Hours passed uneventfully in the small cell. Sonata played cards with Rubyshine and the blue woman. Aria just sat, frowning and trying to cross her arms, regularly complaining about her empty stomach. The old woman kept staring at the wall, coughing once in a while.
As for Adagio, she waited for the jailer to return, chatting with the other prisoners, watching the card game, or peeking out the window. The crowd that had been gathered outside had now dispersed; fewer and fewer people could be seen in the streets as the sky darkened.
From the corner of her eyes, she occasionally spotted Aria and Sonata holding a hand to their neck, as if still wearing their pendants. Adagio’s own pendant was hidden under her dress, against her abdomen, withheld by her belt. It was too far from its original position to be effective, but at least she could retrieve it if necessary.
She didn’t want to spend any more time than necessary in this unpleasant place. She certainly wasn’t going to wait until the trial. Now that the streets were becoming empty, they had a chance to escape without being seen by someone who knew they were accused of witchcraft. If they could leave the town, then they’d be safe. Probably.
As the darkness shrouded the cell, the players stopped their game, unable to distinguish the cards. Sonata moved to sit next to Adagio. At dusk, a bell rang throughout the town, signaling the beginning of the curfew.
“We should go to bed now,” Rubyshine said.
Sonata looked around. “What bed?”
“We sleep on the ground.”
Sonata moaned. ”But it’s hard and cold!”
“We don’t have any other option right now,” Adagio said. She didn’t like the idea, being used to a certain level of comfort, but there was no way to escape at that moment.
Sonata leaned on Adagio and asked, in a whisper loud enough for everyone to hear, “Adagio, can I sleep on you?”
Adagio blinked. She looked at Sonata’s face to see if she was joking, but the darkness made it hard to discern anything. After a few seconds she asked, “Excuse me?”
“I want to use you as a pillow.”
Adagio pushed her away. “No, you cannot.”
Sonata turned towards the other siren. “Aria?”
“Don’t even ask.”
Adagio ignored Sonata’s additional moans as her attention was caught elsewhere. She heard footsteps approaching, and the hallway brightened. The jailer appeared behind the door, holding a lantern that illuminated the cell with a yellow glow. He glanced around the room and counted the prisoners under his breath.
In a chorus of clanks, Aria dashed next to Adagio and grabbed her dress; startled, Adagio recoiled a few inches, thinking for a moment that she was being attacked, before Aria whispered, “Come on, do it!”
Adagio knew what Aria was talking about, but a part of her thought that breaking out in the middle of the night was a bad idea, due to all the criminals roaming at those hours, and the town’s gates being closed.
But Aria was shivering, and the distress pervading her face made Adagio’s heart pinch. She turned her head towards the third siren. Sonata was staring at her with pleading eyes, and maybe it was due to the lighting, but she looked paler than usual.
Adagio made her decision. She stood up, pushing Aria away, and reached for the pendant inside her dress. Holding it next to the base of her neck, she addressed the jailer as he was about to leave.
“Excuse me, sir. Would you like to hear a… lullaby?”
The guard looked at her with curiosity, and she sang. Note after note flowed from her throat, imbued with power from her jewel, weaving a beautiful melody.
Birds should not be confined
Let them fly with the wind
Come here and listen to me
Open the door; set us free
Soon a green shine flashed in his eyes, and his gaze became empty. Adagio kept singing while a malicious smile crept across her face. Another pathetic creature had fallen under her spell.
Once the song was over, the jailer spoke up. “I’ll gladly let you go, beautiful lady. I don’t think you should be here. But I can’t release your companions.”
Sonata rushed to the door. “Why not?”
Adagio clutched the jewel in her hand. She knew why. That was due to the limitation of her power. Because she had been the only one to sing, the jailer only fell under her charm, and was only willing to do favors for her.
If her voice had been more powerful, she would have been able to make him do anything, and he wouldn’t have thought twice before releasing everyone. Nostalgic memories of Equestria rushed to her mind, from a time when she could gain total control over nearly every pony who had heard her voice…
She brushed the thoughts aside, having important matters to attend to. Even with a weak voice, she still had the option to manipulate the jailer with mere words.
Faking an innocent smile, she said, “I need them to escort me through the night. You wouldn’t want me to get assaulted by criminals, would you?”
He scratched his head. “Well…”
“If releasing them is such a problem, don’t worry; they will come back here once I’ve reached my home.”
“What!? I don’t w–”
Adagio shoved her elbow into Sonata’s side, cutting her speech.
The jailer sighed and reached for his keys. The two sirens stepped aside. All prisoners stayed silent; only the metallic sound of the opening lock resonated in the cell. He entered, walked to Aria, and placed the lantern on the floor. Grabbing her wrist, he proceeded to remove her irons.
As soon as she was unbound, she leaped to her feet and hurried to the door, muttering something that Adagio didn’t discern, but judging by the frown that hadn’t left Aria’s face, it was probably not pleasant. She could have at least pretended to be grateful. Aria had never understood the necessity to feign cordialness.
