Chapters Adagio sat in the window of her third-story apartment, looking at the moon, trying to hold back tears. She looked over her shoulder at a clock mounted on the wall. The time read 11:30. Sonata and Aria were already in bed, exhausted from a long and arduous day. After their pendants were broken during the battle of the bands, their lives had gone into a nosedive. They were working dead-end jobs after school just to keep up with rent on their dinky little apartment. Adagio remembered the good times; when they lived in Equestria, where there was more magic to feast upon than they could ever possibly consume. Even their early years of their banishment to Earth hadn't been too bad, in hindsight. When they had first been banished, they had been doing well for themselves, haunting the seas of Greece, seducing sailors to their dooms. Greece had been wonderful. Their culture was rife with magic, and there was plenty of opportunity for them to feed. But the golden age of the Greeks ended, and the Sirens had been forced to move on.
By that point, they had to learn to be more subtle. The Greeks never saw anything odd about singing women in the ocean. Their mysticism had made them easy prey. But as time passed, humans became more skeptical, and less willing to hear the songs of women who suddenly appeared before them. For years, they had eked out an existence on the edge of the woods, preying on the most druidic, mystical groups in Europe. First the Gauls, then the Britons, then the Lithuanian Pagans.
The Middle Ages had posed significant threat to their lives with the rise of Christian zealotry. Threats of witchcraft had been levied against them on numerous occasions. Sonata had almost been burned alive once in France. Only quick thinking by Adagio had saved her from a mob of angry peasants. But they persevered. And once the Renaissance began, they were once again able to thrive.
Vienna had been Adagio's idea. Then again, every sane decision they ever made had been Adagio's idea. They trekked their way from France to Austria in the 1600's to take advantage of a new musical phenomenon; opera. They hated the music with a burning passion, the very sound of it was like nails into their ears. Aria especially found the style abhorrent. But they had never lived as well as they did when they sung in the concert halls of Vienna. They became staggeringly wealthy, and were able to work their magic on vast crowds of people, which kept the three Sirens very full, and very happy. Germans and Austrians alike flocked to hear them sing. The language, so angry in its spoken form, appealed heavily to Adagio. She didn't care if they ever left. They owned a large manor, beautiful clothes, staggeringly beautiful jewels, and more gold than they could ever spend.
But, of course, they had decided to listen to Sonata.
In retrospect, Adagio should've known that anything that came out of Sonata's vapid little brain was not worth considering, but she had decided to give Sonata a chance. They were always on the lookout for the most magical places on earth, places that had ties to Equestria, or strong magical forces of their own that they could exploit. Sonata had pointed out a backwater nation thousands of miles away that had recently taken a break from their obsession with living on dirt farms and producing little inbred hick babies to start a war with themselves and slaughter each other en masse. For some reason, people from all across Europe started flocking to go there, presumably to get jobs and start little inbred hick families of their own.
So, on July 19th 1884 (Adagio still had the tickets) they had packed up a few belongings they could carry with them, and joined droves of Austrians, Germans, and Italians as they crammed themselves onto boats in Genoa to relocate to the United States of America.
Truthfully, the opportunity had seemed too good to be true. Germans they were not, but Americans had a beautiful tendency toward hatred and violence. Adagio saw it everywhere; it manifested in the cities as gangs of Jews, Polacks and Guidos battled each other in the streets of Brooklyn. She saw it in the south, as terrorist groups like the Ku Kluxes tormented blacks. Everyone, it seemed, hated each other. Poor hates rich, Democrat hates Republican, city-dweller hates country hick. It seemed the negative energy was so abundant that they would be feasting on unimaginable sums of power.
But unlike Europeans, getting an audience to sing to proved more difficult than Adagio had hoped. Opera had never caught on like it did in Austria, and as a result, the Sirens had been forced to peddle themselves as street performers, singing little songs to rile up emotions. Which, again, proved difficult. Adagio spoke fluent Greek, German, English, and French, but the smattering of languages in New York had proven overwhelming. Polish, Italian, Hebrew, Russian, and dozens more made up the rainbow of tongues that were spoken commonly. The Siren's melodies were enchanting for sure, but when their audience couldn't understand the lyrics, their spells' effects were trivial at best. The next forty years were hard on the Sirens. They travelled by train from New York to Chicago to Sacramento and back again, never being able to find somewhere they could lay down roots like Vienna. But then their salvation came: jazz.
Like the rest of the country, the nineteen-twenties were something of a party for the Sirens. They had done okay for themselves during the World War, using their songs to rile up hatred for the Germans. In truth, it pained Adagio to slander the nation that had fed her, clothed her, and treated her like a queen, but the gnawing hunger inside her had forced her to sing war songs anyway. But promoting the war had only kept her from starving. The jazz age was the first time in decades Adagio had felt full.
The music was hypnotic. Even Aria had a little fun as a jazzman. And for a few years they did well. They were living in an upscale penthouse in Manhattan, singing to different packed clubs every night, socializing with gangsters and getting drunk on illegal alcohol. Then the Great Depression hit, and everything went to hell. For the second time since they had arrived in the States, they were wanderers on the streets, sleeping in boxcars and just barely generating enough energy to survive. They roamed the nation, barely staving off the pains of hunger. For the first time, Adagio sympathized with humans. Everyone, it seemed, was hungry.
It took until after the Second World War for them to finally eat well again. When Pop music became mainstream, the Sirens hit their stride. They rode out the fifties to well past the year 2000 as pop singers, disappearing and reappearing every few years with a new look and a new stage name, among other things, stinting as Spice Girls.
Their luck took an unexpected turn for the worse a few years ago. The style of music shifted again, this one more heavily reliant on using computerized effects in lieu of good singing or instrumentation. They learned quickly that their voices had no effect on people once their songs had met the business end of a computer. So they were forced to abandoned professional singing, and retreat to more desperate measures.
They spent a few years roaming, sowing anger and feeding off it in small doses. They always had gnawing pains in their stomachs. Without access to concerts worth of people, they couldn't gather enough power to sate their hunger.
Then opportunity hit them in the face as they fed in a cafe; Equestrian magic, coming from the Element of Magic. Adagio had given up on trying to tap into their old world's power, but this was the chance they had been seeking for more than two thousand years; to reclaim their full power, and rule over this world.
Two millennia of hopes, squashed by Twilight Sparkle and her band of idiots. One fateful song and rainbow blast, and the Sirens found their pendants reduced to shards, their powers gone with the gemstones.
Without their pendants, and the powers of song that came with them, the Dazzlings immediately fell on hard times. Ironically, while feeding had been their primary concern since their banishment, Adagio's stomach was the only part of her that wasn't giving her grief. While distinctly less satisfying than feeding on bad feelings, normal food had the benefit of being much easier to obtain. Granted, much more ramen and Aria would be liable to kill someone, but Sonata had proved herself semi-useful as a cook, and managed to make the noodles at least halfway palatable.
Adagio returned her gaze skyward. She had spent two more than two thousand years with Aria and Sonata. Together they had persevered through disaster beyond disaster. The Huns, the Mongols, the Plague, the Inquisition, the seemingly endless wars fought by Austria against France, the Turks, and Russia. They had weathered through Napoleon, two world wars, and had managed to survive and even thrive in America. Throughout history, the three sirens had maintained their sisterhood, pushing forward onto tomorrow. But Twilight Sparkle had done something that not even the streets of the Depression had been able to do. She had made Adagio hate them.
