//------------------------------// // Falling // Story: Not a Monster 2: Under Their Spell // by Dreamscape //------------------------------// I was awake for hours in my bed that night, tossing and turning as I thought, the blankets crumpled around half of my body, the other half exposed to the cool night air which blew in from the window. My thoughts were filled with images, predictions, and theories about my new friends, especially Sonata. Strangely, even though I was certain that they were using me for some purpose or another, I still rather enjoyed their company. Perhaps it was because I was already so lonely, or maybe due to the fact that I wanted to show what Sunset’s actions had done to me. Was I purposely taking a dark turn by accompanying them, or was it something more? I was beginning to feel that even though the girls certainly weren’t by any means reformed, there was still something likeable, maybe even lovable about them. Even if their most prominent traits were seduction and ‘evil,’ not all of their traits could be bad, and I already saw that. Even if they were sirens, they seemed like fairly normal girls to me. I also began to wonder exactly what I was being used for. An idea which I thought quite probable quickly came to mind. Even though the scheme seemed petty compared to their grand plan of controlling the high school, I was almost certain that they were using me to get back at Sunset Shimmer for what she had done to them. This did raise a few questions. Would Sunset even be mad or jealous at all? Did she still care for me that much, or was I just a pawn like I seemed to be for those girls. I tried my hardest not to think of such an idea, but was forgetting better than taking some kind of action… or was taking action all along? Did the fact that I was not fighting the sirens’ scheme mean I was going against what Sunset had done to me? After what seemed like ages of worry, my mindset suddenly changed to more comforting thoughts, thoughts which I wouldn’t have found so comforting a few days back. I began to wonder how the next day would pan out with the sirens, and if we would end up doing some sort of activity or another after class. I also thought of the way Sonata walked, Aria huffed and crossed her arms, and Adagio’s constant smirking and seductive tone. They were great, and I was looking forward to seeing them again the next day. Those thoughts are what eventually lulled me to sleep. *** The next day seemed to roll around rather quickly, and even though I was sure I had only gotten a little over a few hours asleep, I was energized and ready for the day ahead. I even managed to arrive at the school early. The sun which was coming up earlier and earlier each day was already shining brightly upon my favorite bench, both its surface and the bright rays warming my body instantly as I took a seat. I contemplated heading into the school to find the girls and perhaps spending even more time with them then I was already planning, but thoughts of the many students which lay inside quickly deterred me. Instead, I decided simply to relax and enjoy such a perfect morning. Letting my eyes fall shut, I listened to the constant chirping of birds in the tree beside me, along with the rustling they made when moving from branch to blooming, bud-covered branch. The gentle breeze was still crisp and cool, but carried the scent of early blooming spring flowers. Not even the distant mumblings of students and the echoes of their footsteps where enough to draw my attention away from such natural beauty. I nearly fell asleep before I was rudely interrupted by the bell, instantly returning my thoughts to seeing the sirens at lunch. I was barely able to concentrate in any of my classes, constantly looking up at the clock and wishing for the time to pass by more quickly, of course, this only made it seem to pass by at an even slower crawl than usual. I constantly caught myself slipping off into daydreams about the girls, and then realizing I had no clue what the teacher was lecturing about after missing so much. I was rather aggravated with myself, especially in harder classes like math, along with the classes where I was given mountains of homework in. I had only the slightest clue how to do any of it. Finally, my heart skipped a beat as the minute hand of the clock ticked to the twelve causing the lunch bell to blare into my ears. I jumped from my seat and rushed to the cafeteria, even more quickly than normal. I skidded to a halt as I noticed Aria standing in the middle of the hall before me. She rolled her eyes causing me to blush, and realizing how awkward I must have looked running towards the cafeteria with an idiotic grin on my face. “Uh… hey, Aria, I was just heading to lunch to see you and the girls.” “How sweet,” she said, unamused, and rested a hand against her hip, “but we’re eating outside today.” “Oh, uh… okay,” I mumbled, not really sure if I was at the liberty to ask if I could join them. “Yeah, Adagio said you can join,” she said in a dull tone. “Sonata even made an extra sandwich for you. Just follow me.” “Oh, nice,” I said with a smile and gave her a nod. She raised her eyebrow and stared at me a moment before turning and motioning for me to follow. Although it was a bit overwhelming at times, I was beginning to appreciate Aria’s stubborn, grouchy attitude. I began to wonder exactly what caused her to develop it. I also began to wonder how she kept up such a nice body. I couldn’t help but stare as she walked; she certainly seemed to flaunt what she had. My eyes moved down to the tight pink leggings she wore, perfectly accentuating her legs and hips as they swayed with her walk. “Ehm,” she muttered turning around and glaring at with fierce violet eyes, a slight smirk upon her soft, light fuchsia colored lips. “If you’re gonna stare, at least make it a bit less obvious.” “Uh…” I muttered, blushing deeply as I scratched the back of my neck. “Sorry.” She