Chapter 17

>The next morning, you awake somewhat grumpy
>Those two bickering fucks messed with your sleep cycle
>Still, that should ruin what happened yesterday
>For the first time, you really felt like you belonged in the group
>Even if it was during a stupid song-and-dance number
>'Only through the elimination of violence can we achieve world peace'
>That movie might be your new Samurai Cop
>Anyways, looking around, it seems like you were the last one to wake
>Most of the girls are sitting around, chatting lowly
"Hey guys."
>"Good morning, Miss Sparkle."
>"Mornin', Egghead."
>Pinkie Pie stretches out and gives a big yawn
>Fluttershy is just huddled into herself
>You sit up from your bag and spot Rarity and Applejack sitting up on the bag
>They look like they've seen a fucking ghost
>Rarity turns to you and grimaces
>What the fuck is that supposed to mean?
>Rainbow Dash hops up onto her feet
>"Who's hungry?"
>You and the rest of the girls raise your hands
>"Sick, I'll go make some shit."
>Rainbow Dash can cook?
>Or is she just going to cook up a gourmet cereal breakfast
>The girls begin filing out of the room, following Rainbow Dash
>Before you can leave, you get a tap on the shoulder
>Turning around, who else would it be but the two most annoying people in the world?
>Ugh, and that shirt still reeks
>Rarity knows she can that shit off, right?
"What?"
>Applejack and Rarity both look like they're going to faint
>Jesus fucking Christ with these two
"What?!"
>"Twi, please don't tell nobody 'bout last night... Y'all're the only person who knows, 'n—"
"What are you talking about?"
>Yeah, you're the only one who knows that they argue like a married couple!
"Everybody already 'knows'."
>Rarity puts the back of her hand against her forehead all dramatic like
>"Th-That's not possible!"
"Have you guys sat next to you guys at lunch? It's pretty impossible to not see or hear what's going on. Seriously. And while we're trying to sleep? Really?"
>Rarity begins to stammer
>"W-We just, it's..."
"Whatever, guys. I don't care, but it's still annoying to do that shit when people are trying to sleep. Anyways, I'm going to go and eat, okay?"
>Applejack takes her face in her hands
>"Granny's gon kill me if this gets out..."
"Pfft, literally everybody and your grandmother knows. Whatever."
>Just ignore those two when they're being like this, Twilight
>Just go out and eat and chat people up or something
>You exit and head to Rainbow's kitchen and smell...
>Something actually good, surprisingly
>The other girls are sitting around at a table, talking
>Well, it's mostly Trixie talking at them about autist stuff, but that's fine
>"Hey, Egghead. Ready for some sick pancakes?"
"I'm not sure that's the best use to use when talking about food... You know, Rainbow, I'm actually a little surprised that you can cook, like, anything at all."
>Rainbow pokes her chest with her thumb
>"Rainbow Dash is number one at everything, Egghead! You know that. I'm the world's apex predator."
"More like apex redditor..."
>"What?"
>You shake your head
"Nothing."
>"Well, it's gonna be a few, dude. Take a seat and relax."
>You nod and decide to take your seat next to Trixie
>"Miss Sparkle!"
"Hey, Trixie."
>"Trixie was just talking about that Magic tournament we participated in!"
>Pinkie nods
>"Yup! I don't know what she's talking about at all, but it sounds super fun!"
"Uh... It was okay..."
>Not really something you want to have on your mind at all...
>Especially not when Fluttershy's here
>You just want to relax, like Rainbow said
>Not deal with all that other shit...
>Rarity and Applejack take their seats next to each other, looking somewhat pale
>They're oddly silent
"What, not going to start up where you left off last night?"
>Rarity scoffs
>"Twilight, th-that's... Crude! Please, can we just not talk about it?"
>Rainbow's ears perk up and she turns her head
>"Talk about what?"
"What they were doing all night last night."
>Rainbow makes a long 'Oooooooooooh' sound, before breaking into a laugh
>Rarity hides her face in her hands, and Applejack sulks in her seat looking ashamed
>What fucking drama queens
>"W-We weren't doin' nothin'!"
>You roll your eyes
>Why are they so fucking defensive over this?
