When the Sun Sets

by Deep

First published 5th of June, 2014

Sunset Shimmer, personal student of Princess Celestia, counts down the days until she is finally made princess. Only thing standing in her way to princesshood? A certain pony called Twilight Sparkle.

Sunset Shimmer is the most talented of all of Princess Celestia's students, so much so that the princess is her own personal mentor. After acing her latest test, she is certain she will be named a princess, so she has nothing to worry about when a new student named Twilight Sparkle enters Celestia's school, right?

My Most Faithful Student

"Go on, my most faithful student. I have the utmost confidence in you."

Standing in a room in the royal palace, Sunset Shimmer concentrated all the magic she could muster from her filly body. Focusing the magic in her horn, she counted down the seconds until it was time to unleash it on her target. Princess Celestia--her teacher who could do no wrong--stood close behind her, giving the type of warm smile that could calm even the most tense of ponies. Not that Sunset needed any calming. Four ponies in scholarly uniforms stood beside the princess, writing on pads as they glanced as their watches. They were yawning, and each had the snootiest look on their face. The type Sunset despised.

Never one to let anypony doubt her abilities, Sunset Shimmer smiled confidently and focused on the object a few feet in front of her, a large black metallic weight. Cracks crept out from the floor beneath it, but that only caused the filly to smirk. She shot a glance at the four bored ponies and scoffed, saying to herself, "Like you'll ever even have the power to think about attempting this." Her horn burned with a fiery aura, and in an instant, the magic concentrated in it was unleashed on the tower of weight.

The aura covered the weight and lifted it up a few inches from the ground. The four ponies in the back all dropped their jaws in quick succession, as well as their pads and pencils. Celestia stood unphased and nodded with her same motherly smile. Sunset Shimmer continued lifting the weight higher into the air, making sure to hide any sign of struggle. The thought of only being able to lift this weight a few inches made her growl, and she continued pushing until her horn felt like it was about to be ripped out right at the root.

The weight rose up inch after inch until it stood several feet above the ground. Applause broke out from the back of the room, but Sunset Shimmer held the weight where it was, growling at the fact that the four ponies were clapping already. "You think that's all I got... Ha!" she said. Her horn was enveloped by another fiery aura, and at the same time the aura around the weight began to brighten until the light produced caused everypony else in the room to shut their eyes. The light disappeared a second later, and the five ponies in the back, Celestia included, gasped from the sight in front of them. The weight was gone, replaced by a mass of fire patterned flowers that floated down onto the cracked ground.

Sunset Shimmer jumped into the air screaming, "Ha! Like I'd actually fail!" She picked up the flowers with her magic and threw them around the room, with special aim on the four ponies and the area around them. She pointed at them. "And you clowns... What was with the early clapping, huh?! What, did you think I was done?!"

Celestia’s warm smile transformed into a scowl. "Suns-.”

Sunset Shimmer stepped towards her targets, getting all up in their faces, "Did you think I couldn't do more. Is that it?! That I was too weak to do anything greater?!"

Celestia raised her voice. “Su-”

"I know what it is. You're all jealous! You know your own pathetic kids are too weak to do what I can, and always will be!" Sunset Shimmer would've continued on, but was stopped and held in place by Celestia's magic. The princess glared at her but returned to her normal look when facing the three victims she had just saved.

"Ignoring that last bit..." She shot a dirty look at her student. "I trust you see that Sunset Shimmer is still the top student in my school."

"That she is," one of the mares said, glaring at the filly. "No question there. Her behavior however is a different matter entirely. I hope you made the right choice picking her as your personal student, Princess. But all in all, yes, she passes with top marks." The four ponies began walking out of the room. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we have some other students to grade, as well as this one filly who's looking to join us. Should be a treat. Always a pleasure, Princess... and good luck." They closed the door, leaving Celestia alone with her student.

"So, you going to say anything or what?" Sunset Shimmer said, jumping with glee. "Admit it, I surprised even you."

Celestia paused. "That is true. I expected you to succeed as you always have, but the spell with the flowers was something else indeed."

Sunset Shimmer smirked. "Yeah, it was pretty cool. What can I say? To be honest, though... I did it to impress you... Glad it worked."

Celestia wrapped her hoof around her student and pulled her in for a hug. "You don't need to impress me... You know that."

"Yeah right. I see you always just smiling whenever I do anything... I want to see you shocked when you see what I can do. What? You can't blame me for that," Sunset Shimmer said, giggling.

"That I cannot. And yes, I was shocked. Happy?"

"Obviously!" Sunset Shimmer played around in her mentor's embrace. Celestia played back, resulting in a game where Sunset tried to escape her grasp, only to be caught again. "I'm getting out of this... Just watch me." As the game progressed, though, Celestia's smile fell into a frown.

"Hey, what's wrong? Don't tell me you're sad because you're losing," Sunset Shimmer said, actually managing to escape. "Princess Celestia...?"

Celestia sighed. "It is true that your power is greater than what even I could have hoped for... but I fear for you my student. Your behavior can be... troublesome at times, and I am unsure if even I am up to the task of reforming it.

"What?! If this this about those clowns then they deserved it. You saw how they were doubting me."

Celestia brought her student back into her embrace. "Sunset Shimmer, I accepted you as my personal student because you showed great promise. But ask yourself, is treating others with such malice really how you want to be known. Does it really do your powers justice?"

"Known? Who cares what those weaklings think. The only thing that matters is power. I mean the only reason you're princess is because you can control the sun.”

"You are mistaken. My powers over the sun are not what make me princess. Being a ruler is as much about knowing how to lead with your heart as it is knowing when to lead with your power."

Sunset Shimmer laid back in Celestia's hoof with a pouty face and crossed her hooves. "Still, not my fault they're weak. I mean, I was right when I told them off."

"Perhaps in your mind, but even if you are right, that does not give you permission to-."

"Yeah yeah, I know what you're going to tell me. I got to be modest and humble.”

Celestia shook her head and released her student. "We will continue this later. I have some important matters to attend to. In the meantime, reflect on your actions. I have high hopes for you, my student, but I fear that your ways will one day lead to your downfall." And with that she walked to the door and stepped out.

Sunset Shimmer stuck out her tongue at her. "As if..." She scoffed at the very thought of her downfall and looked around at the sea of flowers that blanketed the room. If it was up to her, no one would be allowed to clean the flowers up. They were a reminder of how far she had come from her days before being Celestia’s student--days she wanted nothing more than to forget. "Sorry, Princess, you might be wise and all, but it seems like the thousands of years you've been alive haven't taught you anything.”

With her business in the room now done, Sunset Shimmer ran through the door and into the halls of the royal palace with a confident smile. The palace staff walked alongside her, but many times also in front of her at a snail’s pace. "Really?" Sunset Shimmer made sure to barge into everyone of them, knocking the royal guards to the side and the dusters and such to the walls. A maid stopped in front of her as she ran by, and found herself almost being knocked down a flight of stairs for her offense. "Walking isn't that hard you know!"

The filly went from hall to hall, zooming past everything and everypony in her way without even considering to slow down. It was only as she ran in front of an open window did she stop, freezing from the beautiful view of the kingdom. Canterlot was basking in her mentor's rays, at the same appearing to be only a hoof away and yet so far from atop the high palace window. She set her sights on the horizon and stuck out her hoof towards the lands beyond the city, wishing they were hers.

That was when she remembered, they were already hers.

She continued on through the palace and ended her journey by ramming through a door and entering her room. She landed on her bed and stretched out her body as she gazed at her room’s many decorations. The walls around her held countless framed pictures of her and Celestia spanning back to the day she entered the palace a few years ago. There were also many pictures of herself alone, and each had a crown or other royal ornament glued to the top of her head. On the ground were several trash bins overflowing with crumbled paper. Each sheet was filled front and back with a myriad of different titles and names for herself with the word princess in front. Princess Sunset Shimmer the Magnificent and Powerful was a common one.

The centerpiece of the room was a map of Equestria on the ceiling on top of her bed. "One day... Oh, who am I kidding?" Sunset Shimmer got up and began jumping on her bed in joy. "The way I'm going, it's probably just a few years before I'm made princess.” She put her hoof on the map, but found herself beginning to frown. "But maybe Princess Celestia was right? I mean, now that I think about it, I can be a little mean. I hope I was never mean to her." But as quickly as the frown had come, it vanished. "But still, those ponies had no right to judge me like that. At least let me finish before judging me! And these stupid maids really need to learn how to walk. Seriously, it shouldn't be that hard!"

Sunset Shimmer fell back onto her bed with her future kingdom in view. "One thing's certain, though. Nopony can take this away from me."

The Next Princess of Equestria

The kingdom of Equestria greeted its future princess as she woke up. From edge to edge it hung above her, the first sight of the day, and that was just how she liked it.

Sunset Shimmer jumped out of her bed and stretched, letting out a big yawn. The sun was up which meant only one thing, another day to grow more powerful and another day to show her teacher that she was ready for more, much more. Her horn was sore from the feats of the day before, but from looking at her, nopony would ever guess that. Any pain she felt was masked by a smile that radiated with a contagious confidence. "I better not be late for training," she said to herself, running out the door.

Outside in the hallway, a horde of staff members and royal guards were locked in conversation with nearly all of them on the verge of jumping around like they had finally gotten their first kiss. Sunset Shimmer walked towards them since they were on her path, saying to herself, "Wonder what they're so excited about? Probably just something stupid." She walked past the crowd, trying to ignore them and just get out. That all changed as she walked past one of the foodservers, a stallion, who was talking to a maid.

"I'd think I was being played for a fool if somepony told me a filly could be that strong!" he screamed. "Seriously, imagine what she'll be like when she's older!"

The words froze Sunset Shimmer where she stood. Are they talking about me? Nopony around her made eye contact with her. In fact, they seemed so into their blabberings that she could've pushed one of them down the stairs and the others wouldn't have even noticed. No... but if it's not me...

She charged to the foodserver, on the verge of a heart attack. "What filly?! Tell me!"

"Oh, surprised you of all ponies haven't heard about her yet," the foodeserver said. "One of the fillies that took the test to get into the School for Gifted Unicorns yesterday blew everypony away with her performance. From what I heard, it was unreal!"

"W-What?!" Sunset Shimmer's eyes popped out.

