The Rainbooms are all gathered by the Wondercolt statue, they had all received a text message from Sunset, asking them to meet her and Rainbow Dash by the school for she had something vital to talk to them about.

“What’s this important thing yah wanted to talk to us about?” Applejack asked, getting straight to the point.

Sunset looked at her friends who looked at her with worry, she started to have second thoughts about this.

“Darling? Is everything alright?” Rarity asked with concern, her keen eye recognizing the body movements of someone doubting themselves.

“Honestly? No,” Sunset started. “I’m afraid I’m starting to slip into my old self.”

“What do you mean?” Fluttershy asked, looking confused.

“Ever since Anon-A-Miss posted Applejack’s nickname and everyone at school started making fun of her, I wanted to find out who they might be and stop them. But with no leads, there wasn’t much I could do,” Sunset confessed. “And after they deleted their blog, I can’t get over the fact that they got away with humiliating Applejack!” Sunset felt her anger rising. “I keep going over in my mind a list of potential suspects and their possible motives against Applejack, but then I realized that other than the old me, no one had anything bad against Applejack! Heck, the students only started calling her a liar behind her back because of what I did!”

Sunset paced back and forth, running her fingers through her hair in frustration. Rainbow Dash and Applejack reached out to stop Sunset.

“Easy there sugarcube,” Applejack said in a calming tone.

“You’re starting to sound obsessed,” Rainbow Dash pointed out.

“Exactly! My obsession led me down a path here,” Sunset suddenly confessed.

“I’m afraid I don’t understand,” Rarity said.

“Back when I was Princess Celestia’s student, she showed me a mirror that was the portal to this world. She asked me to tell her what I see, and I saw myself as an Alicorn princess that ruled over Equestria,” Sunset explained. “After that, I became obsessed with the mirror and wanted to learn more about it. I repeatedly asked Princess Celestia but when she refused to tell me I took it upon myself to find out. I broke into the library's restricted section and found my answers.” Sunset had a look of regret as she told the next part. “Princess Celestia caught me, and we argued. I accused her of holding me back and demanded she give me what I wanted. She refused and removed me from being her pupil, then had her guards escort me out of her castle. But I had other plans, I knew that the mirror portal would be open, so I overpowered the guards and escaped here. After seeing this world, I started to formulate a plan to become a princess and when the portal door opened again, I would show Princess Celestia that she was wrong about me, that I did deserve to be made a princess.”

Sunse’s body started shaking as she let out a sob.

“But I was wrong! My stupid, selfish actions cost me my old life and I betrayed the closest thing I had to a mother!” Sunset cried, wrapping her arms around herself. “I’m afraid that my obsessions with Anon-A-Miss will cause me to ruin our friendship, that’s why I asked you all to meet me. Girls, If I ever start to turn back to my old self, I want you to end your friendship with me.”

“What?!” the girls are stunned to hear this.

“Why do you want us to end our friendship with you?!” Rainbow Dash questioned.

“Couldn’t we stop you instead?” Fluttershy asked, hopeful that Sunset would accept her proposal, she didn’t want to end her friendship with Sunset.

“It wouldn’t do any good,” Sunset shook her head, turning away from her friends.

“Why not?!” Applejack demanded.

“Because I will never change,” Sunset answered. “I may have turned over a new leaf and been given a second chance, but the ambitious, arrogant, mean girl is still there.” Sunset placed her hand over her heart. “It's a part of who I am.”

“Sunset, what do we mean to yah?” Applejack asked.

“You girls are my best friends,” Sunset answered as she turned to face them. “You befriended me when I needed a friend despite what I did to you all, you showed me kindness when everyone else hated me, you helped me be more honest with myself, and you stuck by me even after I tried to kill you all. You were there for me at my lowest and made me feel more welcomed and loved. You girls are….” Sunset struggled to say the next word as the last pony she thought of this way didn’t end up working out.

“Family?” Applejack finished for Sunset, smiling as the former unicorn nodded. “Ah consider yah family too, we all consider yah family. And family always sticks together through thick and thin.”

“Yeah, you’re stuck with us no matter what!” Rainbow Dash said smiling cheekily.

