“...got the music in our hearts, here to blow this thing apart...and together, we will never be afraid of the dark…”
“H-here to sing our song out loud…”
“Dagi, that wasn’t the right note.”
“I know, I know. Let me try again.”
She cleared her throat.
“Here to sing our sing...fuck.”
Sonata erupted into a fit of giggles, covering her mouth her a pillow. “Sing our sing?”
“Shut up,” Adagio smirked, playfully punching Sonata on the shoulder. “I’m tired. We’ve been singing all day.” She placed a hand on her throat. “I don’t remember ever having such a sore throat.”
“Well, you’re improving,” Sonata said, settling her pillow underneath her neck. “Why don’t we call it a day, then? Ooh, we can do each other’s nails! Rarity gave me a bottle of nail polish yesterday. It’s, like, super sparkly.”
“Sounds like a plan. I’m gonna get some water.” Adagio stood up and walked to the kitchen, bare feet tapping lightly on the cold tiles. She filled a clean glass with tepid water and took small sips, gazing out the window. The sky was dark - it was nearing midnight. Her shift today was uneventful, save for Spirit trying to rekindle their friendship. She had kept a frosty exterior, refusing to let herself be won over by his promises of increased pay if she would only look at him, talk to him, anything.
And Sonata was right - Adagio was improving. She was a heck of a lot better than the first time they practiced, and now they had moved on to singing the Rainbooms’ old songs. Sure, hearing them again caused her emotions to spike, but she wasn’t nearly as dramatic about it as she would have been.
“Dagi? You coming?”
Adagio smiled. “Coming.”
***
“Now, show me what you’ve written,” Fluttershy said, leaning over to study the scrawled words that Sonata had etched onto the paper. “Oh, uhm...what does this say?”
“It says ‘awesome’,” Sonata replied. “I sorta wrote it in a hurry.”
“You wrote a song, eh?” Rainbow asked, kicking her shoes off and sliding around the practice room, using her socks as skates. “Why don’t you just sing it to us?”
“That’s a wonderful idea, dear,” Rarity said. “I could help with the music, if you require.”
Sonata nodded, and sat down next to Rarity. “So, uh, here are the words. And I was thinking of…” She pressed a series of keys on the piano. “Just like that, until…” She pressed a few more. “And then the chorus is just this. Is that okay?”
Rarity repeated the sequences. “Yes, I’ve got it. Whenever you’re ready.”
Sonata took a deep breath. “Now.”
“I never knew having friends would so awesome,
Especially now that I’ve got the best of the best.
It’s been a tough road, and there’s more ahead of me,
But my friends have put my mind at rest…”
Sonata glanced around, stopping suddenly. Her wide eyes had hints of uncertainty.
“Dude, keep going!” whooped Rainbow Dash.
“And they said, and they said that they’ll be there for me!
And that I have got the strength,
To be the best that I can be!
And they said, and they said that they would try their hardest to stay by my side,
‘cuz our friendship has grown strong,
And I can feel the magic of friendship deep inside.”
Halfway through the chorus, a strange mist began to tug its way out of Fluttershy’s chest. She gasped, trying to contain it. It was a pearly white, pure and clear, and it slowly curled its way from Fluttershy to Sonata’s throat. She absorbed it, and her voice grew stronger.
“What was that?” Sonata asked after finishing the song, rushing to hold Fluttershy. “I’m so sorry! Did I just steal your soul?”
Fluttershy smiled broadly, a rare move for the shy girl. “N-no, that wasn’t my soul. I feel...so happy. I feel so light and...and good!”
“I too feel quite pleasant,” Rarity piped. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but did you just perform magic, Sonata?”
“...maybe? I...I think so?”
“That was magic.”
Everyone turned to look at Adagio, a dark look on her face. She sat with her legs and arms crossed, an angry glare directed straight at Sonata. “That mist coming out of Fluttershy was positive energy, generated by Sonata’s original song.” She tilted her head so that even though she was sitting, she was looking down at her younger sister. “Congratulations, Sonata. You can now absorb positive energy.”
She stood up.
“I’m going home. I’ve got work.”
The door slammed with a sharp bang, resonating in the still air.
“I... I didn’t mean to,” Sonata mumbled. “Why wasn’t she happy? Isn’t this what we’re trying to accomplish?”
Sunset put down the book she was reading and stared at the door. “That is what we’re trying to accomplish. And well done, Sonata. I’m really proud of you.” The blue girl smiled. “I’m guessing Adagio is just envious of your ability,” Sunset continued. “She’s happy for you, Sonata, believe me, but from what I know, Adagio isn’t very good at showing her positive feelings.”
She thought for a second. “If you have the ability, then Adagio does too. She just needs to find a way to trigger it...what was your trigger, Sonata?”
“Well, it started when I sang the chorus. I was just so happy to have you all around me, that I wanted to make you guys as happy as me.” Her cheeks flushed. “A-and, I was thinking about how nice Fluttershy has been to me, and how pretty she is...that I wanted to make her feel special. As a thank you.”
