> My Final Decision > by Sillyponyme > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Kicked Out and Alone > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- It wasn’t that long ago that her friendship ended with Adagio and now here she was on a bus bench crying in the rain with nothing but the memory of what happened to keep her company. She was a bit of a dork but that’s what made her lovable and her “friend” threw her away like she wasn’t worth more than garbage. Sonata didn’t know what to do now, her only friends were gone and she was still stranded in a world with no magic. “Girls, we need to find some way to repair our rubies but how?” Adagio paced back and forth while Sonata and Aria watched. “No, repairs are not an option. We need new power but how? How can we get that power back when there is so little magic in this cursed world?” “Oh I know, let’s go back to Equestria.” Sonata shouted out. “My friends are idiots.” Adagio mumbled as she continued to pace. It was Sonata’s idea and Adagio practically claimed it as her own not long after. Of course Adagio came up with a reason as to why it wasn’t the same but Sonata knew better. “Abduct Sunset Shimmer and take her magic book. We will ask the princess how to get our powers back. I said lets go to Equestria but she turns the idea down and then decides to communicate with a princess. I more or less gave her the idea.” Sonata wiped her tears away as the rain began to pour. “Dear Princess Twilight, Out of curiosity, is it possible for the sirens to get their power back? I must know because, well, if they can, it would be nice if the others and I could stop it before it began again. Your friend, Sunset Shimmer “Great idea, how did you think it would go Adagio? Kidnap the friend of a princess and no one will find out? Did you really think that it would work out for you? Then again they have yet to catch you after all.” Sonata looked up into the sky as the rain came down hitting her face and drenching her hair. “It looks like we got our answer girls but it will involve getting back to Equestria.” Adagio snapped the book closed and threw it at Sunset who was tied up and gagged. “Don’t worry, someone will find you.” “Do you really think so, we are in a condemned building, do you really think someone will find her?” Adagio face palmed before she turned and ran away with Sonata and Aria right behind her. Rainbow Dash and her friends were running in their direction. After getting away from group, they had jewel stores to visit but Sonata kept messing things up for them. At every store Sonata said something that caused the owner to turn them away. It wasn’t like she tried to ruin things, it just happened. It wasn’t until they reached the forth store that Adagio turned on her friend. “Sonata, go away, we don’t need you here.” “But we’re a trio remember, we” “No Sonata, you almost ruined things for us when we first ran into Sunset at school, and now you’re doing it again. I never thought that anyone could be so stupid but ohhhh, you proved me wrong. So just leave us both alone.” Adagio stood and waited but Sonata never moved. “Well, get out of here. You’re not worth anything to us. Get out of here!” Adagio pushed Sonata to the ground, turned and walked away. Aria only shook her head and mumbled something that Sonata heard. “She is right, Sonata isn’t worth keeping around, for anyone.” With that said and Aria disappeared behind the door. Those were the memories that kept running through Sonata’s head. “I didn’t mean to mess things up, it just happened and now I have no one to go to.” She held out her hands and gathered rain water in her little hand bowl. She looked at her reflection in the water before she drank what water was left in her hands. She had tried to go back to her friends but she should have known better. Sonata walked up the stairs, up to the door and tried to open it but it was locked. “Hello, you girls locked the door on me.” The door opened to reveal Adagio on the other side. “Why are you here, I told you to leave.” Adagio pushed Sonata once again but this time she fell down the stairs. “I thought we were friends, sisters?” Sonata yelled through tears as she held onto her sore arm. “Sisters, yeah right.” Adagio slammed the door without another word and locked it. Sonata stood up off the bench and walked toward the bridge just south of where she was. The wind began to blow harder causing the rain to come down even faster and harder. Thunder roared and lightning could be seen in the distance. Her body started to shiver and her clothes became heavy as the water soaked in. Cars rushed by and ignored her or stopped to help until they saw who it was. Once they saw that it was Sonata walking in the rain, they would step on the gas and take off. She had thought of the possibility of going to the six friends that had defeated them but she had more or less helped to use them. Why would they help her now? It didn’t matter, she would forever be alone without magic and without a person in the world to be with. Sonata stopped in the middle of the bridge and looked over. “Maybe I should jump and end this pain. No that’s stupid but I guess it fits though, I am stupid after all.” She shook her head and decided against it even if it would be easier to end it all. It wasn’t worth it, her mother would have been disappointed in her if she had. That’s right, her mother would be sad to see her life ended because of something like this. “Never give up on yourself Sonata, you’ll be just like every other Siren soon enough.” Sonata sighed and smiled a bit. “You always believed in me mom, even now I can still hear your voice.” Sonata rose a finger into the air and mimicked her mother. “Sonata, you may not be the smartest siren ever but you sure are the most fun. Never lose that about yourself.” She lowered her finger and frowned. “I miss you mom, why did you have to be taken from me?” Sonata frowned and fell to her knees as she cried. It was shortly after her mothers passing that she met Adagio and Aria. That’s when they became her sisters or so she thought. Despite her mothers words, it didn’t help as much as it used to. Sonata had two choices and suicide wasn’t an option. So that left her with picking up the pieces and taking control of her life. “Mom, you always believed in me, now it’s my turn to believe in myself even if it means no longer being a siren as you wanted me to be. I’ll make you proud mom, I swear it.” Sonata stood tall as the wind picked up blowing her sweater in the wind and then lighting hit a tree. The branch broke off and flew right into Sonata and knocked her into the street. The sirens of an ambulance could be heard roaring down the street. Even when they reached the bridge the sirens continued. A few men dressed in uniform got out of the vehicle and checked up on the person on the road. When they checked for a pulse, it was weak, Sonata had been hit hard. Her head bled horribly and it showed all around. It ran with the water and what wasn’t washed away was a puddle on the ground. Sonata’s vision was blurry but even now as she was bleeding to death, there were people that were happy about it. She could hear faint cheering as she was lifted into the ambulance. Her body was fading fast and with one last deep breath she whispered the words “I’m sorry mom, I’ll see you soon.” With that said, she was set down and everything went black around her. > Checking up on Sonata > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunset Shimmer and friends had all gotten together for a sleepover at Pinkie Pies. Applejack and Rainbow were pushing each other in attempts to mess up the other in a videogame just like the last time they had gotten together for a sleepover. Pinkie Pie and her sister Maud were making candy necklaces with Fluttershy. Pinkie did everything she could to teach Fluttershy the correct way to make candy necklaces but it was confusing, for her and Maud and Maud knew what she was doing. Pinkie really needed to learn to make things less, complicated. Sunset couldn’t help but laugh as Fluttershy tried to hide behind her necklace. Sunset looked at Rarity who had spent about ten minutes trying on different pairs of pajama’s. “Seriously Rarity, how hard is it to choose sleepwear?” Sunset thought as she strummed her guitar. Sunset couldn’t help but wonder how any of the girls in this room got along as well as they did. It didn’t really matter but it didn’t hurt to wonder. Sometimes it felt like a miracle that any of them got along. Pinkie was hyperactive, Rarity was such a snob when it came to looking good, Rainbow Dash was as cocky as they come, Fluttershy could hardly defend herself, and AJ could be brutally honest. Sunset, she felt out of place with all of these girls, even Maud and she tried to feed a rock. Sunset had been evil at one time, why wouldn’t she feel out of place. It felt like moving from one world to another but worse. She was with a group of friends and yet didn’t really know any of them the way she should. Even know she would mess up being a good friend and end up hurting them in some way. Still, despite every flaw, the group accepted each other and most importantly for Sunset, accepted her. Sunset finally had people around her that weren’t her minions that only did things for her out of fear. Most importantly, she had friends that genuinely cared about her and didn’t let her past “boo boos” as Rarity put it, get in the way. Sunset had never been so happy and in a way, she wished that she could have shared what she learned with Adagio and her friends. “At least that whole mess helped me get closer to everyone and a certain pony princess.” “What was that darling?” Rarity asked as she finished up brushing her hair. She couldn’t possibly go to bed with a rats nest for hair, it just wouldn’t due. If she did, her hair would be a huge mess in the morning. The knots would never come out with brushing. Sunset looked up toward Rarity and chuckled. “It’s nothing Rarity. I was just thinking about Adagio and how much closer I’ve become with all of you.” Sunset went back to playing her guitar when the sounds of Rainbow Dash and AJ complaining about the power on the T.V. going out; soon followed by the rest of the house. “We should probably head to bed anyway, don’t you think you two?” Sunset set her instrument down and then sirens were heard roaring down the street. She stood up and looked out the window and caught a small glimpse of the ambulance before it disappeared around a corner. “I sure hope that who ever it is, is ok.” “I think it’s safe to say that we’re with you sugarcube but don’t worry about it too much.” Applejack let out a loud yawn and stretched. “Come on girls, let’s get to bed.” Sunset grabbed her jacket and put it on over her pj’s. She had to know who it was that would be in the hospital. Everyone gave her worried and confused looks. “What did I just say Sunset?” AJ asked. “What, I have to know who it is and I want to help if I can. Even if it means just wishing who ever it is good luck.” Sunset ran out the door, down the stairs and outside to her motorcycle. She wanted to do good by people. After all the fingers pointed at her for her wrong doings even when trying to help; she wanted to help people and hoped that one day, she could be liked by more people. She didn’t need to be liked just not given the cold shoulder every time she walked into a room. She accidently knocked her helmet off the handlebars and hopped on her motorcycle. She didn’t bother grabbing her helmet off the ground; she decided to leave it and started the engine. The engine roared to life and off she went into the pouring rain and strong winds. The rain poured down and the wind sent chills up Sunset’s spine. The rain soaked right through her jacket and pj’s and made her shiver even more than the wind. Her clothes were now stuck to her skin. Her hair was soaked and stuck to the sides of her face. She was beginning to wish that she had changed clothes first and put on a helmet. She could see her breath as it blew in front of her face and behind her. Soon Sunset came to a bridge where the ambulance had just been moments ago. She had to wonder why the ambulance had been away from the hospital. “I-I g-g-guess it doesn’t m-m-matter.” Sunset shivered in the wind. “What happened?” Sunset wondered only seeing a large branch on the side of the road. She looked around a little closer but could only make guesses as to what happened. She knew one thing for sure, the branch had been blown onto the road. If the branch was the cause of the accident, it was hard to tell. I could have had nothing to due with the accident, whatever the accident was. Thunder clasped and lightning flashed. The thunder and lightning was a good reminder that she needed out of the rain and wind. She started up her bike again and headed straight for the hospital. Once she arrived, she ran in shivering and with teeth chattering. “E-e-e-excuse m-m-m-m-me.” A pale looking person with light pink hair ran over to Sunset and pulled her over to her desk. She picked up her walkie talkie and asked for help immediately. Once some help was on the way, the nurse turned to Sunset and glared. “What were you thinking coming to the hospital on a motorcycle and in such clothes?” Sunset’s teeth had stopped chattering but she was still freezing. She looked at the nametag the nurse was wearing and then answered. “Nurse Redheart, I have a sarcastic comment but now isn’t the time.” There had been no need to tell Redheart that she had a sarcastic comment but her mouth was faster then her mind. “Who just came in on the ambulance?” Sunset asked as doctors ran over and handed a blanket and a cup of coco to her. “We don’t know her name but she was blue with light blue hair with dark blue stripes in her hair. If you want to see her, she is in room 118 on the second floor. We, wait a minute.” Redheart said as Sunset ran off. Sunset couldn’t be sure if she had seriously just heard right. Was Sonata attacked? It wouldn’t be surprising but Sunset was sure that she was in that position after the fall formal. She couldn’t help but feel bad for the girl especially since she wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed. Sonata may be a siren but it was possible that she was used right? “Nah, a siren is a siren no matter how smart he or she is. Still, this was going to far right?” Sunset ran until she came to the door and skid right into the door. Wet shoes and a waxed floor don’t mix well. Seeing as no one came to the door when she hit it, Sunset could only assume that there was no one there. She stood up slowly to keep from falling on her rear again and jiggled the handle. The door opened to reveal a small room with a T.V. on top of a simple desk. There was a couch next to the window on the far side and across from the T.V. was the hospital bed where Sonata now lays. Around her head was a bloody bandage and there were wires connected to her arms and head. The monitor next to the bed showed her life signs. As far as Sunset could tell, she looked pretty good considering. She then heard a voice from behind her. “First off, I was going to tell you that I’m going to be taking care of her and so I could take you to her. Secondly, run off when someone tries to talk to you. It’s very rude though I’m not surprised considering who it is I’m talking to Ms. Shimmer. Now onto more important matters, her life signs are returning to normal. The hit to her head was pretty bad. We’re sure that she has a concussion but we aren’t sure as to why her pulse was so bad. I suppose it doesn’t matter though. She is recovering well enough that she could possibly leave by morning.” “Here’s a question for you, how do you know all this if she got here like, five minutes ago.” “I’m like, very good at my job.” Nurse Redheart mocked. “I am having some good people bring you something warm to drink and something to wrap you in.” She didn’t like Sunset but she took care of people and Sunset Shimmer was no exception. Sunset ignored her mockery and smiled.“ Thank you and may I stay here until she wakes up?” Sunset asked and received her answer in the form of the nurse leaving. She walked over and sat down next to Sonata and smiled. “I don’t know why Sonata, not completely, but I’m glad that you’re ok.” Sunset was still freezing but leaned back chair and then noticed something odd on Sonata’s neck. It looked like it could be a problem. Sunset looked at the doors small window to make sure that no one was near and then turned Sonata’s head slightly to the side. She wanted to be sure that Sonata didn’t have some kind of growth forming on her neck. She didn’t want to attempt to see the entire object. To do see the object clearly would involve more movement then just turning her head slightly. The last thing she wanted to do was disturb Sonata. What Sunset saw was not what she was expecting. The thing she saw was, she could only guess was a siren inside a golden circle. “What the heck?” > I'm Here for You > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunset had been given some hot cocoa and a blanket to help warm her up after being in the room only a few minutes. She had thanked the assistants and went onto worrying about Sonata. She stayed up for an hour wondering if Sonata had gotten a tattoo on her neck and sneezing every now and then. For whatever reason, the mark was really bugging her. The question was why get a tattoo like that if that is what the marking was. Anyone from Equestria would find it suspicious for sure but perhaps Sonata got it after getting here? Sunset had wanted to get a tattoo a long time ago but the pain involved wasn’t worth it. If she had gotten a tattoo, it wouldn’t have been a pony but this wasn’t about her, this was about Sonata. Sunset shook her head to focus. “No, Sonata seems too, what’s the word?” Sunset scratched her chin as she attempted to come up with the right word. Eventually she settled with the word goofy and moved on, after all, no goofy person would get such a serious tattoo right? Sunset shrugged and looked at the marking again as best she could. With some more inspection without disturbing Sonata, she noticed the mark fade in and out. “Not a tattoo, definitely not a tattoo. Maybe it’s a siren thing. Maybe it’s a warning that the siren is dying? No of course not, why do that if you can’t see it clearly? Then again, it was probably visible back in equestrian. It’s makes sense right? Nah, not possible. Nurse Redheart said that Sonata was recovering. Doctors aren’t always right though, maybe I’m thinking too hard.” Sunset looked at the time and let out a yawn. She set her head down on her arms on the bed and fell asleep. When morning came, Sunset was woken by a scream. She shot her head up, fell off her chair and landed on her rump. “Ow.” She stood up and rubbed her sore rear. When she looked up, Sonata was awake and as far from her as she could get while still sitting on the bed. “Was screaming really necessary?” Sonata grabbed a pillow and threw it at Sunset who ducked it with ease. “What did you do to me, why am I in the hospital?” Sonata grabbed her head as it throbbed. Without another thought, she laid her head onto her remaining pillow and groaned. “Look Sonata, I don’t know what happened to you. I was with my friends when we heard the ambulance drive by. I wanted to make sure that whoever it was would be alright. It turns out that person happened to be you. Now can I sit down or are you going to scream at me again?” Sunset received a nod and took her seat next to Sonata’s bed. She couldn’t be sure if she should ask Sonata about that marking on her neck or just leave it alone. The last thing she wanted to do was get Sonata angry with her, if that were even possible. Sunset wasn’t sure if the girl before her could even get angry. She seemed like the kind of person that was so Pinkie Pie-ish but more so in the naive department, that getting angry was just, not possible. She couldn’t think of any other way to put it. She could have been wrong, in reality she really didn’t know Sonata that well or at all really. Who was Sunset to judge what she was like? “Just stay away from me.” Sonata rubbed the back of her neck and then turned toward Sunset and growled. “Did you see it on my neck?” Sunset was taken back by that question because it was just so abrupt. At least now she may just get her chance to ask about the mark. “Well, answer me?” Sunset was definitely wrong about Sonata not getting angry. Sonata was angry and would probably get more so once Sunset answered. “Yes, I know about the mark on your neck. Now if you don’t mind my asking but what is it and why does it fade in and out.” Sunset looked Sonata right in the eyes but stood up and backed away. Sonata looked as if she might try and rip off Sunset’s head. “You will stay away from me and YOU DON’T KNOW ABOUT THE MARK, GOT IT?” Sonata screamed, received a nervous nod from Sunset and laid back down. “Just go away, I don’t want anyone here.” Sonata had calmed down considerably. “Sonata, let me help you, please. If there is something going on with you, you don’t have to go through it alone.” Sunset tried to offer her help but Sonata wasn’t having it. “I am alone and I will always be alone so just go away and let me be in peace.” Sonata turned away a little too quick. A small amount of pain shot through her head and some tears began to run down her cheeks. Her past came back to haunt her and her present was haunting her as well. Her only friends in the world betrayed her and the only person she loved died many years ago. She felt completely and utterly broken, she just didn’t know it. Sunset walked toward the front door sadly as Nurse Redheart came in and she looked worried but a bit angry when she saw Sunset. She had assumed Sunset had upset Sonata and she didn’t need that. The nurse pointed toward the exit to tell Sunset to leave. “Don’t worry, I’m going but she needs to know something.” Sunset turned to Sonata and frowned. “You’re not alone Sonata, you have your friends good or not. Your friends will always have your back and if not, then you need some better friends.” She thought that Adagio and Aria were still friends with Sonata but would Sonata have said differently? With that said, she walked out the door and headed for the first floor when Pinkie came over and grabbed her in a hug. “Hey Pinkie Pie, what are you all doing here?” Sunset sneezed and shivered a bit. “I must have gotten a cold from last night.” Rarity pushed past Pinkie and felt Sunset’s head. “Darling, you need to get home and rest right now. You are a bit warm and yes, you need to rest, let’s go and no arguing.” Rarity pulled off the jacket she had been wearing and put it around Sunset. Rarity couldn’t let her go outside in the current weather with a temperature, small or otherwise. “We will help you out to the car while Rainbow Dash drives your motorcycle back. Its freezing outstide and you don’t need to get any worse. Applejack, be a dear and go heat up the car, will you?” AJ nodded and ran off wondering who put Rarity in charge. “Rarity, I-I-I” Sunset sneezed mid sentence. “Ok.” Sunset rubbed her nose and smiled. “You won’t believe who is in the room.” Everyone looked to Sunset and waited for an answer. She sneezed a few times more before she spoke. “It was ugh, Sonata Dusk.” Sunset was becoming more miserable and now realized that she was still in her cold if not damp clothes. The trip to Sunset’s home was silent. Sunset was too focused on the marking on Sonata’s neck. It must have been a serious marking if Sonata didn’t want it known or perhaps it was kept secret to save some embarrassment. Perhaps she was being invasive and shouldn’t pry but it bugged her all the same. Something else bugged her as well, where were Aria and Adagio? If anyone should have been there, they should have been. She couldn’t help but wonder if something had happened. Once they arrived, Rarity helped Sunset inside and to her bathroom. “I take it you can get in the tub by yourself and all that.” Rarity chuckled as she left the bathroom before Sunset could respond. Rarity could hear the water running in the bathroom signaling that the tub was starting fill with water or at the very least, draining as it was heating up. She went to Sunset’s bedroom and grabbed some clothes. “This girl has very limited clothing options. Maybe I should take her out on a shopping spree sometime. I should get her some cold medicine but after her bath.” Rarity left the room and went back to the bathroom and knocked. “You don’t have to knock Rarity.” Sunset said from the other side of the door. “Well no, I suppose not but it isn’t polite to just walk in.” Rarity opened the door and set the clothes on the sink. “You relax and I’ll be on my way.” Rarity heard a response but it had nothing to do with what she had just said. Sunset sunk further into the water and under the bubbles so that only her head was visable. “What was that marking, maybe I