> Reformation Buddies
>  by Metool Bard
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue: Empathic Desires
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"All books present and accounted for: Check.  Friends informed about the situation: Check.  Do Not Disturb sign on door..."

Twilight Sparkle went down her checklist one more time as she surveyed her brand new library.  She had just received the last of her new books from Princess Celestia, and the entire collection was neatly placed on towering bookshelves that stretched all around the room.  In fact, if it wasn't from a few desks, tables, and a makeshift mirror portal in the center of the room, the entire area would've been nothing but books.  To Twilight, there was always a sort of magic to a new library, and the one in her brand new castle was no exception.  But since this library belonged to her, there was something special she had to do alone.

"Alright, everything seems to be in order," she said with a content nod.  She closed the door behind her, put away her checklist, and took in a deep breath. "It's time to put this new library through its paces.  No distractions; no crazy adventures; no emergencies.  Just me, these books, and the most sacred of library traditions: Re-Shelving Day!"

She sat down on the smooth crystalline floor and cast a simple spell.  In an instant, each and every tome in the room floated off of the shelves and fell to the floor in several heaps.  Twilight cast another spell, and the books sprang back into the air, levitating within the glow of her magenta aura.  Systematically, they floated around the entire room like a group of soldiers marching in lockstep.  As they did so, individual books were drawn from their route and hovered in front of Twilight's face, allowing her to observe their titles carefully.

"Let's see now," she mused, looking at each book in turn. "Bellerophon and the Chimera goes into Pony History.  Slumber 101: All You've Ever Wanted to Know About Slumber Parties But Were Afraid to Ask?  That's self-help.  My new Daring Do collection from Mom..."  She paused. "Well, Daring Do is an actual pony, but these books are published as fiction.  I'll just reserve this shelf over here for Genre Limbo.  Now then, alchemy goes here, Discord book goes there, necromancy—"

A sudden realization broke her concentration, and all of the books that weren't shelved yet fell back to the floor with a series of thumps.

"Wait a minute.  Discord book?" she pondered aloud.

She took another look at the tome in question.  It was a very odd-looking book with a tan cover and no title to speak of.  It was simply a molded version of a horse's head with bushy eyebrow, closed eyes, a fang, and a long goatee.  Even more curious, a deer's antler and a goat's horn grew out of the top of the book.  Twilight stared blankly at the odd book before breathing out a small snicker and rolling her eyes.

"You seem to be losing your touch, Discord," she told the book. "I know what happens next.  When I open this book, the pages are gonna go wild, and you're gonna pop out.  Just get it over wi—"

She trailed off as something that felt like a soft pompom tapped her shoulder.  When she turned around, she gasped and dropped the book to the floor.  Standing behind her was none other than Discord himself, giving Twilight the hi sign with his lion paw.

"You were saying about me losing my touch?" he said slyly.

Twilight chuckled despite herself. "Okay, okay.  You got me," she said.  She then took a deep breath and sobered up. "So, what're you doing here?"

"Just wanted to drop by and say hello," said Discord, taking a look around the room. "How're you liking your new accommodations, Twilight?"

Twilight shrugged as she started cleaning up the books on the floor. "It's okay, I guess.  I still have a few reservations about this place, but otherwise, I'm just taking things one step at a time."

"Hmm.  I suppose this is quite an adjustment for you, isn't it?" said Discord solemnly, twirling his goatee around his finger. "Still, for being my complete opposite, that Tree of Harmony does have good taste in interior design."

"I guess that's true," said Twilight, still concentrating on her work. "At least, that's what Rarity's been telling me constantly.  The way she's been talking about it, you'd think that she was the one living here."

"Well, who can blame her?  It is a nice castle," said Discord absently. "Although I can't say I'm too happy with the throne room's aesthetics.  It lacks a certain, je ne sais quoi, know what I mean?"

Twilight turned to Discord and gave him a knowing smirk. "You're still upset about not getting your own throne, aren't you?"

"No, not upset.  Merely, disappointed," Discord sighed. "Disappointed in myself, that is.  I understand why the Tree didn't give me my own throne, and I completely accept that.  But in response to this development, I've dedicated my time to becoming a better friend so that one day, I will have my own throne."

Twilight blinked. "Oh.  Um, that's, interesting."

"Indeed," said Discord. "Which is why I need your help with something."

He then snapped his fingers.  In a flash of light, Twilight found herself holding a notepad and quill in her magic while wearing a pair of reading glasses.  Looking up from the notepad, she noticed that Discord was stretched out on a red psychiatrist couch that wasn't there before.  Twilight frowned.

"Well, I was kinda busy when you just decided to barge in, and we might need to have a talk about that," she said. "However, I suppose I could spare a few moments for a friend."

Discord smiled. "I knew you'd say that.  Thank you," he said, clearing his throat. "Now, let me just start by saying that I consider you to be a great friend.  I wouldn't exactly be coming to you for advice if I didn't.  And it's not just you, of course.  There's also Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie and all the rest.  Heck, even Princess Persnickety has been growing on me these past few days."

"You mean Celestia," said Twilight, raising an eyebrow.

"Whatever," said Discord with a wave of his paw. "The point remains that despite some of my more *ahem* questionable actions, I feel that you are all the best friends I could ask for."

Twilight nodded and scribbled some notes into her notepad. "I'm glad you think that, Discord.  Actually, Fluttershy has been telling me that everypony has been more accepting of you ever since you discovered the true value of friendship and helped us defeat Tirek, so I think it's safe to say that we feel the same way about you.  More or less, anyway."

"And I'm very grateful for that, Twilight," Discord said with a bow.  He then sighed. "Lately, however, I've been pining for something.  Something that I'm not sure my current circle of friends can give me."

Twilight looked up and adjusted her glasses. "What's that?"

Discord's brow crinkled as he stroked his chin. "Well, how do I put this?  I sometimes have the feeling that you ponies don't fully understand me.  And what I mean by that is, well, there's only so many times I can just share bits of gossip with Fluttershy or brainstorm Fourth Wall Theater Troupe performances with Pinkie Pie.  I want to talk to someone who's struggling with the same things I'm struggling with.  Someone who's seen what I've seen; been where I've been; done what I've done.  Are you getting all this?"

"Of course," said Twilight automatically, scribbling furiously as a distinct twinkle flashed in her eyes. "Please, continue."

Discord nodded and cleared his throat. "Anyway, the sad truth of the matter is that I don't know anyone who meets that criteria.  Out of all my friends, none of them have fought against friendship and harmony for so long only to embrace it in the end.  No one knows what it's like to be bent on conquering this world, face defeat, and then be given a second chance."

"Well, what about Princess Luna?" Twilight inquired.

Discord shrugged and made a wishy-washy motion with his eagle talon. "I kind of see what you're getting at, but I must disagree.  Lunatic is great and all, and in a sense, she has come the closest to understanding my plight.  We actually play croquet every Sunday night in my dreams using hedgehogs as balls and flamingos as mallets, but don't tell Fluttershy about it.  You know how she gets about animals."

"Mum's the word," said Twilight with a nod. "So, have you talked about these feelings with her at all?"

"I have, and she actually suggested the same thing," said Discord. "But I'm afraid I have to tell you the same thing I told her.  She knew about friendship and how valuable it was long before she turned into Nightmare Moon.  All of this friendship business is relatively new to me, especially considering that I've spent so many eons opposing it.  I can't think of a single pony off the top of my head who can truly comprehend what I'm going through."

"I see," said Twilight, thoughtfully tapping her muzzle. "So you're looking for somepony who can properly empathize with you."

"I, guess that's the proper word for it," said Discord with a shrug.

Twilight knitted her brow. "Well, first of all, I just have to say that I think it's wonderful that you're starting to take friendship seriously.  This probably is the first time you actually came to me or anypony else with legitimate concerns like this, and I'm glad you're taking that step.  However, there is a time and place for this sort of thing, and unfortunately, I'm a bit busy right now.  I still need to see if this new library can hold up to Re-Shelving Day like Golden Oak did before it."

Discord's expression drooped. "So, you don't want to help me."

"No, that's not it," said Twilight, shaking her head. "I'd love to help you, Discord.  I just can't help you right this second.  You're just going to have to be a bit patient and—"

Suddenly, a strange buzzing sound interrupted her train of thought.  Looking towards the direction of the buzzing, she saw that one of the books on the floor was vibrating and generating a strange pink aura.  Discord swallowed.

"Um, just FYI, that isn't me," he said.

Twilight walked over to the pile and lifted up the glowing tome with her magic.  She then smiled and laughed.

"Oh, don't worry about it, Discord," she said. "This book's supposed to do that."

Discord tilted his head. "It is?" he asked, floating over to Twilight and peering over her shoulder. "What kind of book is it?"

"It's a special magic book I got from Celestia," Twilight explained. "See, there's another book connected to this one, and whenever something is written in one of them, it automatically appears in the other.  That's why it was glowing like this.  It just means I got a message."

"Ah, so you have a pen pal," said Discord, intrigued by this new development. "Anypony I know?"

Twilight gave Discord a concerned look. "Um, I'd appreciate it if you didn't read over my shoulder like that.  These letters are kind of, personal."

"Oh, sorry," said Discord, giving Twilight some space. "But you can tell me who it is, right?"

"Hmm," Twilight hummed, stroking her chin and furrowing her brow.  After a pause, she shrugged. "I suppose there wouldn't be much harm in it.  Just promise me you won't end up reading this book behind my back, okay?"

With a snap of his fingers, Discord donned a Pony Scout costume and saluted. "Scout's honor, Princess of Friendship," he stated.

"Right.  I'm holding you to that," said Twilight firmly.  She then cleared her throat. "Anyway, the other book belongs to Sunset Shimmer."

The hat part of the Pony Scout uniform suddenly turned into a ticking alarm clock as Discord stroked his goatee. "Hmm, Sunset Shimmer, Sunset Shimmer.  Where have I heard that name before?" he mused.  After a few ticks, the alarm clock started ringing, and Discord snapped his fingers. "Oh, yeah!  Now I remember.  She stole your crown at your first Royal Summit in the Crystal Empire, didn't she?"

"Yes, she did," said Twilight with a small sigh. "That was back when we still had the Elements of Harmony.  She planned on using the Element of Magic to create an army of drones and use them to conquer Equestria."

"And you traveled to the world of humans to stop her, yes I know that part," said Discord thoughtfully. "However, I think there's a part of this story I'm missing.  Why would she be sending you letters?"

"Oh, well, that's easy," said Twilight. "After she was defeated, she actually wanted to change her ways and become a better person.  It's a bit of a long story, but the long and short of it is that she's now my friendship student, just like I was Celestia's."

"You don't say," said Discord, brushing his goatee with his talon. "That's actually quite..."

He trailed off mid-sentence, and his expression brightened.

"What is it, Discord?" asked Twilight.

"Let me see if I have this straight," said Discord listing off each item on his fingers. "She wanted to conquer Equestria, she was defeated by you and your friends, she turned herself around, and she's learning about friendship."

"Um, yeah.  That about sums it up," said Twilight.

Discord squinted and began stroking his chin again. "There's someone else I know who's like that.  Very much like that, actually.  And I think this someone would very much like to meet Sunset Shimmer and get to know her better.  Pity I can't remember his name, though.  Mmm, it's on the tip of my tongue..."

As he said that, his forked tongue lolled out.  A miniature Discord was tap-dancing on one of the prongs, holding a large neon sign that said "It's me!  Duh!"  Twilight deadpanned at the odd display.

"Discord, I know where you're going with this..." she said.

"Hoo boy," Discord sighed, casting his gaze upward.

"...and honestly, that's not a bad idea."

Discord did a double take. "Wait, it's not?"

Twilight smiled. "You're right, Discord.  You and Sunset Shimmer have many things in common.  Actually, she's just as new to friendship as you are, so having a friend who relates to her struggles would be just as good for her as it is for you."

Discord stared blankly at Twilight. "I thought for sure you were going to shoot me down on this one."

"Why would I?  I think seeking out friendships like this is a good thing, especially for someone like you," said Twilight earnestly. "In fact, I'm proud of you for coming up with this idea on your own.  Even if you are pursing friendship for the wrong reasons."

Discord's eyes watered, and he smiled. "Th-that just might be the nicest thing you ever said to me.  Th-thank you, Twilight."

Twilight flew up to Discord and gave him a friendly pat on the back. "I meant every word of it," said she.

Discord nodded and dries his eyes with his snake tail. "Well, I know now what I must do."

He then snapped his fingers and summoned a pair of empty suitcases.  Twilight arched an eyebrow.

"Um, what are those for?" she asked.

"Why, I'm packing, of course," said Discord in a matter-of-fact tone. "I'm not going to become Sunset Shimmer's friend just by standing around here, now am I?"

Twilight's eyes went wide. "Wait, you're going now?!"

"Well, there's no time like the present!" said Discord happily.  As he spoke, he tore through a floating dresser and began filling the suitcases with random articles of clothing. "Besides, I could use a vacation from Equestria, and what better way to spend it than to make a new friend?"

"Yes, but—"

"Just picture it, Twilight," interrupted Discord, placing his lion arm around Twilight's shoulder. "Someone out in this world who finally gets me.  Someone who will help me grow into a better draconequus.  Someone who can help me earn my own throne in this wonderful castle of yours!"

"W-well, those are all good things.  However—"

But Discord didn't seem to be listening.  He was too wrapped up in his glee. "I'm very glad we had this talk, Twilight.  My mind feels so much clearer now.  I knew I could count on you to have the right answer."

"Yes, well, thanks.  But see, there's something I have to—"

"Up bup bup!  You've helped me enough, Twilight.  And for that, I'm grateful," said Discord with a bow. "Nevertheless, I want to try this on my own.  It's high time I gave myself a friendship test."

"Again, that's very noble of you, but—"

"No time for buts, Twilight!  I'm off!  I'll be sure to send you a postcard once Sunset and I are the best of pals!  Bon voyage!"

"Discord, wait!  Sunset—"

She got no further.  A large cruise liner appeared in the middle of the room, and Discord had boarded it.  He blew Twilight a kiss and tossed a necklace of flowers around her neck before the whole thing disappeared in a flash of light.

"...Shimmer doesn't, know that you're, reformed," Twilight muttered, punctuating her thought with a great sigh. "Ugh, you could've at least waited for me to send a message to her."

She sighed again. "Well, it's too late for that now.  And I'm pretty sure Discord would get mad at me if I went through the portal myself and tried to interfere.  I don't like it, but I think my Canterlot High friends are gonna have to tackle this crisis on their own.  But as long as Discord behaves himself, that shouldn't be too difficult.  Besides, Sunset's a smart girl.  She doesn't need my help to figure things out."

She then swallowed. "I hope..."
> Siren Split
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Adagio Dazzle grumbled and groaned to herself as she tromped up the stairs of the run-down apartment building where she lived.  Today had been a bad day for her, just like the day before and the day before that.  Seven hours at school, an hour more in detention for trying to take over the world, and the rest of the afternoon working at a diner she didn't even like.  She was still wearing her blue waitress uniform, which was decorated with grease stains and smudges.  Letting out a frustrated sigh, she marched up to the door leading to her apartment and unlocked it.

Inside, nothing had changed.  Dirty clothes of varying shapes and sizes decorated the floor and furniture, as well as empty takeout boxes, instant noodle cups, and a fine layer of dust.  As she walked in, the floor made a distinct creaking sound with every step she took.  She also swore she saw some sort of vermin skittering under the destroyed chunk of upholstery that was once a couch, but it was too fast to make out what it was.  And of course, at the far end of the room, a single television set was bathing the poorly-lit room in its alluring glow.  Sitting in front of the television were none other than Adagio's cohorts, Sonata Dusk and Aria Blaze.  They both sat cross-legged on a filthy mattress, their eyes glued to the screen as Aria mashed the buttons on her video game controller.

"Quick!  Jump over the water!  Jump over the water!" Sonata chanted.

"What do you think I'm trying to do?!" Aria growled.

Adagio scowled and folded her arms. "I'm glad to see that you two have decided to make productive use of your time," she said sardonically.

"Hello to you too, Adagio," said Aria, giving Adagio a sideways glance. "Oh, and pardon us for wanting to crash and unwind after a long day."

"Yeah, pardon us," Sonata parroted, blowing a raspberry at Adagio. "You're just mad 'cause you suck at this game."  In a split second, she turned her attention back to the screen. "Aria, what're you doing?!  Jump over the water!"

Aria's knuckles slowly turned white as she gripped the controller. "Sonata, if you don't stop back-seat gaming me, I'm not gonna let you have a turn."

"What?!  No fair!" Sonata whined. "Adagio~!  Aria won't let me have a turn~!"

Adagio pinched the bridge of her nose. "Ugh, at least tell me you two have something interesting to report about the Rainbooms this time."

"Oh, not this again," Aria griped. "That's all you've been talking about all week, Adagio!  We're not against getting revenge on those guys; we wouldn't have agreed to stay at that stupid school if we were.  But for the love of Pete, can't we go just one night without talking about them?!"

Adagio gave her partners a bemused look. "You didn't find out anything, did you?"

Aria shrugged. "You said it, not me."

"But, yeah.  We didn't find much," said Sonata as she sheepishly twiddled her fingers.  This prompted Aria to shoot Sonata a dirty look, and Sonata blinked in confusion. "What?  What?!"

Adagio sighed. "You two are useless."

"Hey, your little scheme just so happens to be easier said than done," Aria protested. "We're not even in all the same classes as those guys; you know that!  We've all been busting our chops trying to get some dirt on those Rainblossoms!"

"Rainbooms," Adagio corrected.

"Whatever," said Aria dismissively. "The point is that we might not have much to use against them, but it's not for a lack of trying."

Adagio crossed her arms and pursed her lips. "Sounds to me like you're just making excuses for your lack of results.  Again."

"Well, we had tough days, too!" Sonata snapped. "Aria had to put up with those FlimFlam bozos, and my boss hates me!"

"That's because you keep trying to eat your customers' orders, Sonata," Aria sighed. "I knew getting you a job at that taco place was a bad idea."

"Well, at least I don't have to dress up like a banana all afternoon!" Sonata retorted.

Aria's eye twitched. "I thought we agreed never to speak about that, Sonata."

Adagio pressed the tips of her fingers into her forehead. "It's come to my attention that you two don't realize what's at stake here."

"Here we go," said Aria, rolling her eyes.

"Don't 'here we go' me!  This is serious!" Adagio screamed, flailing her arms about as she paced around the room. "Ever since the Battle of the Bands, our lives have been completely ruined!  Those blasted Rainbooms destroyed our pendants, and without them, we can't use magic!  Gone are the days where we can just sing and get whatever we want!  Now we've been degraded to common peasants trying to make ends meet like the rest of those pathetic humans!  We work ourselves to the bone every afternoon just to keep this leaky roof over our heads and food on our table!  It's humiliating!"

As Adagio continued to rant and rave, Aria mimicked her using her hand as a puppet.  Sonata giggled once or twice at Aria's act, but sobered up when Adagio turned in their direction.  At a pause in the tirade, Aria interrupted.

"Are you done preaching to the choir yet?" she asked. "This isn't exactly stuff we don't already know.  We don't need a reminder every single freaking night."

"Maybe I wouldn't have to remind you so much if you actually had something to show for all this hard work you claim to do," Adagio countered.

"Again, it's not for a lack of trying!" Aria barked back, taking her eyes off the game and glaring daggers at Adagio. "You're at that school with us; you know this spy stuff's hard!  Why do you always blame us when things go wrong, huh?!  Why don't you ever admit that maybe it's—"

A splash followed by a sad-sounding jingle interrupted Aria's train of thought.  She turned back to the screen to see that in her moment of distraction, she accidentally lost a life.

"My turn!" Sonata chirped, pawing for the controller.

"H-hey, that doesn't count!" Aria protested, pulling the controller out of Sonata's reach. "Adagio was distracting me!"

"You should've pressed pause then," Sonata retorted.

Aria sputtered and spat, unable to form a rebuttal.  Begrudgingly, she relinquished the controller. "You're the worst, Sonata," she grumbled.

"I know you are, but what am I?" said Sonata smugly.

"Ooh, nice comeback," Aria said sarcastically. "It took you what, five seconds to think that one up?"

"No, it took me three!" Sonata boasted.

Aria opened her mouth to respond, but she couldn't think of anything to say.  Adagio simply shook her head and clicked her tongue.

"Honestly, I don't know what to do with you two sometimes," she sighed. "I really wish you'd get your acts together and—"

Just then, a bright flash of light blinded all of the Sirens for a brief moment.  When their vision returned, none of them could believe their eyes.  Floating before them was a strange creature that appeared to be a mismatch of a variety of different animals.  A deer's antler; a lion's paw; a bat's wing; a lizard's foot; a snake's tail.  It was a creature all of Equestria knew and feared, and it was standing right in their living room.

"Hmm.  This can't be right," Discord mused. "Surely, she wouldn't live in a dump like this."

The Sirens were speechless.  None of them could even blink.  Apparently oblivious to their presence, Discord took out and upside-down map and began reading it over.

"Okay, let's see here," he said. "I took a left at that dimension, a right at the dimension with the good King Sombra...  Hmm, no, I seem to be in the right neighborhood.  Maybe I should ask one of the locals."

He then put away his map and floated down to Adagio. "Excuse me, miss.  Do you happen to know where Sunset Shimmer lives?"

Adagio tried to respond, but any words she wanted to say were stuck in her throat.  She simply stared back at Discord, her mouth agape.

"Ooookay, I'll take that as a 'no,'" said Discord with a frown. "Oh well, only one thing for it, then."  He then closed his eyes. "There's no place like Sunset Shimmer's home."

He clicked his heels three times, and in another flash of light, he was gone.  The Sirens looked at each other in awkward silence.

"Um, did all of you just see that, or was it just me?" asked Aria, breaking the silence.

"N-no, I saw it," Sonata said with a shiver.

"I did as well," Adagio concurred. "I honestly thought he was supposed to be trapped in stone."

"I guess he got out somehow," said Aria with a shrug.

"It appears so," said Adagio.  Suddenly, a sinister gleam appeared in her eyes, and her lips curled into an evil smile. "Wait a minute, girls.  If Discord's here, do you know what that means?"

"Up is down, black is white, and children are all spaghetti?" whimpered Sonata.

Aria shrugged again. "Equestria's screwed and this place is next?"

Adagio deadpanned. "I was thinking more along the lines of how it affects us."

Aria tilted her head. "Huh?"

Adagio smacked her forehead. "Don't you see?  Discord obviously has plans for this world.  If we can get in on those plans and help him out, he can give us our magic back, and together, we'll teach those Rainbooms a lesson they'll never forget!"

Sonata gulped. "Um, Adagio?  A-are you sure that's a good idea?"

Adagio turned to Sonata and raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, this is Discord we're talking about, right?  As in the Discord?  The biggest and baddest tyrant who ever lived?  I mean, I know I'm not exactly the sharpest lightbulb in the crayon box..."

"That's an understatement," said Aria, rolling her eyes.

"...but I know enough to know that Discord is, like, super bad," Sonata concluded, pouting her lips and giving Aria the evil eye.

Aria sighed. "Sonata, we're not exactly paragons of virtue ourselves."

"Yeah, but all we wanted to do was have everyone adore us," said Sonata. "Discord would make it so that we'd have to walk on our elbows and play the piano with our ears, just for yuks!"

"Sonata, you don't even play the piano."

"No, but he'd force me to!" Sonata shrieked. "This is bad, bad, bad!  No one should think that Discord is a good thing, Adagio!  No one!"

Adagio scoffed. "Well well.  It looks like you don't want your powers back as badly as we do," she said with a sneer. "In the meantime, Aria and I will—"

"Um, actually, as much as Sonata is acting like a total baby right now, I'm gonna pass on this one too, Adagio," Aria interrupted.

Adagio blinked. "Wait, what?!"

"Hey, I want my powers back just as badly as you do," said Aria. "But I'm not gonna turn myself into Discord's personal plaything in order to get them.  I only have so much dignity left!"

"Says the girl who dresses in a banana costume," Adagio whispered under her breath.

"I heard that!" Aria snapped.

"Look, we wouldn't become Discord's playthings," said Adagio. "We'd become his partners."

Aria folded her arms. "His partners?  Really, Adagio?  Have you paid attention to any of the stories about Discord?  He doesn't need partners.  He can do whatever he wants with a mere thought.  He has no use for anyone, let alone three washed-up sea ponies with no magic to do his bidding."

"Doesn't he?" said Adagio with a sly smile. "I seem to remember that it was the Elements of Harmony that turned him to stone.  I'll bet you anything that was the same Equestrian magic the Rainbooms used to defeat us."

"So what if it is?"

"Well, if we can distract the Rainbooms and split them up somehow, it'll be one less thing for Discord to worry about when he takes over!"'

Aria arched an eyebrow. "So, basically, we're just going to keep doing what we've originally been doing for the past week.  If that's the case, I'm sure Discord would have nothing but praise for our progress so far.  Seriously, aren't you supposed to be the smart one?"

Adagio clenched her fists and stomped her foot in anger. "You know what?  Fine!  If you two are gonna be like that, I'll just do this on my own!  And when I rule this pathetic little world as Discord's queen, I'll get in both of your faces and laugh!  You just wait!"

With that, she marched out of the apartment in a huff and slammed the door.  There was a pregnant pause that was broken by Sonata.

"Shouldn't we go after her?" she asked.