"You were doing what you've been doing for a long time. Why are you acting so weird about it now?"
>Rarity shakes her head
>"H-How could you know it, that... That it wasn't just a one time thing?"
"Like I said earlier, everybody knows. I mean, I've known how you two felt about each other since the moment I met you two. The looks you give each other. You think we don't know?"
>Applejack stands up from her seat
>"Ah'm leavin'..."
>"What?! Oh, AJ, please..."
>Applejack shakes her head
>"Ah can't be here right now..."
>Rarity bursts into treats and runs after her
>Jesus fucking Christ
>Yeah, no, you get it
>Not having someone to argue with 24/7?
>Yeah, what torture
>Rainbow scratches at her head and turns to you with a perplexed look
>"What the hell's going on?"
"No idea. They woke me up with their arguing last night and now they're acting all weird."
>Rainbow throws her hands up in the air
>"But we already know they argue ALL THE TIME!"
>Pinkie nods
>"Yeah, we know that they can't keep their hands off of each other! I had to hold AJ down just to keep her away from Rarity last night!"
>Trixie nods
>"Trixie has not been friends with you girls for very long, but Trixie also knows this."
>You throw your arms up in the air as well
"I KNOW!"
>Drama drama drama, all the fucking time
>Fluttershy just holds her head in her hands, muttering to herself like a fucking weirdo
>Your stomach grumbles
"Food almost done?"
>"Any second, dude."
>Sick
>Holy shit, these pancakes are impeccable
>Fucking Rainbow Dash
>If she just dedicates all her time to getting really good at shit, what else does she even do with her time?
>Pinkie and Trixie thank Rainbow for the food and leave
>Trixie gives you a wave as she heads off, and you wave back
>Fuck you're a slow eater
>"So, this was your first slumber party, huh, Egghead?"
>You nod
"It wasn't quite what I'd expected, but, I still had a lot of fun."
>"What were you expecting?"
>You shrug
"You know. The stereotypical slumber party stuff. Nothing but stupid games and making out. The usual."
>As you look up, you see that Rainbow is squinting hard at you
"Is there something on my face?"
>"Why did you think we would make out at a slumber party?"
>You raise your eyebrows
"It's in the book?"
>"What book?"
"Slumber 101. It's the quintessential slumberology textbook, I believe."
>She shakes her head
>Are you missing something here?
"What?"
>"Dude, that's fucked up. That's what you were planning for when you came here?"
>You feel your heart in your chest
>The tell-tale sign of spaghetti build up
>Fuck
"Um... Like, yeah, but I was glad it didn't happen! I-It was just, you know, in the, you know, in the book!"
>"Egghead, you're reading some WEIRD books."
>You lower your head, trying to keep yourself calm
"I-I guess..."
>"Eh, whatever, Egghead. Doesn't matter. You still helped me get back together with Anon, and didn't try to do any weird shit. But, you know, could you imagine having to deal with people doing that shit at a slumber party? Dude, that'd be so awkward."
>You nod
>That's pretty true
>Encountering anything like that, especially amongst friends, would be pretty awkward!
>Maybe your opinion of normies shouldn't be so low that you take stupid rumors, or books, seriously...
>You exhale
>Spaghetti wasn't so bad that time
>You finish up and thank Rainbow for the food
>Time to head ho—
>There's a tap on your shoulder
>"T-Twilight?"
>God damn it, Fluttershy
"What?"
>She looks up at you from behind her hair
>Always with that fucking pretend demeanor
>"Th-This doesn't change anything, b-but... Yesterday was fun. Thanks for being cool. M-Mostly."
"I didn't do anything for you."
>She nods
>"S-Still... I don't always get to spend time with Rainbow, so... I-I'm just happy you didn't ruin it."
>You look her over
>This is all a facade, you know that, but it's still convincing as fuck
>The pouty face, the shrunken gait, the soft-spoken voice, all of it
>Probably just sign of how fucked up she is, you suppose
"A-Are you going to leave me alone now?"
>Fluttershy steps closer to you and smiles madly, putting her face in yours, then slides a finger across her neck
>"Even if you're not a total fuck-up, I'm still looking forward to—"
>"Yo, Fluttershy! You're not leaving too, are you?"
