//------------------------------// // Dazzling Thoughts and Discussions // Story: Rainbow Rocks: Unfinished Business // by Gadman85 //------------------------------// Adagio and the others were once again working at Johnston’s. All three of them felt rather light hearted after that night and were actually looking forward to more nights like that. Each of them had enjoyed the night for at least one reason. Sonata loved it because she was with her friends and it was fun to see Aria and Sunset go at it with their little competition between each other. She was a little scared it might turn in to something bad, but in the end both girls loved it and declared it a “Tie” and they would pick up again next time they were all out together. Aria loved the outing because she got to be the ‘tough’ girl again by getting into a competition with Sunset. The two of them went at it without holding back. She thought her old competitive nature might rear it’s ugly sea faring head, but surprisingly it didn’t. Aria instead found herself having lots of fun with Sunset and she even got a few silent laughs at Sonata’s cheering. Also it was kind of fun having Adagio riding on the back of the fake motor bike during that race. Adagio had enjoyed the trip to Pizza Palace because she felt happy again. She further felt like she had made the right call for her friends by deciding to give Twilight and Sunset a chance when they came calling at Johnston's. Plus it was nice to be out with others along with Sonata and Aria. She cared deeply for the other two and really enjoyed being around them, but changing it up a little bit also seemed nice. That was over a free weekend. Now, the trio were back at work once again. This time Aria was on kitchen duty and Adagio was working the bar while Sonata waited tables. It was a rather decently paced night and so Adagio had some time to think on different things while at the bar. One thing she noticed was that it was a lot more bearable, if not enjoyable, at work when you had friends you enjoyed your time off with after hours. She guessed this was how humans had put up with such routines for so many years throughout the species life time roaming this planet. As a former immortal that always got what she wanted with the sound of note, it was previously a concept she could never understand. It also didn’t help that she really couldn’t have cared less to understand. Humans were merely puppets to her in the past. Now that she was human herself, she realized how it was to be one to an extent. She had realized she found herself enjoying that free time now that it was more of a precious commodity. As she had many times before, Adagio reflected on how much it was the three of them seemed to have gained at the price of their immortality and powers. She, like the others, found the exchange more than fair enough. This thought was a still a surprise to her. The curly haired girl had figured she would miss immortality the most of the three of them. “Maybe that is actually the case compared to Aria and Sonata,” she thought to herself. She then gave a smile and a silent chuckle to herself. “It just shows how weak immortality is compared to friendship if even I have so easily tossed aside that notion after such a small period of time.” Adagio looked up and smiled a little brighter as a customer approached, “Welcome to Johnston’s. What can I get you to drink?” “Ummm… a Rum Punch please?” The customer asked nervously. Adagio wanted to roll her eyes, but didn’t. She had a hunch about this customer. She might be wrong, but she doubted it. “I need to see your ID first. We have to card everyone.” The guy shakily handed over his ID for her inspection. She looked it over and was a bit surprised it was a real ID. However, there was one problem. “You still have to wait two days…” He gave a sigh and looked over to the table where two guys were sitting and definitely not looking over at them to see what happened. “I told them it wouldn’t work. They kept egging me on though saying they'll just look at the month and year since its the end of the month. They don't actually look at it in detail." He gave a sigh and asked, "I won’t get in trouble will I?” Adagio thought for a moment and gave a sigh. “Usually you would, but since you are only two days away and this isn’t a 21 and up only place. I’ll go easy on you. You should pick better friends though. I’m not an expert, but if this is something they commonly do then maybe you should stop being their friend.” The guy gave a relieved sigh and said, “Fortunately its not. I mean we do play jokes on each other and such, but not usually like this. Do you think you could do me a favor?” Adagio gave him a look and the guy leaned in and added quietly, “I want a Mango Mule.” He then gave her a smile that she soon matched with a laugh. “You’re in luck I know how to make that. Usually in places like this, bartenders only know more common drinks and