Author's Note

This fic has some stuff in common with Appledashery.

"What's that, Lemur? You mean nobody reads it and it's never gonna be finished?"

Ahem. No... but maybe ~~yes~~.

What I mean is that the synopsis pretends to be about one thing but then the story goes out of its way to do a whole bunch of other things.

In truth, I don't plan for this fic to meander quite like that other fic that nobody reads. This has a place it wants to get to. It's just... taking it's sweet-ass time in getting there. That's one reason why I haven't incorporated a "Porn" tag. Sure, it'll get Porn-y at some point... but by my own friggin' metrics.

In other words, there'll be a lot of fluff between then and now... textually speaking. And don't hold too much importance in how introspective the plot is getting. I'm not trying to make this fic about something important and meaningful. It's still a sissy/crossdressing niche thingy.

I just... y'know... wanna get super deep into exploring Flash Sentry's head before we explore his anus.

Is that so hard to believe?

Eh... go back to Cookie Clicker.
-SS&E

To Thine Own Selves Be Pink

“Flash...” Sunset Shimmer peered left and right through thin eyes as they rounded a bend in horticultural landscaping. “Are we...” The little pony girl exhaled through her little pony muzzle. “...at Disneyland?”

“Disney World,” Flash Sentry corrected. He hugged the dangling equine to his chest as he walked down an ever-evolving pathway. One by one, colorful buildings of vaguely “medieval” design sprouted up on either side of them. Bodies came into being along the path—first their legs, then their backpacks and strollers, then their faces and mouse hats. The noise was thoroughly explained now: a cacophonous chorus of tourists murmuring, children laughing and screaming, and cast members heralding—all under the symphonic broadcast of upbeat classical music. “Only... something's off about it,” the boi stammered. “I know Florida's Magic Kingdom is way larger than the one on the West Coast, but I don't recall Fantasyland being quite this big.”

“It's not an accurate representation of the actual amusement park,” Sunset explained, repositioning her meager weight in his arms. “But, rather, it's a reflection of how your mind interpreted it... presumably from experience.”

“Sure, I can buy that.”

“And from the looks of it...” Sunset nodded her horn at how noticeably large the park guests were. “...you must have been here last when you were a child.”

“About age eight, actually,” Flash said.

Sunset looked up at his chin above her flouncing mane. “I never knew your parents took you to Walt Disney World!”

“They didn't.” He sighed out his nostrils.

“... … ...Magnolia?”

“Concepcion did.”

“Concepcion...” The pony's muzzle scrunched. “I think I've heard that name before...”

“She was the housekeeper I knew the best while growing up,” Flash said. “Housekeeper slash babysitter slash groundskeeper slash stand-in mom.” A faint smile crossed his lips. “She was always so kind... so patient... so affirmative. She believed in me and my potential and would come up with newer and more unique ways to try and lift my spirits up every day... before and after school.”

Sunset nodded. “I bet she loved you, Flash.”

“As well as she could. I'm pretty sure she and her co-workers accepted me as an adopted da—...” The boi bit his dreamtongue. “...as an adopted son.” He cleared his throat. “And I... I got along pretty well with her children and godchildren.”

“Were Concepcion's kids nice to you too?” Sunset asked.

“Heh... yeah, they were,” Flash murmured. “It's just that...” His words trailed off.

“Just what?”

He hugged the little pony closer to his slender chest. At last, he sighed once more. “I never felt like I was my true self around them. I felt like... I was the kid of the rich people their mother slash parents' friend worked for... … ...and—for the longest time—I didn't really know how to deal with their kindness.”

“... … ...because your parents' and sister's acceptance of you was so cold,” Sunset stated. “You felt that receiving anything else wasn't what you were 'supposed' to receive.”

“Sure, I guess.” Flash glanced casually up at a doppelganger of Cinderella's Castle that stretched impossibly high into the stratosphere, blotting out the sun. “So much in my life has been... second-guessing good fortune when it comes my way.”

“It might explain why you didn't just ditch me a few weeks into our relationship, Flash,” Sunset said in a somber tone. “All of the cruelty and menace and overbearing intimidation I brought on...” She swallowed hard. “Must have just been sprinkling croutons into your salad.”

“Yes, well...” Flash smirked slightly as he navigated around a congo-line of brightly-shirted Brazilians. “...the dressing didn't hurt.”

“Flash...” The pony's ears hung flat. “It isn't supposed to be funny.”

“Sometimes you just have to chuckle at life, Sunset,” Flash muttered. “For the last fifteen-odd years, I've taught myself how to laugh at everything on the inside.” His shoes scuffled to a stop before a park bench. “I wish I had learned how to do that sooner.”

