The Hero of My Storyby maxisscrewedChaptersChapter 1 — Sunset’s DreamChapter 2 — Twilight’s First SleepoverChapter 3 — The Door With The Moon On ItChapter 4 — The Journals With The Sun & MoonChapter 5 — HorsefliesChapter 6 — The Prince & Princess Of The Sun & MoonChapter 7 — The Tree Of The DaydreamChapter 8 — Deep In EverfreeChapter 1 — Sunset’s DreamSunset Shimmer would sleep peacefully most nights. "There’s not much more I can do, you dork! Why are you expecting me to protect you all the time? All of you bring up my past and my family and you expect to just say ‘oopsie, no offense’ and forget it?" "I’m sorry, Sunset, I didn’t mean to," Twilight whimpered, but Sunset’s pale cheeks flushed red. "You never mean to! Nobody ever means to! I know I was a bully! I know my dad is in a motor gang! I’m not your guardian angel, Twilight!" She would learn to wake herself up after The Dream, so she didn’t wake up in a panic-induced screaming fit. "Tell me where we’re at, Sunset," Artemis asked, and the girl shook her head. "You would laugh if I told you." "Take a guess." "The moon?" Tonight, The Dream was...different. "My heart aches for you, Sunset Shimmer." Sunset hung her head down to stare at the red and yellow glitter on the cobblestone roads and it slowly flooded away with her tears. She squeezed her eyes shut in her sleep as she tossed onto her back. "What have I done," Sunset wailed, looking up to the bright pink star in the sky that sat right next to the moon. The sight of the star caused her head to surge with a horrible pain and she shot awake in bed, screaming loudly. It wasn’t but a few minutes before the door slammed open and the light flicked on, but she shielded her eyes. "What’s wrong, sweetie," her father asked in a panicked fluster. "It hurts!" He turned the light back off and she began to sob into her hands. The large, intimidating man rushed to her bedside and sat on the edge of her comfortable bed. "I’m sorry, baby," he sighed, petting her long, red and yellow hair. He wiped the tears away from her pale, gaunt cheeks and he gave her a smile. "Maybe you should do something fun with your friends tomorrow? Get your mind off of this little nightmare you have." "It’s not a nightmare," she tried to explain wrapping her arms around his burly body. "What is it then?" The room remained silent for a long time while they hugged each other and she squeezed her eyes shut. "A premonition." "So, you’re still having The Dream?" "When you say the dream, do you mean the dream or The Dream? Because if you were just talking about ‘the dream’ that would be wrong, it would be a dream—" "The Dream, Pinkie Pie," Applejack shouted over the loud-speaking girl, letting Rarity hold her slightly muscular arm as they walked down the street. "Yes, I’m still having it," Sunset sighed, shaking her head. Twilight Sparkle kept her nose in her textbook as they walked side by side and Sunset gently glanced over to her every once in a while before quickly looking back to Applejack. Then, when she looked to her for the last time, she saw Twilight was now staring back. "Is something wrong?" "What? No, of course not!" "You seem off today," Twilight persisted, but Sunset’s face flushed with a relieved sheen when a large mansion came into view. "Hey, there’s your Auntie Celestia’s house, Twi! Let’s go visit her, I haven’t seen her for a very long time. How’s your Uncle Artemis?" "Well, uh, he’s fine I suppose—" "Great! Let’s go see them!" Sunset Shimmer rain ahead of the group to the large doors and she frantically tried to press the doorbell. Her vision was blurred and doubled, and everything began to spin when her friends approached. She closed her eyes, and the vision of the horrible, leathery monster that haunted her dreams filled her head. "Lookin’ for something?" Applejack pressed the doorbell and Twilight held Sunset from behind to make sure she didn’t fall. "I’m fine," she quickly urged, standing against the pole. The loud, long song of the doorbell chimed and they waited for a few seconds before a tall, curvy, beautiful lady with dark skin and a radiant smile opened the door. Her sun kissed skin glistened with soft, golden freckles and her pink eyes were sweet like strawberries. "Well lookie there, Twilight," the cheerful lady chimed with an even bigger smile, "it’s so nice to see you and your friends ‘hanging’ together!" Before Twilight could say anything, Artemis walked by behind her with his nose in a book. The porcelain, pasty young man looked up from under his dark blue hair and he spotted Sunset. "Celestia," he mumbled, looking back down, "the bacon-haired girl is about to pass out." "I have a name," Sunset snapped angrily, and Artemis stopped once again to look over his glasses at her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before she pursed her lips. "Oh. You’re the delinquent. I suppose you belong to the thug, don’t you?" "He isn’t a thug, you take that back right now," she shouted and her pale face turned red with anger. She barged in past Celestia to get to him and Twilight scurried past her aunt to grab Sunset’s leather jacket from behind. Artemis cocked an eyebrow and looked her up and down before closing his book. He was much skinnier than his sister, and had a gaunt, ghastly look about him. His hair was flaked with silver glitter, which was oddly natural hair color for him. He stood taller than his sister, even though they had a large age difference, with him being just past twenty-one and Celestia being almost thirty. "How should you prove me otherwise if you act like this, dear?" Sunset said nothing, and he nodded to Twilight’s friends. "Good to see you, but I will not be joining you today. I’m going to lock myself in my room so that I do not have to deal with you. Good day." As Artemis climbed the stairs, Celestia placed a gentle hand on Sunset Shimmer’s shoulders. "Please, dearest, don’t pay attention to him. He gets so mad when others have parents that love them. Our parents did nothing for us." After a long bout of silence, Celestia smiled and stood up straight. "Cookies, anyone?" Chapter 2 — Twilight’s First Sleepover"I hope you feel better now, Sunset," Celestia coddled, placing a gentle hand on Sunset Shimmer’s knee. She smiled to the woman and sighed, looking towards the staircase that Artemis had walked up so long ago. The cuckoo clock on the wall cried out seven long chimes, and Celestia looked to the beautifully crafted clock. The sun in the backdrop of the clock began to change to the moon, and she stood to her feet. "What’s wrong, Aunt Celestia?" "Nothing, Twilight—look after your friends, please, I have business to attend to." She began to rush to the stairs, but then stopped on the bottom step and she looked behind her. "Goodnight, dearests, sleep tight and be safe on your walk home!" She continued to jog up the steps and Sunset looked to Twilight. "There’s something off about them both." "Yeah," Twilight began, nervously looking at her feet as she tapped on the cover of her book. "What’s wrong with them?" "Hey, I have an idea," Twilight quickly offered with a nervous smile. "What if you stayed over tonight? All of you? I’ve never gotten to have a sleepover before!" Applejack had long since dozed off with her hat over her face. Rainbow Dash wasn’t so discreet about her sleep, snoring loudly. The science lesson that the studious girl had tried to explain had bored nearly all of them to death, and the only one that seemed remotely interested was Pinkie Pie—perhaps because the sweet, pudgy girl had no idea what was going on throughout the physics lesson. "Are we going to have to hear about quantum physics some more," Sunset asked, and she folded her arms. "Nope," Twilight proudly stated, and they all let out a sigh of relief. Fluttershy started to nod off and she placed her head gently on a Rainbow Dash’s shoulder. The athletic girl jumped and immediately wrapped her arm around Fluttershy, looking around at the scene. "What? What’s going on?" "I have a whole book of sleepover activities!" "Uh," Rainbow Dash nervously began, "I think Fluttershy wanted to—" "She’s not talking about science anymore," Applejack mumbled. It was obvious after she picked her hat back up onto her hay colored hair that she had been awake for a while, since she had no sleep left in her eyes and she knew what was happening around her. "Twilight, why do you have a book about sleepover activities, darling," Rarity kindly asked with a little song in her tone, and Twilight Sparkle smiled. "I’ve always wanted to have one, but Aunt Celestia said I couldn’t because Uncle Artie would—" "Oh, forget your uncle! He’s weird anyways," Rainbow Dash scoffed, letting a Fluttershy get comfortable in her shoulder. "I wouldn’t say that, but we can all stay in my room away from him! He always works all through the night, and he’ll be in his office anyways!" There were creaking footsteps that came down the stairs, and Artemis came into view with a cup of hot tea. "Your friends are still here," he asked, and the other six girls could tell that he was in a much better mood. He seemed more put together and awake, and he finally wore a smile. "Yeah! Guess what?" "What?" "We’re going to have a sleepover!" "Well, isn’t that exciting," he answered to her in a more cautious tone. The smile faded away and he took a sip of his tea. "I have one rule about the house, though. Nobody should step foot towards or into that room at any point." Artemis pointed a bony finger to a door with a black moon burned into the wood. "Understood?" The girls nodded and he smiled. "Good." Artemis held his arm out to where his hand pointed up the staircase. "Goodnight." "Goodnight," Twilight responded, and she squealed in happiness before she clamored upstairs. Five of the girls followed, and one was stopped at the bottom by his cold hand. Sunset Shimmer looked to the man, and they locked eye contact. "What’s the rule," he whispered. "Don’t