There are two kinds of guilt: the kind that drowns you until you’re useless, and the kind that fires your soul to purpose.
Sabaa Tahir, An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1)

Twilight sat reading her new book when there was a knock on the door. She sat down her book and took a deep breath before walking up to the door and opening it slowly. In the entrance stood the dazzlings. Sonata immediately ran to Sunset, wrapping her arms around her waist and glaring at Twilight.

“You’re not taking her back!” she shouted as she looked up at Sunset, “Don’t let her take you back, please don't go.”

Despite Sunset’s initial shock, she quickly recovered and returned Sonata’s embrace, stroking the girl’s hair in comfort. “It's okay Sonata,” reassured Sunset, “Twilight’s just here to visit. I’m not leaving, I promise.”

“Geeze Sonata, cry much?” Aria sneered, but Twilight could see relief in her eyes.

“Shut up Aria!” Sonata cried out. “I'm not talking to you!”

“You just did, you idiot,” retorted Aria.

While they continued to bicker, Adagio stared at Twilight. She had a look on face that made the princess feel like all her secrets were being read once again.

“Did you need to ask me something? Your staring at me pretty hard,” Twilight asked her.

She simply smirked before closing the distance between them. “Why are you really here?” she asked as Twilight backed up slightly. “It can't be for just a simple visit. Are you going to actually do something about the chaos unfolding around our dear Sunset? I was beginning to think you had forgotten all about your dear friend and that we were going to have to put it to an end. Oh wait, we already started to.” The siren purred in her ear the last statement.

“What have you done?” Twilight asked

“Oh nothing much, just convincing former classmates to see things our way, but it's such a large school. So if your not here to help her, then then you better change your mind. We've come to care a great deal about Sunset, so I would advise you not to piss me off.” Adagio warned her as her eyes flashed with determination. She briefly broke eye contact to glance over at Sunset.

“I'm here to help her, I've been in a similar situation before,” Twilight admitted.

Adagio tore her gaze from Sunset and her sisters and raised an eyebrow at Twilight “Have you really?” she asked sceptically.

Before Twilight could answer, “We're going to grab some food, do you two want anything?” Sunset asked leaning over the couch looking between the two of them.

“I'm fine with anything as long as it doesn’t have meat,” Twilight answered her, she really wasn't in the mood to decide. There were other matters to deal with.

“An apple pecan chicken salad,” Adagio answered while giving Sunset a genuine smile.

“All right, we'll be back in a few,” Sunset told them before grabbing her bag and the other two sirens on her way out the door.

“Now then, you were saying something about being in a similar situation,” Adagio turned back to Twilight.

“It was at was at my brothers wedding,” recounted Twilight “my sister in law was my foal sitter. I found out they were getting married via invitation to their wedding. I thought she was acting strange and no one else could see it, so I interrupted their rehearsal and accused Cadence of being evil.” As Twilight spoke, tears began to form in her eyes from the memory. “Everyone took her side and left me. I will admit, I could have handled the situation better and acted a little less crazy.” The princess soon regained her composure and wiped her tears before turning to look Adagio in the eye. “The point is I do know what it feels like for your friends to abandon you and not to believe you,”

For a while, Adagio said nothing and just stared at Twilight incredulously as a question came to her mind. “Were you right?”

“Kinda. Cadence wasn't evil, but the Changeling Queen Chrysalis who replaced her was,” Twilight said.

“So what exactly are your plans for helping Sunset?” Adagio asked

“I'm going to talk with the others, it worked last time they were fighting,” Twilight said. Though she spoke with plenty of hope and confidence, she was secretly having doubts about her plan and Adagio could see it plain as day.

“Perhaps you could use some help. I would be more then willing to assist you,” before Twilight could say anything Adagio continued, “but I do things my way,”

Twilight consider her opinions, “Before I agree, I need to know what your plan is,”

Twilight didn't like the smirk Adagio gave her, but it was too late as her fate had been sealed. The next thing Twilight knew, Adagio had her lips on hers. That was not how Twilight wanted her first kiss to go.

Twilight touched her lips in shock, “What was that for? How is that part of your plan?”

Adagio just smirked as she said, “You’ll find out in due time your majesty.” She spoke in a seductive voice as she gently stroked Twilight’s hair and winked at her.

Twilight bated her hands away and said, “I gave you a chance for Sunset's sake, don't make me regret it.” Adagio acknowledged her warning.

“I suppose I could explain, but that would just ruin my fun,” Adagio sighed dramatically. “I've done this to Sunset as well, how else do you think we found out about Anon-a-miss, and about Rarity getting her fired from her job?”

Twilight looked at the siren in shock, “Rarity did what now?”

Adagio look at her confused, “Sunset didn't tell you either?”

