The knock on the Sparkles’ front door was about as uncompromising and abrasive as Twilight had expected. She channelled the jump she’d made at the sound into one that sent her bounding towards the front hall, making sure there’d be no room to say she’d slacked off in any way or shown anything but maximum commitment.
But the person revealed when she hastily flung the door open was not who she expected at all. “You! I thought… Limestone…?”
“Limestone works 70 hours a week,” Aria announced, folding her arms. Folding them already, after four seconds in Twilight’s company! “If she had to serve as your deity during her off hours as well, I’d never get to see her.”
Well, it had been Aria that Twilight originally approached. But Aria had at no point shown any signs of being able to stand her in the slightest. “Right, sure, that makes sense.” And after Twilight had spent the last week repeatedly listening to the CD Limestone had given her, too. “Thank you.”
“She’ll be at the club later. I’m here to make sure you’re presentable enough to be let in the door.”
...That felt like it might be a test? She really wouldn’t put it past Aria to try to trip her up with things like that, to make sure she was taking things onboard and not just copying the surface motions. “What happened to not dressing up as something you’re not?”
Aria grunted. “That’s all well and good, but what do you say to the bouncer who won’t let you in unless you change your shoes?”
Thinking before she spoke was something that had been drummed into Twilight from a very early age, and therefore was usually done automatically. But here she made a conscious effort to double-check her answer before airing it, because she had to be sure, and this felt even more like a test – or a trap – than ever.
Which was tricky when the excitable part of her was getting giddy from doing its ‘Ooh, I know this one!’ dance.
Double-checking confirmed her conclusions, though. She did know this one.
“ ‘Fuck you, I won’t do what you tell me.’ ”
...Aaaand she’d just said that where her parents might hear, inside. She didn’t think it likely, since the windows were closed, and she certainly wasn’t about to check when standing in front of Aria trying to show conviction, but still, all that stuff about her thinking before she spoke rang somewhat hollow.
So distracting was the thought that it took her a moment to register Aria’s reaction. Aria, who, for the first time, was not looking disgusted by Twilight’s existence. Judging by her raised eyebrow and slightly quirking lips, she might actually have been impressed. “Alright, I take it back, this could be fun.” Then she pursed her lips. “Have your family got enough spare to post bail?”
Twilight blinked. “Huh?”
“Sounds like you’re gonna need it,” Aria said, evidently deciding enough was enough with waiting on the doorstep, stepping into the house and practically pushing Twilight backwards when she didn’t catch on in time.
Aria’s backpack, previously slung by one strap diagonally across her back in such a way that seemed deliberately designed to fly in the face of not only the manufacturer’s intentions and everything medical science knew about healthy back posture, but also the entire reason a backpack might have two straps at all, clinked as she set it down on Twilight’s bed. “Ok, we’ve got about eight hours, including eating, predrinking and travel, to get you looking like someone I wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen next to.” She looked Twilight up and down. “Urgh, we’re gonna be so late.”
Trying to ignore it and not take it personally – and doing better than she’d have thought a few weeks ago – Twilight shifted from one foot to the other, standing in the middle of the floor. “So, um, this is my bedroom…”
Aria took one glance to each side, no doubt taking in the periodic table on the wall, the telescope, and the horde of bookcases. “How could it not be?”
As quickly, soundly and discreetly as she could, Twilight mentally prepared herself for that kind of day. It was ok. She was here to learn from Aria. If she could do the things she wanted already, she wouldn’t need to be learning them. So when Aria was disdainful of her bedroom, probably thinking it was nothing like the bedroom of someone rebellious, then, well, she was right. Twilight wasn’t a rebel, not yet, and that was the whole reason she’d wanted Aria to be there in the first place.
This particular kind of learning meant change, and that meant being brave enough to say out with the old and in with the new.
“Ok,” she said, squaring her shoulders and taking a breath, “what do we need to cover, and where do we begin?” Was that expecting Aria to do too much of the work, like before? Hurriedly Twilight added, “Clothes, obviously. Uh… makeup?”
“Makeup,” Aria nodded. “Hair. Accessories.” She paused, then looked Twilight in the eye and said firmly, “Shoes.”
Twilight swallowed. She hadn’t even thought about that. Rarity sometimes acted like shoes were the single most important thing about an outfit. And if Twilight didn’t have any that went with whatever Aria picked out, where would that leave her?
Aria looked towards Twilight’s wardrobe. “Clothes first, and shoes. While the shops are still open, in case there’s nothing usable.”
While part of her scoffed at the thought and felt just a little affronted by the idea that absolutely nothing in her wardrobe would do, a more sensible part observed that looking punk, goth or anything similar was never a consideration when she’d bought the clothes, so seemed an unreasonable expectation of them now. She’d be better just going with Aria’s approach, and keeping an open mind to going to the shops if necessary.
