//------------------------------// // Hughes Irritating High School Musical // Story: The Equestrian Edda // by Grey Ghost //------------------------------// Jason sighed as he relaxed, lounging around lazily on Rarity’s throne. About a week had passed since Tirek’s rampage and things had settled down quite nicely. The biggest changes where Megan, who was now around Jason’s age and seemed to have stabilized there, and Twilight’s new tree castle, which was just awesome. “You know, I’m trying to polish the throne, Jason,” Rarity said, giving him an annoyed look as she looked up from her work. “I can see that,” he said as he placed his legs over the side, letting out a fake yawn. “Now you're just being spiteful.” Rarity glared at him, a pout forming on her face. Before they could continue, a stallion wearing a blue uniform trotted in, pulling a cart of books behind him. “Excuse me princess,” he started, giving her a smile, “Where do you want all these books from Princess Celestia?” Twilight didn’t look up from her papers. “The library,” she gestured with her hoof. “Third door on the left.” “Even this one that's glowing and vibrating?” That made Twilight look up, to see that indeed, at the very top, was a vibrating book, flashing purple every so often. She levitated it down, flipping it open. “What is it, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked as the rest of the girls trotted over. Jason sat up on the throne but was otherwise too lazy to investigate. “It looks like a message to Princess Celestia from my friends at Canterlot High!” Twilight exclaimed, a look of shock on her face. “How is that even possible?” Rarity questioned, giving her wings a light buzz. “I have no idea but...” Twilight’s eyes widened, “It looks like they need my help.” Twilight closed the book before gesturing for them to follow her. Jason sighed as he got up, joining in. After a few minutes, Twilight pulled a book off the shelf. “The way Sunset Shimmer described them, I think these new girls sound an awful lot like... the sirens.” Jason groaned, running a hand down his face. “What?” Rarity asked, raising her eyebrow at her husband’s behavior. “I’m just trying to figure out why things from Greek mythology keep appearing in a universe based off Norse myth.” He shook his head, looking at Twilight. “But you continue, I’ll save any more comments for the end.” “Er... thank you,” Twilight said before clearing her throat and beginning the tale. The Sirens had used their voices to cause chaos, feeding on the negative emotions to become stronger. Then, Star Swirl showed up and kicked them into another world. At least, that's what Jason got of of the story. “But Star Swirl must’a sent ‘em there ages ago. How come they’re just surfacin’ now?” Applejack asked once Twilight was done with her tale, frowning a little. “I don't know. But if my hunch is right and it is the sirens who have come to Canterlot High, this spell they've cast is just the beginning. My friends need me. I have to get back to them.” Twilight proclaimed, walking toward a very odd looking mirror. “I hate to burst your bubble, Twilight, but the connection between their world and Equestria will still be totally cut off for a super long time.” Rainbow Dash reminded, hovering in the air. She went to land, only to frown, looking at her talons, deciding not to scratch up the floor. “Okay, first of all, if there was bubble-blowing going on, why wasn't I told about it?!” Pinkie demanded, zipping in between the two, “And secondly, if the connection is totally cut off, how was Sunset Shimmer able to get a message to Twilight?” Twilight gasped, a smile appearing on her face. “Pinkie! You’re a genius!” she shouted before dashing away. Pinkie smirked. “Yeah, I get that a lot,” she said before pulling Dash down so they were muzzle to muzzle, “Now about those bubbles...” she started, giving Dash an intense look before she turned to watch Twilight walk by, the alicorn carrying several strange objects in her magic. “Let me help,” Jason said, shifting into Grey Matter, leaping onto Twilight’s back. The collected ponies, and dragon, watched as the two bickered and argued over what went where until they had constructed a strange machine around the mirror. “...And the interval between the two points is defined as the square root of the sum of the squares of the separation between the points along three spatial dimensions.” Twilight proclaimed to their audience, smiling at them. “Yeah, I don’t think they get it,” Jason said, tapping the Omnitrix and returning to normal. He rubbed his neck, looking back at the mirror, “Think it works?” “Thats what we’re going to test.” Twilight lit her horn up, grabbing the book up in her magic and placed it on the machine. Immediately, magic rose up out of the book and into the machine. They let out a collective ‘aww’ as it roared to life and soon the mirror's