Sunset was a light sleeper, often waking up at random during the night. Fortunately, she could typically fall back asleep quickly, so it wasn't a problem for her.
However, on this particular night, she was having a sleepover with her friends and noticed that Pinkie was missing. Sunset settled back into her mattress and closed her eyes. She didn't feel the need to check on Pinkie's whereabouts, assuming she might have gone to the bathroom. Nevertheless, her mind remained alert, listening for any signs of Pinkie's return.
As time continued to pass without any sign of Pinkie, Sunset grew increasingly worried. She quietly got out of bed and left the room, careful not to disturb her sleeping friends. As she walked through the house, she didn't see any lights on in the other rooms, so she headed downstairs.
Sunset heard a faint sound emanating from the kitchen, prompting her to investigate. As she approached the source of the noise, she found Pinkie sitting on a chair in front of the open refrigerator, with a can of whipped cream in hand and spraying its contents directly into her mouth.
Sunset raised an eyebrow at the sight of Pinkie letting the can fall to the ground, where several others were already scattered about. Undeterred, Pinkie quickly grabbed another can and resumed consuming its contents.
"Hi, Pinkie!" Sunset greeted her.
Pinkie turned her head, her expression surprisingly serious before recognizing her friend's voice. "Oh, hi, Sunset!" she responded with a faint smile, before turning back to the fridge.
Curious, Sunset asked, "What are you doing up so late?"
"I'm just thinking," Pinkie replied matter-of-factly, spraying another burst of the whipped cream into her mouth.
"Dangerous," Sunset joked, chuckling. "Trouble sleeping?"
Shrugging her shoulders, Pinkie continued to indulge in the sugary treat.
"Twilight warned you not to chug that whole bottle of soda," Sunset said, taking a seat in a nearby chair. "Do you mind giving me one?"
Pinkie tossed a can to Sunset. "Maybe it's the caffeine, but you all fell asleep so early. It's not even 2 AM yet."
Sunset nodded in agreement, spraying a line of whipped cream onto her finger. "I think we're all still tired from PE."
They sat in silence, each enjoying their whipped cream snacks as the occasional sound of spraying interrupted the quiet between them. Sunset couldn't help but observe Pinkie, who appeared lost in thought, staring blankly into the open fridge.
"What's on your mind?" Sunset finally asked gently, breaking the silence.
Pinkie shrugged. "I don't know, really. Sometimes I think about past events, other times I let my imagination run wild with hypothetical conversations, and sometimes I just wonder how things work or looking at them from a different perspective."
"Like shower thoughts?"
"Yeah," Pinkie nodded. "It just kinda happened when you all fell asleep."
"Sorry about that," Sunset ran her fingers through her hair. "We can make it up to you by spending time together in the morning."
"No worries," Pinkie reassured her. "Sometimes it's necessary to take a quiet break and sort through your thoughts."
"Mind if you share some of these thoughts with me?" Sunset asked.
"They’re more random," Pinkie sighed.
"Do you think that’ll stop me?" Sunset grinned. "Give me your best."
"If you say so." Pinkie turned to Sunset. "Remember when we went to the furnishing company because Rarity wanted to buy a mirror? She made all that fuss about buying a new one that was never used, but if you really think about it, a mirror is always in a used condition."
Sunset opened her mouth to reply, but then let the words sink in.
"You’re actually right," Sunset wondered. "Why didn’t you bring this up when we were there?"
"I’m sure it has to do with me contesting Rainbow who among us could eat more hot dogs." Pinkie held her stomach, groaning. "That was a mistake."
Sunset laughed. "I remember the look of the salesman when you demanded more and they were out of sausages. Not sure if they were impressed or scared by you two."
"I think they were more worried," Pinkie replied. "But Rainbow still wants another try."
"She can never lose," Sunset said. "Any more mind-blowing thoughts?"
"These are not mind-blowing," Pinkie responded.
"These may not be mind-blowing, but I'm all ears," Sunset responded with a smile.
Pinkie looked at the whipped cream can in her hand. "Well, have you ever tried standing backward on stairs?"
Sunset raised an eyebrow.
"I attempt it sometimes," Pinkie replied. "But I still can’t figure out how."
"I think that’s physically impossible," Sunset muttered, rubbing her forehead. "Where do you even come up with these thoughts?"
"Well, you did call them shower thoughts," Pinkie chuckled. "Although, perhaps they should be called midnight snack thoughts."