Adagio, Aria, and Sonata's relationship had become ever rockier in the last few months. The only reason they were living in this downtown dump of an apartment was because none of them could find a job that could put a roof over their head alone. It was not the millennia of cooperation and even... friendship that kept them together anymore. It was a simple sense of practicality. Adagio could feel Aria and Sonata drifting away from her. They were the only family Adagio had. Humans died too fast. Look away for a few decades and they were gone. But Adagio had always known that her friends would be there with her forever. Aria and Sonata were like sisters to Adagio. They were the only people besides herself Adagio cared about.
Adagio's fists clenched as she thought. I won't lose them. She swore. With the moon as my witness, I won't lose Aria and Sonata. And I will make them pay for what they've done to us.
Aria's alarm clock started blaring at 8:00 AM. She woke up with a groan, assessing her mood for the day. She was somewhere in the realm of screaming at or stabbing the first person who made eye contact with her. About her Saturday norm.
She got out of her tiny, uncomfortable bed and began rummaging through her dresser. Her wardrobe choices were scant, but she settled on a pair of (unintentionally) ripped jeans, and her T-shirt for work. She had about half an hour before her shift started. Just enough time to grab a cereal bar and leave. The only consolation of losing her Siren powers was that it was now a lot easier to sate her appetite. But that hardly made up for what she had lost. Aria still fondly remembered her years in Austria, when she had been a legend of the stage, able to bend the most powerful men in Europe to her will. She had managed to cause more than one war that way. But then Sonata had to drag them to this backwater country.
Aria had one secret she had been harboring from the others all those years that they had been in Austria; she enjoyed singing in the opera. When they first arrived, Aria had hated it with a burning passion. But, as time passed, Aria realized that not only was she incredibly good at it, she was also enjoyed being the lead performer. Every time before and almost every time since, Adagio had always been the lead singer. But in Austria she had been happy to let Aria take the most demanding parts of their performances. And she loved it with a burning passion.
She had gotten rather used to being the queen of the stage when Adagio and Sonata "surprised" her with tickets to the United States.
She dismissed the other sirens from her head. No point making her any more likely to commit a murder today. Without her singing skills, she wouldn't be able to dissuade the cops from arresting her. She walked to the Canterlot mall, brows knit into a constant scowl, sending a clear message of "Don't fuck with me" to anyone who looked at her.
She had no idea why she had taken a job working at Capitol Records. Sure, she knew a lot about music, but at the same time the job made her miserable. All day long, she was reminded of what she had lost, by the never-ending stream of classic rock that came out of the store's speakers. A huge standee of Freddie Mercury was on display in the back of the store. She had to resist the urge to rip its stupid head off. Even Aria had been awed by his voice when she first heard Bohemian Rhapsody over the radio decades ago. Now his stupid moustache just drove her insane. Seeing anything even vaguely related to music made her seethe with rage.
The day at least had the mercy to be uneventful. Barely anyone came into the store that day, with the exception of the school's disk jockey, Vinyl Scratch. The girl must have bought every record the the store carried, twice. Every day, Aria saw her checking out with another huge stack of vinyls and CDs. She had no idea where Vinyl got the kind of money she dropped there on a regular basis, but Aria was seriously considering finding out. She could use the extra cash. For today though, there was nothing left to do but grab this week's paycheck from the little box in the back of the store and go home. Her check would probably be stashed in a little lockbox she had brought with her from Austria, along with what little of value she still had.
There was one thing in that box that could make a difference in their lives, but Aria refused to show it to Adagio or Sonata. She had lost or abandoned all of the beautiful clothes and jewelry she had brought from Vienna, except for one piece. The year had been 1758, and a young Hapsburg prince had fallen for the bewitching opera singer. He had requested Aria perform at his coronation, an opportunity to which Aria excitedly agreed. Not only would this be one of her biggest performances ever, she was doing it alone. As a token of his favor, she had given Aria a diamond necklace that must have cost a fortune, even by the royal family's standards. She didn't like him, of course. He was kind of nice, but he was ugly as sin. She made fun of Americans for screwing their cousins, but this man couldn't have been more inbred if he were a sandwich. She still took the necklace, and kept it all these years as a memento of Austria. Selling the thing could easily get the Sirens out of this dead-end town, but Aria didn't want to give it up. It was the one thing she had left from the life that they had stolen from her, and there was no way in hell she was going to sell it to help out that stuck-up bitch Adagio or that useless numbskull Sonata.
She left the mall and started walking home. It isn't fair. She grumbled. Her stomach was growling again. She hadn't eaten since breakfast, and that had been almost twelve hours ago. She looked around the empty street, too hungry to make it home. She noticed a little retro diner a few blocks down the street. She dug around in her jeans pockets, trying to find her wallet. Adagio's rule was that they were supposed to always eat at home, because it saved money on food, but Aria wasn't in the mood to obey Adagio. She looked inside the crusty old piece of leather. In a mix of fives and ones, she had about fifteen bucks. Easily enough for a meal. She looked at the diner again. Rockin' Reggie's 60's Grill, eh? She had kind of enjoyed the sixties. Their career as pop singers had kept them gorged on energy, and had gotten to kiss Paul McCartney at the Grammys in 1968. It had been a fun decade.
Aria began weighing the choice in her head. Hmm, on one hand, I love burgers and shakes, but on the other hand, Ms. Bitchtits says we're not supposed to eat out . The decision came pretty easily. She pushed open the door, and for the time being, let her problems go, immersing herself in nostalgia.
The situation in the restaurant was immediately different than how she remembered it. Back in the sixties, people would immediately have recognized her as a pop star and offered to buy her food. Today, almost no one spared a sideways glance to the girl with the massive purple and green ponytails. She walked up to the counter. A scrawny teenager was working the register. This part looks about right , She thought. Between his pathetic excuse for a beard and hilariously high-pitched voice, he looked like every soda jerk she had met while that term still meant something.
"Good evening Miss, what can I get for you?" He asked politely, voice cracking on every word.
Aria scanned over the menu, which was spelled out above his head on a letter board. "Eh, gimme a Cheeseburger and a chocolate shake."
The kid started scribbling her order on a piece of paper. "What would you like on your burger?" He asked again.
"Lettuce, tomato, and pickles." He hung the note on a clip in the window that separated kitchen and restaurant, and rung the bell. They did go for authenticity. Aria observed. The place did look like it had been ripped straight out of the sixties. They even had a jukebox in the corner. I wonder...
Aria went to look at the machine. She began pressing the buttons on the console, flipping through to see if she could find one of the records she was looking for. Sure enough, she found one. A vinyl with a purple label titled "Nightfire" by the band Annie and the Heartbreakers. That had been one of many cover names the Dazzlings had used over the years. Aria had written that particular album, and was particularly proud of the B-side hit, "Fight for My Heartstrings". Millions of teenage boys had flocked to hear her masterpiece, filled with idiotic fantasies that maybe he was the one she was singing about. In truth the song was, like everything else, cooked up to make people fight. In that regard, the album had been a huge success. One of their concerts had broken into a massive brawl that left eighteen people hospitalized. Aria put a quarter into the jukebox and let the record play. She sat at a corner table and allowed her voice to fill the room.
Who will it be? I'm yours for the taking!
All you have to do is fight for me!
C'mon, bring it on, till your arms are aching!
Bring your A-game in one, two, three!
Fight, fight, fight until you can't anymore
Give me a good show, don't be a bore!