"It's true," the maid said." I saw the whole thing... Truthfully, I thought she was cursed at first. She came in as weak as any other filly when the test started, but then there was some big rainbowy explosion in the sky and the next thing you know she went out of control! Scared me half to Tarturus."

Sunset Shimmer brought her face closer to the maid's. Her eyes popped out even further. "What?! What did she do that was so impressive?!"

"What didn't she do!" the maid said. "Transformation spells, an age spell..."

"And don't forget about the dragon," the foodserver said. "She turned a baby dragon giant like it was nothing!"

"Yes... and her eyes went all white, something I've only seen the Princess do! She got so out of control that Princess Celestia herself had to control her," the maid said.

Sunset Shimmer was left motionless from the idea that a filly could be that strong. The soreness in her horn spiked suddenly, further branding her with the truth of how weak she was compared to this mystery filly. "Who's her professor? What was she accepted as. A second year? Third?"

"Third?!" the foodserver laughed. "Come on, that's ridiculous. The only professor a pony like that deserves is Princess Celestia herself."

Sunset Shimmer stepped backwards, shaking her head. "No... No..." She ran away in the direction of Celesita's throne room as fast as she could. "No... No..." She galloped through the halls so fast that she was just a fiery haze to any onlookers. " This is definitely just some stupid joke. Age spell... Dragon... Cursed?! Even exaggerating's gotta have a limit." The throne room was only a few halls away, mere minutes but too long for the filly to bare. "Whoever started this is gonna be in big trouble. Just wait until I get to the Princess!"

Sunset Shimmer rammed through the doors to the throne room, ready to scream out the lies she had just been told. What she got instead was the sight of her mentor talking to another filly with a motherly smile. The same motherly smile that Celestia always gave Sunset.

Sunset Shimmer froze as her eyes popped out to their maximum and broke the scene. Celestia and the filly turned to her, but all she could do was twitch her eye and look on as another pony stood beside her mentor where she once did. The filly was a unicorn the same height as her, with a bright purple body and eyes. Her tail and mane were a darker purple and had two streaks in them, one pink and one a brighter purple. The filly stood wrapped in the warmth of Celestia's hoof, shivering and looking down at the ground like a scared puppy. There was no look of power on her, no feeling that this was a pony that could do the things she supposedly did. Nor was there any shred of confidence on her. Sunset Shimmer glared at her, jaw dropped and disgusted, and with only thought in mind. What. The. Hell!

"Princess Celestia, what is going on?!"

The authenticity of Celestia's smile blew away, turning it to one that was obviously fake. "Good morning, Sunset. I can see that you are quite surprised right now. Not that I expected anything different." The filly switched back and forth between facing the ground and the glaring pony in front of her. "This is Twilight Sparkle, and from this point forward she shall be your peer, as well as my new personal student."

Sunset Shimmer's blood pressure reached new heights as she glared at her peer with a newfound intensity. Celestia tightened her hoof around the filly beside her, saying, "Go on now. No need to be shy," and released her.

"Hi," Twilight said, looking more nervous than ever. "Like the princess said, my name's Twilight. What's yours?"

Sunset Shimmer redirected her glare to the Princess, completely ignoring the noise coming from the joke of a pony in front of her. "But I'm your apprentice!" she screamed, pointing at herself, "You can't just get another one! What, am I not good enough on my own? Do you need another one to feel proud, is that it?!"

Celestia's forced smile gave way. She glared at her student. "I can assure you that you have nothing of the sort to fear. Now if you can just-."

"And really, Princess!" Sunset Shimmer pointed at the pony meant to be her peer. "This is who you put me with!" Twilight turned away, frowning. "The castle staff told me the things she apparently did like age spells and that she had cursed white eyes, but just look at her. This is who you're picking to follow in your footsteps?! She can barely get her face out of the ground!"

"Enough!" Celestia screamed, stomping the ground. Her eyes glowed white, but returned to normal as her breathing softened and returned to its normal pace. She still glared at Sunset, saying, "I can assure you that Twilight is in fact capable of all she is credited with. She is your sister student, and any attack made on her I will treat as if it were on me. Are we clear?"

Sunset Shimmer just growled.

"Are we?!"

Sunset Shimmer growled again, but in the end forced up a smile and turned to her new sister. "So... Twilight, huh? My name's Sunset Shimmer. Where you from?"

"C-Canterlot," Twilight said, still shaking like she was in front of some invisible audience.

"Ugh... I'm not gonna bite you or anything." I'd really like to though. "What do keep on fidgeting around for?"

"Sorry, I'm just kinda nervous being here, that's all."

"What, you never been in a palace before?"

"Well, no... but it's not that. I just can't believe that I'm here... next to the Princess... in the palace. Yesterda,y I was with my parents... and now I'm all alone, being told that I have some special power or something."

"So that's what she's been telling you," Sunset Shimmer said, glaring at the Princess, who glared bac., "She told me the same thing when I first came. Guess special power isn't as rare as it used to be. What else she tell you?"

"Nothing much. She showed me around the castle and introduced me to the staff. They were nice, but I wish this place wasn't that big, especially my room."

Sunset Shimmer kept her focus on her mentor, glaring, and gave not a single shred of attention to the pony she was in conversation with. "Uh huh... yeah..."

"I wish my parents could be here with me, though..." Twilight said, getting saddened. "But they told me they couldn't come... I wish I knew why though."

"You're better off without them, trust me. I left my parents a long time ago. Second best decision I ever made." Sunset Shimmer shook her head at the Princess and felt a sting inside her worse than any mere soreness. "I'm going now... Got stuff to do. You know how it is." Not giving Twilight a second to say anything back, she gave one last dirty look to the Princess and ran out of the room, barging straight through the doors.

Now on the open hallways, Sunset Shimmer charged through them at record speed, growling with the face of a soon to be serial killer. The crowd of ponies lost in their conversations about the almighty Twilight Sparkle came once again, to which she did the obvious thing, ram through each and every one of them. Making the foodserver and maid hit the floor felt the best.

She ran through the door to her room and jumped onto the bed once she was inside, screaming with the intensity of a roar but the sound a little girl throwing a hissy fit. "How could she! I've done everything she's said for years, been to every stupid lesson, every stupid speech, and this is how she repays me! Why doesn't she just take in all of Equestria as her personal students?! You know what; she probably will!"

Sunset Shimmer got up and walked back and forth in front of a collection of framed pictures of Celestia and her set atop a dressing table. "I'm her personal student, me! What, am I not good enough, is that it? Yeah, doing everything you say and more apparently isn't good enough anymore. Silly me for thinking it was!" Her anger hardened her breathing, "I'm her personal student; I'm the next princess; nopony's gonna take this away from me. Definitely not a pony like Twilight.”

She turned to a picture, one of her as a younger filly riding atop Celestia like in a game of giddyup. The smiles on their faces were ones of pure bliss, like their company was all they wanted in the world, and all they needed. Sunset Shimmer remembered it as the first picture Celestia and her took together, though now, years later, it evoked not even the slightest glimpse of emotion. The frame was hoof-crafted by the duo, a symbol to commemorate their relationship for all time. Sunset Shimmer growled, after which she slammed the picture onto the floor, shattering it. She gave it one last look and shot a magical beam at it. What remained was just specks of burnt dust, too small to even be considered ashes.

Sunset Shimmer stood beside the specks, breathing heavily. As the seconds passed, though, her breathing began to calm and the sight of the dust began to bring out emotion from the filly. The picture had been there since the beginning, a reminder of who she once was and the pony that had taught her so much, and now it was nothing more than grains of dirt being picked up by the air, never to return again.

A tear broke out, but she fought it, trying to keep it from dripping onto her cheek. "Why do I act like this?" The dust scurried around on the ground, going every which way into corners and cracks unreachable by hoof. "Maybe this is what Princess Celestia mean? I mean I've always been… Well, that's not true either. No point in lying to myself." Sunset Shimmer gazed at the gallery of pictures that showcased her relationship with Celestia over the years. From her first days in the palace to now, the princess always stood beside her with the same motherly smile, unchanged by time. The only pony who changed was her.

Sunset ran around the room and went to every crack and pore that could've contained the dust she had made. The process took over fifteen minutes, but by the end of it she magically held a glob of dirt and other things in the air. Most of it was who knew what, but somewhere inside was the picture of Celestia and her, and so it would have to do. She softly placed the glob where the picture once stood, and charged out the room smiling like in the picture.

I got to learn to keep it cool. Twilight's just some nervous little pony who can't even be in the palace without her mommy. Nopony like that's being made princess. Sunset Shimmer ran across the halls managing to not ram anyypony in her way. But still... I don't like that 'special power' talk... But I'll just deal with that later. Gotta make up for how I acted first before it's too late. Don't want Twilight thinking I'm some bitch!

She increased her speed and headed towards the throne room. As she sped through a hall a few corridors away from her destination, though, a familiar voice caught her attention and froze her within an instant. The hall had a row of rooms on both sides, with every door shut and window covered. Only one door was opened, by an inch or two, and out of it leaked the voice of the pony Sunset Shimmer was running to see, Princess Celestia.

What? What's Princess Celestia doing in these rooms? They're not even supposed to be done yet, Sunset Shimmer thought, slowly walking towards the open door and peeking. Inside stood the Princess caressing a worried looking Twilight Sparkle. Behind them was a bed, closet, tables and other living accessories, the same as in Sunset Shimmer's room, only newer looking. What the..?

Celestia raised Twilight's head and looked at her with a smile so contagious even Sunset Shimmer couldn't resist it, saying to the worried filly, "Look, my child, I know this is all very new to you... but trust me when I say that this is for the best You are here because you are special, and you owe it to yourself to bring out your talent."

"B-But... why can't I see my parents?" Twilight said.

"Of course you can see your parents," Celestia said, caressing her. "You can see them anytime you wish. Just because you are here does not mean you cannot see them."

"B-But why can't they live here too?" Twilight pointed around the room. "This room is so big... We can have another bed right there... and... and..."

Sunset Shimmer rolled her eyes and held in her laughter.

"I am sorry, Twilight," Celestia said. "But your parents cannot join you. They have their own lives to live, as you do yours... I am sure you can understand."

"I guess..." Twilight said, still facing down. "I mean I am happy to be here... This place is everything I dreamed it would be. I just need some time to get used to it is all.

