Many Happy Reunions - Part Five

Chapter Five: Generosity and it's Limits


“…and that’s pretty much everything.” Quiver looked up at the mare beside him and gave a rueful smile. “Quite a bit to unpack, isn’t it?”

Sunrunner’s expression was noticeably sourer than his. “No kidding.” She’d kept silent as her coltfriend had elaborated upon the parts of his life story that she hadn’t already been privy to, mostly everything having to do with his family but also his brief adjustment period to living in Ponyville. Her expression turned regretful as she looked back up at him. “You really almost ended it all?”

He nodded sadly. “Sour slapped me over that. Wouldn’t be shocked if you did the same.”

“I think we can skip that.” She scowled. “And that mare Luster Drain?”

“Locked up and serving time for what she did, but something tells me she won’t be serving her full sentence.” He shrugged. “Equal parts cynicism and me doubting that she’ll do anything to compound her punishment.”

The scowl softened slightly. “Better than nothing, I suppose.” It faded as she leaned forward and gave him a hug. “Still, I’m sorry that you had to go through all of that. I’m not gonna say that you were always on my mind, but I did worry about you from time to time. Wonder how you were doing. That’s why I tried to get back in touch, but…”

“But if it wasn’t for my father, you’d have managed it.” He draped a forelimb around her and returned the hug. “Runnie, I’m not mad over that. Seeing you again, knowing what I know now, I feel a lot better over it.” He smirked and added, “And I’m really glad that I wasn’t the only thing on your mind over all that time. I’d worry if I was.” The hug broke off as he admitted, “Seriously, the universe shouldn’t revolve around anypony, especially me. And I’ve gotten more than my share of the wrong sort of attention for my liking.”

“So you’ve told me.” She frowned. “He really thought you faked getting a cutie mark?”

“He probably still thinks I faked getting it.” Quiver looked down at his flank and scowled. “Fur grows back and it’s still there, and that’s still not enough to convince him that it’s real.” He turned back to look at her and continued, “And him saddling me with every bit of housework and yardwork that he could think of every day whenever I didn’t have schoolwork to worry about just made things worse. Having a talent for something doesn’t automatically mean that you’re good at it, and you have to practice writing just as much as you practice any other skill. But the way he acts, I may as well have never gotten it. And there was always something for me to do, even after I got a job.”

“I remember.” She pursed her lips for a moment before she next spoke. “Quivs, there isn’t a nice way to say this, but it has to be said. Your dad’s a plot-rutting bastard.”

He turned to her in shock. “Runnie! That’s going a little far, isn’t it?”

“Let’s take a quick count.” She extended a wing and began ticking off items with her feathers. “You get suspended from school, and rather than try to hear your side of things, he lashes out at you and calls you a retard. He notices your cutie mark, assumes that you faked it, and tells you to scrub it off. He doesn’t notice that you scrubbed it off so hard that you were down to [i]bare skin[/i], which barely got covered again by the time you resumed classes, and starts working you like a dog rather than encouraging your talents or looking into the problems at school for himself. He takes every chance he can get to poke at you and make jokes at your expense, acts like he expects you to screw up…”

“More like he anticipates it.”

“…and when you make the decision to move out after years of that kind of treatment, he throws a hissy fit and bitches at you over all sorts of things that were never your fault in the first place.” She scowled as she looked over the singled-out feathers on her wing, then waved it off and pulled it in. “My parents never pulled that kind of horseshit on me. No parent should. It’s no wonder you seriously considered taking your own life, or that you almost killed somepony last night.” The scowl faded as she admitted, “But I’m just as glad that you didn’t. And I’m glad that you got out.”

“Did I?” Quiver gave her a fearful look as he explained, “Runnie, he raised me. Mom gave me plenty of love, yes, but he was still a big influence on my life, one full of impotent anger and rage just looking for a target. I don’t think I’m going to become him just because I share half his DNA, that’s stupid, but…”

A wingtip touched his lips as she assured him, “Quivs, you got out.” She smiled and assured him, “Yeah, fine, you’ve got some anger in you. Everypony does. But you’ve got a better awareness of it than he does, and much better control. Push comes to shove, you know how to hold yourself back.” She lowered her wing. “The fact that you shared all of that with your friends, and not just with me, tells me that. Recognizing a danger, and actively working to prevent it, is a lot different from what he’s done.” She then frowned and added, “Though from the sound of things, he’s not the only one you have to thank for your issues. Those grandparents of yours probably didn’t help. Probably messed him up too, along with your aunt.”

“Mom would probably agree with you.”

“Yeah, well, your mother’s not without blame in all of this either, but at least she never made you consider taking your own life. And if I ever meet Two-Face’s mom, I’ll have words for her too.” She then smiled and added, “And anyway, it’s his own damn fault if he can’t see you for who you are.”

A rueful half-smile formed on his muzzle. “A guy who got lucky?”

“A good, decent stallion with a big heart, who’s better than almost anypony gives him credit for.” She wrapped a wing around him. “You’ve made friends with the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, met three princesses and gave all four of them very good impressions despite not having personally met all of them. And that’s ignoring everything else you’ve accomplished. And if your dad can’t see all that good for himself, then like I said, he’s a bastard. And his opinion isn’t worth listening to.”

Quiver’s eyes never left hers, but his half-smile turned into a full one as he leaned over and gave her a hug. “I’ve missed you, Runnie.” She squeezed him back, and as the hug broke, he wondered aloud, “So, will I get to hear more about this cousin of yours?”

Sunrunner turned saddened as she admitted, “Not much else to tell, sadly. Mom’s still pissed about what happened to her. Pissed enough that she’s never told me exactly what Princess Celestia told her regarding her disappearance, and Dad never saw fit to say either. Which is a surprise, considering how hard it is to get him to shut up sometimes.”

“I remember. I like your parents.”

“They like you too.” She glanced around the cave and added, “So, question. How do we get out of here? I don’t think I can carry you up that slide.”

Quiver grinned. “Stairs. Follow me.”

-

As her cousin and his marefriend discussed things in private, Sour Sweet found herself feeling decidedly uncomfortable as she watched Pinkie Pie tend to the Cake twins.