The sirens and the jailer left the cell. As he locked the door, Sonata waved goodbye to her former cellmates.
“Good riddance,” the woman replied.
The sirens went back to the room where their possessions were stored. The jailer returned the key of the inn room to Adagio; she attached it to her belt, even though she wasn’t planning to use it again.
“Wait!” Sonata exclaimed as he closed the chest. “What about our pendants?”
He shook his head. “Since you two are going to come back, I have no reason to give those jewels back. I’d rather keep them as insurance.”
Aria growled and clenched her fists and teeth. Adagio feared she was about to do something reckless again. She had to act quickly.
“Can you at least let them look at the jewels for a few seconds? Just to make sure they haven’t been damaged.”
The jailer complied and handed Aria and Sonata one jewel each. They couldn’t tell them apart, but it didn’t matter. After exchanging wicked smiles, the three sirens sang. Soon the jailer changed his mind, and with his agreement, the girls left the jail with their possessions.
The last lights of the day had faded away, and the moon was hidden by the walls of the nearby houses, turning the streets into a black mass scattered with the faint yellow glows of lamps and candles behind some windows, and the occasional wandering lantern of the watchmen.
Adagio cautiously advanced through the darkness, her companions tailing after her. The sirens’ footsteps and murmurs were the only sounds audible in the eerie silence of the night.
“Do you know how to go back to the inn?” Sonata whispered.
Adagio sighed. “We’re not returning to the inn; the front door should be locked by now. We have to leave the town. We won’t be safe as long as we stay here.”
“All our stuff is in the inn room,” Aria protested.
Adagio didn’t like having to explain everything, especially in such a situation, but her comrades’ inability to figure out things by themselves left her no choice.
“People know we’re not from this town. When they notice we’ve escaped, the inn is the first place they’ll search. In fact, the soldiers may have already gone there and confiscated our belongings.”
Sonata grabbed Adagio’s arm. “But, all my toys…”
“We’ll replace them. Now, be quiet and follow me.”
Adagio’s plan was to find one of the town’s gates and convince the guards to open it. On the way, they had to avoid the patrolling watchmen, as the girls would be brought back to the jail if they were found outside during curfew hours. Of course, they could simply charm the watchmen, but it seemed safer not to get caught.
They also had to avoid thieves and assassins. Not carrying a source of light had the advantage of making the sirens invisible, hidden in the veil of the night. Hopefully, this would let them stay away from trouble. Of course, it also had an obvious disadvantage.
“Do you have any idea where you’re going?” Aria asked.
Though she wouldn’t admit it, Adagio was lost. The darkness made all the streets look the same, when she could see them at all. It didn’t help that she was unfamiliar with the town, having only arrived there a little more than a day ago. Her only hope was to advance in a single direction until they find the town’s walls, then walk along it until they reach a gate.
“Of course I do.”
They meandered for a while, evading patrols twice. As time passed and she couldn’t tell if they had made any significant progress, Adagio found herself sweating increasingly despite the coolness of the air. She tried her best to keep her composure; after all, the other sirens were relying on her.
Finally, Adagio let out a sigh of relief as they arrived in front of a gate. Two armed guards were keeping it, one posted on each side of the massive wooden door. The sirens stepped forward in the light of their lanterns.
“Who goes there?” a guard asked.
Adagio smiled and bowed slightly. “Good evening, sirs. My companions and I regrettably lost track of the time and missed the bell. Could you please open the door for us?”
Behind her, she could hear Aria whisper, “Why don’t we just sing?”
Adagio wanted to avoid attracting attention, but soon found she had no choice as the other guard said, “Hey, aren’t you witches?”
Adagio sweated again. “Not at all,” she said, her voice sounding less confident. “Let me explain. With a song.”
The sirens’ beautiful singing voices resonated through the night, though they tried to keep the volume low. In the lyrics, Adagio made sure to specify that they were ordinary girls and not witches.
Once the song was over, the first guard said, “I’d love to help you, but I can’t open the door. Don’t have the keys.”
Adagio froze and blinked. “You don’t?”
“No, the sergeant keeps them. We just guard the door.”
Adagio clenched her fists as her mind raced to find something to say or do. “We need a place to spend the night. Could you help us?”
The guards looked at each other hesitantly, then the second one said, “Normally, since you’re out during curfew, I should bring you to the jail,” – Aria groaned – “but, well, I guess I can make an exception for you and lodge you for the night.” Adagio grinned. “Come with me.”
As they walked away, the other guard spoke up. “Hey, are you just going to let me guard the gate alone?”
“Just give me a minute. I’ll be back soon.”
The sirens followed the guard, who introduced himself on the way as Midnight Storm, to his home, a wooden house located a couple blocks away from the gate, where he lived alone. After unlocking the door and leading them inside, he used the flame of his lantern to light an oil lamp. He left to resume his duty, and Adagio locked the door behind him. The sirens found themselves alone in a dark room, gathered around the lamp.
“At least we have a place to stay tonight,” Adagio said, looking around the narrow room. The lamp rested on a table placed against the wall. The only other furniture visible was a bench under the table, a large cupboard, and a stool in the back, next to an open hearth with glowing embers. A staircase led above, presumably to the bedroom.
