Work Text:
Twilight has never seen Sunset's home - a fact she only realises standing in front of the door to her apartment, staring up at the unvarnished beige wood under yellowing LED lights.
She's certain this is the right address; she'd made sure of it, checked the map on her phone and the text Sunset had sent hours prior a thousand times over on the way here. She supposes she never really thought about it. Sunset is someone she sees at school all the time, hangs out with in coffee shops, restaurants and their other friends' homes - but never hers.
It momentarily makes her stop thinking about the fact that they're going to be hanging out one-on-one for the first time as she knocks on the door, only to be thrown right back into it as it swings open.
Sunset is no different from how she was yesterday, or the day before, and probably tomorrow - even still, her heart gets caught in her throat.
Her expression brightens in excitement as she sees Twilight, opening the door fully and stepping aside "Twilight! So glad you made it, I was about to call."
"Of course!" She nods, fumbling over her words as she’s beckoned inside "I had to stop by the library to find one of the textbooks we need, I didn't have it at home."
The space she finds herself in is quaint, carefully setting her shoes beside Sunset’s at the door before following her into the room. It's small and open plan, with a kitchenette on the far wall and a lofted bedroom, tidy in a way she can't imagine it is when Sunset doesn't have a guest over, yet still managing to be cluttered.
"Do you want anything to drink? Water? Tea?" Sunset asks, already rummaging around the cupboards and fridge "A can of Coke? How old is that?" She mutters, more to herself than anything.
"Water is fine, thank you."
Surveying the room, she can’t quite tell where they’re supposed to work. Her desk isn’t big enough for them both to work effectively with the amount of study material they need. Some boxes are set out in front of the TV with just enough room to sit on the sofa – tentatively, she takes her chances. Setting her bag down to pull out a pile of books, her laptop and practically every piece of stationery a person could need in their life, barely contained atop the surface.
Sunset returns with two glasses of water, setting them down so she can collapse into the seat beside her. Apparently, she picked correctly.
"Right," She sighs "Let's get to work."
At last, Twilight is back in her element. Working with Sunset is surprisingly easy, but she supposes that was always a given, even if this project is on history rather than either of their preferred subjects.
The hours drag on, drowned out by endless writing and researching, flowing between them the same way anything else does - as easy as breathing, even when Sunset leans over her laptop to reach a book, and she forgets how to breathe because oh Celestia, she's so close, oh god oh-
It's only once the sun is setting, spilling golden light through the windows, that Sunset sighs, leaning forwards just enough to close Twilight's laptop before falling back into the cushions "I need a break. If I have to write another word I'm gonna tear all my hair out."
In truth, Twilight probably has another three or six or maybe even twelve hours in her. Even still, she makes no move to open the laptop again. If Sunset wants a break, then they're having a break.
Sunset stands, and Twilight looks away as she stretches, only hearing her walk away to the kitchen.
She returns with two protein bars, holding one out to her "You're not allergic to nuts, right?"
Twilight shakes her head, taking the bar. "Thank you."
A comfortable silence lingers as they eat, and Twilight once more becomes abruptly aware of how they're alone together. By now, Pinkie Pie would've found something to ramble excitedly about, or Rainbow Dash would have some sports game she saw on TV to explain. Instead, it's just them.
Her gaze flickers across the room, its modest furnishings. Nothing matches; clearly bits and pieces picked up over time to create a cosy, lived-in space. In her opinion, it's very Sunset. She wonders where anyone else could fit in here.
There’s only one bed and one door other than the entrance, presumably leading to the bathroom. Does she sleep on the sofa?
When discussing where to do their project, the school library had been ruled out first - it's a Sunday, and much like the school one on any given day, the public library will be (and she can now confirm it absolutely was) incredibly busy. Twilight hasn't yet broached the topic of having friends over with her parents, so Sunset had offered her place, stating no one would be there anyway.
Then, she thinks about it properly for the first time. Sunset came from Equestria, and while Twilight still knows very little about it, she knows Sunset had been alone. Unless someone has taken her under their wing and she never mentioned it, this is hers and hers alone.
She supposes they're similar in that regard. They've both ended up in a whole new world; it's just a little more literal for Sunset. But Twilight had her new friends at her new school to coach her through it, Dean Cadence to help with the paperwork, her parents to sort out all the parts she couldn't. Sunset didn't have any of that.
Very little of the old Sunset has trickled down to her - she's always operated on the idea it doesn't matter who she was, just who she is now, who they will become now there is hope to cling to, a shining beacon of warmth she still can't quite believe is hers to keep.
She knows she had been vengeful, though, bitter over a world which couldn't give her the fulfilment she longed for in the only way she'd known it could. If Twilight had been sent to a new world with a new body and nothing holding her to earth, would she have ended up the same? It's strange enough just knowing there's an alternate world at all – another version of her who found this love and acceptance long ago, and lives as a princess of all things!
Somewhere, there's another Sunset. Bearing her identity, name and presumably a family to fall back on.
She isn't sure why she asks, but it comes out anyway: "Sunset?"
"Yeah?" She says, muffled by a mouthful of food.
"You know how there's another Twilight, with, like, the wings and magic and everything?"
Sunset nods, swallowing yet still looking at Twilight from the corner of her eye with an edge of apprehension.
