Never Gonna Give You Up

Love is a funny thing. It can make you incredibly happy, or incredibly sad. It can be your reason to live, or your ultimate downfall. It's unpredictable, needy, greedy, and troublesome.

Sunset Shimmer knows this better than most people.

Only a few months ago she hadn't even known what friendship was, and yet there she was dealing with an incredibly awkward crush on someone that she really shouldn't be crushing on for many reasons. The stress of it had taken over her life and her friends insisted that she share her problems. And, no offense to them, but telling those girls things like this didn't usually help.

"Honestly, Sunset," Rarity giggled at the pained look on the orange girl's face, "What's the big deal? You really can't tell us anything about him?"

"If it is a him!" Rainbow Dash, curse her, offered.

"Is that why you won't tell us?" Rarity smiled cheekily, "Why Sunset, I had no idea! Who might she be, then?"

They meant it jokingly, but Sunset cringed as the others laughed along. Humans had such an aversion to such couples, something that she had never even heard of before she arrived in the human world. While she doubted her friends would turn their backs on her if she dated a female, the idea still made her nervous. The fact that Rarity went straight for the joke made her question herself even more.

"Laugh all you want," She chuckled nervously, "I'm still not telling you who she is." A bit of defiance went through her, so she figured she would at least give them that, and leaned back in her chair. The cafe around her seemed extra busy with activity today; something she was grateful for because it lessened the chance of people overhearing their conversation.

The others went silent, curiosity written on their faces. No one had expected her to say such a thing, obviously. Rarity went slightly pink and muttered what might have been an apology.

"...Who?" Rainbow asked, this time with a bit more... Urgency? Sunset gave her a look.

"Still. Not. Telling." She smirked and looked away, slightly enjoying the looks on her friends faces. While she was looking away, Applejack and Rarity leaned close to each other and began whispering. Sunset could hear them perfectly well, but she gave them a moment.

"Who do you think it is?" Rarity asked.

"Hard ta say." Applejack responded, "She's been stressed about it, and wants to keep it a secret... Someone not good for her image? Like a bad bo--girl?" Applejack corrected herself with a bit of a grimace.

"Like Gilda?"

"It's not Gilda." Rainbow cut in. The other two gave her a look, to which she sheepishly shrugged.

"Hmm... Vinyl?" Rarity offered.

"Could be. Wait, what about Twilight?"

"What, the princess?" Rarity's eyes widened, "What a story that would be!"

Applejack nodded, "It would be stressful, too. And Ah could see why she wouldn't want to share that with us."

"True, true." Rarity nodded as an idea formed in her mind, "Maybe we could get one of them to admit to it!"

"Uh, maybe we shouldn't get involved." Applejack backtracked a bit, "Ah mean, it's their business, right?"

"And we, as their friends, should support them, right?"

"Uh... Well..."

"We're not even sure it's Twilight." Rainbow cut in again, "Doesn't she like Flash Sentry?

"Well, that's true..." Rarity hesitated, "What if it's the Twilight from this world? A different Twilight, but still stressful because she knows the alternate!"

Sunset Shimmer cleared her throat, getting them to turn their attention back to her. "Girls, really! That's enough!"

"I agree," Fluttershy said, "It's Sunset's business."

Rainbow huffed and Rarity rolled her eyes, but nothing more was said about it. Meanwhile, Sunset Shimmer let out a sigh of relief.

They had gotten a little too close to the truth.

It was later that week when the subject was brought up again. Sunset had been leaving right after school every day all week, and finally Rarity could stand it no longer. The others were curious as well, but no one was more interested than Rarity. Sunset wasn't entirely sure why, but she wouldn't put it past the diva for it to be just the search for gossip.

"Who is it, darling?" The diva practically begged, "Please, tell us who it is!"

"Rarity," Sunset groaned, "Please just leave me alone! I told you, I'll tell you when I'm ready to!" To be honest, Sunset was sick of the others trying to butt in. She had been tempted many times to tell them who it was, just to get them off of her back, but then she realized that might create an even bigger problem and, well, the whole situation just gave her one big headache.

"Just-just tell me this one thing... Is it Twilight?" Rarity's face was hopeful, and Sunset grimaced.

