> Creeping Normality
>  by Eyeswirl the Weirded
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1: With Extra Cheese
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Another day done," sighed Adagio Dazzle as she stepped into the locker room of her workplace.

She began the process of removing her 'uniform,' from the black, shiny little shoes and white stockings with holes like Swiss cheese running all the way up the legs (which made them a BITCH to put on at first, but she'd gotten used to them), to the white and blue, diagonal-striped short skirt and poofy-shouldered shirt combo that showed a little more cleavage than she'd have expected at a family joint like this, to the little apron that only amounted to a white, lace-lined semi-circle hanging over the front of her skirt and a big bow over the back, to her tiny, blue necktie, to the ridiculous, oversized, sky-blue sailor cap and trailing, red ribbon on her head. It wasn't a conventional work uniform, she was sure, because the boy in the kitchen never wore anything so ridiculous. At least, not as part of the job.

It seemed as though she'd been in luck when she found a job opening at the Eezy-Cheezy, especially when her cohorts, Aria Blaze and Sonata Dusk, had managed to lose their jobs on the same day. The owner (who also worked the register and delivered orders from the kitchen personally before Adagio came along), one Gouda Will, had easily been convinced to employ her as a waitress, but he hadn't mentioned the silly-looking get-up she was expected to wear. That had been months ago, and as her group was still sweating from paycheck to paycheck, it was a job she worked to keep.

Gouda Will was a kind-hearted man, very patient, very understanding, and one of few faces in Canterlot willing to hire any of 'those three girls.' Unfortunately, the Eezy-Cheezy was fairly small and he could only pay one oddly-dressed waitress along with his cook, so Aria and Sonata had to hunt elsewhere, even if they derived endless enjoyment from Adagio's goofy outfit.

Maybe it wouldn't have come to this if I hadn't doubted myself...

Following the Battle of the Bands, Adagio had been pointed to as the sole blame figure for the loss of their gems (and somehow, their ability to sing along with them), and she'd conceded that she must have done something wrong if the Rainbooms could make a comeback like that even after everything the sirens had stacked against them. Considering what it had cost them, she caved under the combined pressure from Aria and Sonata (the latter of whom mostly just seemed annoyed about not being able to sing people into doing whatever she wanted anymore), had a minor breakdown, and let Aria lead the group. They easily agreed that before they could even think about striking back at the Rainbooms (who probably weren't going anywhere), they'd need money if they were going to make it without magic, and what they'd liberated from wealthier citizens than themselves (in case of emergency) in their handful of years here wasn't going to last forever.

Aria's first plan had been to seduce a wealthy young man and swindle him out of his fortune. This ended with Aria being bent over his nanny's knee and the three of them thrown out. 

Then came her attempt to out-fox two conmen in town, which cost them the car they'd been using to get around until then. None of them were sure if bus fare and long walks were better than paying for gas. 

To this day, Aria wouldn't tell them about the caper she'd tried to pull on her own. They only knew that she came home with torn clothes, a few bruises in weird places, one of her twin-tails missing (she actually pulled off the look rather well, the three of them having some fun giving her a makeover that night), that she'd been banned from the local mall, and had developed a crippling fear of lobsters.

Without so much as asking for any kind of input, Sonata had the bright idea to just gamble up a fortune herself, took their savings from two out of three of the hidden stashes (having been making a game of figuring out where they were even before the Battle), and snuck out to a casino in the middle of the night. She came back at four in the morning, naked, and without a cent to her name. Furious, Adagio had done her best to emulate the nanny (Aria was happy to offer tips) before reasserting her control over the group and having them all look for legitimate employment.

No, she thought as she redressed in her own clothes, maybe this wouldn't have happened if I hadn't doubted myself, and if I'd kept Sonata on a short leash.

When she was ready to head home, she found Gouda Will sweeping the floor of the diner. He was a large man, to be sure, though most of it appeared to be fat, from his trunk-like legs to the folds on his dull-blue face up to his short, black hair. As was almost always the case, he grinned brightly. "See-a you t'mor-row, Ahdaagio!"

She nodded, giving him a tiny smile in return. "See you."

Some day, I have to work out just what accent he's using.

She'd been telling herself that for weeks, but as was also almost always the case, her thoughts were halted by the head of the smiling cook peeking out from the kitchen.

"Hey there! Clockin' out?"

By rights, one teenage boy shouldn't have been enough to work that kitchen, nor should most of the menu to this place have been possible to serve as 'fast food,' but this one pulled it off every day. How that was possible was something Adagio wasn't sure she wanted to  know, and the grin she offered him was always a little strained. 

"It is closing time, Mr. Sandwich, as it has been every time you've asked."

Still hanging sideways through the doorway, he chuckled. "Call me Cheese," he said while pulling an accordion from somewhere and stretching it outwards, "CUZ' I'M-" Adagio walked past him without another word, making him deflate a little. "Aw, no time for a song? Well, okay then, seeya tomorrow, 'Dagi-O!"

She didn't offer more than a fleeting wave in response to his nickname for her, even if hearing it made smiling just a little easier. 'Dagi-O. It sounded almost musical. Not that she'd know much about that these days, thanks to those girls with the impossibly strong magic. Her blood boiled as she remembered the time they dropped by the Eezy-Cheezy to "check up on her" when they heard where she was working.

"Pfft, wow," Rainbow Dash had snorted, "this is what you do now?"

"Don't make fun, Darling," Rarity had chided with a poorly-suppressed giggle, "honest work is honest work... even if she is wearing the tackiest thing I've ever seen!"

They'd hung around to make cracks like that for at least an hour, with Adagio unable to so much as hide in the back room while there were orders to take. Sunset Shimmer hadn't made any biting remarks, but the smug smirk on her face did more than enough to convey her thoughts.


%%%


Nearly the second she'd closed the front door, Adagio heard Sonata shout. Most audible was the smile.

"Welcome home, Cheese-Head!" 

Unfortunately for her, the path from the front door to her room led through the living room, where the hyenas were waiting. Sonata didn't wait for eye-contact, barely containing her giggles already.

"Have fun cuttin' the cheese today?"

"I'm not the cook," she deadpanned, "I barely touch the food."

"Yea," chuckled Aria, hands behind her head in a relaxed pose with her feet on the coffee table, "her thing is more 'You want fries with that?'"

The two giggled as Adagio glared at them. She wasn't sure when exactly her 'lead' had become in-name-only, but somewhere over the last several weeks, it was clear that they'd lost any respect they ever had for her. "At lea-"

"No, no," snickered Sonata, pointing at Adagio's hair, "it's, 'do you want curly fries with that?'"

Both laughed as Adagio clenched her teeth. That joke wasn't funny the first time, let alone the fiftieth. "At least I have a job! You two haven't brought in any money in weeks, are you even still looking for work?"

"Hey, it's a rough job market," Aria said with a smirk that said she was anything but broken up about it, "nothin' we can do. I mean, your boss ain't hiring more, so we'll just have to hope for the best."

"Y-yea," giggled Sonata, "but hey, at least you're still bringing in the cheddar!"

Adagio loosed a low growl-groan through gritted teeth. "You two are-"

"Woah, woah, don't get so cheesed off, Dagi!"

Her face reddening as the two laughed at her, again, Adagio stormed off to her room for the night. Even if she was distantly glad that they were actually kind of getting along this way (the time they had cheerfully danced together while making fun of her had been kind of cute), the sound of them celebrating her humiliation with another high-five did nothing to diminish her frustration.

There was a time in which she might have at least gotten some satisfaction in recounting some of their less glamorous work, or even pitting them against each other to get the focus off of herself for a while (though recent months had left them less eager to bicker with one another whenever she was around to torment instead), but she just didn't have the energy anymore. Even so, she found herself muttering a familiar oath.

"Some day, you'll all pay..."


%%%


Work was a little... different, the next day. Officially speaking, the Eezy-Cheezy was due to be closed until around mid-afternoon, but the gathering of a flock of children, a few of the parents and/or older siblings that brought them along, and a camera crew outside the restaurant made Adagio sure she'd forgotten something.

"Mr. Will? What's going on here?"

He turned to her with a brighter smile than usual. "Ahh, Ahdaagio, nice to see you! The hard-a work of you ann'a Cheese has been-a great for the Eezy-Cheezy!"

Any pride Adagio felt for drawing in more customers with her 'cute' little outfit (which she certainly did, by the way some regulars eyed her) was dampened by having to do it in a 'cute' little outfit.

"And so-a today, we shoot our very first commercial, where you'll be-a the star as Poofy; salesgirl for all things-a cheesy!"

Feeling her insides get a little colder, Adagio glanced at the crowd of kids, parents, and siblings. She didn't see anyone she recognized, but felt she should voice her concerns anyway. If she gave some warning beforehand, maybe she wouldn't get fired when business tanked. "Uhh, Mr. Will? I don't think you want my face promoting your store."

His quiet reply came with a sympathetic smile. "I know about-a what happened at Canterlot High, Ahdaagio, and is'salright. You've-a been a boon to business since you arrived, and-a no matter what came before, your work is-a what helped us afford our very-a first advertisement! That's-a why I can think of no one better to help me spread-a the joy of cheese to as many people as possible!"

Adagio hadn't noticed an increase of customers since she started working, but if she wasn't driving anyone away...? She let out a quiet sigh. "Alright, then... what do you need me to do?"

With a quick run-down of the planned commercial, she went to get dressed as Gouda Will set things up, trying to adjust her mindset to that of someone happy to sell cheesy food. It wouldn't exactly be the greatest performance of her life, but if she was going to do it, she was going to do it right.

...He couldn't possibly afford a prime-time slot, right? It'll be at three in the morning or something, and the only ones who'll see it are bored insomniacs that won't remember anything anyway. 

When she returned, it looked like it was just about time to get started. She didn't have time to dwell on the feeling she got when Cheese Sandwich turned, pointed to her, and announced "There she is!", which drew cheers of excitement from the kids he'd been keeping busy. Doing her best to smile, she approached the group with a friendly little wave.

Cheese briefly walked her through her lines and they rehearsed the scene with the kids (who were happy to shout 'Eezy-Cheezy!' as many times as they were given the cue) their youthful enthusiasm proving infectious as they all but celebrated this character they'd only learned about less than an hour ago. He really must have done a good job building up excitement, because Adagio even found herself smiling much more easily than usual as she acted out the part of 'Poofy.' Before she knew it, it was time to get started. 

When she was in position and had a tiny microphone pinned to her shirt, the cameras started, she took a quick step forward, and while it wasn't in the script, cartwheeled over to the kids, grinning brightly. She pantomimed taking a picture just as she came to a stop. "Say cheese!"

"Cheeeese!" the children cheered, making her giggle.

"Great!" She turned to face the camera. "Hiya, folks! I'm here to tell you all about a great place to stuff your face-" she winked, "-with extra cheese!"

Their timing wasn't perfect, but the kids called out as instructed.

"I wanna burger!"

"Cheese-sticks!"

A few shouted in unison. "PIZZA!!"

Poofy giggled merrily. "You can get all that and more here at Eezy-Cheezy," she threw in a quick, lively twirl, "so bring a friend, bring the family," she shot the camera an especially cute smile, "and bring your appetite, 'cuz you can have as much cheese as you please, here at-" she let the kids finish for her.

"EEZY-CHEEZY!!"

An announcement from the director (one Cuttin' Dry, a tall, thin, light-green man with slicked-back, light-yellow hair and sharp sunglasses that he never took off) reminded Adagio that he and the nearby camera crew, who caught all of that, existed. 

"Awright," he announced with another accent that Adagio couldn't quite place, "we're gonna keep rolling for a bit more footage we can chop up and use for one of them background montage things during the fine-print voiceover shot at the end. Just keep lookin' all ad-friendly and cheerful for a while and we'll letchu know when we're done." He cued the audio team to play some upbeat music (all of which Adagio knew by heart; it was played constantly as ambiance in the restaurant) as Adagio stood still, her character of moments ago already having slipped away from her.

Am I supposed to just ad-lib now? What do they-

She caught sight of Cheese Sandwich standing off to one side, smiling at her as he pantomimed shaking someone's hand with one arm and pointed to the nearby children with the other. Otherwise paralyzed with indecision, she took this cue immediately, turning to the nearest of the kids and offering to shake their little hand with a warm, friendly (and heavily practiced) smile. She shook a few hands as the role came back to her, but didn't know what to follow it up with until she glanced back at Mr. Sandwich. Again, she took his cue (which was to do a jig where he stood this time) and playfully danced with the kids that would join her, which, as she caught sight of the audio equipment, gave her an idea.

It was such an impulsive thing; jogging, skipping, and cartwheeling over, even as the director asked what she was doing by turning up the music, feeling light as a feather as she cartwheeled back, then hopped, skipped, and jumped up onto one of the outdoor tables. She used to let Sonata do any and all cartwheeling, so maybe she was unconsciously trying to emulate her for the part of Poofy. She certainly felt lighter and happier than she had in recent months, maybe even years! All eyes on her, she drank in their gazes, the smiling faces, and even the confused ones! 