“I don’t mind, dearie.” Startled, she turned to find their mother giving her an encouraging smile. “If you want to play with the babies, that is. They’ve got plenty of energy for you and Pinkie, trust me.”

“Oh, no, it’s not that.” The unicorn gave her an apologetic look and explained, “No offense meant to your children, Mrs. Cake, but young foals make me uneasy. They’re messy and unpredictable and…” She hesitated for a moment, unsure of what next to say. “Has Pinkie told you about last night? Everything Quiver and I shared?”

“Nothing specific.” The matronly mare turned comforting as she admitted, “But what little I’ve heard doesn’t paint a happy picture for your family.”

“That’s an understatement.” Sour frowned. “My mother went out of her way to shove me into the spotlight, present me in a way that she was happy with. Between that and no father, I didn’t have the happiest of childhoods. And Quiver had things in his own flavor of terrible thanks to my uncle. And as for our grandparents, well…” She flicked a quick glance at Pound and Pumpkin and asked, “You ever think of those two as a blessing?”

“Every minute of every day.”

“Well, my grandmother had three grandchildren, and only one of us got called a blessing. It wasn’t me or Quiver.” She turned back to her host. “And the really sad thing is, every time she’s seen me, she’s pressured me to find a nice stallion, settle down and give her another blessing. Her words. It’s not something I’m really in a rush to do.”

Mrs. Cake laid a gentle hoof on Sour’s shoulder. “Dear, I can’t say I blame you. What little Pinkie’s told me says that you’re trying to work through some personal problems, and from what you’ve said, it sounds like you’re afraid that you’ll continue where your mother and grandmother left off.” She then gave the mare a soft smile and continued, “Tell you the truth, all parents worry about something when it comes to children. In my case, well…” She lowered her head and admitted, “It was whether I’d ever have any of my own.” Sour turned surprised as her host admitted, “It’s no secret that I’m a bit on the old side to be having foals this young. My best friend growing up had her first one within a year of getting married to her foalhood sweetheart, but me?”

“It couldn’t have taken you that long to meet your husband.”

“Oh, that wasn’t the problem. Carrot and I met after he started apprenticing for my father, and we’ve been married, well, longer than Pinkie’s been alive. It was something else.” She looked to her children and their caretaker and said, “Thank the Maker for fertility treatments, otherwise…” She put that thought aside and continued on. “Anyway, you might find yourself that special somepony, or you might not. But things change, and ponies change. And you shouldn’t stop yourself from having something wonderful, just because you’re afraid of how things could go wrong.”

A shrug. “I suppose not, but…”

“But that doesn’t mean you should be in a rush either. And that grandmother of yours should understand that.”

Sour gave a rueful smile before her cousin’s return prompted her silence. “Hey Quiver. You and Warbler take care of what you needed?”

“Yep.”

A nod, then she turned to her fellow Guardspony. “You smack him?”

Sunrunner’s eyes tabled. “You already did that, Two-Face.”

“I know, but he’s a stallion. They’re stubborn.”

The pegasus smirked. “And us mares aren’t?”

Quiver managed a groan just as Pinkie approached with a gleeful look and both babies on her back. “Ooh, Quiver! Twilight sent Spike here with a message for you guys! She’d like you and Sunrunner to come to the library somewhere between eleven and noon! Didn’t say why, but I betcha it’s something important!”

The stallion raised an eyebrow. “Pinkie Sense?”

She gave a conspiratorial grin. “Nope! Not this time! And my lips are sealed!” She then mimed zipping her lips, and Pound and Pumpkin followed suit.

Quiver smirked. “Fine then, be that way.” He turned to Mrs. Cake and said, “Can we get something to go?”

-

Rarity frowned as she continued her work, and tried her best to put her mounting frustrations out of her mind. She had worked hard upon all of the dresses she’d made for her current client, and all of them had been rejected. Granted, she could likely find somepony who wanted them – Primrose’s physique was hardly any different from that of the average mare – but still, it irked her to have to endure this sort of thing.

She paused over her materials, before she could start stitching everything together, and quietly groaned. A part of her hoped that she was simply dealing with a picky customer, while another part of her found herself wishing harm upon whomever had dreamed up the axiom of the customer always being right. Nonetheless, she found herself thinking that her earlier hopes regarding Primrose had been dashed. Fortunately, Quiver wouldn’t lord this over her too much.

“So you think they’ll find that fag Quiver?”

Rarity, despite herself, had always had an ear for gossip, and found her attention firmly on her customers as Primrose laughed. “Of course they will. He can’t be that hard to find in a dump like this town, and all they have to do is encourage him to think Chum-Scummer will be there. Even if she isn’t, well, he always wanted to feel like he was wanted, like other ponies liked him. Promise him an award, and he’ll some running like a dog for table scraps. And we’ll be ready for him.”

Brick chuckled darkly. “Can’t wait for him and High Note to reunite.”

“And I know High Note will be happy about seeing his boyfriend too, but that won’t be the half of it. By the end of that reunion, we’ll break…”

The door leading into Rarity’s workshop banged open, and the fashionista affixed them with her fiercest glare. “Get. Out.”

Primrose gave her a disbelieving look. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me!” She strode forward and declared, “Get! Out!”

One unicorn looked at the other in surprise, with the green-eyed one finally casting a smirk towards the blue-eyed one. “You still owe me a dress.”

“I owe you [i]nothing[/i]!” Rarity maintained her glare as she elaborated, “First, you haven’t yet paid me for my services! No exchange of funds, no exchange of goods! Second, I refuse to be even a distant party to whatever cruelty you happen to be planning!” No sense in letting slip that she and Quiver were acquainted with one another. “And third, I have the legal right to refuse service to whomever I choose for whatever reason I choose, valid in both Ponyville and Indianapoloosa! So I reiterate! Get! Out!”

Primrose eyed the mare before her until her grin turned into a sneer. “Oh, you poor, poor soul. You don’t want to do this. You toss me out, and it’ll mean the end of your career in the fashion industry. Who will want to do business with a madmare who’d toss out a customer at the drop of a hat? They’ll think you’re insane.” The sneer deepened as she added, “The press will eat you alive.”

