Marceline's Sun

Chapters

Chapter 01: Blue Harvest
Chapter 03: Reopening Wounds
Chapter 04: Miss Cellophane
Chapter 05: Riddle Me This
Chapter 02: Better Off Dead

Chapter 01: Blue Harvest

Marceline's Sun

Chapter 01: Blue Harvest

By Wanderer D

Canterlot High's walls crawled with darkness, the inky, sticky and fluid type of darkness that crawled like goo out of the depths of the void. Lightning split the night for a second, and stumbling figures could be seen, wading through the miasma, struggling to lift covered arms and hands, forcing mouths open, their lips like splitting drying glue as gasps for help escaped the orifices that passed for mouths.

Voices echoed, judging and bitter resonating across the entire world.

"She really scared me and laughed about it, I don't want her around. She should pay for what she's done! I want to feel safe!"

Sunset turned around, floating in the sky as lightning crossed above her, highlighting seconds of spinning clouds.

"Hello?" she called, but the only answer was the howling of the wind, voices singing with unknown words she couldn't make out, and a slow, pulsating red glow menacingly giving shape to the darkness around her, crawling to grasp her.

She heard her own voice suddenly, crystal clear against the background of moans and cries of pain: "I never knew there was another way! I'm sorry!"

She turned and gasped at the tombstone that had suddenly materialized in front of her.She stood on dried grass, staring down at the dirty stone, in front of which lay her old diary, rotting, the emblem of her cutie mark stained and rusting as the elements, time, and exposure had done their work on it. No flowers decorated the otherwise empty ground in front of it, and it was only adorned with a single mark: the yin-yang sun of her cutie mark and the date of the Prom.

She stared at her grave, aghast, until a cacophony of voices behind her made her twirl around. "We will never forgive you."

In front of her, the entirety of the student body stood, eyes cold, as she was blasted by a rainbow, and unwilling to listen to her cries as the world was torn around her; as her body disintegrated into specs of light.

The last thing she recognized was Twilight Sparkle, a sorrowful look in her eyes as she spoke one last time to her.

"I'm sorry. I tried to help them see."

Sunset sighed. "I'm sorry too."

"I'm a monster, Marcy."

Marceline glanced at the demon—her adoptive sister—who lay sprawled on her back next to her. Wings, arms and legs stretched as she stared up at the night sky. Sunset's lips were pressed together, and her eyes were wide as she contemplated the weight of her own admission. Even after all this time, it surprised the vampire how her sister's wavy mane and tail did not burn everything around them… given they were made out of fire.

Below the hill where they had sat down to nap/watch the rest of the open air concert happening outside the forest while they waited for their turn. It was a pretty good crowd too; party bears had arrived early on and were not giving any signs of stopping. They had seen people from the Candy Kingdom come up, and even some ghosts.

Marceline thought about Sunset's comment, then tried to guess the reason. "Eating the last of the chocolate-covered berry mushrooms does not make you a monster, Sunny." She shrugged. "Cruel, yes. Sadistic? Definitely. A monster? Eeeh."

Sunset refused to look at her, stubbornly focusing her eyes on the moon. "Sure it does, did you see how distraught that little ghost baby was when they had none left?"

Marceline rolled her eyes. "Dude, it would have just gone through their body. It's not like they can really eat them."

The other girl blinked. "Oh." She sat up. "I guess that makes sense."

Marceline snorted. "Why are you even worried about that kind of thing, Sunny? We're Alicorn Fall, we're sort of supposed to not be nice at all."

Sunset gave her a sidelong glance. "Really."

"Hey, it's all part of the presentation, we can be our normal anti-hero selves later." Marceline punched Sunset on the shoulder. "Marceline: the Vampire Queen cannot be seen with her sister moping around. What will the fans think?"

"Sorry, sorry," Sunset groaned, reaching over to pick her guitar up. She got into a more comfortable position and strummed it. "I just… I fell asleep for a bit... I had the dream again."

"Oh." Marceline felt a pang of worry in her chest, but quickly made sure it didn't show. Sunset's dreams had plagued her the first few years they had been traveling together, until finally they had faded for a long time after Marceline's transformation into a vampire.

But even then, Sunset would occasionally fall back into them, and suffer nightmares of her previous life… the weight of being hated and judged and wished dead for her mistakes sometimes turning her into a small, shivering wreck of a demon, crying in her sleep and asking to be forgiven.

It usually ended with several days of sulking and creative blockage that had complicated more than one gig. Still, her sister took precedence, so Marceline took a deep breath and turned her now-blank and totally-not-telling face to glance at the group of pastries playing what had to be the sappiest, sweetest, most cavity-inducing attempt at pop.

She could already see the crowd was ready to run them out, so that meant they only had one more set before it was their turn. They should be going down there now. "We could just bail, you know?"

Sunset grimaced. "Hell no. This is the big break, remember?"

"Eh. Screw them. It's just another contest. We can come back next year. Or wait a hundred and come back when all the judges are dead. We literally have all the time in the world." She said each word with as much conviction as she could, although it was clear that Sunset wasn't buying it.

"Marcy," Sunset said, "I know how important this is for you." She sighed and stood up, her black, steel-studded boots glinting in the moonlight. "Let's go shred some tunes," she added, turning to offer her hand.

Marceline grinned and took it, pulling herself up to hover a couple of feet off the ground. "Let's make sure they never forget it!" She squeezed Sunset's hand and headed down to prepare.

Guitar riffs, screaming crowds, and songs about their failures, their fears, their almost humiliating attempts at reaching out to others. Marceline started strumming the rhythm, floating back and Sunset stepped forth for her own song:

Let's go to that place
where you messed up your life
and your heart got turned around
and it's there, lying in pieces

That everyone hates,
and everyone forgets
and everyone judges and
everyone gets

What they want,
it just takes your life
with no chance to turn around
and you're there, lying in pieces

When you're gone,
the light shines
in the dead eyes that
everyone gets

And you're gone,
and all the good people cheer
and all the good people sneer
and all the good people
are there, lying in pieces!

Sunset glanced over her shoulder, moving her wing just right to allow her to smile at Marceline, who grinned in return as launched into her sweep-pick and the drummer hit the last beats.

The crowd roared around them, the sheer energy almost enough to lift away the bitterness left over from her dream earlier that day. She basked in the adulation, stepping to the side so Marceline could take center stage.

Her smile froze when her sister did, bowing and grinning at the crowd. She could see the marks the Vampire King had left on her neck… another failure to add to the many she had. And even if it had been several hundred years since she'd returned to find her sister changed, she still felt responsible for not being there.

Mareline caught her staring and rolled her eyes, taking her hand and forcing her to bow to their audience before a ghost with a bowtie floated up to them to shoo them off the stage to much abuse from the audience.

Sunset gave the next band—a group of lanky wood creatures with equally rural instruments—a thumbs up. "Good luck up there, fellas!"

The lead singer, a racoon with a straw hat, shook his head and motioned for the others to follow him. She felt slightly guilty again. It wasn't her fault that they had been put before these guys, but they'd had a tough time playing banjos to a crowd that had not only survived but embraced hers and Marceline's brand of crazy.

She winced when something cracked behind her, sounding suspiciously like a banjo on someone's head, but refused to look back.

Once they were out of the crowd, Marceline rounded on her. "Hey, I thought you said you understood that what happened to me was not your fault."

Sunset winced. "Sorry… it's just—"

"Nothing." Marceline interrupted, poking Sunset in the chest with her finger. "If anything, it's my fault for letting Simon exile you into the Nightosphere."

Sunset batted Marceline's hand aside with a noncommittal grunt. "You couldn't have known he was going to do that."

"Yeah, well, you couldn't have known I'd run into a bunch of vampires while you were trapped." Marceline crossed her arms and smirked.

Sunset chuckled. "Fine, fine." She drew Marceline into a tight hug. "I just get anxious about that. Especially after the dreams. They bring back… all the things I did before I met you… and all the things I failed at since. I know you went through a lot before, and I didn't want to add to it…." She leaned into her sister's hair. "I thought… I thought I'd come out of there and you'd be old… or dead."

"You've never failed me." The vampire leaned in, hugging Sunset close, then pulled back after a tight squeeze. "Well, now we're both immortal, and honestly, I love being a vampire." She tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Alright, enough of the mushy stuff, let's go find a place to crash. It's almost morning."

No…

"She'd better stay away from us from now on!"

"Ah think we'd be better off without her."

"I hope this magic sends her away. And good riddance!"

"I don't want her around. I want to feel safe!"

"She-she's gone! What did you do?!"

The voices echoed in the void around her, four of them blasting her with their hatred, and one, horrified, pleading with them.

"We could have purified her of the magical corruption, teach her another way!" Twilight cried.

"Forget it, Twilight. She's gone, and I can't say I'm sad about it." Rainbow Dash's voice countered.

Sunset was suddenly floating above a smoking crater outside the front of Canterlot High. Rarity, Flutershy, Applejack and Rainbow Dash all stood around it next to Twilight Sparkle as the other students slowly emerged out of the building, now freed from her spell.

This had happened hundreds of years ago, and still their voices and hate haunted her as if it had just taken place the previous night.

"The magic of friendship is intended to heal—to help people change!" Twilight said, turning to all of the students. "It works on the principle that we all have some good inside of us! And together we can bring out the best in each other! Sunset could have been your friend, but you—you'd rather see her dead than give her a chance! What sort of monsters are you?"

"She tried to shoot magic fireballs at us, Twilight!" Applejack retorted. "And y'all might say that the magic corrupted her, but it was her or us, and she never made an effort to be nice to us. We owe her nothing."

