…“You're staying?” asked Sunset.
“You have a problem with that?”
“Well, I'll need to check with Fluttershy; It is her home. And honestly, I'm not so sure it's such a good idea.”
“Fine, you ask her.” Aria headed for the door to the hall. “I need a drink.”
Rainbow Dash was having a lousy morning. OK, so she'd slept in late, but she'd had a late night, and she must have been lying awkwardly, because now her side hurt. More to the point, she still hadn't eaten — Applejack had dragged her out of bed, and she'd just about made it to the kitchen, where delicious food smells had awoken her hungry belly, before the sirens' drama in the hallway had kicked off. Now she found herself alone with Sonata and Twilight in the front room, the half-eaten remains of Adagio's breakfast resting temptingly on the table.
Of course, she could return to the kitchen, but that would mean leaving Twilight alone with one of The Dazzlings, which frankly didn't strike Rainbow as such a good idea, right now. So instead, she began leaning against a nearby wall, staring at the door, and waiting for one of the other girls to show up.
After Aria left the room, Sonata slumped back into the couch, folding her arms, and gazing out the window with a troubled expression on her face, until she felt a weight dip the couch next to her.
Turning to see where this added weight had come from, Sonata found herself face-to-face with a bespectacled purple girl, who was putting on an awkward smile.
“Hi there!” said the purple girl.
“Do I know you?” Sonata asked, frowning — the girl did look familiar.
“Oh, no. Not really, I mean. But you probably met the other 'me'.” Seeing no understanding in Sonata's face, Twilight continued, “The other Twilight Sparkle, I mean. That's my name — but there's another girl, from your world, who looks a lot like me, and has the same name. What I mean is, there are two Twilight Sparkles, and I'm one of them, but you've probably met the other one.”
Sonata smiled, and nodded, albeit with a slightly glazed-over expression. “Oh, OK. You're one of the Rainbooms, right?”
“Uh, well, no, I'm not in their band. But I am friends with them.”
“So, you guys are trying to make friends with Adagio, right? Can you make her not be mad at me and Aria? Because this really sucks.”
“I don't think it works that way, sorry.”
“Oh.” Sonata looked utterly dejected, and Twilight couldn't help but rest a sympathetic hand on her shoulder.
“We'll talk to her, she might come around.”
“It's because we got our gems smashed, isn't it? I knew she was still mad about that.”
“Um, actually, I think she might think it's a little weird for two sisters to be doing… 'that'. A lot of people believe that sisters shouldn't, y'know, have sex.”
Sonata blinked. “Oooh, that makes more sense. What about you?”
“What?”
“Do you think it's wrong?”
“Oh! Well, I guess no, not really. I mean, it's a little unusual, but if you're not harming any—”
Twilight's eyes went wide, and her gaze slowly dropped.
“Sonata?”
“Hmm-mmh?”
“Y-your hand is on my knee.” As Twilight spoke these words, Rainbow Dash's head snapped around, but she remained speechless as Twilight continued. “Actually, just above my knee. And slightly inward. I'm not sure that's an appropriate place for your hand to be, really.”
Sonata was leaning forward, her smile suddenly a lot more… adult.
“You're cute, you know that?” Sonata… purred. “I bet Aria wouldn't mind sharing.”
Twilight shuffled back into the corner of the couch. She put her own hand over Sonata's, to prevent that hand from sliding any further up her leg, and she gave a small yelp when she felt Sonata's other hand encroaching onto her hips.
“Oi, blue girl,” growled Rainbow Dash, “hands off.”
Sonata briefly met Rainbow's glare, before slinking back to the far corner of the couch, pouting.
Twilight turned her head to offer Rainbow Dash a grateful smile, but froze when she felt something stroking its way up her leg. Turning her gaze downwards, she found that Sonata had slipped own shoe off, and was now stroking one foot up and down her shin.
Twilight glared angrily at Sonata, who raised her hands and wiggled her fingers.
“No hands.” Sonata sang.
Twilight frowned, and pushed Sonata's leg aside, then stood up. “No feet, either.”
It shocked Twilight just how quickly Sonata jumped up, how quickly she found herself pinned in between the couch and the lascivious siren.
“That's a fun game,” Sonata remarked, “no hands, no feet… what else can I use?”