Rarity grinned. “Between the two of us, darling, they’ll have plenty to dine upon. After all, what will they think when it’s revealed that you were wearing a fake gemstone in your engagement horn ring?”

A haughty laugh. “Fake?”

“Fake. False. Not true.”

“As if they’d…”

“I’m a certified gemologist, one of my closest friends grew up on a rock farm, and I have a very wide social circle and the wiles to use it.”  

Primrose paused at that, and Rarity could see her considering her options. After a few seconds, she turned her head to one side, the sneer still on her face. “Brick?” The stallion straightened up at that. “We’re leaving.”

Brick looked between the two mares in surprise as Primrose turned and made her way out of the shop, but quickly moved to follow her out with little prompting. As the doors closed behind them, Rarity took a deep breath. She expected trouble over this in the future, and likely in the very near future, but better a loss in business than a loss in principles.

Besides, now she could look Quiver in the eye again.

A knock sounded from somewhere within her shop before a drawer popped open and a familiar pink pony’s head popped out. “The meanie-pants bully is gone, right?”

“Yes Pinkie, fortunately.” Rarity had long gone past the point of questioning how her friend did all of the things that she did, and was just grateful that she was being a little more thoughtful about it. “What brings you my way?”

“Oh, just a little bit of good news that I didn’t want that Primrose lady to know about.” Pinkie pulled an envelope from her mane and held it aloft with her hoof. “But I definitely wanted you to know about it.”

The envelope was taken up in the unicorn’s magic, and she opened it to reveal and review its contents. Her eyes widened, and she took in a sharp intake of breath before screaming gleefully and dancing in place.

Pinkie grinned. “I know! I can’t wait for you to meet her!” The grin faded as she turned serious. “Anyway, I need your help.”

Rarity’s grin soon matched her own. “Whatever it is, darling, I’m in.”

-

Sunrunner idly took another chomp out of her muffin as she trotted along beside Quiver and Sour. “Quivs, you remember when we were kids, and you talked with me about Occam’s Razor?”

“Hm-hmm.” Quiver swallowed the last of his own muffin, then brushed some crumbs from his muzzle. “What of it?”

“Well, maybe it’s just me being suspicious, but I’m starting to think there’s something going on around here, and that your friends have been interested in me some time. I mean, Pinkie went so far as to fetch Princess Twilight to chase me down as soon as she heard I’d shown up. And the princess outright said that she’s been trying to track me down for a while now. You don’t do that for a random pony.”

“And you’re trying to figure out why.” At her nod, Quiver pursed his lips thoughtfully. “Well, I don’t like to speculate without having more information available to me, but what little’s there suggests that Twilight has an interest in you.”

“Yeah, but it doesn’t explain why she’s interested. That’s the critical question.” She looked to her fellow Guardspony. “No thoughts on this, Two-Face? No accusing me of having an ego?”

Sour shook her head as they approached the library. “Nothing beyond the fact that if what I think is going on is the truth, then she wouldn’t want me to spoil it for you.”

That raised eyebrows with the other two ponies as the door to the library opened and a familiar little dragon greeted them. “Hey guys. Nice timing. Come on in.” He gestured them inside before turning back and calling out, “Twilight! They’re here!”

With a quick flash, Twilight winked into the main chamber of the library with a nervous but hopeful expression on her face. “Perfect!” She took a breath to collect herself and stepped forward. “Sunrunner, I’m sorry for not saying anything about it to you earlier, but I had to make some arrangements before I could do anything definite. Like I said earlier, I’ve been trying to find you for months, on behalf of somepony you know. Your cousin, Sunset Shimmer.”

That immediately had the pegasus’ attention, and Sunrunner noticed the satisfied look in Sour’s eye. “You knew!”

“I suspected.” The unicorn gave an apologetic smile as she explained, “Sunset was brought up in my briefing when I became the princess’s bodyguard.”

Sunrunner frowned, then turned to the princess. “Okay, Sour being briefed on her means she’s likely to come up in her duties. And if you’re trying to get in touch with me on her behalf, then there’s a chance you’ve had contact with my cousin. So two questions. First one, how do you have contact with her? Second, how long?”

“I’ve had contact with her since the Princess Summit this spring in the Crystal Empire. As for how, well, it’s a long story.” She turned to the lone stallion in the room and asked, “Quiver, you’re familiar with the concept of alternate realities, aren’t you? Parallel dimensions, alternative timelines and so on?”

“Yeah, that sort of thing’s been showing up in fiction for decades. But last I checked, as far as real world science went, it wasn’t much beyond a theory.”

“Real world science is a little over a thousand years behind the times.” She gestured for everyone present to follow her as she explained, “During the early days of Equestria, Star Swirl the Bearded created a number of artifacts that could allow for travel between alternate worlds.” She led them down into the library’s basement. “He and Princess Celestia used his prototype to visit a number of them. And almost three years ago, Sunset used a later version to travel to one. She’s been living there since.”

Sunrunner’s attention went to the ornate mirror in one corner of the basement lab. “Is that the portal? It looks like a fancy mirror.”

“No. The portal Sunset used was moved to the Crystal Empire in time for the summit, and it’s stayed there since.” The group approached the artifact as Twilight explained, “This one’s related to it. It leads to what we’ve dubbed a ‘bridge realm’ between the two worlds. It’s one of the methods I’ve used to keep in touch with her.”  

Sunrunner raised a hoof to the glass, and pulled it back in surprise as she saw ripples form on its surface. She turned to Twilight and asked, “She went all the way to an alternate world? Why?”

“That’s probably something you’re better off hearing from her. I’ve been in touch with her, and if she’s not waiting for you in there now, she will be soon.” The princess gave a hopeful smile. “And she’d like to speak with you.”

Sunrunner’s gaze drifted to the floor. “Does she now.” She turned back towards the portal and added, “She and I didn’t exactly part on good terms.”

Spike stepped up with a worried look. “Don’t you want to see her again?”

