Chapter 11. Temperance.
Trixie sighed as she closed the front door behind her. It was barely past midday and already she was exhausted.
Principal Celestia could be truly stubborn when she wanted. Even after agreeing to put the sisters up should they accept, she still bombarded both Sunsets with tons of questions, demanding extra explanations about magic and whatnot. Trixie was beginning to think the principal just wanted to find excuses to refuse helping.
But even then, Trixie was sure the principal wouldn’t tell the police or something. There was a spark in her eyes that reminded Trixie of the time she performed her magic at the school. Maybe, Trixie thought, Principal Celestia had truly understood the stakes and was actually having fun, in a very twisted way.
Those thoughts vanished when Trixie looked up. Sonata was sitting by the sidewalk, using a long stick to doodle in the dirt. Trixie took special notice on Sonata’s furrowed brow and slight pout.
Trixie cocked her head.
“Hey,” she said. “How are you?”
Sonata startled and looked up. “H-Hi... I’m fine... I guess.”
Trixie sat down next to her. “Say, I’ve been wondering. Why do you want to talk to the siren?”
Sonata lowered her head, staring down at her doodles. “I don’t know…”
“You don’t know?”
Sonata shook her head. “I just saw her and got this feeling… I think…” she pursed her lips. “I just want to understand…” Trixie gave her a confused look. “I want to understand her… She’s me, after all…”
Trixie hummed thoughtfully. “I don’t think Sunset’d be against you just talking to the siren…”
“But Adagio won’t let me,” Sonata replied as she hugged her legs.
“But she’s just your sister, right?” Trixie asked. “Even if she’s the oldest, it’s not like she can forbid you things.”
Sonata lowered her head a bit more. “She’s… more than just a sister to us… Our parents are always away for work, so Adagio’s been looking out for Aria and me ever since we were children.” She closed her eyes for a moment. “She can get really bossy and mean, but I know she cares for us… And whenever she gets in her protective mode, she won’t change her mind.”
Trixie frowned as she felt a lump in her throat. She looked up to the sky, observing the gray clouds lazily coming together to obscure the day. She thought about the last time she saw her mom. It’s been a while, she thought.
Then a more recent memory played in her mind, and she couldn’t help but smile as she quickly formulated a plan.
“I don’t know you or your sisters,” Trixie began. “so I can’t promise anything, but I may be able to convince Adagio to let you talk to the siren.”
That made Sonata suddenly look at her with shimmering eyes. “Really?!”
Trixie gave her a thumbs up. “I’ll do my best! Just wait here, I’ll go talk to her.” And with that, she stood up and got back inside the house.
Principal Celestia had left just a few minutes ago, accompanied by both Sunsets and Twilight, leaving Applejack and Rarity in charge of supervising the siren. In the kitchen, Pinkie was teaching Fluttershy how to bake or something. Rainbow and Aria were in the backyard tossing a baseball at each other and talking things Trixie wasn’t particularly interested in.
That left Adagio, who was sitting at the dining table. Since the moment they had agreed to stay, she had been scribbling something down, refusing to let anyone see what it was. Trixie didn’t think much of it, but was glad to see she was a good distance away from everyone, just enough to have a private conversation if they minded their volume.
“Hey,” Trixie announced herself to Adagio. “Can I sit here?”
Adagio casually covered her notes with an arm and turned to Trixie. “Sure.”
Trixie smiled as she sat down next to Adagio. “So I was wondering… How on earth did you three become friends with Sunset Shimmer?”
After a short pause, Adagio only raised an eyebrow. “Why do you ask that?”
“Well, I’m pretty sure she’s never been an easy person to deal with, right?”
Adagio shrugged. “She’s always been an odd one, but she helped me and my sisters settle in when we transferred to Manhattan’s Academy.” Her eyes darkened a bit. “Of course I knew about the rumor that she had pushed someone from a window, but I always thought they made it up out of spite because she was popular…”
“Until you saw her stabbing me.”
Adagio cringed. “I’m sorry about that… I-”
“You didn’t know she’d do that,” Trixie agreed. “I never thought about it, so you don’t need to apologize.” She gave Adagio a tiny smile. “Besides, she apologized.”
That grabbed Adagio’s attention. “Now that you mention it, she changed a lot. I guess prisons do work.” Trixie chuckled at that. Adagio let out a long sigh. “I wonder… in what other ways she changed…”
It was barely a whisper, but Trixie heard it nonetheless. She straightened up and shot Adagio a knowing smile. “I want to make a deal with you,” she said and waited for Adagio to look up at her. “I can help you get back with Shimmer.”
Adagio blushed. “How did-”
“I saw you earlier. You weren’t exactly subtle about it,” Trixie explained. “I need to know for sure, though. You two were an item, weren’t you?”
Adagio nodded slowly. “We began dating about a week after we met…” She looked away, focusing on her covered scribbles. “But… When I last spoke to her, right before her last trial… She said she just dated me to avoid me stealing her spotlight.”
Trixie bit the inside of her mouth as she watched Adagio slump. “Well, I won’t say it’s not true. I didn’t know her back then.” She placed a hand on Adagio’s shoulder and smiled. “But for what it’s worth, I’m pretty confident she regrets even thinking that. If you really want to, I can help you two get together again!”
