//------------------------------// // 6. An Expanding Aura // Story: Dazzling Doubles // by icecreammac //------------------------------// “Okay, girls, it’s time to get serious.” Sunset looked at the rest of the Rainbooms with as serious an expression as she could muster given her squirming insides. That morning had been a roller coaster. At first, the house had a warm, comforting atmosphere as the quartet relaxed and enjoyed a small breakfast with Melody Lights, Soprano Nights having already left early, as he apparently needed to do every workday morning. However, as the four made their way to school—after Sunset confirmed that there were three bushes on each side of the street, just like she saw the night before—the warm atmosphere gradually diminished with each step away from the Night-Lights’ house, until the sisters were back to looking every which way for a sign of the sirens. Even Sunset found herself nervously glancing around, though she tried her best to look fearless for her new friends. Thankfully, reaching school brought back that comfort; even if the sisters would have to endure some harsh glares and whispers, it was a far cry than what the doppelgangers might do. Still, Sunset vowed to try to get everyone to see the truth that the Night-Lights were not the infamous sirens. “What do ya mean?” Applejack asked. “Yeah, what’s up, Sunset?” Rainbow said. Sunset took a deep breath. “They saw the Dazzlings.” Expressions of surprise painted her friends’ faces, but none of them said anything, so Sunset continued, “They told me yesterday after school. They shared a bus with the siren Sonata. They were really scared, so I decided to walk them home. Which reminds me.” Sunset pulled out her phone and displayed the family photo she took the previous night. “I met their parents. Lovely people. Totally not at each other’s throats, and not a single flash of green in their eyes, which, if you’ll recall, are the telltale signs of the Dazzlings’ mind control, so no, they’re not hypnotized.” Sunset put her phone away. “Anyway, I spent the night there and walked them to school this morning. And I can already tell they’re telling the truth; the fear I saw can’t be faked.” Sunset’s friends paused as they let the story sink in. “Okay,” Applejack finally said, “let’s say that they’re telling the truth. And I ain’t sayin’ they’re not!” she corrected hastily when Sunset glared at her. “What do we do now?” Sunset replied, “Eventually, I want to go out and find the Dazzlings. I don’t know if they’re planning anything, but they know their counterparts are in town, so they may try something. Before that, though, I want you girls to help me convince the school that these aren’t the Dazzlings.” “How will we manage that?” Rarity asked. “I’m not sure, honestly,” Sunset admitted. “Short of capturing the Dazzlings and dragging them through the halls, it’s not like we can definitively prove it. I think the best we can do is be their friends and be obvious about it. The students here put a lot of stock in us, so if they see that we’re friendly with the Night-Lights, they may follow suit.” Rainbow snorted. “The Night-Lights?” she asked. Sunset blushed. “Uh, yeah. Their parents are named Soprano Nights and Melody Lights. Night-Lights,” she sheepishly explained. “That’s precious,” Rarity said, Fluttershy nodding in agreement while Pinkie giggled. “Right,” Sunset said, taking a breath. “Back to the point. Let’s just get along with them, alright? I promise, they’re not the Dazzlings, and they’re much nicer than you think.” The girls looked amongst themselves before looking back at Sunset. “Alright,” Applejack said reluctantly, sighing. “If you say they're on the up-and-up, we’ll give ‘em the benefit of the doubt.” Sunset sighed in relief. “Thanks, girls. You won’t regret this.” She turned on her heel. “Let’s head on over, then!” “Sunset, wait!” Applejack said hurriedly, stopping Sunset in her tracks. When Sunset looked at her questioningly, the farmer continued, “Don’t you think us all rushin’ over there would…overwhelm ‘em?” Sunset paused, her blush returning. “Oh, yeah.” “Don’t you worry, Sunset,” Applejack continued. “We’ll meet with ‘em when the time’s right; we share a few classes with ‘em, after all. You just sit on down and eat your lunch; you look like you can use the distraction.” Sunset hesitated, giving the Night-Lights one last look, before acquiescing. “You’re right. I could use a breather.” With that, she dug in. “Uh, howdy, girls.” The sisters’ gazes immediately snapped toward the voice, finding Sunset’s…rural friend standing nearby, accompanied by Sunset’s pink, hyper friend. Applejack and Pinkie Pie, if memory of Sunset’s stories served. “What do you want?” Aria said. “If you’re gonna try to tell us not to hang out with