//------------------------------// // Past Mistakes // Story: Saving the Siren // by King of Madness //------------------------------// "Look, I'm just saying that we should be focusing more on figuring out how these powers work." Sunset Shimmer exclaimed. Ever since what happened at Camp Everfree, Sunset had been ecstatic to learn more about how her and her friends' newfound powers worked. While they had gained control over them fairly quickly, there were still many things about them that Sunset didn't understand. She had considered running tests on each of her friends but, remembering how trying to learn how their musical transformations worked went, thought better of it. She had asked Princess Twilight for advice, but all she said was to not try too hard because trying to put logic in everything could lead to trouble. She had mentioned something about 'Pinkie Sense' while explaining in her note. Nevertheless, Sunset wouldn't call it unexplainable just yet. Twilight adjusted her glasses. "I know, but..." Sunset sighed and put her hand on her friend's shoulder. "I know you're still not comfortable with your powers, but there's nothing to worry about. Midnight Sparkle is gone." "Yeah, Twilight," Spike popped out from Twilight's backpack. "You don't have to worry about that anymore." Twilight sighed and rubbed the purple dog's head. "I know. It's just that... I can't get her out of my mind. Whenever I use my powers, I'm afraid something bad will happen. I know it sounds stupid but..." "It's not stupid, Twilight." Sunset assured. "I was a power-drunk she-demon too, remember? I can't tell you how many nightmares I had after I came to my senses. I'll admit, I wasn't too concerned about turning back into Sunset Satan, but I have a pretty good idea about how you're feeling." Twilight gave a weak smile. The two were currently in the Sugarcube Corner cafe, sitting at their usual corner. Rainbow Dash was writing a new song for the Rainbooms. Fluttershy was at the Animal Shelter and Applejack was helping her. Rarity was making costumes for the upcoming school play, which she had written herself. And Pinkie Pie said she had something important to do; she didn't actually say what it was, just that Derpy needed her help. So, it was just Sunset, Twilight, and Spike today. After a few minutes, the three exited the cafe. "You know, you don't have to help with the studies if you don't want to." Sunset reminded her friend. "No, no. It's fine." Twilight insisted. "I just need to get over what happened. Like you did." Sunset gave an uneasy laugh. "Hehe... To tell you the truth, I don't know if I did." Sunset thought for a bit as they passed the cafe. "Maybe..." Her attention was taken by something she caught out of the corner of her eye. She looked to her right and saw someone sneaking to the back of the cafe. They were wearing long pants and a hoodie with the hood up, so Sunset couldn't make out any features. Something about it made Sunset curious. Twilight noticed that Sunset had stopped walking and saw where she was looking. "What is it?" "I think I just saw someone sneak back there." Sunset bit her lip. She couldn't explain why, but something was telling her to go check it out. She couldn't see any logical reason why she should've but... "I'm gonna go check it out." She made her way towards the back. "Um, Sunset..." Twilight reluctantly followed. Sunset tiptoed at the side of the wall with Twilight behind her. She could hear someone digging through the trash. Twilight put her hand on Sunset's shoulder. "I don't know about this Sunset." She said in a hushed voice. "We don't who this person is." "Well, my dog senses aren't acting up." Spike added in an equally hushed tone. "Usually when someone bad is near, like Principal Cinch, I can pick up on it." "I don't get it." Came a voice from around the corner. The three stood perfectly still and listened to the person, a girl from the sound of it, just around the corner of the cafe. "Why would someone throw perfectly good half-eaten donuts away? I just don't understand." The girl sighed. "Then again, I don't understand a lot of things, do I? Oh, well. At least, I get to eat something." That voice... There was something familiar about it. Sunset turned to Twilight and Spike. "I know that voice, but I can't place the face." Sunset turned back towards the voice and, with a deep breath, turned the corner. The girl had her back to Sunset and was indeed searching through a trash can and eating half-finished donuts. Sunset suppressed a gag and cleared her throat. "Ahem. Excuse me," "I SURRENDER!" The girl shouted as she threw her hands up, throwing a donut into the air, which landed on Twilight's head. Sunset jumped back a bit from the outburst. "No, no. It's okay. We were just seeing if you were alright." The girl kept her hands in the air for a few seconds before relaxing and