Her Knight in Sunlit Armor

Chapters

1. A New Friend
2. The New Status Quo
4. Sunset Saviour
5. The Ice Cream Tradition
6. A Private Performance
7. An Otherworldly Painting
8. A Relaxing Recovery
9. A Stuttering Confession
Intermission
Volume 2 — 1. A Song for a Song
2. An Otherworldly View
3. Welcoming Party
4. Secrets and Dyes
5. Reconciliation
6. A Magical Date
7. The Confrontation
Epilogue
Volume 1 — Prologue
3. A Trip to the Mall

1. A New Friend

Twilight spun her chair as she sat in her lab, staring at the ceiling. It was already five o-clock, and most of the students had left school. She was still here, as usual, working on one of her projects.

The lab was outfitted with a couple of desks, a nice desk chair for herself and a borrowed classroom chair for the occasional guest. The far wall held a bookcase and some old storage boxes. She had some of the best science equipment CPA could get her — on a small budget — and a cork board filled with various notes on her biggest, hardest, and most infuriating project yet.

But once again, Twilight was stumped.

About four months ago, she had been working on a simple research project that involved measuring electromagnetic fields in Canterlot City. She had refitted an antenna she made for a science fair project and used it to for this project. Soon after she set up her antenna, she picked up some strange readings coming from the western side of the city. Then she picked up some more two months later.

And the worst part was, she had been spending these past few months trying to figure out what caused them, and every theory and hypothesis turned out to be incorrect.

Twilight looked at the clock. Cadance — her ride home — would be coming to get her soon, and since she wasn’t going to get any more work done here today, she decided to pack up and meet up with her.

Her head was still buzzing with hypotheses and possibilities on what the energy readings could be, but none seemed promising, and each was getting more wild than the last. In an effort to quiet her mind, she put on a pair of ear buds and scrolled through the music on her phone. It held mostly classical music — her preferred genre — and she ended up picking one of Vivaldi’s compositions.

The halls were empty of students, just the way she liked it. She reached Dean Cadance’s office, and saw her ex-babysitter there, looking at her phone while leaning back in her chair.

Twilight took out her ear buds, and walked up to the door. “Hey, Cadance. Are you done for the day?”

Cadance looked up at here with a playful smirk. “Yep, I was just sending Shining a message to come pick us up. My car’s in the shop.” She clarified. Then she stood up and grabbed her coat from the back of her desk chair and started towards Twilight. “He just texted me to say he was almost here, let’s go to the parking lot.”

Twilight moved out of the doorway and then followed Cadance down the hallway. “He texted you while driving?” she asked with faint indignation.

Cadance laughed, “Are you implying that your cop of a brother is driving unsafely?”

“Well, when you put it like that…” Twilight trailed off. “So, are you having dinner with us tonight?” she asked hopefully. “Or are you and Shiny going out maybe?”

Cadance looked at Twilight, then lifted her hand to Twilight’s face and brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. “It’ll just be me and Shiny tonight, but I did want to talk to you while I had the chance.”

Twilight felt slightly miffed at Cadance’s doting. “What did you want to talk about?” She asked, as she pushed her glasses up her nose.

“I’ll tell you about it when we get to the car.”

Twilight rolled her eyes, but followed Cadance through the rotunda and out the front door.

Cadance waved at Shining, who was barely visible inside the car parked just below the front steps.

“Com’on, he’s here already,” Cadance took Twilight by the hand and pulled her along.

Twilight took the backseat, while Cadance got in the front passenger seat. Twilight took off her backpack and placed it on the seat next to her, looking up to see Cadance and Shining sharing a quick kiss. She looked away, pulling out her phone as a distraction as her cheeks colored slightly. She tended to get a bit awkward when seeing her brother show such displays of affection.

“So, how was school?” Shining asked as he took off down the road.

“It was fun” Twilight said.

“It was great!” Cadance exclaimed, at the same time.

“A new student enrolled,” Cadance continued, “she came to my office today so I could give her her schedule and stuff. She starts classes tomorrow.”

“In the middle of the school year?” Shining asked, puzzled. “That’s kind of unusual isn’t it?”

“Apparently she had some stuff going on at her last school that she wanted to get away from. She didn’t go into detail though.”

Twilight pulled out a book, preparing to start reading for the rest of the journey, when Cadance turned in her seat so she was looking at Twilight.

“She has really good grades, but her old school had much lower expectations from their students, so she’ll need some help to make sure she can catch up. She’s also lacking in one subject. Biology. Kind of strange that she seems to have very little trouble with any of her subjects, except for that one.” Cadance gave Twilight a meaningful look.

“Uhm, maybe she’s just a bit squeamish about that kind of thing. I’ve known a couple other students who had that issue.” Twilight reasoned.

Cadance shook her head. “I actually asked about that, and she said it was just a weak spot for her. But anyway, I came up with a great plan to solve both her problem, and yours.” She said happily.

Twilight gave her a suspicious look, and Shining tilted his head, glancing away from the road to raise an eyebrow at his girlfriend.

“And what problems are you talking about, exactly?” Twilight asked, closing her book. It seemed she wasn’t going to get much use out of it this trip.

“Her need to keep up in school, of course,” Cadance counted on her fingers. “And your problem with making friends!”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “You already had me try to make friends yesterday, and now you already have a new plan lined up?

“Oh, com’on Twily!” Cadance pleaded. “She just showed up today and I really think you’d like her.”

Twilight sighed. “So, what is this plan of yours?”

“I told her you could tutor her after school.” She said, the pleading tone had quickly shifted to exited delight.

Twilight gaped at her, and Shining slowed the car down as he gave Cadance a skeptical look. “You made that offer without asking Twilight?” He asked with a raised eyebrow.

Cadance had the decency to look sheepish. “I may have gotten a bit ahead of myself in my excitement.” She turned back to Twilight, fer face regaining it’s cheer. “Twilight, before you say no, let me tell you a little about her.”

Twilight closed her mouth into a pout but after a few seconds she nodded and looked away.

Cadance squeed at the apparent success of her plan before continuing at a almost urgent pace. “Okay, so, Her name is Sunset. She lost all of her friends recently and is clearly feeling lonely.”

Twilight supposed she could sympathize with that feeling.

Cadance continued, talking faster with each sentence. “She’s smart, almost as smart as you from what I can see of her grades. She’s really sociable in a way I’m sure could help you get out of your shell a bit. Oh, and she’s really cute.” Twilight’s eyes snapped back to Cadance’s grinning face in time to catch a wink.

“I… How… W-why would you mention that?” Twilight stuttered. She started fidgeting with the hem of her skirt.

Cadance tilted her head innocently. “No reason. So you’ll do it?” Twilight looked up into her hopeful eyes.

“Sure, I’ll do it. But if she’s like all the other students then I don’t think It’ll go anywhere.” Twilight hugged herself, her eyes casting out the window. The memory of her attempt — and failure — to make friends yesterday was still clear in her mind.

Cadance reached her hand out to Twilight’s shoulder. “Don’t worry Twilight, this girl seems really nice. I’m sure you’ll get along really well.” Twilight looked up to her reassuring smile, and a smile of her own spread over her face.

If Sunset really was smart, she and Twilight should have plenty to talk about. But by similar logic, if she was very sociable, she would probably end up making friends with a lot of the other students and end up forgetting about her.

“Thanks, Cadance.” She felt the car slow to a stop and saw that they had reached her home. She quickly grabbed her backpack.

“Oh, uhm. I’ll see you tonight, Shining,” Twilight had directed the statement at Shining, but Cadance answered her with a slow shake of her head, a lascivious smirk on her face. Twilight blushed, while Shining chuckled.

“I’ll see you tomorrow after school, Twily,” he said.

Twilight gave a hasty “’Kay,” while she shuffled out of the car as quickly as she could.

“Oh, and Twilight?” Cadance said as Twilight was just about to shut the car door. “I’ll send Sunset to your lab after classes tomorrow, okay?”

Twilight nodded before even registering the words and shut the door.

While she made her hasty escape to her home, Cadance’s last words sank in. She’s going to be in my lab as well? She thought, dejectedly. This could end badly for me.

Twilight was having trouble keeping focus in class. Usually, when this happened, it was because she’d be thinking about a project she was looking forward to working on after school, this time however, the distraction was caused by the mystery girl who would be in Twilight’s lab today. Her lab had always been a safe haven from the cruel, uncaring world outside. The only people she had invited in there before were Shining and Cadance.

Twilight managed — despite the distractions — to take down notes on what the teachers said, of course. But she wasn’t doing much more than that. She often didn’t even register what she was writing down, good thing that the whole point of taking notes is that you can look over them later.

When the bell rang, signaling the end of Twilight’s last class today, her nervousness hit a peak. She was barely aware of the students leaving the classroom around her as her mind froze at the thought of what was coming next. This wasn’t going to be like last time, where she could just sit there in the background if it went badly. It would just be the two of them.

She took a few breaths to calm herself, the way Cadance had taught her years ago. Worst case scenario, I’ll just focus on tutoring her and avoid small talk, she thought.

“Miss Sparkle, are you alright?” The teacher asked. Twilight, brought out of her thoughts, mutely nodded towards the teacher before she gathered her things and left the classroom.

When she entered the hallway, it was already empty. She made her way to her locker, not far away and exchanged her psychology textbook for her biology one. Just as she was finishing up, she turned around to see Indigo Zap stalking towards her.

Twilight backed up in surprise, her back hitting her closed locker. Indigo’s smile might seem perfectly pleasant, but Twilight had seen it often enough to know what it meant

“Hey, Sparky,“ Indigo put her hand on the locker behind Twilight and leaned in, partially trapping her there. Twilight gripped her textbook to her chest.

“It was cute of you to come sit with me and the girls at lunch the other day.” Indigo said.

Twilight huffed. “That’s not the word I’d use.” She muttered.

Indigo just smiled in response. “So anyway, I got this essay I have to turn in for geology tomorrow. But the funny thing is I haven’t started it yet, and I frankly don’t feel like doing it.” She brought her free hand up to brush one of Twilight’s bangs out of her face. “I was hoping you’d be nice enough to help me out, since we’re friends and all.”

Twilight looked away. Indigo’s smile was frankly unpleasant to look at.

“Fine, I’ll do it.” Twilight sighed. She kept her answer simple and quick, wanting to get away from Indigo as soon as possible. It wasn’t that she wanted to do other peoples homework, but she knew from experience it was simpler to just accept it with Indigo. And trying to get Principal Cinch to intervene hadn’t gotten any results yet.

Indigo grinned a toothy smile. “Good, I knew I could rely on a good friend like you. You should sit with us more often at lunch,” She stepped back from Twilight and started down the hall. “I’ll send the details when I get home,” She called before rounding a corner.

Twilight sighed and walked the opposite way, towards her lab, having absolutely no interest in spending more time than necessary with Indigo or any of the Shadowbolts.

Her lab was only a couple of hallways away, so she got there pretty quickly. There was no sign of this ‘Sunset’ yet.

She unlocked the door with the key Cinch had given her for the janitor’s-closet-turned-lab. She sat down in her desk chair and groaned.

I guess I’m not going to get any work done today. Between tutoring the new student and doing Indigo’s homework for her, I won’t have any free time.

She groaned a second time for good measure. She didn’t feel like getting started on anything, since Sunset should be showing up any moment now, so she just opened up her biology book to try to plan out the study session.

Knock, knock.

“Come in,” Twilight called.

The door opened to reveal the face of Twilight’s maybe-soon-to-be-friend, if Cadance had her way that was. She felt a knot form in her stomach again, this one quite strong.

“Twilight!?” The girl asked. She seemed oddly surprised, though Twilight couldn’t really see why she would be.

“Oh, I guess Cadance already told you my name. You’re Sunset I presume?” Twilight stood up and offered her hand to Sunset.

Sunset stood in the doorway, seemingly hesitant. “Oh, uh… yeah, she did.” She reached out and shook Twilight’s hand. “I’m Sunset Shimmer. Nice to me you.”

Twilight took a good look at her new study partner. She was a little taller than Twilight, and had long flowing yellow and red hair. Her smile also looked a bit goofy at the moment, like she was trying not to laugh. Twilight’s hopes — and smile — fell at seeing her expression. She brought her arms up to hug herself as she looked away. “Something funny?” It came out more aggressive than she intended.

Twilight glanced back to see Sunset’s shocked expression. “No, I didn’t mean… It’s just-” She cut herself off, looking around for an excuse for her slight. “You look a lot like someone else I know. Except for the glasses.” She giggled. Twilight relaxed a little at seeing this. It didn’t sound like a made up excuse, except maybe for the hesitation. Twilight raised an eyebrow at her response.

Sunset looked around herself. “Whoa, you have this place all to yourself?” she asked in awe.

Twilight took another look at the girl, noticing a few more things about her. Most prominently that Cadance had been underselling her when she called her ‘cute’. This girl was outright gorgeous, the only thing about her that wasn’t was her outfit. The CPA uniform didn’t really suit her all that well.

“Yep,” Twilight answered, allowing a bit of pride in her voice. “Principal Cinch let me have one of the janitor’s closets to do my research in after a couple of my papers were published. I had help turning it into a proper lab, though.”

Sunset gave her an approving smile. “Sounds like I’m in good hands then.”

Twilight smiled, then noticed that Sunset was holding two cans of soda.

Following her gaze, Sunset held out one can to Twilight. “Here, I got thirsty after class, and figured I’d bring something for you too.”

“Thanks,” Twilight mumbled, taking the can.

Sunset opened her own can then sat down in the guest / classroom chair. Twilight sitting back in her own — much more comfortable — desk chair.

Twilight eyed her soda wearily, a side effect of having been the subject of a number of pranks in her school years. It was still sealed, so Sunset couldn’t have tampered with it, unless she was really good, which she might be for all Twilight new. If it is a prank, then I should just get it over with so I can kick her out and get some actual work done.

Sunset scooter her chair next to Twilight’s. Putting her drink on the desk, she pulled out her own biology book.

Twilight took a sip from her drink, keeping her eyes on Sunset. If she had put something in the drink, she would undoubtedly be watching for Twilight’s reaction. But she just flipped through the pages of her own book, and Twilight enjoyed a nice refreshing beverage.

“So, I was thinking we could start with chapter four. My old school was pretty slow on the material, so I’m pretty far behind.” Sunset looked up to Twilight with… something. Curiosity? Admiration?

Twilight decided to shelve that mystery. She wasn’t the best at reading faces, anyway.

She flipped her book to the appropriate chapter. “We covered chapter four a couple of weeks before winter break in class. It’ll take a few days to get you caught up. How often did you want to have these study sessions?”

“I was kinda hoping we could have them everyday after school, just until I’m all caught up. If that’s okay with you?” Sunset replied.

“Oh, uhm. Sure,” Twilight said. She wasn’t too happy about spending so much of her free time on this — she still had plenty of projects to be working on after all — but this way, she could just get it over with sooner, anyway.

Besides, Sunset seemed genuinely interested in learning, which gave her some hope that this could, maybe, actually be fun.

Twilight caught herself staring at the girl and cleared her throat. “So anyway, let’s start, shall we?”

“One,” Twilight held up a single finger, eyes still locked on her book, “all life is composed of cells. Two,” a second finger joined the first, “the cell is the basic unit of life, and three,” a third finger joined. “All cells come from other cells.”

Twilight looked up at Sunset, and for a second she wondered if Sunset had just seen the secrets of the universe on the wall behind her. A quick glance over her shoulder showed nothing out of the ordinary.

“Uh, are you okay there, Sunset?” Twilight asked tentatively. Sunset closed her open mouth and shook her head.

“Yeah, sorry. I just had no idea about all that.” Sunset stared off into the distance. If Twilight didn’t know better, she’d say that the girl had just had her entire world turned on it’s head

The following silence made Twilight slightly nervous. “Didn’t they cover this in your old school?” She asked.

Sunset looked at her again and shrugged. “Not this exactly, and what they did cover seems to have been heavily simplified, compared to what this place teaches. In the classes I’ve had today, I’ve noticed that I’m gonna need to catch up a little in those ones too.” She paused for a moment, staring into space. “I had no idea that all life was made up millions of tiny little cells that each have their own little role. It’s kind of crazy.”

“Well, didn’t you ever come across it before? Like on TV, or just conversation with others?” Twilight had to wonder how someone could have near perfect grades in almost every subject, and yet be so uninformed about this one.

Sunset’s eyes widened, and she started rubbing one arm with her other hand. “Well, no. Biology wasn’t all that big where I’m from. Hehe.” Twilight just stared. Did I hit an uncomfortable subject? Is this some kind of prank after all, and she’s badly trying to cover a lie?

Twilight didn’t spend too long thinking on it, and decided to just let it slide. “Well, that’s why you’re here. Hehe,” she laughed nervously. Why do all my social interaction devolve to awkward laughing and avoiding eye contact?

The awkward silence was broken by Twilight’s phone ringing, the calm classical music did little to settle her nerves. Twilight grabbed the phone and answered it in record time.

“Hello?”

“Twilight, why aren’t you home yet?” Came the rather annoyed voice of Twilight’s mother.

“Oh. Sorry, Mom. I guess I just lost track of time. I’ll take the next bus home.”

“Dinner’s already ready, so you’ll just have to reheat it when you get here.”

Twilight idly checked the clock on the wall. It was far later than she had realized, she and Sunset had been here for a few hours already. Cadance had offered Twilight a ride earlier when she left, but that had felt like a few minutes ago, not a few hours ago.

Sunset followed Twilight’s sight and was similarly shocked.

“Sorry, Mom. I’ll be right over.” Twilight apologized again.

“Alright, sweetie. I’ll see you soon.”

Twilight hung up the phone. “I guess that’ll do for today,” Twilight told Sunset.

Sunset nodded. “Yeah. Sorry for stealing your whole afternoon,” she said sheepishly.

Twilight waved her hand in a dismissive motion. “Nonsense. We made lot’s of progress. Plus… it was kinda fun,” Twilight admitted, standing up and putting on her parka, then making her way to the door.

“Definitely,” Sunset agreed. She put her textbook and notebook in her bag, then stood up to follow Twilight.

“You’re taking the bus home?” Sunset asked, getting a nod in response. “If the ground wasn’t covered in snow and ice, I could’ve given you a ride on my motorcycle.” Sunset grinned.

Twilight paled slightly, remembering all the statistical evidence of the dangers a motorcyclist faced. “Uhm. I think I’d rather not,” she gripped the textbook to her chest defensively.

Sunset laughed. “Well, you wouldn’t be the first one.”

“M-maybe someday.” She smiled at Sunset, hoping her smile wasn’t too obviously strained. “So, are you taking the bus too, or?” she let the question hang.

Sunset shook her head. “I’m close enough that I can just walk.”

They left the lab together, and walked down the hall towards the rotunda.

“So, when does the bus get here?” Sunset asked.

“Let’s see,” Twilight pulled out her phone to check the time. “It comes by at fifteen minutes past… which is in five minutes.” As Twilight put her phone away, she fumbled and dropped it. Darn it!” Twilight covered her mouth and looked at Sunset in shock.

Sunset simply chuckled at her slip. “Aw, did the widdle girl just say a naughty word?” she teased.

Twilight picked up her phone and was pleased to see it hadn’t cracked.

Sunset was still laughing — albeit good-naturedly — so she shoved her in the shoulder. “Hey, don’t tease me. My parents are very strict about language.” This just made Sunset laugh even harder. Twilight just crossed her arms and waited it out, continuing on a little ways and stopping at her locker.

Sunset caught a few moments later, her textbook having been replaced with a stylish leather jacket. “Sorry, you’re just really cute when you’re flustered.” Twilight turned away to hide her blush. “Let me make it up you. You said the bus is in five minutes, so how about I give you some company while you wait?”

Twilight started at that. “Y-you want to wait for a bus with me?” She asked. She was faintly aware that her hand had started toying with a lock of her hair, and deliberately made it stop.

“Well, it’s more that I don’t want you to have to wait alone. Unless you’d rather just read a book, or something?” Sunset added. Twilight’s mind ground to a halt. It was very rare that someone — other than family or Cadance — wanted to spend time with her, just to spend time with her.

“I-” Her voice faltered, so she cleared her throat. “I’d l-like that a lot actually.” Excitement and nerves fought within her, and she focused her attention on her breathing for a few seconds to calm herself down as they continued towards the exit.

“So,” Sunset brought Twilight away form her buzzing thoughts. “What kind of hobbies do you have?”

Twilight gave it a moment’s thought. “I like books. My mom’s a writer, so I probably get that from her. I also like learning. That most likely comes from my dad, he teaches at Canterlot University. Between them, my parents have a sizable library at home. I read most of their books by the time I was eleven.” She giggled at the memory of her parents’ reaction when she demanded they get more books, because they didn’t have enough.

“That was kind of expected. Do have any other hobbies, though? Something that might surprise me?” Sunset challenged.

“I also play violin.” Twilight wilted slightly. “I never really had any friends, so I guess gravitated towards hobbies that I could do alone.” She hugged herself, and locked her eyes with the floor.

Soon they came too the schools exit, and Sunset held the door open for her. “Well,” Sunset said as they came outside into the cold. “I like reading and learning as well. But I also like riding my motorcycle when the weather allows me to. I enjoy music and drawing, and I like going to the mall with friends.” She hesitated for a moment before adding, “maybe we could do that last one together, see if you like it too?”

Twilight blushed. She’s inviting me to spend time outside of school? She could hear her own heartbeat at this point. “That would be great actually. I don’t go to the mall often.” Her voice was so timid, she wasn’t even sure Sunset had heard her.

“Great, are you free tomorrow after school?” Sunset asked with a smile.

Twilight giggled, “I’m free pretty much every day after school actually.” As she realized what she said, she blushed, then turned away and cleared her throat. “Anyway, It’s this way to the bus stop.” She pointed in the general direction, and started off, Sunset keeping up with her.

“We can head to the mall after our study session tomorrow, then.” Sunset said.

Twilight just smiled and nodded, not wanting to give her mouth any more chances to embarrass herself.

“Great, would you mind if I added you on MyStable? You know, just so we can keep in touch?”

Twilight reached for her phone, nearly dropping it again as she fumbled pulling it out of her pocket. Why are my hands so shaky today?

“S-sure. Yeah. Uhm.” She wasn’t really sure what to do here. This was all pretty new to her. “I-it’s, uhm, Twilight Sparkle.” Sunset started tapping on her own phone, and before long Twilight got a friend request. She held back a giggle as she accepted it.

They reached the bus stop, and stopped to face each other.

Twilight took a cursory glance at Sunset’s profile. “Huh,” She said, “you have even fewer friends than I do.” And that said a lot too, given she only had Shining and Cadance, plus a couple of cousins who she almost never saw. Sunset only had two.

“Yeah,” Sunset responded bitterly, “I used to have a lot more, but I recently did a bit of spring cleaning on my profile.”

Twilight raised her head to look at the now brooding girl. “Cadance told me that something had happened at your old school and that you wanted to get away from it.” She put on her best soft voice, instinctively trying not to provoke the almost-angry girl.

Sunset huffed. “Yeah, something like that. I don’t really want to go into detail right now, but I basically lost all my friends, and decided to get a fresh start.” She looked away for moment, before changing the subject. “So how come you decided to tutor the new kid when you already have a bunch of extra curricular projects going on?” Sunset asked.

Twilight looked down, playing with the hem of her skirt. “It was Cadance’s idea, actually. She wanted me to spend less time cooped up in my lab and to actually make some friends.”

“Oh. Are you and Dean Cadance close?” Sunset asked.

Twilight nodded. “She used to be my babysitter when I was little. That was years ago, but she still looks out for me even now.” She chuckled.

“That’s really sweet,” Sunset smiled.

They stood in silence a moment, before the bus came into view in the distance. Twilight moved to stand closer to the curb.

Turning to Sunset she said, “thanks for keeping me company. I’ll see you again tomorrow?” Twilight asked. She wasn’t entirely sure why she said that as though it was a question.

“Yep, I look forward to it.” Sunset responded as she stood back a little. The bus rolled up and Sunset gave Twilight a wave. “Bye.”

Twilight waved back before she got on the bus, smiling wide.

Author's Note

A little behind the scenes for those interested.

I imagine it will come as a surprise to no one what those mysterious reading Twilight picked up are all about, but I'd like to mention the timing of them.

As far as I know, they never specify exactly how much time passes between the Equestria Girls movies. We know that the first one took place in fall (because of the Fall Formal) and that Anon-a-miss, which takes place after Rainbow Rocks, takes place around the holidays.

In this story, the Fall Formal was four months earlier, in August. The Battle of the Bands was two months earlier, in November. And the story takes place in early January, just after the winter break.

If you see any grammatical errors, please PM me so I can fix them

2. The New Status Quo

When Twilight got off the bus, she could hardly believe how the day had gone. Sunset wants to spend time with me outside school? She thought, she actually wants to spend time with me after school! Her smile kept returning every time she thought about the mall trip tomorrow.

The walk from the bus stop to her home was only a few minutes long, and by the time she reached her house, her giddy excitement had barely faded.

She made a beeline for the kitchen, throwing out a casual “Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad,” when she passed them in the living room, and getting a pair of greetings in response. She found a plate of lasagna in the fridge and popped it in the microwave.

She gave Spike a few belly rubs while she waited. Then she brought her heated dinner out to the living room, intending to take it upstairs to her bedroom.

“How was school?” Her mother asked. “Cadance told us that you were tutoring a new student.”

Twilight stopped to answer her. “It was great!” Twilight said happily. “Sunset’s really fun to talk to. We’re even going hang out at the mall tomorrow.”

Her parents faces lit up. “You made a friend!?” Twilight Velvet squeed. She stood up from the sofa and pulled her daughter into a hug. “That’s wonderful.”

Twilight moved her plate to the side, making sure it didn’t get spilled all over them in the hug.

Velvet backed off. “And what are you tutoring her in?”

“Biology, mostly. But she’ll need a bit of help catching up in most of her classes.” Twilight replied.

“Oh, biology is such a bore” Velvet droned, “I could never remember the names of all the different hormones and muscle types and cell parts.” Twilight rolled her eyes.

“Well, lucky for me, Sunset actually finds the subject fascinating.” Twilight said.

“That’s good to hear, sweetie,” Night added.

“Thanks. So, can I go eat my food before it gets cold again?” Twilight asked sarcastically.

Velvet gave her a stern look. “Not if you think you’re going to eat it in your room, young lady.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and returned to the kitchen.

After her late dinner, Twilight went to her bedroom and collapsed into her desk chair.

Her bedroom was an appropriate one for a bookworm like her. She had a bed at the far wall with a wardrobe next to it, a desk under a poster of the periodic table of elements to the right. And to the left, a telescope pointing out the window flanked by two bookcases.

Twilight turned on her computer and opened up MyStable. She had given Sunset’s profile a glance at the bus stop, but she was curious how much she could find out about her new friend. Not in a creepy way or anything, though. She was just curious about the few other friends Sunset had on there.

Twilight looked at the short list and felt knot of nervous excitement at seeing herself in there. She then looked at the other two names on that list.

Celestia and Luna.

They felt familiar to Twilight. She was sure she had seen those names together somewhere, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. She shrugged and decided she’d simply ask Sunset about it sometime.

Putting that question on the back-burner, Twilight decided to have a look at what stores were in the mall. She hadn’t been there in ages and wanted to, at the very least, plan out which stores she wanted to visit.

The bookstore captured her interest, naturally. The arcade might be fun, if Sunset was interested too. Or the cinema, Twilight was a little interested in a Sci-fi movie they where showing this week. There were an awful lot of clothes stores there, Sunset would probably want to check some of those out.

A half hour of idle research later, and Twilight remembered something rather important. She still had to write up Indigo’s essay for her geology class, and she only had a couple of hours left before she had to send it to Indigo!

Looking over the project description that Indigo had sent her, Twilight knew it would take more time than she had to get an A worthy essay. Hopefully Indigo won’t be too mad about a B. Why do so many students leave their work till the very last day? Twilight lamented, as she cracked her knuckles and got to work.

Twilight didn’t feel great when she woke up. Having to hastily write an essay the way she did made her feel awful, even if it wasn’t for her own class.

She had done the necessary research in only half an hour, and had less than two hours to actually write the essay before she had to send it over to Indigo so she could turn it in before the deadline. The essay was clearly not meant to be written in one day, and had it actually been assigned to Twilight, she would certainly not have left it so long before starting it.

She did her best to put the pestering thoughts out of her mind as she pulled herself out of bed and into the bathroom for her morning routine.

After a quick shower, she went downstairs for breakfast, barely mumbling a ‘good morning’ to her dad — Clearly her mood still hadn’t fully recovered — before sitting down and pouring herself some cereal.

“Sleep well?” Night asked tentatively.

“Not really,” Twilight grumbled, “had some persistent thoughts keeping me up.”

“Worrying about the trip to the mall today?” Her dad asked as he sipped his coffee.

Twilight was about to correct his assumption before her sleep-addled mind remembered that she didn’t want to talk about Indigo pawning off homework to her. She already knew it was pointless, Indigo had Principal Cinch on her side, and with Cinch’s connections and authority, that made Indigo practically untouchable.

“Yeah, something like that,” Twilight took advantage of the easy lie. “Mom sleeping in today?”

Night laughed, “Making your own schedule has it’s perks,” he responded. “Shining’s still at Cadance’s. I swear if this keeps up, he’ll have practically moved there by Monday.”

Twilight just nodded at that. She finished her breakfast quickly and went back to her room to get ready for school.

She put on her school uniform and put her hair into her usual bun. She stared at her reflection for a while, noticing some imperfections in her skin. She took out her seldom used makeup kit that her aunt had bought for her birthday. She didn’t know much about using makeup, but she could at least put on some concealer and eyeshadow.

She then took a brush to her hair, loosing her bun and putting it in a ponytail instead. That looks a bit more casual, she thought. She wanted to look her best today, it wasn’t often she had someone to look good for. Family didn’t count, of course.

When she was satisfied she had done the best that her — admittedly limited — abilities allowed, Twilight went downstairs.

The bus ride to school was rather monotonous, so she listened to some Bach to pass the time.

Her first class today was Biology. She was the first student in the classroom when the bell rang, and she took her usual seat in the front. As she watched the other students enter and take their seats, she was surprised to see a familiar red and blond haired girl enter the classroom.

“Sunset!” Twilight waved her friend over, and Sunset took the desk next to hers.

“Hey, Twilight. I’m glad to have a familiar face in at least one of my classes” Sunset said.

The teacher entered the classroom and Twilight and Sunset got out their textbooks and notebooks. The class ended up being mostly a lecture, with the students really only taking down notes. Twilight looked over at Sunset from time to time, and found that she seemed rather bored. Thought she was still taking notes on everything.

Twilight leaned over to Sunset while the teacher was facing the whiteboard. “Are you getting any of this?” She whispered to the distracted girl.

“Just bits and pieces. I’ll have to look over my notes again when I’m caught up” Sunset whispered back.

Class continued in that same way until the bell rang. “So,” Twilight began as she and Sunset started down the hallway, “did you have any plans for the mall today?”

“Well, there are a few stores I want to check out, but mostly I figured we’d just roam around and see if anything interested us.” Sunset shrugged. “It’s not that big, so we don’t really need to plan it out meticulously.” She paused and gave Twilight a curious glance, “unless you want to plan every detail?”

Twilight started twirling a lock of her hair in her finger. “I do have a habit of planning these kinds of things down to the last detail. But I wouldn’t mind just ‘winging it’ if that’s what you prefer.”

Sunset smiled at her, “okay, if you’re sure.” She looked at one of the classroom doors. “This is my next class,” She said, pointing over her shoulder at the door.

“Okay, I’ll see you later,” Twilight waved goodbye.

“See you at lunch?” Sunset asked.

“Sure,” Twilight’s eyes lit up with the suggestion. She had an extra spring in her step as she made her way to her next class.

Twilight’s next two classes where uneventful, and she quickly found herself in the cafeteria, sitting down at an empty table in one corner. After a few moments, she was joined by Sunset.

“Hey, Twilight,” Sunset said. She did not have a tray of food with her, and instead pulled a lunch box out of her backpack.

“Hi, Sunset. You get a packed lunch?” Twilight asked as she started eating her bland tasting chicken nuggets.

“Yup. I’m vegetarian, so I can’t eat most of the food they serve here.” Sunset explained “Plus I’ve heard that it tastes pretty bad.” she added in a stage whisper.

Twilight looked hungrily at the salad and fruits in Sunset’s lunch box, then turned her gaze to her own bland looking lunch, her face falling.

Sunset had clearly seen this, since Twilight heard her laugh. She looked up and saw Sunset push her lunch box a little closer to Twilight. “Here,” she said, smiling, “you can have some of mine if you want. Mom always gives me more than I need anyway.”

Twilight returned Sunset’s smile with one of her own. “Thanks,” she said.

They ate in silence for a few minutes. Twilight mostly ate her own lunch, but would have a piece of fruit or salad now and then. It really put into perspective how much better it was than the cafeteria food.

“So, how do you like Crystal prep so far?” Twilight asked in between bites.

“I like it,” Sunset responded, “it’s more demanding than my old school, which is good, because my old school was a bit too slow for me. The extra schoolwork also gives me something to spend my free time on now that I don’t have a whole group of friends to spend it with.” Sunset’s face fell for a moment. She sighed before her smile returned. “Most of the students here aren’t great, but I seem to have found the best one.” She winked and nudged Twilight’s shoulder playfully.

Twilight blushed. “I’m not… I don’t…” she stuttered. “Uhm. Thanks,” she eventually said.

Twilight went back to her food, and before long, she noticed that Sunset was finished. Her head was resting in one hand, the arm propped on the table, and she was looking at her.

“Everything okay?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah, I just noticed you have your hair in a ponytail today.” Sunset reached out and fiddled with Twilight’s hair, causing her fading blushing to return. “I like it. It suits you.” Sunset added. Twilight made a mental note to wear her hair in a ponytail more often.

“Th-thanks,” Twilight had no idea what else to say, so she just went back to her food. When she was finished, they still had a few minutes before their next class.

“What’s your schedule like?” Twilight asked,” I’m curious to see if we share any more classes.”

They both pulled up their schedules on their phones to compare.

“Oh, we have P.E. together too!” Twilight said cheerfully.” I hate that class, maybe now it’ll be a bit more bearable.”

Sunset chuckled. “What are friends for, if not to make boring classes fun,” she said sarcastically.

They spent the rest of the lunch period chatting about what books they liked, and soon the conversation was centered around the Daring Do series.

“My favorite is Daring Do and the Griffin’s Goblet.” Twilight said, her eyes shining with joy at being able to talk about one of her favorite book series to someone who had actually read them.

“I like that one too,” Sunset said, tentatively, “but my favorite has got to be Daring Do and the Legend of the Lost Art.” Sunset took a sip from her water bottle.

Twilight gave her a confused look. “But, that one doesn’t come out until next summer.” She stated.

Sunset’s eyes widened, and started choking on the water. After a few moments, and a few slaps on the back, courtesy of Twilight, Sunset recovered and gave a nervous laugh. “Sorry, I’m just so exited for that one, I sometimes say it’s name by mistake. I meant to say that my favorite is Daring Do and the Ring of Destiny.”

“You must be excited for the movie then too, right?” Twilight asked.

Sunset nodded. “Definitely. Which book do you think they'll choose for the story?”

“I personally hope they pick the Griffin's Goblet, but being realistic, I assume they’ll pick the Quest for the Sapphire Stone.” Twilight replied.

Just at that moment, the bell rang, and they left the cafeteria for their class.

Twilight looked back at her schedule. “Hey, we have P.E. now, I can show you how to get to the gym,” Twilight offered.

They stopped over at their lockers to grab their P.E. outfits.

Twilight led her friend over to the gymnasium, outside and off to one side of the main building.

“So, I heard this place is pretty big on sports, not to mention all the trophy displays in the hallways.” Sunset said.

“Yes, but thankfully that's just if you're on the sports teams. P.E. class isn’t too bad. Usually just some running and a game, like soccer or dodgeball. I usually just stand in the corner for the last two.” Twilight added quietly.

Sunset giggled. “Yeah, you do seem like that type.“

They got to the locker room and changed into their P.E. uniforms, Twilight keeping her eyes locked on the inside of her locker the whole time. The school had its own P.E. uniform in addition to the normal one, thus all the students had the same dark red shorts and dark blue t-shirt.

Today, they were just running laps. Sunset stayed next to Twilight the whole time, even though it was clear that she could have been going much faster. They shared the occasional conversation, but they were mostly pretty short, largely because Twilight had a hard time talking in between her panting. She was thankful for the company anyway.

With twenty minutes left of class, the teacher had them all play dodgeball. Twilight and Sunset were put on the same team and Twilight, true to her word, spent the whole time in the corner, hoping she wouldn’t be targeted. Most of the other students had learned that she wasn’t a threat and had stopped aiming for her.

Sunset, meanwhile became very competitive. She wasn’t the best shot on the team, but she was good at paying attention to everything that was happening — an impressive feat given that they were playing with four separate balls — and actually shouted out orders and warnings every now and then to her teammates. She even got Twilight to throw a ball a couple of times when one landed near her. She missed every time, of course, but it still felt kinda nice to not be invisible for once.

Back in the locker room came the part that Twilight always dreaded, no matter how many times she did it. Twilight kept her face close to her locker as all the girls undressed and went to the showers, chatting happily about some gossip or other.

She fought to keep her blush at bay as she herself stripped, keeping her eyes focused on the inside of her locker.

“Hurry up, Twilight, I want to get all this sweat cleaned off ASAP.” Twilight turned to look at Sunset and instantly lost the battle with her blush. Sunset was completely naked, unless you counted the towel she had tossed over her shoulder.

Twilight quickly turned her eyes back to her locker, but the image stuck in her head. “Sunset! Uhm, that was, uh, quick. J-just gimme a sec.” Her anxiety only increased at the thought of Sunset watching her as she finished undressing.

“Oh, right.” Sunset said in an apologetic voice.” People often tell me I’m a bit too comfortable with nudity. My bad.” Twilight heard the rustling of a towel, and when she had undressed herself, she turned and saw that Sunset had wrapped her towel around herself, just as Twilight had.

They went into the showers and Twilight did her best to think about anything other than the room full of naked girls she was in. It was made slightly easier with her glasses off. Sunset continued their conversation about Daring Do, completely unfazed by her surroundings. Well, she did say she was comfortable with nudity, Twilight reasoned. She kept up the conversation with Sunset, glad for the distraction. Though she was putting in a lot more effort to maintain eye contact than usual.

Once they had finished, and gotten dressed, Sunset and Twilight headed for Twilight’s lab. On the way there, Twilight tried to get the image of Sunset’s naked body out of her mind, but it kept popping up again and again. I have a feeling it’s going to pop up tonight when I go to sleep, too. Twilight already felt ashamed at the thought. It wouldn’t be the first time she did that while thinking about the P.E. locker room, but… thinking that way about a friend made her feel… dirty.

They made their way to Twilight’s lab, since P.E. was their last class of the day. Twilight kept her eyes fixed straight forward until they got there, barely engaging with Sunset who was now talking about something she was having trouble with in her chemistry class.

Twilight managed to get that image out of her head after a few minutes of tutoring Sunset. Instead of continuing with their biology recap, Twilight and Sunset decided to spend this study session on helping Sunset with the small gaps in her knowledge in her other classes. They made sure not to get too distracted and spend the whole afternoon here, like yesterday.

“How are we getting to the mall, by the way?” Sunset asked, “I kinda forgot to think about that.”

“I might be able to get Cadance to drive us, or we could take the bus.” Twilight replied. Looking at the clock on the wall, she noticed it was only a few minutes to until the bus arrived. “If we leave now we can catch the bus and be at the mall in about twenty minutes.”

Sunset nodded. “Okay, that works.” She put her textbooks into her backpack.

Twilight stood up, stretching her arms, then put on her coat and scarf. “What do you want to do first when we get there?” she asked.

“I kinda want to go to the arcade,” Sunset said.

“That sounds fun.” They left the lab and made their way to their lockers, dropping off their school supplies, before heading outside.

It was snowing now. Sunset pulled her jacket tighter around herself, while Twilight put on a pair of dark blue mittens she’d had in her pockets.

“Ugh, I hate winter.” She complained.

Twilight giggled. “Winter’s actually my favorite season.”

Sunset gave her an incredulous look. “How can you actually like winter?”

“Because I love how everything looks in the snow. I like being able to wear my parka, and because there aren’t any bugs in the winter,” Twilight counted off her fingers. The effect was diminished by the mittens.

“Well, I miss the sun,” Sunset said. “And the warmth, and the soft grass.” After a brief pause, she chuckled. “Figures you’d be the type to be scared of bugs,” she teased.

Twilight pouted at her. “I’m not scared of bugs,” she defended herself. “They just make me feel really uncomfortable when they’re around.”

They got to the relative safety of the bus stop shelter, which protected them from most of the falling snow.

Sunset shivered and pulled up the collar of her jacket.

Noticing this, Twilight took off her scarf. “Here. You look like you’re freezing.”

Sunset eyed the scarf for a second, then smiled and accepted it. “Thanks.” The scarf didn’t exactly match Sunset’s colors, but it at least kept her warm.

Looking at her phone, Twilight saw it was still a couple of minutes before the bus would arrive.

“So,” Sunset broke the short silence, “What projects are you working on in that lab of yours? Must be something pretty important, right?”

Twilight nodded fervently. “I have a couple of projects going on right now. There’s one I’ve been working on for four months that I’m completely stuck on.”

Sunset crossed her arms. “Four months, huh? That’s a pretty long time.”

“I know! It’s infuriating sometimes,” Twilight huffed. “So, it started out as a simple research paper where I wanted to measure electromagnetic activity in the city. And a few days in, I picked up some readings that couldn’t be explained by anything that would be considered normal in a city. It was some kind of incredibly strong electromagnetic field, localized to a very small area.” Twilight took a deep breath, having spent all her air during her rant.

“Uhm. Did you say this happened four months ago?” Sunset rubbed the back of her head, nervously. Twilight nodded. “And it wouldn’t have been happening around Canterlot High, would it?”

Twilight’s eyes widened in excitement. “That’s exactly where I picked up the readings! Do you know something about it? Were you there?!”

Sunset shook her head and hands. “No! I just used to go to CHS before I transfered here, but… uhm. I wasn’t at school that day, I just heard from the other student’s that something really strange had happened.” She laughed nervously.

Twilight wasn’t fully convinced, but it was clear that whether or not Sunset knew something, she didn’t want to talk about it. At least, not now.

“Okay,” Twilight conceded. “I guess the only lead I have left is to go there and ask people if they saw anything.”

“Uhm. I don’t think that would get you anywhere,” Sunset said. “From what I could tell, the students didn’t have anything concrete on what happened. Just sort of vague descriptions and stuff.” More nervous laughter.

Twilight remained unconvinced. Did it have something to do with her personally? Did she do something that she doesn’t want me to know about? Or maybe she just doesn’t want me to talk to her old classmates, she did say she didn’t want to talk about her past and that she wanted a fresh start. While she pondered Sunset’s odd behavior, the bus showed up.

Twilight got in and Sunset followed her. After taking their seats, Sunset immediately changed the subject.

“I still don’t understand how you could actually like winter,” she huffed, brushing stray snowflakes off her jacket.

Twilight rolled her eyes. She humored Sunset’s change in subject, but made a mental note about her odd behavior.

Author's Note

If you see any grammatical errors, please PM me so I can fix them

4. Sunset Saviour

When Twilight woke up the next morning, she decided to take a very long shower, slowly washing away the thoughts from last night. Afterwards, she went through her usual routine, and put on a little makeup as well.

She still had a few extra minutes before she had to leave for school, and decided to use that time to make herself a packed lunch. Sunset really has the right idea here.

Twilight listened to music on the bus ride again. She had chosen Beethoven today, and was reminded that she had agreed to play for Sunset.

She was nervous about seeing her again. She wanted to stay friends with Sunset, of course. But a part of her felt like she would somehow know what Twilight did, or that she would give it away somehow.

Twilight didn’t run into Sunset on her way to her first class. Thankfully, learning about Ivan Pavlov and Classical Conditioning managed to put Sunset out of her mind during the class.

When the bell rang, Twilight realized that her next class was biology, which she shared with Sunset. As the rest of the students left the classroom, Twilight lingered, putting her books away with more care and less hurry than normal. She knew she had to face Sunset again, to look her in the eye and act like nothing had happened, but she still wanted to put it off, even knowing it wouldn’t help. Thus she delayed, knowing that it would do her no good.

Twilight decided to take a secluded path to her next class. She preferred to avoid the more crowded hallways, and today, she really didn’t feel like having to deal with the other students bumping into her constantly. When she was nearing her next classroom, she heard a voice call from behind her.

“Hey, Sparky, wait up!”

Twilight turned and saw Indigo jogging to catch up to her. Judging by her expression, Twilight’s mood was about to get even worse..

“Hello, Indigo,” she said in a neutral voice.

When Indigo reached her, she put her hands on her hips. “Sooo, about that essay you wrote for me.” Twilight started fidgeting her hands. “I got a B- for it. Now, I was hoping to get at least a B+. I spoke to the teacher, and if I want to keep my grades high enough to satisfy my parents, I’ll have to do some extra credit. Of course, the soccer tournament will be starting soon, so I won’t have much time to study.” Indigo’s voice was laced with mock self pity. “Since you got me into this mess, I figure it’s only fair you help me out, right?”

Twilight felt a bubble of anger towards the bully for blaming her for any problems she had. She tried to force the anger down, it hadn’t helped her the first time, and it would do any better now. She tried, but, her anger still got the best of her.

“Well, maybe if you didn’t leave your homework until the last day, I could have helped you more! Or, better yet, maybe you wouldn’t even need to rely on other student’s to do your homework if you actually payed attention in class, instead of constantly staring at Neon Light’s butt!” Twilight was practically shouting at this point.

Her eyes widened and her anger withered as she realized what she had just done. Indigo glared at her. Twilight backed up out of sheer instinct, and Indigo followed after her, grabbing her by the shirt and pushing her up against the wall. There was murder in those eyes.

“Why you little-”

“Hey!”

Both Twilight and Indigo looked around at the sudden interruption and Twilight felt a hint of hope at seeing Sunset standing there with her arms folded over her chest. Her normally kind features twisted in a snarl.

“Put her down!” She demanded.