“I do, but…” A rueful laugh escaped her muzzle. “Thousands of changelings? No problem. Reuniting with a wayward relative? That’s another matter.”

Quiver stepped to her side. “Runnie, if you want us to stay out of this…”

“No, I want you all with me. If nothing else, it’ll stop me from running.” She stood up straight, took a deep breath, and then stepped forward through the portal. She emerged on the other side, then looked around at the seemingly vast, cavernous space as Twilight emerged behind her. “Well, can’t say I’m not impressed.”

As the other ponies joined them and started gawking despite themselves, Twilight grinned. “Yeah, the awe never really goes away.” She then turned to the Pegasus and added, “Just a warning, but Sunset’s going to look a little different from the last time you saw her. Not bad different, just a little outside of normal by Equestria’s standards.”

“I can deal with that.” She turned back to Twilight and just caught the mirror at the opposite end of the space before them begin to ripple. “But where do I start? What do I say to her?”

“Maybe I could start instead?” Sunrunner’s ears went alert at that familiar voice, and she turned to find a very unusual creature looking back at her with some very familiar features and a nervous expression on her face. She waved a forelimb and gave a nervous smile as she said, “Hey Runnie. Long time no see.”

It took the mare a couple seconds to process what she was seeing, and she stepped forward as if on autopilot to get a better look. The creature was taller than her, perhaps even tall enough to look Princess Celestia in the eye, and clearly some form of primate, with long legs and forelimbs that ended in appendages with five digits each. Her skin lacked fur, but maintained a familiar amber shade, while her eyes and hair were all too familiar. “Shims?”

And then the creature sang a tune that Sunrunner recognized all too well.

“Do you want to build a snow-mare?”

Her voice was low, frightened and uneasy, but nonetheless, she was clearly singing, and as it continued, it was clear that she was trying her best, and failing, to hold back tears as she continued.

“We could’ve been best buddies.
But we were not,
It’s all my fault,
But can’t we try again?”

Sunset Shimmer bowed her head and closed her eyes as she quietly sang, “Do you want to build a snow-mare?”

She felt soft feathers dab at her face, and opened her eyes to see her cousin look up at her, quietly weeping herself as she smiled and sang in reply.

“It never had to be a snow-mare.”

Sunset collapsed to her knees and took her cousin into a warm hug. “I’ve missed you, Runnie.” She wiped away what she could of her tears as she continued, “And I am so sorry. For everything.”

“Why should you be sorry?” Her cousin was wiping away tears of her own as the two broke off. “I’m the one who should be sorry. I came on too strong, scared you off.”

“No, you didn’t. I pushed you away.” Sunset gently ran a hand down her cousin’s neck. “Back then, with everything going on, I thought… I felt like you and Aunt Flare and Uncle Streak were trying to make me forget about my mom and dad, and take me away from everything I knew. I know you didn’t mean that now, but that doesn’t excuse how I acted, or how I treated you. That’s no one’s fault but mine.” She took one of her cousin’s hooves in her free hand and continued, “I know that I was a terrible big sister to you, but if you give me the chance, I’d love to try and be a great cousin for you.”

Sunrunner frowned. “No. I can’t do that.” She then smiled. “Because you were always an awesome big sister. And nothing’s gonna change that.”

The two laughed, then hugged again, before Sunset turned to the princess. “Thanks Twilight. I told you that you’d do it, didn’t I?” That prompted a laugh from the alicorn before she turned back to her surrogate sibling. “So, you want to make introductions, or should I start guessing?”

Sunrunner laughed, then gestured the remaining two ponies forward. “Shims, meet Sour Sweet and Quiver Quill. Sour and I went to the Academy together, and now she’s Princess Twilight’s bodyguard. Quiver’s her cousin, and my coltfriend.”

“And somepony you wrote a lot about in your letters.” She grinned a little at her cousin’s blush, then raised a hand and balled it into a fist. “Nice to finally put a face to the name.”

Quiver smiled and raised a hoof. “Likewise.” The pair shared a hoof-bump before the stallion laughed. “Lyra will go nuts if she ever finds out about this.”

Sunset looked at him in surprise. “You’ve met Lyra Heartstrings?” At Quiver’s nod, she laughed. “Small world. But yeah, you’re right. Seeing me would be a dream come true for her.” She turned back to Sunrunner and explained, “Consequence of going through the portal. It turned me into a human, or at least a close approximation of one.”

“I was wondering about that.” She then gestured to Sunset’s chest and asked, “So, what are those things on your chest?”

Sunset rolled her eyes at the inevitable question. “They’re mammary glands.”

Her cousin looked at her in shock. “Are they always that big?” Her cousin nodded, and she decided, “Humans are weird.”

Sunset chuckled. “Don’t knock it ‘til you’ve tried it. Besides, I’m actually considered pretty attractive by human standards.” The mirth faded from her voice as she addressed the elephant in the room. “So, I guess you’ve got some questions.”

“I do.” Sunrunner sat down in front of her cousin, with Quiver and Sour following suit close by. “For starters, what happened? Why leave for an entirely different world? And what caused you to want to get back in touch?”

The former unicorn sighed. “It’s a long and very painful story.”

Her pegasus cousin gave an encouraging half-smile. “I’ve got plenty of time. And if you’re worried about the two of them, well, something tells me Sour already knows, and I’m not gonna leave Quivs out of the loop.”  

Sunset smiled. “Good for you.” She then began her story, and indeed, it had been a long and painful one. Even those already in on some of the pertinent details found themselves moved by her words, with Twilight and Spike both bowing their heads and providing the former unicorn comfort, until she reached the midpoint of her tale.

“…and thus ended my reign as Queen Bee of Canterlot High.” She gave her cousin an apologetic frown. “You must not be too thrilled, after all the trouble you had with your bullies.”

Sunrunner shook her head. “No, but as terrible as you were, you never got physical.”

“And you’ve shown a lot of obvious remorse.” Quiver looked up at her with a comforting smile. “I doubt Primrose would ever show anything like that, even after getting a face-full of magic from all six Elements of Harmony, let alone one. I don’t like bullies, but repentant bullies? That’s a whole different matter.”

