In a dark, dingy place, where few ponies ever thread, a certain someone was ranting like nuts.

They say revenge is a dish best served cold; But the correct term would likely be revenge is a dish best served when you have absolutely nothing to lose, and are also really petty. And this certainly applied to this particular Unicorn.

“Okay. Okay. This is it! Not even STARSWIRL figured this out. But I did!!! No one believed in me but here I friggin’ am!! If nothing else, after today, even if I die, or get killed, or get thrown in the darkest cell of Canterlot prison, or maybe Tartarus– Do they throw regular ponies in Tartarus? Nah, probably not. A-anyways. Even if everything else goes wrong, I’ll go down in history as a pioneer of the mystic arts!! A genius of technological marvels! A brilliant explorer of a brave new frontier!!”

‘Hermes’ was what he called himself; He was an moderately humble Unicorn scientist that studied travel based magic from a young age, and since those early years, he tried braving frontiers no one else dared; Mostly because no one else cared to. He was not particularly tall or built– like many in academia– His fur was a grayish brown that could resemble bronze in the right light, his mane was an unkempt white-ish blonde, and he wore glasses that had been cracked for a long time.

Moldy, unkept, abandoned, unfunded, breaking several safety violations, there were more than a few words one could use to describe the ‘observatory’ lab he had made his home, but above all else, ‘lonely’ would describe it most; to those that cared for companionship, of course.

“Yeah, yeah, no pony thought I could do it. No pony even dared to even try; The most brilliant minds in Equestria shunned me; Thought lowly of me, gave up on me, were… Like, super rude to me!!! But this will show everypony; everywhere! Hermes will be a name known in more than one universe!!”

There were litters of machines and paraphernalia littering the room all the way to the ceiling; To anybody else, they would be incomprehensible, but to this Unicorn, it was a perfect thousand-piece puzzle he had put together.

And speaking of puzzles; He had a board full of notes, pictures, data, and evidence. Things that would seem pointless to others, but not to him. A myriad of information on this world and others; Mish mashed in organized chaos.

Pictures of places that no one in this world had seen, much less been; Pictures of ponies no one in this world had met, but very much knew.

Objects that made no sense; A shattered mirror pieced together that did not cast reflections was surrounded by coils, a telescope that could not see connected to dozens of wires, each of these with multitudes of runes engraved in them, all brought into sense and context with his magic, and his creation. Whenever the machines lit to life, they would shake the foundations of the room, dust would fall from the ceiling, and you could feel the energy on your skin.

“Payback; That’s just the cherry on top. At the very least, the world will know what I’m capable of! That I DID it! That I, Hermes, have discovered how to bridge the gap between universes!!! Not just one; but ANY universe! Even STARSWIRL gave up on this magic; On this technology!! But I didn’t.”

The dull sound of his hoofsteps echoed on the walls of his lab, as he moved from one place to another, frantically fiddling with devices; His magic floated gears, mechanisms, circuitries and runes all around him, with intentions only he knew.

The most important one at this moment was akin to a crown; A technomagical crown made to be retrofitted around the horn of a Unicorn, specifically with his Multitudes of wires, circuitries and runes all were exposed on it’s halo, as if you could see the innards of the machine. He looked at himself in a small mirror, making sure everything was fit properly, then unsuccessfully covered his face with a hood, clumsily trying to pull it forwards, only for it to slide off the machinery.

Magic and technology, meshed together to perfection, or as close as one could achieve, with these resources.

“Today’s the day; The best shot I'll have at her. She’ll be distracted; As will everypony, and amidst the festivities, BOOM. I’ll strike. Twilight Sparkle... I’ll make you pay for all the time you cost me; And everything you took from me. Revenge is a dish best served warm and toasty!! …If your wife isn’t around to turn me into mulch, that is. …NO! I thought of everything! I got this! Today’s the day!! Payback will be mine!!!”

He proudly posed and gazed at the ruin he called a lab, then, with all the determination a nerdy scientist with no proper social life could muster, made his way towards his destiny.

“Celestia be my witness. Twilight Sparkle, this will be the worst day of your life.”

Waking up was so, so easy for Sunset Shimmer these days.

You know when you have something special you’re doing the next day, some sort of event, gathering, meeting a friend; Or even something as simple as knowing you’ll get to see something new?

Something to look forward to the next morning?

This was how she had felt every morning, for well over a year; for well over multiple years.

And now, as she laid in bed, quite comfortably too, already feeling the invitation of the sun peeking behind their curtains, she chose to stay in there, and appreciate its softness and comfort. A premeditated laziness, one might say; She certainly would, as she waited for a delightful sound she was quite used to hearing.

And there it was, without further ado, A bell towed quietly above the building they slept on, which resulted in the sound Sunset oh-so-eagerly awaited for. She folded her wings close in expectation.

The cutest yawn in all of Equestria, one belonging to none other than her wife, Twilight Sparkle.

Feeling the light shuffles of the waking Alicorn forced a grin on Sunset’s face, even when she continued to pretend she was asleep. Every little grunt and cute sound made by the stretching of her partner got her closer and closer to giggling, but she held on, steadfast.

Another adorable yawn, as Twilight sat up in bed, without difficulty. Sunset remained still, making good usage of the king-sized bed they had cherished for ages now; A more than comfortable size for two growing Alicorns, after all.

With every shudder and stretch of the fabric, she could feel her wife’s movements, scanning the room, and then resting her gaze on Sunset.

“Gooood morning, my Sun…!” Akin to a kind whisper, akin to an pleasant invitation, Twilight spoke close, waiting for her wife to open her eyes.

And, mischievously, Sunset did no such thing.

“Heeeelloooo, Goood morning, Sunsun…!” Another futile attempt, another loving, inviting whisper.

And stalwartly, she kept her eyes closed.

“Hey. Hey sweetie. Wake up.” There you go, she was starting to get demanding, here comes the best part.

The tiniest of smiles crept up in Sunset’s lips, just in time for her wife to plant a kiss on her cheek. “Wake up.”

Silence. Were she not pretending to be asleep, she likely would have dared, defied the Princess of Friendship to drag her out of bed. The best kind of defiance, really.

“Wake up.” A kiss.

“Wake up.” Another kiss.

“Wake up.” And yet another loving kiss.

Her indomitable warrior spirit was close to being broken under a barrage of loving kisses, and frankly, Sunset Shimmer was prideless enough to accept that sort of defeat, but she certainly wasn’t one to go down without a fight.

“Wake up wake up wake up wake up” Kiss after kiss, it was more than clear to her wife that this was yet another game being played by Sunset, and that she was not about to lose.

That final barrage was enough to force Sunset’s hand, as she opened her eyes with the widest, most pleased grin, and flipped over, pinning her wife down and unleashing her own barrage of kisses. “Well well well, look who’s awake!” That would have sounded more confident, if it was not being drowned in a savage attack of loving kisses.

Even after that vicious attack of loving smooches, even while being pinned down by her wife, Twilight Sparkle still maintained a certain professional composure. “Gooood morning. You’ve got a big day today; Lot’s to do, and I wanna make this absolutely perfect for you, Sunsun. What do you say?”

Finally, Sunset allowed herself to stop playing the game, hovering above her love with unending delight. “I’ll say this day’s already pretty damn perfect, if you ask me.”

“Oh really… Why’s that…?” With an eyebrow raised, a tilt of her head, and a mischievous smile, Twilight knew she was playing with fire.

Letting out a loving growl, delighted to be in that exact position, Sunset stretched her wings, but dared not to move an inch away from her love. “‘Cause from where I'm standing, the view’s pretty good.”

And there it was, a proper kiss on the lips, one they shared many times before, but much like the warm glow of dusk, or the gleam of the stars in the sky, never got old.

With mischievous giggles, Sunset would have taken it even further, but her wife placed a hoof on her mouth. “Down, girl!! We’ve gotta go get ready! I need to take a proper shower, and you oughta tidy up too. Let’s get outta bed already!”

Sunset let out the biggest pout and puppy eyes she could muster. “Aww… Aren’t we celebrating me today…? Why can’t I have a bit more bedtime with my wife!!!” She said, with a jokey tone, that certainly didn’t hide much of her desire.

“Because we have to make appearances, and a bunch of other stuff I wrote down on a checklist, I forgot– I'll go get it— And you gotta go tidy up. Mwah.” With one final kiss, Twilight teleported out of bed, and immediately started stretching and yawning once more. Sunset nearly tumbled away, cursing quietly for not being able to enjoy this moment for a little while longer.

Before entering their bathroom, Twilight gave her one mischievous wink and a tail graze. “Keep that energy in mind for tonight, Sunsun.”

And with that statement, and a dumb grin on her face, Sunset considered lowering the sun herself, right now.

But, responsibilities were responsibilities, and the best rewards were ones gifted after a long day of hard work. She hopped out of bed, and did her own morning stretches, while opening the blinds swiftly.

The sun didn’t blind her; It scarcely had ever, for years, now. The beautiful sights of Ponyville sprawled below those windows, and the light of the town almost reflected on the ceiling of their room.

And what a room it was. As Sunset made her way to the closet, she admired every bit of the environment. With a mixture of bricks and wood, the architecture was far from royal, but quality. A cozy, surprisingly humble place, considering its residents were two princesses. Closets, bookshelves, the comfiest chairs you could get to match tables meant for study, a king sized extremely cozy bed, and, one of her favorite corners, a comfortable vanity mirror with pictures of all their friends and the adventures they shared, and besides it, her Valkyrie armor was mounted on stand.

She had always followed her wife’s schedules diligently, and trusting on them, she took no rush on selecting an outfit for the day, delighting herself on hearing Twilight's hums in the shower echoing from the bathroom beside them.

She gazed at two potential garments, one finely put together fiery frilly dress, and one of her favorite leather jackets, that had gold spikes on it, no less. “Hey Sparkles, since the party is for me, do you think that I could–”

“--You could, but Rarity might attack you on sight!” Her voice echoed from inside the shower, knowing exactly what her wife was up to.

“Heh! I’ll burn that bridge when I get to it!” With a confident grin, Sunset took the jacket and its accessories, and laid them out in her bed, fully aware of the potential consequences of her actions.

“I could always hide behind Applejack, she’d be too distracted macking on her girl to actually criticize my outfit, heheh!” No response from Twilight other than delightfull giggles echoing from inside the bathroom, and Sunset took that as endorsement, as she prepared her outfit for the day.

But her gaze landed back on her armor, mounted in the corner.

She couldn’t resist.

With incredibly fluid rehearsed magical motions, she floated each individual piece of that armor set customly made for her, and adorned it, an action that took less than ten seconds.

And now, looking at the mirror, it was as if she was prepared for war; Or at the very least to a battle with a legendary mythological beast, and she was a stranger to neither.

The armor covered her body nearly entirely, giving away very few weak spots; Allowing for a comfortable flexibility as well, with a mixture of plates, chainmail and cloth. It even covered the top part of her wings, giving her the appearance of having razor sharp feathers, from a certain angle. The helmet covered the horn as well, with its own metallic plating for it, Perfect for fencing, with her red/gold hair cascaded from under it. The metals were mixtures of bronze and gold, which matched her color perfectly; Enchanted steel made to sustain the highest of temperatures.

She had adorned that armor dozens upon dozens of times, There were dents and scars in nearly every plate, much like the Alicorn who wore it. And sometimes, she still felt as if it was maybe too big for her. As if she hadn’t earned it.

But the best feeling was when it fit just right. As if that armor was a part of her skin.

She glanced at a photo on the vanity, shying away from her reflection; The picture had all her friends smiling and gathered around her; And she smiled awkwardly, the first month anniversary of her ‘joining the team’ so to speak, Before Midnight Sparkle, before becoming an Alicorn, before everything. Pinkie had hastingly prepared a cake, and that younger Sunset wasn’t even sure if she deserved eating, after everything she had done. She looked small, shriveled into herself, even.

Looking away from the old Sunset to the current Sunset filled her with confidence.

“It’s gonna be a party, not a battle, you know?” The delighted giggle of Twilight echoed quietly in the room, snapping the warrior out of it, as she entered it with a towel wrapped over her mane. She joined her wife side by side, looking with pride at their reflections.

“Hey, if it’s a good party, I’ll get some use out of this.” Sunset smirked, nuzzling her wife; Or more an attempt at a nuzzle, as they bonked their heads with the enchanted steel of her helmet, resulting in both of them breaking into giggles.

Beholding her own reflection, Sunset’s expression changed a bit, and her wife could read her like a book; And if there was anything Twilight Sparkle was known for, was being a bookworm. “Sunsun. You more than earned it. You look formidable. Heck– Remember that time in the Hall of Unity, where you scared that griffon waiter so bad he almost soiled himself, and it was with just a glare?”

A mischievous snicker bubbled up immediately from her wife. “Heheh. That’s the last time that guy spills a drink on my Princess. That was a fun visit; I hope Celestia lets us tag along this year, too.”

The same kind of giggle bubbled up on the Princess of Friendship, following with those adorable snorts. “If her inviting Discord to some parties is anything to go by, I imagine she’ll appreciate us being there to make another mess next time too.”

Just reminiscing on the many disastrous parties they had participated in involuntarily caused a hearty chuckle to come out of Sunset. “Pff hey. At least we’re also professional mess fixers. We totally averted a diplomatic incident! Canterlot almost got sold, but we fixed it, heh.”

With better aim this time, Twilight nuzzled her proper. That nuzzle almost resulted in sparks, with its friction, Sunset could feel her joy, feel her love, as if they were her own. “That we did. Anyways, put the armor away sweetie, we gotta go get ready, lots to do!”

Sunset complied, Magically binding the armor inside her horn. One of the many perks of being an Alicorn, Is that where Unicorns would usually be able to store a bag, maybe a suitcase’s worth of contents magically within them, an Alicorn could push that much further with ease; Twilight herself nearly carried a library around with her, everywhere she went.

With a confident, gleeful demeanor, The Princess of Friendship beckoned her forward. “Let’s put on our duds and get to it! Big day!”