should ask Princess Twilight about it.” Sunset sneezed before she heard the door to the bathroom shut. Sunset shrugged and closed her eyes as her body warmed up from the water. Rarity walked into the living room where the others were waiting. She wasn’t sure what Sunset was talking about but she knew what she heard. “Hello girls, Sunset will be just fine but she said something about a marking and asking Princess Twilight about it. I suppose we shouldn’t worry though right?” “Right, we don’t need to go interferin with anythin that happened while we weren’t around. If she asks for help then we will but until then, we drop the subject.” Everyone agreed to no longer dwell on it, out loud at least. Since it was brought up, they couldn’t help but be curious themselves. > Trust Me > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was twelve in the afternoon and Sonata was still in the hospital. Nurse Redheart had told her that she could leave at ten but then some “complications” came up. All Sonata wanted was to leave now and make things right but all she could do is read and watch T.V. for the time that she would be here. Reading wasn’t her style and so watching T.V. was the only thing left to do. She grabbed the remote, turned on the television and flipped through the stations. She didn’t stop flipping until she passed the news station and something caught her eye. She flipped back and saw both Adagio and Aria speaking with the news lady. “Tell me girls, what are you going to do now? The entire town knows of the battle of the bands at Canterlot high so as of now, you have no power left.” Sonata listened and watched and noticed the statue behind the three. Why were Adagio and Aria there, it’s not like they would be welcomed back to school. Going back to Equestria didn’t even cross her mind. “What are you two doing?” Sonata asked and Adagio answered, the news lady, not Sonata. “Well, now that we have a portal back to Equestria and our new gem pendants, we just need to power them up and we will have our power back. We will have everyone bowing to us and no one will be able to stop us this time; not even those wretched girls from the battle of the bands.” Adagio didn’t mind telling everyone what they had planned, it wouldn’t make a difference. She turned to leave but stopped and shook a finger in the air as she turned to face the camera again. “I almost forgot something, if Sonata Dusk is watching this, good luck loser.” Adagio laughed as she turned around once again and jumped through the portal. Sonata cocked her head in confusion. “First they hate me and tell me to get lost, then they wish me luck and then they go back to hating me? I think they’re confused.” She picked up the remote to change the channel but a face appeared on screen. It looked vaguely familiar to her with it’s blue and purple hair. Then it spoke in a whisper just loud enough for Sonata to hear. “Remember my dear, remember who you are.” Sonata screamed and the face vanished as Nurse Redheart burst into the room. “What’s wrong, I heard you scream and you’re pale.” Nurse Redheart felt Sonata’s head and then ran out of the room and grabbed some water for Sonata. When she returned, Sonata was gone. Sonata had to get out of the hospital, she couldn’t take it anymore. Whatever was going on in her head made her uncomfortable. Her head still hurt a bit but she was willing to deal with it. Her stomach ached and it made her feel like throwing up. After the accident the last night, she hadn’t rested as peacefully as she normally would, considering the nightmares she had from time to time. Sonata was quickly growing tired and now wanted nothing more than to sleep in her own bed. “Forget making things right, maybe it isn’t worth it. I’m going insane so why try.” Unfortunately there was no place to go. The door to her previous home was sure to be locked. Sonata started to sprint when the doctors called out for her to stop. Once Sonata was out of the hospital, she was able to ditch the doctors by climbing into a dumpster. She sat back uncaring that she was waist high in garbage. Despite the terrible smell, it was better than being in a hospital room with nothing to do. Her stomach then growled greedily for food. With nothing left to do, Sonata began to think about what Sunset had said about her being alone. Maybe she could stop by and grab some food and it wasn’t like she had any pride left anyway. The problem was, she had no idea where anyone lived. With no determination left, she tried to think of her mother and what she would say but it didn’t help at all this time. She was feeling more and more alone as the time went and her mind seemed to be going. “Mom, where are you, I’m scared and I don’t know what to do. Why aren’t your words helping me anymore?” Sonata listened in hopes that maybe her mothers words would help but when they didn’t, she broke down and cried. After a while of crying, the dumpster opened from the outside to reveal Applejack and the others. “Sonata, what are you doing in here?” All the girls had worried expressions but Sonata just glared at them. “Why do you care, it was you and your stupid friends faults that I ended up this way. You just can’t leave well enough alone can you?” Sonata shoved her hand upward into the lid of the dumpster causing Applejack to let go and back up to keep from getting hit. “Let’s go girls, she doesn’t care.” Rainbow Dash turned and walked off with all but Sunset, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie following. “What are you doing, she doesn’t want help. There is no use in fighting her and besides, you heard what she said.” Rainbow said confused by her friends actions. Why should they help the siren? It wasn’t their fault Sonata didn’t have friends. Sunset thought about what her friend had said and found the answer. “I didn’t want help either remember. When I first got to this world, I didn’t need friends or didn’t think I did. I used people from the moment I learned to walk on two legs. I was probably a bigger monster then Sonata and the other two and yet I’m here with you five. She may not want help but she sure needs it. She needs a friend right now and I want to be that friend.” Rainbow shrugged and walked off. The others looked back and forth between themselves and nodded. “Good luck Sugarcube.” Applejack and the others turned and followed Rainbow Dash away. Sunset inhaled deeply and then lifted the lid to the dumpster and smiled. “Sonata, you want to go for ice cream? I’ll buy.” Sunset reached out her hand for the blue girl but Sonata didn’t take. “Look, I know how you feel Sonata. Alone with no one to care about you.” “With the want to be loved.” Sonata said. “Just so you don’t feel, worthless.” The two said in unison. They both smiled and Sonata took Sunsets hand before pulling her into the dumpster. “That’s for ruining our plans and thank you.” Sonata jumped out of the dumpster rather clumsily. “Thank you for ruining the plans or for being here for you?” Sunset asked unsure what it was she was being thanked for even though she did have an idea. “Thanks for trying to help, I don’t know why but I feel like I don’t really hate anyone. My head hurts and I keep seeing my mother in my sleep; now that I think about it, she was the face I saw on the T.V. in the hospital.” Sonata grabbed Sunsets hand and helped to pull her out of the dumpster. She rubbed the back of her neck before she started to cry. She saw her mother on the T.V. and in her dreams. Why was this happening to her, why was her mother doing this? They both felt a drop from the sky as it began to rain again. “Oh great, I’ll probably get hit by another tree.” “No you won’t, I’ll be there for you when you need it but you need to trust me, can you do that?” Sunset smiled but it didn’t last long. “Are you ok Sonata?” Sonata made two fists and shook from the anger rising. “No I’m not, because you can’t say that to me. That’s exactly what Adagio and Aria said to me and look at what happened. Just stay away from me.” Sonata took off running in the opposite direction. “What just happened?” Sunset asked as the rain began to pour down. She lifted the umbrella she had over her head. “Princess Twilight, I need you.” She stood there under her umbrella wondering how she would get Sonata to trust her. Sonata needed a friend and Sunset wasn’t going to give up. The two of them were very similar. “I know how you feel Sonata, please trust me.” > I Dream of Mom > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- It had been a long morning for Rainbow Dash and the others due to the lack of activities. Once noon came around, the day had only gotten worse. They saw the news and could only watch as Adagio and Aria went through the portal. They discussed the event only a moment before a knock came to the door. One second they were bored to death and the next everyone from school and the news lady was in front of Pinkie Pies house. It was made clear why everyone was there. They were unhappy about what happened on the news. “Everyone, first off, I don’t know if we should be disturbed by the fact that you all know that we are here. Secondly, everything will be fine, I’m sure Princess Twilight has everything under control.” Rainbow said as the news lady came up to her. “What do you think will happen should they return?” Rarity cut in and answered. “Should they return, they will be powerless. Princess Twilight would in no way allow them to return with powers and that is only if they aren’t imprisoned there. Why come to us for help anyway, it’s not like we can really do anything.” “Rarity is right, so why don’t you all just leave no offence to you Principal Celestia and vice Principal Luna.” Rainbow turned and slammed the door. It was a long hour before Rainbow and AJ convinced everyone that there was nothing to worry about. Most of the hour was screaming through the door telling everyone that nothing was wrong. This was of course just a way of delaying as they weren’t sure themselves. Rainbow was sure that she was sure but the others weren’t as confident. Now it came to a decision, stay behind and let Twilight worry or go after the girls. “I don’t see any reason to go after them. Chances are they won’t get very far.” “Rainbow, I don’t know that I agree with you on that one. Those girls are pretty sneaky.” AJ went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. “Even so, I bet that Princess Twilight has guards all over the place now just to make sure that no one dangerous goes through the portal. She isn’t stupid enough to leave a portal open and not have it guarded.” Rainbow laid back on the couch and put her feet up. With a bit of thought, Rarity spoke up. “I must agree with Rainbow Dash, Princess Twilight wouldn’t risk anything I’m sure. Besides, even if Adagio and Aria made it past security, they wouldn’t stand a chance of not being noticed. After all the time that those three have been here and all of a sudden two sirens appear in her world. You can’t tell me that they wouldn’t be caught right away and not to mention it once again but they don’t have their powers. What could they possibly do?” The girls looked between each other to see if there were any disagreements. “Sunset, what do you think, Sunset?” Sunset’s hair was the only thing they saw as the front door shut. Sonata was ready to cry again, Sunset said she wanted to help but Sonata could see right through her. She could tell that Sunset Shimmer only wanted to improve her standings with other people just so she wouldn’t look bad. Sonata wasn’t going to fall for it though, she already fell for Adagios trick. She wasn’t going to fall for another similiar trick by another person. Her eyes were dry and itchy and her head continued to give her problems. All she wanted now was to rest up. There wasn’t any chance of going back to the way things used to be. Everywhere Sonata went was another dead end. She was given mean looks wherever she went. How was anyone supposed to sleep when people would do everything in there power to keep them from relaxing? Even in the rain, people wouldn’t give her a break. Kids from school would trip her, throw sticks and rocks at her, and say things like “You should have gone with your friends” or “Help us by making one less of you freaks in the world.” She wasn’t wanted anywhere but she didn’t need to be reminded of it. “Why did Sunset Shimmer get off easy. All we did is sing to control people, Sunset Shimmer broke up friendships, threatened people and more to get what she wanted. I don’t see people treating her like this.” Sonata continued her search for a place to rest when a rock no bigger than the palm of her hand hit her in the back. “Ow, this isn’t fair.” Sonata arrived at the bridge that she had been on when the branch hit her in the head and sent her to the hospital. Frightened that she would get hit by another branch or worse, she jumped over the bridge and landed on the ground seven feet below. She landed in such a way that her ankle twisted and caused her to fall to the ground. “Ahhh!” Sonata screamed as she grabbed onto her ankle and rubbed it. “Stupid, stupid, stupid.” Sonata crawled under the bridge and stayed as far from the growing river as possible. Her body was soaked but it didn’t matter, she was tired and wanted to sleep. She pulled herself up next to the underside of the bridge and rested her back against it. Just as Sonata began to fall asleep, something crawled onto her face. Her eyes shot open and in a panic she knocked the creature off her face and onto the ground. The millipede fell and disappeared under the dirt. Sonata stood up and ran into the rain in an attempt to wash away the feeling of bugs crawling on her. “Ow!” Sonata screamed after taking a few steps on her hurt ankle. “Why, why did this have to happen to me?” She screamed once again and into the air as she took a seat on the ground. She seemed to be screaming a lot, all of it was justified. Sonata began to shiver as a cold wind blew past her. The wind whistled as it blew through the trees. The only living things outside besides people were moisture loving insects. Most of the people had returned home to rest and warm up. It was probably a good thing, Sonata wouldn’t have more things thrown at her now. “I wish I had somewhere to go.” With a loud yawn, Sonata’s eyes closed and she fell asleep outside with the rain pouring down on her. A very young Sonata had been swimming for an unknown amount of time when her mother jumped on her and tackled her. With a little force, Sonata was tickled until she could no longer breath. “Mommy, no.” Sonata struggled to say through her laughing. “Mommy, when do we get to see the princesses. You said they were coming.” Sonata’s mother’s name was Bandura and she looked like every other siren with a few exceptions. She was longer than most and her body was two completely different colors rather than one color and then the other color the same but darker. She was blue like Sonata but she had a sparkly purple as a secondary color. Her eyes were purple as well. Her back fin and her tail were longer and were sharp along the tip. The jewel on her chest was blood red with the center being black. Her eyes were very gentle and loving. “Yes sweetheart, they are coming which means you need to look your best. We all have a lot to talk about and you will be the center of the discussion. This means that you need to be on your best behavior.” Bandura cleaned Sonata’s jewel first and then continued onto the rest of her. The gem was the most important part of a siren. Without it, a siren would lose their singing voice. It could be recovered but not without some sacrifices. Once Sonata was all cleaned up, Bandura backed away and smiled. “You look beautiful my dear. Come on, lets go to the meeting place.” Sonata and her mother swam down into the water and through an underwater cave. Once on the other side, the two popped up out of the water and started toward the meeting place. “Now, when we get there, I have something very important to tell you. You don’t know how excited I am about this meeting.” This was all so new to Sonata and so exciting. Sirens never left far beyond where they lived except on certain occasions. This was one of those times and she couldn’t have been more excited about it. Once the two reached the meeting place which was an island, the sounds of birds and other animals were heard. Unfortunately because of the niose, they didn’t hear the danger coming. By the time they heard the Gryphon’s screech, it was too late. Sonata was pushed back into the water by the Gryphon’s tail. “Sonata, stay back.” Bandura screamed as the gryphon tackled her onto a rock. Bandura tried to dive into the water but the gryphon snatched her up and threw her onto dry land. She tried her best to get back into the water but the winged beast ran it’s talons across her back tearing flesh and spurting blood. The gryphon continued its assault until a yellow beam shot it out of the air. The gryphon turned and saw Celestia with an angry look on her face and the two began to fight with each other. Sonata, worried for her mother, crawled over to her as best she could with tears in her eyes. “Mommy, mommy!” Sonata yelled as she reached out for her mother. Bandura coughed up blood onto the sand. She kept her head facing the ground as blood ran from her body like a river onto the sand. “Sonata, st…ay ba…ck.” She coughed up more blood before collapsing onto the ground. “I love…you…my dear.” Badura stopped breathing and Sonata crawled over to her mother and hugged her tightly. She checked for any signs of a heartbeat but there was none. That’s when something grabbed onto her and dragged her away. “Let me go, moooooooommmmmmy!” Sonata screamed. “Noooooooooo!” Sonata woke with a start and screamed at the top of her lungs. She looked around at her surroundings but had no idea where she was. It was dark and she couldn’t see anything clearly. It wasn’t until the light turned on that she knew she wasn’t anywhere familiar. “Who is there?” “Calm down, it’s me.” The voice was Sunset Shimmers. “I told you to leave me alone.” Sonata said and stood up but fell back onto the couch she was on. Her blood rushed from her head and made her dizzy. Sunset went over to help but Sonata swatted her hand away. “You stay away from me, I don’t need your help. How did you find me anyway?” “I was worried about you, so I went searching.” Sunset backed away from Sonata. Sonata’s dizziness from standing too quickly faded. She stood up and looked at Sunset. “I know what you want and it’s not to help me so screw off.” Sonata limped toward and out the door and left. She didn't care that it was near three in the morning, she wasn't about to stay with Sunset Shimmer. > A Letter to Twilight (Updated) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sonata was about half a block away when she heard someone coming up behind her. She flipped around on her hurt ankle without thinking and fell to the ground. She got a good enough look at the person to know that she didn’t like her. “Why can’t you leave me alone? Do you enjoy stalking me? I’m not some pet that you have to look after. Just because I was a helpless foal when she died doesn’t mean I am now!” Sonata screamed. Sunset offered to help Sonata up but her hand was pushed away. Sunset wanted to yell at her for being so stubborn but she knew all too well it wouldn’t do any good and she wasn’t about to admit to herself that she was being stubborn as well. All she could do was speak calmly. “Look, I’m sorry for whatever happened to you as a foal, I’m sorry." Sunset pauesed a moment to breathe. "Look, I’m not here to stalk you Sonata; I’m here to help you. That’s all I want to do.” Sonata stood up off the ground and slapped Sunset as hard as she could. Her nails sliced Sunsets skin causing her to bleed from the four scratches. Sunset stumbled backward and held her hand to her face in pain groaning. When she removed her hand from her cheek, blood covered her hand and dripped down her arm. Sunset looked up and glared at the girl before her. “Fine, you want to be alone then fine.” Sunset walked away cursing Sonata the entire way home. Sunset walked into her house in pain and tired. She had stayed up just to make sure that Sonata was ok and she attacked. “So much for making up tonight.” Sunset tripped into her bathroom and attempted to catch herself but failed. She fell on her stomach and lost the breath in her lungs. All she wanted to do was help and this is what she got in return. After catching her breath, she opened up the medicine cabinet and pulled out some rubbing alcohol. “This is going to seriously hurt.” She pulled out some cotton balls and dabbed them in the alcohol. “Here goes nothing.” She dabbed her face and screamed curse after curse into the air. After about a five minute torture session full of curses toward the pain and possibly a bit toward Sonata, Sunset placed some bandages over her cuts and held them in place with the adhesive tape. “I need to speak with Princess Twilight.” She flinched as she spoke as it caused her cuts to stretch beneath the bandages. “I swear; that girl has some serious claws on her.” Sunset walked out of the bathroom and over to her desk where she kept the journal when she wasn’t in school. She quickly realized after a few incidents at school that she needed the book with her wherever she went just in case. She pulled out her book and opened it up. “Where to start?” She wondered as she tapped her chin with her pen. “I know.” Dear Princess Twilight, I need some advice on what a friend should do. You see, I’m trying to be friends with Sonata Dusk, you know, from the Dazzlings. Anyway, I’m trying to be her friend but the more I try to talk with her, the more she pushes me away. Just a few minutes ago, she scratched me pretty badly. The left side of my face looks like it’s ready for Halloween. In case you’re wondering, Halloween is the equivalent to Nightmare Night. I suppose we can talk later about things like this. Anyway, back to the topic at hand or hoof in your case. I don’t know what to do now. Do I leave her alone; do I continue to try to get close to her? I’m still having a hard time seeing Sonata like this. She is usually so happy and a little more like Pinkie Pie. Now she is all dark and gloomy. She says that she wants to be alone. She doesn’t trust that I want to be her friend or that I really want to help. That’s the other thing, she accused me of saying something that Adagio and Aria said and something happened. I’m not sure what but she really wanted me away after word. Did that sentence make any sense to you? There are two other things that I need to bring up. She said something about someone or somepony dying. I’m not sure what that was about and when I apologized to her for whatever happened to her when she was younger and told her I wanted to help, she sliced my face. I probably should have mentioned that above huh? Anyway, the last thing I should mention is a weird mark on her neck. It looks like it could be a siren inside of a golden circle. I think that everything she is going through has to do with that marking on the back of her neck and her two friends. The only thing is that I haven’t a clue if they are connected or not. You might want to look it up, see what you can find on Sonata and the siren in the golden ring. If anyone can do it, it’s you. Sincerely your friend, Sunset Shimmer PS. If you want to and can come visit, please do. I need all the help I can get. Sunset closed the book and set it on her desk. She flinched as the cuts on her face stung her. In an attempt to get her mind off her face, she turned on her television. There were a few marathons going on at the moment. She couldn’t decide between two of them, Attack on Titan or The Walking Dead. She thoroughly enjoyed both series very much. It could also be that even on her bad days, she knew the characters in those two shows had it far worse then she had it. At the moment, either would take her mind off recent events. As she began to choose which show she wanted to watch, she checked to see which marathon was further through. To her dismay, they were both equally through. Normally she would watch whichever had the most episodes left but both shows had the same amount left. Sunset couldn’t decide and so she went with the marathon that she was closest to. “Attack on Titan it is.” With a loud yawn, she selected the program. Unfortunately, she fell asleep before she made it five minutes into the show. Sunset felt like she had only been sleeping for a few minutes when the doorbell rang and woke her up. She looked at the time and found it was ten o’clock in the morning. She stretched out and let out a yawn before getting out of bed to answer the door. The doorbell rang once again. “I’m coming, hold on!” Sunset yelled as she walked toward the door. When she opened it up, there in front of her was Sonata with something in her hands and an officer. “Good morning officer, did “yawn” Sonata do something?” The officer rubbed his forehead that gave Sunset the indication that he had a headache and was probably irritable. “More or less, she broke into a building that she had been kicked out of, according to her, to grab something of hers. " The officer spoke with much irritation in his voice but he was calm. "I’m letting her off with a warning. The only reason I don’t arrest her for the break in is because she was retrieving something of great importance to her. I can understand how a picture could be sentimentally important. Now I've heard of you Sunset Shimmer from my fellow officers. I believe you're a good girl and with that in mind, would you care to take in blue girl here until morning or if you would rather just help her find a job somewhere, I'll leave her here. I don't really care either way." Perhaps you and your friends can help her.” Sunset nodded, gave an awkward smile and let Sonata into her home. “Have a good day and remind her every so often that if she tries this again, she will get more than just a warning. Breaking into a home is only appropriate if it’s your own, not if you used to live there.” “Good day and thank you officer-” Sunset looked at the officers’ nametag. “Armor.” The officer nodded and walked away. Sunset turned to Sonata and folded her arms. “It looks like we’re stuck together and only you have yourself to blame for this one.” “Whatever.” Sonata hugged the photo close to her chest and turned around. Sunset wanted to ask who was on the picture but decided against it. “I’m still tired from watching you all night and I’m sure you’re tired too so let’s both get some sleep.” Sunset walked back to her room and fell asleep on her bed grateful that it was Saturday. Sonata groaned angrily, she couldn’t stand Sunset Shimmer. “Don’t you worry yourself with me; I don’t need you to protect me. I don’t want protection or to be here anymore.” Sonata whispered as she took a glance into the kitchen in the direction of the knives. “I won’t be anyone’s problem anymore.” Sonata looked down at the picture in her hand as she took a seat and began to cry. “I’ll see you soon mom.” > Pain and Explanation > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunset woke up at about one that afternoon and stretched. She opened the blinds in her room and blinded herself. The son shone brightly through the window and into the room. The sun reflected off the T.V. and into Sunset’s eyes. She covered her eyes and moved out of the way of the suns ray. After she recovered from being blinded, she grabbed some clothes and went through her normal routine after waking. She went to the bathroom, had a shower and brushed her teeth and hair. After finishing up in the bathroom, she grabbed her purse and left her bedroom. The small home big enough for two people was far to quiet for Sunset’s liking. She walked down the hallway; passed through the living room and went straight to the kitchen. She pulled out a pot and filled it with water before setting it on the stove. “I should probably make sure that Sonata is still here.” Sunset walked into the living room and nearly bumped into Sonata. Sonata was a mess. Her hair was frazzled and sticking up like a balloon had been taken to it. Her shirt was slipping down her left arm while the other side was hugging her neck. The makeup she wore was smeared across her face. Sonata hadn’t looked like this last night, had she? It didn’t really matter. “So Sonata, I thought I would warm up some tea for us if you’d like.” Sunset then hit her forehead with her palm. “You know what; I need to go speak with my friends this morning about a job for you. I doubt that you would be able to get a job anywhere else unfortunately.” Sunset’s eyes widened when she realized what she had said. “I’m so sorry, that was rude. You know what, eat whatever you want. Just don’t touch the peanut butter crackers. I’ll never hear the end of it if those are gone when Trixie gets back.” It was shortly after the battle of the bands when both Trixie and Sunset reluctantly moved in together. Unfortunately for both of them, they needed each other. Trixie needed help to pay the rent and her father refused to continue to help pay it. As for Sunset, she really needed a place to stay other than at a friend’s home. It wasn’t a pleasant situation, the two of them were always on each others nerves but it was better than nothing. Sonata shrugged and sat down in the kitchen. “I’ll see you later then.” Sunset opened the door and picked up her phone to make a call. The phone rang as she shut the door behind her and walked away. After a few rings, Sunset realized that she forgot her wallet back at the house on her nightstand and then Pinkie answered. “Hey Pinkie, I have a question for you. I was just on my way out to go meet with you in person.” Sunset was about to turn the knob on the door when she heard a painful scream come from inside. She dropped her phone and ran inside leaving Pinkie talking to no one. “Sonata, what’s?” Sunset stopped dead in her tracks at the sight before her. Sonata held a bloody knife in hand and her wrists had been cut pretty badly. Blood dripped from the knife and drained from Sonata’s wrists. Sunset turned and picked up her phone from outside and hung up on Pinkie who was still talking. She quickly dialed 911 and ran to grab some medical supplies. She reached the medical cabinet when someone picked up. “Hello, I have an emergency.” Sunset gave her address explained what she knew as she grabbed what she thought she needed. Once the ambulance was on the way, she ran back to the kitchen and over to Sonata. Sonata was now passed out on the floor soaking up her blood with her shirt. “Sonata, you idiot, why would you do something like this?” Sunset did everything she knew how to do without causing more harm and waited while making calls to her friends. It was hours later and Sonata woke up with tubes in her arms. Her vision was a bit blurry but she had lost a lot of blood, so it was to be expected. To her left was a blurry red and yellow puffball. Once her vision returned to normal and she could see who was next to her, she glared. “You, you called the ambulance. Why would you do that, I should be dead right now!” Sonata screamed. “Good to see you awake.” Sunset said setting the remote to the T.V. down and turned to Sonata. Sunset was going to get some answers right now. She knew that Sonata was upset and all but this was unexpected and unacceptable. “You may not feel good right now Sonata but I’m tired of this. You’re constantly angry with me for trying to help you and now this? Do you realize the trouble that would have caused for me if anyone would have found you dead other than me? More importantly, why Sonata? I think I deserve some answers from you after the stunt you pulled. If there isn’t a good explanation for this, you will be sent somewhere I’m sure you don’t want to be; possibly a mental institute and I will suggest it just to get you help. I don’t want you to end up somewhere like that but I don’t want to see you hurt yourself either, so spill it.” Sunset wasn’t going to let Sonata go this time. She just hopped this wasn’t the wrong decision. Sonata was about to ask why she should say anything but the last thing she needed was to have someone watch over her twenty four-seven. “It’s not fair; you just couldn’t let me leave this world could you? I just wanted it to end ok.” “Wanted what to end Sonata?” “The dreams and the memories the mark brings me. There is so much that you just don’t know and you were never supposed to know. Everything brings on pain and sadness. I don’t want to tell you anything but-” Sonata let out a heavy sigh. “I have to now no thanks to you. I was supposed to have been dead when you arrived back but you just wouldn’t let me go.” Sonata put her head against the headboard and let tears slip down her cheeks. She felt a hand on hers and looked at Sunset angrily. She pulled her hand away and looked away. “Here’s the deal Sunset, I lost so much at the age of ten but it really all began when I turned five.” “This mark was none existent until I turned five. My mother came into my room and when she saw it, she was thrilled.” Sonata burst into a full blown cry as she spoke. “I didn’t know why it made her so happy but it did. When I asked her about it, she said that she didn’t think I would ever get the mark. Of course it wasn’t the answer I was looking for and so I asked again. She didn’t explain more than that and said I would find out at the age of ten. It was at that age that I was supposed to meet with Princess Celestia but when we reached the meeting place.” Sonata paused for a minute or so before she continued. Sunset could tell this wasn’t easy for Sonata but she needed to hear if she was going to help, though it was getting hard to listen to. Maybe she didn’t want to hear more, she could tell where the story was going. “When my mother and I got to the meeting place, a large griffon attacked my mother and ripped her apart. I wanted to go help my mother but Celestia showed up and attacked the griffon. I was already having a hard time getting to her because I didn’t have my land legs, few sirens do. I never saw how the battle turned out because I was dragged away and knocked out. When I woke up, I was in an orphanage with two girls beside me, Adagio and Aria. They told me they could help me and all I had to do is trust them.” Sunset couldn’t take it anymore; she had to stop Sonata from talking. “Sonata, stop.” Sunset would have got up and walked away but after everything she said, she couldn’t bring herself to just walk out. “No, you wanted to know so badly then you’ll know.” Sonata’s crying faded and was replaced by anger. “Now as I was saying, they told me to trust them. I said no at first but then I would get asked about the marking by other orphans. I’ve had to move from one place to another because sirens would find out about my mark and ask questions about it. All the questions did was remind me of my mother. I never even got to go to her funeral.” Sonata wiped her tears away and noticed Sunset do the same. “This is why I get upset when the marking is brought up and why I had no problem accepting there offer when they asked again. They followed me everywhere I went, so I said why not. They weren’t going to leave me alone. I have no idea why they were always so interested in me.” Sonata found herself getting off topic and shook her head. “Anyway, back to the story. The mark brings up memories of my mother and so I try to ignore it. Adagio and Aria distracted me from it. Until recently, I’ve been ok but then you and your stupid friends ruined everything for me, especially you. Now the memory of her on the sand bleeding to death haunts me. No matter what I do, that is the only memory I can seem to remember. I used to remember words she would say that would help but those words don’t anymore.” “Sonata, I’m so, so sorry.” Sunset said trying not to cry. “You are not sorry, no one is ever sorry. This mark was something happy for my mother but it only brings me pain. NOW GET OUT AND LEAVE ME BE!” Sonata screamed and Sunset ran out of the room. Sonata was about to lie down and sleep when five others walked into the room. “Great, what do you want?” Rarity stepped forward and spoke softly and kindly toward Sonata. “Would you be a dear and tell us why Sunset upsets you so much?” Sonata turned her head toward the window and let out a heavy sigh. “I hate her because this is all her fault.” Rainbow walked up next to Rarity and put her hands on the bed. “Now hold on, she didn’t put you in here, you did that yourself.” “You really don’t get it do you? It’s her fault we failed. She was the one to suspect us of something. She was the one to call that princess and if it wasn’t for her, you would have lost even with that princess. She was the cause of everything that happened to me. I would have never been kicked out if not for her. She ruined my life, so yes, I hate her.” The five stood there in an uncomfortable pregnant silence. It felt like forever before someone spoke. “Well?” Sonata had expected someone to chew her out for her feelings toward Sunset but no one did. “We’re sorry that you feel that way Sonata. How about we change the topic and asked about the reason for what Adagio and Aria did. It’s something we’ve been curious about.” Rarity asked as she took a seat on the edge of the bed. “Would you mind telling us why they would go to the news and tell everyone what they had planned? I don’t know much about villainy but I’m pretty sure that there is a reason for spilling the beans as it were. What’s the reason for all of this?” “You want me to betray them?” Sonata glared at the five before her. “Didn’t they betray you first?” Applejack asked. Sonata opened her mouth to speak but there were no words. Applejack was right, she was betrayed and there was no reason to defend Adagio or Aria anymore. “Ok, I guess I’ll start from the beginning.” “Thank you.” Fluttershy whispered but it didn’t go unnoticed. “I’ve never been thanked for anything before.” Sonata let a smile grow from ear to ear. “Ok, so it all started a few weeks after the battle of the bands. Adagio had a plan on how to get revenge on this world and take over Equestria afterward. The only problem was finding the gems to hold our magic in once we restored it. To do that requires the rarest of gems. We went from jeweler to jeweler that had the desired gems but I messed up every time. There was only one place left to go for rare objects. We heard of someone named Zecora but she lived in some deadly forest. She carries the rarest of the rare gems. See, the rarer the gem, the more powerful we become, I think. Maybe it was color and not rarity.” Sonata tapped her chin and wondered why they needed rare gems. When she really thought about it, she really didn’t know anything about her own race except for what Adagio told her. “Could you just get on with it?” Rainbow asked getting impatient. “Right, so anyway, they kicked me out but you already know that. I know the entire plan though. I suppose I should have started with that.” Rainbow leaned toward AJ and whispered in her ear. “I question what she really knows.” AJ just shrugged. “Adagio said that she would announce to the world what they would be doing in order to create chaos. Imagine what the world would turn into if they knew of magic and a portal that three people would go through to get power so that they could take over. At least it was three at the time the plan was thought up. Now it’s down to two.” “Of course, can you imagine what people would do with that info? The world would be thrown into a panic but how does that help you exactly?” Pinkie asked as she threw her hands into the air and ran in a circle four times before coming to a stop. Sonata turned on the T.V. and flipped to the news in hopes that there would be an example. To her luck, the school was the focus of the news. She pointed behind Rarity and the others. “Here we are at Canterlot High School. It looks like the principal of the school has tied herself to the portal.” It was the same news lady that spoke with Adagio and Aria. She waved the cameraman over as she walked toward Celestia. “Excuse me, there are many people wondering why?” Celestia looked at the news lady. “No one destroys this portal without killing me first.” “There are world leaders angry and frightened. Why would you protect something that holds such dangers?” “Easy, there is someone on the other side of this portal doing everything she can to keep those sirens from returning. The danger is minimal and there is no reason to destroy the portal when we’re safe. Even if I’m wrong, how do we know that there aren’t other threats in this world from the other side? The only person able to help us is on the other side of this portal and to destroy it would only hurt us more. That’s why I protect the portal.” Celestia said. “Ok, enough of this news stuff, let’s just talk like normal people here.” The news lady said. “Why should we trust you, I surely don’t want this portal here and I’m sure there are those willing to kill you just to destroy the portal.” Sonata turned the T.V. off and waited for the five girls to turn around before speaking. “You see the disharmony in all this, imagine the power they will have once they get back and all they had to do was talk to a news person. All the anger built up just because they spoke to the world. Whether they believe it or not, people won’t take the chance on what Adagio and Aria said actually being true. I don’t know how they would get their power back but they will and everyone on earth is screwed.” Without further questioning, the five girls thanked Sonata for the info and ran out of the room. > Conversation Between Worlds > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunset ran home as fast as she could after Sonata’s story. When she got home, Trixie was waiting for her and she wasn’t happy. “What is that supposed to be, a prank?” Trixie pointed to the kitchen floor covered in what she thought to be fake blood most of which was almost dry. “This is a real sick joke you know.” Sunset wasn’t sure what happened in that moment but she snapped. She ran over and punched Trixie and knocked her to the ground. “This isn’t some joke Trixie. I’m trying to help Sonata but already I failed. I leave for ten seconds and come back to Sonata with slit wrists. Once again she is in the hospital and this time it’s because I left her alone. Show a little respect for once and I know; I don’t have much right to talk about showing respect but dang it Trixie.” Sunset paused for a moment before she continued. “Did you think for even a second that something bad has happened?” Trixie backed away from Sunset while holding onto her jaw a bit frightened and then she accidentally put her free hand in the small puddle of blood. “Ew, ew, ew, ew, ew, help me, get it off.” Trixie whined as she shook her hand in an attempt to shake off the blood and clean her hand. Sunset was in full rage mode now and Trixie was terrified. “You’re unbelievable Trixie, help yourself, it’s what your good at. You only know how to look out for yourself and it makes me sick. What’s worse is that I was far worse than you when it came to looking out for myself.” Sunset walked over to Trixie and stood high above her quivering body. “I have never felt bad about what I did until I actually had friends. Now I can’t look at people in the eye. Keep up your selfish act Trixie and see where you end up.” Sunset walked off angry and tired. Once she reached her room, she had time to think. She felt bad about yelling at Trixie but she felt worse about Sonata. Sunset realized just how wrong she had been. She never should have told Sonata that she would be sent to a mental institution. Sunset climbed into bed without changing into her pajamas and fell asleep. Sunset woke when she heard her desk drawer buzzing. When she opened up the drawer, she yawned and pulled out the book and opened it up. She woke herself up enough to read what Twilight had said. Dear Sunset Shimmer, Let me start by telling you how I think you should handle Sonata. First off, don’t be pushy; doing so will most likely push her away. Try doing things for her without really being there. Send her something that she would like with a note attached. Don’t ask what you should write, that needs to come from you. Hopefully with time, you’ll be able to get close and help her out. If that doesn’t work, ask Pinkie. If there is one thing I learned from her and I’ve learned many things, it’s never give up on trying to be a friend. As for the mark, it doesn’t ring a bell. I’ve been searching through all kinds of history books but I can’t find anything on a mark like that. Perhaps it could just be that, a mark with no meaning at all except to Sonata. I would love to come help but I don’t think that would be such a great idea right now. I’ve got some problems of my own here to deal with. Until the problem is resolved, I won’t be visiting anytime soon. Sincerely Your Friend, Twilight Sparkle Sunset frowned knowing that she had messed up with Sonata. “Great, I’m horrible. I’m sure Twilight won’t be happy with me once I tell her the news. That’s just another problem she doesn’t need right now or I could be over thinking what her response will be. All well, here I go.” Dear Twilight Sparkle, I messed up with Sonata; she thoroughly hates me now if she didn’t before. I was stupid and found a way to “convince” her to tell me what was going on with her. I know; I’m a terrible friend. I guess I’ll just stay away from her now. I suppose I shouldn’t have done anything until I got word from you but I didn’t. I wouldn’t blame you if you’re mad at me now. The mark is more than just a mark by the way. Oh and good luck with Adagio and Aria. Sincerely, Sunset Shimmer Sunset set her book down and lay down on her bed. Just as she closed her eyes, the book began to vibrate. Sunset sat up and looked at the book, shocked. “She wrote back awfully fast.” Sunset shrugged and opened the book. Sunset, we’ll talk about Sonata later and I’m not mad at you. You’re trying and you were right the last time I was there. You do still have a lot to learn but I think we all do when it comes to new people. You’re not a horrible friend; you’re just trying a little to hard. I can’t blame you for that. Now what do you mean good luck with Adagio and Aria? “She doesn’t know; how is that possible?” Twilight, you don’t know about Adagio and Aria? They went through the portal a day or two ago. I thought they were the problem you had to deal with. You have guards at the mirror right? Sunset began to worry more than ever. How was it that Twilight didn’t know about the two sirens and if they weren’t the problem than what was the problem? Surely the two sirens didn’t take out the guards guarding the mirror unless there were only two or three but Twilight was smarter than that. “She does have guards guarding the mirror right?” She asked herself this time. Whatever was going on in Equestria, it was bad enough that Twilight didn’t know about Adagio and Aria. “What’s going on Twilight?” Just then her book buzzed. Sunset, yes I had guards at the mirror but they never said anyone came through it. All they told me is that they don’t remember anything happening. I suppose I should have questioned them but they all looked so tired. It was a few days ago when it happened. Something isn’t adding up here. I better have a word with my guards. It’s possible that just maybe Adagio and Aria are the cause of the problem. It’s Tirek, he is terrorizing ponies everywhere but he is only taking a little magic from them. He stays in hiding and, oh no. Sorry for the rambly and possibly confusing response but I’m rushing through this and, sorry, I have to go. Sunset didn’t know what was going on but it wasn’t good. She heard the name Tirek from somewhere but she wasn’t sure where. All she knew is that the name carried danger with it. Sunset wanted to write to Twilight but she couldn’t be sure what to say and would it matter now? “Maybe I should write her just to make sure that everything is all right?” As she got ready to write, words appeared on the page. Sunset, prepare yourself for Adagio and Aria, I believe they are making their return back to CHS however I will delay them as long as I can. They can’t go through without the book. They got their powers back through Tirek and my friends and I can’t stop them. You need to get our friends together and fight them off. I do have one worry though, they appear stronger than they were but I suppose that was obvious. Be careful. I’ll have to speak with Princess Celestia about the mark you mentioned. Sorry, I don’t have time to explain who Tirek is if you don’t know. Until next time Sunset. “This isn’t good.” Sunset looked at the time and decided eleven at night wasn’t too late to text the others but then again, Adagio and Aria weren’t going to give them time if they could help it. > School Day > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunset picked up her phone and sent a text out to each of her friends that said “Come to my home tomorrow and we’ll walk to school together. We need to talk.” Sunset looked at the text and switched the two sentences around before sending it on. She wasn’t really up to going to school tomorrow but she had already missed too much the last few days to miss anymore. What’s worse is that she hadn’t told anyone she was going to miss school. She looked out the window and up to the sky and she couldn’t help but smile. The sun had set so slowly compared to Equestria, Sunset knew that much of her old home that hadn't changed. The mixture of different shades of the same color of orange and red, mostly orange was beautiful and relaxing. She was sad she had missed the setting sun. “I bet the setting sun was why I was named Sunset.” She yawned and fell onto her bed eyes closed. She was asleep in seconds. Morning