After losing their magic, the Dazzlings are hit hard by shame and sadness. None are more hopeless than Adagio Dazzle, who loses all light in her life and begins to sing a swan song. For sirens, this is suicide.
After losing their magic, the Dazzlings are hit hard by shame and sadness. None are more hopeless than Adagio Dazzle, who loses all light in her life and begins to sing a swan song. For sirens, this is suicide.
Sonata Dusk begs for the help of Sunset Shimmer and her friends to stop the song and keep Adagio alive, but they discover that saving a life is more difficult than saving a school, and they may not be able to keep their former enemy from fading away forever.
This story was inspired by the song "Never Too Late" by Three Days Grace.
"Main 6" is tagged but Twilight is not in this story. Rated Teen for language and mature subject matter.
Sonata Dusk ignored the piercing stares and smattering of ugly remarks as she rushed through the school, burst into the cafeteria, and nearly threw herself on the table that the girls that had defeated her not long ago were sitting at.
“Please…” she heaved, trying to catch her breath, “You have to help me!”
Unsurprisingly, Sonata was immediately met with hostility,
“What in tarnation do you think you’re doing here?” Applejack rose.
“Oh, we’ll help you, all right. Help you get a well-deserved butt whooping!” Rainbow Dash followed suit. Sonata shrank back to defend herself, but before Rainbow could grab her by the collar, Sunset Shimmer stood in between them, outstretching her arms to block her friends’ advance.
“Wait!” she said, “Don’t just go attacking people out of nowhere, girls. Look.” Sunset moved aside to allow the others to get another look at Sonata Dusk.
The siren’s face was sunken. She looked tired, both from the running she had just done and from an apparent lack of sustenance. Her face carried the same desperation she spoke with. This was certainly no villain come by to harm anyone. Rainbow Dash and Applejack backed off.
“Sonata Dusk, right?” Sunset asked, putting a friendly hand on her former enemy’s shoulder. No one knew better than her how it felt to come back to this school after attempting to take it over—as oddly specific as that situation was. Sonata nodded.
“You look like you’ve seen better days. What is it that you need?”
“It’s Adagio, she’s started singing!” Sonata told them. This, of course, meant little to the HuMane 6, who looked at her and each other with expressions of confusion.
“Um, singing?” Fluttershy echoed. Sonata lightly knocked herself on the head,
“Oh, right, you girls aren’t from Equestria. Sunset, you know what I’m talking about, right?”
“I’m sorry, I never learned anything about sirens before leaving Equestria. I’m as lost as the others are,” Sunset admitted.
“Could you tell us why it’s so bad that she’s singing?” Rarity prodded.
“It’s not bad that she’s singing, it’s her singing that’s bad now that we totally blew up their amulet thingies!” Pinkie Pie attempted to joke, but the mood wasn’t right for it, and she was quickly chastised by Applejack with a light chop to the head.
“Actually,” Sonata continued, “we do still have a little bit of our magic, but it’s not enough to try to make people fight and get stronger like before. We have enough magic to carry a tune, and do one other thing: a swan song.” Sonata looked down. Her expression dropped even lower at the mention of this mysterious power, which she went on to explain.
“As long as we have magic, we sirens are nearly immortal. No amount of physical injury can kill us. Only two things can destroy us for good. One is deadly illnesses, and the second is a swan song. It’s a form of suicide in which a siren sings non-stop for five days straight. At the end of the five days, they fade away and die.”
“Oh, dear!” Rarity gasped and covered her mouth.
“Adagio started singing one?” Sunset asked. Sonata nodded again,
“Yes; it’s been two days already. All this time Aria Blaze and I have been trying to talk her out of it, but she just won’t listen! We’ve tried everything we can think of. We didn’t want to come to you because we were sure you wouldn’t help, but no one else in this world has magic—or the ability to touch people the way you do.”
“Why don’t you just cover her mouth or tackle her to get her to stop?” Rainbow Dash suggested.
“It’s impossible. A barrier surrounds the singer to prevent things like that from happening. The only way to stop a swan song is to have the singer stop it themselves.”
“Why would magic like that even exist?” Fluttershy wondered.
“Because it’s the only way a siren gets to move on with honor and dignity. We can’t die of age, so when a siren feels that their time in the world is up, they sing a swan song. Usually it’s a happy occasion because swan songs are the most beautiful melodies we can sing. Loved ones bring by gifts and last tributes to the departing siren and say their goodbyes, but occasionally,” Sonata brightened up slightly when speaking of the culture of the swan song, but returned to her somber visage at the last part, “Occasionally there are deaths like this, where it’s too soon and a siren goes far before their time. Adagio feels so helpless, but I know there’s more we can do! We don’t have much magic anymore but there’s an entire world out there that we haven’t even explored yet! I don’t want to lose her!” Sonata began sobbing as she spoke. She was now attracting the attention of other cafeteria patrons, whose only glances at her up until then were of suspicion.
“Now don’t you worry none,” Applejack came over to Sonata Dusk and put her hand on her shoulder, “We’ll do everything we can to snap Adagio out of it. No matter what y’all have done in the past, I ain’t letting anyone die when they’re just a teenager.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Rainbow Dash cut in, “How do we know this isn’t just another trick to get us all in one place so you can suck out our magic?”
“Rainbow Dash, look at her. Siren or not, Sonata is throwing herself at our mercy to help save her friend from dying. I don’t know about you, but I’m going to give her the benefit of the doubt, like you did for me.” Sunset’s comment drove the point home to Rainbow.
“Right. I’m sorry,” Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head.
“Thank you, thank you so much! We really don’t deserve this!” Sonata squeezed Sunset Shimmer in a tight hug.
The girls took the liberty of excusing themselves from class for the rest of the day to focus on helping Adagio.
“So if I understand correctly, we have three days to stop Adagio from finishing her swan song, right?” Sunset Shimmer asked Sonata Dusk as she and the others followed the siren to where Adagio was singing.
“Two days, eighteen hours, and forty-six minutes to be exact, but who’s counting? I’m not! It’s not like every second Adagio sings is a second closer to me losing my best friend forever!” Sonata’s eye twitched. Applejack put a calming hand on her shoulder,
“Calm down, sugarcube. We can figure a way out of this.” Sonata stopped and took a deep breath.
“I don’t mean to sound rude, but,” Rarity put a cautious finger to her lips, “When you say ‘best friend,’ well… I was under the impression that you and Aria Blaze simply, er, rolled with Adagio, seeing as you’re the only three sirens in this world.”
“Are you crazy!?” Sonata whipped around, “The three of us have been, like, inseparable for hundreds of years!”
“Hundreds of years?” Rainbow Dash repeated, “I thought you were sixteen or something! Plus, you’re all, y’know—”
“Stupid? I know I can get confused at times but that doesn’t mean I don’t know anything.” Sonata sneered at Rainbow.
“I-I’m sorry,” Rainbow apologized.
“It’s fine. I’m stressed. I just don’t know how Adagio got to where she is. She had so much passion, so much fire. Sure, she got a little misguided, but she was always so sure of herself, which is why we still followed her even when she wanted to take over the school.” Sonata began sobbing, “The more I think about it, the worse I feel. You all are so happy… how do you do it? What is there to live for?”
The girls exchanged looks. They felt guilty. At face Sonata’s observation was correct. They were happy, relatively speaking, and none of them had any pressing issues that could derail that—certainly not anything close to what the sirens were going through. But it’s not like they had never known pain. Perhaps the best way to find out how to help Adagio was to first connect with Sonata. It would mean digging deep and opening up scars that were still healing, but this was blood they had to share for Sonata’s sake, and for Adagio’s.
The bond of friends is enough that this was communicated among the six girls with no words. They all mentally braced themselves and attempted to muster up the courage to share their sadness. Rarity was the first to speak.
“Some time ago, I was not the girl I am today…”
A sixth grade girl clung to the fringes of her olive denim skirt. It was the first day of the school year, and little Rarity was entering the throes of middle school. Moments ago, she had seen off her bouncing younger sister, Sweetie Belle, to the third grade of the nearby Fillymore Elementary School. She felt like a proud and responsible elder sibling then, but the walls of Saddlebrook Middle School were far more daunting than she had imagined. All the confidence she had woken up with that morning escaped through her feet and acted as a puddle of super-glue, refusing to let her take a single step forward. She could feel her heart beating hard and fast in her chest and in her clenched fingers. This was a nervousness she had never experienced before. It was as if the entire universe was telling her to turn around and go home.
The hands of the giant clock on the front of the building hit eight o’clock, and as the first chime rung, a hand slapped Rarity on the back of her bookbag, causing her to stumble for a moment. The hand’s owner was a spry looking cowgirl—or at least that’s what Rarity assumed she was, given the boots and Stetson hat (which was a tad too big) she was wearing.
“C’mon, sugarcube! You’ll be late if you’re just standin’ there all day!” The cowgirl called as she ran ahead. Whatever modicum of nerves that were still left in Rarity jump-started, and her fears subsided. It was just another school. A bigger one, but still just a school. She hurried after the student who had slapped her on the back with a smile on her face.
It was the last genuine one she would show for three years.
Brutal, if behavior was compared to temperature, would equate to absolute zero on the thermometer of animosity that Rarity experienced from students at Saddlebrook. Only the cowgirl delivered any amnesty throughout Rarity’s entire middle school career. She always had different classes and a different lunch period, though, so she was rarely present to assuage the onslaught of bullying that Rarity endured.
“Does she get dressed in the dark?” she would hear in the halls.
“My gosh, her hair is, like, purple puke!” she would hear in the bathroom stalls, well aware that the offenders knew she was there.
“I can’t believe she tries to make friends around here. So hopeless!” To her knowledge, Rarity had done nothing to make other students dislike her. No, dislike is too polite of a word. They hated her. They hated her as if she had burned their homes and stole their money and kicked their pets. A convicted murderer would receive better treatment if they walked the same halls as Rarity.
She never wanted to worry her parents or sister, so when she went home she would always put on a brave face and make up a story or two to make it seem like things were going all right at school. Rarity got really good at making things up. She would pretend to go out some weekends to feign a social life. She might catch a movie on her own, or go shopping on her own, and she’d even gone to a couple concerts. On her own, of course. Occasionally she’d think of inviting the cowgirl someplace, but the few times they got to talking it always seemed like she was busy with her farm on all their days off.