Celestia tightened her embrace with the filly. "I admire your bravery, my child." Twilight looked up at her. "It takes great courage to so suddenly change your life."

I was never called brave, Sunset Shimmer thought, growing more disgusted.

"Not many can do what you have already done," Celestia said. Twilight began to smile. "Know that I will be here whenever you need me. I know you feel alone, but there is no need, my child. I will always be here. You shall never be alone." They both embraced, caught within each other's warmth. Sunset Shimmer began to growl as the seconds passed and their embrace only tightened. The bliss on their faces was unmistakable.

Celestia and her student ended their hug but still looked on with the same bliss. "There is no reason to fear," Celestia said. "You have great power, more than I have seen in any pony, and it shall be my honor to help you unlock it. Perhaps... there shall even come a time when you no longer need to address me as Princess."

That was the final sentence Sunset Shimmer could hear. She ran away from the door and to an abandoned corner several halls away, unable to erase what she had just witnessed. Her body shook with anger and her breathing reached a point where the next gasp of air was an impossible challenge. The sight of her mentor and the filly that had come out of nowhere into her life burned within her, as did the words spoken. The look of bliss on Celestia's face. The fact that another filly had come so suddenly out of the blue with such supposed power. The fact that this was all happening the day after Celestia had seemed so disappointed at her. The thought--no, the promise that Twilight would one day join Celestia as princess. Sunset Shimmer cringed as the sting of reality tore her from the inside out, leaving her all alone, with only herself as her companion.

"Alright, Celesita," Sunset Shimmer sucked in her snot, "You wanna play me like that? Fine!" The smile on her face turned cold. Any and all memory of warmth left her heart, leaving her with only the embedded image of what she was up against and the knowledge of what now had to be done. "You wanna play me for a fool, fine... You wanna throw me away like some old crown, fine... You wanna replace me with some pony who doesn't even know what she started... Fine! I should've learned my lesson last time, but oh well..."

Sunset Shimmer slammed her hoof against a nearby framed picture of the Princess. Not satisfied, she continued slamming her hoof into it until it was nothing more than ripped paper and shards of glass on the floor. "I'll be your perfect student... Don't you worry, Celestia. And as for Twilight Sparkle, just wait until I'm done with her!

Too Easy

Sunset Shimmer stood in front of the closed doors to the throne room, ready to begin her plan. The voices of Celestia and her beloved Twilight Sparkle leaked out from the other side, no doubt from what was obviously another chat about Twilight's greatness. Sunset Shimmer could only laugh as she heard the muffled chatter, and she stood with an ever growing evil smile which was made even more apparent from the afternoon rays which struck her from the windows behind her. "This is gonna be too easy," she said to herself, cracking a chuckle. She took a deep breath and a moment later had transformed. No longer looking like the walking time bomb she did before, she now gave off the appearance of the nicest little filly you could ever meet, the last pony you'd except to push anypony.

She opened the door slowly and took a step into the throne room. Celestia and Twilight were facing one another in conversation but stopped from the sound of the doors opening. Sunset Shimmer looked upon her teacher and peer in silence with her new face. Her expression was now one of sadness and she faced down, keeping her eyes away from the two ponies in front of her. The silence lasted for a few seconds until she spoke, "Hi... Princess... Twilight... You guys busy?"

"I have time... What is needed?" Celestia said, lacking the usual gentle tone she kept for her student. Twilight looked away, uneasy.

"It's nothing like that," Sunset Shimmer paused ,"I'm actually here to say... that I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" Celestia said.

"Yeah..." Sunset's voice gave off a tone of genuine sadness. "About earlier... I shouldn't have gotten angry like that." Celestia's head shot back from surprise. "Look, I know I can be pretty mean sometimes, but I just feel icky about what happened. Twilight didn't do anything. I'm the one who overreacted. I guess I was just... you know... jealous." Sunset Shimmer picked her head up and found Twilight now facing her but still with an uneasy look. "It's my bad... I feel like a jerk for exploding on Twilight like that, especially since it's just her first day here." She stared her peer in the eye. "So... Twilight, wanna start over?"

Twilight smiled, looking almost excited, and turned to the Princess who smiled as well with a look of overwhelming pride. Celestia gave a nod to her new student and Twilight began walking to Sunset Shimmer, saying, "I can't really blame you. You've been Celestia's only student forever! I'd probably be mad too."

"So, we cool?" Sunset Shimmer stuck out her hoof.

Twilight paused, "Yeah," and pounded her hoof against her new friend's.

"Great... so, you wanna do something? You know, to get to know each other and stuff... I can show you around the palace?"

"I would... but I kinda already got a tour... and besides, I don't want to do all that walking again," Twilight said, laughing.

Sunset Shimmer grabbed Twilight, wrapping her hoof around the purple filly tightly. "Yeah, but you never got my tour! Come on, I'll show everything you need to know about this place, especially what they don't want you to know!"

Twilight looked back at the Princess, "Can I?"

"Of course," Celestia said, looking more proud than ever.

"Yeah!" Sunset Shimmer screamed. With Twilight still in her hooves, she ran towards the door, dragging her new friend along for the ride.

"Twilight," Celestia said.

The two fillies braked. "Yes, Princess?" Twilight said.

"Remember what we talked about earlier... Time is not a luxury we can waste right now."

"Don't worry-" Twilight never had a chance of finishing, as Sunset Shimmer began running again at twice their original speed.

"Come on already!"

The two ran out the door smiling in each other's hooves. As Sunset Shimmer gazed at her friend's joy, all she could feel was fire burn inside of herself. You idiot.

"My room.... really...that's where you want to go first?!"

Sunset Shimmer relaxed on her bed and watched as Twilight walked around every which way gazing at and touching everything that could be gazed at and touched. The bed, the walls, the fan, even the trash can. Twilight paused to focus on every one of them like the only place they could ever be found was in this room. Sunset Shimmer still had her nice pony face on, but found it more of a struggle to hold it as her new friend kept on inspecting every inch of her property. "What, you never seen a wall before?" she said.

Twilight laughed, "I like the pattern you have... the color too. I'm still thinking of how to decorate my room, so I'm looking for ideas." The walls had a fiery pattern with alternating reddish-orange and bright yellow flames.

Just pick something, shouldn't be that hard. "So, Twilight, tell me about yourself... You said you lived here in Canterlot before. What kind of house? Was it big?" Sunset Shimmer said.

Twilight turned to her, "No, it was pretty normal. What do you want to know?"

"I don't know.... usual stuff I guess. How's your family like?" Probably a bunch of tools like you.

"Great! I couldn't have asked for better parents... there's also my BBBFF Shining Armor."

Sunset Shimmer looked at Twilight like she had just spewed out some random gibberish, "BBBFF?"

"Yeah!" Twilight jumped up in excitement, "It means Big Brother Best Friend Forever. My brother and I are really close." She continued blabbering on about all the things she and her BBBFF did together, but everything said went in one of Sunset Shimmer's ears and out the other. Sunset's hoof tightened into a fist with her eyes focused on her bestie's face, but she fought back the urge and reinforced her friendly smile, lest her new mask be seen through.

"Anyway... what got you into heavy duty magic?" she said.

"I guess I've always been into magic... What really got me into it though was the last Summer Sun Celebration. Just seeing Princess Celestia raise the sun in front of everypony... I knew that I had to be like her one day," Twilight said. "How about you?"

"I'll tell you some other time... I got my reasons," Sunset Shimmer said. Her tone was feisty, like she had been offended.

"Okay..." Twilight turned back to the contents in the room and restarted her exploration. She gazed at the mass of crumbled papers next to the trash can and then walked to the collection of pictures Sunset Shimmer had of her and Celestia on the walls and dressing table. The map of Equestria on the ceiling was next to hold Twilight's attention and did so for many seconds, aferwhich she said, "Why do you keep the map up there?"

"I like having Equestria be the first thing I see everyday," Sunset Shimmer said.

"Why?"

"Cuz I'm going to be princess one day, obviously!"

"You are Princess Celestia's main student... but still, being her student doesn't mean you're automatically going to be a princess too. How can you be so sure?" Twilight said.

"Isn't it obvious?! The only reason the Princess is even training us is so we can replace her... She's going to stop being princess one day, you know."

"I don't think I'd accept the position even if I got it," Twilight said, looking worried, "Being princess looks like so much work... If I had to do everything Princess Celestia does, I'd probably go crazy from the stress!"

"Yeah... except you'd still be the princess of an entire kingdom! Think about it... the entire kingdom is yours... everypony bows down to you whenever they see you... you own this whole palace... and that's just the basics! How dumb can you be not to want that!"

"Well, I don't know about being dumb, but I don't want it," Twilight said, "I just want to learn everything I can and do something good with it... Becoming princess would be great, but it's not a goal."

Sunset Shimmer laughed. Typical goodie-two shoes. You're saying that now but just wait... power is everything! Anypony who tells you otherwise is either stupid or jealous of those who have it. Remember that... though I'm sure you know what I'm talking about, considering what you did to get here."

"I don't even count that to be honest," Twilight frowned, "I only did all that because of some mysterious rainbow explosion. Without that, I'm nothing compared to a pony like you."

Sunset Shimmer paused to take in the moment, afterwhich she forced up the most heartwarming smile she could muster and stood up to caress her friend, "Yeah, you might've only did it because of some rainbow, but that still means you got all that power inside of you. No joke, and remember, I'm the last pony who'd say something like this... when you get it out one day," If you even make it that long, "You're gonna be a lot stronger than me... probably even the Princess. So stop moping around."

"Okay, now I know you're just saying that," Twilight said, blushing.

"I'm being serious... what, I can't compliment you... I'm not that selfish you know." The two fillies shared a laugh.

Twilight smiled as the laughter died. It wasn't a regular smile of pure joy, but one that had a hint of sadness mixed into it. She faced down and paused, then saying, "You know, when I met you, I was scared we wouldn't get along... I never really had that many friends back home... My brother was really the only pony I ever considered my friend. I was scared that it would all be the same here... but I'm glad it's not... thanks."

Sunset Shimmer blushed and wrapped her hoof around Twilight, "Oh shut up with the sappy stuff... same here though. Now come on, let's explore this place for real!"

