One Achievement Follows Another
Chapter X: One Achievement Follows Another
Unlocking the door to the music studio, it’s hard for me to not enjoy the sound of the bell ringing, making the establishment feel more alive than it has in a year. That single sound reminds me that this place is mine. There are still numerous things that need to be fixed, but for now? This is a day of celebration. I’ll make sure of it. The lights in the studio flicker on within a second and I can’t help but enjoy the sight. All of this is owned by me now. Not someone above me. I own this business and I can do with it what I please, when I want. I’m determined to turn it into something bigger than it ever was…
Walking into the studio from behind me, Applejack sets a couple bags down on the counter near the door as Rarity sets her sights on the studio itself. Clearly, a look of surprise overcomes both of them, but the cowgirl is able to contain it more than her girlfriend.
“Oh my gosh… You own all of this, darling?” Rarity asks in disbelief, walking further into the studio. Her hand briefly feels the furniture in the main area of the studio. Applejack simply looks at the walls and the ceiling, nodding to herself.
“It is quite impressive, Sugarcube. Gosh. Knowing you, I bet ya have some pretty big plans for the place, right?” Applejack’s eyes look towards me with curiosity, wanting to hear whatever I have planned. I can’t help but chuckle at her curious nature.
“Well, I can say that my plans are decently sized~” I tease my friend, placing the grocery bag in my hand on the counter next to Applejack’s bags. Taking out a bottle, I smile at the label showing my favorite kind of whiskey. Four Roses Single Barrel. I’d say today is a special occasion that justifies this little treat~
“Before you get too focused on those plans of yours, ya may want to have someone inspect the walls,” Applejack tells me with her eyes focused on the ceiling, seemingly trying to observe any change. She looks so focused that you can almost swear that she’s trying to spot any movement in the paint.
“What do you mean exactly…?” I ask her with a raised eyebrow, placing the bottle back down. Applejack’s behavior feels very… weird. What the hell does she mean? Is there something I should know about? I guess she does know more about repairs than me, but I’m hoping nothing is wrong with the studio…
“From the looks of it, this building has been around for a while. The pipes may be outdated and if there’s any sign of mold, ya need to take care of it early to avoid spending a fortune on it. Since the bakery below the studio also owns a portion of the building, I’m guessing you would have some sort of insurance.” Applejack traces her finger across the wall, her eyes still focused on the paint with furrowed eyebrows.
“You can tell all of that from the wall?” I ask her with a slight chuckle, not believing her statement momentarily. Even though Applejack is always honest with me, it’s hard for me to understand how she could tell that from the wall. The cowgirl looks towards me with a serious expression, clearly not a fan of my humorous chuckle.
“You would be surprised to know how much ya can tell about a place just from the wall,” Applejack tells me with a simple knock against the wall. The knock sounds solid without much reverberation, disappearing as quickly as the sound appeared. The whole time, Applejack doesn’t break our eye contact, giving me a slight smile. “This whole wall seems to be pretty solid. Good soundproofing and insulation. But that’s probably because this is the wall separating us from the outside.” Applejack turns her gaze back towards the paint, lightly scratching the wall to test it. Honestly, I’m surprised that Applejack could tell that the wall was solid from one knock. Wouldn’t you need to test multiple spots? Wait. Was she doing that this whole time…?
“Enough about architecture, darling. We’re supposed to be here to celebrate Adagio’s big achievement~” Rarity tells Applejack with a coo to her voice, walking over to the cowgirl and draping her arms around her. Applejack simply wraps one arm around Rarity to keep her by her side, briefly nuzzling the fashionista.
“I’m just offering advice. That’s all-”
Before Applejack can finish her statement, the door’s electronic bell rings again just as it opens, making me avert my gaze from the couple. Pushing her back against the door, Rainbow Dash holds five pizza boxes in her hands, clearly struggling to get inside. Behind her is a surprised Fluttershy, clearly confused as to what she’s supposed to do in the situation.
“The pizza is here!” Dash exclaims with a broad smile, walking inside and leaving Fluttershy to catch the door.
“I-I tried to help her, but she wanted to carry them all,” Fluttershy tells us with a quieter tone compared to the louder Rainbow Dash. Knowing Dash, that actually fits. I can see her wanting to show off as much as possible. Especially due to the amount of abuse she had to go through with her previous team a couple years ago. She sometimes needs these moments to strut her stuff.
“Pfft! It was no big deal! I had it all under control,” Dash responds to Fluttershy’s statement with a laugh, setting the boxes down on the counter.
Rarity laughs out loud at Dash’s words, briefly bringing her hand to her mouth. “Is ‘under control’ the definition for struggling with a door? Because that’s what it looked like from over here,” Rarity speaks up in a teasing tone, clearly joking with our friend.
“I think you were too focused on AJ to really see what was going on,” Dash fires back before sticking her tongue out, making Rarity quickly let go of Applejack. Despite Rarity’s attempt to maintain appearances, Applejack still holds the fashionista close to her.
“It wasn’t just this door. It was every door on the way here,” Fluttershy commented with a giggle, joining in on the teasing. Dash dawns a look of betrayal upon hearing Fluttershy’s words. Honestly, what made her think Fluttershy would defend her in this case? She was the main witness to Dash’s attempt at showing off.
“Well, still. We’re here now.” Dash’s eyes look around the music studio with an odd sense of recognition in them, nodding quietly. “Huh. The place hasn’t changed much since I quit. I suppose the new owner is going to make a few changes, huh?” Dash teases me with a wink before walking over to me, hugging me as tight as she can. In no way are her hugs as tight as Apple Bloom’s, so I can thankfully breathe during this embrace. “Congrats, Adagio~ I didn’t say it over the phone, but man. Great job.”
Patting Rainbow on the back, our embrace ends quietly. I can’t help but nod at Rainbow’s congratulations, both of us chuckling for no real reason. “Thank you, Dash. I’m sure that you carrying those pizza boxes was a bigger challenge than me buying this studio.” Dash sticks her tongue out at my tease, walking back over to the food. Fluttershy takes a breath and opens her mouth to say something, but her words go unspoken. She is easily interrupted by the door behind her opening once more, five or six balloons floating into the room with the words “Congrats, Adagio!!!” written on them.
Within seconds, a pink blur rushes inside the studio, Pinkie Pie inspecting the room with an excited smile. “Ooh! So this is the studio you work at~!” Pinkie exclaims with excitement, clearly in awe at the place. “It looks so comfy here!” Once again, Pinkie zooms away from me, plopping down on the couch with a grin. “It feels comfy too!”
“Yeah, Pinkie. I used to work here too and believe me. Those seats aren’t comfortable for hours at a time,” Rainbow Dash responds to Pinkie Pie’s exclamation. The party machine doesn’t seem to listen to her for a second. Turning my gaze back towards the door, I see the last two people we were waiting on walk inside my little studio. Twilight looks more reserved than usual, but honestly? It’s nice to see her out and about after what happened the last time I talked with her. I don’t have any updates on what happened after that…
Beside her, a woman with hair that shines like the sun sets down a medium-sized box onto the counter before her eyes make contact with my own. Her eyes reflect the ocean and her lips form a warm smile that reminds me of how much I love her. God… I never get tired of looking at her. I never find it exhausting to be around her and every moment she’s around, she lights up my life. I’m sure everyone else notices my love for her easily, but how am I supposed to not fall in love with that smile all over again? Years after I fell in love with her, I still can’t avoid letting out a pure smile due to just how much I love her~ This is true love, right?
