The band wasted very little time getting ready. According to the schedules given by the principals, the first third of the day would go to the Dazzlings. The second third would be for the Cavalry, while the end would go to the finals.
Everyone slept in. That is to say, nobody slept well, and by the time they did fall asleep it was practically morning. So the Rainbooms and Cavalry woke up around noon.
It made them scramble to get ready. The slot for their practice started at 2. They would have until 6, and then nothing until the battle at 7.
Meaning they had two hours to get ready.
No, scratch that.
That Rarity had two hours to get ready.
After realizing this, those two hours were jam packed with movement and speed. Rarity moved fast enough to make Pinkie Pie jealous. She needed to get her outfit together, the ones for all the Rainbooms, and ones for the Cavalry. For those counting at home that is ten outfits to make in two hours.
Things were tense on the drive to the auditorium. Rarity struggled in the back, stitching on colors and sleeves and emblems.
Killjoy thought it was entertaining.
They made it to the auditorium a half hour late. The Cavalry pretended to set up their stuff. The Rainbooms used it. Sunset tried running the tech booth. Raspberry stood beside her, actually running tech booth.
“Check, one, two. Testing, testing...” Dash tapped her mic. “Testing...!”
The speakers squeaked. The sound came sharply and in everyone’s ears.
Raspberry lowered the mic’s sound. Sunset winced, apologetic. “There. We good?”
“No we are not!”
The group turned to the side stage. Trixie Lulamoon stood with the Illusions, glowering.
“Didn’t we beat you?” Killjoy asked. “You’re supposed to be- I don’t know. What does Trixie do when you beat her?”
Raspberry shrugged. “This.”
“Ah.”
Trixie Lulamoon “The Great and Powerful Trixie is the most talented girl at Canterlot High. It is I who deserves to be in the finals!” Trixie announced. “And I will not...be denied!” Sge clicked her fingers.
Her lackeys grabbed a nearby lever.
Raspberry grabbed Thorax.
A trap door on the stage. Cavalry and Rainbooms fell beneath the stage, Sunset and Bumblebee too.
Trixie cackled as the trap doors closed. “See you never!”
Raspberry groaned. Thorax landed on her legs.
==RRFTC==
They tried kicking down the door. Thorax attempted to shift into a large form- it failed. The magic of this world worked differently. He could only shift into human forms.
They were trapped down there.
For hours.
Rarity bemoaned that she couldn’t work on her dresses. Even worse, overhead were the loud repetitive sounds of the Illusions singing ‘Powerful and Great’.
The song grated after a while.
“Why did Trixie do this?” Twilight asked.
“The sirens probably tricked her into it. Said she would’ve won if we hadn’t beat her- which is why they told the principals you cheated.”
“You think so?” Twilight asked. “Oh that makes sense. Trixie would’ve been bothered that she couldn’t stand against me, and would blame you. When she came here to stop you, it must’ve looked perfect that we were both here.”
“Yeah.” Killjoy slumped herself on a box. “Trixie really hates you in any universe.”
Raspberry sighed. “It’s a tragedy.”
Thorax and Applejack tried kicking down the door again. For twenty minutes. It failed. Hilariously.
“Can’t you kick it down?” Dash asked Raspberry.
“No. It’s locked- really locked. I would break my foot.” Raspberry answered.
“Then- then use magic-” Dash tried.
“We tried that already.” Raspberry waved her hand at the door.
“Fine. Fine!” Dash made a run at the door.
She collided with it.
“See? I said-” Raspberry never got to finish her sentence.
Dash stood up. She made another run at the door.
“They’ve done everythin’ they could!” Applejack told her friend. “So how about you start trying!”
Dash ground her teeth. “They have magic. I know they do. They used it earlier, when they transformed!”
“Why were you transforming, Bee? You never said.” Raspberry asked. She could feel the many eyes of the others.
Thorax stuffed his hands in his pockets. Raspberry noted they were fists. “It’s a song. I’m part pony. Why wouldn’t I?”
“This magic requires a strong emotional connection, just like it does back home.” Raspberry argued. “Why did you emotionally connect with that song?”
Thorax narrowed his purple eyes. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“No. I’m bad at it. You tell me, please?”