go in your chamber," she muttered, snatching her arm back. He nodded to her and began to walk to his office door, keeping an eye on her to make sure she went upstairs. Sunset Shimmer glared at him as he turned his back on her, and he pulled out a key that was tied around his neck. It fit perfectly in the door and he slowly turned it to unlock the office door. Then it hit her, like an itch she couldn’t scratch. She had to get into that room. Author's Note If I messed up any grammar, feel free to correct me: I’m not wearing my glasses and I’m on an iPad Chapter 3 — The Door With The Moon On It"Who wants to play spin the bottle?" The girls seemed to be under Pinkie’s spell whenever a game was involved, and without a word they all sat down in a circle on the soft, carpeted floor. "Who’s first," Fluttershy quietly asked, and she jumped when Rainbow Dash blurted out in her ear. "Me," the rainbow-haired girl shouted, grabbing up the cola bottle from Pinkie Pie. She placed it on the carpet, then gave it a good spin. It pointed at Fluttershy. "Truth or dare?" "Truth," Fluttershy groaned, folding her hands in her lap as she hung her head down. "Is it true you’ve kissed me?" Her face turned bright red and the girl became faint, shaking her head. "I-I can’t answer that, Dash!" "If you don’t answer that means it’s automatically true!" The sweet girl sighed and closed her eyes. "True." All of the girl’s except for Sunset Shimmer and Applejack squealed in excitement: Applejack because she had a cool head on her; Sunset because she was too busy drawing in her journal. Her father told her that if she ever felt upset about a dream, she should draw it in a happier outcome. The girl had drawn so much that her art skill had improved greatly, and tonight, she was sketching herself as the beautiful princess that fought the horrible leathery demon. Instead of the princess being Twilight, as it usually was, they had traded places. "Sunset," Rarity shouted, and the girl jumped, slamming her notebook closed from prying eyes. "Yes?" "Truth or dare, sweetie." "Oh, uh, truth." "Is it true that your father stabbed your mother? I heard the rumor somewhere around school—" "You can’t just ask someone that," Applejack groaned, and Rarity shrugged at the larger girl. "Sorry, no offense!" "It’s alright," Sunset lied, and she forced a smile at a Rarity. "My mother died from cancer when I was little, Rarity." "Oh, I’m so sorry, Sunset, I didn’t know—" "It’s fine, Rare, trust me." Sunset spun the bottle and it landed on Twilight. "Truth or dare?" "Well, I assume from a statistics standpoint that everyone’s guess would be that I would say truth to test my knowledge, but that isn’t the case! I will say dare!" "I dare you to tell me what Artie’s hiding—" Sunset hit her tongue and Twilight’s dark face fell and she pushed up her glasses. "Huh?" "I asked you ‘what are you hiding?’ Okay, let me try again: would you rather date me or Pinkie?" "Oh! I thought you just asked me what my uncle was hiding," she laughed, "because I would have to dissolve your body if I told you." Sunset’s face fell and Twilight smiled, nudging her shoulder with her elbow. "That’s an easy question! Since Pinkie’s already got a crush on Cheese Sandwich, I’d have to say you!" Everyone cooed at the answer, and Sunset smiled. All of the girls were asleep except for Sunset Shimmer and Twilight. They lied side by side on the floor and Sunset looked over to Twilight. "Twi?" "Yeah?" "Do you mean what you said?" "About what?" "The dating thing." The room remained silent for a long time, and Sunset knew that she had fallen asleep again. She waited for any sign of life before standing off of the floor, creeping to the bedroom door. Ever so softly she opened it, and she crept from the room silently. She slowly walked down the hallway and approached the living room. If she was caught, she could lie and say she was going to the kitchen to get a drink. Sunset slowly pressed her back against the door, and heard nothing from inside of the room. It was dead silent. Breathing ever so softly, she slowly bent down and peeked through the keyhole. Inside was a stone, square pool of water that was as black as night with gentle specks of silver swirling around it. She glared at it and smiled, backing away to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water from the fridge. Artemis opened the door and rung his hair out with a towel as he quickly walked into the kitchen. "What are you doing," he hissed, and she looked at him as if he were a madman. "Getting a drink," she responded, walking past him. He caught her arm and pulled her back, leaning down to her. Any trace of anger left him and he now looked like a kind, caring young man. "Tell nobody. Not your friends, not your father. This is our secret. Understand?" "Cross my heart," she whispered, and he nodded to her. "Thank you," he sighed with a smile, patting her shoulder. "It’s just water," she quietly responded, and he shrugged. "What something looks to you may not look the same to me." She smiled and he smiled right back, and she turned to face him once again. "You’re weirder I thought you were," she told him outright, and he chuckled. "And you’re more inquisitive than I thought," he explained, grabbing a bottle of water as well. "Persistence is a virtue, Sunset. Keep it forever." Then the two parted ways, and she went back upstairs to the bedroom, where she found Twilight looking through her journal with a flashlight. "I’m sorry," the girl immediately whimpered, and Sunset’s bottled up rage finally exploded. Chapter 4 — The Journals With The Sun & Moon"How dare you," Sunset roared, and Twilight shut the journal. The girls were startled awake by the loud, angry voice, and a Fluttershy turned the light on. "I’m so sorry, Sunset, I didn’t mean to invade your privacy!" "Sorry doesn’t cut it, Twilight," she screamed, and Applejack held her hands up to Sunset, who was approaching Twilight. "Let’s calm down, sugar cube," Applejack calmly explained, but Sunset bared her teeth together. "You’re supposed to protect me," Twilight squeaked, and this was the final straw for Sunset. "Protect you? Protect you? There’s not much more I can do, you dork! Why are you expecting me to protect you all the time? All of you bring up my past and my family and you expect to just say ‘oopsie, no offense’ and forget it?" "I’m sorry, Sunset, I didn’t mean to," Twilight whimpered, but Sunset’s pale cheeks flushed red. "You never mean to! Nobody ever means to! I know I was a bully! I know I’m tough! I know my dad is in a motor gang! I’m not your guardian angel, Twilight! Do you know what else I know? I know that your uncle’s a two-sided-coin and your aunt is probably just the same! And you’re just like them!” Twilight began to sob into her hands and Rarity grabbed Sunset’s jacket, pulling her back. Rarity’s face was blushing bright red with anger and she clutched onto either side of Sunset. “That was very uncalled for,” she hissed, and Sunset Shimmer looked back at Twilight, who cried a single tear onto the page that she had opened to. There, on the page, was a beautiful, smeared image of Twilight Sparkle as a horrible creature, and Sunset attacking her with a knife. "Twilight," Sunset worriedly whimpered, looking down at her, "I'm so sorry." Twilight Sparkle only cried, and everyone glared at Sunset angrily. Rainbow Dash kicked the book over to her and Sunset scooped it up, looking down at the evil drawing. "She doesn't want your apology," Rainbow shouted. "Just like you used to be," Applejack muttered, shaking her head. "It's a shame." Sunset glared at all of the girls right back, and her last resort was Fluttershy. The girl shook her head and looked to the floor before Sunset grasped handfuls of the paper in her journal, throwing them to the carpet. "Take them. Look at them. I don't care," she mumbled, and their glares turned soft before she left, shutting the door gently. Sunset walked down the stairs and ignored Rarity trying to call her back up, and she stopped right in front of the confusing young man's office. She shook her head, then left through the door without another word. "Dear Twilight Sparkle. No, that's too formal," Sunset mumbled as she walked down the dark, foggy streets back to her house. "Twilight by itself is too informal." She pulled her phone from her pocket and placed it over the sun on her journal. "Okay, Eris," she spoke into the phone, and it came to life by illuminating in her coastal teal eyes. "How do I write an apology letter?" The phone's wheel spun for a second, before its smooth voice lifted from the speaker. "Write it from the heart," it explained, and she rolled her eyes before pressing the button. "That's too mushy," she spat angrily, hastily stuffing the device back into her pocket. She squeezed her eyes shut in frustration before reopening them, then she stopped in her tracks. She had come to a halt in front of the fountain of the town hall, which held two statues of horned pegasi that were encircling the fountain of water, one being higher than the other, with both looking at one another. Droplets of water splashed from the fountain onto the cover and they sank in, causing the color of the leather to change. Her brown journal blotted completely with black, and the sunshine that her phone had once covered was replaced with a crescent moon. The same moon that was on Artie’s door. She quickly opened it to the first blank page and she stared at the royal blue sticky note that was attached. Don't let that anger get to you, or you will become what I once did. Be the better person. I wish you well, young one. Artemis "Oh God," she shouted as a burning sensation filled her hands. She dropped the darker journal to the cobblestone ground and looked over her hands. The book had seared two sunshines into either of her hands, both shaped like the one that had previously been on her journal. Then, before she could