"Is there another Sunset?"
She doesn't answer immediately, looking away, down at the makeshift table as if it will answer for her.
"Somewhere," She says eventually, weighted in a way she can't grasp "I don't... I don't really know where she is. I know she used to go to a school in the area, but she left before I arrived. If she's anything like me, though, she probably didn't get what she wanted here."
She turns back to Twilight, expression set into something serious but oddly wistful "I get recognised sometimes, very rarely but still, usually by classmates. They never seem to remember her well, so I just play along. They wonder why she's back in town with this look, like she wouldn't want to be here. Or they don't want her here."
Twilight thinks she understands, if not the complexities of whatever personal experiences Sunset is imagining her counterpart mirrored, then the discomfort of knowing someone is bearing your name but only the outline of your story, none of your own memories, never to be fully known the way you can know yourself. An imposter, left in her own wake. A much more accomplished imposter at that.
"When I came here, I thought about reinventing myself, taking on a completely new identity, but someone called on me by name not even a week into being here, and I knew it'd never work." She chuckles to herself, almost fondly "It's hard, y'know? I'm not even technically a person; I have no ID, no birth certificate, stealing hers was my only real option. Selfishly, I hope she never comes back, even if it's what I deserve."
"She'd understand," Twilight says without thinking.
Sunset makes a noncommittal hum, lips thinning to a fine line as she shakes her head "I don't know if she would. She's probably still alone, angry at the world, pushing everyone away..." She grimaces "If you met Princess Twilight when you were at Crystal Prep, before the Friendship Games, just on the street, would you see it as you do now? Or would you see her as a vision of who you could've been?"
"I..." Twilight stops, mulling it over before sighing "I think I'd hate her. A little bit. I- I'd feel bad about it but... She's the Princess of Friendship, and I'm... I'm me."
Sunset nods, a soft, sad smile finding her face "Sorry, that was a bit much. I suppose it isn't the same; she doesn't live here, she doesn't lie about being you and live your life in the human world."
"I can't really see her as me." Twilight confesses, "She's so different, so untouchable. I don't think I could ever be like her. I messed up somewhere and missed my chance."
"It's never too late, y'know." Sunset places a hand on her shoulder, squeezing slightly before pulling away. Twilight fights not to mourn the loss "You can't 'be her', I suppose. Unless you want to stage a coup, make this town a monarchy and instate yourself as Princess, I guess."
She snorts an ugly laugh, something lighter returning to her eyes "But you have friends now, and we're here for you no matter what. Whether you want to be more like Princess Twilight, or someone entirely your own, it doesn't matter as long as it's the path that makes you happiest."
It's true - she knows it's true. Even still, she can only stare, half-comprehending. Maybe one day, she'll be able to embrace it fully, without restraint – forever fretting over how permanent this is, if she’s nothing more than a stand-in for the real thing. For now, she settles for the halfway marker, nodding at Sunset as if it will portray everything she doesn't have the words for.
Words have never been her speciality. They aren't objective the way numbers are; they don't have a fixed basis like science. They're just words, and she is at a loss for them.
This was all she dreamed of, once. She hadn’t known what exactly it’d be, but the sentiment had been there, the longing to be something more than she’d always been. She’d thought the answers would be found in furthering her education, feeding a passion only Twilight alone could ever truly understand because people are unpredictable and often more trouble than they’re worth. Even still, she knows she could never go back – no matter the guilt she may forever bear over her means of reaching this point.
Sunset seems to understand, though, smiling warmly at her, backlit by the golden light, aflame and wonderful.
"I'm he- We're here for you too." Twilight sputters out, face far too warm in an otherwise cool room "I know you know that, but... You don't have to deal with everything on your own."
She doesn't mean to, but her gaze flickers back to the kitchen behind Sunset, its worn-out stove and old fridge, and back to her, the subtle lines of her face, the weariness she fights her way through so effortlessly.
She hadn't really thought of it until today, but if she has no family, no means, no one helping her, she's built all of this from the ground up on her own. She has an after-school job, but Twilight never considered it was paying for her entire livelihood - they're all getting to that age she supposes, the transition point where her friends will start wanting that little bit more pocket money.
No wonder she picks up so many shifts and falls asleep in class all the time.
It's a helpless situation, really. Twilight doesn't know the first thing about the legal system, or how to somehow give Sunset more of a support system than she already has.
Still, she's made it this far. She has to trust that Sunset knows what's best for herself, that she'll come to them if anything goes awry.
She's always admired Sunset's strength, her willpower, how she always fights to be better than she was the day before - even more so now. Still, she wishes to be a pillar the same way Sunset is to her, something foundational and grounding.
"Thanks, Twilight." She smiles, genuine, warm and just for her.
She holds her gaze for a moment, visage softening as she regards Twilight, far gentler than anything she's earned. Then, she looks away, sighing; "We still have to finish this project by tomorrow, don't we?"
Twilight sighs, slumping so far into her seat she almost falls on the floor "Yeah."
The interaction changes nothing. They keep working well into the night, keep hanging out inside and outside school - nothing has changed. Even still, she feels closer to Sunset, and that's all she really wants, at the end of the day, following her heart to the truest extent.