“I’m not sure,” Adagio replied simply. “Even if she changed, I don’t think she ever had feelings for me. Why bother?”
“But you do have feelings for her, don’t you?” Trixie asked.
Adagio furrowed her brow. “Why do you insist?”
At that, Trixie shot her a wide smile. “Because I understand what it feels like to be head over heels for Sunset Shimmer,” she said after she grabbed Adagio by both her shoulders and forced her to face her completely.
“You’re dating the other Sunset?” Adagio asked.
Trixie nodded eagerly. “We also went through a kind of break up last year. They may be different people, but if this time interacting with Shimmer has taught me anything, is that they tend to react in similar ways.”
“What do you mean?”
Trixie’s smile turned into devious grin. “Oh, I’d be glad to tell you everything I’ve gathered…”
Adagio frowned. “You want a deal,” she said, and Trixie’s Cheshire Cat Grin alone was enough an answer. “What do you want from me?”
“Let Sonata talk to the siren.” Before Adagio could start arguing, Trixie lifted both hands in front of her. “Just hear me out. I know why you feel apprehensive about it, trust me, I get it. But think about it this way.” She briefly looked towards the front door. “Sonata, and you two as well, need closure. You might find it in writing whatever it is you are in that notebook, and Aria seems to be enjoying some exercise, but Sonata? She’s outside doodling with a stick. She told me she has an itch for talking to the siren, and to me that sounds like it’s the closure she needs that she’s looking for.”
Adagio looked down at the table.
“I know what you’re gonna say,” Trixie continued. “It’s too dangerous. That thing’s the reason you three suffered so much.” She placed a hand on Adagio’s shoulder and gave her a small smile. “But for what it’s worth, even if she hasn’t tried to use her magic on us yet, we have several safety protocols against her. And the more we learn about her, the more we can defend from her power.”
Raising a finger and pressing it against her brow, Adagio huffed. “I can’t believe I’m taking you seriously.” Trixie only beamed at the comment. Adagio turned to look at Aria, who seemed to be laughing with Rainbow Dash, then back at Trixie. “Why do you want to convince me to do this so bad?”
Trixie leaned back and hummed for a moment.
“I hate what’s going on,” Trixie began. “I’m a girl of magic, you see? My goal in life is to be the world’s greatest magician. And yet, this whole situation goes beyond me. Sirens? Hypnosis? A fight for the fate of the world? I want nothing to do with it!”
Trixie drummed her fingers on the table. “If it were for me, I would ignore everything and just pretend everything’s fine. But I can’t.” She looked down at the table. “Sunset feels responsible for this whole debacle, you know? She thinks it’s her responsibility to defeat the sirens. And I know she will try with or without me.”
Losing focus a little, Trixie’s lips pursed upwards. “And, you know, I love her to pieces. And if she’s willing to go to the end of the world and back, I will be by her side…”
Trixie cleared her throat and looked up to Adagio. “What I’m trying to say is, if you think about it, Sonata talking to the siren might give us some information about them, some facts we can use to defeat them.” She leaned forward. “And if we defeat the sirens, you and your sisters can go back to your lives. And you, my dear, will have all the time in the world to court Shimmer.”
Adagio’s cheeks heated up as she leaned back and crossed her arms.
“Just give it some thought,” Trixie added. “I’m going to see what Pinkamena is doing in the kitchen.” She winked at Adagio and left.
~~~~~~~~
Sunset had been dumbfounded when Twilight volunteered to accompany her and Shimmer to drop Celestia off at Canterlot. As far as she had known, Twilight hated Shimmer’s guts.
But when they bid Celestia farewell and were on their way back, Sunset started to understand why.
Shimmer was still sarcastic, mean and ill-spirited, but she had not spouted a single insult towards anyone within the car, instead taking all her fury with the other drivers. Every now and then she would glance to the rearview mirror, and more than once, Sunset noticed, it wasn’t to look out for other cars.
She had noticed that Shimmer had mellowed some since she got her wound, but she was starting to think that maybe Twilight had something to do with it too.
Either way, she wasn’t going to complain.
After an hour or so, they finally returned to the house. It hadn’t been an excruciatingly slow experience like the other times, so Sunset’s mood was still high enough to tackle Trixie into a hug after entering the house.
“So, how was it?” Rarity asked. She and Applejack had traded places with Rainbow and Pinkie, and were now sitting at the dining table with Fluttershy and Aria. Adagio and Sonata were probably in one of the rooms.
“We managed to convince her not to turn us over to the police,” Sunset replied. “So there’s that.”
“I’m still worried Principal Celestia might change her mind,” Twilight said as she took a seat at the table. “Was it really a good idea?”
Sunset sighed, “Trust me when I say… I don’t know.”
Trixie gave her a deadpan look, and Sunset couldn’t help but smile and answer with a quick peck.
Shimmer walked up to the one-way mirror. “What’s she been doing?”
Rainbow crossed her arms and looked away. “Eh, the usual. Just doodling.”
Pinkie smiled. “I think she’s a good artist! Look! That there is a leprechaun!”
Shimmer rolled her eyes, but decided to give a good look at the siren.
