Chapter 8: "Can We Talk?"
Rubbing sleep from her eyes, Aria groggily pondered when it was that Adagio became a morning pony.
Possibly when she became a pony?
The massive puff of orange hair near the door obscured it's owner's face from the side as she looked over a piece of paper. Aria meandered over, yawning into a hoof. "Hey, what's up?"
She was snapped wide awake by the return of Adagio's more sinister grin when she suddenly turned to face her. "I found it pushed under the door. It's from Blueblood, addressed specifically to me."
Aria glanced over to where Sonata was supposed to be, not seeing her there. She gulped. "And, that's, good, right?" She forced a smile. Badly.
Adagio chuckled almost maniacally. "Yes, Aria, this bodes well. He wants to meet me, alone, in what the letter hints is a private area, tonight! This is exactly what I needed."
As Aria wondered whether or not Adagio knew how what she just said sounded, there was another split-second scan for Sonata, to no avail. "Okay, so, what do we do now?"
Adagio approached Sonata's empty bed. "Wake up!" She stamped a hoof by the edge of the lightly embroidered quilt, hanging just off the floor. A startled shriek came at the same time as a thumping noise, followed closely by a pained groan.
Sonata's groggy, blue, slightly sore head popped out from under the bed. She gave a plaintive whine. "Whaaat?"
"Get up, we're going to the library again following breakfast."
"Huh?"
"Ditto that," remarked Aria, "don't we already have a book for magic?"
"Yes," answered Adagio, still smiling evilly, "but this time we find all the information we'll need, to sway both the prince and this world when we have them in our grasp! And I know just what to say if anypony asks what we're doing there..."
---
"Man," huffed Aria as the three of them entered CSFGU's library, "I can't believe they bought that."
Adagio chuckled. "You know, with how easily we've been getting by with Princess Celestia and her sister, I'm starting to wonder if bewitching their counterparts was even necessary." With a split-second's reflection, her smile disappeared. "Though I do wish that were still an option."
"So," Sonata asked, glancing around inquisitively, "what are we looking for this time?"
"I'd like to double-check what I found last time. I'll find those insane articles again, you two see what you can dig up that might pertain to those stories." Her cohorts nodded affirmatively, if with some reluctance on Aria's part.
---
About an hour later, Adagio sat at a table covered in newspapers, very annoyed.
'Archfiend Tirek Battles Princess Twilight for Control of Equestria'
Is this meant to be humorous?
'Nightmare Moon Threatens Nighttime Eternal'
You're kidding, right?
'Royal Wedding Crashed by Changeling Queen'
Just perfect.
'Chocolate Rain and-'
Adagio slapped the paper on the table, resisting the urge to scream in frustration. Get the local newspapers to make up a story about checker-pattern fields and giant houses of cards? Sure, why not, what's the fun in making sense?!
"Goin' well over here, I guess?"
She didn't look up from the table. "Not now, Aria. Have you found anything substantial?"
"I looked, but there aren't any books on the stuff in those papers. If it was all recent, I guess they wouldn't stick it in the history books yet?"
The two of them heard Sonata, accompanied by rapid hoofsteps. "Guysguysguysguysguysguysguysguysguys!!"
They replied in unison, but kept library volume rules in mind. "What?!"
Sonata stopped to catch her breath, holding a book where they could see. "Ok, you know how you asked us to go looking for stuff that happened?" To a pair of unamused nods, she went on. "Well I figured, 'if we wanna know what we missed, why not start with US and go from there?'" She put the book on the table and started flipping pages. "So I found us!"
When the flipping stopped, Adagio found herself smiling with nostalgia for their old bodies, though the artist really didn't do justice to the way their scales shined with iridescent glow in the sunlight. "They remember after all. And?"
Sonata wore a strange look of worry and despair. "Check the dates. Between any of those papers, and the time it says we were banished."
Picking up a newspaper while glancing at the book, Aria raised an eyebrow. "What? What does that have to do wi-" She stopped, her jaw going slack, her blood going cold.
Adagio wasn't looking much better, sitting perfectly still as her eyes rapidly jumped from paper, to book, to other papers, growing paler as she desperately willed the numbers to rearrange in her sight.
