September 1st, 1989
Dear Diary -
I believe that I'm a good person. You know, I think that there's good in everyone. But here we are, first day of Senior Year, and I look around at these kids I've known my whole life and I ask myself -
What happened?
Sunset Shimmer closed her diary with a sigh. It was only lunch time, and already the familiar shouts of "Freak!" "Slut!" "Burnout!" "Bug eyes!" "Poser!" "Lard ass!" were echoing up and down the hallway of Canterlot High School. It was hard to believe that these were the same kids she'd run about with on the grade school playground. Kids who'd once been sweet and kind had changed into cruel teenagers - and high school had been the trigger. Canterlot High School was no regular school; oh no.
It was the Thunderdome with classrooms.
No one trusted anyone at CHS. If you put one toe out of line, you were as good as dead. If you were pretty or rich or athletic, you had to follow the rules of the kids at the very top of the high school hierarchy, but being ugly or brainy meant that you would be picked on, ruthlessly, every day for the entirety of your high school career. Sunset was lucky enough to be unremarkable in the eyes of the student body, as this meant she was generally left alone. She was still picked on by the Alpha Jocks, but certainly not as brutally as other kids were. She'd never been beaten up or had her property destroyed, but she'd often been forced to give up lunch money, and it was rare for her locker to be graffiti-free.
It was survivable, but unideal. But even this could change at any time; the more you didn't fight back, the more the bullies thought they could get away with.
All anyone could do to survive was count the days to graduation and hope that they weren't dead before it arrived. College would be paradise.
"Ow!"
In front of Sunset, a senior had tripped a sophomore girl over. The students all laughed at the poor girl in the hope that they wouldn't be the next victim. Sunset rushed to help the girl up. "Hey, are you OK?"
The girl glared at her and pushed her messy purple hair out of her face. "Get away, nerd!" she snapped.
Sunset winced at the nickname, but scooted away with a sigh of "Oh, OK." As she headed towards the cafeteria, the shouts of "Homo!" echoed back to her, coupled with comments about the sophomore's dykey haircut. This, it seemed, was what had inspired the tripping.
One more year of high school, and then things will get better, Sunset reminded herself as she picked up a lunch tray. As soon as I get my letter from Hoofard. Then I can blow this town. Go some place with ivy-covered walls and smokey French cafés. And stop dreaming of setting this hellhole on fire. The feeling of her tray being smacked out of her hands and the clatter as it hit the floor snapped her out of her reverie. A smug tanned face grinned back at her. "Ooooooooooops," it grinned lecherously.
Sunset groaned. Just her luck. It was none other than tall, green-haired Timber Spruce, entering his third year as linebacker for the Canterlot Wondercolts (and eighth year of smacking lunch trays and being a huge dick) with his own special kind of finesse.
"What did you say to me, skank?!" Timber demanded, and Sunset realised she'd voiced her thoughts.
"Um, nothing," she gulped, pulling her jacket and scarf around herself protectively. Timber grunted and walked away. Sunset bent to pick up her tray, but crashed heads with someone who'd had the same idea. She stumbled and landed on her butt, looked up at her accidental assailant, and grinned delightedly.
"Hey Twilight!"
The bespectacled girl smiled back. "Hey!"
Twilight Sparkle had been Sunset's best friend practically since they were born. She was a cheerful, geeky girl with a love of ponies and a huge heart, but unfortunately that wasn't what helped you survive at a school like Canterlot.
Twilight helped Sunset up. "We still on for movie night tonight?"
"Yeah, you're on Jiffy Pop detail," Sunset said, tucking her red curly hair behind her ears.
Twilight beamed. "I rented The Princess Bride!"
"What, again?" Sunset chuckled. "Haven't you seen that, like, twenty times now?"
Twilight shrugged serenely. "What can I say? I'm a sucker for a happy ending."
"Twilight Dorkle! It's been too long!" a boy's voice boomed aggressively, far too close for comfort. Twilight turned to face a tall,muscular boy with curly blue hair: Tornado Twister, quarterback and the smartest guy on the football team - which, Sunset thought privately to herself,was a lot like being the tallest dwarf.
Tornado leered at poor Twilight, and smacked the lunch tray out of her hands. He and Timber weren't exactly original when it came to pranks. Sunset should have been used to it by this point, but as Twilight miserably folded in on herself and Tornado gloated, she saw red.
"Hey! Pick that up! Right now!" Sunset snapped.
Tornado paused and turned slowly towards her. "I'm sorry, are you actually talking to me?" Timber materialized out of nowhere to stand next to his friend.
"My buddy Tornado here asked you a question."
Sunset glanced around, and realised that the entire cafeteria had ground to a halt to watch the confrontation. She'd backed herself into an inescapable corner. Sunset took a deep breath. "Yes, I am," she said boldly. "What gives you the right to pick on my friend? Look at you! You're a high-school has-been waiting to happen. A future gas station attendant."
Tornado blinked slowly. He seemed stuck for a reply. Sunset winced as he leaned closer, his nose practically touching her own, and raised a finger to point at her chin.
"You have a zit right there."