Aria looked around as the record continued to spin. A faint rumbling had begun with the record, at first so quietly Aria couldn't hear it over the ancient vinyl that was, miraculously, unscratched. But as the four-minute track continued, it got louder. People were arguing. Vigorously. Aria couldn't believe it. She dug around in her pocket, where she kept the broken shards of her pendant wrapped up in a paper towel. She was shocked by the crystal shards. They were glowing, wealky, but they were glowing nonetheless. They were weakly pulling the aura of hatred and anger into them, trying to fill with power. Aria let out a little gasp as she saw two of the smaller pieces fuse into one bigger shard.
"Miss, here's your order." The teenage employee snapped Aria back to reality, away from the countless broken pieces of red gem in her lap. He deposited a tray in front of her, with a delicious-looking burger, and an alluring milkshake in an old-fashioned glass. "I tell you, I love that song." The kid commented. He walked over to the jukebox, and popped another quarter into it. The song began playing again, and the arguing continued. Aria looked at her crystal shards intently. They shimmered, but they didn't fuse.
Aria began processing what had happened as she chowed down on her dinner. Okay, so I put on one of our old songs, and it makes people fight, just like when we sang it live. The people start releasing energy, and it makes my pendant start to fix itself. Aria's eyes lit up with realization. If I can fix mine without Adagio or Sonata knowing, I can get myself out of this two-bit country! She could finally be rid of the other Sirens, and probably sneak back to Austria, the closest thing she had to a home.
She took another bite out of her burger. And soon Adagio and Sonata will be out of my life for good. She smiled at the thought. She would have to be sneaky. Aria had no doubts she could hide an elephant from Sonata in their apartment, but Adagio wasn't so stupid. Aria would need to figure out how to get her amulet to keep reassembling itself. There were only about twelve patrons in the restaurant. She would need to get a lot more power if she was going to fix the entire thing.
Sonata frantically searched through her dresser, looking to see if she still had at least one nice outfit left. She had to get out of the apartment soon. She would be late for work, and she couldn't risk bumping into Adagio. She had plans for that night that she could not risk her housemate discovering. She had prepared a pot of noodles for dinner, and left them simmering on the stove. She quickly shoved her outfit, a pink tank top, purple skirt, and her flashiest pair of boots into a plastic bag, before grabbing her purse and sprinting out the door.
It had started yesterday. She had been sitting alone at lunch, again. The Sirens had stopped sitting together awhile ago, which left Sonata all by herself. No one at the school tried to associate with the three. It wasn't a problem for Adagio or Aria, they liked being alone. But to Sonata, it was torture.
She was starving. Adagio had advised against bringing lunches in order to save money for rent, and she didn't have any spare cash on hand to buy food. Nothing to eat and no one to talk to, she lamented, This SUUUUCKS.
As Sonata sulked, a boy from her gym class quietly approached her from behind. He cautiously balanced two trays in his hands as he stepped towards her. He sat down besides her, and tapped her on the shoulder. "Hey. I never see you eating lunch. I thought you might like some food." He offered her a tray. Tacos. Her favorite.
She smiled, "Thank you so much! No one ever does anything nice for me."
He laughed awkwardly, "It's the least I could do. I can't have my star volleyball player working on an empty stomach, can I?"
Sonata giggled, "I guess not."
He took a deep breath before he spoke again. Sonata noticed his entire body was tensing up. Whatever he was getting ready to say, he was really nervous. "So, are you doing anything tomorrow night?"
She shook her head, "Nope. I get off from work at five, so I'm pretty much free."
He exhaled, "A friend of mine is throwing a party tomorrow night, and I wanted to know if you'd be interested in coming with me."
"What kind of party?" She asked.
"My buddy Big Macintosh throws a farm party every year. They play music, we dance, go on hay rides." He explained. He immediately blushed and started stammering, "I understand if you aren't interested."
Sonata shook her head, "No, that sounds like a lot of fun. So you want me to be your date?"
"Yeah..."
Sonata giggled. He might have bad nerves, but he seemed really nice. Most of the boys at CHS either scorned her after the Battle of the Bands, and those who didn't just gawked at her boobs all the time. He never did either. In fact, he was one of the few people who had ever treated Sonata nicely. He held doors for her, complimented her, and always took her on his team for gym, when everyone else would refuse to take her.
Sonata gleefully smiled. "Then it's a date!" She wrapped her arms around him, and gave him what humans called a "bear hug". She had never gotten to try one out before. Aria and Adagio didn't like her touching them.
"Uh, you're crushing my spine..." He gasped. Sonata released him and nervously laughed, "So, you want me to pick you up at your house tomorrow?"
Sonata deadpanned. There was no way in hell she could risk having him anywhere near her crappy apartment. She'd be mortally embarrassed if he saw it, and besides that, Adagio would surely scare him off. "Uh, would you mind meeting me where I work? We can go from there."
"Sure. Where do you work?"
"I work at that Mexican restaurant downtown, Juanito's." She answered.
He nodded, "Sure, I'll drive over at five."
"Sounds great!" She hugged him again, less forcefully this time, "Thanks again for the tacos, Shining Armor."
Sonata now waited patiently in front of the restaurant. Her shift had ended five minutes ago, prompting her to dash into the women's restroom, and change out of her uniform and into her nice clothes. She stumbled out of the stall, toilet paper stuck to one boot while she struggled with the buckles on the other. Finally, she got the thing strapped up, and waited patiently in the warm spring breeze.
Shining Armor pulled up in a white pickup truck. It was fairly old, but a lot of work had been put into fixing it up fairly recently, as was attested by the shiny new coat of paint and recently installed running boards beneath the seat. Shining stepped out. He was wearing a blue flannel shirt and jeans, and waved to Sonata, who excitedly ran over to him. "You ready to go?" Sonata nodded. He opened the passenger door for her, and helped hoist her inside. The step was comically high; the frame of the truck was at the same height as Sonata's waist, and the seat was nearly level with her neck.
Shining Armor climbed in, and started driving. Sonata looked around downtown as they drove through. Her seat was huge. She probably could have fit two of her in it comfortably. The drive was about ten minutes, most of which Shining spent talking to her while rock and roll came through the oversized speakers of his powered-up sound system. She giggled at the Hawaiian bobble head on his dash board. His taste might be terrible, but he was still really sweet to her.
"We're here," he announced as they pulled up to the farm. Sonata saw acres upon acres of apple trees, all covered in delicious red fruit. She drooled a little as they past them.
He parked alongside a bunch of other cars and trucks, along one side of the Apples' barn. Shining jumped down, and offered Sonata a hand to help her. He eased her down to the ground, and walked inside the barn. All the hay bales and farm equipment had been moved to the edge of the barn or put somewhere else for the night. The middle of the floor had tables and chairs set up all around, with a big empty space cleared for dancing in front of the raised platform that was being used as a stage. Sonata recognized a few people from school: She saw Vinyl Scratch trying to get her girlfriend Octavia to dance with her, but wasn't having much luck. Onstage, Sonata recognized Applejack shredding on her base, besides a mountain of a teenager who was playing acoustic guitar. She glared toward Sonata. If looks could kill, Sonata would have died a gruesome death. They wrapped up their song, and as their audience applauded, she whispered into the boy's ear. The boy, who Sonata assumed to be her brother, their host, Big Macintosh, jumped down from the stage, and walked up to Shining Armor. "Hey pardner, mind if'n Ah talk with y'all a minute?" He asked. He and Shining walked outside, around to the back of the barn. Sonata followed, trying her best to stay out of sight.
