At the lake, you were seen inching towards the shore, tossing a flat stone in your hand up and down with a disheartened frown. You sat down on a nearby bench and placed your head in your hands with yet another sigh.

(Y/N): I guess... I've just gotta live with this somehow. Maybe it really won't be so bad. Oh, who am I kidding? I don't think I'll ever be able to accept this. Shadow worked so hard to get to where he was, but now... now I've taken it all away from him.

You let out another sigh as you side threw the stone across the water, making it skip several times before landing in the water.

(Y/N): ** I have often dreamed... of a far off place, where a great warm welcome will be waiting for me. Where the crowds will...** No, that doesn't work here.

???: Geez, you look like you've been through literal hell and back.

You heard someone speak off to the side, making you jump a little. You turned your eyes to the speaker and they widened once they saw who it was.

(Y/N): Is that...

You were hoping it was Shadow, but they revealed to be Patriot, only he didn't appear to be himself like he used to be. He appeared more laid back. He approached and sat next to you as you looked away from him.

(Y/N): ** I know what you're gonna say. "I wasted my time trying to get him back and I should accept what's been given to me."

You stood and took a few steps forward.

(Y/N): But I just can't, okay? I can't just instantly be fine with having everything that originally belonged to the old Shadow. He did so much to get to where he was and he just... gave it all up. I now have to live with that fact for the rest of my life and I'll never live with myself no matter how much I try.

You faced him once again.

(Y/N): Being with the Shadowbolt girls won't make me any more accepting of it and I doubt that it ever will. So... do me the kindest favor, Patriot, just shut your mouth and spare me the "I told you so" speech, alright? Because I've already been through enough as it is.

You concluded with a saddened groan. Patriot was silent at first until he raised an eyebrow in... confusion?

Patriot: Okay, first off, that's a really nice way to greet a friend, Y/N. Second, what on earth are you talking about? Sunny and the rest of the Shadowbolts aren't in your harem, they're in Shadow's.

(Y/N): ** Look, you can say that I deserve them more than the old Shadow and that they shouldn't have been with him to begin with, but I just can't-

You stopped and froze when you took in what he said. You quickly turned to him in shock.

(Y/N): Wait... what did you say?

Patriot: Uh, I said that the Shadowbolt girls are with Shadow, dude. They're what makes up his harem along with Moondancer, Sunlight, the Dazzlings, Wallflower, and Juniper. Did you hit your head or something?

(Y/N): You mean... they aren't in mine?

You asked him, resulting in him looking at you confused again.

Patriot: Um... were you planning to have them in yours? Don't you think that's a bit too much to handle? You know, there's a bit more to...

You started to zone out as you honestly couldn't believe what he was saying. Did he really say that they were in SHADOW'S harem?! Did you even hear that correctly? Is this just a dream?! You pinched your arm and let out a yelp of pain. You then slapped yourself hard across the face resulting in even more pain.

Patriot: ...sure, those girls are cute and all but, I don't think they'd want to switch.

(Y/N): B-But... but weren't they... weren't they...

You tried to say something, but your brain was too busy trying to untangle itself from the web of confusion it had found itself in after hearing Patriot's exact words.

Patriot: Weren't they what? In your harem? Pfft. Bud, you must've been dreaming. Hope it wasn't a perverted one. ** Like ninety percent of O/N's dreams.

(Y/N): But... I-I...

You tried again, but you still couldn't make a coherent sentence. Patriot sighed and stood up before walking up to you.

Patriot: Look, if you need confirmation, I'll take you to him. Come on. He's getting ready for his school's graduation, but I'm sure he won't mind if we drop by.

Eventually, you made it to CPA where you spotted Shadow at the main entrance, talking with what you think might be his harem as you and Patriot approach him.

Shadow Moonlight: ... and then he's all like, "You ain't down with us no more. You ain't fat! You ain't fat!" And then Cheese Sandwich responds with, "You ain't fat, you ain't nothing! YOU AIN'T NOTHING!"

Lemon Zest: Whoa, that escalated quickly.

Shadow Moonlight: I know, right? And all because Cheese was in good shape. It's as if they encourage health risks!

Aria Blaze: Well, there are those idiots who say that big people should be proud of who they are or something like that.

Shadow Moonlight: I hate those kinds of people.

Patriot: Shad, hey!

He called, gaining Shadow and his harem's attention.

Shadow Moonlight: Patriot! Y/N! I thought you guys were at CHS's graduation march practice.

Patriot: Well, we were just about to, but it seems that Y/N for some reason got it into his head that your little girlfriends were with him instead of you, so I brought him here for you to confirm it for him.

Sour Sweet: ** Aww, he thought we were in his harem? Well, not every girl wants to get in line for a boyfriend, Y/N!

