Twilight's Eclipseby ThistleZoeyChaptersChapter 1: Celestia's Other PupilChapter 2: The Twin Tailed EclipseChapter 3: Trading Traits and Feeling GreatChapter 4: Sunset's new MoonChapter 5: Trixie 'Distraction' LulamoonChapter 6: How I Met Your [adopted] MotherChapter 1: Celestia's Other PupilđCelestia's Other Pupilđ âOk Trixie, you have gone TOO far this time!â growled Twilight, clopping her hoof down hard. The unicorn stared at Trixie, the accidental Alicorn, with an anger that was making her mane almost stand up on end. Trixie stood there, dumbfounded. âWhat? What did I do?â Trixie asked, tilting her head like a dog that had just been told off for peeing on the carpet 6 hours ago. âYOU CALLED MY STEP SISTER HOT INFRONT OF MY ADOPTIVE MOTHER???â she said, exasperated. âOh! Thaaat! Sorry, Sparky, I didnât realise that would upset you! She is kinda hot though, you gotta admit! Donât know how that mangy stallion managed to pull THAT one off.â She said, smirking. Twilight growled loudly. âTRIXIE! THAT'S MY SISTER IN LAW! AND ALSO! MY BROTHER!â âYouâre brother is your sister in law?â âUUUGH!â The pair were visiting the crystal empire shortly after Princess Trixieâs coronation, along with all of Twilightâs friends. The celestial sisters were having a bit of trouble figuring out what Trixie was a princess of. Luna had floated the idea of âconfidenceâ, but Celestia had pointed out that Trixie was more, in her words, âtoo dim to light a candleâ. Celestia had then suggested âcunningâ, where Luna had let her know that gaslighting was not a thing that should be supported by the monarchy. The crowd had been⌠confused to say the least. A few questions were thrown around about how appropriate it was for a pony who had just a month ago attacked a town and brought it under an authoritarian rule, but nopony could deny that Trixie knew how to put on a show. Enhanced by her Alicorn abilities, Trixie had shown canterlot a light display like they had never seen before. Just as the parade had begun, and after a LOT of pleading from the blue pony, the moon had quickly replaced the sun in the sky. With a starry backdrop, Trixie shot up a cascade of blue and purple fireworks into the sky. The lights intertwined with each other and burst out into sparks as the harmless streams of light showered down over the crowd. The final act was a brief recreation in lights of her and Twilightâs battle over ponyville, which ended in the shapes of Twilight and Trixie ascending into the air, kissing as red love hearts burst around her. Twilight looked up in awe, and then over at Trixie. Trixie looked down at her, and winked. Even the Celestial siblings were impressed. All of Twilightâs friends had slowly come around to the idea, apart from Rarity; she didnât seem too keen on it at all at first. However, after seeing Trixieâs rabid defence of Twilight during an incident with a timber wolf and how Twilight looked at her once she was standing over her convinced her. It reminded her how she felt about AppleJack. Everything had been going swell for Twilight and Trixie. They had still argued and bickered a lot, of course, but that was part of the fun for them. Trixie enjoyed being irritating beyond belief, and Twilight could finally admit to herself how much she loved being teased and bullied. They of course both had their limits, and if Twilight ever said something along the lines of âTrixie, end it.â, she would stop. Similarly, if Trixie just wanted calm affection, she would simply say âHug, Twiggleâ. Was it messy? Yeah. Was it healthy? Most certainly not. Were they both into it? More than anypony could possibly believe. And here they were, having yet another argument, and yet again Twilight could feel the burning on her cheeks. Trixieâs strange comment towards Cadence had caused Twilight to ask to be excused, and she dragged Trixie by the tail into the first door that she could find. It looked like a small library room, with a weird shaped mirror in the corner. As always, Trixieâs arrogant gaze (enhanced by her new height advantage) still cut through her like a blazing sword. âTrixie, when are you going to learn?â Twilight stammered, already feeling herself get flustered. Trixie sat down in front of her, and brushed Twilightâs sides with her wings. âThe exact same moment that you learn there's nothing you can do to stop me,Twilight.â Twilightâs brain was filled with the usual Trixie induced fog, and she looked up at her with wide eyes. She waited for permission. Trixie nodded, winking. âYou know you like it~â Twilight leaned in, and they kissed. Sparks flew from their horns. Trixieâs wings unfurled behind her, and she picked Twilight up in a tight embrace. Both of their magic fields intertwined and the pair began to rise, Trixieâs wings wrapping around her unicorn girlfriend. After a few minutes, Twilight pulled away, staring deeply into Trixieâs eyes. Trixie returned the look. âWhat the fuck did I do right to deserve youâŚâ Trixie whispered, unable to take the smile off her face. âWhat the fuck did I do wrong to deserve youâŚâ Twilight replied, smile also on her face as she blushed back. âWHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE!?â The moment was somewhat broken by the pair of horse lovers realising they werenât alone. Both of their heads snapped round as they dropped back to the ground. An orange unicorn with red and yellow hair stood just in front of the mirror in the corner of the room. She was wearing a leather jacket, and had one of her ears pierced near the peak of the earâs point. She had some black eyeshadow on and her hooves were a vibrant cyan. Twilight couldnât believe it. She looked so cool! âOH! Goodness!â Twilight was so embarrassed, her eyes wide as she stared at the unicorn in front of her. âI-Iâm so sorry! I didnât realise you were here! I D-donât think Iâve met you before! W-Whatâs your name?â âT-Twilight Sparkle!?â the Unicorn said in disbelief. Twilightâs blood ran cold. She knew who she was!? âOh! That's weird!â Said Trixie, smoothing out her hair in an attempt to look normal (she failed.) âThat's my girlfriendâs name too!â Twilight gave Trixie a kick in the back leg to shut up. âTrixie! Please. U-Uhm, Iâm sorry⌠Do I know you?â Asked Twilight. âI⌠my NAME! Is sunset Shimmer.â She stated firmly. âAnd you⌠youâre my replacement? You? And you- wait, did- TRIXIE!?â Sunset said, jaw dropping as she realised who had just called Twilight her girlfriend. She shot a withering glare at the purple unicorn. âYouâre dating this worldâs fucking TRIXIE!?â âW-Wait⌠this worldâs..?â Twilight managed to get in before Trixie steamrolled through. âOf course she is! Who would say no to a smokinâ hot alicorn like myself!â Trixie said, flourishing her wings proudly behind her. Sunset froze. Her eye twitched. âYouâŚâ she said slowly. âYouâre⌠Youâre an Alicorn.â Twilightâs head tilted a little. She could have sworn she saw embers starting to glow in her mane. âYep!â Trixie replied happily stated. âIsnât it awesome?â âH⌠HowâŚâ âOh, easy! I just kissed a girl who was possessed by an evil amulet! Easy peasy!â She said smugly. âWhat's wrong, have you never kissed a mare before?â Sunsetâs eye twitched once more, and she started shaking. âUhm⌠Miss⌠Shimmer?â Twilight said, carefully approaching. âAre you okay?â âShe fucking LIED TO ME!â Roared Sunset, and before Twilight could even comprehend what was going on, the orange unicorn had erupted into a blazing fireball. Trixie let out a squeak of shock as she felt a blast of inferno suddenly going her way. She managed to block it with a magic barrier, but she could still very much feel the heat. Twilight had leapt out of the way and was now left staring at the enraged Unicorn. Trixie glanced over at Twilight in panic. âUHHH! SPARKS! MIGHT BE A GOOD TIME FOR THAT FRIENDSHIP STUFF!â âS-Sunset Shimmer! W-Who lied? T-Tell me! Use words! N-Not violence!â she said, slowly approaching Sunset. The fiery unicorn was slashing spell after spell towards Trixie, who was having trouble holding her off. She may be an Alicorn, but she was still Trixie Lulamoon. Sunset turned to her and lashed out, a blazing whip striking her across the face. Crying out in pain she fell to the ground, smelling the burnt fur around her muzzle. She lay on the ground, beginning to hyperventilate as the enraged Sunset Shimmer came to loom over her. âYou werenât her first pupil, Twilight Sparkle.â She hissed, standing over her with fury in her gaze. Twilight stared up at her. Her terrifying expression made her want to shrink down into a little ball. She tried to speak, but Sunsets hoof striking down right beside her ear shut her up again. Sunset leant her head down, her muzzle nearly touching Twilightâs, looking like she was about to bite her head off. âShe told me I would have to be patient to become an Alicorn. And SHE just got it handed to her?â She growled, hoof pointing towards the steadily rising Trixie. She lent down even further. âExplain to me how thatâs Fair, Twilight Sparkle.â Twilight stayed silent as she felt a strange sensation fly throughout her body. The way Sunset was standing over her, ready to snap her like a dry twig at a moment's notice⌠the way the fire lit shadows bounced off of her muzzle⌠the raw fury she felt emanating from her⌠It took a moment for her to realise what it was she was feeling. Uh Oh. âCelestia LIED. She lied to me. And sheâs lying to- are you blushing!?â Sunset suddenly backed her head away, her anger almost immediately turning to confusion. Twilight was indeed blushing. Her cheeks were shining a rosy red as she stumbled around in her mind trying her best to find a response that wouldnât make her seem like a total freak. The closest she could get was: âI-Itâs warm in here!â Nailed it, Twilight. Sunsetâs rage had seemingly been temporarily dampened by this sudden development. Her eyes darted around Twilightâs face for a few moments before darting down to look at the rest of her body. She had an expression that Twilight could only read as⌠consideration? Her heart started racing. Their staring and breathing at each other contest was broken as Sunset was suddenly hit in the side by a blast from Trixie. âSTAY AWAY FROM MY GIRLFRIEND YOU HARLOT!â Screeched Trixie. Sunset snarled back and shot off another fireball, but Trixie seemed to be in the zone. She leapt into the air, dodging the attack, and activated her horn with a hiss. Twilight was knocked out to her flustered stupor at the noise. She knew it well. Trixie was casting a spell that she had created herself. She usually used it for whenever her and Twilight wanted to sneak out of social gatherings. âFLASHBANG, BITCH!â A loud crack accompanied the sudden blast of bright light. Sunset cried out, stumbling backwards towards the mirror. Twilight felt a wing around her side and with Trixieâs help she stumbled up onto her hooves. The feeling was reassuring, and she looked up at the furious Trixie. Even when angry, she still had a grin plastered on her face. Twilight felt her blush return momentarily. The pair looked towards Sunset, whoâs back was against the mirror as she wiped her eye furiously with her hoof. Twilightâs head tilted a little as she saw Sunsets tail start to gently ripple into the mirror. The mirror was a portal!? âFuck you, Twilight. Fuck both of you.â She growled, and turned to head on into the portal. The way her mane swayed when she moved⌠and that cutie mark was so pretty⌠Twilightâs body started moving before she had time to process what she was doing. âP-Please! Sunset! Donât go through! W-We can talk! I want to understand!â pleaded Twilight, leaping forward and grabbing onto her leg. â??? Let go of me!?â She said, pulling back out of the mirror for a moment and looking down at Twilight with bewilderment. âI need to know what C-Celestia did! I want to know how we can try and make this right!â She said in desperation. Sunset tensed, and she lowered her head towards her again. âThere is nothing you can do to fix this.â âTWILIGHT! STAND BACK!â A lot happened in the next one second. Trixie blasted a beam at the mirror. Sunset responded by leaping into the mirror portal. Twilight was still attached to Sunsetâs back leg. Twilight realised what was happening at the last moment, and tried to leap away, but her tail got caught on Sunsetâs. And as Sunset entered the mirror, Trixieâs energy blast smashed into the portal, cracking the mirror. Twilight suddenly had the sensation of being aggressively pulled into the air whilst being loosely aware of the screaming of Sunset Shimmer around her. Just as quickly as the chaos had started, it was over. Twilightâs eyes opened to see that she was in a forested area. She blinked a few times, rolling onto her front. This was the everfree forest? âWhat the FUCK did she do!?â Twilight let out a scream. Sunset Shimmer was lying Right beside her, glaring back at her with tears in her eyes. Twilight did all she could to keep the blush from reforming. She didnât do enough. âI-I donât know! W-Where was that portal meant to take you?â She asked. âBack home. Somewhere I had POWER. And now Iâm back here⌠stuck with another loser pupil who failed her teacher.â Sunset said bitterly, standing up. Twilight rose up too, checking her surroundings, trying her very best not to look at Sunset. Her mind was whirring. In all her time being Celestia's star pupil, the Alicorn had never mentioned Sunset Shimmer. She hadnât even mentioned having a pupil before. And yet here one was. One that was incredibly jaded. Twilight had always hoped in the back of her mind that she may one day ascend to Alicornhood, especially with how magically gifted she was. She had a feeling that might be what Celestia was building her up for. Trixie accidentally becoming an Alicorn had rather thrown a spanner in the works. Even the celestial sisters didnât know exactly how the process of becoming an Alicorn worked. But Sunset had apparently been told she would become an Alicorn? Then why did she leave? And why was Twilight blushing so much?? Shaking her head to clear those thoughts She was pretty sure she knew which part of the woods they were in and looking up at the sunlight gently piercing through the trees she could at least tell which way was north. âOkayâŚâ she said, and pointed with a hoof. âWe need to go that way. Thatâs the way back to Ponyville.â âIâm not going to Ponyville.â Said Sunset shortly. âI never want to see another Pony in my life. I want to go out into the woods and die. Just like I deserve.â âWhat!? Why would youâŚâ Twilight asked, but was once again shut up by a glare from Sunset. She weighed it up in her mind⌠she wouldnât be able to help Sunset on her own. She needed Celestia. She had a lot of questions for her. Plus, Trixie was probably having a magically fuelled breakdown right now. âOkay⌠uhm⌠well I amâŚâ she said quietly. âBut I-Iâll be coming back. So uhmâŚâ âBye.â Said Sunset shortly, and turned to leave. Twilight sighed, and did the same. Both felt the pain at the same time. âOWCH!â They cried in unison as the felt something pull on their tails! âI TOLD YOU Iâm not coming-â Sunset roared, turning round once more, seeming ready to annihilate her, but she froze. Twilight was staring at her tail. Well, To be more precise⌠She was staring at their shared tail. Their tails were fused together at the joint. Twilight felt the blood rushing to her face as the blush formed once more. They were stuck together. Sunset voiced what they were both thinking perfectly well. âWHAT THE FUCK!?â Author's Note Hi everypony!! V excited to write this silly story!! For those who are currently reading Intertwined reflections, don't worry! New chapter is on its way! I am just taking a bit of a break from it as life irl has gotten a bit more soup than usual. I find silly stuff like this much more relaxing and enjoyable to write (whereas more serious stuff is more overall fufilling.) Expect semi regular updates! Lots of love, Zoey! PS. this story may contain ponyamory Chapter 2: The Twin Tailed EclipseâWHAT THE FUCK!?