Ticket to Madness

Chapters

The Ticket Arrives
Ticket Confessions
No Choice is Best Choice

The Ticket Arrives

Sunset’s life was anything but normal. Being raised by Princess Celestia herself, a literal goddess, ensured that. For the most part, this ensured that Princess Sunset Shimmer had a relatively good life growing up. A loving mother. An aggravating but still lovable little brother. Everyone listened to her. Life was spectacular. However when it came to being special, she knew full well that it wasn’t always so good. Which had led up to this moment.

She was currently patching up the mess that had occured recently with the local griffon. That had been a bloody mess, literally in many cases. She sighed. It was just so frustrating. If it wasn’t one thing, it was something entirely different. Some of them weren’t even about the disasters that had been taking place as though they were just as important. How her mother did this for thousands of years she would never know. ‘Guess that comes from the perks of being a goddess.’ She thought to herself.

Right now she was happy to say that she was dealing with the last loose end of the griffon debacle. Sunset Shimmer smiled over the table at Trixie de Lis. The two of them were sitting in her private study in her beloved Tree home. It made her feel warm and comfortable in this building. Trixie was currently reading a scroll that Sunset had given her. It hadn’t taken her long and the sour look on Trixie’s face meant that she had done a good job.

Sunset brought her hooves together and gave her companion a smirk, “Now have you read through the contract?”

Trixie huffed and nodded, “Yes, Princess.”

“And do you agree to go along with everything I’ve written on it?”

Trixie nodded again. It was obvious she wanted to shout her own arguments against it but she was adamantly loyal to the crown. Sunset was rather glad. It meant she could very easily boss her around and get her to do whatever she wanted. ‘Hey, I might be trying to learn about friendship, but that doesn’t mean I can’t abuse my power now and again.’

Sunset herself smirked and hefted a pen over to her with her magic, “Now sign it. After that, you will not be able to perform any major action in this town without my consent. As well, you will defer to Time Turner as a superior. I know the Inquisitors wanted you to be equals, but at this point, I think we both know that’s not going to happen.”

Trixie sighed and nodded, “Yes, My Princess.” With that she signed it and gave it over.

Sunset was relieved it was over. The paperwork and everything leading to this had taken a few days given that she had to bend the forelimbs of a number of Inquisitors to get them to even consider her paper. That and a threat of her mother’s involvement. The Inquisition may have a lot of power, but when it came to Celestia, they were spineless. Helped that she would occasionally ponder restricting some of their powers. She had done so in the past but given that rogue chaos cults and changeling covens would spring up now and again, they were still necessary.

“You may go,” Sunset was glad to see her leave and let out a relieved breath. “It’s over. It’s finally over.” The moment of relaxation was tarnished the moment a pointed finger tapped her shoulder. She yelped and turned around, only to glare at her brother. “What is it?”

“Oh just checking up on you,” Spike turned his head to the door. “I’m guessing you’ve gotten Trixie all straightened out?”

Sunset huffed and nodded, “More or less. She’ll be loyal to me if that’s what you’re worrying about.”

“That is what I’m worrying about,” Spike deadpanned. Sunset punched him in the shoulder. She knew it wouldn't do anything to him given he was an Earth Dragon, but it still made her feel good. “So any plans to go out with your friends?”

Sunset quirked an eyebrow, “What are you on about?”

“Well mom did task you with learning as much as you can about friendship,” Spike pointed out. “As well, you’ve been cooped up in your home or the Mayor’s office so much these days. You needed to get out more.”

Sunset huffed, “Fine, I’ll go spend some time with them.” She stood up from her chair.

“Good,” Spike smiled. “And don’t worry, I’m free this afternoon so we can read some of your favorites together.”

Sunset’s cheeks flushed slightly as she glared at him, “We’ll see about that… It’d better be Moby Dick or so help me…” She left the threat in the air. In all honesty, just reading with her brother was the best thing she could think of to do beside her other hobbies and points of interest. She wouldn’t want to jeopardize that but she liked to remind him who was the older sibling.

Spike chuckled and mockingly raised a hand to protect himself, “I heard you loud and clear, sis.” Then his cheeks puffed out before he let out a green breath of fire. It wasn’t the type that would burn her house to the ground, thankfully. Just the type of magical fire their mother had taught him so she could message him directly. A scroll had been opened up.

“Spike,” Sunset turned around to face him. “What’s that about?”

Spike shrugged, “Beats me.” He opened it and let out a little whistle. “Seems like mom wants us to go to the Grand Galloping Gala.” He held up two golden tickets.

Sunset’s eyes widened. She never really got the chance to go to a Gala before. That was mostly her fault. If it wasn’t one burning or another, she was usually banned from the Gala for causing an incident or far too busy to go. This was her chance. Her chance to finally spend some good ol’ relaxing time with her mother pushing the nobles around. She did that already, but not in a prestigious place like the Gala.

Sunset moved closer and snatched the two tickets with her magic. She grinned and chuckled, “Oh this is the ticket, Spike. We’re finally going to get to go to that Gala. I’ve been denied too many times to go but this is my chance.”

