Her strange habit of waking up slowly and comfortably aside, most people didn’t want to hear “Oh… my fucking God…” first thing in the morning. Sunset was no exception; her eyes cracked blearily opened, and she rolled over to stare at the door of her bedroom.

“What… what?” she moaned, half-wishing whoever it was would just leave. She had only gotten home a few hours ago!

But through her blurry vision she could see that it was only Rainbow Dash, and that from her tone the girl was hovering somewhere between disgusted and decidedly amused. That was only confirmed when she spoke again.

“Okay, so I kind of thought that maybe this would happen, but I guess I just… wasn’t expecting to walk in on it!”

“Huh?” Rubbing at her face, Sunset finally became aware of an odd presence next to her body. Warm, and solid. Slight movement pushed the back of her heel into something that most certainly felt like a leg. Her eyes widened, and for a moment, Sunset was almost afraid of what she would find.

But it was only Twilight, snuggled deep into the covers and breathing softly. Her always-perfect hair was now an adorable mad tangle, and a line of drool glistened down from the corner of her mouth.

“Oh,” Sunset finally whispered. “Last night — I mean, this morning—”

“Spare me the details!” Rainbow blurted out, and when Sunset looked over she saw her friend had raised both hands up in a warning gesture. “Th-that’s fine! I mean, you do you and, well, good for you guys, but I’m awesome staying in the dark on this one!”

“No!” Sunset stammered. “Nothing like that happened, w-we just fell asleep! I swear to God!”

“Swear to— you mean you swear to goddess?” Rainbow’s grin was slowly returning now that the shock had worn off.

“Well, I can swear to whoever I want to swear! And… well, yeah.”

When the details of the previous couple days came rushing back into her mind, a glow spread up through her chest and into her face, invigorating her entire being. Twilight was a goddess. She was here to stay with Sunset, and she didn’t have to go back and forth between worlds all willy-nilly any more. Or at least, not for a while. That was a win in her book!

“You okay?”

“We did it,” she told Rainbow with a huge grin. “Flurry helped me — we got Twilight freed from the mirror!” Her head tilted a few degrees. “Or at least partially. Technically. Whatever; the point is, we did it!”

“Oh,” Rainbow half-laughed, obviously still unsure of what any of this actually meant. “And I’m guessing from the look on your face that it’s a good thing?”

Around that time is when the Goddess of Friendship herself began to stir. Her legs shifted under the sheets, head tossing in two different directions. One arm fell across Sunset as she tried to roll over onto her stomach, which seemed to rouse her a little faster.

“Hmwah?” Purple eyes slowly slid open, and she coughed slightly. Sunset’s heart skipped a beat; it was as if just the simple sound of a cough was enough to prove that she was actually, really here. “Whazzat?”

“You were asleep,” Sunset told her, beyond amused by the whole situation.

“Oh…” Then her former summoner’s grin became infectious as Twilight focused on her, her entire face lighting up. “Oh wow! I’ve never actually slept in this form before!”

Again, Rainbow laughed at them. “Yeah, wow, such a big deal.”

“And you were with me when I did.” Twilight’s hand found Sunset’s and clasped it tightly. “You… I’ve never felt to safe, so at peace.”

“Gawd!” Holding up her hands in defeat — or maybe to ward off any lesbian radiation they might be giving off — Rainbow slowly backed out of the room. “I’m, uh, just gonna see if I can get your coffee pot to work for once, alright? You two… just do whatever. Don’t mind me!”

Once they were alone, Sunset rolled over and slid her arms around her friend’s abdomen, holding her close. “Morning.”

“Hey.” Now Twilight’s cheeks were a little darker than before, and she drifted closer, just enough to nuzzle her cheek against Sunset’s. “You’re really adorable when you sleep.”

“When I— oh.” Now Sunset’s blush was trying to wage war with Twilight’s, and it was a very close battle. “Um… thanks? You, too. Even when your hair’s a mess.”

That did wipe the smile off her face. “Shit… I forgot about my hair. Sleeping does that to me.” Passing her other hand over it as she sat up, she said, “You don’t think it’s cheating to use magic to style my hair all the time, do you?”

“Not if you teach me how to do it, too,” Sunset laughed. She also hadn’t failed to notice that one of the goddess’ arms remained draped over her body. Possessive, inviting. Intimate. Heart beating just a little faster, she decided to simply put her hand on Twilight’s forearm. To test.

The reaction was pretty immediate; Twilight froze, looking at her intently. From the way she glanced down, it seemed like she had completely forgotten about how close they were, but was now acutely aware of their positions. Instead of pulling away, she surprised both of them by running her hand up and down Sunset’s side, stroking through her shirt.

“What… are we doing?” Sunset breathed softly.

“Who knows? Not me… not anymore. Kinda gave up on the whole ‘knowing more than I should’ when I decided to come stay here.”

“Really? Huh. Too bad. We could have really used some of your magical mind-reading powers right about now.”

Swallowing, Twilight slid her hand up even further, skipping over her chest only briefly — and ignoring the sharp intake of breath — to alight on her neck. “Yeah.”

“Yeah… damn, for somebody who acted like they didn’t know what their feelings were a couple days ago, you sure are putting the moves on me.”

Instantly, Twilight’s hand disappeared, her eyes widening. “Fuck, I wasn’t trying to— you just felt so— no, I didn’t mean to say that you feel ‘good’, even though you totally do, but I d-didn’t mean to put it that way!”

Grinning at the normally self-assured goddess’s lack of chill, Sunset leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. “I’m not gonna judge.”

“You completely intoxicate me.” Twilight admitted simply after a moment. “You totally take my breath away, and I’m honestly shocked by how much I care about you, and how I was able to live without you for so long.” Swallowing hard, she pressed her face into Sunset’s neck, and her warm breath teased her skin so much that Sunset felt butterflies erupted from cocoons in her stomach. “And somehow, I thought that if I told you it would make me feel more sure of myself, but instead it just makes all my feelings ten times more intense!”

