Art of a Sun's Love Volume 1

It was over a week since Noble Shield's death, and on the day of his funeral, October 14, to say it was bleak would be an understatement. Apart from Sunset and Icy Heart, amongst a crowd of guests were the families of Sentry, Faust-McCracken, Dash, Shy, and Sparkle, many of which had fathers who knew Noble personally. Sunset's friends gave her the best moral support they could.

"We're sorry to hear about your dad's death," said Rainbow Dash.

"It must be so awful," said Fluttershy.

"When Flash told me and Fictionary about it, I thought it was a joke," said Vincent, "I can't believe this would happen to him."

"I hope they catch that Gabby Gums and cut her head off for what she did," said Soarin.

"That's a bit extreme, isn't it?" remarked Song Cue.

"Extreme crimes call for extreme punishments," said Soarin.

The kids' chatting was then cut off by the sound of the priest clearing his throat. Silence fell, and then he spoke up.

"We are all gathered today," he spoke, "to say goodbye to a wonderful person; Noble Shield. He was a good man; loyal, kind, and brave even to the very end..."

As the priest continued to speak, Sunset once more had tears in her eyes. They streamed down her cheeks. Vincent handed her a handkerchief to dry her eyes, which she accepted.

"Thank you," Sunset whispered, and wiped her eyes.

Soon, the coffin was lowered into the hole. Shortly after, the gravediggers then buried the coffin with dirt. After their job was done, those attending were allowed to place flowers around the grave. Sunset was the first to lay flowers - they were orange marigolds, her father's favorite type of flowers. She then looked at the tombstone. It read:

NOBLE GLEAM SHIELD

A LOVING HUSBAND AND FATHER

BORN MARCH 22, 1968

DIED OCTOBER 4, 2007

"Goodbye, daddy," she sniffled, "I'll try my best to be the girl you want me to be..."

Everyone else (even Icy Heart, to everyone's shock) said their farewells to Noble Shield and then left for home.

The week had gone by after the funeral; Sunset did her school and homework as expected, but she never spoke up in class unless called upon, and she didn't speak to any of the students. Not even Flash could get something out of her, even if it was half-hearted.

That Saturday evening, Sunset was gazing out the front window, still depressed and deep in thought.

Hard to believe that dad is actually gone forever, she thought to herself, Why did this have to happen? Now with him gone, there's nothing to protect me should mom try to hurt me again.

Speaking of whom, Sunset felt a hand touching her shoulder.

Oh no, she shuddered in thought, here it comes.

However, what she felt took her by surprise; was Icy Heart actually showing her sympathy?

"Hard to believe, isn't it?" said her mother calmly.

"Why are you caring for me?" asked Sunset, "You rarely, if ever, showed sympathy for me."

"You're the last thing I have left to remember Noble by," said Icy Heart.

"I am?" asked Sunset, surprised.

"Of course," said Icy Heart, "would I lie to you?"

"Erm... I suppose not," replied Sunset.

"Good girl."

Sunset was confused at her mother's new show of comfort, but deep down inside, she felt like she was up to something.

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By Monday at school, Sunset proved to be a little more talkative than last week, but she still showed depression. However, she also displayed signs of worry and wasn't afraid of speaking her mind about what she thought about her mother.

"So your dad dies and all of a sudden, your mom acts nice to you?" asked Flash, "Well, we did see her place flowers on his grave, so maybe she hadn't done her job as a parent and feels remorse herself."

"She might be plotting to kill you next," said Soarin.

"Hey! Don't scare Sunset like that!" snapped Rainbow Dash, "She's stressed enough as it is!"

"Sorry," said Soarin.

"Actually, I think he's got a point," said Sunset.

"I do?" he asked, confused.

"Yes," said Sunset, "my mother would never just change her ways in a snap. She must be up to something."

"Can we help you, by any chance?" asked Flash.

"I'd rather do this alone," said Sunset, "not that I'm ungrateful, but I don't want to risk any of you getting hurt."

"You sure you'll be okay?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"I hope so," said Sunset.

FEBRUARY 16, 2008

Over the next few months, from Halloween right up to Valentine's Day, Sunset kept a close eye out in case her mother tied something. However, apart from two or three harsh scoldings, Icy Heart seemed to display no signs of cruelty against her daughter.

"I'm probably imagining things," Sunset told herself, "but I know something isn't right... who the heck is Gabby Gums?"

Based on her knowledge, Sunset knew that just about everybody in Rainbow Falls knew everybody, even if they never met before. The police had been on the hunt for Gabby Gums since October, but so far, they found no evidence of the mysterious killer. During that time, gossip about her was a big topic in both Rainbow Falls and Canterlot, and rumors began to spread about what happened to her.

"I heard she fled the country," said a man.

"Don't be ridiculous," said his friend, "how could she leave if she was wanted? Security would've stopped her before she even boarded a train!"

"Maybe she's a master of disguise."

"Bah. Anyone could be a master of disguise," said a nearby Aria Blaze.

"Maybe she found a mine full of tacos," said Sonata Dusk.