“Granted, you did do a bunch of stuff like burning some nobleponies robes and whatnot that barred you from going.” Spike idly commented.

Sunset snorted, “They deserved it. This year I’ve been a very good girl so obviously I am being rewarded. It’ll just be us two.”

“Sorry about that,” Spike rubbed the back of his head. “Moondancer already sent me a ticket just yesterday. Didn’t think to mention it to you just yet.”

Sunset snarled before collecting herself, “Fine, fine. I’ll go just ask a friend.”

“Which one?”

Sunset paused for a moment as she tried to think of who to choose, “I have six friends and only one spare ticket…” Her eyes widened. “Which means I have to choose between my friends.” A smile started to grow on her face.

Spike nervously held up a finger, “Ummm, Sunset? I don’t think that’s a good thing.”

“Pfft, says you.” Sunset looked fervently at her tickets. “These tickets are a test.”

Spike blinked a few minutes before tilting his head to the side in confusion, “A test?”

“Mom is testing me about this whole friendship thing,” Sunset reasoned. “Yes, that must be it. I just have to figure out who is the best one to take with me and I will pass.”

“I don’t think that’s it,” Spike said. “Maybe mom just forgot to send more tickets.”

Sunset rolled her eyes, “Mom is not that scatterbrained, Spike. She knows what she’s doing.” She turned to leave with a confident swagger in her steps. “Now if you will excuse me, I have a friendship test to pass.”

Spike sighed as she closed the door behind her, “This will not end well.”

___________________________________________________________________

*earlier*

Celestia let out a little groan as she fell onto her bed. She had to deal with a number of issues this day. They were mostly the same, but the griffon and human ambassadors wanted to talk to her on the same day? That was grueling. Both of their empires were serious contenders with Equestria and also the most annoying to deal with. That meant she had to be extra nice to them to avoid a full scale and costly war. It was aggravating and it didn’t help that she had to deal with the goblins later. That was a mixed bag if there ever was one.

Then came the Grand Galloping Gala. Oh that was an even worse event. It was just so boring, but she had to attend every year. It was so repetitive and dull. It was partially why she had discouraged her children from going and gone out of her way to keep them out. That and Sunset’s bad behavior certainly didn’t help.

This year though, she couldn’t think of a reason to bar them from going. They had saved Equestria and brought back her sister, not to mention the events that had taken place in Ponyville over the last while. Sunset would be hounding her about it and she would have no excuse. Sunset had been as good as she could be. So she magicked up her quill and parchment and went to writing. Then she tied it up with two tickets and sent it off to Spike.

‘There, that’s taken care of. Now I can finally have some shut eye before I have to deal with the griffons.’ Celestia smiled before she frowned, ‘Wait, doesn’t Sunset have-’ Celestia’s train of thought was interrupted when she heard one of her crystal messaging balls ring. It was one of her godly contacts as she recognized the tone. She went over and activated her side.

“Hello~” Amaterasu’s furry and beautiful face called out on the other side. The nine tailed Kitsune goddess was radiant as one would expect from a fellow sun goddess. “I’m so glad I could contact you.”

Celestia gave her a relieved smile, “As I am I.” Now this was a pleasant surprise if there ever was one. Amaterasu was one of her oldest friends.

“Yes, but it’s not all idle chit chat I’m afraid.” Amaterasu spoke. “I have a few things I wanted to discuss.”

With that, Celestia focused her entire free time with discussing politics and whatnot with Amaterasu. At the back of her mind, she thought she was forgetting something but she pushed that pesky thought back down. There was no harm in it and she had a lot on her plate.

Author's Note

Hello everyone and welcome to my newest Shimmerverse story. This one should be rather short, but I hope you all still enjoy it.

Slight tidbit: I really wanted to include a reason for Celestia forgetting to send more. I know some interpret it as her giving Twi a test, but eh. I think making everything she did a 'test' is pushing it so I created a way to have it slip her mind.

Ticket Confessions

Pizzelle happily hummed as she finished another dozen cookies. With as many orders she had received, she had a lot on her plate. It wasn’t bad though as this was one of her joys in life. The other was her son of course. Oh that brought back memories to when he started to call her mommy. She couldn't stop herself from crying for hours. It still was hard not to cry given how much it meant to her. He was currently in school right now and she couldn’t wait for him to come back so she could cuddle him some more.

That’s when she heard the little chime of the doorbell. She took off her oven mitts, placed them on the counter, and went over to open the door. She smiled as she looked at Sunset, “Sunset, I wasn’t expecting you here today. At the very least, not this early in the day.”

“Had a lot of things on my mind,” Sunset walked into the house once Pizzelle stood aside. “I thought I would come over and talk to you about a few of them.”

“By all means,” Pizzelle lead her into the living room and the two took a seat. It was simple room, just a couple of couches and some rugs. Although, the walls were littered with photos of several ponies. “I am actually glad that you came by. It’s been a while since I’ve had someone to really talk to.”