Sunset quietly walks over to me as the sounds of everyone else greeting each other plays in the background. Her eyes look into mine and for a moment, nothing happens other than exchanging a smile with each other. “Hello, beautiful~” she whispers before bringing her hand to my cheek. Why does that statement make me so… happy? So full of joy that I just want to hug her and spend the rest of my life in her arms… The simple touch of her fingers on my cheek makes me smile uncontrollably, making the love of my life giggle to herself. “I know you so well, don’t I?”
“I know you too.” Pressing my lips against hers, my mind temporarily blocks out all the noise around us. Even though I have to make this kiss short, I still enjoy it nonetheless. “I’m glad you’re here~ I thought for sure your internship would keep you late again,” I tease her with a chuckle, making Sunset playfully roll her eyes.
“You know I wouldn’t miss this, Alligator. This is really important to you. Of course I’d be here~” Turning away from me, Sunset waves to Rarity, opening her mouth to say something.
“What is with everyone and the PDA? I thought this was a party,” Rainbow Dash interjects with a small laugh, taking a bite of her pizza.
“Maybe you’re just jealous, Dash,” Applejack tells her with a hearty laugh, scruffing up the athlete’s hair. With one swift move, Applejack pulls Rarity in for a hug, lifting the fashionista off her feet and subsequently surprising her.
“Well, it is statistically significant that the majority of people feel more uncomfortable with public displays of affection if they are not in a relationship. Now it hasn’t actually been studied if this is the same for people who aren’t looking for a relationship or if there is a difference.” Twilight smiles to herself, seemingly proud of her observation, but that look of pride quickly disappears as she looks at us. “A-at least, that’s just what I know. I could be wrong.” It’s good to see that she has her usual nerdy attitude back~
“Well, I think it’s fitting given the situation since emotions are high right now,” Fluttershy comments with a nod, adding to Twilight’s point. “Also, since it’s a party, I brought a couple games. Would anyone be up for a game of Scattergories?”
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“A train conductor?” Fluttershy asks timidly, all of us trying to make sense of Applejack’s bizarre gestures. Every movement she makes seems to contradict each other, only prolonging the amount of time it takes to guess what she’s trying to mimic. Rarity, on the other hand, has been smiling on the sidelines this whole time with a knowing look on her face. She knows exactly what Applejack’s prompt was for this game of charades. I doubt the cowgirl shared it with her, but Rarity knows her so well that it’s not surprising that she would understand her non verbals a lot better than us.
“Nope,” Applejack responds to Fluttershy with an almost deflated tone, clearly exhausted that no one has gotten it yet. She’s tried her best to make it obvious to us, but I suppose we’re all dense. For a moment, Applejack’s eyes light up with an idea, raising her hand in the air. Bringing her other hand up, she moves her hand around the air as if she is rubbing an object. Pretending to take a bite of the object, Applejack then points to herself before acting repulsed.
“Snow White?” Twilight asks our friend. At this point, everyone is focused on her imitations. Even Rainbow Dash is trying to eat her pizza quietly just to pay attention. Applejack looks at Twilight with a look of pain and conflict, bringing her hands to her face as she groans in anger. The way she’s acting makes it sound like Twilight was pretty close to the answer.
“Oh! I get it! She’s a doctor!” Rainbow Dash exclaims, just barely swallowing her food before she spoke. Applejack’s hands fly up to the sky and a look of relief finally comes over the cowgirl, a hysterical laugh exiting her lips.
“Finally! God damn. I tried to make that as obvious as possible to y’all,” Applejack tells us with a giggle, bringing her hands to her knees as if she’s tired from the whole ordeal. “I mean, I tried to mimic the whole-”
“Ooh! My turn!” Pinkie Pie interrupts Applejack, quickly rushing into the middle of the room and pushing the cowgirl back to her seat. Applejack is left with a bewildered face, seemingly questioning what just happened.
“Eh? But I didn’t get to finish what I was-”
“Knowing Pinkie, she will probably give away the prompt by accidentally saying it,” Dash interrupts our friend, looking at Pinkie selecting a card from the deck. Once again, Applejack looks surprised that she was interrupted, taking a deep breath to say something.
“Well, I mean, it is Pinkie, so-”
“Dashie! That’s so mean!” Pinkie interjects with a pout, giggling shortly after. “I do my best to not give it away verbally!” Pinkie pulls a cupcake from her hair and throws it at Dash, causing her to try and dodge it in vain. Fluttershy and Twilight laugh at what just transpired, but Applejack is less than enthused. Rarity gives her a kiss on the cheek which seems to help her a little bit, but you can still tell that she’s annoyed if you look hard enough.
“Just don’t talk until one of us guesses it~ That should work,” Sunset advises Pinkie with a welcoming nod. Pinkie Pie excitedly jumps up and down before reading her prompt. While we wait for her to actually begin, the feeling of Sunset’s fingers intertwining with mine makes a blush appear on my face all too easily. It’s not an abnormal gesture, but it still makes me happy every time we hold hands.
The sound of a buzz makes me turn my gaze from Pinkie, seeing Rainbow Dash reach into her bag. “Sorry! Y’all don’t mind me. It’s just my phone,” she tells us with a reassuring tone before pulling out her phone and looking at the screen. Even though everyone else looks away from her, I can’t help but idle my stare on her, feeling a little curious. The sound of Pinkie’s gestures and giggles don’t turn my gaze. For some reason, I can’t really look away. Ever since Dash looked at the screen, the color seemingly drained from her face. After a few moments, Dash’s eyes widen and look over the screen much faster than before.
“Dash?” I call out her name, causing everyone else to stop playing the game and look at our friend. Rainbow Dash doesn’t seem to register my question, her eyes frozen to the screen. This feels really… confusing. Before I can say another word, Dash barely opens her mouth, still looking at the screen. A couple of tears slide down her cheek just as her plate with a slice of pizza falls off her lap.
“Mom…?” Dash barely mutters, her lips quivering from the word. Before Applejack can try to reassure her, Dash throws her hand into her pocket, pulling out a blue necklace as fast as she can.
“Dash-” before Applejack can finish her sentence, Rainbow Dash is suddenly gone with only the sound of the front door slamming shut accompanying her disappearance. How did she… What just happened…?
“She still uses that necklace?” Rarity asks the group in disbelief. Use…? How the fuck would you use a necklace in this instance?
“I think the bigger problem is whatever was on her phone, sugarcube…” Applejack quickly stands up from her seat, running over to the door. The door opens again just before Applejack runs after her friend, despite there being no hope of catching up to her.
Pinkie Pie stands in the middle of the room with a conflicted face, her hair slowly straightening and falling down beside her face. “What… happened with Dashie?” she asks quietly, still trying to be happy, but it’s clear that she’s not.
“That’s what we’re trying to figure out, darling.” Rarity pulls out her phone and starts typing something into it, presumably trying to get a hold of one of our missing friends.
“What was that necklace?” I finally ask everyone, standing up from my seat. My question is a desperate attempt to switch the topic. I’m sure we can’t get a hold of Dash right now… She would just ignore us and keep us away. We’ll have to wait until she gives us an answer as to what happened. “Sunset has a similar one in her jewelry box. You said Dash ‘used’ it. What is going on here?” Why does it feel like they’re hiding something from me…? Everyone dawns a sheepish look as soon as I ask my question, Rarity biting her lip quietly.
“Well, um… You see, we all have those. It happened a while ago and-” before Rarity can finish her thought, Sunset holds her hand up, shaking her head.
“Rarity, we agreed. That we wouldn’t talk about them,” Sunset whispers, seemingly ignoring me for now.
