“Who Are Your Friends?”by The Sleepless BeholderChaptersAccepting The DealSupporting The TailoressTwilight-ing The ScientistAngering The CaretakerTrusting The BakerNoticing The GardenerAppreciating The FarmerTeasing The RainbowEpilogue: Attending The PartyAccepting The DealSunshine walked back and forth inside her spacious office. Charts, finances, future projects and calls from her secretary left forgotten as her anxiety slowly reached breaking point. She obviously hadn’t expected for Sunset to accept her offer right away, but it had already been a week since their meeting, and she hadn't received even a single message from the girl. “I can feel you getting old from here.” The voice of her friend talked through the office phone; the only contact Sunshine had allowed herself with the outside world. “You knew things could not work out in the end.” “Yeah, I was ready for that, but I didn’t expect just… silence.” Sunshine checked her phone again, wanting to see if she had a missing call or a text. “Maybe I should–” “Don’t you dare call her!” “Fuck! This is going to kill me.” Sunshine let herself fall on a large black couch, big enough for her to sleep on if she had to pull an all-nighter. “Why don’t you take a few smokes to calm your nerves?” “I’m trying to stop doing that, I don’t want to have to deal with the consequences later down the line.” “That hurts Sunshy. Will you care for your old friend when my body starts to give up?” The voice asked with feigned sadness. Sunshine sighed. “Stop with the teasing. You know I can pay for any operation your body needs.” “Okay okay, serious mode engaged.” That got a chuckle out of Sunshine. “She’s going to say yes.” Sunshine rolled her eyes. “And what gives you this prophetic vision?” “She’s you,” the voice answered matter-of-factly “She will need you just as you need her.” Sunshine frowned. “What do you mean?” There was a bit of a pause before the answer came. “Sunshine, all your life you’ve only cared for three people; your parents and me. They're on the other side of the world, and while I’m just a call and a few cheap beers away, you’re alone most of the time.” “Are you telling me that a mature, financially successful woman should be jealous of her young doppelganger because she has more friends?” Sunshine asked sarcastically. “And you immediately proved my point. You can’t even see it.” Sunshine let out a grunt of annoyance. “This is like that bullshit of ‘money can’t buy happiness’.” The argument was suddenly interrupted when Sunshine’s phone started ringing. The redhead stood up, quickly pulling it out and felt a wave of relief and nerves as she answered. “Hello?” “Hey, it’s me, Sunset.” “How’re you doing?” Sunshine asked, shutting down her emotions with practiced professionalism. “I’m okay, I guess. I wanted to make you an offer.” “Do you want to make changes to our deal?” Sunshien questioned suspicious. “Something like that. Can you come to my apartment?” “Sure, I will be there in ten minutes.” “Oh, okay. I will be waiting.” Sunset hanged up, and Sunshine let out a sigh of relief before going to her office phone. “I'll call you later and tell you how it went.” “Ask her about our bet!” the voice shouted before Sunshine finished the call. Steer parked right outside Sunset's apartment, giving his employer a look of 'good luck' as she opened the door and went out into the street. Sunshine looked at the apartment, wondering just how Sunset could afford it. She went up to the door and ringed two times before waiting to be let in. She fidgeted a bit, still remembering her friend's words, but remaining nervous anyway. When Sunset finally opened, Sunshine saw that the girl had made an effort to look her best, like if she was going to her first job interview. "I guess a more business-minded conversation will be easier" Sunshine thought, still not really sure about how Sunset was taking all this. Their first meeting had showed that they certainly got along, and Sunset was smart enough to see the benefits, but Sunshine had accidentally opened some old wounds in the girl's past by being too reckless, and she couldn't help but wonder if that was the cause of the week-long silence. She wanted to be cautious this time. She didn't want to lose this deal. "Come in, what can I offer you?" Sunset asked as she left space for the woman to enter. "Do you have coffee?" "Sure, I'll guess that we have the same preference." While the girl went to prepare the coffee, Sunshine took in the look of Sunset's house. It made her feel... Old. There was a huge painting on the wall near the entrance that reminded her of all the pieces she had made during her younger years, making her wonder if she could still use a brush to create something like that. There was a pile of video games and consoles under a large TV, with a camera and microphone set ready for streaming. Streaming was one of the things Sunshine would’ve loved if it existed in her younger years, playing for hours with her friend during those days they had so little to worry about they didn't need a schedule for their entire week. A glance to Sunset’s dresser betrayed the large amount of leather jackets the girl owned, but it also had a lot of colorful and even silly outfits and clothes, which made Sunshine wonder when was the last time she wore something other than her usual suit. Sunshine could feel that this was Sunset's home. It had her name written all over it. "I like what you've done with the place." "I... Didn't do anything. Just cleaned a bit." Sunset said a bit awkwardly as she gave the woman her coffee. "And that's why I like it. It doesn't need much to feel like home. Although I would certainly miss some of the benefits of an outlandish house." Sunset chuckled. "Well, I lived in the biggest castle in Equestria so I can understand what you mean. Sometimes I miss having a personal chef to keep my plate full. Although food delivery is a pretty close second." Sunshine smiled as the mood between them started to feel less awkward. "So, how have you been doing?" "A bit nervous to be honest. At least when I'm not working." Sunshine admitted as she took a sip of her coffee. Sunset scratched the back of her head. "Yeah, sorry about the wait. I needed to... Process things." Sunshine gave her an apologetic look. "It's understandable, I put a lot of pressure on you. I'm sorry for that." "It's okay. I called you to offer you something." "I'm listening." Sunshine said with curiosity. "The thing is... Other than memories regarding your family, I don't really know you. Which is weird because you're… me." Sunset added looking confused. "No, I get it, we have lived very different lives. What do you propose to breach that gap? Do you want me to tell you about myself?" Sunshine asked, keeping a professional attitude. Sunset put on her best smile. "Well, I would like for you to meet my friends." Sunshine kept staring at Sunset for a few seconds as her friend's words bounced inside her head. "Could you please elaborate?" "Back in Sugarcube Corner you said something that got me worried. That you didn't have friends." "Oh." Sunshine clearly relaxed at the answer. "Don't need to worry, I do have a very good friend." "You mentioned it, but, still, I would like for you to meet them before we can move forward with the adoption thing." Sunshine put down her mug. “Sunset, be honest. You think me having only one friend is a problem?” Sunset fidgeted a little. “Not that it’s wrong, just… I think it could help us understand each other better.” Sunshine snorted. “So that’s how I looked whenever I asked my parents for something.” She let out a slightly annoyed sigh before continuing. "Very well, if those are your conditions, I will do it." Sunset smiled. "Good, do you mind if we start now?" "I don't. Who do you want me to meet first?" Sunset rolled her eyes. "Since I value my life, you need to meet Rarity first." Supporting The TailoressAfter only an hour of travel, Steer left the two women at the entrance of Rarity's house/business, wishing them good luck. Sunshine seemed calm, but internally she was questioning a lot of things, many of them involving how Sunset would react to her actions. "Did she faint when she saw the card?" Sunshine asked as they walked to the door to stablish a more playful mood. "Yep," Sunset answered with a smile. Sunshine grinned. "Did you take a picture?" "Nope." Sunset knocked on the door and it almost flew open by shaky hands. "Welcome! it's an honor to meet you!" Rarity exclaimed, doing a herculean effort to not faint in the presence of one of the leaders of the fashion industry. "The pleasure is mine," Sunshine gave her a firm handshake. "It's always a pleasure meeting people who have a clear goal for their life." "Oh, then I've a story to tell you. Please come in." Rarity let them pass and offered some tea, but her guests refused, leaving her to drink some on her own. The interior of the house was spotless, everything was in its place and some finished dresses were arranged so anyone with a keep eye for fashion could study them. Sunset and her adult not-self sat down on one of Rarity's 'dramatic' couches, while the fashionista sat down on an armchair before speaking. "Excuse my curiosity, but Sunset told me you inherited Sunward Destiny." Sunshine crossed her legs. "Yes, but I didn't earn it by asking nicely." "Oh, I'm not doubting your capabilities, darling. May I call you, darling?" "Please do, it's a refreshing change of pace." "Well, darling, I'm a bit curious, how was it to suddenly be in charge of something so large?" "Well, luckily my mother gave me a good head start, but it was hard to keep everything working in order." Sunset was surprised at how quickly Rarity had managed to calm down and engage Sunshine in conversation, and as the chat continued, she realized just how bored she was getting. She had talks about fashion with Rarity before, kind of impossible not to have them, but it never got so deep into the business part of it. She tried to pay attention, then started browsing social media, only to end up asleep on the couch. When Sunshine realized her young not-self was asleep, she interrupted Rarity mid speech. “You’re generosity, right?” Rarity took a few seconds to catch up. “Oh, I suppose, yes. It doesn’t really get brought up much on this side of the mirror, so you don’t need to think about it.” “Still, it’s something that defines you. Is that why you tend to give free samples to people?” Sunshine asked almost accusatorily. “I think you meant to say; give gifts to friends, darling.” The older woman shook her head slowly. “That’s not a good business attitude.” “Is that a piece of advice, or a hint that you wouldn’t hire me unless I change?” Rarity asked, copying Sunshine’s tone and posture. “Because both aren’t needed.” Sunshine grinned. “Before you jump to conclusions, I won’t do it because I can tell that you wouldn’t be comfortable working under someone. I believe you can find more success on your own without being bogged down on corporate bureaucracy.” “Then why did you wait until Sunset was asleep to talk about it?” Rarity questioned glancing at her friend. “Were you afraid that she would think less of you for not giving me a job?” “I didn’t want to take that chance,” Sunshine admitted. “And I also wanted to see how you would react without her listening in.” Rarity nodded. “Yes, having her hang around will make all these little reunions a bit more challenging for you. But, darling, have a bit more faith please. You can make mistakes in front of us. Sunset has made her fair share of them; she won’t be quick to judge.” Sunshine shook her head. “I don’t want to put more worries on her mind. I did enough with our first encounter.” “You think mentioning her parents was a mistake?” Rarity put her cup down. “It was a surprise to all of us. Sunset never said anything about her family, and she probably never would have if you hadn't appeared in her life like you did.” Sunshine raised an eyebrow. “Are you saying that it was a good thing to make her cry and lament never having a family?” “She was doing it on the inside we just didn’t know. And she would’ve continued doing it for years. Now, thanks to you, she knows what having a family’s like. She has a bit of closure on that chapter, an wanting you to adopt her shows that she’s starting to move on from it.” Rarity let out a sad sigh. “I had a similar epiphany about Sweetie Belle. Didn’t realize just how much she looked up to me and needed my support when our parents weren’t around. I can’t help but wonder how many times Sunset felt alone when we were on family reunions.” “You didn’t have a way to know,” Sunshine offered as a consolation. “We had. Little hints here and there. A longing look when Granny Smith and Applejack talked in the cafeteria, a small grimace when Rainbow’s parents came to cheer for her during sports events, any kind of interaction with principal Celestia. There were many chances for us to pick up something was wrong but didn’t notice. That’s a mistake we all regret now and have you to thank for fixing it. So, don’t be afraid to mess up once or twice. Being dishonest will be what dooms you in our circle of friends.” Sunshine raised an amused eyebrow. “I would expect that kind of lesson to come from Applejack.” Rarity let out the most lady-like snort that could be possible. "Darling, we don't need to stick to our labels, and neither should you. Even if you take this role as Sunset’s ‘mother’ you can also be her closest friend." Sunshine took a moment to think about it, and a smile slowly formed on her lips. “Thanks for the advice.” “It was my pleasure,” Rarity said before picking her cup back up. Sunshine’s smile turned into a grin. “You know, I may not hire you, but I guess a simple gift wouldn’t be too much.” “How generous of you.” Rarity said before taking a sip of her tea. “How about your own boutique and a good word with the top providers of textiles in the country?” Rarity sprayed her tea all over the floor. “W-what?!” “And let’s say…” Sunshine rubbed her chin in fake thought. “…340,000 dollars to start you up?” Rarity was too busy fainting to respond. Sunshine giggled, took out her phone to take a picture of the happily unconscious fashionista, and gently nudged Sunset awake. “Hey sleepyhead, who’s next on the list?” “Twilight,” Sunset groaned as she slowly woke up. “What happen to Rarity?” Twilight-ing The Scientist“Looks like I’m not the only one with money,” Sunshine said as she looked at the large house Twilight lived in. Sunset shrugged a bit. “Well, she has to get funding for her inventions somehow.” Sunshine took a thinking pose. “So, bribing her into friendship would be harder.” “Hey! Don’t brainwash my friends with money!” Sunset exclaimed with a little smile. Sunshine laughed. “I’m just joking.” Both women walked up to the door and it automatically opened for them. Sunshine noticed a camera looking at them. “Your friend seems to be full of surprises.” “Wait to see her laboratory,” Sunset said as they entered. “She has an actual laboratory?” “Yeah, she’s the full mad scientist package.” They finally arrived at the heavy door that lead to the lab, and once the locking mechanism finish opening, they entered to find Twilight sitting in front of a computer with multiple monitors wearing a lab coat. “Hello and welcome!” Twilight greeted them. “How did things go with Rarity?” Sunset crossed her arms. “Sunshine managed to make her faint again.” The woman chuckled. “It was surprisingly easy.” She then looked around the room, admiring all the machinery and chemistry sets the young scientist had all over her laboratory. “I’m curious, what project are you working on right now?” “Well, I’ve been working on this little drone right here.” Twilight pulled the device from its small stand so Sunshine could see it, and the woman picked it up to examine it closely. “Interesting, some of these parts seem custom made.” Twilight tapped the tip of her fingers. “Well… sometimes it’s easier to build it yourself rather than find a piece that fits your criteria, but it's a bit more expensive sometimes.” “Admirable job, but I think you should implement a better cooling system, or the battery will give you problems after constant use.” “Yeah, that’s one of the issues I’m working on." Twilight exclaimed with a bit of annoyance. "Any suggestions?” “Maybe the solution could be a more efficient camera that doesn’t put too much strain on it. Have you considered a 40 pro?” Twilight sighed. “Yeah, but I couldn’t convince my parents that buying an entire phone just for the camera was justified. And it’s really expensive.” Sunshine pulled out her phone from her pocket. “Take it from mine. I barely use the camera and I can buy another one later.” “Really? Thank you!” Twilight immediately took the phone and started breaking it apart with her tools. Sunshine took advantage of her concentration to spy on the screens of the computer. “You’re giving it a custom AI?” Twilight didn’t look away from her work. “Yep, I want it to be as independent as possible.” Sunshine grabbed the mouse and inspected the coding. “Hum, sorry to say, but this coding is very poor.” That got Twilight’s full attention. “Excuse me?” “There are a lot of unnecessary sequences that you could trim down into a more basic set of commands. No wonder the