“Welcome to my world,” Sunset giggled, trailing her fingers up to Twilight’s elbow, feeling the slight wrinkle of skin there before continuing up her arm until they met the sleeve of the old green tee she had loaned Twilight for sleeping. “Part of me was really hoping that… I mean, now that you are here and all, maybe it would be easier to ignore how much… how m-much I…”

“How much you what?”

“Want you,” Sunset said quietly. “How much I started to want you without even knowing I did.”

Twilight drew back immediately, goggling at her with such wide eyes that Sunset had to turn away, couldn’t meet that astonished gaze head on. “What? Okay, I know we kind of talked about this, but you never said — never actually admitted out loud…”

“Yeah. Kinda hard to admit something to other people when you can’t even admit it to yourself, right? And with your situation being how it is, was…”

“You want me? Like… you know that now, for sure?” When she got no answer, she reached up to gently stroke Sunset’s hand. “And that’s not a bad thing. Before now, I couldn’t even think about wanting you back — but it just kept happening. I kept thinking about our kiss and trying to figure it out, but thinking about it got me nowhere, since I knew I couldn’t allow myself to get involved or do anything about any potential feelings. So I would do my best to shove those feelings down deep.”

“Then… what do you feel for me?” Sunset squeezed her eyes shut. “Ugh, that sounds so stupid — and you don’t have to answer that if you don’t want to. Sorry.”

“Honestly?” I’ve… never felt this before. I’ve had lovers before, some I cared about more than others, but none of them were you. They were completely different experiences, and all of them have been ponies. You and me, it’s brand new. I’m in the dark as much as you are.”

Chuckling weakly, Sunset whispered, “If the five-thousand year old immortal friendship goddess doesn’t know, I think we’re shit out of luck, since I’m just some dumb human.”

“Stop it,” Twilight told her firmly, both hands reaching up to cradle the back of her head. “Don’t talk about yourself that way. It’ll piss me off.”

“Oh yeah? And what are you donna do if you’re pissed off, change to your super-scary monster form and spout Disney quotes at me?”

As it turned out, her plan of attack was to kiss her. Deep, and hard, and without holding anything back the way she had the last time. Sunset was so stunned that she herself barely reciprocated until she felt Twilight pulling back, trying to give her room to protest — which made her throw herself into it with all the frenzy of a woman already completely resigned to love. As entirely possible as that was.

Their tongues had just barely found each other when they heard a clang! from the kitchen, and broke apart with ragged breath, eyes flying open to stare at each other in complete shock.

“Well!” Twilight managed to say.

“Yeah. Kind of, um…”

“Wow.”

“That, yeah.” Passing a trembling hand over her own face, Sunset whispered, “Did we really just do that?”

“Definitely. Do we want to do it again?”

“I don’t know, do we?!”

Twilight shrugged, then darted forward to leave a very light peck on Sunset’s lips. “Seems okay.”

“Does seem fine to me.” Sunset returned the favor — twice, in quick succession. “Feels great, like… holy shit, you’re fantastic.”

“No, you. Dude, can we do this every day?”

“Stop me!” Sunset dipped her head forward, then paused. “No, really, stop me. I mean, if you don’t want to.”

“Who are you hearing complaining?” Twilight took her mouth again, pressing both hands into her back and breathing hard as their lips melted together. Their legs slid anxiously against each other’s, and Sunset did feel a shiver run down her spine when their chests touched — since it was something she never thought she would feel from a romantic partner, even back when she fantasized about this kind of thing. Which felt like a lifetime ago. Making out with a girl was going to take a brief period of mental adjustment.

… a very brief one.

“Ohhhh-kay,” Twilight panted as they broke off, her hand grazing up and down the back of Sunset’s neck, even as she grinned and tried not to laugh. “This is… the best thing ever, but maybe we should go out there where Rainbow Dash is. We’re being horrible hosts.”

“True. We should probably get dressed first, though.”

“Guess we should.” As Twilight climbed out of bed, she glanced down at her clothes and sighed. “In your stuff, again. Geez, I can’t just steal half your wardrobe!”

“We’ll take care of that later. But for now, find some pants?”

The look on Twilight’s face when she glanced down and suddenly remembered that she was only wearing a pair of Spongebob Squarepants boxers below the tee was worth the entire trip to magical ponyland.

“Wow… so it’s all true. Twilight, Flurry Heart, the mirror, magic… talking ponies.”

Both Sunset and Twilight were nodding, the latter chewing her waffles with slow relish as the former sipped her coffee. She had enjoyed watching Twilight eat much more than she thought the she would, but it was because everything was somewhat of a novelty to her.

“Ohhhh,” Twilight moaned as she let her fork fall to the plate with a clatter, leaning back with a look of bliss on her face as she struggled for breath. The reaction looked like something else entirely, and Sunset had to fight to keep from blushing for no rational reason. “That was… fucking incredible!”

“Dude, it was just an Eggo with some maple syrup,” Rainbow rolled her eyes as she drank her own coffee. “You’d think you never had one before.”

“I actually haven’t! And… I don’t know, but things just taste different here than back home. Not bad or anything, but humans just developed different tastes and flavors than us. It’s a novelty for me.”

“Fair enough, fair enough.” After a few seconds, Rainbow turned to Twilight. She was still getting used to addressing her directly, since knowing that someone other anything a standard-issue human, let alone an immortal princess, was uncharted territory for her. “Um, so where are you going to be staying? I mean, if you used to live… you know, on your world, I kinda doubt you had an apartment somewhere in the city.”

“She didn’t,” Sunset said as she got up and grabbed her jacket, tossing a spare one to Twilight, who actually dropped it — and they both grinned at each other. “We need to stop by there and scope it out before we go looking for clothes. Wanna come with?”

“Sure, just let me get my coat from my place.” She was partway to the door when she stopped. “Wait, stop by where?”

Whatever magical strings Twilight pulled to accomplish her move to Earth from Equestria had done their job well.

When they walked into the apartment building across the street from Sunset’s — door unlocked, as Twilight had mentioned earlier when she explained to Sunset about her living arrangements — they immediately saw two keys sitting on the small bookshelf just inside the door, waiting for the new owner to collect them. They weren’t even brand new, just relatively new. Underneath those was a manila folder containing all the necessary documents she would need.

