Pony People Partaking in Playing Parody Pastiches

by Eyeswirl the Weirded

Request Night

"Woo! Man, that was awesome!"

Sunset's glee drew a chuckle from Adagio as the two stepped out of the garage level of the sirens' penthouse building and into the hall leading to the lobby. "Glad you like your new bike."

"'New bike'?!" Sunset whirled around to face her, her wide, beaming smile unchanged. "They don't even make motorcycles like those anymore, and that one's in perfect condition! Really, is there any way I can say 'thank you'?"

Adagio chuckled. "I think you already did, about seventy times since your birthday last week. Besides," she said while tenderly running a hand over her opposite arm, gently caressing the leather of Sunset's old jacket, "now that I have the proper look down, I needed someone to drive me around town."

Sunset noticed that Adagio had been wearing the jacket almost every day, but reserved her soft-pink tank-top, jet-black, high-heeled boots, and tight, shiny, thin leather pants for when Sunset offered to take her somewhere, even if it was just going out to grab lunch like today. It made Sunset feel a little weird about just wearing her usual clothes, but she was the one driving the bike (with Adagio tightly clinging to her back...), so she was sure she still got full Biker points.

The cinnamon lipstick doesn't seem to have any pattern, though.

"So," she asked as they headed to the elevator, "what was it Aria wanted to show us?"

"Apparently, a few of your-... our friends dropped in and heard about Request Night."

It still tickled Sunset every time Adagio remembered that the other Rainbooms were her friends too. "Request Night?" That Adagio was still using her Exposition Fairy wand tickled her even more as she drew the sparkling, star-tipped baton from her hair.

"Yes, we-" She stopped in front of the elevator, quickly pointing at the 'Out Of Order' sign with her wand. "Well. Stairs it is."

"Y-you live on the top floor!!"

Moving right on to the staircase, Adagio gave the wand a brief twirl. "Yes, and sometimes it comes with-" she brought a hand to the outer side of a firm, muscular thigh with a sharp smack, "-interesting benefits." She stopped, standing with one hand on her cocked hips to peer over her shoulder and grinning impishly at the sight of a lightly flushed Sunset. "As I'm sure you can see," she added while giving her behind a slow shake before starting up the stairs, leaving Sunset to quickly follow.

Sunset did her best to shake off the blush as they started up the stairs. "So... This happens often?"

"Not weekly, but the elevator shaft was never the same after The Incident of 2009."

"Which was?"

"Sonata sampled certain substances for the first time. Simultaneously. Our lawyers strongly advised me not to say more."

"Ah. So, Request Night?"

Smiling, Adagio twirled the wand once. "Every other Wednesday, we get together to sing for each other. Sonata told you that we all have songs we feel someone else does better, right?

Nearly stumbling on the steps, Sunset looked at Adagio in shock. "You heard that?!"

Adagio quickly threw the wand to her opposite hand and gave it a light shake. "You two were right next to me and we all have good hearing, Sunset, Aria just tends not to listen and Sonata is... Sonata." And back to the first, giving it another twirl. "As I was saying, there are some songs we've come to enjoy hearing each other sing, as with my 'making' Aria sing 'that gushy crud' or Aria and Sonata 'making' each other sing cheesy showtunes." She smiled a little as Sunset snickered.

"Is that all they request from each other?"

"Thankfully not. Sonata has asked for lullabies and Aria occasionally requests raunchy pop songs one might hear at a nightclub, which are... appropriate, for Sonata's singing voice." She grinned. "Personally, I like to have Sonata sing metal and rock ballads."

"Heh, I can imagine. What does Aria like you to sing?"

"Slow, creepy versions of love songs to freak out Sonata." Sometimes while staring fixedly at Sonata, even crawling towards her or sitting on her lap if Aria paid up.

"Huh?"

"You might be surprised how dramatically the tone changes if the instrumentation is tampered with."

"So the lullabies Sonata asks for...?"

Adagio smiled approvingly. "You catch on quick."