“We talked yesterday,” Sunset deadpanned.

Pizzelle giggled behind her hoof, “Oh I mean ‘Really’ talk to. Ditzy and Love Tap haven’t had as much time to come over and talk as they used to. All the recent disasters that happened recently have really shaken things up, dontcha know. So they’ve been trying to keep their own families safe. Good for them, but I miss the more carefree days of the past. Thankfully, if nothing pops up soon, it should go back to normal. Well, as normal as an Element bearer can be in life.”

“I gotcha,” Sunset said quickly, noting a stop in Pizzelle’s speech and capitalizing on it to stop the conversation. Sunset pulled out a quill and parchment. “I wanted to ask you a few questions. Mostly just curious is all.”

“Oh?” Pizzelle’s curiosity was perked. She leaned forwards, getting a bit closer to Sunset. “What ever could you ask of me?”

“Well just a simple question really,” Sunset said. “I was just wondering what you would do if given the opportunity to go to the Grand Galloping Gala.”

Pizzelle didn’t say anything for a moment. She just froze as her eyes widened, “The Grand Galloping Gala?” She finally said.

Sunset nodded, “Yeah, the Grand Galloping Gala.”

Pizzelle’s smile broke out into a huge, tooth bearing grin. “Oh yes. Now that would be a dream come true.” She gestured a hoof around her, “As you well enough know by now, I have quite the lineage. From explorers, to ecologists, and of course bakers.” She giggled, “And that is why I want to be something. Oh yes, many of my family aren’t famous but I want to put our family’s pastries out there into the wide world. What better way than to serve Princess Celestia herself. Oh you are a good princess, Sunset. Don’t get me wrong, but she is Princess Celestia. You must understand.”

Sunset didn’t take that as a slight at all. She simply nodded. Her mother was indeed the greatest being to grace the world. She wrote down everything she heard, “So you want to become a famous baker, right?”

“Well more like I want to spread my tasty pastries around the world to make people happy,” Pizzelle brought up her hooves together and gave a heartwarming smile. “The same way my ancestors did. Did I ever tell you the story of how my great, great Uncle tamed a horde of angry minotaurs with cherry pies?”

Sunset opened her mouth and closed it. That was not something she had heard about. It was just so… strange to think of that happening, “No I haven’t, but I don’t have the time to go over it.”

Pizzelle nodded, “I understand, but it certainly was a great tale. I’ll make sure to remember to tell you it soon enough. You’ll certainly enjoy it. Anyways, why are you bringing up the Grand Galloping Gala?”

Sunset held up a golden ticket which made Pizzelle gasp, “Oh my mom gave me an extra ticket, so I’m going around to see who deserves it the most.”

Pizzelle frowned, “Who you think deserves it the most?” She looked confused by the statement.

Sunset nodded, “Yep.” She stood up, “So thanks for sitting down and speaking to me. I’ll see you later, okay Pizzelle?”

Pizzelle nodded and waved her off. She sat there and tapped her chin. She would have to find a way to make herself seem like the most deserving. Her ancestors were counting on her after all.

___________________________________________________________________

“Okay,” Sunset looked at her little list and checked off the box by Pizzelle’s name. “Pizzelle’s done. Huh, quicker then I thought actually.” She smiled, “Thankfully I’m too smart to get caught up in one of her long spiels. Now who’s next?”

“Look out!” Sunset only had a second to look before a green blur smashed into her. The two tumbled about the ground as a loud crashing noise filled the air. Once they stopped, Sunset got her head on straight as it were and glared at her assailant. “Lightning Dust. What is the matter with you?”

Lightning snorted and got up. She extended a hoof, “Is that the thanks I get for saving your life?”

“Saving my life?” Sunset looked at her with a narrowed gaze. “What are you…?” She looked around Lightning to see a broken piano lying on the ground. Her eyes widened. Normally that would be easily swatted aside but had it taken her by surprise, well she wouldn’t be talking right now. “Thank you.”

Lightning grinned, “Don’t mention it.” She flew up towards the flying mail ponies and a large wagon. Ditzy was with them at the head, smiling apologetically. “What the hay was that about, Ditzy? Can’t your crew keep your stuff locked up?”

“I just don’t know what went wrong,” Ditzy spoke in turn. “It was secure when we lifted it off the ground.”

“Well just try to not fly over the marketplace or something,” Lightning huffed before landing beside her.

“You know,” Sunset said as ponies hustled over to clean away the debris. “I still wonder why Ditzy is a mailmare with all she does wrong.”

“Oh she’s never wrong about getting a package there on time,” Lightning corrected. “She’s good at her job. She’s just clumsy is all. Which is why she’s not allowed to handle delicate items.”

Sunset nodded, still not quite sure if that was the best job for the Ditzy mare. “Still though, I am glad you saved me. It also helped me out in the end because I was looking for you.”

Lightning quirked an eyebrow, “For what exactly?”

Sunset picked her quill and notebook out of her pack, “Oh I just want you to answer a question.”