came and there was a knock at the front door. Sunset was already up and mostly dressed. The only thing left to do was slip on her skirt and put on her jacket. “Sunset, your friends are here, now tell them to leave!” Trixie yelled. Sunset groaned. “Shut up Trixie!” She yelled back as she put her jacket on. “I’ll be right out girls.” Sunset grabbed her wallet and her other necessities and ran out the room. She held up her index finger as she ran by her friends and picked up a scone from the kitchen. “Ok let’s get going.” “Ok Sunset, what’s going on, why are we here?” Rainbow asked yawning. “I think what Rainbow means is why can’t we talk at school instead of rushing over here to talk on the way? Do you know how hard it is to look fabulous when you’re running around and sweating?” Rarity tapped her foot waiting for an answer. The others looked at her and gave her the look that said "Really?" "Well yes, I should never sweat this early in the morning." The others just ignored Rarity's comment. “I understand but I didn’t want to talk around other people. Thing is, I spoke with Twilight last night.” Sunset walked past her friends who were very excited to hear what Twilight had to say. “Things aren’t looking good.” Sunset went on to quickly explain everything for the next ten minutes. “So what I’m hearing is that, we can’t do anything. Why tell us this if we can’t do anything about? I mean come on, Princess Twilight and the pony versions of us can handle the sirens right? I’m sure Twilight was just being dramatic when she said her and the other versions of us couldn’t stop them.” Rainbow put her hands behind her head and laid her head back. “Rainbow, she didn’t say they could handle it. From what I got from this is that Princess Twilight is struggling. I say we should be prepared.” Applejack pulled Rainbows hands down and turned her around. The two just glared at each other. “It’s like I said, Twilight did say Adagio and Aria seemed stronger than normal. If that’s true, than how can your five counterparts and Twilight hold them back if it took all seven of us to beat them the first time?” Sunset fold her arms even more worried after saying that out loud again. Rainbow Dash even lowered her head. “So when they get here, we’re all going to be their personal zombie army?” Pinkie asked walking around like one for a few seconds. Sunset had done a bit of thinking about the mark on Sonata’s neck. Something about the mark seemed powerful, significant somehow but she couldn’t find any connection. She knew it would be helpful somehow but she couldn’t put her finger on it. The mark or the meaning behind it seemed like the last hope they had but she couldn’t tell the others, not yet. She didn’t want to give false hope if she was wrong and with Sonata in the condition she was in, Sunset couldn’t tell. “Earth to Sunset!” Rainbow said waving her hand in front of her friends face. “What, sorry, I was lost in thought is all.” The school bell rang and the six friends were still outside. “Come on, we don’t want to be late.” Sunset ran ahead and into the school. “Um, girls, did any of you notice that the portal is gone?” Fluttershy squeaked not sure if this was really the best time to bring up the missing portal. “Fluttershy darling, you really must,” Rarity turned around and noticed the missing portal. “Speak up.” The others turned around at hearing Rarity’s pause and all jaws dropped. In the school, Sunset ran to her first class and possibly the oddest class of the day; math taught by Mr. Discord. The moment she stepped into the classroom, she was called out. “Glad you could join us today Ms. Shimmer, would you care to explain why you haven’t been here?” “I was taking care of a friend is all, she really needed help and well, I volunteered to help out.” Sunset said as she took her seat. Discord groaned and started teaching. “Now class, blah blah blah….blah.” That was all Sunset heard, to worried about Sonata and the upcoming and current events. “Ms. Shimmer! Please pay attention.” Sunset shot her head up and apologized. “Since you are so unfocused today, you can come up to the board and finish this word problem.” When Sunset didn’t respond, Discord groaned irritably. “MS. SHIMMER, to the office immediately!” Sunset jumped out of her seat and fell to the floor. “Office, now!” Sunset stood up, grabbed her backpack, and ran out of the room all while hearing chuckles. Her face turned so red that she looked like a tomato. She couldn’t help being distracted; she was just so worried about everything that was happening. She wanted to help but what could she do? What would happen when Adagio and Aria returned and how could she help Sonata? Sunset was sure that Sonata would be the most important factor in beating Adagio and Aria. "How could Sonat" BAM. Sunset stumbled backward and looked up as the door opened to reveal Principal Celestia. “Come in Sunset, Discord said you would be coming.” “I know I’m not exactly focused” Sunset was cut off by the raise of Celestia’s hand. “I don’t care about that right now Sunset, I’m worried about what’s going to happen.” Celestia wasn’t sure what was going on but she wanted to. She was Principal and if something was going to happen to the school again, she had to be aware of it this time. Sunset was shocked, she was sure she would get at the very least a warning about not focusing in class. Apparently even the Principal was worried. “I’m not sure myself but I know Princess Twilight is doing everything she can to make sure that Adagio and Aria don’t return.” “Yes and if they should return, what then? What do you and your friends intend to do should that happen? I can’t let something else happen to this school. The school district is threatening my job and worse, the children here are being threatened. I don’t care if you have to take a month off of school to prevent the worst even if I lose my job but I care too much for my students. I want to know what you have planned. Everyone here is counting on you and your friends.” Celestia sipped her coffee and shook as she did so. “How much coffee have you had?” Sunset asked. “Forget about it and please tell me what you have planned. I don’t care if you’re in the process of forming a plan. I don’t want my students hurt and the fact that I can’t protect them is…killing me. Please Sunset, do something.” Celestia had a strong face but then she broke into tears. What could she do? Twice the school was threatened and twice she failed her students. She didn’t want there to be a third time. “I do have something but it’s a long shot. Let me talk to my friends and Princess Twilight, I’m sure that she has something that could help us. Then again better not, she already has her hooves full already helping me. I will do everything I can to make sure that things don’t take a turn for the worst.” Sunset walked over to Celestia and put a hand on her shoulder. “Everything will be ok, just focus on the school and let me and my friends handle everything else.” “Thank you Sunset Shimmer, now go.” Sunset left and shut the door behind her. “Save them.” Celestia shook and almost dropped her cup. Sunset was now in the hallway with even more on her shoulders then before. She couldn’t help but think it’s partly her fault. She just had to try and help Sonata but that’s a good thing right? Sure, she may not have been correct in the way of trying to help but her heart was in the right place. If she had, no Adagio and Aria would still have done what they did. She couldn’t have stopped them and how was she to know that they would have done this. “Right, I don’t have to feel bad for letting them go after the battle of the bands.” With a deep breath, she took her next steps in stride. She wouldn’t be overbearing toward Sonata or at least she felt like she had been. “No more worries, we’ll figure out how to stop Adagio and Aria and I’ll, no we'll do it calmly.” As Sunset strode down the hall, she smiled as she thought. “I’ll send Sonata some flowers with an apology. I’ll wait until she gets out of the hospital and then I’ll take her shopping if she wants. At worst, she will tell me to leave her alone.” Sunset walked by the classroom Pinkie was in and peeked in. Sunset almost broke out laughing at the look on the teachers face. She had to cover her mouth just to stifle her laughter. Once the need to laugh was gone, she opened the door. “I wish I were in Pinkie’s class.” Sunset mumbled to herself at seeing all the happy faces. How could anyone not want to see a student make a complete fool out of a teacher by doing what ever Pinkie was doing? Sunset was about to find out just what it was to. “Pinkie Pie, how do you do that? It makes no sense.” The teacher named Chrysalis said, her anger growing. Chrysalis was the second strictest teacher in the school next to one of the gym teachers, Spitfire who was a nightmare most of the time to most students. Chrysalis was really just a pain in comparison. “Of course it does, I proved it on the board.” Pinkie pointed to the board with a big smile on her face. “But…I…what?” Chrysalis was at a loss for words. Despite what she knew, the proof on the board showed that Vinegar and baking soda turns a person’s hair a different color. It might bleach the persons hair but not those to things. Everything there made sense and no sense at the same time. Just as Chrysalis was about to say something, a cough was heard. She turned her head and saw Sunset Shimmer. “What do you need Ms. Shimmer?” “The Principal wants to see Pinkie right away.” “Oh thank goodness.” Chrysalis thought. “You may go Pinkie.” In her mind, she was dancing around like a school girl to have Pinkie leave. As Sunset and Pinkie left, Sunset had to ask. “So how does that work Pinkie because I don’t think even with your logic, Vinegar and Baking soda could change a persons hair color.” “Oh it’s simple, it can’t. I was just messing with her with unreal real facts. So why does Principal Celestia want to see me?” Pinkie asked as she skipped down the hall. “She doesn’t Pinkie; I just needed to say something that your teacher wouldn't mind you leave for. I don’t think she would have let you, actually I think she would have been happy to let you go regardless the reason.” Sunset chuckled. They stopped by the others classrooms and got each of her friends out of their classes. “Sunset darling, why have you taken us out of our classes exactly?” Rarity asked as she followed Sunset outside. “We need to come up with a plan of action and Celestia gave us permission to miss class to do so. She doesn’t want anything to happen to the other students or us and she is desperate. Let’s be honest here, we really are the only hope.” Sunset took a seat on the step in front of the school and cocked her head. “Where did the portal go?” The others just shrugged. “Should we be worried about that?” “No, don’t worry about it.” Celestia said coming up behind the group. “I had it lifted and moved into the basement of the school. I just made an announcement about a science fair coming up next week. I told all the students to call their parents and to tell them they would be staying in school every night until their projects are done. If you girls want, you can join in on the project while you figure out what you’re going to do about the siren issue. If you decide not to, you won’t be penalized for it.” With that said, Celestia walked back inside. “So who else thinks that Celestia has an alternative motive with the whole science fair junk?” Rainbow asked. “It doesn’t matter right now; right now the important thing is keeping everyone safe.” The others nodded in agreement. “Right, so here is what I’m thinking. I, we need to befriend Sonata. She clearly doesn’t like me at all, so I need you five to get close. I have a few reasons for this. One reason is because she really needs someone.” Sunset received “mhmms” from the others. She decided that maybe it was best to bring up her theory with the mark. Perhaps it would motivate the others. “The other reason is because, despite Sonata’s wish not to have the mark on her neck brought up, it is a big part of the solution. I’m not sure how but I’m sure it is. I don’t think being friends with her will make her open up but if Twilight finds anything, she may be willing to at least talk about it with friends.” “I don’t think she would go for it, friends or not. She hates your guts Sunset and she blames you for everything that has happened to her.” Rainbow said as she leaned against the railing. “That’s depressing but still, that is exactly why you need to be the friends here. I will work on it but you five have the best chance.” Sunset put her hand in the middle of the group. “So what do you say?” The group looked between each other and then put their hands in the middle. “Then it’s a go.” They raised their hands into the air. “It’s not like we have any other options until we hear from Twilight.” AJ stretched. “Let’s go girls.” As everyone left, Rainbow turned to Sunset and smiled. “You’re really getting into the leader role.” She punched Sunsets arm and walked off. Sunset smiled until the others were out of sight and then rubbed her arm. “Ow.” Sunset mumbled with a smile and then headed home to plan out her next step. > A Day with Sonata > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pinkie Pie and the others headed straight for the hospital to speak with Sonata. The entire way there, the group had been talkative and then they reached the front steps. They looked between each other to see who would take the first step up. They could only assume one of two things would happen once they reached Sonata’s room. They would walk into the room and Sonata would refuse to talk, which seemed unlikely. She may not be talkative at the moment but she would definitely say something. It was more likely that Sonata would make things awkward somehow. It was also possible they would be told to leave by her. They were only nervous because they weren’t sure what to say now. They had a plan and saying the wrong thing could ruin it. It also didn’t help that they felt like they were just using Sonata. They knew that they weren’t but it felt like it and if Sonata found out what they were doing, it would only make things harder than they already were. “Excuse me girls, are you five ok?” The five looked ahead to see one of the nurses with a worried look on her face. She was in the typical hospital attire but her hair was not visible. She must have had really short hair. Her eyes were an emerald green and she was very slim. She looked very young, probably in her early twenties. “Oh, uh, yes were coming in and were just fine.” Rarity chuckled and started up the stairs. Applejack and Pinkie followed close behind and Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash brought up the rear. “Thank you for the worry though.” “We’re here to see Sonata if it’s ok.” Applejack said closing in on Rarity with every step. The nurse nodded and led the group into the hospital. “Now I must tell you that she doesn’t want too many people or Sunset Shimmer in the room.” The girls looked to each other with painful expressions. Sonata really didn’t like Sunset, good thing she wasn’t there. If she had been, it would have been an awkward moment for sure. “This means only one of you at a time is allowed into her room. I only ask that no matter what, only one of you enter the room at a time out of respect for the patient. She is having a hard time right now.” “But of course, only one at a time.” Rarity heard a collective “mhmm” from behind her. “Yes, we can imagine.” “I don’t think you understand, I suppose that Sonata will tell you if she feels comfortable.” The nurse stopped at the door and frowned. “Remember, one at a time and you may be surprised at what you find.” With that said, the nurse left as she jotted down a few things on her clipboard. This left the girls a little worried. “I will go first girls.” Rarity grabbed the handle and turned it. “Hopefully we won’t need more then just one of us in there.” She inhaled deeply and walked into the room. “Hello, Sonata?” Sonata had been looking out the window that had been barred up and Sonata looked as if she had tied to the bed. Nurse Redheart was in the room as well. She stood up and walked out of the room and reminded Rarity not too take long. Rarity nodded and continued toward the bed. “Sonata, what is going on here?” Sonata looked at Rarity with her tear stained face. She looked horrible and from the looks of it, she was being force fed through wires. It seemed completely unnecessary. “Rarity, please help.” Rarity sat next to Sonata. “I don’t want to be alive anymore, why is that so wrong?” Rarity was mortified at hearing that bit of news. Yes, she knew how Sonata felt from what Sunset had told them but seeing the room and hearing what Sonata just said was scary. Did the nurses really have to bar up the windows and force feed her through wires just to keep Sonata alive? “Sonata, why are the windows barred, why are you tied down and why are you being force fed?” Rarity wanted to help Sonata out but she had to know what was going on. Sonata began to cry but spoke anyway. “The windows are barred because I tried to jump out the window. I’m tied to the bed so I couldn’t hurt myself, I’m being force fed because I can’t feed myself because they tied me down and they want to send me to a mental hospital.” Sonata screamed and shook violently. Rarity went into action and began hugging Sonata. It seemed to work, she stopped shaking. “My friends and I, excluding Sunset, will do whatever we can to help you darling.” When the thought of what could have happened when they saw Sonata came to mind, this wasn’t one of the possibilities. “How about we spend the rest of the day at the mall with my friends and me?” Sonata looked up at Rarity and nodded. “Alright, let’s get you out of here then.” “They won’t allow it.” Rarity grabbed onto Sonata’s hand and smiled. “So what, and this is usually against my belief in obeying the law but we’ll break you out if we have to. You just have to promise us that you will stop trying to end your life. You’re in pain, I get it, but suicide isn’t a decision we want you to make. You need true friends to be there for you.” Sonata didn’t see any other option. “Ok, I promise. Cross my heart and hope to die.” Rarity cringed and decided to change the promise a little. “How about cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Sonata raised a confused eyebrow. “It’s a Pinkie Promise.” “Ok, I suppose that is more fun to say. So cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Sonata chuckled a little at saying the silly promise. “With us, you can have more fun things like that.” Sonata nodded. “Let me go speak with the nurse.” Rarity stood up and walked toward the door. When she stepped out, Nurse Redheart and the others were waiting. “Nurse Redheart, Sonata would like to go out and spend the day with us. I assure you that she won’t hurt herself. We will make sure of that.” Nurse Redheart shook her head. “No, in a few hours, she will be taken away for professional help.” After about ten minutes Rarity gave up and told Nurse Redheart they were leaving. As expected, Nurse Redheart walked back into the room. “So here is what we’re going to do. Sonata is being taken to a mental hospital and that will not do. Rainbow Dash and Applejack, I need you to knock out Nurse Redheart. Now usually I’m completely against something so barbaric but I can’t let Sonata waste away in some mental institution. I also can’t allow her to be force fed her whole life. It’s something that is sure to happen if she is taken away.” Rarity walked off and came back with some chloroform and a rag she had taken from on of the rooms. “Her you go, easy knock out.” The others didn’t have time to object to the idea before Applejack had the chloroform and rag in her hands and Rarity was inside the room talking with Nurse Redheart. “Are we really going to do this?” AJ asked looking to the others. They shrugged and she face palmed herself and whispered. “I can’t believe were actually doing this.” She inhaled deep with one question in mind. ‘Why wasn’t Fluttershy saying anything?’ Fluttershy was frozen in place with confusion. She kept going over the plan in her head and the reasons for it. She was most definitely conflicted. “We should do this, the nurses are just trying to help but we can’t let Sonata be taken away when we can help her. This can’t be legal though but Sonata must want to leave so it’s not like we’re kidnapping her right? It’s still not right but neither is letting our possible friend be miserable.” She had spent so much time thinking, she hadn’t noticed the others start to leave. “Fluttershy, come on!” Rainbow yelled “Yes darling, you must focus.” Rarity said as she took a left turn toward the stairs. It was at that moment they bumped into another nurse. “Oh, hello.” It was the same nurse that had taken them to the room. “Where are you going and who gave you permission to take Sonata out of her room? Don’t you bother answering; I want to know from Aaappllllleeejjjaaack, zzzzzz.” The nurse collapsed to the floor asleep after having powder fly into her face. “Pinkie, why are you carrying around sleeping powder and why didn’t you tell us you had that?” Rainbow Dash asked as they continued down the stairs and toward the door. “In case of a sleeping emergency and you didn’t ask.” Without further discussion, the group exit the hospital and ran to Pinkie Pies home before they took a breather. Once they caught their breath, Applejack began to yell. “Why did that just happen?! Why did any of that just happen?!” The others pointed to Sonata who just cocked her head. “Really? And how did you manage to get the Chloroform anyway Rarity? There is no way they just gave it to you?” “You see, there are more than just a couple knocked out nurses in the hospital.” Rarity chuckled nervously. Applejack was about to yell again when she was grabbed into a big hug. “Oh thank you thank you thank you.” Sonata let go and smiled. “I don’t really know what to say.” Applejack wasn’t happy about what just happened and she couldn’t believe it either but she saw Sonata give the biggest smile she had ever seen, it made her heart melt. “Don’t mention it; all you need are some friends to help you through. I’m pretty sure a mental hospital wouldn’t have helped you none anyway.” “Hey, now that Sonata is free, lets go do something. Oh, I know, who is up for laser tag?” Rainbow Dash looked to Sonata since she would most likely be the deciding factor when their stomachs growled. “Maybe we should eat something first.” “Right then, let’s go to the mall. I can get some shopping done and all of us can go to one of the food courts for lunch.” Rarity was already out the door and on her way. “Now why on earth is Rarity deciding everything today?” Applejack asked heading for the door. “And why have we not been tracked down by the police or something. They must have found knocked out nurses in the hospital by now?” “Um, I may know, about Rarity, not the police thing.” Fluttershy spoke up finally. “I think Rarity is just frightened. She probably doesn’t know what to do and so she does the first thing she can think of. We did take Sonata out of the hospital without permission.” Police cars were seen flying down the street with their sirens roaring. The group jumped behind a bush. “There are the police Applejack.” “Come on everyone, let’s go to the mall.” Applejack shook her head. What had they done, how could they relax. The answer came when she looked at Sonata bouncing around and happy. Freeing her was the right thing to do even if it wasn’t for the right reasons or legal. AJ hoped more than anything that Sonata wouldn’t find out about the plan to befriend her. It would just cause problems. Once everyone arrived at the mall, Sonata was asked something she had never been asked before. “So Sonata, what do you want to do?” Rarity asked. “Oh, um, what does everyone else like?” The reply she received was not one Sonata expected. Everyone liked different or wanted to do different things. Sonata could have sworn that friends were supposed to like the same things. That’s how it was with Adagio and Aria and yet here were five friends that didn’t enjoy the same things. Sure Adagio, Aria, and her had different fashion choices and food choices but everything else was pretty much the same. Was it really possible? Could the five girls really be such good friends and like different activities? She would find out soon enough, it was just a matter of asking questions. “Well, how about I do a little bit of what everyone likes to do? Have a little one on one with all of you.” Sonata asked but received nervous glances. “I guess not, I wouldn’t trust me either.” She knew why they were nervous, a complete idiot could tell why. She was a siren, who would want to be alone with her. “Oh Sugarcube, we didn’t mean to make you feel bad. Sure we can have one on one time with you. If