"My life would be easier if it was the princess, believe it or not." Sunset gruffed, which surprised Rarity. Sunset turned aquickly and walked away, eager to not talk any more about who she was seeing. It was bad enough that she had her own doubts about her relationship: What if the others were against it as well? She couldn't carry on without the support of her friends.

She sighed as she walked away from the school, all too eager to leave said friends behind her for the moment. It was true that they had all come a long way from the beginning of the year, but just how far Sunset wasn't sure. Twilight had told her that she should share more with their friends and build their trust, but she was too insecure. Thankfully, Twilight knew about her relationship with the other person, and gave her advice the best she could on it. She was grateful to know she had at least one friend's support.

A little while later she found herself across town, all alone. She ducked into a little cafe and headed to her usual table in the back while she waited on her partner to show up. It was at that little cafe that they had met a few weeks back, something which made Sunset grateful, yet at the same time she almost regretted that day altogether.

That day, her life had become a lot more complicated.

Her partner was far from perfect. She was a shy little thing that seemed to be a magnet for trouble. She was great at math and her life revolved around science. She had very few friends, and zero interest to find more. In some ways, she was exactly like Sunset and in some ways they were exact opposites.

Their relationship, however, seemed to work just fine. They certainly cared for each other, and understood one another. Their differences kept them entertained, at the very least. Really their only problem was, well...

Sunset's eyes lit up as she saw a head of orange and red hair walk back towards her table. Instead of the jagged yellow stripes that Sunset had, this girl had smoother, orange stripes that reflected her tamer personality. Her eyes were also a shade of blue darker; barely noticeable in most situations. The biggest (outwardly) difference was that while Sunset wore pinks and leather, this girl wore denim and blues.

They were exact opposites. And yet, they were also exactly the same. Because they were both Sunset Shimmer.

I wonder what the others will say when they find out I'm in love with myself?

Author's Notes:

First person to guess the theme with the chapter titles gets a shout out or gets to recommend what happens next in the story :3

Never Gonna Let You Down

Sunset's life was never particularly easy. She grew up in a group home in Canterlot before she became Princess Celestia's student, and even as a student her life was full of difficulties. Her insecurities made her hesitant to try new things or make new friends, and eventually she gained enough power to make herself think that those insecurities were strengths. She didn't want to make friends because she didn't need them.

Once she thought about it, many of her problems were caused by her own beliefs, and not Celestia's teachings like she originally thought.

Sunset sighed as she reflected on the royal mess that was her life. She sat at the back of a cafe in downtown Canterlot, and sulked silently. She had her collar pulled up so that it hid half of her face, and she crossed her arms. She scowled at the blonde waitress that attempted to take her order and was successfully left alone.

Old habits die hard.

"I hear you gave Pine a hard time." An even yet irked voice interrupted her thoughts and made her jump. She looked up at the person standing before her and couldn't help but gasp. When the other person saw her she, too, was surprised. They stared at each other for a moment before the newcomer slowly eased herself into the booth opposite Sunset.

"Who are you?"

"Eheh. Would you believe I'm you?" Sunset honestly had no better response. What was there to say? "Oh, yeah, I'm your alternate-dimension counterpart, just hanging out in apparently the cafe you hang out in."?

Sunset was surprised that she had met her self from this world. Really, what were the chances of meeting her at a small cafe? Apparently fairly great. So she told this Sunset (who conveniently went by Shimmer) the truth: From her leaving Equestria up until the events of the Battle of the Bands. Shimmer, for her part, remained quiet except for the occasional question or observation.

When Sunset was done, Shimmer didn't say anything.

"So... What do you think?" Sunset asked harshly, a cover for her fear. She was a bit nervous that this girl wouldn't believe her. Or, worse, call her crazy.

"Well," Shimmer seemed to weigh what she was about to say, "I guess I believe you, for the most part. You see, my friend Sparky has been studying that school for a while..."

Shimmer, in turn, told her about Sparky (Twilight Sparkle), who had sensed a large disturbance near that school several months before. Shimmer herself was quicker to believe in Supernatural happenings, while Sparky seemed more insistent on a scientific explanation.

"Well," Sunset smirked, "Now you can tell her you were right."