“But Dash has already broken that promise,” Twilight speaks up, standing up out of her seat. “I know what we agreed on, but it’s clear that Rainbow Dash will probably tell her eventually. Shouldn’t we let her in on this?”
“Let me in on what?” My question comes out in an angry sigh, exhausted with this whole conversation. What have they been holding back? I thought we were all best friends. Yet I’m out of the loop on something like this? “What the hell is going on here?” Rarity and Twilight look at me with pity, but they keep their lips tightly shut. Fluttershy is simply staring at the floor, an unsure look on her face. I hate this conflict… Why should it seem like such a big deal to tell me something? They should know I would keep a secret. Am I even their friend? Just… ugh…
“Well, I suppose I could tell her,” Pinkie tells us with a hopeful tone to her voice, faking her enthusiasm. Her hair still hangs like curtains and her eyes seem full of nothing but anxiety.
“No,” Sunset speaks up, taking a deep breath. “I’ll tell her. It’ll be better if I do it.” Sunset finally connects her eyes with me again, an apologetic tone in her stare. What have you been hiding from me, Sunset…?
“Are you sure? It affected you the most, darling…”
“I’m sure… Just try and find Dash and make sure she’s doing alright. I’ll talk with my fiancée.” Looking around at everyone else, I see them slowly nod with a conflicted look in their eyes. Fluttershy is the first to stand and walk towards the door, followed by Pinkie Pie.
“Well, it was a fun party while it lasted,” Rarity tells us with a slow nod as a farewell. Twilight walks towards me and gives me a hug, patting my back before she walks with Rarity towards the door.
…
As soon as the door shuts, I can’t help but stare at Sunset, feeling hurt by this whole situation. “What the hell was all of this, Sunny?” Standing in the middle of my studio, I feel really pissed off that I was kept in the dark about all of this. What is this? What is even going on? “Today was supposed to be about my studio. Yet I find out there’s some magic necklaces that all of you have? What is going on, Sunset?”
“I’m sorry. I really am sorry for keeping you away from this.” Taking a deep breath, Sunset stands up from her seat and walks over to the counter, pouring another two glasses of whiskey. “There’s a reason why I did it…” The air is filled with a sense of tension, despite how much I try to shake it off. I don’t like it… Sunset is usually so happy and strong. What could be so bad that she needed to keep it a secret? That she’s afraid to even talk about it? “I know you’re probably angry with me, but please trust me. What I’m about to tell you is strange…” Handing me one of the glasses, Sunset gives me an apologetic smile, trying to give me a peace offering. Her eyes don’t look away from my own for an instant… She’s telling me the truth.
Holding the glass, I take a slow sip, sitting down on the couch. “Alright. I trust you. You still need to tell me what’s going on though.” Sitting down beside me, she gives me an understanding nod. For a few moments, nothing but silence passes between both of us, giving her adequate time to find the right words. The last thing I would want is for Sunset to tell me this news without preparing herself first. We both need to be clear-headed for this. Though, I suppose that means drinking this whiskey isn’t the best idea…
“Do you remember when you caught me cutting myself a couple years ago?” Sunset asks me quietly, barely moving other than to signal her finger towards her stomach.
“Of course. That was one of the scariest moments of my life…” It had happened just a couple months after we got together. She hasn’t done it since then thankfully, but it was still pretty frightening to see the one I love hurting herself.
“Do you remember what I told you was the reason why I did it? Why I sometimes feel depressed?” Even though Sunset hasn’t hurt herself since, she does have insecure thoughts every now and again. She sometimes feels depressed and the best I can do is be there for her.
“You said you were afraid of the future and of how magic could affect you again,” I answer her quietly, taking a drink from my glass. How does this relate to those necklaces? Is it because of magic…? My mind is racing with a thousand questions a minute, but the only one who can answer them is her.
“As I told you, magic is… different here. In Equestria, it is everywhere and you can manipulate it how you need to, but it’s not the same here.” A heavy sigh exits her lips before pressing them against the edge of her glass, drinking the whiskey. Sunset takes a deep breath to replace the one she just exhaled, looking back over at me. “Magic in this world acts differently. You can’t predict it and you can hardly control it. It is chaotic. Even as the self-appointed master of magic in this world, all I can say is that magic in this world is a force that can’t be controlled without extreme patience and strength.”
“And those necklaces are magical, right?” I ask her with a raised eyebrow. Sunset simply nods to my question, gently swirling the liquid in the glass.
“So, do you remember what I told you about my trip to Camp Everfree with my friends?” Looking into my eyes, Sunset slowly grabs my hand, her body movements telling me that this is… really serious. It was a while back when she told me what happened at that camp, but I think I remember the gist of it.
“You said your camp counselor was corrupted by magic and tried to preserve the camp in nature.” I still fail to see how this connects to what happened today, but I have trust that Sunset will answer my questions soon enough.
“Well, I never told you what happened after that…” Taking a deep breath, Sunset looks away from me briefly, a thoughtful look painted across her face. “See, Gloriosa Daisy got her magic from crystals that were in a cave. Somehow, they were imbued with magic and I don’t know how, but when we saved the camp, those crystals were given to us. Conveniently, they changed to necklaces of different colors.” Sunset brings her finger to her neck as a gesture to accompany her message. This information is new to me… She never told me this side of the story. I thought it was a simple “power of friendship” narrative, but now it seems like it’s a lot more complicated than that.
“So, that orange and red necklace of yours back home is magical?” For a moment, my question goes unanswered… That is until Sunset gives me a small nod, a look of guilt overcoming her.
“Yeah… When we got robbed, I was the most worried about that getting into the wrong hands. I’m not even sure if other people can use it besides me, but the thought is still terrifying…” Sunset’s eyes look down to the ground, a haunting familiarity to her words… The whole reason Sunset cut herself in the first place was because of how terrifying magic was for her. How much it scared her that she could possibly turn back into that she-demon… Is this why? Is this the reason why she’s so scared? “Those necklaces give us magical abilities. Dash can go faster than anyone else alive. Pinkie Pie can manipulate the vibration of objects, usually so that they explode. Rarity can make diamond objects. You get the gist of it. It sounds nice at first, but…” Sunset takes a deep breath with a shaky voice, composing herself as well as she can. Come on, Sunny…
“You can tell me,” I whisper to her, holding her hand a bit tighter. Bringing my finger to her chin, I gently guide her gaze to mine, trying to give her the assurance she always gives me. “I’ll always be here for you. No matter what.” Holding my pinkie finger out to her, Sunset smiles a little more than before, giggling at my gesture. As childish as it is, it brings comfort to her… It doesn’t take long for her to wrap her finger around mine, pressing her nose against my own.
“Around six months after we had all graduated, I noticed something weird. My necklace granted me the ability to read people’s memories for relevant information in a situation, but after six months of wearing it, that started to change.” Sunset pulls away from me, standing up from the couch. Walking over to the counter, Sunset turns back to me, connecting her gaze with mine. “I had always required touch to do that, but now? I could be this far away from someone before I could look into their mind. God, I couldn’t just read their memories. I could hear their thoughts and I could feel their emotions as if they were my own. I could feel the memories of the world itself and the scariest part…?” Sunset brings her hands up to her face, rubbing her forehead out of frustration. “I couldn’t control it. No matter what I did, it just kept getting stronger and I couldn’t keep it in check. The last time I dealt with magic that was uncontrollable and growing at such a fast rate, I had turned into a she-demon. You already know about my anger issues, so I didn’t think that the two factors were a good fit…”
For a while, nothing else is said between us, Sunset taking deep breaths to try and not get too angry about memories from the past. Magic… Uncontrollable magic. I had always wondered why Sunset was so scared of turning into that awful form again, but now I know why she feels that way. God, she was scared that at any moment, that magic could corrupt her again. Despite the fact that I believe she’s too pure to turn into that again, Sunset doesn’t know that… Was her self-harm a few years ago a way to try and make up for all the times she let magic take control of her life?