"We could, but that would require me to care," said Aria, scooping up the video game controller.

"So, that's a no then?"

Aria sighed. "Yes, Sonata."

"Yes that's a no, or yes we're going after—"

"Yes that's a no."

"Okay," Sonata sighed, falling to her knees and casing the mattress to bounce a little.

"I don't know what you're so worked up about," said Aria. "Discord's gonna take over this world, so what?  It's not as though we like this world.  You said it yourself; this place is the worst."

"Well, yeah.  It is," said Sonata. "But do you want Discord to make it worse than the worst?"

Aria palmed her face. "Sonata, that makes no sense."

"Exactly!  That's what makes Discord so evil!" Sonata exclaimed. "We can't let him do this, Aria!  We just can't!"

"Oh, quit being such a drama queen," said Aria. "I mean, heaven forbid we actually have some excitement in our lives.  Discord can take this world to Tartarus in a tote bag for all I care.  Doesn't bother me one iota.  Heck, I know I'm gonna be laughing when he completely and utterly trounces the Rainblossoms."

Sonata pouted. "Yeah, you just try saying that when a ham sandwich grows out of your left pigtail and starts driving you around like a choo-choo train."

Aria gave Sonata a quizzical look. "That's, oddly specific."

"I have weird dreams," Sonata replied.

Aria let out an exasperated sigh. "Well, take that up with the school counselor, not me."

All was quiet for a time as Sonata picked at a tear in the mattress while Aria continued playing her video game.  Finally, she perked up.

"Hey, Aria!  I just got an idea!" she cheered.

"It's gonna be stupid, I can tell," said Aria, not even looking up from her game.

"Hey!" exclaimed Sonata, sounding rather insulted. "That's not nice!  At least hear me out first!"

Aria sighed and hit the pause button. "Alright, fine.  I'm paying attention.  What's this idea of yours?"

"Why don't we go warn the Rainbooms about Discord before he starts his evil plan?"

Aria deadpanned. "Yeah, I'm sticking with my first reaction.  That's stupid."

"But you heard Adagio!  The Rainbooms can stop Discord with their Equestrian magic!  We need them!" Sonata insisted.

"Did you take more stupid pills for breakfast than normal or something?" Aria scolded. "The Rainblossoms are our enemy, Sonata!  They're the reason why we don't have magic anymore!  I'm not gonna forgive them for that!"

"Well, I'm not saying we forgive them," said Sonata meekly. "I just think that getting rid of Discord is more important."

"It really isn't, Sonata," said Aria. "You're just overreacting because you're afraid of him.  Besides, those guys aren't gonna believe you, anyway.  I'm sure they hate us as much as we hate them.  They'd be stupid to trust anything we say after what we did."

"B-but this is Discord we're talking about!  We have to warn someone!" Sonata insisted.

"No, we don't," said Aria. "Again, no one's gonna listen to you.  After the Rainblossoms destroyed our magic, our names officially changed from the Dazzlings to mud.  The whole school hates us.  Everyone hates us."

"T-that's not true," Sonata whimpered, casting her gaze downward. "I don't hate us."

Aria gave Sonata a sideways glance.  She noticed the tears forming in her eyes and bit her lip.  After a pause, she sighed.

"You know what, Sonata?  If you really want to talk to the Rainblossoms or whatever they're called, go right ahead," she said. "Just leave me out of it.  I'm not saying a word to them after what they've done."

Sonata looked up and tilted her head. "But wait.  If you're not gonna help me or Adagio, what will you be doing?"

Aria shrugged. "I'll just sit back and watch the fireworks, I guess."

Sonata tilted her head to the other side. "What fireworks?"

Aria groaned. "I mean I'm gonna watch you and Adagio make fools of yourselves with your crazy schemes while quietly laughing to myself."

Sonata pouted. "Hey, that's mean!  You act like you don't care about us at all!  All you're worried about is yourself!"

Aria snickered. "You're just figuring that out now, huh?  Seriously, you've known me for how long?"

Sonata blinked. "Um, since we started working together to conquer Eque—"

"The question was rhetorical, Sonata," Aria interrupted.  A few seconds later, a familiar growl came from her stomach.  With a sigh, she tossed the controller over to Sonata. "Here, take over.  I'm gonna go get dinner ready."

"W-wait, what?" asked Sonata. "Shouldn't we wait for Adagio?"

Aria scoffed. "I highly doubt Adagio's gonna be back anytime soon, and I'm sorry, but my stomach can't wait.  She can fix her own dinner when she gets home."

"Well, why not let me do the cooking then?"

"Because I don't want a repeat of the Taco Incident."

"Hey, you can't prove that was me!"

Aria rolled her eyes. "Sure I can't," she said. "Just take over for me, will ya?"

Without waiting for a response, Aria got up and made her way to the incredibly messy kitchen.  Sonata sighed and tried to focus on her game, but her thoughts kept drifting back to Adagio and Discord.

I hope Adagio's okay, she thought. Wherever she is...
> A Deal with the Draconequus
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Sunset Shimmer felt uncomfortable.

It wasn't because she was walking around the empty corridors of Canterlot High wearing nothing but her pajamas.  After living in the school for so long, she had gotten used to that.  No, her discomfort came from the fact that she was all alone.  Darkness enveloped her like a shroud, with only her small flashlight providing any source of illumination.  The only sounds she heard were her own breathing and the pitter-patter of bare feet on cold tile.  Not even the custodian was around and about; he had already gone home for the day.

But for Sunset, Canterlot High was her home.  And that was a sad truth she contended with every night.

"I can't keep living like this," she mumbled to herself. "It's just so, lonely at night.  I should really consider moving in with one of my friends.  But who?  Would the others get upset because I didn't ask one of them?  And would their parents allow me to stay even though I don't have that much money?  I mean, I wouldn't want to cause them any trouble or anything.  I'm not like that anymore."

She continued to voice her thoughts aloud as she approached a small, out-of-the-way supply closet that was marked off with a "Caution: Keep Out" sign.  Back when she first arrived in this world, this was her base of operations.  It was a secret clubhouse where she would draft her sinister schemes and brief her cohorts, Snips and Snails.  But now, it was simply her bedroom.

She opened the door with a creak, revealing a simple sleeping bag, a Rainbooms poster designed by Rarity, and a black stand that held her v-neck guitar.  With a heavy sigh, she slung her backpack from her shoulder and took out a simple brown book with her symbol engraved on the cover.  She absently flipped through the pages and sighed again.

"No response yet," she mused. "Then again, she must be pretty busy, what with her royal duties and all.  And it's not like she's forgotten to write to me."  She sighed once more as she put her book away and laid down on top of her sleeping bag. "I just wish I had someone to talk to tonight."

"Wish granted."

A sly, sinister-sounding voice rang in Sunset's right ear.  Confused, she got up and turned to see who it was.  The sight before her caused her to let out a shriek.  Floating in the middle of her makeshift bedroom was a creature she was all-too-familiar with.  The head of a pony; the body of all different kinds of animals.  It was none other than Discord, the infamous Master of Chaos.

"N-no.  Th-this is impossible," she muttered, crawling up against the wall. "Th-there's no way this is real.  I-it can't be."

Discord tilted his head. "Hmm.  That's, not exactly the reaction I was expecting.  Are you alright?"

Sunset didn't answer.  She simply continued muttering to herself. "I-it's probably just a bad dream.  Yeah, that's it.  I just conked out in the library or something.  I should be waking up any moment nOW!"

She flinched as she felt a sharp pain in her right arm.  Looking over, she saw the fluffy end of Discord's snake tail take the form of a pair of pinching fingers.  A dark chill went up her spine, and she began to hyperventilate.

"Oh no.  Oh no oh no!  Th-this is terrible!" she stammered. "D-Discord has gotten free!  H-he's probably already taken over Equestria!  I-I have to—"

"Whoa, whoa, wait!  Back up, hold your horses," said Discord, cutting across Sunset. "You're Sunset Shimmer, right?"

Sunset gasped. "H-how do you know my name?"

Discord shrugged. "Well, you did cause quite a stir when you stole the Element of Magic a few moons back.  How could I not know about you?"

"W-wait, how do you know about that?!" Sunset yelled. "Y-you were encased in stone!"

Discord raised an eyebrow. "You mean, Twilight never told you?"

Sunset blinked. "Never told me what?"

"Why, that I've been reformed, of course.  It was Celestia's idea, surprisingly enough."

Sunset's fear slowly gave way to indignation as she glowered at Discord. "Y-you really expect me to believe that?  Princess Celestia would never agree to free you.  You're a dangerous monster who spreads chaos and disharmony wherever he goes."

"It's true, though.  And what's more, I can prove it," said Discord.  With a snap of his fingers, Sunset's magic book appeared on her lap. "Twilight knows all about it.  Write her a letter; she can vouch for me."

Sunset raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, or you'll just rearrange the letters to make it look like she's vouching for you."

"Maybe the old Discord would've done that, but not me," said Discord. "In fact, I can take you to Equestria right now, if you want.  That should prove to you that it's still standing."

"And as soon as I see that it's not, you'll trap me there or probably corrupt me," said Sunset, a surge of determination seeping into her voice.  She got to her feet and pointed an accusing finger at the draconequus. "I won't fall for your tricks, Discord."

Discord pinched the bridge of his nose. "Okay, you're seriously making this far more difficult than it needs to be."

"So what do you expect me to do, play along and bow down to your will?" Sunset asked, folding her arms. "Sorry, but that's not happening.  You might've been able to take over Equestria, but my friends and I will make sure you don't do the same to our world!"

"But I don't want to conquer this world, or Equestria for that matter," Discord insisted. "I promise, I haven't changed a single, solitary thing since I got here."

"Oh yeah?  Well, why did you come here, then?"

"Well, isn't it obvious?  I want to be your friend."

Sunset did a double take. "Huh wha?"

"Just as I said, my dear Sunny," said Discord, brushing Sunset's cheek with his paw. "Do you mind if I call you Sunny?  I'm gonna call you Sunny."

Sunset scowled. "As a matter of fact, I do mi—"

"Up bup bup!  I haven't finished explaining myself yet," said Discord, placing a finger to Sunset's lips. "Now, as I was saying, it's come to my attention that you and I share some common ground.  As such, I thought to myself: 'Hey, I could use a friend who gets me, so why not take a vacation from Equestria and go meet her?'  And well, here I am!"

He then struck a pose and caused confetti to rain from the ceiling.  Sunset, however, continued giving him the evil eye.

"You really must think I'm stupid," she spat. "I know all about you, Discord.  You stand against friendship and harmony.  You manipulate ponies to turn on one another so that the world can be your own personal playpen.  And now you break out of your stone prison somehow, come all the way here, and spout off this ridiculous nonsense about you being reformed and that you want to be my friend?"

Discord twiddled his fingers. "Well, yes.  Everything you just said is correct."

"Uh-huh.  And how am I supposed to believe that?" Sunset asked rhetorically.

Discord shrugged. "I don't know.  How are you?  I mean, I could really use the info to bond with you properly like good friends should."

As he spoke, his elongated body coiled around Sunset as he placed his lion arm around her shoulder.  Sunset growled and wiggled out of his grip.

"We are not friends, Discord," she snarled. "Not now, not ever."

Discord's expression drooped. "Aw, why not?  We have so much in common."

"No, we don't," Sunset proclaimed. "I'm not like you."

"See, I must disagree with you vehemently there, Sunny," said Discord. "I mean, think about it.  I tried to conquer Equestria; you tried to conquer Equestria.  I was defeated by the Elements of Harmony; you were defeated by the Elements of Harmony.  I changed my ways; you changed your ways..."

"I acted out of jealousy and spite; you're just insane," said Sunset in a flat monotone.

Discord deadpanned. "Very true, but let's try to focus on the similarities, shall we?"

"Let's not," said Sunset, reaching into her backpack and pulling out her cellphone. "In fact, I'm going to call my friends right now so that we can put you back in stone where you belong!"

"Whoa, hey now!" exclaimed Discord, waving his arms frantically. "Th-there's no need for that, Sunny."

"Don't try to play innocent, you tyrant.  I will not let you lure me away from my new path," Sunset spat. "I'm happy with where I am now.  My friends are there for me, I have a mentor looking out for me, and it's gotten to the point where my classmates actually smile at me instead of giving me disapproving glares.  I don't know how you managed to get free or what your game is, but I refuse to let you take that away from me."

"And I don't want to," Discord insisted. "It's what makes us alike.  Heck, if you came to me with the same offer, and I knew about every atrocity you've done, I'd still be your friend."

Sunset drew in a short breath and flinched. "S-stop trying to compare us.  I-I won't be taken by your lies."

Discord's face clouded with worry. "It seems I hit a nerve with that one.  Are you okay, Sunny?"

Sunset opened her mouth to respond, but something suddenly began to sink in.  She rubbed her arm and cast her eyes downward.

What if he is telling the truth? she wondered. What if he really was reformed like I was?  I'd be no better than the other students at CHS if I turned him down.  No, no!  I-I can't let him trick me.  H-he's just putting on an act.  Isn't he?  I mean, I know I haven't been to Equestria for a long time, but would Celestia really want to reform someone like him?  Th-that's just ludicrous.  B-but...

After a long pause, she looked up at Discord. "How come Twilight never told me about this?"

"Search me," said Discord with a shrug. "Then again, she was trying to tell me something before I departed, but I didn't listen.  I was just so excited to meet you and become your friend."

Sunset folded her arms. "I-I still have my doubts about that.  You and friendship have always been like oil and water.  Why, then, would you want to be anyone's friend, let alone mine?  It makes no sense."

Discord arched an eyebrow. "Since when have I ever made sense, Sunny?  And just FYI, I once thought the same way you did.  I didn't think I needed friends to be happy, but I was wrong.  I'm sure you know how it is."

Sunset didn't want to admit it, but deep down, she saw Discord's point.  Even so, she stood her ground.

"Y-yeah.  My friends are special.  And they are important to me," she said firmly. "Which is why I won't let you take them away."

Discord sighed. "This really isn't getting us anywhere.  I travelled through ten dimensions to meet you, Sunset Shimmer.  I'm not going home empty-pawed or taloned."

"Wait, ten dimensions?" asked Sunset. "Couldn't you have just teleported straight here?"

"What can I say?  I like taking the scenic route," said Discord. "Listen, Sunny.  I'll tell you what I'll do.  You doubt my words, right?  Well, what if I could prove to you that I was a good friend?  And I mean prove it to you in a way that cannot be misconstrued for any of my tricks."

Sunset stroked her chin. "I, guess that sounds fair.  But how would you do it?"

Discord opened his mouth to reply, but he closed it again and began stroking his goatee.

"Hmm.  I actually haven't thought about that part yet," he admitted. "But if you give me a chance, I'll hopefully figure something out."

He then summoned a calculator and began punching in random numbers. "So, here's what I propose.  I'll stay in this world for, lessee, carry the seven, by the square root of pi...  What time is it now?"

Sunset blinked and checked her phone. "Um, I have nine thirty."

"Right, thank you," said Discord, entering this information into his calculations. "As I was saying, I'll stay here for, twenty hours, forty-two minutes, and thirty-seven seconds, starting now.  If I can't earn your friendship in that time, I'll go back to Equestria, and you'll never see me again.  Does that sound fair?"

Sunset raised an eyebrow. "How do I know you'll keep to that promise?"

Discord smiled. "I guess you don't."

Sunset mulled it over for a few seconds. "You're sure you won't leave otherwise."

"I didn't come all this way for nothing."

Sunset sighed. "Alright, fine.  I suppose I should take the high road and give you a chance.  But if you go back on your word, my friends and I will show you no mercy.  Is that clear?"

"Crystal," said Discord, his skin becoming transparent and crystalline.  He then reverted back to normal and stretched out his paw. "Let's shake on it, friend."

Sunset tentatively reached out her own hand, eventually accepting Discord's gesture.  But as soon as she gripped his paw, his entire body went into convulsions, with sparks flying out of him every which way.  Sunset would've recoiled in shock had Discord not been holding her hand so tightly.  When he finally did let go, he was laughing.

"Ha ha!  Good one, Sunny!" he guffawed. "I do so love a friend with a sense of humor."

Puzzled, Sunset looked at her hand.  She was surprised to discover that a hand buzzer that wasn't there before had manifested itself.  She looked back at Discord with a blank stare of confusion. "Why did you—?"

"Well, it was too obvious for you to be the victim of the gag.  I don't do 'obvious,'" said Discord with a chuckle. "Besides, I thought it might be a good way to show you that I'm not such a bad guy now.  Well, I'd better let you get some sleep.  We have a big day tomorrow.  Sweet dreams!"

With a snap of his fingers, he donned a blue nightgown and cap, and a lit candle appeared in his talon.  When he blew the candle out, he seemingly disappeared into the inky darkness.  Sunset continued to stare into space, trying to figure out what just happened.

"What did I just do?" she mumbled. "And, was it right?"

"Well, we'll just have to find out, won't we?"

Sunset looked up to see Discord still floating in front of her.  She arched an eyebrow.

"Oh, right!  Sorry, you're supposed to be sleeping now," said Discord with a sheepish snicker. "Right, I'll just, find my own place to get some shut-eye.  Goodnight."

With that, he disappeared in a flash of light.  Sunset let out a groan and crawled into her sleeping bag.

There's only one thing I know for certain, she thought. Whether he's telling the truth or not, it's going to be a loooong day tomorrow...
> Drastic Initiative
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Stupid Aria.  Stupid Sonata.  How dare they defy me.  Don't they realize that they're nothing without my genius to guide them?"

Even though she was seven blocks away from her home at this point, Adagio was still sore at her subordinates.  Although she had her fair share of disagreements with Aria and Sonata, this particular argument was something she would not forgive them for.  She gave them a plan, and they told her they wouldn't do it.  This angered her to no end.  Before losing her powers, no one ever said "no" to Adagio Dazzle, let alone her compatriots.  She continued to vent her frustrations aloud to the cold night air as she walked down the empty sidewalk.

"Well, I'll show them.  I never needed those idiots, anyway.  And once my plan comes together, they'll be begging me to bask in the glory," said Adagio.  She stopped at a lamppost and leaned against it to rest. "So, Aria thinks that I have nothing to offer Discord, does she?  Well, we'll just see about that."

As she basked in the lamppost's dim glow, a quartet of hungry eyes stared at her from an alleyway across the street.  Before she could notice them, they disappeared into the shadows.  After a pause, she snapped her fingers.

"I know just what to do," she said to no one in particular. "Discord said that he was after Sunset Shimmer, right?  He must be planning to manipulate her into carrying out his dastardly schemes.  So, all I have to do is give her a little shove in the right direction, away from her friends and towards the she-demon she truly is.  That way, Discord can corrupt her without too much effort!  It's brilliant!"

Just then, she heard a loud clang behind her.  Curious, she turned around to see what it was, only to find an overturned trashcan with no sign of a culprit.  With a shrug, she turned back around and began crossing the street.

"But of course, I have to be careful about this," she mused. "If I want Discord to give me my powers back, I need to follow his rules.  That means whatever I do to nudge Sunset Shimmer, it has to make as little sense as possible.  Hmm, I'll need some supplies.  Where did I put my wallet?"

She patted down her waitress uniform, only to find that it was not in any of its pockets.  With a growl, she tore of the blue skirt, revealing her usual purple outfit underneath.  Once out of her grease-stained uniform, she found her wallet without much trouble.

"Ah, there we go," she said.  She opened it up, and a group of moths flew out.  A vein on her forehead bulged as she stared at the three dollars that made up the wallet's contents.

"Okay, fine.  Th-that's fine," Adagio said in a strained tone. "N-no need to lose your temper so soon.  You just need to use some of that vintage Adagio Dazzle ingenuity, that's all.  My magic may be gone, but I still have—"

She was interrupted by a collection of growls behind her.  She turned around and raised an eyebrow.  Four stray dogs had appeared from the shadows, and three of them were glaring at her and snarling.  The first dog was a red doberman with a rounded jaw and glistening fangs.  The second was a large brown bulldog that appeared to have some sort of spiky lump on its tail.  The third was an unusually scrawny German Shepard with purple fur and orange hair over its eyes.  The only dog that didn't seem to be growling at Adagio was what appeared to be a cross-eyed mixed breed with green fur and multi-colored spots.  This dog simply stared off into space with its tongue hanging out.  Adagio huffed.

"Oh, it's just a bunch of mangey mutts," she scoffed. "What do you want?"

The doberman bared more of its teeth and arched its back.  Adagio was still unfazed.

"Look, I don't have any food, if that's what you're thinking," she said. "Even if I did, I wouldn't share it with the likes of you.  So go bug someone else."

None of the dogs listened to her.  Three of them began to advance while the cross-eyed one simply stood there and scratched itself with its hind leg.  A mixture of frustration and fear welled up in Adagio's chest.

"D-didn't you hear me, you stupid mutts?  I said scram!  Beat it!  Shoo!" she snapped. "I have a lot to do tonight, and I haven't the time nor the inclination to deal wi— DAH!"

She was cut off by the doberman lunging forward and snapping his jaws just inches away from her pant leg.  Finally realizing the predicament she was in, she broke into a run.  The four dogs were quick on her heels, their angry barks echoing throughout the city.


***


"Okay, minor setback," said Adagio, nursing a few nips the dogs left on her. "But I can't let this kind of stop me.  If I did, I'd be no better than those two layabouts back home.  Now, it's time I got what I need."

She entered a small park, taking care not to attract the attention of any policemen on their rounds.  Venturing off the beaten path, she heard a buzzing sound coming from the underbrush.  She grinned.

"A hornet's nest.  Perfect," she whispered.  She took her waitress uniform and began tearing it apart shred by shred. "I won't need this anymore now that Discord will give me back my powers.  It's about time this stupid thing was put to good use."

Part of the uniform was converted into a makeshift satchel to store all of her spoils.  She then wrapped the rest of her uniform around her arms to protect them from getting stung.  She peeled back the bushes, revealing the circular nest on the ground.

"Alright, Adagio.  Easy now," she told herself, sweat trickling down her brow as she reach out. "Gently, gently..."

She then noticed something out of the corner of her eye.  Turning her head, she saw the cross-eyed dog from before staring back at her.  One of its eyes drifted over to her leg.  Adagio blanched.

"N-no.  Shoo," she hissed. "Go away!"

The cross-eyed dog opened its large jaw, only to shut it again.  Its eyes never left Adagio's leg.

"My leg it not a bone, you mongrel!" Adagio snarled. "Go bite someone else!"

But the dog didn't leave.  It just kept staring at Adagio's leg, opening and closing its jaws at random intervals.  Finally, Adagio couldn't take it any more.

"I said GO AWAY!"

She kicked the dog right in the jaw, sending it flying back with a yip.  She gave the dog a smug smile.

"Yeah, that's what you g—"

Her triumph was interrupted by a loud and incredibly angry buzzing in her ear.  The recoil of her kick caused her to slide forward, nudging the nest and disturbing the hornets.  Adagio screamed in pain and terror as the entire swarm surrounded her, stinging her from every angle.


***


"Th-that was probably more trouble than it was worth," Adagio grumbled, using the scraps of her uniform as makeshift bandages. "I'm going to have to try something a bit safer."

She continued walking through the park, scooping up anything that she could use.  Thorn bushes, rocks, poison ivy, and more all got stuffed into her satchel.  At the park's exit, she heard a bunch of cricket chirping.  Another sinister grin formed on her face.

"So, the Rainbooms like music, eh?" she said. "Well, let's see if they'll like these fellow!"

She burst through the underbrush, happening upon a group of eleven crickets singing their nightly tune.  As soon as they saw her, they began to scatter.

"Oh, no you don't!" Adagio yelled. "Come here, you stupid crickets!  Come here!"

She ran back and forth trying to snatch up as many of the small insects as she could.  Alas, the crickets were simply too fast for her, dashing in between and around her legs.  In one desperate attempt, she tried to pounce on them, only to land face first into the ground.  Her entire collection of junk went flying every which way as the crickets made their escape.  Adagio pounded her fist into the gravel walkway.

"I said come here, not go away!" she screamed.

A collection of familiar growls followed by one odd squawk echoed behind her.  Turning her head, she saw that the stray dogs had returned.  Her eyes went wide.

"N-no, I didn't mean you guys!" she shrieked. "Get away from— mmph!"

She was interrupted when the collective weight of all four dogs pressed her face into the ground.  Their howls of triumph could be heard all around the block.


***


"Okay, first thing I do when Discord and I take over is that all dogs have to give me back rubs," Adagio swore to herself. "That'll teach them to mess with the likes of me."

The moon was directly above her as she limped over to her next stop.  It was a simple apple orchard at the edge of town.  All of the lights in the farmhouse were off, indicating that everyone was asleep.  Adagio chortled and rubbed her hands together.

"I should've come here in the first place," she said, dipping her voice so as not to disturb any of the animals. "This is sure to give Sunset the shove towards corruption."

With her makeshift satchel slung over her shoulder, she snuck into the large red barn.  As soon as she was inside, she fell to her knees and scooped up handful after handful of hay.  She stuffed each handful into her satchel until it was full to bursting, snickering all the while.

"There, that ought to do it," she said, feeling quite pleased with herself. "Next to get all this to the school so my plan can really begin."

When she emerged from the barn, she discovered that the lights in the farmhouse were on.  Someone was standing on the front porch, but from Adagio's vantage point, it was hard to tell who it was.

