Just An Average Trip to Equestriaby Nature PastelChaptersThe Last Day of School and the First Day of ChaosOh. My. Gosh. We. Have. A. New. Princess.AnxietiesThe Coronation of Princess Sunset ShimmerDemonsThe Last Day of School and the First Day of ChaosTick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Big. Clock. So. Slow. Won't. Stop. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Equestria. Far. Away. Can't. Go. Not. Time. Tick. Tock... Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Sunset woke up suddenly and looked around the classroom. The teacher was droning on about some maths equation, but nobody was listening. The stifling heat of the summer day was making everyone sleepy, and they were all thinking about the summer holidays. Some would stay at home with their families, some would be going to foreign, exotic countries. Technically, Sunset was doing both. She had all her things ready at her bungalow for a nice long fortnight. She would spend her time with Twilight Sparkle and her friends, and visit Celestia in Canterlot. According to what was written in her journal, her pony friends needed a break as much as she did. "Miss Shimmer, would you be able to tell me the answer to this question or do you need to have a long nap during the holidays?" barked the teacher. The class broke out into laughter. "I'd much rather the second option, sir," she replied. "And you shouldn't snap at a student who saved your life from two angry demons a month ago." Now the class were laughing at him. "Fair enough, Shimmer. Next time you refuse to pay attention, I will give you holiday homework." "No can do, sir. I'll be going to Equestria to see the other Twilight Sparkle, and there's a lot of stuff we need to do. Plus, there aren't any pens. I could use a quill and ink, but the ink would seep through the pages of my book and destroy it." He sighed. "You are intelligent, Shimmer, I'll give you that. If only you put as much effort into your work as your," he hesitated, "magic." At the end of the school day, Sunset did not go straight to Equestria. She had to say goodbye to her friends. How to do that? Go to Sugarcube Corner and eat a donut each. They each talked about what they would be doing. Twilight would be going to a festival in a few days - which was held in the grounds of a university that specialised in science. Pinkie and her boyfriend Cloudy Sky were going on a cruise around the world. Rainbow Dash was going to run a marathon for charity, and Rarity and Fluttershy were going to support her before heading off on a horse-riding holiday. Applejack was spending the entire six weeks on the family farm. She didn't seem to mind. She was actually looking forward to it. Everyone was looking forward to the holidays. "So, how're you spendin' your 'oliday Sunset?" asked Applejack. "It's a surprise," she replied. "I know I'll spend most of my time in Ponyville, but I don't know what's in store. If I hazard a guess, the other Fluttershy will take me into the woods and the other Rarity will take me to the spa and get me into an amazing outfit for the party that the other Pinkie Pie has organised. The rest of the time will be spent relaxing," she sighed in relief and happiness. "Between fighting off two demons here - no offence to Pinkie and Cloudy-" "None taken," they said together. "Telling my own demon where it stands, and adjusting to the Dazzlings as friends, I could do with some relax-in-Equestria-with-my-other-friends time." "Speaking of the Dazzlings," said Rainbow Dash, "Will they be there?" Sunset bit her lip. "They have a schedule. I'm probably going to run into at least one of them. I hope it's Sonata, she still owes me a burrito. Let's see her face when she finds out how expensive eating out is in Canterlot." Everyone laughed. Sunset looked at the clock on the wall. "Dammit," she said, "gotta go. Twilight closes the portal in ten minutes. Rainbow, I might need a magic piggyback." "Nope. You'll break my back before the marathon. Well, you and your backpack." Everyone hugged and wished each other well. Sunset gave each of them a notebook. "They work in the same way as my journal. Not as big. Just for the holidays. When I'm in this world, we can use Skype or that stupid site Grapevine. Eight minutes. Bye." She ran out of the café. She took a taxi home. Three minutes. She scrawled in her journal, need 15 more minutes, then changed into a new outfit. Even though she would not be wearing them in Equestria, she didn't want to be in smelly clothes when she returned. She switched backpacks, and packed her journal and a notebook identical to her friends' ones into the new backpack. Her motorbike was in the garage, locked away and safe. In pony years, she would turn nineteen in August, so she was technically allowed to drive. She had passed her driving tests with ease, so by law it didn't matter. Twelve minutes. She hauled the backpack on, left the bungalow, locked the door and legged it back to Canterlot High School. Five minutes. She yelled a war cry and ran through the portal: a statue of a horse on its hind legs. All of a sudden she was in Equestria and everypony was screaming. She could not understand a word of what they were saying. She counted. Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Spike the dragon, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, Starswirl the Bearded, a pony called Starlight Glimmer she had once met, a yellow stallion with called Sunburst, Adagio Dazzle, Aria Blaze and Sonata Dusk ("Yes," she whispered), all with new necklaces. "Woah, what does any of that mean?" she yelled. Everyone instantly stopped screaming at each other. The problem: they stayed silent and did not tell her anything. "Are you going to let me stand here without a clue what's going on and looking like an idiot?" she shouted, flapping her huge yellow wings. Wings. She had wings. She was an alicorn. She was a princess. How in Starswirl's hat did she become an alicorn?! Oh. My. Gosh. We. Have. A. New. Princess."Penny dropped yet?" asked Twilight, beginning to laugh as Sunset tried to work out how to use her wings. "Yeeeeaaaaaah," Sunset said slowly. "Wait. Summarise everything going through your head right now." "Oh. My. Gosh. We. Have. A. New. Princess." "Yeah I know - hang on! Just because I'm an alicorn, does it mean I have to be a princess?" "Yes. Get used