Sonata, the siren, was always wearing the same clothes she was given. She often cleaned them, but she never asked for more. But the most puzzling thing about her was that she spent most of her time drawing those weird symbols on paper sheets. They had given her a pink crayon so she wouldn’t have a possible weapon, but the siren had not complained.
Since Sunset was the only one that ever interacted with Sonata, she was also the one to give her the paper, and thus, she was able to read whatever was written every time she got in the room. She had told the group that most of it was just a diary, with some memories of the past months mixed in there. Sadly, nothing relevant had come up yet.
“So I was thinking,” Pinkie started.
“That’s a bad sign,” Shimmer replied, not looking at her.
Pinkie wasn’t fazed by her rudeness anymore, so she continued with a higher volume. “We should do with the sirens the same we did with you and Sunset!” When Shimmer only raised an eyebrow, she continued. “You know, we should be on a first name basis with the good ones, and last name basis with the evil ones!”
Shimmer raised an eyebrow, but remained silent.
Rainbow placed a finger on her mouth in a thoughtful expression. “You know, that’s not a bad idea.”
“Why would we need to do that?” Shimmer asked angrily. “The girls are leaving tomorrow, there’s no point.”
“But there is,” Adagio said as she crossed the hallway’s threshold. She smiled at Shimmer’s slightly startled face. “We may be leaving, but that doesn’t mean we’re not going to be in contact with you guys.”
“I think that’s for the best,” Sunset agreed. “You’ll be able to return to your lives as soon as we’re done here.”
Shimmer frowned, but before she could say anything, Sonata appeared from behind Adagio, wearing a faint grin on her face.
Adagio let out a heavy sigh. “So, Sonata and I talked, and…” she bit her lower lip and closed her eyes for a moment. “I agreed to let her talk to… that thing.”
“Really?” Sunset asked surprised. “What made you change your mind?” Her answer came in the form of Adagio’s intense stare at Trixie. Sunset turned to her. “You?”
Trixie shrugged. “I think it will help us, somehow.”
“Maybe,” Adagio replied, slowly getting closer to Trixie. She stopped when she was but a foot away and dug her index finger in Trixie’s left shoulder. “But I swear, Trixie Lulamoon. If something, anything happens to my sister, I will have your head.”
Trixie smiled sheepishly, but said nothing. She turned to Shimmer, who, for just a fraction of a second, was smiling at the scene. Trixie turned back to Adagio. “Sounds fair.”
~~~~~~~~
Some thirty minutes later, Trixie was once again wearing her heavy getup, hidden by a thick hoodie, and holding a pair of air horns. She was besides the door of the siren’s room, waiting for Adagio to stop nagging her sister.
Sunset leaned to Trixie before she could activate the noise cancelling headphones. “Say, how did you get her to agree with this?”
Trixie grinned, mostly to herself. “Let’s just say us pure-hearted maidens think alike.”
Sunset raised an eyebrow, but before she could ask for an explanation, Sonata walked up to her. “Ok, I’m ready.”
Trixie nodded and activated her headphones, making herself virtually deaf. Sunset gave Sonata a reassuring smile and then signaled to Rarity, who knocked on the one-way mirror.
After a few seconds, Sunset unlocked the door and opened it.
The room was covered with paper sheets, scribbled on with pink. The siren had tried to organize them in piles, but apparently, she had hurried to her mattress so fast, they all had scattered. Sunset made a mental note to try and read the new ones.
She entered, and the siren was sitting cross-legged on the mattress at the far corner of the room, smiling expectantly to Sunset. Behind her, Trixie positioned herself in her usual spot.
“Hello,” Sunset said. “There’s something I have to tell you. We decided to start calling you Dusk. You don’t mind, do you?”
The siren, now Dusk, cocked her head for a moment, her smile never leaving her face. “Of course not!” It’s my name, anyway!”
Sunset nodded in understanding. “Good. Now, you have a guest. I expect you will behave as promised.” She stepped to the side, and sure enough, Sonata entered the room. Trixie used a foot to slam the door shut behind her.
Dusk stared at her, first with genuine surprise, then with fear, but didn’t say a thing as Sonata slowly closed the distance and sat down on the lonely chair.
The contrast between them was too big, Sunset thought. Dusk had her hair untied, long enough to reach her calves when standing and shone healthily. Her skin was a vibrant shade of blue, smooth and nice. Sonata, on the other hand, had her hair barely long enough to reach her shoulders, and it was opaque and messy. Her skin was pale and sickly, and one could easily notice the sharpness of her cheekbones and the heavy bags under her eyes.
They were, in essence, the same person, but they looked nothing alike.
Sonata, ever since waking up, had struck Sunset as apprehensive and a bit curious. But now, when face to face with the girl responsible of her suffering, her apprehension turned into fear, but her curiosity did nothing if not skyrocket through the roof, and the mix of these two things made such an odd contrast in her facial expressions, Sunset would’ve laughed if she wasn’t wary of the siren herself.
After a while of staring, Sonata spoke up first.
“Why did you cut our hair?”
Sunset raised an eyebrow at that.
Dusk didn’t seem surprised by the question, but rather, she looked like she had expected it.
“Adagio ordered it,” the siren replied, casting her eyes down.
“Do you hate us?”
She’s not pulling any punches, Sunset thought surprised.
“No.”
