How do you like your tea?
Adagio Dazzle sat stretched out on the couch, book in hand. The television was on, set to some talk show or other where a bunch of people sat around and "debated" -- which was mostly yelling over each other -- some new celebrity gossip or other. It was more to provide background noise than for any real interest, to keep their house from being too quiet.
It was just as a dead body was found by the rest of the group that there was a knock on the door.
Just when it was getting good, Adagio thought. With a sigh, she marked her page, and got up to answer.
Opening the door, Adagio found this world's Twilight Sparkle, and she had to fight the urge to giggle. The girl was dressed in a dark red cut-off vest, which was likely an attempt to mimic Aria's punk look and her own vest. Unfortunately, it did not go with the rest of Twilight's outfit, which absolutely screamed "preppy nerd" in ten foot tall flashing letters. She looked more like a little girl who had borrowed something from her big sister's closet than anything else.
"Aria's still asleep," Adagio stated as she moved to open the door wider. "You could try to wake her up if you want, but I would not recommend it."
"I'm here to see you, actually," Twilight declared as she stepped into the apartment. Pulling out her phone, she quickly tapped a few buttons.
Then she tapped a few more.
Then some more.
"Wait," Twilight called out. "Hold on. I know it's here somewhere."
With a sigh, Adagio shut the door.
"Do you want some tea?"
The question got Twilight to pause in her searching. She looked up at Adagio, brow furrowed. After a second, her eyes went wide with realization.
"Oh," Twilight said. "Yes. Yes. Thank you." She then made her way to the dining table.
Adagio made her way to the small kitchen to prepare the tea. Considering who the guest was, Adagio opted to go with one of her cheaper teas. Admittedly, a small part of it was out of spite: this was a counter-part to an Equestrian Princess, and friends with The Rainbooms. Mainly, however, it was because Twilight Sparkle had little to no interest in teas. At least, not enough to differentiate between the qualities in flavor.
Once it was ready, and she made her way to the table, Twilight held her phone out for Adagio to see.
"I wanted to ask you about this," said Twilight.
On the screen was a black and white photograph. In said photograph was Adagio Dazzle, dressed in a slinky dress of some dark color, with a light fur stole across her shoulders. One hand rested on the sleeve of a heavy-set, balding man in a full dress suit.
A man that Adagio recognized right away. A small smile formed on her face as she took a hold of her tea, old memories of way back then coming back.
"That's you," Twilight pointed out.
"Indeed," Adagio stated. "Very astute of you." She took a drink.
"No," Twilight said. "I mean that's you. With Chocolate Chip Cannoli, Chicoltgo mobster, and best known bootlegger during prohibition."
"Best known because he got caught," Adagio pointed out. "Not even for the actually bootlegging either." She let out a chuckle, shaking her head. "Tax evasion of all things. Even after all these years, I still can't believe it."
"Adagio!" Twilight nearly yelled out. "Were you a mobster's girlfriend?"
Setting down her tea, Adagio leaned forward. Her elbows rested on the table as she wove her fingers together. Her brilliant raspberry eyes narrowed as she fixed Twilight with a look.
"First," she stated, "the term is 'moll.' M-o-l-l. And as for your question." She let out a hum, tilting her head back and forth. "Yes, and no. We dated, and he bought me lots of fabulous gifts, but we never even kissed, much less had sex." She then leaned forward more, a wicked grin forming on her mouth. "Although, I did claim that we did, often, and that he was quite endowed and had plenty of stamina." She then gave a wink.
A little squeak escaped from Twilight as her eyes went wide. A blush covered the girl's entire face, and then some, disappearing down the collar of her shirt. Her hands tensed until her knuckles were white, threatening to crush the teacup in her grip.
The sight of it was too much for Adagio, and she could not contain herself. Throwing her head back, her entire body shook with laughter.
The blush of embarrassment faded as the embarrassment did as well, giving away to confusion.
"You were just teasing me?" Twilight asked.
"No," Adagio said, still chuckling. "Not at all. I swe..." She stopped, hand half way up to her throat. All of the humor of the moment was gone.