The two of them remained in shocked silence until Sonata determined that saying it out loud fell to her. She did so quietly, hoping that would make it better somehow. "We're over a thousand years in the future."
No response.
"Guys? I said we're-"
"Well," uttered Adagio flatly, "this explains the change of speech."
They were again quiet before incredulous, confused laughter bubbled up in Aria's throat. "W-what? You're thinking about that right now?"
"Yes," she answered entirely too calmly before changing the subject, still not looking up from the papers. "and if anything, this works to our advantage. A thousand years of not being around likely means we've all but faded from general memory, everyone who would have recognized us even if we'd returned to our original forms are long dead. Given that we had no allies, that's entirely a positive thing." Now she looked them in the eyes. "As such, we press forward."
There was a moment of Aria and Sonata looking back and forth between her and each other, as if trying to swallow the news in one bite. Seeing the resolve, the sheer force of will in Adagio's eyes, they relented to her command once more. "O-okay," muttered Aria, "what next?"
"Sonata, you look for information on this 'Hearths Warming' holiday we heard about last time. Aria, see what you can find on the places the letters in Blueblood's desk were addressed to, I'll be looking into how Equestria functions in this... new age." Shifting the newspapers into a pile, she muttered to herself. "Has to mean something that they can just shrug off crisis after crisis."
Aria raised an eyebrow. "I thought you said all of it was-"
"Yes," she grumbled, less than pleased to be proven wrong about something, "but with what we've seen, Princess Twilight, the stories in the papers, what Sonata described in the museum? It all fits, and Twilight Sparkle was at the center of each event. We'll have to be careful or we may fall victim to her magic again." As the two of them set off to find the designated information, she willed herself not to think about everything they'd lost since meeting that infernal wizard.
It doesn't matter. I'll ensnare the prince, he'll do whatever we need him to, and then everything will be fine. Everything will be fine!
A while later, Sonata made her way back to Adagio just as she was putting the last of the newspapers back where they'd been.
"Hey, Dagi?"
"What is it, Sonata?"
"I've been wondering; the stories with all those guys locked up in Tartarus; why weren't we sent there?"
"What, to the massive caverns guarded by a three-headed dog?"
"Yea. I mean, not like that would have been any better, but since it was probably Old Beardy that locked up half of those guys, why would he do something different for the three of us?"
Adagio chuckled. "That would have been a sight. The three of us, 'contained' in a prison full of angry inmates brimming with negative energy, but a tune away from being a happy workforce, desperate to escape? Even if starting the most destructive riot in history wasn't an option, with our gems, we could have likely gotten Cerberus to chew through our binds and be off, maybe tell him to go play fetch with the sun on the way out." She leaned a little to get a better look at the book balanced on Sonata's back. It was green with red lines along the edges. "What's that there?"
Sonata jumped in panic, rapidly turning back and forth. "What's what?! Is it on me?! Is it a spider?! HELP!!"
One corrective dope-slap later, they'd set the book on the table. The Joys of Hearths Warming, went the title. "Ah, good," Adagio said with a nod, "let me know what you learn from this one, I'll see what I can find regarding..." She paused, not sure how to word it. "The, nation in general, I suppose." Perhaps the system of government would be a good place to start.
---
Adagio was starting to feel like an idiot. It seemed like every time she set herself to research something, her results were useless, baffling, or both. Such was the case when she tried to figure out who was really 'in charge' of Equestria. Blueblood had said his aunts were the head of state, but there were all these other offices and titles of ambiguous meaning. Towns everywhere with mayors, nobility that did, what exactly? Did ponies operate on something like feudalism? Were they capitalistic like the other world's residents had been? And what was this about buffalo chieftains? Was tribalism alive and well too? What the hell kind of hierarchy were they running here?!
She groaned, resting her head on the table.
Knowing that princesses are at the top is good enough, right?
That didn't explain why Twilight Sparkle wasn't here in Canterlot, but Adagio badly hoped it meant there'd been a falling out of some kind. Whatever, if they just knew who the most important ponies were, she wouldn't have to tell the others that she'd failed twice in a row. That both of them had generally succeeded at their tasks only made her look worse.
