Book four of "Who We Become".
After discovering the magic of friendship, Sunset Shimmer's senior year was one of the happiest times of her life. But it's been almost two years since graduation; all her friends have moved on to studying abroad, to pr...
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As she examined herself in Twilight's bedroom mirror, Sunset thought about how great the day ahead her should feel. It was the day of the Summer Sun Celebration, and she was making her first public appearance as captain of the Twilit Guard. Rarity even made her a uniform for the occasion, which she had shipped to Canterlot Castle in time for the event.
Distantly, Sunset felt some pride in her appearance. Rarity had designed the uniform with form in mind, rather than function, and Sunset certainly did look good in it. The Lunar, Celestial, and Crystal Guard could all keep their heavy armor. Sunset's was styled after the traditional officer's vest, but was set apart by color. The vest itself was blue, with darker folded over sleeves. It held two medals on it, one was gold and had six gems of different colors, representing the Elements of Harmony as Twilight's official insignia, and the other was a shield with Sunset's cutie mark, signifying her as the guard's captain. Rarity had also taken Sunset's discomfort with public nudity into account, giving it a dark blue skirt. Topping it off was a sash of braided purple and yellow, representing her dedication to Twilight and Fluttershy.
She loved every detail about the outfit. Even if she knew they didn't think too much of it, Fluttershy and Twilight had named her captain, and Sunset was honored to play that part. Having the uniform made the whole thing feel that much more official, and knowing it had been designed completely around her made it even better. She had been so excited for the chance to show it off at the Summer Sun Celebration. As a princess, Twilight was attending the official event being held in Manehattan, so of course Sunset and Fluttershy would be accompanying her.
But then, Spike was supposed to be with them as well. They had been looking forward to meeting up with Luna and Celestia, and had talked about possibly using the opportunity to tell Celestia about their relationship. Now Celestia knew, but didn't approve. In the two days they had been at the castle, Celestia had kept herself too busy to interact with them, citing the Celebration as her excuse. On the other hoof, Luna had been with them almost constantly. She would barely break from working through plans and reviewing child care laws with them for sleep, and sometimes it seemed like she wouldn't at all if not for Fluttershy's insistence.
Sunset sat down on the bed. When it got down to it, none of them really slept very well. Still, night time was easily Sunset's favorite time. Before the night Twilight Velvet and Night Light took Spike away, Sunset had slept in her own room, separately from Twilight and Fluttershy. But they'd spent both nights in Canterlot sharing the bed in Twilight's room at the castle. Sunset missed her old room and the feeling of familiarity it brought, but it was important they do whatever they could to make Twilight feel more comfortable. Besides, she would give up a lot more than that for the chance to spend the night cuddled up with her marefriends. She had been unsure of where she was supposed to sleep the first night, and even less sure if she should bring it up. Thankfully, she was saved by Fluttershy's decisiveness. Before anypony had the chance to start any awkward conversation, Fluttershy was already bringing Sunset and Twilight up to bed, and seemed to take it as a given that they would be sharing a room.