“Then why did you do all that to us?” Sonata insisted, her voice was even, but there was a faint quiver in it as she spoke. “We didn’t know why we sometimes woke up with bruises and cuts… We didn’t know why food sometimes appeared on the floor…” She took a deep breath. “We didn’t know why we were still alive…” She hiccuped and sniffed. “If you don’t hate us… Then why would you do that to us? What did we do to you?”
Dusk cocked her head, a frown of confusion on her face. “I… Adagio never told me,” she replied. “I always thought she had a plan for you, so I just did what she ordered me to do.” She started playing with her fingers, interlocking them and rubbing her thumbs together. “I didn’t know you were sad.”
Sonata gasped loudly, and she looked like she had been slapped. “H-How?!” She leaned forward, and her voice barely turned up in volume, but tears were now running down her cheeks. “How could you not see we were sad?! How can you be me if you don’t understand me?! I don’t…” Her eyes darted from side to side as she looked down for just a second. “How can you do that to another person?!”
The siren’s confused frow never left her face, and her mouth was a thin line. Sunset thought she looked like a grade schooler trying to understand advanced High School math.
“Is… I….” Dusk fumbled with her words, her eyebrows moving up and down as she thought. “Is that bad?” She finally asked. “I… Adagio says whatever we do is good. I don’t understand…”
Sunset thought Sonata would stand up and yell. She tensed up at the idea of having to stop a fight between an infuriated girl and an uberly powerful magical creature.
But such a reaction didn’t happen. Sonata only stared at Dusk for the longest time, regarding her in a way reminiscent of a linguist trying to figure out an ancient text written in a dead tongue.
Sonata leaned closer, staring right into Dusk’s eyes. Sporting a deep frown of her own and pursing her lips in a thoughtful manner. Her tears had subsided, replaced by a slight redness. And after a long pause, she did something that made both Sunset and Trixie flinch in utter surprise.
She flicked a finger on the siren’s forehead.
“Ow!” Dusk complained as she placed a hand on her forehead. “Why did you do that?!”
“Did it hurt?”
“Of course it did!”
“Would you do the same to me, now that you know it hurts?”
There was silence as Dusk processed the question. She pouted and glared at Sonata, but much to Sunset’s relief, she didn’t retaliate. Instead, she lowered her hands and looked down at her legs.
“Have you never stopped to consider that you’re hurting others?” Sonata continued. “Have you been living your whole life disregarding others’ wellbeing? How can you be proud of yourself knowing you almost killed me and my sisters?!”
Every question made Dusk’s frown deepen in concentration and confusion.
“I don’t get it,” Dusk said. “Adagio said…” She made a face and cocked her head. “She says the only thing that matters is us and everyone else is our plaything, and the world is our playground.”
“And what do you think?” Sonata insisted. “Surely you have your own view of the world.”
“I…” Dusk hesitated, the grabbed her head with both hands and groaned. “I don’t know! My head hurts! This is why I only do what Adagio tells me to do! It’s so much easier that way!”
Sonata gently grabbed Dusk’s hands, making her look at her, then slowly brought them down. “I know,” she whispered. “Thinking is for geniuses like our sisters,” she continued, earning a slow nod from the siren. “Why bother deciding what to have for dinner or where to go on a weekend? Food is always good, and places are always fun, right?” Dusk nodded again and a small smile appeared on her face. “When it comes to things like that, it’s better to leave it to the people that know.”
Then, Sonata’s smile faltered. “But, you know, there are things that we have to think about, even if it hurts our head. Things that even geniuses don’t have the answers to.” She leaned down a little and looked upward to the siren. “Things like good and evil. Things like empathy or sympathy. Things like friends and family and yourself. Things like life and death.”
Dusk made another face.
“I know it’s hard to understand,” Sonata continued. “But, the moment you come up with your own answer, you won’t have to think about it anymore.” She offered the siren another smile. “Just ask yourself, do you feel sad when others are sad? Do you feel happy when others are happy? Is it correct to hurt people? Should you ask for something, or just take it? What are the consequences of something you are about to do?”
“That’s a lot of questions.”
“Yes,” Sonata replied. “But if you really want to understand, you’ll have to answer all of them.”
Dusk’s face suddenly filled with worry. “B-But I’m not used to this! Adagio’s the one that tells me what to think! What to do!”
“If your sister loves you, she’ll want you to think for yourself,” Sonata said simply. “If she doesn’t want you to think for yourself, then she doesn’t love you. I think you should think about that first.”
And with that, Sonata stood up and simply walked up to the door, next to Trixie.
Dusk looked up, and Sunset knew she had to say something. “What she said is true,” she said. “We’ll leave and let you think. I’ll come back with your meal in a few hours.” And with that, she signaled the girls to leave.
Once alone, the siren remained sitting on the mattress, looking up at the ceiling and hugging her legs.
~~~~~~~~
The following hours were spent in heated discussions.
Sonata had done something incredibly dangerous, confronting the siren and confusing her and whatnot. Everything could’ve gone wrong. The fact that it hadn’t was used to fuel the arguments even further.
That is, until Rarity proposed an idea.
“The siren clearly doesn’t know the difference between good or bad,” she had said. “We could try to teach her that. I mean, she looked quite puzzled.”