the ones on the menu, but here a few of our bartenders know a lot more drinks,” She gave him a smile at his idea and felt a little pride that she could make the drink he asked from her. It was actually a great idea on his part. The Mango Mule was a rather fancy mocktail using different ingredients some of which were common in different cocktails. Also it used Ginger Beer which came in alcoholic and non-alcoholic varieties. Johnston’s had both. The receipt stated which was used. “Are you sure this will work? It isn’t really a ‘man’s’ drink if you get my drift,” Adagio added with a grin. “Don’t worry about it,” the guy added in reply. He'd drink whatever drink he wanted. “You should probably pay for the drink now then. The receipt will say it’s non-alcoholic. Don’t go and try to buy anything else for the next two days at least. You’re really lucking out here,” Adagio finished in warning. “Believe me I won’t,” the customer assured her as she finished up the drink and rung it up for him. With his drink in hand, the guy walked back over to his friends with a bit of extra strut in his step. He had to make it look like he just got away with something after all. Adagio shook her head at the guy and looked over in the direction of Sonata as the ponytailed girl laughed and talked a little with the customers at the table she was serving. Adagio was happy to see her friend in a good mood even if that was more or less Sonata’s default. Despite Adagio's general feelings on the matter once again there was that little voice, it went on about how the other girl naturally fit in with pretty much anyone and what that might mean. The curly haired girl shook her head as she told herself, “Sonata wouldn’t leave us like that.” “Maybe she will once the opportunity comes along…” a voice said in the back of her mind. “No, she wouldn’t,” Adagio thought as she tried to convince herself. At the same time there was a part of her that, while sad, would be happy if her friend did leave them for the right reasons. It didn’t really match up well against the part of Adagio that would be sad and would even beg Sonata not to leave. Adagio broke from her musings and returned her full attention back to her work. She was still on the clock even if it wasn’t a fast paced day. She had one final thought as she started making another drink for a different customer. “Maybe I should ask Twilight and Sunset about this.” {-} {-} {-} Sonata went and placed another table’s orders and was taking a short break before starting her rounds again. She looked over to the bar where she saw Adagio smile and give a laugh to a guy as he leaned in and placed an order. Sonata felt happier seeing Adagio like that, but again those thoughts of being abandoned appeared in her mind. She shook her head to clear them after a few seconds. It was silly to have them. Her friends even assured her they wouldn’t do that when they had their heart to heart night. "Maybe I should mention it to them again sometime anyways," she thought. Considering everything else that happened that night they might have sort of overlooked the matter. Sonata gave a sigh, “I’m being a selfish brat… I mean everything Adagio went through for us… She deserves happiness no matter where she finds it.” The light blue haired girl gave a stretch and a yawn as she shook off the sad feelings and smiled again. She needed to make another round to her tables now and there were some really fun customers today. {-} {-} {-} Aria didn’t have a problem with working in the kitchens and she even really liked it most days. Many people wouldn’t know it, but she actually loved cooking. She even cooked for her friends some nights. She would do it more often, but working a restaurant and cooking for customers all day could be exhausting at times. There were actually two things that got to her sometimes when she was on kitchen duty though. The first one was that she had to cook things a certain way. Being in a restaurant you couldn’t really have too much of a difference taste wise in a dish. This meant they had to follow a certain method to cooking the food and make sure it was mostly consistent across the staff. It has been said that the key to a successful restaurant was consistency in the food. When people choose your restaurant for whatever reason they expect it to be a certain way. If it was just 'okay' that could work, so long as that was always the case. Having the food suddenly get very good a couple of times before then going back to the norm or worse wasn’t a good thing. Fortunately, while Aria couldn’t experiment or try things differently, the food quality and cooking was on the better side at Johnston’s Bar and Grill. This meant she could be a little proud of the meal she cooked for a customer at least. The second thing that sometimes bothered her, though she would never admit it just like she would never have a heart to heart with the others she started, was she felt