And as always, her joy was contagious. This was going to be a perfect day. “Ya ain’t gotta tell me twice, Sparkles.”

Their community center was, with all modesty, the best building in Ponyville. Sure, there might be some arguments to be made regarding that, but considering the beautiful columns that were literal trees that they built the structure around, all of which aided on it’s support, once you passed by the gorgeous, three-floor library, the arboretum/community garden, and even the recreational/visit area on the first floor, your arguments would likely fade.

And that wasn’t to mention the beautiful clock tower that shined for all of Ponyville, with bells that towed in special events. The fourth floor belonged to the princesses alone, it was where they resided, but they certainly didn’t mind sharing the rest of the building. Neither of the two needed anything more than this; Even if neither would shy away from living in Canterlot Castle in the future.

All that mattered was the present, and in the present, they were happy.

As was their usual routine, Twilight floated a checklist in front of them as they slowly moved by the hallways and rooms of their community center, greeting any of the early rising ponies that were visiting; There was always a certain calm hustle and bustle in the building, and they adored it.

And of course, Twilight was as organized and efficient as ever, as she listed their responsibilities for the day.

“While I go check on the preparations with Pinkie on the sugarcube corner, you’re flying to Cloudsdale to find Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy and help them make sure the skies are clear; Applejack and Rarity likely already finished their tasks, but you and me can check on them respectively after, just in case!”

She spoke joyously, and Sunset regarded her with adoration, being a bit distracted. Just a bit.

“After 10 O’clock, Celestia’s coming by Ponyville, for that Alicorn space lesson you have today, you two can enjoy yourselves while I take care of all the rest of the preparations! Liiiike for example, checking on who RSVP’d; which, by the way, fun stuff; Spike’s coming from the dragon lands, and not only will my parents be coming by, but your parents will be here too!”

Once there was no reaction from Sunset, just that dumb grin, Twilight knew exactly what was happening. She wrapped her checklist into a tube and bonked her wife on the head a few times for good measure. “Stop! Being! Distracted! By! My! Big beautiful eyes!”

Nothing but giggles emerged from Sunset, delighted to have been so predictable. “Heheheh It’s not my fault!! You try being less adorable and gorgeous!!”

With a pout and a fluster of her cheeks, Twilight’s eyebrow was raised. “How much of that did you listen to?”

With a little smile and a tilt of her head, Sunset tried being cute to earn her forgiveness, almost with a purr, because she had listened to none of it.

It worked.

The day was already looking up wonderfully.

Deep, focussed breaths.

Sunset and Celestia stood face to face, on the outskirts of town, ready to begin their lesson.

“Remember. The strength of the Earth Ponies, the elegance of the Pegasi, and the magic of the Unicorns; You need to master all of them to truly be able to call yourself an Alicorn.” There was always wisdom behind her words, but the kindness and gentleness that came with her lessons was what always kept Sunset smiling during them.

It still felt a bit strange at times, to be a pupil of Celestia once more, but what came above that strangeness was joy, regardless of her reservations. They were truly happy to work with each other again.

These lessons were one of Sunset’s favorite things to do as an Alicorn. A full exploration of just how far she could go, how strong she truly could be. “...Right. And only when I unite those powers as one is that I can reach my true potential–”

“--While remaining humble.” They both completed together, in unison, which led to them both snickering.

After the laughter subsided, Sunset let out an exhale, not a bad one, either. “Well… I could write a book about being humbled.”

“And I wager it would be full of wisdom, Sunset Shimmer.” Celestia did not even hesitate, with that same pleased smile she carried often around her newest oldest pupil. “And I also wager Twilight would be first in line to read it. If I did not beat her to it, of course.”

“Good luck trying to beat Twilight Sparkle at reading a book, one written by her wife no less…!” They shared more amused snickers.

“Shall we begin?”

“We shall!”

Both of them breathed deeply, feeling the wind on their faces, feeling the grass beneath their hooves, hearing the quiet sounds of Ponyville in the distance, tuning out everything, feeling everything.

As they channeled the power of fire and light around them, gathering their energy, Celestia gave more wisdom, Readying herself. “You are a meteor that will never burn up, that will fly higher and higher; going up, up, up. Concentrate on that power and GO.”

Immediately upon that final word, they both took off in a corkscrew manner, shooting upwards into the sky at tremendous force, much like a meteor, but flying away from the planet instead of towards it.

Even after having done this dozens of times, it still felt exhilarating, channeling all of her strength to break the atmosphere, fly like a shooting star; Sunset was quite used to the idea of being surrounded in flames; She was utterly immune to them at this point.

“If you need assistance, do not hesitate to ask, Sunset!!” The voice of her mentor was barely audible on their ascent, and regardless, the Princess ignored her, despite being thankful.

She pierced the clouds like a fiery arrow, The wind viciously raged against her, but she did not falter. The higher up they reached, the easier it got, she could see the sky change from blue to a darker hue, and finally, for what felt like either ten minutes or ten seconds, she was utterly devoid of weight.

Exhaling steam, she shook her head, gaining her bearings, and letting out a chuckle, taking in the sights.

“Welcome back to the final frontier, Sunset Shimmer!” Celestia’s voice rang out gleefully.

Looking around at this place; The place of all places, was always a delight. She spun around on multiple axis, using both magic and her wings or even just bodily motions to move around, feeling weightless, And Celestia did the same, akin to almost prancing. She could see stars brighter than ever, the moon, closer than ever, and Equestria was her roof, this big beautiful blue and green planet that was her home.

They were now in Space.

It was quiet; But not completely, there was almost a hum that her planet emitted, as it spun.

And of course, the main event, the Sun.

Their Sun.

Celestia floated near her, with a giddy smile. “Never gets old, does it?”

With a grin from ear to ear, Sunset nodded enthusiastically. “Never. Man, I'm so glad I can stare at it without burning my eyes now.” She let out a chuckle. It was as if she could see the true nature of the star, bathe in its light fully, be one with it entirely, and in a way, it certainly was.

“Our Sun is forever giving. And just like me, you can draw power from it, be one with it. Bathing in its light and flames will give you strength, allow you to heal faster, make you stronger; And although it’ll take some getting used to, you will learn to raise and set it with ease, in that, I have the utmost faith.” She spoke every word with confidence and pride, not on herself, but on her pupil. Sunset wasn’t the only one that felt lighter than air.

Every word was kind. Every word gave her courage. Sunset opened her wings, almost akin to a solar panel, and allowed herself to bask in that light as much as she could. Flames and sparks flowed across her fur, as if they were part of her, and she glowed. And it felt incredible; One of the best sensations, like embracing a lover.

“Gosh, look at you–” Celestia’s words stuttered, as she smiled fully, beholding her student with pride.

“...Look at me…!” Sunset gave her the same warm smile.

The Queen of the Sun let out a delighted sigh, almost holding back joyful tears, as she gazed back at her star. “You certainly imprinted with it phenomenally well; I am overjoyed to see how well you take up the power of the Sun within you, despite the interesting proficiency you have with it’s flames, as opposed to me with it’s light, I have no doubt you will master both, my student…!!”

“I have a good teacher!” She did not hesitate with her response, smiling back as she tried a couple of different spins and tricks with the weightlessness of space. She remembered fondly, the first time she did this with Celestia, and how back then, the Queen struggled a lot more to keep her delighted joy in check.

“Perhaps, if you’d like, tomorrow you could raise it?” She poked at her pupil, with a nudging delighted smile.

Letting out a nervous chuckle, the Princess had her doubts. “Maybe– I dunno, last times I did it, it was kinda—”

“The more you do it, the easier it’ll get, Sunset. And someday, it’ll be as easy as breathing…!”

With a short, happy chuckle, the Princess beheld the star once more. It felt hard to believe that one day this would be hers, and that one day, she could easily manage it. And yet, the mere thought of it made her smile.

They changed their stances, now, channeling their magic on their hooves so they could walk on space itself, making the floor they desired, something that was incredibly easy to perform with no gravity, a kind of magic made for Alicorns.

“Besides. It is not just the Sun that will give you strength, Sunset. Your strength will always come at its greatest from within.” She pointed at her Pupil’s heart, with that same earnest smile.

With a quick chuckle, the Princess delighted herself, making light of the situation. “Heh, yeah, I do fight really well when I'm pissed.”

“Your anger and your rage are certainly good places to draw your strength; after all, those emotions are akin to wildfires. Few would be able to subdue you… But you must always remember, that inner strength comes from every emotion, even joy.”

Tilting her head, Sunset followed her, a bit confused. “Joy?”

Celestia nodded, as she gazed at the constellations above them, with ease. “Yes, Sunset. Happiness. As an example, think of me– I spent 1000 miserable, busy years ruling alone… And then, when I tried training a pupil, somepony to someday take my place, I… I failed terribly…”

“Really…? Who…?”

“You, Sunset.”

“Oh.” The Princess nearly burst out laughing on her lapse of memory, but contained herself, respecting her teacher’s teachings.

“Once Twilight freed my sister, brought her back fully, I could feel it. I could feel that good things were coming. And have I ever been so glad to be right… Because she brought you back to me, too…!” She beheld her pupil with love and pride, and Sunset looked at her with the same appreciation.

“...Twilight is everything…” Was all that the Princess could muster to say as her cheeks got red, thinking of her love and all she had done for everybody everywhere.

With a nod, Celestia gazed back at her sun. “I have never been more fulfilled and happy than I have been these past few years. I have gotten my sister back, I have gotten my original pupil back, and both of my students are excelling in ways I couldn’t have even dreamed of even with my wildest bursts of hope…! Equestria is safe, and it is thriving. And I am now more sure than ever that my legacy will stand firm… I could not be any happier.”

There was so much faith and trust in those words; they made Sunset’s heart flutter. She tried not buckling under the weight of that responsibility; And she never would again. “That’s… Really, really nice, but how does it help you fight…?”

A short chuckle came from the Queen, delighted to continue. “Because, dear Sunset, I am so happy, that I know for a fact that if there was anything threatening this happiness, I would not hesitate to face it, and to protect that joy, I would be capable of anything.”

Now that, Sunset could easily understand. “Hmm, yeah, I get it. If there was anything threatening Twilight, I would do absolutely everything in my power to crush it.”

The love that her pupils shared was an endless source of amusement, and even more of joy. “And I have no doubt you would be happy to do so, protecting your loved ones with all your might. And if you manage to unite your anger and your happiness into one single drive, I believe you would be unstoppable.”

That amount of faith in her still felt strange, but it simply made her smile. She chuckled, and let out a half joke, half truth. “Eh, power is awesome, but what good is it, when there just aren’t any good fights around?”

And yet, the Queen saw through that easily. She was well aware that her pupil loved a good battle, and never wanted that energy to be wasted. “Peace is what all great warriors strive for, Sunset. And do not worry; Trouble is always around the corner in Equestria; You can trust me on that; Although I believe trouble would think twice, before facing you.”

They shared giggles, and then agreeable nods, another lesson well taught.

And it was time for the next one. “So– As your Alicorn powers go, how has been the development of your telepathy? I wager it has not gotten out of hand?”

With a nod, The Princess reminisced on recent events and discoveries. “Well, I wouldn’t call it telepathy per-se, as far as I know, whenever I’m having physical contact with someone, it’s as if I can feel their feelings; Though it depends on how loud they’re feeling it, I think. And I’ve been getting better at looking through memories, too; It’s almost like… It’s almost like I’m listening to the pony I’m ‘reading’ retell their own memories to me, in an incredibly short amount of time… It’s kind of freaky, but not bad, really. …Have you figured out why I got this power…?”

“All Alicorns are blessed with their own particular eccentricities, Sunset. This is only the latest and most surprising example of that. And personally, I believe we have only scratched the surface of what Alicorns are capable of doing...” She spoke, not listlessly, but with an almost sort of excitement.

That sort of statement was certainly bringing about a certain curiosity. Sunset, for a moment, wondered if, in her following 1000 years of rule, she would discover things about her and Twilight, that even Celestia and Luna were incapable of doing.

“And I have no doubt that you and Twilight will discover great things, on your future rule.” Who’s the mind reader now? Sunset chuckled nervously, trying to remain humble; Celestia really did know her well.

The Student considered speaking more of the subject, but held her tongue; She was about to mention how any sort of physical relation with a lover was certainly enhanced, when she could feel what Twilight felt, at the same time. Awkward, weird, she changed her mind on saying it instantly.

“O-oh, and there’s one more thing too. We found out that I'm not just able to read memories; I can show others my memories, too. Like– I can make others see what I've seen, feel what I've felt, the same way that I can see for others. It was a… Very strange discovery.”

With her ears twitching in curiosity, the Queen perked up, approaching her pupil. “Oh? Could you demonstrate?”

“I-I’ll try.” they leaned on each other, and Sunset concentrated. With a jolt, and with her eyes glowing, she remembered something.

With a giggle, Celestia recoiled. “My, that is incredible! It was like I was there! What an interesting power…! And well, what a nostalgic memory…!” Her giggles covered the delight she felt on being brought on a trip down memory lane. The first time she had met Sunset felt like eternities ago at this point… And she was a very cute little filly. The Queen considered pinching her cheeks, but restrained herself.

The Princess shrugged, trying to stave off the feeling of reliving such a memory. To her, a more interesting power would have involved explosions. “Pff yeah, it sure is something. I’ll get back to you when I’ve found an actual use for it.”

With an understanding nod, Celestia had no doubt. “I am certain that much like all else you’ve learned, you’ll wield it diligently.”

Sunset chuckled with a tinge of awkwardness. “You know, it’s kind of embarrassing– Some ponies around Canterlot have started calling me ‘The Princess of Empathy’, because of this power.”

“Oh? Do you not like it?”

Scratching the back of her head with her hooves, she got a tad sheepish, trying to hide her disappointment. “Well, Not exactly, It’s just… not what I expected. I suppose I’m still trying to figure out what I am, in that stance too, other than, well, an inheritor of the sun…”

“Hm… ‘Princess of Empathy’ is certainly not what I would call you, either; Even if it does have a ring to it.”

Sunset beheld her mentor with expectation, hoping for a purpose.