“Cool, cool,” Sunset said as she rifled through them. Twilight looked over her shoulder at it, watching as Sunset checked off the documents. “Driver’s license, passport, birth certificate — oh, two copies, awesome.”

“I forgot to ask, but why did you say I need two copies?” Twilight asked as she joined Rainbow in exploring the apartment.

“You never know when you’ll lose one — and a lot of places ask to see it, so you’ll probably end up taking one somewhere. Better to keep another copy safe at home.” Then she grinned. “Aww, here’s a little baby Twili holding an ‘I Choose You, Pikachu’, that’s adorable.”

“Really?” Twilight walked over and glanced at the magically-created photograph and snorted. “Hah. Could be me, I suppose. Decent enough likeness. That Pikachu looks like a cheap knock off, though.”

“Don’t diss Pikachu!” Rainbow whined from the other room. She walked back in the living room, her arms crossed over her chest. “Wow… it’s empty, but then again, at least you have closet space. I’m jealous you were able to get this all set up; wish I had magic to do this kinda shit for me.”

Sunset grinned as she started to separate some of the items into different stacks. Then she slipped one one of the keys onto her key ring, for good measure. “Well, apparently this place was already up for lease. All it took was a quick spell to secure the papers, and a couple more for some forged documents. Twilight is all set up for her life here now; name, education, imaginary family. Everything. Well, almost everything, anyway.

“Really?” Snatching the license from atop one stack, Rainbow read, “Twilight Sparkle. The hell? Isn’t that already her name?”

“Yeah, but now it’s legal,” Twilight grumbled, before lowering her voice to add, “Or as legal as magically gaming the system can get.”

“What did you major in, then?”

Twilight straightened, lifting her chin proudly. “Political Science.”

Rainbow snorted. “Of course you did. Miss Princess.”

Darting over to the rainbow-haired girl, Twilight snatched the ID away, slipping it into her pocket. “You don’t need to know my fake birth date, either. Or my height and weight.”

“Was she always this uptight?” Rainbow grunted towards Sunset.

“She’s not uptight, she’s just… Twilight,” she replied with a shrug. “Just like you’re you, and it shows the way you’re both bickering.”

Rainbow looked affronted, like she had been betrayed by the remark, but then harrumphed and went back to exploring. “Should have known you’d take your girlfriend’s side.”

Such a seemingly innocent remark caused the pair to stare at each other for a few seconds. They hadn’t discussed labels, not really, but this seemed to be appropriate. A moment later, when Rainbow was in the bedroom, Twilight tugged her closer by her belt loops.

“Is that what I am?” she asked softly. “Your girlfriend?”

“Shhh,” Sunset breathed, though she was grinning down at the floor like an idiot. “I don’t know. Ask Rainbow; apparently, she’s got all this figured out.”

“Don’t wanna ask Rainbow. I’d rather ask you.” Then she leaned in for a quick peck, just enough to feel the softness of her lips before drawing back. “The more that happens, the more the label seems right. You’re my steady gal.”

Loud, raucous snorts made Rainbow run back in the living room to investigate, and she had to figure out what she had missed when she found Sunset on the floor, clutching her sides. A bemused Twilight was sulking in the kitchen, so she was no help.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re a riot,” Twilight grumbled five minutes later when Sunset had recovered enough to stand. “I’m still working on some of the more modern colloquialisms, alright?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Sunset gasped, working her hand through her coat pocket. “But if that’s true, I may have something here to help you with that.”

After closing the refrigerator, Twilight glanced over with an unimpressed look… that slowly melted into one of pure, childish glee. “Dude, is… is that what I think it is?”

Holding out the slightly-worn comic book, Sunset grinned. “Yup. Batwoman. New 52, issue number one. I snagged it a couple weeks back for a song. Got a few more squirreled away somewhere, too. I never thought I might actually get the chance to give them to you, but hey, you might want something to read until you can get cable instal—”

The next kiss was no hesitant peck, that was for certain.

Once the apartment tour wrapped up, there was a mutual agreement that the one bedroom one bathroom was modest, but more than tolerable. All that remained was a road trip to IKEA to complement the rest of her furnishings.

Then there were the exciting aspects of her new identity as Miss Twilight Sparkle, which needed to be memorized. All forged documents showed her as a second-generation immigrant from Europe with both parents deceased as of a couple of years ago. There was a cash card with several thousand dollars preloaded onto it, and a credit card registered in her name for emergencies. Also, all the proper documentation that reflected her degree in an ivy league school — which had been Sunset’s idea. Seeing how that Twilight was indeed a real life princess, of a sort, it stood to reason that a good degree would only help sell her for the job market.

Funny how she could do that for Twilight and not her own aimless life. But that was something to worry about later.

By the time they made it to the mall, it was pretty late in the day and the stores were nearly empty. Their bags were laden down with an assortment of cute things, some of them articles of clothes close to to what Twilight had conjured for herself on previous occasions. A few of the store owners had seemed mildly surprised that two of the girls were holding hands so often, but none of them commented; they mostly just tried to be as courteous as possible. Homophobia isn’t as lucrative as biting one’s tongue, in most cases.

In the lingerie store — where Twilight splurged on a few items that she swore had nothing to do with Sunset, a little too insistently — they happened to run into Rarity, who was rummaging through the store’s collection of silk nighties. Their conversation was brief, but Sunset was grateful it happened.

“I normally wouldn’t bother buying something like this, not when I can make it myself,” Rarity confided in her as she idly fingered the soft fabric. “But it’s good to get some fresh ideas sometimes.”

“Really? Normally you’d be all over stuff like this. You got a gift card from your mom, right?”

“Yes, but lately I’ve been…” She lowered her voice. “Ever since Blueblood blew me off and my ex stopped talking to me, I just… I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. Men don’t want me, or they just want to hit-and-quit. Which is not what I’m about.”

A lump formed in Sunset’s throat, and the glanced over her friend’s shoulder to catch Twilight’s eyes. She was rather busy trying not to look overwhelmingly embarrassed at what was in her hands, but she did eventually notice Sunset and shrug. It seemed that the old days of knowing what people were thinking really were over.