a little left out for the day. It didn’t always bother her, but sometimes it did. Whoever was waitress or bartender were out there in the front and got to see pretty much everything. The cook kind of was busy in the back the whole day. It probably didn’t help that Aria sometimes wondered just how she fit in with their group. She wasn’t really sure what role she should play. She was of course the tough one, but did Adagio and Sonata need a tough one in their life? Sonata was the fun and a little crazy at times friend. Adagio was the one that kept them grounded when needed and still in some ways kind of the leader. “Where do I really fit in with them?” she thought to herself as she had times in the past. She wasn’t really sure and that kind of frightened her. She felt like she needed them, but they didn’t ultimately need her in the end. They wanted her around, but what if that somehow changed? Would she have to keep constantly changing to make sure they didn’t get tired of the ‘tough girl’ or ‘the rebel’ as she kind of was when they were sirens. It was annoying to be thinking about these kinds of things. She shouldn’t be thinking about them she was the tough girl. “A tough girl who cries and actually likes cute things,” a voice said in the back of her head. “A tough girl who loves playing with kids and worries when kids get hurt. What kind of a tough girl is that?” The voice finished. Aria shook her head and concentrated more on her work. “I should ask Sunset about this,” she told herself. Sunset would probably know best about this. The fiery haired girl found a way to fit in with an already solid group of friends. Twilight would probably be helpful as well, but the princess wouldn’t fully understand what she, Aria ex-siren, was feeling on this. Sunset probably wouldn’t fully understand how big this deal was either, but at least Sunset would have a much better idea. {-} {-} {-} Adagio gave a stretch as she took a quick break. She took this as an opportunity to go ahead and give Sunset and Twilight a call. “Hello, Adagio” Sunset answered. “Hey, Sunset,” the curly haired girl replied. “So what’s up?” Sunset asked. “I was actually wondering if I could talk to you two about something friendship related. It would be just me. Is that okay?” Adagio asked. “Yes that’s fine. When do you want to meet?” Sunset asked as Twilight waited on her. “Tomorrow early evening. We don’t have anything planned and it isn’t uncommon for us to do our own thing every so often. Will that work?” she asked. It wasn’t long until she got a reply. “Yeah that will work just fine. I know a place that isn’t too far from where you work. It should be close enough since you told us you all walk to work a lot of the time. It’s a little bit of a walk for us, but that isn’t a problem.” “Thanks. Sounds good to me,” Adagio said not hiding her relief that they had a plan. “Anything else?” Sunset asked. “Nope. Not this time. I have to get back to work soon anyways. See you tomorrow,” she replied as she got ready to head back. “See you tomorrow, Adagio,” Sunset replied as they both hung up. {-} {-} {-} Aria took a few steeling breaths as she took a break in the "cook’s lounge" as they called it. It was just a small sitting area really, but the other “lounge” wasn’t much different. That one was shared by the Hostesses, wait staff and bartenders. She stretched and then pulled out her phone and called up Sunset. She might as well get the meeting thing planned. “Hey, Sunset.” She replied when the phone was answered. “Hey, Aria.” Sunset replied a little surprised. She had just finished talking to Adagio. “So I was wondering if you know. I could meet with you alone to talk about something,” she said. “Okay. When do you want to meet with us?” Sunset asked curiously. Aria frowned a little to herself. “Ummm… No offense to Twilight. And I don’t mean anything by it, but I was kind of hoping to talk to just you… If that was okay...” After a couple of seconds of silence, Sunset replied. “That can work. What time and did you have a place in mind?” Aria gave a sigh in relief. “Tomorrow evening at Faller’s. Do you know where that is?” Aria asked. “Yes, I actually do. I can do that,” Sunset replied a little surprised. “Good then. Sooo See you then…” Aria finished a little awkwardly. “Yep see you then,” Sunset finished with a friendly tone. Aria felt a little more relieved. If Sunset knew of the place that kind of told her it was the best choice to talk to Sunset alone. Faller’s was a bar that allowed older teens inside. You couldn’t get alcohol there unless you had the best fake ID ever (even then it still might not work), or were actually old enough to drink, or if you had mind controlling powers. {-} {-} {-} “So, I guess I’ll meet with Adagio. Aria did ask specifically for you alone.” Twilight said after Sunset hung up and put her phone away. “Yeah seems like it. I’ll tell you how to get to that café. It’s a bit of a