“Alright, what’s the question?”

“Would you like to go to the Grand Galloping Gala?” Sunset said without hesitation.

“The Grand Galloping Gala?” Lightning said loud enough to gain the attention of a few passerbys. Sunset didn’t pay them any attention of course. They were beneath her notice. “I’d love to go.” Her wings flapped in eagerness, “It would be my ticket to getting into the Wonderbolts.”

Sunset hummed in thought, “Well you might be able to talk to them there, I’m not so sure-”

“Oh you’ve got to take me,” Lightning pressed forward before pulling back. “You are going, right?”

“I’ve got an extra ticket so I was wondering who deserved it the most,” Sunset admitted.

Lightning smirked and put a hoof over her heart, “I swear to you that I am the most deserving of it. You know what I’d do if I was a Wonderbolt? I’d awe Equestria with my killer lightning fast moves. No one could keep up, well except Rainbow Dash. No one’s as fast as her of course. Oooh, maybe I’d get partnered with her and we’d save Equestria. How awesome would that be?”

“Didn’t we save Equestria?”

“Pfft,” Lightning waved her off. “Oh we did and that was epic, but I wasn’t a Wonderbolt. Being a Wonderbolt would make the whole experience twenty percent cooler!”

“I get it,” Sunset pushed Lightning away as she was leaning in a little too close. “I’ll keep you in mind.”

“You better,” Lightning took off into the air. “I’ll be back later for my ticket.” With that, she sped off.

Sunset sighed. Lightning was a bit too forceful for her tastes. Of course, she couldn’t complain. She was forceful too. So she went on, not really paying attention to the whispers about.

____________________________________________________________

Redheart looked over a number of vials she was working on. Each one of them held a concoction for this or that. All of them organic in origin of course. She preferred working with animals and the like, which she housed in another section of her own ‘workshop’ in the hospital. “So let me get this straight,” Redheart said as she turned around to face Sunset. “You want me to answer what I would do at the Grand Galloping Gala?”

Sunset nodded. The solar princess, daughter of Celestia, was sitting on a chair as she drank a bit of orange juice she had provided, “Yes indeed.”

“And I assume you have a ticket for me?”

“I have an extra ticket and if I find your reasons to be sound, I’ll give them to you.” Sunset spoke.

Redheart nodded, “Well that sounds fair.” She tapped her chin. “I’d honestly like some more funds for my project. Of course the Order Hospitaller sends me enough funds to conduct them, I’d like a bit more recognition and support to complete some of my projects.”

“Oh?” Sunset quirked an eyebrow. “Like what?”

“I’ve been thinking of splicing dinosaurs and ponies together,” Redheart said with absolute seriousness.

Sunset stared at her for a moment. She blinked a few times and then got up, “Yeah, I’m going to be leaving now.”

Redheart gave her a smile and wave, “Take care now.”

_____________________________________________________________

Sunset had been disturbed by the wish of Redheart. So much so that she had sought out Coco herself. She would give her some very much deserved rest from that insanity. The two of them sat together, with Coco nervously looking at her. “So what would you want if you went to the Gala?”

“Ummm,” Coco tapped her hooves together as she thought about it. “I would… like to help Rarity out with her outfits. If she got to sell some of them there, it would help us a lot. We’re doing fine, but some ponies are nervous to work with us because… you know…” She gestured to the Diamond Dog guards.

Sunset nodded in understanding. Rarity was Equestria’s only pony lead Diamond Dog pack. Because of that, a lot of ponies thought she was a savage. That was certainly not true, but the thought persisted. “I understand. Perhaps I’ll choose you to go with me once I’m finishing thinking this over.”

Coco’s eyes widened, “You would?”

Sunset nodded again, “Of course.”

“Yay~” Coco clapped her hooves and smiled, which honestly was rather heartwarming. She was glad she chose this location after Redheart. Nothing against her nurse friend but… yeah, her ideas could be crazy. Sunset was glad she wasn’t crazy.

______________________________________________________

Sunset huffed as she watched Quickfix working on some four wheeled contraption. Luckily for her, Fiddlesticks was there. Apparently she had come over to see what Quickfix was up to and ended up helping the zany inventor with another one of her inventions. “So what’s your answer?”

“Oh Ah’d just like to help the farm is all,” Fiddlesticks hoofed over a bunch of metal pieces to Quickfix, who took them in her magic. “If’n ah get to go, ah could make quite a profit. Them rich ponies would give us enough bits to fix up a bunch of stuff on the farm. Hey, we could even afford a barn that won’t get destroyed.”

“HA!” Quickfix barked in laughter. “Now that’s a joke, if’n ah’ve ever heard one. Ye got bad luck, ye Apples when it comes to barns.”

Fiddlesticks huffed, “So says ya. What do you want, Quicky?”

“How many times do ah have to tell ye to stop calling me that?” Quickfix huffed before patting the contraption she was working on. “Do ye recognize this, Sunset?”

Sunset shook her head, “Now, what is it? Wait,” she slapped her forehead. “Is it that automobile you spoke of when I first came to town?”