“It’s a song about a girl leaving a relationship for somebody else.” Thorax stated. “Why did you?”
Raspberry grimaced, quickly correcting her face. She agreed partly with Thorax. The song was about a guy losing his girl, but there was another side to that. A side that Raspberry enjoyed very much. She hadn’t realized she started transforming until the drumstick hit her head.
“Maybe...” Raspberry glanced behind her. Checking on the others, and the Rainbooms. “Maybe I heard a different song.”
“What song were you hearing?”
Raspberry swallowed.
Twilight tried to step forward.
Killjoy pulled her back. She wore a giddy smile, watching with wide dark purple eyes. “Nonono. Let them have this.”
“What, why?” Twilight asked.
“They’ve been avoiding this fight for six months. Let them have it!” Killjoy explained.
“Six months?” Sunset asked. Raspberry started messaging her six months ago. She never mentioned anything about any fights.
“They never want the kids to see them fight, so they hide it.” Killjoy reasoned. “So now a lot of big things built up into this and I really wanna see it!”
Raspberry swallowed. “You- you think I want to leave? Leave you?”
Thorax raised his chin. “Well it makes sense. You keep getting further and further from me. I told you last night. A huge monster nearly destroyed everything. He was gonna go after our kids and you said nothing!”
“I explained, last night, that I worked around that.” Raspberry replied.
“And- when it did, you just- just gave up.” Thorax shook his head, trying to shake off the image. “You looked dead.”
“My friends and family needed me.”
“And what about me? Did you even think about me during all of this?”
“You were why I did it.” Raspberry admitted. “All our kids were safe. Twilight would’ve managed fine. Discord came and reminded me you were in trouble.”
“It didn’t feel like it.”
“That’s on me. I should’ve taken your feelings into account. I’m sorry.”
“And my sister? What about her? Why haven’t you found her and her abductor yet?”
Cicada and Bumblebee gasped. They hadn’t known the reason Cicada’s alternate wasn’t around. Maybe they should have guessed, but the idea was so horrible that no sand person would jump to abduction. Bumblebee held tighter to Cicada.
“Because she’s trapped in one of his world’s. The only way in is with his permission, which we will never get, or his blood. Breaking in. Doing to him what he’s done to me.” Raspberry explained. Each word said like it was pulling out from her heart. “I want to find her too. A lot of my tech for that was- well I left it in my MCU apartment. Or it would work best in my MCU apartment. I want- I want you to have your sister back. I pushed you to get back with your brother, and I want you to have your sister more than anything. Because I want...I want you happy.”
Thorax visibly struggled. Like he wanted to rage, and now that he had he couldn’t stop. But he knew- it was clear on his face- He knew that fighting in front of their friends would hurt them both.
“Bumblebee still follows you around.” Thorax pointed at the boy, furious. Bumblebee tilted his head.
“I- Uh.”
“He’s still here. Trying to get close to you, and you don’t tell him to back off.”
“He’s a boy-”
“And you won’t even tell him we’re married!”
The Rainbooms and the Cavalrys gasped. Killjoy held tighter to Twilight, buzzing with excitement.
“Or anybody! You hide it, all the time!” Thorax ranted. “Nobody is allowed to even think it. You keep correcting them. What did I transform during that song? Maybe because the mare I love doesn’t want to marry me.”
Raspberry bit her lip. She met Thorax’s eyes. He could see them watering. Thorax kept himself meeting her eyes. He refused to look away from it. He wanted to challenge Raspberry- to see her weasel her way out of it.
She reached into her Bag. She pulled out a wrapped parcel.
“Happy Birthday.” Raspberry said.
Thorax glared at the present.
“I wanted to give you this in a big party- it was gonna be great. We convinced the others to make it a big thing. Pinkie was throwing us a party in Equestria. A big birthday party for you and this was gonna be- well you should have it now.” Raspberry held out the parcel. “Please?”
Thorax took the gift. The rest of the people in the room watched with bated breath. Pinkie chewed her nails off, creating a little pile at her sides.
Thorax opened it. The parcel held a folder. He opened that to reveal a bunch of documents. He glared again at Raspberry.