Fluttershy giggled. “Thank you, Sonata. Oh, and Sunset, at around the same time, I felt such a wonderful calmness come over me...like I was being wrapped in a giant, warm blanket. Then the magic came out. It didn’t hurt - I actually didn’t feel it come out. I just felt happy.”
“Interesting,” Sunset muttered, taking note of what just happened. “Sonata, you’ve already tapped into your magic, and in such a short time. I’m just wondering, if you’re younger than Adagio, how can you be more powerful?”
Sonata shrugged and sat down. “Adagio and Aria...they’re older than me, yeah, but...I think it might have to do with who they are.” A wistful expression settled on her features. “Dagi...took it upon herself to become the sole leader. She was the one who scoped out potential victims, wrote our songs...she’s the one who did all sorts of things to make sure we were safe.” Sonata looked down, her lower lip quivering dangerously. “S-sometimes she would surprise us. W-with rooms full of people to sing for and feed off. She never told us what she had to do to make that happen. I can’t even imagine what she had to do, and she doesn’t want to talk about it. If she hadn’t forced us to leave all those burdens to her, maybe...maybe she wouldn’t be so weak.”
Sonata took a deep breath.
“With Aria, well, she was always pretty jealous of Dagi. Dagi did everything for us, and I guess Aria got sick of not being allowed to branch out and get her own victims. I remember one time, Aria tried to get Dagi to let her tag along to some event, I don’t know what it was. Dagi kept refusing, and then Aria said horrible things.” A tear worked its way from Sonata’s eye to her clasped hands. “S-saying that D-dagi was just trying to make herself stronger a-and didn’t care about us...and she c-called her so many bad words...they didn’t speak for about a week until they suddenly got over it.”
Fluttershy had wrapped her arms around Sonata by this time, and even Rainbow had a somber expression on her face. The siren’s shoulders shuddered as she let out a shaky breath.
“I just want us to be together again,” she whispered.
Sunset sighed. “Sonata, I’m sorry you had to live in such a hostile environment. I’ll talk to Adagio tonight, see if I can make her see how wonderful your progress is. Good job, everyone. Let’s break for today.”
“Sonata, do you want to come to the animal shelter with me today?” Fluttershy asked. “I always find taking care of animals to calm me down.”
Sonata grinned, her sadness dissipating. “Yes please.”
“Sunset,” Applejack began as Fluttershy and Sonata left. “You’re the best suited gal to talk some sense in Adagio, but...be gentle. You probably know this already, but she’s a delicate one.”
“Thanks,” Sunset nodded. “I’ll do my best.”
***
“What can I get you?” Adagio asked, not bothering to look up at the newcomer. She continued methodically wiping the counter, eyes glazed over with her inner thoughts.
“I’ll have your strongest.”
Adagio’s head snapped up to see Sunset sitting in front of her.
“Woah,” she mumbled, surprised by Sunset’s appearance.
Her multi-colored waves were a sharp frame around her face , which was painted with dark eyeliner and a red lip. Her clothes, black and leather, were tight around her body. She smirked, tapping the counter with her nails.
“I was trying to make myself look older,” Sunset confessed, blushing slightly. “I didn’t want to get kicked or anything.”
“Why are you here?” Adagio finally mustered. “I didn’t know you drank.”
“I don’t. Well, not where I could get in trouble, anyways. I came to talk to you, Adagio. Do you know what happened today?”
Adagio rolled her eyes. “Yeah. Sonata got her magic back. Is that all?”
“You know, it wouldn’t kill you to show her you’re proud,” Sunset said, fiddling with her fingers. “She was really upset because she thought you were angry with her.”
“Well, I’ll make it up to her," Adagio stated, placing a glass of water in front of Sunset. “Sorry, my boss hates it when a customer doesn’t have a drink in their hand.”
“That’s fine. Anyways, I’m here to find out how to get your magic back as well. Sonata said that her trigger was her desire to make us happy, Fluttershy more specifically. They’ve gotten real close lately... I think Sonata might have finally found a best friend.”
“Good for her.” Her voice dripped with sarcasm. “Now they can go off and hold hands in the sunset while I’m stuck here with no friends and no magic.”
Sunset recoiled slightly. “I’m your friend,” she said, wounded. “How can you say that after everything me and the girls have done for you?”
“Then why don’t I have my magic back?” Adagio snapped. Her anger was increasing, and she didn’t want to cause a scene. “I don’t want to fight here. Just let me do my job, or I’ll get in trouble.”
Sunset didn’t leave her seat. She remained there, never moving, taking slow sips from her glass of water. Adagio promptly ignored her, chatting up the other customers with the kind of charisma that some people were just born with.
A loud screech permeated the air, caused by Spirit toying with a microphone. “How’s everyone doing?” he talked into the mic, grinning nervously.
No one really answered back.
He cleared his throat. “So, it’s open mic night! We’ve got a karaoke machine here, and an acoustic guitar for anyone who wants to take it slow. They’re, uh, here.” He shuffled off, ears red.
Sunset raised an eyebrow, a plan formulating in her brain. She stood up, keeping her eyes focused on the acoustic guitar.
