//------------------------------// // A Stargaze to Remember // Story: My Chemical Reaction // by MysteriousStranger //------------------------------// Aria’s P.O.V. It was a smooth Sunday. I was sitting on my bed, with the radio on low volume reading, Young Sorceress Academia. I came here right after lunch and haven’t left my room for around an hour now. My peace ended when someone knocked on my door. Sonata was out, so the person knocking could only be… “Yes, Adagio…?” I said, after groaning. “Open up, Aria. You promised you would help me.” “I know, I know…” I sighed and placed a bookmark in my book before closing it and placing it aside, then, I walked towards the door. Upon opening it, I found my older sister, smiling. “Let’s get this over with.” “Aria-” Adagio frowned at me. “You’re just going to judge some of my designs. It’s not that bad. Look.” She gave me her sketchbook. “Most of them are pants. You like pants, right?” That was a stupid question, of course I liked pants. Who didn’t? I’d never be caught dead wearing anything less than shorts at best, much less skirts and girly things like that. The thought of Adagio forcing me into a dress that one time still made me cringe and killed my soul a little. With her sketchbook in hand, I walked back to my bed to sit down and moved my book so Adagio could sit next to me.  “What if I say that I don’t like any of your designs?” I asked opening the sketchbook. “Come on, Aria, just look at them,” She said, while pointing at her sketches. “I’m trying to design clothing with more punk traits. You inspired me with the outfit you used to wear before.”  I’m glad that Adagio wasn’t looking at me, because I couldn’t prevent a faint smile escaping from me with her comment. I never thought I could inspire her in any creative manner. Did she really look to me for inspiration? My train of thought was interrupted when Adagio’s hand invaded my view. “Like this one right here. Don’t you think it has potential as a formal attire?” I glanced down at the sketch. I didn't want to openly admit it but it was an interesting design. It was very simple by comparison, but it still felt very punk. A long sleeve style shirt with rolled up sleeves and large bottoms to hold them with an black vest with belt straps instead of buttons made the upper portion of the outfit. A loose black tie with a skull design hung around the neck definitely giving a more formal style. The pants were simple body tight pants with loose almost bell-bottom style with black boots and a belt around the waist. Topping the style off was finger-less black gloves, very tacky in my books. but an interesting take I had to admit. “Maybe… wait-” I glared at my sister. “Is this one of your attempts to make me dress nice?” Adagio giggled softly. “Of course not. I’m just doing what Hoity Toity asked me to. Design new outfits. I needed inspiration, so I looked for it on you and Sonata.” She said before smirking. That explained a lot. “I’m also better paid than my previous job, so we might actually be able to have dinner in a restaurant with remarkable reputation. So, if you were to wear that…” “No.” I sharply said, before glancing back to the sketchbook. Adagio sighed. “Oh, come on, Aria. It will be fun!” “Fun?” I made eye contact with my sister again. “What’s fun on starving? The portion in those places are too small!” Adagio frowned. “Not every fancy restaurant serves gourmet food, you know?” I shrugged and returned my gaze towards my sisters’ designs. “I think that these outfits are fine.” “Really?” Adagio blinked twice. “You think they can become a trickle-up trend?” I groaned again. “Don’t use those technical words on me, Adagio!” I said, before glaring at my sister. “Seriously.” “Fine,” My sister huffed and took back her sketchbook. “Thank you for your help. I’ll be in the kitchen talking to Mr. Toity, if you want anything.” “Sure.” I waved a hand aimlessly, not really paying attention to my sister.  Once she was gone I took my book again and resumed from where I left off. Hikari, or how she asked everyone to call her, Kari, just found a way to skip the journey and reach her dreams of being like her idol. I must know if she will actually pull it off! With that at the forefront of my mind I read on eager to see where Kari’s adventure would take her. By the end of the chapter Hikari didn’t succeed, of course. She decided to experience the journey first hand, which I completely agree on. If I learned anything from movies is that the journey is always more important than your destination. I stopped reading after finishing the chapter. My eyes got very heavy, I was tired. I stood up and stretched my body before walking out of my room. I could overhear Adagio talking on the phone. “Trust me, Hoity Toity, you’re going to love these designs! I’ll bring them to you tomorrow!” While she was busy with her boss, I used the distraction to leave the house to give myself some more time alone. I walked with no destination in mind. I was free to wander about as I pleased, and though I took it for granted before now it was like a sweet release from my own daily routine. Had you asked me a few months ago if I could learn a life lesson from reading, I would have laughed in your face. I decided to start with walking around the block to warm up for a longer walk through town.  