glass was replaced with a swirling purple vortex. “Don't suppose we could join you this time around?” Applejack asked, with her and the other girls giving a hopeful smile. Twilight gave them a smile but shook her head, “Better not. It could make things pretty confusing if Canterlot High all of a sudden had two of all of you.” They exchanged glances before nodding in agreement. “But I still get to go, right?” Spike asked, waddling up to Twilight, “There isn't another one of me at Canterlot High. And you never know if you might need your trusty assistant.” Twilight gave him a smile and nod. “Yes!” he smiled, fist pumping. “Well, sounds like fun, count me in,” Jason said, looking at the portal. “I don’t have anything planned.” “I dunno Jason,” Twilight said with a frown, “Are you sure?” “Oh, just let him go, Twilight,” Rarity said, primping her mane. “If anything, it’ll let me get my cleaning done.” She fixed Jason with a glare, which he returned with a smirk. “Well that settles that, then. Shall we?” Jason asked, moving up to the portal, looking over his shoulder to see Twilight and the girls sharing a hug. He couldn't help but smile, shaking his head, “Typical ponies.” After a moment, Twilight separated from the girls and she and Spike raced through the portal. “Well that’s my cue, tell Chrissy what I’m up to Rares,” Jason instructed before moving through the portal himself. Rainbow Dash sighed as she tossed her soccer ball from hand to hand. She paused, turning to Sunset Shimmer. “I’m starting to think she isn’t coming.” As if on cue, Twilight and Spike shot out of the portal, landing a few feet away. “Twilight!” the girls all shouted at once, with Sunset Shimmer jogging over to her. “I’m back...” Twilight said sheepishly, giving them all a smile. She frowned, turning to Sunset Shimmer as the other girl offered a hand to help her up. The two looked at each other rather awkwardly before another person was shot out of the portal, colliding with Twilight. “‘Ow does walkin’ into a portal shoot ya out the otha side?” the new arrival, a young man in green sneakers, rather scuffed up jeans, a jean vest with the sleeves cut off, a black shirt and a green mohawk, said as he got to his feet, brushing himself off. “Oi! The hell’s up with my voice?” “Jason?” Twilight asked as she sat up, blinking a few times. “No ya knob, I’m Hughes,” he said, pointing to himself with his thumb. “And If I’m here, and that damned watch ain’t on my wrist,” he held up his bare right arm, “Then I have to assume it’s in use.” He looked into his shirt, letting out a sigh as he spotted the Omnitrix resting on his chest, “Yup... called it. Ya can’t change me back can ya?” “This unit is experiencing interference from the portal. User will remain in current form until interference is removed,” it chirped. “Lovely,” he said, wearing a very displeased look on his face. “Uh... Twilight,” Rainbow Dash asked as she and the rest of the girls all stared at Hughes, “Who is that?” Twilight sighed, getting to her feet and brushing herself off. “It’s a long story... And I've got some bad news about those new girls.” “Well, you can tell us all about it at Sugarcube Corner!” Pinkie declared with a big grin. “Pinkie’s right, we’re going to want to get comfortable for this,” Twilight said before she and the girls started to walk away, with Sunset trailing behind. “Oh yes, this is just gon’ be lovely,” Hughes muttered to himself as he started to follow them, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “You're telling me,” Jason commented with a laugh, “You’re always the one getting on my ass about everything, now you have to drive.” “Oh stuff it ya wanker,” Hughes retorted with a snort, blocking Jason out as he followed the girls, wearing a rather miserable look on his face. Once the group reached Sugarcube Corner, they gathered around a table, each with a milkshake, while Twilight explained everything about Jason and Hughes. “Oh, I do hate that you had to return at a time of crisis. There's so much catching up to do!” Rarity exclaimed, giving Twilight a smile. “For starters, a certain blue-haired guitar player was just askin' about you,” Applejack added, giving Twilight a smirk. “Flash Sentry was asking about me?!” Twilight asked with a blush, looking off to the side, twirling her hair around her finger. This lasted only a moment before Hughes slapped her upside the head. “Ow! Hughes! What the hay was that for!?” she demanded, rubbing the back of her head. “The hell’s wrong with you?” he asked, crossing his arms, giving her a stern look, “You're like twenty-five and you have a crush on a high school student? Besides, I thought you were terrified of Flash.” “Thats because he’s a stalker!” Twilight countered, glaring at him. “Oh I see, it’s okay because this Flash Sentry plays the guitar while pony Flash just gets labeled as a stalker. Thats totally not