Burning Rubber

"So how do you know about Magi-Cycle Racing?" Sunset asked for the second time that evening. Last time she asked, she had gotten a vague answer. Something along the lines of "Oh, I have my sources."

This time, she hoped to get a definitive answer

"Let's just say my sister is a bit of a superfan." Celestia says.

"You mean...Vice Principal Luna is...?!"

"Yes. My sister does participate in the races. She just can't seem to get enough of them. She even made me take her to the first tournament. I must admit, it was rather entertaining."

"You don't mean you actually...?!" Sunset quickly backpedaled,

"What? Adults can't have fun, too?" Celestia smirked.

"No, no! That's not what I meant, I swear!" Sunset quickly backpedaled, apologizing profusely for her outburst. Celestia however, simply laughed.

"Relax, Sunset. I was only joking. Do forgive me. I suppose I do have a little too much playfulness in me, after all!"

"Not at all, Principal Celestia, its fine, I promise!"

"And don't call me Principal right now, Sunset, okay? I'm not at work, and you're not at school. Right now, we're just two girls out on a drive. In my car, I might add. Whatever happened to your license, Sunset?"

"Got suspended. Turns out destroying a whole side of a school building on live TV makes people question what other things you could break."

" I see. I suppose they would, wouldn't they?" Celestia asked, honestly curious.

"Are you still mad at me about that?" Sunset asked, twiddling her thumbs.

"Sunset! No! Why would you ever think that?"

"Well, I did, you know, kinda...destroy the school?!"

"That is true...But you've tried your best to make up for it, and that in itself shows how much effort you're putting into improving. And that's all the apology I need."

"I see. Thanks, Celestia."

"You're welcome, Sunset. You're welcome."

Some time later, after a visit to a fast food restaurant, the two found themselves parked just outside of a dead end alleyway, looking into its depths.

"Celestia? I don't feel so good about this..." Sunset said, gulping as she looked into the sea of black that seemed to block off all outside intruders.

"Oh, come on! You're young, you can handle it!" Celestia said before excusing herself.

"Forgive me, I seem to be prone to outbursts tonight. Perhaps my sister and I share more of a love for this sport than I first thought. That was definitely something she would say."

Sunset simply stared at her principal. Celestia was acting different from her usual self. Was she really that excited for this race? She would have to see what was so good about it herself then.

They went into the alleyway, and Sunset was surprised to see that there was a door in what had previously been a normal, if completely dark, trash filled passageway.

Celestia knocked three times, and was let in only moments later. She turned and gestured for Sunset to follow her in, and when she did...

She was immediately assaulted by copious amounts of leather. The sheer amount of black around her almost scared her, and the many different Magi-Cycles set her head spinning.

Or maybe it was just the smell of new tires in the air. It reminded her of a garage. Which was strange considering the place looked more like a bar than anything else.

Hundreds of eyes landed on her the moment she entered, and like a sea full of hungry sharks they followed her wherever she went.

In her fear induced panic, she made the mistake of making eye contact with one of them, who snarled at her, causing her to jump.

Celestia noticed this and placed her hand on her student's shoulder. "Pay them no mind, Sunset. They're just wary of new arrivals is all."

Sunset could only nod as she kept her eyes forward. But, inevitably, her vision wandered again, and this time, it landed on something she wasn't expecting.

Six girls, all chatting and laughing like nothing was wrong. She didn't know what it was, but she couldn't keep her eyes off of them. They felt so out of place to her, and yet, they seemed like they belonged there just the same.

Their magi-cycles were the only ones with any color to them. Unlike all the simple black ones she had seen since stepping inside, these had personality, and she could somehow just tell which ones belonged to which girl just by looking at them.

Unfortunately, Celestia caught her staring. "Ah, I see you've finally noticed them. I was wondering when you would. They are quite literally the loudest ones here after all."

"W-who are they? I've seen them around but..."

"You mean you don't recognize them?" Celestia smiled at her.

