A familiar scene in Canterlot High School played out once more on a Wednesday afternoon: the Rainbooms practicing their songs in one of the music rooms during a free period whilst a former villainous attempted-brainwasher listened in happily, bouncing her head to the beat. Unlike the fateful day when Sunset Shimmer was interrupted from such an enjoyment by the introduction of the Dazzlings to the school, this time it was one of said Dazzlings, Sonata Dusk, enjoying the music provided by the new Rainbooms, now featuring Sunset Shimmer.
The last several months had been crazy for the former siren. In late fall, she and her sisters had gone from the continued agony of their millennia of exile in a magically barren world to the hope of regaining their full power. A group of five humans and two ponies-in-human-bodies wielding the harmony magic that she and her sisters had sought to tap into dashed their hopes. The resulting argument was the last straw for Aria, who left to wander the world as ever before - the girls would wander from town to town to hide their immortality. Without their pendants and the ability to feed, there was no guarantee that they would remain immortal, yet the stubborn siren followed their old plan just the same. Sonata was worried for her sister; Aria hated eating food, always wanting to attempt to feed off hate magic, but that was no longer a possibility. She wished she could be there to make sure Aria was keeping her physical body healthy, despite the constant chorus of "This ugly carcass is not my body!"
Adagio had remained, but flat-out refused to "continue to pretend to be anything less than a millennium old by attending a high school with a bunch of hormone-riddled bipedal freaks." Sonata loved the school, though - free hot lunch, people to talk to, exciting events - what was not to like? She was trying out for the cheerleading squad ("I may not be able to sing anymore, but I can still scream!" Adagio was not happy with the demonstration that followed.); and she was trying to be friendly with the Rainbooms: after all, if Harmony magic was more powerful than the sirens' magic, then it deserved respect. Adagio would harrumph, but agreed enough to not interfere, and allowed frequent visits to their house (back when they still had their magic, the sirens had convinced an old man that he hated to the point of giving it away). Adagio even helped make snacks once.
The Rainbooms' song was coming to a close, pulling Sonata from her silent reverie. "Watch out for us we're awesome as we wanna be!" and a final chord faded out. The girls looked at each other with varying degrees of approval on their faces.
"I still do not like it, Rainbow Dash," said Rarity, face clearly confirming her to be strong on the side of disapproval. "Even with changing it to reference the entire group, it is still far too boastful."
"Well I still like it!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "It's still the best song we have for pure rock."
"It doesn't have to be all rock, all the time, Dash," Applejack admonished.
Pinkie Pie pounded out a fast beat on the drums. "I agree with Dash!" she said. "Even if we wanted to stray from rock, it's still got the best beat."
Fluttershy sighed. "It's... too loud... still... for my tastes, at least," she said in a voice fading out the entire time.
Sunset Shimmer shrugged. "I'm sorry, but I have to go with Dash here. This was a headlining song before I joined. You all have practiced it the most, so it's our best song."
The girls looked at each other tensely. Applejack laid out what they were all thinking. "Well, if it's a vote, that makes it three to three. Where do we go from here?"
Pinkie Pie shot up from her stool. "Hey, 'Nata, what do you think?"
Sonata Dusk gasped at her sudden inclusion. "Me? You want me to decide?"
The girls looked at each other and nodded.
"You seem to know a good crowd pleaser," said Rainbow Dash.
"You have excellent taste," added Rarity.
"Plus, you have a thousand years of experience with music, even if your voice sounds like a dying diamond dog without magic," Sunset finished. She noticed Sonata wince at the mention of the damage to her voice, and quickly added, "No offense."
"None taken," Sonata smiled. She was genuinely grateful to have a friend who literally knew where she was coming from, especially with the distance now separating her and her sisters, so she was happier for the understanding Sunset held for her than she was upset with the rude yet honest assessment of her skills.
"So," Pinkie Pie asked, "What's it gonna be?"
Sonata put a finger to her lips and looked at the upper corner of the room. "I'd vote no. I don't think you'll be able to get the same feel without the constant rhyme of 'me' with the titular 'be.'"
Rainbow Dash inhaled, puffed out her cheeks, then sighed. "You're right, and I agree that it's a fair tiebreaker. 'Awesome as I Wanna Be' is out of the rotation." She crossed out an entry on a nearby notepad. "Well girls, that leaves us in a pickle. Even with Fluttershy's songs, 'Life is a Runway' and 'My Past is not Today' are not enough to bring us up to a full show, and we have gigs lining up already after the Battle of the Bands."
"Even if you count the song Princess Twilight sent us though the journal?" Fluttershy asked.