She met his stare. She loosened her shoulders, forcing herself to relax.
“What is this?” Thorax pulled out one of the documents.
“They’re for Thorsten Chrysson. I- I wanted to still call you- it’s stupid. Your birthday is the same but I played around with the year.” Raspberry answered.
Killjoy gasped. “She’s doing it.”
“Doing what?” Twilight whispered. Killjoy hushed her.
“…why?” Thorax asked, eyebrows scrunched.
“Because then the next bit would make sense.” Raspberry came over to his side. She turned the page. “Please tell me you can read that?”
Thorax’s eyes widened. Killjoy squeezed Twilight’s hand.
“…did you fake my signature?” Was all Thorax could manage to say. His purple eyes watered, quickly overflowing with tears.
“And my parents’. I’m good at that.” Raspberry replied. Yep, the tears came now. Thorax cried, looking at the papers like they would vanish if he looked away. “I…do you mind? I thought you wouldn’t mind. Do- do you mind?”
“What’s on the paper?” Pinkie whispered.
Twilight shook her head. “I don’t know. I can’t see.”
“It’s a marriage certificate. From Earth. For us.” Thorax revealed.
The girls all gasped. They looked at Raspberry. Her dark pink cheeks were even darker with a blush. She lifted her chin, trying to pretend the blush wasn’t there. The girls all cooed and cheered.
“We’re Earth married now.” Raspberry told him. “There- Pinkie’s party was gonna end in a marriage ceremony and I haven’t gone to get the dress...but I mean this is fine too. Yeah. Marvel’s still gonna be the honeymoon. I’ve got, like, so much stuff to make it better for you. Stuff that I couldn’t get in Equestria.”
“Are you serious?” Thorax asked.
“About you? Always.” Raspberry replied.
Thorax could only stare. He stared at the birth certificate, and the marriage certificate. They weren’t fake. They were faked, but they weren’t faked. They were- Raspberry- She arranged it.
“She got it all planned out.” Thorax recalled.
Raspberry blushed. “I’m gonna kill her for ruining the surprise.”
Thorax looked up at her. He shook his head. “You- you had a wedding planned out. As-as a birthday present?”
Raspberry nodded. “It- I thought you didn’t- it was another thing I planned without you. I’m sorry. I told Pinkie to cancel it-”
“Call her back.”
Raspberry blinked. “I...huh?”
Thorax shook his head. “Call Pinkie back.”
“Wha...why?”
Killjoy snorted. Fuck, she loved it when her sister was struck dumb.
The others in here smiled too. Most of them, anyway. Rarity was crying. This was better than a soap opera!
“For that party.” Thorax started walking up to Raspberry. “That big, awesome party. You and I are gonna plan it. Together.”
Raspberry squeaked.
“Okay?” Thorax asked.
Raspberry nodded, cheeks a bright pink. She scrambled to get her phone from her pocket, holding it out. “Please.”
Thorax grinned. Giggling, he took the phone. “This is going to be insane.”
She giggled with him. “It- you still, really?”
“Yes.” Thorax stated. “Okay? Yes, I want that.”
“Because I’m gonna find her, I will.” Raspberry promised. “She’s- I’ll find her. I want to find her-”
Thorax came closer. He held her hand, pulling her up to him. Raspberry shut up. Thorax wrapped Raspberry in a hug. Raspberry stood, gobsmacked.
“I love you.” Thorax promised.
Her heart burned.
==RRFTC==
There was a loud thud.
Thorax and Raspberry didn’t flinch. She stayed wrapped up in a hug. The rest of the group sighed, used to this.
There was another thud.
Killjoy rolled her eyes. She tossed a knife in the air, making a show of catching the blade. She tossed it again.
Another loud thud.
“If we couldn’t bust down the door.” Killjoy groaned. “Why do you think you can?”
Dash grunted. She brushed off her shirt, getting ready for another run up.
Applejack stepped in her way. “Give it up, Rainbow Dash.” She pulled her friend away from the door. “You’ve been tryin’ at this for hours. It’s not gonna open.”
“Maybe it doesn’t even matter that we’re trapped down here. I don’t think the counter-spell would have worked anyway.” Twilight reminded them.
