Being in such a central location, the great market town of the plains was, of course, a great hub of trade for the land. Warriors and creatures and peoples from all corners of the known world came through here, meeting up, swapping stories of their adventures, living their lives or simply arriving for the lucrative trading opportunities. The blacksmith was hard at work, the sound of his frequent hammer strikes ringing throughout the street. The vendors were all calling to passers by, hoping to sell their wares. And every once in a little while, there'd be a barbarian mercenary, glaring quietly at those who looked at them funny. Amidst all of this was, of all people, Flash Sentry. Clad in the clean armour of the knights of the holy order, the teen glanced around, letting out a sigh before looking to the clock. A clock that absolutely fit in with this medieval and fantasy setting, yes Sir. Seconds passed him by, and eventually, there was a loud "bleep" to the side, and he turned, smiling as he did so.

"Glad to see you made it, Timber."

Sure enough, Timber Spruce had indeed arrived. Unlike Flash, however, he was decked out in far lighter gear, more akin to a ninja or thief, and after taking in the surroundings, he grinned.

"Oh yeah! Tirek's Revenge! I can't even begin to say how much I love this game!"

Then, he turned to Flash, sounding just a touch apologetic.

"Hey, sorry for getting here so late. My internet connection was lagging a bit."

But Flash merely chuckled.

"No problem. Happens to the best of us."

Putting his hands on his hips, Timber looked around for a bit.

"So...where's that monster we were gonna slay?"

Turning around, Flash raised his hand and pointed westward. There, far in the distance, was a large an imposing mountain, complete with dark-looking storm-clouds at its peak. Seeing that, Timber considered it.

"Huh...ominous."

Nodding in agreement, Flash walked beside him.

"So...ready for an epic adventure?"

Timber let out a laugh.

"You know it, buddy."

Flash nodded.

"Great! Then let's...oh."

Timber raised an eyebrow.

"What is it?"

Flash looked to him, then to something just behind him, before starting to walk off. Timber followed his movements, and noticed that he was walking towards one of the local merchants. Specifically, it was one selling weapons, with a wide variety of swords, axes and maces on display.

"Finest steel in the realm, my friends! Come and have a look!" the NPC declared.

Flash walked to the stall, looking to one sword in particular.

"Hmmm...this sword has two attack points higher than the one I have right now."

Timber, who now finally reached him, looked to the weapon.

"Alright. So get it then."

Flash sighed.

"But...it has three fewer speed points. So my attacks will do more damage...but it'll take longer to do them."

He pulled out the sword he currently had on him, looking from it to the sword on the stall.

"Okay...stronger...or faster?"

Timber rolled his eyes.

"You know, on average, it probably won't matter which way you choose."

Considering that, Flash let out a chuckle, sheathing his sword yet again.

"Yeah, you're right. Sorry."

Smiling, Timber gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"No problem. So...now?"

Flash nodded with determination.

"Yes! Now we slay the monster!"

"Yeah!" Timber agreed.

They turned, heading for the direction of the nearest gate, ready to sally forth and meet their monstrous foe. But, when they'd only taken about ten steps away from the vendor, the voice of yet another NPC, a local guard, called out.

"Hear ye, hear ye! A thousand gold pieces awaits whoever brings us the bandit King, Ragnar One-Eye!"

Flash halted.

"Oooh! A thousand gold? That'll be enough to help me get that magic amulet I saw a while back."

Stopping, Timber let out a groan.

"Really?! We're doing bounty hunter work now?"

Flash shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, there's a lot of cool stuff at the market right now and...well...you know those monsters only drop things like bones, right?"

Timber sighed.

"Yeah...but think of the experience! I'm only, like, a hundred points away from the next level! We kill this thing and that'll skyrocket me up the levels!"

Thinking on that, Flash nodded.

"Okay, sure, experience. That's good too. I mean, this bandit quest isn't going anywhere, right?"

Timber laughed.

"Nope! And hey, you know how it goes. Even if some other player does take that quest while we're gone, that bandit will still be there for us to get."

Flash matched his laugh.

"Yeah...that reward's probably been offered for him about a thousand times by now."

As they walked off, Timber was clearly amused by that prospect.

"Yeah, funny how stuff repeat like that in these games, eh?"

However, much to the chagrin of Timber, Flash soon halted yet again, for he had noticed something close by. The blacksmith, who had been hammering away at that same piece of metal for some time now, eventually stopped, and began to move away. Granted, he appeared to be walking into a wall for a few seconds, but even so, he was leaving. And with that disappearance, Flash soon spoke up.

"Actually...there's something else."

Now stopping himself, Timber grunted in irritation.

"What now?!"

Flash pointed to the now-abandoned blacksmith's forge.

"The guy left, so I can use the forge now. And I've been carting around a hundred pieces of iron ore all day."

Timber looked to him with incredulity.

"Who carries around a hundred pieces of ore?!"

Smirking, Flash pointed to himself.

"A guy who's gonna make himself a fine-looking sword, that’s who!"

And so, onto the forge he went, and after pausing for a few moments, his equipped sword was soon replaced with a blacksmith's hammer, which Flash promptly took and began to beat away at the anvil before him. Timber, who now resigned himself to this, simply stood to one side.

"You know...you play this game just like my sister."

Looking up from his work, Flash seemed intrigued by that.

"Oh, Gloriosa plays this?"

Timber nodded.

"Yeah, but...you know how much of a perfectionist she is. She tried finishing and completing every little thing she came across."

Flash raised an eyebrow.

"Wait...this online game, filled with thousands of quests, that's being constantly updated and expanded by the creators...and she tried to hundred-percent it?!"

Timber sighed.

"Yep."

The hammering of Flash's ore carried on for several minutes, and Timber, growing increasingly frustrated by this, eventually just rubbed his temples slightly.

"You know what? You stay here and do all this stuff if you like, but I’m gonna go off and fight that monster!"

Hearing that, Flash looked to him with concern.

"Er...I wouldn't do that if I were you. It's a little difficult if you're going solo."

Timber snorted to that.

"Pfft! I've played this game a bunch now! I think I can handle it, buddy!"

Pulling out his dual-daggers, Timber gave Flash a wave.

"See ya later! Have fun with your sword-making!"

Flash sighed, shaking his head before getting right back to his blacksmithing. Minutes passed, and eventually, he seemed more than pleased with how the sword was coming along. NPC's walked on by, repeating the same two or three phrases, but he got used to it. And then, right out of nowhere, the words "respawn" started to flash close to where he was. He turned, looking at those words and starting to quietly count down alongside the numbers that appeared with it.

"Five...four...three...two...one..."

A flash of light, and then, right next to him, was Timber Spruce. The green-haired boy was panting furiously, still swinging away, as though some terrifying creature was still around him. Then, he soon realised where he was and, more importantly, that Flash was watching him. The latter, after letting out a long sigh, put on a smile for his friend's benefit.

"So...how'd things go with the monster?"

With his situation sinking in for him, Timber sheathed both of his daggers, folding his arms and putting on a somewhat pouty expression.

"...I don't wanna talk about it."

If there was one thing that could be said with certainty about Adagio Dazzle, it was that, more than anything else in this world, she enjoyed comfort. Soft pillows, a nice warmth around her, softness abound. All these things and more always managed to bring a smile to her face, and today, the eldest Sirens sister was experiencing such feelings in spades. Sitting upon her sofa, in the main room of her and her sisters' apartment, she laid down with a look of utter contentment upon her face, lounging upon large pillows and clad in her favourite purple bathrobe. But, she was not alone here this morning, for there, sitting at the opposite end of the sofa, was her lover, Andante. Though the lad was many thousands of years younger than her, this fact did not in any way dull his skill when it came to pleasing his girlfriend. And pleased she was, as the boy's hands expertly massaged her bare feet. Soft moans of pleasure escaped her, much to Andante's delight, and after a while, she opened her eyes, looking down to him almost with a look of pride about her.

"I must say, Andante...you get better and better at this every single time."

A chuckle escaped Andante at that.

"I live to please, Adagio."

He considered that.

"Well...I live to please you anyway."

Adagio matched his laugh.

"That’s better."

For a time, neither of them said anything else, with Adagio content in being pampered by her lover, while Andante very much enjoyed doing the pampering. But, after a while, it was the young man who broke that silence.

"Adagio...how would you say our time has been so far?"

Though a little taken aback by the question, the Siren, reclining further into her side of the sofa, began to consider it.

"Well, I can safely say that you're probably one of the more satisfying lovers I've had."

Andante chuckled.

"Likewise."

A few further moments of silence passed before Adagio continued.

"All-in-all, while we may not have the deepest connection going...I'd say it's been good so far."

Andante nodded.

"I concur."

A smirk crossed his lips.

"After all...how many in my position get to say they sleep with a literal legend?"

Adagio looked down to him, matching and surpassing his smirk.

"Oh, you know it, my sweet little thing."

Again, they laughed together, but this time, it didn't last as long, for it was at that moment when their solitude was interrupted by the distinct creaking sound of one of the bedroom doors opening. Turning, Adagio saw that it was the door of her sister, Aria, which prompted her to raise an eyebrow.

"Ah, I see my dear sister has...oh!"

But, to her surprise, she saw that it was not Aria coming out of the room, but rather her boyfriend, Wiz. The boy, after exiting that bedroom, carefully and slowly closed it behind him, making sure not to cause even the tiniest bit of sound as he did so. Seeing him, noticing that he was clad only in his boxer shorts, Adagio withdrew her feet from her boyfriend, and began to sit upright. Andante soon joined her, and sat beside her on the sofa, as Adagio finally spoke up to Wiz.

"Well, well, well, I certainly wasn't expecting to see you up first."

Giving a short but nervous laugh, Wiz nodded to that, scratching the back of his head slightly.

"Yeah, well...I guess I'm getting better at recovering from...well... you know."

Adagio put on a knowing smile.

"Ah, my sister remains as vigorous as ever, I assume?"

Nodding, Wiz took a seat on an armchair just opposite from where Adagio and Andante were sitting, letting out a long exhale as he did so.

"Tired still?" Andante asked.

Wiz looked to him with some incredulity.

"Well, pardon me if some of us don't have sex-with-Sirens as second nature to us."

Leaning back into his part of the sofa, Andante took on a somewhat smug look.

"Yes, it is indeed a blessing and a curse," he remarked in a faux-humble manner.

Adagio rolled her eyes to that bravado, before looking to Wiz once more.

"I take it Aria's still sleeping?"

Wiz nodded.

"Yeah, she's...well, I'm sure you know."

Adagio smirked.

"Indeed. Mornings were never her speciality, especially after, how shall we put it, an active night beforehand?"

Wiz blushed, much to the amusement of Adagio.

"Oh, seriously, you've had my sister how many times now, and you're still blushing?"

In response, Wiz shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, it's just the way I am. Maybe I'll get used to it, but for now it's still pretty...overwhelming."

Andante nodded, understanding somewhat.

"Fair enough. So, you two plan on anything special today?"

Perking up slightly, Wiz nodded.

"Yeah. We're going over to the Sweet Snacks Café. Apparently Pinkie has some big special dessert she wants us to try out."

Adagio considered that.

"Knowing her, it should be quite the spectacle."

Leaning back into his chair, Wiz sighed.

"Probably."

Then, ever so slowly, the boy hoisted himself up from his sitting position, letting out a grunt of tiredness as he went through it.

"I hope you don't mind, but I think I'm going to go for a small walk."

The other couple nodded to him, watching him go to the fort door and, quite frankly, being amazed that he still had strength in him to even consider doing any exercise right now. But, as he reached the knob of the apartment's door, he stopped, looking back to the other two with mild irritation in his expression.

"Out of curiosity...how long were you two going to wait before reminding me that I was about to head out of here in just my boxers?"

Taking on a look of amusement, Adagio regained her earlier smirk.

"Oh, were we supposed to remind you of that?"

Shaking his head, Wiz began to walk back towards Aria's bedroom door, and yet again, he made sure to be doubly quiet as he entered once more. Adagio and Andante watched him, and as soon as he was gone, it was again just the two of them there, with nobody else to see. But, as the silence of this moment sank in for them, rather than get back to their prior intimacy, Adagio instead began to look just a touch more thoughtful. She turned, looking to her lover, and began to speak in a softer tone than before.

"Andante?"

The young man looked to her.

"Yes, Adagio?"

The Siren paused, but only for a moment.

"How would you feel about...going for a walk ourselves today?"

Andante, naturally, was a little taken aback by this, but soon recovered, giving a short nod.

"Sounds good to me. Where would you like to go?"

Adagio considered that.

"I think the park would be rather nice, what with all the good weather we've been having lately."

Again, Andante nodded.

"Sure. But, if I may ask, why? You don't normally ask for that kind of thing."

Reclining back into her side of the sofa, Adagio gave another knowing smile.

"Oh, every once in a while, I think it'll be good for us to shake things up."

Andante thought on that, and the smile on his face made it clear that he agreed with that sentiment, much to Adagio's delight. But, mere moments afterward, the guy spoke up again.

"In that case...how about I be the one on top tonight?"

To that, Adagio raised an eyebrow.

"Don't push your luck, boy."

Andante, still smiling, shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, worth a shot, right?"

Adagio chuckled.

"True enough, I suppose. Now..."

With a sly smirk, she placed her hand upon the middle of her bathrobe, and slowly began to untie it.

"...how about one more round before we head out?"

Her lover matched the hunger in her eyes, smirking right back.

"Your wish is my command, my Lady."

The local café was, it had to be said, not quite as busy as the owners probably would have wanted it to be. That wasn't to say that there was no business to be had there, but it was clear that today was not going to be seeing waves of people coming in for drinks and food. There was, however, one particularly notable customer here right now, and that was Sonata Dusk, the youngest of the Siren sisters. She wasn't here with anybody, but even so, solitude didn't seem to make her feel anything less than her usual chipper self. As she sucked on a particularly large milkshake, the ancient blue-haired beauty was, with her free hand, holding her phone, looking to a few internet videos upon it. And from the look on her face, it seemed as though she was more than satisfied to just keep on doing that for the time being. A few chuckles escaped her as she passed video after video, and she'd spent so much time watching them that, eventually, her milkshake was completely drunk without her even noticing. However, she did not remain alone here forever, as a familiar voice soon called to her.

"Sonata?"

Turing, the Siren smiled when she saw who it was.

"Hey there, Indigo."

Sure enough, Crystal Prep's most noted athlete was indeed entering the café, giving a smile and a nod to Sonata as she moved further inwards. Sonata watched as she made her way to the counter, ordering a milkshake of her own which, thanks to the lack of activity here today, was brought to her fairly quickly. With milkshake in hand, Indigo walked over, taking a seat on the opposite side of the booth to where Sonata was sitting.

"You having fun here?"

Sonata giggled.

"Yep! Dagi and Ari were busy today, so I figured I'd come down for a good shake."

Indigo nodded.

"Same here. The other girls all had stuff to do, so it's just me today."

Though her own milkshake glass was long-since empty, Sonata nevertheless raised it to her colleague.

"Alrighty then, here's to having nobody else to spend time with today!"

Chuckling, Indigo raised her own glass, and together, they gently clinked them against one another. Indigo took a deep swig of her shake, while Sonata got back to the business of watching internet videos. But, after a time, she happened upon one in particular that seemed to catch her interest a great deal. And after watching it for a while, she eventually looked to Indigo yet again.

"You know, I saw that music video your friends made with Sunset and the others. It was really good."

Looking to her, Indigo nodded.

"Yeah, they said they had a lot of fun with it. Helped them raise all the money they needed too."

Sonata considered that, then seemed to gain a somewhat confused look.

"Um...why weren't you in it?"

To that, Indigo suddenly started to look a touch nervous.

"Um...what?"

Sonata gestured to her phone.

"The music video? You and those girls are usually pretty inseparable, so...why didn't you take part?"

Folding her arms, Indigo leaned back into her side of the booth, turning her head to look out of the window.

"I just...didn't think it fit me, you know? I mean..."

She chuckled, even though it clearly sounded like a forced one.

"I'm Indigo Zap, remember? I'm not gonna get into all that frilly dancing stuff!"

Sonata tilted her head slightly.

"But...Rainbow did, remember?"

Indigo's nervousness started to become more prominent.

"Well...sure...yeah, I mean..."

"And also Applejack too, right?" Sonata added.

Indigo, as one would expect, was not very happy as having Sonata Dusk of all people start to poke holes in her reasoning, which the latter continued to do for a few moments afterwards.

"I mean, I get you have this whole tough tomboy thing going on, but if those two tough tomboys can get into dancing and have fun with it, then it doesn't really make sense for you not to have fun, right?"

She let out a brief laugh.

"Heck, even Aria likes to dance every now and again, and she's probably tougher than all of you combined."

After all of this, Indigo let out a long and slow sigh, looking to Sonata and bearing a look of clear embarrassment.

"Look...the truth is...I'm..."

Then, she grumbled the rest of her answer, speaking so quietly that Sonata couldn't hear her. The latter, of course, leaned in closer, turning her head to the side and placing a single hand behind her ear.

"Er...didn't really catch that, Indigo."

Indigo grumbled.

"I said, I'm..."

But again, she mumbled the rest of her answer, much to Sonata's irritation.

"Okay, this isn't going to be all hat great if you're just gonna whisper everything."

Indigo, hearing that, let out a frustrated grunt before looking her Siren companion right in the eye.

"I'm not good at dancing, okay?!"

Of course, the aggressive and forward way she'd said that caused Sonata to retreat backwards slightly, and shortly afterwards, Indigo calmed down almost immediately. She buried her face in her hands, letting out another long sigh, and when she finally looked up to her colleague, it was with a genuinely apologetic tone.

"Look, I'm...I'm sorry about that. It's just...I'm not a good dancer."

Now recover from her friend's earlier outburst, Sonata leaned forward again.

"But...you're usually so good with moving and athletic stuff, right?"

Indigo nodded, looking almost ashamed as she did so.

"Yeah...and that just make this whole thing worse. Indigo Zap, the best Crystal Prep has at pretty much every sport they do...and she can't dance?"

She groaned in an annoyed tone.

"Ugh! I'd never live it down! When Sunny and the other girls asked me to take part, I had to come up with some made-up excuse, like needing to practise for a race that wasn't happening!"

Folding her arms again, she started pouting.

"I've just...always been bad at it. I don't move right, I almost trip over a whole bunch, I'm just...not cut out for dancing."

Silence fell between the two girls, and for a while Indigo passed the time by tracing her finger around the edge of her half-empty milkshake glass. Sonata, meanwhile, watched her carefully, taking in everything that had been said. Then, ever so slowly, she broke out into a sweet-looking smile.

"You know...I could help you."

Indigo turned to her, raising an eyebrow.

"Huh?"

Giggling, Sonata continued.

"I mean it! I love dancing, and I've been doing it for, like, thousands of years, remember? I know a few things that could help you with it, if you like?"

Indigo blinked slowly.

"I...I don't know."

Sonata leaned forward.

"Come on! You want to get good, right?"

Sighing again, Indigo nodded.

"Yeah...I guess I do."

Sonata clasped her hands together.

"Great! If you like, you can come over to my place at the weekend, and I can give you as few steps to start off with."

Thinking on that, Indigo let out a dry chuckle.

"Sure...sounds good. Hey, it might be fun. So..."

Turning, she faced Sonata fully.

"...what kind of dances do you have in mind?"

Sonata poked the end of her chin, pondering that question for a while.

"Well..."

Then, a "light-bulb" look came to her, and she looked to Indigo with a wide smile.

"Oh! I do know this one dance, and it was pretty good for this Emperor guy me and my sisters were living with for a while. It was real slow, and he loved every minute of it."

Then, thoughtfulness came to her.

"Although...we did have to do it when we were half-naked most of the time."

A blush came to Indigo at that.

"Um...do you, you know...have any other dances you can teach me?"

Leaning back into her side of the booth, Sonata folded her own arms and let out a huff.

"Hmph! You're no fun sometimes."

The museum of Canterlot was, rather unfortunately, not exactly high on people's list of priorities when it came to places to visit when they wanted an exciting or enjoyable day. Oh sure, there was always some small measure of enthusiasm to be had here and there, but for the most part, you'd only truly get a small number of devoted visitors on an average day. But, within the museum itself, there was indeed some love for what went on there, and nowhere was this more apparent than with one of the place's tour guides; Maud Pie. The girl, with her infamously stoic expression, was currently going about her business, making sure all of the displays of the geology section were where they needed to be. Thanks to her, every igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rock was prominently displayed, looking about as exciting as one would expect such treasures to be. And while most wouldn't notice it, to those who knew her, it was clear that Maud was loving her work here. One of those aforementioned close friends was none other than the one who now spoke to her.

"You've arranged that rather expertly, Maud."

The barest hint of a smile crept onto the girl's face, and she turned to see her boyfriend, Mudbriar, looking to her. He too appeared just as reserved as she, but for Maud, that suited her just fine.

"Thanks. I was thinking of going for a bit more of an avant-garde presentation, but I decided going with the tried and true way was preferable."

Mudbriar nodded.

"I can only hope my work on the ancient tree displays yield that kind of success."

Stepping forward, Maud placed a hand upon his shoulder.

"It'll be fine. You're good with wood, Mudbriar."

Mudbriar nodded. But, before he had the chance to reply to that, they were both halted by the distinct sound of somebody clearing their throat. Together, they turned to see that a third individual had arrived onto the scene. It was a small girl, with dark purple hair, who was currently wearing what appeared to be a miner's helmet. Though Mudbriar had no knowledge of this child, Maud most definitely did, and walked closer towards her before speaking up.

"Hello. You were that girl from my presentation the other day."

The girl, with her hands clasped behind her back, gave a nod, blushing slightly before answering.

"Um...yeah. I'm Sally. From the Maud Squad?"

Maud nodded, and looked over to Mudbriar, who nodded right back to her.

"Technically, I should be staying to pick up your checklist after you’re done, but...I'll leave you to your friend," he declared.

"Okay," Maud responded in her usual deadpan manner.

So, she watched her boyfriend depart, leaving her with this eager-looking young girl.

"So...what can I do for you?"

Stepping closer, the girl clapped her hands together, looking so excited that, for just a brief moment, Maud was reminded of her sister, Pinkie Pie. But she said nothing about that, instead remaining silent as the girl finally spoke up.

"Well...I was wondering if it'd be okay for me to stay and watch you work? You know, seeing you handle all those rocks and bones and stuff?"

Slowly, Maud blinked, then nodded.

"Sure...I see no reason why not."

Sally squealed with joy, then immediately rushed over to a small chair by the side. Just as she'd said, she watched as Maud carried on with her work. For the next several minutes, Maud took out rocks or fossils from their respective boxes, matched them up to the names on the display stands around her, as well as checking off all of them from a clip-board she had close by. For many, this might have appeared as somewhat tedious work, but for Sally, she seemed to just eat up every minute of it. It was an enthusiasm Maud couldn't help but comment on.

"You know...I wasn't expecting to get a fan-club for myself."

Sally snorted.

"Pfft! How could you not?"

Maud turned, looking to her with the usual degree of emotionlessness.

"I know I'm not as exciting as a lot of my friends. My sister's exciting, Rainbow Dash is exciting, even Applejack is exciting. But me? Most don't normally think me interesting enough to warrant making a group devoted to me."

Leaning forward, Sally frowned slightly.

"But you're awesome! All this geology and old stuff is really neat! Leaning about how rocks form or what turns bones into fossils is just so...so...so..."

Maud considered her words.

"...Exhilarating?"

Sally, snapping her fingers, then pointed one straight at her.

"Yeah! That! I've loved stuff like this since I was little!"

She paused, thinking on the words she'd just said.

"Well...more little than I am right now anyway."

She giggled at her own joke, all while Maud simply watched.

"That was funny. You ought to join me during my Saturday stand-up comedy session at the local café."

Sally seemed utterly star-struck at that prospect.

"Oh my gosh! You think so?"

Maud nodded.

"Yes. But you may get a...rocky reception."

A pause, but only for a few moments, for the girl soon burst out laughing, holding her stomach as she did so. Maud watched her, standing perfectly still and waiting until she'd finished laughing.

"Glad you liked the joke."

Wiping away a tear from her eye, Sally nodded.

"Oh...that was good!"

Turning back to her display, Maud got down to one knee, casting a critical eye on the old stones before her. Sally walked beside her, and she too began to stare at them.

"What are you doing now?" she asked, sounding genuinely curious.

Maud looked to her, then got back up to a full standing position.

"I'm making sure it's in a good position so that the lights of the museum cast a good shadow. Making sure it has the proper aesthetic is important...even if most don't really notice it."

Sally walked closer.

"What can you tell me about it? The stone there?"

