Sunset pulled hard at the iron gates to no avail. She sighed after a few more tugs before looking them over more closely. They were locked tight and surprisingly sturdy compared to usual school locks. What was truly odd was the fact there wasn't even an obvious keyhole. All there was, were three recesses that seemed like they were supposed to have something. A seven petal flower, a kite, and a circle. She couldn't find a way to really manipulate whatever mechanism there might be to unlock the door.

But it was the only clue she had to go off of for finding a way to open the door.

There was something about the shapes that were familiar though. She just couldn't put her finger on what.

She sighed, looking around the main hall. Now that she was really paying attention, it wasn't just the school was dark and a little disarrayed, it also seemed....old. Worn. Even the wall by the front door showed signs of age even though she just rebuilt it shortly after the Fall Formal. She's passed this spot hundreds of times, and the paint never quite matched the old wall, but now it all seemed weathered the same.

If this place was her mindscape, it was even odder. Old and worn out isn't something she'd usually apply to her own brain. So what was the deal?

She sighed, looking at the door. Logically, she could probably just break a window and be done with it, but she supposed if the Mind Delve decided to give her a puzzle, she should solve it. It's not like she had any better ideas.

She looked towards a bulletin board nearby. She pulled off the school map, usually left up for guests, and took a pen leftover for signs up for play auditions. Another oddity she noted was the auditions for Bedazzled, the school play her friends and she had all helped put on. "Is it because it's my mind?" She murmured.

Probably. It made the most sense, remnants from a memory.

She took a look around the main hall, but upon seeing nothing else out of place, she decided to begin her search of the school, ready to mark off rooms. She imagined it'd take a while to make it through everything.

And found out it may not take near as long as she feared.

Mostly because as soon as she tried opening up classrooms, she would often find doors were jammed shut. She tested the first few, thinking maybe the door was sticking, but no amount of throwing her shoulder into it or pulling on the doorknob got any results.

She hoped that meant it'd save her time and that what she needed wasn't stuck behind one of those doors.
She'd continue on, testing doors, pushing open doors of open lockers, and marking off what she'd look into. There was little of note until she came across something odd in one of the lockers. She was sure she was imagining it, pulling it out to have a closer look.

"You must pay more attention to your surroundings, Sunset Shimmer," Celestia said, pressing the wet compress to the burn on Sunset's hoof. "Hold that a moment," she advised.

Sunset did as instructed, letting her own magic hold it as her mentor looked for something. It was harder than it would be normally, with the pain throbbing through her leg, but not beyond her. "I didn't realize how hot it had gotten," Sunset said, voice tight with pain. As soon as Celestia found what she was looking for, she took over again and floated over a brown bottle.

"Drink this," she said, unscrewing the lid. "I know you're used to heat, but that's all the more reason to be mindful. Just because Philomena doesn't burn you doesn't make you immune to fire."

"I know, I know," Sunset muttered as she drank the medicine with a grimace. "Ugh. What is that?"

"A drink made from a Zebra recipe. It won't heal your burn, but it'll relieve the pain and boost your own system. It should make our trip to the hospital far less painful for you," Celestia said.

"I guess there's some crossover," Sunset said as she stared at the Heath Drink. It certainly wasn't something in the human world, any drinks for generic 'health' would usually have some trendy name and rarely be anything effective. But she remembered this bottle, she was sure it was the one from Equestria.

She wasn't sure why it was here, but she figured it wouldn't hurt to take with her, putting it in her tote bag before moving on. Trying to focus on the task at hand.

It was just...it had been some time since she had even thought about Philomena. She wondered if the phoenix was all right. Obviously, still alive, she was sure nothing would happen to her in Celestia's care.

But...she had to wonder if the phoenix had missed her. She hadn't even said good-bye before she came to the human world. And she had barely been able to talk to Celestia for the sake regaining the memories of her friends. Let alone to even think about asking after the phoenix.

Maybe she'd have the nerve once she was done with this. She knew her mentor has forgiven her, but that hadn't made talking to her that much easier. She was just no longer worried she'd be thrown into the dungeon forever.

She shook her head. "Focus, Sunset Shimmer," she muttered, trying another door, not truly surprised when it opened. If this place was running on her memories at all, it made sense this door would open. It was the music room, after all.
What she wasn't expecting, however, were all the mannequins.

