"Being good with words was always your thing."
"Miss Dazzle?"
Silence. They couldn't make her speak again. Not again, and not ever. The carpeted step on which she sat smelled funny, but she didn't care.
"Miss, is your name Adagio Dazzle?"
It's not going away, Adagio,reminded her conscious.
"Yes. I am her."
But what did it mean to be her, exactly? Why was she here? Why was this person bothering her and want to know her name? The name that used to give her pride...the name that was the start of a beautiful friendship between two girls she didn't even like at first, much less tolerate. It didn't matter now, though. She didn't want any more of Adagio. She wanted to be someone else. Someone else that wasn't what she was before. She didn't want herself.
Someone she didn't recognize stood before her, holding something out. She didn't have to look to know what it was.
They were speaking to her, but she wasn't listening. She continued to stare anywhere but in the person's eyes. She wouldn't take what they were trying to give her. Not even if her life depended on it.
"...to have this." The object migrated from the person's hands and laid itself on the carpeted step with her. Her eyes did not land on it. She wound her fingers around a loose string in her tights instead.
"I'll be going now. I'm sorry for y-your loss."
And with that, they left her once more in the precious and wonderful state of her solitude.
You were the smartest of us three. I won't deny that I had my moments; but I suppose you two ran the show, and I was always in the background...
"Hey! You're back."
She trudged right past the other girl and made a detour in the kitchen and threw the thing that had been so tightly clenched into her hand onto the counter. She went back into the living room and made her way to her room. The other girl got in her way again.
"Adagio, come on. Don't act like this."
The pale magenta skinned girl stepped in front of her, stopping her in her tracks, pigtails swinging.
"Leave me alone."
There. That would shut her up.
"I know you want to be alone, but I thought we could go out and do something together. I know you haven't been out since-"
"No. Leave me alone, Aria."
She laid one lemon yellow hand on the other girl's shoulder, and moved her out of her way. She trudged to her bedroom and slammed the door. From there, she kicked off the same boots she had laid eyes on many times before, and let them lay on the carpet in the middle of the floor. She collapsed on her bed, and sprawled out, laying on her stomach, eyes open and staring at the boots.
Her fellow siren had always told her to pick them up before, and she had done it, but now she could care less. Aria would be around to pick them up for her anyway as soon as she left her bed. Which, by her calculations, would be close to about...never.
I often asked myself why I would write something like this, but I suppose it came in handy in the end. Maybe I was actually smart for once.
When consciousness returned to her, the light in the room had dimmed significantly, and from her viewpoint, her boots had vanished, and she was now covered in a thin cotton throw blanket. Aria's doing, to be sure.
On the bedside table was a plate of what appeared to be cookies, and a card bearing a simple message: Went to get groceries. Will be home soon. Let me know if you want to go somewhere. -A
She pressed her face into her covers and heaved a heavy sigh. So she had broken Aria. Before she knew it, she'd be all alone. But was being alone so bad? If she was alone, she wouldn't have Aria pestering her all the time to go places and move on. She could wallow in her misery for the rest of her life, if she so pleased.
On the other hand, Aria was all she had. If she didn't have her, then who would make her cookies and buy food and keep things in order? Who would hug her and reassure her that everything would be okay and that she wouldn't die? Who would keep her from completely falling apart?
It was Aria's job now. It used to be Hers, but She was no longer with them. And she never would be again. No matter how much she wanted it to happen, She wasn't coming back.
She had loathed herself every day since That Day. Perhaps she had felt guilty too late, or hadn't realized or recognized the signs. She was so busy trying to make everyone else feel like nothing more than a candy wrapper on the street to realize that She and Aria needed help.
It wasn't her fault that they were trapped here, or it could very well had been, but revenge had tasted so sweet...so real...so CLOSE, that maybe it blinded her from seeing the truth. It was possible that she believed that if she could obtain this world's Equestrian magic, she and the others would finally be able to return home. And not just as a force of nature; but as normal ponies.
That's all she ever wanted. She'd have never admitted it to Aria. Not even to Her. But maybe all she really wanted was to be normal.
A power forced onto her; it was what her family wanted, and even what she thought she wanted. Desperate for attention and company, she had dragged Her and Aria into this entire mess without thinking about how it would affect them. How they would deal with it.
They had had some fun times together, and perhaps even she had enjoyed herself. Who knew she wanted to terrorize normality so badly? Maybe she had done it because she was jealous of what the normal ponies had.
And now She was gone, never to return. And here Adagio was, ashamed of her own name and status in her current world. What it meant to be her...she just didn't want anymore. All because of Her.