Looking down to her, Maud seemed to be silent for an unusually long time. Sally, noticing this, suddenly appeared just a touch hesitant.

"I'm...I'm sorry. Am I not supposed to ask?"

Maud shook her head.

"No, it's just...it's always surprising when people show actual interest. Usually my sister and her friends are the only ones to really care what I have to say."

She considered that for a moment.

"Well...others care...but only when I have some magical help to make the displays more unexpected."

Putting her hands upon her hips, Sally frowned.

"Well, I'm the founder and leading member of the Maud Squad, the most prestigious Maud-Pie-loving group in the world, and I’m interested, so I'd like to hear."

The older girl thought on that, then gave a nod of consent, much to Sally's clear joy. She clapped her hands, then rushed over to her earlier chair and, with the expected screeching sound, dragged it over to be closer to Maud. She sat back down on it, looking to her in the same way children would when they were about to be told their favourite bed-time story. Maud, after realising that this enthusiasm was genuine on her part, thought long and hard for a while, before clearing her throat and giving the girl the lecture she so desired, pointing to a particularly large geode close by.

"This example here was first brought to the museum back in nineteen-fourteen, and was the subject of controversy when it was accidentally placed on the same display intended for a fossilized pterodactyl wing."

Slowly, she blinked.

“But, hold onto your seat...because this is where it gets crazy...”

As any vendor would always hope for, the Mall of Canterlot was absolutely packed today. From groups of teens spending the day there as a hang-out spot, to families coming en masse for their weekly shopping, there was no place within the sprawling complex that wasn't crowded right now. And among these, the busiest of all was undoubtedly the various cafés, restaurants and general food stalls that lined the main aisle of the place. In particular, the local milkshake bar saw more than its usual share of customers, most of which hailed from the local schools like Canterlot High or Crystal Prep, and those two groups seemed to be getting along far more amicably than they ever would have done in days gone by. That sense of camaraderie was present in the smiles of everybody there, and a grand old time was being had by all. Amidst all of this however, were two teens in particular. Micro Chips and Sandalwood, who were sitting at a small table of their own right now and downing their respective shakes. When Sandalwood had finished his, he let out a long sigh of contentment.

"Ah! Now that’s a good shake, eh, Micro?"

Though Micro was nowhere near as far along in finishing his drink as his colleague was, he nevertheless gave a nod of agreement, adjusting his glasses slightly before finally answering him.

"Indeed. Though I will admit that the flavours aren't quite as, shall we say, distinct as the ones down at the Sweet Snacks Café."

Sandalwood gave a chuckle to that.

"You're right there, bud! Pinkie makes the absolute best stuff down there! Milkshakes, ice creams, heck she even managed to make that one dessert with the pineapple in it taste good!"

The two boys laughed together, and for a time, they simply contented themselves with the upbeat atmosphere of the place, turning their gaze to all those who passed them by. Every once in a while, they'd look out to somebody else further away, and it was during that latter activity when they saw none other than Sunset Shimmer. The ex-unicorn was, at this very moment, heading to her job as the sushi restaurant, already decked out in her uniform for the place. The boys watched her, and eventually, saw her head into the restaurant.

"Dude...do you ever think about her?" Sandalwood asked.

Micro turned to him.

"Who, Sunset?"

Looking back to his friend, Sandalwood nodded.

"Yeah, man! I mean, she's awesome and stuff, but...do you ever stop and think about how she's you know...a unicorn?"

Leaning back into his chair, Micro considered that, tapping the end of his chin as he pondered that thought.

"Well, with everything we've seen over the past few years, it would be foolish of me to dismiss such a notion."

Sandalwood seemed surprised by that.

"Really? But you're always so big on science and logic and stuff."

Micro nodded.

"True enough. But, with all the visual evidence, I cannot help but accept the new reality of our situation at Canterlot High. Magic exists. An alternate world of talking equines exists. Monsters exist and come to our locale with alarming frequency. I suppose..."

He considered his next words carefully, eventually cracking a smirk.

"...it's just one of those things you get used to."

Raising his now-empty milkshake glass, Sandalwood chuckled to that.

"You'll get no argument on that from me, friend."

Turning back in the direction of the sushi place, Micro once more appeared deep in thought, then spoke aloud as he did so.

"Although...I suppose, from her perspective...our world must seem rather strange."

Leaning forward, Sandalwood nodded.

"Oh yeah! No magic, except for the stuff that comes over from her side. Lost of machines and, you know, no talking animals."

Micro looked to him.

"Besides Spike, you mean?"

Realising that, Sandalwood took on a somewhat embarrassed look.

"Oh, right, forgot about him."

He slapped his forehead.

"If you'd have come to me a few years ago and told me that I'd one day to go the same school as a girl who has a talking dog, I'd have called you nuts."

Micro raised an eyebrow.

"Quite. Though it would give some fascinating insight into canine psychology."

Sandalwood gave a chuckle, nodding slightly.

"Maybe you could ask Twilight to help you interview the little guy?"

Micro smiled to that.

"Oh, that sounds delightful. I always appreciate being able to converse with Miss Sparkle. So rare that I get the chance to speak to an intellect like hers."

Sandalwood, upon hearing that, folded his arms and looked to his friend with incredulity, which soon prompted Micro to raise his hands in a somewhat defensive manner.

"Oh! Not that I don't think you’re intelligent, Sandalwood! It's just..."

But, to his surprise, his friend simply broke out into another laugh.

"Hey, it's no biggie, Micro! I get it. Sometimes a brain just needs to talk to another brain, right?"

Micro blinked.

"Um...right?"

Then, Sandalwood leaned closer again.

"Although, I'd be careful about getting too chummy with her. You know, boyfriend and all that. Plus a whole bunch of magical BFF's to back her up."

Micro seemed aghast at such a notion.

"My dear fellow! I assure you, I have no such designs on Miss Sparkle! Besides, I'll have you know that I am happily dating Starlight!"

Again, Sandalwood laughed.

"Geez, you really need to get a handle on when people are yanking your chain, Micro!"

Micro, naturally, seemed just a touch irritated at his friend's jests, though the latter soon took on a thoughtful look of his own.

"But you know, now that I think about it...didn't Sunset hang out with another Starlight? Here in the Mall a while back?"

To that, Micro groaned.

"Oh, for the love of...for the last time, my girlfriend is not Starlight Glimmer! She's just...Starlight."

Sandalwood nodded to that, accepting that statement, but nevertheless appeared just as thoughtful.

"Yeah...but what if she's, like, the other Starlight's counter? You know, how everyone over here has some pony version over there?"

Micro, adjusting his glasses again, shook his head to that.

"Highly doubtful. Our Starlight and theirs bear no resemblance to one another, either in terms of appearance or personality. It's likely just a coincidence of names."

Leaning back into his chair, Sandalwood smiled again.

"Yeah, makes sense. And you know..."

A hearty chortle escaped him.

"...it's still pretty awesome, right? Us, here, talking about magic and different versions of us from other worlds?"

Micro dwelt on that thought.

"Perhaps...it does upend a lot of previously-established notions of how the world is supposed to work though. All those physicists and philosophers who have imagined other worlds or denounced the possibility of them...I imagine even they would get something of a headache if they were to truly take in everything that we've learned over the last few years."

In response, Sandalwood shrugged his shoulders.

"Sure..."

He broke out into another smile.

"...but it is more fun, right?"

Micro sat in silence, thinking on those words, before breaking out into a smile of his own.

"Well...I suppose one cannot argue with that, my friend."

Together, the two laughed, but it did not last long. For then, at that very moment, there was a commotion to be heard a short while away. Turning, both they and the other patrons of the milkshake bar saw that there was some sort of shoplifter trying to run away from wherever it was they'd just robbed. However, hot on the guy's heels was, of course, Sunset and her friends. They'd all used their power to assume their magical outfits and appearances, and were in the process of chasing down the criminal, in much the same way they had done with prior such incidents. Nobody said anything, merely watching as this group ran further and further away in search of their quarry. And when it was all done, Micro and Sandalwood turned to look at one another.

"So...just another day then?" Sandalwood asked.

Nodding, Micro sighed.

"Yes...it would appear so."

Then, he smiled yet again.

"And we wouldn't change it for the world."

Together, the two boys gave each other a fist-bump, with Sandalwood responding soon afterwards.

"Same here, friend, same here."

The music room of Canterlot High was, on most days, usually the favoured hang-out spot for the school's most noted students, the Rainbooms. But, it was also known to be chosen for a number of other activities, and today, it was seeing just one of those. Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were, at this very moment, in the middle of setting up the place for something that clearly had nothing to do with music. Furniture was being moved around, large instruments were being carefully placed to the side, and by the time it was all finished, there was a single large table in the centre of the room, surrounded by four chairs. Having finished their arrangements for the room, and taking their respective seats, the three girls each placed a book down in front of where they were each sitting. After having done so, however, they didn't start speaking to one another, at least not at first. Instead, they looked to the door of the music room, occasionally glancing down to the fourth, and currently vacant, chair. After a while though, Scootaloo let out a long sigh.

You're sure she got the message?"

Sweetie nodded.

"Yep. She responded and everything."

Looking to her two colleagues, Apple Bloom's expression was one of concern.

"Maybe she got cold feet about it? Ah mean...she is pretty shy bout this kinda stuff."

Scootaloo opened her mouth to speak, only to be kept from doing so when, at long last, the door of the music room started to slowly creak open. All three sets of eyes turned to look upon it, just in time to see a young girl, a few years their junior, enter. At first, she merely peeked her head in through the gap of the door, but after seeing the smiling faces of those three girls, and the welcoming gestures they were giving her, she entered the place in earnest. Slowly, she closed the door behind her, and began to make her way over to her chair, all while the CMC watched. Eventually, she was seated, and as soon as she'd finished looking to the other three girls, she finally broke the silence.

"Um...hi. I...I'm here now."

Leaning forward, Apple Bloom let out a brief giggle before replying to that.

"Howdy, Lily! Welcome to the Canterlot High Book Appreciation Society!"

Lily blinked to that.

"You...you mean a book club?"

Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes.

"Well, we wanted to call it that, but a certain fashion-loving sister of mine felt the name needed a bit more pizazz!"

Scootaloo looked to her with a raised eyebrow, prompting Sweetie to respond.

"Hey! It was her word, not mine!"

Shaking her head, Scootaloo then turned to Lily.

"We heard you liked books a lot, so we figured we should invite you over and talk about them."

Slowly, Lily looked down to the tablet she'd been carrying this whole time, before promptly placing it upon her side of the table.

"Oh. Um...you like books too?"

The three girls nodded in unison, each holding up the book they'd personally brought with them.

"Yep! We may do other stuff, but the CMC love books as much as anybody here!" Apple Bloom announced.

"Well...besides Twilight, obviously," Sweetie Belle added.

"Or Rainbow," Scootaloo concluded.

Apple Bloom cast them a look of irritation, then smiled again as she regarded Lily.

"So then...what books do you like, Lily?"

The youngest of the four girls thought on that, then looked down to her tablet. She swiped the screen a few times, then settled on one choice in particular.

"Well, um...I'm in the middle of a fantasy book. It's kind of an old one, but...I'm really liking it."

Scootaloo seemed eager to hear more about that.

"Ooh! Does it have a wizard?"

Lily nodded, seeming just a touch more open now that the other girls were showing clear interest.

"Yes...there's definitely a wizard."

"And maybe a dragon?" Sweetie asked.

Lily's smile widened.

"Yes, a dragon too."

"An' a big adventure across the land?" Apple Bloom enquired.

Again, Lily nodded.

"Yes, it has all of those things."

Then, she saw them all looking to her, seeming quite eager to hear what she had to say. Lily, who clearly wasn't used to being the centre of attention, started to blush a bit, hiding the bottom half of her face behind her tablet. Apple Bloom, seeing this, leaned back slightly, starting to sound a touch apologetic.

"Oh! Ah mean...if ya don't wanna talk about it, we understand, right, girls?"

The other two nodded together, making it clear that, despite being here, Lily was under no obligation to do anything she wasn't comfortable with. But, to the CMC's slight surprise, the younger girl lowered her tablet again, giving a nod of her own before speaking up again, albeit with a more quiet tone than everybody else.

"No, it's fine. I'm just...not used to people taking that much interest in my books."

Then, a look of fondness came to her, as though a pleasant memory had resurfaced for her.

"Well...aside from really good babysitters of course."

The other girls looked to each other in a way that, very clearly, showed that they didn't know who she was talking about. But, that wasn't a big matter right now. Because if she was indeed willing to talk about this beloved book of hers, then they were going to give her a willing and eager audience. They scooted their chairs closer, resting their hands upon the table and giving her genuine looks of enthusiasm. Lily, seeing all of this, looked down to her tablet, then back up to them, then finally back to the book. Taking a moment to get her thoughts in order, she eventually started talking.

"You see...I first heard about this story from my Mom. It was her favourite back when she was my age. She helped me find it and...and I've loved it since."

A tale such as that caused clear interest in the CMC, who leaned forward even closer, prompting Lily to, at last, start describing the story of her book in earnest.

"...It's a story about a man who meets a wizard. And the wizard has a bunch of his friends come over to the man's house, and at the end of it they all go off together on an adventure."

Scootaloo's smile widened.

"An adventure to fight a dragon, right?"

Lily nodded.

"Kind of. They have to go to where the dragon is and get a big pile of treasure back, which the dragon took a long time ago."

Apple Bloom chuckled.

"What did ah tell ya, girls? Ain't this a swell club?"

Scootaloo glanced to Sweetie Belle, then to Apple Bloom.

"Don't you mean a Book Appreciation Society?"

To that, Sweetie Belle grunted in irritation.

"Ugh! Can we please drop that already?!"

Lily, seeing all of that, started to giggle, much to the delight of the other girls.

"Glad ta see yer enjoyin' yerself, Lily!" Apple Bloom commented.

Calming down a little, Lily gave a small nod.

"Yeah, it's...it's fun so far."

Looking to her, Sweetie regained her earlier smile.

"So...do you wanna read it out? The story?"

Lily seemed taken aback by that.

"You...you want me to read it? To all of you?"

The round of simultaneous nods she got gave her answer, and after a brief moment of hesitation, Lily once more smiled to them. Clearing her throat, she started to speak.

"In a hole in the ground..."

As Sunset often wanted whenever she took part in the Canterlot High Fencing Club, the school's gymnasium was completely empty right now. That wasn't to say that she disliked having others about, but when she was involved in something that required focus and precision, which fencing most definitely qualified as, it was best not to have much in the way of noise or distraction. As ever, she was clad in the bright white fencing uniform required of her sport, which she was right in the middle of fastening properly. No loose folds around to give her trouble later on. And when that was done, she then turned her gaze to her weapon. She may not have described herself as a massive sword fan, but there was no denying that her rapier had a certain charm to it. The sheen as the gym's lights reflected off it, the lightness of it, there was a beauty there that she took just a moment to appreciate. But, this time of quiet did not last forever, as a familiar voice called to her soon afterwards.

"Looking forward to the lesson?"

A smile touched Sunset's lips as she looked up, and sure enough, she saw her two fencing partners who, alongside the two older instructors, made up the entire fencing club of the school. On her left was a girl with blonde hair, which was tied back into a ponytail, while the other had hair of bright red, and while that too was in a ponytail it was tied to the side, creating an asymmetrical image for herself. Chucking slightly, Sunset got up.

"You looking forward to it too, Cloudy?"

The blonde girl gave a nod.

"Always do. But, not as much as Rose over here."

She'd gestured to the red-headed girl beside her, and she too let out a brief laugh.

"Hey, I've been in this club since I started at CHS, so yeah, call me pretty invested at this point."

The three girls laughed together, but when it died down, Sunset looked over to the clock on the wall. Her smile faded a little as she finally realised the time, and promptly turned to look to her companions yet again.

"Are the instructors late?"

Cloudy shrugged her shoulders.

"Maybe? I haven't seen them."

Rose looked to them both before weighing in.

"Actually, I think I saw them talking with Vice-Principal Luna a while back. Something about parking spaces."

Cloudy rolled her eyes.

"I swear, that stuff gets brought up every week!"

Smiling, Sunset moved over to a chair on the side of the gym, and was followed shortly afterwards by her two fencing partners. Rose, after taking a seat of her own, soon tuned to Cloudy, speaking aloud.

"They may be late, but we can get used to that. But if we were late...?"

Cloudy grimaced.

"Ugh! Don't remind me! I still remember how they talked the last time I turned up a few seconds over!"

Nodding, Sunset cleared her throat, then started to waggle her finger in a disapproving manner while imitating what was, apparently, the voice of their instructor.

"Now now, Cloudy Kicks! Why can't you be more like Rose Heart over here? She never turns up late, does she?"

Again, Cloudy grunted.

"Argh! Don't! I'll get flashbacks from it!"

Sunset and Rose laughed together over this, and while Cloudy was herself a touch irritated, she too joined in on the laughter after a while. But, the laughs did not last forever, and when it was over, the other two girls leaned back into their chairs, with Rose turning a curious eye over to Sunset.

"Hey, I never did ask, but...do you guys have fencing over where you're from?"

Considering that, Sunset shrugged her shoulders.

"Maybe? I mean, I heard of one or two ponies who might have taken it up, but I don't think it was ever as big over there as it is here."

Cloudy giggled to that.

"I don't blame them. I mean, don't you guys fight with, like, magic and stuff?"

She then pointed to Sunset in earnest.

"Heck! Haven't you mostly used magic to fight over here?"

Sunset, dwelling on that thought for a moment, gave an accepting nod.

"Well...I can't really argue with that. Magic is a pretty big part of combat and self-defence over there, at least for us unicorns. Pegasi tend to use their speed and flight, and earth ponies often rely on their strength."

She tapped her chin a little.

"Melee weapons tend to largely be used by non-ponies."

Cloudy nodded as she heard all of that.

"It's still weird to think on it, ponies fighting. I mean, when I think of a world of magical talking animals, I don't really think of them getting into scraps all that much."

Sunset, in response, let out a rather dry laugh.

"Trust me, there's been plenty of fighting on our end over the years. In fact, if my friends on that side have been any indication, there's been a lot of it pretty recently. Invasions, battles, monsters, it's been getting pretty crazy over there since I left."

Rose, having been quiet for some time, looked down to her sword, then back to Sunset.

"...Why did you join the club, Sunset?"

The ex-unicorn turned to her.

"Hmmm?"

Rose continued.

"I mean, I know you're pretty good at this, and heck you're probably better at it than I am. But what made you want to take it up in the first place?"

Sunset seemed a little taken aback by that, as though surprised that such a question would ever be asked of her. But, after considering it for a few moments, she started to answer.

“Hmmm...hard to say really. I mean, I enjoy it a great deal, love it even. But as for why I started? I guess...I’ve always had a love of things that meant I had to focus and concentrate a lot. My studies, the odd game of chess, that sort of thing. So having a sport where I have to focus on a single opponent, to move and counter-move them...I guess that just drew me to it.”

Rose nodded, but said nothing as Sunset continued.

“Plus...I figured some physical training in the field of fighting would be good for me.”

Cloudy looked to her after that, seeming just a touch concerned.

“You...you think you’re in trouble?”

Sunset shook her head.

“Not exactly. But, as you said, we Equestrians rely on magic a lot when it comes to fights, which is something I’ve done even on this side of the portal. But, a day may come when I’ll need something extra, something where magic won’t be an option.”

Slowly, she looked to the other two girls.

“Guess, this club was a good mix of both for me.”

The other girls, after considering all of that, gave simultaneous nods.

“Well, whatever your reasons, we’re glad you’re part of the group, Sunset,” Rose stated.

“Yep,” Cloudy added.

Sunset chuckled.

“Thanks, girls. I appreciate that.”

But, before anybody else was able to say anything, they were distracted by the distinct sound of somebody opening the gym’s door. Sure enough, they saw that it was their instructors. Two older women, one with blue hair and one whose hair was of a dark shade of red. Approaching the girls, they took on a somewhat apologetic tone.

“Sorry for our lateness, girls. We were just...um...”

“Arranging some better parking agreements,” the other explained.

“Yes, that,” the first acknowledged.

The girls gave each other knowing looks, but again, they said nothing, for the instructors then put on their fencing masks, picking up their swords and speaking in a more authoritative tone.

“Now then...please assume the proper stances.”

And just like that, all three girls stood next to one another, their swords in hand, and one foot astride from the other, all with eager looks on their faces. Seeing that, one instructor nodded.

“Good. Now...onto the lesson.”

Now, in all fairness to her, Cheerilee wasn't wrong to believe that the library should be maintained for pursuits that one considered "proper". It was, after all, a place of learning, of quiet contemplation, or simply a place one went when they felt the need to expand their minds with the wisdom of the ages. What it wasn’t usually thought of, however, was a place for students to come along, dressed in bizarre costumes, and sit around a table while throwing dice. But, to Cheerilee's slight irritation, that was exactly what was going on right now. However, to her credit, she never said a word on the matter, instead sticking to her work of making sure that other books, which had simply been laid about willy-nilly, were put back where they needed to be. In some instances, she even took some small measure of amusement in seeing what the youths were doing, but, as ever, she simply watched from afar. As for the four youngsters who had taken to that aforementioned game, there was, at the very least, some genuine enthusiasm on display, particularly from the one lone girl in the group.

"Behold, mere mortals! For the Great and Powerful Trixie the Wizard will amaze and astound you with feats of magic the likes of which your feeble minds could never even dream of!"

Shaking the dice in her hands, she rolled the thing with great vigour, and all eyes looked down to see it fall. But, sadly, when it finally stopped, the number that came up gave Trixie some measure of dejection, as well as amusement for the two boys beside her.

"Hehe, just a two!" Snips remarked.

Snails chuckled.

"That means your big fireball is only a little spark!"

The two boys laughed, but Trixie, far from being annoyed at this, simply smirked at them both.

"Do I need to remind you two that the reason I was trying to cast a fireball was because you were about to be eaten by a dragon and needed help?"

The laughter halted, and the two boys looked to one another.

"Oh...yeah...she was doing that, wasn't she?" Snails conceded.

Taking on a rather nervous look, Snails stuttered for a bit before turning to look at the final member of their group, Big Mac.

"Um...we can get out of this, right, Mac?"

The older boy took the dice himself, shaking it and giving it a roll. Again, all eyes looked to it, and when the numbers were revealed, Mac gave a nod.

"Eyup."

Trixie rolled her eyes.

"Yes, yes, good for you. The dragon slipped, giving you a chance to escape."

Snips and Snails, naturally, gave a sigh to that.

"That was a close one!" Snails remarked.

But Snips, by contrast, merely snickered.

"Hey, it's no biggie. I'd have just used my super-sneaky elven hiding powers to get away if things got too bad."

Snails turned to him.

"But...what would I have done?"

Snips considered that, eventually shrugging his shoulders.

"Dunno...maybe play a song to lull it to sleep?"

Snails, in an uncharacteristic move on his part, gave a frown to his friend.

"I said I'm a barbarian, not a bard!"

Snips blinked.

"Oh...right."

Trixie, after having listened to all of this, let out an irritated grunt.

"Ugh! Mac? Just roll it again!"

The farm-boy nodded, and did indeed roll the dice. The group looked down, with Trixie giving a short nod.

"Hmmm...looks like you both get away...but now the dragon turns his eyes to Big Mac instead!"

However, rather than looking like he was at all fearful or bothered by that apparent turn in fortunes, Big Mac merely chuckled, cracking his knuckles before holding up his character card, pointing to it with a smug-looking smirk upon his face. Trixie, seeing that, understood immediately, smirking right back.

"Oh, I get it. You berserkers have a natural defence against fire. So the dragon can't incinerate you like he would for these two," she concluded, pointing to Snips and Snails.

The latter two boys looked from Trixie, to Mac, and then back again.

"But...but...but the dragon could still eat him, right?" Snails asked.

Trixie, tapping the end of her chin, considered that.

"Hmmm...it could..."

Her snicker returned.

"That is...assuming Mac rolls a six or lower."

Big Mac retained his look of confidence, and once more took hold of the dice. All eyes were upon him, waiting with fear and anticipation to see if his roll would be true, or if it would condemn him to death by dragon-digestion. The throw was made, the dice bounced all along the table, it ground to a halt, and then, with baited breath, the group looked on to see what was in store for Big Mac. Trixie, seeing what now lay there before her eyes, gave an approving nod.

"Huh...twelve."

Snips' head snapped in Big Mac's direction, his face one of utter awe.

"That...that means you use your great berserker strength to punch that dragon right in its face! And you knock it out too!"

Leaning back into his chair, Big Mac gave a satisfied nod to that.

"Eyup."

Trixie gave a dry laugh.