Indigo let go of Twilight, but she didn’t move away, keeping her trapped against the wall. “You’re the new girl, right? Well, let me give you a little tip for surviving this place. Don’t get in my way.”

Sunset laughed. A low, dark laugh that didn’t suit her. Her mouth twisted into a condescending smile, "Listen, Goggles, I may be new to this school, but I have more than enough experience with this particular game.” Taking a few steps closer, Sunset continued. “How about you leave my friend alone, and I don’t make your life a living hell? Sound good?”

Twilight gaped at her friend. The same person that she was tutoring, who helped her pick out a cute new outfit, or the person who flinched every time someone mentioned her old school. She looked downright intimidating, and Twilight realized she had been wrong a moment ago. This did suit her. A little too well, in fact, like she was used to it.

Indigo looked between Sunset and Twilight a couple of times. “You don’t scare me.” Twilight thought she could hear a faint quiver in Indigo’s voice, but that must have been her imagination. Right?

Sunset smirked at Indigo, folding her arms. “Yeah, they all say that at first.”

Indigo was looking nervous now. Twilight could she a bead of sweat on her forehead. Indigo kept her gaze locked on Sunset for a few seconds, before the bell rang.

Twilight nearly jumped at the sudden sound. Indigo, meanwhile, backed off.

“You got lucky this time, Sparky,” she said, keeping her eyes on Sunset backed away and around the corner.

Sunset breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank the stars she backed off.” Twilight turned to her friend and noticed that she seemed even more relieved than she herself did. “She looked pretty tough. Sports captain, I assume?”

Twilight took a moment to figure out what just happened. “Uhm, yeah. She’s the soccer captain, and she plays for a few other teams as well.”

Sunset nodded and pointed in the direction of their next class. “Let’s get moving, so we’re not late.”

Twilight followed along, glancing nervously at Sunset every few seconds, wondering what to say. Sunset’s demeanor had returned to normal. Twilight felt her muscles slowly relaxing again.

“Thanks for saving me. I really got her angry this time.”

Sunset gave her a worried look. “Does she threaten you often?”

Twilight thought back to her encounters with Indigo. “No. I usually just do what she wants. It makes things easier.” Twilight drew in on herself as she said this.

Sunset put her arm around Twilight’s shoulders. “That’s exactly what she wants you to do. Take it from me, a bully’s worst fear, is for their victims to stand up to them. They thrive on having power over others, if you refuse to give them that power, they have nothing.”

“Except their fists.” Twilight muttered.

“Have you told anyone about this. Cadance, or the Principal?” Sunset asked.

Twilight nodded. They had reached the classroom, so Twilight delayed the rest of the explanation until they had seated themselves in one corner.

“I told Principal Cinch about it the first time,” she said, bitterly. “She told me that she felt sympathetic, but that she couldn’t do anything drastic to Indigo, because she was important for the sports tournaments. I assumed she would do something to stop Indigo from continuing to bully other students, but nothing changed. Turns out she cares more about trophies than the wellbeing of her students.” Twilight banished the bitterness from her voice, with much effort. “Anyway, next I went to Cadance, who talked to Indigo’s parents. That didn’t do anything either, so I figured there wasn’t anything I could do.” Twilight kept her eyes locked on her textbook.

“Couldn’t Cadance do more for you?”

Twilight shook her head. “Cinch stopped her from doing anything that would ‘compromise the sports teams’,” Twilight huffed, just as the teacher entered and began the lecture.

Twilight and Sunset stayed silent for the rest of the class, and by the end of it, Twilight was feeling a little better. Sunset seemed to genuinely want to help her with Indigo, and she seemed to know what she was doing.

“Hey, Sunset?” Twilight caught her friend’s attention as everyone packed up and left the classroom.

“Yeah?”

“I was wondering about earlier. When you were standing up to Indigo…” Twilight wasn’t sure how to phrase the question.

Sunset looked down. “You’re wondering why I’m so good at playing the bully.” Twilight gave a soft sound of affirmation. Sunset sighed, “that’s because I used to be one, up until about four months ago. I didn’t tell you sooner, because I wanted you to get to know me as I am now. I was worried I might scare you off.” Sunset put her backpack over her shoulders, then met Twilight’s eyes.

Twilight saw worry in those eyes. She quickly shook her head, “you don’t need to worry about me leaving you like that.” She gave Sunset her most reassuring smile. “I’ve seen you for who you are now. It doesn’t matter to me who you used to be.”

Sunset stared at her wide eyed. She looked to be fighting back tears. Twilight was wondering whether she had said something wrong, when Sunset suddenly burst forward and caught her in a tight hug.

“You have no idea how much it means to hear you say that.” Sunset whispered.

Twilight froze up like a deer in headlights. She deliberately ignored the feel of Sunset’s breasts pressing against hers, and patted her lightly on the back. “Uhm, you’re welcome, Sunset.” She said hesitantly.

Sunset let go of her and the two of them left the classroom, both sporting light blushes.

“So,” Sunset said. “What class do you have next?”

“Math, you?” Twilight responded.

“Physics. How about I walk you to your class, and come get you when it’s over?” Twilight gave Sunset a questioning glance. “You know, in case Indigo tries something.” Sunset clarified.

Twilight gave a small smile. “I’d like that.”

“And don’t worry,” Sunset said, her voice darkening a touch, “you might think Indigo is untouchable, but she isn’t.”

Twilight wasn’t really sure how to respond. She was happy that Sunset wanted to help her, but she didn’t want Sunset to get hurt trying to solve her own problem.

Sunset escorted Twilight to her math class before heading off to her own classroom. They didn’t run into Indigo again, and Twilight sincerely hoped it would stay that way.

Today’s lecture involved a topic that Twilight had already studied in advance, allowing her to use the time to read ahead in the textbook, and to plan her study session with Sunset.

Unfortunately, having time to think brought a particular issue back to the forefront of her mind. What was she going to do about last night? Did she need to do anything about last night? What if Sunset found out and didn’t want to spend time with her anymore?

Cadance might know what to do. But I would have to tell her what I did if I want her advice.

Twilight agonized over what to do. Was it worth telling Cadance something so embarrassing if it meant she might help her? Maybe.

The bell rang, and the students filed out of the classroom. Twilight packed up and was about to leave too, when she remembered that Sunset was going to come to her. It made her feel like a child having to wait for an adult come pick her up. But, while it seemed a little embarrassing, it did make her feel safe, too. Plus, she did enjoy Sunset’s company.

The teacher had just finished packing up his things, when Sunset showed up in the doorway.

“Hey, Twilight.” She greeted.

Twilight immediately stood up and rushed for the door. “Hi, Sunset, how was your class?” The two of them left the classroom and started down the hall.

“It was okay. Most of it was stuff I already knew, though. Physics and math come pretty easy to me.”

Twilight nodded. “Hey, how about we have lunch in my lab? I’m not too fond of the cafeteria.”

Sunset hummed in thought. “We’d probably run into Indigo if we went to the cafeteria anyway, best to avoid that for now.” She nodded.

“Great,” Twilight exclaimed, “I brought some lunch from home. I got kinda jealous after seeing yours.” She added in a lower voice.

Sunset chuckled. “What did you bring?” They had reached the lab, and Twilight unlocked it, stepping aside to let Sunset in first.

“I made a salad.” Twilight replied cheerfully.

They sat down at the desk and pulled out their lunch boxes. Sunset eyed Twilight’s salad for a moment.

“Vegetarian, huh?” She crossed her arms, “I did say you don’t need to do that on my account didn’t I?” She accused.

Twilight squirmed under Sunset’s gaze. “It’s not that. I just wanted to try it too, I guess.” Sunset raised an eyebrow at her. “I was never really that fond of meat to begin with, it just became a consistent part of my diet because my family always fed it to me.”

Sunset looked thoughtful for a moment. “Oh. Well, okay then. Do you mind if I have a taste. That salad looks really good.”

Twilight nodded as she pushed her lunchbox a little towards Sunset. “Sure, I’m happy to share.”

Twilight and Sunset finished their lunch and spent the rest of their break studying. Sunset was a quick learner, and it was looking like she would be all caught up pretty soon.

“So, I was wondering about something.” Sunset said, leaning back and taking her focus away from her notes. “When you were shouting at Indigo, you said something about her staring at someones butt.” Sunset’s wore a mirthful expression. “What was that all about?”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Indigo has a crush on this boy, Neon Lights. She thinks it’s a big secret, but half the class can’t help but notice. I have no idea how Neon hasn’t picked up on it yet.”

Sunset nodded absentmindedly for a moment. “What’s he like? Is he cute?” She asked.

Twilight furrowed her brows. She hesitated for a moment before answering. “Well, he’s pretty popular, mostly because he rides a motorcycle and comes from a rich family. He’s not all that smart, like Indigo, he’s here mostly for his sports abilities. As for if he’s cute, I don’t really think so, but that might just be because he isn’t my type, I guess. A lot of other girls like him, though.”

She wracked her brain, trying to find anything interesting about him. “He always wears sunglasses, even indoors, it’s really weird. He’s also really aloof about everyone around him. Though, he didn’t ever pick on me like a lot of the other students did, so I guess while I don’t really like him, I don’t mind him either,” she finished in an almost questioning tone.

Sunset just silently nodded while Twilight spoke, then she looked up at the clock. “The bell’s about to ring, we have P.E. now right?”

“Yep, last class of the day.” Twilight responded while she put her books away.

As they left the lab and started towards their lockers, Twilight jumped when she saw Indigo staring at her from a nearby locker.

Sunset stepped up in front of Twilight, crossing her arms. “Don’t you have somewhere better to be?” she asked.

Indigo glared at her. “I was just leaving in fact.” She turned and left.

Twilight took Sunset’s arm and led her down a different hallway. “Was… was she waiting for me?” she asked.

Sunset sighed. “I don’t know.”

They reached their lockers and dropped off their backpacks in favor of their gym clothes, then made their way to the P.E. building. Twilight couldn’t help but notice that she didn’t get bumped into as much when she was with Sunset.

Twilight found it very difficult to hold up a conversation with Sunset while they were half-naked in the locker room. She let Sunset chat about her classes while giving off occasional nods and hums to let Sunset know she was listening, which she mostly was.

They played basketball for the whole period, though Twilight took up her usual tactic of avoiding the ball and other players as much as she could. Until a certain redheaded friend of hers started to encourage her, much like she had done during their dodgeball game yesterday.

When they got back to the locker room, and everyone started undressing, Twilight took off her glasses before she got another surprise from Sunset. Not that it helped much, even through her blurry vision, Sunset still looked gorgeous. Sunset seemed to have run out of topics to tell Twilight about, so they showered in gloriously awkward silence. Or maybe that was just how Twilight felt about it, since Sunset seemed to be happily humming a tune that Twilight was unfamiliar with.

After leaving the locker room, Sunset and Twilight made their way back to the main school building.

“Hey, Twilight?” Sunset asked. “Do you mind if I take a rain check on our after-school studying today?”

Twilight hesitated. “Sure, I guess. We did already cover some stuff during lunch anyway. Do you have something you need to do?”

Sunset nodded. “Yeah, I do. I’d love to see you sometime over the weekend though.”

Twilight smiled. “That’d be great.”

Sunset took a step closer and pulled Twilight into a hug. Again, Twilight was unprepared and unsure what to do, but she did eventually return the hug.

“I’ll talk to you later,” Sunset waved and went the other way.

“Okay, bye.” Twilight waved back, a little flustered from the surprise hug.

A few minutes later, Twilight knocked on the Dean’s office and, hearing her old babysitter’s voice, walked inside.

“Hi, Cadance. Do you have a few minutes to talk?” Twilight asked.

Cadance nodded as she put a few papers away. “Sure thing. Have a seat.”

Twilight sat down and fully intended to start talking about Sunset and last night. But instead, no sound left her mouth, and she started fidgeting in her seat.

Cadance took notice of this and gave Twilight a comforting smile. “How was your day?” She asked, seemingly in an attempt to get Twilight to relax a little. It did work, after so many years of babysitting her, Cadance knew how to get her to open up.

“Well, It was good. Mostly.” She thought back to her encounter with Indigo. She didn’t really want to bring up that lost cause again. “Indigo was teasing me a bit, but then Sunset showed up and got her to back off. She also walked me to my classes after that. The other students don’t bother me as much when she’s around.”

“Dawww,” Cadance cooed, “thats so sweet. It’s like she’s your knight in shining armor.”

Twilight felt her cheeks heat up. “That might be going a bit far.”

Cadance leaned in, whispering conspiratorially. “Did you find anything out about what I mentioned?”

Twilight thought back to Cadance’s advice from their last conversation. She shook her head. It had slipped her mind until now. “I was a little distracted actually.” She said, looking away.

“Because of Indigo? Cadance asked.

Twilight took a deep breath. “Yes, but also something else.” She was practically squirming in her seat at this point. “L-last night I did something that I probably shouldn’t have, and… it’s making it a little awkward to be around Sunset.” She met Cadance’s eyes again. Instead of the repulsion she had been fearing, Cadance’s expression only showed curiosity.

“What did you do that would make you uncomfortable around her?”

Twilight fought to keep her squirming and fidgeting under control, her eyes locked on the desk between her and Cadance. “I… Umh, I m-masturbated…” She whispered, “While thinking about… h-her in the locker room.”

Twilight dared a glance at Cadance’s expression. She looked surprised, but not disgusted or appalled. Twilight sat there, staring and waiting for Cadance to say something.

This was a mistake. I shouldn’t have told her that. I shouldn’t have told anyone that.

Twilight’s thoughts were interrupted when Cadance stood up and walked around the desk. She crouched down next to Twilight and took one of her hands in both of her own.

“Twilight, what you did is nothing to be ashamed of.” Cadance raised a finger to stop Twilight’s protest before it started. “I know you feel awkward about it around Sunset, but believe me when I say that what you did, admiring your crush in the privacy of your own bedroom, is normal. More common amongst the boys, perhaps, but you don’t have to be ashamed of it.”

“But Sunset’s my friend,” Twilight said.

“And you are a hormone filled teenager. You know better than I what effect chemistry has on the brain. Don’t beat yourself up about this stuff. I can’t say this enough times, so I’ll say it again.” Cadance moved her hands to hold Twilight’s head, forcing her to meet her eyes. “What you did was normal. Okay?”

Twilight nodded. Feeling some of her anxiety leaving her.

Cadance stood up and walked back to her own chair, smirking at Twilight. “Besides, I think Sunset is the type who would just take that as a compliment if she did find out.” Twilight gaped at her, until Cadance broke down into laughter.

Twilight huffed and crossed her arms. “That’s not funny. But thanks for the advice.”

Cadance gave Twilight a serious expression. “I want you to find out if Sunset is into girls or not. If you want to start a relationship with her, that’s where you need to start.”

Twilight nodded and stood up. Cadance stood up too. “One last thing before you leave.” She walked around the desk and pulled Twilight into a hug. “You shouldn’t worry so much,” she whispered.

They pulled out of the hug and Twilight fidgeted with the hem of her skirt. “It’s just been so long since I had a real friend. I’m worried I’ll mess things up and lose her.”

Cadance rubbed Twilight’s back as she led her to the door. “She’s not going to abandon you just like that. She obviously likes spending time with you.”

Twilight thought about how Sunset had hugged her back in their biology class earlier that day, and again before she left. Maybe Cadance is right, she thought, and a smile crossed her face.

After being reassured by Cadance, Twilight decided to go back to her lab and spend some time working on one of her projects. She had been neglecting them somewhat ever since she started tutoring Sunset. Not that she minded, much.

Sitting at her desk, she puzzled over the mysterious readings that had been picked up from CHS. She had hoped that taking a bit of time off from it would help her get some new ideas. No such luck, they were as mysterious to her now as they ever were. The only thing she could imagine being the cause, was if some kind of cutting edge piece of technology had been used there, but why would something like that happen at a highschool?

Without any knowledge of what had actually happened, all that data only told Twilight that something unusual had occurred. Which was clearly not enough information to write a paper on, no matter how much you stretched it out.

Sunset knew something. She hadn’t wanted to talk about it earlier that day, but she clearly knew something.

Maybe if I approach the topic a bit better, Sunset will be willing to talk about it. Or I could just go to CHS and ask some of the students there if they know anything.

Thinking over her options, Twilight decided to talk to Sunset first. Even if it would be difficult to get her to open up about whatever she knew, it was still much more appealing than trying to interview a bunch of teenagers she had never met before.

With that decided, Twilight started working on one of her more mundane projects, on the subject of how Canterlot City went from a small town to a burgeoning city in mere decades. She kept at it until Cadance knocked on her door to give her a ride home.

Author's Note

A little behind the scenes for those interested.

I just wanted to say, I'm really happy with how Cadance turned out in this story.

I wasn't sure how much I'd be able to do with her at first, but I've found that she works really well as a 'big sister' to Twilight, giving her advice when she needs it and helping her even when she doesn't realize she needs help (Like trying to get her to make friends).

She has a few more scenes later on, including my favorite scene with her. :twilightsmile:

If you see any grammatical errors, please PM me so I can fix them

5. The Ice Cream Tradition

Twilight woke up on Saturday feeling refreshed. Last week had taken more out of her than usual. It showed how unfamiliar Twilight was with friendship that simply spending time with Sunset had exhausted her.

She went through the motions of her morning routine, not really paying much attention, though she did decide to wear the outfit Sunset had helped her pick at the mall two days before. She idly wondered what she should do today. The library was an appealing choice. She could see if she found something on the history of Canterlot City.

“Hey, mom?” Twilight walked into her mother’s study, Spike held in her arms. “I wanted to go to the library today, could you give me a ride?”

Velvet looked up from her work, — writers, as she said, made their own work schedules, and a workaholic like Twilight Velvet had no intention of giving herself the weekend off for anything less than a family camping trip — and addressed her daughter.

“Sure, I could use a break from staring at this screen, anyway.” She stood up and stretched her arms over her head, yawning while she was at it.

“Did you get stuck on a scene?” Twilight asked.

Velvet nodded. “Yes, not really sure how to introduce the villain. He’s supposed to come off as a good guy at first, but as you learn more about him you start to realize what his real motivations are.”

Velvet walked past Twilight out into the hallway, ruffling Spike’s fur as she passed.

Twilight followed her mother downstairs. “Usually when people want to do that, they just make their villain really charming so the audience’s first reaction is to want to like them.”

Velvet huffed. “True, but at this point, the audience is savvy enough to recognize this and realize they're a villain from the start, so I have to find something else to do.”

As they reached the front door, Twilight set Spike on the floor. “You need to stay here Spike, I’ll only be gone a couple of hours.”

Velvet grabbed her keys and the two of them put on their winter coats before stepping out into the snow.

“So, how are things going with your new friend,” Velvet asked encouragingly.

Twilight got into the car before she answered. “It’s going really well. She’s much easier to talk to than any of the other students at school. She also helped me pick out this outfit at the mall.” She indicated the dark blue blouse and socks, along with her purple skirt.

Velvet looked at the outfit and gave an appreciative nod as she started the car. “She has good taste, a useful trait to have in a friend. I remember when I went to prom, I had a friend who helped me pick out my dress. I tell you, if it hadn’t been for her, your father and I would probably have never gotten together, and you would never have been born.” She chuckled.

Twilight took a moment to contemplate the fickle nature of fate, then banished the creeping cosmic dread in favor of something more pleasant. Books. She kept silent until her mother spoke again.

“So, do you have anything planned for the weekend?” Velvet asked.

“Well, I’m going to the library to find a book on the history of Canterlot city for a project I’m doing.”

“Not that,” Velvet rolled her eyes. “I mean, do you have any plans with Sunset this weekend?” She clarified.

“Oh,” Twilight mumbled. “Uhm, Sorta. Sunset said she’d like to hang out, but we didn’t decide on a specific time or activity”

“Maybe you should call her?” Velvet suggested. “I’m sure you two can find something fun to do with your weekend.”

Twilight gave it some thought. She had never really asked someone else to hang out with her. The few times she met with other students outside school, they had invited her, like how Sunset brought up the idea of going to the mall together.

“I guess I could ask her if she wants to do something.” Twilight half mumbled.

Velvet chuckled at her daughter’s tone. “I think you should. But when you do, make sure to put a bit more confidence in your voice,” she teased.

Twilight pulled out her phone and opened her messenger app. Cadance had convinced her to start using it, and she had only recently added Sunset to it.

Hi, I was wondering if you wanted to hang out today? I’m going to the library now but I’d like to have lunch with you after. If you’re free.

Twilight read and re-read the message a few times without hitting send. Is it too much? Does it sound like I’m asking her on a date? What if she already has plans? Twilight took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

It’s fine, she’s not going to look that deeply into a text message. Just send it and see if she answers. Don’t worry so much. She hit send quickly, before her insecurities resurfaced, and put her phone back into her pocket, deliberately trying to take her mind off it.

“What are you going to be reading today?” Velvet asked. “More research for that mystery project of yours?”

Twilight was glad of the distraction. Even after putting her phone away, she was still wondering whether she could have worded that text better.

“I’m taking a break from that project, actually,” she replied.

“Oh?”

“I’m working on a extra credits project for history class. This one is about how Canterlot city grew exponentially fast, compared to other cities.”

Velvet chuckled. “Taking a break from a project by working on a different project. You must have inherited that from your father.”

Twilight joined in the laughter. “I guess I did.”

Twilight stepped out of the car just outside the library. Without her mother to distract her, she pulled out her phone to see if Sunset had answered.

OMC, I’m actually heading to the library right now! I wanted to get a bit more studying done over the weekend. We can meet up there and have lunch together afterwards.

OMC? Must be a typo, Twilight thought, before she texted her response.

Cool, I’ll see you soon.

Twilight entered the library and took a moment to enjoy the calm atmosphere. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath through her nose, filling her senses with the wonderful smell of old books.

Nodding her greeting to the librarian, — she didn’t know his name, but she saw him often enough when she came here — she made her way to the history section to search for books that might help her with her research paper. She traced her fingers along the spines of the books as she read their titles, picking out the ones that seemed helpful.

A few minutes later she settled herself in a little reading nook with a small stack of books on the table in front of her, and a notebook and pen next to them.

The first book she picked from the stack gave a few useful insights into what Canterlot city was like before it became a true city. The next two, unfortunately, had no relevant information to help her. She huffed annoyedly as she not-so-gently dropped the third book onto the ‘done’ stack, before reaching for the next book.

“Hey, Twi.”

Twilight looked up to see Sunset standing there with a stack of books in her arms and a smile on her face.

“Hey, Sunset,” Twilight greeted.

Sunset placed her books on the table and approached the chair Twilight was comfortably curled in. She pulled Twilight into a brief, awkward hug. “It’s good to see you again,” she said, then took a seat opposite Twilight.

Twilight blushed. “You too.”

“I see you're wearing your new outfit. It really does look good on you.” Sunset complimented.

Twilight looked over Sunset’s own outfit, and realized that this was the first time she’d seen her in her everyday clothes as opposed to her CPA uniform — or her CPA uniform gym clothes.

“Your outfit looks really good too. I didn’t want to say anything before, but the school uniform doesn’t really suit you,” Twilight giggled.

Sunset rolled her eyes. “I know! I hate it. But I guess I have to make sacrifices if I want a good school,” she finished with mock despondency, causing Twilight’s giggling to increase. She just about managed to stifle it after the librarian shushed her from the front desk.

“So, have you been here long already?” Sunset asked.

Twilight looked at the time on her phone. “Uhm, I’ve been here about an hour.”

Twilight looked at the books Sunset brought and saw they were largely history and biology books.

“You’re studying for history? I thought you didn’t have history class this semester?” Twilight asked.

Sunset picked up the history book and idly flicked through it. “Thankfully, I don’t. I’m even worse at history than I am at biology. But I figured I might as well study up on it ahead of time.”

“So, “ Sunset continued, “what brought you here, anyway?”

“I really like coming here on the weekends. I love the quiet and the books.” She paused for a second and started twirling a lock of hair around her finger. “I’m doing a bit of reading for a research paper I’m working on. It’s extra credit work for my history class.”

Sunset nodded and picked up one of her own books. “That’s cool. So, you’re taking a break from that other project you had?” she asked tentatively.

Twilight nodded. “For now, yes.” She decided not to pry Sunset for more information yet. She still seemed a little reluctant to talk about it.

“Cool. So how about we stop talking and have some nice quality reading time?” Sunset said with a playful smirk.

Twilight smiled, nodding fervently. She then opened her next book and, after another glance at a smiling Sunset, used it to hide her blush.

The two of them read in silence for a good hour or two before Twilight finished with her stack of books. She hadn’t gotten as much information as she had hoped, but she had managed to write down plenty of useful notes.

She stretched her arms and caught Sunset’s attention.

“I’m done with my reading. How are things on your end?” She asked.

Sunset yawned and stretched her own arms. “I’ve managed some progress, but I could really use a break. I don’t have the same reading endurance I used to.”

Twilight checked the time on her phone. “It’s more or less lunchtime now. Where did you want to go to eat?”

“I walked by a café on my way here that looked pretty good, mind trying it out?”

“Okay, let’s do that.” Twilight said.

Sunset led the way to the café while Twilight was wringing the hem of her skirt. She had asked Sunset out to one activity, she might as well see if she could get her to hang out tomorrow as well.

Just ask if she wants to hang out tomorrow. It’s easy. Not as easy as the text, but still easy. Just ask her, don’t overthink it like you’re doing now. Just ask. She attempted to psych herself up.

“Hey, Sunset,” Twilight started hesitantly. Sunset turned her head and gave an affirmative sound. “I was just wondering if you’d like to… uhm, hang out tomorrow, too?”

Twilight could feel her heartbeat quicken. Why is talking so hard!?

“Sure. But would you mind if I invite someone else too?” Sunset asked.

Twilight relaxed a little at that. Well, that works. I guess. She smiled.

“Sure, I guess. But who is it?” Twilight added.

Sunset rubbed the back of her neck bashfully. “My boyfriend, actually.”

And just like that, Twilight’s previous joy vanished, replaced with a sinking feeling.

“Oh.”

“Yeah, I met up with Neon Lights after you talked about him. Turns out we got along pretty well and so I thought ‘what the hell?’ and asked him out.”

She’s dating someone else. And it’s a boy too.

Sunset suddenly stopped, while Twilight took a few more steps before she realized they had reached the café.

Twilight put on a smile, though she couldn’t imagine it would be a very convincing one, and followed Sunset inside.

They ordered their food, and chatted for a bit. Twilight mostly listened while she struggled to keep up a cheerful expression. After they finished their food, Sunset decided to have dessert, and insisted she buy one for Twilight as well.

“So,” Sunset picked up her fork to start on her dessert, “I get what you meant when you said Neon was aloof, but I think he’s just putting on a show for people. A lot of people think that it’s cool to be distant with everyone. I think he could be a nice guy when you get to know him, though.”

Twilight just nodded along. She never really cared to learn more about Neon Lights, but now it felt like each piece of information about him was taunting her.

Sunset moaned as she took a bite of her dessert, a lemon cheesecake. “Oh, stars above, this is good.” She muttered.

Twilight’s melancholy was briefly pushed aside at hearing Sunset’s unusual exclamation.

Then, Sunset leaned over the table to whisper conspiratorially to Twilight. “If I’m being honest, I don’t expect things to work out between us.” Twilight froze, and her eyes widened. “I mean, he’s cute, but I don’t really expect much more than just some fun with him.” Sunset finished.

Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. Okay, that was just a misunderstanding. Sunset isn’t replacing me or anything like that, she thought, trying to calm her frantic heart. Sunset was looking at her expectantly.

“Oh… uhm, I don’t really know what to say about that.” Twilight said, without emotion.

Sunset nodded. “Yeah, just don’t tell him, okay?”

Twilight just nodded, not really sure what to think about everything that she had just learned.

They finished their desserts mostly in silence. Sunset went home — after giving Twilight another hug, which only made Twilight even more confused about what to feel — and Twilight pulled out her phone, intending to ask her mom for a ride home. Looking at her contacts list, one name stood out to her.

Making her choice, Twilight called the one person she really needed to talk to right now.

“Hey, Cadance. Um, I really need to talk to you. Can you come pick me up?”

Twilight stood outside the café, waiting for Cadance to pick her up, all the while her mind went in circles, thinking about Sunset, her new boyfriend, and what that meant.

She’s probably not into girls, Twilight thought, the chances of that were already low, but now they seem practically zero. Can I be happy just being her friend? Can I handle sitting with her at lunch, watching her kiss some boy? If not, what would that mean? Would our friendship just end? Could I handle losing my only friend like that? I told her only yesterday that I wasn’t going to just leave her, and that really meant a lot to her. If I leave just because we can’t have a deeper relationship it could really hurt her.

She hadn’t realized quite how much Sunset meant to her until now. It had just been a silly crush, right? Did high school crushes really hurt so much when things didn’t go well?

Twilight agonized while her mind went in circles, until she was startled out of her panicking thoughts by a car horn. Looking up, she saw Cadance. She slowly brought her accelerated breathing under control, then got into the car and gave her ex-babysitter a half hearted greeting.

“Hey, Cadance.”

“What’s the matter ladybug, you look like a child who just found out Santa isn’t real,” Cadance said, trying to tease out a smile.

Normally, Twilight would have at least pouted at Cadance for that, but she didn’t really have it in her now.

She wanted to tell Cadance what the problem was, but found it difficult to open her mouth. Instead, she watched the buildings speed past the window for a few moments while her mind regained control of her voice.

“Sunset has a boyfriend.”

Cadance glanced over, then reached a hand out and took one of Twilight’s.

“I’m sorry to hear that, sweetie.” She cooed. “Love can be a harsh thing. Let’s go get some ice cream, Okay? It’s pretty much tradition in situations like this,” she smiled.

Twilight just nodded.

They stayed silent on the way to the nearest ice cream parlor, and only spoke once they had gotten their cold treats and comfy seats.

“How are you holding up?” Cadance asked delicately.

Twilight shrugged, swirling her spoon through her icy treat. “I don’t really know how to feel, or what to do.” Her voice was monotone. She felt sad inside, but she also felt guilty about feeling sad. This, inevitably resulted in a lot of emotion-based confusion for her.

“What did Sunset say about her boyfriend?” Cadance asked, taking a spoonful of her ice cream.

Twilight listlessly played with her ice cream some more. “She said she kinda liked him, and thought he could be nice. But she also said she didn’t expect the relationship to last.” She said in an emotionless voice.

Cadance nodded in thought. “Sounds like she really isn’t serious about the relationship. Well, she is just a teenager, it’s not too uncommon for high school romances to be short lived.” Cadance said with a hint of encouragement.

Twilight ate her comfort ice cream in silence. Logically she knew there was a chance — a very small chance — that she could still end up with Sunset somehow, but knowing that logically didn’t help her feel any less hopeless. The ice cream did help, at least a little.

“You’re still friends though right? That’s not going to change?” Cadance asked, looking worried.

Twilight shrugged again. “I don’t want to lose my only friend, but I’m not sure how I feel about her never being more than that.” Her voice cracked slightly at the end, so she stopped and shoveled more ice cream into her mouth.

“There was one moment,” Twilight half-whispered, not taking her eyes off her treat. “Sunset said something that made me think she didn’t want to be my friend anymore. It was just a momentary misunderstanding, but for that one moment… I felt like my world was crumbling around me. We’ve only been friends for a few days, and already I don’t ever want to go back to being alone.” She paused for a second. “Well, not alone alone, but you get what I mean, right?” she looked up pleadingly at Cadance. She was sure she looked like a mess right now, and was thankful there weren’t any mirrors in sight.

Cadance nodded. “I think you should stay as her friend. I know how important she is to you, and I also know that losing a good friend hurts a lot. I know you’re hurting now, but maybe you’ll find another girl you like, and then you and Sunset can laugh together about this whole thing.”

Cadance’s smile was reassuring, but Twilight didn’t feel very reassured.

“Well, if you like, I have a whole playlist of sappy love songs that I could send you. They won’t make everything feel okay again, but they might help.”

Twilight nodded and offered a tiny smile in thanks. Truth be told, she didn’t feel like doing much other than lying in bed, and maybe listen to Cadance’s playlist, for the rest of the day.

Author's Note

...I'm gonna go get some ice cream now.

6. A Private Performance

Twilight woke up Sunday morning to her alarm clock, groaning from a migraine she was getting for sleeping too long.

Last night, after getting ice cream with Cadance, Twilight had spent the rest of the day curled in bed with Spike, a fluffy romance novel and the playlist Cadance had given her.

It seemed to have helped a bit, since she wasn’t feeling quite as down as she had yesterday. Though she still decided to stay in bed a bit longer.

Velvet checked on her daughter a couple of times, but didn’t push things when she realized Twilight was in a bad mood. So, Twilight’s sleep extension went undisturbed, until she heard her phone vibrate.

Groaning and freeing herself from the tangled covers, Twilight reached out to her phone to see what had disturbed her. It was a message from Sunset.

Neon and I are gonna have lunch together. You wanna join us?

Twilight's immediate desire was to refuse. She didn’t really want to do anything with Neon, frankly. But then she remembered her conversation with Cadance yesterday.

I shouldn’t let this ruin our friendship. She means more to me than that, she thought.

With a burst of determination, Twilight responded with a quick ‘Sure’. As soon as she sent the message though, she started worrying if it was the right decision, and tapped out another message.

I mean, if you don’t think I’ll be a third wheel, you know. I don’t want to make things awkward or anything.

She waited for a response from Sunset, doing her best not to start writing yet another message. She had been told that she could ramble when she was nervous.

Don’t worry about it. I offered didn’t I?

Twilight breathed a sigh of relief at Sunset’s response. Then tensed up again at Sunset’s next message.

Meet us at the café in one hour, Okay?

An hour? Is it that close to lunch already? She thought, looking at her clock to confirm it.

Twilight tapped out an ’Okay’, then rushed into the bathroom for her morning routine.

Twenty minutes later, Twilight had finished showering and was trying to decide if she should wear makeup or not.

In the end, she chose to put on some concealer and a touch of eyeshadow. She had enjoyed using it in the past few days, and figured it wouldn’t hurt to do more often.

She picked out an outfit to wear — a light blue shirt with a pink sweater vest, and a purple skirt with light blue kneesocks — and got to the bus stop with only a couple of minutes to spare.

Once she got on the bus, she felt she could finally relax. Unfortunately, that also meant she could start thinking about Sunset and Neon again. She decided to distract herself with some music, putting in her earbuds and picking a classical composer at random.

She got to the café with plenty of time to spare, and picked out a booth by the window while she waited.

About a minute later, Sunset walked in, her arm looped around Neon’s.

Twilight put on a smile and waved. She hoped the smile wasn’t too obviously fake.

“Hi, Twilight,” Sunset said as they approached the table. She leaned down to give Twilight a short hug, “I’m glad you could make it. Neon, this is my friend, Twilight.”

Neon nodded to Twilight. He was wearing those sunglasses he usually wore, and Twilight was starting to think they looked pretty stupid. “Hey. I’ve seen you around at school, but it’s nice to meet you properly.” He said in a surprisingly soft voice.

“It’s, uhm, nice to meet you too.” Twilight said, her voice strained.

Sunset and Neon took their seats opposite Twilight. Sunset turned her attention to her boyfriend. “Twilight can be a little nervous around new people.” She half-whispered.

Twilight, not knowing how to respond, just laughed nervously.

The waitress came over and they ordered their food, and then they talked. Though it was mostly Sunset and Neon chatting about motorcycles. Twilight knew enough about mechanics to keep up, and Sunset would occasionally address her to give her opinion, or Twilight would jump in with a fact or two about the topic.

This isn’t too bad, Twilight thought. She could feel the occasional pang in her heart when she saw Sunset smile at her, and she did look away when Sunset leaned into Neon for a brief kiss.

But she was managing to spend time with Sunset as her friend, despite the hurt. She had agreed to come here because she knew that losing Sunset as a friend would be far worse than this. And getting proof that this could work, that while she had lost her chance at Sunset — if she ever had one to begin with — she wasn’t going to lose her as a friend.

“So, Twilight” Sunset pulled her friend out of her reverie, “have you had any more trouble with Indigo?”

Twilight’s eyes widened and she glanced briefly at Neon, though she couldn’t determine his reaction because of his darn sunglasses.

“Uhm. Well, no. I never really run into her outside school, thankfully,” Twilight replied tentatively.

“Woah, hold on. What was Indigo giving you trouble with?” Neon asked.

Twilight looked away and started rubbing one hand against her other arm.

“Indigo was bullying Twilight,” Sunset filled in when she saw that Twilight didn’t want to say it. “She was making her do her homework for her, even going so far as to threaten her.”

Neon shook his head. “That girl just keeps getting herself into bad situations. Did you tell the Principal?”

“Of course I did. And it changed nothing.” Twilight sighed. She shot Sunset a look to tell her she was not happy about her bringing this up in front of Neon. Sunset gave an apologetic smile, at least.

“I think,” Sunset said, slowly. “That she’s just under a lot of pressure, and doesn’t know how to deal with it.”

Twilight gaped at her. Only a couple of days ago, Sunset had been furious at Indigo when she confronted her. Why would she sympathize with her now? She should be defending me, not her!

Twilight pushed down her indignation, but she still gave Sunset a questioning look, making sure her upset was clearly visible.

"I think you're right about that, Neon added. "That girl can be really cool when she wants to. I think she could use a friend who's more positive than those girls she hangs out with."

Sunset threw her arms up. "Exactly! I've barely talked to those girls since I transferred, and even I can tell they're a bad influence."

Sunset looked at Twilight, and her expression shifted to guilt. “Not that I’m saying that justifies her actions, because they totally don’t.” She frantically added.

Twilight huffed and looked away, until she felt Sunset’s hand on her own. She looked back and saw her friend leaning over, an apologetic look on her face.

“I'm sorry that I'm coming off like I'm defending her. That's not what I mean,” She whispered. “I’m going to make sure she doesn’t bother you again. I’m just… I don’t know. Trying to figure her out I guess?”

Twilight smiled, feeling reassured. The apology also helped.

Twenty minutes later, they exited into the snowy parking lot, and Twilight overheard Neon asking Sunset to hang out with him. Her ears perked, wondering if this would mark the start of Sunset spending less time with her. Though a part of her did feel a bit guilty about her jealousy.

“I’d love to, but right now I wanted to spend some time with Twilight,” Sunset said. “How about we go see a movie tonight, or something? Maybe around eight?”

Twilight turned away, hiding her smirk as felt a surge of satisfaction at Sunset prioritizing her over Neon. She knew it was petty, and that Sunset had taken the neutral option of making time for both of them. But she still picked Twilight first.

After a few moments, she felt a tap on her shoulder. “Come on, let’s go.” Sunset said.

Twilight could see Neon getting into his car behind her, and had to fight off another smirk.

Maybe this jealousy is going to be a bit more of a problem than I expected, she thought to herself as she followed Sunset down the street.

“So, did you have anything in mind?” Twilight asked her friend as they started walking away from the café.

Sunset nodded. “Remember when Cadance picked us up from the mall?” Twilight nodded. “Well,” Sunset continued, “we agreed to play music for each other, and I intend to make good on my promise.”

“You’re going to… p-play a song for me?” Twilight asked hesitantly. Sure, they had said they’d do it — someday — but having it actually happen was still a bit of a surprise. Her eyes widened slightly as she realized she hadn’t even picked a song to play for Sunset, let alone practice it.

“Yeah, I’m pretty excited to hear you play, so I figured I’d get my song out of the way now, so I can start pestering you about your song,” Sunset said in a teasing voice.

Twilight gulped. She wasn’t sure how she’d feel about performing a song just for Sunset given her now hopeless crush on the girl. Cadance had — albeit teasingly — suggested she play a love song for Sunset, the thought of which now made Twilight start to fidget. Twilight laughed nervously.

Just stay calm. We’re friends, nothing more. It’s perfectly normal for friends to share their interests, including music, so stop thinking this is such a big deal.

“Hey,” Sunset gave her a worried look, “are you okay?”

“Yep! Never better,” Twilight responded instantly. Sunset raised an eyebrow at her skeptically. “Okay, fine.” Twilight conceded. “I’m a little nervous because I didn’t expect this so soon. I haven’t even picked out a song to play for you or anything.” She looked away sheepishly.

Sunset chuckled and lightly punched Twilight’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about it, I don’t mind waiting. But I already picked out a song for you, and I’ve been pretty excited to let you hear it.”

Twilight smiled at the reassurance — rubbing her shoulder absentmindedly. “It’s the song you wrote yourself, right?”

Sunset nodded happily. “I’ve only played it for Mom so far. It’s… It’s really special to me, you know?”

Twilight nodded. Inwardly she was over the moon about Sunset wanting to share something with her that she felt was ‘special to her’.

Before long, they had come to Sunset’s house. Twilight had seen it before from the outside when she and Cadance had dropped Sunset off. She was curious to see what her friends living space would look like. There was also a not-insignificant part of her that was curious to see what the home of a principal would look like.

Sunset unlocked the door and Twilight followed her inside. Taking off her scarf and parka, Twilight looked into the living room. It was pretty ordinary, and Twilight briefly wondered what she had been expecting.

There was a sofa and a couple of armchairs surrounding a coffee table, and a TV on one wall. There were also a couple of bookcases and a dresser with a few framed pictures on it.

“Hi, Mom. I’m home!” Sunset called out, just as Celestia — whom Twilight recognized from a few of her MyStable profile picture — entered from what appeared to be the kitchen, holding a cup of tea.

“Welcome back, Sunset.” Celestia said, before spotting Twilight. “Oh, and this must be Twilight Sparkle. Sunset’s told me a lot about you.” She said warmly.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Twilight waved.

Sunset took Twilight’s hand and led her towards the stairs at the other end of the room. “We’re just gonna be in my room, Okay?” She asked her Mom.

Celestia nodded and said, “have fun you two.” Twilight blushed and quickly banished an inappropriate thought.

Sunset’s bedroom was pretty cool. At least, that’s what Twilight thought of it.

It was decorated with a few posters of bands and popular films, and the walls were painted with a red and yellow color scheme. “Nice room. It really suits you.”

Sunset chuckled. “Yeah, Mom put in a lot of work to make sure I’d be happy here when she took me in.”

Sunset picked up an acoustic guitar and sat in her desk chair, pointing for Twilight to sit on the bed. Twilight climbed up and sat cross legged on the bed, watching Sunset tune the guitar.

“Is it just the two of you here?” Twilight asked, having just realized that at no point had a ‘dad’ been mentioned when Sunset talked about her living situation.

“Yeah, but Aunt Luna visits a lot. I think it’s mostly because Mom’s a much better cook than she is.” Sunset grinned at Twilight, causing the other girl to giggle a little.

“Okay, you ready?” Sunset asked.

Twilight straightened her back and focused all her attention on Sunset, then nodded.

Sunset started picking the notes, one at a time. Then, she began to sing.

“Power
Was all I desired.
But all that grew inside me,
was the darkness I acquired.”

Twilight was instantly transfixed. Sunset’s voice was beautiful.

“When I began to fall,
and I lost the path ahead.
That's when your friendship found me,
and it lifted me instead.”

Sunset’s playing sped up considerably as she went into the chorus. She started playing cords instead of single notes.

While rock wasn’t Twilight’s favorite genre, she could definitely see the appeal now.

“Like a phoenix burning bright,
in the sky.
I'll show there's another side to me,
you can't deny.

“I may not know what the future holds,
but hear me when I say.
That my past does not define me,
'cause my past is not today.”

The song calmed a bit, and Twilight felt herself release a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

“Ambition,
is what I believed.
Would be the only way,
to set me free.

“But when it disappeared,
and I found myself alone.
That's when you came and got me,
and it felt like I was home.”

As the song played through the chorus a second time, Twilight thought about the possible meaning of the lyrics. Sunset had written them herself and it was clear that they meant a lot to her.

‘My past does not define me, cause my past is not today.’ Twilight was reminded of the time Sunset told her about her past as a bully. She had seemed so vulnerable when talking about it, and when Twilight promised not to judge her by her past, Sunset had outright hugged her, practically in tears.

Sunset finished, and as the last cord faded, Twilight clapped enthusiastically.

“That was amazing, Sunset!” She cheered.

Sunset smiled and blushed — actually blushed — then said, “Thanks. I wrote it shortly after Christmas. I really needed a distraction at the time.” Sunset frowned a little, looking at the floor.

It sounded to Twilight like that could have been around the time Sunset lost her friends.

Changing the subject, Twilight decided to ask about some of the lyrics that had caught her attention. “I noticed you made a couple of references to a ‘you’ in the song. Is that referring to anyone in particular?”

Sunset nodded, her smile returning. “Yeah. The first one is my other friend. Uhm, I haven’t really told you about her yet have I?” Twilight shook her head. “Remember when I first met you, and I said you reminded me of someone else I knew, minus the glasses? That’s the one.”

Twilight was about to inquire further about Sunset’s mystery friend, but Sunset continued before she could.

“Anyway, the second one is a bit on the nose to be honest. ‘That’s when you came and got me, and it felt like I was home.’ That one is about Celestia adopting me. It was the first time I felt like I had a real family.”

“That’s beautiful.” Twilight said softly.

Sunset just nodded.

The two of them stayed silent for a few moments. Twilight couldn’t help but notice that Sunset seemed a little nervous. She was fiddling with the tuning keys on the guitar, without actually checking how they sounded. As if she was just trying to distract herself.

With a deep breath, Sunset put the guitar off to the side and faced Twilight directly.

“Twilight,” she said, her voice more serious than Twilight had heard before. “I have something to tell you. And I know you’re not going to believe me at first, but you’re my friend, and I want you to know about this.”

Twilight furrowed her brows. Sunset’s change in demeanor catching her off guard. “Okay, what is it?”

Sunset took another deep breath. “My other friend I told you about? Her name is… Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight cocked her head and gave Sunset a questioning look. “Uhm… what?”

Sunset laughed nervously. “Right, so this is all going to sound really strange, but please just hear me out, okay?”

Twilight nodded slowly. She had absolutely no idea where Sunset was going with this. Something about having a friend with the same name as her? Who was also a princess?

Sunset took a deep breath, then met Twilight’s eyes. “I’m not from this world. I actually come from a parallel dimension.” She paused to let that sink in.

Twilight just stared at her. “Uhm… what?”

“A-and an interesting thing about this parallel dimension is that it actually has a lot of the same people as this dimension has. So there’s a Celestia on both sides, and a Luna on both sides. And a Twilight Sparkle on both sides. There’s also magic there. I was actually a pretty skilled spell caster myself before I came here.” Sunset showed a brief hint of pride. “And there’s more stuff that’s different but… I think it’s best to let this part sink in first.”