battery gets such abuse with the amount of unnecessary processing power it uses.” “Can you show me?” Twilight asked, the phone now forgotten. Sunset felt a sense of déjà vu as her friend and future mother engaged in a conversation that she couldn’t realistically follow, so once again she had to seek entertainment on her phone. She ended up leaning against a nearby wall and downloading a sudoku game to play around. As the minutes passed, Sunset could hear the excitement in Twilight’s voice rise, until it started to sound dangerously close to what Starlight had described as a 'Twilight-ing'. “Do you want a second daughter?!” the scientist shouted with a huge smile and starry eyes. Sunshine chuckled. “Sorry, the only way would be for you to marry Sunset.” Sunset froze for a second before turning her head towards them, but Twilight had already closed the gap in that brief period of time. “Would you marry me?” “Wha– no! Why would I marry you right now?” Sunset exclaimed. “Oh, come on, we have so much in common,” Twilight pulled out a list out of… somewhere. “We’re both smart individuals, we have the shared experience of tasting the power of dark magic…” Twilight continued listing all the reasons her and Sunset would make a great couple while Sunset looked at the grinning Sunshine and muttered. “You’re evil.” The older woman let things play out for a few more seconds to amuse herself before going up to Twilight and whisper something in her ear. The young scientist suddenly stopped ranting as a shudder took over her body, and Sunshine had to catch her before she collapsed to the ground unconscious. “Wha– What did you do? What did you say to her?” Sunset asked in a bit of a panic. “One of the greatest secrets of the universe,” Sunshine responded mysteriously as she set Twilight’s unconscious body back on the chair. “Are you going to knock all my friends unconscious?” Sunshine chuckled. “I will stop when it stops being funny.” After securing Twilight to the chair, they got out of the house thanks to the automatic system, but before they could get on the car, Sunset stopped. “Hey, I wanted to ask you something.” Sunshine looked at the girl, noticing the distress in her face. “Is something wrong?” “It’s…” Sunset seemed to have problems phrasing her words. “I know what you said about making my friends faint and bribing them is just you joking around.” “They are just jokes,” Sunshine felt the need to clarify. “I know, but…” Sunset grabbed her arm. “It reminded me of myself... when I was a bully.” Sunshine flinched. “I’m not like that. I can stop if you want.” “No, it’s not that,” Sunset quickly added. “It just made me wonder. Were you like that during highschool?” Sunshine let out a long sigh. “Okay, I guess it'll be better if I tell you the full story.” She looked around for a place where they could sit, but found nothing, so she simply continued. “For starters, I went to Crystal Prep, not CHS.” Sunset cringed. “Oh. Was it like before the ACADECA??” “Maybe worse,” Sunshine admitted. “When I started, I quickly realized that it was kill or be killed in there. Metaphorically speaking. So, I decided to place myself at the top.” Sunset winced as memories of her darker days came back. “While I was smart, I knew it wouldn’t be enough, so I looked for the biggest student in the faculty and got her to beat up anyone who posed a challenge. With her at my side, we cutthroated our way to the top. Again, metaphorically speaking.” Sunshine clarified. “Well, except that one time, but he pulled a gun on me.” She added in her mind. “Okay, that sounds… a bit worse,” Sunset admitted uncomfortably. Sunshine grimaced. “Sorry, but it’s just a past of mine.” “What made you change?” Sunset asked. Sunshine shrugged. “Maturity I guess.” Sunset looked at her confused, so she elaborated. “I didn’t have a big revelation or got literally hit with friendship, I just… graduated and went to learn how to do business with mom.” Sunshine looked away for a moment, with a bit of shame in her eyes. “I guess that’s why I make you uncomfortable.” “It’s not like that,” Sunset quickly corrected. “It would be unfair to judge you for your past, specially knowing you didn’t have friends to help you move pass that.” “Well, now you and your friends can teach me,” Sunshine offered with a small nervous smile. Sunset shook her head. “No. Please keep being yourself. It makes me feel a bit better knowing that I could’ve eventually moved on from that.” She looked down at her feet. “Sometimes I felt like I would’ve been stuck as the queen bitch forever.” Sunset was suddenly held in a warm hug. “People change Sunset, even if it takes them years on their own or a few good friends. And you said it yourself, it could’ve been worse.” Sunset surprise turned into a smile, and she hugged her older not-self, enjoying the moment of peace between them. After a short while, Sunshine let go and asked. “Who would be next?” “It would be Fluttershy. That one could be a bit problematic,” she answered with a bit of nervousness. Angering The CaretakerSunshine was surprised when Steer left them not at a house, but a small animal shelter. “Does she work here?” “She sort of half-owns it. Didn’t you follow me for two months or something?” Sunset asked. “I investigated you, not your friends outside the ones included in the bet.” “Who did your friend vote for?” Sunset asked as she knocked on the door. “I won't say.” Sunshine answered as the door opened, letting them in. She was immediately hit with the scent only a bunch of animals living in a closed interior could give. A small automatic perfume spray tried in vain to hide the pungent smell, and Sunshine looked around for a window to open. “Fluttershy! Windows!” Sunset shouted, covering her own nose. “Sorry!” the soft voice of the caretaker exclaimed before running to a large window covered with a mosquito nest and opened it, letting the contaminated oxygen be replaced with fresh air. “I swear your nose is rotten by this point,” Sunset complained jokingly as the ambient became breathable again. “Sorry for that. I’m Fluttershy.” The pink haired teen offered a hand to the tall woman, who accepted it while still trying to rub the smell out of her nose. “Don’t worry, I admire your… dedication,” Sunshine said as politely as possible. There was a bit of an awkward silence before Fluttershy clapped her globed hands. “Well, let me do the introductions.” “To who–” Sunshine was about to ask until she realized that the sources of the pungent smell were all looking at her like if an alien had decided to visit Earth. “This is going to take a while.” And take a while it did, since Fluttershy gave a not-brief-enough biography of each and every living being in the animal shelter, and Sunshine was sure that if the building had rats or roaches, they would have names too. The reward at the end of the long road was the chance to interact with the small bundles of fur, scales and feathers. It was clear Sunset had visited before since as soon as Fluttershy opened the bird cages, several parrots and other avians flew to her and perched themselves on her arms, shoulders and head. Sunshine smiled at the joyful expression Sunset had, surrounded by the love of the birds. However, it also gave her a small pang of sadness. Seeing a young version of herself so much happier than she was at that age made her feel like something had been missing. Finally, she looked for an animal to pet, not wanting to be a rude guest, and settled on a small brown bunny. She lifted it with delicate care, and gently brushed its back with her hand, feeling is softness. “I always love how their fur feels.” “Do you have any pets?” Fluttershy asked, and Sunshine realized her mistake. “No, I never had time for pets, and my mother would freak out if I brought one home,” she answered, hoping to deviate the conversation. But she had no luck. Fluttershy’s eyes lost all joy and slowly lowered her head. “How many?” “How many what?” Sunshine asked, even the bunny in her hands looking nervous. Even if her eyes were covered by her hair, Fluttershy’s stare could be felt through it. “How many do you kill for your industry?” Sunshine frowned, slowly putting the bunny back into its habitat. “You may want to rephrase that,” she said threateningly. “Is it thousands? More? Do you care?” “To be honest. No, I don’t. They’re fur, food and money.” “How can you say that?!” Fluttershy shouted. “They’re no different than the one you were holding a moment ago.” Sunshine crossed her arms. “There’s a big difference.” “Oh really?” The woman pointed at the now scared animal with her thumb. “First, this one's a pet. It’s meant to be loved and cared for. Meanwhile, the ones used for any industry are literally born to be used by someone. As income, testing, food, or in my case, fashion.” She then pointed at Fluttershy like her mother did every time she gave her a lecture. “Any besides that, I don’t own a farm or slaughterhouse or whatever you want to call it. I buy whatever fur I need for the season in bulk, those animals are long dead before I have any say in what their future should be.” Fluttershy clenched her firsts. “You still know where they come from. You shouldn’t support those businesses to make more money for yourself!” “Oh, so I should cripple my way of living because I dare use a product that already exist regardless of my choice?” As the two women continued their heated discussion, Sunset looked at them feeling torn. She didn’t want to pick a side, but they didn’t seem to be willing to stop. Their argument was getting more and more intense. She wanted them to… “Stop!” she shouted, and the birds perched on her flew back to their cages. Sunshine looked at Sunset’s distraught face and sighed, feeling ashamed. “You better just leave,” Fluttershy said, turning her back on them, but mostly to Sunshine. The taller woman gave a barely audible and very insincere goodbye before exciting the door, and Sunset followed closely. “I…” the redhead teen tried to say soemthing, but didn’t know how to complete the sentence. “It’s not your fault.” Sunshine let out a long, defeated sigh. “I can’t get along with everybody.” Sunset bit her lip, looking away. “I knew something like this could happen, but…” "Look," Sunshine interrupted. “It’s not the first time I’ve heard complains about my business. Just, never in person.” She crossed her arms and looked at the sky. “I always wanted to shut them up, and I guess I took the chance with your friend. I’m sorry.” “It’s not like…” Sunset struggled to find the right words. “You had valid arguments…” “Why aren’t you mad?” Sunshine asked abruptly. “She’s your friend. You’re a horse. You should be taking her side.” “I… it’s just that…” Sunset looked away as she continued to struggle. Sunshine moved to look her in the eyes, studying her face. “Sunset, what do you want?” “I just want this to work,” Sunset finally admitted before scratching the back of her head. “I guess it’s obvious what my answer will be at the end.” She expected that her words would put a smile on Sunshine’s face, but the woman looked at the sky again, thinking with a neutral expression. As the seconds passed, Sunset felt a new wave of nervousness take hold of her. Sunshine seemed to have been as eager to become her mother as she was, so Sunset never considered the idea that the woman could also say no to the deal. After what Sunset thought was an eternity, Sunshine broke the silence with one question. “Who’s next?” “Pinkie Pie,” Sunset answered almost immediately. “She’s at Sugarcube Corner.” Sunshine simply nodded and went to the car without saying anything more. “I hope Pinkie can cheer her up a bit.” Trusting The BakerSunset was tapping her knees nervously as they traveled to Sugarcube Corner. She took a glance at Sunshine, noticing that the woman was still looking out the window. She had remained completely silent since they last talked, Sunset even had to tell Steer where to go. “I fucked up. I fucked up royally!” Sunset thought as she took her phone out of her pocket before sending a quick message to Pinkie Pie. “Hey Pinkie, we will be there in a few minutes, is everything ready?” As expected from Pinkie, the response was almost instant. “Of course, silly! I’ve been preparing everything since this morning. Is something wrong?” “We just got out of meeting Fluttershy. It didn’t go well.” “Is she level three grumpy?” Sunset didn’t want to take her chances. “Level zero.” “I’ll be prepared.” Sunset could imagine Pinkie saluting as she sent the message, which put a smile on her face. That smile died horribly when she noticed Sunshine was staring right at her, neutral disappointment clear in her face. “Pinkie just wanted to check if we were coming. She has a surprise for you.” Sunshine’s expression didn’t change, and she just went back to stare out the window, her absolute silence starting to make Sunset feel nauseous. “We’ve arrived,” Steer announced. “What?! I thought we had a little bit more time!” Sunset was about to make an excuse to delay the meeting, but Sunshine was already out of the car. Steer didn’t give his usual 'good luck', as if he knew exactly how his employer was feeling. They quickly entered the small business and found zero customers sitting at the tables. Instead, the place was filled with balloons, confetti, streamers and a big paper sign with “Hi new friend! And thank you for being an awesome person!” written on it. Sunset felt a wave of relief as she saw Sunshine genuinely smile at the decorations, joy coming back to her features. “I knew Pinkie could do it,” She thought, feeling her body relax. “Quite a surprise, isn’t it?” Sunset’s question murdered Sunshine’s smile in cold blood. Her face turned back into a neutral expression that somehow showed less emotion than Maud on a bad day. “Welcome back!” Pinkie shouted springing out of nowhere, quickly offering her hand to the woman. “I’m Pinkie Pie, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” “The pleasure is mine,” Sunshine responded with a tone of apathy like she was dealing with a customer five minutes before the closing hour. Despite this, Pinkie maintained her cheery attitude and invited her over to take a seat in one of the tables where a menu was placed. “What can I serve you before we talk?” “I already had some coffee with Sunset,” Sunshine answered with the same apathy as before, but Pinkie didn’t give up. “But a coffee is never enough without a good desert!” she went to the fridge behind the counter, leaving Sunshine with a confused look as the menu was forgotten on the table. Sunset offered a nervous smile of awkward innocence at her friend’s antics, even if she really didn’t know what Pinkie had planned in such a short time. The pink girl came back with a tray covered with a metal dome which she placed in front of the woman with a big smile. Sunshine slowly pulled the dome off, revealing a simple yet absolutely delicious-looking chocolate sundae. She looked at the pink girl suspiciously before moving her eyes towards Sunset. Sunshine quickly tasted a spoonful of the desert, her eyes opening wide before narrowing in anger. She turned towards Sunset, staring at the teen like she wanted to explode her in flames. “That was very low of you!” “Wh– what? I just–” Sunset stuttered, confused and terrified. “You saw my memories with my mother, only you could know how to make it taste like if it was made by her!” Sunshine was gripping the spoon with such strength her knuckles were turning white. “I– I didn’t tell her anything! She just does these kinds of things. She gifted me an exact replica of the cakes I used to eat with Celestia back in Equestria for my birthday!” Sunset moved her hand forward, offering her palm. “I can show it to you.” Sunshine looked at Sunset’s hand, and after letting out a long sigh, her anger was drained away. “It’s okay, I believe you.” she then looked at the baker standing in front of her, and surprisingly still held a positive look. “I’m sorry.” “I understand,” Pinkie said sitting at the table. “It’s been years since your parents left, you probably have missed it a lot.” Sunshine simply nodded before taking another spoonful of the desert. “You thought Sunset was trying to rig our meeting so you would like me.” Again, the woman nodded, a bit of shame in her eyes. “I… can’t blame you for thinking that,” Sunset said, sharing that bit of shame. “I shouldn’t have lied to you and tried to… ‘fix it’.” Sunshine looked at her younger doppelganger. “Sunset, what worries me is that I will end up hurting you.” “Hurting me?” Sunset asked confused. “Like I did with your parents. When I saw how distraught you felt after my fight with Fluttershy, I couldn’t get the thought of you slowly abandoning your friends because I don’t like them out of my mind.” “I would never do that!” Sunset exclaimed. “And I know they wouldn’t either, our friendship means more than that.” “I guess I didn’t see that before.” Sunshine finished her desert and licked the spoon clean. “Rarity told me that I could make mistakes without you judging me. I didn’t want to test her theory so soon.” “You also care a lot about this deal you proposed,” Pinkie said with a smile. Sunshine chuckled. “More than I thought apparently.” The words had an instant effect on Sunset, washing away the weight she had felt on her shoulders