Sunset followed his gaze. She saw a slight specimen of youth, with hair like a spilled vat of sea-blue ink. The child was a veritable pixie: fair and androgynous and tiny... hugging its knees while hiding into the geometry of the bench wearing knee-length shorts and a bright white t-shirt with some forgotten band name on it. While the other park guests roared and marched and circulated all around him, the young Flash remained still, unmoving, and inevitably sunbleached by the bright Florida sky.

“I... don't think I've ever seen anything so simultaneously adorable and sad,” Sunset remarked. “Were you... unsupervised?”

“Nah...” Flash shook his head, nodding towards a space to the side. “Concepcion and a few of her work friends where there. She brought her kids. They all brought their kids.”

Sunset watched as a bunch of children Flash's age—but mostly older—pranced and chased each other around their parents as the group paused by a Fantasyland storefront selling overpriced ice cream treats. Another portion of the group was standing in line to meet with the Faerie Godmother.

“I've heard the tale told different times over the years,” Flash said. “Basically, one summer, I was looking really down. Moreso than usual. So Concepcion brought it up to my mother—explaining how she felt that something needed to be done to lift my spirits. My mom must have shrugged it off, saying, 'Why don't you take him to Disney World or something.' And Concepcion didn't really understand English sarcasm so well, so she told my mom it was a good idea. Then Mother likely just... waved her hand and got tickets for me, Concepcion, and a few dozen other people.”

“Your mother's superpower was always money-waving.”

“You're not wrong.” Flash nodded. “So we had this one bigass trip to Florida and... well... this is how it went down.”

Sunset grimaced. “You look miserable.”

“But the kids—my acquaintances, the other children—they were having the time of their lives.” Flash managed a warm breath as he stared down at his younger image while hugging a pony to his chest. “I think I was okay with that. More than okay. Indirectly, I brought joy and happiness to so many others who probably would never have gotten a ticket to Disney World any other way. I... I like that...”

Sunset blinked up at him. “You like what?”

“Bringing others pleasure,” Flash murmured. “Contentment. It... it's gotten less and less easy over the years. But—once upon a time—I used to be able to make others smile and giggle and have fun simply by existing.”

Sunset squinted at the sad little doppelganger. “You don't seem to be existing very well here.”

“I was being a stupid little sad sack,” the boi grumbled.

“Awwwwwwwwwww...” Sunset gave him an empathetic smile. “Flaaaaaaash.”

“So much money poured into this vacation—and there I was being a frowny-face in the center of it.”

“You're not exactly frowning,” Sunset said. “You just...” She fought the urge to say it, but gave in: “...look like you.”

“Concepcion did her best to try and cheer me up,” Flash said. As if on cue, a middle-aged woman wandered over with a chocolate-covered banana and offered it to the melancholic child on the bench. He took it in his tiny hand while maintaining a distant look in his eye. “She rarely left my side. But... y'know... she never forced me to smile. That's something Mom or Magnolia would have tried to do... turning the whole vacation into an unnecessary dramatic scene. But people like Concepcion were more patient... accepting. I think she had faith that someway—somehow—I was likely smiling on the inside. I can't blame her for being wrong... I didn't give her much to show for all of her efforts, no matter how kind she was to me.” He watched as his eight-year-old self nibbled on the chocolate fruit. “Wowsers, that's Freudian.”

“Funny...” Sunset remarked. “I kinda sorta figured that you of all people would have simply relished a week at Disney World. Instead... you look so... displaced.”

“Nothing about where I was or what I was doing could change the fact that I knew my parents did this to... more or less get me out of their thoughts.” Flash looked across the faceless crowds meandering chaotically through the dreamscape. “Year after year, I came to realize that I was simply a shame to them. This would only grow worse over time, and I... just could never find myself in a place where I could celebrate the moment... or enjoy life's riches—even when they were presented to me. Somehow it just... felt wrong to give in. In the back of my mind, I knew that something would have to change... I would have to change.”

“But... did you ever?” Sunset asked. “Change, I mean? When I found you a day or two ago, Flash, you had been evicted from the last home your parents provided you.” The pony squirmed in his grasp. “I'm not trying to make you feel guilty or nothing, sweetie, but if some part of you really and truly wanted to appease them... then why didn't you after all these years?”

Flash hugged her tight like a pillow as the spires and thatched roofs of Fantasyland sank all around them, giving way to a broad gray plateau.

“I... I don't know, Sunset,” Flash murmured. Gently, he knelt down and allowed the little unicorn to stand on her own four hooves. “As much as I wanted to fit in... to make others proud... I just...” He winced. “...I could never feel like I was right... like I'd be in the place... in the role that would make me feel happy—or at least content for the rest of my life. So... I just... did nothing.” He gulped. “I settled for limbo.”