"Y'sure you heard somethin' out here, girl?" asked a familiar rustic voice.

A bark was heard, and Adagio's blood ran cold.

Oh no.  Not another one! she thought.

She tried to tiptoe her way out of the barn, but the objects in her satchel rustled with every step she took.  Just when she got outside, a brown sheltie started yapping like mad.

"Hey you!  Stop right there!" the dog's owner called out. "Winona, sic 'em!"

The sheltie barked and dashed towards Adagio.  Not wanting to be tormented by dogs a fourth time, Adagio darted away as fast as her damaged legs could carry her.  She continued running down the dirt road until she didn't hear the dog barking anymore.  As soon as she thought she was safe, she took a moment to catch her breath.

"E-eyes on the prize, Adagio.  E-eyes on the prize," she panted, a sinister twinkle in her eye. "Once you become Discord's queen, this'll all be worth it..."
> Friends of Friends
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, Sunset awoke to an unfamiliar yet pleasant aroma wafting through the air.  Groggily, she fumbled through her backpack and took out her cellphone.  She couldn't fully make out the display in her half-asleep state, but from what she could tell, it was only six o'clock.  Already, she felt that something was amiss.  Her alarm wasn't set to go off for another twenty five minutes.  She would've questioned this further, but at present, she was simply too tired to think.

She let out long, pronounced yawn and stretched herself out as she sat up in her sleeping bag.  She then looked down in front of her and smacked her lips.  It took a moment for her brain to register what was in front of her, but once it did, she recoiled in surprise.  Placed over her sleeping back was a wooden tray that held a mug of coffee, a vase with a small blue flower, and a laminated sheet of paper.  As she picked up the sheet to read it over, there was a bright flash before her eyes.  When the flash died down, Discord had appeared, sporting a black tuxedo and a handlebar mustache.  He held a pen in his talon and some sort of notepad in his paw.

"Good morning, Sunny!  Rise and shine!" he cheered. "I hope you're hungry, because we have a great selection for you today."

"Mmm.  S-selection?" Sunset murmured, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Indeed," said Discord, scribbling in the notepad. "Our specials today are waffles from Belgium, toast from France, muffins from England, and we just got a shipment of cakes all the way from Pan."

Sunset raised an eyebrow at that last choice. "Excuse me?"

"Of course, if none of that is to your liking, we also have eggs, hash browns, bagels, donuts, and croissants," Discord continued. "Or would you simply prefer a fresh grapefruit and the morning paper to start your day?  Anything your little heart desires, I'm sure our chefs can whip it up.  And of course by our chefs, I mean me."

Sunset stared blankly at the tray before her.  At that moment, she realized that the laminated sheet was some sort of menu.  But instead of listing specific dishes, it just displayed one item:


Anything Sunny Wants ~ $0.00


Sunset placed the menu down and turned back to Discord. "Okay, what's all this about?"

"Why, it's breakfast in bed, my dear," Discord answered. "I thought I'd take some time out of my day to do something special for you this fine morning.  That's what a good friend does, you see."

Just then, all of Sunset's memories from last night came flooding back as she finally came to her senses.  After shaking herself a bit, she sighed.  Discord frowned.

"What's the matter, Sunny?" he asked. "Don't tell me you never had breakfast in bed before."

"Well, actually, I haven't," said Sunset, rubbing her arm and casting her gaze downward. "And honestly, it's a very nice gesture."  She then looked up at Discord and narrowed her eyes. "Maybe a bit too nice."

Discord folded his arms. "Oh come now, Sunny.  Can't I do anything friendly without you scrutinizing it?  I'm genuinely trying to earn your trust here."

"I know.  That's what has me worried," said Sunset, heaving another sigh. "Besides, I already promised my friends that I'd meet them for breakfast today at our usual hangout."

Discord blinked, and then blushed. "Oh.  I, kinda wish you told me that in advance."

"Says the guy who barged into my bedroom last night without warning," Sunset countered.

"Touché," said Discord.  With a snap of his fingers, the breakfast tray disappeared. "Well, that's perfectly alright.  We can go have breakfast with your friends if that's what you want."

Sunset arched an eyebrow. "'We?'"

"Yes, we.  What's wrong with that?" Discord said with a shrug. "You're not just going to leave me here, are you?"

Sunset tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm.  You have a point.  Now that you're here, I should probably keep an eye on you.  But if you are telling the truth about becoming my friend, then I think we need to set some ground rules."

Discord took in a sharp breath through his teeth and let it out in a pained sigh. "Alright, fine.  If there's one thing I know about being a good friend, it sometimes means doing things you really don't want to do.  What are you stipulations, Sunny?"

"First of all, stop calling me that," Sunset growled.

"Why?  I think it's a cute nickname for you," said Discord sweetly. "Plus, it's a tad ironic, given your grumpy disposition.  I don't know about you, but I love me some irony."

Sunset gave Discord a bemused glare. "You're gonna keep calling me that no matter what I say, aren't you?"

"As long as we have a chance to be friends, I see no reason not to," Discord replied.

Sunset sighed. "Alright, fine.  But here's a big one that you have to follow."

"Alright, I'm all ears," said Discord as ears poked out of every point of his body. "What's this rule of yours, Sunny?"

"If you really want to be my friend, you can't get me into trouble," said Sunset sternly. "I don't know if you know this, but I had a pretty bad reputation at this school.  And while I've taken strides to erase it, it hasn't fully disappeared yet.  So I don't want you causing some chaos and pinning the blame on me, got it?"

"My chaos shall only be used to make you happy, Sunny," said Discord, holding up his talon and placing his paw to his chest. "This I swear on the Tree of Harmony itself."

Sunset blinked. "You're swearing on your arch-nemesis?"

"Former arch-nemesis," Discord corrected. "We're on good terms now."

"Right, of course," said Sunset, furrowing her brow. "Y'know, actually, I might want to tell my friends about you just to see what they have to say.  This whole situation is really beyond my grasp."

"You'll get no argument from me, Sunny," said Discord. "So, shall we get going?"

Sunset's eyes went wide. "Whoa, whoa!  Wait, hold on!" she exclaimed. "You're not planning to go out like that, are you?"

Discord tilted his head. "Like what?  Am I underdressed?  Overdressed?  Is it my breath?  I could hop into the shower quickly, if that's what you're referring to."

Sunset smacked her forehead. "Don't play dumb, Discord," she snarled. "People are going to panic when they see a large, bizarre-looking creature walking down the street.  There's no such thing as a draconequus in this world."

"Oh, right.  That whole thing," said Discord, twirling his goatee around his finger. "I figured it was something like that."

Sunset tilted her head. "Then, why did you act like you didn't know?" she inquired.

Discord shrugged his shoulders. "No reason," he said simply. "Well, don't you worry, Sunny.  I've come prepared!"

With that, he snapped his fingers and disappeared in a flash of light.  A split second later, Sunset's ringtone began to play.  She picked up her phone and answered it, only to find Discord on her screen and messing with her apps.

"Hey!" she yelled.

"Relax, Sunny.  I plan on leaving this place the same way I left it," said Discord, opening up a puzzle game app.  As he started eating the puzzle blocks, Sunset gave him a dirty look.

"Couldn't you have just turned into a human like me?" she asked.

"What, you mean be boring and predictable?  No, thank you," said Discord, still munching away at the puzzle blocks. "Besides, what exactly was your plan?  Pass me off as some foreign exchange student or something?  Not only would it not work, but that's just so cliché."

Sunset groaned. "Okay, maybe you're right," she conceded reluctantly. "Still, is this really the best you could come up with?"

"Why not?  It's perfect," said Discord. "Now whenever I want to talk to you, it'll just look like you're accepting a call.  That's a pretty good cover, if I do say so myself."

"Yeah, only one problem, though," said Sunset. "We're supposed to turn our phones off in class."

"Well, that's no biggie," Discord responded. "I'll just take on another form."

"Yeah, or maybe you'll cause my phone to go off in the middle of class so that you can give me answers to a test," said Sunset, rolling her eyes.

"And, that would be a bad thing, how?"

Sunset deadpanned. "You seriously don't know?"

Discord gave Sunset a bemused look of his own. "You really need to lighten up, Sunny.  It was just a joke.  Seriously, even Rainbow Dash has enough of a sense of humor to laugh at a good prank."

Sunset did a double take. "Wait a minute!  How do you know Rainbow Dash?!"

Discord shrugged his shoulders. "Because she's my friend."

"Th-th-that's impossible!" Sunset stuttered. "She's my friend!"

"Oh, she is?  Goody!  Another thing we have in common!" Discord cheered.

Sunset's eyes narrowed as she wagged an admonishing finger at her screen. "If I find out that you did something to her—"

"Trust me, Sunny.  I haven't," Discord promised. "She doesn't even know I'm here.  Honest."

Sunset massaged her temples. "This is really starting to give me a headache," she grumbled. "Alright, we shouldn't waste any more time here.  I'll let it go for now, but no funny business, buster.  I've got my eye on you."

"Splendid.  Then you can see for yourself what a wonderful friend I am," said Discord happily. "Well, I'll see you soon!"

With that, he snapped his fingers, and the phone's screen reverted to its original state.  Sunset let out a sigh and stuffed the phone into her backpack.

"I really must be crazy, giving him the benefit of the doubt like this," she mumbled.  Just as she was about to lay out her clothes, her phone went off.  Curious, she took it out and saw that she had a text.  After reading it, she sighed.

"'I heard that, Sunny,'" she read aloud, rolling her eyes and deleting the text. "Cute."

She then put the phone back into her bag and prepared to change out of her pajamas.


***


Sunset arrived at the bakery just as the clock hit seven.  Peering inside, she saw that all of her friends were sitting around their usual spot by the window, waiting for her.  An uneasy feeling formed in the pit of her stomach, and she took a deep breath.

It's barely been over a week since the Battle of the Bands.  I hope they're prepared for this, she thought as she exhaled. Well, here goes nothing.

The bell over the front door chimed as she walked inside.  Right away, her friends perked up and waved to her.

"Good morning, Sunset!" Pinkie chirped.

"Hey, guys," said Sunset, trying to force a smile.  Applejack saw right through her facade and raised an eyebrow.

"You alright there, Sunset?" she asked. "You look kinda out of it."

Sunset brushed the back of her head sheepishly. "It's, a little hard to explain," she said. "L-let me just get my food, then we'll talk."

She ventured over to the counter, where Mrs. Cake was waiting with a radiant smile.

"Hello there, dearie," she said in her usual sweet tone. "What can I getcha?"

"A scone and some coffee, please," said Sunset, reaching into her wallet.

In a matter of seconds, she made her transaction.  She then took her food over to her friends and sat down.

"Wow.  You really do look worried, Sunset Shimmer," said Fluttershy. "What's wrong?"

"It's a little hard to explain, but I'll try my best," said Sunset, turning to Rainbow Dash. "First of all, I want to ask you something."

Rainbow Dash looked up from her egg sandwich. "Yeah?  What's up?"

"Did anything, strange happen to you last night?"

Rainbow Dash arched an eyebrow. "You mean something from Equestria kinda strange, or just the regular kind of strange?"

"The first one."

"Nah, nothing like that," said Rainbow Dash, shaking her head. "Why do you ask?"

Sunset bit her lip. "Well, if that's the case, I don't know what this means."

"What are you talking about, darling?" asked Rarity.

Sunset leaned in and beckoned the others to join her.  When the did so, she cleared her throat.

"Long ago, Equestria was ruled by the spirit of disharmony, known only as Discord," she whispered, making sure no one else would overhear. "Under his rule, all ponies suffered and were subject to his tricks and powers.  For his actions, he was turned into stone by the Elements of Harmony."

"Ooh!  You mean that whole magic of friendship thing we do when we defeat the bad guys?" said Pinkie.

"Exactly," said Sunset.

"Well, that's really interesting and all," said Rainbow Dash. "But why are you telling us this, Sunset?"

Sunset sighed. "Brace yourselves, guys.  This is gonna come as a shock."

Fluttershy gulped. "I don't like the sound of that."

Sunset reached into her backpack and took out her cellphone.  After laying it on the table, she tapped it on.  Just as the screen came to life, a beam of light shot from it, revealing a holographic image of Discord.

"Well now.  This is quite a surprise," he said, twirling his goatee around his finger. "I certainly didn't expect to see all of you here."  His gaze then met Fluttershy's, and he smiled. "Though I must say, it's nice to see some friendly faces.  How have you been, my dear?"

"EEP!"

Fluttershy squeaked in terror and hid herself under the table.  Discord snorted.

"Alright, who are you and what have you done with my friend Fluttershy?" he growled indignantly.

"Um, that is Fluttershy," said Rarity. "I think the real question is who, or what, are you?"

"I think I should explain," said Sunset. "Guys, this right here is Discord."

"WHAT?!"

The entire group recoiled, with Fluttershy still cowering under the table.

"Wh-what do you mean that's Discord?" asked Rainbow Dash. "I thought you said he was encased in stone!"

"I thought that, too," said Sunset. "But he actually appeared in my bedroom last night without any warning."

"Wait, what's he doin' on your phone, then?" inquired Applejack.

"Well, I thought you already knew that, Applejack," said Discord with a smirk. "I am the Master of Chaos.  Anything I want to happen happens."

"Just a moment.  How do you know our names?" said Rarity, raising an eyebrow. "This is the first time we've even heard of you."

"Let's just say you remind me of some friends from home," said Discord, giving Fluttershy's empty seat a sideways glance. "Although it's clear to me that you really aren't them."

"Hang on, I think I understand what's going on here," said Pinkie, stroking her chin in thought. "You're saying that back in Equestria, there are pony versions of all of us, right?"

Discord blinked. "That's, exactly it.  How did you guess?"

"Just a hunch," said Pinkie with a goofy grin.

Discord chuckled. "Ah, Pinkie Pie.  No matter what the dimension, you always put a smile on my face."

"Well, I try!" Pinkie chirped. "I guess that's why Twilight got along with us so well.  We reminded her of her pals from home."

"I suppose that's as good a reason as any," said Applejack with a thoughtful nod. "But I reckon we've got more important things to worry about.  Like, what's this Discord guy doin' here now if he's supposed to be in stone?"

Sunset sighed. "That's just it.  I don't know.  He claims that he's been reformed, but after everything he's done, I can't think of anyone who would want to reform him."

"I'm pretty sure the same could be said about you, Sunny," said Discord, folding his arms. "People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones."

Sunset's eyes twitched. "I-I thought I told you to stop comparing us," she growled through gritted teeth.

"Wait, why is he calling you Sunny?" asked Pinkie. "You never had a nickname before."

"Well, he claims that he's here so that he can be my friend," said Sunset.

"Then who are you to deny him?" asked Rarity. "I mean, after everything you've done, we still gave you a second chance."

Sunset's eye twitched again. "I-It's not the same thing.  Discord's ten times worse than I ever was."

"If you're so worked up about it, why doncha just ask Princess Twilight?" said Applejack with a shrug. "She knows what's goin' on in Equestria, doesn't she?  I'm sure she'll tell ya what's what."

Sunset shook her head. "It's not that simple, Applejack.  Discord can twist reality to whatever he wants.  If he woke up one day and decided that the sky was green, it would be green."

"I think plaid is more my color," Discord interjected. "But for the sake of argument, she's right.  Anything I want to happen can happen with a simple thought."

Pinkie's eyes sparkled. "Coool~."

"Um, no.  Not cool," Fluttershy whimpered. "That's actually very, scary."

Discord let out a sad sigh. "I'm not going to get used to that.  Y'know, back in Equestria, Fluttershy was the only pony willing to put up with me while I was being reformed.  But in this world, she hates me apparently."

Sunset pinched the bridge of her nose. "Look, the point is that even if Twilight did write to me, Discord could just make it so that her response is favorable to him."

"That doesn't mean he will," said Applejack. "Go ahead, give it a try.  It can't hurt."

Sunset pondered this for a moment, and then shrugged. "I, suppose it can't," she said.  She then reached into her backpack and pulled out her book.  But when she opened it, she found a peculiar message.


Warning: Low signal due to chaos interference.  Please move to a chaos-free zone and try again.


Sunset gave Discord a dirty look. "Okay, Discord.  You're really losing your credibility here."

"What?  What did I do?" Discord asked innocently.

Sunset pointed to the message in her book. "Care to explain this?"

Discord let out a sheepish chuckle and blushed. "Ah, I see.  Terribly sorry about that, Sunny.  Chaos magic sometimes has this nasty habit of doing things that I didn't tell it to.  It wouldn't exactly be chaos if someone had control over it, after all."

Rainbow Dash knitted her brow. "I dunno, Sunset.  Something about this guy seems pretty shady."

"That's what I'm thinking, too," said Sunset gravely. "Discord was known to be a master manipulator, after all.  Besides, every history book in Equestria confirms that he always stood against friendship and harmony."

"But that's all in the past, Sunny.  I've seen the error of my ways," said Discord. "And now, I have lots of friends.  Look, I'll even prove it."

He then tapped on Sunset's address book app on her phone.  But instead of Sunset's contacts, it brought up a list titled "Discord's Friends."  Some of the names Sunset recognized; others she didn't.  She was especially perplexed when the name "Tirek" was crossed out and decorated with insulting doodles, while the name "Fluttershy" was surrounded by hearts and butterflies.

"He doesn't seem that evil to me," said Pinkie, observing the Discord hologram from every angle. "Maybe he's telling the truth."

"B-but what if he isn't and he ends up conquering this world?" said Fluttershy, emerging from her hiding spot. "Oh, but what if he is and we end up breaking his heart by not believing him?  I-I just don't know what to think."

"I don't believe any of us do," mused Rarity. "Sunset, did he say how long he was staying?"

"He said that he'd leave at around six twelve tonight unless he can earn my trust," said Sunset.

"Wait, six twelve?" asked Rainbow Dash, scratching her head. "Why not six o'clock or six thirty?"

"Because those times make sense, and that's no fun," Discord answered simply. "And until that time is reached, I will not rest until I can prove to Sunset Shimmer that I'm a good friend."

Rainbow Dash paused for a moment, and then shrugged. "Well, at least he won't be interrupting our concert."

Discord blinked. "Wait, concert?  What's this about a concert, Sunny?"

Sunset bit her lip. "N-nothing.  J-just—"

"What do you mean nothing?  Fluttershy booked us to play at the animal rescue center tonight at six thirty!" Pinkie blurted out.  Sunset gave Pinkie a dirty look, and she blushed. "Oops.  I talked without thinking again, didn't I?"

"Oh, really?" said Discord thoughtfully. "Well, I certainly wouldn't want to miss that.  I suppose I can stay for a bit longer."

"Hang on!  You promised me you'd leave at six twelve!" Sunset shouted. "We had a deal!"

"I am merely altering the deal, Sunny," said Discord in a dark, chilling voice. "Pray I don't alter it further."

Fluttershy squeaked and hid herself under the table again. "U-um, Mr. Discord?  A-are you sure you're a good guy now?"

"Yeah, I'm with Flutters on this one.  That's kinda creepy," said Pinkie.

"What are you talking abou—  Oh, I see what you mean," said Discord, his voice still raspy. "Hang on a second."

He then patted his chest and began coughing violently.  After a few coughs, a frog leapt out of his mouth, manifested itself into reality, and landed on Fluttershy's head.

"Sorry, bit of a frog in my throat," said Discord, patting his chest once again. "Those little devils make me say the darnedest things, I tell you.  Well, I'd love to stay and gab, but I think I should rest for a bit.  Ta-ta, girls!"

With that, the hologram disappeared, and the phone's screen reverted to normal.  Fluttershy emerged from under the table, cradling the frog in her arms.

"Well, what do you think we should do now?" asked Rarity.

"Y'know what I think?" said Applejack, adjusting her hat. "I think we should give this guy the benefit of the doubt for now.  He doesn't seem to be lyin'."

"But it might be a trick, AJ," said Rainbow Dash. "He could end up ruining our concert!  We can't let that happen!"

"That doesn't mean he will, darling," Rarity said firmly. "Although his demeanor does appear to be a tad, uncouth."

"Well, when you get right down to it, he didn't look like he was that evil," said Fluttershy, playing a bit with her new friend.

"Looks can be deceiving, though," said Pinkie, knitting her brow. "But at the same time, he seemed super fun, too.  I-I dunno, I just can't decide.  What do you think, Sunset?"

Sunset heaved a great sigh. "I honestly have no idea if he's telling the truth or not.  And I can't get a message out to Twilight because of this chaos interference or whatever.  I guess all I can do right now is keep my eye on him and see what happens."

"That's probably for the best, Sunset," said Applejack with a tip of her hat.  She then picked up her apple danish. "Now then, I think we've spent enough time gabbin'.  Let's finish our breakfast so that we can get to school on time."

The others nodded in agreement and dug in to their own breakfasts.  While they talked about a great many things to take their minds off their troubles, Sunset couldn't erase Discord's presence from the back of her mind.  Of course, she didn't hide her feelings all that well.

"Aw, cheer up, Sunny!" said Pinkie, patting her on the back. "I'm sure that no matter what happens, it'll all turn out alright in the end.  That's how it always works, right?"

Sunset couldn't help but smile at Pinkie's optimism. "I suppose you're right, Pinkie.  We'll get through this, no matter what Discord throws our way."

Just then, her phone lit up and vibrated, indicating that she got a text.  She picked it up and let out an exasperated groan.

"What's wrong, Sunset?" inquired Rarity.

"'I heard that, Sunny,'" Sunset read aloud.

Everyone stifled a giggle.  As they laughed, Sunset couldn't help but let out a chuckle herself.  Even with the threat of Discord hovering around her, it was impossible to be in a bad mood with her friends.

Pinkie's right, she thought. No matter what happens, we'll get through this together.  Even so, I really don't know what to believe.  I hope Twilight can find a way to contact us soon and straighten this mess out.  Otherwise, I'm gonna end up having a migraine before this is over...
> Freak-out Fail
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Sonata wrung her hands nervously, her eyes darting every which way as she ventured across the school campus.  So far, her morning appeared to be entirely normal.  She got out of bed normally, she had a normal argument with her roommates about bathroom privileges, she ate a normal breakfast, and the day itself just reeked of normality.  But in the back of her mind, she knew this was the calm before the storm known only as Hurricane Discord.  She took a deep breath to calm her nerves.

"I can do this.  I can do this," she chanted to herself. "I just gotta play it cool.  It's no big deal.  I'll find the Rainbooms, casually walk up to them, tell 'em the sitch, and they'll take care of everything else.  Yeah.  This'll be a cinch.  All I have to do is be cool.  I can do that in my sleep, no problem."

She kept repeating this mantra over and over again to psych herself up, but inside, her heart was pounding something fierce.  All the while, she kept a sharp lookout for any of the Rainbooms or Discord's shenanigans.  Eventually, she heard the muffled sound of a thumping bass coming from behind her.  When she turned to see the cause of the sound, she froze in her tracks.  Walking across campus was none other than Canterlot High's resident deejay, Vinyl Scratch.  As usual, her headphones were blaring some sort of electronic beat that she kept in time to with every step she took.  Sonata swallowed.

"This is it, Sonata.  Keep it cool," she whispered, taking a few deep breaths. "She won't hurt you.  Discord's probably not spying on you right now.  Just tell her what's going on, she'll tell the Rainbooms, and then everything will be okay.  Alright, let's do this."

She quickly made a beeline towards Vinyl and wave her arm frantically. "Yo!  Hey, you there!  Wait up!"

Vinyl stopped and turned to see Sonata running towards her.  She smiled and raised her fist, which caused Sonata to skid to a stop.

"Waa~!  D-don't hurt me!" she shrieked, squeezing her eyes shut and turning away.

Vinyl's eyebrows softened, and her smile turned into a concerned frown.  She took off her headphones and reached out to Sonata with an open hand.  Sonata opened one tentative eye.

"Y-you're not gonna hurt me?" she whimpered.

Vinyl shook her head.

"Then, what was with the fist?"

Vinyl let out a sigh and made a vertical waving motion with her wrist, indicating that it was nothing.

"Oh, okay," said Sonata, calming down a little. "S-so, um...  How're you doing?"

Vinyl shrugged one shoulder.

"Oh, that's cool.  That's cool," said Sonata, brushing the back of her head sheepishly. "I'm cool too, by the way.  I'm just, like, really ready for a cool day at school, y'know?  Just being cool.  Check out how cool I am."

Vinyl nodded slowly, although because of her shades, Sonata had no idea if she was actually listening or not.

"Yeah, you know it," said Sonata. "Just a couple of girls talking about being cool.  Nothing weird about that.  Everything's fine.  It's okay."

Vinyl tilted her head as she noticed beads of sweat forming on Sonata's brow.  She opened her mouth to say something, but Sonata interrupted.

"Th-there's just one teeny tiny little thing that's bothering me," she said. "I-it's nothing serious or anything.  Nothing to cause a panic over.  J-just that THE MASTER OF CHAOS HAS RETURNED AND HE'S GONNA DO HORRIBLE THINGS IF THE RAINBOOMS DON'T STOP HIM!"

Sonata gasped and clasped her hands over her mouth right after her outburst.  A few of the other students on campus gave her strange looks as they walked by.  Vinyl lowered her shades and raised an eyebrow.

"I-I know this is hard to believe, but it's true!" Sonata insisted, falling to her knees and clawing at Vinyl's dress. "I saw him last night!  He's gonna make this world worse than the worst, and only you and the Rainbooms can stop him!  Please, help!"