And Celestia caught on to that glance, with a smile. She let go of the invisible floor she had made for herself, and allowed herself to float recreationally. “Tell me, Sunset. When was the last time my sister visited you?”

“Well, we meet for training a couple times; And she visits Twilight for her training as well– Oh, you mean in my nightmares? Huh… I don’t know… I don’t remember? –Wait. Back before Midnight Sparkle returned. Holy crap, has it really been that long…?” She pondered, gazing at nothing, trying to recall.

With a joyful giggle, Celestia nodded. “Indeed. It seems that since all that long ago, Since your ascension to Alicorn-hood– And even with you eloping with Twilight– You have had no nightmares. No fears.”

“W-well that doesn’t sound right…?”

The Queen did not let up, demonstrating just how much faith she had in her pupil. “You adorned the mantle of the Valkyries— A lost mantle, mind you, and you earned it, Slaying a mythological beast, no less. It had been unheard of anypony slaying a Legendary Phoenix; And you did so, without fear.”

Again, Sunset attempted to be humble, trying to make light of her accomplishment of slaying that building-sized bird of flames, trying to not just accept flattery from the Queen of the Sun herself. “The land of dragons was in danger, I had to help— And I mean, it's just armor I wear, I don’t really like… Well, I’d like to, but I don't call myself a Valkyrie in public.”

But Celestia did not let up. There was a time and a place for humility, and Sunset had no need for it at the moment. “And yet, you have become a master of combat– You slayed a legendary Phoenix, earning you that title; the title of Valkyrie Phoenix. And with it, I think, you would have earned another. To me, at least… You are Sunset Shimmer, The Princess of Valor.”

Now that. That title. That stirred a fire within her. She considered, for a moment, her name going down in legend with that title. But shaking her head, she decided to reign it in, remaining humble once more. “Aww, c’mon. I have, like… fears…?”

Celestia suppressed a chuckle. “Name the last time you were scared.”

“W-well, first thing that comes to mind is when Twilight became Midnight—”

“Five years ago.”

“Still though, like. I’ve got. Phobias?”

“Name one.”

“Clowns are weird, I guess?”

“Aren’t you best friends with Pinkie Pie?”

“Shoot. You’re right. Clowns are awesome. Damn.”

With a hearty chuckle, Celestia delighted herself in floating mindlessly around her pupil, who was considering her words.

Sunset attempted to shift the subject away from praise to her, still, after all of that, attempting to remain humble. “Oh yeah! Me and Twilight never found out any book or anything at all that reported on what happened to the original Valkyries; Only ones that reported on how they fought, and what kind of magic they used… I figured you might know, since you were alive and ruling at the time…?” Sunset had spent hours studying and mimicking moves she had found on ancient, dusty books, adding them to her already wide skill set of fighting prowess

With a change in demeanor, Celestia fidgeted with her mane, the Princess of Valor could notice that she was acting a tad different; And she appeared to be blushing…?

“Ah, the Valkyries…”

A moment of silence Where Sunset tried deciphering her mentor’s gaze.

“...ahem. It is an interesting tale, but one better for another time. Let us get back on the subject, Sunset; We were talking about your strengths, were we not?”

“O-oh. Yeah.”

Fidgeting, wondering, and floating much the same, Sunset gazed above her, to Equestria, then back at Celestia. “...I guess when we talk about strength, I still sometimes wish I was strong like you…”

“Why would you wish to be strong like me? When you’re strong like you! There is nothing more beautiful than that.” Celestia did not hesitate, coming closer. She poked Sunset in the chest, aimed at the heart, and a jolt went through the Princess of Valor.

Sunset blinked, considering if she had felt what she had just felt, but Celestia did not stop talking. “Trust me, it’s not about the amount of strength; it's about playing to your strengths. And you already do so incredibly. I hope, with time, that you will no longer have doubts.”

“S-sorry, old habits.” Sunset gave out a genuine smile, trying to forget the accidental mind reading she had just done of her mentor, no matter how good it felt, no matter how strange.

Chuckling, with the sheer lightness of how far she had come, she spoke, not with doubt or anxiety, but honesty. “I suppose sometimes I… Sometimes I still don’t feel worthy.”

“Me either.” Celestia gazed at the stars.

That Statement made the Princess’s ears twitch with surprise. She beheld her mentor, in expectation.

“We all make mistakes, Sunset. It is how we recover after stumbling that matters. You above all are a stalwart example of this; It is no wonder you are a Valkyrie Phoenix, having risen from the ashes again and again...” She gave her pupil a warm smile.

Finally, Sunset nodded, accepting the faith her mentor was placing on her. “...I guess you’re right. I’ve been… Weightless, for years. And I haven’t lost a fight since I beat Midnight Sparkle, either. It’s like I really have become fearless…”

Speaking with pride, containing her joy, she wrapped her lesson with a beautiful ribbon. “It suits you. You have become strong, truly strong, and yet, you have proven that you possess a kind heart. It suits you.”

“Y-yeah, I guess it… I guess it does…!”

Finally, with Sunset accepting that, the Queen of the Sun couldn’t resist anymore, embracing her pupil in a tight, loving hug.

“W-woah!!” They spun around in space a bit disoriented, as Celestia let out giggle after giggle. Her happiness was bursting out of her, And Sunset could feel it all.

“I am just so, so proud of you…!”

It wasn’t just the loving embrace of her mentor, but the fact that her emotions were on the surface, and Sunset could read them, even unintentionally. She giggled, so Sunset giggled too. She felt pride, so Sunset felt it too. She felt joy, so Sunset felt it too.

That sort of parental approval was something that the Princess was still getting used to, even after five years of having it; And it fueled her in unimaginable ways.

The giggles subsided, and Celestia let go, with them both still smiling. “Well, I believe with that, our lesson today is over. What’s next on your day? Festivities in Ponyville, no doubt?”

Pondering, her gaze lied elsewhere, on the moon, no less. She stared at it, reminded of something. “Oh yeah! I’ve been meaning to ask, ‘cause I don’t get to talk to Luna often; How’s Twilight imprinting with the Moon? I always forget to ask her ‘cause uhh…” Because most of the time she spent with Twilight was loving Twilight, and not caring about much else.

“Ah, yes!” Celestia turned to the moon, much like Sunset, snickering. “Luna has indeed provided me with reports on how Twilight has been doing in her lessons; And as you and I know well, Twilight is an overachiever. Although Luna has told me her pupil struggled to fully imprint with the Moon at first. (I’ve been told she almost draws powers from the stars around her, not just the moon!) She has told me that not only Twilight already has mastery over the tides, but her control of dream magic is already quite advanced!”

With a quiet snicker, Sunset nodded. “Oh, that much I already know, heheh.”

“Really? How?”

“Oh– Um, I, Uh,”

Fluorescent lights buzzed, the AC hummed, and Sunset could not care less, leaning back on her chair and popping the collar of her spiked leather jacket smugly. She kept her wings unfolded, and gave out an-ever-so-confident grin.

The classroom was nigh empty, except for her, and her teacher, Twilight Sparkle; Who wore her usual overly buttoned fancy outfit, complete with tie, skirt, glasses, and held her hair neatly in a bob. Her wings were folded, with strong focus on discipline, as usual.

“Whatever.” Leaning confidently back on her chair, Sunset smugly rolled her eyes.

And the teacher would not accept such an attitude. “Whatever? Your insubordination requires correction, Shimmer. You are by far, my most unruly and unkept student. A certified trouble maker, if you will.”

Tilting her head, akin to a taunt, Sunset continued to smirk. “Put it on my tab, teach’.”

Approaching her with unwavering confidence, Principal Twilight stared her down. “Oh, I think I will. You’ve been a bad girl, and you require discipline.”

Leaning forward, unintimidated, nearly muzzle to muzzle, Sunset stared her down right back. “You know what they say about taming lions, teach’… They bite.”

But before this could go any further, a glowing portal opened in the classroom, and Princess Twilight Sparkle stepped through it. “Hey Sunsun! Guess what! Queen Luna taught me how to go inside dreams now! --O-oh. Um…?”

Sunset’s demeanor changed entirely, getting embarrassed and flustered upon seeing her girlfriend in her dreams of all places– her actual, real girlfriend. “U-uh.”

Beholding both of their outfits, and even the environment, Twilight tilted her head, containing a snicker. “So, um, what did I just walk into?”

Fidgeting with her hooves, Sunset tried finding the right words to maybe cover for whatever this was, but the teacher Twilight, AKA dream Twilight, beat her to it, with a confident, entertained smile. “Sexy teacher dream!”

Sunset facepalmed, and Twilight couldn’t help but break out into laughter. “HAHhahahihihi…! A-and is this a recurring dream?!”

“No!” Sunset tried covering.

“Yes!” Dream Twilight shamelessly nodded.

Even more laughter from her Love, and the dream version of her also amused herself quite a bit, joining on the snickers, and then continued. “Oh, this is nothing. You should see her ‘Knight in Shining armor/Princess rescue’ dream. It gets even raunchier.”

“That’s enough out of you, dream Twi…!!” Sunset desperately tried stopping her, flustering with embarrassment.

With endless delight, the Princess came closer, smiling at her girlfriend with a lot of enjoyment. “Oh, this is delightful. I love these powers already. May I take over from here, me?”

The Teacher Twilight happily stepped away, with a confident smile. “Oh, by all means, me!”

With a cocky smile, the Princess waved her horn, showcasing her newfound knowledge of nightly dream magic in full display. The teacher Twilight faded away, not before stating “Have fun, you two!” And with the same glow and change of the dream, Princess Twilight was now dressed exactly like the dream version of her; In full teacher getup.

She adjusted her glasses, getting closer. “Now. Where were we?”

“Um… Discipline?”

“Oh yes. Discipline.”

“...Sunset? Hello?”

“--Twilight just told me about it. Yeah. She just told me. Normally.”

Shrugging with a giggle, Celestia paid it no mind, turning her gaze to the cosmos once more. “Ah, I am so happy for you two. I wonder how your rule will affect our Equestria; Being starkly different from two sisters ruling, of course…!”

Gazing at the stars, Sunset smiled. “...I’m not afraid. Whatever happens, we’ll deal with it.” They both exchanged caring looks, full of joy for their lives currently; And full of appreciation for Twilight Sparkle.

Turning back to the farthest cosmos, Celestia closed her eyes, and spoke listlessly, and yet, with a smile. “...One day, when our task is done, and you two are more than ready… me and my sister will brave the cosmos, and return to stardust once more… I have never had a chance at having a family, apart from her– But I am so, so happy that I will get to leave Equestria to you two. I couldn’t have possibly asked for a better legacy.”

Her joy was infectious, even if Sunset didn’t want to see her gone. “...Well, I hope you two stick around for a long time still. We’ll miss the hell out of you both, when you go…”

Celestia let out a couple of delighted snickers, pleased to be missed. “Do not worry, Sunset. We’re not vanishing simply; And besides, one day, one day very, very far from now, I have no doubt you and Twilight will do the same.”

For a moment, a brief, longing moment, Sunset wondered what it would be like, to fly across the cosmos together with her love for eternity. Becoming stardust together, Nebulae, after leaving behind a legacy of love in the world that belonged to them.

Then, blinking, she shook those thoughts off, because you can't make out if you’re stardust. Give it a couple thousand years.

They both remained quiet for a little while longer, simply admiring the view.

And then, a familiar feeling rose within sunset, as her horn glowed with a purple streak, and she looked down to Equestria. Her entire demeanor changed, ears twitching, tail whipping. “Oop. Twilight’s calling me.”

“Oh? How do you know?” Tilting her head, Celestia had noticed the magic that swirled around Sunset’s horn; Without her usual color.

With her face slightly reddened, Sunset fidgeted, wanting to go, but being respectful. “Oh, um, Cadance helped me and Twi put a spell together– We can call each other from nearly opposite corners of Equestria now. It’s mostly for emergencies, but–”

“--Heh, I should have known. See? You two are already discovering new inventive ways to use magic. Well don’t let me keep you, it is likely about today’s festivities! I will see you down there. Oh, and Sunset; Happy Anniversary.”

With a cheerful grin, Sunset nodded. “Thanks! Yeah, lots of people RSVP’d; Even my parents!”

Celestia’s demeanor changed entirely, with a frown. “Oh. Your mother will be there.”

The Princess raised an eyebrow. “Play nice.”

And the Queen frowned harder. “I’ll play nice if she plays nice.”

She couldn’t help but chuckle, turning back to Equestria. “Heh. I’ll see you down there, Queen Celestia. Thanks for the lesson, it was incredible; as usual.”

She let gravity overtake her, flipping downwards, and descending upon Equestria at high speeds, akin to a shooting star, heeding the calling of her love.

And Celestia remained up there a little while longer, appreciating that she had never been this happy— Not in a thousand years.

Another happy landing, and an explosive one at that.

As she flew down, she could see tents and parasols strung above tables all over Ponyville plaza, and that plenty of the townsfolk gathered around already, likely having noticed the shooting star that was Sunset flying down to the party at that moment.

Sunset’s arrival produced a massive gust of wind; and even her golden red magic hue flowed with a blast around through the party, akin to an actual meteor crash. She landed square center on Ponyville plaza, on a small clearing, and clearly Twilight was more than ready for her, holding the objects of the party down with her telekinesis, so they wouldn't be blasted away by the wind.

With nothing but smiles, Sunset spotted all of her friends, and they spotted her. A banner was above them, hanging on the entrance of the Community Center, alongside several gorgeous decorations, likely the work of Pinkie and Rarity’s combined talent. The banner read; Happy Alicornaversary! 5 years of Princess Sunset Shimmer! Here’s to many more! She tried containing her giddy excitement, and instead gave them a confident smile, spreading her wings wide.

“Hello to everypony who isn’t Twilight, and a special hello to everypony else!”

The entire crowd cheered for her arrival, even if the two Princesses only had eyes for each other.

Twilight teleported forward immediately, giving her wife a greeting kiss. They exchanged no words, they were unnecessary for Sunset, after all, she could feel her wife’s joy and happiness emanating from her with every touch, they simply enjoyed each other's presence, all while their friends approached, hounding them with affection. Every kiss felt like sparks, like fizzles of joy.