“Oh my god… I finally understand,” I instinctually state, slumping back into the couch. Sunset raises her eyebrow and a cute inquisitive look comes over her.
“Finally understand what…?” she asks me quietly, leaning away from the counter.
“I understand why you felt so afraid of magic. I thought it was a weird fear since you were done with your magic adventures, but this whole time, you’ve had a necklace that has uncontrollable magic.” Setting my glass half full of whiskey down on the table, I can’t help but exhale, weirdly relieved to finally know this piece of knowledge. Still. I don’t know everything there is to know about this situation. “So, your magic was starting to scare you. What happened next?” My eyes return to hers, intent on finding the answer to this question. We’ve come too far to stop now…
“Well… My friends started to experience similar things with their magic. We all talked about it and came to the agreement that we wouldn’t use our necklaces anymore and we wouldn’t talk about it ever again. We thought it would be the best for the world if it had less magical problems.” Walking back towards me, Sunset sits back down on the couch, rubbing her hands together in the middle of her thoughts. “Rainbow Dash and Applejack were the only ones who didn’t agree at first. They thought we should still use our necklaces and track down magical threats, but they agreed after a bit of pleading. But now, I guess that deal has been broken since Dash used her magic again and… here I am talking about it.”
Taking a sip of my whiskey, I contemplate what Sunset just told me. Everything about magic in this world… It doesn’t add up. Why is it so different than it is in Equestria? And why did they get those necklaces in the first place? Are they this world’s version of the Elements of Harmony? If so, then why would it act so… wild? It doesn’t make sense. Even the siren queen inside my mind has had a hard time understanding magic in this world. There has to be some rhyme and reason to it all. The only one who can figure that out is her… She knows the most about magic here, yet she’s afraid of it.
“Want to know what I think?” I ask her quietly, finishing off my glass. Sunset looks at me with a confused expression once again, clearly curious about my question. “I think you should use them…” Setting my glass down, I turn my body to her, giving her my full attention. “Listen. I understand you’re afraid of it. I know that and in no way do I want to make you feel like I don’t value your insecurities. All I’m saying is that you’re the master of magic in this world. You’re far smarter than any wizard back in Equestria and you’ve tangled with magic a dozen times. By this point, you already know one rule of magic. You’ve said as much to me.” Sunset raises her eyebrow at me, leaning back with a doubtful expression.
“What rule did I tell you…?” she asks me quietly, clearly unsure what I mean.
“You told me that magic in this world, no matter how uncontrollable it seems, tends to enhance certain attributes of a person. Usually, if someone has evil or torment in their heart, you told me that they will turn into something dark and disastrous.” Grabbing Sunset’s hand, I do my best to smile leaning forward to make up for the distance she made between us. “Whereas if someone is valiant and true, they will be made into something good. You told me this rule. You found out one rule of magic in this world already. I think if anyone has a shot of fully understanding and utilizing magic here, it is you.”
Sunset’s eyes look into my own with doubt, desperately trying to find the reason why I am saying these things. Her stare tells me that she almost hopes that I’m right… “But what if I don’t have good in my heart, Adagio…? What if all the attempts I’ve made to be a better person are only masking what is underneath…?” Sunset briefly looks away from me, but her grip on my hand gets tighter, holding onto me for comfort. “Why are you so confident in me, Adagio…?”
“Is it wrong to be confident in you? You were always telling me I could do it when I stressed out about the test.” Bringing Sunset’s hand up to my lips, I gently kiss the back of her hand without breaking eye contact, bringing a blush to her face. “But in all seriousness? I believe in you because… I know you’re a good person. I know whatever malice you may have had in your heart disappeared a long time ago. You’re so compassionate and kind that there’s no way that you’re the same person you were back then.” Looking into her eyes, I know that the truth is a lot different from her point of view. She doesn’t have any evil in her heart. Every reason she would use magic would be for a good cause. “You’re perfect. You may not believe me, but just believe me when I say that you would not turn into that demon again.”
Silence fills the air. Neither one of us moves or makes a sound. Instead, Sunset lets the words I said hang in the air, her eyes still looking into my own. I can’t help but wonder what is going on behind those beautiful cyan eyes. It hurts when Sunset is insecure like this because I never know if I will be able to help her…
Leaning forward, Sunset gently wraps her arms around me, giving me a kiss on the cheek in the process.
“Okay. I’ll think about it.”
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The sound of playful yelling and splashing can be heard faintly in the distance. The smell of apples and grass accompanies the sound, adding to the warm summer day. On days like these, it feels like the world is full of life. The funniest thing is that I used to hate days like today. I preferred it when it was rainy and cold. In a way, I still do in some ways. It feels like a day you can sleep in and take advantage of the cooler weather. Bright and sunny days like today are still appreciated though. Especially by people who are younger than me. Much younger.
Pulling off my scarf, I quietly push it inside my bag, not wanting to get it wet just in case. The alligator hoodie I have on should be able to handle a little water. Much better than my scarf at least. As a precaution, I also left my ring at home, knowing that if I lose my ring in this orchard, I will never find it again. The Apple Family farm is huge and you’ll never know when you might lose something here.
The whole reason I’m here is to see a couple friends. Applejack pointed me in the direction of the river near the edge of the farm. The sounds of splashing only prove to me that I’m close. Walking up a steep embankment, I look over into an energetic river. The water flows enough that it could probably drag you downstream if you float, but it’s not strong enough to pull someone who is swimming or standing in the water. A large splash sends water out in all directions, an orange girl popping her head out of the water to shake her magenta hair. Sweetie Belle promptly splashes Scootaloo with more water, the two of them laughing at each other. On a makeshift platform above the river, Apple Bloom stands above them in her swimming suit, yelling some nonsense to them. It feels really weird to see Apple Bloom without her bow on.
“It’s over, Crusaders! I have the high ground!” Apple Bloom yells down to the two of them. Sweetie Belle has a terrified look on her face just as she realizes what is going to happen. Scootaloo, on the other hand, seems oblivious.
“You underestimate us, Apple Bloom!” Scootaloo yells back up to her with a teasing tone. That… is the moment Scootaloo seems to understand her grave mistake. Right then, Apple Bloom jumps off the platform, falling into the water. It’s funny to watch the water splash the other two Crusaders, all of them clearly having fun here. As soon as Apple Bloom breaks the surface of the water, she shakes her head a bit to get rid of some of the water from her hair. The laughing continues before Sweetie Belle’s eyes look up the embankment, finally spotting me. When she waves to me, it makes the other two turn their attention to me.
“Adagio!” Apple Bloom exclaims with a happy tone to her voice, quickly making her way to the edge of the river. I know it will only be so long before she comes crashing into me. For now, the water is slowing her down, but as soon as she’s out of it, nothing will stop the human missile. Taking a deep breath, I physically prepare myself for the teenager’s eventual embrace. Looking down at the river, I already see Apple Bloom become a blur. Oh boy…
“Oomph!” Within a second, something hard slams into my abdomen, throwing me onto my back. God… Pain instantly travels through the back of my skull, making it nearly impossible to hear anything for a moment. I can almost swear every time I hit my head, it hurts more than the last time… God damn. It hurts so bad that I can barely feel any other part of my body…
Taking a deep breath, I can finally start to hear the world around me again. Trying to shake the pain off, I open my eyes, seeing Apple Bloom look down at me with a worried stare. “Are ya alright? I really didn’t mean to hit ya that hard,” she tells me with a dozen apologies right after. The feeling of cold and wet clothes makes me glad I put my scarf into my bag. I knew she would make me wet from hugging me.
