My Little Pony: Nine Elements

Book 4

Written by Brandon Nell and Blake Hawkins

Chapter 7: Welcome to the Neigh-borhood, Gamer Sunset

Six days after the Power Ponies adventure, Twilight woke up to see Spike sleeping in bed beside her. The weather was growing colder, so, Spike decided to sleep in Twilight’s bed to stay warm. That, and Twilight insisted he do so after nearly losing him in the comic book world. Twilight found the sight absolutely precious, sentiments that felt stronger when Spike said a simple phrase in his sleep while nuzzling her sides: “Mama.”

With tears of joy welling in her eyes, she gently nuzzled Spike and softly replied, “That’s right. Mama’s here.” And she gave him a caring kiss on his forehead. She then hugged him against her barrel, the little drake nuzzling his nose into her chest. She tenderly rubbed his back. Soon, the rest of the original Guardians of Harmony entered the room.

“Good morning, Twilight,” Fluttershy softly said. “Good morning, Spike.”

“Shh,” Twilight shushed. “He’s still sleeping. You know how he gets when his sleep is disturbed.”

“Terribly sorry,” Rarity whispered.

Fluttershy gently nuzzled the top of Spike’s head.

“He certainly is cute when he’s asleep,” Fluttershy whispered with a smile.

“Personally,” Rarity whispered. “I find him cute no matter what.”

“That’s sure true,” Applejack whispered with a nod.

Rarity gave Spike a gentle kiss on his left cheek. Spike began stirring, alarming the six ponies.

“Boy~” Spike yawned and stretched. “That was a great sleep.” He looked to see Twilight was awake. “Hi, Mom. Good morning.”

The pleasant mood was not the reaction the ponies were expecting Spike to have.

“Good morning, Spike,” Twilight said. “Our friends are here.”

“That’s weird,” Rainbow said. “Spike usually gets annoyed when he’s woken up. I know that from experience.”

Spike glared at Rainbow. “That was a rough awakening,” he said. “I don’t like rough awakenings. Rarity gave me the kind of awakening I like: a gentle awakening.”

Rarity couldn’t help but blush. She wasn’t sure how Spike knew that it was Rarity who woke him up with a kiss, but, she still felt happy about doing so.

“Now that we’re all awake and together,” Pinkie said. “Is everybody ready for breakfast?”

“Sounds good to me!” Spike said excitedly.

“Sorry if he seems a bit energetic this morning,” Twilight said. “I tried giving him a few emeralds for dinner last night, but, I ended up giving him a bowl full of green apple rock candy by mistake. So, he still has a bit of sugar in his system.” Spike, as if proving her point, gave a little gremlin cackle.*

“No need ta apologize, sugarcube,” Applejack said gently. “Spike’s a young’n n’ havin’ a sugar rush from candy is bound ta happen. Ah know ah’ve seen Apple Bloom have a sugar rush from eatin’ too many homemade apple treats.”

“I propose he have real emeralds until his sugar high dies down,” Rarity said.

“Thanks, Rarity,” Twilight said. “We’ll have to make sure he gets something high in protein and healthy fats. And of course, he’ll have to stay hydrated.”

During breakfast, Pinkie made Spike some fried eggs (non-fertilized, of course).

“Thanks, Pinkie,” Spike smiled. By that point, his sugar rush had died down a bit. He ate them contentedly. Pinkie affectionately rubbed Spike’s head. “They’re really tasty.”

Suddenly, they heard a musical bird chirp, which they recognized as Phoebe.

“That sounds like Phoebe,” Fluttershy smiled. “And with Phoebe close by, that would also mean that Sunset is close by.”

They stepped outside to see Phoebe flying above them before she dropped a scroll from her talons. Spike grabbed it as it dropped and he unfurled it. He then read what was written upon it aloud. “To Twilight, Spike, and friends. Meet me at the Ponyville Train Station within half an hour of receiving this letter. I have a surprise announcement when you get there. Signed, Sunset Reginald Shimmer.”

“Ooh~” Pinkie squeaked excitedly. “I wonder what kind of surprise announcement Sunset has.”

“Well, let’s get to the station now and find out,” Twilight said.

“Phoebe,” Fluttershy said. “Would you like to travel alongside us or would you like to fly ahead back to Sunset?” Phoebe responded with a musical chirp. “Oh, you’re going straight to the station?” Phoebe chirped again. “Alright then.”

