“Why do people do this?” Flash asked, looking up the trail to their left.
“It’s good for you! Gives you fresh air and exercise. And you get to be out in nature, and see lots of cool things!”
“If people didn’t fill the air with so much smoke and pollution, they wouldn’t need to climb a mountain just to get fresh air.”
Sunset was on a date with Flash. No, not that Flash. She was on a date with Flash Magnus.
“I mean, we don’t have to,” she said carefully. “If you don’t want to.”
Flash shrugged. “I need to get more used to these legs anyway. This is good practice for me, if I’m going to be visiting often.”
“Well, we’re also not going all the way up. It’s a pretty short hike, so you shouldn’t be too tired at the end.”
He smiled. “I appreciate it, but remember, I was a soldier. I’m perfectly used to pushing myself—though usually with my wings."
She nodded. “Then we can get started!”
She turned and led the way up the road, taking care that Flash Magnus didn’t fall too far behind. The incline was a little steep, but not the steepest hike Sunset had ever done. On the right side, the trees were thick, coming close to the road like a wall. The left was open, at least for now, and a riot of wildflowers of all colors spread out into the distance like an entire paint aisle had spilled over the grass.
Sunset paused for a moment, knelt down, and pulled out her sketchbook. Flash watched over her shoulder, smiling, as in a few quick strokes she captured the contour of the land. The flowers close to her she drew in detail, but she allowed those farther away to fade into the background. It would take a long time to draw them all, and though Flash loved to watch her work for as long as she wanted to, she did have a hike to finish.
“I won’t be stopping so often once we get started,” she told Flash as she stood up and dusted off her knees. “But even though that field was right at the entrance, I wanted to get it down.”
“That’s fine! You don’t have to apologize to me. It was gorgeous, and your drawing was amazing!”
She blushed, but was saved from further comment when a sudden break in the trees to their right opened up and the entire valley they were hiking up was visible. It was long and narrow, and the trail they were climbing took them up the left side of it. Towards the far end of the valley, the grassy dirt foothills gave way to the rock of a mountain. A waterfall, cascading down the side of the mountain, had etched a channel in the side, falling straight down. The river that fed the waterfall must have split into three higher up the mountain, though, and on each side of the channel another waterfall fell. These three falls fed a lake, from which a river flowed through the valley.
Sunset looked up the valley appraisingly. “We should be going about… halfway up those waterfalls. If you want to.”
“Sunset, you didn’t complain through the entirety of the fiasco that was my date. I think I can handle whatever you want to do for yours.”
She nodded awkwardly and kept going.
The view of the valley vanished again, replaced by dense trees on the right. A stand of dense trees approached on the left, and as they continued on the trail, the trees came right up against it. Now they were surrounded by trees on both sides. The branches reached overhead, swaying gently in the wind, making the trail look like a long, leafy hallway. Sunlight shimmered down in dapples on the ground. The trail curved both in front of and behind her, and the trees seemed to wrap around her. The close warmness never failed to make Sunset feel like she was in a hug made of nature.
“It’s a little claustrophobic,” Flash said.
“I should’ve known,” Sunset apologized. “Rainbow has the same problem. If you want-”
“Sunset!” Flash snapped. “No, I don’t want to go back. I want to spend time with you doing the things you love.”
“Okay. If you’re sure.”
“Sunset, you didn’t complain of airsickness until you actually threw up, at which point your first instinct was to apologize. I think I, the Pillar of Bravery, can handle a space a good two pony-lengths wide.”
“Right. Pillar of Bravery.” She laughed awkwardly.
They rounded a turn. Sunset noted the tall rock by the side. They were making good time—they’d reached that rock in only about five minutes, not counting the drawing break. And it was about the one-third mark. Usually it took at least ten minutes to reach it. Then again, usually she was dragging a complaining Rainbow Dash.
She slowed again, taking down a rapid sketch of a particularly shapely pine. It only took a minute or two to capture the bare essence of it—she’d fill in the rest of the details later, at home.
They kept moving, but Sunset often paused to quickly draw something on the sidelines—a pretty flower, a fluffy cloud, a creeping vine, and once, a little chipmunk that skittered across the trail in front of them, holding an acorn in its puffy cheeks.
Another turn of the switchback trail brought them to Sunset’s favorite part of the hike. By all rights, the trail should have ended there. The hill did, and the trail ran right into the side of the mountain. The channel carved by the waterfalls was just to their right, so close Sunset could’ve reached her hand in, but the trail went beside it instead of into it. It would’ve just run into straight rock, but some intrepid soul had carved into the mountain, creating a tunnel enclosed on three sides, open on the left behind the waterfall, running straight along the channel.
“You okay going into this?” she asked.
“It’s wide enough by far.”
“Good.” She plunged into the tunnel, and he followed close behind. The noise of a waterfall grew louder and louder, and soon it came into view on their right. “It’s close enough that you can stick your hand in!” Sunset called over the thunder.
Flash did so. The water hit his hand with the force of Rockhoof charging, and he pulled back in surprise.
“Something wrong?” Sunset asked from behind him.
“Not used to such sensitive hands.”
