Born Again (Rewrite)

"I once believed that justice could be found in the court of law, and in the light of day.
But I was fooling myself.
The darkness only responds to darkness..."

The sun shone upon the city of Canterlot, despite the snow blocking its way. The birds were singing, and the citizens of Canterlot were heading to their destination; whether it was job-related or else.

It was rather... peaceful, to say the least.

It's a pity, that no one knew how it was during the nighttime. There was one place in particular, where everyone was truly enjoying their morning - Canterlot High, a school where everyone seemed to know each other, was filled with chatter. Every student was simply having a good time, talking to each other, or simply listening to music.

Entering the school, however, two individuals were in a heated conversation.

"So you've been alone on the holidays...for all that time?!" Applejack exclaimed, clearly stunned by her friend's words.

"Yep." Sunset Shimmer replied with a sad sigh.

'Cuz I don't think I can find anyone who would want to spend time with me. Me, a former bully, a former villain from another world who is now roaming the streets at night, beating up criminals. What would possibly be wrong with that?' Sunset told herself, only half sarcastic.

"That's awful."

She could only agree.

Trying to get rid of the uneasy topic, Sunset said in a cheery tone, "Don't worry about me. I've got you guys now! I'll see you later, AJ."

"Yeah... later Sunset."

Making sure she was out of sight, Applejack started texting her other friends.

Darkness.

The only thing she saw, the only thing she felt, was darkness.

But nevertheless, she admired its beauty, and the sense of familiarity it brought. She had always liked dark places. Whenever she was feeling down, she wouldn't go and talk about it with anyone else. She would go hide in a dark corner, until she was fine to come back.

Or somepony found her. Mostly, it was the latter.

She would sit there, alone, and let her mask fall. The mask she put up for covering her true emotions. She was truly worthless. She wasn't worthy of being her dau- no. Her student. She wasn't even worthy of being their friend.

She hurt so many people. On both sides of the mirror. Just because she thought she was superior. That she didn't need anybody. She'd be just fine on her own. She didn't need friends, only servants.

She was a fool back then.

She wouldn't be one now.

She had a wonderful life. She had friends now. She was reformed. She was nice to everyone, and they've accepted her, right?

'Right?'

Sunset sighed. She couldn't help it. The fact she still had doubts about the whole... friendship thing. It felt... wonderful, to be honest. The Rainbooms were pretty warm and forgiving.They took her in, despite everything she had done, mostly to them.

And she was both thankful and ashamed for that.

But she didn't deserve them. She would never deserve happiness. She-

'Okay Sunset, you do not wanna go there again.' Sunset thought, 'It's all in the past. No need to beat yourself up over it.'

If it was that simple. She could still feel the pain... The scars...

They were the reminders.

'I got a question for you, miss Shimmer. Should I tell you or should I TELL you?' A teasing voice asked.

In her head. And no, she wasn't crazy.

'...yet.' She mentally added as an afterthough.

However, it did stop her from farther self-loathing.

Sunset sighed and told it, 'Whatever. I don't think I can ever stop you from doing so.'

'How are you so sure that they're your friend?'

'Pardon?'

'Well, look at it this way, Shimmer. The Rainbooms hated your guts way before the Fall Formal. Then, Princess Twilight shows up, like an angel coming from above, fixes everything, gets rid of the scary demon, and tells them to take care of you. And guess what? Plot twist, they fucking accept! Amazing! They even become best buddies with you, all the while, every other person in CHS wants you gone forever. But that doesn't mean they can't remind you of your past EVERY. SINGLE. TIME! Hell, they didn't even asked you to join their band until after the Battle Of The Bands. And for what? Did they even tell you the fucking reason?'

'For fuck's sake, we had this conversation for about a thousand times, and I-'

'Yeah, yeah. People make mistakes, they're humans, I was a bitch, blah blah blah! Honestly, they disgust me! Not just them, but all the others as well! You should know better. You're the one who's always cleaning their filth!'

'No one asked for your approval, dipshit.'

'You hate me because I was your shitty past, your greatest form, or because I'm right most of the time?'

'That's a hard pass.'

'Sure. Do what you want. But if I was in charge...'

Sunset desperately tried to block her own thoughts. Sometimes, she wondered how she was still sane. Or if she was.

'I guess sanity comes with a price.' She groaned mentally.

Pushing past the heated mental argument, she tried to get her thoughts back on track.

Right now, she was on a rooftop of a building near Pinkie's house. She had nothing better to do, so she went in there and waited for the others, since the slumber party was starting in about twenty five minutes.