Shadow Moonlight: Sour, come on. Don't be so rude.

He sighed as he turned back to you.

Shadow Moonlight: You'll have to excuse her, Y/N. She got in a fight with a couple of other girls earlier.

(Y/N): How'd that happen?

Sunny Flare: They were comparing Shadow to you, saying that you were hotter. Not that you're not attractive, dear but... Shadow is our boyfriend.

(Y/N): Sooo... you guys really are together?

Lemon Zest: Dude, where have you been for the past year and a half? We're together because of you and you don't even remember?

You were about to answer when Shadow had a sudden moment of realization.

Shadow Moonlight: Ohhh... wait a minute, I think I know what's going on.

He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small note.

Shadow Moonlight: I had a feeling this day was coming soon. I just didn't think it'd be today of all days. Here.

He hands you the note.

(Y/N): What's this?

Shadow Moonlight: A letter... from an old friend of yours.

You opened the note and read it.

"To Y/N,

By the time you're reading this, I've already gone back in time, altered the past and have probably been dusted by now. If I'm lucky, which I doubt, I'd get reincarnated into an alternate universe or something, but enough about me. I'm sure you're already experiencing the changes now, huh? Well, here's the thing, before I decided to alter the past, I went to Sweet Shoppe to think about how to make everyone happy, including myself because... you were right. The audience may not give a crap about me, but I know that there are people here that care a lot about me and if I'm not happy, they'll be miserable, so... I made a few alterations to my original plan.

It started with Patriot. Rather than making him your best friend, I made him mine, but instead of him being the bully and me being the victim, we were both victims together and then you came to help us both out. Hopefully, if I'm right about this, we're all friends now and since V/N's gone, I don't think there's any need to worry about finding the Dark Amulet.

Next is the Shadowbolt girls. I'm sure you saw him already, but the new me has all of them, along with a few new additions. Thinking about Wallflower erasing your memories because of me, kind of made me think that she may or may not have liked me more than just a friend. I don't know, but I bet the new me does. Juniper, I don't know about her either, but I think we all knew that there was more to her boasting to me than she let on. I believe the Dazzlings admitted that they liked me during one of the loop days, so... they might be a part of it too.

Third, the new me is a lot more confident and doesn't act like me nor Shallow in the slightest. He loves himself and is a lot more outgoing than I ever was. Most importantly, he's still got his parents and he's kept them throughout his whole childhood which also means that Sunny and I were never adoptive siblings, so... things are a lot less awkward between her and I. I think you'll grow to like the new Shadow. On top of that, Edge is a completely different person because of this new me. He's friendlier, supportive, and rather than being snarky to everyone, he's only that way to people he hates. He seems to have pushed past V/N's betrayal thanks to the new Shadow Moonlight.

Lastly, I made sure the events with V/N turn out the same way because I still wanted to have Hollow around. Hopefully if you see him, tell him I said hi. He may look slightly different because V/N had nothing to inspire him to make a copy, but I'm sure it won't matter.

I know I said guys like me don't get happy endings but, I know guys like you get yours, so I hope you make the most of it, buddy. Take care of yourself, and enjoy the new and improved "better life" I made for you.

Best regards,

Your old pal, Shadow Moonlight

P.S. Don't tell him I told you this but O/N actually has a major crush on the human Dazzlings, so... I may have arranged something for them. Also... you may be shocked to see a couple new faces in your harem as well.

You glanced up at the new Shadow and then back down at the letter.

(Y/N): You... held onto this? For how long?

Shadow Moonlight: For about twelve years, dude. Gotta say, he really fixed us up.

(Y/N): Well, I don't know if he said anything about it, but there was one other timeline where he made it so that you turned out alone and that your girlfriends were mine instead of yours.

Shadow Moonlight: Oh, he told me that, Y/N. He even revealed to me and Patriot that he was my future self.

(Y/N): He did?

Shadow Moonlight: Mmmhmm. At least I'm not some edgy jerk here, so you don't have to worry about getting into many conflicts with me, dude.

He chuckles as he gives you a playful punch. Your smile, however, slowly turned into a bit of a frown.

(Y/N): I'll... I'll admit... This timeline is better than the one before... but a small part of me still kinda wishes that I could have convinced him to stay.

Shadow Moonlight: At least he didn't give up everything this time and we still got to be childhood friends. Plus... I'm not that much different from him, bud. I just have a little more self-worth than him as he stated in that letter. Trust me, it'll be like he never left.

(Y/N): I hope you're right about that.

Shadow Moonlight: Well, try not to think of me as his replacement, Y/N. Think of me as the end result of you finally helping him overcome his anxieties.

(Y/N): I'll... I'll try.

Shadow Moonlight: Anyway, now that we got all of that cleared up, what are you going to do?