Sunset raised a hoof to tap her fuzzy chin in thought. “...just when was the last time you felt like you were performing the role you were supposed to?”

"For the love of oats! How useless are you?!?"

Sunset instantly winced at the sound of her own snarling voice. As the world rippled through dreamscapes around them, she spun around to see two teenagers situated in a high school breakroom. The taller of the two—an enraged valkyrie—was hopping on one foot, cradling her other ankle with a pained expression.

"Do you want to stomp my hooves—I mean—my toes off?!?" The younger Sunset doppelganger's nostrils flared.

"I-I'm sorry, Sunset!" The teenage boi shrank away from her, trembling. "I'm telling you... I-I've never really practiced this before! I... I'm afraid I'll just step on your feet again!"

"Give me a Goddess-damn break!" The teenage girl face-palmed, sighed, then reached out with both arms. "Come here, ya sissy."

"Eeep—!" Flash flinched—but was soon yanked into Sunset's grip. Then, with forceful motions, he was shaken into a dancing stance, framed by the dominant partner.

"Okay. Look..." The valkyrie frowned, but her upcoming motions were curiously gentle as she graduated the two of them into a slow waltz across the room. "I've read enough on this shit to help us both practice. But you're going to have to let me lead for a while." She narrowed her eyes down on him. "Do you understand what's happening? This—what I'm doing right now—is what you'll be doing when we're dancing in front of everyone at the Fall Formal! You have to learn my movements here and copy them when the time comes!"

"Okay..." Flash gulped, his eyes misty as he stumbled to follow her motions. "Okay, I th-think I can do this—"

"Don't think nothing! Learn, okay?! Friggin' grow a pair, will ya, Flash?!" Her grip of his arm and shoulder tightened as she spun him around the room. "And try to call me something more endearing. No more 'Yes, Sunset' and 'Sure thing, Sunset.' I need you to be my boyfriend in front of others... not my toadie!"

"Uhm... okay..." Flash winced. "...sweetie?"

"Snkkktt-hahahaha!" Sunset smirked her way through an evil laugh. "Ohhhhhhhh Luna on a bike! You'd be absolutely hopeless without me..."

The pony watching all of this heard a heavy sigh. Curious, she turned around to see her fellow dreamwalker leaning limply against a faded wall of the conjured room.

"I... I'm sorry, Sunset," Flash muttered, gazing past the shadows of their past selves. "I... I-I really don't know why I keep bringing us back here..." His sad eyes reflected her fuzzy face. "It's not fair to you—"

"No. No..." She waved a hoof. "I think this is important somehow."

His fair brow furrowed. "How so?"

The unicorn kept waving. "Just... just keep thinking—"

SWOOOSH! The dancers behind them twirled, blurred, and reformed into two figures scaling a rocky hill on the north end of town.

"Will you frickin' hurry it up?!" Sunset Shimmer grumbled, hauling a backpack with a telescope over her shoulders. "Sheesh, Flash. This is your own home town! Don't tell me you've never gone hiking around these parts before!"

"I..." The teenage boi painted. "...have seen..." He crawled his limp limbs up the side of the steep incline. "...the sights..." Sweat glistened in the setting sunlight. "...of this place..." He collapsed against a boulder, whimpering. "...from down below..." His eyes clenched shut. "Ohhhhhhhh we're up high... oh gosh oh gosh oh gosh..."

"Unnnngh..." Sunset rolled her eyes and turned right around, marching downhill. "Where in the Hell would you be without me. Honestly."

"Huh?" The young Flash reopened his eyes, grimacing as the valkyrie stomped towards him. "What are you going to do?"

"Shove your worthless butt down into the ravine. What do you think?"

"Wh-what?!" Flash squealed like a girl.

"Haaah!" The valkyrie smirked, lifting the boi up in mighty arms and effortlessly carrying the smaller teenager. "I'm just making this easier, Flash. Relax! And grow a funny bone, will ya?!"

"I... I-I..." He trembled, clinging to her as the strong girl carried them both uphill. "...I thought I-I was supposed to be growing a pair of t-testicles..."

"Hahahah! That too. But somehow a funny bone seems even more possible."

"Sunset..."

"Heh heh... friggin' limp napkin of a man. Why am I so crazy for ya...?"

"Because... I'm... ... ... nice?"

"Sure. Let's go with that. Now stop trembling or else I'm gonna drop your sorry ass halfway up the hill. You really wanna miss the meteor shower, wuss?!?"