The pegasus among them grinned at her coltfriend. “Ain’t that the truth.” She then turned back to Sunset. “So, I guess you did read my letters.”

“A lot later than I should have, but yes, I did.” The flame-haired girl nodded towards Twilight and said, “Princess Celestia found them, and Twilight got them to me just in time for the human world’s equivalent to Hearth’s Warming.” Sunset rolled her eyes and corrected herself, “One of them, anyway. Lots of winter holidays, each with their own origin and some older than others. The letters were kind of a mixed blessing, but I was glad to have them, even with everything that went down.”

Quiver noticed the saddened look on Twilight’s face and frowned. “Let me guess, another long and painful story?”

“More like a short and painful story.” Sunset sighed and explained, “After everything went down at the Fall Formal, I was looked after by the girls that I’d hurt the most, the counterparts to Twilight’s friends in Equestria. Up until that time, I thought that things were good. And then Anon-A-Miss happened.”

“Thanks to a mix of jealousy, lingering fear and hate towards Sunset, the counterparts to the Cutie Mark Crusaders decided to frame her for sharing secrets about other people around Canterlot High in an open forum using the false identity of ‘Anon-A-Miss’.” Twilight looked to Sunset and explained, “It only took a couple days for the girls to accuse her of the deed and cast her out. The secrets kept coming, and…”

“…And after I got mobbed by some of my supposed victims, I hit rock bottom and almost killed myself.” Shocked and sympathetic expressions were on Quiver and Sunrunner’s faces as Sunset continued, “Twilight stopped me in time, but it was only thanks to Pinkie’s sister Maud that the girls worked up the nerve to apologize for how they treated me. And after that, it was a couple weeks, some hard questions from a therapist for all six of us and me getting targeted by a fragment of the Nightmare as a new host before the entire situation was resolved.”

Sunrunner’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Did they get punished for it?”

Sunset nodded. “I almost took the Crusaders with me by accident, and that finally shamed them enough to confess to their crimes and turn over everything they had on those who’d contributed to Anon-A-Miss. Everyone who submitted got punishment for it. And as for the mob, well, once there was evidence to back up what happened, they got punished too.”

A grim but satisfied expression remained on the pegasus’ muzzle as she decided. “Good. You didn’t deserve that.”

“There were a lot of things that she didn’t deserve, from the sound of it.” Curious expressions turned to Quiver as he asked, “Sunset, Celestia showed you the Crystal Mirror, and after you had that vision and asked her about it, she never told you anything.”

“No. Like I said, she didn’t think that I was ready.”

“Well here’s a question for you. If she didn’t think you were ready to know the full details about the mirror, then why show it to you in the first place?” Before Twilight could even start to protest, the stallion turned to her and countered, “Don’t pretend for one second that what I said isn’t a valid question, Twilight. You and Sunset have both had to wonder about that at some point.” He glanced around and reasoned, “I think we’re all wondering about it. I’m just the only one here who can get away with saying anything and not feel like I’m betraying her, or my mental image of her.”

Twilight winced at that, but nonetheless protested, “Quiver, you’ve never met Princess Celestia…”

“I don’t need to meet somepony in the flesh to know that they’re capable of making mistakes, Twilight. Her taking you and Sunset on as students was no mistake, certainly, but the way she handled things with Sunset and the mirror is a mistake at best. And given my history, you can see why I’d consider the worst-case scenario.”

The princess looked at him in shock. “Quiver! Celestia isn’t your father!”

“No, which makes this all the more damning, especially in light of what went down after this Anon-A-Miss mess. You and Sunset have kept in touch, and you stopped her from trying to kill herself. Did Celestia know about any of it?”

“Of course she knew!”

“Then why didn’t she do anything about it?! If my father heard about my instance of considering offing myself, he’d at least read me the riot act about causing some stunt to get attention! But Princess Celestia’s hardly done anything! It’s like she’s washed her hooves of Sunset and made her your problem!”

Sunset looked at him in shock. “You almost…?”

“When you spend a good chunk of your life dealing with an emotionally abusive parent telling you how the world and everypony in it will treat you like shit just because it can while demonstrating it for himself, and every other adult in your life gives you anything from well-meant empty gestures to straight up apathy while bullies make your life miserable, it’s not hard to start thinking that you’re the problem, and that the world might be better off without you.” He shot her a sympathetic look and assured her, “You’ve got a lot of guilt over the hurt you’ve caused, and that’s fair, but not everything is your fault, Sunset. What you did at Canterlot High is on you, and you’ve owned up to it, but the road that led you there, after getting enrolled at the SfGU? Celestia’s got no one to blame but herself for that, and I can only hope that she’s already realized it on her own.” He then frowned and added, “But if she has, then there’s still no excuse for her not setting the record straight and owning up to you. Especially after that Anon-A-Miss mess.”

“But Celestia said that she was sorry…”

“And a lot more needed to be said beyond that. And still needs to be said.” Quiver gave Twilight a firm look and finished, “The sooner, the better.”

Both Twilight and Sunset bowed their heads as they considered Quiver’s words, only to be distracted as loud clapping sounded from nearby. Heads turned as a startlingly-familiar young woman with finely-curled purple hair admonished, “Photo Finish!”

The other teenage fashionista scoffed. “Please Rarity, do not pretend zhat you vere not thinking of doing zhe same!”

Rarity sighed, then turned to her friend in regret. “My apologies, Sunset.” She approached with Photo Finish in tow and explained, “I knew that you wanted this time for yourself, but it was all that I and everyone else could to restrain Photo Finish from interrupting your reunion. Stopping her from entering the bridge realm was, alas, impossible.”

Sunset shook her head and managed a slight smile. “It’s alright, Rarity. All the important stuff got dealt with.” She turned back to her cousin and asked, “I guess I don’t need to make introductions.”

“No, kinda obvious who they are.” Sunrunner’s gaze turned to the portal leading back to Canterlot High as she wondered aloud, “But why didn’t we notice them earlier?”