“Are you… are you being serious?” Twilight wanted to dismiss this as just some kind of prank. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had tried to convince her of something so unlikely. But still possible though, and that was the difficult thing. Parallel dimensions had never been explicitly disproven. What Sunset was claiming could, in theory, be true. Then a thought struck her.

“Hang on. Did you say ‘magic’?” She asked.

Sunset nodded slowly. “I know that’s difficult to believe, but it’s true.”

Twilight nodded absentmindedly. An idea was forming in her mind, though it was a long shot. “Did you by any chance bring any magic with you from this other dimension? Maybe sometime in late August? And maybe again in early November?”

Sunset chuckled. “Oh, right. You mentioned you picked up some strange readings, didn’t you?”

Twilight nodded.

Sunset sighed. “Yeah, that was me. Both times.”

Twilight felt a wide smile creep onto her face. “Aha!” She jumped off the bed. “That’s why I couldn’t figure out what on earth those reading where!” She exclaimed. “Because they weren’t from earth to begin with!”

Sunset gave her a skeptical look. “Wait. You believe me? Just like that?”

Twilight shrugged and gave a deep sigh. “I’ve exhausted pretty much every possible explanation I could think of for those darn readings. The only other course of action I had left was to actually go to CHS to see if I could find anything about it there.” Twilight closed her eyes and massaged her temples. “At this point, I’m so frustrated with the whole thing, that ‘it was magic’ actually sounds like a reasonable answer.”

“You…” Sunset began tentatively. “ You really believe me?”

Twilight shrugged. “I guess I’m sorta accepting it for right now, but I’m sure I’ll need proof to really believe it.”

Sunset got up and walked over to her nightstand. She picked up a fairly large book from it. Twilight caught a brief glimpse of a stylized sun on the cover.

Sunset sat back down with the book and a pen. She didn’t say anything, but she opened the book to an empty page, about half way through, and wrote a short sentence in it. Afterwards, she closed the book and put it on her lap.

“This journal is enchanted. It’s connected to a similar one back in Equestria — that’s where I come from — and anything written in one shows up in the other.” She furrowed her brows in thought. “It’s basically magical texting.”

Twilight probably would have laughed, if this whole situation wasn’t so strange. “So…. who did you just sent a ‘magical text’ to?”

Sunset rubbed the back of her neck. “Your extra-dimensional counterpart. Princess Twilight was my only friend for while before I met you, and this is how we keep in touch,” she indicated the journal in her lap.

At that moment, the journal started to vibrate and glow. Sunset opened the book again and, after a few moments, wrote another message in it.

“You want to talk to her?” She asked, smiling encouragingly.

It took a few moments for Twilight to pull her attention away from the glowing, vibrating, supposedly magical book. She had seen many, many books in her time, and none of them had acted anything like that.

She looked up at Sunset and nodded. Sunset handed the journal to Twilight, along with the pen. She could see three messages on the page. The first and last in the red color of the pen Sunset had handed her, and the middle one in a purple script.

Hello, Princess. Are you there?

I’m here, Sunset. Did you want to talk about something?

I wanted to introduce you to my friend, Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight brought the pen over the page with a shaking hand.

Hello?

She stared at the page as the impossible happened. Purple writing appeared out of nowhere, forming a response.

Hello, Twilight. My name is Princess Twilight Sparkle. This must feel pretty strange to you, but I assure you I feel the same way.

Twilight considered what to do. She pinched herself — subtly — to check if she was dreaming. She, apparently, wasn’t.

Where are you?

I’m in my bedroom, in my castle, in Equestria.

Twilight stared. The text seemed to be responding to her question, suggesting that it wasn’t some kind of prerecorded message. Though, even if it was, she honestly had no idea how this could be done as a trick to fake magic.

Was everything Sunset said true? Is she not from Earth?

Well, I don’t know exactly what she said to you, but if she’s as close to you as she says, then I know she wouldn’t lie to you. And yes, Sunset was born here in Equestria and went to earth only a few years ago.

Twilight looked up at Sunset. She looked a little nervous, and was clearly waiting to see Twilight’s reaction to this world-view-shattering news. She tried to think of something — anything — to say. Only one thing came to mind.

“Why is my doppelganger a princess?”

Sunset raised an eyebrow. “That’s your first question?” She asked.

“I’m having some difficulty organizing my thoughts at the moment.” Twilight kept her voice neutral, and did her best to keep herself calm.

Sunset chuckled slightly. “Well, to answer your question. Princesses aren't the same in Equestria as they are here. They’re still considered royalty, and they sometimes have a lot of authority, but they’re also magically powerful. Princess Twilight was a very gifted uni- uh, mage. Her specialty was the, uhm… as strange as it sounds, her specialty was the magic of friendship. Her official title is Princess of Friendship.” She looked around in thought. “It's interesting to see how some things are really similar between you two, while other things are really different.”

Before Twilight could respond, she felt the journal vibrating again. Looking down she could see another message from the Princess.

I’d love to meet you in person someday. We could share childhood stories and see what’s the same and what’s different!

Sunset leaned over to read the message as well. “See, she has the same scientific curiosity as you,” she teased. The familiar expression helped Twilight relax just a little.

Twilight looked between the journal and Sunset a few times. Then she wrote back her reply.

Sure, that sounds... fun, I guess? But I’m gonna go now. I have a lot to think about and… stuff.

She handed the journal back to Sunset. “Why did you decide to tell me now?”

Sunset shrugged. “I’ve been wanting to tell you for some time. I guess with the song and everything, I just kinda felt like opening up a bit more, you know?”

Twilight nodded. “I think I should head home. I need some time to think about the nature of the universe that is suddenly so much bigger than it seemed this morning.” Twilight stood up to leave.

Sunset stood up as well, leaving the journal on her seat, and walked Twilight downstairs and to the front door. “Are you okay? I’m sorry for springing this on you, but I couldn’t really think of any way to make this less of a shock.”

Twilight shook her head. “It’s fine. I’m fine, more or less. I just need time to process this.” She put on her coat and scarf.

“Do you want a ride home? I’m sure Mom would be willing to drive us.” Sunset offered.

Twilight shook her head again. “No, I’ll just walk. I could use some fresh air and the time to think.”

Sunset locked eyes with her, seemingly staring into her soul. Could she do that? She did say she knew magic, Twilight mentally chided herself for jumping to such absurdity. Even if she couldn’t exactly disprove it.

“Okay, well. Have a safe walk home.” Sunset took a step forward and hugged Twilight tightly. Twilight hugged back after a moment. It felt wonderfully reassuring.

Sunset broke the hug just before it became awkward. “I’ll see you tomorrow at school, okay?”

Twilight nodded. “I’ll see you then.” Twilight left the warmth of Sunset’s home, and started the hour-or-so walk to her house. All the while her mind buzzed with this new world that had been revealed to her.

Author's Note

I just now realized I use the same formating for Twilight's thought, and for texting. :facehoof:

Oh well, it's a bit late to fix that now though.

7. An Otherworldly Painting

Twilight took the bus to school the next day, having spent the rest of Sunday thinking about the revelation Sunset had shown her. She was still having a hard time believing it, but after using an enchanted book herself, she couldn’t just dismiss it as a lie or trick.

She had spend a couple of hours re-checking some her data at home on the mysterious energy project, and had re-confirmed that nothing made sense about it. So magic really did seem to be as good an answer as anything.

When she approached the front entrance of Crystal Prep, she heard a voice call out to her.

“Hey, Twilight!”

Twilight looked up to see Sunset approach from beside the entrance door. Sunset pulled Twilight into a hug when she got close. Twilight noticed this had become a regular greeting from her fiery haired friend recently.

“How’re you holding up?” Sunset asked when she broke the hug.

“Well enough, I guess. I’m still processing all of it, I think.”

Sunset nodded sympathetically. “Yeah, I know it’s a lot to take in. Especially since I just kinda dropped it all on you like I did.” She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly.

“So, uhm…” Twilight started, glancing over to where Sunset had been standing. “Were you waiting for me out here?”

“Well, yeah. I said I was gonna walk you to your classes, right?” Sunset replied.

Twilight thought back to last Friday. “Yeah, you did, didn’t you?” She smiled as Sunset led her inside.

“What’s your first class today?” Sunset asked.

“Math”

“Hmm. Mine’s Physics. They’re pretty close to each other, right?” Sunset was still learning the school layout it seemed. Not to surprising since she hadn’t even been here a week.

“Yes they are! They’re even in the same hallway.” Twilight replied encouragingly.

Classes went by smoothly. There was nothing like a good classroom lecture to take Twilight’s mind off of anything. Even the existence of magic and parallel dimensions, though she did briefly wonder whether maths, physics and the like was the same over there. She could ask Sunset later.

Twilight wished she had more classes with Sunset. As it was, they only shared biology and P.E. Maybe she could ask Cadance to get them more classes together for next semester. Heck, maybe Cadance would do that even without her asking, she had been the one to introduce them after all. She didn’t make a habit of taking advantage of her position as Dean, but this seemed like the kind of thing she’d make an exception for.

A couple of hours later, Twilight’s second class finished, the rest of the students filed out, and she ended up sitting in an empty classroom, waiting for Sunset to come pick her up. They had a shared biology class together next, followed by lunch.

She looked up when she heard someone running into the classroom.

“Sorry I’m late. Teacher decided to keep us a couple of minutes extra to because someone was being a dick in class.” Sunset said, annoyance clear in her voice.

Twilight gasped. “Sunset!” She chided.

“Oh, sorry.” Sunset had the good grace to look ashamed. “I forgot you didn’t like curse words.”

Twilight blushed. “I-It’s fine. I know I’m a little over sensitive to them, it’s just how my parents raised me, I guess.”

“Right. Well, come on. We don’t want to be late for bio.” Sunset indicated for Twilight to follow her out into the hall.

They got to their biology class just in time before the class started, and took their seats next to each other, near the front of the class.

Once the teacher got into his lecture, Twilight couldn’t resist asking Sunset a few questions.

“Hey, Sunset,” she whispered. “Are the laws of physics the same in Equestria?”

Sunset looked up, frowning in thought. “I think so. Except we have some magic that can kinda mess with them a bit.”

“Mess with them how?” Twilight asked, her curiosity peaked.

“Well, you know how the earth revolves around the sun? And the sun and moon just sorta do their own thing here?” Sunset asked, prompting a tentative nod from Twilight. “Yeah… they don’t do that in Equestria. We actually have demigod-like beings there that control the heavens with their magic.”

Twilight stared.

She’s making a joke. She has to be. I should just wait patiently for the punchline that is definitely coming. Any second now.

Sunset stared back. “Uhm, Twilight. Are you okay?”

“Uh, yeah,” Twilight nodded dumbly, slowly realizing that Sunset apparently hadn’t been joking.

Sunset gave her a reassuring smile, then went back to taking down notes from the lesson.

Meanwhile, Twilight decided to file that feat of impossibility away to examine — and probably ask many, many more questions about — later, and set her focus back on the class as well.

After biology, Sunset and Twilight went to the cafeteria for lunch. Twilight preferred to eat in her lab, but Sunset wanted to meet up with Neon. Which, Twilight conceded, was fair. Neon hadn’t arrived in the cafeteria yet, so they took their seats at an empty table.

They took out their respective lunch boxes and started eating, all the while casting occasional smug looks at the fairly lengthy line for the cafeteria food.

“I noticed you were keeping up pretty well in bio.” Twilight said. “Do you think you’re all caught up in it then?”

Sunset nodded while she swallowed her bite. “Yep! I did a bit of extra studying over the weekend. Even got Mom to help me with some of it.” She chuckled slightly. “I probably should have gotten her help much sooner to be honest.”

Twilight gave a half hearted laugh as well, it wasn’t quite genuine. “Uhm… does that mean we’re not gonna h-hang out after school?” She asked, trying to hide the worry in her voice.

Sunset gave her an odd look. “Well, your lab is pretty cool. Plus I’m kinda curious to see some of those projects you’ve told me about. And I could probably help you out with one of them in particular.” She smirked and nudged Twilight’s shoulder.

Twilight smiled, feeling thoroughly reassured, then went back to her food.

Just as Twilight was about to finish, she was startled by someone slamming their hands on the table. She looked up to see Indigo glaring at them.

Twilight cowered, her hand seeking out Sunset’s arm under the table for safety.

“What do you think you’re doing, Bacon Hair?” Indigo spat, directing her venomous words at Sunset.

Sunset, didn’t even flinch. She took one more bite of her salad, then spoke, “I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about, Goggles.” she said in a calm voice, though her eyes seemed to be challenging Indigo.

“Neon is off limits!” Indigo hissed, keeping her voice low. “If I see you talking to him again, I’ll beat you to a pulp!”

Sunset raised herself out of her seat, bringing her eyes level with Indigo’s.

“You’re certainly welcome to try,” she grinned at the bully, inviting her to make a move.

Twilight, no longer able to hold onto her proverbial life line, sunk further into her seat. The tension rose to a fever pitch.

Sunset and Indigo kept staring at each other, neither of them blinking, neither of them backing down or making any move.

After a few tense moments, a new voice joined in.

“Hey, Sunset.” Twilight looked up to see Neon walking towards them. “You, uh… you okay?”

Indigo broke first and snapped her head to look at Neon. “Neon! Ah… yeah, we’re just… talking.”

Sunset smirked at Indigo, then turned her attention to her boyfriend. “It’s sweet of you to worry, Neon. But I’ve got this.”

Indigo shuffled her feet, glancing back and forth between Neon and Sunset. “I have to go.” She suddenly turned and went back to her own table.

Sunset chuckled darkly and sat back down. “That was easier than I expected.”

Neon sat down opposite Sunset. “Was she giving Twilight trouble again?” he asked.

Sunset shrugged, poking her salad with her fork. “Something like that.”

The three of them chatted away the rest of the lunch break. Twilight did her best to ignore the bouts of jealousy in favor of simply having a good time with friends. Not to say that it was a complete success, but she did her best anyway.

Before long, the bell rang and Twilight and Sunset went off to P.E. together, saying goodbye to Neon.

“So, I’ll pick you up tonight, Sunset? Maybe eight o’clock?” Neon said. Twilight had to fight a frown trying to overtake her face. Apparently the two lovebirds had a date.

Sunset hesitated for a brief moment. “Oh. Yeah, eight sounds good.” She waved at Neon, then left the cafeteria with Twilight.

Twilight had noticed that P.E. wasn’t nearly as bad when she had Sunset with her. Today was running again. Just running. For, like, almost an entire hour. Twilight was, unsurprisingly, not all that pleased.

“Why… does… the coach… hate me?” Twilight said between her panting. There were only a few minutes left on the clock, or so Twilight hoped. Sunset had, despite being in better shape, stayed with Twilight the whole time.

“I’m sure the coach doesn’t hate you Twi. At least not you personally, though I do wonder if all coaches secretly hate the nerdy kids.” Sunset frowned in thought. Twilight honestly couldn’t tell if she was joking or not.

“Honestly though,” Sunset continued. Twilight noticed she didn’t have any trouble talking despite the fact she had been running next to her the whole time. “You do kinda need the exercise.”

Twilight glared at her. “I don’t… need stamina… to run… experiments.” She hadn’t noticed the pun until it was already out there. She decided to just go with it and added a playful wink.

Sunset laughed. “True, I guess I can’t argue with that.”

In the changing rooms after class, Twilight took her glasses off first and adamantly avoided looking anywhere below head height. She was starting to, maybe, get a little used to being around a naked Sunset. Maybe. Though it did still feel massively awkward for her, and she wondered if that was obvious to anyone. But, when that thought only made her feel even more awkward, she decided to just not think about it anymore.

Sunset walked Twilight to her last two classes of the day, then they made their way to Twilight’s lab to hang out after their classes.

“Why would you take art class, though?” Twilight asked. Sunset had just come from said class, and was happy chatting about a painting she had just finished. “I mean, there are so many other classes you could have picked.”

Sunset folded her arms and gave Twilight a smirk. “Why did you take violin lessons when you could have spent that time on something else?”

They both stopped in front of Twilight’s lab. Twilight pulled out her key, then said, “well, you got me there I guess… But still, it’s different in school. School is for learning sciences!” She argued.

Sunset chuckled. “Actually, that’s only one part of school. In fact, one of the biggest parts of going to school is to make friends, and learn about social interactions.”

Twilight unlocked the door, stepping aside to let Sunset in first. “But there aren’t any classes on friendship, that would be ridiculous!”

Sunset booped the agitated girl’s nose with her finger on the way into the lab. “You’re not supposed to learn those things from the teachers, Twi.” Collapsing in the desk chair and putting her hands behind her head, Sunset continued. “The students are meant to learn that from each other.”

Twilight blushed. That seemed pretty obvious once it was spelled out like that. “Oh… right.”

“Anyway,” Sunset pulled them back on-topic,” I took art class because I like drawing. I wanted to show you a picture I took of my painting.” She took out her phone and started tapping on it.

Twilight just watched, feeling a little sheepish for insulting something that, she now realized, clearly meant something to Sunset. She wondered if she should apologize, but before she could, Sunset handed her the phone.

The painting in the picture depicted a beautiful landscape. It was a sunset over a large meadow. On the right there was a mountain, tall and thin — by mountain standards — and on the side of the mountain was a city with tall white spires, decorated with purple and gold. Waterfalls cascaded from the city and down the length of the mountain. On the left, in the foreground, there was a pony on a small hill, looking out over the vast expanse of the meadow before them.

“Woah,” Twilight said, after a few moments. “I can see why you took art class now.”

Sunset smiled at her. “That’s where I grew up,” she said in a soft voice.

Twilight looked up at her. “You mean… this is Equestria?”

Sunset nodded. “The city on the mountain, that’s Equestria’s version of Canterlot. That’s where I lived.”

Twilight could hardly believe it, the whole painting looked like an illustration straight from a fantasy book. To think that it was real, even in some parallel dimension? It was insane.

“It looks like a fairy tale.” Twilight whispered, her eyes drawn back to the picture.

Sunset chuckled. “It kinda does, doesn’t it?” She scooted herself a little closer. “Thanks for letting me share all this with you, and not, you know… freaking out about it.”

Twilight looked up. “Can I ask you something?” Sunset nodded, smiling wide. “I figure you haven’t told Neon any of this. Are you going to?”

Sunset sighed and looked away. “I don’t think so. I’m having fun with him, sure. But I don’t really feel that deep connection, the kind you get with a best friend or a close family member, you know?” Twilight thought she saw a faint blush on Sunset. “The kind I feel with Mom and… with you.”

Twilight felt a blush of her own. “I… I’m really glad you feel that way.”

Sunset scooted closer still, then grabbed Twilight in a quick hug.

“Could I ever go there?” Twilight asked tentatively.

“You want to… come with me to Equestria?” Sunset asked.

Twilight nodded. “Not right now, but someday, once I’ve had a chance to wrap my head around all this.” She half-giggled. “Assuming it would be safe to do,” she added.

Sunset coughed into her hand. “In theory, it would be safe. But the portal between the worlds is ancient, so we don’t know everything about how it works or why it does certain things.”

“That’s not very reassuring.” Twilight said.

“Don’t worry! The main thing we haven’t figured out yet is why stuff like, ‘why does it give us clothes when we cross,’ or ‘why am I eight years younger here than in Equestria’.” Sunset waved her hand in a vague motion.

“Uhm,” Twilight started. “What do you mean ‘eight years younger here’?”

Sunset froze. “Oh, uhm… that’s something I was gonna tell you in a much smoother way, actually.” She rubbed the back of her neck abashedly. “I’m actually twenty five years old in Equestria, even though I’m seventeen here. Or somewhere around seventeen anyway, I kinda just had to guess on that one. Princess Twilight was also noticeably younger when she came here. And we haven’t actually brought anyone who was originally from earth over to Equestria to see if it’s the same that way around.”

“You’re twenty five years old!?” Twilight exclaimed. “And you have no idea why the portal does that?”

“Well, Princess Twilight is trying to figure it out, and we do have an idea as to why… but we aren’t a hundred percent sure.”

“Okay. Uhm, in that case, I’m going to have to change my request to ‘Can you take me to Equestria someday, if it’s safe’.”

Sunset nodded. “That’s totally fair, and I promise I’ll tell you everything you need to know before we go. If you decide to come, I mean.”

After a brief silence, Twilight started giggling.

“What?” Sunset asked.

“Cadance always said I got along better with people who were older than me. I guess that’s still the case now, huh?”

Sunset joined in the laughter.

After the laughter died down, Sunset asked, “So, did you want me to help you with the Magic Project?”

Twilight huffed. “It’s not called the ‘Magic Project.’ That’s a terrible name… even if it is accurate.”

Twilight showed Sunset a little of what she had been struggling with for months now, but they ended up spending most of the time chatting and having fun, until Cadance knocked on the door to give Twilight a ride home.

Late that night, Twilight was lying in bed and sending off text after text to her apparently magical friend. The night before, she had been trying to wrap her head around the mere existence of another world. Now that she had more or less accepted it, her mind was buzzing with questions about what it was like. Questions which she was sending Sunset as fast as they came to her mind.

How advanced is the technology in Equestria?

How did magic influence the development of technology, society and the economy?

Are there spells to create food? Is there world hunger there?

Does everyone there have magic or is it exclusive somehow?

Is there a class system based on who has magic, or how powerful their magic is?

Sunset would occasionally answer a few of the questions in between bursts of new ones. Until she sent what basically amounted to a plea for mercy.

Twilight, please. I need to sleep. Can you just write these questions on a piece of paper or something and ask me tomorrow?

Twilight, feeling a little sheepish for letting herself get overexcited again, promptly apologized.

Sorry. I’ll just go and do that. Good night, Sunset.

Once she had filled out a few pages in her notebook, Twilight was starting to have trouble keeping her eyes open, and eventually fell asleep.

The next morning, Twilight made good use of that list. During her first class of the day — biology — which she shared with Sunset, she snuck in as many questions to her as she could while still keeping one eye on the teacher. Sunset in turn, had to ask Twilight a few questions about the lesson itself because of the constant distractions.

The next class, which she did not share with Sunset, passed much too slow for Twilight’s liking and, again, she found herself wishing she had more classes with her friend. At the end of the class, Sunset showed up to walk Twilight to their next class, P.E.

Twilight was fairly sure she didn’t need the protection from Indigo. The bully hadn’t actually bothered her since Sunset first stood up to her. Not that Twilight would complain about spending more time with Sunset.

“Ready to go?” Sunset asked.

“Of course. I even prepared which questions to ask first on the way to the gym building,” Twilight responded cheerfully.

Sunset rolled her eyes. “Of course you did. Well, ask away then my curious little bookworm.”

They walked through the halls, and despite Sunset’s teasing encouragement, Twilight decided to hold off on the questions while they were surrounded by other students. Sunset had never actually asked her to keep all this a secret, but she just assumed it went without saying.

Once they had gotten their gym clothes and were outside, making their way to the gym building, Twilight continued with the barrage of questions.

“You said there were demigods who controlled the sun and moon, right?” Sunset nodded. “Ok, just gimme a second to let that sink in again… So, what’s the calendar like? If they can control it, surely it isn’t the same mess we have here right?”

Sunset laughed. “Yeah, that was one of the things that confused me when I first got here. The Equestrian calendar is a lot simpler then Earth’s calendar. We have four seasons in a year, ten weeks in a season and ten days in a week. The days are twenty-four hours long exactly, so we don’t have leap years.”

Twilight quickly ran the math through her head. “So that’s four hundred days in a year? And each season is exactly a hundred days, too?” A new thought hit her and she stopped in her tracks. “Hang on, do you have demigods to control the seasons, too?”

Sunset turned to her friend and giggling at her incredulity. “No, we use more mundane magic to control the weather and seasons. It’s usually a big community effort with its own festivals and holidays like Winter Wrap Up and such.”

Twilight gaped at her. ‘More mundane magic,’ was a very strange phrase to hear. She shook her head, “okay, that’s really weird. Let’s move on to something else for now.”

Sunset shrugged and continued walking. “Alright, what else do you want to know?”

“Does Equestria have the same kind of animals as earth? I remember there was a pony in that painting you made.”

Sunset chuckled sheepishly. “Well, that’s actually something I wanted to tell you about.”

Before she could expand on that topic, a figure walked out from behind a tree in front of them.

Twilight quickly recognized her as Indigo. And she looked very unhappy. Before she even realized what she was doing, Twilight had hid herself partially behind Sunset, peeking over the much braver girl’s shoulder.

“Well, well. What do we have here,” Indigo said in a mocking tone. “A frightened little nerd and an overconfident slut who doesn’t know when to quit.”

Sunset folded her arms in front of her. “What do you want now, Indigo?” she asked, sounding almost bored. “We were kind of in the middle of something.”

Indigo stomped her way towards them, causing Twilight to cower even more.

“Don’t worry, Twilight, “Sunset whispered to her. “We’ll be fine, okay?”

Turning back to the enraged Indigo, Sunset switched on her ‘bully’ voice she had used on Indigo before. “One more step and I’ll-”

Wham

Sunset hunched over, clutching her stomach.

Twilight backed up a few steps, tripping and falling into the snow. “Sunset!”

Before Sunset could recover, Indigo grabbed Sunset’s head and slammed it into her knee, then let the redhead fall to her side, into the snow. Twilight flinched at the unpleasant sound Sunset’s nose had made.

Panicking, Twilight fumbled her phone out of her pocket. Luckily, Indigo didn’t seem to be paying her any attention yet. Twilight was briefly grateful that her contacts list was so short, allowing her to quickly find and tap Cadance’s icon.

Indigo, meanwhile was kicking Sunset while she was down. The vulnerable teenager used her arms to block as much as she could, but even then Twilight could hear her grunting in pain with each blow.

“You just couldn’t quit while you were ahead, could you?” The bully asked rhetorically. “You may have been some bigshot in your old school, but here you’re just a pathetic slut who’s way in over her head!”

Twilight was in tears when she finally heard Cadance’s voice. “Hello?”

“Cadance! We need help. Sunset’s being attacked in the yard behind the school!” She nearly screamed the words. This had the side effect of grabbing Indigo’s attention and the intimidating athlete started stalking over to Twilight.

“What? Is she okay?” Cadance asked, frantic. Twilight could hear that she was already moving.

“She’s really hurt. Please hurry!” Twilight pleaded. She tried to crawl away from Indigo, but there was no way she could escape. She dropped the phone, staring at the bully who was now crouching over her.

“You sneaky little rat. This was supposed to be easy, but you just had to complicate things.” Indigo snarled before getting up and legging it away. Twilight could hear footsteps coming from Crystal Prep’s main building, and Cadance’s voice . Luckily, the Dean’s office was very close to the staff entrance at the back of the school.

Twilight stood up and ran over to Sunset. “Sunset! Are you okay? Do you need an ambulance?”

Sunset’s only answer was a groan as Twilight gently rolled her onto her back. She had a bloody nose, and a bruise forming on her cheek.

Cadance sat down in the snow next to her. “Who did this?” she asked.

“Indigo,” Twilight answered simply. “We need to get Sunset to the nurse. Can you help us?”

Cadance and Twilight helped Sunset to her feet.

Sunset leaned on Twilight as they slowly followed Cadance to the school’s staff entrance.

It took a few minutes to get Sunset to the nurse’s office. Twilight and Cadance stood off to the side while the nurse examined Sunset.

“Your nose isn’t broken, thankfully. It’s just swelling a bit. Put some ice on it when you get home.” She said with a cold efficiency.

“Apart from that, you just need bed rest, and you should be fine in a day or two. I’ll let your teachers know you’re taking the rest of the day off,” she added.

“Okay. Thanks,” Sunset said.

Twilight helped her down from the examination bed, and two of them followed Cadance out to the hall.

“Can you give us a ride to her place?” Twilight asked the older woman.

Cadance nodded. “Of course.”

Twilight reached into her pocket, only to realize she had forgotten something. “Oh, I left my phone outside. Can you take her to your car while I go get it?”

Cadance nodded, and put and arm around Sunset. “We’ll meet you in the parking lot.”

Twilight ran outside to retrieved her phone from the snow, then ran back to the parking lot where Cadance had just finished helping Sunset into the backseat.

Twilight sat down next to her friend in the backseat while Cadance took the driver’s seat.

“Cadance, can you get me excused from the rest of my classes today, too?” Twilight asked.

Sunset looked at her. “You’re going to miss your classes?” she asked in a gruff voice.

Twilight nodded. “I want to make sure you’re okay. Your Mom’s still at work, right?”

Sunset nodded. “She could probably take the afternoon off. But I think I’d feel better with you there just in case.” She smiled weakly. It didn’t really look the same with her face bruised and covered in bandages like that.

Twilight smiled in return. “How are you doing? Does it hurt much?”

Sunset nodded weakly. “A little, yeah.”

“Don’t worry,” Cadance called from the driver’s seat. “We’ll be at your place in a couple of minutes.”

Author's Note

It seems that Sunset's bark was worse than her bite.

8. A Relaxing Recovery

“Okay, Mom, I’ll see you tonight. And don’t spend all day worrying about me, I’ll be fine.” Sunset put her phone away and turned to face Twilight. “Mom’s got some important meeting today after work. She wanted to reschedule it, but I told her not to. Especially since you so kindly offered to keep me company.”

Twilight blushed a little. “Well, of course. You’re my friend and I’d hate to leave you all by yourself like this.” Sunset smiled at her, and Twilight caught a glimpse of Cadance mirroring that smile in the car’s rear view mirror.

“We’re almost there. It was the yellow house, right?” Cadance said from the front seat.

“Yep, that’s the one.” Sunset replied. She was sounding surprisingly cheerful considering the circumstances.

Cadance pulled up into the driveway and Twilight helped Sunset to the door.

“I think I can walk from here, thanks.” Sunset said, digging through her jacket pocket for her keys.

Cadance turned to address Twilight. “Call me later if you want a ride home, Okay?”

Twilight nodded just as Sunset got the door open. “Bye, Cadance.”

“Thanks for everything,” Sunset added.

“Oh, I’m not done yet. I’m going to have some words with Principal Cinch about this!” Cadance fumed, then left the two girls alone.

“Do you think Indigo will get into trouble this time?” Sunset asked.

Twilight sighed heavily. “I hope she does, but honestly… Cinch will just give her a slap on the wrist. So, Indigo did this because you asked out her crush?”

Sunset nodded. “I didn’t think she’d get quite this mad about it. Last time I was able to intimidate her enough for her to back off. This time, I barely got in a word.”

Twilight helped Sunset get to the sofa in the living room. Biting her lip, she said, “You seemed so confident the whole time though. I kinda expected you to put up a bit of a fight.”

Sunset chuckled. “I’ll let you in on a secret. I’m terrible at fighting. In Equestria, I could take just about anyone with my magic, but after I came here, I never bothered to re-learn to fight. Back when I was a bully, I had all of CHS under my thumb. But at no point did I get into a real fight with someone. I had other ways of getting what I wanted.” Sunset leaned back in the sofa before continuing.

“Intimidation, manipulation, even blackmail. Those were the tools that let me control an entire student body. I like to think I’m pretty good at them by now,” Sunset gave a half smirk that quickly faded into a sad frown.

Twilight didn’t know how to take this new information.

“I’m gonna get you an ice pack.” Twilight said, then made her way into the kitchen. She didn’t find any ice cubes, but she did find a pack of frozen peas. She wrapped them in a dish towel and brought the makeshift ice pack to Sunset.

“Here, keep this on your nose to stop the swelling. Is there anything else I can get you?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah, could you grab me some pajamas from my room? This uniform is pretty uncomfortable,” Sunset used her free hand to indicate her Crystal Prep uniform.

“Oh, sure.” Twilight went upstairs and entered Sunset’s room. She spotted the dresser in the corner and started searching it.

It was a strange feeling to be digging through someone else's clothes, even with their permission. Especially with their permission. And doubly so when she came across the underwear drawer.

Turning around with a pair of pajamas in her hand and a furious blush on her face, Twilight spotted a familiar journal sitting on Sunset’s nightstand.

She put the clothes down on the bed and opened the journal. She didn’t want to snoop, though. She just wanted to re-read the exchange she’d had with her doppelganger from yesterday, to confirm it had actually happened.

The words were still there, just as Twilight remembered them. Sunset had chatted a bit with the Princess after Twilight left, but it seemed to just be small talk.

She closed the journal and brought the pajamas back downstairs.

“It’s so strange to think that you have a magic book that lets you talk to my dimensional counterpart,” Twilight said, handing the clothes to Sunset.

Sunset stood up and started to unbutton her shirt. “Yeah, it is pretty strange,” she agreed.

Twilight blushed and turned to face away from Sunset, causing the other girl to chuckle.

“Twilight, we share a locker room, remember?” she teased.

Twilight gave a nervous laugh, turning back. “Right.” She sat down on the sofa, hoping that a distraction would present itself.

“Hey, Sunset?” she said. “I was wondering if you could tell me what it was that you did.”

Sunset cocked her head in confusion before pulling on a oversized t-shirt.

“I mean,” Twilight corrected herself. “What caused the readings I picked up.”

Sunset finished putting on her pajama bottoms, and frowned. “Alright, I guess we can have story time.”

Twilight realized a little too late that she was dredging up the past again. The past that Sunset clearly wanted to get away from. “Uhm, if you don’t want to talk about it-”

Sunset cut her off with a shake of her head. “I think it’s only fair you know about this. But since I don’t really like this story, you’ll have to do something for me in exchange.” She collapsed onto the couch, her head on the opposite side from Twilight, and lifted her feet into Twilight’s lap. “Rub my sore feet.” She smirked and wiggled her socked toes for emphasis.

Twilight rolled her eyes and smiled, but she did cave in, taking off Sunset’s socks and starting to massage them.

“It all started a little over four months ago, at the CHS annual Fall Formal. I had been stuck here for a few years. I was angry, bitter, jealous, resentful and a touch megalomaniacal.”

Twilight gave her a questioning look. “That doesn’t sound like you at all.”

Sunset looked away bashfully. “That’s what I used to be like,” she said quietly.

“I wanted power, so I went back to Equestria to steal a magical artifact. Princess Twilight, who was the true owner of the artifact, followed me here. Hijinks ensued and at the end of it, I got my hands on the magic, and I turned into a dark reflection of my negative emotions, then the Princess blasted me with a wave of friendship magic. It did something to me. The quick description is that it made me a better person, but there’s obviously a lot more to it than that.”

“Magic can change someone’s personality?” Twilight asked.

“Well, technically yes, but the Princess didn’t really change my personality, though. The magic just changed my emotions, made it so I’d be less angry, less jealous, etc.” Sunset waved her hand through the air. “I’m still the same I used to be, only with a clearer mind, less clouded by negative emotions. Ooh, that’s the spot.” Sunset cooed when Twilight started rubbing a particular spot on the sole of her left foot.

“That’s fascinating,” Twilight said, mostly to herself. She wondered what Sunset would have been like before. Supposedly the same person, but could she ever have befriended her if she had been as angry and bitter as she claimed?

“That’s the first magical event you picked up on,” Sunset continued, “The second one was the Battle of the Bands, two months ago. Me, the Princess and my then-friends had to fight a trio of sirens who had been banished here from Equestria.”

“Hold on, when you say sirens, you don’t mean Greek mythology sirens, do you?” Twilight asked.

Sunset shrugged. “Equestrian sirens aren’t quite the same, but they're pretty close. Anyway, let me finish the story, then we can talk about the various mythological creatures that actually exist, okay?”

Twilight gaped at her. “Right, okay.” She filed a few questions away on that topic.

“The sirens used music to control people's emotions, and we ended up having an epic magic music battle to strip them of their power. Because of the sirens’ music had turned the audience half brain dead, no one actually got a recording of it. Which is a bit of a shame, because it was a really cool display of magic.”

Twilight was once again stunned by the casual nature in which Sunset talked about epic displays of magic.

“So, that’s the short version. And I don’t really want to go any deeper into it.” Sunset looked away.

Twilight squeezed Sunset’s toes to get her attention. “Thanks for telling me. I know you don’t like talking about your past.” She gave her friend a smile, and got one in return.

“So,” Twilight continued, “about Equestria and mythological beings.”

“That actually reminds me. I never got to answer your question earlier today.” Sunset said, pulling her feet away and sitting up, facing Twilight, one hand still holding the pack of frozen peas to her nose.

Twilight had completely forgotten about her list of questions from this morning. “Oh, right. What was the question again?”

Sunset smirked. “You asked if Equestria has the same kind of animals as Earth. And the answer is that some animals are the same. We have a few more exotic ones as well. Griffins, hippogryphs, manticores and dragons.”

Twilight gave Sunset a deadpan stare. “You're messing with me right? All those famous creatures just so happen to exist in another dimension?”

Sunset gave Twilight a serious look. “I promise you I am not, nor have I ever ‘messed with you’ when telling you about Equestria. I honestly wonder if someone from earth spent a few years in Equestria, then spread all sorts of tales of these mythical beings.”

Twilight pushed her glasses up her nose. “That doesn’t entirely work. Lots of these creatures come from different mythologies and times. Dragons didn’t show up until much later than griffins for instance.” She pushed up her glasses as she thought. “Although, it could be possible that multiple people got glimpses of your world, each bringing only a few myths to their culture and time.”

Sunset smiled at her. “Yeah, that seems possible. Although, if that’s the case, those people where probably called crazy for some of the other things they must have seen.”

“Like what?”

Sunset fiddled with her fingers. “One of the key differences between Equestria and Earth is that there aren’t any humans in Equestria.”

“Oh,” Twilight said, pondering that statement. The two sat in silence for a few seconds, before the weight of the comment set in Twilight’s mind. “Hang on, you said you where from there? How can you be from there, if there aren’t any humans…” Twilight trailed off, mouth hanging open in shock.

“So, a funny thing about the portal,” Sunset laughed nervously. “It changes your species to fit the world you’re entering.”

Twilight worked her jaw, trying to push out the words on her mind.

“The dominant species in Equestria is actually ponies, as strange as it sounds. A-and ponies divide into three subspecies. Earth ponies, pegasi and unicorns.”

Twilight finally managed to get her vocal cords working. “You’re a pony?” She asked, her voice faint.

Sunset rubbed the back of her neck. “Uhm. Unicorn, actually. And, to be honest, it’s more like I used to be a unicorn. I’ve been here for a while, and this is my home now. I feel like I’m more human than pony at this point, even though it was difficult for me to accept at first.”

“Oh. Okay.” Twilight said, lamely.

Twilight sat there for a few moments, while Sunset patiently waited for her. “How many times are you going to do that?” Twilight asked.

“Do what?”

“Blow my mind with worldview-shattering revelations,” Twilight clarified.

Sunset laughed. “I’m sure I got a few more in me,” she teased. “So, do you want to watch a movie or something?”

Twilight stared at Sunset. “Uhm. Sure, we can do that.” She shook her head to try and clear it.

Sunset nodded her head at a shelf with a collection of DVD’s in the corner. “After Aunt Luna found out I had only seen a few documentaries and other films we were shown in school, she let me borrow a bunch of movies she thought I’d enjoy.” Sunset chuckled. “Well, ‘let me borrow’ isn’t really the right phrase, she pretty much demanded I take them.”

Twilight moved to sit in front of the DVD collection. “Hang on, you haven’t seen any of these?” she asked, looking over the vast array of classics. Disney, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, even a large haul of horror classics.

“Aunt Luna made me watch Star Wars with her, but I haven’t gotten to many of the other ones.” Sunset replied. Twilight gave her a disbelieving stare. “Hey, don’t look at me like that. We didn’t have any of these in Equestria.”

Twilight giggled. “Oh, right. Well, how about some Disney? Did you see any of those yet?” Sunset shook her head. “Well, then you’re in for a treat! There’s nothing better to get you in a good mood than a Disney movie. Preferably one from the 90’s Renaissance,” she added.

A couple of hours later, Sunset was humming the theme of ‘Be our Guest’ while sending a few texts. The pack of frozen peas had been returned to the freezer sometime during the film.

Twilight assumed Sunset was telling Neon what had happened, and maybe Luna too. She briefly wondered if she should offer to get the journal so Sunset could tell the other Twilight too.

Instead of giving words to her idea though, she sat in contemplative silence. The revelation that Sunset wasn’t human had been bothering her throughout the film.

“You know,” Sunset interrupted Twilight reverie. “I feel for the Beast. It’s pretty terrible to have everyone see you as just a monster.” Before Twilight could reassure her friend, Sunset’s phone buzzed. “Uhg, speak of the devils.” Sunset scowled, turning her phone off and tossing it onto the coffee table.

“What was that?” Twilight asked.

“Nothing worth wasting our time with. What’s next? Another movie? I think you’re onto something with these Disney movies making you feel better.”

Twilight nodded. If Sunset didn’t want to talk about it, Twilight wasn’t going to push her. She returned the ‘Beauty and the Beast’ DVD to it’s home, then thought about what to play next.

“Hey, Sunset,” Twilight spoke over her shoulder. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

Twilight fiddled a little with her hair. “So, you mentioned that you’re friends with my Equestrian counterpart, right?” Sunset gave a sound of affirmation. “Did you ever come across your own counterpart?”

Twilight located a suitable film to play next and made her way to the TV. She glanced at Sunset after a few moments of silence.

“No. I searched some records a few years back. As far as I can tell, she never existed. That’s not too unexpected though, There are a few people here I recognized from Equestria, but I’m fairly sure it’s not a one-to-one thing where everyone has a counterpart in either world. Heck, there’s like, twice as many people here than in Equestria, so a one-to-one thing wouldn’t really make sense.”

Twilight nodded, then sat back on the couch, next to Sunset. “Oh. I see.” Twilight sat back down on the sofa and pressed play on the remote.

Twilight and Sunset chatted for a little longer after the film ended. Sunset gave Twilight a crash course in Equestrian ponies, telling her about unicorn spells, pegasi controlling the weather and earth ponies getting the short end of the stick — which Sunset seemed to be only half joking about.

“Hang on,” Twilight held her hand up in a stopping motion. “If I go to Equestria, Will I turn into a pony?”

“Well, that’s the theory anyway. So far we haven’t seen a human go to Equestria.”

While Twilight pondered the thought that she might someday be a quadruped, another thought occurred to her. “The pony in the painting…” she trailed off.

Sunset nodded. “She wasn’t anyone in particular, but she would be an actual citizen of Equestria, yes.”

“Wasn’t it- she naked, right?” Twilight blushed.

Sunset burst into laughter. “Yeah, clothes are more like an accessory in Equestria. We don’t need them to keep warm or to hide certain bits.”

“Oh. I see,” Twilight started wringing the hem of her skirt. “I guess that’s another big difference between our worlds.”

There was a brief silence, during which Twilight continued nervously fiddling with her skirt.

“Hey, Sunset?” Twilight asked tentatively. “Can I ask you a question.”

Sunset gave her a calculating look. “Is this one going to be more personal than the rest of them?”

“Yeah,” Twilight nodded.

“Alright, go ahead.”

“Everything you tell me about Equestria seems so wonderful. And the way you talk about it… makes me wonder if you miss it. If you want to go back there for someday.”

Sunset gave a deep sigh, and stared up at the ceiling. A wistful smile spread over her features. “I used to be one of the best unicorns in all of Equestria. I was the personal student of Princess Celestia, the goddess of the sun herself. Magic was everything to me, I spent nearly every waking moment of my life studying it, practicing it, and mastering it.

Sunset turned to Twilight.

“But that was basically all I had there. Coming here, I lost one thing that was indescribably important to me. But I’ve gained so much more.” She took one of Twilight’s hands in her own.

“So, yes I do miss it. And it’s very possible that my love of magic will drive me to go back there sometime. But I can’t imagine abandoning the family and friends I’ve made here. And for now, I just want to enjoy the company of those closest to me as much as I can. To make up for lost time, I suppose.”

Twilight brought a hand up to wipe away a stray tear. “Well, since we’re getting all touchy-feely… Sometimes I wonder what has changed my life more. Knowing that magic and parallel dimensions exist, or gaining a friend like you.”

The two of them lent forward into a hug. One that lasted long enough that it would normally have been awkward.

Shortly after they broke apart, the front door opened to reveal Celestia and Luna. The former of which rushed to pull her daughter into a hug.

“Sunset! I’m so glad you’re okay.”

“Hi, Mom.” Sunset said thought the crushing embrace.

Twilight looked up to see Luna smiling at her. She had never met her in person, but she remembered her from pictures, both in this room and on MyStable.

“You must be Twilight?” She asked. Twilight nodded. “Hmm, I see what you mean sister. The resemblance is remarkable.”

Twilight tilted her head in confusion.

Sunset explained once Celestia had let her go. “They both met Princess Twilight when she came here.”

Twilight nodded in understanding. “Well, it’s nice to meet you Luna.” The older woman gave a smile and a nod. “Anyway, I should probably be getting home. It’s close to dinner time.” Twilight said, looking at the time on her phone.

“You’re welcome to stay if you like,” Celestia said.

Twilight thought it over for a couple of seconds. “It sounds lovely, but I have some stuff I need to do at home. Maybe some other time?”

Celestia nodded. “Alright, then.” She gave Sunset’s hand a quick squeeze before going into the kitchen.

Twilight called Cadance to ask for her promised ride.

“Hey, Twily. How did it go?” Came Cadance’s voice over the phone.

“Great. We mostly just watched Disney films and talked a bit. Can you come pick me up?”

“Sure thing. I’ll be there in a few minutes.” Cadance replied.

Twilight put her phone away and started listening to Sunset and Luna’s conversation.

"I assume the person responsible for this will be severely punished?" Luna asked.

"Actually," Twilight grumbled. "Principal Cinch tends to be lenient with students who are 'important for the school's image'," Twilight rolled her eyes as she repeated the Principal's words. "By which she means students who will win competitions, and with the soccer tournament this week, I have a feeling Indigo will get off with a slap on the wrist," she finished with a huff.

Luna looked between Twilight and Sunset. "Truly? Your Principal makes a habit of this sort of thing?"

When both of the girls nodded, Luna sneered. "I shall be having words with the superintendent about this!"

After this, they moved on to more pleasant topics. Luna was excited to hear that Sunset had watched more films and wanted to know what she thought of them. Twilight gave her own opinion on some of the movies they mentioned and also gave Sunset even more recommendations to add to her list. But through it all, Twilight thoughts kept going back to the newest revelation Sunset had revealed to her. I have a crush on a pony, she thought. My best friend is a pony.