walk, but it’s pretty easy to remember. I wonder what they're going to talk about,” Sunset asked as she sat back down across from Twilight. “Guess we’ll just have to find out tomorrow. Also it’s your turn.” Twilight said with a big smile. They were playing a board game and Sunset was actually surprised how good Twilight was at it. The pony princess was winning the game. It probably didn’t help Sunset’s case that she found Twilight’s thinking face so cute as the princess figured out her next moves. It was distracting. It was still ultimately fun, so she didn't mind. {-} {-} {-} Adagio walked into the café Sunset texted her about and quickly found a waving Twilight sitting in a booth alone. Adagio walked over and asked, “Where's Sunset?” “Something came up for her and she had to take care of it. That won’t be a problem will it? If it is then we can reschedule and just hang out for bit instead,” Twilight answered as the curly haired girl sat down across from her and looked at the menu. “No, this can work. I actually kind of wanted to talk to you about this more than her. I hope you understand there will be certain things I would rather talk to her about instead of you and vice versa.” She pointed to the drink she wanted as the waitress came over to their table. Twilight smiled as she said, “Naturally I expected that. It’s actually common among friends to an extent. After all I wouldn’t talk to Rarity, who loves fashion and can be obsessed with staying clean, about hiking and camping in the woods. Nor would I have the same kind of heart to heart talk with Sunset I would with someone else. That’s part of the reason I wanted Sunset to approach you three with me. I’ll admit there are things she would be better suited for talking about than me.” “I thought you did that because you will have to return to Equestria sometime,” Adagio said. “True, partly, but Sunset might do the same eventually as well. It's her choice and something she has thought about. I’m not sure what will happen if you three tried to return though. You might return as ponies or you might stay as humans. Or you three might not be able to go back through period. Sorry if that was something you three really wanted,” Twilight said with a frown. Adagio thanked the waitress for her drink and took a refreshing sip before speaking again. “We’re still trying to figure out what we want to do in the future. Returning to Equestira is the last thing we want to do. Earth feels more like our home than Equestria at this point. At the moment, figuring out our relationship with each other is more important. That’s part of the reason I wanted to talk to you today.” “What is it you wanted to talk about?” Twilight asked as she observed Adagio. Body language was important when talking to someone. She had picked up on a few things humans did that ponies didn’t and what it meant during her visits. “Well…” Adagio looked away as she spoke quietly. “It’s about Sonata. I’m not sure what to do about her now that we’re all human and the whole friendship thing.” She took a drink to think on how to ask what she wanted to without seeming too selfish. “Is she having more of a problem adjusting than you and Aria? I haven’t really known her for long, but that didn’t seem to be the case when we all met last time,” Twilight pointed out. “It’s the opposite more likely. She’s adjusted much better than we have. She isn’t worry free or anything like that. But well… I can’t think of how to say this without seeming selfish,” Adagio said as she looked down at the table. “Just say it. We’re all selfish in some manner really. It’s part of who we are. Both ponies and humans,” Twilight said hoping to ease Adagio's mind. Adagio took Twilight’s advice. “I fear she’ll leave us behind. She’s kind of said the opposite, but I fear that will change. She’s a natural social butterfly in this world. She may sometimes seem a little on the dumb side, but she’s much smarter than that. It just took me turning human to better understand that. She's very good at reading people’s emotions and knowing what to do. I was pretty horrible, as you know, and didn’t ever see that about her before we became humans. I really don’t want her to leave us, but I feel that maybe it would be best for her if she did. She could easily find true happiness in this world.” Adagio gave a sigh and continued, “I actually wouldn’t be surprised if she quickly found true love, like the kind in all of those fairy tales and stories. I know this would be best for her, but I still don’t want her to leave me… I don’t want either of them to leave me. At the same time, part of me knows I should encourage Sonata to go out there and find that happiness. She deserves it more than either Aria or I do. Aria would even agree with me completely on this.” She gave a groan/whine as she took another sip of her drink. “I’m being a terrible friend aren’t I? I’m being too selfish and greedy. I’m bad at this