â Twilight didnât have a response. Sunset tried to yank herself away from twilight but it just caused them both more pain. Twilight looked to Sunset, and saw that there was a strand of hair in her mane which was her regular purple. She could also see that a small strand of red was dropping down in front of her own vision. Whatever had happened seemed to have done more than just joined their tails. Sunset snarled, and lit her horn. It formed into a hot knife like projection and it looked like she was going to cut it off! âW-WAIT! S-STOP!â Twilight cried, leaping at her. This knocked her over, but Sunsetâs quick roll meant that she was now standing over Twilight. âI don't want to be attached to somepony beneath me.â She snarled. Twilight stared up at her. Her usual Trixie fog that clouded her brain was getting burnt away by a new sensation⌠Sunset Blaze. She couldn't remove the blush from her face as she tried to string a sentence together. âI-if you cut your, my, OUR tail, w-we don't know what will happen! I-it might have been internal organs and stuff that g-got merged too!â she pleaded. âA-And, uhm- I⌠Donât⌠want to accidentally⌠kill you or anything because that would⌠be badâŚâ she trailed off a bit. Sunsetâs eyes narrowed in understanding, using her hoof to move Twilightâs new red strand of hair out of the way of her eyes (Twilight shuddered). â... fuck.â the fiery unicorn said shortly, and manoeuvred herself to the side to allow Twilight to stand up. The linking rope that was their tail could extend to about a metre, allowing them to stand side by side relatively comfortably. Twilight stood next to her but faced away, pretending to look around their surroundings for an indication of where they were but was in truth just trying not to look at Sunset. Wow this had been a hectic 3 minutes hadnât it- After a minute or two of calm, Sunset let out a sigh. âThis really, really fucks up everything, you know?.â she said, anger dancing around the corners of her every inflection. Twilight eventually looked over at her. âItâs⌠not idealâŚâ she said, laughing nervously. âWhat was⌠your plan?â âWhy should I tell you?â she asked. Twilight opened her mouth to speak, but she didnât really have a good answer. âExactly. Now let's just get this over with. How do we get out of these woods so I can go and have to face Celestia, get un-merged and get sent to prison. Sound good to you?â she said, huffing a bit, and simply started walking. âWhy would CelestiWOAH-â Twilight didnât have much choice when it came to where the pair would be going; Sunset was much stronger than her. She winced a little as her tail was pulled and she quickly started walking along beside her. Her eyes looked back at their strange, merged tails. The colours and strands all seemed to fuse together⌠It was quite beautiful in a way. A horrifying sort of way. Her eye moved over and landed on her cutie mark. It was so similar to Celestias⌠and yet even cooler. She looked at it for longer than she meant to and was only cut off by Sunset coughing loudly. âWill you stop staring at my ass?â âI-IâM NOT! I-I WAS LOOKING AT YOUR C-CUTIE MARK, I PROMISE!â she squealed in embarrassment, her cheeks going ruby red once more. âSure.â she said, rolling her eyes. Twilightâs blush wouldnât go away, and she once again found herself speechless. What was this!? Why did she have such power over her! It was similar to the way that Trixie made her feel but more⌠She frowned. She couldnât quite place the feeling. But she knew she was scared of it. âUhm⌠Sunset?â she managed to pipe up eventually, speeding up to become level with her. âWhat.â She said shortly. âThis⌠isnât the right way.â Twilight managed to eep out. Sunset stopped suddenly. Twilight kept on walking and was accidentally moved into her by the torsion of their tails. She scrambled as far away as their predicament would allow. âWhy didnât you say that earlier!?â she growled. âI⌠U-UhmâŚâ âAnd WHY Do you keep blushing!?â she said, her anger rising. âA-Allergies!â Twilight blurted out the first thing that came to mind. âTo what?â asked Sunset shortly. Twilight blinked. Come on Twilight. Something that could be making you blush⌠â... Grass.â âGrass?â âY-Yeah, Grass makes me blush and itch.â she replied, before awkwardly pretending to itch her side. Sunset turned her head to stare at her. âBut⌠youâre a pony. You eat grass.â âYes! WELL, I donât, but others do, yes!â she said, before tilting her head. âArenât you⌠also a pony?â âYes.â â... do you eat grass?â âNot recently. Plus, if I did now, our flipped around insides might make ME allergic too. So I canât risk it.â she said. âNow which was the way out?â Twilight was floored. It worked!? Somehow!? Maybe this Sunset wasnât as smart as she had thought⌠Either that, or she was too arrogant to realise that somepony she viewed as beneath her would try and deceive her. âT-This way!â she said, and started to slowly move. Sunset nodded and moved alongside her. The pair walked in a very awkward silence for about 15 minutes. Twilight kept on trying to do small talk, but Sunset would shut her down immediately. It had been about 20 minutes in total before Twilight realised something about Sunset. Right now, she had a very similar expression to the one Fluttershy usually wore. That is, desperately trying to hold back tears⌠Hmm⌠âS-SunsetâŚâ she asked slowly. âMay I ask⌠why exactly are you so scared of seeing Celestia again?â Sunset growled a little at the question. âIâŚâ Twilight looked away. âI understand youâre mad at her⌠A-And as her current student, Iâd⌠Like to know. I have a right to know.â â... She lied to me, that's all.â Sunset said with finality. âA-About what?â Twilight kept on pressing. âDo I really need to say?â she snapped. Twilight was silenced once more, only able to let out a sigh. â... She told me I would never become an Alicorn.â Twilight let out a little gasp, looking back at Sunset with wide eyes. Celestia would never say something like that! âS-She did?â âYeah.â Twilight was shocked to her core. She had always seen Celestia as this big overarching maternal figure⌠one who could do no wrong⌠Always supportive, never denying her possibilities⌠For her to outright tell a former student that she wasnât good enough? â... I donât believe you.â Said Twilight. Sunset stopped again. Twilight managed to stop in time. âI donât care if you believe me, Twilight Sparkle.â she said, twisting her head around at an awkward angle which made her glare right into Twilightâs eyes. Their horns were almost touching, and Twilightâs face began to flush up again. âSooner or later, she is going to let you down when you need her most.â she said in a low voice, her mane flaring up with the ember like glow that it had done before. The pair maintained eye contact for a few moments. Twilight looked ready to pass out. Sunset just looked angry. After what felt like an eternity, Sunset started to walk again. Twilight was soon to follow, unable to make the blush go away. As she stayed as far behind her as it was possible to go. She thought back to their first encounter back in the mirror room with Trixie. If Celestia had told Sunset that sheâd never become an Alicorn, then seeing Trixie with wings and a horn may have been a little too much for her to handle. Twilight could sympathise with that at least. Trixie becoming an Alicorn certainly had been a big shock. But one little thing wouldn't leave her brain. Sunset had said in âthisâ world. Was she from some sort of alternative reality? Or, at least, had returned from one? It was how she apparently knew Trixie already⌠Her thought was cut off but a sudden snarling from Sunset. âFuckâŚâ âW-What is it?â Asked Twilight, but it didn't take long for her to find out. Two timber wolves had appeared out of the underbrush. Twilight shuddered a little, and got herself ready. She was no Alicorn, but she was still exceptional when it came to defensive magic. âHow are we going to do this?â Asked Sunset as the two timber wolves began to circle this. Twilight took a moment to respond. âO-Oh! Uhm- wait, me!?â âSpoiler Alert! Nopony else is here, âIdiot.â Twilight heard herself shudder at the berration. On Celestia fr it was a bad time to be a bottom. âUhm⌠you⌠timberwolves are controlled by their headâŚâ she said carefully. âSo take out the head, the body goes down. Got it. Cover my back.â She said, eyes narrowing as Twilightâs pupils dilated. âAnything for youâŚâ she said slightly dreamily. âWhat!?â Twilight had temporarily entered her âTrixie is telling me to do somethingâ mode. âN-nothing!!â She saidâ and turned around. They were almost back to back, Sunsets mane beginning to light up. As it did, Twilight had a strange sensation on her forehead. The single strange red and yellow hair was flaring up, similar to Sunsetâs mane. She held it in her mane for a few moments, and decided to experiment. She cast a magical barrier in front of her. âThe fuck?â mumbled Sunset. The new small purple and pink strand of her mane had started to shimmer as a small bubble of protection surrounded her for a few seconds. âO-Our magic is connected!â said Twilight excitedly. âI-It must be a byproduct of us merging together! I can only imagine what other things we now share! I could write a whole BOOK on this!â Her ears flattened in embarrassment as she let out a little nervous giggle. âS-SorryâŚâ Sunset stared at Twilight. For a brief instant, Twilight could have sworn a smile had crossed Sunsetâs face. And a moment later, as they were both distracted, the timber wolves pounced. Twilight felt the hard knock of timberwolf paw on the side of her head. And felt her own body hit the floor. Through her concussed vision, she saw tiny snippets of what happened. The flames striking out at the wolves. Angry yells from Sunset. Her own hair flaring up. Getting dragged about a bit. A new voice. One she recognized but couldn't place. She tried to speak, but the sound of ringing filled her ears as she felt herself get picked up and placed on Sunset's back. It was warm and firm, like laying on top of a bed with a cosy fireplace in the corner. She smelt like a campfire on a winter night. She felt a small purr escape her lips as she drifted out of consciousness⌠Twilight stood in darkness. âH-Hello?â she called out. âTwilight SparkleâŚâ an ethereal voice rang out through the dark void: a voice that made her freeze. The visage of Sunset Shimmer appeared in front of her, smiling. âDon't worry~â she said calmly, placing a hoof on Twilightâs shoulder. âNothing here can hurt you, my little pony.â Twilight blinked twice, cheeks furiously red. âIf anything comes to hurt you⌠I'll be ready to protect youâŚâ she said and placed her muzzle against hers affectionately. âW-Wait! St-Stop! I have a-â âA girlfriend? That pitiful excuse for an Alicorn? You don't need her. The Sunset is stronger than the Lulamoon, after all!â âT-thats not a phrase-â the purple unicorn started to say before feeling the familiar feeling of a hoof on her lips. Sunset was smiling. Twilight became wide eyed and quiet. âShhh⌠it's not your turn to speakâŚâ she said, as she moved in to kiss. âN-No!â Twilight spluttered out. Sunset stopped, but the smile didn't go away. âYou can admit to yourself that this is what you want, TwilightâŚâ âI⌠IâŚâ âTime to wake up, sleepy headâŚâ the Visage of Sunset faded away as it walked back. Twilight could slowly feel her senses sharpening. âW-Wait! I donât! I donât THINK IâŚâ she said slowly, as she transitioned from one state of consciousness to another⌠âHark! The unicorn wakes! It seems that she cannot catch any breaksâŚâ âH-Huh? S⌠Sunset?â Twilightâs eyes slowly opened, but it was not Sunset looking down at her. Instead, the familiar and comforting presence of Zecora enveloped her view. âNot quite, Twilight. Those Timber Wolves certainly met their match, when they came into contact with the mare to which you are attachedâŚâ Twilight managed to get onto her front and looked behind her. She was on the floor of Zecoraâs hut. And sure enough, Sunset was there. She was facing the other direction, head on the floor as she seemed to be sleeping. âIs sheâŚâ Twilight said, tilting her head. Zecora nodded. âShe is unharmed, though I must say, the surrounding area is not the same way. Quick and fast I had to act, or the entire forest would no longer be intact. Her magical fire would make any quick to flee⌠so I must ask youâŚâ Zecoraâs tone became much graver. âWho is she?â âIâŚâ Twilight started, looking at the resting body of Sunset. Her ear had twitched a few times as the pair had been talking. With the knowledge she may be listening, Twilight looked back to Zecora. âShe was Celestiaâs first student. She had gone through some sort of mirror portal being kept in the Crystal Empire, and she came back to do⌠something. Nothing g-good, I'm sure. She had a⌠somewhat bad reaction to seeing Trixie as an Alicorn. And⌠I canât⌠quite describe it⌠but she has somewhat of an⌠effect onâŚmeâŚâ she said, trailing off at the end. âAn effect, you say? In what way?â Zecora asked curiously. Twilight looked at Sunset, her eyes focusing on the way her mane lay on her motionless neck. It was so delicate and majestic⌠and those forelegs looked like they could carry her to safety through a blaze⌠Twilight gulped, and looked to Zecora, her cheeks red once more. âAh⌠I seeâŚâ Zecora said, looking to Sunset. âDo not worry⌠your secret is safe with meâŚâ Twilight saw Sunsetâs ear flick in the exact same way Twilight knew her own ear to twitch when she heard news that she didnât know how to process. Oh no. She knew. Trixie watched in despair as the dust settled in the mirror room, her girlfriend and mystery interloper having suddenly vanished. She managed to flood the room with an extinguishing spell as quickly as she could, putting out all traces of fire, before shakily moving towards the remains of the mirror. Magical smoke poured out of the frame, the enchanted glass left shattered on the floor. There was no trace of Twilight, nor Sunset. They were gone. Trixie began to quiver. Sunset had just taken her Twilight away from her. That stupid horse with her stupid face and amazing hair and stunning physique had just gone and stolen her girlfriend to who knows where. And the portal to get her there was destroyed. She thought of Twilight, sad and alone, at the whims of an evil unicorn who was probably doing unspeakable things to her at this very moment. Sure, the idea of a weak Twilight being a damsel in distress was tantalysing to Trixie. But she was more scared of what would happen if she lost the emotional, calm and loving Twilight that she had come to cherish even more than the one of raw passion. Now, ladies, gentlemen, and everything in between. Trixie Lulamoon was many things. An Alicorn. A lesbian. A showpony. But one thing she was not was level headed in a handling crisis. Her body quivering, she took a deep breath. And simply screeched. Her horn activated and everything in the room started moving. Books flew off the shelves, furniture was thrown into the air (shattering upon hitting the ground) and the high up windows shattered as if they had just been hit by a heavy stone. It was a good minute of enraged screeching. Once she was done she collapsed onto the floor in a shivering wreck. Fortunately for Trixie, there was somepony close by to help her deal with her distress. Unfortunately for Fluttershy, she was the pony close by to have to help Trixie deal with her distress. Most of the other ponies were in the throne room having a meeting. Despite it being a huge and open room, Fluttershy was having trouble with how many ponies were there. This, combined with the lack of Rainbow Dash (She was busy at Wonderbolts Camp), had given her the nervous courage to ask Celestia if she could be excused. She had of course accepted. Fluttershy had planned to just head to her bedroom and read the book that Twilight had leant her about old equestrian folklore. She looked at the cover as she moved, smiling softly. She had always been interested in learning about how Equestria was in its early years. This soft and nice plan had been interrupted by the guttural noises of discontent coming from the small library room in the castle. Oh! Someone is upset! I need to go and help! Fluttershy quickly fluttered up into the air and moved as fast as she could towards the source of the noise. The sounds inside were destructive to say the least, and once they had mostly subsided, she tentatively opened the door. âUhm⌠are you⌠oh⌠oh noâŚâ She saw Trixie sitting in a pool of her own destruction. She backed out of the room. She looked both ways in the corridor behind her. Nopony else was around. Ok Fluttershy. You can do this! Sure! You arenât the biggest fan of Trixie⌠but Twilight loves her, so she must be worth helping! Since if you didnât help her that would make Twilight sad! And you definitely do NOT want that! She took a deep breath, and went into the room. âT-Trixie! Hi! Uhm⌠is⌠everything ok? Wheres-â âSHHHEEEESSSS GOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!