by Perdita Finn
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
HASBRO and its logo, MY LITTLE PONY, EQUESTRIA GIRLS and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. © 2017 Hasbro. All Rights Reserved.
Cover design by Véronique L. Sweet.
Hachette Book Group supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.
Little, Brown and Company
Hachette Book Group
1290 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10104
Visit us at LBYR.com
MLPEG.com
First Edition: December 2017
Little, Brown and Company is a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc. The Little, Brown name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.
Library of Congress Control Number 2017946351
ISBNs: 978-0-316-55735-1 (paper over board), 978-0-316-55732-0 (ebook)
E3-20171024-JV-PC
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Chapter 1
A Friendship to Remember
Chapter 2
The Queen of Clubs
Chapter 3
Super Superlatives
Chapter 4
Most Changed
Chapter 5
Not in the Picture
Chapter 6
The Worst Nightmare Ever
Chapter 7
Time for Homecoming
Chapter 8
A Surprising Reunion
Chapter 9
The Biggest Reader
Chapter 10
Most Likely to Get a Clue
Chapter 11
Wiped Out
Chapter 12
Best Sense of Humor
Chapter 13
Suspicious Activity
Chapter 14
The Greatest and Most Powerful
Chapter 15
A Missed Message
Chapter 16
Best Detective
Chapter 17
The Worst Case of Invisibility
Chapter 18
Let’s Forget This Ever Happened
Chapter 19
A Magic Moment
Chapter 20
Cursed!
Chapter 21
The Magic of Friendship
Chapter 22
Most Improved
Chapter 23
Memories to Treasure
For Ella
A Friendship to Remember
Sunset Shimmer grabbed her camera from her locker. As the editor of Canterlot High’s yearbook, she always had to be ready to capture a special memory. Her friends were bustling down the hallway to class. She wanted to take pictures of them all. Twilight Sparkle and Applejack called out a greeting as they passed. Sunset Shimmer snapped a photo. Fluttershy caught her eye and smiled at her sweetly. Sunset Shimmer clicked her camera again. It was another great shot. This would be the best yearbook ever!
She had to make sure there were lots of candid photos. She also had to get a photo of every club and every team—and there were so many of them! Once she finished taking the photos, the whole school needed to vote on Superlatives, and then she had to arrange and lay out the pictures of the Best Dressed and the Most Talented. She wondered who would win in the Best Friends category this year. She knew whom she was voting for.
Rainbow Dash came over to say hello and posed for a photo. Just as Sunset Shimmer raised her camera, she saw Pinkie Pie sneak up behind Rainbow Dash. Pinkie winked as she held up bunny ears behind Rainbow Dash’s head. Sunset Shimmer snapped the photo, trying not to giggle. Rainbow Dash whirled around when she realized Pinkie was behind her and laughed out loud. All the girls crowded around Sunset Shimmer to look at the photo. It would be so funny and cute in the yearbook.
So much had changed for Sunset Shimmer. When she first came to Canterlot High from Equestria, the magical land of ponies, she had wanted to be the queen bee. But instead of becoming the most popular girl in the whole school, she had terrified everyone by turning into a she-demon. Luckily, Princess Twilight had come from Equestria just in time to stop her path of destruction.
Best of all, the very girls to whom she’d been meanest had forgiven her. They had even started hanging out with her. Since then, Sunset Shimmer had been learning about the most powerful magic of all—friendship. She used to think she was tough, but she was really just lonely. She never wanted to be all alone ever again.
All day long, Sunset Shimmer took photos of her friends. She knew she would always treasure them. She captured Twilight Sparkle studying hard in the library. She took a picture of all the girls posing by Applejack’s shiny red pickup truck. She never wanted to forget all their wonderful adventures together—from winning the Friendship Games to saving Camp Everfree and discovering the crystal geodes that gave each girl her own special magic.
That afternoon, they all met in the yearbook office to begin laying out the pages. Their geodes glowed. Twilight Sparkle used her special telekinesis to upload Sunset Shimmer’s camera’s memory card. Rainbow Dash zoomed around the room at lightning speed from workstation to workstation. Applejack used her super strength to lift a heavy printer and move it from one table to another. All around the girls, magic sparkled… but the best magic of all was how easily and happily they worked together. Sunset Shimmer never took it for granted.
“I want to treasure these memories forever,” she confided to the other girls.
“We all do,” agreed Twilight Sparkle. “We’ll always be able to look through our yearbooks and remember how much our friendship meant to us.”
“Best friends forever,” Pinkie exclaimed. “Forever and ever and ever.”
“Forever,” Sunset Shimmer repeated. She and her friends would never, ever forget one another. Would they?