Approaching Adagio's table, Aria didn't envy her. Looking up stuff in old books was about as exciting as it sounded to begin with, looking up government workings had to be like watching paint dry one drop at a time. Getting her attention, Aria shared what she'd found about the places (it was initially only the three or four she could remember the names of, but Adagio didn't need to know that) in the letters. Appaloosa, Fillydelphia, Las Pegasus, Manehattan, and some others that weren't included in the addresses.
"So what you're telling me," Adagio summarized, "is that in addition to the thatched-roof cottages we saw outside Twilight's keep and the lucrative buildings we've seen in this city, there are dusty towns akin to what you'd see in those cowboy movies and bustling metropolises like those in the other world, and the Crystal Empire, which apparently got wiped off the map for about as long as we did before miraculously returning, all existing simultaneously?"
"Yup."
There was a long silence as Adagio tried and eventually gave up in connecting the dots as to how things must have changed in the last millenium. "Let's go see what Sonata's found."
---
"So," Aria mused, "it's basically Chr-"
Sonata nodded. "Kinda. Winter holiday, everypony getting together, weird food, warmth and friendship all over the place."
The sound of a slow-building cackle from Adagio drew their attention. She was smiling maliciously, even for her. "Hearths Warming. The most festive of holidays in the coldest time of year, light in their hearts against the encroaching darkness of the season, love and joy spreading like wildfire to warm even the coldest spirits..."
Adagio getting poetic, for lack of better words, usually meant a big plan was in motion, Battle of the Bands big, but her fellow sirens couldn't help a worried glance at each other.
She emitted a low chuckle before smiling with faux-sweetness. "It's all so perfect, isn't it? Why, could you imagine if something were to happen on such a day?" Her smile again grew dark. "Something so tragic, so horrible, that all those warm, fuzzy sentiments going around were to be converted into anger and resentment? Understanding would become suspicion, feelings of camaraderie would become feelings of betrayal, and all would blame each other in their hurt, certain that the disaster was anyone's fault but their own. And best of all, we won't even have to sing to make them do it. Under the right circumstances, ponies will argue and hate each other all on their own, and when that happens? Our encore, a thousand years overdue, will shake the foundations of this realm! When our voices are restored to their full power, we'll make sure the only thing in the world that isn't utterly despised, is the three of us!"
The mastermind to the destruction of Hearths Warming was milliseconds away from beginning a loud, maniacal laugh when Aria put a hoof over her mouth, whispering through her teeth as she quickly glanced around. "Cool it, will ya? We're in a library!"
Adagio blinked twice, equally surprised and annoyed to be cut off in her rant monologue mad rambling explanation, but silently consenting that maybe this wasn't the best place for it. She cleared her throat. "Right, well. After tonight, we can get Blueblood to assist with this phase of the plan." As he likely understood the workings of the holiday better anyway, it was perhaps less than sensible to hammer out specifics right now.
The next hour and a half was spent looking up a few more things, sharing findings, Adagio getting frustrated with a stuck sliding ladder needed to reach a particular book, (it's not stuck anymore) Aria and Sonata getting into an argument over whether or not princesses were nocturnal and Celestia was some kind of mutant, and some other shenanigans that almost got them thrown out before they opted to go back to the castle and, given all the activity of the last few days, just rest for a while.
---
Later on that day, the trio waited in the Pisces room in their own ways. Aria got bored and fell asleep, Sonata practiced sound spells in a more controlled manner than the day before, and Adagio went over the lines and thought processes she'd use to convince Blueblood she was everything he could ever want in a mare.
For the third time in recent memory, Aria was jolted awake by a knock at the door. "Good evening, ladies," called Kibitz, "there are reservations for Miss Adagio Dazzle at the Amour des Etoiles cafe, complete with escort should she see fit."
Adagio smirked, whispering to the others as she approached the door. "Be good while I'm gone, you may be welcoming a princess when I return."
Aria rolled her eyes, Sonata stared intently at Adagio's sides as she went out the door. When they were alone, she turned to Aria. "Is she growing wings? Or do you get a horn first?"