and heart, letting her breathe calmly. “Then I will prepare a bigger party when you two make it official! With all the new friends you have made and will keep making today.” the Pinkie girl declared, confetti flying form somewhere behind her. Sunshine let out a hearty laugh. “I would love that.” She then looked at Sunset, who was also smiling, much more relaxed than even before starting the day. “Who should we visit next?” Sunset thought for a moment, a smile never leaving her lips. “I think you’re ready for Wallflower.” Noticing The GardenerSteer didn’t consider himself a very expressive individual during his work hours. His choice of maintaining a respectful and professional stance at all times was what had kept him employed for a long time. However, hearing the two women he was transporting chat and joke around happily like the first time they met after the previous sour ride put a smile under his grey bushy mustache. His GPS informed him that they had arrived at the destination, and he stopped the SUV before announcing their arrival. This time, instead of a ‘good luck’, he simply told them to have fun. Sunshine smiled at the change of humor in the old man and looked at the house they had arrived to. A bit rustic, covered with vines, but they had been trimmed enough to function as a decoration of the house rather than a sign of abandonment. Sunshine walked up to the door, but Sunset started walking around the house, so she followed her until they saw a quite large greenhouse, with something, or rather someone, walking around inside. “You did tell her that we were coming right?” “I believe it’s less stressful for her if you surprise her rather than give her time to get anxious about your arrival. We still need to knock,” Sunset explained as she hit the glass door a few times. “Come in!” a voice called out, and they entered what was supposed to be a greenhouse, but looked more like a miniature jungle with a variety of plants that one would need a guide to identify. Sunshine took a few steps forward, amazed by the sight of so much green and other beautiful colors, even the smell inside the enclosed space made her feel refreshed compared to her office. She then ~~almost shit herself~~ was surprised when Wallflower moved, revealing that she had been standing next to her, camouflaged between her plants. “You… would be a great forest sniper,” the woman exclaimed as her blood pressure returned to normal levels. Wallflower chuckled; a bit embarrassed by the woman’s reaction. “Sorry, Sunset says I should wear something a bit more striking, so I don’t blend in so easily.” “I could get something made for you,” Sunshine offered as she studied the girl’s form, making an estimate of her measurements and thinking about what colors could complement her green tones. “She seems to have a nice figure under that sweater.” She then noticed something that called her attention; the sleeves of the sweater she was wearing were covered in dirt. She didn’t roll them up before working. “Uhm, I’m Wallflower,” the green girl said, a bit nervous because of the woman studying her body. “Oh, my apologies, I’m Sunshine, although I’m pretty sure all of you know me already.” “I think it’s just a formality.” “Then let’s put formalities aside and hear about this Noah’s Ark of nature you have going on here,” Sunshine proposed, still looking around in awe. Wallflower let out a little laugh. “Well, I can show you how I started it. Follow me.” Sunshine did as she was told for the fifteen seconds it took for the green girl to blend back into the scenery, forcing her to use Sunset as guide while the, from Sunshine’s perspective, disembodied voice explained the history of her little sanctuary. They spent almost an entire hour roaming the miniature jungle, and at the end, Wallflower presented Sunshine with a large daisy-looking flower with a golden center surrounded by vibrant orange petals. “This is a Gerbera daisy; I think it fits you. The color means sunshine of life.” “It’s beautiful!” Sunshine exclaimed, admiring the potted flower with bright eyes. “You’re a precious little thing.” “Are you saying that to Wally or the flower?” Sunset asked jokingly. “Yes,” Sunshine answered without hesitation, making everyone chuckle. She then looked at the happy expression in Wallflowers face, and her eyes wandered back to her dirty sleeves. “I think we should visit Applejack next before going with Rainbow,” Sunset said checking the hour. They weren’t too far from night hours. “It was a pleasure to meet you. I will come back soon,” Sunshine said goodbye, and she and Sunset went back to the car. The teenager sat down on the seat and was suddenly given the gifted flower. “Wait here for a moment, okay?” Sunset nodded a bit confused and watched as Sunshine walked back to the greenhouse. “You’ve done her a lot of good,” Steer said, getting Sunset’s attention. “The way she talks, how she smiles when she’s with you and some of your friends. The only times I’ve seen her like that is when she and her friend get together at the karaoke club.” Sunset smiled, happy to know she was giving back some of the things Sunshine had gifted her. “Who’s her friend?” she couldn’t help asking. Steer let out a hearty laugh. “I’m not going to risk my job. You have to ask her yourself.” “Oh, come on! At least a little clue?” Sunset asked playfully. Steer gave it a little thought. “The only thing I will tell you is; her friend bet on that Twilight girl.” Sunshine entered the greenhouse after knocking on the door, waiting patiently until Wallflower appeared from between her plants. “Did you forget something?” Wallflower asked a bit confused. “Actually, I wanted to tell you a story.” “Oh… okay.” Wallflower put her tools aside, curious about the woman’s behavior. “A few long years ago, when I was a little older than you, me and my friend lived together in a small ramshackle apartment. It was dirty, sometimes cold, but we didn’t care. We could do anything we wanted in there, we were free, in a sense.” Sunshine let out a chuckle at the memories. “Parties, band sessions, alcohol, and eventually, drugs. Minor at first, but one day we found a way to get this medicine, I can’t remember the name right now, but we got a big bunch of it, and planned to spend the entire week high off our asses. However, my parents called me with an invitation to a cruise they were planning for a long time.” Sunshine’s mood soured a little. “I decided to go with them, and made my friend promise she would save my share of the drugs for when I came back.” The woman let out a long sigh, and Wallflower could see the regret in her eyes. “When I came back, my friend had spent both her and my share of the drugs and sold a lot of our things to get more. She had become addicted.” Sunshine looked up at the glass roof of the greenhouse. “If I was a better friend, I would’ve brought her with me to the cruise. I know that my parents wouldn’t have objected to it. But I wasn’t thinking about that at that moment.” “What were you thinking about?” Wallflower asked, feeling a bit tense about where the story was going. “That my friend needed me.” Sunshine answered with an eco of the determination she felt at that time. “So, I threw away the drugs and sat down with her. She complained, of course, saying that she didn’t have a problem, that what she was doing was her own choice and that I didn’t have any right to get in her business. I countered every argument that she threw my way, causing her to get angry and try to kick me out.” “She attacked you?!” “More like ‘try to push me away’, but it didn’t work. She was very weak due to the drug abuse, and… Well, you could only tell if you knew her, but despite her anger, she didn’t want to hurt me for real. So, after she tired herself out, I told her that I wasn’t going anywhere, that she would get through this and we would go back to having fun and enjoying our time together.” “Did it work?” Wallflower asked, looking at the ground with sad eyes. “Not at first,” Sunshine admitted. “But it changed things. She started to tell me to leave, but for my own good. That I shouldn’t sink with her. That she wasn’t worth it. That she was a mess that I shouldn’t clean. That she shouldn’t exist.” Wallflower crossed her arms, hugging herself. “But I told her that I wouldn’t abandon her. That our friendship was worth the effort of helping her. That she was invaluable to me. That no matter what it took, I would do everything to make her feel better.” A tiny smile formed on Sunshine’s lips. “After that, she started crying. She cried for a long time. I can’t even remember how many days we spent in that apartment, repeating the cycle until she finally stopped.” Sunshine let out a chuckle. “We later joked that she probably cried the drugs out of her system.” She turned her head towards Wallflower. “She finally accepted my aid, and we went to some professionals that could help her recover. My parents payed for the very best, they didn’t even question anything when I told them what had happened with my friend. After some hard months of rehab, she got better, stronger than before, her words, not mine, and we went back to sharing our lives together. And at the end, she became a very successful woman just like me.” Wallflower wiped some tears she didn’t know she had shed. “Why are you telling me all this?” “Because Sunset’s just like me. She will do all that and maybe more, and her friends will support her just like my parents did.” Wallflower was about to ask something, but she froze when a warm hand gently took hold of her wrist. “You can always reach to us, and I will gladly help you with anything you need, no matter what.” She gave the gardener a warm, motherly smile before letting go. “Thank you for the flower,” she said before leaving the greenhouse. Wallflower looked at her wrist, pulling down the sleeve of her sweater, as her mind was bombarded with different emotions, until one of them brought her calm. She grabbed her tools and went back to work with a smile on her lips. “How did it go?” Sunset asked when Sunshine finally entered the vehicle. “She’s a really sweet girl,” the woman responded, and as Steer started the SUV, a thought popped into her head. “Maybe I can have another daughter.” Appreciating The Farmer“Well, this was unexpected.” Sunshine thought, looking at her plate full of apple-based foods. As soon as they arrived, they were ~~ambushed~~ welcomed by Applejack and her family, inviting them over for and early dinner. Sunshine hadn’t eaten anything other than Pinkie’s secret desert, and Sunset even less, so they accepted their invitation, which also included… Sunshine looked at Steer, eating with a smile on his face while having a very polite, short-worded conversation with Big Mac. Sunset, for her part, was chatting with Applejack, who had Apple Bloom sitting on her legs listening in. Which left Sunshine looking at the elder of the family at the other side of the table. “I find it quite the contrast,” Granny Smith said pointing at Sunshine’s clothes. The woman gave a simple glance at her clothing and shrugged. “As long as you don’t put me to work.” The elder smirked. “You get a pass just this time. Food is usually reserved for those who help the family do work.” “I can respect that. Although, I never gifted clothes to my employees.” Sunshine thought back to her discussion with Rarity. “Maybe it’s not such a bad business attitude after all.” “I’m sure they would appreciate something like that.” Granny smith chuckled. “But what do I know about running a business like yours?” “Well, you certainly know how to run a family.” Sunshine looked around her with a smile, seeing the happy faces of everyone at the table. Granny Smith raised an eyebrow at her words, and slowly stood up. “Would you help me with the dishes?” “Sure,” Sunshine answered, shoveling the last bit of food into her mouth, and gathering the plates. The rest of the Apple family were about to help, but a quick glance of their elder stopped them, and they went back to their respective conversations. Sunshine, unaware of all this, carried as much as she could and followed Granny Smith to the kitchen, putting everything in the sink before looking for sponge and detergent. “Oh, you clean by hand?” the elder asked jokingly. Sunshine snorted. “Compared to all the other stuff I have to do; cleaning dishes is relaxing for me.” Granny Smith laughed. “You’re nothing like Filthy Rich. As amiable as he is, he would never join a family dinner.” “If your granddaughter and his daughter started dating, he surely would make an exception,” Sunshine answered as she scrubbed the plates. “Maybe, but having her wife around would be a problem.” Sunshine sighed with a discontent only Spoiled Rich could generate. “That woman can’t be pleased. She rejected six dresses exclusively made for her with every ridiculous specification she requested. I wanted to leave my office and stuff each of them down her throat before kicking her out.” Granny Smith rested her back against the counter next to the sink. “It’s a wonder how her daughter survives such a woman.” Sunshine shook her head. “Spoiled isn’t mother material.” “And what about you?” The question froze Sunshine in place. “I heard about the deal you proposed, but how do you plan on being a mother for that girl?” Sunshine slowly resumed her work. “Well… first, make sure she has everything she needs.” Granny nodded. “Support her the same way my parents did. I won’t expect her to inherit my company.” She frowned for a moment, thinking about the future of her company. “That’s not a now problem. Back to Sunset, I will try my best to make her happy.” She turned her head to the elder at her side. “I know it won’t be easy, but I want to do it.” Granny looked at her in the eyes. “I raised my kids, and my kids’ kids. It never got any easier. Many mistakes, big and small. No one is prepared for something like that. But I trust that you will do a decent enough job.” Sunshine smiled, going back to her work. “Well, maybe it would be a little easier if I could have some advice from someone with experience in the matter?” Granny Smith started laughing. “If you do some farm work, I can give you a few pointers.” Sunshine nodded. “It’s a deal then.” “Also…” Granny added looking away for a moment. “My hip’s getting saggy. This old, knowledgeable body would work better with a replacement.” Sunshine started laughing and Granny joined too. “My friend would love to meet you.” They continued their chat for a while, even after the dishes were clean, until Sunset walked into the kitchen. “Sorry for interrupting.” “It’s getting late?” Sunshine asked looking at her watch. “Rainbow’s the only one left, right?” “Yeah, she said she would be waiting for us at the school’s racetrack.” “Is that allowed?” Sunshine asked as she left the kitchen, waving goodbye to Granny Smith. “Being the star athlete and one of the girls that deal with the magical shenanigans at school gives you some benefits,” Sunset answered with a small laugh. They both gave their goodbyes to the Apple family and went with Steer back to the SUV, but Sunset stopped when her phone received a message. Sunshine looked at her while the girl read the text. “Is something wrong?” “It’s…” Sunset considered lying, but decided against it. “Fluttershy. She calmed down and told me she’s sorry for her outburst with you.” Sunshine raised an eyebrow. “Does that happen often?” “Fluttershy getting mad?” Sunset shook her head. “Very rarely, but she can be scary when she does.” “And when does she get mad?” Sunshine wondered. “Well, when you mistreat animals, as you saw. Sometimes to get our attention when me and the girls are arguing about something. Basically–” “When something’s important to her,” Sunshine concluded, smiling a little. “Can I answer that message?” Sunset was surprised at the request, but after looking at the text Fluttershy had sent one more time, she gave the woman her phone. Sunshine took a moment to read Fluttershy’s text. “I’m sorry Sunset. I knew how much this meant to you and I ruined it. I should’ve stayed quiet. I can keep my distance if you want, but I promise I won’t start any more fights with your mother. I hope you can forgive me.” With a smile, Sunshine replied. “I forgive you. You said what you said because it’s the only way you know to get yourself be heard, and I can understand that. You are kindness, and that kindness needs to be sharp sometimes to protect what it cares for. I hope you will defend my daughter with that same glare you showed me. Sunshine.” The woman gave the phone back to Sunset and got in the vehicle. “You’ve very good friends.” Sunset smiled, and suddenly got another text. “She answered already?” “It’s from Pinkie,” Sunset turned to look at her with a confused but slightly amused look. “She says ‘I’m proud of you’.” Sunshine blinked twice. “Your ‘good friends’ are also really weird.” Teasing The Rainbow“About time you girls came here!” Rainbow exclaimed as she saw both redheads approach the racetrack. “Are you impatient to see Sunset again?” Sunshine asked with a grin. “What? No!” Rainbow quickly answered. “Really? You don’t find her attractive?” the woman questioned, looking upset while Sunset’s eyes widened. “I– She’s– I think–” Rainbow stammered looking away. “That’s not important right now. I’ve