"I swear upon my voice," was a phrase the three of them had used to show their absolute sincerity, due to how precious their voices -- and the power that came with them -- were to them. It would be like a person swearing that if something went wrong, they would cut of their dominant hand.
Except now, their magic and voices were gone. The figurative hand has been cut off at the wrist.
After taking a breath and drinking some tea, Adagio pushed the memory aside.
"What I told you is completely true," she assured Twilight. "Cannoli slept with a lot of women, some of whom were professionals, many who had slept with others, and not all of who were worried about proper hygiene. As such, he ended up with a number of STDs, which gave him other problems." Adagio let her gaze drift back to her cup. "Couldn't let others know about it, though. They may see it as a weakness and try to usurp him" Her shoulders straightened up as she puffed out her chest. "Thus, it my duty as his moll to help hide those problems, making the others think he was as strong and healthy as ever."
"That's all very fascinating," Twilight said, "but a little off-topic." She tapped at her phone which had gone to sleep. "What were you doing in Chicoltgo, during Prohibition, with a renowned mobster?"
The question was a little surprising. Adagio had to consider a moment and how to answer it. She was pretty certain she understood the subtext to it.
"All this talk about prohibition has me feeling like having something a little stronger," Adagio declared as she got up and headed back for the kitchen. "Do you want something more to add to your tea?"
"I'm under twenty-one," Twilight pointed out. "I'm legally not allowed to drink alcohol. Except at home, in the presence of a parent and guardian."
Pausing, Adagio turned back to look at Twilight and raised an eyebrow.
"Aren't you learning how to be more of a punk from Aria?" she asked. "And isn't a part of that whole counter-culture to be anti-establishment? 'Fuck Da Police!' and all that?"
A fresh blush formed on Twilight's cheeks.
"Uhm... yes..." she replied. Her gaze drifted down to her lap. "But... well..."
"Oh relax," Adagio called out as she resumed walking. "I'm not going to force you to drink anything. And if you decide you want a little, I'm not going to call the police on you or anything."
There was not a lot of choice when it came to alcohol. Back when they had their powers, the three of them were unable to get drunk for one reason or another. When they lost said powers, they were able to get drunk, and had done so quite often for a while. During that time, any liquor they bought was consumed immediately and far quicker than was probably safe. Once they had gotten over the worst of it, they still had a few that had not been consumed, and would get a little once in a while.
Grabbing a bottle of rum that had about a third or so of it remaining, Adagio made her way back. After pouring a shot of it into her own, she held it up for Twilight, who shook her head. With a shrug, Adagio set it aside, sitting back down and taking another drink of her now hard tea.
"You are aware of what we are?" Adagio asked. Her brow then furrowed as she considered. "Or perhaps I should say 'what we were?'"
"You means sirens?" Twilight asked. "Creatures that were able to create and feed off negative energies, as well as mind control sapient creatures when you had enough Equestrian magic?" She gave a nod. "Sunset and the others told me, yes."
"And I'm guessing that in all your studying and science, you've learned some details about biology, nature, and animal behavior, right?"
Twilight's lips pressed thin and brow furrowed as she looked at Adagio.
"Yes?" she replied. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Quite a bit, actually." Adagio leaned forward, placing her chin on one hand. "Tell me, Professor Sparkle, how many predators do you know of that stayed in one area while their prey migrated elsewhere?"
Several seconds passed in silence. Adagio continued to sit there, watching as the question was considered. She could imagine the little wheels in Twilight's head turn and turn, normally so quick to pick up on things, but now trying to gain traction as she tried to figure out how one question correlated with another, and how it all tied into her own.
"Well, some like foxes and raccoons are smaller predators that are capable of adapting to nearly any environment, allowing them to thrive when their more common prey is lost," Twilight explained, "but most predator do tend to travel with their prey, or to areas with higher numbers."
"Very good." Adagio leaned forward. "Now tell me." She put on her best predatory grin. "What makes you think that it would be any different for us?"
That led to a new level of confusion. Adagio would swear she could smell smoke as Twilight's mind tried to follow.