friendship thing.” She might have continued, but she felt Twilight place a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see the Princess of Friendship giving her an understanding look. This kind of surprised Adagio. She figured the Princess of Friendship would be appalled at her for being such a bad friend. “Friendship isn’t always easy. It can at times be very difficult. You are being selfish and a little greedy, but everyone is to an extent. Letting it control you and getting carried away with it, is when it ends up being wrong,” Twilight said. “That barely helps at all…” Adagio grumbled. Twilight gave a small laugh as she said, “I wasn’t finished yet, Adagio.” The curly haired girl looked a little sheepish and sat up to listen further. “You aren’t being a bad friend here, Adagio. You’re struggling with what you want and what you think would be best for Sonata. A bad friend wouldn’t care about such things.”’ Twilight sat down and took a long sip of her drink before looking Adagio straight in the eyes with a serious expression. “But in the end. It isn’t for you to decide what is best for Sonata or Aria. It’s their own choice. As their friend, you should try to support them with what they decide. Something I’m sure deep down you already know.” Adagio looked crestfallen at Twilight’s words. It was true. She hated how she couldn’t decide for them. She wanted them both to keep following her like they had been. “We’re equals now.” Adagio remembered Aria’s words from when they were looking at apartments. She was happy at the time, but hadn’t really thought of the full extent of those words' meaning until later. It still didn’t make things any easier on her. Adagio was about to let out another sigh and concentrate on her drink, but Twilight wasn’t finished it seemed. “However, this is something you should talk to Sonata and Aria about. You shouldn’t keep it to yourself. You don’t fully know what either of them considers happiness. Who’s to say they don’t want you there with them for the rest of their lives or something like that.” Twilight gave a smile as she said, “Communication is very important in friendship and most relationships period. It wasn’t the same, but I had two friends who got caught up in doing things and going places neither of them wanted to go. They were too concerned about the other the whole time and what ifs. They didn’t want to talk about it either. Finally, they did talk and found each other wanted something different from what their friend thought they wanted. After that, things quickly got better for both of them.” Adagio felt a little relieved as she listened to Twilight. “Talk to Sonata about this. Tell her everything. Tell her what you fear will happen and how you feel it is also the best for her if it does happen.” Adagio gave a sigh. “While I’m a little relieved to hear what you said. I don’t fully like the idea… Last time we talked heart to heart there were all of these emotions and I wasn’t sure how to deal with them.” Twilight gave a sigh as she said, “I don’t know how sirens are, but both ponies and humans are emotional creatures in many ways. For better or worse.” The ex-siren had a feeling that whatever the outcome of this talk with Sonata and Aria was it would involve tears, hugs and possibly all three of them having another ‘sleepover’. Being human and this friendship thing was exhausting. “But even you know it will be worth it and in some bizarre way you are kind of enjoying all of this,” the voice in her head told her. The voice was right. She was ultimately enjoying it all in some way. It was probably just a strange actually feeling truly alive kind of thing. A lot of things were overwhelming, but it had been mostly positive things even with all of the bad they had been through at first. Adagio gave a determined sigh as she took another sip of her drink. “Thanks for the help, Twilight. So what have you and Sunset been up to since we last met each other?” The curly haired girl didn’t want their meeting to be just a bunch of heavy talk now that she was here. “We’ve been relaxing a little for the most part. We spent a good bit of time looking for you three up to now. I also wanted to spend more time getting to know Sunset better on this visit if possible. How’s it been at the restaurant?” Adagio gave a giggle. “Actually I kind of helped one customer pull a bit of joke on his friends…” She then told Twilight the story and the Pony Princess laughed when it was over. The two then each ordered a second drink and talked a little longer before paying and leaving. Before they parted Twilight asked, “Do you mind if I tell Sunset about our talk? She’ll probably ask when she gets back.” “I don’t mind. Until whatever it was that came up for her, she would have been here for it anyways. I just thought this was more up your alley than Sunset’s. I think I was right,” Adagio said. “Maybe… Maybe not… She’s really been a fast learner on