to it." "You what?!" Celestia took over. "Twilight's right - all alicorns are royalty. This is a lot of alicorns at once - Shining Armour became an alicorn last month." This was news to Sunset. She gave Twilight an accusatory look. "You were supposed to tell me everything important that happens in Equestria and you couldn't be bothered to tell me that your brother is an alicorn too now." "Yes," Twilight apologised, "when I used all my magic to stop the battle between the Crystal Empire and the Dragon Lands, I may have been helped by my older brother. Nopony even noticed - he was wondering how long it would take anypony to spot them - until Princess Cadance brought it up. She said to him, "Look at your beautiful wings!" And that was that. He was already a prince, but we celebrated anyway because there hasn't been a male alicorn since King Cosmos. And he died - what, two thousand years ago?" "Two thousand, seven hundred and forty nine," Luna corrected. "I remember him like he died yesterday. Good old Dad." "Soooo," said Sunset,"do I have to have a coronation and a party and all that nonsense?" "Yes," answered Twilight. "Oh hell." The news managed to spread like wildfire. By the end of the day, everypony in Equestria knew about the future Princess Sunset Shimmer, Ambassador For The Human World. Including the voices inside Celestia and Luna's heads. There were no nightmares, so Luna walked into Celestia's dreams. They found their inner demons - Nightmare Moon, the evil version of Luna, and Daybreaker, the evil Celestia that Starlight Glimmer imagined - in deep conversation. Their chatter died away as the Princesses approached them. "Oh," Daybreaker said with obvious displeasure, "my weaker self, and your weaker self, sister." "Could not have phrased that better myself," replied Nightmare Moon. "I thought I told you two that you don't exist," Celestia interrupted. "Ah, well, Celestia. This is your dream. This is your party. You invited me by dreaming about me. The same goes for our sister Nightmare Moon." "Our? Luna is my sister, but Nightmare Moon is a thing. So are you. By the way, you always get gatecrashers such as yourselves at popular parties. By the way, I'm curious. When did you make up for trying to kill each other?" "When you and Luna made up." "So you two are just more extreme versions of us." "I like that." "Then I should not have phrased it that way. What are you talking about?" "Later. Remember, this is a dream. Anything is possible. Including being myself." Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon disappeared. "Hey Luna," called Celestia, but she was gone. She was in Sunset's dream, which had turned into a nightmare. Sunset was at her coronation as the new Princess of Equestria, but she was making a fool of herself without meaning to and the crowd were laughing at her. A dream version of Celestia looked down at Sunset and said, "You are useless. Twilight Sparkle and Starlight Glimmer are so much better than you. You are an embarrassment. Have you learned nothing hiding from me in that other world?" Sunset tried to speak, but spat out teeth instead. "Hey Sunset," whispered Luna. Sunset turned to her. "Do you really think Celestia would do that to you? She's not real. This is a dream." The scene dissolved and the two alicorns found themselves on a cloud. Sunset was human, and was looking into a huge mirror. Her reflection was that of a huge winged troll. "Go away demon," Sunset told it. "No, I am part of you," it replied. "There is nothing you can do to get rid of me forever. I will always come back." Sunset turned into an alicorn. "You can't follow me into Equestria." The reflection changed. An ugly alicorn covered in orange scales stared back at her with beady black eyes. "Oh yes I can. I have big plans for both Equestria and the human place called Earth. Midnight Sparkle might even agree with me." "Ahem, Miss Demon Reflection," Luna said. The demon looked at her. "Now, demon, just because you can't be destroyed, it doesn't mean you cannot be locked away for a while." Luna made a box out of magic, took the demon out of the mirror, and shut the demon in the box. It tried to escape, but Luna made a padlock and locked the box. Sunset looked up at Luna. "Thanks," she said, "She kept bugging me. I'm nervous about being a princess. I feel like everypony expects me to be some heroic mare taller than Celestia, who wears armour made of rubies and could kick Tirek's head off if I wanted to. I'm not that kind of pony." Luna sat opposite Sunset. "Am I that kind of Pony? No. Is the job easy? No. Am I still a princess? Yes. Your demon is your worst enemy. You get dragged down. Maybe these wings will help you fly away from it." Sunset smiled. "Could you teach me? Twilight could, but sometimes you just need a break from your friends to stop being irritable." Luna's horn lit up and a huge blanket of clouds appeared below them. Sunset looked curious. "So if I fall, I fall onto that and bounce back up?" "Yes. Now, step back about ten paces, then take in a big breath and run forwards. Open your wings before you get to the end of the cloud. Then, when you jump off, flap them as hard as you can. This is a dream, so you're not actually flying, but that's how you do it in real life." Sunset stepped back, then ran forwards and unfolded her wings. She jumped off the cloud and fell and flapped her wings again and again and - Flew. "Sunset to Luna, I am airborne!" she yelled gleefully. "Coming in to land in three, two one-" Her hooves hit the cloud, but she kept moving and did a roly-poly before landing on her bottom. She laughed. It was one of the best moments of her life. AnxietiesSunset was nothing short of petrified. Her heart was pounding in her chest. Her breaths were short and rapid. She was wearing a beautiful cyan gown that matched her eyes, and she had seen the tiara that she would soon have placed on her head behind her horn. It was surreal, and she had no idea how she would survive it. Tears began to run down her cheeks as she thought of all the horrible things she had done to people and ponies alike before Twilight had shown her another way of living life successfully. Princess Sunset Shimmer, officially the worst princess, and the first to become an emotional wreck even before her coronation. Oh. My. God. Shut. Up! She was having another of her private battles