“Um… okay, listen.” How could she make this happen without it revealing just how much she had dabbled in Rarity’s life? After a moment of indecision, she decided it wouldn’t be too much of a misuse of her own knowledge to let slip a very vague detail. “You didn’t hear this from me — in fact, you can’t repeat this to a single person. Ever.”

Rarity’s eyes widened at the prospect of juicy, non-disclosable gossip. “What, what, what?!”

“Don’t ask me how I know this, either, but… the thing with Blueblood has nothing to do with you. He’s going through some, um, mental health issues.”

“Shut up, he is not!” She was smiling, but what she said was, “That’s awful!”

“Yeah, yeah. Just don’t want you thinking that him bailing on you had anything to do with you — or I mean, even if it did, it’s definitely not the only reason. You’re pretty amazing, and nobody should make you feel like you aren’t.”

Rolling her eyes, the mollified fashionista flicked Sunset on the upper arm. “Stop, that’s enough flattery, you lesbo.” Then she dropped her voice again, glancing around to make sure no one else was close enough to overhear. “Um… so that dark-haired girl over there next to the girl with rainbow hair is your gee-eff, right?” At Sunset’s nod, Rarity squealed, “Girrrrrrrlllll~!”

“Cut that shit out right now, you asshole.”

“Your face is glowing! Darling, I almost thought you were kidding before now, or maybe doing some sort of social experiment for class, but… you seriously are into girls!” Rarity’s grin turned decidedly suggestive. “Especially that one trying to choose between thongs right now!”

Under her breath, Sunset hissed, “Fuck off! Wow, see if I ever come out to you again!”

“Can you even do that more than once?” About that time, Twilight wandered over because she had overheard the outbursts. Rarity instantly became less effervescent and smiled primly as she said, “Hi! You’re a friend of a friend, so that makes you my friend, too!”

“Twilight,” the goddess replied with a warm smile, reaching out with her hand that wasn’t full of panties to shake the other’s. “And you’re… Rarity, right?”

“Um, yes. I am. How did you know?”

Twilight’s smile turned playful. “I’ve heard a bit of how generous you are. Always wanted to meet you in person.”

“Oh!” Rarity turned a grateful smile to Sunset. “Well, that’s great! I’m sure we’ll become fast friends.”

The mischievous smile that Twilight shot over toward Sunset threatened to send them both into a giggle-fit, but they somehow managed restraint.

After they had finished shopping for clothes and stowed the bags in Sunset’s little car, right next to the jumper cables and the old chess set that she had been meaning to throw away for a year or more because both the white and black queens were missing, they went back in to do a little browsing at the bookstore. Rainbow was less interested in books than the others, and so she split up from Twilight and Sunset to get a Christmas gift for Fluttershy.

“Oh sweet, I can finally read these,” Twilight remarked as she picked up a box set of Harry Potter novels. “Been hearing good things.”

“Really? I would have thought a little magic is old news for you, because… well, you know.” This was good practice; Sunset was still trying to get used to never mentioned her former — at least, somewhat former — life as a pony princess with direct terms like ‘your world’ so they could avoid awkward moments in the future.

“Well, it isn’t so much the magic as it is the world the author created. I mean, I’ve only heard a little bit here and there, but the whole fanbase is huge, and that there are whole conventions dedicated to it. I mean, do you have any idea how many fanfiction there is for the entire series? More than any other fandom in human history, I’d wager. And—”

“Twilight Sparkle?”

Both of them stopped dead and turned. That name should have not been uttered out loud in the middle of a bookstore in the mall. At least, not until Twilight had been on Earth for longer than day, or at least started introducing herself to people! Even less acceptable was for the name to be spoken by Professor Shine herself.

“Um,” Twilight said very slowly. “Excuse me?”

“It’s you. I…” The older woman glanced quickly around the store, then at Sunset, then back at Twilight — and all at once, everything came together in Sunset’s mind, she understood, but there wasn’t enough time to speak out.

“I’m sorry, I’m not sure what you mean,” Twilight attempted with a slightly bemused smile.

After a moment of awkward silence, Sunset stepped forward. “Professor,” she said. “What’s wrong?”

As her old eyes glanced between them again, Shine seemed to be grappling with many different emotions at once. After a few seconds, she tried a tense smile on for size. “Nothing! Nothing, I just… never expected to see…” She hesitated again, and then seemed to reach a decision. It may have had something to do with the look over her shoulder at the rest of the store, or perhaps the worry that flickered across Twilight’s face. Regardless, what she followed up with was, “To... see a student of mine outside of class, that’s all. After a while, you just sort of start to assume there’s an invisible faculty-pupil wall, don’t you?”

“I… yeah. Right, yeah, that’s kind of what I thought, too. How… are you, though?”

“Quite alright, I assure you. And who is this… breathtaking young woman along for the ride?”

“This… is—”

“—Twili.” Twilight chimed in politely. “I’m her friend.”

“Good, good. Nice to meet you, Twili.” The old woman slowly offered her hand, and Twilight took it, shaking it with a placid smile playing around the edges of her mouth. Discomfort didn’t even begin to describe the mood that hung over the scene like a stuffy curtain from a high school play. “Any friend of Miss Shimmer’s is a friend of mine, of course.”

“Right,” Twilight agreed. “Likewise.”

Gathering up her purse and the book on the Persian Empire she had apparently been about to purchase, she nodded as she looked between them. Then, again, she looked at Sunset. “About that book I loaned you…”

“Oh, crap!” Sunset gasped. “I keep forgetting to—”

“No, no. You can keep it.” After a slight pause, in which her eyes flicked back to Twilight, she whispered, “About time it had a new owner, anyway. Who knows, you might still be able to learn a thing or two from it. Even if…” She paused, then waved away her words as she finished with a simple, “See you in class tomorrow. Miss Shimmer… Twili.”

The goddess’ head dipped a little. “Goodbye.”

The minute she was out of earshot, Sunset whirled on Twilight and grabbed both her shoulders. “What the actual fuck?! She knows you!”

“Yeah… I guess she does.”

“You ‘guess’? What kind of bullshit is that?!” Another glance around before she guided her girlfriend over toward a couple of chairs in a semi-secluded area and sat her down. “Did she summon you before?”

