S.M.I.L.E. Agent Aria Blaze

by Hopeful_Ink_Hoof

Dealing with THE MAN

In their forgotten little basement apartment sat The Dazzlings. Aria Blaze sat upside down on the couch, staring at the television. Technically, she was watching it, but was not really paying attention. It was some stupid superhero movie that was clearly made to capitalize on how popular other superhero movies were, without trying to put anything original or creative into it. Sonata Dusk sat next to her, bowl of popcorn in her lap, idly munching away as she stared intently at the screen. Nearby, Adagio Dazzle sat in what was specifically her chair, reading... Aria did not know what, and did not really care. Probably some dumb romance novel or other.

While she could not speak for the others, Aria Blaze was bored. Bored, bored, bored, and of course, bored. With their gemstones gone, they could no longer create negative emotions among creatures, nor could they feed off it to give themselves power. It also meant they could no longer sing. For the longest time, they had been stewing in bitterness, and planning on coming up with a way to take revenge against The Rainbooms for defeating them, but after working with those same girls to help save Sunset Shimmer and Canterlot City, the three of them had kind of moved past it. They would by no means consider the girls "friends" (and the idea of it made Aria want to puke), but it did make it hard to hate and blame the group for the defeat. Then after going to Equestria, fleeing in terror when they learned Starswirl and The Pillars were still around, and being convinced to return in order to explore the kingdom, The Dazzlings had decided to return to and stay on earth. Which means that they had no reason to go back, and no reason to plan on a way to do so.

This all added up to one major question.

What were they supposed to do now?

No reason to cause chaos and arguing, no desire to go back to Equestria, no need to try and get energy on Earth, no real desire to get revenge, and that also meant that there was no reason to go out and get drunk while they stew in their depression and anger.

So it was that they sat at home, a bad superhero movie playing on TV, with Aria bored out of her skull.

Maybe she could try becoming a supervillain. She could put on one of their old costumes and commit a few crimes. Maybe find some people that would be willing to work for her. As long as she kept away from Canterlot High and the mall, she would not have to worry too much about The Rainbooms messing with her. Although... now that they had superpowers of their own, it was possible they would actively try to stop her...

A knock at the door got the attention of all three of them. They all turned, staring at it.

No one knocked on their door. No one was even supposed to know where their apartment was supposed to be. The building was one that had locking mailboxes in the lobby, and any food delivery was met there as well. They also never had any friends come over.

Maybe one of the Rain-bums found out and came over to try and talk to them about "the magic of friendship," or some other crap.

Or maybe it was one of those religious people.

The knocking repeated.

"I'll get it," Aria declared, pushing to get up. Maybe she could threaten whoever was out there. There were times when a good glare and scowl got the point across pretty well, but sometimes it was nice to tell someone what you were going to do with their little booklet or flyers if they did not fuck right off.

Pulling open the door, Aria found herself face to face with a woman in a suit. Said woman looked to be at least in her thirties by human standards. Her skin was an extremely pale gray color, and her hair was white with streaks of purple going through it.

"Easy," she said in a friendly tone, holding up her hands. "I come in peace. Not here to cause you any trouble." She gave a smile, that reached her pale blue eyes. "I promise."

That... was not what Aria was expecting. If it had been one of the Rainbooms, they would have just started with hello. If it had been a religious person, they would have pretty much jumped into their whole spiel right off. This woman seemed to think they were some sort of danger, and was trying to calm them. Did... did she know what they were?

The woman leaned forward and raised an eyebrow.

"May I come in?"

If it had just been Aria, she would have let the woman in, if only to find out what was going on. However, it was not just her. So she turned to look at the others. First, she turned to Sonata, who had moved to face the door, and was watching things as she continued to munch her popcorn. Next she turned to Adagio, who gave a small nod.

"Don't try anything funny," Aria warned, giving one more glare to the woman. After a second, she stepped back, pulling the door open wider as she moved out of the way.

"I'll leave the knock-knock jokes at the door," the woman said as she stepped into the apartment. She made her way toward the living room, looking around as she did. She came to a stop beside the television, turning to face The Dazzlings.

"Ladies, my name is Twilight Velvet," she announced.

Sonata let out a gasp.

"You mean the writer?" she asked, leaning forward.

"The same," Velvet confirmed, giving a small nod. "However, that is not my only job, and it isn't why I'm here." She took a deep breath, straightening up. "You see, I am also an agent of SMILE. The Secret Magical Intelligence League of Earth. It's our job to monitor supernatural and magical events, deal with such in the necessary manner, and keep the general public from becoming aware of them."