The group made it to the station just as the next train came in. Sunset (wearing her disguise to conceal her wings) and Wallflower stepped out of the train with a luggage trolley in tow.

“It’s so good to see you two again,” Twilight said as she hugged both Sunset and Wallflower.

“I trust Phoebe delivered my message?” Sunset said.

“She did,” Spike nodded.

“Well, it’s time for the announcement,” Sunset said. “As of today, the three of us are moving into Ponyville!”

Hearing the announcement, Spike and the Guardians cheered with delight.

“This is the best surprise announcement ever~!” Pinkie exclaimed.

“Oh, but, it gets better,” Sunset continued. “We’re moving into the Golden Oak Library!”

Spike and the Guardians cheered with delight again. After the cheering, Twilight took the opportunity to chime in.

“I’ll make certain that you three will be very comfortable,” she said.

“Is the basement free?” Sunset asked.

“As a matter of fact,” Twilight said. “Yes, it is.”

“Perfect,” Sunset said. “I’ll need the space for my alchemy and other experiments.”

“We will have to properly prepare by getting spare beds and a perch for Phoebe should she need one,” Twilight said. “But, I do have some available space where you can set your bags down once we get inside.”

“The luggage in the trolley is actually my luggage,” Wallflower said. “Sunset’s carrying hers in her Item Box.”

“Ah, right,” Twilight said with a blush.

“No disrespect to Wallflower,” Sunset said. “But, I didn’t want to get her luggage cluttered in with mine. That’d be a real hassle.”**

“Yeah,” Wallflower said.

On the way to the library, Sunset managed to move the trolley by herself with minimal effort.

“I think you girls are going to love living with Spike and me,” Twilight said as they moved. “It’s the perfect mix of spacious and cozy.”

“And I’ll have plenty of reading material for research for this world,” Sunset said. Meanwhile, Wallflower was getting a closer look at the plants around the library.

“It looks like these plants are all well tended to,” she smiled. She then lit up her hooves to make some of the plants grow a bit more. “A little extra love doesn't hurt.”

“Just don’t use none o’ that magic fer Winter Wrap-Up,” Applejack said. “‘Specially not on mah farm.”

“Okay, I won’t,” Wallflower said. “Not that my plant magic works all that well in the winter anyway.”

“Thank ya,” Applejack smiled. Then, she registered the last part of Wallflower’s comment. “What ‘bout when we met ya in the Crystal Empire?”

“I think that was because of the spell around it keeping winter out,” Wallflower replied. “Regardless of the season there, the weather is still comfortably warm.”

“Hey, yeah,” Pinkie said. “Weird how we never noticed that detail each time we went there.”

“It’s likely due to the fact that we’ve always been so busy helping the citizens and Princess Cadance,” Rarity ventured to guess.

During that conversation, Sunset was humming a little tune while moving Wallflower’s luggage.

“What’s that tune you’re humming?” Spike asked.

“Oh, the theme song to CatDog,” Sunset answered.

“Cat…dog?” Spike asked. “What kind of an animal is that?”

“A cat and a dog who share a body despite having opposite personalities,” Sunset explained. As Sunset explained, the other mares listened to her. “While the brothers can independently control their upper bodies with two heads, they are conjoined at the midsection, meaning they have no tail or hind legs.” She then illustrated an image of such a creature.

“That does sound like an interesting creature,” Fluttershy noted.

“Cat is a strait-laced, intellectual cat whereas Dog is an impulsive, happy-go-lucky dog,” Sunset continued. “Because Cat and Dog can’t be separated, Dog will often drag his brother into activities Dog enjoys, such as chasing garbage trucks, eating fast food, and exploring, even though Cat is reluctant to do so.”

“Oh my,” Rarity said. “Um, what’s a garbage truck? We know the garbage part, but, the truck part is foreign to us.”

“Well, you know those carts we ponies pull around?” Sunset asked.

“Yeah,” Rainbow said.

“A truck is basically one of those that can move with absolutely no need for a pony to pull it,” Sunset explained.

“Oh, cool,” Rainbow replied. The others got the idea as well. “How does that work?”

“It’s a little too difficult to explain,” Sunset said. “And it’s not really important to what I’m explaining. So, CatDog gets into a lot of zany shenanigans.”

“Sure does sound like it,” Applejack nodded.

