A Dazzling Sunset
Chapter 6
Sunset rubbed her palms along her jeans, wiping them clean of the moisture from moving fresh laundry from one machine to the next. She shrugged off her jacket, tossing over the back of her chair as she walked into her kitchen. The tiny nook smelled heavenly thanks to the tea she’d set when Adagio started the shower. She didn’t have any of the fancy tea pots or cups that Princess Celestia had always favored. She didn’t even have any of the stuff the humans of this world made for tea. But she had a good stainless steel pot with a spout dent shaped into its lip and she had a couple of hearty sized coffee mugs that were just right for hot drinks.
The tea itself wasn’t anything special either. It was just the usual pre-bagged stuff she picked up at the local grocery store every couple of months. It still tasted pretty good and smelled a lot like Celestia’s study on those cold days of her youth as a student to the Princess. Those were good days, now that she looked back on them through the filter of hindsight. That narrow band of time during her foalhood when she’d been happy and hadn’t yet become fed up with the Princess’ glacial approach to teaching.
The tea in the pot was still gently steaming, so she poured cold tap water into the mugs to cool it when they mixed. Sunset hummed softly to herself as she carefully tipped the pot to add the tea. Then she grabbed her sugar canister and spooned into two uneven scoops into each cup before giving them a stir. The ritual was nothing like the overwrought presentation her teacher used to—and if Princess Twilight was to be believed, still—favored. But it worked for her. It managed to center her, settle her mind so she could focus all of it toward whatever problem she needed to solve.
Sunset sighed contently, grabbing the mugs, and turned around to find her problem staring her in the face.
Adagio Dazzle raised an eyebrow at the two mugs, one fist on her hip while the other tugged at the edge of the large white towel that she had wrapped around her torso. It was just big enough to tuck in over her chest, but it refused to stay completely closed across her legs and hung just above the midway point of her thighs. “I don’t have anything to wear.”
She frowned at Sunset. The girl seemed suddenly frozen, standing there with two cups. “You gonna put those down and get a camera? I can hold this pose a little longer if you want.”
“Uh...sorry...I-I didn’t mean to stare!” Sunset grinned nervously. “You just caught me by surprise, that’s all. I, uh, hope you like tea?”
“So long as it’s sweet, I guess. Sonata usually just buys sodas.”
“Huh.” Sunset blinked, pulling her eyes away from the vision of golden perfection standing in her too tiny living room, and set the tea on her small table. She pulled out her one chair and offered it to Adagio. Don’t stare. Don’t stare. Try to ignore it...her...good goddess, I knew she had wide hips, but this is ridiculous! Sunset took a calming inhale of breath. And those…healthy...thighs. It’s too much. Why does Adagio Dazzle, of all people, have to be this attractive?
“Sure you don’t want to get a camera? I know you have a phone that could do it.” Adagio smirked, watching Sunset carefully keep her eyes on anything except her. Normally she loved this sort of attention, the stares the humans gave her whether they were enthralled or not was a pleasant little ego booster. This though, was funny. The pony couldn’t have been easier to read. It made her feel far more in command than she’d been since the battle of the bands.
“It’s almost like you planned this, hmmm, Shimmer? Get me out here alone with promises of a shower and food when I’m at a low point.” Adagio’s smirk widened and she cocked her hip out, letting the towel slide another inch open along her thigh. “Then once you get me out of my clothes, you come up with a flimsy excuse to keep me out of anything else. It’s not like I didn’t see this coming. I can tell there is still a little darkness left inside that friendly exterior...and you sorta outed yourself back at the park. You like what you see.”
It wasn’t a question. The answer, of course, was ‘yes, Sunset did like what she saw.’ Sunset, however, wasn’t about to give the siren the satisfaction of an admission. Sunset threw her hands up in exasberation. “Really? I planned all of this? And for what, getting some flesh to ogle? I have internet access for crying out loud!” She rolled her eyes, folding her arms across her stomach. “I was the school’s Queen Bee. It’s not like I’m hurting for attention, Adagio.”
Except for the fact it keeps coming from the wrong gender. Sunset stood straighter and squared her shoulders. With her arms crossed and jacket off, it drew attention to her chest. “Have you seen me? I’m not some plain Jane by human standards. I’ve got better goods than you do.”
‘Pffft.” Adagio waved her hand vaguely, but couldn’t stop herself from looking away just as Sunset had done earlier. Bluster or no, a part of her was acutely aware of the fact that the redhead was very much not a plain Jane. A battle over bust size was just too cliche, and one she knew she wasn’t going to win. To cover herself and change the topic before things became too uncomfortable, she sank into the offered seat and grabbed the handle of one of the mugs. “So...um, where are you going to sit?”