She stepped back to check that it was indeed the music room before looking inside again. She should see the steps and speakers of the room. Some of the instruments. It did seem to be the music room, just with...

Mannequins.

Sure, there's been one or two dressforms for Rarity to do outfit work while they were working on Rainboom things, but not a full form mannequin like these. Well, like these if they were in good shape.

Most of them were obviously old and damaged. Missing parts of their limbs, pieces barely hanging on, blank faced heads partially caved in. And the clothes were damaged, tattered and dirty. No, definitely not the kind of handiwork that'd come from Rarity.

It was all very....creepy.

But it was the first room she'd managed to open, so she ventures in to look around. Checking around the mannequins and to see if they were wearing any jewelry, looking behind instruments, and inside the piano. It's not until she gets to the windows on the other side of the room that she finally sees it.

A flower shaped piece of jewelry. Gold for the petals and a red gem in the middle. It was familiar to her. Very familiar.

"Wait. Isn't this from my first crown?" She said aloud. Except instead of being cheap plastic, it look like it might have been real metal and a gem, or at least glass.

A light static fills the air.

Either way, it's the right shape and she picks it up. A familiar sensation hitting her as she makes contact, though instead of it feeling like she was seeing something in her mind, the light seemed to spread around her, filling and changing the room to show the memory from the object.

"I'm not sure I'm up for this," Sunset said, looking down at the simple white dress she was wearing, playing with the end of the skirt. Fingers were still so weird to her. She had to constantly practice to get used to them, to not stand out.

A dance was the last thing she wanted to try and navigate. How did humans even dance in group settings?

"Hey, come on. It won't be that bad, Sunset," Flash Sentry said, putting a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently.

"Somehow, I doubt that," Sunset said, looking up with a frown.

Flash chuckled. "You always do. And yet you've admitted some of the places I've dragged you to have been fun."

Sunset hummed, looking away. "....concerts are different. Everyone's too busy looking at the stage to notice how stiff I am."

"To be fair, everyone knows you've been through physical therapy," Flash said.

"Because you have to call me coma girl," Sunset shot back.

"Only because you call me guitar boy. I'm not even sure you knew my name for three weeks."

Okay, she hadn't. She hadn't been overly invested in learning who people were.

"I can't help you're married to your guitar," Sunset said instead.

Flash shrugged. "Fair enough," he said. He then moved his hand away from her shoulder to open the glove box. "I know you're still not good with crowds, so I got you something," he added, holding out a box to her.

Sunset looked at it in confusion before taking it and opening it. Her eyes widened in surprise at earrings in the shape of her cutie mark. "How did you-"

"You always wear the shirt with that emblem when you know you're going into an uncomfortable situation," Flash answered.

Sunset stared at him and there was that feeling again. The one that made her face heat up, and her heart feel tight in her chest. Stupid boy. Stupid boy and being so....so sweet and nice! It could never work. She knows it can't. He's a human, she's a pony. She's going home in a few years!

But still....still, sometimes she wonders.

"....you sappy nerd," Sunset said, looking away from his bright smile, taking out the earrings. It takes a few tries for her to get them in her ears, pierced on a dare, but Flash patiently gives her time to figure it out.

"One hour. If this isn't at least a little fun in an hour, we're leaving," she said.

"If you want," Flash said, but he still looks so pleased as he gets out of the car, moving to the other side to open her door for her and help her out. She doesn't need the help so much these days, but it's a habit he doesn't seem inclined to get rid of.

Flash leads her into the school and to the gymnasium. The whole place is lit up with multicolored lights and streamers and balloons. It's not like the grand galas she's used to, but it has a certain charm to it.

Flash keeps close to her. She's hesitant to dance alone at first, usually only going along when Flash has a reason to lead her in some moves, but eventually she relaxes and starts moving on her own. She never gets as enthusiastic as some people around, and Flash seems to go out of his way to dance like a fool when she's uncomfortable to get a laugh from her.

Before she knows it, hours have passed and they're announcing the Fall Formal Princess. Sunset doesn't even pay it any mind, instead going for some punch because why does she care about a popularity contest.

Until her name is announced.