with her demon. She bit her lip. What if it took over again? Ooh, yes, I will take over. One day. One day. I just need a chance. And how will you get that chance? You. The human Twilight. Celestia. Luna. We all have a plan. So Celestia, Luna, Twilight and I are all going to let you out. Really?! Yes. Stop crying and compose yourself, you're about to be declared one of the most powerful creatures in Equestria. Shut. Up. Please. I can't stand you any more. When we get a chance, we WILL take over. All of us have something in common. We all have a Nightmare Pony or person, a demon who helps us when we are vulnerable. I am your demon. I can take over, but only when you are vulnerable, either in real life or emotionally. Remember when you put on your friend Princess Twilight's crown? The magic could have killed you. I made sure that didn't happen. I saved your life. You should thank me. In your dreams. We have the same dreams. Ugh. Shush. Shut it. No. I want you to listen. "I said shut it!" she yelled. Twilight's head turned to look at Sunset with a mix of confusion and worry. "Nobody was talking, Sunset," she said. "Ugh, it's little Demon Shimmer." Sunset's horn lit up and a cyan bubble appeared. Sunset's demon, in human form, appeared inside the bubble. Sunset used her magic to place her demon in an empty jar. She placed the lid on the top, and bound it. Only Sunset could get it out again. "So Twilight," asked Sunset, "how do you do this whole coronation thing?" Twilight took a deep breath before telling her friend, "You have to smile and let Princess Celestia place the crown on your head. Then there's the worst bit: the speech." "Oh no. As a rule I don't do speeches. What do I say?" "You are the Princess of Independence. When I was crowned, I spoke about my friends. If I were you, I would speak about life on Earth - is it Earth? I forgot - and how you had to learn quickly to survive there. Mention your battle with your demon. Also, talk a bit about friendship with the people there. That should be sufficient." "You've stepped over the line. That's way too much." "The speech only has to be a minute long. Just include what you feel like including." A bugle sounded. "Oh hell," said Sunset. She was not looking forward to this, not one bit. Twilight enjoyed the look of nervousness on her friend's face as she thought of her own coronation not long ago. She made her way into the hall and stood next to her brother. Then the grand doors at the other end of the hall opened and Sunset Shimmer slowly walked down the centre. The Coronation of Princess Sunset ShimmerSunset walked slowly to the other end of the hall, where the other alicorns were standing. Cadence and her daughter Flurry Heart stood to the far left, next to Luna and Celestia. Shining Armour and Twilight were to Celestia's right. Music played. Sunset smiled at the ponies stood on either side of her. When she was in front of Celestia, she stopped and lowered her head a little. Celestia used her magic to guide a beautiful crown adorned with Sunset's cutie mark in jewels to her head. Sunset immediately felt its magic. All of the alicorns except Sunset turned around and guided her out of the hall to the balcony. Thousands of ponies stood below, looking up at them. At me, thought Sunset. "Fillies and gentlecolts," said Celestia, using magic to make her voice loud enough for everypony to hear, "today is a special day. Today, we have crowned a new princess. This is no ordinary princess, however. Sunset Shimmer is now the Princess of Independence, and the first to gain her alicorn magic outside of Equestria!" The crowds cheered. Celestia stopped using the spell on her voice and whispered to Sunset, "My independent little student. You have grown up so quickly." Celestia guided her forward. "Hello, everypony," Sunset began, unsure of what to say. She thought of an idea and grasped at it. "It is an honour to be here, telling all of you about my magic and becoming a princess. "I may be a princess now, but I am in no way comfortable with this." The crowd laughed. "Being independent doesn't mean that you do everything alone and refusing the help of others. It's about doing what you can on your own, and turning to others when you are struggling." She stopped smiling. "I wasn't a nice pony. I said and did things that I should not have done, and I lost friends over it. Then, when I needed help, I couldn't find anypony willing to help me. It was my fellow princess, Twilight Sparkle, who showed me how to live rather than survive. "I have been living in another universe for a while now. It has its differences, like the creatures that inhabit these worlds, and its similarities, like how friendship makes all the difference in both of these places. Independence is knowing that you have friends to fall back on, and that they will always be there for you. I would like to credit this new journey to some friends, the Sirens. They had been treated badly, and turned to dark magic to fight their attackers. I treated them the same. They helped me overcome my greatest enemy - myself - and that is how I earned my wings. I helped them get back to Equestria, and they helped me overcome my fear of returning. I would not be here if they had not taught me that your greatest enemy is not turning to anypony when you need to." She smiled again as she said this. That felt so good. The crowds of ponies cheered for their new princess. The alicorns made their way back into the hall, went back into the room behind the room full of ponies and closed the door, cutting off the cacophony. Celestia hugged Sunset. "Oh, Sunset Shimmer, I have missed you so much!" she cried. "I've missed you too, Princess Celestia," was all Sunset could say. "Good speech," said Twilight and Shining Armour, Cadence and Flurry Heart came over. "That went a lot better than I thought it would," she replied. "I've tried very hard to avoid crown since the whole demon event, but I couldn't outrun them forever." "Sunset!" said little Flurry Heart, flying around the new princess's head. "Now now, Flurry Heart, don't get too excited," Cadence told the filly. She turned to Sunset and her voice dropped to a whisper. "She's heard a lot about you from her Auntie Twilight. They get on really well. Don't tell Flurry, but in three weeks' time we'll be going on holiday." "I'm supposed to be on "holiday," but