She couldn’t believe she’d forgotten. “I’m so sorry! I completely didn’t think about-“
“It’s fine, it just took me by surprise.” He stuck his hand back in, and held it that time. “See?”
“All right.” She put her left hand in and traced it along, then quickly withdrew it and started drying it on her clothes. She couldn’t draw with wet hands.
Soon after the waterfall, the tunnel turned right. The thunder of one waterfall faded, but another crescendoed in its place. This was the rear waterfall, but Sunset stopped before she reached it. “Here we are,” she announced, gesturing. The valley spread out before them, from the other direction this time. The two side waterfalls were up close, framing the whole rest of the valley. Sunset sat down, folding her legs crisscross, and began to draw. She spent a lot of time on this sketch, more than any of the others. Flash leaned against the back wall and watched her contentedly.
She began to approach the point of diminishing returns. The more effort she put in, the less improvement she would make in the drawing. Eventually it wasn’t worth it any more. After all, this was only the first draft. When she got home, she would draw it again in more detail, with all her supplies available. The first sketch was just to keep it in her mind until then.
There was a knock on Sunset’s door, and she jumped to answer it. As she expected, Flash Magnus was outside.
“Here to watch the Compilation?” she asked.
The Compilation was what Sunset did after every journey she went on. She brought her sketchbook everywhere, and then within a few days after she got home, she took all the pictures and put them together into one that summed it all up. Whether the ‘journey’ was a date (like the two most recent), a hike with friends, or even Camp Everfree, Sunset drew it. And since Flash loved to watch her work, she’d extended an invitation for him to come see the Compilation of their most recent date, whenever he was open.
“That, and to talk.”
That tone of voice could bode no good, but Sunset didn’t ask. She hurried around, setting up all her supplies—pencils, canvas, paint, sketchbook—and pulled out a chair for Flash to sit in while he watched. And talked.
He sat. “Sunset… How do I start? Ever since I’ve known you you’ve been nothing but selfless. You’ve been kind, you’ve been worried about me, you’ve been… you’ve been amazing.”
There was a “but” coming. Sunset steeled herself.
“But, if I’m honest, I’m worried.”
That wasn’t what she’d expected. “Worried?”
“Sunset, I’ve seen you with your friends. You’re confident. Strong. A leader. And I love that about you. But when you’re with just me? You lose all that. Suddenly you’re… what do they call it now? A doormat. And I don’t understand why. Is it something about me?”
Sunset put down the brush she’d just picked up. “No, it’s something about me. I’ve told you I used to be evil, but that’s only half of it. I also used to be a huge jerk. I dominated everyone in the school. I was a bully. And the one person who had it worst… was my boyfriend.”
She sighed, barely even able to think about it. “I put him down every chance I got. Any complaints he had, I ignored. Any preferences, I steamrolled.”
"You what?”
“Ran over. Squished. I was horrible to him. The fact that he’s forgiven me says leagues more about him than about me. I’ve gotten over doing that to my friends, but you’re my first date since then. Doesn’t help that you have the same name, either.”
Flash stood up, took her hands in his. “Sunset, trust me when I say you have absolutely nothing to worry about. I know what kind of woman you are. I’ve seen how you act. You’re kind and compassionate—but you’re also confident and assertive. And there is nothing wrong with that. If you need it, you have my official permission to worry about what you need and what you want. There’s nothing wrong with thinking about me, but you can also take care of yourself.”
She bit her lip, then nodded. “Okay. I’ll… I’ll try. You might need to remind me from time to time.”
“Of course. I promise.”
They stood there, holding hands. Eventually Sunset said, “...Flash, I need my hands free if I’m going to paint.”
He dropped them, looking embarrassed, and stepped back towards his chair. Sunset turned to the canvas and the extremely rough sketch she’d made on it, and began the first layer of paint.
She worked with enthusiasm, splattering herself with paint. The vague outlines of the mountain valley spread across the canvas. A second layer went on soon after and with a little more care. Slowly, she built it up.
The painting began to take shape. All around the outline, it was framed by a line of rock. At the sides of the canvas, the two waterfalls fell, but they came together into a point at the bottom. Vines crept up the sides, curved smoothly across the top corners, and joined in the center, twining together down from that point into another sharp line. Together, the vines and waterfalls made the shape of a heart, which framed the rest of the valley, with its forest full of shapely pines, its field covered in a riot of wildflowers, and its gently rolling river.
Finally, Sunset stepped back. “It’s done.”
Flash Magnus smiled and squeezed her paint-covered hand. “It’s perfect.”
Author's Note
Couples supporting each other in artistic endeavors are my aesthetic, and Equestria Girls shorts have made clear that Sunset is interested in art. Combine that with my adoration for uncommon ships, and you get... this. It's probably not going to win, but I had a lot of fun writing it!
This chapter was supposed to be all there would be, it really was. But the more I thought about these characters, the more ideas I got. The story is tagged Complete because it's not really lacking anything as it is, but rest assured, I have much more to tell about this pair. This story will continue updating but also remain tagged Complete. Sorry if this confuses anyone.
