Applejack and Big Mac have finished delivering the last crate of Apple cider to Filthy Rich’s store, Barnyard Bargains is full of shoppers getting the last things they need for their holiday celebrations.

“That’s the last of 'em,” Applejack said as she closed the tailgate of the family truck.

“Mighty thanks for the delivery, Applejack,” Filthy Rich thanked Applejack. “I hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas.”

“Thanks, Filthy Rich. Ah hope yer holiday goes great,” Applejack bid farewell to Filthy Rich as she and Big Mac got in their truck and drove off. “That’s all the deliveries for today, Big Mac?”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac said.

“Then let’s head home. Granny and Applebloom should be almost done with the food for the party,” Applejack remarked. She is very excited about the Apple Family Christmas party. She’s probably even more excited since this will be Sunset’s very first Christmas with the people who care about her. “This year's Apple Family Christmas party will be the best one yet!”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac agreed with a smile.

Applebloom exited the supermarket with a bag in hand. Granny Smith had sent her to get something last minute. Normally, she would be excited that it was Christmas Eve, but she felt awful. After confessing to Sunset and watching her walk away without even looking at her, Applebloom assumed that Sunset hated her.

“Ah don’t blame her,” Applebloom muttered as she made her way across the street, after hanging out with Sunset a lot and asking her to help her and her friends with their school work, this is a huge betrayal. She hadn’t even told her friends about confessing to being Anon-A-Miss.

“Applebloom!”

Applebloom was slightly startled and looked around to who called her name, she spotted Sunset Shimmer hurrying towards her.

“Sunset?”

“I’m glad I ran into you,” Sunset said as she stood in front of Apppebloom.

“Yah are?” Applebloom questioned. “Aren’t yah mad at me?”

“I was more shocked than mad but after thinking it over I realized that it wasn’t all your fault,” Sunset admitted.

“Huh?” Applebloom was confused.

“If I hadn’t told Applejack that I spent my holidays alone then she wouldn’t have missed out on your family traditions,” Sunset pointed out. “But I am angry that you humiliated your sister by posting her embarrassing nickname.”

Applebloom flinched at that.

“Have you told Applejack?” Sunset asked.

“No,” Applebloom shamefully admitted.

“You should,” Sunset encouraged. “Otherwise the guilt will eat away at you.”

“But what if she hates me?” Applebloom voiced her concern. “What if she never wants anything to do with me?”

“She won’t,” Sunset assured Applebloom as she placed her hands on her shoulders. “You’re her little sister and she loves you.”

Applebloom’s lower lip quivered before she slammed into Sunset, wrapping her arms tight around her as she cried. Sunset wrapped her arms around Applebloom as she let her cry.

“I’m sorry Sunset!” Applebloom cried. “Ah’m so sorry for trying to frame yah! All yah wanted was a family and ah didn’t understand yah at all!”

“It’s okay,” Sunset assured her. “I’ve got great friends like you so I don’t need a family.”

“What are yah saying?” Applebloom pulled back to look at Sunset. “Everyone deserves a family!”

“Not everyone,” Sunset said sadly. “And I’m okay with that.”

Applebloom’s eyes widen, why would Sunset say she is undeserving of a family?

“Applebloom, can you do me a favor?” Sunset asked.

“What is it?” Applebloom asked as she rubbed her tears away.

“Can you let everyone know that I won’t be coming to the Christmas party,” Sunset conveyed.

“What?!” Applebloom raised her voice. “Why not?!”

“Because it’s for members of the Apple family and I’m not family,” Sunset said with a hint of regret.

“But yah are!” Applebloom insisted.

“I know Applejack thinks of me as family but given my history along with personal issues, I can’t truly be a part of her family,” Sunset explained.

“Ah don’t understand,” Applebloom said. “Why can’t yah be a part of our family?”

Sunset stared at Applebloom, her conviction faltering slightly but she reminded herself why she had to do this.

“Because I’m afraid.”

“Yer afraid?” Applebloom questioned. “What are yah afraid of?”

“I’m afraid that I’ll mess this up like I did with my former mentor,” Sunset confessed as she pulled away from Applebloom and hugged herself. “I’m already messing it up.”

“Why do yah say that?” Applebloom asked.

“Anon-A-Miss,” Sunset answered.

“But that wasn’t you!” Applebloom reminded her.

“But I was the cause of it,” Sunset pointed out. “You created the account to get back at me and your sister, you wouldn’t have done that if I didn’t drive a wedge between you two.”

Applebloom was about to protest but Sunset held up her hand.

“There’s more,” Sunset began. “After I started hanging out with you and your friends, Applejack started getting jealous. She didn’t like that you were ditching your family for me.”

Applebloom was shocked to hear this, Applejack was jealous that Sunset was hanging out with her like how she was jealous of Sunset hanging out with her sister. Talk about irony.

“It didn’t stop there,” Sunset continued. “Rarity and Rainbow Dash also grew resentful that I was hanging out with their sisters.”

“D-did yah try talking to them?” Applebloom asked. “Maybe yah can work things out like how yah did with me.”

“We did talk and we resolved the issue,” Sunset said.

“Then ah don’t see what the problem is,” Applebloom stated. “If yah fixed the problem then everything should be okay.”