She felt like she was slipping, yet not falling, getting dizzy, yet composed, nervous, but thrilled, and most importantly, alive. The sensible thing to do might have been to stop herself and assess the situation, but Poofy didn't feel like thinking about it.

Poofy felt like singing.



Warning: This may get stuck in your head. Contains J-Pop.




Look, above, the counter and see our menu,
Find, the meal, that will best suit your needs.
Grab, a drink, and maybe a dessert or two,
and of course, there's always extra cheese!

Come, and try, a taste of triple-cheese pizza,
or, maybe, nachos stacked high above.
Cheese, with ease, with macaroni and pita,
burgers, tacos, and cakes you're sure to love!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy, 
Ev'ry thing you can think of!
Cheddar, Colby, Swiss, and Mozzerella,
Come and taste our... ch-ch-ch-Cheezy Love!
Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy, 
Ev'ry thing you can think of!
Cheddar, Colby, Swiss, and Mozzerella,
Come and taste our... ch-Cheezy Love!

Poofy felt herself smile genuinely as she got into her dance routine, making quick, subtle, cutesy motions and winking at the audience, all of whom were smiling right back at her, many clapping in rhythm as she threw herself into the performance.

Grilled, with bread, or blown up into crunchy puffs,
on, the side, melted for dipping sauce,
eat, it raw, so much can be done with the stuff,
so, I hope, I got the point across!

So, come in, place your order, take a seat,
and, we will, be with you very soon.
All, the cheese, that the whole family can eat,
if you like, you don't even need a spoon!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy, 
Ev'ry thing you can think of!
Cheddar, Colby, Swiss, and Mozzerella,
Come and taste our... ch-ch-ch-Cheezy Love!
Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy, 
Ev'ry thing you can think of!
Cheddar, Colby, Swiss, and Mozzerella,
Come and taste our... ch-Cheezy Love!

The children (and Cheese) were all but hopping up and down and cheering with excitement now, heads and feet of the film crew, Gouda Will, and the parents bobbing and tapping along with the tune. For the first time, it was like Adagio was under her own spell, getting all the more fired up for it.

Cheezy-Love, Cheezy-Love!

Cheezy-Love, Cheezy-Love!

Cheezy-Love, Cheezy-Love!

Cheezy-Love, Cheezy-Love!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy, 
Ev'ry thing you can think of!
Cheddar, Colby, Swiss, and Mozzerella,
Come and taste our... ch-ch-ch-Cheezy Love!
Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy, 
Ev'ry thing you can think of!
Cheddar, Colby, Swiss, and Mozzerella,
Come and taste our... ch-Cheezy Love!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy!

She took up a bowing pose just as the song came to an end, which helped hide her ecstatic face as the sounds of applause washed over her, warming her entire body and quickening her heart-rate. That, she realized, was most likely the trigger, the thing that woke up whatever magic she had left; the audience. Before they got the gems, the three of them enjoyed singing, like just about any other civilized aquatic life, and the only thing better than playing for a crowd was playing for a cheering one. The kids were happy to see her the instant she arrived, the way Cheese Sandwich had stirred them up leaving them akin to the fans she once had back home.

I owe you, Mr. Sandwich, and if I ever find the means, maybe I can pay it back.

When it started to get quieter and she regained most of her composure, she hopped off the table, casually paced over to the sound system, returned the volume settings to what they were, and smiled at the director. "How was that?"

Cuttin' Dry grinned. "Great!" Then he frowned. "But, uh, it ran sorta long for a commercial, y'know? It'd cost a lot to use the whole song."

Having spent a little time browsing videos in her spare time, Adagio smiled. "What about as one of those online ads you can skip five seconds in?"

He scratched his head. "Hey, yea! That's somethin' to look into. Don't know how much it'll help a local joint like this, but we'll get back to ya!"

She winked. "Thank you dairy much!" This won some giggles as she looked in the direction of Gouda Will, immediately getting swept up in a big, crushy bear-hug.

"That-a was out-a-standing work, Ahdaagio! You'a done the Eezy-Cheezy real proud!" She didn't need to see his face to know he had that little glint in his eye again. "And-a soon, even more peeple will be-a comin' in for some-a tasty cheeses!"

Truly, it was as if nothing got this man out of bed in the morning if not for the thought of people eating cheese. That, however, was not what she chose to ask about.

"...Mr. Will, what is your accent supposed to be?"

His answer was no less cheerful. "I have-a no idee-ya!"

The question was now whether or not he was just messing with her.
> Chapter 2: Going Places
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


%%%



Two months later...



%%%


"-open!"

On cue, Adagio cut the red ribbon with the oversized scissors, flashing the crowd a smile and a cute pose. Distantly, she worried that everyone was going to assume she must have used those massive shears when trimming her own hair instead of just to open new locations of the Eezy-Cheezy. How that had happened, she wasn't sure. 

It had all gone kind of fast, but she knew it had something to do with that song-commercial being caught on a local (and famous) web personality's channel while commenting on the latest episode of some cartoon or video game or something, the video-maker dancing along to the tune, gifs being made, the song exploding across forums and video sites over the course of about a day, and a massive influx of patrons at the Eezy Cheezy in the following weeks.

She was sure many of those new customers recognized her, but there were only two, maybe three stray comments regarding her actions at the Battle. At least, that was all she heard, business having been very busy and more than a little frantic at times, but at least Gouda Will was able to hire more workers. Strangely, Aria and Sonata declined to join her at the Eezy-Cheezy while there were still openings, having claimed they were looking into jobs elsewhere. Adagio hadn't had time to really investigate between her usual job as a waitress and the added (if not unpleasant) workload of performing the song (dubbed 'Cheezy-Love') twice a week, posing for photos with kids (and teenagers... and a few adults... and one elderly couple), and even signing autographs! 

It amazed her just how much people had grown to like her Poofy act, but she had to admit it was a fun part to play. Always peppy, smiling, bright-eyed and optimistic as she winked and made cutesy gestures at people for no reason, wishing them well whether her nearly endless, cheesy chatter actually convinced them to buy more food or not, merrily bouncing around the restaurant from order to order, barely time for a thought in her head beyond smiling and selling people cheesy food. Maybe this was why Sonata seemed so cheerful all the time.

With all the eyes on her lately, she wasn't even embarrassed about the outfit anymore! 

...Well, maybe just a little, but she was getting used to it. The closest thing she actually got to the scorn she'd anticipated was a couple of disapproving looks from the Rainbooms when she snubbed their table in favor of letting one of the new-hires take their order. They only dropped in once in the last few months, but damned if she was going to let them dent her good mood for so much as an instant. 

Speaking of good moods, once Gouda Will had finished his little speech about hoping everyone in the central city area of Canterlot would enjoy their cheesy meals, it was time to sing again...


%%%


No matter how quietly she closed the door, Sonata always seemed to hear it.

"Welcome home, Cheese-head."

Adagio wasn't sure if the replacement of mocking cheer by bitter envy was an improvement as she walked to the living room. "Still no luck in getting your own voices back?"

"No," Aria growled through tightly-clenched teeth, refusing to look at her. 

They all knew that it wasn't for lack of trying, but no amount of screechy, ill-tuned effort won Aria or Sonata the angelic mastery of song that Adagio had regained. It wasn't as if she'd paraded it in front of them day after day (just the first two or three), even if she felt that they mostly deserved it after months of tormenting her, but perhaps the near-constant reminders on more than a few commercials and websites had the same effect. It probably didn't help that she did make liberal use of the words "Don't get so cheesed off, girls" for quite some time, but they absolutely deserved that one. 

"There are still openings at the new location," she said neutrally, "since those jobs you were looking into didn't work out." Even if they couldn't so much as name the business they'd supposedly applied at, Adagio did her best to say that last part without a note of accusation. Not that the response was any less vitriolic for it.

"Pfft, what, working in a fast food place? Dead-end minimum wage? No thanks, I'll hold onto my dignity. Have fun prancing around in that stupid outfit."

Though annoyed, Adagio did her best to keep a level tone. "It would be something until a better offer came along, if only so we'd have a little more money saved up."

"Maybe," Sonata chimed in, "but the work would still suck!"

"Perhaps, but even so, we don't have the luxury of-"

"Yea, yea, easy for you to say, Miss Happy Meals," Sonata's usual aptitude for nicknames did nothing to diminish the dismissiveness of the statement, "you at least get to have a little fun at work, but we'd still be stuck with the total suck-fest parts."

Right, nevermind the months of that I endured, you two should get everything right off the bat.

Saying that out loud, she knew, would only lead to another argument. She also knew that they didn't have the easiest time either while hopping from job to job over those many weeks, but even if each of them had picked up an... unflattering job or two in that time, at least they weren't mocked mercilessly for the duration. By those they were helping to keep housed and fed, at that.

Well, maybe if I gave them a little hint... "You could dance with me, you know. Even without your voices, I'm sure the three of us could-"

Aria scoffed. "Humiliate ourselves in the dumbest-looking get-ups we'd ever wear together? No thanks, that one's aaaall you. Congrats on looking like a doofus all over the internet, by the way."

And that was the last straw, Adagio stomping to her room without another word.

Maybe it wasn't fair that she wouldn't outright tell them how she got her own voice back even while knowing how much it would mean to them, to keep them locked out of what she felt when her magic returned (at a fraction of the gems' strength, as she learned when she could barely get a squirrel to eat out of her hand at the park, but still), but frankly? So was making her their punching bag while she alone consistently brought home income of any kind. 

So was acting like she was a terrible leader even when her plans (most of which she formed and adapted on the fly, mind) worked virtually without a hitch right up until being cheated at the last second.

So was the fact that her two losses consisted of her enemies either having unbelievably good luck (she had since heard about the involvement of Vinyl Scratch and her preposterous, shape-shifting car) or pulling a portal to another dimension out of nowhere.

So was said enemies being completely, collectively immune to her group's magic for no apparent reason in the first place. 

So was the way all of her victories, her every successful manipulation, every split-second analysis, and every stroke of brilliance, went utterly ignored, as though they'd never happened, where her shortcomings (whether they were actually her fault or not...) were brought up and rubbed in over and over again.

So was her being the only one who had to continue to degrade herself on a daily basis (granted, the job grew on her recently) so the three of them could get by.

As far as Adagio was concerned, those ingrates could keep waiting. 

























...She'd share what she knew and do her best to help them too at some point, of course, but after months of putting up with those two at their worst, letting them try to work it out for themselves didn't feel unfair to her. 


%%%



Another month later...



%%%


"You're sure I can't change your minds? There'd be-" Adagio flinched at the impact of a TV guide against the wall near her head, the magazine hitting the floor in such a way as to show an image of her own work looking back up at her.

"Just go already!"

Huffing at Aria's shouted command, Adagio turned and went out the door without another word. Not even about how she was kind of impressed that Aria had made that throw so well even while lying on the couch.

Seeing her walk down the driveway through the living room window, Sonata turned to Aria with a frown. "Should we really be staying here?" Aria's I-will-strangle-you-with-your-own-kidneys look made her re-word that thought. "I mean, yea, screw her for getting her voice back when we don't, but-"

"But nothing," growled Aria, wishing she had another TV guide to throw, "if that sellout wants to go parading across the country to open more of those cheese joints and make even more commercials, let her, we don't need her."

Raising a fist, Sonata made a confident face as she cried "Yea!"

They really didn't need her, they had each other! They kinda had each other and her too before, but whatever, now they had each other and all that money she left in the new hiding place. It was SUPER easy to spot, too, especially with that sticky note on it!




If you don't spend frivolously, this should last you two until I get back, but you should keep looking for work anyway. 

No gambling!!




Silly Adagio, leaving such an obvious marker for a hiding place. Even Sonata knew it was best to use something subtle to help her remember where her stashes of things were, like a candy wrapper sticking out, or something pointing to it from elsewhere in the room, or even just a quick swipe with an actual marker to make it look like it had been drawn there by total accident!

So, she and Aria would stay home while Adagio went on her surprisingly-successful-now-that-it-had-gotten-really-popular-cheese-biz trip, but... She frowned at Aria again.

"What are we gonna do now, though? Just live in her blocks-out-the-sun-with-all-that-hair shadow forever, or what?"

Still lying on the couch, Aria only responded with a devious, Adagio-worthy smirk.


%%%


Watching her luggage be loaded into the trailer... bus... thing... the big, fancy house-car she'd apparently be travelling in for the next few months, Adagio quietly marveled at the task she was given to aid in that process: Nothing at all.

It was such a little thing, having people that did things for her again, but it was a little thing she would appreciate for however long this Poofy gig lasted. 

Completely missing the point of such graces was Cheese Sandwich, who helped things along with this own hands. Shutting a freshly-packed storage compartment on the exterior of the vehicle, he smiled at Gouda Will, who stood next to Adagio as they waited. "Thanks for lettin' me onboard for the trip, Mr. Will!"