Twilight didn’t meet her eyes. Instead, she looked at her hands thoughtfully. “You know I can’t discuss my previous summoners with you.”

“You aren’t being summoned anymore, okay?! Tell me.”

Twilight exhaled in a short huff. “Fine. You’re right, Eve summoning me a few times, way back before she became a teacher. Not even as many times as you, but… they were pretty memorable occasions. She’s actually one of the few humans with real, honest-to-goodness magic, and she’s not too bad at it, either.”

“Eve,” Sunset scoffed derisively. “Did you… I mean, what kind of working relationship did you two have?”

“She never tried to solicit me sexually, if that’s what your asking.” Both of her eyebrows twitched upward when Sunset drew back in shock. “What? Isn’t that what you were trying to ask? If she got to sample the goods first?”

“No, it wasn’t,” Sunset said, taken aback. “You… I mean, yeah I was thinking it, but it’s not a matter of ‘first’ or anything like that, it’s…” Then she ran a hand through her hair, sighing. “This is me jealous, I guess. Wow.”

“It’s… actually kind of cute, even while it’s insulting. Either way, what’s the difference?”

“Okay, you… didn’t, did you? Because you acted like me getting a crush on you was the worst thing ever.”

With a heavy sigh, Twilight reached over and took one of Sunset’s hands between her own. “No. I wish you didn’t need to ask, though. She… summoned me a long time ago, and you are my present. And my future.”

“Why do you even want to stay with a baby like me? I’m… thousands of years younger than you, and obviously never been in a real relationship before!”

“I haven’t either; not for a very long time, at least.” Her voice got a little smaller. “I thought we had been over this. Do you not want to be with me because I’m… too—”

“Not because of you,” Sunset told her firmly, her words chiseled in stone. “Because of me. I’m too young, too… inexperienced and naive. You’re perfect — you’re everything, I just don’t know if—”

The single fingertip silenced her effortlessly. “Shhh. You’re everything I could ever hope for, as well. And don’t forget — you’ve grown up in this time period. Me? I called you my steady gal just this morning.” One of her shoulders shrugged upward. “So I’ve been in a few relationships before. So what? It doesn’t make ours any less special to me. Or… make me any less nervous about screwing things up.”

“You? Nervous?” The scoffing had only just started when she saw Twilight wince, so she headed it off. “Wow, you really are nervous.”

“Heck yeah, I am. I… nopony in the whole universe matters to me as much as you. Not anymore. Not any of my previous relationships.” Her voice got smaller and smaller. “Please don’t keep thinking of me as the one who has all the answers, or is going to be able to fix everything. That isn’t me anymore. I still have magic, and so do you… and I’ll teach you to use it, but that isn’t what we’re about. I’m… Celestia, what am I trying to say?”

And then Sunset did something she hadn’t thought herself capable of. Trying not to think about how public of a setting they were in, she slid herself into Twilight’s lap, earning a quiet squeak in the process. Both arms looped around her neck as she settled in, trying to find a comfortable perch on her partner’s lap.

“You might not be able to fix my every problem on the spot anymore,” she whispered against Twilight’s collarbone, “But you’re still my princess.”

“Really?” Once Sunset nodded, Twilight leaned down to press their lips together. “That’s probably… the sweetest, most clichéd thing anyone’s ever said. And not just to me.”

“Well, I tried,” Sunset muttered, turning away to hide her pout.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah. Yeah, anything?”

“Are you… super self-conscious right now?”

“Oh yeah.” Gulping, she shifted and kissed Twilight again, then leaned her forehead against hers. “Is… everybody watching us? Should we get up?”

“Probably should.” But Twilight’s hand was wandering down past her lower back. “Aaaaanytime now.”

“Yeah, we— whoa there! Hands above the waist, missy!”

The goddess’ smirk gave away her lack of shame. “Aww, but that’s no fun.”

Following some greasy goodness in the food court — during which they ran into Rarity again, who goaded Sunset nonstop about her new sexuality status in the most good-natured of ways — they made their way back to their apartments, Rainbow having bought very little for herself. Twilight, on the other hand, picked up everyone’s check, regardless of whether they ordered; whether it was sushi for Rarity or a giant slice of pizza for Rainbow. Knowing her cash card was a finite resource, at least in theory, didn’t even seem to phase her. If things got tough, she said, she would just find a job.

“Are there any libraries that need an assistant?” she had asked lightly.

Then things progressed back to Sunset’s apartment, where the four of them dug further into Sunset’s pilfered beers as they put on a bad movie in the background and found a conversational rhythm. Despite how varied their backgrounds were — Twilight’s even more drastically — there was enough common ground that there was never an uncomfortable moment. Sunset idly wondered about how adding Fluttershy into the mix would change things up.

Most satisfying for Sunset was how easy it was to get along with Rarity again. The last few interactions shook loose the dust and frost from their old bonds of friendship, and she couldn’t have been more grateful. Even if there was still a lie of omission hanging between them.

Which, of course, she brought up to Twilight after the others had left. Sunset was already in her pajamas from just after she got home, but Twilight had elected to keep her new flower-patterned white dress on for a while longer. The guests leaving was a decent cue to ditch the fanciness.

“There’s no reason for you to feel guilty,” she called from the bathroom as she changed.

“But I can’t help it,” Sunset whined from the bed. “She should know that half the reason we’re friends again is because I messed up her hookup with that asshole.”

“You did her a favor! And besides…” Opening the door, she slunk back out, wearing a dark purple nightie that barely reached halfway down her thighs. “Are you ready to explain to her everything about me in the process? About you?”

One of Sunset’s eyebrows lifted as she looked up and down the soft, feminine form that was so poorly hidden by her current garb. One hand was perched on her hip in an attempt to look confident, though the way her toes curled under her feet belied that pretense.

“Well… maybe not quite yet,” muttered Sunset. “I kinda want you all to myself for a while longer.”

“Is that so?” the goddess whispered as she stalked over to the bed. “You want to keep little ol’ me away from other people?”