Maybe not even she liked Rarity.
One day in seventh grade during the midterm exams some of the students in Rarity’s class hatched a terrible, awful, horrible idea. They were going to leave this girl behind and finally show her how beneath them she was. They were going to make it so that she would always be a step behind everyone she knew. They were going to make Rarity fail the seventh grade.
No school in the county had a stricter policy on cheating than Saddlebrook Middle School, especially when it came to the standardized midterm and year final exams. Rarity did decently in sixth grade—she had been alone, but studious, and managed to pass easily. During those tests, though, no one was out to get her like they were the next year.
a-squared plus b-squared equals c-squared is known as what theorem? The question read. Rarity knew this one easily and was about to bubble in “c” for “Pythagorean.” She just had to crick her neck once. It had been an hour into the test, after all. A face turned her way caught her eye, though.
“Psst,” the boy whispered. She looked to her left and right ever so quickly, so as not to attract the attention of the proctors. Rarity had never attracted anything but negative attention before, so even this rather neutral call to alertness was enough to freeze her.
“What did you get for number forty-two?” the boy said very softly. That’s not an insult, Rarity thought. She uttered an involuntary “duh” as the shock of being spoken to (a) by a boy, (b) non-threateningly, and (c) during the midterms temporarily disabled her thought not to speak.
“’Duh’ isn’t an answer! Forty-two! What’s the answer to forty-two!” He hissed, more urgently this time. Rarity snapped her head down and scanned her paper for number forty-two. Her entire middle school life depended on it. If she could provide this kid with the answer to this question, perhaps his attitude might change toward her. And if his attitude changed, perhaps other students would start talking to her, too!
There! Forty-two! Now Rarity could see why he asked. It was a difficult problem on the slope of a line that she had some trouble on as well.
“The slope is three!” she whispered back. The boy put his hand to his ear, signaling that he had not heard her. “Three!” she said again, “The slope is three!” The boy leaned out of his desk slightly to beckon Rarity for her answer once more,
“I’m telling you the answer to number forty-two is—WHOA!” What began as a sharp whisper ended in a loud yelp and a crash. Rarity had leaned over toward the boy just as he had to her, but her desk was missing two feet, and the imbalance combined with the sudden extra weight compromised the structural integrity of it, and it toppled over with Rarity in tow.
“RARITY!” the proctor yelled, storming a beeline straight to the fallen student.
“What in the world are you doing?”
“I fell!” Rarity answered. All eyes in the room were now on her. Many students were attempting to stifle their laughter.
“I can see that. How did you fall when you’re supposed to be sitting still taking a test?” the proctor asked. A paper fluttered down from the crash at the teacher’s feet. He picked it up and read it over for a few seconds. His scowl went from bad to worse.
“Is this your exam?” he asked.
“Y-yes, sir,” Rarity replied, hanging her head.
“Wrong. This is the state’s exam. With all the correct answers on it. I don’t know how you got it, but you’re busted now.” Rarity’s world stopped. Her stomach flipped and her heart sank.
Hold on, she thought. I don’t have the state’s exam. How could I? I would never—
She glanced around. It was clear now that she had been played from the beginning. Over to her right was a girl trying particularly hard not to look in her direction. Her backpack was open, a clear violation of the test-taking rules but in the midst of Rarity’s “accident” no one would notice. That girl must have planted those papers while Rarity was distracted!
To her back left was another boy. He quickly scooped something from his desk into his lap. It was only for a second, but Rarity saw that it was the missing feet to her desk.
The boy who had asked for answers now held a face of fake confusion to blend in with the other students who had little to no idea what was going on.
“I-I didn’t… it was them… they were the ones who—”
“No excuses, young lady. All the teachers told the students the consequences of cheating on the exam, and you’ve done so in the worst way possible. You’ll be lucky if you get off having to repeat this grade.”
Rarity lost it. She had no way of defending herself. Even if she tried to explain she’d just stutter and blubber her way through it making herself look guiltier. She wasn’t brave enough to stand up to the kids who had been tormenting her for the last year and a half, and today they’d delivered a death blow. She bawled on the floor, nearly choked on her own tongue, and she was sure she felt her panties wet a little earlier.
“Come on, none of that here. It’s your fault this happened in the first place.” The proctor pulled Rarity up by the wrist and began dragging her out of the room. As she caught the faces of several students through her bleary eyes on the way out, she resigned to the fact that if she had any smidge of anything that could be called a reputation at this school, it was irreversibly negative at this point. That is, until it all turned around.
SLAM! A pair of hands smashed onto a desk, drawing everyone’s attention and the girl who had been sitting behind Rarity stood up. It wasn’t just any girl, though. It was the cowgirl, and she looked none too happy.
“No! I ain’t lettin’ y’all get away with this!”
“Applejack! Do I need to invalidate your exam, too?” the teacher said.
“Do what you want to my test! I’ve watched for too long while so many of y’all ripped this girl to shreds! I mean, come on! What are ya, wolves?” Rarity’s hysterics halted, and everyone in the room watched as Applejack snatched the desk feet from the boy who had taken them and emptied the test-planting girl’s backpack, revealing several more copies that she was using for herself.
“There’s your cheaters!” Applejack yelled, “If there’s one thing I hate more than treatin’ others with such disrespect it’s dishonesty! Mr. Straightedge, Rarity’s innocent!” her gaze turned to Rarity and her intense face immediately softened,
“She always has been.”
“After that my life just got… better. Applejack’s now one of my very best friends and all that creativity I was using to lie to my parents now goes into the clothes I make.” Rarity smiled.
“And what about the test?” Sunset asked.
“I got the chance to take it again, as did Applejack for sticking up for me. The kids who tried to get me to fail were punished harshly. I’m not sure exactly what happened, but I didn’t see them ever again starting in eighth grade.”
“But what does this have to do with Adagio?” Sonata asked.
“It means that even when everything seems hopeless and the entire world’s out to get you, if you just push on, you’ll find your light, often in the form of a friend. Adagio is in a dark time, Sonata Dusk. You have the power to be that friend that pulls her out of it,” Rarity answered. For the first time since she ran into the cafeteria, Sonata seemed less tense. She stared into Rarity’s eyes for a moment, contemplating her words, then nodded, letting out a long sigh.
Unfortunately, during the telling of Rarity’s story, the seven girls had forgotten to pay attention to where they were walking, and ended up very off course, and further away from Adagio. Fluttershy was the first to point it out,
Every house, shop and building the girls passed was more worn-down and dingy than the next. This coupled with the graffiti, neglected roads and pathways, and intermittently functional walk-signs told them that they had entered a part of town that they certainly didn’t want to stay in for long.
“I told you we should have just kept following the train tracks! Now we’re lost in the ghetto!” Rainbow Dash complained.
“Shh! Keep your voice down!” Rarity hissed, “You may be right about where we are but I don’t think the thugs and ruffians that hang around here appreciate anyone calling their neighborhood ‘the ghetto.’” Sunset Shimmer pinched her forehead.
“In any event, we need to get back to a familiar area or Sonata can’t lead us to Adagio. We’ve spent so much time wandering around we’re starting to lose daylight.” Indeed, the sun’s yellow blaze was giving way to orange and red. By now, school at Canterlot High had long been let out, but no one that the HuMane 6 knew lived in any area like the one they were in now. They wouldn’t be able to ask a fellow student or follow a school bus to get back on track. As they came to another intersection, Fluttershy suddenly perked up. She looked both ways and then crossed the street to their left.
“Fluttershy, don’t go runnin’ off on your own around here!” Applejack called after her.
“No, it’s okay!” Fluttershy called back from the middle of the street. “I know where we are!” The other six girls looked at each other, puzzled, but trusted their friend’s sense of direction and crossed with her.
As they continued down their new direction, Fluttershy’s stride became less guarded and she held her head up higher. For whatever reason, she wasn’t scared despite her surroundings. Slightly up ahead, a pair of boys a little older than the age of the girls exited a house and began walking in their direction. They had large, imposing bodies and were dressed just like the “thugs” Rarity had hoped not to run into. At first they were just chatting and joking with each other as they came down the sidewalk, but then they noticed the confused group that had halted in their tracks. Save for one.
“Hi, guys!” Fluttershy waved and greeted the two boys cheerfully.
“Fluttershy!” they said simultaneously. Fluttershy embraced them both in a hug, popping her foot. As Fluttershy’s completely casual approach of these scary-looking young men signaled there was no danger, the other girls slowly walked forward as well.
“Well, well, well, who are these lovely ladies?” One of the boys said, examining the group of friends.
“And how many of them are single?” the other one said.
“Single, but not looking.” Rarity said tersely. The others nervously nodded in affirmation. Whoever these guys were, they knew Fluttershy, but they certainly weren’t as tactful as her.
“Now, now, you two. Don’t be rude,” Fluttershy spoke up. “These are my school friends: Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Sunset Shimmer, and Sonata Dusk. Girls, these are my neighborhood friends: Three Point and Boom Box.”
“You can call me Trey,” Three Point said, winking.
“We’ve been hanging with Flutters ever since she came to the neighborhood.” Boom Box added.
“Came to the neighborhood?” Pinkie echoed, “Does that mean you, like, live here?” Fluttershy nodded,
“My house is just up ahead.” She turned to the two boys, “Sorry to cut the introductions short, but we really are in a bit of a hurry. I’ll talk to you guys later, okay?”
“Sure thing, Fluttershy. We were on our way to a movie anyway.” Trey shrugged.
“But it’s Tuesday.” Fluttershy raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah, Ten-cent Taco Tuesday! You know action-flick explosions are the best with tortillas!” Boom Box beamed. The three said their farewells and the group of girls followed Fluttershy the little ways to her house.
“Here we are, home sweet home.” Fluttershy said in a singsong voice.
Just like most of the other homes in the area, Fluttershy’s place was small and appeared to be on the verge of collapse if not just in need of major renovations. Unsurprisingly, various animals also occupied the home, but they were Fluttershy’s animals, so they were actually fairly clean and well-behaved. They were probably the most intact things in the house. The first room upon entrance was the living room, where a sagging couch faced a modest cathode-ray television sitting atop a haphazardly constructed TV stand. An older video game console was hooked up to it, something that Rainbow Dash decided to take advantage of without even asking. The other girls spread out (as much they could) in the living room while Fluttershy went to the kitchen.