He smiled brightly. "No praaahb'lem, Cheese-a Sandwich," just as Adagio feared, he rested a hand on her shoulder. "It was-a her idee-ya to bring you along to-a help me see to it that-a the new chefs knew juuust-a what to do in-a the Eezy-Cheezy style!"

She smiled rigidly, hoping to cut him off before he could get the wrong idea. "I-" 

Cheese darted towards her in an instant, seizing and quickly bending her arm up and down in what she realized was a really, really enthusiastic hand-shake. "Thanks a million, 'Dagi-O," he said with his usual grin, "riding around on the Eezy-livin' party bus sounds like a riot! And not the kind with flipped cars and tear-gas!"

Not looking directly at him, Adagio invested the bare minimum amount of energy in the handshake that he would be able to feel her shaking back. "Don't mention it."

"Hahaha, Too late!" He laughed a little more before bouncing away and onto the vehicle they'd probably be spending a lot of time in over the next few months.

Internally, Adagio sighed. Seeing to it that he got to come along for the ride while she and Gouda Will toured the country was the nicest thing she could think to do for Cheese Sandwich (given the way he spoke when the subject came up), but he didn't need to know it was her idea. He was probably going to spend half the trip bugging her now, but at least when she got back, Aria and Sonata would be that much easier to deal with by comparis-

Wait, what did he say? 'Riot'? 

They had caused one of those once, just to see how much extra power they pulled in. The answer was "Not enough to risk our lives in that terrifying mess again by being close enough to feed on it," but did it mean he knew who/what she really was?

Of course he knows, who did you think you were fooling? He lives in Canterlot too, he must have heard something by now. 

Maybe she could just stay away from him. While they were in the trailer-bus-thing together. For months. Even the places they were due to visit would never see them that far apart.

Good thing he was invited along. Whose idea was that again? Ugh...

Glancing around, she noticed that she was standing outside the vehicle by herself, and hastily got on-board. Inside, she found it to be a surprisingly luxurious thing, with soft, felt carpets, big (for bus seats, at least), cushy chairs with cup-holders, and a little television screen within perfect viewing distance from where she sat.

She wondered if it was too soon to go sending pictures of this to Aria and Sonata so they could see what they were missing.

When the vehicle started moving, Cheese looked to Gouda, both seated nearby.

"So how's that toy-per-kids'-meal thing comin' along?"

Gouda smiled. "Merchan-dice-ing is-a goin' forward fine, Cheese-a Sandwich, and-a most of the Eezy-Cheezy line isn't-a even out yet!" He shot Adagio a particularly proud look. "The Poofy dolls are-a preet-ty high demand already with-a the girls."

She smiled too, trying not to let the idea of her tiny, somewhat distorted likeness being sold en masse go straight to her head.


%%%


Meanwhile, at Canterlot High...

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy!

Eezy, Cheezy, Eezy-Eezy-Cheezy!

Sitting at the lunch table, the Rainbooms looked down at the phone in the center of the table as Adagio's music video ended. The human Twilight Sparkle, now over her hang-ups about Midnight Sparkle since their adventure at Camp Everfree, scratched her head. "So, that's one of the sirens? The girls that threw the school into chaos with singing?"

"That's them," Applejack confirmed while adjusting her hat, "we gonna do anything 'bout this, Sunset?"

Sunset had barely opened her mouth when Rainbow answered. "We kick her ass, duh! The other two have gotta be backing her up offscreen or something, maybe they've got a-" 

"It doesn't matter," interrupted Sunset, "whatever they're doing has nothing to do with us." She shrugged. "As evil and exploitative as advertising can be, she isn't up to anything illegal as far as I can tell and Aria and Sonata haven't even been seen doing anything suspicious. That was why we stopped by the Eezy-Cheezy, remember? Nobody there acted remotely like they were bewitched and there was no sign of anything we'd be justified in interfering with. I might not like the sirens, and it is weird that she apparently has her voice back, but until we can prove that she's actually using some sort of magic, we have no reason to go after them."

"Uh, we're super heroes?" Rainbow gestured to her amulet in lieu of the unseen the powers it bestowed. "Power and responsibility and all that jazz, right?"

Rarity rolled her eyes. "Fond though I am of the included wardrobe, we're not responsible if no one is at risk. Well, at risk of anything worse than serious weight-gain from too many cheeseburgers."

Rainbow pouted. "...But, if they do get up to something, we can swoop in and save the day?"

"Yes, Rainbow," Sunset said with an amused grin, "if they do something that clearly crosses a line, then we can do something about it, but until then? Life as usual."

Looking at Fluttershy, Rainbow's eyes narrowed. "I'm pretty sure a line's been crossed already..."

The rest of the table shared uncomfortable expressions as they again took in the sight of their mousiest friend; wearing an Eezy-Cheezy t-shirt and sky-blue sailor cap with a trailing, red ribbon much like the one on Adagio's mascot suit, grinning and bobbing along to the tune of the music video she must have seen a hundred times by now. Sensing that she was being stared at, she looked up. "...What?"

Pinkie sneezed confetti.


%%%


Alone in a dimly-lit room, a man in a security uniform eyed the monitors in front of him. All was clear, but he barely allowed himself to blink, his jaw clenched and one hand hovering over the buttons to the security doors. 

It was quiet.

His eyes flicked from one screen to the next, finding each to be blank.

Listening carefully, he checked the halls immediately adjacent to his tiny room, sharply inhaled when he looked back at the screens, then slammed the doors shut. 

After a long moment of silence, he checked the screens again to find all areas, at least those remotely near him, vacant.

He opened the doors again.

He listened. 

He waited. 

He checked the monitors.

He checked the hal-

"Hiya!"

He shrieked, falling out of his chair as Poofy smiled and held up a freshly-baked, still-steaming cheese pizza.

"Working late? The Extra-Eezy-Cheezy Deep-Dish Pizza might be just what you need, good for long nights on the job, parties," she lifted a slice just enough to show off the strands of melted cheese glistening in the light, "or just any old time you want some of the tastiest pizza you'll ever have with friends!" She let out a girlish giggle, winking at the camera. "Or by yourself, we won't tell anyone."




Eezy-
Cheezy!




Her sales pitch delivered, Poofy leaned over to look at the fallen security guard. "...You okay?"


%%%


"Why are we dressed like this again? I feel like I'm gonna catch librarianism or something!"

Walking towards the local studio, the one at which most of Adagio's early ad work had been done, Aria shook her head. She knew that Sonata was stupid, but she had no words for her thinking that wearing mature, professional clothing, such as the suits they were wearing now (a combination of blazers, blouses, pantyhose, black heels, and knee-length skirts), was a symptom of some kind of intellectual disease. Or something like that. Best not to think about Sonata logic.

"I told you, we're going to go in there and pose as Adagio's parents, which they'll buy because nobody asks questions when they're given a sob story about how the two-mommies stigma made life hard for Adagio growing up and we're just so proud of her for making it this far. Then, we'll talk to the big-wigs, with everyone thinking that, since we're her legal guardians, we own her, we take over everything she does; we get all the money she makes, and maybe stick her in something even more embarrassing while we're at it."

Silence. She had to stop and turn around to see Sonata standing there with a vacant, wide-eyed look on her face, but Sonata jumped back into awareness with a big smile as the whole plan finished processing in her head. "Sounds great!"

Aria actually smiled, and not just because she didn't have to explain her explanation again. When they reached the lobby, a tall, thin man with a long, pointy nose sat behind a desk, narrowed eyes peering out of his gaunt face to stare at the two visitors as though they were kids playing on his yard.

"Can I help you ladies?"

Eesh, thought Aria, creepy accent. He sounds like one of the officers on the bad guys' side from those World War 2 movies.

Anyway, she cleared her throat. "Good evening," she said in a soft, sweet voice, "we are Adagio's mothers, and we'd like to speak to those in charge about her career prospects. Might you know where we could find her agent?"

His small, beady eyes somehow narrowed just a little further. "You have identification?"

"Haha, of course, I-" Reaching through her purse to find nothing reminded her that Sonata must have brought them. "...Oh, dear me, I must have... Sonata, dear, the IDs, please?" 

And then Sonata gave her that look. That stupid, stupid, I-messed-up-but-I'm-hoping-it'll-go-away-if-I-stare-at-you-Deer-In-Headlights-style look. 

"You brought them... right?"

"I thought you did!"

"I didn't because you were suppo-"

They stopped when they heard the skinny guy stand up, towering over them at his full height. He reached out to press a button on an intercom-looking thing.

"Release ze hounds."


%%%


Many miles away, Adagio leaned back into the cozy chair of a fancier hotel room than any she'd been in since before the gems were destroyed, letting out a contented sigh as she finished her dinner. She wasn't sure that Gouda Will would have reacted badly had he known she chose to eat an ordinary, cheese-free meal, but this room was private, it had been too long since her last juicy steak, the evidence was neatly disposed of, and what he didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

It wasn't even paid room service, either! She hadn't really thought the hotel staff would give her a meal of her choosing if she asked, but apparently 'Poofy' batting her eyes and making a cute smile had roughly the same effect as her old spells did. Well, that, and throwing 'Cheezy-Pleezy?' on the end of it, for which she was still cringing at herself hours later.

Ugh... 'Cheezy-Pleezy'? What is wrong with me?! I don't know what's worse; that I said that out loud in front of several witnesses, or that it came so naturally!

In hindsight, following it up with 'thank you dairy much' when she got her wish wasn't much better. She sighed.

At least it means I have a good handle on the character now, right? If nothing else, maybe it'll make for a funny story when I get home. It should be safe, they won't have much to mock me for when I come back successful, famous, and richer than we've ever been, and giving them a freebie like that should ease things a little if they're bitter about their own stupid, stubborn choice of staying home. Aria will probably cringe too, but Sonata might tease me anyway.

Cheezy-teas-

Bringing both hands to her head, she lightly pulled at her own hair. "Ugh, stop!!"

Anyway, she had this little space; a room with a desk and mirror surrounded by lights, a cabinet for the clothes she'd be wearing on-stage and off, her own bathroom with a spacious tub, an especially soft bed, and the promise of a similar arrangement at future stops. Not that the trailer-bus-thing was unpleasant, really, but she had no complaints about not outright living in it until they'd dropped by all the Eezy-Cheezy locations.

Hm. If I were to find a boy-toy, could I bring him back here to-

Startled by her phone ringing, she snatched it up in an instant to find that it wasn't Mr. Will calling at exactly that moment to scold her, either for not eating cheese or for her last thought, but it was just the studio back in Canterlot. Feeling a little silly for worrying, Adagio didn't let her blush creep into her voice. 

"Hello? I- what? No, I don't have two mothers, why would- What did Herman say? I don't know anyone like- The hounds? Hm. And, you said they looked young? Y-what? Um... Thank you for sharing, that's, very interesting, but, no, they weren't my parents. Okay, thank you, goodbye."

She set the phone down, baffled.

What kind of...? Who would even...? I, suppose Aria and Sonata are the only two I know that might-... but, no, it couldn't be them. Impossible. Why would they pretend to be my non-existent, lesbian parents when they could just introduce themselves as my friends? Not even they would do something so stupid. 

And then she needed to think about something else, especially something not related to the time in which Aria was in command. Or when Sonata went out gambling. Or that time they went to the circus and-

Oh, look at that, they have little stars stuck to the ceiling in this room! How nice.

She looked around. 

One, two, three, four. Four lightbulbs wired to this vanity. Illumination from every angle.

Adagio never did find out what happened during Aria's solo mall trip. Maybe it wasn't even her fault? Maybe a Rainboom or six showed up, heckled her, and Aria alone took the blame for what followed on account of not being a local hero, incapable of doing wrong as far as that entire town was concerned? It almost felt feasible, until Adagio tried to picture Aria passing up a chance to complain about her primary hate figures again.

Rrgh. Need to distract myself, but without them around, I have no one to talk to. Ooh, wait!

A faint blush warmed her cheeks as her lips curved into a smirk.

What about that idea from before? Bringing a boy back here?

The smirk vanished as the door flung open. "Hey, 'Dagi-O!"

Not that one!!

She turned to look at him with as straight a smile as she could manage. "Hello, Mr. Sandwich." Lacking a way to say 'I could have been dressing, you know' without risk of it sounding flirtatious, she stuck with the simple greeting.

"Gouda Will told me to tell you that Cuttin' Dry told him that the editing guys told him that they got the newest commercial put together and it's lookin' great! We're done for today, but we'll be headin' out tomorrow to open the new Eezy-Cheezy a few towns over!"

"I, see. Thank you."

"Also," he produced a little bag from behind his back, "these came in for you, a fan that said he heard you'd be in town swung by the studio and dropped it off!"

"Huh? I-" Perplexed, she took the bag as it was handed to her. It was full of small, powdered donuts. "...That's, nice. How does anyone know where we are?"

"Our schedule's on the website!"

"Ah."

They looked at one another in silence for a moment, Adagio not confident that thanking him for what someone else wanted to give her would make much sense. Or make the feeling in the air any time he was around any less uncomfortable.