"Yes, yes, well done, Mac. But, as you probably know, we came to this dragon's cave for a reason, remember?"

The boys all looked to one another, then back to her, giving nervous laughs, prompting a sigh on her part.

"Right...of course you forgot."

Rubbing her temples slightly, she then gestured to the still-idle dice.

"Well then...let's see what great treasure we've unearthed after all this."

This time, it was Snails' turn to take the dice, and he gave an enthusiastic roll. When it was done, many shoulders slumped.

"...Four," Trixie remarked.

"Eyup," Big Mac concurred, sounding let-down.

"Well...it might still be good, right?" Snips asked.

Taking the instruction book, Snails read through it for a few moments, then looked to his friend and shook his head.

"Actually...if we roll a four, that means the treasure is only a hundred gold pieces."

Leaning back slightly, Trixie grunted.

"Ugh! That barely covers the cost it took for all those healing potions we used a while back!"

Snips sighed.

"So...what now?"

Snails, perking up slightly, looked to all of his colleagues before weighing in.

"You know...we still have that treasure map from before, right? It talked about a whole bunch of treasure chests in that big old castle, remember?"

Looking to him, Trixie raised an eyebrow.

"The castle? Surrounded by a moat of lava? Guarded by the legions of the un-dead?"

Snails, in that oblivious way of his, nodded.

"Yep, that one! Do we go?"

The group all looked to one another, and Trixie, after having weighed her options, merely let out a long sigh.

"Well...I suppose it does give me a chance to try out my fireball spell again."

Resuming her earlier smile, she gave a hearty nod to her younger companion.

"Very well, little barbarian, lead the way!"

Snails, now excited at this, grinned widely.

"Then onwards, my friends! To the castle of unyielding doom!"

The others, looking to him, blinked slightly, with Trixie ultimately voicing their shared sentiment.

"Okay, for the record...I did not know it was called that before I agreed to go there."

Then, to their shared surprise, somebody nearby cleared their throat, gaining their attention. They turned, seeing Cheerilee looking to them all, and after a few moments of hesitation on her part, she spoke up with a nervous smile.

"Um, I'm sorry to interrupt, but...could I play too?"

When chemicals were involved, it was always best to have one of the staff on hand to keep an eye on things, even when not directly intervening in what the students were doing. Such was the case today, as the teens within the chemistry class went about their respective work. Several groups had gathered since the class started, and each was working on a project of their own. Though subjects like this had often gained an unfortunate reputation for being boring or uninteresting, there didn't seem to be nay such sentiment here today, as the looks on everybody's faces seemed to convey excitement or simple enjoyment in the work they were all doing. Happiest of all, was, obviously, Twilight Sparkle, who was hard at work writing note after note in her book, always making sure to properly check the equipment and chemicals she and her group-mates had put before her. After going over those notes several times over, however, she broke into a smile, closing the book and addressing her friends.

"Alright then...shall we get started?"

The others, Rarity, Derpy and Flash, all gave simultaneous nods, expression their shared eagerness to begin the work. Rubbing her hands together slightly, Twilight went first, taking several test-tubes and ensuring that they were all properly secured above the Bunsen-burners. Derpy and Flash, meanwhile, were busy making sure they had the correct measurements of all the various chemicals they needed, with Flash in particular keeping a narrow eye over their measuring tools. Drop by drop he watched, raising a hand to his colleague as soon as they had enough. As for Rarity, she had taken to looking over Twilight's notes, largely to ensure that she too had a clear idea of what they were trying to achieve and how they'd do it. After some time had passed, she set the book down, looking to her spectacled friend.

"I trust you're confident we can do this, Twilight?"

Smiling, Twilight nodded back.

"I am. It's all standard stuff really. All the pieces are in place, all the chemicals and catalysts are gathered...and all we need to do now... is go step-by-step."

Flash, scratching the back of his head briefly, then took to raising his hands, holding out goggles for his team-mates.

"Let's not forget these, girls."

Giggling, Twilight took hold of the offered safety equipment, as indeed did Derpy and Rarity. The four took a moment to ensure their eyes were properly covered, and afterwards, took hold of some nearby gloves. Once those too were on, all eyes were upon Twilight, and she got down to one knee and carefully placed the first few liquids into their respective tubes. The others watched, beads of sweat rolling down their brows as the young scientist did what she did. Then, as soon as she was convinced that everything was in order, Twilight then took the aforementioned catalyst and, even more carefully, placed just a few drops within each tube. At first, there was nothing, for it was heat that was now required. Heat that Twilight and the others were more than willing to give, as they each took a burner for their own and, on the count of three, turned them on.

"Okay...let's see..." Twilight mused.

It took a few moments, but eventually, the chemicals within the tube began to ripple, and then, they changed colour, becoming a bright blue from the clear and transparent look they had before. Everyone smiled at this, Twilight especially, and she clapped her hands together.

"We did it! A total metamorphic reaction!"

Rarity, sweeping aside some of her hair, looked proudly to what they'd done.

"Well, I think we can safely say that this went rather well."

Derpy nodded.

"Yep."

Then, a sly smirk came to the blonde girl, and she turned to Flash.

"Certainly better than the first chemistry experiment you were ever part of, right, Flash?"

The boy chuckled, looking away slightly. Rarity too joined in on the laughter, and Twilight, adjusting her glasses a little, looked on at all of this with some confusion.

"Um...what happened, exactly?"

Flash sighed.

"It was a stupid mistake on my part really. It was basically a simple version of what we're doing here, but when it came time to clean up everything, I...well...I failed to let the tubes cool down before I put them under the water-tap."

Twilight nodded, understanding.

"Ah...I get it."

The boy nodded.

"Yep...shattered glass all over. Had to stay after class for a bit to help clean it all up."

Twilight smiled once more.

"Well, not to worry. Nobody got hurt, right?"

Flash chuckled.

"Right," he concurred.

Together, all four of the group looked down to the chemicals still reacting, seeing that shade of blue turn darker and darker. Twilight, clearly satisfied with this, raised her had, gaining the attention of the nearby teacher. The latter walked over, and from a short distance, she looked to what the four students had done. A smile crossed her face, and she gave a short nod, indicating her approval, much to Twilight's delight. As the teacher began to move away to monitor other students' work, Rarity spoke up again.

"Well, I may not have as much enthusiasm for the sciences as you, Twilight, but I must say, I do enjoy a good experiment such as this every so often."

Derpy smiled to that before adding her own voice to matters.

"Me too!"

Twilight giggled.

"Well, like I told Sunset a while back, science has been pretty much my whole life since I was little. There's nothing that gives me more joy."

A pause as she considered those words.

"Well...besides spending time with you and my other friends, obviously."

Rarity seemed touched by that.

"Awww...the feeling is mutual, darling!"

Taking off his gloves, Flash chuckled briefly, drawing the attention of Twilight.

"Something funny?"

The boy shook his head.

"Nah. I was just thinking of my Dad. The way Mom tells it, he was always terrible at this kind of thing. Every time he tried to add one thing to another, boom, right in his face."

In response, Twilight stifled a need to laugh.

"Oh dear."

Placing his hands upon his hips, Flash nodded.

"Yep. But, it was during those classes that he met my Mom though. She'd laugh when he got his face covered in soot, then walk over and wipe it off him with her handkerchief."

To that, the other three girls looked to him as though they'd just seen an adorable puppy.

"Awwwwww!" they all said together.

Flash chortled to that.

"Yeah, Scootlaoo reacted the same way."

But, before anybody else was able to say anything further on the matter, they turned in unison to see that, yet again, the teacher had arrived. She handed a piece of paper to Twilight, who graciously accepted it, before again turning to go to the other students. Together, all four gathered around, looking to the paper, and soon after, broke out into wide smiles.

"We passed!" Derpy exclaimed.

"Indeed we did, Miss Hooves! A true triumph, I believe," Rarity added.

"Yep, call me pretty happy about this," Flash remarked.

Adjusting her glasses slightly, Twilight looked on fondly to her colleagues in all of this, before taking on a look of pride as she regarded the equipment from their experiment.

"Well...guess we'd better start cleaning up."

Derpy put on another smirk as she turned to Flash.

"Let's wait until it's all cooled off first, right?"

To that, Flash rolled his eyes.

"Yeah...never hearing the end of that one."

With the bell having rung some time ago, the students of CHS had largely taken to the cafeteria for their lunch-time, and as such, there was a great buzz of chatter from that building that was heard all the way around the immediate area. As such, many who happened to be nearby could very easily hear just how crowded and noisy it was in there right now. But, for those who had taken to going outside for their lunch, in was a different matter. Here, things were a lot calmer, with fewer people and, quite frankly, just a nice bit of sunshine to brighten up their day. Upon the school steps, all close together, was one such group that was enjoying this lovely weather; CHS' school band. Their leader, Baton Twirl, was hard at work at her namesake skill, twirling her baton with great vigour while her band-mates watched. Many of these latter students were busy with their respective lunches, but one, the boy sitting beside the tuba, soon broke the silence between them.

"Don't you ever get tired of practicing, Baton?"

The red-headed girl simply snorted to that.

"Pfft! Nope! Gotta keep it up if you wanna stay good, Scott. Heck, you play a tuba, remember. I'd have thought someone who actually had an instrument would appreciate that."

Scott rolled his eyes, but said nothing as another of his colleagues, the girl with the trumpet, spoke up instead.

"She's right, you know. Given all the times we're call on around here, we can't afford to let up."

Baton smirked as she regarded her friend.

"Thank you, Mary. At least somebody agrees with me."

Afterwards, it was now the turn of the boy with the largest drum to add his voice to matters.

"Do...do you guys ever feel like there's not much call for us? At least, not as much as there used to be?"

A remark like that earned him looked from all the others, with his fellow drum-player, albeit with a somewhat smaller drum, responding soon afterwards.

"What do you mean, Mike?"

Mike turned to face him, shrugging his shoulders slightly.

"I don't know, it's just..."

He sighed.

"Look, James, we've all been at this for years now, practicing and loving what we do. But..."

He paused, looking around the immediate area to all the other students who happened to be passing them by.

"...have you ever noticed that a whole lot of music and song has been happening recently? Like, ever since that Princess girl came along a few years back?"

Pondering that, the boy with the trombone nodded slightly.

"Yeah...it does seem that way, doesn't it? I mean...it really does seem like, whatever day we're on, there's a whole bunch of music and singing going on. Like, completely out-of-nowhere singing and music."

Mike pointed to him.

"Thank you, Tony! That's exactly what I'm talking about! I mean, what point is there in a group like us, if a whole bunch of awesome music is just going to start up willy-nilly whether there's anybody with instruments or not?"

Baton, now sitting upon the stairs at last, considered that, tapping her baton against her chin as she thought on the question.

"Huh...you know...I hadn't actually thought of that."

After having heard everybody else, it was, at last, the turn of the girl with the flute to speak up.

"Well...I can't speak for all of you, but I can safely say that, whether all that weird stuff happened or not, I'd still be wanting to do all of this."

The eyes of all her band-mates was upon her, prompting her to carry on explaining herself.

"No, I mean it! Ever since I first joined, I've been having so much fun with you guys! Getting together, practising, plus all the stuff we do together outside of school. Besides..."

Slowly, she glanced down to her instrument, putting on a warm expression.

"...when I first started, I honestly never thought I'd be good at this. But with you all there to encourage me...well..."

Blushing slightly, Mike, scratched the back of his head in a nervous way, then spoke up, albeit with a tone that expressed clear hesitation.

"Well...you've gotten really good at that flute, Jessica. I don't think I've heard anybody play it quite as well as you since I came to this school."

Though taken aback by her colleague's compliment, Jessica smiled, even matching his blush. While the two smiled at one another, their friends all smirked, giving each other knowing looks as that awkward moment played out. At the end of it, however, Baton let out a sigh, leaning back slightly and, once more, twirling her baton in her hand.

"Yeah...it's been pretty great, I'll admit. I mean, sure, all the songs and random music coming out of nowhere can make our line of work seem pretty...what's the word?"

James looked to her.

"Pointless? Superfluous? Unnecessary?"

Baton looked to him with a raised eyebrow.

"Wow...way to just suck the joy out of the moment, James."

James, naturally, simply stayed quiet after that, much to the amusement of some of his other band-mates, but they too stayed silent as their leader carried on.

"But yes. As unnecessary as our group may be at this point, I'd still not trade it for the world. Heck, the rest of the school may not think we do much these days, but that hasn't stopped us from still being needed from time to time."

A smirk returned to her lips.

"Heck, remember that one time Rainbow called us up before the Friendship Games? That was pretty neat, right?"

Mary raised an eyebrow at that.

"Um...didn't you pretty much hog the spotlight during all that?"

Baton blinked slowly a few times, then cleared her throat a little bit.

"Yes...well...we all pitched in, and that’s what matters!"

Of course, the group all had a look of "are you kidding me" about them at those words, but they let it slide for the time being. Instead, and after letting out a long sigh, Mike once more broke the silence.

"Well, I think what Baton was trying to say is that...it's still pretty neat being around you guys, doing all of this."

Baton snapped her fingers, then pointed one straight at him.

"Yes! That! What he said!"

Mike shook his head, then looked to his other musicians.

"So, before we get back to classes, anybody got any ideas on inviting Octavia to be part of the club?"

Tony rolled his eyes.

"Dude, we've been inviting her for years and she always says no. It ain't happening, buddy. Let's just look to someone else, like...Trixie, maybe?"

Jessica shook her head.

"Nope. Guitars don't really fit with what we've already got."

Pinkie?" Tony suggested instead.

James raised an eyebrow.

"Excuse me? We've already got two drum people, remember?"

Tony just grunted at this point.

"See, it's stuff like this that's kept it as just us for the last few years. We've gotta have somebody new at some point, guys!"

A silence fell over them at that, and when it was over, it was Baton who spoke.

"Well, push comes to shove, we could always just ask Vinyl."

Slowly, Tony looked to her.

"Um...don't you think her particular brand of music is a bit...well...at-odds with ours?"

To that, Baton shrugged her shoulders.

"Hey, I don't even do music at all, and I’m in the group, remember?"

The others all looked to one another for a moment, then collectively looked back to her.

"Okay, fair point," Tony conceded.

Giving her baton another twirl, the girl took on a smug look.

"Hey, it's me, remember? Of course it's a good point!"

When one entered the kitchen intended for the Canterlot High cooking club, they were often taken aback by very powerful and alluring smells. The smells of cakes, pies, and many other assorted goodies that caused their mouths to water from just the tiniest whiff. Today was by no means an exception, as the six youths were hard at work on the new cake recipe they planned to carry out. Flash, Derpy, Pinkie, Sandalwood and Velvet were, in their own respective corner of the kitchen, each carefully preparing the ingredients necessary to get their cake in order. And last, but certainly not least, was Rainbow Dash. In contrast to the rest of the group, however, the young athlete was not preparing any ingredients, but rather simply standing to one side and staring at an open cook book. Specifically, it was the page that held the recipe they were using today, and she squinted hard at every step needed for it. Eventually, and after a long silence, she let out a sigh, turning to her half-brother.

"You know...I'm really not that great a cook, Flash."

The boy, who was right in the middle of kneading his dough, looked to her, letting out a brief chuckle.

"Yeah, I know. I remember how long it took to clean that pan up after the last thing you tried to bake here."

Embarrassment crossed Rainbow's face, and she scratched the back of her head slightly before replying to that.

"Well...maybe it'd be best if I wasn't actually, you know...here?"

To that, Flash halted, and looked to her with uncharacteristic sternness.

"Rainbow...cooking, no matter what form it may take, is an important skill that everybody should have some handle on in their lives. I learned it, Scootaloo learned it, and you’re gonna learn it too."

Rainbow grunted.

"Ugh! But it's so boooooring!"

Flash rolled his eyes.

"It is not! It's fun! Putting all the ingredients together, seeing it all turned into a delicious meal, it can be truly engaging."

The, he raised an eyebrow to her.

"Besides, I'll not have this be something you took part in just so you could beat Applejack at having the most clubs under your belt. If you're gonna be part of this, you're gonna be part of this!"

Folding her arms, Rainbow grumbled under her breath.

"Of all the brothers in the world, why did I have to get the responsible one?!"

Giggling, Pinkie turned from her own work to face her friend.

"Cheer up, Dashie! Flash is right, this is fun!"

Looking to her, Rainbow raised an eyebrow of her own.

"Pinkie, you once baked the Mona Lisa into a friggin' cake! But me? The first thing I tried baking here turned into a charred pile of ash!"

Pinkie snorted to that.

"Pfft! You were just rushing it! You missed out a whole bunch of ingredients, you didn't mix them up right, you put the temperature way too high..."

"Er, if you were trying to give me a pep talk, feel free to start saying nice things anytime now," Rainbow interrupted.

Pinkie frowned, then smiled again.

"Anyway, my point was that you'd be really good at this if you didn't just treat this as part of some silly contest."

Derpy looked over to the party-loving girl, adding her own voice to the mix.

"Pinkie, this is Rainbow we're talking about. Everything is a contest to her."

Rainbow looked to the blonde girl, slightly taken aback by those words.

"What?! No! Not everything!"

Derpy gave her a silent look of incredulity, prompting Rainbow to suddenly look a touch embarrassed.

"Okay...maybe everything."

Pinkie nodded to that sentiment.

"Well, if you took your time, you'd probably be just as good as the rest of us."

This time, it was Rainbow's turn to look incredulous.

"What, bake-Mona-Lisa-into-cake good?"

Again, Pinkie snorted.

"Pfft! Obviously not that good!"

Rainbow slapped her forehead after that, which elicited a chuckle from another of her club-mates, Sandalwood.

"You just gotta throw yourself into it, Rainbow. You know what they say. There's nothing sweeter than the taste of something you made yourself."

Walking over to him, and seeing the various raisins and cherries he was preparing, Rainbow considered that.

"Yeha...my Mom says the same thing every now and again."

Velvet, another of their club, looked to her with some interest.

"And you never tried cooking or baking at home?"

Rainbow shook her head.

"Well...no, not really. I guess...it all came down to me being worried about..."

A dry chortle escaped her.

"...well...you all saw the last monstrosity I baked here."

A shiver went through the others at the thought of that, but Flash, who had been silent for some time, merely let out a deep exhale before turning to Pinkie.

“Pinkie...show her what needs to be done.”

To that, Pinkie gave a salute.

“Aye-aye, Captain!”

With the command given, Pinkie, to Rainbow’s great shock, suddenly took her hand and yanked her halfway across the kitchen, placing her right in front of a wooden chopping board. Looking down to it, Rainbow saw that it already had a thin layer of flour upon it, prompting her to turn to Pinkie with some confusion.

“Er...what do I do now?”

In response to that, Pinkie unceremoniously slapped a big blob of dough right onto the flour, taking Rainbow aback slightly.

“What you need to do now, Dashie...is knead!”

Blinking slightly, Rainbow knew that her bed had been made for her, so now there was little choice but to lie in it. So, sighing, she placed her hands upon the dough, pressing it down gently. However, as Pinkie watched this, she shook her head.

“No, no, no! You've gotta be more fierce with it! Here...”

Walking behind her, Pinkie reached around and took hold of Rainbow’s hands, and so used them to knead the dough more vigorously. Rainbow, though unsure of this, nevertheless stayed quiet as her friend gave her demonstration. After a minute or two of this, Pinkie eventually let go, and Rainbow, to her credit, began to carry on exactly as she’d been shown.

“Like this?” she asked.

Putting her hands upon her hips, Pinkie nodded with enthusiasm.

“Yep! Keep doing that for a bit, and then we’ll move onto the next part!”

Cracking a small smile, Rainbow did indeed carry on with this, and for a time, the whole club simply carried on in silence with whatever work they were getting on with. However, Derpy soon looked over to Rainbow, speaking up in a reassuring tone.

“Don’t worry, Rainbow. None of us were very good at this when we first started. But, we all eventually learned to enjoy it.”

Rainbow, still kneading, turned to her.

“Do you do this a lot, Derpy? At home?”

Derpy nodded, smiling to herself.

“I do. Nothing gives me more joy than giving some small piece of cake that I baked to my little sweetheart and seeing her smile at it.”

Rainbow chuckled.

“Oh yeah? Dinky likes it?”

Again, Derpy nodded.

“She does. Can’t have it too much of course, but it’s still nice to know I make stuff good enough for her.”

Flash, looking over to the two, gained a smile of his own.

“I know the feeling. I remember when my Mom first taught me how to boil an egg. I swear, no egg ever tasted as good as that first one I prepared for myself.”

Pausing briefly, he then looked to his sister.

“Getting involved yourself always makes the food better, Rainbow, no matter how good or how bad a cook you are.”

Rainbow chuckled to that.

“Well...I guess I could stand to add one more thing to the list of stuff I'm great at.”

Naturally, the rest of the club rolled their eyes to such a remark, albeit in good humour. Soon afterwards, however, Rainbow looked to her still-kneaded dough, before speaking up again.

“Say, Pinkie...what do we do next?”

Looking to her, Pinkie giggled, then walked over and, with Sandalwood’s blessing, took his prepared fruits, before walking back to her friend.

“What happens now...is we make this cake the fruitiest thing Canterlot High has ever seen!”

Watching her and her enthusiasm, Rainbow’s smile widened.

“Wow...guess I never noticed how much you love this kinda stuff.”

Leaning over to her, Velvet whispered in her ear.

“You should see what she’s like on her less-restrained days.”

Hearing that, Rainbow took in that information, before promptly looking to her friend, seeing her eye slightly twitching as she regarded all the cake ingredients.

“Okay...kinda worried now.”

Sunset and her friends, having finished their regular band practise with one another, now found themselves feeling more than satisfied over the great music they'd been playing together. But, with this time now over, they set to work on making sure all of their instruments were put away properly. That is, with the exception of Twilight, who didn't actually have an instrument right now. Instead, the young scientist simply sat to one side along with Spike, petting him slightly while she watched her other friends all do what they were doing. Applejack and Rainbow, naturally, were laughing to themselves over who was making the best music during their session, while Rarity had taken to polishing her own, making it shine like the sun, much to her delight. Fluttershy was enjoying a quiet moment with her own pet, Angel, and Pinkie was giving her drumsticks a few twirls, which seemed to amuse her quite a bit. Meanwhile, Sunset, who was the first to put her instrument away, looked to the rest of the girls, putting her hands upon her hips before finally breaking the silence.

"Pretty good jam today, girls."

Applejack chuckled to that.

"Ah'll say! We get better an' better these days!"

"Indeed, darling. We're becoming quite the musicians," Rarity added.

"And it's super fun too!" Pinkie exclaimed.

Sunset had a laugh herself, but didn't say anything, as Rainbow then elected to speak.

"You know...I could always get this lot cleared away a bit...faster? If you like?"

Of course, words like that earned her looks of incredulity from her colleagues, leading to a sigh on her part.

"I know, I know, no abusing our magic, right?"

Nodding, Twilight stood up, allowing Spike to leave the music room after all this, no doubt to chase some poor local squirrel, before taking a step forward and looking to her friend with some concern.

"I realise our abilities can make things convenient for us, Rainbow, but given what trouble it gave for us last time we over-used them, it might be best to just...ease off every now and again."

Rainbow grumbled to that.

"Okay, sure."

Sunset then frowned as she remembered those past days.

"I'm not exactly eager to re-live all that, Rainbow. Hearing everybody's thoughts in my head constantly? It was a pretty trying time for me."

Fluttershy looked to her with worry.

"Was it really that bad?"

Sunset sighed.

"It was. You wouldn't believe what trouble I had just trying to get to sleep when it was all going on. Every time some late-night jogger went past my apartment, boom, up all night after hearing whatever was going on in their heads."

The others nodded in agreement, clearly sympathising with her statement. All, that is, except for Rainbow, who instead looked to her with some measure of curiosity.

"...What thoughts were they?"

Sunset looked to her, confused.

"Pardon?"

Rainbow shrugged her shoulders.

"The thoughts you heard...what were they like?"

Rarity turned to her, almost aghast at those words.

"Rainbow Dash! Are you seriously suggesting that Sunset Shimmer violate those people's privacy by revealing their innermost thoughts to all of us for the sake of mere gossip?!"

Rainbow considered that.

"...Yeah?"

Rarity blinked.

"Oh...um...alright then."

Then, she too looked to Sunset.

"As morally debatable as this may be, I confess that I too wonder about what it was you heard."

Folding her arms, Sunset dwelt on that possibility.

"Well, I can't say it was easy to really pick out specific thoughts when they happened. It was especially bad when the school day starts. Imagine going to a really crowded place, full of people who are all chatting so loudly that you cant hear yourself think. That was what it was like for me."