Shimmer blushed, "Ah, well, maybe I wouldn't go that far, but she will certainly find some answers now, at least."

At that moment, both girls realized how different they were. While Sunset was bold and brash, only slightly outwardly affected by her insecurities, Shimmer was the opposite: Shy and insecure with a bit of a short fuse.

Sunset had a feeling that was because one of them had Celestia, and the other hadn't. But was that a good thing? From Sunset's point of view it became apparent that Celestia could take at least some blame in her turning into, well, her.

They kept talking for a while after that, eager to learn about each other. Some patrons and the staff gave them odd looks, but neither minded. By the end of the night they had become fast friends, and Sunset wanted to laugh at the irony that she had befriended her alternate self without actually liking herself.

They swapped numbers and promised to meet up some time soon before going their separate ways. Sunset never would have expected making a friend so quickly; it had taken being nearly blown up to make friends with the others. She was surprised it was so painless that time.

They met again a few days later, and almost every day the week after, before finally they agreed to meet every day after school.

About a month into this friendship Sunset was sitting at the lunch table with her friends when Rarity pointed out that she looked smitten. At first confused, Sunset realized it was true. She had fallen in love with Shimmer. With herself.

She didn't waste much time telling Twilight this, in desperation. The princess told her that she should really discuss it with Shimmer herself, along with some rather awkward advice and offers to ask Celestia what to do.

Sunset nearly went insane in the process of telling Shimmer. When she finally did, however, she was glad.

"I, well," Sunset ran a hand through her hair, "I like you. Like, a lot. And I... I don't know what that says about me for one thing." She tried to joke.

Shimmer was surprised at the confession. "Wow, I... I don't know what to say." She blushed and looked away. Sunset thought she saw a smile on her face.

"...Do you like me?" She raised a brow when Shimmer's smile grew.

"I... I might." The more timid of the two said, "I wanted to say something, but I was afraid to."

This was too perfect, or at least Sunset thought so. Then again, in a way it kind of made sense to love someone who was supposed to be you, didn't it?

"So... What do we do?" Sunset sighed, "This isn't exactly conventional."

"Why don't we just... Take it as it goes?" Shimmer offered, "Keep it between us for a while. If you want to! We could tell your friends, if you wanted..." She smiled shyly, and Sunset found herself smiling back.

"Okay."

Sunset giggled as she listened to Shimmer tell her about the Twilight of this world. This Twilight, Sparky, seemed to be on the crazy side, something common among Twilights, they decided. At first Sunset thought that Celestia made her students crazy, but either that wasn't so or Twilight was just... Destined for crazy.

As much as she hated to admit it, she expected the latter.

"So..." Shimmer hummed, running her fingers through Sunset's hair, "What about your friends?"

"We're driving Rarity crazy." Sunset chuckled, leaning into her girlfriend's touch, "She's been dying to know who you are. She actually thought I might have been dating Twilight."

"There's an idea." Shimmer giggled. She paused for a moment before asking, "Do you know when you want to tell them?"

Sunset sighed, "Well, they're going to be poking their noses in some time soon. I'd rather not wait so long that they find out on their own, y'know? It's like the set up for a bad sitcom."

"I understand."

"Did you want to tell them?"

"Well... I agree that we should tell them before they find out."

"Hmph. Copy-cat."

"I know, we're so similar. It's strange, no?"

"..."

"You love me."

"Don't remind me."

They giggled, and Sunset looked at her girlfriend. "Well, I think Pinkie said something about a party tomorrow afternoon... I could tell them at lunch tomorrow, and see if they want to meet you at the party?"

"Are you sure? You don't have to tell them alone."

"I don't want to bring myself as back up, though." Sunset chuckled

Shimmer gave a wane smile. "That's a good point. I'm not very good backup anyways."

Sunset kissed her girlfriend's cheek tenderly, unsure of what to say. It was true that Shimmer was a bit... shy, and totally different than Sunset. But Sunset didn't want the girl getting down on herself because of that. It kind of hurt her when Shimmer said such things about herself. In Sunset's opinion, Shimmer was amazing. However, as it seemed to be a trend among them, Shimmer thought the opposite of herself.