wake anybody up, she scooped up the journal and ran down the road in the direction of her house. Chapter 5 — HorsefliesSunset Shimmer pounded her fists into the punching bag that was suspended from the ceiling. Her hands were covered in blood, sweat, and wrapped in bandages from the strange events of the previous night. Then, to interrupt the silence, there was a gentle knock at the garage door before it slowly slid open, and in front of the punching bag was the beautiful Rarity. “Dear, are you okay? You got very upset last night and I just came around to check on you.” “I’m fine,” Sunset grumpily muttered, glaring at Rarity. “Well you certainly don’t seem fine.” She softly sat up on the toolbox in the garage and smoothed her tube skirt out. “Would you like to talk about it?” Usually, Sunset would decline. This time, it seemed like those words were the trigger to a gun that had just been fired. “Why does Artie have to be so indecisive about who he wants to be,” she grumbled, stopping just long enough to grab a sip of water and adjust her tee shirt. "What are you talking about, sweetheart?" “One minute he’s nice and the next he wants to kill me! That’s probably why Twilight read through my journal—because her whole family is dysfunctional!” “I don’t think she meant any harm, Sunset. She knew you liked drawing and I suppose she wanted to see some of your art. What I saw was gorgeous, too.” “Oh, I bet you all had a great time looking at them!” Rarity frowned when she saw the tears trickle down her beautiful cheeks. "Dearest, no," she cooed in a motherly voice, "Twilight put them in a folder to give back to you. We didn’t look, and I promise this from the bottom of my heart." "Twilight isn’t the monster, Rarity, I am! I switched our roles because I was so angry about my nightmares!" "I think she would understand, Sunset." “I hate myself,” she finally shrieked, and started punching into the bag with both fists heavily. She opened her hands to stop the heavy bag from coming back into her, but a beam of white shot from her palms where the suns were, causing them to feel fuzzy as if she had slept on top of them for hours. The force knocked her back into the toolbox, and Rarity leapt from it, landing on her tall, red high heels. Sunset lied on the floor for a second, and when she opened her eyes, the punching bag was lying in the driveway and Rarity was standing over her, helping her onto her bottom and her back against the toolbox. "Oh my God," she squeaked, looking down at her hands. "What was that," Rarity shouted in fear, looking at her hands as the bandages had been scorched away. "I don’t know," Sunset shrieked, looking up at Rarity in fear. The fashionista watched the last searing string of dark brown smoke lift from the punching bag, which had a hole burnt straight through. "Something bad is happening, Rarity, I’ve been burning everything! I even burnt my yogurt this morning!" "Do you think—never mind." "What?" "This might seem silly," Rarity laughed, tucking her hair behind her ear. She waited for a second before biting her lip. "Do you think your story and nightmares are coming to life?" They stared at each other and Sunset looked back at her hands. "I gotta apologize to Twilight and get those sketches back." The doorbell chimed and a Rarity rubbed Sunset Shimmer’s shoulder as she began to feel weary again. "You always get sick here. Is something wrong?" "Artie—" "Huh?" "Nothing." The door opened, and Twilight answered the door. Her cheeks were stained with tears and her eyes were puffy from crying for hours. "Twilight, I am... Oh God..." "What?" Sunset shook her head and looked up at what had been causing her sickness this whole time. There were tiny, wretched creatures, with the body of a wasp and the face of a horse’s skull. They growled at her and she watched as a trail of yellow and red glitter was sucked from her mouth from the creatures, which flapped their leathery wings. "Sunset, what’s wrong," Rarity worriedly shouted, and Sunset’s eyes rolled into the back of her head. The last thing she heard was Rarity asking once more what happened and she heard a lady’s scream, before she closed her eyes and groaned. Celestia came to the door and watched just in time as the slender girl fell backwards and collapsed down the stairs. Chapter 6 — The Prince & Princess Of The Sun & Moon“Wake up,” Artemis shouted and Sunset woke with a start, coughing and sputtering as water was dumped over her face. “Are you alright,” Celestia worriedly whimpered, holding Sunset’s hand. “No,” Sunset muttered, “my head is pounding and my heart feels like it’s going to jump out of my chest.” “You’ll be fine,” Artemis signed, patting her knee. “I think we need to explain something to both of you. Where did you put that journal?” Sunset thought for a minute before pulling the book from her messenger bag and handing it to him. He caught a glimpse of her hands and she clenched her fists and hid the new markings. He opened the cover and it crackled softly as he flipped the page open. There was a sketch of a toddler holding a small baby with the moon through the window behind the two. “The older girl is the princess of the sun,” Artemis explained, “the younger is the prince of the moon.” “I’ve heard this story,” Sunset piped in, filling the page. The next was of the older girl weaving a crown of sunflowers and the boy, that was now a toddler, making a crown of nightshade. “They were best friends, right?” “Yes.” He pointed to the next page, where the two kids were older. The girl was happy and smiling, with many people surrounding her, and the boy stood far behind and alone. “Nobody loved him because he was alone—“ “Except for his sister,” Celestia roared, silencing the room. “She just had friends, that’s all. He was socially awkward and hated everyone—“ “They wronged me!” Artemis’s pupils turned to slivers and his hair turned to royal blue fire. “Okay, whatever you say,” Celestia whispered, holding her hand up to him. His hair calmed back down and his pupils returned to normal. “Wait,” Twilight began, “they wronged you, Uncle Artie?” “What are you saying,” Sunset whispered. "This is the story of Nightmare Moon and it’s all wrong." “Well, your journal is the story of Daydream Shimmer and it’s ‘all wrong’ too, now isn’t it?" The room remained silent and Artemis flipped the page. Across two pages was a side by side picture: to the left, the boy sat on his knees and screamed at the sky, with horrible, black bat wings protruding from his back and tears streaming from his eyes. On the other side was the girl, folding her arms and glaring st the door. “I was so unhappy that I wanted everything to change,” he whispered. “I wanted people to feel the pain that I always felt every day of my life. I wanted them to cry like I did when I was little. There was this evil that formed in my heart, Sunset.” “Do you still have it?” He stayed silent, and she folded her arms. “Is that what just happened to your eyes?” “It took over me,” he mumbled, and on the next page was a horrendous fight that spread over the two pages. Artemis was on one side, with a beam of light spreading from his palms. Celestia did the same, but she was much more beautiful than he was, with a white, flowing dress and a crown on her head. In the center was a ball of magic that swirled together. “I wanted you to die that night,” Celestia whispered. “Same to you,” he muttered. The tension was high in the room, and Artemis slowly flipped the page. There, illustrated as clear as day, was a photo of Celestia’s magic throwing him upwards, and on the next page was a photo of the newly created moon and the girl that cried on the ground. "When I hit the rock, it turned white," Artemis explained. I was the keeper of the moon, as she was the sun." "You are special," Celestia finished up, turning the the page to a picture of the baby Twilight in her arms. "Both of you are." "One of you will be banished as I was," Artemis whispered, closing the book loudly. "Your journal might be ruined, but it will soon come true again, Sunset. It only depends who will be Celestia, and who will be me." Twilight and Sunset looked in between each other, before Sunset furrowed her eyebrows. "Can we not stop it?" Artemis looked away and Celestia pursed her lips. "No," the lady flatly explained, and Twilight grabbed Sunset’s hand. Sunset looked down at the gesture, and she felt more sorry for a Twilight than she ever had. That was, until she heard her thoughts when their skin made contact. I know she’ll be the demon at the end of the day, Twilight growled in her mind, because she’s more mean than the devil himself. Sunset snatched her hand away and looked down at the suns on her hands. One of her new powers was to hear other’s thoughts, and she couldn’t begin to comprehend how to use them. So, she looked up at Artemis, and he shook his head before she looked back down. None of them could understand what was happening to her, and she didn’t want to start asking others to believe it. Chapter 7 — The Tree Of The Daydream"No way," Pinkie Pie screamed, slamming her fists on the table. "You can read minds? Like a psychic? Part of my birth family was a line of psychics! I’m pretty sure I have some in me myself. Wait, no, they were fortune tellers." Sunset rested her face in her hands as she listened to the girl scream, and there was a moment of silence. "Daddy," she shouted to the man behind the counter. The skinny, red-headed man stood up and continued to wipe a milkshake glass. "Yes, sweetums?" "Can we have another milkshake, pretty please?" It wasn’t but a few minutes of silent waiting before the man came back, placing four milkshakes on the table. Sunset’s was vanilla, Pinkie’s was strawberry, Rarity’s was chocolate, and Fluttershy’s wasn’t even a milkshake, but rather a vegetable smoothie. "Haven’t you had enough sugar today, gummy bear?" "No, she argued as he brought them another round of