“One of their main adversaries are the Greaser Dogs,” Sunset said. “A trio of street thug dogs who get their kicks pounding CatDog. Mostly Cat.”

“Poor Cat,” Fluttershy said sympathetically.

“The Greaser Dogs hate cats,” Sunset said. “But, they feel the only thing worse than a cat is a dog who hangs around with a cat.”

“How awful,” Rarity said.

“Yeah,” Applejack said. “Winona might chase cats sometimes, but, she don’t hurt ‘em.”

“Hey, uh, how did CatDog even happen?” Rainbow asked.

“That’s never explained,” Sunset answered. “Not even in the three episodes that focused on their journey to find their parents.”

“That sounds like a lot to take in, but, still interesting,” Spike said.

“Can we hear the song?” Pinkie asked.

“I’ll do you one better,” Sunset said. She lit up her horn and projected this video from it.

“The characters look like they’re drawn, but, they can move,” Rainbow said. “How do they do that?”

“Through a process called, ‘animation,’” Sunset said. “For one second on screen, it takes twenty-four drawings. As you can tell, it’s a long and tedious process.”

“I can imagine,” Rarity said. “Especially when making those backgrounds over and over.”

“Actually,” Sunset explained. “The backgrounds are only drawn once.”

“Ah~” Rarity nodded.

“The characters are drawn on sheets of a special kind of clear paper called cels,” Sunset explained further. “Each one is drawn differently so that it looks like the characters are moving. This particular form of animation is known as a cartoon.”

“Cartoon, huh?” Pinkie said. “Sounds like my kind of style.”

“Humans have made hundreds of cartoons in almost a century,” Sunset said. “No magic whatsoever was used in making any of them.”

The ponies and Spike were amazed by this.

“The human world has a lot more to it than I thought,” Twilight said.

“Trust me, that’s just the tip of the iceberg,” Sunset said. “Now, cartoons were created to entertain those watching them. Though, some were done better than others.”

“Where would this CatDog cartoon fall, in your opinion?” Rarity asked.

“Well, it was one of my personal favorite NickToons,” Sunset answered. “Right up there with Rugrats and Doug.”

“Intriguing,” Rarity said with a nod, making a mental note to ask about those later.

Soon, Sunset’s room was set up in the basement. There was a bed, a dresser, an alchemy table, an art desk, a wardrobe, a desk with large gems shaped into what Twilight and Spike recognized as a computer set, and a slightly larger box-like gem connected to thinner ones via cables.

“Can Spike or I get you anything?” Twilight asked. “It’s getting close to lunchtime.”

“Well, what do you have?” Sunset asked.

“Well, we’ve got bread and ingredients for sandwiches,” Twilight explained.

“Or I can whip up a batch of my hoof-licking nachos,” Spike said.

“I think I’ll have some of both,” Sunset said.

“You’ve got it,” Twilight smiled as she and Spike headed up to the kitchen. Sunset followed them and helped by making her own sandwich. She took a small loaf of bread, sliced it lengthwise, spread butter on the inside of the slices, used her fire magic to toast it, and topped one side with sliced cheese, shredded lettuce, sliced tomatoes, sliced onions, chopped peppers, and hot sauce before placing the top slice on top and using her fire magic to toast the whole thing.

“Impressive,” Spike smiled as he poured the melted cheese over a plateful of homemade tortilla chips.

“I like to call this the spicy hoagie,” Sunset said.

“Sounds tasty,” Spike said. “Would you mind if I had a bite?”

“How about I make you your own?” Sunset offered.

“If you’re up for it,” Spike said. “Thank you.”

Sunset made Spike a sandwich just like her own and gave it to him.

“Enjoy,” Sunset smiled. “And thank you for making me my own batch of nachos.”

Spike took a bite of his sandwich and was amazed by the taste. “Wow~!” he gasped after he swallowed his bite. “That is delicious!”

Sunset sampled Spike’s nachos. “Not too bad yourself, Spike,” she commented.

“Thanks,” Spike said after swallowing a second bite of sandwich. “I love nachos and I love making them. They’re my favorite savory snack.”

“Maybe sometime,” Sunset said. “We can do some cooking together.”

“Sure, that’d be great,” Spike smiled.***

After Sunset and Wallflower’s welcoming party (which consisted of the whole town despite Sunset’s insistence that it be a small scale celebration), Wallflower and the guardians were getting a look at Sunset’s room.