>Rainbow places an arm on Fluttershy's shoulder
>Fluttershy immediately turns the 'shy' back on, giving Rainbow a faint smile
>"Oh, o-of course not. I-I was just saying goodbye to Twilight."
>Fucking bitch cunt
"Yeah... It was nice seeing you guys..."
>"See ya, Egghead!"
>Fluttershy waves you off
>"B-Bye..."
>What a fucking creep
>Really wish you could tell Rainbow what kind of person Fluttershy really was
>All she knows is whatever sad sob-story she grew up with
>You exit Rainbow's house and begin the walk home
>So, what is it that you're going to do now?
>Definitely going to be a while before you can show your face in the Game Shop...
>At least, of your own free will
>It's been a while since you've seen Sunny
>No one's heard from her in a while
>Maybe you should take a detour and head over to her place
>Check up on her
>Maybe she's sick, or worse...
>You nod to yourself
>It'd be best to check up on her, yeah
>And so, you begin the walk to her place
>Dad won't be too upset if you're home just a little late
>It takes a while, but you think you're finally coming up on Sunny's place
>After last time, you really just want to have things go back to normal
>Put the whole theater fiasco behind you
>And she definitely helped to do that last time you hung out, but it still hangs heavily in your mind
>You do wish she'd felt about you the way you did her, but maybe Sunny's way of doing things makes the most sense
>Shoot for friends first before anything else
>Plus, this is the first time you haven't really had oneitis in a long time
>Sunny being so understanding, almost too understanding, helped you move past what could have been a very dark time
>Not that you still didn't weirdly enjoy all the sparring and—
>You stop and eye a car across the street
>No way...
>That looks like Shining's old car
>The one he got when HE was in high school
>You're sure of it
>Haven't seen that since he became a cop
>Fuck, no, there's no way
>Why would he be here?
>You keep walking, nearly at the entrance to Sunny's apartment complex when a man in a hoodie walks out
>That's...
"Shining?!"
>"Twily? What are you doing here?"
"Checking on Sunny... What are you doing?"
>He shakes his head
>"The less you know, the better."
>Shining attempts to pass you, and you grab his arm
"Hey! I knew you weren't going to stop looking into Discord, but... You're getting my friends involved, too?! You know how dangerous that is!"
>He pulls his arm away
>"Twily, she came to ME. Let's leave it at that. Now go home. It's better for the two of you to have as little contact as possible. I wouldn't even be here if she didn't get... If I didn't have to be."
"Shining, what happened?"
>Your brother puts an arm around you and tries to lead you away from the apartment complex
>"Twily, let's go."
"No! If you're not going to tell me what's going on, I'm going to ask her myself."
>"Twily, don't—"
>He curses under his breath as you pull yourself away from him
>You rush through the complex to Sunny's door, and knock furiously, Shining on your tail
>The door opens
>"Back alr—Twilight?"
>You push yourself in, and Shining follows after you
>"I tried to stop her."
>Sunny coughs and waves her hand
>"It... It's fine."
"Okay, I want to know what's going—"
>As you turn to Sunny, your mouth drops
>She looks beaten to all shit
>Bruises all over from what you can see, she's holding a hand against her abdomen, slouched, using one arm to hold her up against a wall
"W-What happened to you?!"
>You turn to Shining
"What... What the fuck?! What do you have her doing for you?!"
>Sunny puts an arm on your shoulder and smiles, talking with a slightly faltering voice
>"Twilight, it's fine. This is just what happens when you get initiated... Or re-initiated, in this case..."
"Initiated in what?!"
>Shining turns his face away from you
>Sunny frowns
>"I used to be in a gang. I'm fine. It looks a lot worse than it feels, and you should've seen what I went through the first time. This is nothing. Don't worry about it."
>You shake your head
>Gangs?
>Initiation rituals?
>Shining?
>It doesn't take a genius to put the fucking pieces together...
"But... Why? Why—Why would you guys do this?! I-I can handle myself. You shouldn't be getting yourself caught up in my problems! I know you said you wanted to help, but..."
>Sunny nods
>"I'm not doing this just for you. I'm doing it because it's the right thing. Because, maybe... You don't know what kind of things I've done, Twilight. You don't know the person I used to do. Shining is helping me make things right..."