"...Then, what does Sonata like to hear from you?"

"Ever since we began, it's always been something different in Sonata's quest to find something that annoys and/or disturbs Aria the way slow love songs do her."

"So you've just sung a little of everything? Rap, country, metal, polka, and so on?"

"Yup."

Sunset let her imagination wander a little to distract from the increasing soreness in her legs as they continued up the stairs. Adagio in various outfits suited to the respective genres of music was an interesting thought experiment, but asking if they dressed up for these occasions would probably just get her teased again, so she just let her keep talking.

"There are variations to what we ask one another to sing, of course, and each of us get to request one Encore from one of the others for the night, so the favorite three songs are usually the last played. Aria tells me that Rainbow, Applejack, and Rarity showed up, the topic arose when the latter took a seat on the stage in the living room- you remember, where we sang that duet with the-"

Smiling in fond recollection, Sunset giggled. "Yea."

Adagio nodded. "-and the others explained to the three of them why we saw fit to have that installed in our house so many years ago. Someone got the idea to have them try it out themselves, and according to Aria, it's an interesting show so far." Stopping at the highest floor, she smiled as she took hold of the doorknob. "Hopefully we're in good time to catch part of it."

It would be very wimpy to ask Adagio to carry her the rest of the way, so Sunset focused on the prospect of a well-earned rest for the remaining walk into the sirens' penthouse. When they opened the door, Sunset was once more quietly awed by the decades-old collection of tasteful knick-knacks on carefully-polished shelves, pictures and paintings in elegant frames, random junk that held sentimental value only to the sirens, and what might have even been priceless antiques and artifacts gathered since the sirens arrived in this world. The feng shui of the place left something to be desired, with most of it scattered about seemingly at random, but Sunset got the impression that most of it was placed wherever there happened to be room at the time.

That said, she was a little sad that, like today, the sirens usually kept their curtains drawn and their blinds shut, cutting off the city view unless she wanted to stand there to peek through them like a bored filly spying on the neighbors.

They walked into the living room and headed straight for the stage. It was a structure that took up about a third of the spacious area with lights, curtains, sound systems, and prop chests all centered around a large, round, wooden platform. Naturally, comfortable chairs and a few couches were arranged for optimal viewing, which was where Aria, Sonata, Rainbow, and Applejack were found.

Rainbow happily waved to them. "Hey, guys!"

"Afternoon," answered Adagio, giggling as Sunset flopped down on an exceptionally soft, plush couch with a blissful sigh before taking a seat next to her, "have we missed it?"

Sonata shook her head. "Rarity's getting ready to do Rainbow's pick, but you did miss Rainbow yodeling."

Rainbow got a few odd looks as Applejack snickered, earning her a light elbow and a wry grin from her Apline-singing friend. "Laugh it up, AJ."

"Thanks," she replied smugly, "Ah reckon Ah will."

Sunset smiled at Rainbow. "What'd you ask Rarity to sing?"

Rainbow beamed. "It's a surprise."

"What-"

"Okay, okay, you twisted my arm! You know how those two bicker about Too Dirty vs. Too Clean sometimes? And how Rare fusses over Applejack looking like something the tractor ran over?"

Applejack's brow furrowed. "We don't-"

Sunset smiled. "Yea?"

Rainbow mimed a twirl of the fairy wand to signal Adagio to do it with the real one, something she was still amazed Adagio always complied with. "Well this morning, somebody got a dirty handprint on some fancy, hard-to-wash fabric..."

Flushed, Applejack tugged her hat downward. "Said Ah was sorry."

Crossing her arms, Rainbow grinned proudly. "I just asked her to sing about her feelings on the subject. You can thank me later."