I wonder if there's anything I can do to boost her self esteem... Sunset thought to herself

They chatted for a while longer before Shimmer got a text and suddenly had to go.

"Sparky wanted me to come in and work late in the lab tonight," She sighed, "So I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow." Sunset hugged the other girl and they parted for the night. She sighed when she was left alone once again.

The next day Sunset got up and was ready for school an hour early, mainly due to nerves. She was nervous about telling her friends about her... unconventional relationship. She honestly had no idea how they would react, and it scared her. She had gotten so used to knowing how people would react, and what their weaknesses were. With these girls, however, she had no idea.

The day dragged on, yet at the same time it went by too fast. She found herself at her lunch table far sooner than she wanted to be.

"Okay." Sunset said with a finality that made her friends look at her. She gulped at the sudden attention before she remembered that was what she wanted. Duh.

"Well, uh." Her mouth seemed stuck as she tried to continue. Her swallowed her nerves. "Well, about that person I'm seeing..."

Rarity's eyes lit up, and she leaned forward, eager to finally hear the information. The others leaned forward, too, but Rarity seemed about to implode.

"It's, uh, kind of a sensitive topic...?"

"You're among friends here." Fluttershy assured her. Pinkie and Applejack nodded in agreement. Rainbow muttered something and rolled her eyes.

"Well, okay. So this person is kinda... Well, I'm not really sure that I should like her." Sunset hesitated and rubbed the back of her neck. "I mean, she's great and all. She's probably my best friend outside of you guys. But, considering who she is... I haven't wanted to say anything, because I was afraid you guys would agree that I shouldn't be with her."

"The only way we would think that was if she was abusive." Rainbow tossed the statement at Sunset, who looked surprised.

"Agreed." Rarity nodded, "Who you date is your business, not ours, anyways."

Sunset took in a final breath. "Okay. Now, I'm completely serious when I say this, okay?" She gave Rainbow and Pinkie pointed looks, and they both nodded.

She said the next line as fast as possible. "I'm in the interesting situation of having fallen in love with this universe's version of me."

Pinkie's eyes about popped out of their sockets, and Rarity fainted dramatically.

Just kill me now.

Never Gonna Run Around And Desert You

Sunset huffed and crossed her arms as Rainbow guffawed. They had to take Rarity to the nurse's office, and the fashionista had yet to wake back up.

Several times Rainbow had looked like she was about to stop and say something, but then she would look at Sunset and start laughing all over again. She was practically on the floor in laughter, and her face was bright red. Sunset scowled and resisted the urge to punch her.

Fluttershy sat next to Rarity, but she kept an eye on Sunset as well. She felt torn, as she knew both of her friends needed help. She didn't know what she could do for Sunset, though, except offer a small, sympathetic smile. Applejack, however, looked cross.

"Honestly, Sunset. Why are we even in this situation?" The country girl asked with a roll of her eyes.

"Hey," Sunset countered, "You guys wanted to know! Haven't you ever heard "Curiosity killed that cat"?" She shifted her wait and glared at Applejack, "Rarity was the worst, too! She should have been prepared for anything." Applejack's comment stung, and Sunset only knew how to react callously. She didn't really think Rarity deserved any kind of bad treatment, but her doubts slowly began to creep back into her mind.

"You're the one in love with yourself!" Applejack grimaced, "If ya hadn't fallen in love with your clone we wouldn't have to worry about this!"

An extra loud laugh from Rainbow made both of them jump, and all eyes turned to the blue girl that was kneeling on the floor in laughter. Applejack snickered, and Sunset felt herself flare up. She snarled a bit and turned back to Applejack.

"Ohhh, so sorry to have been an inconvenience!" Fluttershy whimpered but Sunset didn't take her eyes off of Applejack. Said girl sneered back. Sunset, despite not being a pony or having magic, felt the familiar feeling of raised hackles and the burning pressure of her body wanting to release magic. A dim place in the back of her mind told her that Applejack was her friend, but her judgement was becoming cloudy.

"Oh, come on, git off'it!" Applejack said as she crossed her arms, "Ah can hardly even believe this story is true. How do we know ya didn't make it up?"