The cafeteria erupted with laughter. Sunset snatched the tray off the floor and stalked away to her normal table; the one next to the bins. Twilight followed her. "That was really brave of you, Sunset. Thanks for sticking up for me."
"No problem," Sunset groaned as she realised that in her desperation to escape from Timber and Tornado, she'd forgotten to actually get lunch. Twilight offered her half of her own sandwich and Sunset took it gratefully, eating one-handedly while scribbling in her diary with the other.
Dear Diary -
Why?
Why?
WHY?!
She could practically hear the other students asking the same thing. It was all over their faces. Micro Chips, one of Twilight's fellow science nerds, wondering why everyone hated him. Scootaloo, the sophomore who'd been tripped in the hallway, wondering why she didn't fight back. Twilight, gazing longingly at Timber, wondering why he wouldn't date her. Timber, wondering why he'd knocked Sunset's tray out of her hands. Even Twister, wondering why he acted like such a creep.
Suddenly the cafeteria door swung open, and a collective hush fell over the student body. Three girls entered, shoulders thrown back, haughty expressions on their faces. Their high heels clicked on the lino and their long glossy hair swished perfectly.
They were the Dazzlings.
Like every high school, there were the popular girls. Popular girls tended to be pretty OR rich OR mean; the Dazzlings were all of these things.
Dressed in yellow was Sonata Dusk, the Head Cheerleader; tall, athletic, and dumber than a pile of rocks, but she was hot and promiscuous and her father was loaded from selling engagement rings.
Then there was Aria Blaze, who wore green and ran the yearbook. She had no discernible personality, but her mother had paid for the breast implants that kept her perched at the top of the social food-chain.
Well, almost at the top.
That spot was reserved for Adagio Dazzle. The Red Queen. The almighty.
She was a mythic bitch.
As cruel as they were, Sunset couldn't deny that the Dazzlings were special. Seemingly made of solid Teflon, they were the only students in the whole of Canterlot who were never bothered or harassed. And though she hated to admit it to herself, Sunset would have given anything to be like them.
They were perfect. Everyone, boys and girls alike, wanted them as either a friend or a fuck. Some, like Twilight, wished they would be nicer, and others wanted to do horrible things to them in revenge for the torment they'd endured at the hands of the three girls, but the sentiment still stood.
You could have literally kidnapped a Dazzling and be photographing her naked in an abandoned warehouse with the intention of leaving her tied up for the rats, and you'd still wish you could've dated her, or at least sat at her table. Sitting at the Dazzlings' table meant that you'd be Noticed.
Half an hour later, the lunch bell rang, and Sunset waved goodbye to Twilight before darting into the girls' bathroom. Just her luck, Adagio and Sonata were standing in front of the mirror, reapplying lip gloss and fixing their hair. A loud retching from within a cubicle told her that Aria was there too, getting reacquainted with today's lunch.
As Aria gagged over the toilet, Adagio snorted loudly and derisively. "Grow up, Aria, bulimia is so '87."
Aria ignored her. "Sonata, I need a mint."
Sonata tossed her long blue hair over one shoulder and began brushing it fiercely. "What you need, Aria, is to see a doctor."
Aria groaned loudly. "I hate my doctor! He smells like Kraft Mac N Cheese!"
The door swung open again, and Ms Cheerilee stood in it, glaring sternly at the Dazzlings. She hadn't noticed Sunset. "Aah, Adagio and Sonata." There was yet another loud retch followed by a dull splosh, and Ms Cheerilee grimaced. "And Aria. Perhaps you three didn't hear the bell over all the vomiting? You're late for class."
Adagio scowled at Ms Cheerilee. "Aria wasn't feeling well! We're helping her." Privately, Sunset didn't really think that what Adagio was doing counted as 'helping', but she kept silent and instead began scribbling a hurried note in her diary. Ms Cheerilee tutted at Adagio.
"Not without a hall pass, you're not. Week's detention."
Sunset neatly tore the page out of her diary. "Actually, Ms Cheerilee, all four of us are out on a hall pass," she said loudly, handing the note to the astounded teacher, who probably hadn't even noticed her until then. "Yearbook committee."
Ms Cheerilee glared at the note, taking in what appeared to be Principal Celestia's handwriting okaying the absences of Adagio Dazzle, Aria Blaze, Sonata Dusk and Sunset Shimmer. "I see all four of you are listed," she eventually snapped. "Hurry up and get where you're going." She handed the hall pass to Adagio, who offered her a pseudo-charming smile, and left them alone in the bathroom.
Adagio examined the note and gave a low whistle. "This is an excellent forgery," she said approvingly. She looked up at Sunset and narrowed her eyes. "Who are you?"
Sunset found herself stuttering. She may have disliked Adagio heartily, but she was nonetheless in awe of her as much as the rest of the student body. "Uh, Sunset. Sunset Shimmer." And then - "I crave a boon." She wasn't sure what had possessed her to say it, but this would probably the only time the Dazzlings would look at her without animosity. This could be her only shot.
