Sonata Dusk Therapy Session #1, October 7th
The following is an excerpt of a recorded conversation, taken for note taking purposes by Still Waters, LCSW.
“Okay, the tape recorder is on, and the microphone is working. This is Still Waters, speaking with Sonata Dusk. Sonata, once again I’d like to emphasize that nobody will ever hear this recording except for you and me, without your express documented permission. You can choose to ask me to stop recording at any time, and I will stop. Do I have your permission to record our conversation?”
“Uh, yes, sure.”
“Thank you, Sonata. And thank you for having the courage to talk to somebody.”
“…sure.”
“So for the first thing. I want you to know that this is a safe place. You can say anything you’d like to say, and it won’t leave this room. I will not take any action on anything you tell me, unless I feel like your life, or the lives of other people, are in danger. Okay? So you can share anything with me. That’s not just my policy, that’s the law, and I’m a pretty strong believer in your privacy. Second, I need you, in turn, to be as honest with me as possible. Therapy is no quick fix to all of life’s problems, but I will do my best to give you the tools you need to help yourself, okay? And that only works if you talk to me as honestly as possible. Any questions so far?”
“Nope.”
“Great! There’s one last thing you should know. Pinkie Pie has given me permission to share something with you, and I feel like it might be helpful. I have been seeing her for a few years now, and several months back, in one of our sessions, she shared some very surprising and shocking things with me. Um, some things that kinda challenged how I viewed science, reality, and, well, physics. To make a long story short, she told me about all the magical things that have been happening to her this year. She told stories about alternate dimensions, girls turning into demons, that sort of thing. As a mental health worker, it’s not my job to believe or disbelieve her, but honestly I was seeing some red flags. I was really concerned she’d become delusional. But then she proved it to me. I’ve worked with a few people recently who have been hurt or traumatized by recent magical events, so I’d say I know enough to believe and help anybody who’s been affected by these things. When Pinkie told me I could share this with you, she also said that those sorts of subjects would probably be coming up in my conversations with you. She didn’t say any more than that. Is that okay with you?”
“I guess? I don’t know.”
“Well, don’t worry about sharing that kind of thing if you don’t want to. I just wanted you to know that I’ll believe you if you tell me you came from another world, or you have magical superpowers, or whatever.”
“Um, both of those things.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m not from here, doc. I’m from another world. And the superpowers. At least I used to.”
“Would you like to tell me about where you came from?”
“…no.”
“That’s fine. Let’s talk about where you are now. Do you live with your parents?”
“No. I don’t have parents. I live with my sisters.”
“Sisters that came with you from your home world?”
“Yeah.”
“Can you tell me about them?”
“Um, sure. There’s Adagio. She’s kinda the leader, she usually tells us what to do, what the plan is. Then there’s Aria. We, uh, fight a lot. Adagio usually breaks us up eventually, but recently she’d kinda been… not there.”
“What do you mean by not there?”
“You said anything I say here doesn’t leave this room, right?”
“Yes, Sonata. Nobody ever hears this except me, unless you tell me otherwise.”
“Okay. Adagio drinks.”
“Alcohol?”
“Yeah. Lots of it. I don’t think she’s been sober enough to even have a conversation with me or Aria for a month, at least. Usually it’s just one word answers to our questions, if she bothers to say anything at all.”
“Did she always drink?”
“Nah. Back in Equestria there wasn’t a lot of opportunity, and when we got banished here, it was always the next scam, the next scheme, the next seduction, the next whatever. She didn’t have time to be an alcoholic. Now that we’re normal, she’s given up. She doesn’t do ‘plans’ or ‘schemes’ any more. She just sits in her room and drinks.
“What about you and your sister? Do either of you drink?”
“Nope. I never saw the appeal. Aria drinks beer sometimes.”
“Sonata, can I ask how old you are?”
“Um, I have no idea. I’m not really… uh… human. Well, I guess I am now. I think I might even be aging. What does it feel like to age?”
“Hmm. I can’t say I know how to answer that, mostly because I don’t know what it feels like to not age. I’ve never felt the difference.”
“…you’re oddly calm about me talking about this weird stuff.”
“You are not the first, nor will you be the last of my clients who needs to talk about magical problems or issues. Trust me, Sonata. You can say whatever you want.”
“What do you want to hear about next?”
“Well, for now I’d just like a broad picture of your life. What do you do for work? What do you do with your sisters? How do you spend your free time? That sort of thing. We’ll get more into specifics at future meetings.”
“I work at a warehouse filling internet orders. Amaze-bay. I work twelve hour days, so there’s not a lot of time for free time.”
“Twelve hour days?”
“They pay overtime. I’m usually only ever scheduled for eight or nine, but I stay late when I can, and nobody tells me I can’t.”
“What about school?”
“I don’t go to school.”
“I’ve heard that working a job like that is really difficult. Lots of hours, few breaks, harsh working conditions.”
“I guess.”
“Okay. So what do your sisters do for work?”
“Adagio doesn’t work. She stays at home and watches TV and drinks. Aria… she has a hard time finding a job. Lots of bosses just don’t understand her, or her personality. So she has to go job hunting again.”
“Is Aria employed right now?”
“Nah.”
“I see. So the only one bringing in an income for your entire family is you?”
“Aria does bring in money when she has a job.”
“And when did she get fired from her last job?”
“Um, probably about a month and a half ago.”
“So when Aria isn’t employed, you have to work extra overtime just to make up the difference?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Sonata, from a practical standpoint, I have to ask. Do you have enough food to eat? You and your sisters?”
“Kinda? Not really, I guess. Um, you won’t tell anybody?”
“I promise, Sonata.”
“When things get tough, I’ve been looking for food in dumpsters. That’s… Pinkie Pie caught me stealing from the dumpster where she works. Please. I don’t want Aria to know, she’d get so mad. Don’t’ tell anybody, okay?”
“Sonata, you have my word. Is it bad, when Aria gets mad at you?”
“It didn’t used to be. We’d fight, and Adagio would let us bicker for a bit, and then she’d break us up. But Aria’s trying so hard to be the leader now that Adagio is… um… not really there anymore. So I guess it is kinda bad.
“Sonata, does Aria hurt you? Physically?”
“No! Never!”
“…okay, Sonata.”