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang. Luna went to answer it with Twilight following behind her.

“Ah, Dean Cadance. It’s lovely to see you again. What brings you here?” Luna asked.

“I’m here to pick up Twilight.” Cadance replied, just as Twilight came into view.

“Hi, Cadance. Just gimme a sec to get dressed.” Twilight put on her shoes, coat and scarf.

"Do you know what punishment has been decided for Sunset's attacker?" Luna asked the Dean, just loud enough for Twilight to hear.

Cadance crossed her arms, frowning. "No, but I talked to Cinch about it earlier. I got the distinct impression she was gonna let her off easy, though. If she does, we'll clearly have to do something about her."

Twilight attention was redirected to Sunset when the recovering girl tapped her on the shoulder.

"At least something good might come of this," Sunset said with a faint smile.

Twilight nodded and returned the smile.

“Thanks for keeping me company, Twilight,” Sunset pulled her into a hug, which she promptly returned.

“I’m just glad you’re okay.”

Twilight and Cadance left, Cadance calling out over her shoulder. “Say hi to Celestia for me.”

Luna nodded before closing the door.

“Sunset seemed rather lively,” Cadance commented. “I’m glad she’s recovering so well.”

“Yeah,” Twilight said.

They got into the car, staying silent for a little while. Twilight was staring out the window, fiddling with the sleeves of her parka.

“Is something bothering you, Twilight?” Cadance asked, causing Twilight to jump slightly.

“Oh, uhm. I guess.” Twilight replied. She wasn’t sure how to feel about Sunset being a different species. Or having been a different species, anyway. And she couldn’t really tell Cadance about it either. That would involve far too much explaining.

“It’s nothing.” Twilight settled.

“Come on, Twilight I know it’s not nothing.” Cadance said in an annoyed tone. “You can talk to me.”

Twilight sighed. “Well, I guess I’m just a little confused. Sunset told me that she used to be… different from how she is now.” Twilight didn’t enjoy talking around the truth, but Cadance did usually make her feel better about the things that troubled her.

Cadance frowned in thought. “Oh, you mean about having been a bully in her old school?” She asked sympathetically. “I know you’ve had some issues with bullying, but-”

“It’s not that,” Twilight interrupted. “She told me that last week, actually. What’s bothering me is that I found out that she used to be, like, physically different. I can’t really explain it properly.”

Cadance furrowed her brow in thought, before her eyes widened a little. “Ooh, I think I know where this is going.” Twilight felt her heart skip a beat.

She couldn’t actually know, right?

“Twilight, I know this can be a difficult subject to talk about. I always feel like I’m treading on eggshells whenever I do.” Twilight furrowed her brows, thoroughly confused. “The important thing to know is that this is Sunset’s choice. And what’s on the inside matters much more than what’s on the outside. Sunset made the choice to be like she is now, it doesn’t matter what she used to be. I know it can be tough not to think about what she was but it’s important to remember that she is and always has been Sunset.”

Twilight was practically panicking now. How could she know!? How is she so casual about this!?

“If Sunset chose to be a girl, then she’s a girl, maybe even more than you or me. No matter what people thought she was at birth, or what anyone might say about her now.” Cadance concluded.

Twilight’s brain came to an abrupt halt. Oh… Oh, right. Okay, her mind slowly caught up.

“Uhm. That’s no-” Twilight cut herself off. Don’t correct her you idiot! She just gave you the perfect substitute.

“Uhm. That’s really helpful. Thanks, Cadance.” Twilight said. While Cadance had misinterpreted Twilight’s half-information, what she said was kinda applicable to this situation. A little. Whatever the case, Twilight did feel a bit more at ease now.

Cadance beamed at her. Looking very pleased with herself. “I’m glad I could help. Like I said, this can be a very tough subject. Oh and don't worry, Sunset's secret is safe with me," she added with a wink.

Twilight continued to contemplate this news while staring out the window. Then, when a thought struck her, she sent Sunset a quick text message.

Wait, is that why you needed tutoring in biology?!

Author's Note

A bit of a talky chapter today, but tomorrow is the exciting finale, and the epilogue!

I hope you are as excited as me. :twilightsmile:

Also, to those who may not have fully understood that last scene.

When Twilight said Sunset used to be 'physically different' and was all secretive about it as well, Cadance interpreted that as Sunset being a transwoman. I'm not implying that what Sunset went through is like what a trans person goes through. But I have a feeling that what Twilight is going through could be similar to what someone feels when they find out someone they like is trans.

9. A Stuttering Confession

The next day, Twilight was surprised to see Sunset waiting for her in front of Crystal Prep. She had healed from her injuries quite well overnight, but the bruise on her cheek was just barely visible under the makeup if you knew to look for it.

“Hey, Sunset,” Twilight greeted as she approached. “I was half expecting you to take the day off school today.”

Sunset pulled Twilight into their customary greeting hug as soon as she was in arms reach. “It wasn’t as bad as it looked. Besides, I already spent almost a week being behind on schoolwork, I don’t want to go straight back to that now.”

Twilight gave her a smile as they made their way through the doors. “I’m just glad you’re feeling well.”

Sunset walked Twilight to her first class of the day — maths — and left with a promise to see her after the class. The two of them didn’t share any classes on Wednesdays, but they did both have a free period just before lunch.

Math class was rather mundane. Though, if Twilight were to be honest with herself, all her classes had started to become rather mundane after she started spending time with Sunset and especially after Sunset started telling her about magic.

After the class ended, Twilight sat doodling in her notebook until Sunset showed up.

“Whatcha drawing?” She heard her friend’s teasing voice over her shoulder.

“Nothing!” Twilight hastily closed the book, but she was sure Sunset had gotten at least a decent look at it first.

Sunset laughed. “I think it’s cute that you’re drawing little unicorns, but you really could use some practice.”

“I was just wondering what you might look like on the other side of the portal. I’m trying to picture ponies that can talk, and it just seems so silly.” Twilight blushed.

Sunset started leading Twilight out of the classroom and down the hall. “I guess you’ll just have to wait until I take you to Equestria,” Sunset replied, her teasing tone all but gone. “The ponies in Equestria really aren’t like the ones here. We’re much softer and cuter for one thing,” she added with a hint of bragging.

Twilight giggled. “Now I’m even more curious!”

“Yeah, there’s nothing quite like cuddling up to a pretty pegasus mare, with her soft wings wrapped around you like a warm blanket.” Sunset looked wistfully into the distance.

They walked in silence for a few moments, before the moment was broken by Sunset’s phone.

Sunset looked at what the new message said, then rolled her eyes and sighed.

“What was that all about?” Twilight asked.

Sunset waved her hand in a dismissive motion. “Nothing worth wasting our time with.”

Twilight frowned, but let the matter be. “So, I was thinking, since we both have a free period before lunch, we could spend that time together? I was hoping to get more help from you on some of my projects. We could even have our lunch in the lab.”

Sunset winced. “That does sound nice,” she said, tentatively. “But I was actually going to spend the lunch period with Neon today. Just the me and him, if that’s okay with you?” She added. They stopped walking, having reached Twilight’s next classroom.

Twilight prevented her smile from faltering too much. “Of course. I mean, I really like hanging out with you, but it’d be unfair of me to demand that you spend all of your time with me instead of your boyfriend.” She laughed nervously. “So, you still want to spend the free period with me?” Twilight started twirling a lock of hair in her fingers.

“Well, yeah,” Sunset said. “Neon has a class then, so I’d just be reading in the library all by myself. There’s no fun in that.”

“Hey,” Twilight huffed. “Good quality reading time is fun.” She pouted, crossing her arms.

Sunset chuckled. “Okay, Twilight, you win. I can’t disagree with that cute face of yours.” She ruffled Twilight’s hair.

Twilight blushed furiously. “Y-you think I’m c-cute?” she half-whispered.

Sunset nudged her shoulder. “Of course I do. I’d have to be heartless not to.” Twilight was sure she had a stupid smile on her face, but try as she might, she couldn’t get rid of it. “So, I’ll see you after class.” Sunset waved and started towards her own classroom, leaving Twilight standing there, still smiling like an idiot.

Calm down, Twilight. She’s just a friend, it didn’t mean anything. Friends compliment each other all the time, she tried to convince herself as she took her seat and the bell rang. Stop reading so much into it!

Twilight didn’t usually have trouble focusing on physics, but by the end of the class, the page in her notebook was filled with more doodles than notes. Twilight blushed as she furiously erased the various hearts and stick figure unicorns.

By the time Sunset came to pick her up, Twilight had gotten rid of the embarrassing ‘evidence’ and stuffed her notebook into her bag.

“You ready?” Sunset asked from the doorway.

Twilight nodded, slinging her backpack over her shoulder and joining Sunset. “So, I was thinking. If you told me about the basic theory of how magic functions, I might be able to develop a way of measuring it!”

Sunset chuckled. “I probably should have seen this coming. I’ll try to remember what I can from CSGU, but I was always more for the practice than the theory.”

“CSGU?” Twilight asked.

“That’s ‘Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.’ Magic school in layman’s terms,” Sunset smirked. “Although, a fair warning; I tried to study magic in this world directly a little while ago, and it did not end well for me. I have reason to believe that magic works differently here than in Equestria, so I don’t know how much help I’ll be.”

Sunset left to go spend her lunch break with Neon, while Twilight just sat and ate her lunch alone. She didn’t use to mind that so much back when she did it every day.

Well, almost every day. She would occasionally have Cadance bring her take out and the two would eat together here in the lab or in Cadance’s office.

Thinking about it, she hadn’t done that in a while and decided that she might as well do so now.

She closed the lunch box containing her mostly uneaten noodles and started through the hallways towards the Dean’s office.

She stopped, however, when she heard a familiar voice around the corner. She was in a secluded part of the school where very few students would be — especially during lunch period.

“I see you’ve recovered pretty quick.” Twilight heard the unmistakable voice of Indigo Zap, laced with superior pride.

“I see you seem to have gotten off easy on your punishment. Did Cinch even bother to give you so much as detention?” That was unmistakably Sunset’s voice. She didn’t have the ‘bully’ voice she had used on Indigo before, though her voice was filled with confidence.

Twilight didn’t want to just leave them, in case Sunset needed her help. But she didn’t really want to reveal herself either. After yesterday, Indigo was a lot scarier than before.

“Detention for four weeks, minus the days where I need to practice,” Indigo said in a smug voice.

“Let me guess,” Sunset deadpanned. “You have practice every day, don’t you?”

Twilight heard Indigo laughing.

“In any case,” Sunset groaned. “I actually wanted to apologize for a few things.”

Twilight froze, and from the sound of it, so did Indigo.

“What? Really?” Indigo chuckled.

“Yes. See, I knew you were interested in Neon when I asked him out. I didn’t think too much of it at the time, but it’s clear that what I did caused you more pain than I realized.”

Twilight was shocked. Sunset really sounded sincere about this. Almost as if she actually liked the bully who beat her up only a day before.

“I’ve also come to realize,” Sunset continued after Indigo had been silent a few moments. “That Neon and I aren’t really working out. So I was hoping to offer you an olive branch.”

“What the heck are you talking about?” Indigo sounded very confused. A feeling Twilight could associate with in this moment.

“I’m gonna break up with Neon today, and if you do a little favor for me, I’ll give him a little shove in your direction.” Sunset’s voice was getting a hint of mischief.

“What favor?” Twilight didn’t need to see her face to know that Indigo was clearly holding back her anger.

“You leave me and Twilight alone. Simple as that.” Sunset responded.

Indigo laughed again. “You think I need your help?”

“Well, I could also tell him the truth about what happened to me yesterday… he was pretty upset to hear I’d gotten hurt, you know. A few well placed words and fake tears, and he’ll never give you the time of day. He is such an impressionable boy, after all” Sunset finished. Twilight could practically hear the smirk in her voice.

Twilight had to repress a shudder. She couldn’t help but remember a conversation she’d had with Sunset the day before.

Intimidation, manipulation, even blackmail. Those were the tools that let me control an entire student body. I like to think I’m pretty good at them by now.

Could this have been her plan from the start?

“You bitch!” Indigo yelled.

“Don’t be too hasty, now. Cinch may be able to let off with a slap on the wrist, but she can’t help you with your little crush, now can she?” Sunset’s voice softened a bit. “You should count yourself lucky that I have a good role model these days. By my standards, this is generous.”

Twilight stood frozen in place, just waiting.

“Fine. You two nerds aren’t worth the trouble, anyway.” Indigo spat the words at Sunset.

Twilight heard footsteps getting farther away, then a deep sigh coming from Sunset, before her footsteps started approaching the corner Twilight was hidden behind.

Twilight snuck away as fast as she could and hid in a bathroom nearby. She would probably have to confront Sunset about this later, but getting caught eavesdropping didn’t seem like the best way to start that conversation.

She sat in one of the stalls for a few minutes, before walking out into an empty hallway. She decided to go back to her lab. She needed to think some things through. Besides, she didn’t have much of an appetite anymore.

Twilight sat in her lab, waiting for the bell to ring. She had two classes left today, and after that she was going to talk to Sunset about this whole mess.

Did she actually get a boyfriend just so she could get Indigo to back off?

Twilight ruminated on this until Sunset came back.

“Hey. Bell’s about to ring, let’s get to class,” she said, waving her hand in a ‘come on’ motion.

Twilight stood up and followed after her. “So, uhm…” While she wanted to bring up Neon and Indigo, she knew that conversation would take much longer than the time it would take them to get to class. She had to hold off on that topic until after school. “Are you doing anything after school?” She asked.

Sunset shook her head. “Nope. You have something in mind?”

Twilight fiddled with the hem of her skirt. “I was thinking we could go to that café from the other day. It’s not too far from here, and I thought it’d be nice to just sit and chat for a bit.” She did her best to keep her voice sounding innocent, not wanting to give anything away.

Sunset gave her a smile. “Yeah, that sounds nice.”

They reached Twilight’s classroom and said their goodbyes. Twilight distracted herself with her classes as best she could, with mild success.

A couple hours later, Twilight and Sunset had their drinks and pastries, and took their seats in the same café where Twilight had found out Sunset had a boyfriend. Well, technically she found out on the way here, but the symbolism kinda worked.

This time they decided to take a couple of window seats. They were sitting next to each other facing the window, their eyes glancing between the snow covered streets outside and their food.

Sunset dug into her cake slice. “Mhm, this is really good!” she said.

Twilight held off from her own treat. Deciding to get straight to the point she said, “I heard what you said to Indigo during lunch.”

Sunset stopped chewing, and looked up at Twilight. She swallowed her bite. “Oh.”

“I kinda eavesdropped on you guys. But I didn’t mean to!” Twilight added, hastily. “I mean, at first I just didn’t want to leave you alone with her after what happened yesterday, and then I was just curious, and then I had been hiding there for so long it was feeling weird…” Twilight stopped to take a breath.

Sunset reached over to put her hand on Twilight’s. “It’s okay, Twilight. I’m not mad at you. But I clearly owe you an explanation.”

Twilight nodded. “Did you… did you plan that from the start?”

Sunset chuckled. “Getting right to the heart of the matter, huh?” she took a sip from her coffee. “Yes, I did.”

Twilight gaped at her. “A-and so you broke up with Neon? And he’s gonna go out with Indigo? How did you manage that? How did Neon take that?!”

Sunset looked away. “Yeah, pretty much… He wasn’t too surprised when I broke up with him, I dropped a few hints early on that it might happen.”

Sunset poked her cake slice with her fork. “I had also been talking a bit about Indigo around him. About how I thought she just needed someone to help her make better choices in life. It was pretty obvious to me that Neon did like her, at least a bit, so I made sure to keep it that way,” she looked down at her food, idly playing with it. “I wasn’t lying when I said he was impressionable. And I honestly think he’ll be good for her.”

Twilight idly stirred her tea. “You seem to be taking this whole thing very casually.”

Sunset took on a more serious expression. “Yeah. That’s what happens when you spend years being a self absorbed bully, seeing people only as tools and obstacles.” She looked guiltily up at Twilight. “I told you before that I was used to using people in pretty awful ways. Honestly, I enjoyed being able to use him and give him a good time while I was at it.”

Twilight blushed. “That almost sound like you, uhm…”

“Hey, I’m not that easy,” Sunset chuckled. “I just mean that we had fun going to the movies and stuff. And the odd kiss here or there.”

Twilight started eating her cake, trying to distract herself from various mental images she had unwittingly brought upon herself.

“You don’t think I went too far, do you?” Sunset continued. “I mean, this plan was by far the least malicious one I came up with.”

“Uh, that’s usually not the best justification for, well, anything.” Twilight said, giving her friend a worried look.

Sunset held her cup with both hands, staring into it. “Do you think I went too far?” She repeated in a soft voice.

Twilight took a sip of her tea. “Compared to what she did to you? Not even close. But it does look like Cinch might get into trouble herself. Hopefully Indigo will get actual punishment then." Twilight looked out the window. "Honestly, I just have a hard time seeing how someone could look at a relationship as, well, a tool.”

“Well, it wasn’t the first time I did something like this,” Sunset said, chuckling halfheartedly. “Shortly after I came here I started dating a boy named Flash. I didn’t really see much in him, to be honest. I only went out with him to become popular at school. And because he taught me a bunch about this place actually. Oh, and his mom would always feed me when I came over. I think she knew I wasn’t eating properly, and did everything she could to fix that.” Sunset smiled at a distant point somewhere outside the window.

“He taught me how to play guitar. At first I just wanted to get better at using fingers. That was also why I started drawing, by the way.” Sunset flexed hers for emphasis. “It was only later that I really started to enjoy them both for the art.”

Sunset chuckled, coming out of her reverie. “But even I was a love-sick teenager once too, you know. When I first dated someone, she was all I could think about for months.”

Twilight was about to take a bite of her cake, when her fork froze in mid air. “Uhm. She?”

Sunset nodded. “This was way back in Equestria. There was this cute pegasus mare who worked at a café I liked to go to after school.” Sunset smiled. “She was such a sweetheart, and at the time, she was the only thing that could get me to look up from my magic studies.”

Sunset paused to take another sip. “That lasted for a few years and we eventually drifted apart. I wonder what she’s up to these days?” she mused.

“So, you’re not straight?” Twilight ventured.

“Nah,” Sunset said. “I’d probably say I’m pan. So long as I can have an intelligent conversation with someone and I enjoy their company, I’ll at least consider them.”

Twilight felt her heart skip a beat. I might have a chance, she thought. I might actually have a chance! She could feel her heartbeat getting more frantic, her mind getting a little hazy. I don’t know what to do, I need Cadance!

She pulled out her phone, “Uh, hold on, let me just answer this real quick.” It was technically a lie, she had no message to answer, but she did have one to send.

Cadance! Sunset is single and pan. What do I do?!?!?!

“Sorry about that,” Twilight placed her phone face down on the table. “Cadance wanted to know what my favorite color is. I think she’s trying to buy my birthday gift ahead of time or something,” she laughed nervously.

“I don’t mind,” Sunset mumbled through a mouthful of cake. Her eyes widened, and she quickly swallowed with the help of her coffee. “Sorry, that was rude of me.”

Twilight heard the telltale sound of a vibrating phone. She snatched hers up in an instant to check her new message from Cadance.

I’m going to want to know what happened with her and Neon, but I guess that can wait. For now, ask her if she’s interested in you!

Oh, and good luck, Twily!

Twilight gulped, then turned to face Sunset fully. “So, uhm. Y-you said you could consider b-being with anyone who you could have an intelligent conversation with a-and whose company you enjoyed… would that by any chance include, uhm… me?” Try as she might, Twilight couldn’t keep the stutter from her voice.

Sunset looked at her with a pondering expression. Then, a smile spread across her face. “Well, we do tend to have some pretty engaging discussions every now and then.” She turned in her seat to face Twilight fully, leaning her head on her hand. “And I do really enjoy your company.”

Twilight stared at her for a few moments, smiling uncontrollably, before realizing Sunset was waiting for to say something.

“I-in that case…” Twilight hesitated.

“Yes?” Sunset encouraged, leaning forward a little.

She knows. She knows what I want to say, and she’s smiling. Just get the words out, Twilight, now is not the time to be a stuttering mess!

“I was w-wondering if maybe,“ Twilight had to stop to take a breath. Her breathing was far from even.

“Go on, Twilight. I’m not gonna bite.” Sunset smiled and put her hand on Twilight’s again. The smile was a reassuring one, but Twilight was convinced she saw a hint of mischief in there.

Twilight closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “If maybe you’d like to go out with me?” she managed to get the words out without stuttering, but her voice was still wavering a bit, and a few pitches higher than normal.

Sunset giggled lightly at Twilight’s display, but not in mean way. She squeezed Twilight’s hand for a moment. “I’d love to, Twilight.”

Twilight stared in amazement. “Okay,” she breathed.

Sunset chuckled at her.

Twilight couldn’t blame her. She must’ve looked pretty silly sitting there with wide eyes and a goofy smile plastered on her face.

Sunset returned to her food, and Twilight shifted to face the window again. “So, did you have anything in mind?” Sunset asked.

“What?” Twilight blinked, finally managing to shake some of the haze from her mind.

“For our first date?” Sunset said.

“Oh,” Twilight blushed. “I was kinda hoping you’d pick. You’re probably a lot better at it than me.”

Sunset rolled her eyes. “Well, usually the person who asks is the one to plan the date. But I’ll let you off the hook for this one. But you will have to plan some of the dates,” Sunset pointed her fork at Twilight. “I’m curious what you’d come up with.”

Twilight nodded. “Deal.”

Twilight’s phone vibrated with a new message.

Well?!?!

She smiled as she typed her reply.

I have a date!!

After she put her phone away, there was a brief silence while they focused on their food. Then Twilight, in a burst of daring, dragged her chair a little closer to Sunset, her eyes locked on her food.

Sunset noticed, and raised her eyebrow at the other girl.

Twilight blushed. She kept her eyes on her food, but she could see Sunset’s grin in her periphery.

Sunset chuckled, then moved her own chair to close the distance between them, until their shoulders were just barely touching. And the two of them leaned into that touch.

Intermission

“Twilight, breathe,” came Cadance’s soothing voice. “Remember how I showed you.”

Twilight brought her hand to her chest as she breathed in. She held it there for a few seconds, and then released her breath, her hand moving in an outward motion.

“I don’t think I can do this,” Twilight moaned.

It was Friday evening, and Cadance was helping Twilight get ready for her very first date.

“Twilight, stay still if you don’t want makeup in your eyes,” Cadance warned, bringing the makeup brush back to Twilight’s right eye.

Twilight stopped moving her body, though her mind was not as easily quieted.

“What if I do something wrong? Or what if she realizes she doesn’t like me? What if I knock over my drink and spill it all over her?!” Twilight cried.

Cadance sighed, shaking her head. “Twilight, you’re overthinking this.” She put a hand on the younger girl’s shoulder. “Sunset agreed to go on this date with you, and you told me yourself that she said she was looking forward to it.”

“But-”

“No buts! ”Cadance declared. “You don’t need to do everything perfectly, she isn’t going to suddenly not like you, and if you spill something on her,”Cadance paused to give another sigh. “Knowing you, you’ll apologize profusely, and then try to wipe it off yourself with a napkin and just make the whole thing even more awkward.” Cadance finished, refocusing on applying Twilight’s eyeshadow.

“What? But… That’s-” Twilight squirmed under Cadance’s ministrations. “Aren’t you supposed to be reassuring me?” she accused.

“Oh, I am, ladybug.” Cadance cooed, lowering the makeup brush. “Look, what I’m trying to say is that even if you do something silly, the worst thing that’ll happen is that you embarrass yourself. And maybe Sunset, too while you’re at it.” She trailed off. “But it’s not like she’ll hate you for that! Now keep still while I finish, I’m almost done.”

Twilight obliged.

“There we go,” Cadance took a few steps back, giving Twilight an appreciative look. “You look great, Twily. And you really don’t need to worry this much. Sunset likes you, Twilight. And even though this is your first date with her, she’s not going to be expecting you to be any different to who you normally are.”

Twilight nodded, taking another deep breath. “Okay, I guess you’re right.”

She stood up and turned to look at herself in the mirror. What she saw was a very pretty, and very surprised girl looking back at her. She smiled at her reflection. “I… I think I’m ready.” She said with newfound confidence.

Cadance dropped Twilight off at the restaurant Sunset had picked for the date. It was a local Indian cuisine place that Twilight had visited a few times with her family called The Tasty Treat.

She had been expecting Sunset to pick a posh restaurant where the menu was in French, or something like that, but seeing a familiar place helped settle her nerves a tiny bit.

“Good luck, Twily!” Cadance called through the open car window, before driving off.

Twilight looked back to the restaurant, and noticed Sunset standing by the entrance, waving at her with a smile.

She was wearing pretty casual clothes. An orange blouse, pink skirt and, of course, her signature leather jacket. Twilight made a mental note to thank Cadance for making sure she didn’t overdress.

Twilight herself was wearing her parka to stave off the cold, and underneath, the purple skirt, and dark blue blouse and socks that Sunset had helped her pick during their mall trip. It was quickly becoming her favorite outfit.

“Hey, Twi. It’s great to see you again,” Sunset greeted her with a hug.

“Hi, Sunset. Have you been waiting long? Are you cold?”

“Nah, I’m fine,” Sunset replied. “Com’on, let’s go inside.

Sunset led the way inside, and picked a table near the window.

“You look great, by the way,” Twilight said, feeling her cheeks warm up. She took off her parka, and placed it on the back of her chair before sitting down.

“Thanks,” Sunset smiled. “You look pretty hot yourself.” She wiggled her eyebrows, causing Twilight to blush, and look away bashfully.

“Uh, th-thanks,” she said, twirling a lock of hair in her finger.

Sunset turned her attention to the menu, prompting Twilight to do the same. Though she didn’t need to, since she always got the same thing when she came here.

“So, you’ve been here before, right?” Sunset asked, looking up from the menu.

Twilight nodded.

“Anything you could recommend?”

Twilight bit her lip. “Sorry, I never tried any of their vegetarian dishes.”

Sunset shrugged. “That’s alright. I’ll just go with the vegetarian curry. It looks pretty good.”

“I always have the chicken tikka masala when I come here.” Twilight said.

The waiter came over and they placed their orders.

When the waiter left, Twilight tried to come up with something to say. But when nothing came to mind, she started fiddling with her napkin, occasionally shooting timid glances at the gorgeous girl across from her.

Sunset just sat there, with her head resting in her hand, smiling at Twilight.

The moment was broken by the sound of Sunset’s phone vibrating in her pocket.

Sunset frowned. “Sorry, I forgot to set it to silent,” she said, while reluctantly pulling it out.

When she saw who the caller was, she groaned before denying the call. “Ponyfeathers, them again?”

Twilight perked up. This was the third time Sunset had been bothered by someone trying to contact her. “Who is it?” As soon as Sunset opened her mouth, she added, “and please don’t say ‘nothing worth wasting our time with’.” She gave Sunset a beseeching look.

Sunset closed her mouth, looking guilty.

“Okay,” she said, quietly. “It’s my old friends. They keep saying they want to see me.”

If she could, Twilight would have raised a single eyebrow. “And I take it you don’t want to see them?”

Sunset shook her head.

“Well,” Twilight said, tentatively. “Maybe they found out who framed you and they want to apologize?”

Sunset snorted. “Yeah, that’s probably it. But I don’t really feel like listening to them either way.”

“Well, what if you met up with them and shouted at them. Would that make you feel better?” Twilight asked, with the most doting voice, and playful smile she could muster.

Sunset chuckled. “Maybe. Can we talk about something else, now?”

Twilight nodded. “Sure.” She wracked her brain once more for a topic, and settled on the thing that had dominated their conversations in the past few days. “We could talk more about Equestria?” she suggested.

Sunset nodded, her smile returning. “Alright, what do you want to know?”

Twilight leaned forward, over the table, her eyes glinting with excitement. “When can I see it?”

Sunset hesitated. “Uh, I guess we can go whenever. But we’d probably want a few days off for it. Maybe we can go during spring break?”

Twilight pouted. “But that’s, like, two months away. Can’t we go sooner?” she pleaded.

Sunset giggled. “Okay, okay. We can take a weekend trip if you want.”

Twilight’s face lit up. “Can we go tomorrow?” she chirped.

Sunset guffawed, a stark contrast to how she was only a minute ago. “That’s way too short notice, Twi. If you really want to go as soon as possible, we can plan a trip for next weekend.”

Twilight sat back up straight. “Okay, I guess I can wait a week. Ooh, I might be able to convince Cadance to give us that Friday off school. That way we can go even sooner and stay even longer!”

Sunset crossed her arms. “I didn’t think you’d want to miss school for anything less than an emergency,” she said, playfully.

Twilight snorted. “Normally not, but for something like this?! Honestly, if I had my way we’d leave tomorrow and not come back until I was satisfied.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow, making Twilight a little jealous. “Oh, I’m sure it wouldn’t take me too long to satisfy you,” she said with a salacious smile.

Twilight’s eyes widened, and her cheeks burned.

Sunset wiggled her eyebrows a few times, before the two of them broke down into laughter.

Sunset walked Twilight home after the date. When they reached her front door, Twilight didn’t know what to say. Thankfully, Sunset did.

“I had a really great time tonight,” she smiled at her date.

Twilight blushed. “I had a great time too, Sunset.”

Sunset pulled her in for a hug. It was much the same as the ones they’d shared before, but it felt… warmer, somehow.

They drew back only enough to see each others’ faces, but they kept holding each other.

They stood there, in the snow, just staring at each other and holding each other. But it wasn’t awkward, at least, Twilight didn’t feel that way. To her, this moment felt a lot like what Cadance would sometimes describe to her.

She was transfixed by the beautiful girl smiling at her.

Slowly, they drew closer again. Twilight’s eyes focused on Sunset’s full lips. Her eyes lidded, and shut. Her heart beat in her chest as she puckered her lips, preparing for the kiss.

Then, the moment was broken, when she felt something soft and warm rubbing against her cheek.

Twilight opened her eyes, and saw Sunset rubbing their cheeks together, humming in delight.

“Uh… Sunset?” Twilight said.

Sunset backed up a step, giving her a questioning look.

“Did you just… nuzzle me?” Twilight asked, her face halfway between confused and amused.

Sunset blushed. “Uhm, I guess I did. Oh… you were going in for a kiss, weren’t you?” she added, sheepishly.

Twilight nodded, fighting off her giggles. “I guess I’ll have to wait until the second date for that,” she said, playfully.

“O-Okay. So… I’ll see you tomorrow?” Sunset asked, recovering from her embarrassment.

Twilight nodded, “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She opened the door, but before going through, she gave Sunset a quick nuzzle back, then rushed inside with a giggle.

Author's Note

Thanks for reading.

Volume 2 — 1. A Song for a Song

Twilight put her violin down on her bed, stretching her fingers with a satisfied groan. Her last minute practice had gone perfectly. And yet, she could feel sweat staining her t-shirt.

With an annoyed huff, she threw the smelly garment into the far corner of her bedroom, before pacing over to her dresser to snatch her deodorant from it.

“You’ve got this, Twilight!” she insisted to herself. “You played the song perfectly, just like usual. Sunset is going to love it, and even if she doesn’t, it’s not like she’s gonna leave you or anything,” she laughed nervously to herself.

“I set up the scented candles, I did my makeup better than usual, and I picked out a cute outfit…” she trailed off with a huff, picking out a clean t-shirt that Sunset had once complimented her on, and quickly put it on.

“And, after I play the song, then…” she took a deep breath. “Your plan is going to work, Twilight. So stop being so darn nervous!”

She paced back over to her bed, glancing at her phone to see a new message from Sunset.

I’m heading to your place now

“Okay,” Twilight muttered under her breath. “She sent that five minutes ago, so if she walks, she won’t be here for another ten minutes, most likely.”

Her maths were interrupted by the sound of the doorbell ringing downstairs.

“Unless she got a ride with Celestia or Luna, of course,” she added nervously.

After a moment’s hesitation, she rushed out of her bedroom and down the stairs, calling out, “I got it!” to her mother on the way. She brushed past Velvet, who had already nearly reached the door before Twilight’s shout.

Opening the door, she spotted her redheaded girlfriend standing just outside. Spike rushed in from the living room, wagging his tail excitedly when he came up to Sunset.

“Hi, Sunset,” Twilight greeted, biting her lip anxiously.

“Hey, Twilight,” Sunset beamed. She leaned in to kiss Twilight, but was stopped at the last moment by the bespectacled girl pressing her hand against her chest.

Twilight gave her a significant look, then nodded her head to where her mom was standing behind her.

“Oh, hey Mrs. Velvet.” She laughed awkwardly.

“Nice to see you again, Sunset,” she greeted.

Twilight cleared her throat. “So, Sunset,” she said, hoping to prevent her mom from starting up a conversation. “You’re early.”

Sunset quickly recovered from her near slip up. “Yeah, Luna was on her way downtown and gave me a ride,” she explained, pointing a thumb over her shoulder at the driveway, where a car Twilight vaguely recalled having seen before was starting to leave.

“Oh, cool,” Twilight said, nodding her head. “Uh, c’mon in.”

As soon as Sunset entered, Twilight closed the door behind her and grabbed her by the hand, dragging her towards the stairs.

“We’ll be in my room!” she called out to her parents, before rushing back up the stairs with her girlfriend in tow.

Sunset let out a small yelp as she was pulled along.

Once they were safely back in Twilight’s bedroom, she shut the door and turned the lock.

“What was that!?” she hissed.

“Sorry, I wasn’t thinking,” Sunset fidgeted her thumbs sheepishly. “Sweetie, we’ve been dating for a week. When are you gonna tell your parents?” she pleaded, taking Twilight’s hands in hers. “I hate having to hide this. Having to hide us.”

Twilight took a calming breath, enjoying the feeling of her girlfriend’s hands in hers. “I know, I’m sorry. I’m just really nervous about it. Not to mention coming out to them. But I will, at some point, it’s just…” she looked away biting her lip. “Hey, can we talk about this later? This wasn’t really what I invited you over for.”

Sunset smiled. “That’s right, you still owe me a song, don’t you?” she leaned forward, giving Twilight the peck on the lips she’d been denied earlier.

Twilight blushed. “Uh, yeah. That’s r-right” She lowered her eyes, shuffling her feet awkwardly. “Sorry, I’m a little nervous about this.”

“Still?” Sunset asked, giving Twilight a sympathetic look.

Twilight nodded.

“Anything I can do you make you more comfortable?” Sunset offered.

Twilight thought about it, then shrugged. “Just, sit down on the bed. The longer we wait, the more nervous I’ll get.”

Sunset nodded, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

Before Twilight could follow her to pick up her instrument, she heard a scratching at the door.

“C’mon, then, Spike,” she said, opening the door briefly to let in the excitable dog.

“Hello there, buddy,” Sunset cooed, pulling Spike onto her lap. She then picked up the violin and bow, left on the bed earlier by Twilight, and passed them to the anxious girl. She didn’t say anything else, but instead give her a reassuring smile.

Twilight stood tall in front of her girlfriend and puppy, placed her violin under her chin, and double checked its placement. She tuned the strings, despite having done so only a few minutes ago for her practice, then took a deep breath to steady herself.

She shot Sunset the closest thing to a confident smile she could manage, then closed her eyes and started playing.

Twilight focused on the music. The room fell away, and her mind drifted along the familiar melody. She swayed slowly with the song, and she felt her mouth curve into a relaxed smile. Her thoughts drifted to Sunset, how impressed she’d be. How much she’d like the song.

And then I’ll kiss her, and then we’ll make out on the bed, and then…

And then Twilight missed a note.

Her eyes shot open as her fingers stumbled over the incomplete melody. She saw Sunset tilt her head as her brows furrowed. Twilight kept going, though, despite the heat gathering in her face, or the sweat she was sure was pouring from her.

She managed to pick up the melody after her brief stumble. She closed her eyes again, and slowly got her breathing back under control. She managed to get herself back into the right mindset as the song transitioned to into the second part.

Her relaxed smile returned, the melody flowing with ease, just as it should. The song transitioned into a more energetic part, one she’d practiced enough to be able to play it through muscle memory alone.

She risked a glance, peeking open her eyes to see her girlfriend’s reaction.

Sunset’s eyes were closed. She was smiling and swaying lightly with the music.

She likes it! She really likes it, despite the mistake. Tonight is going to be perfect, Twilight thought happily. She closed her eyes again, renewed with confidence that this was going well, and that her plan would work.

She transitioned to the final part of the song. It was slow, simple, and easy to get right. So, when Twilight played a flat note, she was genuinely shocked.

“Darn it!” she stomped her foot on the carpet, eliciting a much softer sound than she intended. She was brought out of her frustration by the sound of clapping.

She looked up to see Sunset applauding enthusiastically and smiling happily at her.

“That was beautiful,” she said.

Twilight huffed, placing her violin and bow back into their case. “You’re just saying that. I made two mistakes. Two!”

Sunset stood up, taking both of Twilight’s hands. “It was beautiful, Sweetie. Even if it wasn’t perfect.”

Twilight pouted. “But I wanted it to be perfect. When you played for me, it was flawless. And I wanted to give you something just as good.”

Sunset frowned. “Twilight,” she said. “I had fun. I loved it, in fact. I don’t mind that it wasn’t flawless.”

Twilight slumped, sitting down on the edge of the bed, and immediately, Spike jumped onto her lap. Twilight started to pet him purely from habit. “Still, I wanted this night to be special.”

Sunset sat down next to her, wrapping her arm around the gloomy girl. “Twilight, every night with you is special.”

Twilight gave her a small smile. “I know, but… I wanted tonight to be… more special.”

“How do you mean?”

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

“Twilight, honey,” Velvet called from the other side. “Your father and I are leaving on our date night!”

“Okay, Mom,” Twilight called back.

“We left some money on the dining table so you could order a pizza, okay?” Velvet continued. “And don’t forget to feed Spike!”

“I won't, mom. You guys have fun,” Twilight called. For a moment, the two teenagers sat in silence, listening to the fading footsteps while Twilight continued to pet Spike.

Sunset glanced to the door, then back at her girlfriend. “Hold on. You said you wanted this night to be special… And your parents are going to be out tonight… ”

Twilight nodded. She kept her eyes focused on the puppy, bringing her other hand to scratch his chin. Her hands were shaking, now. Her earlier confidence all but gone.

“You wanted to have sex tonight,” Sunset concluded in a soft voice.

Twilight nodded. She could feel tears building in her eyes. “I ruined it, didn’t I?”

Sunset stroked her back comfortingly. “No, Sweetie, you didn’t ruin anything. You don’t need some perfect, romantic evening in order to lose your virginity.”

“But…” Twilight trailed off, not knowing what to say. Groaning, she wiped the first traces of tears from her cheeks.

Sunset leaned closer to her and put on her sultriest voice. “I mean really, if you just wanted to get off, I’d be happy to just eat you out in a bathroom stall in between classes.”

Twilight laughed, giving Sunset a playful glare before punching her on the shoulder. “I’m not that kinda girl, Sunny.”

“Oh, I know,” Sunset chuckled, backing off so she could rub her shoulder. “That’s why I never offered before. My point is, this doesn’t need to be a big deal. Nothing is ruined. If you still want to have sex, there's nothing stopping us. Or, if you want to try playing that song for me again, I’d be happy to listen.”

Twilight groaned. “No, If I keep trying to play now, I’ll just make more and more mistakes.”

“And, what about my other offer?” Sunset asked sultrily. She slid closer to Twilight again.

Twilight fidgeted with Spike’s collar, not meeting Sunset’s eyes. “I… I don’t-” she cut herself off. Her fingers began moving more frantically as she felt her anxiety start to flare up.

Twilight saw Sunset’s hands reach out to grab both of her own. She looked up at her, seeing a worried expression on her girlfriend’s face.

“We don’t have to do anything you aren’t comfortable with, okay?” Sunset said with an encouraging smile. “We can just hang out like we normally do. We can order a pizza and just play a board game, or something.”

“You’re not d-disappointed?” Twilight stuttered through her tears.

Sunset brought her hand up to wipe a stray tear from Twilight’s cheek. “Of course not. I mean, I do want to go all the way with you,” she said with a faint blush. “But I’d never want to push you into it.”

Twilight buried her face in Sunset’s shoulder, hugging her tightly. Sunset returned the hug and rubbed Twilight’s back soothingly.

Twilight reveled in her girlfriend’s closeness. Her touch, and her warmth. The smell of her shampoo. She loved every moment she got to be with her, and cherished even the smallest touch. And yet, she always felt anxious at the thought of taking their relationship farther.

“Thanks for being so understanding,” Twilight mumbled into Sunset’s shoulder. She pulled away, wiping at her eyes. “I guess we can still have fun, even if… Even if it isn’t what I had planned.”

Sunset smirked. “Hey, with the two of us together, we can’t not have fun.”

Twilight chuckled, feeling her earlier anxiety and nervousness fade away. “You got me there,” she said, smiling.

“So,” Sunset continued, pulling out her phone. “Do you want me to order the pizza?”

Twilight nodded. “Sure, thanks.”

By the time Twilight’s parents returned from their date night, the girls had finished eating and returned to Twilight’s bedroom. And Spike was fast asleep in his basket by the foot of Twilight’s bed.

The girls had changed into sleepwear, though Sunset had to borrow a pair of Twilight’s pajamas for the night. The top was a little too small for her, and showed off a generous amount of midriff, thought the redhead didn’t seem to mind, and Twilight certainly didn’t either.

“What’s this?” Sunset asked.

Twilight pulled her eyes away from her girlfriend’s appealing figure to see her picking up a particular book off of the desk. “Uh, nothing,” Twilight said, her voice a few octaves higher than normal.

“’The simple life of an equine: A beginner’s guide to a horse’s biology and behavior’?” Sunset read aloud. She looked up, quirking her eyebrow.

“I was just doing some research for our trip tomorrow,” Twilight said, her face burning.

Sunset opened the book. “Biology, dietary habits, herd hierarchies,” she flipped through the pages. “Breeding behaviors?” she looked up at Twilight, trying to hold in her laughter. “Really, Twi?”

Twilight blushed. “I realize it won't completely translate to Equestrian ponies, but…” she trailed off, shrugging.

“Well, you’re right about that,” Sunset snickered, reading one of the passages in the book. “I’ve read up on Terra horses before, not to mention met some at Applejacks farm, and there are lots of other differences besides the magic and talking.”

“Really?” Twilight perked up in excitement. “Like what? Can you give me some examples.”

“Uh, sure,” Sunset placed the book back on the desk. “For one thing, Equestrian ponies have larger heads and thicker legs. We’re also way more flexible. Our diets are more like a human’s, just without the meat.” Twilight nodded, encouraging her to continue. “The social structure is more like earth’s too, so the chapters on herd hierarchy and breeding behaviors won’t really be relevant. You won’t have to worry about random stallions sniffing your butt and trying to mount you in the streets,” Sunset said with a wry grin.

Twilight blanched at the thought, opening her mouth wordlessly as she tried and failed to come up with a response.

“Not that I’d let them, of course, even if they tried,” Sunset continued with a smug smile.

“Thanks, I think,” Twilight said, shaking her head to get the mental image out.

“So what are you most excited about,” Sunset asked as she flopped onto the bed.

“Magic, I suppose. But there’s just so much to be excited about,” Twilight gushed, following Sunset onto the mattress. “I’m really excited to see your old home, as well. And spending a couple of days as a quadruped is bound to be interesting. What about you?”

“I’m mostly just excited to see you being excited over everything,” Sunset smiled teasingly. ”The main reason for the trip is to satisfy your curious mind, after all. Plus I really wanna see how you look as a pony.”

Twilight pressed herself closer to Sunset as she started to feel the day’s fatigue catch up to her. “You’ve seen the princess, though. Won’t I just look like her?”

“You won’t be one hundred percent identical,” Sunset reasoned. “For one thing, I’m sure you’ll look cuter than her.” She ruffled Twilight’s hair lovingly.

Twilight snorted. “How do you figure?” she asked, grinning.

“You just have this innocence and naivety about you that she doesn’t,” Sunset said with a teasing voice. “It’s cute and kinda endearing.”

“So,” Twilight smirked. “What you’re saying is you like me because I’m child-like? I didn’t know you were into that kinda thing.”

Sunset snorted in laughter. “It’s more that the princess is starting to remind me of my mom, with all her responsibility and leadership and stuff. Similarities to my mom aren’t exactly sexy, you know.”

“Oh, darn it!” Twilight mock complained. “Why didn’t you mention that before I bought a bunch of blue, green and pink hair dye?”

Sunset guffawed, bringing her fist to her mouth in an attempt to quiet herself. “Stars above, Twilight, I do not need that mental image.”

“Sorry,” Twilight giggled. She snuggled closer, taking her girlfriend’s hand in her own while also resting her head on Sunset’s chest. “You’re really comfy,” she murmured happily.

Sunset chuckled. “Speaking of people being comfy, another thing I’m looking forward to is being able to share a bed with a pony again.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes, though her mouth kept smiling. “You are referring to me, and not some other mare, right?”

Sunset looked up in thought, a teasing smile tugging at her lips. “Well, ideally it’d be you and some other mare, but we’ll just have to see how it goes, I guess.”

Twilight snorted trying to keep her laughing quiet. “I suppose I couldn’t really get jealous if the other mare happened to be my doppelganger, huh?”

They shared another laugh, before Twilight decided to ask a slightly more serious question. “Hey, I just had a thought.”

“Hmm?”

“Do ponies kiss? Like, proper makeout kissing, I mean,” Twilight asked, blushing.

“Yeah, they do. Like I said, more flexible than the horses here,” Sunset replied. “We, uh, don’t need to do that if you don’t want to,” she added, sounding a little awkward.

“No, It’s not that I don’t want to. It might be a little awkward for me, but you know… when in Rome and all that,” Twilight said, though even she could tell she didn’t sound sure of herself.

“Oh, darn, I’m gonna need to teach you how to kiss all over again, aren’t I?” Sunset grumbled playfully.

“Hey, I’ve gotten pretty decent at it by now,” Twilight pouted.

“True,” Sunset agreed patiently. “But kissing as a human, and kissing as a pony are very different, despite the fundamental similarities.”

“Right, differently shaped mouth, face, tongue, and even teeth,” Twilight counted off, absentmindedly tracing the inside of her mouth with her tongue. “Yeah, I’m gonna be thrown right back to basics there. Awkward kisses ahoy!” she cheered with a giggle.

