Her fiery red and yellow hair flowed in the wind as she leaned against the railing on the outside stair leading up to Canterlot High. It was afterschool and the sun was hanging low in the sky.

Autumn.

Leaves blew around her feet in blurs of reds, yellows, and oranges. The pink and orange sky set a calming mood and the nice breeze brushed against her face.

Everything seemed perfect. There was nothing wrong...right?

Without warning the girl slumped down and slid off the rail, dropping down on the concrete steps. The girl covered her face as her shoulders shook in an uncontrollable manner.

Sunset Shimmer was crying.

The quiet sobs that escaped her lips were cries of pure depression. The shining, cold tears slowly made their way down her chin and fell to the ground. They were diamonds falling from a well of sorrow. Sunset sniffed and ran a hand across her eyes, trying to stop the tears.

Why?

Why couldn't they see?

The tears fell anyway. They were determined to escape the pits of sorrow they surfaced from. Her hands trembled as she grabbed the rail. Slowly she got to her feet. But her legs gave out from under her and she roughly landed back on the step. It was just how she was now. Falling from the position of queen to the lowest of the low.

So low, that she couldn't climb out and redeem herself. She fell through all levels of hell and was trapped for all eternity to burn for her sins.

But why?

She changed.

Why couldn't they see?

Looking up to the sky, with desperation in her eyes, she saw the fading colors of an early sunset.

Sunset.

The slowly dying colors of magnificent beauty hung in the sky until no more of its glory could be seen. It shone brightly, showing off its brilliance as those below stared in admiration of its radiance until it was time for the glow to wear away. And those that watched in awe would wait the next day to see it again.

That was exactly what Sunset Shimmer was like to everyone around her until she showed her ugly side and ruled with an iron fist. But all things beautiful came to an end and so did the autumn sunset. The girl watched it disappear into the clutches of night. Seeing the dark sky she thought of princess Luna and her fall from greatness. From what she heard, Luna was becoming well-liked. If only she could be liked again that easily...

The tears on that stained her cheeks were still damp as she sat under the now dark sky. The breeze died down and nothing stirred. It was as quiet as ever.

Up in the sky she saw stars appear in the sea of blue. But one star caught her eye specifically. It was high up in the sky far from the moon twinkling...sparkling.

Anger entered her heart once more as her mind immediately clicked. That sparkling star was like Twilight. In times of emptiness, in times of despair, when upon the darkest hour, she was there and wiped it all away.

It was a sign. A sign she had not seen before.

The setting sun with its glorious colors of warm reds, pinks, yellow, and oranges was her. In the days she was innocent and pure and popular among the rest, she was the beautiful setting sun. But as she turned evil, everything became wretched around her. The disappearing sunset in the sky turning to night symbolized that phase. But when midnight came around, the superstitious time of all evil, Twilight appeared as the shining star that rose above her that very moment. Twilight meant midnight and when that time came she sparkled.

Twilight Sparkle.

Sunset's luck was to run out and in the midst of it, that purple princess would come. She felt a lump in her throat. Her fate was told among the sky, their names tied into the space above her. Without realizing it, the sky spelled out her doom every evening and night.

The skies knew.

They knew.

Silently she prayed. She prayed to no one, but everyone. Somebody, but nobody. Just praying for mercy.

Why?

Why couldn't they see?

She was a diamond in the rough, just struggling to remove the hard stone cast around her so that she could be heard, liked, and loved. She wanted others to see she changed for the better. She wanted to be appreciated again, but everyone refused to see she was good.

That's what they couldn't see.

Slowly she wandered away from the stair, just hoping her life could just end at that moment. Nothing was worth living for anymore. Her prayer would never be answered any way.

Thinking about the good days of when she was in Equestria as the star pupil of Celestia only made her feel worse. Back then, she had a purpose. There was something worth living for then. But not now.

Sunset Shimmer walked away from the school toward the street. Then an idea hit her.

What if there was a way to make things better?

What if she could get past all her mistakes and be seen as a good person?

The girl passed by the great stallion statue in front of CHS and felt an urge to go to it.

The only thing that would make her feel better was if she went and apologized to Celestia. She felt that if she could make things right between them, everything else would get better.

But how could she get to Equestria?

Surely there was no way. The portal would be closed.

She stood staring at the statue desperately.

She had to know. She had to try.

If she could make things alright between them all would be well.

At least she hoped.

Meanwhile in Equestria, Celestia felt strange. Something out of the ordinary was going to happen. She just knew it. Celestia was sensing something she could not understand...

" I better keep an eye out..."

Author's Notes:

This is the first chapter of what I hope to be a likeable story. If you like Sunlight shipping fics, than this is the one for you. Hope you enjoy this!