Adagio's eyes narrowed. "What boon?" She pronounced each word slowly and carefully, taking the time to roll the letters around her mouth like bubblegum.
"Uh…" Sunset could feel her hands shaking. "Let me sit at your table at lunch. Just once, no talking necessary. If people think that you guys tolerate me then they'll leave me alone." Adagio showed all signs of preparing to interrupt, so Sunset pressed on. "Before you answer, I also do report cards, permission slips and absence notes." It was a talent that Sunset was secretly extremely proud of. She could forge anyone and everyone's handwriting after only seeing it once. She rarely used it other than for bogus permission slips to skip gym and occasionally school when she wanted to see a movie, but this was the first time anyone had complemented her on it.
Aria emerged from the cubicle, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She glanced at Sunset. "How about prescriptions?"
Sunset was about to answer that she'd never forged a prescription before, but she was fairly certain that she could, when Adagio interrupted with a sharp, "Shut up, Aria."
Aria grimaced. "Sorry, Adagio."
Adagio turned back to Sunset Shimmer, who was feeling increasingly glad for her floor-length skirt, as it meant that the Dazzlings couldn't see her knees knocking together. The Queen Bee gazed intensely at Sunset's face, before saying, "Y'know, for a greasy little nobody…" Sunset braced herself for what would doubtless be Adagio ripping her and her request to shreds. "…you do have good bone structure."
Sunset's eyes widened in surprise. That was not what she'd expected at all.
Sonata nodded in agreement. "And a symmetrical face." She drew an imaginary line with her finger from the centre of Sunset's forehead to the bottom of her chin. "If I took a meat cleaver down the centre of your skull, I'd have matching halves." She looked seriously into Sunset's eyes. "That's very important."
Sunset barely had time to look shocked at this morbid statement before Aria chimed in, "Of course, you could stand to lose a few pounds," and Sunset wrapped her arms protectively around her stomach. Sure she had a little chub, but it had never bothered her until now. Then again, everyone knew that Aria was obsessed with having a perfect figure.
Adagio nodded thoughtfully. "Y'know, this could be beautiful. Mascara, maybe some lip gloss, and then we're on our way." She turned to Aria. "Get this girl some blush. And Sonata, I need your brush. We can take her shopping for some new clothes after school."
"Why wait?" Sunset asked breathlessly. "I can get us out of school now, no questions asked." She twiddled her pen between her fingers for emphasis.
The Dazzlings all grinned delightedly. "Let's make her beautiful," Adagio smirked, then to Sunset, "OK?"
Sunset nodded fervently. "OK!"
The second day of school began much in the same way the first had. As the halls filled, Tornado shoved Micro Chips away from him with a snarl of "Out of my way, geek!"
Poor Micro Chips shook in terror. "I don't want any trouble!" he begged. "Please don't hurt me!"
Timber glared at him over Tornado's shoulder. "You're gonna die at 3PM, dork."
Micro Chips backed away, bumping into Rarity and Pinkie Pie - two girls nowhere near as popular as the Dazzlings, but popular enough to get invited to the right parties and be hit on by jocks. "Don't you dare touch me!" Rarity snapped.
"Yeah, get away, pervert!" Pinkie agreed.
Micro Chips darted away as fast as he could, begging God to let him know what he'd ever done to deserve this. Who could survive this? It was inescapable. It felt like he was dying.
He was pulled from his hurried conversation with God by the sound of the hallway going silent. Wondering what could have possibly caused this, he turned to face the doors. Ms Cheerilee's voice cut through the silence like a knife through butter: "Who's that with the Dazzlings?"
Sure enough, Adagio, Aria and Sonata were standing in the doorway - only someone else was standing with them. A fourth Dazzling, dressed all in blue, red-haired with blonde highlights and wide turquoise eyes. A babe.
Whispers as to who the new girl might be buzzed quietly up and down the corridor, but the answer came in the form of Twilight's shocked voice cutting through the crowd.
"Sunset?"
Sure enough, the girl standing confidently next to the Dazzlings was none other than Sunset Shimmer. She was carrying herself differently, her shoulders back instead of slumped forwards, and she looked taller - she'd exchanged her normal clumpy boots for a pair of patent black kitten heels. Her hair was no longer lank and untidy; now it was carefully curled and tumbled down her back like a scarlet and golden waterfall.
She looked incredible, and judging by the delighted smile playing around her lips, she knew it. As the Dazzlings walked down the corridor, she could hear her name being whispered reverently by students and staff alike, and she couldn't stop the grin that lit up her face. When she reached her locker, now free from graffiti and stood out from the rest of the dull green metal doors with two enormous sparkly blue 'S' stickers (matching Adagio's red 'AD', Aria's green 'AB' and Sonata's yellow 'SD'), she hurriedly scribbled a new entry in her diary before heading to homeroom.
September 2nd, 1989
Dear Diary -
You know, life can be beautiful. You hope, dream and pray hard enough, and eventually you'll get your way.
If you've ever wondered if it would feel good to look like hell on wheels, I can confirm that it does. My God, it's beautiful.
I might be beautiful.
And when you're beautiful, it's a beautiful fricken day.