Sunset felt hungry.
That's not supposed to happen. Something unique to unicorns is that they can use their magic as an emergency source of food, in case anything happens. So, they don't need to eat as much as Pegasi, or even Earth Ponies.

So why was Sunset hungry? That's not supposed to happen? Why is this a thing now? What?

"Hey, you alrigh' there sugarcube?" Applejack asked with confusion. "Ya look... Well, hungry."
"Oh! Did you not eat breakfast?" Rarity asked, concerned. "I've got a bar in my bag in case of something like that."
"I'm fine, really. I don't often have breakfast." Even as Celestia's personal student, she hardly ate. She... may have gotten addicted to the magical fullness she had, and didn't realise she needed food to replenish her reserves. And well, let's just say, addiction is a topic Celestia had drilled into her head.

It was the reason why she stayed away from all drugs and alcohol. It scared her, to be honest. As does being hungry. She's supposed to have a lot of magic, as she can't use it here, and the portal clearly has some type of magic being put into her clothes, as they've grown with her, for five years.

Wait, it's been five years... She... Oh wow, she hardly even thinks of Equestria as home anymore, does she? Is it home? Or... Is this place home? This school.

Does she have a home? Wow, she's hungry. She needs something to eat. Wow, that's actually starting to hurt slightly. Huh, this is weird. She's never felt this before.
Is this stomach pain? She doesn't much care for it, thank you. She doesn't like this.

But, does she deserve it? She wonders if this is punishment for not trying to deal with the Sirens sooner. That could be it. Ok, so a bit of a punishment. She'll be better next time. She'll have a good lunch.

"Sunset… you look close to falling over..." Fluttershy said worriedly. "Please, eat something?"
"I can wait till lunch," Sunset said, smiling. It's true, she could wait till lunch.
Why do people not believe her? Wait, was that...
"Uh, I think the three are here," she said, wincing as something fell over in the hallway. Sounds like a locker.

"The- Oh... Oh dear. I thought Cheerilee was looking after them..." Rarity said worriedly. "It seems they got away from her… again."
"I'll grab them," Sunset said as she got up. The teacher, she couldn’t remember their name, just sighed and nodded.

Sunset clutched her stomach, as she looked for the kids.
"Look, I get that you're bored, but yah can't be doing things like this," a girl's voice was saying. "I've got to get to class. Don't, be naughty. Ok?" Footsteps, and Sunset turned the corner.
"Who was that?" she asked them. Scootaloo just shrugged.

"Dunno. She's been around but... She's weird," Sweetie Belle said. "I think Mamma said her name was Dead Heart," she said.

"Wait. Dead Heart?" Sunset asked. That...
"Yeah," Bloom nodded. "Dead Heart. Weird huh? We don' know any other name for her."

... A little rule for naming, in Equestria. The words, Death, Dead, Living, Life, or anything that is close to that, are not allowed.
They're banned, as they are considered rude, and even downright hateful towards the filly that would be named it.

So why are they called that? Why do they have thi- WAIT DID SHE SAY ANOTHER NAME!?
"Other name?" She asked.
"Yeah. We've all go' nicknames. Mine's Apple Bloom, but mah name's really Blossom," she said smiling.

"..." Sunset blinked, and almost doubled over, as her stomach rumbled. WOW THAT HURT!
"Are yah ok?" Ap- Blossom, asked worriedly. "Did yah eat? Are yah hungry?"
"I'm fine," Sunset said, shaking her head. "I'm ok," she lied.

She just smiled, and lead the three back to the library. Cheerilee just smiled, as the four walked in.
"There you three are. Thanks Sunset. Geez, Today's been a mess, sorry," she said, wincing. "Come on, it's story time, you three."

Sunset sighed as she finished lunch. That's better. No more stomach pain. She'll ask for some notes later.
"So, uh... Why don't yah often eat?" Applejack asked. Does she have a different name too? "It's just... You act like it's normal?"
"Oh, right," Sunset sighed, and shrugged. "Magic."
"..." Everyone just stared at her with a dull look. "..."
"I'm not joking," she shrugged. "It's a long story."