Pinkie grinned to that.

"Sure...but you must have heard something over all that, right?"

Thinking back to those days, Sunset shrugged her shoulders.

"I guess? I mean..."

Tapping her finger to her chin, she took a moment to really try and think back to what she heard in her mind during her out-of-control-magic days.

"Mr Cranky was focused on his lesson plan for the day. Sounded pretty tired about it too. Cheerilee was thinking the same, albeit with more enthusiasm than Cranky."

Twilight nodded to that.

"Sounds about right."

Then, a grimace crossed Sunset's face.

"Then there was that one moment where I heard Snips' thought and..."

She turned away, frowning.

"...let's just say I would've thought twice about having him around me back in the day if I knew he was thinking that kind of stuff about all the girls he was looking at."

It took only a moment for the others girls to get the idea, leading to a shared shiver among them all.

"Okay...way too much information!" Rainbow admitted.

In spite of that prior moment, Applejack chuckled to her athletic colleague.

"Bet yer wishin' ya hadn't brought this up now, eh, Rainbow?"

Rainbow smirked to that.

"They day's still young, AJ. There's still probably loads of...wait..."

She then turned to Sunset again.

"You talked about Snips, but...what about Snails?"

Sunset shrugged her shoulders.

"Surprisingly, he was just thinking about the chores he was going to do when he got back home."

Rarity gave a "hmmm" to that, almost sounding impressed.

"Well, at least one of those lads has their head on straight."

Again, there was a general murmur of agreement on that, and when it was over, Sunset spoke once more.

"Other stuff was as you'd expect. Trixie thinking about how great she is, Octavia dwelling on her next solo performance..."

A warm smile crossed her face.

"...I even heard Flash secretly thinking of taking Scootaloo to her favourite amusement park for her birthday."

"Aaaawwwwww!" the other girls all said simultaneously.

Sunset chuckled to that.

"Funnily enough, Scoot was thinking about that very place at the same time, so no prizes for guessing how she'll react when her brother takes her there."

Hearing all of that, Rainbow let out a chortle.

"Yeah, yeah, this is all good stuff, Sunset...but was there anything big you heard? You know, something juicy or shocking?"

Though a little irritated at her friend's insistence that she divulge someone else's secrets, Sunset, in all honesty, had a hard time even coming up with an answer to that. But, after a while, her eyes widened, and she snapped her fingers.

"Oh! I did hear this one thought, very quick, and it came from Vinyl."

The girls all gave her their complete attention, but the ex-unicorn suddenly started to look a touch more serious.

"What I say now...doesn't leave this room."

All of them immediately assumed the "Pinkie Promise" pose, with hand on hearts and everything. And Sunset, seeing that, looked around briefly before whispering her answer.

"Well...let's just say a certain cello-player is going to get a surprise invite to her favourite restaurant."

A moment passed, then simultaneous gasps from the other girls.

"Oh my!" Fluttershy exclaimed.

"Daawww! That's nice!" Pinkie added.

"How positively wonderful!" Rarity declared.

"Mighty sweet of her!" Applejack stated.

"And hot as heck too!" Rainbow concluded.

Twilight, who seemed to share her friend's sentiment, nevertheless looked to Sunset soon afterwards.

"Did it ever feel troubling to you? Being able to hear your classmates' thoughts like that? I mean...I always imagined a moment like that might reveal things that...well...would make you look at them in a bad way. Maybe...maybe sour your time at the school?"

Sunset thought on that, and then, shortly afterwards, a small but genuine smile came to her.

"Maybe...but not at this school, Twilight."

“...You mean besides Snips?” her spectacled friend added.

“Yes, obviously.”

Even though Rainbow had long ago learned to love practising her guitar skills alongside her friends, there was no denying that she was nevertheless an incredibly talented solo player. And today seemed to prove that, as she shredded away with her beloved instrument in her and her friends' favoured hang-out spot, the Canterlot High music room. On and on she played, with a look of utter confidence upon her face, never once hitting a bad note or missing a beat as she demonstrated just how skilled she was at this. And moreover, she certainly seemed to be doing well enough that her one lone audience member, Fluttershy, had a wide smile herself, as she listened to the loud yet entertaining song that was being played for her. But, as with all things, this solo came to an end, and Rainbow let out a long sigh after her performance, looking to Fluttershy with her usual look of bravado.

"Well?"

Standing up from her chair, Fluttershy gave an enthusiastic clap of her hands.

"That was very good, Rainbow! Music must be second nature to you by now!"

Chuckling, Rainbow set her instrument to the side for the time being, sweeping aside some of her multi-coloured hair, before placing her hands upon her hips and speaking back to her friend.

"Yeah, as nice as it is to practice with the girls, I gotta admit, I love a solo moment every now and again."

Looking over to the nearby clock on the wall, she gave a silent nod to herself, before then looking back to Fluttershy.

"Speaking of the girls, it's probably time that we..."

But, she didn't get the chance to speak, as just then, she felt an incredibly unpleasant shiver pass through her spine, causing her to grimace. Fluttershy noticed this immediately, and stepped forward towards her, her face one of obvious concern.

"Rainbow? What's wrong?"

Letting out an irritated grunt, Rainbow turned her eyes to the door of the music room.

"Flutters...I know that feeling. It's the feeling I always get when..."

Just then, the door opened, and there, standing confidently on the other side, was Fluttershy's younger brother, Zephyr Breeze.

"Hey there, ladies! Guess who?"

Fluttershy, though surprised to see her brother, soon developed a look of understanding, turning to Rainbow once more.

"...Oh."

"Yep," Rainbow concurred.

Zephyr, who was so far unaware of the discomfort he’d just caused by simply being here, stepped into the music room in earnest, still possessing that usual swagger of his as he approached Rainbow.

"Yeah, I know, it must be pretty overwhelming, getting to see me again, right, Rainbow?"

Rainbow rolled her eyes.

"Oh, I'm definitely feeling something, Zephyr."

Frowning, Fluttershy then looked to her younger sibling.

"Zephyr, pardon my rudeness, but Rainbow and I were just about to head out."

But the boy simply waved her off.

"Now now, sis. I'm sure that, whatever you two were doing, it can wait. I mean, I'm pretty sure being around me changes your priorities, right, Rainbow?"

Rainbow gave him a frown even deeper than the one his sister was giving him.

"Zephyr...Fluttershy's right. We had plans. And besides, I'm not really in the mood for...well..."

She then just generally gestured to him.

"...whatever this is."

But Zephyr, who still wasn't getting the message, let out a hearty chuckle, stepping beside Rainbow and, to the latter's chagrin, draping his arm around her, holding her closer.

"Oh, my sweet little Rainbow. Always thinking of my sis, eh? It's so sweet you two are such good friends. It really is inspiring."

Then, after looking around, he leaned in closer to her.

"Mind you, you wouldn't believe how relived I was when I heard she'd started dating Pinkie. I'd spent a good long while worried the two of you might actually end up together. And if that happened, then phew, what chances would I have to hook up with you?"

Slowly, Rainbow gave him a narrow glare, as indeed did Fluttershy, but the two said nothing as he gave yet further oblivious statements.

"But, looks like the way is clear, eh? Rainbow Dash, my sweet little baby-doll."

And thus was laid the straw that broke the camel's back.

"OKAY, THAT DOES IT!!!"

Rainbow gave him an unceremonious shove, pushing Zephyr off her and glaring at him with pure anger. Naturally, the boy was taken aback by this, but, so too was Fluttershy.

"Rainbow...?” she started.

But Rainbow shook her head at her childhood friend.

"No, Fluttershy! I know he's your brother, and I know you love him, but this has got to stop!"

Looking back to her unwanted admirer, Rainbow resumed her look of distaste.

"Zephyr...it's time I said to you something that you should have understood a long time ago!"

Hearing that, Zephyr was at a loss for words, and even made a loud gulp just before the girl started to speak firmly to him.

"For as long as I've known you, you have been, without question, the biggest creep I've ever met! Every time we're even remotely close together, you act as though you and me was some destined thing to happen! You act like I should be fawning all over you, that you're some great and spectacular prize that me and other girls should be drooling at when we see you!"

Stepping forward, she pointed an accusing finger at him, placing it square in the middle of his chest.

"But you know what? You're not any of those things! You're not slick, you're not cool, you're not a so-called "chick-magnet", you're..."

Grunting, she brought her face right up to his, squinting her eyes so tightly that it caused Zephyr to start sweating.

"...you're just...a creep."

The words had been spoken with such venom that Zephyr was made utterly speechless by it. And likewise, Fluttershy had been so taken aback by the aggression that Rainbow had displayed towards her brother that she too struggled to really think on what to say right now. Eventually, however, Zephyr brought himself out of this stunned state, looking to his older sister with an almost pleading look.

"F...Flutters?"

His sister knew what was going on in his head right now. He wanted reassurance, some words of comfort to make him feel as though Rainbow was just being "overly mean" or perhaps "overreacting" to the things he'd said to her. He wanted validation, to feel like he was in the right, and that others believed that too. But, his sister knew that wasn't going to happen. Slowly, Fluttershy turned to Rainbow, and the latter folded her arms and gave her a stern look. In her heart, Fluttershy knew what had to be done, and what had to be said. So, taking a deep breath, she looked to her brother, stepped forward, clasped her hands together in front of her skirt, and spoke in as calm a tone as she was capable of giving.

"Zephyr...when it comes to girls, you are, quite probably, one of the least pleasant boys they have known. You act as though you are divinely appointed to be desired by women, even though nothing could be further from the truth. They give you hint after hint after hint, and yet you are either oblivious to it, or wilfully ignoring it."

She frowned.

"And neither option puts you in a good light."

Raising her hand, she pointed straight to Rainbow, while keeping her eyes squarely on her brother.

"Zephyr...Rainbow is not interested in you. She has never been interested in you. And in all likelihood...she is never going to be interested in you."

Again, she took a deep breath, closing her eyes.

“Maybe, one day, you will find a girl who likes you...but it won’t be like this...and it won’t be Rainbow.”

She paused, but only briefly.

"Your efforts to woo her have, and always will be, unsuccessful. And if you have even the tiniest shred of respect for her as a girl and a person...you will take what we've said to you, accept it..."

Slowly, her eyes opened again, bearing sternness to them.

"...and never pursue her again."

Silence like the grave. That was what the music room was like now. Zephyr, as he had been for some time, was completely quiet, looking like he had just been given the worst new it was possible to hear. Gradually, he looked to Rainbow, who continued to maintain her appearance of displeasure towards him. Then, he looked back to his sister, and again, it looked as though she too was not going to budge on this matter. He had been told the truth, and it was bitter to hear. So, after taking a moment to get his bearings, he took a step back from Rainbow, brushed himself off slightly, then looked to her with an expression like he had no idea what he was doing right now. A sentiment that was further reflected in the unsure tone he now spoke in.

"I...I'm...sorry."

Rainbow blinked, slightly surprised by those words coming from him. But, surprised or not, she nevertheless stood her ground on her position, facing him fully and speaking firmly.

"Don't be sorry...be better."

Slowly, Zephyr gave a small nod, then turned away from her. Both Rainbow and Fluttershy watched him head towards the door of the music room, and as he opened it, he looked over his shoulder to his sister.

"I'll...see you back at home, sis."

Fluttershy nodded to that, then she watched him leave, closing the door behind him. Now alone, Fluttershy let out a deep exhale, and Rainbow could see the discomfort on her face.

"You okay?"

To that, Fluttershy nodded.

"Yes. I...I suppose I always knew I'd have to say that to him one day. I just...I thought I'd always hoped he would have...I mean...before."

Rainbow sighed, nodding.

"I hear ya. But, as Sunset would say, sometimes you need tough love. Nobody likes being told what they don't want to hear...but if we didn’t say all that to him...you know what would have happened."

Looking to the door, Fluttershy answered.

"I know...he'd have just kept on doing it."

Walking beside her friend, Rainbow raised an eyebrow to her.

"Think he'll get over this?"

Looking back to her, Fluttershy smiled.

"I think so. He'll feel bad for a while, but...I think, perhaps...he needed that. You were right, we'd have done him no favours by staying silent. And perhaps, now that he knows...he can start doing something about it."

Rainbow chuckled to that.

"Here's hoping, Flutters. Now..."

Looking back to the clock, Rainbow gave another nod, then looked back to her friend.

"...I think our friends will probably be waiting for us. Don't want our milkshakes to go to waste, right?"

Giggling, Fluttershy smiled back to her.

"Yes, Rainbow...I think we could use some right now."

Then, to their slight surprise, the door slowly creaked open again, and a sheepish-looking Zephyr poked his head in.

“So...just for the record, was it the baby-doll remark? Or was it just me calling you little?”

Naturally, the two girls simply gave him further glares, prompting him to slowly retreat back out.

“Right...got it...shutting up now.”

Being fairly early, there was nobody else about in the teacher's lounge right now, but to be perfectly honest, that was exactly how Mr Cranky liked it. Nobody else meant no talking, no sound, no disturbances while he worked. A brief moment of calm and quiet to his day before the hectic school times began in earnest. Sitting at one of several tables within the room, the older man sighed deeply as he took a sip of his coffee, looking down to the papers before him. Plans for the day, and a curriculum for the lessons he was going to be giving today. His expression was as clear as day, and even a novice of reading people would have been able to tell that he looked about as tired and unenthusiastic as one could get under the circumstances. But, his solitude here did not last forever, as the sound of the door creaking open prompted him to finally look up from his work. There, entering the lounge herself, was a fellow teacher, Miss Cheerilee, and as soon as the latter saw her colleague, she smiled.

"Good morning, Cranky! I hope the day's treating you well."

He didn't return the smile, merely raising his cup to her slightly.

"Miss Cheerilee."

His words were brief and to the point, and while Cheerilee would have clearly wanted to speak to him further, she could tell that he was busy right now. So, she instead turned to the lounge's coffee maker. Cranky, for his part, simply looked down to his papers, trying to focus on his lesson plan for the day, all while hearing the sound of the coffee maker producing its namesake drink for Cheerilee. After taking the piping hot beverage, and having a good swig of it, the younger woman let out a sigh of contentment.

"Ah! Perfect way to start the day!"

Cranky grumbled to that, taking a sip of his own drink, and paying no mind to his younger colleague as she decided to take a seat opposite him.

"So...what will your students be learning from you today?"

Letting out a sigh of his own, Cranky glanced up to her briefly.

"History. We're learning about pre-1800's farming techniques."

Cheerilee blinked to that.

"Well...I'm sure there'll be plenty of interest in a topic like that."

To that, Cranky let out a dry chuckle.

"I appreciate the sentiment, Miss Cheerilee, but we both know that's not going to happen. These students aren't that eager for things like this."

But Cheerilee shook her head.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that. There's been a great deal of passion in these students over the last few years. Grades are up, and the whole atmosphere of the school has improved from what it used to be."

Considering that, Cranky nodded.

"Yes...I can't argue with that. But..."

A frown crossed his face.

"...it's still a little disappointing when you have a lesson and your students just...don't seem that interested."

Cheerilee tilted her head slightly.

"Oh?"

Cranky paused, and then, after a few moments, he placed his papers down, before turning and reaching down to the briefcase he'd brought with him. After rummaging around inside of it for a bit, he pulled out what appeared to be a hand-held electronic game device, which he carefully placed upon the table, prompting Cheerilee to enquire about it.

"Never took you for the gaming type, Cranky."

Another empty laugh escaped the man, but afterwards he shook his head before explaining things.

"Had to confiscate this from Snips last week during one of my classes. He was playing it right in the middle of it. Thought I wouldn't notice either."

His frown deepened.

"And the others weren't all that eager to hear what I was lecturing them on either."

Then, his expression softened, and he leaned back into his chair.

"Though, in fairness to them...I don't think I care as much about these lessons as I used to either."

Cheerilee, leaning forward slightly, looked to her colleague with no small measure of concern.

"You don't really mean that, do you, Cranky?"

A pause from the man, and then, he looked her right in the eye.

"Cheerilee...you haven't been in this job as long as I have. Aside from Granny Smith, I'm probably the oldest faculty member of Canterlot High. I've taught here for decades, served under at least six Principals, and seen student after student pass through these hallways before going out into the big wide world."

He turned, looking out of the window.

"At the start, I had probably the same enthusiasm for this work as you do right now. But as time went on, little things would just start to add up. Moments of disinterest or apathy from the students, the repetition of what I was teaching them, the routine and regularity of my time here."

A quick shrug of his shoulders followed.

"After a while...it's just the kind of work...you become numb to, you know?"

Hearing all of that, it was now Cheerilee's turn to frown.

"Cranky...what we do here is important. I appreciate that you might not have the same drive you used to, but you can't deny that our work here is worth doing. Helping these kids, getting them ready for the future, giving them a place where they can learn and grow."

The old man let out a deep exhale after that.

"I know...I've tired telling myself that same thing whenever I feel like this. And after all these years, it's a line of thinking that's, quite frankly, lost its edge."

A silence passed between the two teachers, and for a time, Cheerilee looked as though she was completely at a loss on how to make her colleague feel better. Then, after thinking on the matter for a bit, a smile came to her. She too reached down to her briefcase, and after looking in it for a few moments, she pulled out what appeared to be a small letter, causing some curiosity in Cranky.

"What's that?"

Cheerilee's smile widened.

"It's something one of the younger students gave me the others day. She and the others really enjoyed the lesson I gave them, so she decided to thank me by writing this letter."

Silently, she handed it to Cranky, and after a moment of hesitation, the latter took it from her. Picking up his glasses, he used them to better read the words on the paper. And as he did this, his eyes began to widen slightly, for that letter contained perhaps some of the most genuinely affectionate statements he could remember any student ever saying to their teacher. Words of thanks and praise, talking about how much fun they had during the lesson. It talked of how the student and her friends all talked about what they'd learned for days afterwards, and how they were looking forward to learning more the next time they had Cheerilee giving them a class. And speaking of whom, Cheerilee herself, after seeing that Cranky had read quite a bit of the letter so far, finally broke the silence between them.

"I know there are times when this job can get dull. It can get repetitive, and we may even wonder if what we do even does our students any good at all."

Raising her hand, she gestured to the letter.

"But someday...I get a student saying things like this to me...and I'm reminded why I wanted to take this job in the first place. Because if I can make even one student feel that way about the things we've taught them...then I know that it will have all been worth it."

Cranky, for a time, didn't know what to say. He simply looked to Cheerilee, to the earnestness in her expression, and knew that she'd meant every word of it. A minute or two passed before he did anything else, and when he did, he sighed deeply before, at last, cracking a smile. Admittedly, it was a small smile, but genuine all the same, and when he spoke, it was with a tone softer than he was usually known for.

"Thank you, Cheerilee. I...I'm glad you said all this to me."

Reaching forward, Cheerilee gave him a quick pat on his hand, returning the smile.

"Think nothing of it, friend. And you know..."

She looked down to the papers Cranky had been looking through prior to her arrival.

"...you yourself may get such praise even when teaching lessons like that to your students."

Moments afterwards, Cranky gained a look of incredulity to him.

"I'm a teacher, Cheerilee, not a miracle-worker."

When one had a life and daily routine as hectic and as packed as Sunset and her friends, it would be easy to assume that their days were always like that. Lots of action, lots of stuff to do, with no opportunity to just kick back and smell the roses. Fortunately for the girls, this was not the case, and today, they did indeed have a moment to simply chill for once. There was no work to be done, no problem they needed to use their magic for, and no issue to cause them any concern. Sitting quietly upon the floor of Twilight's bedroom, the girls were all in the middle of simply whatever took their fancy today. Fluttershy was playing around with Spike for a bit, Rarity was reading one of her magazines, Applejack was watching Sunset play one of her video games, Pinkie was just fiddling around with some balloons, and Rainbow was hard at work on a nice long nap. As for Twilight herself? She was quietly reading a book of her own, one filled with scientific theories the likes of which would simply cause headaches for her friends. But, after a while, she looked up from this, smiling to herself before finally speaking up.

"When was the last time we had a moment like this?" she asked.

A chuckle escaped Applejack at that.

"Ah hear ya, Twi. Seems like a lifetime ago."

Looking up from her game, Sunset nodded.

"Well, when you're part of a group of magical high-school girls, being busy tends to be the norm."

Turning her gaze from her magazine, Rarity smiled.

"Indeed, darling. Though I do appreciate a little quiet time every now and again..."

She gestured to her book.

"...especially when one has all the latest celebrity gossip to catch up on."

Giggling slightly, Fluttershy allowed Spike to have his chew-toy in earnest, looking to her fashionista friend.

"Honestly, I'm just glad we get a chance to just have a peaceful moment together. We probably all have quiet moments on our own, but it's always been better when we're all here."

Setting her balloon aside for the time being, Pinkie bore a wide smile, scooting over slightly and giving her girlfriend a surprise hug.

"You said it, Fluttershy! Getting together with friends is just the super-awesome-best thing ever!"

Though taken aback by this, Fluttershy soon eased into it, returning the hug and matching her girlfriend's smile.

"And being here with you is good too, Pinkie!"

Naturally, this cute little display earned a simultaneous "awww" from the other girls, as well as a quick chuckle from Spike.

"Yeah, as much as I love hanging around you girls, it does get pretty tiring, you know, having so much magic to deal with all the time."

A look of thoughtfulness came to him, and he tapped his chin with his paw as he pondered his words.

"Although, I guess I do owe magic for making me able to talk with you all."

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Meh, guess I can take the weird stuff after all."

Giggling, Twilight reached forward, picking her puppy off the ground and giving him a quick hug.

"Trust me, Spike, being able to talk to you has been one of the best things to ever happen to me."

Holding him out in front of her, her smile widened.

"I always loved having you around, and you'll always be my best friend, but now? Now, we can actually have conversations with one another!"

Spiked raised an eyebrow.

"Love you too, Twilight, but to be honest, most conversations would go better if you didn't keep going all sciency on me. Seriously, I can't really understand a lot of that stuff."

Putting him down, Twilight let out a faux-huff.

"You're no fun."

The girls, of course, gave a laugh to that, as indeed did Spike. But, when it died down, they all turned when they heard the distinct sound of somebody yawning. Sure enough, it was Rainbow, and the yawn she gave was right alongside her mouth opening far wider that most of them thought a human being was capable of doing. When she finished, she returned to her earlier dozing, prompting Fluttershy to take on a slightly concerned look.

"Oh my! She really did go all out with her exercises today, didn't she?"

Applejack nodded.

"Eyup. Tennis, soccer, boxing, ah swear, that girl tried every sport under the sun today!"

Sunset nodded, looking to her sleeping friend.

"Well, you know Rainbow. She doesn't do things by halves. And let's be fair, she did pretty great when she was doing it."

Pinkie giggled to that.

"I’ll say! You should've seen the other teams when she came along! Whoosh! Right past them so fast they didn't even know what hit em! And that was without her magic too!"

Smiling to that, Sunset then looked to her rainbow-haired friend, and, after a brief moment of hesitation, she scooted over slightly, reaching forward and taking hold of her shoulder, nudging her a bit.

"Rainbow? Rainbow?"

It took a few moments, but eventually, the young athlete started to stir, slowly opening one eye, and then the other. As before, she let out a large yawn, and after taking in both her surroundings and the friends who were looking at her, she focused her attention on Sunset in particular.

"Oh...I fell asleep again, didn't I?"

Smiling again, Sunset nodded.

"Yep. Hope it was a good one."

A chuckle escaped Rainbow at that.

"Yeah, it was pretty neat. You know me. I'm the champ..."

But, she was kept from finishing that by yet another yawn, which lasted about ten seconds before she was finally able to say anything else.

"...yeah, the champ of naps."

Again, the girls all laughed to that, even Rainbow, and when the laughter was finished, it was Twilight who spoke next.

"This...this is fun."

Looking to her, Rainbow smirked.

“Yeah, sure, but you won’t catch me doing this too much!”

Looking to her with some incredulity, Twilight replied to that.

“Oh? Got more sports in mind?”

Letting out a dry chortle, Rainbow nodded.

“Yep! I plan on going out to the track tomorrow and seeing how well I can do. With luck, I'll beat my personal best from last time.”

Pinkie turned to her, looking like she was clearly interested.

“Ooooh! Can I come see?”

Fluttershy spoke soon afterwards.

“I wouldn't mind watching either.”

“I concur. It might be quite the sight,” Rarity added.

Taking on a look of pride, Rainbow gave a big smile to her friends.

“Sure! Always love to have an audience to my being awesome!”

Though smiling all the same, Sunset rolled her eyes to that.

“How about you, Twilight? Got any plans for tomorrow?”

Twilight considered that.

“Well...I was going to ask if anybody wanted to join me for a game of chess.”