“That’s one of the things I’ve been trying to figure out, with Sunset’s help.” Twilight shrugged. “Best guess is that transit through the bridge portals leaves the user with a temporary effect similar to the Not-My-Problem spell, though we don’t know exactly how long it lasts.”

Quiver raised an eyebrow. “Everyone makes their presence known before it wears off?” The princess nodded, which prompted a laugh on his part. “Better that then all of us just failing to pay attention, I guess.”

Sunrunner laughed as well before she turned to face the human Rarity. “Rarity, huh? It figures. The one bearer of an Element of Harmony that I haven’t met yet, and I meet her human counterpart first.”

“I’m honored.” The fashionista knelt down to get a better look at the pegasus, and seemed to be making a genuine effort to restrain her hands from stroking the pony’s fur. “And delighted to meet you, Lieutenant. Sunset’s told us a great deal about you, and I must say, you look very much like how I imagined that you would. I just hope that what you’ve heard about myself and my friends hasn’t soured you towards us.”

Sunrunner frowned. “I’m not gonna say I’m happy about how you treated her.” The frown softened as she leaned forward. “But she’s forgiven. I can do the same. Just don’t repeat your mistakes, huh?”

Rarity cooed and ran a hand through the pony’s mane. “Oh, of course not!” She then giggled and admitted, “Oh, you are absolutely adorable!”

Photo Finish made a dismissive snort. “Zhey are all adorable!” She then waved at Quiver and noted, “Save for zhe stallion. He is too mannish to be adorable.” She gave him a sidelong glance and added, “No offense.”

He rolled his eyes. “None taken, I suppose.” He then turned to Sunset. “Now I’ve gotta ask…”

“Yes there’s a human version of Lyra, no she doesn’t know the truth yet. I’m just waiting for her to ask.”

“Okay, thanks for clarifying, but I was wondering about something else. You and Twilight are trying to figure things out, right? Anything that we should know about in particular?”

“Mostly how the portals work and how the magic from our world is interacting with the human world.” Twilight grew hesitant as she amended, “Among other things.”

Sunset turned to Photo Finish, who raised a hand and vowed, “You have mine word zhat nothing discussed here escapes my lips without your permission.”

“We’ll hold you to that, dear.” Rarity got back to her feet. “You recall that magical crown from the Fall Formal? Well, that crown was an artifact from Equestria, which as you know, Sunset attempted to use for her own ends. It’s one of a set of six, collectively known as the Elements of Harmony. Twilight and the pony counterparts to myself and the other Rainbooms were their bearers for about nine months or so before that incident.”

Sunrunner raised an eyebrow and grinned. “Rainbooms?”

Sunset smirked. “They formed a rock band, long story.” She then got to her feet and continued where Rarity left off. “Anyway, while everything was going down with Anon-A-Miss, a situation arose where Twilight and her friends had to return the Elements to their source, another magical artifact called the Tree of Harmony. After that was done, the Tree grew something that we’ve started calling the Chest of Harmony.”

“You remember those blueprints that I was studying last weekend? The ones Silver Spoon took an interest in?” At Quiver’s nod, Twilight explained, “Those were for the Chest. I’ve been spending the last few months trying to find a way to open it, but no luck so far. It looks like it needs six keys to open it, but every effort we’ve made to try and find them has come up empty, and I don’t want to try and pick the locks.”

“Afraid that it won’t work?” At Twilight’s nod, Quiver brought a hoof to his chin. “Makes sense. And I’m not surprised word about this hasn’t gotten out.” He frowned and admitted, “I can’t say that I envy you, Twilight. I wish I could help.”

“Who says you can’t?” At his surprise, Twilight smiled. “Quiver, you figured out that Nightmare Moon was coming back without even trying, and another set of eyes can’t hurt. Maybe you’ll find something we’ve missed, or come up with an idea that hasn’t occurred to us. I certainly wouldn’t mind the help.”

Sunset gave him an encouraging smile. “And you’ll be a lot more helpful with that than I’ve been, at any rate.”

He considered their words for a moment, then smiled. “Well, I don’t have all the time to apply to it that you do, but I can try.”

“Thanks.” Twilight turned to Sunset and added, “And I’m glad that Vinyl wasn’t the last one to learn the truth. Hopefully, this is a good sign.”

The flame-haired girl grinned. “Fingers crossed.”

-

“So, anyone else hoping things are going okay in there?” Pinkie Pie glanced among her friends and those newly introduced to the truth, gathered together in the teacher’s lounge at Canterlot High, and worriedly asked, “I mean, things are probably going okay in there, right?”

Fluttershy quietly laid a hand on her friend’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Pinkie. We’re all worried for Sunset. This is her first time seeing her cousin in a long time, and…” The mirror rippled as Photo Finish emerged, with Rarity and then Sunset following. “Oh dear.”

Everyone’s attention turned to Sunset as she smiled. “It’s okay everyone. I’ve seen Runnie. We’re good now.”

Exhales of relief sounded as the remaining four Rainbooms gathered close and embraced their friend. Applejack in particular seemed relieved as she took Sunset into a hug. “Good to know you an’ her patched things up, Sunset. Wish it hadn’t taken this long.”

“Me too, but…” Sunset frowned. “I think I still have some unfinished business to deal with. We both do. Not with each other, that’s squared away, but…”

“But that’s life, sugarcube. There’s always a loose end somewhere.” The farmgirl smiled hopefully. “Give it time, and you’ll get there. Right now, Ah say we celebrate.”

Sunset smiled back. “Yeah. Let’s do that. One small favor though, before we do that.” She tipped her head towards the one male present and asked, “Can Flash and I have the room?”

No one dissented from that, and the rest of the girls filed out, leaving the flame-haired girl alone with a very confused young man. “What’s all this about?”

“This.” Sunset rushed to him and took him into a warm embrace. “Thank you, Flash. For everything. For giving me a chance when you had every reason not to, for standing by me, for…” She laughed even as she fought back fresh tears. “Sorry, I…”

“Hey, it’s okay. It’s been a big day for you.”

“Still, you could’ve held a grudge, but you didn’t.” Sunset wiped at one eye and admitted, “I’m still lucky you chose to give me a chance.”