“Does anyone want anything while I’m in here? I’ve got plenty of tea and, um… tea.”
“Tea’s fine, thanks,” Sunset Shimmer said, answering for everyone. A few moments passed in relative silence. The only sounds were of Fluttershy’s animals skittering about and the beeping and blooping of the Haystation 2. Fluttershy returned from the kitchen with a tray full of mismatched teacups and set it on the flimsy looking coffee table. After losing another life, Rainbow Dash cursed and turned around, finally breaking the tension,
“So, Fluttershy, why didn’t you—”
“I’m sorry!” Fluttershy cut her off, “I should have said where I was taking you sooner. It took me a while to realize where we were because we weren’t coming from the direction I normally take from school. Then I didn’t want to tell you that I lived here because I was afraid you would run away. I’m so, so sorry.” She took a deep breath. Another short silence.
“That is so not the issue here.” Rainbow Dash said.
“Yeah, we don’t care where you live,” Pinkie added, “Sure, we were surprised that you do live here, but we couldn’t hate you for it or anything. That’s just silly!”
“I hate to break up this love-fest and all, but we do kind of have a friend to save.” Sonata Dusk interjected.
“She’s right. Sorry, Sonata,” Sunset apologized. She stood up, “It’s good that we got some rest, but now that we know where we are we can keep moving to where Adagio and Aria are.”
“Actually, it’s probably best we stay the night here.” Fluttershy raised her hand shyly.
“What?” Sonata was now angry. “I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention, but a swan song lasts five days, and we’ve already lost almost four of them! We’ll barely have 24 hours to get to Adagio and convince her to stop singing if we waste an entire night here! It may sound like a lot of time just for talking, but we need those hours. This is a lot more complicated than just going up to her and saying ‘Please stop, I love you!’ I know because I’ve already tried that!” Without missing a beat, Fluttershy responded with uncharacteristic nonchalance,
“Well if we leave now, we’ll all die.”
“Come again?” Applejack said, clearing her ear just in case she had heard wrong.
“A gang runs these parts,” Fluttershy explained, “And they’re no one you want to even cross paths with. In fact, the only reason I’m alive right now is because Three Point and Boom Box are part of the rival gang that keeps the really bad guys away.”
“Okay, now that has to have a story behind it. How’d you end up in a place where a gang has to keep you safe from another gang? Where are your parents?” Sunset asked. Fluttershy sighed and looked down.
“It’s like this…”
“ANOTHER ONE?” Fluttershy’s father was holding the umpteenth rabbit his daughter had brought home by the scruff of its neck. She was sure she had hidden this one well enough, but she guessed at this point detecting any disenfranchised animals was old hat for her parents.
“But, Dad,” she squeaked, “He was all alone and—”
“They’re always ‘all alone!’” he cut her off. “They’re always ‘so helpless’ and ‘just need a friend’ and whatever bull you come up with and I can’t take it anymore!” He tossed the rabbit aside to the sound of a slight yelp from Fluttershy. It scampered out the open back door of the house. The girl, fresh out of middle school, looked to her mother sitting in her chair in the corner of the foyer. Her mom always had a way to bail her out, but this time she was pretending nothing was happening, her nose deep in a book.
“I’m sorry, Dad. I-I won’t do it again…” her voice trailed off. Both she and her parents knew this was entirely untrue. Fluttershy wouldn’t stop bringing home animals and caring for them and rehabilitating them and turning her family’s nice home into a veritable zoo costing them thousands. She couldn't stop. It was against her nature.
“How many years has this been going on, Fluttershy?” Her dad asked a question he already knew the answer to. Fluttershy was silent.
“HOW MANY!” He slammed his fist against the wall. Fluttershy’s mom jumped in her chair a little.
“S-s-six years, sir,” she whispered.
“And how many animals have been through this house?” Another one they both already knew.
“I can’t count. There were too many—”
“Too many! Too damn many! And your mother and I have sacrificed so much—no, too much, for you to be some sort of martyr for these stupid creatures!” Fluttershy began sobbing. Her mother closed her book and set it on her lap. She closed her eyes and did not move. She had to brace herself for what she knew her husband was about to say.
“No more tears, Fluttershy. It’s not going to work this time. You’re gone.” Fluttershy froze. By gone, he didn’t mean…
“If you can take care of these animals, you can take care of yourself. I’m giving you money for you to find a place to stay, and you’ll get enough of a monthly allowance for food, clothes, and school supplies. When you figure out how to leave the outside where it belongs you can come back. Otherwise I don’t want to see you until you graduate.” Fluttershy opened her mouth to argue but no words came out. She wasn’t the arguing type, and even if she was she probably couldn’t convince her dad to change his mind. Not this time, anyway. Fluttershy’s mother had already left the room when Fluttershy looked to be saved again.
The next morning Fluttershy was awoken early to begin packing her bags. The only saving grace that her mother had given her was sparing her the trouble of looking for a place to stay. She handed her daughter a list of apartments and small houses she might want to check out.
“They’re all animal-friendly. I made sure.” She said as Fluttershy looked the list over.
“Mom…” Fluttershy said. That single word was all the questions she needed the answer to. Was this all real? Were they just scaring her into shaping up and not actually kicking their fourteen-year-old out? Why didn’t her mom say something to lessen the punishment like she always did?
“We wouldn’t do this if we didn’t think it was necessary, sweetie. All these animals… it really has gotten out of hand.”
“Will Dad really not let me back until I graduate high school?”
“He’s still really angry, Fluttershy. I doubt it will take him four years to cool down, but at the very least maybe it’s best you lay low for the summer. A few months away isn’t that bad, right?”
Fluttershy’s mother was wrong. A few months away wouldn’t be bad, but she had assumed her daughter would choose one of the places to stay on the list she had prepared and be frugal about her spending.
The very first day Fluttershy was out on her own she found another injured rabbit she named Angel and spent the deposit money on its leg surgery. She could no longer afford any of the places her mother had picked out, so she scoured the newspaper for anything else within her new diminished price range. She found a place that she felt would suit her needs, but it was in a part of town she had never been to before. Once she arrived to check it out, she surmised she would never want to return to this part of town again, but the fear of returning home and suffering worse punishment outweighed the fear of staying here temporarily, so she made the proper arrangements to rent the small house.
Despite the living conditions that Fluttershy had not expected, the first four weeks in her new place were amicable. She could house as many animals as she wanted there and the house came pre-furnished, although to call many of the items “furnishing” would be a generous embellishment. After coming home from grocery shopping one evening she sighed and thought that even if she had to spend her entire high school career here she wouldn’t mind.
That was when that evening turned into hell.
Just before Fluttershy closed the door behind her it burst open, knocking her to the ground. Four young men stormed the house, black bandanas covering the lower halves of their faces.
“Don’t you move, bitch!” One of them ordered. Fluttershy couldn’t move even if she wanted to. She was too scared to even scream. The men went around the house, grabbing armfuls of whatever they could—food, what few decorations Fluttershy had, and even a couple of her animals, and taking it out. Three of them did trips in and out of the house stealing things while the fourth that had ordered Fluttershy still kept a knife pointed at her. After about twenty minutes they had already removed enough that the interior of the house echoed when they came back in. Fluttershy had seen things like this on TV. Now that they were done robbing her, they would tell her not to tell anyone what happened or they’d hurt her family. Or they would have, if reality were so kind.
“Let’s break this bitch in,” one of the men said, shutting the door behind him. Two of the other men grabbed Fluttershy by the shoulders and dragged her to the kitchen table that they had left. Once they laid her on the table realization struck and Fluttershy screamed at the top of her lungs.
“NO! STOP IT!” she yelled. Her voice bounced off the empty walls, making it seem that much louder. “PLEASE NO!” The men only laughed in response. One of them leaned over her and whispered into her ear,
“Welcome to the neighborhood.” He licked her ear and Fluttershy began crying hysterically in between her screams. She tried to kick him away but the other men held her legs.
This was it. All because she couldn’t leave all those animals alone. All because she tried to be a good person. Fluttershy wanted nothing more than to wake up in her bed back at home—her real home—and run to her father and apologize for everything, but no matter how many times she shut her eyes tight and opened them, this was the nightmare she was living. Fluttershy passed out just as she heard her front door blast open again.
A cartoon was on a small television set on top of a clumsily-built TV stand when Fluttershy awoke. She was on her couch covered in a blanket. A small chuckle jolted her up. Did the men really stay in her house that night after what they had done to her? Did she… belong to them now? The young teen decided to muster up some courage to at least get a glimpse at whoever was laughing. If she could remember his face, she could make a break for it and head to the police.
“Oh, you’re up,” the laughing voice broke Fluttershy’s thoughts. He pointed to the television, “Hey, do you like this show? This episode’s pretty great.” Fluttershy only shifted her eyes toward the TV, just in case he made a move. Not caring what was on, she nodded, and her gaze locked back on the person who had woken her up. She had forgotten to try to run. Although the man, or rather boy (he didn’t look but a few years older than her) appeared large and intimidating, she didn’t sense any malice coming from him. His smile was actually kind of sweet. Was this really one of the ones who took advantage of her last night?
“Trey, she’s up!” he called. Another boy about his age came from the kitchen, wiping his hands with a cloth.
“Cool, no hospital bills!” he said.
“He means ‘hi,’” the first boy rolled his eyes. “The name’s Boom Box. This is Three Point, but everyone just calls him Trey.”
“What’s your name?” Trey asked. Fluttershy mouthed her name rather than speaking it. She couldn’t find the strength to force air through her throat.
“Sorry? I didn’t quite catch that,” Trey put a hand to his ear.
“She said ‘Fluttershy,’ dude.” Boom Box said.
“How the hell did you hear that? She barely made a noise.”
“I got the ears, bro.” Boom Box seemed proud of himself. Fluttershy had a moment of security and used it to look around her small living room. The men yesterday had ransacked her house, taking almost everything in sight. Today, however, all that was taken was back. In fact, there was even more stuff in her house than before. She certainly didn’t have a TV twenty-four hours ago. Her new bunny Angel surprised her by jumping into her lap, content as could be.