Sunset anymore, think again!” Sonata snapped. “We weren’t gonna!” Pinkie said quickly. “We just wanna be your friend.” The incredulous sisters looked to the farmer, who sighed. “Sunset told us everything. We’re, uh, sorry we didn’t hear ya out last week.” “Don’t mention it,” Adagio said through gritted teeth. “It’s not like we would’ve believed you, anyway. So, where to?” “Wait, we’re actually hanging with them?” Aria asked Adagio angrily. “Yes, we are. The less people we have on our backs, the better,” Adagio replied. She turned back to Applejack. “Now, where to?” “How about the Sweet Shoppe?” Pinkie immediately asked excitedly. “Uh, fun as that sounds,” Applejack began with a calming hand on Pinkie’s shoulder, “the Sweet Shoppe’s pretty popular with CHS students. I don’t think that’s a very good place to hang out right now.” Applejack ended her sentence with a questioning look at Adagio, who gave her a look that said that it was indeed not a very good place to hang out right now. “What about a movie?” she asked. “I…don’t think that’s a very good idea,” Adagio said. “Why?” Sonata asked. “We’ll be in a dark room where no one can see us.” “Yes, but we wouldn’t be able to see anyone else, now would we?” Adagio rebutted. Sonata and Aria exchanged glances. “Oh, yeah,” Sonata said, biting her lip. “What about my place?” Pinkie said just shy of shouting. The sisters exchanged glances again. “Your place?” Aria repeated. “Yeah! We can watch movies, make cupcakes, eat cupcakes. It’ll be like a slumber party!” “Do you have sleeping bags?” Aria asked with a smirk, causing her sisters to snicker. “Well, duh! I’ve got enough for all of us!” Pinkie exclaimed. Aria looked at Applejack. “Really?” Applejack returned the look. “Really.” Adagio looked at her sisters with a silent question. Aria and Sonata exchanged glances before giving Adagio a shrug and a nod. Nodding herself, Adagio turned back to Applejack and Pinkie. “Fine, but on one condition.” “What’s that?” Applejack asked. “You invite Sunset.” “Deal!” Pinkie said. “The more the merrier!” Aria went to work texting their mother while Pinkie texted Sunset. Only Adagio saw the subtle glare Applejack threw at Pinkie. Curious. Nevertheless, Adagio decided to think about it later; they still had one more class to get through, after all. “This is gonna be so much fun!” Pinkie squealed as Adagio and Sunset met the other four girls at Adagio’s locker. “I already cleared it with Maud, and she agreed to spend the night at a friend’s house so we could have the whole house to ourselves!” Adagio spared a glance at her sisters. Aria tried her best to keep a neutral expression, while Sonata seemed to be actually looking forward to the evening, though whether it’s because they were making new friends or because they wouldn’t be alone that night, Adagio couldn’t tell. The others waited while Adagio got her backpack and packed what she’d need that night, and as soon as she closed her locker, Pinkie yelled, “Let’s go!” grabbing Adagio’s wrist and yanking her along as she sped down the hall. After a speedy and chatty walk, the group arrived at Pinkie’s house, which was surprisingly austere in its decorations given its bombastic occupant. The two-story building was made of sturdy brick and had an oddly blocky appearance. Inside, the living room was simply decorated, with a sofa, a recliner, a television and stand, a coffee table, and a few family photos. The furniture were muted tans and browns in color. “Not exactly what I expected,” Adagio mumbled as she took it all in. “Yeah, Maud likes to keep things simple,” Pinkie said. “Trust me, if I had my way, there’d be a lot more color, but what can ya do?” she finished with a shrug. “I’ll tell ya what we can do,” Applejack replied cheerfully. “We can get this shindig started! Y’all make yourselves at home. Let’s hit the kitchen, Pinkie!” “Yeah!” Pinkie cheered, speeding off to the kitchen with Applejack. After a tentative second, Sonata decided to run after them. Aria decided to flake out on the sofa, turning on the television and surfing the channels. Adagio, however, stayed in the entryway with Sunset. “Thank you for coming, Sunset,” Adagio said quietly. “No problem, but I have a question,” Sunset said. “Pinkie said you’d only stay over if I’m here. Why?” Adagio bit her lip, looking away. “Well, to be honest, I still don’t trust them,” she finally said, an embarrassed blush starting to light up her face. “I was…afraid that they’d try to get rid of the big, scary sirens, and it certainly didn’t help that Applejack looked unhappy with inviting you. I-I know it’s silly, but we’ve got enemies on all sides, and just because you’re our friend doesn’t mean your friends are our friends, and we’ve got enough to worry about as it is, and—” “Hey, hey,” Sunset