The observing unicorn snorted, then covered her muzzle as she chuckled. Within seconds—however—she was grimacing. "Ahem..." She forced herself to look away from the scene. "I'm... I'm sorry." The mare's ears folded as she shook her head. "None of that was ever truly funny... or joyful. It's cruel to snicker at it, Flash."

"No it's not."

Blinking hard, the pony looked up at him. "Huh?"

He bore a smile, although it was a weak one. "Not... everything was so terribly awful, Sunset," he said. Slowly, the boi walked over and stood by her side. "I mean... sure... I took what I could get out of our relationship. But... you... you grew comfortable to be with."

She hung her head, scowling at the earth. "Nobody should ever grow content with cruelty. Nobody."

"I'm not saying you're wrong." He knelt down and ruffled her fiery mane. "I'm just saying what happened. For all of your angry and abrasive ways... you were always keen to take control." He bore a gentle, tranquil expression. "I... really need that in my life." A sigh. "I don't think it's all that shameful to say, anymore. I need others telling me what to do... pointing and clicking... giving me directions and objectives. Heck... if my parents were actually around me all the time—or my sister, at least—then maybe I'd finally be somewhere. Instead I was... given a wide enough birth to be my depressed self and languish into nothingness. That's the time when you found me and gave me something besides myself to dwell on every day."

"I never wanted to be like your parents," Sunset said, her voice scratching with a touch of sadness. She sniffled and clenched her teeth. "You deserved so much better—you still do... and I had to show up and drive your life even further into the ground."

"You gave me purpose, Sunset." Flash fidgeted, gazing off into the nebulous dream. "...and you gave me attention." A soft sigh escaped his nostrils. "That did more for me than you can ever imagine. I even felt comfortable enough to... to..."

The pony arched an eyebrow. "...to what?"

SWOOOSH!

The world shifted behind them, turning dark. Stars formed overhead, and cosmic streaks shimmered past them, creating a cosmic light show. On the top of a hill, lying beneath an erected telescope, two teenagers—a buxom redhead and a petite boi—rested with their bodies sprawled across blankets. Together, they gazed at the meteor shower while the valkyrie rambled on:

“All my life, I've had this dream... this dream of being important... of being powerful.” The past Sunset's eyes narrowed, reflecting the streaking heavens. “So many pon—individuals where I come from are powerful but don't know what to properly do with their strengths. They sit up high and pretend to be wise while the far corners of the world suffer with or without them.” She shook her head. “I never want to be like that—passive, predictable, by the book. I want to take charge. I want to exercise my power... and put those who are weak and wicked in line. Remind them of their place... y'know? We're all in this crazy thing called life together and it's a total waste if the climb goes anywhere but upwards. Only I seem to be the one who knows how to make a difference.”

Flash Sentry watched the streaking stars, murmuring: “Do you hate sand? I hear it gets everywhere.”

The valkyrie's brow furrowed. “Huh?!?”

The boi giggled, curling up in the grass.

While she was fuming, she didn't lash out at him. Instead, the teenage redhead continued on: “And once I've claimed my own throne—so to speak—then I will have finally settled down with someone who I can allow to be close... to bear witness to all my accomplishments... to know about all of my triumphs and failures and help me strategize for the campaign ahead.” She smiled hungrily. “It's not so much that I will have conquered my significant other... but he or she will know how I've achieved what I've achieved and they'd be happy to count themselves among them.”

The boi looked over, blinking. “He or she?”

“You heard me, pipsqueak.” The girl yawned, smirking into the meteor shower. “This world has plenty to offer me in both places. I have no problem admitting that. Take you, for instance. You're really just half a man... heh...” She ran a hand through her hair while chuckling to the side. “Guess when you're with me, I'm getting the best of both worlds. Who'd a thunk it? Hahah...”

Flash Sentry's gaze wandered the night's sky from horizon to horizon. “... … ...would you prefer if... if I-I was half a woman?”

“Didn't we already establish that?” the valkryie droned with a sarcastic smirk. “Heh...” She “punched” his shoulder and snickered. “I'm only joshin' ya, kiddo. Enough about me. What's your big dream of settling down?”

“M-my big dream...?” He clenched his teeth nervously.

“You heard me. I rambled on and on about my quest for power. How about you tell me your ideal scenario.”

“Like... like a fantasy?”

“Sure.” She belched. “Whatever.”

“... … ...” Flash squirmed where he lay beneath the stars. He clutched the sheet between him and the grass, took a deep breath, and finally stammered: “I have... always... always dreamed of... of...” He clenched his eyes shut. “... … ...of b-being swept off my feet by a big handsome prince.”

The night air was deathly silent.