“I understand personally how ambition can be a double-edged sword,” Rarity said as she walked up to Sunset and took hold of her hands. “But when it’s tempered with discipline, self-control, and the support of your loved ones, then it becomes something positive.”

“None of us are perfect,” Fluttershy spoke gently as she approached Sunset. “What you did showed us that we still have much to learn as friends and I would like it if you learned with us.”

“It’s our differences that make us the best of friends!” Pinkie Pie shouted excitedly.

“Each of us has something the others are missing and it’s our friendship that makes us whole,” Rarity pointed out, as she stepped away from Sunset. “You’re nothing like the person you used to be.”

“For starters, you asked us for help. The old you would never do that,” Rainbow Dash pointed out.

“Yer obsession with Anon-A-Miss is because yah care about me so much that yah couldn’t stand to let that varmint get away with hurting me,” Applejack said, smiling as she tilted her hat up.

“It’s like you said, you learned from us, but we have yet to learn from you,” Rarity said as she shared looks with her friends as they extended their hands out to Sunset. “Twilight asked us to guide you and that’s what we’ll continue to do but we want to ask if you would honor us by being a part of our family.”

Sunset’s eyes widened as she covered her mouth in shock, her best friends had just asked her to be their family. After years of being alone in this world and ruining what she had with Princess Celestia, Sunset has another chance to have the family she desperately craved.

“Do you….do you really mean it?” Sunset asked as tears started pooling in her eyes.

“Yes!” they all said in unison.

Sunset closed her eyes, her tears falling freely as she rushed towards her friends. They enveloped her in a group hug as she cried, their tears joining Sunset’s as they welcomed a new member of their family.

Sunset flopped forward onto her bed, today’s events left her exhausted both physically and emotionally. She raised her head and smiled at the photo of her and her friends…her family. She finally had a family. She quickly sat up and grabbed her backpack, she needed to tell Twilight about what had happened. As she pulled out her journal, her smile slowly faded as she stared at it. Remembering the mare, she thought of as a mother figure filled her with sadness.

“Princess Celestia,” Sunset whispered as a stray tear slid down the right side of her face. “I’m so sorry.”

Sunset wiped away her tears as she opened up her journal and started writing, she really hoped that it would be different this time.

Princess Celestia walked down the darkened halls of her castle, her sister had begun her night shift, and she was heading towards her room to get some well-deserved rest. During the holiday season, she’s more busy than usual but with her sister helping her it wasn’t too bad. Celestia smiled as Luna was always excited about the holidays, she couldn’t wait to take part in the holiday activities that Canterlot held. Celestia’s smile fell as she approached a nearby bedroom that belonged to her former student, Sunset Shimmer. She opened the door to check inside and everything was how it had always been since Sunset left, she made sure to keep it that way.

She saw great potential in Sunset and took her as her personal student, they naturally became close and without her realizing it she began to see Sunset as a daughter. But like any parent, she started seeing herself in Sunset unfortunately it was the arrogant part of herself. She tried to set Sunset down the right path but in doing so she only made it worse. She often played back the events of that day in her mind, trying to see what she could’ve done differently to change the outcome. It didn’t matter, nothing would change what has happened. After Sunset had abandoned her, she kept the mirror portal close by in case Sunset returned.

Unfortunately, Sunset’s return was not what she had hoped. She stole the element of magic and fled, and instead of going to confront Sunset and get the element of magic back, she sent Twilight instead. It was a good decision on her part as not only was Twilight able to get her element back but was able to get through to Sunset and let her in capable hands as she put it to learn about friendship. Celestia believed that Sunset’s rehabilitation should be left to Twilight, and she sent her the journal she used to communicate with Sunset so long ago, it was a good thing she did as Twilight later told her that Sunset had asked for help in regard to an ancient Equestrian threat, the Sirens.

This proved to her that Twilight had once again succeeded where she had failed, she smiled sadly as she realized that Sunset no longer needed her guidance and would probably never return to Equestria.

“Maybe it’s for the best,” Celestia softly spoke. “Twilight did say she was happy when she visited the last time.”

A single tear slid down her face.

“And that’s all a mother needs to hear,” Celestia took one last look at the room before closing the door. “Goodnight, my Sunset.”

Author's Note

New family gained while lamenting the family they have lost; I hope you enjoy this chapter, and I look forward to your comments.