Quickfix’s grin almost split her face, “Oh yes, that’s it exactly. Ah don’t know about ye, but I’m getting closer to completing it. Just a bit more and Equestria will hit a new shiny age. Oh I can see it now, automobiles and other tech about everywhere.” She put her hooves together and a dreamy expression spread across her face, “Now that would be a dream come true.”

“Well today one of your dreams will come true,” Sunset smiled and held up a ticket as she wrote everything down. “I’ve got an extra ticket so that means I can bring someone who I feel deserves it with me.”

“Oh that would be me,” both Quickfix and Fiddlesticks said at the exact moment. They paused and looked at each other, before glaring.

“Don’t even think about it,” Fiddlesticks huffed. “Ah need it fer my family.”

“An ah need it fer me invention,” Quickfix snarled.

Sunset gulped, nervously getting up as her two friends glared at each other. “Ummm, okay. Maybe I should let you guys cool off. I’ll see you later when I make up my mind.” With that, Sunset excused herself. Not before coming across a mechanical cat and mouse running about the house. She sighed, nothing about this assignment was going to be easy. However, she would not let her mom down. She was going to make a choice and that was one she would stick with. She just hoped that the fighting would stop soon.

Author's Note

I am sorry for how long it took to write this chapter. As I said in the blog, Fate stories have eaten up a lot of my time. Hopefully, I can finish this story soon enough. Until then, I hope you enjoyed this story and please leave a comment. They are greatly appreciated and really do help me to improve. Take care.

No Choice is Best Choice

Apple Cobbler couldn’t help but grumble to herself as she helped her cousin setup yet another party in Sugar Cube Corner. Oh don’t get her wrong. She loved her family. Apples gotta stick together, which is why even she wasn’t too fond of Applejack since she left it. Still, that didn’t mean she didn’t find Fiddlesticks a bit much at times. It didn’t help that a certain brother of hers was mucking around.

“Ouch,” Caramel, for the fourth time that day, stumbled over his own hooves. He had a bandage wrapped around his head. That had been acquired during that night where she and her brother had gotten caught by the Inquisition. Thankfully, nothing much had came from it except for him getting his head hurt when they had gotten him down from the trap.

Apple Cobbler swore that her brother was born with bad luck. It was up to her to help him with that. If she got rich in the meantime, that was a big bonus~ She huffed and turned to her cousin, “So I’ve been meaning to ask you all day, but what’s this party about?”

“Oh it’s about my bestest friend in the whole world,” Fiddlesticks beamed as she was arranging sparkly sun pictures across the walls. “Sunset Shimmer.”

Apple Cobbler’s eyes sparkled as she grinned, “You don’t say.” ‘Praise Celestia, looks like fortune is coming my way.’ “I’m sure she’ll be grateful for us throwing this party in her honor.”

“Yep,” Fiddlesticks nodded. She wasn’t paying much attention to what she was saying at the moment. “It’s why Ah’m gonna get that ticket.”

“...Ticket?” Apple Cobbler raised an eyebrow.

Fiddlesticks nodded again, this time more enthusiastically. “Yeppers. She’s got an extra ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala. It’s gonna be mine.”

Apple Cobbler’s grin only grew, “Oh that is a lovely thought.” ‘This is perfect. My idiot brother just needs to get in her good graces. Surely Sunset’s friends will drive her crazy and he will sweep her off her hooves and I’ll be rich and living the dream in no time.’

Suddenly a voice spoke up from behind her, “What’s this about Sunset and tickets?”

If Apple Cobbler had not violently reacted at the moment, she would have realized it was none other than Shade. The reformed servant of Nightmare Moon was having a rather good day thus far. That is until Apple Cobbler let out a startled whinny and bucked him away. He smacked into Caramel and they both fell over. She sighed, “Sorry about that.”

____________________________________________________________________________

Now usually Princess Sunset Shimmer wasn’t one to eat out, especially not at small diners. It was mostly the attention that annoyed her, although the flimsy food choices didn’t help. She was a princess after all and had the finest chefs at her disposal. As for the attention, she did love it but it could get grating at times. So she simply wished to eat with only her family. Every other time she could spend watching ponies grovel at her hooves. Now that would be excellent.

Right now though she didn’t have time to watch ponies grovelling. She was sitting and looking over her notes. Each one carried a wish of her friends. A wish she could grant if she only took them to the Grand Galloping Gala. Yet every time she looked at them, she just grew more and more confused. It annoyed her, which caused her to let out an annoyed snort.

“Something on your mind,” her brother, Spike, said from the other side of the table.

Sunset snarled as she bit into her quill. It left a bad taste in her mouth but at this very moment, she didn’t care. The air around her was getting pretty hot and a few pedestrians nearby had to move due to the death glare she was giving the notebook. ‘Come on brain, WORK! Think of something. Which should be the ticket holder and who should be pushed aside? Why can’t I just pick? Why is this just so damned hard?’