shallow, Twilight.” Hughes glared back, much the to shock and confusion of the girls. “Hey! Twilight is not shallow!” Rainbow Dash snapped, coming out of her stupor. “Oi, wasn’t talkin’ to ya bluey,” Hughes said, snorting a bit. “Who are you calling bluey?” she snarled at him, leaning across the table. “You!” he proclaimed, getting in her face. “Have you seen yourself!? You’re blue! Humans don’t come in blue, or pink or yellow or white out white!” “Okay, Ah think everyone should just calm down,” Applejack said, getting between the two and pushing them back into their seats. “Perhaps you could give us just the slightest bit of gossip from your world?” Rarity asked in hopes of getting the conversation back on track. “She's got an official title now!” Spike spoke up from Fluttershy’s lap. He had been turned into a dog, something Hughes didn’t exactly understand. He put a dog treat to his mouth, pretending to play the trumpet, then announced, “The Princess of Friendship!” “Wow,” Sunset said, wearing a genuine smile, “Wow, that's really impressive. Guess you really were Princess Celestia's prized pupil.” “She’s even got her own castle!” “A castle?! You have your own castle?!?” Rarity asked with sudden fervor, grabbing Twilight by the shirt and giving her a vigorous shake. She blinked, remembering herself. “Eh...” she pulled away, grabbing a napkin and patting Twilight’s shirt, “Ooh, uh, lovely.” “Can we get to the point please?” Hughes asked with a sigh, running a hand down his face. “Taking care of evil songstresses should take priority over gossip.” He shot a glare at Rarity, who looked away sheepishly. “Yeah... but first, take a look at this Twilight,” Rainbow said, pulling her phone and starting up a video. Said video was of herself playing guitar, only to gain pony ears and pegasus wings. “Pretty sweet, huh? It happens to all of us when we play.” Twilight studied the video carefully before sitting back in her seat. “Hmm. My crown was returned to Equestria, but some of its magic must have remained here at Canterlot High. Now that we're all back together, we can use that magic on the sirens. Just like when we were able to use it on Sunset Shimmer when she turned into that horrifyingly awful winged monster! No offense.” “None taken,” Sunset said with a sigh, before giving a smile. “Heh. I'm used to it.” “Wait,” Hughes spoke up, looking at her. “You turned into a raging she-demon?” “Um... yes...?” Sunset asked, looking away. “That’s metal as fuck.” Sunset blinked, looking at him a bit strangely. “Uh... thanks...” she said, deciding to take the statement as a compliment. After a few more minutes of discussion, the group got up, heading to a party at the school to deal with the dazzlings. “So, this is high school eh?” Hughes asked as he looked around the auditorium. Various groups stood around, all glaring at each other, with several arguing with each other. “Smells like teen spirit,” he said with a smirk as both Hodgepodge and Jason groaned in the back of his mind. Pinkie suddenly appeared in his face, causing him to jump back a bit. “Your pun is bad and you should feel bad.” “Okay... that one sucked,” he said, holding his hands up. This seemed to please Pinkie, who moved off to devour some cookies. He leaned back on the table, letting out a bored sigh. He frowned at Twilight, who was busy flirting with human Flash. “What a knob,” he muttered, turning his attention to the doors as three girls walked in, one of them having the biggest head of hair Hughes, Jason, or Hodgepodge had ever seen. He stared at it, several questions coming to mind about said hair when Twilight’s voice derailed his train of thought. “There isn't going to be a Battle of the Bands! We're gonna make sure of that! Alright, girls, let's do this! Friendship is Magic!” Twilight declared, standing with the other girls, holding hands as they waited for... something to happen. “Oh for the love of...” Hughes groaned, placing his head in his hands, “Am I the only intelligent one here? I mean really.” He pushed away from the table, moving over toward the confused group when the big haired girl started to speak, riling up the crowd. He paused as a green mist filled the air, which the big haired girl and her two cronies absorbed using their necklaces. "Did nobody else see that?” he asked, though the girls didn’t really respond. “Seriously, am I the only one that saw that?” The girls all turned, hurrying out of the room. “Oh bollocks,” he muttered before following after them. “It doesn't make any sense.” Twilight said as they regrouped on the school's front steps. “I should have been able to create the spark that would help us break their spell. That's how it worked before.” “I think it’s ratha obvious,” Hughes said, looking intently at the ground, resting his chin on his hands, “We have to fight fire with fire.” “Whatcha talkin’ about?” Applejack