She hid behind a mountain of hay as the two talked. "Look, Ah got nothin' against you, but Ah think mah sister is right. That girl y'all brought is nothin' but trouble. Y'all heard what happened at the Battle of the Bands, dontcha? Ah know your family was on vacation that week, but still."
To Sonata's surprise, Shining Armor stood up for her. "I don't care what Applejack says. She's harmless. She's incredibly sweet. I think the other two were just stringing her along. She doesn't seem like the kind of person who goes and causes trouble."
Macintosh shrugged, "Y'all know her better'n ah do. To be honest, Ah don't care that y'all are bringin' her round fer the party. Applejack is just a mite concerned, is all."
"Screw Applejack." Shining Armor said. "If she wants Sonata to leave, then I'm leaving too."
"Cool yer jets pardner. No one's makin' anyone go anywhere. Applejack's old enough to be able to act mature 'round someone she don't like. She'll just have to act like a grown-up tonight."
Shining Armor was visibly relieved, "Thanks Mac." The two shared a manly hug before returning inside. Sonata slipped in ahead of them, and was waiting in a corner when Shining returned. "Sorry about that," he apologized, "Just had misunderstanding to clear up."
Sonata looked awkwardly at the ground, "Shining, if me being here is a problem, I'll leave." She sadly whimpered.
"No way. I want you here." He said. There was no questioning the integrity of his words. It was plain on his face. Sonata hugged Shining Armor tearfully. He returned the embrace, taking her in his strong but gentle hands, "You wanna dance?"
Macintosh had retaken the stage, and after what looked like a tense discussion with his sister, they seemed to reach an agreement and departed. In their place, their grandmother stepped onto the stage carrying a fiddle, and spoke out to the guests. "Alright y'all little varmits, this here's an old Apple family square dancin' song." She began to rub out a vigorous, upbeat tune, which got the entire party up and dancing.
Shining led Sonata onto the dance floor. He walked her through the steps, and she started mimicking them. Awkwardly at first, but she got the hang of it very quickly. Within a few minutes, she had flawlessly picked up Shining's lessons and the pair were going at it almost as well as any of the Apples. Sonata looked at the couples she could recognize. Vinyl had gotten her way with Octavia, and the two were going at it, extremely clumsily, but trying nonetheless. The cross-eyed girl in her gym class was dancing with her date, that muscle headed jock that played violin. What's her name again, is it Derpy or Ditzy? Sonata shrugged. She couldn't remember.
Applejack kept her distance with her friends, but they didn't say anything mean to her. That being said, she could feel a lot of bad energy directed towards her. The song finished, and the couples all sat down. Shining went to get them some food and cider from the buffet table, leaving Sonata by herself.
Sonata felt a buzzing in her skirt's pocket and felt around for her cell phone. Wait a minute, I don't have a phone. What was causing that vibration? She pulled out a piece of cloth, and gasped with recollection. She had forgotten about her broken pendant. This skirt was the same one she had worn to the Battle of the Bands, and she must have put the pieces in the pocket and forgot about them. She saw little green particles of mist, the unmistakable sign of malice, drifting into the pieces. Before Sonata's eyes, two of the smallest shards fused together, leaving a still tiny but definitely bigger one in their place. Sonata tried to find the source of the anger. It seemed to flow from Applejack. Wow. She really hates me. Then realization dawned on her. Ohmygosh! If this can put two pieces back, maybe more power could fix the rest! I have to tell Adagio and-
She couldn't. If she told Adagio, she would have to tell Adagio she was out with a boy at a party, and she would be furious with her. Sonata had no idea what kind of punishment she'd get, but she knew it would be unpleasant beyond words. Maybe I'll just keep this tiny secret to myself. She smiled. Having her amulet back would be a dream come true. If pissing Applejack off could help repair it, then piss her off she would.
Author's Note
Hey everyone! Great news! My robotics team build season is officially over, which means I will have a lot more time to be working on my writing! I have a special project in the works right now. All I will say is, to my knowledge, there is nothing like it on this site!
Chapter 3- Adagio
Adagio groaned as she pushed through the door of the third-story apartment. Her arms were filled with groceries, and her legs were exhausted from a long day's work at the coffee shop. She had not sat down in nearly twelve hours, and was on the verge of collapse. She looked around the living room. Weird. Sonata and Aria are usually home by now. The clock read eight. Sonata's shift ended at five, and Aria's at seven. She smelled dinner, which was, as per usual, ramen. Adagio poked her head into the kitchen. Instead of what she usually saw, Sonata slaving over a large pot of noodles, adding bits of meat or vegetables trying to make the food edible, there was just a pot sitting on a very low flame. There was a note stuck to the pot. Adagio read it with annoyance.
Dear Gi-gi
Adagio groaned. She hated that nickname and Sonata knew it.
Had to run out for a little while. Dinner is on the stove, just turn off the burner and it should be ready to go!
Love, Sonata Dusk
PS: I'm totally not with a boy tonight.
Adagio raised an eyebrow. Having Sonata out of the house for the night was a mixed blessing. On one hand, it was one headache she would not have to endure, but on the other, Sonata had a tendency to get herself into trouble. Adagio had long ago discovered her tendency to say the most idiotic things at the worst possible times. One slip up eight hundred years prior had almost gotten her burned at the stake in France. And of course, more recently she had nearly directly told that bitch Sunset Shimmer that they used their songs to control people. Fortunately, it seems that Sunset was almost as imperceptive as Sonata herself, and hadn't immediately clued in on what they were planning.
Adagio carefully handled the pot. Sonata had at least been smart enough to leave a couple potholders and a rubber mat out for her. Adagio ladled herself out a bowlful, and sat down on the dingy old couch in their living room to tinker with a Rubik's cube. She had bought the thing out of curiosity nearly thirty years ago and still couldn't figure the damn thing out. She had given one to Aria and Sonata for Christmas that year. Aria had solved hers (by rearranging the stickers) and Sonata had, somehow, managed to finish the puzzle. Adagio had a relatively short list of life goals right now. They were, in order, 1) Keep a roof over her head, 2) Regain her Siren powers, 3) Find a better home, and 4) finish the cube. Items two and three were unlikely to happen anytime soon, which left Adagio with a lot of spare time to work on number four.
For the better part of two hours, she was bouncing between her dinner, the puzzle, and reading The Hunchback of Notre Dame , which she had taken from the school library. They couldn't afford a TV, but free access to books helped keep Adagio kill time. She closed the book as Aria walked inside. Adagio immediately noticed something strange with her friend. She carried herself nervously, trying to make herself as small as possible, and avoided making eye contact.
"Sonata's out, but she left us some food. Want some?" Adagio casually offered.
Aria shook her head, "No, I'm fine. Thanks though."
Adagio raised an eyebrow. Aria was always hungry after work. She usually went half the day without eating, which left her ravenous by the time she got home. If she didn't want food, something was amiss. "What's going on?" Adagio asked. Her tone was not accusing, not yet. But it was certainly suspicious.
"Nothing's wrong. I've got some homework to do." Now Adagio knew something was up. Aria actually doing her schoolwork on a weekend was on the same level of strangeness as her saying something nice to Sonata. Now Adagio went into interrogation mode.
"Where have you been?" She demanded, putting herself between Aria and her bedroom.
Aria glared at her angrily, "Nowhere. Get out of my way." She pushed Adagio aside, but not before Adagio could make out a ketchup stain on her T-shirt.
"You ate out!" Adagio accused, "I can't believe you!"