Pinkie was the first of her friends to arrive; So quickly one could have easily suspected her of teleportation; But Sunset knew better, exceptionally so, being capable of catching the Pink Pony’s famous tackle-hugs before it collided, giving her a strong hug of her own.

“HEY BESTIE PARTY GIIIRLLL!!” She shouted, leaping into Sunset’s arms, being more than welcome to do so. Being in loving contact with Pinkie Pie felt very, very funny for an empath. “What’s up, bestie party master?” The Princess replied, as they both backed up and did an elaborate hoof-shake that ended with Pinkie being knocked to the floor with a chest bump; They clearly needed to rethink the ending of their hoof-shake, now that Sunset had gotten bigger. But of course, the Pink pony never minded it.

Rainbow Dash was the next one to arrive, with Fluttershy close behind. The former adorned her wonderbolts getup, and the latter, a simple cute party dress, that matched her style well, while also being accompanied by several birds that were either landed on her or flying around her.

And of course, the daredevil pegasus was the first one to speak up. “DUDE THAT LANDING WAS AWESOME!!! SIIIICK!!” And naturally, Sunset replied with the same kind of cocky smile, and they did their own kind of elaborate hoof shake, that even involved their wings flapping together. “That was for you, man!” They both laughed together, reliving its awesomeness.

Fluttershy, giggling, approached the laughing duo, followed close behind by her bird friends. “Happy Alicornaversary, Sunset Shimmer! Dashie brought her Wonderbolt friends to do a presentation later today! And apparently there’s a chance that Starlight and Trixie will make an appearance to put on one of their shows, but we’ll see; They usually are kinda tardy.”

With enthusiastic nods, Rainbow got closer to her girlfriend. “Oh yeah oh yeah! And Flutters brought her bird friends to sing later, too!” After trying to name all of the bird friends of Fluttershy, whose names she had attempted fairly successfully to memorize, She eagerly pointed at the other side of the party, where a stage resided, ready for any band that’d like to perform; Which piqued Sunset’s interest immediately, with her ears twitching. “Wow, you guys went all out, huh?”

Vibrating with excitement, nearly hopping in place, Pinkie smiled HARD. “Of course, silly!! Today’s for YOU!!”

And sharing similar excitement, but with a much calmer demeanor, Twilight added “We figured you might want to play sometime today; We have plenty of ponies that want to use that stage, but whenever you want to, you can!”

Without hesitation, Sunset hugged her wife, who reciprocated, with giggles. “You know me so well…!”

Before they could undo the hug, Pinkie joined in, and that easily got Rainbow and Fluttershy to join too; And then, running towards them, late to the embrace, Applejack and Rarity hopped on it too.

“Happy Alicornaversary, darling!! I hope you’ve enjoyed the decorations; My idea! And don’t think I haven’t noticed your outfit–!” The Unicorn stated, joining in the embrace, followed close behind. “HOWDY Y’ALL!! BIG HUG, C’MON!!” And just like that, Applejack wrapped her limbs around her friends and lifted them all into a delighted, cheerful hug; Sunset didn’t need to read minds to be able to tell that those two were distracted by making out, and that’s why they were the last ones here; Not that she minded, all her friends were together, and they were happy, so she was happy.

And, wrapped comfortably in the embrace of her friends, Sunset could feel all their joy, like it was her own. This day was pretty close to perfect.

“How's the coolest daughter in the world doing?? Cm’here, Mustard!!” Flare Shimmer, Sunset’s mother, ran towards her daughter, giving her a very happy hug. “Heya, mom!” That excitement was infectious, the Princess could feel it fully, smiling the same way as her.

Flare Shimmer was an older Earth Pony, who carried herself like she was much younger. She dressed in many similar ways to how Sunset usually would, with leather jackets all around, she was the original inspiration for Sunset’s style, after all; She even carried her electric guitar on her back, one that had seen many years of use, and covered her right eye with pony-tailed hair. It’d be rare you’d ever see her nowadays without a toothy smile. Despite her wrinkles, she always remained feisty.

“Heya, kiddo!” Gold Shimmer, Sunset’s father, approached with less of his Ex-wife’s excitement, but no less joy. He joined in on the hug, and they embraced each other quietly. Sunset always felt a certain surprise, having outgrown her parents so much.

Her father certainly carried himself differently from her mother. He was a tall Unicorn that covered his eyes with hair often and wore comfortable sweaters, being moderately soft spoken, with no particularly noticeable eccentricities about him.

And nonetheless, this family was more united than it had ever been, after all this time.

With a quick glance away from her daughter, Flare smiled, looking at Twilight, who gleefully followed behind her wife. “And there’s the cutest daughter-in-law in the world!! C’mon, join in!!” Which naturally, she did.

With a quiet snicker, Gold addressed the Princess of Friendship. “Lovely to see you, Twilight. I take it our daughter has been behaving?”

“Oh, you know, most days... But I never worry, after all, I’m an expert in discipline.” She gave Sunset a mischievous smile, who herself almost choked on a cough.

Flare let out hearty laughter, then addressed her daughter. “Heheh, I expected nothing less. You better be the coolest wife in the world too, ketchup!”

“Oh, she is.” Twilight smiled happily, nuzzling her love, who was more than happy to nuzzle back. “By the way, have you two seen my parents? Oh, and maybe Queen Celestia?”

With a nod, Gold pointed towards the end of the party, where several guests sat. “Of course! We were sitting at the same table; Nightlight and Velvet should be over in that direction. As for Celestia…”

“Oh. She’s here too?” Demeanor clearly changed, Flare frowned.

Her daughter raised an eyebrow. “Play nice.”

And Flare frowned harder. “I’ll play nice if she plays nice.”

Twilight rolled her eyes, hoping not to have to break a mom fight apart soon; and hoping even more that the two of them could find common ground. “I’ll go check on mom and dad! You three enjoy yourselves. See you in a bit, my Sun.” Leaving her wife with a quick kiss on the cheek, she pranced away.

Sunset watched her move away with a dumb grin on her face; One that her parents noticed. “‘My Sun’, eh?” Gold tilted his head, with a smile.

“I-it’s just a cute little pet name, nothing to it–” She lied, badly, flustering; And naturally, her parents didn't buy it. That ‘Pet Name’ was an affirmation, a promise, of a love that would last over a thousand years. It was also a bit embarrassing to be called that in front of your parents.

Suppressing her desire to cackle joyfully, Flare poked her on the chest, sending the little flurries of emotions her mother felt through her. “That’s my daughter, right there, heheh. You scored BIG time, kiddo– What, you gonna let her put you on a leash next?”

Suppressing her snickers, and the desire to bite onto the leash commentary, (Which she likely would have in the past, regardless of its truth,) Sunset simply smiled and nodded. “Thanks, mom. I’m happy you two made it.” And that she was, incredibly so.

With a pleased nod, Gold Shimmer smiled back at her. “We wouldn’t miss it for anything, Ketchup. Oh yes– Flare brought her guitar, maybe after we get some snacks, you two could…”

And that mere suggestion already sparked excitement on the two mare Shimmers, whose ears twitched, as they both nodded together in eager agreement, even playing air guitar riffs together.

Surprised, Gold turned his gaze behind them, with a wave. “...Oh hello, Queen Celestia!”

All three of the heads turned at the tall Alicorn’s approach; And her quiet demeanor certainly was noticed, not behaving regally, simply professionally. “Greetings, Shimmers. Sunset, Twilight said you wanted to see me about something?”

Suppressing her instinct of saying ‘I don’t think I do?’ and blinking, she could tell what her wife was doing; Likely trying to get Flare and Celestia to get along. She turned to her parents, showcasing them. “Heya, Queen Celestia! Remember my parents, Flare and Gold?”

“Indeed I do. Hello again to you both!” She stated plainly and professionally, regarding Flare as if she was regarding an assassin, and the mother did the same glance back at her.

Sunset’s mother forced on another of her toothy grins. “Heeeyy Celie. We were just talking about how proud we are of our daughter, and how we love her very, very much. We were even talking about how we might play guitar together later! I taught her that.” Before she even wrapped a loving arm around her daughter, both of the other Shimmers snickered, knowing that Flare was not one to speak the word ‘love’ lightly.

Sunset felt a jolt of frustrated tense anger emanating from her mother as she looked at Celestia.

Clearing her throat, the Queen attempted to remain composed, nodding. “Of course. I, too, am also incredibly proud of Sunset. She has made truly astounding progress, even before her ascension. Did I mention that I took her to space today? Why yes, I’m teaching her how to fly through the cosmos!”

The emotions that Sunset felt from her mother did not change for the better, maybe even intensifying. “Oh that’s great, Celie, that’s great. Do you know how to play guitar? ‘Cause me and my daughter know; ‘cause we’ve played together, dozens of times. We might even do so today, on these festivities! And look at that, we even dress similarly!” She pointed at their same punk style, and Sunset couldn’t help but roll her eyes at her behavior.

With an eye twitching, the Queen tried her absolute best to maintain her royal composure. “No, I do not know how to play guitar. One certainly doesn't need such distractions, when she is busy training the future rulers of Equestria; Who are doing incredibly well in my care, by the way.”

“Play nice, you two.” Sunset tried stopping them, but little could go between those two mothers; She wasn’t even sure that they both heard her.

Flare’s smile wavered, and yet, remained full of teeth. “Really? Do you ever loosen up and have fun with her? Do you care about her?” And quickly and quietly, Gold attempted to poke her into backing up, and to stop antagonizing the Queen, but he certainly knew better than to expect it.

Nearly raising her wings, Celestia tried breathing deeply, but she very much could not keep full composure. “Sunset is my number one priority– As is Twilight. I’ve done all in my power to give them a comfortable, incredibly easy transition into being the rulers of our world–”

“You never changed her diapers though.” The mother dismissively muttered.

Blowing air from her nostrils, and forcing a smile, Celestia had a comeback she had thought of for maybe months. “Did you know? She’s called me ‘mom’ more than a few times by accident. Fun fact, isn’t it?” It was absolutely true, and The Queen of the Sun refused to forget it, delighting herself endlessly with it.

Flare let out a quick snarl while preparing to unleash her retort; But she didn’t need to. Sunset could feel all of her mother’s anger before she herself even processed it.

Sunset blinked and immediately stepped in between them, letting go of her mother and all the anger she felt.

Raising her wings between them, she stopped them both on their tracks. “Mom, STOP. And Celestia, stop taking the bait. Can we all just breathe here? It’s supposed to be a party.” She cared a lot about both of them; But it was really hard to surpass the ego of a Queen, and least of all, the ego of someone who raised Sunset Shimmer.

Both the mothers looked away in embarrassment, trying to cool off their anger.

Gold Shimmer cleared his throat, knowing this would still be a long party. “Apologize, both of you. Please.”

The two mothers mumbled their own respective apologies.

Looking at her mother directly in the eyes, Sunset spoke plainly. “Mom. It’s not Celestia’s fault that I was banished, it was mine. It was my failure.”

Both of the mothers spoke in unison. “That’s not fair to you, Sunset! Hey stop copying me.”

“Down, both of you, please.” Gold quickly stated, resulting in them both crossing their arms and frowning. He continued, attempting to diffuse the situation. “Listen. What you can both agree on is that you love Sunset, right? Why don’t we just calm down and talk about something lighter?”

A brief moment of Silence, as both of them frowned in annoyance.

But Flare saw another chance, and she took it, nuzzling her husband lovingly. “Thank you Goldie, you always know just what to say. I love you.” Both of the other shimmers snickered, knowing full well how out of the ordinary it was to hear the word ‘Love’ from Flare’s mouth– It almost felt like it was a joke. They could immediately tell she was trying something; And Celestia was none the wiser.

“Speaking of which, Celie, how’s your love life doing?” Unfortunately for Celestia, she couldn’t tell she was once again being baited, choosing to believe Flare’s unassuming smile.

“Same as it ever was.” She looked away towards the party, not even considering that question for what it was.

The voice that Flare spoke with was dangerously close to condescending. “Oh, what a shame! A thousand years, and no reports of the Queen of the Sun ever being in love, it always surprised me, to be honest!” It took her all the energy she could have possibly mustered not to simply say ‘No bitches?’

Both Sunset and Gold facepalmed quietly.

And Celestia, almost flustering, scoffed and groaned. “Hey! I’ll have you know I've had more than a couple of flings over my years!” The word ‘flings’ was spoken in a way that implied that she was not good with any sort of slang; None of which inspired confidence in the truth behind her words.

All that Flare had to do was tilt her head and raise an eyebrow, with that same smile. And Celestia kept digging her own embarrassment grave. “I’ll have you know that I had a brief, yet passionate affair with an evil king from a mirror dimension! –H-he wasn’t evil then. He became evil after.”

The three Shimmers blinked in confusion. And Celestia stuttered, continuing. “The gate between our worlds shattered, and he was consumed by darkness.”

“That’s uhhhh… That’s a bummer, man.” For once, Flare was not making fun of her, this was her genuine reaction.

Fluttering her wings in frustration, Celestia refused to be made fun of; But unfortunately for her, it wasn’t hard. “And that’s not all! I also had a brief but very loving relationship with a Valkyrie, in the past!”

Grimacing with pity, Flare had to ask. “And then…?”

“...We didn’t get to do anything– She died.” Celestia facepalmed, realizing that she was setting herself up for even more embarrassment. Sunset regarded her with concern, wondering what did happen, all those centuries ago.

Flare sat back down, genuinely taken back, even if amused at the Queen's expense. “That’s just sad, man. No other way to put it.”

Once again, Celestia tried covering for herself, to little success. “W-well you can’t blame me– An Alicorn of my responsibilities, of my position, I simply have no time for things such as those. H-here, I’ll prove it! Sister! Come over here please!”

The Alicorn’s horn glowed almost akin to a lighthouse, beckoning attention, as she waved to her sister, on the other side of the party. Lots of heads turned and/or were blinded by it, groaning in annoyance, one pony even accidentally hit a wall, being surprised.