“Your room looks lovely, Sunset,” Rarity said politely.

Rainbow then noticed something unusual. “What’s this?”

“Oh, that’s a cartridge for a video game,” Sunset answered.

“Video game, huh?” Pinkie said.

“What are those?” Rarity asked.

“I’ll show you,” Sunset said. She then touched a big boxy gem, which had the facet facing them turn blue. She then connected another strange device to it before plugging the cartridge into it. “There we go.” The screen turned white before blue stylized letters appeared with voices singing, “SEGA.”

Fluttershy yelped from the sudden loud noise, but, she was still captivated by this new device. Soon, the screen changed to show a logo reading, “Sonic the Hedgehog.”

“‘Sonic the Hedgehog,’” Rainbow said, reading the logo aloud. From the center of the logo came a strange humanoid animal creature with a cocky grin waving his finger.

“Hmm…” Pinkie said, looking at Sonic. “There’s something familiar about that little character, but, I can’t put my hoof on it.”

“Playing a video game,” Sunset explained. “Is like watching a movie or a cartoon, but, you control what happens.”

“That sounds cool,” Spike smiled.

“For this particular game,” Sunset continued. “You control the title character, Sonic the Hedgehog, as he battles the evil Doctor Ivo Robotnik, also known as Doctor Eggman.”

“Sounds like some character,” Applejack said.

“Stance up!” Sunset said before transforming and taking the controller. “Now, watch what happens when I press these buttons.” She made Sonic jump while moving forward, causing him to smash what looked like a ladybug, which then turned into a cute little critter.

“Aww~” Fluttershy cooed.

“That was a Badnik,” Sunset explained. “They’re Robotnik’s robot minions, which use little creatures like the one you just saw as batteries.”

“That’s awful,” Wallflower gasped.

“Sonic can break them with his Spin Attack,” Sunset continued. “That’s when he jumps up and curls into a ball in midair before using his quills like a buzz saw.”

“That’s incredible,” Twilight smiled. She then saw floating, spinning rings. “What are those rings?”

“Power Rings,” Sunset explained. “Sonic collects them. However, if he gets hurt, he drops some rings. Watch what happens if he touches a Badnik without attacking when he doesn’t have any Power Rings.” She made Sonic run right into a Badnik. On contact with the robot, he jumped up and fell through the ground before the screen went black.

“What happened?” Rainbow asked. “Why’d the screen go all black?”

“Sonic died,” Sunset answered before the level restarted. “So, that means I have to try again.” She pointed to one of the corners of the screen. “You see that little icon of Sonic in that corner?”

“Yeah,” Spike replied.

“That represents his extra lives,” Sunset explained. “The number next to it indicates how many he has left.”

They noticed there was a number 2 next to the icon. That indicated there were two lives left.

“What happens if all the lives are lost?” Rarity asked.

“The game’s over,” Sunset answered. “And the player loses.”

“I see,” Rarity said. “Well, this is quite exciting.”

“How exactly does having a Power Ring help Sonic?” Wallflower asked.

“Watch,” Sunset said before she made Sonic get a Power Ring and touch a Badnik without attacking. Sonic jumped back and dropped the ring.

“Cool,” Rainbow smiled.

Sunset then made Sonic recollect the ring, jump up, and smash the Badnik. “As you saw,” she said. “As long as Sonic has at least one Power Ring, he can take a hit without losing a life.”

“That’s great,” Spike said.

“But, this makes him drop the rings he’s carrying,” Sunset said. “Luckily, he can collect them all again.”

“I see,” Twilight said.

“He has to do it fast,” Sunset continued. “Or the rings he dropped will disappear for good.”

“That’s messed up,” Rainbow admitted.

“If Sonic collects 100 Power Rings,” Sunset said. “He gets an extra life.”

“That’ll come in handy,” Applejack smiled.

“There’s also some power-ups to help him along the way,” Sunset said. “They could be additional rings, a shield to take a hit without dropping rings, a temporary speed boost, temporary invincibility, or even a free extra life.”

“That’s interesting,” Wallflower said.

Soon, Sunset made it to a checkpoint with 50 Power Rings.

“Alright,” she said. “Time for the Special Zone.”

“Ooh~” Pinkie said, intrigued. “What happens here?”