"I'm sorry, Darling, but I do believe that the only reason you wanted to extend your hand at her was because you're the same species, rather than—

SLAP!

Twilight flinched and closed her eyes, holding her hand and visibly controlling herself before she spoke again, slowly and coldly. "Everypony should at least get a second chance. If they ignore that, then maybe they're not worth befriending. But when you had the chance to be better, to reach out and save somepony from themselves, you chose to kill them." She shook her head. "Come on, Spike, let's leave this place and never come back. They deserve whatever happens to them next."

Sunset sat up, eyes wide and breathing heavy. She shook her head, raising a claw to her forehead. Nearby, Marceline slept on her side, hugging Hambo tightly. She rolled out of her bed and stumbled as silently as she could out of the dark room, closing the door behind her.

The glare of the sun stung her eyes, and she flinched back before they adjusted and she was able to make out the trees around her. The Forest House Inn was one of her favorite places to spend time in the Land of Ooo. Most of the locals were friendly, and those that weren't… well, she and Marceline had a reputation for kicking ass for a reason.

She took a deep breath, enjoying the morning breeze as she ambled over to sit down at a wooden table next to the large group of trees that had grown together into the house. She sighed, smiling in gratitude as a small sapling wobbled up to her and set down some bread and juice for her. "Thank you."

She waited until she was alone before sighing and dragging a hand down her face. "Why now? After a hundred years they're all dead. They have to be. They're just human."

"Ah!" a nearby bush screamed, "Your hair is on fire!"

"What?! Oh." She pulled her flaming hair back with her claw, extinguishing the flames and returning the look to her old, wavy hair. "Sorry, that happens when I'm upset…" she called out to the rapidly distancing shrub.

It had taken her ages to get her hair down to looking normal, instead of what she liked to call "the angry Saiyan" much to Marceline's confusion over the years. "I've grown." She insisted, shaking her head. "I'm not… who I used to be. Why am I having these dreams again after so long?"

The top ice cube in her juice clicked against the glass.

"And even if they weren't… they wouldn't want me back." She glanced down at her claws. "Then why do I feel like I need to do something? Like someone there needs my help?"

The forest was quiet, save for the distant chirping of birds, and the wind rustling the leaves in the trees. It wasn't like she expected an answer anyway. She shook her head, thinking back on what the Elements of Harmony had said to her centuries ago.

Her chance for forgiveness was gone. The last humans died away while she was stuck in this world's hell, and by the time she was out, Marceline was a vampire, and had lived on her own for almost ten years. Honestly, her sister was more important to her than obtaining the forgiveness of people that'd rather see her dead than see if she could change.

She had caused them a lot of pain, and now she was out of their lives because when the chance had come, they had proven to be no better than her and basically killed her for all they knew. Both sides won. Difference was, she regretted her actions, and if her dreams were true visions, well, they didn't. Her redemption, if it ever came, would not be from the human world of Canterlot High, or from the ponies of Equestria.

It would come from her friends here, and from her sister. If it was even necessary at this stage. Because, if Sunset was honest with herself, she didn't care whether it happened or not, as long as she and Marceline got to spend time together exploring this Land of Ooo.

Her old life as a pony and then as a human was long gone. She had outlived that by a thousand plus years of being a demon (longer if she counted the dilated time spent in the Nightosphere), and she had a good thing going on here.

She hadn't even bullied a single creature since her start in this world. Well… kicking ass didn't count as bullying if she was saving people right? She had changed more than just in species. She had fully embraced her new chance… and even if the Elements of Harmony had wanted that change to happen in Canterlot High, it was too late now. Her home was here, and she had grown as a person here.

She held her head with both claws as she rested her elbows on the table and groaned.

"More juice?" one of the sapling waiters asked, filling up the glass without waiting for an answer, only to meep in panic when Sunset picked him up and brought him up to her face with a manic look. "I already went over all of this soul-searching bs. Why again? Why now?"

Her question was answered by a distant crack. Sunset frowned and looked up to the clear skies. She could see a swirling portal of blue-white light had suddenly materialized high up ahead. Out of it fell two humanoid creatures in an uncontrolled, but inevitable date with the hard ground.

Sunset sipped her juice.

"Um…" The sapling, who was still being held in place by one of her claws, pointed up at the falling figures. "Aren't you going to help them?"

Sunset glanced at it, then at the woodland creatures, and other humanoids around that were giving her judgemental looks. She sighed, letting the sapling go. "Fine."

She put down her glass, then stretched her wings, pushing off with a powerful leap to gain speed quickly as her magic helped raise her into the air. Once she was above the Forest House Inn, she flapped her wings hard, magical fire flashing in their wake as she accelerated, dodging flying birds on her way.

When she was close enough to the falling figures, she pulled a quick loop around them and matched their speed to grab one of the figures, then the other by the arm and pulling up enough so she could hold them tightly by the waist while their arms were around her shoulders.

Once both were firmly under control, she spread her wings again, allowing the air to help her slow their descent until she was hovering a couple of feet above the soft grass outside the Inn and could safely drop them onto the ground. A couple of animals ran up to check on the unconscious humans, just as she covered her mouth, not quite believing what she was seeing.

"Put them all together in a room…" she ordered one of the Inn's staff. "I'll watch over them."

Marceline yawned and stretched in her bed for a few seconds before nimbly sitting up the exact moment the sun was gone from the horizon. She rolled her shoulders and glanced around the room, her eyes scanning for her sister and their guitars, finding the latter, but not seeing the former.

A flash of worry crossed her mind before she forced herself to calm down. "Just because she's not here, it doesn't mean dad kidnapped her again."

She floated up and went out of the room, searching for Sunset. When she spotted a gingerbread man and a lemon tart making their way through the hall, she floated up to them, tapping their shoulders and quickly turning invisible when they turned, floated up and around them, and materialized behind them.

"Hey."

"Aaaah!"

She grinned a fanged smile at the cowering couple, chuckling evilly and looming over the cowering pair before relaxing into a more normal expression. "Hey guys! I'm looking for my sister. Red. Tall. Hair on fire. Wings. Tail?"

"O-oh…" the tart said, gulping, "y-yeah, her! We saw her!"

The gingerbread man nodded quickly. "Y-yeah! Uh, I think she went into one of the rooms near the entrance."

"Thanks!"

Marceline flew away from the shivering candy people and towards the entrance, where the fox lady attending the front desk recognized her and pointed her to another, nearby room. She didn't bother knocking, not hearing any noise inside, and found her sister sitting while two humans slept on the beds.

For a moment, she panicked, thinking back to when Sunset had confided in her long ago about the magical items that had trapped her in this world, and how she needed to earn some sort of forgiveness from humans to be able to go back. But Sunset's look wasn't hopeful, or resolute. If anything, it was as if she was scared of them.

"Hey." Sunset didn't look at her, keeping her eyes on the sleeping women, as if she expected them to suddenly jump and bite her.

"Hey yourself." Marceline hovered over each human, studying them, before turning to look at Sunset with a blank expression. "So?" She motioned at the unconscious pair with her hands. "What's the deal?"

Before Sunset could answer, one of the women groaned and slowly opened her eyes. Then, she immediately sat upright, glancing around in a panic before recognizing the girl beside her. She took in the room before her eyes centered first on Marceline, who gave her a toothy smile, and then went over to her sister.

"S-Sunset Shimmer…" the woman spoke, eyes widening and growing progressively wetter by the second. "Y-you're alive!"

End Chapter

Chapter 03: Reopening Wounds

Marceline's Sun

Chapter 03: Reopening Wounds

By Wanderer D

Fluttershy walked around the Forest Inn, taking in the exotic wildlife. These animals were generally much more sentient than the ones back home. Some spoke, while others acted as expected. There were several that were mutated versions of the ones she knew, but there didn't seem to be any malice in them.

She sighed, wrapping her arms around herself and looked around. She spotted a bench near a bed of flowers, and made her way there, sitting down and staring at the forest.

Sunset Shimmer was alive. Alive and happy, apparently, which made her feel… odd. There had been relief… after all, if Sunset Shimmer was alive—they hadn't murdered her at all! But then there was fear... and then anger.

Fluttershy's fingers curled into frustrated fists.

Why was she living a happy life here while they suffered? Why did the girl that bullied her and her friends, scared the crap out of her and other students, who broke friendships over and over in the most cruel way possible… get to have a good life here in a world of magic and fancy that she could have never imagined?

She hugged herself tighter and took a deep breath. "I shouldn't think about those things. I should be happy she's alive and well."

But it hurt. It hurt that she was so angry. It hurt that Sunset could be happy and Fluttershy didn't even know if her friends were okay, or even alive. She knew on some level, she shouldn't hold it against Sunset that she had made a life away from Canterlot City. She had been blasted out of there by her and her friends… and Twilight. And! It didn't look like she was up to her old… self either.

"You really don't want to help them?"

The voice of the vampire, Marceline, made Fluttershy start. She looked around, but there was no-one else outside. She glanced above herself, at the round window just above and behind her.

"Oh no…" she whispered. She was right outside their room! Should she run?

"It's complicated," Sunset's voice answered before Fluttershy could make up her mind. "I don't want them to suffer but… they made their stance clear on whether they wanted me there or not."

"Come on, that was ages ago."

As Fluttershy reconsidered whether she should stay or go—after all, Sunset was talking about helping her and Principal Celestia—someone strummed a guitar. The melody was melancholic, just like Sunset's voice as she started singing.

"You say… that I'm nothing but a monster…"

"Sunset."

