Consequences

by shallow15

Dilemmas, Debates, and Jacuzzis

Aria found Adagio brooding in her usual place. While the house they lived in was small, it at least had come with a pool and attached jacuzzi. Whenever Adagio became too stressed, too angry, or just wanted to get away from the other two former sirens for a while, she would come out to the hot tub and soak until she felt calm enough to get on with whatever was bothering her.

While she’d never admit it out loud, Aria had come looking for her because Adagio had gone out to the pool deck at about nine that morning and it was now almost one in the afternoon.

She’s probably boiled herself to death by now. Aria thought as she opened the sliding glass door to the backyard. And with my luck, I’m gonna have to be the one to clean up what’s left of her and keep Sonata from losing her shit.

Adagio had not boiled herself into oblivion. She sat in the roiling water of the jacuzzi, her voluminous hair somehow pulled up into a gravity defying tower on top of her head. Her shoulders were bare, which wasn’t surprising. All three of them swam and soaked in the nude.

The fences were high enough to keep the neighbors from peeping, although a few of the middle school boys had tried to get a look every now and then. Aria preferred hurling a rock at them, while Sonata usually waved and Adagio would either give them a violent tongue lashing or a show, depending on her mood.

The mood today was clearly dour. Adagio was resting her head on the edge of the jacuzzi, eyes closed, face tense. In a rare moment of self-restraint, Aria resisted the impulse to splash cold water from the adjacent swimming pool onto Adagio’s chest. Instead, she nudged her fellow siren with the toe of her foot.

“You missed lunch. I called for you, but you didn’t answer. There’s no leftovers. Sorry.”

“Mmm.” Adaigo didn’t open her eyes. “Where’s Sonata?”

“Her panic attacks were annoying me. I gave her forty bucks and told her to go to the movies. There’s gotta be some cartoon or gory horror flick playing to keep her occupied for a couple of hours.”

Adagio nodded, then opened her eyes and sat up in the hot tub. “I need some advice.”

Aria snorted. “I told you to lay in a supply of Plan B six months ago, but you just had to --”

“I’m serious, Aria,” Adagio interrupted. Her voice was firm but quiet. Not the usual imperious demanding tone she usually used. That was enough to get Aria’s attention and to get her to turn off the snark.

Adagio gestured to the jacuzzi. “Join me?”

Aria shrugged and stripped out of her clothes, sliding into the water and taking a seat on the bench across from Adagio. Adagio was frowning in thought. It was a rare expression as the lead siren usually had at least five different plans ready to go for any given situation.

“What is it?” Aria asked.

Adagio was silent for a moment, then turned to Aria with a serious expression. “I don’t know what to do about Tempest.”

“Kill her and skip town,” Aria replied. “Problem solved. Is that what you’ve been out here brooding about for the last four hours?”

Adagio gave her a look and an irritated sigh. “That will just bring more heat down on us from STORM. Tempest isn’t some anonymous pencil pusher there. You know that.”

Aria was forced to concede the point. She had been the one who hacked into STORM’s database after their first encounter with the agent. “You aren’t seriously considering telling her anything, are you?”

Adagio shrugged. “I honestly don’t know.”

Aria groaned. “You’re not Sonata. You have a brain you can use. There’s no reason in Tartarus to believe she’ll leave us alone if we tell her what she wants to know. For all we know, she’ll go after the Rainshrooms or whatever the hell they’re calling themselves now, and then once she’s got them, we’re locked up right along with them.”

“That’s true,” Adagio murmured. “But what if she isn’t lying? What if she can get the case closed? We’d be free. No more hiding. No more worrying.”

“She’s a goddamn spook!” Aria protested. “They’re trained to lie and make it look good. Okay. For the sake of argument, let’s take her at her word. There’s other ways to close the case without bringing us in or letting us go.”

Adagio looked at Aria, perplexed. Aria rolled her eyes, made a gun shape with her first two fingers, put them to her head then pulled them apart from each other while making a gunshot noise with her mouth.

“You think she would go that far?” Adagio asked.

Aria gave her an incredulous look, tilted her head and pointed at the bruises on her neck where Tempet’s fingers had been. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

The next thing out of Adagio’s mouth shocked Aria to the core and spoke to how seriously the Dazzling leader was taking their situation.

“You’re right. I’m sorry.”

Aria stared, wide-eyed. “This is really getting to you, isn’t it?”

Adagio nodded. “I’d like to get revenge on Sunset Shimmer and her little pals just as much as you would, but putting Tempest on their trail?” She shook her head. “No one deserves what will happen if she catches them.”

“Maybe they can rainbow blast her and take care of her that way,” Aria said. “I mean, I’d rather just kill her for all the shit she put us through, but if we have to give her something, it’s not like they can’t defend themselves.”

“True.” Adagio sat in thought for a bit, then: “So you agree with Sonata? We tell Tempest what she wants to know?”

Aria considered. She really didn’t give a damn about Sunset Shimmer and her friends, and if it would get STORM off their back for good, then it was stupid not to take advantage of the STORM agent’s offer. On the other hand, Aria trusted Tempest and the rest of STORM about as far as she could throw them. The few run-ins the sirens had already had with STORM proved the agency wasn’t the type to let things like them go.

“I wish Cantata was here.”

Aria blinked and looked up sharply at Adagio. A scowl crossed her face and she felt anger flowing through her. “Well, she’s not!” she snapped. “And in case you’ve forgotten, STORM’s the reason why!”

Aria stood up, not caring she was exposing herself. “You damn well remember what they did! What she had to do! You know what? No. Fuck. No. Don’t tell Tempest anything. Why the hell should we help them after what they did to us? To her!”

Aria began climbing out of the jacuzzi. “And fuck you for trying to manipulate me into giving you permission to tell Tempest what she wants to hear! If you decide to give up and sell the Rainblooms out to her, just keep in mind that you’re probably going to sell us out as well and we’re all going to end up just like she did! Fuck this. I’m out. Figure out your own damn problems! Serves me right for caring!”

Aria pulled her t-shirt on over her head and gathered up the rest of her clothes. As she turned to open the sliding glass door back into the house, she heard the water slosh.

“Aria, wait!”

Aria glared over her shoulder. Adagio had gotten out of the hot tub and was cinching the belt on her bathrobe. Her index finger of one hand was extended, while the hand itself was shaking. Aria blinked. She knew that gesture. It was one Adagio frequently adopted when a plan was forming. She looked at her fellow siren with skepticism.

Adaigo’s hand stopped trembling and her familiar crooked grin crossed her face.

“I think I have an idea.”

Author's Note:

Yeah, I'm just gonna try to post something whenever I can get the time to write.

Comments

[CapNTilfy]

Aria snorted. “I told you to lay in a supply of Plan B six months ago, but you just had to --”

My Beanis senses are tingling!

[TheFreedomWatching]

“I wish Cantata was here.”

You mean....Sonata?

If you decide to give up and sell the Rainblooms out to her, just keep in mind that you’re probably going to sell us out as well and we’re all going to end up just like she did! Fuck this. I’m out.

Adagio: I don't care. Bye.

[shallow15]

9448735

You mean....Sonata?

No.

[lazyreader19]

Hakuna Cantata~ 🎶

[raven618]

9703406
Boo! Bad pun!