Looking to her in earnest, Sunset spoke up enthusiastically.

“I’ll join you for that. It'll be fun.”

Twilight returned the smile, but soon turned to Applejack as the latter let out a hearty laugh.

“Well, ah reckon ah’ll just’ keep this relaxin’ time goin' when ah get back home. Maybe spend tomorrow kickin' about the house.”

Sunset nodded to that.

“I don’t blame you for that, AJ. I mean...”

Slowly, she glanced around the room, to each and every one of her friends, before once more cracking a smile.

“...this has been pretty good.”

"How she can keep up a pace like that I'll never know!” Rarity exclaimed.

"You can say that again!" Pinkie added.

"Well, she always was the fastest of us, after all," Fluttershy remarked.

All three girls watched on with both excitement and awe as the most athletic of their group, Rainbow, did exactly as she'd once promised, and was now running around the track field of Canterlot High as fast as she possibly could. She used no magic, nor otherworldly ability to go at the speed and pace she had, and was simply using her natural talents to do it. And moreover, she seemed to be fairly satisfied with it as she was doing it, with her usual look of confidence as she made her way around the field. The other girls looked on, with Fluttershy holding up a stop-watch in her hand, occasionally looking down to it as her friend made her rounds. But, after a while, Rainbow at last came to the finish line, with Pinkie and Rarity cheering her on as she crossed it, while Fluttershy merely smiled sweetly. As one would expect after such exertions, she was panting furiously, but was soon attended by Fluttershy, who handed her a refreshingly cool glass of water.

"Thanks, Flutters."

Her tone was one of genuine thanks, and Fluttershy offered another soft smile in return. Soon afterwards, Rainbow downed the drink frantically, taking gulp after gulp at a pace almost as fast as the one she'd just been running in. After almost a full minute of swallowing that water, she finally took in a deep breath, which was followed shortly afterwards by a long and satisfied sigh.

"Oh yeah! I so needed that!"

Giggling, Pinkie stepped forward.

“That was really great out there, Dashie!”

Rarity nodded.

“Indeed, darling! I daresay I’ve never seen you go around that fast ever!”

Placing her hands upon her hips, Rainbow looked towards Fluttershy, and proceeded to ask the obvious question.

“So...what was my time?”

Realisation came to the animal lover at that.

“Oh! Of course!”

Looking down to her stop-watch, a smile came to her, and she promptly held it up for everybody to see the numbers.

“One minute and five seconds!”

Grinning, Rainbow balled her hand into a fist, striking a triumphant pose.

“Yes! A whole five seconds faster!”

Letting out a hearty laugh, she looked over to Fluttershy.

“You know, my offer still stands, Fluttershy.”

Raising her hand, Fluttershy spoke softly and maintained her smile as she replied.

“Thank you, Rainbow, but I'm quite happy doing my own exercises.”

Rarity nodded.

“I concur. A great burst of energy such as yours may be all well and good for you, Rainbow, but I prefer my morning yoga classes, thank you very much.”

Though briefly disappointed by that, Rainbow soon took it in stride, resuming her prior smile and nodding to her friends’ words.

“Fair enough, I guess. Although...”

She turned, looking out to the track.

“...you girls don’t know what you're missing.”

Pinkie looked to her with some curiosity.

“You really love all that, don’t you, Dashie?”

Folding her arms, Rainbow gave a nod, but kept her eyes firmly upon the field she’d been running on.

“Oh yeah. Ever since I was little, I’ve loved going out for runs like that. The wind in my hair, seeing everything just fly by. It’s just...pretty exciting. And when you come back, panting hard and feeling your heartbeat upped...it really makes you feel like you've accomplished something.”

Fluttershy looked to her, showing understanding, and yet, just for a moment, seemed to share Pinkie’s curiosity.

“Rainbow...does it ever bother you?”

Turning to her, Rainbow raised an eyebrow.

“What?”

Fluttershy took a moment to get her thoughts in order before finally starting to elaborate.

“When you got your magical pendant, it’s been able to make you go faster than ever before. Faster than any human being could go. Does it...”

She hesitated, but only for a moment.

“...does it ever bother you to have days when you go at these speeds here. After going as fast as you do with your magic...I wonder if you feel...well...”

Rainbow nodded.

“Like it’s a downgrade?”

Fluttershy didn’t answer, and merely nodded back, showing that this was indeed what she was going to ask. Rainbow, for her part, didn't answer back straight away. Instead, she stayed silent, considering the question carefully, tapping her foot slightly to pass the time. And when she finally did speak up, it was with a more reserved tone than she was usually known for giving.

“Well...I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it. I mean, come on, if I love running at these speeds, then running at magic speeds was always gonna be pretty awesome to me.”

The others nodded to each other, as though having expected that from her. But, they said nothing as their athletic friend continued.

“But...no. I don’t think it’s a step backwards for me to do running without my magic, Flutters. Because...well...”

Again, she gestured to the track.

“...when I’m out there, running on my own, with no magic to help me, it feels...it feels like it’s a speed and a time I'm earning. Magic is pretty awesome, I can’t argue with that, but it’s not something I can do myself. It’s something that was given to me by the pendant.”

Slowly, she looked back to her childhood friend.

“Given the choice between running as me or running with my magic...I’ll pick option one. Because as awesome and cool as it is to go at a zillion miles an hour with that stuff...at the end of the day...I’ll always feel that running around as normal...is all mine, you know? That’s as good as I can describe it anyway.”

After a few moments, Fluttershy gave another smile, nodding in understanding.

“I can certainly understand, Rainbow. You always were someone who preferred doing things your way after all.”

A chuckle escaped the other girl at that, but then, as she considered all of this, she sighed, looking just a touch down.

“Although...I will say that I miss my old wings.”

The others looked at her in silence, prompting her to explain further.

“The wings me and Fluttershy got when we first ponied up? I know we still have them and stuff, but we don't really use them like we used to. We just sort of float there while we shoot our friendship lasers and stuff. And heck, all the rest of you do that too now, so what's even the point of the wings these days? I mean, come on, getting to fly?! How awesome was that?”

Then, she started making motions with her arms that, apparently, were supposed to simulate her flying movements.

“Remember when I first got them? I went zoom! And then whoosh! And up and down and all around and...ugh! It was just great!”

Giggling again, Pinkie bounced to her side.

“Not to worry, Rainbow. At least the pony version of you gets to fly all the time, right?”

Slowly, Rainbow turned to her, looking just a little bit incredulous, and Pinkie, after thinking on her own words for a bit, suddenly cleared her throat in a nervous manner.

“Okay...maybe that sounded more reassuring in my head.”

In one of the quietest corners of the Canterlot High library, the two greatest minds of the school were duking it out in one of the oldest and most respected contests in the world; Chess. Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle, each one sizing up the other, and each one planning move after move after move before their opponent had even done anything. But, despite this competition between them, there was an air of enjoyment about it. To the two girls, this right here was fun, and that was exactly how they liked it. A nice little quiet moment playing a game they loved while spending time with a dear and close friend. Eventually, it was the turn of the former Crystal Prep girl to finally move one of her pieces, and she did so by choosing her Rook, moving it forward and expertly capturing one of Sunset's Pawns. The Equestrian nodded to this, acknowledging the fine move her foe had made, but then, developed into a knowing smirk. For as she reached forward, she took hold of her Knight, and with one move, removed the offending Rook from the board. Twilight, for her part, merely giggled to this.

"Well done, Sunset."

Chuckling to herself, Sunset leaned back into her chair slightly.

"I've been playing games like these for a long time, Twilight. Trust me, I know what I'm doing."

Nodding back to her, Twilight glanced down at the board.

"You know...you could always join the chess club if you're that into it."

To that, Sunset shook her head.

"Thanks for the offer, but I prefer just doing it as a side-thing. Something to do every once in a while with friends."

Twilight raised an eyebrow.

"Well...with a friend anyway."

Leaning forward again, Sunset smiled, letting out a brief sigh.

"Yeah...the other girls all have other things they'd prefer doing. Chess isn't really their cup of tea, and that's fine."

Her smile widened as she regarded Twilight in earnest.

"Besides...I have you here, right?"

Returning the smile, Twilight nodded.

"Yes you do."

And with that, the spectacled girl took hold of her Queen, and thus used it to remove the very knight that had thwarted her Rook a few moments ago, leading to another chortle on the part of Sunset.

"Not bad, not bad."

A smirk crossed her face soon afterwards.

"But be careful, Twilight. The Queen may be the most powerful piece on the board, but you don't want to use her too much."

To this, Twilight matched that smirk.

"Oh, I don't plan on throwing her away anytime soon, Sunset."

They stared intently at one another for a while, and then, they burst out laughing. The "seriousness" of the moment was gone, replaced instead by the simple fact that they were just having a good time here. But, their laughter had proved to be just a touch too loud, as the irritated face of Cheerilee soon emerged from around the bookcase they'd been playing by.

"Shhhh!"

Slightly embarrassed, the two girls gave her apologetic looks, to which Cheerilee nodded, at which point she once more retreated behind the bookcase, leading to looks of amusement on the part of the two players.

"So...was this the kind of thing you used to play in your spare time? Back in Equestria?"

Moving another piece, Sunset gave a nod to that.

"It was. Besides painting, chess was something I was always interested in. A game of tactics and strategy, having to think and predict of what your opponent might do when you made your move."

Looking to the pieces on the board, a nostalgic smile came to the ex-unicorn at that.

"Most of the other students never really played with me all that much...but Princess Celestia did."

Twilight looked to her with interest.

"Was she good?"

Thinking on that, Sunset looked to her with a knowing smile.

"Oh yes...she was very good."

Leaning back slightly, Sunset crossed one leg over the other, thinking on those far-off memories.

"She was the one other chess-player I ever faced who ever gave me any trouble. I always thought I was good...and then a day would come when I'd face her...and all of a sudden, I realised just how much I had to learn."

Another chuckle escaped her.

"I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. She taught me how to play the game after all."

Leaning forward, Twilight showed more interest than before in the story being told to her.

"Well, wouldn't that mean you knew how she played?"

Though Sunset nodded to that, it wasn't long before her prior smirk returned to her.

"She did...but the thing about Princess Celestia is...she never taught you everything. At least, not all at once. Oh sure, she'd show me the basics, but other lessons were always introduced later, with each game we played. No matter how much we competed, she always had the upper hoof. And even when I thought I had learned all I could about the game, she always had a trick up her sleeve."

Twilight blinked.

"...Does...does that expression even work when we're talking about ponies?"

Sunset once more opened her mouth to speak, only to suddenly be hit with the realisation of what her friend had just said to her. So, after tapping her chin with her finger for a bit, she shrugged her shoulders.

"You know what...I'm actually not sure."

She smiled again to her friend.

"Funny how those things go, isn't it?"

They shared a laugh together, and for a time, they said nothing afterwards. Instead, they simply contented themselves with their game, with each turn taking far longer than most students would give. After a while, however, there came a time when both of them only had about three pieces each on the board, at which point Twilight looked up to her colleague.

"This has been a pretty good game, Sunset."

The Equestrian nodded.

"It has. Although..."

A knowing look came to her.

"It might take a turn for the worst for you, Twilight."

Though confused, Twilight looked again to the board, adjusting her glasses slightly. And that was when she saw it. Sunset was right. There was indeed an opening for her to make her move and declare a Checkmate. Victory was in the bag for her, and the move hadn't even been made yet. But, while Twilight was nervous about this, she soon saw, to her surprise, that Sunset picked up her King, and promptly took him off the board.

"I concede," Sunset announced.

Though taken aback by this, Twilight eventually managed to get some words out.

"Um...what?"

Chuckling, Sunset folded her arms and shrugged her shoulders.

"What? We were in this for the fun, remember?"

A few moments passed, and Twilight, having now worked past the relief of having avoided defeat in this, nodded in acknowledgement of that, smiling fondly to her friend.

"Yeah...it was pretty fun, wasn't it?"

Sunset nodded back, and then, to her slight surprise, found Twilight giving the board a quick glance before raising an eyebrow to her.

"But for the record...I probably could've figured a way out of that."

Sunset stared at her friend, and then put on yet another smirk.

"You just keep telling yourself that, Twilight."

Being a Saturday, the Sweet Snacks Café was about as lively as one would expect, being almost jam-packed full of all the local teens who loved coming there for the sweet and delicious confectionaries they were so famous for making. The waitresses were in full swing right now, roller-blading over to each and every customer they had, always with a smile on their faces and lovely-looking milkshakes in their hands. But, curiously enough, the most active member of their staff, Pinkie Pie, was not among them during this tumultuous time. And that was because not only was this her day off, but she was also here as a customer herself. And not just her, but all of her friends too, who sat together in their usual corner both, downing their favourite flavours of milkshake. While most of them enjoyed this moment, Rainbow and Applejack, naturally, had made something of a contest out of their drinks, and were eyeing one another as they finally finished, with Rainbow emerging as the victor.

"Yes! In your face!"

Chuckling, the farmer girl tipped her hat to that.

"Fair’s fair, Rainbow. Good job."

Looking to them both, Sunset put on a smile.

"Good job to all of us, remember?"

The girls all looked to her as she raised a particular piece of paper, an essay she'd recently been given back, with a big red "A+" stamped on the top. The other girls all smiled to this, looking down at their own papers, which all had similar grades given to them. Pinkie especially giggled to this.

"Nothing's better than spending time with friends after a big old successful assignment!"

Twilight, adjusting her glasses, nodded to this.

"I couldn't agree more, Pinkie. After all the hard work we put into this, we deserved a nice break."

There was a general murmur of agreement over that, and after a brief bout of silence, Fluttershy spoke next.

"It'll be nice, having this get-together, given..."

A grimace came to her.

"...given that I need to talk to Zephyr when I get home."

Rainbow frowned to that.

"Ugh! What's he done this time?"

Sighing, Fluttershy began to explain.

"My parents are trying to get him to start thinking about what he wants to do once his final year in the school is over. I mean, they're not being pushy about it, obviously, knowing them, but they still want him to think on it."

Rarity looked over to her.

"Well, here's hoping he has a plan, like we do."

Sunset looked to her with curiosity.

"Oh? You have something in mind, Rarity?"

The young fashionista, sweeping aside some of her hair, nodded back to that.

"Indeed I do, darling. I like to think my career in the local fashion world is going well, slowly but surely. I've already caught the eye of a few notable names, and even if that weren't the case, my time working at the local stores has given me a great deal of insider experience."

Fluttershy smiled to this.

"I know the feeling. After all the time I've spent volunteering down at the animal shelter, the manager there actually asked me if I wanted to stay on in a more permanent role once my time at CHS is over."

Pinkie smiled widely to her partner's declaration.

"That's sounds super-great, Fluttershy! I'm sure you'd love it there!"

Fluttershy smiled right back to her girlfriend's assurance, before looking to her with curiosity.

"And you, Pinkie?"

Leaning back into her side of the booth, the party-lover took no time whatsoever before replying to that.

"Weeeeeeeell...as you all know, I work plenty of jobs, including this one right here..."

She gestured to the rest of the café, even giving a wave to some of her fellow waitresses, which was promptly returned, before finally continuing to speak.

...but what I really want to be getting into is my cooking! I've already started looking into a few places that are hoping to hire a baker or dessert chef of some kind, or at least someone with starter experience. And from there, well, we'll wait and see."

Chuckling to that, Applejack used a finger to scoop up the last bits of froth from the side of her milkshake glass and tasting it before adding her voice to the proceedings.

"Well, y'all know mah family's orchard is a pretty full responsibility. Oh, sure, ah've worked on it plenty, but when mah time at CHS is done, it may well be mah full-time life."

Her friends looked to her, and as a result, she decided to clarify.

"Now that's not sayin' ah won't be lookin' fer other stuff, but ah think we all know where mah heart lies."

They all nodded to that, and soon after, they turned to Twilight, who began to speak up next.

"Well, as you'd probably expect, I plan on continuing my experience in the sciences, and I've been looking into a number of Colleges that specialize in it. When CHS is done, I intend to carry on in my education."

Rainbow gave a smile to her friend.

"Yeah, figured you'd do that.”

Twilight looked back to her with some curiosity.

"And you, Rainbow?"

The athlete shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, you all know I probably won't be breaking out as some mega-level rock-guitarist, so I figured it'd be best to focus on my other great love."

A smirk came to her.

"I always keep an eye-out for try-outs for the various sports teams around town. They're always looking for people who look like they can go far, and with luck, that might just be me making headlines about some big score somewhere."

Sunset, having finally finished off her own milkshake, smiled to her.

"Sounds like quite a dream, Rainbow, but don't forget to get yourself something to fall back on if sports don't go your way."

Looking back to her, Rainbow nodded.

"Don't worry, I won't let ambition make me put all my eggs in one basket, Sunset. And speaking of which..."

She gained a curious look herself.

"...how about you?"

Letting out a long sigh, Sunset looked to all her friends before replying to that.

"Honestly? I'm not sure what I want to be doing. I considered maybe trying to become a teacher, like Princess Celestia was, but I'm not sure if it's something I'd be happy doing."

Seeing their Equestrian friend be so unsure about her future caught them off-guard, and Pinkie Pie especially seemed to be eager to find something to cheer her up. But then, just as she was thinking on that, the door of the café opened, and into it came, of all people, Pinkie's older sister, Maud. Smiling, the party-lover waved enthusiastically to her.

"Ooooh! Ooooh! Maud! Over here!"

The amateur geologist made her way over, giving a small nod to each of her friends before finally glancing to her sister.

"Everything okay, Pinkie?"

Pinkie glanced from her, to Sunset and then finally back to her sister.

"Well...Sunset's a bit worried about her future after CHS, so I was wondering if you had any inspirational ideas? You know, about what your goals are maybe?"

Though Sunset was slightly irritated at her friend just blurting out her concerns like that, she was nevertheless grateful for the help, and in fact started to look to Maud herself, curious as to what the older girl would say. After a while, the seemingly-emotionless elder sister began to make her case.

"My biggest goal in life is to not wake up at the age of forty with the crushing realisation that I've wasted my life in a job I hate because I was made to feel like I had to have my whole life planned out while I was still a teenager."

Silence fell over the group, and all of the other girls looked on at Maud with both uncertainty and some measure of discomfort. All, that is, except for Pinkie, who grinned widely at her sibling.

"Thanks, Maud! Great advice! Okay, you can go and have a milkshake and stuff now!"

Maud nodded, then got back to heading to the counter, all while Pinkie looked over to Sunset.

"See, Sunset? There's no rush! You can still enjoy life and not have to worry about the future just yet!"

Though Sunset wasn't quite as excited about the proclamation that Maud had given, she could still appreciate what was behind it, and so, after letting out a sigh, she gave a warm smile to her pink-haired friend.

"Thanks, Pinkie. I guess...I could enjoy not having a plan for a bit."

Folding her arms, Pinkie took on a somewhat prideful look.

"See? When in doubt, just ask Maud."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow to that.

"Yeah...not sure if I’ll be doing that anytime soon, Pinkie."

Pinkie rolled her eyes at her friend’s words.

"Ugh! Great wisdom is never appreciated in its time!"

Maud's big line comes courtesy of Daria

In the strange and often crazy world of Equestrian magic and High-School life, it was always nice to know that, no matter how busy or dangerous one's life became, there was always the opportunity to just sit back and relax a little bit with your friends every once in a while. And for Twilight, Fluttershy and Adagio, that was exactly what they were getting right now. Sitting comfortably within the confines of Twilight's bedroom, the three ladies were all chilling together, doing a number of different things. Adagio was sitting upon the edge of the bed, one leg crossed over the other while reading a magazine. As for Twilight and Fluttershy, they were sitting down on the floor, right next to one another and smiling as they scrolled through a number of text messages that had just come through the former's phone. They giggled, they went "awww" and they typically seemed like they were enjoying themselves. After a while, however, it was the Siren among them who broke the silence, looking down to the two much younger girls and raising an eyebrow.

"An interesting read, I take it?"

Looking up to her, Twilight smiled.

"It's a few messages from Timber. He and I have been corresponding about his job down at the beach doing lifeguard work."

Fluttershy looked to her spectacled friend.

"I have to say, you're getting really good at these messages, Twilight."

Twilight practically beamed at that.

"Thanks, Fluttershy. Without Sunset's help from before, I'd probably still be stressing out whenever he sent me a message like this."

Curiosity came to the young scientist.

"And you? How do you and Pinkie message each other?"

A warm smile crossed Fluttershy's face at that.

"Oh, we don't really message each other as much has you and Timber do. Honestly, Pinkie just shows up whenever she has something she needs to say to me."

Looking down to her, Adagio put on a somewhat confused look.

"What...she just...shows up? How does she even know where you are?"

Glancing up to her, the animal-lover giggled slightly.

"It's Pinkie...so she always knows."

Adagio rolled her eyes to this before getting back to her magazine, but, as she did so, she apparently became the point of interest for the other two teens.

"And you, Adagio? How are things with Andante going?"

A sly smirk crept onto the Siren's face, as it normally did, and while she did not look to her colleagues, she nevertheless answered them.

"Oh, things are going very well. I do confess, I am surprised that a human is able to have that kind of stamina. The way he's been able to keep up with me is simply...satisfying."

A chuckle escaped her.

"And trust me, knowing there's a fellow out there who's so determined to give me pleasure like that, be it in bed or out of it...it is quite the find."

After staring at her for a wile, Twilight's smile faltered, but only a little.

"Um...are you okay in that sort of relationship? I mean, not to sound critical or anything, but it seems like you and Andante only really have...well...physical things towards each other."

Looking down to her again, Adagio nodded.

"Oh, we do other things too from time to time, but yes, physical intimacy is the chief thing we do when we're together."

A moment passed, and her smirk returned.

"And believe me when I say that I am absolutely fine with that. Pleasure is practically what we Sirens live for, dear. So don't be too surprised."

Blushing slightly, Fluttershy thought on that.

"Oh my! I couldn't imagine a relationship so focused on...on...on that side of tings. Me and Pinkie have only had a few kisses so far."

Adagio looked to her, giving Fluttershy an expression that suggested that the pink-haired girl was just about the most adorable thing in the world to her right now.

"Oh, Fluttershy, you sweet little thing. Yours is a relationship to enjoy. I may not have had much in the way of emotional connections with others over the centuries, but do not take that to mean I don't recognise a meaningful one when I see it. And you, my dear..."

Reaching forward, the centuries-old woman gently placed her hand upon the girl's shoulder.

"...most definitely have one that'll last."

Now, naturally, both girls were somewhat taken aback at the unexpected words of assurance and comfort from their former enemy, but even so, they appreciated it all the same, with Fluttershy returning the gesture with a sweet-looking smile. Adagio herself gave a nod to this, then glanced up to Twilight.

"And you, Twilight? You and Timber weren't really friends before you started dating, like Fluttershy and Pinkie were. How would you say you two are doing?"

Taking a moment to think on that, Twilight looked back to the Equestrian before answering.

"Well...I’d say we're doing okay so far. I mean, nothing serious has happened yet, but we're having fun whenever we get together. And sure, I wish stuff like our trip to the observatory had gone to plan, but things always turn out well."

Adagio, hearing all of this, gave a brief nod.

"Good to hear. And if nothing else, you certainly seem to have yourself a confident boyfriend."

Giggling to that, Twilight nodded.

"Yep. Timber told me he dated a few girls before me, so he's not quite as nervous about it as a newcomer to the dating scene."

Fluttershy looked to her, surprised.

"He's dated others?"

Twilight, looking to her friend, gave another quick nod.

"He has. About three I think. None of them really lasted that long, a month at most."

To that, Fluttershy regained her earlier smile.

"Oh my...that makes you his longest relationship yet, right?"

With her chest swelling out with just a touch of pride, Twilight spoke with a tone that contained just the barest hint of smugness.

"Well, one doesn't like to brag...but yes."

The three ladies all shared a laugh with one another, and when it was over, Fluttershy gave a smile wider than any she'd had before.

"It's always nice, isn't it? Having someone in your life you enjoy having with you?"

Crossing her legs again, Adagio swept aside some of her hair before giving a small chuckle.

"Indeed. We three may have very different relationships, and want them for entirely different reasons, but it's still something to be happy about."

There was a general sense of agreement to that, creating an air of camaraderie among the three. But, when it ended, Twilight tapped the end of her chin, pondering something.

"You know...I'm the only one here who's never even kissed her partner yet. I wonder if I should do something about that?"

But Adagio shook her head.

"It'll come when it'll come, Twilight. If what you have now makes you happy, there's no need to go and force anything else."

The others looked to her, slightly surprised.

"Oh? I'd have thought you'd be all for Twilight trying to get her first kiss," Fluttershy remarked.