Sunset’s shoulders slumped a little, her expression softening at the sudden change in the conversation. “I...uh, was just going to use my desk chair, actually. I thought some warm tea might help.”
Adagio didn’t respond immediately. She watched the dark liquid in her cup turn slowly, tiny flecks of tea leaves that escaped their bags tumbling along before sinking to the bottom. Sunset moved at some point, and returned a moment later with a chair on wheels. She watched Sunset take up her own mug and blow across the surface of it. “Help what?”
“Huh?”
“You said the tea would help. Help with what?”
“Uh…” Sunset took a sip of the warm liquid, swallowing loudly. “It’s to calm my nerves, honestly. I’m still new at this making friends business.”
“You want to be my friend?” Adagio lifted her mug and took a tiny test sip. The heat felt good against her tongue. Needs more sugar, but whatever. Why do I sound so dead all of a sudden? I’m sitting here—basically naked—with the only other equestrian female I know that likes girls. Shouldn’t I be doing something? Teasing her? Propositioning her? She smirked at that thought. As if she’d ever live that down.
“Yeah. I want to be your friend, Adagio. In case you haven’t noticed it, you’re an emotional wreck.” Sunset shrugged, her cheap desk chair creaking. “Since this afternoon, you’ve been all over the board from grumpy and confused, to angry, to seductive, to completely disconnected. I know that pattern intimately and, no offense, but I know you need a friend right now.”
Adagio snorted, swirling the tea in her mug and making the leaves dance in the dark amber-colored liquid. She took another sip and then set it back down, her eyes staying focused there. “I suppose that’s right. I...I normally have a lot more control over myself, but now I just seem to be reacting to the world around me more than actually, you know, doing anything. I didn’t even mean to try and insult you there. It just sort of came out.”
“It’s a hard habit to break, hmm?” Sunset blew on her drink for a moment before sipping lightly. “You spend so much time and effort on being in charge. Being in command all the time. Doing the whole ‘manipulative bitch’ schtick. Then you get knocked down a peg and the whole facade crumbles, but you still have the habits. You still-”
“Expect everyone to do what you say.” Adagio finished for Sunset, her hand reaching up to rub the yellowing rim of her bruise. “But then they don’t.”
“You know, I never even asked...but does that still hurt? I think I have some first aid creams and pain relievers.”
“No. It doesn’t hurt.” Adagio sighed, looking up at Sunset and regarding the red head seriously. “In a weird way, I’ve come to feel sort of proud of it, you know? I mean, I’m going to kill Aria when I get the chance, but at the same time I can’t blame her for doing it. Heck, I would have punched me! Look what I’ve brought us too…”
“Is it really so bad, though?” Sunset pulled up her knees, propping her feet on the edge of the chair, and rested her chin on the denim. “I’ve survived this long without magic. Or well...magic that makes any sort of sense as I understand it. I know it’s a life changer, but you’re still alive, healthy and young, right? You can make a new life.”
“I guess.” Adagio shrugged noncommittally. If I can get my hands on your magic source, I won’t need to, now will I?
Silence reigned between them, the only noise coming from the machine in the garage drying their laundry. When Sunset spoke again, she tiled her head, raising an eyebrow quizzically. “Do you mean that seriously? About killing Aria? Seems a bit extreme, even if she did punch you in the eye.”
“Pffft, she deserves it. Aria has been a loose canon for as long as I’ve known her. Hungry for power and complete rubbish with it whenever she gets a taste.”
“I remember you said she caused trouble for the three of you, back at Dom’s.”
“I’m just worried about leaving her alone for too long.” Adagio waved her hand around vaguely. “Aria is a magnet for bad stuff. She could get Sonata into some serious crap and then I’ll have to clean up like I always do. But now I won’t have my magic to get them literally out of jail or away from some monkeys on another witch hunt.”
“You worry about Sonata?” Sunset raised her head, the other eyebrow cocking in interest. “That seems...uncharacteristic of you.” She cleared her throat. “No offense.”
“Heh...maybe it is. Sonata is a big siren, she can handle herself.” Adagio looked back at her cup, but made no move to pick it up, her voice growing softer. “But she’s my cousin. I’m obligated to worry.”
Sunset kept to herself, thinking about what she and Princess Twilight had gone over about pony knowledge on Equestrian Sirens. Their culture was almost a complete mystery, since it all happened at the bottom of the seabed. Few of the creatures had ever even come to the surface, and a full third of those that had, was currently sitting—barely wrapped in a large towel—in her appartment. Knowing that they even cared for family members at all was something of a surprise. It seemed silly, but a part of her expected the sirens to be cold like the fish or snakes they superficially resembled.