we’re gonna be friends, we have to trust each other. So who do you want to go with first?” Applejack asked “Thank you Applejack, I think for comfort sake, I’d like to go with you first.” Sonata smiled nervously and walked off with AJ. As Applejack and Sonata turned the corner, AJ yelled back. “Don’t even think of following us Rainbow Dash.” With that said, they disappeared out of view. “So Sonata, have you ever played at the arcade before?” “I never really did much of anything but hurt others since I got here.” Sonata frowned but a comforting hand was placed on her shoulder. It was so new to her; neither Adagio nor Aria ever tried anything like that. She couldn’t help but smile. “I don’t mean to bring up any sore spots Sonata, but what you just said was more or less exactly what Sunset Shimmer said when she was defeated by us.” Applejack and Sonata walked into the arcade and stopped. “So Sonata, take us to a game and let’s play.” Sonata pointed to a game that looked fun and ran over to it. She wasn’t sure what to think now. She was beginning to think that just maybe she could at least be nicer to Sunset. It was hard to imagine that one similarity could make Sonata change her thoughts on Sunset Shimmer but it had. If what Applejack said was true, then perhaps Sunset really was just trying to make friends. After all, Sonata had no idea how this friendship thing works and just maybe Sunset wasn’t sure either and really was just trying to help. “So Applejack, is it really possible that you and your friends actually like different things?” “Darn tootin it’s possible. I don’t think we would be friends if we didn’t like different things or at least wouldn’t be much of friends. Our different likes and dislikes help us grow closer. We learn to understand each other. Sure our differences can cause some problems sometimes but they also keep us from being clones. Can you imagine what it would be like to have hundreds of the same person running around? Imagine Pinkie pie everywhere.” Applejack said as she stepped off the DDR pad the winner. “I guess that makes sense, I’ll admit that even though our personalities are different, Adagio, Aria, and I felt like the same person a lot of the time.” Sonata thought back to the Battle of the Bands song and chuckled. “It’s ironic actually. Let’s just forget it and have some fun finally huh?” The rest of the day went by with Sonata asking questions on friendship and doing whatever it was the others wanted to do. Rainbow Dash and her played laser tag. Rainbow Dash creamed her every time but Sonata learned something important, Rainbow hates to lose. Rarity went shopping with Sonata and bought her some better clothes in Rarity’s opinion. Pinkie Pie and Sonata spent their time going around trying samples of treats around the mall and then it came to Fluttershy, the shyest person on earth. “So have you had fun today?” “Yep, I never realized just how much fun it is to have real friends. So what are we gonna do?” Fluttershy pointed to the food court. “For realzies, that’s all. I thought it would have had something to do with animals.” “Oh, well normally it would but it’s getting late and I’m getting hungry.” Fluttershy started toward the food court followed by Sonata. A T.V. was on and they heard something about the hospital. “Oh dear.” The two looked up and saw Nurse Redheart on the news. “Her friends broke her out of the hospital by knocking me and my colleagues out. If she wants away so bad then let her but if she ever appears in this hospital again because of a suicide attempt, I will personal transport her to a mental hospital and possibly her friends too. They are all nuts.” With that said, Sonata and Fluttershy turned to each other and began laughing. “We really are kind of nuts aren’t we?” Fluttershy took a seat at one of the tables. Sonata sat down across from Fluttershy still laughing. “Yeah, but I guess it comes with being friends right?” Fluttershy stopped laughing along with Sonata and smiled. “You know, if it weren’t for Sunset Shimmer, we wouldn’t have tried to be friends with you. What I mean is, Sunset tried so hard to be your friend. She really thought that you two could be and so I and the others decided that we should try to. You owe Sunset a lot. We wouldn’t be right here right now if not for her.” Sonata looked away embarrassed and ashamed. The more she spoke with the others, the more she realized just how hard Sunset tried to be her friend. Now she finds out that her new friends are only her new friends because of Sunset. That thought just made her feel worse. She shook her head and smiled. “I guess I do, thank you Fluttershy.” Sonata received a small nod from her new friend. “So what do you want?” “What do you want Sonata?” Sonata turned her head around to look at the different restaurants before turning back around with a smile on her face. “Tacos! Tell me what you want and I’ll go get the food.” Fluttershy gave Sonata her order and watched as Sonata stood up to leave before getting bumped into. “Hey, why don’t you watch wh…ere you’re go…ing?” Sonata stopped and stared at the boy in front of her. His hair was dark and he had blue eyes and grey skin. His shirt had three four leaf clovers on it. “I’m so sorry.” “Don’t be, it was my fault completely.” The boy stood up and looked very carefully at Sonata. “Hey, you’re the siren girl from battle of the bands right?” Sonata looked away sadly. “Hey, don’t look so down, my name is Lucky Clover by the way.” Sonata just waved to him. “Hey, come on, I know who you are but that doesn’t mean I don’t like you. You’re real pretty you know. Here, let me give you my number and you can call me.” Lucky wrote down his number and gave it to Sonata. “I have to go, I hope to hear from you. See ya.” With that, he ran off. Sonata looked sadly at the piece of paper in her hand. “I think he really likes you. You should call him tomorrow and see what he is doing.” Fluttershy suggested. “You really think he could actually like me after everything I did?” Sonata asked still staring at the paper in her hand. “Of course I do Sonata; I really believe he likes you.” Sonata gave Fluttershy a big bear hug and went to order their food. Today ended off on a high note, that was for sure. > Surprise > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was earlier that day shortly after Rarity and the others escaped with Sonata unknown to Sunset. Sunset grabbed her backpack and book and headed out the door. She decided to get a few things for Sonata to try and apologize for being so pushy. Her first stop had been the flower shop and then the candy store. Lucky for her, the biggest problem was finding which candy Sonata would like best. Should she get plain milk chocolate or something with more to it like milk chocolate with nuts or perhaps some truffles made with white chocolate with a cherry in the middle? After looking over the many confections, she decided to grab a pound of mixed chocolate and candies. It cost her a bit and seemed a bit datish. She had to admit that she was a bit embarrassed by it. She shook the thought from her mind and reminded herself that getting things like this for someone in trouble is kind and that’s it. She then looked at the flowers in her hand. “I suppose the flowers are a bit overkill but all well.” Sunset put the goodies and flowers in the cart on her motorcycle as a cop car drove by. Normally this wouldn’t worry her but with the recent events; she really hoped this didn’t have to do with Sonata. On the likely chance it did, she decided to see where the cops were going. She followed fifty feet behind so as not to look creepy or suspicious. The last thing she wanted was to be asked questions and possibly taken in for question just for being suspicious. Once the cops reached their destinations, Sunset sighed heavily. Once the cops were in the building, she drove into the parking lot. She was right where she was hoping not to be at the end of the road. Deciding that she had nothing to lose, she grabbed the items off her bike and slowly made her way into the hospital. Once she was inside, she dropped the items she held and her jaw dropped. Something bad happened here and she hoped more than anything that her friends weren’t involved with whatever happened. “Yeah, wishful thinking Sunset.” She whispered. In front of her were two nurses with ice packs on their heads and one that looked like she would fall over any minute. The last nurse was Redheart speaking with one of the officers and that was not a good sign in itself. Sunset walked casually over to Redheart with confusion written on her face. It was a fair expression as she didn’t have any idea what happened. “Nurse Redheart, what happened here?” She was sure that she would regret asking the question but it needed to be asked. Nurse Redheart looked at Sunset and glared. She wasn’t happy and she was more than ready to have everyone involved arrested. “Your friends came here and asked me to release Sonata into their care and when I refused; they knocked out two nurses, stole Chloroform which they used to knock me out, freed the patient, and knocked out another nurse before taking off. I should have you arrested just for affiliating with them but that’s unfair to you and more than I feel like dealing with. Your friends on the other hand are getting arrested for what they did.” Redheart felt dizzy and had to grab onto the wall to keep from falling over. Sunset grabbed a nearby chair and helped Nurse Redheart to sit. She was officially shocked by what she heard. “What were they thinking, idiots.” Sunset slammed her hand against the wall and rubbed her temples with her other hand. After a minute, she found a chair and brought it over so she could sit and talk with the nurse. “Look, please don’t place charges against them.” Redheart gave Sunset a look that said “Really, you’re kidding me.” Sunset knew she would have to be really convincing to keep her friends out of jail. “I know what they did was most definitely illegal but just hear me out.” “You have five minutes Miss. Shimmer.” Sunset exhaled relieved that she was at least being given a chance. “I asked my friends to help me convince Sonata to be their friends. All we want is for her to be happy and Sonata likes them more than me. My friends were the best chance at gaining her friendship. I’m sure all they wanted to do was take Sonata out for a fun day and get her to relax.” Redheart nodded.” The thought was if Sonata could make friends, she would stop these crazy suicidal thoughts. I can only guess that when you refused them that chance, they freaked out. Yes, what they did was wrong but they were only trying to be good friends to someone who needs friends more than anything. We know she is having issues but we know that some good friends could help her. Please, I beg of you to let them go. If I have to, I’ll work off any damages that may have occurred but just…please. They were only trying to be good friends, please don’t punish them for that.” Sunset begged and it felt degrading but she was sincere about it. After some thought Nurse Redheart left and returned twenty minutes later. “Ok miss Shimmer, my colleagues and I have come to an agreement on one condition. You work here for one month part time to help pay off the Chloroform they stole and if I ever see your friends here again because of a suicide attempt, I will personally take them to a mental institute. Do that for me and I won’t press charges.” “Of course, thank you so much.” Sunset was so relieved that Nurse Redheart had her colleagues were so reasonable. She started to leave when Redheart stopped her. “You’re a good friend Sunset, not many stand up for their friends like you do. Now don’t get me wrong, I was outvoted. I did my best to convince the others to have them arrested. The only reason I spoke with them at all is because I thought that they would agree to have them arrested. Thanks to your friends, I’m doing damage control and I have to deal with my boss and explaining the whole incident.” Nurse Redheart let out a heavy sigh. “I still want them arrested but I’ll look past it this once.” “Thank you, very much.” With that said, Sunset ran out of the building and started home. What was she going to do now and was Chloroform really a months pay even part time? Did it really matter? No, her friends were worth it and besides, she would make sure that they didn’t do something like this again. She was going to have a few words with them assuming she found time to and nothing got in the way. Sunset turned a corner when she nearly bumped into someone. Sunset and the person chuckled. “Excuse me.” “Of course Sunset. My name is Lucky Clover by the way.” “Nice to meet you and how do you know me?” Sunset asked while shaking his hand. “I know all about what you and the sirens did. I get it, you were lost and you didn’t want what you though you wanted. I’ve seen it before, even in myself.” Lucky rubbed the back of his neck and smiled wide but not so wide he looked goofy. Sunset though for a moment and wrapped her arm around him. “So Lucky, let’s talk.” She pulled her arm away and walked toward her home. “Would you mind if I asked you about what you did?” She wasn’t sure why she was being so nice to Lucky as most would have probably called the cops for being a stalker. Who was she to judge though; she did a lot of stalking when she was her former self. She would hear him out at least and he seemed nice enough. “Sure, the more I talk about it, the better I feel. It started when I was in elementary school. I had always been picked on because I had a hard time in school. Math was confusing, I hate computers or at least I did. I’m not exactly athletic and so on. Despite my inabilities, I still did fairly well. I got a few B’s and mostly C’s in school. That was bad though, I was in a very high class school that I should never have been excepted to go to. Everyone in class got A’s and only every once in a while high B’s. I was always pushed around, bullied and no one ever helped me. Even teachers were cruel.” Lucky stopped when he noticed Sunset had fallen a few feet behind him. “I was a bully at CHS, I’m sorry.” Sunset apologized. She couldn’t help but feel bad because she didn’t help anyone. She was a bad influence and though Luckys problem was before she arrived, she hadn’t helped younger kids when she was a bully. Who knew if any kids found out about what she did and decided they wanted to be bullies just because they could. Maybe she was just overreacting but even if that were true, she still felt bad. “Please, keep going.” Lucky put a comforting arm around Sunset and smiled. “Thanks.” “So as the year went, once I left that awful school, I thought I wanted to be one of those bullies, just to keep from getting picked on. I wanted others to know how I felt or at least I thought I did. I actually sent a few kids home in bandages and sent one kid to the hospital. Before that kid, I always thought that I had the respect. To be honest, I never knew what respect was until that one kid I sent to hospital told me that he forgave me. He said that he felt bad for me and hoped that I would also forgive those that made me the way I was. He even gave me a thumbs up and said ‘good luck.’ I had never been so surprised by an act in my life. One person was friendly to me despite what I did to him. I changed again, back to the way I used to be. Well, there were a few changes I made. When I would get mocked by others, all I could do is remember that one kid. I simply said that I forgave them and they stopped.” Lucky wiped tears from his eyes. “The worst part is that it took me a year to figure out how stupid I was.” “So what was the kids name or do you know?” Lucky shrugged. “You changed and that’s what’s important. You changed even faster than I did.” Sunset let out a small chuckle. “Could you do me a favor and help me watch over one of the Sirens?” Lucky nodded. “Her name is-” “Sonata, I keep track of others like me. I like to help them if I can. I also have to admit that I kind of like that particular Siren. I know exactly what to do. Lucky started to leave when a thought occurred to him. “Where would I find her?” “Don’t know, maybe you’ll get lucky.” Sunset was really beginning to wish she had asked what exactly the others were going to do. “Thanks Sunset, see ya.” Lucky waved goodbye and ran off. Sunset had spent so much time talking, her stomach began to growl. It was well past lunch time. Sunset was near Sugarcube Corner and walked in when her backpack began to buzz. “You have great timing Twilight.” Sunset pulled out and opened the book. Dear Sunset, You were right about the mark being something special. I spoke with Princess Celestia and she told me all about it. Turns out, she was the only one outside of the siren race allowed to know this secret. It will make more sense later. I’m going to let Adagio and Aria through the portal in the morning. Be sure that Sonata and you are there waiting for them and then tell Adagio and Aria that you know what they did. One of the two will deny it out loud depending on who is doing the talking. Once that happens, bring me and Celestia up and I’m sure that Sonata will want to know. Just don’t tell them right away, let Sonata talk to them first before interfering. Good Luck to the both of you. Sincerely, Twilight Sparkle. “Oh boy, this is gonna be interesting.” > Story of Betrayal > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Adagio and Aria had just come through the portal and looked around confused. Where had they ended up and why was it so dark? Adagio groped the wall as she tried to make her way to any light source when she heard a loud pang. “Aria, what was that?” “I think I found the water heater.” “You find it with your head?” Adagio laughed as she joked about Aria hurting herself. “Nope, my body.” Aria answered irritably. She was ready to strangle Adagio but it would have to wait. Adagio continued to search and groaned in annoyance with the darkness but at least she knew where they were now. How and why the portal ended up in the basement was beyond her. Putting it down there wouldn’t stop them from returning and that was the other thing, why would the princess let them through. Whatever the reason was, it couldn’t be for her benefit. If something happened to Aria, she didn’t care. The important part was getting more power, nothing and no one would stop her. Unknown to her, Aria had the same thought. They would only work together until they got what they wanted and then one way or another, one of them would disappear. The worst part was that they didn’t even fully realize what they were doing. Adagio had been moving slowly along the wall and around things for about five minutes and finally found a switch. The lights flipped on and blinded Aria. Adagio was prepared and covered her eyes but Aria stumbled around and fell to the ground. She waited to see again before speaking. “How about some warning next time jack-” Aria stopped and reached down beside her for something buried beneath boxes. “Hmmm?” She grabbed the item and picked it up. It was a sniper rifle. “Aria, what are you doing?” Adagio walked over to Aria and noticed the rifle. “This is good.” “Why does the Principal have a rifle in her basement? She couldn’t have been thinking; leaving the gun down here with the portal.” Adagio was curious, she couldn’t imagine Celestia would ever have a rifle. Protection was a good reason but if that were the case, why leave it in the basement. It didn’t matter, she would soon have everything she ever wanted and if things didn’t go the way she wanted, she had a rifle now. Outside of the school, everyone was where the statue used to be. Everyone from school found out due to everyone being in the school working on projects. After seeing Sunset and the others walk up and just stand where the statue used to be, they all got curious and decided they would see what was happening despite Sunset’s suggestion to go home. She would have tried harder to convince everyone to leave but they all came wearing headphones. She could only assume that the headphones were for protection against the sirens. It helped Vinyl Scratch, why wouldn’t it help everyone else. Sunset was having a hard time with the decision to let Aria and Adagio back, what if nothing went the way Twilight said it would? She loved her friend but Twilight couldn’t always be right. Her biggest worry was the possibility that this could be a trap led by Twilight who was corrupted by the sirens. “No, Twilight is far too strong to be corrupted. Come on Sunset, have some faith in your friend.” Sunset whispered to herself. This wasn’t the time to freak out especially with Sonata freaking out. They hadn’t truly spoken since the hospital. It had been half an hour since they arrived when a green mist started to slowly roll in from all around them. Sunset stared at the school doors to see Aria and Adagio walk through. Aria held the rifle behind her back so that it wasn’t visible to anyone else from where they were. The school was instantly angry at seeing the two sirens who were talking. Aria and Adagio had very happy faces at seeing the group of people and it only improved with the negative energy coming off of the students which only continued to grow. All of the students glared at the two. “Hello Sunset, you don’t seem happy to see us and Sonata seems a little apprehensive.” Adagio said and then frowned slightly. Sonata must have been worried she would get hurt again, Adagio had to apologize. “Sonata, we want to apologize for how we treated you. We’ve realized that without you, we just aren’t as powerful. We would like you to come back to us.” Adagio whole heartedly apologized the best way she knew how. Sonata couldn’t just go back to them but they were apologizing, sort of. Still, she needed to know she wouldn’t be betrayed again. Going back was worth it if it meant getting the chance to change her friends for the better. She worried Sunset wouldn’t like it but she didn’t have a choice. Fluttershy supported the decision, so why wouldn’t Sunset? Sonata had to speak with Sunset. Sonata made it very clear to Fluttershy after they got the text from Sunset. Sonata and Fluttershy had just finished eating when Fluttershy asked a question that had been bothering her since they left the hospital. “Sonata, may I ask why you were so willing to come with us?” Fluttershy asked even though she was sure of the answer, she didn’t want to assume anything. Sonata wrapped her arms around her body and gave a half smile. “It wasn’t a hard decision to make. While we were in the hospital, I felt that it was either leave or go to a mental institute alone and scared. After we left, I only stayed because I was scared. I thought the cops or the hospital would find me and take me away. I figured with friends, I might have a chance if they showed up.” “You were scared, I get it.” Fluttershy stood up, walked over to Sonata, and hugged her tightly. “We won’t let you get hurt ok.” Sonata nodded when Fluttershy’s phone buzzed. She pulled out her phone and looked at the message before handing the phone over to Sonata for her to read. An excited smile spread across Sonata’s face. “They are coming back, this is my chance Fluttershy. If they want me back, I can go and change them for the better. I can help them see what it’s like to really have friends like you.” Sonata jumped up and down excitedly. “Oh, well sure, but you need to be careful. It would be easy if they wanted to change but if they don’t, they may hurt you again. You may even push them away like Sunset did with you. Her intentions were good but her actions were a bit misguided.” Fluttershy put a comforting hand on Sonata’s shoulder. “I get it and if they really don’t want to change after a few days I guess I’ll leave. If they try to hurt me again, I’ll leave. I will come back to you girls no matter what happens. I’ve never felt like anyone has really cared about me until recently. I should also apologize to Sunset; she was just trying to help me find friends, true friends. I was just too angry with her to see it. I owe her and I don’t want to hurt her anymore.” That’s how her night ended, with a possibility of hope and a bit of regret. “I will come back but you don’t get to hurt me again. I almost killed myself because of you and I still have the scars to prove it.” Sonata flashed her wrists so Adagio and Aria could see. The two looked away from Sonata’s wrists and stared at each other. “I know I’m not smart but I’m an equal part of the team and I expect to be treated as such.” Sonata pulled her arms close to her body and shivered a bit. By this time, the green mist had completely surrounded them. The only visible ones were Adagio, Sunset, and Sonata. Sonata turned to Sunset and whispered. “I have to go with them, I know they can change.” Sunset shook her head with a smile and her hands on her hips. “I get Sonata; you have to help your friends.” “Thank you.” Sonata hugged Sunset