Spike wasn’t affected by it due to witnessing it too often. He sighed, “Sunset, if you don’t stop glaring, you’ll burn this place down to the ground.”

“I am thinking, Spike.” Sunset growled. “Don’t make me burn you.”

Spike rolled his eyes, “Like that ever works.” To which she set his head on fire. He just sat there and gave her his best ‘really’ stare. He wiped away the flames and went about the conversation as if it didn’t happen. “Okay, I see this whole ticket thing is getting to you. Why don’t I just ask mom to send more tickets?”

“Pfft, as if.” Sunset snarled, throwing her quill behind her. The waiter yelped as they dodged it. “Mom is testing me. I will not fail her.”

“But you don’t know if she’s really testing you. For all we know, this was a mistake.”

“Mom never makes mistakes.”

Spike just stared at her for a moment, “How about that time she accidentally ordered us twenty five ninjas.”

“Okay, that was kind of my fault.” Sunset winced at that memory. “I did say I wanted a set of ninja toys and she sort of… took it literally but besides that one time she’s been pretty on point. Well except when Auntie Ammy comes over but she is a Kitsune. They are rather flustering.”

“And beautiful,” Spike grinned which earned a scoff from Sunset. “But seriously, let me send a quick note to mom. I’m sure she’ll understand.”

“Not on your life,” Sunset shot back. “I am going to do this and I’m going to do this right.”

Spike sighed as he settled himself into a more comfortable position, “I’m just trying to look out for you, sis. You’re going to run yourself ragged.” She just glared at him. He simply raised a hand in defense, “But I’ll leave you to it then, if that’s how you’re going to be.”

Sunset smiled and nodded, “That’s rather wise of you, Spike. You should know by now that I am always right.” She chose to ignore his look of annoyed disbelief. She smiled in relief when the waiter came over, “Oh thank goodness. I’m starving.”

Before she could order however, Apple Cobbler with Caramel in hoof, saddled up next to Sunset Shimmer. “Princess Shimmer! It’s a delight to meet you again.” Apple Cobbler said with a smile.

“Right,” Sunset didn’t pay her much mind, opening her mouth to order.

“Such a nice day out, right Caramel?” Apple Cobbler looked over at her brother.

Caramel hesitantly nodded, “Yeah, it is.”

“You know, Princess Shimmer.” Apple Cobbler said. “My brother is a rather dependable stallion. If you needed someone to go with you to somewhere important, he’s probably the best pick in town.”

“She’ll keep that in mind,” Spike narrowed his eyes.

Sunset set herself at ease. Usually her brother would be all over any cute girl that so happens to cross his vision. If he wasn’t interested, then she wasn’t worth either of their time in the first place. It also meant she didn’t have to deal with his flirting at all. So she turned to order something.

“He’s also a great dancer,” Apple Cobbler cut in a bit louder. “He’d sweep you off your hooves, princess.”

Sunset glared at her. She had to give Apple Cobbler credit. She didn’t recoil like most ponies would. ‘That still doesn’t give you any brownie points in my book.’

“Oh Sunset,” Pizzelle walked over with a tray of cookies on her back. “I was looking all over town for you. I just realized I had some extra cookies and I wanted to share them with you.”

“Ma’dam,” the waiter spoke up. “You aren’t supposed to bring food to a cafe.”

“Oh pish posh,” Pizzelle said. “Why I often brought my own snacks to a number of cafes when I was travelling with THE Great and Powerful Presto They always appreciated my cooking. In fact, a number of cafes took up my recipes. One time I even stopped a minotaur from trying to declare war on Equestria with a few muffins. Oh now that is quite the tale actually.”

“I think we got the picture,” Apple Cobbler snorted. “What are you doing here?”

“Sunset is my dear friend,” Pizzelle spoke up. “And I wanted to give her a few treats and maybe talk about a few things. Like, perhaps, tickets.”

Sunset groaned, “About that…” ‘How do I explain to her that I don’t know who to choose yet?’

Before she could say anything, the area around her started to darken. Ponies started to run to shelter, crying out about rain. Sunset frowned and looked up to see gray clouds forming around her in the sky. “What the-”

And like that, the rain started. Pizzelle and the others gave a cry of discomfort as they ran into the cafe. Spike was the only one to stay as the rain didn’t bother him. He just sighed, obviously as irritated as Sunset was in that moment. Although Sunset was thankful that the rain was falling on everything but her in the one patch of remaining sunshine.

“Spike?”

“Yeah, sis?”

“Was it supposed to rain today?”

Spike scratched his head, “Not that I recall.”

“Hey Sunset,” the two of them looked up to see none other than Lightning Dust. “Funny seeing you here on this fine day.”

“It’s not exactly fine if it’s raining,” Sunset spoke.

Lightning chuckled, “Yep, which is why I decided to help you out today. You know, because we’re the best of friends and all that.”

“And I’m sure it has nothing to do with the tickets,” Sunset said as she quirked an eyebrow.

“Well maybe, but we are friends.” Lightning clarified. “Friends help each other.”