â wailed Trixie, smashing her hooves into the floor, her wings spread out all the way on the floor. âTHAT HARLOT STOLE MY GIRLFRIEND, FLUTTERSHY!â âUhm-â Fluttershy stood there awkwardly. She was of course concerned at the news that Twilight had been gone, but had compartmentalized that for now as she tried to figure out how to deal with Trixie in this state. âWhich harlot are you talking about?â âSUNSET FUCKING SHIMMER! SHE TOOK HER AWAY TO HER STUPID DIMENSION OR SOMETHING! WHERE IS SHE, FLUTTERSHY!?â Trixie dramatically shot her head up, her long mane flicking up behind her. Her eyes were huge and wet. âUhm⌠Iâm not sure where she is, uhm-â she shuffled her hoof along the floor. âCan you⌠uhm⌠maybe tell me what happened?â âI w-was here making out with my awesome girlfriendâŚâ she sobbed. Fluttershy blushed. âIt was HOT and STEAMY and then suddenly! Out of that mirror-â she pointed with a wing â-Sunset Shimmer arrived! Some hot girl started shouting and attacked us! We had managed to beat her away when Twilight tried to get her to stop! Then BAM! They were both gone⌠just like thatâŚâ she said, going very quiet. Fluttershy shuddered. That was NOT good⌠âAND NOW SHEâS GONE FOREVER AND SHE WILL NEVER KNOW HOW MUCH SHE MEANS TO ME AND HOW MUCH I GENUINELY CARE FOR HER AND AAOOUUHGHHH WHAT DO I DO FLUTTTERRSHHYYYY!!!!!!! HOLD ME!â âOh- uhm, what?â âI need a HUG!â âOh⌠uhm⌠ok⌠I guessâŚâ she said, and awkwardly shuffled up to the sobbing alicorn. She took a deep breath and carefully placed a foreleg around her back. She let out a squeak as Trixie rapidly embraced her, causing the book she was holding to fall onto the floor. Her ears flattened down as she glanced at it. It was open on a page about something called âThe prophecy of the Twin Tailed Eclipseâ. Sounded fascinating, but Fluttershy had bigger horses to comfort. âS-SorryâŚâ whimpered Trixie. âI⌠donât know what t-to doâŚâ Fluttershy awkwardly patted her on the back. âIâm⌠n-not sure what to do either, TrixieâŚâ she replied. âI think⌠Maybe going to Celestia would be a good start?â Trixie nodded though the sniffles. âWould you like me to take you there?â she asked slowly, secretly wanting an out so she could go panic about Twilight being missing on her own. â... yes please.â she said, and waited to be picked up. â... Oh, uhm, I meant, uhm, go with, go with me, not, uhm, Iâm not⌠strong enough toâŚâ she mumbled. Trixie blinked. âO-Of courseâŚâ she said, and let out a short loud forced laugh. She staggered to her hooves and wobbled out of the room. Fluttershy gave a sad little sigh as she took a few deep breaths. Twilight was gone, apparently stolen by a unicorn called âSunset Fucking Shimmer.â She wondered why a parent pony would put a curse word in a childâs name. Strange. She carefully stood up herself to follow, her eyes momentarily moved down to the open page of the book. âWhen the twin tailed eclipse makes its mark on Equestria, only the power of the sun, moon and stars will be able to temper the rage felt withinâ. Author's Note Hi all! Sorry for the delay! My new plan with writing is! Write the stories in blocks :) I'll continue writing this until I get stuck, at which point I'll swap back to 'Misty's guide to shimmer and shine'! If you want more sunset action, go check out that story! hehe Leave a comment down below! I love reading what you all thought <3 SEE U LATER HORSES Chapter 3: Trading Traits and Feeling GreatâSo is there any chance of us getting un⌠scrambled?â Twilight sat on the floor of Zecoraâs hut, watching the zebra rhythmically move around her home. She would pause every now and again to study certain ingredients, or to flick through one of her books in zebrican. As Twilight asked her question, she hummed in thought. She finished scanning one final page in her book, and shut it with finality. âI do not wish you to despair, but a cure cannot be achieved within my care.â she said finally. âThere are no records of your specific condition, nor anything close to what has come to fruition. It is something that magic may have to fix⌠Iâm sorry, Twilight, but I am out of tricks.â Twilight let out a big sigh, her ear flicking. This wasnât the first time sheâd been in a situation like this, but it was certainly the strangest. âThanks for all your help⌠Ze⌠coraâŚâ she said as she started to shake. A confused expression crossed her face as she did. Zecora tilted her head slightly. âTwilight, my dear, are you in need of relief? For you appear to be shaking like a leaf.â Twilight shook when she was upset or stressed. This of course was stressful news to hear, but she had been expecting it, and thus hadn't hit her too hard. But this emotion that was building up inside of her was⌠anger? âI⌠Iâm⌠FineâŚâ she said forcefully, trying to get to her hooves. âIâm just⌠feeling⌠frustratedâŚ?â she managed to get out as she felt the sudden rage build up inside of her. Her breathing became laboured and she got the sudden desire to break something. A little bit of fear twinged the side of her mind, too. Why was she so mad!? âIf you need to take a moment to process, the trees outside may help you destress.â Zecora said, quickly moving to the door and opening it for her. âThank you. Sunset. Get up.â said Twilight, and started to walk towards the door. Sunset opened her eyes at the feeling of tugging on her tail. It was far too instant for her to have actually just woken up. âCanât we stay here for a bit longer?â asked Sunset. âThis zebra seems to know-â âNOW!â snapped Twilight, whipping her head round and snarling at Sunset. Sunsetâs ears flicked back⌠Sunset was suddenly blushing. ⌠There was a holy moment between the pair where both were unaware of what they were doing. And then like a crashing wagon, both were hit with realisation. Twilightâs expression moved to one of confused shock. She did NOT mean to act like that⌠she didnât act like that⌠all that had happened was a little bad news Sunset looked the other way as quickly as she could, taking a few deep breaths. She turned back around, face back to normal, and looked agitated. âFine. Let's go outside.â she said, standing up and walking right past Twilight. Twilight was still busy being stunned to move along in sync, and so ended up being partially dragged outside. She locked eyes with Zecora temporarily, who only shrugged in similar bewilderment. Once they were outside, Twilightâs anger took over once more. She took a few laboured breaths, before she let out an angry shout. She levitated a nearby large rock and threw it into a tree. There was a satisfying crack as it slammed into the trunk, a few splinters flying. She stared at it on the floor, and lifted it up again. Shutting her eyes and clenching her jaw, she picked up the rock once more and began to compress it with her magic. Fissures started to form on its surface. She growled which turned into an outright scream of anger as the rock shattered. She was left standing, breathing heavily in and out. The rage had been quelled for now but she still felt herself on a short fuse. âAre you done?â Asked Sunset, who had moved to her side. âLeave me⌠aloneâŚâ was all Twilight was able to get. âNoowww you get it, don't you? What it's like to be asked loads of questions when youâre-â âNO! I DONâT get it! Why am I so mad!â she growled. âI don't get mad like this! Only Trixie or maybe Discord gets me this riled up! A-All that happened was I got a bit of bad news! Why am I suddenly-â She stopped speaking as the lock of red and yellow hair flipped down in front of her face. She stared at it in her perifial. Ohhhhh no. âIt looks like more than just our tails have been fused.â said Sunset bitterly. Twilight nodded slowly, and took a few deep breaths. Eventually, she sat down. âI⌠need a minute.â âJust keep on breathing. You'll calm down eventually.â Sunset added, sitting down too. âDo⌠you get this angry?â Asked Twilight breathlessly. âBitch!? You've SEEN me that angry.â Sunset replied with tenacity. The sharpness of it made Twilight shudder a bit. Looks like she still had that effect on her- Wait a moment. âSunset, did you blush when I shouted at you?â Sunset let out a low growl. âI was really hoping you hadn't noticed that.â Twilight was dumbfounded. Sunset did NOT seem like the type to be affected the same way that Twilight was when- Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh⌠Twilight looked away bashfully. âI'm not stupid, Twilight. I'm aware of your weird freakish attraction to me. And it seems that your apparent love of being beratedâŚâ she let out a shuddering sigh. âŚâHas of COURSE somehow passed on to me.â âI⌠seeâŚâŚâ said Twilight slowly. So many thoughts were zooming around in her head right now. Sunset knew how she felt. And Sunset had at least physically reacted to her. So did that mean Sunset was⌠âBut, Twilight Sparkle. I want to make one thing so abundantly clear that it gets into your brainwashed little mind effortlessly.â Said Sunset, who grabbed Twilightâs head and spun it so they were looking at each other's eyes. Twilight blushed. âAnything I feel towards you right now is ONLY because of us merging. No other reason. Once this whole ordeal is done, I'm going to go back to my side of the portal. Back to where I matter. I do NOT like you, and I do NOT want to be with you, no matter what. Not friends, not anything more. Nothing. Got it?â she said firmly and with purpose. Twilight's heart dropped. And then dropped further upon realising it had dropped in the first place. The first thing that had come to her mind was sadness that Sunset didnât want anything to do with her, especially not romantically. This was immediately followed with the realization that Sunsetâs attention was something she wanted⌠something she craved. And if she craved Sunset? Where did that leave Trixie? She could never leave Trixie, not after all they had been through. And yet, she could feel an almost identical gravitational force towards her moon and this new star. Despite all of this inner turmoil, Twilight could not help herself from squeaking a little at the firmness of Sunsetâs statement. All she could do is a little nod. Sunset nodded back. âOk. Good. Glad weâre on the same page.â she said, and turned around away from her. Twilight could see Sunset tensing. Twilightâs ears went down as she looked at her own hooves. She didnât think they were on the same page at all. âAND THEN! S-SHE⌠*SOB* SHE TOOK MY GIRLFRIEND THROUGH THAT FUCKING MIIRRRORRRRRRRRRRR! I-IâM GOING TO HAVE TO WRITE A EUULLOOOGGGYYYYYY!!â Trixie was sitting at the table with Celestia, Luna and Cadence, surrounded by tissue boxes and ice cream cartons being hastily replaced by Rarity. She wouldnât tell anypony where they were coming from. Fluttershy was beside Trixie, awkwardly patting her on the back. âUhm⌠there⌠thereâŚâ she said, continuously giving VERY heavy signals that sheâd like to be rescued right now. Unfortunately, AppleJack had already left for Ponyville to coordinate a Equestria wide search, Rarity was on breakdown duty and PinkiePie was busy planning a âwelcome backâ party for Twilight when she was returned back to them. So the grave duty of the breakdown manager was laid on the pony who had the most breakdowns. Excellent. It had been Luna asking most of the questions. Celestia had been very quiet since learning who had returned. âTrixie Lulamoon.â Luna said calmly. âI would like to remind you that the chances of Twilight being dead are slim. We understand that mirror is a gateway between worlds. The worst case scenario is that she is trapped on the other side with no way back.â This didnât seem to comfort the newly ascended alicorn as she only wailed louder. Fluttershyâs pats on the back intensified. âBest case scenario is that she is somewhere in Equestria. I should be able to visit her dreams tonight if this is the case. So please, try and remain calm.â âYOU DONâT UNDERSTAND, LUNA! YOU HAVE NO WOMEN!!! I HAVE WOMAN!!!! AND I NEED HER TO BE OK! IF SHE ISNâT OK⌠IâŚâ her loud sobbing stopped momentarily as she just sank her head further into the table. âI donât know what I'd have to keep on going.â Luna seemed a bit taken aback by the outburst. Fluttershy looked like she wanted to escape more than ever, hiding her head in her wings. âWe will find her, Trixie.â said Celestia. âAnd we will also find the pony who took her.â Fluttershy looked over at Celestia, her ears flattening a little. Celestia looked very grave. More than usual in a time of crisis⌠âIâm going to kill her⌠that stupid hot and pretty unicornâŚâ Trixie mumbled, face still on the table. âIâm going to make her pay for taking my twiggle away from meâŚâ Celestia looked away from Trixie as she said this, bottom lip twitching. âIf youâll excuse me.â she said, rising from the table and gliding away in her usual way of movement. Cadence frowned as she looked to Trixie. She got closer to her, and placed a hoof on her back. âYou really do miss herâŚâ she muttered. Fluttershy sighed in relief. Finally! She could go and hide in her room and cry! â... Fluttershy, could you please go and check on Celestia for me?â Cadence asked the pegasus softly. SHOOT. âWhy!?â she responded with dismay. âI-I mean.. Uhm⌠I mean, why me?â She quickly followed up. Cadence gave a little laugh. âYou have the incredible ability to comfort other ponies in ways that even I donât understand. Plus, I think that I or Luna speaking to her now may bring up⌠certain memories she doesnât want to consider.â Luna closed her eyes solemnly. Fluttershy felt like she had just walked into season 2 of a sitcom and didnât know the backstory of any of the characters. âO-OkayâŚâ she said, and nervously clip-clopped to the side door that Celestia had gone out of. The alicorns left in the room remained silent for a few moments, before Trixie looked up at Cadence. âH⌠Have you ever had a woman, Cadence?â Trixie sniffled. âI-â Cadence blinked. âYes, Iâm the princess of love.â âDo youâŚâ she sniffled. âHave one now?â âN⌠No, Iâm married to Twilightâs brother.â âHA!â Trixie laughed suddenly and loudly. âAnd thus! I am the greatest AlicornâŚâ she said, laying her entire weight into Cadence as she started to cry again. Cadence held her supportively (something she had practised over a long time). âTrixie Lulamoon, I do not see-â Luna had started speaking but was silenced by Cadence shaking her head. âShe needs this.â Cadence stated simply, and looked down at Trixie. âYes Trixie. You are the greatest Alicorn.