Quietly, Flare Shimmer whispered to her daughter, containing her laughter. “Why is she even hiding behind that excuse– You got married in less than half a decade of being an Alicorn!!!”

“Mom, stop bullying the Queen of the Sun, please.”

In the distance, Luna quickly took notice, flying there and taking a drink with her, having it float beside her; A glass of what could be wine, or fruit punch, for all they knew. “Greetings, Shimmers. Is my sister making a fool of herself again?”

“Am not.” Celestia quickly attempted to interject, moving on. “Flare here was giving me a bit of grief, you see–”

Nodding, Luna lowered her glass. “Oh, perhaps I can help, I have a suggestion.”

With ears flicking forward, Celestia leaned closer, hoping her sister would back her up; Maybe even, possibly, hopefully, help her roast Flare Shimmer back. “Yes?”

“Why don’t you, and hear me out here–” The Queen of the Night took a swig of her glass. “Why don’t you banish her to the moon?”

Even Sunset couldn’t help but snicker a bit at that one, joining the others in laughter. It was the rare occasion that Queen Luna ever cracked jokes, but on that comet-like rare instance, it was hilarious.

Blowing air from her nostrils, Celestia fell deeper in embarrassment, using her many thousands of years worth of patience training to remain as level-headed as possible, to questionable success. “We were just talking about romance and relationships, and I was explaining how Alicorns like us don’t have much of a chance to have such things!! Go on, tell them.”

“You don’t know everything I do, sister.” Luna stated plainly, covering her mouth with her glass, taking a swig.

Celestia’s eye twitched. She glared at her sister intently. “What do you mean by this. What do you mean?”

No response from her sister, who simply lowered her glass, and raised her eyebrow, with a sly smile.

“Okay that’s it. Where is my niece. She will sort this out.” Celestia immediately turned around and walked around the party with haste, shouting for Cadance leaving those four on their own devices.

Tilting her head, Luna shared a knowing smile with Flare. “See? No one gets on a sister’s nerves like a sister.”

“You're my man, Luna” they did a sort of awkward fistbump that only two old mares would do, but with hooves.

Rubbing his temples, Gold sighed. “Can you two stop embarrassing the Queen. Please. Honey, we are this close to causing a diplomatic incident with your jealousy fits.”

“I’m not jealous.” She lied. Naturally, her husband knew her well enough not to buy it.

Sunset nodded in agreement with her father. “It’s good to see you Luna; but Celestia was having a pretty good day before this– Can we dial it back?”

Luna took another swig, amused. “I will, once she stops making it this easy.”

“Hear hear.” Flare agreed quietly.

Blowing raspberries, Sunset rolled her eyes. “You two are so lucky Twilight isn’t here, the Princess of Friendship would chew you both up for this one.”

Giving her best pouty eyes, as part of the joke, Flare pleaded for her daughter. “Sweet little Mustard wouldn’t snitch on her mama, would she?”

Try as she might, Sunset couldn’t stop but snicker at her mom’s demeanor. “Whatever.”

They shared a brief moment of silence accentuated with laughter, taking in the atmosphere of the party. Sunset could see her friends in the distance, enjoying themselves in their own respective ways. Fluttershy’s bird choir was absolutely on point as usual; And Pinkie seemed to be doing another keg stand.

With her ears perked up and with a smile, Sunset remembered something good. “Oh! Mom! Guess what! I beat Queen Luna in a fight! Fair and square, too; It was just last month, in one of our training sessions!!”

Flare’s eyes lit up, with a proud smile, she traded looks with her daughter and the Queen. “Holy crap, I’m SO proud of you, Ketchup. is this true, Luna!?”

Luna hid her pride for her student and friend with her glass. “I suppose, statistically speaking, that you would win eventually, Sunset Shimmer.” She teased.

The entire demeanor of the Princess of Valor changed, as she got incredibly excited, smiling wildly. “OOooooHHhh Them’s FIGHTING words, Luna!! You wanna go again?? I’ll take you one here and now, I don’t care— I know all your moves, Nightwing!!”

Her excitement was certainly infectious. “And I won’t slip the same way again, Lightwing.” The Queen of the Night raised an daring eyebrow.

If there was something that brought Sunset Shimmer excitement, more than many other things, it was an invitation for a good fight. She was beaming.

Suppressing a chuckle, Gold tried intervening. “Kiddo, please don’t have an Alicorn fight on your own anniversary. I’m pretty sure Ponyville plaza couldn’t survive it.”

She pouted. “Awww but dad, the best parties are the ones where we beat the crap outta each other…!”

“Hear hear!” Her mother agreed with enthusiasm.

In a matter of seconds, Twilight teleported into the conversation, kissed her wife quickly, stated “no fighting.” and then teleported away, back into the party elsewhere.

Sunset’s demeanor changed completely once more, as she sat back down, with an dumb grin. “Welp! No fighting, then.” She obeyed implicitly.

Her mother let out a boo as a joke. And then, at long last, after a thorough search, Celestia returned to the conversation, with her niece, Cadance, the Princess of Love following behind; Who was quick to greet Sunset. “Hello again, my favorite Lovebird! Where’s your other bird?”

“You just missed her; Heya, Cadance!” Sunset let out a warm smile, pleased to see the Princess of Love again.

“Aww, bummer. I’m sure you two won’t keep your hooves off each other for long, so–” But she was interrupted, by Celestia grabbing her, lifting her, and pointing her like a gun towards Luna.

“Okay, dear niece; Scan her.” The Queen of the Sun commanded, and Luna didn’t even flinch, simply giving her glass another swig.

“Scan her what– What is going on here exactly?” Cadance raised an eyebrow, confused at why she was being held akin to a metal detector.

It was clear that Celestia’s patience was running thin. “My sister claimed she has had love affairs recently; And I strongly doubt the validity of that statement!!! Go on, tell me I'm right!”

And yet, with mere seconds of love magic inspection, Cadance turned to her aunt, with a grimace. “Well, um, then I wont say anything.”

Even just Celestia’s look of terror-filled surprise was enough to send Flare into a snickering fit.

Looking a bit closer, Cadance nodded in approvement. “If it makes you feel better, it was more of a affair than love; A handful of them, though– OOF” Her aunt dropped her on the ground.

“We speak of this no longer.” Celestia stated plainly, with a blank look, regarding her sister with what one could presume is rageful envy.

As soon as Flare’s laughing fit was done, she poked her daughter. “Yo, Mustard, the stage is clear, what say you and me go and shred for a bit? Wanna play your favorite?”

Despite the annoyance of her two mother figures fighting, she couldn’t help but be excited for this part; She didn’t have as much chance to play recreationally nowadays, and playing with her mother was even better. She materialized her own guitar from her horn. “Actually mom, I was thinking we could play your favorite?”

A genuine smile appeared on her mother’s face, as both of them brandished their guitars. “Coolest. Daughter. Ever.”

“YO PINKIE!” Sunset shouted, and seemingly out of nowhere, Pinkie materialized herself next to her; Which certainly would surprise most; But the Princess of Valor knew her too well for that. “HIYA Sunsun!! Hiya, miss Shimmer! Hiya mister Shimmer, Princess Cadance, Queen Luna and Queen Celestia! You rang?”

After the surprise of the Pink pony simply manifesting out of thin air, Flare gave her a confident smile; Pinkie was Flare’s favorite out of all of Sunset’s friends. “We sure did, Rockstar.”

And brandishing her guitar, Sunset gave her friend a knowing nod. “Me and my mom want to shred. You in?

Gasping with joy, Pinkie smiled hard. “YEAH YEAH LET'S GO!! Bye mister Shimmer bye Luna bye Celestia bye Cadance!!” The three of them ran out onto the stage.

“B-bye, then.” Celestia barely managed to mutter.

And right then Sunset turned around and waved properly. “Bye mom– I mean Celestia!”

Despite the wave of embarrassment she had been bathed in, the Queen of the Sun felt that be replaced with relief, the moment she heard that word, counting that as a small victory, and let out a quiet smile. Her gaze accompanied her oldest pupil getting on stage.

“You girls be wise, now!” Sunset’s father stated, before nodding a respectable goodbye to the three royals near him and leaving to find a comfortable spot in the crowd.

The three Alicorns idled for a little bit, each with their own level of awkwardness over the current events.

Luna was the first one to speak up, finishing her glass. “All in good fun, sister?”

The Queen of the Sun, an Alicorn who was over 1000 years old, was pouting. “Hmpf. Could you not be treasonous in front of Sunset, please? …I’m going to go look for Twilight.” She wandered off, trying to stave off the embarrassment she felt over the last few conversations.

Luna and Cadance appreciated a moment of silence, until the Princess of Love spoke up. “For the record? Good for you. I’m glad you’re putting yourself out there. Celestia could learn a thing or two from it. You and me? We gotta have a girls night sometime.”

Both of them exchanged snickers, knowing that the Queen of the Sun certainly would likely never want to join something of the sort.

With a giddy smile, Twilight sat at a good distance of the stage, waiting for her wife to start playing. Besides her, were Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, praising the shy pegasus for having just finished her musical number with her bird friends.

“Tell your Wonderbolt friends that you can all start performing as soon as Sunset and her mom are done playing!”

With a wide grin, Rainbow’s eyes lit up. “Awww YEAH. Thanks, Twi!” She turned to her girlfriend. “Kiss for good luck, babe?”

What proceeded was not a kiss, but something a bit more passionate and fierce, as Fluttershy pulled her close and unleashed a long and passionate muzzle to muzzle display of affection, and once she let go, Rainbow looked as if she had been slapped, but to both of the other mare’s entertainment. “W-woah…! …Um!”

It was certainly a shock to see the shy Pegasus doing such a display. She sheepishly smiled. “What? I’m in a good mood…! Let’s go, Dashie. You’re gonna do great…!” They shared giddy nods, and flew away together. “Good luck!” The Princess of Friendship accentuated.

“What’s the next performance, darling?” Rarity questioned, as she joined Twilight at the table, with Applejack close behind her.

“Sunset’s playing with her mom and Pinkie– You two want to sit with me?”

With a mischievous giggle, Rarity winked at her love, who cleared her throat. “Um– No thanks, Twi, Me n’ Rares will find our own seats elsewhere!” Applejack stated, a bit flustered.

What she actually meant was that she and Rarity would find a comfortable place somewhere to makeout, regardless of the performance that would or wouldn’t be happening soon. And Twilight could obviously tell, knowing her friends well. She simply smiled and raised an eyebrow.

“See you later, Twilight. Let’s go, Applejack dear!” Rarity proclaimed, while grazing her tail alongside the Farmer’s flank and moving on.

“Bye Twi! Tell Sunset her playin’ was great!” Applejack followed close behind.

The Princess of Friendship simply sighed in delight, watching her friends walk away. The atmosphere of the party was so light– Everyone was having fun, especially her wife, and that’s what mattered most.

“Twilight.” Celestia stated plainly, sitting next to her.

“Hi, Queen Celestia! …So, everything went okay?”

“Hmm.”

“That bad, huh?”

She could see all over the Queen’s face that she had been thoroughly irritated. Without further ado, the curtains opened, And the Two Shimmers strummed their electric guitars loudly, while Pinkie accompanied them with drums, with an incredibly excited rhythm.

Twilight smiled widely, seeing her wife wink at her from the stage, as she got completely in the zone. She turned to Celestia, who was watching the show intently.

“Sooooo….. I take it bringing Luna into the conversation didn’t help?”

“Another casually treasonous display from my next of kin.”

“Surely it wasn’t that bad?”

“...She made fun of me.”

Twilight suppressed a giggle, knowing that despite her many years of experience, Celestia still had the same emotional fragility as even a normal pony would; regardless of all her grand qualities.

They both looked at the stage intently, where Sunset and her Mother shared a mic.

And of course, Twilight couldn’t keep a loving grin out of her face, gushing at her mentor. “They play so well together, don’t they?”

“I’m not jealous.” She lied, poorly, observing the two of them be incredibly happy on their display.

Taking a moment to think of what to say, the Princess of Friendship got a little bit closer, giving her mentor a comforting bump. “You know she values having you back even more than you do, right? Trust me. I know.”

A brief moment of quiet, as Celestia stared forward quietly.

“You’re not gonna lose her. Not again, not ever. She loves you, and I do too.”

The Sun Alicorn couldn’t help but smile, hugging her pupil, appreciating her wisdom. “Thank you, Twilight. The student has become the teacher, I see!”

“Pff, give me a decade or two still, I’m not in a rush.” She stated, turning her gaze back to her love, who was continuing to shred, joyfully. “I don’t mind us taking our time.”

The sun lowered, and the party’s energy lowered with it, even with its still loving liveliness. The two wives sat together on a table, distant from the other party goers, enjoying eachothers company, flank to flank. They watched the wonderbolts flying above them, performing an encore of tricks on the afternoon sky.

The gleeful murmurs of happy ponies, their laughter and snickers and even music accentuated their conversation; And despite that, they felt like they were alone; Like there was no one in the world but them.

They sat, leaning on each other; And to Sunset, who could feel emotions, this was something she always delighted herself in doing. Despite she, herself, being the one learning to harness the Sun, Being able to feel her wife’s feelings on skin-to-skin contact felt akin to being sat next to a comfortable fireplace; A much fuzzier and cuter one, at that.

She let out a listless sigh, with a smile, and her wife took notice. “What are you thinking about?”

A sly smile appeared on Sunset’s lips. “Read my mind, Sparkles.”

Nuzzling her, The Princess of Friendship made a cute humming noise, as if she was actually casting some magic, which she was not. “You’re thinking About… how lucky you are.”

With a wide eyed snicker, Sunset nodded. “You know, that’s not actually that far from it. Good guess!”

“I learn from the best, hihi.” Her wife knew her well.

Only a brief moment of silence passed, before Sunset nodded and continued, a bit more seriously. “...Sometimes, I forget that this is all real. I feel so lucky to have all this, I just… It almost doesn’t feel like it’s true. It feels like it’s a dream. Like a daydream…?”