“It helps that I believed you when you said you were sorry.” Flash turned downcast as he admitted, “Not everyone who does terrible things expresses real regret over them. You did, but someone else I knew never did.”

Sunset suddenly got a very ill feeling. “Flash, you don’t have to…”

“No, but I want to. And I can trust you with it now.” Flash gestured for her to sit down, and the pair did so. “Sunset, you remember meeting my family?”

“I remember your father giving me the evil eye. Can’t say I blame him now.” She frowned and turned worried. “And I remember seeing your mother limp. Don’t tell me…”

“No, that wasn’t because of him. It was someone else. A real monster, unlike you.” The young man turned bitter as he admitted, “And one I share more with than I care to admit.”

Sunset gently reached out and took his hand, and stood ready to listen to his story. She doubted she’d be okay afterwards.  

-

“You could’ve let me smash her place up a little. Maybe smash her up a little.”

Primrose allowed herself a smirk at that thought before she shook her head. “No Brick. As much as I like immediate gratification, I have something far better in mind. I can drop a few words in a few ears, and ruin that mare’s career.” She grinned and added, “I think I’ll start in Canterlot. Hoity Toity has a fantastic selection, and…”

“HOT!” Frantic screams reached the mare’s ears, and she turned in surprise to see her remaining two associates running about like chickens with their heads cut off, with Roxy’s screams being the loudest at the moment. “HE’P! HOT! HE’P!”

“WATER! WATER!” Hot Trail’s eyes found those of her friend, and she cried out in relief, “PRIMRO’!” The pink pegasus rushed towards her and screamed, “WE NEED WATER!”

The unicorn gave her a look that was equal parts disgust and disbelief. “You’re a pegasus, aren’t you? Get your own!”

Hot Trail frantically looked about before she noticed the small bits of cloud lazily drifting through the air. Her eyes went wide, and she shot skyward. Her efforts were clumsy, but they yielded fruit as she collected and compacted the bits of cloud together into one dense, dark cloud, then brought it down close to the ground. “ROXY! BITE!”

The bulky earth pony mare looked up at the cloud and did as she was told. Hot Trail quickly joined her in taking a bite out of the compacted cloud, and after several more from both of them, they stopped, and their eyes went wide with shock before another gout of flame burst from each of their mouths.

Primrose and Brick ducked in surprise. The former glanced at the cloud and grimaced. “Local weather patrol can’t do their job right.”

“Or you don’t know how to deal with hot peppers.” The two turned to find a mare approaching them, three wrapped candies for a cutie mark as she dug something from her saddlebags. “Hey!” The two fire-spewing mares turned as she tossed some candies into their mouths. “Eat these! They’re milk chocolates! You’ll feel better!”

The two chewed, sighed and exhaled steam in relief, Hot Trail in particular looking relieved. “That’s better.”

“Good.” Primrose then shoved away the pony who came to her associates’ rescue with her magic and approached them. “Now what happened?”

Bon-Bon simply picked herself up and frowned as she went on her way. “You’re welcome.”

“Those two little shits set us up!” Heedless of the odd pony nearby giving them disgusted looks – and more than a few mothers covering sensitive ears of their foals – Roxy elaborated, “We found Quiver at some place called Sugar Cube Corner! He and Sunrunner knew we were coming, and had this crazy pink pony give us gag cupcakes!”

“And this other pony, some unicorn, was there too!”

Brick laughed. “Guess the fag’s finally…”

“The unicorn was a mare.” Roxy scowled as she recalled the encounter. “Sucker-punched me and threw me around. Little bitch is lucky I didn’t mess her up more.” She then realized that neither was carrying much and wondered aloud, “Didn’t get that dress?”

Primrose scowled. “The seamstress got a little bit too uppity for her own good. I was going to put her in her place, but it seems I have more immediate issues to deal with.” The scowl turned into a wicked grin as she amended, “Blunder Bill and Scum-Chummer are both in town, huh?”

“Yeah, and they’re fitting right in with the rest of the weirdos and freaks and retards around here.”

The unicorn’s grin widened at Hot Trail’s summation. “Then we just need a good opportunity to put both of them in their place all over again. Something public, something…”

“Of all the rotten luck!” The quartet’s attention went to an open window to a house that, if not for its color scheme and customizations, could pass for any normal domicile in Ponyville. One side looked sedate with its earth tone paint, until one saw the chimney resembled a pipe organ. The other side lacked such extravagance, but was colored in varying shades of indigo. Both sides, however, had musical designs in their windows, and the flowerbeds resembled the keyboards to pianos. “I’ve nothing against providing music for a party, but I would appreciate it if Pinkie Pie could provide me with a bit more forewarning!”

“Tavi, chill.” The four inched closer to the open window as a second voice joined the first. “Pinkie wouldn’t call you in if she didn’t think you could do it. Besides, I’ll be there to back you up.”

“And I appreciate that, Vinyl, but we hardly know any of the ponies this event is in honor of.” Primrose peeked in the window to see a light grey mare with a deep grey mane holding up an invitation to a second mare, a unicorn with an electric blue mane. “How am I supposed to prepare music for these three ponies if I don’t know their musical tastes?”

The unicorn lifted up her glasses as she studied the invite. “Well, can’t speak for the other two, but I think Lyra knows this Quiver guy. Maybe she can help?”

Primrose’s eyes widened, and she turned away from the window and grinned at her entourage as she whispered, “And as usual, things go exactly the way I need them to. Roxy, Hot Trail, you two follow those mares and make sure they’re really talking about Putrid Swill. Brick and I are going to the telegraph office.” The grin grew venomous as she reasoned, “If he won’t come to the party we’re throwing for him, then we’ll crash his.”

Grins spread across the other three ponies’ faces, and they found themselves anticipating what was to come.

-

“Runnie? You okay?”

