Magnum Opus

"We were...so...CLOSE!"

The front door flew open with a loud crack, rebounding off the wall from the sheer force of the blow. Moving with a quickened pace, fists clenched by her sides, Adagio Dazzle stormed into her apartment with the presence of a charging rhino. Owning the threshold with a fiery fury that rivaled freshly-spouted magma, the tangerine-haired Dazzling gripped the first object to get in the way of her warpath, and with a frustrated yell, hurled it clear across the room without a moment's hesitation. The object in question, now in pieces on the floor, was formerly known as a decorative table vase.

Ten seconds passed before the remaining Dazzlings followed their enraged teammate into the apartment. Aria Blaze looked even more put off and angsty than normal; arms crossed, eyes darted off in a displeased scowl, she promptly flopped onto a large red couch.

Following her in toe with the most timid approach of all was the electric blue-haired Sonata, who closed the door behind her quietly. Hands clasped in front of her chest, uncertain of how to approach the situation, she turned to the open room and slowly walked over to the couch, sitting upwind from Aria.

"How...how did those girls do it!?" Adagio demanded to the entire apartment. The only Dazzling still on her feet, she paced to and fro around the living room, eyes glaring at the floor as she went. "Their magic was never that powerful throughout the entire competition, so how!? Why couldn't we sense it? Magic that potent couldn't have been undetectable!"

"Sunset Shimmer clearly made some kind of difference." Aria mumbled, grabbing a throw pillow and squeezing it to her chest. "Who knows, maybe they planned on holding out until the finale all along."

Down the couch, Sonata took off her shoes and huddled herself into a ball, apparently deep in thought.

"We were too close, I could practically taste it...all dashed away because this group of girls figured out how to use their magic against us!" Adagio continued.

"What does it matter?" Aria asked with a rhetoric tone. She let her head fall back, her long hair draping over the back of the couch. "Regardless how and why it happened, they won. It's over, Adagio."

"No! We're not giving up." Adagio said with grit. "Those girls...somehow, they knew what we were, how to fight back. There's absolutely no way anyone has been tailing us this whole time in this world, which means those girls had to have learned about us at some point between our first performance, and the Battle of the Bands finale. Which means they must have had recent contact with Equestria."

"Remember when they all held hands at the big party? They said something about friendship and magic, right?" Sonata piped up, coming out of her trance at last. Eager to contribute, she uncoiled from her position and assumed a relatively normal sitting position. For her, anyway.

"Made me wanna hurl." Aria deadpanned.

"Yes...they seemed to do an awful lot of parading on about their friendship." Adagio said aloud, her thoughts racing. Her blind rage having subsided for the moment, she sat in an armchair across from the couch, crossed her legs and stared into the bridge of her fingers. After a few moments of brief silence, her eyes widened with a revelation. "But that one girl, the one who opposed us at the party, did either of you see her anywhere when we first made our performance in the cafeteria?"

Aria and Sonata exchanged glances, and shook their heads. Adagio leaned forward, her expression beginning to turn to that of a scheming villain for the first time in hours.

"She's the one. It would explain what the Rainbooms were talking about when they tried to oppose us at the preliminary party, and how they knew how to confront us at the finale. It would mean they indeed did enter the competition as a way to try and stop our spell, and that she was the brains to the entire plan."

"Alright. So, how does that help us, now?" Aria asked.

"Don't you see? She's from Equestria and she's the one who gave the rest of the Rainbooms all the details about us within the past week. Which means she had to get to this world somehow. I don't know how long she's been here, but I do know those sentimental Equestrians wouldn't banish one of their own kind to this dimension forever, just to help a few humans..."

"...so there could be a two-way portal, hidden somewhere." Aria finished, her sour expression turning to a smug smile. She tossed aside the throw pillow and got to her feet, crossing her arms and maintaining eye contact with Adagio.

"Precisely. That buffoon Starswirl may have banished us into this magic-less pit, but it would appear our luck may not be out just yet."

Adagio made her way to the apartment window, pressing her knuckles to the windowsill as she stared into the darkness, her sneer equally dark. In the reflection of the glass, Aria joined her friend and leader by her side, placing a hand to her hip and looking out at the moonlit suburbs with a content smile. The moon was now fully risen, providing light to the streets and alleyways that weren't bathed in street lights.

From their floor, the Dazzlings had a clear view of the entire horizon; the moon, stars and wispy clouds painted the dark sky brilliantly. When last the three of them witnessed it, they had discovered that Equestrian Magic had been brought to this magic-less parallel world. Now, the hunt for a portal to return them to their true home was within their grasp.

"At dawn, we begin the search." Adagio said with her normal tone of command. "By any means necessary, we must find that portal and use it ourselves."

"Finally." Aria said with a sigh. "I couldn't stand this place before we lost our magic. To think if we'd actually have to get jobs, or something. I can't wait to go back."

"I can't wait to have my cute tail again!" Sonata exclaimed, grinning goofily before joining her teammates in striking an evil pose of her own.