"But, you're able to create the very emotions that you need to feed on," Twilight pointed out. "All you need is an area with a large enough group of creatures and perform for them, causing them to fight among themselves, and thus allowing you to feed off of their conflict."
"That's true," Adagio conceded. Leaning back, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Just like it's true that, in theory, you could learn to mine minerals, smelt the ores, smith them into the required shape, fabricate other materials, and use them all to create whatever invention you've come up with." She pointed a finger. "But you don't do that do you?"
"No," Twilight answered, shaking her head. "There are a few pieces that I've had to modify or fabricate, but most pieces I need I can find or buy."
Then Twilight's eyes went wide as something clicked.
"Wait," she cried out. "Are you saying that you three were drawn to places that had potential for large amounts of conflict?"
"Not in any way we could confirm," Adagio admitted, "but it always seemed to work out that way to one extent or another." She held out a hand. "Although, I want to point out we were not involved in any way, shape, or form, to any events that led to mass genocide. In point of fact, if we were ever in such an area when such was a possibility, we fled as soon as we possibly could." She then lowered her hand. "But places with high tension, civil unrest, riots. Those, we were drawn to, fed off of, and may have even had a part in causing."
Her gaze drifted to the shut off phone, then over to the rum bottle. Reaching out, Adagio Dazzle placed a single, manicured nail against the glass, tracing along it gently.
"During prohibition, a tension began building in so many of the major cities. Sure, so many people said they were okay with it, but they resented it. Doing it only out of pressure, and fear of how they would be seen if they openly opposed it. It was also one of those things that everyone thought was fine until it affected them. Sure, it might get rid of those hard liquors, but 'it won't affect me and my wine,' or such." She sighed.
"Then The Depression made it all so much worse." She grinned. "So many lost so much so suddenly. They wanted to forget about their loss, their miseries. They wanted a way to lash out, blame others, vent their frustration. Hungry, angry, desperate."
She pressed a finger against the bottle.
"All just building up under the surface until it needs just one... little..."
She gave the bottle of rum a poke, causing it to fall to the floor. There was a loud thump as the it hit, but no sound of glass shattering.
"...push," Adagio finished, "for it all to come bubbling up."
She was a little disappointed that it didn't shatter, which would have really emphasized her point. At the same time, it was a relief since it would have spilled the rest of the rum, and she would have to clean up all of the broken glass on the floor. She also had the urge to pick up the bottle, but that would kind of ruin the moment.
Instead, she refilled her tea cup.
"So, you went to Chicago, fed on the negative emotions from people, then when Cannoli got arrested... you moved on?" Twilight asked.
"Oh, we had left before then," Adagio said. "Around the time that 'The Unbangables,' or whatever they called themselves was formed and started taking out Cannoli's empire."
"Untouchables."
"Meh," Adagio replied with a shrug. "Whatever. We took what we could and left well before that happened. By the time he was convicted, we were actually in Hollywood, where they just introduced The Hays Code, and many of the studios were not happy at the idea of restricting what they could film or show."
"Did you love him?"
The question was so sudden and unexpected that it caught Adagio off guard. So much so, that she was not even sure what Twilight meant.
"What?" Adagio asked.
"Cannoli?" asked Twilight. "Did you love him."
Needing time to consider the question, the moment having passed, and all because she still wanted something a little stronger than just tea, Adagio picked the bottle of rum up from the floor. She poured in a little, watching the fluid rise closer to the lip as she did. For a moment, she stared at the beverage, thinking back to then: the flirting, the gifts, even her own little role in helping with the business.
The pictures of the mayor in bed with Sonata were probably lost to history.
"No," she finally answered. "He was a nice enough fellow to me, and had a very predatory edge that thrilled me as a siren to no end." She grinned to herself. "We had some wonderful times together." The smile then vanished. "But no. He was a means to an end. A way to get what I wanted. Although it was a bit more mutual than some of the others since he got something out of it as well."
Her hand shifted, swirling the tea and rum in her cup.
"I did care for him. Suppose you could call it 'love' in a way, but more like how one might love a friendly old alley cat that prowls around the neighborhood. It's nice to see, spend some time with, may even care a little for, but you never actually take it in, and when one day it disappears, yeah you're sad and miss it, but it doesn't exactly change your life or anything."