Should I just ask if he knows? I mean, he probably does, but he doesn't  act like he does. Even when I started this job, he never gave me any of those looks like nearly everyone else has, but it could just be a very firm poker face.

It was as she tried to think of a subtle way to test him that he gave her a crisp salute, give or take the unchanged grin on his face.

"Welp, seeya tomorrow, 'Dagi-O!"

And away he went, presumably to put together a new (and hopefully less irritating) song to sing on and off during tomorrow's tour-bus ride. Adagio was alone again, but determined that it was probably best that way; she didn't want to picture the scene if Cheese came by while she was entertaining a guest. Or the guest entertaining her. Even with the door locked, knowing that he, and perhaps others, had listened in would make the rest of this trip unbearably awkward.

Hm... Could I, maybe, borrow a recording room some time? Pretty sure those are sound-proofed, so if I just blocked up the window and-

No, no, she thought as she reached into the baggie Cheese had dropped off, I'd definitely get fired for that, and I'm not ready to drop this job just yet.

There was no cheese in the donuts either, but she wasn't sure if that was what made them extra sweet.
> Chapter 3: Back and Forth
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Poofy stood alone in the center of a tall, dimly-lit, cylindrical room, spots of glittering, golden light showing in a ring along the top edges of the walls all around her. Slowly, those lights began to extend towards the ground in the form of thick, glowing, yellowish sludge. Poofy stood silently, a passive look on her face as the substance flowed down the walls and onto the floor, soon flooding the room. 

When the glowing ooze had reached her ankles, Poofy smiled, watching as a long, slender, feminine arm emerged from the mass of melted cheese. It was the same color as the fluid from which it came, with holes all through the arm in a manner resembling Swiss cheese as it continued to rise, a slim woman with similar holes throughout her arms and legs coming to a stop with her feet still submerged. She was naked, but nothing was showing that wouldn't be aired on network TV.

Her piercing, orange eyes opened, looking at Poofy through golden strands of long, messy, cheesy hair as she sensually paced closer. Poofy responded in kind, stepping forward to greet her by gently seizing her hand and pulling it closer to raise the cheese-woman's arm to her mouth. The camera focused on the cheese-woman's simultaneously pained and blissful face as Poofy took a bite, then closed in on Poofy's cheese-smeared lips.

"Chīzu ga daisuki."

The scene faded out with an above shot of the two holding one another, surrounded by copies of the cheese-woman standing in a circle and slowly waving their arms in seemingly random directions.




Eezy-
Cheezy!





%%%


Staring at the screen with a completely blank expression, Adagio didn't even turn to look at Cuttin' Dry. "Why did you make me do that?

"I don't really get it either, Poofy, but they told me this'll help sell the brand ovahseas."

"...Alright, then."

It was as she was heading back to her dressing room that she happened across the actress that had helped with that commercial; a woman with black, smooth, somewhat shiny skin and long, dark blue, slightly messy hair, one long strand perpetually hanging in front of her face. Easily as tall as Principal Celestia, she was clad only in a towel, another of which she was using to actively dry her hair with both hands as she walked. Noticing Adagio, she offered a sultry smile. "You were great in there, 'Poofy.' Ever think about going pro?"

Knowing that this woman was an actress that had taken tons and tons of roles over the years (apparently with a talent for changing her look) and could make for a very valuable contact if she wanted to play at actual stardom, Adagio replied with a polite grin. "Thanks, but I'm just seeing where this takes me for now." 

Black hands gently cupped her face as Chrysalis let the towel she'd been holding rest over her head like a hood. "Mm, really?" Adagio immediately recognized the tinge of lust in her deep, green eyes, every bit as striking even without the contacts she'd worn on the set, as her smile grew sharkish. "Well, if you get your fill of cheese, maybe we can find something else that sates your appetite. I'd love to work with you again." She grinned wider as Adagio blinked twice, but she was the one surprised when Adagio gently seized her wrists to free herself, taking a step back.

"Sorry if this is at all presumptuous, but I'm afraid I don't swing that way."

Chrysalis's eyes widened. "...Really?"

"Really."

Holding her with a concentrated stare, Chrysalis slowly raised an eyebrow, her question coming in a low, sultry purr. "You're sure?"

"Very."

"Oh." Her seductive routine fading in an instant, the older actress offered an apologetic smile. "Well, I guess this is awkward, then. I really had you pegged as-"

"I'm not."

"But it's like you give off an aura that just says-"

"Yes, I know," Adagio interrupted with a mild blush, "I get that sometimes, but I'm not into women. Incidentally," she said with a slight crook to her smile, "you might like a friend of mine. Purple girl, about my age, cute face when she's not scowling," her eyes flickered downward, "and not shy about her fondness for legs."

Doing a little inspecting herself, Chrysalis smirked. "Does she have hips like yours?"

Her cheeks coloring further, Adagio kept her smile. "No, but, she may join me in this business some day and if I get a chance, I'd be happy to introduce the two of you." She was startled by the speed with which her hand was seized and shaken.

"I think we're going to be good friends, you and I..."

Externally, Adagio smiled, but in the back of her mind, a quiet dread arose.

What did I just agree to...?


%%%


"So, do we look better or worse now?"

"Shut up, Sonata."

The two trudged into their home in two of the tackiest, most brightly-colored outfits they'd ever worn (which, with Adagio in charge of their group's general aesthetic, was saying something! Seriously, would it kill her to throw a little black in somewhere?), every detail of the erratic skirts, uncomfortable shoes, crazy socks, and irrational flaps of geometry all coming together to form something that wasn't necessarily flattering, but showed skin in the right areas to draw attention without offending pearl-clutching grannies, made it hard to look away from them as soon as they were noticed.

And that was before they were pelted with rotting fruit.

Gonna get my own wandering fruit stand some day, bring it with me, find someone in this town doing a lousy job at something, and see how they like it.

Aria casually scraped some rancid, congealing tomato off her shoulder and flung it at Sonata.

"Egh! Hey!! What was that for?!"

"I told you your plan was stupid!" She scowled a little harder when Sonata huffed, somehow having the pride to cross her arms and raise her chin in this situation.

"Was not! Putting on something eye-catching and singing and dancing on a table worked great when Adagio did it! I mean, yea, she did the singy part a lot better, but our dancing was totally perfect, so we should have at least got partial credit!" 

"Just copying Adagio isn't gonna get us anywhere!" Scraping something green and mushy off her chest, she wrinkled her nose at the scent of it. "We've gotta come up with something on our own."

"Oh, like your lesbian mommy plan was any better? I've still got bite-marks on my butt from when we tried again last week!"

"Tch," Aria grumbled, gritting her teeth as she brushed her own hindquarters in painful recollection. They managed to sneak past the creepy dude in the front of the building, but the dogs were there waiting for them when they got to the producer guy's office. "How was I supposed to know those were just his pets? Let alone that they'd recognize us. Stupid dogs and their dog magic."

Sonata glared. "And what was with tripping me?! I thought we were on the same side!!"

Rolling her eyes, Aria looked away. "I didn't trip you," with the first kick, anyway, "you fell over your own stupid feet. By the way? Grabbing my ankle just helped the mutts catch both of us!"

"You were supposed to help me up!" Or at least get bitten too, bitch!

"Pfft, whatever. By the way? Next time we're walking, because paying the bus fare there and back isn't helping work off your fat ass."

"Hmph," Sonata scoffed, even if sitting around the house and eating snacks all day had made her just a little heavier. "First, we wouldn't have been able to walk that far anyway, so spending a few bucks to get there is just the smart way to do it! Second, I didn't get fat, I got a lil' love-cushioning!"

"...What."

"Check it out," she said while turning around and sticking her rear out, "now I can tw-ERK!!"

Sonata made an inelegant noise as the new boot-mark on her backside sent her face-first to the floor.

Aria set off for the shower, brainstorming how they'd get their own fame and fortune now. This was made more difficult by having to practically wrestle Sonata for the right to use it before the hot water ran out, but their struggle lasted long enough to make it a moot point. When toweling off, Aria was a little surprised that they didn't slip, fall, and bust their heads open while standing in the wet bathtub like that, but they'd taken falls before and she was sure they'd have been fine anyway.

Stupid Adagio and her safety warnings. 

Hell, she'd barely even felt any discomfort when the water started getting cold!

And that, as her muscles continued to lightly ache with exertion, gave her an idea...


%%%


"Hey, you!"

A large, muscular, blue man with a darker-blue crew-cut seized the camera in both hands, peering into it as though shaking it down.

"You scared?! Scared of being a fat, wimpy loser?! WELL, DON'T BE!!"

The screen was filled with an explosion, which cut to the speaker having lost his shirt while lifting a bench over his head.

"Because with my help, you can eat whatever you want, any time you want, and still be-" he tossed the bench upwards to make a pose that better emphasized his bulging upper-body muscles before catching it again. "-RIPPED!!"

The camera panned up to show Poofy sitting on the bench, her legs dangling over the side. Smiling for the camera, she winked. "Satisfaction guaranteed!"

Another explosion. The muscular man was now doing effortless push-ups without breaking eye-contact with the camera. "I'm Iron Will, author of Extra-Large and In Charge, and my book can teach you everything you need to know to be a huge, powerful, machine no matter what you stuff your face with!"

Dressed in a tank-top, yoga pants, tennis shoes, and a sweatband color-coordinated to look as much like her usual outfit as possible, Poofy cartwheeled over and hopped onto Will's back, not slowing his push-ups in the slightest as she stood between his shoulder blades and the Eezy-Cheezy logo hovered in the corner of the screen.

"But for those of you who like life a little easier, Eezy-Cheezy does have healthy alternatives and a well-stocked salad bar. A balanced diet is important, so please consider your health if you decide to stop by."

Her eyes widened with surprise as she was launched into the air by Will shooting himself up from the ground, quickly catching her in a princess-carry fashion, and looking straight at the camera as he held her against his hairy chest. "ORDER NOW!!"

This part not having been in the script, Adagio offered the camera a shaky smile as she raised one hand to make a peace sign, praying her fierce blush wasn't visible under the studio-applied make-up.




Eezy-
Cheezy!





%%%


A short scene was included of Poofy struggling and straining as she slowly lifted an unseen object, looking very proud of herself when she succeeded. The camera panned out, revealing the object to be a small stack of Iron Will's books, Will himself standing by with an unamused stare on his face. She smiled up at him as if to say 'How was that?', earning her a head-pat.


%%%


"Thanks'a so much for helpin' us out, Cousin Will!"

Arms crossed, Iron Will deftly nodded. "No problem. I've always liked the old family cooking, and hearing people whispering like scared little man-babies about how I'd 'gone soft' for eating a cheesecake or two was all I needed to get up and prove 'em all wrong." He flexed what Adagio guessed to be about 90% of the muscles in his upper body at once. "And boy, did I!!"

Rarely did Adagio find herself on the receiving end of tantalizing displays, but even if he wasn't addressing her, she quietly appreciated that the bulging wall of man-muscle still hadn't put his shirt back on. She didn't even hear what Gouda said before she noticed both of them looking at her.

"Um..." Poofy quickly raised one arm in a salute, stood on her opposite leg to strike a cutesy pose, said "Cheezy ciao!" without thinking, and ran off.

This body will get bigger soon, right? Not confident about my chances until then.

Watching the pillow on legs flee, Iron Will shrugged. Muscles like his intimidated people, it was just a fact of life. He turned to Gouda. "So, we still on for that game show in a couple months?"

Gouda smiled. "I'll-a be sending lil' Poofy to rep-a-resent us at-a Eezy-Cheezy, for sure!"

Iron flexed again. "Good talk!"

When Gouda left, Iron marched over to the table with the copies of his books, noting that while one was missing, there was a small stack of bills and a donut in its place. He grinned and made a thumbs-up signal in no particular direction. "Hah, they're selling already!"


%%%


Standing next to Sonata and looking over their competition, Aria snickered. They had come to a big swimming pool halfway across the city for a contest, and while the prize money wouldn't exactly have them set for life, it'd be a score to keep them going for weeks and probably open the door for them to the swimming big leagues. Better still, the other competitors were just normal humans going up against her and Sonata, who had spent most of their early lives in the water, but half of them were scrawny little wimps that probably wouldn't even make it all the way across the pool in the racing segment.

"This is it," Sonata giggled to herself as she giddily bobbed in place, "we can do this, we were born to do this! It's like, hippocampuses are good at two things; singing and swimming, and this is one of those!"

"Hippocampi," Aria corrected, unable to stop grinning at Sonata's contagious excitement, "but yea. Losing the gems may have cost us our singing abilities somehow, but we had years of practice in the water, too."

They'd even tested this one; hopped a few fences in the richest neighborhood they could find, snuck into someone's backyard pool, timed each other going from one side to the other, and found that they were both pretty damn quick. They'd have helped themselves to anything they could swipe from the house itself, but the risks of slipping and hurting themselves with wet feet on polished floors or getting caught and possibly arrested before their debut into the world of pro swimming (not that Sonata's idea of calling themselves The Backyard Bikini Bandits didn't strike a chord with Aria) had them agree on playing it safe this time.