something prepared for you two.” “What did you do this time?” Sunset asked, a bit worried about her friend’s machinations. “Oh, just a little something I did when Twilight first came to school.” Sunset looked confused, until she remembered the story. “You’re not making her play football!” Rainbow shrugged. “Why not? She’s not that old.” “Yeah, but–” Sunset was interrupted when Sunshine put her shoes in her hands. “Sunny, give me your boots,” the woman said, showing a competitive grin to the athlete. Sunset sighed and complied, and soon Sunshine was defending the goal against Rainbow. “I will start slow for you,” the multicolor-haired girl announced before kicking the ball to the lower right corner of the goal. Sunshine moved surprisingly fast and kicked the ball back, which flew right beside Rainbow’s head and entered the opposite goal. “Point for me,” Sunshine announced, rubbing her sore foot a bit. It had been a while. Rainbow recovered from the shock and went to get the ball back, deciding to go all out and kicked the ball right above the woman’s head, who ducked as the high-speed projectile seemed to catch fire for a second. “Point for me!” Rainbow shouted victoriously while Sunshine went for the ball. Sunset sat down on the benches to watch the match, smiling at the fierce competition between the two egos. Sunshine was putting a good fight against the athlete, but Rainbow was faster and more agile than her, so the scores quickly went in her favor. Finally, at 4-2 in favor of Rainbow, the rainbow-haired girl prepared herself to end the match, bouncing the ball on her foot. Sunshine stood firm, defending the goal, but when Rainbow kicked the ball, a rainbow-colored shockwave launched it towards her like if it just came out of a canon, hitting her in the midsection and pushing her inside the goal. “Victory for Rainbow Dash!” the athlete exclaimed, celebrating her victory until a fist hit her in the back of the head, sending her to the ground. “The fuck's wrong with you?!” Sunset shouted, her eyes catching fire. Rainbow lifted her arms in surrender. “Sorry, I just got a bit too into it. That rainbow thing never happened before.” “It’s okay Sunset,” Sunshine said as she stood back up. “Now it’s my turn.” “Your turn?” both teens questioned confused. “This school has a fencing club, right?” Sunshine asked with a huge grin, which Sunset copied perfectly. Rainbow was now wearing a fencing protection jacket and helmet, and holding a sword in her hand, trying to copy the stance her opponent had. “This can’t be that hard. I’m awesome!” She thought right before feeling something press against her chest. “Point for Sunshine!” Sunset shouted. “Wait what?” Rainbow managed to ask just before Sunshine lunged at her again. With some luck, she managed to move the point away from her, but Sunshine redirected the strike with a quick movement of her wrist, landing a hit in the middle of the girl’s chest. “Point for Sunshine!” Sunset shouted, adding another mark for her future mother. Rainbow decided to go on the offensive, using her superior speed to barrage the woman into submission, but Sunshine deflected each of them with the dexterity of her hand before hitting her opponent right in the bellybutton. “Point for Sunshine!” Rainbow growled, losing patience, and was hit in the head before she could retaliate. Enraged, her body started to glow with magic. “I will hit her at least once!” She screamed internally before lunging at her opponent. Sunshine did a sidestep, putting a foot in Rainbow’s way, causing her to fall face first on the wooden floor of the clubroom. The athlete tried to stand up, but Sunshine was already on her, pointing the tip of her blade at her chest. “Match’s over! Sunshine is the winner!” Sunset celebrated with her fist in the air. “I guess we’re even for the rainbow thing,” Dash said with pained pride, offering her hand to the victor. “Not yet.” Sunshine helped the girl up. “But soon.” Rainbow chuckled nervously and walked away towards Sunset as she took off the heavy jacket. “Your mom is kind of ominous.” Sunset laughed. “Yeah, she can be a bit evi–” Sunshine made a slash with her sword, and a tearing sound was heard right before Rainbow’s shirt fell from her body with its back severed in two, exposing her naked to torso. Sunset’s face turned as red as her counterpart’s hair, and quickly turned around. “Mom, what the hell?!!” Sunshine just started laughing like a maniac as Rainbow tried desperately to cover herself. “Now we’re even.” “Sunset, gather the girls, we need to blast your mother asap!” Rainbow exclaimed, glaring at the woman with open hatred. “You’re not blowing up the school again!” Luna shouted, making her and Celestia’s presence known. The embarrassment in both teens doubled at the presence of the principals, but Sunshine’s grin just grew larger. “Tia,” she saluted the taller woman with a nod, and then turned towards Luna. “Nightmare Moon.” The vice-principal’s stoic face was struck bit a hit of embarrassment, and even Celestia chuckled at the name. “That was a long time ago. I’ve moved on from that phase of my life.” Luna stated, far more defensively than she would’ve liked to. Sunshine looked hurt by her words. “Don’t tell me you threw it away. That leather was really hard to find.” Luna’s eyes filled with fury. “You will shut up this instant you vile woman!” “What kind of awesome thing did we miss?” Rainbow asked, having covered herself with the white fencing jacket. “Did you know each other?” Sunset asked, looking at the amused face of Celestia. “Luna did, long ago, but I never got the chance.” Celestia glared at Sunshine with annoyance. “If I knew, I wouldn’t have let you trick me so easily.” “Trick you?” Sunset asked confused. “When I came here saying I was your mother,” Sunshine explained with a grin. “She looked like she was about to have a heart attack when I entered her office.” “I almost had,” Celestia confessed with a frown. “I didn’t expect that a version of you would appear at my office after so long, and when she said she was looking for her ‘daughter’.” Celestia looked at Sunset with a bit of embarrassment. “if I tried to explain magic to her, which I barely understand, she could’ve thought that I was covering something up and made some legal action against the school, so...” “You just sent me to her?” Sunset questioned with her arms crossed. “Not even a bit of warning?” “She looked innocent enough,” Celestia excused herself, making Sunshine laugh again. “You really are a vile woman.” “Who has lied to my sister, embarrassed me in public, and assaulted a student,” Luna counted with her fingers. “Are you sure you will be a good influence for Sunset?” “She’s perfectly capable of distinguishing right from wrong.” Sunshine left the last of the fencing equipment on a nearby bench. “And I can make all of this up to you.” Luna raised a curious eyebrow. “How?” Sunshine leaned closer to the vice-principal and whispered in her ear, loud enough so everyone would hear her. “I made a design for Celestia too.” Luna’s eyes widened. “It’s called Daybreaker.” Luna grinned maliciously. “I’ll buy it.” Celestia’s face turned even more white than it already was and turned towards the two teens with panic in her voice. “Blast her with magic. Destroy the school if you have to!” Sunshine laughed and quickly trotted to the exit. “I better leave before someone calls the police or something.” “Wait for me!” Sunset shouted, following her to the exit, leaving the two women and teen alone. “Sooo…” Rainbow looked at the two principals while pressing her lips together. “Can I hear the story about… Nightmare and Daybreaker?” Luna frowned. “Two weeks of detention.” “Oh, come on! I won’t tell anyone.” “Three weeks!” Sunshine and Sunset exited the school with smiles on their faces before the woman stopped to look around them. “Everything started here.” “Did you enjoyed meeting my friends?” Sunset asked, walking in front of Sunshine. “A lot,” the woman admitted with a smile, remembering each of her encounters. “You’ve something amazing with these girls.” “I can share it with you,” Sunset smiled and offered her hand to Sunshine. “It’s obvious by this point, but officially, I accept you as my mother.” Instead of grabbing her hand, Sunshine pulled the girl into a hug, softly brushing the girls red and golden hair. Sunset was surprised for a second, but then she hugged her back, smiling as a missing piece of her life felt finally fulfilled. Sunshine looked down at the happy face of Sunset, knowing that she had been the one that caused that reaction. She never thought she could make someone as happy as her daughter was right now, but she would do her best to keep that happiness going until Sunset was ready to face the world on her own. Rainbow and the principals looked at them through the glass doors and decided to leave the school by the back exit, letting them enjoy the moment for a bit longer. Night finally came when the new family finally separated, their smiles never fading. “So, I guess it’s my turn now.” Sunshine raised an eyebrow. “Your turn for what?” “Meeting your friend.” Sunset answered excitedly. Sunshine faked a thinking pose. “I don’t know if you’re ready yet.” “Oh, for Celestia’s sake!” the teen exclaimed frustrated. “Cut with the mystery already!” “How about this…” Sunshine looked at her daughter with a grin. “You tell me which of your friends you like, and I tell you who’s my friend.” Sunset sighed, rubbing her temples before chuckling. “Fine, It’s To Be Continued.” Epilogue: Attending The PartySugarcube Corner had been reserved once again, but this time, there was a genuine party inside the establishment. Music, drinks, food, and cheer all around for everyone. Sunshine stood in the middle of the small chaos looking at her new social circle with a smile. “Would it be a bit egotistical to say that you look marvelous darling?” Rarity asked as she approached her. Sunshine smiled and looked at her brand-new dress, a perfect copy of the Daydream form of Sunset, minus some of the metal accessories, and obviously, the horn and face paint. “After such good work, I think you deserve it.” “I hope you aren’t mad about it being a gift,” Rarity joked. “I think I’ve come around to like the gift-giving idea,” she said looking at Wallflower standing near one of the walls, alone but smiling. The girl had received a gift from Sunshine, two leather wristbands with colorful flowers patchworked into them. Due to this simple gift, Wallflower had allowed herself to attend the party with a red blouse and short blue jeans with sunflower patterns instead of her usual long-sleeved clothing. “I’m happy to see that,” Rarity said, also looking at Wallflower. “It doesn’t look like a bad business practice now, does it?” “Nope.” Sunshine turned towards the fashionista with a serious face. “However, once you hop on into the fashion industry completely, I hope you manage your business well.” Rarity scoffed. “Oh, don’t fret darling, I’ve a good head on my shoulders.” “Good, I don’t want you burning my company to the ground after I retire.” “And why would I–” Rarity froze in place. “Can I hear that again darling?” Sunshine shrugged as if it was nothing. “I said I won’t run the company forever.” “And you– you want–” Rarity stammered, her hands shaking. “Uh! Twilight brought her toy with her.” Sunshine ignored the panicking fashionista, who proceeded to faint and fall on top a of a mysteriously well-placed couch. Twilight’s drone flew up to Sunshine, who smiled and posed for the camera before a flash came from it. “It looks like it’s working well.” Twilight let the drone sit on top of her legs like if it was a puppy and looked at the computer at her side. “The facial recognition system you gave me did wonders for the AI. I can’t thank you enough.” “Oh, I’m sure one of your inventions will come in handy one day.” Twilight turned her head towards the woman, the shine of her glasses hiding her slightly crazed eyes. “What do you need? Doomsday weapons? Love potion? Time machine?” “Hold it there before you start threatening the entire tri-state area,” Sunshine warned, placing a finger over the girl’s lips. “If she’s not on a no-fly list somewhere in the world, someone’s not doing their job,” a voice said that surprised Sunshine. “Oh, I almost forgot about you,” the woman exclaimed, looking at the purple dog currently drinking punch out of a glass. “Yeah, I was sleeping when you visited last time.” He offered a paw to the woman. “Name’s Spike.” Sunshine shook his paw. “Pleasure to meet you.” She then glanced at Twilight. “Are you in charge of keeping her contained?” Spike saluted. “Yes madam.” “Hey!” Twilight complained. Sunshine copied Spike’s salute. “Your sacrifice keeps this world safe.” “I’m not crazy!” Twilight shouted. The woman and dog laughed before Sunshine noticed Fluttershy walking towards her, so she went to meet her halfway. “I like her,” Spike commented as she left. Pouting, Twilight pulled the punch away from her dog. “No more punch for you.” Sunshine and Fluttershy stood in front of each other, neither looking at the other in the eyes. They spent a long time without saying anything, until surprisingly, the shy girl spoke first. “I’m sorry. Right or not, I shouldn’t have accused you like that. Specially not in front of Sunset.” Sunshine raised her hand to shoulder height. “I also handled it poorly. I should be used to criticism by now, and I can’t judge you for sticking to what you love.” “So…” Fluttershy rubbed her arm. “Truce?” Sunshine smiled and nodded. “Truce.” They both noticeably relaxed after talking, and the woman suddenly had an idea. “Hey, maybe, as a way to compensate for it a bit, I can help out with your shelter with some donations?” Fluttershy thought about it for a moment. “There’re a few charities I know that would appreciate the help.” “We can meet someday and talk about it. Just you and me?” Sunshine offered. Fluttershy nodded. “Okay.” She then looked at her in the eyes. “Please take good care of Sunset.” Sunshine smiled. “I will. Promise.” The woman was suddenly pulled aside by pink hands. “It looks like you’re having fun!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed. “You really are the master of parties,” Sunshine praised with a smile, causing the baker to giggle. “Thank you for helping me break out of my doubts.” “Oh, it was nothing silly. Everyone needs a little help from time to time. The important thing is that everyone smiles at the end.” Sunshine laughed before remembering something. “Speaking of smiling at the end, could you close your eyes for a moment?” “Uh! I love surprises!” Pinkie exclaimed before closing her eyes, trembling in excitement. She then felt something being pulled over her head, until it rested on her shoulders. “I hope I got them right,” Sunshine said before moving away from Pinkie. The pink girl opened her eyes and looked down, discovering that she was wearing a rock candy necklace. “Wha– How?! Did Maud tell you?” “No one did, I just knew,” Sunshine answered with a grin, leaving the girl perplexed as she walked away. She then found herself in the presence of Applejack and Rainbow Dash, the farmer girl lifting her hat in salute. “Hats off to the one who took this stubborn ego down a few pegs.” “Hey, I would’ve beat her easily if I knew how to fence!” Rainbow complained, crossing her arms. Applejack gave her friend a cocky grin. “I don’t think building fences is that complex of a skill.” Sunshine and Rainbow went silent as they looked at the farmer, then at each other, then back at the farmer, and finally exploded in laughter. “Did I make a funny face?” Applejack questioned confused. Sunshine looked at Rainbow Dash, struggling to keep it together. “If you want a rematch, you can ask Sunset to give you a few lessons in sword fighting.” Rainbow’s competitive grin returned to her face. “And I can teach you a few tricks to be better at football.” Meanwhile, Applejack pieced together why they were laughing, and frowned. “I’m going to give you the hardest work when you come back to the farm.” Sunshine shrugged. “Worth it.” She then turned to look at Wallflower, who was still standing at the side of the party, and decided to walk up to her. The girl smiled when she saw the woman approach her before saying; “I can see you better now.” That particular wording made Wallflower giggle, and Sunshine laid herself against the wall next to the teen. “Thank you,” the girl said showing the wristbands, admiring the meticulous patchwork it had. “It was my pleasure, and my way of thanking you for the flower. It makes me smile every time I see it.” “I can relate,” Wallflower said with a bit of a blush, which only brighten her smile. Sunshine shared her smile and did a bit of memory. “Have you ever gone to the Kirin Gardens?” Wallflower’s eyes widened, looking at the woman with incredulity. “That’s… on the other side of the country.” Sunshine smiled. “Unless you’re afraid of planes, I can take you there if you want.” Wallflower looked like she was about to pull a Rarity, but then the entrance door opened, and a figure walked inside the room. “Sorry, but we’re closed for the day,” Pinkie apologized with a smile. “I invited her,” Sunshine announced, getting the attention of everyone. Smiling, she pointed at the new arrival. “This is my friend.”