"Sounds more like you," snapped Aria, "or it would be if such a thing existed."

"Will you two shut up?" scolded Adagio Dazzle.

"Maybe she bathed in acid and killed herself so she'd never get found," said Aria.

"Now who'd do something as crazy as that?" asked Sonata, "Even I wouldn't do it if I wanted to!"

APRIL 16, 2008

Eventually, one spring afternoon, the incident would be brought upon a proper light. It was during spring break for the school year when Sunset Shimmer came upon a discovery.

"What's this?" she wondered to herself. It was Icy Heart's diary with a bookmark.

"Why is that specific page marked?" asked Sunset. Making sure Icy Heart wasn't back from the store yet, Sunset decided to investigate.

"I know I shouldn't invade other peoples' privacy, but I don't know," she shrugged. Using a hairpin, she picked the lock and was able to open the book. She then turned to the page that was bookmarked, and what she read was shocking, to say the least.

"Dear Diary, today I have committed the unthinkable. I succeeded in polishing off Noble Shield while he was asleep. It was not easy for me to handle. As long as nobody finds out my secret, all will be fine."

"Not for long," muttered Sunset, scowling once she finished reading.

All this time, her mother had been lying to her just to keep her safe, and she blamed Noble Shield's death on a pretend woman! Now that she found out what her mother had done, Sunset decided to bring this piece of evidence to the police. One way or another, Icy Heart was going to pay for murder!

"I have to get this to the proper authorities while mom is gone," she said to herself.

Grabbing the book, Sunset opened her window and escaped through.

"But in case she finds out," she said, "I should hide somewhere I'll be safe."

So she ran to the Sentry household fast as her legs could carry her.

Sunset didn't know how long she'd been running, but she soon came to 66 Strawberry Avenue. Much to her surprise, the car was pulling out of the driveway. She had to make a move or else her mother would cook her in a stew!

"Stop! Stop!" she cried as she picked up the speed. Thankfully, the car stopped, and out of it stepped Page Turner.

"Sunset Shimmer?" he cried, "What are you doing here?"

"I have something important to show you!" said Sunset, "Gabby Gums didn't murder my father!"

"Are you sure?" asked Page, "People have been gossiping about her for six months, and the police can't find her."

"That's because she isn't real!" insisted Sunset, "My mother made her up! She killed my father!" To prove her point, she showed Page the bookmarked page in the diary. Once Page had read it, he gasped.

"You're right!" he said, "We had better call the police right now. You'd better come inside so Icy Heart can't hurt you."

Flash, Vincent, and Fictionary were all in the living room, about to watch some classic Thomas the Tank Engine episodes. The episode that was starting was called Henry and the Elephant, and the voice narrating the episodes was George Carlin.

"Thomas the tank engine puffed happily along his branchline with Annie and Clarabel," Carlin said through the television, "Sir Topham Hatt was waiting on the platform. He looked at his watch. 'Well done, Thomas! You are right on time and really reliable.'

"'Thank you, sir,' whistled Thomas. 'Ooh! Right on time and really reliable!' hummed the coaches. But the big engines were not feeling cheerful at all..."

Just then, Page came in with Sunset. Vincent, being the first to spot them, held out the remote and paused the video.

"Sunset?" he said with surprise, "What are you doing here with dad?"

"She gave us some very important information," said Page, showing the diary page. Needless to say, they were shocked.

"Now everything makes sense," said Flash.

"I told you we should have called the police on that woman before all this started," said Lullaby.

"That'll do, dear," said Page, "Icy Heart really tricked us all; she's clever and manipulative, she is, and she went and stabbed Noble Shield in the back... or in his case, the chest."

Just then, the doorbell rang. Sunset yelped with fear and quickly cowered behind Flash and Vincent. An all-too familiar voice that soon followed confirmed her fears.

"SUNSET SHIMMER!!!"

"It's her!" cried Sunset.

"Page, hide the children and call the police!" said Lullaby, "I'll deal with Icy Heart."

"Come on, kids; follow me upstairs!"

The children followed Page as Lullaby went to the door. When Lullaby opened it, there stood Icy Heart, with her trademark scowl on her face. Lullaby stared back with a firm expression.

"Where is she?" snarled Icy Heart.

"Where is who?"

"Don't play stupid with me! Where is that nosy little brat known as my daughter?!"

"Somewhere where you won't hit her," Lullaby said firmly.

"You liar! You know where she is, don't you?!"

"Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you!"

"I demand you tell me!" demanded Icy Heart.

"You leave Sunset alone, you big bully!" snapped Lullaby.

"She's my daughter!"

"She was Noble Shield's daughter!" shouted Lullaby, "You never gave her any attention until he died, so she was his full responsibility! Up until now, Icy Heart, I simply thought you were a woman who kept to herself, but after hearing about what you did to your husband and have been doing to your daughter, I now realize the truth. You are nothing but a cold, heartless monster!"

Icy Heart growled angrily.