The two fillies bursted out of the room and charged onto the maze of hallways and corridors before them. They ran side by side and went through hall after hall. "Now those ponies are the foodservers," Sunset Shimmer said as her and Twilight ran past one, "Like the name says, they'll serve you whatever you want whenever you want. The most hilarious thing to do to them is asking for a food that doesn't exist in the middle of the night. You don't know what you're missing until you've done it."

The two sped past a maid hard at work cleaning a spill of some unknown liquid. "Pro tip, maids gotta pick up after you no matter what!" Sunset Shimmer said, "So try to get creative, alright?"

Twilight laughed as she looked at the spill, "Ew... what do you thin that is?"

"Trust me, you'd don't want to know half of the stuff that exists in the place... Moving on!"

The fillies ran towards and into the kitchen where the head chef and an army of cooks were busy preparing plate after plate of food meant for a royal palace. "Pro tip number two," Sunset Shimmer said, "The chef will put stuff in your food if you complain about it, but he's on probation... One more strike and he's out! Just letting you know if you two don't get along."

"Thanks..." Twilight said, sounding unsure.

The two ran to the royal guard's training center, a set of halls set aside just for them and filled with rooms such as an indoor track, a weight room and a room filled with nothing but guards yelling at each other. Twilight nearly stopped while watching the intensity at which Equestria's finest trained.

"Wow... I wouldn't want to mess with those ponies," she said.

"Oh please... I know foals who can beat them up," Sunset Shimmer smiled mischievously, "Hey, you want to go someplace really intense?"

Twilight followed her friend as she led her into the far end of the palace, beyond the point the voices of anypony could be heard. They went into a tower that looked like any other and down it's circular staircase. The trip down took a few minutes. Twilight gasped once at the bottom from the sight in front of her. A prison complex lay in front of them that went so far that it disappeared into the pitch black shadows that had to be at least hundreds of yards away. The walls were all a blackish rock and dozens of cells were cut into it with the insides as dark as the rock around them.

"Welcome to the dungeons!" Sunset Shimmer said, looking a little too happy, "What, you thought this place didn't have any?"

"Uh... huh..." Twilight was frozen stiff.

"It's been a while since anypony has been sent here... or really been down here at all. But still, it's good to have places like this... just in case." Sunset Shimmer imagined her bff in a far off cell inside the shadows, wasting away. Better get used to this place... buddy. "Come on, let's explore some more."

The two fillies continued their journey through the royal palace for another hour. By the end of it, all their stamina had been sucked out of them and they were left on the floor of a hallway sucking in as much air as they could. They faced each other while on their backs and shared a laugh. "A-Any place... else you want to show me?" Twilight said.

"Maybe..." Sunset Shimmer took ten quick gulps on air in succession, "Let's just stay here for now though."

As they enjoyed the cold marble floor, the sound of quick hoofsteps approached them. A second later a royal guard stood over Twilight with a worried look. "Twilight Sparkle," he said, "The Princess requests your presence at once! She says it's urgent!"

"Aww... can you please tell her to wait a little while," Twilight said, "I haven't had this much fun in a long time!"

"No can do..." the guard said, shaking his head, "It's about... the visit."

Twilight jumped up, "Understood! Sorry for keeping her waiting!"

"Woah... woah... hold on there," Sunset Shimmer picked herself up, "What visit?"

"A griffin ambassador is coming tomorrow night with his family," Twilight said. The royal guard began to look more worried with every word she spoke until he sweated like he too had just run for an hour. He then walked away slapping his forehead. Twilight continued, "I don't know what they're going to talk about but Princess Celestia kept on saying that it was super important! I didn't even know she could get as nervous as she did."

"And how don't I know about this?! I'm always with the Princess during stuff like this," Sunset Shimmer glared. Guess I really am being replaced.

"You didn't know?" Twilight said, "I thought Princess Celestia had already told you a while ago? You sure she didn't tell you about it?"

No, Twilight, cuz I'm frggin deaf... And that was when a brilliant idea hatched in Sunset Shimmer's mind. Her glare vanished and she shot towards Twilight and held her looking more panicky than anything else, like a businesspony late for a meeting. "You're obviously going, right?"

"Well... yeah... the Princess has been preparing me for it ever since I first came here. It's weird, we've talked more about that than my studies," Twilight said.

"Good..." Sunset Shimmer sighed, "Cuz you know... the Princess needs at least one of us during these things." She laughed.

"You don't want to go? We can talk to the Princess right now and-"

"Nah... I'm fine... Don't worry about me. I'd rather train anyway."

"You sure?" Twilight said, sounding saddened, "I thought it would be more fun if we did it together."

Sunset Shimmer began walking backwards, "Like I said... it's cool," and then ran away from the scene full gallop. "See ya!" Hope you're ready for tomorrow...

Author's Notes:

I was originally going to add what happens "tomorrow" to this chapter but then realized that it would make it too long. Hope you're as excited for the next chapter as I am! I already feel bad for Twilight.

Bye Bye, Twilight

It was like the sirens for an air raid had just gone off; every staff member of the royal palace was scrambling on the hallways with lightning speed and bumped into each other with the wall as their next point of impact. They all shook with a worried look that had to be seen to be believed and only ran faster as every second ticked away. "Minutes, everypony!" a maid yelled out holding five stacks of plates on top of each other, "That's all we got, move it!"

In the middle of the mess of ponies and in front of the entrance to the palace stood Princess Celestia with a look of anxiety even worse than the rest's. She didn't shake or clench her teeth like the others but the fear inside her was obvious to all. Twilight Sparkle stood beside her in a custom designed dress looking nervous as well but also with a halfly formed frown. She gazed outside the window beside them at the night sky in silence while her mentor kept her eyes on the entrance doors like they were about to explode open any second.

Twilight turned to the her, saying with her head down in a saddened tone, "Princess..."

"Not now, Twilight," Celestia said, keeping her eyes glued in front, "My apologizes, but the Griffin ambassador has already arrived... It is only a matter of seconds before he reaches here." She jerked her head to Twilight's direction. "Twilight, you remember the instructions I gave you on how to behave?"

"Yes, Princess... I remember... But-."

"Good..." Celestia went back to facing the doors, "I cannot overstate how important this meeting is... If all goes well it will mean great things for the future of Equestria and our relations with the Griffins. I apologize but I will listen to what you have to say when this is finished. Now keep your head up... looking one's guest in the eye is crucial for a welcoming first impression."

Twilight picked up her head, but still frowned, "Understood... Princess" Why couldn't Sunset Shimmer be invited too?

A shadow watched the Princess and her protégé.

Far off in a corner, through the swarm of panicking ponies, stood Sunset Shimmer keeping an eye on the duo with an evil smile. She stood in a dark closet and watched through the space left from the slightly opened door. The space couldn't have been more than a centimeter in width, but it was all that was needed.

She chuckled with a menacing tone, "Time to get what's coming to you Twilight ol' buddy... I did a little research on this Griffin ambassador and his wife, and trust me, you can't make this any easier for me." She turned to her side where a glass vial filled with a clear liquid sat next to her. She picked it up and opened it with her magic and drank the liquid inside to the last drop. An instant later her body began disappearing until it was gone. Gotta love the potions department!

Sunset Shimmer slowly opened the door and used her magic to make sure it wouldn't creak. Her magic now had no glow. She put a magical field over her hooves to lesson the noise from her steps and began walking to the Princess and Twilight, stopping once she was a hall away.

The doors to the palace began opening. "Remember your training, Twilight," Celestia said. Once open they revealed a valet, and behind him the Griffin ambassador and his wife. The ambassador was of old age, not senior citizen but above middle age, and had the look of royalty on him which was complimented by his fine black suit and near sparkling red tie. His wife wore a flowing white dress and also had the look of a Griffin that had only known luxury, especially on her face which was packed with make up and an obvious plastic surgery. Her most striking feature though was her gold necklace which held a sky blue jewel in the center that was the size of a pebble. It reflected the moonlight in colorful sparkles.

"Greetings," Celestia said in an even more princess-like voice, "Welcome to the royal palace. It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Majestic. This is my protégé, Twilight Sparkle."

"Hello," Twilight bowed, "It's a pleasure to meet you."

Majestic laughed, "No need to bow young one..." He turned to the Princess, "Good to meet you too... I've certainly had quite the experience since I got here. This valet of yours has given me the best tour I could of asked for!"

The valet nodded and left the scene. Celestia nodded back, "As I expected of him."

"Aren't you forgetting someone, dear...?" the wife said.

Majestic laughed, "My apologies.... This is my wife, Radiance."

Twilight stared at Radiance's necklace with both eyes wide open, "That is a beautiful necklace."

"Why thank you!" Radiance said, putting a claw over her chest, "This is no ordinary jewel... it is an heirloom that has been in my family since we have existed. I received it on my grandmother's death bed as her final wish before departing." She paused and stared at the jewel looking emotional.

"I'm so sorry for your loss," Twilight said.

"My condolences as well," Celestia said, "Now then, let's walk to the banquet hall, shall we? I have quite the dinner planned for us." The four of them began walking through the palace with Sunset Shimmer following them, always just a few steps away. Celestia walked beside Majestic, saying, "I trust that you are as enthusiastic about this trade deal as I?"

"Of course!" Majestic said, "The Griffins have always been close with Equestria... It's a surprise this wasn't discussed earlier."

Celestia laughed, "Agreed... I do hope all goes well. Once the fine details are sorted out this will usher in a new age for relations between our two cultures."

"And not to mention the benefit it will give to our economies," Majestic said.

As they continued together behind them walked Twilight and Radiance who walked side by side. "I've actually heard quite a bit about you," Radiance said.

"About what I did to get here, right?" Twilight said.

Radiance nodded, "I do hope for a bright future for you... a being with your potential is quite a rarity indeed. How are you enjoying your new home in the palace?"

The two continued their conversation and followed the route to the banquet hall. Sunset Shimmer remained behind them and matched every one of their hoofsteps with her own. She followed them as the doors to the banquet hall opened and entered in just a few inches behind her targets. The hall had a rectangular table in the middle with dining cloth and chairs that surpassed the quality of anything else in the palace. A dozen waiters stood on the far side of the room, standing tall with a friendly yet professional smile.

The doors closed and the four guests of honor took their seats on the table. Celestia and Twilight sat beside each other facing the two Griffins with Twilight in front of Radiance and the Princess in front of the ambassador. Sunset Shimmer tiptoed to a few feet away from them.

"What kind of a feast do you have prepared for tonight, Celestia?" Radiance said.

