I can't believe I'm about to do this. I remember when I first made these characters up that I made the firm decision to not write a mlp story... and yet, here I am. How weak am I? Such a slave to my brain. Curse it and all the coming up with ideas it does!
Well, on another note, this is just a fun little story about my OC ponies, the Elemental Princesses of a land called Wu Xing, which neighbors Equestria to the west. Plus, this story is a bit based on my desire to see Sunset Shimmer return to Equestria. Not that I want her to leave the human world, but Equestria was the life she ran away from and going back to it would be a big step for her character. Plus, they're bound to run into the human world Sunset by movie 4. All my OC ponies have already been drawn, so hop on over to my deviantart page to take a look because I don't give two shits about writing a paragraph describing everyone's appearance when I can just draw a picture.
"Are you sure about this, Sunset?" Applejack asked as the seven girls gathered around the portal to Equestria.
She nodded, "I am. When I first came here, I was just running away from my problems and following a dark path. But you guys helped me find a new, better path. I'll always love and care about you guys, but Equestria will always be my home and I think it's time for me to go back and stop running."
"We understand, Sunset," Fluttershy whispered.
"We're going to miss you a great deal, darling!" Rarity exclaimed as the girls gathered around to hug her.
"You better come back and visit!" Rainbow Dash declared, giving her a light noogie on her head.
"And bring lots of presents!" Pinkie Pie added.
Sunset laughed and embraced her friends, "I will, I promise. And Twilight," she said, moving over to the bespeckled girl. "Take care of yourself, all right?"
"I will. Thank you for everything, Sunset," Twilight said, hugging her tightly.
Sunset smiled as she pulled away and moved to the portal. She placed her hand on the cool stone as she stepped into the portal. She turned back and looked at her friends as they waved goodbye with sad looks on their faces. She smiled and waved back before completely stepping through herself. She felt the surge of magic flow through her as she traveled between the worlds. When she emerged, she suddenly felt unbalanced and quickly fell onto all fours. "This'll take some getting used to again," she commented, looking at her pony legs. "But it's good to be home." She smiled to herself as she looked up and saw her unicorn horn. "Um, hello? Anyone here?" she called out to the empty, dark library as the Crystal Mirror stood behind her.
All of a sudden, the lights came on and confetti rained down all around her. "SURPRISE!" Six ponies jumped out and Sunset saw balloons and decorations all around the library, along with a large table of food and desserts.
"Wh-what is all this?" she asked as the ponies surrounded her with hugs.
"Why it's a welcome home party of course!" Pinkie Pie explained.
"You guys did all this… for me?" she asked in disbelief.
"Of course!" Twilight exclaimed. "When you said in your latest letter that you decided you wanted to come back to Equestria, I had Pinkie Pie put everything together to give you a big welcome!"
"Wow, that really means alot to me. Thank you!"
"Anything for a friend," Twilight smiled.
"Now let's party!" Pinkie exclaimed. The ponies danced and ate for hours as Sunset and Twilight reminisced about their adventures in the human world. Their fun was cut short, however, when Spike burped out a scroll.
"What's that?" Sunset asked.
Twilight used her magic to bring the scroll over to her as she quickly read it. "It's from Princess Celestia! She says she needs to see us in Canterlot immediately. It's urgent!"
"All right, I wonder what monster we're gonna fight this time!" Rainbow Dash.
"You don't know if it's a monster fight! She could be sending us somewhere for a diplomatic mission, like the Crystal Empire, or Manehattan!" Rarity insisted.
"Well whatever it is, we're not going to find out what it is just by sitting here!" Twilight declared as the ponies began heading out of the castle. They stopped, however, when they noticed Sunset had not moved from where she was standing. "Sunset Shimmer, aren't you coming with us?"
"O-oh, are you sure that's a good idea?" she asked. "I don't know if Princess Celestia will want to see me."
Twilight closed her eyes briefly and smiled before walking over to Sunset and putting her leg around her. "I think she'll be very happy to see you. Besides, this way you can finally have some closure!"
Sunset took a deep breath and exhaled. "You're right. I've been running from what I did and said to Princess Celestia when I left. It's time to put the past behind me." The seven ponies and Spike boarded the train to Canterlot and within a few hours, they arrived at the marvelous royal city. The royal guards escorted them to the castle and announced their arrival to the two princesses in the main throne room.
"Thank you for arriving on such short notice everyone. I- Sunset Shimmer?" Celestia gasped with wide eyes. Sunset quickly lowered her head in shame and hesitantly stepped out in front to face the princess.
"H-hello, Princess Celestia," she said nervously, trying to avoid looking at her in the eyes.
"You've returned from beyond the mirror."
"Yes! I-I thought it was time that I return to Equestria. I wanted to tell you how sorry I am, Princess Celestia, for everything I did and said that night! You were trying to teach me an important lesson and I was just too stubborn and arrogant to see it. I know you must have been furious with me."
"I forgive you," Celestia said.
"Y-you do?" Sunset asked, in shock, finally meeting the princess' eyes.
"Yes. I was never furious with you, Sunset Shimmer," she said, gently placing her hoof on Sunset's cheek. "I was only sad because I thought you had lost your way, but I'm glad to see that you have found it."
"I have! And it was all thanks to Twilight," Sunset smiled at the purple alicorn.
"So, why did you call us here, Princess Celestia?" Fluttershy asked.
"I've received urgent news from the kingdom of Wu Xing," she began.
"Wu Xing?" they all asked.
"Never heard of that place before," Rainbow Dash said casually.
"Where is this Wu Xing? Doesn't sound like any place I know of in Equestria," said Applejack.
"That's because Wu Xing is not a land in Equestria," Luna stated. "It is a kingdom beyond the seas to the west and like Equestria, it is ruled by its own alicorn princesses."
"The structure of their kingdom is actually quite similar to ours," Celestia continued. "Where we have the Elements of Harmony, the inhabitants of Wu Xing rely on the Aspects of Balance."
"Balance?" Twilight asked.
"Yes. Balance with others, balance with nature and balance with oneself as well," Celestia explained.
"So what's this urgent news you've received from them?" Sunset asked.
"Several years ago, their ruler, King Gold, disappeared without a trace. His daughters have spent years trying to find him or any clue as to where he might have gone, but they have come up with nothing. So they've requested our help in the search. But I'd like to send the lot of you instead."
"Really? Why us?" Twilight asked.
"If the request had come in earlier, when the Elements of Harmony were bound to us, we would have gone. Balance and Harmony aren't too different from each other and I think traveling to Wu Xing will be a great learning experience for all of you. You as well, Sunset Shimmer."
"M-me?" she asked, surprised.
"Yes. As you know from experience, traveling to a new land can teach you a lot about yourself that you didn't know."
Sunset thought about it for a moment and smiled at the princess. "We'll do our best, Princess Celestia."
"I'm confident you will," she smiled. "I've arranged for you all to travel to Wu Xing by boat. You'll have to travel to Vanhoover and board there and it should take you roughly a day to reach Wu Xing's capital."
I hope I'm portraying the Mane 6 and Co. well. I don't follow the show 100%, but I do catch some episodes every now and then. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this story. Since it's a side project, anticipate short chapters and a fast pace.