“That’s where Sonic gets a Chaos Emerald,” Sunset explained before she brought Sonic to the checkpoint and made him jump into the ring of sparkles. Spike and the ponies were amazed by this. “I need to focus to get the emerald.”

They quieted down as Sunset worked on the controls. After a few tries, she made Sonic get the Chaos Emerald.

“One down,” Sunset smiled. “Five to go.”

“You got this, Sunset,” Twilight said encouragingly.

“What’s the deal with the Chaos Emeralds, anyway?” Rainbow asked.

“The Chaos Emeralds,” Sunset explained. “Are collectibles in the game. Collecting all of them earns the player the good ending.”

“That’s so cool,” Spike smiled.

“I’m sure you noticed times where Sonic was going so fast, his legs looked like blurry wheels,” Sunset said.

“Yeah, we have,” Wallflower said. “Well, I know I have.”

“That’s why he’s called Sonic,” Sunset said. “Because he’s faster than sound and keeps on jumping around.”

“Oh~!” Pinkie exclaimed at last, looking between Sonic and Rainbow. “That’s why he seems so familiar to me!”

“Except Sonic can’t actually fly,” Sunset said. “He hasn’t gotten his Super Form yet.”

Rarity had trouble processing that statement. “I’m sorry,” she said. “He doesn’t have his WHAT?!”

“Super Form,” Sunset repeated. “In the sequel game, there’s seven Chaos Emeralds to find. Getting all of them not only gets the good ending, but, it also gives Sonic the ability to become Super Sonic, which allows him to fly, run faster, and become immune to damage.”

Spike and the ponies were amazed at this.

“That must make the game easy,” Rainbow said.

“Not quite,” Sunset responded. “First, you have to get all seven emeralds. Then, even when you do, you need at least 50 Power Rings to keep the transformation active for 50 seconds.”

“That is a lot ta take in,” Applejack noted.

“Super Sonic can collect more rings to sustain the transformation longer,” Sunset continued. “But, once he completes the stage before running out of rings, the transformation automatically cancels out.”

“Interesting,” Twilight nodded.

“Alright,” Sunset said after a while. “Time for the boss.”

“You got this, Sunset,” Spike smiled encouragingly.

Sunset made Sonic jump on top of Robotnik in quick succession until the scientist is red in the face and retreats. The ponies and Spike cheered for Sunset.

“This isn’t the last of Eggman,” Sunset said. “There’s a few more zones.” She then made Sonic jump on a capsule, making it open and release several critters.

“That is wonderful that all of those little animals are safe,” smiled Fluttershy.

The next morning, Twilight, Spike, and Wallflower found Sunset playing the game more aggressively than the previous day.

“Sunset?” Wallflower coaxed gently. “Are you alright?”

But, Sunset was too focused on the game in front of her. “Come on, Sonic!” she chanted. “Keep it up!”

“Uh, Sunset?” Twilight said, concerned. “Have you had breakfast yet?”

“This is a little disturbing,” Spike said when Sunset didn’t reply.

“Yeah,” Wallflower agreed. “I’ve never seen her act this way.”

“We’ll have to check in with her later,” Twilight said. “When somebody gets into the zone, it can be hard to break them out of it.”

“Yes!” Sunset said. “Chaos Emerald number 3!” As she played her game, she started to sing.

“This is the coolest game I've ever played~
This is the coolest game that was ever made~
Racing down the path with lightning speed~
Yes! Got the next Chaos Emerald~!
The Badnik horde hasn’t got a chance~
Doctor Eggman’s going to need new pants~
As I collect Power Rings in every Zone~
I just can't get enough, I wanna keep on playing more and more~
I just can't get enough and I won't stop until I get through this game and beat its score~!”

By evening, Sunset was still playing. By this point, the other guardians were concerned themselves, having heard what happened. They tried to get her to come upstairs.

“Sunset, come on, it’s no longer time to play~” Pinkie sang as she tried to coax Sunset.

“Sunset, come on, you’ve been inside all day~” Fluttershy added.

“We’re going to go upstairs to grab some food~” Rainbow added.

Alas, their efforts were in vain as Sunset simply levitated a water bottle over and drank from it before singing again.

“I'll be right out, I promise that I will~
But I can't quit this game until~
I defeat Eggman completely~!”

“But, Sunset-” Pinkie started before Sunset interrupted her by singing another chorus.

