Phoenix

“Good morning, Sunset, I hope you slept well!” the door to the girl’s room rattled with the intensity of the knocking from the older woman on the other side.

A few days had passed since Sunset had first arrived, three to be exact as Sunset marked it on her wall calendar. She had spent almost the entirety of each day in her room, only ever allowing Mother Charity in when the woman brought food, or other items that Sunset requested to help her pass the time. Today however, Tuesday, March the tenth, Sunset had slept in.

“Well, more like afternoon!” the woman said as the door opened, the woman slowly making her way in, a few bags in her grasp. “I just finished the shopping and got you the items you requested.”

Sunset grunted as she sat up, holding her human arm in front of her face in an attempt to dim the light while she hid her crimson red one under the sheets somewhat. She watched as the woman approached, softly kicking the door shut behind her before dropping the bags on the foot of Sunset’s bed, rifling around inside of it and pulling items out.

“Fourty feet of bandages, because I know there will be hiccups these first few times.” Mother Charity nodded as she dropped the mass of linen on Sunset’s legs.

“Good morning to you too…” Sunset stretched as she yawned, her muscles groaning happily.

“Three pairs of leather gloves, just in case you, er, tear the fingers out.” Sunset responded by smirking and clattering her clawed digits against each other, chuckling as she received a rolling of the ivory woman’s eyes.

“Your order for your bras has been placed, and should be ready in two weeks at the latest. Here are the plain white tees, sweatpants, jeans, socks, and underwear you asked for.” Sunset nodded as each item was named before being dropped on her lap. “Oh, and here is your eyepatch. I still don’t know why you wanted such a childish design.”

“Awesome, thank you, Mother!” Sunset grinned as she grabbed the package of tshirts, her grin faltering as her clawed digits easily sliced through the plastic packaging. “Er… Why don't we start with wrapping up my arm?”

“As long as you don’t slice me up, I think that should be fine.” Mother Charity nodded as she fished out the many packages of linen bandaging, as well as some butterfly clips. “Well? Where should we start?”

“Well, the shirts should hide my shoulder…” Sunset’s world went briefly dark as she pulled her night top up over her head, setting it down beside her and looking over at the mottled pattern of deep, blood red and her natural amber colouring. “And a bit of my upper arm, so why don’t we start, like, around the top of the bicep?”

“Alright, how tight are we looking?” the ivory woman started to wrap the bandaging around the limb, pausing after only one or two loops. “Flex for me.”

“You know, I used to get paid for tickets to the gun show.” Sunset commented as she raised her arm, tensing her muscles as far as she could go.

“Oh really now?” Mother Charity scoffed playfully as she swatted at the girl, shaking her head before continuing to wrap the bandages around. “I bet you loved the attention!”

“Eh, at that point I was still amnesiac, and I wasn’t so comfortable with my body.” Sunset shrugged as a crude grin spread on her face. “Got used to it quick, especially when I was regularly handed fresh, crisp King’s.”

“So what you’re saying is I should install a pole for you outside of the building then?” the woman paused and applied a butterfly clip, keeping the bandage taught around the girl’s firm arm.

“Eh, I don’t want to put any of the local strip joints out of business.”

“Alright, showoff, relax your arm and tell me how loose it gets. I don’t think we need you slipping free and scaring everybody.” Sunset nodded and relaxed her arm, the bandaging loosening slightly from the death grip the woman had it encased in.

“Eh, seems good to me.” Sunset returned to tensing her arm, holding it for a moment before returning to a relaxed state. “Do it up like that I guess.”

“Down to your wrist is fine?” Mother Charity glanced down at the claws that made up the girl’s right hand. “I don’t think you'd fit in the glove with the extra mass.”

“Works for me.” Sunset held her arm out towards the matron, the linen getting wrapped around the limb in rapid, well practiced motions. “So, assuming this works well I guess I’ll head down and start helping around the place. Anything specific needing done?”

“Oh, you know,” the woman sighed as she stood up, backing away and looking over her work. “the usual house cleaning and maintenance, which I know you just adore.”

“That was the old me.” Sunset shot back, twisting and manipulating her arm to make sure nothing would pinch or tear. “I’m fine doing my share of work. Besides, I know I can help with the tutoring still.”