She stops short, punch halfway to her mouth, staring at the stage because there's no way she heard that right.

Flash gently takes her punch. "Go on up, Sunset," he said gently.

Sunset numbly walks up to the stage, to the woman who looks so much like Celestia. She bows her head to take the crown and looks out at the crowd cheering for her.

For her.

They wanted her as their princess.

A hand reached up to touch her crown, to make sure it was real, a smile spreading across her face in wonder because they wanted her as their princess.

She hadn't imagined she'd ever win. It had seemed like a dumb, inane thing at the time. It's not like anyone would really appreciate her. She only signed up to get Flash to stop bugging her about it.

And now she was here. She was selected.

She left the stage as the princess' dance was announced and she grabbed Flash's hand as they moved to the spotlight for their dance. Her self doubts about her movement couldn't even plague her now. She couldn't get her smile to fade at all.

"I told you people liked you," Flash said as they danced under the ever shifting lights of the Fall Formal.

Sunset couldn't stop the smile that had been plastered on her face since her name was announced. She had honestly thought it was a dumb thing, signing up, but Flash had said it might be fun. She never imagined she'd win, especially when she hadn't been trying.

"Fine, fine, I guess you're right," she said. "This time." She added with a teasing smirk.

Flash chuckled. "Hey, just because you're finally adjusting to life again doesn't mean I have to be wrong all the time, Coma Girl," he said.

"Please don't call me that. I think I much prefer Princess Sunset as a nickname if anything is going to catch," she said.

Part of her wondered if she was voted for out of pity. She pushed the thought from her mind.

"It is a pretty good name," Flash said, dipping Sunset and actually getting a laugh out of her. "Congratulations, Princess Sunset Shimmer."

Sunset just smiled wider. She could really get used to that.

Sunset breathed in sharply.

The static of the radio was starting to get louder, but Sunset doesn't pay attention, not quite yet. Not after that.

It had been her first Fall Formal. She had arrived the spring before, managed to adjust herself to the human world, but everyone had heard about her cover story. She had to explain why she was terrible at things like basic movement and common knowledge. Extreme hospitalization seemed the best way to go. Recovering from muscle atrophy and brain damage, of course she had been struggling.

It had worked. It had even brought her time to find a way to figure out the paperwork. Just needed a little more time to remember to bring it, that's all. Just look broken hearted if asked about guardians and people hesitated to ask deeper questions. As long as she made everything look fine on paper, then she was able to play off the rest.

She was also pretty sure she had been voted princess of the Fall Formal out of pity for that. She had been more focused on trying to catch up and not look like a constant idiot over socializing.

The static grew louder.

Flash probably went out of his way to get people to think to vote for her. Wanting to make her feel better. He had always been kind, far too kind for the likes of her, but even if that first crown had led her down a bad path, the memory was still...

It was still a happy one.

That night had been such a good one. So much praise and a lot of fun. It had been the first party in a long time that had been about fun instead of formal social gatherings for school and Celestia.

She wonders what it might have been like, if she hadn't let that pure happiness get tainted the way she did?

She sighed, putting the jewel piece in her bag, reaching for the radio to see why it was buzzing when she heard a creak behind her, glancing up.

A mannequin was right behind her and it's segmented hand grabbed her elbow.

HATEPAINHURTWHYWHYWHYWHYBETRAYALGUILTLIESLIESLIESHOWDARESHEHEGOAWAYDISAPPEARLEAVELEAVELEAVEHOWCOULDSTOPITSTOPSTOPSTOPSTOPSTOPSTOP!!!!

The rush of negative emotions was intense, driving Sunset to her knees, barely enough mental focus for her to jerk her arm away as tears sprung to her eyes from the sudden flood. It was like every negative feeling had poured into her head, leaving her struggling to get a hold of herself as she slumped back against the wall.

"W-why?" She gasped, looking up through her tears, breathing labored as she tried to get a decent breath. Her eyes widened in horror as she understood what was in front of her.

She saw one of the mannequins. Blank face staring down at her, one hand outstretched and the other was....it was like it was broken. The shoulder was half busted off, hanging more off its back then it's side. Which made it moving that arm look unnatural, disjointed, arm moving up more like a scorpion's tail then a proper arm.