milkshakes. He tickled the girl and she giggled, snorting as he kissed her curly head of hair. "Are you okay, Sunset Shimmer?” ”Huh?" She sat her head up and looked at the freckled man, who gave her a smile. "Oh, uh, yes sir, Mr. Cake." "Don’t worry, I get it," he mumbled, slipping her an ibuprofen before he walked back to his counter. She took the pill and groaned, squeezing her eyes shut. "So, how mad are the others?" "Dashie won’t talk about what happened," Fluttershy sighed, stirring up her smoothie before taking a tiny sip, "but we’re going on a date tonight—" "Oh, do tell," Rarity inquired with a sly smile. She leaned over to get the gossip from Fluttershy, who awkwardly gave a forced grin and looked to the wall and back. "Uh, we’re going to a restaurant, Rarity, it’s no big deal." "Of course it’s a big deal! What are you wearing? Do let me fix your hair and makeup, darling, I never get to primp for a date anymore after Applejack got her new truck. All we do is go around and around in the dirty old mud, and—" "We’re here for Sunset, Rarity," Pinkie Pie explained. For once, the girl was right. "Tell me about your speakie-weakie thingy!" "I don’t know, I can just tell what you’re thinking when I touch you." "Really? Oh, oh! Me first!" "Wait, no," Sunset tried to protest, but it was too late. Pinkie Pie scooped up her hands and Sunset’s head began to spin with the girl’s even faster thoughts. Can she really tell what I’m thinking? This is so exciting—I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited in my life—except for that time that I threw that party—oh, or that time that—no, maybe—I don’t know, I just can’t tell! Sunset drew her hands away and grabbed her temples, trying to recover from the girl’s fast pace. "Me next," Rarity butted in, and Sunset’s eyes rolled as Rarity grabbed her hands. Applejack looked so good at the farm today. She was bending over trying to grab some wood, and she kept begging me for help. And, oh, how I wanted to help— "Oh, God, ew," Sunset screamed, taking her hands back. "Can you do me," Fluttershy asked gently, slowly taking Sunset’s hands. I’m probably being a bother. Oh, either way, this is exciting! Sunset looks so... So... Drained. Fluttershy let go and Sunset looked even more white than ever. Her skin was the color of a piece of paper. She shivered and groaned, slowly taking a sip of her milkshake to regain her self-awareness. "So, What was I thinking about," Pinkie asked happily, and she shook her head. "It went by so fast," she mumbled sickly, "you were talking about a party or something. Like, the most exciting point in your life. Rarity you were thinking about Applejack and her ‘equipment’ at the farm, and Fluttershy, you were thinking about being a bother to me and thinking about how I looked drained. Do I look drained?" "Yeah," Rarity sighed, and Fluttershy nodded in agreement. "Well," Sunset sighed, "it can’t be worse than the horseflies." "About the what?" "That’s what Artemis said they were," Sunset sighed, "there were these little creepy bugs that were making me sick." "Remember when she would nearly faint at their doorstep," Rarity asked. "She saw what he called a horsefly." "Thank you for repeating exactly what I just said," Sunset muttered, and Rarity began to braid Fluttershy’s over abundance of light pink hair. "You’re welcome," She cheerfully replied, and Sunset looked through the window. "It’s stronger for Twilight, though," she explained. "I don’t know why." "Well, is there anything else that might be connected?" Sunset hesitantly took off her fingerless leather gloves and showed the three her new sunshine marks on either palm. Rarity had seen it once before, so she wasn’t too shocked, but Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were amazed. "That’s so cool that you got a tattoo," Pinkie screamed. "And you never even told us!" "They aren’t tattoos," Sunset tried to explain. "They look like tattoos to me!" "They aren’t," Sunset groaned, letting Fluttershy take her hand. This is the tree of the Daydream, Fluttershy thought, and Sunset heard it in her head. Should I tell her or not? It may be good, but it may be bad— "I can hear you." "Oh no," Fluttershy started, dropping her hand. "What’s the tree of the Daydream?" The other three looked to Fluttershy, who bit her lip and squeaked as all attention was turned to her. "Well, um, it might be better to show you." "Okay, where is it?" "In Everfree." Chapter 8 — Deep In Everfree"Is everyone ready?" "What is the meaning of this," Rarity dramatically whined as her rain boots became mucky with ankle deep mud. The rain poured down on the outskirts of the woods, but the girls were sheltered by the treetop canopies, as well as the black blanket that covered the foreigners and the light yellow, butterfly-decorated cloak that covered Fluttershy. "You’ll see." They began to walk, and Fluttershy used a match to light her torch. She held it up over her head and it audibly lit the way, and when they were about ten feet into the deep woods, she began to sing a song. Every once in a while, Fluttershy would sing a sweet little tune as she held the torch above her head. She had advised for Rarity, Sunset, and Pinkie Pie to hide under a black blanket to help them blend in, but she wore her normal clothes that she had just returned from her date in. "What is wrong with her," Rarity hissed softly, and Sunset shook her head. "I don’t know." "She thinks she’s some princess in a tower or something! Why is she singing?" Fluttershy sang her song once again and a little bird landed on her shoulder. It was plump and cute, and it pulled at her ear softly. She stopped in front of a shrub and continued to sing, and Rarity nearly shrieked as a bear trotted out of the woods. Wolves approached Fluttershy, and snakes slithered around her legs. She smiled and let the bear lick her hair, and she scratched behind his ear. "I’ve brought friends," she explained to a black wolf that slowly approached her. "They seek answers." The wolf shot a look at the three that slowly uncovered themselves, and he nodded softly. Behind the bush was a red glow, and she spread the brambles apart to reveal a small, beautiful, red and yellow sunshine inside of the tree. The girls all gasped as it’s leaves began to glisten and glow, and Fluttershy pointed to the sun. "That’s the Daydream?" "Yes," she explained. "What’s it’s story?" "Long ago, there was a prince of the moon—" "And a princess of the sun, I know the story," Sunset chuckled, and Fluttershy nodded. "Before Artemis was banished to the moon, he and Celestia would play under this very tree. They would play until dark and they had to go home, but this was their tree. Their legacy was left here, Sunset. You are connected by spirit to them. That’s why Artemis is kind to you," she whispered, "because he understands your pain." Sunset’s hands began to feel tingly and she slowly held them out to the stone. It warmed her hands and she smiled as it was loosened from the tree and came into her hands. She widened her eyes as gold began to swirl around the crown, and it created a tiara around itself. The wolf then howled, and the animals appeared to cheer. "What’s wrong with them?" "You are bound to it. You are the one that freed the stone," Fluttershy whispered. "Well, I’m not King Arthur," Sunset laughed, but Fluttershy shook her head. The girl grabbed a stick from the forest floor and lit another torch, passing it along to Sunset. "Go," Fluttershy explained. "What?" "I said go," Fluttershy surprisingly screamed. "Let nobody know you have it! Hide it away!" Sunset shook her head before running, and the crown made her hands feel weightless. When she was out of the woods, she nearly dropped it into a mud puddle as she went along, but she placed it on her head so she could use her arms for balance. Then, unexpectedly, a pair of dark, leathery wings grew from her back and lifted her into the sky. She screamed as they involuntary carried her over the town, but they eased her down to her open garage, right in front of the punching bag. Sunset quickly removed the crown and rushed into the house, slamming the door as she began to sob. "I knew I was the villain," she whimpered, before trudging to her bedroom with tear-stained cheeks. "Sunset Shimmer, are you awake?" Sunset jumped at the gentle hand on her back, and Fluttershy jumped as well with a squeak. "Yeah," she groggily groaned, sitting up. This time, not just three girls were in her room—six were there. Applejack and Rainbow Dash didn’t look too happy to be awake, but nevertheless, everyone except for Twilight was there. "I know some of you are angry at her," Rarity began, "but she has something to show you. Pinkie, what did you see through your window at night?" "It was Sunset Shimmer and she had these big demon wings like she did at last year’s prom!" "Look," Sunset began, scooping up the tiara, "Fluttershy took us to Everfree for some answers last night, and she told me to protect the tiara! I put it on my head and turned back into a, uh, she-demon." The girls all stared at her in confusion, and Sunset Shimmer looked down at the crown. "I’ll show you." She gently placed the crown atop her head and the windows blew open, making Fluttershy cower under Rainbow Dash’s arm. The girls all stared in fear, but instead of demon wings, two light, shimmery wings emerged from her shoulder blades. A white beam began to form around her forehead, and she reached up, and threw the tiara down to the floor. Sunset Shimmer fell back down on her bed and grumbled, holding her head. "See! It changes me!" "You were not just a demon," Rainbow Dash stuttered, and Sunset Shimmer shook her head. "I don’t understand." "You were lovely," Rarity whispered. Sunset looked up at the crown and glared. "That isn’t possible." Author's Note I think of Fluttershy singing something like this in the forest. Just a nice little tune that the animals might like.