Twilight shook her head, what else had Sunset kept from her? Before she went to see the others, she needed the whole story from the former unicorn. She wished that Sunset had trusted her enough to tell her these things, but Twilight couldn't say she was to surprised. Between the Anon-a-miss fiasco and her overly nosey parents, trust must be difficult for her. “Back on the topic of you kissing me, what exactly was that?” Twilight asked again much calmer this time.

“Fine, but only for Sunset's sake. When I kissed you, I got brief glimpse into your mind. Just the surface of what's currently bothering you.” Adagio explained reluctantly.

“How does it work?” Twilight asked while berating herself for not having a pen and paper on hand. There had been nothing about this in any of her books as not much was know about the sirens. “Can the other two do that as well?”

Adagio shook her head, “No, they have their own skills, and I really don't know how it works. It just does,”

“What can they do?” Twilight asked thinking that maybe when this over she could do her own research paper on the sirens.

“You'll have to ask them yourself. Sonata might tell you but I highly doubt Aria will be as willing,” Adagio told her.

Twilight nodded. She figured it could wait till after she resolved the Anon-a-miss situation.

~~~~~~~~~

Five girls sat around a table three of them sat closer together then other two sat over a phone.

“Applejack, darling, what's in the box?” Rarity asked curiously.

Applejack shifted uncomfortably in her seat wincing slightly, she glanced down at the box gripping it closer. “Sunset’s spark plugs. Girls, ah did somethin’ real bad. Ah was so mad at her that ah stole Sunset’s spark plugs and damaged her bike.”

“It's all cool Aj, it was justice.” Rainbow told her.

“I agree with Rainbow Dash. After all, if she had never started anon-a-miss then you never would have stolen her plugs and I never would have had to take matters into my own hands ethier. Obviously it worked since she has stopped posting,” Rarity pointed out

“The cops probably scared her, glad I called them,” Rainbow said proudly while putting her feet up on the table and leaning back in her chair.

Fluttershy stared at her friends in horror. She never would have thought them capable of such terrible things.

Pinkie shot them death glares and angrily spoke with them, she turned to Fluttershy speaking loud enough that the other three would hear them. “Fluttershy, we just got six new people agreeing with us about Sunset's innocence. That makes it what, thirty-two people now?”

Fluttershy nodded, “Yes, that’s right Pinkie. Hopefully we will be able to convince more people now that schools starting back up,”

“How could you side with her! After all she's done and after all we've been through?” Rainbow Dash shouted at the two girls, earning a death glare from Pinkie as Fluttershy sunk in on herself.

“Because she’s our friend! Anyone could have taken her phone, or hacked it! It's a bad frame job and it fooled us!” Pinkie yelled back, standing up as she gestured wildly. “Those posts made you blind and messed up your minds, but Twilight can set you free.”

As if saying her name summoned her, Twilight walked threw the door and took a seat before addressing the hyperactive pinkette. “Pinkie, would you please sit back down? I would like to have a calm conversation with you girls, if you don't mind.” Twilight spoke with a calm yet authoritative tone.

Rainbow dash rarely one to be calm took Pinkie’s place as the one standing, “Maybe you should be talking to Sunset rather than us! Shoot her with more rainbow magic shit!”

Twilight sighed as she looked Rainbow in the eye. “One: I can’t do that unless all of our magic is in harmony, which it is not at the moment. Two: even if we did use our magic on her, it wouldn’t do much good because she’s already been purified. Three: I'm not sure it would even work without her any more.”

Rainbow tried to retort to Twilight’s words, but she had none as she knew that the princess was right.

“So you agree with us and thirty-two other people that Sunset's innocent!” Pinkie said excitedly trying not to get up.

“But Twilight, dear, there’s so much evidence that Sunset has returned to her wicked ways. If you don't put a stop to it, who will? Goodness knows I've tried my best,” Rarity tried to explain.

“Yes I heard about that, I just don't understand why you had Sunset fired from her job,” Twilight said with a shake of her head.

“I did what I deemed best for the school. Students go there to eat, not be spied on,” Rarity defended herself, “I also saved their business. No student would go there to eat knowing Sunset worked there.”

“How- how how could you?” Fluttershy looked at the three girls on the other side of the table. “Even if Sunset was posting secrets, what you did is worse. Even at her worst, Sunset never tired to ruin someone's life. The demon thing notwithstanding.”

Applejack looked down at the box in clutched tightly in her hands, she at least looked like she felt awful for her part in this mess.

“And Rainbow Dash, you could get into big trouble calling the police when you didn't need to,” Fluttershy continued.

Twilight rubbed her forehead as she felt herself getting a headache, this was not going well at all. The sound of the door opening and a former siren stepping through caused everyone to turn to Adagio.

“Look who I found listening and arguing behind the door,” The three girls huddled in front of her. Guilt was written plan as day across their faces. “Now why don't you three tell them what you were arguing about, or I could always tell them myself.” they looked up at her before turning to each other.

Author's Note

Big thanks as always to speculore, we are getting close to the conclusion thire will be a sequel that will follow a bit of the Friendship Games