And the end of that arm was broken off, leaving it jagged and sharp and it drives that arm down right for Sunset Shimmer.

Sunset barely manages to push herself from the wall, lunging across the floor to get out of the way. The Mannequin misses it's mark for Sunset's heart, but any doubt of the broken arm's sharpness vanishes when she feels the broken material slash across her arm, pain burning across the length of it.

The Mannequin was turning to come after her, and there was more movement in the room.

She had to run. She was already on the verge of being a wreck, she couldn't handle whatever....this was.

She keeps low to the ground.

There were at least two other Mannequins alive amongst the others, each with a similar broken arm hanging more off it's back, heading for her. She feels the blades arms swipe over her head as she half crawls, half lunges across the ground to get away from the...from the monsters that were trying to hurt her.

Kill her.

The room was filled with the static of the radio, the creaking of artificial limbs, and her own choked breathing. Never before had the music room felt so big.

A Mannequin lunges for her, the good hand outstretched and no, she can't be touched again. If she had another emotional onslaught like before, she wouldn't be able to run, the other two would get her for sure.

She grabs an acoustic guitar from the wall she finds herself against, throwing it up in defense as the Mannequin's hand slams into it with a distorted screech of the guitar strings as the fingers get tangled in them. She braces her foot against the head of the guitar, kicking hard to force the Mannequin into one of the other two.

They tumbled with a crash and Sunset moved. There was still a third after her, managing to avoid her throwing back the piano stool, but it gives her enough time to get closer to the door. It's getting closer and she's not sure she'll make it.

She takes a risk, grabbing the arm of another mannequin and she's relieved there's no emotional attack from this one as she spins on her knees and throws it at the other to knock it down.

The other two are getting up.

She makes a scrambling dash to the door, grabbing the knob and throwing open the door before falling through the doorway and slamming the door shut behind her.

She holds it shut, twisting the knob to make sure the tab was firmly in the slot, still on her knees, breathing hard and fast. The static of her radio quieting down quicker than her racing heart.

She waited for the monster to come, taking the few seconds to get air in her lungs, to blink away the tears, trying to think of what to do, hoping the door is sturdy enough to hold them back. They didn't seem particularly strong, she should be able to hold them back.

Except nothing came.

No attempt at the door knob, no thud against the door, not even the sound of movement from in the room. It was...

Odd.

Sunset Shimmer had been on numerous magical adventures, on Earth, and back in Equestria when she was Celestia's protege. She's been chased by monsters and this silence wasn't normal. It was like they were gone as soon as she closed the door.

Sunset bit her lip, slowly letting go of the doorknob, wiping at her face to clear her eyes. Still with no sign of the monsters. She pushed herself to her feet. The monsters, the odd Mannequinn's, hadn't attacked right away. Only after...after the static had started. Which was now dying down. Was the radio the thing that caused them to move?

Or had it been a warning?

She stared intently at the door, grabbing the door knob again and carefully, slowly, opened the door just enough to see inside. Ready to slam it shut again, but she had to know what was happening.

The Mannequin was only a few steps from the door, good hand still outstretched. Like it really froze in place the moment she had closed the door.

The door shifted, creaking just a bit, and it's face moved to look at her the same moment the radio static came to life.

It jerked forward.

She slammed the door shut. The radio silenced a moment later.

Then quietly, carefully moved away from the door.

So. Evil Mannequin. With stabby arms and the ability to force negative emotions into her if she let's them touch her. Maybe just their hands, but it's not something she wants to test. They also seemed to respond to sound.

And her radio responded to them moving. Was it just the Mannequins? Or would it be all threats?

Were there more threats?

"Okay, priorities, Sunset," Sunset Shimmer said to herself, looking down at her arm with a grimace. The cut along the length of her forearm was shallow, at least enough where the bleeding was slowing, but she needed to take care of it. To avoid infection or it getting worse.

The nurse's office wasn't far. She was far more cautious opening this door, looking around for any Mannequins or odd creatures before stepping inside.

As she looked through the cabinets and drawers, however, the sense of dread the monstrous encounter had started, was growing exponentially. She knew the school tried to keep on top of these supplies, especially after magic had started to crop up. Considering there's been more than one explosion at the school, it was an understandable precaution to have an extra stocked nurse's office.