"Make it up?!" Sunset tried not to screech--the nurse had left them alone for the time being but that could change at any time--"You think I'd just make something like this up?!" The idea stung, and she hoped her friends wouldn't fight her on this. She needed their support, not that she would say it.

"Ah dunno! It's 'bout as likely!"

"Right, me flat-out lying about something like this is as likely as it happening."

"Well--" Rainbow chuckled uneasily from her position on the floor, more calm after seeing her friends fight, "She has a point, Sunset. Not that you're a liar, but--"

"Ya are an attention-seeker."

The room went silent at Applejack's accusation. Rainbow and Fluttershy cringed, and even Applejack looked like she regretted her word choice. However, the blonde didn't move an inch as she stared Sunset down. Sunset, on the other hand, had a blank face. Here blue eyes sparkled with the barest hint of emotion, but she dared not show it. Instead she lifted her chin and said "Like I need your opinion."

She turned swiftly and walked out of the room. The door slammed behind her and made Rarity jolt straight up. After a moment's confusion she glanced at her friends' faces and said, "What? Something on my face?"

"That was a horrible idea." Sunset whimpered to herself as she trudged towards her apartment. Apartment was a generous word for the one room hobble that was her home, but she had enough to mope about at that moment. School was still in session, so she just prayed that she wouldn't be seen by anyone. The last thing she needed was someone getting a bright idea and reporting her.

The red-head tried not to cry as she replayed the scene with her friends again and again in her head. She tried to sneer and growl the sadness away, but she didn't have the heart. She was sad, and lonely, and she had screwed everything up.

Maybe AJ's right. She sighed as she struggled to open her front door, This must be all my fault. My friends wouldn't just turn on me without good reason. She rubbed the side of her face with one hand and closed the front door with the other. She tossed her bag onto her kitchen table and threw herself onto the couch.

She laid there for a while and felt her anger and sadness slowly fade into numbness. She buried her face in the couch and once more tried not to cry. She felt bitterness and resentment begin to bubble up inside her, and it scared her. She wanted to blame herself, but she also wanted to blame Applejack. And of course if Rarity hadn't fainted it wouldn't have been a problem...

Or maybe I'm just the problem. She sighed and turned onto her back to face the ceiling. I make people unhappy. They just aren't... Safe around me. She clenched her jaw and slowly exhaled as a feeling of self-hate almost consumed her. Her friends were probably right; she caused more trouble than anything.

Then she remembered Rainbow's reaction. It was closer to the expected one; laughing. Rainbow had almost laughed herself sick when she fully processed what Sunset had said. She thought it was a joke--or worse, that the very idea was just that funny. Sunset had to admit, it was comical. And unlikely, for sure. But that level of Rainbow's laughter made her feel sick.

Did that mean loving Shimmer was wrong, though? Often the thought that others wouldn't approve was on her mind. But then she wondered... If she should approve. Her friends thought it was a joke, and with recent revelations being as they were.

"It doesn't really matter if I like her..." Sunset whispered to herself, "She's in danger around me. I'm a joke."

Her mood shifted for a while longer: her anger at Applejack, her humiliation at the thought of Rainbow, and her all-consuming love at the thought of Shimmer...

She didn't try to go to sleep, but she soon found herself dozing off. Her dreams were haunted by the sound of Applejack screaming and Rainbow laughing, and somewhere in that mess was a whisper of power, a promise for more... Dreams of fire and magic filled her mind as her body became slick with sweat and tears. Even in sleep she couldn't escape the cascade of emotions.

Her sleep was so deep that she missed Shimmer's call. And the second one. And the third. And the call from Applejack (which would have been an apology, should she have chosen to wake up.)

She didn't hear any of them, so far gone was she. She didn't have the willpower to wake up just then, or to face any of them. Her body just shut down, though her mind continued to work frantically. Nightmare after nightmare flashed through her tortured mind, and she was oblivious to her friends' concerns.

She woke up the following morning with ten messages on her phone, and a sick feeling in her gut.

Author's Notes:

An update?!

Don't look at me, I'm just as surprised as you are :O

In other news, the first two chapters of this, imho, suck :P But I'm too lazy to go back and fix them. Hopefully the chapters from here on out are better!

