Tear Jerker / Spectacular Seven

Warning: Spoilers Off applies to Moments pages.

• Volume I, Chapter 9 opens with Selena, Trixie and Sunset all paralyzed with grief after Artemis is captured by the Sirens, and presumed dead after his crystal ball goes dark. Between the screams of anguish and the slow, soft crying of Trixie to her mother, it really tugs at the heartstrings how much the situation is effecting them all.
• Volume I, Chapter 14 is rather unkind to Sunset's psyche. At first, Selena thinks she's found a way as to how the Sirens escaped their captivity. But then, it takes a cruel turn. After learning about leylines, which are magic streams that travel to places called leygates, Selena says they need a large concentration of magic to form. Sunset immediately realizes how one formed; it was her being blasted with the Elements of Harmony. In essence, Sunset's selfish actions not only made her almost destroy the school, but now she's put the whole world in danger. Sunset's guilt immediately kicks back in, to the point she just goes upstairs and lies down with a knot in her stomach. The poor girl just can't catch a break.
  Sunset: One day... I can’t go one day without being reminded of how badly I screwed up.
• Volume II, Chapter 4 sees Sunset finally confess to having Catapult Nightmares to Twilight, including the latest one where all her friends were dead, the whole town was on fire, and Sunset was apparently responsible for all of it. It gets so bad that Sunset finally breaks down crying in Twilight's arms, afraid of herself.
  Sunset: I thought it was over, Twilight! I thought I was done having nightmares! But they just keep coming — she keeps coming! Over and over again to haunt me! I see everything on fire! I lose all control of myself! I see all of you girls, gone, dead!
  Twilight: Sshhh. It’s just a bad dream, Sunset. It can’t hurt you.
  Sunset: Yes it can! I know it can! It’s too real! It’s not just a dream, it’s a prediction! I knew it — I knew using magic was a bad idea! It’s like she’s sitting right there! Right on the edge of my heart. One mistake… one mistake and I’ll… I’m scared, okay? Scared of what’ll happen next.
• Volume II, Chapter 9 invokes some Sympathy for the Devil from Artemis to Moondancer. Thanks to some Oblivious Guilt Slinging, Artemis makes Moondancer feel bad about the kinds of things she'd doing to get what she wants, as well as giving Moondancer the attention and affection she'd been craving so desperately with no strings attached. She even keeps the pink dress he helps her pick out, just because he was nice to her. Moondancer's mask of civility almost cracks, and she nearly tells Artemis everything, but holds herself back. She might be a Rich Bitch, but the chapter does paint Moondancer sympathetically. At least until her Villain Song at the end where she says that Twilight belongs to her.
• Volume II, Chapter 13 is all about the search for Sunset after she's kidnapped by Lamia under orders of Tempest Shadow, only for Sunset to have her soul stolen. It's got an undercurrent of fears from Artemis and Selena, with Trixie also worried about her surrogate sister. But Twilight gets it the worst, as she's worried sick to the point she ignores several magical goings-on during the search for Sunset, barely keeping herself from crying. It makes Twilight admit to herself that she really does love Sunset, and now, it might be too late to tell her.
• Volume II, Chapter 16. While Sunset and Twilight are reunited after a long time apart, it's not under pleasant circumstances. When Sunset is found in the factory, she's catatonic, malnourished, and covered in bruises. She's taken to the hospital immediately, but she won't wake up. This is because her soul has been taken, but the heroes don't know that, so not even magic can help her. This is also where Twilight admits she loves Sunset, even if Sunset isn't around for her to hear it. The author even admitted that this was the lowest point, emotionally, for the heroes.
• The Final Battle of Volume II. Moondancer reveals her Face–Heel Turn to the heroes, which devastates Twilight. Even after all this time, she still believed that Moondancer had some good in her, and Moondancer spat it back in Twilight's face.
  • The same chapter also has Lamia show up at the CHS prom, apparently drunk, complaining to Sunset about how she can't stand to listen to Scarlet Inferno's whispers in her ear anymore, revealing that she's been Scarlet's vessel, used by Tempest and Moondancer. Lamia is clearly at the end of her rope being the Butt-Monkey of the villains, finally screaming that she doesn't want to have anything to do with this anymore. As bad as she is, it's enough to make Sunset and company feel sorry for her.