“What happened?” Fluttershy thought out loud. Boom Box and Three Point looked at each other. Their pleasant faces became serious, and they turned to Fluttershy,
“Those damn Dogs happened,” Trey said.
“Dogs?” Fluttershy repeated.
“Diamond Dogs Onyx,” Boom Box explained, “They run this neighborhood—or at least they used to until last night. We’re part of the Sun Street Guardians, and our raid last night just happened to be at the same time those bastards were trying to hurt you.”
“They didn’t get to. You were… okay when we busted into this house because we heard screaming. You were passed out, but they didn’t manage to do anything major,” Trey continued.
“You’re a gang?” Fluttershy asked.
“The Diamond Dogs are. They have chapters all over the state named after gems and minerals, and the Onyx chapter is by far the worst group. They’ll outright kill you for looking at them funny or being in their territory at the wrong time. Things like age or gender don’t matter to them.
“Us Guardians on the other hand… I wouldn’t call us a ‘gang’ per-se. We just protect our neighborhood and the people in it. The police don’t bother with this area of town ‘cause we’re all poor and stuff, so it’s up to us to make sure our families are safe. That raid I was talking about was to push those mutts out of this part of it. There’s nothing but Sun Street-ers around here now.” Boom Box finished. Fluttershy thought they definitely didn’t sound like any gang members she had seen in movies or TV. These boys just wanted to help her. They might still get into trouble, judging by the fact that they seemed perfectly content at making themselves at home in a fourteen-year-old’s place, but Fluttershy surmised that their hearts were good. She was safe now, after all.
“So what’re you doing here all alone?” Three Point asked.
“My… my parents kicked me out because I couldn’t stop bringing in animals. They gave me money for a place to stay but I kind of wasted most of it, so I’m here,” Fluttershy answered.
“That explains all the furry things running around,” Boom Box said, lifting his feet so a cat could pass under him, “Well, every cloud has a silver lining.”
“What do you mean?” Fluttershy tilted her head.
“This isn’t the fanciest place, but you’ve got us now. We live just down the street, and our friends are all on this block, so no Dogs will mess with you ever again.” Fluttershy began crying again, but these were tears of joy. She thanked Boom Box and Three Point profusely for everything they had done. She decided to stay in the house to repay her debt to the two boys and their gang, though they insisted she could leave at any time as it was still a rough place to live. Over time Fluttershy met more members of the Sun Street Guardians, but remained closest to Three Point and Boom Box. At the end of that summer Fluttershy’s mom tracked her down and said she was allowed to come back as she had promised, but Fluttershy declined, feeling that this neighborhood would help her grow as a person.
“And even though I’m fine now and this street is safe, the Diamond Dogs Onyx are still around, and they like to prowl around at night just to find people to hurt. I can’t imagine what I’d do if any of you went through what I did.” Fluttershy finished her story. Her friends stared at her, surprised that the most timid of them had gone through such an ordeal and seemed to come out all the stronger for it.
“That’s…” Sonata tried to find a way to protest, but from Fluttershy’s story she knew that if the Diamond Dogs got a hold of any of them there was a much lower chance of them reaching Adagio at all than if they waited for sunlight and only lost a few hours. “I’m sorry,” she said.
“It’s okay,” Fluttershy gave a small smile, “I know it’s hard right now, but we’re here for you, just like the Guardians were there for me when I needed them most.”
Applejack yawned,
“Well, I don’t know about y’all, but gettin’ lost and hearin’ Fluttershy’s story got me plum tuckered out. We’ll need some sleep if we wanna hit the ground runnin’ tomorrow.” The others nodded their agreement.
Fluttershy pulled out the bed in the couch along with a couple cots she had in storage. She slept with Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie in her own bed while Applejack, Rarity, Sunset Shimmer, and Sonata Dusk used the couch bed and cots. They would awake at first light the next morning.
Sonata Dusk rested her elbows on the splintery windowsill of Fluttershy’s house and gazed outside. The sun was just peeking over the horizon, firing the first rays of the day into the siren’s eyes. She turned to avoid the bright light and saw Applejack sitting up, staring at her from her cot.
“You’re up early,” Sonata said. Applejack grabbed her hat from the floor and put it on,
“I’m a farm-girl, sugarcube. If I wake up at dawn, I’ve slept in.” She got up and pulled on her shirt and skirt. None of the girls had planned on spending the night anywhere, so they either had slept in their clothes or removed a layer or two before bed.
Applejack joined Sonata on the alcove that the latter was staring out of.
“I noticed you didn’t sleep,” she pointed out.
“Don’t worry about it,” Sonata dismissed her, “Sirens don’t need much sleep. It takes five days to kill ourselves, after all.” That made AJ bite the inside of her cheek. She understood that Sonata was incredibly distressed, but she didn’t like how the whole situation was making her act. Instead of chastising the bitter retort, though, Applejack opted to try to sympathize with Sonata.
“You really love Adagio Dazzle, don’t you?”
“More than anything, Applejack. Aria, too—we’ve all been together so long. It’s like the entire universe isn’t complete if just one of us isn’t around.” She may get a bit angry, but it’s only because she feels so strongly, Applejack thought. She put a hand on her newest friend’s shoulder,
“I know how you feel.” Applejack doubted that Sonata believed her at that particular moment, but she seemed to at least appreciate the sentiment, acknowledging her by leaning her head onto the comforting hand. A moment of silence passed before Applejack spoke again.
“Say, Sonata. I don’t wanna sound like it’s gonna happen, but do y’all—you and Aria, I mean—know what you’re gonna do if… if we don’t make it?” Sonata sighed heavily before answering,
“Sing our own swan songs… or at least that’s what we thought we’d do. We both know that Adagio wouldn’t want that, though. It’s just that ‘going on’ was always a three-girl decision so when we think of there being only two of us all alone in this world… we just don’t know how to go on, except for doing everything we can to get Adagio back.” Going on. That phrase resonated with Applejack. In fact, so was most of what Sonata was saying.
“Can I tell you a story, sugarcube? It’s about how I went on after losin’ two people real important to me.”
“Who did you lose?” Sonata asked. Applejack took off her hat and set it on the windowsill. She took a deep breath and said,
“My parents.”
“I felt her kick, Ma!” Applejack gasped when she pressed her hands and head against her mother’s enlarged abdomen.
“It’ll be any day now, won’t it, sugarcube?” Calvados, Applejack’s father, chuckled at his daughter’s exuberance.
“Any day, Cal. Doc says she’s due in four weeks but I’d say she’s ready now. Oof!” Another shift from Honeycrisp’s passenger caused her to lurch forward a bit.
“You wanna go to the hospital now? We could always induce,” Calvados suggested. Honeycrisp waved and shook her head,
“Now, Cal, you of all people should know that takin’ out a pie ‘fore it’s baked means it won’t taste as good.”
“Are you sayin’ that somethin’ will be wrong with the baby if she comes out early?” Applejack tilted her head.
“No, darlin’, not at all,” her mother assured her, “But you and Big Macintosh were both right on time, so I’d feel… better if it was the same for your sister. I think I can bear her weight for just a month more, so don’t you worry none.”
Three-year-old Applejack had been looking forward to having a little sister since she first heard the news that her mother, Honeycrisp, was pregnant, although she didn’t exactly know what the word “pregnant” meant at the time. She did know, though, that it was a happy occasion, and that being a big sister would be a big job. She was ready. Her entire family worked hard on the farm every day, and though little Applejack was already beginning to take up some of the smaller tasks such as pig washing and chicken feeding, taking care of a little sister would be her first big-girl job, and she couldn’t be more excited.
The final month of Honeycrisp’s pregnancy was rife with happy tension. Every time the lady of the Apple Family halted or suddenly held her stomach or doubled over, someone would ask if it was time. She would always dismiss her family members and say the same thing,
“She’s lively, but it’s not time just yet.”
Calvados worked a little less to hover around his wife, a behavior he was repeating from both Big Macintosh and Applejack’s births. When an Apple is ready to be born, they tend to leave little time for dawdling between the moment water breaks and delivery. Granny Smith said it had been that way with Honeycrisp, herself, and countless Apples across all branches and several generations. It was Granny Smith who said it, though, so the accuracy of the claim may not have been as reliable as she would like you to think it is.
The family’s high-energy routine was almost normal when things took a turn for the worse, and Applejack could only watch as it all spiraled out of control.
About a week before the baby’s expected due date, Honeycrisp was taken to the hospital to prep for delivery. Despite her protests, the doctor and her family deemed it too dangerous to risk anything happening to the baby just for the sake of tradition. Labor was to be induced immediately. Applejack, Big Macintosh, and Granny Smith surrounded Honeycrisp as the doctor and nurses prepared their instruments.
“Where’s Pa?” Applejack asked her brother.
“He’s home, workin’ on expense reports. Granny Smith says he did this when you were born, too. He likes to get work done then come here and hold his child. Makes him feel like he rules the world. He’s old-fashioned like that.” Granny Smith grasped her daughter’s hand,
“You ready, darlin’?” she asked.
“This ain’t my first rodeo, Granny. I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. It’s time to bring little Apple Bloom into this world.”
“Apple Bloom? Is that her name?” Applejack echoed.
“Sure is, sugarcube. Cal’s gonna have a fit that I decided without him, but I saw the first bud of the season pop open on the way here, and if that ain’t a sign that Apple Bloom is a perfect name, I don’t know what is.”
The doctor came over and slipped on his mask. “Could we have some distance, please? We’re ready to begin.” Honeycrisp’s family moved back to allow the doctor and nurses in. They attached a couple IVs and sensors. A machine beeped steadily to indicate heart rate. After administering the induction drug, the doctor said,
“It should only be a couple moments before the contractions begin, but once they start, they’ll start hard. We’ve got you on some numbing medicine, though, so you’ll mostly feel the pressure rather than the pain.”
Just as the doctor said, not two minutes had passed when Honeycrisp’s contractions began. The doctor and nurses went into full medical-mode, giving the Apple matriarch instructions on breathing and pushing. Big Macintosh and Granny Smith held either of Honeycrisp’s hands as Applejack looked on in wonder and worry.