Chapter 1 — Sunset’s DreamSunset Shimmer would sleep peacefully most nights. "There’s not much more I can do, you dork! Why are you expecting me to protect you all the time? All of you bring up my past and my family and you expect to just say ‘oopsie, no offense’ and forget it?" "I’m sorry, Sunset, I didn’t mean to," Twilight whimpered, but Sunset’s pale cheeks flushed red. "You never mean to! Nobody ever means to! I know I was a bully! I know my dad is in a motor gang! I’m not your guardian angel, Twilight!" She would learn to wake herself up after The Dream, so she didn’t wake up in a panic-induced screaming fit. "Tell me where we’re at, Sunset," Artemis asked, and the girl shook her head. "You would laugh if I told you." "Take a guess." "The moon?" Tonight, The Dream was...different. "My heart aches for you, Sunset Shimmer." Sunset hung her head down to stare at the red and yellow glitter on the cobblestone roads and it slowly flooded away with her tears. She squeezed her eyes shut in her sleep as she tossed onto her back. "What have I done," Sunset wailed, looking up to the bright pink star in the sky that sat right next to the moon. The sight of the star caused her head to surge with a horrible pain and she shot awake in bed, screaming loudly. It wasn’t but a few minutes before the door slammed open and the light flicked on, but she shielded her eyes. "What’s wrong, sweetie," her father asked in a panicked fluster. "It hurts!" He turned the light back off and she began to sob into her hands. The large, intimidating man rushed to her bedside and sat on the edge of her comfortable bed. "I’m sorry, baby," he sighed, petting her long, red and yellow hair. He wiped the tears away from her pale, gaunt cheeks and he gave her a smile. "Maybe you should do something fun with your friends tomorrow? Get your mind off of this little nightmare you have." "It’s not a nightmare," she tried to explain wrapping her arms around his burly body. "What is it then?" The room remained silent for a long time while they hugged each other and she squeezed her eyes shut. "A premonition." "So, you’re still having The Dream?" "When you say the dream, do you mean the dream or The Dream? Because if you were just talking about ‘the dream’ that would be wrong, it would be a dream—" "The Dream, Pinkie Pie," Applejack shouted over the loud-speaking girl, letting Rarity hold her slightly muscular arm as they walked down the street. "Yes, I’m still having it," Sunset sighed, shaking her head. Twilight Sparkle kept her nose in her textbook as they walked side by side and Sunset gently glanced over to her every once in a while before quickly looking back to Applejack. Then, when she looked to her for the last time, she saw Twilight was now staring back. "Is something wrong?" "What? No, of course not!" "You seem off today," Twilight persisted, but Sunset’s face flushed with a relieved sheen when a large mansion came into view. "Hey, there’s your Auntie Celestia’s house, Twi! Let’s go visit her, I haven’t seen her for a very long time. How’s your Uncle Artemis?" "Well, uh, he’s fine I suppose—" "Great! Let’s go see them!" Sunset Shimmer rain ahead of the group to the large doors and she frantically tried to press the doorbell. Her vision was blurred and doubled, and everything began to spin when her friends approached. She closed her eyes, and the vision of the horrible, leathery monster that haunted her dreams filled her head. "Lookin’ for something?" Applejack pressed the doorbell and Twilight held Sunset from behind to make sure she didn’t fall. "I’m fine," she quickly urged, standing against the pole. The loud, long song of the doorbell chimed and they waited for a few seconds before a tall, curvy, beautiful lady with dark skin and a radiant smile opened the door. Her sun kissed skin glistened with soft, golden freckles and her pink eyes were sweet like strawberries. "Well lookie there, Twilight," the cheerful lady chimed with an even bigger smile, "it’s so nice to see you and your friends ‘hanging’ together!" Before Twilight could say anything, Artemis walked by behind her with his nose in a book. The porcelain, pasty young man looked up from under his dark blue hair and he spotted Sunset. "Celestia," he mumbled, looking back down, "the bacon-haired girl is about to pass out." "I have a name," Sunset snapped angrily, and Artemis stopped once again to look over his glasses at her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before she pursed her lips. "Oh. You’re the delinquent. I suppose you belong to the thug, don’t you?" "He isn’t a thug, you take that back right now," she shouted and her pale face turned red with anger. She barged in past Celestia to get to him and Twilight scurried past her aunt to grab Sunset’s leather jacket from behind. Artemis cocked an eyebrow and looked her up and down before closing his book. He was much skinnier than his sister, and had a gaunt, ghastly look about him. His hair was flaked with silver glitter, which was oddly natural hair color for him. He stood taller than his sister, even though they had a large age difference, with him being just past twenty-one and Celestia being almost thirty. "How should you prove me otherwise if you act like this, dear?" Sunset said nothing, and he nodded to Twilight’s friends. "Good to see you, but I will not be joining you today. I’m going to lock myself in my room so that I do not have to deal with you. Good day." As Artemis climbed the stairs, Celestia placed a gentle hand on Sunset Shimmer’s shoulders. "Please, dearest, don’t pay attention to him. He gets so mad when others have parents that love them. Our parents did nothing for us." After a long bout of silence, Celestia smiled and stood up straight. "Cookies, anyone?"
Chapter 2 — Twilight’s First Sleepover"I hope you feel better now, Sunset," Celestia coddled, placing a gentle hand on Sunset Shimmer’s knee. She smiled to the woman and sighed, looking towards the staircase that Artemis had walked up so long ago. The cuckoo clock on the wall cried out seven long chimes, and Celestia looked to the beautifully crafted clock. The sun in the backdrop of the clock began to change to the moon, and she stood to her feet. "What’s wrong, Aunt Celestia?" "Nothing, Twilight—look after your friends, please, I have business to attend to." She began to rush to the stairs, but then stopped on the bottom step and she looked behind her. "Goodnight, dearests, sleep tight and be safe on your walk home!" She continued to jog up the steps and Sunset looked to Twilight. "There’s something off about them both." "Yeah," Twilight began, nervously looking at her feet as she tapped on the cover of her book. "What’s wrong with them?" "Hey, I have an idea," Twilight quickly offered with a nervous smile. "What if you stayed over tonight? All of you? I’ve never gotten to have a sleepover before!" Applejack had long since dozed off with her hat over her face. Rainbow Dash wasn’t so discreet about her sleep, snoring loudly. The science lesson that the studious girl had tried to explain had bored nearly all of them to death, and the only one that seemed remotely interested was Pinkie Pie—perhaps because the sweet, pudgy girl had no idea what was going on throughout the physics lesson. "Are we going to have to hear about quantum physics some more," Sunset asked, and she folded her arms. "Nope," Twilight proudly stated, and they all let out a sigh of relief. Fluttershy started to nod off and she placed her head gently on a Rainbow Dash’s shoulder. The athletic girl jumped and immediately wrapped her arm around Fluttershy, looking around at the scene. "What? What’s going on?" "I have a whole book of sleepover activities!" "Uh," Rainbow Dash nervously began, "I think Fluttershy wanted to—" "She’s not talking about science anymore," Applejack mumbled. It was obvious after she picked her hat back up onto her hay colored hair that she had been awake for a while, since she had no sleep left in her eyes and she knew what was happening around her. "Twilight, why do you have a book about sleepover activities, darling," Rarity kindly asked with a little song in her tone, and Twilight Sparkle smiled. "I’ve always wanted to have one, but Aunt Celestia said I couldn’t because Uncle Artie would—" "Oh, forget your uncle! He’s weird anyways," Rainbow Dash scoffed, letting a Fluttershy get comfortable in her shoulder. "I wouldn’t say that, but we can all stay in my room away from him! He always works all through the night, and he’ll be in his office anyways!" There were creaking footsteps that came down the stairs, and Artemis came into view with a cup of hot tea. "Your friends are still here," he asked, and the other six girls could tell that he was in a much better mood. He seemed more put together and awake, and he finally wore a smile. "Yeah! Guess what?" "What?" "We’re going to have a sleepover!" "Well, isn’t that exciting," he answered to her in a more cautious tone. The smile faded away and he took a sip of his tea. "I have one rule about the house, though. Nobody should step foot towards or into that room at any point." Artemis pointed a bony finger to a door with a black moon burned into the wood. "Understood?" The girls nodded and he smiled. "Good." Artemis held his arm out to where his hand pointed up the staircase. "Goodnight." "Goodnight," Twilight responded, and she squealed in happiness before she clamored upstairs. Five of the girls followed, and one was stopped at the bottom by his cold hand. Sunset Shimmer looked to the man, and they locked eye contact. "What’s the rule," he whispered. "Don’t go in your chamber," she muttered, snatching her arm back. He nodded to her and began to walk to his office door, keeping an eye on her to make sure she went upstairs. Sunset Shimmer glared at him as he turned his back on her, and he pulled out a key that was tied around his neck. It fit perfectly in the door and he slowly turned it to unlock the office door. Then it hit her, like an itch she couldn’t scratch. She had to get into that room. Author's Note If I messed up any grammar, feel free to correct me: I’m not wearing my glasses and I’m on an iPad