friendship, but I appreciate you think that of me,” Twilight said with a smile. The two then said goodbye one last time and went their separate ways. As Twilight walked back to Sunset’s apartment, she wondered how Sunset’s meeting with Aria went. The princess also wondered if it was a similar issue they were talking about or not. She would ask Sunset about it and hope her friend didn’t mind telling her. {-} {-} {-} Sunset waited at a table in Faller’s where she was going to meet Aria to have a talk. It was a place that didn’t have a problem with letting in older teens so long as they got their under age stamp and didn’t try to buy alcohol. It wasn’t technically allowed in the area, but the owner was very well connected. He was also very strict on the no alcohol or cigarettes unless you could have them legally, so he managed to get an exception made in the laws for his business. Plus, it didn’t hurt that he was very well known and liked in the community as a whole. The place seemed like the kind of place Aria would like, but it also seemed like Aria was trying too hard to be cool or something when she said they should meet here to talk. It was the kind of place Sunset would have wanted to ‘meet up’ at when she was trying to be the popular girl at CHS. Sunset had no idea how close she was to the truth thinking this as she waited and sipped on her Ginger Ale. Sunset didn’t have to wait too long for Aria. “Hey Sunset, glad you made it,” Aria said as she sat on the opposite side of the table. “No problem. What was it you wanted to talk about with me alone?” Sunset asked. “Getting right to it, huh?” Aria replied as she ordered a drink of her own. “Well I didn’t think you would appreciate ‘conversation’ before discussing what it was you wanted to talk about,” Sunset replied easily. “You're kind of right. I have a bit of a friendship question I was wondering about,” Aria said as she avoided eye contact and quickly took her drink from the waiter. “I thought it would be something you would be better suited to answer than Twilight. I know she is the Princess of Friendship and all, but well… you know…” Sunset looked at the twin tailed girl with a questioning look as she asked, “I’m not exactly sure what you mean. I’ll help the best I can. Is it about adjusting to friendship after being evil and all powerful or something?” Aria gave a sigh, “Kind of. I guess I have to actually ask.” “This is true,” Sunset gave a small chuckle in reply. “Okay so. I was kind of wondering how you managed to find your role with the other Rainbooms. I mean they were already pretty much a full and close group with each other from what we heard and saw. They had the brash sporty one,” Aria counted with a finger. “Rainbow Dash,” Sunset said. Aria nodded and continued. “There was the fun and kind of crazy but in a usually good way one.” “Pinkie Pie,” Sunset replied. “Then there was the hard working tell you how it is girl with the hat,” Aria continued to count off on her fingers. “That would be Applejack,” Sunset replied. Some might think she would get upset that Aria didn’t already know their names, but really it made sense she didn’t. Heck the only reason Sunset knew the Dazzlings’ names were because Twilight picked them up some how. “Then you have the fashionable and beautiful one that makes dresses, and who acts all sophisticated.” Sunset gave a chuckle, “That would be Rarity. There is more to her than just that, but yeah that’s how most people know her.” Aria gave a thoughtful look for a second and continued her list. “Then there was the animal lover and extra shy one. I think I remember her name was Fluttershy. I mean for crying out loud shy is in her name and that is part of her role and what not.” “Well I’m surprised you remembered any of their names. But yeah that describes Fluttershy really well,” Sunset’s voice showed her surprise. “Then there’s you and Twilight. She is the one that seemed to bring you all together and you can always ask for help when you really need it. You’re the reformed bad girl who is also really smart and helps keep the others grounded and balanced when needed. If all you've told us is true,” Aria finished. Sunset had a thoughtful look as she said, “I guess that could be how to describe me. So what is your question, Aria?” “Well, we kind of have roles as well... or at least the others do. Sonata is the fun and zany, but not always bright one. She is also very much the heart I guess you could say. She brightens our world just being herself. She also seems to know when either of us needs to be cheered up and always knows how to do so,” Aria said as she took a sip of her drink. Sunset waited for Aria to continue. “Adagio is the brain pretty much and even now kind of seen as the leader to a degree. She’s also very good at figuring out something is wrong and fixing it in some way. She’s far from perfect, but she’s smart. Adagio is also the one that keeps Sonata down to