“Is Ma hurtin’?” she asked. Her mother’s pained screams caused the young Apple to doubt the effectiveness of the pain medicine. If that was just the pressure, Applejack thought her mom might make glass break if there had been nothing to cull the force of the contractions at all. The beeping of the heart monitor increased steadily as Honeycrisp struggled to push out her second daughter.
“Applejack, call your father and tell him to get his hide down here! His wife needs him!” Granny Smith called over the cries of her life-giving daughter. Applejack felt slightly relieved that she got to leave the room for a bit. She rooted through her grandmother’s purse to find her cell phone and scampered out to call her dad.
“Hey, Pa, it’s me, Applejack!” she said when she heard the click that indicated he had picked up.
“Hey there, sugarcube! How’s your ma doin’?” he asked.
“She’s doin’ an awful lot of screamin’, but Granny says she’s fine. She wants you to ‘get your hide down here.’” Applejack did her best to imitate Granny Smith’s voice. Calvados chuckled,
“All right, all right. I’m leavin’ now. You tell your mom that I love her, all right? Give her a kiss for me. And the baby, too!”
“It’s Apple Bloom!” Applejack blabbed.
“What? She did not—” he cut himself off, “…Apple Bloom, huh? Well give Apple Bloom a kiss for me, too. I’ll be there to kiss ‘em both myself real soon.”
Applejack was about to say bye and hang up when a new commotion from the delivery room arrested her attention. The heart rate monitor that had been beeping quickly, but steadily, was now erratic and incredibly fast. Other alarms that she didn’t know about were also going off. Applejack ran back into the room to find that her mother’s screams had been replaced by that of her brother and grandmother. Honeycrisp was unconscious.
“Blood pressure and heart rate spiking!” One nurse yelled, “She’s losing a lot of blood!” The mess before Applejack terrified her. She screamed “MAMA!” and dropped the phone. She tried to run to her mother but another nurse scooped her up and whisked her out of the room.
“We need you to stay here right now, all right, sweetie? We’ve got to help your mom and little sister.” The sight of her mother in such a weak state drained Applejack of thought. The experience, which had been happy but tense up until now was now loud and hectic and the barely-preschool age little girl had no idea what to do. So she just stood outside the delivery room and listened, eyes and mouth agape.
The doctor ordered the injection of some drug. The nurse said they didn’t have any in the room. She bolted out to go get it. Granny Smith cursed out the doctor, demanding her daughter be saved. Big Macintosh yelled “Mama! Mama!” over and over again, as if the hundredth time it reached her ears would have any more effect than the first time. After a couple moments the nurse came back with the necessary medicine, hastily filling a syringe with it and stabbing it into Honeycrisp’s arm. The incessant beeping would not relent.
“Get a towel ready—she’s going to spasm!” the doctor said. He positioned himself and prepared to receive Apple Bloom. Honeycrisp’s unconscious body convulsed strongly a few times. It was enough to expel the baby’s head and allow for the doctor to pull her out on his own. Apple Bloom wailed, and for a moment silenced everything but the monitoring machines. She was safe and alive. The doctor carefully handed her over to one of the nurses and cut her cord.
“Get her to an incubator,” the doctor ordered, immediately turning his attention to Honeycrisp.
“Her heart rate isn’t going down. The hypertension is kill…” his voice trailed off as he remembered his company. “We need vasodilators. Ready the defibrillators, too, just in case,” he told the other nurse. It was too late, though. Just as the nurse left, Honeycrisp took in several sharp breaths. The heart rate machine beeped irregularly for a moment then made the worst sound imaginable. A single, long, monotone sound that indicated cardiovascular activity had stopped. The doctor grabbed a phone on the wall, pressed a button and said, “Code blue, floor seven, room 20B.”
A resuscitation team rushed in. Big Macintosh and Granny Smith bawled, as did Applejack once the shock finally subsided.
One count. Two counts. Three counts followed by the call of “Clear!” Honeycrisp did not revive, though. She was gone. The doctor called the time of death, collected all the messy and soiled materials, and silently left the room with the resuscitation team. Applejack joined her family around her lifeless mother.
“She… she’s not gonna wake up, is she?” Applejack sniffled.
“No, she’s not,” Granny Smith embraced her granddaughter and cried over her head.
“We need Pa,” Big Mac said, “When’s he gonna get here?” He was answered by the nurse who had gone to retrieve the vasodilators. She was crying, and the Apples assumed it was in response to the loss of Honeycrisp. The actuality was much, much worse.
“He’s… not coming.” The nurse sobbed.
“What do you mean he’s not coming?” Granny Smith asked, “What happened to my son-in-law!?” The nurse could barely hold back her tears,
“I’m so sorry. So, so sorry. Paramedics just responded to a traffic accident. An eighteen wheeler crushed a pickup running a red light. Mr. Calvados was in it.” For the first time in hours, the delivery room was dead silent. No one, not even Applejack could muster any more tears or cries or pleads for life. The nurse expressed her apologies again and left the room. A good twenty minutes passed before anyone spoke again.
“We don’t have any parents,” Big Mac said. He would not speak many sentences longer than that for years.
“I’d better let the family know what happened. It’s going to be a real quiet reunion this year.” Granny Smith stared at her lost daughter for a few more moments before getting up and leaving the room. Applejack was the last to have the phone, though.
“I picked up the phone to give it to my granny and the call I was havin’ with my dad was still goin’. He must’ve heard the commotion goin’ on and sped too darn fast to try to get to the hospital in time. I was only three, but I remember it all like it was yesterday.” Sonata Dusk’s eyes were wide as Applejack finished her tale.
“My gosh, I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“Don’t worry none. It was almost fifteen years ago, and I’d say my family’s stronger than ever,” Applejack said.
“You don’t… blame Apple Bloom at all?” Sonata asked. Applejack shook her head.
“Shoot, no. I mean, when I got older I did wonder ‘what if’ a couple times, but then I figured if there’s anything in the universe guidin’ our lives, it wanted us to take all that sorrow we experienced in that one day and turn it into love for what we had, Apple Bloom especially. That thought has kept me goin’ all this time. So I think if things… don’t end the way we want them to, just put that love you got for Adagio Dazzle and put it toward somethin’ that’s gonna make you and Aria happy. That’s the best thing you’d be able to do for her in that case.”
“But that’s not going to be the case. We’ll save her.” Sonata’s face was stern and serious now.
“Damn straight we will,” Applejack nodded, “Now let’s get the others up. We’ve got a friend to save.”
The girls got out of the neighborhood a little after nine in the morning. With just fifteen hours left before Adagio’s swan song ended, according to Sonata Dusk, the group had to get moving fast.
“Just outside of downtown is an abandoned apartment complex. That’s where our home is,” Sonata explained.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Outside of downtown?” Rainbow halted for a moment.
“Yes. Is there a problem?”
“Uh, no… I just didn’t hear you. L-let’s go.” They rode a city bus to a stop just a couple of blocks away from the complex, where after getting off Rainbow Dash immediately pulled up the hood of her jacket.
“Rainbow, it’s May. It’s gotta be eighty degrees outside; you can’t possibly be cold.” Applejack pulled her hood off.
“Yeah, well, it’s windy,” Rainbow replied, putting her hood back up. Applejack paused for a moment to feel the air.
“No it ain’t. There’s hardly any wind. What’s goin’ on, darlin’?”
“Nothing. I’m not hiding anything. Come on, we have to get going to Adagio.” Applejack rolled her eyes and dropped the subject. Rainbow was right; their former enemy’s predicament was more important at the moment. It didn’t stop Applejack from taking note of Rainbow’s behavior, though. Every time someone came around a corner or exited a building, Rainbow jumped slightly and hid more of her face inside her hood. She wasn’t half this skittish in Fluttershy’s neighborhood. Ironically, for all her avoiding of people, her limited view caused her to bump into a boy about her age leaving a gym.
“Oops! Sorry, ma’am, I—”
“Oh, crap!” Rainbow cursed. She had recognized the boy before he recognized her. He probably wouldn’t have thought her any more than a hooded stranger had he not knocked the hood off.
“You! What the hell are you doing back here?”
“Hey, man, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Rainbow lied, trying to diffuse the situation before her friends took notice.
“No way! You’re the girl from Fleetmare who always cheated against all our teams at Graystreet Middle!”
“Now hold on there, partner,” Applejack stepped in between them. “I know sometimes Rainbow’s too competitive for her own good, but she ain’t a cheater. What’s this all about?”
“’Ain’t a cheater,’ my ass!” the boy mocked Applejack. “Looks like she hasn’t told any of her friends at her high school why she’s all but banned from this entire district!”
“What’s all the commotion about? We’ve got to get moving,” Sunset Shimmer doubled back to retrieve the two friends that had stopped.
“This fella here says Rainbow’s been de facto banned from this area of town—somethin’ she probably shoulda mentioned to us by now.” Applejack narrowed her eyes at Rainbow Dash, who gave a big sigh in response,
“Look, dude, I swear I’ll tell them and I’ll be out of here in ten seconds flat, but we seriously do have some business to take care of, so if you really want to punish me for coming back here, you know where I live.” The boy made a fist and it appeared he was about to punch Rainbow, but saw no light of conflict in the eyes of his former foe, so he stayed his hand.
“Fine, but I’ll be letting everyone around here know you’re in the area, and they might not be so forgiving.” The boy sulked off, leaving Rainbow relieved and Applejack and Sunset Shimmer bewildered.
“Holy crap on a cracker, RD, what in all hell did you do to get an entire neighborhood wantin’ to beat you up?” Applejack asked.
“Exactly what he said, Applejack,” Rainbow Dash crossed her arms, “I cheated.”
It was fall of Rainbow Dash’s eighth grade year at Fleetmare Middle School, and the first sports of the season were holding tryouts. Rainbow Dash spent her afternoons surveying who would be her teammates on the football, soccer, and softball teams. She didn’t need to try out herself, of course. Ever since elementary school she had always been the most agile wide receiver, the fastest forward, and the strongest second baseman/home run hitter combo. If Rainbow signed up for a team, she was on it.
As she watched, though, she noticed something that she had never seen before. The other kids that were trying out were actually good. In fact, they might have even been at least twenty percent—
No. They couldn’t be better than her. No one was better than the Rainbow Dash. If they were, how could she be praised for shooting the winning goal when anyone else could just as easily? How could people tell stories about her making an impossible catch when it was suddenly not-so-impossible for other people? For the first time in years, Rainbow felt like she had to train.