“That I am sure of.” Mother Charity chuckled as she grabbed the punctured bag of tshirts, holding in front of herself with a queer look. “You know… Even when you first came back I thought you were on something, Sunset…”

“I don’t blame you. You Humans seem to think of yourselves as the center of the universe. Er, no offense!” Sunset and the woman burst out into laughter as Sunset waved her hands before herself. “Technically, you might be? But there are more worlds out there.”

“Well, at least I can scratch meeting a real alien off of my bucket list.” an ivory hand reached out towards Sunset, holding out the bag of shirts.

“I guess. Though if I were to ever head back home, I’d probably find it extremely strange.” Sunset took the bag in her amber hand, before delicately running a claw down along the plastic, a little bit of applied force to the claws made sure they pierced through the material. “Hell, when I first showed up and saw a horse for the first time? It was mind boggling! Here was the nearest relative to me, potentially, and you people have been using them as beasts of burden? But then, uh… I realized that they weren’t actually the same as us Equestrians.”

“I always wondered why you wanted so many books on horses back in the day. Why don’t I leave you be for now? I think you can get dressed yourself.” Mother Charity nodded as she departed the room, Sunset waving once before she shimmied off of the bed and onto her feet.

***

Sunset shifted uneasily from foot to foot as she made her way down the stairs, the childish skull and crossbones eyepatch covered her right eyes, distorting her vision as it hid her daemonic deformity. It was strange walking down stairs without proper depth perception, her brain struggling to comprehend things now that the Equestrian had willingly half blinded herself. She grunted as she landed a little harder than intended, her right hand gripping the banister pole beside her tightly.

She could hear the material of the leather glove on her hand squeak tightly, but the hide held strong, refusing to allow her claws to break through and announce their presence to the house. She chuckled darkly before continuing on her way down the stairs, one step at a time, always making sure that she was stable and secure before moving on to the next.

There were a few times that she had to nod and greet other family members as they made their way up and down the stairs, some of the younger ones pausing to stare at Sunset. She smiled as she waved back at them, warmly asking how they were doing. That seemed to ease their childish inquisitivity, all of them answering in soft, polite manners before continuing on their way.

It took awhile, but eventually Sunset made it to the ground floor, smiling as she felt even ground beneath both sock encased feet. She slowly made her way through the halls, greeting and waving to anyone who passed into her view, pausing only when she stood in front of a large window, the room behind it filled with various supplies. She looked down to the small, well used bell sitting on the counter, hand swatting at it quickly and causing a melodic ringing to fill the air.

“What would you- Oh, hullo, Sunset.” an older boy, maybe the age of Sunset, came around the corner, his dead, emotionless face twitching slightly when he saw Sunset, his hand adjusting his glasses on his purple face to make sure as he walked over towards her. “I thought I heard rumours about you being back.”

“The rumors of my vanishment have been greatly exaggerated.” Sunset chuckled as she looked down at the boy, his blond hair done up in a topknot, matching the rest of his lazy attire. “How have you been, Apathy?”

“You know my name is Berzailios Beaker, Sunset,” the boy responded, his tone and expression a perfect match to his nickname. “so why do you keep calling me that?”

“‘Cause! You have yet to tell me not to.” she smiled playfully as she watched Berzailios reach down under the counter and pull up a large, worn, grimoire of a book onto the table, the slight dust that had built up on the counter exploding away as the massive tome landed. “So what’s available? I’m fine with doing anything, so just start listing them off!”

“Well then… We have numerous areas of the House that need cleaning. It would include dusting, mopping, and sweeping.” a delicate purple digit ran down the sheet in a slow manner, Berzailios slowly mono toning aloud what her read. “There is also some need for tutoring this afternoon. There is an unseasonal cold hitting some of the House, so the usual tutors are unavailable. We need help with the Elementary students, and a few of the Middle School students have an exam coming up that they need help with.”

“Consider it all done!” Sunset beat her chest as she stood up, beaming brightly. “Anything to keep me occupied!”

“...Are you running away from things again?” the boy said, his shockingly familiar magenta eyes staring into the Equestrian.

“W-What do you mean, Apathy?” Sunset’s facade faltered in the presence of the boy’s studying look. “I gotta earn my keep just like everyone else!”

“If you’re sure then…” the boy returned to looking at the book, a pen appearing seemingly out of nowhere as he started writing the girl’s name into the empty slots. “The tutoring sessions will take place in the usual room. Let me write down what rooms need cleaning still and get you your supplies.”