"You tell me," Celestia said.

The waiters went into the kitchen and came out with plate after plate, dish after dish of the finest food royalty could afford. They set it on the table and left afterwhich the four sitting down began to dive in and enjoy their banquet. "Would it be too much to ask for your chef as part of the deal?" Majestic said, laughing in between bites.

Sunset Shimmer smirked, Now to make my move... and scanned around the room. The waiters were too busy either picking up or delivering dishes and the four were completely into their endless meals. Sunset Shimmer quickly powered up her horn and used her magic to throw Radiance's current dish as she was eating onto the floor, shattering it. The food spilled all over Radiance's dress.

She screamed, "What in the world?!" and looked at her dress in horror, "Someone explain this at once!" The other three froze. "I did not do that; what is going on?!"

As she continued reacting in horror to the spill, Sunset Shimmer concentrated to her fullest and carefully cut Radiance's family jewel from her necklace and moved it across the table from underneath towards Twilight.

"I'm so sorry," Celestia said, looking worried, "Ponies, have this cleaned up at once!"

An army of staff members ran into the room and began the clean up. A waiter even came in with a replacement to the lost dish and food. As everypony at the table was drawn into the drama Sunset Shimmer slowly lifted Twilight's dress and placed the jewel into it. She then crossed her hooves and waited. Twilight hadn't noticed. Sunset Shimmer sighed and took a few steps back. And now it begins...

Radiance calmed down, "I do say... either that plate had a mind of its own or this palace is haunted."

"Agreed..." Majestic looked around with suspicion, "That was quite weird indeed."

"I can assure you neither is true," Celestia said, "It was just an unfortunate accident, that's all. I do apologize for your dress however."

"This dress was of great value... but it can be replaced," Radiance said with a grumpy tone, "As long as the next meal is not the same as the last."

"Dear..." Majestic said, "Did your jewel drop along with your food?"

Radiance looked down, "What?! Where did it go?!" and jumped out. "No... No... No! It can't be missing! No!" She began looking for it underneath the table, on top of the table and even in the chandelier. She shot around in every direction.

"Just calm down..." Majestic said, "It has to be here somewhere."

Celestia spoke up, "Yes... I can have-."

"No! I can't lose this... My grandma... No!" Her hysteria continued for another minute until she suddenly froze and then glared at Twilight. "The plate... a unicorn like you could have easily done that."

"Radiance, pl-," Celestia said, before getting cut off.

Radiance walked towards the filly, "You have been eyeing my jewel ever since I reached here... The commotion from my ruined meal is all you would've needed... Where is it?! Where are you hiding it?!" she screamed right in Twilight's face. "Tell me!"

Celestia got up, "Radiance, stop this at once! I can assure you that Twilight did not steal anything!"

"Then you won't mind if I inspect her dress..." Radiance began tearing through the filly's dress as Twilight screamed, making sure to inspect every thread and fiber. A second later she pulled out the jewel leaving the others still with shock, most of all Twilight. Majestic began glaring.

Sunset Shimmer squeed internally to the point of euphoria, Here it comes!

"W-What..?" Twilight said, shaking her head, "No... It really wasn't me... really! I have no clue how it c-could've gotten there. Princess... you believe me?"

"I knew it!" Radiance yelled an inch away from the filly, "How dare you! Do you have any idea what meaning this has to me?!"

Twilight choked back a tear, "Bu-."

"Silence! Not another word from you! First you destroy my dress and then you have the audacity to steal from me!"

Sunset Shimmer held back her laughter but found her stomach cramping. The pain was so, so worth it.

Radiance turned to the Princess, "Celestia, punish her at once! I want to see it happen, no promises!"

Twilight began crying.

"I said quiet! Celestia, execute her! Do it!"

Majestic slammed the table and got up, "I've had enough of this! Radiance, control yourself! And we're leaving this so called meeting!"

Twilight cried while repeating to herself, "I didn't do it... I didn't do it... I didn't do it..."

Majestic stormed out of the room with his wife right behind him. Celestia chased after them, "Please, do not let this taint the negotiations!"

"Negotiations? Ha!" Majestic walked away faster, "If your own student behaves in such a manner how can I possibly allow my kingdom to do business with the rest of your kind... Your kingdom may be beautiful but if this is how you conduct yourself then I want no part in it... Consider the deal off!"

"No, please... I can assure you-."

"Nothing! Good day!" And with that the two Griffins left the palace and slammed the door shut. Celestia frowned at first but then glared with such an intensity that she looked like a completely different pony. She walked back to the banquet hall where Twilight was still repeating to herself.

"Twilight, go to your room," Celestia said in an unrecognizably angry tone.

Twilight choked up from her tears, "Please, Princess... It really wasn't-."

"Twilight! I order you to report to your room at once!"

Twilight got up and left without saying another word. Sunset Shimmer watched with a smile so high that it cramped her cheeks, Bye bye, Twilight...

Author's Notes:

And that's why you don't steal from crazy people!

Twi and Sunset

Victory had been achieved; now all that was left was to enjoy its sweet aftertaste.

Sunset Shimmer took her time as she walked to the palace's throne room. The sun had once again risen and shot its light through and off every one of the marble laden hallways, making the air itself appear if it was a part of the sun. Sunset Shimmer had the smile of a filly that could do no wrong and even walked in such a soft and delicate fashion to match her smile. The events of the previous night kept on replaying in her head, the Griffin's tantrum, Twilight crying, a look of such disappointment on Celestia's face, and only added to her smile.

She opened the door to the Princess's throne room where she found the alicorn alone on her throne facing down and with a look of disappointment no less as strong as from the night before. Celestia looked lost in thought, now oblivious to the present happening around her. Sunset Shimmer spoke up, "Hello... Princess..."

Celestia turned to the filly, "Oh, my apologizes... I am not in the greatest of moods currently. Do you wish to speak about something?"

"Not rea... well... kinda," Sunset Shimmer looked down frowning for a moment, "I obviously heard about what happened yesterday... and even though I can't really know how you're feeling... Sorry."

Celestia grew a warm smile and walked to her student, "I am sorry as well; it was my responsibility to ensure all went well and it is pretty clear that I failed."

Sunset Shimmer chuckled, "Still though... it's not like you can do everything... and even if ya could, stuff just happens sometimes. Try not to feel too bad about it."

Celestia caressed the filly, "I will try to... Perhaps if I had made some different choices things would not have happened as they did... But what's done is done."

Sunset Shimmer frowned, "I just don't get why Twi would do that though... and even if you're going to do something like that don't do it on a night like that!" Celestia laughed. "So what did you do to her... I assume you kicked her out of the palace... right?"

"Who do you take me for?" Celestia said, jokingly, "Twilight is in her room."

Sunset Shimmer's eyes popped out. What?! "R-Really?"

Celestia nodded, "It is true that she ruined what would have been the biggest trade deal in generations, but with her potential I feel that she can be a force for good in Equestria unlike any other... I refuse to throw such potential away."

We get it; she's gonna be strong! "Makes sense, and it is the reasonable thing to do."

"Also..." Celestia looked away to the window, where the view of her kingdom lay before the two, "I am beginning to doubt that Twilight was the culprit."

Sunset Shimmer's eyes popped out further, "W-W-What?"

"Twilight does not feel like the type of pony who would do this... and more importantly, my intuition is telling me that there is more to that dinner than what we saw. Many of the guards and staff members have told me the same."

Shiiiiiiit... Sunset Shimmer stepped backwards towards the door, "True... I mean you can never know... I'm going to Twilight now; might as well see how she's doing." She then ran through the door and onto the halls with an ever rising heart rate. The events of the previous night once again played out in her head. She probably just feels guilty... There's no way I left any way for these ponies to figure it out. Everything was planned! I'm probably just stressin' myself out for nothing, but still... you can never be too sure. Sunset Shimmer reached Twilight's room, where she barged through the door to find the filly on her bed surrounded by wet cloth. Twilight was still sucking in mucus.

"My bad," Sunset Shimmer chuckled, "Heard about what happened... thought I should cheer you up. Somepony has to!"

Twilight turned to her friend; the sight of the orange filly made her smile. "I d-don't think you're going to be enough..."

"Says you," Sunset Shimmer said, walking forward.

"Re-eally... It's like... I don't even know how to feel right now."

"What do you mean?"

Twilight opened her mouth but reclosed it as her frown returned. She looked away, "Oh, just forg-get about it... it's not like anypony will believe me anyway."

"I will... and you can't just assume I won't like that... messed up, Twi."

Twilight's smile returned, "What I mean is, as sad as I am, I'm not as sad as I would be."

"Okay... so..?"

Twilight paused and took a deep breath, "Sunset, do you think I stole that Griffin's jewel?"

"Obviously not... but I'm pretty sure you already knew that, right?"

"Shouldn't have doubted you in the first place," Twilight said. "Sunset, somepony framed me last night... I'd like to think it was all one big misunderstanding, but that was no accident. I'm more mad than sad."

"That's what I was scared of too," Sunset Shimmer said, "No offense, but what can you do though? At this point everypony's sure it was you."

Twilight paused, "I don't know... but from becoming your friend these past few days I've learned a lot, even if you don't realize it." She got up and stood tall, "And what you'd do is prove that you were innocent... You wouldn't stand for this!"

Sunset Shimmer paused even longer, "Ye... s...?"

"I'm going to clear my name, and I even already have the evidence to do it." Twilight grabbed her friend and charged out of her room, dragging Sunset Shimmer along for the ride.

The two fillies sped through the palace and the entered the throne room where the sight of them caused the Princess to freeze. "Princess..." Twilight said, then taking a deep breath, "I know I'm supposed to be in my room, but I have something that needs to be said. One of the qualities you and our kingdom are known for is honesty, and the commitment to the truth... and I can not let such a lie against me exist any longer!" She stomped the floor and looked Celestia in the eye, "Princess Celestia, I did not steal that jewel last night, and I can prove it!"

The Princess and Sunset Shimmer both watched in silence.

Twilight continued, "First of all, when the Griffin's plate was knocked over there was no magical aura around it, let alone a purple one. What this means; I don't know, but Princess, as far as I know there is no way to prevent an aura from occurring... but like I said, this is as far I currently know. Secondly..."

"You have really thought this through haven't you?" Celestia said, laughing, "Do not fear, I too am coming to the conclusion that it was not you."