The Queen of Clubs
Sunset Shimmer looked over her schedule for the yearbook. She had to find a way to photograph all the after-school activities in a single afternoon. Could she do it? She would have to move fast. Hopefully nothing would go wrong.… Like seeing one of her best friends walk through the front door of the high school with a giant pig. But that’s just what Sunset Shimmer saw that morning as Applejack tugged a plump pig through the hall on a leash. Oh no! What was Applejack doing? Sunset Shimmer rushed over to find out. The pig grunted before plopping down in the middle of the hallway. Applejack yanked on his leash, but he wouldn’t budge. She laughed.
Rarity stared at the pig, wrinkling her nose.
“Why did you bring a pig to school, Applejack?” Sunset Shimmer asked her friend. “Today of all days!”
“It’s photo day for all the clubs!” Applejack explained.
“Exactly!” exclaimed Sunset Shimmer.
“And it’s a Young Farmers’ Club tradition to have your critter in the yearbook picture.”
“Awww!” gushed Flutt
ershy, coming over to pat the pig. He snorted and blinked his long-lashed eyes.
What could Sunset Shimmer say? She hadn’t thought about the animals that needed to have their photos taken. She looked over her schedule.
“You’re lucky you’re in only one club,” said Rainbow Dash to Applejack. “I’m in five this year. So busy.”
Applejack looked concerned. “Young Farmers’ is just one of the six clubs I’m in.”
Rainbow Dash shook her head, not impressed. “I meant five sports clubs.”
“Darlings, please!” Rarity stepped in to make peace. “It’s not a competition.”
“Actually it is,” piped up Sunset Shimmer. “The yearbook always has a special photo of the Most Involved student, only I haven’t figured out who that is yet.”
Rainbow Dash grinned. Applejack’s eyes lit up. A competition. Rainbow Dash and Applejack liked nothing more than competition. They studied each other. Who was in more clubs? Who could be in more clubs? Who would win the prize for Most Involved when the yearbook came out?
That afternoon, Rainbow Dash raced from one meeting to another. She sped into the library; crashed into Sunset Shimmer, who was just setting up the photo; and studied a chessboard for less than a second, moved a piece, grinned, and dashed out. She had to get to her next club!
At another table in the library, Applejack played Ogres and Oubliettes with Trixie and a bunch of other kids. They studied the board, a giant map covered in figurines. Everyone wore a silly hat—except Applejack, who had on a football helmet. She clearly didn’t fit in, especially since her pig sat beside her. But that didn’t matter. She would get her picture in the yearbook no matter what!
Sunset Shimmer clicked her camera. She looked at her photo. Not so good—except for the pig. He was actually quite photogenic. She took another photo of the game players.
Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash had joined Fluttershy’s knitting circle. The girls sat on the steps of the school with balls of yarn. Their needles flashed in the sun. Rainbow Dash picked up a pair and knitted super fast. In under a minute she held up a tiny sweater with a design of the Canterlot High Wondercolt. Fluttershy clapped her hands, delighted, and put it on her pet bunny. Sunset Shimmer snapped a photo for the yearbook. What a moment to treasure.
But Applejack and Rainbow Dash didn’t have time to treasure anything. They were too busy racing from club to club. Applejack showed up in the gym, ready to have her picture taken with the Fencing Club. They all stood on a mat wearing their fencing gear—masks on their faces and swords in their hands. Applejack was confused. She had brought a piece of the fence from her farm! Still, she jumped into the photo anyway, pulling her pig behind her. She’d put a lot of effort into fixing that fence. Why couldn’t she be in the Fencing Club?
“Is there any rule against it?” Applejack asked Sunset Shimmer. Her pig grunted happily beside her.
“Nope,” she answered, taking a moment to catch her breath. She wasn’t in any club except Yearbook, but that one club kept her busier than all of them combined! Putting together a yearbook took a lot of work.
As soon as the photo shoot was over, Applejack raced across the gym to where the cheerleaders were meeting. They all formed a pyramid. But Applejack touched her sparkling geode necklace and activated her super strength. She was going to lift all the cheerleaders into the air! She did it with one hand, her pig standing right beside her. Her pig smiled, the star of the photo shoot yet again. That would be an amazing picture—and it was!
Sunset Shimmer heard a huge explosion in the distance. It sounded like an experiment gone wrong.
“The Science Club!” she said. She had to get there fast.
Applejack and her pig raced down the hallway beside her. “Cooking is a kind of science,” said Applejack breathlessly. “And I’m great at cookin’. This’ll be another great club for me.”
But Rainbow Dash had already beaten her to it. Twilight Sparkle shook her head as Rainbow Dash held up a smoking test tube. Oops! She had soot all over her face. But Sunset Shimmer had somehow managed to capture it all. It would be in the yearbook—another memory of her friends and how creative and wonderful they were.
But Applejack frowned and counted on her fingers. Did Rainbow Dash have more clubs than she did now? Maybe.
Rainbow Dash took off down the hall and whizzed into the art room. She picked up a paintbrush and splattered some colors across a canvas. She wasn’t half bad! She glanced out the window as the marching band passed by, practicing. Oh no! Applejack was clanging a triangle. She had joined that club, too! Rainbow Dash would have to find another club to keep up with her. Were there any left?