it's not very holidayish. I didn't realise that I would become Equestria's latest alicorn." Later that day, Sunset and Twilight returned to Ponyville. There were ponies everywhere, congratulating Sunset on becoming a princess. She smiled and said thank you very much and sighed in relief when the doors to the Castle of Friendship closed. "Whew, that was a day," she sighed. "I know," came Twilight's reply as they walked into the hall. It was dark. "Hey, who turned out the lights?" Sunset asked. She saw ponies trying to hide in the gloom. "Oh no, you ponies are throwing me a surprise party. I can see you," she told them, using her alicorn magic to light up the room. "SURPRISE!!!" yelled everypony except Sunset. "Not much of a surprise if you yell, "surprise" after I say that I've seen you!" "Of COURSE it is!" shouted Pinkie Pie, bouncing over, "because you didn't know that there actually was a surprise party UNTIL we confirmed that there was by yelling, "SURPRISE." We could have been pretending to be statues. Well, we had to be as silent and still as statues to make sure you didn't guess that we were throwing a surprise party, so maybe we were pretending to be statues, but it didn't work because some smart alicorn called Princess Sunset Shimmer managed to guess because some ponies were not hiding well enough but that doesn't matter because you were always going to know that there was a party when we told you..." "Er, Pinkie, take a breath." "Hhhhhhuuuuuuuuuuuh!" Pinkie gasped as she inhaled. "Oh my, they even have a cake with my cutie mark on." Sunset didn't want everypony to make a huge fuss, but could not help grinning despite herself. The party was a huge success and went on until midnight, when Sunset and Twilight started kicking ponies out so that they could get a good night's sleep. They had events planned, and only twelve days until Sunset had to return to Earth. DemonsDemon Shimmer grinned as she watched Sunset fall asleep. All she had to do is pop into Celestia's dreams to speak to Nightmare Moon and Daybreaker, then slip into the dreams of those ponies and people who have their own demons, and the plan would be ready. She disappeared into the dream realm. In this realm, she could escape from the jar that Sunset had sealed her inside. She was surrounded by what appeared to be bubbles. She saw Celestia in one of them and stepped into a meadow, where the sun shone brightly. She went up to the sun, where Daybreaker was hiding from Celestia. "Daybreaker, good to see you," she giggled. Daybreaker's fiery mane and tail had been tied in pastel-coloured ribbons, and she was in the process of repairing her damaged armour. "Sunburn, help me with the ribbons," the evil alicorn grunted. "Gladly." Sunburn Shimmer untied the ribbons in Daybreaker's mane and tail. The alicorn smiled. "In the world that Nightmare Moon and I are creating, demons shall rule. In one half, the sun shall shine for all eternity. In the other half, the moon and stars shall never leave. That way, my sister and I can get what we both want." "I have a slight complication." "Oh?" "Sunset took me out of her mind and sealed me in a jar." "How humiliating that my student got stuck in a jar. Rarity has been... Quieter, from what I have heard. She remains undetected. You could not keep silent for three seconds. Oh well. At least you can operate in the dream realm unnoticed. You could even slip into Sunset's dreams. As long as Sunset does not see you." "I shan't risk that. Besides, I need to know when is best." Nightmare Moon and Nightmare Rarity materialised. "Well, sister, this is interesting," said Nightmare Moon. "Sunburn has actually been of use." Sunburn gritted her teeth. "I can operate without detection. Luna, Celestia and Rarity know that you are doing something, but are too preoccupied to sort it out. I was just asking Daybreaker when would be best." "Hmm," said Rarity, "I would say... Next Wednesday. That is when the Moon and Sun will be in the right positions. Isn't that right, Queen Daybreaker?" "Yes. That is correct. Now, all of us must rally all the other known demons before then. The unknown ones shall follow when we take over Equestria. Friends, spread word, and meet on Wednesday morning." Eventually, Sunburn found the dreams of the human Twilight Sparkle. She flew to the full moon. "Midnight!" she hissed. Where was that demon? "Coming, coming," groaned Midnight. "What's up with you today?!" "Well, this demon doesn't exactly like talking to the demon of the person who ruined my plans." "I am Sunburn, not Sunset. We don't see eye to eye. I would have let you tear apart Earth to get to Equestria. Sunset had other plans." "Good ol' Sunset." "Next Wednesday, at dawn. It does happen at the same time on Earth, doesn't it?" "It does. It will be beautiful." "Good to hear that you approve." "Of course I approve! Eternal midnight! What is there to disapprove of?!" "Well, this is Midnight Sparkle, who does not like working with other demons." "Ah, good point. Still, there are several long-term gains to helping out, such as seeing and causing a lot of destruction, so I'm in." "Wednesday, at dawn. Be sure to have Twilight under control by then." "Coming from the demon who got banished from Sunset's mind. That is a problem for Queen Daybreaker and the Mare in the Moon." "Which I will solve. Curiosity killed the cat. Surely me sitting in that jar smiling for hours on end will make her curious as to why I am happy. Then I will take control." "Extreme magic?" "Summer Sun celebration. You'll be taking over then as well. Twilight wants to stay up. She'll be tired. When the Sun rises, she'll have to rely on magic to stay awake against the extreme sleeping potion that you will make sure she drinks an hour before sunrise." "Yes. Now run along, it's nearly dawn in Equestria. Dawn only collides in the two worlds at the Summer Sun celebration and Midwinter. I have a few minutes to get ready." "Bye Midnight." "Bye Sunburn." Sunset woke up in one of the guest bedrooms of Twilight's castle. It was a Sunday. Her demon sat there, in the jar on the bedside table, grinning like a maniac. No change there. "Listen, demon," Sunset told it as it turned around and pretended to sulk, "no amount of sulking, crying, pleading, looking bored or grinning manically like you have a plan, will get you out of that jar. You hear me?" It nodded. "Good. I need breakfast." She left the room, leaving Sunburn Shimmer to go back to grinning.