This side of Adagio Dazzle was yet another in a long line of things she never thought she’d see.
And maybe it means there might be something to befriending her after all. She cares for someone other than herself. Sunset smiled faintly at the thought. Perhaps she might just walk away from this with a success.
“What are you smiling about?”
Sunset’s eyes snapped up. Adagio was staring at her intently. She grinned nervously, hugging her knees to her chest a little tighter. “Oh, nothing. It’s just weird to hear you talk about the other sirens like that. You three didn’t seem like the horribly best of friends at the school.”
“We aren’t.” Adagio deadpanned. “Look...can we talk about something else? This is giving me a headache.”
“Well, what do you want to talk about?” Sunset took another strong sip of her tea, slurping intentionally loud. Princess Celestia used to scold her for it, back in her student days, but it was always an effective way of stating her exasperation with how their conversations went.
Magic? Adagio rolled her eyes and lifted her own tea to her lips. How you keep your hair looking silky smooth? How my legs are starting to get cold in this towel? I don’t know! I just don’t want to think about the other two right now. Her imagination had other ideas though, conjuring up images of Aria and Sonata in various levels of trouble. Most of it was nonsense. In all likelihood, they probably wouldn’t get shot at while she was dealing with Sunset’s hospitality. Probably. She hoped, at least.
She swallowed slowly. The tea, like the soap and water in the shower, warmed her. It did make things better, oddly enough. In a way, that slow heat helped her see things in perspective. There was no real need for her to rush. She was comfortable, clean, and her company of choice was not punching her in the face. She could afford to relax for a change. Briefly, Adagio wondered if that was just an aspect of the situation, or something in the tea itself. She looked back at Sunset Shimmer out of the corner of her eyes. Sunset wasn’t watching her, but was pretty focused on her knees, or maybe the floor.
“What about you?” Adagio ventured gently, hunting for the right words. “You keep saying we’re alike. That you know what I’m going through. But I don’t actually know jack squat about you, Sunset.”
“What’s there to know that I haven’t already told you? You know I’m from Equestria, that I’m a unicorn, that I studied under Princess Celestia until I couldn’t take her teaching methods anymore and I ran away to the human world with dumb dreams about conquering the place.” Sunset mimicked a nonchalant shrug, but her voice sounded huffy and thick to her own ears.
“The army of brainwashed teenagers thing.”
“Yeah.” Sunset sighed tiredly and buried her face in between her knees. “Whenever anyone says it out loud like that...it just sounds stupid.”
“It does.” Adagio smirked mirthlessly, her mind turning over her own former plans. “But honestly? It’s not like my idea was any better. Worse really, if you think about all I...we...lost in doing it. I feel so stupid.”
“We all make mistakes.”
“Ours were pretty colossal ones, though.”
Sunset lifted her head enough to nod vaguely. “I guess that’s a point worth being proud over. I mean, how many other people can claim they tried to mind control a bunch of teenage human high schoolers with limited success in a bid to control the world?”
“And walked away from the rainbow colored aftermath? I heard yours was the reason CHS has that new pavement out front?” Adagio’s smirk finally started to reach her eyes. She giggled a moment later. Sunset joined her, the red head’s laughter bubbling up and out like seafoam. Maybe Sunset had a point about them having more than a few things in common. Maybe she could be worth talking to, worth being friendly too. Adagio sighed, but for once in a long time, it wasn’t a tired, wounded, sigh. The last of the tension in her shoulders that survived the shower melted out of her and she sank a little more in her seat.
“Hey...you got a bath robe or something? My legs are getting cold in this towel.” Adagio tilted her head, feeling her loose cloud of hair brush across her back. “Oh, and thanks. For the shower. And dinner too, I guess.”
Sunset smiled and stood up, stretching before setting down her mostly empty mug of tea. “Sorry I didn’t offer the robe earlier. I almost never use it myself.” She grinned and walked over into her sleeping area and opened the top drawer of her dresser. “One of the side effects of never having guests over is walking around naked. Don’t sweat it about the shower or anything. I could tell you needed it, Adagio. If nothing else, my own...conversion, for lack of a better term...has shown me just how far a little kindness and compassion can go.”
She walked back, a moment later, with a golden red colored, long fluffy robe in hand. Sunset handed it to Adagio and turned away to let the blond girl change. “I’ve learned a lot about this sorta stuff, but I still have a long ways to go. It’s still a day to day thing, sometimes. I envy the girls at school...they do this stuff so effortlessly. But if they can do it, so can I.” She crossed her arms over her front, leaning to the side slightly as she listened to Adagio move behind her. “Take it from me, the trust issues are going to be the biggest hurdle. Those just sort of take time. Hopefully, you don’t still think I’m trying to take advantage of you?”