said calmly, putting a hand on Adagio’s shoulder and stopping her words. “It’s alright. I talked with Applejack. She just didn’t want you to rely on my presence to be comfortable with my friends. I told her that it was understandable that you’d want me around for a while. I’d love for you three to be friends with my other friends, but baby steps, okay? If you need me, I’ll be there. Promise.” Adagio stared into Sunset’s eyes, her vision filled with Sunset’s gaze and confident smile. Suddenly, tears began filling her eyes, and she threw her arms around Sunset’s body, resting her head on Sunset’s shoulder as she struggled to keep her emotions in check. “Thank you, Sunset,” she said after calming down a bit. “You don’t know how much that means to us.” Sunset just held Adagio, stroking the girl’s back and hair as she waited for Adagio to break the hug first. Eventually, Adagio did, and after drying her eyes, she walked over to the sofa, trying to act natural for Aria, who was trying, and failing, not to let on that she heard the whole thing. Sonata stood off to the side as Pinkie mixed ingredients and Applejack peeled apples. After a small conversation, the girls decided that apple-cinnamon muffins would be a better late-night treat than cupcakes, and though Pinkie balked at the lack of cupcakes, she soon regained her enthusiasm as she worked. “You sure you don’t wanna help?” Pinkie asked for the third time. “There’s plenty of stuff to do!” “I’m fine,” Sonata said, looking at them half-askance, half-nervously. “I don’t want to get in the way.” “You won’t be in the way, silly!” Pinkie chirped. “There’s plenty of room for all of us!” For the third time, Sonata bit her lip, considering. Unlike the last two times, though, she finally relented, deciding to actually make herself useful, and Pinkie cheerfully moved aside to give her space to prepare the muffin trays, wrappings, and cinnamon and brown sugar for the toppings. A few minutes went by as Sonata got more comfortable, finally getting into a rhythm. Soon, Pinkie began to sing a small ditty, making up lyrics about baking muffins as she worked. It was a catchy tune, and Sonata found herself bobbing her head to the melody, and as Pinkie finished one of her “verses”, Sonata decided to jump in. She got maybe three lines of made-up lyrics in before she noticed the dead silence of her surroundings, and her singing trailed off. She looked over to her companions and found them both staring at her, confusion on their faces. “Wh-What?” Sonata stammered. “You’re singin’,” Applejack said. “Uh…yeah,” Sonata replied, confused herself. “I like singing.” Applejack and Pinkie exchanged glances, worry entering their expressions. Suddenly, the pieces fell into place for Sonata. “Oh, come on!” she snapped. “Do you really still think we’re those sirens? I thought you were over that!” “W-We are!” Applejack said quickly. “It’s just that, uh…it brings back bad memories, is all.” “Yeah!” Pinkie added. “They were only around for a few days, but those days sucked!” Sonata looked from one to the other, her glare never truly leaving. Finally, she said, “Fine, but don’t think I’ll let that stop me from singing!” “Sure,” Pinkie said. “After all, even if you were the Dazzlings—” Pinkie was cut off by Applejack’s elbow in her side. “Ow! I’m just saying their magic doesn’t affect us! Ow!” she yelped again as Applejack elbowed her again. Sonata’s shoulders fell, and she sighed. “Forget it. I’m not really in the mood to bake anymore, anyway. You girls keep going without me.” With that, she turned and walked from the kitchen as Applejack and Pinkie kicked themselves. Sunset felt pretty good. Sure, the movie they decided to put on was cheesy—some stupid comedy movie they chose to try to keep their minds off everything—and sure, she was pretty hungry and couldn’t wait for whatever her friends were making, but she was at a sleepover with some of her old friends and all of her new friends. They were finally giving the Night-Lights a chance, even baking with one and letting them sleep at their house. Yep, Sunset felt good. Which is why she was startled when Sonata suddenly plopped down on the sofa with a grunt. The three looked at her curiously. “Sonata, are you okay?” Adagio asked. Sonata only grunted in response. The three exchanged glances before Adagio tried again. “Sonata, come on. What’s wrong?” Sonata sighed and, after a moment, said, “They still don’t trust us.” Surprised looks adorned the others’ faces. “What do you mean?” Adagio asked. “They’re letting us spend the night at their house.” “Yeah, but apparently, my singing ‘brings back bad memories.’ It was going so well until I decided to open my mouth.” Aria and Adagio looked at Sunset, who sighed. “I’m sure it’s just a misunderstanding. I’ll talk to them,” she said, standing up and heading to the kitchen. She found her friends in the kitchen working on their snacks—muffins, it turned out—but they weren’t very animated. “Oh, hey, Sunset,” Applejack said when she noticed Sunset. “We’re sorry ‘bout what happened with Sonata. We never meant to offend her. It’s just, when she started singin’…” “We kinda just saw one the sirens who tried to kill us,” Pinkie finished somberly. That gave Sunset pause, a surprised look adorning her face. She thought a bit, and finally, things clicked. “I…I’m sorry,” she finally said. “I’ve been so hung up on proving myself right that I never considered why you’re feeling what you’re feeling. You’re not just worried they’ll hurt me. You’re…scared of them, too, aren’t you?” Applejack and Pinkie looked away with a tinge of shame, before Applejack said, “Well, kinda. Now, don’t get me wrong, I ain’t jumping at shadows or nothin’, but…we almost lost last time. It took all seven of us to beat ‘em, and Twilight’s not here now. What if we’re not so lucky next time?” Sunset turned Applejack’s words over in her head. “I understand,” she said. “It must be hard letting go of that fear, especially when the Dazzlings truly are still out there, but remember, we destroyed their gems, and even if they got them back, the only reason they were so tough is because they absorbed your Equestrian magic. Our friendship is much stronger now, so I doubt they’ll be able to absorb it again. Without that magic, we probably won’t even need all of us to beat them.” Fortunately, the girls brightened a bit. “Well, I can’t deny the logic there,” Applejack said, sighing in relief. “Thanks, Sunset. That makes me feel better. I’m not at a hundred percent, but I’m much better than I was.” “Yeah, I guess it is a bit silly to worry about them getting their magic back,” Pinkie said with a light giggle. “So…what now?” Sunset thought a bit. “Go ahead and get those muffins in the oven. We need to have a meeting.” The six girls sat around Pinkie’s living room, though Sunset remained standing, as there wasn’t enough sitting room for six people. Applejack decided to speak first. “First off, Sonata, we’re sorry ‘bout what happened in the kitchen. I guess we’re a bit jumpier than we thought we’d be about the Dazzlings, but that’s not fair to you. We said we’d give you a chance, and we shouldn’t be lettin’ our fears get in the way o’ that.” The sisters exchanged glances before Sonata said, “It’s alright. I guess we’re all a bit worried about them, and we haven’t exactly been friendly, either.” “With good reason,” Aria mumbled. “Aria!” Sonata snapped. “No, she’s right,” Applejack said. “We’ve given y’all no reason to play nice with us.” She sighed. “To be perfectly honest, if Sunset weren’t so adamant on provin’ us wrong, we’d probably still be treatin’ y’all like outcasts.” Applejack flashed a hopeful smile. “But, we’re here now, and we’re still willin’ to give this a shot. So, what do ya say? Start over?” The sisters looked at each other for a few seconds before Adagio and Sonata pointed their looks at Aria, giving her the final say. Aria thought a moment before shrugging. “Yeah, I guess.” “Yay!” Pinkie squealed. “Group hug!” “Baby steps, Pinkie!” Sunset yelled, but it was too late. Before the sisters could protest, Pinkie wrapped her arms around all three, giggling in delight. Sonata returned the hug, while Adagio and Aria just rolled their eyes and waited for it to end. Eventually, a ding sounds front the kitchen, and Pinkie sped off, yelling, “Muffins are done!” Sunset tried to hold back a grin at the surprised and irritated looks on Adagio and Aria. “You okay?” she asked. “We’re fine,” Adagio said, “but all this talk of the sirens reminds me. Do they know where Pinkie lives?” Sunset shook her head. “I don’t see how they’d know that, especially since this house looks nothing like you’d expect her house to look.” That seemed to satisfy Adagio, and the sisters settled back into the sofa as Pinkie rushed back in with a platter of hot muffins and a jug of sweet tea. The group found their worries melting with the heat of the muffins as they enjoyed a few more movies before finally going up to Pinkie’s room—which looked exactly like one would expect from Pinkie—and turning in. Sunset was the last to get in her sleeping bag. After brushing her teeth, she came in to the sound of her friends—all five of them—exchanging stories and jokes. She smiled at the sight as her eyes drifted to Pinkie’s window. Not really expecting anything but not wanting her curiosity to fester, Sunset took a glance out the window. She saw nothing, as she expected. Still, she closed the curtains and settled into her sleeping bag, joining in the conversation before the group finally fell asleep.