“But what’s to stop something like this from happening again?” Sunset questioned, She turned away and hugged herself tighter. “Anon-A-Miss showed me that I am causing rifts in the relationships of everyone around me. What if I cause more rifts between you and your family? What if….what if I cause a rift between my friends?”

Applebloom recalled how Sunset separated her big sister and her friends, Sunset was making a lot of sense. But there was one thing bugging her.

“How come yah only want to stay friends and not be family?”

“Because being friends didn’t cause these problems,” Sunset answered as she glanced back at Applebloom. “When the girls and I started getting closer because of the sleepovers, that’s when the problems started.

“But won’t yah be alone?” Applebloom asked in a soft tone, looking at Sunset with worried eyes.

“As long as I have my friends, I’m never truly alone,” Sunset answered with a smile as she turned away. “Even when I’m spending the holidays alone.”

Sunset walked away, leaving Applebloom to stare at her retreating back before she had to go home. Neither noticed that someone was watching their exchange.

“Thanks for inviting me, Rarity,” Sweetie Belle thanked her big sister as they were driven to sweet Apple acres.

“Think nothing of it, Sweetie Belle,” Rarity said as she smiled at her little sister. “The party is to celebrate together with family, so of course you were always going to be invited.

Sweetie Belle felt a bit of shame at that, she was almost going to humiliate her sister if not for Sunset. The car ride was silent until they arrived at Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack greeted them at the door.

“Come on in!” Applejack said excitedly as she motioned for them to enter. “Applebloom and Scootaloo are in the kitchen Sweetie Belle.”

“Thanks, Applejack,” Sweetie Belle thanked Applejack as she hurried to where her friends were.

“Thank you, darling,” Rarity thanked Applejack as she stepped inside the Apple home.

“Hi, Rarity!” Pinkie waved enthusiastically from the living room.

“Sup, Rarity,” Rainbow Dash greeted her fashionista friend, raising her mug of cider from her seat on the sofa.

“Hello, Rarity,” Fluttershy greeted with a smile as she was sitting next to Rainbow Dash.

“Hello, darlings,” Rarity greeted her friends. “Has Sunset arrived yet?”

“Not yet,” Applejack answered. “But ah hope she gets here soon.”

“Applejack?”

Applejack turns to see a sad-looking Applebloom.

“What’s the matter Applebloom?” Applejack asked, looking a little concerned.

“Sunset isn’t coming,” Applebloom confessed.

“What?!” Everyone said in shock.

“W-what do yah mean she’s not coming!” Applejack demanded.

“Ah ran into Sunset when ah went to get something fer Granny,” Applebloom started, looking guilty. “She wanted me to tell yah that she wasn’t going to attend the party because she’s not family.”

“Not family?!” Applejack raised her voice, she was starting to get annoyed at Sunset’s stubbornness. “Fer lands sake!”

Applejack pulled out her phone, searched for Sunset's contact, and pressed call. It rang two times before Sunset picked up.

“Hey, Applejack,” Sunset answered in a monotone tone, she was anticipating Applejack’s call.

“Sunset, Applebloom informed me that you aren’t coming to the Christmas party,” Applejack started. “Something about yah not being family.” She heard Sunset sigh.

“Listen, Applejack-“

“No! You listen, Sunset Shimmer!” Applejack cut off Sunset. “Ah know yah have unresolved issues with yer mom, but yah can’t let that get in the way of yer happiness.” Applejack’s tone softened. “We're all here to give yah the best holiday experience yah ever had with yer family.”

Applejack heard a sob on the other end, she smiled knowing that she managed to convince Sunset.

“Applejack, I-“

The line suddenly went dead.

“Sunset?” Applejack questioned as she looked at her phone, the call had ended.

“Did she hang up?” Fluttershy asked, worried about the situation.

“No, ah think the line got disconnected,” Applejack theorized as she tried calling Sunset again but there was no answer. “She’s not responding.”

“I don’t get it, why does Sunset keep wanting to be alone?” Pinkie Pie asked out loud.

“Ah know why,” Applebloom spoke up, all eyes were suddenly on her. “Ah’ve got something to tell you all.”

“Applejack?” Sunset questioned as she looked at her phone to see a black screen, she checked it and realized that the battery was dead. Sunset started laughing. “There’s no denying it, this is more proof that I’m not meant to have a family.”

Sunset fell back on her bed, she stared at her ceiling with a smile.

“This is how it’s supposed to be,” Sunset whispered. “How it’s always meant to be.”

The color faded from Sunset’s body as she finally accepted that she would be alone on Christmas, a part of her really hoped that it would be different this time. But she was only fooling herself. She imagined her friends having a wonderful holiday with their families, laughing and having fun. She imagined Princess Celestia celebrating Hearths Warming with Twilight and Spike, there was no room for her. There never was.

The ringing of her doorbell caught her by surprise, and she sat up quickly. She wondered who that could be, it couldn’t be Applejack as the call only ended recently. The doorbell rang again, prompting Sunset to get off her bed and go to her door. She peeked through the eyehole and was shocked at who it was. She quickly unlocked her door and swung it open.

“Flash?!”

Author's Note

Just when all hope seemed lost, we're nearing the last chapters. I hope you enjoy the chapter, and I look forward to your comments.