This was going to be cake!


%%%


"...So-"

"Shut up."

"But-"

"Shut up."

"We-"

"Shut up!"

"Itwasn'tyourfault!"

"Shut-..." Aria turned to look at Sonata as though her head were on backwards. "Huh?"

Still dripping with pool water and failure, the two walked in tandem towards the locker rooms, Sonata nodding affirmatively. "It's not your fault we didn't win. We were good and all, and I totally thought we had a shot too, but those girls must'a been practicing for this since like, before the contest was even a thing."

Aria scowled a little. She should have known the one wearing goggles before she'd even gotten changed would be the sporty type, but she had no idea how good humans could be at swimming. While she and Sonata were naturals and beat a few of the other competitors, they just didn't measure up to the practiced professionals and/or freakishly good amateurs, not even having placed for any kind of prize by the end of the competition.

Maybe they could train a little themselves, but catching up to the winners could take months, and even with all the money Adagio left them, they didn't have that long. Not if they didn't want to let her come back to find that she was still their only source of income.

Rather than riling herself up by picturing the smug, told-you-so faces Adagio might make, she looked at Sonata with the most earnest, non-scowly face she could manage. "You... didn't do anything stupid today." She found herself smiling a little at Sonata's wide-eyed 'for realzies?' face. "Yes. Really."

Sonata beamed with pride! 

...Then she smiled sheepishly. "I was gonna pee in the pool when we lost, but I already went before we got started."

Jaw clenched, Aria's eyes narrowed. "Don't. Ruin. The moment."
> Chapter 4: Lucrative Trolling
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Standing alone on the balcony of an icy, crystalline palace as the sun rose, a pale, fair-haired figure looked over the snowy mountain range below. The wind howled as flurries of fresh powder were kicked across the landscape in billowing clouds, but the observer couldn't have cared less. 

"The cold never bothered me anyway," she muttered.

"Yea, me either." 

Crunching sounds were heard as the startled, lawyer-friendly version of a well-known fictional character whipped her head to the side, finding Poofy with a little box of nachos in melted cheese. 

"Because these Eezy-Cheezy nachos are just the right temperature to keep warm without burning my tongue!" 

Said tongue glided out to snatch another nacho as Poofy held the box close, chewing for a few seconds before holding it out where the snow queen expy could reach. 

"Want one?"




Eezy-
Cheezy!





%%%


Poofy sat in a soft, plush chair by the desk of the talk show's host as the commercial ended, speaking the moment the cameras were back on her. "The tongue thing wasn't in the script, but I wanted to demonstrate what I was advertising." She winked at the camera, making a quick thumbs-up signal to go with her cute smile. "And to get another taste of the Eezy-Cheezy menu!"

The host, one Prince Blueblood, was a white-skinned, blonde-haired man in a white tuxedo and blue bowtie, with the kind of chiseled face Adagio wouldn't have been surprised to see in shampoo commercials. 

Maybe that was how he got this job...

When the chuckles from the audience abated, Blueblood smiled. "I suppose that's an effective, if unhygienic manner to prove one's product."

While she didn't miss the slightly condescending tone of the sentiment, she pretended to. "In hindsight, yea, but I couldn't really use a knife and fork; did you see her castle? All the eating utensils were made of ice! They'd have melted the second they touched the hot, melted cheese! Have you ever had soggy nachos?"

"Can't say that I have."

"And you won't, as long as you're getting them fresh from the nearest Eezy-Cheezy!"

There was more laughter from the audience and what may have been a sincere smile from the host. "Well, I'll have to take your word on that."

As he turned to address the audience and do the standard thing of briefly advertising his guest, Adagio kept her smile up too. He wasn't really happy to have her here, she knew that even without having heard him talking to his staff about not wanting to promote 'common carnival faire' on his show shortly before they got started, but this was show business. This was show business, which meant they went for the highest ratings they could net with a smile. She could certainly sympathize with his dismissal of what she was selling, not having been crazy about anything on the Eezy-Cheezy menu when she got the job, but at least a few items had grown on her. 

She could see in Blueblood's eyes that this wasn't the first time he'd have preferred different company. He had probably been at this game for at least a few years now, if not since childhood, and though their time together was limited, she didn't get the impression that he was happy with this life.

Well, the difference between him and her was that soon enough, she'd have her two oldest companions along for the ride again, whereas he would probably spend his stardom days alone. Really, it almost sounded sad when she thought of it like that, but who was to say she'd still be at this five or ten years from now?


%%%


Lying on her bed later that evening, she stared up at the blank ceiling. While not sure how she'd be making her living in a few years, she was sure this Poofy thing wasn't going to last forever, and had already secured emergency funds (using a chunk of what they were paying her now) in private accounts and moderate investments for when tragedy struck again. Maybe she could find something in this line of work, because it certainly wasn't difficult most of the time, just... a little empty, perhaps? 

Granted, having to do twelve takes for that Japanese commercial because the director thought things weren't 'surreal enough' was tiring, but I got through it fine. Could I get a job as one of the suits that organize these things? The ones who decide where the money goes? That's essentially Gouda's job now, and I think I understood what the papers I saw him going through are about...

If the Eezy-Cheezy line lasted as a business and people took the girl who played Poofy seriously enough to let her handle the finances, maybe she could secure enough money to last the three of them for life? She was sure she couldn't keep parading about in her cute little outfit forever, because going by the fan art depictions she'd seen of Poofy online, her costume on a fully adult body would probably be more effective in selling something other than cheesy food.

Of course, perhaps the most important thing was that eventually, the Rainbooms would come in, stomp all over everything she had going for her, and leave with nothing but praise and gift baskets for 'saving the day' again. 

Maybe it wouldn't go down exactly like that, but knowing the absurd means by which they'd made their comeback and arguably more absurd means by which, she learned, they had gained super powers at some summer camp not too long ago (she felt like she should thank Pinkie Pie for posting so many details to her social media of choice), she wasn't exactly feeling optimistic about her capacity to live a comfortable life while they still hated her. Which, going by their track record, would last until she went groveling for their forgiveness, most likely giving up everything she had now for good measure. 

Could they tolerate her being successful without their forgiveness and platitudes? With her being wealthy and famous when they weren't? 

Perhaps. 

Should she assume they would? 

Absolutely not. 

She knew very well by now the tendency people had to look at anyone doing better than them in any way and think "Not if I have anything to say about it!" It was half the drive she played on to bring about the Battle of the Bands. Even if she thought the Rainbooms wouldn't attack her for the sake of their pride alone, they were still enemies, and just as Adagio remained cautious of them coming after her on a whim, it would be foolish of them to completely dismiss her as a threat.

Well, I mean, I might have money, but it's not like I have tons of power and influence now or anything. Even if it were only over fast food and possibly the entertainment industry, what am I going to do? Send late-night comedians to heckle them when they're busy? Have bad sandwiches delivered to their houses? 

Her worries hinged on them ever coming at all, however, or going after Aria and Sonata because those two were still within reach. There was no magical menace, no fiendish plot, nothing the Rainbooms could justify attacking them for short of sheer suspicion (the sort that had her going down this paranoid line of thought at all...), and any attempt to 'stop them,' stop her, would, in theory, just end with the Rainbooms' collective arrest. Aria and Sonata had the sense to call the police if they felt threatened, right? 

The Eezy-Cheezy tour group had its own security team, of course, but it was nothing that would stand up to super powers, she was sure. It was hard to imagine the Rainbooms really forcing their way in without an adequately heroic excuse, but there was the chance their group could try something subtle if they decided to come after her, something with plausible deniability if they could slip past security. In fact, they were just as liable to try that anyway.

Actually... what if they thought they did have a 'heroic' reason? Or just didn't care?

Adagio felt herself smirk.

If they came to cause trouble, just kicked down the door and attacked me without a valid reason, much less a legal one, they'd be completely in the wrong, wouldn't they? At least as far as the law was concerned, and I doubt they can match our lawyers. 

She could set a trap; lure them in, get them arrested, and never need to spend another night worrying about whether or not they'd harass her, Aria, or Sonata from then on. Perhaps the best part was that it would all depend on them, because even if they didn't take the bait, it would show her that they weren't driven entirely by their egos after all, meaning they didn't care that much about her doing well and she didn't need to worry about them anyway!

The method she had in mind was kind of stupid and petty, but so was the Rainbooms dropping in to make fun of her for a solid hour at work. The only question now was whether or not Cuttin' Dry and the marketing department would go along with her ideas. 


%%%


Quietly looking over the tables of people happily eating cheesy meals just outside the most recently opened location, Poofy sighed contentedly. Then she heard a voice.

"Hi, every-body!" In skipped a yellow young woman with big, black boots, a pigskin-leather jacket over a simple skirt and shirt, and an utterly absurd wig consisting of synthetic bacon strips, making her look like the Medusa of myth, but with bacon instead of snakes. "Who's hungry?!"

The people at the tables exchanged looks, a small boy raising an eyebrow. "We're already eating."

"Great! You know what they say; there's always room for bacon!"

The boy looked at her dubiously. "Does anyone say tha-"

"Bon appetite!" She reached into her own meaty hair to pull out a bundle of greasy bacon strips, throwing it over the nearest table like confetti, to the bafflement and mild disgust of the patrons. "No need to thank me, just-" In the effort to barrage other tables with bacon, she tripped over her own big, silly boots, flying headlong into a wide-eyed Poofy as they collided in a billowing dust cloud. 

When the smoke cleared, Bacon Head was lying partially inside Poofy's fluffy hair as she sprawled out on top of her, visibly dazed. "Haha, my bad."

Making an exaggerated, deliberately adorable pout for the camera, Poofy looked around, spotted something offscreen, and smiled. "Cheezy-cheer up, look!" Reaching out to take the plate from an unseen hand, she held a sandwich in the little field she'd been told the camera would be zooming in. "New on the breakfast menu; Eezy-Cheezy's own bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich, available at an Eezy-Cheezy near you!"




Eezy-
Cheezy!





%%%


The next shot depicted Bacon Head still lying on Poofy as the sun was going down, the latter turning her head to give the former a slightly worried look as the camera slowly zoomed out. "Can I get up now, or...?"

Bacon Head looked genuinely distraught. "But what if they want bacon and cheese after breakfast?!"

Poofy sighed.


%%%


With the end of the video being played on a phone at a table in Sugarcube Corner, a few of the Rainbooms snickered, Sunset grumpily crossing her arms. "Was that supposed to be me?"

"What," giggled Pinkie, "a biker-looking girl that slams into people when she's trying to help? Nah, definitely not you at all."

Scowling through a fierce blush, Sunset replied through gritted teeth. "I said I was sorry."

"She's gonna be sorry," growled Rainbow, "when that bitch gets back to Canterlot, I'm gonna-"

Twilight tilted her head. "I hate to interrupt, but 'Slams into people'? I haven't seen Sunset do that."

"It was before we met you," Rarity said as she reigned in her giggles, "something Adagio apparently remembers." She turned to Sunset. "I wouldn't be too hung up on that if I were you, Darling, at least that part is true. If anything, I would be offended by the implication that you have messy, greasy hair." 

Her eyes briefly widening, Sunset idly ran a hand through her hair. "Thanks Rarity, totally needed to be self-conscious about that."

"It doesn't feel greasy," remarked Fluttershy as she brushed her fingers over a loose strand.

"Or smell bacon-y," Pinkie added with a grin, "which is good, or you might get chased by wolves!"

"Uh... yea," Sunset said with a little smile, "I guess so. Thanks."

"Any time!"

"Guys," Rainbow asked somewhat incredulously while bringing up another video, "are you forgetting something? The reason everyone's making fun of us now?"

"I haven't sat in front of a telly long enough to glean a clue," remarked Rarity, "but I have been wondering why I keep hearing cracks about 'sugar patrol' amid what feel like laughs at my expense."

"Well, feast your eyes," Rainbow muttered sourly as she set the phone where everyone could see, taking solace in the fact that Adagio wouldn't see any ad revenue from a video uploaded to a random Joe's channel.


%%%


It was another scene set outside an Eezy-Cheezy establishment, though this time with no one around during the long, panning shot of the area. Then, out of nowhere came a flash and a cartoonish sound effect from which six girls in brightly colored, slightly gaudy outfits appeared, generic Sentai-style uniforms mostly comprised of painted cardboard and aluminum foil in the Rainbooms' colors.

"Nobody panic," cried their leader, a purple girl with darker-purple hair and a white, wavy skunk stripe, "Rainbow Sugar Patrol is here!"

Without further ado, they kicked open the door and charged in, immediately finding a frightened and perplexed Eezy-Cheezy employee behind the register.

"Uh... it wasn't lock-"

"Don't worry," Purple Patroller said in a heroic tone as she held up a little box, "we're here to fix everything, with the only meal you really need!" She opened the box to reveal an assortment of technicolor cupcakes, all thickly covered with sprinkles embedded in already sugar-rich frosting.