Unfortunately, when she began focusing on herself, her cohesion with any of her teams fell dramatically. She’d learn the cost of needing to be the best one day after a particularly grueling soccer practice.
A boy in a gray letter jacket leaned on the fence that closed in Fleetmare Middle’s sporting areas. He observed a blur of cyan and rainbows cross the field closest to him again and again, back and forth. After fifteen straight minutes of full speed running, the blur—a girl, finally stopped to pick up her water bottle and take a drink. The boy figured it was a good a time as any to introduce himself. He hopped over the fence and called out to her,
“Hey there. You’re pushing yourself pretty hard out here.” Rainbow Dash looked around the field. She was the only one on it with the rest of Fleetmare’s team having left at least three hours ago.
“Yeah, extra suicides, is all… were you watching me all afternoon?”
“No, I was just walking around the area and only saw you for the last half-hour or so. I thought you were cute so I waited until you were done so I could hit on you. You just don’t slow down, though.”
“Well the ‘Dash’ part of my name isn’t for nothing,” Rainbow boasted.
“What’s the other part of your name?”
“Rainbow. And I’m not really looking for a boyfriend. Or a boy.”
“Oh,” the boy frowned for a split second, “Well, all dating aside, with moves like that, you must be the best player on your team.” Rainbow Dash grimaced,
“I used to be. But everyone’s all skilled this year. It’s like I don’t even stand out anymore. That’s why I’m out here getting better than skilled. When we go up against all the other schools, not only will Fleetmare be better than last year, with me powering up, we’ll be unbeatable.” She pumped her fist in triumph. The boy smirked,
“Aw, yeah? Well I’m from Graystreet Middle, and our teams are nothing to shake a stick at either. Don’t think you’ll sail into any of the district championships without a little trouble from us. See you around, Rainbow Dash.” The boy, whose name was Stormbringer, waved and left. Unfortunately, while he thought he was simply setting up a friendly rivalry with his challenge, Rainbow took his words to heart. It scared her, and she ended up not leaving the fields until well after dark that night.
Rainbow began her descent in the second game of the soccer season, which was against Graystreet. In the previous game, Fleetmare had won, but just as Rainbow Dash had feared, she didn’t perform as well as she wanted. She had one assist in the entire match, but the show was stolen by her teammates. The coach even had the nerve to take her out of the game for the last fifteen minutes!
It was a split-second decision. She was chasing down an opponent—Stormbringer, incidentally—and he was getting away from her. Rainbow Dash wouldn’t have it. She tugged his shirt, knocking him off balance, and he fell, losing the ball. Because of the angle, the referee didn’t see it, which allowed Rainbow to break away and take the ball all the way back to the other side of the field and score a brilliant goal. As she celebrated her point, she caught a glimpse of Stormbringer, the only other person on the field who knew exactly what happened to allow Rainbow to score her goal. His glare pierced her. She felt a pain in her stomach. She knew it wasn’t right. But when her teammates surrounded and hugged her, she stopped caring. She was on top again. She was the hero. Now she wasn’t Rainbow Dash, Star Among Players, she was Rainbow Dash, Star Among Stars.
In November, it was time for Fleetmare’s football team to take on Graystreet, who had gone undefeated until this game. Graystreet looked good. Too good. Even before the game started Rainbow felt a pit in her stomach. Good play might not be enough to beat them. She had to even the odds, but not by running a little harder. The game had a collection of footballs to be used over the course of play, and most of the time they sort of sat in the equipment room… unguarded.
Rainbow excused herself to use the restroom about fifteen minutes before the game began. Lucky for her, the women’s room happened to be next to the unlocked equipment room. Inside were the game balls, just sitting there. Anyone knew that slightly underinflated footballs were easier to throw and catch. If she could just let the air out of the ones her team would be using, her team—and by extension she—would really shine.
Four quarters and five touchdowns later (three scored by Rainbow Dash herself), she was proven right. Fleetmare prevailed 35 to 7 over Graystreet. It was a devastating upset for the middle school giant. Rainbow was hailed as a hero once again and she felt on top of the world. Unfortunately for her, in her celebratory tossing of the winning ball into the stands, it was caught by the boy she had met weeks ago who she had slighted in the earlier soccer game. He wasn’t going to let her get away with cheating this time.
“I couldn’t stop. Whether it was secretly fouling players or messing with equipment, I had to do something in every single game in every single sport just so I could have the edge. When you start losing the thing that makes you who you are, you want to do anything to get it back.” Rainbow Dash hung her head low in front of her friends.
“So how did you get caught?” Sunset Shimmer asked. Rainbow sighed again,
“That guy, Stormbringer, the guy we just ran into… he was on my case ever since I first fouled him in our soccer game and it didn’t get called. He started recording and taking pictures of everything I did, then sent it to every school newspaper in the district. I was kicked out of all sports for the last three months of the year, not to mention the ban on me even setting foot downtown until I graduate high school.”
“That must be why you’re at Canterlot High,” Applejack said, “We’re not in the same district as the schools Fleetmare and Graystreet Middle feed into.” Rainbow nodded confirmation. She looked up to Sonata Dusk with a determined expression, a tear in her eye.
“That story is why I’m not going to let you lose Adagio. I don’t want to see you get as desperate as I was to get the light back in your life. I didn’t have friends like now to keep me from playing dirty, but you’ve got us! No matter what happens, I’m here for you. We all are.” Sonata nodded, then checked her watch,
“Well if you want to keep that promise we have just short of twelve hours to go before Adagio’s swan song ends! We’re just a few blocks away—let’s go!”
The girls dashed off in the direction of the abandoned apartment complex. As they neared, a voice echoed off the brick walls. A beautiful voice. It was a voice that could arrest someone with its melody and bring them to their knees. It sounded like an orchestra in vocal form. There was a magic to it. A magic that would make anyone suspect that the voice’s source was not of this world. It had to be Adagio Dazzle’s song.
“We’re still blocks away! How can her voice reach this far?” Pinkie Pie asked as they headed toward the sirens’ home.
“We’re sirens, remember?” Sonata Dusk huffed as she ran, “To tell you the truth, if we had decided to just blend into the school instead of taking it over, there would have been a lot more singing like this instead of those mind control ballads we were using.”
Moments later, the girls finally reached the apartment complex where Aria Blaze was still keeping Adagio company and doing her best to stop the swan song on her own. Sunset Shimmer was about to ask which room they were in when a brilliant glow caught her eye. Yellow light was pouring out of windows on the top floor of one of the the three-story buildings.
“I take it that’s Adagio,” Sunset said.
“Oh, no, it’s worse than I thought!” Sonata gasped and fell to her knees. She began bawling uncontrollably.
“What is it? What’s wrong?” Fluttershy rushed to her side.
“I thought we had half a day left! I must have miscounted or something! That glow can only mean one thing: Adagio’s already in the final chorus.”
“The last chorus takes up the final three hours of the swan song. That may seem like a lot of time, but if Aria’s failed after five entire days, it may as well be three seconds.” Sonata Dusk lost herself in tears again. She didn’t cry long, though, because the confusion of being picked up and carried by Rainbow Dash paused her sobbing.
“I told you, Sonata,” Rainbow grunted under the siren’s weight, “I’m not gonna let you lose her! Three hours is more than enough time. When she sees all of us here she’ll know just how many people care about her in this world! We can do it!”
“Save the sap talk for later, darlings, let’s go!” Rarity led the charge into the building and up the stairs to the Dazzlings’ apartment. The girls were met with a terrible and beautiful sight.
Aria Blaze sat in the corner of the main room, knees pulled up to her chest and head tucked down. It seemed she had given up long ago. In the center of the room, suspended in a translucent orb of yellow magical energy was Adagio Dazzle. The magic of her song had torn her normal attire to shreds and replaced it with an elegant, flowing white robe that extended well past her floating feet and piled onto the bottom of the orb. It looked as if Adagio was a plant growing from the gown itself. Her arms were spread outward, a pose that spelled that she was ready for death.
Adagio’s song had only grown more beautiful since the other girls were first able to hear it, but their hearts sank as they knew it meant she was that much closer to never singing again. Regardless, they had finally arrived at their destination, and were ready to put all their energy into saving the person who had tried to maliciously rule over them not long ago.
Despite already knowing it was useless to try, Rainbow Dash charged at the orb, kicking and punching and outright slamming her entire body into it.
“Dammit, Adagio! Argh! Snap out of it! Hi-yah! Do you know how hard we worked just to get here! Yah!” Adagio did not stop singing, but took notice of her new company. A look of surprise crossed her face, shortly replaced by one of pain as if she had just been stabbed in the heart.
“Dagi, please listen! It’s not just me and Aria anymore! These girls, they forgive you! We’ll stand by your side! I promise, we all will!” Sonata screamed at her friend.
“Listen to Sonata, I beg of you!” Rarity called, “There are hundreds of happy years ahead of you! You have so much to live for!”
“I’m sorry we took so long, but please understand! We’re here now! We don’t want to leave you!” Fluttershy cried.
“If you’re thinkin’ your death is gonna bring anyone happiness, you’re dead wrong! Ain’t no one gonna be happy if you quit on us—not even you!” Applejack yelled, throwing her hat to the ground.
“Don’t you see how it can get better? Don’t you see how lucky you are to even have just one person that cares about you? Just look at me! I know it can get better! It always can!” Sunset Shimmer joined in, too.
“You know, Adagio… it’s not fun to die.” Pinkie Pie stepped forward and gently put her hand on the magic orb. “In fact, of all the things in the universe that aren’t fun, dying is pretty much at the top of that list.” Adagio continued to sing. She didn’t even turn in Pinkie’s direction. Pinkie’s open palm turned into a fist. She banged on the orb, the impact of her strike sending ripples around it.
“LISTEN TO ME!” she screamed. Tears welled up in her eyes. “I know what it’s like to die. I know what it’s like to feel hopeless and worthless and useless and stupid…”
“Pinkie, you aren’t gonna…” Applejack trailed off.
“You’ve never told anyone that story but us.” Rarity said.
“Are you sure it’s still not too painful?” Fluttershy asked.