Raspberry shifted in the hug. Thorax pressed his nose against her head, nuzzling her cheek.
“Of course it would have worked, Twilight.” Applejack narrowed her green eyes at Dash. “Assumin’ a certain band member didn’t try to hog the spotlight the whole time we were tryin’ to play it!”
“Hey! If you wanna tell Twilight she’s getting a little too caught up trying to be the new leader of this band, you don’t have to be all cryptic about it.” Dash shrugged off.
“She was talking about you, Rainbow Dash!” Rarity yelled.
Dash gawked. “Me?! I’m just trying to make sure my band rocks as hard as it needs to!”
“OUR BAND!” The rest of the Rainbooms yelled.
Thorax squeezed Raspberry. “You got this.” He assured her.
Raspberry bit her lip.
Cicada moved closer to Bumblebee. She moved her head, making her head fall over her face to hide herself. Bumblebee acted as the protector.
“But why wasn’t it working? I should know what to do.” Twilight fretted. She backed away from them, curling in a ball. “How could I not know what to do? How could I have failed like this?”
“It might’ve been your idea to start a band, but it’s not just your band, Rainbow Dash!” Applejack argued.
“I’m the one who writes all the songs!” Dash stated.
“I write songs! You just never let us play any of them!” Fluttershy reminded her.
“I had the most perfect outfits for us to wear!”
Applejack rolled her eyes. “Again with the costumes! No one cares what we’re wearin’!”
“I care, Applejack! So sorry if I enjoy trying to make a creative contribution to the band!” Rarity argued.
Pinkie popped up between them. “Hey! Anybody here remember fun?! I’ll give you a hint: It’s the exact opposite of being in the Rainbooms!”
“I wish I never asked any of you to be in my band!”
“I wish I’d never agreed to be in it!”
“Me neither!”
Thorax pulled back, kissing her head again. “You ready to work?”
“Do it for a livin’.” Raspberry sighed. She smiled as Thorax hugged her side. He stayed there, arm around her back.
Green magic was pouring off the girls. The magic floating up into the ceiling. Raspberry watched it go. A bitter feeling swelling in her gut.
She took a deep breath in.
The Rainbooms continued arguing.
Killjoy stood up, tucking her knife away. She stood at Raspberry’s non-hugged side.
“ENOUGH!” Raspberry shouted.
Her voice boomed. It cut to each of the Rainbooms, silencing them. They stared at Raspberry, confused and only more enraged. Raspberry stood strong and confident. She had people on her side that gave her all the courage she needed.
“You girls have been bickering since we got here.” Raspberry made sure to look each girl in the eye, slowly moving between each one so they couldn’t escape this moment. “About everything that anyone can argue about. I’m no better, you all just saw that. But I did hope you guys would take my warnings.”
“You didn’t give us any!” Dash shouted.
“No, she did.” Pinkie pulled a sticky note out of her hair. “‘The Dazzlings don’t need magic to make you argue’. Right, Raspberry?”
“Exactly. They don’t need to use their magic. You’re all doing a fine enough job yourself.” Raspberry stated.
“Now, sure, we’ve been fighting, but it ain’t that bad.” Applejack shook her head. “It’s just-”
“You were spitting out green clouds before I stopped you.” Raspberry told them. She turned to Sunset. “You saw it too, yeah?”
Sunset swallowed. “I- I did. Yes. Ever since they-” She stopped herself, hugging her arm to her chest and looking away from the others.
Raspberry held out her hand. Killjoy stepped back, letting the hand go out. “Ever since they...?”
“Started the band.” Sunset admitted in a rush. She quickly shut herself back down.
Sunset looked at the Rainbooms. All of them stared, confused but now a little more hurt. She wanted to be their trusted friend, to be welcomed in their group. They closed their ranks to her ages ago. Sure, the words and entries from Raspberry helped, but they did nothing to stop that lonely feeling. What would they think of her now? Would they think she started their fighting, just to ruin Equestria again? The very thought made Sunset sick.
“Hey. No, come on.” Killjoy bumped Sunset forward. The yellow-orange haired girl stumbled. “You got their attention. Just finish it. Rip off the bandaid.”