That single idea had sparked a round of proposals, plans, and counter arguments. They had been closely observing and documenting all of the siren’s actions since they had captured her, and so far, she hadn’t attempted to use her magic once.
The only reason they all agreed was because they had no idea how to get to the other two sirens.
And, of course, it was Sunset who would try first.
She stood in front of the door, holding a tray with a bowl of vegetable soup and some fried fish with mash potatoes on the side. Trixie, as always, stood by her side, wearing her getup and looking at her with a confident grin.
A knock on the mirror later, she entered and waited for Trixie to close the door.
Dusk was still looking up at the ceiling, having moved just to lie down. “I got your food,” Sunset announced as she walked up to the chair where she placed the tray.
The siren sat up and looked at the food, then up to Sunset, wearing a worried frown.
“Uhm… can I have more food?”
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “You eat three complete meals a day, how are you still hungry?”
Dusk seemed to hunch, almost guiltily. “I… The food is enough to satisfy me, I guess… but…” she looked away, trying to make herself look smaller. “I-I haven’t fed in a while…”
She left the words there, not wanting to say more. Sunset stared at her for the longest time.
The siren was odd. Very odd.
As far as Sunset had known, the sirens were as powerful as they were evil. Creatures that relished on hatred and suffering. Their only purpose in life was supposed to be creating misery wherever they went, starting wars and then watching them unfold.
The siren in front of her did not seem to have done those things, even if Sunset knew she had.
Dusk had been utterly terrified to have her gem taken away from her again, then she had spent days confined in a tiny room with the bare minimum to survive, and she hadn’t complained once. She had been confronted by a girl she herself had kidnapped and tortured, but she hadn’t shown any other emotion other than complete confusion.
Indeed, she was an odd one, and Sunset had to agree, they could try to exploit that.
“Tell me again,” Sunset said. “When you feed, what happens around you?”
Dusk perked up at that. “Uhm… Nothing?” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Well, I mean, there’s energy around, you know? But I think only me and my sisters can truly sense it. No one else knows it’s even there, and no one ever notices it’s gone. It’s like… Like myst.”
“Myst?”
“Yeah!” Dusk replied happily. “Myst! Well, people can see myst, and if it’s thick, they can also feel it, but… Well imagine it’s myst that people can’t see or feel. So, if they can’t see it or feel it, and they don’t even notice it’s there or not, so… Yeah, nothing happens!”
Sunset hummed. “Eat your food, I need to think of something,” she said and walked up to Trixie.
As the siren started to wolf the food down, Sunset took a small notebook and a pen from her jacket pockets and wrote a message to Trixie. Trixie read it once, and her eyes widened in horror as she furiously shook her head. Sunset scribbled some more and showed it to Trixie.
Trixie made a face, still shaking her head, but Sunset insisted with her notebook. Trixie cocked her head to look at the siren, who was still eating, then she looked back at Sunset and, once more, shook her head.
Sunset scribbled once more, but Trixie nudged her with a foot to stop it. They looked into each other’s eyes for a moment. Sunset didn’t need Trixie to speak in order to understand. She could see fear, worry, and a little bit of anger, but there was also something else, a spark that was beginning to shine brighter every passing second.
After a while, Trixie sighed and nodded. Sunset didn’t celebrate, but gave Trixie an appreciative smile nonetheless.
She turned around and waited for Dusk to finish her food.
“So, are you still hungry?” Sunset asked just as Dusk finished the last portion of fish.
The siren looked up at her with widened eyes. “Yes. Can I really have another fish?”
Sunset snorted at that. “Actually, I wanted to make a deal with you.” That got Dusk’s full attention. “But first, have you thought about what Sonata told you earlier?”
Dusk frowned, but didn’t stop looking at Sunset. “Yes… But I still don’t understand…”
“Do you enjoy seeing other people fight each other?”
“Uhmm… I mean, I don’t really care?”
“That’s not what I asked,” Sunset insisted. “Do you enjoy it?”
Dusk looked down for a moment. “I… I guess not?”
“Why not?”
“Uh… Because... “ Dusk’s frown deepened so much, Sunset thought her face was going to break. “I don’t know.”
Sunset nodded softly. “Well, I for one don’t like seeing people trying to kill each other. So, of course, I don’t like that you guys are making people do that.” Dusk looked away. “Your hypnosis magic doesn’t help either. Free will is the most basic right of every sentient being, and you taking it away… Well, I hope you can see why it’s a bad thing.”
With a heavy sigh, Sunset gently grabbed Dusk’s chin with her fingers and lifted up her head, offering a smile. “So, the deal I want to make with you? You have to think, really think about what we tell you about these things. Try to understand that you can do so much good with your skills, and you don’t need hypnosis to have people like you.”
“I don’t?”
Sunset actually chuckled at that. “No, you don’t. But you do need to change your mind state. You have to care for other people even if you don’t know them. You have to really answer the questions Sonata asked you.”
Dusk looked away, then back at Sunset. “And… if I do that…”
“If you promise to at least try to do all those things…” Sunset swallowed nervously. “If you do that, and don’t try to use your magic against us, I will let you feed off of our energy.”
Sunset then witnessed the fastest reaction she had seen from the siren yet. Not a second had passed since she said the last word before Dusk leant forward with big, hopeful eyes and a wide, painful-looking smile.
“Really?! You mean it?!”