"Nothing but a monster. Feelin's just a rollercoaster…"

"Seriously?"

The tune picked up in tempo. "But I didn't want you dead! And so you killed me instead…"

"We've talked about this song, and it's just as bad now as it was six hundred years ago."

A sudden metal twist to it. "With a rainbow of dread!"

"Seriously though," Marceline's voice was now mixed with laughter.

"Soo now, I'll just bang my head, to the rhythm of… death! And whisper your name, like I'm nailed to my bed!"

Another guitar strummed in, accompanied by Marceline's voice. "And get all the fame, because it's all worth some lead, to take me down—"

"—to the edge of town! And sleep with the fish!"

"They make a nice dish!"

"Really?" Sunset asked.

"Told you the song sucked," Marceline countered. "Is it even a song?"

"And the pain in my heart, this song from the start, an hymn to pain… a tune to regret, and I want to forget… and a thousand years just gone… like a Band-Aid just torn, and then I'm exposed like-like…" Sunset's voice broke and the guitars stopped.

Fluttershy could imagine Marceline putting down her guitar and going to sit next to Sunset. It made her feel uncomfortable, that the bully that had caused her so much pain could also be in pain.

She wanted to stand up and scream at her that she didn't have a right to feel bad or miserable when she was the reason behind so much hate… and that just made her feel worse about herself.

About what they had almost done.

But she didn't stand up or scream. 'I don't have the guts,' she thought miserably as the conversation among monsters continued uninterrupted.

"Hey."

"I know I'm being stupid. I'm sorry, Marcy."

"No, you're not being stupid. You have a right to be upset. It's been a really long time since you thought that was over, and you still have nightmares now and then."

A sniffle. "It's not an excuse for bad music."

"Hey, at least we didn't try to compete with that song. Can you imagine? The banjo band after us would've been crying their eyes out of joy."

"Right." Sunset sighed. "I just hate having these relapses, Marcy. I'm—old. Almost as old as Princess Celestia now, and I'm still almost 20. I've seen the world change, new life appear, civilizations collapse and I'm still 20. Every time I think I've matured, moved on, I'm reminded that I can't really move forward."

"Hey, I know how you feel… but it doesn't mean you haven't grown… it just means that you're still young and just like me, you have some damage. And all that crap only makes us stronger, right? It's just sometimes, we need a little break." A beat. "Listen, why don't you go for a flight? I need to rest anyway so we can head out tonight."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, you need to clear your head and I need to wait till Sunset before I can really go out without looking like I fell out of the discount bin."

"I see what you did there."

"Then you know I'll be fine."

"Alright, sis. I'll see you in a bit, okay?"

"See you soon!"

Fluttershy heard the door closing after a few moments and released a breath. It was then that she felt the hand on her shoulder and meeped as she looked up at the grinning face of Marceline.

"You're coming with me." She barely had a moment to protest before she was pulled through the open window as easily as if she was a weightless plush toy.

"I could hear your heart, and your breathing," Marceline said. "And generally speaking, it's not a good idea to spy on demons and vampires. " She grinned, her many, many serrated teeth showing.

Fluttershy immediately withdrew into herself, letting her hair cover her face. "I'm sorry! I know it's rude, I was just sitting under the window and I was afraid that if I made a noise, Sunset would hear me!"

"As if Sunset was the one you need to be afraid of." Marceline snorted. "Whatever."

Fluttershy flinched. "She did horrible things to me and my friends."

Marceline frowned. "I guess she got what she deserved when you and your buddies murdered her for all intents and purposes, huh?" She shook her head, floating up and laying on her back in the air, strumming her axe-guitar. "What does redemption matter if you finally manage to forgive yourself after countless selfless acts and sacrifices, as long as people who were supposed to be long gone after trying to murder you think you still don't deserve it, right?"

"Why should she forgive herself?" Fluttershy stood in the middle of the room, hesitantly hugging herself and refusing to meet Marceline's eyes. "You don't know what she was like."

"Hm. Maybe I don't." Marceline drawled. "I still think it's pretty fresh that you'd come here and ask for help after basically murdering her." She twirled in the air and got in Fluttershy's face. "So what did she do that she deserved to die? Why don't you tell me?"

"I didn't want her to die!" Fluttershy cried. "I wanted her to leave me and my friends alone!"

"Right." Marceline snorted, leaning back. "She heard your words, you know? What you were thinking when you blasted her?"

Fluttershy looked down. "It's not what I wanted to happen."

"Well it did. And you weren't the only one that wanted her gone for good. What, you think your friends were all-forgiving?" Marceline prodded.

Fluttershy looked away.

"I guess the punishment fits the crime, then," Marceline said.

"No!" Fluttershy finally snapped, glaring at the vampire. "I've felt awful ever since it happened! She was horrible to me and to my friends but—I never thought what I felt would…" She shook her head violently. "What she did wasn't right. She slowly destroyed our friendships, and she threatened me and my animals… what did you expect us to be like? Happy?" She paced in the room before turning and sitting down, face in her hands. "What did Twilight want us to do? Just… let things go, as if she'd never damaged any of us? She had secrets on everyone, there were students who were terrified that she'd expose them!"

Marceline narrowed her eyes. "Why didn't you put a stop to it? What kind of secrets would terrify you so much?"

"Some students were in a very bad place to begin with. Their parents or family, their community or even friends weren't as accepting of their identity, or in some cases downright phobic about it." Fluttershy lowered her hands and entwined her fingers, staring at the floor as she thought about things. "Sexuality, gender, drugs, depression, anything that could embarrass or hurt us… she found it all and she dangled it in front of us."

She glared up at the vampire. "We're teenagers. So what if she never actually shared any of it, or actually never intended to expose them?" she asked. "We were living in fear for our lives just waiting for the day our parents would find out, or the police, or the principals! If we didn't do what she said, she threatened them to use those things! How could we know she wasn't going to do it? How could we even trust her? Every time we did what she said, all we knew was that we had bought ourselves some time before she needed something else."

She closed her eyes. "Is it so surprising that we would hate her so much that a fleeting thought of getting rid of her forever would cross my mind when we were actually fighting her with magic?"

Marceline kept glaring at her for a moment before sighing and floating down to sit, cross-legged, on the other bed, across from Fluttershy. "I guess not."

"Huh?" Fluttershy looked up.

"Surprised?" Marceline asked, smirking at Fluttershy's expression. "Sunset did tell me all about it. Not all she knew about you and the other students, but about how she used all of that to hurt you all."

Fluttershy frowned. "Then how can you—"

"Care for her? Forgive her?" Marceline laid back on her bed, staring at the ceiling. "How about the fact that she regretted so much what she did to all of you, that she willingly went to hell here? Or that she's spent the last thousand years making up for her mistakes, feeling that she deserved to die? Or maybe because she saved me when I was just a kid?" the vampire shook her head. "As far as I'm concerned she's paid in spades for some high school manipulation scheme whether you feel she deserves it or not."

Fluttershy bit her lip. "Has it… really been a thousand years?"

Marceline shrugged. "Give or take. I'm rounding it up, to be honest. What's the difference between nine hundred and a thousand anyway?"

"...a hundred?"

Marceline sat up and gave her a look. Fluttershy couldn't help herself and giggled, making the vampire roll her eyes at her. "So what are you going to do now?" Marceline asked.

"About… Sunset?"

"In general, I guess."

Fluttershy looked down at her hands. "I… understand what you said but… it hasn't been more than a couple of months for me. I don't think I c-can forgive Sunset. Yet."

Marceline shrugged. "You do you, but we'll do our own thing too. I'd start looking for a job though, this ain't Canterlot anymore little girl. Now…" She motioned to the door. "I do need to sleep."

"R-right."

Fluttershy stood up and walked out the room, closing the door behind her. She gulped, then walked down the hallway, politely allowing a pair of walking and talking racoons to walk past her before continuing to the front door.

There, she froze, eyes wide and body shaking when she spotted none other than Sunset Shimmer, leaning against the door, as if she had been waiting for her. The first time she had transformed, Fluttershy had been horrified of the shape Sunset had taken, but time here had seemed to adapt her body… it looked more similar to her normal human self, still taller and red-skinned. Her hair now fell on her shoulders just like it had before, curling at the tips, but somehow still made of fire.

Black sclera with crimson, slitted pupils studied her, a single white fang visible under her upper lip flashing as she grimaced, Sunset pushed away from the door, her bat-like wings adjusting her balance, and her tail swaying behind her as she sauntered over to her.

Fluttershy wanted to scream. It was just like her nightmares. But there was nowhere to run and now—

She meeped and flinched when she felt Sunset's clawed hand rest on her shoulder. Then, when nothing happened she opened one eye, then the other. The older girl… the demon held her in place with her eyes. "I heard what you told Marceline."

"B-but I thought you'd—"

"Gone flying?" Sunset laughed. Shook her head. "No. And I didn't fool Marcy either. But I guess it was enough for you to be absolutely honest."

"I-I'm—"

"I'm sorry."

"W-w—" Fluttershy stared at the demon, who had closed her eyes and had curled her other hand into a fist.

"I'm sorry. I'm glad you're here and I can apologize to one of you, after all this time. I can't even imagine the pain I put you through to make you hate me so much." She sighed, opening her hand and relaxing her shoulders. She opened her eyes as well. "I don't expect you'll forgive me, but I do regret what I did so long ago… it has shaped who I am now. I—" She cleared her throat. "Sorry. Don't want this to be more awkward. I just wanted to tell you that before Marcy and I left tonight."

Fluttershy simply nodded.