"And we," announced the blue girl with spiky hair of multiple, eye-stabbing colors, looking a little like she was wearing a clown wig with rabies as she gestured to the others "will stand here doing nothing useful!"

The cashier kept a neutral face. "...I just work here, so-"

"Go on," urged Purple, "try them yourself! I guarantee it's tastier than anything else you've ever had, and everyone needs sugar!"

There was a pause as the employee, a bemused look in his eyes, stared back at them. "Like, 36 grams?"

Blink. "Huh?"

Nodding, the employee pulled up his phone to fact-check. "The human body needs about 36 grams of sugar a day, there being around a tenth of a gram in a single slice of cheese. How much is in one of those cupcakes?"

The Shiny Foil Scouts shared a look. "Uhhh..."

"Ignoring the salad bar, I know the Eezy-Cheezy menu isn't the healthiest thing in the world either, and it kinda seems like common sense that you shouldn't binge on anything for long, but if you do, sugar is a lot worse for you than cheese."

"But, b-but," sputtered Purple, holding up the box again, "everyone needs-"

"Look," the employee deadpanned, "relying entirely on any one thing does not a balanced diet make, and people need more than sugar to get by."

Purple and her nonspeaking, barely-involved cohorts looked at the cupcakes, then at the employee, the cupcakes again, the employee again, then started toward the door with their heads down.




Eezy-
Cheezy!





%%%


The table was silent apart from Sunset's snickering. 

"Hey, any of those girls look sorta familiar to you guys?"

"She's dead," Rainbow hissed before anyone else could answer, an enraged blush on her scowling face, "when I get my hands on her, I'll kick her butt so hard she'll, she's gonna be... buttless!" Annoyed and embarrassed though the others were, all of them gave her curious looks. She made an irritable face and crossed her arms. "You know what I mean."

"While I don't normally condone violence," Rarity muttered through a grimace, "I'm quite certain she just declared war. Don't get me started on those outfits she imagines us in."

Applejack looked as though she'd tasted a worm. "Hold up a sec, are we even sure that was directed at us? Ah mean, the bacon one sure looked like Sunset, and them cupcake scouts had some'a the same colors as us, but-"

"Are you blind?!" Rainbow immediately came to regret slamming a fist on the table, masking it as best she could as just lightly shaking that hand in rage. "That was totally a dig at us! She did one at Sunset and the other was at the rest of us!"

Cheeks lightly flushed, Fluttershy was smiling. "I was in an Eezy-Cheezy commercial! Eeee!"

"So, wait," Pinkie said while scratching her head, "if she thinks Sunset is a bumbling doofus, does she think the rest of us are like cupcake delivery if the cupcakes were friendship? And, if the sugar is rainbows, does the cheese stand for anything?"

Twilight touched a fingertip to her chin in thought. "Could it be a secret message directed at us? A riddle? Hm..."

Crossing her arms as she leaned back, Sunset shrugged. "It could be that the metaphor in the cashier rejecting the cupcakes is not being able to rely on friendship (the sugar) alone to get through everything and anyone saying it does might come across as obnoxiously naive despite genuinely good intentions, but I wouldn't count on that being Adagio's exact interpretation." She got six perplexed stares, to which she returned a flat look. "While I'm eternally grateful for what happened after the Fall Formal, just having friends didn't exactly solve all my problems."

"It didn't? I thought the idea behind all this was that working together, we can overcome any hardship."

"Even hanging around the school's heroes didn't make everyone stop hating me, Twi. At least not until I helped stop another magical menace." She smiled sheepishly the second Twilight started to frown. "Not you, silly."

"I don't think the commercial made much sense," mused Fluttershy, "but if Sunset is right, if that is how Adagio sees friendship, maybe it's because she doesn't know anything else? If all she's really seen is us always winning through magic (which might be what the sugar meant) that solves everything in a pinch, maybe that's what she thinks friendship really amounts to? The other two sirens, Aria and Sonata, are still here in town, not with her, so if they've had some kind of falling out and she's all alone now, she might understand even less about friendship than she did before, possibly even being embittered on the very concept of friends working together."

Dead silence. Six stares. Fluttershy shrunk in her seat and blushed. "B-but, um, th-that's just a guess..."

Rainbow shook her head. "I don't care what she thinks, she's gotta go down!"

Sunset gave her a deadpan stare. "We still have no grounds to go after her, Rainbow."

"Uh, she's a bad guy?"

"And we will be too if we go kicking down doors because we didn't like a commercial. In fact, I'm pretty sure that's how I got one of my competitors disqualified for a Fall Formal a couple years back; I made an embarrassing little video about her, let her fume off, then riled her up a little more until she-" Sunset's eyes widened. "It's a trap. She had stupid, embarrassing commercials made about us specifically so that we'd get all cheesed off-" the other girls snickered and snorted with amusement, Sunset blushing and trying not to smile as she corrected herself, "-get all angry, go throwing our weight around, and probably get ourselves arrested in the process, just like how one of my opponents bumped herself off the running list by throwing a hissy fit at Luna over my video."

"Ah-ha," Rainbow announced with a grin that said she was seconds from scoring the winning goal, "that's a bad guy thing! We've got her!"

"No, we don't," Twilight said with a mild frown, "because even if someone is insulting you with the hope that you'll get mad enough to attack them, that doesn't give you the legal right to do so. We'd still be facing some kind of charges for sure. If we tried to hurt her in any way, we'd be playing right into her hands."

"We can just tell everyone she's a brain-washing witch! Think about it; one of the sirens sings to come buy cheesy crud, and people all over the place come buy cheesy crud! Coincidence?! Sunset even said it was weird that she could sing again, so she's gotta be hypnotizing people somehow, which means she's evil and we'd totally be in the right for kicking her butt!"

Twilight tilted her head. "Your plan is to just tell everyone "No really, she's using magic!"? Because Principal Cinch was going to try the same thing to declare the Friendship Games a farce, and if you thought no one would believe her with no immediate proof, why would anyone believe you?"

"Because we're heroes! We can just prove the magic is real by doing some!!"

"Which would prove that you have magic, which would mean that if anyone was bewitching anyone...?"

Pulling at her own hair, Rainbow groaned as her head sank to the table. "We've SAVED THE WORLD, for crying out loud! Saved it from her!! This isn't fair!"

"Be that as it may," sighed Rarity, "I'm afraid there's really nothing we can do right now. Even if we did succeed in paying her back somehow, what would change? No amount of rainbow blasts is going to have an impact on her growing corporate standing. In fact, she may even be planning legal action against us, should we give her a cause, and not even magic would fix that."

Sunset wanted to object, but Applejack spoke up before she could think of a counterpoint.

"Lay down with the dogs, and ya get fleas. Granny Smith tells Applebloom all the time that the best way to deal with Diamond Tiara is not to sink to her level, be the bigger person an' all that."

Rainbow took a deep breath, the rage finally leaving her expression. "...Yea. I guess so." She scowled. "But can I just say that being the bigger person kinda blows sometimes?"

The seven girls giggled. At least until a small group of CHS kids walked by their table snickering about 'Sugar Patrol,' at which point Rainbow needed a long sip of a milkshake to avoid throwing one at someone. This somehow escalated into a milkshake speed-drinking contest between her, Pinkie, Applejack, and Sunset.

There were no real winners in this struggle, only ice cream headaches, but for her peace of mind, the others declared Rainbow the victor.
> Chapter 5: Repel and Attract
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Knowing what she knew about people, this had to work. 

Aria hadn't wanted to get by on her good looks alone, let alone doing so coupled with Sonata's, but she didn't want to be a pathetic failure, either. Sonata had jokingly said they should just become strippers together, because they definitely got more than their share of stares during that pool race, but Aria preferred to keep her dignity. Luckily, becoming 'titty streamers' came with the plausible deniability of it being their personalities that kept people coming back.

She had done a little research about how exactly Adagio got famous, and apparently a big part of it early on was some web celebrity- 

Cewebrity? Note to self: Never say that out loud.

-with a huge following. While trying to find out how to build such a following, Aria had discovered modestly hot girls playing video games and doing the same sort of stuff other people were, all displaying themselves on a little corner-cam the whole time, but while half-naked and regularly making suggestive poses. People being people, Aria could see that this won them a lot of attention, money, and even a few dedicated worshippers. After a few hours of studying this material, she knew just what to do.

The plan was simple: She and Sonata, dressed in skimpy clothes, would sit in front of the microphone and webcam they'd discreetly swiped from some local electronics shop (Sonata using her dopey-hot-girl-with-questions routine might have been good practice for what they were about to do), play some (pirated) games, and watch as the donations poured in.

And it only took them two days to get everything working!

"Okay," sighed Aria while smoothing out what could charitably be described as her shirt, "looks like we're live. Are we both in the shot?"

Sonata leaned in for a closer look at the screen displaying what the viewers would see, smiling when she noticed the way this displayed her chest on camera. "Yea! Think we should scootch a little closer for the ooh-look-lesbians angle?"

"If we really need to bring in viewers, you can sit on my lap for a while." Aria smiled. "It'll make for a smooth transition when I need to spank you 'for screwing up' in the game!"

"Wha-?! Why am I the one getting spanked?!"

Aria smirked with smugness she'd been waiting to release all day. "'Cuz you've got the fatter ass and the internet loves 'em "thicc." Now shut up, time to start this thing."

The title of their stream wasn't creative, but 'Two Girl Friends Play' had already brought in about two dozen viewers. It was nothing compared to the thousands Aria had seen on some other channels, but it was a start. Of course, the first thing she saw in the chat were comments about not being able to see what they were playing.



[So, there a game here?]
[cant see anything]
[Can see tits!]
[They're not even pretending to be a game channel. -_-]
[And that's a bad thing?]



"Oh, uh," she said while trying for a 'cute,' dopey-girl smile, "guess we need to show us and what we're playing! Just a sec!"

It took her six and a half minutes to work out how to have their monitor show on the stream without that infinite-window-ception thing, but at least Sonata sitting there smiling with her cleavage visible mostly kept people from leaving. 

"Okay, game time! Here we go!"

Only one of them could play at a time, but that left room for one to talk and one to lean in closer to the camera to be able to reach the necessary buttons. She opted to play first, if only so that Sonata and wouldn't get all of the camera focus.

Barely past the start menu, the chatbox alerted them to a problem



[Facecam's kinda small. :/]
[Can't see!]
[So? We're here for the game.]
[boi u gay]
[Titcam's too tiny!]
[your mom gay]
[Look how they're dressed. We KNOW what we're all here for.]
[I'd love to look, if the screen weren't like 4 pixels.]



Quietly sighing, Aria stopped to adjust that window. "Better?"



[Bigger!]
[Better!]
[Faster!]
[Less clothes please]
[Stronger!]
[C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER!!]
[Still kinda small tho]



Rolling her eyes, Aria messed with the window sizes until half the screen was her and Sonata and the other was the game. "Now?"



[take off your tops]
[Adequate boob-to-game ratio.]
[I disagree!]
[More boob is good.]
[No. Too much boobcam = boob ban.]
[Are either of you pregnant?]
[Can we start the thing already?]
[You have nice hair. :)]
[GO FULL BOOBCAM]



In line with what they were supposed to be doing here, Aria started the game. She was barely through the tutorial before more complaints caught her eye.



[Framerate's sucking.]
[Really choppy!]
[Are you guys pregnant?]
[I'm getting lag]
[Boobcam is good though.]
[The game is old and shit anyway, but at least their hot.]
[It's coming in all screwed up!]



Repressing a very unattractive grumble, Aria paused the game to start fiddling with the stream's settings, which at least gave her an excuse to lean closer to the camera and pretend she was paying close attention to the framerate, not the appreciative comments toward her beauty.

Unfortunately, Sonata could read too, and quickly leaned hard against Aria with a bright, pretty smile that the untrained eye wouldn't spot as forced. "Hey, why don'tcha let me fix it?"

Rather than waiting for an answer, much less approval, Sonata reached across Aria's hands to get at the keyboard and cursor-slidey-pad-thing.

"Uh, no," Aria retorted as calmly and appealingly as she could while holding her ground, "I think I've got it, just need to screw with the uh... bitter, bitrate and it'll be-"

Sonata pushed against her harder, which put a strain on her 'cute,' girly giggle. "No, really, I can do it!"

"Haha, I've got it."

With how fervently the two struggled against each other, it was ten minutes before they noticed that the stream had gone down.

Knowing what Aria knew about people, it could have worked. 

Knowing what she knew about technology, there wasn't a chance in Hell.


%%%


"So, Poofy, we're gonna be stoppin' here in Hollywood for a while, got a few gigs hooked up and some business to take care of. That cool with you, or are ya gonna be needin' accommodations?"

Adagio smiled. "It's fine with me, Mr. Dry, I can stay here as long as we need." 

Provided Aria and Sonata aren't stupid with the money I left them. Worst comes to worst, they'll call if they need me to send them more, but I will do so with some very stern words!

Cuttin' Dry smiled too, gently putting his hands on Adagio's shoulders as he knelt down a little to look at her at eye-level. "To think I was scared you'd turn out to be another whiny diva! You lemme know if ya need anything, 'kay?"