Sunset did her best to hide she was startled. “Yes, I mean it.” She got up, grabbed her notebook and quickly scribbled something in there, then she walked up to the mirror, where she placed the text against it. A few seconds later, she closed the notebook and turned to the siren.
“So, what are you going to do from now on?” Sunset asked.
Dusk straightened up. “I have to think, even if it hurts my head!”
“It’s a good first step, I think,” Sunset muttered to herself. Then she addressed the siren. “Well, here’s your first lesson: Treat others as you would like to be treated.”
Dusk nodded. She grabbed a paper sheet and her crayon, and started writing what Sunset said.
With that, Sunset took a deep, shaky breath, and walked up to Trixie. “Just because you are willing to listen and change, I will give you a little reward,” she said, earning Dusk’s total attention.
Sunset stopped mere inches from Trixie, staring deeply into those beautiful, shimmering amethyst eyes of hers. Trixie looked back at her, nervousness showing in a little tick of her right eyebrow and a small bead of sweat rolling down her face. Sunset had always found Trixie to be a gorgeous girl, but ever since she started dating her, Sunset thought she got more and more beautiful as days passed.
She truly loved Trixie, and she tried to express that love every chance she got.
This time, a simple kiss would do.
And so she gently grabbed Trixie’s cheeks and closed the distance, locking their lips together. Sunset loved those smooth lips, moist and sweet with strawberry gloss.
Some days, all Sunset wanted to do was kiss those perfect lips all day.
When she finally parted, the first thing she noticed was the furious hammering of her heart; she could almost hear it. One glance at Trixie told her she felt the same way.
Sunset pinched herself, the sting of pain told her she was still very much in control, so, after another deep breath, she turned to look at the siren.
Dusk was sitting there, still as a statue and with her eyes closed. Nothing seemed to be happening, and in other circumstances, Sunset would’ve thought she was just meditating. But the red gemstone had the faintest glimmer it, and in any other circumstance, Sunset would’ve thought it was just reflecting the light bulb's light.
Five full seconds later, Dusk opened her eyes and sighed contently, a pleased look in her face, as if she had drank water after hours of walking in the desert.
“Finally…” she said in such a low voice it was almost a whisper.
“Glad you enjoyed it,” Sunset said evenly. “Now, you do what I told you, and we may allow you to feed again.”
Deal in place, Sunset ushered Trixie out the room, her heart still in her throat.
Not a second after the door closed, Sunset leaned back on it and sighed heavily. She saw Trixie taking off the headphones and braced herself for the scolding of a lifetime.
She just hadn’t expected it to come from somewhere else.
“What the living fuck did you do?!” Shimmer howled from the other side of the hallway, a furious look in her eyes and her fists clenched so tight her knuckles were already white.
Sunset took a deep breath. Her heart was still hammering in her chest and this yelling wasn’t making it better.
“I implemented the reward system Twilight proposed days ago,” she said simply.
“Reward system?!” Shimmer yelled as she walked closer. The girls behind her were already on high alert and circling her. “You’re giving her the magic she needs to kill us all! How do we know she didn’t get to you already?!”
As much as Sunset loathed to admit it, Shimmer had a good point.
“She’s right,” Adagio said as she got to Shimmer’s side. Her voice, however calm, cracked and quivered. “You are putting us all in danger.” She looked from Sunset to Trixie and narrowed her eyes.
“Even so,” Twilight intervened, standing between both Sunset and Shimmer and extending her arms to both girls. “The siren seems to be following orders. She hasn’t tried to hypnotize Sunset, and she didn’t try to do a thing to Sonata.”
“Yet,” Adagio said.
“Look, girls,” Trixie said, walking up to Twilight’s side. “We could argue about this right outside the siren’s room and actually give her a reason to attack us, or we could all sit down and talk about it.”
Everyone looked at each other before silently agreeing to do just that.
Sunset, once more, let out a long sigh of relief. One, for the girls not eating her alive, and two, because they managing to stay calm was a sign that they weren’t being mind control. Or at least, that’s what she wanted to think.
The girls made their way to the living room, some bringing chairs from the dining table. Shimmer never stopped glaring at both Sunset and Trixie, as if she was waiting for just the tiniest excuse to get violent. Sunset couldn’t really blame her.
When they all were sitting, Shimmer spoke up. “You have three seconds to tell me why I shouldn’t lock you and Lollipop to make sure you’re not magicked up.”
Sunset interlocked her fingers and brought her hands to her mouth. “I realize I did something very stupid.”
“You don’t say,” Rainbow said.
“But there’s something I’ve noticed about the siren,” Sunset continued, ignoring Rainbow. “She doesn’t seem to be evil, heck I don’t think she even understands the concept yet.” She lowered her hands and started nervously playing with her thumbs. “I believe we can turn her to our side if we teach her the difference between good and evil.”
“Or you could actually turn her evil,” Shimmer replied coldly. “Did you stop to think about that?”
Sunset glared at her tiredly. “Yes, I did. That’s why I’m using Twilight’s idea for the reward system.”
“I did suggest it,” Twilight said, her arms crossed on her lap. “But my idea was more about giving her better food or a better bed. Things like that.”