"But you could die! You already got... I-I mean, look at you!"
>You begin to pace frantically before turn to Shining
"Y-You shouldn't have let her... I..."
>"Like I said, she came to me. Twily, do you understand what kind of an in Sunset is? We can get the solid proof we need to put him away for good! We're not going to just sit by and let him trash the city!"
"Doesn't... Shouldn't she go to a hospital?!"
>Shining shakes his head and rubs at his face, clearly frustrated with the situation
>"Twily, she has to tough it out. That's the point. It's been days since she went undercover. She's already recovering well. I've been running painkillers for her, trying to tend to some of her worse injuries—"
>You turn to Sunny, and you can see that she's gritting her teeth hard through her smile
"I thought you said it wasn't that bad!"
>"Well, you know, relatively... I've gotten wor—FUCK!"
>She slumps against the wall, contorting, gripping her side
"Sunny!"
>You rush to her side and grab a hold of her, keeping her from totally collapsing
>Shining lets out an expletive
>"I have to go and grab more medical supplies. I'll be back."
>He utters another curse under his breath as he runs out
"Sunny, are you okay?"
>"Twilight, I-I'm fine... Your brother has been taking good care of me when he can."
>You sling one of her arms around your shoulder and attempt to carry her to her room
>This is A LOT harder than it looks in the movies
>Either that, or you're just incredibly weak
>Or both
"Fuck... Why would they beat people so bad they can't even work for them? What's wrong with gangs?"
>Sunny laughs
>"I'm old blood. I wanted my old spot back. That meant taking a little more punishment. Like I said, it wasn't—"
>She lets out a hacking cough and you have to momentarily stop
>"—it wasn't that bad. Usually they wouldn't let that happen but... I never snitched, and I made a name for myself..."
>Sunny turns her head away from you
>"I... I'm not proud of it..."
>You shake your head
>Sunny's capable of being violent, but...
>A violent criminal?
>Not just that, but a gang member?
>You... You just can't see that in her
"Whoever you were, that's not who you are now, but... Getting involved with this shit... I never wanted that."
>A sense of relief spreads over you as you lay Sunny down on her bed
>"Thanks, Twilight... And I'm sorry."
>You take a seat on the bed with Sunny
>God, what the fuck is happening to your life
>No, what the fuck are you doing to other people's lives?
>You were very close to ruining Treehugger's life
>You pushed your Dad back into drinking
>And Sunny's plunging herself back into a fucking GANG
>Frowning, you look at Sunny's beaten and bruised body
"This is all my fault..."
>Sunny moves a hand over to yours
>"Hey, it's not."
>She chuckles
>"It's Fluttershy's."
>She chuckles again and grimaces, clutching her side
>You simply frown
>"I guess that's not that funny... Twilight, I do want to help you, but I'm doing this for me."
>Sunny sighs and stares at the ceiling
>"I'm doing this because I'm not sure anything's ever going to be enough to make up for the kind of person I used to be... But I'm going to keep trying. Even if it kills me."
>God fucking fuck, Twilight, look at what shit you've caused
>You grip her hand
"Don't say stuff like that. Sunny, I like you just fine..."
>You blush slightly
"I think you already know that... And Trixie's been looking for you everywhere. She misses you. The girls miss you. Whatever you did in the past... That doesn't define you! The Sunset Shimmer I know is, man, she's almost sickeningly perfect! You're amazing! You don't need to do this, for me, for yourself, for anyone!"
>Sunny tries to smile, but averts her eyes from yours
>"I'm... I'm glad that you think I've come so far. That, when no one else would give me a chance, you did, but... You never met the real me. It feels like... I'm holding back. Every. Day. Maybe the Sunset Shimmer you know is perfect, but... She's not really real. The real me is the worst person I know..."
>She pulls her hand away and lets out a deep breath, clearly holding back tears
>You're not sure what you can say to her
>You don't want to see her, or any of your friends, get hurt
>And no matter how bad she used to be... That's not the person you know, not the person she IS
"Sunny..."
>You take a deep breath
"You helped me back when I was... When I was just a total dick! I didn't really care about anyone. God, I know it's cheesy, but I'd probably still be holed up in my room if it wasn't for you. This is going to sound dumb, but..."
