After everything that had happened recently, it was pretty much universally agreed among Sunset and her friends that they needed a moment to simply relax and unwind. And where better to do that than at one of their absolute favourite hang-out spots? So, that was exactly where they all went after school. Sugar Cube Corner, while normally pretty busy, was today fairly quiet, which was just fine by them, given that they didn't really want a whole bunch of activity right now. Shortly after their arrival there, each of the girls was soon enjoying tasty, not to mention large milkshakes, each tailored with their respective buyer's personal flavour. For a time, there was simply enjoyment and calm all around, even from Pinkie of all people. But, after a while of this, there came a time when somebody needed to say something, and that someone was Sunset herself.
"Well...that was quite a lot packed into a few weeks, right, girls?"
There was a general murmur of agreement among the other teens, followed shortly afterwards by another round of simultaneous slurps. Rainbow especially seemed pooped by this, leaning back into her side of the booth and letting out a long sigh.
"I tell ya! Usually the only time we're that active is when there's some big magic monster or problem to sort out!"
Pinkie giggled.
"It was all still pretty fun though, right?"
Twilight looked to her, smiling.
"It was. The play was a hit, and everybody had a good time."
Applejack chuckled.
"Y'all can say that again! Wonder if there'll be another one next year?"
Rarity considered that before adding her voice to the conversation.
"Well, I, for one, would certainly enjoy taking the leading role again."
Fluttershy nodded to that.
"I'm sure you'd do a good job of it, Rarity. You were very talented."
Rarity took on a brief look of pride at that, before promptly taking another delicate sip of her milkshake. Overall, the mood was a good one, and as such, Sunset couldn't help but smile to it, relaxing a little in her own spot in the booth before once more looking to her colleague. Then, after a while, she turned, looking over to Twilight.
"So...how did things go with Timber?"
Looking to her, Twilight smiled.
"Oh, it was wonderful! I don't really play a lot of golf, but we had a lot of fun there."
Sunset smiled to this, but before she responded, she was suddenly cut off by Fluttershy, who replied to Twilight's words with clear confusion in her voice.
"But...wait...I thought you'd arranged to go to the zoo?"
Looking to her, Twilight raised an eyebrow.
"Er...no? It was golf. I mean, it took a while for me to figure that out, but thanks to Sunset's help, I was able to figure out his text."
Fluttershy arched her own eyebrow in response.
"Twilight...I’m the one who helped you with the text, remember?"
Naturally, both Twilight and Sunset seemed taken aback by this.
"Er...are you sure about that, Fluttershy?" Sunset asked.
Fluttershy opened her mouth, then closed it again, a look of uncertainty coming to her.
"Oh...well...I think I was the one who helped you."
Glancing over to her, Applejack stretched out her hand, gently placing it upon Fluttershy's shoulder.
"Maybe yer jus' stressed from the play, Flutters. Ya know how that stuff can make yer mind go loopy an' such."
Considering that, Fluttershy nodded.
"Yes...maybe that was it."
A smile came to her face as she regarded her farmer friend.
"Thank you, Applejack."
The blonde girl chuckled, adjusting her hat slightly before speaking up again.
"Ain't nothin' to it, little lady! If ah'm gonna help ya with yer stage-fright, ah'd certainly help ya out here!"
The moment she'd spoken those words, Rainbow frowned.
"Er, excuse me, AJ, but I’m the one who helped Fluttershy out with her stage-fright!"
Applejack frowned right back.
"Ya did not!"
Rainbow nodded.
"Did too!"
She looked Fluttershy right in the eye.
"Remember all that work out on the field, when you were doing the announcer work?"
Of course, Fluttershy seemed completely nonplussed at this.
"Um...no. I don’t remember that, Rainbow."
As one would expect at this point, there was an air of unease among the group, and many of them looked to one another with a degree of concern.
"Okay...what the heck?" Pinkie remarked.
Leaning forward, Sunset regarded them all with seriousness.
"I think...it might be best if we just go over everything that's been going on with us over the last few weeks."
Given everything they'd heard over the prior few minutes, there seemed to be an air of agreement at that suggestion. So, the girls each began to recount what they'd been up to in the weeks leading up to the play. Who Sunset had asked for help in her driving. What trends Rarity had set for the school. How the stage had been built after Applejack got her injury. Twilight's method of relaxing when the stress of the play rehearsals got too much for her. All this and more was discussed at length, and with each conversation that was had, there was more and more confusion upon the faces of the girls, all culminating with Sunset speaking the obvious conclusion to all of this.
"Okay...something’s up."
There were nods abound at that statement, and before long, Rainbow spoke up, her voice sounding pretty confident.
"I'm betting it's the memory stone! It's the only explanation!"
But Sunset shook her head.
"Can't be. I looked it over after we broke it. No more magic."
Fluttershy seemed thoughtful over all of this.
"In that case...what could it be?"
"Multiverse theory."
All eyes turned to the owner of the second voice; Twilight. The spectacled girl adjusted her sitting position, cleared her throat, then began to explain.
"Basically...the theory is that with every decision we make, there's a parallel version of events where some other choice played out. If you go down a road and turn left, there's also another world out there where you turned right, at least, according to the theory."
Hearing that, Applejack scratched her head.
"So...we're seein' a whole bunch o' other version o' the past few weeks?"
Twilight nodded.
"It's possible that our Equestrian magic, the effects of the memory stone, and maybe even our own distress over the play, might have all combined to create some insight into alternate versions of events."
Sunset thought on that.
“You might be right. Princess Twilight told me once how one of her earliest encounters with Starlight Glimmer was a fight with her in the past, thanks to some time-travel magic. Choices made back then created a plethora of alternate universes, each with a different version of her friends and the Equestria she knew.”
Her eyes narrowed.
“So...I don’t think multiverses are a theory anymore.”
She then looked to Twilight.
"Do...do you think it's permanent? What’s going on in our heads right now?"
Twilight shook her head.
"I don't think so. The fact that these memories aren't held in our minds with certainty seems to suggest that it's just a temporary thing. A...a passing influence, if you will."
Pinkie breathed a sigh of relief.
"Phew! That's good! I'd hate to be walking around not knowing what I really did on those days!"
"Indeed, darling!" Rarity agreed.
Then, the young fashionista considered her own words, looking over to Rainbow and glancing at her hair in particular.
"Although...I do wonder what it would have been like if I had chosen you as my inspiration for the week's trend."
Rainbow chuckled.
"It would have been pretty sweet, I can tell ya that much!"
There was a general round of laughter after that, and before long, all of them seemed to be chatting with each other over the revelation of these various alternate possibilities they might have been through. A few minutes passed as they discussed such things, and after the conversation had gone on for a while, Sunset leaned back into her chair, smiling to herself and taking another sip of her milkshake.
"Well...I think it's pretty safe to say that, no matter how things played out...they'd have played out pretty well."
Looking to her, Twilight smiled back.
"It all happened between friends, Sunset. How could it have been anything else?"