“Which is why Ah brought my portable saddle umbrellas,” Quickfix piped up. The lot of them looked over to see that she was wearing a mechanical bridle that had a large silver umbrella over her body. “Saw the clouds a gatherin’ so Ah thought to come over and make sure my great friend here, Sunset Shimmer, was doin’ alright.”

“I got here first,” Lightning growled.

“Well actually,” Pizzelle came back out, now with an umbrella of her own which she held in one of her wings. “I was the first one to get to her.”

“Quickfix,” Sunset asked. “Are you here for-”

“The ticket,” Quickfix cut her off with a smile. “‘Course Ah am. Ye need me to have a roarin’ good time and to help this here country of ours flourish.”

“That’s it,” Sunset conjured a small shield of magic over herself and started walking. The water droplets smacked into the shield, leaving her dry. “I’m going to the Sugar Cube Corner and getting something to eat there. Come on, Spike.” She speedily walked away from the group.

“This was your fault,” Lightning called down to Quickfix.

“Don’t make me come up there and give ye a whallop,” Quickfix shook a hoof angrily up at her.

____________________________________________________________________

Sunset huffed as she neared the entrance of Sugar Cube Corner. She never really got why the owners had to make it look so much like a gingerbread house. Granted, it went well with their theme but still. She found it to be a bit much, but she wasn’t complaining right now.

“Sunset,” Spike spoke up. “Don’t let them get to you. They might be a bit greedy right now, but they are still your friends.”

“I know,” Sunset huffed again. “I just need to get something to eat and clear my head, then I can pick one of them. I just hope they don’t get on my nerves continuously until then.”

Unfortunately for her, life wasn’t going to ease up on her. For the moment she opened the door, a pair of hooves pulled her in quicker then she could blink. She found herself in the middle of a large group of ponies. The place looked like it was about to host a party.

“Surprise,” everypony screamed.

“Are ya surprised, Sunset?” Fiddlesticks bounced up and down in front of her. “Are ya?”

“Yes, but not in a good way.” Sunset muttered to herself. She didn’t want to scream at Fiddlesticks. Oh she’d scream at the others if they kept up with this ticket business, but she still remembered Fiddlesticks look of anguish over the burnt trees. She had been forgiven, but she still felt like she needed to keep her cool around the country mare.

“Well this party should lift yer spirits,” Fiddlesticks giggled as she lead Sunset into the party.

Sunset had to admit, the next few minutes were alright. This wasn’t anything new. She had attended a party or two of Fiddlesticks before. They were certainly different than the parties in Canterlot. Not as extravagant, but much easier to be at ease without some noble breathing down her back. Spike was of course flirting with a few mares. She decided to move over to the buffet table after playing a game or two.

Sunset smiled as she picked up a cupcake and opened her mouth. That’s the moment Redheart slammed a large folder onto the table. Sunset put down the cupcake, “Redheart, what the hay?”

“As Celestia as my witness, I tell you that these documents will change Equestria forever.” Redheart huffed. “I have new designs that could help us greatly.”

“Uh-huh,” Sunset nodded. ‘Run. Run. No way in Equestria am I going to try to reason with a mare who’s on about this sort of thing.’ Sunset tried to walk backwards, but came into contact with Coco Pommel. “Oh, it’s you Coco. Sorry for bumping into you.”

“It’s fine,” Coco muttered. “That happens a lot. Ponies don’t really notice me.”

Sunset nervously smiled, “Right.” ‘How is that possible, anyways? She’s too darn cute to not notice.’ “So what are you doing here?”

“Oh, well… ummm…” Coco nervously rubbed her foreleg.

“You can tell me,” Sunset said. She was honestly hoping it would be something other then the ticket. That was a subject she just wanted to bury right now since she was so hungry.

“I was wondering if you would, if that is okay, I mean you don’t have to, not that I’m trying to force you to do anything.”

“Like what?”

“...Ticket?” Coco looked up at her with pleading eyes.

Sunset quickly averted her gaze so as to not look into that cute face, “N-Not right now. I’m still thinking about that extra Gala ticket.”

“Did somepony say Gala ticket?” Both Redheart and Fiddlesticks spoke up. A few other ponies turned their heads toward her.

Sunset stared at everyone and huffed, “You know what? I’m done. I’m just going home.” She pushed past everyone. “Come on, Spike.”

“But ya can’t leave,” Fiddlesticks jumped in front of her. “We haven’t finished yet.”

“I know what you are trying to pull,” Sunset poked her friend’s chest. “It’s devious and I like that, but right now? I am not in the mood.” She used her magic to push Fiddlesticks aside and walk out with Spike in hoof.

_______________________________________________________________________

Sunset snarled as she stomped through the streets. The pegasi were already starting to clear up the skies, so it wasn’t downpouring anymore. Sunset found that strange, but then again, this was Lightning Dust. Leave it to her to rain on someone deliberately for something.

“Sunset,” Spike started to speak.

“Can it, Spike.” Sunset huffed. “They’re acting stupid right now. I don’t want you defending them.”