Earth when needed and comes up with plans even if they are just for going to the waterpark. She makes sure they work out the best she can. Then I’m the tough one.” “What does this have to do with your wanting to meet up exactly?” Sunset asked. She was getting a feeling she would kind of have to push Aria a little to get to the problem. Aria looked down to the table with a bit of sadness. “I don’t think they really need a tough girl in their friendship group. Adagio and Sonata are both very strong and tough in their own ways. They don’t have a problem with me, but what if they decide they don’t really want a tough friend? What role will I play? I could try to change it to something else, but what if they get tired of that as well? How do I find out what role I’m supposed to play? I feel like they don’t really need me in their group. They would both end up doing fine in the end. Sometimes I feel a bit left out because of this.” Sunset gave a frown in sympathy for Aria. She thought over how to answer these questions. She took a sip of her drink and took in a breath. “Friendship isn’t about finding roles to play in your group of friends, Aria. Some 'roles' may end up happening, but that isn’t required for friendship. You just have to be yourself. True friends won’t require you to be a certain way to still be their friend. They may try to help you change if you need help with something, but you shouldn’t have to completely change who you are just for your friends.” Aria was listening intently, but had a bit of a questioning look. “None of my friends are filling a particular role. They aren’t trying to fulfill a certain type of persona for our group. They're who they are. I may be the ‘smart one who keeps them balanced and grounded’, but I don’t do so to fill a particular role. I do so because I care about them.” “Hmmm…” Aria hummed in thought. “Tell me, Aria. Do you ever do anything that would go against the ‘tough girl’ attitude?” Sunset asked. “Sometimes… But not often. Why?” Aria asked with caution. “Do Adagio or Sonata get upset about this or do they accept it and maybe even like it?” Sunset asked as she looked Aria right in the eyes. “They don’t really complain and well sometimes they have encouraged me to do so if I really want to that is,” Aria said starting to see where this was going. “Then I don’t think you have to worry about fulfilling a role in your group. It seems to me they care for you as Aria. Not as Aria, the tough girl,” Sunset said. “But what if they get tired of just Aria? I mean just me doesn't fill in a role. Like I said they could do just fine without me,” Aria asked as she returned Sunset’s look. “When we were sirens I was the cool rebellious one. What am I supposed to be now? I don’t really want to be like that again. How do I keep them as friends and make sure they aren’t going to eventually get tired of me?” “It isn’t easy trying to find a way to ‘fit in’, but one thing that will help is if you speak up about this, since it's something you’re worried about. Tell me have they also changed as well?” Sunset asked. “Well yes they have. We all have to some degree,” Aria answered wanting to hear what Sunset said next. “Do you still really care for them and consider them friends?” Sunset asked. “Yes. Of course I do. I wouldn’t be concerned otherwise,” Aria answered. “We all change as time goes by, Aria. Sometimes these changes can cause problems with others we considered friends, but that is just how it is.” Aria looked a little downcast. This wasn’t what she wanted to hear. “However…” the twin tailed girl perked up a little. “The fact you three have all changed to some degree and still you’re concerned about the others and see each other as friends. Means you three don’t have to fulfill 'roles' to be friends. We haven’t known each other for long, but it was super obvious to both Twilight and me that you three really care for each other. Remember how Adagio got that night not too long ago when we came to the restaurant where you all work?” Sunset asked. Aria nodded. “That is not the behavior of someone who will get rid of the ones they care about just because they change some. You three had a moment after that. A moment you wouldn’t have had if your friendship was so tenuous you had to act a certain way for it to exist.” Sunset paused as Aria absorbed her words before continuing again. “One thing important about friendship is communication. You need to talk to each other if you’re really concerned about something. It won’t be easy, but it’s necessary. So find a time to talk to the others about this, and make sure you don’t put it off for too long either.” Aria looked to Sunset questioningly. “If you do, then you might never talk about it. It might be something that eventually gets healed after a really long time, or it might never get fully healed. It might get worse and could then actually cause a more serious problem. I had to have a lot of