>This is going to sound really dumb
"Ugh, maybe it seems like something that doesn't matter, but I went to a slumber party. I went out and did something with a group of people for the first time, maybe ever. You've helped me a lot."
>Sunny pushes herself up into a sitting position, leaning against the headboard of her bed, and pulls her knees up to her chest
>She half frowns, her eyes still avoiding you completely
>"Twilight, you were never a bad person to start with. Just someone who just needed a friend. I'm telling you, you wouldn't be here trying to give me this pep talk if you knew what I've done. Who I was..."
>Sunny hands her head in her hands and sighs
>"Fuck, who I am!"
"Sunny, you believed in me when I didn't believe in myself. And I believe in you! The way you've treated me, Trixie... A... A bad person... They wouldn't beat themselves up like this!"
>You can tell she's not buying it
>You wish she would
>Fuck, you're no good at this kind of thing...
>"Twilight, do you know what I'm the most scared of right now?"
"No..."
>"It's not getting hurt. Getting killed, even... It's that I'll feel at home. That'll I'll have proof that I haven't changed."
>You shake your head
"That's dumb."
>Sunny laughs, seemingly more out of surprise than anything else
>"That's... Dumb?"
"I don't know what else to say... I don't know what it is that you did, but, I guess I do know that hating yourself constantly is bad. I don't have the solution, but... It's been better with others there to help."
>You scratch the back of your head, and Sunny finally looks up at you
"I want to be there for you. As your friend!"
>"As my friend, huh?"
>Sunny laughs lowly and gives you a small half-smile, and you know your little speech hasn't changed her mind
>Not totally
>You're not even sure about the shit you're saying, but...
>It felt good to hear this stuff from someone else, from her
>Maybe you'll end up doing some good for Sunny, too
>Having someone to lean on, friendship and all that shit
>All those dumb platitudes about caring about people and yourself and shit
>They can mean something if you make it there yourself
>Right?
"I'm not going to be able to convince you—Hell, at this point, I don't know if it's even possible... But, could you not go through with all this?"
>"I'm sorry, but, no..."
>You can't hide your disappointment, your frown...
>Why do the people around you need to have this need to 'do what's right' or whatever?
>"Hey, i-it's going to be fine. After this all blows over, things will go back to normal. Just hanging out and stuff."
"That would be nice... I'm still sorry about last time."
>Sunny laughs and grips for her side in pain
>"You're always sorry."
"Shouldn't I be?"
>"It's 'dumb'. I don't mind what happened."
>Maybe a little spaghetti amongst friends isn't so bad...
>You can hear a knock on the door
"That's probably Shining."
>Sunny nods and you get up to leave, making your way to the apartment's entrance
>You open up the door
>Shining pushes his way in, carrying a bag of what is most probably medical supplies of some sort
"Does she really need all that stuff?"
>"Better safe than sorry."
>Well, that's sort of relieving, you guess
"Wait, Shining..."
>He stops
>"Yeah?"
"Is she going to be okay?"
>"Like I said before, she's healing pretty—"
"No, I mean... Doing whatever it is she's doing for you..."
>Shining sighs
>"Knowing her, yeah, she's not going to have trouble."
>He turns to you
>"You know, she really comes off a lot different in person than she did from her files."
"What do her files say?"
>"Not sure you want to know."
"So I hear..."
>Eh, maybe it really is best not to know
>If you're going to try and tell Sunny that her past isn't all there is to her
>Well
>Going out of your way to find that shit out would make you an asshole
>Shining places the bag of supplies on a nearby counter
>"Twily... You should head home."
"Can't I stay here a while longer?"
>He shakes his head
>"It's best we contact her as little as possible from now on. Hell, it was just dumb luck that we happened to be here when you showed up."
>You frown
>You don't really know what Sunny's getting herself into... What Shining's getting her into...
>Doesn't mean you aren't still sick to your stomach over it...
>Maybe you can find out a way to fix things yourself
"I'm just going to say goodbye, then."
>Shining sighs
>"Fine. Make it quick. I'm heading out."
>You hear Shining exit out the door as you head back into Sunny's room
"Shining dropped off some stuff for you..."
