Sunset leaned against the horse monument in front of Canterlot high and stared off into space, she didn’t want to go back home, nobody cared at the orphanage they wouldn’t miss her, she’s a big girl and could live by herself. Sunset sniffed and tried not to cry as she buried her head in her arms.
“No one cares, I’ll go stay at the Library” she sniffed “No one can tell me I can’t read if I’m living at the library!” she sniffed and smiled
Starting to get up, she leaned against the statue, as a strange sound came from nowhere it sounded like sizzling meat. Her eyes went round as plates, and she started screaming as she fell towards her side into the mirror, and the last thing she saw before everything went black was another shape being flung from the monument.
Celestia barreled into the room, her eyes wild “SUNSET! SUNSET WHERE ARE YOU!” she looked around the room wildly until it settled on the mirror, Starswirl's mirror.
“Oh no, NO NO NO! Sunset please tell me you didn’t.” Celestia ran over to the mirror and placed a hoof on it.
It had sealed already. Sunset had waited till the last minute to use the mirror so Celestia couldn’t follow her. “Sunset why? All you had to do was talk to me… No she did try to talk to me and oh Faust, I've done it again.”
Celestia slumped resting her head on the mirror holding back her tears. She failed two ponies so completely now. Her ear perked up as she heard sobbing from the corner of the room. Walking over she looked down on her student, a younger version of her student, and she was crying. “Please god, please I won’t try to run away again, send me back. Matron baker? Please find me, please I’m so scarred.”
Celestia felt her own tears running down her face, this wasn’t her sunset this was that other worlds sunset, and she was so young, and scarred. Celestia dried her eyes and pulled the crying filly to her.
“Hush little filly don’t you cry, Celly will be by your side,
I’m here to give you sweet dreams,
Just lay your head on me,
And I’ll sing to you
Of the joys you bring
So hush little filly don’t you cry, Celly will be by your side.”
As Celestia finished the lullaby, she walked out of the room and nodded to one of her guards. “Go and have my bedroom prepared I think it’s time we head to bed.” Celestia hugs Sunset closer to her, and looks down she was sound asleep the wet fur of her cheek standing in stark contrast to the surrounding fur.
The guard salutes and heads off “Sleep well little one, I won’t let the same thing happen to you.”
Dawn’s light danced over Celestia warming her and her soul, taking a deep breath she turned back to her room and the little lump curled up under the covers. Pulling the covers off of the sleeping sunset, she watched with sad eyes the little filly shivered from the morning air. “I may not be the one to raise you this time, but I will always be here to take care of you my little sun.”
Celestia sniffed and lit her horn. “Last night will be but a bad dream little sun, I can’t let you remember. We can’t send you back for a long time. When you find out hopefully you will be able to forgive me for this.”
Laying her horn on the filly’s horn Celestia cast the spell she had prepared. Sealing away her memories and imposing similar memories in their place, and adding a few new ones in place all leading up to last night, and the horrible nightmare Sunset had about being torn out of her own world and thrown into a new one.
Tears wetting her fur Celestia hugged Sunset. “Forgive me my little sun, but she already has taken your place. I hope you can have a good life here with us.”
Laying the filly back down Celestia cleaned herself up and returned, nudging the filly until she awoke. “Come Sunset, I know it’s early but I can’t well leave you alone. So you get to sit in with me at day court.”
Sunset’s eyes teared up, and she pounced on Celestia. “Princess! It was horrible! I had a nightmare, it was awful, I didn’t live in Canterlot! There were hairless monkeys everywhere, AND I WAS SO SCARED!” Sunset broke down into sobs hugging the princesses leg and shaking.
Rubbing the fillies head “hush now little one, it’s alright it was just a nightmare. Dreams are fleeting and memories last forever.” Scooping up the filly she tickled her. “And do you want that dream to be memory? Put it away and soon you’ll forget about it Sunset.”
Wiping away the tears Sunset nodded to Celestia. “I don’t want to remember that princess, I’ll try to forget.”
Smiling down to her. “Good, now little one go clean up we have a day ahead of us.” Celestia leans down to sunset “and I’m going to have raven bring some toys for you to play with.” she winked at sunset, and the filly ran off to the bathroom.
Celestia’s smile faded, and her eyes held sadness that few could understand, she whispered to herself “Don’t worry, Sunset I’ll find some way to help you and when that day comes it will be your choice, for how your life will proceed from there.”
Cadence didn’t want to go to breakfast this morning, she hadn’t seen sunset all day yesterday. That means she has something planned for her, a new dirty trick to try to force her to leave with. She hesitated at the door’s to the dining room, she didn’t want auntie Celestia to see how worried she was. The more she avoided sunset the worse it got. She almost wanted to stop foalsiting that cute little filly twilight, but her brother was too cute. She would put up with sunset for him. Gulping she pushed open the doors and marched in.
“Sorry I’m late auntie I overslept…” Cadence stopped in her tracks as she caught sight of the most incredulous thing she had seen. Sunset but not a filly muzzle deep in a stack of pancakes no utensils just a face covered in syrup and waffle bits and her mane plastered to the side. “Auntie what happened to sunset?”
Celestia looked up to her adopted niece and gave her a gentle smile. “Cadence, I’d like you to meet Sunset again. She had a magical accident we can’t reverse and doesn’t really remember much right now, and may never. It was that bad. Even gave her awful nightmares.”
Celestia looked at Sunset and smiled. “Cadence Dear, I was going to bring Sunset with me to day court but I think it may take a bit too, long to clean her up. So could you take her with you to your foal sitting job, I’ll even match what the fillies parents are paying you to add to your allowance to take care of Sunset today.”
Cadence let out a strangled gurgling sound, while Sunset looked at her with hurt on her syrup covered face. “But princess you promised to let me sit in and watch the court today!”
Celestia gave her a warm smile. “Now Sunset, Court is about to start. You’re still eating and need to take a bath. Cadence can take care of that with you, and she has a family she foalsit’s for.” She dart’s her eye’s over to Cadence and gives her a pleading look. “She can, get you washed up and you can make friends with her and tell me all about it later.”
Giving Celestia a curt nod she rushes out of the room, while Cadence gave the sun princess her best confused angry face, while Celestia gave her a apologetic smile.
Author's Note
Hit me with all the critique you have! I can take it!
