CHAPTER 5: CORDUALLY INVITED

princess twilight was carrying a candle obra to take to the starswirl the bearded wing. princess Celestia personally asked her to study opening spells, though twilight knew almost every opening door spell there was, princess Celestia told her that this one was very important. twilight wasn't one to argue with the princess. she picked up a spell book and began to read. "let's see, opening doors, opening the ground" twilight read aloud, she bookmarked the opening the ground spell, could be useful when she and her friends are running away from a horrible monster. she came across many different spells but couldn't find what the princess was looking for. she even came across a "pure of heart spell" but that wouldn't help the princess. she went to take another book from the shelf when she, without knowing, stepped on a secret button in the floor. a secret compartment rose from the floor of the library, making twilight jump. she looked at the compartment, inside was a tattered old book with a sun on the cover, it wasn't exactly like princess Celestia's cutie mark, but it was close. she opened the book, and there was an inscription on the first page, "diary of sunset shimmer" twilight read aloud. "SPIKE!" she screamed. spike zoomed into the room to twilight's call. "what, what's wrong?" he asked. twilight showed him the diary and his eyes widened. "I didn't know sunset shimmer kept a diary" the small dragon acknowledged. "me neither... should we read it?" she asked. "you're asking me if you should read a book?" spike said sarcastically. "but this isn't any book, this is sunset shimmer's diary, I wouldn't want to read her secrets" twilight accused. "but what if in there is what princess Celestia is looking for?" spike asked. that was true, twilight thought. she turned to the first entry of the journal and began to read. "dear diary, this is my first entry in the palace, I am excited to begin my studies, though I will miss the comforts of my own bed, and melody breeze in the bed next to mine, but dad says that the princess wants to train me and my powers, and that it's imperative I learn control over them, whatever that means." twilight read for hours until she found a very interesting spell in the journal. "opening portal spell?" she said aloud.

the princess was still awake in the throne room when twilight burst in telling of imperative news. "princess Celestia!" twilight urged. "yes princess twilight?" the princess asked in her usual gentle tone. "I found something, something amazingly important!" twilight lifted the diary with her magic so Celestia could see the spell. "good work princess twilight, this spell is just what we needed" Celestia explained. twilight was confused, "what do you mean? the only portal I've ever seen is the one locked away in the gate" princess Celestia sighed, "well, I wanted to tell you sooner, but the winter's snow ball has had my sister and I so busy, I've decided to invite sunset shimmer to the ball to sing" twilight's eyes widened. "are you sure? I mean, this is the pony who stole the element of magic and tried to take over equestria with it" twilight snapped. "as you told me when you returned from the other world, she has learned her lesson about friendship and that she has been reformed, and since you have found this spell and her diary from when she was my student, I thought it would be perfect for her to return to equestria, return home" princess Celestia explained. twilight thought about this, sunset shimmer was considerably twilight's friend, but the others wouldn't forgive and forget like twilight did, or at least was trying to. it would be great to see her again, but then twilight thought about sunset shimmer's family. she had met sunset's older sister, melody breeze; at princess cadence and shinning armor's wedding. she was a very famous singer in canterlot, and her father was a blacksmith for the canterlot royal guard. her family was longing for her to return home, and the snow ball would be perfect for twilight to convince sunset shimmer to stay in equestria! "ok, I'll do it, but I will need to use the spell to teleport an invitation first" twilight included. princess Celestia nodded. twilight bid the princess goodbye and continued with her studies for the rest of the night, thinking about what to say to sunset shimmer if she even came back. twilight grabbed a piece of parchment and wrote a letter to the fiery girl. she signed the front with sunset shimmer's name, it took a lot of effort and twilight had a bit of a headache after she sent it, but it was, hopefully, teleported to the world sunset shimmer was in. but that wasn't all, in the diary, twilight read some very interesting entrees that said things like, "I am very frightened, my powers are growing, and I fear I will not be able to control them" or "the princess has told me that though the night holds beauty, it holds great darkness, and that fear will be my enemy, but that though the night is dark, there will always be light, even in dark." twilight didn't know what these entrees meant, but she intended to find out.