Accepting The DealSunshine walked back and forth inside her spacious office. Charts, finances, future projects and calls from her secretary left forgotten as her anxiety slowly reached breaking point. She obviously hadn’t expected for Sunset to accept her offer right away, but it had already been a week since their meeting, and she hadn't received even a single message from the girl. “I can feel you getting old from here.” The voice of her friend talked through the office phone; the only contact Sunshine had allowed herself with the outside world. “You knew things could not work out in the end.” “Yeah, I was ready for that, but I didn’t expect just… silence.” Sunshine checked her phone again, wanting to see if she had a missing call or a text. “Maybe I should–” “Don’t you dare call her!” “Fuck! This is going to kill me.” Sunshine let herself fall on a large black couch, big enough for her to sleep on if she had to pull an all-nighter. “Why don’t you take a few smokes to calm your nerves?” “I’m trying to stop doing that, I don’t want to have to deal with the consequences later down the line.” “That hurts Sunshy. Will you care for your old friend when my body starts to give up?” The voice asked with feigned sadness. Sunshine sighed. “Stop with the teasing. You know I can pay for any operation your body needs.” “Okay okay, serious mode engaged.” That got a chuckle out of Sunshine. “She’s going to say yes.” Sunshine rolled her eyes. “And what gives you this prophetic vision?” “She’s you,” the voice answered matter-of-factly “She will need you just as you need her.” Sunshine frowned. “What do you mean?” There was a bit of a pause before the answer came. “Sunshine, all your life you’ve only cared for three people; your parents and me. They're on the other side of the world, and while I’m just a call and a few cheap beers away, you’re alone most of the time.” “Are you telling me that a mature, financially successful woman should be jealous of her young doppelganger because she has more friends?” Sunshine asked sarcastically. “And you immediately proved my point. You can’t even see it.” Sunshine let out a grunt of annoyance. “This is like that bullshit of ‘money can’t buy happiness’.” The argument was suddenly interrupted when Sunshine’s phone started ringing. The redhead stood up, quickly pulling it out and felt a wave of relief and nerves as she answered. “Hello?” “Hey, it’s me, Sunset.” “How’re you doing?” Sunshine asked, shutting down her emotions with practiced professionalism. “I’m okay, I guess. I wanted to make you an offer.” “Do you want to make changes to our deal?” Sunshien questioned suspicious. “Something like that. Can you come to my apartment?” “Sure, I will be there in ten minutes.” “Oh, okay. I will be waiting.” Sunset hanged up, and Sunshine let out a sigh of relief before going to her office phone. “I'll call you later and tell you how it went.” “Ask her about our bet!” the voice shouted before Sunshine finished the call. Steer parked right outside Sunset's apartment, giving his employer a look of 'good luck' as she opened the door and went out into the street. Sunshine looked at the apartment, wondering just how Sunset could afford it. She went up to the door and ringed two times before waiting to be let in. She fidgeted a bit, still remembering her friend's words, but remaining nervous anyway. When Sunset finally opened, Sunshine saw that the girl had made an effort to look her best, like if she was going to her first job interview. "I guess a more business-minded conversation will be easier" Sunshine thought, still not really sure about how Sunset was taking all this. Their first meeting had showed that they certainly got along, and Sunset was smart enough to see the benefits, but Sunshine had accidentally opened some old wounds in the girl's past by being too reckless, and she couldn't help but wonder if that was the cause of the week-long silence. She wanted to be cautious this time. She didn't want to lose this deal. "Come in, what can I offer you?" Sunset asked as she left space for the woman to enter. "Do you have coffee?" "Sure, I'll guess that we have the same preference." While the girl went to prepare the coffee, Sunshine took in the look of Sunset's house. It made her feel... Old. There was a huge painting on the wall near the entrance that reminded her of all the pieces she had made during her younger years, making her wonder if she could still use a brush to create something like that. There was a pile of video games and consoles under a large TV, with a camera and microphone set ready for streaming. Streaming was one of the things Sunshine would’ve loved if it existed in her younger years, playing for hours with her friend during those days they had so little to worry about they didn't need a schedule for their entire week. A glance to Sunset’s dresser betrayed the large amount of leather jackets the girl owned, but it also had a lot of colorful and even silly outfits and clothes, which made Sunshine wonder when was the last time she wore something other than her usual suit. Sunshine could feel that this was Sunset's home. It had her name written all over it. "I like what you've done with the place." "I... Didn't do anything. Just cleaned a bit." Sunset said a bit awkwardly as she gave the woman her coffee. "And that's why I like it. It doesn't need much to feel like home. Although I would certainly miss some of the benefits of an outlandish house." Sunset chuckled. "Well, I lived in the biggest castle in Equestria so I can understand what you mean. Sometimes I miss having a personal chef to keep my plate full. Although food delivery is a pretty close second." Sunshine smiled as the mood between them started to feel less awkward. "So, how have you been doing?" "A bit nervous to be honest. At least when I'm not working." Sunshine admitted as she took a sip of her coffee. Sunset scratched the back of her head. "Yeah, sorry about the wait. I needed to... Process things." Sunshine gave her an apologetic look. "It's understandable, I put a lot of pressure on you. I'm sorry for that." "It's okay. I called you to offer you something." "I'm listening." Sunshine said with curiosity. "The thing is... Other than memories regarding your family, I don't really know you. Which is weird because you're… me." Sunset added looking confused. "No, I get it, we have lived very different lives. What do you propose to breach that gap? Do you want me to tell you about myself?" Sunshine asked, keeping a professional attitude. Sunset put on her best smile. "Well, I would like for you to meet my friends." Sunshine kept staring at Sunset for a few seconds as her friend's words bounced inside her head. "Could you please elaborate?" "Back in Sugarcube Corner you said something that got me worried. That you didn't have friends." "Oh." Sunshine clearly relaxed at the answer. "Don't need to worry, I do have a very good friend." "You mentioned it, but, still, I would like for you to meet them before we can move forward with the adoption thing." Sunshine put down her mug. “Sunset, be honest. You think me having only one friend is a problem?” Sunset fidgeted a little. “Not that it’s wrong, just… I think it could help us understand each other better.” Sunshine snorted. “So that’s how I looked whenever I asked my parents for something.” She let out a slightly annoyed sigh before continuing. "Very well, if those are your conditions, I will do it." Sunset smiled. "Good, do you mind if we start now?" "I don't. Who do you want me to meet first?" Sunset rolled her eyes. "Since I value my life, you need to meet Rarity first."
Supporting The TailoressAfter only an hour of travel, Steer left the two women at the entrance of Rarity's house/business, wishing them good luck. Sunshine seemed calm, but internally she was questioning a lot of things, many of them involving how Sunset would react to her actions. "Did she faint when she saw the card?" Sunshine asked as they walked to the door to stablish a more playful mood. "Yep," Sunset answered with a smile. Sunshine grinned. "Did you take a picture?" "Nope." Sunset knocked on the door and it almost flew open by shaky hands. "Welcome! it's an honor to meet you!" Rarity exclaimed, doing a herculean effort to not faint in the presence of one of the leaders of the fashion industry. "The pleasure is mine," Sunshine gave her a firm handshake. "It's always a pleasure meeting people who have a clear goal for their life." "Oh, then I've a story to tell you. Please come in." Rarity let them pass and offered some tea, but her guests refused, leaving her to drink some on her own. The interior of the house was spotless, everything was in its place and some finished dresses were arranged so anyone with a keep eye for fashion could study them. Sunset and her adult not-self sat down on one of Rarity's 'dramatic' couches, while the fashionista sat down on an armchair before speaking. "Excuse my curiosity, but Sunset told me you inherited Sunward Destiny." Sunshine crossed her legs. "Yes, but I didn't earn it by asking nicely." "Oh, I'm not doubting your capabilities, darling. May I call you, darling?" "Please do, it's a refreshing change of pace." "Well, darling, I'm a bit curious, how was it to suddenly be in charge of something so large?" "Well, luckily my mother gave me a good head start, but it was hard to keep everything working in order." Sunset was surprised at how quickly Rarity had managed to calm down and engage Sunshine in conversation, and as the chat continued, she realized just how bored she was getting. She had talks about fashion with Rarity before, kind of impossible not to have them, but it never got so deep into the business part of it. She tried to pay attention, then started browsing social media, only to end up asleep on the couch. When Sunshine realized her young not-self was asleep, she interrupted Rarity mid speech. “You’re generosity, right?” Rarity took a few seconds to catch up. “Oh, I suppose, yes. It doesn’t really get brought up much on this side of the mirror, so you don’t need to think about it.” “Still, it’s something that defines you. Is that why you tend to give free samples to people?” Sunshine asked almost accusatorily. “I think you meant to say; give gifts to friends, darling.” The older woman shook her head slowly. “That’s not a good business attitude.” “Is that a piece of advice, or a hint that you wouldn’t hire me unless I change?” Rarity asked, copying Sunshine’s tone and posture. “Because both aren’t needed.” Sunshine grinned. “Before you jump to conclusions, I won’t do it because I can tell that you wouldn’t be comfortable working under someone. I believe you can find more success on your own without being bogged down on corporate bureaucracy.” “Then why did you wait until Sunset was asleep to talk about it?” Rarity questioned glancing at her friend. “Were you afraid that she would think less of you for not giving me a job?” “I didn’t want to take that chance,” Sunshine admitted. “And I also wanted to see how you would react without her listening in.” Rarity nodded. “Yes, having her hang around will make all these little reunions a bit more challenging for you. But, darling, have a bit more faith please. You can make mistakes in front of us. Sunset has made her fair share of them; she won’t be quick to judge.” Sunshine shook her head. “I don’t want to put more worries on her mind. I did enough with our first encounter.” “You think mentioning her parents was a mistake?” Rarity put her cup down. “It was a surprise to all of us. Sunset never said anything about her family, and she probably never would have if you hadn't appeared in her life like you did.” Sunshine raised an eyebrow. “Are you saying that it was a good thing to make her cry and lament never having a family?” “She was doing it on the inside we just didn’t know. And she would’ve continued doing it for years. Now, thanks to you, she knows what having a family’s like. She has a bit of closure on that chapter, an wanting you to adopt her shows that she’s starting to move on from it.” Rarity let out a sad sigh. “I had a similar epiphany about Sweetie Belle. Didn’t realize just how much she looked up to me and needed my support when our parents weren’t around. I can’t help but wonder how many times Sunset felt alone when we were on family reunions.” “You didn’t have a way to know,” Sunshine offered as a consolation. “We had. Little hints here and there. A longing look when Granny Smith and Applejack talked in the cafeteria, a small grimace when Rainbow’s parents came to cheer for her during sports events, any kind of interaction with principal Celestia. There were many chances for us to pick up something was wrong but didn’t notice. That’s a mistake we all regret now and have you to thank for fixing it. So, don’t be afraid to mess up once or twice. Being dishonest will be what dooms you in our circle of friends.” Sunshine raised an amused eyebrow. “I would expect that kind of lesson to come from Applejack.” Rarity let out the most lady-like snort that could be possible. "Darling, we don't need to stick to our labels, and neither should you. Even if you take this role as Sunset’s ‘mother’ you can also be her closest friend." Sunshine took a moment to think about it, and a smile slowly formed on her lips. “Thanks for the advice.” “It was my pleasure,” Rarity said before picking her cup back up. Sunshine’s smile turned into a grin. “You know, I may not hire you, but I guess a simple gift wouldn’t be too much.” “How generous of you.” Rarity said before taking a sip of her tea. “How about your own boutique and a good word with the top providers of textiles in the country?” Rarity sprayed her tea all over the floor. “W-what?!” “And let’s say…” Sunshine rubbed her chin in fake thought. “…340,000 dollars to start you up?” Rarity was too busy fainting to respond. Sunshine giggled, took out her phone to take a picture of the happily unconscious fashionista, and gently nudged Sunset awake. “Hey sleepyhead, who’s next on the list?” “Twilight,” Sunset groaned as she slowly woke up. “What happen to Rarity?”
