Prologue: Not as Bad as They Seem

Sunday night, two days after the Battle of the Bands. Sugarcube Cafe was nearly empty, save for a couple of small groups of students meeting up for study or recreation. Everyone was still abuzz with this past weekend’s performances, the Rainbooms’ being the hot topic of the night. Everyone, except for three hooded figures sitting in a booth at the back of the shop.

“Alright, I’ll admit that Friday’s fiasco was a bit of a setback, but--”

“Setback? They managed to break our gems into tiny pieces. Give it up Adagio, we’ve lost.”

“Are you girls going to finish your smoothies?”

The Dazzlings, distraught at losing their siren abilities, can do nothing else except sit around sipping on milkshakes and smoothies while they plot a way to get their powers back. As the leader, Adagio was doing most of the thinking. Actually, she was doing ALL the thinking. Aria wasn’t particularly eager to help and Sonata was being an airhead as always.

“Here, just take mine. I’m too irritated to enjoy it anyway.” Adagio slid her drink across the table to Sonata, overjoyed at the offer. Adagio furrowed her brow as she thought of a plan. Aria couldn’t help but laugh at the sight. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. Just the fact that you’ll end up looking all wrinkled if you keep that up.” Adagio could do nothing but grimace at her. However, at that moment, she was struck with inspiration.

“That’s it… This world has some understanding of magic, correct? We just need to find someone who specializes in magical study, or at least someone who has an understanding of magical trinkets.”

Aria raised her hand in a sarcastic fashion, yet had information that her leader might want to hear. “There’s this old guy that runs an antique shop not far from here. Pretty sure he might know a thing or two.”

“Excellent. Is that shop still open at this time?”

“Should be. Sonata and I could go check it out. It’ll give you time to air out”, she chuckled.

“Alright, fine. Just go and leave me in peace.” Adagio rested her head on the table, relieved to finally catch a break after days of plotting. “And don’t forget, we need to show up at school in the morning.”

“What for? It’s not like we need to stick around now that--”

“It would be suspicious if three teenage girls show up for two days, then disappear without a trace, don’t you think?” Aria opened her mouth in protest but promptly shut it.

“You have a point. C’mon Sonata, you’ve had enough of those.” Aria grabbed her “sister” by the arm and dragged her away from the booth.

“But I haven’t finished this one!”

Twenty minutes later, the cafe was empty save for the remaining employees and Adagio. She still hasn’t raised her head from the table. Her mind was still in turmoil after her run-in with the Rainbooms and their savings from street performances were starting to dwindle. Without their magically augmented singing, the Dazzlings couldn’t make another dime.

Adagio pulled out a small notebook from her sweater pocket. She never trusted the other two with their earnings, so she kept tabs on it herself. Her worry grew as she stared at the remaining sum.

“At this rate, we’ll have to cut these cafe trips entirely. Might need to find some part-time work after all…” She put the notebook away and stood up, making her way to the counter.

She took a seat on one of the stools, resting her chin on her hands and watching the workers clean up for the night. One of them noticed and made his way toward her, ready to take her order.

“What can I get for you?”

“Just give me the strongest drink you have. Anything will do.”

The waiter points to one of the menu items on the counter. “Well, we do have the Danger Pinkie.”

“The what?”

“It’s something that one of our workers came up with. Pretty strong stuff, if I do say so myself.“

Adagio read through the text that accompanied the image of the coffee, but decided to treat herself to it anyway. “I guess I’ll have that, then.”

The waiter penned down her order and started to prepare it. She simply played with her hair, curling and tugging on it as she sat patiently.

“You know, you look familiar.”

“I've heard that a lot recently.”

“Yeah, I remember. You're one of the new girls that took part in that battle of the bands. The Dazzlings!”

Adagio groaned, expecting to deal with even more ridicule from a stranger. “Listen, if you're going to--”

“The crowd was bigger than what you were used to, wasn't it?”

She sat there, surprised that the next words he spoke weren't harsh or mocking. He almost seems concerned. She decided to see where their conversation was headed before doing anything rash.

“Yeah...We don't usually perform in front of so many people.”

“It must have felt exhilarating to be in front of a large audience like that, though. What happened to your friends?”

“The one in twintails, Aria, wanted to get home soon. She's really afraid of walking alone, so Sonata volunteered to walk her home.”

The waiter smiled as he wiped the counter. “I'm Vorpal. Vorpal Sword.”

Adagio, feeling less worried with each passing second, finally introduced herself as well. “The name’s Adagio Dazzle. Pleasure.”

“The pleasure’s all mine, Adagio.” Vorpal waved at a leaving coworker before fully focusing his attention on her again. “Will I be seeing you at school tomorrow morning?”

“Oh, I’m sure you will, Vorpal. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” She placed her cup on the counter and ran a finger around the edge, flashing a rather flirty smile. “You wouldn’t mind showing me around campus, would you? Our last tour guide was a little brief in her presentation.”

“I’d be glad to. Just come to the library during lunch and I’ll--”

The cafe door was opened suddenly, the bell ringing loudly. A young man, about Vorpal’s age, stood there looking slightly annoyed. “Hey, aren’t you done with your shift yet? We were supposed to leave ten minutes ago.”

“Oh, right” Vorpal responded. He walked out from behind the counter before removing his apron and slinging it onto his arm. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Mrs. Cake!” he yelled.

“Alright deary, be safe!” replied the owner of the cafe. “And say hello to your parents for me!”

“I’ll wait for you in the car” said Vorpal’s friend. “Seems to me like you’re finally putting your literary smarts to good use.” He chuckled to himself as he left Adagio alone with Vorpal.

“My friend, Comet Blade” added the waiter. “He’s a little...well, he’s Comet. You get used to him. Anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Can’t wait”, Adagio responded. She downed the last of her drink and left her payment on the counter, then left the cafe as well. Just as she was exiting, the other two sirens approached her. “Well? How did it go?”

“No good”, said Aria. “Turns out the antique store owner’s a bust.”

“But we did see this cute little porcelain dolls that stack inside each other. What were they called? Matty...Mato…”

“Matrotska dolls.”

“Oh, right! Thanks, Aria! Did you get bored without us, Adagio?”

“Please, any time away from you two is a load off my mind.” She couldn’t keep her mind off the human she was talking to earlier, however. As a matter of fact, she found herself unable to shake him out of her thoughts. “Although, I did get the chance to chat up one of the locals. If anything, it seems there are a few students who think we’re still just normal teenagers.”

“Soooo...does this mean we’re going back to CHS tomorrow?”

“That’s exactly what it means, Aria. Now, let’s go get some rest. We have a long day ahead of us.”

Author's Note

Well, it's done. That romance fic I said I'd do. Although to be honest with you all, I don't think I'll do well in this particular genre. I'm not exactly the romance literature type.

That being said, I hope you enjoy the prologue for my first fic that DOES NOT star either Spike or any of the Mane Six as the main characters. Of course, that doesn't mean you won't see them in later chapters, but the three characters (or five, if you add in Aria and Sonata) that this story will focus on the most will be Adagio, Vorpal, and a third canon character I've yet to reveal.

Just, uh, read at your own risk. I don't usually stray from the adventure genre.