Suddenly, the lights went out, leaving the room in near-total darkness until the spotlight pointed at the stage kicked on. It was pointed squarely at the red, velvet curtains, which were dramatically thrown aside as Rarity stepped out. To Sunset's shock, she was completely disheveled; hair unstyled and messy, mascara running down her face, one strap of her grey, tattered dress hanging off a shoulder in a way that showed a little more cleavage than Sunset thought she'd be comfortable with. More startling than that were her cold, dead eyes, which locked onto a pale, frightened Applejack as the music played and Rarity started singing.

Unforgivable... That's what you are...
Unforgivable! Your stains and tar!
All your grime and filth, it clings to me!
Oh the rancid stench, it stings, you see!
All this, and more...
Do I so abhor...

Unforgivable... That's what you say...
when so pitiful, your looks I sway!
I say, Darling, it's despicable,
that someone so, unforgivable,
Dares to say I'm, unforgivable, too.

Rainbow and the sirens quietly giggled as Applejack, unable to look away, sat perfectly still in wide-eyed silence.

"Hey, hey," tittered Sonata as she gently elbowed the farmer a few times, "just be glad it's not in front of a live audience."

"With a camera dedicated to capturing every second of her impotent rage and humiliation," Aria added with a smirk, drawing an angry pout from the butt of her sold-out-an-entire-theater joke.

"Sit on a cactus, Aria."

Leaning over a little without looking away from the spectacle, Adagio whispered to Rainbow. "Did you help her prepare this?"

"Nah, she had it done on her own in just a couple minutes."

Sunset looked at Rainbow in shock. "Rarity did that?! To herself?!"

"Yea, I was shocked too."

Rarity had paced closer to the target of her song, anger entering her expression as she pointed an accusing finger her way.

Unforgivable! You've had your way!
It's unlivable! Your mud and hay!
And so, Darling, it's despicable!
That someone so, unforgivable,
Dares to say I'm, unforgivable, too...

As she delivered the last note, Rarity slowly collapsed on the stage, her condemning hand still extended in Applejack's general direction even as it flopped lifelessly against the hardwood floor.

When things were quiet again, five members of the audience offered their applause as Applejack sheepishly scratched her head. "Yeesh, Rare. Did it really hurt ya that bad?"

"Oh, heavens no," she said in a normal tone as she sat up, not a hint of emotional turmoil in her face, "but when offered such a-" she lovingly ran a hand over the smooth surface beneath her, "-beautiful stage, I couldn't just put less than one hundred percent into this performance, now could I?"

Proud smiles on their faces, the sirens approvingly nodded in unison as Applejack facepalmed and muttered about mountains and molehills, making Rainbow giggle.

"Cool. So," she said while looking at Aria, "how didja say we decide who's next again?"

Aria adopted Rainbow's signal for the fairy wand, hoping it would help all present remember this time. She waited until Adagio had finished the motion before answering. "We usually just let whoever go first, but the most recent singer decides who's next, so, Rarity?"

Smiling as she stood up and hopped off the stage, Rarity looked over her choices. "Hmm... Sunset...?"

And then Sunset felt fear. "Um... yea?"

Rarity wore a hesitant, pleading smile. "How would you feel about a backwards baseball cap, baggy, ill-secured pants, and excessive, gaudy, gold chains?"

"What."

"It's just that, ever since Snips and Snails did their, er, song together, I've been thinking about how they were your minions..."

"Uh-"

"And that got me thinking of you doing something along the same lines..."

Sunset blushed. "Ohh, no, I never-"

"Sooo-ooo, I was hoping you might treat us to an Old Sunset Gangster Rap! Pretty please? I know it's technically not Request Night, but maybe you'd enjoy it anyway? I can assure you the necessary outfit is all backstage." She glanced over her shoulder. "Quite an impressive selection back there, actually."

Adagio grinned proudly. "Thank you."

Her head down, Sunset fidgeted in place. "Y-you don't really want me to... rap at you, do you?"

Rarity clasped her hands together, giving Sunset wide, watery puppy-dog eyes. "Please?"

"Uh..."

She looked to the others, startled to see the exact same expression mirrored on all five of their faces, even Applejack!

Traitors, all of you!!