The Last Day of School and the First Day of ChaosTick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Big. Clock. So. Slow. Won't. Stop. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Equestria. Far. Away. Can't. Go. Not. Time. Tick. Tock... Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Sunset woke up suddenly and looked around the classroom. The teacher was droning on about some maths equation, but nobody was listening. The stifling heat of the summer day was making everyone sleepy, and they were all thinking about the summer holidays. Some would stay at home with their families, some would be going to foreign, exotic countries. Technically, Sunset was doing both. She had all her things ready at her bungalow for a nice long fortnight. She would spend her time with Twilight Sparkle and her friends, and visit Celestia in Canterlot. According to what was written in her journal, her pony friends needed a break as much as she did. "Miss Shimmer, would you be able to tell me the answer to this question or do you need to have a long nap during the holidays?" barked the teacher. The class broke out into laughter. "I'd much rather the second option, sir," she replied. "And you shouldn't snap at a student who saved your life from two angry demons a month ago." Now the class were laughing at him. "Fair enough, Shimmer. Next time you refuse to pay attention, I will give you holiday homework." "No can do, sir. I'll be going to Equestria to see the other Twilight Sparkle, and there's a lot of stuff we need to do. Plus, there aren't any pens. I could use a quill and ink, but the ink would seep through the pages of my book and destroy it." He sighed. "You are intelligent, Shimmer, I'll give you that. If only you put as much effort into your work as your," he hesitated, "magic." At the end of the school day, Sunset did not go straight to Equestria. She had to say goodbye to her friends. How to do that? Go to Sugarcube Corner and eat a donut each. They each talked about what they would be doing. Twilight would be going to a festival in a few days - which was held in the grounds of a university that specialised in science. Pinkie and her boyfriend Cloudy Sky were going on a cruise around the world. Rainbow Dash was going to run a marathon for charity, and Rarity and Fluttershy were going to support her before heading off on a horse-riding holiday. Applejack was spending the entire six weeks on the family farm. She didn't seem to mind. She was actually looking forward to it. Everyone was looking forward to the holidays. "So, how're you spendin' your 'oliday Sunset?" asked Applejack. "It's a surprise," she replied. "I know I'll spend most of my time in Ponyville, but I don't know what's in store. If I hazard a guess, the other Fluttershy will take me into the woods and the other Rarity will take me to the spa and get me into an amazing outfit for the party that the other Pinkie Pie has organised. The rest of the time will be spent relaxing," she sighed in relief and happiness. "Between fighting off two demons here - no offence to Pinkie and Cloudy-" "None taken," they said together. "Telling my own demon where it stands, and adjusting to the Dazzlings as friends, I could do with some relax-in-Equestria-with-my-other-friends time." "Speaking of the Dazzlings," said Rainbow Dash, "Will they be there?" Sunset bit her lip. "They have a schedule. I'm probably going to run into at least one of them. I hope it's Sonata, she still owes me a burrito. Let's see her face when she finds out how expensive eating out is in Canterlot." Everyone laughed. Sunset looked at the clock on the wall. "Dammit," she said, "gotta go. Twilight closes the portal in ten minutes. Rainbow, I might need a magic piggyback." "Nope. You'll break my back before the marathon. Well, you and your backpack." Everyone hugged and wished each other well. Sunset gave each of them a notebook. "They work in the same way as my journal. Not as big. Just for the holidays. When I'm in this world, we can use Skype or that stupid site Grapevine. Eight minutes. Bye." She ran out of the café. She took a taxi home. Three minutes. She scrawled in her journal, need 15 more minutes, then changed into a new outfit. Even though she would not be wearing them in Equestria, she didn't want to be in smelly clothes when she returned. She switched backpacks, and packed her journal and a notebook identical to her friends' ones into the new backpack. Her motorbike was in the garage, locked away and safe. In pony years, she would turn nineteen in August, so she was technically allowed to drive. She had passed her driving tests with ease, so by law it didn't matter. Twelve minutes. She hauled the backpack on, left the bungalow, locked the door and legged it back to Canterlot High School. Five minutes. She yelled a war cry and ran through the portal: a statue of a horse on its hind legs. All of a sudden she was in Equestria and everypony was screaming. She could not understand a word of what they were saying. She counted. Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Spike the dragon, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, Starswirl the Bearded, a pony called Starlight Glimmer she had once met, a yellow stallion with called Sunburst, Adagio Dazzle, Aria Blaze and Sonata Dusk ("Yes," she whispered), all with new necklaces. "Woah, what does any of that mean?" she yelled. Everyone instantly stopped screaming at each other. The problem: they stayed silent and did not tell her anything. "Are you going to let me stand here without a clue what's going on and looking like an idiot?" she shouted, flapping her huge yellow wings. Wings. She had wings. She was an alicorn. She was a princess. How in Starswirl's hat did she become an alicorn?!