another early morning at canterlot high school, sunset shimmer was sitting, bored out of her mind in her class. she was just doodling random musical notes on her paper and humming the melody. she would do this all the time with her sister; they make up melodies and sing them out-loud. it reminded them of their mother. sunset's mother had disappeared when she was little, no more than three years old. before she left, she lived with her sister and her father. oh how sunset missed them, she glanced at her warm violet shirt with her cutie mark on it. the picture appeared on her top in her freshman year. she hadn't ever told the story to anyone until last week. everyone was over what happened at fall formal and was finally warming up to her, the cutie mark crusaders even asked her how she got her cutie mark. she remembered the story from when she first came to this world. it was a stormy day and she was sitting at the school statue, doodling in her notebook during a free period. at the time, she wondered how 'humans', as she now knew they were called, even got cutie marks. she heard laughing coming from the sports field, and it didn't sound friendly. she set her notebook down to go see who was laughing, of course is was slam dunk and touchdown making fun of a girl with flat, purple hair. she was told that the girl was visiting from the city, and was a total book-worm. sunset shimmer didn't know the girl's name, but anyone with half a mind could see that she was irritated and her little dog was picking up her school supplies out of the mud, she couldn't hear well from where she was standing, but it sounded like they were calling her "firelight stumble" or maybe "dirt sparkle" they were obviously insulting her with her own name, as they did. sunset shimmer became angry at the two boys, she had been in that girl's shoes, slam dunk and touchdown made fun of HER for being new, and she filled with rage to see them doing it to a girl they didn't even know! before she could stop herself, she was on the field, in front of the girl like a fiery shield. "hey, back off!" she snapped. the two boys were taken aback by her sudden appearance. "oh yah, or what?" touchdown snapped back. "or else someone is going to be an organ donor before they can even drive, so walk away before a rip you limb from limb and use your guts for a SKIPPING ROPE!" the two boys ran away and sunset was about to help the girl pick up her things out of the mud, when the ground shuddered and a storm cloud zapped a bolt of lightning on the ground, and the sky cleared away in almost a minute! left behind was a beautiful, circular rainbow! she learned in science class that the entire circle of the rainbow could be seen in the sky, but it was extremely rare, and all the more wonderful. "hey, look!" sunset shimmer said to the girl. she lifted her head at the sky, and her eyes widened. "wow, I read in most of my science books that circular rainbows are incredibly elusive" the girl said. the bell sounded and the girl snapped into a frantic state. "oh, I can't be late, come on spike" the girl said to her dog. the dog barked and they sped away. "uh, bye" sunset shrugged and walked away. she then saw a small light come from her heart. the next thing that happened made her spirit rise and a smile emerged on her face. a fiery yin yang sun had appeared on her shirt. her cutie mark had come! "sunset shimmer!" called a voice. sunset shimmer snapped out of her thinking when pinkie pie shrieked in her face. "what is it pinkie?" she asked. "class is over, for one, oh and this came for you" pinkie handed her a scroll with her name on it. "but, I never get mail, especially not at school" she said as she took the paper from pinkie. "well it was on the front lawn near the statue of the horse" the cheerful girl smiled. sunset shimmer unrolled the scroll and read what was written on it. surprisingly it was royal hoof-writing,

Dear Sunset Shimmer, I know you haven't been home in a long time, but I have recently found a powerful opening portal spell, and with the first annual Winter Snow Ball tonight, the princesses believed it would be wonderful if you could attend the ball to sing. you will have time to prepare yourself for the ball, the portal with be opened for you at midnight tonight. hope to see you there.

