Pacing the polished floor of the gymnasium, you again contemplate going home, but not before catching Adagio's eye. She looks over and the two of you lock eyes for a moment before she begins to make her way toward you. You observe her as she approaches, a much different sight than from that morning on the sidewalk. Comparing her from months ago to now, you can tell that she isn't completely rid of her "bad-girl" appearance, what with the way she still sways her hips slightly as she walks. Her charm and talent for visual appeal, though much more modest now, is still mesmerizing all the same.
"Hey, you." She smiles warmly, though her eyes glimmer a little with concern.
"H-hey..." You reply as you tentatively glance back toward the foyer, but decide to stay after mustering up a little courage. "Enjoying the party?"
"Oh, it's alright." She laughs nervously, "You'd think that after a millennia of loving big crowds, I'd be used to them. Truth is, I'm a little terrified of it. I suppose things really have changed..."
"Did you celebrate holidays before this year?" You ask, but you figure you already know the answer.
"No..." She replies, thinking back. "Sona wanted to have Christmas last year, but Aria and I just weren't interested." She looks over at Sonata, who is thoroughly enjoying herself and having a very enthusiastic conversation with Pinkie Pie. "And, well... We were a lot different..." She averts her eyes a little, staring at nothing in particular. "We had Thanksgiving last month. It was our first real holiday in this world. Just the three of us and Sunset..." She smiles at her friends. "What about you? Did you have holidays where you're fr-" She stops short, suddenly wondering if you'd want to answer any questions about Earth to her.
"Yes," You reply, to her shock. "but not for the past few years."
"W-what happened?" She asks tentatively.
You deliberate for a few seconds before answering. "The war..." You figure this word probably means nothing to most people in this peaceful world, but Adagio's eyes widen knowingly after not hearing it for many, many years. "I'm sorry..." You continue, "I don't really like to talk about it..."
"It's alright." She smiles reassuringly. "I understand." Looking over at her friends, she ponders for a moment before opening her mouth again. "You want to join us?" She asks, gesturing toward the rest of the group.
"I, uh..." You freeze, still unsure about the idea of being around the three of them all at once.
"Anon..." Her smile fades a little, "I know there's nothing we can do to erase what we did, but..." She looks to the floor for a moment before meeting your eyes again, apprehensively placing a hand to your arm. "I want you to know that I'll do anything to fix this. Will you give me that chance?"
You close your eyes for a moment, letting out an inaudible sigh.
She's making such an effort. I can't just say 'no'...
"Yeah..." You whisper, nodding your head a little.
Her face brightens up at this and she wraps her arms around you in a tight hug. "Thank you..." She replies, "Now, come on..." She pulls back, offering a hand to you. You chuckle nervously at this, hesitating slightly as you take her hand. "C'mere, you." She grins slyly, giving your hand a slight tug and you both start to walk towards the rest of the group.
"Dagie..." You begin, "There's something I've been wanting to ask you..."
"What is it?" She smiles, cocking her head at you a little.
You think back to the morning after they'd had their way with you. "...Why did you let me go after that night?"
"Oh..." She pauses as the question catches her off-guard. "Well, I knew where you lived, at the time at least. We were going to pay you a visit the next night, but..." She ponders in deep thought for a moment. "I came over a few weeks later, but you were gone..." She frowns, squeezing your hand. "I wanted to apologize. I'm just glad I was able to, now." She smiles, "Sunset told me about how good of a friend you've been to her, especially after what happened with the Fall Formal."
"Oh, I was never actually there." You reply, "Before today, all I heard was what the other students know. She was nice, seemed like someone who was trying to put a bad history behind them." You chuckle a little, "A lot like you, in fact."
As if to end the subject on a fitting note, the two of you are interrupted by the sound of laughter coming from above. You look up to see Pinkie floating overhead with dozens of balloons tied around her waist. "Oh no, Pinkie!" Sonata exclaims worriedly, "How will you get down!?"
"It's okay, Sona! Don't you fret!" The pink-haired girl shouts, pulling a pointed hairpin out of her curls and starts popping the balloons one by one. "I'm always prepared!"
"What in tarnation are ya doin' up there in the first place, Pinkie Pie?" Applejack protests.
"You'll see!" She teases.
Ignoring the rather bubbly girl above you, you turn your attention to Aria and Sonata. "How are they doing?" You ask Adagio, gesturing toward them.
"Aria's a lot better. I can't thank you enough for what you did earlier. It's really been eating at her for a long time; and Sonata, well..." She smiles affectionately at the blue-haired girl, "It'd take the end of the world to get her spirits down. Knowing her, she's probably forgotten about the whole thing by now." She laughs.
Suddenly you notice Sunset looking over at you worriedly, gesturing to the sound of balloons popping over your head. You both look up to see Pinkie dangling something green above you. "I finally did it!" She shouts, eliciting a cascade of face-palms from her friends. You stare curiously at the leafy object hovering overhead until you finally realize what it is. It's...
"Mistletoe..." Adagio states absent-mindedly before suddenly understanding what this means and her eyes widen nervously. Sunset clearly hadn't told the other girls about the incident to spare Adagio the humiliation.
"I don't think that's how it works, Pinkie Pie..." Rainbow Dash points out. "Doesn't it have to be hanging in a tree or something?"
"Don't jinx it!" Pinkie retorts playfully, hanging upside-down as she suspends the leafy sphere by a string.
"Y'all know what this means, right?" Applejack grins craftily.
"Does it mean that they have to... you know...?" Fluttershy squeaks quietly, pursing her lips in demonstration. The others nod in unison. "Uhm... Oh..."
Sunset stands frozen in place, wondering how in the world she is going to get the two of you out of this situation. You feel Adagio fretting with your sleeve and you turn back to her, noticing that she's staring straight into your eyes with a slight smirk, almost as if asking the obvious question. You hesitate, suddenly realizing that this could go a plethora of different ways, but then you remember what Sunset told you before.
She deserves the benefit of the doubt... You tell yourself. It's only right. You smile back at her, nodding your head and she lets out a bashful squee before gleefully tackling you, causing a unanimous "Awwwh..." from everyone around you two. She kisses you with unbridled passion, showing just how long she's been holding back. Leaning into her embrace, you nervously return the gesture. Sunset stands a few feet away, looking dumbfounded for a second before pressing her hands to her mouth to try to stifle a happy squeal.
"Hey, now." Applejack exclaims after a moment and you both stop to look over. "Get a room, you two." She chuckles.
At this, Adagio smiles in approval. "Wanna take me home?" She whispers into your ear with a playful wink, a corner of her mouth turning up mischievously.
"Hell yes." You reply, clasping her hand in yours as you two walk toward the foyer.
"Wait..." Sonata exclaims, turning to Aria. "Where are they going?"
"They're going to go 'celebrate Christmas' at his place." Aria laughs.
"I get that, but... Oooohhhhhhhhhh..." She replies after a moment.