Oh. My. Gosh. We. Have. A. New. Princess."Penny dropped yet?" asked Twilight, beginning to laugh as Sunset tried to work out how to use her wings. "Yeeeeaaaaaah," Sunset said slowly. "Wait. Summarise everything going through your head right now." "Oh. My. Gosh. We. Have. A. New. Princess." "Yeah I know - hang on! Just because I'm an alicorn, does it mean I have to be a princess?" "Yes. Get used to it." "You what?!" Celestia took over. "Twilight's right - all alicorns are royalty. This is a lot of alicorns at once - Shining Armour became an alicorn last month." This was news to Sunset. She gave Twilight an accusatory look. "You were supposed to tell me everything important that happens in Equestria and you couldn't be bothered to tell me that your brother is an alicorn too now." "Yes," Twilight apologised, "when I used all my magic to stop the battle between the Crystal Empire and the Dragon Lands, I may have been helped by my older brother. Nopony even noticed - he was wondering how long it would take anypony to spot them - until Princess Cadance brought it up. She said to him, "Look at your beautiful wings!" And that was that. He was already a prince, but we celebrated anyway because there hasn't been a male alicorn since King Cosmos. And he died - what, two thousand years ago?" "Two thousand, seven hundred and forty nine," Luna corrected. "I remember him like he died yesterday. Good old Dad." "Soooo," said Sunset,"do I have to have a coronation and a party and all that nonsense?" "Yes," answered Twilight. "Oh hell." The news managed to spread like wildfire. By the end of the day, everypony in Equestria knew about the future Princess Sunset Shimmer, Ambassador For The Human World. Including the voices inside Celestia and Luna's heads. There were no nightmares, so Luna walked into Celestia's dreams. They found their inner demons - Nightmare Moon, the evil version of Luna, and Daybreaker, the evil Celestia that Starlight Glimmer imagined - in deep conversation. Their chatter died away as the Princesses approached them. "Oh," Daybreaker said with obvious displeasure, "my weaker self, and your weaker self, sister." "Could not have phrased that better myself," replied Nightmare Moon. "I thought I told you two that you don't exist," Celestia interrupted. "Ah, well, Celestia. This is your dream. This is your party. You invited me by dreaming about me. The same goes for our sister Nightmare Moon." "Our? Luna is my sister, but Nightmare Moon is a thing. So are you. By the way, you always get gatecrashers such as yourselves at popular parties. By the way, I'm curious. When did you make up for trying to kill each other?" "When you and Luna made up." "So you two are just more extreme versions of us." "I like that." "Then I should not have phrased it that way. What are you talking about?" "Later. Remember, this is a dream. Anything is possible. Including being myself." Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon disappeared. "Hey Luna," called Celestia, but she was gone. She was in Sunset's dream, which had turned into a nightmare. Sunset was at her coronation as the new Princess of Equestria, but she was making a fool of herself without meaning to and the crowd were laughing at her. A dream version of Celestia looked down at Sunset and said, "You are useless. Twilight Sparkle and Starlight Glimmer are so much better than you. You are an embarrassment. Have you learned nothing hiding from me in that other world?" Sunset tried to speak, but spat out teeth instead. "Hey Sunset," whispered Luna. Sunset turned to her. "Do you really think Celestia would do that to you? She's not real. This is a dream." The scene dissolved and the two alicorns found themselves on a cloud. Sunset was human, and was looking into a huge mirror. Her reflection was that of a huge winged troll. "Go away demon," Sunset told it. "No, I am part of you," it replied. "There is nothing you can do to get rid of me forever. I will always come back." Sunset turned into an alicorn. "You can't follow me into Equestria." The reflection changed. An ugly alicorn covered in orange scales stared back at her with beady black eyes. "Oh yes I can. I have big plans for both Equestria and the human place called Earth. Midnight Sparkle might even agree with me." "Ahem, Miss Demon Reflection," Luna said. The demon looked at her. "Now, demon, just because you can't be destroyed, it doesn't mean you cannot be locked away for a while." Luna made a box out of magic, took the demon out of the mirror, and shut the demon in the box. It tried to escape, but Luna made a padlock and locked the box. Sunset looked up at Luna. "Thanks," she said, "She kept bugging me. I'm nervous about being a princess. I feel like everypony expects me to be some heroic mare taller than Celestia, who wears armour made of rubies and could kick Tirek's head off if I wanted to. I'm not that kind of pony." Luna sat opposite Sunset. "Am I that kind of Pony? No. Is the job easy? No. Am I still a princess? Yes. Your demon is your worst enemy. You get dragged down. Maybe these wings will help you fly away from it." Sunset smiled. "Could you teach me? Twilight could, but sometimes you just need a break from your friends to stop being irritable." Luna's horn lit up and a huge blanket of clouds appeared below them. Sunset looked curious. "So if I fall, I fall onto that and bounce back up?" "Yes. Now, step back about ten paces, then take in a big breath and run forwards. Open your wings before you get to the end of the cloud. Then, when you jump off, flap them as hard as you can. This is a dream, so you're not actually flying, but that's how you do it in real life." Sunset stepped back, then ran forwards and unfolded her wings. She jumped off the cloud and fell and flapped her wings again and again and - Flew. "Sunset to Luna, I am airborne!" she yelled gleefully. "Coming in to land in three, two one-" Her hooves hit the cloud, but she kept moving and did a roly-poly before landing on her bottom. She laughed. It was one of the best moments of her life.