asked, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. “The last time you lot used your magic was with the tiara, and now it shows up when you play your music. So obviously, we have to beat their music with our music,” Hughes stated before looking at them. “Unless you want to do it like the Greeks and just slay them.” “Let’s not resort to violence, Hughes,” Twilight said quickly, wincing at the horrified looks the rest of the group gave him. “Alright then, battle of the bands it is,” Hughes said with a nod, hopping to his feet. He looked at them, cracking his neck. He paused, looking back to see they still giving him odd looks. “What?” he asked. “Not to say that your idea is bad but... how would just us playing defeat the Dazzlings?” Rarity asked, giving him an unsure look. “It wouldn’t alone, what we need is a musical counterspell!” Twilight said, a smile forming on her face, “And with everyone together for the competition, it’ll be the perfect chance to break their spell!” “Guess the Rainbooms are the band to beat,” Applejack said, giving Twilight a smile. “And I believe you, Twilight,” Rarity started, pointing at the startled purple girl, “just became the Rainbooms' newest member.” The girls all rushed forward to hug Twilight, leaving Sunset by herself, a sad look on her face. “You shouldn’t frown,” Hughes said, getting her attention. “Doesn’t look as pretty as your smile.” “What?” she asked, her frown vanishing, being replaced by a rather surprised look. “I said, your frown ain’t as lovely as your smile,” he repeated, leaning on the handrail. “Oh um... thank you...” she said, looking away as her yellow cheeks tinted a bit red. “No problem, love,” he said with a smile, before frowning again as Pinkie shouted something about being ‘besties’ and a slumber party at her place. “Oh bollocks...” Meanwhile... Chrysalis sighed as she boredly listened to the noble before her blather on about something. She didn’t even remember what he wanted, her mind too busy wandering. Mostly over how much things had changed for her race. No longer did they have to hide, scraping together whatever love they could manage to steal. Now they were, largely, accepted into pony society. There was very little need for love harvesting when ponies gave it freely, which led to the biggest of her worries. With less of a need to actively gather love, many of her harvesters had asked to... leave. Thier slackened duties had given them an abundance of free time and many had taken the opportunity to grow as individuals and become more independent. Such as it was, many of them wanted to leave the hive and see the world. She sighed, leaning back on her throne, and closed her eyes. “Are you paying attention, your majesty?” the noble asked, causing her to sit up with a blink. “I apologise,” she said with another sigh, looking at the speaker, a blue unicorn with rather fancy clothes. “My thoughts have been wandering.” She cleared her throat, getting up. “Why don’t you return tomorrow? I should be able to devote my full attention to your petition then.” The unicorn sighed, but nodded. “As you wish your Majesty.” He gave a polite bow before trotting out of the room. Chrysalis closed her eyes, passing orders onto her drones, telling them to let the remaining petitioners know that court was over for the day. “How does Celestia do it?” she asked with a sigh, collapsing back into her throne. “With a lot of patience,” the aforementioned alicorn spoke up, trotting into the room with a smile. “Oh joy, you’re here,” Chrysalis said, rolling her eyes. “Whaddaya want, Celestia?” “I was informed that you were holding court today since Twilight and Jason decided to go on an adventure,” Celestia replied, not seeming to mind Chrysalis’s abrasive attitude. “Well, I suppose you're better to talk to than the nobles...” Chrysalis said, getting off her throne, stretching out. “Come on, we can talk in my chambers,” she said, leading Celestia out of the throne room. “Chrysalis, is something the matter?” Celestia asked, giving Chrysalis a motherly look. “Ugh... this is what I don’t nee-” She paused, tapping her chin. Perhaps this once, she could ask for advice. “Actually there is. Ever since changelings were accepted into Equestria, we haven’t needed as many harvesters to gather love, and many of them... want to leave the hive.” She turned, looking Celestia in the eyes. “I... don’t know what to do...” She let out a groan, her ears drooping. “You’re suffering a condition most mothers suffer from when their children leave home,” Celestia said, never losing her smile. “I believe it’s called ‘empty nest’ syndrome.” “Are you making fun of me?” Chrysalis growled, narrowing her eyes. “Of course not,” Celestia said with a dismissive shake of her head, “I think you should let them go.” She raised her hoof to silence Chrysalis. “You didn’t let me finish. Let some of them go out and every few