“Not really...I guess. Is it weird I’m mildly disappointed you don’t have an evil plan?”
“No. That’s normal too. Expectations are funky like that.” Sunset smiled, hugging herself as memories of her own early days after getting hit with the magic of friendship had opened her eyes and heart. Her mind still found it hard to grasp concepts like selflessness or simple courtesy. “It’ll pass in time. Or, at least, it gets easier.”
Wait… Sunset blinked. Does that mean she’s disappointed that I’m not taking advantage of her? She scrunched her eyes closed tightly for a second as her imagination tried to supply her images of what Adagio looked like as she was changing into the robe. She opened them again when she heard the chair move and the siren take a seat once again. Sunset gave herself a quick count to ten to make sure she looked calm before turning back around.
When she did, her breath caught in her throat and she stared openly for a couple of seconds at Adagio. While the towel wrap had certainly brought attention to her hips and curves, the robe managed to cover that while accentuating the graceful lines of her shoulders and neck as they were absorbed into that fluffy mass of curly hair. The girl was resting her chin in one hand, elbow on the table and eyes focused in the distance, paying Sunset no attention as she fumbled once again to appear neutral.
“Um...oh good, it fits.”
“Yeah.” Adagio plucked at the robe where it hung loosely at her chest, thankful for the extra soft material. “How long until my clothes are dry?”
“I’ll go check!” Sunset turned on her heel, walking stiffly out into the garage and closed the door behind her. As soon as it clicked shut behind her, she took a deep breath of the cool air in the dark room. The smell of the laundry detergent turned the dust-on-grease odor of the garage a pleasant sort of lavender. Sunset held her breath for a moment, leaning back against the door, before letting it out smoothly.
“Come on girl...keep it together.” She whispered to herself, letting the noise of the dryer keep it hidden from her guest. “Just because she’s...gorgeous...is no reason to lose your cool. You hang out with good looking girls all the time and this never happens.”
She pushed off the door, reaching over to flip on the light and banish the night back outside the windows. Sunset shook herself and glanced over at the dryer, its ancient knob still pointed at a faded forty five. “Fantastic...basically another hour of having to not look at her. What’s wrong with me, anyway? It’s fricking Adagio Dazzle...I shouldn’t be reacting like this. But what did she mean?” Sunset ran the conversation though her mind again.
...mildly disappointed you don’t have an evil plan… It made her head hurt just to think about the twisted connotations that one sentence brought up. In a way, it almost made her wish she did have an evil plan to assert dominance over her former enemy. Sunset touched her stomach, feeling the odd butterflies there and the hungry tingle underneath that. No. Do not go there, Sunset. That only leads to ruin and you’ve already been there. You are stronger than this. Your libido does not dictate your actions.
“But what do I do about it?” She sighed again, scowling at the dryer’s lack of urgency. “Maybe...maybe I should just take a shower too. Relax, let it all wash away. After I set up a place for her to sleep...that would be the friendly thing to do, right?”
She huffed again, blowing her hair out of her face before settling her expression, and went back inside. Adagio was right where she’d left her, a second empty mug pushed up gently against her own. “Uh, looks like another thirty to forty minutes. Not too much longer.” Sunset wiped her palms on her jeans, grinning nervously. “I was thinking I’d go ahead and take a shower myself, since it’s already dark and getting later. Let me...uh...grab a pillow and a blanket for you.”
Adagio didn’t say anything, her maroon colored eyes just watching as Sunset pulled some spare bedding from her single closet. “Sorry if it smells a bit musty. We normally have sleepovers at Pinkie’s or Applejack’s place. Lots more room there.”
“I see…” Adagio murmured, only half listening to Sunset, seemingly lost in her thoughts.
“Ok...well, I’m going to take my shower, so...if you want to go ahead and crash, feel free.” Sunset eyed Adagio, but the girl continued to be distant and detached. Adagio didn’t seem ready to do or say anything else, and she couldn’t think of any reason to keep the awkward one-sided conversation going, so she headed for her sleep area and the bathroom beyond.
Adagio continued to sit there, not focusing on anything, until she heard the hiss of the shower start. She rose slowly from her place at the table, pushing the chair back into place before she wandered over to the shelves that lined the room. What am I doing? What am I even looking for? She shook her head. Would she even know something contained equestrian magic if she saw it? If it wasn’t floating and glowing with a rainbow of colors, what was to differentiate it from any other random item she might find?