“I’m fine. Just help me up, alright, shortstuff?” I ask her quietly, chuckling at her concerned expression. It quickly turns to a look of annoyance, giving me a pout.
“I ain’t short. I’m just as tall as you.” Apple Bloom picks me up with ease, setting me down on my feet and subsequently reminding me of her strength. My head still hurts a little from hitting the hard ground, but other than that, all of my senses have returned to me. I can agree with Apple Bloom. She’s almost as tall as me. She’s definitely grown up a lot. “Sorry for making your clothes wet. I just wasn’t expecting to see you!” Apple Bloom tells me with a happy smile, clearly excited that I’m here.
Looking down the embankment, I see the other two Crusaders get out of the water and dry themselves off with some towels. Chuckling lightly to myself, I grab Apple Bloom in a hug, messing up her hair even more. “I texted you that I was coming, but I suppose you didn’t see that,” I tell her with a laugh, finally letting her go from my embrace. “It’s surprising to see you out and about. I thought you had to quarantine yourself for Diamond Tiara.”
A sheepish grin comes over Apple Bloom for a moment. Laughing at my statement, Apple Bloom brushes the hair out of her face with a nod. “Well, yeah, I was doing that, but Diamond is feeling a lot better! Her immune system is doing better than it was and now I can finally hang out with Scoots and Sweetie Belle again~” A look of realization appears in her eyes as she looks at me, suddenly grabbing my hands. “Wait a minute! You were supposed to take your test a few days ago! Did ya take it? Oh, you have to keep me in the loop, Adagio!” Apple Bloom tells me with as much excitement as she had when I first told her I fell in love with Sunset. Apple Bloom has always been excited for her friends. She’s always there to build me up and she’s actively called herself one of my best friends. I mean, she isn’t wrong.
“Don’t get too excited now. I wouldn’t want you to explode,” I tease her with a chuckle, not to the amusement of the cowgirl at all. “Yes, I did take my test. I’m so tempted to tease you with the results even more, but I won’t. I passed the GED~”
As soon as the words leave my mouth, Apple Bloom’s eyes widen and a hearty smile instantly appears on her lips. With the strength of a truck, Apple Bloom picks me up in a hug, giggling wildly to herself.
“YES! Yes yes yes yes!!!! You did it!” Apple Bloom yells with a crazy laugh to her voice, shaking me around as if I’m a stuffed animal. “Oh my god! I’m so proud of ya! Did ya buy the studio? Oh, please tell me you did!” Apple Bloom pleads with me, excited beyond comparison upon hearing the news. Her eyes look into mine and I can tell she’s hoping that I also went ahead with my plan of buying the music studio. Chuckling to myself, I nod to her question, knowing it would only result in me being hugged even tighter. “Yes! You’re doing so well for yourself, Adagio,” Apple Bloom tells me with a silly smile, hugging me so tight that it’s hard to get a breath into my lungs.
“And it’s all because I had a rascal like you to believe in me,” I tell her quietly in an attempt to mask the lack of air inside me. “But please. Let go of me. For now at least,” I barely whisper out, feeling the world close in on me. Is this how it feels like to suffocate? It doesn’t take long for that feeling to go away as soon as Apple Bloom sets me back down on the ground. Taking a deep breath, I can’t help but enjoy the feeling of fresh air in my lungs.
“Sorry! I just felt really excited, that's all. And I ain’t the reason why you’re doing so well! You just needed a lil push back then. You did most of the work~” Looking at each other, Apple Bloom and I share a small laugh, remembering days that had long since passed. What can I say? Back when I met Apple Bloom, she was just a young girl who had no direction in life, but she had the energy of a god. Now? She still has that indomitable human spirit, but she also has a direction. She’s thinking of going to college and job opportunities are opening up for her. Where has the time gone? Great, now I sound like a human reminiscing over the “good days.”
“Still. I appreciate the little push,” I tell her with a smile, patting Apple Bloom’s shoulder with a small nod.
“It’s surprising to see you here, Adagio~ How are you doing?” Sweetie Belle asks me as soon as the other two Crusaders finally walk up to us. Before I can respond to Rarity’s younger sister, Scootaloo jumps in front of her, making eye contact with me.
“Would you like to join us? The water is great!” Scootaloo exclaims with a big smile. Apple Bloom gasps with a smile, clearly enjoying the idea that Scootaloo suggested.
“I don’t know. Adagio doesn’t seem to have her swimsuit,” Sweetie Belle mentions with an inquisitive look to her face.
“That’s not a problem! I’m sure she can borrow one of my big sis’s swimsuits!” Apple Bloom tells her friends with a nod, all three of them giving each other a high five. Before I can even try to say something, Apple Bloom grabs my arm, letting me know that this was going to be something I can’t avoid. If I die from being dragged around one of these days, Applejack better pay for my funeral…
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Knocking on the purple door, I can’t help but shake my head at the decor of the home. Even though I love the color, I don’t think it works well for the outside of a house. Sunset and I haven’t even gotten around to paint our house. It’s just white… I don’t even know what color I would like to paint our house. Does Sunset like it the way it is? If not, maybe we should look into different paint options. That home is ours and the number one thing I want is for both of us to feel comfortable in it. After our apartment was robbed, it was hard to feel comfortable there, especially since we didn’t really own the place. Now, we own our house. If Sunny wants to change anything about it, I would be willing to hear it out.
Look at me. Here I am thinking about damn house colors. That’s not the point of today. Today, I’m supposed to meet with Twilight. It is supposed to be about hanging out with her and apologizing to one of the last few people on the list. Over the last few days, I have already apologized to almost everyone from Canterlot High. At least, everyone who attended when I was there. Rarity helped me apologize to a really weird individual by the name of Photo Finish and Applejack accompanied me to apologize to Bon Bon and Lyra. Honestly, I knew I had seen them somewhere before. Back during my preparation for my first anniversary with Sunset, I remember seeing them at the Crystal Empire jewelry store. They were quite interesting…
Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash helped me with quite a few individuals. One of the weirdest was this guy named Bulk Biceps. Out of anyone, I expected Rainbow Dash to know him best, but it was actually Fluttershy. He didn’t remember me at all, but he did insist on working out with me for a day. It was not necessarily something I had an affinity for, but I indulged him regardless. Regardless, it makes me think about who Twilight has in mind. The list is pretty small by now, so it can only be a few individuals she could help me with.
The sound of the doorknob breaks me from my thoughts, making me look back up at the door. The locks disengaging accompanies the door opening in front of me, showing a rather well-dressed Twilight. She’s wearing a collared white shirt with short sleeves, a purple vest buttoned up on top of it. Her usual skirt is gone in favor of black pants. Her outfit is a pretty big contrast from my own, considering I’m wearing a black leather jacket with purple high heel boots. Then again, I’m also wearing a mismatching scarf, so can I really complain?
“What is up with the new look, Twilight?” I ask her with a humorous chuckle, looking her up and down. Twilight brushes off some dust off her vest and smiles at me with a nod.