Aria repeated her last action. "She means she's gonna charm that jerk so hard he might propose to her." A confusing thought ocurred to her. "Or, would that make them king and queen? Isn't that how it works?"
Sonata shrugged. "Maybe, but I think kings and queens are like, automatically bad in this world."
"Huh. Wait, if queens are 'bad' and princesses are 'good', does that mean Adagio thinks she's turning 'good'?"
"Or bad while making Blueblood a bad prince."
"Would that be good or bad?"
"Uhm, I don't... Bad for Equestria?"
"Screw Equestria! I wanna know if it's good or bad for us!"
"Yea, me too."
Neither of them knew what it would mean if Adagio suddenly decided to go straight or something, but it didn't seem likely regardless. "Anyway, I don't remember that being a thing back when-"
"A thousand years ago?"
The two of them stared at each other in silence as the reminder of their predicament sunk in. Aria got off the bed, casually paced over to where Sonata was sitting, and sat next to her, looking away. She spoke softly, as if afraid the walls would hear. "How you holding up, Nata?"
Sonata's reply was just as quiet. "I think I'm okay, Ria. You?"
She shrugged a little. "It could be worse, right? If we didn't come out of the portal-" she examined a hoof, "-different, we'd have gotten caught like, right away, right?"
Sonata nodded, starting to smile. "Yea. Besides, like I said before... At least this way, we're cute!"
Aria snorted, the corners of her mouth just slightly inclined upward. After another quiet moment, she nudged Sonata. "Any idea what's up with Adagio lately?"
Sonata shook her head. "No, but I know what you mean. Ever since the Bee-Oh-Tee-Bee, she's been scarier than ever. But at the same time? Like, nicer."
"Right?!"
Both of them remembered that night very clearly.
---
"Dammit, Sonata, will you give it a rest?! Our magic is gone, and so are our voices!"
"Oh, like moping about it is any better? That's all you know how to do when things go bad, isn't it, Aria?!"
"Shut up!"
"YOU shut up!"
As the two glared at each other, both realized they were unconsciously waiting for something. That something currently stood a few feet away, staring at them, dead silent and utterly expressionless. They shared a tinge of uncertainty as they looked at her, Sonata the first to verbalize their mutual question for her. "Uh, D-Dagi? Aren't you gonna yell too?"
Hollow eyes stared back at them, slowly turning toward the sky.
"Bit of a set-back, isn't it?"
The others felt their jaws drop. She'd said it so calmly, so casually, one would think she were discussing a sudden rain on an otherwise sunny day, but before they could say anything, she turned and walked away.
---
"I-I was sure," muttered Sonata, "that she would get mad. Like, really, really, madder-than-she's-ever-been mad. But, nothing."
Aria nodded. "Yea. The way she's flipped out over stuff before, I thought she'd be livid after what happened that night. Ever since, it's like all we can do is wait for the axe to fall, but at the same time, s-she..." She spared a quick glance at Sonata, just to make sure she was paying attention. Aria didn't like making eye contact when they talked like this. "Yesterday, when you were with Blueblood? I think she might have trying to be friendly. I mean, she talked in a way I don't think she'd ever normally talk to either of us."
Sonata nodded. "She was really patient with me in the library, the first time we went. No 'Hurry it up!', no 'Stay focused, you idiot!', she hardly even gave me the usual mean stares."
"And, back when we were on the train? I don't know if you heard it, but she actually complimented both of us."
"Huh. She's done that a couple times, actually, since we got here. She used to only do it when we pulled in a lot of negative energy together, and we can't even do that anymore!" Sonata looked around the room, visibly worried. "What do you think it means?"
Aria gulped. "It means she's gonna explode, sooner or later. When she does, it will be biblical, the ground will shake and the sky will turn red, they'll make a two-hour documentary on it and the victims will be remembered as heroes. B-but, hey!" She managed to force a small smile. "Maybe it'll be at Blueblood, and not us?"
Sonata copied her expression. "And then she'll go back to normal?"
Smiling got a little easier. "Normal for Adagio."