How do I even know there is some thing here that is magical, anyway? Sunset was...is...a unicorn. They don’t normally use enchanted items. It’s not like I’m going to find some version of my gem just lying around.
Adagio ran her fingertips gently over the spines of the books on the shelves, her eyes scanning them without really reading any of the titles. They looked like textbooks mostly, with the occasional oddity mixed in. A book of children’s rhymes. A book about historical ghost stories. A worn paperback with pictures of women riding horses on the cover. The cases for the CDs and DVDs were just as normal and uninteresting. Except for the ones that looked suspiciously like bootlegs of cartoons from the previous couple of decades. The stuffed animals and little kitschy trinkets were cute, but told her nothing she didn’t already know about the homesick former pony.
“This is pointless.” She let her hand drop and turned in place, looking around the small apartment. “Maybe I just suck at making plans? There isn’t even anything here worth using as blackmail.”
There wasn’t anything in the kitchen nook, the big closet where the extra bedding had been stored, nor anything in the back where Sunset slept either. She was just thinking about checking in the boxes of holiday decorations they had walked pass in the garage when she heard the shower stop. By the time the bathroom door opened, Adagio was sitting on the small couch, leaning against the provided blanket, her tiredness plain on her face.
She looked up when Sunset leaned around the partition, her eyes going wide. The redhead’s hair was still mostly wet and hung in a dark red sheet against her side, the yellow highlights all but invisible in the backlight from the bathroom. Sunset wore a large, loose t-shirt that failed at hiding her obvious curves and hugged close to her hips, but what really threw Adagio was the capris. They were blue and covered in a pattern of little yellow ducklings that looked like they swimming together in a line.
“Oh hey, you’re already on the...is something wrong?”
Adagio realized that at some point, her jaw had dropped open, and snapped it shut. “Uh...no. N-nothing wrong...I’m just...I...uh…” She gestured vaguely with her hands, her eyes flicking around, unsure where to focus. Finally, she managed to hold on Sunset’s face. “I just wasn’t expecting little ducky PJs.”
“What were you expecting?”
“I-I don’t...know?” The siren shrugged. She honestly wasn’t sure. She just knew that duck patterned pants was not it. “Something...I don’t know, less girly?”
Sunset raised an eyebrow skeptically, planting her fist on her hip. “What does that mean?”
“Nothing, really! I guess...I was just sort of expecting something more adult-ish. Really, they look cute on you.” Adagio swallowed and looked away, her voice going soft. “I’ll shut up up now.”
“Adagio…” Sunset shook her head. I think that was a compliment. Sheesh...was I this awkward when I first changed? Goddess, I hope not! Note to self: ask Rarity how bad I was at this stuff. It’ll help me help her...I think.
Sunset swallowed, reaching up to scoop her hair up into a loose tail. “Well, I’m going to dry my hair and head to bed. Do you...uh, need anything?” She smiled slightly, watching the blond slump bashfully. She really is pretty.
Adagio shook her head slowly, keeping her eyes on the floor. “No.” Sunset turned away and before she could stop herself, Adagio whispered. “Thank you.”
Sunset paused for a moment, her smile growing lopsidedly. Maybe this will work out after all. A second later, she returned to the bathroom and the waiting tornado strength caresses of her blow dryer.
The siren continued to sit there for a few minutes more before letting her slump carry her completely down onto the couch cushions. It wasn’t the most comfortable place she’d ever slept, but true to Sunset’s earlier promise, it was much better than her camp in the woods outside the horse park. The furniture barely registered her weight at all, sighing softly under her as she settled and pulled the blanket up over herself.
Great, she frowned into the darkened living area, the blanket covering her all the way up to her nose, now she thinks I’m a dork as well as mentally unstable. Why did I have to mention her damn PJs? What was she supposed to wear, some sort of silken boy shorts or leather to match her jacket? It’s just normal stuff...so get your mind out of the gutter, Adagio.
Sunset’s shape, that dangerously curvy silhouette played coy in Adagio’s imagination, bending and twisting in ways that made her toes curl. This is going to be a fun night. Stupid libido...I don’t even have the privacy to do anything about it. She grumbled to herself and pulled the blanket fully over her head, blocking out the last of the light and sound from the bathroom. I’m the siren here. It’s supposed to be me that does the tempting, not the other way around!
She bit her lip, swallowing down a frustrated whimper, and closed her eyes, wishing for sleep to come swiftly. As fate would have it, her prayers were answered before Sunset turned off the lights and finally climbed into bed herself a short time later.