Adagio watched a stray hair sway back and forth to the time of her breathing, wondering when Aria would get home so they could eat. Aria would want her to go out, and she knew that her fellow Siren would mention how much She would have wanted Adagio not to be like this.
A noise pierced her thoughts and caused them to deflate. It was the soft melody of the doorbell, sounding at the door. She pushed her face into the covers. If it was more well-wishers, she did not want to answer.
The ringing pursued, this time more frantic and upbeat.
It's not going away, you know, said her mind, carefully.
Shut up, she told it. She dragged herself off her bed, silently cursing Aria for getting locked out, and padded down the hall and to the door.
She unlocked the door and threw it open, and the second she did, there was a flash of pink and the strong smell of something sweet, and someone was wrapped around her.
I have always wanted to be normal; just like you. I think that's why I followed you here, even though I thought this world was the worst. And maybe it was. But with you and Aria, it made it all the more tolerable. I never missed anything back in Equestria because of you both. And for that I am grateful.
"Who-?" was all she managed to get out before the pink someone enveloped herself around her.
In a wave of what smelled like frosting and sprinkles, the someone pulled away, and Adagio finally got a good look at the someone.
She was about Adagio's height(minus the boots), with pale pink skin and an explosion of magenta curls, much like her own, hanging down by the girl's shoulders. She had big sky blue eyes and a cute outfit patterned with what appeared to be balloons. She carried an overstuffed pink tote bag covered in stickers. Adagio knew who the pink girl was; she recognized her from before. She was a part of the Rainbooms...and a part of the group of girls that had overthrown her and the other Sirens.
She let a scowl spread across her face.
"What do you want?"
Even though she was clearly scowling, the pink haired girl didn't seem to care in the slightest. She smiled kindly at Adagio, and then proceeded to dig around in her bag. Before she could turn her away, the pink girl pulled out a plastic take-out container containing a delicious looking chocolate cupcake iced in a pattern of white and violet.
"Hi, Adagio! I'm Pinkie Pie, the drummer from the Rainbooms and a girl in your grade at school! I thought I might come by and bring you something sweet!" said Pinkie, holding the cupcake out to her.
"Really? How sweet of you!" she replied, with mock kindness, and then allowed the scowl to once again lay to rest on her face.
"Thanks! I have another cupcake here, too! I also thought we could share cupcakes together or something. Kinda like a Cupcake For No Reason party!" said Pinkie excitedly, grinning wildly.
"Listen. I don't know why you're here, but if you don't mind I'd kinda like to be left alone. It's been a long day. Besides, you don't even know me, and I don't know you. Nor do I want to." she snapped, and proceeded to close the door.
"Wait!"
Pinkie Pie, or whatever she called herself, stuck her boot between the door and the inside of the house.
"What?" she snapped, wishing desperately that her long since dead necklace was still working.
"At least take the cupcake. I did bring it over here for you, even though you don't know me that well." said Pinkie, smiling weakly, and held out the container.
Though she would have preferred not to, something told Adagio that if she didn't accept the sweet, this pink-haired maniac wouldn't leave her alone. And she was only trying to be nice, after all; most people at the school that she and Aria now attended wanted nothing to do with them.
Aria would have let this girl in, despite their differences. Aria wanted to change what everyone thought...she wanted to make things better.
So why don't you?, asked her head, patiently.
Adagio reached out and took the container from Pinkie Pie.
The old Adagio would have slammed it on the porch steps, and let it explode everywhere, and have the pink haired girl run off in tears.
But she wasn't that Adagio anymore. She was just...her. And as much as she disliked to admit it, there was absolutely nothing wrong about letting this girl in. All she wanted was to have sweets, after all. And it had been a while since Adagio had had this treat. In fact, it had been longer than she could remember.
While she stood on the porch pondering, Pinkie Pie had stood there, smiling, awaiting the other girl's response. The former Siren allowed a long and heavy sigh to escape from her lips.
"Fine. Come in."
I know that after you get the news, you might be sad, but please know that this is out of my hands, and that I don't want you to stay in the past afterwards. It might be hard for you both to accept the truth, but...this is how things have to be, I guess.
She hadn't bothered to clean up, but now that she had company, she felt the tiniest twinge of guilt.
What would Pinkie Pie say to the other girls about the state of she and Aria's house? Or worse; what would she say to Adagio's and Aria's classmates? Even now as they were struggling to make amends?
However, as she looked into the big blue eyes of her classmate, she knew immediately that Pinkie Pie didn't care about the mess. She seemed more content with looking around then criticizing.