“Sounds good to me,” she said, trying to play it cool and keep her voice from revealing quite how relieved she was that one of them appeared to know what they were doing.
“No. No. No. Definitely no. And no.” The last hanger screeched as Aria slid it to the side, followed by a moody silence as she stood staring at the rejected wardrobe contents. She muttered, “I actually hate you quite a bit more now I’ve been through your clothes.”
Standing behind Aria’s shoulder, Twilight thought the comment itself hurt less than how it signified the loss of the progress she thought she’d been making with Aria. Still, she’d observed Aria for long enough to be reasonably sure that appearing upset would only make it worse. So she tried to be objective, and see it from other angles. “Yeah, they’re not very ‘you,’ are they?”
Aria grunted.
If Twilight was to need an entirely new wardrobe, that would get very expensive. Even just getting one set of clothes together for tonight wouldn’t be cheap. “Nothing at all we could use then?” And there was the issue of time constraints, with the high street shops being due to close in under two hours.
Still not turning away from the wardrobe, Aria’s hands rose to her hips as she surveyed the selection. “Not without some serious alteration.” After a few more seconds of apparent contemplation, she wrenched all the hangers back to the left of the railing. “I suppose I should just be glad we found some workable shoes.” She glanced at where Twilight’s new-ish blue boots had been set near the bed, then back to the wardrobe. “Alright, let’s see what we can cannibalise.”
Having already stood around uselessly for one round of rifling through clothes, Twilight leapt at the stray thought of how she could contribute, and marched over to her computer. “343 Guilty Sparkle,” she said, pausing for the voice command to beep in recognition, “play the album With Teeth, by Nine Inch Nails.”
After a second acknowledging beep, the music faded in, and Twilight returned to her spot hovering over Aria’s shoulder, glad to see a couple of garments folded over Aria’s arm as she sorted through the wardrobe with the other. But she reached the end far too soon, and the picked out pile didn’t grow any further. Bustling past Twilight, Aria laid both items out on the bed, then stood back to look at them again.
“Uh...” Twilight said, scratching her head and wondering if she dared actually question Aria aloud. The navy Crystal Prep hoodie certainly wasn’t what she’d expected Aria to pick, but the dress beside it might genuinely have been the last thing on that hypothetical list. “Do goths really wear… white?” she asked, tapping her fingertips together in front of her.
“Well, Amy Lee does,” Aria said, making a nonplussed face, “but I’ve got other ideas.” She rummaged around in her backpack and pulled out a box, flashing it in Twilight’s direction before tossing it onto the bed next to the dress. ‘BLACK NO.1,’ it said in bold letters, with ‘Fabric Dye’ underneath. “We’re gonna need a washing up bowl or something.”
“Sure, I can do that,” Twilight nodded. Even if the dye ended up staining the bowl permanently, they couldn’t be that expensive to replace. So as long as her mom didn’t need it for anything this evening, then–
“What are you girls up to?” came a honeyed voice from the doorway.
Twilight half-jumped, half-spun, to see a vision of pink in a smart business suit and skirt. “Cadence!” she said, rushing to hug her soon-to-be sister-in-law. “This is Aria,” she said after letting go, at the last second thinking to drop the automatic ‘my friend’ that had preceded Aria’s name.
It happened so fast Twilight wasn’t sure she didn’t just imagine it, but she thought she saw a frown flicker across Cadence’s face. Either way, it was long gone when she gave a pearly white smile and said, “Hello, Aria, how do you do?”
“ ‘Sup,” Aria said, briefly raising her chin in Cadence’s direction, while her own smile, much like how she stood, was best described as ‘relaxed.’
Which was good, because the contrast between Cadence’s blue blouse and gold pendant and Aria’s outfit could not have been more apparent. Although Twilight had registered it on Aria’s arrival, only now was she beginning to appreciate that Aria’s belt was made mostly of bullets, repurposing as a fashion item something that was meant to supply ammunition to a machine gun.
Nothing she’d ever seen from Rarity’s fashion shows had prepared Twilight for that kind of clothing statement.
And Aria had paired that with tight, ripped black jeans, an even tighter black strap top that showed her stomach, and an unbuttoned denim waistcoat absolutely covered in silvery spikes, much like those on her black choker and wristbands. Only after taking all that in did Twilight come to realise quite how much focus it took keeping balanced when Aria was around, if it had taken her this long to really notice.
“We’re choosing clothes for a night out,” she blurted into the atmosphere she thought might be turning awkward, belatedly answering Cadence’s initial question
“Oooh, that sounds fun!” Cadence said, clasping her hands together in front of her chest, instantly dispelling any tension that might have been brewing. “Look at you, all grown up and going out. Where are you off to?”
Twilight froze with her mouth open on the point of replying, realising she had no idea.
“Machina,” Aria supplied. “At Thestrals, on Vanhoover Street.”