â Having thankfully escaped that conversation, Fluttershy had gingerly gone through the door after Celestia. The princess sat against the window, gazing out at the setting sun. Luna would have to go on her duties again soon. Silently, tears rolled down her royal cheeks. Fluttershy considered just turning back around.. But she just couldn't. âP-Princess Celestia?â she said quietly. âIs it ok if I come in?â âOf course, Fluttershy.â Celestia replied, not moving her gaze from the window. Fluttershy gently shuffled in, sitting down next to Celestia, and she gently spread her wing as far as it could go to cover her back.. It was a lot easier to comfort somepony when they werenât screaming about how a harlot stole their girlfriend. âI⌠assume that⌠you know this, Sunset Shimmer?â âI do, Fluttershy. She was⌠my first student. Before Twilight. She is my greatest shame.â âOhâŚâ said Fluttershy quietly. âDid⌠she do something bad?â Celestia laughed a little, shaking her head. Her wise old eyes turned to fluttershy and she smiled sadly. Fluttershy shuddered; despite having, of course, met Celestia countless times, this was their first one on one moment, and having royalty gaze upon you would never not be intimidating. âNo⌠she did nothing wrong at all. It was me who wronged her. Sunset Shimmer never failed me. Iâm the one that failed her. I could never truly reach her⌠when she left I felt⌠relief that I wouldnât have to face my failure. But it seems that with her⌠explosive return, Iâm going to have to face her once more. Sheâs probably here to kill me.â Fluttershyâs heart rate quickened. âW-Why would she want to kill you?â she squeaked. âBecause I told her that she would never be an Alicorn.â Trixie tilted her head a little. âIsnât that⌠true?â she asked timidly. âI was not always an Alicorn, my dear. Nopony was born an Alicorn⌠and I believed that Sunset truly had the potential. But she had no patience. She wanted it as soon as she could and would do anything to get it. I can only imagine she was here to either kill me, or steal something to help her gain power. AndâŚâ Celestia chuckled. âI donât suppose seeing our dear friend Trixie becoming an Alicorn would have made her too pleased, would it?â âNo, I donât suppose it wouldâŚâ Fluttershy replied sadly. The two sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the busy streets of the crystal empire twinkle in the light from the setting sun. â... do you want to see her again?â asked Fluttershy, finally. A short choked sniffle came from Celestia. âMore than anything.â âGood luck, my unicorns, with your journey. Let us hope the next is a little less⌠burney.â Zecora said as she bowed respectfully to Twilight and Sunset. The pair of unicorns had barely spoken a word to each other since their last conversation. âDo you plan out your rhymes before you start speaking?â Sunset asked. Twilight growled a little. Sunsetâs ear flattened back. âI cannot say that I do, I admit, but the words always appear to fit.â said Zecora with a smirk. âBut how-â âJuuuuust leave it, Sunset.â Twilight said. âShe will run rings around you.â Zecora smiled in thanks. âOkay. WellâŚâ Sunset looked at the floor. âThank you for your hospitality. I appreciate it. Really.â âAny time, my sunkissed friend. Now, I believe you have a reunion you must attend.â she said, and before Sunset could respond, she had shut the door. The pair stood in an awkward silence for a few moments, before Twilight piped up: âDo you mind if I take the lead? I know my way back to ponyville pretty well from here.â âFine.â said Sunset shortly, avoiding any eye contact. Twilight let out a little sigh and started moving. Sunset followed suit, but seemed to be trying to look anywhere that wasnât Twilight. Twilight was deep in thought for the entire journey back through the woods, a hundred trains of thoughts running through her mind like the main station at canterlot. Sunset had said that she didnât want anything to do with her, and that all of this was just a result of their merging. She could understand why she would think that. But she couldnât wipe their first ever interaction from her mind. Sunsetâs response to seeing Twilight blush was a look of consideration. No matter how minor of a moment it had been, it was there. So surely she couldnât be telling the truth. But at the same time, did she want it to be true? She had Trixie. Trixie was more than enough. But now whatever happened, she would always have the âwhat ifâ of Sunset Shimmer in the back of her mind. She bit her lip. She was in a very tough spot with no clear way out. She was also in the incredibly unlucky situation of being unable to really ask anypony for help; Sunset shimmer would only ever be a tail away from overhearing Twilight asking for help, and Twilight was sure that sheâd find a way to butt on in and shut her down once more. So who could she turn to? She gave a sigh as the pair finally left the woods to the outskirts of Ponyville. The sun was just setting on the horizon. âThank goodnessâŚâ Twilight said. âWe can head to the post office and send a letter to Celestia from there. Usually Iâd just get Spike, but heâs busy dealing with a messy div-â âNo.â Sunset said sharply. âWe are not doing that.â Twilight looked at her. She was looking angry at the mere suggestion. âBut-â âTwilight.â she said, putting a hoof down and stopping their shared movement. âThe moment I see her again, sheâs going to imprison me. And if she imprisons me, sheâll have to imprison you, too. Canât I just have one more night of relative freedom? Itâs not like I can exactly run off now that weâre joined at the tail.â She tried to flick her tail but all that it did was make Twilight's tail be pulled. Twilight squeaked a little and shuffled in flusteredness. âThatâŚâ she considered it. âIs a good pointâŚâ she looked over at the town. Her old home, the golden oaks library, had of course been destroyed when the alicorn amulet had taken over her body and she had her, as Trixie put it, âlittle episodeâ. The pair had taken up residence in a small house near the outskirts, not too far from Sweet Apple Acres, with plans to rebuild a new library for them to live in. But the little house did them for now. It was far enough so nobody could overhear them arguing (and then making out). Twilight looked back to Sunset who was looking at her expectantly. It was a similar way that Twilight would look at Trixie when she was waiting for an answer. A twisted, cruel idea danced from her subconscious of her mind and into the forefront, which made Twilight involuntarily smirk. She shouldnât⌠but oh how she wanted to⌠As Sunset said, it was her last day of relative freedom. It was also Twilightâs last day of being sure sheâd be able to stick around her. âSure, Sunset. We can do thatâŚâ Twilight said, the smirk creeping onto her face. âIf you say pleaseâ. Sunset let out a sigh of confusion. âWhat!?â âYou heard me.â Twilight said, her smirk growing (as did her blush). âSay please, Sunset.â âO-Or what?â Sunset said carefully, before realising what was happening. She growled, looking away angrily as her orange cheeks started to turn red. âOh, FUCK you.â âOr weâre going straight to the post office, where Muffins will send a lovely letter to princess Celestia! Wouldnât that be a shame~â she did, doing her best to emulate Trixieâs temp of speaking. Sunset looked like she was about to bite twilight, her eye twitching. She snarled in defeat, looking at the floor. Slowly, her gaze went up and made eye contact. â... Please.â Twilight shuddered in victory. âOf course, Sunsun-â âFUCK OFF.â Roared Sunset, and without warning tackled Twilight to the floor, landing on top of Twilight. Her hair was suddenly ablaze, and any semblance of submission had been singed away like ethanol to an open flame. Something about that nickname had really set her off. âYou do NOT call me that, got it!?â she snarled down at Twilight, whoâs hooves had fallen to her front. Twilight was bewildered, and felt herself shrink back into the floor. As terrifying as it was, she could feel herself get incredibly flustered. Sunsetâs chest was heaving as she glared down at the purple pony, her eyes darting around Twilightâs face. Twilight saw it again. Consideration. Slowly, Sunsetâs growl turned into a shout. âYou are a fucking NIGHTMARE to be around, you know!?â Ouch. That hurt. Alot. Twilight felt herself shudder⌠but it wasnât out of sadness. She wanted to shrink back down into the dirt and pray for this to end, but she felt the strange twinge in the back of her head that she only got when she was angry. Before she knew what she was doing, she pushed Sunset off and rolled them so she was the one standing over her. âIâM a nightmare?â she asked angrily. âYOUâRE the one who appears out of nowhere and tries to kill my girlfriend and almost sets fire to an entire forest!â she argued. âMy life was PERFECTLY⌠well not perfectly- BUT IT WAS FINE! Everything was going to be ok! I had a BEAUTIFUL girlfriend who drives me up the WALL BUT I LOVE HER! And now YOU and your stupid face and hair just had to waltz on in with some half baked revenge mission against my teacher because you got a bad grade!â âOh, OH OH you did NOT just say thatâŚâ Growled Sunset, and pushed her up. The pair were left both sitting opposite each other, as close to face to face as they could possibly be given their predicament. âMy plan was PERFECT! I was going to become an Alicorn and PROVE her WRONG!â Yelled Sunset right into Twilightâs face. âWell maybe she was RIGHT that youâd never become an Alicorn! Trixie is FOUR TIMES the alicorn you could ever be!â âTRIXIE CANâT EVEN SPELL HER OWN FUCKING NAME!â âYEAH, WELLâŚâ Twilight screamed, but found herself lost for words as she glared into Sunset's eyes. Sunset glared back into hers, the angry flush on her face clear for the whole world to see. Both were at the boiling point. The tension was too high. Something had to break the tension. Something had to happen. Sunset growled. â... Fuck you.â she said, and leaned in. Twilight had a split second to make a decision. A split second wasnât long enough. Their muzzled made contact. However⌠the pair would be interruped. Just as their lips touched, they were both jolted by a voice. âTwilight? How in EQUESTRIA did you- WHAT IN TARNATION!?â Both mares immediately moved back from each other in a panic, both of their heads shooting around in a panic. Who was there? Twilightâs hot blood was suddenly a subzero blizzard as she saw who it was. AppleJack. âUHMâ was all Twilight was able to get out. âI-ITâS⌠UHM⌠NOT WHAT⌠IT LOOKS LIKEâŚâ she stammered out. Sunsetâs fight or flight had kicked in, but had (unfortunately for her) chosen the secret third option: freeze. âReally?â said Applejack, who was approaching with agitated purpose. âLast thing we know of you is that you got into a tussle with some fire unicorn and ended up blinkinâ outta existence, I offer to start a search of the whole of Equestria, and I just so happen find you about to mack it on with the same fire unicorn? If this ain't what it looks like, then I must be blind.â Twilight was trying to say words but all that was coming out was gutteral panic noises. âI⌠c-can, I⌠I can⌠explain-â âGo on then.â Said AppleJack, raising an expectant eyebrow. âUhm.. well.. You see we⌠Weâre⌠kind ofâŚâ Twilight stood up, and pointed at their combined tail. AppleJackâs expression didnât change. Sunsetâs head was bouncing between AppleJack and Twilight, seemingly panicking for a way out of this. âSo youâre stuck together. That's nice. Why were you about to cheat on your girlfriend?â asked AppleJack firmly. Twilightâs bottom lip began to wobble. She had fucked everything up so badly. AppleJack couldnât lie. Trixie was going to find out about ALL of this⌠she was going to leave. And it was all her⌠no⌠NO! It was SUNSETâS FAULT! She felt the rage build inside of her once- âIt wasnât her fault.,â said Sunset quickly. Twilight had been about to bite Sunset but had the wind knocked out of her by Sunsetâs sudden statement. AppleJackâs gaze moved to Sunset. âIt was all me.â Sunset said, standing up. âI⌠misread signs. Twilight never told me that her and Trixie were together and IâŚâ she gulped. âI mistook her anger as playful flirting. Itâs different where I come from.â AppleJackâs other eyebrow raised, as she glanced over at Twilight. Twilight wasnât breathing, but she nodded in agreement. After a tense couple of seconds, AppleJack let out a deep sigh. âOkay. Fine. I believe you.â Both Twilight and Sunset let out a sigh of relief. âBut DONâT expect me not to be tellinâ Trixie about thisâ she said to Twilight. Twilight nodded solemnly. Now come on back to the farm; we got a double bed you can rest atop.â she said to sunset. As Twilight stood up, AppleJack approached her. âAnd Twilight?â she said, towering over her. âYes?â Twilight asked nervously. AppleJackâs serious demeanour shifted into one of tired joy, and she gave Twilight a tight hug. âIâm so, so glad that youâre okay.â she said, voice full of relief. Twilight couldnât help but smile. âI-It's good to see you too⌠Itâs beenâŚâ Over AppleJackâs shoulder, Twilight glanced at Sunset. Sunset was blushing, and looked away at the eye contact. Sunset had done that to save her. âI-Itâs been one of the most bizarre days of my lifeâŚâ Soon. Sunburst looked up at sky nervously from the roof of his house, his eyes studying every inch. His eyes squinted a tiny bit as he looked towards the nearly set sun. He of course had an enchantment on his spectacles that allowed safe viewing. Because of course he would. Why wouldn't he? His eyes flicked down the the pages in front of him. If his calculations were correct, it would be any day now. That is, of course, if the ancient legends were true. Sunburst did a little shimmy with his tail. Only a few years ago, he wouldn't have believed that any of the old legends were true. But with the return of Discord, the changeling attack and now the ascension of a new Alicorn? Anything was possible. âJust as the sun dips below the horizonâŚâ he mumbled to himself, rapidly glancing between the book and the horizon. He saw what he was looking for. Just as the sun dipped below the horizon, there was a small burst of light shooting from the star, flying off into the night sky above them like a comet. Sunburst let out a little squeal of excitement. âYES! HAHA! I WAS RIGHT! TAKE THAT, SISTER!â he bellowed in triumph. âSunburst! My kids are trying to sleep!â A crystal pony shouted up at him. âHAHAHAHAH yes sorry Quartz iâll be quiet now sorry.â The wizard said quietly, and started to hobble down from the roof. Once back in his study, he continued his excited little dance. âThey were RIGHT! A thousand years after the fall of the moon the twin tailed eclipse will appear! JUST like they predicted! And of course, with a few adjustments with time dilationâŚ!â He said, looking back down at the book. âIt was tonight! HA!â Looking at the book some more, he tilted his head. In all his excitement that the event may happen today, he never actually turned the page to see what it meant. Smiling to himself, he turned the page. His face slowly dropped the more he read. âOh⌠oh no⌠OH SWEET BEELZEBUB!?â He sat down in horrored shock. âWHY COULD YOU HAVE NOT JUST TURNED THE PAGE YOU IMBECILE! UGH!! I NEED TO WARN EVERYPONY!â he said anxiously, but blinked a few times. âBut- who do I tell!? Nopony would listen to meâŚâ He paced rapidly around until an idea sprung into his head. It wasn't a great one⌠But he had to assume his familial connection would at least give him some leverage! He was sure he could get a meeting with Celestia that way! Only thing was⌠His sister probably wasn't the best topic to bring up to the princess of the sun. Chapter 4: Sunset's new MoonSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.Chapter 5: Trixie 'Distraction' LulamoonSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.Chapter 6: How I Met Your [adopted] MotherSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.