“And while that’s a lovely idea,” Sunset said. “If you’ve been paying attention, the siren doesn’t seem to care about any of that. She didn’t ask for clean clothes everyday or products to clean herself, we just gave them to her.” She then looked at the girls, one by one. “She hasn’t even asked to be let out. The one and only thing she has asked for is food.”
“Since she’s a siren, the only thing she cares about it feeding on energy. I’m actually surprised it took her this long to ask for it.” Sunset leaned back on her chair, resting her hands on her lap. “Besides, as I already told you, they don’t need to hypnotize in order to feed. That’s just a means to an end.”
Shimmer clicked her tongue. “Yeah, and who told you that? Oh, right. It was that damned siren!” She stood up. “Who’s to say she hasn’t been hypnotizing you?”
Sunset only looked up at her. “You already told us what it feels like to be under her spell,” she said evenly. “I haven’t lost track of time, or control over my movements. I’m always giving Trixie a physical sign I’m still in control.”
“You were hypnotized by the siren?” Adagio asked Shimmer with both surprise and concern.
Shimmer didn’t reply right away and just sat back down, crossing her arms. “Who’s to say she isn’t being more subtle with you? I told you she doesn’t even need to open her mouth. A hum is all she needs.”
Sunset nodded. “Still, I don’t think that’s the case. I haven’t been feeling any different about her or the situation overall. And the more I think about it, the less I see this siren capable of being subtle or smart enough to come up with such a long term plan.”
“Excuse me, darling,” Rarity chirped in. “I don’t even want to dare think you’re being controlled, but… We all saw you giving her exactly what she wants.”
“And I told you beforehand!” Sunset insisted. “I wrote it on my notebook, see?” She grabbed and opened her notebook in the exact place she had scribbled her little plan. “And before you say anything, I still think she’s not capable of making me do this. I specifically wrote the word “girls” because there’s no way the siren knows all of us are girls.”
“That proves nothing,” Shimmer said. “You’re implying the sirens’ hypnosis is a complete mindwipe. As if they can just puppeteer and make us do exactly what they want.”
“And ain’t that exactly what hypnosis mean?” Applejack asked.
Shimmer shook her head, never looking away from Sunset. “I already proved that, didn’t I? When I listened to their music, it progressively and subtly made me like it. But I was always writing and I stopped the moment I thought it was good. Their music, ergo, makes you a willing slave for them, but it doesn’t turn you into a mindless minion.”
“Who says ‘ergo’?” Rainbow asked, but was thankfully ignored.
Trixie glared daggers at Shimmer. “You’re now just searching for excuses to take it out on Sunset!”
Twilight cleared her throat as she shifted in her place. “Sunset, we trust you have good intentions, and out of all of us, you’re the one that knows the most about magic. But you could’ve told us your plan, discussed it, and then, if we all agreed, let the siren feed. You doing it on your own is a huge red flag.” She turned to Trixie. “And you agreeing with her on the spot doesn’t help her case, either.”
Trixie wanted to glare at Twilight, but she knew she was speaking the truth, so she looked down for a moment before gazing up. “I trust Sunset with my life,” she said simply. “If she thinks this is the best course of action, I will support her, no matter what.”
“Even if she’s being controlled?” Pinkie asked suddenly during a gasp, which was a strange thing to hear.
Trixie frowned.
“There’s no need to interrogate Trixie,” Sunset said, bringing the spotlight back to her. “I recognize I did something reckless, but I still think I am in full control of my body.”
“That’s another thing,” Shimmer said in a less accusatory tone than before. “I think you’ve been warming up to the siren lately. Suspiciously so. Who’s to say she hasn’t been doing that to you from the day you got her the gem back?”
That wasn’t right, she’s been in complete control all this time! She just sympathized with the siren because they both were from Equestria, and the siren was just confused and…
Sunset paled. Were these her real thoughts, or was she being subtly mind controlled after all? She lowered her head thoughtfully.
“Let’s say you’re right,” she began.
“Sunset!” Trixie yelled horrorized.
But Sunset only looked up at her and placed a hand on her shoulder. “I’m not saying I am, in fact, hypnotized,” she continued, then turned to Shimmer. “But let’s just say that, hypothetically, I am.” She nervously gulped, feeling her lips a bit dry. “What’s going to take for you, all of you, to erase all your suspicions on me?”
Shimmer leaned back. “I think you being the only one to interact with the siren has been a mistake. In fact, I think you shouldn’t come here for about a week.”
“What?!” Trixie yelled as she stood up, but Sunset gently grabbed her by the hand and shook her head. “But Sunset! This bitch is trying to alienate you!”
“No, I think she’s right,” Sunset said calmly.
Everyone, including Shimmer herself, looked at her with various degrees of surprise.
“However, I still think she shouldn’t get much more information on us.”
Shimmer buffed. “That’s no problem. As far as we know, the siren thinks you and I are the same person. I’ll just take your place. And uhh,” she looked around for a moment. “And Gayhair can dress up as Lollipop.”
“What?!” Rainbow yelled.
“Whoa hold yer horses there,” Applejack intervened. “Are y’all saying Trixie should leave too?”
“Well no,” Shimmer said with a wave of her hand. “But I believe Lollipop won’t want Bubbles to feel alienated,” she punctuated that last word with a bit of mockery.