"Anyway, um, no offense but I hope we don't meet again, like you wished." Nodding back, Sunset patted her on the shoulder, then headed into the Inn, leaving her alone.

Fluttershy turned to follow her with her eyes. 'I'm sorry too.' at the tip of her tongue. But she didn't say anything, once again hating herself for keeping silent, and once more, Sunset was gone.

But this time, there was no relief to go along with the guilt.

Chapter 04: Miss Cellophane

Marceline's Sun

Chapter 04: Miss Cellophane

By Wanderer D

Almost 1000 Years Ago… (give or take a hundred)

Simon was long gone, and along with him, the last of Marceline's very limited family. Or those she considered family, in any case. He had run away, just like her mom a few years earlier. Family… didn't really tend to stay, in her experience.

Marceline frowned at her own thoughts, gathering herself and her plush toy closer to the blazing trash can, but careful not to be too close to it, lest Hambo or her shirt catch on fire.

"I guess I scared them away," she said. "Figures. Everyone is afraid of monsters, Hambo. And I'm a monster. But you won't leave me, right?" she asked her plush monkey, holding it to the light against the snow falling around her. "Of course you won't. You're different. I don't scare you." She turned to face the still night in the destroyed city. "But it sure is quiet now, without Simon."

It was then that she heard it.

Against the unnatural hush of the snow.

A sniffle.

A groan.

Sobbing.

"Hello?" she called hesitantly. The city wasn't exactly dangerous, especially after Simon had blasted so many mucus monsters into icy bits, but that didn't mean that it was safe either. There were other things.

The shadows in the windows. The whispering fog. The pink ooze.

But no one answered. Still, she could hear the crying, and after sharing an encouraging look with Hambo, she decided to investigate. She might be a little girl, but she was far from weak.

She stepped out of the remains of the entrance to some sort of underground train… a subway, Simon had called it, where she had set up camp and lit a trashcan on fire to keep warm.

She rubbed her arms as she walked slowly, pausing every so often to strain her hearing and follow the sobs. Whether it was Simon behind it or not, the world seemed to be getting really cold the last few days, around here, and she really needed to get out of there… but she had hoped that he would come back.

"Idiot," she chided herself, "no one ever does."

The crying was a bit more clear now, and she walked around a building almost out of sight from her shelter and found, to her surprise, a small sizzling crater, with a young woman… with wings and fire for hair… curled up into herself, her bat-like wings wrapped protectively… not against the cold, but as if she was expecting to be hit. Her clawed hands were curled into tight fists, and occasionally a small drop or two of blood would seep between her fingers and sizzle against the snow.

"I didn't know…" the demon girl whispered among sobs. "I didn't know there really was another way… I didn't know."

After a moment's thought, Marceline slowly made her way down the crater, carefully approaching the crying demon.

"I don't wanna d-die… I'm sorry. I didn't know… I didn't see it…"

"Hello?" Marceline tried again, stumbling the last few steps so that she could kneel next to the demon girl.

The demon flinched, as if struck, then twitched, her eyes snapping open and she half-rose, eyes wide to look around. "T-twilight?"

"It's closer to midnight," Marceline provided helpfully.

The demon girl's eyes shifted to stare at her. "But—where is everybody?" She sniffled, and used the back of her hand to wipe the tears and snot.

It didn't really clear the snot, and she really should clean it from the sleeve of her nice leather jacket, but Marceline didn't say anything. She knew what that was like. At least it wasn't burnt through or something.

Instead, she shrugged, looking around at the dead buildings outside. "I dunno. They're all gone I guess. I haven't seen that many people for years. Simon said most of them died after the war."

"War?" The demon was quiet for a moment, then gathered herself into a ball of misery, wrapping her arms around her knees and her wings around herself.

Her fiery hair—which had burned bright for a moment—dulled and lost its heat, until it didn't stand on end anymore and fell around her shoulders and face, with only her red, pointy ears poking through. A tail made of fire, which Marceline hadn't noticed earlier, wrapped around the demon's boots.

"You should go home, little girl," the demon said.

"I'm not a little girl! I'm Marceline." She sat down next to the demon girl, unwilling to just leave her alone when she was suffering. She knew what that was like if you were alone. And it sucked.

The demon raised her head just enough so she could peek at her over her arm. "Isn't it a bit late for you to be out? Especially to hang out with… um… a demon?" She sniffled.

"You look like you need a friend."

The demon flinched. "I-I don't deserve friends, Marceline. I… hurt a lot of people. They decided I shouldn't be al—t-that I shouldn't be around them." She hugged herself tighter. "I deserve to be alone. I didn't know then… but now I do. I was wrong and I am so sorry… you shouldn't be around me. I'm not wanted. People hate me for everything I did."

Marceline watched the demon melt into another sobbing mess. "I forgive you," she said after a pause.

The demon's head whipped up, and she turned to stare at Marceline. "B-but you—I can't just… you can't just do that!"

Marceline shrugged. "Seems like you really regret hurting those people you were talking about…" she looked down at her hands. "I hurt others too, you know. And that scared people that I thought…" She bit her cheeks before sighing and glancing at the older demon. "You don't seem too bad for a demon, though. So, I forgive you."

"I thought they had finally killed me…" The demon's eyes slowly welled with tears. "I-I thought… how could I make people hate me so much and not realize how bad that was? How bad it could get?" she sniffled, once again cleaning her eyes with the back of her hand, before freezing still the moment Marceline touched her shoulder.

"It's okay."

It took a second, but then the demon was crying again, although this time, she was hugging Marceline. It was a bit tight, but it didn’t seem like the demon was trying to hurt her, so she didn’t struggle. Instead, she leaned into the embrace and hugged the demon back.

Marceline hummed to herself as she kept busy, opening a can of really old soup and placing it carefully on top of a metal grill she had thrown on top of the burning trash can. Behind her, the demon lady kept to herself, sometimes glancing up at her when she thought Marceline wasn't looking.

It had been two days since the demon lady had arrived, and although mostly she had kept to herself, she had helped a little here and there. Their shelter now had less rubble, and the fire was easier to keep going. They had foraged together through the city, avoided the pink goop that occasionally would smile at them, and overall just kept herself busy.

Marceline had to admit though, that demon was lucky. She didn't have to worry about freezing during this crazy winter, or else her short skirt and leather jacket wouldn't have helped much as each night brought along more chill.

Marceline shuddered, blowing air into her hands and rubbing them together while watching the soup begin to boil. Once it seemed it was ready, she picked it up carefully with some clothes to keep from getting burnt, and went to sit down closer to the other girl, who was watching her with a familiar expression.

"I've been traveling a lot," she explained to the demon girl, who blinked. "First with my mom… and then with Simon." Marceline felt tears welling in her eyes, but fought them back. "I-I know how to take care of myself."

"Why are you being so nice to me?" the demon asked. "We just met and… I'm a demon. Ugly inside and outside."

It was Marceline's turn to blink. "I don't think you're ugly. You're kind of pretty, and your hair looks better down, I think."

The demon chuckled, then seemed to realize what she was doing and then sort of choked it back. It sounded kind of painful.

"Uh, thanks, I guess." The demon shuffled in place, glancing down at her tail. It was an odd one, more like a horse's tail than say, a cat or a devil tail. "But you shouldn't be so trusting, Marceline. I meant it when I said I had hurt a lot of people… so much that they wanted me to die."

Marceline glanced at her. "Did you kill them?"

"What? No!"

"Did you chop them up, or torture them?"

"Well, I didn't chop them up, but sort of tortured?" the demon confessed, looking down. "I knew their secrets and I… I used them to do what I wanted." She huddled more into herself. "Sometimes… just out of pettiness I messed up their friendships or their hopes… I think… I think I was jealous."

"I know what being jealous is like," Marceline said. "The other day I saw a family of racoons and their mom was with them…" she paused, remembering the sudden anger and resentment that she had quickly quelled down. She didn't want a repeat of the Coyote mother. "Are you still jealous?" she asked instead.

The demon chuckled, although she didn't sound like she thought it was funny. "Not… as much." She sighed, crossing her arms over her knees and leaning on them, staring at the snow. "I just wish I had realized what I really wanted before I did all of that." Her voice turned sad. "I wouldn't have hurt so many ponies and humans. Now I'm here—wherever here is—and I can't even apologize."

Marceline didn't know what to say to that. Simon and her mom had both told her that apologizing was important, but what could you do when there was no one to apologize to even if you did have to? She sipped the soup. "Why don't you do it now?"

The demon looked confused. "Do what?"

Marceline walked over to her and kneeled in front of her, facing her seriously. "Apologize?"

"Um, to who? They're not here."

"Well, the whooole wide world is out there," Marceline said, motioning with her arms to the entrance beyond the steps. The snow-covered derelict city expanding beyond their sight. "They might not hear you, but you are apologizing, right?"

"They wouldn't be able to forgive me, what's the point?"

Marceline hummed. "My mom always said that an apology didn't mean you would be forgiven… but it was just the right thing to do if you hurt someone, or did something wrong."

The demon snorted, but didn't frown, her smile growing soft as she glanced at Marceline. "You're alright, Marceline."

"Wanna do it?" Marceline asked, standing up and offering her hand to the demon. "I'll go with you. I guess I should apologize too, since I didn't do it before."

The demon studied her hand for a few seconds before shrugging and taking it. "Ah, what the hay. Let's shout our lungs out. Name's Sunset, by the way. Sunset Shimmer."

Marceline thought about it, nodding. "I like your name," she responded, feeling a smile creep into her face too. And, somehow, a little something within her seemed less empty. "Come on."