AnxietiesSunset was nothing short of petrified. Her heart was pounding in her chest. Her breaths were short and rapid. She was wearing a beautiful cyan gown that matched her eyes, and she had seen the tiara that she would soon have placed on her head behind her horn. It was surreal, and she had no idea how she would survive it. Tears began to run down her cheeks as she thought of all the horrible things she had done to people and ponies alike before Twilight had shown her another way of living life successfully. Princess Sunset Shimmer, officially the worst princess, and the first to become an emotional wreck even before her coronation. Oh. My. God. Shut. Up! She was having another of her private battles with her demon. She bit her lip. What if it took over again? Ooh, yes, I will take over. One day. One day. I just need a chance. And how will you get that chance? You. The human Twilight. Celestia. Luna. We all have a plan. So Celestia, Luna, Twilight and I are all going to let you out. Really?! Yes. Stop crying and compose yourself, you're about to be declared one of the most powerful creatures in Equestria. Shut. Up. Please. I can't stand you any more. When we get a chance, we WILL take over. All of us have something in common. We all have a Nightmare Pony or person, a demon who helps us when we are vulnerable. I am your demon. I can take over, but only when you are vulnerable, either in real life or emotionally. Remember when you put on your friend Princess Twilight's crown? The magic could have killed you. I made sure that didn't happen. I saved your life. You should thank me. In your dreams. We have the same dreams. Ugh. Shush. Shut it. No. I want you to listen. "I said shut it!" she yelled. Twilight's head turned to look at Sunset with a mix of confusion and worry. "Nobody was talking, Sunset," she said. "Ugh, it's little Demon Shimmer." Sunset's horn lit up and a cyan bubble appeared. Sunset's demon, in human form, appeared inside the bubble. Sunset used her magic to place her demon in an empty jar. She placed the lid on the top, and bound it. Only Sunset could get it out again. "So Twilight," asked Sunset, "how do you do this whole coronation thing?" Twilight took a deep breath before telling her friend, "You have to smile and let Princess Celestia place the crown on your head. Then there's the worst bit: the speech." "Oh no. As a rule I don't do speeches. What do I say?" "You are the Princess of Independence. When I was crowned, I spoke about my friends. If I were you, I would speak about life on Earth - is it Earth? I forgot - and how you had to learn quickly to survive there. Mention your battle with your demon. Also, talk a bit about friendship with the people there. That should be sufficient." "You've stepped over the line. That's way too much." "The speech only has to be a minute long. Just include what you feel like including." A bugle sounded. "Oh hell," said Sunset. She was not looking forward to this, not one bit. Twilight enjoyed the look of nervousness on her friend's face as she thought of her own coronation not long ago. She made her way into the hall and stood next to her brother. Then the grand doors at the other end of the hall opened and Sunset Shimmer slowly walked down the centre.
The Coronation of Princess Sunset ShimmerSunset walked slowly to the other end of the hall, where the other alicorns were standing. Cadence and her daughter Flurry Heart stood to the far left, next to Luna and Celestia. Shining Armour and Twilight were to Celestia's right. Music played. Sunset smiled at the ponies stood on either side of her. When she was in front of Celestia, she stopped and lowered her head a little. Celestia used her magic to guide a beautiful crown adorned with Sunset's cutie mark in jewels to her head. Sunset immediately felt its magic. All of the alicorns except Sunset turned around and guided her out of the hall to the balcony. Thousands of ponies stood below, looking up at them. At me, thought Sunset. "Fillies and gentlecolts," said Celestia, using magic to make her voice loud enough for everypony to hear, "today is a special day. Today, we have crowned a new princess. This is no ordinary princess, however. Sunset Shimmer is now the Princess of Independence, and the first to gain her alicorn magic outside of Equestria!" The crowds cheered. Celestia stopped using the spell on her voice and whispered to Sunset, "My independent little student. You have grown up so quickly." Celestia guided her forward. "Hello, everypony," Sunset began, unsure of what to say. She thought of an idea and grasped at it. "It is an honour to be here, telling all of you about my magic and becoming a princess. "I may be a princess now, but I am in no way comfortable with this." The crowd laughed. "Being independent doesn't mean that you do everything alone and refusing the help of others. It's about doing what you can on your own, and turning to others when you are struggling." She stopped smiling. "I wasn't a nice pony. I said and did things that I should not have done, and I lost friends over it. Then, when I needed help, I couldn't find anypony willing to help me. It was my fellow princess, Twilight Sparkle, who showed me how to live rather than survive. "I have been living in another universe for a while now. It has its differences, like the creatures that inhabit these worlds, and its similarities, like how friendship makes all the difference in both of these places. Independence is knowing that you have friends to fall back on, and that they will always be there for you. I would like to credit this new journey to some friends, the Sirens. They had been treated badly, and turned to dark magic to fight their attackers. I treated them the same. They helped me overcome my greatest enemy - myself - and that is how I earned my wings. I helped them get back to Equestria, and they helped me overcome my fear of returning. I would not be here if they had not taught me that your greatest enemy is not turning to anypony when you need to." She smiled again as she said this. That felt so good. The crowds of ponies cheered for their new princess. The alicorns made their way back into the hall, went back into the room behind the room full of ponies and closed the door, cutting off the cacophony. Celestia hugged Sunset. "Oh, Sunset Shimmer, I have missed you so much!" she cried. "I've missed you too, Princess Celestia," was all Sunset could say. "Good speech," said Twilight and Shining Armour, Cadence and Flurry Heart came over. "That went a lot better than I thought it would," she replied. "I've tried very hard to avoid crown since the whole demon event, but I couldn't outrun them forever." "Sunset!" said little Flurry Heart, flying around the new princess's head. "Now now, Flurry Heart, don't get too excited," Cadence told the filly. She turned to Sunset and her voice dropped to a whisper. "She's heard a lot about you from her Auntie Twilight. They get on really well. Don't tell Flurry, but in three weeks' time we'll be going on holiday." "I'm supposed to be on "holiday," but it's not very holidayish. I didn't realise that I would become Equestria's latest alicorn." Later