"Blow my mind some more," Sunset said, clapping her hands. "Give me all you’ve got."
"Are you sure?" Pinkie asked. "I mean it when I say they're random."
"Even better." Sunset grinned.
"How was the alphabet put in the order it’s in?" Pinkie asked.
Sunset nodded slowly. "Have you asked your elementary teacher about it?"
"From the moment she introduced it to us," Pinkie replied. "She hated how none of us were satisfied with ‘because it was decided like that’."
"I remember as a filly, I was never satisfied with the answers Princess Celestia gave me," Sunset said. "I have no idea how she had the patience to deal with me, especially after I left her." Sunset looked away.
"Hey," Pinkie gave a cheering smile. "She did forgive you, right?"
"She did," Sunset agreed and took a deep breath. "Anyway, back to your midnight snack thoughts. What else do you have to offer?"
Pinkie grinned, making a pause to increase the tension. "The freezer is just a pause button for decomposing food."
"Well, that’s one way to view it," Sunset replied.
"You don’t wash your hands. They wash each other while you stand there and watch."
"A little creepy," Sunset said.
"If a net gets torn, does it have more or fewer holes?" Pinkie continued.
"Hm," Sunset squinted her eyes.
"Why do we park on a driveway and drive on a parkway?"
"I think I’ve heard that one before," Sunset said. "But still a good one."
"What would the Middle Ages have looked like if instead of horses, they rode motorcycles?"
Sunset closed her mouth, suppressing laughter. She took a deep breath and let it out. "You know what? We need to make a video of that. I’m sure Rainbow will love playing the knight."
"That sounds like fun!" Pinkie replied. "How about we suggest it tomorrow?"
"It will need more time for preparations, but we can schedule it," Sunset said, but then yawned. "Okay, last midnight snack thought, then I’ll go to sleep."
"Hmm," Pinkie mused, rubbing her chin. "What if supernatural encounters are actually quite common, but the government or a secret group keeps them localized and monitored to ensure they don't breach their containment zones? They could secretly film these known manifestations and use them as material for movies or shorts for public consumption, making it seem like fiction."
Sunset blinked, silently processing what she just heard. At first, she wanted to dismiss it as nonsense, but the more she thought about it, the more she wondered if there was some truth to the idea. Why hadn't there been a bigger reaction to the introduction of Equestrian magic to this world? Why hadn't any officials come to Canterlot City to investigate the rumors of paranormal encounters?
Pinkie let out a yawn and stretched her arms. "Alright then, that's the last one as requested. Good night, Sunset," she said, giving her friend a warm smile before heading out of the kitchen.
Sunset remained rooted to her spot, her heart pounding in her chest as she struggled to process the implications of what Pinkie had said. Could it really be possible that their band's meteoric rise to fame was nothing more than an elaborate ruse? Were their conveniently placed jobs at the Canterlot Mall part of a larger plan to keep them in the city? And what about that inexplicably cheap cruise trip they'd taken, which had led to them uncovering and stopping the rest of Storm King's magic? Had that all been orchestrated?
The more Sunset thought about it, the more the pieces began to fall into place. How else could she afford to live in a full apartment as a sushi restaurant worker? How else would she and her friends just live their life normally while showing off their magical transformations during their musical performances?
The memory of her transformation during the Fall Formal flashed through Sunset's mind. She'd destroyed the entire entrance to the school, yet Principal Celestia had brushed it off without further questioning and could easily get the funding to fix it. Was that because she was somehow complicit in this larger conspiracy?
Sunset shook her head, trying to dispel the unsettling thoughts from her mind. She stretched her arms and let out a loud yawn. Maybe she was just overthinking everything. Exhausted, she made her way to her room and climbed into bed, hoping to get some much-needed rest.
Username: @TheScreenSceptic
Date: May 14, 2017
Feeling Truman Show fatigue anyone? Seems like every show/movie is copying the formula of self-aware characters breaking the fourth wall and revealing conspiracies. Let's just have a good old-fashioned story without the constant reminder that we're watching a story. Let characters be characters and stories be stories without any higher power controlling them. Who's with me?
#metafatigue #justtellthestory #simplicity #backtobasics #originality #letcharactersbecharacters #stopconspiracyfeeding
Author's Note
In case you're wondering, this story got inspired by this youtube short: https://youtube.com/shorts/zlXB7kO4aQU. No, this fic is not an SCP-crossover. 