“Sunset,” Adagio finally broke her silence. “Where are you going?”
The girl didn’t reply, and walked straight to the stage. She swung the guitar over her shoulder and tapped the microphone.
“Hello, everyone. My name is Sunset Shimmer, and I’ll be performing an original song for you all.” She tested out the guitar by plucking out a few chords.
“I’ve been down so many roads,
Each one harder than the last.
Scorned and taunted, left for worse,
Each memory a scar etched on my past.
But even though my wings were broken,
The fire in my heart no longer burned.
I dug around in the ashes and found
Something worth…
I found light and love and peace and hope,
An extra raft, some extra rope,
And I used those things together,
And I became a better person.
I found light and love and peace and hope,
I found friends to help me live and cope,
I found light and love and peace and hope,
and they were in me all along.”
Sunset’s gaze landed on Adagio, and held her stare for the rest of the song.
“I admit I’ve made mistakes,
I regret most everything.
There are things I cannot shake,
Things I’ve done still lingering.
But I can find it in myself,
To forgive the person I used to be,
For I know that now I can move on,
And change for the better…
I found light and love and peace and hope,
An extra raft, some extra rope,
And I used those things together,
And I became a better person.
I found light and love and peace and hope,
I found friends to help me live and cope,
I found light and love and peace and hope,
and they were in me all along.”
She gave the guitar one final strum and stepped away from the microphone, bowing deeply. She was met with enthusiastic applause, and even Spirit approached her to pat her on the back.
“Hey, if you ever wanna go big, I can hook you up with some gigs,” he said, turning into a businessman. “Here’s my card. Call me anytime.”
Sunset accepted it with a polite thank you, and returned to Adagio. She smiled. “How was I?” she asked.
Adagio struggled to answer for a little while. “Y-you were great. Really great. Nice song.”
Sunset ducked her head. “Thanks. I wrote that song a few weeks after I settled down with the girls.”
“It was a nice song,” Adagio repeated. She kept her eyes low. “I liked it.”
“Do...you want me to teach it to you?” Sunset suddenly asked.
“For real?” Adagio asked, the darkness in her expression turning into excitement. She quickly captured her emotions. “Like, I don’t really care. But, sure, I guess.”
“Let’s get out of here,” Sunset whispered, grabbing Adagio’s arm. “You hate this job, right? Let’s ditch. He won’t notice.”
Adagio bit her lip, then nodded. She pushed her way through the crowd, Sunset’s fingers still firm against her flesh. They ran out into the open air, giggling like kids.
“Follow me,” Sunset said, leading the way. Adagio began to recognize where they were going - the park. The same park Adagio had sat in and blubbered about her feelings.
They sat down heavily on a park bench, huddling close for warmth in the chilly breeze.
“Okay, so I’ll teach you the chorus,” Sunset started. She sang the first line.
“I found light and love and peace and hope.”
Adagio licked her lips and tried to sing it.
“I found light and love and peace and hope.”
“One more time. Listen carefully...I found light and love and peace and hope.”
“I found light and love and peace and hope.”
“You got it! Let’s keep going…”
Adagio pressed on, trying her hardest to match the notes perfectly.
“Adagio, no,” Sunset said. “You’re trying too hard. You gotta...let the music flow in you. Don’t be scared to make mistakes. Just...sing.”
The siren took a deep breath, and was about to let it out before it caught in her throat. Sunset had placed her hands on top of Adagio’s, caressing her knuckles with the pads of her thumbs.
“I found light and love and peace and hope,
An extra raft, some extra rope,
And I used those things together,
And I became a better person.”
“Perfect,” Sunset whispered.
“And I’ve been through so many hoops,
And I’ve tried so hard to protect,
But no matter how often I fell,
I would always get up again.”
Sunset inhaled sharply, and the corners of her mouth turned up. “Keep going,” she mouthed, not wanting to speak.
“And I thought I’d spend my life alone,
Tortured by the sorrowful seeds I’ve sown.
Now I understand I should let them grow
And cut them where they stand.
I have crossed the oceans, walked on clouds,
I have scaled the mountains and the underground.
I have been most everywhere,
But no place can compare,
here with you…
Because you gave me light and love and peace and hope,
You handed me the extra rope,
You helped me put those things together
And become the better person.”
Sunset’s smile widened until it stretched from ear to ear. She felt so calm, so free, so so happy...She glanced down just in time.
Pink mist peeked out from her chest and lazily danced towards Adagio. It made a wreath around her throat before it sunk into her skin. Adagio’s voice became richer as she finished her song.
“Adagio,” Sunset barely whispered. “You did it.”
Adagio squeezed Sunset’s hands. “Thank you,” she murmured, dipping her head. “I...I couldn’t have done it without you.”
Their head were mere inches from one another, so close that tendrils from their hair mingled together. Adagio breathed in deep, relishing the taste of Sunset’s magic. It had been so, so sweet. She looked up to see Sunset with her eyes closed. Her makeup had long been rubbed off, and her face was pale as she basked in the ivory moonlight. She looked happy.
Adagio wanted her to stay that way.