Aria assumed a defensive posture, "So what if I did?" She indignantly asked.
"I don't know if it's occurred to you, but we don't exactly have a lot of money," Adagio growled. "Getting food at restaurants is a luxury that we can't afford."
"I don't need to listen to this shit." Aria shoved her way past Adagio and went into the bedroom she and Sonata shared. She slammed the door in Adagio's face, leaving her screaming at the door.
"What the fuck is your problem?" She shouted. "You're acting like a bigger shit than usual!"
As Adagio banged on the door, Sonata casually strolled in. She looked at the spectacle before her, and realized it probably would have been a good idea to take Shining up on his offer to go on a moonlight drive. She went into the kitchen and ladled herself a bowl of noodles. She had filled herself up on homemade burgers and cornbread at the party, but Sonata never turned up food, even when she was still a Siren, and eating was a luxury, not a necessity. She sat down on the couch, and dug through her backpack until she found the book she was reading. It was her favorite, The Lorax.
Adagio gave up a few minutes later and returned to her dinner. Sonata waved to her, but Adagio just ignored her. She opened up her book again, and sighed, "I don't have any time to care about what you were doing right now. Just try to let me know beforehand, and try not to get yourself knocked up while you're out there." Sonata choked a little on her noodles.
Sonata finished eating and tried to get into the bedroom. Aria had locked the door. "Um, Ari, can you let me in?" Sonata peeped, "I need to get my pajamas."
All Aria said in reply was, "Fuck off."
Adagio stood up again. "Do NOT talk to her that way," She roared. "Open this door, damn it, and let her in!" Aria said nothing in response. Furious, Adagio reached up to the top of the doorframe. She kept a key to the door up there, and was going to get Sonata into her room and give Aria a piece of her mind, and possibly a piece of her fist. She jimmied the lock until she felt it unlock, and pushed. The door still wouldn't open. Aria had barricaded the door. How old was she, nine?
Adagio had reached her limit. "Aria, you let Sonata in right this minute or I swear I will beat you senseless!" Still nothing in reply.
"Where am I supposed to sleep?" Sonata whimpered. Adagio looked at her with concern. Sonata looked like a sad puppy that had been kicked one time too many.
"You can sleep on the couch, or with me, whatever you prefer." Adagio softly offered. "I know my bed is tiny, but I can make room."
Sonata hugged her gleefully, and Adagio hesitantly hugged back. Aria would be getting hell in the morning. She would have to come out eventually. And when she did, Adagio had some choice words picked out for her, including but not limited to: Brat, shithead, cunt, bitch, and twat. For the meantime though, she just wanted to read.
She sighed. When she had started reading The Hunchback , Claude Frollo's character stood out to her immediately. In a way, he reminded her of herself. Frollo had stepped up to take care of his younger brother Jehan when their parents died, and later to raise Quasimodo. Similarly, Adagio saw herself as a motherly figure to Aria and Sonata, after their banishment left them stranded on Earth, alone.
They're my family. I have to protect them. She vowed, as tears began welling up in her eyes. She was no stranger to fighting with her friends; she considered it to be something of a hobby of theirs. But the spats they were having were getting worse and worse lately, and ending with no resolution and a lot of bad feelings.
She blamed Twilight Sparkle and her friends. It was their fault for taking their powers away. Those amulets kept the Sirens together. As long as they had eternal life, they needed each other. They kept each other safe, and gave each other a sense of belonging. Everything around them would grow old and die one day, but they would remain forever. Adagio went into her room. Under her mattress, she had a little box she had bought a few days after they moved to America that she used to keep the few precious things she still had. She opened the dusty wooden lid. Inside she had a photograph that had been taken right after they stepped off the boat in New York Harbor. The three of them looked so much happier. They had plain but elegant fur coats and modest haircuts, but stood together, arm in arm, ready to take on the strange new country.
Those were the girls Adagio saw as a family, almost like her sisters. She looked out the window. To the east, beneath the moon, she could see Canterlot High School. She clenched her fist in rage. I will make them pay for what they did to us. Adagio began formulating a plan. She didn't know how, but she was going to make them miserable for ruining their lives. Maybe she could tear apart their friendship, and see how they liked it. Or crush their ambitions, one by one, until they have nothing to live for. Either way, they would soon be feeling the wrath of Adagio Dazzle.
Aria awoke and realized the situation she had put herself into. There was only one escape route from her bedroom, the door. The fire escape was in Adagio's room, and Aria did not like her chances with the three-story drop straight onto the concrete below. She pushed the dresser out of the way. She would have to face Adagio sooner or later. Might as well be now.
Adagio was sitting on the couch, absorbed in her book. She heard the door creaking open, but kept reading. Aria crept past, trying to be sneaky. Adagio's stern voice caused her to jump. "You know, I would be a lot less angry if you hadn't acted like such a little brat last night. That was how I would expect a child to behave." Adagio was berating her without even looking up. When Aria didn't say anything, she continued, "If you don't have work today, you should just leave. Before one of us does something she'll regret."
Aria took the hint and left, grabbing a quick breakfast before getting the hell out of the apartment5. Outside, she had to figure out where to go. She had a couple places she liked to hang out when she was angry, the park a few blocks down the street being one of them. She walked over silently, avoiding looking at the few people strolling around. The park was empty. She looked around to confirm her observation. Sure enough, there wasn't a single kid in sight. Weird. It's the weekend . In the past, parks like this one would usually be crawling with brats at this hour. Where were all the kids? Probably still sleeping or playing video games.
Aria say down on a swing, and allowed herself to space out. It was a beautiful, tranquil spring morning. There was a warm wind blowing, and songbirds singing in the trees. She closed her eyes, and let herself be at peace...
"Hey Ari!" Came a familiar voice. Aria's eyes shot open, and a loud groan escaped her mouth. It was Sonata. Of course it was, she loved the park too. Aria had never seen someone as happy on stupid monkey bars as her.
"Go away Sonata." She growled. At this point, she was better than Adagio, but still one of the last people Aria wanted to see. Surprisingly, Sonata kept her distance, which left Aria in relative peace until she saw a group of girls walking their way.
Aria groaned again, even louder than before. It was Sunset Shimmer and the Stuck-Up Snob Squad; the group of assholes who ruined her life. Sonata saw them too from atop the jungle gym, and stealthily climbed up into a huge oak tree as the group walked into the park.
Rainbow Dash didn't see Sonata, but she did see Aria. "Ugh, first one of them crashes AJ's party, and now another one of them is hanging here!" She complained.
Rarity nudged her, "Now, Rainbow Dash, let's not be so rude. She isn't hurting anyone."
Pinkie Pie wasn't paying any attention to her friends. Instead, she was twitching erratically, while her face contorted into uncomfortable looks, and her giant cotton-candy hair stood up on end. Aria thought she might have some sort of disorder, or had just eaten so much candy it had finally overwhelmed her body's ability to withstand it. When her friends noticed this, they looked worried.
"Somethin' wrong pardner?" Applejack asked.
"P-P-P-PINKIE SENSE!" She shrieked, as a large branch fell out of the tree and hit Applejack squarely in the head. The severed tree limb had knocked her flat on her ass, and left her head spinning.
