. The rookie QB grins a little. He points his index finger to her and nods his head, he then goes to his team mates for the huddle.
Sunset can’t help but squeal when her little crush noticed her up in the stands. Hopefully Carsey Warsey will do something good for her… wiat, Carsey Warsey?
The team break from their huddle and get ready for the play. Both teams line up at the line of scrimmage, ready for the play. Carson hikes the ball and takes a few quick steps back. The team defending is doing their best to try and get to the quarterback, but with no avail. Carson looks rapidly for an open player and sees number ‘43’ down near thet the end zone. If he throws now, the running back will catch it.
Seeing time is slipping from him, Carson throws the ball with the right amount of power.
Everything seems to go in slow motion while the ball is spiraling in the air. Anticipation is in the crowd, waiting to see if it’ll be a complete pass. The ball gets closer to ‘43’ and everything is picking up pace as the ball descends. The receiver leaps high to take grasp of the pigskin, with a defensive player just under him by a few inches.
The ball successfully lands in ‘43’s’ hands. As gravity brings the running back down to the ground, he moves the ball to his arm for security and shoves the other player out of the way with his other hand. His feet touch endzone ground and the stadium erupts in cheers.
“OOOHH THAT WAS A GOOD PASS!!”
The running back spikes the football and does a celebratory dab. The score is now twelve to seven, Eagles.
“That’s how we do it!” the guy next to Sunset shouts! “That’s how we roll!” The yellow and red haired agrees. As she looks back at the guy who caught the ball, she gets a good look at his name.
“Sproles,” she mumbles. She remembers reading up on him. Good to see a ‘familiar’ face.
With that touchdown, the Eagles are leading now they just need to get the field goal.
Half time rolls around and Sunset uses this time to stretch her legs and use the bathroom. The score is now twenty to seventeen. Before the second quarter ended, the Buccaneers were able to get a field goal in, making them trail behind Philadelphia. But Sunset knows they can hold out for just two more quarters.
As she walks out the bathroom and heads to her seat, she sees a small, Eagles fan-ware store. Seeing no reason not to, she goes right in and sees the store flooded with green, black or white merchandise. Everything from bobbleheads, jerseys, t-shirts, even footballs with logos of the team.
She browses the store, not leaving a stone unturned. She can imagine that there is someone in this world, maybe more likely in this city, may have almost every piece of Eagles merchandise. Their entire room or home, Eagles everywhere.
Sunset is just about to leave when her eyes land on a certain something.
Easily making it back to her seat, Sunset Shimmer sits down with a huge grin on her face. She looks down and smiles at the black, Carson Wentz jersey she just got. It’s now official, Sunset Shimmer is a fan of the Philadelphia Eagles!
One Week Later
It’s a clear but hot day in Canterlot. Every so often, someone would see a passerby with something cold in their hands to beat the heat. For a certain group of friends, congregating inside Sugarcube Corner near the wall, at the sofa, they are beating the heat with cold soft drinks and milkshakes. A purple haired team is sweating a little more than usual. Everyone is accounted for, except for one yellow and red haired teen.
“Where is she?” Rainbow Dash asks, checking her phone. She looks at the last message that was sent to the group chat. The message reads: “wrapped up in something gonna be there soon” and next to the message is the sunglasses emoji.
“What could that gal be up too?” Applejack wonders, sipping on her vanilla milkshake.
“Traffic?” Fluttershy suggests.
“We’re all within walking distance,” Rainbow points out. “Doubt it’s that.”
“Wardrobe emergency?” Rarity suggests.
“Cupcake emergency!?” Pinkie Pie blares. Obviously, the group won’t know what Sunset is doing until she arrives.
About five minutes later, Sunset bursts through the doors of Sugar Cube Corner, a little winded.
“There she is!” Rainbow proclaims. Sunset, after letting out a couple heavy heaves, shouts to Mrs. Cake behind the counter:
“Large iced tea, sweet, extra ice!” Nodding, the pinked haired woman works on Sunset’s order.
“What took you so lo-” Rainbow stops herself mid sentence and notices something different about her friend. Mainly her top. It’s a black football jersey with white letters and numbers outlined in green and an eagle patch on the shoulders. “Sunset, this may be a weird question for me to ask, but what are you wearing?” The girl looks down and sees she is in her Eagles jersey.
“Must have forgotten to take it off,” she murmers.
“Is that a Philadelphia Eagles jersey?” Rainbow leans to the side to get a glimpse of the number on her back. “A Carson Wentz jersey to be more specific?”
“Umm… I kind of went to the preseason opener last week when I was in Philly, and… kind of became a fan.” Ohhs can be heard from Applejack and Rainbow while the other girls are a bit surprised. No one really suspected Sunset Shimmer to be a fan of any sports team. “And as for why I’m late, I was watching the preseason game against the Steelers.”
“Bet that was a tough one. Since Roethlisberger is still on the team,” Applejack chimes in.
“Fortunately, we did win. Twenty-seven to twenty-four was the score. And last week’s game, we beat the Buccaneers twenty-eight to fourteen.”
Twilight learns to Fluttershy and whispers: “I never understood why when a team wins, the fans say ‘we’.” Fluttershy's response is a simple shrug. She wasn’t the one to talk or know much about sports.
“So, you guys cool with me being an Eagle fan?”
Rainbow let out a snicker. "I think we're all just grateful you're not a Cowboys or Patriots fan."
“Agreed,” Applejack says.
“But, I will say my Falcons are gonna get ya come week 10.” Sunset can’t help but roll her eyes at Rainbow. She’s awfully hopeful about her favorite team.
“My team, the Texans, don’t play either of ya’ll this season, so you don’t have to worry about us.”
Sunset grins a little at her football loving friends. She wouldn’t feel left out whenever those two talked about how bad Tony Romo is or how agile Shady McCoy can be. She’d be up to speed now.
“Girls,” Rarity says. “I have a bit of a confession.” She stands up from her chair and tightly clutches her shirt. In one swift motion, with a satisfying tearing sound, Rarity rips off her shirt, only to reveal a black football jersey with a white four in the middle. Everyone is shocked to see Rarity wearing something like this.
“The Raiders?!” Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Sunset chorus.
“Surprised?” Rarity asks a little smug like, placing her hands on her hips. “Black isn't really my color, but I just love Derek Carr and the Raiders.”
“Heh,” Rainbow lets out. “Never expected you to be a football person Rarity. Why the Raiders though?”
“My parents are from Oakland.” Sunset nods in understanding.
“Well, you learn something new everyday,” Applejack says. Everyone nods this time.
“Iced tea is ready dear!” the woman behind the counter says.
Remembering she placed an order, Sunset lightly jogs to the counter and pays for her drink, then returns to her friends.
Not only is Sunset in the football loop with AJ and Rainbow Dash, Rarity likes it too! Pinkie, Twilight and Fluttershy may not be sports fans, but that’s okay. Everyone is entitled to what they like or not. In the end, as long as no one supports the Cowboys or Patriots, everything is peachy.