After crossing the street towards the next block, my cell phone started to ring in my pocket. I slipped my hand in and pulled the phone out to take a quick look at who the caller was, not that I needed to, and smiled. For the ID, I decided to use the photo I took with Twilight alone. “Hey, cub. What’s up?”  “Aria, hello!” My little friend seemed to be in a great mood. “I wanted to call earlier, but I didn’t want to disturb your sleep.” “I don’t usually wake up at the same time.” I said. “Sometimes I’m up at 10AM, others at 12AM. Today I did at 11:30AM.” “Oh!” There was a short pause. “Then I’m glad that I waited. I was up early since I had to say goodbye to my friends. The sleepover was a complete success!” I smiled upon hearing the sincere joy in her voice. “I’m glad to hear that.” I lost my smile when I remembered something. “Did you show them our photo? What did they say?” “They saw it, yes. It wasn’t so bad. No one said much about you, and Rarity just told everyone about her encounter with you and Adagio at the convenience store. After that, we played some games and no one mentioned you again.” I smiled, internally sighing of relief. Twilight’s friends aren’t asking many questions about my sisters and I, which means that they’re giving me the space I want. I was thankful for that.   “That’s good.” “Yes. Now that they know about you, I feel lighter. I’m not constantly worried about ‘what would happen if’, because I already have the result,” Twilight said.  I felt guilty hearing that. I never realised fully just how much making her hold back was weighing her down, which made me lose my smile. “I-I’m sorry…” “No, no, Aria, it’s fine.” Even without seeing her, I knew that she was smiling. “I don’t blame you. I know you have your reasons for wanting to remain anonymous” I recovered my smile. “Thank you for being so understanding, Twilight.” “I wouldn’t be a good friend if I didn’t.” There was a short pause where I heard my friend breathing in a weird way, as if she wanted to say something and then changed her mind. “So, Aria…” She eventually spoke. ”I was wondering… uh…” “Yes?” I used a soft tone to try to encourage her. I think it worked. I’m not use to doing it but I think I got the hang of it. “Well, we haven’t really stargazed in a long time. We only did it once, actually, and, umm…” Twilight paused. “Oh, do you want to do it again?” I smiled widely. Finally, a chance to put what I learned from the constellation books to good use. I can’t wait to surprise her! “Of course, Twilight. I was actually thinking of asking you to do it again one of these days.” “Really? Oh, yay!” My friend sounded very excited. She got me to chuckle, which seemed to make her realize what she did. “I-I mean, wonderful! It’s a date! W-With the stars, I mean!” “Okay…” That was weird, right? “Name the place and date, cub and I’ll be there.” “Hmm…” Twilight thought for a moment. “How about Greystone Park? The view from there is amazing. Is tomorrow night okay? 7:30PM?” “Sounds good.” I smiled. “I'll bring something for us to drink.” “Okay! And I’ll bring sandwiches. We can have dinner together!” I grinned. “I would like that.” There was another short pause and I found myself dreading the thought of wanting to hang up. I have really become accustomed to these talks with Twilight, and I hate it when they have to come to an end. “I don’t want to hang up, Aria, but I must go. My parents and I are heading out.” I heard Twilight say on the phone. “It’s no problem, Twilight. We’ll talk later,” I said softly. “I carry my cell phone with me all the time, so you can text me if you want!” I chuckled. “I might take on your offer. Have fun, Sparks.” “I will, thank you! You have a good day too. See you tomorrow!” “See ya’.” After hanging up, I remained in place at the corner of the street with a smile. Her good mood got to me. After putting my phone away, I looked in front of me and noticed that I instinctively walked to the video store. Since I’m here, I’ll rent a movie. I’ll study a bit more astronomy to show off tomorrow night, but that can wait for a couple of