(Y/N): I think I'll... head to the mall... try and cheer myself up, you know. I'll see you guys later.

You turned around and walked a few feet away from them before suddenly disappearing in a (F/C) flash of light. You appeared at the mall's fountain and peered into it, watching your reflection. You reached into your pocket and pulled out a coin and turned it over in your hand a few times. You tossed the coin into the fountain, creating a tiny splash when the coin hit the water's surface. You sat on the edge and placed your head in your hands, pondering over everything that just happened.

(Y/N): So, he really did change everything again. I... I guess it's better than before, but... I still can't shake this feeling of... failure.

You sighed once again as the camera zoomed out to reveal that your body had lost some of its color, leaving you almost gray while you tried to wrap your brain around this whole thing. However, you didn't think for much longer when a faint sound hit your ears. You turned your head up and listened.

(Y/N): That music... it sounds... familiar.

You stood and followed the sound to its source. You trudged onwards for about a minute until you finally found where the music was coming from. Unsurprisingly, it was emanating from the music shop, but there was something else that did, in fact, surprise you. When you went inside, you saw the Rainbooms with their instruments playing some music while also in their Pony-Up forms. They each smiled when they saw you come in and they began to sing.

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

You blinked a few times while comprehending what you just watched.

(Y/N): Uhh... did I miss a rehearsal or something?

Sunset Shimmer: ** No, dummy. We did this to cheer you up, of course.

Pinkie Pie: Yeah, sweetie! We didn't want you to sulk over Shadow, so we put this together for you.

(Y/N): Um, don't get me wrong, I'm grateful that you all did this for me, but I'm not entirely sure how that song was supposed to cheer me up, girls. I mean, you were just singing about good vibes, not exactly the same thing as dealing with a loss.

Rainbow Dash: Maybe the song wasn't to help you over a loss, but it did help take your mind off of it, right?

She asked which made you think about it for a second. A small smile made its way to your lips and you looked back up at your girls.

(Y/N): I... I guess it did.

Sunset Shimmer: Look, Y/N, the Shadow you know may not be coming back but, at least he made a timeline that was close enough to the old one where he still had his girls and that you were still best friends with him.

(Y/N): Wait, how'd you all know about that?

Rainbow Dash: We sent Pinkie to keep an eye on you until we were done setting everything up and she told us about you reading what that note Shadow gave you had to say.

(Y/N): O-Oh... yeah, that.

You sighed after that.

(Y/N): I... I know that I should move on from the old Shadow, but I just... I just wish that I could have still helped him in some way or another. Instead... I feel like I failed him again.

Fluttershy: Oh, Y/N, I'm sure it must be awful what you're going through, but you didn't fail him. He even told you that himself.

Rarity: I agree with her, love. Besides, you tried the best you could for him. I think that's something to be happy for. Sometimes, when someone is really set on something and their mind can't be changed, there's gonna be moments where... there's nothing you can do for them.

(Y/N): Yeah, I know... but...

Applejack: Hon, ya didn' fail him. After you left, we followed you and saw what Shadow was now. He's still yer best friend in this timeline, so you've gotta pick yer head up and see the bigger picture.

(Y/N): I can't just forget about him, girls.

Sci-Twi: And we're not telling you to, Y/N but... if there's one thing that the other Shadow was right about, is that you have to let go. Before this, you didn't have a chance to convince him but... now you did and it didn't work.

Pinkie Pie: Actually, it did work in a way, Twi, since Shadow still got his girls in the end.

Sunset Shimmer: She's right. So, Y/N, I don't believe there's a reason for you to hold onto him anymore. You've done all you can.

Sci-Twi: Yeah, sweetheart. Shadow made things better for all of us including him, not just you. He's a better guy now. He didn't even really lose anything other than his insecurities.

(Y/N): I guess...

You hang your head low before Sunset puts a hand under your chin and tilts it upwards to look at her.

Sunset Shimmer: Y/N, this really is for the better. Shadow doesn't self-loathe anymore, he still has his girlfriends, Patriot isn't an evil psychopath, and we've even got Hollow and Edge back. What more could you need?

(Y/N): **

Rainbow Dash: Come on, babe. Couldn't you do it for us, please?

She asked. You gazed at each of your girls in silence as they looked back at you with pleading faces with the exception of Pinkie who had her iconic puppy dog eyes.

(Y/N): Well... I can't promise I can fully accept this but... I will try.

Your answer earned wide smiles from the Rainbooms who couldn't be any more happier with that.

Sunset Shimmer: That's all we really need from you, Y/N.

Pinkie Pie: WHEEEE!!!!

She squealed before wrapping her arms around you and the rest of the group and pulling you all in for a group hug.

???: Well, it seems like you're finally starting to feel better.