Sunset Shimmer leaned against the wall and looked back over her photos. Art Club. Check. Marching band. Check. Somehow she had kept up with her busy friends—and so had the pig. Now who was in the most clubs? It was time to tally the score.
The bell rang. All after-school activities were now over.
Exhausted, Rainbow Dash collapsed on the front lawn. Applejack and her pig joined her. They both grinned at each other. That had been fun! Who had won?
Sunset Shimmer joined them, camera in hand. She was tired, too. She wiped some sweat from her forehead. “Well, the scores are in,” she began, looking at a paper in her hand.
Applejack, looking over her shoulder, couldn’t believe it! “It’s a darn tootin’ tie!”
“You have got to be kidding me!” Rainbow Dash said with a laugh. “After all that?”
“At least between the two of us, we joined every club at Canterlot High,” noted Applejack. That was an achievement.
Rarity cleared her throat. She had joined them and sat down beside Applejack’s pig. “Not all the clubs,” she said smugly.
Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked confused.
Rarity had Sunset Shimmer scroll down the photos on her camera to a glamour shot of Rarity all by herself.
What club was this? Was it about fashion or celebrity? Could they join?
Rarity laughed. “Oh no, darlings. It’s very exclusive.”
Applejack studied the picture. In the background, she noticed her pig! What was he doing in the photo? “Is that my pig?”
“Well, of course!” Rarity exclaimed. “You can’t expect me to be the president and the vice president. And he’s not really so smelly once he’s wearing a little perfume.”
Sunset Shimmer shook her head, looking through the photos on her camera. “Your pig is the real winner,” she told Applejack. “He’s in more clubs than anyone!”
Everyone laughed, and the pig grunted happily.
Sunset Shimmer was the happiest of all. Her friends were so energetic and involved and funny. Every day was an adventure with them, and she never wanted to forget a single moment they had shared. Thanks to the yearbook, she wouldn’t have to. That was for sure.
Super Superlatives
Sunset Shimmer was directing Twilight Sparkle and Applejack as they arranged photos in the yearbook room. They had to be carefully cropped to fit into the layout. Sunset Shimmer was really happy with the way the yearbook was beginning to look. That’s because they were working on it as a team.
“I remember when I didn’t have any friends,” Sunset Shimmer said to the others. “But you all forgave me for stealing the magic crown.”
“Of course we did!” said Applejack. “And since then, we have had a lotta good times together. Remember when we found our magic gems?” She touched the geode around her neck.
“How could I ever forget!” exclaimed Sunset Shimmer. She clapped her hands and accidentally bumped into a girl she hadn’t noticed before in the yearbook office. “Oops!”
“Excuse me,” whispered the girl.
“I’m sorry,” Sunset Shimmer apologized. “I didn’t see you come in.”
The girl bit her lip, looking down at the floor shyly. “I’ve been here awhile,” she murmured.
“I didn’t realize—”
“I’ve been trying to get your attention,” she interrupted.<
br />
“Ain’t she a quiet one?” noted Applejack softly.
“Yeah,” agreed Rainbow Dash. “And we know some pretty shy people, am I right?” She looked at Fluttershy, who blushed.
“I’m Sunset Shimmer,” she said to the new girl. “President of the Yearbook Committee and editor in chief. Do you want to join? We could always use extra help.”
“I’m Wallflower,” answered the girl, still not meeting her eyes.
“Nice to meet you,” answered Sunset Shimmer.
“I’ve been on the Yearbook Committee all year,” Wallflower said quietly.
Sunset Shimmer felt terrible. “Oh! Umm…”
“We’ve had literally dozens of classes together since we met in ninth-grade English.” Wallflower looked like she was about to cry.
“I—I meant,” stammered Sunset Shimmer. “It was nice to meet you then, which is when I also remember us meeting.”
Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. Nice save!
“Anyway,” Wallflower said with a sigh, “I counted up all the votes for the yearbook Superlatives.” She handed Sunset Shimmer a piece of paper. Superlatives were when all the students in the school voted on which kids they thought were best at all different kinds of things. Whoever won got his or her picture taken and had a special page in the yearbook.
Sunset Shimmer read the Superlatives out loud. “Most Likely to Succeed, Best Smile, Class Clown.” Her face broke into a big smile, and she held up the paper for the other girls to see. “Look who won Best Friends!” There were all their names—Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, and Sunset Shimmer. Sunset Shimmer’s heart felt so happy. Nothing meant more to her than this.
Pinkie Pie clapped her hands, delighted. “I always knew I liked you all, but now it’s official! In yearbook form. The people have spoken!”
Twilight looked at some of the other categories on the list. “Oh, good for Micro Chips,” she noted a little unhappily. “Most Likely to Invent Cold Fusion.”
“Don’t be jealous, Twilight,” said Fluttershy encouragingly. “We all know you are a genius, too.”