Sunset swallowed, ready to deny that allegation. However, when two hands began to slide their way up her sides and she found her breath catching, she began to wonder. She fidgeted quietly as Twilight paused.

“We don’t have to do anything, you know,” the goddess blurted out. “I mean, not that I don’t want to or anything, but we can just hang out and watch another movie or something. We can just sleep. I don’t—” she blinked rapidly, her jaw working silently as she searched for words. “I don’t want to pressure you into anything, Sunny.”

Grabbing for courage that she knew was there, and knowing that now was as good a time as any, Sunset smiled. “I don’t feel pressured,” she murmured. She reached up to her pajama top and popped the topmost button. Twilight inhaled sharply at the action. “I know what I’m doing, Twilight.” She hesitated. “Well, I don’t, obviously. I’m a... virgin… but I know that I care about you, so I know that I want to do this with you.” She frowned slightly, her eyebrows knitting above her eyes. “Unless you don’t wanna do this, of course.”

“No, no,” Twilight said, shaking her head and running her hands down her thighs. “No, trust me, I am all aboard this ship. I am the captain of this ship.”

“What does that make me?” Sunset laughed and leaned back a little on the bed. Another reach for courage had her popping the next button of her top.

Twilight gave a lopsided smile. “The first mate?” She giggled when Sunset breathed another laugh and her smile grew more subdued, reaching out to gently rub her hands along Sunset’s upper arms. “You okay?”

Sunset nodded. “Oh yeah. Just, you know...” She lifted her hands and slapped them back down on the bed with a soft ‘whumph’. “Don’t wanna snag a rock and sink the ship or anything.”

Twilight snorted in that delicately adorable way she does and leaned forward. Electricity popped in the air between them, the hairs on Sunset’s arm stiffening. She gently touched her fingertips to Sunset’s face and then swooped in to meet her lips. “We’ll take the scenic route, okay? Much fewer rocks.” Her warm breath puffed against Sunset’s lips.

Sunset’s laugh was broken by staccato breaths. “O-okay.”

Twilight kissed her again, climbing atop the bed and pushing her back down on the mattress. Her knees planted on their side of Sunset’s legs, carefully lowering on top of her hips. Their tongues met, tentatively as first, but quickly became accustomed to the sensation.

After a moment Twilight pulled back, panting. “Wow,” she said, her cheeks dark.

“Yeah. Wow.” Sunset was suddenly way too hot, and she took the opportunity to unbutton more of her top, shucking it from her shoulders. She wore a simple black bra, so nothing was exactly all that interesting in the new view, but the idea of her pale gangliness being bared to her girlfriend was more than enough to send another wave of anxiousness pulsing through her.

Smiling softly, Twilight leaned forward and kissed her collarbone. Her lips were hot, and her hands shook as they swam past her arms to finish taking off Sunset’s top. She was just as nervous as Sunset, apparently. There was another tug and a brief pause, causing Sunset to glance down.

“There’s one more button,” she breathed. “I forgot one.”

“Oh,” Twilight replied, giving another soft laugh as her hands moved lower to pop the final button through its hole. Sunset barely had the chance to take another breath before her top slipped past her wrists, leaving her in just her bra and a pair of yellow boxers. She stared up at Twilight, her chest swelling and deflating at a dizzying speed. She was a literal ghost compared to Twilight — who was all tan skin and flawless complexion — but at that moment, with how the goddess was looking at her like she was perfection, it made everything worth it.

Without a word, Twilight reached up and pulled her nightie over her head, throwing it carelessly away. It pooled noiselessly to the floor along with Sunset’s top. The human scurried backward so that her back was against the pillows at the head of her bed, and she took a moment to admire the curves and lines that made Twilight up; the little hills of her knees and the dents behind them, the tiny cave of her bellybutton and the swell of each breast. She was perfect, and Sunset didn’t realized that she had said that aloud until Twilight’s cheeks darkened in a blush.

In a moment of playfulness, Twilight reaching behind her to pull the hair tie that had held her hair up in a ponytail all day long. She smirked slightly, stretching the piece of elastic between her thumb and forefinger, aiming it at Sunset.

“I dare you,” the human growled, lips splitting into a wide grin. Twilight laughed, directing the hair tie toward the floor, and let it fly. It bounced once and spun beneath the dresser.

Following Twilight’s lead, Sunset pulled her own hair free of her tie and held it up. There was a definite kink where it had been pinched, her reddish-blonde curtains swinging at the sides of her face. But unlike Twilight, Sunset didn’t give her enough time to throw out a dare before she let the hair tie go in her direction. Twilight sputtered as the elastic smacked her shoulder, her mouth dropping open in shock.

“Why you little—” Twilight hissed, crawling across the bed, between Sunset’s legs, fingers digging into her sides. Sunset gave a brief squeal as the goddess tickled her, squirming and kicking her legs, laughing in delight.

After a moment Twilight managed to wrestle Sunset to her side, and then onto her back, resuming her previous post on top of her hips. Sunset grinned up at her, as if to say she had that planned all along, but instead of retaliating with words, Twilight kissed her again. At once the playfulness melted into something decidedly more intimate as Sunset’s fingers reached behind Twilight’s head, tangling themselves in her tresses, their kisses growing in intensity.

When their tongues met again, Sunset inhaled sharply through her nose, and Twilight slid her hands beneath her back. By the time Sunset had pulled away and blinked up at the girl, the clasp of her bra was already undone, and Twilight was smirking triumphantly down at her.

“You sure?” Twilight asked after moment, watching Sunset closely for any signs that she wasn’t into this. In answer, the human finished pulling off her bra and tossed it to the growing pile of clothing on the floor, propped herself up on her elbows, and kissed her.

“Okay, you’re sure,” the goddess giggled. She reached down to cup one of Sunset’s breasts in her hand, thumb grazing along a puffy nipple.

Sunset’s breath hitched in her throat, responding with a sound against Twilight’s lips that was something between a moan and a groan. Twilight peppered her jaw with more kisses, working her way along her neck. Sunset fell completely against the pillows, hands falling beside her as Twilight began to explore her body in earnest.