She led Sunset all the way up the stairs to the edge of the entrance, where they could see the city beyond them. Seeing that the demon was hesitating, she faced the city too, thinking hard about what to apologize for before bringing both her hands up so she could shout as loud as she could: "I'm sorry I sucked your soul that one time, Mrs. Coyote-creature ma'am!"

"O-kay?" Sunset muttered, then shrugged and followed Marceline's example, shouting at the snowy city. "Umm… I'm sorry, Lyra! Bon-bon really did go to Victorias' Secret for you!"

Marceline glanced at Sunset. "What does that even mean?"

"That I have a lot of baggage and questionable decisions in my past."

Marceline hummed, but Sunset seemed to have gained some confidence and shouted again.

"I'm sorry, everyone in Canterlot High!" She took a deep breath, and shouted again, "I'm sorry I abused your trust and used your secrets against you!"

She took another deep—shuddering—breath. "I'm sorry I threatened so many of you! I'm sorry I made you scared for your lives!

"Wallflower, I'm sorry I had to call the police to stop you from doing something stupid because of what I said!

"Snowflake, I'm sorry the teachers were never on time to stop me!

"I'm sorry all your lives were so miserable because I was there!"

Marceline gulped, then turned to the city as well, unwilling to let Sunset do the whole thing alone. "I'm sorry, Simon! I'm sorry I couldn't-I couldn't stop you from wearing the crown!" She sniffled. "I'm sorry you had to leave! I hope you come back!"

"I'm sorry I made you all hate me so much that you thought I should die!" Sunset's voice choked halfway through that scream.

"I'm sorry you had to take care of me because I wasn't strong enough!" Marceline cried.

"I'm sorry I left home a-and you Princess!" Sunset screamed, pulling into herself for a sob before taking half a step forward and screaming again. "I'm sorry I said those things! I didn't know what I wanted! I'm sorry!"

"I'm sorry you had to leave too, mom!" Marceline shouted, sniffling. "I love you! I miss you!"

Sunset's hand gently squeezed Marceline's shoulder as she took in air again to shout, "I'm sorry, Cadence! I'm sorry I said you smelled like a wet chicken that one time you fell into the fountain at Canterlot because I intentionally altered the frequency of your teleportation spell!" A beat. "But you did!"

Marceline blinked, looking up at Sunset, who shrugged, smiling, before kneeling down next to her. "Thank you, Marceline… I do feel a little better."

A smile grew in Marceline's face. She had succeeded. It then faded as she struggled, and failed, to contain a huge yawn.

"That's an impressive set of fangs, Marceline."

"Thanks," she mumbled.

"Come on, let's get you to sleep."

Without much strength left, she simply nodded, rubbing her eyes as Sunset led her downstairs and away from the cold air.

Sunset watched the sleeping Marceline in silence. The younger girl—a tween at that point, at most—mumbled something then shifted, cuddling closer into her lap.

There was little to be done about the chill; they were just down a flight of stairs from the street level, and the entrance to the underground had caved in so much that magically blasting it would've probably cause the rest of the structure to collapse on them.

So they were protected from the elements only as far as being outside of the snowfall itself, and a bit out of the way from the wind, but not fully sheltered.

The burning trash can next to them provided some warmth, but some wind would occasionally circulate with enough strength to make the younger girl try to wrap herself tighter in the old blanket she had found somewhere in the destroyed city whenever she wasn't whimpering at something in her dreams.

This had lasted long enough for Sunset to sigh, and scoot closer, letting Marceline—who had been so tired she had only blinked once, then fallen asleep again—rest her head on her thighs as she wrapped her wings around both of them.

Marceline had sighed and cuddled in tighter, still whimpering a little until Sunset had lazily started stroking her hair as she slept. With the younger girl warm and safe, the former unicorn had gazed into the cloudy, snowy sky she could barely see above them, framed by the remains of buildings.

"Where am I?" she wondered. "This doesn't look like Canterlot City…" she glanced down at Marceline. "And it's definitely not Equestria." She sighed, resting her hand on Marceline. "I wonder if I'm in hell or Tartarus of some sort."

She closed her eyes and tried to remember any details that came to mind.

Her nerves burned with blue electricity. "...better off without her…"

A pink haze that made her every bone ache. "...never come back..."

An orange pressure all around her, crushing her. "...she doesn't deserve forgiveness..."

A yellow fear as if she was just seconds from suddenly being torn to shreds. "...if she was dead…"

White flames that froze her blood. "…a hundred years of suffering for everyone she's hurt..."

A purple warmth. "...she needs another chance to be better…"

An all-encompassing cacophony of pain and emotion, loss of her senses, unable to understand words just intent.

LEAVE AND DISCOVER—

Sunset gasped, her head snapping up, her eyes wide. She stared around, unable to remember where she was until Marceline's mumble and the younger girl's arms wrapping around her waist brought her back to reality.

She shivered, but it definitely wasn't the cold. The feelings… the words… the hate. Everything she had reaped herself from her blackmailing, her threats… her willful lack of empathy.

She had known. She had absolutely known that what she was doing was cruel.

She knew and she hadn't held back.

She had known what it felt like to be treated as less than worthy of existing… her first couple of years at Celestia's school had been brutal… but she had also thought herself above that. The fact that whenever Celestia looked at her, it felt like she wasn't seeing her but rather, her usefulness hadn't built any real self-esteem.

And still, she had always assumed that she'd never be as cruel. She'd never be as angry. As jealous. As manipulative. As selfish or abusive as any of them. She hadn't been brought down as bad as the students of Canterlot High had been, but she had felt the sting, and she had felt hurt more than once.

And she had promised she would never, ever be that.

And then, around the time Cadance had been adopted, that had changed. As if all of her pent up conviction had been worth nothing in the face of reality. As if her lessons in friendship, forgiveness and tolerance were nothing more than a layer of dry, peeling paint and she had stumbled into a vat of acetone.

Oh, she had known she was wrong to take pleasure in antagonizing the young alicorn. She had known that it was wrong to really lord over the other students just how much better at magic she was, even if they had been mean to her in the past.

And also, she had known all along how worthless that was at the end of the day. That once Cadance had arrived to the spotlight, her own was diminished. That Cadance had everything she had always wanted and would never get.

In her own eyes, she had become… inconsequential, even invisible to Celestia and others. From being in the cusp of achieving her dream, it had been snatched away, even if unintentionally, by Cadance.

That's when Sunset had realized that she basically had no reason to even be there. How could she compete with an alicorn? How could she still matter to Celestia if there was already somepony better in every way?

She would never live up to that. Cadence had been bullied and still come out on top. She had been mocked and attacked, but she hadn't broken and resorted to petty revenge like Sunset had. She had even become an Alicorn without any prior knowledge of real magic.

There was no way to compete with that. Not as she was. Not with what she was doing.

But it had taken being… murdered by the Elements of Harmony to realize that her problem wasn't lack of power, or knowledge, or drive. Maybe she had been worthy once, when Celestia had adop-taken her in. But along the way, those qualities that the princess had seen had obviously faded into nothing.

And it was too late. She had escaped to become more when she had left Equestria. She had only shown herself to be even less. And when she had gotten power… she had been immediately corrupted even more, brought low… and not forgiven.

Well, not by everyone. But Twilight was a princess. The forgiveness of an immortal was surely easily given. Had she asked Celestia for forgiveness instead of… being herself, she probably would still be in Canterlot with her. Hell if she was immortal she would probably forgive anyone easily too.

What did it even matter, when everyone would be dead in the blink of an eye? No wonder Celestia couldn't adopt non-alicorns. Her 'little ponies' were ultimately just a drop of water in an endless sea.

There was a moment in one's life, she assumed, when things simply just clicked and came into sharp focus. When you met your opposite and also who you could have been, had you simply been better. Meeting Twilight had been that moment for her, even before stealing the crown, she had known that here was a better pony.

And that was the only reason she couldn't really piece things after the fact. How could Twilight Sparkle… the princess of essentially everything she had endeavored to destroy while at Canterlot High… believe in her enough to give her a second chance? Simple. She had nothing to lose.

And now, perhaps because of that last act of pity, one request for mercy against five statements of murder, that she was here in this other world. Where could she even go from here, now that she was stranded in this… destroyed, cold city?

Was there a point for her to be here? Sunset sighed. If she was honest with herself, being somewhere unrelated to her old world was… refreshing. She had a new perspective to internalize, and she was in a place where no one expected anything of her.

Marceline shuffling a little made her look down and smile.

"Maybe you're my second chance…" she said, yawning as she rested her back on the wall and closed her eyes. Maybe… it wouldn't be so bad. Maybe she could be someone here for Marceline and herself.

Chapter 05: Riddle Me This

Marceline's Sun

Chapter 05: Riddle Me This

By Wanderer D

Present Day…

"You should really talk to her."

Marceline looked up at Sunset. "Talk to who?"

"Bubblegum."

Marceline frowned, then crossed her arms and leaned back on the chair. She took in the sights around them.

They had traveled all night and arrived at the Haunted Swamp in time to avoid the sunlight, and now lounged on the deck of a lifted cottage that overlooked most of the inhabited areas of the swamp, where ghosts and ghouls spent the days of their unlives in relative peace and quiet.

SNAP!

"Oww!"

Except for the occasional L33t-e-gator attack, if you got too close to their territory, of course. But since neither Sunset nor Marceline were near them, that wasn't her problem. No, the problem was that they were supposed to be taking a break in light of Sunset's unanticipated reunion with people from the other world, and also to a lesser extent, Marceline's breakup with Bubblegum a couple of months back in the Glass Kingdom.