“You like it? I got it for clearance and I figured I could use some more formal clothes. I was thinking something that wasn’t a dress, you know?” Twilight does a little spin in front of me to show off her new apparel, admiring it for a second before looking back up at me. “I got a new job at Equestria World as a magician. I already technically work as a biologist, but I figured the second job could help me earn a little more money.” Stepping out onto the porch, Twilight quietly closes the door after making sure the light inside is turned off. I can only assume why she is being so cautious is to make sure Spike doesn’t wake up from the noises. He sleeps a lot, but I suppose that’s expected with dogs…
“Extra money, huh? That is understandable. Houses are not cheap at all.” Looking at the wall of Twilight’s house, I can’t help but sympathize with her. The house Sunset and I own is pretty expensive. Not only do we have to fully pay it off, but the bills are sometimes a nightmare. Though, that should get less tedious once the studio starts to make more money. Honestly, I’m really thankful Sunset decided to take a chance on the studio with me. I know I can turn it around…
Walking off the porch, Twilight leads me to the sidewalk. She slowly takes a deep breath before looking at me with a smile. “I don’t get out as much as I should. I’m actually kind of envious of you. You get out all the time and you have good people skills.” Without saying another word, Twilight walks to the left, keeping her eyes ahead of her. It feels a little weird that we’re already leaving her house, but I suppose Twilight already has plans for the day. The thing that catches my attention more is the fact that she said she was envious of me.
“You’re exaggerating. There’s not much to actually be envious of.” I mean, the only thing I would consider envy worthy would be the fact that I bought a music studio. I’m just good with people. It’s not like it is something I can just activate. And the only reason I’m out as much as I am is because I don’t have a driver’s license. So, I do not have access to the motorcycle unless Sunset is driving me. Everything she mentioned is just the fruit of coincidence.
“Not really. I’m not exaggerating. You really are an impressive person,” Twilight tells me with a slight hum as we walk down the sidewalk, her hair easily flowing back due to her ponytail hairstyle. “You were a villain before. A few years ago and all. You’ve really grown past that stage and done a lot with your life. I still sometimes get nightmares of when I was turned by magic, so to see that growth is really inspiring.” Twilight gives me a small smile before looking back in front of us, making way for a quiet moment between us. Surprisingly, there’s not a lot of sounds other than the wind or the occasional car. It’s pretty peaceful today…
“Well, you’ve made good strides too. Just remember that. We never fully forget what happened, after all.” I know I will never forget, no matter how hard I may try. I loved power with every fiber of my being, but now? I love Sunset more than that. “Speaking of strides, I was wondering something.” I hope she doesn’t think this is too much to ask… I can’t help but feel curious. I haven’t heard anything regarding her relationship ever since she came to my home, crying her eyes out. “What happened with Timber? The last I heard, you went to try and smooth things over with him.”
Twilight’s eyes look down the sidewalk a few seconds after my question is uttered, a conflicted emotion strewn across her face. I didn’t want to make her feel awkward or bad by asking that question… I just really want to know how things are going. “He and I are… good,” Twilight slowly responds, her hands fiddling with each other. “We talked and we’re going to give it another try. We both made quite a few mistakes and I agreed to see a counselor about our issues. I really want to make it work with him.” A solemn tone accompanies her words, almost as if Twilight has some doubt about the future she wishes for… It’s understandable after what she went through. I would feel some level of doubt in her position too.
“You love him and it’s clear he still loves you. I am sure you two will be able to grab those issues by the throat and work past them.” Patting her shoulder slowly, I try my best to let her know I’m here for her. It’s sometimes hard to talk with Twilight with how reserved she is… But I try my best to be her friend. It’s difficult to be friends with people sometimes. You always end up caring about them and worrying about what might be going on behind the scenes. That is the most difficult part.
“I hope so,” Twilight whispers in response, fiddling with something connected to her purse. From what it looks like, it appears to be a small keychain of an ice cream cone. It is one of those plastic ones that won’t really get damaged if they fall on the ground, but it is interesting nonetheless. It has pink and brown on it to symbolize syrup along with colorful specks that look like sprinkles. On top of the cone, a singular cherry tops off the whole keychain.
“Where did you get that?” I ask her with a curious tone, briefly pointing at the keychain. A surprised look comes over Twilight, letting go of the keychain for a moment.
“Oh? Um, that? It was a gift from Fluttershy. She and I have been playing tennis with each other for a while now and one time, she and I got each other keychains at one of those toy capsule arcade machines.” Twilight inspects the keychain again, running her finger across it. “It took a while for her to warm up to playing with me, but now she is pretty confident. You wouldn’t know it from looking at her, but Fluttershy is pretty strong. She can hit a tennis ball as if the gods were smiting it.” Twilight looks up from her keychain with a raised eyebrow, seemingly curious about something. “Tell me, Adagio. Do you believe in a god or any kind of divine entity?” Twilight’s question hits me pretty hard because… I don’t have a simple answer to it.
“It’s hard to explain…” Taking a deep breath, I walk a couple paces ahead of Twilight, looking up at the bright blue sky. “Honestly, Twilight? I believe that… I was one of the most powerful creatures in all of Equestria. I believe that I was essentially a god among mortal creatures. But do I believe in gods? In a way, yes. I believe gods are simply higher creatures who mortals have no idea how to comprehend or describe without saying they have ultimate power when they really don’t. Gods are not actually gods. Just creatures.” Turning around, I stop in the middle of the sidewalk, making Twilight don a confused expression. “Look around us. We live in a world that has magic. This world can accomplish what some may call miracles. In my opinion? I believe the universe itself has a sort of life essence in the form of magic. So, to answer your question, no. I don’t believe in gods, but I do believe that some creatures can harness more of that magic than others can.”
For a moment, nothing exchanges between the two of us other than a stare. Twilight seems to understand what I mean, bringing a hand to her chin. “You know, I kind of believe the same thing you do,” she tells me quietly, looking up at the sky. “I believe that there is some sort of… greater force. Whether that be a god or destiny itself, I believe that there’s a greater force that helps us in one way or another. Combined with scientific invention, I believe we can someday learn more about the universe itself. Who knows? Maybe we can find out how the universe came to be one day.” Twilight chuckles to herself, seemingly proud of how her own idea correlates with mine. “To be honest, religion is a fascinating thing because it lets us see the many interpretations to how people think the world works. It doesn’t have to be a point of controversy as long as we agree that we believe different things, you know?” Walking past me, Twilight grabs her keychain again for a moment before chuckling to herself a little more. “After all, there is no right way on how one should perceive life.”
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“Absolutely not,” I state without a moment of hesitation, looking at the store promptly named Cosmos Arcade. It’s been a couple years since I have been here. I usually try to stay away from this part of the mall, especially since there are better arcades Sunset and I usually go to. Regardless, Twilight brought me here under the guise of apologizing to a former CHS student. Technically, that is what we’re doing, but… why does it have to be her of all people? God, she was one of the only people who had a bigger ego than me, even back when I had my magic! I still have a big ego now, but that was after a lot of work to build it back up.
“Why not?” Twilight asks me with a curious tone to her voice, switching her gaze from me to the store every now and then. It is understandable that she did not know what kind of drama I have with this place. As much as I enjoyed my time with Sunset here, it is the person that works here that I do not want to see again…
“I’m not going to apologize to her. She’s a bigger narcissist than I was,” I scoff, folding my arms with a roll of my eyes. “Don’t get me wrong. I still flaunt my stuff and I say that I’m better than others, but that is all mostly a joke. Mostly. That Trixie is… insufferable.” Groaning to myself, I bring my hand up to my face, taking a deep breath in. “Why should I even give her the pleasure? I’ve already proved I’m better than her.”