"Ow, now what in tarnation was that?" She growled, putting a hand on her scalp. A trail of blood had begun running down her head, which Rarity quickly covered with a handkerchief. Everyone looked around for the source of the falling branch. They couldn't see Sonata hiding in the treetops, and assumed it had just naturally broken off and fell. They shrugged and moved on, presumably to find somewhere else to be little goody-goody bitches. Aria was confused. Sure, Sonata defined the term ditz, and accidentally hurt people constantly (especially Aria), but Aria couldn't see her intentionally harming anyone. She saw something peculiar as her fellow Siren climbed down. There was a cloud of green mist pooling on the ground where Applejack fell, the telltale sign of bad emotions. Aria quickly took out her amulet, and part of the mist was drawn into it.
She approached Sonata, curiously. "Hey, what was that about?" She asked. Sonata was absorbing the remaining energy into her own gem. The reaction had been alarmingly powerful. Even in broad daylight, Aria could see the gleaming power of the crystal shards from a good distance away.
Sonata looked around nervously as Aria approached her, "If I tell you, you won't tell Adagio will you?" She stammered.
Aria grinned. Sonata wanted to keep secrets from Adagio? "Sure, I won't tell her."
Sonata inhaled, and began talking at a ridiculous speed. "Okay so I was at this party last night with a boy from school and Applejack was really pissed off that I was there, and I felt a buzzing in my pocket, so I went to check my phone, then I remembered I don't have a phone, and I looked and saw my pendant was glowing! Well, the pieces were glowing, anyway. Applejack made so much energy that it put some of the pieces back together!" Aria inspected her shards. The reaction had been astonishingly powerful. She had gone from about thirty shards to twenty. Way more powerful than what she had gotten in the restaurant.
Aria had an idea. It was incredibly risky, because not only did it involve keeping secrets from Adagio, but it also meant having Sonata keep that same secret. She decided to test Sonata's resolve to see if she could be trusted. "So Sonata, why don't you want me telling Adagio about this?"
"Well if I told Adagio, I'd have to tell her I was with a boy at the party, and then I'd have to tell her who I was with, and she'd probably get really mad and say I couldn't see him." That was good enough for Aria. She had a good reason to lie, to keep her little boyfriend a secret. She could work with that.
Aria's plan was pretty solid. If Sunset and her friends could produce that much energy with a little prank, focused efforts would net huge quantities of power. Aria had a great mind for torment. Her angry, brooding nature allowed to dream up downright cruel things that could make people despair or rage. She would be the brains, and Sonata would carry out her plans, siphoning off their misery to repair their amulets. And after hers was done, Aria would strike out on her own. She would deal with Sonata in due time, because if she was going to leave, it wouldn't do to have either of the others at their full power. But for the time being, Sonata would be... useful. That's a sentence I never thought I'd use. Aria mused.
She felt a smile coming on. Aria felt excited for what she was going to do. The only times she could immediately think she had felt so eager were far in the past. Her performance at the Emperor's coronation was one of them, although she had enjoyed singing with Emperor Nero as he played the fiddle during the fire of Rome.
She put her arm around Sonata, and began to explain her plan to her new minion, "Okay Sonata. We're going to go after those girls, and make them so angry, so miserable, that they'll never want to see us again."
"But they already don't want to see us." Sonata pointed out. "That's how I got all that power last night, remember?"
Aria facepalmed, "I mean so that they're afraid of us. We're going to make their lives hell, and use their energy to fix our amulets."
"And then we'll help Adagio, right?" Sonata's question was the one Aria was dreading. She needed to be crafty with her answer. She had to say no, but say it vaguely so that Sonata wouldn't know it.
"We'll worry about her later. For now, it's important we don't tell her. It'll take too long to fix all three of our amulets at once."
"So we'll take care of you and me, and help her out later?" Sonata asked.
"Sure, that's just what we'll do." Aria sweetly answered, crossing her fingers behind her back.
Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter. The three sirens sat together at a lunch table in the corner of the cafeteria, talking intently among themselves. "So, are we ready to get started?" Aria asked.
"Not yet," Adagio whispered, "There's one detail we still need to deal with."
"What's that?" Aria and Sonata asked.
Adagio pulled them in closer, "Those girls have some way they can communicate with Equestria. It's the only possible explanation for how they called that other girl here. We need to make sure she doesn't come to interfere again."
"How are we supposed to do that?" Aria asked.
"Ohh! I know!" They turned to look at Sonata, "They have this book that they can use to write to Twilight!"
Aria gave her a confused look, "How do you know that?"
"I heard Rainbow Dash talk about it awhile ago." Sonata explained, giggling. "I don't think she knows how loud she is. I could hear her from across the gym."
Inspiration dawned on Adagio, along with a nefarious smile, "I know just what to do. Sonata, where is this book?"
"Sunset Shimmer keeps it in her locker," She answered dutifully.
Without speaking, the three got up from their table and walked out into the hallway. Across the cafeteria, Applejack was watching them intently. "Ah think somethin's brewin with them girls. Anyone else notice how friendly-like they been actin' with each other lately?"
Rainbow Dash nodded, "Yeah. Something's fishy here. I think we had better write Twilight, just in case."
"I don't think so." Sunset said, "They're harmless without their magic. We should just leave them alone."
Applejack argued back, "Ah still think they're the ones who hit me with that log over the weekend. Ah think they're up to somethin."
Out in the hallway, Adagio, Sonata and Aria had gathered around Sunset Shimmer's locker. "We've got to get our hands on that book," Adagio said, pointing at the lock, "Aria, can you open it?"
Aria dug around in her pocket until she found a paper clip. She bent it into a point and began fiddling with the lock. Adagio and Sonata formed a wall around her, to keep anyone from seeing what they were doing.
"Aaaand, we're good." Aria said a minute later. The door popped open as she wiped a bead of sweat from her brow. "Cheap things will break for anything. So what are we going to tell Twilight so she doesn't come?"
"That there's some construction work around the portal, so it would be very dangerous for her to come through in the next few weeks," Adagio answered as she stuck her hand inside and began rooting around. She pulled out a jacket, a purse, a sandwich in a bag and a beat up old game boy before she found what she was looking for; the ratty old book with a sun printed on the cover.
Aria handed her a pen, and Adagio started writing. In Equestria, Twilight Sparkle picked up the other book as it began to glow, and read the words as they formed.
* * *
Dear Twilight Sparkle,
They started some construction around the school today. They've dug all around the statue that brings you here, so for your safety, don't come to CHS for any reason in the next month.
Twilight raised an eyebrow at the message. It seemed incredibly suspicious, but at the same time, she knew better than to mistrust her friends. Surely they were just looking out for her safety. Sunset's handwriting seemed neater than she remembered, but she just attributed it to simple improvement and returned to her game of cards with Rarity.
"Is something the matter with your human friends?" Rarity asked.
Twilight shook her head, "No. There's some work being done over there and they were warning me it might be dangerous for me to come right now."
Rarity smiled approvingly, "Well that was very kind of them. Now, do you have any sixes?"
"Go fish," Twilight said.
* * *
Adagio admired her handiwork before ripping out the page. "There. It's like we were never here." She put the book back in its place. "We had better go. The bell is about to ring. Do you remember the plan?"
"All out war," Aria smirked, "Go after each of them all day until we have our amulets back. Then we get the fuck out of here."
"Aria, I'll leave the plotting to you from here," Adagio smiled.
Aria grinned. She was the boss today. "Oh, I have just the idea."
* * *
Rarity screamed. "Oh heavens above, this is THE. WORST. POSSIBLE. THING!"
"What's the matter?" Fluttershy sheepishly asked.