“Now sis,” Spike said as the pair stopped before the door of the library. “I know they are getting carried away-”

“Just like the nobility,” Sunset’s scowl deepened. “I was hoping I would get away from plot lickers like that but throw a golden ticket in front of a pony’s face and they go crazy.”

“You’re not going to try and burn them, are you?”

“Pfft, as if.” Sunset scoffed at the idea. “But… Okay, maybe I will if they keep this up. Then they’d get it out of their heads or something.” With that, she opened the door and readied herself to relax and get something to eat.

The moment she did, she didn’t take long to spot six particular mares standing or laying down on a ledge up in the library. Sunset simply stared at them as she walked inside with her brother and closed the door behind her. She just kept continuing to stare. The mares nervously fidgeted about.

“So…” Quickfix spoke up finally. “About that ticket.”

“I don’t know who to give it to,” Sunset growled. “And I really don’t appreciate you trying to bribe me to get it. Bribe or generally bother me about it. I don’t care who goes. I just want someone I can call a friend to come with me and that’s bucking hard to do with six. Not to mention you all have reasons to go. Should I choose one over the others because I personally believe it to be more important? Is that friendship? To choose what’s more important and fuck the rest? Are they more or less important? I don’t know. I don’t bloody well know and then you go on about that and I just want to get something to eat.”

The mares cringed as they looked about themselves. They looked down with their droopy ears. Shuffling about, they sighed.

Fiddlesticks was the first to jump down. She quickly went over and pulled Sunset into a hug, “Ah’m sorry, Sunset. Ah didn’t mean to make ya feel that way.”

“Same here,” Quickfix joined into the hug.

“Same,” Redheart was next.

“We are too,” Pizzelle pulled Coco into the large embrace.

“We don’t want the ticket if it means you’re going to feel bad about it.” Coco spoke. The others nodded in agreement.

“So… does that mean I get it?” Lightning grinned, earning her a glare from everyone. She sighed and joined into the embrace. “Okay, okay. I don’t need the ticket. Geeze.”

Sunset smiled, “You know, I don’t think I need it either.” ‘At least not this year.’ “I’ve got a lot to learn about friendship and, well, I don’t think I can learn it at a prissy dance.” She turned to Spike, “Spike, take a letter.”

Sunset cleared her throat as Spike prepared to write, “Dear mom. I wanted to let you know that while I am happy that you would send me tickets to the Gala, I have to decline. I honestly can’t choose between my friends and I don’t want to hurt them with this choice. A true friend shouldn’t make a choice like that if they can avoid it. So you can take it and give it to somepony else. Love, Sunset.”

Spike nodded. He quickly finished it and breathed fire, sending the letter away with the tickets inside. He smiled at her, “Now that was very mature of you, sis.”

“Don’t push your luck,” Sunset huffed before Spike hiccuped and a letter shot out of his mouth. She frowned, “Wow, that was fast.”

Spike nodded and opened it up, “Ahhh, it seems mom is glad you feel that way. She thinks you’ve come a long way and that she can’t to see more friendship letters. However, she’s also very sorry. There was a mistake.” He pulled out seven golden tickets causing the mares to gasp. Spike just smirked.

“Do not say it,” Sunset scowled. “Do not bucking say it.”

Spike rolled his eyes, “Alright, princess. I won’t say it.” He smirked. “But I’ll think it~” He got a fireball to the face for that, to which he just chuckled.

Sunset huffed before turning to her excited friends. They were chatting and gossiping about what they would do at the Gala and it was just great to hear. She couldn’t help but smile. She may not be a good friend, but she was getting better. She just hoped she could keep it up and not mess things for everyone.

__________________________________________________________________

Celestia huffed within her private room. She tapped her hoof against the floor. She was honestly agitated with herself for forgetting about the other ponies. That wasn’t like her. She normally was more perceptive but it must have been one of her off days. Still, this was a perfect opportunity for another lesson for Luna. Maybe this one would get through to her. She could only hope.

She turned to the ball, “I’m sorry, Ammy. I’m going to have cut this meeting short.”

Amaterasu nodded with a smile, “Go on. I think I can take care of the rest of this on my own. Dealing with kirin is honestly… stressful. So I’m glad you were able to help out, even if it took a while. Sorry about that.”

“Don’t be,” Celestia waved off the concern. “I’m happy to help out a friend. Now, I’ve got to take care of some private business. I’ll see you later.”

“See you,” Amaterasu said before Celestia canceled the magic inside, causing the images to fade.

Celestia smiled as she walked out of the room. Talking with her best friend usually went a long way in lifting her mood. She just hoped it would carry through to her conversation with her sister. Again, she could only hope.

Author's Note

This took longer then I wanted to. Mostly because of a burnt computer but a little bit of procrastination didn't help out. Either way, this is the end of this story and I hope you all enjoy it. It might take a while before I publish another Shimmerverse story as I have to clear up which I'll choose but until then, I'm thankful for all those that have read this. I can't wait to read your feedback. Until next time, take care.