Chapter 3 — The Door With The Moon On It"Who wants to play spin the bottle?" The girls seemed to be under Pinkie’s spell whenever a game was involved, and without a word they all sat down in a circle on the soft, carpeted floor. "Who’s first," Fluttershy quietly asked, and she jumped when Rainbow Dash blurted out in her ear. "Me," the rainbow-haired girl shouted, grabbing up the cola bottle from Pinkie Pie. She placed it on the carpet, then gave it a good spin. It pointed at Fluttershy. "Truth or dare?" "Truth," Fluttershy groaned, folding her hands in her lap as she hung her head down. "Is it true you’ve kissed me?" Her face turned bright red and the girl became faint, shaking her head. "I-I can’t answer that, Dash!" "If you don’t answer that means it’s automatically true!" The sweet girl sighed and closed her eyes. "True." All of the girl’s except for Sunset Shimmer and Applejack squealed in excitement: Applejack because she had a cool head on her; Sunset because she was too busy drawing in her journal. Her father told her that if she ever felt upset about a dream, she should draw it in a happier outcome. The girl had drawn so much that her art skill had improved greatly, and tonight, she was sketching herself as the beautiful princess that fought the horrible leathery demon. Instead of the princess being Twilight, as it usually was, they had traded places. "Sunset," Rarity shouted, and the girl jumped, slamming her notebook closed from prying eyes. "Yes?" "Truth or dare, sweetie." "Oh, uh, truth." "Is it true that your father stabbed your mother? I heard the rumor somewhere around school—" "You can’t just ask someone that," Applejack groaned, and Rarity shrugged at the larger girl. "Sorry, no offense!" "It’s alright," Sunset lied, and she forced a smile at a Rarity. "My mother died from cancer when I was little, Rarity." "Oh, I’m so sorry, Sunset, I didn’t know—" "It’s fine, Rare, trust me." Sunset spun the bottle and it landed on Twilight. "Truth or dare?" "Well, I assume from a statistics standpoint that everyone’s guess would be that I would say truth to test my knowledge, but that isn’t the case! I will say dare!" "I dare you to tell me what Artie’s hiding—" Sunset hit her tongue and Twilight’s dark face fell and she pushed up her glasses. "Huh?" "I asked you ‘what are you hiding?’ Okay, let me try again: would you rather date me or Pinkie?" "Oh! I thought you just asked me what my uncle was hiding," she laughed, "because I would have to dissolve your body if I told you." Sunset’s face fell and Twilight smiled, nudging her shoulder with her elbow. "That’s an easy question! Since Pinkie’s already got a crush on Cheese Sandwich, I’d have to say you!" Everyone cooed at the answer, and Sunset smiled. All of the girls were asleep except for Sunset Shimmer and Twilight. They lied side by side on the floor and Sunset looked over to Twilight. "Twi?" "Yeah?" "Do you mean what you said?" "About what?" "The dating thing." The room remained silent for a long time, and Sunset knew that she had fallen asleep again. She waited for any sign of life before standing off of the floor, creeping to the bedroom door. Ever so softly she opened it, and she crept from the room silently. She slowly walked down the hallway and approached the living room. If she was caught, she could lie and say she was going to the kitchen to get a drink. Sunset slowly pressed her back against the door, and heard nothing from inside of the room. It was dead silent. Breathing ever so softly, she slowly bent down and peeked through the keyhole. Inside was a stone, square pool of water that was as black as night with gentle specks of silver swirling around it. She glared at it and smiled, backing away to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water from the fridge. Artemis opened the door and rung his hair out with a towel as he quickly walked into the kitchen. "What are you doing," he hissed, and she looked at him as if he were a madman. "Getting a drink," she responded, walking past him. He caught her arm and pulled her back, leaning down to her. Any trace of anger left him and he now looked like a kind, caring young man. "Tell nobody. Not your friends, not your father. This is our secret. Understand?" "Cross my heart," she whispered, and he nodded to her. "Thank you," he sighed with a smile, patting her shoulder. "It’s just water," she quietly responded, and he shrugged. "What something looks to you may not look the same to me." She smiled and he smiled right back, and she turned to face him once again. "You’re weirder I thought you were," she told him outright, and he chuckled. "And you’re more inquisitive than I thought," he explained, grabbing a bottle of water as well. "Persistence is a virtue, Sunset. Keep it forever." Then the two parted ways, and she went back upstairs to the bedroom, where she found Twilight looking through her journal with a flashlight. "I’m sorry," the girl immediately whimpered, and Sunset’s bottled up rage finally exploded.
Chapter 4 — The Journals With The Sun & Moon"How dare you," Sunset roared, and Twilight shut the journal. The girls were startled awake by the loud, angry voice, and a Fluttershy turned the light on. "I’m so sorry, Sunset, I didn’t mean to invade your privacy!" "Sorry doesn’t cut it, Twilight," she screamed, and Applejack held her hands up to Sunset, who was approaching Twilight. "Let’s calm down, sugar cube," Applejack calmly explained, but Sunset bared her teeth together. "You’re supposed to protect me," Twilight squeaked, and this was the final straw for Sunset. "Protect you? Protect you? There’s not much more I can do, you dork! Why are you expecting me to protect you all the time? All of you bring up my past and my family and you expect to just say ‘oopsie, no offense’ and forget it?" "I’m sorry, Sunset, I didn’t mean to," Twilight whimpered, but Sunset’s pale cheeks flushed red. "You never mean to! Nobody ever means to! I know I was a bully! I know I’m tough! I know my dad is in a motor gang! I’m not your guardian angel, Twilight! Do you know what else I know? I know that your uncle’s a two-sided-coin and your aunt is probably just the same! And you’re just like them!” Twilight began to sob into her hands and Rarity grabbed Sunset’s jacket, pulling her back. Rarity’s face was blushing bright red with anger and she clutched onto either side of Sunset. “That was very uncalled for,” she hissed, and Sunset Shimmer looked back at Twilight, who cried a single tear onto the page that she had opened to. There, on the page, was a beautiful, smeared image of Twilight Sparkle as a horrible creature, and Sunset attacking her with a knife. "Twilight," Sunset worriedly whimpered, looking down at her, "I'm so sorry." Twilight Sparkle only cried, and everyone glared at Sunset angrily. Rainbow Dash kicked the book over to her and Sunset scooped it up, looking down at the evil drawing. "She doesn't want your apology," Rainbow shouted. "Just like you used to be," Applejack muttered, shaking her head. "It's a shame." Sunset glared at all of the girls right back, and her last resort was Fluttershy. The girl shook her head and looked to the floor before Sunset grasped handfuls of the paper in her journal, throwing them to the carpet. "Take them. Look at them. I don't care," she mumbled, and their glares turned soft before she left, shutting the door gently. Sunset walked down the stairs and ignored Rarity trying to call her back up, and she stopped right in front of the confusing young man's office. She shook her head, then left through the door without another word. "Dear Twilight Sparkle. No, that's too formal," Sunset mumbled as she walked down the dark, foggy streets back to her house. "Twilight by itself is too informal." She pulled her phone from her pocket and placed it over the sun on her journal. "Okay, Eris," she spoke into the phone, and it came to life by illuminating in her coastal teal eyes. "How do I write an apology letter?" The phone's wheel spun for a second, before its smooth voice lifted from the speaker. "Write it from the heart," it explained, and she rolled her eyes before pressing the button. "That's too mushy," she spat angrily, hastily stuffing the device back into her pocket. She squeezed her eyes shut in frustration before reopening them, then she stopped in her tracks. She had come to a halt in front of the fountain of the town hall, which held two statues of horned pegasi that were encircling the fountain of water, one being higher than the other, with both looking at one another. Droplets of water splashed from the fountain onto the cover and they sank in, causing the color of the leather to change. Her brown journal blotted completely with black, and the sunshine that her phone had once covered was replaced with a crescent moon. The same moon that was on Artie’s door. She quickly opened it to the first blank page and she stared at the royal blue sticky note that was attached. Don't let that anger get to you, or you will become what I once did. Be the better person. I wish you well, young one. Artemis "Oh God," she shouted as a burning sensation filled her hands. She dropped the darker journal to the cobblestone ground and looked over her hands. The book had seared two sunshines into either of her hands, both shaped like the one that had previously been on her journal. Then, before she could wake anybody up, she scooped up the journal and ran down the road in the direction of her house.