Sunset never thought it could be like this; not just a wonderful thing in the aesthetics, but on a deeper level, it felt so much more than that. She knew she had a freckle below her left breast, a birthmark on her right thigh, a little mole that liked to hide just under her arm right above her rib cage, and not to mention her brand new mark — the sun-motif cutie mark that graced her upper thigh, half-covered by her boxers; Twilight found it all, her lips burning when she kissed bare skin. Her hands clenched in and out of fists as Twilight explored, kissing and licking and fanning over every part of Sunset that she could reach.

Sunset’s breathing became so fast that Twilight stopped. She pushed herself up on her hands, her concern visible.

“Sunny,” she whispered, planting a warm hand just below Sunset’s breast, cupping the side of her rib cage. “Breath. Slowly, before you pass out.”

Sunset pinched her eyes shut, nodding as she forced herself to steady her breaths. Her heart still raced, a quick drumming in her chest, but she slowly started to feel better. “Sorry,” she said, opening her eyes. “I’m just, I’m so— this is just so, so good. You’re so fucking good at this.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Well, I have picked up a thing or two over the years,” she muttered, though her tone was pleased. “But you haven’t seen anything yet.” She quickly kissed Sunset’s lips again before disappearing down the length of her body.

Sunset lifted herself up on her elbows to watch the goddess, their eyes locking as she surfed down the plane of her stomach and over her legs. Thighs parted for her, and Twilight planted a kiss as the elastic of Sunset’s boxers, causing the human to erupt with shivers, goosebumps racing across her skin at a fascinating speed. Twilight studied the phenomenon for a moment or two, until Sunset’s soft moan brought her back to the task at hand.

She gently pressed her fingertips to the inside of Sunset’s knee and slowly dragged them up toward her thigh. Sunset groaned again and shifted, her heart hammering in her chest at all the sensations assaulting her body. She felt so hot, so tingly, that all she could do was lay there and watch as Twilight hooked her fingers into the waistband of her underwear and tug them down the length of her legs. And that simple action, paired with the look that flashed across Twilight’s face when she saw Sunset completely bared before her, caused all of Sunset’s nerves to disappear, only to be replaced with desire — because finally, right then, Sunset knew with absolute certainty that she wanted Twilight Sparkle, and that she wanted Sunset right back.

Her skin shivered where Twilight pressed a kiss to her thigh — her lips hovering right over her cutie mark. She felt soft hands ghost over her center, Sunset’s straining hips that struggled not to lift. She heard herself make another sound, this one deeper and far more animalistic than she thought could ever come from her, and it shook her to the core.

Twilight didn’t wait. She didn’t ask then if Sunset was ready, because she clearly was. She was more than ready. She simply skimmed her hand over her mound and pressed her fingers against her damp flesh. The sudden stimulation alone was enough to make Sunset cry out. In an effort to retain even a little dignity, she lifted a hand up to her face and pinched a knuckle between her teeth.

“Don’t hold back,” Twilight murmured, circling with two fingers through her folds. Sunset moaned again, releasing her finger from her teeth, and cried out. Twilight’s movement were slow, testing, a little unsure, but gentle all the same. She stroked once, twice in one direction, circled a few times, and then changed again, each time eliciting another strangled moan or whimper from Sunset. It was a kind of torture that Sunset never knew she could like so much.

And then it slowed, and stopped.

Sunset looked down at Twilight, her expression almost desperate.

“W-why—”

That was as far as she got, because then Twilight slipped two fingers inside of her. Sunset’s eyes widened and her mouth slackened, her arms giving way as she fell back. Her back arched off the bed and her hands fisted into her blankets.

“Oh. My. God—” she panted, barely able to keep her voice below ‘acceptable’ as Twilight shifted on her knees to accommodate the new position. Her fingers slid in and out from between Sunset’s legs as a steady, even pace, occasionally curling and spreading inside of her, her thumb brushing against the very top of Sunset’s slit.

Sunset groaned, her head thrashing from side to side on the blanket as Twilight worked her wonderful magic. She managed to keep her legs spread only because her girlfriend was settled securely between them, but she couldn’t keep from squeezing her thighs against Twilight’s shoulders as she felt the goddess lean her head down and—

Then the touch changed ever so slightly. Her fingers still slid through her wetness with delicious slowness, but the pad of her thumb against Sunset’s flesh became warmer, softer and infinitely more teasing.

With shaking arms, Sunset pushed herself up once more on her elbows to see Twilight leaning over her, her tongue flicking out to taste her — once, twice, three times, and then she looked up to catch Sunset’s eye.

That was all it took. Sunset came crashing down, lost in the waves of her climax, her constricting muscles and sweating skin. She fell back on the bed and reached down to wind her fingers through Twilight’s hair, gripping as hard as she could. All the while, Twilight didn’t even pause; she kept tasting her, licking her, sucking her until she was too tender to move. She only stopped when Sunset’s trembling thighs finally dropped in exhaustion against the mattress.

A rustle of movement seconds — or minutes — later told Sunset that Twilight had crawled up the bed to lay beside her, and she opened her eyes to see the goddess drawing little figures on the sweaty skin of her stomach.

“Wow,” she managed.

Twilight grinned. “You liked it?”

“Liked it?” Sunset laughed. Though she was still shaking a little, she managed to roll over and plant a kiss to her cheek. “Dude, there aren’t any words strong enough to describe how that was.”

Twilight’s eyebrow arched up into her bangs. “Well? How does not being a virgin feel?”

Sunset smirked, knowing a challenge when she heard one. After another few moments to gain her breath back, she rocked forward and kissed Twilight again. She could taste Twilight and something Sunset was fairly certain was herself on the goddess’ lips, but instead of grossing her out it only spurred her on. “Awesome,” she breathed as they parted. And in the span of a second, Sunset wrapped an arm around Twilight’s back and plucked at the clasp of her bra.

Grinning wickedly, Twilight chucked the bra over the side of the bed and, to both the girls’ surprise, Sunset immediately latched onto a nipple with her lips. Twilight gave a surprised sound as Sunset’s curious tongue tested the sensitivity of the little bud. Her hands wandered, following the curves of her sides, the dip between her breasts. She pushed Twilight only her back and straddled her, only barely remembering to hold her long hair back with one hand as she kissed every inch of Twilight’s chest and stomach. She grunted when Twilight hooked her ankles behind her back, the trembling that had been prevalent at the onset of their encounter all but gone.