“She needs to know,” Pinkie looked at her friends, an uncharacteristic sadness in her eyes, “It’s all I’ve got. If this doesn’t save her, nothing will.”
It was Pinkie Pie’s freshman year at Canterlot High School. Since the first semester started, she had been eager to make her first high school friends. She made sure she was super helpful to everyone, gave spirited introductions in all of her classes, and tried to strike up a conversation with just about everyone she met. By October, she had memorized the names of all the teachers and staff and at least a hundred students across all four grade levels.
Unfortunately, she didn’t feel she was close enough to call any of them “friend,” yet. Pinkie planned to change that at her first ever high school party, hosted by herself.
The party began smoothly enough. Guests began arriving fashionably late, about ten minutes after the scheduled start time. Just an hour and a half in it was in full swing—Pinkie’s house was swelled to capacity and there wasn’t a soul who wasn’t having fun. Even Pinkie’s parents, who were always welcome at her shindigs, were having a great time. Pinkie was eager to start bonding, and when she spotted a small group of kids leave the party, she chased them down to see what was up.
“Leaving already?” Pinkie asked cheerfully, “We’re just getting started, you know!”
“Sorry, freshie. You’ve got a lot of people here, but we thought this party was gonna be a bit more… hardcore,” one of the kids said.
“Yeah, we’re off to have some real fun,” another added. Pinkie tilted her head,
“Is it the music? I can play whatever you want! Or maybe I can run down to the store and get your favorite snacks!” The kids chuckled and then looked at each other, having a silent conversation.
“You really want to party, don’t you, freshie?” the first kid asked.
“Ya-huh! Partying is like, my life!” Pinkie boasted, puffing her chest out.
“All right, then. You can come with us. Your folks will take care of the bash here, right?” Pinkie felt the tiniest hint of hesitation before accepting, but the prospect of making her first high school friends was too much to pass up. She didn’t know what sort of “real fun” these kids had in mind, but it wasn’t anything Pinkie Pie couldn’t handle.
At least, it wasn’t at first.
Pinkie never did learn the name of those kids. Either that or any one of her stupors over the next few months made her forget. That first night, the students that Pinkie met told her she could increase her fun tenfold if she took a drag from a strange looking cigarette. She was skeptical for all of five seconds—after all, her new friends wouldn’t lie to her, would they? Pinkie coughed as she inhaled the smoke and wondered what was so fun about making her lungs burn.
“It takes a minute to kick in. Don’t worry, we’re gonna get wild real soon,” one of the kids said, taking a deep puff of her own. Pinkie’s view became hazy as they approached the defunct industrial district of the city with many abandoned warehouses. At the same time, though, she felt oddly elated. She felt a smile creep across her face with no joke or quip to warrant it.
“I feel, like, really weird guys, haha…” she chuckled. The kids smiled, pleased that their new recruit had joined the team,
“It’s a good weird, though, right? Nothing better than flyin’ high, Pinkie Pie!”
“Yeah, weird but good. This is awesome!” And for a while it was awesome. For some weeks, actually. Most weekends, and even some schoolnights, Pinkie would bid her parents goodnight (they trusted their daughter) and meet up with the kids. She’d smoke a funny cigarette, and have a supercharged night.
Eventually, the kids stopped inviting Pinkie to go with them. When she asked why, they told her the worst possible thing a party person like her could hear: she had become boring. She was great for a while but high Pinkie had become stale for them. She begged for a way to get in their good graces again.
“Well, none of us are really into it…” one of the kids began, “But we know where we can get something even better than what you’ve been doing before. Show us how fun you are with that, and we’ll party with you again.” Pinkie wholeheartedly obliged. This small group of delinquents were the only ones who would give her the time of day at Canterlot High at this point. This was an enigma that escaped the hyperactive fifteen year old, but she didn’t let it bother her much. As long as her friends liked her, that was okay. And to get her friends to like her, she needed to get harder.
“Ouch! Do I really have to take it this way?” Pinkie winced as one of the kids removed the needle from her elbow vein. A few hours ago, they had gone to a shady district downtown to pick up a dose of what Pinkie had just taken. They holed up at one of the kids’ apartment before heading out on the town for the night.
“Trust me, the pain will be worth it in a second,” she smirked. Just as the girl said, it wasn’t even a minute before Pinkie’s eyes dilated and she sunk into the chair she was sitting in, temporarily limp.
“Ho-o-o-o-o-ly crap!” Pinkie gasped, “Is this what it’s like to know everything?” She suddenly got up and ran to the door.
“Guys. Guys! This door is here! This door is here!” She pawed at it like a cat begging to be let outside. The kids around her snickered, enjoying the show.
“Why is the door here? It’s in my way! Help me move it!” As it turned out, Pinkie did not need help moving the door. Not because she remembered she could open it normally, but because she somehow found the strength to rend the door from its hinges and toss it out of her way.
“Whoa,” one of the kids sat up, wide-eyed, “How did she do that?”
“Pinkie, where are you going?” Another one called after her, as she had bolted out the apartment to goodness-knows-where.
Pinkie Pie’s high lasted for an incredible six hours. In that time, she transitioned from periods of manic unpredictability that saw smashed car windows, raided mailboxes, and arguments with stray dogs, to periods of calm, intense introspection in which Pinkie would simply sit down, rock back and forth, and question the universe.
This was raw entertainment for the delinquents that drugged her. When they weren’t laughing hysterically at the mayhem Pinkie caused, they were filming her, wasting no time putting their videos online for the world to see, without her knowledge.
After winter break, Pinkie would show up to school out of her mind all on her own. The kids who had dragged her into this hell had since abandoned her, but by then getting her next fix was all Pinkie cared about. She had lost herself to the drugs and was more often than not penniless due to her habit. It wasn’t until February that Pinkie got a literally sobering look at what she had become.
Pinkie Pie’s midterms were abysmal. Despite some of the highest grades in her class in the beginning of the year, failing or near-failing scores on all of her mid-year tests officially called her into question with her school counselor and parents.
“Do you know why you’re here?” Miss Cheerilee asked. Pinkie twitched.
“N-no,” the freshman stuttered. She knew she was in the wrong. She knew the drugs she had been taking were bad. She knew her grades were slipping. She couldn’t stop, though. The cravings were just too much.
“Pinkie Pie, almost all of your teachers and several students have expressed concern over your rapidly changing demeanor over the school year so far. When you first started you were bright and bubbly and fun for everyone to be around. Then something changed. You’re here so we can find out what that is so we can help you get back to the Pinkie that’s been a joy for this entire school to have,” Cheerilee said. Pinkie looked down and remained silent.
Igneous Rock, Pinkie’s father, put a hand on his daughter’s shoulder. Pinkie jerked slightly at the touch,
“Baby, we can’t help you if you don’t tell us exactly what’s going on. We’re suspecting that you’re getting into some stuff, but we have to know why so we can get you out of it.” Pinkie would not speak. Cheerilee sighed,
“It looks like I’ll have to show you what I mean. In all of this, you’re lucky you weren’t even arrested. Although, to be honest, I almost wish you had been,” she tapped at her desk’s computer and turned the monitor toward Pinkie and her parents. On the screen was Pinkie, but not as she recognized herself. Clip after clip showed the young high school girl disheveled, gaunt, and disoriented. She remembered almost none of it. Apparently she had trashed stores, yelled at people for no reason, and attempted to mutilate herself on several occasions. Those around her saved her from accidentally killing herself, but only because it meant there was more fun to be had with her later. Their cruel laughter echoed in Pinkie’s mind, and as she saw the her-but-not-her do horrid, horrid things, she began hyperventilating.
This was all over the internet. It was no wonder no one else besides those delinquents wanted to even talk to her. She was just a plaything. She didn’t have any friends. She just had her drugs. And the drugs had her. They would not let go.
There was only one thing that could free her.
As Pinkie Pie ran out of the counselor’s office, past some students changing classes, out the school, and down the street, it all became so clear. From the beginning she had been used. Those kids had no intention of actually becoming friends with her. She was just an experiment—a lab rat. When she was a kid she, too, would often toy with ants “just to see what happened.” She never expected she’d become the target, though. She felt tears streaming down her face as she continued to run, her legs knowing where she was headed but her mind too clouded to stop them. Pinkie tried to remember when she had lost it all. When the funny cigarettes and needles had arrested her brain and made her cease to be the true Pinkamena Diane Pie. But the more she traced her steps, the murkier her memories became. As she surmised that she would never get out of the inescapable nothingness that had become her life, she stopped running and surveyed where her legs had taken her.
And she was just in time for the one o’clock express that would be barreling through this crossing at any moment.
She heard the train’s horn and walked to the tracks like it had called her. The next horn was louder and she smiled. It said “I’m coming, Pinkie.” The next horn was deafening and she spread her arms to embrace death. Then it all went black.
Pinkie Pie wondered when trains began to sound so quiet. There was no blaring horn anymore—no chugging of the wheels on the steel beams. Just regular, soft beeps. And crying.
Hold on, crying?
Pinkie’s eyes shot open. She was alive. A quick survey of her surroundings revealed she was in a hospital room, hooked up to all manner of machines. In one corner of the room sat her mother, Cloudy Quartz, who appeared to have been crying for some time now. She was being consoled by a blonde girl with a cowboy hat in her lap. To Pinkie’s right was another girl sitting in a chair facing towards her. Only her rainbow hair was visible, though, because her head was resting in her hands. Until she looked up, that is.
“You know, you run really fast. I could barely keep up,” were the first words out of her mouth.
“Rainbow Dash, you darn just tackled the girl and broke her arm. Couldn’t you say somethin’ nicer as the first thing she hears after wakin’ up?” The blonde girl turned toward them when she heard Rainbow Dash speak.
“Hey, I told her she’s fast. It’s a compliment, AJ,” Rainbow said. The blonde girl shook her head and sighed,
“Well, a broken arm’s better than a broken… everything, I s’pose. I’m just glad to see you’re up, uh, Pinkie Pie, right?” Pinkie didn’t have a chance to answer because her mother embraced her in a tight hug.
“Oh, my darling Pinkamena! I was so worried! Please don’t leave me! Mommy loves you so much!” No matter how much she had been crying before, the sight of her waking daughter was enough to fuel an entire deluge of new tears of happiness.