“That’s fine, we’ll just make up for it with lengthy ‘training’ sessions,” Sunset wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Twilight started to trace her thumb across the back of Sunset’s hand while her mind wandered back to their second date, when they’d had their first kiss. It had been everything Cadance had described to her and more. Specifically, more awkward. Twilight had no experience at the time and had simply stood frozen as Sunset did all the work. Now, after almost a week of practice, and some instruction from Sunset, she’d gotten a lot better.

Twilight giggled. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’d much rather you spent that time teaching me magic, rather than kissing.”

“I’d argue that kissing is magic,” Sunset replied, her free hand going back to brushing Twilight’s hair.

“Now you’re starting to sound like Cadance,” Twilight sighed. That sigh then turned into a yawn.

“Tired?” Sunset asked, just before she gave a short yawn herself.

“I guess we should try to get some sleep, huh?” Twilight said with a nervous smile. “Big day tomorrow.”

Sunset smiled, leaning her head closer to Twilight’s. “Yep. Not everyday you go on an inter-dimensional vacation.”

As bell rang, signaling the start of lunch, Twilight excitedly started down the hallway towards her lab, which had quickly become her and Sunset’s usual meetup spot at school.

Today was a Friday, and normally she and Sunset would have one more class after lunch — P.E. — but Sunset had suggested they skip it, so they could get to the portal sooner. If it was any other class, Twilight would have refused, but P.E. wasn’t exactly her favorite.

Twilight slowed down as she caught sight of a particular girl ahead. Indigo Zap was standing by her locker, chatting with a few other girls. She caught Twilight’s eye for a second, before focusing back on her friends.

Twilight pulled the straps of her backpack closer and sped up her pace as she passed. Indigo hadn’t done anything to her since Sunset’s ultimatum, but Twilight still felt a tiny bit scared whenever she passed by her.

She reached her lab, finding her a much more pleasant surprise waiting for her.

“Hey, sweetie,” Sunset said, standing aside so Twilight could unlock the door.

“Hi, Sunset,” Twilight replied. She would have preferred to reply with a kiss, but the school had strict rules against PDA. Luckily, Twilight had her own mostly private room where they could show all the affection they wanted.

Once they were inside and Sunset had closed the door, Twilight turned and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

“You know,” Twilight smiled teasingly. “Class has become a lot less interesting since I met you.”

Sunset smirked, leaning in for another kiss. “I guess I must be a bad influence,” she said in a sultry whisper. “You best be careful, or I might corrupt your youthful innocence.”

“Who needs innocence when you’ve got a smoking hot girlfriend?” Twilight flirted with a smirk.

Sunset frowned. “Oh, dear,” she said with mock worry. “It seems it’s already started. I’m afraid the only way to reverse the process now is to limit your exposure. You’ll have to stay here, while I go to Equestria by myself,” she concluded, barely holding back her grin.

Twilight stepped closer to her girlfriend, wrapping her arms around Sunset’s waist. “You aren’t going anywhere without me, missy. Especially not to magicland.”

Sunset chuckled. “If you insist.” She pulled Twilight into a longer, deeper kiss.

Twilight let her thoughts fade as she leaned into the kiss. Her body practically melted into the other girl, the intimate touch relaxing her entire being.

After a a few long seconds, Sunset broke the kiss. “C’mon, we should get going.”

Twilight nodded. She put her school bag on the desk, and Sunset hesitantly copied her actions.

“Are you sure no one’s gonna mess with these while we’re gone?” Sunset asked.

“I’ve left plenty of stuff here over the weekend before. No one ever touched any of it,” Twilight said. Upon seeing Sunset’s unconvinced frown, she grabbed a pen and post-it note from the desk. “Here, maybe this will make you feel better.”

She wrote down the words ‘Please do not steal’ in her neatest handwriting before sticking the note onto the backpack. “Better?”

“Fine,” Sunset sighed. “But I still don’t see why I couldn’t just use my locker?”

“Because I can’t make out with you next to the lockers, of course,” Twilight replied with a smirk.

Sunset rolled her eyes. “Well played. Anyway, I'm getting hungry. Do you want to eat at my place on our way to the portal?"

"Actually, Cadance invited both of us to eat lunch with her," Twilight replied, picking up her phone and re-reading Cadance's message. "Something about a special occasion."

"Alright," Sunset nodded, opening the door and beckoning for Twilight to leave first. “So, what do you think this 'special occasion' is?” she said as she followed Twilight into the hallway.

Twilight took Sunset’s hand in hers, smiling brightly. "Dunno. Maybe she just wants to say goodbye before we go on our trip.”

Twilight knocked on the Dean’s door, hearing a muffled ‘come in’ from the other side. They entered the office, seeing Cadance sitting patiently at her desk. In front of her were a trio of small cylinders wrapped in aluminum.

“Burritos?” Sunset asked as she and Twilight took their seats opposite the dean.

“Mh-hmm,” Cadance hummed in affirmative. “Caballo is one of Twilight’s favorite fast food places near here. I figured I’d splurge, since we have some things to celebrate.”

Twilight and Sunset shared a curious glance, though Cadance continued before they could ask.

“I got a veggie burrito for you,” she said, handing one too Sunset. “And the usual fajita burrito for my Ladybug.”

Twilight took the offered food. “Thanks, Cadance. So, what’s this about celebrating?”

Cadance smirked as she unwrapped the top of her burrito. “Principal Celestia, Vice Principal Luna and I had a meeting with the superintendent regarding Principal Cinch. One of the many things we talked about was, of course, the recent misbehavior of one particular student here, as well as Cinch’s unwillingness to appropriately disciple said student.” She paused, glancing at Sunset. “Your mother and aunt were particularly passionate about that part.”

“And?” Twilight asked, sitting on the edge of her seat.

Cadance leaned over the desk, talking in a stage whisper. “I’m not technically allowed to say this yet, but… come Monday morning, our dear Principal Cinch won’t be here anymore.”

Twilight’s eyes lit up. “Wait, seriously?”

Cadance nodded, her smile widening.

“Who’s going to replace her?” Sunset asked.

Cadance instead of answering, simply held her smile while she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Twilight gasped. “You-!” she stopped herself from shouting, instead leaning in and lowering her voice. “You’re going to become CPA’s new principal?”

“That’s right,” Cadance practically danced in her seat in her excitement. “But again, I’m not supposed to tell anyone this yet, so keep it secret.”

Twilight and Sunset both nodded.

“Does this mean that you’re going to actually punish Indigo?” Twilight asked.

Cadance nodded. “I still think Sunset should have reported her to the authorities,” she shot the redhead a meaningful look. “But Celestia told me you didn’t want to do that.”

Sunset shrugged, swallowing a bite of food. “It wasn’t that bad. I don’t really want her to be sent to juvie, or anything like that.”

“Be that as it may,” Cadance continued, anger clear in her voice. “She attacked you on school premises, during school hours, and as such I can and will discipline her as I see fit.”

“You’re not gonna expel her are you?” Sunset said, sounding worried.

Cadance sighed, dissipating her anger. “As much as I’d like to, no. But I can give her plenty of detention. And I certainly don’t think she’s responsible enough to be a sports team captain anymore. Not to mention that she’s unlikely to keep her scholarship with this on her permanent record.”

“Good,” Twilight said. She felt herself take a bit of schadenfreude in hearing this. Sunset, however, just kept eating, not saying a word.

“Well, anyway,” Cadance said between bites of her own burrito. “That’s not the only thing I wanted to celebrate. Velvet told me you two are going on your first vacation together. A skiing trip, right?”

Twilight nodded, though she felt a tinge of discomfort at having to lie to Cadance. “We’re leaving pretty much right after school, and then we come back Sunday afternoon.”

“Hmm,” Cadance smiled wistfully. “I really should drag Shining to go skiing with me sometime. It sounds like a lot of fun.”

“Yep, we’re pretty excited,” Sunset said, sharing a look with Twilight.

“Yeah,” Twilight added, squirming a little in her seat.

“Make sure to take plenty of pictures for me okay?” Cadance asked.

Twilight paled. Her mouth opened to reply, but nothing came out.

“Actually,” Sunset shot in. “We’re gonna leave our phones behind. Y’know, live in the moment. Focus on each other and the trip itself. That kind of thing.”

Cadance pouted. “What if you need to contact someone?”

“Don’t worry, we’ll be able to call mom if we need to,” Sunset replied.

Cadance put her head in her hand disappointedly. “So no pictures?”

Sunset chuckled. “I’m afraid not.”

“Okay, fine,” Cadance relented with a dramatic sigh, focusing back on her food.

Twilight squeezed Sunset’s hand under the table, mouthing a ‘thank you’ at her.

‘Anytime,’ Sunset mouthed back. “Thanks for the food Cadance,” she said, taking another bite. “Mmh, this burrito is really good.”

“I never tried the veggie one,” Twilight mused.

“Here, try it,” Sunset said, holding the burrito out for her girlfriend.

Twilight hesitantly leaned forward to take a small bite. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Cadance giving them a look Twilight was quite familiar with. It was one that was usually accompanied by the words ‘that's soooo cute!’

Twilight, now sporting a faint blush, nodded in approval, “Yeah, that's really good.”

They finished their food in silence, and Twilight and Sunset stood up to leave.

“I’ll see you on Monday, Cadance,” Twilight said.

Cadance stood up from her desk and moved to grab Twilight in a hug. “Have a great time, Twily.”

After she let Twilight go, she turned her attention to Sunset. “You take good care of my ladybug, okay?” she said in a warning tone.

Sunset nodded. “Of course.”

Cadance nodded. “Good, now shoo. I need to talk to Twilight for a minute.”

Sunset quirked an eyebrow. “Alright, I’ll just wait outside, then.”

Cadance waited until the redhead was gone before she returned her attention to Twilight. “Now, I know you’re a responsible girl,” she whispered, “but I also know that you’re going to be alone with your girlfriend for a whole weekend.”

Twilight blushed. Oh, no. Where is she going with this? she thought.

“Here,” Cadance continued, pushing something small and plastic into Twilight’s hand.

Twilight kept her eyes locked on Cadance’s, not daring to look at the mystery object. Instead, she thumbed the square packaging in her hand, tracing a small donut shape within.

Twilight, now sporting a furious blush, was about to protest, but Cadance cut her off before she started.

“I don’t need to know whether or not you’ll need these, I just want to know that you’re safe. Now go have fun with your girlfriend,” she added with a wink.

Twilight was still trying to get her mouth to work when Cadance turned her around and started gently pushing her to the door.

“Everything okay, Twilight?” Sunset asked once Twilight was outside the office.

Twilight glanced between Sunset and Cadance. “Uhm. Yeah, let’s go.”

She pulled her girlfriend by the arm as she rushed down the hallway, escaping the giggling Dean.

“What was that all about?” Sunset asked once they had rounded a corner, and Twilight calmed down a bit.

Twilight looked around. There were only a few students in the hallway, and all were well out of earshot.

Even then, she leaned close to Sunset, showing her what Cadance had given her.

Sunset raised an eyebrow at Twilight. “Why did Cadance give you condoms? She knows we’re a couple, right?

Twilight nodded. “You see,” she started blushing furiously. “After you told me you used to be a pony,” Twilight whispered. “I was a little… confused about how I felt, so I talked to Cadance. I didn’t tell her you were a pony!” she added, seeing Sunset’s surprise. “I kept everything vague, and I kinda, maybe, sorta… gave her the impression that you were trans…” Twilight trailed off, letting the implication set in.

Sunset glanced back down at the condoms, then back up at Twilight before bursting into laughter.

“I’ll just throw these away,” Twilight muttered, her blush returning.

Author's Note

It's finally here!

The rest of this story is all finished and I'll be publishing one chapter every two days. (Last time it was every day, but that was a bit too stressful for me.)

I'm sorry it took so long for me to finish this. I kinda got distracted and started writing another story alongside this one, but the bright side is that the delay between this story and my next one should be much smaller.

2. An Otherworldly View

Twilight bounced on the balls of her feet while Sunset dug through her pockets for her house key.

“We’re just gonna send a message to the princess, and then we’re going straight away, right?” she asked, smiling with excitement.

Sunset chuckled. “Well, we don’t have to leave right away.” She opened the door to her room, gesturing for Twilight to enter first.

“Mom won’t be home from work for a few hours yet,” Sunset smirked. “Whaddya say we have some fun before we leave?” She pulled Twilight close, sealing their lips in a soft kiss.

“I must admit that is a very tempting offer,” Twilight blushed.

“In that case, why don’t we continue this in my bedroom?” Sunset led Twilight by her hand up the stairs.

Twilight could feel her excitement build as they approached Sunset's bedroom. Once they were inside, Twilight took a seat on the edge of the bed, giving her girlfriend what she hoped was a sexy look.

Sunset leaned forward to kiss Twilight, weaving her hands through her girlfriend’s hair.

Twilight moaned in response, even as Sunset pushed forward, pressing her back against the bed. Twilight gasped at the butterflies swarming her stomach as Sunset straddled her waist.

Lost for words, Twilight simply stared in reverence at the beauty before her. Her breath caught in her throat as Sunset leaned over her, capturing her lips in an even deeper kiss.

The feel of Sunset’s hands gliding under her shirt to caress her waist was almost heavenly. Twilight moaned loudly into the kiss, digging her fingers into her girlfriend’s rich head of hair and breaking away only to take in a frantic breath before returning the kiss.

She felt one of Sunset’s hand trail lower, her heartbeat increasing with each electrifying inch it traveled. Twilight’s eyes widened suddenly as Sunset’s fingers snaked underneath the band of her panties.

“W-wait!” she cried, pushing the other girl away suddenly.

Sunset shot off her as though she’d been shocked. “I’m so sorry!” she gasped, looking panicked. “I didn’t mean to... I-I don’t know what came over me, I just got caught up in the moment-” she flinched. “Dammit, that’s not an excuse.” She looked up with fearful eyes. “I’m so sorry, Twilight. Are you… o-okay?

Twilight nodded, hugging her legs to her chest. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just overreacted, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for making you have to hold back like this,” she added, guiltily looking away.

“No, Sweetie,” Sunset said, shaking her head. “It’s my fault, I should be able to control myself better. I don’t want to push you, I really don’t, I just… I lost control.” She hung her head, sighing heavily.

“But I don’t want to make you have to wait,” Twilight said in a small voice. She felt a knot well up in her throat and tears fill her eyes. “I honestly thought I’d be ready by now. I want to be ready,” she choked out, her tears steadily trailing down her cheeks.

Sunset crawled back across the bed, slowly and gently wrapping Twilight in a warm hug. “Don’t push yourself for my sake, Twilight. It’s only been a week. There’s nothing wrong with you not being ready yet. I’m just really cavalier about this stuff,” she sighed. “But that’s not important. What’s important is that you feel comfortable with taking the next step before we do it. So, we’re going to wait until then. No buts.”

“But-” Twilight cut herself off, cringing. “I guess you're right. And, you're sure you don’t mind the wait?” she asked with a small frown.

Sunset wiped the tears off her cheek. “Oh, Twilight. Of course I don’t. Do you want to know why?”

Twilight nodded, eyes wide with curiosity.

Sunset leaned closer, whispering in her ear. “Because you’re worth waiting for.”

Twilight giggled. “Thanks,” she whispered with a grin. She wiped away the rest of her tears, chuckling. “Sorry I got so emotional and ruining the moment.”

Sunset kissed her on the cheek. “Don’t ever apologize for that.”

Twilight leaned her head on the redhead's shoulder. “Okay, If you insist.” She allowed herself to fall into the comforting embrace of her girlfriend as her worries and anxieties ebbed.

They stayed like that for a few minutes, until Twilight slowly extricated herself from Sunset’s embrace. “We should probably get going.”

“You feeling better?” Sunset asked.

“Yeah, I’m good,” Twilight said. “Thanks for being there for me. And for being so soft and cuddly,” she added with a giggle.

“Oh, you think I’m cuddly now, just wait until you see me as a pony,” Sunset smirked. She then stood up to grab the journal from her desk, and wrote out a short message. “I’ll have the Princess open the portal in fifteen minutes. That’s about how long it’ll take us to walk there.”

The journal announced the Princess’s reply. Sunset, after reading the message, returned the book to its place on the desk. “Alright, let’s go.”

Twilight stood up to follow after Sunset. “Hey, Sunset?” she asked. “I was wondering. Did you ever tell the Princess about us?”

Sunset chuckled. “No, actually. I guess that kinda makes me pushing you to tell your parents kinda bad, huh?”

Twilight shrugged. “Maybe. But you are right about that, though. I should tell my parents about us. Besides, you told your mom before we even went on our first date. Actually come to think of it, why didn’t you tell the princess, yet?”

Sunset cringed. “I kinda figured it’d be better to tell her in person. Though, to be honest, that was mostly an excuse to put it off. I mean, how am I suppose to tell my friend that I’m dating her doppelganger?”

Twilight giggled. “I’m afraid I don’t know the answer to that. But I guess I’d want to hear that in person if it were me. Which it sorta is, I guess.”

They giggled together on their way back downstairs.

“I still can’t believe I’m going to a magical land of ponies,” Twilight said with a mixture of excitement and disbelief.

Sunset giggled. “You’re so cute when you’re excited.” She took Twilight’s hand as they left the house and began the short walk to Canterlot High School.

Winter was more or less over for the year, save for the occasional snowy day. Today in particular was the first truly sunny day of the year, and Sunset looked especially happy about that. She seemed to visibly soak in the sun’s rays, giving off a beaming smile in return.

“So,” Sunset said, trying once again to start up a conversation. “What are you most excited about seeing?”

“You already asked me that,” Twilight huffed.

“Technically, I already asked you what you were most excited about,” Sunset said defensively. “Now I’m asking what you’re most excited about seeing.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Fine. I guess that one would be a tie between seeing magic, and, well… you,” she added with a smile.

Sunset squeezed Twilight’s hand. “Hmm. I guess I can’t complain. Magic is pretty cool, after all,” she said, bumping Twilight affectionately with her shoulder.

“Hey, Sunset!” someone shouted behind them.

Twilight looked around in surprise, while Sunset simply froze on the spot, her eyes wide.

“Oh, no,” Sunset groaned.

They both turned around to see a group of girls running towards them, led by a rainbow haired girl who Twilight presumed was the one who had shouted.

Twilight remembered seeing these girls from a distance at the mall, all those days ago. She felt her excitement fade to be replaced by anger. She crossed her arms, glaring at the five girls as they caught up.

“Sunset, we’ve been trying to contact you for ages,” the rainbow haired one said, voice tinged with agitation.

“I know, Dash. I’ve been avoiding you for ages,” Sunset put her arms on her hips, shooting Dash an annoyed look.

“Twilight!” one of them gasped with a noticeable accent. “I didn’t realize you had come back.”

Twilight cocked her head in confusion and took a step back from the stares of the other girls. She looked over to Sunset for support.

Sunset sighed. “Guys, I’d like you to meet my new friend, Twilight Sparkle — not the princess — who I met when I transfered to Crystal Prep. Twilight, meet Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie,” she indicated each girl in turn.

There was a chorus of ‘oh’s from the girls, before Pinkie stepped uncomfortably close to Twilight.

“Hi, I’m Pinkie Pie. It’s nice to meet you, can we be friends, too?”

Twilight took a step back from the energetic girl. “Uh, no,” she said coldly.

Sunset grabbed Pinkie by the shoulder, ushering her back to the rest of the girls. “Look, we’re in kind of a hurry here, so what do you want?” she asked coldly.

“Well you see, darling, about a week ago we, well…” Rarity trailed off, looking to the others for support.

Applejack stepped forward. “We found out that you weren’t actually the one spreadin’ those rumors, on account of the real culprits comin’ forward.”

Sunset’s expression softened. “A-and?” she asked, her voice a little shaky.

“We wanted to apologize, for one,” Rarity said.

“And we were hoping you’d come back to CHS,” Rainbow finished. “And it’d be totally awesome if new Twilight could come too.”

Sunset stared at them with wide eyes. “R-really?”

Twilight touched Sunset’s shoulder, getting her attention. “Sunset?” It pained her to see the conflict in her girlfriend’s eyes.

“Whaddya say, Sunny?” Pinkie piped up.

Twilight glared at the girls she’d come to hate. “She’ll think about it,” she said coldly. She took Sunset by the arm and led her back down the street towards the portal. “C’mon, Sunset, we have somewhere we need to be.”

Sunset allowed herself to be dragged away wordlessly.

“Call us!” came Pinkie’s shout from behind them, l just before they rounded a corner.

The two of them kept walking in silence for a little while, before Sunset spoke up in a small voice. “So, that was something.”

Twilight fidgeted with her fingers, not meeting Sunset’s eyes. “You’re really considering their offer, aren’t you?”

Sunset didn’t answer right away. “I don’t suppose you’d want to come with me if I did transfer back?” she asked hesitantly.

Twilight wrapped her arms around her torso. “I don’t know. Crystal Prep wouldn’t be the same if you left. I’d still have Cadance there, though. Do you want to go back?”

Sunset cringed. “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t. If for no other reason than because my mom works there.” She gave a humorless chuckle. “I figure most teenagers would hate having their parent as their principal, but I kinda liked having her close by all the time.”

Twilight sighed heavily. “Well, if you do decide to transfer back, I can’t promise to come with you, but I won’t try to stop you or anything. So long as we can still be friends, and, you know… girlfriends.”

Sunset smiled, wrapping an arm around Twilight’s shoulder. “I’ll promise you one thing; I have absolutely no intention of changing either of those,” she said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

“Good,” Twilight replied, resting her head on Sunset’s shoulder.

“Alright we’re here,” Sunset said as they rounded a corner and her old school came into view.

“It’s not as impressive as Crystal Prep,” Twilight muttered, a little bitterly.

Sunset chuckled. “We’re not here to compare schools, Sweetie.”

“Right, sorry,” Twilight blushed. “Is that it there?” she asked, pointing at a statue of a horse on the front lawn.

“Yep, that’s it, alright.”

Twilight tilted her head as they approached it. “I was expecting something more…” she waved her hand in circles, looking for the right word.

“Magical?” Sunset suggested with a grin.

“Otherworldly,” Twilight responded.

“So, in other words… magical,” Sunset said smugly.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Fine. I expected it to be more magical,” she gave in with a huff.

Sunset squeezed Twilight’s hand, before stepping up to the flat surface of the statue’s base. She put her hand up until it was almost touching the stone.

“The portal’s open already,” she turned her head towards her girlfriend, smiling wide. “Come here and feel it.”

Twilight stepped up to her and lifted her hand next to Sunset’s. Even without touching the stone, she could feel something. There was a faint throbbing in the air.

“Woah,” she said. Twilight had seen magic firsthand with the journal, but feeling it like this was even more fascinating.

“Are you ready?” Sunset asked, her excitement starting to shine through her voice.

Twilight looked around them, noting that they were alone. And that they hadn’t been followed. She took a deep breath, then nodded.

Sunset nodded back. “It’s best if we go one at a time. I’ll go first, and you follow me a few seconds after, okay?”

“Okay, I’ll see you on the other side,” Twilight smiled. Her heart was pounding.

Sunset leaned in for a quick kiss, then walked through the solid stone.

Twilight blinked. “And the award for most realistic portrayal of magic goes to platform nine and three quarters,” she muttered under her breath, eyes wide.

She used Cadance’s breathing technique to calm herself down while counting the seconds.

Two, three, four, five.

As she reached five, she closed her eyes and stepped into the tingling embrace of the portal.

Twilight spun through a rainbow tunnel of colors. She lost feeling in practically every part of her body. After a few seconds, the sensation faded. She felt herself tumbling forward, and a shiny crystalline floor rushed up to meet her.

“Aah!” she yelped, before she suddenly stopped in midair.

“Don’t worry, I gotcha.”

Twilight looked up at hearing Sunset’s voice, seeing two ponies standing in front of her. One had a striking resemblance to her girlfriend, and the other to herself.

The purple one, presumably her own royal counterpart, had a horn and a pair of wings, while the orange one, Sunset, had only a horn. Which was glowing a faint teal hue.

She felt whole body being lifted slightly, and deposited on her legs — all four of them.

“Hello, Twilight. It’s nice to finally meet you,” said Princess Twilight Sparkle.

“Oh, uhm. It’s nice to meet you too… Twilight,” Twilight responded awkwardly.

Sunset had a wide grin as she got closer to her. “I’m glad you got to keep the glasses here. They look really cute on you.”

Twilight felt a slight blush from Sunset examining her like this. She instinctively brought her foreleg up to adjust her glasses.

“Uhh, thanks.”

“It looks like the portal did age you up, too,” Sunset continued, and started circling around her girlfriend. "The princess and I expected that would happen."

Twilight turned her head to follow Sunset, and caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror she had just come out of. Her jaw dropped, and the pony in the mirror copied her.

She raised her left foreleg and watched her mirror image do the same. She got up close to see her features better. The best comparison she could think of for what she looked like was a plush toy.

She could hear Sunset exchanging pleasantries with the Princess while she continued to examine herself.

She wiggled an ear, flicked her tail, and even made faces at herself.

“So how are things back at CHS? Have you talked to the girls yet?” Twilight heard the Princess say with a worried tone.

Sunset sighed. “Actually, yeah. We ran into them on our way to the portal.”

“How did it go?”

Twilight shifted so she could see Sunset’s reflection in the mirror. Even with completely different facial features, she could tell that her girlfriend was still deeply conflicted.

“They apologized. Sorta. But I’m still not sure what I should do. I think I need some time to think about it.”

Twilight turned and made her way over to the other ponies. In the process, she noticed they were standing in a huge library. She made a mental note to try and read some of the books here if she had the time.

“How are you feeling?” Sunset asked, her frown turning into a smile as she focused on her newly transformed girlfriend.

“Pretty good, actually,” Twilight answered with an excited grin.

“I’m glad to hear that,” The princess said. “So, Sunset. I was thinking that maybe spending some time with the girls here might help you figure out what to do. There not the same as your friends-”

“Ex-friends,” Twilight interrupted with a frown.

The princess smiled awkwardly. “Uh, right… Anyway, I know the girls at CHS can be a bit immature at times, but I saw the potential they had when I met them. You just need to give them a chance.”

Twilight gave an annoyed huff, and was surprised at how… horsey it sounded. She decided not to voice the grievances she held over those girls, and instead looked around at all the fascinating sights. Mostly, she looked at Sunset’s new body. It looked so soft and cuddly.

“Maybe,” Sunset said, looking away. “I guess it could be fun to at least meet them. Which, I’m sure would take place in the form of a Pinkie party.” Sunset giggled.

Twilight brought a hoof up to stoke Sunset’s leg. It was even softer than it looked!

“I could ask Pinkie to throw a party for you guys if you want,” The Princess offered.

Twilight pulled her hoof back. She took a deep breath, then did her best to try and bury her muzzle in the fur of Sunset’s side.

Sunset stumbled a bit, before catching herself. “Sweetie? Are you okay?” she asked, giving Twilight a curious look.

Twilight blushed back at her. “Uhm. Sorry, you just looked super cuddly.”

Sunset ruffled her mane with a chuckle. “See, I told ‘ya so.”

Their attention was brought back to the third pony in the room when the Princess giggled behind her hoof.

“’Sweetie,’ huh?” she asked, teasingly.

Sunset’s eyes widened. “Oh, right.” She looked away, coughing into her hoof. “Uhm. Princess, I’d like you too meet Twilight Sparkle... my marefriend.”

Twilight tilted her head at the word. “Marefriend?” she asked Sunset. “Oh, right. Mare as in… Right, I get it.” She brought a hoof up and awkwardly adjusted her glasses.

The princess gave Sunset a playful wink, nudging her shoulder with a hoof. “I thought there was more going on then you let on in your letters,” she teased.

Sunset shuffled her hooves. “I wanted to tell you in person. We’ve been going out for about a week now.”

“That’s wonderful,” the princess beamed. “I’m really happy for you two.”

Sunset looked away, shuffling her hooves awkwardly. “So, uhm… I’ve noticed that you two are pretty similar — sometimes in very specific ways — and I feel like I should ask, even though it’s really awkward. You’re not, like, jealous or anything… right?”

Twilight’s doppelganger laughed mirthfully. “I get why you might be worried about that, but no. I’m very happy with our friendship as it is.”

“Okay, great,” Sunset said in a relieved chuckle.

Twilight smiled. She didn’t want to admit it out loud, but she felt a wave of relief flood her at hearing that she didn’t have to worry about competing with a magical prodigy princess.

“I’m going to go get some refreshments,” said princess continued, turning to make her way out of the library. “Feel free to make yourselves at home until I get back.”

As their host left, Twilight decided to take a closer look at the room they were in. She had already established that it was huge, but upon further inspection, she saw that every wall was lined with bookcases. There was also a cozy reading area with a couple of sofas and a coffee table.

She followed the bookcases along the wall, stopping every few steps to read the titles on the spines of the books.

“Are these books on magic?” She asked, feeling a little childish when she heard her own words. She looked over her shoulder to see that Sunset had made herself comfortable in the reading area, taking up one half of the loveseat.

“Some of them, I’m sure,” she replied, glancing at the tall bookshelves.

Twilight gazed in awe at the room. “When you first told me she lived in a castle, I just kinda shrugged it off as magical and otherworldly. I didn’t consider that she might have a whole library in her home. It kinda makes me jealous. Honestly, just being here is really incredible when I think about it.”

“If you think this is incredible, just wait until you see the rest of Equestria.” Sunset nodded to a nearby window.

Twilight made her way over and took in the view.

“Woah,” she gasped at the tall mountain in the distance, surrounded by wide meadows and the occasional forest. There was a city perched on the side of the mountain, only the largest marble structures visible from this distance. “That’s amazing.” She smiled over her shoulder at Sunset, before turning back to the window.

“I can’t believe I’m looking at another world right now,” she giggled. Sunset came up next to her and put a hoof on her withers.

“It’s beautiful isn’t it?”

Twilight nodded, then cocked her head in thought. “It looks kinda familiar, though.”

Sunset gave her a knowing smirk. “Oh?”

“Yeah, the large meadow, with the mountain over to the right. And that’s Canterlot, isn’t it?” Twilight asked, pointing at the city on the mountain.

“Mhmm,” Sunset hummed in confirmation.

Twilight gasped. “It’s the painting! You painted this in class, and showed me afterwards!”

Sunset kissed her on the side of her muzzle. “That’s right. I visited here during the holidays, and got the tour of the castle. When I saw the view here, it made me a little nostalgic and this image really stuck in my head.” She returned her gaze to view, a small frown. “My painting didn’t turn out quite right, though. This was all covered in snow when I first saw it, so I kinda had to guess some of the colors.”

The two of them were brought out of the moment by the sound of the door opening again. The Princess came back inside, carrying a tray in her magic which she set down on the coffee table by the sofas.

Twilight and Sunset made their way over to the reading area, thought Twilight couldn’t take her eyes off the floating tray.

“So, it turns out the welcoming party is tonight,” the princess said with a forced smile plastered on her face. “It seems that a certain reptilian assistant of mine let slip that you’d be visiting today, and plans have already been made without anyone actually asking any of us.”

“Of course,” Sunset sighed. She retook her spot on the loveseat, Twilight following with only a little trouble hopping onto the sofa. “Better late than never, I guess. You don’t mind, do you, Sweetie?”

Sunset looked over her girlfriend, who was staring open-mouthed at the magenta encompassed teapot currently pouring tea into one teacup after the other.

“You’ll get used to it,” Sunset smirked, using her magic to close Twilight’s mouth.

Twilight shook her head as she registered her girlfriend’s words. “Will I, though? Also, can I do that?” she pointed a hoof at the teacup Sunset had just picked up in her teal aura.

Sunset looked down at her cup. ”Yeah. It’ll take some practice, and if memory serves, I already agreed to teach you. In the meantime,” she added, lifting Twilight’s cup in her aura as well, and bringing it up to the awed unicorns lips. “I can give you a horn,” she winked.

Twilight giggled, before taking a hesitant sip. She felt a little silly being unable to even drink tea by herself, but with Sunset being the one helping her, she didn’t mind.

Sunset turned her attention back to the alicorn. “So about this party. Will there be booze there?”

The princess’ smile faltered slightly. “There can be, if that’s what you want.”

“Great!” Sunset cheered.

“You’re going to be drinking?” Twilight admonished. “You’re not even of legal age yet!”

“Yeah I am,” Sunset retorted. “And from the looks of it,” she added, giving Twilight’s new body a scrutinizing look. “So are you.”

“Oh, right,” Twilight groaned, rubbing her temple, almost knocking her glasses off in the process. “I forgot about the age thing. How does that even work?”

Sunset shrugged. “If you ask me, the best way to deal with it is to just roll with it. And by that I mean enjoy the fact that you can legally get drunk while you have the chance.”

“… Sunset?” Twilight asked, eyes narrowing in suspicion. “Have you been drinking illegally?”

Sunset took a sharp intake of breath. “Again, with the mirror, and the whole age thing, who can really tell?” she chuckled nervously

Twilight glared disappointedly at her.

“Fine. Yes, I have,” Sunset relented. “And you may feel free to oppose me doing so in the future… But tonight, I’m officially legal. And after our encounter with the girls earlier, I really need something stronger than soda to process my feelings.”

“That doesn’t sound very responsible,” both Twilights said in unison.

Sunset huffed. “Look, I clearly have some tough decisions ahead of me, and I’m already pretty stressed out, okay?”

“You seemed like you were doing fine a minute ago,” Twilight frowned, suddenly feeling guilty for not noticing her girlfriends discomfort.

“That just means I did a good job of hiding it,” Sunset said with a sad smile. “Look, I promise I won’t do anything stupid, okay?”

“Okay. But I’m going to hold you to that promise,” Twilight smiled, awkwardly rubbing her face against Sunset’s neck in a vague facsimile of a nuzzle.

Twilight noticed the Princess fidgeting on the other sofa. “Maybe I should go help Pinkie with setting up. You two could stay here, or go exploring the castle.”

“Sure thing. We’ll find some way to entertain ourselves,” Sunset answered with a nod.

The Princess hopped off the sofa. “Alright, I’ll come get you two when everything’s ready.” Before leaving, she trotted up and grabbed Sunset in a tight hug. “I’m so happy to see you again, Sunset.”

Sunset melted into the hug. “It feels good to be back.”

The hug ended and the Princess turned her attention to Twilight. “And I look forward to learning more about my alternate self, and the mare who stole one of my closest friend’s heart.”

Twilight and Sunset giggled as the Princess turned to leave.

After she was gone, Sunset turned fully to face her girlfriend. “Anything in particular you want to do before the party?”

“Magic,” Twilight replied instantly.

Sunset giggled sweetly. “Alright, we have time for some of the basics.”

Author's Note

I'm going to be honest... I'm not super happy about having to constantly refer to Princess Twilight as 'the princess' or 'the alicorn.'

At one point, I tried calling one of them 'Twilight' and the other 'Twi' in the narration, but I really didn't like how that turned out, either. The narration is meant to be from SciTwi's POV, and it didn't really make sense for her to think of herself as 'Twi' or anything like that, and 'the princess' felt like the most natural nickname she'd use for her counterpart.

I think the way I did it works well enough, but I will probably try to stay clear from these kinds of situations in future fics. :twilightsheepish:

3. Welcoming Party

Twilight looked from the crowded hall to her wide-eyed girlfriend.

“Sunset? Are you okay?” she asked, gently nudging the frozen unicorn.

Sunset shook her head. “Yeah, it’s just… They all look and act so much like the girls from CHS.”

Twilight looked back at the six ponies chatting, flying, drinking, arguing and bouncing around the room. They had yet to notice the two unicorns watching them from the hallway.

“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Twilight said, hoping to console the other mare.

Sunset closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

“No, I need to do this,” she sighed. “If I can’t even talk to their pony counterparts, how will I ever confront the others?”

Twilight nodded. “Okay,” she smiled encouragingly. “Just remember that I’ll be with you the whole time.” She awkwardly leaned into Sunset, hoping the touch would comfort her girlfriend.

Instead, Sunset gave her a mischievous grin. “Oh, no you won’t,” she said, tapping Twilight on the muzzle with her hoof. “You need to socialize, too, young lady. I won’t have you hiding behind me all evening.”

Twilight groaned. “Do I have to?”

“Well, I want you to,” Sunset replied, almost making it sound like she was giving her a choice.

Twilight responded with a pout. Or at least, what she thought a pout looked like in this body.

“It’s not that big a deal, Twi,” Sunset chuckled. “I’m sure you could get along with Fluttershy. She’s quiet and kinda socially awkward like you.”

“The last time I tried to chat with someone ‘like me’ as you put it, we spent half an hour staring at anything but each other and struggling to think of anything to say, or find anything we had in common,” Twilight deadpanned.

“Okay, so maybe Rarity or Rainbow?” Sunset suggested. “They can usually keep up a conversation by themselves if you let them.”

Just then, they were interrupted by the Princess waving at them.

“Sunset! Twilight! C’mon over!”

“Here we go,” Sunset whispered unenthusiastically.

The couple trotted over to the center of the room, where the others had all gathered to greet them. Twilight noticed that she seemed to be getting a lot of confused looks.

“Girls,” The Princess started. “I’d like you all to meet Sunset Shimmer, and her marefriend, Twilight Sparkle. The other Twilight Sparkle, that is.”

Twilight gave a wave and a nervous smile. Before she could properly say hello, she was interrupted by a raucous laughter.

“That’s priceless,” a hovering pegasus said. “Your friend is dating another version of you!” she guffawed a few of the others giggling a little with her.

Twilight squinted at the colorful pegasus, trying to discern how she could possibly be airborne with those wings, not to mention while rolling in the air from her laughter.

She looked over at Sunset, hoping for an answer, only to find her scowling at the pegasus.

“You done, Rainbow?!” she snapped angrily, once the pegasus settled down. “Got it all out of your system?”

Everyone went completely silent, staring at the amber unicorn.

“Ahem,” the Princess nervously trotted forward a couple of steps, wearing a forced smile. “Sunset, Twilight, you’ve met these ponies' counterparts, but for formality's sake, I’ll introduce them.” she said, looking at her doppelganger.

“This is Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie,” she pointed to each pony in turn. “Now that the pleasantries are out of the way, why don’t you girls help yourselves to some food and drinks?”

Sunset sheepishly bowed her head, and went for the drinks table, Twilight following close behind.

“Oh thank goodness, they brought the alcohol,” Sunset sighed in relief. Using her magic, she poured herself a mug of cider. “You want some too, Twi?” she offered.

Twilight looked over the selection of drinks available. “I’ll just stick to the juice, thanks.” She picked up a muffin in her teeth and awkwardly tossed her head back to eat the whole thing in one go. She couldn’t help but notice how strange it felt to suddenly have a differently shaped mouth.

Sunset took a large swig of of her drink. “That’s a shame, I was looking forward to seeing what kind of a drunk you are,” Sunset teased.

Twilight stuck her tongue out in concentration as she put Sunset’s earlier lesson into practice, focusing her magic to lift a jar of juice. “What do you mean, ‘what kind of drunk’?”

“Like, if you’re an angry drunk, or a sleepy drunk, or sentimental drunk,” Sunset trailed off.

Twilight smiled victoriously as she picked up her full mug. “I’m afraid you’ll just have to wait to find out.”

Sunset rolled her eyes. “Oh fine, then.”

Just then, Twilight’s attention was pulled to a pair of ponies approaching her.

“Darling, you simply must tell us more about yourself,” said Rarity the unicorn. “We’re very curious to know about our friend’s counterpart.”

“Uh,” Twilight stammered. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sunset being waved over by the Princess.

Sunset gave her a wink before abandoning her.

“Uhm,” Twilight gulped. “Right. Uhm, you’re Rarity, correct?” she said with a forced smile.

“That’s right, darling,” replied the unicorn. “And this here is Fluttershy,” she added, pointing to the yellow pegasus next to her.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Twilight said.

“So, as I was saying,” Rarity continued. “While you look very much the spitting image of our Twilight, you seem to be a bit more… what’s the word?” she waved her hoof absently, looking to Fluttershy for help.

“Timid?” the pegasus suggested quietly.

“Yes, that’s exactly it,” Rarity beamed. “Not to say that it’s a bad thing, dear,” she added, looking sheepishly at Twilight.

Twilight shuffled her hooves. “It’s fine. I have noticed that the Princess seems to be more outgoing than me.”

“Yes, she has really come out of her shell since she moved to Ponyville,” Rarity nodded.

“I guess having a group of close friends would have that effect,” Twilight smiled with a hint of melancholy.

Rarity cleared her throat awkwardly. “Yes, quite.”

Twilight cringed at the awkward silence that followed. Every time she was put in social situations like this, she always managed to say something wrong.

“So, what do you do for a living?” Twilight asked, hoping to break the tension.

Rarity’s face lit up. “I am a renowned fashion designer,” she proclaimed proudly. “I run a boutique here in Ponyville, but I’ve done commissions for quite a few stars. Why, just a couple of weeks ago, I made an entire ensemble for none other than Sapphire Shores for her Equestria wide tour!”

Twilight wracked her brain for the name. “Oh! I know Sapphire Shores. She does music, right?”

Rarity’s expression turned a little sour. “Yes, I suppose you could put it that way.”

Meanwhile, Fluttershy stifled a giggle. “She really is like our Twilight used to be, huh?”

Rarity chuckled brightly. “I suppose I should have expected that.”

“So, you must be moving up in the world, huh?” Twilight asked, happy to have found a subject matter that actually resulted in interesting conversation.

Rarity nodded excitedly. “As a matter of fact, I’m hoping to be able to open up a new boutique in Canterlot soon. I’ve been saving up for years now, and think I might have found the perfect location, too. It’ll still be a lot of work, but I’ve never let that stop me before.”

Twilight nodded along.

“So, what about you, darling?” Rarity asked. “You may not be a princess, but I’m sure you have quite an interesting job nonetheless.”

“Oh, I’m still in school.”

Both ponies stared confusedly at Twilight.

“You mean as a professor?” Rarity asked.

“No, as a student,” Twilight clarified. She shuffled her hooves a little uncomfortably. “There’s this weird quirk with the portal where Sunset and I are younger when we’re in the other world than here in Equestria. I’m not even old enough to be in college yet.”

“Oh,” Rarity said, looking even more confused.

Twilight sipped her juice, happy to at least have something to do with her hands. Or magic, as the case was.

“Well, anyway,” Rarity said. “I must say I like your glasses. I’ve had Twilight — that is to say our Twilight,” she giggled, “model for me on a few occasions, but you have a slightly slimmer build,” she leaned to the side, clearly examining the uncomfortable unicorn. “Not to mention you don’t have wings. Yet,” she chuckled. “You simply must come by my boutique and let me try some designs on you,” she finished with a gleam in her eyes.

“Uhh,” Twilight cringed. “I’m actually only going to be in Equestria for three days — more like two and a half, really — and I…” she hesitated as she stifled her initial impulse of following up with ‘I have more important things to do’. “Sunset and I have a really packed schedule already,” she lied

“Oh, pish posh, darling, it’ll only take a few hours,” Rarity said, unperturbed.

Twilight gave a forced smile. She didn’t understand how ‘only a few hours’ of her short vacation in a magical land could be considered a small sacrifice in the fashionista’s mind.

“But-” she hesitated, worried that anything she might say would come off as rude.

Before Twilight could think her way out of this awkward mess, she was saved by the voice of her girlfriend calling her over.

“Hey, Sweetie! Come see this.”

Twilight gave a strained smile to the two ponies in front of her. “Um, I’ll think about it. Excuse me.”

Twilight sighed in relief as she made her way to the amber unicorn, who seemed to have just finished a conversation with Applejack and Pinkie.

“What did you want to show me?”

“Here, look at my hoof,” Sunset lifted the appendage in question. “Does it look weirdly bumpy to you?”

“What?” Twilight furrowed her brows. “What do you mean? And why would you ask me of all people.”

“It kinda looks like a rash to me.” Sunset continued worriedly, then shoved her hoof closer to Twilight’s face. “What do you think?”

“I don’t even know what a horse rash is supposed to look like!” she whispered annoyedly. “You called me over for this?”

“No, I called you over cause you looked like you were dying over there,” Sunset said simply, lowering her hoof. “Was it really that bad?” she asked with a sympathetic smile.

Twilight sighed and softened her voice. “I don’t know. Rarity wanted me to model for her. I barely even know her and she’s asking me to spend my valuable, limited time here in Equestria in a dress shop of all places!”

Sunset put a hoof over her withers. “Don’t worry, Twi. I know how excited you’ve been for this trip, and I’m going to make sure it’s as not boring as possible,” she said, giving Twilight a kiss on the muzzle and eliciting a small giggle from the purple unicorn. “C’mon, let’s go talk to the princess.”

Sunset led them over to where Princess Twilight was chatting with a small reptilian creature.

“Hey, Twilight, “Sunset said.

“Hi girls,” the Princess said brightly. “How are you enjoying the party.”

“It’s great,” Sunset replied in a tone that Twilight recognized as her girlfriend’s ‘I don’t want to tell you I dislike something,’ voice.

“Yeah, same,” Twilight added, forcing a smile.

“Oh, by the way, this is my assistant, Spike,” the alicorn indicated the small figure she’d been talking to with her hoof.

Twilight’s eyes widened.

“Nice to meet you, other Twi!” Spiked greeted cheerfully.

Twilight’s eyes widened even more. “Sunset,” she whispered. “Is that what I think it is?”

Sunset rolled her eyes. “Why don’t you ask him yourself?”

Twilight looked between her girlfriend and the awkwardly shuffling creature.

“Ahem. Hello, uh, Spike,” she greeted nervously. “W-would it be rude of me to ask what you are?”

“Not as rude as referring to me as ‘it',” he replied with a frown. “But, to answer your question, I’m a dragon. I heard you don’t have those in your world?”

Twilight shook her head. “Only in stories and fairy tales. So, can you breathe fire?”

“Yep,” Spike replied proudly.

“How does that work?” Twilight continued, her curiosity overshadowing her nerves.

Spike rubbed his chin in thought. “Magic I guess. I never really thought about it,” he looked over at the alicorn at his side.

The Princess shrugged. “I don’t know the specifics either. I thought about doing some research on it, but I didn’t like the idea of doing experiments on my number one assistant.” She ruffled the top of Spike’s head lovingly.

Spike extracted himself from her grip. “Oh, hey look, it’s Rarity. I’m gonna go say hello,” he said hastily, before running away from the giggling alicorn.