Vinyl brushed Sonata off, giving her an annoyed look.

"C-C'mon, you gotta believe me!" Sonata cried. "You don't know what Discord could do.  He might make it so that black is white and get us all killed at the next zebra crossing, or he could turn gravity into gravy, or worse!  The only thing that can stop him is your Equestrian magic!  You're our only hope!"

Vinyl's face clouded with concern. "Um, do you want me to go get you a cup of coffee or something?" she asked. "It sounds like you had a pretty wild time last night."

Sonata blinked. "Wh-what are you talking about?  I spent my night at home."

"Ah.  I see what's going on here," said Vinyl with a thoughtful nod.

Sonata's expression brightened. "R-really?"

"Sure, sure.  I do that kind of stuff all the time.  I know what it's like."

Sonata's hopeful smile turned into a stare of confusion. "Wait, what kind of stuff?"

"Aw, don't be so bashful.  You know what I'm talking about," said Vinyl with a playful wink. "It's all good.  I won't tell anyone.  That's strictly your business, and no one can take that away from you.  But just FYI, you might wanna splash some cold water on your face before first period.  Mr. Doodle will not be happy if you stumble into his math class spouting off that crazy mumbo jumbo.  Trust me, I've been there."

"B-but it's not crazy mumbo jumbo!" Sonata yelled. "I saw him, for realsies!  I saw Discord with my own two eyes, and you need to tell the Rainbooms about him before he—"

"Whoa, hey.  Chillax, girl," said Vinyl, placing an arm around Sonata. "I get it.  It's okay.  Believe me, I've seen my fair share of weird things, too.  And I'm not talking about magical she-demons or epic music battles, either.  But while those things are real, you just gotta remember that everything you saw last night wasn't."

"But it was!  I swear!" Sonata wailed. "I'm not making this up!"

"I'm not saying you made it up," said Vinyl. "I'm just sayin' it's probably just in your head.  That's cool and all, but school ain't exactly the time or the place for that, y'know what I'm saying?  Now, how about we hit up the bakery and get you a nice hot cup of coffee, huh?  It's sure to cure you of those heebie-jeebies."

"I don't need any coffee!" Sonata shouted, sinking to her knees again. "I need the Rainbooms to defeat Discord before he breaks my brain!"

"H-hey!  Hands off the merchandise, girl," Vinyl snapped, shoving Sonata off again. "Sheesh.  You must've gotten into some crazy hijinks last night.  I'm afraid to even ask what happened."

"I just told you!" Sonata exclaimed. "It's Discord!  He's come to turn this world into a crazy nightmare, and—"

"Only the Rainbooms can stop him, yeah yeah yeah," Vinyl interrupted with a dismissive wave of her hand. "I heard you the first time.  Though at this point, I think you should probably call in sick.  The teachers don't like it when you're not in the right state of mind.  Especially not Mr. Doodle."

"B-but I can't," said Sonata, her voice cracking. "I-I have to warn the Rainbooms about Discord."

Vinyl sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "Alright, suit yourself then.  But don't say I didn't warn you."

With that, she put her headphones back on and walked away.  Sonata jumped to her feet.

"W-wait!  Don't go!" Sonata called out hoarsely. "Y-you gotta..."

Alas, her cries fell on deaf ears.  Vinyl was too engrossed in her music, and Sonata couldn't strain her voice over the thumping beat.  She stopped in her tracks and sighed as she watched Vinyl leave.  After a pause, she heard a familiar snickering behind her.  She spun around and glowered.  Sure enough, Aria was walking up to her, stifling her laughter all the while.

"Smooth, Sonata," Aria chuckled. "Way to keep your cool under pressure.  No one will suspect that you're having an episode.  Except for, oh, I don't know, everyone in earshot.  Pfft-hehahaha."

Sonata crossed her arms and sulked. "Sh-shut up," she grumbled.

"Nah, I don't think I will," said Aria with a smug grin. "I'm also gonna say I told you so.  She clearly didn't believe a word you were saying."

"W-well, she didn't hate me, either.  You were wrong about that part, so nyeh~!" Sonata snapped, sticking her tongue out at Aria.

Aria simply scoffed. "She was probably just trying to keep up appearances, Sonata.  Besides, I thought you weren't trying to like these guys."

"I-I'm not," said Sonata, twiddling her fingers. "I'm just trying to warn them about Discord before he does something bad, that's all."

Aria sighed. "You know, that's probably not gonna fly with Adagio.  Heck, with how obsessed she sounded last night, she's probably gonna kill you if she finds out you're doing this."

Sonata's eyes went wide. "Wh-what?!  Oh, breadballs!  I-I totally didn't think of that!"

"Somehow, I'm not surprised," said Aria, casting her gaze upward.

Sonata gripped Aria's arms and gave her a manic stare. "Promise me you won't tell Adagio about this, Aria!  Promise me!"

Aria deadpanned. "You have five seconds to let go of me.  Five..."

"B-but Aria—"

"Four..."

"Y-you can't tell—"

"Three..."

"I'm being serious he—"

"Two..."

"Nyah-ah-ah~!"

Finally, Sonata released Aria and stumbled back a few feet.  Aria sighed and brushed herself off.

"That's better," she said. "Anyway, you don't need to worry about me, Sonata.  I wasn't planning on telling Adagio anything in the first place."

Sonata breathed a sigh of relief. "F-for realsies?"

"Yeah, sure," said Aria with a shrug.

Sonata smiled broadly and stretched her arms wide. "Oh, thank you, Aria!  I really owe you one!" she cheered. "I'm so happy, I could just—"

"Don't even think about it," Aria snarled, cutting across Sonata.

Sonata's expression deflated. "Okay."

Aria heaved another sigh. "Just for the record, I'm not touching this Discord situation with a ten-foot pole.  As far as I'm concerned, both you and Adagio have lost your minds."

"What were you saying about me?"

Sonata blanched as she noticed Adagio walking towards them.  She hid herself behind Aria, who simply folded her arms and scowled.  Adagio herself looked like a mess.  Her eyes were droopy and bloodshot, and her clothes were decorated with rips and tears.  But despite all that, she still kept her head held high.

"And Her Highness graces us with her presence at long last.  Finally decided to leave the bathroom, did you?" she said irritably. "Sonata and I were just discussing how you were hogging it this morning, actually.  So much so that we ended up leaving without you.  Seriously, what was up with that?  My hair looks like a rat's nest thanks to you!"

Adagio groaned. "I got in late last night, and I was too tired to take a shower when I got home, okay?"

"Yeah, about that," said Aria, arching an eyebrow. "Do I want to know what you were doing that could've possibly justified that little bathroom adventure?  This is like the first time we're seeing your face since you stormed off chasing after Discord."

There was a sinister gleam in Adagio's eye as she wrung her hands. "Oh, you'll see soon enough.  By the way, it's not too late, girls.  You two can still get in on the action.  I'm sure Discord will make us all his queens if we work together."

"Sorry, Adagio.  Still passing," said Aria flatly.

"Yeah, me too," whimpered Sonata.

Adagio shrugged. "Oh well.  Your loss.  More power for me, then.  Now, if you'll excuse me, my little present for Discord should be showing itself any minute now."

She walked past Aria and Sonata with a cocky swagger.  Aria stroked her chin and smirked.

"She actually made a present for him?" she mused, letting out a slight snicker. "Oh, this I gotta see."

With that, she took off after Adagio.  Sonata lagged behind, staring at her feet and heaving a great sigh.

"Well, I only talked to one Rainboom," she mumbled. "I'm sure one of the others will listen to me.  They gotta listen to me.  They just gotta.  Aria's wrong.  They don't hate me that much."

She paused, and then swallowed. "D-do they?"
> What the Hay?!
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"Good morning, Sunset Shimmer.  Nice weather we're having, huh?"

"Hey, Sunset!  Looking forward to the Rainbooms concert tonight!"

"Hello, Ms. Shimmer.  How are you today?"

Sunset Shimmer beamed as she strolled down the crowded hallway of Canterlot High.  The air was alive with the hum of pleasant cross-conversation and a string of cheerful greetings.  Every time one of those greetings were directed towards Sunset herself, she felt a gentle warmth in her chest.  She couldn't help but sigh in contentment.

Her bliss was interrupted by her ringtone.  With a slight groan, she answered it.  Sure enough, Discord appeared on her screen.

"Hey, so, I've been thinking about making us friendship necklaces," he said, showing her two golden pendants.  One was half a heart depicting a human Sunset Shimmer; the other depicted her as a unicorn. "Which one do you like better?"

Sunset raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you jumping the gun a little?"

Discord tilted his head. "I thought it was common for friends to give each other gifts regardless of the occasion."

"That or you're trying to bribe me to trust you," said Sunset with a scowl.

"What?  No!  That's not it at all!" Discord growled indignantly. "How could you even think that, Sunny?  I put a lot of work into these, y'know.  I didn't have to do that."

"Translation: You snapped your fingers, and lo, they did appear," said Sunset, rolling her eyes.

Discord had no retort. "You win this round, Sunny," he grumbled, opening up a to-do list app.  He then crossed off an entry marked "Friendship Necklaces."

"H-hey!  You'd better not be messing around with my planner!" Sunset warned.

"Relax, this is purely my file," said Discord, looking down the list. "So, how do you feel about fresh-baked cookies?"

Sunset resisted the urge to palm her face. "Discord, you can't just buy someone's friendship with favors and gifts.  It doesn't work like that."

Discord blinked and looked back at his list. "Huh.  I wish you told me something before I made this useless thing," he mused. "Oh well.  Back to the drawing board."

He then exited out of the app and tore it up as if it were made of paper.  Sunset rolled her eyes.

"Look, I don't have time for this now," she said. "There are only ten minutes before first period, and I need to focus on preparing for school.  So, if you don't mind..."

"Alright, alright.  I'll ask you about this later," sighed Discord, shaking his head. "Sheesh, Twilight never told me about you being such a grouch."

With a snap of his fingers, the phone's screen went dark.  Sunset let out a sigh of her own and went over to her locker.

"Don't let him get to you, Sunset," she told herself. "Just keep calm.  Everything will— GAH!"

As soon as she opened her locker, the pungent odor of a stable assaulted her nostrils.  A wave of hay spilled out onto the floor, along with sticky barbs and pointy thorns that stuck to her clothing.  After recovering from the shock, Sunset deadpanned.

"Great.  As if this day couldn't get any worse," she mumbled bitterly, staring at the mess on the floor.  Just then, her phone's screen lit up, and Discord reappeared.

"I thought I heard a noise," Discord said. "Are you—?  Sweet Celestia Luna and Twilight on a pogo stick!  What happened?!"

Sunset glowered at Discord. "I think you—"

"We have to get you cleaned up, Sunny," Discord interrupted. "You cannot go to school like that.  Fortunately, as a good friend, I have just the solution!"

He scrolled through the apps on Sunset's phone and came to one marked "Shower."  Before Sunset could protest, he tapped the app.  In the blink of an eye, Sunset found herself standing in a bathtub with a green shower curtain shielding her from prying eyes.  She barely had time to get her bearings before the shower head above her started bombarding her with warm, soapy water.  She gasped and sputtered.

"Don't worry, Sunny!  I'm not peeking!" Discord called out, hiding his face behind a yellow umbrella. "And your phone is perfectly alright, too!"

A few seconds later, the shower disappeared.  Sunset was soaked to the bone and shivering.  She gave her phone a dirty look.

"Not done yet, Sunny," said Discord, scrolling over to another app. "I got this one from a friend back home."

He tapped an app marked "Rain-Blow Dry," and all of a sudden, a small whirlwind lapped at Sunset's feet.  A split second later, the whirlwind turned into a raging tornado displaying a full spectrum of color.  The warm winds did their job, whipping away every bit of moisture from Sunset's body.  After a few dizzying seconds, the tornado vanished as quickly as it came.

"Et violà," said Discord cheerfully. "All clean, dry, and ready for school.  How do you feel, Sun—?"

He stopped himself mid-sentence and covered his mouth with both hands.  Sunset was indeed dry and clean, but her hair had become all tangled and bunched up thanks to the tornado.  Tears formed in Discord's eyes as he snickered, trying desperately to hold his laughter in.

"O-oh my goodness," he wheezed. "I-I am s-so s-sorree hee hee hee hee~!"

Discord continued to snigger and chortle, wriggling about on Sunset's screen as she gave him a bemused look.  Finally, Discord took a few deep breaths and calmed himself down.

"You done?" Sunset asked.

"Y-yeah, I'm good," said Discord, clearing his throat. "Again, I do apologize, Sunny.  I-I know I shouldn't have laughed at you, but I-I just couldn't h-help myself."

"Uh, Sunset?  Wh-what was that?"

Sunset looked up to see that Flash Sentry was standing right in front of her, his mouth agape.  Sunset gulped.

"F-Flash, I-I can explain..." she said nervously.

"Fret not, Sunset.  I've got this," said Discord.

With a snap of his fingers, he appeared before Flash's eyes.  He was wearing a black suit and shades.  Flash continued to stare at the bizarre spectacle that unfolded before him.

"Here, Sunny.  You'll need these," said Discord.  With another snap of his fingers, a pair of heavily-tinted sunglasses appeared on Sunset's face.  Discord then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small metal stick.

"Sir, would you please stare at this for a moment?" he asked Flash.

Flash was completely dumbfounded. "S-Sunset, what's going on?  Wh-who is this?  I-Is there—?"

"I said stare at the metal stick, sir," Discord said gruffly.

"H-hey, don't tell me what to d—"

Discord interrupted Flash by pressing a button on the stick.  A bright flash filled the room, and Flash was rendered stupefied.

"You saw nothing," said Discord coldly. "You will go about your normal day like nothing happened."

Flash nodded. "R-right, sure," he said in a dazed tone.  He then turned around and went on his way.  Once he was gone, Discord went back into Sunset's phone.

"Whew, that was a close one," he said, taking off his suit and shades. "So, where were we?"

Sunset took a moment to shake herself. "Discord, what are you up to?"

"I think I've made my motives abundantly clear several times now, Sunny," said Discord, folding his arms. "It's not my fault that you don't believe me."

"It's hard to believe you when you put garbage in my locker and brainwash the other students," Sunset snarled.

"Okay, first of all, I didn't brainwash that boy.  I simply made him forget ever seeing me.  Other than that, he's right as rain," said Discord. "Second, you really think that mess in your locker was my work?  Please.  This is clearly just some amateur prank.  Now if there were peaches dancing the Watusi in your locker, that would be a different story."

"But that's the thing, Discord.  The students at CHS don't play pranks on me like this," said Sunset.  She then let out a sad sigh and cast her eyes downward. "Well, not anymore, at least."

Discord arched an eyebrow. "'Not anymore?'" he parroted. "What do you mean by that, Sunny?"

Sunset heaved another sigh. "After the Fall Formal, when it was revealed that I was a unicorn, a couple of punks named Hoops and Dumb-bell thought it would be hilarious to stuff hay in my locker."

Discord blinked. "Wait, so they didn't care that you used the Element of Magic to try and conquer Equestria?  They were just picking on you for being different?"

"Oh, no.  They were still incredibly sore about what I did," said Sunset. "They just wanted to rub salt into my wounds for good measure."

Discord frowned and crossed his arms. "Well, that's highly uncalled for.  So, what do you plan on doing about it?"

Sunset did a double take. "Pardon?"

"Well, if those two hooligans are up to their old tricks, you should stand up for yourself, shouldn't you?" asked Discord.

Sunset bit her lip and shook her head. "No, see.  That's what they want me to do."

Discord gave Sunset a blank stare. "You lost me, Sunny."

"If I tried to confront them, it would just confirm their suspicions."

"What suspicions?"

"That I'm still the same she-demon that does whatever it takes to get what she wants."

Discord furrowed his brow and tapped his chin. "So, you have trouble advocating for yourself because of your reputation," he mused. "I sure know what that feels like."

Sunset snorted. "Seriously, Discord.  Stop comparing us like this.  I'm not falling for it."

"Case in point," Discord sighed. "Listen, Sunny.  If you're so worried about this silly misconception, then I have a suggestion for you."

Sunset deadpanned. "Do I want to know what that suggestion is?"

"I think you'll like it," said Discord with a shrug.

Sunset sighed. "Okay, fine.  What's this suggestion of yours?"

"If you can't advocate for yourself, then I'll advocate for you."

Sunset blinked. "What?"

"Let me tell you a story, Sunny," said Discord, leaning back on his snake tail. "Back in the early days of my reformation, nopony believed that it was possible.  Nopony, that is, except for Fluttershy.  And no matter what, she would always defend me no matter how guilty I appeared to be.  I can do something similar for you.  I'll find those ruffians and show them the error of their ways."

Sunset raised an eyebrow. "That sounds like a recipe for disaster.  And a good way to get me into trouble," she said skeptically.

"Not if I'm careful about it," Discord retorted. "I may be new to friendship, Sunny, but I'm not stupid.  Besides, I'd be helping you get the justice you deserve.  Wouldn't you love a friend who would do that for you?"

Sunset opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by the bell ringing.

"Whoop!  That's my cue to skidoo," said Discord. "We'll pick this up later, Sunny."

He then snapped his fingers, and the phone's screen went dark.  Sunset sighed as she got her bags out of the messy locker.

"The custodian is not gonna be happy about this," she muttered under her breath. "'Get the justice I deserve,' he says.  As if that madman knows what justice is."

The phone vibrated in Sunset's pocket.  She picked it up to find an all-too-familiar text.

"'I heard that, Sunny,'" she growled, deleting the text. "That's not gonna get old anytime soon..."


***


Unbeknownst to Sunset, Adagio and Aria were watching the tail end of her phone conversation with Discord.  Adagio grinned from ear to ear as she wrung her hands in delight.  Aria, however, was less than impressed.

"That's your present to Discord?" she inquired. "You gotta be kidding me."

"Don't be so quick to knock it, Aria," said Adagio. "See how agitated Sunset Shimmer is?  She's probably so angry, she's ready to punch someone's lights out.  It should be no problem for Discord to corrupt her now."

"Uh-huh," said Aria, casting her gaze upward. "That totally justifies you hogging the bathroom all morning."

"Hey, this took a lot of work to put together, Aria," Adagio growled through gritted teeth.

"And I'm sure Discord appreciates it," Aria replied sardonically.

Adagio huffed. "Scoff if you must, Aria.  But once Discord praises me for my efforts, we'll see who has the last laugh."

She then marched off to class.  Aria sniggered and shook her head.

"I can't decide which is funnier," she chuckled. "Adagio being delusional, or Sonata being stupid.  Well, I guess it doesn't matter either way.  This should be highly entertaining no matter what happens next..."
> Palling Around the Pool
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ugh~.  I will never understand why humans have to wear these stupid things whenever they want to go swimming.

That's what Sonata wanted to say as she stared at her sky blue one-piece bathing suit.  She made a point to complain about it every time Swim Class rolled around.  But this time, other things were on her mind.  The morning was almost done, and since her encounter with Vinyl, she didn't get a chance to meet any of the other Rainbooms.  She heaved a great sigh and started undoing her ponytail.

"You're unusually quiet today, Sonata," Adagio observed as she slipped into her own purple one-piece. "Don't tell me you're still fretting over Discord."

"N-no!" Sonata squeaked defensively. "I-I haven't thought about Discord since this morning!  I don't know what you're talking about!"

Adagio raised an eyebrow. "Are you okay, Sonata?"

"Fine!  Never been better!" Sonata shouted, her shoulders growing stiff.

Aria scoffed as she undid her pigtails, but didn't say anything else.  Adagio looked between the two and frowned.

"You two are hiding something from me, aren't you?" she said, folding her arms.

"What?  Nah," said Aria with a playful laugh. "You're just being paranoid, Adagio."

"What she said!" Sonata blurted out. "I've got nothing to hide, honest!  I wouldn't lie to you, Adagio!"

Aria stifled another laugh while Adagio gave Sonata a skeptical look.

"Look me in the eye and say that," she challenged, towering over Sonata.

Sonata swallowed. "I, um..."

"Hey, slowpokes!  We're all waiting on you three!  Pick it up, would ya?"

A familiar scratchy voice caused Sonata's head to whip around.  She caught a quick glimpse of Rainbow Dash's multicolored swimsuit and sky blue bathing cap as she exited the girl's locker room.  In that moment, Sonata's spirits rose from their doldrums.

This is my chance! she thought. I can finally warn the Rainbooms about Discord!

"Sonata, are you listening to me?" Adagio growled.

"Hold that thought," said Sonata.  With that, she hastily changed into her swimsuit and ran after Rainbow Dash.  She just got out of the locker room when a loud whistle caused her to stop.  The whistle came from a serious-looking woman with a rosy complexion and blue hair.

"How many times must I tell you, Ms. Dusk?" the teacher scolded. "No running along the edge of the pool."

"S-sorry, Ms. Firefly," Sonata said sheepishly. "I just—"

"Don't give me excuses, Ms. Dusk," Firefly barked. "Just go find a seat over there."

She pointed to the edge of the pool's deep end, where all of the student were lined up in a row.  Sonata found an empty spot next to Rainbow Dash and made a beeline towards it, making sure not to run.  As she sat down, Firefly cleared her throat.

"Alright, everyone.  Today, we're going to go through all the strokes we learned so far," she said. "I expect twenty laps out of each of you.  Four laps front crawl, four laps back stroke..."

Sonata drowned out the rest of the teacher's instructions as she tried to get Rainbow Dash's attention. "Psst!"

Rainbow Dash gave Sonata an annoyed look and kept her attention on Firefly.

"Psssssst~!" Sonata hissed.

"Shhh~!" Rainbow Dash hissed back, putting a finger to her lips.

"C-c'mon, this is really important!" Sonata whispered.

"It can't be more important than this," Rainbow retorted, dipping her voice. "Now be quiet.  You'll get us both in trouble."

"But we're already in trouble!" Sonata cried. "This world is gonna become worse than the worst, and you have to stop it!  Just like you stopped us!"

Sonata heard an annoyed cough down the row.  Looking beyond Rainbow Dash, she saw Aria in her green two-piece suit giving her a cold glare.  Sonata blushed.

"Uh, I still hate you for that, by the way," she said with a sheepish chuckle.

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. "You alright there?"

"No, I'm not alright!" Sonata exclaimed softly. "This world is gonna be totally screwed up unless you and the Rainbooms stop—"

*Tw-EET*

A loud whistle interrupted her train of thought.  Sonata and Rainbow Dash looked up, only to find Firefly standing over them and tapping her foot.

"Is there something you two girls want to share with the rest of the class?" she asked.

"N-no, ma'am," said Rainbow Dash nervously. "J-just skip it."

Sonata's eyes widened. No!  I can't miss my chance now!

"I have something to say!" Sonata yelled, her hand shooting into the air. "And that is..."

She trailed off when she noticed Adagio giving her suspicious looks.  Sweat poured down her face, and she swallowed.

"That is what, Ms. Dusk?" inquired Firefly. "What did you want to say?"

Sonata hemmed and hawed, trying to rack her brain for an answer. "Um, uh...  What I wanted to say is that, I have nothing to say?"

It took sheer force of will for Aria to prevent herself from bursting out laughing.  Firefly, however, was less than amused.

"Double laps.  Both of you," she ordered.

Rainbow Dash folded her arms and pouted. "Thanks a lot," she grumbled, giving Sonata a dirty look.

"B-b-b-b-b-b-but..." Sonata stuttered.

"Complain, and I'll make it triple," Firefly warned.

Sonata clammed up in an instant. "Y-yes'm," she whimpered.

Firefly sighed. "The things I put up with," she groused before turning back to her students. "Alright, everyone!  Remember, this is not a race!  I expect you all to simply do your best!  On your marks, get set..."

With the sound of her whistle, all of the students dove into the pool.


***


When class ended, Sonata didn't even bother to dry off.  She simply marched into the girl's locker room and slammed her head into one of the doors with a dull clang.

"Great.  Just great," she mumbled. "If she didn't hate me before, she must hate me now.  Aria's right.  They won't listen to me."

"Hey there."

Sonata jumped as she heard a familiar voice call out to her.  She turned around to see Rainbow Dash clad in a light blue towel with her symbol plastered on it.  Sonata's face lost all color.

"O-oh, h-heh heh," she chuckled nervously. "I-it's you.  I-I guess you're still mad at me about, well, y'know.  Everything.  U-um, p-please don't hurt me."

Rainbow Dash tilted her head. "What?  Why would I want to hurt you?"

"Because you hate me."

Rainbow Dash scratched her head. "Uh, okay.  That's, not exactly why I wanted to talk to you."

Sonata blinked. "It isn't?"

"I was just wondering why you were acting so uptight," Rainbow Dash said with a shrug.

Sonata gave Rainbow Dash a quizzical look. "Why would you want to know that?"

"Well, you got me in trouble with Ms. Firefly; I think I deserve to know why," Rainbow Dash said frankly, folding her arms.

Sonata looked all around the room to make sure the coast was clear.  Unfortunately, Adagio was right in earshot.  She hastily cleared her throat.

"Um, well, funny you should ask that," she said, wiping some sweat from her brow. "Y-y'see, uh, I-I can't tell you that right now."

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?  Why not?"

"For reasons," Sonata said hastily. "Just, reasons."

Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes. "You said something about this world being in danger before."

"D-did I?" Sonata said, rubbing the back of her head. "Wh-when did I say that?  I-I clearly didn't say that."