• Volume III, Chapter 7: Fluttershy goes through Tranquil Fury at seeing Soarin getting close to Rainbow, since Fluttershy Cannot Spit It Out that she's in love with Rainbow. In the break between the two laser tag games, Sunset talks to Fluttershy, saying that she should confess her feelings. But Fluttershy, who's Trying Not to Cry, won't do it. While she says it's because she wants Rainbow to be happy Sunset speaks from experience that such a thing is only going to end in heartache. It makes both of them have to confront some rather depressing things.
• Volume III, Chapter 13: Rainbow Dash's Two-Timer Date comes to a horrible end, which Rainbow admitted it would. Once Fluttershy finds out that Rainbow was not only two-timing her, but with Soarin, Fluttershy loses her cool and screams at Rainbow, causing Rainbow to deservedly feel like an idiot for what she's done. And when Rainbow finally puts the pieces together that Fluttershy has a crush on her but said nothing about it, she feels even worse.
  Fluttershy: B-but you said today was all about me. We… we planned this for weeks!
  Rainbow: Fluttershy, I—
  Fluttershy: You lied to me!
  Rainbow: No, I just—
  Fluttershy: I thought we could have at least one more day together, just the two of us! I could pretend just one more time it was only us! But even when I think you picked me, you still picked him! (to Soarin) This is all your fault you… you… homewrecker!
  Soarin: Wait, what?
  Rainbow: Fluttershy, calm down—
  Fluttershy: No! It’s obvious you like him more than me! If you want him, fine, I won’t stop you! I hope you two are very happy together! (Fluttershy runs off crying)
• Volume III, Chapter 17: Sunset hits another low point after the Sirens pull a Redemption Rejection, attack Sunset and her foster family, and steal the staff that Tempest wants. Sunset feels responsible for what happened, since she convinced people to give the Sirens a chance, and it blew up in her face. But what really stings at Sunset's heart is the idea that she and the Sirens are not so different; Sunset says that the only reason she changed was because the Elements forced her to change. Sunset even says "people like us" don't change unless they have to change, showing that Sunset still thinks of herself as a villain. It hurts to see that Sunset's self-esteem, after all the good she's done, is still so horribly low that she can think she's not worth redeeming.
  Sunset: The Sirens came to us of their own volition, and they still turned out evil! What does that say about me? All of my changes are based off a curse subverting my free will half the time! This entire friendship is based off that! I'm no better than the Sirens!
• Volume IV (General): Over multiple chapters Twilight is beginning to grow increasingly unhappy and potentially jealous over not having magic.
• Volume IV, Chapter 10: Following Adagio’s latest robbery, Shining Armor is hospitalized with a flaming sword stabbing him near his heart. Twilight’s mother has to admit she doesn’t know if her son is going to survive. She, Twilight’s father, Cadence and especially Twilight are all in agony waiting helplessly.
  • Following this, Twilight tries asking her friends to use their magic to help, but sadly it dissolves into a brief shouting match. Twilight is understandably very upset that her brother might die and downright angry that her friends can’t easily fix it, but they are all correct in stating that simply magicking away a major stab wound would inevitably lead to people asking questions. It ends with Twilight storming off without saying goodbye to Sunset.
  • Lastly, Twilight is now furious at Adagio and when she hears she’s been spotted, tracks her back to her current hideout. Twilight confronts Adagio by herself, and actually does a decent job… then Adagio regains the upper hand and viciously beats her down. She then deliberately leaves Twilight alive because she can practically taste her hatred and sadness, and can’t wait to see how much worse she’ll be after this.
• Volume IV, Chapter 12:
  • Moondancer is panicking because her company’s board of directors is pressuring her to succeed at hosting the Gala for fear of being voted out as Chairman, which would leave her very likely to be executed by Tempest or Tirek.
    • Moondancer is also rapidly chugging down glasses of wine by the time Fluttershy approaches her. When this is pointed out, Moondancer bitterly notes her parents aren’t there to tell her otherwise.
  • Meanwhile, Applejack finally grows too sick of Rara’s celebrity lifestyle to stay silent, and vents about how miserable she is, not realizing Rara is right behind her. When Applejack gets so upset she declares she hates most of Rara’s life (including her music), the poor girl runs away in tears, while Applejack is guilt-ridden.
• Volume IV, Chapter 15: After enduring weeks of Rarity prioritizing her own career over helping Coco save the Canterlot Revival, the poor girl angrily chews her out for it and storms off in tears.
  • Meanwhile, despite both Twilight and Sunset’s very best efforts, the stresses are growing because of Twilight’s growing fixation on magic, her new job eating up much of Twilight’s time, and her being unable to even talk about it thanks to an NDA, and the looming threat of the Spectacular Seven being split up once college and their adult lives role around.