Sunset chuckled. “You know,” she whispered nudging Twilight in the side. “The Princess might get to have all this cool magic stuff, but if you ask me, your Spike is way more adorable.”

Twilight snickered.

“So, how are you girls getting along with everypony?” the Princess asked hopefully.

Sunset shuffled a little uncomfortably. “Pretty well, I guess. Apart snapping at Rainbow earlier. I’ll admit that they aren’t the same as the girls from CHS. They’re more mature, at least,” she reluctantly admitted.

“How about you tell me what the other girls were like?” the Princess suggested. “And I also want to know what happened when you ran into them today.

Sunset sighed. “Alright, just gimme a sec, first.” She proceeded to chug the rest of her mug, before magically reaching for another from the distant drinks’ table. “Okay, so where do you want me to start?”

The purple alicorn huffed at Sunset’s antics. “Okay, let’s start with…” she furrowed her brow in thought as she summoned a piece of parchment with her magic. “How often did they invite you to hang out with them?” she asked, reading from her list.

“Technically, they invited me to pretty much everything they did,” Sunset started, causing the Princess to smile. “The day after you left, they added me to their group chat on MyStable. So, anytime one of them invited the others, they were inviting me too.”

“Well, that doesn’t sound so bad,” the princess said hopefully.

“It doesn’t,” Sunset said bitterly. “Except that half the time I’d show up, their first reaction was surprise, like they’d forgotten all about me. We once went to the cinema together, and I had to sit three rows behind the rest of the girls, because they’d only bought five tickets in advance.”

“Ouch,” Twilight winced, giving her girlfriend a questioning look. “And you kept hanging out with them?”

Sunset’s expression softened and her voice turned sad. “The thing was, that the other half of the time, they genuinely seemed to be putting in an effort. And those times really were good. I loved hanging out with them when they actually let their guard down and treated me like a part of the group. I assumed that I just had to be patient, that it would take some time for them to get used to me.”

Sunset took another gulp of her cider. “Then they decided to start a band together,” she continued bitterly. “And they never even asked me if I was interested! They had to practically drag Fluttershy into going on stage with them, and they didn’t even think to ask me if I was interested?! And then they wrote all these songs about how great friends they were and how the whole school loved them." Her expression turned even more bitter. "They were there, singing lyrics like ‘we are all together,’ while I sat on the sidelines, and being ‘better than ever,’ while I felt as unwanted as a… a-!”

She cut off her rant, sighing angrily and rubbing her forehead. “It didn’t help that the rest of the school didn’t treat me any better,” she added, taking another gulp of cider.

Twilight shuffled her hooves uncomfortably. “I know the feeling. It’s tough to be excluded like that, especially when the people often don’t even realize they’re doing it.”

Sunset looked at her with a small smile. “Thanks, Twi.” She sighed again, calmer this time, before continuing. “And when I say they’d forget all about me, I’m not kidding. They’d get all mushy about Flash’s crush on, well… you,” she jabbed a hoof at the Princess. “And then they’d suddenly remember that I’d dated him for over two years. And even worse than that, they’d keep throwing my past mistakes in my face as if they didn’t even realize I was right next to them! ‘It’s almost as bad as that time Sunset turned into a demon,’” she imitated in a mocking voice. “’Oops, no offense.’”

Twilight froze. “Wait, what? Demon?”

“I don’t want to talk about that part right now. Too painful,” Sunset groaned, massaging her temple with one hoof. She drained the rest of her second mug of the evening. Twilight decided to keep count, just in case she needed to step in at some point.

“But after you helped beat the sirens…?” the Princess asked desperately, the parchment in her magic wilting.

“They started to get a little better,” Sunset admitted. “They even invited me to a bunch of slumber parties.” She sighed sadly. “Then one day when it seemed like all of my hard work to try and redeem myself just vanished into thin air. Until today, when we ran into them on the way here, and they said that the culprit came forward, and then apologized.” Sunset’s voice lost its earlier vigor. “They said they wanted me back.”

She slumped to her haunches with a heavy sigh. “Do you think they’ve changed? Should I forgive them and let them back into my life?” she looked up desperately at the Princess.

The purple alicorn shuffled her hooves. “I-” she stammered. “I don’t know,” she bowed her head in defeat. “I want to say you should accept their apology and give them another chance — to believe that they have changed and that they have good in them, just like my friends do. But I don’t know if that would be fair to you at all. From what you've said, it sounds like you’ve already given them plenty of chances.”

Twilight looked on warily as Sunset summoned up a third mug. “If you ask me, you should just tell them to stop bothering you. Since I met you, they seem to have only caused you stress and heartache.”

“Maybe,” Sunset muttered uncertainly, staring into her mug.

“Oh! I know!” the princess piped up. “Whenever I’m not sure what to do, there's one pony I can always go to for advice,” she smiled brightly.

Twilight cocked her head questioningly. “Cadance?”

Sunset, however, paled. She stared at the alicorn with wide eyes. “You can’t mean Princess Celestia,” she moaned.

The princess put a comforting hoof on Sunset’s shoulder. “Sunset, I know you’re worried about seeing her again, but I promise you she won’t be upset,” she smiled reassuringly.

“Wait, Celestia as in the ruler of Equestira, and also your mom's counterpart?” Twilight asked, glancing at her own doppelganger.

“Yep,” Sunset said unenthusiastically. “She was my mentor back when I used to live here. But... There's some hefty baggage between us.”

Twilight frowned. “You seem to have baggage with a lot of people from your past.” As soon as Twilight saw the hurt look on Sunset’s face, she realized what she’d said and her hoof shot up to cover her mouth. “That came out wrong. I’m so sorry.”

Sunset sighed and hung her head. “You’re kinda right, though. As much as I wish it were otherwise.”

The princess lifted Sunset’s chin with her hoof. “All the more reason why I think you should talk to her.”

Sunset groaned uncomfortably. She downed her third mug of cider, burping into her hoof before answering. “Fine, you win. I’m probably making a bigger deal out of it than it really is,” she said, though clearly unconvinced. “Besides,” she smiled at her girlfriend. “I did really want to show you around Canterlot while we were here.”

“That’s great!” the alicorn shouted, accidentally spilling a little of her own cider in her excitement. “I’ll get us train tickets for tomorrow morning. We can spend the whole day there, seeing the sights, reconciling old differences, visiting the Royal Library…” she trailed off, smiling into empty space.

Twilight perked up. “Royal Library does sound pretty exciting. I’d love to get a chance to visit there.“

“There’s also some great restaurants there,,” Sunset rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “After I meet with Celestia, we could make a date out the rest of our day.” She looked guiltily at the Princess. “If you don’t mind, that is.”

The alicorn giggled. “Don’t let me get between you two. But, how about we go to the Royal Library together, the three of us, then you two can go off on your romantic date afterwards. I’ve been told that library visits aren’t very romantic, anyway,” she added with a blush.

Sunset giggled, while Twilight shuffled her hoofs awkwardly, joining the princess in blushing.

“That sounds good to me,” Sunset said. “At least I’ll have something to look forward to after talking to Princess Celestia.”

Twilight laughed brightly. “A Royal Library and a magical date? Sign me up!”

Twilight had tried to stop Sunset from drinking past her fifth mug, but was later annoyed to find her sneaking sips when she wasn’t looking. Well, more like gulps really.

By the time the party ended, both Twilight and her counterpart had to work together to help Sunset over to their guest room.

“I’m so glad you two like each other,” Sunset slurred happily. “My best friend and my marefriend getting along just makes me so happy.”

Twilight shared a look with the princess. The two of them were pressed either side of the amber unicorn, supporting her so she didn’t fall on her side while they walked.

“It’d be pretty awkward if we couldn’t get along, given how similar we are,” the princess said with an awkward chuckle.

“Where are you taking me?” Sunset asked absentmindedly, looking around at the crystalline hallway.

“To bed, Sunny,” Twilight answered.

“Oh, good,” Sunset said, closing her eyes tiredly. “Bed sounds nice. Are you guys coming to bed with me?”

The purple ponies both blushed, deliberately not looking at each other.

“I am,” Twilight answered. “I don’t think it’d be appropriate for the princess to join us,” she said sharply.

“But we’re such close friends!" Sunset whined. "It’d be so much fun to have a sleepover together."

“We can have a sleepover some other time, Sunset,” the princess assured her. “But I have to go back to the party to say goodbye to the girls.” Sunset looked pleadingly at the princess. “Then I have to take care of some… princess stuff?” she added unconvincingly.

It seemed to convince the inebriated unicorn though, as she slumped her head in defeat. “Okay, Twi… Twilight,” she blinked a couple of times, looking back and forth between the two ponies flanking her. “Twi?” she asked, confusedly, still glancing between them.

“I’m here, Sunset,” Twilight said patiently. “I’m the one with the glasses, remember?”

“Oh, right,” Sunset smiled. “So, how do you like Equestria so far?”

“It’s certainly incredible.”

Sunset laid her head down on her shoulder. “I’m so glad you like it. I know that Terra is my home now, but this place will always be special to me.”

“Okay, we’re here,” the princess brought them to a halt in front of an unassuming door. “This is where you guys will be sleeping for your visit.” She opened the door in her magic before leading them inside.

The room itself felt impersonal. Just the basic necessary furniture, and a large bed.

“Sorry that it’s so plain,” the princess said sheepishly. “I haven’t made time to decorate the guest rooms yet. I was planning on adding some paintings, at least. You know, something to liven it up a bit.”

Sunset sniffled. “No, it’s beautiful, Twilight,” she said, putting her hoof on the Princess’ shoulder and locking eyes with her. “The whole castle is beautiful, just like you. It’s wonderful, and welcoming, and kind, and forgiving,” she sniffled, seemingly holding back tears. “And I’m so glad you got it, because you deserve it more than anypony else,” she cried, pulling the sheepish alicorn into a tight hug, sobbing into her mane.

“Uh, thanks, Sunset,” the alicorn patted her back awkwardly. “That’s very nice of you to say, but you need to get to bed now, okay?”

Sunset let go of her, wiping her eyes with a hoof. “Okay, Twilight. Thank you,” she sniffled.

The princess gave her counterpart a questioning look. Twilight couldn’t do more than shrug in response.

The alicorn smiled at Sunset, her magic wrapping around the drunk unicorn. She lifted her softly onto the bed. “Good night, Sunset.”

“Oh!” Sunset groaned. “My stomach didn’t like that.”

Twilight rushed up to her girlfriend, then stopped to cast a worried look at her counterpart. “Hey, Twilight? Can Equestrian ponies vomit?”

The princess tilted her head in confusion. “Yes. Though I think Sunset’s going to be fine,” she added, taking a closer look at the rapidly recovering unicorn. “Sorry, Sunset, I didn’t mean to upset your tummy,” she smiled.

“S’kay,” Sunset slurred. “I’m good.”

Twilight took a step closer to her counterpart. “Thanks for the help, uhm… Twilight,” she smiled sheepishly.

“Don’t mention it. If you need anything, my bedroom is at the end of the hallway to the left, okay?”

Twilight nodded. “Thanks,” she repeated. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Twilight,” the alicorn giggled as she left, closing the door behind her.

As soon as she was alone with her girlfriend, Twilight felt a tinge of nervousness. They had slept in the same bed a few times before, and Sunset had always behaved herself. But this was the first time Twilight would be sharing a bed with her drunk girlfriend.

She heard a shuffling sound from the bed behind her. “Sweetie?” came Sunset’s voice, still slightly slurred from the alcohol. “Aren’t you coming to bed?”

“Yeah,” Twilight replied. “Just… gimme a sec.” She walked over to a dresser and made herself look busy. She ignited her horn and, with a little effort, opened one of the drawers. It was empty, as she suspected, but that wasn’t the point. She stared into it for a few moments, all the while working to keep her breathing steady, and her hooves from shaking.

As much as she loved being close to Sunset, there was something holding her back from taking the next step. Normally, she trusted Sunset to respect her boundaries, as much as she hated having to make her girlfriend hold back and wait on her account. Now though, Twilight wasn’t sure if she could trust Sunset like that, nor did she expect to be able to stop Sunset if…

She considered going to the princess and asking to sleep in a different room. Her counterpart had mentioned that the castle had plenty of unused rooms, so it probably wouldn’t be an issue. Though, the thought of sleeping alone, especially in an unfamiliar world like this, didn’t appeal to Twilight all that much.

No, that’s excessive, Twilight forcefully pulled her train of thought to a halt. Sunset may be drunk, but she’s still Sunset, and I trust her. This isn’t a big deal.

Twilight took a deep, calming breath, then turned and made her way to the bed. She peered at the amber unicorn, hoping to discern her mood or her intentions. She couldn’t see her face through the darkness, though.

“Sunset?” she asked quietly. No response. After a few more seconds of silence, Twilight concluded that her girlfriend had simply fallen asleep.

With a flicker of her magic, she levitated her glasses onto the nightstand, and then she tentatively reached up and hopped onto the bed, trying her best to not disturb the sleeping unicorn. After a moment, she found herself on her back, staring at the ceiling. Her earlier worries had quickly faded, but a new problem revealed itself.

With nothing else to distract her, Twilight was keenly aware of her new body, as well as how strange and uncomfortable it felt to her. She fidgeted a little, hoping to relieve some of the discomfort in her new and awkward joints, but found no respite.

She rolled herself onto her side — away from Sunset, so as not to disturb her sleep — and kept wiggling and shuffling her body in the hopes of finding a comfortable position.

She heard a groan come from behind her, and immediately stopped moving. The groan was followed by a brief shuffling, and then Twilight felt her whole body tingle as a teal glow surrounded her.

She only just managed to stifle a yelp as she was tugged backwards, until she felt a furred hoof wrap around her barrel, swiftly followed by three more hooves that each pulled her into the other unicorn’s embrace.

For a moment, she held her breath, wondering if Sunset had fully woken up or not. She felt her heart beating quickly as she waited.

She heard Sunset sigh happily, and felt the sleeping mare’s muzzle bury itself in her mane.

See, Twilight, she’s still the same sweet, considerate girl, even if she is drunk. And a pony, Twilight thought to herself happily. A very soft, very comfy pony. She leaned into the comforting embrace and closed her eyes. The familiar warmth of her girlfriend soothed her to sleep in mere minutes.

Author's Note

This chapter gets a little nitpicky about some of the early parts of Rainbow Rocks, but hey, what else would a drunken rant be about? :twilightsheepish:

In case someone is wondering about the timeline, this story takes place sometime in season five. Before Tanks for the memories (which takse place during winter, thus most likely to line up with the whole Anon-a-miss debacle) But before Canterlot Boutique (Which Rarity eluded to in this chapter)

4. Secrets and Dyes

“Rise and Shine!”

Twilight groaned, flailing her limbs in front of her in an attempt to block the sun’s rays from her face.

A similar grunt came from behind her, where Sunset rolled over, away from the window. “No,” she whined. “It’s too early.”

“We need to be up early if we want to catch a timely train to Canterlot,” the princess explained.

The words jogged Twilight’s memory of where she was, and she felt the sleepiness evaporate from her in an instant. “C’mon, Sunset, she’s right. I wanna see the this magical city.”

The amber unicorn growled from beneath her pillow.

Twilight looked over to her counterpart. The princess was standing next to the newly opened window, holding a glass of water in her magic. “I’m guessing this is what a hangover looks like?”

The alicorn giggled. “More or less.”

Twilight glanced up at the princess’ horn. “And, I don’t suppose there's a spell that can cure hangovers?”

“No. At least, not one that’s proven to be safe to use. Generally speaking, spells that mess with a pony’s chemical balance aren’t particularly safe. Of course, the main problem with hangovers is dehydration,” she added, pointing at the glass in her aura. She moved over to the side of the bed, levitating the glass of water next to the pillow Sunset was using to hide from the sunlight.

“Sunset, drink this,” she ordered.

Sunset groaned again, but relented. She extracted herself from the sheets and took the glass of water, gulping it down in seconds.

“Why is it so bright outside? It’s her mocking me, isn’t it?” she complained.

“Of course not, Sunset,” the alicorn ruffled her wings. “She doesn’t even know you’re here, yet.”

Sunset’s only response was to bury her face in the sheets and groan incoherently.

“Fine,” the princess grumbled. “You can have a few more minutes of sleep, if you want. Your marefriend and I will be in the bathroom when you’re properly awake, okay?”

Sunset used her magic to pull the comforter over her body. “Kay,” she said, her voice muffled by the fabrics.

“What are we going to be doing in the bathroom?” Twilight asked as she followed her counterpart out into the hallway.

The princess looked a little sheepish as she answered. “Well, you see,” she began, hesitating just a little. “I’m quite well known in Equestria, and especially in Canterlot. And the existence of the mirror portal is a… state secret of sorts. If ponies see you trotting around Canterlot, looking almost exactly like me, right down to the cutie mark, those ponies will start to ask questions that we’d rather avoid having to answer.”

“Oh, so I’m getting, like, a disguise?” Twilight asked, furrowing her brow.

The princess nodded. “That’s the plan. I hope you don’t mind it too much,” she added sympathetically.

Twilight snorted. “Of course not. I’ve only had this body for less than twenty-four hours, anyway. I don’t mind if I have to look a little different.”

“Great,” her counterpart smiled in relief. “In that case, we’re going to dye your coat, and maybe your mane and tail, and we'll also paint a new cutie mark on. Oh, and we’re probably going to give you a new name to use in public. Just in case.”

“Right. That makes sense,” Twilight nodded.

They entered the bathroom, and Twilight’s eyes widened. It was huge. For a second, she wondered where the bathtub was, until she noticed the swimming pool sized indent at the far end of the room. It was currently empty of water, though she could see numerous faucets lining the edge.

“I brought out a few different colors for you to pick from,” the princess said, trotting over to the large table housing the sink.

Twilight trotted up next to her, looking at the array of dye bottles. “Oh. To be honest, I was expecting you to use magic,” she giggled.

The princess giggled as well. “I could technically do this with magic, but using simple dye is much easier.”

Twilight looked back at the dye bottles. “Okay, let’s see… I guess I’d prefer something bluish. Maybe teal? For the coat, that is. Not sure about my hair. Uh, I mean mane and tail.”

“Okay,” the alicorn pondered, looking at between the bottles and the unicorn. “How about we just get rid of the highlights? Teal and dark blue should be a good combination.”

Twilight nodded. “Okay, that sounds good.”

“Great,” the alicorn said, grabbing the teal and dark blue dye bottles in her aura. “Just step into the tub, and I’ll start rubbing the dye into your coat.”

“Don’t you mean ‘step into the pool’?” Twilight teased.

The princess giggled sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck. “Yeah, I guess. Just so you know, I didn’t actually design this place. The whole castle just sprouted out of the ground.”

Twilight laughed. As soon as she took one step down into the tub, however, she stopped. “Wait, what?”

“Oh, god,” Twilight suddenly saw the alicorn in a new light after a solid fifteen minutes of her explaining various villains she and her friends had thwarted. “Your life is full of seriously dangerous events. How can you face even just one world threatening monster without having a full on panic attack?”

The princess smiled, raising her dye covered hoof as she was about to answer.

“Wait,” Twilight interrupted, frowning. “Don’t tell me. It’s friendship, isn’t it?”

The alicorn giggled into her wing. “Yep, pretty much. That and regular visits to the spa. With my friends, of course.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Of course.”

“So, you and Sunset, huh?” the princess changed the subject with a suggestive smile.

“Yeah,” Twilight answered with an awkward giggle. “I can still barely believe that I actually asked her out, let alone that she said yes!”

“You two seem to be really happy together,” the princess continued rubbing the dye into Twilight’s back. “If you don’t mind me asking, is she your first girlfriend?”

Twilight nodded. “Yeah. Before I met her, I never would have had the courage to ask anyone out.”

“Mhm,” the alicorn hummed. “And how are things going between you two? Again, if you don’t mind me asking.”

“Well,” Twilight smiled as she thought back to her time with Sunset. “Really well, to be honest. I mean, Sunset is amazing, and literally magical. When she first showed me the magic journal, I honestly wasn’t sure if I could believe my eyes or not. Although, it was pretty weird to find out that she’s technically, sorta older than me, but still also technically not.”

The princess giggled. “Yeah, that little quirk of the portal has been quite the puzzle. My current hypothesis is that it has to do with the average lifespan and or age of maturity of a human as compared to a pony, but I haven’t gotten around to properly testing it yet.” She moved over to Twilight’s front and started to gently apply the dye around her face. “Still, dating someone who’s a few years older doesn’t have to be a problem unless you make it one. In fact, I’ll tell you a secret,” she added, glancing left and right, before leaning in to whisper. “I’ve recently started seeing somepony in secret. And she’s technically much older than me.”

Twilight perked up in interest. “Oh? How much older?”

“A couple of millennia, give or take a few centuries,” the smirking alicorn replied casually.

Twilight furrowed her brow. “What? Like, as in an immortal?”

The princess nodded. “But we're not ready to make it public yet, so don’t tell anyone, okay? Not even Sunset.”

Twilight smiled. “Your secret is safe with me. So, what’s she like?”

The princess returned her attention to dying Twilight’s muzzle, a wistful smile on her face. “She a bit like Sunset, actually. Strong and proud, but with a past that haunts her.”

“I see,” Twilight said, wondering how much her counterpart might be willing to share. “Uhm, I don’t mean to pry, but can I ask you a personal question?”

“Of course.” She finished applying the dye to the fur on Twilight’s muzzle, then backed up a couple of steps.

Twilight felt herself starting to blush, and hoping that the dye would cover it up. “Have you and your girlfriend… had sex yet?”

The princess’s eyes widened in surprise and she immediately started blushing. She coughed into her hoof, looking away sheepishly. “We have,” she stated quietly. “So, you and Sunset…?”

“We haven’t,” Twilight said. “And the problem is, Sunset really wants to. And I want to as well, but there’s something holding me back, and I’m not even sure what it is. The night before we came here, I planned out this whole romantic thing where I would serenade her, and we had the house all to ourselves… But then I messed it all up, and then I felt terrible and I couldn’t go through with it.”

The princess’s expression turned worried. “You said that Sunset wants to do it. She isn’t pushing you into anything you’re uncomfortable with, is she?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, she’s being really patient with me. More than I feel like I deserve. Although…”

“Although what?”

“Yesterday, before we came here, we were making out and she kinda… got lost in the moment. She backed off as soon as I told her too, and was really sweet to me afterwards. She says she’s okay to wait until I’m ready, but I don’t want to make her wait.”

The princess nodded. “I think I know what you mean. I had some anxiety about my first time, too. My marefriend helped me through it, though. I talked it through with her, and I realized that with how much more epxerience she had than me, I was worried I’d disappoint her — that I'd fail some invisible test — and that she’d lose interest in me. That wasn’t the only reason why I was hesitant, but it was a pretty insidious thought, and talking to my partner helped me overcome my anxiety.”

Twilight’s mouth opened in shock. “Woah. That, uhm… that actually sounds like it might be what’s holding me back. Or at least part of it.”

“So, you’ll talk to her about it?” the princess asked.

“Yeah,” Twilight nodded. “Tonight. Probably.”

The princess raised an eyebrow at her. Before she could say anything, however, a distant call echoed through the bathroom.

“Twilight?!”

Both the alicorn and unicorn looked up to see Sunset bursting into the bathroom. She was out of breath, and had a bad case of bed head.

She raised a forehoof to shield her eyes form the bright lights, groaning. Her attention then turned to the dye covered unicorn standing in the bathtub with the princess. “Uh, Twi?”

“Yep, it’s me. I'm getting a disguise!” Twilight replied cheerfully, before she saw Sunset sighing heavily. “Are you okay, Sunset?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Sunset chuckled, turning her attention to the princess. “I just got a little worried when I realized you said you were taking her to the bathroom. I don’t know how much you remember of Terra, but communal bathing isn’t really a thing there.”

“Communal what?” Twilight’s eyes widened. Though her question went ignored by the other two.

The princess merely giggled. “Don’t worry, I remember. I’m surprised it took you so long to respond to that, though.”

Sunset huffed, grabbing a brush in her magic and starting to smooth out her mane. “I have a hangover, so sue me. By the way, why are you painting my marefriend blue?”

“I'm dying your marefriend teal , because we’re all going to Canterlot together, and I don’t want rumors about my long lost twin making the papers tomorrow. Or conspiracy theories about me cloning myself in an attempt to lighten my workload or something,” the princess waved her hoof in annoyance. “Anyway, on that topic, we need to give her a new name. Just to use around others, I mean.”

"Oh, okay,” Sunset blinked. “Hmm, what do you think, Twi?”

Twilight nervously pawed at the basin of the tub. “I think I’d rather you picked one for me, Sunset,” she said, feeling her cheeks warm into a blush that was no doubt covered by the coat dye.

“Hmm,” Sunset hummed with a malicious glint in her eyes. “In that case… how about ‘Sweet Cheeks’?”

Twilight felt her blush magnify. “I-I’m not su-” she cut herself off. “I mean… I-if you like it, I guess-”

“Great!” Sunset interrupted her. “It’s settled then. So, how long is this going to take, anyway?”

The princess looked at a clock on one wall. “Just need to let the dye sit for a few more minutes. But we still need to give her a new cutie mark, too.”

“Okay, but you leave that to me,” Sunset insisted. “If anyone’s going to paint my marefriend’s flank, it’ll be me.”

Twilight giggled. “Thanks, I think.”

Sunset smirked. “You’re welcome, Sweetie.”

“Hehehe,” Twilight brought her hoof up to muffle her giggling.

“Stop squirming, Twi,” Sunset said from behind her.

“It’s cold! And It tickles!” the now teal coated unicorn complained as she felt the paintbrush return to her flank. Sunset had already painted her a new cutie mark on one side, but had insisted on finishing both sides before letting her see it.

“Twilight, can you hold Sweet Cheeks down for me?” Sunset asked sweetly.

“Sorry, Sunset,” the princess giggled. “I’m having too much fun just watching.”

Twilight looked over to see her lying comfortably on a large cushion. “So, you don’t mind taking the whole day off to come with us to Canterlot? I kinda figured you’d have, like, royal duties or something.”

The alicorn giggled. “I do have royal duties, true. But I also have the occasional day off. Besides, I love an excuse to visit Canterlot and the princesses.”

“Right, of course.” Twilight felt a sudden rush of wind on her flank. She looked back to see Sunset’s horn glowing as it seemingly manipulated the air around her.

“Alright, done!” Sunset smiled. She brushed her hoof against her handiwork, checking to see if it was dry.

“Do I get to see what it is now?” Twilight asked, shooting her girlfriends an annoyed glare.

“Of course you can,” Sunset smiled haughtily. “How else would you be able to bask in my artistic mastery?”

Twilight rolled her eyes. She walked over to the large mirror in front of the sink. She hadn’t yet gotten used to seeing herself as a pony, but now the mare in the mirror was almost completely unfamiliar to her. She turned to her side to see her new cutie mark.

Her flank was now adorned with a book with a chemical vial on the front cover. She had half expected Sunset to give her some kind of joke cutie mark after the name she’d picked, but this looked straightforward enough.

“I figured it’d be better if you had something that didn’t grab ponies attention to much,” Sunset said, coming up behind her.

“It looks great, Sunset.”

“Good job, Sunset,” the princess said. “We should be just about ready to leave for the train station now.”

“What about breakfast?” Sunset asked.

“We’ll eat on the train,” she answered simply. “Spike’s making us something we can take with us. I’m going to go say goodbye to him and grab the food. Why don’t you two head to the train station, and I’ll meet you there?” she glanced at the clock on the wall. “We’re actually running a little late, so it might be best if we teleport.”

“Teleport?” Twilight asked in awe.

“Sure,” Sunset said, uncertainly. “Uh, hang on.” In a flash, she disappeared from Twilight’s side, and reappeared at the other side of the bathroom, next to a window overlooking Ponyville.

After a moment surveying the town, she teleported back to Twilight’s side, smirking. “I see it. We can get there, no problem.”

The princess nodded before disappearing in a flash herself.

Twilight gaped at the amber unicorn. “You guys can teleport?!”

Sunset smiled proudly. “It’s a rare spell. Princess Celestia invented it herself and passed it down only to her personal students.”

“Impressive,” Twilight said, turning on her ‘flirting’ voice, which was just her normal voice but a couple octaves lower. “I had no idea I was dating such a powerful and prestigious sorceress.”

Sunset leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. “You don’t know the half of it,” she whispered sultrily. “Now c’mon, we have a train station to get to.” She turned and led the way back to the window.

Twilight followed after her, and looked out over the town.

“See the train tracks over there?” Sunset pointed. “You can see where they meet that building a little further down.”

Twilight nodded. "We're gonna teleport down there?"

“Yep. You might feel a little dizzy, by the way,” Sunset warned.

“Is it dangerous?” Twilight asked, giving the other unicorn a worried look.

“Hah! With a ‘powerful and prestigious sorceress’ like myself?” Sunset smiled proudly. “A fair maiden like you will be perfectly safe,” she winked.

Twilight smiled, then raised her head into the air. “Very well then, mighty sorceress. Take me the to the train station. I am prepared,” she said, barely keeping her giggling in check.

Sunset gave her a gentle kiss on her muzzle. “Close your eyes,” she whispered. “It’ll make it a little less unpleasant.”

Twilight did so, and felt Sunset’s neck press against the side of her own in a tender embrace.

“Three. Two. One.”

Twilight felt a jolt surge through her body. She felt her stomach twist, and collapsed to one knee. She felt Sunset’s hoof comfortingly patting her on the back while she recovered. A couple of shaky breaths later she got back up.

She blinked, looking around at the ponies milling about. She also noticed the building in front of them was the train station building which, mere seconds ago, had been in the distance.

“You okay?” Sunset asked.

Twilight nodded. “Yeah. I’m okay now.” She looked behind herself at the castle, now on the other side of town. “I can’t believe I just teleported,” she said, a smile creeping onto her face. “That was incredible!”

“C’mon, the princess should be here any second now,” Sunset led Twilight into the train station.

While Twilight was in the middle of examining the station’s interior, a flash and a pop drew her attention to the purple alicorn, wearing a pair of saddlebags, that now stood in line for the ticket booth. She looked around and gave a cheerful wave when she spotted the two of them.

“Huh,” Sunset mused, waving back. “It’s kinda neat having someone else who can keep up with me like that. Apart from Princess Celestia, I mean.”

Twilight felt a small pang in her chest. “I don’t suppose I could learn to teleport?” she asked sheepishly.

Sunset smirked. “Oh, I’m certain you could. And I’m not just saying that cause the evidence is standing in front of us,” she said, pointing at the princess who had reached the front of the queue. “You’ll need quite a bit more practice first, though.”

Twilight sighed. “Right, of course.”

They walked over to the alicorn, who handed them each a train ticket. “There we go,” she said. “Three tickets to Canterlot. The train leaves really soon, so we should get aboard. I always get a little nervous when I leave it to the last whistle,” she added with a nervous smile.

Twilight giggled. “I can relate.”

They climbed aboard the train and settled into an empty section of the carriage. The princess placed her saddlebags on the seat next to her and levitated out a few snacks onto the table.

“Dig in!” she said, picking up a bagel in her aura.

“Finally. I’m starving,” Sunset said, taking a large bite out of a sandwich.

Twilight carefully picked up another sandwich in her own flickering aura. She ate slowly, in contrast to the amber unicorn next to her who was already on her third sandwich.

They ate in silence, and before long the train started moving. Twilight shuffled herself closer to the window, hoping to get a good look at Equestria on the way.

As she watched the small town disappear into the distance, and the rolling fields stretch across the landscape, she listened with one ear to Sunset and her counterpart talk excitedly about the details of teleportation. She did her best to follow their conversation, though she struggled to understand a lot of the magical terms.

Twilight didn’t notice the train stopping. She was far too busy gawking at the view. The train station was on the very edge of the mountain side city, giving an incredible view of the surrounding lands. She could see Ponyville in the distance, as well as the crystal castle she’d slept in that night. There were lots more towns and villages visible in every direction, too far away to make out any individual building.

“C’mon, Sweet Cheeks,” Sunset nudged the distracted unicorn. “We need to get going.”

“Right,” Twilight replied absentmindedly, pulling her gaze from the window and following after her counterpart and girlfriend.

They exited the train car and moved onto the crowded streets of Canterlot.

“Huh,” Sunset mused. “I kinda expected ponies to treat you, you know, more like a princess.”

The alicorn snorted. “I may be a princess, but I’m still nowhere near the level of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.”

“Hey, Sunset,” Twilight spoke up, remembering one of the things her friend had told her about before.

“Yes, Sweet Cheeks?” Sunset replied with a saccharine voice.

Twilight blushed at her girlfriend's tone. “These princesses you guys are talking about, they’re the ones who control the day and night, right?”

“Yup,” Sunset said proudly.

“So I’m about to meet a literal goddess of the sun?” Twilight asked, feeling silly for uttering such a ridiculous sentence.

“Pretty much," Sunset smirked. "Give her a few more years, and 'Most Faithful Student' over here will probably build a temple in their honor."

“W-what? That's ridiculous!” Came the princess’ voice from Sunset’s other side.

“C'mon, Twilight,” Sunset playfully bumped her flank against the alicorns. “I’ve known you long enough to know that you worship her more than anypony else.”

Princess Twilight blushed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I simply respect her as a wise mentor, and a valued friend.”

Twilight leaned closer to Sunset, making sure to whisper loudly enough for her counterpart to hear. “Am I that bad of a liar, too?” She and Sunset shared a snigger.

The trio lapsed into a comfortable silence. Twilight looked around at the surrounding buildings. Most of them were painted white and decorated with purple and gold. Up ahead, she could see the castle towering over the rest of the city.

Twilight nudged Sunset, giving her a warm smile. “It almost feels like I’m inside your painting right now.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow, a mischievous smile on her muzzle. “I’d be happy to let you inside a few of my other places too, if you wanted.”

Twilight snorted, bringing a hoof up to muffle her giggle. “That’s gross, Sunset.”

Sunset burst into laughter. “I’m sorry, Sweetie. I couldn’t resist.” She gave Twilight a kiss on the side of her muzzle, effectively mollifying the annoyed unicorn.

They got to the castle, where a pair of guards let them pass as soon as they spotted Princess Twilight.

“Welcome to my old home, Sweetie,” Sunset whispered as they walked the large marble halls of the castle.

Twilight gazed in awe at the beautiful marble hallway. She idly noticed that she was gaping at the sight, and only stopped when she heard the sound of the two ponies beside her giggling.

They started off down the hallway, with the princess leading the way.

"Hey, Sunset?" Twilight piped up, grabbing the amber mare's attention. "Yesterday, you seemed pretty unhappy about the idea of seeing your mentor again. I believe you said there was baggage involved?" she added in a gentle voice.

Sunset sighed. "Yeah."

At first, it seemed like she wasn't going to say more, but just as Twilight was considering pushing for more, Sunset continued.

"I never knew my parents. They died when I was little, leaving me to be raised at an orphanage. That all changed when I applied for Celestia's school, though. She took notice of me, and offered to take me as her personal student. Even said I could live here in the castle. It was a dream come true." Sunset wore a wistful smile as she reminisced outloud.

She then stopped in her tracks, as something caught her attention.

After a second, the others stopped as well. Twilight looked up to see a large oil painting of a beautiful alicorn, with a white coat and light pink mane and tail. The painting looked ancient.

Sunset stared at the painting. "At first, I hoped that I had also gained a mother. But I quickly realized that wasn't meant to be. She was my mentor and my idol. No matter how much I wanted her to be more."

She moved on from the painting, catching back up to the other mares. "But now, I finally do have a family. And I don't really know how to feel about Princess Celestia anymore. To be honest, I thought I had burned all my bridges when I left," she added, her ears wilting.

Sunset's words were followed by silence, apart from their hoofsteps.

Twilight wasn't sure what to say. She wasn't even sure what to think. Luckily, the princess broke the silence before she had to.

"Celestia let you live in the castle?" the alicorn said, ruffling her wings in annoyance. "She gave me an apartment next to the school."

Twilight tilted her head at the princess's tactlessness. Until she noticed the hint of a smile on her muzzle.

A smile which Sunset copied with a soft chuckle. "She was probably hoping you'd socialize more that way. I barely ever left the castle grounds, no matter how many times she insisted I try to meet new ponies."

The princess giggled into her hoof. “You're probably right. Not that it worked. I didn’t really talk much to others until she sent me to Ponyville.”

The three of them shared a much needed laugh.

“C’mon, we’re almost to the throne room,” the princess said softly after a short silence, continuing down the hall.

"Right," Sunset said, and Twilight couldn’t help but notice she looked a little pale.

Author's Note

So, I mention in this chapter that teleportation is a rare spell known only to Celestia and her students, and I wanted to give a deeper explanation of my headcannon for that spell.

A while back, I read a fic (can't for the life of me remember which one) in which Celestia was the creator of the teleportation spell. I really liked the idea and thought about it a bit more.

The ponies we see using that spell (not counting comics, since I haven't read most of them) are Celestia, Twilight, Sunset, Starlight and Trixie.

Interestingly, we only ever see Starlight using it after she becomes Twilight's student. Which makes sense if Twilight was the one who taught her the spell. And Starlight later passes the knowledge onto Trixie (Sortof).

Oh, there's also Flurry Heart, but she wasn't actually taught the spell by anyone, she just knew it instinctively because baby hijinks.

5. Reconciliation

Twilight stared at the massive doors in front of her, straining her neck to see the top of them. As if the guards on either side weren’t impressive enough, the doors themselves were massive.

Next to her, Sunset had her eyes closed and was taking one deep breath after another. Fearing that she might be approaching a panic attack, Twilight nudged her gently on the shoulder, surprising the other mare.

“Hey. You’re gonna be fine, Sunny.”

Sunset smiled at her. “Thanks, Sweetie.” On her other side, Princess Twilight took a few steps forward, greeting the guardsponies with a nod.

“Are you ready, Sunset?” she asked, looking over her shoulder at them.

Sunset gulped, but nodded. The alicorn turned back to the guards, who in in turn, opened the great doors to admit them.

The throne room was just as massive and impressive as the doors leading into it, if not more so. On the far side, Twilight could see a large, golden throne and a familiar figure sitting upon it.

The trio made their way up the red carpet leading to the throne itself. Looking around, Twilight spotted a number of stained glass windows to either side, depicting sun and moon motifs.

She brought her attention back to her girlfriend. Sunset had her eyes locked on the floor, and appeared to get increasingly nervous with each step she drew towards the solar alicorn. Twilight's counterpart looked to be getting a little tense as well. Twilight wanted to say something to Sunset, to whisper comforting words to her, but a glance at the imposing, stoic Princess sitting upon the throne stifled those words.

Princess Twilight came to a halt in front of her fellow Princess, Sunset and Twilight following her lead. The amber unicorn’s eyes still locked on the floor.

“Sooo, Princess Celestia,” Princess Twilight giggled with a too-large smile plastered on her face. “You'll never guess who's back. Actually, maybe you can guess, cause she's right here. But, uhm...” she trailed off. Apparently she wasn’t much better at dealing with tense situations than Twilight herself was.

Sunset took one more calming breath before stepping forward to address the Solar Diarch.

Twilight followed her gaze, taking in the full appearance of the royal alicorn who stood up from her throne. Her stoic expression showed the barest hint of shock.

“Princess, I know you must have mixed feelings about seeing me. The last time we saw each other, I was your snide little pupil, who betrayed and abandoned you. But I want you to know, that I come before you, a changed pony. I am so, so sorry, Princess. I am so sorry and ashamed of what I did. I don’t know how I can ever make it up to you. But I-”

She was cut off, as Princess Celestia pulled her into a tight hug, wings and all

“How can you forgive me so easily?” Sunset sobbed into Celestia’s fur. “I thought you’d be furious with me.”

“Oh, Sunset,” Celestia responded softly. “I was never angry with you. I was sad, because I thought I had lost you.”

“I’m so sorry,” Sunset wailed, pulling out of the hug and wiping her eyes.

“I forgive you, Sunset,” Celestia beamed. “And I am so very proud of you. Don’t think I haven’t heard of your exploits in the other world.”

Sunset didn’t respond, instead, simply smiling sheepishly at her old mentor.

Both of Sunset’s companions found themselves wiping tears from their eyes, though Twilight had some trouble with her inexperienced hooves.

“Why don’t we take this conversation somewhere a little more cozy, and you can introduce me to your new friend,” Celestia continued, nodding her head in Twilight's direction.

Sunset nodded in response, and the Princess lit her horn.

Twilight felt a familiar jolt as she was teleported for the second time in her life. She closed her eyes to try and suppress the dizziness. After a few seconds, the sensation lifted and she opened her eyes again.

The four of them had all been transported to a much smaller room. One of the walls held a lit fireplace, and another was filled with bookshelves.

The other ponies were all making themselves comfortable on various cushions cradled in front of the fireplace. The two Princesses sat next to each other and across from them, Sunset had picked out a pillow large enough for two and was looking expectantly at Twilight. She quickly closed the distance between them and snuggled up close to her girlfriend.

“So then.” Princess Celestia continued. “Who is this lovely young mare you’ve brought, Sunset?”

Twilight felt herself blush at the comment.

“Well, Princess, this is my friend from the other world, Twilight Sparkle,” Sunset answered, looking at Twilight.

“Uhm, hello,” Twilight said, barely audibly. The solar alicorn certainly was a sight to behold, and when her full attention fell on her, Twilight felt herself tense up.

“Twilight Sparkle, you say?” Celestia asked, glancing at the blushing alicorn next to her. “I’m afraid you’ll have to provide a bit of an explanation.”

“I’m Princess Twilight’s counterpart from Terra,” Twilight explained. “We dyed my coat, mane and tail so I wouldn’t draw unwanted attention.

“Fascinating,” Celestia said, staring intently at her. “Ah, yes, I can see it now. You have the exact same eyes as my student. “

Twilight nodded, squirming a little under the alicorn’s scrutiny.

“You two seem very close,” Celestia observed, turning her attention onto Sunset. “It makes me happy to see that you’ve found good friends in your new home.”

The smaller alicorn giggled. “They’re more than friends, actually,” she said, giving Sunset and Twilight a mischievous smile.

“Really, now?” Celestia asked, raising an eyebrow at Sunset.

Sunset’s hoof traced circles in the carpet. “Uh, yeah. She’s kinda my… marefriend.”

Celestia smiled brightly. “That’s wonderful to hear, my little pony. I worried about you, after my methods to get you to reach out to others failed.”

Twilight heard a stifled gasp emanate from her counterpart.

“You’re methods weren’t the problem, Princess,” Sunset murmured. “I was.”

Celestia hummed. “And yet, here you are, a changed pony, in your own words. You have managed to bond with others without my interference,” she waved a hoof meaningfully at both Twilight and her counterpart.

“Only after the Elements of Harmony curbed my jealousy and anger,” Sunset grumbled.

“None of us are perfect, Sunset. And some of us need a little help, even if we don’t want to admit that we do. Isn’t that right Twilight?” Celestia glanced at the younger alicorn.

Princess Twilight blushed and nodded. “I’ve had to learn that lesson firsthoof. And secondhoof, too, a few times.”

Celestia looked back at Sunset. “Twilight here has told me what happened across the mirror on both occasions she visited, but why don’t you tell me how things have been for you since I last saw you?”

Sunset exhaled heavily. “That would be a pretty long story, Princess.”

“For you, Sunset, I have all the time in the world,” Princess Celestia replied.

Sunset beamed at her. “Well, okay then.” she launched into a brief overview of her time spent on the other side of the portal. The solar Princess would occasionally interject with a question or comment. But for the most part, Sunset held the floor.

Twilight listened to her girlfriend’s story, some of which she had already heard, but much of which was new. It hit her just how much Sunset had changed before she met her.

“At first, I was so scared,” Sunset continued after describing being hit by the elements. “I didn’t know how I was supposed to act, or what I was supposed to do. After so many years of treating others as little more than tools, and thinking of myself as better and more important, it was a huge change for me. But those girls, my friends at the time,” she admitted with a sigh, “accepted me into their group, and showed me a way to be better."

Sunset repeated much of what she’d talked about back at the party last night, this time with less anger, and more melancholy.

“Then, after the battle with the sirens, I felt like I had redeemed myself. People no longer avoided me at every opportunity, or whispered behind my back.” Sunset’s face fell as she continued. “But that didn’t last very long. Someone started spreading rumors and bile among the students, making it look like I was the one doing it. And before long, I had lost every one of my friends there. If it hadn’t been for Princess Twilight and Mom, I don’t know what I would’ve done.”

Sunset’s eyes widened as she realized her slip.

“’Mom’?” Celestia perked up. “Now that’s something I’d like to hear more about.”

Sunset blushed. “Oh, yeah. I forgot to mention that. Uhm…” She took a couple moments to gather her thoughts. “When I first got there, I was living alone. It was tough, but I got by. Until one day, I was taken in by the school’s principal. She gave me a place to stay and good food. Eventually she formally adopted me.”

Celestia tapped her chin in thought. “Twilight,” she looked over at the young alicorn on her side. “Didn’t you say that the principal in that other world was my own counterpart?”

Twilight nodded, giggling. “That’s right.”

Sunset groaned, burying her head in her hooves.

The others shared a giggle at her display, before Celestia spoke up. “It is rather fitting though. I always thought that, if things had been different, I could have been a mother too you. Alas, my duties as Princess would have left me with too little time for you,” she finished solemnly.

Sunset peeked out from behind her hoof. “Thanks, Princess. It still feels kinda weird to talk about her with you, to be honest.”

Celestia shrugged. “Then perhaps we could change the subject back to the other doppelganger in your life.”

All eyes turned to Twilight, causing her to instinctively wilt and press closer to Sunset.

“I’m quite curious to hear how you two met,” Celestia continued.

“I’ve been talking almost non stop for a while now,” Sunset said. “Why don’t you take over here, Sweetie?”

Twilight gulped. “Uhm, sure.”

She wracked her brain for where to start, and cursed the fact that she hadn’t gotten an opportunity to prepare.

“We met at school,” Twilight started. “After Sunset transferred, I mean. I-I helped her with some of her studies, and we just kinda got along really well.”

Both princesses watched her expectantly.

“There was some drama with a bully, too... Sunset sung me a beautiful song... We went to the mall once," she knew she was grasping at straws at this point and decided it be best to just stop. "That’s more or less it,” she finished with a nervous smile. She turned to look at Sunset, lowering her voice to a whisper. “You’re way better than me at telling stories.”