Rainbow Dash deadpanned. "Wow, and I thought Applejack was a terrible liar."

"L-look, I really really want to tell you, but I can't," said Sonata. "Y-you gotta believe me."

Rainbow Dash sighed and shook her head. "I have no idea what you're babbling about, but I've got no time to figure it out right now," she said. "I scheduled a practicing session in the Music Room right after this, and I gotta get changed."

"W-well, maybe we can talk over lunch or something," said Sonata, twiddling her fingers. "You usually have lunch with the other Rainbooms, right?"

"Uh, yeah," said Rainbow Dash, arching an eyebrow. "Why do you care?  I thought you didn't like us."

"Well, I don't," said Sonata. "It's just that this is super duper important, and you need to hear me out."

Rainbow Dash massaged her temples. "Okay, this is really starting to confuse me.  I'm just gonna jet."

"W-wait, j-just one more thing!" Sonata called out.

Rainbow Dash turned her head. "What is it?"

Sonata placed her hands behind her back and shuffled her feet. "Um, do you, hate me?"

Rainbow Dash tapped her chin in thought. "Well, that's hard to say.  I mean, you and the other Dazzlings did try to take over the school last week, but you're not really a threat anymore.  I dunno, I guess I don't know enough about you guys as normal teenage girls to answer that."  She then smirked. "'Sides, anyone who can give me a run for my money in the pool earns some brownie points in my book."

Sonata blinked. "Y-you like my swimming?"

Rainbow Dash let out a lighthearted laugh. "Girl, I'm surprised you aren't on the Wondercolts swim team yet.  You totally should ask Ms. Firefly about signing up.  When she's in a better mood, that is."

Sonata blushed and twiddled her fingers. "Oh, well, thanks.  It comes with living most of my life in the water, y'know.  Being a sea pony and all that."  She then tugged at her swimsuit and scowled. "Though I think I would be better if I didn't have to wear this skintight trap and just—"

"And I'm bailing on this conversation before it gets awkward," said Rainbow Dash, cutting across Sonata. "Seeya later, Sonata."

With that, she darted off.  Before Sonata could fully process what happened, she heard an angry voice behind her.

"And what was that all about?"

Sonata gulped and turned around.  Aria was right behind her, crossing her arms and tapping her foot.

"N-nothing," Sonata said sheepishly. "I-I don't know what you're talking about."

"Really?  Because it sounds to me like you were trying to be all buddy-buddy with our mortal enemy," said Aria, staring daggers at Sonata.

"N-no, nothing like that," said Sonata frantically, waving her arms about. "I-I was just trying to, well, y'know.  That."

"What?"

"What do you mean what?  You know what I'm talking about."

Aria sneered. "Oh, I'm not so sure, Sonata.  Why don't you fill me in?  Or are you unable to because of reasons?"

Sonata tilted her head. "That's exactly it, Aria.  How'd you know what I was gonna say?"

Aria sighed. "And it flies right over your head."

"Huh?"

"I was trying to mess with you, Sonata.  Of course I know what you're talking about," Aria growled. "It's just that the way you're going about it has me, concerned."

"Hey, I didn't ask her to compliment my swimming," Sonata protested. "She just did.  And by the way, why would she do that if she hated me?"

Aria palmed her face. "To keep up appearances, you nimrod.  Doy!"

"Well, you don't know that," Sonata countered. "I bet I know more about the Rainbooms than you do."

"Do not."

"Do too!"

"Do not."

"Do too!"

Aria raised her hands and stopped the childish argument short. "Alright, fine.  Go ahead and try to prove me wrong.  Just make sure that Adagio's not in earshot before you announce your warning to the world."

Sonata stared at Aria for a moment. "W-wait.  Are you, helping me?"

Aria flinched. "Wh-what?  No, I'm not!"

"Really?  'Cause it sounds like you're helping me."

Aria's cheeks began to burn. "I told you, Sonata.  I'm not helping you with anything."

"Are you sure?  That last thing you said sounded pretty helpful to me."

"I-I was just pointing out how stupid you are!  I'm always doing that!"

Sonata smirked. "You're worried about me, aren't you?"

"I am not!" Aria snapped, turning away from Sonata.

"Are too," Sonata insisted, poking Aria's arm.

"Am not!"

"Are too."

"Am not am not am not~!"

"Are too are too are too~!"

"Am not times infinity!"

"Are—"

"Oh, will you two just shut up?!"

The debate was interrupted by Adagio marching in between Aria and Sonata, giving them both dirty looks.

"Must you always bicker and argue over every little thing?" she groused. "I can't hear myself think.  You know, I'm almost glad you two aren't with me on joining Discord.  You'd probably screw everything up because you're a pair of idiots."

With that, she stormed off.  Sonata leaned in close to Aria and cupped her hand over her ear.

"Hey, Aria," she whispered.

Aria rolled her eyes. "What?"

Sonata snickered. "Are too times infinity."

Aria blushed profusely and clenched her hands into fists. "You're the worst, Sonata."

"No, you," said Sonata, sticking out her tongue at Aria.

Aria sighed and walked over to her own locker. Stupid Sonata, she griped mentally. She's so dumb, she couldn't find her way out of a paper bag if I gave her a map.  If it wasn't for me and Adagio, she'd never be able to function in this world.  N-not that I care about that or anything...
> Magical Music Theory
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"Hey, are you feeling okay, Sunset?"

"Ms. Shimmer, you've been awfully quiet today.  I trust that you're paying attention to the lesson?"

"Man, Sunset.  You don't look so good.  Something bothering you?"

Questions of concern bombarded Sunset all throughout the morning.  Ever since the incident with her locker, she tried her best to proceed through her day like normal.  However, she found this to be increasingly difficult with Discord breathing down her neck at all times.  Sure, he didn't cause any disruptions during her classes, but that only made her more uneasy.  Despite her attempts to maintain a stiff upper lip and pretend that nothing was wrong, everyone could tell that she was on pins and needles.

She breathed a muted sigh as she walked over to the Music Room with her guitar slung over one shoulder and her backpack slung over the other.  When she entered, she found that her other friends had already begun setting up.  A series of low twangs resonated around the room as Applejack tuned her bass while Fluttershy was going over some music with Rarity and Pinkie Pie.  Oddly enough, though, Rainbow Dash was nowhere to be seen.  Sunset walked in and cleared her throat.

"Huh?  Oh, howdy Sunset," said Applejack with a tip of her hat. "How's it going?"

"Hard to say," said Sunset, looking around the room. "Um, where's Rainbow Dash?  She's usually not late for practice like this."

"Mmm, it is quite strange, isn't it?" Rarity mused, knitting her brow. "Well, I'm sure she just got held up somewhere.  She should be along any minute now."

Fluttershy fiddled with her tambourine and looked down at Sunset's pocket. "Uh, Sunset?  I-is he still here?"

"As far as I know," said Sunset with a sigh. "He's been pretty quiet since classes started, but every time I check the book, it still gives me that chaos interference notification."

Pinkie shrugged. "Well, at least he hasn't been doing anything evil, right?  That's a good thing, isn't it?"

"I guess," said Sunset, setting her bag off to the side. "Still, I can't help but worry that he's up to something."

"Maybe he is," said Pinkie. "But that doesn't mean that it's a bad something."

"It doesn't mean it's a good something, either," said Fluttershy tersely.  She then cast her eyes downward and started fiddling with her tambourine again. "Oh, I hope he doesn't ruin our rehearsal.  This is our only chance to practice before the concert tonight, and we have to make it count."

Sunset forced a smile and placed a hand on Fluttershy's shoulder. "Don't worry, Fluttershy.  We all know how much this concert means to you, and none of us plan on letting you down."

Applejack looked up at the clock and scowled. "Okay, this is startin' to get ridiculous.  What's takin' her so long?"

"Hey, guys!"

As if on cue, Rainbow Dash burst in through the door with her blue guitar on her back.  She took a moment to wipe some sweat from her brow and catch her breath.

"Oh my stars, darling!  You look absolutely ragged!" Rarity exclaimed. "What happened?"

Rainbow Dash took one final deep breath before answering. "I got held up in the locker room at Swim Class.  Had to jog all the way up here as soon as I got changed."

"Oh my," gasped Fluttershy. "Did you get in trouble with Ms. Firefly?  I heard she can be very, scary."

"Kinda," said Rainbow Dash, brushing the back of her head sheepishly. "I didn't mean to, though.  It was Sonata that got me in trouble."

Sunset perked up. "You mean one of the Sirens?  What was she doing?"

Rainbow Dash shrugged. "She was going on and on about the world being in danger and that we had to stop it, but that's really all I could understand.  She first tried to get my attention while Ms. Firefly was giving instructions, and we both had to do double laps because of it.  Then when I tried to ask her about it in the locker room, she said she couldn't tell me for some weird reason.  I dunno, she was just acting so strange the whole time."

Pinkie's eyes widened. "You mean you actually got one of those girls to talk to you?!  I've been trying to befriend them all week!  But every time I try, they just want nothing to do with me."

"Well, we did kind of humiliate them at the Battle of the Bands, darling," said Rarity. "It wouldn't be out of the ordinary for them to hold a grudge against us for that."

"What I want to know is what she meant by the world being in danger," said Sunset, furrowing her brow and tapping her chin. "That never seemed to be a concern of the Sirens before, especially since they were trying to take over."

"Got any ideas what she could be talkin' about?" asked Applejack.

Sunset nodded. "There's only one explanation I can think of.  I think someone has some explaining to do."

She then took out her cellphone and turned it on.  Sure enough, Discord was still there.  He was wearing some blue coveralls and had a paint roller in his paw.  The phone's background had completely changed from Sunset's symbol to a stained glass picture of Discord having a therapy session with Twilight Sparkle.  Using his snake tail, Discord rolled up a bit of wallpaper that covered the last of Sunset's old background, humming a little tune to himself as he worked.  Sunset suppressed a groan and cleared her throat noisily.

"Let the rainbow remind y— Oh, Sunny!  Hey!" said Discord cheerfully. "How's everything?"

Sunset glowered. "First of all, if you're going to live on my phone, I'd appreciate it if you stopped messing with my settings."

Discord looked over at his handiwork. "You don't like the color?" he asked. "I could go with something else, if you'd like."

"It was fine the way it was, Discord," Sunset growled.

Discord sighed. "Well, excuse me for getting bored in here," he grumbled.  With a snap of his fingers, the background reverted to normal. "So, that's probably not the reason you called.  What can I do you for, Sunny?"

"Just answer me this," said Sunset. "Did you talk to anyone else in this world before you came to me?"

Discord's brow crinkled as he twirled his goatee around his finger. "Hmm.  Now that you mention it, I did get a bit lost when I first got here.  I ended up in this run-down apartment where these three girls were staying.  I remember them being very unhelpful, actually."

"Unhelpful?"

"They were just gawking at me in stunned silence, refusing to give me direction," said Discord, folding his arms. "Quite rude of them, I must say.  You'd think they never saw a draconequus before."

"Maybe because they haven't," said Rainbow Dash, rolling her eyes.

"Actually, that might not be it," said Sunset. "Discord, do you remember what these girls looked like?"

"Not off the top of my head, I'm afraid," Discord replied.

Pinkie stroked her chin for a moment. "Hmm.  Hang on a sec."

She then reached into her backpack and pulled out a piece of paper and some crayons.  After a few minutes of scribbling, she held up a crude stick figure drawing of the Sirens.

"Did they look like this?" she asked.

Discord poked his head out of the phone to get a better look at the drawing.  He narrowed his eyes and stroked his chin for a few seconds before a lightbulb appeared over his head.

"Yes, that's them," he said with a nod.

"I thought as much," Sunset sighed. "Discord, why didn't you tell me that you bumped into the Sirens last night?"

Discord gave Sunset a bemused look. "What do you think I'm going to say, Sunny?"

"I don't know, that I didn't ask?"

A loud buzzing sound came from Sunset's phone.

"So sorry, but that's incorrect," said Discord, holding up a card. "The correct answer is: 'I didn't know they were the Sirens.'  Thanks for playing, though."

"Wait, you mean you know about the Sirens?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"I don't know them personally, but I've heard of them," said Discord absently. "Though I've always wondered where they ended up after Starswirl the Bearded put an end to their shenanigans."

"Hold on.  Weren't you in stone when the Sirens tried to rise to power?" asked Sunset, raising an eyebrow.

"Being turned to stone does not render me unaware of everything that goes on around me, Sunny," Discord responded. "So, they were banished to this world, eh?"

"Pretty much," said Sunset. "Starswirl thought this was a safe place to send them, seeing as this world doesn't have magic for them to steal."  She then sighed and cast her eyes downward. "Or at least, it didn't."

A sly smirk crossed Discord's face. "A statement that cryptic usually has a story behind it.  Care to share, Sunny?  There's no point in hiding this stuff from me, anyway."

Sunset sighed. "Just over a week ago, they found out that I had brought Equestrian magic into this world.  They wanted to steal that magic and regain their power."

"Yeah, but we totally whooped their butts thanks to you!" said Rainbow Dash, putting an arm around Sunset.  Sunset blushed and cast her eyes downward.

"Huh.  So they also tried to take over, only to be stopped by friendship," Discord mused.  His expression then brightened. "Wait!  That means they can be my friends, too!  Oh, this keeps getting better and better!  Now instead of one friend who understands me, I have four!"

"Actually, the Sirens haven't been very interested in making friends lately," said Sunset. "In fact, they still hold a grudge against us for defeating them."

Discord slumped over and gave Sunset a deadpan look. "Why do you feel the need to ruin my fun like that, Sunny?"

"Because when you have fun, the rest of the world usually suffers for it," said Sunset bluntly. "Besides, from what Rainbow Dash tells me, they're afraid of you."

"Well, all the more reason for us to extend the olive branch then," said Discord, his eagle arm turning into said olive branch. "I've found that it's amazing what you can do with a little bit of kindness."

"Hey, don't you say that sometimes, Flutters?" asked Pinkie.

Fluttershy shuffled her feet sheepishly. "Um, I guess.  But I don't know.  We did kinda destroy their magic."

"Actually, we didn't," said Sunset in a matter-of-fact tone. "Raw magical energy works like any other form of energy.  It can't be destroyed; you can only decrease its quality.  The Sirens still have magic in them, just like every other pony in Equestria.  They just can't use it without their pendants."

"Um, hate to break in on this little spiel, but didn't we come here to practice?" inquired Applejack, arching an eyebrow.

"AJ's right, guys," said Rainbow Dash, testing her guitar. "We can worry about this later."

"Right, sorry," Sunset apologized. "I guess we got a bit carried away."  She then set the phone down on the piano and gave Discord an "I"m watching you" gesture. "You'd better not mess this up."

"I wouldn't dream of it," said Discord.  In a flash, he appeared on the piano and sprawled himself out. "I'd hate to ruin what's sure to be a magnificent performance."

Sunset gave Discord one final glare before joining her friends. "Alright, what should we play first?"

"Let's go with 'Shine Like Rainbows,'" suggested Fluttershy.

"No objections here," said Applejack with a shrug. "Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah, I think that's a good idea," Rainbow Dash said with a nod.

The others concurred as well.  Discord flipped over onto his stomach, head in his hands as he watched the Rainbooms about to perform.  Pinkie raised her sticks into the air.

"One!  Two!  Three!  Four!"

The Rainbooms launched right into their song.  Discord's tail swished side to side, keeping time with the rhythm as warmth filled his chest.  He could almost feel the friendship radiating off the six girls as they played.  Everything about the song moved him in some way, from the baseline established by Applejack to the alluring sound of Fluttershy's voice.  He was just about to get entirely lost in the music when something peculiar caught his attention.

Right at the bridge of the song, the girls changed.  Small glowing nubs sprouted out of their heads.  As their hair grew longer, the nubs were revealed to be tiny pony ears.  Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy barely even flinched as a set of wings grew out of each of their backs.  In fact, none of the girls seemed to pay this transformation any mind at all.  They just continued to play, their long ponytails flowing behind them.  Discord rubbed his eyes in disbelief and blinked a few times.  He opened his mouth to say something, but he was rendered entirely speechless by the spectacle.  Finally, the song came to an end.

"That was awesome, guys!" Rainbow Dash cheered. "We're gonna rock this concert tonight!"

"We sure are," said Sunset with a smile. "Actually, I really feel a lot better now."  She then looked over at Discord and tilted her head. "Um, Discord?  Are you okay?"

Discord gulped. "Um, I know you're probably going to blame me for this, but I assure you, I did not do anything."

Sunset blinked. "Wait, blame you for what?"

"This."

Discord snapped his fingers, and a wall of mirrors appeared in front of the Rainbooms.  Pinkie Pie giggled.

"Oh, you don't have anything to worry about there, Mr. Discord," she said. "That's supposed to happen."

Discord did a double take. "It is?"

"Yep!  Happens every time we play!"

Discord slithered around the entire group, observing them from every angle. "My my.  This human world has a few surprises that I'm not privy to."

"It's not a human thing, I assure you," said Sunset. "But apparently, music can be used in this world in order to channel Equestrian magic."

"That would explain the vibe I got from you as you played," said Discord with a warm smile. "You six really are close friends, aren't you?"

"That's what makes our magic so strong," said Sunset, smiling back. "And it's something that you can't defeat."

"Nor do I wish do," said Discord. "Of course, you just think I'm lying about it."

"Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, Discord," Sunset quipped.

"And I shall provide that evidence in due time," said Discord solemnly. "So, how exactly does this work?"

Sunset raised an eyebrow. "You really think I'd tell you?"

Discord sighed. "Come on, Sunny.  Throw me a bone here, will you?  Just on the off-chance that I'm actually telling the truth?"

His eyes then turned into those of a puppy dog as he stared right at Sunset and clasped his mismatched hands together.  After a pause, Sunset heaved a sigh of her own.

"Okay, fine.  But this better not come back to bite me," she warned.

"If it does, you can do with me what you wish," said Discord with a bow.  Sunset rolled her eyes and cleared her throat.

"Anyway, as I said, our magic is channeled through the music we play," she explained. "There are three factors that go into how powerful that magic is: Quality, passion, and of course, friendship.  The closer our bonds are, the better we sound, and the more effort we put in, the more magic we show.  Of course, friendship is the most powerful factor of all."

"Ugh, yawn~!" Rainbow Dash hollered, casting her gaze upward. "Seriously, I forget how much of an egghead you are sometimes."

Sunset shot Rainbow Dash a glare. "Hey, I am not an egghead.  I'm well-educated."

"Translation: Egghead," Rainbow Dash retorted.  When she noticed the other member of the band giving her cold glares, she hastily cleared her throat. "Uh, not that being an egghead is bad or anything..."

Just then, a buzzing sound came from Sunset's backpack.  Curious, Sunset walked over and opened it up.  Much to her surprise, the magic book was glowing and vibrating.

"I thought you said that there book was outta commission," said Applejack.

"I thought it was," said Sunset, scooping it up.  She set the book down on the piano and opened it up.  Everyone gathered around her as she read the message aloud.


Dear Sunset Shimmer:

I'm sorry this massage has taken so lang to reach u, but it appars that Discord's magic is creating some sort of potato.  Luckily, I managed to cost a signal-boasting spell that will hopfully get threw.

As you're probably aware, Discord has been freed.  Queen Horsey Time felt that his power could benefit Kuala Lumpur, so she decreed that he was to be refoamed.  Believe me, I was waffle of this myself, but through Fluttershy the Beast Master's help and a valuable bread from me, he has fully embraced the magic of friendship.  Even so, he still has a lot to onion, just like you daring.

He felt that the best coarse of achtung was to find somepony who could relay to him on a personal stage.  I told him about you, and he right left before I could tell him that you didn't no aboot his reformation.  I'm showing you this now to say that you can muster him.  You just need to have a bit of pancake with him.  Again, he's still learning the chipmunk.

Hope to listen from you soon,

Princess Dwigh Light Sprinkle


A heavy silence fell over the room as they all stared at the book.  Rarity was the first to speak up.

"Um, would anyone care to translate?" she asked.

"Sorry, I don't speak chaos," said Sunset, knitting her brow. "However, from what I can make out, Twilight does seem to be vouching for you."

"Told ya," Discord said smugly.

"Hang on, buddy," said Rainbow Dash, raising her hand. "Didn't we already establish that we can't trust the book because you can manipulate it?"

Discord snickered. "You give me too much credit, Rainbow Dash.  Trust me, if I was messing with you, I would not be this subtle."

"And I suppose we just have to take your word on that," said Sunset, placing her hands on her hips.

"It would help, yes," Discord said, crossing his mismatched arms. "You really are a tough nut to crack, Sunny."

"Well, that's because I don't want to end up losing what I have," Sunset retorted.

"Right, yes.  You've made that abundantly clear," said Discord with a sigh. "Listen, I'm going to just pop off for a bit.  I need some time to think."

"Not so fast," Sunset snarled. "I still don't know if I can trust you."

"And you may never know with that attitude," Discord shot back. "If I'm going to earn your friendship, I need to break this rigid mindset of yours.  Besides, friends should give each other their space when need be."

Sunset pinched the bridge of her nose and groaned. "Please stop making me look like the bad guy here.  You're the legendary tyrant, not me."

"And you tried to become a legendary tyrant in your own right.  What's your point?" Discord countered.

Sunset's eye twitched. "That comparison is really starting to get on my nerves, Discord.  Knock it off."

"Alright, alright.  Sheesh," said Discord, shaking his head. "I really thought you'd be happy to find a friend who understands what you've been through, Sunny.  I know I am."

With that, he snapped his fingers and disappeared.  Sunset let out a great sigh.

"He's gonna be the death of me," she mumbled.

"There there, darling," said Rarity, patting Sunset on the back. "I'm sure it'll be alright.  We have Twilight's seal of approval, after all.  I, think."

"Even if we don't, we can still keep that guy in line just like before," said Rainbow Dash proudly. "We're here for you, Sunset, no matter what Discord does."

Sunset smiled. "Thanks, guys.  I really appreciate it."

"And we appreciate you, Sunny," said Pinkie with a goofy grin. "Okay, so what're we playing next?"

The girls resumed their practicing, and Sunset did her best to keep up.  All the while, however, the her worries about Discord remained in the back of her mind.

I hope you're right about him, Twilight, she thought. For my sake.
> Adaptable Adagio
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	So, it seems my first gift wasn't enough to appease him.  I'm going to need to think of something else.

The wheels in Adagio's mind were spinning as fast as ever as she crossed the barren outdoor campus.  She was supposed to be in Ms. Cheerilee's Library class, but just like every day before, she decided to skip out.  Normally, the other Sirens would join her in playing hooky, as none of them cared about their grades all that much.  This time, however, she was glad to be alone with her thoughts.  She needed to focus on achieving an alliance with Discord, and as far as she was concerned, Sonata and Aria would simply get in her way.

She sat down on a small patch of grass that was specifically marked with a "Do Not Walk on the Grass" sign and rested her chin on the back of her fist.  Her brow crinkled as her mind worked furiously, trying to plan her next move.  As she pondered, she became aware of a presence casting a shadow over her.  She opened one eye and snarled.

"Beat it, buddy," she snapped. "You're in my li—"

When she turned to face the offender, her jaw dropped.  Sitting right next to her was none other than Discord, who also appeared to be deep in thought.  Discord turned his head to Adagio and smirked.

"Adagio Dazzle, I presume?"

Adagio quickly shook herself and got to her feet. "D-Discord.  I-It is an honor to finally meet you in person," she said with a bow.

"You as well," said Discord, returning the bow. "I must say, I have missed your havoc-creating melodies for many a moon."

Adagio let out an awkward chuckle. "Y-you're quite a flatterer, milord."

Discord laughed. "Oh, you're mistaken, my dear.  I haven't been a lord in quite some time."

"Well, what else would I call someone as powerful as you?" said Adagio in a sultry tone. "After all, you are a legend back in Equestria."

"Yes, I suppose I get that a lot," said Discord, brushing his paw against his chest. "So, might I ask what you're doing out here?"

Adagio smiled. "Funny you should ask that, milord.  See, I don't know if you remember, but you appeared before me last night, and—"

"Ah, yes!  That.  I thought you looked familiar," said Discord with a nod. "Although to be honest, you're more recognizable as a fish than a mammal."

Just then, Adagio felt as though her legs had been turned to jelly.  When she looked down at herself, she saw that a long fish tail with sparkling red scales had replaced her legs.  She fell over from shock, but instead of hitting solid ground, there was a small splash.  She bolted upright and sputtered, discovering that the grassy knoll she was sitting on was now a pool of salt water.  She gave Discord a confused look while he smiled at his handiwork.

"There.  Now you look like a proper Siren," Discord chortled.

Adagio chuckled nervously along with him. "V-very funny, milord.  Quite humorous," she said, clearing her throat. "Anyway, as I was saying.  When I saw you last night, I knew that it was my destiny to help you achieve your desires."

Discord arched an eyebrow. "Wouldn't that require knowing what my desires are?"

"Well, of course I know what your desires are.  Doesn't everyone?" said Adagio with a shrug.

Discord sighed. "Not everyone, I'm afraid.  And that's a big problem I have right now."

"I see," said Adagio, swimming up to Discord.  She then started tracing her finger along Discord's side. "Well, why don't you tell me all about it, and I'll see what I can do to help."

Discord gave Adagio a quizzical look. "You'd really do that for me?  I thought you girls were frightened by my presence."