months have them come back and let another group go out. I do something similar with my royal guard during peacetime, to keep them from burning out on their shifts.” Chrysalis blinked, tapping her muzzle in thought. “You know, that does sound like a great idea.” She smiled. “Looks like you're not useless after all.” “I’m going to let that one slide,” Celestia muttered, giving the changeling empress an unamused look. She raised an eyebrow as Chrysalis paused, looking a little... queasy. “We’ll have to cut this short,” Chrysalis said quickly, shuddering a little. “I apologize. You can talk to Pupa and reschedule,” she said, bolting into a room a little further down the hallway. Celestia moved to follow, only for the changelings guarding the door to bar her entrance with a glare. “Strange...” Celestia muttered to herself, wondering what that was all about. “Heading to bed?” Hughes asked from the couch, watching as Sunset Shimmer walked out of the kitchen. “Oh I didn’t realize you were up,” she said, looking at him with a bit of a frown. “We didn’t wake you did we?” “Nah, the couch did.” He shook his head, shifting around again, trying to get comfy. “I don’t know why you insisted on sleeping on the couch,” she said as she walked closer, taking a seat on the couch’s arm. “Gee, maybe ‘cause a young bloke like me sleepin’ in a room with several young girls totally doesn’t look bad at all,” he countered, scowling a little. “Bloody ‘ell, this place is the worst...” “It’s not that bad,” Sunset said, shaking her head, “You know, none of us really know that much about you.” “Not much to know, I’m some jerk’s alternate personality and I’m kinda a dick,” Hughes said with a shrug. “Though... we’ve all been a bit... wired since that thing with Tirek.” “Thing?” Sunset asked, her curiosity piqued. “Yeah, he stole our life force and we all died,” he explained. “Obviously we all got better but... Jason’s acting like a right bastard, I’m even more of an asshole, and Hodgepodge... no he’s about the same.” Hughes said, stroking his chin. “I can’t imagine what it's like having to live in the same body with two other people.” Sunset shuddered a little. “What is it like?” “Eh it's not so bad,” he said with a shrug. “Jason’s usually in charge, Hodgepodge controls a specific form as do I, I just got stuck with the human form.” He looked at Sunset for a moment. “You uh... wanna... go out after all this?” “You're asking me on a date?” Sunset asked, not really sure how to react. “Weren’t you just yelling at Twilight for having a crush on Flash?” “I got mad at her for having a crush on someone that’s several years younger than her, who's not even twenty,” Hughes clarified, letting out a yawn. “You just think on it alright? We both need the sleep. Night Sunny.” “Night Hughes,” Sunset said, resuming her walk back up to Pinkie’s bedroom, her face flush from the sudden nickname. “You know,” Hodgepodge said as Hughes moved backstage with the girls, “I just realized something.” “That this Celestia and Luna have freakishly long legs?” Hughes asked as he leaned on the wall, crossing his arms. “Well yes, that is freaky... stop getting me off topic!” Hodgepodge snorted. “I meant, just look at those Dazzlings! They’re a glam rock band. Especially Adagio, she looks like something the eighties hacked up during its death throes.” “Your point?” “My point is, you have to beat their glam rock pop whatever with grunge, or at the very least punk rock.” “Hmm... ya got a point,” Hughes said, pushing away from the wall. He grabbed a spare guitar before moving onstage. “Change of plans,” he said, giving the guitar a test strum, “I’m taking over as lead.” “What? Who said?” Dash asked, giving him a bit of a glare. “I did, ya just have to trust me,” he said, smirking a bit. “Just follow my lead,” he told Pinkie, who started belting out some drum beats, and he joined in himself a few moments later. “Breakin' rocks in the hot sun,” he sang into the mic, calling up an old favorite. They played through the song rather beautifully, with the girls somehow knowing how to play the song despite never having practiced or even heard it before. The only thing that really went wrong were the acts of sabotage: someone swung Rarity around like a rag doll via magnets and someone chased Fluttershy around the stage with a stage light. Of course, Hughes was the only one to even recognize it as sabotage, with the girls just arguing with each other. “Enough!” he shouted, getting their attention, “We have enough to deal with as it is, we don’t need to go blaming each other over what was obviously the other bands trying to sabotage us!” He gave a sigh, shaking his head, ‘Bunch of idiots...” he grumbled, crossing his arms. After they calmed down and got some more practice in, they utterly crushed a solo cellist with a rendition of “Rock Me Amadeus.” Now they were in the semifinals against