//------------------------------// // Finally Safe To Fall (T) // Story: A Collection of Unfinished Stories // by LunaEclipsed15 //------------------------------// Adagio Dazzle was walking along the trail of a park that was fairly close to her apartment when she watched a flash of yellow and red fly by, accompanied by the sound of crying. Adagio spun around to see a figure retreat into the trees, going off the path. If she had to guess, she would say the girl was a teenager. Adagio contemplated her options for a moment. A: keep walking and forget about the girl, or B: follow her and see who she is and what’s wrong. On the one hand, Adagio wasn’t one to stop and help others with their problems if it didn’t directly benefit her, but on the other hand, this girl clearly looked distraught. There was something eerily familiar about her that intrigued Adagio, and soon she found her feet moving in the direction the girl had gone before her brain could catch up. Adagio picked up her pace as the cold bit at the little amount of skin that was exposed. It was nearly Christmas and the weather had turned from cold sleet and hail to soft powdery snow and temperatures below freezing only a few weeks ago. She had lost sight of the girl, but she knew she must be around somewhere. She couldn't have gone far. When the sound of broken sobs reached her ears, Adagio frantically began to search for the direction of the noise. She had to be close, and she was crying. Adagio didn’t like that idea, for some reason. But she was committed to this, she had to see it through and help this girl, for some reason she wasn’t really sure of. Adagio spotted a flash of color around a nearby tree and ran towards it. Her footsteps were almost silent in the snow as she searched for the girl she had seen. For a moment she thought that maybe her mind had made the whole thing up when she found her. A girl no older than seventeen had her back pressed up against a large oak tree, her fiery hair falling down around her. She wasn’t even wearing anything warm! Just a ripped leather jacket and a pair of ridiculously thin tights protected her against the cold weather. It was then that Adagio recognized her. She was the girl that had defeated her and her sisters. She was the one who had sang her heart out to rid them of their evil magic, she was the one who had saved them. She was Sunset Shimmer. Adagio kneeled down beside her. “Sunset?” she asked, not reaching out to touch her shaking shoulder for fear of Sunset running off again. Sunset jumped a little then lifted her head up and looked around, meeting eyes with Adagio. Her eyes were filled with tears, her hair was messy and there were tear tracks lining her face as the tears continued to drip down her cheeks. That didn’t stop her from glaring at Adagio. “What are you doing here?” She growled, scooting away from Adagio. Adagio smiled. “I’m not just going to leave you out here. You’re over three miles from the city, I doubt you live this far out.” Adagio leaned back and crossed her arms. Sunset lifted a shaking hand to her face, trying to wipe away her tears but only succeeded in making her already freezing hand colder. Adagio sighed at Sunset’s apprehensive look. “Look, I don’t have any magic anymore, you and your friends took it all away.” Sunset visibly cringed at the mention of her friends. “And you’re immune anyway, you have the magic of friendship, remember?” There was that look again, the cringing, hurt look that Adagio didn’t understand. “What do you want with me?” Sunset asked, confused. Adagio sighed again. “You’re clearly alone, you’re crying in the middle of the woods, and your clothing is less than warm for this weather. Come back to our apartment, we have a spare room you can sleep in until the storm blows over. It’s only going to get colder.” Adagio knew she couldn’t just leave Sunset out here. The girl’s lips were starting to turn blue along with her fingertips. Adagio stood up. She held out a hand, watching Sunset study her carefully before slowly sliding her cold hand into Adagio’s gloved one. Even through her glove she could feel Sunset’s freezing hand. She helped Sunset to her feet. She swayed for a moment, finding her balance. She had to be on the verge of contracting hypothermia. “So, you said our apartment, do you live with the other sirens?” Sunset asked as they walked, still trying to compose herself and stop her crying. Adagio nodded. “Yeah.” Adagio kept walking, leading the way for Sunset. She would occasionally look behind her to make sure Sunset was still following and hadn't run off. She was always just a few steps behind. She was shivering like crazy though. Adagio stopped after a few seconds of considering her new idea. Sunset had been staring at the ground and didn't notice Adagio had stopped walking. She bumped into the taller girl, stumbling back. Adagio slid off her coat, turning around. She reached out and draped it over Sunset’s shoulders. Sunset was confused for a moment before she carefully slid her arms into it. It was long enough that it almost reached her knees but it was warm enough to slow down her shivering. Adagio turned around, satisfied, and kept walking. “Why are you doing this for me? I took away your power, I left you with nothing, why are you being nice to me?” Sunset walked faster, catching up so now she was walking side by side with Adagio. “Because, I’m not totally mean. You were all alone out in a snowstorm that’s only going to get worse with nothing warm on and if I had left you out there you probably would have frozen to death. Stop questioning me, I’m not going to hurt you or try to mind control you.” Sunset went quiet as they continued walking to the Canterlot City Apartment Complex. It was pretty close to the trail that Adagio had been walking. She knew that Aria was on dinner duty, and they almost always had leftovers, so there would be plenty for Sunset to eat. She wondered how long Sunset had been walking. Canterlot High was really far away from here on foot, and Sunset didn’t have any of her school stuff with her, like she had run out of school and never returned. Sunset was silent the rest of the way, following Adagio. She didn’t know