hours. “Heading out already, Aria?” Adagio asked me as I headed towards the front door. “Didn’t you agree to meet with Twilight in about an hour?" “Yes, but I’ll go on foot to arrive on time.” I said before taking a bag in which I had two bottles of water and the astronomy book Twilight lent me. I’ll return it to her tonight, not before sharing some star facts with her. “Very well.” My older sister smiled. “Make sure to be back by 12AM.” I groaned. “I’m not a kid, Adagio. I can go to bed whenever I want.” “Maybe you can.” Adagio frowned disapprovingly. “But I don’t want you to break Twilight’s sleeping schedule. She may be in Spring Break, but she still needs to go to bed at a reasonable time. Besides…” My sister took a deep breath. “This city might not be dangerous, but I’ll only be able to sleep properly once you’re here.” “Seriously, Adagio?” I looked away from her so she wouldn’t see me smile.  It warmed my heart to hear her say that, even though I’m perfectly capable of defending myself and others, she still worries about me. “Since you’re so worried about Twilight’s sleeping schedule, I’ll walk her home myself after we’re done.” “Good.” I glanced at her. She crossed her arms and smiled. “I won’t hold you any longer. Enjoy the night.” “Thanks.” I smirked and opened the front door, only to be stopped by another voice. “Wait!” Sonata came running from her room and skidding to a fault near me. When she was close to me, she jumped to hug me, gripping her arms around my neck. “Have fun, Aria!” “Thank you…” I awkwardly patted Sonata on the head and she released me from her vice grip grinning at me. “I’ll be back later.”  My sisters waved at me as I walked out. It’s a shame that I don’t have any kind of music player. Walking long distances can get boring, but at least it would be quiet while I thought about the time I’d be spending with my cub. I hope the things I learned in my little cram session would impress her. While I walked toward Greystone Park, I pulled up the hood from my sweater as I walked down the street. As I approached the park I noticed there weren’t as many people out as I thought there would be. Which was fine by me, less chance to run into Twilight’s friends at this point. As I wandered around aimlessly I eventually spotted Twilight near a small table sitting alone with all her stuff including her telescope still in its storage bag. “Aria, hi!” As soon as Twilight spotted me, she waved excitedly as she ran towards me. I barely had time to react when Twilight reached me and went for a hug, nearly tackling me over. I chuckled and hugged her back. “Hey there, cub. It’s good to see you.” Twilight had a beaming smile when she released me from the hug. “Let me help you with the telescope. This time, I won’t be as clueless with the name of the parts.” My friend giggled at my declaration.  “Okay.” My friend pulled out the telescope and I helped her to set it up. As I expected, this time it was easier for me to follow Twilight’s instructions. I did make sure to read up on the parts for a portable telescope this time around, and it paid off. After the telescope was ready, Twilight and I sat on opposite sides of the picnic table to eat. She placed the sandwiches on a disposable plate while I placed the water bottles on the table. I brought no cups, so we had to drink straight from the bottles. “Twilight, before anything, I want to talk with you about something,” I said with a serious tone. My friend placed her food on her plate and focused on me. “Y-Yes…? What’s wrong?” She looked worried. I better hurry up before she worries and gets the wrong impression. Sighing, I continued. “I don’t want you to feel like I’m mad at you, or that I’m scolding you, but… I don’t understand why you kept Spike being able to talk a secret from me,” I said looking down at my hands.  “Oh?” Twilight looked away. “I thought it would be for the best. I don’t think it’s safe for him or me to tell everyone that he can talk because of magic from out of this world. I didn’t think telling you was a good idea.” “But Twilight…” I crossed my arms. “You know I’m not from this world.” My friend quickly glanced at me, widening her eyes. “I recognized the magic Spike carrying. It was Equestrian, just like me,” I said factually. “Th-That’s right! I-I forgot…” Twilight covered her mouth with her hands. “I’m so sorry, Aria! It’s just that-” She removed her hands from her face. “Unlike with Sunset, I never saw you using magic. It was easy for me to forget that you’re not really human.” I felt guilty hearing Twilight say that. She was correct after all, without my magic it was easy to be mistaken for a normal human now. Not that my sisters or I went out of our ways to use magic