Trixie tensed up, but Sunset only grabbed her a bit harder and guided her back to sit down. Trixie stopped trying to pounce at Shimmer, but did not sit.
“As long as you have everything under control, I’ll comply with being away,” Sunset said with a shaky voice. “However, I don’t want to be completely left out. If something happens, I want to know.”
“I guess that’s ok,” Twilight agreed. “We’ll have to figure something out to keep the siren out of the loop, but I think that can wait.”
Sunset nodded a thanks to her and stood up, walking up to the front door.
“Where are you going?” Shimmer asked.
“Where do you think?” Sunset replied tiredly. “I’m going home. I’ll take this time to clear my mind and, I dunno, do something else.” And with that, she left, being closely followed by Trixie.
~~~~~~~~
It was a painfully long ride, sitting at the back of the bus that would take them to Canterlot. They didn’t talk for half the ride, choosing to just silently contemplate the scenery pass by.
“Why did you agree, Sunset?” Trixie finally asked.
Sunset sighed and gave Trixie’s hand a squeeze, but didn’t turn to look at her. “I think they may be right. That I may have been influenced by the siren… I don’t want to think it’s true, but…” She shook her head and closed her eyes for just a moment. “If it is, then this is the best course of action.”
“You can’t be serious…”
“I don’t want to risk it, Trix,” she said, and finally turned to Trixie, giving her hand yet another squeeze. “I did something reckless, and it could’ve turned out really bad. I wouldn’t forgive myself it you had gotten hurt because of me. This is also to help me clear my head, see if my ideas were really mine, you know?”
Trixie gave her a small grin. “Well, in hindsight, this is a good thing.”
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “How so?”
“Well,” Trixie leaned in. “We’ll have our house for ourselves all week.”
Sunset couldn’t help but smile and that, and closed the distance to kiss those taunting lips. Trixie was right, even if Sunset could potentially be controlled by the siren, she was still herself, and there was nothing she wanted more at that moment than to being with Trixie.
And so they arrived home in high spirits, already kissing, eager to kick off their lives together with a great start. And in just a matter of seconds, they were already on Sunset’s bed, having already took off their jacket and sweater.
Sunset’s worries always seemed unimportant when she was with Trixie, and as she kissed her, she couldn’t think of anything else but the now and then.
She loved those moments where Trixie lay there, on top of her, as they kissed. Sunset liked Trixie’s weight, lite as it was, against her own torso. This was probably the moment Sunset loved the most, caressing Trixie’s back and feeling both the warm and firm muscles, and the cold and soft fabric of Trixie’s clothes.
Trixie, on her part, seemed to love digging her fingers in Sunset’s hair, twirling and tangling them, caressing Sunset’s head and neck, then her face and back to her hair.
These were the moments Sunset had come to love the most, and if it depended on her, she would easily stay like this all night, doing nothing but kissing Trixie and tracing the shape of her body again and again.
This night, however, even Sunset couldn’t stay this for too long. They hadn’t had time for themselves like this in a long while, and they both needed it. They needed to feel the other as close as they could, they needed to let loose their desire for one another.
Then, a loud melody rang painfully in their ears. They looked at each other for a moment then toward Sunset’s discarded jeans, buzzing with a barely muffled ringtone. The one set for Sunset’s Great and Powerful Agent phone.
“Let it ring,” Trixie whispered. She grabbed her shirt from the hem and, in a quick motion, removed it from her body and threw it somewhere. She then fell onto Sunset again.
They didn’t know when the phone had stopped ringing, but just as Sunset released the clasp of Trixie’s bra, it started obnoxiously blasting music again.
This time, it was Sunset who quickly snatched the phone and, without a second thought, hung it up before setting it on the nightstand.
It didn’t stay silent, however, and Trixie groaned quite loudly. She sat up, beads of sweat running down the sides of her face.
“You have two minutes,” Trixie said with heavy breathing. She then stood up beside the bed and started undressing herself.
Sunset frowned and gave the phone a death glare before snatching it again and answering.
“Hi!” She said, remembering her script, but unable to hide the anger in her voice. “This is Sun-” She stopped.
On the other side of the phone, she could hear sobbing. “Don’t hang up, please,” the ragged voice said. “I beg you…”
Sunset looked at Trixie, who was barely done taking off her jeans. She stopped when she saw Sunset’s expression. “What?”
“I’ll do anything...” The voice begged between sobs and hiccups. “Please, Sunset, I beg you…”
Trixie slowly straightened up, a confused frown on her face. Sunset bit her lower lip and looked down. Her anger had left her body, replaced by a very inopportune set of conflicting emotions.
Trixie leaned over, worry written on her face. “Sunset?”
“Please…” the voice continued. “Let me talk to Trixie…”
Sunset looked up at Trixie, staring into those gorgeous eyes of hers. She took a deep breath as she closed her eyes.
“I’ll see what I can do,” was her only answer before she hung up.
“Sunset, what’s going on?”
Sunset placed her phone back on the night table and looked up at Trixie.
“Trust me when I say I’m as frustrated as you, but…” She shook her head. “This call was… I think it’s important for you.”
Trixie leaned back and gave Sunset a very concerned look. “Because…?”
For the umpteenth time, Sunset sighed. “It was your mother,” she said. “And she wants to talk with you.”