Sincerely, Twilight Sparkle

sunset's mouth hung open at the letter; pinkie pie closed it for her. "what does it say?" she asked. "twilight wants me to attend the first winter snow ball to sing, do you know what that means?!" sunset gleamed. pinkie pie tapped her chin thoughtfully. sunset shimmer beamed at pinkie pie, "the portal's open today" sunset zoomed out of the classroom, took a random person's hands and spun them around in a circle. "the portal's open today!" she cheered.

"the portal is open, do I dare?
no other places can compare
I'm tired of using hands to hold a pen

for years I've roamed this high school's halls
it's like a ballroom with no balls
finally I'm going home again

there'll be actual real life ponies
it'll be totally strange
but wow am I so ready for this change?"

sunset shimmer swung open the window and stared longingly at the morning sky.

"cause for the first time in forever
there'll be music there'll be light
for the first time in forever
I'll see Luna bring the night

don't know if I'm elated or gassy
but I'm somewhere in the zone
cause for the first time in forever...
I'll be going home"

"I can't wait to see everyone" sunset shimmer gleamed at Hercules and scooped him up into her hands "wait, what if I see, THE one" she darted to the staircase and continued her song.

"tonight imagine me gown and all
flirtingly drift throughout the ball
the picture of sophisticated grace

I suddenly see him standing there
a handsome stallion, tall and fair
I wanna stuff some chocolate in my face

but then we laugh and talk all evening
which is totally bizarre
nothing like the life I've lead so far..."

sunset shimmer burst into the library. she climbed up onto the book-shelf ladder, and spun and slid around the room as she sang.

"for the first time in forever
there'll be magic, there'll be fun
for the first time in forever
I could be noticed by someone

and I know it's totally crazy
to dream I'd find romance
but for the first time in forever
at least I have a chance"

back in equestria, princess Celestia was reconsidering inviting her former student to the snow ball. she worried that sunset shimmer would give in to the dark magic in her heart, that being changed by the elements of harmony was ineffective in reversing it; she just hoped that sunset shimmer remembered what the princess had taught her...

"she won't let them in
or let them see

she'll be the good girl she has been trained to be
she'll conceal
and won't feel

she'll put on a show
make one wrong move and everyone will know...

but it's only for today"

"it's only for today!"

"it's agony to wait..."

"it's agony to wait!"

"tell Luna to open up... the gate!"

"the gate!"

sunset shimmer burst into the cafeteria, ignoring the glances people gave her as she sang. all she thought of was this chance, to go home, to see her OWN world.

"for the first time in forever..."
"don't let them in, don't let them see..."

"I'm getting what I've dreamed so long...!"
"be the good girl you have been trained to be..."

"a chance to change my destiny..."
"conceal..."

"a chance to find where I belong..."
"conceal don't feel don't let them know..."

"I know it all ends tomorrow, so it has to be today...
cause for the first time in forever
for the first time in forever..."

sunset shimmer leaped onto the table and winked at... well she didn't know! and she didn't care!

"nothing's in my WAY!"

rarity, applejack, and pinkie pie bounded up to her and helped down from the table. "I assume you're happy about something" rarity chuckled. sunset shimmer pulled the letter from her pocket and handed it to rarity. rarity unrolled it in a flourish, and read it. "this is wonderful, you must be so excited!" "I am!" sunset beamed. "bout what?" rarity handed the letter to applejack. "well in that the cat's meow, it's no wonder yer so happy" "well I know you are excited to go home, but I certainly hope you won't miss the winter's ball tonight" said rarity. "of course I won't" she replied. she had forgotten for a moment that the winter's ball was tonight. she agreed to meet the girls at rarity's shop to get ready, and she couldn't be more excited, and maybe even a little relieved. for her to return home would be magical, but she was more relieved to see everyone again, she and twilight's ponyville friends had not technically met. "so are you coming back or staying home forever?" asked rainbow dash as she and fluttershy walked up. "well a 'course she's gonna stay home... aren't ya?" applejack asked. sunset shimmer was debating that herself, she decided... to decide later. "I'll decide later, come on, we have a party to get ready for!" she exclaimed. the five girls smiled and the six of them walked out together.