Twilight-ing The Scientist“Looks like I’m not the only one with money,” Sunshine said as she looked at the large house Twilight lived in. Sunset shrugged a bit. “Well, she has to get funding for her inventions somehow.” Sunshine took a thinking pose. “So, bribing her into friendship would be harder.” “Hey! Don’t brainwash my friends with money!” Sunset exclaimed with a little smile. Sunshine laughed. “I’m just joking.” Both women walked up to the door and it automatically opened for them. Sunshine noticed a camera looking at them. “Your friend seems to be full of surprises.” “Wait to see her laboratory,” Sunset said as they entered. “She has an actual laboratory?” “Yeah, she’s the full mad scientist package.” They finally arrived at the heavy door that lead to the lab, and once the locking mechanism finish opening, they entered to find Twilight sitting in front of a computer with multiple monitors wearing a lab coat. “Hello and welcome!” Twilight greeted them. “How did things go with Rarity?” Sunset crossed her arms. “Sunshine managed to make her faint again.” The woman chuckled. “It was surprisingly easy.” She then looked around the room, admiring all the machinery and chemistry sets the young scientist had all over her laboratory. “I’m curious, what project are you working on right now?” “Well, I’ve been working on this little drone right here.” Twilight pulled the device from its small stand so Sunshine could see it, and the woman picked it up to examine it closely. “Interesting, some of these parts seem custom made.” Twilight tapped the tip of her fingers. “Well… sometimes it’s easier to build it yourself rather than find a piece that fits your criteria, but it's a bit more expensive sometimes.” “Admirable job, but I think you should implement a better cooling system, or the battery will give you problems after constant use.” “Yeah, that’s one of the issues I’m working on." Twilight exclaimed with a bit of annoyance. "Any suggestions?” “Maybe the solution could be a more efficient camera that doesn’t put too much strain on it. Have you considered a 40 pro?” Twilight sighed. “Yeah, but I couldn’t convince my parents that buying an entire phone just for the camera was justified. And it’s really expensive.” Sunshine pulled out her phone from her pocket. “Take it from mine. I barely use the camera and I can buy another one later.” “Really? Thank you!” Twilight immediately took the phone and started breaking it apart with her tools. Sunshine took advantage of her concentration to spy on the screens of the computer. “You’re giving it a custom AI?” Twilight didn’t look away from her work. “Yep, I want it to be as independent as possible.” Sunshine grabbed the mouse and inspected the coding. “Hum, sorry to say, but this coding is very poor.” That got Twilight’s full attention. “Excuse me?” “There are a lot of unnecessary sequences that you could trim down into a more basic set of commands. No wonder the battery gets such abuse with the amount of unnecessary processing power it uses.” “Can you show me?” Twilight asked, the phone now forgotten. Sunset felt a sense of déjà vu as her friend and future mother engaged in a conversation that she couldn’t realistically follow, so once again she had to seek entertainment on her phone. She ended up leaning against a nearby wall and downloading a sudoku game to play around. As the minutes passed, Sunset could hear the excitement in Twilight’s voice rise, until it started to sound dangerously close to what Starlight had described as a 'Twilight-ing'. “Do you want a second daughter?!” the scientist shouted with a huge smile and starry eyes. Sunshine chuckled. “Sorry, the only way would be for you to marry Sunset.” Sunset froze for a second before turning her head towards them, but Twilight had already closed the gap in that brief period of time. “Would you marry me?” “Wha– no! Why would I marry you right now?” Sunset exclaimed. “Oh, come on, we have so much in common,” Twilight pulled out a list out of… somewhere. “We’re both smart individuals, we have the shared experience of tasting the power of dark magic…” Twilight continued listing all the reasons her and Sunset would make a great couple while Sunset looked at the grinning Sunshine and muttered. “You’re evil.” The older woman let things play out for a few more seconds to amuse herself before going up to Twilight and whisper something in her ear. The young scientist suddenly stopped ranting as a shudder took over her body, and Sunshine had to catch her before she collapsed to the ground unconscious. “Wha– What did you do? What did you say to her?” Sunset asked in a bit of a panic. “One of the greatest secrets of the universe,” Sunshine responded mysteriously as she set Twilight’s unconscious body back on the chair. “Are you going to knock all my friends unconscious?” Sunshine chuckled. “I will stop when it stops being funny.” After securing Twilight to the chair, they got out of the house thanks to the automatic system, but before they could get on the car, Sunset stopped. “Hey, I wanted to ask you something.” Sunshine looked at the girl, noticing the distress in her face. “Is something wrong?” “It’s…” Sunset seemed to have problems phrasing her words. “I know what you said about making my friends faint and bribing them is just you joking around.” “They are just jokes,” Sunshine felt the need to clarify. “I know, but…” Sunset grabbed her arm. “It reminded me of myself... when I was a bully.” Sunshine flinched. “I’m not like that. I can stop if you want.” “No, it’s not that,” Sunset quickly added. “It just made me wonder. Were you like that during highschool?” Sunshine let out a long sigh. “Okay, I guess it'll be better if I tell you the full story.” She looked around for a place where they could sit, but found nothing, so she simply continued. “For starters, I went to Crystal Prep, not CHS.” Sunset cringed. “Oh. Was it like before the ACADECA??” “Maybe worse,” Sunshine admitted. “When I started, I quickly realized that it was kill or be killed in there. Metaphorically speaking. So, I decided to place myself at the top.” Sunset winced as memories of her darker days came back. “While I was smart, I knew it wouldn’t be enough, so I looked for the biggest student in the faculty and got her to beat up anyone who posed a challenge. With her at my side, we cutthroated our way to the top. Again, metaphorically speaking.” Sunshine clarified. “Well, except that one time, but he pulled a gun on me.” She added in her mind. “Okay, that sounds… a bit worse,” Sunset admitted uncomfortably. Sunshine grimaced. “Sorry, but it’s just a past of mine.” “What made you change?” Sunset asked. Sunshine shrugged. “Maturity I guess.” Sunset looked at her confused, so she elaborated. “I didn’t have a big revelation or got literally hit with friendship, I just… graduated and went to learn how to do business with mom.” Sunshine looked away for a moment, with a bit of shame in her eyes. “I guess that’s why I make you uncomfortable.” “It’s not like that,” Sunset quickly corrected. “It would be unfair to judge you for your past, specially knowing you didn’t have friends to help you move pass that.” “Well, now you and your friends can teach me,” Sunshine offered with a small nervous smile. Sunset shook her head. “No. Please keep being yourself. It makes me feel a bit better knowing that I could’ve eventually moved on from that.” She looked down at her feet. “Sometimes I felt like I would’ve been stuck as the queen bitch forever.” Sunset was suddenly held in a warm hug. “People change Sunset, even if it takes them years on their own or a few good friends. And you said it yourself, it could’ve been worse.” Sunset surprise turned into a smile, and she hugged her older not-self, enjoying the moment of peace between them. After a short while, Sunshine let go and asked. “Who would be next?” “It would be Fluttershy. That one could be a bit problematic,” she answered with a bit of nervousness.
Angering The CaretakerSunshine was surprised when Steer left them not at a house, but a small animal shelter. “Does she work here?” “She sort of half-owns it. Didn’t you follow me for two months or something?” Sunset asked. “I investigated you, not your friends outside the ones included in the bet.” “Who did your friend vote for?” Sunset asked as she knocked on the door. “I won't say.” Sunshine answered as the door opened, letting them in. She was immediately hit with the scent only a bunch of animals living in a closed interior could give. A small automatic perfume spray tried in vain to hide the pungent smell, and Sunshine looked around for a window to open. “Fluttershy! Windows!” Sunset shouted, covering her own nose. “Sorry!” the soft voice of the caretaker exclaimed before running to a large window covered with a mosquito nest and opened it, letting the contaminated oxygen be replaced with fresh air. “I swear your nose is rotten by this point,” Sunset complained jokingly as the ambient became breathable again. “Sorry for that. I’m Fluttershy.” The pink haired teen offered a hand to the tall woman, who accepted it while still trying to rub the smell out of her nose. “Don’t worry, I admire your… dedication,” Sunshine said as politely as possible. There was a bit of an awkward silence before Fluttershy clapped her globed hands. “Well, let me do the introductions.” “To who–” Sunshine was about to ask until she realized that the sources of the pungent smell were all looking at her like if an alien had decided to visit Earth. “This is going to take a while.” And take a while it did, since Fluttershy gave a not-brief-enough biography of each and every living being in the animal shelter, and Sunshine was sure that if the building had rats or roaches, they would have names too. The reward at the end of the long road was the chance to interact with the small bundles of fur, scales and feathers. It was clear Sunset had visited before since as soon as Fluttershy opened the bird cages, several parrots and other avians flew to her and perched themselves on her arms, shoulders and head. Sunshine smiled at the joyful expression Sunset had, surrounded by the love of the birds. However, it also gave her a small pang of sadness. Seeing a young version of herself so much happier than she was at that age made her feel like something had been missing. Finally, she looked for an animal to pet, not wanting to be a rude guest, and settled on a small brown bunny. She lifted it with delicate care, and gently brushed its back with her hand, feeling is softness. “I always love how their fur feels.” “Do you have any pets?” Fluttershy asked, and Sunshine realized her mistake. “No, I never had time for pets, and my mother would freak out if I brought one home,” she answered, hoping to deviate the conversation. But she had no luck. Fluttershy’s eyes lost all joy and slowly lowered her head. “How many?” “How many what?” Sunshine asked, even the bunny in her hands looking nervous. Even if her eyes were covered by her hair, Fluttershy’s stare could be felt through it. “How many do you kill for your industry?” Sunshine frowned, slowly putting the bunny back into its habitat. “You may want to rephrase that,” she said threateningly. “Is it thousands? More? Do you care?” “To be honest. No, I don’t. They’re fur, food and money.” “How can you say that?!” Fluttershy shouted. “They’re no different than the one you were holding a moment ago.” Sunshine crossed her arms. “There’s a big difference.” “Oh really?” The woman pointed at the now scared animal with her thumb. “First, this one's a pet. It’s meant to be loved and cared for. Meanwhile, the ones used for any industry are literally born to be used by someone. As income, testing, food, or in my case, fashion.” She then pointed at Fluttershy like her mother did every time she gave her a lecture. “Any besides that, I don’t own a farm or slaughterhouse or whatever you want to call it. I buy whatever fur I need for the season in bulk, those animals are long dead before I have any say in what their future should be.” Fluttershy clenched her firsts. “You still know where they come from. You shouldn’t support those businesses to make more money for yourself!” “Oh, so I should cripple my way of living because I dare use a product that already exist regardless of my choice?” As the two women continued their heated discussion, Sunset looked at them feeling torn. She didn’t want to pick a side, but they didn’t seem to be willing to stop. Their argument was getting more and more intense. She wanted them to… “Stop!” she shouted, and the birds perched on her flew back to their cages. Sunshine looked at Sunset’s distraught face and sighed, feeling ashamed. “You better just leave,” Fluttershy said, turning her back on them, but mostly to Sunshine. The taller woman gave a barely audible and very insincere goodbye before exciting the door, and Sunset followed closely. “I…” the redhead teen tried to say soemthing, but didn’t know how to complete the sentence. “It’s not your fault.” Sunshine let out a long, defeated sigh. “I can’t get along with everybody.” Sunset bit her lip, looking away. “I knew something like this could happen, but…” "Look," Sunshine interrupted. “It’s not the first time I’ve heard complains about my business. Just, never in person.” She crossed her arms and looked at the sky. “I always wanted to shut them up, and I guess I took the chance with your friend. I’m sorry.” “It’s not like…” Sunset struggled to find the right words. “You had valid arguments…” “Why aren’t you mad?” Sunshine asked abruptly. “She’s your friend. You’re a horse. You should be taking her side.” “I… it’s just that…” Sunset looked away as she continued to struggle. Sunshine moved to look her in the eyes, studying her face. “Sunset, what do you want?” “I just want this to work,” Sunset finally admitted before scratching the back of her head. “I guess it’s obvious what my answer will be at the end.” She expected that her words would put a smile on Sunshine’s face, but the woman looked at the sky again, thinking with a neutral expression. As the seconds passed, Sunset felt a new wave of nervousness take hold of her. Sunshine seemed to have been as eager to become her mother as she was, so Sunset never considered the idea that the woman could also say no to the deal. After what Sunset thought was an eternity, Sunshine broke the silence with one question. “Who’s next?” “Pinkie Pie,” Sunset answered almost immediately. “She’s at Sugarcube Corner.” Sunshine simply nodded and went to the car without saying anything more. “I hope Pinkie can cheer her up a bit.”
Trusting The BakerSunset was tapping her knees nervously as they traveled to Sugarcube Corner. She took a glance at Sunshine, noticing that the woman was still looking out the window. She had remained completely silent since they last talked, Sunset even had to tell Steer where to go. “I fucked up. I fucked up royally!” Sunset thought as she took her phone out of her pocket before sending a quick message to Pinkie Pie. “Hey Pinkie, we will be there in a few minutes, is everything ready?” As expected from Pinkie, the response was almost instant. “Of course, silly! I’ve been preparing everything since this morning. Is something wrong?” “We just got out of meeting Fluttershy. It didn’t go well.” “Is she level three grumpy?” Sunset didn’t want to take her chances. “Level zero.” “I’ll be prepared.” Sunset could imagine Pinkie saluting as she sent the message, which put a smile on her face. That smile died horribly when she noticed Sunshine was staring right at her, neutral disappointment clear in her face. “Pinkie just wanted to check if we were coming. She has a surprise for you.” Sunshine’s expression didn’t change, and she just went back to stare out the window, her absolute silence starting to make Sunset feel nauseous. “We’ve arrived,” Steer announced. “What?! I thought we had a little bit more time!” Sunset was about to make an excuse to delay the meeting, but Sunshine was already out of the car. Steer didn’t give his usual 'good luck', as if he knew exactly how his employer was feeling. They quickly entered the small business and found zero customers sitting at the tables. Instead, the place was filled with balloons, confetti, streamers and a big paper sign with “Hi new friend! And thank you for being an awesome person!” written on it. Sunset felt a wave of relief as she saw Sunshine genuinely smile at the decorations, joy coming back to her features. “I knew Pinkie could do it,” She thought, feeling her body relax. “Quite a surprise, isn’t it?” Sunset’s question murdered Sunshine’s smile in cold blood. Her face turned back into a neutral expression that somehow showed less emotion than Maud on a bad day. “Welcome back!” Pinkie shouted springing out of nowhere, quickly offering her hand to the woman. “I’m Pinkie Pie, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” “The pleasure is mine,” Sunshine responded with a tone of apathy like she was dealing with a customer five minutes before the closing hour. Despite this, Pinkie maintained her cheery attitude and invited her over to take a seat in one of the tables where a menu was placed. “What can I serve you before we talk?” “I already had some coffee with Sunset,” Sunshine answered with the same apathy as before, but Pinkie didn’t give up. “But a coffee is never enough without a good desert!” she went to the fridge behind the counter, leaving Sunshine with a confused look as the menu was forgotten on the table. Sunset offered a nervous smile of awkward innocence at her friend’s antics, even if she really didn’t know what Pinkie had planned in such a short time. The pink girl came back with a tray covered with a metal dome which she placed in front of the woman with a big smile. Sunshine slowly pulled the dome off, revealing a simple yet absolutely delicious-looking chocolate sundae. She looked at the pink girl suspiciously before moving her eyes towards Sunset. Sunshine quickly tasted a spoonful of the desert, her eyes opening wide before narrowing in anger. She turned towards Sunset, staring at the teen like she wanted to explode her in flames. “That was very low of you!” “Wh– what? I just–” Sunset stuttered, confused and terrified. “You saw my memories with my mother, only you could know how to make it taste like if it was made by her!” Sunshine was gripping the spoon with such strength her knuckles were turning white. “I– I didn’t tell her anything! She just does these kinds of things. She gifted me an exact replica of the cakes I used to eat with Celestia back in Equestria for my birthday!” Sunset moved her hand forward, offering her palm. “I can show it to you.” Sunshine looked at Sunset’s hand, and after letting out a long sigh, her anger was drained away. “It’s okay, I believe you.” she then looked at the baker standing in front of her, and surprisingly still held a positive look. “I’m sorry.” “I understand,” Pinkie said sitting at the table. “It’s been years since your parents left, you probably have missed it a lot.” Sunshine simply nodded before taking another spoonful of the desert. “You thought Sunset was trying to rig our meeting so you would like me.” Again, the woman nodded, a bit of shame in her eyes. “I… can’t blame you for thinking that,” Sunset said, sharing that bit of shame. “I shouldn’t have lied to you and tried to… ‘fix it’.” Sunshine looked at her younger doppelganger. “Sunset, what worries me is that I will end up hurting you.” “Hurting me?” Sunset asked confused. “Like I did with your parents. When I saw how distraught you felt after my fight with Fluttershy, I couldn’t get the thought of you slowly abandoning your friends because I don’t like them out of my mind.” “I would never do that!” Sunset exclaimed. “And I know they wouldn’t either, our friendship means more than that.” “I guess I didn’t see that before.” Sunshine finished her desert and licked the spoon clean. “Rarity told me that I could make mistakes without you judging me. I didn’t want to test her theory so soon.” “You also care a lot about this deal you proposed,” Pinkie said with a smile. Sunshine chuckled. “More than I thought apparently.” The words had an instant effect on Sunset, washing away the weight she had felt on her shoulders and heart, letting her breathe calmly. “Then I will prepare a bigger party when you two make it official! With all the new friends you have made and will keep making today.” the Pinkie girl declared, confetti flying form somewhere behind her. Sunshine let out a hearty laugh. “I would love that.” She then looked at Sunset, who was also smiling, much more relaxed than even before starting the day. “Who should we visit next?” Sunset thought for a moment, a smile never leaving her lips. “I think you’re ready for Wallflower.”