"Oh, you're probably just thinking about Sonata," said Adagio with a laugh. "Don't mind her.  She's an idiot."

Discord opened his mouth to question this, but thought better of it. "I'd rather not ask.  You probably know her better than I do."

"You have no idea," Adagio purred.  She rested her head against Discord's body and walked her fingers along its length. "So, what has been troubling you, milord?"

"Tell me, Adagio.  Are you familiar with Sunset Shimmer?" Discord inquired.

Adagio grinned from ear to ear. "Indeed I am, milord.  She has quite a reputation here at Canterlot High."

"Yes, I'm abundantly aware of that," Discord sighed, staring off into the distance. "And that's why she's being so, difficult.  I mean, here I am, trying to earn her trust, and she just keeps resisting me no matter what I do."

"That does sound quite discouraging," Adagio cooed. "But remember, you are Discord, the Master of Chaos.  Nothing is beyond your grasp."

Discord chortled sheepishly. "Okay, now who's the flatterer?" he said mockingly.

"I merely speak the truth, milord," said Adagio with a simple shrug.

Discord wagged an admonishing talon at Adagio. "Don't give me that, missy.  I know all about your sea pony wiles."

Adagio gasped. "Why, milord!  I'm appalled that you'd even think that!  All I wish to do is serve your will."

Discord folded his arms. "Ms. Dazzle, you're trying to seduce me, aren't you?"

Adagio flinched and fell into the water with a loud splash.  When she emerged, her cheeks were bright red. "Wh-what?  I-I—"

She was interrupted by Discord doubling over with laughter. "Y-you should see your face right now.  It's priceless," he snickered.

Adagio took a moment to process this.  Once she realized what happened, she forced out a laugh of her own. "H-ha ha.  G-got me again, milord.  Masterfully done."

"Well, I try," said Discord.  He then wiped a tear from his eye and sobered up. "I actually wish that Sunny was more like you."

Adagio tilted her head. "How so?"

"Well, aside from the fancy title and such, you're actually willing to hear me out," Discord explained. "You have no misgivings with having a nice chat with the Master of Chaos.  The same cannot be said for Sunny.  She thinks I'm up to no good, and I have to convince her that I'm not."

A sinister gleam flashed in Adagio's eyes. Oh, you are an evil one, Discord, she thought, wringing her hands. You put on a nice little show for Sunset Shimmer; show her that you're in the right.  And when the time finally comes, whoosh!  You pull the rug right out from under her!  And before she can go back to her friends, it'll be too late!  Fiendish!

"Um, are you alright there, Adagio?" asked Discord, raising an eyebrow.

Adagio quickly snapped out of her devilish glee and hastily cleared her throat. "F-fine, milord!  J-just fine!"

Discord shrugged his shoulders. "If you say so," he said. "Anyway, where was I?"

"You were talking about earning Sunset Shimmer's trust, milord."

"Ah, yes.  Thank you, Adagio," said Discord with a nod. "Now, as I was saying, she hasn't been very receptive to my attempts.  In fact, just this morning, her locker was booby-trapped, and what does she do?  Blame me, of course.  Yes, never mind the fact that I was the one who cleaned her up; I'm just here to cause trouble because that's what I do."

Adagio's face lost all color. Shoot!  My present backfired!  How was I supposed to know it would go against his plans?! she thought, taking a few deep breaths. Okay, Adagio.  Keep it cool.  No need to let him know that was you.  Just make the best of a bad situation.

"W-well, what happened after that?" she asked.

"We had a bit of a discussion about what to do with the culprit," Discord answered. "See, I thought Sunny had every right to strike back, but she's afraid that it would give off the wrong impression.  So then, I suggested that I would advocate for her if she couldn't do it herself."

Adagio beamed. "That's a wonderful idea, milord.  Show her how trustworthy you really are by taking up her banner."

"Exactly," said Discord. "Although she's even hesitant about that, if you can believe it."  He sighed and shook his head. "Tsk tsk.  There is simply no pleasing that girl."

Adagio nuzzled up to Discord once again. "Since when has something as petty as that ever stopped you, milord?  Remember, your power is unparalleled to any other force in any dimension."

"Except the Elements of Harmony," Discord corrected.

"Yes, there is that," said Adagio, furrowing her brow. "However, that's all the more reason you should act now and get Sunset Shimmer on your side.  She may object at first, but she'll come to respect your way of thinking in time.  You just need to give her the proper shove in the right direction."

A lightbulb appeared over Discord's head as he stroked his goatee in thought.  After a pregnant pause, it lit up, and he smiled.

"You're right, my dear Adagio.  If I'm careful enough about this, I can break Sunny's rigid mentality and show her my side of things."  He rose into the air and dusted himself off. "Now, what are those hooligans' names again?  Hoops and Dumb-bell, I believe?"

As Discord pondered this, the wheels in Adagio's head went into overdrive. It seems he still doesn't fully realize the danger he's in from the Rainbooms, she thought. If he's going to conquer this world, he needs to do so in a way that'll render them useless.  I can't stop advising him now!

"Actually, milord, I know who you should go after," she said.

Discord turned to Adagio and leaned in eagerly. "You have my attention."

"It's the one they call Applejack," said Adagio. "The hay came from her farm, after all.  She's the one who must be dealt with."

Discord arched an eyebrow. "Are we, talking about the same Applejack here?" he asked.  He then paused and smacked his own forehead. "Oh, wait.  We're not.  Heh, silly me."  His self-mocking smile faded as he straightened out his goatee with his paw. "Still, though.  I find it hard to believe that she'd do something like that to a good friend like Sunny."

"That's why you have to punish her," said Adagio coyly. "You have to show Sunset Shimmer who her real friends are by exposing her fake friends."

"That's only if she is a fake friend like you claim," Discord mused. "No, Adagio.  Outright punishment would just raise too many questions.  This calls for a proper investigation."

He snapped his fingers and created a bright flash.  When the flash had disappeared, Adagio was standing on her feet again and wearing a dirty green trench coat, a red tie, and a pen in her ear.  Discord, meanwhile, was sporting a magenta business suit with a frilly white cravat.

"Don't go slacking on me now, Faithful Assistant," said Discord, tapping his forehead with a single talon. "We must uncover the truth!"

With that, he disappeared, and the grassy knoll reverted to normal.  Adagio quickly discarded the costume Discord provided for her and dusted herself off

"He certainly is an odd one," she pondered aloud. "I'm not sure why he's taking this roundabout tactic to conquer this world."  She then smiled mischievously. "But that doesn't matter.  Soon, Sunset Shimmer will be like putty in his hands, and he'll have me to thank.  And after that, he will return my powers to me in gratitude, and the world will adore me once again.  Everything's going according to plan.  Mmm hmm hmm hmm heh ha ha ha..."


***


While the outdoor campus itself was devoid of students and faculty, Sonata and Aria managed to stumble upon Discord and Adagio's conversation while looking for their self-proclaimed leader.  Sonata gasped in horror while a small grin formed on Aria's face.

"I-is that what I think it is?" Sonata whimpered.

"Yep.  Looks like Adagio is going completely gaga over Discord," Aria scoffed, shaking her head. "Seriously, why doesn't she just propose to him already?"

Sonata began to hyperventilate. "Th-this is bad, Aria.  This is, like, super duper bad.  Discord's luring Adagio right into his trap!"

"Yeah, and I'm gonna have a good laugh about it once she figures that out," said Aria with a shrug. "What exactly is the problem here?"

"Don't you see?  He's gonna use her to make this world worse than the worst!" Sonata wailed. "It's all part of his master plan!  It has to be!"

"Sure, like he really wants someone like Adagio to do his bidding," Aria said sardonically. "He's probably just gonna keep stringing her along and turn her into his personal puppet for his amusement.  And if that happens, she has no one to blame but herself."

Sonata gasped. "You're seriously just gonna let that happen to her?!  After everything we've been through together?!  Don't you care?!"

Aria deadpanned. "Please tell me you didn't just ask me that."

Sonata blinked. "Why?  You already know I did."

Aria palmed her face. "Look, I'm just gonna head over to the cafeteria and get some lunch.  Have fun with your pointless panic attack, Sonata."

Sonata's eyes widened. "Wait, that's it!  I promised Rainbow Dash that I'd be meeting the Rainbooms for lunch!  Then I can warn them about Discord, and they'll make him go away!"

She then dashed past Aria at full speed.  Aria snickered.

"Well, I'm certainly getting a front-row seat for this show," she said, walking after Sonata. "There's no way those stupid Rainblossoms are gonna take Sonata seriously.  And it looks like she has to learn that the hard way.  Heh, this oughta be good..."
> Negative Zone
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	As per usual, the atmosphere of the school cafeteria was alive with the hustle and bustle of students gossiping and chatting it up.  Flash Sentry was tuning his guitar, the Crusaders were brainstorming some new plan, and Granny Smith was serving everyone with a smile.  Everything was pretty much the status quo.  But even though there was no sign of Discord's influence to be seen anywhere, Sunset still felt very on-edge as she got her food and sat down with her friends.

"Alright, I think we should go over this one more time just to make sure we're all on the same page about tonight's concert," said Fluttershy, taking out her notebook.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Chill out, Fluttershy.  We all know the sitch.  We're meeting at the Animal Rescue Center at six o'clock to set up, we agreed to play 'Perfect Day for Fun,' and I already talked to Vinyl about helping out with our sound.  Everything's copacetic."

"For now, anyway," Sunset sighed.

Applejack gave Sunset a concerned look. "You still worried about that Discord fella?"

"Of course I am," said Sunset. "Trust me, you guys don't know Discord like I do."

"Darling, you've been fretting about this all day," said Rarity, stabbing a bit of lettuce with her fork. "I understand you're concerned about the safety of our world and all, but there is such a thing as being overly cautious."

Sunset shook her head. "I dunno, Rarity.  I feel like the second I let my guard down, he's gonna make something terrible happen."

"So, you're just gonna treat him like a bad guy no matter what he does?" asked Pinkie, tilting her head. "That's silly.  I mean, we don't do that to you."

Sunset's shoulders became stiff. "I.  Am not.  Like Discord," she said in a strained tone. "In fact, I'm getting a bit sick of being compared to the most ruthless tyrant in Equestrian history."

Pinkie cast her eyes downward. "Sorry, Sunset.  I didn't mean to make you mad."

Sunset sighed. "It's not your fault, Pinkie.  It's his.  Every time he brings that up, I feel like he's messing with my mind.  I swear, if he tries to pull that one more time, I'm gonna lose it."

"Hey!  Hey, you guys!"

The conversation was cut short by a familiar voice crying out to them.  The Rainbooms turned to see Sonata bobbing and weaving around several people as she ran up to their table.  She skidded to a halt right in front of them and took a moment to catch her breath.

"Um, you okay?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"No.  I'm not okay.  Nothing is okay," Sonata panted. "Look, you gotta listen to me.  This is super duper important!"

The Rainbooms looked across from each other and shared a collective shrug.

"Um, sure.  Have a seat," said Rainbow Dash, gesturing to an empty spot.

Sonata blinked in confusion. "Wait, that's it?"

Fluttershy gave Sonata a befuddled look of her own. "Were you expecting something else?"

Sonata rubbed the back of her head. "I thought for sure you guys were gonna yell at me to get lost or beat me up."

Applejack arched an eyebrow. "Now why in tarnation would we go and do an awful thing like that?"

"Well, you guys hate me, don't you?  I mean, after the whole Battle of the Bands thing and all."

There was an awkward pause and the Rainbooms tried to come up with a proper response.  Rarity broke the silence by clearing her throat.

"W-well, 'hate' is such a strong word, darling," she said. "I can't say that we like you, but—"

"I like her!" Pinkie chirped, cutting across Rarity.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Pinkie, you say that about everyone."

Pinkie shrugged. "How is that a bad thing?"

"Look, the point is none of us really like what you did.  There's no disputing that," said Sunset. "But if something is really bothering you, we'll hear you out."

Sonata's eyes sparkled "F-for realsies?"

"For realsies!" said Pinkie with a firm nod.

Sonata took a quick look around to make sure the coast was clear.  She noticed that Aria had just sat down at a table across from the Rainbooms, watching the exchange intently.  Sonata swallowed a large lump in her throat and took a deep breath.

"O-okay.  Thanks, guys," she said, taking a seat next to Rainbow Dash. "Uh, just so you know, I still hate you for taking away my powers and junk.  It's just that this is way more important."

"Well, stop beatin' around the bush and just spit it out already," said Applejack. "What're you so worked up about?"

Sonata did another check before saying her piece. "I-it's Discord.  He's broken out of his stone prison, and he's come to break all of our brains and take over the world!"

"Didn't you try to do that just last week, though?" asked Rainbow Dash.

Sonata shook her head vigorously. "No, you don't understand!  Discord's, like, a bajillion times nastier than all of us put together!  He's gonna make this world worse than the worst, and you guys have to stop him!"

There was another awkward pause as the Rainbooms looked at one another.  Sonata sighed.

"Look, I know it sounds like I'm making all this up, but it's true!" she insisted. "I saw him with my own eyes!  He's messing with Adagio right now as we speak!  You guys have to—"

"Um, back up," said Sunset, raising her hand. "He was talking to Adagio?"

"Yeah," said Sonata. "I mean, I don't know what they were saying, but he's probably luring her into some kind of trap!  You guys gotta help her!  I'm not lying about this!"

"No one said you were, Sonata," said Rainbow Dash. "Actually, we believe you."

Sonata did a double take. "Y-you do?"

"We actually saw him this morning," Fluttershy mumbled, stirring her tomato soup. "He was quite, scary-looking."

Sonata scratched her head. "Wait, I'm confused.  If you know he's here, and you know what he's gonna do, why haven't you done anything about it yet?"

"Well, that's actually a bit complicated," said Sunset. "Y'see—"

She was interrupted by a country-style ringtone going off.  All eyes turned to Applejack, who looked equally perplexed.

"Now who on Earth could that be?" she pondered aloud. "I'm certainly not expectin' any calls."

She took out her cellphone and checked the caller ID.  Unfortunately, it simply said "unlisted."  With a shrug, she answered it.  In a flash, Discord appeared on her screen wearing a grey suit and a porkpie hat.  His paw clutched a small notepad, and his talon held a blue quill.

"There's no cause for alarm, Ms. Applejack.  I simply want to ask you a few questions," he said plainly.

Sonata yelped and hid herself behind Rainbow Dash. "I-it's him!  He's here!  Don't let him get me!"

Applejack gave Discord a quizzical look. "What kind of questions?"

"Well, let me start from the beginning," said Discord, scribbling in his notepad. "Are you by any chance familiar with the incident that transpired this morning?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," said Applejack firmly.

Discord's snake tail tapped an app marked "Doubt" on Applejack's phone. "Is that right?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "You heard nothing about the mess left in Sunny's locker?"

"I heard about a mess in the hallway from the janitor throwin' a fit," said Applejack. "I had no idea it was because of Sunset, though."

"I see," said Discord, jotting down this information. "Now then, let's talk about you and Sunny.  How would you describe your relationship with her?"

Applejack shrugged. "I think Sunset Shimmer's a swell gal and a good friend.  Sure, she's a bit rough around the edges, but I've come to respect that."

Discord's tail whipped the "Doubt" app again. "Are you sure about this?  You two haven't had any large disagreements or anything like that?"

"Can't say that we have," said Applejack earnestly.

Discord nodded and wrote down this information as well. "Tell me, Applejack.  You own a farm, correct?"

"My, family does," said Applejack, rubbing her head. "What's that got to do with anythin'?"

Discord reached into his pocket and pulled out a single bit of straw. "Sunny's locker was filled with a mountain of these little things.  Would you say that this is possibly hay from your farm?"

"I, suppose," said Applejack with a shrug. "I mean, I can't picture anywhere else it could've come from."

Discord's tail swished over to an app marked "Truth" and tapped it.  Discord himself tapped the underside of his chin with his quill.

"So, you admit that the hay may have come from your farm," he mused. "That gives you the means.  Now, let's go over the—"

"Wait just a minute!" Sunset interrupted. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"I think I'm trying to gather some information," said Discord.

"Don't give me that!" Sunset snarled. "Applejack is not responsible for booby trapping my locker this morning!"

"Can you honestly say that for sure, Sunny?" asked Discord, raising an eyebrow. "I don't want to believe it myself, but no one ever said the truth was pleasant."

A raging inferno ignited in Sunset's eyes. "I knew it!  I knew you were up to something!  You're trying to make me turn on my friends!  I never should've trusted you!"

"Wh-what?  No, that's not it at all!" Discord cried. "I was just—"

"Don't listen to him!  He's lying!" Sonata yelled. "He's gonna destroy everything!"

Discord deadpanned. "Okay, two questions.  Who is that, and who invited her?"

"That just so happens to be Sonata Dusk," said Sunset, narrowing her eyes. "And she was just telling us about your little chat with Adagio."

Discord's eye went wide. "So that's what this is all about.  The Sirens are setting me up!  Sunny, you can't trust them!"

"I trust them more than I trust you at the moment, Discord," Sunset said bluntly. "At least they aren't trying to cause any real damage like you are."

"Look, I can explain," said Discord. "Adagio told me that Applejack was the one who booby trapped your locker.  I wasn't sure whether to believe her, so I just started an investigation."

Sunset scowled. "You really expect me to buy that?  How do I know Sonata's not telling the truth about you?"

"W-well, because Twilight Sparkle has already vouched for me!" Discord retorted. "Didn't you see the letter?"

"That still doesn't prove anything!" Sunset roared back. "You probably corrupted her when you took over Equestria for all I know!"

Discord threw down his notepad and quill and ripped off his suit. "Okay, this is starting to get ridiculous.  No matter what I say or do, you keep finding fault with it!  I'm trying my hardest to befriend you, but you keep typecasting me as an irredeemable monster!  You've been in my shoes before; you should realize that you're acting like a total hypocrite!"

Sunset pounded the table in a fit of anger, garnering the attention of all the other students. "Well, excuse me for exercising some caution around the mad tyrant of Equestria who can control reality!" she screamed.

"Sunny, if you'd just give me a chance—"

"You had your chance, and you blew it!" Sunset bellowed, cutting across Discord. "I don't believe you changed at all!  You're still up to your old tricks; pitting everyone against each other with your dastardly schemes!"

"I-it's not what it looks like!" Discord insisted. "I wanted to get you justice for what happened this morning.  What was I supposed to do?"

"Oh, I don't know.  Tell me about it and let me handle it?!"

"But if I did that, you'd just yell at me.  That's why I wanted to handle things myself."

"I seem to be yelling at you right now, so good work avoiding that!"

Discord's shoulders slumped over as he twiddled his fingers. "I-I just wanted to help."

"Well, you didn't," Sunset huffed.

Pinkie blinked. "Is anyone else getting déjà vu, or is it just me?"

Every muscle in Sunset's body became tight, and she took in a long, sharp breath.  After a pause, she glared at Discord.

"We are not the same, Discord," she stated coldly. "I don't care how many comparisons you make between us; you will never make me stray from my path."

"B-but Sunny—"

"Don't, call me that," Sunset snapped. "We are not friends, we never were friends, and we will never be friends.  Now either leave this world and get out of my life, or my friends and I will put you back in your stone prison."

Discord snorted angrily. "You know what, Sunset Shimmer?  I was jealous of you for a while.  You actually have a good life here in this school, even after all you've done.  I'm only just starting to get that kind of respect back home.  That's why I wanted to be your friend so much.  I thought there was a lot you could teach me.  But as it turns out, you're no better at this than I am.  In fact, maybe you're a bit worse.  Because if our positions were reversed, I'd accept you in a heartbeat."

He then summoned a coatrack with a matching fedora and jacket resting on it.  He took the hat off the rack and put it on upside-down, and he put the jacket on inside-out. "Keep this conversation in mind when you get your next message from Twilight, because at the end of the day, you're going to feel really stupid.  Good day to you, madam."

Applejack's phone suddenly sparked violently, and all of the other lights in the cafeteria flickered for a moment.  When everything settled, Discord was gone.  A hush fell over the cafeteria as everyone stared at Sunset in awe and confusion.  Sunset's cheeks turned bright red.

"Are you gonna be okay, Sunset?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Sunset bit her lip. "I-I need to be alone."

Without another word, she marched out of the cafeteria.

"H-hey, wait up!" Pinkie hollered.  Before she could get up from her seat, Fluttershy held her back and shook her head.

"Let her go," she said. "I'm sure she'll be alright after she's had some time to cool down."

Pinkie sighed. "Oh, okay."

Slowly but surely, lunchtime resumed.  The Rainbooms continued eating in silence while the rest of the school began discussing what had just occurred in hushed tones.  Sonata simply sat there, her mouth hanging open as she stared at the spot where Discord and Sunset had their quarrel.  Even after the Rainbooms left to dispose of their trays, she didn't move a muscle.  Aria scooted over next to her and munched on a large chocolate chip cookie.

"Well, that was quite a show," she said, sounding quite amused. "I honestly can't say I was expecting that to happen, though.  I'll bet Adagio's just as surprised, huh Sonata?"

Sonata didn't respond.  Aria raised an eyebrow.

"Uh, hey.  Earth to Sona—"

"Aria?"

Aria recoiled slightly at Sonata's sudden response. "Um, yeah?"

"This is usually the part where we feed off the negative energy, right?"

Aria shrugged one shoulder. "Yeah.  I mean, we can't do that anymore, but that would definitely be happening right now if we could."

"And, that usually feels good, right?"

"Energy being converted into magic tends to do that, Sonata," said Aria, scratching her head. "Why are you bringing this up?"

Sonata let out a deep sigh. "Because I don't feel good right now.  In fact, I don't know how I feel.  It's like there's this icky black stuff in my tummy, and my heart's all yellow and green."

Aria blinked. "Okay, I don't understand a word you just said."

"Th-that's the best way I can describe it, though," said Sonata. "I dunno, I never felt anything like this before.  It's so weird, and it kinda hurts, too.  Negative energy isn't supposed to hurt us.  Th-this doesn't make any—"

Her eyes suddenly became as wide as dinner plates. "Oh no."

"What now?" Aria groaned.

Sonata's chest heaved up and down as her breathing became erratic. "I-it's Discord.  H-he must be mad at me for trying to foil his plans.  He's making me feel strange in order to punish me."

She continued to hyperventilate as tears welled up in her eyes.  Aria gulped.

"N-no.  Don't you dare," she said nervously, backing away from Sonata. "Don't even think about it, Sonata.  I'm gonna get so mad if you do this.  I-I mean it.  Don't do it, Sonata.  Don't—"

Before she could say another word, Sonata let out a loud wail and tackled Aria into a hug.  She buried her face into Aria's chest, staining her clothes with tears and snot.

"Hey, what did I say?!  What did I just say?!" Aria scolded.

"P-please, Aria!  Y-y-you have to help me-e-e-e-e-e~!" Sonata bawled. "I-I don't feel like myself!  I-I'm scared!"

"Th-that's not my problem!" Aria growled, trying to pry Sonata off of her body. "Now get off!  You're making a scene!"

"C-c'mon!  D-don't say that!" Sonata sobbed, her voice muffled through Aria's shirt. "I-I don't know who else to turn to!"

"Well, what do you want me to do about it?"

Sonata sniffled and looked up at Aria.  Aria scowled at her moist undershirt as tears continued to flow down Sonata's face.

"Y-you have to tell the Rainbooms," Sonata whimpered. "I-if Discord put a curse on me, they can help."

Aria scoffed. "You go tell those stupid Rainblossoms.  I'm not speaking to them."

"B-but they hate me.  I messed everything up."

"You're still not making sense, Sonata.  Last I checked, I wasn't on their friend list, either."

"B-but I don't know what else to do, Aria.  I-I'm so confused, and I feel like I messed up, but I don't know why, and everything's just so strange and scary, and Discord's probably gonna—"

"You're not letting go of me unless I promise to help, are you?"

Sonata's lip quivered as she made puppy dog eyes at Aria.  After a long pause, Aria groaned.

"Alright, fine," she relented reluctantly. "If it means you'll stop whining like a baby, I'll go talk to 'em for you."

Sonata got to her feet and smiled. "Th-thank you, Aria," she said, drying her eyes. "You're the best."

Aria sighed. "Yeah, well.  You're the worst."

"I know," Sonata said glumly, looking down at her feet. "I feel like the worst."

Aria winced. "O-okay, do me a big favor and never say that again.  Seriously, you're starting to scare me."

Sonata nodded meekly, and the two headed off.  Unbeknownst to them, Discord's eyes appeared on the neck of Flash Sentry's guitar.

Hmm.  This is unexpected, he thought. Maybe none of us have the full story here.  I need to see where this goes.

With that, the eyeballs closed and disappeared before anyone could notice.


***


While all this was going on, Adagio watched the entire ordeal from outside the cafeteria.  She couldn't tell what was happening, but she knew Sunset was mad at Applejack's phone for some reason.  Her lips curled into a thin smile.

You're doing great so far, Discord, she thought, wringing her hands and walking away. Now, I'll just need to find you again, and we can start discussing Phase Two...
> Breaking Aria's Armor
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I can't believe this!  Now the whole school must think I'm crazy!  H-he just—  Why did he—?  Ergh!"

Sunset was locked in a fugue state, pacing around the empty music room and ranting to no one in particular.  Occasionally, she stopped pacing to let loose some angry riffs on her guitar, hoping it would make her feel better.  But no matter how much she tried to vent, her frustration and embarrassment would not disappear.