She was treating it as a low-key separation, but when Sunset had caught her messing around with Ash of all wizards, it had led to a long, long discussion about relationships. And she meant long. Her sister tended to go on very drawn and emotional lectures that sort of meandered around almost as bad as that lady they had met… Princess Celestia.

And to be honest, even if Sunset had been right and Ash was indeed a punk-ass wizard-wannabe that was aiming way out of his league and only achieved her orbit on rebound, (Sunset's words, not hers), she was still kind of wishing she had let her be for a bit.

As if last week hadn't proved it enough, Sunset needed to chill. And getting under Marceline's nerves was not the way to do it.

"We're giving each other time, Sunset," she groused, drinking the red out of her cherry margarita in one sip just to prove a point. "Just let it rest. We're all immortal here. I'll catch up with her later."

Sunset sighed. "Fine, sorry, I know it was bad… I'll keep my mouth shut for now."

Marceline cringed. "Sorry sis, it's just still a bit raw… and I said a lot of things that were hurtful, I just need to give her time too."

"I get it."

Marceline didn't miss the tone in Sunset's voice and sat up to face her. "So… you're going to visit?"

Sunset nodded, glancing deeper into the swamp, her shoulders slumping. "Yeah… seeing Celestia and Fluttershy, then talking about Bubblegum reminded me that I haven't been here in around a hundred years. I should visit the shrine."

Marceline nodded, rubbing her arm. She much preferred it when Sunset was on the same wavelength as her and they could have fun. But she also understood too well how nostalgia could keep you down.

Their tour was technically over for now and they didn't have any other bookings for the next few months. This was usually when they would part ways for a bit of time to give each other space. That's why Sunset hadn't been around when Bubblegum and her had their fallout fighting… that lizard. Larvo.

But that was also how they both had adventures that they could share with each other later on, and not too long ago… about a hundred or so years ago, Sunset had a friend who she had met here in the swamplands while adventuring.

"You should go then," Marceline said.

"Oh, no, Marcie, I'm here with you—"

Marceline reached over to pat Sunset in the head. "Hey. It's me, sis. I know she meant a lot to you. Go say hi. I'll be alright. There's places here for me to explore too."

Sunset grinned, leaning forward to give her a hug. "Alright. Thanks, Marcie." A moment later, she had taken flight into the swamp.

Shrugging, Marceline finished her drink, then stretched thoroughly before floating over to the town.

Built by humanoids and later also populated by ghouls and ghosts who had emerged from the Hunted Swamp, Skanky Bay was almost charming. Wooden houses with decks above the water, lightbulbs strung from house to house over the streets. Vendors and creatures of all sorts just trading and living the best they could.

Marceline had been there once before, when the town had been inaugurated. It was kinda cool to see how things had changed. Not to mention, her favorite place was this little restaurant that—

"What do you mean you ran out of fries?!"

"What?!" Marceline flew over to where a female blue humanoid with rainbow colored hair was staring angrily at the manager, who didn't look too impressed.

"I mean exactly what I said!" the manager, a humanoid neon-green half-lizard replied impassively. "We ran out just a few minutes ago."

"B-but you told me that if I managed to recover your menus from the L33t-e-gators I could have a bucket today!" the humanoid talking to her, who was wearing several layers of bandages covering most of her body and face, snapped. "Ugh, this is so uncool!"

"Yes, well—" he was interrupted when Marceline lifted him up. "M-Marceline the Vampire Queen!"

"You! What does she mean that there's no fries?! You should have fries!" Marceline growled. "That's not cool, bro! I was totally looking to have some here tonight!"

"W-well as I was telling her…" he motioned at the bandaged humanoid, who was blinking at her in confusion, "We ran out! A Shelf Hunter stormed the kitchen and stole the whole batch!"

"Ugh!" Marceline dropped him on the floor. "Then why did you promise her some if you couldn't pay her?"

"Er…" the manager cleared his throat.

"I can't believe we came all the way here to get fries and you're out!"

"Um… we?" the manager gasped. "Y-you don't mean your sister…"

Marceline nodded. "She's had a bad week so I told her you made the best fries in Ooo."

"Umm… I-I uh…"

Marceline took a deep breath. "Alright, bro. Here's the deal: I'll get your stuff back from the Shelf Hunter, but you get my order done fast and free."

"D-deal!" The manager stood up, grinning. "And um, can I get a picture of you and your sister eating here?"

Marceline leaned in, giving him a glare. "You're pushing it."

"R-right."

"Hey!"

Marceline slowed down for the bandaged humanoid to catch up. She couldn't tell much about her, other than she seemed to be fit and really liked bandages. The young woman was wearing a pith hat with large aviator glasses resting above the brim. Through the thorough mummy-job, she could see a pair of red irises peeking at her. "Yeah?"

"Hey, so… mind if I tag along? I can help you deal with these guys. I can't believe I went through all the effort earlier to get the menus back only for this to happen!" She clenched her fist. "I will have my revenge!"

"Hey, easy there," Marceline said, laughing. She floated around the girl, humming to herself. "So you took out some L33t-e-gators? That's not half-bad."

"Heh. It's pretty awesome," the girl agreed. "Name's Daring Do." She extended her hand, and Marceline shook it with a grin. "With a name like that it sounds you're ready for adventure."

"I definitely am!" Daring responded. "That's my gig: rock, sports, and adventure!"

"We're more like Punk Goth, but, I guess you can come with if you manage to keep up, Do, but I'm not slowing down for anyone, I have a concert later tonight, and I can't miss it."

"I can keep up!" Daring said. "The question is, can you?" And then she took off, jumping skillfully from tree to tree, and even using a rope with a grappling hook to swing over larger expanses of water.

"Not bad, Daring Do!" Marceline shouted. "But you're going the wrong way!"

In the end, Marceline had only allowed Daring Do to suffer for a few more minutes before her need for fries and a hint of pity made her sweep lower to pick up the protesting adventurer and fly them both to the Shelf Hunter's hideout.

"So what's a Shelf-Hunter like?" Daring asked.

"What?" Marceline looked down at the humanoid with some surprise. "You went out to hunt one and you don't know what it looks like?"

"Hey, my usual hunting grounds are more… urban."

"Alright, fair," Marceline muttered. "I haven't seen one for some time… I think last time it was with… Bonnie."

"Oh? I sense a story there."

"None of your business." Marceline growled. "We broke up recently, that's all you need to know."

"So… you're into girls, huh?"

"I can hear the smug smile in your face," Marceline responded, unable to hide her own grin."But yeah, and boys." Her smile faded. "Anyway, we encountered one a long time ago. It's like… a humanoid with a Possum's head and tail, usually overweight, and stinky. They tend to be misogynist, egocentric bastards with delusions of grandeur. Clothes are optional for some of them."

"Ugh. Sounds disgusting."

"They are. But you have to be careful. As ugly, blatant and disgusting as they are, they can be very convincing if they catch you at a bad time," Maceline said, "the one Bonnie and I had to stop had convinced an entire town to isolate themselves from the rest of Ooo and to worship him as their king. We arrived just in time before they starved to death."

"Lucky them," Daring muttered. "Seriously though, who would believe such a creature?"

"You'd be surprised… but I think we're here." She slowed and hovered down to deposit Daring Do safely on the ground before hiding next to her. A few feet away, the entrance to a collapsed building of some sort, half looking like the buildings of the city, half like a temple, burrowed deeper underground… and in front of it was a blob that merrily whistled as it bounced back and forth in front of the entrance.

"Is that… a slime?" Daring asked, pointing at a bouncing blob twice their size. "With a giant lemon wedge half buried inside?"

"It's a Lemon Pudding," Marceline said. "Resilient, and simple-minded."

"I bet we could take it!"

Before Marceline could answer, the slime stopped and turned to face them. "Halt! I am THE GUARDIAN OF THE TEMPLE!" it said, two tendrils coming out of its side to wave eerily in the air. "OoooooooooOooooooo."

"Right, guardian," Daring snorted.

"Hey dude, why don't you chill?" Marceline said. "We just need to get the fries the Shelf Hunter stole from the town. Why don't you let us through and no one will have to worry about cleaning up the splatter?"

"Naaaaay!" The slime said, "For he has revealed to me that I am here to protect the temple from aaaaall enemies! I will guard it from the hordes of villains trying to ransack it!"

Marceline and Daring shared a look, then glanced around the completely empty area.

"Are they… um, gone for lunch?" Daring ventured.

"No!" the slime insisted, "they're here… hiding! I must protect this place from the invaders!"

"Right," Daring sighed. She glanced warily at the slime. "How long ago did you discover you were the temple guardian?"

"Oooh, that's a very interesting story!" The slime bounced in place eagerly. "I was passing by this morning, and the Shelf Hunter saw me, and he immediately knew I was intended to manage and guard against everything that might try to get in, other than himself, of course."

"This morning?!" Daring asked, aghast. "You were just like, passing by and this random guy who is known for lying told you you were the guardian of the temple and you believed him?!"

"Heeeey!" The slime rolled forward until it was looming over Daring. "Are you saying I can't do the job?"

"That's not what I said!"

Marceline shrugged. "I already told you they're resilient, and simple-minded, but they're also unusually stubborn once they believe something, even if it isn't true."

"Great. Just great."

"In order to pass you must answer my riddle!" the slime said.

The girls glanced at each other, then back at the slime, which coughed before speaking:

"This as simple
a riddle can be,
This thing has leaves,
rings and a trunk…"

While Daring focused on the Slime, Marceline glanced around and floated away.

"With all said clues,
I think you'll agree,
it can only be a—?"