With a quiet nod and a smile, Twilight knew better than to simply allow her wife to feel insecure. She moved a strand of hair away from her Sunset’s eyes. “I know what you mean, But it’s real, my Sun. It’s real and it’s good; Everyday is a gift with you, and we’ll have a thousand years of this to look forward to…!”

Trying to make light of those feelings, Sunset nuzzled her. “You’re awfully poetic today, Sparkles.”

“What? I’m in a good mood…!” She smiled sweetly, nuzzling back.

That resulted in Sunset getting even closer, with a loving smile. “Just sayin’, we don’t have to stop at a thousand…”

Even the suggestion sent a jolt of eager joy and excitement through The Princess of Friendship, and her wife felt it; As Twilight immediately said “And for the record, if this was a dream, I’d make it even better.” Her smile turned mischievous, and Sunset followed suit, getting even closer.

“Oh really? And how would you make it better, Sparkles?”

“Well for starters, i’d–”

A single firework sounded off, and both of their ears flicked back, Sunset turning her gaze away immediately, more aware.

With a groan, The Princess of Valor distanced herself from her wife only a little. “There isn't supposed to be any fireworks while the wonderbolts are flying– I better check out who’s making a misfire. I hope it’s not Pinkie…”

Twilight let out a small giggle. “Pff yes, I’m hoping our friendship reduces her pyrotechnic tendencies.”

“Cover me?”

“Of course, Sunsun.”

Sunset took off savagely into the sky, and Twilight easily held all the objects nearby down with her telekinesis, a maneuver they had both already rehearsed plenty of times.

Her flight was brief, and low. She kept her eye on the fireworks tent, wondering what had happened. Getting a bit closer, she could see a couple of ponies confused at the misfire.

She inspected the surrounding party for a little bit, mimicking the way Rainbow Dash would often scout Ponyville, ensuring all was well and okay.

She noticed something that did not raise much alarm at first. The gaze of the ponies around the firework tent led to a hooded figure, who was galloping away from the fireworks tent, and into the party, bumping into a bunch of other party guests, not exactly blending with the crowd.

The moment it raised an alarm was when Sunset saw the hooded figure glance back; Directly at her, and then continue moving forward… On the direction of her wife.

She didn’t waste time speculating, she simply flew down to be beside her wife, to take a better look at the suspect.

She landed, and Twilight could only state “Back already?” Before the magical impact happened.

The hooded figure shot some sort of strange magic blast towards Twilight, and yet, Sunset was in front of her, taking the whole hit.

She got thrown back, crashing against the table they were sitting by, much to both their shocks.

The Princess of Friendship inspected her wife thoroughly, relieved to find no wounds, and see her well awake, and managing to stand.

The hooded figure loudly and gleefully professed his victory. “A-HA! Gotcha! I, Hermes, finally have achieved my ultimate vengeance!!! You shall wander forever, Twilight Sparkle!!!” The crown-like halo machine around his horn fizzled and sputtered smoke, seemingly malfunctioning from having fired once.

“What’s the big idea, asshole?!” Sunset snarled, getting up and staring him down; Ready to tackle him.

But besides her, Twilight’s eyes widened with concern; To something that her wife did not notice.

There was a magical glow enveloping her.

“Sunset…?!”

The Princess of valor started levitating, and not by her own choice; As a strange magic swirled around her; And she herself was very confused and shocked; Not being able to do anything about it.

That panic increased even more when her limbs started fading.

Hermes, from the corner, fidgeted in surprise. “U-um, uh oh, I missed.”

Bit by bit her body seemingly vanished, and she had no idea what was happening or what she was feeling; And the rest of the party gathered around slowly, utterly concerned, having no idea what was happening.

Sunset did the last thing she could do. “I don't know what's going on– I love you, okay? I love you!! I love you so much–”

And then, she faded, like she was never even there.

Twilight watched in staggered grief, as the few sparks that remained turned to air, right where her wife was, merely moments ago.

It was as if the light of the Sun itself dimmed.

Celestia ran over, having felt it; As well as all their friends and family.

In the corner, Hermes started panicking, considering a getaway, fidgeting with the device atop his head. “C’mon, reload, reload, reload…”

Twilight’s gaze turned from grief to rage, as it moved to the cowardly Unicorn fidgeting with whatever that device was.

The air itself got electrified, as her eyes glowed; With her magic, she intensified the gravity on him, and then dragged him across the floor closer to her, crashing on several chairs and tables along the way, then bringing him to eye level, incapacitating him entirely.

Objects around them started floating erratically, as the Princess's rage could be seen generating sparks around them. Hermes whimpered, as he felt as if his entire body was pressing in on itself, his bones risking being crumbled to dust at any moment.

With a snarl, The Princess flipped him upside down, nullifying his magic with her own, looking eye to eye, tears bubbling in her eyes, but rage, endless rage, being her primary drive.

“WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY WIFE.”

Sunset Shimmer rematerialized, collapsing on a cold stone floor, And immediately let out a sigh of relief, as she patted herself, lifting hooves and raising wings, checking for wounds, being glad to find none. “I’m alive! Oh thank goodness I'm alive, I'm alive…!”

Letting out a huge shuddered exhale, she looked around, in confusion.

She was in some sort of jail cell, in fact, it looked like it was Canterlot prison.

“Twilight?! I’m here, Twi–”

She stopped, after turning around, eyes widened.

Before her, stood another pony, an Unicorn, one that was very familiar. After all… It was her.

Sunset Shimmer, dressed in a prisoner garment, with her horn bound, stared right at the Alicorn version of her that just dropped from nowhere, looking at her in immense confusion and disbelief.

They both spoke in unison.

“What the fuck are you?!”

Into the multiverse we go.

Art I made of Celestia, Flare, and Gold. I think its comical that Flare, being just an Earth Pony, can still get on her nerves, heheh.

So one thing I should probably clarify, I was going to put the "OC" Tag on this story not just because of Sunset Shimmer's parents, 'cause since there will be a lot of universes, some characters might be original here and there; Not to mention my own additions to the world, like the concept of the Valkyries, which will be explored more as time goes! (Specially through Sunset's combat prowess) Though I realized it made more sense to have "Mane 6" in the protag character tag.

Also regarding Flare and Gold-- I know a lot of people prefer to write Sunset Shimmer to be an orphan, and honestly, I don't mind that in the slightest, it's certainly compelling, but few people that do that ever actually go all in, explore her mommy issues with Celestia, and her insecurities regarding having failed the only mother figure she ever had, and whats more, exploring her desire of maybe being with Celestia again! All of those are compelling and interesting, but I rarely see writers go all in (like girl. are you just gonna stay in the human world paying taxes and never try to see your mom again?)

Either way. I had a pretty good idea regarding what kind of parents would have made Sunset "End up" the way she was, (stubborn hard headed punk that feels entitled to be the best) And realized there was a wonderful opportunity to craft a mother figure to be Celestia's rival in a very entertaining way. So forgive me for indulging in original characters but I'm having fun with them, heheh. Don't worry, they'll show up in the story again. And the mom fights will return.

Also regarding Celestia and Luna-- I kinda beefed them um big time (I don't like how wimpy they are in canon) even promoted them to Queens in this universe, since there now is a princess of the sun and one of the moon, (Twilight and Sunset) But above all, I took big inspo with their fun relationship in the comics, where they are a bit more goofy. I hope y'all enjoyed it!

Also, the song that Sunset and Flare sing is one called "For the kill" Which plays on the end credits of the movie Hardcore Henry, by far the dumbest yet funnest action movie ever made, heheheh. And The tone and lyrics of the song might be very descriptive of some of the future chapters.

Worth stating, the fic will not exactly be serialized, not every chapter will lead directly to another, meaning that sometimes there will be no connection or lead up, I'll simply throw you, the reader, and Sunset, into a new problem, but don't worry. I already planned out everything, beginning, middle, end, and every single chapter. And besides, not all chapters will follow Sunset's adventure.

Time to take the plunge! And meet some more Sunsets.

Life as a prisoner suited Sunset Shimmer. At least, that’s certainly what she believed.

For starters, there were no more responsibilities or stakes. Her one and only directive was to sit in a room, sit in a yard, sit in a cafeteria, and not interact with anybody, unless it was necessary. Training, working out, anything of that sort was merely a pastime by choice, and luckily for her, few dared to attempt to demand her attention. In fact, a place like this was perfect for someone for which being a bully came naturally to.

“Welcome to the land of the permanent sun, where the flowers are melted and the future is fun,”

Though it was not a problem. Other ponies knew well enough to leave her be, and what's more, Canterlot prison was a correctional facility, it was exceedingly comfortable, and made to improve the lives and dispositions of those in it, until they were free to go.

“The freeway lizards ain’t feelin' so good, on a one-way trip back to West Hollyhoof, let's go–”

Which was the only issue for her, really; Because this is exactly where she belonged. But it was certainly not a challenge to extend her stay. After all, all you have to do to stay in a place like this is to break something, or someone. And Sunset Shimmer was an expert at both, and more than eager to do so.

“It feels so good to have a, perfect song, it feels so good to be in total control…!”

It was, in a sense, almost akin to being in a permanent state of meditation. Not introspection, but rather, the absence of it, thinking of nearly nothing at all. Except, of course, her creativity was hard to suppress in a place with an absence of purpose. So she wrote songs. So she drew.

“It's so convincing, that something's missing, the sun is kissing, my face, and erasing my doubts,”

And naturally, to an ex-student of Celestia, it was easy to circumvent magical binds. She sat in her cell, in one of the highest floors of Canterlot prison, in a day like any other, feeling the rhythm of a melody that played in the distant cafeteria, and wrote her own song for it. Her horn was bound by a magic-nullifying cuff, but that was not enough to stop her, naturally. She pressed it against a wall and channeled its energy fiercely at the furthest tip, and made it work akin to a blowtorch.

“I'm going out, with a bang, and the fangs, of a parasite, I'm feeling alright, alright, alright, alright,”

Sure, she could have asked for a pencil and a sketchbook. But no. As if. Her art had the need to be something else; To be an imposition. And it sure as hell wouldn't be drawn with her mouth. She burned the tip of her horn, ignoring the pain, embracing it even, and made the walls of her cell into a canvas; moving her entire upper body, sometimes even rotating herself on an horizontal axis while remaining in contact with it. At times, she brought her bed closer to the wall, just so she could reach higher. This was her kind of meditation, being utterly in the groove.

“Alright, all night, alright, all night, alright, all night, alright, all night, alright, all night,”

A prisoner from another cell interrupted her groove, offering commentary on the fact she wasn’t exactly being quiet. “Is the song over? Is that how it ends?”

“Work in progress!” She barked, blinking, huffing, annoyed to have been pulled from her work.

“I like it! It’s interesting. ‘Metaphorical’? I guess? I don’t get it but I don’t need to.” The prisoner added, apologetically.

“Thanks, Corkscrew.” Sunset responded plainly, not wanting to make this into an actual conversation.

Another prisoner, in another cell next to her, had a different opinion. “Are ya done yapping? That song made no damn sense at all. What's with the lyrics–”

“Nopony asked for your OPINION, Peanut! Fuck off.” She barked in response instantly, dismissing any criticism.

“Right back at ya, Shimmer.”

She did not bite back. The best way to get her fellow inmates to shut up was to simply not respond; Unless they were face to face; Then she’d break their face. She returned to the center of the cell, observing her work, thinking of what she’d do next, what she’d change, considering spreading it to all the walls and even the floor. Before she could continue, fireworks sounded off in the distance, making her ears twitch, bringing her attention to the window atop the cell.

Blowing raspberries, she tried focussing on the wall before her, but as the explosions sounded in the distance, it drew her to them. She moved the bed towards that wall, jumped on it and held the bars to support her view; Using her back legs to lean her on the wall, and her front legs to hold onto the bars on the window.

In the distance, Canterlot castle was shooting fireworks into the sky. “Whoopdy fucking do.” She groaned, lingering.

And she continued to linger. Her expression softened, as she observed the shape of the castle towers in the distance. Her mind unwillingly brought her to think of how it was to walk within its walls.

“Ugh!”

She purposefully hit her head against the bars, and forced herself down. No more looking. And when she was on the floor, she bucked her bed for good measure. Bending the steel of its support a bit, but not much else.

Calm deep breaths. Close your eyes, and think of nothing.

Return to your art…

“Shimmer!” A familiar voice approached her cell. She instinctively exhaled, but did not respond.

Flash Sentry sat outside her cell, with his usual lighthearted demeanor, and wearing full royal guard getup. She sat, and raised an eyebrow. “What?”

Despite the coldness he was being given, he gave her a warm smile. “I don’t need a reason to check on my favorite prisoner, do I?”

“Whatever.” She looked back at the wall, trying to tune him out, with little success.

He tilted his head; Not critically, but in surprise, looking at the burn scratches in the wall. “I see you’re defacing another cell. How do you keep doing that?!”

With a look of feigned innocence, she rolled her eyes. “Oh me? I dunno man these things just appear in my walls. Crazy right? Maybe I’m haunted. Like by a ghost.”

That actually got a chuckle out of him, but it wasn’t hard to amuse the guard pegasus. “What is that, anyways, some sort of fireball with teeth?”

She was not surprised that someone wouldn’t get her art and its meaning, but it was still a tad disappointing, a disappointment she suppressed with a shrug. “Hell if I know, man. It’s just here.”

“Well how lovely. If it’s not you misbehaving, I can give in a good word and lower your sentence–”

That statement was not a joke to her. With a snarl, she instantly lunged at the cell bars, ignoring the pain of how hitting her head on them violently felt; shaking its foundations, and igniting the tip of her horn, pointing it at his neck. He flinched, but only a little.

She said nothing as she did this.

“Huh. So that’s how you do it.” He said, looking at her horn ignited akin to a soldering iron.

Swallowing her rage, she didn’t move an inch. “I’m not in the mood for your shit, Flash. Leave me alone.”

And of course, he didn’t. His gaze was one of stern concern. “Like I said. I don’t need a reason to visit my favorite prisoner.”