The boi shivered, but he took the opportunity to stumble forward with his words:

“Being found... being rescued by someone strong... powerful... handsome.” He gulped dryly. “Then being treated like the d-delicate flower that I was... and... and f-feeling compelled... maybe even obligated to... to th-thank them for rescuing me in... in any way possible...” His cheeks burned. “Even if... even if it m-made me uncomfortable... because their pleasure and th-their majesty is one-in-the-same and it'd be my duty to uphold it... and... and I would be rewarded lavishly in return—”

“Pffft—haah haah haah haah!” Sunset Shimmer laughed bombastically.

The boi's breath sucked in and he curled away from her in the blanket.

“You... you... you...” Sunset sputtered between wheezing chuckles. “You're telling me... that... th-that you wanna get fucked by a knight in shining armor?” She grinned wickedly. “Wouldn't that make you—like—a friggin' princess or some shit?”

“Uhm...” Flash trembled, curling up harder. “...m-maybe...?”

“Hah hah hah hah hah hah!”

The boi sniffled. A tear squeezed out of his eyes, followed by another. He looked away and wiped his trembling cheeks dry with a limp wrist.

“Yeesh, Flash, I knew you were a sissy but I had no idea you were a full-blown fruit cake! Hah... well—nuts to you. I'm wearing the crown at the Fall Formal. You'd better not steal it, ya hear?”

“Yes, Sunset...”

“At least in my dreams, I'm still wearing pants. Fantasize all you want, but let's keep our priorities straight, mmm'kay?”

“Y-yes, Sunset... … ...”

On the far side of the hill, gazing from a nebulously lofty position, the unicorn Sunset Shimmer struggled to maintain her composure. She sniffed, wiped a fresh tear clean off her muzzle, and turned from the scene altogether.

“That... wouldn't be the last time you tried sharing your heart with me, Flash,” the mare murmured. “Over the course of the next few weeks, you let more of your true self show and... and I trampled it all to the ground...”

Flash was considerably better composed than she was at the moment. “It was only a fantasy, Sunset—”

“It's more than that and you know it!” she exclaimed, angry and misty-eyed at the same time. She trotted up to him and gazed up with a vulnerable expression. “It's something you've cultivated all your life! It's a source of joy! Of contentment! Of being—”

“It's just a distraction, Sunset,” Flash said firmly. The boi adjusted the facsimile of a high school jacket framing his dreamself before sighing. “An obsession. A fetish...”

“Maybe with others.” Sunset stifled a whimper, shaking her head. “But not with you.”

He rolled his eyes, gazing off across the melting mountains and buildings of past Canterlot City. “What... are we even doing here, Sunset?”

“Flash...”

“You brought me to this place in a search for 'magic in my life.' And so far... all we've done is over-analyze my youth and make you feel horrible.”

“We're still on a quest for—”

“I'm sorry.” He bit his lip, gazing down at the unicorn. “I don't know why we keep coming back to the time you and I used to date. It... it must be really hard for you. I swear I'm not doing it on purpose.”

“No.” She slowly shook her head. “I don't believe you are either. But... but I brought us here after letting you touch the portal. It was in pursuit of something... a feeling... a memory... a sensation.”

“A name,” Flash muttered.

Sunset did a double-take at that. “What?”

He ignored both her and himself. “I... don't think there was much magic in the way we used to hang out together, Sunset.” He gulped. “No offense. I mean... even if the way you treated me can be seen as objectively awful, I wouldn't want to be without the experience and memories I've gained to this day. Nevertheless... 'magic' it was not.” He shrugged. “You came into this world with a really messed-up plan. You crash landed into me. I bore the brunt of it. Then—after Princess Twilight and the Elements intervened—you shaped up for good... the good that you always had in yourself.”

“Flash...”

“I was just your whipping boy. And that's okay. I can live with that, Sunset—”

She raised a hoof to his leg. “But you can live with so much more. You could have... but whenever you brought it up... I just snuffed it all out. I laughed at you... shamed you... and silenced you at every turn.”

“Oh Sunny...” Flash knelt down and stroked the mare's mane. “I might be a sissy... but I'm no airhead. Doesn't take a genius to know what you've been trying to do for me since you took me in at your place.” He smirked crookedly. “The fruit snacks. The desktop background on my computer. The friggin' bed shirts that you've been leaving me—”

The cat-sized pony shook her head. “This isn't about that, Flash. This is about who and what you've been endeavoring to be your entire life.” She stood up on her hind legs and pressed her front hooves to his side so she could stare closer into his face. “It all flows from somewhere... and I think... I truly believe that something magical in this world recognized it and carried its essence to you.”

“Carried its essence...?” Flash grimaced. “Sunset, what are you talking about?”