rubbing the back of her head. "Oh, okay." She turned around to face them. Due to the girl's hood still being up, Sunset couldn't properly make out her face for the moment. Still, she looked familiar. After a second, the girl's eyes widened. "Oh, no." She backed into the trash can, knocking it and herself over. Sunset quickly stepped over and knelt at the girl's side. "Are you okay?" She asked. But before she could get an answer, her eyes widened just as the girl's had. When she fell over, the girl's hood had been knocked off her head, revealing someone Sunset didn't think she'd see again. The blue color pattern. The hot-pink eyes. The outrageous ponytail. She was one of The Dazzlings. "You!" The siren smiled nervously and gave a small wave. "Me." Twilight looked between the two in confusion as she tried to pick the frosting out of her hair from where the donut had landed. "Sooo, you two do know each other?" Sunset helped her old foe up and nodded. "Yeah, you could say that." She took a step away from the siren. "This is... uhhh... I'm sorry, what was your name?" "Sonata." "This is Sonata. She and two friends of hers tried to take over the school." "What!?" Twilight certainly hadn't expected that. "Speaking of which," Sunset crossed her arms and turned to Sonata with a questioning look. "Where are your friends right now?" Although she hadn't known them long, she vividly recalled that The Dazzlings had never been apart in all the times she had seen them. Something about one of them being alone just didn't sit right with her." "Adagio and Aria? Well, uh..." Sonata glanced around nervously. "They're nearby." Sunset raised an eyebrow. "Somewhere." Sonata started to look rather sad. "I'm sure they're around... Maybe?" Sunset just gave Sonata a look. Sonata sighed and hung her head. "They left." "Left where?" Sunset didn't want to be pushy, but she didn't want to take chances. Even though their crystals had been destroyed and they were effectively human now, she didn't want to underestimate The Dazzlings after what they pulled last time. "I don't know!" Sonata suddenly snapped. "They... They just left!" Tears started forming in her eyes. Sunset was surprised by Sonata's sudden outburst. The poor girl looked like she would break down at any moment. This couldn't be an act. She couldn't have been lying, but still... "Sonata, will you hold your hands out please?" She asked as she rubbed the geode around her neck. Sonata wiped her eyes and gave Sunset a funny look. "Why?" "I just want to check something." Sonata hesitated before holding out her hands towards Sunset. Sunset took Sonata's hands in her own and activated her power. This is all YOUR fault! You and your mind-numbing stupidity! Thanks to you, we have no magic at all! We're no different from these insects we've been stepping on! Remember all those ponies back when we ruled? Remember how they would grow old and die? That's what's going to happen to us! AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! Adagio, wait! Please! We've been together forever. We can't just- Smack. Sunset snapped out of her trance and looked at Sonata in pure sympathy. "Oh, Sonata. I-I'm so sorry." Sonata retracted her hands, having no idea what was going on. "What just happened?" "It's a long story, but I can see into people's minds and read their emotions by touching them. I know that they abandoned you." "Oh... W-Well, I'm sure they come around eventually. It was just a... just a..." "Sonata," Sunset put her hand on her former foe's shoulder. "Why don't you come with us? We can help you." Sonata gave Sunset an unsure look as she considered the offer"Umm... No, thanks. I'll just stick around here until they come back." "How do you know they will?" "Because..." Sonata seemed to be at a loss. "Because they have to. I mean, we can't really be done... Can we?" Sunset sighed. "Look, Sonata, I'm gonna be straight with you. I think Adagio and Aria were bad for you. I just saw how they treated you after the Battle of the Bands. I think you should just let them go." "What?! That's crazy talk!" Sonata stated, slapping Sunset's hand off of her shoulder. "We've been together for like a bajillion years! We helped each other! How can I just let them go!?" Sunset didn't know what to say. Indeed, the three sirens had been together for thousands of years. Regardless of how the other two had treated her, Sonata was not going to just let them go. On top of that, she didn't seem to want Sunset's help. At the same time though, Sunset couldn't just leave her like this. After thinking for a moment, Sunset turned to Twilight. "Do you have a pen and a piece of paper I can borrow?" Spike ducked into Twilight's backpack and resurfaced with a pen and paper in his mouth. Twilight took it and gave her dog a scratch behind the ear. "Thanks, Spike." Twilight handed it over to Sunset, who started