"I'm not sure what you mean by that, darling," Rarity. Is that her real name? "But... I feel that the long story isn't quite wrong. So, uh... What do you mean by the magic stopping you from being hungry?"
"... Well, magic can be a secondary source of food so we don't starve." DON'T MEANTION YOU WERE A PONY SHIMMER! "Even the ones with Wings, can do it too. But... If they have to use it too much when they're young, either Magic, or Wings... well, they can stop growing their wings, making it almost impossible for them to fly, or for Magic to not be as strong as others, as their bodies become dependent on that." She blushed. "And as they get older, they might get an… addiction."

"Speaking from experience?" Rainbow asked... gently? Also, Rainbow might be her name. That tracks with her family.
"I've seen it happen to a few... and a few funerals..." She shuddered. "And an AA meeting or two..." Another shudder, and a sigh.
Everyone just stared at her. "I... I wa... What the fuck Sunset!?" Rarity asked with a hiss.

"I..." Sunset just remembers the worry... Wait, the same look Principal Celestia gives her, every morning. Why? She's ok. "It's a long story."

Twilight has had a very weird day.
And not in the usual science is cool sort of way.
In the, SHE HAS NO IDEA WHAT'S GOING ON! kind of way, ya know?

She had been in the library as it was Saturday, and she just felt like reading a book. A new one. She loves the library, as it's large and is kept very nicely. And, it's quiet. She didn't have to talk, or listen to anyone or anything.

She heard the sounds of a pen on paper, and a girl muttering. She blinked, and wondered if they were studying, or if they were a vandal.

Oh if it was a Vandal! She quietly walked over to where she heard it, and turned the corner.
She just sighed, and looked at the multi-coloured haired girl. Pretty like a sunset...
WOW! What a thought there Twily! Just shout about how gay you are to the universe, why don't you!
"So, uh... what ya got there?" she asked, pointing at the weird book, which had a sun with a yin yang symbol. And on the back, it was... wait, that's her mark! HOW DOES SHE HAVE HER MARK!? "And why do you have my symbol?"

"Your- Oh... You're Twilight Sparkle," she said. "Ok... I'm Sunset Shimmer," she said, holding out a hand.
"Nice to meet you?" Twilight said, shaking it, and quickly grabbing the book.
"HAY!" Sunset cried. "You could have just asked," she said, with a sigh.

She saw the handwriting. Her handwriting. But, she's never even seen this book... And why are they writing in the same book? Like... A conversation...

And it was writing. In her hand. And not a pen around her. "What... Is... This?" She asked.
"Uh... Magic Journal. That can communicate between two worlds," she said without hesitation.
"... Just like that?" she asked.
"I mean. Can't really hide it, can I? You saw it write itself."
"Fair. So, uh... There's another world, that's a mirror to this one?" Twilight asked. "The possibilities! If someone is needing a blood transfusion, or if you needed a person to rant to, or-"
"ok, before you get too excited. One. Government. I'd be taken faster than a Pinkie Pie Cupcake."

"¿Disculpe?"
"Two, not everything is the same. Uh..." Sunset pulled out a phone, and flicked a number of photos. "I never really brought it up, cause like... Don't understand it? But, she hasn't got the same colours as you. Or style," Sunset said, and showed Twilight a picture of a girl in a really nice dress, with a crown, looking like a princess. Oh, and she's white.

"¿Qué carajo?" She hissed, looking at the white girl. "Why does she look so different?"
"Dunno." Sunset shrugged. "... Write back, I wanna see what happens." She grinned.
"Trouble, Troublemaker, yeah that's your middle name. I know you're no good but you're stuck in my brain~" She blinked. "Uh, thanks brain!? WHAT!?" Twilight thought.

"So, uh... ... Can you answer some more of my questions please?" Twilight asked. "I... Want to learn more."
"Sure? I mean, ok. Uh, better get away from other people. Talking about magic and mythological creatures like they're real, tends to get some odd looks."
"Alright... Uh, how about we go to my place. Mami won't be home for a while."
"Ok then. Lead the way, Ms Sparkle."

Accessing Memory...
Sunset Shimmer <~~
Twilight Sparkle
Mia Angelina Cadenza

Sunset... Sunset could remember it like it was yesterday.
The hunger. The... The fullness. The emptiness.
The Addiction.
It had started off slow. Not that much, not that often. Just when she had a long night in the library. Or the food at school wasn't that great.
She used the power sparingly.