Twilight jumped up, "Really?!"

Celestia nodded, "Upon review, the whole incident appears too... perfect. I do not know who did this, or why, but my intuition tells me that it was not you. I apologize for coming to such quick judgment... It seems my anger clouded my better judgment... It was most unlike me."

Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit! Sunset Shimmer looked on, smiling.

"I will order an official investigation into the matter," Celestia said, "You have nothing to fear... I also feel that the Griffin ambassador and his wife will have a change of heart as well. Anger is a powerful poison."

Twilight ran to the Princess and embraced her, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Celestia hugged back.

Twilight walked back to Sunset Shimmer and the two fillies walked away from the throne room with smiles. "Lucky break, eh?" Sunset Shimmer said.

"Not that lucky... I wish I knew who did this," Twilight said.

"They'll figure it out eventually," Sunset Shimmer said, resisting the urge to deck Twilight in the face.

"True..." Twilight grabbed her friend by the hoof, "Or we can figure it out now!" Sunset Shimmer gave a blank face. "We're starting our own investigation! Come on!"

The two fillies stood busy at work in the royal banquet hall, the same hall that had nearly spelled Twilight's end just one day prior.

Sunset Shimmer stood beside the central table with a bored face; her eyes flickered between open and closed and the odd yawn escaped her every minute or two. She stared at Twilight, who ran around underneath the table and paused every thirty seconds to stare at yet another part of the table that looked just like the rest. Twilight continued like this for the next couple of minutes until her friend's yawns grew more frequent and morphed into a muffled growl. "Oh my Celestia!" Sunset Shimmer screamed, "What are we even doing right now?! There's nothing under there; there never was!"

Twilight stopped for a moment but went right back to her investigating.

"There's nothing under there!" Sunset Shimmer growled, "Just give it up."

Twilight sighed, "I know... I guess I'm just hopeful that there's a clue or some evidence... maybe too hopeful."

"It's alright to be hopeful, but not for an hour!"

"Sorry," Twilight blushed and got out of the table, "You never know what the culprit could've used or done to help their plan... as far as I'm concerned a crime scene hasn't been investigated until every nanometer has been checked five times over."

"I'll pretend to know what that is, but just give it up already," Sunset Shimmer said, "We've been doing this little investigation of yours for hours now and haven't found anything... I think it's smart to just leave it to the professionals."

Twilight paused, facing down, "I know... but I really want to figure this out myself. I've always had a thing for mysteries... I even have a whole shelf in my house's library for the genre."

Sunset Shimmer launched a friendly punch at Twilight's shoulder, "You're such a nerd."

"Guilty as charged," Twilight said, laughing.

"So are we quitting or what? My hooves are startin' to hurt from all this standing around."

"Nope..." Twilight shot a confident look, "We're just going to my second plan... interrogations!"

The two fillies spent the next chunk of time tracking down any and every pony that was in the banquet hall during the incident, before or after it. Most of them didn't comply due to still believing Twilight was the culprit, "Like I'd really answer anything for you!" or just not taking the fillies' investigation seriously. By the end only three had offered themselves, a royal guard, a stallion food server and a maid, and were drawn to the banquet hall and told to sit down.

"Not exactly what I had in mind, but it'll do," Twilight said.

Sunset Shimmer rubbed her hooves together while letting out an evil laugh, "We're doing this the good cap bad cop way, right? I've always had a thing for the bad cop."

"Uh... that won't be necessary," Twilight said, "Let's begin, shall we?" Her and Sunset Shimmer walked to their first witness, the bored looking royal guard. "First of all, let me just say to you all, thank you; I'm sure you'll all be of great help. Now then, what do you remember of the incident?"

"Not much to be honest," the guard said, "My focus was on the ambassador when the plate fell... the only thing I saw was that crazy griffin having a tantrum."

"When she was getting all... crazy, was her jewel still on her?" Twilight said.

"Beats me... Like I said, I don't know much. I was half asleep as it was; never was into formal stuff."

"Is there anything you do know?"

"Hmm... we-no... maybe-nah... there was this one thing that got me," the guard said, "It was probably cuz I was half asleep... During the dinner, I heard weird noises coming from near the entrance... it was like... breathing, except it was muffled. It was probably just me being too bored though."

"Interesting..." Twilight tapped her mouth.

Sunset Shimmer glared at the guard, You're so fired...

The two fillies next went to the maid, who sat put in her chair with a jolly smile. Twilight asked her, "What can you recall from last night?"

"Many things!" the maid said, "I was part of the clean up for the griffin's plate and let me just say that something about last night wasn't right."

"Do tell," Twilight said.

"I saw the plate as it was thrown... yes, it was thrown... I'm not necessarily saying it was you, but somepony picked up that plate with their magic because in all my years working here I've never seen anything quite like that."

"You say it had to have been magic..." Twilight said, "Was there any magical aura or field or anything around the plate as it was being thrown?"

"None... I know it's bizzare but that's just the truth."

"I know," Twilight said with a worried look, "That's why I'm scared."

The fillies went to their last witness, the food server, who sat with a smirk and his hooves crossed. "I'm tellin' you now," he said, "I got no new info to tell you two about last night, sorry."

"I'd believe you if you didn't look so guilty," Twilight glared, "Nothing, huh?"

The food server laughed, "Calm down, how I look's got nothin' to do with anything... I just got nothin' that hasn't been already said."

The maid spoke up, "Now you know that isn't true." The food server mouthed something to her. "Just be a dear and tell these fillies, the secret's out as it is."

"Yes, tell us," Twilight said, "If there's a secret I'd certainly like to know it."

The food server paused before giving a dirty look to the maid, then saying, "Alright... but remember, you didn't hear this from me. My friends is the pony in charge of the potions department and he told me last night before the dinner that there was some 'mishandling.' Some potion was stolen, which one, I don't know, but it was something."

Sunset Shimmer looked on with a muffled growl.

The food server continued, "As you two can, tell this ain't somethin' you should be blabbing to random ponies... Yeah I told a few but you two just remember to keep your mouth shut, aight. Do what you gotta for your 'investigation,' but that's it."

"We intend do," Twilight said. Her and Sunset Shimmer said their goodbyes to the witnesses and ran off towards the potions department. Sunset Shimmer kept her eyes on Twilight as she ran and gave her a deathly glare.

The trip to potions only took a few minutes; it was located on an upper floor in a tower adjacent to the central and biggest tower that held the throne room. Once there the two fillies walked to a square opening in the wall with a middle aged unicorn stallion standing on the other side.

"Hey! What can I do for ya two?" he said.

"We're not here for any potions," Twilight said, "If it's okay with you, we'd like to ask some questions, about last night."

The stallion's eyes began darting around, "Okay... but why last night?"

"You tell me... I'm sure you've heard about the fiasco that happened with the griffins?" Twilight said. He smiled nervously. "Sunset Shimmer and I are conducting an investigation to figure out what really happened. I hope you'll be of great help."

"Alright then... fire away... I'll see what I can do."

Twilight nodded, "Thank you... So to begin... were you working here last night, or was there some other pony here?"

"I-It was me... Sorry, but I don't think I'll be of much help since I wasn't at the dinner," the stallion said.

"We're actually not here to ask about the dinner itself... but point taken."

Sunset Shimmer watched the two with a never ending mental growl roaring inside her, I got to figure out a way to end this quickly.

"Where are the potions kept? In the back I'd assume," Twilight said.

"Yep... I got em' all on shelves in storage; they're arranged by function... though I'm sure Sunset already knew that; she's quite the regular customer."

Sunset Shimmer snapped back to reality, "Hmh? Well... yeah... bu-just answer the questions."

"How safe would you say the potions are?"

"Pretty safe I'd say..." the stallion gulped, "My job rests on their safe keeping... I basically protect them like my own kids."

"Has there ever been a robbery?"

"No!" the stallion yelled, "What is this, a work inspection?! I get you two have your 'investigating' to do, but I'm gettin' a lil' sick of these questions... so please, unless you have some potions you need could be so kind as to leave?"

Twilight gave Sunset Shimmer a quick smirk before returning back to the red stallion in front of her. "It seems like we have a foalnapping then, because from what I've heard there a was a potion stolen from here last night!"

The stallion paused, "That's it, leave! Now! And don't think the Princess will take your side because you're her student; you got no right to question me like this!"

"He's right!" Sunset Shimmer yelled, looking worried, "This technically counts as harassment... Sorry, Twi, but we can't question this guy anymore."

Twilight smirked, "Actually, we can... Due to the verdict of the case Pony Joe v. Mulia Mild last year this does not classify as verbal harassment and we thus can not be apprehended or given any formal punishment for this." Sunset Shimmer's jaw dropped. "Three hundred and sixty two days ago he would've been in the right, but now we are! So tell us, what potion was stolen? There's no point in denying it any longer; my sources already know it and so do we."

"Fine!" the stallion cried out, "Yeah! A potion was stolen from here... Sorry for not wanting to get myself fired! It's not like you can blame me!"

"We totally understand," Twilight said.

The stallion took a deep breath, "It was an invisibility potion... And it happened two night ago; I only realized it was gone last night though."

Twilight paused with her eyes wide open. She looked back at the potions dealer, "Is there any clue to who the robber was?"

"No... nothing; they must've come in the middle of the night. Whoever it was though, they had to have known their way back there... that place's a bigger maze than the palace maze gardens! Also... that potion ain't for any unicorn... only really powerful ones can activate it; for the rest it's just bitter water."

Twilight nodded her head while looking deep in thought, "I think we have enough. Sunset, let's go back to my room; I think I have this whole case solved." The two fillies ran away from the scene. "Thanks for the help! And we'll make sure the Princess doesn't fire you!"

The stallion sighed, "You better..."

The moonlight shined into Twilight's room and the two fillies inside it. Twilight laid on her bed with her eyes up and her hoof on her chin, saying, "It could've been... no... She would've benefite... but why wou... If it was me... ugh!"

Sunset Shimmer stood beside the bed and watched on looking bored, "I thought you said you had 'this whole case solved?' Just accept it, Twi, we're never gonna solve this thing on our own. Let's just give up already... I wanna sleep." How in the name of Tartarus can I get her to stop this?

"No can do," Twilight said, "I'm so close to busting this whole thing open.. I just need a few more minutes."