Never Gonna Make You Cry

Author's Notes:

I'm gonna be honest I've forgotten where this was going, AND my interest for it has died down. I mean I still love it, and the ship is cool, but I want to move on to bigger, better things.

That being said... I do have an idea for this. But it would be fairly expansive... I could wrap it up short and sweet slice of life style, or end it angsty, but... I think I have an idea.

The party. Sunset felt ready to puke as she listened to voicemail after voicemail from Pinkie. They went from happily inviting her back to practically begging her to answer. Some were downright angry, and sent a shiver up her spine.

Fluttershy had sent a text emoji of two people hugging, which was... oddly sweet.

Rarity's calls were apologetic on Applejack's behalf, which annoyed her. They annoyed her even more when she noticed Applejack and Rainbow hadn't left any messages. Applejack had tried to call, and that was something at least...

The ones that scared her the most, though, were Shimmer's.

Sunset felt her stomach churn as she listened to Shimmer's voice. She had been hopeful, then worried, then... Angry.

"I stood her up." Sunset whispered to herself. "I..." Her eyes burned, and she shut them tightly. Anger and resentment burned within her as she remembered, in painful detail, how the events from the day before had panned out.

She had fallen asleep without setting an alarm or anything, and had completely missed the party. The party she was supposed to take Shimmer to. After the events of the day before, her friends' utter rejection of her situation, she hadn't really wanted to go anymore, anyways. But she hadn't told anyone of that...

She wanted to blame Applejack, and most of her did. But there was also a small part of her that didn't want to blame anyone except herself. Her self hatred wasn't a new reaction of any kind, but the return to it so quickly... Hurt.

Sunset resisted the urge to throw her phone as she tried to calm her mind. Her thoughts jumped around, and she rubbed her temples.

You've really done it this time, haven't you?

Sunset cringed at the voice in her mind. With her self-hatred, of course, came the return of the negative thoughts she had before. After the Fall Formal they had left, along with her 'alter-ego' and she hadn't counted on them coming back. Of course, it made sense that they would, in a time when she had screwed up and her friends had left.

I'm screwed.

Sunset about jumped out of her skin when the phone in her hand rang. She took a moment to calm herself before she stared at the ID.

Rarity.

With a sign Sunset decided she couldn't hide from her friends forever. She could skip school, but that would only make the others try to find her. While her heart begged her to talk to Shimmer, her brain reminded her that school was the best option. Besides, she had no way to get to Crystal Prep on her own.

"...Hello?"

Shimmer had been very worried about Sunset. It was rare that Sunset didn't return a call or text within an hour, but a day? That was unheard of.

Of course she was still angry. Whether she had been forgotten or not she simply didn't know, because Sunset wouldn't respond. Had something bad happened? Fear crept through her as she wondered if Sunset's friends had managed to talk Sunset out of seeing her any more. Sunset had been worried, but...

Shimmer scowled at her phone.

"You okay?" Sparky's question startled her out of her thoughts.

"O-oh, um, yeah. Just... Sunset..."

Sparky shifted uncomfortably. "Oh... Your, um...?"

Sparky had taken the news considerable well, all things considered. She still was skeptical about the magic thing, and Shimmer falling in love with her dimensional counter-part was weird, sure. But Sparky trusted Shimmer. Kind of had to, since they were the only friends they had.

"Yeah." Shimmer glanced at her phone. "We were supposed to go to a party yesterday, but she never responded."

"Ouch." Sparky winced sympathetically. A moment passed and her eyes lit up. "You said she goes to Canterlot though, right? Let's go visit her! I mean, then I can check out those weird events and stuff, too."

"What, skip school?" Shimmer raised a brow.

Sparky looked around them to make sure no one was looking and then pulled a slip of paper out of her bag. "Don't tell anyone, but... Principal Cinch gave me this slip. It say so long as it's for my project, I can leave school whenever I want. I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to have it, though."

Shimmer's eyes widened as she stared at the official-looking document. "Thi-this... How long have you had this?"

Sparky grinned sheepishly. "A while... Now, do you want to stalk your girlfriend or not?"

Shimmer scoffed at the phrase, but looked at the paper. She wanted to talked to Sunset, and if Sparky had a free pass...

"I... Yeah, okay." What could be the harm in visiting her?