He set off without waiting for an answer, chuckling to himself about how having been taken off the crew of someone called Magnifico was the best thing that ever happened to him.

Heading to the hotel she was told she'd be staying in, Adagio idly thought that she'd actually been pretty demanding, what with asking for a room to herself everywhere they went and those last two commercials. Granted, corporate meddling had distorted her original vision of the commercial mocking Sunset into a means of selling a new menu item and butchered her vision of the one mocking the others. 

Somehow, her proposal for a simple scene of Poofy popping in to kick the faux-Rainbooms and their sweets aside and promote some random cheesy product turned into a dig at critics of the chain saying "too much cheese!" about a cheese-centric restaurant and something about a perceived rival in some snack product, all without Poofy so much as making an appearance. Hopefully, they did their secret job of offending the Rainbooms anyway. 

Feeling kind of iffy about that now, actually, because if they didn't even realize that I was trying to make fun of them but do still want to take me down, I'll never know if they're planning to come after me or not.

Dwelling on this wasn't going to do any favors for her nerves, so she settled for being annoyed about the thought of that Magnifico character Cuttin' Dry mentioned, of being outdone by mere mortals in terms of being treated like a goddess. 

But I've been doing everything I used to do! That was how things were back in Equestria; "Bring me food and comfort and I'll move on when I feel like it." Is there more I could be asking for?

Stepping onto the elevator to reach her room, she supposed she could be asking for oiled-up young men, but those kinds of conquests were something she earned through seduction, not demanded through power. 

I'll be left alone here for much longer stretches than I was when we had to keep moving, but... given last week's incident with a creep and his camera, I really should be careful about what kind of ammo I give potential enemies. Especially now that I've riled up my old ones. Worst case scenario, all it would take was a shot or two of me bringing someone here and I might be replaced by some new girl in a wig.

...I wonder what Aria and Sonata have been up to. Did they find jobs yet? Are they going to? Maybe I could send them a care package, a bundle of money and some of the finer things I can have shipped to them to give them a taste of the high life? I'm sure Sonata would adore some of the chocolates I've sampled, but Aria was touchy about me 'rubbing my success in her face' even before I left...

Swiping the keycard in the reader beside the door, she stepped into her hotel room to find that her bags had been left by the bed. The especially big, soft bed, she found when she sprawled out on it! Sitting up, it was clear that this really was a high-end establishment, even for what she was getting used to; plush carpets, tasteful decor, a vanity in the corner, a huge flatscreen on the wall in front of the bed, and...

A jacuzi? Just, out in the open? It's right by the window, people might see-

Her train of thought broke right off the rails as she looked out the window to embrace the wide, breath-taking view of the ocean in full. She knew the elevator ride had taken a while, but didn't know she was up this high! 

Would it be possible to get a house on top of a tower or something? Do they have those? Then again, if I want a view of the sea, Canterlot may not be the best-

"Hello."

Nearly jumping out of her skin, Adagio turned to see a stark-white young woman with black hair in a short, sleek style hanging barely past her neck in a finely-cut line, looking back at her with keen, blue eyes. That combined with her long-sleeved maid outfit with an ankle-length skirt gave her a soft, but elegant kind of feeling that had Adagio unwittingly thinking the exact same thing as the girl across from her:

She looks like a doll...

"Erm," began Adagio as she slid off the bed, "hello... Whom might you be?"

Pinching the sides of her skirt outward in a curtsy, the maid bowed her head, her face and tone remaining stoic and expressionless. "I am Felt Feather, hired to cater to you for the next thirty days."

"...Oh." Nothing changed in Felt Feather's face, but it struck Adagio that that probably wasn't the best reply. "I mean," she said in the most dignified tone she could manage, casually brushing a hand through her hair, "you most likely know already, but I am Adagio Dazzle, pleased to meet you."

I didn't ask for a maid... did... did someone assign her to me? Is Cuttin' Dry actually taking pity on me because I haven't been demanding enough?!

"So, erm, not that I don't want you here or anything, but I wasn't notified that I'd be getting help of any kind. Who sent you?"

Felt answered in a calm monotone. "I was hired for the first month by one Q. Chrysalis as a surprise. Would you like me to strip?"

Adagio blinked slowly. "...No thank you."

She nodded. "I was specially instructed to arrive here before you did and wait on the bed in minimal night garments to gauge your reaction, but you arrived moments before I could properly unpack your belongings."

It was incredibly hard to read from her facial expression, but something in her new maid's eyes told Adagio that this was a deliberate, calculated effort to preserve her dignity. 

"Well, that's a pity," said Adagio with a bright smile, "but I guess there's nothing to be done."

Felt nodded deftly. "Indeed, a shame."

Adagio kept smiling. 

I think I like this girl!

She would have to thank Chrysalis later for her exquisite choice in maids (and possibly punish her for trying to seduce her by proxy), but for now, she held out a hand. "I look forward to working with you, Miss Feather."

Rather than stepping forward to shake her hand, Felt lowered her eyes to it for a moment before looking back at Adagio's. "Forgive me if this seems at all impudent, but I am working for you, not with you."

Blinking twice, Adagio let out a mildly embarrassed laugh as she retracted her hand. "Y-yes, that's, um... In that case, do you think you could bring me a cold beverage? I think I saw a sign relating to milkshakes down in the lobby."

She nodded, heading for the door. "As you wish, Madam."

Once she was alone, Adagio took a quick look around her room (which itself had four more little rooms, of which she made sure to inspect every corner) to make sure she really was alone this time, then let herself breathe out an irritable sigh. 

A maid. A personal servant. Why didn't I think of that?

Because it might be difficult to bring her around with us on the tour bus? Do we have room for her? What is she supposed to do when it's time to move on from this city? Are we going to be here for over a month? Would I be tearing her away from her family if I had her come with us?

I suppose it would be more demanding of me not to care about her circumstances and think only of myself, but getting the most out of this situation isn't worth the drawbacks of being irresponsible. Suppose I can ask her the relevant questions to decide what to do while we're-

"Your shake."

Jumping with a start, again, Adagio snapped her attention to the maid, now offering her a milkshake in a sealed cup with a freshly-inserted straw. "Oh, er..." she muttered as she gingerly accepted the beverage, "that was fast. How did you find this so quickly?"

"They do indeed serve shakes not far from the lobby, and there was no traffic on the stairway."

"...You took the stairs?"

Her blank expression unchanging, Felt briefly mimed an almost comically exaggerated running motion where she stood, particularly oscillating her arms, then pointed to the drink Adagio was holding. "Shaken, not stirred."

"...Right."

Not quite certain how much of her smile was forced, Adagio determined that this might take some getting used to.


%%%



Back when they first learned of the place a year or two ago, the sirens had thought that if they ever found themselves in Hollywood, they'd take the town by storm; enthrall a crowd to serve them and be made stars of the highest magnitude, walk on red carpets everywhere they weren't carried, drink and party and indulge themselves without a care.

It was a vague dream, Adagio now realized, and one she wasn't sure how to really enact even if she hadn't lost her gem. That wasn't why she mildly disappointed herself by spending her first day in Hollywood mostly just lounging about in her hotel room, watching television, indulging in some slightly lonely one-girl karaoke (after her maid declined to join her), and enjoying the private hot tub, but it came as a sobering thought when she realized she'd spent her entire free afternoon and following morning not really doing anything exciting. 

I suppose, technically, I'm not in Hollywood, because this hotel is in Santa Monica. So, it's almost like I haven't spent my first day here just kind of laying around, right?

Some time to just relax was important too. And, her morning exercises were special if they were performed on a balcony with a clear view of the beach. That was what she told herself when she went downstairs to the car that took her to start Poofy's schedule for today. 

Work went along the familiar rhythm; scripts and rehearsals while she waited for the film crews to sort out props and technical difficulties, a few takes if things went smoothly, several if they didn't or if the directer had a sudden idea, and Adagio remaining in-character as Poofy the entire time, her bright, cheery persona lifting the spirits of even the most bitter, failed playwrights and aspiring actors that she'd encountered, stuck doing various, unglamorous jobs on the set. 

If no other celebrities (minor or otherwise) were brought in to promote their products, it usually gave her time to think, and chief in her stray thoughts as work wrapped up for the day was an older co-worker; Cheese Sandwich, whom she hadn't seen or heard from all that much when they weren't on the tour-bus together. Presumably, he was helping train other cooks along with Gouda Will, but unless they were opening several stores in the local area, she couldn't see that keeping him occupied for their entire stay here.

Which means he'll probably come around again. I really, really hate to admit it, but I still can't read the boy. I can only imagine what he's heard by now, who he's talked to, and, if he knows, what he's been telling them.

It had been about a month and a half since she left Canterlot now, and while she was genuinely amazed that her past endeavors in just this world hadn't come back to haunt her yet, there was absolutely nothing to say that they couldn't bring everything crashing down if it came out that she was magical monster.

...Well, provided anyone bought it and cared, that is. Judging by the fact that the Rainbooms still hadn't been rounded up and dissected (if their continually-active social media accounts were any indicator), it seemed that no one cared about magic all that much. So maybe that was something to say that her past wasn't going to catch up to and kill her, but still!

Then there were, of course, the Rainbooms, who hadn't made any effort to come after her even with those stupid commercials out! She knew by the comments left on their account pages that they were facing regular mockery now in the form of comments marked with 'Sugar Patrol' and 'Bacon Head' in one way or another, but it didn't look like they were making any sort of move in response. 

She'd called Aria and Sonata to make sure they were alright, but even if she worried for the entire hour after it went to a machine, Sonata calling back with ten solid minutes of blowing raspberries told her that at least the two of them were probably doing fine.

But I still don't know where the Rainbooms stand, whether or not they're still opposed to my success, whether they were content to move on or changed their minds after seeing those ridiculous-

"Hey, Dagi-O!"

Just barely suppressing an undignified shriek, Adagio still jumped with a start at the sudden appearance- 

I don't know how he does that, either!! 

-of her coworker. She took a quick look around, remembering that she was still standing in the studio as people talked business and put away equipment for the day. Bracing herself for further shenanigans, she managed a polite smile. "Uh... Hello, Mr. Sandwich." 

Smiling brightly, he produced a little bag from behind his back, possibly from within his own curly hair, offering it to Adagio. "I come bearing gifts!"

"Oh," she replied with a surprised little grin of her own while accepting the bag, "more donuts?"

"Sugar cookies this time! A fan dropped 'em off by the bus today, so I figured I'd hop over and drop 'em somewhere closer. Like in your hands!"

Even though she held her smile, Adagio couldn't think of a verbal response right away, blinking in silence for a moment. "...And, so you have. Thank you."

He chuckled. "Any time you like, Dagi-O! Have you been around town at all? Because I saw a giant bagel, a guy who juggled knives, a singing parrot, a shopping cart full of rocks, a pirate (or a mugger with a dedicated theme, was kind of hard to tell), a balloon pretzel, and a whale, and that was just in the kitchens today!"

"I, see."

"Get your inner tourist on a little and you'll see even better," he suddenly popped a pith helmet onto his head while striking a comical, exaggerated, about-to-start-running pose that drew a snicker from Adagio, "which is what I'm about to do right now! Catch ya later!"

And off he went, presumably to confuse people in the most cheerful manner possible elsewhere. She idly eyed the bag while processing what he'd just said.

'Any time you like'? He's not... that wasn't, a pass at me or anything, right? I have difficulties predicting his behavior as it is, if he's started taking an interest, I really will be in trouble!

Not that he didn't seem like a nice boy and all, but she couldn't imagine any kind of courtship working out between them and, well... despite her Poofy act, Adagio wasn't exactly a nice girl. If he was thinking of trying to woo her, she couldn't safely reject him until she knew what he knew and how best to contain his reaction if he didn't take it in stride.

If he knows the details, and he probably does, he could easily make a nuisance of himself if- but, Gouda Will already knows and doesn't care, so maybe it doesn't- no, Cheese could still tell everyone else around here what I-

"Hey."

Startled, again, Adagio whipped around to find a familiar face.

"Well now," chuckled Chrysalis, dressed in only teal short-shorts and a black tank-top that did nothing to conceal her midriff, "I might have been flattered at that reaction if I hadn't just taken off the ghost-witch costume. Jumpy today?" Before Adagio could answer with more than a slightly indignant, adorably flushed face, Chrysalis raised an eyebrow as she caught sight of the bag in her hands. "Sorry, did I catch you on lunch break?"

"Er, n-no... 'Ghost-witch'? Were you cast in a horror flick or is that another food commercial for Japan?"

"Yes."

"You must have an interesting career."

"Some roles are more fun than others." She smiled brightly. "Speaking of which, how have you liked having your own personal servant?"

Externally, Adagio kept a cool grin. "Oh, it's been lovely, she does everything I could want her for." Judging by the way Chrysalis perked up, a smirk bordering on lewd crossing her features as she leaned in closer, that sounded just as suggestive as Adagio meant it to.