openly if we could get away with it. We survived on subtlety. That begged the question, was I human now, or was I still a siren inside? However as Adagio always said, there was more to a siren than our magic. I looked down clenching my hands into fists. “My sisters and I lost most of our magic a little while ago. What remains is easy to conceal.” “Really?” She looked at me curiously. “What kind of magic do you possess?” I smirked, standing up. “One all sirens possessed naturally. Step aside, Sparks. I’ll show you.” My friend nodded and stood up as well. She took a few steps backwards. Once she was at a safe distance, I crawled under the table. “Get ready!” When I reached the middle of the table, I used a single hand to lift the entire picnic table above my head with ease. Twilight gasped. “Oh, wow!” “Yeah-” I chuckled. “Superhuman strength. We needed this to defend ourselves and help us to swim faster.” After finishing speaking, I put the table back where it was. I didn’t drop anything to the ground. I sat down again, and Twilight quickly did the same, looking excited. “How strong are you?” She asked me. “Not as much as you would think.” I said, before taking a sip of my water. “If I did proper exercise in a gym, I think I would be able to lift a car, although I would struggle to do so. I’m not looking to get muscles, though. Not really my thing. As it is, I can carry a few heavy boxes one on top of the other without breaking a sweat.” “Fascinating!” Twilight grinned. “Yeah…” I chuckled again before smiling at my friend. “I’m not mad at you. Just remember that I know a thing or two about magic. I just can’t wield it anymore.” Twilight nodded giving a cute salute. “Understood!” “Good.” I grabbed a sandwich from before speaking again. “So, tell me, cub.” I took a bite from my sandwich before continuing. “How was your week?” “It was fine.” Twilight swallowed her food. “Since I had no homework to do, I could focus on organizing the sleepover I had. I also read and went to the park with Spike. How about you?” “Regular, I guess.” I shrugged before drinking from my water. “I watched T.V. and did some reading too, but Adagio has been trying to come up with new clothing designs and she’s been asking for my opinion all week long…” I sighed. “Why is she looking for inspiration in punk style?” My friend took another bite from her sandwich. “I think that’s nice.” I glared at her, but quickly softened my expression. Twilight swallowed and smiled. “Your sister loves you. Think about it. When her clothing gets sold, whenever you see someone wearing what she designs, you’ll remember how important you are to Adagio.”  I remaining staring at her, narrowing my eyes. Twilight blinked a few times before leaning down her head slightly without breaking eye contact with me. “You don’t agree…?” I remained silent, genuinely considering what my friend just said. Whenever Adagio walked into my room, I always entered in a state of alert. She always had something to say that would annoy me, like cleaning your room, or let Sonata watch T.V. with me. Not to mention the times she teases me with Twilight, but I sometimes forget that we’re related. Sisters. She cares about me and I care about her and Sonata too. Adagio didn’t choose punk so she could have more excuses to annoy me. She did it… because she liked it. Ugh, so cheesy!  I quickly realized I had been silent for too long and Twilight was still watching me expectantly. I better say something before Twilight gets upset.  “I guess that’s one way to see it.” I smiled, and my friend fully raised her head again, widening her eyes. “I never thought about it like that. Thank you, Sparks.” Twilight blinked in confusion a few times before returning the smile. “You’re welcome. I hope her designs become a reality.” “She has a good eye. Or at least that’s what your friend Rarity thinks,” I said looking thoughtful. “Rarity lives and breathes fashion,” My friend chuckled before drinking water. “She knows what she’s talking about.” I looked over at Twilight giving what she said some serious thought.  “When she and Adagio met… I never heard my sister talk so much about that. I swear, for a moment I thought she was going to propose to your friend,” I confessed. Twilight snickered. “I can be like that, when it comes to talking about what I’m passionate about.” “I noticed.” I smirked. “You were like that when we stargazed the first time, also when you fixed that movie I refuse to mention. Oh! And with, Little Sorceress Academia.” “Hey!” She folded her arms, she tried to look angry, but she couldn’t hide her smile. “You did the same with that book!” “But we’re not talking about me.” I faked an angry glare. It didn’t last long, because I soon burst in laughter, alongside Twilight. How come I enjoy doing silly things like these with her? After the laughter died out, we finished eating and we stood up together. I didn’t finish my water, so I took the bottle with me, while Twilight pulled a blanket from her bag. “I came prepared this time.” “You and your problem with a little dirt,” I said in a joking manner. My friend giggled softly. “My clothes are fresh from the washing machine. I would much prefer to keep them clean, at least for a few days,” Twilight said. “Fair enough.” With a smile, I helped her to set the blanket out on the grass before bringing the telescope over. Twilight got on her knees on the blanket and placed her eye on the finder scope and used a hand to adjust the telescope. I sat more casually close to her, with a knee looking upwards and an arm on top of it. “I’ll use the telescope to find the constellations.” She looked at me, smiling. While she looked, I did my own investigation. I checked the sky to find the star formation I wanted to impress Twilight with. “There’s Draco again! Do you want to look?” “Sure.” I smirked again. My friend gave me space so I could get my eye on the telescope. I admired Draco for a moment, but now, it was time to put my recently acquired knowledge to good use. Thanks to all the reading, it was now much easier for me to spot the constellations. I moved the telescope to find a specific constellation. When I found it, I glanced at my friend. It’s showtime. “I can see Leo over there.” I said with a casual tone. “Its name is Latin for lion, you know? To the ancient Greeks, it represented the Nemean Lion killed by the mythical Greek hero, Heracles, which I believe means 'Glory of Hera'.” From the corner of my eyes, I could see how Twilight slowly looked at me, with her jaw dropped. Her reaction made me smile more. “Now, about Heracles, I have no idea what or who that is.” My friend blinked, still in shock. Then she shook her head and took control of her mouth again, forming a smile. “Heracles was a Greek demigod. According to Mythology, the Nemean Lion you just mentioned was killed by him as part of one of his twelve labors.” “Greek mythology, huh?” I smirked. “Those Greeks show up quite a lot, don’t they? Looks like there’s more for you to teach me.” Twilight grinned and nodded. I put my eye on the finder scope to look for the next constellation. “There’s Boötes over there. If I’m right, the name in Greek means ‘herdsman’ or ‘plowman’. It contains the fourth-brightest star in the night sky, the orange giant Arcturus.” I looked at Twilight, who nodded in affirmation. “And between Leo and Boötes, there’s…” My friend encouraged me to continue. “Coma Berenices.” I said with confidence. “Its name means ‘Berenice's Hair’ in Latin and refers to Queen Berenice II of Egypt, who sacrificed her long hair as a votive offering.” Twilight clapped excitedly. When she stopped, she left her hand clasped together. “Y-You…” My friend smiled widely. Mission completed! “You read the book I lent you…?” “Yup.” I looked up into the sky, smiling proudly of myself. “I really enjoyed it. In fact, I liked it so much, that I bought another Astronomy book to keep reading about the subject.”  I glanced towards my friend again. Her jaw didn’t drop again, but her mouth had the shape of an ‘O’. “I read about Aurora Borealis. How it’s a natural light display in the planet's sky, but I got let down when I found out that they can only be seen in the high-latitude regions. What a shame. From what I could see on the colored photos of the book, it’s a wonderful sight.” I made a short pause thinking about how amazing it would be to see them in person. Twilight still had her hands clasped, but they were closer to her chest. She was also gazing at me intensely. She seemed to be frozen. With a smug smile, I continued. “We can witness it from the northeast state of this country, right? If one day I have a chance to go there…” I took my bottle of water before finishing the sentence “I would like to take you with me.”  