Chapter 1: Celestia's Other PupilđCelestia's Other Pupilđ âOk Trixie, you have gone TOO far this time!â growled Twilight, clopping her hoof down hard. The unicorn stared at Trixie, the accidental Alicorn, with an anger that was making her mane almost stand up on end. Trixie stood there, dumbfounded. âWhat? What did I do?â Trixie asked, tilting her head like a dog that had just been told off for peeing on the carpet 6 hours ago. âYOU CALLED MY STEP SISTER HOT INFRONT OF MY ADOPTIVE MOTHER???â she said, exasperated. âOh! Thaaat! Sorry, Sparky, I didnât realise that would upset you! She is kinda hot though, you gotta admit! Donât know how that mangy stallion managed to pull THAT one off.â She said, smirking. Twilight growled loudly. âTRIXIE! THAT'S MY SISTER IN LAW! AND ALSO! MY BROTHER!â âYouâre brother is your sister in law?â âUUUGH!â The pair were visiting the crystal empire shortly after Princess Trixieâs coronation, along with all of Twilightâs friends. The celestial sisters were having a bit of trouble figuring out what Trixie was a princess of. Luna had floated the idea of âconfidenceâ, but Celestia had pointed out that Trixie was more, in her words, âtoo dim to light a candleâ. Celestia had then suggested âcunningâ, where Luna had let her know that gaslighting was not a thing that should be supported by the monarchy. The crowd had been⌠confused to say the least. A few questions were thrown around about how appropriate it was for a pony who had just a month ago attacked a town and brought it under an authoritarian rule, but nopony could deny that Trixie knew how to put on a show. Enhanced by her Alicorn abilities, Trixie had shown canterlot a light display like they had never seen before. Just as the parade had begun, and after a LOT of pleading from the blue pony, the moon had quickly replaced the sun in the sky. With a starry backdrop, Trixie shot up a cascade of blue and purple fireworks into the sky. The lights intertwined with each other and burst out into sparks as the harmless streams of light showered down over the crowd. The final act was a brief recreation in lights of her and Twilightâs battle over ponyville, which ended in the shapes of Twilight and Trixie ascending into the air, kissing as red love hearts burst around her. Twilight looked up in awe, and then over at Trixie. Trixie looked down at her, and winked. Even the Celestial siblings were impressed. All of Twilightâs friends had slowly come around to the idea, apart from Rarity; she didnât seem too keen on it at all at first. However, after seeing Trixieâs rabid defence of Twilight during an incident with a timber wolf and how Twilight looked at her once she was standing over her convinced her. It reminded her how she felt about AppleJack. Everything had been going swell for Twilight and Trixie. They had still argued and bickered a lot, of course, but that was part of the fun for them. Trixie enjoyed being irritating beyond belief, and Twilight could finally admit to herself how much she loved being teased and bullied. They of course both had their limits, and if Twilight ever said something along the lines of âTrixie, end it.â, she would stop. Similarly, if Trixie just wanted calm affection, she would simply say âHug, Twiggleâ. Was it messy? Yeah. Was it healthy? Most certainly not. Were they both into it? More than anypony could possibly believe. And here they were, having yet another argument, and yet again Twilight could feel the burning on her cheeks. Trixieâs strange comment towards Cadence had caused Twilight to ask to be excused, and she dragged Trixie by the tail into the first door that she could find. It looked like a small library room, with a weird shaped mirror in the corner. As always, Trixieâs arrogant gaze (enhanced by her new height advantage) still cut through her like a blazing sword. âTrixie, when are you going to learn?â Twilight stammered, already feeling herself get flustered. Trixie sat down in front of her, and brushed Twilightâs sides with her wings. âThe exact same moment that you learn there's nothing you can do to stop me,Twilight.â Twilightâs brain was filled with the usual Trixie induced fog, and she looked up at her with wide eyes. She waited for permission. Trixie nodded, winking. âYou know you like it~â Twilight leaned in, and they kissed. Sparks flew from their horns. Trixieâs wings unfurled behind her, and she picked Twilight up in a tight embrace. Both of their magic fields intertwined and the pair began to rise, Trixieâs wings wrapping around her unicorn girlfriend. After a few minutes, Twilight pulled away, staring deeply into Trixieâs eyes. Trixie returned the look. âWhat the fuck did I do right to deserve youâŚâ Trixie whispered, unable to take the smile off her face. âWhat the fuck did I do wrong to deserve youâŚâ Twilight replied, smile also on her face as she blushed back. âWHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE!?â The moment was somewhat broken by the pair of horse lovers realising they werenât alone. Both of their heads snapped round as they dropped back to the ground. An orange unicorn with red and yellow hair stood just in front of the mirror in the corner of the room. She was wearing a leather jacket, and had one of her ears pierced near the peak of the earâs point. She had some black eyeshadow on and her hooves were a vibrant cyan. Twilight couldnât believe it. She looked so cool! âOH! Goodness!â Twilight was so embarrassed, her eyes wide as she stared at the unicorn in front of her. âI-Iâm so sorry! I didnât realise you were here! I D-donât think Iâve met you before! W-Whatâs your name?â âT-Twilight Sparkle!?â the Unicorn said in disbelief. Twilightâs blood ran cold. She knew who she was!? âOh! That's weird!â Said Trixie, smoothing out her hair in an attempt to look normal (she failed.) âThat's my girlfriendâs name too!â Twilight gave Trixie a kick in the back leg to shut up. âTrixie! Please. U-Uhm, Iâm sorry⌠Do I know you?â Asked Twilight. âI⌠my NAME! Is sunset Shimmer.â She stated firmly. âAnd you⌠youâre my replacement? You? And you- wait, did- TRIXIE!?â Sunset said, jaw dropping as she realised who had just called Twilight her girlfriend. She shot a withering glare at the purple unicorn. âYouâre dating this worldâs fucking TRIXIE!?â âW-Wait⌠this worldâs..?â Twilight managed to get in before Trixie steamrolled through. âOf course she is! Who would say no to a smokinâ hot alicorn like myself!â Trixie said, flourishing her wings proudly behind her. Sunset froze. Her eye twitched. âYouâŚâ she said slowly. âYouâre⌠Youâre an Alicorn.â Twilightâs head tilted a little. She could have sworn she saw embers starting to glow in her mane. âYep!â Trixie replied happily stated. âIsnât it awesome?â âH⌠HowâŚâ âOh, easy! I just kissed a girl who was possessed by an evil amulet! Easy peasy!â She said smugly. âWhat's wrong, have you never kissed a mare before?â Sunsetâs eye twitched once more, and she started shaking. âUhm⌠Miss⌠Shimmer?â Twilight said, carefully approaching. âAre you okay?â âShe fucking LIED TO ME!â Roared Sunset, and before Twilight could even comprehend what was going on, the orange unicorn had erupted into a blazing fireball. Trixie let out a squeak of shock as she felt a blast of inferno suddenly going her way. She managed to block it with a magic barrier, but she could still very much feel the heat. Twilight had leapt out of the way and was now left staring at the enraged Unicorn. Trixie glanced over at Twilight in panic. âUHHH! SPARKS! MIGHT BE A GOOD TIME FOR THAT FRIENDSHIP STUFF!â âS-Sunset Shimmer! W-Who lied? T-Tell me! Use words! N-Not violence!â she said, slowly approaching Sunset. The fiery unicorn was slashing spell after spell towards Trixie, who was having trouble holding her off. She may be an Alicorn, but she was still Trixie Lulamoon. Sunset turned to her and lashed out, a blazing whip striking her across the face. Crying out in pain she fell to the ground, smelling the burnt fur around her muzzle. She lay on the ground, beginning to hyperventilate as the enraged Sunset Shimmer came to loom over her. âYou werenât her first pupil, Twilight Sparkle.â She hissed, standing over her with fury in her gaze. Twilight stared up at her. Her terrifying expression made her want to shrink down into a little ball. She tried to speak, but Sunsets hoof striking down right beside her ear shut her up again. Sunset leant her head down, her muzzle nearly touching Twilightâs, looking like she was about to bite her head off. âShe told me I would have to be patient to become an Alicorn. And SHE just got it handed to her?â She growled, hoof pointing towards the steadily rising Trixie. She lent down even further. âExplain to me how thatâs Fair, Twilight Sparkle.â Twilight stayed silent as she felt a strange sensation fly throughout her body. The way Sunset was standing over her, ready to snap her like a dry twig at a moment's notice⌠the way the fire lit shadows bounced off of her muzzle⌠the raw fury she felt emanating from her⌠It took a moment for her to realise what it was she was feeling. Uh Oh. âCelestia LIED. She lied to me. And sheâs lying to- are you blushing!?â Sunset suddenly backed her head away, her anger almost immediately turning to confusion. Twilight was indeed blushing. Her cheeks were shining a rosy red as she stumbled around in her mind trying her best to find a response that wouldnât make her seem like a total freak. The closest she could get was: âI-Itâs warm in here!â Nailed it, Twilight. Sunsetâs rage had seemingly been temporarily dampened by this sudden development. Her eyes darted around Twilightâs face for a few moments before darting down to look at the rest of her body. She had an expression that Twilight could only read as⌠consideration? Her heart started racing. Their staring and breathing at each other contest was broken as Sunset was suddenly hit in the side by a blast from Trixie. âSTAY AWAY FROM MY GIRLFRIEND YOU HARLOT!â Screeched Trixie. Sunset snarled back and shot off another fireball, but Trixie seemed to be in the zone. She leapt into the air, dodging the attack, and activated her horn with a hiss. Twilight was knocked out to her flustered stupor at the noise. She knew it well. Trixie was casting a spell that she had created herself. She usually used it for whenever her and Twilight wanted to sneak out of social gatherings. âFLASHBANG, BITCH!â A loud crack accompanied the sudden blast of bright light. Sunset cried out, stumbling backwards towards the mirror. Twilight felt a wing around her side and with Trixieâs help she stumbled up onto her hooves. The feeling was reassuring, and she looked up at the furious Trixie. Even when angry, she still had a grin plastered on her face. Twilight felt her blush return momentarily. The pair looked towards Sunset, whoâs back was against the mirror as she wiped her eye furiously with her hoof. Twilightâs head tilted a little as she saw Sunsets tail start to gently ripple into the mirror. The mirror was a portal!? âFuck you, Twilight. Fuck both of you.â She growled, and turned to head on into the portal. The way her mane swayed when she moved⌠and that cutie mark was so pretty⌠Twilightâs body started moving before she had time to process what she was doing. âP-Please! Sunset! Donât go through! W-We can talk! I want to understand!â pleaded Twilight, leaping forward and grabbing onto her leg. â??? Let go of me!?â She said, pulling back out of the mirror for a moment and looking down at Twilight with bewilderment. âI need to know what C-Celestia did! I want to know how we can try and make this right!â She said in desperation. Sunset tensed, and she lowered her head towards her again. âThere is nothing you can do to fix this.â âTWILIGHT! STAND BACK!â A lot happened in the next one second. Trixie blasted a beam at the mirror. Sunset responded by leaping into the mirror portal. Twilight was still attached to Sunsetâs back leg. Twilight realised what was happening at the last moment, and tried to leap away, but her tail got caught on Sunsetâs. And as Sunset entered the mirror, Trixieâs energy blast smashed into the portal, cracking the mirror. Twilight suddenly had the sensation of being aggressively pulled into the air whilst being loosely aware of the screaming of Sunset Shimmer around her. Just as quickly as the chaos had started, it was over. Twilightâs eyes opened to see that she was in a forested area. She blinked a few times, rolling onto her front. This was the everfree forest? âWhat the FUCK did she do!?â Twilight let out a scream. Sunset Shimmer was lying Right beside her, glaring back at her with tears in her eyes. Twilight did all she could to keep the blush from reforming. She didnât do enough. âI-I donât know! W-Where was that portal meant to take you?â She asked. âBack home. Somewhere I had POWER. And now Iâm back here⌠stuck with another loser pupil who failed her teacher.â Sunset said bitterly, standing up. Twilight rose up too, checking her surroundings, trying her very best not to look at Sunset. Her mind was whirring. In all her time being Celestia's star pupil, the Alicorn had never mentioned Sunset Shimmer. She hadnât even mentioned having a pupil before. And yet here one was. One that was incredibly jaded. Twilight had always hoped in the back of her mind that she may one day ascend to Alicornhood, especially with how magically gifted she was. She had a feeling that might be what Celestia was building her up for. Trixie accidentally becoming an Alicorn had rather thrown a spanner in the works. Even the celestial sisters didnât know exactly how the process of becoming an Alicorn worked. But Sunset had apparently been told she would become an Alicorn? Then why did she leave? And why was Twilight blushing so much?? Shaking her head to clear those thoughts She was pretty sure she knew which part of the woods they were in and looking up at the sunlight gently piercing through the trees she could at least tell which way was north. âOkayâŚâ she said, and pointed with a hoof. âWe need to go that way. Thatâs the way back to Ponyville.â âIâm not going to Ponyville.â Said Sunset shortly. âI never want to see another Pony in my life. I want to go out into the woods and die. Just like I deserve.â âWhat!? Why would youâŚâ Twilight asked, but was once again shut up by a glare from Sunset. She weighed it up in her mind⌠she wouldnât be able to help Sunset on her own. She needed Celestia. She had a lot of questions for her. Plus, Trixie was probably having a magically fuelled breakdown right now. âOkay⌠uhm⌠well I amâŚâ she said quietly. âBut I-Iâll be coming back. So uhmâŚâ âBye.â Said Sunset shortly, and turned to leave. Twilight sighed, and did the same. Both felt the pain at the same time. âOWCH!â They cried in unison as the felt something pull on their tails! âI TOLD YOU Iâm not coming-â Sunset roared, turning round once more, seeming ready to annihilate her, but she froze. Twilight was staring at her tail. Well, To be more precise⌠She was staring at their shared tail. Their tails were fused together at the joint. Twilight felt the blood rushing to her face as the blush formed once more. They were stuck together. Sunset voiced what they were both thinking perfectly well. âWHAT THE FUCK!?â Author's Note Hi everypony!! V excited to write this silly story!! For those who are currently reading Intertwined reflections, don't worry! New chapter is on its way! I am just taking a bit of a break from it as life irl has gotten a bit more soup than usual. I find silly stuff like this much more relaxing and enjoyable to write (whereas more serious stuff is more overall fufilling.) Expect semi regular updates! Lots of love, Zoey! PS. this story may contain ponyamory