"Well, you're doing a shitty job of it," Aria blurted out. All eyes were suddenly on her. None of them were angry, however. Even the agent that she had actually just insulted did not seem very offended. More curious.

Aria held up a hand.

"Sunset Satan," she said, ticking a finger, "us, Midnight Sparkle, the giant woman who rampaged through the mall." She threw out her hands. "Deep Abyss, we had this whole thing where Sunset Shimmers came from across who knows how many dimensions! And that doesn't even touch on things like whatever happened to give the Rainbooms super powers!"

Without realizing it, she had taken a step forward and was pointing a finger.

"If you were good at you're job, you probably would have busted our ass before we were able to get through The Battle of the Bands!"

A gasp suddenly escaped from Sonata as she turned to look at the suited woman again.

"You're not here to lock us up, are you?"

"Sonata, relax," Adagio said. "If she were here to do something like that, she wouldn't have come alone."

"Unless there are a bunch of agents surrounding the building, waiting for her order," Sonata replied.

The thought of a bunch of humans in suits surrounding the building made Aria look toward the door. She found herself grateful that they were underground, which meant it was the only way through to their apartment, while at the same time wishing that there were windows so that she could look outside and be sure that was not what was happening.

"Besides," Adagio continued as though no one had interrupted, "if they were interested in capturing us, they likely would have done it when we were at our most vulnerable and recognizable." She turned to look at Velvet. "Such as right after our defeat. Not months later." Her gaze narrowed. "And especially not after we helped the same people who defeated us deal with an issue." One orange eyebrow raised up. "Or am I mistaken?"

"No, no," Twilight Velvet said. "You're not mistaken at all. As I said, I come in peace."

She then turned to Aria.

"As to your point: I will concede that there is a problem from where you are looking." She let out a sigh, shifting. "Unfortunately, things are a bit... complicated when it comes to Canterlot High. I don't entirely know the details, but there are additional restrictions on what we are and aren't allowed to do on or near the campus."

A finger came up.

"However, that doesn't mean we haven't done anything." Twilight Velvet gave a smirk. "Or have none of you noticed how all those events are not mentioned in the paper or on the news?"

From the look on her face, that gave Adagio a moment of pause. Of the three of them, she was the one that kept track of the news the most. Even if they had not been paying as much attention to it as she used to, she still would have noticed if any of that had been mentioned.

"Nobody watches the news on tv or reads the paper anymore," Sonata declared. "They get their news on the internet. With all those teens and their phones, there must be dozens of videos of everything that happened."

"Right," Velvet said, a small chuckle in her voice. "A random teenager puts up a video on a website, claiming to see a girl transform into some sort of monster due to magic. In and of itself, if we assume someone does see that video, what are the chances they are going to believe that it is real?"

That was something of a good point. Most people did not believe in magic as a rule. Especially in this day and age. If they saw anything that was supposedly magic, more often than not, they would disregard it. Stories of hoaxes often helped with that. Kind of hard to prove ghosts are real when most mediums are using speakers and wires.

"Now," Twilight Velvet continued, "add to that the fact videos are made every day which are special effects, made to entertain. People who want to make videos themselves to entertain others, or hoping to some day become actual movie directors. Many times, those videos do not include any notes about how they aren't real. Next, have a comment about seeing wires or cg here, some pixelation around someone or something there, create a video showing how a similar special effect could be created, and all of a sudden, the real video with actual magic is seen as just another something that people made to get views."

She shifted, letting out a sigh.

"Although, admittedly, some are easier than others." She motioned toward The Dazzlings. "Say, like a music video where two bands play against each other, and it ends up in a lightshow battle where giant figures representing both go up against each other in massive fight, with only one winning. It's like someone saw Shire Trotter Vs The World and decided to use an idea straight from it."

"Oh... right..." Sonata said in a soft tone.

"Getting back to the matter at hand," Adagio called out, "why, precisely, are you here?"

"Right," Velvet agreed. "First, on behalf of SMILE, I would like to thank you for your assistance in dealing with the recent multi-dimensional Sunset Shimmer anomaly. While it may have been for your own reasons, you were helpful, and your aid is greatly appreciated."

Aria could not help but roll her eyes, letting out a snort. They had teamed up with their one time enemies, spent hours searching for Sunset Shimmers, had to fight a bunch of evil and monstrous versions of the same, and in the end, rejected the reason they had offered to help in the first place. Now they were getting thanked for it? If the agency was really grateful, they would show it with something more tangible. Like money.

"Second," Velvet said, "I have been sent here to offer a job with us to Aria Blaze."

"...What?" all three Dazzlings cried out.

"Why?" Aria added.