Rarity held up a clothes hanger with a small white dress, crying, "That lovely sun dress I lent to Pinkie Pie! It's covered in strawberry frosting!" Fluttershy examined the outfit in question. Surely enough, it was covered in icing. Homemade pink icing, filled with sprinkles.
"I told her to be beyond careful with this poor thing! I needed it for tonight, and now it's ruined!" Rarity grit her teeth and snarled, "I'm going to give that airhead a stern talking to." Rarity stormed off, stained dress in hand, with Fluttershy following her out. After they left the boutique, Aria, Sonata and Adagio stepped out from a dressing room.
"Nice touch with the homemade icing." Aria smiled, patting Adagio on the back. "That's as good as Pinkie Pie's sugar-coated fingerprints by their standards."
"It was Sonata's recipe," Adagio said. Sonata held onto a small bowl of it, dabbing her finger in it and eating it every few seconds. The three took out their pendants, and allowed them to absorb Rarity' anger. The reaction was powerful, but they still needed more.
* * *
"FLUTTERSHY!" Pinkie Pie screamed. She looked around the kitchen until she found a broom to beat out the animals that had gotten loose in her kitchen. As soon as the squirrels, cats, and raccoons were out of the house, she stared in horror at what was left of the cake she had been slaving over for nearly five hours.
"Maud's birthday cake! It's ruined!" Pinkie felt her hair flop down flat into her face. She clenched her fists and growled. Fluttershy was going to pay for this. It had been hell trying to keep fourteen pounds of rock candy attached to a cake, while frosting it. She stormed out of her kitchen as the three sirens were laughing in a hedge, looking inside her window.
Sonata was laughing so hard she felt tears running down her face. "Aria, how did you get so many of Fluttershy's animals?"
"Have you seen her house? It's practically a zoo. I just grabbed a few, stashed them in my backpack, and let them loose." She rolled up her sleeve, revealing an arm covered in claw and bite marks, "We had better get finished soon. I have no idea what kind of diseases those monsters are carrying."
* * *
"Oh no, this is bad..." Fluttershy's house had turned into a complete disaster. Somehow, Applejack's dog had gotten loose in her house, and was terrorizing all of her animals. She ran throughout her house, trying to grab Winona, but without success. Fluttershy's eyes bulged in horror as she saw the dog running towards... her rabbit hutch.
Fluttershy screamed as the dog began barking at the terrified baby bunnies in the wooden box. She jumped on Winona, and grabbed the dog by the scruff of her neck. Fluttershy had lost control. Nothing was going to hurt Angel's new family on her watch. She dragged Winona by the collar and threw her into an available kennel. "I'm gonna give Applejack a piece of my mind..." She quietly growled, hopping on her bicycle and pedaling off with Winona in tow.
"Good work catching Applejack's dog." Adagio commended. "It must have been a bitch to catch that mutt."
Sonata smiled, "Oh my gosh, you have no idea. Winona's pretty fast, but she got tired after an hour."
They took out their crystals to begin feeding, and were slightly alarmed with how much power Fluttershy had generated. The girl didn't seem like much, but from the looks of it, she could kill if you poked her wrong.
* * *
"See ya later, Rainbow Dash!" Applejack waved. The two had just finished another round of Street Fighter on Applejack's old Super Nintendo. Rainbow had won. Again. Applejack sighed as she left. Something seemed mighty suspicious with the game. Rainbow always seemed to have way more health than she should. She shrugged and went about cleaning up her living room. She bent over to pick up one of the two beat up old bean bag chairs they always sat on, and saw a book underneath it.
"That no good, rotten, lying cheater!" Applejack exclaimed, picking up the book. It was a cheat codes manual. She opened it to a bookmarked page halfway through. "'Extended health meter'? She's been cheatin' me every game Ah've ever played!" Applejack brimmed with rage. On multiple occasions they had bet money on games, and on another occasion, she had to serve as Rarity's personal model for an entire weekend on a bet.
"Hey sis, whatcha yellin' bout?" Applebloom asked, peaking her head over the banister of the stairs.
"Go'n play with yer friends," Applejack glared, "Ah've got a bone to pick with Rainbow Dash."
Applejack tilted her stetson down and barged out the door, book in hand. Aria, Adagio, and Sonata emerged from behind her garage.
"Nice going with that plan," Adagio commented, patting Aria on the back.
Aria shrugged, "Wasn't my idea. Sonata?"
"Nope, not me!" She cheerfully answered. The three looked at each other for a moment, and simultaneously realized what had happened. As realization dawned on them, they couldn't help but laugh.
* * *
"Dammit Rarity! What part of 'fix it' don't you understand?" She took her soccer uniform out from the box left on her doorstep and shrieked. All she had asked was that Rarity get a few stains out of her shirt and fix a tear on her pants for the championship game tomorrow, but instead she had gone and made over the entire thing. Every inch of her jersey was covered in sparkly sequins. She inspected her shorts, and found the same to be true. Rarity had even gone through the trouble to cover the number one on the back in baby blue sequins.
Rainbow looked at the stitching. Not only were the sequins securely held in place, but it was pretty obvious even to Rainbow that Rarity had not wanted these to come off, ever. The stitches were so numerous, but so elegant and complex that they couldn't have come from anyone else's hand. She slid a pocket knife out of her shorts, but put it back immediately. There was no way she would be able to undo what Rarity had done without wrecking the jersey.
"I'm gonna be a laughing stock! I'm never gonna get picked up for a pro team after this!" Rainbow Dash wailed. She looked her phone. The time read five. If she hurried, she could possibly find Rarity and get her to get the sequins off before tomorrow. Rainbow darted into her garage, grabbed her skateboard, and frantically rolled off to find Rarity. Where would she be at this hour? Probably with Fluttershy at the park.
Adagio watched as Rainbow Dash fled. The three drank up the energy, which had been less than they had anticipated. The reaction was more of panic than anger, which was a less powerful source of energy. The Sirens looked at the progress they had made. Sonata and Adagio's amulets were stubbornly in two shards. Aria's however, still glowed. They stared at the two halves intently, watching, hoping as sparks began to bind the two pieces. With a flash, the two halves united into one, completing the gemstone. Aria gasped, and victoriously clipped it onto her necklace string, and fastened it around her neck.
"How do you feel?" Adagio excitedly asked.
Aria didn't speak. Rather, she tried humming a simple melody. The resulting tones were beyond pleasant. They were the hypnotic tunes that had been their primary tool of getting energy for millenia. "It worked! It worked! I can sing!" Aria cheered, happier than she had ever been.
Adagio looked at her pieces with annoyance. "We're going to need a lot of power to complete mine and Sonata's. I'm happy for you Ari." She smiled.
"Don't worry Adagio. I'll make sure you two have your pendants back before tonight is over. Just you wait. I have a plan."
"Which would be?"
A sadistic smirk spread over Aria's face, "Those girls love to hang out at the park on South Main street. They're all pissed at each other already. All we need to do is show up and feed on their anger. Then, we can show the our 'gratitude' for these last few months."
* * *
Sunset usually met her friends in the park on weekday afternoons, but today was different than usual. All of the girls had beaten her there, and they were all in each other's faces, shouting. Everyone was pointing fingers at someone else, and the situation was getting out of control.
"Would it kill you to control your animals?" Pinkie screamed at Fluttershy.
"Would it kill you to try to keep my clothes clean?" Rarity shouted back to Pinkie.
Applejack grabbed Rainbow Dash by the collar, "Ah know you've been cheatin' all this time at video games, Rainbow!" She accused, holding up the book.