writing on it. Sonata slid over and looked over Sunset's shoulder to see what she was writing. When Sunset glanced at her, Sonata turned and started whistling (Well, tried to whistle; she ended up blowing raspberries instead) to look inconspicuous. Once she was finished, Sunset handed the paper to Sonata. "That's my address and a map from here to my house. If you decide to let me, I'll help you." Sonata looked from the map to Sunset. "Umm, why? I know I'm not very smart, but I'm pretty sure me and my sisters mind-controlled everyone in your school into hating each other. So, why would you help me?" "Let's just say our hands aren't clean either." Sunset rubbed the back of her head and gave an apologetic smile to Twilight. "They gave us a second chance; there's no reason to not give you one." Sonata blinked in confusion and looked at the map. Sunset couldn't figure out what was going through the siren's head. The look on her face was... blank. But before either could say anything, Sunset's phone vibrated. She brought it out and checked it. "What is it?" Twilight asked. "Pinkie just texted me. She says she needs help." She looked to Sonata. "Sonata, please just think about it." With that, she and Twilight left; leaving behind a very conflicted and confused Sonata Dusk. "What does Pinkie need help with?" Twilight asked as she and Sunset ran down the side walk. "I don't know. She just said that she's at a tree near Derpy's house." Pinkie Pie dug her teeth into the bindings that trapped her hands and tried to rip them off. Failing, she tried to forcibly pull herself free, though it was difficult to do so since one of her feet got tangled as well a little while ago. Luckily, she had been able to use her tongue to text Sunset for help. She looked to the wall-eyed girl that was currently hanging upside down from a tree, wrapped in the same kite string that ensnared Pinkie. "Hey Derpy, how did you get like this anyway?" The fun-loving girl asked. "Well, I was flying my kite and then... this happened." Derpy answered. "I just don't know what went wrong." Nighttime had arrived about three hours ago. Sunset rested her head on her fist as she tried to concentrate on her homework, struggling to stay awake. She had been worn out from helping Pinkie and Derpy get out of a web of kite string. How did they end up that way in the first place? How get Pinkie text her with her tongue? Why did Derpy's kite have two miles of string? Sunset didn't know and didn't even try to figure it out. Right now, she just wanted to finish her work and hit the sack. Knock, knock, knock. Sunset was beginning to fall asleep when the sound of knocking at her door woke her up. Strange; who could be knocking at this time? Sunset could've guessed Pinkie, but she had already done something weird that day. Knock, knock, knock. Stretching, Sunset got up from her desk and made her way downstairs. Knock, knock, knock. She unlocked the door and opened it. Bonk, bonk, bonk. "Oh, sorry. I thought you were the door." Sunset rubbed her forehead. "Sonata?" The siren nodded. "Yeah. Sooo, after you left, I started thinking..." "...And?" "Well, I didn't do a good job. Anyway, I figured if I'm gonna wait for Adagio and Aria to come back..." "...Yeah?" "Uh, I had a thought but I lost it. The point is... Can I sleep here tonight?" "Uhhh, sure. Yeah." Sunset moved aside, allowing the siren in. "So, this is your house?" Sonata asked as she looked around the place. "Yep." Sunset couldn't think of much to say. She was already worn out from the day's events and hadn't expected Sonata to arrive that very night. Ugh, she needed some sleep. She'd think more about it all in the morning. Sonata rushed into the kitchen. "You got any potato chips?" "In the cabinet next to the fridge." There was a sound of a cabinet shutting and a fridge opening. "Oooh, grape soda!" "Help yourself." Sunset was already half-asleep. Sonata came back with a bag of potato chips and a two-liter of grape soda. She jumped and landed right on the coach, grabbing the remote and turning on the TV. "Oooh, My Little Robot is on!" "Yeah well, I'm going to bed. Try not to make to make a mess." Sunset was already walking up the stairs. "Okay! Thanks for letting me stay here!" "You're welcome." Sunset went to her bedroom and locked the door, not wanting any surprises while she slept. She climbed under the covers and let her head hit the pillow. Hopefully, she would have time to finish her homework before school tomorrow. As she drifted off to sleep, something in the back of her head told her that letting Sonata into her house and leaving her to her own devices wasn't the best idea, but she was too exhausted to care. Besides, she told Sonata she would help her, didn't she? She had to uphold her word. The sound of laughter came from the living room. Sunset sighed. "I'll figure out everything in the morning."