It was only now that Pinkie felt odd. It was a good odd, though, and not like the one she had when she first smoked. Aside from a broken arm, Pinkie Pie felt normal for the first time in what seemed like forever. She thought out loud,
“What happened? I remember running from Miss Cheerilee’s office and then…” The girls and her mother became silent looking between themselves and Pinkie. Finally, the girl with the cowboy hat spoke up,
“Sugarcube, you were about two apple pickin’ seconds from bein’ hit by a train. Rainbow Dash here risked her life tacklin’ you out of the way.”
“I know you might have wanted to die,” Rainbow’s mention of that three letter word made Cloudy Quartz wince, “but that wasn’t the real you in control. Trust me, I’ve seen how the stuff you’ve been taking can mess a person up, and I wasn’t gonna let that happen right in front of me.”
“You should have talked to someone, Pinkie. The teachers, your friends… don’t you have any friends?” Cloudy Quartz asked her daughter. In fact, that was the first time she had ever needed to ask that. Normally, she had no shortage of friends. The Pie household always had some new face show up just about every week.
“I thought I did,” Pinkie admitted, “But they were just using me for entertainment. By the time I figured it out, well… here I am.”
“Well, you’ve got friends now. We’ll stick by you, Pinkie Pie. Right, Applejack?” Rainbow Dash put a hand on one of Pinkie’s shoulders. Applejack manned the other one,
“Darn tootin’ we will. The truth is, we were meanin’ to hang out with you more a lot earlier, but with RD on all the sports teams and me workin’ on my family’s farm so much, we didn’t have much time to seek you out. I really wish we didn’t have to come together this way.” Pinkie took hold of the hands on her shoulder and held them close to her chest. She was sobbing.
“Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She repeated that over and over for at least a minute, clutching her new friends’ hands tighter and tighter. It started to hurt them, but they didn’t pull away.
“Tell you what,” Rainbow Dash said, “How about we throw you a party to celebrate, uh…” she paused. To celebrate Pinkie not dying? To celebrate Pinkie’s arm getting broken? No matter how she thought about it, Rainbow couldn’t come up with a tasteful way to say “good thing your suicide attempt failed.” Luckily, Applejack had the answer,
“To celebrate new friends. I know a girl who’d love to plan it. She’s a bit uptight, but I’m sure you’ll get along just fine.”
“And I’ll invite Fluttershy. I met her earlier this year, and she could use some more school pals besides me,” Rainbow Dash added. For Pinkie’s sake, they kept it just those five girls and Pinkie’s parents, but it was the most fun Pinkie had ever had in her life.
“Do you see, Adagio? I came back from the brink—from absolute zero because people cared. They didn’t even know me back then! If you still want power… imagine the power you can have with friends by your side.” Pinkie looked to Sonata Dusk, prompting Adagio Dazzle to do the same.
“Look at Sonata. Right now she and Aria Blaze are the strongest girls in the world because of the love they feel for you. You three can really be something great if you just come down and hug them again. Maybe you won’t run the world or a country or even a school, but when Sonata came to us, all of that was the last thing on her mind. She wasn’t worried about her magic or her singing. She was just worried about you. That’s got to be worth something.” Such a monologue was uncharacteristic of Pinkie, but having heard her story they understood where it was coming from.
And then, save for the droning hum of the magic orb around Adagio, all was silent. Adagio had stopped singing. Aria Blaze noticed this, looked up, and ran to the side of the orb Adagio was facing and the other girls were on.
“She… she stopped,” Aria gasped, “We did it! Thank goodness, we did it!” The others relaxed and breathed huge, audible sighs of relief. Sonata and Aria broke down bawling.
Unfortunately, they had assumed too soon. Adagio stared fondly at her fellow sirens,
“I’ll go knowing you two are in good hands. Goodbye.”
“DAGI, NO!” Sonata’s scream was drowned out by the explosion of the magic bubble. Now, not the area around her, but Adagio Dazzle herself was awash in a golden light that was slowly getting brighter. She was floating, and pulled her arms to her chest before addressing the girls before her.
“I guess it’s time for me to apologize.” Adagio had the slightest hint of the condescending tone Sunset Shimmer and her friends were used to, but in these circumstances, it didn’t sound intentional. “Sonata, Aria. Listen to me. Not every siren gives their life at the right time. I’m sure that’s why you’ve tried so hard to stop me from singing, and why you’ve enlisted the help of these girls. You have to know, though: I’m doing this for you.”
“For us?” Aria spoke for the first time since Sonata and the other girls arrived, “How could you dying possibly be for us?”
“Do you remember why we tried to take over Canterlot High? We were starving for magic, and creating disharmony among those students was the best way we could feed ourselves. It may not have been right, but it was what we had to do to survive. Now, without that source of magic, I knew it was only a matter of time before we ran out of magic again—this time, completely,” Adagio explained. Sonata was not placated,
“But you didn’t have to do this! These girls have taught me that friendship is the greatest source of magic there is! It can create magic where there isn’t any! I’m sure if we could foster that between the three of us—”
“I know the power of friendship,” Adagio cut her off, “But I learned it too late. Had I found your new friends before all this… had I not been so desperate to save the three of us… We could have had a lot of new friends.” She smiled at the retrospect, but was crying at its futility.
“Sonata, Aria, there is something you must know about a swan song. When it is over, all the life experiences of the siren singing it become pure magic, and that magic spreads out into the world. Most importantly, though, it first goes to the ones that siren holds most dear.” Adagio floated down and hugged Sonata Dusk and Aria Blaze with glowing golden arms that were beginning to fade and become translucent at the fingertips.
“After I’m gone you’ll have enough magic to live off of while you build new friendships with Sunset Shimmer and her friends. Your songs will become more beautiful, and your voices will be stronger. You have to sing for me until it is time for you to sing your own swan songs. Hopefully they will not be as soon as mine was.” Adagio took Sonata and Aria’s faces in her ethereal hands and kissed them both. “I love you,” she said.
With that, she once again floated up and spread her arms. Her body glowed brighter and brighter as it faded from the extremities inward. The last part of her to lose form was an orb of pure golden magic from her center that first let out several powerful concentric waves of magic before splitting into two and imbuing themselves into the chests of the remaining living sirens.
Adagio Dazzle was dead.
The brilliant display of the swan song’s finale had masked the setting of the sun. Sparse moonlight mellowed by the light of the nearby city was the only thing illuminating the abandoned apartment. A single moonbeam seemed to call to where Adagio once stood. Sonata Dusk and Aria Blaze held each other, their sobs now soft but constant. Their friend’s life and memories now swam through their minds.
Sunset Shimmer and the others had watched the spectacle after Pinkie Pie’s story in stunned silence. Their faces, either locked on the two sirens huddled before them or nothing in particular, took a while to sober to the current situation.
“Come on, y’all,” Applejack got up, “I reckon these two need some time alone.” Sunset grabbed her arm gently,
“No. It’s just the opposite. They need us now more than ever.”
The remainder of the school year passed. It was now graduation day.
Principal Celestia took the podium after delivering the last diploma to the year’s graduating class. Six girls were not paying attention to her speech, though, as they were preparing the ceremony’s two special guests for their appearance.
“Are you sure we’ll be all right out there?” Sonata Dusk asked.
“We weren’t exactly going for motivation last time we got on a stage,” Aria Blaze added.
“You’ll be fine, darlings. Like we said, we’ve spent the last parts of the school year talking you up among students and teachers. After all, Principal Celestia wouldn’t have let you on if she wasn’t convinced of your good character,” Rarity assured the two sirens. From the other side of the curtain, the principal’s voice could be heard:
“And now, to close this year’s Canterlot High Graduation, a final word and a song from a couple, um, former students who would like to tell you about moving on.” Sonata and Aria walked to the podium side by side to near total silence.
“Um, hello,” Sonata said a bit too close to the microphone. The feedback reverberated for a few seconds. “We know we’re probably the last people you’d expect to show up here, much less give a speech at your graduation ceremony, but we, like you, are at a point in our lives where we are unsure of ourselves. We are putting a lot behind us, and the road ahead is big and long and really scary.”
“As you might notice,” Aria took over, “There are two of us up here. Not long ago we were three, but recently we… lost our friend, whom we loved dearly. After she passed, Sonata and I were at a loss as to what to do with our lives and where to go. We’ve never been in a place so dark, or so unsure, and we know many of you are in positions like that as well. You may not have lost anyone, but the lessons the two of us have learned should ring true for you just as much.” She passed the microphone back to Sonata.
“Aria and I struggled for five long days in an attempt to save our friend. During that time I went on a journey, the beginning of which some of you may have seen when I ran into your cafeteria earlier this school year. I was taken through the lives of some very dear friends of mine, all of whom could have easily ceased their stories where they were when times were hardest or when it seems they had lost it all. But through their trials and tribulations they triumphed and emerged on the other side of all their hardships, all their sadness, and all their efforts stronger than ever ready to weather whatever the future had in store for them. For all of them, they found that strength through friendship.”
“Our friend Adagio Dazzle knew that we had to have that same strength to carry on. She impassioned us to live like, no, alongside our new friends. With them by our side there is no sadness that can keep us down forever. Friendship is the greatest magic. It endures longer than any spell or curse can. For you who are about to enter a harsh world, know your friends and keep them. Treasure them. When you are unsure of your life, they will help guide you. When you are in danger, they will save you. When you think you’ve lost everything, know that you always have your true friends,” Aria’s voice grew as she spoke.
“So, to celebrate friendship; to celebrate making it here with the help of your friends, please rise and listen to our song inspired by our friends, both old and new.” The audience rose as the music began.
This world will never be what I expected And if I don’t belong, who would have guessed it? I will not leave alone Everything that I own To make you feel like it’s not too late It’s never too late…
Following the song the students and audience remained standing to deliver a standing ovation. The sirens bowed and were joined by Sunset Shimmer and the others, who all embraced.
Pinkie Pie, the valedictorian, ran up to the microphone.
“Canterlot High School seniors, you may now turn your tassels and consider yourselves graduated! They said not to throw your hats but we’re gonna do it anyway! Whee!”
And for Sonata Dusk and Aria Blaze, all was well. They would carry on the memory of Adagio Dazzle in her swan song.