“Something has happened to each and every one of us—the girls and I. And I believe that you are among us. You're also affected. Similarly... but differently all the same.”

“How... do you know this?” He shrank from her, brow furrowed. “Is this some Equestrian nonsense—?”

“It's not nonsense, Flash. I... I've suspected something for a while. I just didn't realize it could have been you until... until I found you.”

“Is that why you brought me here?”

“Flash...” The pony pressed against his arm, her voice emphatic. “When the girls and I become one with the Elements of Harmony... when we 'pony-up' and perform superpowers... we are harmonically in tune to what we love in life... what we love to do... where we love to be. This has come to encapsulate all of us. We now share this love—in more ways than one—and it empowers and enlivens us. I believe the same thing may be true with you—but you've always been alone. And you've always harbored this secret joy and harmony alone.”

“If so, that's news to me,” he droned.

“I don't think it is,” Sunset remarked. “I think you know exactly where to look. And—what's more—I think I can help bring us both there.”

“To what? To the 'magic?'”

“Just think, Flash...” Sunset insisted. “Think about what makes you truly happy.”

He fought the urge to groan. “Haven't we already been through this?”

“No. We've only run through the cycles of what you believed would make you happy,” Sunset said. “The outer layers of gray pretense and excuses. Your parents threw money at you. I threw insults at you. But in all such cases, you were like a light that was snuffed out. Your fantasy could never become reality. You lived under a shadow... and you accepted that as the most you could ever get. And you never bothered to crawl out from beneath that rock because you knew that the light you'd be exposed to would be far dimmer than the fire that birthed you. So you settled for limbo, Flash. For so many years you languished... while the walls of your cell crumbled and decayed... and the whole world beyond turned into your prison.”

“... … …” The boi gaped at her.

“When... were you... the happiest, Flash?” Sunset reached up and caressed his face with her hooves. “Just... relax. Concentrate. I'm here with you, alright? I'll lend all of my strengths. All of my telepathic talents. You may not know it, but you're the source of my power right now. Perhaps... you've always been...”

“I... was happy...?” The boi's words slurred. He brought a hand out and rested it against the mane of the pony he was kneeling before. “...so... unbelievably long ago...”

FWOOOOOOOSH!

The entire world turned pink. Bright. Rosy.

The cherry-scented air was full of giggles. The laughter of innocence and femininity.

Sunset and Flash looked aside. Both breathless.

No less than eight children were gathered in the room. The bed was pastel pink. The carpet was a fluffy salmon. Bright girly cartoon characters dotted posters and vinyls on the wall. The curtains and lampshades and closet matched the estrogenical ensemble.

Then there—positioned in the center of the room—was a five year old “boy.” He wore a shiny pink princess gown that was two sizes too big over his t-shirt and shorts. He held a scepter in his hands, trailing with pink streamers. There rested a cheap plastic tiara on his head...

...and he had the dumbest grin on his face.

The girls forming a circle around him giggled and laughed—but not at his expense. Their smile shared the same brightness as his, and they cooed and coddled and complimented with each passing second:

“Awwwwwwwww!”

“You're so pretty, Flash!”

“Doesn't my lil' sister's dress look so good on him!”

“You make the most adorable princess, sweetie!”

“Nuh-uh! Don't do a bow! Do a curtsy!”

“You're a princess now! Princesses curtsy!”

“I'd bet you'd love to do a twirl!”

“Yes! Give us a twirl, Your Highness!”

Giggling, the elegantly “dressed” youngster did as instructed. All of the older children laughed and applauded.

“Yaaaaaaaaaay!”

“All hail Princess Flash!”

“Heeheehee!”

“You're just tooooooo precious! And to think my sister wanted to give away this dress to Good Will!”

“You wanna take it home with you Flash? Huh?”

“Ohhhhhh I bet he does!”

“Awwwwwwwww! Look! He's blushing!”

“Don't you mean she's blushing?”

“Heeheehee...”

“You make such an adorable girl, Flash.”

“She's got the hair for it!”

“Heehee!”

“The favorite princess of the faeries for sure!”

“Oh! Oh! We gotta do his makeup!”

“Yes! Would you like that, Flash? Would you like to look even prettier?”

“I think he does!”

“Look at that smile! I don't think I've ever seen him smile like this before!”

As the room lit up with more and more merriment...

...Sunset's lips pursed in wonderment. “Are these Concepcion's godchildren?” A blink. “They... they're...”

“They're so sincere...”

Sunset looked at Flash.