and then turned to face her friends. Adagio frowned but wanted to smile as Aria went around ripping headphones off of the students head and singing quietly to them. Everything was going as planned but even better than anticipated. The kids around school would fall under their spell and the heroes wouldn’t even notice thanks to the thick green mist surrounding them. Everything was falling into place and even Sonata was willing to join them again with little convincing effort. “I agree completely Sonata and we never should have pushed you away. Whatever you want, you got it.” Adagio could only watch as Sonata ran over and hugged her. Adagio wanted to shove her off but that wouldn’t have been helpful. She just told Sonata that she never should have pushed her away; it wouldn’t help for her to do just that because of a hug. It was the same kind of pushing but it could have been seen by Sonata as such. “Great, now let’s do what we do best.” “Hold on Sonata, you may not want to join them. I know what they did and you won’t like it.” Sunset was shaking due to nervousness. She really hoped she wasn’t about to push Sonata away again. There was also the possibility she was speaking up too soon. Everything came down to how well she could pull off this conversation. “Yeah, no kidding. I’m sure all of you know what we did and so does Sonata. It’s why we apologized.” Adagio knew Sunset knew what they did to Sonata but she wanted to play with her a bit. She also knew what Sunset really meant and it worried her. She wasn’t sure how Sunset knew but she did. Adagio couldn’t let Sonata know it though. There would be questions and that wouldn’t do her or Aria any good. “Wait, I care about Aria again?” She wasn’t sure why but she did. Adagio shook her head so she could focus on the bigger problem. Not only would the secret affect them but Sonata would have to die and Adagio was being honest when she said that without Sonata, they weren’t as strong. “Oh no, don’t you try and change the subject, you know what I meant.” Sunset looked to Sonata who had a look of confusion. “Sonata, just tell them to tell you what they did. Princess Twilight and Princess Celestia know what they did but they wouldn’t tell me. They wanted Adagio and Aria to explain it to you.” Sunset could see the anger in Adagio’s eyes. That furious look was all she needed to know that this was working. They did do something that Sonata wasn’t supposed to know about. Sunset was on the right track now, thanks to Twilight. Sonata turned to Adagio who looked angry. Sonata didn’t want to just order Adagio around though, she was sure that if she asked, Adagio would tell her. “Adagio, what is she talking about, what did you do?” Sonata asked worriedly. Adagio relaxed and smiled. She was in the clear for now; all she had to do was convince Sonata nothing was wrong. “Are you really going to believe them Sonata? They don’t deserve trust. They are our enemies, why wouldn’t they try to keep us apart?” Adagio wasn’t as in the clear as she thought she was when she heard the answer. “They do deserve to be trusted; they saved me from going to a mental institution and from other things. They have been trying to be my friends. They have done quite a lot. I understand why you would be suspicious but they can be trusted. Please Adagio, tell me what happened. I won’t be mad if you just tell me. I’ll forgive you, please just tell me.” Sonata pleaded. Adagio knew one thing; Sonata wouldn’t forgive them regardless of what Sonata said. She would lie and hope that it would fly. “Fine, if you trust them then fine but you will soon find it was stupid to. There is nothing we did that would hurt you, they’re just assuming. I can’t say that I blame them though. We hurt you once; we could have done it before too right?” Adagio said as a matter of fact. Sonata backed away saddened. She knew Adagio well enough to know when she was lying or being truthful and this was not a truthful time. “You’re…you’re lying to me aren’t you?” Adagio did a great job at feigning shock and hurt that Sonata didn’t trust her. It was so convincing, Sunset almost believed her. “You really trust them don’t you, they brainwashed you!?” Adagio pulled out a knife and ran over to Sunset ready to stab her through the chest when she heard Sonata yell at her to stop. Adagio stopped inches away from Sunset and shook slightly. After nearly being stabbed, Sunset couldn’t do more than shake. Adagio couldn’t kill Sunset, not right now at least. Sonata’s ranking kept Adagio at bay and it was frustrating but she wouldn’t let anyone know it. She turned to face Sonata, irritated. “What is it Sonata?” For the first time being alive, she started to bark orders and it felt good. “You will leave her alone and tell me just what she meant Adagio. You owe me.” Adagio struggled but smiled when she saw Aria nervously singing in Sunsets ear. Sunset could hear the continuous ringing of the sirens song in her ear. She couldn’t fall under the spell, she just couldn’t. The more she tried to focus, the harder it became to resist the song. She couldn’t obey the ones trying to hurt them, she had to resist. Despite her efforts, Sunset was failing and then the song stopped. Sunset found herself able to fight back. “Come on Sunset, screw what they tell you to do. Do what you need to do.” Still, it would take a little time to get her conscious back. Adagio turned around and spun the knife around in her hand. “Fine, you win Sonata. I was really hoping it would never come to this. All well, I knew it was bound to happen eventually. Here’s the truth Sonata, it happened at the age of five.” Adagio stopped when Aria walked up next to her looking beat up. “What happened to you?” “Never touch the DJ’s headphones.” Aria grabbed Adagio’s shirt and pulled her close. “NEVER TOUCH HER HEADPHONES! SHE DOESN’T LIKE IT!” Aria let go and walked away really freaked out. Adagio pointed to Aria and Sonata shrugged. “Anyway, as I was saying.” Adagio wanted to keep her mouth shut but Sonata told her to spill the secret, she had to tell her. “It all started when Aria and I were five.” The mist was finally going away. “Our mothers were apart of a freedom group. It was small but strong; only a few wanted true freedom.” At this point, no one even noticed Twilight come out of the school; they were too focused on the story. If they had seen her though, they would see a very disappointed look. Twilight shook her head saddened by what Adagio thought to be real freedom. She also knew the whole truth behind the mark on Sonata’s neck. Twilight would have to tell Sonata eventually. Adagio grew angry as she told the story but she kept her cool pretty well. “All they wanted was to be free from authority. All they had to do was kill one siren but it failed. At that time, no siren had ever attempted an assassination. Only one siren knew that the attack was pointless if our mothers were caught trying such an attempt. They were caught by said siren and then they were EXECUTED!” Adagio calmed down and continued. “Aria and I swore revenge on the siren but it took some years to do. We finally found a griffin willing to hunt the siren and kill her. Yes it’s true that there was a truce between the sirens and the griffin’s but there were mercenaries out there. We found said mercenary and sent him to execute her royal highness. I was ten but Aria was nine at the time and boy were we angry kids.” “What does this have to do…with…me?” Sonata began to realize what Adagio was saying. “You got it before I even finished the story, impressive but I’ll finish it anyway.” Adagio cleared her throat. “We had everything set up perfectly. With that in mind, once her highness was dead, we rescued the daughter and had her join us. With an all powerful siren on our side, we couldn’t lose.” Adagio chuckled. “That mark on your neck is the royal family mark and all we had to do was keep it a secret from you until the time was right. All we had to do was wait for the mark to fade. It started to fade back in Equestria but it stayed there on your neck fading. We are still waiting. If you had known, we wouldn’t have a chance because if you haven’t noticed yet, the royal family has control of all sirens. For sirens, being royal is a birthright. There is no possibility of ascension like with Princess Twilight. That mark testifies to your rank and proves to everyone who you are and we didn’t want you to know about it too soon. We had to threaten other orphans to tell you that the mark wasn’t something they knew about. Sooner or later the mark would run out of it’s magical charm and you would be worthless to a point. You would still be known as a princess but you’re control over sirens would be gone. Granted you would still be more powerful than we could ever hope to be, so we would still keep you around. Just wish we would have had Equestria before it came to this. Now you have to die.” Adagio walked over to Sunset and handed her the knife. The mist was clear enough now that everyone could be seen through it. The only person not there that they didn’t expect to see was Twilight. She had left some time ago thinking everything was going well. “Sunset Shimmer, you know what to do.” Sunset walked toward Sonata who was now facing Sunset and Adagio. Sunsets movements were odd, they were jagged and strained. She could hear Adagio yelling at her but her focus was on Sonata. Sunset fought every step of the way toward Sonata who looked frightened. She raised the knife once she was within range and then did the unexpected. She slashed at her own ribs and snapped out of the trance she was in. Sunset cursed as she felt the sting of the knife. “How did you ever have the courage to slit both wrists Sonata?” Sunset yelled and grabbed onto her bleeding side and dropped the knife in the process. Adagio wasn’t happy with this development. She ran over to Sunset and pushed her down before she did the same to Sonata. Adagio went over to Sunset and looked her straight in the eye. “You just have to be a hero, don’t you Sunny?” She kicked Sunset in the ribs where she had been cut. Sunset screamed out some curses while holding onto her ribs. Her side stung horribly and if she didn’t get some medical attention, she would bleed out. However, now wasn’t the time to think about it. Adagio frowned and turned to Sonata. “So sorry it had to be this way Sonata. You know, I’m amazed your still shocked you stupid girl.” Adagio stepped on Sonata’s stomach and smiled. Adagio stomped on Sonata’s chest and then kicked her in the head. “Say hi to Tirek for us in the underworld would ya?” Adagio turned to Rainbow Dash who now had a rifle in her hand. Sonata screamed out to Adagio who turned around to see Sonata flipping her off while yelling at her. “I am never going to be friends with you again, go rot in Tartarus!” Adagio laughed at Sonata’s threat. “Rainbow, go ahead and kill her, she made her decision. It’s the last one she will ever make.” Unlike Sunset who had been able to resist the sirens song, Rainbow was under the sirens full control. Sunset saw this as Rainbow Dash raised the gun. Being injured already; Sunset did the only thing she could think of. She jumped on top of Sonata as the sound of the gun went off. The bullet pierced through Sunsets shoulder and broke into fragments as it exit and entered Sonata. Sunset laid limp on Sonata. They were both bleeding horribly and Sonata was already about to black out. They could only hear laughing as Adagio and Aria walked off before Sonata closed her eyes. It wasn’t until Sunset was about to black out that an ambulance arrived. > A Nightmare, A Friend, Four Princesses, and Equestria > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The medics jumped from the vehicles and went to work. Sunset and Sonata were placed onto gurneys and placed into the ambulances. Both girls were bleeding out and Sonata was in worse shape than Sunset. The blood on Sonata’s blue skin was turning purple where it ran on her skin. The doctors in the ambulance were doing everything possible to keep her from bleeding out but Sonata’s skin started turning white and pale. “Come on, don’t you die on me.” Doctor Horse frantically worked on keeping Sonata stable without doing more damage. The fast speed and bumpy road complicated things. All of a sudden there was a loud bang. “What’s going on up” The ambulance spun around throwing the doctor to his knees and Sonata off the gurney. Blood splattered the wall of the vehicle as Sonata flew into it with a loud thud. The vehicle flipped sending Sonata and the doctor into the roof of the ambulance. The glass windows shattered as the vehicle rolled. Doctor Horse’s vision became blurry as the doors to the back of the ambulance opened up. Doctors rushed into the blood covered vehicle and carefully pulled out both passengers. Doctor Horse blacked out. Sonata opened her eyes, the world around her pulsed rapidly and her body hurt. The sun was bright and burned her eyes. She slowly moved around as her eyes adjusted to the brightness. “Sonata, sweetheart.” Sonata looked around trying to hear the voice singing to her. Who would call to her like that and why? The voice was gentle and it sounded familiar. It couldn’t be though, the owner was gone and had been for many years. “Sonata, where are you going?” Sonata put her hands over her ears in an attempt to refuse to listen. It was torture and it hurt. Someone was trying to mimic her mother’s voice, she couldn’t listen. “Please don’t shut me out sweetie, I love you.” “NO! You are an imposter acting like my mother. She is dead, stop talking.” Sonata started to run but the owner of the voice was faster and cut her off. Sonata stopped when she ran right into the siren and fell on her rear. She looked up at the siren to see that it was her mother or at least someone pretending to be. “Leave me alone, stop tormenting me.” “Sweetheart, don’t puuusssshhhhh meeeeee awaaaayyyy.” The sirens voice dragged on as she began melting away. Blood began to flow from her eyes, ears, and mouth as she melted away. A griffin grabbed the figure and carried the melting thing away and in its place was Aria, and Adagio pointing and laughing. “What’s going on, why is this happening?” Sonata backed up and away from her two former friends. “Sonata, how pathetic is she?” Aria laughed. “I know, first she loses her stupid mother and then her mind, not that she ever had one. The look on your face is priceless.” Adagio and Aria grew and towered over Sonata. “She is the dumbest Siren ever; I bet her mother is glad to be dead. I know I would be if it meant having a daughter like her.” Aria laughed harder along with Adagio. Tears formed as Sonata shrunk to the ground as Aria and Adagio threw her mother’s dead body at her and laughed. “Stop it; I never did anything to you. Why are you doing this?” Sonata asked through the tears. Adagio was about to answer when the two were blasted out of existence and was replaced by Luna. “Pri-Princess L-Luna?” Sonata said weakly. “Calm down young Siren, your nightmare is just that. Do not let Aria and Adagio torment you with false words. My sister knew you well child or at least your mother well. She was a great queen from what I’ve heard.” Luna wrapped her wings around Sonata lovingly. “I don’t understand how you are here? I’m not in Equestria, so how can you be here?” Sonata wiped the tears from her eyes and sniffled. “You are in Equestria Sonata; you were brought here by an unknown source. Both you and Sunset Shimmer are here and being treated. You have noticed that this nightmare of yours is pulsing?” Sonata nodded. “You are weak and you are dying or were dying. You are right now under intense care.” The dream world shook violently. Sonata broke free of Luna’s wings, took a step back and began breathing rapidly. She was on the verge of hyperventilating. “Calm down child, do not worry. I wish I could show you what is happening but that could put you at great risk. Your body can barely handle me here as it is. The magical energy it takes to enter a dream is very little and the damage it does to the mind isn’t even existent if one knows how to properly do it but to an injured body such as yours, it takes a large toll on the body and mind. I am tired because I had to strain myself when entering your dream to keep the damage minimal. I must go before too much magical damage is done but remember, all of us are here and waiting for you to wake.” Sonata nodded as her dream shook again. “We are waiting for you; Sunset is the most worried for you.” With that said, Luna disappeared. When Luna returned to the real world, all eyes were on her. “Adagio and Aria are making things hard on her in there. I did my best and I believe she is calmed down but I could not stay. She would have died if I stayed much longer.” “Luna, you have done enough. Look, she isn’t panicked anymore. She will be just fine, though she may be tired after waking up.” Doctor Horse said. Usually he didn’t make house calls but Princess Twilight had insisted. He couldn’t refuse especially when he heard that Princess Celestia, Luna and Cadance would be there. It must have been important to have four Princesses there. To be fair though, Cadance had been there visiting with her sister in law but that didn’t lessen the importance just because of circumstance. “I still don’t know how those little holes were made. Right near her most important vitals too, how scary it must’ve been. Whatever made them is gone, so that’s a plus but repairing her artery was rather difficult. Thank goodness for magic.” “Yes, I have to believe that magic saved our lives.” Sunset sat up slowly and leaned against the head board. “Thank you for allowing me the use of your guest bed by the way.” “Of course, what are friends for?” Twilight smiled before turning to Sonata who was still very pale. Her blood soaked the sheets of Twilights bed. Was the blood gross, very; was giving up her bed necessary, definitely. She was glad to have medical supplies in the castle. Twilight had been able to read up on how to take care of somepony bleeding to death. That had saved Doctor Horse some trouble of hooking up both Sonata and Sunset. There had been some rearranging of tubes to the correct places but it did save them the extra time. Time was something that the two girls just didn’t have. There hadn’t been time to move a different bed into the room even though Twilight didn’t want her sheets getting bloody. Friends were worth it though and the decision to bring in a different bed so hers wouldn’t get bloody wasn’t really there. It was a sacrifice in her mind that she was more than willing to make. Twilight barely had time to get Sonata to her room up the stairs and down the hall. It was the closest room with a bed in it. Twilight had been grateful that Spike hadn’t been there. It would have most likely scared the dragon in such a way; he wouldn’t have been able to sleep without Luna there in his dreams. She would have somepony clean the floor if nopony had done so already. There was a long trail of blood leading up to her room from the mirror room. No one in Equestria had seen so much blood and Spike was a baby dragon. “So what do we do now?” “All we can do; wait and hope for the best.” Sunset said looking over at Sonata and hoped that just maybe everything would be ok with her. Adagio and Aria hurt her in the worst way. Now they continued to do so in her dreams. It was unacceptable and it caused her anger to rise. “No, I can’t think of things like that in my condition. We’ll recover and then I’ll lose my temper.” Sunset thought as she brought a hoof up to her injured shoulder. It wasn’t fair, why did Sonata get the worst of it? She may be a siren but she didn’t deserve all this pain. Sunset came to a conclusion, she would help Sonata in every way she could. For the next few hours, everypony was quiet. The doctor was doing his job and made sure that all Sonatas’ vitals were working. Twilight nervously paced in circles while Cadance tried to calm Twilight down. Luna and Celestia stood by Sonata waiting for her to open her eyes. Sunset couldn’t even sleep. Every time she had tried, Sonata came to mind. Sunset couldn’t sleep when Sonata may not wake up. The air in the room became thick, everypony was worried. Twilight sped up her pacing as time went on and she would even whisper the words, “come on Sonata, you can make it” Over and over. She had almost sped up into a trot and had even begun sweating. She didn’t care though; Sonata was the focus for the time being. “Sunset, Twilight, she is waking.” Luna had said a little louder than she had meant to. She moved Sonata’s head to face Sunset. Sonata slowly opened her eyes to see the face of the first true friend that she had ever had. “Sunset?” She saw her friend smile and then turned her head slowly and saw each princess one by one. “What’s going on?” Sonata grabbed the floating glass of water in her hooves and began to drink. She wanted to drink all the water in one gulp but she was too weak. “Sonata, rest and when you are rested up and ready to talk, I will explain everything.” Sonata nodded and fell asleep once again. Twilight smiled and left to grab some fresh sheets for the bed. When she returned, she magically changed the sheets by moving them through Sonata. A maid had followed Twilight and took the bloody sheets to wash them. Twilight thanked the maid and then sat down. “There is going to be a lot to talk about when she is ready.” The first and most important for Sonata would be to explain the mark. The second most important thing would be to explain what happened to her race and why they have become endangered for the lack of a better word. Twilight was not excited about it, not one bit. The one thing she just couldn’t explain was how they got to Equestria. Just then a pony came into her room. Everypony looked toward the door to see the Stallion. “Who are you and how did you get here?” Twilight started to charge up a magical blast just in case as did the other princesses and Sunset. Sunset then saw the stallions cutie mark and wondered. The pony looked over at Sonata and smiled paying no attention to the others in the room. “My name is Lucky Clover and I brought Sonata and Sunset here. I can explain everything that happened to them before they came here.” Twilight nodded and welcomed Lucky in. Everypony relaxed and smiled. > I Saved Them > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lucky had been watching from a distance. He had pulled out his phone the minute he saw Aria with a rifle ready to call 911 should things go horribly wrong. As he expected, things went wrong fast. Sonata and Sunset were shot and picked up by the ambulances. Lucky got in his car and followed from a short distance. As they drove, he saw the tire pop on the ambulance in the front. He had to stop. He stepped out of his car and watched the scene before him. “Hurry, get them on the gurneys, there is no time to lose.” One of the doctors ordered and stepped into the ambulance that Sonata had been in. He was pretty beat up from the crash but OK for the most part. he had some cuts and bruises but nothing serious from what Lucky could tell. Blood covered the vehicle from top to bottom and Doctor Horse was lying in a puddle of it. The doctor ran over to his boss and helped him up. Lucky had seen enough and looked into the distance where Rainbow Dash was aiming her rifle waiting for the moment to finish off Sunset and Sonata. Why the gun hadn’t made a sound the first time must have been due to a silencer. It was the only explanation for the popped tire. Had the gun fired without a silencer, it would have been heard. Where they got a silencer was a mystery, a mystery that wasn’t worth looking into. Lucky couldn’t allow Rainbow to continue shooting at people. He ran as fast as he could toward Rainbow Dash who was too focused on her targets to notice him. Lucky tackled her as soon as he was within reach of her. The gun fired into the air as the two crashed to the ground. They wrestled on the ground for a few minutes for possession of the rifle. Lucky got the upper hand and was able to pull the rifle from Rainbow and apologized as he hit her over the head with the butt of the gun knocking her out. He searched her knocked out body and found a few bullets. “This can’t be all of them?” Lucky emptied the gun of its bullets and took the gun and the bullets back with him to the car. By the time he arrived, everyone was gone. He put the gun and bullets into the trunk and then hopped into the drivers seat. He turned on the car and took off toward the hospital. Once Lucky arrived, he parked in the pick up/drop off only section and ran in. There was a trail of blood leading into one of the nearby rooms. He heard a noise behind him and saw a large group of people behind him led by Applejack and the others excluding Rainbow Dash. “Hand over the girls’ buster.” AJ pointed to Lucky with a blank stare on her face. She spoke in a monotone voice and all of them