talks and heart to hearts with the others after we first became friends. It was difficult at times, but it was worth it in the end.” Sunset gave a sigh at the memories. “It probably helped me a lot having Twilight to ask questions about and talk to on these things. That’s part of the reason why we want to help you three when you want us to. We also want to become good friends as well. I hope that was helpful,” Sunset finished with an uneasy smile. She really wanted to show that she had learned a lot since her reformation. Aria was in thought for a few seconds. “It really does. It won’t be easy, but I’ll do it. Just got to figure out when to talk about it with Adagio and Sonata. Maybe tonight. I’m not sure.” “That could work. You’ll have to figure it out though. I hope you’ll give me a call once you’ve had the talk if you feel like you need to talk some more,” Sunset said as she took a sip of her Ginger Ale. “Yea. I’ll do that," Aria said as she took a sip of her drink. "So… how are you doing?” Aria clumsily segued the conversation after some silence. “Things are going alright. Twilight beat me at a board game last night, which I thought she wouldn’t understand. She can be surprising like that with things. There’s still some things she isn’t very capable of understanding easily, but not everything,” Sunset started. She knew Aria was trying to keep things from staying awkwardly silent after their talk. The two then talked for a little while longer before they left Faller’s. While on her way back home, Sunset thought about how much to share with Twilight. She didn’t think to ask Aria what she could talk about or not. Sunset decided this meant she had to be careful. She couldn’t think of much not to discuss with Twilight though. In the end, she decided to just not go too much into detail and at the least give Twilight a good idea about their conversation. {-} {-} {-} On the drive back to her home, Aria decided to just get the discussion over and done with. She wasn’t going to wait any longer. They weren’t going in until late tomorrow anyways, so if the talk ended up going well into the night they could just sleep in tomorrow. “This isn’t going to be easy…” Aria thought to herself as she opened the door. {-} {-} {-} Sonata was bored right now to be honest. Both Aria and Adagio had things they went to take care of on their own. She wished at least one of them would have let her tag along. “Maybe I do need to learn more patience like they sometimes tell me,” she thought to herself. The light blue haired girl then decided she would try that meditation stuff humans sometimes did. She wondered if it would work now that she was human as well. “Ooooo maybe I’ll reach some kind of taco nirvana! That would be awesome!” she thought as she assumed the position she had seen meditators use many times, especially on tv and in movies. “Haaummmmm,” Sonata hummed. That had to be part of the deal to meditate, she often heard chant humming was involved. “Haaummmmm,” She soon repeated a little more anxiously. This wasn’t going as easily as she thought it would. It had been an hour or maybe longer. Sonata still wasn’t getting this meditation thing. “This position is so not comfortable at all!” She groaned to the empty apartment. Maybe she was doing it wrong. Sonata tried clearing her mind again. More time passed, but now Sonata could have sworn she saw some kind of taco shaped light in her mind. The light was growing and becoming clearer. Then she heard the door open and close as Adagio gave a sigh and entered the room. The light vanished and Sonata opened her eyes and smiled at Adagio. “Hey Adagio! Welcome back! Did you do what you had to do?” She asked cheerfully. Taco nirvana could wait, even if it would have been glorious. “Yeah. I did. Is Aria back?” Adagio asked as she placed her hand bag on the counter. “Nope!” Sonata answered cheerfully. She then asked questioningly, “Why?” “I was just wondering because…” Adagio started as the door opened and closed again. Then both Aria and Adagio said, “We all need to talk.” The two recent arriving girls blinked and looked to each other and asked, “You need to talk about something as well?” They each just nodded and kept staring as thoughts ran through their heads wondering what the other would need to talk about. Sonata rolled her eyes as she asked, “So are we going to talk, or are you two going to just keep staring at each other?” The other two broke their stare as Adagio said, “Let’s get ready first then we can talk.” “Yeah sounds good,” Aria agreed. “Okay! I needed to use the bathroom anyways. This meditation stuff isn’t what it’s cracked up to be,” She said getting up from the floor. “Maybe I needed to add background music or have tea.” As Sonata trotted off, both Adagio and Aria were wondering “Meditation?” while they went to get ready. Since apparently they both needed to talk about something it was probably going to be a long night.