that day, Sunset and Twilight returned to Ponyville. There were ponies everywhere, congratulating Sunset on becoming a princess. She smiled and said thank you very much and sighed in relief when the doors to the Castle of Friendship closed. "Whew, that was a day," she sighed. "I know," came Twilight's reply as they walked into the hall. It was dark. "Hey, who turned out the lights?" Sunset asked. She saw ponies trying to hide in the gloom. "Oh no, you ponies are throwing me a surprise party. I can see you," she told them, using her alicorn magic to light up the room. "SURPRISE!!!" yelled everypony except Sunset. "Not much of a surprise if you yell, "surprise" after I say that I've seen you!" "Of COURSE it is!" shouted Pinkie Pie, bouncing over, "because you didn't know that there actually was a surprise party UNTIL we confirmed that there was by yelling, "SURPRISE." We could have been pretending to be statues. Well, we had to be as silent and still as statues to make sure you didn't guess that we were throwing a surprise party, so maybe we were pretending to be statues, but it didn't work because some smart alicorn called Princess Sunset Shimmer managed to guess because some ponies were not hiding well enough but that doesn't matter because you were always going to know that there was a party when we told you..." "Er, Pinkie, take a breath." "Hhhhhhuuuuuuuuuuuh!" Pinkie gasped as she inhaled. "Oh my, they even have a cake with my cutie mark on." Sunset didn't want everypony to make a huge fuss, but could not help grinning despite herself. The party was a huge success and went on until midnight, when Sunset and Twilight started kicking ponies out so that they could get a good night's sleep. They had events planned, and only twelve days until Sunset had to return to Earth.
DemonsDemon Shimmer grinned as she watched Sunset fall asleep. All she had to do is pop into Celestia's dreams to speak to Nightmare Moon and Daybreaker, then slip into the dreams of those ponies and people who have their own demons, and the plan would be ready. She disappeared into the dream realm. In this realm, she could escape from the jar that Sunset had sealed her inside. She was surrounded by what appeared to be bubbles. She saw Celestia in one of them and stepped into a meadow, where the sun shone brightly. She went up to the sun, where Daybreaker was hiding from Celestia. "Daybreaker, good to see you," she giggled. Daybreaker's fiery mane and tail had been tied in pastel-coloured ribbons, and she was in the process of repairing her damaged armour. "Sunburn, help me with the ribbons," the evil alicorn grunted. "Gladly." Sunburn Shimmer untied the ribbons in Daybreaker's mane and tail. The alicorn smiled. "In the world that Nightmare Moon and I are creating, demons shall rule. In one half, the sun shall shine for all eternity. In the other half, the moon and stars shall never leave. That way, my sister and I can get what we both want." "I have a slight complication." "Oh?" "Sunset took me out of her mind and sealed me in a jar." "How humiliating that my student got stuck in a jar. Rarity has been... Quieter, from what I have heard. She remains undetected. You could not keep silent for three seconds. Oh well. At least you can operate in the dream realm unnoticed. You could even slip into Sunset's dreams. As long as Sunset does not see you." "I shan't risk that. Besides, I need to know when is best." Nightmare Moon and Nightmare Rarity materialised. "Well, sister, this is interesting," said Nightmare Moon. "Sunburn has actually been of use." Sunburn gritted her teeth. "I can operate without detection. Luna, Celestia and Rarity know that you are doing something, but are too preoccupied to sort it out. I was just asking Daybreaker when would be best." "Hmm," said Rarity, "I would say... Next Wednesday. That is when the Moon and Sun will be in the right positions. Isn't that right, Queen Daybreaker?" "Yes. That is correct. Now, all of us must rally all the other known demons before then. The unknown ones shall follow when we take over Equestria. Friends, spread word, and meet on Wednesday morning." Eventually, Sunburn found the dreams of the human Twilight Sparkle. She flew to the full moon. "Midnight!" she hissed. Where was that demon? "Coming, coming," groaned Midnight. "What's up with you today?!" "Well, this demon doesn't exactly like talking to the demon of the person who ruined my plans." "I am Sunburn, not Sunset. We don't see eye to eye. I would have let you tear apart Earth to get to Equestria. Sunset had other plans." "Good ol' Sunset." "Next Wednesday, at dawn. It does happen at the same time on Earth, doesn't it?" "It does. It will be beautiful." "Good to hear that you approve." "Of course I approve! Eternal midnight! What is there to disapprove of?!" "Well, this is Midnight Sparkle, who does not like working with other demons." "Ah, good point. Still, there are several long-term gains to helping out, such as seeing and causing a lot of destruction, so I'm in." "Wednesday, at dawn. Be sure to have Twilight under control by then." "Coming from the demon who got banished from Sunset's mind. That is a problem for Queen Daybreaker and the Mare in the Moon." "Which I will solve. Curiosity killed the cat. Surely me sitting in that jar smiling for hours on end will make her curious as to why I am happy. Then I will take control." "Extreme magic?" "Summer Sun celebration. You'll be taking over then as well. Twilight wants to stay up. She'll be tired. When the Sun rises, she'll have to rely on magic to stay awake against the extreme sleeping potion that you will make sure she drinks an hour before sunrise." "Yes. Now run along, it's nearly dawn in Equestria. Dawn only collides in the two worlds at the Summer Sun celebration and Midwinter. I have a few minutes to get ready." "Bye Midnight." "Bye Sunburn." Sunset woke up in one of the guest bedrooms of Twilight's castle. It was a Sunday. Her demon sat there, in the jar on the bedside table, grinning like a maniac. No change there. "Listen, demon," Sunset told it as it turned around and pretended to sulk, "no amount of sulking, crying, pleading, looking bored or grinning manically like you have a plan, will get you out of that jar. You hear me?" It nodded. "Good. I need breakfast." She left the room, leaving Sunburn Shimmer to go back to grinning.