***
It felt like no time had passed at all since her head had hit the pillow. But the tiny apartment was fully dark now, the only lights coming from a few of the appliance LEDs in Sunset’s kitchen nook. It was quiet. No road noise. No crickets. Just the breathing coming from the other side of the room partition.
Adagio blinked, confusion and sleep fog making her slow as she struggled to remember why she wasn’t in her camp, the night whispering around her, telling her what a joke her life had become. She raised her head, looking around the faintly outlined living area for whatever had woken her. Nothing was immediately obvious, so she let herself drop back onto the pillow. Then she heard it.
A quiet buzzing noise. It pulsed with hushed urgency for a few seconds and then stopped.
Is that a phone? She squinted across the space at one of the LEDs that had a clock face. It is well after midnight, who would be calling Sunset now?
The buzzing returned, repeating its pattern, but the former pony’s breathing remained steady and unbothered in her bed.
Something about the noise, however, told Adagio it wasn’t a phone set on vibrate. The sound stopped, and just as before, started up again a minute later. Fantastic. I’m going to kill whatever is making that racket. She sat up, the robe she still wore falling loose and open, and stood up.
The buzzing led her, inching along carefully through the darkness, into Sunset’s bed area of the one room home. She could just make out the black-on-black mass of the girl, Sunset’s head buried amid her own pile of pillows and sheets. It was no wonder Sunset hadn’t been woken by it, but the more she heard the sound, the closer it brought her to Sunset’s most personal part of the apartment, the more nervous Adagio felt.
The sound came again, from the top drawer of the dresser there. Adagio sent Sunset another glance, reaching out to pull it slowly open. The last thing she wanted right now was for the girl to wake up and find her snooping through her underwear. The buzzing got louder, but Sunset’s only reaction was to shift slightly, breathing deeper as she got comfortable. A faint purplish glow from between the bundles of cloth in the drawer illuminated the inside of the dresser, pulsing in time with the buzzing.
She kept glancing from the light to Sunset’s sleeping form, her hand hovering just above the drawer. The sound stopped and the light went out. It came on again. Adagio swallowed and reached in cautiously, unsure of what she was about to find buried under Sunset’s striped socks and underwire bras. When she pulled it out again, she held an old looking book in her hand, the pulsing sound once again going silent, the fading glow showing her a sun motif in familiar shades of red and yellow.
“T-the…equestrian magic...”
Her mouth went dry and the book suddenly felt massive in her hands. The thing she had searched for, the actual honest to goodness, physical thing that had some sort of connection to Equestria. To home. To the power that could make her the undisputed leader of the sirens again. It could make her more than that, it could make her the ruler of this entire prison she’d been thrown into. She might even get her fins and scales back.
Adagio worked her jaw, wetting her mouth, and jumped alittle when the book once again started its magical buzzing and light show. She startled, bumping into the foot of Sunset’s bed. The sleeping girl shifted again, groaning quietly. Adagio backed up, shoving the book inside the fold of her bathrobe. She gave Sunset a parting glance and quickly tiptoed back to the couch, a devious smile flashing across her face.
Adagio pulled her blanket around herself and the book, muffling it as soon as it repeat its display. In the bright glow, there was no mistaking it for some sort of human technology. It was a thick hard bound book with an embossed, symbolized sun on the cover and it was literally vibrating with magic.
“Now what?” Adagio chewed on her lower lip, regarding the obviously magical device. Given a moment to think about it, she had no idea how to harness the magic it held or how to do anything with it. She didn’t even know what it did. Recalling the battle, the Rainbooms had never used the book. They had just sung their songs and channeled the magic through their bodies.
Maybe...it’s like a human spellbook? That didn’t seem right to her either. Why would ponies make such a thing? Lacking any other idea at the moment, Adagio reached out and opened the book.
The moment she did, the aura around it came to life and flipped pages until it landed on one that seemed like the last to contain any sort of writing. True to what she could remember of Equestria, the contents of the book was completely hoof-written, not a single bit of type to be seen, though it oddly seemed to hold writing by more than one pony. The writing style jumped back and forth, as if two authors were trading off after each sentence or paragraph.
There were even notes in the margins, but those all had similar penmanship, and a couple of tiny doodles that looked surprisingly familiar. Adagio touched one long coiling figure with a wide flaring dorsal fin lightly with her fingertips. “Is this supposed to be me?”
The book glowed with magic once more and before her eyes, new words appeared on the next blank line. She squinted at them and the lines started to rearrange themselves until she could read it, the rest of the writing following suit a second later.