“I just can't get enough~
I'll get through this story very soon~
I just can't get enough~
Why don't you come and play some other afternoon~”

“Afternoon?” Rainbow asked. “But, the sun’s already-” Once again, Sunset’s singing cut them off.

“I just can't get enough, I wanna keep on playing more and more~
I just can't get enough and I won't stop until I get through this game and beat its score~!”

Rainbow, Fluttershy, and Pinkie, realizing they couldn’t get through, went back upstairs to regroup with the others.

“Yeah, I would usually get pretty sucked into a good Daring Do book,” Rainbow said with concern. “But, Sunset’s really sucked into this game of hers.”

“I’m really worried about Sunset,” Twilight said. “She’s barely eaten anything since she got here.”

“There has to be something we can do to help her,” Fluttershy said. “If she keeps this up, she might not be able to do other fun things she likes with her friends.”

“Ooh!” Pinkie piped up. “I’ve got an idea! We can give her a potion that would give her nightmares about video games!”

The others were shocked at Pinkie’s idea.

“Pinkie, that’s a horrible idea!” Spike exclaimed. “We’re trying to help Sunset, not traumatize her!”

“Oh, right,” Pinkie said, giggling sheepishly. “Ooh, I got another one. We can hypnotize her into not liking video games.”

“Pinkie, that’s not any better,” Twilight said sternly. “We would be tampering with Sunset’s personality, what makes her uniquely her.”

“Twilight’s right,” Applejack nodded. “We don’t want ta be like Discord used ta be. We want ta show that while these here video games’re good ta play every once in a while, it’s also important that she does other things.”

“That won’t be so easy with her so deep in the zone,” Spike noted. “She doesn’t notice the world around her anymore.”

“So much so that time would seem to pass by in a blur,” Rarity added grimly.

Meanwhile, Sunset had earned the last Chaos Emerald in her game.

“Yes!” she cheered. “Last Chaos Emerald! And before the final zone!” But, just before she was about to get started on it, she heard a deep grumbling noise. “Huh? Does Twilight have plumbing problems or something?” she wondered. The sound sounded again. She looked down and saw her rippling stomach. “Oh,” she said in realization. “It’s my stomach. Guess I should’ve gotten snacks.” She started to stand up, but, suddenly, due to her fatigue, she passed out and collapsed onto the floor.

Twilight, hearing the noise from upstairs, rushed down to see the collapsed Sunset on the ground. She gasped, but, she gently used her magic to levitate Sunset onto her back and carry Sunset to her bed.

As Sunset rested, she was dreaming. In her dream, she found herself in the library, only it was much dustier and covered in cobwebs.

“Whoa,” she said. “That took a lot out of me.” She started to get up, though her body was feeling stiff. “Ow! That feels uncomfortable sitting in one place for a while” As she walked along, she came across a full-length mirror. Looking in it, she saw that she had a body shape like Celestia’s if she were anthropomorphized. “What the-?! H-how long have I been playing that game?”

After looking at herself in the mirror, she saw Spike looking like this:

****

“Hey, Sunset,” Spike said in a deep, yet good-natured sounding voice. “Long time no see.”

“Spike?!” Sunset proclaimed. “Wh-what happened?! Why are you so… so…” She gestured a hand to Spike’s bigger stomach.

“Fat?” Spike said, chuckling heartily. “That’s what happens when a dragon like me grows older. My appetite became more hearty.”

“But, where’s Twilight and the others?” Sunset asked, trying not to panic.

“Twilight is still here,” Spike said, but, with a frown he said. “But, the others… they’re gone.”

“Gone?” Sunset gasped. “Where?”

“They died years ago,” Spike said bluntly.

“Died?!” Sunset queried. “Even Wallflower?”

“All of them are dead, Sunset,” Spike said. “My mom and I moved back to Canterlot after they all died. You’ve been sleeping in the basement for 100 years now. Give or take a few weeks.”

Sunset could hardly believe her ears. “One… one hundred years?” She repeated as tears formed in her eyes. She ran outside and soon came to the Ponyville Cemetery. To her horror, she saw six headstones with the names and Cutie Marks of Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Wallflower. “No… no, this can’t be…” Sunset’s voice began to break as she collapsed onto the ground in turmoil. “What have I done? What have I done~?!”

Back in the real world, Sunset was muttering the same phrase in her sleep. “What have I done…” she muttered. “What have I done…”

“She’s starting to come around!” Twilight whispered.