"That's what you said 'a few more minutes' ago!" Sunset Shimmer yelled, "Who are even your suspects?!"

Twilight tapped her chin, "Let's see... it could've been a pony who didn't want the trade deal to happen... but that seems unlikely and just plain dumb for many reasons."

"Don't know, I'm actually thinking it might be that... You know, maybe the trade deal would've cost somepony their job?"

"No... it just seems too farfetched, and if it was that then why steal the palace's invisibility potion? Stealing it here is too risky for an outsider... It had to have been somepony in the palace."

"Maybe you pissed off a staff member? A lot of them are crybabies and will hold a grudge," Sunset Shimmer said.

"Could be that... but I doubt I offended anypony here that much already," Twilight said, laughing.

Should I just knock her out? No... she hasn't solved it yet... Let's just see where she goes from here... then I'll make my move.

Twilight took a quick but deep breath, "Okay... let's think this through... Who would want not just to ruin the dinner, but make me the culprit? Sunset, any ideas?"

"Nope..." Sunset Shimmer said in an annoyed tone.

"Hmm... the criminal would have to be somepony that wants me gone, that I'm certain of... We also know they have to be a highly skilled unicorn that knows their way around the palace..."

Sunset Shimmer clenched her hooves.

Twilight continued, "It could've been a member of the royal guard? Plenty of powerful unicorns there."

Sunset Shimmer gathered her magic.

"But why would they want me gone? No... no.. it wasn't them."

Sunset Shimmer's horn glowed.

"Alright... so who would benefit from having me gone, is strong, knows the palace well and has obviously been here for a while..? Who could've I angered so much? Who am I a threat to? Sunse-." Twilight slowly turned to her friend, and froze. "Sunse-?" Before she could finish, a magical noose wrapped itself around her throat. As the noose tightened, an orange aura lifted her body and slammed it against the wall.

"Hoooray! You figured it out!" Sunset Shimmer walked to the cracking wall with a smirk, "Too bad it doesn't mean shit." Twilight let out a throat ripping gasp as her face turned blue. "Try not to die, aight? Look... this isn't personal... well actually, yeah, it is." Sunset Shimmer reslammed Twilight head first. "Nopony's taking my crown away from me, nopony... especially not some sissy pony like you! I don't even care that you know it's me; it doesn't change a thing... I'm just glad I don't have to pretend that I like you anymore."

Tears dripped down Twilight's face.

"Really?" Sunset Shimmer said, then letting the filly go. Twilight fell to the floor and coughed and gasped for as much air as she could take in. "You're lucky I can't just get rid of you here."

Twilight continued gasping, all the while letting free her tears, "I-I actually believed you were my friend."

"Guess you believed wrong!" Sunset Shimmer yelled at the downed filly's face, "And stop crying; it's just starting to annoy me now." Twilight sucked in mucus. "Look... I feel like being kinda nice, so I'm gonna give you options... Option one, you leave here, tell Celestia you don't want to be her student anymore and go back to whatever hut you came from... I'll leave you alone, and it'll be like this never even happened. Sound good?" Twilight didn't respond.

"Or then we have option two... You stay here and continue being Celestia's student... Remember what happened yesterday? See how much your throat is hurting? That's nothing... if you stay I'll make your life a living Tartarus, and no, there's no lengths I'm not willing to go to. Right now I know you're thinking of running straight to Celestia and blow this all up in my face... I know... run to her... it's not gonna make a single difference." Sunset Shimmer squatted down, "Like I said, you knowing doesn't mean shit... I just have to get... more creative now, that's all. So what's your choice? And remember, you're only getting this chance once."

Twilight paused. Seconds passed as the two fillies gazed at one another, waiting for the silence to be ended by the words that would set both their futures into motion. Twilight faced down, but transformed her gaze into a glare directed at the filly on top of her. "Isn't it obvious?" she said.

Sunset Shimmer smirked, "Alright then... your choice," and began to walk out of the room. "Enjoy breathing while you still can, Twi." She left the room, leaving Twilight alone, now with the moonlight as her only friend.

"See you... Sunset."

I Want You to Hate Yourself

The following morning, as Sunset made her way to Celestia’s throne room, she was shaking with fear. Why am I so stupid? No way Twi stays quiet and doesn’t tell Celestia. She’s probably already told her; I’m sure of it. They’re probably talking about how to get rid of me right now. Celestia wouldn’t put me in the dungeons; she’s too much of a softie for that. But she’ll definitely kick me out. I’ll be forced to go back to my house, and my mom will never let me live this down. She’s never gonna stop bragging about how she was right about me.

When Sunset reached the door to the throne room, she took a deep breath, preparing herself for what fate awaited her. I can’t go back to my mom. If Twi really did snitch on me, and Celestia really is gonna let me go… then I have to make sure I’m put in the dungeon, even if it means attacking Celestia to make sure it happens. Anything is better than going back home.

She entered the room, eyes shut and wincing from fear. She was too scared to see Celestia’s face.

“Good morning, my student,” Celestia said, sounding as motherly as ever.

Confused, Sunset opened her eyes. Celestia was sitting on her throne, smiling as brightly as ever. Twi stood beside the princess, forcing a smile, but clearly shooting Sunset a glare.

“Good morning to you too, Princess,” Sunset said. “Were you two having a meeting or something?”

“Twilight awoke much earlier than usual, and to my delight, began asking me for duties she could assist me with,” Celestia said as Twilight shot Sunset a grin.

“Did she now?” Sunset returned Twilight’s glare. “Tell me, what did she volunteer to do?”

Celestia used her wing to caress Twi. “Quite a few things, mostly to make my day a bit easier. How about you help her? Two ponies working together will get done much faster than one.”

“Oooooor… how about I do different chores?” I see what you’re up to, Twi. You really think acting like the perfect student will be enough to win Celestia over? Well, two can play at that game. I’ve known Celestia longer than you have, and know just what to do to get on her good side. After the princess sees just how much better of a student I am than you, she’ll toss you aside like the trash you are. “In fact, give me as many as you can!”

“Uh,” Celestia said, “I am not sure if that is wise--”

“If anypony can handle this, it’s me. Besides, I know how much you love having a day just to relax.”

Celestia lost herself in fantasy from the thought of a day of relaxation. “It is true that it’s been too long since I had a day to unwind.”

“Exactly. Give me everything you can. You just relax today. And who knows, I might throw in a surprise later too.”

Twilight began to panic. “Give me more tasks too. I can handle them!”

“I am sorry, Twilight, but are you still new here. Focus on completing the tasks already assigned to you.”

With a smirk, Sunset stuck out her tongue at her rival.

It only took a few minutes for Celestia to give Sunset a giant list of tasks to complete. Most were things Sunset had done before, and so she began them quickly. Her goal was to complete them before the day was done and then return to Celestia to ask for more to do. As she sped through the checklist, she gleefully thought about how jealous Twilight must have been right now. Not only that, she used her lunch break to schedule a spa date with Celestia for the evening.

It took Sunset until five in the evening to complete her list, after which she returned to the princess and said, “All done. Not that you should be surprised.”

Celestia was lying back on her bed, relaxed and reading a book. “I am not surprised in the least. You have outdone yourself, my student.”

“I know.” Sunset couldn’t help but smirk. “And remember how I said I’d have a surprise…” She took out her spa tickets. “Me and you. The spa. In two hours. How does that sound?”

Celestia’s face lit up. “That sounds wonderful! However…”

No, no. There’s not supposed to be a however.

“Twilight is not done with her chores yet. I do not wish to leave the premises in case she needs my assistance.”

Hmmm, I can use this to my advantage. “How about I help her finish? When I make sure she’s done, then we’ll go.”

“Perfect idea. I really have taught you well.” Celestia gave Sunset a wink.

Oh, you have no idea how well you’ve taught me. Sunset sprinted to Twi, who was in the royal banquet hall, in the middle of arranging a feast for the Canterlot elite. Despite looking overwhelmed, Twi was managing the preparations well, so well in fact that Sunset couldn’t help but growl when she saw how organized and efficient her rival was.

When Twilight heard the growl, she turned the source of the sound and gave Sunset her most vicious glare.

“I’m surprised you didn’t snitch,” Sunset said, making sure to look cocky. “You know, with you being the way you are.”

“It wasn’t to protect you, that I can promise.”

“Let me guess, you want to show me the error of my ways by turning the other cheek? So that I feel bad, apologize, and become friends with you for real?”

“Wrong again.”

“Or maybe you just want to kick me out the old fashioned way, by proving that you’re a much better student than me. Whatever it is, just spit it out.”

Twilight shook her head. “I want you to hate yourself. More than you already do, that is.”

Sunset was taken aback. “Excuse me?”

“It’s not hard to see that you already do. The way you act so confident, so cocky, always showing off how great you are. It’s obvious that you’re compensating for something. I don’t know what that something is, only that it has to be big. Otherwise, you wouldn’t base your entire personality around proving it wrong.”

Sunset began to shake with anger. “You don’t know a single thing about me.”

“I don’t need to. Because after you’re gone, I’ll never have to see you again.”

Furious, Sunset began to power up her horn. She wanted nothing more than to turn Twilight into a pile of ash.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you. Too many witnesses, don’t you think?”

With another growl, Sunset powered down her horn. “I’m gonna end you for this.”

“Sure you will.”

Shaking more than ever, Sunset sprinted away to an empty hallway, where she let out a scream filled with every ounce of fury inside her. That piece of shit, acting like she knows me. Who does she think she is, acting so confident about who I am. She doesn’t know a single thing about me, neither does my mom. Especially my mom. I’ll prove them both wrong.

Guessing that Twilight would be able to finish her tasks on her own, Sunset forced a smile and returned to Celestia. The two of them went to the spa and began their spa date. During it, Celestia was on cloud nine, but Sunset needed to use every ounce of her willpower to keep up her smile. Memories of her childhood and her mom’s words consumed her, making her want to hide her pathetic face beneath a pillow and cry.

And the worst part of it all was that her misery made her unable to enjoy her date with Celestia, the one pony who had believed in her. The one pony who had told her that she could become special. She owed everything to the princess. In fact, she should’ve been completing Celestia’s tasks every single day out of gratitude, not once only as a way to outdo Twilight.

She really was a horrible pony, and she knew it.

“Isn’t this the best, my student,” Celestia said, relaxing in a jacuzzi.