Sunset held her breath as she watched the short boy walk away, her hand coming up to wipe away at the small beads of sweat that had started to form. Something had triggered when she saw the boy’s magenta orbs, her heart clenching as they were replaced with large, tear filled eyes surrounded by cyan skin, a distant voice asking where her sister was.

***

The rest of the day had progressed well enough, with the day after continuing to do the same. Sunset seemed to be having a decent enough time getting reintegrated with the members of the House. She had more than a few times where she had to explain just why she had vanished without warning, only to just reappear. She started having fun with it after a little while, giving a different story every single time she was asked.

“Oh? You want to know how I got these scars?”

“Well, you see, this one time in band camp…”

“What if I told you…”

It wasn’t long until Mother Charity had called Sunset to the main office, asking about what she would like her schedule to be. To the younger crowd, it seemed innocent enough, but Sunset knew the carefully coded language, and it wasn’t long until the pair were sitting privately in the woman’s office, the door closed and locked.

“So, you said Friday. Are you sure that isn’t too soon?” Mother Charity was sitting back in her seat, her finger resting against each other in front of her face as she studied Sunset.

“I think I should be fine. If anything happens then I’ll let you know.” the Equestrian shrugged as she leaned back. “It might be a nice break of pace from the normal grind.”

“You have been extremely helpful around the house, Sunset. Everyone is singing high praises of how much you have changed since you have came back… But I’m not everyone.”

“What do you mean? Have I been doing something wrong?” Sunset sat forward, a worried look on her face. “Why didn’t you let me know sooner?”

“Sunset… I have seen a lot with this house. I have seen loss, and abandonment. I have seen youths struggle to try and find purpose in their lives. I have seen some of our family members retreat into themselves when they can no longer deal with life.” the woman sighed as she sat forwards, her hands resting delicately onto the dark mahogany table between her and Sunset. “But I have very rarely seen anyone do what you are doing right now.”

“Um, what? The rest of the House all works together to keep this place neat and tidy, so how am I any different?” Sunset made a sound somewhere between worry and bemusement.

“It is very rare to see people in this house run away from things by giving away their lives. You never seem to be by yourself, Sunset. You’re always helping someone, or cleaning somewhere, and are barely taking care of yourself.” Mother Charity leveled a matriarchal gaze upon Sunset. “What is it that you are running away from right now?”

“Look, if you are here to chastise me for being too helpful, then I’ll cut down a little bit on the cleaning! But please don’t act like-”

“Sunset Shimmer.” the girl paused as she heard her full name called out in a motherly tone, her aquamarine eyes squeezing shut as she turned her head away. “Why… are you running away? What is making you freeze up like this?”

“It’s nothing… really…” Sunset replied, unable to look away from the baseboard running along the wall to her side. “Just trying to comprehend all the memories is all.”

“Is that why you haven’t called your friends? Or the girls that took you in?”

“How could I!” Sunset screamed, spinning around as she came to her feet, slamming her hand powerfully onto the table. “I abandoned them, Mother! After everything they have ever done for me! I just fucking… ran away like a little bitch!!”

“They were there for me at my lowest points! They picked me up after my greatest falls! And what thanks do I give them? Faking my own god damn death! And I know they think I’m dead! I’ve read the paper! I’ve seen the obituary!” Mother Charity sat there in silence as Sunset ranted and raved, tears starting to build and fall down the girl’s face.

“They sacrificed so much for me, and I just decide: Fuck it! Let them think I’m dead!” Sunset turned around and kicked the chair, the heavy wooden piece of furniture shaking slightly, but remained unmoved. “How could I face them and say: Guess what!? I’m alive! I let you all think I’m dead cause I figured that you had all done too much for me already!”

“You saved their lives, Sunset…” Mother Charity interjected softly, watching unfazed as the teen spun around to glare, her aquamarine orbs small and wild as they shook around in her head.

“It was cause of me that they were threatened in the first place! If I had actually been a good pony than they would have been friends the entire time! I ruined their lives, Charity! I dragged them all through a living hell, and they decide to forgive me!? Why would they waste their time trying to be nice to a useless bitch like me that let her pride and delusions of grandeur take over my life!? Why would they even think that I was worth even a momentary glance!?”