No response other than her ears twitching over the sound of more fireworks.

“And besides– I got you something.” He smiled again, and with a wing, reached out into his bag, and took out a little wrapped object, unfolding it in front of her.

It was a cupcake.

Leaning her head away from the bars, Sunset smirked dismissively. “Oh great. Dessert.”

“Some crazy pony brought like a thousand cupcakes to that party happening in Canterlot castle right now. Thought I'd bring you a little something!” He handed it through the bars with a smile, and after some hesitation, Sunset took it.

On inspection, it was an overly colorful miniature cake, full of sprinkles and almost like a rainbow.

With a shrug, she took a bite. It was incredibly sweet; But surprisingly not nauseatingly so. She felt the taste of multiple different kinds of fruit, and what seemed like multiple different kinds of chocolate; And maybe even a certain spice?

She grimaced, denying its enjoyment. “Crazy is right. Who the fuck puts this much sugar in anything?”

He tilted his head and smirked. “If you don’t like it, you can give it back.”

Her response was to defiantly eat the rest in a single bite, and chew it all while making eye contact.

“That’s what I thought.” That made him chuckle; because she almost choked.

A moment of silence passed, as she finished eating, laying on the floor casually.

“Did you bring me a cupcake?” A prisoner asked in the cell beside them.

“Aww, sorry, Corkscrew. Next time, I Promise!” The Guard responded, genuinely apologetically.

Letting out sarcastic laughter, Sunset condescended from inside her cell. “Cupcakes are for special prisoners only, bud. And for some inexplicable reason, this idiot thinks I'm it.”

Flash ignored that comment, turning back to his old friend. “Want to know what the big party is about?”

“No.” She lied, turning away.

And naturally, he didn’t take the hint. “Some kind of Celebration regarding the Princess of Friendship. I guess she took down another bad guy or something with her friends, saving Equestria again and stuff?”

“Don’t talk to me about her.” She responded, coldly. Incredibly cold.

“...Celestia is there.”

“Flash. Shut the fuck up.” Now she turned to face him. And her anger was not rehearsed, it was almost like a plea. There was untamed rage behind her eyes, and with a sigh, The guard nodded, giving in.

More silence.

He waited, for a little while longer, before changing the subject. “Want to hear what me and my girl did last weekend?”

Nothing but sarcasm in her tone. “I would rather be locked up in Canterlot prison. Oh wait…!”

“Sick burn, Shimmer!”

“Thanks, Corkscrew.”

“Medium burn at best.”

“Fuck off, Peanut.”

With an exhale, Flash rolled his eyes. “It must be exhausting to act like this all the time. Don’t you ever get tired?” It was a genuine question, hoping to get a genuine answer, a hope that would not be met.

“Dude, i’m laying in a cell. I’ve got stamina for days. So are you leaving me alone, or what?” She tilted her head, laying on the floor, with a sarcastic smile.

“...Yeah. Bye, Shimmer.” He answered plainly, and turned around and started walking away.

Watching him walk away removed the smile from her face. Her ears twitched, as the sounds of the fireworks ringed louder, and her breathing got uneasy.

She didn’t want to be alone. Not now.

“...So have you shown your new girlfriend that you play guitar yet?”

He stopped, and smiled. Now that was the Sunset Shimmer he was hoping to talk to.

Turning around, he gave her a warm smile. “Oh yeah. I serenaded the hell outta her; She was super into it, too! Mostly laughing though– I guess most mares aren’t used to getting these kinds of overly lovey-dovey stuff done towards them. I was kinda nervous about it, ‘cause in any retrospect, it felt so embarrassing and dumb.”

“Dumb can be pretty cute– And you could write a book about that.” Her smile was actually kind, as she nodded. “So what song was it?”

With a bit of a fluster, he scratched his head. “‘Love boat.’ We were actually on a boat; Like, on a romantic ride through the Canterlot canals– I didn’t just– Yeah.”

Sunset let out a groan, but she was still smiling. “Aww dude, that’s like. Prehistoric! You sure you shouldn’t have played something more modern? I figure chicks would be into that more, nowadays.”

He chuckled along, nodding. “Pff maybe. But she’s a classy lady, so I had to play classy.”

And that made her chuckle some more, with a genuine smile. “Flash Sentry, ‘Classy.’ Never thought I'd see the day. Well, that’s one lucky lady. Happy for you, man.”

Another warm smile, “Thanks, Sunny. I appreciate it.”

“Ew, don’t call me that.” That little pet name reminded her of the time they used to date, no thank you.

A prisoner teased her from another cell. “Heheheheh Sunnyyyyyyy!”

“Shut up, Peanut.” She barked back.

They shared a bit of comfortable silence, accentuated only by the fireworks.

Flash inspected her with concerned eyes, top to bottom. Full prisoner garments, hair cut short, and bags under her eyes. “...Do you… Do you ever wish you had made different choices? That you weren’t… Here?” He asked, genuinely.

She spoke simply, as these were facts. “Oh, I'm not leaving. In fact, Peanut is on top of my shit list. When the end of the month rolls around for my evaluation, I'll break a couple of her legs.”

“Sunset, that’s not–” He exhaled, reigning it in. “That’s not what I mean. I just meant like… Don’t you wish you could have done things differently…?”

Gritting her teeth, she tried her best not to be angry. She tried her best to entertain. “Are you asking me about regrets, or are you asking me about time travel?”

No response, as he sighed, wondering if asking this was a stupid idea.

But that silence urged her to continue. “I’ve been in this prison for like… Six years. All I have are regrets. Maybe in some other world I would have done better. But I doubt it. It is the Sunset Shimmer way to fuck everything up for myself and others. My trademark, really.”

He tilted his head in concern. “You could always try again…?”

“That’s a funny joke. There’s nothing to try.” She looked away dismissively.

He tried his best not to be exasperated. “Why don’t you just– Why can't you just behave, and then leave?!”

“You’re asking why not, while I’m asking why would I?” She responded, with a forced smile at him. No, that statement was not objective, it was deflective, and above all, it was a subject-ender; One that wasn’t her usual angry outburst.

Whether either of them liked it or not, this conversation was over.

With a sigh, he leaned his head against the bars. “Well… I’m gonna fly back to the party, I feel bad, so I’m gonna bring some of these guys some cupcakes. Want another?”

“I could take it or leave it.” She lied, with her mouth watering at the idea of tasting more of those bizarre, strange desserts.

“See you later, Sunset Shimmer.” He gave her a frail smile, and walked away definitely, and she did not respond, simply turning to face the wall with her art again.

And there she remained. Attempting to ignore the sound of the fireworks, attempting to focus only on nothing.

“Welcome to the land of the permanent sun…”

Until something happened.

With a strange, bizarre flash, a pony simply materialized in her cell, falling to the floor.

And it was not just any pony…

“I’m alive! Oh thank goodness I'm alive, I'm alive…!” The newcomer exasperatedly proclaimed, as she patted herself, checking herself for wounds.

That voice, and that mane, it was unmistakable, Sunset Shimmer was looking at herself.

But of course, not really, because this Sunset before her was an Alicorn. An image that was almost offensive to the Prisoner; Large wings, larger body.

“Twilight?! I’m here, Twi–”

That name, being said by that voice, and that face, with wings, the Prisoner was completely and entirely flabbergasted.

Their eyes met, and they were both equally confused.

“What the fuck are you?!” They both said, in perfect unison.

A brief moment of silence, interrupted by the Princess, with a flash, suddenly adorning full valkyrie armor, and raising her wings menacingly, her horn aglow.

With magic, she pinned the Prisoner against a wall, and snarled. “Are you a changeling?! Where am I! TALK!”

Sunset’s demeanor changed from frustrated confusion to utter fear, as she was entirely overpowered by Alicorn magic. “A-am I a changeling?!! Dude YOU’RE the one that just APPEARED in my cell!! What the fuck is going on?!?!”

The imagery of herself, significantly taller, significantly burlier, covered head to toe in armor, was nothing less than terrifying, from this perspective. “WHAT DID THAT HERMES GUY DO TO ME. WHAT–”

The Princess stopped, with her ears twitching. The fireworks…

With a single, fluid motion, she easily hopped over to the window, and gazed outside.

“...Canterlot…? What am I doing in– There’s no party scheduled here today…?!” She muttered, in utter confusion. She jumped back on the cell, with a loud thud, making the prisoner flinch. “Twilight. Where is Twilight?!! And what the hell are you– Some sort of– mocking illusion of me?!”

Unfortunately for her, the Prisoner was as confused as she was, unable to speak, as she sat against the wall, making no sudden movements, in surrender.

With one forceful motion, the Princess pinned the Prisoner further against a wall, and scanned her memories, an act she nearly instantly regretted.

“What the hell is wrong with you?!” The Princess backed up, with a grimace mixture of disgust and pity.

“What did you just do to me?!” Her other self responded, utterly confused.

Mulling on the disbelief, on the confusion of having just seen through memories of another version of her, she looked around in concern, and then her eyes landed on the wall, with the Prisoner's art burned into it.

“It’s… It’s us… When we stole her crown…!?” With an exasperated exhale, the Princess studied the burns on the wall intently.

What the art was, in fact, was the demon version of Sunset Shimmer, a snarling, vicious thing, hair akin to flames, baring teeth and crooked horn, demonic wings burned on that wall.

“You… you just… Choose… this…?!” with a distraught head tilt, the Princess scanned the cell and her other self from top to bottom.

The Prisoner, still leaning against the wall, didn’t want any part of this, whatever it was. She forced her mind to attempt to not rationalize, or even consider an answer to why in the world this was happening, and instead, simply spoke softly. “D-dude. You’re an Alicorn– So just teleport out of here and just leave me be, okay? I don’t want any trouble…!”

The gaze of the Princess narrowed even further, baring her teeth. “Do mom and dad even know you’re alive?”

“Cupcake time, everypony!” Flash Sentry’s voice gleefully echoed on the halls of the prison, and both the Sunset’s looked in that direction, naturally recognizing it. “That crazy pony gave me like– Dozens of them in this super tightly packaged thing–”

He stopped, regarding Sunset’s cell. In utter confusion, ignoring the cheers of the other prisoners. The Valkyrie looked at him in utter disbelief. “Flash?! What is going on here, do you know what’s happening?!”

His confused and concerned look switched between the two Sunset’s. “U-um. Shimmer, why is there two of you– And why is one an Alicorn, in full battle getup–”

The Princess did not wait for him to finish, using her magic to bring him closer, a bit too violently, and as he squirmed against the bars he was just slammed against, in disbelief, she touched his shoulder.

“You’re not my Flash!?– What the FUCK is going on?!” The Princess yelled in disbelief, as she teleported the guard inside the cell, pinning him against a wall.

“For what it’s worth, you look awesome in armor??” Was all he managed to mutter, as she loomed over him menacingly.

Then, her first option came to mind. Teleporting out of there was easy, flying out of there was easy, but there was one thing that needed to be done before anything.

She channeled her magic, and cast the spell that would call Twilight Sparkle to her side, the same one her wife had used to call her to her side earlier that day.

Nothing happened.

“C’mon, c’mon Twi, c’mon…!” Gritting her teeth, She started getting desperate, and used the spell again.

And again, and again, and again… “Where are you, where are you…?!”

Her ears twitched, her hide shivered, and she ignored the prisoner beside her asking what the hell was she doing.

She could sense an Alicorn coming.

With a flash, Princess Twilight Sparkle teleported into the outside of the prison cell, with a flustered gaze and tail whipping about.

“U-um– Did somepony call me here? Because I felt–” Turning, she saw the three residents of that cell.

Flash was the only one in there that behaved normally, nodding respectfully and giving the Princess a salute. The Prisoner backed herself all the way into the corner, muttering desperately “not her, not her, not her…!” All the while the Princess of Valor didn’t behave much differently, with a battle stance ready, her wings quivered in expectation and shock.

“Y-you’re not my wife…!!–” Was all she could muster to mutter, with a mixture of disbelief and despair.

That was indeed not her wife. This Twilight Sparkle was notably smaller, and she did not carry herself with nearly as much calm confidence as her wife did. Her hair was on a fancy bob, and she wore a party dress.

Both of them evaluated each other in confused, flustered silence. The Princess of Friendship’s heart beat faster, a natural side effect of their calling spell. “Y-you… Aren’t you…? Sunset Shimmer…?! Why are there two of you…? And an Alicorn, no less…?”

“Not her, not her, not her…!” Sunset Shimmer cowered in the corner, and faced a wall, eyes closed, trying to be as small as possible, hoping she would be invisible, with weak, unsteady breaths.

The Valkyrie did no such thing. With one single magical motion, she teleported the Princess inside the cell, and scanned her memories too.

A task that did not last long, due to the Princess of Friendship politely and kindly asking her to let go.

That request, from that voice, made the Valkyrie yield instantly. “Sorry! Sorry. I’m sorry.” She muttered, inconsolable.

“You’re… Not my wife… Did you… Replace her…?!” Studying her from top to bottom, Sunset loomed over her, in silent grief; seeing all these imperfections, these differences, from scent to shape, it wasn’t her. She didn’t understand what was going on, but looking at this impostor was heartbreaking; And it didn’t help that from the brief scan of her memories, she could tell this Twilight Sparkle ruled utterly alone, outside of her friends.

“L-look, I don’t know what’s going on, but… That Sunset Shimmer in the corner, that I know. But you…? You’re not from here, are you…?” She speculated, studying the Alicorn before her; Her touch made the Princess of Valor flinch.

Her gaze turned to the art on the wall, unable to make sense of it, and then to the Sunset in the corner. “It’s been six years, hasn’t it…? Are you okay, Sunset Shimmer?”

No response from the Prisoner, who just cowered in the corner of her cell, covering her face.

“U-um… Has this prison treated you well…?” The Alicorn tilted her head with pity and concern.

Now the Prisoner managed to speak, just barely, through almost with a desperate whisper, not making eye contact. “...Could you three please get the fuck out of my cell…?”

“That’s it.” The Valkyrie turned to her smaller, shriveled self, and grabbed her fiercely, almost akin to a headlock.