Sunset sat beside her, her sadness causing her body to feel numb. She couldn’t feel the warm water. The only thing she could feel was guilt over her scummy actions.

“Sunset?” Celestia said, noticing her student’s silence.

Twilight was right. Mom was too. Celestia, you’re such an idiot for choosing me.

Holding back tears, Sunset grabbed Celestia and gave her the tightest hug she could. “I’m sorry, Princess. I’m so sorry.”

No Chance for Friendship

That night, Sunset stayed awake, unable to sleep. She thought back to her spa date. After she’d broken down in front of Celestia, the princess had asked her what was wrong, only for her to stay silent. She hated herself for not having the courage to speak up, since Celestia was surely still worried over what had happened. But it was too late for the truth now. If Sunset told Celestia what she had done to try to remove Twilight, and what she planned to do, then she would be kicked out herself.

It was too late for her to apologize to Twilight as well. Twilight wouldn’t believe any apology, nor should she. Any chance Sunset had for friendship was gone forever, killed the moment she tried to get rid of her first potential friend. The only path left for her now was one of deceit. At the very least, if Twilight was removed, Sunset would get the crown someday. Even if she hated herself for what she had to do to get that power, she’d still have it, and that was worth more than anything.

Proving her mother wrong was worth more than anything and everything.

So how do I get rid of Twilight? With a sigh, Sunset began scheming. It only took her a few minutes to come up with a plan.

……………………………..

The next morning, Twi woke up early again to help Celestia out with her tasks. She couldn’t deny that a part of her was doing this as a way to show that she was the superior student, and not Sunset. However, as manipulative as she fancied herself to be, she couldn’t deny that her main reason for helping the princess was simple gratitude. As much as Twilight missed her family and her simple life with them, the princess had brought her into the palace more as a daughter than a student, and given her an opportunity many would kill for. For this, Twilight owed the princess a lifetime of thanks and gratitude, a debt she was eager to pay back.

As she went through the list of tasks the princess had given her, she thought back to her encounter with Sunset yesterday evening. Despite the stern exterior she had shown, Twilight had felt like crying during the confrontation. Not because of how Sunset had hurt her, but because of how she had hurt her rival. Despite everything--the betrayal, the insults, the manipulation--Twilight couldn’t help but yearn to be Sunset’s friend, and she felt pathetic for feeling this way. She had every right to be mad at Sunset, and every right to want her to suffer, and yet she was more worried about her enemy’s feelings than her own. Perhaps this was because Twilight had no real friends other than her brother, and Sunset offered the chance for actual friendship. She couldn’t deny that her biggest fear in life was to go through it without any friends, and she also couldn’t deny that every time she tried to make one, she’d either get made fun of or bullied. Was Twilight really this pathetic, that the only reason she felt sad was because she was lonely?

No, Twilight couldn’t help but feel that there was a deeper reason. She cared for Sunset, because as scummy as she was, she was still a pony deserving of forgiveness and redemption. As Twilight spent the day toiling away to make Celestia’s life easier, this feeling of regret over her hurtful words grew. It caused her to stay silent when the palace staff asked her how her day was going, and it made her unable to force a smile. And the worst part of it was that her innate love of friendship was why she was uniquely prepared to absolutely crush Sunset.

Despite being an introvert--and a pretty awkward one at that--Twilight had been able to figure out that Sunset was a self-loathing mess. And she had also realized that the best way to ruin such a self-hating pony was amplifying this hate.

And to accomplish this, all Twilight had to do was… nothing.

As long as Twilight continued following her heart--showing Celestia gratitude, being the best student she could, being grateful for this once in a lifetime chance--Sunset would inevitably implode. Sunset would continue to try her various schemes and plans, but as they failed, she’d begin to realize that there was no driving Twilight away. And once she realized that, her desperation would grow. What Sunset would do after that, Twilight wasn’t sure. Perhaps Sunset would do something so stupid that it’d cause her to immediately get kicked out. Or maybe Sunset would simply realize that she would forever be doomed to be second-best, a fate which would surely drive her mad.

Twilight hated herself for even thinking this way, but she reminded herself that Sunset was the one who’d started this feud. If anything, Twilight should’ve been this vindictive back in magic kindergarten instead of acting like a weakling. She should’ve fought back against her bullies instead of being a victim and waiting for her teachers to give help which never came. Perhaps then she would've been deserving of friendship. And if she still wasn’t, then at least she would’ve gotten sweet revenge. Besides, there would always be new ponies to meet and befriend. Even now, it wasn’t as if Sunset was Twilight’s only hope for friendship. There were so many other students in Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns that Twilight could meet and befriend. Twilight didn’t need Sunset. She didn’t need any single pony for friendship.

Thankful that she’d finally seen the light regarding friendship, Twilight continued going through the list until late afternoon, when a royal guard called for her. “Hi, there,” she said, smiling at the chance to help a soldier. “What do you need?”

The guard just stared at her, as if he was some sort of mindless state. Twilight’s gut told her to back away from him, but she decided to go with her heart, which brushed off the weird behavior as just sleepiness. “Follow me,” the guard said, his voice lacking any emotion.

Once again, Twilight went with her heart and followed him. Perhaps it was because she was drunk with joy, so gleeful over her new role in life, that she went against the warnings her mind was giving her to run away. “Where are we going? Does Princess Celestia want me back in the throne room for something?” Twilight said, bouncing with glee.

“Keep following.”

The guard led her into the dungeons, where Twilight snapped out of her euphoria and froze. She began to run away, but the guard charged after her.

“Help!” Twilight screamed out, but there was nopony nearby. Barely anypony entered the dungeons anymore, and when they did, it was mostly just to clear excess spider webbing.

It only took a few seconds for the guard to grab Twilight. Powering up her horn to its maximum, she tried her hardest to magically push him away. Come on, where is that special power Princess Celestia was talking about? But the guard’s grip was too strong for her to break free from.

As Twilight continued to struggle, a cyan magical aura enveloped her. The aura was like a tight rope tied around her body. She couldn’t move and could barely breathe. “He… lp…” Twilight could barely speak and began to suffocate. The world began to spin, until darkness consumed her.

When she woke back up, she found herself lying trapped in a dungeon cell. Sunset was standing in front of her, on the other side of the grimy metal bars of the cell. Sunset was hanging her head, causing her mane and the shadowy darkness of the hallway to hide her face. In a voice consumed by sadness, Sunset said only one thing before walking away.

“You win.”

Despite her best efforts to remain calm, it only took Twilight a few seconds to panic. “Help! Somepony, help me!” She didn’t know how long she screamed for, only that nopony came.

The dungeon was pitch black, so dark that Twilight couldn’t even see her own body. It made her panic more. Her heart was pounding against her chest, and she could barely breathe. It was as if she was suffocating all over again.

No, I can’t let her win.

Determined, Twilight took a deep breath and calmed herself. She began to survey the situation. Okay, Twilight, think. Based on the darkness, I have to be in the deepest section of the dungeons. Just based on how thick the webbing is here, I’m confident that this isn’t a place the guards or staff go to regularly, meaning I’m stuck here until Princess Celestia realizes I’m missing. But that’s the thing… It won’t take the princess long to realize that I’m gone, so why would Sunset trap me here?

Okay, let’s put myself in her hooves. She hypnotized that royal guard, trapped me here… but then what? To have me die of dehydration? If she wanted me dead, she’d want it done faster. It’d take me at least three days to die of dehydration, more than enough time for the princess to find me.

And why did Sunset say that? That I won?

Forget about Sunset. Focus on the situation. I’m in this dungeon, most likely so I’m killed. But whatever is supposed to kill me has to be coming soon.

That was when Twilight felt them, the creatures crawling all around her. There were dozens of them crawling out of the tiny holes in the wall, all squirming around like a mass of mutated bugs straight out of her nightmares. She froze, but that only made it easier for them to crawl over her, right over her eyes. Their legs pricked at her skin, and she could feel their sharp teeth brush against her coat as they covered her body.

She powered up the horn, illuminating the cell with a faint light. A part of her was too scared to learn how they looked, but she willed herself to keep her eyes open. The creatures crawling over her were like a mass of meaty, furry insects. The sight caused her to tremble, and that was when the creatures’ let out a loud hiss that reverberated throughout the hall.

The creatures began to gnaw into her body, causing her to scream with pain. She shook as intensely as she could to get them off. Most of them fell off, and what few remained, she used her magic to throw away. The horde descended upon her once again a moment later. She squished any that came close, and used her magic to push back as many as she could, at least until more began squirming toward her. The creatures surrounded her.

Teleportation! Maybe that’ll work.

Twilight gathered her magic to try teleporting outside of the cell. She had only heard about the spell from Celestia, but it was better than nothing. When her magic was gathered, mere moments from being consumed by the horde of creatures, she activated the spell. She could feel her body being taken to another place. Yes, yes, get me out of here.

But when she reappeared, she was only halfway out of the cell. Her body was stuck between the metal bars, and that was when the pain took hold of her.

Due to her failed teleportation, two of the bars were going through her body, hitting her with a pain she couldn’t begin to describe. Her innards were being stabbed by unbendable bars of grimy, rotten metal, sending her into shock. At the same time, hundreds of the creatures jumped on to her and began to gnaw on her skin. Coughing up blood, she let out a scream too terrifying for her darkest nightmares.

The pain caused her to lose consciousness, and she was glad for that. If she was to die, she didn’t want it to be through agony. She wanted to drift into the night asleep.

And asleep she went, until her eyes began to glow white. The light illuminated the hall, and despite being unconscious, she involuntarily used her magic to turn the metal bars into butterflies. With a hiss, the creatures fled back into the dark holes they came from.

The overwhelming power left Twilight a moment later, and she snapped back to consciousness. I’m alive?

She looked around the hall, feeling the gentle flutter of butterflies. It happened again. The same power that helped me get into the school.

The relief only lasted a moment, until the pain returned. She coughed up more blood, but the pain was manageable somehow. Perhaps because she knew it was her turn for revenge.

Gritting her teeth through the pain, she sprinted through the hall and used her magic to open the exit door, which led to the higher floors of the dungeons. The butterflies led the way toward the light shining from the upper floors. Twilight continued running, not giving a damn for the globs of blood she was spitting out, until she reached the throne room and burst through its door. Inside stood Celestia and Sunset.