“I know it is easy to think that she doesn’t deserve a second of your time, and maybe she doesn’t,” Twilight reassures me with a nod, bringing her hand to my shoulder. “I know you also have a deep respect for yourself now and it is hard to talk to someone like that since it feels like it would be easier to ignore her. But try to think about it like this. You are not doing this for her sake, are you?” Twilight walks around in front of me, making me look her in the eyes. Raising my eyebrow, I can’t help but wonder exactly what she’s trying to do. Is she trying to be inspiring…? It isn’t exactly working. “Tell me. Right now. Why are you here?” she asks me with a determined look in her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. This is far from the usual reserved Twilight I know…
“I don’t know, honestly. You’re the one who brought me to her,” I respond in annoyance, holding my hand out in the air towards the arcade.
“Well, then why have you been apologizing to everyone? There has to be a reason for the great Adagio Dazzle to do this.” Twilight walks a step closer to me, poking my collarbone with a slight nod.
“Don’t make fun of me. I am better than Trixie.”
“Then respond to my question. If you really are confident in yourself, tell me.” Twilight doesn’t back down, looking me in the eye with a determined glare to get me to answer her question. If I was more insecure in myself, I might actually take a step back, but… I’ve built my confidence up since then. I’m not as insecure and doubtful as I was two and a half years ago.
“The real reason I’ve been doing this is because I want to feel truly worthy of Sunset. To prove once and for all that I have changed and that I can take responsibility. Is that satisfactory for you?” Looking past Twilight, I can’t help but stare at the arcade with annoyance. “But Trixie? Just… ugh…” Exhaling through my lips, I rub my eyes with my index finger and my thumb. Why does she have to be so exhausting? Is it because it’s hard to have our personalities butt together? As much as I hate to admit it, Trixie and I have a lot in common. Except I’ve learned decency from Sunset and I’m better than her at manipulating people. Not that it’s a good thing, but still.
“It is tiring, but you have shown a lot of responsibility. Not just recently, but ever since you befriended Sunset. You’ve been making up for your actions and I think that is commendable.” Twilight grips my shoulders, nodding slowly to her statement. “As annoying as she may be to you, do you think you can put aside your pride for a few minutes and prove you can take responsibility here and now, even if it involves someone as annoying as Trixie?” As much as I may feel annoyed by Twilight’s words, I know she’s right. Taking a deep breath, I look towards the glass ceiling of the mall.
“Alright. I’ll do it. But I can’t wait to get out of here,” I tell her with a slight roll of my eyes, looking back at the arcade. With a deep breath, I walk past Twilight towards the arcade. I’m not looking forward to this at all, but this should only last about ten minutes. Then I can go home and pour myself a large glass of whiskey… Too bad I don’t have any cherry cheesecake to go with it.
Walking inside the arcade, the sounds of beeping, blasting and music fills my ears more than it did out in the mall. The carpet is a dark blue with a star print, temporarily distracting me. Looking towards the counter, a familiar girl with blue skin counts some dollar bills with worried eyes, her eyes looking between the cash register and the bills in her hands over and over again. For a brief moment, I can’t help but feel a little curious as to what the “great and powerful” Trixie is worrying about, but I try to shake it from my head.
Walking over to the counter, Trixie waves her hand for a second, not looking up at me. “Uh, I’m sorry. Could you hold on for a second?” Trixie asks kindly, looking around the counter for something. Whatever it is, I know it isn’t my problem, but it sure seems to be bothering her.
“What are you trying to look for, Trixie?” I ask her quietly, almost mad at myself for engaging with her. I mean, it should make me happy to see her worry, but… deep down, I know Trixie isn’t necessarily a bad person. She’s just an asshole…
Trixie’s eyes look up at me as soon as she hears my voice, seemingly surprised to see me here of all places. Believe me, Trixie… I’m surprised I’m here too. “A-Adagio? I didn’t expect to see you here. Again.” Trixie leans back in her seat, her eyes scanning me up and down. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen you of all people. What do you want from the great and the-”
“Powerful Trixie? Yeah, I get it,” I reply to her, rolling my eyes. “Believe it or not, I’m here to talk with you. To apologize over my past actions.” It’s best if I just get this done quickly… God knows I can only bear with her ego for a certain amount of time.
“You? Apologizing? I find that a little hard to believe given the last time we met, you looked like you wanted to punch me,” Trixie laughs in my face, instantly reminding me of that one ball game… I was trying to catch one of those shirts they were throwing into the crowd, but Trixie grabbed mine. She kept saying it was hers and the demon in my mind tried to come out then and there. Yeah, I wanted to punch her. Trixie’s eyes look over at Twilight, who is still standing over by the door of the arcade. “Oh, yeah. I forgot you have friends now. Aren’t you with Sunset? Maybe she’s nice enough to actually teach you a thing or two,” Trixie laughs again, seemingly flaunting her own ego by teasing me. Don’t lose your cool, Adagio…
“Actually, she has taught me some things. Like how I should actually own up to the things I do. Do you want to tell me what is worrying you so badly or not?” I ask her with a stern face, trying my best to keep myself composed. Trixie raises her eyebrow at my question, surprise caught in her eye.
“Wait. How did you- Was I that obv…” Trixie trails off, whispering to herself. “What is it to you anyway, Adagio?” Her question is filled with a defensive air to it, only showing her worry that much more. Honestly, it’s a little sad to see her so defensive of the things that make her not the perfect person she tries to portray herself as.
“Because I was curious to hear your side of the story.” Leaning my elbow down on the counter, I brush the hair out of my face and do my best to remember what Sunset would do here. “Believe it or not, I’m not totally self-obsessed anymore. It’d be interesting to hear your story.”
Trixie once again looks shocked, opting to lean away from me in response. “What, so that you can laugh at me? I don’t think so, Dazzle,” Trixie states in a condescending tone, clearly smirking to herself. She probably thinks she’s gotten the better of me and as good as it would feel to fight back…
“No. To understand you and possibly help you,” I respond in a quiet and kind tone, not breaking my eye contact with her. Trixie looks like she’s lost pretty much all the words she could say to me, looking at me in bewilderment. She expected me to fire back at her, but instead, I gave her kindness. People have a natural tendency to make enemies. Those enemies help us to try and feel better about ourselves and we do anything we can to hold onto those rivalries. It is why being the bigger person and being kind to someone is the hardest part about an exchange like this. It’s also why some people fight even harder, just to see if you will finally break your kind exterior.
“Why are you… doing that?” Trixie asks me slowly, still looking at me as if I was the most confusing phenomenon to her.
“Doing what?” I respond quietly, making sure she knows I’m listening to her.
“That. Being nice. I’d expect you of all people to be mad at me, especially since I just made fun of you.” Despite her usual loud and obnoxious behavior, Trixie’s words are quiet and unsure, opting to not make a joke at my expense. Maybe it’s because she’s seen how much I’m trying to be nice to her. “I mean, once someone decides they don’t like me, they usually keep that opinion forever. Why in the hell are you being nice to me? You’re freaking Adagio Dazzle.” Even though her statement would prompt anyone to defend themselves, I decide to stay quiet, not rejecting her words. I mean, she’s technically not wrong… I was that selfish before. Regardless, the silence seems to eat at her more than any word I could say. Trixie breaks our eye contact, looking around the arcade before sighing to herself. “You want to know? I guess I misplaced a few dollars. I don’t know where they are and my manager is really strict about that sort of thing. I could have sworn I counted out everything correctly. I don’t know, maybe someone cheated me…” Trixie looks away from me, her eyes opting to inspect the floor’s design rather than connecting our gaze. A shameful expression is on her face as she says those words, slowly putting the bills in her hand down on the counter. Her usual confident and perfect persona is nowhere to be seen, leaving someone who is deeply ashamed of their failure, seemingly afraid of the ridicule she’s tried so hard to avoid her entire life.