Before Daring could offer an answer, something huge and heavy slammed on top of the pudding so hard it made the ground shake and Daring hover in the air for a few seconds. She stared with wide eyes at the trunk, easily the size of a house in width, then turned to stare at Marceline, who had her guitar ax over one shoulder, as she grinned at her.

"Hey!" a tiny squeaky voice said, drawing Daring's attention to several little blobs of lemon pudding that were wiggling about. "That's right! It's a tree! You may pass!"

"Thank you, thank you," Marceline said, floating past them.

"That. Was. Awesome!" Daring laughed—a bit hysterically at that—as she climbed over the downed tree to follow the vampire down into the underground cavern/temple.

The cave was as humid and stinky as expected, but the pair simply made their way down and down, until they reached the bottom hall, which was half-flooded. In the distance, they could hear snickering and someone talking to themselves.

With a wary shared sigh, they both slowly made their way into the temple, careful of traps, but surprisingly found none.

"Are these… all sprung?" Daring asked.

Marceline shrugged. "Seems the Shelf Hunter couldn't be bothered to reset them."

"Figures."

The hallway opened into a large room with old machines, and statues, and golden decorations all over the place that would look a lot more grand were they not mostly covered in trash and decaying food.

"Casino?" Daring muttered.

"Don't know what god that's supposed to be," Marceline said, "but their temple now belongs to that."

The Shelf Hunter sat, snickering to itself, on top of a mountain of trash. Next to him, an open fridge full of frozen fries lay on its side, it's contents thankfully still in their plastic bags, but probably close to going bad.

"My, my, my," the Shelf Hunter said, "If it isn't Marceline the Vampire Queen, what brings you to my kingdom my dear?" The possum's face grinned, revealing long rows of sharp teeth. "Decided to marry me? I'm handsome. I know."

"Eww. No." Marceline growled, hovering up to float just out of reach from the disgusting creature. "We came here to take back the food you stole. You can't just walk in and grab what you want, dude. That's not cool."

"Peh." The Shelf Hunter snorted, waving a paw-hand dismissively. "I can do whatever I want. I am the king!" He sneered, pulling down a lever.

Before Marceline could react, a heavy cage slammed on top of her, trapping her within. "Dude! What the hell?!"

"Oh! I am king, dear Marceline, but a king needs a Queen, and who better than the queen of all vampires to be my bride?" The creature leered at her. "I know you broke up with Princess Bubblegum, so only another royal can be my match!"

"Why is everyone so invested in my romantic life?!" Marceline hollered.

"Don't know," Daring Do answered, drawing their attention to where she stood on top of one of the collapsed pillars inside the room. "But I'm willing to bet that it's not going to stop here. You simply have to roll the dice, place your cards on the table, and see where the roulette lands you!"

A moment of silence.

"Really? Guys? We're in Casino?" Daring asked, then slumped. "Never mind."

"And what are you supposed to be?" the Shelf Hunter asked.

"Your worst nightmare!" Daring shouted, jumping down and pulling alongside her a rope.

The vampire and mutated possum watched the humanoid fall past them to the floor below.

The Shelf Hunter snorted. "What was that supposed to achiiiiiiieeeeeeeaaaaaah!?" the last of his scream was due to him being pulled up by the tail—which Daring had somehow lassoed—into the air, with enough force to slam him against the roof of the building hard enough to shatter the fake materials and start a chain reaction.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Marceline mutated into a giant bat creature, throwing all the bags of fries into the fridge, and picking it up before flying down to grab Daring Do all while avoiding the collapsing building.

"Woo whoooo!" Daring shouted as she was carried out of the temple and into the night air. "Dude! Wait until I tell my friends about this!"

Marceline laughed. "Let's get our fries first."

Later…

Daring Do sat on the rafters, eating her fries as the lights dimmed. The ghosts, ghouls, humanoids and other creatures that had packed the small arena started hollering and shouting as sparkling fire lit up the stage.

The fries weren't the best she had ever had, but that wasn't important. What was important was that she had made friends with an amazing girl, who happened to be an awesome adventurer in her own right, a rock star, and a freaking Vampire Queen!

"How awesome is that?" she muttered to herself just as smoke covered the back of the stage.

"Alright, Haunted Swamp!" Marceline called, flying into the stage alongside a group of ghosts that spread around to grab some microphones. "Time to light up the night!"

"Woo!" Daring shouted alongside the many concert goers.

"Ad the first song of the night, is something we just composed, so give it up for my sister… Sunset Shimmer!"

Daring stared, her fries sliding down from her frozen hand as crimson wings parted the mist and smoke to reveal the golden red, clawed and fanged shape of Sunset Shimmer herself.

"Haunted Swamp!" Sunset called as Marceline passed her her guitar. "This is a bit slower than usual, but here's to all the night creatures in the Land of Ooo! Come on, girls!"

The three ghost singers pulled together, their voices invoking a sense of wonder as they rose and fell.

"AaaaaaAAAaaa…"

Sunset took the microphone while Marceline struck a chord and the drummer set the tempo. She sang as crystals chimed between notes, and her guitar played a more contemplative note.

"This time the worlds are quiet,
and silence—parts the clouds.

In a dream—full of light!
The nightmares, hide in hope.

And like snowdrops, your sins
Fall and coat the land around!

It's your fears. And your silence.
The cause—and the cure."

"AaaaaaAAAaaa…" the ghost trio sang, the music rising to a crescendo, and the music became more lively. The drums' beat faster and more constant. The ghouls, ghosts and creatures that had been swaying to the earlier bit started stomping their feet and nodding to the song.

"When you run into the ether!" Sunset sang, leaning down to stare at the crowd with a grin, her hand going to her chest.

"And your self begins to fade…

And you curse! And you fall!
That's when you know…

You're on borrowed time!
It's the—"

"It's the darkness—of your soul!" the crowd sang.

"AaaaaaAAAaaa…" the ghostly trio sang again, headbanging to the beat.

"And you call out for mercy!" Marceline sang.

"And your voice—it just fails!" Sunset sang back.

"AaaaaaAAAaaa…"

Marceline leaned in, singing alongside Sunset. "It's the weight—of your regret!"

"AaaaaaAAAaaa…"

"And the darkness—of your soul!" the crowd sang.

"AaaaaaAAAaaa…"

"It's the darkness—of your soul!" the crowd sang again, alongside Marceline and Sunset.

"AaaaaaAAAaaa…" the ghosts sang as the music slowed down again.

"In the darkness—of your soul." Sunset repeated alone, as Marceline leaned back and the crowd swayed again, allowing her to sing on her own again.

"When the silence—breaks the clouds…

"And your nightmares, break your soul."

"AaaaaaAAAaaa…" The ghosts sang. "AaaaaaAAAaaa…"

Both Sunset and Marceline leaned into the microphone to sing the last line.

"It's the darkness—of your soul."

The crowd erupted in cheers, but Daring didn't care. She stood up just as Marceline struck the first chords of another song, and stumbled her way out of the arena. She felt like she was choking, so she quickly removed her hat, revealing a mop of rainbow colored hair, and pulled down the bandages so she could breath.

She slid into an alley and rested her back on the wall, breathing heavy.

"S-she's here. Sunset Shimmer? But how? I thought we killed her?" She licked her lips and shook her head. "And Marceline's on her side? Fu—" she slammed her fist on the wall next to her. "Crap. How?!"

She glanced at the lights from the concert, forcing herself to take a deep breath before covering herself again and fading into the darkness.

To be Continued

Chapter 02: Better Off Dead

Marceline's Sun
Chapter 02: Better Off Dead
By Wanderer D

Sunset, Marceline, Fluttershy and Celestia were sitting at a large round table under a heavy green canvas outside of the Forest Inn, provided to them by the Forest Wizard. The canvas was thick enough that it blocked the sun quite efficiently, but Marceline had insisted on still wearing a wide straw hat, her jacket, and sunglasses to further protect herself from the sun.

Having been invited to the concert, they had been offered a complementary breakfast, which the owners of the Inn had been gracious enough to extend to Celestia and Fluttershy as well.

Their unexpected guests sat quietly, watching as squirrels, birds, deer, racoons and fairies brought snacks and drinks for all of them.

Sunset fought to keep herself calm, despite wanting to be anywhere else.

Flashbacks to her exile had haunted her for decades, until she had finally forced herself to cope with both the guilt and pain. All she had been told by the Elements was that forgiveness would be essential, and then she was dumped in the middle of a destroyed city.

After two hundred years in this world, she had thought all the people she had known from Canterlot High were already dead and gone, and by five hundred years here, they were nothing more but a distant guilt that had taught her that there would always be consequences to how she treated others.

And now, suddenly, almost thousand years after getting dumped in this world like so much trash, here were two of her old acquaintances, proving if anything, that fate and destiny really had it for her.

She watched as their guest's eyes widened in fascination when Marceline picked up an apple and sucked the red out of it, leaving it perfectly white before putting it down again. Soon after, Fluttershy poked it cautiously with a finger, eyes wide with disbelief.

Sunset, for her part, was brooding. A thousand years. It was impossible for a normal human to live that long. More so if that human was already an adult in their thirties, then adding the centuries to follow on top. But not only was Principal Celestia looking just as Sunset remembered, but Fluttershy wasn't someone she'd want to see at all... either older or looking just like she did when she had wished Sunset gone.

"I don't want her around. I want to feel safe!"

When the rainbow of harmony had hit her, Sunset had not only heard, but felt the thoughts and emotions of Twilight's 'friends' as they used the power of the Elements of Harmony on her. Fluttershy's thoughts were still an echo in her memories of that rainbow storm of pain that had thrown Sunset across dimensions. Her thoughts and her feelings.