Giving another chuckle, Adagio leaned forward, regarding her animal-loving friend carefully.

"I may love physical stuff as much has anyone, Fluttershy...but even I know it's best not to make things happens before their time. Nothing's worse than a kiss or a moment in bed that happened before the lovers were ready for it."

Sighing, Twilight looked to Adagio, her expression giving away her appreciation.

"Thank you, Adagio, I...I'm glad someone said that to me."

Nodding to her, the Siren then got back to her magazine, finding her previous page before replying to her friend's words.

"Hey, when you've had as many relationships as me, you learn a thing or two."

Canterlot's combination museum-observatory was quiet today, which was to be expected, given that the busy season had come and gone for them. And yet, despite this, there were nevertheless one or two people looking around an having a nice quiet time. But, among these rare visitors was none other than Sunset Shimmer, who sat quietly by herself on one of the benches in the biggest chamber of the place. With a thoughtful look upon her face, she was busy staring at the centrepiece of this room. A statue, almost high enough to reach the ceiling, depicting an old man in a rather outlandish wizard-looking costume, all while sporting a fairly large beard. Sunset eyed it carefully, looking very much like she wanted to comment on it, but, before she could, she was interrupted by the arrival of one of her friends. It was Aria, the middle Siren sister who, after joining her fellow Equestrian, offered her a smoothie, which Sunset graciously accepted with a smile.

"Thanks, Aria."

Nodding to this, Aria took her place beside Sunset, letting out a sigh before looking to her with a raised eyebrow.

"So...exactly when are we getting to the movies?"

Chuckling slightly, Sunset took a quick slurp of the drink Aria had given her before finally answering that.

"We'll go soon enough. I just needed to talk to Twilight about something."

Sighing, Aria nodded to that, then cast a rather irritated scowl at the statue Sunset had been looking at.

"You know...I'd rather not be around that thing, if it's all the same to you."

Sunset looked to her, confused.

"Oh?"

Aria's frown deepened.

"Yeah...bad memories."

However, before Sunset could enquire further, she noticed, in the corner of her eye, somebody running towards the two of them. Sure enough, it was Twilight, and the two girls smiled at each other before the young scientist finally reached them. After taking a moment to catch her breath, Twilight adjusted her spectacles before finally speaking up.

"Sorry I'm late. I just got done leading a tour group around here."

Sunset gave a quick chuckle.

"No problem."

Placing her hands on her hips, Twilight looked to her otherworldly friend.

"So...what did you want to talk about?"

A silence passed, and then, after taking a moment to get her thoughts in order, Sunset looked once more to the statue.

"I wanted to talk to you...about him."

All three girls were looking to the statue now, with Aria obviously being unhappy about it, and Twilight, looking back to Sunset, tilted her head slightly.

"Starswirl the Bearded? What about him?"

Sunset, with her eyes still on the statue, answered her friend.

"Well...there's also a Starswirl in my world, and he's...kind of a big deal."

Giggling, Twilight nodded.

"No surprise there, Sunset. We're all supposed to have differing versions of each other between our worlds, and Starswirl was pretty important here too."

Sunset nodded back.

"I know, but...I was wondering what you could tell me about him."

Twilight, clearly eager to discuss a figure of historical important, smiled widely to the request before clearing her throat slightly. Aria rolled her eyes and folded her arms, very clearly not looking forward to this, but she nevertheless remained quiet as Twilight began to speak.

"Starswirl the Bearded was a revolutionary teacher of mathematics and stargazing. Thanks to him, many were taught how to chart the stars and navigate, which led to many other breakthroughs. He's regarded as one of the greatest minds of the past, and he's pretty much synonymous with learned individuals."

Looking back to Sunset, Twilight gained some curiosity of her own.

"And you? What's he like on your side?"

Sunset opened her mouth to speak, only to be interrupted by Aria, who answered in her stead.

"He was a self-righteous jerk who wouldn't let us have our fun, that’s what!"

Sunset raised an eyebrow to this, but Twilight just seemed confused, prompting the former to start explaining.

"He was a figure from Equestria's ancient past who was notable in thwarting the plans of a number of...well..."

She didn't finish, but Aria let out a long sigh, before concluding her sentence.

"He dealt with bad guys! Like me and my sisters!"

Twilight nodded, understanding.

"Ah...I see."

Looking back to the statue, Sunset continued.

"He was also famous for creating a number of important spells, many of which are still in use today. He's, for lack of a better word, a legend back home."

Twilight looked to her, then to the statue, almost awe-struck.

"That...sounds pretty impressive."

Another chuckle escaped her Equestrian friend.

"By all accounts, he was. I swear, you should hear Princess Twilight gushing about him in her messages to me. Whenever she uncovers some long-lost document about him, she just has to talk about it."

Twilight giggled.

"I can understand. Getting the chance to learn more about your idols can be pretty exciting."

But, while the two were clearly enjoying this little talk, Aria was somewhat less pleased about it all.

"Ugh! Can you two give it a rest! The guy was a major thorn in the side of my sisters and me, so could we maybe not spend our day fangirling him?"

Looking to her, Sunset raised an eyebrow, and Aria, already predicting what she was going to say, beat her to it.

"Yeah, yeah, I know, Sunset. We were bad guys, we were turning friends against each other, we deserved it, yadda yadda yadda."

She let out a long exhale.

"Doesn't mean I have to like hearing about him."

Sunset didn't say anything, but it was obvious from the way her expression softened that she was, indeed, willing to let the matter drop, much to Aria's appreciation. However, it seemed as though Twilight, in one of her clear bouts of unthinking curiosity, couldn't help but say one final thing about it.

"Still...it would be nice, getting the chance to speak to a great person like that. I mean, I know he's long dead both here and in Equestria, but..."

However, Sunset then looked to her and, with a knowing smile, started to add a particular piece of information.

"Actually, he's still alive back home."

Both girls looked to her, almost to the point of speechlessness.

"Um...what?" Aria enquired.

Looking to her, Sunset explained.

"Princess Twilight and her friends uncovered this big mystery about him a while back and, after doing a whole bunch of other stuff, they managed to free him from some magical realm along with many other figures from Equestria's past. So yeah, Starswirl's back in Equestria."

Aria stared at her, blank-faced, but Twilight, by contrast, responded to this news with utter glee.

"You...you mean...there's a chance I might one day actually be able to speak to the Starswirl the Bearded?"

Chortling briefly, Sunset shrugged her shoulders.

"Well...you could speak to a Starswirl the Bearded, since he's, you know, not the one you know."

But Twilight rolled her eyes.

"Pfft! I'm not picky, Sunset!"

The two girls once more shared a laugh, but Aria, who remained silent for some time, simply stared at the statue before her, narrowing her eyes and then letting out a long and tired-sounding sigh.

"Yep...Adagio's not gonna like hearing about that."

Twilight’s back garden was, as one would probably expect of a girl like her, the very model of orderly and properly-organized, with flowers of every variety, shape, size and colour all neatly put away in their own particular section of the place. it was beautiful to look at, and as the young scientist got to work on watering them all, it was clear from looking that she was having a fun time doing so. But, she was not alone here today, as Applejack was also present, sitting down on a small bench that leaned against the back of her friend's house. The farmer was, at this moment, busying herself with throwing a ball across the garden, which Spike would chase after and return. He may have gained intelligence, but that did not mean he didn't still enjoy a good ball game every now and again. Seeing her beloved pet play with her friend like this, Twilight giggled to herself, and after setting down her watering can for a bit, she walked on over and sat next to Applejack, the latter of whom now looking to her and breaking the silence between them.

"Satisfied?"

Nodding, Twilight answered.

"I am. They've all had their proper watering. And I'll be sure to give them another one later."

Chuckling, Applejack looked on as Spike returned, eagerly wagging his tail as he placed the ball down at her feet. Reaching forward, Applejack gave him a friendly pat on the head, which he certainly seemed to appreciate, before once more looking to Twilight.

"Ah gotta say...it's nice havin' a little gardenin' that doesn’t go nuts on us."

Grimacing slightly, Twilight nodded in agreement.

"I know what you mean. That business with Principal Celestia's greenhouse was...rather difficult."

Putting his ball down again, Spike rolled his eyes.

"That’s an understatement."

The three shared a laugh to this, but when it was over, Applejack looked to Twilight with some measure of concern.

"Do...do ya ever wonder where it came from? The magic that gave ya so much trouble back then?"

Sighing, Twilight leaned back into her side of the bench, pondering that very question.

"I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about it. But the truth is...I think this is just the kind of world we live in now. Equestrian magic has seeped into our daily life whether we like it or not, and may well continue to do so, at least for the foreseeable future."

She turned, looking to both of her friends before continuing.

"Granted, having it inhabit a watering can of all things was a little unexpected, but even so, it may well be the type of incident we should be looking out for now."

A smile came to her.

"Still, at least it gives us lots to talk about."

Spike looked to her with some incredulity.

"Oh yeah? Like what?"

Adjusting her spectacles slightly, Twilight answered.

"Well, for one thing, the fact that ordinary water was able to counter-act the effects of the water that was infused with Equestrian magic is a fairly interesting thing to consider. Was it simply that being exposed to regular and unaffected water brought the plants back to normal? Or was it because water from our world just naturally has some kind of counter-acting property when brought into contact with magic?"

Spike blinked slowly to that, with him and Applejack looking to one another before glancing back to Twilight, who carried on speaking.

"Although...the latter scenario can’t be the case, because if it were, then how would the water have become infused with magic to begin with?"

Chuckling, Applejack folded her arms and crossed one leg over the other before giving a sly smirk to her inquisitive friend.

"Ya know, Twi...ah think there's an even better question that needs ta be asked."

Twilight looked to her, looking very obviously interested in that prospect.

"Oh? What?"

Leaning closer to her, Applejack simply blurted it out.

"Why did y'all not seem all that spooked by the fact that there were a whole bunch o' singin' flowers all around ya? Seems like ya shoulda questioned that a bit."

Here, a blush crept onto Twilight's cheeks, and Spike, who had also been guilty of not questioning such a thing, looked away and nervously scratched the back of his head. After poking the ends of her fingers against one another, Twilight tried to give an answer to her friend.

"Well...um...sometimes...when I'm doing something I enjoy, like gardening, and there's nobody around...I tend to start doing a little song. I like doing it, and it makes me happy to sing in times like that, but..."

A curious look came to her.

"...as for why I never questioned why the plants were singing, I..."

Slowly, a look of realisation came for her.

"Huh...you know...I never actually considered that."

Frowning, she turned to look to Applejack yet again.

"How did I not notice or care about that? I mean, singing flowers?! That should have been a red flag for me right then and there!"

Spike nodded, sighing.

"Same here. Heck, I'm a talking dog, and even I should have known something was up!"

Chuckling, Applejack, by contrast, didn't seem that concerned with what her friends were saying, and soon placed her hand gently upon Twilight's shoulder.

"Y'all shouldn't worry too much bout it. Happens all the time around here."

Twilight raised an eyebrow.

"...Seriously?"

Applejack nodded back.

"Seriously. Ah don' know if y'all noticed this, but things get kinda...musical in this ere town."

Twilight looked to her with incredulity.

"I doubt people can be that obsessed with spontaneous musical numbers for no reason, Applejack."

But, rather than seem put off by her friend's words, Applejack instead gained a look of slight satisfaction, and so, to Twilight's confusion, got up and out of the bench before taking a few strides forward. Placing her hands upon her hips, Applejack glanced around, looking to the houses that surrounded that of Twilight, and soon put on a knowing smirk. Cracking her knuckles slightly, the young farmer then took in a deep breath, before bellowing out a tune.

"Ole McDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O!"

Naturally, Twilight thought her friend had gone quite mad all of a sudden, but for now, she said nothing, and instead watched as Applejack placed her hand behind her ear, as if waiting to hear something in particular. Then, before Twilight or Spike could say or do anything, they heard it. Another voice, from one of her next-door neighbours, who was probably standing nearby in their own gardens.

"And on his farm he had a cow, E-I-E-I-O!"

Twilight blinked to this, raising a finger as if to get ready to ask a question, only to be stopped when yet another of her neighbours, this time on the other side, started to sing too.

"With a moo-moo here!"

"And a moo-moo there!" another neighbour called out.

"Here a moo, there a moo!" a further neighbour bellowed.

"Everywhere a moo-moo!"

Chuckling, Applejack finished it off.

"Ole McDonald had a farm...E-I-E-I-O!"

Turning, the girl walked over to her former Crystal Prep colleague, tilting her head slightly and still bearing that smirk of hers. After blinking slowly, and then looking around to all the directions that unexpected musical moment had come from, Twilight cleared her throat in a slightly nervous manner, before giggling to her friend.

"Okay...maybe musicals do override people's brains quite a bit over here."

Tipping her hat, Applejack nodded.

"Told ya."

The streets were fairly busy today, with folks of all walks of life heading down the main vendors of the town of Canterlot with great vigour, always eager to get where they were going or to do a bit of shopping. Food, clothes, electronics, whatever it was they wanted, they were eager to get there and get their hands on it. But, amidst all of this activity, there was nevertheless one brief island of calm. And that was Sunset Shimmer. Sitting quietly to herself, the former unicorn smiled fondly at the window of the clothing store just across the street from her, which still bore the marks she’d left during her time assisting Rarity. Chuckling to herself over that memory, the Equestrian took a quick slurp of a soda can she'd brought with her for the day, before leaning back into the bench and letting out a contented sigh. However, through the corner of her eye, she noticed a familiar figure walking to her. Turning, Sunset smiled to see that it was Rarity, and so she scooted along the bench, giving her friend a space to sit upon, which Rarity did as soon as she arrived.

"Thank you, darling."

Sunset raised her can to her.

"No problem, Rarity."

Sweeping aside some of her hair, the young fashionista looked on with joy at the aforementioned window display, a smile coming to her with every customer who stopped to admire what her friend had created for her.

"Pinkie told me how you became as good with art as you are, but I must confess, this is truly something wonderful."

Sunset, still smiling herself, gave a brief shrug of her shoulders.

"Hey, I was just helping out a friend. It's no problem."

Looking over to her, Rarity gave a quick "tut-tut" before replying to that.

"Oh, I assure you, Sunset, you got me out of quite the pickle back then. If it wasn't for you, who knows how my career might have strayed."

A grimace came to her.

"In truth...I'm actually rather guilty accepting credit for your work. Everybody heaps praise on me for having made it and...well..."

Still looking fairly relaxed, Sunset leaned forward, giving Rarity a friendly pat on her shoulder.

"Like I said, it's no problem. Remember, I was staying anonymous with my street art long before we got to your display. Besides..."

A chuckle escaped her.

"...if recognition and praise for my art was what I wanted, I'd have revealed myself as the artist a long time ago."

Rarity nodded, understanding.

"Yes...I suppose that makes sense."

Giving her purple-hared friend her full attention, Sunset's smile widened.

"And besides, we both know how creative you are when you need to be, Rarity. So even if I hadn’t helped you like this, I've no doubt that you'd have eventually created something just as impressive. Better even."

But Rarity waved her off to that, trying to display her usual amount of modesty on the subject.

"Oh shush, darling! You're going to make me blush!"

The two girls shared a laugh over that, and when it died down, Sunset took the moment of quiet to offer her friend her soda, which still had some drink in it. Rarity, though grateful for the offer, politely declined with a simple shake of her head, to which Sunset merely shrugged her shoulders again. With permission pretty much granted, the Equestrian downed her beverage heartily in several deep gulps, much to Rarity's slight amusement. But, while the former was busy with her drink, Rarity once more looked to the window display. She focused on the dresses there, the use of colour, and the overall presentation of the whole thing. And as she dwelt on these elements, a new thought began to emerge in her mind that she pondered long and hard.

"You know, Sunset...you may consider yourself talented in art...but I would put money on you having some secret ability in the field of fashion also."

Putting her now-empty can to the side for the time being, Sunset looked to her colleague with interest."

"Oh?"

Glancing back to her, Rarity gave an enthusiastic nod, gesturing yet again to the display across the street.

"I mean it, darling! What you created over there is not only some fine piece of street art. That right there is something even an in-the-know fashion figure like Miss Hemline was impressed by. That's no mean feat."

A knowing look came to Rarity, and she gave a quick nudge to Sunset with her elbow.

"If you put your mind to it, you could probably create all sorts of astounding works! Dresses, gowns, suits, you name it!"

Sunset considered that, looking over to the display she had made. A look of pride came to her, and she was obviously pleased with having made what she'd made, but even so, a long sigh escaped her as she dwelt on Rarity's words.

"I appreciate your compliment, Rarity, but...I don't think I'd be as good as you claim."

Rarity, as one would expected after a comment like that, seemed positively aghast at her friend's remark.

"But...but...why ever would you say such a thing, darling? Just look at how people are fawning over your creations! Even now, weeks after they stopped being the latest thing, they're still drawing people in!"

Sunset nodded, allowing herself another brief moment of pride before getting back to the matter at hand.

"I know, and trust me, I appreciate that you and others liked what I made. Really, I do. But fashion is something I think I just...added to. I took what was there and I added my own little touches to it."

She gestured to her display.

"I never made what you see there...I just dressed it up a bit. Sure, I did something you and your other fashion colleagues might not have done, but that's just the work of an artist, not a fashion designer."

A smile came to her, and she turned yet again to Rarity.

"You, on the other hand, Rarity, are the fashion expert here. I may have made something nice to look at, but it was you who got it started. You who made the base for me to put my stamp on. If I was asked to just make an outfit, from scratch, I'd be completely lost. I wouldn't know where to start, what materials to use or any of the things that came so naturally to someone like...well...you."

Here, it was Rarity's turn to look somewhat pleased.

"Well...one doesn't like to brag, but..."

Sunset smirked to this, but then got back on-track.

"The point it...I appreciate that you think I could do what you do...but I know myself well enough to know that this wouldn't be the case. Besides..."

Leaning back into her bench again, a chuckle escaped her as she dwelt further on the topic.

"...I already said that I prefer anonymity when it comes to my art. Getting involved in fashion would make that pretty difficult."

Rarity, who sat in silence for a time as she considered all of her friend's points, eventually let out a long sigh, nodding in agreement.

"Well...I suppose I can certainly respect a choice like that. Though for the record, I believe the fashion world is all the poorer for not having one of your talents in it, Sunset."

Looking back to her, Sunset put on an appreciative smile, giving her another pat on the shoulder.

"Thanks, Rarity. But look at it this way...that world is made all the richer by having you in it instead."

The two smiled to one another, both feeling much better thanks to what they'd said to the other, and then, after giving one final look to Sunset's creation across the street, the later finally got out of the bench.

"You know...I'm in the mood for some lunch. Care to join me?"

Getting herself up as well, Rarity nodded.

"I would be delighted, Sunset."

And so the two began to make their way down the street together, but as they did so, Sunset took her still-empty soda and glanced back to the bench, wherein there was a recycling bin right next to it. Smirking, she crushed the can in her hand, then gave it a quick toss over her shoulder as she continued to walk further away from the bench. Rarity, noticing this, looked on with some amazement as the can hit its destination of the bin perfectly, even as Sunset walked away without even looking. Putting on a smirk of her own, the young fashionista raised an eyebrow indeed.

"Hmmm...what about sports then?"

There were moments, not many but a few, where Trixie simply could not help but roll her eyes at the sheer saccharine sweetness on display as she observed the antics of Twilight, Fluttershy and all the rest of the Rainbooms. Oh, to be sure, the moods between the girls had cooled off considerably ever since Trixie's unexpected aid to Sunset a while back, but even so, she wasn't really "clicked" with the girls the way others were. But, let it never be said that the young magician isn't willing to be with them and want to spend time with them, and such was actually the case today, as she, Fluttershy and Pinkie were all sitting alongside one another on one of the many benches that dotted the outside of Canterlot High. It was the middle of their lunch hour, and while most students were inside enjoying their meals, these three girls had, by contrast, chosen to be outside, taking in the wonderful sunshine and gentle breeze. It was a pleasant time, all things considered, but as Trixie downed a few bites of her sandwich, she glanced over to her colleagues.

"So, got any plans tomorrow?" Pinkie asked.

Smiling sweetly, Fluttershy clasped her hands together before nodding.

"Oh, yes! I'm going over with Sonata and Lemon to the park again, and we're going to try and raise awareness for the Save-the-Birdies Foundation."

Pinkie giggled to that.

"Sounds good! Those poor little things are so lost and helpless sometimes! Falling out of trees or getting knocked over by bikes they didn't see coming!"

Fluttershy nodded solemnly.

"Quite right. It'll be good to help them out whenever we can."

Eventually, the animal-lover turned, looking to her latest companion.

"You know...you’re always welcome to join, Trixie."

Swallowing what she'd already had of her lunch, Trixie gave an appreciative nod to that offer before replying.

"Trixie is grateful for the chance, but experience has taught me that such things are unlikely to gain much attention. After all, if the crowds on the streets are unwilling to pay attention to astounding magic shows, then it's unlikely an appeal to help animals will work out much better."

Pinkie smirked to that.

"Nah! You should see Fluttershy in action! Ever since Sour gave her some pointers in getting people to pay attention, she's been really good at it!"

Fluttershy blushed, and Trixie took a brief moment of amusement in this before speaking up again.

"Well, I can't blame you for wanting to help them. You always did have an affinity for the little things."

Fluttershy looked to her, smiling at that remark.

"I've loved birds for as long as I can remember. And ever since I started to actually talk to them, it's been an even greater joy to spend time with them."

Considering that, Trixie let out a deep sigh.

"Yes...must be nice."

Immediately, the young couple beside her took on somewhat worried looks. They knew something was eating at her, though they couldn't tell what it was. Eventually, it was Fluttershy again who began to ask the question.

"Um...Trixie? Is something wrong?"

Trixie, folding her arms all of a sudden, shook her head.

"Not wrong exactly, but..."

Another exhale, and this time, she turned, looking to her two friends.

"Look...I've been wanting to get involved in magic all my life. From the time I did my very first card trick as a little girl, I've wanted to have magic be who I am. And seeing what you two can do...what all of you can do..."

Realisation came to the other girls, and Pinkie, being Pinkie, simply blurted out what they now knew.

"Oh! You're jealous, right?"

Now, it had to be said that there was no maliciousness or mockery in the way she'd said that, but even so, it irked Trixie a great deal to have her issues just laid out in front of her like that. But, she knew it wouldn't do to refute the point, as she understood in her heart of hearts that the party-lover was spot on with this. Instead, she took a moment to briefly calm herself before giving a single nod.

"Yeah...I guess I am jealous."

Pinkie, realising how her words might have come across, immediately slapped her hands over her mouth, looking more than a little apologetic. As for Fluttershy, her expression softened, and she offered Trixie a small smile, reaching forward and giving her a friendly pat on the shoulder.

"It's okay, Trixie. We've all had moments where we feel less than those around us. I used to feel like my music, for instance, was never as good as the rest of the band. And Pinkie sometimes feels like she doesn't do her essays as well as Sunset or Twilight."

Trixie looked to them both, raising an eyebrow.

"...Really?"

This time, it was Pinkie's turn to speak.

"Yep! Heck, you wouldn't believe how jealous I can get when I try some of AJ's apple pies! I can never make those things as good!"

Fluttershy smiled warmly to her at this, then glanced back to Trixie.

"You know...if you're interested...I could do a little translating for you?"

Trixie's eyes widened, and she seemed taken aback by that offer. It was an interesting thing, it had to be said, and as she pondered it for a time, she looked around. Sure enough, there were one or two birds sitting in the branches of a nearby tree, and then another just hopping about on the edge of the statue that stood outside the front entrance of the school. Tapping the end of her chin with her finger, Trixie considered the offer, then smiled, giving a nod to her magical friend.

"Alright then...translate away."

Clearly happy a being given the chance to do something she loved, Fluttershy glanced around herself, eventually settling on the bird on the statue. Touching her pendant, there was a brief glow of the thing, and then, Fluttershy placed her other hand behind her ear, listening carefully to what the aforementioned bird had to say. Trixie watched, her attention drifting from Fluttershy to the bird and then back again. Eventually, Fluttershy resumed her smiling, giving another nod before looking back to Trixie.

"That one over there is going over a mental list he's made for himself over where the best patches of grass are around here for finding worms."

Chuckling, Trixie looked over to the tiny avian.

"What...like he's remembering the best restaurants in town or something?"

Giggling, Fluttershy nodded in confirmation of that, prompting Trixie to then look to the birds in the tree.

"And them?"

Again, Fluttershy took a moment to listen, with Pinkie too now leaning in closer, genuine interest appearing on her face. Then, Fluttershy's expression broke out into pure and unfiltered joy, and she squealed happily before clapping her hands together.