"Right in the middle of the cafeteria, too," she grumbled. "Who does that tyrant think he is?  How stupid does he think I am?  Why did I ever agree to try and appease him in the first place if he was just gonna try to turn me against my friends?!  This is—"

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.  Thinking it was someone getting prepared for a class, she sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry if I'm hogging the room," she said. "You can come in if you want; I'll just go somewhere else."

The door opened, revealing a grumpy-looking Aria with a moist shirt.  Off to the side, Sunset could see that Sonata was behind her.  Sunset glared at Aria.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm at a really low ebb right now," she growled. "I don't have time to deal with you guys."

Aria shrugged. "Fine, whatever.  I'll just—"

Just when she turned to leave, she saw Sonata's sad, tear-stained face.  Heaving a great sigh, she did an about-face and marched right back into the music room.

"Look, I don't like you, and you don't like me," she said, folding her arms. "But I promise, I'm not trying to cause trouble or laugh at you."

Sunset narrowed her eyes. "Alright then.  What do you want?"

Aria clutched at her arm, and her shoulders became tense. "Well, the thing is, I need your he—  I need your he-ha-hoo...  I need your h— mmmgh."

"Just spit it out already," Sunset snarled. "I don't have the patience for this."

Aria averted her gaze. "P-please don't make me say it.  This is humiliating enough as is.  I don't even want to be here right now."

It didn't take long for Sunset to figure out what Aria was talking about. "You mean, you want my help?"

"Y-yes, that," said Aria, blushing slightly.

Sunset turned her back to Aria. "Well, sorry to disappoint, but I kinda have my own problems at the moment."

"Yeah, I noticed," said Aria. "B-but, try looking at it this way.  You want to be alone, and I don't want to be here.  The faster we wrap this up, the faster we can get out of each other's way.  Deal?"

Sunset turned her head and gave Aria a sideways glance. "Okay, what's going on?"

Aria sighed. "It's Sonata.  Ever since Discord got here, she's been flipping out.  It was funny at first, but now it's just gotten annoying.  Could you just, I don't know, use your Equestrian magic to zap her and make her feel better so I can get on with my life?"

Sunset tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. "Hang on.  You're not afraid of Discord?"

Aria scoffed. "In case you didn't know, I hate this world.  I also hate the fact that I was banished here.  As far as I'm concerned, Discord can do whatever he wants to this place.  It's no skin off my nose."

"Really?  Because it seems to be bothering your colleague Sonata," said Sunset, crossing her arms.

"Well, that's because she's being a scaredy cat," Aria huffed. "Adagio and I aren't afraid of him in the slightest.  Heck, Adagio's even deluded herself into thinking that if we team up with Discord, he'll give us our powers back."

Sunset blinked. "Wait, don't you guys always work together?"

"Hey, just because Adagio happens to be the smartest doesn't mean she controls what I think," Aria growled. "Although I'm beginning to wonder how smart she really is after seeing what lengths she's gone to in order to win Discord's favor.  That or losing her powers must've really gone to her head."

"I would think that you would want your powers back, too," Sunset stated.

"Oh, don't get me wrong.  I will never forgive you guys for ruining our lives," Aria said coldly, shooting Sunset a glare. "I just know better than to trust Discord.  Knowing him, he's probably just teasing Adagio with a promise that he'll never keep.  You know how he is."

Sunset furrowed her brow. "Let me see if I've got this straight.  Adagio wants to join forces with Discord, Sonata is afraid of him, and you're just not getting involved at all."

"That about sums it up," said Aria with a shrug.

"Then, why are you asking me to help Sonata?"

"Well, it's either that or she keeps using me as her personal handkerchief," Aria grumbled, pointing to the mucus stain on her undershirt. "After you had your little meltdown in the cafeteria, she decided to have one of her own.  She thinks that it's Discord's doing, and at this point, I kinda believe her."

"What do you mean?" inquired Sunset.

"It's hard to explain," said Aria, casting her gaze over to the door. "She said something about messing everything up, but that's about all I could make out.  Even then, it doesn't make much sense to me.  We've been causing trouble and feeding off of negative energy ever since we banded together in Equestria.  There's no reason for Sonata to get all broken up about your little spat."

Sunset stroked her chin in thought. "Hmm.  I might have to agree with you.  Sonata didn't really do anything wrong.  It was all Discord's fault."

"Him and Adagio," Aria corrected. "Then again, I don't think Adagio deserves that much credit.  She was just lucky that Discord took an interest in the 'present' she left in your locker."

Sunset's eyes went wide. "Wait, what?  That was Adagio's doing?!"

"Yep," said Aria. "She thought it would make it easier for Discord to corrupt you or some such nonsense."

"And you're telling me this, why?" Sunset asked, arching an eyebrow. "I thought you said you didn't want us to get rid of Discord."

Aria laughed. "Oh, please.  Like you guys would be able to even touch him.  I'm not worried about that at all.  In fact, I'm looking forward to seeing Discord trounce you losers."

"But, what about Adagio?"

"What about her?" Aria snapped. "In case you didn't pick up on it, I'm not exactly on her side on this one.  Whatever happens to her is her own darn fault."

"Yet you're worried about Sonata."

Aria winced. "Th-that's different.  I just want Sonata to stop being an idiotic pest.  There's nothing more to it."

Sunset didn't quite believe her, but she decided to drop the subject. "If you say so," she said, furrowing her brow and closing her eyes. "So, Adagio booby-trapped my locker to appease Discord, and Sonata mentioned that she was talking to him earlier today.  They could be working together.  But, Discord didn't seem too happy about the incident.  Then again, why did he go after Applejack if he wasn't trying to make me turn on my friends?"

"Don't ask me.  I don't know, nor do I care," said Aria bluntly. "Now, let's get back to my problem, shall we?"

"Your problem?" Sunset asked, folding her arms. "Wouldn't it be Sonata's problem if she's the one beating herself up over nothing?"

Aria deadpanned and pointed to the stain on her shirt again. "As long as she keeps overreacting like this, it's my problem.  That's the only reason I'm even talking to you in the first place.  I need you to fix Sonata and make her normal again."

"So, you're worried that Sonata's not herself?" said Sunset.

"Th-that's not it," Aria sputtered. "I-I could honestly care less about what happens to her."

Sunset raised an eyebrow. "So, you do care about her?"

"N-no!  I just said I didn't!"

"No, you said you could care less.  That means you care about her, at least a little bit," said Sunset frankly.

Aria blushed. "Nuh-uh.  Y-you're just making that up."

Sunset's face clouded with concern. "Why do you act like caring about her is such a bad thing?  I mean, I used to think that, but I never had any real friends before the Fall Formal.  I didn't think I needed them.  On the other hand, you and the other Sirens have always been together as far as I know.  Even though you were spreading your dark influence out of a desire for power and adoration, you three still had each other."

Aria scoffed. "Oh, give me a break.  Like I would be so crushed if I went one day without Adagio's nagging or Sonata saying something stupid."

Sunset furrowed her brow. "Well, if Sonata knows that you feel this way about her, why did she trust you to do this for her?"

"Because she's an idiot.  Duh," said Aria. "She's always been an idiot.  She never pays attention, she wouldn't survive a day without me or Adagio, and she always has that sickening sunny demeanor no matter, what, happens..."

Aria trailed off and hid her face. "W-wait, f-forget that last part."

A ghost of a smile crossed Sunset's face. "You miss that about her, don't you?  That's why you agreed to help her."

Aria bit her lip. "N-no.  Th-that's not true," she whimpered. "I-I just don't like seeing her cry.  Especially when she keeps using my shirt as a tissue; that can get very irritating.  Besides, she's just being paranoid over nothing.  She doesn't need your approval for anything, but because Discord is around, she's trying to get all chummy with our biggest enemy.  I-I just don't understand her."

Sunset nodded contemplatively. "Well, I don't think it's my place to say what she's thinking exactly.  But if I were to guess, you guys seem to thrive on getting attention.  When we promised to listen to Sonata, that must've felt good for her.  But once that was gone, she felt like she did something wrong.  I think this might be her first experience with feeling guilt."

Aria chuckled bitterly. "Yeah, right.  It's just Discord messing with her empty head."

"Keep in mind this is only speculation," said Sunset. "As such, I don't think I need my Equestrian magic to 'cure' her, seeing as there's nothing to cure.  All you need to do is tell her that she did nothing wrong, and that I forgive her anyway."

Aria gave Sunset a sideways glance. "Can't you do it?"

"I would, but to be honest, you've given me quite a bit to think about," said Sunset, rubbing her arm. "Believe it or not, Discord claimed that he's not even interested in taking over.  He just wanted to be my friend.  I wasn't sure if I could believe him, but after what you told me about Adagio, well..."

"You think he's telling the truth?" said Aria. "Heh, that'll be the day."

"That's just it.  I can't be sure," Sunset admitted. "I thought him going after Applejack was definitive proof that he hadn't changed at all, but now things aren't so cut-and-dry anymore.  I-it's just so frustrating."

Aria shrugged. "Well, that's your problem, not mine.  I don't know what's going on in Discord's brain, nor do I care.  All I want is for Sonata to be her silly self again."

Sunset smiled. "Y'know, without the evil magic and stuff, you Sirens don't seem to be that bad.  Well, you and Sonata, at least."

Aria gave Sunset a bemused look. "Don't get all sentimental on me.  I did my thing, so I'm gonna bounce.  I don't know if this forgiveness shtick is gonna make Sonata feel better, but I'm willing to try anything."

"I'm sure it'll work," said Sunset. "And, thanks for sharing all this with me, um, you."

Aria arched an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"I'm, sorry.  I completely forgot your name," Sunset said, brushing the back of her head sheepishly.

Aria deadpanned. "You're serious."

"To be fair, you're not exactly that talkative in class," Sunset retorted.

Aria let out an exasperated groan. "It's Aria.  My name is Aria."

"Oh, right," said Sunset. "Well, thanks again, Aria."

"Don't mention it," said Aria, narrowing her eyes. "And I mean it; don't mention this.  We never spoke, I still hate you for taking away my powers, and if you tell anyone otherwise, I'm gonna knock your block off.  You got that?"

Sunset wasn't the least bit intimidated. "Got it," she said plainly.

"Good," said Aria, giving Sunset an "I'm watching you" gesture.  With that, she marched out of the room.  Sunset let out a large sigh.

Okay, so I'm back to where I started with Discord.  Except I'm not because I snapped at him and made him angry, she mused. I guess there's nothing to do now except wait for him to make the next move.  I just hope it doesn't interfere with the concert...


***


Sonata perked up as soon as Aria emerged from the Music Room. "What'd she say?  What'd she say?"

Aria sighed. "She told me to tell you that she forgives you for messing up, even though you didn't really do anything wrong."

Sonata breathed a sigh of relief. "So, she's not mad at me?"

"Doesn't seem like it," said Aria. "And by the way, you owe me big time."

Sonata beamed and tackled Aria into a hug. "Oh, thank you, Aria!  Thank you thank you thank you~!"

"G-get off!" Aria grunted as her cheeks began to burn. "Y-you're gonna embarrass us both!  Stop it before someone sees—"

"Well, you look happy."

As if on cue, Adagio came walking in.  Sonata squeaked in terror and hid herself behind Aria.

"H-hi, Adagio," she stammered. "H-how's it going?"

"You've been acting strange all day, Sonata.  And I want to know why," Adagio demanded.

Sonata gulped. "Wh-what are you talking about?  I-I'd never hide stuff from you."

"Don't you have somewhere else to be?" Aria asked, crossing her arms. "You know, tracking down that dracaonequus hubby of yours?"

"Now, why would she need to do that when I'm right here?"

A sinister voice echoed from all directions, causing Sonata to shiver even more.  Suddenly, two yellow eyes with red pupils opened up on the wall, revealing a Discord-shaped indent running along it.  Sonata yelped and hid herself even more.  Adagio bowed.

"Milord.  So nice to see you," she said. "I saw what happened in the cafeteria.  I take it all went well?"

"Not quite," said Discord with a pout "Because of your brilliant idea, now Sunset trusts me even less."

Adagio scoffed. "She may be clever, but we can still win her over, milord."

"About that," said Discord, stroking his goatee. "I've done some thinking, and I do believe I have the perfect plan that'll give us all what we want."

Adagio gave her partners a smug smile. "You hear that, girls?  I told you Discord would help us."  She then turned back to the camouflaged draconequus. "What is this plan, milord?"

Discord snapped his fingers, and each of the Sirens suddenly found a card in their hands.

"These are backstage passes to the Rainbooms' concert tonight, with an address of where to go," he explained. "Once you arrive there, all will be revealed."

"And how exactly can we trust you?" asked Aria, folding her arms.

"Because I'm offering a chance for all of us to come out on top," said Discord plainly. "You can take it or leave it, but just know that you'll be missing out if you don't show up."

"We'll be there, milord," said Adagio with a bow. "Count on it."

"Um, what do you mean 'we?'" asked Aria, raising an eyebrow.

Adagio deadpanned. "Come on, Aria.  This is the moment we've been waiting for.  Discord himself is giving us his word that we'll all get what we want.  You aren't just going to let this slip through your fingers, are you?"

Sonata looked up at Discord. "So, you're not going to make me grow the wings of a bat and stomp around like a zombie while singing 'Row, row, row your boat' through a carwash?"

Aria did a double take. "Where do you keep getting these specific scenarios?!"

"Oh, don't tell me he wouldn't do it!" Sonata barked back.

"Girls, girls.  There's no need to fight.  I assure you, as long as you follow my plan, nothing bad will befall you," Discord promised.

Sonata looked back at the pass in her hand, and then at Aria. "Um, if I agree to do this, will you do it with me?"

Aria opened her mouth to say no, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.  Finally, she sighed.

"Yeah, alright," she relented. "But you still owe me."

"Splendid," said Discord, rubbing his hands together. "I'd better go on ahead and make some preparations.  See you tonight."

With that, his form faded into the wall.  A sinister gleam flashed in Adagio's eyes.

"When we get our magic back, I expect a full apology from both of you," she gloated.

Aria rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

The three Sirens went off their separate ways.  Aria shook her head.

I still can't believe Sonata talked me into this, she thought. Well, I guess it could've been worse.  At least Adagio and Discord prevented her from doing the "I'm Right, You're Wrong" dance.  I don't think whatever's left of my dignity would've survived that.  I just hope it survives whatever Discord has in store for us tonight...
> Sunset Swings
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunset spent the rest of her day walking on eggshells.  Since her discussion with Aria, she was expecting Discord to pop up and do something or for Twilight to send her an angry letter scolding her about not being a good friend.  But even after the final bell marking the end of the school day, nothing extraordinary happened.  Everything proceeded as it normally would.  This only served to make Sunset even more nervous.

What is he up to? she wondered. Is he going to attack the concert?  Is he mad at me?  Was he really telling the truth?  I-I just don't know anymore.

These thoughts continued to plague her as she arrived at the animal rescue center a few minutes late.  But when she got backstage, the Rainbooms were very disorganized.

"I-I swear I had my keytar here just a moment ago!  I-I know I took it with me!" Rarity panted as she ran around the stage. "Wh-where could it have gone?"

"Cool your jets there, Rare," said Applejack, rolling her eyes. "I'm sure it's just in the last place you looked."

"Th-that's just it, Applejack!  I was holding it the last time I checked!" Rarity wailed. "I didn't drop it or anything; it just vanished!  Oh, of all the worst things that could happen, this is THE, WORST, POSSIBLE, THING!"

"You think that's bad?  What about our music?!" Rainbow Dash snarled, tossing sheet music every which way. "Our song isn't here!  It's just this weird stuff that doesn't even have any lyrics!"

Fluttershy meekly fiddled with her tambourine. "W-we have time.  L-let's all calm down and get this sorted out before—"

"Hi, guys!"

Sunset whipped around as an all-too-familiar voice called out behind her.  Much to her surprise, Sonata and Aria were standing right there.  Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes.

"Did you guys do this?" she asked, pointing an accusing finger at the Sirens.

Aria snorted. "Do what?  We just got here."

"What are you two doing here, anyway?" Sunset inquired. "This area should be off-limits."

"Backstage passes," said Sonata, flashing her card. "Discord gave 'em to us."

A lightbulb went off in Sunset's head. "Discord?  Why would he do that?"

"I dunno," Aria said with a shrug. "All I know is that Sonata owes me big time."

"Um, guys?"

All eyes turned to Pinkie Pie, who was peeking out at the crowd through the curtain.

"What's up, Pink?" asked Applejack.

"Did we order a grand piano for our show?"

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. "Uh, no.  Why?"

"'Cause there's one sitting on stage right now."

Rarity blinked. "Well, I suppose that solves my keytar problem.  Somewhat."

Applejack smirked. "Heh, at least now you get to express your full musicality properly, amiright?"

Rarity pouted and crossed her arms. "I can't believe you still remember that," she grumbled, blushing slightly.

Sunset scratched her head. "This has to be Discord's doing," she said. "Hang on, I'll see if he's around."

She took out her cellphone and turned it on.  However, her settings were completely normal, and Discord was nowhere to be seen.  With a frustrated grunt, she put the phone away.  But just as she did so, another familiar voice was heard.

"You know, I find it quite fascinating that you're okay with this."

Sunset turned around, and her eyes went wide.  There was Discord, in all his mismatched glory, walking next to Vinyl Scratch and chatting.  Despite gazing upon a bizarre creature no human had ever seen before, Vinyl didn't seem disturbed by this at all.  She simply smiled and shrugged.

"Mmm, yes.  I suppose you would get used to this kind of thing after a while," Discord mused. "Listen, thanks again for letting me do my thing here.  I promise, you will not regret it."

Vinyl gave Discord a thumbs-up, and the two of them shared a fist bump.  The Rainbooms were rendered speechless as Vinyl walked past them to set up her equipment.  Sunset was the one to break the silence.

"Discord?  Wh-what was—?"

"Ah, Sunset Shimmer.  So glad that you're here," said Discord with a bow. "You may have noticed that I *ahem* changed up the setlist for tonight's performance."

"Without asking our permission?" said Rainbow Dash, folding her arms.

Discord chuckled nervously. "W-well, yes.  But this plan was very last minute, and preparations are still being made as we speak.  Speaking of which, have our other guests arrived?"

"Huh?  What other guests?" asked Sonata, looking all around the backstage area.

"I'm pretty sure he means us, Sonata," Aria sighed, rolling her eyes.

"O-Oh, right," said Sonata, brushing the back of her head sheepishly. "I-I knew that."

Discord knitted her brow and stroked his chin. "Hmm.  We seem to be missing one, but no matter.  The show must go on, as they say."

He then snapped his fingers.  In a flash of light, the backstage passes Sonata and Aria had changed shape.  Sonata was now holding a shiny silver trumpet, while Aria had a golden saxophone strapped around her shoulder.  Aria arched an eyebrow.

"And, what exactly are we supposed to do with these?" she asked.

"Why, you're performing with the Rainbooms tonight, of course."

"WHAT?!"

Everyone recoiled at Discord's revelation.

"Th-that's nuts!  You're nuts!" Aria shouted. "I-I'm not performing w-with them!"

Pinkie tilted her head. "Why not?  It could be fun."

Rainbow Dash shot Pinkie a quizzical look. "Fun?"

"Yeah.  I mean, isn't that what being in a band's supposed to be?" said Pinkie.

"B-but we're your enemy.  We hate you, and you hate us," Aria stated bluntly.

"Who told you that?" asked Pinkie, placing her hands on her hips. "I don't hate you guys now that you aren't trying to take over the world."

"I-it would be a nice gesture if we let them play," whimpered Fluttershy. "But I have to ask, Mr. Discord."

"Mmmyes?"

"Wh-why a trumpet and saxophone?  We're a rock band."

"Why, it's simple mathematics, my dear Fluttershy," said Discord, conjuring up a chalkboard and writing out a nonsensical equation. "Now, you guys play rock and roll, as you just mentioned.  I once heard, though don't quote me on this, that rock and roll is a combination of jazz and blues.  Since I figure we've all been rather, uptight lately, I've subtracted the blues part of the equation and made this a jazz concert."

"Th-that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!" Rainbow Dash sputtered. "W-we're not a jazz band!  We can't just pick up and play this music!"

Pinkie shrugged her shoulders. "Why not?  We did it before, remember?"

Everyone shot Pinkie a blank stare.  She blinked in confusion.

"Why are you all looking at me like that?  It's true," she said simply.

Sunset sighed and turned to Discord. "Discord, I—"

"Sunset, listen," said Discord, placing a paw on her shoulder. "I know you don't have much reason to trust me, but all I'm asking for is one more chance.  If this concert doesn't make us friends, nothing will."

Sunset bit her lip and cast her eyes downward.  She was silent for the longest time, taking the entire day into consideration.  Finally, she looked up and nodded.

"Alright, but this is it, pal," she said firmly.

"Thank you, Sunset," said Discord with a bow.  He took another look around and stroked his chin. "Hmm.  We're still missing one guest.  Sonata, Aria.  Did Adagio come with you?"

"Not really," said Aria. "As soon as detention was over, she took off like a shot.  If anything, she should've been here before us."

"Huh.  Odd," said Discord.  He then shrugged. "Oh well.  We can't wait on her much longer.  Just play the music I've provided for you, and everything should work out.  Break a leg, everyone!"

With another snap of his fingers, Discord disappeared.  The Rainbooms exchanged concerned glances.

"I hate to say it, girls, but he has a point," said Rainbow Dash. "We can't back out of this now.  Still, keep your guard up no matter what happens."

"Agreed," said Sunset, looking over at the Sirens. "Um, please tell me you two know how to play those things."

Aria deadpanned. "We spent our entire lives singing; you tell me.  Not to mention that your Equestrian magic rendered us tone-deaf."

Sonata then blew into her trumpet.  Much to Aria's surprise, the note she played was not off-key in the slightest.  Aria did a double take.

"Sounds to me like you've been corrected," said Rainbow Dash.

Aria cleared her throat. "Th-that doesn't prove anything."

"Oh, just relax.  It'll all be fine!" said Pinkie with a wide grin. "That's a Pinkie Promise!"

"I hope you're right, Pinkie," Fluttershy said meekly. "I'd hate to have gone through so much trouble to organize this only for it to fall apart at the last minute."

"Well, we'll just have to make sure that doesn't happen," said Sunset with a nod.  She then took a deep breath and let it out. "Okay, let's do this."


***


Adagio stared down as the stage from the makeshift catwalk above, a mischievous grin plastered on her face.  A veritable treasure trove of troublemaking goodies decorated the walkway.  From buckets of paint to rotten fruit to cream pies, she had everything she needed to ruin the Rainbooms.

"Most excellent, milord," she cackled. "Once I use your gifts here to defeat the Rainbooms, nothing will stand in our way!"

Just then, a spotlight from above shined on the stage, and a distorted voice rang out over the intercom.

"Ladies and gentlemen!  Thank you for coming to this fine performance tonight!" the voice announced. "Let's dive right in and give you all what you came for.  Put your hands together for your friends and mine, the Rainbooms!"

There was a great round of applause as the Rainbooms ventured awkwardly onstage.  The applause stopped abruptly when Sonata and Aria were revealed to be with them.  Adagio was equally surprised.

What are those two morons doing down there? she wondered. We were supposed to meet up here to sabotage the concert.  Ugh, can't they do anything right?  I suppose it's true what they say.  If you want something done, you have to do it yourself.

"Hey.  Didn't those two try to take over the school?"

"Yeah!  And they totally sucked at singing!"

"Those guys are a bunch of jerks!  Get 'em off the stage!"

Scattered boos mixed in with the cross-conversation.  Sunset bit her lip.

"Not exactly a great start, Discord," she muttered under her breath.

Vinyl, however, was not perturbed in the slightest.  She casually booted up a track into her stereo and turned it on.  The crowd was suddenly silenced by the music blasting out of her speakers.  The Rainbooms exchanged looks and shrugged.  They all knew there was no turning back now.  They all readied their instruments, and Pinkie raised her sticks into the air.

"Ah-one, ah-two, ah-one-two-three-four!"

With that, the Rainbooms launched right into the song.  Just as Pinkie said, they found that they were playing flawlessly, even though they had never performed this kind of music before.  Even Sonata and Aria were able to keep up on the instruments Discord provided for them.  Although Sunset tried her best to keep her guard up, she couldn't help but get caught up in the swinging music.  Eventually, she completely lost herself, shredding on her guitar with a fiery passion.  A warm sensation flowed throughout her body, and she knew exactly what was coming next.

Sure enough, the Rainbooms all transformed.  One by one, their hair grew into long ponytails, and small ears appeared on their heads.  Sunset basked in the aura of friendship the radiated from her and her bandmates, but in the back of her mind, she was puzzled.  Discord was giving them access to their Equestrian magic.  If they had to, they could petrify him at any time.  She couldn't think of any reason for him to give himself such a handicap, and yet he did.  However, such concerns were drowned out by the compelling music she played.

Meanwhile, Adagio watched from her perch with a scowl on her face.

"This isn't good," she mused. "Their Equestrian magic is dangerous.  I have to stop this."

After a quick look around, she spied a spotlight pointed directly over Fluttershy.  A nefarious grin formed on her face as she recalled the Rainbooms' first set in the Battle of the Bands.

"Let's see how well their magic works once that runt flees the stage like the coward she is," she giggled, walking over to the spotlight.  She positioned the spotlight ever so carefully, making sure that it was directly above Fluttershy's head.  With a twinkle in her eye, she flipped the switch.