“Sunset… Do you really see yourself as useless? As someone who shouldn’t exist?” Mother Charity remained seated at her desk, not a hint of emotion coming off her stony visage.

“Shouldn’t I?” the teen responded, storming over to the desk. “What have I done that’s actually worthwhile, huh? What sort of good deeds have I performed? What have I done to prove that I’m not a waste of life!?”

“Four students, each of them barely passing math at the best of times, recently brought home tests with marks of eighty three percent and higher. Three girls got gold stars because they were able to show the class how to properly do basic multiplication.” the woman’s voice was simple but firm as she listed off recent happenings. “One boy got a treat from his teacher because he was able to finally add three and five together. Two students now understand monomials.”

“Potentially fifteen students still have their lives. Four girls got to make a new friend. And three monsters, beings that should by all right be imprisoned in their home world, got to have a sister. They learned properly what it means to save a life, instead of take one.”

“So tell me, Sunset.” the ivory skinned woman stood up and walked around the table, sliding down onto her knees as she wrapped her arms around the amber skinned girl who had been silently sobbing on the floor as she heard of her good deeds. “Do you really see yourself as useless?”

The two remained there, Sunset wailing mutely as she was rocked back and forth by the older woman. Visions and memories innumerable passed by Sunset, reminding her of her times with the people she had met while she had been on this world.

Princess Twilight reaching out and helping her out of a crater in the ground.

The Orchestra group replacing her lunch when she “lost it”.

Shopping at the mall with the Sirens, their faces glowing as they hung around her, chatting and sharing stories.

“Sunset… You need to talk to them…” Mother Charity whispered softly as she held onto the girl. “I know they would be beyond emotions to hear that you are alive and well…”

“I… I can’t…” Sunset sobbed gently, grabbing onto the woman as she tried to bury her hand away. “They would hate me…”

“No they wouldn’t, Sunset… You know they wouldn’t…”

“I’m not strong enough…”

“Maybe not now, no, but you are, Sunset…” an ivory hand set about to rubbing the top of the girls head, smoothing out her hair. “You can do it…”

“No… I… I don’t want to disappoint them…” Sunset choked as fresh tears tried to force their way through clenched eyelids.

“They won’t be disappointed, Sunset…” Mother Charity responded lovingly, smiling as she continued to embrace the girl.

“...I… I just…”

“It doesn’t have to be today, Sunset…” Mother Charity said, pulling the girl up to look at her, gently wiping away tears with her hands. “But you really do need to talk to them…”

“Will… Will you help me…?” the girl asked, a pathetic sob breaking through her voice. “I… I can’t do it alone… I don’t want to be alone…”

“You aren’t alone, Sunset… I’m here for you, just like they are…” Mother Charity’s smile grew wider as she pulled the girl in. “You’ll never have to worry about being alone ever again…”

***

“So, are you sure you are stable enough to start back up on Friday?” the pair had eventually managed to get everything out, Sunset’s eyepatch laying on a pile of tissues to try and dry it out properly.

“Y-Yeah, I’m good… I’ve done worse in more unstable conditions.” Sunset smiled weakly before blowing her nose one last time, depositing the tissue into the woman’s waste basket. “Besides, maybe it’ll be good for me to be somewhat close to someone again.”

“You do remember what they can be like, right?” the woman’s warmth shifted to unease as she shared a look with the girl. “Some of them can be a little-”

“I’ll be fine. Besides, if they get lippy I think I can handle them.” Sunset’s daemonic eye seemed to flash as the girl gave a predatory grin. “Maybe they’ll like having me be in charge?”

“We’ll see. Your first client will be one of your regular Johns, um… What’s his name again?” Mother Charity spread around the paperwork on her desk, struggling to find the paperwork she just had sorted. “Well, whatever his name is, I’m sure he’ll recognize you. He was rather whiny when her heard you weren’t around anymore. Thought I was lying.”

“Oh! Him!” Sunset started to laugh, her lungs hurting after having cried so hard. “Yeah, he’s a whiny little bitch! Okay, yeah, that should be fine. What time is he showing up?”

“Well he is coming for dinner first, but when I mention that you are back he will probably want to have a private dinner with you in one of the side booths.” Mother Charity smiled apologetically as she looked back up at Sunset, the teen slumping in her seat slightly.

“Joy.”