A moment passed in silence, Adagio staring down at the tea, still waiting for her to take drink.
"Do you miss it?" Twilight asked.
Although she had a good idea on what Twilight meant, Adagio still felt obligated to ask.
"Miss what?"
"The power," Twilight answered. "The ability to feed on those negative feelings, to manipulate them, to manipulate people into doing what you want." Her gaze drifted down, looking toward her lip. "That kind of power sounds... addictive. Intoxicating." Reaching up, she took a hold of the pendant around her neck. "Like a drug."
Two things were going through Adagio's mind, both of which were relevant. She watched Twilight, clutching at the pendant that -- if Adagio understood the story -- gave the girl the power of telekinesis.
"Yes," Adagio answered. "It was like a drug. It was addictive, so much so that we were always looking for more. For a bigger 'fix.' The longer we went without, the more irritable we got. The more we wanted more. Needed more." She flopped back in her seat. "And yes, we miss it. From what I understand, most addicts miss their drug of choice, even after they get clean, and know how dangerous it was." Her eyes narrowed as her lips pressed thin. "But that's why you're asking, isn't it?"
Twilight nodded.
"It was part of why I was so reluctant to take the geode the first time," she explained. "When I had all that power, I tore holes in reality, and didn't care about the risks to either, to what would happen to the creatures of either. It felt so great." She sighed. "And I was -- I am -- scared that I'll give in to that again. That once I get better, some part of me will slip and I'll do something like that again. That I'll get so caught up in the power and the thrill, that I'll not think about how much I'm hurting someone else."
"Good."
"What?" Twilight cried out, looking up at Adagio with wide eyes.
"I said 'good,'" Adagio replied. She started rolling her hand at the wrist. "I'm sure you've heard all the platitudes before: 'don't beat yourself up,' 'you made a mistake,' 'don't let it consume you,' and considering you're little group, 'your friends will always be there to help you.'" She huffed and rolled her eyes. "And yeah, there's all some truth to that." She then held up a finger. "BUT! That doesn't mean you should completely forget what you did. Those who forget history and all that. So yes, don't always beat yourself up over what you did, but don't completely forget that it happened and you did it either."
She then went silent, letting the statement sink in, and finally took a sip of her tea, which was actually pretty cold by now.
This had also gotten a lot more personal than she liked. Talking about lovers and romantic partners, especially one that was not too intimate and nearly a century ago. Talking about her powers, and the loss of them, was still painful. Like tearing the stitches from a still healing wound.
And coming so close to talking about how they struggled after, how they had gone through the dark magical equivalent of withdrawal, and opening up to... not her exactly, but someone who looked like the Equestrian Princess, and was friends with those same girls...
Shotgunning the rest of her tea, she set the cup on the table and stood up.
"This moment has gone too long," she declared. "Twilight, thank you for coming, and the trip down memory lane. Now if you would be so kind: please start the coffee while I go wake up Aria."
"Uhm... okay?" Twilight replied. Getting up, she made her way to the kitchen.
With a nod, Adagio turned away from the table and made her way down the hall. She stopped in front of Aria's door, marked by a spray painted black siren skull at eye level and the words "STAY THE FUCK OUT!" scrawled underneath in red. Using her entire body, Adagio slammed her fist into the door repeatedly, nearly shaking it from the frame.
"ARIA!" she shouted. "Get your lazy ass out of bed already! It's past noon and you got company."
"Bite me!" Aria shouted back.
"You have until the coffee's done!" Adagio announced. "If you're not out by then, I will drag you out by your ankles and give you a scalding hot coffee enema!"
She coughed to clear her throat.
"By the way," she continued in a calmer, more normal voice. "Twilight Sparkle is here and looks like she could use your advice."
Shouting a line of profanities, Aria Blaze loudly made her way to the door. Yanking it open, she shoved past Adagio, rushing for the kitchen in her sleeveless undershirt (which Aria loved calling a "wife beater,") and panties.
Adagio let herself giggle.
She was pretty sure that someone had a crush.