Chapter 5 — HorsefliesSunset Shimmer pounded her fists into the punching bag that was suspended from the ceiling. Her hands were covered in blood, sweat, and wrapped in bandages from the strange events of the previous night. Then, to interrupt the silence, there was a gentle knock at the garage door before it slowly slid open, and in front of the punching bag was the beautiful Rarity. “Dear, are you okay? You got very upset last night and I just came around to check on you.” “I’m fine,” Sunset grumpily muttered, glaring at Rarity. “Well you certainly don’t seem fine.” She softly sat up on the toolbox in the garage and smoothed her tube skirt out. “Would you like to talk about it?” Usually, Sunset would decline. This time, it seemed like those words were the trigger to a gun that had just been fired. “Why does Artie have to be so indecisive about who he wants to be,” she grumbled, stopping just long enough to grab a sip of water and adjust her tee shirt. "What are you talking about, sweetheart?" “One minute he’s nice and the next he wants to kill me! That’s probably why Twilight read through my journal—because her whole family is dysfunctional!” “I don’t think she meant any harm, Sunset. She knew you liked drawing and I suppose she wanted to see some of your art. What I saw was gorgeous, too.” “Oh, I bet you all had a great time looking at them!” Rarity frowned when she saw the tears trickle down her beautiful cheeks. "Dearest, no," she cooed in a motherly voice, "Twilight put them in a folder to give back to you. We didn’t look, and I promise this from the bottom of my heart." "Twilight isn’t the monster, Rarity, I am! I switched our roles because I was so angry about my nightmares!" "I think she would understand, Sunset." “I hate myself,” she finally shrieked, and started punching into the bag with both fists heavily. She opened her hands to stop the heavy bag from coming back into her, but a beam of white shot from her palms where the suns were, causing them to feel fuzzy as if she had slept on top of them for hours. The force knocked her back into the toolbox, and Rarity leapt from it, landing on her tall, red high heels. Sunset lied on the floor for a second, and when she opened her eyes, the punching bag was lying in the driveway and Rarity was standing over her, helping her onto her bottom and her back against the toolbox. "Oh my God," she squeaked, looking down at her hands. "What was that," Rarity shouted in fear, looking at her hands as the bandages had been scorched away. "I don’t know," Sunset shrieked, looking up at Rarity in fear. The fashionista watched the last searing string of dark brown smoke lift from the punching bag, which had a hole burnt straight through. "Something bad is happening, Rarity, I’ve been burning everything! I even burnt my yogurt this morning!" "Do you think—never mind." "What?" "This might seem silly," Rarity laughed, tucking her hair behind her ear. She waited for a second before biting her lip. "Do you think your story and nightmares are coming to life?" They stared at each other and Sunset looked back at her hands. "I gotta apologize to Twilight and get those sketches back." The doorbell chimed and a Rarity rubbed Sunset Shimmer’s shoulder as she began to feel weary again. "You always get sick here. Is something wrong?" "Artie—" "Huh?" "Nothing." The door opened, and Twilight answered the door. Her cheeks were stained with tears and her eyes were puffy from crying for hours. "Twilight, I am... Oh God..." "What?" Sunset shook her head and looked up at what had been causing her sickness this whole time. There were tiny, wretched creatures, with the body of a wasp and the face of a horse’s skull. They growled at her and she watched as a trail of yellow and red glitter was sucked from her mouth from the creatures, which flapped their leathery wings. "Sunset, what’s wrong," Rarity worriedly shouted, and Sunset’s eyes rolled into the back of her head. The last thing she heard was Rarity asking once more what happened and she heard a lady’s scream, before she closed her eyes and groaned. Celestia came to the door and watched just in time as the slender girl fell backwards and collapsed down the stairs.
Chapter 6 — The Prince & Princess Of The Sun & Moon“Wake up,” Artemis shouted and Sunset woke with a start, coughing and sputtering as water was dumped over her face. “Are you alright,” Celestia worriedly whimpered, holding Sunset’s hand. “No,” Sunset muttered, “my head is pounding and my heart feels like it’s going to jump out of my chest.” “You’ll be fine,” Artemis signed, patting her knee. “I think we need to explain something to both of you. Where did you put that journal?” Sunset thought for a minute before pulling the book from her messenger bag and handing it to him. He caught a glimpse of her hands and she clenched her fists and hid the new markings. He opened the cover and it crackled softly as he flipped the page open. There was a sketch of a toddler holding a small baby with the moon through the window behind the two. “The older girl is the princess of the sun,” Artemis explained, “the younger is the prince of the moon.” “I’ve heard this story,” Sunset piped in, filling the page. The next was of the older girl weaving a crown of sunflowers and the boy, that was now a toddler, making a crown of nightshade. “They were best friends, right?” “Yes.” He pointed to the next page, where the two kids were older. The girl was happy and smiling, with many people surrounding her, and the boy stood far behind and alone. “Nobody loved him because he was alone—“ “Except for his sister,” Celestia roared, silencing the room. “She just had friends, that’s all. He was socially awkward and hated everyone—“ “They wronged me!” Artemis’s pupils turned to slivers and his hair turned to royal blue fire. “Okay, whatever you say,” Celestia whispered, holding her hand up to him. His hair calmed back down and his pupils returned to normal. “Wait,” Twilight began, “they wronged you, Uncle Artie?” “What are you saying,” Sunset whispered. "This is the story of Nightmare Moon and it’s all wrong." “Well, your journal is the story of Daydream Shimmer and it’s ‘all wrong’ too, now isn’t it?" The room remained silent and Artemis flipped the page. Across two pages was a side by side picture: to the left, the boy sat on his knees and screamed at the sky, with horrible, black bat wings protruding from his back and tears streaming from his eyes. On the other side was the girl, folding her arms and glaring st the door. “I was so unhappy that I wanted everything to change,” he whispered. “I wanted people to feel the pain that I always felt every day of my life. I wanted them to cry like I did when I was little. There was this evil that formed in my heart, Sunset.” “Do you still have it?” He stayed silent, and she folded her arms. “Is that what just happened to your eyes?” “It took over me,” he mumbled, and on the next page was a horrendous fight that spread over the two pages. Artemis was on one side, with a beam of light spreading from his palms. Celestia did the same, but she was much more beautiful than he was, with a white, flowing dress and a crown on her head. In the center was a ball of magic that swirled together. “I wanted you to die that night,” Celestia whispered. “Same to you,” he muttered. The tension was high in the room, and Artemis slowly flipped the page. There, illustrated as clear as day, was a photo of Celestia’s magic throwing him upwards, and on the next page was a photo of the newly created moon and the girl that cried on the ground. "When I hit the rock, it turned white," Artemis explained. I was the keeper of the moon, as she was the sun." "You are special," Celestia finished up, turning the the page to a picture of the baby Twilight in her arms. "Both of you are." "One of you will be banished as I was," Artemis whispered, closing the book loudly. "Your journal might be ruined, but it will soon come true again, Sunset. It only depends who will be Celestia, and who will be me." Twilight and Sunset looked in between each other, before Sunset furrowed her eyebrows. "Can we not stop it?" Artemis looked away and Celestia pursed her lips. "No," the lady flatly explained, and Twilight grabbed Sunset’s hand. Sunset looked down at the gesture, and she felt more sorry for a Twilight than she ever had. That was, until she heard her thoughts when their skin made contact. I know she’ll be the demon at the end of the day, Twilight growled in her mind, because she’s more mean than the devil himself. Sunset snatched her hand away and looked down at the suns on her hands. One of her new powers was to hear other’s thoughts, and she couldn’t begin to comprehend how to use them. So, she looked up at Artemis, and he shook his head before she looked back down. None of them could understand what was happening to her, and she didn’t want to start asking others to believe it.