Chapter 2: The Twin Tailed EclipseâWHAT THE FUCK!?â Twilight didnât have a response. Sunset tried to yank herself away from twilight but it just caused them both more pain. Twilight looked to Sunset, and saw that there was a strand of hair in her mane which was her regular purple. She could also see that a small strand of red was dropping down in front of her own vision. Whatever had happened seemed to have done more than just joined their tails. Sunset snarled, and lit her horn. It formed into a hot knife like projection and it looked like she was going to cut it off! âW-WAIT! S-STOP!â Twilight cried, leaping at her. This knocked her over, but Sunsetâs quick roll meant that she was now standing over Twilight. âI don't want to be attached to somepony beneath me.â She snarled. Twilight stared up at her. Her usual Trixie fog that clouded her brain was getting burnt away by a new sensation⌠Sunset Blaze. She couldn't remove the blush from her face as she tried to string a sentence together. âI-if you cut your, my, OUR tail, w-we don't know what will happen! I-it might have been internal organs and stuff that g-got merged too!â she pleaded. âA-And, uhm- I⌠Donât⌠want to accidentally⌠kill you or anything because that would⌠be badâŚâ she trailed off a bit. Sunsetâs eyes narrowed in understanding, using her hoof to move Twilightâs new red strand of hair out of the way of her eyes (Twilight shuddered). â... fuck.â the fiery unicorn said shortly, and manoeuvred herself to the side to allow Twilight to stand up. The linking rope that was their tail could extend to about a metre, allowing them to stand side by side relatively comfortably. Twilight stood next to her but faced away, pretending to look around their surroundings for an indication of where they were but was in truth just trying not to look at Sunset. Wow this had been a hectic 3 minutes hadnât it- After a minute or two of calm, Sunset let out a sigh. âThis really, really fucks up everything, you know?.â she said, anger dancing around the corners of her every inflection. Twilight eventually looked over at her. âItâs⌠not idealâŚâ she said, laughing nervously. âWhat was⌠your plan?â âWhy should I tell you?â she asked. Twilight opened her mouth to speak, but she didnât really have a good answer. âExactly. Now let's just get this over with. How do we get out of these woods so I can go and have to face Celestia, get un-merged and get sent to prison. Sound good to you?â she said, huffing a bit, and simply started walking. âWhy would CelestiWOAH-â Twilight didnât have much choice when it came to where the pair would be going; Sunset was much stronger than her. She winced a little as her tail was pulled and she quickly started walking along beside her. Her eyes looked back at their strange, merged tails. The colours and strands all seemed to fuse together⌠It was quite beautiful in a way. A horrifying sort of way. Her eye moved over and landed on her cutie mark. It was so similar to Celestias⌠and yet even cooler. She looked at it for longer than she meant to and was only cut off by Sunset coughing loudly. âWill you stop staring at my ass?â âI-IâM NOT! I-I WAS LOOKING AT YOUR C-CUTIE MARK, I PROMISE!â she squealed in embarrassment, her cheeks going ruby red once more. âSure.â she said, rolling her eyes. Twilightâs blush wouldnât go away, and she once again found herself speechless. What was this!? Why did she have such power over her! It was similar to the way that Trixie made her feel but more⌠She frowned. She couldnât quite place the feeling. But she knew she was scared of it. âUhm⌠Sunset?â she managed to pipe up eventually, speeding up to become level with her. âWhat.â She said shortly. âThis⌠isnât the right way.â Twilight managed to eep out. Sunset stopped suddenly. Twilight kept on walking and was accidentally moved into her by the torsion of their tails. She scrambled as far away as their predicament would allow. âWhy didnât you say that earlier!?â she growled. âI⌠U-UhmâŚâ âAnd WHY Do you keep blushing!?â she said, her anger rising. âA-Allergies!â Twilight blurted out the first thing that came to mind. âTo what?â asked Sunset shortly. Twilight blinked. Come on Twilight. Something that could be making you blush⌠â... Grass.â âGrass?â âY-Yeah, Grass makes me blush and itch.â she replied, before awkwardly pretending to itch her side. Sunset turned her head to stare at her. âBut⌠youâre a pony. You eat grass.â âYes! WELL, I donât, but others do, yes!â she said, before tilting her head. âArenât you⌠also a pony?â âYes.â â... do you eat grass?â âNot recently. Plus, if I did now, our flipped around insides might make ME allergic too. So I canât risk it.â she said. âNow which was the way out?â Twilight was floored. It worked!? Somehow!? Maybe this Sunset wasnât as smart as she had thought⌠Either that, or she was too arrogant to realise that somepony she viewed as beneath her would try and deceive her. âT-This way!â she said, and started to slowly move. Sunset nodded and moved alongside her. The pair walked in a very awkward silence for about 15 minutes. Twilight kept on trying to do small talk, but Sunset would shut her down immediately. It had been about 20 minutes in total before Twilight realised something about Sunset. Right now, she had a very similar expression to the one Fluttershy usually wore. That is, desperately trying to hold back tears⌠Hmm⌠âS-SunsetâŚâ she asked slowly. âMay I ask⌠why exactly are you so scared of seeing Celestia again?â Sunset growled a little at the question. âIâŚâ Twilight looked away. âI understand youâre mad at her⌠A-And as her current student, Iâd⌠Like to know. I have a right to know.â â... She lied to me, that's all.â Sunset said with finality. âA-About what?â Twilight kept on pressing. âDo I really need to say?â she snapped. Twilight was silenced once more, only able to let out a sigh. â... She told me I would never become an Alicorn.â Twilight let out a little gasp, looking back at Sunset with wide eyes. Celestia would never say something like that! âS-She did?â âYeah.â Twilight was shocked to her core. She had always seen Celestia as this big overarching maternal figure⌠one who could do no wrong⌠Always supportive, never denying her possibilities⌠For her to outright tell a former student that she wasnât good enough? â... I donât believe you.â Said Twilight. Sunset stopped again. Twilight managed to stop in time. âI donât care if you believe me, Twilight Sparkle.â she said, twisting her head around at an awkward angle which made her glare right into Twilightâs eyes. Their horns were almost touching, and Twilightâs face began to flush up again. âSooner or later, she is going to let you down when you need her most.â she said in a low voice, her mane flaring up with the ember like glow that it had done before. The pair maintained eye contact for a few moments. Twilight looked ready to pass out. Sunset just looked angry. After what felt like an eternity, Sunset started to walk again. Twilight was soon to follow, unable to make the blush go away. As she stayed as far behind her as it was possible to go. She thought back to their first encounter back in the mirror room with Trixie. If Celestia had told Sunset that sheâd never become an Alicorn, then seeing Trixie with wings and a horn may have been a little too much for her to handle. Twilight could sympathise with that at least. Trixie becoming an Alicorn certainly had been a big shock. But one little thing wouldn't leave her brain. Sunset had said in âthisâ world. Was she from some sort of alternative reality? Or, at least, had returned from one? It was how she apparently knew Trixie already⌠Her thought was cut off but a sudden snarling from Sunset. âFuckâŚâ âW-What is it?â Asked Twilight, but it didn't take long for her to find out. Two timber wolves had appeared out of the underbrush. Twilight shuddered a little, and got herself ready. She was no Alicorn, but she was still exceptional when it came to defensive magic. âHow are we going to do this?â Asked Sunset as the two timber wolves began to circle this. Twilight took a moment to respond. âO-Oh! Uhm- wait, me!?â âSpoiler Alert! Nopony else is here, âIdiot.â Twilight heard herself shudder at the berration. On Celestia fr it was a bad time to be a bottom. âUhm⌠you⌠timberwolves are controlled by their headâŚâ she said carefully. âSo take out the head, the body goes down. Got it. Cover my back.â She said, eyes narrowing as Twilightâs pupils dilated. âAnything for youâŚâ she said slightly dreamily. âWhat!?â Twilight had temporarily entered her âTrixie is telling me to do somethingâ mode. âN-nothing!!â She saidâ and turned around. They were almost back to back, Sunsets mane beginning to light up. As it did, Twilight had a strange sensation on her forehead. The single strange red and yellow hair was flaring up, similar to Sunsetâs mane. She held it in her mane for a few moments, and decided to experiment. She cast a magical barrier in front of her. âThe fuck?â mumbled Sunset. The new small purple and pink strand of her mane had started to shimmer as a small bubble of protection surrounded her for a few seconds. âO-Our magic is connected!â said Twilight excitedly. âI-It must be a byproduct of us merging together! I can only imagine what other things we now share! I could write a whole BOOK on this!â Her ears flattened in embarrassment as she let out a little nervous giggle. âS-SorryâŚâ Sunset stared at Twilight. For a brief instant, Twilight could have sworn a smile had crossed Sunsetâs face. And a moment later, as they were both distracted, the timber wolves pounced. Twilight felt the hard knock of timberwolf paw on the side of her head. And felt her own body hit the floor. Through her concussed vision, she saw tiny snippets of what happened. The flames striking out at the wolves. Angry yells from Sunset. Her own hair flaring up. Getting dragged about a bit. A new voice. One she recognized but couldn't place. She tried to speak, but the sound of ringing filled her ears as she felt herself get picked up and placed on Sunset's back. It was warm and firm, like laying on top of a bed with a cosy fireplace in the corner. She smelt like a campfire on a winter night. She felt a small purr escape her lips as she drifted out of consciousness⌠Twilight stood in darkness. âH-Hello?â she called out. âTwilight SparkleâŚâ an ethereal voice rang out through the dark void: a voice that made her freeze. The visage of Sunset Shimmer appeared in front of her, smiling. âDon't worry~â she said calmly, placing a hoof on Twilightâs shoulder. âNothing here can hurt you, my little pony.â Twilight blinked twice, cheeks furiously red. âIf anything comes to hurt you⌠I'll be ready to protect youâŚâ she said and placed her muzzle against hers affectionately. âW-Wait! St-Stop! I have a-â âA girlfriend? That pitiful excuse for an Alicorn? You don't need her. The Sunset is stronger than the Lulamoon, after all!â âT-thats not a phrase-â the purple unicorn started to say before feeling the familiar feeling of a hoof on her lips. Sunset was smiling. Twilight became wide eyed and quiet. âShhh⌠it's not your turn to speakâŚâ she said, as she moved in to kiss. âN-No!â Twilight spluttered out. Sunset stopped, but the smile didn't go away. âYou can admit to yourself that this is what you want, TwilightâŚâ âI⌠IâŚâ âTime to wake up, sleepy headâŚâ the Visage of Sunset faded away as it walked back. Twilight could slowly feel her senses sharpening. âW-Wait! I donât! I donât THINK IâŚâ she said slowly, as she transitioned from one state of consciousness to another⌠âHark! The unicorn wakes! It seems that she cannot catch any breaksâŚâ âH-Huh? S⌠Sunset?â Twilightâs eyes slowly opened, but it was not Sunset looking down at her. Instead, the familiar and comforting presence of Zecora enveloped her view. âNot quite, Twilight. Those Timber Wolves certainly met their match, when they came into contact with the mare to which you are attachedâŚâ Twilight managed to get onto her front and looked behind her. She was on the floor of Zecoraâs hut. And sure enough, Sunset was there. She was facing the other direction, head on the floor as she seemed to be sleeping. âIs sheâŚâ Twilight said, tilting her head. Zecora nodded. âShe is unharmed, though I must say, the surrounding area is not the same way. Quick and fast I had to act, or the entire forest would no longer be intact. Her magical fire would make any quick to flee⌠so I must ask youâŚâ Zecoraâs tone became much graver. âWho is she?â âIâŚâ Twilight started, looking at the resting body of Sunset. Her ear had twitched a few times as the pair had been talking. With the knowledge she may be listening, Twilight looked back to Zecora. âShe was Celestiaâs first student. She had gone through some sort of mirror portal being kept in the Crystal Empire, and she came back to do⌠something. Nothing g-good, I'm sure. She had a⌠somewhat bad reaction to seeing Trixie as an Alicorn. And⌠I canât⌠quite describe it⌠but she has somewhat of an⌠effect onâŚmeâŚâ she said, trailing off at the end. âAn effect, you say? In what way?â Zecora asked curiously. Twilight looked at Sunset, her eyes focusing on the way her mane lay on her motionless neck. It was so delicate and majestic⌠and those forelegs looked like they could carry her to safety through a blaze⌠Twilight gulped, and looked to Zecora, her cheeks red once more. âAh⌠I seeâŚâ Zecora said, looking to Sunset. âDo not worry⌠your secret is safe with meâŚâ Twilight saw Sunsetâs ear flick in the exact same way Twilight knew her own ear to twitch when she heard news that she didnât know how to process. Oh no. She knew. Trixie watched in despair as the dust settled in the mirror room, her girlfriend and mystery interloper having suddenly vanished. She managed to flood the room with an extinguishing spell as quickly as she could, putting out all traces of fire, before shakily moving towards the remains of the mirror. Magical smoke poured out of the frame, the enchanted glass left shattered on the floor. There was no trace of Twilight, nor Sunset. They were gone. Trixie began to quiver. Sunset had just taken her Twilight away from her. That stupid horse with her stupid face and amazing hair and stunning physique had just gone and stolen her girlfriend to who knows where. And the portal to get her there was destroyed. She thought of Twilight, sad and alone, at the whims of an evil unicorn who was probably doing unspeakable things to her at this very moment. Sure, the idea of a weak Twilight being a damsel in distress was tantalysing to Trixie. But she was more scared of what would happen if she lost the emotional, calm and loving Twilight that she had come to cherish even more than the one of raw passion. Now, ladies, gentlemen, and everything in between. Trixie Lulamoon was many things. An Alicorn. A lesbian. A showpony. But one thing she was not was level headed in a handling crisis. Her body quivering, she took a deep breath. And simply screeched. Her horn activated and everything in the room started moving. Books flew off the shelves, furniture was thrown into the air (shattering upon hitting the ground) and the high up windows shattered as if they had just been hit by a heavy stone. It was a good minute of enraged screeching. Once she was done she collapsed onto the floor in a shivering wreck. Fortunately for Trixie, there was somepony close by to help her deal with her distress. Unfortunately for Fluttershy, she was the pony close by to have to help Trixie deal with her distress. Most of the other ponies were in the throne room having a meeting. Despite it being a huge and open room, Fluttershy was having trouble with how many ponies were there. This, combined with the lack of Rainbow Dash (She was busy at Wonderbolts Camp), had given her the nervous courage to ask Celestia if she could be excused. She had of course accepted. Fluttershy had planned to just head to her bedroom and read the book that Twilight had leant her about old equestrian folklore. She looked at the cover as she moved, smiling softly. She had always been interested in learning about how Equestria was in its early years. This soft and nice plan had been interrupted by the guttural noises of discontent coming from the small library room in the castle. Oh! Someone is upset! I need to go and help! Fluttershy quickly fluttered up into the air and moved as fast as she could towards the source of the noise. The sounds inside were destructive to say the least, and once they had mostly subsided, she tentatively opened the door. âUhm⌠are you⌠oh⌠oh noâŚâ She saw Trixie sitting in a pool of her own destruction. She backed out of the room. She looked both ways in the corridor behind her. Nopony else was around. Ok Fluttershy. You can do this! Sure! You arenât the biggest fan of Trixie⌠but Twilight loves her, so she must be worth helping! Since if you didnât help her that would make Twilight sad! And you definitely do NOT want that! She took a deep breath, and went into the room. âT-Trixie! Hi! Uhm⌠is⌠everything ok? Wheres-â âSHHHEEEESSSS GOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!