what to say. Adagio led them into the building, smiling at the doorman as they walked to the elevator. Adagio pressed the button for the fourth floor once Sunset was safely inside, leaned up against the back wall. Adagio joined her as they were taken up to the top floor. Adagio fished her keys out of her pocket, unlocking the door to apartment 412 as they approached it. She pulled Sunset inside, helped her take off Adagio’s coat and her boots as they stood in the entryway. They could smell Aria’s cooking coming from the kitchen. It smelled like tacos, go figure. If Sonata had any say that’s what they always had. Despite coming from a world full of ponies and other sentient animals, the three sirens had been in this world long enough to start eating meat. She wasn’t sure if Sunset did though, given she was a pony. “You eat meat?” Adagio asked Sunset as she picked off her own shoes. Sunset shook her head. “Only bird and fish. Nothing with hooves.” Sunset followed Adagio into the kitchen. “Well you’re in luck, Aria’s on a chicken craze. She always finds a way to work it in.” Adagio smiled. Sunset leaned against the doorframe and watched Aria’s back as she worked over a skillet of something. Sonata came running in, her blue ponytail bouncing. “Dagi! Oh my god, Sunset Shimmer! What is she doing here?” Sonata seemed confused, but not mad at seeing Sunset. Aria spun around to see their house guest. Adagio had disappeared into the apartment. Sunset hugged her leather jacket around herself tighter, not enjoying all the eyes on her. Aria studied her for a moment before she went back to her cooking. “Dagi?” Sonata asked again, looking around for her sister. Adagio walked back in, locking eyes with Sunset before the fiery haired girl averted her eyes to the floor. “What? Can’t a girl use the bathroom?” Adagio asked, but the wink she sent to Sunset said otherwise. Sunset was slightly worried by that, but didn’t let it bother her too much. “So, Sunset, was it? What brings you here?” Aria asked, watched Adagio pull four plates out of the cabinet out of the corner of her eyes. “Adagio found me… said I should spend the night,” Sunset bit at her lip, worried the other girls wouldn’t agree and kick her out. Sonata just smiled. “Yay!” Sunset was confused, she looked up, cyan eyes meeting purple. “What? I thought you guys would hate me? You know, after I took away your magic and all.” Sunset dragged her socked foot along the line between the carpet and hardwood floor that separated the kitchen from the hallway. Aria was setting out taco shells and toppings onto the table as Adagio was spooning ground beef and shredded chicken into two seperate bowls. “We don't hate you at all! In fact, we’ve wanted to thank you ever since the battle of the bands!” Adagio shot Sonata a look and Sonata quickly began setting the table. “Thank me? For what? I ruined your lives…” Sunset watched the three girls run around the kitchen, getting things ready to eat. “That’s where you’re wrong, Sunny!” Sonata may be a little airheaded, but she wasn’t totaly dumb, she could follow a conversation when she wanted to. Sunset felt her breath hitch at the old nickname. Adagio couldn’t help but notice Sunset’s face scrunch up everytime her friends were mentioned. She wondered what had happened, but didn’t press. The occasional shiver still racked Sunset’s body. Hopefully some warm food would help. Adagio beckoned Sunset over to the table and pulled out a chair for her. Sunset sat down, beginning to build herself some tacos along with the other three. Once they all had food on their plates and were eating, Adagio spoke up. “So I guess we owe you an explanation,” she said, looking across the round table at Sunset. Sunset nodded. “First of all, let us introduce ourselves. I’m Aria, this is Adagio-” she pointed at her orange haired sister “- and that’s Sonata.” She motioned at the blue haired girl across the table from her who was chowing down on her tacos, not paying attention to the other three. “I’m Sunset. Sunset Shimmer.” Sunset tried to smile, but it just came out faltered. She distracted herself by taking a bite of her chicken taco. The girls were quiet for a few moments as they ate. “So, you said that you wanted to thank me? For what?” Sunset looked at Adagio with a questioning look. “Well, at first, we hated you. We hated you and the Rainbooms so much.” Aria looked down at her plate as she spoke. Sunset blushed as a sad look passed over her face. “Understandable,” Sunset mumbled. “We hated the fact that we didn’t have our magic anymore. I mean, we finally had a taste of Equestrian magic and all of a sudden you and your friends ripped that away.” Adagio chimed in. She studied Sunset. There was that sad look again. She wondered what was going on. “But then we realized that you had given us everything we had ever wanted since being banished to this world,” Sonata said around a mouthful of food. Aria glared at her. “What do you mean?” Sunset asked, her eyebrows creasing together as she looked at Sonata. “Our hunger, silly.” Sonata giggled, not elaborating. Adagio rolled her eyes and spoke up again. “What she means is, without our magic, we weren’t hungry anymore. Without our gems we couldn’t feed on negative energy, and without that need for negative energy, we were never hungry anymore. In Equestria, we had plenty of energy to feed on, but here, it was sparse. Without that need, we’re finally satisfied after every meal. You really helped us Sunset. You and all your friends.” Adagio smiled at her, and Sunset realized that she liked seeing Adagio smile. “So you felt that you owed me one, so you’re letting my stay with you until the storm is over…?” Sunset inquired, piecing the picture together slowly. “I mean- yeah. Any sane person shouldn’t be out in that storm. Dagi was being an idiot when she walked out there.” Aria shot a mean look at her sister. “Well maybe if you hadn’t been being such a bit-” “GIRLS!!” Sonata interrupted before Adagio and Aria could say something they would regret. Sunset sunk back in her seat. “Chill out, we have a guest.” She pointed at Sunset, who was biting at her bottom lip in apprehension. Sonata took a bite angrily out of her taco.