Looking over at Twilight, I see her give me a thumbs up, still standing by the door to support me. Taking a deep breath, I wave Twilight away, nonverbally telling her I need to do this by myself. “How much are you missing? Depending on the amount, it could be that people are cheating you out of the price or maybe your coworker is pocketing some of it for themselves.” Looking back over, I don’t see any sign of Twilight. Honestly, a part of me feels glad she listened to me.
“About twenty-five dollars,” Trixie quietly admits to me, her eyes still not looking over at me. My eyes wander over to the cash register, making me raise my eyebrow. I’ve seen that kind of register before… Taking a deep breath, I walk over behind the counter, much to the surprise of Trixie. “Adagio, you can’t come-”
“This model of register is a fickle son of a bitch,” I state in a monotone voice, looking at the drawer of cash. It is almost overflowing with the amount of cash stuffed inside. I guess Trixie’s manager doesn’t take out some of it on a regular basis… “When this drawer is overflowing, this kind of register has the habit of ‘eating’ bills up.” Slowly, I slide two fingers on top of the bills, curling them up inside the top of the drawer. I can’t see anything, but I can definitely feel something soft like a dollar. Chuckling to myself, I pull as gently as I can, bringing the bills out of the tight space above the drawer. Trixie’s eyes instantly widen upon seeing the bills, surprised to see my little trick.
“H-how did you… what?” After giving the bills to her, she quickly counts them up, a relieved expression landing on her face. “How did you know that…?” she asks me quietly, her eyes finally reconnecting with mine. Again, I can’t help but chuckle at her question, leaning against the counter.
“I used to work at a nightclub that had a similar register. They always had a tendency to get full by the end of the night and sometimes? Some of those bills would go missing.” A small laugh escapes my lips, remembering just how much I hated that job. Even if it did have free liquor for the staff and a lounge area… “Now I own a music studio, so I don’t work there anymore. I guess I’m saying that my occupation isn’t the only thing that has changed.” A small smile comes to my face, but it leaves as soon as it appears… Walking back around the counter, I look down at Trixie, trying to give her my honest expression. “You’re right about a couple things, Trixie. I can get full of myself. I have the tendency to have an ego and boast about my accomplishments to others, but I have changed. For the record, I’m sorry for manipulating you back in high school.” My eyes avert her gaze, looking towards the door with a feeling of satisfaction that I did it. Walking towards the door, my mind wanders to the thought of the sweet whiskey I have back at home. As much as I hate dealing with Trixie’s ego, I do feel a little sorry for her. She’s clearly struggling with things that I can understand all too well.
“Wait,” the high-pitched voice of Trixie says in a louder tone than before, stopping me in my tracks. I can’t help but feel confused at the request, looking back at the girl I was previously annoyed at. I didn’t think she had anything left to say… Taking a deep breath, Trixie stands up from her seat and looks me in the eye with a small smile. “I’m sorry too…”
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The lovely sounds of birds singing makes the household chores feel a little less tiresome. Wind gently blows on the chimes hanging from the porch and cool air is brought inside the house from the windows. The music I set on the radio rings a pop song through the air gently, giving the day a brighter mood. Cleaning isn’t necessarily fun, but it can be made better with all the little things. This is coming from a person who doesn’t like cleaning, but it has to be done nonetheless. Besides, Sunset promised me a movie night full of cuddles if I help her out with this. What siren in their right mind would refuse that?
The funny thing is that I may actually be out of my mind. Most sirens aren’t like how I am now. Maybe I’m just a siren crazy in love with a mortal woman. Or a pony… I mean, she did come from Equestria as well. Maybe that’s where her eternal hopefulness comes from. Regardless, it’s a deal I can’t refuse. Hell, I get to pick the movie we watch tonight. I’m not sure what it will be yet, but I’m sure an idea will come to my mind by the time night falls.
Picking up another plate, I gently scrub the glass with a sponge, washing each dish as carefully as I can. Normally, something like this is hot and tiring, but the cool wind from outside makes it tolerable. Just as I finish the plate and put it inside the dishwasher, a couple of arms wrap around me, hugging me from behind. “Guess who~” a familiar and all too lovely voice coos into my ear, pressing her lips against my cheek. Without fail, another blush comes to my face, making me embarrassed that I still blush at these small yet nice details. You’d think after a couple years, I’d get used to Sunset’s kiss or her kind words. Or her straight up flirtatious advances.
“Is it the fiery-haired goofball of my dreams?” I tease her with a roll of my eyes, a smile still present on my face as always.
“Bold of you to call me a goofball when you were moaning my name last night~” she teases me right back, pinching my ear slightly before she hoists herself up on the counter, looking down at me washing the dishes.
“But was I wrong?” My question gets another giggle out of the woman, making her lean back and smile at me.
“You’re really sassy, you know that? What does it look like to other people when two sassy women are in a relationship?”
“First off…” I turn off the sink slowly, moving over and grabbing Sunset’s hips. “It doesn’t matter what others think. And secondly…” Moving my head upward, I connect both of our lips for a second, feeling as happy as I can be. “It looks awesome~”
“Speaking of which, I was wondering~” Sunset quickly responds to me, playing with a strand of my hair. “Have you done everything you need to do before our special day~? I’d still be willing to help if you have anything else you need to do~” Sighing heavily, I can’t help but feel like I’m burdening her with all of this… I hate to keep saying no to her and add yet another thing to the list, but I’m sure this is the last thing…
“Actually… there is one last thing I want to do.” Sunset raises her eyebrow at my question, but her smile still remains. “There are two people I need to talk to one more time…”
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Very nice indeed. Quite uplifting, though my one complaint is you wasted the opportunity when Trixie asked Adagio how she pulled those bills out to say “A magician never reveals her secrets.”
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Though, I did want Adagio to seem more genuine with her, so not helping her out by explaining the register trick would have made it seem cocky and arrogant though. Still. I like the idea. Maybe I'll find a way to include it in the future.
Oh, I love that idea~ Now I wish I had included it.
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To be fair I’m pretty sure Sunset Shimmer said that to Trixie at the end of Forgotten friendship
Looks like she'll need to do some inspections before the building reopens.
https://m.Shame we never got to know the origin of the crystal. But fortunately, I myself made a possible theory similar to this that I added into my own eqg finale I made last year. I even put a shocking twist regarding the crystals towards the end of the story.
Wow, that sure does explain everything now.
Seems like Adagio for once knows how to handle this better than Sunset.
I think I've found my favorite part of the chapter/reminds me of something similar I did for my eqg final last year.
Ikr.
Good to know DT is doing better.
Didn't expect her to be a magician.
Had a feeling it was Trixie.
Damn!
This next chapter will sure be interesting.
Glad to see the story back following it's month long hiatus but my only complaint is how long this turned out.
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A few inspections would be a good idea~
Yeah, the way I am going about the crystals in the human world is saying that they are similar to a nexus, which in my story is a center point of magic. It did feel a little weird that we never got the explanation for them, ngl
I'm glad you liked this chapter so much~ I didn't read your finale, so any resemblances are purely coincidence XD
And yeah, I know some people don't like long chapters, but I like writing them a lot~ But thanks! It feels really nice to finally upload a new part to my story.
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np