In response, the woman gave a shrug.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know," she said. "Orders came straight from the top, but gave no explanation. Only that of the three, you were the only one that could accept the position." She held up a hand. "However, there is more to it. So, full deal... or, as much as I can share with you. You, Aria Blaze, come work for SMILE, help deal with supernatural and magical events that occur in and around Canterlot City, and let our scientists study you. That means running tests on your abilities, doing scans of your body, collecting tissue samples, and probably some more invasive examinations that would do no serious harm. In exchange: you will receive a paycheck; any civilian criminal records will be completely expunged; SMILE will keep its own record of your history and activities, but it will be restricted to requiring a high level of clearance to be viewed; and most importantly, you will be given all the paperwork needed to be seen as full and legal citizens of both this world, and this country. That means birth certificates, vaccination records, school records, driver's licenses, and high school diplomas."

There she paused, and Aria tried to take it all in.

Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! she thought to herself. This was a decision. A big decision. One that affected all of them. Yes, she had talked about overthrowing Adagio and taking control of the group before, but she had never actually gone through with it. And Sonata had been right when she said that Aria had never come up with a plan of her own for the three of them to use. She was not a leader. She was a punk. A rebel. One of her favorite parts was how they could screw up human society.

Aria turned to look at the others.

Sonata was no help. She was just looking at Aria with wide eyes.

Adagio raised an eyebrow, then made a "go ahead" motion with her hand.

The bitch was leaving it completely up to Aria.

"How long do I have to think about it?"

A sigh escaped Twilight Velvet, shoulders sagging.

"I'm afraid this is a now or never type of deal." Pulling back a sleeve, she looked at her watch. "I have to leave in ten minutes to attend a different meeting, and I need an answer before I go. If I don't get one, then it's considered a 'no,' and the offer is off the table."

"That's not fair," Sonata said. "Aria should have time to think about it."

"No, it's not," Velvet agreed. "And yes, she should." Turning, she gave a sympathetic smile. "If it were up to me, I would give her at least the night to think about it." She sighed, running a hand through her hair. "But it's not up to me. I have my orders."

Velvet turned to the Dazzling in question.

"Besides, think of it as experience. People have to make choices without knowing everything or getting to think it through all the time. If you do accept, you will have to do so all the more."

Aria scowled but considered it. As much as she hated it, it was kind of true. Although, Adagio was still better at thinking things through than she was. Still, there had been a few times where their group had to do what they could and kind of hope for the best.

Still, she needed a little more time to think. And a little more information.

"What if I say no?"

"Then that would be the end of it," Velvet answered. "I would leave, you three would get to go on with your lives, and SMILE will leave you alone so long as you don't try to use magic to take over the world, or restore your lost powers." She held up a finger. "But, that also means you don't get any of the benefits. You will not have any of the previously mentioned paperwork, with the exception of what pieces you already have, and any open warrants on any of you would still be that way. Also, I feel I should point out that, should you ever decide to try and get jobs, you can no longer rely on your powers to make someone hire you, and a background check will show the lack of documentation. It's not impossible for you to get a job, but it would be difficult, and likely something with very little pay."

Aria's lips pressed thin as she looked at the woman. As annoying as it was, it was all true. No birth certificates, no school records. Aria had a driver's license, but she was the only one, and she had used her powers to get it instead of filling out all the proper paperwork. They had some money, and few bills, but they had never really saved up much. After all, if they ever needed more, they could manipulate someone into giving it to them. That was no longer an option, though. If they decided to move out, not only would there be a matter of having no previous addresses, but they would also have to pay either the rent, or a mortgage. In either case, it would eat up most of their savings, and they would need to get jobs.

Something else suddenly occurred to her. If she accepted this deal, she would likely have to deal with other magical creatures. It would be part of her job to stop them. Maybe even fight them. She would get to fight monsters like what she used to be, and she would be getting paid for it.

"Alright," Aria said, "I'll do it."

Comments

[FanOfMostEverything]

This promises to be very interesting. I find myself wondering if the sirens ever gave Equestria another chance after hearing the Pillars were still a thing, but I suppose we might not have a story if they did. (Well, not this story, anyway.) Also, what is it about authors in this franchise that has them live adventurous double lives?

Looking forward to more, especially if Twilight Sparkle ever finds out what her mother really does for a living. (Indeed, this raises questions about pony Velvet...)

[Herald of Opera]

9839462
It's damned hard to come up with an adventure that couldn't happen in Actual Equestria, so if we're going to have fantasy fiction at all we have to pad its ranks with creatures who secretly didn't try to.

[Shadow_Wolf]

I'm intrigued