Adagio walked straight into the kitchen and to the cabinets, where she got out two small plates and two cups. She set them on the kitchen table cautiously, and went back to the fridge for some milk.
Pinkie Pie sat herself at the kitchen table, and dug around in her tote bag until she had a container with a cupcake of her own.
Adagio stiffly poured her classmate a glass of milk, and filled her own glass as well. She returned the carton to the fridge, and slid into the seat across from Pinkie. Pinkie opened her container and lifted a vanilla cupcake with pink frosting and silver sprinkles out and onto the plate, where she took a big bite at once, letting crumbs rain onto the plate.
Adagio followed suit, but didn't take a bite out of hers. She instead sat quietly, took a gentle sip of her milk, and tried to concentrate on her thoughts.
Why was Pinkie Pie REALLY here? Was Aria behind this in an attempt to make the bad memories go away? Or maybe she was conspiring against her, and the cupcakes were poisoned? Or worse than that, maybe those rumors she had heard the Eco-Kids talking about were true...that this girl baked people into her cupcakes and then made the living eat them?
Adagio shook her head rapidly. That couldn't be the truth. Pinkie Pie had never harmed her or anyone before(at least, to her knowledge), and didn't seem like the kind of girl to do so, either.
Pinkie Pie finished her cupcake in another shower of sweet crumbs, and struggled to lick icing off her face. Adagio rose awkwardly, retrieved a napkin, and handed it to her classmate, who took it with her signature beam.
She allowed herself to sit again, and continued to stare at the cupcake Pinkie had brought, as if it were about to lash out at her. Meanwhile, the pink haired girl had fished a can of whipped cream out of her tote bag, and was now squirting a generous amount onto her pink-frosting covered plate. Once this was completed, she stuck her finger into the white mound and stuck it into her mouth.
It took her a few minutes to realize that Adagio was watching her; and even when she did she continued to eat the whipped cream, her eyes wandering.
"Uh...Pinkie Pie, is it?"
Now she had her attention.
"Yeah?"
"Why are you really here?"
The pink haired girl took a sip of her milk before answering, wiping pink frosting off her face.
"Well, you see, after we beat you in the showcase and destroyed your necklacey thingies, Twilight went home, right? So the girls and I thought we might befriend you, and reform you guys just like we did to Sunset Shimmer! Only the thing is, you guys didn't really talk to us even after we tried to talk to you!! And then, the whole thing with Son-"
Adagio cleared her throat loudly to prevent her ears from hearing that name, which earned a skeptical look from the pink haired girl.
"So...anyway, I thought I might come cheer you and...uh..." Pinkie Pie thought for a minute, as if trying to recall the other Siren's name.
"Aria. Aria Blaze." said Adagio.
"Yeah!! That's it! I was coming to cheer you and Aria up. And I have another cupcake in her for her, too! Is she out somewhere? I also thought she could join our Cupcakes For No Reason party!" said Pinkie, excitedly.
"She went to get groceries. She should be back whenever." replied Adagio, vaguely, picking at the string on her tights again. Maybe inviting Pinkie Pie in for a snack wasn't such a good idea after all. She felt her eyes travel to a spot on the counter, straight to the last object she wanted to see. Pinkie Pie gave another kind smile, and waved one pale pink hand in front of Adagio's face.
"Hello?" she singsonged, playfully.
"Is anyone home?"
Adagio's eyes snapped back to her pink headed classmate, and she crossed her arms. She forced her eyes back onto the cupcake that she had yet to eat.
"Uh...Adagio?"
"Yes?" she asked, quietly.
"You know, if you want to, you can talk to me about anything. As I mentioned before, I may not know you very well, but I like to think of everyone as my friend, including you and Aria." said Pinkie, giving a small but very kind smile.
"I appreciate it, but I don't think there's much you can do now." she said, quietly, staring at the cupcake.
"Well...I could be your friend."
And with that, the tears that Adagio had stored up inside her for as long as she had held breath in her lungs let themselves loose.
You and Aria are my best friends, now and forever. No matter what, you both will be like sisters to me in my heart.
"I'm sorry, Pinkie. For everything we've done to you and the others. I want to change, and Aria does too, but no one will give us a chance." sobbed Adagio, shaking slightly, frantically wiping makeup off her face.
Her insides screamed at her to stop sobbing; that only wimpy and helpless girls cried...but she couldn't help it. She had wanted to cry for so long; longer than she could even remember. She put her face in her hands to keep from embarrassment; hopefully Pinkie Pie would spare this detail when she told the whole school of this visit.