Rainbow perked up. "I hadn't counted that. I need to copy it over." She wrote into the book, announcing as she did, "'Friendship... Through... the Ages.'" She did some quick math on her fingers. "We're still about a song short. Fluttershy and I have tapped our notebooks, and Rarity and Sunset have done well to add in their songs. Pinkie? AJ? Anything from you?"
Pinkie shook her head. "Drumming is its own world, Dash. I'll try to work on one, but I'd probably not get farther than rough lyrics."
AJ added, "And knowing you, it'd probably wind up being too many chimichaungas and kumquats for anyone but you to find a way through, let alone write music for. Not that I'm better off, I'm happy to support y'all with this here bass, but I've still got too much farmwork to do to sit down and write something else."
The six musicians looked at each other in defeat, until a voice outside their circle of glances said, "I have a song."
Twelve eyes turned to fix on Sonata Dusk.
"Is it new?" Rainbow Dash asked. "I'd rather not sing something that was originally designed as part of an evil plot. No offense."
"None taken, and yes," Sonata said. "I used to do the writing for The Dazz... for my sisters." Sonata wanted nothing more than to cling to them as a family and forget what they did as a band. "When we found out that we couldn't sing anymore, I wanted to write a song to see if that had been affected too." She reached into her backpack and produced a sheet of paper. "I think I've still got the touch, but you can reject it."
The six Rainbooms stood huddled over the paper, each shifting until they could all read it.
Rarity was the first to speak. "'Once upon a time you came into my world?' Oh my, 'You?' Is this...?"
Sonata nodded. "It's a love song," she confirmed. A hint of a blush spread on her cheeks.
"Second verse starts out 'Friends, you are in my life,'" Applejack noted, sharing glances with her bandmates. "It's not quite the conventional love song, is it?" Young entertainers suspected the admirer's charming ode's subject.
Sonata shook her head. "I suppose not. It's a love I feel very passionately for... it's just not the type that could legally result in a marriage." She giggled a little, adding, "Not around here, anyway."
"Love is love," Rainbow Dash said with a snort. "From what I can read here, you obviously will stick with these friends. I like the line, too: 'You can count on me to be there by your side.' That's true love."
Sonata smiled. "And I will... even if I wind up giving love to others." She glanced happily at the girls around her.
"It's really the first love, isn't it?" Fluttershy sighed. It makes it work well here as a love song; couples will like to remember the first time they could 'see the signs.'"
Dreamily, Sonata nearly whispered, "I can remember that feeling so well, seeing the signs of true love, like it was yesterday."
"What about this part?" asked Sunset Shimmer. "'And when the music comes alive, we sing our songs to lift us up so we can shine?' Is that for the subject of the love song?"
"It's a metaphor," Sonata dropped her head. "At least, anymore it's a metaphor. It's not like I can sing anymore, but..." She sucked in a breath and gave the girls a resolute look. "The music between us is still there."
"Ooh! I like the bridge! Especially how you rhyme 'crescendo' with 'rainbow!'" Pinkie Pie squealed. "Is this a subtle nod to your new group of friends?" she added with a nudge and a wink.
Sonata giggled and nudged back. "I think it's not subtle at all. It's practically overt! Yes, I want us to be able to shine together like you guys do - literally and figuratively. I just wish my desire to shine together could be returned." Wordlessly, the Rainbooms gathered together to give their newest friend a group hug. "Thanks," Sonata whispered. "I'm glad I have you all, but..." she stood up, breaking the circle. "I think I need to go and express these feelings to the object of my affection."
The girls nodded their approval, and Sonata left.
It was not too long later when Sonata returned, laden with plastic bags labeled "Burrito King." The Rainbooms were trying to put together music to the new lyrics.
"Good news, 'Nota!" Rainbow Dash announced. "We've decided to use your song in our rotation!"
Rarity nodded. "We needed a good love song," she said with a sly smile.
Sonata jumped, rustling the plastic bags. She squealed and shouted, "Oh! I'm so glad I could help my friends!" She held up the bag triumphantly. "To the love of my life!" she said, gesturing with her free hand.
The Rainbooms stared a moment. Applejack let loose what was on all their minds. "Sugarcube... are you sayin' that the love of your life... the subject of the song you gave us... is tacos?"
"Yep!" the siren confirmed cheerily. "I came to drop some off for you to thank you for your friendship!" She placed one bag on a nearby table. "Now I'm off to have some quality time with these bad girls!" With that, she took a supreme taco laden with sour cream from one of the remaining bags and licked around its edges before taking one long lap of the tongue along the inside, collecting all the sour cream in one go. She giggled, "It's tangy and delicious!" before walking off with her prize.
Five jaws hit the floor. Pinkie simply grabbed her drumsticks and walked out the other door, announcing, "I'll be in my bunk."