Sunset looked at them for a bit longer, finally understanding what her principal meant. "They're the ones who defeated me..."

"That's right." Celestia smile changed to a knowing smirk. "Why don't you go and say hello?" She nudged her student towards them,, winking at her.

"Um...Hi." Sunset said, finally announcing her presence to the six girls. All six of them looked at her for a moment before one of them, the one with the styled hair, finally spoke up.

"Why, hello there, darling! To what do I owe the pleasure?" the girl smiled at Sunset. It was a friendly, almost seductively sweet smile.

"Well, My name is Sunset Shimmer, and well-"

"Hold on a minute, Rares. What did you just say your name was?" Sunset was cut off by a girl with rainbow hair. She was sure those had to be highlights right? But who in their right mind would spend countless hours on a hairstyle like that?

"Um....well, I'm Sunset, and-"

"Sunset Shimmer? As in the girl we had to stop from taking over our school?" Rarity asked.

"Well...yeah..." was all she said in response.

Rainbow Dash bolted up, rolling up her sleeves."Oh, I've been waiting to give you a good thrashing since you first showed up you-"

"Calm down, Dash. She's here for a reason. The least we can do is let her tell us what it is." Rainbow was cut off by AJ.

"Ugh...fine!" Dash grumbled as she sat back down.

"Go on, sugar cube. We're listenin'." Aj said, gesturing to her.

Sunset blushed from embarrassment and began to speak. "W-well, I've been trying to change myself, and Principal Celestia seems to think that becoming a Magi-Cycle Racer will help me."

"Well, it's certainly good to hear that you would like to change, but I'm afraid I fail to see how participating in the sport would be of any use to you, darling." Rarity said, a thoughtful expression on her face.

"I'm gonna have to agree with Rarity on this one. Principal Celestia is wise and all, but I just can't see where she was hoping to go with this." Aj spoke her agreement.

"Ooh, ooh! Maybe it'll help her change into a new swimsuit!" Pinkie suddenly said, popping up out of nowhere with CHS' brand new swim team uniforms. How did she even get those? And did she just pull that out of her hair?

"Oh! But that doesn't mean we won't try and help you!" Fluttershy quickly said when she saw Sunset with a downtrodden expression.

"Thanks girls, but...you're right. I don't think joining you would help me. I guess i'll just have to find another way."

"The way is right in front of you, Sunset. You just can't see it yet."

Sunset jumped at the sound of a voice from right behind her.

"Do not be afraid, Sunset. It is only me." Celestia places her hands on Sunset's shoulders. "And I must say, I am hurt to know that my own student has lost faith in me."

"That- What- No, I-" Sunset stuttered before straightening up. "I could never lose faith in you. If anything, I'm losing faith in myself." Sunset looked down.

"Oh, you poor dear!" Rarity said as she suddenly got up and hugged Sunset.

Apple Jack spoke up. "Look, why don't you just give it a try? I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for before you know it!"

"Apple Jack's right." said another voice that Sunset almost didn't recognize. She had been so quiet that Sunset had forgotten she was there. The small surprise was enough to make her look up from the ground...

And see Twilight Sparkle. The resemblance to her own world's version of the girl was uncanny. Everything down to her cutie mark, although on her skirt, instead of her hips, was exactly the same. The only differences she could see were the glasses and the hairstyle. Now all she needed was the personality, and they'd be the exact same person!

When she spoke, it was with Twilight's voice, and what she said was so much like her that she had no choice but to know. This was her counterpart

"why don't you come with us? I'm sure there's something we can do to help you find your way."

Sunset looked on from Twilight to all the others. Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Apple Jack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie. All of them were willing to help her change for the better, and here she was moping about like a crying child.

No more. She would use this chance to become a better person. She couldn't let Celestia down. Not when she just found a way to show everyone that she was different from before.

She looked at all of them, a smile spreading across her face as she said, "Alright. When do I start?"