Adagio held the lamp and climbed the stairs, creaking the wood with each step. The room upstairs contained a large bed with a wooden chest at its foot, and a stool that may have served as a nightstand, on which Adagio put the lamp.
Once Aria and Sonata had joined her, Adagio spoke up. “We’ll leave the town tomorrow morning. We’ll wait until mass, when the streets are mostly empty. That way we’ll have less chance of being recognized. Then we’ll keep travelling during the next days just in case. Maybe leave the country…”
“That was an awful plan,” Aria spat, not trying to hide the anger in her voice. Sitting on the bed with her arm crossed, she glared at Adagio.
Adagio felt the heat rise in her face. She remembered their conversation in the cell earlier. Apparently, Aria had never changed her mind, simply waiting for the right time to resume the argument.
“All right, speak up. Are you still blaming me for what happened? Do you think it’s my fault if we have the town after us?”
“Of course it’s your fault. You wanted to come here. A town full of crazy people who see witches everywhere. Just so we could discover that there isn’t any magic here.”
Adagio clenched her fists and raised her voice. “I’m trying to find a way out of this world!”
“It’s been centuries!” Aria jumped to her feet, her voice shaking slightly. “We’ve crossed half of the world following all kinds of rumors and it has never led us anywhere. After all the times we’ve tried and failed, how come you haven’t given up yet? There is no Equestrian magic in this world. This should be clear by now.”
Aria took a deep breath. Adagio stayed silent, looking at her impassibly. Sonata remained aside, biting her fingers while throwing glances back and forth at them.
Aria continued, “And even if we did find Equestrian magic here, it would probably be just pathetic banished creatures like us, and not a way back home. We’ve been wasting our time, all these years.” She added, slowly, “We wouldn’t even be stuck in this horrible world if it weren’t for you.”
Adagio rushed forward and grabbed Aria by the top of her dress, bringing their faces inches from each other. “I never forced you to follow me. If you didn’t want to take part in the plan, you should have just swum back to your reef.”
As Aria struggled, Adagio eventually released her grip. She put her hands on her hips, and with a softer voice, she added, “And by the way, ever since we’ve been in this world, I’ve never seen you come up with a more productive idea. You don’t care about anything here, and you don’t think we can go back to Equestria. What would you have us do, then? Stay in bed until we starve to death?”
Aria crossed her arms again and looked away, grinding her teeth. A few seconds of silence passed, comforting Adagio in her convictions. Part of her felt it was time to stop the conversation, but her anger clouded her reason, and she continued.
“If you disagree with my decisions so much, why are you even sticking with me? You could have parted ways long ago. Just leave right now, so I won’t have to see your sullen face again.”
Sonata gasped, causing Aria to look at her before facing Adagio again.
“You wanted to scold Sonata.”
Adagio immediately turned toward the third siren, her anger shifting targets. “Yes. You.”
Sonata became paler and took a few steps backwards as Adagio approached, until her back hit a wall.
“What did you have in mind, telling people we were sirens?”
“But, we are!” Sonata replied, her voice trembling and uncertain.
“No one is supposed to know. Is that so hard to understand? Are you trying to get us in trouble?”
Sonata shrank and hid her head behind her arms, whimpering.
“Think before you speak!” Adagio spat. She considered going further, but finally her reason emerged, and her anger soothed down.
Aria was standing in front of the now opened wooden chest, which apparently didn’t have a lock, and was untying her belt. Adagio drew near and peeked inside. It predictably contained clothes from Midnight Storm, but nothing that seemed useful to them.
Aria removed her dress, then placed it and her belt in the chest, keeping only her undertunic on. She untied her hair, removed her shoes, and without a word or a glance to her companions, lay in the bed, her back turned to them.
Adagio briefly wondered if she had gone too far, before turning her attention back to the chest.
“We’ll have an easier time going unrecognized if we cover our hair and wear different clothes,” she said, mostly to herself. “But it doesn’t look like our host can help us.”
“We all have hooded capes in the inn room,” Sonata timidly said.
“I know, but we can’t go back there. We’ll have to do without.”
Adagio decided there was nothing left to do for the day. She and Sonata undressed like Aria had done, and they went to bed. Adagio lain in the center and told Sonata to blow off the lamp.
Sonata perked up as she picked up the lamp, as if she was about to do something particularly exciting. She held the flame next to her mouth, and in a puff, the room went dark.
* * * * * *
The ring of the day bell resonated in the room, waking Adagio up. She partially opened her eyes. The faint light of dawn filtered through the shutters. Though it was still dark, Adagio was able to distinguish shapes.
The first thing she noticed was that Sonata wasn’t in the bed. Aria, on the other hand, was still there, unmoving, her back turned to Adagio, and a hand around her pendant.
Adagio got up and cautiously went down the stairs. On the ground floor, she opened the shutters, letting more light penetrate. Then she noticed something was very wrong.
The door was ajar, and Sonata was nowhere to be found.