Chapter 7 — The Tree Of The Daydream"No way," Pinkie Pie screamed, slamming her fists on the table. "You can read minds? Like a psychic? Part of my birth family was a line of psychics! I’m pretty sure I have some in me myself. Wait, no, they were fortune tellers." Sunset rested her face in her hands as she listened to the girl scream, and there was a moment of silence. "Daddy," she shouted to the man behind the counter. The skinny, red-headed man stood up and continued to wipe a milkshake glass. "Yes, sweetums?" "Can we have another milkshake, pretty please?" It wasn’t but a few minutes of silent waiting before the man came back, placing four milkshakes on the table. Sunset’s was vanilla, Pinkie’s was strawberry, Rarity’s was chocolate, and Fluttershy’s wasn’t even a milkshake, but rather a vegetable smoothie. "Haven’t you had enough sugar today, gummy bear?" "No, she argued as he brought them another round of milkshakes. He tickled the girl and she giggled, snorting as he kissed her curly head of hair. "Are you okay, Sunset Shimmer?” ”Huh?" She sat her head up and looked at the freckled man, who gave her a smile. "Oh, uh, yes sir, Mr. Cake." "Don’t worry, I get it," he mumbled, slipping her an ibuprofen before he walked back to his counter. She took the pill and groaned, squeezing her eyes shut. "So, how mad are the others?" "Dashie won’t talk about what happened," Fluttershy sighed, stirring up her smoothie before taking a tiny sip, "but we’re going on a date tonight—" "Oh, do tell," Rarity inquired with a sly smile. She leaned over to get the gossip from Fluttershy, who awkwardly gave a forced grin and looked to the wall and back. "Uh, we’re going to a restaurant, Rarity, it’s no big deal." "Of course it’s a big deal! What are you wearing? Do let me fix your hair and makeup, darling, I never get to primp for a date anymore after Applejack got her new truck. All we do is go around and around in the dirty old mud, and—" "We’re here for Sunset, Rarity," Pinkie Pie explained. For once, the girl was right. "Tell me about your speakie-weakie thingy!" "I don’t know, I can just tell what you’re thinking when I touch you." "Really? Oh, oh! Me first!" "Wait, no," Sunset tried to protest, but it was too late. Pinkie Pie scooped up her hands and Sunset’s head began to spin with the girl’s even faster thoughts. Can she really tell what I’m thinking? This is so exciting—I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited in my life—except for that time that I threw that party—oh, or that time that—no, maybe—I don’t know, I just can’t tell! Sunset drew her hands away and grabbed her temples, trying to recover from the girl’s fast pace. "Me next," Rarity butted in, and Sunset’s eyes rolled as Rarity grabbed her hands. Applejack looked so good at the farm today. She was bending over trying to grab some wood, and she kept begging me for help. And, oh, how I wanted to help— "Oh, God, ew," Sunset screamed, taking her hands back. "Can you do me," Fluttershy asked gently, slowly taking Sunset’s hands. I’m probably being a bother. Oh, either way, this is exciting! Sunset looks so... So... Drained. Fluttershy let go and Sunset looked even more white than ever. Her skin was the color of a piece of paper. She shivered and groaned, slowly taking a sip of her milkshake to regain her self-awareness. "So, What was I thinking about," Pinkie asked happily, and she shook her head. "It went by so fast," she mumbled sickly, "you were talking about a party or something. Like, the most exciting point in your life. Rarity you were thinking about Applejack and her ‘equipment’ at the farm, and Fluttershy, you were thinking about being a bother to me and thinking about how I looked drained. Do I look drained?" "Yeah," Rarity sighed, and Fluttershy nodded in agreement. "Well," Sunset sighed, "it can’t be worse than the horseflies." "About the what?" "That’s what Artemis said they were," Sunset sighed, "there were these little creepy bugs that were making me sick." "Remember when she would nearly faint at their doorstep," Rarity asked. "She saw what he called a horsefly." "Thank you for repeating exactly what I just said," Sunset muttered, and Rarity began to braid Fluttershy’s over abundance of light pink hair. "You’re welcome," She cheerfully replied, and Sunset looked through the window. "It’s stronger for Twilight, though," she explained. "I don’t know why." "Well, is there anything else that might be connected?" Sunset hesitantly took off her fingerless leather gloves and showed the three her new sunshine marks on either palm. Rarity had seen it once before, so she wasn’t too shocked, but Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were amazed. "That’s so cool that you got a tattoo," Pinkie screamed. "And you never even told us!" "They aren’t tattoos," Sunset tried to explain. "They look like tattoos to me!" "They aren’t," Sunset groaned, letting Fluttershy take her hand. This is the tree of the Daydream, Fluttershy thought, and Sunset heard it in her head. Should I tell her or not? It may be good, but it may be bad— "I can hear you." "Oh no," Fluttershy started, dropping her hand. "What’s the tree of the Daydream?" The other three looked to Fluttershy, who bit her lip and squeaked as all attention was turned to her. "Well, um, it might be better to show you." "Okay, where is it?" "In Everfree."
Chapter 8 — Deep In Everfree"Is everyone ready?" "What is the meaning of this," Rarity dramatically whined as her rain boots became mucky with ankle deep mud. The rain poured down on the outskirts of the woods, but the girls were sheltered by the treetop canopies, as well as the black blanket that covered the foreigners and the light yellow, butterfly-decorated cloak that covered Fluttershy. "You’ll see." They began to walk, and Fluttershy used a match to light her torch. She held it up over her head and it audibly lit the way, and when they were about ten feet into the deep woods, she began to sing a song. Every once in a while, Fluttershy would sing a sweet little tune as she held the torch above her head. She had advised for Rarity, Sunset, and Pinkie Pie to hide under a black blanket to help them blend in, but she wore her normal clothes that she had just returned from her date in. "What is wrong with her," Rarity hissed softly, and Sunset shook her head. "I don’t know." "She thinks she’s some princess in a tower or something! Why is she singing?" Fluttershy sang her song once again and a little bird landed on her shoulder. It was plump and cute, and it pulled at her ear softly. She stopped in front of a shrub and continued to sing, and Rarity nearly shrieked as a bear trotted out of the woods. Wolves approached Fluttershy, and snakes slithered around her legs. She smiled and let the bear lick her hair, and she scratched behind his ear. "I’ve brought friends," she explained to a black wolf that slowly approached her. "They seek answers." The wolf shot a look at the three that slowly uncovered themselves, and he nodded softly. Behind the bush was a red glow, and she spread the brambles apart to reveal a small, beautiful, red and yellow sunshine inside of the tree. The girls all gasped as it’s leaves began to glisten and glow, and Fluttershy pointed to the sun. "That’s the Daydream?" "Yes," she explained. "What’s it’s story?" "Long ago, there was a prince of the moon—" "And a princess of the sun, I know the story," Sunset chuckled, and Fluttershy nodded. "Before Artemis was banished to the moon, he and Celestia would play under this very tree. They would play until dark and they had to go home, but this was their tree. Their legacy was left here, Sunset. You are connected by spirit to them. That’s why Artemis is kind to you," she whispered, "because he understands your pain." Sunset’s hands began to feel tingly and she slowly held them out to the stone. It warmed her hands and she smiled as it was loosened from the tree and came into her hands. She widened her eyes as gold began to swirl around the crown, and it created a tiara around itself. The wolf then howled, and the animals appeared to cheer. "What’s wrong with them?" "You are bound to it. You are the one that freed the stone," Fluttershy whispered. "Well, I’m not King Arthur," Sunset laughed, but Fluttershy shook her head. The girl grabbed a stick from the forest floor and lit another torch, passing it along to Sunset. "Go," Fluttershy explained. "What?" "I said go," Fluttershy surprisingly screamed. "Let nobody know you have it! Hide it away!" Sunset shook her head before running, and the crown made her hands feel weightless. When she was out of the woods, she nearly dropped it into a mud puddle as she went along, but she placed it on her head so she could use her arms for balance. Then, unexpectedly, a pair of dark, leathery wings grew from her back and lifted her into the sky. She screamed as they involuntary carried her over the town, but they eased her down to her open garage, right in front of the punching bag. Sunset quickly removed the crown and rushed into the house, slamming the door as she began to sob. "I knew I was the villain," she whimpered, before trudging to her bedroom with tear-stained cheeks. "Sunset Shimmer, are you awake?" Sunset jumped at the gentle hand on her back, and Fluttershy jumped as well with a squeak. "Yeah," she groggily groaned, sitting up. This time, not just three girls were in her room—six were there. Applejack and Rainbow Dash didn’t look too happy to be awake, but nevertheless, everyone except for Twilight was there. "I know some of you are angry at her," Rarity began, "but she has something to show you. Pinkie, what did you see through your window at night?" "It was Sunset Shimmer and she had these big demon wings like she did at last year’s prom!" "Look," Sunset began, scooping up the tiara, "Fluttershy took us to Everfree for some answers last night, and she told me to protect the tiara! I put it on my head and turned back into a, uh, she-demon." The girls all stared at her in confusion, and Sunset Shimmer looked down at the crown. "I’ll show you." She gently placed the crown atop her head and the windows blew open, making Fluttershy cower under Rainbow Dash’s arm. The girls all stared in fear, but instead of demon wings, two light, shimmery wings emerged from her shoulder blades. A white beam began to form around her forehead, and she reached up, and threw the tiara down to the floor. Sunset Shimmer fell back down on her bed and grumbled, holding her head. "See! It changes me!" "You were not just a demon," Rainbow Dash stuttered, and Sunset Shimmer shook her head. "I don’t understand." "You were lovely," Rarity whispered. Sunset looked up at the crown and glared. "That isn’t possible." Author's Note I think of Fluttershy singing something like this in the forest. Just a nice little tune that the animals might like.