â wailed Trixie, smashing her hooves into the floor, her wings spread out all the way on the floor. âTHAT HARLOT STOLE MY GIRLFRIEND, FLUTTERSHY!â âUhm-â Fluttershy stood there awkwardly. She was of course concerned at the news that Twilight had been gone, but had compartmentalized that for now as she tried to figure out how to deal with Trixie in this state. âWhich harlot are you talking about?â âSUNSET FUCKING SHIMMER! SHE TOOK HER AWAY TO HER STUPID DIMENSION OR SOMETHING! WHERE IS SHE, FLUTTERSHY!?â Trixie dramatically shot her head up, her long mane flicking up behind her. Her eyes were huge and wet. âUhm⌠Iâm not sure where she is, uhm-â she shuffled her hoof along the floor. âCan you⌠uhm⌠maybe tell me what happened?â âI w-was here making out with my awesome girlfriendâŚâ she sobbed. Fluttershy blushed. âIt was HOT and STEAMY and then suddenly! Out of that mirror-â she pointed with a wing â-Sunset Shimmer arrived! Some hot girl started shouting and attacked us! We had managed to beat her away when Twilight tried to get her to stop! Then BAM! They were both gone⌠just like thatâŚâ she said, going very quiet. Fluttershy shuddered. That was NOT good⌠âAND NOW SHEâS GONE FOREVER AND SHE WILL NEVER KNOW HOW MUCH SHE MEANS TO ME AND HOW MUCH I GENUINELY CARE FOR HER AND AAOOUUHGHHH WHAT DO I DO FLUTTTERRSHHYYYY!!!!!!! HOLD ME!â âOh- uhm, what?â âI need a HUG!â âOh⌠uhm⌠ok⌠I guessâŚâ she said, and awkwardly shuffled up to the sobbing alicorn. She took a deep breath and carefully placed a foreleg around her back. She let out a squeak as Trixie rapidly embraced her, causing the book she was holding to fall onto the floor. Her ears flattened down as she glanced at it. It was open on a page about something called âThe prophecy of the Twin Tailed Eclipseâ. Sounded fascinating, but Fluttershy had bigger horses to comfort. âS-SorryâŚâ whimpered Trixie. âI⌠donât know what t-to doâŚâ Fluttershy awkwardly patted her on the back. âIâm⌠n-not sure what to do either, TrixieâŚâ she replied. âI think⌠Maybe going to Celestia would be a good start?â Trixie nodded though the sniffles. âWould you like me to take you there?â she asked slowly, secretly wanting an out so she could go panic about Twilight being missing on her own. â... yes please.â she said, and waited to be picked up. â... Oh, uhm, I meant, uhm, go with, go with me, not, uhm, Iâm not⌠strong enough toâŚâ she mumbled. Trixie blinked. âO-Of courseâŚâ she said, and let out a short loud forced laugh. She staggered to her hooves and wobbled out of the room. Fluttershy gave a sad little sigh as she took a few deep breaths. Twilight was gone, apparently stolen by a unicorn called âSunset Fucking Shimmer.â She wondered why a parent pony would put a curse word in a childâs name. Strange. She carefully stood up herself to follow, her eyes momentarily moved down to the open page of the book. âWhen the twin tailed eclipse makes its mark on Equestria, only the power of the sun, moon and stars will be able to temper the rage felt withinâ. Author's Note Hi all! Sorry for the delay! My new plan with writing is! Write the stories in blocks :) I'll continue writing this until I get stuck, at which point I'll swap back to 'Misty's guide to shimmer and shine'! If you want more sunset action, go check out that story! hehe Leave a comment down below! I love reading what you all thought <3 SEE U LATER HORSES
Chapter 3: Trading Traits and Feeling GreatâSo is there any chance of us getting un⌠scrambled?â Twilight sat on the floor of Zecoraâs hut, watching the zebra rhythmically move around her home. She would pause every now and again to study certain ingredients, or to flick through one of her books in zebrican. As Twilight asked her question, she hummed in thought. She finished scanning one final page in her book, and shut it with finality. âI do not wish you to despair, but a cure cannot be achieved within my care.â she said finally. âThere are no records of your specific condition, nor anything close to what has come to fruition. It is something that magic may have to fix⌠Iâm sorry, Twilight, but I am out of tricks.â Twilight let out a big sigh, her ear flicking. This wasnât the first time sheâd been in a situation like this, but it was certainly the strangest. âThanks for all your help⌠Ze⌠coraâŚâ she said as she started to shake. A confused expression crossed her face as she did. Zecora tilted her head slightly. âTwilight, my dear, are you in need of relief? For you appear to be shaking like a leaf.â Twilight shook when she was upset or stressed. This of course was stressful news to hear, but she had been expecting it, and thus hadn't hit her too hard. But this emotion that was building up inside of her was⌠anger? âI⌠Iâm⌠FineâŚâ she said forcefully, trying to get to her hooves. âIâm just⌠feeling⌠frustratedâŚ?â she managed to get out as she felt the sudden rage build up inside of her. Her breathing became laboured and she got the sudden desire to break something. A little bit of fear twinged the side of her mind, too. Why was she so mad!? âIf you need to take a moment to process, the trees outside may help you destress.â Zecora said, quickly moving to the door and opening it for her. âThank you. Sunset. Get up.â said Twilight, and started to walk towards the door. Sunset opened her eyes at the feeling of tugging on her tail. It was far too instant for her to have actually just woken up. âCanât we stay here for a bit longer?â asked Sunset. âThis zebra seems to know-â âNOW!â snapped Twilight, whipping her head round and snarling at Sunset. Sunsetâs ears flicked back⌠Sunset was suddenly blushing. ⌠There was a holy moment between the pair where both were unaware of what they were doing. And then like a crashing wagon, both were hit with realisation. Twilightâs expression moved to one of confused shock. She did NOT mean to act like that⌠she didnât act like that⌠all that had happened was a little bad news Sunset looked the other way as quickly as she could, taking a few deep breaths. She turned back around, face back to normal, and looked agitated. âFine. Let's go outside.â she said, standing up and walking right past Twilight. Twilight was still busy being stunned to move along in sync, and so ended up being partially dragged outside. She locked eyes with Zecora temporarily, who only shrugged in similar bewilderment. Once they were outside, Twilightâs anger took over once more. She took a few laboured breaths, before she let out an angry shout. She levitated a nearby large rock and threw it into a tree. There was a satisfying crack as it slammed into the trunk, a few splinters flying. She stared at it on the floor, and lifted it up again. Shutting her eyes and clenching her jaw, she picked up the rock once more and began to compress it with her magic. Fissures started to form on its surface. She growled which turned into an outright scream of anger as the rock shattered. She was left standing, breathing heavily in and out. The rage had been quelled for now but she still felt herself on a short fuse. âAre you done?â Asked Sunset, who had moved to her side. âLeave me⌠aloneâŚâ was all Twilight was able to get. âNoowww you get it, don't you? What it's like to be asked loads of questions when youâre-â âNO! I DONâT get it! Why am I so mad!â she growled. âI don't get mad like this! Only Trixie or maybe Discord gets me this riled up! A-All that happened was I got a bit of bad news! Why am I suddenly-â She stopped speaking as the lock of red and yellow hair flipped down in front of her face. She stared at it in her perifial. Ohhhhh no. âIt looks like more than just our tails have been fused.â said Sunset bitterly. Twilight nodded slowly, and took a few deep breaths. Eventually, she sat down. âI⌠need a minute.â âJust keep on breathing. You'll calm down eventually.â Sunset added, sitting down too. âDo⌠you get this angry?â Asked Twilight breathlessly. âBitch!? You've SEEN me that angry.â Sunset replied with tenacity. The sharpness of it made Twilight shudder a bit. Looks like she still had that effect on her- Wait a moment. âSunset, did you blush when I shouted at you?â Sunset let out a low growl. âI was really hoping you hadn't noticed that.â Twilight was dumbfounded. Sunset did NOT seem like the type to be affected the same way that Twilight was when- Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh⌠Twilight looked away bashfully. âI'm not stupid, Twilight. I'm aware of your weird freakish attraction to me. And it seems that your apparent love of being beratedâŚâ she let out a shuddering sigh. âŚâHas of COURSE somehow passed on to me.â âI⌠seeâŚâŚâ said Twilight slowly. So many thoughts were zooming around in her head right now. Sunset knew how she felt. And Sunset had at least physically reacted to her. So did that mean Sunset was⌠âBut, Twilight Sparkle. I want to make one thing so abundantly clear that it gets into your brainwashed little mind effortlessly.â Said Sunset, who grabbed Twilightâs head and spun it so they were looking at each other's eyes. Twilight blushed. âAnything I feel towards you right now is ONLY because of us merging. No other reason. Once this whole ordeal is done, I'm going to go back to my side of the portal. Back to where I matter. I do NOT like you, and I do NOT want to be with you, no matter what. Not friends, not anything more. Nothing. Got it?â she said firmly and with purpose. Twilight's heart dropped. And then dropped further upon realising it had dropped in the first place. The first thing that had come to her mind was sadness that Sunset didnât want anything to do with her, especially not romantically. This was immediately followed with the realization that Sunsetâs attention was something she wanted⌠something she craved. And if she craved Sunset? Where did that leave Trixie? She could never leave Trixie, not after all they had been through. And yet, she could feel an almost identical gravitational force towards her moon and this new star. Despite all of this inner turmoil, Twilight could not help herself from squeaking a little at the firmness of Sunsetâs statement. All she could do is a little nod. Sunset nodded back. âOk. Good. Glad weâre on the same page.â she said, and turned around away from her. Twilight could see Sunset tensing. Twilightâs ears went down as she looked at her own hooves. She didnât think they were on the same page at all. âAND THEN! S-SHE⌠*SOB* SHE TOOK MY GIRLFRIEND THROUGH THAT FUCKING MIIRRRORRRRRRRRRRR! I-IâM GOING TO HAVE TO WRITE A EUULLOOOGGGYYYYYY!!â Trixie was sitting at the table with Celestia, Luna and Cadence, surrounded by tissue boxes and ice cream cartons being hastily replaced by Rarity. She wouldnât tell anypony where they were coming from. Fluttershy was beside Trixie, awkwardly patting her on the back. âUhm⌠there⌠thereâŚâ she said, continuously giving VERY heavy signals that sheâd like to be rescued right now. Unfortunately, AppleJack had already left for Ponyville to coordinate a Equestria wide search, Rarity was on breakdown duty and PinkiePie was busy planning a âwelcome backâ party for Twilight when she was returned back to them. So the grave duty of the breakdown manager was laid on the pony who had the most breakdowns. Excellent. It had been Luna asking most of the questions. Celestia had been very quiet since learning who had returned. âTrixie Lulamoon.â Luna said calmly. âI would like to remind you that the chances of Twilight being dead are slim. We understand that mirror is a gateway between worlds. The worst case scenario is that she is trapped on the other side with no way back.â This didnât seem to comfort the newly ascended alicorn as she only wailed louder. Fluttershyâs pats on the back intensified. âBest case scenario is that she is somewhere in Equestria. I should be able to visit her dreams tonight if this is the case. So please, try and remain calm.â âYOU DONâT UNDERSTAND, LUNA! YOU HAVE NO WOMEN!!! I HAVE WOMAN!!!! AND I NEED HER TO BE OK! IF SHE ISNâT OK⌠IâŚâ her loud sobbing stopped momentarily as she just sank her head further into the table. âI donât know what I'd have to keep on going.â Luna seemed a bit taken aback by the outburst. Fluttershy looked like she wanted to escape more than ever, hiding her head in her wings. âWe will find her, Trixie.â said Celestia. âAnd we will also find the pony who took her.â Fluttershy looked over at Celestia, her ears flattening a little. Celestia looked very grave. More than usual in a time of crisis⌠âIâm going to kill her⌠that stupid hot and pretty unicornâŚâ Trixie mumbled, face still on the table. âIâm going to make her pay for taking my twiggle away from meâŚâ Celestia looked away from Trixie as she said this, bottom lip twitching. âIf youâll excuse me.â she said, rising from the table and gliding away in her usual way of movement. Cadence frowned as she looked to Trixie. She got closer to her, and placed a hoof on her back. âYou really do miss herâŚâ she muttered. Fluttershy sighed in relief. Finally! She could go and hide in her room and cry! â... Fluttershy, could you please go and check on Celestia for me?â Cadence asked the pegasus softly. SHOOT. âWhy!?â she responded with dismay. âI-I mean.. Uhm⌠I mean, why me?â She quickly followed up. Cadence gave a little laugh. âYou have the incredible ability to comfort other ponies in ways that even I donât understand. Plus, I think that I or Luna speaking to her now may bring up⌠certain memories she doesnât want to consider.â Luna closed her eyes solemnly. Fluttershy felt like she had just walked into season 2 of a sitcom and didnât know the backstory of any of the characters. âO-OkayâŚâ she said, and nervously clip-clopped to the side door that Celestia had gone out of. The alicorns left in the room remained silent for a few moments, before Trixie looked up at Cadence. âH⌠Have you ever had a woman, Cadence?â Trixie sniffled. âI-â Cadence blinked. âYes, Iâm the princess of love.â âDo youâŚâ she sniffled. âHave one now?â âN⌠No, Iâm married to Twilightâs brother.â âHA!â Trixie laughed suddenly and loudly. âAnd thus! I am the greatest AlicornâŚâ she said, laying her entire weight into Cadence as she started to cry again. Cadence held her supportively (something she had practised over a long time). âTrixie Lulamoon, I do not see-â Luna had started speaking but was silenced by Cadence shaking her head. âShe needs this.â Cadence stated simply, and looked down at Trixie. âYes Trixie. You are the greatest Alicorn.