The two of them giggled together.
There was another quiet moment. The pair didn't need to look at one another to feel a little better about having gotten recent worries off their chests, in a way they would never try with Adagio. Probably because half of their worries were about Adagio herself.
"Hey Ria," Sonata picked up at normal volume, "have you ever been a pony before?"
Aria was sufficiently thrown. "Um. What?"
"Before this time, I mean? Have you ever turned into a pony, with wings or otherwise?"
"Of course not," she deadpanned, turning to look at Sonata now, "why would you think I had?"
"Then why did you know how to move with four legs?" Aria's mouth hung open in confusion-addled silence. Sonata elaborated. "I've never been a pony either, but we all knew how to move, like it was nothing. When we first turned into humans, I remember all three of us having trouble staying upright for at least a few minutes, but pony bodies? Got it in a pinch. Isn't that weird?"
The Hippocampus-turned human-turned pegasus's mouth remained hanging open, utterly lost for a response. Sonata waited patiently, her eyes saying it was just as much a mystery to her and she'd very much like an answer soon. Aria eventually got her mouth to work again. "Huh. Now I kinda wish Adagio was here, bet she'd have some kind of explanation."
"How do you think the thing with the prince is going?"
---
Walking alongside the armored pony leading her to Blueblood's meeting place, Adagio decided it was probably for the best that he wouldn't so much as turn his head to catch sight of her; her smile might have been a little too enthusiastic at that moment.
The building they stopped at seemed very unremarkable from the outside, at least compared to the rest of Canterlot, but the interior was a different story. Very dark, velvety blues and violets made up the plush, immaculate floors, walls, and ceilings, spotlessly clean apart from the odd white, glimmering stones embedded in seemingly random places. The combined effect of the small, shining stones and the dark environment was surreal, like walking through the depths of space. A waiter of some sort had evidently been expecting her, as he took over when the guard left with little more than a nod.
As she was guided through the dimly-lit, well-furnished building, Adagio felt the faintest tingle along her spine. Knowing she was going to meet a stallion in private in a dark place, the cafe had an almost sensual feeling to it. If that was his intention, she'd use it for all it was worth. She was led to a large, black cylinder with a sliding door, the waiter gently pressing a button on the side. A few seconds later, the door opened, revealing a small, dark, circular chamber with a long, curved bench set around a little table.
But it was definitely too small for the first thing that sprung to mind to be done comfortably.
Just as well, still not planning anything like what I thought Aria got up to, but hopefully he won't notice that.
Blueblood sat at the side of the table opposite the door, waving her in. Adagio was already wearing her 'friendly' face, making sure not to lay it on too thick just yet as she sauntered in and sat across from him. When she was seated, Blueblood's horn lit up and a valve on the wall behind her turned, closing the door and leaving a dim ceiling light as the only source of illumination.
"Welcome," he said, "I trust there were no problems on the way?"
"None at all," she cooed back.
"Good, good. Have you ever been to a place like this?"
She gently shook her head, resting her head on her forehooves, her elbows on the table, and her eyes firmly on his.
"It's essentially a hybrid of restaurant and observatory, leaning toward the latter. On that note, would you like anything? They serve a variety of teas, coffees, and plates of bite-sized refreshments."
"It's not really food I'm interested in, Mister Blueblood."
A lie! Finally!
It was only technically untrue, in a really roundabout sort of way, but right now she'd take it.
To her mild surprise, he didn't seem to take the hint in that statement, just smiling normally. "Fair enough, definitely in the right building for that line of thought." He nodded upwards to a tube with a glass orb hanging down over the center of the table. "That's the main attraction to these booths, mixtures of magic and machinery that redirect the light in the night sky to be displayed in their respective chambers, letting guests view the stars as though they were out in the clear countryside without having to leave the city." He grinned a little wider. "Astral projections, if you will."
As he went on explaining how exactly the glass circles on the roof and a series of long tubes aligned to form the display that could be activated by a nearby switch, Adagio struggled to keep her alluring expression. Listening to him was part of the act, but something felt amiss. Shouldn't he be looking at her a little differently? This felt like one scholar sharing findings with another, not a meaningfully romantic outing.