Killjoy didn’t often give Sunset advice. Or, advice that didn’t end with ‘just stab your problems away’. Sunset took this advice like a duck to water.
She took a deep breath. “Ever since you started this band, you’ve been letting little things get to you. I never said anything ’cause I didn’t feel like it was my place. Not when I was so new to this whole ‘friendship’ thing. I still have a lot to learn. But I do know that if you don’t work out even the smallest problems right at the start, the magic of friendship can be turned into something else.”
“I can’t believe all this tension was happening right under my nose and I didn’t realize it. I’m supposed to be the one with all the answers. And all I’ve done since I got here is let you down.” Twilight wilted back into her legs.
Raspberry pulled back. Thorax kept his hold tight. Raspberry moved into it.
“Twilight.” Raspberry and Thorax walked towards her. “You’re still recovering from Tirek, and of all the stress that came with it. You nearly lost your house, and all of your friends. You have not let any of us down. We let you down, by expecting so much too soon.” She held out her hand. “Now come on. Accept some help.”
Twilight looked at the hand. Shakily, she reached up for it.
Raspberry and Thorax helped Twilight to her feet.
“Or, accept someone’s songs.” Raspberry offered. She smiled over at Fluttershy. “Because I think our counterspell belongs to somebody very special.”
“That doesn’t solve our problem with the door.” Dash reminded them. She pointed at the door with her thumb.
Raspberry hummed. She kissed Thorax’s cheek. “Bye babe.”
“Bye babe!” Thorax waved.
Raspberry walked to the door. “Door turns towards us. Kicking it down isn’t gonna work.” She knelt on the ground, eyeing the door. “It’s got a hole...makes it an interior door. That means I need a-”
“-allen wrench.” Killjoy noted. “Green tool case.”
Raspberry opened her Bag. She pulled out a small green tool box. “
“Do we need a lock pick?” Killjoy asked. She knelt beside her sister.
“No.” Raspberry pulled out an allen wrench. She used it on the doorknob. It wasn’t the right fit. She reached for another one.
“You still owe me a new one.” Killjoy reminded her sister. The allen wrench didn’t fit. “After you lost mine.”
“Find one and I’ll cover it.” Raspberry tried another.
“All the ones I want require a lockpick to get.”
“Buy one with money.”
“There’re more fun to steal.”
“Then point me at the one you wanna steal.”
“No. I wanna steal it.”
“Then steal it.”
“No.” Killjoy complained. She slumped against the wall. She eyed the tool box. “It’s that one.”
Raspberry looked at it. “Oh okay.” She plucked it up, tucking it into the doorknob. It turned. “We got it!”
The door opened. A small purple dog fell over.
“Spike!” Twilight cheered.
“Huh?” Spike looked up. He looked around at the group. “How did you open the door?”
Raspberry held up an allen wrench. “We unlocked it.”
Spike blinked again. “Oh. Yeah that makes sense.” He stood up, shaking his body. “I was just gonna start looking for somebody who can avoid the sirens magic.”
“We know somebody.” Raspberry and Killjoy stated.
“You heard ‘em, girls!” Cicada jumped up. She hauled Raspberry and Killjoy to their feet. “Time for you to prove you’ve got the- the-”
“Friendship magic!” Bumblebee told her.
“And there’s only one way to do it!” Twilight stated.
“We’re getting the band back together?” Pinkie asked.
Dash hugged her. “We’re getting our band back together!”
Pinkie threw up her hands. Confetti floated down. “Whee!”
“Ooh, which version of the counterspell are we going to play?” Rarity asked.
Twilight looked at Raspberry. Raspberry nodded at the song journal. “I know just the song.” Twilight turned to the exact page in the journal. “The song Fluttershy wrote is perfect.” She showed it off to them.
Dash grinned. She gave Fluttershy a thumbs up. “Yeah. It’s great, and I can’t wait to hear it.”
Fluttershy squealed. She joined Dash and Pinkie’s hug.
“We’re about to save the world here. Personally, I think we should do it in style.” Applejack turned to Rarity. “Rarity?”
Rarity’s blue eyes sparkled like diamonds. “I thought you’d never ask!” She grabbed Thorax, pulling him close. “I’ve got outfits for everyone!”