"Oh, that's so wonderful"

Trixie looked to her with confusion.

"What? What is it?"

Still smiling widely, Fluttershy looked to her.

"Those two are going to be parents soon! The one on the left will be laying her eggs tomorrow!"

As one would expect, this led to simultaneous "awwww's" on the part of the three girls, and Trixie, now smiling herself, gave a congratulatory thumbs-up to the two birds in the tree, who happily tweeted before flying off. Sighing, Trixie turned her gaze back to Fluttershy, her expression far softer than it had been before.

"Thank you, Fluttershy. I...I appreciate that."

Smiling once more, Fluttershy gave yet another pat on Trixie's shoulder.

"If you ever need to know what these lovely animals are saying...I'm always here, Trixie."

When it came to places that the Rainbooms would go to chill and hang out, the Mall wasn't usually high up on heir list. After all, given that they all worked at the place, did they really want to spend too much of their spare time there too? But, there were times, however few, where they did enjoy coming over here, even though the memories of giant mirror-wielding ladies did occasionally taint their pleasant times here. Sitting together near one of the many ice cream vendors that dotted the place, the girls were all chowing down on their chosen confectionaries, with Pinkie's especially apparently having been piled up with more sprinkles than were humanly possible. Today was a fairly calm day, all things considered, which suited them just fine, as a time of peace and quiet was always welcome with their hectic lifestyle. As they licked and licked at their ice creams, Pinkie was, inevitably, the first to finish, letting out a satisfied sound as she wiped away the last of the melted cream from her lips.

"Mmmmmmm! Yummy!"

Sunset chuckled to that.

"Always nice on a hot day, right?"

The others nodded in agreement to that, with the exception of Twilight, who was instead busy reading a particular segment of the local newspaper. The other girls noted her doing this, with Rarity especially seeming a touch concerned.

"Um...Twilight? Darling? You might want to look up."

The young scientist did indeed look up, and just in time to see a very large drop of her ice cream about to fall down from her cone and onto her lap. Quickly, she reacted, getting out her tongue and hastily lapping up the stray cream, much to her friends' amusement.

"Somethin' caught yer eye, Twi?" Applejack enquired.

Though she briefly let out a nervous giggle to her previous ice-cream-related mishap, Twilight actually gave a nod of confirmation to that, picking up her aforementioned newspaper and turning it around so the others could see. It was an article right in the middle pages of the paper, and at the top there was a somewhat blurred photograph, though all the girls could see that it was of them. Specifically, it was them dressed in their magic-induced outfits, chasing down some shoplifter. The photo was of such a poor quality that none of their faces were seen properly, but regardless, they looked to the article with interest, especially Rainbow.

"Oh yeah! Getting famous, are we?"

Fluttershy poked the end of her chin briefly.

"Well...not really. I mean, they just know there's a group of crime-fighters out there. They don't know it's us."

But Rainbow waved her off.

"Pfft! Semantics!"

Fluttershy frowned.

"That's...not what that word means."

Sunset shook her head to that, then glanced back to Twilight.

"What does it say?"

Looking to the article in earnest once more, Twilight began to read it aloud.

"It's talking about how there's a slight drop in the number of petty thefts in the city of late. Apparently, there are fears that the criminals will meet the "masked heroines" if they try something."

Pinkie giggled

"Yay! We're causing crime to drop!"

Twilight, adjusting her glasses slightly, continued to read.

"But there are also talks about how some people aren't approving of there being vigilantes running around."

To that, Pinkie's exuberance dropped somewhat.

"Awww! Why'd you have to say that?"

Rainbow too looked a touch disheartened.

"Yeah! I mean, what, just because we're not cops means we're not allowed to step in?"

Rarity, considering the matter herself, added her voice to the proceedings.

"I understand your frustrations, Rainbow, but consider. We are, and let's be perfectly frank here, a group of unsupervised teenagers who go around stopping crime using magic from another world. And without any sort of accountability, I might add!"

Rainbow rolled her eyes after hearing all of that.

"Hey, we're doing good out there, remember! Stopping bad guys! Keeping stuff from being stolen! And hey, if criminals are even thinking of not doing crime because of that, then we're doing even more good work!"

Applejack, after taking a moment to adjust her hat briefly, thought on the issue herself.

"Ah hear ya, Rainbow...but we ain't cops. So, ya know, it's kinda...well...illegal fer us ta be doin' all that."

Rainbow looked to her farmer friend with incredulity.

"And I suppose you're going to say it was illegal for us to stop Sunset when she went crazy with Princess Twilight's magic crown?"

She gave a brief glance to her Equestrian friend.

"No off-OMPH!"

She was halted by a finger to her lips by Sunset, who simply smirked at her.

"For the thousandth time...none taken."

Chuckling quickly, Rainbow looked once more to Applejack.

"Or how about Juniper? Or Gloriosa? Or any of those guys! We couldn't just wait for someone official to come along! We had to act!"

Twilight looked down to the article again, then looked back to her friends.

"I can understand that. I mean, it's unlikely any legitimate law-enforcement figure could have dealt with those threats without the use of magic like ours."

Rainbow looked to her with triumph.

"Ha! See?"

But Twilight raised a finger soon afterwards.

"But that still doesn't change the fact that it's rather iffy that we do this other stuff with our powers."

She sighed.

"Taking on petty crooks or shoplifters is one thing, but..."

Her eyes narrowed.

"...what if we one day come across something more serious? Someone who wants...well...something worse?"

Rarity nodded, showing understanding.

"I can certainly vouch for that, Twilight. I still recall how atrocious it was to come across an armed mugger with Sugarcoat and Adagio. No police were there, and I didn't have my amulet."

Rainbow looked over to her.

"But if you did, you'd have trounced him! Like Adagio did!"

Rarity, considering that, swept aside some of her hair.

"Well, that goes without saying, darling."

Rainbow cackled to that, but Fluttershy seemed a touch more concerned.

"Do you think...that it might be worth considering stepping back from everyday crimes?"

The others looked to her, and after taking a moment to consider her position, she started to elaborate.

"Taking on magical threats is certainly our jurisdiction, at least for now. But perhaps...it might be best for regular crimes to be left to those whose job it is to stop them."

Sunset, who had been silent for some time now, gave a slow nod.

"Maybe you're right, Fluttershy. Defending ourselves is certainly going to always be an option...but this thing we've been doing lately, going out of our way to seek out criminals? That might not be something we should be doing."

Rainbow seemed aghast by that.

"But...but...but..."

Twilight then frowned at her athletic friend.

"I know you want to help, Rainbow, and I know we've done some good. But vigilantes are still vigilantes. And if I'm being perfectly honest...I don't really want to be a vigilante."

Rainbow sat there with her mouth agape, no doubt thinking how anyone wouldn't want to be seen as some crime-fighting super-heroine. But, as she looked from face to face, seeing her colleagues all seem to share Twilight's sentiment on the matter, she eventually relented, letting out a deep sigh and shrugging her shoulders.

"Ugh! Okay, fine! I guess I can settle with letting the law do its job!"

Sunset chuckled to that, reaching over and giving her friend a quick pat on the shoulder.

"Well, look at it this way...at least there's always the chance of crazy magical Equestrian monsters and corruptions to let your frustrations out on."

Rainbow paused, thinking on that for a moment, before nodding slowly and forming one of her trademark smirks.

"Yeah...that is good, isn't it?"

Now, there were many places where one would expect to find a girl like Sunset Shimmer on one of her days off. Hanging out at the Mall with her friends. Going to the park for a jog. Going to the library to do some studying with Twilight for some upcoming test. Maybe just going out to see a movie. Where people didn't expect to see her go, however, was the local police station. And yet, this was where the young Equestrian now walked to, a grim yet determined look upon her face as she did so. A long sigh escaped her, and after a few moments of hesitation, she walked onwards. Pushing the door open, she was greeted with the sight if a fairly calm station, with the few officers here simply sitting at their desks and quietly working. One noted her arrival though, and stood up to greet her. Sunset, knowing she'd have to be careful here, put on a smile as the older man drew nearer.

"Morning, Miss. Can I help you?"

The ex-unicorn nodded, glancing around the place before settling her gaze back to him.

"Yes, I...I heard that someone was brought into one of your cells here recently? A jewel thief?"

A frown came to the officer, and after putting his hands upon his hips, he let out a long sigh, nodding.

"Yeah...kid got caught by those costumed vigilantes a while back. He's been moping here for a few days now."

Curiosity came to the man.

"Why'd you ask? You a friend of his?"

Sunset thought on that, then shook her head.

"No, but...we sort of have a history. I was wondering if I could see him?"

The officer considered that, looking the young woman over, before turning his head and looking down to one corridor in particular.

"Well...it's not exactly orthodox procedure...but I guess I can allow it."

Sunset gave an appreciative smile to that, and as the man began to walk off, she followed. Other members of the force watched her go, and for a moment, Sunset wondered what it would be like if her boyfriend, Flash, actually achieved his ambition of one day joining this group. She smiled at the thought of him in one of those uniforms, but her smile was short-lived, for before long, her guide through this place unlocked a nearby door, allowing the two of them entry into the small cell area of the station. From the sound of things, they had few, if any prisoners here, and as the officer continued onwards, Sunset found that the one she was looking for was apparently being held in the cell right at the end of the hall. It was one of those open bar sorts of cells, and as such, it took only moments for Sunset to see then one she'd come here for.

"Heads up, kid. You've got a visitor."

The jewel thief, a young purple-haired boy, looked up as he continued to sit down, and saw Sunset. Confusion came to him, but he said nothing as the officer looked back down to the girl.

"I'll be close by if you need me."

Sunset nodded, watching him go, and before long, it was just her and the prisoner. A moments or two passed, and when it was over, she cleared her throat.

"You may not recognise me, but...we've kind of met before."

The boy shook his head, prompting Sunset to continue.

"I...well...my friends and I...we're the one who...you know..."

At first, the kid had no idea what she was talking about, but then, as time passed on, his eyes widened, and recognition came to him.

"...You?!"

Sunset nodded.

"Yeah...me."

Standing, the boy took a few steps closer to her.

"But...that costume doesn't even cover your faces! How did I not...?"

A chuckle escaped the Equestrian at that.

"Trust me...it just works."

But, rather than be amused by this, the boy started to frown at her.

"...Why are you here?"

Sunset's expression softened.

"I...I wanted to know if you're doing okay."

The boy very much looked like he wanted to be angry with her, but then, after a minute of quietly seething, he let out a long sigh, his shoulders slumping.

"I'm...I'm fine. Thanks for asking."

Sunset raised an eyebrow to that response.

"I'm...I'm sorry, but I was expecting you to be...you know...a lot more bitter towards me."

The prisoner shook his head, heading back for the small bench of his cell and sitting down.

"It was my own fault. I'd have been caught sooner or later. If not by you, then by one of those cops out there."

A silence passed over them both, and understandably, neither one of them looked all that comfortable speaking to the other. But, not wanting this visit to be completely quiet, Sunset cleared her throat.

"So...um...think you'll get out soon?"

Her conversation partner shrugged his shoulders.

"I guess. A few weeks, maybe a month. Won't be all that keen to meet up with my friends or family after I get out though."

Sunset's expression became one of optimism.

"I'm sure they'll understand. You're young, you had a crush on a girl, and you did something...well..."

The boy raised an eyebrow.

"Stupid?"

Sunset scratched the back of her head.

"I was going to say emotional, but sure, that works too."

The two, in spite of how awkward the moment had been, shared a laugh to that. But, when it ended, a long sigh escaped the prisoner.

"Yeah...it was stupid of me. It's just...when you think you've got no other way to catch someone's eye..."

Slowly, Sunset frowned.

"If she was going to want to be with you, it would have been because of who you are, not because of what you got her or..."

She hesitated.

"...or what crimes you committed in her name."

The boy flinched.

"She's probably never gonna want to see me again after this."

For a time, Sunset considered that.

"She might. She may forgive you for what you did just for the sake of impressing her."

But then, her frown returned.

"But...if she decides then and there that she's interested, because you did something wrong for her...that might be a sign she's not the kind of girl you should want to be with."

Slowly, as the boy dwelt on those words, he nodded.

"Yeah...probably wouldn't be a good sign if doing something like that actually made her like me more."

Sunset shook her head.

"Nope."

Again, the two said nothing to one another, but, when that time ended, the boy looked to her. He hesitated, but then, after gathering his courage, he spoke.

"Have...have you ever done something wrong? You know...because you thought it was a good idea at the time?"

Though taken aback by that question, Sunset nevertheless managed a chuckle soon afterwards.

"Yeah...you could say that."

The boy nodded.

"And...and you turned out okay afterwards?"

Folding her arms, Sunset bore a knowing smirk.

"Better than I was before, if I'm being honest."

Gradually, a smile formed on the lips of the boy.

"Well...here's hoping the same goes for me too."

Sunset gave a brief laugh to that, looking to the bars that separated them, before glancing back to him.

"One can only hope."

Still looking to her, the prisoner's smile widened.

"Th...thanks...for visiting me."

Sunset, shrugging her shoulders, matched his smile.

"Hey, I'm the one who put you here, remember? It's the least I could do."

Leaning back into the wall behind his bench, the boy pondered that.

"Huh...getting caught by a bunch of super-heroines. Guess there's worse ways to get sent to jail."

As the sun began to set towards the horizon, Granny Smith couldn't help but smile. It had been a busy day, but now she had a chance to relax. And relax she did, sitting quietly by herself upon the bench in her back yard, she stared warmly at the beautiful sky, enjoying the sounds of the birds tweeting their evening songs. In her hand was a simple cool glass of water, and she was sure to take several sips of it as soon as her mouth started getting dry. It was a calm, relaxing and, most importantly, quiet moment. But, sadly, that long quiet didn't last forever, as Granny's ears picked up the all-too familiar sound of a cat meowing. However, this was no bad thing to her, as a smile soon crept onto her lips, and she turned towards the direction of the sound. Sure enough, a woman about her age was there, smiling right back at her, and holding an adorable-looking cat in her arms. Silently, Granny scooted to one side, allowing the newcomer to take a seat beside her, and once the latter was down, the former finally spoke up.

"Glad ta see ya made it, cousin."

The other woman gave a brief chuckle.

"Oh, you know me, Granny, I never pass up a chance to enjoy a beautiful sunset."

Granny, still smiling, reached over to a nearby table beside the bench, picking up a second glass of water and handing it to her guest. The other woman accepted it, smiling wider as a result, before taking a nice and refreshing gulp of her drink. Granny herself, leaning back into her side of the bench, let out a long sigh, before once again speaking.

"Ya know, Golden...it's kinda funny."

Golden Delicious, after wiping away a few stray drops of water from her lips, looked to her relative with curiosity.

"Oh? What?"

Silence passed, and Granny appeared thoughtful for a time.

"When you, me an' the other girls were all young, we used ta say we were always the bees' knees. We'd get in trouble, cause all sorts o' ruckus about town..."

Another chuckle escaped her.

"It seemed like there'd never again be a group o' gals like us."

After taking in a deep breath, the old woman exhaled, sounding partly relaxed, but also, to a small extent, resigned to something.

"An' then...ah think o' mah granddaughter."

Golden raised an eyebrow.

"Applejack?"

Granny nodded in confirmation.

"Eyup. She an' her friends are always out an' about, gettin' themselves into scrapes an' japes an' adventures. They go way past anythin' we ever did."

Here, it was Golden's turn to laugh, and she reached over, giving her friend a quick pat on the shoulder.

"Oh, Smithy...you're not saying you're jealous of them, are you?"

Granny matched her laugh, and she waved her off, shaking her head slightly in the process.

"Nah...nah...but ah sometimes wonder... where did it all go?"

She leaned further into the bench, looking more and more thoughtful as time went on.

"The time? One minute, yer young, hoppin' about town feelin' invincible like yer life'd stretch out forever...an' the next? The next...yer out on a bench, with the most excitin' thing bein' the chance ta listen ta a few birds."

The birds in question, as though insulted by such words, turned up their beaks in their respective trees, before promptly flying away, much to Granny's slight amusement. Golden, by contrast, looked to her old friend with a raised eyebrow, leaning in closer and speaking with more than a little incredulity in her tone.

"Oh? Because I heard not so long ago of a supposedly retired bus lady taking a joy-ride with the girls and getting into all sorts of trouble."

Granny, hearing that, allowed the memory of that day to sink in, and a knowing smirk crept onto her face.

"Yeah...that was a good day. Ah tell ya, Golden, ah felt alive when ah was doin' that!"

Another chuckle was heard from her soon afterwards.

"It reminded me of mah old bus-drivin' days, ya know, when ah'd always get in trouble fer givin' the students a real shortcut ta school every mornin'?"

Again, Golden laughed.

"I remember. I still like to think back to the look on Principal Sombra's face whenever he had to give you a talking to."

She again placed her hand upon Granny's shoulder.

"His face became so red that it looked like a tomato!"

The two, understandably, shared a laugh to that memory, but when the laughter eventually died down, they both let out simultaneous sighs. While clearly feeling content in this moment, they soon elected to go for their respective glasses of water, enjoying the last few gulps of that cooling liquid before speaking up again.

"Ah don' know, Goldie...ah look ta AJ an' her friends...an' ah jus' miss those days. That was us, once upon a time."

Golden turned to her, raising her eyebrow slightly.

"Oh? I don't ever remember going around town fighting monsters and wielding magic powers. Either you're over-glorifying the past, or my memory is getting worse than I thought in my old age."

The two shared another laugh to that, creating yet more good feeling between them, but again, as the laughter stopped, Granny gave a slow nod of her head.

"Ah know, ah know, maybe we weren't quite as adventurous as the new girls."

Slowly, a smile crept further onto her lips.

"But maybe...maybe ah should be happier fer em."

Golden looked to her with curiosity, prompting Granny to elaborate.

"Ah mean...we thought we were spirited back then...but these girls? They go above an' beyond in a way we never did! Makes me glad the next generation ain't gettin' too peaceful, ya know?"

Understanding what her friend was getting at, Golden matched her smile, and with her still-empty glass in hand, she raised it. Granny, seeing this, smiled back to her, raising her own glass, and together, the two elderly ladies gently clinked them against one another.

"To the next generation. May they be ever crazy and wild."

Granny chuckled.

"Ah'll drink ta that!"

A pause.

"Well...as soon as ah get another drink that is."

Golden laughed, but then, took on a thoughtful look of her own.

"Do you ever wonder how things might have been if we ever had magic powers at their age?"

Granny snorted.

"Girl, don't kid yerself! If you an' me had powers back then, there'd be nothin' left o' Canterlot at all!"

Golden blinked, then shrugged her shoulders in a display of begrudging acknowledgement.

"Yeah...good point."

Now, Pinkie was always known for occasionally childish actions, and in truth, her friends had always found that to be endearing. Today, it appeared as though she was doing more of the same, as she was presently sitting behind the wheel of the currently-switched-off old school bus, Rusty. The very vehicle that had taken them to one of their live shows, it now stood idle in its home in Applejack's back yard. But, it was not the young farmer herself who was present here, but Rainbow, who placed her hands upon her hips as she shook her head to Pinkie's current antics. It wasn't annoyance, and in fact she was even smiling at the sight of her colleague making some imitation driving noises back there. But, she nevertheless let out a long sigh, before promptly striding forward and hopping into the open door of the bus. Standing next to her friend by the drivers' seat, the athlete smirked slightly, listening on as Pinkie continued to play out her driving fantasy.

"Screeeeeeech! She makes the turn, just dodging the cars on the other side! Can she make it across the line? Can she? Yes, she can! And the crowd goes wild!"

Folding her arms, Rainbow let out a chuckle.

"Enjoying yourself, Pinkie?"

The party-lover gave a wide smile to that.

"You know it, Dashie!"

Still smiling, Rainbow made her way over to one of the nearby seats within the bus, sitting herself down and letting out a contented sigh.

"Pretty sweet day, right? Nothing to do but kick back and relax."

Pinkie nodded to that, getting up from the drivers' seat and joining her friend.

"Yep! Well, that, and thinking on where to go for our next band performance."

Rainbow nodded, a slight smirk creeping onto her lips.

"Yeah, it'll be pretty nice when it happens."

Another chuckle escaped her.

"Here's hoping it doesn't go like last time. Granny Smith's one heck of a driver, but I think we could all do with a few less detours like that."

Pinkie's shoulders slumped upon hearing that.

"Awww, but it was fun! All the twists and turns...

A knowing look came to her.

"...and let's not forget me being able to just use my awesome magic!"

Here, Rainbow paused, looking to her friend with interest.

"Yeah...that was...something."

Now, while Pinkie might not have been the absolute best at reading people, there were nevertheless times when she could sense that her friends were thinking about stuff, and this was just such an occasion. So, raising an eyebrow, she glanced to her friend.

"Something up, Dashie?"

Rainbow paused, thinking on how best to word her thoughts.

"Well...it's just..."

A sigh escaped her, and she leaned forward slightly.

"Don't get me wrong, Pinkie, your magic is awesome, but..."

Pinkie leaned closer to her.

"But what?"

Rainbow blinked to her, before finally just blurting out what she wanted to say.

"Do you ever feel that your magic is a little bit...you know...destructive?"

But Pinkie, rather than be offended by that, simply snorted and rolled her eyes.

"What? No! It's not that bad!"

Rainbow's eyes narrowed.

"Pinkie...your power is literally being able to cause explosions to stuff you throw."

Raising one hand she started counting off her fingers.

"I have my speed, AJ has her strength, Rarity makes those diamond shield thingies, Twilight lifts stuff up, Fluttershy talks to animals, Sunset reads minds..."

She turned to her friend once more.

"But you? Your power is pretty dangerous compared to all that."

Pinkie, for the first time, seemed to think hard on that, now that it had been laid out for her in the way Rainbow just had.

"Yeah...I guess..."

She then frowned.

"But you guys can do dangerous stuff with your powers too. AJ's strength can hurt people if she wanted, ditto for Twilight if she lifted up a whole bunch of heavy stuff. Fluttershy, though I love her to bits, could just command a big bear or something to rip someone to shreds."

Rainbow, thinking on that, let out a chortle.

"Yeah...can't really argue with that."

She leaned back further into her side of the bus-bench.

"If you'd have asked me what kinds of magic you specifically would get, I'd have said being able to make...I dunno...a bunch of confetti spew out from nowhere at the snap of your fingers or something."

Pinkie, contrary to how she usually seemed, appeared to be rather taken aback at this new line of thought her friend had brought up for her, and this was reflected in her tone as she spoke.

"Yeah..."

Then, her eyes widened.

"Gah! I could have killed someone!"

Rainbow looked to her.

"What?"

Pinkie looked right back.

"Back at Camp Everfree, when we were making that dock, I almost hurt a whole bunch of you when I threw those nails! if my magic had been going on at the time, you could have all been killed!"

A grimace crossed Rainbow's face at that.

"Yeah, I'll be honest, that hadn't really escaped our notice."

Pinkie groaned, starting to slump down onto her seat.

"Urrrrrrgh! Why'd I have to get saddled with the blowy-up power? Now I'm just...sad!"

Rainbow, realising that her words had upset her friend, frantically thought of how best to respond to this. Eventually, and after putting on a smile, she leaned forward, giving a friendly pat to Pinkie's shoulder.

"Hey, I know things seem bad, but it's actually okay!"

Pinkie looked to her, clearly not quite believing what she was hearing, which prompted Rainbow to continue.

"Seriously, I mean it! Sure, you might have had dangerous powers back then, but now? Now, you can control it, just like the rest of us! And you're not some crazy nut-job who wants to blow stuff up! You're Pinkie Pie! You only ever want to make people happy!"

Confidence appeared in her expression soon afterwards.

"So as far as I'm concerned, there's no danger from you, Pinks. You only use your magic when you need to, and when it comes to powers like yours, I can't think of anyone I'd rather give it to."

The look on Pinkie's face made it very clear that she was touched by what her fired had just said to her, and before Rainbow could say anything else, she was suddenly struck with an enormous and tight hug from her companion. Eventually, however, she settled into it, letting out a brief chuckle and returning the embrace. But, when they parted, Pinkie looked a lot more relaxed than she bad been for the past few minutes, and after letting out a sigh, she folded her arms, looking more than a little confident.

"In that case, I swear to only use my powers to blow up the right stuff!"

Rainbow, giving a slow blink to that, let out a sigh of her own, raising her hands and giving her temples a rub.

"Pinkie...maybe try coming up with a less scary thing to say next time?"