“W-what are you doing?! Let me go!! Why can’t you all just LEAVE?!”

“We’re taking this higher.” With a flash, the Princess of Valor teleported them both out of the cell, leaving the other Princess and the guard behind. She took flight outside of the prison, with one singular purpose; Canterlot Castle.

“STOP!!! TAKE ME BACK!!” The Prisoner desperately pleaded in her grasp, unable to escape it no matter how much she squirmed. Sunset Shimmer flew towards the castle at high speeds, ignoring her other self’s fears. and without a hesitation, picked the party room, and burst through a window.

She landed with impact, directly in the middle of the festivities, even knocking a table aside, sending dozens of plates crashing down.

The party was beautiful, as many Canterlot parties were. Banners, tapestries, Chandeliers, and many fancy party guests, this looked much like any other party, and yet, there were subtitle differences she could see here and there. Her nerves were high, as was her adrenaline, she was in full battle mode as her eyes shot in all directions, inspecting everything.

And of course, the party guests were utterly baffled at the armored Alicorn that just savagely burst in the party.

Familiar faces looked at her with no familiarity. Her gaze landed atop the party and her nerves spiked even further. Celestia, wearing a lovely party dress, glared at her with utter disbelief.

“Why, why, WHY?! Anything but her!!! Please just take me back–” The Prisoner desperately pleaded in her grasp. With magic, she dragged Sunset across the party with her as she galloped towards the Princess of the Sun.

“CELESTIA!” She shouted, pleading for this to be her Celestia, and not some bizarre impostor like everyone around her.

“A-a… A Valkyrie…?” The Princess questioned in the distance, in disbelief.

Guards around the room immediately took action, galloping and flying towards Sunset, in an attempt to stop her from continuing her run towards their princess. Unfortunately for them, they were dealing with a Valkyrie.

She dodged each attack and countered them without losing speed. Each blow was like a sledgehammer delivered with the swiftness of a dagger, and any magic cast at her was either easily deflected or countered.

She reached Celestia, with a look of confusion and despair. The Prisoner she brought with her squirmed in a panic, with whimpers and yelps.

“Please– You have to help me– I don’t know what’s going on, is this really you, or–” But she could tell. Merely by the gaze of utter confusion and shock. That was not her Celestia; And she herself was speechless, slowly coming to the realization of who was the armored Alicorn in front of her.

Bringing the Prisoner closer, she put her in a headlock again. “WHY ARE THERE TWO OF ME?! WHAT’S GOING ON?!”

The Princess and the Prisoner's eyes met, in utter despair. “Let me go, let me go, let me go,” Sunset desperately pleaded, averting her eyes and shaking like a wild animal, but the Valkyrie ignored her fears, ignored her pain.

“S-Sunset Shimmer…!? You’ve ascended…?” Gazing at her wings, her armor, her enhanced size, Celestia gasped, and yet, she knew that wasn’t her Sunset. Her Sunset was currently having a panic attack at the mere sight of her.

“HEY ASSWIPE! BACK AWAY FROM CELESTIA!” A familiar voice made Sunset’s ears twitch, as a Pegasus flew towards her at high speeds. She didn’t bother to look, dropping the prisoner on the floor, and delivering a swift right hook to the pegasus that tried tackling her, intercepting her immediately.

Rainbow Dash tumbled on the floor violently, nearly unconscious.

“SHIT! Sorry, Rainbow! I didn’t know–” But her ears shot back again. Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were all running towards her, with fighting intent. A shiver went down her spine, and she did all she thought was viable at the moment, and Lunged at Princess Celestia.

The moment they touched, Sunset showed her her own memories, in a desperate plea of demonstrating what had happened, in a desperate plea to understand what was happening.

“Stand down, everypony, NOW!!!!” With her bombastic Canterlot voice, Celestia commanded all of the ponies about to lunge at the Valkyrie to stop; And they followed that command implicitly.

Her demeanor changed entirely as her gaze rested back on the Princess of Valor.

“My… You… Sunset Shimmer… You would inherit my sun…? Together, you would inherit the sun and the moon… A rule of love…!” She mumbled, eyes teary, gazing at the Princess before her, with grief.

“Please… What is going on…?” Gritting her teeth in utter confusion, Sunset gazed back, desperately in need of answers.

With a long exhale, Celestia’s gaze alternated between the two Sunsets. “You are not my Sunset Shimmer… She is. You are from another world… Another universe.”

That made the Valkyrie sit down, head spinning in utter confusion. She was far, far, far away from home.

“Y’all mind tellin’ us what’s goin’ on here? Who’s this other Alicorn, Princess Celestia? And who’s her shivering twin over there?” Applejack tilted her head analytically, confused, pointing at the oversized armored figure and the prisoner.

On the floor, Rainbow Dash spat out a tooth, and groaned and mumbled incoherently; Fluttershy ran to her aid.

“Excuse me darling, but what is this fashionable armor you’re wearing? It’s simply divine!” Rarity approached the Valkyrie slowly and cautiously, studying it.

“Not the time, Rares!” The Farmer quickly corrected her, receiving a blow of raspberries as a response.

It was bizarre. Her friends looked at her as if they didn’t know her. And they didn’t, they really didn’t.

On the floor, the Prisoner cowered, her eyes desperately glancing at every direction in sheer panic, her heart beating miles per hour, as if she was surrounded by vicious predators. Every single pony in that party was looking in her direction, and she wanted to simply disappear– A panicked prisoner stood out immensely in this environment, and just glancing at Celestia made her stomach twist. Her heart raced even more when Pinkie Pie addressed her. “Hey, are you Sunset Shimmer? Did Flash bring you more cupcakes? It’s really nice to meet you!”

That was the last straw for the Prisoner, who, with the sheer panic and anxiety she felt, and the unintentional adittive of the overly sugary cupcake she had just eaten recently, vomited on the floor then and there, shocking all of the ponies that were staring at her. Celestia regarded her with concerned pity, which only served to make her feel worse.

As she let out a frail yelp, seeing an opportunity, with ragged, panicked breaths, she took off, in any direction that wasn’t here, at a panicked lightning speed, towards any window or door she could bolt out of.

But it was short lived. Her other self teleported right in front of her, stopping her in her tracks, and pinning her against the floor with a single hoof. “STOP RUNNING FROM YOUR LIFE! WHY ARE YOU SO AFRAID?!” She yelled, utterly enraged at this other version of her.

Squirming, gritting her teeth, The Prisoner thrashed pointlessly in her grip, attempting to punch her face with her hooves, doing no damage. “L-let me GO asshole!!! What the fuck is your PROBLEM!!? JUST LET ME GO!”

“My PROBLEM is that I’m an Alicorn Princess that is happily married and will inherit the sun– And you are a cowering sniveling thing that chose to rot in a cell, and SOMEHOW, WE’RE THE SAME PONY!!” Her screams echoed in the halls of the party, as all the party goers watched in disbelief.

Thrashing still, savagely and yet meaninglessly the prisoner attempted to free herself from her grasp. “I DONT GIVE A SHIT IF YOU’RE HAPPY– JUST LET ME GO!!”

“HOW DARE YOU BE AFRAID OF TWILIGHT SPARKLE– THAT’S SUPPOSED TO BE YOUR WIFE, YOU WORTHLESS SACK OF SHIT!!” Sunset Shimmer screamed so loud it brought about a hush within the party.

All of Twilight’s friends gazed at the insane display in confusion, and behind the two Shimmers, Twilight watched in equal shock, having just teleported in.

Celestia was the first to break that silence, as she teleported closer to the two, speaking calmly. “Sunsets… it’s okay. Please, no more fighting. Let us discuss this elsewhere…”

She offered a hoof to the Valkyrie, who accepted it. Together, the three teleported away from the party.

“Did that big scary lady say ‘wife’...?” Fluttershy asked, while helping Rainbow sit up.

“It sure as hay sounds like she did?” Applejack scratched her chin in confusion.

“I suppose it could have been kind of romantic– If that other mare had not vomited. Eugh…” Rarity backed away from the puke with haste.

“Twilight! Girl! Why didn’t you tell us you were getting married?! Congrats, girl!” Pinkie hopped to her friend, who was staring at nothing, in complete confusion.

The trio reappeared in a balcony, high in the castle, where all was quieter. The Prisoner, still panicked, did not manage to formulate proper words in the presence of Celestia, all she did was curl into herself, eyes shut.

“I’m sorry, I don't know what’s happening, I’m so sorry, I don't want to be here, just take me back to my cell, I'm so sorry–” She apologized endlessly, in pained mutters, unable to make eye contact.

“Sunset Shimmer… It took an interdimensional traveler intervening for us to finally see eachother again– Please, there is no need to fret.” The Princess of the Sun spoke softly, calmly, pleading for her old student to center herself.

Shivering, fearful, she did not reply anything other than apologies, wishing to be anywhere but here.

The Valkyrie took a deep, long breath, calming her own nerves, exiting her combat stance and demeanor. She gazed at this version of her with utter pity.

“Sunset Shimmer… May I see your face clearly, if you please…?” Celestia asked the Princess of Valor kindly, with her head tilted, urging this unknown version of her pupil to let go of her defenses.

With an exhale, Sunset returned her armor to her horn, and there she stood. The differences between the two Shimmers were staggering, but so were the similarities.

“...You’ve grown so much… Look at you…!” the Princess asked, with a mixture of quiet prideful mourning and grief.

Because of course, this was not her Sunset. Her Sunset was a shivering, cowering mess on the floor, panicked at the mere sight of her.

“Celestia… What is happening? Why am I here? How do I get back home…?”

The Alicorn of the Sun let out a sigh, and walked over to the edge of the balcony. “I’m afraid I have no clear answers, Sunset… But if I may offer a theory– You were cursed. Cursed to be cast upon another universe, my world… And I am afraid I have no idea on how to get you back to your home… Not now, anyway. Perhaps this requires deep research– I could summon Twilight, and we can go to the royal archives together.”

That last statement passed through the Valkyrie like a cold breeze. She shuddered, unable to make sense of anything, unable to think properly. On the floor, the Prisoner felt even worse.

Her gaze turned back to her other self, who was covering her face. “So this Sunset just… gave up…?! She just chose to stay rotting in a jail cell for the rest of her life?”

Approaching the two of them, Celestia let out a listless sigh, gazing at her Sunset. “...Yes. She did not accept any of our offers and second chances. She chose to extend her sentence indefinitely… Violently, if I may add. I tried sending her only friend to visit her often, to convince her that there was another way, and yet…”

Gritting her teeth, the Valkyrie closed her eyes, reminiscing on having shifted through her other self’s memories. “Flash tried, so hard… But I’m too stubborn. I was always so fucking stubborn…”

The Princess spoke once more with a mixture of pride and sorrow. “...That you were. But I suppose that in your world… You had the courage to carry on. And to think, you even married my other pupil…!” She felt, deep down, a form of envy, that was truncated by her sorrow over the state of her own Sunset.

But before they could continue, the strange glow enveloped the Valkyrie once more, as she floated against her will and her limbs began to fade. “Oh no, goddamnit, not again…!”

“Oh no– I believe it’s happening again! I was afraid of this–” Celestia studied her, trying to decipher what was going on; Sunset’s limbs were vanishing one by one.

The last thing the Princess of Valor could do was address her other self. “Don’t you DARE go back to that cell– You HAVE to try! You HAVE to become me! Don’t you–”

And just like that, she was gone, vanishing once more.

Celestia and her old pupil were alone.

All that Sunset did was lay on the floor, quiet, shivering.

“Sunset Shimmer.” Celestia stated, sternly and plainly.

The shivering stopped, the unicorn managed to open her eyes and meet her gaze. “I’m sorry, i’m so sorry, please just take me back to my–”

“No.” Another stern, and decisive motion from the Princess, as she sat next to her old pupil. “You are no longer welcome in my Prison. I will no longer enable your desperate attempts at running from yourself.”

All that Sunset could do was mutter.

“If you wish to do so… You are free to go. Go anywhere in Equestria you would like. Perhaps return to your parents, but…” Celestia bit her lips, as if preparing herself for what she was about to say next. “But if you would have me… I would like to have you as my pupil once more…”

The mere suggestion turned a knot in Sunset’s stomach. “W-why?? I don’t deserve it– I didn’t then, I don’t now! I-I’m not her, I’m not, I’m just not–”

With a softer tone, Celestia moved strands of her pupil’s hair away from her eyes. “Didn’t you see…? Didn’t you see what you could become…? You have to try, Sunset…”

“I-it’s too late…!” Grimacing with fear, Sunset recoiled from her touch.

“No. It never is. Your other self has shown me that– Despite her mistakes, she carried on, and became stronger than ever. Her world needs her, and now I see that mine needs you. She carried on, and now you need to, too. I’ve missed you, Sunset Shimmer– Will you be my pupil once more? Will you allow me to give you purpose, once again…?” Celestia planted a kiss on her old pupil’s forehead, in an attempt to calm her.

The shivering stopped completely. The offer shocked her. It uprooted her fears and insecurities and allowed them to be in plain view.

She sat there, with ragged breaths, understanding just what was offered to her.

Now all she needed to do was make a decision.

First universe, one of many.

The prisoner.

The song the prisoner Sunset was singing in the beginning is called "Valley of the Pagans" and is by the band Gorillaz! Not only does it slap but the lyrics were surprisingly meaningful to Sunset Shimmer on this. I like it!

Also writing Flash was surprisingly fun, and it won't be the last time I do it. It'd make sense for a caring guy to be her last and only 'friend' after everything. Plus, I should talk about Sunset's taste, because considering how she's enamored by Twilight, and she once dated Flash, it's pretty clear she likes "Cute" above everything lmao. And Flash's himbo tendencies are definitely cute.

Oh and Flash mentioned a song called "Love boat" it's real and I love it! it was the opening of an old show, and I think it slaps, and Sunset was right, its prehistoric lmao.

A lot of these universes might classify as short stories, but I'll keep tinkering with the formula! I don't plan on being predictable. But hey, I hope you enjoy either way!