She should explain. Should a Unicorn, or a Pegasus, not have enough food, or energy to continue. They may use their magic to give them a burst. But... sometimes it can turn into an addiction.

She stopped sleeping, when she realised it dealt against that. Then she stopped eating so much. She could feel the fullness from the magic. The... The feeling of good that came from it.

She became a bit snappy, and rude. But, not enough that people thought something was wrong. Well, only one person noticed something was wrong.

Celestia. Damn that Alicorn. She's been around so long, she knows the signs of a Magic Addict. So, she knew. But, didn't say anything.

At first.
Then, after a while, she left Sunset alone. Just for a day. Sunset would always eat when she asked. But, not much else. Just enough to make her happy.

And then Celestia took her to a Rehab centre. Showing her the effects it could have. It was having.

Sunken eyes, muscles going. Ribs almost visible through her coat... Irritation, mood swings... Loss of magic.

Sunset was scared straight. She... She didn't want this to happen to her. So, she stopped. She went to bed on time, and ate as much as she needed.

That was two weeks before the mirror incident. Sunset doesn't want to remember the week leading to it, thank you very much.

She doesn't like who she was. At all. She's better now. Than she ever was.

Celestia doesn't need to see the failure of a student again. Ever again.

Accessing Memory...
Sunset Shimmer
Twilight Sparkle
Mia Angelina Cadenza <~~

Mia Angelina Cadenza. Often just called Cadenza.
A Dean of her school. A kid that was a baby sat next to Celestia's younger sister.
And... A mother.
She doesn't know how it happened. It's just that one day, she decided to take a babysitting gig.

A week long one.

God she should have seen the red flags the second she walked in. There were no personal effects of the parents, or older brother. The kitchen was clean, but there was the smell like cookies had just been made.

A crap load of money was on the table, and... A bunch of papers for her to sign.
She's never taken care of someone for a week straight. A couple days maybe. But never a full week.

So she didn't think the papers were odd, as it was a full week. And she'd need to be responsible. So, she signed all the papers she was asked to. No questions asked, nothing read over.

A fool. A fool of a woman she was. She felt herself get mad even thinking about them.

Twilight Velvet, was almost a recolour of Twilight Sparkle. And Night Light was... Well, he was there. He just looked like an older Shining Armor.

She settled in, and made some dinner for the both of them. Twilight was just happy reading books. But, that's another thing that should have tipped her off.

She was used to being alone. Kids shouldn't be used to that. So she spent most of the week with her. Anytime she needed to go out and get something, she took Twilight. She made sure Twilight was happy, and safe, and cared about.

And then the end of the week came, and she noticed something. They didn't text her that they were about to fly back. She got in the mail, with something addressed to her.

Why? It was a bunch of money, of bloody course. "Mierda. Se movieron. No van a volver... Pobre Twilight."

"Hmm?" Twilight asked, as Cadence walked back into the room.
"Nothing princess. It's just... A long day. Uh, good news. I'll be sticking around for a bit longer," she said, and Twilight looked happy at that.

She called up the courts to see what the actual hell that legal document was.

"ADOPTION PAPERS!?" She yelled into the phone.
"Mam, if you would please-"
"DON'T TELL ME TO CALM! HOW IS THAT LEGAL!?"
"You signed them. Correct?"
"I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE HELL THEY WERE!"
"It still legally binds you."
She growled. And hung up.

"A- Ah- Adop... Adoption?" Twilight got out, between sniffs, and trying to dry her eyes. "They... They they they wouldn't just give me up... Right?" she asked, as tears streamed like waterfalls.

"Oh, oh honey... Mi amor, don't worry. I'm here. I... I'm your mami now," she said, knowing what that paper work was for.

Fucking bastards!

Author's Note

Notes! Important ones:

Yes! I have made the CMC actual little ones. Around six years old. I hated how the movie made them so close in age, because it doesn't really make sense, in any sense of it. And, there were no others around their size, for the entire series, I'm not sure about the comics, but yeah.
So, they're four year olds now, and more often than not, get looked after by a teacher not on duty. Or, Cheerrilee. She's often their baby sitter, as she's just the librarian.

Pony Twilight is White. That is all.