Good luck, Sunset! I’m sure you’ll be able to pass this test with flying colors. Just take things slowly, let the friendship develop naturally. Believe me when I say trying to force it along will blow up in your face! Ask me how I know!
I’m sorry for the late reply. Princess Luna asked me to personally help her sort her library. I just got back home and my jaw is killing me. Let me know how things go, I’m interested in your findings for my own studies into cross-species friendships with non-mammals and the sirens represent a unique set of data points!
Your friend and confidant.
-Twilight
P.S.: Checked Fish off the list. If it comes up, ask Adagio if sirens lay eggs or have live births. I’m interested in knowing, Starswirl’s notes don’t really cover it. But don’t worry about asking if it’s awkward! Being comfortable around each other is an important early step in the friendship process!
She sneered at that. Damn ponies. What do they care how we do that?
Adagio let her eyes crawl over the rest of the notes, and back and forth messages between Sunset and that other girl, the pony princess Twilight. The notes covered what the princess could dredge up about Adagio and the other sirens. They mentioned Starswirl several times and the twisted story of their banishing from Equestria ages past. Adagio turned the pages slowly, scanning the words closely. Sunset had planned all this, in a way. She’d felt bad about the friendship she’d received after her own conversion not being extended to the sirens.
The notes and conversation got older the farther she flipped back through the pages. Mention of her and the others disappeared and the tone of the writing changed drastically to bickering and demands. Something about hidden knowledge and great magic to be found in openness and honesty. The script was still recognizably Sunset’s, but the other writer wasn’t Princess Twilight, but somepony with a much more flowy style.
It didn’t have anything to do with her, and Adagio felt her interest waning quickly. She turned the pages back to the most recent entry, rereading Sunset’s words. The pony actually wanted to help her. Sunset felt that they could connect over their shared trials and defeats. Adagio looked over her shoulder at the partition separating her from where the unicorn turned human was resting.
I could take it. She turned back, focusing on the door that lead outside. I could leave with it now and she’d never know. Get my clothes back and just...leave. Her dim reflection in the TV screen, highlighting in the journal’s faint glow seemed to sneer back at her. You are Adagio Dazzle. You are a force to be reckoned with. If she still wants to be friends, she can do it after Aria has been put back in her place.
Aria. The purple siren’s face flashed in Adagio’s memory, her fingers curling into a fist without her thinking about it. The upstart needed to be taught a lesson.
If I just wait...she’ll do it to herself. Aria can’t lead now anymore than she could years ago. I don’t have to do anything. She swallowed, feeling the magical book’s weight in her lap. It felt surprisingly light, like a feather that really should be a stone. Taking it for herself would be easy. Simple. She knew that Sunset wouldn’t trust her again if she took it. No matter if she somehow managed to use the magic to beat Aria.
Why Sunset’s trust would even matter to her was a strange thought. She turned it over in her mind, examining it, but it seemed so alien to her. If she put the book back and went back to bed, she’d still have...whatever it was she had with Sunset still intact come the morning light.
“But…” Adagio looked down at the book. At the possible key to her return to power. “But what about Sonata? Do I just abandon her while Aria goes about self-destructing herself? Or...do I do something about it? It...it doesn’t matter who you hurt, if you are just proving you’re the best. Right?”
Adagio closed the book slowly, running her hand over the split color sun on the cover. Confusion warred within her. She could still put it back where she’d found it. Let Aria run head first into her own dead end and pick up the pieces later. She could sleep on Sunset’s couch, maybe eat breakfast and then start being normal.
But that wasn’t what her gut told her to do. She wanted to hit Aria so bad, she could taste it. Friendship could wait...not that she needed friendship. Friendship was for weaklings. That was what she’d always told herself.
Now, she just wasn’t so sure.
Adagio sighed, humming to herself. It was a nervous habit, a bit like a human sucking their thumb. It calmed her, and when she’d still had her gem, the sonics would stroke her hair the way the ocean used to do the same to her fins and frills. The book, under her hand thrummed along in time, seeming to throw her voice back in her face. Tempting her with the possibility of getting her strength and power back.
Behind her, the gentle rise and fall of Sunset’s breathing whispered strange thoughts of a different sort of strength. A different way to look at the world and those around her. In the long years of her life, Adagio never looked to others for help. In all her time banished to the human world, her disdain for such behavior had only grown. Treating others as equals only led to eventual ruin. But now...the world was different. She was weak. She needed allies.
Slowly, Adagio closed the journal, its magical glow fading now that its message had been delivered. It reverted to a simple object, the texture of its back cover pressing into her knees. She again felt weirdly disconnected, her body moving by itself. How was she supposed to know the right thing to do? How was she supposed to choose between her vengeance and the feelings of others? Was she even capable of doing the right thing?