Suddenly, a bright flash erupted from the spotlight, right into Adagio's face.  With a scream, she stumbled back and fell against the railing.  When she recovered her vision, she saw that the spotlight was shooting out of the wrong end for some inexplicable reason.  Quickly getting to her feet, she marched over to the light and tried to turn it around.  But despite her efforts, the light would not budge.

Maybe he's testing me, she thought, trying to stave off the frustration. He does seem to like jokes, after all.  Alright, we can still ruin them!

She then looked over at the grand piano where Rarity was sitting.  Just above it were the buckets of paint, which displayed every color of the rainbow.  Adagio tiptoed over to the buckets and hefted one up.

"She won't be so fond of those stupid rainbows once this ruins her precious outfit," she said with a sneer.  With a muted grunt, she flung the paint over Rarity, hoping to drench her in the stuff.  However, the trail of paint did not meet its target.  It instead did a loop in midair, as if it were an airplane pulling out of a difficult maneuver.  Adagio's jaw dropped in astonishment, and in her moment of stunned surprise, the paint flew right into her mouth.  As she forced back her reflex to swallow the stuff, she felt a tingling sensation that she didn't quite expect from paint.  Her face flashed multiple colors in rapid succession, and the tingling gradually turned into burning.  In a matter of seconds, she felt as though her mouth was on fire.

"DAH~!  S-S-S-SPICY~!"

She ran back and forth across the catwalk, flailing her arms and howling in pain.  Strangely enough, her screams could not be heard over the Rainbooms' music.  After a few seconds, she tripped and fell face first into one of the cream pies.  The soothing cream nullified the sting from the spicy paint.  She got up and sputtered, wiping the cream from her eyes just as the voice over the loudspeaker made itself known again.

"On trumpet, give it up for Sonata Dusk!"

All of the lights suddenly converged on Sonata.  Although taken aback at first, Sonata quickly launched into a trumpet solo as soon as the chorus was over.  Everyone watched in awe as she played with such shining enthusiasm.  It was as if the trumpet was something she had been practicing her whole life, even though it was thrust upon her by Discord not a few minutes ago.  What's more, she didn't even seem to notice.  Just like the rest of the Rainbooms, she was swept up in the fervor of the music.

Adagio looked over at the rotten fruit, eggs, and cream pies all ready for her to use.  She then turned back to Sonata and shrugged.

"Well, at least you idiots will be of some use to me," she said, snagging an egg. "Sorry, Sonata.  It's nothing personal."

She drew back the egg and threw it at Sonata with all her might.  But just as it left her fingertips, something rammed into the back of her head, causing her to stumble forward.  Quickly, she got her bearings and reached behind her.  Through her thick head of hair, she could feel a slimy substance trickling down her neck.  When she withdrew her hand to see what it was, she found that it was covered with egg yolk.  Even more surprising, Sonata kept on playing like nothing happened.

Fuming, Adagio snatched up a tomato.  Without thinking, she threw it at Sonata.  Once again, something slapped against her head with a dull splat.  She reached behind her to feel it.  This time, her hand was covered in squashed tomato while Sonata remained unscathed.  Adagio raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, something funny's going on here," she snarled, taking a pie into her hand.  She raised it to throw at Sonata, but stopped short.  She focused instead on her peripheral vision, waiting for a culprit to show itself.  Just then, out of the corner of her eye, Discord's shadow flashed into view.

"Ah-ha!  Got—"

She spun around and tried to throw the pie at the shadow, only to smash it into her own face.  Her body trembled as she let out a deep-throated growl.

While Adagio was cleaning herself off, something amazing was happening to Sonata.  As she continued playing her solo, she began to float up off of the ground.  Sunset noticed this and turned her head.  Just as she did so, a gentle glow radiated from Sonata's body.  Silky pink sea horse fins sprouted from her back, her ponytail grew in length, and small pony ears appeared on her forehead.  Sunset recoiled, almost cutting one of her guitar strings with her pick.  Aria's jaw dropped to the floor.  The other Rainbooms were equally baffled by this turn of events, but for whatever reason, it wasn't enough to stop the music.  However, Sonata didn't even seem to notice her transformation.  She was focusing solely on the pleasant feeling that spread throughout her entire body.

"On saxophone, Aria Blaze!"

Aria snapped out of her stunned silence as soon as her name was called.  Without many other options, she launched into a solo of her own.  Just like with Sonata, her tunes were vibrant and smooth for someone who had little to no experience with the instrument.  Sunset watched with increased interest as Aria went through her own transformation.  The same silky fins; the same longer hair; even the same pony ears.  When her transformation was complete, Adagio had finally wiped off the last bit of pie to see what was going on.  Her eyes became as wide as dinner plates as she watched Aria's magnificent performance.

"Th-that's Equestrian magic!" she exclaimed. "They're getting their magic back!  WHY ARE THEY GETTING THEIR MAGIC BACK?!  THAT POWER SHOULD BE MINE!"

Sunset faintly heard Adagio's infuriated outburst above, but she was too engrossed by Sonata and Aria to pay it much mind.  The wheels in her mind were kicked into overdrive as she tried to process what was occurring before her.  However, the fast-paced song that she and the Rainbooms played made it difficult for her to concentrate on finding answers.

"On guitar, Rainbow Dash!"

As soon as the spotlights shifted from Aria to Rainbow Dash, she wasted no time launching into her own solo.  As always, she shredded her guitar with expert precision, and her Equestrian magic practically exploded from her body.  On the catwalk above, Adagio suddenly noticed that she was snapping her fingers along with the beat.  She quickly grabbed her hand, only to discover that she was tapping her foot.  She clamped down on her foot, only to bob her head.  She gripped both sides of her head, only to sway her hips.  No matter what she did, some part of her body was compelled to move in time with Rainbow Dash's riffs.

"N-no!  S-stop it!" she shouted at her own body. "This is insanity; this is mayhem; this is not the least bit delightful!"

But much to her dismay, her body did not follow her commands.  At least, not until the next solo was announced.

"On piano, Rarity!"

When she finally regained her composure, angry veins were bulging out of Adagio's head.

"That does it," she spat. "No more Ms. Nice Siren!  I will have my revenge, Discord or no Discord!"

As Rarity's fingers gracefully waltzed along the keys of the grand piano, Adagio marched over to a stepladder and climbed down from the catwalk.  As soon as she stepped off the ladder, she scanned the area before her and frowned.

"Okay, there has to be a circuit breaker somewhere around here," she pondered aloud. "Once I trip that, I can take those Lamebooms out of commi—"

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a low growl just over the sound of Rarity's piano playing.  She turned around, and her face lost all color.  The four dogs from the night before were standing before her, arching their backs and ready to pounce.  The red doberman licked its chops while the cross-eyed mutt simply blinked.

"N-no.  N-not you again," Adagio stammered, slowly backing away. "Go away!  L-leave me alone!  Heel!"

"And on drums, Pinkie Pie!"

As soon as Pinkie's drum solo was announced, the dogs leapt at Adagio.  Adagio screamed at the top of her lungs, but unfortunately for her, her cries were drowned out by Pinkie wailing on the drums with her usual flair.  After a few seconds, everyone else joined in for the chorus once again.  Sunset looked out into the crowd, and saw that everyone in the audience were enjoying themselves.  They were tapping their feet, clapping their hands, and cheering them on.  Any misgivings they had about the Sirens being onstage had vanished entirely.  Sonata and Aria looked happier than she had ever seen them before, and even the other Rainbooms appeared to be much more relaxed.  Something inside Sunset stirred.  She couldn't quite tell if it was relief, guilt, or some other feeling, but whatever it was, it was causing tears to well up in her eyes.

"Alright, Sunny!  Take us home!" Pinkie hollered.

Sunset shook herself and strummed her guitar.  Much to her surprise, the sound that came out was not that of a string instrument, but of brass horns.  But instead of questioning it, she decided to just roll with it and continue playing.

Considering everything else that just happened, this is the least of my worries, she thought, concluding the song with one final strum of her guitar. At least Fluttershy's concert wasn't ruined.

Sure enough, the audience had erupted into applause, chanting the Rainbooms' name over and over again.  Sunset let out a small sigh and waved to the crowd along with her bandmates.  Despite the questions and complicated emotions plaguing her, she felt that they could wait until she had to face Discord again.
> The More the Merrier
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"That, was, SO AWESOME~!"

"I-I honestly wasn't sure what to expect, but in the end, we were simply fabulous, if I do say so myself."

"Everyone was so happy.  I'm glad everything turned out okay."

"Okay?!  That was better than okay!  It was stupendaterrifawonderful!"

"That ain't a word, Pink."

"Well how else am I gonna describe something that was stupendous, terrific, and wonderful at the same time?"

The Rainbooms all found themselves in incredibly high spirits as they congratulated each other backstage.  Outside, they could still hear the cheers of the crowd calling their name.  Only Sunset was reserved in her enthusiasm, as many conflicting thoughts and emotions weighed heavily on her mind and heart.

"I reckon we all deserve a pat on the back," said Applejack, tipping her hat to the Sirens. "Especially you two.  You really surprised us with that there light show."

"I know, right?!" Sonata gushed, floating about with her Equestrian magic. "I mean, did you hear 'em, Aria?!  They were cheering!  For us!"

"Y-yeah.  I-I guess they were," said Aria, looking over at her silky fins. "But, how did that happen?  I thought our magic was destroyed."

"Not destroyed, my dear Aria.  Merely suppressed."

A voice coming from seemingly everywhere echoed around the Rainbooms.  After a brief search, they found Discord coming out from below a dimensional trapdoor.

"Suppressed?  What do you mean?" asked Aria, raising an eyebrow.

"All ponies from Equestria, whether they be from the land, sea, or sky, have Equestrian magic within them," Discord explained. "That magic cannot be destroyed; merely diminished.  When the Rainbooms defeated you, all they did was deny you access to your dark powers."

"So, wait.  We had our magic the whole time?" asked Sonata, rubbing her head.

"Pretty much," said Rainbow Dash with a shrug. "At least, that's what Sunset believes.  And she knows more about this stuff than we ever will."

Sunset looked up at Discord. "I-I don't understand.  Why did you set all this up?"

Discord smiled. "After our little argument, I discovered that something was amiss with these two," he said, gesturing to Sonata and Aria. "Instead of storming home empty-handed, I decided to stick around and get the full story.  I overheard your conversation with Aria, and then it hit me."

"What?"

"The ultimate way to prove that I'm a changed draconequus.  As you know, I have a reputation for destroying friendship.  So, I figured if I used my powers to create friendship, there would be no way for you to dispute my word."

Sunset looked over at the Sirens, and then back at Discord. "So, you invited them to join our band because..."

"I see you're catching on, Sunset Shimmer," said Discord with a nod. "Not only have I exposed these lovely ladies to the magic of friendship, but I've done away with their sole reason for hating the Rainbooms.  Now we can all be friends!"

Aria blinked. "W-wait, wait.  Time out," she said, gesturing with her hands. "Th-there has to be a catch to this.  I mean, you wouldn't just give us our magic back just so that we can all get along.  That's not you."

"It is now," said Discord. "A lot has happened in Equestria since your banishment, Aria.  Although I suppose there is a slight catch in your case."

Aria scoffed bitterly. "I knew it."

"The magic you used on that stage is not the dark magic you're used to.  You can no longer hypnotize others or feed off of negative energy."

Sonata tilted her head. "But if we're not feeding off of negative energy, where do our powers come from now?"

"Why, from the magic of friendship, of course," said Discord with a wink. "That and music."

Aria frowned. "So, what?  You expect us to go against everything we ever knew and change overnight?  We've been creating conflict and feeding off of negative energy since the beginning.  That's all we understand.  This magic is great, sure, but we could never use it on our own.  Besides, without our dark magic controlling what people think, everyone hates us.  You can't exactly use this precious magic of friendship without friends."

A sudden epiphany hit Sunset like a ton of bricks.  Aria's words caused a cascade of painful memories to flood her mind.

But all I've ever done since being here is drive everyone apart.  I don't know the first thing about friendship.

The turmoil and confusion disappeared from her mind.  In its place was a sharp pang of guilt.  With a deep sigh, she approached the Sirens.

"Listen, I understand how you guys feel," she said, casting her eyes downward. "You just discovered a new way to be strong without causing suffering to others.  It goes against everything you've done up to this point.  You're scared, and you don't know what to do."

Sonata's eyes went wide. "Whoa.  It's like she can read my mind."

"Oh, please," Aria huffed. "I-I'm not scared.  I just don't think this'll work.  No, I know this won't work.  W-we can never get anyone to listen to us without our powers."

"You sure about that?" asked Applejack, arching an eyebrow. "Sonata here had the guts to try."

"Th-that's 'cause she was afraid of Discord," Aria spat.

"And Discord was defeated by the Elements of Harmony; the ultimate weapon of friendship," said Sunset plainly. "Aria, maybe you don't want to admit it, but I've been in your position before.  For the longest time, I had to endure everyone being cold and distant to me because of what I did at the Fall Formal.  Sometimes, I even wondered if I'd ever be accepted."

She then looked up at Aria, tears welling up in her eyes. "Well, I'm here to say that I'll accept you two.  And as someone who can truly empathize with you, I'll help you through this if you'll let me."

"That goes for me as well, girls," Discord said somberly. "Everything Sunset here has said applies to me, believe it or not.  That's why I wanted to become her friend in the first place.  It's nice to have a friend who knows what you're going through."

Sonata twiddled her fingers. "Y-you mean, people will adore us again?  For realsies?"

"Not just that," said Sunset with a warm smile. "They'll adore you because you're good people, not because you force them to."

"Don't forget about us!" Pinkie chimed in. "We can teach you loads of stuff, too!  Right, girls?"

"Heck yeah!"

"Eeyup."

"But of course, darling."

"Uh-huh."

Sonata's eyes watered. "Aria, I-I feel weird again.  I-I'm so happy right now.  S-so, why am I c-crying?"

"Because you're being a sap," said Aria, rolling her eyes.

"And what's wrong with that?" asked Discord with a sly smile. "From what I heard, you're pretty sappy yourself when it comes to Sonata."

Aria blushed profusely. "Y-you're making that up."

"No, I can vouch for him," said Sunset with a giggle.  She then held out her hand. "What do you say, Aria?  Friends?"

Aria looked at the hand for a moment, then at Sonata, then back at Sunset.  Finally, she sighed.

"I suppose this is better than not having magic at all," she said, taking Sunset's hand. "Alright, I'll give it a shot.  But I'm just doing this for Sonata."

"Yay!  People will like us again!" Sonata cheered, throwing her arms around Aria and Sunset.

"Not only that, but we're all besties now, too!" Pinkie chirped, joining in the fun. "This calls for a celebration!  Slumber party at my house!"

Discord chuckled and shook his head. "Heh, some things never change."

"Hold it right there!"

A sharp, angry voice interrupted the festivities.  Everyone turned around to see a battered and bruised Adagio Dazzle.  Egg yolk, tomatoes, and bits of cream pie decorated her hair, and her clothes were ripped and torn.  She glared daggers at Aria and Sonata, her hands clenched into fits.

"I knew you morons were a lot of things, but I never thought you'd be traitors!" she spat, pointing an accusatory finger at the two.

"Eep!" Sonata squeaked, hiding behind Aria.  Aria herself had a smug grin on her face.

"Wow, Adagio.  You're a mess," she snickered.

"S-stop laughing!  You're the one in trouble here!" Adagio screamed. "After everything I did for you idiots, this is how you repay me?!  By joining our greatest enemy?!  You two must really be braindead!"

Her glare shifted over to Discord. "And you!"

"Me?" Discord asked innocently, casting his gaze upward as a halo appeared above his head.

"Your plan was an entire bust!  None of your traps worked!"

Discord furrowed his brow and stroked his goatee with his paw. "I don't follow."

"They all blew up in my face!"

"No, see, that was supposed to happen."

Adagio did a double take. "Wh-what?!"

"Well, I heard about what you did to Sunset Shimmer this morning, and from that, I pieced together how you led me astray," said Discord simply. "I couldn't have you ruin my last chance to get in Sunset's good graces, so on the off chance that you didn't accept my generous offer, I took a few precautions."

"B-but I did accept!" Adagio bellowed. "You set up those traps to sabotage the Rainbooms so that they wouldn't be able to use their magic against you!"

Discord sighed and shook his head. "Tsk tsk tsk.  You really don't get it, do you, Ms. Dazzle?  I just told you what the traps were for.  And if you had just put your petty revenge scheme aside and joined your friends on stage, you would've gotten your magic back, too."

"Why do those, those turncoats deserve their magic more than I do?!" Adagio howled. "I'm the one who dedicated myself to your will!  I was priming Sunset Shimmer for corruption the entire time!"

"That's just it, Adagio.  I don't want to corrupt Sunset Shimmer," said Discord. "My only goal in all this was to become her friend.  I've long since retired the status of a tyrant, and I've discovered that friendship truly is magic."

Adagio's face lost all color, and her entire body trembled. "Th-that's impossible.  Y-you're—  Th-this doesn't make any—  Sh-she was—  But I—  Th-they—  Ooooh~."

With that, she swooned and collapsed to the ground.

"Huh.  She took that better than I expected," Discord mused.

Aria stifled a laugh. "Heh heh heh.  I-I knew it was gonna be hilarious to see this bite Adagio in the butt."

"We're still gonna help her, though.  Right?" asked Sonata. "I mean, this new magic would make her act a lot less crazy."

"Yeah, I suppose," Aria conceded. "Adagio might be a pain in the neck, but she's our pain in the neck."  She then smirked. "Besides, it's about time she followed my lead for a change."

"Let her know that we're extending the same courtesy to her, then," said Sunset.

Applejack arched an eyebrow. "You sure 'bout that, Sunset?  I mean, she almost drove you and Discord apart."

Sunset let out a self-mocking chuckle. "If people like me and Discord were given a second chance, why not her?"

"Makes sense to me!" Pinkie chirped. "Now, about that party..."

"Maybe another time," Aria interrupted.

Sonata's expression drooped. "Aww.  Why not?"

Aria looked down at Adagio and scoffed. "I think we need to get someone home, don't you?"

"O-oh, right," said Sonata sheepishly. "I-I totally knew that."

Aria rolled her eyes. "Of course you did," she said. "C'mon, help me out here.  She's probably a bit heavy."

With that, Aria and Sonata hefted Adagio off of the floor and over their shoulders.  Aria turned to the Rainbooms and smirked.

"I guess we'll be seeing you guys around," she said.

"Yeah, bye!" Sonata said with a wave. "Looking forward to that swim team thing!"

"Just remember that you have a bathing suit for a reason, a'ight?" said Rainbow Dash, waving back.

"Don't be a stranger, y'all."

"Take care, darlings."

"Hope your leader becomes nice, too!"

"Be careful on your way out."

The Rainbooms and Sirens exchanged goodbyes.  As Aria and Sonata left, they began talking.

"Hey, Aria?"

"What's up?"

"I never knew I could play the trumpet like that."

Aria chuckled. "You're telling me.  I never knew I was so good with the saxophone."

"Hey, maybe we should find an instrument for Adagio, too!  Then we can have our own Equestrian magic band!"

"If it'll stop her from pestering us about getting revenge on the Rainbooms, I'm all for it."

"Great!  I actually have a great instrument in mind.  It's perfect for her."

"What is it?"

"The bagpipes!"

Aria deadpanned. "You're joking."

"Nuh-uh."

"Sonata, that's the most annoying instrument in the world!"

"Says you!  I happen to like bagpipes."

"Yeah, you would like something like that, wouldn't you?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Sonata, you have, like, no taste.  At all.  In anything."

"Hey, I have taste!  I had enough taste to try and befriend the Rainbooms, didn't I?"

"Th-that's entirely different!"

"Is not."

"Is too!"

"Is not."

"Is too!"

"Is not is not is not~!"

"Is too is too is too~!"

The two of them continued to bicker and argue all the way out the door.  The Rainbooms watched in stunned silence before Rarity cleared her throat.

"Those two have an, um, interesting way of displaying their affection, don't they?" she said.

"I don't see how.  We argue 'bout stuff all the time," said Applejack bluntly.

"Oh, that's not—"

Rarity stopped herself mid-sentence when she caught sight of Applejack's knowing grin. "Ugh, I almost walked into that one."

Sunset giggled. "I think those Sirens know more about friendship than they think they do."  Her smile faded, and she hung her head. "That's more than can be said for me."

She looked up at Discord and heaved a great sigh. "Discord, I owe you an apology.  I shouldn't have been so hostile towards you.  Especially since now I know that you're telling the truth about your reformation."

Discord shook his head. "No, Sunset.  I'm the one who should be sorry.  I appeared before you without any sort of warning or indication that I had changed; you had every reason to doubt me.  What's more, I didn't really bother to listen to you and find out what you really wanted.  I just acted on my own initiative, thinking that at long as my intentions were noble, and they were, you'd be fine with it.  It was wrong of me to make that assumption."

"That doesn't excuse what I did, though," Sunset mumbled.  She hung her head again as a few tears fell from her face to the floor. "You were right.  I was acting like a hypocrite.  I should've been more patient with you, but I was too worried about being corrupted or backstabbed.  I-I didn't want to go back to..."

"The way you were," Discord said, completing Sunset's thought.

Sunset sniffled. "Y-yes."

"So that's why you didn't like being compared to him," Rainbow Dash mused.

Sunset nodded.  Discord pulled on the powder puff at the end of his snake tail and tore out a handkerchief, using it to dry Sunset's face.

"If it makes you feel any better, Sunset, I'm not offended," he said warmly. "In fact, it's all the more reason I should share the blame for what happened.  I honestly thought that us being similar was a good thing, and I didn't take your feelings into consideration.  I really should work on that."

"B-but you didn't really do anything wrong," said Sunset. "I'm the one who should—"

"Oh, for Pete's sake!" Pinkie growled. "You were both wrong, and you already apologized to each other!  So stop kicking yourselves and make up already!  I don't host pity parties!"

Discord couldn't help but laugh at Pinkie's choice of words.  Sunset let out a chuckle of her own.

"She's right, you know," said she. "We still have a lot to learn about friendship.  It's only natural for us to make mistakes along the way."

"Indeed," said Discord. "Which is why I came here in the first place.  This road is a lot less treacherous if we tackle it together."  He then extended his paw. "So, what do you say, Sunset Shimmer?  Friends?"

Sunset nodded. "Friends.  Oh, and Discord?"

"Yes?"

Sunset grinned from ear to ear. "Call me Sunny."

Discord's face lit up as he coiled his body around Sunset and gave her a big hug.  Sunset returned the gesture as she felt a great weight tumble from her shoulders.

"Now ain't that sweet," said Applejack whimsically.

"H-hang on, I got something in my eye," said Rainbow Dash, brushing away a single tear.

Rarity giggled. "Of course, darling," she said.  Suddenly, she looked down and discovered that her keytar was strapped around her shoulder. "Oh my!  Wh-where did that come from?"

"Hey, guys?"

The tender moment was interrupted by Vinyl poking her head through the curtain.  She hastily cleared her throat.

"Um, not to interrupt, but the grand piano on stage suddenly went missing," she said. "I don't know where it went."

The Rainbooms looked at each other, then at Rarity's keytar, and then at Discord.  Discord cast his gaze upward and whistled innocently.

"Wait, so Rarity's keytar was the piano the whole time?" asked Fluttershy, scratching her head. "Th-that doesn't make sense."

Discord let out a hearty laugh. "Oh, Fluttershy.  What fun is there in making sense?"

The Rainbooms all shared a laugh.


***



Dear Princess Twilight:

Well, it turns out you were right about Discord.  He really did change his ways in the time I was gone from Equestria.  I'm very happy to call him my friend now.  Not only that, but he actually helped us reach out to the Sirens as well.  It's a bit of a long story, and I'm sure Discord will give you all the details himself.  For now, I want to focus on a few lessons that we all learned today.

Discord learned that while it's great to take initiative, you can sometimes get a bit carried away if you're not listening to the person you're trying to help.

Sonata Dusk learned that friends can always guide you through new experiences, especially when they're frightening.

Aria Blaze learned that showing concern for someone you care about is not a sign of weakness.

Adagio Dazzle...

Okay, she didn't really learn anything.  At least, not yet.  We're gonna be working on that.

As for me, well, I learned a little something about trust.  I knew all about Discord from Equestria's history, and that's all I knew about him.  Seeing him pop up without any prior notice and claiming that he had changed had me suspicious.  And I was right to take his word with a grain of salt.  But that didn't mean I was justified in latching onto any excuse I could to oust him when he was genuinely telling the truth.  Being skeptical about the extraordinary is perfectly healthy and natural.  By the same token, however, you can't just assume that you're in the right.

Very truly yours,
Sunset Shimmer


Twilight looked over the page in her magic book and smiled.  Nestled between the pages was a little postcard depicting a picture of Discord, Sunset, Aria, and Sonata.  All of them wore large smiles, except for Aria, who settled for a half smirk.  Sonata was also giving Aria bunny ears behind her back.  On the back read the following:


Told you I'd send a postcard.

~Discord


Twilight chuckled. "I guess this is how Celestia felt whenever she got stuff like this from me," she mused. "Y'know, I could really get used to that.  Well done, Discord.  And congratulations on your new friend, Sunset Shimmer; my most faithful student."


The End