â Having thankfully escaped that conversation, Fluttershy had gingerly gone through the door after Celestia. The princess sat against the window, gazing out at the setting sun. Luna would have to go on her duties again soon. Silently, tears rolled down her royal cheeks. Fluttershy considered just turning back around.. But she just couldn't. âP-Princess Celestia?â she said quietly. âIs it ok if I come in?â âOf course, Fluttershy.â Celestia replied, not moving her gaze from the window. Fluttershy gently shuffled in, sitting down next to Celestia, and she gently spread her wing as far as it could go to cover her back.. It was a lot easier to comfort somepony when they werenât screaming about how a harlot stole their girlfriend. âI⌠assume that⌠you know this, Sunset Shimmer?â âI do, Fluttershy. She was⌠my first student. Before Twilight. She is my greatest shame.â âOhâŚâ said Fluttershy quietly. âDid⌠she do something bad?â Celestia laughed a little, shaking her head. Her wise old eyes turned to fluttershy and she smiled sadly. Fluttershy shuddered; despite having, of course, met Celestia countless times, this was their first one on one moment, and having royalty gaze upon you would never not be intimidating. âNo⌠she did nothing wrong at all. It was me who wronged her. Sunset Shimmer never failed me. Iâm the one that failed her. I could never truly reach her⌠when she left I felt⌠relief that I wouldnât have to face my failure. But it seems that with her⌠explosive return, Iâm going to have to face her once more. Sheâs probably here to kill me.â Fluttershyâs heart rate quickened. âW-Why would she want to kill you?â she squeaked. âBecause I told her that she would never be an Alicorn.â Trixie tilted her head a little. âIsnât that⌠true?â she asked timidly. âI was not always an Alicorn, my dear. Nopony was born an Alicorn⌠and I believed that Sunset truly had the potential. But she had no patience. She wanted it as soon as she could and would do anything to get it. I can only imagine she was here to either kill me, or steal something to help her gain power. AndâŚâ Celestia chuckled. âI donât suppose seeing our dear friend Trixie becoming an Alicorn would have made her too pleased, would it?â âNo, I donât suppose it wouldâŚâ Fluttershy replied sadly. The two sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the busy streets of the crystal empire twinkle in the light from the setting sun. â... do you want to see her again?â asked Fluttershy, finally. A short choked sniffle came from Celestia. âMore than anything.â âGood luck, my unicorns, with your journey. Let us hope the next is a little less⌠burney.â Zecora said as she bowed respectfully to Twilight and Sunset. The pair of unicorns had barely spoken a word to each other since their last conversation. âDo you plan out your rhymes before you start speaking?â Sunset asked. Twilight growled a little. Sunsetâs ear flattened back. âI cannot say that I do, I admit, but the words always appear to fit.â said Zecora with a smirk. âBut how-â âJuuuuust leave it, Sunset.â Twilight said. âShe will run rings around you.â Zecora smiled in thanks. âOkay. WellâŚâ Sunset looked at the floor. âThank you for your hospitality. I appreciate it. Really.â âAny time, my sunkissed friend. Now, I believe you have a reunion you must attend.â she said, and before Sunset could respond, she had shut the door. The pair stood in an awkward silence for a few moments, before Twilight piped up: âDo you mind if I take the lead? I know my way back to ponyville pretty well from here.â âFine.â said Sunset shortly, avoiding any eye contact. Twilight let out a little sigh and started moving. Sunset followed suit, but seemed to be trying to look anywhere that wasnât Twilight. Twilight was deep in thought for the entire journey back through the woods, a hundred trains of thoughts running through her mind like the main station at canterlot. Sunset had said that she didnât want anything to do with her, and that all of this was just a result of their merging. She could understand why she would think that. But she couldnât wipe their first ever interaction from her mind. Sunsetâs response to seeing Twilight blush was a look of consideration. No matter how minor of a moment it had been, it was there. So surely she couldnât be telling the truth. But at the same time, did she want it to be true? She had Trixie. Trixie was more than enough. But now whatever happened, she would always have the âwhat ifâ of Sunset Shimmer in the back of her mind. She bit her lip. She was in a very tough spot with no clear way out. She was also in the incredibly unlucky situation of being unable to really ask anypony for help; Sunset shimmer would only ever be a tail away from overhearing Twilight asking for help, and Twilight was sure that sheâd find a way to butt on in and shut her down once more. So who could she turn to? She gave a sigh as the pair finally left the woods to the outskirts of Ponyville. The sun was just setting on the horizon. âThank goodnessâŚâ Twilight said. âWe can head to the post office and send a letter to Celestia from there. Usually Iâd just get Spike, but heâs busy dealing with a messy div-â âNo.â Sunset said sharply. âWe are not doing that.â Twilight looked at her. She was looking angry at the mere suggestion. âBut-â âTwilight.â she said, putting a hoof down and stopping their shared movement. âThe moment I see her again, sheâs going to imprison me. And if she imprisons me, sheâll have to imprison you, too. Canât I just have one more night of relative freedom? Itâs not like I can exactly run off now that weâre joined at the tail.â She tried to flick her tail but all that it did was make Twilight's tail be pulled. Twilight squeaked a little and shuffled in flusteredness. âThatâŚâ she considered it. âIs a good pointâŚâ she looked over at the town. Her old home, the golden oaks library, had of course been destroyed when the alicorn amulet had taken over her body and she had her, as Trixie put it, âlittle episodeâ. The pair had taken up residence in a small house near the outskirts, not too far from Sweet Apple Acres, with plans to rebuild a new library for them to live in. But the little house did them for now. It was far enough so nobody could overhear them arguing (and then making out). Twilight looked back to Sunset who was looking at her expectantly. It was a similar way that Twilight would look at Trixie when she was waiting for an answer. A twisted, cruel idea danced from her subconscious of her mind and into the forefront, which made Twilight involuntarily smirk. She shouldnât⌠but oh how she wanted to⌠As Sunset said, it was her last day of relative freedom. It was also Twilightâs last day of being sure sheâd be able to stick around her. âSure, Sunset. We can do thatâŚâ Twilight said, the smirk creeping onto her face. âIf you say pleaseâ. Sunset let out a sigh of confusion. âWhat!?â âYou heard me.â Twilight said, her smirk growing (as did her blush). âSay please, Sunset.â âO-Or what?â Sunset said carefully, before realising what was happening. She growled, looking away angrily as her orange cheeks started to turn red. âOh, FUCK you.â âOr weâre going straight to the post office, where Muffins will send a lovely letter to princess Celestia! Wouldnât that be a shame~â she did, doing her best to emulate Trixieâs temp of speaking. Sunset looked like she was about to bite twilight, her eye twitching. She snarled in defeat, looking at the floor. Slowly, her gaze went up and made eye contact. â... Please.â Twilight shuddered in victory. âOf course, Sunsun-â âFUCK OFF.â Roared Sunset, and without warning tackled Twilight to the floor, landing on top of Twilight. Her hair was suddenly ablaze, and any semblance of submission had been singed away like ethanol to an open flame. Something about that nickname had really set her off. âYou do NOT call me that, got it!?â she snarled down at Twilight, whoâs hooves had fallen to her front. Twilight was bewildered, and felt herself shrink back into the floor. As terrifying as it was, she could feel herself get incredibly flustered. Sunsetâs chest was heaving as she glared down at the purple pony, her eyes darting around Twilightâs face. Twilight saw it again. Consideration. Slowly, Sunsetâs growl turned into a shout. âYou are a fucking NIGHTMARE to be around, you know!?â Ouch. That hurt. Alot. Twilight felt herself shudder⌠but it wasnât out of sadness. She wanted to shrink back down into the dirt and pray for this to end, but she felt the strange twinge in the back of her head that she only got when she was angry. Before she knew what she was doing, she pushed Sunset off and rolled them so she was the one standing over her. âIâM a nightmare?â she asked angrily. âYOUâRE the one who appears out of nowhere and tries to kill my girlfriend and almost sets fire to an entire forest!â she argued. âMy life was PERFECTLY⌠well not perfectly- BUT IT WAS FINE! Everything was going to be ok! I had a BEAUTIFUL girlfriend who drives me up the WALL BUT I LOVE HER! And now YOU and your stupid face and hair just had to waltz on in with some half baked revenge mission against my teacher because you got a bad grade!â âOh, OH OH you did NOT just say thatâŚâ Growled Sunset, and pushed her up. The pair were left both sitting opposite each other, as close to face to face as they could possibly be given their predicament. âMy plan was PERFECT! I was going to become an Alicorn and PROVE her WRONG!â Yelled Sunset right into Twilightâs face. âWell maybe she was RIGHT that youâd never become an Alicorn! Trixie is FOUR TIMES the alicorn you could ever be!â âTRIXIE CANâT EVEN SPELL HER OWN FUCKING NAME!â âYEAH, WELLâŚâ Twilight screamed, but found herself lost for words as she glared into Sunset's eyes. Sunset glared back into hers, the angry flush on her face clear for the whole world to see. Both were at the boiling point. The tension was too high. Something had to break the tension. Something had to happen. Sunset growled. â... Fuck you.â she said, and leaned in. Twilight had a split second to make a decision. A split second wasnât long enough. Their muzzled made contact. However⌠the pair would be interruped. Just as their lips touched, they were both jolted by a voice. âTwilight? How in EQUESTRIA did you- WHAT IN TARNATION!?â Both mares immediately moved back from each other in a panic, both of their heads shooting around in a panic. Who was there? Twilightâs hot blood was suddenly a subzero blizzard as she saw who it was. AppleJack. âUHMâ was all Twilight was able to get out. âI-ITâS⌠UHM⌠NOT WHAT⌠IT LOOKS LIKEâŚâ she stammered out. Sunsetâs fight or flight had kicked in, but had (unfortunately for her) chosen the secret third option: freeze. âReally?â said Applejack, who was approaching with agitated purpose. âLast thing we know of you is that you got into a tussle with some fire unicorn and ended up blinkinâ outta existence, I offer to start a search of the whole of Equestria, and I just so happen find you about to mack it on with the same fire unicorn? If this ain't what it looks like, then I must be blind.â Twilight was trying to say words but all that was coming out was gutteral panic noises. âI⌠c-can, I⌠I can⌠explain-â âGo on then.â Said AppleJack, raising an expectant eyebrow. âUhm.. well.. You see we⌠Weâre⌠kind ofâŚâ Twilight stood up, and pointed at their combined tail. AppleJackâs expression didnât change. Sunsetâs head was bouncing between AppleJack and Twilight, seemingly panicking for a way out of this. âSo youâre stuck together. That's nice. Why were you about to cheat on your girlfriend?â asked AppleJack firmly. Twilightâs bottom lip began to wobble. She had fucked everything up so badly. AppleJack couldnât lie. Trixie was going to find out about ALL of this⌠she was going to leave. And it was all her⌠no⌠NO! It was SUNSETâS FAULT! She felt the rage build inside of her once- âIt wasnât her fault.,â said Sunset quickly. Twilight had been about to bite Sunset but had the wind knocked out of her by Sunsetâs sudden statement. AppleJackâs gaze moved to Sunset. âIt was all me.â Sunset said, standing up. âI⌠misread signs. Twilight never told me that her and Trixie were together and IâŚâ she gulped. âI mistook her anger as playful flirting. Itâs different where I come from.â AppleJackâs other eyebrow raised, as she glanced over at Twilight. Twilight wasnât breathing, but she nodded in agreement. After a tense couple of seconds, AppleJack let out a deep sigh. âOkay. Fine. I believe you.â Both Twilight and Sunset let out a sigh of relief. âBut DONâT expect me not to be tellinâ Trixie about thisâ she said to Twilight. Twilight nodded solemnly. Now come on back to the farm; we got a double bed you can rest atop.â she said to sunset. As Twilight stood up, AppleJack approached her. âAnd Twilight?â she said, towering over her. âYes?â Twilight asked nervously. AppleJackâs serious demeanour shifted into one of tired joy, and she gave Twilight a tight hug. âIâm so, so glad that youâre okay.â she said, voice full of relief. Twilight couldnât help but smile. âI-It's good to see you too⌠Itâs beenâŚâ Over AppleJackâs shoulder, Twilight glanced at Sunset. Sunset was blushing, and looked away at the eye contact. Sunset had done that to save her. âI-Itâs been one of the most bizarre days of my lifeâŚâ Soon. Sunburst looked up at sky nervously from the roof of his house, his eyes studying every inch. His eyes squinted a tiny bit as he looked towards the nearly set sun. He of course had an enchantment on his spectacles that allowed safe viewing. Because of course he would. Why wouldn't he? His eyes flicked down the the pages in front of him. If his calculations were correct, it would be any day now. That is, of course, if the ancient legends were true. Sunburst did a little shimmy with his tail. Only a few years ago, he wouldn't have believed that any of the old legends were true. But with the return of Discord, the changeling attack and now the ascension of a new Alicorn? Anything was possible. âJust as the sun dips below the horizonâŚâ he mumbled to himself, rapidly glancing between the book and the horizon. He saw what he was looking for. Just as the sun dipped below the horizon, there was a small burst of light shooting from the star, flying off into the night sky above them like a comet. Sunburst let out a little squeal of excitement. âYES! HAHA! I WAS RIGHT! TAKE THAT, SISTER!â he bellowed in triumph. âSunburst! My kids are trying to sleep!â A crystal pony shouted up at him. âHAHAHAHAH yes sorry Quartz iâll be quiet now sorry.â The wizard said quietly, and started to hobble down from the roof. Once back in his study, he continued his excited little dance. âThey were RIGHT! A thousand years after the fall of the moon the twin tailed eclipse will appear! JUST like they predicted! And of course, with a few adjustments with time dilationâŚ!â He said, looking back down at the book. âIt was tonight! HA!â Looking at the book some more, he tilted his head. In all his excitement that the event may happen today, he never actually turned the page to see what it meant. Smiling to himself, he turned the page. His face slowly dropped the more he read. âOh⌠oh no⌠OH SWEET BEELZEBUB!?â He sat down in horrored shock. âWHY COULD YOU HAVE NOT JUST TURNED THE PAGE YOU IMBECILE! UGH!! I NEED TO WARN EVERYPONY!â he said anxiously, but blinked a few times. âBut- who do I tell!? Nopony would listen to meâŚâ He paced rapidly around until an idea sprung into his head. It wasn't a great one⌠But he had to assume his familial connection would at least give him some leverage! He was sure he could get a meeting with Celestia that way! Only thing was⌠His sister probably wasn't the best topic to bring up to the princess of the sun.
Chapter 4: Sunset's new MoonSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.
Chapter 5: Trixie 'Distraction' LulamoonSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.
Chapter 6: How I Met Your [adopted] MotherSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.