human Trixie and her band, the Illusions. “This is it!” Sunset said with a rather big smile, “Last round and you’re in the finals!” She turned to Twilight, “Unless you think the counterspell is ready to be played now.” Twilight gave a quick head shake, gulping. “Don't worry, Twilight,” Applejack said with a reassuring grin. “Finals aren’t until tonight. We'll get in a little more practice before we're supposed to hit the stage. We won't let you down!” The rest of the group, including Hughes, all gave their own assurances. “Um, I was just wondering...” Fluttershy spoke up, “We haven't played any of my songs yet, and...” “Ya know what,” Hughes spoke up just as Dash opened her mouth, “You're right Flutters, I already have the song for this round picked out, but we’ll play your song in the finals, alright love?” “Oh, that would be nice,” she said with a smile before Trixie’s band finished their song and made their way off stage. “Hmph,” Trixie snorted, giving them the stinkeye. “You’re never gonna top that performance, ‘Rain-goons’. You shouldn’t be allowed to when you have such a big advantage over the rest of us.” “Oh blow it out your arse,” Hughes said, pushing past her and into position on stage. The others joined in not too much later and on Pinkie’s cue they started to play. Only instead of what Hughes had planned, Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here,” out came that ego trip that Dash called “Awesome As I Wanna Be.” Hughes just glared at her throughout the bit, at least until Sunset flew across the stage, tackling Dash and cutting the song short. Sunset got up, biting her lower lip, noting every eye was on her. “Now that’s the bad girl we love to hate!” Flash shouted, causing the gather students to jeer, hurling their own insults at Sunset, who just stood there like a lost puppy. “Oi!” Hughes shouted back, moving out into the spotlight, “You shut your damn mouth mate, before I come down there an’ kick your teeth in!” He flipped them off before grabbing Sunset’s hand and pulling her off stage. “I-It wasn’t like that...” Sunset said, looking at the floor, rubbing her arm. “What was that?!” Dash demanded, glaring at her. “You were showing them your magic. I-I didn't know what else to do,” Sunset explained, unable to meet her friends gaze. “OK, look,” Hughes cut in, putting his hand on Sunset’s shoulder, “That last bit was a mess ok? Lets not play the blame game. Sunset could have handled it better and Dash could have stuck with the damn song I picked,” Hughes cast her a glare before letting it go. “We can still do this, but we can’t just fall apart, right?” “Good show, ‘Rain-brooms’,” Trixie said, walking over. “That wasn’t even clever,” Hughes shot at her, causing her to blink before continuing on her tirade. “I uh...especially liked the part where Sunset Shimmer, in a fit of jealous rage, knocked out Rainbow Dash mid-guitar solo!” “It wasn't a fit of jealous rage!” Sunset nearly screamed, causing Trixie to flinch back. “Oh hey,” Hughes coughed, pointing behind the two. “The almighty tallest have picked out the winners!” Celestia and Luna were indeed on the other side of the stage, going over their notes... until the Dazzlings came out and sang them a little song. “Oh, fuck me...” he muttered to himself, running a hand down his face. The two freakishly tall humans walked out onto the stage with Celestia clearing her throat, “The band that will be joining the Dazzlings in tonight's finals... The Rainbooms!” “Anyone not see that coming?” Hughes asked, looking at the others, who were rather shocked that they had won. “It’s... it’s like I'm in a show for pre-teens...” he grumbled to himself as they made their way off stage through a booing crowd. “How did we end up ere’ again?” Hughes asked as he lounged on the floor of the basement, listening to the girls argue. They had been at it for the past few hours and it was getting on his damn nerves. “You know what, fuck this,” he said, moving to sit up when Sunset broke into the argument, managing to calm everything down. “About damn time.” He jumped to his feet and brushed himself off. “I mean really, were all of you too stupid to realize that they were trying to play us?” “Hey!” Dash snorted, pointing at him, “It’s not like you tried to help at all!” “I thought it best to let you all work it out,” he said with a shrug before pulling out Laevateinn, “Now how's about we bust the door open and lay the musical smack down on those posers?” The girls let out a collective cheer but before the door opened, with Spike padding in. “Every single time...” Hughes muttered, putting the sword away as he moved out of the basement. “I’ll meet up with you girls in a few minutes, I gotta go get me some new duds.” He ran off before they could stop him, not about to let himself be put into any of this Rarity’s strange pop monstrosities. ** five minutes later ** “OK... did