"Fine, I did it!" she snapped, "I killed Noble Shield! But I didn't want to! I tried to talk him out of the divorce, but that stubborn man wouldn't listen to me. So I did what I had to do to make sure I would never lose him to another woman!"

"I can't believe you killed him out of jealousy!" said Lullaby, appalled and disgusted by Icy Heart's reasoning, "If you couldn't have him, then nobody could! You could've simply shared him with Sunset, but instead, you chose to isolate yourself and take it out on poor Sunset! You could've chosen to take a page from my book by sharing love amongst your family! If Sunset were my daughter, I'd give her all the love she could ever ask for, spoil her rotten if I must!"

Suddenly, the sound of police sirens echoed. Icy Heart heard them, and scowled even more as they came closer.

"You... YOU DIRTY RAT!!" she yelled, "You got your stupid husband to tell them on me, didn't you?! Leave him with your little brats so I can't get to my daughter, huh?! One of these days, Sentry! I'LL HURT YOUR FAMILY FOR THIS!!"

"You will never hurt anybody ever again!" snarled Lullaby, "And if you ever try to hurt my family, I will make you sorry!"

Several police cars pulled in.

"Icy Heart!" shouted a police officer through a megaphone, "You are under arrest for child abuse, obstruction of justice, and the murder of Noble Shield!"

"You'll never take me alive!" snapped Icy Heart as she bolted for it. Suddenly, one rough looking officer with dark brown hair and green eyes gave chase.

"Nobody escapes from Whiplash!" he yelled.

The officer, Whiplash, jumped onto Icy Heart, pinning her to the ground. He was much stronger than her, so escape for Icy was impossible.

"So, you like beating up your own child?" he snarled in anger, "Then let's see how you like getting beaten up yourself, you sick freak!"

Whiplash grabbed Icy Heart by the hair of the head and gave her a hard punch to the stomach. Icy groaned and thought she would throw up, but then Whiplash began to hit other parts of her body as well. After a minute, he then took out his gun and pointed it to Icy Heart's forehead. She was now too weak to even think about fighting the brutish officer.

"Say your prayers," he said darkly. But just as he was about to pull the trigger and kill the abusive woman...

"Whiplash, stop!"

Whiplash looked back to his fellow officers.

"This woman deserves to die for everything she has done!" he insisted.

"Our duty is to protect and serve," argued another officer, "not kill people, even if their behaviors were atrocious."

Scowling, Whiplash lowered his gun. Icy Heart was promptly handcuffed and taken to a police car; she didn't even dare run away in case she got beaten again. Lullaby had seen the entire event from the front door, and had found the scene most uncomfortable to watch.

A good thing the kids didn't see that, she thought to herself.

"Ma'am," said an officer, walking up to her, "may we see the evidence that confirms her crimes?"

"Of course," said Lullaby, handing them the diary, "this page has a confession of the deed."

"Hmm," said the officer grimly, "this'll have to be presented in court."

Soon enough, the police had left the scene with Icy Heart arrested. Lullaby then told the children it was now safe to head downstairs again.

"Thank goodness that bully's gone," said Vincent.

"Thank you for saving me," said Sunset, giving Lullaby a hug.

"It's quite alright, dear," said Lullaby, "don't worry. She'll never hurt you again."

"I hope we never see her again," said Flash.

"Me too," said Vincent, "I bet they'll give her the electric chair for what she did."

"Now, Vincent, you shouldn't think in black and white when it comes to criminals," said Lullaby, "many of them probably have a reason to why they did what they did, especially when it comes to family."

Sunset just looked out the window as the sun began to set. This looked like the beginning of a new life for her. However, something was on her mind...

"Where will I go now?" she asked, "I love it here in Rainbow Falls, and I wouldn't dream of being anywhere else."

"Maybe someone can adopt you," suggested Flash.

"Not quite, Flash," said Lullaby, "she'll have to be under foster care. We'll watch over her until we can find someone who's willing to take her in."

"Yay!" said Vincent, hugging Sunset. She blushed at that.

"Wanna watch TV with us?" asked Fictionary, "We were about to watch Thomas before you and daddy came in."

"Sure," said Sunset.

Once sat down, Vincent held out the remote and resumed the episode.

"...'Where's Percy?' mumbled Henry, 'He's supposed to fetch our coaches!'" said narrator George Carlin, "'We get no rest!' complained James. He edged angrily onto the turntable and spoke rudely to Henry..."

"What's the name of the episode?" asked Sunset.

"It's called Henry and the Elephant," explained Vincent.

The quartet watched the rest of the episode, and whilst watching, there were humorous moments like the workmen running out of the tunnel and the elephant spraying water all over poor Henry. However, based on today's experiences, the last scene must've struck a particular vibe for Sunset...

"...'First the rain, then an elephant! Whatever will you be afraid of next?' 'Never mind, Henry,' murmured Thomas, 'I think you were brave today, and really reliable too.'"

"I'd say the same for you, Sunset," said Vincent.

"Me?" asked Sunset.

"Yes. You were very brave to search your mother's diary and find the truth to your father's death."

"Thanks," said Sunset, and she hugged him whilst the next episode began.