looked like zombies. Their eyes were blank and had no expression in them. They even walked slowly, stable but slowly. It was almost frightening, almost. “Sorry, can’t do that.” Lucky ran to the hospital room and burst through the door. “Are the bullets out?” The doctors nodded and continued to work. “Good, now keep them from bleeding out and pit them in my care.” The doctor was about to argue but Lucky grabbed him by the collar. “We don’t have time for this, keep them from bleeding out and then I’ll take them someplace safe.” “We can’t just hand them over to you boy, now leave and if you ever touch me again, I will have you arrested for assault.” Lucky had had it; there was no more time to waste. He punched the doctor and pushed him away followed by the second doctor in the room that tried to stop him. “You can try and have me arrested but I’m positive that it won’t do you any good.” He knocked out both of them before finding the necessities for the situation. He may not look like much but when he was pushed, he could take care of himself. Lucky grabbed some bandages and wrapped them around both girls’ wounds, tightly and securely. He grabbed both girls, ran them out of the room on stretchers and pushed by all the zombiefied people, some of who were police. He picked up Sonata and Sunset and set them in his car before getting in and driving off. Lucky was within a yard of the school and stepped on the brake. In front of him were Adagio and Aria. He got out of the car with a look of complete rage on his face. “Get out of the way or I will run you both over.” The two laughed and began singing but Lucky just continued to stare. “I don’t give a crap about your indignant singing you filthy wretches. Now move out of the way.” “Look at that Aria, he has quite a mouth on him.” Adagio smiled cruelly. “Yes he does.” Aria pulled out a handgun she took from an officer and aimed it at Lucky before Adagio took it from her. “What are you doing?” “I’m gonna shoot him, back off.” The two continued to fight over who would get the chance to shoot Lucky. Lucky took the chance and hopped into the car and drove around them. He drove up the stairs of the school and through the doors. The glass from the doors shattered and the windshield cracked. He didn’t care and continued to drive down the hallways and stopped in front of the door to the basement. The school and his car were completely messed up as he had just driven through it but it was worth it. He got out of the car, opened the back door, picked up Sonata and carried her down the stairs to the portal. He slid her through and then did the same with Sunset. He reached the bottom of the stairs and slid Sunset through when Adagio grabbed him by the shoulder and flipped him around. Lucky didn’t have time to react before he was sent flying to the ground. “I had a bit of a fight with Adagio before I came through and disabled the portal.” Lucky tossed the book over to Twilight. “Adagio doesn’t fight well when she is angry.” Lucky smiled and shook his head. “I’m not much of a fighter but she couldn’t touch me.” “You knocked out two docters.” Applejack said. “I said I’m not much of a fighter, not that I can’t fight.” Everyone in the room just nodded. “Right, so anyway; thanks for keeping us safe.” The group looked at Sonata and frowned. Sunset was terribly worried despite the fact the siren was recovering. “I hope she’ll be ok.” > The Truth Behind the Mark > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- It had been weeks since Sonata and Sunset had arrived in Equestria with the help of Lucky. The bad news, Sonata hadn’t yet woken up from her sleep. The good news, sleep had become the only issue with Sonata. She was recovering nicely, considering. Luna had gone in to visit Sonata every now and then in her dreams. Everything was well with her, now if only she would wake. “Come on Sonata, wake up soon.” Sunset rarely looked away and when she did, Lucky was there to watch Sonata. At the moment, both were looking at her and then her eyes fluttered. “Hey, everypony, look, she’s waking.” Everypony in the room watched as Sonata’s eyes slowly opened. To her relief, it was dark enough in the room that it didn’t hurt her eyes when they opened. It was also light enough to see everypony in the room. “What happened?” Sonata turned her head to the right and saw a familiar looking pony. “Do I know you?” The pony chuckled and nodded. “Yes Sonata, at least a little anyway. I introduced myself as Lucky Clover.” Sonata had to think about it for a moment and then her eyes widened and a large smile formed on her face out of happiness and shock. “Lucky, how did you, why are?” Sonata stumbled through her unfinished questions. Twilight took this opportunity to speak. “Sonata, he saved you and brought you here. Now I think it’s time to fill you in on that mark of yours. Celestia is here to help me explain if needed.” Sonata looked confused but nodded. She had already been told about the mark, Adagio admitted what it did and what would happen if it disappeared. “The first thing you must know is that I was there when Adagio and Aria returned. This also means I know what Adagio told you and what she told you is false. The mark has nothing to do with your ability to control people. The ability you have is similar to the royal canterlot voice.” Twilight turned to Celestia who gave her an approving nod. “It is because you were born royal that you can control other sirens. Now the mark on your neck is indeed magical, the only part about the mark Adagio was correct about. The mark is like a containment vacuum I suppose. The point of it is to keep all sirens from becoming violent and psychotic.” “Whoa, whoa, whoa, you lost me after the canterlot voice thing. This mark is a containment thingy that keeps Sirens from becoming lunatics.” Sonata couldn’t help but laugh at hearing something so ridiculous, and she knew ridiculous. “I know how that sounds Sonata but hear me out. Your mark is the mark of royalty because only royalty can handle the power within the mark.” Twilight was tapped on the shoulder and turned to see Celestia. “Perhaps I should explain this part to Sonata.” Twilight nodded and backed up. “Sonata, I knew your mother well. We were great friends but your mother did struggle from time to time. The negative energy stored within the mark is rather intense. One reason she didn’t become corrupted by the power is because of the responsibility of being queen. Another reason and the biggest reason is because she already had complete control over all sirens. It was for that reason that only royals can have the mark for they don’t have the need for such power. Resistance is easy for those with complete control. If a normal siren with no power were to have the mark, it would consume them. This was what your mother told me.” Celestia turned to Twilight. “Go ahead.” “Thank you. Sonata, you see, without the mark, sirens will be able to take all the negative energy they like. Sirens will feel the power they gain in a way they have never felt before. With that much power building up inside them, they tend to want more and they will start going mad with power. Sirens would want more and more and will even kill other sirens to get it. The worst part is that, they won’t even realize what they are doing and they don’t get anything from doing so. This is where your mark comes in handy Sonata. The mark absorbs the excess negative energy and keeps it stored. Fun fact, if sirens can’t find any negative energy, the queen can release some energy for the sirens to take. The mark is not about control but about preserving your race. Celestia told me your mother was worried you wouldn’t get the mark.” “Ok, can you tell me in words I can understand?” Sonata said sitting up in her bed. “The mark takes negative energy from other sirens so the sirens don’t get power hungry and destroy each other to get it.” Sunset put a hoof on Sonata’s shoulder. “Oh, why didn’t you just say that? I still don’t get it though, I don’t remember taking any energy.” “The mark works indep, on its own so as long as the other sirens are around you, the mark does all the work. You have probably been so distracted with things the last thousand or so years that the temptation for power just wasn’t there. You had great distractions with Adagio and Aria after all. They are so power hungry as it is; those two dragged you into it.” Twilight yawned and stretched. “Great, now I’m rambling on. So in a few hours, we will have something to show you. Since you haven’t been around, there is one last siren in Equestria alive. She has been imprisoned and you need to see why.” Twilight turned to one of the maids with a smile. “Would you please go get something for Sonata to eat?” She turned back to Sonata and nodded. “After you eat and regain some of your strength, we’ll take you to where you need to be.” She paused when a thought came to mind. “Is there anything special you would like to eat?” “Admittedly, I could go for fish if you don’t mind.” Sonata smiled sheepishly while rubbing the back of her neck. “If you don’t then, yeah whatever.” “Spike, you heard her, please go tell the maids to get her some fish.” Spike saluted and ran off. “Thank you Spike.” Twilight sat down next to Sonata. “I have foods for many a species here. If I were to host a banquet for a griffin ambassador for instance, fish would be a must. Now why don’t you relax and I’ll come back in a few hours.” Twilight and all but Sunset and Lucky left. A few hours later, Sonata, Twilight, Celestia, Luna and Sunset were off to the Canterlot dungeon. Lucky and the others had to stay behind as there wasn’t enough room on the chariots. Also, it was best that Lucky saw as little of Equestria as possible. The last thing they needed was for him to get attached and not want to leave. Once they arrived at the dungeon, Celestia and Luna spoke with the guards. While they did the talking, Twilight turned to both Sonata and Sunset. “Prepare yourselves for what you’re about to see or maybe not see. I don’t know how this is going to work. I do know what Celestia told me. There will be a large and thick amount of negative energy. The siren will also be, should I say, feral. I don’t know exactly what she means by feral but it doesn’t sound good so as I said, prepare yourselves. I can only assume that the siren will be seriously nutty.” Celestia turned around and gave the go ahead. Twilight walked in with Sonata and Sunset following close behind. Luna led the way down. “You know, it’s kind of terrifying in here.” Once they entered, a path led straight down into the dark with only a few torches lighting the way. Celestia had stayed behind to make sure the door to the entrance was shut. “I thought I would end up here after Twilight helped me, had I come back. Now that I’m here, I remember that fear.” “You have no need to worry Sunset, I forgave you for your mistakes.” Celestia said as she passed by the five. “Hold on.” The group came to another door that had torches on both sides of it and a window that was currently being guarded by a dark pony wearing a helmet with a star on it. “Nightstar, it’s good to see one of Luna’s guards here. It’s been so long since my sisters guards had something to do. You and her other guards have always done such a wonderful job.” “Thank you your highness, please go in.” Nightstar opened the door and allowed the group passage. “Step quickly, don’t fall behind.” Celestia kept her light bright and stayed in the center of path leading passed many cells. There were many criminals behind bars and the dungeon was very dark and lonely with very little lighting. Some prisoners were talking to them as they passed and others were whistling at the princesses. Some tried some rather naughty things like spanking them as they past. Luckily the group was too far away for them to be reached but it didn’t stop the ponies from saying what they wanted. The combination of everything made it very unnerving, even for the princesses. Soon they arrived at another door that opened up to reveal a much lighter staircase than before. “Watch your step.” Twilight couldn’t help but wonder just how far they had to go. “Celestia, how much further is this cell?” “Just down these steps and we will be in the biggest cell you will ever see. It’s about the size of five of those six by eight cells you saw previously. It needs to be.” At the bottom of the stairs was another door that was being guarded. The guard allowed them entrance. Celestia walked in about twenty feet and then stopped. “Line up everypony.” The group did as they were told and then Celestia tapped on an invisible forcefield. The cell took up most of the room and it was filled with water. In a split second, a Siren flew into the force field and pound against it repeatedly. She used her tail to whip the shield and then continued to attack it. It’s scales were covered in dry blood and now fresh blood from hitting the field. Its scales were peeling and red. The real color of the siren wasn’t noticeable. It’s mouth was covered in the blood of its meals. Her fins were torn and it’s eyes bloodshot. Her hooves were greatly damaged and its tail was cut up. “This is what happens without a queen everypony.” The group looked in horror and Sonata felt sick as the siren thrashed around. They soon noticed a green mist surrounding them. The sirens pounding continued and the negative energy made it difficult to see. Now a new voice spoke. It was raspy and demonic sounding. “Power, I need more, give me mooooore.” The pounding became louder and louder. “Give it to me, fear me and give me power. Let me out, LET ME OUT! I must have more.” Celestia decided that was enough and lit the way to lead the group out of the dungeon and back into daylight. Sonata couldn’t move, she was terrified and nausous at what she had just seen. She didn’t want to return to the depths of that dungeon but in her mind, she knew it would be necessary. She didn’t know when but some day she would return and she wasn’t looking forward to it. Sonata did know one thing, Adagio and Aria would pay and so would she. One way or another, they all had a price to pay and it wouldn’t be pretty. > Adagio and Aria will Suffer > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The entire way back to Twilight’s castle, Sonata grumbled about Adagio and Aria. She was angry, scared, sad, and it all came to the need to kill Adagio and Aria. She wanted to leave Equestria and never return, after all, what was there to return to? She would get rid of the two sirens that ruined her life and then she would stay. There was no returning to the place where she was born. If her race was going extinct, she would make sure that she wouldn’t be around to see the end. Sonata and the others walked into the mirror room. “I’m gonna kill her for what she did, for what they did. First Adagio and then Aria, they will pay for everything they have done.” Sonata said out loud and clearly. She didn’t care who heard her. Twilight and Sunset looked the most worried by what Sonata was saying. Celestia was saddened by Sonata’s words and Luna wasn’t sure how to feel. On the one hoof, she felt angry with Sonata but on the other hoof, she felt sad. Luna also felt like she should feel sympathetic but she wasn’t sure why. “Sonata, maybe you should stay and relax for a while. You should give yourself time to calm down.” Sunset put a hoof on Sonata’s shoulder. “Sonata, we can talk about it. We can figure something out but killing Adagio and Aria won’t solve anything.” Sonata pulled away from Sunset and stepped in front of the portal. “It will solve something, they won’t be able to hurt me anymore. They won’t hurt anyone or anypony ever again. They deserve to die.” Sonata turned around with a bloodlust in her eyes so threatening, it scared everypony in the room. “They will PAY…FOR EVERYTHING THEY HAVE DONE TO ME. THEY WILL PAY FOR TAKING MY MOTHER AWAY FROM ME. THEY DESERVE TO DIE!” Sonata turned back, tears in her eyes and jumped through the portal followed shortly by Sunset. “Go away Sunset, I don’t need you here.” “Excuse me if I disagree with you. I may not understand what you’re going through but--” “NO! You don’t get to say anything. They are going to die, I’m going to make sure of it. THEY DESERVE IT!” Sonata walked away determined to take care of the two sirens that ruined her life. Sunset wasn’t sure what to do, what could she do? Sonata was in no mood to listen to reason. The only thing she could think of doing was to follow Sonata and that’s what she did. She had to make sure the crazy siren didn’t get herself killed even if it meant getting beat up a bit for following. Sunset followed Sonata to the door and then stopped the siren from continuing. She had to try to get through to Sonata no matter what. At the very least, Sunset had to calm Sonata down. Sonata wasn’t thinking clearly and whether she liked it or not, she needed help. Sunset took a deep breath and grabbed onto Sonata’s shoulder and flipped her around. Sonata was ready to punch Sunset right in the face but stopped. She couldn’t waste her energy fighting with Sunset. “I know you want them dead Sonata and I’m not going to stop you from doing that but at least calm yourself down so you don’t die doing something stupid.” “I’ll be fine, now let me go.” “No Sonata, look out the window and tell me what you see.” Sonata shrugged and looked at the windows but they were covered by something from the other side. She shrugged and Sunset continued. “Exactly, as far as you know, Adagio and Aria could be waiting for you to come through. They would shoot you before you even had the chance to speak.” Sonata groaned irritably but she knew Sunset had a point. If the two were waiting for her, then she would be sure to die. “Then how do you suggest I kill them before they kill me?” Sonata continued to stare at the window. Sunset shook her head, Sonata was insistent on killing Adagio and Aria. Sunset found two possible solutions to keep Sonata from doing something she would regret and keep two needed sirens alive. The first suggestion, Sunset was ok with, the second one, not so much. “Look Sonata, you need them both alive. Your race depends on them staying alive and you know it.” Sonata looked at Sunset and nodded. “Fine, I’ll keep Aria alive, I don’t think she is as big of a threat.” Sunset groaned wondering just how Sonata had become so dead set on killing. Sunset couldn’t deny that she would be ready to do the same thing as Sonata but they were two complete opposites. Sonata was happy and cheerful, Sunset was less so but not so violent anymore. Unfortunately, her past was about to save two sirens and it made her want to throw up. “Fine but if you really want to punish Adagio and Aria, take their magic away from them. Force them to do want you want them to do. I’m sure they won’t like it, believe me, I should know.” Sunset felt an large lump form in her throat. She had just suggested to Sonata that she turn her enemies into slaves. She had just told her friend to do what she tried to do to everyone at Canterlot High with the exception of taking magic. Then again, she kind of did that too. Sonata thought about this for a minute and came to the conclusion that Sunset was right and gave her friend a nod. “Let’s go, I can’t wait to make her suffer.” “Sonata, let’s go out the back but before we go, may I ask you something?” Sonata groaned but allowed Sunset to ask. “When I first met you, you were so cheerful and happy. Even when you were being mean, you never acted the way you are now. Don’t tell me that I would do the same thing as you. I know I would but I grew up petty and selfish despite the ponies who were with me. You had a bad influence from the moment you met Adagio and Aria but even then you haven’t ever wanted so badly to hurt others in the way you do now. If I’m wrong then by all means, tell me and I’ll drop it but something tells me that there is more to this situation. What happened Sonata because I’m worried?” Sonata wanted to turn and walk away, her past was none of Sunsets business. How could Sunset be so blunt with her? Just because she had been blunt before and Sonata had been happy once she knew why Sunset had been so blunt doesn’t, who was she kidding? Sonata let out a defeated sigh. Perhaps she would feel better if she just said something. “It’s a short story Sunset, a short story from a long time ago. When I was with other sirens, sometimes I would get mad. I got so mad that I wanted to hurt other sirens. It didn’t even have to be a big thing. All anyone had to do is look at me funny and I would attack them. I never knew why but I did it. My mother would lecture me about the need to be kind to others. She taught me how to control my anger and it was because of her that I could stay calm. Now with my mother gone, and Adagio and Aria being the reason for my mother’s death, I lost it. They took the only siren in my life that treated me lovingly. To be honest, there were few that actually liked me. I thought Adagio and Aria were a part of the few.” Sonata fell to her knees and began crying when she felt two arms wrap around her. She looked up and saw Sunset crying along with her. “Why are you sad?” Sunset smiled and wiped the tears from her eyes. “I don’t like seeing my friends in pain.” Sunset stood up and held out her hand for Sonata who gratefully accepted. “Come on, let’s go around back.” Sunset smiled but saw Sonata’s eyes widen. “Sonata, are you ok?” “Sunset, watch out!” Sonata yelled and pushed Sunset out of the way as a baseball bat hit her in the head knocking her out cold. Sunset turn around and felt a split second of pain before falling unconscious. > The Freezer > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Something happened, something bad. Sunset’s eyes opened as she was drug through the hallway of what she suspected to be the school. To her left was Sonata, they were being taken somewhere but she couldn’t be sure where. Her eyes closed and when they reopened, there was ice on the floor. Sunset’s eyes closed again and when they opened, she was hanging above the floor. Her eyes were blurry, everything was a big blurry mess. She looked around her but didn’t see Sonata anywhere. Sunset’s head ached and she was beginning to feel very cold. Her breath had started to become visible. She struggled to free herself but being hung from her wrists made it impossible to free herself. “Sonata, you there?” Sunset asked weakly but didn’t receive a response. She rubbed her eyes the best she could with her arm in an attempt to clear them a bit. The attempt had been slightly useful, at least she could see more than just a blurry room with colors mixed in. Now she could see blurry colored shapes. Her vision was slowly improving. Sunset realized where she was now or more like made an accurate guess as to what she was hanging in. “I’m in the flippin freezer aren’t I? I suppose it explains the cold.” Sunset let out a sigh. With her vision clear enough to actually see now, her guess was confirmed. There was meat hanging all around her and the room she was in was very tiny. Sunset began to swing herself closer to one of the hanging slabs of meat. She tried to wrap her legs around the slab she was aiming for but missed. It took a few tries as her legs couldn’t grip the icy meat. She finally wrapped her legs around the cold meat slab. “That is FREEZING!” Her body started to stiffen and shiver but she couldn’t let go of the slab. She had to free herself and the meat was going to help. She grabbed the chain she was hanging on and pulled herself upward while using her legs to climb up the slab of meat. It had been very difficult due to the slickness of the slab but she was able to get her hands high enough up the chain to slide the ropes off the hook. She shot her body forward, hit the slab of meat and slipped. She hit the floor with a loud thud. She was sure that something fractured at the very least. She stood up and found it painful to breathe. “Yep, f-f-fractured rib.” Sunset painfully stood up off the ground and walked through the meat slabs. Every movement made her side ache. She began to shiver more and more and her movement slowed considerably. Once she reached the door, she struggled to open it due to her slow movements and aching side. The door slowly creaked open as the handle turned. Sunset was ready to collapse to the floor but she had to keep moving for Sonata’s sake. Once the door completely opened, there was still a good walk to the other door leading outside. “W-w-why did th-th-they have to h-have a s-s-sep-s-separate fre-fre-freezer for the m-m-meat?” It took much longer to reach the door than it should have but she was moving at a snail’s pace. She looked beside the door and found the thermometer. Her eyes widened when she saw the temperature at negative ten degrees. She turned to the door and banged on it. “L-l-let me out!” Sunset demanded with as much vigor as she could give. She looked through