Shimmer Run 1981

"This is the last time I bring you out for this conversation, young mare." Starswirl once again tried to tempt Sunset Shimmer with a vial of magicaine, dangling it in front of her face. "Imagine having the power to give the pony you love a gift beyond gifts."

Sunset Shimmer sighed as she stared at the vial of magicaine. She was fully aware of the building's fortifications and was starting to give up hope of rescue.

The large zebra burst into the office and whispered something to Starswirl. Trixie burst in shortly after with the battered amulet.

"Stygg!" She cried out excitedly.

"Shimmer my love! What ever he is offering you-" Stygian cried back.

Sunset Shimmer turned her horn to the vial and vaporized it with a jolt of energy. "Some things just aren't worth the cost." She smiled.

"You will regret this!" Starswirl shouted as he fired a blast from his horn, grazing one of Sunset Shimmer's front hooves. He dove behind his desk. The zebra started charging at Trixie.

"Go to her! The great and powerful Trixie will handle this brute!" Trixie tossed the amulet over to Sunset Shimmer.

"Put me on, quickly!" Stygian ordered. Sunset Shimmer clasped the amulet around her neck right as Starswirl emerged from behind the desk and fired a massive shadowy blast of energy. It broke around a shield surrounding Sunset Shimmer. The remainder of the blast destroyed the outer wall of the penthouse office.

As the zebra finished making charge against Trixie she tossed a smoke bomb down and the zebra went crashing into the office door, his head pierced it and he got back up and faced Trixie wearing the door like a necklace.

"You're not yourself right now, Starswirl!" Stygian shouted. Sunset Shimmer fired a horn blast at Starswirl but the effort was futile.

"You're right. I'm better than myself now." Starswirl snapped in an otherwordly voice. Shadows began swirling around him. "I have given myself to the darkness. I am now Shadow Whorl!"

The zebra charged at Trixie and as he neared her she pulled her hat off and dumped a load of marbles from it onto the floor. The zebra slipped and came to a skid as he tried to stop but he went sliding through the hole in the wall. He let out a fading scream as he descended to the street below.

"It's never too late to turn away from the darkness!" Sunset Shimmer yelled. She charged at Starswirl.

"What are you doing!?" Stygian protested.

"Believe in yourself!" Sunset Shimmer urged as she grabbed onto Starswirl and the three exploded into an orb of fiery light.

The trio found themselves inside Stygian's laser grid landscape. Tendrils of blinding white light held an encircling army of writhing shadows at bay in the distance.

"How could you do this to me?" Stygian cried as he approached Starswirl. "Is it true that you have betrayed me to this state?"

Starswirl nodded and looked down with shame. "I've lost control." he sobbed. "All these years I've served Equestria's best interests."

"Well what happened?" Sunset Shimmer asked.

"I used to be the one lecturing young foals on the dangers of using drugs." Starswirl sobbed. "But I found myself attending a victory party for the defeat of the Storm King. Some younger ponies were passing around mare-ihuana and of all the magics I have researched I hadn't a counter-spell for the peer pressure." Starswirl shook his head.

"Don't you know that mare-ihuana is a gateway drug?" Stygian lectured.

"I know that now. It just spiraled out of control so quickly. Before I knew it I had revived the magicaine trade and I knew you were the only pony that could stop me." Starswirl sighed.

"Don't you know that winners don't use drugs?" Sunset Shimmer sighed.

"I know that now. But now who am I to talk? I will just look like a hypocrite." Starswirl shook his head.

"Young ponies look up to you Starswirl. I know I do. Your experiences only serve to reinforce the dangers of drug use." Sunset Shimmer placed her hoof on his shoulder comfortingly.

"We'll ask Princess Celestia to go easy on you in exchange for helping us shut down your operations and speaking out to foals about the dangers of drug use." Stygian offered.

"Even after I have taken everything from you?" Starswirl sobbed.

Stygian and Sunset Shimmer took each other's hooves. "But you gave me the most important thing, love." Stygian smiled.

"You gave US love" Sunset Shimmer corrected.

The shadows in the distance vanished as Starswirl slumped down and began sobbing.

As the three emerged from the laser grid the sound of sirens grew closer. Several police pegasi flew in and landed along with Luna, Celestia and Twilight Sparkle.

"How could you do this to our kingdom, Starswirl?" Celestia shook her head as the police Pegasi lead Starswirl away.

"Shimmer, Laser-run!" Luna shouted angrily. "You've caused over a million bits in damage. I have the mayor of Neighami breathing down my haunches, you two are the most disorganized, reckless, and frankly absolutely insane crime-fighting duo I have ever seen!" Sunset Shimmer trembled as Luna stared her down. "But you sure know how to get the job done." She grinned at them.

Sunset Shimmer, Stygian and Trixie walked with Celestia and Twilight Sparkle in to the production room to show Celestia the pottery wheels and the magicaine that was being imbedded in it.

"It's going to take a while to clean up the damage this operation has done." Celestia sighed.

"I'm proud of you Sunset Shimmer." Twilight smiled and placed a hoof on her shoulder.

"Sunset wait..." Trixie said. She used her magic to pull the amulet from Sunset Shimmer and clasp it around her own neck.

"What are you doing?" Stygian asked.

"Just do it." She whispered.

Trixie's eyes began to glow red as Stygian projected his mind into her body.

"My love?" He asked gazing on Sunset Shimmer through a normal pair of eyes for the first time.

"Stygian?" She smiled as she reached over and touched her hoof against Trixie's shoulder.

"I can feel that." Trixie's body quivered with excitement.

The two ponies embraced as Twilight and Celestia looked on. Police ponies poked around the room collecting evidence. One of them unchained the radio from the support column and it went crashing to the floor. The jolt slid the dial to a different station and a romantic, soulful song began to fill the room.

Sunset Shimmer and Trixie started to slow-dance to the sweet melody.

"What are you doing?" Twilight quizzed as she watched Princess Celestia use her magic to grab a wad of clay from one of the pottery tables and start to form it.

"I was feeling inspired." Celestia smiled as she showed off the finished product. It was mostly spherical with a crevasse running down one side.

"It looks like a b-" Twilight started

"A beautiful heart. Yes." Princess Celestia smiled sweetly.

"Yes, that's exactly what I was about to say." Twilight laughed nervously to herself.

The two princesses looked over at Sunset Shimmer and Trixie. Sunset Shimmer and Trixie leaned over and began to kiss each other passionately. A police pony was walking by with a camera and Celestia grabbed him aside with her hoof.

"You should document that as evidence." Celestia laughed as she winked and nudged the police pony.

The radio stopped as Trixie grabbed back control of her body and pushed Sunset Shimmer away.

"Now let's not make a habit of that. This is TRIXIE'S body after all." She objected. Everypony laughed.

"Did you learn anything about friendship today?" Twilight Sparkle asked Sunset Shimmer.

Sunset Shimmer looked over at the Alicorn Amulet and then back over at Twilight. "I did. I learned that sometimes being in a romantic relationship with another pony for a long time can be hard and the emotional challenges you face can build up over time- so it's important to keep working at it and to keep looking for opportunities to rekindle your mutual passions." Sunset Shimmer smiled as she explained.

"I'm so proud of you!" Twilight beamed as she hugged Sunset Shimmer tightly.

"What next?" Sunset Shimmer asked, turning back to Trixie and Stygian.

"The show must go on!" Trixie exclaimed excitedly as they walked over to the other end of the room.

The trio looked over the caravan to see that it was heavily damaged from the ordeal.

"Perhaps some repairs are in order first." The trio laughed as an exciting synth-rock melody started playing on the radio in the middle of the room.