"-which would bode ill for astrocartography. Thankfully, anypony qualified to make use of these systems likely wouldn't make such mistakes. But you're probably not interested in that, either?"
She felt a twinge of alarm, but kept it from her face. He'd said it very casually, still smiling as though nothing was the slightest bit out of place. "Well, fascinating as it is, I'm afraid my attention is..." she reached across the table to gently brush his hoof with her own, noticing right away that fingers were a lot more useful for light, coquettish touching, "elsewhere."
He chuckled lightly. "As is mine, truth be told, which is why I'd like to know a little more about you."
Here it is! "Anything at all."
"Thank you. Where did the three of you perform, before coming to Canterlot?"
She averted her eyes just slightly, tilting her head as though briefly reminiscing. "Ohh, here and there, though those days are quite past us now."
He nodded once. "Why did you want to leave?"
She internally smirked, having prepared an adequate defense against that kind of inquiry. She lowered her head to look down at the table for six and a half seconds, looking up with a sad, apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, a lot of things happened back home, and-" her lower lip quivered for a fraction of a second, her eyes misted over just enough to be perceptible in the dimly-lit chamber, and her breath hitched just slightly. "-we, my companions and I, don't really call that place home anymore."
He nodded again, giving her an understanding sort of look. "I see. For whatever it's worth, you have my condolences."
She shook her head, blinking away the tears that had been forming. "It's alright, we, we're quite past it now." In her mind, Adagio was laughing maniacally with the thrill of another deception. Although they really did flee from a place they had no reason to stay in. Another dimension probably qualifies as very far awa-
Shut up, brain, I'm counting this as a lie!
"How long have you known your companions, Miss Blaze and Miss Dusk?"
She displayed a warm smile. "Oh, I can't remember a time I was without them. I think of those two as family, we're all very close."
Technically true again...
"I see. Next, what exactly is your troupe up to, here in our fair city?"
She blinked once, her mask nearly slipping. Didn't I already answer that one? "I... We're-"
"Broadening your horizons, seeking greener pastures?" He kept the same, ordinary smile, in stark contrast with his next statement. "It's passable, but are you sure there isn't something else you'd like to tell me?"
She gaped at him. "I-I beg your pardon?"
"For your alibi. That's the term, isn't it? For a falsehood being used as cover?" Before she could react, he reached out a hoof, speaking softly. "It's alright, really. I think I can help."
Quite a few thoughts shot through her head at that moment, a half-dozen impulses whirring about as she tried to best decide which would be the wisest course of action. She tried speech. "What?"
He nodded affirmatively. "Do you know why I wanted to talk to you in a small, private booth? Where the walls are thick enough that scholarly discussions of the stars and romantic sentiments alike are effectively muted to the rest of the world? I've tested these chambers, nopony could hear us even with their ear pressed up against the door, you can speak freely here."
Her ears drooped, her voice shook, but she managed to contain herself to a quiet question. "H-how much do you know?"
"I know that the three of you are hiding something. I know you're all very new to Equestria. Miss Dusk saying it out loud certainly helped, yes. I know you couldn't possibly be affiliated with any theater or film industry in the country. I know that, however far you've traveled, you would have learned more about recent events than you seemed to know when first I saw you if you'd come by normal means. I know your group is up to something. Most importantly of all? I know I can help."
Adagio looked him in the eye. Stared at him, bore into his soul with all she had. He didn't budge. If he was lying, he was better at it than she was. They'd come too far to run away now, and for all she knew, he had guards right outside the booth if she tried to escape. "I'm listening..."
Dramatic Irony: When the audience knows something the characters do not. Comes with a side of possibly looking forward to their reactions when the truth comes out, hope it wasn't too disappointing!
Also, I looked it up, the plural of metropolis is metropolises. The more you know! 
Part of me wanted to write a chapter entirely about the trio's library shenanigans, but Act 1 was going way too long as it was.
I think "Screw Equestria" is the most villainous thing I've had Aria and Sonata say so far. They are still bad guys, but it's hard to make them look evil when they're standing next to Adagio.