But instead of laughing or taking a picture of her on her phone, Pinkie rose from her seat, came over to where Adagio was sitting, and wrapped her pale pink arms around her.
"It's okay, Adagio. The girls and I....we want to give you and Aria a chance; you know, to make things better. And I'm sure that the other's will come around! If they don't, they'll be subject to relentless parties!" said Pinkie, chuckling weakly at her own joke.
"I-I don't know why I'm telling you all of this." said Adagio, shakily.
"I-I've wanted to c-cry...for so long. E-Especially after S-S-S..." her voice trailed off. Pinkie's eyes were big, understanding, and kind.
"You mean after Sonata passed away?" she asked, softly, softer than Adagio had ever heard her speak before. Adagio nodded, wiping tears and running makeup off her face once more. Pinkie gave a sigh.
"Believe it or not, I know what it feels like to loose someone close to you. There were days when I didn't even want to party. But I never would have gotten through that without my friends."
Adagio forced herself to look up at Pinkie, and Pinkie smiled back at her, the same soft and kind smile from earlier.
"I would really really really really really REALLY like it if you and Aria came and sat with me and my friends tomorrow at lunch. I think that that will make you both feel TONS better, and I know that the others and I would really love that."
Before Adagio could answer, another noise destroyed the moment. The sound of a door opening, and footsteps coming in.
Aria came into the kitchen, carrying several grocery bags, when she saw Adagio wrapped in Pinkie's embrace. Stumbling a bit in surprise, she set the grocery bags down and leaned against the counter.
"A-Adagio? is everything okay?"
Pinkie smiled at Aria's arrival.
"Oh, hi! Aria, right?" she said, energy returning. Aria nodded, slowly.
"I'm Pinkie Pie, from the musical showcase and from school! I brought over some cupcakes for you and Adagio, and I was just talking with her, and I asked if maybe you guys would come and sit with me and my friends tomorrow at lunch!" she said, taking a large breath and finishing with a huge smile. Aria took a deep breath, and steadied herself on the counter. She looked from Pinkie Pie, still hugging Adagio, who had makeup stains on her face.
"Adagio? What do you think?" asked Aria, quietly, obviously surprised. There was a pause on her fellow Siren's end.
"I-I don't mind. I don't mind at all." said Adagio, and gave a weak smile. One Aria hadn't seen in months.
"Then it's settled!" squealed Pinkie, and finally stopped hugging Adagio to go to her tote bag for Aria's cupcake.
Aria went to put away the groceries, not sure if she fully believed what was going on. It had only been a few short hours since she had left the house, and already Adagio had become seemingly better than before.
Just as she was clearing the bags away, she caught sight of something on the counter. It was a white envelope, with no address or stamp. There were two names scrawled on it, in handwriting that only she and Adagio could recognize. Aria reached for it, and picked it up. She didn't have to look at it for more than three seconds to know what it was, or where Adagio had come by it. She brought it over to the kitchen table, and set it in front of Pinkie and Adagio.
"Adagio..." she started slowly.
"If you don't want to read it, then-"
"I don't."
All time stood still a minute.
"But I know I can, if I have both of you to read it with me."
Pinkie beamed, and a slow smile spread across Aria's lips. Aria settled herself in the chair next to Adagio, and Pinkie pulled her chair around and sat on the other side.
"First, though; I'd like to eat this."
Adagio took the cupcake in her hands, and took a big bite. It was even more delicious than she remembered.
Dear Aria and Adagio,
I never thought I'd be writing this letter, but I guess the time has come. Being good with words was always your thing, both of you. I often asked myself why I would write something like this; but I suppose it came in handy in the end. Maybe I was actually smart for once.
You were the smartest of us three. I won't deny that I had my moments; but I suppose you two ran the show, and I was always in the background...and I liked that. It gave me a chance to be myself. Aria, you were creative, and though you fought with me sometimes, I know that inside you cared.
I know that after you get the news, you might be sad, but please know that this is out of my hands, and that I don't want you to stay in the past afterwards. It might be hard for you both to accept the truth, but...this is how things have to be, I guess.
I have always wanted to be normal; just like you. I think that's why I followed you here, even though I thought this world was the worst. And maybe it was. But with you and Aria, it made it all the more tolerable. I never missed anything back in Equestria because of you both. And for that I am grateful.
You and Aria are my best friends, now and forever. No matter what, you both will be like sisters to me in my heart. And more than anything, I love you, Adagio. I love you, Aria.
Your friend and sister forever,
Sonata Dusk
Author's Note
I have no words on this one. Hope you enjoyed!