Rainbow Dash laughed nervously, "Whaddya mean? I've never seen that book before." Without a word, Applejack opened the cover. Written in pencil, it said Property of Rainbow Gail Dash . "Oh, hehehe. That book."
"You've been lyin' to me all these years!" Applejack screamed.
Sunset Shimmer tried to defuse the situation, "Come on girls, can we just calmly talk about this?"
"Shut up Sunset!" They all yelled in unison. Sunset took a step back, tears welling up in her eyes. They had never been so short with her. She hadn't seen the girls at each other's throats like this since the Battle of the Bands, but they had been influence by the Sirens. She stepped away from the fray to distance herself from the fight and gasped. She saw a green fog emanating from her friends, the same that they had released when Trixie had imprisoned them beneath the stage the night of the finals. That could only mean that the Sirens were at work here. No, that's not possible! Their amulets were broken! I saw them break into pieces! Sunset fearfully followed the trail of mist behind a bush, and suddenly, her voice failed her.
She saw Aria sitting while humming a seductive melody, while the other two were fixing glowing red gemstones around their necks. The stones gleamed with a the same intensity as a star. When they noticed Sunset, they stood up, and fearlessly got right into Sunset's face.
"Hey Sunset Shimmer. Remember us?" Adagio asked, effortlessly hoisting her up by her collar. Sunset shrieked. "We owe you some pain for what you did to us at the Battle of the Bands."
"Care to do the honors Sonata?"Aria asked, cocking her fist.
"Right with ya sis," She giggled, mirroring Aria. Sunset braced herself. This was going to hurt.
Sunset Shimmer's terrified screaming turned the girl's attention away from their squabbling just in time to see one of the Sirens holding her by her shirt, while the other two punched her in the face. As the blows landed, Adagio let go, sending Sunset flying, landing on her back in the dirt, eye blackened and nose bloodied.
"What the hell?" Rainbow gasped. Before she could process what was happening, the three charged at them. Aria ran straight up to Rainbow Dash and put a brutally strong punch into her ribcage. Applejack moved to defend Rainbow, but Sonata ducked in next to her, grabbing onto her arm and twisting it with inhuman force. Applejack screamed as she felt her shoulder dislocate, and her arm begin to break.
Rarity and Fluttershy tried to avoid the fight, and went to the aid of Sunset, trying desperately to rouse her and get her away. Adagio stepped over her crumpled body, looking down at them like a spider to its prey. "Please, don't hurt her!" Fluttershy begged.
Adagio flashed a sadistic grin, "I'd be more worried about yourself dear." She kicked Fluttershy to the ground and grabbed Rarity by the hair, hoisting her into a standing position. Rarity shrieked as Adagio put a powerful punch into her stomach, followed by one into her eye. "Sorry to mess up your pretty face," Adagio taunted, throwing her to the ground.
Aria was quickly getting frustrated with Pinkie Pie. All that sugar in her system had her moving at borderline sonic speeds. Every strike she threw was effortlessly dodged, and Pinkie Pie was giggling about it, like they were playing a silly game. She finally cornered Pinkie near the monkey bars, when Sonata came swooping in, doing a flip over the top of the bars before delivering a kick straight into her ribs, sending Pinkie Pie reeling into the ground.
The Sirens gazed around the battlefield. The only one still moving was Fluttershy, who quivered like a leaf in a hurricane whenever they looked her way. The aching in their knuckles gave them a feeling of satisfaction. Sunset and Rarity would surely have black eyes after that beating, and they had more than likely broken a few bones. Months of infighting between the three had been avenged in less than five minutes.
Adagio took one look back to inspect her handiwork. Five girls lying on the ground, beaten senseless, with one more left standing to witness their brutality. The Sirens left the scene of the assault to return home. Aria and Sonata's presence at her sides brought a comforting feeling to Adagio. These two had stood by her side through thick and thin, throughout human history. They were her closest allies, her dearest friends. She smiled. Perhaps Twilight Sparkle was right. Maybe friendship was, in fact magic.
Losing her powers was not the great tragedy that had befallen Adagio. More valuable were the bonds that kept her together with Aria and Sonata. As they walked back to their apartment to figure out their next course of action, Adagio started singing a song, which Aria and Sonata quickly joined in on.
There was a time we were apart But that's behind us now But we've made a brand new start And the future's lookin up And as we walk these empty streets I'm feelin' something new Yeah we're the Sirens forever, And that's bad news for you! Now we're stronger than ever! Closer than ever! Yeah, we're better than ever! And always together!
Author's Note
wow, that came out longer than I thought! thank you everyone who has been putting up with me for the past month with this, I feel really great seeing this story be so well recieved! All that's left is a short epilouge, which i should have out in a couple days. Thank you again, your support is what keeps me up writing well into the night (that's a good thing!
"Fifteen thousand." The jeweler argued.
Aria gave him a hard glare, "Seventeen."
The elderly man conceded to the girl, "Alright, fine. Seventeen thousand dollars. If I might ask, where did you come across such a piece? I cannot find any evidence that it was stolen, so how did so fine a necklace come to you?"
"It's been in my family for a long time." She lied.
The answer seemed satisfactory to the man, "Very well then." He turned around and opened the safe on the wall behind him. He pulled out a stack of bills, and handed them to Aria. She counted them up, and upon finding the amount correct, handed him her diamond necklace.
Aria left the shop feeling strange. As much as that necklace meant to her, selling it had made her feel strangely happy. It was like old baggage left behind, giving her a brand new start.
"Hey Adagio, you ready to go?" She asked, stepping into the apartment. While Aria had been haggling with the collector, Adagio and Sonata had been doing some shopping. They had pooled all the money they had saved up, and went out and bought three sleek new suitcases. They had gone through the apartment, and collected everything that they wanted to bring. They would never be returning to this town again. In fact, if their resolutions held true, they would never be returning to this miserable country ever again.
The following morning they went about their business, notifying their employers of their resignation. Aria went out and bought a laptop for herself, and MP3 players for both Adagio and Sonata. After they finished their shopping, they decided to visit the sixties diner in town (on Aria's recommendation), and for the first time in too long, enjoyed a meal and each other's company.
After dinner, they caught a taxi to the nearest airport. Aria had booked them one-way tickets to Vienna, leaving that night at eight. They made their way through customs, using guile and wit to pass the guards. Within thirty minutes, they were seated in first class, waiting for takeoff.
"Excited?" Adagio asked, nudging Aria in the arm.
"Mhm." Aria smiled, and embraced Adagio. "I can't believe it's been so long since we've been back."
"Attention passengers, this is your captain speaking. We'll be taking off in just a moment." The voice on the loudspeaker put Aria at ease. Within a minute, the plane was taxiing down the runway, and off into the air. Aria watched as the landscape below her shrunk until it was no longer visible. She let out a sigh of relief.
"Another adventure, eh Dagi?" Aria asked, elbowing her friend.
Adagio nodded, "Yep. Just the three of us against the world."
"I wouldn't have it any other way!" Sonata cheered.
Aria patted the leather handbag at her side, which she had loaded with her cash. She still had a ton of money left on hand, easily enough to get them into an upscale apartment while they got themselves established. They would not want for comfort anytime soon, that was certain.
Author's Note
Whew! Just a short little bit to send them off with. I'd like to sincerely thank everyone who has stuck with me through all of this. It gives me no small amount of satisfaction to see the (almost) universally positive reception. I'm also really excited to be able to do this