One of the regular fixtures of days at Canterlot High, besides the frantic and often uncontrollable chaos that the students would often bring to the proceedings, was the awesome-sounding music of its foremost band, the Rainbooms. Oh sure, musical talent was abound in many of the students there, but when it came to top-notch rock sounds, nobody matched Sunset, Rainbow and the rest of their group. Even Twilight, despite being a relative newcomer to the group, was able to hold her own as a signer, though she had yet to choose an instrument for herself. On and on they played, with their music heard to anyone who passed by the music room, creating smiles for all. But, as always, there came a time when that music came to an end, and the girls, all smiling to one another, all shared a laugh, showing clear enjoyment over their joint practice session. But, after a time, Rainbow let out a sigh, sitting herself down at the side of the room.

"Oh yeah, now that's what I'm talking about!"

Chuckling, Sunset set her guitar down, looking more than satisfied with how their music had gone.

"It was a pretty good session today."

Twilight nodded to her.

"I think I'm getting better with my singing."

Applejack, letting out a hearty chortle, gave a friendly slap on the spectacled girl's shoulder.

"Ah'll say! Yer soundin' pretty sweet these days, Twi!"

Twilight blushed, but turned to look to Fluttershy soon afterwards.

"And your animals certainly seem to like your input, Fluttershy!"

The animal-lover matched her friend's blush, turning and looking over to a nearby collection of rabbits, squirrels and other assorted small creatures, who did indeed seem to enjoy her sounds.

"Oh, I just do what I can."

Rarity, sweeping aside some of her hair, smiled to that.

"Nonsense, darling! Your tambourine was simply divine to listen to!"

"And your keytar work was pretty great too, Rarity!" Pinkie added.

Rarity took on a look of brief pride at that.

"Well, one does try, Pinkie."

The group all laughed together, creating an air of friendliness between them. But, when it was over, Sunset once more let out a sigh, taking a seat over next to where Rainbow was.

"You know...I was having lunch the other day, and I happened upon some kid who was listening to our music on his phone."

The others looked to her with interest.

"Oh? Do continue," Rarity insisted.

Sunset nodded.

"It was from our last live performance. He seemed really into it, since he kept playing that clip over and over again."

Rainbow let out one of her trademark cackles.

"Why wouldn't he? Have you heard us? We're great!"

Twilight, taking a seat of her own, adjusted her glasses slightly before adding her voice to matters.

"I don't doubt that we have our fans...but for the casual person in the street to have that kind of love for our music? It's a little strange to think about."

Pinkie gave a knowing smirk to that.

"What, stranger than us having magic powers or acting like superheroes?"

A small giggle escaped Twilight at that.

"Okay, maybe not that strange, given our more recent endeavours. But still..."

Fluttershy nodded towards her ex-Crystal-Prep colleague, kneeling down to her aforementioned animal friends and petting a few of them.

"Do you ever wonder how well we'd do if we did more official music? I mean, going out and making records and things like that?"

Applejack, who took a brief moment to adjust her hat, looked to Fluttershy with interest.

"Not a bad question, but ah don't think we'd be too massive."

Rainbow snorted.

"What? AJ, no offense, but you're crazy! We'd be majorly popular!"

Rarity walked over to her, sitting herself down and reaching over to give the young athlete a pat on the shoulder.

"I realise that our music is most impressive to listen to, and we're undoubtedly popular here at the school, but you must remember the music industry is quite a cutthroat place to be."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah? How do you know?"

Rarity, after crossing one leg over the other, began to explain.

"Well, I may be best known for my work in fashion, but I have had talks with others in my field who've dabbled in music in the past. And if even half of the horror stories I've heard are true, those professionals would chew us up and spit us out without a second thought."

Naturally, Fluttershy let out one of her expected "eep" sounds after a statement like that, leading to Pinkie giving her a more reassuring tone.

"Hey, it's no worry, Fluttershy! I don't know about you, but I'm actually not all that interested in getting all big and official with my music."

Fluttershy looked to her, returning the smile.

"Me neither. I just like doing it with my friends, for fun. I couldn't imagine going into it as a career choice, even if the other students here do think we're really good."

Rainbow, leaning back into her chair, rolled her eyes a little.

"Man, I could just see myself out on stage in a life like that! The crowds, the cheers! The...the..."

Her smile faded.

"The expectations and having to have some manager breathing down my neck about appealing to this or that group...ugh!"

She shuddered.

"Yeah...maybe keeping it small with you girls would be better!"

Again, the group shared a laugh together, with even Rainbow getting in on it. Sunset, after giving herself a quick stretch, looked over to her now-idle guitar. With a warm smile creeping onto her lips, she reached forward, gently placing her hand upon it.

"Fame and fortune are all well and good...but in the face of just being able to do it for fun? It'll never measure up."

A shrug of her shoulders followed, and she turned to the rest of her friends.

"Besides, I think I'm safe in saying that that fame we get around here is more than enough, wouldn't you say?"

The girls all looked to one another, and then, without saying a world, all turned to the nearby window. There, staring at them creepily on the other side, was Snips. His breathing was so heavy, in fact, that it created a layer of condensation on the window, which he then used to write the worlds "I love your music". Naturally, the girls all responded to this with similar grimaces, before looking to Sunset, Twilight breaking the silence between them.

"Yep...no argument here."

"Awww! They think Tank's their Mommy!"

I smile at Fluttershy's words as she and the other girls fawn over the sight before them. And in truth, I cannot help but feel much like they do. These young ones around me, they come to me, like any child to a parent, and while I myself might not be their sire, I am nevertheless here for them. Had I the throat for it, I might have let out a chuckle to that thought. Me? A parent? A strange thought, to be sure, and one that, in truth, I never considered before. Not fully at least. My owner, Rainbow, might not realise this, but I am an old tortoise. Have been for some time now. The thought of children, while not entirely absent from my mind during my long life, has, on very rare occasions, propped up here and there, usually when seeing other young creatures. But now that these ones here are acting this way towards me, I cannot help but wonder.

True, this will likely be the last time I ever look upon them, as already, one by one, the young make their way into the waters. I see them go, and to my slight surprise, several of them stay behind, nuzzling me affectionately. I return the gesture, my wrinkled lips forming into a smile as I do so. But, as much as I wish I could remain with them, I know they have a long journey to complete. So, as difficult as it is, I begin to nudge them away from me, encouraging them to go to the sea. They seem just as hesitant to leave me as I am to see them go, but go they do. I take a few steps closer to the edge of the water, just to escort them that last small distance, but then, I stop, knowing that this is where we would part. The last of them shows just the tiniest bit of hesitation, but then, finally makes its last motion, entering the sea.

I am a tortoise, they are turtles. By all logic, it would never have worked. They are creatures of the sea, while I and those of my kin walk upon the land. We are of two different worlds, and were I to keep them, they would only have been hurt. For a being of water to live upon land would have been difficult at best, and deadly at worst. No, as much has it pains me to admit this to myself, they must go to the sea, where they belong. My heart aches, seeing them swim further and further away from me, but I take solace in the fact that, at the very least, they have been given a good start in life. And really, while parenthood is not something I ever expected to have in my life, a good start is really the best thing any parent can ever give their children. So, I suppose, I can take comfort in that thought.

Will I ever see them again? Perhaps years from now, when they are fully grown? Will they remember me? Will we converse? Will they call me Father? Or perhaps, as Fluttershy remarked, as Mommy? Another smile comes to me as I think on that prospect, knowing that it would not be unwanted, at least on my part. Only time will tell, as the old saying goes. The girls around me continue to be enamoured at what has transpired before their eyes. The "cute baby turtles" that they so adored. But for me? This moment will always be far more meaningful than mere cuteness. It will be the moment where, just for a little while, I had children. And I look up, seeing them swim off to the horizon, witnessing as the one with the red shell stops to wave back to me. My smile widens, and a single tears falls down my cheek, and I think to myself that, yes, they will be alright out there.

"Come on, Tank. Time to go home," Rainbow says to me.

Home? Yes. We're all going to our homes now, aren't we?

It was foolish, and she knew it. After everything they'd agreed to, all saying they'd never get involved in everyday crimes, here she was all the same. Sunset Shimmer, running down the main street of the town, following a pair of crooks who'd just taken the belongings of an old woman just a few blocks away. It had been quick, just snatching her purse, but they were off before anyone could react. Well, anyone except her of course. Others had called the police, but, fearing that they'd get away with it, the Equestrian had decided, despite what she'd promised to do, to chase after them. No magic yet, at least for now, but she would follow all the same. On and on she ran, but there came a time when, sadly, they'd given her the slip. Frustration took hold of her, and she began to look all over, hoping to catch some sight, some glimpse of where they'd gone, though her hope of finding them dwindled with every passing moment.

However, it appeared as though fate was smiling upon her today, for just a few minutes later, she heard the distinct sound of fighting not far away. She made her way over, and after turning one corner in particular, she found, to her surprise, that it was the robbers. They had just stumbled out of an alleyway, and were, to her confusion, fighting each other. Why they were doing this, she could not say, only that she had no time to react to it. For just then, she heard the clear call of police sirens behind her, and she turned to see several cars pull up. The officers leapt out, and within moments, the criminals were apprehended, taken into the cars and separated from their stolen goods. Sunset watched, happy that this had been dealt with, but still confused as to exactly what had transpired between them two of them.

"Well, that was certainly fun, wasn't it?"

The familiar voice caused Sunset to turn, and she looked on with wide eyes to find that it was none other than her fellow Equestrian, Adagio. Flipping aside some of her hair, the elder Siren smirked to her ex-unicorn colleague, walking towards her in that confident way of hers.

"Sunset, my dear, what a pleasant surprise."

Sunset, blinking a few times, eventually started to put the puzzle pieces together, looking over to the now-departing police cars before turning yet again to face Adagio.

"Did...did you cause those two to fight?"

Adagio, trying to look as innocent as she possibly could, which wasn't very much, shrugged her shoulders.

"Oh, I simply happened to be in the right place at the right time."

Folding her arms, Sunset took on a look of confusion.

"So...what did happen?"

Leaning against the wall of the nearest building, Adagio began to explain.

"Well, I was walking home from a quick stop at the milkshake bar, when I decided to take a shortcut through this alleyway here. When I walked through, however, I found those two miscreants."

A chuckle escaped her.

"They were going on about how easy it had been to take that sweet old lady's purse, and how they'd apparently given some rather relentless girl the slip."

Amusement came to her expression.

"I take it you were who they were referring to?"

Sunset didn't answer, just blushing slightly and looking away, much to Adagio's delight.

"In any case, it didn't take me long to figure out what was going on, so I decided maybe it would be worth having a little bit of fun with them."

Sunset, upon hearing that, arched an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"

A knowing smirk came to the Siren.

"Well, I strode over there, catching their attention, and I just so happened to mention how impressive the two of them seemed."

She turned, looking back towards the alley.

"Eventually, I may or may not have planted in their heads tiny little seeds of just how impressed I would be with whoever had been the mastermind of that little heist of theirs."

Again, she shrugged her shoulders.

"A few smiles, the right words in the right place, and before you knew it, they were at each others' throats, both trying to prove which was the boss in that situation."

A darker look came to her.

"Of course...I think we all know who was really in charge by the end of it."

Sunset, having heard all of that, blinked in disbelief, shocked that Adagio could have done all of that in such a short amount of time. Then, a thought came to her, and her eyes drifted down to the reconstructed gem dangling off Adagio's necklace. Adagio herself, seeing this look, rolled her eyes.

"Oh, Sunset, I assure you, this old trinket of mine is just as devoid of magic now as it was when you and your friends defeated my sisters and I. What I did here today..."

Triumph crept into her expression.

"...that was all me."

Though Sunset was still taken aback by this, she nevertheless started to relax a little.

"Well...I'm glad this was resolved. The crooks are taken care of, and the old woman gets her purse back."

Stepping forward from where she was leaning, Adagio gave a firm nod to that.

"Indeed, and what's more, I got a little fun out of it."

A chuckle escaped her.

"I tell you, Sunset...it felt good, being able to do that sort of thing again."

Sunset smiled.

"Yeah, helping others is pretty rewarding, isn't it?"

Her companion shook her head.

"I'm not talking about that. I meant what I did with the thieves. Just being able to sway them that way. A few words, and bam, they were tearing each other apart. They might have known each other their whole lives, but as soon as I entered the picture, it was all over for them."

Slowly, Sunset frowned.

"It's not good to be that happy about tearing people apart, Adagio, criminal or otherwise."

The Siren rolled her eyes.

"You might not think so, but don't forget who it is you're talking to. I am Adagio Dazzle. I am the Siren. And few things in life have given me greater joy than to know that I can simply do what I've done. Take allies and just turn them upon each other, even without my magic."

Sunset looked horrified at those words.

"But...but you've changed. You're better than you were before...right?"

Adagio matched the frown she'd been given earlier.

"Oh, I've changed alright. Now, when I do this sort of thing, it's been in the service of people like you, rather than being used against you. Trust me...there was a day when that would never have happened. But now? Well...you saw for yourself."

Sunset paused for a while, trying to get her words together.

"But...but...it's still not right, being so amused at turning people into enemies."

As before, Adagio leaned against the building.

"Does it matter? If it results in something good for you, or perhaps that old woman whose honour you were defending, if it helps...does it truly matter if I get a kick out of, shall we say, less-than-honourable means to do it?"

Sunset hesitated. She wanted to argue against that point, as every positive instinct in her body was telling her to do so, but Adagio, seeing this struggle in her, let out a long sigh. She stepped forward, reaching out and giving her a quick pat on the shoulder.

"Sunset...you're a good person. But the truth of the matter is...this is who I am."

The former unicorn watched as her friend took on a more serious look to her.

"I am a Siren, and my nature is manipulation. Ours is conflict, and subversion...it is what makes us what we are. We may no longer have the means to rule the world, but that does not mean we no longer take pleasure in the things you and those like you find distasteful."

Sunset listened to every word, and while she wanted to simply frown, wag her finger and lecture her colleague over what she'd said, she knew, in her heart, that it would do her little good, if any. So, realising that she had been given truth, she let out a long sigh, and instead, looked to Adagio with equal parts fear and curiosity.

"Adagio...tell me...do you consider me your friend? truly your friend? And the others too?"

Slowly, the eldest Siren sister fixed her with a look that was nothing short of steely.

"Would I have ever told you the story of my son...if we were not?"

A silence passed between them, and after looking into that ancient Siren's eyes, Sunset knew she had her answer. Slowly, she gave a nod, avoiding Adagio's gaze, if only for a few moments.

"Okay, I...I suppose if that's how things are for you, then...I can accept that."

Adagio, in a move far faster than Sunset's, smiled back to her, giving her another pat on her shoulder.

"Cheer up, Sunset. It's not many who get to claim that they have a friend like me."

In spite of her earlier mood, Sunset couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yeah...can't really argue with that."

Walking past her, Adagio maintained her victorious smirk, and Sunset, after showing just a moment of hesitation, started to follow.

"So...how about we go back to my place for some tea?" Adagio offered.

Sunset looked over to her, raising an eyebrow, which prompted her companion to continue.

"I don't know about you, but turning people into enemies does leave a lady rather thirsty."

Sunset smiled back to her.

"Yeah...for what it's worth...I know the feeling."

When Pinkie Pie threw a party, she really threw a party. The music room of Canterlot High had been decorated to the nines, with streamers, balloons, banners and every colourful thing a celebration was expected to have. And what's more, all of their friends had been gathered here for this. The Rainbooms, the CMC, the Shadowbolts, Adagio and her sisters, all of their respective boyfriends, even some of the people they'd once been enemies with, like Wallflower, Juniper and Gloriosa. Everyone was here, and in truth, that was really all this party was. There was no big event that needed celebrating, no special occasion to honour, it was just friends, hanging out and having a fun time. And speaking of fun, the hostess herself, Pinkie Pie, was sure to be going around everyone here, making utterly sure that they were all enjoying themselves. But, of course, it was to her closest friends that she went first.

"Hey, Sunset! Having fun?"

The Equestrian gave a quick chuckle.

"I am. You've really outdone yourself here, Pinkie."

The party-lover beamed to that, and in response, she gave a surprise tight hug to her girlfriend, Fluttershy.

"Isn't it great, Flutters? Having all our bestest friends here?"

Though taken aback by the embrace, the pink-haired girl nevertheless eased into it, offering Pinkie a warm smile.

"It is good. Having everyone here is just wonderful."

Pinkie gave her girlfriend a quick kiss on the cheek, eliciting a blush from both of them. A hearty chuckle was soon heard, and they turned to see both Applejack and Rainbow looking over to them with smirks on their faces.

"Try not to have Fluttershy all to yourself, Pinkie. Some of the rest of us wanna talk to her too," Rainbow remarked.

"Eyup! Ain't gonna be a proper party without talkin' ta all our friends after all," Applejack added.

Pinkie giggled nervously to that, before indeed releasing Fluttershy and allowing her to speak to the rest of the party guests. First on that list was Rarity, who moved to the animal lover and swept aside some of her own hair before speaking up.

"I must say, Pinkie has truly outdone herself today. And these colours? Oh, I must confess, she truly has an eye for aesthetic when it comes to this sort of thing!"

Fluttershy giggled.

"Well, she had a little help in that."

Rarity raised an eyebrow, but soon got her answer, as Twilight suddenly appeared onto the scene, adjusting her glasses a little before adding her voice to matters.

"It was a simple matter of trying to make sure that everything corresponded with the colours that pre-existed in the room. After that, Pinkie simply did what she did best."

"Yeah...making sure the place look like a balloon factory exploded everywhere."

They turned at the sound of the second voice, seeing the ever-snarky-looking Aria arrive into their little collection.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I wanted to return your book, Twi."

And the Siren did indeed offer a book to the spectacled girl, prompting a smile from the latter.

"Ah yes, a fine story from the great Edgar Rice Burroughs. How did you find it?"

Aria shrugged her shoulders.

"Pretty good. Still prefer Twenty Thousand Leagues personally."

Twilight smiled.

"Understood. I'll look for another one for you later."

Aria chuckled.

"Yeah, it'll be good to talk to Wiz about it some more."

Here, she glanced over her shoulder, seeing that very boyfriend of hers mingling with some of the others guys, like Big Mac and Timber. The boy soon spotted her, offering her a smile and a wave, which she couldn't help but give a chortle to.

"He's a dork...but I love him."

"Well, at least you have a boyfriend!" Sonata announced unexpectedly.

Sonata's declaration may have been genuine, but it was clear from the look on her face that it was made in good humour, causing a shared laugh among the group there.

"Well, you could certainly get yourself one if you wanted, Nata," Rarity remarked.

Sonata shook her head, gaining an amorous look to her.

"Thanks, but no thanks. I think we all know who my eye is set on."

She turned, giving the nearby Flash Sentry a wink, causing the boy to roll his eyes. Sunset, seeing that, gave her Siren friend a frown.

"Er, he is still dating me, Nata."

Sonata shrugged her shoulders.

"Hey, I got time."

Sunset sighed to that, looking instead to Twilight.

"You talked to your old classmates yet?"

Twilight smiled.

"I have. They're really doing well right now. Indigo and Rainbow have a big race planned between them, Sugarcoat is planning on another date with Moonlight, Lemon's going off to listen to some of Vinyl's music later, and Sour plans on going to the gym with Aria for more stress relief. So yeah, things are pretty good."

"Hey, don't forget me!"

They turned, seeing the raised eyebrow of Sunny Flare walk towards them.

"I've got plans too, Twilight!"

The former Crystal Prep girl blushed, chuckling a little.

"Ah, right, sorry."

But Sunny merely smiled, walking over to them.

"My Mom and me are going over to the city cemetery later. We're going to put some new flowers down for my Dad."

Sunset smiled, reaching over and giving her a pat on the shoulder.

"Well, I hope you have a good time there together."

Sunny chuckled.

"Well, as good a time as someone can have, going to a grave."

The ground shared another laugh together, only to stop when they looked over to see none other than Adagio walking towards them.

"Oh, you never know. Fun can be had in the most unlikely places when you get right down to it."

Sunset smiled to her.

"How've you been?"

Adagio gave her a smirk.

"Oh, well enough. I plan on going home and doing some more singing practice later. With how busy things have been at the spa, I simply haven't been able to get away lately."

Sunset nodded.

"Well, I hope you get the chance. You've been sounding pretty good with that lately."

Adagio brushed some of her hair behind her ear, smiling to her former foe at that.

"That's very nice of you to say, dear."

But, the silence that followed did not last long, as they soon found that Wallflower, Juniper and Gloriosa walked over towards them.

"You know, it's hard to imagine that so many people here would end up as friends," Gloriosa remarked.

"Yeah, I mean...how many people here only met each other because they were planning something bad? Like us?" Wallflower added.

"Well, you know how forgiving these girls can be," Juniper finished.

A chuckle escaped Sunset at that, but, before she truly had a chance to say anything in response towards those words, she was interrupted all of a sudden by Pinkie, who poked her head into the group, let out a very loud gasp, then started speaking in that usual excited way of hers.

"Oh! That's it! That's what this party's toast is gonna be!"

Then, she leapt up onto a nearby chair, clearing her throat loudly so that everyone noticed her. Soon, all eyes within the room were upon her, and she smiled widely to the assembled friends before her.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Let us raise our glasses to friendship! And all the joy it's brought us!"

There was a silence for a time, but then, Timber let out a chuckle, breaking the ice.

"I'll drink to that!"

He raised his cup, followed shortly by all the others. Sunset, smiling warmly, raised her own cup, adding her voice to what Pinkie had already said.

"To friends..."

She smiled to Twilight and the rest of the Rainbooms, who smiled right back at her as she continued.

"...to those who used to be our enemies..."

Her smile then fell to Adagio and her sisters, who gave her half-smiles-half-smirks in response before raising their cups. Then, before Sunset said anything else, a different voice called to her.

"...To relationships we once thought we'd never have again...or never imagined having at all."

Sunset turned, and here, she looked upon the loving expression of Flash, as he gave her the warmest smile of all. He also gave a glance over to his sister, Rainbow, who raised her cup silently to him with a nod, allowing the boy to look back to his girlfriend. She matched this, looking to him with equal love in her own expression, before finally turning, addressing the crowd yet again.

"...To us!"

"To us!" they all echoed back to her.

And with that, they all took a swig of their drinks, with Pinkie merrily hopping off her chair, looking very pleased with herself.

"Yeah, this is a good moment!"

Sunset chuckled.

"Yeah...thanks, Pinkie."

Pinkie smiled widely, giggling happily before once more moving over to hug Fluttershy. Meanwhile, Sunset glanced over to Flash, walking over to him and, to the boy's slight surprise, leaning forward and giving him a tender kiss upon his lips. The young couple enjoyed the moment, oblivious to the smirks and giggles they were no doubt receiving, before breaking away and moving to other people. Flash walked over to speak to Derpy, as well as to help her in feeding Dinky, whom she'd brought with her to the party. Naturally, the infant was being fawned over by many of the other party-goers, much to her Mother's delight, and it even caused Sunset a smile too as she regarded her. After a while, the ex-unicorn wound up speaking to Twilight and Adagio, with the former letting out a long sigh.

"Well...it's pretty overwhelming, right? I once had no friends at all, and now...I have all of this!"

She gestured to the whole room, prompting a chuckle from both Sunset and Adagio.

"Trust me, dear...you're in good company in that regard," Adagio remarked.

Sunset nodded in agreement.

"Yep, no debate here."

Slowly, the eldest Siren looked over to her fellow Equestrian.

"How do you think all this really began anyway?"

Slowly, Sunset gained a knowing smile, and after quickly looking around the room, to all the friends she and her colleagues had made during their time at this school, she looked again to the one who had once been her deadliest enemy.

"Well...it all began a few years back...when I tried to steal Princess Twilight's crown..."

And so, with this chapter, I finally bring my Equestria Girls continuity to its end. I first began this continuity three years ago, and at first was just trying to see how various combinations of Rainbooms and Dazzlings worked with one another. It proved popular enough that, when the third EG film came out, I decided to do the same with the Shadowbolts. And from there, you all know what happened. I kept on writing and writing and writing, adding characters, relationships, twists that even I didn't know I was going to do at the time. And as I write this, looking back over it all, I can safely say to have been happy creating all of these stories.

But, the simple matter is that, after all this time, I feel like I've written about as much as I can for these characters and the scenarios I've given them. And besides which, as you can probably tell, I've started to lose steam with this continuity in recent months, as many of my latest entries probably don't measure up to the quality of a lot of the earlier works I put into it. So, rather than carry on, I think it's for the best that I bring it to an end here on what, hopefully, is an enjoyable note.

For those who've kept up-to-date with this continuity since the start, I thank you all for staying with me for as long as you have done. And I hope even more that you've enjoyed what I've written for it. It's been a fun time, but for this interpretation of all these characters, I bring it to a close.