Sunset’s only response was to chuckle and nuzzle her.

“Anyway, since I’m here,” Sunset said, turning her attention on her former mentor. “I wanted to ask for your advice on something. Just before we came here, my old friends came up to me and offered an apology, saying they wanted me back. I’m not sure whether I want to forgive them or not. At first, when they turned against me, I wanted nothing more than to get them back, to undo whatever had come between us. But, after a few weeks, I guess I became bitter towards them and wanted nothing to do with them anymore. Now that they've offered an apology, I don’t know what to do.”

“I think you should forgive them.” Princess Twilight chipped in. ”I know those girls have a good heart. They just made some mistakes. Besides, remember how much fun we all had at the party yesterday?”

“Yes, but those are your friends,” Twilight retorted, her temper rising. “These girls aren’t like the mares that you’re so close too. They betrayed Sunset’s trust, and trust is not easily regained.”

The purple alicorn ruffled her wings and her voice filled with agitation. “But Sunset could at least give them a chance to regain her trust, rather than block them out completely.”

“What if Sunset doesn’t want to give them another chance?” Twilight snapped angrily. “What if she’s happier now than she ever was with those self-righteous blowhards?!”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Twilight’s eyes widened in shock. As did the others’. She looked around when she felt Sunset’s hoof on her withers.

“Calm down, Sweetie.” Sunset’s soothing voice mixed well with her calming strokes. “What’s got you so angry over this?”

“Sorry,” Twilight said, her face blushing and her eyes downcast. “I may have gone a bit far, there.” She cleared her throat, “But that still doesn’t mean that I don’t have a valid point,” she added, defiantly. “If you ask me, the only reason they apologized was to clear their own collective conscious. They seem to think they're such amazing friends, and abandoning Sunset must’ve been a blow to that self image.” She shot a glare at her counterpart. “Perhaps someone put delusions of grandeur in their minds.”

“What?!” Princess Twilight shrieked, her wings snapping to their full span, as she stood to her full height. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“You remember what Sunset said,” Twilight raised herself to her hooves. “Those girls were forgetting that she even existed while writing songs about how great they all are! You can't honestly tell me that's not a little narcissistic.”

“They were learning to be better! They just made some mistakes!”

“That is enough,” Celestia spoke, not with force but with a note of finality. The smaller alicorn dropped back to her barrel in an instant, and Twilight followed at a slower pace.

“I’ve never seen you get that worked up before,” Sunset smiled at her. “Seems you can be pretty fierce when you want to.”

Twilight hung her head sheepishly. “I just really don’t like what those girls did to you.”

“But they made me happy, too,” Sunset replied. “Even if it wasn’t all the time.”

“Hm,” Twilight mumbled noncommittally. She still felt a little sulky, but decided to keep it to herself for now.

“So,” Celestia spoke up, gazing playfully at Sunset. “Now you’re wondering whether or not you can forgive you’re old friends after they betrayed and abandoned you?” Celestia tapped her chin. “Sounds somewhat familiar.”

Sunset froze, her eyes widening. “Oh. I never really thought about it like that.” She thought it over for a moment. “A-and you accepted me back, even after everything I did to you. Does that mean…”

Celestia shook her head. “I am simply pointing out an interesting parallel. Just because I decided to accept you back into my life, does not mean you must make the same decision for them.” The princess sighed. “When you left, it hurt me. And if you had come back to me a mere month later, claiming to be reformed, asking me to forgive you and take you back, I might not have been able to do so, yet.”

Sunset wilted at the words. “You haven’t really brought me any closer to an actual decision, you know.”

Celestia giggled softly. “My advice would be to talk to them. Tell them how they hurt you, and go from there. You may find it easier to decide what to do.”

Sunset smiled. “Yeah. I… I can do that. Thanks, Princess.”

They all lapsed into a brief silence.

“So,” Celestia spoke up. “How has your stay in Equestria been, so far?”

The trio walked from the castle to the library in amicable silence. Twilight had never seen Sunset look this content since she met her, and she didn’t want to say or do anything that might ruin the moment. She still felt a bit of animosity towards her counterpart, but that feeling was slowly morphing into guilt as time passed.

When they entered the Royal Library, Twilight gasped at the sight. “This… this is amazing!” she gushed.

The library was massive. Even more so than her counterpart’s private library was. Row upon row of ancient, intricately crafted bookcases lined each side of a central walkway. Here and there throughout the shelves were small reading areas with plush cushions of various sizes.

“Pretty impressive, huh?” Sunset said smugly.

“Yeah,” Twilight replied, staring in awe.

The Princess led them to a map near the front, which showed the different sections of the library.

“Hey, there’s the section on advanced magical theory,” Sunset pointed. “I was hoping to maybe find something there that could help us figure out more about the portal. Hmm, was there something in particular you wanted to see, Sweetie?”

Twilight read the various section titles on the map. “Magical creatures sounds interesting. That’d be dragons, hydras and other creatures like that, right?”

“Yep,” Sunset frowned as she looked back at the map. “They're pretty far apart though.”

“I know!” the princess piped up. “You can go to the advanced magical theory section and find what you need there, and I can go with Sweet to help her navigate the magical creatures section. Then we can meet up in this reading area,” she concluded, pointing at a spot on the map.

“Yeah, that works,” Sunset smiled.

Twilight inwardly wilted. “Yeah, sure,” she said with a forced smile directed at her counterpart.

“Okay, great!” the alicorn cheered, prancing off in the direction of the magical creatures section.

Sunset leaned in to give Twilight a small kiss on the side of her muzzle. “See you in a bit, Sweetie,” she said as she went down the opposite way.

Twilight sighed, following after her doppelganger. She caught up to the alicorn quickly, despite her sedated pace.

“Look, I know you’re mad at me,” the alicorn said in a soft voice.

Twilight flinched. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to get so… aggressive earlier.”

The princess said nothing, simply keeping her pace down the aisle of books.

“I’m not angry at you though,” Twilight continued with a sighed. “Not really. I just… I want Sunset to make the right choice.” She chuckled humorlessly. “I don’t even know where all that anger came from. It’s really not like me.”

“I may be able to provide some perspective on that,” the princess said with a proud smile.

Twilight raised her eyebrows in curiosity. “Alright. Go ahead, then.”

“You’re aggression comes from a desire to protect your friend. When one of my friends is being harassed, I can get a little crazy, too.”

“Is that why you keep taking their side?” Twilight asked, a little more bitterly than she intended.

The princess sighed. “I spent enough time with those girls to call them my friends, and I want to believe that they’re good people.”

“And I don’t want them to have another chance to hurt Sunset,” Twilight replied.

“What makes you so sure they will?” the alicorn asked, giving her a meaningful look.

Twilight frowned. “Because they’ve already done it before. And frankly, I’m not convinced that they actually want to change.”

“I believe that they will want to change if they understand exactly how much they hurt Sunset,” the princess replied. “I truly think they didn’t know the significance of their actions."

Twilight didn’t have a retort for that. Instead, she trotted along in silence until they reached their destination.

Twilight gave a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry about antagonizing you. I know you’re just trying to help Sunset. But, I shouldn’t have shouted at you like I did, so, I’m sorry.”

“Apology accepted,” the princess smiled. “And, I’m also sorry for shouting back.” She looked up at the towering shelves next to them. “So, what did you have in mind?”

“Something with illustrations. I want to know just how similar these creatures are to our myths.”

The princess levitated a book from one of the shelves. “I’d recommend this one. It’s written for younger ponies, but it provides a basic understanding of how magical creatures work, without getting bogged down by the details. It makes for a good introduction, while also giving a comprehensive overview. It was one of my favorites when I was a filly,” she added, her expression turning sheepish. “Not that I’m trying to imply anything by that.”

Twilight just giggled. “Hey, I did ask for something with pictures, so I really should have expected this.” She took the book in her own aura and took a closer look at the cover. “It looks good enough for me. Let’s go meet up with Sunset.”

A short trot later, and Twilight caught sight of her girlfriend sitting at one of the reading tables.

“Find something good?” Sunset asked as Twilight took a seat next to her.

“Yup,” Twilight chirped, showing the book to Sunset. “It’s one that the princess really liked when she was younger, so I guess I’m obligated to like it, too,” she joked.

“That’s not what I said!” the princess protested as she took a seat opposite the other two.

“So, Twilight,” Sunset said. “You sure you don’t mind me and Sweetie leaving you after this?”

The alicorn waved her off. “It’s totally fine. I already have some plans of my own for tonight.”

“Oh?” Sunset asked, her interest visibly peaked. “What plans may I ask, and with whom?”

Twilight tilted her head questioningly at her blushing counterpart.

“I’m going to be spending time with Princess Luna,” she replied. “And I’ll probably stay until really late, so you’ll have to take the train to Ponyville by yourselves.”

Twilight gave her a curious look, but didn’t say anything.

Sunset, meanwhile tilted her head in confusion. “Oh, you mean because Princess Luna is nocturnal, right? So she’ll only be getting up around dinner time, I guess?”

The princess gave a nervous smile. “Yep. That’s exactly the reason why.”

“You know, I actually kinda forgot about her,” Sunset said, rubbing her neck sheepishly. “I feel kinda bad about that. Maybe we could come with you and I could at least meet her?”

“No!” the princess said instantly. “She’s, uhh… She’s pretty shy, and I wouldn’t want to, y’know, bring extra guests without giving her a warning first,” she chuckled nervously.

“You mean like you did with Princess Celestia?” Sunset quirked an eyebrow.

“Don’t worry, Sunset,” Twilight nudged her comfortingly. “I’m sure we’ll get to meet her some other time. Right, princess,” she added, throwing a teasing grin at her counterpart.

The princess coughed into her hoof. “I’m sure that could be arranged. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go find something to read.”

She got up and rushed out of sight before either unicorn could reply.

“Is she acting kinda weird to you?” Sunset asked.

Twilight smirked at her. “I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about, Sunny.”

Sunset gave her an inquisitive look, but Twilight simply ignored her and turned her attention to her book.

By the time the princess returned, both Sunset and Twilight had immersed themselves in their respective reading material.

Twilight stuck her tongue out in concentration. Slowly, but surely, the page flipped to reveal the next magical creature.

“So…” the princess spoke, drawing both unicorns from their respective books. “Meeting Celestia again wasn’t so bad, was it?” she asked, looking at Sunset.

“No, it wasn’t,” Sunset chuckled, her earlier happiness making a return. “I honestly didn’t realize how much I needed that. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted from my withers.”

“Does that mean that you’ll visit more frequently?” the alicorn continued, eyes shining with hope.

“Yeah, I think so,” Sunset nodded. “What about you, Sweetie? Would you want to come here more?”

Twilight snorted. “Of course I would! This place has magic, actual magic!” she levitated her book for emphasis, delighting in the sensation despite her struggling.

“I’m glad to hear that,” the princess said. “Oh, and by the way,” she added with a smirk. “I told you so.”

Sunset chucked a cushion at her with her magic. “Yeah, yeah. You did,” she said, rolling her eyes.

Author's Note

Fans of the TV show 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' may have found the reunion scene to be somewhat familiar. :twilightsmile:

When I wrote that scene, I basically just combined the reunion from Forgotten Friendship with a particularly memorable moment from Avatar. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, after all.

Incidentally, Avatar: The Last Airbender, as well as The Legend of Korra are both fantastic shows.

By the way, I've been referring to the 'human world' as Terra in this story. There isn't really a specific reason for that other than that 'human world' sounded really cluncky. And I guess 'Earth' just wasn't fantasy enough for my taste.

6. A Magical Date

Sunset led Twilight through the city. The sun was starting to set, and the streets were packed with pedestrians going every which way.

“Why are you even insisting on making our destination a surprise?” Twilight complained. “It’s not like I’d recognize the name of any of the restaurants here, anyway.”

“It’s the principal of the matter,” Sunset replied, smirking. “And the reveal is more fun the less you know beforehoof.”

“Fine, but at least tell me if we’re almost there,” Twilight grumbled in reply.

“If I remember correctly, it should be just over-”

Sunset was abruptly cut off as a purple pegasus mare jumped out in front of them.

“Sunset Shimmer! Oh my Celestia, it’s been so long!” the mysterious mare pulled Sunset into a tight hug.

Twilight glanced in confusion at her girlfriend. The amber unicorn looked at her with wide, shocked eyes.

Once the mare released her, Sunset spoke up in a nervous voice. “H-hey, Vi. Long time no see.”

“Yeah, you just up and disappeared,” the mare accused playfully. “Where have you been all these years?”

Sunset’s eyes darted to her sides for a moment before she answered with a stilted smile. “It’s a state secret, actually.”

“Aha, so the princess really did send you on a secret mission!” the mare said triumphantly.

Sunset chuckled awkwardly. “I can neither confirm, nor deny that statement. But what about you? Did you manage to finish your degree?”

The pegasus raised herself to her full height proudly. “Yup, I am now a medically trained nurse. Even got a job at Canterlot General.”

“Oh yeah? Was it everything you imagined?”

“Everything I wanted and more,” the mare chirped happily. “So, are you gonna introduce me to your friend here?” she added, turning her attention on Twilight.

“Right, sorry,” Sunset said. “This is my marefriend, Sweet Cheeks.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Sweet. My name is Violet Dream.” Violet nodded her head at Twilight.

“It’s nice to meet you, too,” Twilight smiled. “So, you were a friend of Sunset’s before she, uhm… ‘disappeared’?”

“You could say that. We were very close, if you know what I mean,” Violet winked.

Twilight looked at Sunset for clarification.

Sunset blushed, determinedly not looking at either of the other mares. “Yeah, we used to date, way back when I was at school here.”

“Oh,” Twilight said, entirely unaware of how she should feel about this fact. Apparently, her girlfriend’s ex noticed this reaction.

“Don’t worry,” Violet said, playfully nudging Twilight’s shoulder. “I’m not going to be stealing your filly away from you. I’m happily married, now.”

“Oh?” Sunset perked up. “That’s great to hear. Is it somepony I know?”

Violet shrugged. “Maybe. She’s from one of the noble families here, so you might’ve met her when you lived in the palace. Her name’s Emerald.”

Sunset rubbed her muzzle in thought. “The name rings a bell,” she said. “I think I met her at a gala once.”

Violet gasped, a wide smile on her face. “We should totally go on a double date sometime!”

“I’m afraid Sweet and I are only in Canterlot for today. Although,” Sunset glanced over at Twilight with a questioning look.

Twilight figured she understood Sunset’s meaning, replied with a nod and a smile.

“Sweetie and I are actually heading on a date right now. If you guys aren’t busy, you’d be welcome to join us.”

Violet beamed. “I should be able to arrange that. Where are you headed?”

“Where going to the-” Sunset cut herself off, glancing at Twilight. She then leaned in to whisper the rest to Violet.

Twilight rolled her eyes.

“Oh, yeah,” Violet nodded. “I’ve heard of that place. I’ll go and get Emerald, then we’ll meet you guys there.”

“Great,” Sunset said. “We’ll be sure to get us a good table.”

“Alright, In that case, I’ll see you guys in a few!” Violet gave a quick wave before rushing off down the street that Twilight and Sunset had come from.

“She seems nice,” Twilight said, watching the pegasus disappear around a corner.

“Yeah, she is,” Sunset said with a sad sigh. “Too bad none of it rubbed off on me back when we dated.”

“Hey,” Twilight said, nudging the amber unicorn with her hoof. “Don’t put yourself down like that. You’re plenty nice the way you are now.”

Sunset smiled, then pulled Twilight into a sideways hug. “Thanks, Sweetie. Now c’mon, we’re almost there.”

“Tada!” Sunset extended her hoof in the direction of the restaurant just as it came into view.

“’The Tasty Treat’?” Twilight read off the sign, eyes widening in surprise.

“And you thought you wouldn’t recognize the names of any of the restaurants here,” Sunset teased.

“I admit, I didn’t expect restaurants to have doppelgangers here, too,” Twilight replied with a giggle. “So, you’re taking me to the Equestrian version of the place we went to on our first date,” she continued, thinking out loud. “Does that mean I need to find a carnival if we ever go on a second date here?”

Sunset chuckled, opening the door with her magic and indicating for Twilight to enter first. “I wouldn’t mind if you did, but I don't think that's necessary. I only happened to hear about this place from Pinkie last night, and figured this’d be fun.”

They found themselves a comfortable seat near a window. Twilight sat next to Sunset, leaving the other side of the table for the other couple.

“Guess I’ll have to try one of their vegetarian dishes this time,” Twilight smiled, looking over the menu. As expected, they did not serve any meat here.

“I wanna see if I can find the same curry I had back on Terra,” Sunset said. “I wonder how similar it’ll taste.” She put the menu down and laid her hoof on top of Twilight’s.

“So, what do you think of my old home?” Sunset asked.

Twilight thought for a second before answering. “Well, the palace you used to live in was pretty cool. As was the massive library right next to it,” she said with a smirk. “If the food here turns out to be as good as back home, then I have to wonder why you ever left,” she finished in a teasing voice.

Sunset chuckled. “Hey, now, It wasn't all great. I didn’t really have any family here. Princess Celestia was always a little too distant. I while I did have Vi, I didn’t really have any other friends beside her.”

“That… does sound pretty rough,” Twilight admitted. “I’d be completely lost without my family, most of the time. I even needed Cadance’s help whenever I planned one of our dates.”

“Really now?” Sunset perked up. “I might have to thank her sometime. Does she like chocolates?”

Twilight giggled. “Yeah, she does. A lot, actually.”

“Great, that’s settled then,” Sunset nodded firmly. “So, was there something else you wanted to see while we’re here?”

Twilight settled into a more comfortable position, leaning against her girlfriend. “To be honest, I’d love to just stay here for a whole week to take everything in. But we’ve managed to get most of the really fascinating stuff out of the way pretty efficiently.” She looked up in thought. “It’d be fun to get to see more mythical creatures up close, but, since most of them are dangerous, I’m willing let that slide,” she added with a grin.

“Yeah, Cadance told me to take care of you, so it would be pretty irresponsible of me to lead you into a forest filled with pony-eating creatures.”

“Ugh,” Twilight scrunched her nose. “Camping back home is bad enough. I’d rather not add a hungry manticore into the mix.”

They shared a small laugh, before Twilight continued.

“I wouldn’t mind seeing more of the city, actually,” she said. “It all looks so beautiful and, well… magical.”

Sunset tapped her chin in thought. “We might be able to get a carriage ride through the city. We could go when it starts to get dark. We'll be able to see the stars in the sky and all the little lights throughout the city.”

Twilight nodded excitedly. “That sounds wonderful.” As she spoke, she noticed a familiar pony entering the restaurant. “Oh, they’re here!”

Sunset turned to look, waving at the purple pegasus by the entrance. “Hey, Vi! Over here”

Violet walked over to them, being closely followed by a white coated, green maned unicorn.

“Hello, again,” she said when she reached their table. “Sunset, Sweet, I’d like you to meet my wife, Emerald.”

The unicorn bowed her head in greeting. “It’s nice to meet you Sweet. And Sunset, I believe I made your acquaintance before.”

“Yeah,” Sunset chuckled nervously. “Although to be honest, I don’t really remember it.”

“Oh, don't worry about that,” Violet chirped, taking a seat opposite Sunset. “We have plenty of time to catch up, now.”

“So,” Emerald spoke up as she sat next to Violet. “Vi tells me that you’ve spent the last few years on a secret mission.”

Sunset gave a nervous laughter. “Something like that, yeah. Unfortunately, I can’t really talk about it.”

“I see,” Emerald continued. “In that case, why don’t you tell us how you two met?”

“We met at-” Twilight cut herself off, eyes widening. “Uh, actually, Sunny, I’m gonna let you take this one. I don’t trust myself to not say something I’m not suppose to.”

“She’s in on it too?” Violet asked.

Sunset looked between her current girlfriend and her ex girlfriend. “Sorta. Anyway, we don’t really have a romantic story about how we met.”

Twilight nudged the amber unicorn in the side. “What about the part where you protected me from a bully? I thought that was kinda romantic, at least.”

Sunset cringed. “I’d rather not talk about that whole fiasco right now.”

“Oh,” Twilight blinked in surprise. “Uhm… alright.” She looked over at the other couple, forcing a smile.

She was luckily saved from the awkward silence by the waiter coming by to take their order. They all settled on their meals quickly before returning to the topic.

As soon as the waiter left, Twilight spoke up. “What about you? How’d you two meet?”

“I met Emerald at work,” Violet answered with a cocky grin.

Emerald shot her a playful glare. “What she means is that I spent a few weeks in the hospital after breaking both of my hind legs falling down a flight of stairs.” Her expression softened. “I didn’t have many visitors while I was there. My family all pretended to have more important things to do,” she added bitterly.

“I kept her company while she recovered. And not just because it was my job to check up on her every day,” Violet giggled. “It wasn’t long before I started spending my lunch breaks in her room, just so we could talk more.”

“That’s really sweet. So, how long have you two been together?” Twilight asked.

Violet and Emerald shared a glance.

“Three years?” Violet said uncertainly.

“We’re coming up on five in a couple of months, darling,” Emerald replied with a chuckle.

“Right, right,” Violet turned back to Twilight. “What about you two?”

“It’s actually only been about a week for us,” Sunset replied.

“Ooh, a new relationship, huh?” Violet cooed with a teasing smile. “Still in the honeymoon phase, then?”

Sunset shot an amused look at Twilight. “Yeah. Especially one of us,” she said, pulling her into a sideways hug.

“What do you mean by that?” Twilight pouted.

Sunset replied by booping Twilight on the nose. “Oh, nothing. Nothing at all.”

Twilight gave her girlfriend the best pout she was capable of.

“But, yeah,” Sunset continued, unphazed, as she turned her attention back to the other couple. “We’re still pretty early in the relationship.”

Violet tilted her head questioningly. “But, you’ve had sex, though, right?”

Emerald gave her wife an incredulous look, while Sunset and Twilight both looked away awkwardly.

Violet looked between the two of them a couple of times before gasping. “Wait, you haven’t? Oh my Celestia, you really have changed, Sunny!”

Sunset groaned. “Vi, could you please not.”

Violet ignored her, instead turning her attention fully on Twilight. “Trust me, Sweet Cheeks, you are missing out!”

“Violet!” Emerald chided her.

Twilight sank deeper into her seat. Her cheeks were burning, and a quick glance told her that Sunset was similarly embarrassed.

“Uh, sorry,” Violet said, glancing between her wife and the other couple. “I may have gone a teeny bit to far there,” she giggled sheepishly.

"I see you're still as excitable as I remember," Sunset said, not meeting her ex's eyes.

Emerald shook her head with a sigh. “Moving swiftly on, Sweetie, what do you do for a living?”

Twilight opened her mouth, ready to give the familiar response of being a student. At the last second, she hesitated, then leaned in to whisper to Sunset.

“Can I talk about that?” she asked quietly, warily eyeing the other couple.”Y’know, what with the thing, and the changing numbers, and the drinking?”

“What?” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Oh! Right, that thing. Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.”

Twilight returned to her more natural pose while Sunset cleared her throat.

“Sweet's a researcher,” she said, proudly reaching her hoof around Twilight’s withers. “She’s doing some pretty important research that we, unfortunately, can’t talk about because it involves secret things.”

Twilight nodded energetically. “Yes! That is correct. So, uh, Emerald, what do you do?”

“I’m a jewelry maker,” the white unicorn replied. “My family owns a few jewelry stores in Canterlot, and I’ve been running one of them for about eight years now.”

“That’s quite impressive,” Twilight said, as her mind tried to think up what kind of jewelry ponies would wear.

Their food arrived, and the conversation took a back seat as they all dug in. It tasted just as delicious as the restaurant’s counterpart back home.

Twilight’s mind went back to something Violet had said, though. Apparently, Violet and Sunset had been much quicker to escalate their relationship. Once again, Twilight worried that she was making Sunset wait for her, and despite the redhead’s reassurances that she didn’t mind, Twilight felt awful about it.

She shook her head, banishing that train of thought.

I’ll talk to Sunset about all of this tonight, she thought to herself. We’ll figure out exactly where we each stand on this, and hopefully I’ll be able to move past this block soon.

The carriage ride turned out to be just as magical as Twilight imagined. The lights of Canterlot shone beautifully in the moonlit night.

“Thanks you, Sunset,” Twilight muttered, pressing herself closer to the amber mare next to her. She felt her eyes closing and realized that if she wasn’t careful, the steady movements of the carriage, combined with the soft feel of Sunset’s fur would easily lull her to sleep.

“Thank me for what?” Sunset whispered back, her hoof stroking Twilight’s mane as they cuddled.

“For the date, I mean,” Twilight mumbled. “The whole trip, really. It’s all been so… magical.”

Sunset gave her a soft kiss on the side of her muzzle. “I’m glad you liked it.”

Twilight closed her eyes, enjoying the warm embrace of her girlfriend. After a few more minutes of comfortable bliss, the carriage stopped. Twilight opened her eyes to see the they were back where the ride had started.

“Ride’s over, Sweetie. C’mon,” Sunset stood up, and gracefully hopped onto the cobblestone street.

Twilight hesitated a little before following after her, wincing a little at the unfamiliar impact on her hooves. “So, what now?” she asked, once Sunset had thanked the pony who’d been pulling the carriage. She glanced up at the full moon. “It’s pretty late, already. Should we be heading back now?”

“Yeah, we should start heading for the train station now.”

Twilight nodded. “’Kay.” She yawned, looking around at the nighttime pedestrians as she followed Sunset’s lead. There were still some ponies out and about, though not nearly as many as there were during the day. A lot of the ponies she saw appeared to be out on a date, similar to herself and Sunset.

She thought about the date she and Sunset had just had. They’d had a wonderful, exotic dinner, followed by a romantic carriage ride through the lamp-lit city streets. Everything she’d seen in movies, read in books or heard about from Cadance told her that this night wasn’t over. Not yet.

She looked over at Sunset, who was watching their surroundings with a melancholic expression.

“You know, I missed this place more than I thought I did. I’ll have to make time to visit again soon,” she said.

Twilight nodded. “It is very special,” she answered, though most of her mind was still trying to decipher the date.

When we get back, I need to talk to her. No chickening out on this one! She mentally steeled herself. Then again, after a date like this, is she already intending for us go take the next step tonight?

She glanced over at Sunset, who was staring off into space with a content smile.

No, she wouldn’t try to push me into it like that. But maybe she’s hoping things will go that way?

The thought actually excited her. Twilight felt her cheeks growing warm at the thought of tonight being the night. Some of their previous dates had been special, but none of them had been this… magical. All the signs were pointing in the same direction.

Twilight sent a few furtive glances in her girlfriend’s direction. She could feel an anxious excitement slowly rising inside her.

That feeling persisted all the way back to Ponyville, and it only increased with each step nearer they got to their guest room.

“I don’t think the princess is back yet,” Sunset said as they walked through the eerily quiet hallway.

“Yeah,” Twilight said with a small smirk. “I guess she must’ve got so caught up in whatever she and Luna were doing, that she lost track of time.”

Sunset snorted. “Getting too excited and losing track of time?” she said, directing a teasing smile at Twilight. "That certainly does sound like a Twilight Sparkle to me.”

“Hey,” Twilight frowned at her. “I only did that, like, one time.”

“It was way more than one time, Twilight,” Sunset said with a roll of her eyes. “It happened four times on our third date alone.”

“Yeah, because you were in charge of the schedule for that date,” Twilight replied, pointing her hoof accusingly at Sunset. “You were responsible for keeping track of time, not me.”

Sunset chuckled. “Well, if you had told me your mom set you a curfew, I might’ve taken that into account.”

Twilight looked away sheepishly. “I meant to tell you, but I just-” she cut herself off abruptly, looking over to see a victorious grin on Sunset’s face.

“Got too excited and forgot about it?” the amber unicorn offered.

Twilight slumped. “Yes,” she answered sheepishly.

They reached the door to their room, and Twilight’s nervousness instantly came back to her. She followed Sunset inside, before timidly speaking up.

“Hey, Sunset? I, uhm… I need to talk to you about something.”

Sunset looked at her worriedly. “Oh? About what?”

Twilight looked away, one of her hooves kicking idly at the floor. “It’s about… sex.”

Sunset blinked. “Oh. Alright, then.” She hopped up onto the bed, patting the spot in front of her invitingly. “What do you want to tell me?”

Twilight followed her girlfriend onto the bed, taking a sitting position opposite her. She took a moment to collect her thoughts before speaking up. “First, I want to ask you something. Were you planning on us having sex tonight?”

Sunset tilted her head in confusion. “Well, not really. Why do you ask?”

“Oh,” Twilight squirmed in her seat and looked down at her hooves. “It’s just… I mean, with the nice dinner, the romantic carriage ride and all… Everything I know about dating says that tonight is the night for sex. Like, first time sex.”

Sunset chuckled. “Everything you know about dating being teen romance novels?”

Twilight blushed looking away. “And Cadance…” she mumbled defensively.

Sunset reached out her hoof to touch Twilight’s. “I didn’t have anything planned after coming back here. And yeah, the date was pretty great, but it’s not like I did all that just to get under your tail.”

Twilight snorted into her hoof. “Under my tail?” she repeated.

Sunset blushed. “It's an expression. Kind of like ‘getting into your pants,’ I guess.”

“Yeah, I got it,” Twilight giggled. “Anyway, that’s not really the part I needed to talk about.” She took a deep breath. So far, talking about this was a lot easier than she’d expected. “I’ve been doing some introspection, with the help of my counterpart,” she added with a blush. “And I figured out what was holding me back before. Or at least, part of what was holding me back.”

Sunset nodded, encouraging her to keep going.

“I’m worried that if I let you come too close, you’ll be… I don’t know. Disappointed or something. Like I won't be good enough, somehow. And then you'd lose interest in me. And, as soon as I say it out loud like that, I realize that it sounds kinda ridiculous,” she added, looking away sheepishly.

Sunset squeezed her hoof. “You’re right, that is ridiculous. It’s not like my interest in you is dependent on some imaginary expectation.”

Twilight looked down at where their hooves touched. “I guess. It’s just that you’re so smart, and beautiful, and strong, and perfect. And I’m… not.”

“Twilight, look at me,” Sunset said lovingly, bringing her hoof up to caress Twilight’s cheek. “I already love you. I don’t expect you to be perfect, and if you really believe that I am, then you haven’t been paying attention,” she added with a wry smile.

Twilight felt her throat tighten. Butterflies swarmed in her stomach as she beamed with joy. She placed her own hoof over Sunset’s, keeping it there. “You said the L word,” she said simply.

Sunset smirked. “I know exactly what I said.”

She leaned forward, pulling Twilight into a kiss. A deep kiss. With tongue. Pony tongue, Twilight realized with a start, and she froze up. As she had suspected, making out with a pony was very different.

Sunset pulled away after a couple of seconds. “Uh, are you okay, Twi?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Twilight replied instantly. “Sorry, I just wasn’t expecting that.” After taking a few seconds to recollect her thoughts, she leaned into Sunset for another kiss, and this time, she participated more actively.

Twilight pressed herself closer to Sunset, taking the orange hoof in both of hers and running it down the front of her body. Lower. And lower.

Sunset broke off the kiss, giving Twilight a lustful look. “You sure about this?” she panted.

Twilight herself was panting, and she was sure her expression was just as lustful as her girlfriend’s was.

With a smile on her face, she nodded.

Twilight couldn’t sleep.

Sunset hadn't had the same issue. She’d fallen asleep almost as soon as they finished, and was currently curled tightly around Twilight with a content smile on her face.

Twilight, however, was lost in thought, staring through the window at the beautiful night sky.

It wasn’t that she regretted what they did. Sunset had been amazing, of course. And she’d even said that Twilight wasn’t bad either.

She didn’t regret it, or at least, she didn’t think she did. That was the problem, though. She didn't know how to feel about how things had turned out. She hadn’t exactly planned to lose her virginity on this trip. Or in this body.

It just sort of… turned out that way.

She didn’t know exactly what to think about tonight, but the more she thought about it, and the more happy noises that came form her sleeping girlfriend, the more she started to smile. And the more she knew that she didn’t regret a thing.

Author's Note

I had been hoping to flesh out Violet and Emerald a little more than I ended up doing. Then again, the fact that I'm not good at making original characters is more or less why I'm here. :twilightsheepish:

Regardless, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. And boy, do I feel like I'm pushing that T rating...

Anyway, next up will be the big finale. I hope you're all exited! :twilightsmile:

7. The Confrontation

“Wake up, Sweetie.”

The first thing Twilight noticed when consciousness returned to her was the delicious smell of coffee. She opened her bleary eyes to see Sunset beaming at her.

“I made you breakfast in bed!” the amber unicorn chirped happily, levitating a tray onto the bed.

Twilight yawned. “You’re up early,” she stated, sitting up and looking at the tray. Sunset had made toast and coffee.

“Yup,” Sunset replied. She climbed up onto the bed and took a piece of toast in her magic. “ I can’t remember the last time I slept so well.”

Twilight blinked, then threw her girlfriend a teasing smile. “Oh? I didn’t realize I was that good.”

Sunset snorted. “What can I say, you really get me going,” she winked. “In all seriousness though, I think talking to Princess Celestia has a lot to do with it. But I won’t let your contribution go unnoticed. You did certainly tire me out last night,” she added with a smirk, booping Twilight on the nose.

Twilight giggled with a blush. She picked out a piece of toast with jam on it and carefully levitated it towards herself.

“So,” Sunset said hesitantly. “How are feeling? Y’know, about last night.”

Twilight met her girlfriend’s eyes, her blush growing. “Pretty good. Mostly.”

“Mostly?” Sunset gave her a worried look. “What do you mean?”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “No, I didn't mean that it was bad or anything. I mean, I liked it, loved it even, and want to do it again. Not right now, of course, I mean, just, you know. A-and you were definitely great, too, I didn’t mean-”

“Twilight,” Sunset interrupted sternly. “Remember to breathe.”

Twilight took in a deep breath she hadn’t realized she needed. “Sorry.” She took a moment to collect her thoughts before speaking again. “I didn’t mean to imply that I didn’t enjoy last night… but it was pretty awkward for me. And honestly, I’m not sure how I feel about my first time being in this body.”

Sunset started. “Oh! Oh my Celestia, I didn’t even think about that,” she said, eyes wide with guilt. “I’m so sorry, Twilight, I should have realized.”

Twilight shook her head. “It’s okay. Like I said, it wasn't bad or anything, things just didn't go how I expected them to.” She returned her attention to the piece of toast in her magical aura. “You know, for breakfast in bed I would’ve expected something a little more fancy than toast.”

Sunset shrugged. “I’m not a great cook. It was either this or noodles. Spicy noodles, no less.”

Twilight scrunched up her face. “I guess you made the right choice, then.” She took a large bite out of the bread. “So, do we have any plans for today?”

Sunset shrugged. “We need to get back home this afternoon. Honestly, I kinda want to just stay in the castle today. Hang out with the princess some more and take things easy. Yesterday was exhausting. Emotionally, mentally and physically.”

Twilight chuckled. “Yeah. I’d really love a little more magic practice before we go. Especially if I’m gonna be coming back here with you in the future.”

“Okay,” Sunset nodded. “I don’t mind tutoring you a bit more.”

Once they finished eating, they joined Princess Twilight in the library. The two unicorns were lying on the soft carpet and Twilight was practicing her telekinesis while receiving direction and praise from Sunset.

The princess had settled herself into one of the armchairs with a book, though she seemed a doing a lot more napping than reading.

“Almost got it, Twi!” Sunset cheered as Twilight guided a small marble through a maze of books that the amber unicorn had set up for her.

Twilight stuck her tongue out as she squinted at the frustrating challenge. The idea was to guide the small object through the maze without it ever touching the books. It required a lot of practice and precision to get right. Just as she reached the last stretch, however, Twilight put a little too much pressure on one side, and the marble bumped into a book on the history of agriculture in Equestria.

Twilight huffed in frustration.

“You did really good, Sweetie,” Sunset consoled her. “You’ve already improved a lot.”

Twilight slumped down. “I guess,” she said.

“Do you want to try again?” Sunset asked, levitating the marble tantalizingly in front of Twilight’s face.

Twilight groaned, burying her muzzle in her hooves. “Not yet. I want to take a break.”

“Alright then,” Sunset said. She looked over to see the snoozing princess sprawled in her armchair. “Hey, Twilight!” she called, causing the alicorn to jolt her head up in surprise.

“Wha?!” she said, blinking at them.

“You look like you didn’t get much sleep,” Sunset asked. “What time did you get back last night?”

The princess coughed into her hoof, looking away. “Very late,” she ruffled her wings in frustration. “And why did you wake me up if you could tell I needed sleep?”

Sunset smirked. “It’s fun to bother you. Anyway, I’m curious what you and Princess Luna where up to.”

“Reading!” the princess replied a little too quickly, casting a brief glance at Twilight. “Just reading. She’s been away for the past thousand years, and I was introducing her to some of the books that she’d missed.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow at the blushing princess, but before she could question her further, Twilight excitedly nudged her in the ribs.

“We should do that sometime! I could introduce you to some of my favorite novels.”

Sunset smiled at her. “Yeah? I’d like that.” She took hold of Twilight’s hoof, giving her a soft squeeze before she turned her attention over to the clock above the door. “Hmm, actually, I think we should probably be heading back pretty soon,”

Twilight looked over her shoulder at the mirror portal sitting in the corner of the library. “Right. Mom and dad are probably starting to wonder when I’ll be home.”

“Yeah,” Sunset said, chuckling lightly. “I also have a mom who’ll be waiting for me,” she beamed. “That’s actually kinda new for me. It feels nice.”

“Sunset,” the princess said, closing her book and levitating it off to the side. “While I hate to bring up a difficult subject, I’m curious to know when you plan on talking to the girls.”

Sunset shuffled her hooves underneath her. “I was thinking I might just get it over with first thing when we get back. I want to get it out of the way.”

Twilight squeezed Sunset’s hoof in a comforting gesture. “Do you want me to be with you when you talk to them?”

Sunset smiled. “That’d be a huge comfort, actually. Thanks.” She sighed as she raised herself to her hooves. “C’mon. We should get going.”

The princess jumped down from her chair and approached the two unicorns. “Make sure to visit more often, Sunset.” She smiled, pulling the amber unicorn into a hug. “And you’re welcome to come, too, Twilight,” she added, turning to give her counterpart a hug as well.

“Thanks for letting me visit,” Twilight replied, before lowering her voice to a whisper. “And for the advice, too.”

The princess pulled away, beaming. “I’ll activate the portal for you two.”

Sunset and Twilight approached the faintly shimmering mirror as the alicorn lit her horn and flipped a couple of switches. The mirror started to thrum with magic.

“I’ll see you soon, Twilight,” Sunset said.

“It was nice meeting you, princess,” Twilight waved.

“Goodbye. And make sure to let me know how it goes with the girls,” she waved as the two unicorns passed through the portal.

Twilight stumbled a little before finding her footing. It was a rather odd sensation for her to have to get used to walking on two legs again.

The school grounds were luckily deserted. Though, given that it was a Sunday afternoon, that wasn’t too surprising.

As soon as Twilight had finished getting her bearings, she was joined by her girlfriend. Sunset came stumbling through the portal. She nearly tripped, but Twilight was there to catch her.

“Don’t worry, I gotcha,” she smiled.

Sunset chuckled. “Thanks, Sweetie.” She righted herself before looking around, taking in the empty school grounds. "Huh," she said, looking back at Twilight. "You're hair is still dyed." She took a lock of the dark blue hair, giving Twilight a view of the highlight-less strands.

"Oh," Twilight blinked. "My face isn't painted or anything, though, right?" she brought up her arms, checking for any trace of teal.

Sunset shook her head, smirking. "No, but I can't help but wonder if your butt is."

Twilight blushed. "I... don't think so?" she said uncertainly, wondering if she would even be able to feel the paint of her fake cutie mark if it was there.

Sunset laughed mirthfully, and Twilight joined her soon after.

"It feels good to be back," Twilight flexed her fingers. It felt strange to have them back after having hooves for a few days.

“Yeah? I take it you missed your fingers?” Sunset asked teasingly.

Twilight smiled and took one of Sunset’s hand in both of hers, weaving their fingers together. “Not as much as I missed yours.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow suggestively at her.

Twilight coughed awkwardly. “That sounded less innuendo-y in my head,” she added sheepishly. “So, are you gonna call the girls?” she said, hoping to change the subject.

“If I can get my hand back, yes,” Sunset flexed the hand currently in Twilight’s grip.

“Sorry, I’m afraid I can’t do that,” Twilight replied with a smirk, tightening her grip on the arm. “This arm belongs to me now. You’ll just have to make do.”

Sunset rolled her eyes, despite the smile tugging at her lips. “Fine.” Using her free hand, she awkwardly dug through the pocket meant for her captured one.

Once she had the phone in her hand, Sunset wilted. “I’m not looking forward to this,” she said with a sigh.

Twilight idly played with Sunset’s thumb while the redhead navigated her contacts.

“Hey, Rarity. It’s Sunset,” she said with a reserved tone. Twilight could just about hear the voice on the other end, but couldn’t make out the words. “Can you and the girls meet me now? Just outside CHS… Okay, we’ll be waiting.”

As soon as she hung up, Twilight spoke up. “So, they're coming?”

“Yeah. She said they’ll be here in ten minutes.”

“Okay,” Twilight looked around. “Do you wanna sit while we wait?” she asked, nodding at the steps leading up to the school entrance.

Sunset shrugged. “Sure.”

They walked in tandem, Twilight making sure not to let go of her girlfriend’s hand along the way. Once they’d sat down on the steps, Twilight leaned her head on Sunset’s shoulder and pulled the amber arm into her own lap, examining its fingernails while they waited.

“Hey..." Twilight said softly. "Have you decided what you want to say to them?”

“Not really.” Sunset sighed. “Look, I know you want me to outright reject them and just cut them out of my life-”

“No,” Twilight interrupted softly, interlacing her fingers with Sunset’s. “I mean… sorta. The selfish part of me wants you to do that. But, logically, I know that there’s more to this whole mess than just them being mean and hurting you. If you think things will be different, and you decide to take them back, I’ll support that decision.”

Sunset smiled. “Thanks, Twi,” she said, brushing her free hand through Twilight’s hair. Twilight leaned into the loving touch, snuggling closer to her girlfriend. “Though, I have decided one thing, at least,” Sunset continued. “I won’t return to Canterlot High.”

“Really?” Twilight asked, trying to reign in her euphoric smile.

“Yeah. Even though I know mom and aunt Luna would be really happy if I did come back. The thing is, even if I clear things up with the girls, this place just has too many memories for me. And a lot of them are ones I’d much rather forget.”

Twilight nodded. “I get that. If it wasn’t for Cadance and Shining armor, I might feel that way about Crystal prep.”

Sunset chuckled. “Oh yeah, that’s another thing. If I did transfer back here, I wouldn’t get to see what Crystal Prep will look like under new management.”

“Oh my goodness, I almost forgot about that!” Twilight giggled jubilantly.

They lapsed into a companionable silence, and Twilight pulled out her phone to see if her parents had started to worry. She saw an interesting text waiting for her, and a plan started to form in her mind.

Twilight finished her examination of Sunset’s perfect fingernails, while she thought over her idea.

“Hey, Sunset?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you have any plans tonight?” Twilight asked, absentmindedly tracing circles on Sunset’s arm.

“Not really. Hadn’t thought that far, yet,” Sunset gave her a suspicious look. “You have something in mind?”

“Mhm,” Twilight hummed as she started to fidget with Sunset’s fingers. “My parents are holding a small dinner party tonight to celebrate Cadance’s promotion. She and Shining will both be there, and I was thinking that m-maybe you’d like to come over, too.”

“Sure,” Sunset answered a little hesitantly. “I do like your dad’s cooking. But…” she bit her lip. “Well, you know how I feel about being around them.

“I was actually hoping to fix that."

Sunset looked up at her hopefully. "You mean you're gonna tell them about us?"

Twilight nodded with a blush. "I’ve put it off way too long, so…” she trailed off with a shrug.

Sunset leaned into her. “ Yes, you have,” she teased. “I’m glad you’re finally gonna do it. “

Twilight nodded. “ A-and I was also thinking that, maybe, you’d want to s-stay the night afterwards?” She looked up at her girlfriend with a nervous smile.

Sunset took a hold of Twilight’s hand, stopping her fidgeting. “Are you implying what I think you are?” she whispered with a sultry smile.

Twilight nodded. She could tell she was blushing, and averted her eyes from the redhead.

Sunset kissed her on the cheek. “I’d love to.” She put a finger under Twilight’s, lifting her head up so their eyes met. “And, I know what you’re like, so I know saying this won't make that much of a difference for you. But you honestly don’t need to worry about telling your parents. I’ll be there with you the whole time, and I know they'll accept us. Especially you. And even if they don't, you know that Cadance will support us.” She cast her eyes down to the bespectacled girl's lap.

Twilight followed Sunset’s gaze to their hands and noticed that hers were shaking. “I know,” she sighed, wishing that her nervous habit could listen to reason, for once.

She sent a quick text to her mom, asking if Sunset could join them, and a few moments later, the arrangements were made.

She leaned into her girlfriend, enjoying the calming embrace while she returned her attention to Sunset’s arm. She started tracing out idle circles on her forearm as they again lapsed into a comfortable silence, a smile on her face.

The sound of distant voices caused both girls to look up. Around the corner came five figures. Twilight felt her brow crease in annoyance at seeing the girls who had tormented her girlfriend.

“Guess I should let you have your arm back, now,” Twilight said reluctantly.

Sunset chuckled. “Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll have plenty of opportunities to capture it again in the future.”

Twilight smiled, finally ending her little game. For now.

Sunset stood up, steeling herself with a deep breath. Twilight stood up next to her, and when her attention turned to the approaching girls, she didn’t bother to hide her unhappiness.

“Hi, Sunny! Hi, Twilight two!” came the jubilant voice of Pinkie Pie as she reached talking distance.

“Please don’t call me that,” Twilight replied coldly. The fluffy haired girl didn’t answer, though.

“Darling, we’re so glad you decided to meet us,” Rarity said.

“Yeah,” Rainbow added. “And next to CHS, too. That’s a pretty good sign if you ask me,” she elbowing Applejack in the side and wearing a confident smirk. The farmer, shot her a quick glare.