The next thing she knew, Adagio found herself once more in front of Sunset’s dresser. The girl was still sleeping peacefully. She reached out, her hand hovering over Sunset’s underwear drawer knob. Time seemed to crawl by as her emotions waged war on each other until one path remained before her. She slid the drawer open cautiously and put the book back where she’d found it. Adagio spread the drawer’s contents over the top of it and closed the drawer, whispering to herself. “Sonata forgive me.”
Her eyes stung, tears welling up as the weight of her choice settled onto her shoulders. She hoped this was right and that Aria wouldn’t end up dragging her cousin down with her. The air seemed thick, and she felt her throat tightening. She needed fresh air. The room was suffocating.
“Adagio?”
The siren jerked back, eyes widening in surprise when the dark blot of her hostess shifted and sat up. A second later, Sunset’s bedside lamp lit up the corner of the room, forcing both of them to squint and blink. Sunset looked tired, hair a little wild and PJs rumpled. Her t-shirt rode high, exposing her narrow waist and trim core, while her duck patterned jammies hung low on one hip.
“This isn’t what it looks like, I swear!” Adagio slammed the dresser drawer closed, stepping further away both the book and Sunset. “It...I mean...dammit, you weren’t supposed to wake up!” She snarled, her fist clenching, but her anger was at herself. “I wasn’t going to steal—”
“I know.” Sunset interrupted. She cleared her throat, smiling gently. “I uh...heard you talking to yourself. I’ve actually been awake since you first came back here.”
“And you didn’t say anything?” Adagio bumped into the bathroom door with a dull thud, her anger draining from her expression. “Why...why would you do that?”
Sunset shrugged, throwing back her sheets so she could turn and sit on the edge of her mattress. “I don’t know. I froze up. I didn’t know if you were going try something, or if you just wanted to rifle through my panties.”
Adagio hissed through clenched teeth. “I d-did not want...uhg...I…you’re not even wearing any!” She pointed accusingly at Sunset’s exposed hip where her capris hung low.
The redhead flushed and yanked the hem of her shirt down. “It’s a warm night, sue me!” Sunset took a calming breath and ran her hands down her sides to smooth the wrinkles flat. “Look, Adagio, I know the temp—”
“Don’t.” Adagio covered her face with her hands, running her fingers up into her curls a moment later with a deep sigh. Her voice took on a tired edge. “I don’t want to talk right now. I...I need some air.”
The girl in the ducky pajamas lowered her head, her hands dropping listbonelessly into her lap. Sunset sighed quietly, biting back a snarky quip that was threatening to burst out of her. “I just want to help.”
“Sometimes you can’t.”
Adagio turned, hugging her arms tight around herself.
“Where are you going?”
The siren didn’t stop, reaching the door at the front of the tiny living space in a few steps. “To get some air.”
“Adagio!” Sunset’s eyes widened. “You don’t have to run away.”
“I’m not running away.” Adagio looked back over her shoulder, her hand already turning the knob. “I’m in a bathrobe, out in the middle of nowhere and it’s dark. I’m just getting some damn air.”
And just like that, Sunset found herself alone. She sat there, silently watching the door in the warm glow of her bed side lamp. She was used to being the only one living at her house, but no it seemed lonelier than usual, as if the other girl had taken something with her, leaving a husk behind. Slowly she pulled her legs up, drawing her sheet back over her legs.
Do I go after her? Sunset slumped where she sat, feeling oddly numb and put off by her guest’s behavior. Do I give her space? What is the right thing to do? How do I be a good friend? Maybe space was the right way. She could allow Adagio that time to work through some issues. She’d needed it herself back then, hadn’t she?
But then again, I needed my friends there too. They were there to share the burden. Let me cry and apologize and just listened to me.
She desperately wanted to get up and grab a pen, write to Twilight for advice. But that felt wrong. Weak. She didn’t need guidance every time something didn’t go according to plan. She just needed to find a different angle to approach the problem from. She looked back up at the door, but it remained closed.
Her home remained devoid of Adagio.
She’ll be back. I just have to wait. Certainly by the time Adagio returned, she would have figured out a way to fix this. A way to help Adagio get past this. “Maybe I should offer to kick Aria’s ass for her?” Sunset shook her head, frowning at the straws she was pulling on the whole ‘how to be a friend’ thing.
The minutes ticked by slowly. The clock on her wall buzzed to ring in the time at two in the morning. The sound had only just stopped when Sunset heard to low and distant rumble of thunder. One of the frequent summer storms was rolling in.