the small window and saw Applejack guarding the door. Applejack turned to the door after hearing Sunset’s weak trembling voice and smiled a rather small yet sinister smile. Her voice however was dull and monotone and her eyes were void of life The only facial expression was her smile. “Why would I let you out demon girl? You deserve your fate.” She turned around and leaned against the wall. “Y-y-you don’t m-m-mean that Apple-jack.” Sunset couldn’t hold on anymore and collapsed to the ground. She didn’t have the strength to fight, the cold had quickly bore down on her body. She pulled her arms into her clothes and curled into a ball. It didn’t help much being on the frozen floor. Her body was numb now, she was going to freeze to death in the freezer. Her eyes began to close and her breathing was shallow. She was just about out of it when she heard a ruckus on the other side of the door. She shot her eyes open at the sound of something or someone hitting the door. Sunset tried to stand but she couldn’t find the strength to move. She didn’t feel comfortable moving anyway, she felt like she would break a limb if she tried. She felt completely frozen as if she were a cartoon character covered in a block of ice. The only difference was that she just might die unlike a cartoon character who would defrost and come out of it. At the worst, the character would have a cold and that was assuming anyone found the cartoon character. Soon the noise from the other side calmed down and the door began to open. It creaked and jerked as it moved to let the person through. Sunset didn’t bother to see who it was as her eyes had closed once again but she did hear a voice. She knew who it was pulling her out of the freezer. How Lucky had known where she was didn’t matter, she would be out of the freezer and possibly live another day. She had been dragged an unknown distance but where ever she was, it was far warmer than the freezer. She felt warm air blowing on her. When she was finally able to open her eyes, she saw a fan blowing in her face. Not too far away was Lucky sitting on a desk and smiling. “Glad to see you’re still alive. I wasn’t sure for a second there.” “Lu-lucky, th-thank you f-f-for getting m-me out.” Sunset shivered as she spoke. At least she felt like she could comfortably move. She inched forward to get as close to the fan as she could. The warm air began to break through the ice on her frozen body and thaw her insides. She had never felt so happy to have a fan blow on her. “ Lucky, where i-is Sonata?” Lucky leaned over and rested his elbows on his knees, his hands were clasped. “As far as I know, she is still out of it. Good thing too or Adagio would have killed her already. Man, that girl is nuts now.” Lucky peaked out the window he was sitting by and saw Sonata, still passed out on the ground and all tied up. Lucky for Sonata; he could see out of a small hole in the window. Whoever covered up the window, left the smallest of openings and yet it was big enough to see out of. Lucky stood up and laid down next to Sunset. He wrapped his arms around her and cuddled close. He wanted Sunset to warm up as soon as possible. Lucky needed her to help save Sonata before it was too late. Being so close didn’t faze him at all but it did make Sunset blush. “Don’t think too much of this Sunset, you need to get warm as fast as possible. Sonata needs you and besides, I like her in a special way, not you.” Sunset nodded but it didn’t make it anymore awkward for her. Lucky was so close that air couldn’t make it between them. This may not have been the only time she had been this close to someone but it was the first time a guy had been this close. Even when she was with Flash, she didn’t get this close except for a quick hug. “Right, I, I know you really like Sonata. I’ve just never had a guy cuddle this close before.” Sunset let out a relaxing sigh. “So nice, you’re so warm.” “Yes, and you are freezing, lucky you. I get to freeze while warming you up while you get to warm up while I freeze.” The two chuckled. “Are you warm yet because this is a really awkward position after a while. I’m just glad we are both clothed.” There was a loud “smack” and some pain in his cheek. “I suppose that wasn’t appropriate but at least you can move.” “You are lucky I know how you feel about Sonata or I would have taken that comment much differently.” It was totally obvious from the look he gave when Sonata’s name was brought up. His eyes would sparkle and shine except this one time. Lucky couldn’t help but chuckle at the phrase “you are lucky” but quickly stopped at seeing Sunsets face. “Don’t be stupid Lucky, we have serious business to take care of. Now get off of me, I’m plenty warm now.” Lucky let go of Sunset and stood up. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m still freezing but at least I can move.” Sunset stood up shivering. “Now lets go, we have to get to Sonata.” Sunset despite the coldness she was feeling, ran out of the room followed by Lucky and to the front of the school. She burst through the two doors in time to hear “Execute her” coming from Adagio. Sonata was kneeling with her hands and feet tied and a gag in her mouth. “NO!” > The End > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunset ran as fast as her legs could carry her but what she hadn’t expected was being shot at. The bullet cut her ear as it whizzed by her head. She flinched and grabbed onto her ear. She felt her ear to get an idea on how deep the wound was and at the same time, began singing. She wasn’t sure why she thought now was a good time to start singing but she started regardless. She didn’t get far before she was tackled to the ground and tied up by Pinkie Pie and Rarity. Despite being tackled to the ground, Sunset continued to sing. Pinkie and Rarity’s eyes began to flicker between zombified and normal but it went unnoticed. Sunset continued to sing quietly though it was becoming more talk than song now. “And you can try to fight but we have got the light of friendship on our side.” Sunset was pushed to her knees. “What…ha ha...do we have here…ha ha?” Adagio walked over Sunset chuckling as she walked. She was clearly going insane from the sounds of it. Her hair was a mess and she was all kinds of crazy. Her eyes twitched and her lips were moving as if she were talking but with no words coming out. Her eyes were moving around in all directions and her breathing was rapid. “Ha ha…I’m so glad…ha ha…you could make it to…ha ha…the party.” Sunset stopped singing and looked Adagio in the eyes or at least tried to. “Let Sonata go, both of you let her go.” “Ha ha…both of who…ha ha?” Adagio’s head flinched. “You and Aria, where is she anyway?” Sunset struggled against the rope keeping her down. She had to delay her and Sonata’s execution. If making conversation with the looney in front of her accomplished the task, then she would. “Ha ha… Aria, she is in a better place now…ha.” Adagio began to wobble around. Sunset’s eyes widened. “You killed her!” Sunset said and then whispered. ‘It didn’t take her very long to knock off her friend.’ Adagio grabbed onto her head before grabbing onto Rarity to keep herself from falling over. It felt like she had been hit by a truck. “N-no I didn’t, I didn’t kill her.” She fell to her knees and shook her head. She had no idea what just happened, it was as if she had just missed out on some amount of time like she hadn’t been there. The last thing she remembered was fighting with Aria because Sunset and Sonata got away. Now here she was on her knees in front of the two people that could and would ruin her life. “I don’t think I killed her, why…why would I?” “You don’t get it do you? You’re power hungry and even more so without Sonata around. If you did kill Aria, both you and Aria would be to blame. You will never care about anyone but yourself. You are a killer Adagio, you’re race is now extinct because of you both.” Sunset felt the sharp pain in her cheek from a slap. “You can be as angry as you like but it won’t change the fact that you killed all but one siren in Equestria. Inadvertently sure but you still did it.” “Shut up!” Adagio knocked Sunset over with a hard punch to the face. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. I saved my race by killing the queen. I gave them freedom!” Adagio screamed and then heard the weak voice of Sonata. “Now you wake up?” Adagio looked at Sonata. “I’ve been awake.” Sonata looked up at Adagio. “You killed them all. You took me away and pulled me down with you. You and Aria are mass murderers and so am I.” Sonata looked away for a second with the feeling of guilt and shame for leaving with Aria and Adagio all those years ago. Beside Sonata was Pinkie Pie with the gag in her hand. “You and I will pay for our crimes. A punishment worse than death.” Adagio began to turn but Sonata didn’t give her the chance. “Stay and listen Adagio. For the last few hours I was gaged, I was awake and I tried to think of a suitable punishment for you. I just never bothered to open my eyes because while they were closed, I knew you wouldn’t kill me. Pinkie pulling the gag from my mouth was unexpected though. Now Sunset seems to think you can be punished without killing you. So let’s see just how much pain I can cause you but first things first. I see you still have the news crew here. Let’s see how lucky we can get.” “What do you mean Sonata?” Sunset asked “Pinkie, could you go get Applejack for me?” Pinkie smiled and ran away and toward the front doors of the school. “Here is what you are going to do Adagio. You are going to have the news crew tape you singing. In the song, you are going to tell everyone watching and everyone within earshot of you that none of this happened. You are going to tell everyone that from the time you first spoke with the news to now that it was all a dream. You will send everyone home and when they get into their beds, this will all have seemed like a dream. You will have no control over them. You will also tell them not to talk about it. It was just a weird dream that isn’t important enough to talk about. You will tell them that if anyone brings it up, it will be passed off as a dream and nothing more.” Sonata paused and looked at the shocked faces looking at her. “What?” Sonata shrugged when no one said anything. “Well, go. Oh and by the way, Sunset and her friends only need to be released from your grasp. No need to convince them of anything.” Adagio tried to resist but she couldn’t. “I release your friends. I hate you, Sonata.” “The feeling is mutual.” Sonata said as Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy began to wobble. Adagio had begun singing and it took a few minutes. It had been horrible for Adagio. She had never released anyone from her grasp. Sure, they had been freed such as at the battle of the bands but to release them, it felt disgusting. There had been a lump in her throat the entire time she sang. Once Adagio finished, the crowd of people separated and soon, the front of the school felt empty. “What now your highness?” Adagio spit vehemently. “I have one simple question, why didn’t you kill me while you thought I was out cold?” Sonata asked. “I wanted you shot and killed slowly. One by one, each limb would be shot. I wanted to make you suffer. Looking back, it was stupid. I should have had you killed on the spot.” Adagio growled. “I see, too bad for you. Now it’s time for your punishment. Hand me your necklace.” Adagio backed away shaking her head. Sonata knew having the ability to sing taken away from a siren was crushing. For Adagio, it was even more so. “Now Adagio.” Adagio slowly grabbed onto her necklace but she couldn’t bring herself to part with it. “Your resolve is amazing. Hand it over now Adagio.” Adagio began to pull at the necklace. Sonata began tapping her foot. “Well, take it off and hand it over.” Adagio finally ripped off her neck and handed it over to Sonata all while flipping her off and cussing her out. “Finally.” “You will pay for this Sonata.” Adagio said through tears. Sonata ignored the crying and put the necklace in her pocket. “Until I say otherwise, you will never sing again. You will never leave my sight unless I say so. To put it simply, you will be a slave to me. The only freedom you will ever have is the freedom to use the restroom and speak without my say so. Right now however, you will listen. I’ve realized something and that is that this is a two way punishment. You are my slave but I also have to deal with you every day. To kill you would be preferable to me but you would be free as well. I can’t allow you to go unpunished and before I forget, you do not get to commit suicide. I know you would figure out some way to do it despite what I say. Whether it be jumping off a cliff or stabbing yourself, you would eventually find a way past my orders.” Sonata turned to Pinkie and Rarity. “Do you two know what happened to Aria?” Pinkie raised her hand and jumped in the air saying “ooo me, pick me, I know.” “Ok Pinkie, what happened to Aria?” “Adagio sent her to prison.” Pinkie smiled wide knowing she had helped solve a mystery, in her mind anyway. “Great, Sunset, Rarity, go to the prison and have a word with Aria. Bring her back to me and check out her mental state. You have my permission to kill her if absolutely necessary. Adagio and I are going to Equestria so I can show her what she did. As for the rest of you, I don’t care what you do as long as you don’t follow Sunset and Rarity. I’m sure you don’t want to overwhelm Aria by all of you going to see her. That could either get you all killed and make her not want to talk. Chances are she will be on a killing spree or at the very least ready to be on one.” With that said, Sonata dragged Adagio away. Sunset and Rarity turned to Pinkie, Rainbow, Fluttershy, and Applejack who was just starting to wake up. “Girls, Sonata has a point.” Sunset began. “Quite right, if all of us go in to see her, she may feel interrogated and that’s assuming she is in her right mind.” Rarity took a turn to speak before allowing Sunset to say more. “Exactly, we just want to speak with her, not interrogate her. For this reason, Rainbow should most definitely stay away.” Rainbow shrugged. “Applejack could come if she was more awake and Pinkie can’t be allowed. I don’t believe an explanation is necessary for Pinkie. I suppose if Fluttershy wanted to, she could come with us. Fluttershy isn’t exactly threatening, no offense.” “Oh non-taken and I should really get to the animal shelter anyway. Who knows what condition the poor animals are in.” Fluttershy turned and ran off. You will want backup if Aria is all insane and crazy though right?” Rainbow asked. “Yes but none of us are exactly at fighting level right now. If she is insane, we won’t be fighting her.” Sunset said. “Well, let’s get going Sunset. You three should probably get home and rest, I know I wish I could.” Rarity let out a big yawn, then turned to Sunset and nodded. “Shall we go?” Sunset nodded and began walking away. “Come on, we need to find a ride. Actually, you wouldn’t mind driving, would you? I don’t think I’d feel too comfortable riding my bike right now.” “Of course not darling. Let’s head to my house and we can take my car.” It had been a long and rather boring walk to Rarity’s. They talked a lot about what would happen with Adagio and Sonata. Would they go to Equestria or stay in this world after all of this was taken care of? Would Sonata take things too far with Adagio? Rarity talked a bit about how she felt completely drained, not that it was necessary. All anyone would have to do is look at her. Sunset could only assume that Rarity’s tiredness was a side effect of being controlled for a long period of time. It wasn’t until they were on their way to the prison that the question about Aria’s sanity came up. “What do you think she’ll be like Sunset?” “I’ve got to think she will be more loopy than Adagio. Come to think of it, it could be really bad. I’ve seen how bad a siren can get. That is after at least a thousand years though. I don’t know how fast the change from normal to insane is. All I can say right now is watch yourself.” Sunset looked to Rarity with a nervous expression. As far as she knew, Aria just might try killing everyone in the prison. She didn’t know what they would do except hope that Aria wouldn’t try and kill them. Who knew if they would even be able to talk with the siren. Still, they had to try if she wasn’t out of control. “Let’s just hope for now.” With a deep breath, Sunset leaned back against the seat and relaxed. “So tell me something, why are we going? Is it only to check up on Aria’s mental state?” Sunset looked to Rarity with a smile. “We just want to make sure the prison isn’t in complete disarray at this point. If it is, we know to get our friends involved at a later time when everyone has had some rest. If it isn’t, we talk to Aria and convince her to return with us. I’m sure that Sonata will want complete control of her.” Rarity looked a bit disgusted at the thought of Sonata doing such things. She couldn’t help but believe Sunset had some influence on the decision. “Sunset, you know I love you as a friend should but did you have any influence on Sonata taking slaves over say, something else. Don’t get me wrong, taking their magic away was most definitely the right thing to do but to take everything from them? I don’t know what it’s like in Equestria and I won’t judge but slavery is just wrong.” Sunset sighed and shook her head. “I don’t disagree and yes I did have an influence on her decision. I don’t take offence, so don’t worry. The problem here Rarity is that there is no viable option and I won’t have her kill them. That’s why this is the only way and I’m glad she realized it.” “Sunset, slavery can’t be the only option.” “Rarity, as much as you and everyone may not like it, it had to happen this way. Can you agree that Adagio can’t be allowed to use magic and have the possibility of getting it back.” “Of course.” “Can you agree that Adagio can’t be allowed to do whatever she wants because if she can, she will hurt someone.” “I suppose that is true but shouldn’t she be put in prison.” Rarity just couldn’t believe slavery was the only way. “You need to know why prison is a bad idea. Without a queen in their lives, they will be driven mad. They will destroy everything and everyone, I’m sure of it. We need to convince Aria to come back and be with Sonata. Sonata is the only one that can control Adagio and Aria. I don’t like the thought of slavery but with those two in this world, its slavery or death.” Sunset put a hand on Rarity’s shoulder. “It really does come down to this being a punishment. This is in their way, prison. They can’t be separated from each other or there would be chaos. Sonata can’t keep tabs on both of them at all times if they aren’t next to her. You have to realize how different sirens are from people. To be honest, I think there could be a different way but every time I see the siren in the prison in Canterlot, I know I’m wrong.” “You do realize that I’m actually a bit more confused now than before right?” Sunset shrugged. “I suppose not having seen what you have, I’ll have to believe that there is no other way but I still don’t like it.” Rarity came to the parking lot of the prison and parked the car. “Come on, let’s go.” Sunset and Rarity walked up to the prison gate when an intercom came on. The guard on the other end asked what they needed. “We are here to see Aria Blaze, she is here correct?” The gate opened up allowing the two passage onto prison grounds. The voice coming through the intercom welcomed them in and informed them what would happen. Sunset and Rarity followed the pathway that lead up to the building. Once inside, the two were met by a guard. “Normally there would be precautions for those visiting but in this instance, you can just walk in. No need to check for hidden weapons or hidden escape items.” Sunset and Rarity looked at each other and then to the guard in confusion. “I can’t believe it myself but Aria, she doesn’t want to leave. She won’t say why though.” The guard led the two girls into the visiting area and left to call in Aria. When Aria arrived, she sat down at one of the nearby tables and smirked. “What do you two want and where is the backstabber?” “Who?” Sunset asked “Adagio, where is that treacherous little b-” Sunset quickly cut off Aria before she could finish her sentence. “Ok then, well to answer your question, she is a little tied up at the moment.” Aria scoffed. “Right, so what we came here for is you. I’ll be honest, I expected you to be a little insane.” “Why would I be, you know, more so.” Aria gave an evil crooked grin. “It’s a long story. We had more than one reason to come here.” Rarity breathed in deep and let it out slowly. “Sonata wants you back with her and Adagio.” Aria picked up her feet and put them on the table and leaned back. “Little Sonata wants me back huh? Why, I’m not going to make up with Adagio and I’m not gonna be friends with either of them. I have plans and it involves getting back at them both.” Aria paused when she saw the shocked looked on Sunset’s and Rarity’s face. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to kill them if that’s what you’re thinking. No, I’ve got something else in mind but I think I’ll let some years pass me by first.” Aria looked to the side and saw a big man sitting down at one of the tables. He was covered in tattoos and had a few small earrings in his ear. Only his side was visible as he wasn’t facing her. Aria chuckled and pointed at the man with her thumb. “He is one of the reasons it could take me a few years.” The man heard, looked at Aria and winked. “Ok well, clearly you are somehow ok and not insane or even on the verge of it.” Sunset stood up and took a step away from the table. Rarity noticed Sunset’s uncomfortableness and stood up as well. “So Aria, if you really want to stay here, that’s fine but one last little question. Where is your necklace?” “One name, Adagio. She took my necklace and broke before having me put in here. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to get back to my cell.” Aria stood and walked herself back through the doors she had come from and disappeared behind it. “Let’s get out of here.” Sunset said as she took off for the door with Rarity close behind. She wasn’t sure what she saw. Did Aria seriously not want to leave because of some prison guy and did she hook up with him? The thought of being with someone from prison while in prison was creepy. Sunset also felt like she had to tell everyone that Aria has a revenge plan. She would worry why Aria wasn’t being driven made but at the moment, she didn’t really care. For all she knew, Aria’s drive for revenge overpowered her need for power. The trip back was quick and silent. Sunset and Rarity got out of the car and walked over to the foundation the portal had been on. Sonata and Adagio still hadn’t returned from their little trip. “So Sunset, what do we do? What do we tell Sonata?” “Everything, we tell her everything.” Sunset sat down on the ground and waited only minutes before hearing some voices. The doors to the school flew open revealing Sonata and Adagio. “Come on Adagio. I get that it was terrifying but come on.” Adagio was inching forward hugging her arms as she walked. Behind Adagio was Lucky trying to help push Adagio along. Sunset and Rarity ran over to save them the trip. “Hey, where is Sonata?” Sunset and Rarity took turns explaining to Sonata about what happened. They decided it was probably best to leave out the possible boyfriend in prison thing. It hardly seemed relevant. “So that’s what happened.” “Fine, whatever. Sunset, could you take Adagio home with you? I’m gonna go grab me some taco’s.” Sonata said with a yawn. Sunset grabbed onto Adagios arm and started to walk away when the others showed up. “Shouldn’t you girls be resting right now?” Sunset asked with her hands on her hips. “Ya know, it’s hard to do that when a friends having a problem.” Sonata chuckled and smiled. “So what’s going on?” Applejack asked. “I’ll tell you on the way home Applejack.” Sunset turned to Sonata to say goodbye but found her talking to Lucky. Lucky was smiling awkwardly. “So Sonata, you want to go out?” “We are out?” Sonata replied “No, I mean do you want to grab something to eat?” “I said I was, it’s about time for dinner.” Sunset couldn’t take it, she had to say something. “He is asking you on a date Sonata.” “Ohhhh, well why didn’t you say so?” Sonata smiled at lucky. “I would like that.” Sonata grabbed onto Lucky’s arm and began walking away into the sunset. The girls started walking away, their arms on each other’s shoulders to form a wall except for Sunset who was walking with Adagio. “You think she’ll be ok.” Rarity asked Sunset turned her head around and smiled. “She is going to have problems in the future but until those things happen, she’ll be ok. She’ll be ok.”