Sunset slowly started to open her eyes. She saw the relieved looks on her friends’ faces. Sunset’s eyes shot open and tears of joy welled in her eyes. “You’re all here!”

“Of course we are,” Wallflower said. “We were worried you wouldn’t make it yourself.”

Sunset quickly ran to a full-length mirror and found that her anthro body was just as it should be.

“Oh, thank goodness,” Sunset sighed, relieved. “It hasn’t been 100 years, give or take a few weeks. It was a dream.”

“Dream?” Spike asked. “100 years?”

“Never mind that,” Sunset said, turning to face her friends. She had a humble and apologetic look. “Everyone, I’m really sorry that I got so swept up in playing that game. I developed a video game addiction back in the human world and introducing it here inadvertently awakened it after I managed to keep it under control for so long.”

“It’s alright,” Fluttershy said. “It is good to enjoy doing something that you love. Of course, it is also important to remember that you also need to eat and rest.”

“Speaking of eating,” Pinkie said before giving Sunset a cupcake. “A little something to fill your tummy.”

“Thanks, Pinkie,” Sunset said gratefully and she ate the cupcake. She then began to sing one more time. “I’ve been in the human world too long~
I realize now that I was wrong ~” She spoke normally for a moment. “Who needs Sonic the Hedgehog,” her song continued. “When you've got friends~”

The others smiled as Sunset embraced them and continued her song.

“I think I’ve had enough~
After dinner, let’s go outside and play some kick ball~
I think I’ve had enough~
I want to join in with you all~”

After eating, Sunset (having reverted to her regular form) and the others were outside getting ready for kick ball, singing as they did so.

“We just can’t get enough~
When we’re outside, our laughter never ends~
We just can’t get enough~”

Taking a solo verse, Sunset sang, “Why play alone when you can play with all your friends~”

After a game of kickball, Sunset began writing in the Friendship Journal.

“Moving into the Golden Oak Library was a great experience. Unfortunately, I also unlocked a side of myself that I tried to keep calm for a long time. I was so caught up in playing games that I couldn’t focus on my friends. Well, I’m going to work on balancing the time that I spend with my friends and the time that I can enjoy my own things. After all, I’m going to be with my friends for a long time, so, I want to enjoy the time that I have with them.”

Sunset smiled as she finished up her entry. That night, when she fell asleep, she found herself before Princess Luna.

“Thank you for setting me straight, Princess Luna,” Sunset said, humbly genuflecting before the night princess.

“Very perceptive of you to realize that it was my doing,” Luna said. “Gold Lily informed me telepathically of your situation and I felt compelled to intervene.”

“I’m glad she did,” Sunset said.

“I must say,” Luna added. “This concept of video games intrigues me. Perhaps you can teach me more about its principles.”

“Sure,” Sunset complied. “This could also help me learn to balance my interests and spending time with my friends.”

“And,” Luna added. “Since you’re not officially a princess yet, you needn’t worry about royal responsibilities interfering. My royal responsibilities take place during the night, leaving me with ample daylight hours to occupy myself. Frankly, since my return, there’s been no shortage of times where I find myself overwhelmingly bored throughout the day.”*****

Sunset couldn’t help but smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to do what I can. Besides, I can kind of relate, given my last year in the human world.”

Luna, having seen Sunset’s dreams and memories up to that point, nodded in understanding. “I will see to it that you receive compensation for your services.”

“Thank you,” Sunset said gratefully. Then, an idea occurred to her. “Say, do you think you can compensate me in the form of materials I need for a project of mine?”

“Of course,” Luna nodded. “Just list the materials you need and I’ll do everything within my power, political or otherwise, to acquire them.”

“I will,” Sunset agreed. “I believe you know the intricacies of my invention, the Anthropomorpher, from my dreams, correct?”

Luna nodded. “Your dreams have them in great detail.”

“It took me a while to physically construct just one,” Sunset admitted. “That was partly due to hooves lacking the dexterity needed for such delicate technology. Now that I have a way around that problem, there’s still the material issue.”

“I see,” Luna said. “I shall assist you with this.”

End of chapter.

Author's Note

Here's the next chapter.

*Reference.

**Pragmatism.

***WHOLESOME!

****Art by AleximusPrime.

*****Justification for Gamer Luna.

Here's the reference for the song:

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