He bore a deadpan expression—albeit one awash in tears. He sniffled, gazing at the scene with distant eyes. “Everything was just... right.” A shuddering breath. “They were never making fun of me, Sunset. I was hanging out at Concepcion's house while Magnolia Buckler was away and... and the children and I were playing games and... one of the girls joked about dusting off their little sister's tea set. And... and I wanted soooo much to play along. And they saw it... they saw how much I wanted to be 'pretty' and...”

The boi watched his childhood self twirl one more time. He tripped backwards and one of the girls caught him. The room erupted in giggles as the older children took turns hugging him, pinching his cheeks, and giving tiny kisses on the forehead. The young Flash was red as a beet, and he hugged the scepter to his chest, awash with warm fuzzies.

A tear trickled down the cheek of the older dreamself. “...and I was pretty, Sunset. I was everything I wanted to be. And they were happy for me. Happy for themselves. No sarcasm. No patronizing. The whole pink room was alive with joy... because of me. I was the center of attention... the center of their world. Maybe it... only lasted for an afternoon, but... but...” He sobbed once... twice... then emerged with a tearful smile. “...I would happily live there forever.” He wiped his cheek dry, shuddering. “If I did... maybe I would finally find her...”

Sunset gave him a surprised look. “'Her?'”

Flash was suddenly at a loss for words.

“Flash...” She pressed against his knees once more. “Look at me...”

He reluctantly pulled his gaze off the childhood memory, gazing into the equine's face instead.

Sunset's eyes narrowed. “...this is a precious... precious moment for you. But...” Ears folded. “...I do not believe it's when the magic happened.”

“You... d-don't...?”

“I think it actually happened before this,” Sunset insisted. “And this memory—this naturally occurring moment—merely brought the magic in your heart to the forefront.”

“I... I don't understand...”

“You have to take me back, Flash...”

Flash blinked in confusion. “Take you b-back...?”

“You can feel it in your heart. I know you can.” She smiled hopefully. “Now... help me bring it to the forefront of your mind.” She pointed at the bedroom. “Focus on the happy little Flash in the princess dress. Think of the experience as a tributary belonging to a great river. Then... follow the flow to its source. Concentrate, Flash...”

His dreamself shivered. His eyes clenched shut as sweat replaced his tears.

“You're not that far away,” Sunset continued. “It's there. Bubbling. Frothing. A well-spring. Hot and wholesome and passionate.”

A dense mist billowed through the bedroom, blanketing all of the occupants.

Sunset gasped. She turned about on nervous hooves, gazing in every direction.

Flash squatted low beside the pony, clutching his head in both hands, breathing heavily.

“Just... just relax, Flash...” Sunset stammered, all the while gawking nervously at the impenetrable fog coalescing around them. “...don't force it. Let it happen on its—”

A halo of clear light illuminated the interior of a limousine.

“—own.” Sunset blinked, staring at the phenomenon.

There were voices.

Distant.

Muddled.

Then... the legs of a toddler formed, accompanied by hands.

An unbelievably young Flash Sentry crawled out of the limousine.

A door hung open.

Gravity shifted.

Asphalt.

Sunset watched with mute anticipation.

The halo of light spread—brightening. Sunset saw the POV shift. The fog parted ways to show the legs of Concepcion. Just a foot or two away, the family chauffeur knelt before a broken tire. He and Flash's caretaker sweated and grumbled as they struggled to fix the limo's wheel.

A toddler's mumbling cries of curiosity and joy...

The POV swung around.

The fog shifted.

Flash's legs waddled forward.

Asphalt gave way to grass... then to concrete...

Sunset Shimmer trotted forward, watching as the vision of the ground shifted like ice beneath her. Her ears twitched and her muzzle hung open as she tried to make sense of where the child was going.

Lines in the concrete shifted as the toddler veered left... then right... then straight forward.

Finally... the shiny base of an enormous structure appeared.

“What...?” Sunset leaned forward.

The face of a mirror stretched up and up—past the fog... past the stratosphere.

And that's when Sunset gasped.

“The portal...!” She spun around twice. “...CHS! That's where the limo broke down!” She winced. “Flash... he wasn't being surpervised right now. They didn't see... didn't know—”

A toddler's gasp.

“...?” Sunset spun around.

The POV focused on the mirror. Sunset expected to see an adorable toddler Flash Sentry. But that's not what she saw... nor what he saw.

Instead, there hung a train of sapphire blue fabric... shifting... flouncing... embroidered with azure flowers and trailing floral patterns.

Sunset blinked, strung between confusion and wonderment.

Toddler Flash gurgled. The fabric in the mirror shifted—twirled—as if registering the sound. It was then that Sunset realized that she was staring at the hem of a ballgown. Someone in the mirror was kneeling low... someone massive.

The POV looked up.