Noticing The GardenerSteer didn’t consider himself a very expressive individual during his work hours. His choice of maintaining a respectful and professional stance at all times was what had kept him employed for a long time. However, hearing the two women he was transporting chat and joke around happily like the first time they met after the previous sour ride put a smile under his grey bushy mustache. His GPS informed him that they had arrived at the destination, and he stopped the SUV before announcing their arrival. This time, instead of a ‘good luck’, he simply told them to have fun. Sunshine smiled at the change of humor in the old man and looked at the house they had arrived to. A bit rustic, covered with vines, but they had been trimmed enough to function as a decoration of the house rather than a sign of abandonment. Sunshine walked up to the door, but Sunset started walking around the house, so she followed her until they saw a quite large greenhouse, with something, or rather someone, walking around inside. “You did tell her that we were coming right?” “I believe it’s less stressful for her if you surprise her rather than give her time to get anxious about your arrival. We still need to knock,” Sunset explained as she hit the glass door a few times. “Come in!” a voice called out, and they entered what was supposed to be a greenhouse, but looked more like a miniature jungle with a variety of plants that one would need a guide to identify. Sunshine took a few steps forward, amazed by the sight of so much green and other beautiful colors, even the smell inside the enclosed space made her feel refreshed compared to her office. She then ~~almost shit herself~~ was surprised when Wallflower moved, revealing that she had been standing next to her, camouflaged between her plants. “You… would be a great forest sniper,” the woman exclaimed as her blood pressure returned to normal levels. Wallflower chuckled; a bit embarrassed by the woman’s reaction. “Sorry, Sunset says I should wear something a bit more striking, so I don’t blend in so easily.” “I could get something made for you,” Sunshine offered as she studied the girl’s form, making an estimate of her measurements and thinking about what colors could complement her green tones. “She seems to have a nice figure under that sweater.” She then noticed something that called her attention; the sleeves of the sweater she was wearing were covered in dirt. She didn’t roll them up before working. “Uhm, I’m Wallflower,” the green girl said, a bit nervous because of the woman studying her body. “Oh, my apologies, I’m Sunshine, although I’m pretty sure all of you know me already.” “I think it’s just a formality.” “Then let’s put formalities aside and hear about this Noah’s Ark of nature you have going on here,” Sunshine proposed, still looking around in awe. Wallflower let out a little laugh. “Well, I can show you how I started it. Follow me.” Sunshine did as she was told for the fifteen seconds it took for the green girl to blend back into the scenery, forcing her to use Sunset as guide while the, from Sunshine’s perspective, disembodied voice explained the history of her little sanctuary. They spent almost an entire hour roaming the miniature jungle, and at the end, Wallflower presented Sunshine with a large daisy-looking flower with a golden center surrounded by vibrant orange petals. “This is a Gerbera daisy; I think it fits you. The color means sunshine of life.” “It’s beautiful!” Sunshine exclaimed, admiring the potted flower with bright eyes. “You’re a precious little thing.” “Are you saying that to Wally or the flower?” Sunset asked jokingly. “Yes,” Sunshine answered without hesitation, making everyone chuckle. She then looked at the happy expression in Wallflowers face, and her eyes wandered back to her dirty sleeves. “I think we should visit Applejack next before going with Rainbow,” Sunset said checking the hour. They weren’t too far from night hours. “It was a pleasure to meet you. I will come back soon,” Sunshine said goodbye, and she and Sunset went back to the car. The teenager sat down on the seat and was suddenly given the gifted flower. “Wait here for a moment, okay?” Sunset nodded a bit confused and watched as Sunshine walked back to the greenhouse. “You’ve done her a lot of good,” Steer said, getting Sunset’s attention. “The way she talks, how she smiles when she’s with you and some of your friends. The only times I’ve seen her like that is when she and her friend get together at the karaoke club.” Sunset smiled, happy to know she was giving back some of the things Sunshine had gifted her. “Who’s her friend?” she couldn’t help asking. Steer let out a hearty laugh. “I’m not going to risk my job. You have to ask her yourself.” “Oh, come on! At least a little clue?” Sunset asked playfully. Steer gave it a little thought. “The only thing I will tell you is; her friend bet on that Twilight girl.” Sunshine entered the greenhouse after knocking on the door, waiting patiently until Wallflower appeared from between her plants. “Did you forget something?” Wallflower asked a bit confused. “Actually, I wanted to tell you a story.” “Oh… okay.” Wallflower put her tools aside, curious about the woman’s behavior. “A few long years ago, when I was a little older than you, me and my friend lived together in a small ramshackle apartment. It was dirty, sometimes cold, but we didn’t care. We could do anything we wanted in there, we were free, in a sense.” Sunshine let out a chuckle at the memories. “Parties, band sessions, alcohol, and eventually, drugs. Minor at first, but one day we found a way to get this medicine, I can’t remember the name right now, but we got a big bunch of it, and planned to spend the entire week high off our asses. However, my parents called me with an invitation to a cruise they were planning for a long time.” Sunshine’s mood soured a little. “I decided to go with them, and made my friend promise she would save my share of the drugs for when I came back.” The woman let out a long sigh, and Wallflower could see the regret in her eyes. “When I came back, my friend had spent both her and my share of the drugs and sold a lot of our things to get more. She had become addicted.” Sunshine looked up at the glass roof of the greenhouse. “If I was a better friend, I would’ve brought her with me to the cruise. I know that my parents wouldn’t have objected to it. But I wasn’t thinking about that at that moment.” “What were you thinking about?” Wallflower asked, feeling a bit tense about where the story was going. “That my friend needed me.” Sunshine answered with an eco of the determination she felt at that time. “So, I threw away the drugs and sat down with her. She complained, of course, saying that she didn’t have a problem, that what she was doing was her own choice and that I didn’t have any right to get in her business. I countered every argument that she threw my way, causing her to get angry and try to kick me out.” “She attacked you?!” “More like ‘try to push me away’, but it didn’t work. She was very weak due to the drug abuse, and… Well, you could only tell if you knew her, but despite her anger, she didn’t want to hurt me for real. So, after she tired herself out, I told her that I wasn’t going anywhere, that she would get through this and we would go back to having fun and enjoying our time together.” “Did it work?” Wallflower asked, looking at the ground with sad eyes. “Not at first,” Sunshine admitted. “But it changed things. She started to tell me to leave, but for my own good. That I shouldn’t sink with her. That she wasn’t worth it. That she was a mess that I shouldn’t clean. That she shouldn’t exist.” Wallflower crossed her arms, hugging herself. “But I told her that I wouldn’t abandon her. That our friendship was worth the effort of helping her. That she was invaluable to me. That no matter what it took, I would do everything to make her feel better.” A tiny smile formed on Sunshine’s lips. “After that, she started crying. She cried for a long time. I can’t even remember how many days we spent in that apartment, repeating the cycle until she finally stopped.” Sunshine let out a chuckle. “We later joked that she probably cried the drugs out of her system.” She turned her head towards Wallflower. “She finally accepted my aid, and we went to some professionals that could help her recover. My parents payed for the very best, they didn’t even question anything when I told them what had happened with my friend. After some hard months of rehab, she got better, stronger than before, her words, not mine, and we went back to sharing our lives together. And at the end, she became a very successful woman just like me.” Wallflower wiped some tears she didn’t know she had shed. “Why are you telling me all this?” “Because Sunset’s just like me. She will do all that and maybe more, and her friends will support her just like my parents did.” Wallflower was about to ask something, but she froze when a warm hand gently took hold of her wrist. “You can always reach to us, and I will gladly help you with anything you need, no matter what.” She gave the gardener a warm, motherly smile before letting go. “Thank you for the flower,” she said before leaving the greenhouse. Wallflower looked at her wrist, pulling down the sleeve of her sweater, as her mind was bombarded with different emotions, until one of them brought her calm. She grabbed her tools and went back to work with a smile on her lips. “How did it go?” Sunset asked when Sunshine finally entered the vehicle. “She’s a really sweet girl,” the woman responded, and as Steer started the SUV, a thought popped into her head. “Maybe I can have another daughter.”
Appreciating The Farmer“Well, this was unexpected.” Sunshine thought, looking at her plate full of apple-based foods. As soon as they arrived, they were ~~ambushed~~ welcomed by Applejack and her family, inviting them over for and early dinner. Sunshine hadn’t eaten anything other than Pinkie’s secret desert, and Sunset even less, so they accepted their invitation, which also included… Sunshine looked at Steer, eating with a smile on his face while having a very polite, short-worded conversation with Big Mac. Sunset, for her part, was chatting with Applejack, who had Apple Bloom sitting on her legs listening in. Which left Sunshine looking at the elder of the family at the other side of the table. “I find it quite the contrast,” Granny Smith said pointing at Sunshine’s clothes. The woman gave a simple glance at her clothing and shrugged. “As long as you don’t put me to work.” The elder smirked. “You get a pass just this time. Food is usually reserved for those who help the family do work.” “I can respect that. Although, I never gifted clothes to my employees.” Sunshine thought back to her discussion with Rarity. “Maybe it’s not such a bad business attitude after all.” “I’m sure they would appreciate something like that.” Granny smith chuckled. “But what do I know about running a business like yours?” “Well, you certainly know how to run a family.” Sunshine looked around her with a smile, seeing the happy faces of everyone at the table. Granny Smith raised an eyebrow at her words, and slowly stood up. “Would you help me with the dishes?” “Sure,” Sunshine answered, shoveling the last bit of food into her mouth, and gathering the plates. The rest of the Apple family were about to help, but a quick glance of their elder stopped them, and they went back to their respective conversations. Sunshine, unaware of all this, carried as much as she could and followed Granny Smith to the kitchen, putting everything in the sink before looking for sponge and detergent. “Oh, you clean by hand?” the elder asked jokingly. Sunshine snorted. “Compared to all the other stuff I have to do; cleaning dishes is relaxing for me.” Granny Smith laughed. “You’re nothing like Filthy Rich. As amiable as he is, he would never join a family dinner.” “If your granddaughter and his daughter started dating, he surely would make an exception,” Sunshine answered as she scrubbed the plates. “Maybe, but having her wife around would be a problem.” Sunshine sighed with a discontent only Spoiled Rich could generate. “That woman can’t be pleased. She rejected six dresses exclusively made for her with every ridiculous specification she requested. I wanted to leave my office and stuff each of them down her throat before kicking her out.” Granny Smith rested her back against the counter next to the sink. “It’s a wonder how her daughter survives such a woman.” Sunshine shook her head. “Spoiled isn’t mother material.” “And what about you?” The question froze Sunshine in place. “I heard about the deal you proposed, but how do you plan on being a mother for that girl?” Sunshine slowly resumed her work. “Well… first, make sure she has everything she needs.” Granny nodded. “Support her the same way my parents did. I won’t expect her to inherit my company.” She frowned for a moment, thinking about the future of her company. “That’s not a now problem. Back to Sunset, I will try my best to make her happy.” She turned her head to the elder at her side. “I know it won’t be easy, but I want to do it.” Granny looked at her in the eyes. “I raised my kids, and my kids’ kids. It never got any easier. Many mistakes, big and small. No one is prepared for something like that. But I trust that you will do a decent enough job.” Sunshine smiled, going back to her work. “Well, maybe it would be a little easier if I could have some advice from someone with experience in the matter?” Granny Smith started laughing. “If you do some farm work, I can give you a few pointers.” Sunshine nodded. “It’s a deal then.” “Also…” Granny added looking away for a moment. “My hip’s getting saggy. This old, knowledgeable body would work better with a replacement.” Sunshine started laughing and Granny joined too. “My friend would love to meet you.” They continued their chat for a while, even after the dishes were clean, until Sunset walked into the kitchen. “Sorry for interrupting.” “It’s getting late?” Sunshine asked looking at her watch. “Rainbow’s the only one left, right?” “Yeah, she said she would be waiting for us at the school’s racetrack.” “Is that allowed?” Sunshine asked as she left the kitchen, waving goodbye to Granny Smith. “Being the star athlete and one of the girls that deal with the magical shenanigans at school gives you some benefits,” Sunset answered with a small laugh. They both gave their goodbyes to the Apple family and went with Steer back to the SUV, but Sunset stopped when her phone received a message. Sunshine looked at her while the girl read the text. “Is something wrong?” “It’s…” Sunset considered lying, but decided against it. “Fluttershy. She calmed down and told me she’s sorry for her outburst with you.” Sunshine raised an eyebrow. “Does that happen often?” “Fluttershy getting mad?” Sunset shook her head. “Very rarely, but she can be scary when she does.” “And when does she get mad?” Sunshine wondered. “Well, when you mistreat animals, as you saw. Sometimes to get our attention when me and the girls are arguing about something. Basically–” “When something’s important to her,” Sunshine concluded, smiling a little. “Can I answer that message?” Sunset was surprised at the request, but after looking at the text Fluttershy had sent one more time, she gave the woman her phone. Sunshine took a moment to read Fluttershy’s text. “I’m sorry Sunset. I knew how much this meant to you and I ruined it. I should’ve stayed quiet. I can keep my distance if you want, but I promise I won’t start any more fights with your mother. I hope you can forgive me.” With a smile, Sunshine replied. “I forgive you. You said what you said because it’s the only way you know to get yourself be heard, and I can understand that. You are kindness, and that kindness needs to be sharp sometimes to protect what it cares for. I hope you will defend my daughter with that same glare you showed me. Sunshine.” The woman gave the phone back to Sunset and got in the vehicle. “You’ve very good friends.” Sunset smiled, and suddenly got another text. “She answered already?” “It’s from Pinkie,” Sunset turned to look at her with a confused but slightly amused look. “She says ‘I’m proud of you’.” Sunshine blinked twice. “Your ‘good friends’ are also really weird.”