Despite never having sung rap before, Sunset surprised herself by doing a decent job of holding up the tune.

The same could not be said for her baggy, heavy-with-fake-bling pants.

Author's Note:

I am open to suggestions on a better name for this little seldom-updated collection.
Thanks, Solemn Vigil!

Comments

[Solemn Vigil]

Author's Note:

I am open to suggestions on a better name for this little seldom-updated collection.

Pony People Partaking in Playing Parody Pastiches*?

*pastiche - 1. A work of art, drama, literature, music, or architecture that imitates the work of a previous artist.
2. A musical medley, typically quoting other works.

[Eyeswirl the Weirded]

8796900
I'm afraid the only Pony Person involved here is Sunset.

[Solemn Vigil]

8796998
The Dazzlings were originally equine-like and the Rainbooms can gain equine features. Should that count?

[Eyeswirl the Weirded]

8797725
Hm... Maybe so!

[Solemn Vigil]

"Y-you live on the top floor!!"

Moving right on to the staircase, Adagio gave the wand a brief twirl. "Yes, and sometimes it comes with-" she brought a hand to the outer side of a firm, muscular thigh with a sharp smack, "-interesting benefits." She stopped, standing with one hand on her cocked hips to peer over her shoulder and grinning impishly at the sight of a lightly flushed Sunset. "As I'm sure you can see," she added while giving her behind a slow shake before starting up the stairs, leaving Sunset to quickly follow.

Sunset did her best to shake off the blush as they started up the stairs. "So... This happens often?"

I can imagine Sunset doing a followup to this in a song.

Her presence is like nothing that I've felt before
She's lovely and endearing and yet so much more
I hear her vibrant laughter and see her smile
She asks me to come and join her, "Please stay a while"

Can't shake the feeling that I'm hanging by a thread
It seems to me she has her voice inside my head
Is my anticipation one of joy or dread?
I can't put my finger on it, can't put my finger on it

There's something weird about the way she speaks to me
There's something strange about her smelling like the sea
I didn't have the means to keep her from this harmony
She's some kind of siren girl, some kind of siren girl

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The party beat is thumping, she starts to dance
The crowds come out together, caught in her trance
Her sisters lend their voices and join her side
Now everyone's all swept up in the same tide

Can't shake the feeling that I'm in over my head
It seems to me I hang onto every word she's said
She makes a motion for the cheering crowd to spread
I can't put my finger on it, can't put my finger on it

There's something weird about the way she looks at me
There's something strange about her music and its key
I don't have the means to tell if she's friend or enemy
She's some kind of siren girl, some kind of siren girl

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There's something weird about the way she speaks to me
There's something strange about her smelling like the sea
I didn't have the means to keep her from this harmony
She's some kind of siren girl, some kind of siren girl

There's something weird about the way she looks at me
There's something strange about her music and its key
She's grinning gleefully, turns out she isn't done with me
She's some kind of siren girl, some kind of siren girl

[Eyeswirl the Weirded]

8798995
Something like that would definitely be fitting for some point in the two getting to know each other, yes.
"I can't put my finger on it" and "there's something off about her" are perfect tie-ins to what Sunset actually said in Rainbow rocks, too, so nicely done there!

[Solemn Vigil]

8799181
Thank you for noticing.

The tie-in to Rainbow Rocks was a big reason for going with this song. The others being how catchy it is and the sirens' seductive nature.

[howard035]

I like grunge Rarity, she would really make a good siren.

Nice to see the Rainbooms getting into the act too.

[NaiadSagaIotaOar]

This series never fails to make me happy and smilely And exposition fairy Adagio still being a thing is one of the best parts. Thank you very much for keeping this going

[Tethered-Angel]

Oh, I never expected this to be updated!

[Animefireblade13]

I think “dazzling oddities” might work, or something along those lines. If not, just make that a song at the least, pretty please?

[Animefireblade13]

8796900
So many p’s! Too many p’s!

[The Forgotten Siren]

this was cute