sighed as began to walk once more. “Whatever, it’s fine I guess. I do get it a lot…” “Yeah… I bet,” I mumbled, blushing even more deeply as I realized how stupid my attempt at flirting was. She didn’t have to say anything for me to know what she was thinking. The epitome of an “are you serious?” look covered her face. I decided to shut my mouth before I made her too angry. Before long we were outside. The temperature was almost hot. Adagio and Sonata already sat at one of the few picnic tables in the lawn, setting out sandwiches, drinks, and chips. “Hey taco guy,” Sonata said with a grin and waved. Adagio turned and gave me a smile before looking at Aria. “What took you so long?” she asked. Aria seemed to take the question the wrong way. “Uh, I don’t know, maybe it’s his fault, not mine,” she grumbled pointing a finger at me. I raised an eyebrow curiously, not exactly wanting to take the blame. “I didn’t mean-” Adagio attempted to let out, but was quickly interrupted by Aria’s continued response. “Okay, look… we never really told him that we were gonna eat outside, and I didn’t think any of you texted him. We wanted him out here, right? I was waiting to show him where we were and stuff,” she sputtered out in a nervous rage. “Aww, that’s adorable,” Sonata teased, glaring at her friend. “When did you turn into such a softy?” “I’m not a softy, Sonata! I was just doing what Adagio wanted.” Sonata stuck out her tongue in response. “But she never asked you.” “Yeah, but!” “Girls,” Adagio said calmly, raising her hand. “We don’t need your stupidity right now. Thank you, Aria. Now, let’s just forget about it, sit down, and have a nice meal.” They nodded their heads silently in defeat. Aria plopped down beside Adagio with a frown, and Sonata patted the empty space beside her, giving me a soft smile. “I figured it was a good idea to enjoy a nice day like this,” Adagio said as I sat down. “Yeah, it is really nice out,” I said, looking up at the sky, only a few wispy clouds trailing through the deep blue. “Anyways, how were the tacos yesterday?” Adagio said in a rather polite tone. I opened my mouth to speak but before I could, Sonata sprang into action. “Oh, we had so much fun!” she squealed, wrapping her arm around my back and patting my shoulder excitedly. We ate waaay too many tacos, but it was worth it.” “It looks like you two got to know each other a bit better too,” Adagio said with a rather mischievous looking smile. “You could say that,” Sonata said with a wink, pulling me into a hug and rubbing her cheek against my shoulder. I couldn’t help but smile at the attention and extra warmth from her small body. Aria glared at the two of us as Sonata pulled away. “Anyways, let’s eat. These sandwiches aren’t the amazing tacos from last night, but they’re good because I made them.” “Well, it sounds like we missed out on plenty of fun last night,” Adagio said with a wink. Aria sighed immediately after. “You know, just because you and Sonata are so… close all of the sudden doesn’t mean Adagio and I can’t hang out with you too.” I could feel my lips forming a rather prideful smirk. Was she truly that jealous already? My smirk quickly vanished when I realized it was most likely all a part of their plan. It seemed like a random event, but there was an underlying feeling that all of what they were doing was planned. “Well, we don’t have any plans for tonight. Maybe all of us should do something?” Adagio suggested after swallowing a small morsel of her sandwich. “But there’s nothing fun to do in this stupid little town,” Aria huffed, “especially after Twilight Sparkle, her dream team, and their magical friendship destroyed our amulets.” A sudden pang of guilt struck deep into my stomach at the statement. By spending time with the sirens, I was truly betraying my old friends, but was that wrong of me? Perhaps these girls could change. They were no longer villains, just girls who needed a bit of guidance, although I certainly wouldn’t be the best of guides. I was no leader, more of a follower. Were they the ones changing me? “Yeah, yeah, but it’s not like we have to actually go out or anything,” Sonata explained, her hand motioning so quickly that lettuce and tomato from the sandwich grasped between it was flung out onto the ground. “We just went out yesterday, well us, not you two.” She pointed at me and then at herself, “So I think it’s, like, the perfect night to stay in. What do you think? Wanna come see our apartment and stuff?” she asked, turning to me. I was happy to accept such an offer, I was more of a stay indoors and be as lazy as possible type of person anyways. “Sure, sounds fun to me.” “Fine,” Aria sighed in defeat. “I guess that’ll work.” Sonata set down her partially eaten sandwich and flung her arms about excitedly as she attempted to plan out the night. “It’ll be great, we can watch a movie or play a board game, oh, or video games. I dunno, whatever we want!” “Yes, it’s not like we really do have anything better,” Adagio said with an agreeing nod as she watched her friend practically overflow with joy. As I swallowed down the rest of my rather tasty sandwich, picked away at the crispy, perfectly salted chips, and sipped at my soda, I couldn’t help but grow more excited as well. I was still rather curious to see how such foreign beings lived in a world like mine, and wondered how different their lifestyle would be than your average teenage girls’. Along with that, the promise of movies and games seemed like a rather comfortable and easy way to spend my evening. The bell rang more quickly than I had hoped, and it seemed as though it was much quicker than the sirens expected. As a thank you for the food and company, I decided to help with the rather rushed effort to put everything away. I never received any kind of gratitude, but of course, from girls like them, I wasn’t really expecting it. It did seem as though they appreciated the aid though, and for that, I was pleased.