Teasing The Rainbow“About time you girls came here!” Rainbow exclaimed as she saw both redheads approach the racetrack. “Are you impatient to see Sunset again?” Sunshine asked with a grin. “What? No!” Rainbow quickly answered. “Really? You don’t find her attractive?” the woman questioned, looking upset while Sunset’s eyes widened. “I– She’s– I think–” Rainbow stammered looking away. “That’s not important right now. I’ve something prepared for you two.” “What did you do this time?” Sunset asked, a bit worried about her friend’s machinations. “Oh, just a little something I did when Twilight first came to school.” Sunset looked confused, until she remembered the story. “You’re not making her play football!” Rainbow shrugged. “Why not? She’s not that old.” “Yeah, but–” Sunset was interrupted when Sunshine put her shoes in her hands. “Sunny, give me your boots,” the woman said, showing a competitive grin to the athlete. Sunset sighed and complied, and soon Sunshine was defending the goal against Rainbow. “I will start slow for you,” the multicolor-haired girl announced before kicking the ball to the lower right corner of the goal. Sunshine moved surprisingly fast and kicked the ball back, which flew right beside Rainbow’s head and entered the opposite goal. “Point for me,” Sunshine announced, rubbing her sore foot a bit. It had been a while. Rainbow recovered from the shock and went to get the ball back, deciding to go all out and kicked the ball right above the woman’s head, who ducked as the high-speed projectile seemed to catch fire for a second. “Point for me!” Rainbow shouted victoriously while Sunshine went for the ball. Sunset sat down on the benches to watch the match, smiling at the fierce competition between the two egos. Sunshine was putting a good fight against the athlete, but Rainbow was faster and more agile than her, so the scores quickly went in her favor. Finally, at 4-2 in favor of Rainbow, the rainbow-haired girl prepared herself to end the match, bouncing the ball on her foot. Sunshine stood firm, defending the goal, but when Rainbow kicked the ball, a rainbow-colored shockwave launched it towards her like if it just came out of a canon, hitting her in the midsection and pushing her inside the goal. “Victory for Rainbow Dash!” the athlete exclaimed, celebrating her victory until a fist hit her in the back of the head, sending her to the ground. “The fuck's wrong with you?!” Sunset shouted, her eyes catching fire. Rainbow lifted her arms in surrender. “Sorry, I just got a bit too into it. That rainbow thing never happened before.” “It’s okay Sunset,” Sunshine said as she stood back up. “Now it’s my turn.” “Your turn?” both teens questioned confused. “This school has a fencing club, right?” Sunshine asked with a huge grin, which Sunset copied perfectly. Rainbow was now wearing a fencing protection jacket and helmet, and holding a sword in her hand, trying to copy the stance her opponent had. “This can’t be that hard. I’m awesome!” She thought right before feeling something press against her chest. “Point for Sunshine!” Sunset shouted. “Wait what?” Rainbow managed to ask just before Sunshine lunged at her again. With some luck, she managed to move the point away from her, but Sunshine redirected the strike with a quick movement of her wrist, landing a hit in the middle of the girl’s chest. “Point for Sunshine!” Sunset shouted, adding another mark for her future mother. Rainbow decided to go on the offensive, using her superior speed to barrage the woman into submission, but Sunshine deflected each of them with the dexterity of her hand before hitting her opponent right in the bellybutton. “Point for Sunshine!” Rainbow growled, losing patience, and was hit in the head before she could retaliate. Enraged, her body started to glow with magic. “I will hit her at least once!” She screamed internally before lunging at her opponent. Sunshine did a sidestep, putting a foot in Rainbow’s way, causing her to fall face first on the wooden floor of the clubroom. The athlete tried to stand up, but Sunshine was already on her, pointing the tip of her blade at her chest. “Match’s over! Sunshine is the winner!” Sunset celebrated with her fist in the air. “I guess we’re even for the rainbow thing,” Dash said with pained pride, offering her hand to the victor. “Not yet.” Sunshine helped the girl up. “But soon.” Rainbow chuckled nervously and walked away towards Sunset as she took off the heavy jacket. “Your mom is kind of ominous.” Sunset laughed. “Yeah, she can be a bit evi–” Sunshine made a slash with her sword, and a tearing sound was heard right before Rainbow’s shirt fell from her body with its back severed in two, exposing her naked to torso. Sunset’s face turned as red as her counterpart’s hair, and quickly turned around. “Mom, what the hell?!!” Sunshine just started laughing like a maniac as Rainbow tried desperately to cover herself. “Now we’re even.” “Sunset, gather the girls, we need to blast your mother asap!” Rainbow exclaimed, glaring at the woman with open hatred. “You’re not blowing up the school again!” Luna shouted, making her and Celestia’s presence known. The embarrassment in both teens doubled at the presence of the principals, but Sunshine’s grin just grew larger. “Tia,” she saluted the taller woman with a nod, and then turned towards Luna. “Nightmare Moon.” The vice-principal’s stoic face was struck bit a hit of embarrassment, and even Celestia chuckled at the name. “That was a long time ago. I’ve moved on from that phase of my life.” Luna stated, far more defensively than she would’ve liked to. Sunshine looked hurt by her words. “Don’t tell me you threw it away. That leather was really hard to find.” Luna’s eyes filled with fury. “You will shut up this instant you vile woman!” “What kind of awesome thing did we miss?” Rainbow asked, having covered herself with the white fencing jacket. “Did you know each other?” Sunset asked, looking at the amused face of Celestia. “Luna did, long ago, but I never got the chance.” Celestia glared at Sunshine with annoyance. “If I knew, I wouldn’t have let you trick me so easily.” “Trick you?” Sunset asked confused. “When I came here saying I was your mother,” Sunshine explained with a grin. “She looked like she was about to have a heart attack when I entered her office.” “I almost had,” Celestia confessed with a frown. “I didn’t expect that a version of you would appear at my office after so long, and when she said she was looking for her ‘daughter’.” Celestia looked at Sunset with a bit of embarrassment. “if I tried to explain magic to her, which I barely understand, she could’ve thought that I was covering something up and made some legal action against the school, so...” “You just sent me to her?” Sunset questioned with her arms crossed. “Not even a bit of warning?” “She looked innocent enough,” Celestia excused herself, making Sunshine laugh again. “You really are a vile woman.” “Who has lied to my sister, embarrassed me in public, and assaulted a student,” Luna counted with her fingers. “Are you sure you will be a good influence for Sunset?” “She’s perfectly capable of distinguishing right from wrong.” Sunshine left the last of the fencing equipment on a nearby bench. “And I can make all of this up to you.” Luna raised a curious eyebrow. “How?” Sunshine leaned closer to the vice-principal and whispered in her ear, loud enough so everyone would hear her. “I made a design for Celestia too.” Luna’s eyes widened. “It’s called Daybreaker.” Luna grinned maliciously. “I’ll buy it.” Celestia’s face turned even more white than it already was and turned towards the two teens with panic in her voice. “Blast her with magic. Destroy the school if you have to!” Sunshine laughed and quickly trotted to the exit. “I better leave before someone calls the police or something.” “Wait for me!” Sunset shouted, following her to the exit, leaving the two women and teen alone. “Sooo…” Rainbow looked at the two principals while pressing her lips together. “Can I hear the story about… Nightmare and Daybreaker?” Luna frowned. “Two weeks of detention.” “Oh, come on! I won’t tell anyone.” “Three weeks!” Sunshine and Sunset exited the school with smiles on their faces before the woman stopped to look around them. “Everything started here.” “Did you enjoyed meeting my friends?” Sunset asked, walking in front of Sunshine. “A lot,” the woman admitted with a smile, remembering each of her encounters. “You’ve something amazing with these girls.” “I can share it with you,” Sunset smiled and offered her hand to Sunshine. “It’s obvious by this point, but officially, I accept you as my mother.” Instead of grabbing her hand, Sunshine pulled the girl into a hug, softly brushing the girls red and golden hair. Sunset was surprised for a second, but then she hugged her back, smiling as a missing piece of her life felt finally fulfilled. Sunshine looked down at the happy face of Sunset, knowing that she had been the one that caused that reaction. She never thought she could make someone as happy as her daughter was right now, but she would do her best to keep that happiness going until Sunset was ready to face the world on her own. Rainbow and the principals looked at them through the glass doors and decided to leave the school by the back exit, letting them enjoy the moment for a bit longer. Night finally came when the new family finally separated, their smiles never fading. “So, I guess it’s my turn now.” Sunshine raised an eyebrow. “Your turn for what?” “Meeting your friend.” Sunset answered excitedly. Sunshine faked a thinking pose. “I don’t know if you’re ready yet.” “Oh, for Celestia’s sake!” the teen exclaimed frustrated. “Cut with the mystery already!” “How about this…” Sunshine looked at her daughter with a grin. “You tell me which of your friends you like, and I tell you who’s my friend.” Sunset sighed, rubbing her temples before chuckling. “Fine, It’s To Be Continued.”
Epilogue: Attending The PartySugarcube Corner had been reserved once again, but this time, there was a genuine party inside the establishment. Music, drinks, food, and cheer all around for everyone. Sunshine stood in the middle of the small chaos looking at her new social circle with a smile. “Would it be a bit egotistical to say that you look marvelous darling?” Rarity asked as she approached her. Sunshine smiled and looked at her brand-new dress, a perfect copy of the Daydream form of Sunset, minus some of the metal accessories, and obviously, the horn and face paint. “After such good work, I think you deserve it.” “I hope you aren’t mad about it being a gift,” Rarity joked. “I think I’ve come around to like the gift-giving idea,” she said looking at Wallflower standing near one of the walls, alone but smiling. The girl had received a gift from Sunshine, two leather wristbands with colorful flowers patchworked into them. Due to this simple gift, Wallflower had allowed herself to attend the party with a red blouse and short blue jeans with sunflower patterns instead of her usual long-sleeved clothing. “I’m happy to see that,” Rarity said, also looking at Wallflower. “It doesn’t look like a bad business practice now, does it?” “Nope.” Sunshine turned towards the fashionista with a serious face. “However, once you hop on into the fashion industry completely, I hope you manage your business well.” Rarity scoffed. “Oh, don’t fret darling, I’ve a good head on my shoulders.” “Good, I don’t want you burning my company to the ground after I retire.” “And why would I–” Rarity froze in place. “Can I hear that again darling?” Sunshine shrugged as if it was nothing. “I said I won’t run the company forever.” “And you– you want–” Rarity stammered, her hands shaking. “Uh! Twilight brought her toy with her.” Sunshine ignored the panicking fashionista, who proceeded to faint and fall on top a of a mysteriously well-placed couch. Twilight’s drone flew up to Sunshine, who smiled and posed for the camera before a flash came from it. “It looks like it’s working well.” Twilight let the drone sit on top of her legs like if it was a puppy and looked at the computer at her side. “The facial recognition system you gave me did wonders for the AI. I can’t thank you enough.” “Oh, I’m sure one of your inventions will come in handy one day.” Twilight turned her head towards the woman, the shine of her glasses hiding her slightly crazed eyes. “What do you need? Doomsday weapons? Love potion? Time machine?” “Hold it there before you start threatening the entire tri-state area,” Sunshine warned, placing a finger over the girl’s lips. “If she’s not on a no-fly list somewhere in the world, someone’s not doing their job,” a voice said that surprised Sunshine. “Oh, I almost forgot about you,” the woman exclaimed, looking at the purple dog currently drinking punch out of a glass. “Yeah, I was sleeping when you visited last time.” He offered a paw to the woman. “Name’s Spike.” Sunshine shook his paw. “Pleasure to meet you.” She then glanced at Twilight. “Are you in charge of keeping her contained?” Spike saluted. “Yes madam.” “Hey!” Twilight complained. Sunshine copied Spike’s salute. “Your sacrifice keeps this world safe.” “I’m not crazy!” Twilight shouted. The woman and dog laughed before Sunshine noticed Fluttershy walking towards her, so she went to meet her halfway. “I like her,” Spike commented as she left. Pouting, Twilight pulled the punch away from her dog. “No more punch for you.” Sunshine and Fluttershy stood in front of each other, neither looking at the other in the eyes. They spent a long time without saying anything, until surprisingly, the shy girl spoke first. “I’m sorry. Right or not, I shouldn’t have accused you like that. Specially not in front of Sunset.” Sunshine raised her hand to shoulder height. “I also handled it poorly. I should be used to criticism by now, and I can’t judge you for sticking to what you love.” “So…” Fluttershy rubbed her arm. “Truce?” Sunshine smiled and nodded. “Truce.” They both noticeably relaxed after talking, and the woman suddenly had an idea. “Hey, maybe, as a way to compensate for it a bit, I can help out with your shelter with some donations?” Fluttershy thought about it for a moment. “There’re a few charities I know that would appreciate the help.” “We can meet someday and talk about it. Just you and me?” Sunshine offered. Fluttershy nodded. “Okay.” She then looked at her in the eyes. “Please take good care of Sunset.” Sunshine smiled. “I will. Promise.” The woman was suddenly pulled aside by pink hands. “It looks like you’re having fun!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed. “You really are the master of parties,” Sunshine praised with a smile, causing the baker to giggle. “Thank you for helping me break out of my doubts.” “Oh, it was nothing silly. Everyone needs a little help from time to time. The important thing is that everyone smiles at the end.” Sunshine laughed before remembering something. “Speaking of smiling at the end, could you close your eyes for a moment?” “Uh! I love surprises!” Pinkie exclaimed before closing her eyes, trembling in excitement. She then felt something being pulled over her head, until it rested on her shoulders. “I hope I got them right,” Sunshine said before moving away from Pinkie. The pink girl opened her eyes and looked down, discovering that she was wearing a rock candy necklace. “Wha– How?! Did Maud tell you?” “No one did, I just knew,” Sunshine answered with a grin, leaving the girl perplexed as she walked away. She then found herself in the presence of Applejack and Rainbow Dash, the farmer girl lifting her hat in salute. “Hats off to the one who took this stubborn ego down a few pegs.” “Hey, I would’ve beat her easily if I knew how to fence!” Rainbow complained, crossing her arms. Applejack gave her friend a cocky grin. “I don’t think building fences is that complex of a skill.” Sunshine and Rainbow went silent as they looked at the farmer, then at each other, then back at the farmer, and finally exploded in laughter. “Did I make a funny face?” Applejack questioned confused. Sunshine looked at Rainbow Dash, struggling to keep it together. “If you want a rematch, you can ask Sunset to give you a few lessons in sword fighting.” Rainbow’s competitive grin returned to her face. “And I can teach you a few tricks to be better at football.” Meanwhile, Applejack pieced together why they were laughing, and frowned. “I’m going to give you the hardest work when you come back to the farm.” Sunshine shrugged. “Worth it.” She then turned to look at Wallflower, who was still standing at the side of the party, and decided to walk up to her. The girl smiled when she saw the woman approach her before saying; “I can see you better now.” That particular wording made Wallflower giggle, and Sunshine laid herself against the wall next to the teen. “Thank you,” the girl said showing the wristbands, admiring the meticulous patchwork it had. “It was my pleasure, and my way of thanking you for the flower. It makes me smile every time I see it.” “I can relate,” Wallflower said with a bit of a blush, which only brighten her smile. Sunshine shared her smile and did a bit of memory. “Have you ever gone to the Kirin Gardens?” Wallflower’s eyes widened, looking at the woman with incredulity. “That’s… on the other side of the country.” Sunshine smiled. “Unless you’re afraid of planes, I can take you there if you want.” Wallflower looked like she was about to pull a Rarity, but then the entrance door opened, and a figure walked inside the room. “Sorry, but we’re closed for the day,” Pinkie apologized with a smile. “I invited her,” Sunshine announced, getting the attention of everyone. Smiling, she pointed at the new arrival. “This is my friend.”