So did Sunset.

The first thing she saw was a pair of sea-blue eyes. Deeper than any ocean. Something framed a motherly smile. A cascade of cosmic blues. Then—slowly—that motherly smile turned sisterly... for the figure was shrinking... descending... diminishing... until the beauty and purity of that expression hung level with Flash's.

He—and Sunset—were staring at a little girl suddenly. At even proportion with the viewer. Gowned in radiant blue splendor, with hair that twinkled like lake water at dawn. A smile hung between them... then grew closer as the fog gently nudged the toddler towards it. Flash's tiny little hand reached out... and a tiny hand reached back. When contact was made against the glass, it was like a million cold daggers tickling the heart. Sunset gasped through Flash, losing her balance, teetering forward.

And...

...the nymph in the mirror caught her—caught him—with a kiss. And it hugged her from all sides, cradling her in the warmth of the undying day, soothing her with the symphony of a looming night. All was smooth and graceful and serene, like a dance with no ending or beginning, and Sunset—Flash—was being led into a fragrant beauty that no flowers could match. And when he sobbed—and when she giggled—there was only one name on the tongue.

But when it was pronounced...

...the very breath of it shattered the world.

Flash Sentry awoke to the sound of Sunset Shimmer's high-pitched yelp.

He gasped, falling back atop the picnic table.

Milliseconds after, his ears were deafened by the cacophony of falling rain all around the overhang of their hidden spot on the CHS campus.

Whimpering, Flash Sentry shifted his weight forward and sat up. He gazed nervously at the amazon seated before him. “S-Sunny...???”

“Aaaaaugh!” Sunset stifled a shriek, clutching her head through her tossed hair. She heaved and shook in place, and a tiny whimper left her obscured face, followed by several more.

Flash paled in concern. “Sunset...” He reached a hand forward. “Sunset, are you okay?”

“Just—!” The valkyrie hissed, causing him to flinch. She clutched her skull harder and shook from head to toe. “Just g-give me a d-damn second! It was so... it was so... so...” A sniffling sound, and Flash saw her bringing her hands to her face. “Ohhhhh Celestia...” She cried into her palms, but the voice beyond the overwhelming panic was laced with something sweet and delicate. “Oh sweet Celestia... I've never... never felt...”

Flash grimaced. A lump formed in his throat. “Oh I... I'm so sorry, Sunset.” He sniffled. “I-I don't know what happened... but somehow I feel that this is all my fault—” He gasped as he was suddenly and fiercely pulled into a tight embrace.

“Just... sh-shut up...!” Sunset grunted, but the anger very swiftly melted away as he pulled the boi to her bosom, forcing him to straddle her as she practically drowned the trembling twenty-two year old into a smothering, amazonian embrace. “Just... please Flash... I need...” Her whole body shook, culminating into a vibrating murmur as she nuzzled the top of his head, speaking into his shiny blue hair. “...I need to hold you for a bit, okay?”

“Uhm...” He murmured against her upper chest, blushing. “Okay...”

“Oh Goddess...” Sunset legitimately cried. She sniffled, and laughed for a moment, then cried again. Her arms squeezed tighter as she practically rocked the boi in her embrace. “Oh Goddess... that memory is just... just...” Sunset sucked her breath in. “... … ...have you lived with this your whole life?!?”

“I... I don't know...?” Flash blinked. He then found a reason to blush harder.

Sunset was kissing his neck, then his ear, then his cheek. She followed this up with an even deeper hug—if that was possible. “It's so... beautiful, Flash...” She next kissed his forehead while stroking his back. “You're so beautiful. So precious...” A hot shudder. “Why would you ever... ever try to hide away from any of that?”

“I... I don't understand, Sunset...” He fidgeted, trying to reposition himself more comfortably in her embrace. She relented, turning the hug into something more akin to a cradling. “Did... did you find the 'magic' or something?”

“Yes...” She nodded, finally starting to recover from her sobs. She tossed her hair back, and for the first time Flash saw how tear-stained her face was from waking. “Yes... I definitely found the magic...”

“So... uh...” He bit his lip. “What exactly is it—?”

“Shhh... just... just need to recover...” The amazon gazed off into the rain, holding and stroking him. “Just... need to hold you, Flash. Please... just...” Her eyes closed, and it looked as though a healing warmth was spreading through the woman from top to bottom. “...just let me hold you...”

Flash glanced at the wet world, at the lengths of CHS, then back to her. “Yeah. I... uh... think I can do that...”

“Hmmmm...” She smiled tearfully and gave his body a light squeeze through his hoodie.

All the while the rain continued its cold autumn downpour, like a meteor shower in fast forward.