>Sunny nods
"Can't you just not do this?"
>She doesn't say anything, and instead just sighs and looks away
>You stand next to her bed
"I'm scared. For you."
>"You don't have to be."
"I mean... So, what happens now? You just go undercover and no one hears from you again?"
>She shrugs
>"Until this is over, I suppose so... I'll report to Shining in secret, but aside from that..."
>So you could potentially not see her again for, what?
>Weeks?
>Months?
>If things go poorly, ever?
>"Twilight, I just want to say thanks. For believing in me."
>Oh, not with the fucking 'Long Goodbye' shit...
"Sunny, I... Maybe we can just hang out tonight, and—"
>She shakes her head
>"Bruised or not, I have to be downtown tonight... I should be getting ready to go."
>It feels as though the energy in your body is draining out through your feet, leaving you in a malaise
>Sunny picks herself up off the bed
>"I'm sorry, Twilight, but it just has to be this way."
"I don't even know how dangerous this is, but you have to know, right? Why go through with this?"
>Sunny shrugs
>How badly does she have to think of herself to just shrug at the possibility of death?
>How could she have done something that actually deserves that kind of attitude?
>"Can you help me?"
>You support Sunny with your shoulder, and carry her out into the foyer
"It's just... As your friend, as just another person, this isn't a good idea... And I know you don't... Think about me in that way, but, as someone who cares about you..."
>Oh God, Twilight...
>Keep your fucking shit to yourself and your stupid head water in your tear ducts
>Fuck...
>Sunny pulls you into a hug, and you can feel her weight pulling you down a little, still not fully able to stand on her own easily
>"The fact that you think about me the way you do... It means a lot. I'm sorry I reacted the way I did at first..."
>That's something, you guess...
>"I'm just... Not ready to accept that something like that can be meant for me. Twilight... I do care about you. A lot."
"W-What?"
>Sunny holds you out at arm's length
>"I'm sorry."
"B-But... Just don't go! Shining can find someone else!"
>You already know your attempts to keep her from doing this will be futile
>"I have to do this. I have to make amends. I'm doing this for myself."
"You're doing it TO yourself."
>Maybe...
>You put your arms around her and—
>"Twilight, no."
>Man, what the fuck is going on with your fucking life...
>"I... I feel guilty enough just having friends. I just can't."
"Sunny, that's..."
>She pulls away
>"This is just the way it has to be. I have to make things right before I can do anything else..."
>Sunny picks up a few things, pops a few what seem to be painkillers, and refuses to look at you
>"I'll see you when I see you, I guess..."
"But..."
>She sighs and shakes her head
"But..."
>Sunny walks past you and opens the door to the hall
>And that was it
>The door closed behind her, and you were just left there, standing, alone
>Sunny...
>You don't know if you want to lash out or just lay down and never get back up
>Why do things have to be this way?
>You feel so powerless
>Things just go on around you, and there's nothing you can do but watch
>For the longest time things just went on around you, and you sat by and did nothing
>Staying in your room, online, with your proxy life, you accepted you were powerless to do anything with your life
>But you'd never really tried to do anything, and so there was always that niggling hope that maybe you could do something someday, if you liked
>Now you know that's not true
>You were as meek as you always were
>Fuck, what was the good in all this...
>Good job, you went to a fucking party and had fun, that proves the years of dwelling you'd done wrong, huh?
>Someone feels about you the same way you feel about them?
>Where are they?
>Gone
>Face it
>You're as alone as ever...
>Usually, it seems, this would be the kind of situation where you'd cry
>You cry over fucking karaoke
>Perhaps resignation to a defeat you'd already felt long ago doesn't require any more crying
>People leaving you is all you're good for...
>You're not sure how long you stick around in Sunny's hollow apartment, but by the time you leave, it's already getting dark out
>Her car is gone
>It's a long walk home, but you don't notice
>Thinking too much
>You push your way into your room and collapse lifelessly onto your bed
>Spike licks your face, but gives up when you don't respond
>Why do you even try?
>Turning over, you look to your desktop
>You need to just forget about things for a while...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MV_3Dpw-BRY
>You get up and turn you computer on, the low buzz of the monitor humming against your skin
>This is where you belong, right?