Sunset glanced at the school entrance, then back at the girls. “Actually, I only picked this place because I wanted to get this over with as soon as possible. We only just came back through the portal a few minutes before I called you.” She pointed at the mascot statue behind the other girls.

“Well, regardless,” Applejack stepped forward. “We offered our apologies before, and didn’t get an answer. So, whaddya say, Sunset? Do you forgive us for what we did back in winter?”

Twilight glanced from the farmer to see the ghost of a smile on Sunset’s face. In that moment, she remembered something that the princess had told her back at the library.

I believe that they will want to change if they understand exactly how much they hurt Sunset.

“Wait,” Twilight said, before Sunset could answer. She stepped in front of her girlfriend, crossing her arms at the girls she’d come to dislike so. “Before you do anything else, I want you to know exactly what you’re apologizing for. Because I don’t think you understand how much you hurt Sunset.” She glanced behind herself at her girlfriend, who was watching her expectantly.

She turned back to huff at the five girls in front of her.

“Sunset told me what she used to be like. Although, I still have some trouble believing that she was ever actually like that,” she added quietly. “But the important thing is that she isn’t that anymore. Ever since I met her she’s been a wonderful, helpful and kind person.”

“Well, mostly, anyway,” Sunset added sheepishly from behind her.

“Hush, Sunset, I’m doing a thing,” Twilight stage whispered over her shoulder.

“Ever since the Princess did whatever it was she did to her, Sunset’s been trying to change. Trying to become a better person. And from what I heard, you five made that journey much harder on her than it needed to be. When she needed you the most, you neglected her. You even made fun of her!” she shouted, her temper flaring.

“What?!” Rainbow spoke up angrily. “We did not make fun of her!”

“Not on purpose, maybe. You just didn’t realize what you were doing to her because you couldn’t pull you’re heads out of your own butts!” Twilight shifted her frown into a saccharine smile. “No offense,” she hissed out waving her hand nonchalantly.

“None taken!” chirped Pinkie Pie, before being elbowed in the ribs by Rainbow.

“Now hold up one moment,” Applejack spoke up, striding up to Twilight and poking her firmly in the chest. “You weren’t here after the Fall Formal, so let me just explain to you that we absolutely did not neglect Sunset. We accepted her as our friend, and she became just as much a part of this group as any of us.” There was a chorus of agreement from the other girls.

Twilight glanced over her shoulder, seeing a pained look on Sunset’s face, then turned back to stare down the other girls. “Are you sure about that?” The girls glanced between themselves questioningly, before Twilight continued.

“Did you ever think to ask her to be in your band?”

Rainbow scratched the back of her neck nervously. “We kinda just assumed she didn’t play any instruments,” she muttered ashamedly.

Twilight took a step forward. “Did any of you ever decide to hang out with her outside of the group? Just two of you?”

Rarity coughed into her fist. “Well, I had been thinking about inviting her over for a fitting at some point,” she said defensively.

Twilight fumed, her voice rising with her temper. “When you were trying to contact Sunset after she left, why did none of you come to her house?”

That question was one Twilight had wondered about a couple of times before, and she had already guessed at what the answer might be. Even so, but she wanted to hear them to say it.

“We never asked her where she lived,” Applejack said, her shoulders sagging in shame.

Twilight crossed her arms, the fingers of one hand tapping angrily on the other arm. “And why didn’t you ever ask her mom?”

The girls all stared back in surprise.

“Sunset has a mom?” Rainbow blurted out, before being slapped over the back of her head by Rarity and Fluttershy simultaneously. “Ouch!”

“Look, we get it, okay,” Applejack said, holding her hands up placatingly in front of Twilight. “We could’ve done more to make Sunset feel welcome. We made some mistakes, but everyone does. Including the girl currently hiding behind you.”

Sunset gave an annoyed grunt. “That’s the problem right there!” she said angrily. Twilight stepped aside, smiling at the look of anger on Sunset’s face.

Sunset stepped forward. She pinched the bridge of her nose, taking a deep breath. Twilight had never seen her look so exasperated before. “Look, I want to like you. You’re all honestly pretty cool, for the most part.”

Twilight cocked her head, wondering where Sunset was going with this.

“But, being around you all was really hard for me,” she continued. “I took it, because I knew that I deserved it, and because I didn’t know what else I could do. After the fall formal, I looked up to you to teach me how to be better.” She snarled at five girls.

“But every single time you brought up my past,” Sunset continued, her voice growing louder, angrier. “Every single time you so much as mentioned it… It hurt. Not because it made me angry at you, or frustrated, or sad. It… it hurt, because it made me hate myself!” her voice cracked, tears filling her eyes.

Twilight closed the distance to her girlfriend in a single large step, taking Sunset’s hand in both of hers. Sunset squeezed her hand in return, before turning her focus back on the five girls.

“It made me hate who I used to be,” she continued in a quiet voice. “And it made me hate every part of me that’s still like that.” The tears were now streaming down her face.

Rarity stepped forward, hesitantly. “Sunset… I think I speak for all of us when I say that we never intended to hurt you. And we truly apologize for what we put you through,” her voice cracked. “You should have told us.”

"Yeah," Pinkie spoke up in a sad voice. "I'm sorry, Sunset. I should've done a lot more to make you feel like a part of the group." Fluttershy stepped up next to her, nodding sincerely despite the tears in her eyes.

Applejack sighed, taking her stetson and holding it to her chest. "Shucks, Sunset. I never really thought about it like that. I'm truly sorry."

Rainbow rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "Geez, Sunset. I feel really bad about some of the stuff I said. I was just being an idiot," she wilted, looking away in shame.

“I know you didn’t mean to hurt me,” Sunset said, shaking her head. “I know you wanted to be my friends, and to help me. But the truth is, you girls, whether you intend to or not, are a chain to my past. I almost killed you for Celestia’s sake!”

Twilight’s eyes widened. Sunset hadn’t mentioned that part before. The redhead glanced at her, noticing the look of surprise, though she didn’t say anything.

“Yeah, but you were, like, a demon at the time,” Rainbow argued. “We know you would never do that to us normally.”

Sunset gave her a flat look. “Be that as it may, I can’t be around any of you without remembering the horrible person that I used to be. And the truth is, ever since I stopped hanging out with you all… I’ve felt a lot better.”

The five girls flinched in unison.

“Ouch, sugarcube. Ouch.”

Sunset sighed. “Look, I’m sorry. But there’s just too much baggage here for me to feel comfortable around you all the time.”

“So,” Rarity started, her face crestfallen. “You’re not coming back, then?”

“No.” Sunset crossed her arms. “But I do know that you had the right intentions, so I do forgive you all.”

Everyone fell into a short silence at hearing the verdict.

Twilight sighed in relief. They weren’t entirely done yet, but she could already feel some of the tension of the situation dissipate.

“I guess that’s better than nothing,” Rainbow said, guiltily.

Pinkie Pie took a large step forward. “Hold on, though. You said you couldn’t be around us all the time. Does that mean that your not completely one-hundred percent opposed to hanging out with us some of the time? I promise we'll all be on our best behavior. Even Dashie.”

Sunset chuckled tiredly. “I guess you might be able to convince me to join you girls for a get-together every now and then. Just not too often, okay?”

Pinkie nodded happily. “Only for the most super special occasions,” she agreed.

“Great,” Sunset looked around awkwardly. “I that case, I’ll unblock your numbers and just… see you guys around?”

“Wait…” Fluttershy spoke. She took a moment to wipe the tears from her face. “Could we at least have a group hug before you go?”

Sunset smiled. “Sure.” She turned her attention to Twilight. “You too, Sweetie.”

“Fine,” Twilight grumbled, though she couldn’t stop herself from smiling a little.

Sunset’s old friends surrounded the two of them in a tight group hug. After they separated, Twilight and Sunset’s attentions were drawn to Rarity, who gave a small cough.

“Did I hear you correctly just then? You called her ‘Sweetie’?”

Twilight was startled when Sunset suddenly wrapped her arm around her waist possessively.

“Well, yeah,” she said, her smirk obvious through her voice. “After all, it’s only normal to give pet names to your girlfriend, isn’t it?”

Twilight blushed at the looks of surprise and intrigue she received from the other girls. She smiled awkwardly in return, not knowing what to say, if anything.

“C’mon, Babe, let’s go.” Sunset said, her voice an octave lower than normal. With her arm still firmly around Twilight’s waist, she led her past the stunned girls, and away from the school grounds.

Once they were out of earshot, Twilight gave a small giggle. “Now you’re just showing off,” she accused her girlfriend with a smile.

“Whatever do you mean, Babe?” Sunset asked teasingly.

“You’ve literally never called me that before.”

Sunset chuckled. “Yeah, you’re right. It just seemed like it’d be fun.”

“It was, Twilight giggled. She then paused for a moment, wondering whether she should bring up her other topic. “Hey, Sunset?”

“Yeah?”

“You said something back there that kinda worried me,” Twilight said softly.

Sunset tensed up. “It’s the part where I said I had almost killed those girls, isn’t it?”

Twilight nodded. “You never mentioned that part to me before. Is it something you want to talk about?”

Sunset gave her a nervous smile. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Twi. But I’d rather talk to Princess Twilight about that. It happened during the whole demon transformation and…” she trailed off.

Twilight leaned her head on Sunset’s shoulder, hoping to relax her. “I get it. She’s the expert on magic, friendship, redemption and all that stuff, right?”

Sunset nodded, smiling. “Yeah. Thanks for understanding.” She kissed Twilight on the forehead. “And… thanks for standing up for me like that. Although, I do think you went a little overboard,” she added quietly.

“I disagree,” Twilight smirked.

Sunset glanced curiously at her. “Where’d all that come from anyway? You’re not normally so aggressive.”

“Oh, didn’t you know?” Twilight asked with a teasing smile. “Twilight Sparkles are known for being very protective of the people they care about most.” She darted forward to kiss the corner of Sunset’s mouth.

Sunset chuckled. “Oh? Well, lucky me, then.” Sunset pulled Twilight closer causing her to giggle happily. “So, on an unrelated topic… when the girls inevitably invite me to a party, or sleepover, or whatever. Do you wanna come, too?”

Twilight groaned. “Not especially. But I probably should, shouldn’t I?”

“I think you should,” Sunset chirped. “And I also know that I’ll have more fun if you do come.”

Twilight pouted at her, before relenting. “Fine. I’ll come with you.”

Sunset hugged her closer. “Thanks, Sweetie.”

Author's Note

And there we have it. The long awaited resolution with the Rainbooms. I hope you all found this to be a satisfying conclusion, given the amount of build-up this moment had.

Funny thing, when I first started to write this story, I was planning on having Sunset reject the Rainbooms, but as I wrote out each scene, especially when they're all talking with Princess Celestia. (And also, as I read some of your comments :heart: ) I ended up changing my mind, and going for a more balanced conclusion.

They're not instant best friends yet. The girls are still going to have to really show that they understand how they hurt Sunset, and that they can be better, but Sunset has at least given them a chance to do so.

I guess the moral of the story is, if someone hurts you, and you want to give them another chance, make sure they know exactly how they hurt you and why.

I also wanted to briefly talk about the title of this story. 'Her Knight in Sunlit Armor' is, of course, a pun on the phrase 'knight in shining armor'. The reason why I picked this title is because form the very start, the idea of the story was that Twilight and Sunset would both defend and help each other through each others conflicts.

The plan was always for Sunset to help Twilight deal with her bully in Vol 1, and for Twilight to help Sunset confront the Rainbooms in Vol 2.

I honestly don't think I did a very good job with that in Vol 1. Sunset basically did all the real work, and Twilight didn't actually do anything to fix her own problem. (Plus, if I'm being honest, I think the entire bully arc was fairly weak. Conflict is a bit of a weak point of mine.)

This time around, I feel like I did a much better job by having Twilight stand up for Sunset, and be her emotional support throughout the story, but Sunset was ultimately the one who resolved her own issues with the Rainbooms.

Epilogue

The doorbell rang, sending a surge of anxiety through Twilight.

“I’ll get it!” she called, rushing from the living room to the front door. She opened the door to reveal Cadance and Shining.

“Hi, Ladybug.”

“Welcome back, Twily.”

“Hi, Shining. Hi, Cadance,” Twilight greeted. “C’mon in.” She stood aside, letting the couple inside.

“You are looking distinctly beautiful tonight, Twilight,” Cadance commented as the three of them moved to the dining room. “I haven’t seen that dress in a while.”

“Thanks,” Twilight blushed. “I decided to try and look my best for tonight.” She’d spent the last couple of hours doing what she could to prepare for the evening.

“Hey, Twily? Is someone else coming?” Shining asked, counting the places at the table.

“Yep,” Twilight chirped. “My friend, Sunset, is coming. She should be here any minute, actually,” she added with a nervous chuckle. “Hey, Cadance, can I talk to you in the other room for a sec?”

“Sure thing, Twilight,” Cadance replied, following after the younger girl.

They made their way to the living room, and as soon as they sat on the sofa, Cadance spoke up. “What’s up, Twilight?”

Twilight took a steadying breath. “I'm gonna tell mom, dad and Shiny about Sunset. And, y’know… About me.”

“That’s great!” Cadance cheered quietly. “You have no idea how much I’ve been dying to talk to Shiny about you two. You’re lucky I didn’t spill the beans already.”

“Right, uh, thanks, I guess,” Twilight fidgeted. “So, you don’t mind me telling them tonight? What with it being a celebration for you, and all.”

Cadance waved her hand in dismissal. “Of course not, Twilight. I love sharing the spotlight with others.”

Twilight smiled. “Thanks, Cadance.” She noticed her phone, which she’d left on the coffee table earlier, and decided to see if there was a message from Sunset. “I hope she’s not late. Dad said dinner would be ready soon.”

“Actually, I think I can hear a car coming up the driveway,” Cadance said, grinning widely.

Twilight froze for a second, and as soon as she confirmed Cadance’s claim, she shot back up and ran back to the front door.

Cadance walked past her to the dining room, giving Twilight an encouraging pat on the shoulder, with a whispered, “good luck.”

Twilight stood by the door, waiting for Sunset to ring the doorbell. She counted the heartbeats before the bell rang, taking one more deep breath so as not to answer too early.

“Hi, Sunset!” she said, pulling her girlfriend into a hug.

“Hey, Twi. How’re you doing?” Sunset asked tenderly.

“Nervous, but better now that you’re here,” Twilight replied, ending the hug. She pulled Sunset inside and closed the door.

Sunset gaped at Twilight, staring up and down her body. “Woah, I am really underdressed,” she said, awkwardly tugging at the hem of her jacket.

Twilight waved her off. “Don’t worry, you’re not. It’s me that’s overdressed. And to be honest, I mostly did all of this to keep my mind off this evening,” she added with a crooked smile.

“Well, you look beautiful,” Sunset said, taking Twilight’s hand in her own before continuing in a whisper. “As usual.”

Twilight blushed. She desperately wanted to kiss Sunset right now, but decided against it, in case someone walked in from the dining room.

“C’mon, the food should be ready soon,” Twilight tugged on Sunset’s hand, leading her into the adjacent dining room.

When dinner was served, everyone collectively congratulated Cadance. Twilight and Sunset spent the most of the dinner telling the others all about their ‘skiing’ trip. A feat Twilight would have found impossible without having Sunset to back her up.

As the dinner wore on, conversation started to lull. Shining was making small talk with Night Light about sports, while both Cadance and Sunset kept giving Twilight meaningful looks.

A particularly sharp kick to her shin caused Twilight to look up at Cadance sitting opposite her. The older woman nodded her head pointedly towards the others.

Twilight set down her fork and cleared her throat. “Mom, dad, Shining. I need to tell you something.”

She felt Sunset’s hand searching for hers under the table, and grabbed onto it like a life preserver.

Once all eyes were on her, Twilight continued. “I’m gay.”

There was a beat of silence before three pairs of eyes drifted over to look at Sunset, who reacted with an awkward smile and a blush.

Twilight cleared her throat pointedly. “Hey! I already have a speech planned out for this, so don’t you dare jump ahead!”

All eyes snapped back to Twilight, and at the same time, she could feel Sunset’s hand squeeze hers a little tighter.

“Right, so.” Twilight sighed before continuing. “I started to notice these feelings a few years ago, but I didn’t really know how to talk about them back then. Although, Cadance figured it out pretty quick when I started hanging out with Sunset,” she added with a small smile directed at her ex-babysitter. “And yes, Sunset and I are dating. We have been for a little over a week now.”

“I’m glad you decided to tell us,” her mother said, reaching her hand to touch her daughter’s. “And if I’m being honest," she continued with a knowing smile. "This doesn’t come as a complete surprise.”

“Well, it certainly does for me,” her dad said, chuckling. “Y’know, I’m actually a little relieved. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been a little worried about the day you’d bring home a boy.”

“I for one, think that Twilight and Sunset are adorable together,” Cadance cooed, resting her head in her hands.

Twilight turned to look at Shining, waiting for his input.

The young man’s eyes were locked with Sunset’s. “So,” he said in a low tone, raising an eyebrow suspiciously. “Anything else you wanted to mention about that skiing trip?”

There was a muffled stomping sound, and a yelp as Shining abruptly turned to face his girlfriend.

Cadance was giving him a saccharine smile. “Would you like to try that again, Honey?”

Shining rubbed his foot. “I, uh…” he groaned. “What I meant to say is that Sunset seems pretty cool, and I’m glad you feel comfortable enough to share this with us,” he said, a little uncertainly and looking to Cadance for approval.

“That’s better,” Cadance smiled, taking a sip of her wine.

"So, you’re all okay with this?” Twilight asked hopefully.

The others all gave a chorus of nods and agreement, and Twilight felt her heart soar.

“Well, then,” Night Light said, breaking the short silence. “Who’s up for dessert?”

Twilight caught Sunset’s gaze. Her girlfriend was beaming, and she idly realized she was doing the same. She leaned in close, whispering in Sunset’s ear.

“I love you, Sunset.”

Author's Note

This might be a little too happy and perfect, but I really wanted to end this story on a happy feeling. :twilightsmile:

Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed the story. :heart:

So, that's the end of Her Knight in Sunlit Armor. I may one day decide to add a Vol 3, but as of right now, I have no plans or ideas for doing so.

With that said, I am going to be writing other stories, many of which are sure to feature these two lovebirds again. My next story is already pretty far along, though I still have a lot of editing work to do on it.

For those who want more awkward SciTwi shenanigans, adorable shipping, and even an M rating (a first for me), look forward to my next story, The Unexpected Adventures of Sparky Selene, Professional Pornstar, which I intend to release sometime in the next few months.

Volume 1 — Prologue

Twilight Sparkle was just leaving the classroom when she heard a familiar tune, and pulled her phone out of her pocket. She had a new message from Cadance.

You remember the deal, Twily. All you need to do is talk to a few of the other students during lunch, and I’ll buy you ice cream after school.

Twilight rolled her eyes. Naturally she wouldn’t have forgotten, and Cadance probably knew that. She probably just sent the text so Twilight couldn’t use the ‘I forgot’ excuse later.

It was Monday, the first day back at school after winter break and already Cadance was back to pushing her to make friends.

Not that she would try to back out of this. Talking to others was difficult — except for her family and of course, Cadance — but she did sometimes want to have someone she could spent her time with. Even if just to go to the movies once in a while.

She made her way to the cafeteria, wondering who to try talking to in between apologizing to the students bumping into her.

Indigo and her friends might be a good choice. She didn’t actually like Indigo, but she had at least interacted with her, giving her an excuse to sit with her at lunch. After the amount of homework she had ‘helped’ Indigo with, they probably would kick her away.

Once she had gotten her food, Twilight spotted the ‘Shadowbolts’ as they liked to call themselves. They were all laughing at something, and didn’t notice Twilight approaching.

She ended up standing next to them for a few very awkward seconds, before clearing her throat.

“Hey, Uhm. You girls mind if I sit here?” Twilight asked, nervously. She was usually nervous when talking to others her own age, though she had more luck with adults, like Cadance.

The Shadowbolts all glanced at Twilight, expressions ranging from confusion, to mild disgust, to obviously faked cheer. The latter being quite clear on Indigo’s face.

“Sparky!” She exclaimed, not convincing anyone that she was actually happy she was here. “Of course you can sit with us, right girls?” she added.

The response wasn’t a ‘yes’ exactly, but it wasn’t a ‘no’ either, just general disinterest, so Twilight just sat down. Not that Twilight was disappointed or hurt by their reaction. It was actually a slightly better greeting than she had expected.

“But uhm,” Indigo continued, “I would have thought you’d be more at home sitting with the geeks, though?”

Twilight squirmed in her seat. Of course they didn’t want her there, this was going nowhere. Maybe she should just apologize and leave. although that would be really awkward too.

Lemon Zest snorted, pointing at a trio of boys sitting a few tables away. “Isn’t it obvious. Twilight doesn’t like boys.” She wiggled her eyebrows at the tables newest occupant. “Thats why she came to sit with us girls, right, Twilight?”

Twilight blushed furiously. “W-what, no. I mean… I just-” She cut herself off and took a deep breath while the rest of the girls laughed, some more openly than others.

Stay calm, Twilight. Just keep talking and maybe it’ll get better, Twilight thought.

“I tried sitting with them before, but they always shunned me. I never found out why though.” She said, poking at her unappealing food. Even a prestigious school like this didn’t escape the curse of bad cafeteria food.

“They don’t like you because you beat them in every test,” Sugarcoat supplied helpfully. “And it doesn’t make things better that they’re getting beat by a girl.”

Twilight pushed her glasses up her nose. “Oh. I see.” It stung a bit that they disliked her for being talented, but at the same time, if they really were sexist like that, then Twilight wouldn’t really want anything to do with them anyway.

The girls spent a few minutes talking about sports and rock music. Twilight, having no interest in sports and being mostly into classical, remained silent for all of that discussion

“Well, anyway, did any of you see the news that the’re going to be making a Daring Do movie?” Sunny Flare asked.

Twilight perked up. Daring Do was one of her favorite book series. This was a topic she should be able to involve herself in.

“Oh, I did!” Twilight said happily, as Sugarcoat and Sour Sweet nodded at Sunny’s question. “I really hope they do Daring Do and the Griffon’s Goblet, that one’s my favorite.” There had been some contention on certain forums about which book in the series they would adapt. “But if I’m being honest, they’ll probably pick Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone, since that one’s a classic.”

Twilight’s smile faded under the combined stare of five unamused girls.

“So anyway,” Sunny continued, the rest of the Shadowbolts turning their attention back to her. “I heard they were going to have Chestnut Magnifico playing Daring Do. Oh, she is absolutely stunning in every film she’s in, isn’t she?”

They continued to talk about actresses, and how Chestnut Magnifico was the perfect role for an adventurous archaeologist type, for a while longer. A topic which, once again, Twilight wasn’t very versed in. She had actually thought that Chestnut didn’t really fit Daring’s personality based on her other roles, but was optimistic about her pulling off the famous character. She didn’t say any of this out loud of course, for fear of getting more unwanted stares.

Eventually the bell rang.

All in all, spending lunch with the Shadowbolts went about as well as she had expected. Hopefully once she recounted this all to Cadance, her old babysitter would understand her plight a little better. Plus the promise of having ice cream with Cadance did offset the unpleasantness of the experience.

After lunch came P.E. which was as unpleasant as ever. She spent nearly an hour sweating and panting, then had to get naked in front of the rest of the girls in the locker room showers. It was one of the few times Twilight was grateful that she couldn’t see anything without her glasses, you couldn’t be caught staring if you were half-blind. She was just happy that these girls tended to leave her alone.

After P.E. Twilight had two much more enjoyable classes. Mostly because they involved listening to lectures and writing down notes, rather than running and getting hit by dodgeballs.

After school, Twilight spent a bit of time in her lab until Cadance came to fetch her.

“Hey, sweety.” Cadance greeted, “how did it go?”

Twilight shrugged and picked up her backpack. “About as well as I expected.”

Cadance’s smile faltered. “So, it was pretty bad then?”

“They clearly didn’t want me there to begin with, but I stuck it out like you said I should, and at no point did they talk about anything that I found interesting. I spent the entire time either sitting silently, or making a fool out of myself when they started talking about the Daring Do movie, and then it turned out they were only interested in the actress that was rumored to be in the lead role!” Twilight took a deep breath, then huffed.

Cadance sighed. “Well, I’m proud of you for trying. And don’t worry, I’m sure well find someone who gets you in a way the other students don’t.” Twilight just sulked. Bumping her in the shoulder, Cadance added, “or, worst case scenario, I’ll just have to get you into collage a few years early so you can be around people your own speed,” she teased.

Twilight smiled at the indirect praise.

“In any case,” Cadance continued. “You earned yourself some ice cream. Now let’s get going.”

Twilight nodded. She was very grateful to at least have Cadance and Shining, but she really did want a friend she could talk with about science and Daring Do, someone she could just hang out with after school. Shining was her brother, and Cadance was her friend, but she would like to be able to get along with someone her own age too.

Author's Note

Welcome to my second story. Though, technically I started this one first even though I'm publishing it second...

Anyway, this story is basically finished. I only need to do some final revisions to some of the chapters. Because of this, I intend to release a new chapter every day.
I hope you enjoy the story! :twilightsmile:

If you see any grammatical errors, please PM me so I can fix them

3. A Trip to the Mall

Twilight and Sunset stepped off the bus and back into the slowly increasing flurry of snow. Thankfully they only had to run for a few seconds before coming to the mall’s entrance.

“So, where’s the arcade?” Twilight asked, brushing snow off her clothes and putting her mittens back in her pockets.

“It’s not far,” Sunset returned Twilight’s scarf. “Thanks for letting me borrow this.”

Twilight tucked the scarf in her pocket too, then followed after Sunset as they made their way to the arcade.

Looking at the various arcade games, Twilight tried to remember the last time she had played one. Maybe Shining took me to an arcade a few years back? She thought.

Sunset took her by the hand and pulled her deeper inside. “Come on, let’s play some skee ball!”

Sunset continued to drag Twilight to a few of her favorite games. Not that Twilight minded, she really enjoyed spending time with Sunset. The fact that Sunset beat her in every game they played wasn’t even enough to bring her spirits down.

“I’m getting pretty hungry,” Twilight said, while Sunset looked around for the next game they could play.

“Oh, right. Me too, now that you mention it,” Sunset said. “You want to head to the food court now, then?”

Twilight nodded. “This has been really fun, but if we stay here much longer, we’ll miss the chance to look at any of the stores here,” Twilight tried her hand at teasing

They laughed and started towards the food court.

Entering the food court, they looked around at all the various food stalls.

“What do you want to eat?” Sunset asked.

Twilight took a couple of moments to think before answering. Her eyes scanned over the stalls one more time to see what was most appealing right now. “I want noodles, I think.”

They walked closer to the noodle stall and Sunset gave an appreciative nod. “Sounds good. Let’s get in line.”

There luckily wasn’t a line for the stall.

“Oh, hello.” Twilight said, looking at the different offers they had. ”Uhm, I’ll have the chicken and egg noodles, please.”

“I’ll have the vegetarian noodles.” Sunset said next to her.

Twilight suddenly felt uneasy at her choice, but she decided not to say anything yet.

They sat down at a nearby table and Sunset immediately dug into her food. Twilight however, felt the need to speak up.

“Sunset,” Sunset looked up, her cheeks puffed out from her food. “Does it… bother you that I’m eating meat?” Twilight poked a piece of chicken on her plate for emphasis.

Sunset raised a finger at Twilight while she chewed and swallowed. “Don’t worry, Twilight. I’ve come to terms with the fact that most people eat animals, even if I don’t agree with that. And I don’t want you to feel like you have to eat food you don’t like as much on my account.”

Twilight gave a smile and nod before digging into her food.

“So, what do your parents do for a living?” Twilight asked between bites.

“My mom is the principal of CHS, actually. It made changing schools a bit awkward, to be honest.” Sunset replied.

Twilight remembered Sunset’s MyStable profile, and the fact she only had two other people on her friends list. Two names that had felt vaguely familiar, and that she now remembered seeing when she had been researching CHS after finding out that the readings came form there. They were the Principal and Vice-Principal of CHS.

“Your mom was your principal?” Twilight realized it was a rather unnecessary question, but couldn’t help herself.

“Not always, actually. She adopted me a few months ago. Before then I was on my own.” Sunset chuckled slightly, “I had been sleeping in the school library, on a mattress made of books.” Twilight watched Sunset chuckle at the old memory, trying to figure out how she felt about this.

“You used to be homeless?” Even Twilight could hear the pitying tone to her voice.

Sunset looked down at her noodles. “Well, yeah, kinda. I had a part time job, which was enough to keep me fed and clothed, so I wasn’t really struggling. But now I have a real home, and a parent who really cares. Everything is so much better now. Mostly,” Sunset trailed off and went back to eating, not meeting Twilight’s eyes.

Twilight had lived with a loving family her whole life. She really couldn’t relate to Sunset’s past.

“Wait,” Twilight said, narrowing her eyes, “if you were living in the school, how did they never see you? How did you get in and out after school and on weekends?”

Sunset shrugged. “I stole a key from the janitor, and he never went into the library. Apparently he accidentally destroyed a bunch of books once when he spilled a cleaning bucket, and the librarian demanded that she clean the library herself, which she always did during school hours.”

Sunset took a sip of water before continuing. “Also, the school didn’t feel the need to have CCTV or anything like that. Honestly,” she giggled, “they didn’t take security all that seriously. Normally, what I would do is leave the school early in the morning, before the staff arrived and then show up with all the other students. Except one day, Principal Celestia came to work early, and caught me as I was leaving. I ended up telling her the truth about living there, and she generously invited me to stay with her, which eventually led to her adopting me.”

“You didn’t get punished or anything?”

“No,” Sunset idly played with her noodles. “Mom realized I was a bad place, and needed help not discipline.”

After finishing their food, they started their way out of the food court.

“So, were do you want to go next?” Sunset asked.

“I really want to visit the bookstore. There’s also a movie showing at the theater that might be fu-” Twilight was interrupted when Sunset grabbed her arm and pulled her behind a trash can.

“Shhh, don’t move, “Sunset whispered.

Twilight looked around trying to see what was going on. The other mall goers were continuing on normally, except for a few that gave the two of them questioning looks.

“What is it?” Twilight whispered to Sunset.

Sunset peeked over the top of the trash can, and Twilight followed her. She seemed to be looking at a group of girls in line for one of the stalls. “Who are they?” Twilight asked, not bothering to whisper, since they were on the other end of the large hall, well out of hearing range.

Sunset sighed. “Those used to be my friends. I don’t really want to deal with them now.” They watched as the girls all got their food then went to sit in a corner just out of sight from where they were hiding.

Sunset led Twilight to an escalator that would take them up a level. “The bookstore sounds great. And as a bonus, I doubt well run into them in there.”

“Ok, now you have me really curious. What happened between you and them?” Twilight asked.

Sunset sighed. “It’s kind of stupid really.” She kept leading Twilight in the direction of the bookstore. “Someone started spreading a bunch of peoples’ secrets on a MyStable profile that had been made to look like me.”

“You were framed? And everyone just blindly assumed you were behind it?” Twilight frowned.

“I didn’t exactly have the best track record.” Sunset rubbed her arm bashfully. “They never believed me when I said it wasn’t me, and after a couple of weeks of being shunned and bullied by my classmates, I decided to transfer.”

“And you never found out who did it? Or why?” Twilight felt her fists clenching.

Sunset shrugged. “I don’t really care at this point. I’m pretty happy with what I have now,” she winked.

Twilight blushed. Not really having a follow up, she let the conversation drop.

Twilight’s frown vanished when they entered the bookstore and started browsing the shelves and chatting about various books, genres and authors.

They spent an entire hour just looking at, and talking about books. Twilight bought a couple for herself, and Sunset got one that Twilight had recommended her.

Sunset looked around as they left the bookstore. Twilight had a feeling she was still worried about those girls.

“Is this whole trip going to be a stealth mission now?” Twilight teased, crossing her arms.

“Nah,” Sunset said in a casual tone. “They probably have work today, so we’ll just have to avoid a few of the stores here.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow at her friend. “Is it that big of a deal if they see you?” She asked.

“Well…” Sunset gave Twilight an odd look, then smiled and put her arm around Twilight’s shoulders. “Today is about new friends, not old ones. And I intend to keep it that way.” Twilight felt a warmth in her chest at Sunset’s closeness. She wasn’t used to this kind of affection. Except from family, but that wasn’t quite the same.

Twilight’s smile faltered as the image of Sunset in the locker room returned. Sunset released her and looked around at the shops again. Twilight shook her head to try and banish the pesky thought.

“I was thinking of buying some new clothes,” Sunset said. “You wanna come check it out?”

Twilight nodded, hoping her blush wasn’t too obvious. She didn’t have much of a fashion sense, and rarely gave much interest when her mother dragged her to one of these stores, but she was happy to go along with Sunset.

The mall happened to be full of various clothing stores, and the two of them started with the nearest one.

Sunset went straight for the t-shirt section, Twilight followed along as Sunset quickly scanned the t-shirts. She took out a light blue tank top and, putting it against her chest, she turned to Twilight.

“This looks nice. What do you think?” Sunset asked.

Twilight’s mind started to panic slightly as her not-interested-in-fashion mind thought of an appropriate response. “Uhm, It’s kinda cute, I guess?” She said, with a minuscule amount of confidence.

Sunset looked at it for a bit longer. “Hmm, I’ll try it on.” She continued on and found a pair of orange shorts. “Ooh, I like these.”

Twilight looked around at the various articles of clothing, but didn’t really find anything that caught her eye.

“I’m gonna try these on, could you hold this?” Sunset asked, holding out her bag from the bookstore.

“Sure.” Twilight took the offered bag, and sat down outside the changing rooms. She passed the time by looking through some news sites on her phone. Though nothing caught her interest.

Sunset came out of the changing room wearing the blue tank top and the orange shorts.

“What do you think?” Sunset asked.

Twilight looked up to see Sunset standing in front of the changing room wearing the blue tank top and the orange shorts. Immediately she noticed that the colors suited Sunset a lot better than the school uniform. She also noticed that Sunset was showing off a lot of skin, a look that also suited her nicely.

“I-it looks great,” Twilight brought her hand up to brush her bangs out of her face in an attempt to hide her blush.

Sunset turned back to look in the changing rooms mirror. “It does, doesn’t it? I would totally buy this if it wasn’t the middle of winter right now.” She sighed and went back into the changing room. “Be back in a minute, then we’ll look at some other stores.”

Twilight nodded, then took a deep breath to try and calm her racing heart. How many times is she going to surprise me like that? She thought to herself.

Sunset came back out in her CPA uniform, and the two left the store. They walked past plenty more clothes stores, giving each a quick glance before moving on, until one of them caught Sunset’s eye.

“Here, let’s try this one.” She said, pulling Twilight by the arm into the store.

Sunset pulled Twilight to a rack of blouses in various shapes and colors. She looked at them one at a time, occasionally asking for Twilight’s opinion. To which Twilight tended to give non-committal positive answers.

“Hey,” Sunset said, pulling out a dark blue blouse with long sleeves and holding it up against Twilight’s chest. “This one looks like it might look cute on you. Why don’t you try it on?”

Twilight looked down at the blouse. It did look pretty cute. “Sure, why not?” She said.

Sunset also picked out a few for herself. They spent a few more minutes looking at various shirts and some jeans, not finding anything they liked, before heading to the changing rooms.

There was only one empty changing room, and Sunset insisted that Twilight go first. Twilight switched her school uniform shirt with the dark blue blouse. Before long, it was time to show herself off. Something she had never really taken to before, and with Sunset of all people out there, Twilight was feeling a little nervous.

She took a moment to compose herself then parted the curtain and took a step forward. Sunset looked up from her phone and stood up to admire her.

“I was right, It does look cute on you.” Sunset smiled and twirled her finger, silently telling Twilight to spin in a circle. Twilight was happy for the brief opportunity to hide her blush.

Sunset held a finger to her chin, nodding in appreciation. “I definitely think you should get that one.”

Twilight twirled a lock of hair in her finger. “I think I will. It does look pretty good.”

Twilight changed back, and as she left the changing room, Sunset took her place to try on her picks.

She came back out a few minutes later, holding a short sleeved red blouse in one hand and the rest in the other. “I really like this red one. I’m gonna leave the others though.” Sunset indicated the blue blouse in Twilight’s hands, “So, you going to buy that one?”

“Oh, uhm. Yes. It’s a bit pricey, but I have some allowance saved up.” Twilight said.

Sunset nodded and they made for the cashier.

Twilight left that store with the warm feeling of having gotten something new. Though not as much as when she left the bookstore.

They continued past a few more stores, until one caught Twilight’s eye.

“That one looks pretty good.” She said, pointing at a fairly classy looking store a few paces ahead.

Sunset suddenly grabbed Twilight by the arm and stopped her in her tracks. “Actually, we should avoid that one. One of my ex-friends works there.” Sunset then sneaked closer to the store, and poked her head round the corner. “She’s talking to a customer right now. We should be able to sneak past unnoticed.”

Twilight wondered how necessary all this sneaking around really was, before Sunset grabbed her once again and pulled her forward. Twilight caught a brief glimpse at a purple haired girl she recognized from the food court talking animatedly with a customer before they were out of sight again, completely unnoticed.

“Are you sure you’re not being a bit paranoid about all this?” Twilight asked, wringing her wrist where Sunset had grabbed it twice now.

Sunset saw this and her expression immediately became guilty as she rubbed the back of her neck. “Sorry about that. But no I don’t think I’m being paranoid. Like I said, I want this to be about the two of us, and you cannot imagine just how overbearing those girls are. Especially when they're all together. Well, except for Fluttershy, I guess.”

Twilight still thought Sunset was taking this whole thing a bit too seriously, but decided to stay silent on that. She noticed another store that looked interesting to her and nodded her head towards it.

“How about that one?” She asked.

Sunset looked over at it and nodded. “Yeah, we can check that one out.”

Looking around, Twilight noticed that this store was very ‘girly’ and held mostly skirts and knee socks in bright bubbly colors.

As entered the store, Sunset folded her arms. “This ones all you. This isn’t really my style, you know?.”

Twilight started to feel bad about her choice and considered just leaving and finding a different store they could both enjoy. But Sunset apparently read her expression because she held up a hand to stop Twilight from speaking.

“Don’t worry about me, I’ll help you look.” Sunset smiled reassuringly. Twilight nodded and started looking through the store.

Five minutes later, she had a couple of skirts and a few knee socks to try on, and they went to the changing rooms. Twilight tried on a few combinations of skirts and socks, but one of them stood out from the rest. A purple skirt and dark blue socks that she was sure would go perfectly with her newly purchased blouse. She decided to ask Sunset’s opinion on the matter.

Leaving the changing room, she heard a low whistle come from Sunset. “Now that looks really good. And,” Sunset stood up to get a better look. “I think that blouse you just got would match it really well too.”

Twilight giggled as she spun around to show herself off for her friend. “That’s exactly what I thought.” She responded cheerfully. The nervousness from last time was still there, but it was a little easier to handle the second time around.

Twilight brought her picks to the cashier. The price was a bit smaller this time around, so the didn’t feel too bad about spending a lot in one day. Besides, she could afford to splurge from time to time.

“How about we get some ice cream now?“ Sunset asked. “You know, before I indirectly get you to spend your whole allowance on clothes.” Twilight rolled her eyes at Sunset’s teasing smile.

“Ice cream sounds great actually,” Twilight said.

Five minutes later, Twilight and Sunset sat down with their ice cream. Twilight had ordered cherry, and Sunset had picked blueberry.

Twilight savored the sweetness of the first lick, but was interrupted from her personal bliss when Sunset spoke.

“So, you mentioned you play violin?” Sunset asked.

Twilight nodded. “Yep. I started learning when I was six.”

Sunset gave a low whistle. “You must be pretty good then, that’s what, eleven years of practice?” Sunset asked.

“Ten years, actually. I skipped 7th grade. But yes, I am pretty good.” Twilight blushed as soon as the words left her mouth, hastily adding, “At least, thats what my parents tell me. A-and Shining and Cadance.” Twilight saw a slight grin start to spread across Sunset’s face. “I mean, that’s what my teacher said.” Sunset chucked at Twilight’s embarrassment, and Twilight then decided the best course of action was to stuff her mouth with ice cream so she couldn’t dig herself any further down.

“You’re only sixteen, huh?” Sunset asked. Twilight nodded, her mouth still stuffed with ice cream. “I heard it can be tough to skip a grade. Whole new set of classmates, some find it difficult to socialize with the older, more mature kids.”

Twilight kept her eyes focused on her ice cream cone. “As if I didn’t have difficulty socializing beforehand.” She muttered, then cleared her throat. “I never really had any close friends, so it didn’t really change much for me. Just a new set of slightly familiar faces. So, do you play any instruments?”

“Yep, I play the guitar. Used to be in a band as well. I used to love performing in front of a crowd.” Sunset looked wistfully at her half-eaten ice cream.

Twilight laughed, finally relaxing after the earlier awkwardness. “I was the opposite, I hated having to do recitals. I always got so nervous I’d be stressing over them for days beforehand.”

Sunset joined in her laughter. “I’d love to hear you play someday. If you don’t mind.”

Twilight froze. Inwardly, she was already panicking. ”Uh, s-sure. We could do that.” Terrifying though it might be, Twilight did want to impress Sunset. And she felt like she didn’t have all that many ways of doing so. “I’d like hearing you play too in that case.” Maybe she wouldn’t be as stressed about it that way.

“Done.” Sunset said.

They finished their ice cream, and chatted some more while they waited for Cadance to come pick them up.

“Hey, Cadance.” Twilight asked as she climbed into the passenger seat, while Sunset took the back seat.

“Hi, Twily.” Cadance said with her usual cheer. “Nice to see you again, Sunset.” She added, looking in the rear view mirror.

“Hi De-, uh, Cadance,” Sunset responded.

“So, I’ll be dropping you off first. Where do you live?” Cadance started towards the parking lot exit.

Sunset gave Cadance her address, then turned to Twilight. “So, what kind of music do you like?”

Twilight turned in her seat to face Sunset. “Classical, mostly. It was why I wanted to learn violin in the first place. My favorite is Beethoven.”

“I like classical too, I usually prefer rock, though. I love a song with a lot of energy in it.” Sunset said. “My band was kinda pop, as much as some of us wanted it to be rock.”

“Did you ever write any songs?” Twilight asked.

“We wrote all our songs our selves. I only wrote one song, but that was actually after we split.” Sunset smiled. “Maybe I’ll play that one for you, Twi.”

“Oh?” Cadance joined in, “Did I hear that right? You’re going to give my ladybug a private performance?” Twilight felt herself blush, and saw the same happen to Sunset.

“Yeah,“ Sunset said, “I wanted to hear Twilight play violin, and she wanted to hear me play guitar.”

“I see.”

Twilight could see a glint in Cadance’s eyes, though they were still locked on the road.

They lapsed into a silence that lasted a few minutes, until it was broken by Cadance. “So, what did you buy, Twily?”

“A few books, “ Twilight started, catching an eye-roll from Cadance. “And Sunset helped me pick out some clothes.”

“Ooh, you’ll have to show me after dinner. I’m staying over for dinner by the way,” Cadance clarified, before turned into a suburban street. “Is this the right place, Sunset?” She asked while looking at the various houses along the street.

“Yep, it’s the yellow one on the right, over there,” Sunset pointed, and Cadance pulled the car into the driveway.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Twilight. Thanks for the ride Cadance.” Sunset left the car with her own shopping bag.

“Bye, Sunset,“ Twilight waved at her friend.

“It was nice seeing you again,” Cadance said.

Cadance and Twilight were silent as they drove down the street. Cadance pulled onto a larger road just as she broke the silence.

“So.” She started. “You’re going to give Sunset a private performance? I remember how much you hated your recitals.”

Twilight looked out her window. “It’s different when it’s just one person,” she muttered.

“Is it different because it’s just one person, or because it’s a specific person?” Twilight could clearly hear the teasing edge in Cadance’s voice.

Twilight blushed. “I guess it’s kinda both.” She started wringing the hem of her skirt. “Cadance,” Twilight hesitated, “what do you do if you… like someone?”

Cadance squeed in delight. “Oh, Twilight, I’ve been waiting for this moment for years. And, for what it’s worth, I think you and Sunset look adorable together.”

Twilight wilted under Cadance’s enthusiasm.

“So,” Cadance continued, “you’re going to have to start by finding out if she’s available, and interested. Do you know if she’s single? Or if she’s into girls?” Cadance glanced at Twilight occasionally, battling the urge to give all her attention to the conversation with the need to focus on the road.

“I never said it was Sunset,” Twilight protested weakly.

“Oh, sweety,” Cadance patted Twilight on the head. “You didn’t have to. I could hear it in every word you said to her.”

Twilight huffed in irritation. “Well, anyway. I’m pretty sure she’s single, though I haven’t actually asked. And I have no idea if she likes girls or not.” Twilight slumped in her seat and looked out at the buildings speeding past the window.

“Start by asking her about that, but you know, don’t be too obvious about it. ” Cadance said. “And just spend time together. You’re still young, so you don’t need to rush into a relationship. Just take you’re time, and become friends first, then pursue a bigger relationship.”

Twilight nodded. “Thanks, Cadance.” She said sincerely.

“And, since you’re going be serenading her, you might get a good start if you play her a love song.” Twilight gave Cadance a deadpan stare. Cadance winked at her, then focused her attention back on the road.

“Thanks, Cadance.” Twilight said sarcastically.

Cadance joined the Sparkles for dinner that evening. Velvet asked Twilight question after question about what she and Sunset did at the mall. After dinner she showed off her new outfit to Cadance, and was happy to receive a few compliments on it.

After Cadance went to go spend time with Shining, Twilight decided to spend the rest of the evening getting a start on one of her new books.

When her bedtime rolled around, she went through her evening routine, with the added step of ‘remove makeup’.

After a few moments lying in bed, a certain, persistent image popped into her head.

Sunset naked in the locker room.

The image had popped into her head a few times today already, but unlike before, now she was alone with no distractions, and privacy.

She tried to turn her thoughts to something else, she tried to simply go to sleep.

This is wrong. I shouldn’t be thinking about my friend like this. I shouldn’t do that while thinking about her. She chided herself for wanting this.

But it wasn’t enough. She found her hand constantly drifting lower and lower, focusing on anything other than Sunset’s flawless form became near impossible.

Twilight succumbed to her baser desires.

Author's Note

If you see any grammatical errors, please PM me so I can fix them