Sunset really didn't want to be there. Especially not with Fluttershy. But what could she do? When Celestia had woken up, she had latched onto her like a barnacle on the hull of a galleon, bawling her eyes out and occasionally babbling understandable words such as: 'sorry', 'failed', and 'happy' in between sobs of gibberish.

Marceline had immediately jumped in to dislodge her, trying both to be forceful enough and yet not break the fragile human. At that time Fluttershy, who—after screaming "vampire!" with an odd amount of hope mixed with dread, then "demon?!" then (with much more fear) "SUNSET SHIMMER!" had jumped behind the bed, repeating over and over: "PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!" like a mantra before Sunset had been able to calm her down.

After some talking, the pair had been steady enough to be offered breakfast… which was why they were outside.

Sunset watched as Fluttershy giggled with delight when a pair of woodland creatures poured some tea for her. Sure, she had considered that time-dilation could potentially be an issue between her second world/universe and this one, but the thought had been discarded long ago, when it stopped being important.

Just how much time had passed back in Canterlot City? A day? A week? A year? More than that seemed out of the question, or Celestia would look much older, but other than looking exhausted, her former teacher looked pretty much as she had the day Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy and their friends had blasted Sunset into oblivion.

But all that was purely academic. The more pressing question was… "How did you get here?"

Celestia, who was in the middle of sipping her tea, looked up, blinking. She carefully placed the cup on its plate before clearing her throat. "Well, Sunset… I don't quite understand the process myself, it was mostly Wallflower Blush who figured it out."

"Wallflower Blush?" Sunset repeated. "She sounds kind of familiar."

"She's one of the students you—" Fluttershy stumbled with a slight tremble of fear. "She used…" she glanced at Celestia, who smiled encouragingly. She squirmed in place, darting her eyes from the school principal to the former school bully. "I-I need to go." She stood up suddenly, and quickly made her way into the Inn, leaving the three of them alone.

"What's her problem?" Marceline asked.

"There are many things that currently worry Fluttershy," Celestia replied carefully, as if considering each word before speaking. "But she has a history with Sunset Shimmer, and I believe that will cause trust to come slowly."

Sunset frowned, a pang of guilt in her gut, followed by resentment. It was a thousand years ago! She barely remembered what she had done to Fluttershy, but—if her memory served her right—the girl had been so inconsequential and unobtrusive that she hadn't been the target of Sunset's focus... for the most part.

"Well, why don't you tell us, Celestia?" she asked instead.

"I'm afraid I don't know exactly myself, it seemed to involve a magical rock that came into Wallflower Blush's possession, and using it on the portal somehow. She didn't have much time to explain before we could all try to escape."

Sunset sighed, wondering if Fluttershy knew anything at all and what it would take to get her talking. That would not be a fun conversation, even if it needed to happen. So she shelved that for later. "Fine, but you said: 'escape', what happened?"

Celestia stared at her tea, seeming to gather her thoughts. "After you were gone, Twilight Sparkle and her dog left as well… She had some strong words for Rainbow Dash and company, and they were not kind. The whole school heard her, and… well, she essentially accused them of murdering you in front of everyone there."

"What?!" Marceline gasped. "They tried to murder you?!" She started floating off of her seat, no doubt intending to have some words with Fluttershy, but Sunset stopped her.

"It's fine. If they hadn't done that I wouldn't be here."

"Right." Celestia sighed. "Things changed a little bit as the dust settled the following days and it finally dawned on everyone that you were dead." She blinked, clearing her throat. "Or at least that's what we thought. In any case, the fact that you were simply not there anymore slowly sank in, and the vast majority of the school all agreed you didn't deserve to die."

"Thanks?" Sunset said, shifting in her seat. "I'm not sure how I should feel about them having to think about it to come to that conclusion."

"Luna and I… we weren't happy with how things turned out." Celestia licked her lips as if they had gone dry. "We failed you all. At some point, we failed to push that anger and ambition of yours into something positive. We failed the students because we focused on the wrong thing… and they suffered for our oversight so much so they wanted you… d-gone.

"We couldn't stop Twilight from just leaving after shouting at the girls, but I also didn't have the energy to talk to her after her words hit." Celestia sighed, drinking some tea to give herself a moment. "You were one of the most brilliant, brave, resourceful and strong students I've ever met. Every teacher respected you and looked forward to your future… and you were suddenly gone, because we all allowed what was happening under our noses to continue."

"It's not like I was some innocent child that didn't know what she was doing. Everything I did was calculated and deliberate," Sunset countered. "Well. Almost everything. I didn't plan on turning into a demon and actually attacking anyone with fireballs, but I guess we have to roll with the punches."

"Yes." Celestia looked at the trees and animals and strange creatures running around. She looked at Marceline and then to Sunset. "But it seems that in this world you haven't feel the need to do any of that."

"The elements cleansed me—"

"They showed you there was another way," Celestia interrupted firmly. "Twilight said she felt that there was good in you and that what you really needed was a clearer mind… a different perspective.

"According to her, if used correctly, the Elements force you to take a good look at yourself, and only if there is no wish to redeem yourself, to be better would different actions be taken, like exiling you to the moon, or turning you to stone." She fiddled with a cookie on the table with her finger. "But she also said that never had the Element Bearers wished someone… harmed like the others had."

"You mean dead," Sunset corrected.

"So…" Marceline spoke up before Celestia could tackle that comment. "What does that boil down to, lady? No offense, but you ramble a lot."

"I am still trying to figure out if I'm delusional, dead, or asleep. But I will try to summarize my thoughts, young lady." Celestia gave her a steady look and took a deep breath. "It just means… that to me and the other teachers, the meaning of Twilight's words was that we could have done better for someone we wanted to succeed in life. Beyond the grades. We should have acted when you started lashing out and bullied the first student." She locked eyes with Sunset. "And at that we failed and it cost everyone a lot more than anyone could have predicted."

"Well," Marceline said with a shrug, "it worked out in the end." She scooted over to Sunset and threw her arm over her shoulders, pulling her closer. "Those girls think they got their wish and I got my big sister!"

Sunset smiled and gave Marceline a return squeeze around the shoulders. "Yeah. It all worked out."

"I'm glad that you found your place here so quickly." Celestia's smile was bittersweet. "But doesn't it bother you that they just wanted you… dead?"

"It stopped bothering me a long time ago that they wanted me dead, Celestia. I never thought I'd see any of you again, and quite frankly without that lot and a way back to Equestria, I finally found peace with who I am."

"Oh." Marceline and Sunset exchanged glances, but kept quiet as Celestia cringed, then gathered herself and continued, not lifting her eyes from her cup. "A-Anyway, after Twilight left, we tried to get things back to… as normal as we could make it. We held a funeral for you, and with the portal closed… we thought that, however tragic, it would be the last time we'd have to deal with magic."

Sunset leaned forward. "Did someone else come through the portal?"

"No. They… were already in our world. They said they were Sirens."

"Huh, like the ones in the junkyard?" Marceline asked.

"Probably not," Sunset grimaced. "They might be from my world."

Celestia glanced up from her tea to Sunset. "We were having a competition, and they started singing… they brainwashed the students into becoming violent, then into worshiping them." She held her cup in her hands, staring at it as if the sunlight reflecting on the tea was playing what transpired.

"Luna and I fell for it too, but Fluttershy and the other girls were not as affected and managed to separate us from the sirens long enough for Wallflower to remove the siren's influence from me with her stone, she opened the portal but… it seems that only Fluttershy and I made it." She looked down. "And now we're here."

Sunset and Marceline looked at each other and shrugged.

"Well, that's too bad," Marceline said, "but at least you made it out, right? It might take some time to get used to Ooo, but I'm sure you two'll manage."

Celestia looked up, frowning. "What?"

"The forest here is pretty friendly," Sunset elaborated, "just make sure you don't piss off the Forest Wizard and you'll be okay. But he's a nice guy, so he'll probably help get you started."

"You're not going to help us?" Celestia asked.

"No?" Sunset shrugged. "I've made a life here and I don't see the point of going back to a place where I'm not wanted. Besides, Fluttershy always had a way with animals, right? I think a couple of deer I saw earlier are single."

Celestia gave her an incredulous look. "You can't be serious, don't you—"

"I left Equestria because I felt it was the only way to get what I wanted… and I didn't get it." Sunset interrupted. "I lived in Canterlot City and thought only of what I didn't get in my previous home, and only made others miserable to the point that Fluttershy and most likely the rest of the school thought they would be better off if I died."

"They're teenagers, Sunset," Celestia insisted. "They react strongly to—"

"Celestia." Sunset reached over, holding her former principal's hands in her own. "I know you feel bad about what happened, but I wasn't without fault. I've had plenty of time to realize that… I even went to hell for a while and had to face what I did. Just look at what happened earlier. Fluttershy was surprised when she saw Marceline, and she was surprised when she saw me… but when she realized the demon was me, that's when she freaked out!"

Sunset stood up, not meeting her former teacher's eyes and sighed. "When I came here and met Marcie… I found what I wanted. I'm not throwing that away for ponies that didn't appreciate me and made me feel inadequate, or people that I bullied until they ended up hating me.

"Going back—even if I knew how—would only cause us all pain. If not much time passed in Canterlot City, then they really don't need their bully back and I've had plenty of time to get over things. I'm not reopening the wound more than you already have. Come on, Marcie, we're leaving."

"Uh, if you're sure?" Marceline floated up from her seat, giving Celestia a concerned look before following her sister out of the inn.

End Chapter