“Oh right, I’m not sure I’ve been to that one,” Cadence said. “Shining took me to see Sapphire Shores at the megadome for my birthday last year, it was lots of fun!”
Aria nodded politely, and Twilight got the impression she could actually see Aria’s internals – cogs or sinews, she couldn’t decide which – straining with the effort, so thought she ought to jump in. “It’s a rock club,” she said, feeling her cheeks heating up instantly, “so that’s why Aria offered to help me put an outfit together.”
“Oh!” Cadence’s hands flew to her face. “You should have asked, I wouldn’t have minded helping you if I’d known.”
Even if Limestone hadn’t dictated the terms of the planned encounter – relayed through Pinkie, because even Twilight had agreed that she and Limestone exchanging contact numbers would be unwise – the thought of asking Cadence for help choosing an outfit probably wouldn’t have crossed Twilight’s mind. She was always sharply dressed and so obviously had a great eye for it. But…
What was that word she’d heard Rarity use? Professional? No, not quite, that wasn’t it. Polished! That was the one. Cadence always looked so polished, like her being well-dressed was just a permanent state of being for her, that Twilight hadn’t really considered it being something she’d ever had to put much work into.
“Thanks, but it’s ok,” Twilight said, trying to look apologetic, “we’ve got something picked out now.”
“That’s a relief then,” Cadence grinned. She looked at Twilight expectantly, though her smile remained in place. “Mind if I see?”
“Oh! Sure!”
After a moment’s delay, Aria picked up the white dress on its hanger and held it up for Cadence to get a good look at. “Gonna dye it black.”
“Oh, I’m sure there’s no need for that,” Cadence scoffed, darting past Twilight and striding over to her wardrobe. She began scouring her way through the hangers, just as Aria had minutes before. “You just need something with big, bold colours or a strong print,” she called over her shoulder. “And then you make that horns sign with your fingers and stick your tongue out whenever you see a camera, and we’ll have you looking like a rock star in no time!”
Twilight wasn’t sure why, but she didn’t dare look in Aria’s direction at that moment. Instead she rushed over to Cadence, saying, “Why don’t we try Aria’s idea first?”
Because Aria had come over specifically to help with that, as a huge favour, and Twilight really didn’t want to alienate her. Furthermore, when taking a step back from the immediate problem to look at the broader goal, going with ‘polished’ probably wasn’t such a great step in learning to be rebellious. And underneath it all Twilight did have to admit that Aria probably knew a tiny bit more about putting together a ‘rock’ look than Cadence, because she did it every day.
“But surely you don’t need to dye anything,” Cadence said, turning to Twilight but keeping one hand on the dress she’d got up to in the wardrobe. “That sounds pretty extreme?”
Blushing, Twilight adjusted her glasses. “Actually I think it might be quite fun.”
“I imagine it would!” Cadence faced Twilight fully and clasped her hands in front of her. “But what if it doesn’t turn out as well as you’re hoping? Then you’ll have written off a perfectly nice dress for nothing.” She moved a hand on Twilight’s shoulder. “Not to mention how, either way, you’ll never be able to wear it in white again.”
This time Twilight was brave enough to glance at Aria, while turning for another look at the dress placed back on the bed behind her. There was a raised eyebrow warning of a whole lot more being left unsaid. Twilight shuffled her feet. “I haven’t worn it for a couple of years anyway.”
“Oh, well, are you sure it even still fits?” Cadence, too, regarded the dress, then alternated between that and casting concerned looks at Twilight.
“It’ll be fine,” Aria said, blinking wearily. “A bit shorter, a bit tighter.” She shrugged. “A bit better.”
Cadence said nothing, but after a couple of seconds she smiled again, widely, and everything was back to normal.
Evidently with no more discussion to be had, Aria said, “Shall we grab that washing up bowl and get on with dyeing, before the daylight beats us to it?” There was a glimmer in her eye at the end of that, and Twilight wondered how long she’d been sitting on that pun for.
“No no,” Cadence said, with a light, breezy voice, “don’t worry about that, I’ll get it.” And before Twilight could say a word in protest, Cadence swept from the room, humming as she went.
Twilight blushed, because that really felt like something she should have insisted on doing herself – it was for her dress, after all, so it was her job – and Aria had just witnessed her letting Cadence go to that effort instead. “She’s my brother’s girlfriend,” Twilight said, looking mostly at the floor in front of her. “She’s like a big sister to me.” And she was kind and conscientious and helped Twilight out even when she probably had much better things to do. “Isn’t she the best?”
Meanwhile Aria had sat down, perching on the edge of the bed, holding the dye box close in front of her face and peering at what must be the fine text of the instructions on its reverse. “It’s not often I hear ‘big sister’ and ‘the best’ being said together.”
Between what she must hear around the Pie household and what Twilight had picked up about Aria’s own sisters, she could believe it. But something about the way Aria said it, without even looking up from the packet she was reading, made Twilight shiver.