But now, so much of the room was bare. Even after looking through everything, she had only found another two Health Drinks, a medkit, and a few other odds and ends. More than enough to treat her arm now, but hardly the norm for it and she worried why that was.

"Arm first," she told herself, to keep herself focused.

At least the water worked and she could clean up her arm and wrap it up with some bandages. She pondered a Health Drink, but ultimately, the pain wasn't too bad, and not something that hindered her.

And she didn't know if maybe she'd need them later.

That was her second priority, deciding how to go forward.

She had been attacked. By monsters that had wanted to do her harm. She knew her mindscape may have been a bit of a mess, but nothing so hostile. Nothing so dangerous. Perhaps it was naive to be so hopeful, but she had been in such a better place for so long, she didn't think anything like this would be here.

One part of her wanted to think there was no danger, it'd be like a dream.

But psychic deaths were not impossible, and she doesn't know enough about the Mind Delve to be sure it wouldn't have some kind of psychic backlash if she died here. Most mental magics were tricky things as is. They were difficult spells to master and even then, it was hard to get anything useful if the pony was an unwilling subject. It was hard even when they were a willing subject if they didn't know exactly what to think about.

And there's been more than one brain fried because someone had been reckless trying to craft a better spell for such things.

Her magic was very much an exception and not the rule. The Power of Friendship indeed.

"Okay, there's monsters here, so we know it's dangerous," she muttered. Which changed her willingness to go along with the Mind Delve's weirdness immensely. It's one thing to go on a weird magical mental journey when things are weird, it's a whole other thing when there was coinflip that she could end up dead.

She needed to end the spell, reaching up to grab her geode.

And froze as she found it was gone. She looked down, checking her pockets and looking around her for a sign of the necklace to no avail. Did she lose it? Did she not even have it when she came here?

Actually, what happens to her geode when she comes to Equestria anyway? She had often wondered where her clothes had come from when she arrived in the human world, but the weird thing was it wasn't like everything disappeared. If she wore a bag, that stayed with her. The same with the false crown. She took the book back to Earth no problem.

But when she first met Starlight, talked to Celestia, the whole thing over spring break. Even just today, she had been wearing her geode when she went through the portal, but it had been gone when she arrived in Equestria.

Was it just...inside her? Like her clothes probably were? Was it the geode was bound to Earth, to be a protective magic? Did she still have that magic or was it gone?

She had to try. Sitting down, clasping her hands together, focusing on that feeling she'd been getting used to over the months. That feeling of reaching out, making a connection. It should be easier, Starlight should already be connected to her. She was powering the Mind Delve, it should be as simple as finding that connection.

"Come on, come oooon, Starlight Glimmer..." Sunset murmured, trying to sense something, anything at all.

After a few minutes, there was a loud groan of frustration and Sunset kicked the wall. "You have to be kidding me. This should be simple for me!" She yelled at the ceiling, slumping forward.

She let herself wallow in her frustration for a minute, cursing fate and stupid magical physics.

"Okay. So, no geode. Probably no mental magic at all," she said. She had never been particularly good at those mind spells as a unicorn either, at least not while learning under Celestia. "Though I guess it doesn't matter when all the memories I'd be seeing are mine." It's not like it's loss is a big disadvantage here because of that fact.

No, the only problem was she couldn't contact Starlight Glimmer.

Still, the thought of being without the geode was...sad. Having reliable, stable magic after several years of not had been nice. It had helped her feel more sure in herself.

No, she couldn't linger on that.

As it stood, she was stuck in the Mind Delve spell until she could find a way to end it from in here. Until then, she had to assume that if she died here, she could really die. Especially when this spell didn't even have a safety of contacting the caster built in. If something as simple as that wasn't covered, she couldn't rely on the fact there was protection from accidentally frying her brain.

She could afford to be wrong on that fact, not so much the other way.

And there were monsters here. She wasn't sure how many or how dangerous, but at least the Mannequins seemed intent on hurting her. She couldn't just rely on running away, no, not when a simple touch could bring her to her knees.

Before she went any further, she needed a weapon.

Author's Note

Did I start a horror story to write up a bunch of disjointed headcanon scenes about Sunset Shimmer?

Maybe.