“Don't make me come over there and smack you,” snapped Rainbow Dash.
The effect was dramatic. Sonata's expression suddenly changed to one of utmost shock, and she stumbled back away from Twilight, turning to face Rainbow, and bringing her hands up to her chest and covering her mouth, defensively. Twilight immediately took the opportunity to escape, slipping across to the doorway, though not actually leaving the room.
Looking at Sonata's wide-eyed stare, Rainbow Dash immediately regretted her outburst — partly because she recalled advice Applejack had once given her about dealing with children, never to make a threat you don't intend to follow through with — but mostly because the girl's reaction made her re-consider how violently Sonata had been treated just minutes ago, by Aria. And if that's how Sonata was treated in public…
“L-look,” Rainbow Dash began, mind racing to figure out how to undo the damage of her own careless words…
“You'll… smack me?” Sonata's voice trembled as she inched forwards, her steps bringing her closer to Rainbow, Twilight, and the door. “That's what you said, right?”
“Well…” Rainbow squirmed, shifting from one foot to the other.
Then Sonata's hands shifted, and Rainbow got a clear look at her face. The rainbow-haired girl froze in shock at the sight of the most creepy smile she'd ever seen, plastered over Sonata's face.
In the seconds Rainbow took to react, Sonata closed the gap between them. Standing less than an arm's reach away, she dropped her hands to her sides, and thrust her chin forward.
“Go on, then,” Sonata whispered. “Give me your best shot.”
“E-e-eh…” Rainbow turned a pleading look towards Twilight, who started making “I'll go get help” gestures, before turning to the door.
“What's the matter?” Sonata taunted, “You're a big, tough, girl, aren'tcha? Don't you wanna take a swing, show me who's boss? I bet you —“ Sonata raised a finger to stroke Rainbow's jawline “— like to play rough.”
Rainbow raised her own hands defensively. She could see insanity in the siren's eyes, and although it was nearly midday, Rainbow still felt it was too early in the morning for her to be dealing with this.
Then she noticed Twilight re-enter the room, backwards. In the doorway, stood Aria Blaze.
“What,” deadpanned Aria, “is going on here?”
Sonata… wiggled. Her hips and shoulders swayed in opposite directions, while her feet stayed planted. Without shifting her stare from Rainbow's face, she proclaimed in a loud, joyful voice:
“Rainbow Dash says she's gonna smack me around!”
Rainbow could swear, she didn't even have time to blink before Sonata was unceremoniously shoved aside, and Aria had her by the collar.
“The HELL!? You keep your hands off Sonata, ya hear?”
Honestly, Rainbow felt like crying. She just wanted to sit and eat a quiet breakfast, instead she had to deal with two deranged lunatics.
“Sure, OK”
“She's MINE, you got that?”
Rainbow stared back into Aria's furious gaze, and simply gave up.
“Absolutely. Whatever you say.”
At which point, Adagio Dazzle walked in.
“Ok, what's going on here?”
“Rainbow Dash and Aria are fighting over me!” proclaimed Sonata. “It's so romantic.” She sighed. “It's too bad Rainbow's kind of a wuss.”
“Hey, what?” Rainbow heard her own mouth exclaim, while the smarter parts of her brain tried to get her to keep quiet.
“Yeah,” Sonata continued, “you pretty much gave up right away, I mean, Aria didn't even hit you yet.”
“That's 'cause she knows she can't take me,” smirked Aria.
“Yeah, right!” Once again, Rainbow's brain was screaming at her mouth to stop, “I totally could.”
Adagio took a seat on the couch.
“Anyone got popcorn?”
Two minutes later, Sunset Shimmer, journal clutched under one arm, met Applejack and Pinkie Pie in the hallway. The three of them had heard yelling from the front room, and rushed in to investigate.
Aria Blaze was on the floor, cursing and screaming, with a bedraggled Rainbow Dash straddling her, pinning her down. Sonata Dusk was bouncing up and down in one corner of the room, laughing her head off. Fluttershy and Twilight were stood huddled together in another corner, looking horrified. Adagio was sat on the couch, watching the whole thing with obvious amusement. Rarity was stood against one wall, phone in hand, watching with an expression of stern disapproval.
“OK,” said Sunset, when Aria stopped for air. “What is going on in here?”