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Actually, it's what fun is there in making sense.
Smart.
Now they get it.
You're oddly calm, but yes it does.
Smart.
Chrysalis said almost the same thing, and she got beat and you said "Nothing Can Stop Us Now" during Welcome to the Show, and then you got your asses handed to you.
Actually, it was mostly Celestia and Luna.
Fair enough.
Basically, yes.
Hearth's Warming is 2 words. Also, you're happy, that's not good.
Each other is 2 words. Also, yeesh, and I thought the Grinch was bad. No wonder Jerry Peet considers her the best villain.
Err... My head hurts!
Wow, poor girls, the shock of being gone for over 1000 years must really have been a massive shock to them.
I thought she'd be more pissed.
Yep, when she finally explodes, it won't be pretty.
It is weird, huh?
You what?
You won't want to when you realize just what her plan is.
Very true, it's like putting G1 Megatron next to Emperor Palpatine.
I have finally caught up with this story, and what a read it has been. So far I wouldn't exactly call this a romantic comedy, I'm not sure what I would call it, except exciting and dramatic. It actually feels a lot like how Sunset Shimmer would have ensnared Blueblood. Having just read through 8 chapters, I love so many things about this story:
1). Starswirl's spell sending them to only a few months before the events of EqG 1. To me, there is no way the Sirens could be wandering around the world for 1000 years operating as they do without either taking over the world or getting themselves killed. Also, by making them normal mortals in the first place, there's a lot less disturbing fridge logic in the Elements of Harmony smashing their magic in Rainbow Rocks, because otherwise that movie would have ended with three immortals turned into mortals against their will, which is basically a slow execution.
2). Adagio being a competent leader. I do love the Dazzlings as three stooges in comedies, but it's nice to see a version where Adagio not only comes up with decent plans, but makes optimal use of her subordinates' talents and aptitudes.
3). The fact that Blueblood has already dated almost every other female antagonist from the show, with horrible results. It's hilarious, and it raises interesting questions that the only one he hasn't dated is Suri Polomare, who is hanging around Canterlot working odd jobs. It's a shame she didn't get here before Adagio, or she would probably have been his next paramour.
4). Adagio being creepy-nice. I know the other two sirens think it's repression, but I wonder if it may just be some sort of pony neurological predilection for affection towards the other members of her "herd."
5). Boisterous Luna is always awesome to see, as are matchmaking aunts in general.
6). Blueblood is basically the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Since he's noticed that the Elements of Harmony repair existing infrastructure damage in a burst around them whenever they are fired, and that can save the Treasury a lot of bits, I wonder if it will ever occur to him to have Stibbinz dress up in a freaky costume and "kidnap" the Prince and hold him "hostage" in the most dilapidated section of Detrot, forcing the Element Bearers to save the Prince by firing off their weapon, cleaning up the streets and halving the Equestrian Urban Renewal Expenses.
Can't wait to see more, Blueblood in this story is a real enigma. Adagio's description of what Blueblood would look for in an ideal companion does seem pretty spot on, I can't wait to see what he will do to get her attention.
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Sorry if the tags are leading to some confusion, but the rom-com elements don't really come in until later. I'm of the mind that romances work best when the pair aren't interested/together pretty much right away, and this might be the slowest-boil for a ship I ever write.
I hope it's at least reasonably funny/interesting, in the mean time!
5745668 I figured it was a slow-boil, and like I said it's still really interesting.
What about a oneshot? I liked the library shenanigans...
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Maybe someday as a bonus chapter, along with similarly time-consuming, but not necessarily plot-relevant silliness.
What's a 'chang'-ling?
There it is.
Yeah but you still got Discord running amok...
For a moment I thought Aria meant literally explode.
Sneaky handwave.
Oooh dear.
Then Adagio had an idea.
An awful idea.
Adagio had a wonderful, awful idea.
Nice world building with the setting in use here - the observatory-restaurant-lounge. Nice touches like that always help a fic to stand out.
5745474 Thank you for putting my vague feelings into words!
So... Blueblood will be funding the villainous fall of Equestria?
It actually sounds reasonable, now that I think about it.