not expect to see that...” Hughes stared up into the sky, watching as three multi-colored ghost fish flew around the stage, firing red sound waves at Twilight and the girls. “Did we step into the Powerpuff Girls?” Jason asked, disbelief in his voice. “This is coming from the guy who turned into Mewtwo to help a pretty purple pony princess fight the Shao Kahn of centaurs,” Hodgepodge countered, snorting in amusement. “Sunset Shimmer!” Twilight’s voice cut in, reminding the three of why they were there, “We need you!” Hughes ran up to the band, just in time to see Sunset toss aside her jacket. “Hey girls,” he said, giving them a tired smile, catching his breath, “Sorry I took so long... I had to... know what, doesn’t matter.” He nodded to the DJ in the strange car-thing. “I think it’s time to show these harpies who’s the better band.” He smiled at Sunset, grabbing a discarded mic as the sound of trumpets started to pour from the speakers. He picked up lead vocals, the girls joining in, all them getting into the beat. Hughes blinked a few times as a strange tingling filled his body. His ears moved to the top of his head, shifting into pony ears. Hodgepodge’s horns and wings sprouted from him, causing him to shiver. Sunset had gone through a similar transformation, having just gained pony ears and longer hair. The eight of them rose up in the air, firing off a rainbow into the sky. Said rainbow condensed into a ball before morphing into a ghostly alicorn. It reared up onto its hind legs, firing off a blast of magic that destroyed the ghost fish and removed any remaining traces of the Dazzlings’ magic. Hughes staggered a bit as the song came to an end, the world reverting back to normal as the band’s magic subsided. He steadied himself in time to witness the Dazzlings, once again as humans, sing badly off key and get run off stage. The girls moved to the stage, with Hughes stopping Sunset. “You okay, Hughes?” she asked, looking up into his eyes, making him gulp a little. “Yeah,” he said with a nod, “uh....That song... was... for you ya know...” he looked away, a blush on his face. “What? You love me?” she asked, a teasing hint to her voice. “No,” he said firmly before looking into her eyes, “At least not yet. It’s more of a... deep attraction. Not saying it won’t turn into love but it ain’t there yet. Anyway... about that date.” Sunset just smiled, reaching over and taking his hand. “You know what? I’d love to.” The next morning Hughes and the girls had gathered at the portal, saying their goodbyes. “Can’t wait to get out of this freaky place,” Hughes muttered, putting his hands in his pockets. He smiled tiredly as Twilight and Spike moved through the portal. “Well... I suppose I’ll see ya in a few days,” he said to Sunset, the two of them sharing a smile. He stepped toward the portal, stopping just before going through. “You girls hear that?” he asked, turning back toward the school. “I don’t hear anything,” AJ said with a shrug. “No, I hear somethin’,” Hughes insisted, moving away from the group. “I’ll be back in a few, don’t wait up!” he called back. As he moved closer to the sound, it become clearer – a pair of voices shouting and a third sobbing loudly. “This is your fault you waste of scales!” Adagio shouted, getting into Sonata’s face, the poor blue siren stumbling back into Aria. “You’re always dragging us down!” Aria berated, pushing Sonata to the ground. “You're such an idiot! We’ve lost our magic and it’s all your fault!” “I-I’m sorry!” Sonata wailed, curling up, unable to stop her tears as her former ‘friends’ turned on her. “Come on, Aria,” Adagio said, sneering at the sobbing siren. “We have better things to do than waste our time with this garbage.” The two gave her one last glare before stalking off, leaving Sonata to weep. “Hey,” Hughes said, kneeling down in front of Sonata. “Looks like you need a place to stay.” He smiled at her, holding his hand out, “I think I can hook you up.” She looked at his hand before looking up at him, gave a shaky smile, and took his hand. He held her up, nodding his head, “Come on, let’s go home.” “Any idea what could be taking him so long?” Rarity asked Twilight, eyeing the portal warily. “No,” Twilight said, shaking her head, “He was right behind me, he should be here.” On cue, the portal shimmered and Jason stumbled out, shaking his head. “Jason!” Rarity said, trotting over, pulling him into a hug, “OH! I missed you ever so much!” She nuzzled his face, closing her eyes. “I missed you too Rares,” Jason said, hugging her back. “Jason,” Twilight cut in, her voice stern. “Why is there a siren here?” she asked, causing the couple to turn back toward the portal. Floating there was Sonata, back in her true form, looking rather lost. Jason just smiled, turning back toward the alicorn. “I am so glad you asked. I invited her.” His only reply was a chorus of, “You what!?”