“You know, for a newbie,” Twilight offered at some point, a little breathlessly. “You’re really fucking good at this.”

Sunset smiled against the little cave of her bellybutton. “You should know I’m a fast learner,” she gloated. Then she pulled back a bit, allowing Twilight to hike her newly bought boyshorts down to her knees, where Sunset took control and dropped them to the floor. Then they both were completely bare, washed in the dim lighting of the bedroom. They stared at each other for a moment before Sunset got confident again.

She worked slowly and carefully, always judging Twilight’s reaction with her eyes, but she quickly found out what her girlfriend liked and disliked, mastering her like an instrument. The slightest brush of the pad of her finger was enough to nearly knock Twilight off the edge, so she kept the little circles and drew out the flicks of her tongue. Twilight whispered her name, a quiet little noise that was so adorable it should be fucking illegal, but Sunset was so completely consumed by Twilight that she could only respond accordingly.

When Sunset finally slipped a single finger inside of her, Twilight gasped, letting out a strangled little mewling sound, quickly followed by more words without thought behind then, no construct or forethought — more yes please fuck Sunset faster oh Sunny oh Sunny Sunny — until it was just one long string of noise.

Soon she stiffened, and her back lifted up off the bed, her entire body so stiff Sunset was afraid she might break. Twilight whined her name once more, and then fell, trembling and chest heaving on the bed.

“So… was I good?” Sunset questioned after a minute, a hint of doubt in her voice.

Twilight rolled over and gave her the most incredulous look she had ever seen. “Sunny, shit.” She laughed, reaching over to wind her hands through Sunset’s hair as she pulled herself up into a sitting position. “You were incredible. And, lucky for us…” she grinned mischievously, placing two fingers against Sunset’s knee and began to glide then up the skin of her thigh. “We’ve got a whole night of smooth sailing ahead of us.”

“Just how many ship puns are we going to be using, here?”

“As many as it takes to get the booty.”

“Ugh. Twilight.”

“Alright. Alright; you know, I thought that one was a ferry clever one.” She grinned at Sunset’s flat stare, and then leaned forward to press their lips together. “Now, full speed ahead.”

Later, as the two of them lay in bed, panting and lazily gazing up at the ceiling, naked except for a wholly embarrassing afterglow, Sunset couldn’t help but think back to that awkward, sad kiss they had first shared when she was in the depths of despair. How long ago that seemed, even if it was only a week or so. But it was over now; they had beaten the odds, they had found each other. They got to do this every night for the rest of their natural lives — or, at least, Sunset’s natural life… well, they would cross that bridge when they came to it.

They had a few more things to take care of, of course; gathering the Elements of Harmony on Earth, fixing the mirror, and bada-bing bada-boom, all would be well. There might be issues along the way, but Sunset was certain that between her and Twilight, with their friends backing them up, anything was possible.

“You know, if this doesn’t count as a happy ending,” she finally said, “Then I don’t know what the fuck does.”

“Right?!” They both laughed, which soon sent the both of them into fits of giggles. “Celestia, but you’re… just, look at you. You’re amazing.” Twilight smiled happily. “How did I ever get this lucky?”

“You bet on the right pony, I guess.” Sunset replied easily. “You knew I’d care enough to follow you home and help you out.”

“No, not that.” Rolling onto her side, Twilight pressed her hand up against Sunset’s neck, smiling very faintly but the deepness of her violet eyes, their earnest sheen, told that her joy was so much deeper than any words could convey at that moment. “You. Here. Making me… the happiest, luckiest shit in existence.”

Grinning, and no long able to meet the goddess’ eyes, Sunset murmured, “You can’t keep saying that. But I mean, if you never stopped… I guess that’d be cool, too.”

“Good. You’re gonna get used to it someday, My Little Sunset.”

“Your little— wait. Oh no, you did not—” Sunset groaned aloud and covered her face with her hand. “You did not just switch out my little pony for my little sunset.”

“I did. And I enjoy watching you blush.”

“Stop it, I am not blushing! I’m just… overstimulated!”

“Oh, is that right? You want to go for another round?” The minute her hand was on Sunset’s thigh, she slapped it, and its owner drew it back with an exasperated shout. “Hey! Watch it, human!”

“Oh, so it’s ‘human’ now, is it?” Twilight’s exaggerated pout was adorable, so Sunset snaked in and kissed her on the nose. “I’m gonna forget you said that.”

“Okay, if it’s a fair fight you want — last standing in Super Smash Brothers has to be on the bottom.”

“Oh, you’re on!” Sunset was halfway up when she paused, which allowed Twilight to pull into the lead as she dashed toward the living room, the trail of her nightie billowing out behind her like a cape. “Wait, you— what do you mean, the bottom?!”

“Look it up, Sunny! You game, or what?”

Grumbling, Sunset yanked her shirt back on and stomped after her. “Haven’t we both done that enough for one night?”

“I don’t know, have we?” Twilight asked cryptically as she perched herself on the couch, two controllers in hand, folding her legs neatly under herself. As if to prove a point, she tossed one of the controllers over to Sunset. “Catch!”

Rolling her eyes, Sunset reached out and caught the object — but not with her hand. A murky yellow glow flickered to life around the controller, enveloping it and stopping it mid-flight, keeping it aloft a few feet away from Sunset.

Nodding happily at the casual display of magic in Sunset’s human form, Twilight said, “Your pick first. Who do you wanna be?”

Sunset sighed loudly, plucking the controller free from her magic and walked over to the couch. As she joined the Goddess of Friendship, she gave the question a lot more weight than was necessary. Maybe her friend-turned-paramour was only asking about the game, but she thought it over more carefully than that, reflecting on all they had been through over the past few days, few weeks, few months.

She reached a conclusion readily enough, and plopped herself down to press a light kiss to Twilight’s lips.

“Just me, Twi. Just me.”

"Wow... that was so deep, it was unfathomable."

"Ugh. Twilight."