“Still figuring that out, Quivs.” The five had returned to Golden Oak Library, and it was clear to everyone present that the fiery-maned pegasus was troubled. She turned to her coltfriend with a sad frown and shook her head. “I mean, I’m glad that she’s okay. And I’m glad things are good between her and me now. But hearing about what she did, what she’s been through…”

“Sunrunner, believe me when I say that she’s a different pony than how she was when I first met her. Sunset’s a better person now, and in a much better place than she was.”

“I don’t question that, ma’am. And I’ll be the last one to say that she deserved what happened to her with that Anon-A-Miss mess. I just feel like there are still some ponies who have a lot to answer for with all of this.”

Twilight’s expression grew troubled. “I’m sure that Celestia had the best of reasons for what she did.”

“I was actually talking about my mother, but yes, Princess Celestia too.” She turned to Quiver and her expression brightened. “What you said back there did a pretty good job of hitting the nail on the head, Quivs.”

“Just telling it like it is.” The stallion shrugged as he gave a nervous smile. “Kinda sad. I can sum up that much courage to say things like that to someone I’ve barely known for an hour or so, stand up for them, but for myself…”

A comforting hoof found its way to his shoulder, and he turned to see Sour give him a soothing smile. “Abuse takes a lot of forms, and does a lot of damage. But if it helps, you found plenty of ponies to help heal those scars.” The smile turned to a smirk as she ticked her eyes towards her fellow Guardspony. “Including one in particular.” The three shared a chuckle before she continued, “Seriously though, as much as I complain about you two flirting, I’m glad you have each other. And I’m glad that Sunset has the both of you too.”

Quiver raised an eyebrow. “Not gonna join in on that yet?”

The unicorn shrugged. “Give it time. I sympathize with repentance, but I want some one-on-one time before I call her a friend.”

Twilight smiled. “I think we can arrange that.” She then turned to Sunrunner and offered, “Anyway, something tells me you didn’t expect all of this to happen when you came to Ponyville today.”

“No, but I’m not gonna complain either.” The pegasus stood at attention and smiled. “Thank you, Princess Twilight. For being there for several ponies whom I love. For being their friend.”

“Thank you for being there for them as well.” Twilight’s next smile was both warm and embarrassed as she amended, “And please, you don’t need to be that formal. I’m younger than you are, after all. Just ‘Twilight’ is fine.”

Sunrunner relaxed. “I’ll do my best to remember that.” She then laughed and admitted, “If I’d known all of this was going to happen, I’d have come here sooner.”

“Speaking of, how long can you stay?” Quiver flashed a nervous grin as he admitted, “I mean, I don’t want to sound selfish, and I can get if…”

The pegasus gently lifted a wingtip to his lips as she giggled. “I know what you meant, Quivs. And I’m sure I’ll find some excuse to hang around a little longer.”

The doors to the library opened to reveal a well-maintained unicorn with a vibrant violet mane, an excited expression on her face as she trotted inside. “I apologize for barging in like this, but I had to see this for myself!” She strode up to the newcomer in their midst and asked, “Sunrunner, I presume?” The surprised nod was all that she needed to squeal gleefully and give the mare a warm hug. “Oh, this is delightfully wonderous!” She paused and pulled back, then gave an embarrassed smile. “My apologies, dear, but after all this time and everything that’s happened, well, I’m just very delighted to meet you at last. Rarity, at your service.”

Sunrunner flashed a forgiving smile. “Apology accepted, and it’s alright. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you too. I’ve seen your dresses on display at Hoity Toity’s boutique in Canterlot, and they are gorgeous.” She rolled her eyes and admitted, “Way too expensive for me to own one on my salary, but still…”

“Worry not, darling, we’ll soon correct that bit of misfortune.” Rarity then turned to Quiver and admitted, “Speaking of which, I regret to say that you were completely right about that horrid mare Primrose, both in thinking that she hadn’t changed and in the depths of cruelty that she’d stoop towards.”

“Threw her out of your shop?”

“With no regrets. And while I suspect she has some petty revenge scheme in mind, well, I’ve weathered worse storms than what she can conjure.”

“Well, that’s no surprise.” Heads and more than a few smirks turned towards Spike before he admitted, “What? Rarity’s a leagues-better pony than that Primrose mare. Don’t have to prove that to me.”

“And I appreciate the compliment, Spike.” She leaned over and nuzzled the young drake, then turned her attention back to the gathered ponies. “Oh, and I hope you don’t mind, but…”

“Rarity! Wait ‘till I get there!” Pinkie bounded up and closed the door to the library behind her before making a deep exhale. “Whew! And here I thought [i]I[/i] was hard to keep up with!” She approached and admitted, “Quiver, a lot’s happened in the last twenty-four hours, and upon reviewing all of it, I’ve come to an important conclusion – we need a party! A big party, in honor of you and Sour and Sunrunner and all the happy times to come!”

Sour frowned. “You’ve already sent out invitations, haven’t you?”

“Yepperooni!”

“Didn’t check to make sure Primrose and her cronies were out of town?”

“Nope, but whatever they try to pull, we can deal with them!” Pinkie raised a hoof and declared, “We’ve fought off Nightmares, Discord, changelings, Sombra, and lots of other things in one dimension or another! We can take whatever that party-pooper meanie-pants Primrose throws at us!” She then grinned and added, “Besides, I’ve got plenty more cupcakes where those came from.”

Sour shook her head, only to get a half-smile from her cousin. “You’re better off going along for the ride, Sour. Trust me on this.”

“And if it helps you feel any better, you can come along with me to my boutique.” Rarity turned to the reunited couple and smiled. “I want to make sure my friends look their best for this special occasion.”

Sunrunner’s eyes went wide as she realized the implications of what the fashionista was saying, and a faint squee escaped her lips.

Twilight smiled and shook her head. “Well, go on then. If you’re lucky, it won’t take too long.” As Rarity led the three out the door and Pinkie departed herself to continue party prep, Twilight had to stop her assistant from going with. “Sorry Spike, but I need you here for a little bit longer.”

The little dragon turned to her ready to protest until he saw the troubled look in her eyes. “Letter for Celestia?” At her sad nod, he went off to retrieve scroll and quill. “Take your time, Twilight.”

She shook her head. “I think this has taken too long as it is.”  


to be continued...