After saying the last part I drank some of my water. When swallowing, I noticed that my friend was very still without moving a muscle. Now I was getting a little worried. “Cub?” I waved my hand in front of her eyes. “Twilight!” I placed a hand on her shoulder and shook her body a little. At this, my friend reacted. She blinked and turned her head towards me. “A-Aria…” She spoke with a soft tone. This was strange. It wasn’t the first time she behaved like this either. “Twilight, I’m worried…” I softened my expression. “You’re acting weird again. There’s definitely something you’re not telling me. This is not about you worrying about annoying me with your friendship.” I took a deep breath and released it. “Please, be honest with me. What’s really bugging you?” My friend’s eyes widened. I think her cheeks turned bright pink too. “I-I’m… I…” She gulped and, without notice, she stood up abruptly and walked a few steps away from me, hugging herself. Since she showed no signs of walking any further, I didn’t move. “Aria… th-there’s something I need to tell you… something big…” “I’m listening.” She had my full attention. I didn’t push her any more, instead opting to wait for her to speak when she seemed fit. Twilight opened her mouth, but quickly closed it. She seemed uneasy. She tried to speak several more times, but she kept hesitating. While she struggled to say whatever she wanted to tell me, her face kept turning crimson red. I also noticed that she was shaking, despite the night not being cold, nor windy. Whatever she was trying to tell me was making her extremely nervous. Should I call this off? Just when I was starting to get really worried Twilight finally spoke up. “A-Aria… we’re friends, right?” I nodded, narrowing my eyes in confusion, and Twilight smiled nervously before continuing. “Yes, we’re friends. I like being your friend. Do you?” “Of course.” I raised an eyebrow, even more confused. She’s saying ‘friend’ way too much by normal standards. “Twilight, what’s-” “Good, because we’re good friends!” Even though I don’t get scared easily, her sudden outburst startled me a little. I leaned back by the surprise, widening my eyes in the process. “We’re very good friends, aren’t we? Very, very good friends?” “Twilight…” I stood up and tried to reach her with my hands holding her shoulders. My nervous friend stared at them, still shaking. “What’s going on? Why are you acting like this?” “I’m-” This time, I interrupted her. I wasn’t finished. “Is it me?” “What?” Twilight was in shock by what I just said. “No! It’s not you! W-Well, actually yes, but-” “What the issue then? What am I doing?” I stepped closer to her. “How am I making you uncomfortable? Please, tell me.” “N-No! You’re misunderstanding!” She said, with a hint of desperation in her voice.   “Is it my smell? I used a different shampoo today,” I asked worriedly.  “It’s not-” “Is it my hair? You don’t like it when it touches you?” “What, no it’s not that either!” “Is this because I’m not on good terms with your friends? You don’t like that? Do you want us all to get along?” “A-Aria, please-!” I stopped right in front of her and looked at her right into her eyes. I noticed the scared, wet tears of desperation in them, so I took a deep breath to try and calm myself down. “I'm sorry... I just want to know what am I doing wrong,” I said, still holding her. “You’re not doing anything wrong, Aria…” I was so close to Twilight, that I had a crystal-clear view of her eyes.  The way she was looking at me didn’t seem to be of discomfort. Then, what is it, really? It was driving me crazy not knowing what I was doing to cause this kind of adverse reaction. “Twili-” Twilight looked me in the eyes, wet tears steadily streaming down her face as she looked glaze eyed at me. I felt my heart sink, but then, after contemplating me for a long while, Twilight said something I didn't expect given the circumstances. "Aria, have you read about the constellation Lupus?" She asked out of the blue, adapting a more serious expression. I tilted my head not sure of what she was getting at. I still had no idea what I did wrong and now she was asking me about random facts about a constellation I never heard about? I shook my head as a silent answer to her question. She smiled wiping her eyes with a hand as she spoke. "Lupus is a constellation that is only seen in the far southern hemisphere. It means wolf in Latin." I waited patiently, listening to every word she said as I gently held her in place. "I was also thinking about us being a pack like you said," Twilight elaborated as she placed a hand on mine. "Every pack of wolves has an alpha who leads them, and every alpha has a beta to rule beside them." She paused, looking up at the sky pointing to the stars. "Lupus has its two brightest stars named Alpha Lupi and Beta Lupi," "Twilight, what-" I wasn't able to finish my question. Out of the blue, Twilight suddenly jumped on me and placing her arms around my neck as she planted her lips on mine. Wh-What the-?! After a few moments of contact she pulled away, she was completely red in the face as she looked up at me nervously. "Aria, I like you. S-so, will you be my alpha, and let me be your beta?" She asked me while pushing her hair back, and I was shocked into silence. Even with all of my sisters teasing, I never thought that Twilight would have actual feelings for me!