'That means I get out of the costume.' Sunset reminded herself.

That's when she heard something. The sound of someone panting heavily.

Normally, she'd dismiss it as some random guy being late for work, home or whatever. This time, however, she heard a familiar sound, not so far from the first one. A faint heartbeat, and it startled her because...

It was Rarity's - that couldn't be good.

She looked down, and closely examined the view from above. After a bit of searching, she found Rarity walking towards Pinkie Pie's house for the slumber party. From the looks of it, she didn't seem to notice a strange figure creepily observing her from the shadows - not too different from what Sunset herself was doing. And soon enough, it was revealed that Sunset wasn't the only one who took interest in her. "Damn it! All I wanted was a peaceful night! I can't even get that, can I?" Sunset frustratedly exclaimed.

'Karma's a bitch, ain't it?'

She shook her head and decided to take action. After jumping across a few rooftops, dodging a pesky cat, she landed on the building next to where the man was hiding. She swore she could feel the drops of sweat falling from his face, as his heart beat like crazy.

'That sounded weird.'

"I thought a lady was supposed to be smart, or so I've heard." She caught him saying under his breath, an unusual tone to it. What the hell was he thinking about doing?

Daredevil heard several clicks and flashes from the man. Was he... Was he taking pictures? Is he a stalker or something?

"Wait till Thunderlane gets a load of this!".

And she froze.

'Thunderlane? As in, the Thunderlane? From the soccer team? Why would he want to-'

And then it clicked.

Thunderlane hired someone to spy on Rarity, but why? He seemed like a nice guy, but he always got a bit flustered around Rarity. Sunset always dismissed it as a joke, and her and the other Rainbooms would sometimes tease Rarity about it. Although, she always thought that it'd be impossible for them to make up. Not after what happened at the fourth grade, anyways.

But this? This... This is messed up! This is something you'd expect from a creep, not a well-known athlete with a good reputation. Well, seems like she was wrong.

'Again.'

'I don't think I can ever look into his face again after this! Actually, I don't think I can ever look at anybody in CHS like before! Go Wondercolts, not Wondercreeps!', Sunset angrily thought.

'Your obliviousness is gonna get you killed someday. Literally.'

'Thanks. I'm sure that you're really benefiting from this!'

'I don't suck up emotions! I'm not a Siren, and I'm pretty sure I'm not a symbiote either!'

'You're right? Wait, what the fuck's a symbiote?'

'Nevermind! Don't you have a girlfriend to save from the hands of evil?'

'Oh! Right! Wait girl-'

Sunset cut herself off and swiftly came to the conclusion that she stood there long enough, so she decided to put an end to this mess. She took the billy clubs off of her holsters, detached them, and aimed for the guy's hand. More specifically, the one with the phone.

'You should know better than to mess with my friends like this!' Sunset told him mentally.

And then she threw it.

It happened in a matter of seconds, since the building wasn't that tall and her aim was near perfect. When she heard the man shout, she jumped down and landed on the ground. The man didn't notice her, mostly because he was too caught up in groaning and grunting from the pain of his right hand. Daredevil took this as an opportunity and started talking.

"You know, you're really stupid for thinking that you could get away with this."

The man turned back and stared in shock. He wasn't expecting anyone catching him off-guard. And he sure as hell didn't expect it to be some cosplayer. "Wha- What are you talking about?"

Sunset rolled her eyes in annoyance, and replied, "Don't you even try doing that! That's the lamest excuse you could ever give somebody! Besides, it'll probably cost you an arm."

The man, after recollecting himself, asked, "Who the fuck do you think you are? Some kinda ninja?"

"No, but I did fight a ninja before! They have no sense of humour. And if you must know, name's Daredevil."

"Who?"

"You know, the local vigilante, the girl without fear, devil of Hell's kitchen, etc etc. I'm sure you've heard at least one of them?"

"You're the freak who goes around punchin' people?"

"Real funny pal. But yes! I'm the guy who 'goes around punching people'. And you know why I'm here now?"

"No."

"To punch some more people, duh!"

She grew serious, and grabbed the man by his coat, slamming him against a wall and ordering, "Now, be a good boy, and tell me who hired you to take pictures of Rarity Belle. If you do just that, then I might let you go unharmed."

"I don't know what're you rambling on about! I-I don't even know who that is!"

"Yes you do! In fact, you were hired to do that. Tell me their name, and I'll let you go! Don't, and I'll start breaking each and every one of your fingers till you spill! Which one do you prefer?"

He was sweating like crazy at this point. His heartbeat was rapid and fast, and his breathing grew unsteady. He was scared - just what she wanted him to be.

He struggled a bit, before finally sighing, giving up and crying out, "Fine! I'll tell you! But please! Please don't kill me! I-I really needed that m-money!"

Sunset checked for his pulse, finding he wasn't lying, so she just told him, "Alright! Just give me the name, and I'll let you go! But never, and I repeat, never, do anything like this again! Understood?"

The man whimpered, but nodded anyway, replying, "It was a guy named Thunderlane! He- He just came to me and asked t-to follow this girl. He said he'd give me more money if- if I took pictures! I wasn't gonna do it, man! I swear! B-But he threatened me! He said he'd call the cops on me! I didn't have a choice man! I have a family!"

Sunset shook her head and sighed. Was he that low? To threaten someone for just a perverted action? She was praying that it wasn't Thunderlane, but deep down, she knew it was the only answer. She let go of the man, telling him to go. He frantically nodded and scampered off. After that, Sunset didn't know what to think. She was too tired to come to a straight conclusion, so she decided to leave it for tomorrow. It'd be better this wa-

"Is anyone there?"

Shit.

Daredevil perked her head up, looking for a way out. Unfortunately for her, there wasn't any of them that insured she'd be out in a matter of seconds. It was too late anyways. She stared at the woman who was getting closer, and when she saw her, she froze.

It was Rarity.

Under the mask, Sunset started panicking. 'Oh, what should I do now? She might think I'm following her! Even worse, she might think I'm there to hurt her! Oh shit!'

'Easy there, Sunny buns! Don't freak out! You're annoying enough as it is!'

'Shut up!'

Rarity, upon seeing who was the mysterious stranger in front of her, gasped in shock. She was face-to-face with the devil of Hell's Kitchen herself! She asked with surprise, "Are you-Are you Daredevil?"

Sunset froze. Did she know her?

'At least somebody here knows who you are! Be thankful for that, kid!'

But she ignored that. Gathering all the courage she could find, she replied, "Ummm, yeah! That's me! Anything I can do for you, miss?"

Sunset mentally face-palmed. What the hell was that? She tried to ignore the roars of demonic laughter that was ringing in her head. She gulped.

Rarity, however, didn't seemed to be phased by this. Her lips formed into a smile, and said, "Oh my god! I'm really lucky then! I've never met a vigilante before! Well, I should say hero now! You did save us, after all! And the costume! It looks divine, darling! It's very... fashionable, I say! Very modern and outright gorgeous! It does need a little bit of work, though."

'Wow! I didn't expect her to be so... I dunno, calm about it? But I think I should get going! The party's gonna start at... FIVE MINUTES!? Shit shit shit shit! That took too long! I gotta go!' Sunsetpanickly told herself.

Daredevil interrupted her, and gently responded,"Miss? I'm sorry, but I should get going! The city can't protect itself now, can it?"

Rarity stared for a good minute, before realizing what she said and replied, "Oh! Oh, I'm sorry darling! I think I took enough of your time! The city needs you, of course! Go on!"

Sunset let out a relieved sigh and said, "Thank you! I'll go now! Bye!"

And with that, she jumped on the nearest building and started going up. However, she stopped before she could move away from the area. She had to do something else first. So, she called out:

"Oh, and be careful out there Miss Belle! You never know when you're going to get in trouble!"

She then climbed out of sight, leaving. Instead of going towards her home like usual, she headed to Pinkie Pie's house without being seen. It was a bit of a long way by foot.

Luckily for her, being Daredevil had its perks.

Five minutes later, she was in her usual outfit, panting as she was standing in front of Pinkie's door.

KNOCK KNOCK

She was surprised - like always - when Pinkie Pie opened the door and pulled her in for a bone-crushing hug.

"Hiya, Sunset! Areyoureadyforthemostsuperduperawesometasticgirlsnightoutandslumberpartyofyourlife?!" Pinkie blurted out.

Sunset, barely understanding what her pink friend said, while also nearly choking from how strong her grip was, answered with all the breath that was left, "Pinkie... can't... breathe..."

"Whoops! Sorry!" Pinkie apologized, though she was still grinning.

Sunset let out a chuckle and said, "It's fine. Just never do that again".

Walking to her friends, Sunset, clearly enjoying herself, let out a relieved sigh and thought, 'This couldn't get any better.'

She wasn't wrong.

It could only get worse.

'Are you sure you want to create a new account named "Anon-a-miss"?'

The cursor paused for a moment. Then moved to click on its desired button.

'Yes'.

"...And the truth is... I'd rather die as the devil...
than live as Sunset Shimmer."