"Do tell!"

Chuckling as she reflected a hint of that smirk back, Adagio kept her voice down. "I really should thank you; I never knew what the... possibilities were, before she came along. If you like," she whispered conspiratorially, "I'd be more than happy to have you join us for next time."

For a split second, Chrysalis beamed with delight, quickly reigning herself in before her imagination carried her off again, but Adagio wasn't done.

"For example," she cooed, standing on her tip-toes to make sure her breath just barely reached the taller woman's ears, "any time I ask, she'll give me a big, dripping... milkshake!"

She stepped back, an innocent smile on her face as Chrysalis blinked, dumbfounded.

"Is... that a euphemism for-"

"From the hotel lobby, in chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and mint-swirl!" Relishing the confused look though she was, Adagio drove the point home by finally allowing her smile to shift to mischievous before sticking out her tongue, which was when her senior crossed her arms and her face formed an annoyed, Aria-worthy pout.

"That, was unnecessary."

"As was paying some poor girl to degrade herself in front of a complete stranger to answer a question you already know the answer to."

"...Still!"

"Really though," Adagio said sincerely, "I do appreciate Miss Feather, but please, no more surprises." She decided to leave off the threat this time, if only because she didn't know Chrysalis well enough to know what would intimidate her. How much of a threat was "I'll strip to my underwear and make you watch as I do nothing sexual for a whole evening," anyway?

"Killjoy," she huffed, though the pout quickly gave way to a genuine little smile. "...But, I'm glad you're liking the maid. I was a little worried you'd fire her for trying to seduce you, because she came highly recommended and I wasn't sure the agency would send you another if you turned her away."

Adagio responded with a hint of a knowing smirk. "Oh, dear, then I suppose someone would have had to take the vacant position of my maid?"

Chrysalis's eyes slowly widened in realization, then she smiled. "Why didn't I think of that?!"

Her smile vanishing, Adagio defensively raised both hands, aghast. "N-no, no, I wasn't-"

"I've definitely got the right outfit for-"

"It won't matter since I already have-"

"Room for two lucky ladies to serve you? You are a naughty-"

"Would you even have time?!"

The smirk faded. "Huh?"

"Between the rest of your work? Commercials and movies and so on?"

Chrysalis pondered this for a moment, then frowned. "Is this just your thing? Do you enjoy getting people's hopes up?"

"Er, no," she demurred with a sheepish grin, "sorry."

"Because I'm not kinkshaming if it is."

Adagio blushed. "It's not."

A quiet moment passed as Chrysalis scrutinized her, as though seriously hoping to glean whether or not Adagio drew erotic pleasure from others' disappointment, but she shrugged. "Just as well, I'm not really the serving type anyway, so it probably wouldn't have been fun for long. And speaking of fun," she added as her sharkish smile returned, "when's that purple friend of yours coming?"

Blinking twice, Adagio connected who she was talking about and smiled. "I'm due to see them in person again at the end of the tour, and-" The realization that she lived in a world in which long-distance communication was easy and practical kicked in, making her smile wider. "-oh, I could just call her!" She quickly drew her phone, excitedly pressing the buttons as she spoke. "I looked up your previous roles and I'm sure we've seen at least a few of your movies together, so she might even recognize your voice!"

When the ringing stopped, Adagio held the phone to her ear. "Hello-"

She physically recoiled from the loud, somewhat garbled stream of shouted profanity that blasted from her phone, closing with the familiar beep of an ended call.

For a moment, Adagio stood frozen in shock. Mortified that such a moment was witnessed by an outsider, she hesitantly met Chrysalis's eyes, not surprised to see the uncomfortable stare she was getting. "Uh, th-that was... things were a little rough between the three of us when I left home, and I was hoping they would cool down and come join me by now, but...?"

Gently putting a hand on her shoulder, Chrysalis smiled in sympathy. "Do you know what you need? A fun day out." The confused look, while adorable, was expected, so she quickly elaborated. "It's simple; you want them to come live it up with you in the high life? They'll need to actually see you living it up first, and the best way to accomplish that is to go out and have the time of your life, ideally somewhere the paparazzi or at least a few stray cameramen are liable to hang around, let them post it all over the place, the message'll get back to... I'm sorry, what were their names?"

Adagio smiled a little. "Aria and Sonata."

"Right, right, they'll make sure it gets back to Aria and Sonata. They'll see you living the dream, feel stupid for spurning your offer, come around, make up, and you'll all be Hollywood bombshells ever after."

She knew it wasn't guaranteed that both of Adagio's friends were good-looking, but one dared dream.

Several things clicked together in Adagio's mind at that moment, namely what she could do to solve her problems with Aria and Sonata and banish the niggling feeling that she wasn't getting the most out of this situation at the same time, a smile she couldn't suppress if she wanted to spreading across her face. "You think it could work?"

Grinning, Chrysalis hooked Adagio around the shoulders with one arm to pull her close, pretending not to notice that doing so left Adagio's cheek smushed into a breast as she called out to the director. "Hey Frank, I'm gonna be borrowing this one tomorrow, okay?"

She got an acknowledging wave back, as Adagio noticed when she pried herself loose. "Is his name really Frank?"

Chrysalis chuckled. "No, but let's just say I've been around for a while, and by now, most folks around here call me Queen Chrysalis." She winked. "Stick around and maybe you'll see why. Catch you later, Poofy."

Sashaying away, she slowed down at the door to glance over her shoulder, pleased to see Adagio wearing a hopeful look... until she noticed that it was directed at her phone.

Dammit. Is it too much to hope that maybe she wants them with her so badly because they're more than friends and she has some stray feelings to work through? Food for thought.

She knew the girl had said she was straight, but frankly, so did a lot of women Chrysalis had encountered over the years, and it never hurt to test it a little.
> Chapter 6: Ledge Suspension
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Aria sighed. 

Sitting just outside a lawyer's office over the slightly muffled sounds of Sonata yelling at some rent-a-cop, she was forced to admit, if only to herself, that they might have been screwed. She'd been so sure about this one; so sure that this was gonna be the plan that landed them in millions of dollars they could do whatever they wanted with, maybe even be set for life.

Tracing an idle hand over the gem fragments in her pocket, feeling their sharp edges somehow deepened the sense of their betrayal. They were supposed to be the perfect evidence to show that the Rainbooms had destroyed their irreplaceable property, the means by which they'd establish their case and sue those girls for every cent they were worth, which had to be a lot if they were getting away with using magical super powers in broad daylight. They even had proof! Picture and video evidence of those girls showing off and doing their 'hero' stuff on social media!

Adagio had insisted that this plan would never work, that she only held onto the pieces of her gem for sentimental reasons and the off-chance that she might be able to fix it somehow, so it would have been all the sweeter to prove her wrong using exactly those pieces. And now, if Adagio ever heard about this little failure, or the others, Aria would have more than a few eggs on her face. Maybe she could stop the 'you idiots' and 'I told you so's by throwing actual eggs back, let her wash that out of her stupid hair. 

Finding the remains of one of their gems had felt like a lucky break while they were tearing the house apart in search of more of Adagio's stashes, hoping to find one that Adagio herself had forgotten about if they were lucky. Money was getting tighter and tighter, to the point that they were even looking for holes in mattresses and loose floorboards and stuff. Days of on-and-off searching (between naps and snack breaks) rewarded them with all they had left of the gems, but now Aria was just wondering how much they'd get for pawning the pieces. They were still nice and shiny, and people always spent big bucks for jewelry, right?

None of it mattered, though, because the lawyer didn't just reject their case entirely, he told them to leave and never come back! He even called security on them when they tried to convince him otherwise, which was when Sonata, feeling all legally-minded now, opted to try this 'sovereign citizen' thing she'd heard about on the internet, something about getting what you want by citing rules nobody's ever heard of in the legal system. Aria had a sinking feeling the minute Sonata started telling them that she was a free entity and that the security guy in there now had no jurisdiction over her or whatever, so she'd just walked out, sat down, and waited for the bitter end.

She could still hear it going in there.

"You can't touch me, this is a free country, I have the right to be wherever I want to be! I do not consent! I'm not breaking the law, you can't taze me if I'm not breaking the law, Idonotcons-AAAIIIEEEEEE!!"

Aria sighed.


%%%


"Chrysaliiis...?"

"I know, I know, but hear me out: We want to go out and have some fun, right?"

"Right."

"And we want to ensure some media attention while doing so, right?"

"Right, but-"

"And we know the best way a pair of pretty ladies can get attention, right?"

"Are you sure you're not just trying to get me into a swimsuit like yours?"

"Of course not," tittered Chrysalis, dressed only in a tight, black, shiny slingshot bikini that left very little to the imagination, "black isn't your color at all. If I were you, I'd go with something red. Although," she added with a cheeky smirk, "if you do want into my swimsuit, I'm not-agh!"

Chucking her shirt in Chrysalis's face and smiling to herself when she heard the indignant huff that followed, Adagio disappeared behind changing room doors. As much as she was growing to like the woman, she didn't want to be that close, but she could certainly put up with the flattery until Aria came along. 

If Chrysalis is as interested in her as she is in me, I can't picture Aria saying no. She'll quit hitting on me after that, right? Or at least tone it down when she has someone else to play with whenever she comes around? Maybe she'll like Sonata, too.

She might have felt some sense of sleazy guilt for thinking of feeding her two oldest companions to an apparently ravenous love-monster, but she knew Aria wouldn't mind the chance, and even in the event that she wasn't interested, Sonata would be offended that she'd been left out if she wasn't so much as asked.

The thought of Sonata's angry pout and annoyed foot-stamp drew a quiet giggle as she got dressed in a white-and-blue-striped bikini (in the same hues of her Eezy-Cheezy uniform, because she happened to find one among the shop's selection). It was close-fitting, but not digging into her or riding up uncomfortably, and while it showed plenty of skin, it was easily more modest than what Chrysalis was going with.

Honestly, anyone standing behind her can see almost everything. Then again, our glittering scales used to be enough to entice without the angle of being able to reveal more later. Maybe her near-nudity works on the same principle? My hair covers almost everything but my legs from the back, so maybe I should try it some time.

Shrugging to herself, she stepped out to greet an already smiling Chrysalis.

"Stripes? Good choice; the lines show your curves even from a distance."

Blushing a little, Adagio opted to pretend she was going for that. "Thank you. So, where to?"


%%%


Swiping the keycard and pacing into to her hotel room late that afternoon carried with it a relieving kind of bliss, like lying down on a soft bed after a long day. The difference, Adagio immediately noted, was that the feeling normally came with having accomplished something in the day prior, having actually done some kind of work, which was decidedly not what she was up to with Chrysalis today. 

She did say that they call her 'Queen' around here, but I wasn't expecting to get the whole day off so easily. Perhaps the fact that we're due to stay a few more weeks here is relevant and I suppose I haven't technically had a 'day off' since the tour began, but she barely needed to do more than ask nicely.

That was the dream, wasn't it? To have that kind of power, that kind of influence, to have all of her whims granted with just a wave of the hand and maybe a flirty gesture? At the same time, she knew it wasn't as simple as ordering people around and never thinking about the weight of her actions, that she could never let herself be careless even if she held more sway.

If anything, I should have been even more diligent at the Battle, should have had the doors leading under the stage welded shut, should have-

"Welcome back."

Startled by her maid, again, Adagio clamped down on her budding mental tangent and the sense of annoyance at herself for already failing to be diligent while berating herself for not being diligent enou- She managed a smile. "Eh, yes, hello. Did you need something?"

Felt Feather stared back at her in silence for a moment, as though uncertain whether or not to respond at all. "As it happens, that was my question for you."

"Hm?"

"I have not had an abundance of tasks to attend to during the day, so I have taken to cleaning the hallways and elevators leading to this room."

"I thought the lobby's floor tiles were shinier than usual... Even the dining room tables looked more polished when I popped in for a milkshake and a sandwich." She was a little perturbed by the way Felt twitched, Adagio swearing she could hear a tiny, pained squeak. "Er... Would you like one too, or...?"

"No Madam, but, i-if I may...?" She waited for a nod of confirmation before continuing, her eyes growing soft and sad. "Please do not take my job."

As the realization that this girl was much easier to read through her eyes than her mouth- 

Will that work on Mr. Sandwich, too? 

-sunk in, Adagio noted that she probably could have just asked Felt to bring her food as opposed to getting it herself, even if she happened to be walking near the source anyway. She smiled placatingly. "Sorry, I've spent the better part of the past year doing the serving, and as I still spend most of my time following directions rather than giving them, especially around cameras, it's pretty much become habit to do things myself by now. Perhaps I could find more for you to do if you joined me at work?"

The quiet dismay in the girl's eyes quickly gave way to warmth and hope, even including a tiny smile before she composed herself into her usual stoic expression. Or lack thereof. "That would be welcomed, thank you."

Adagio shrugged a little. "No problem. On that topic, do you think you could bring me my mail whenever it arrives? Might save Mr. Sandwich from running all over to bring it to me."

At this, Felt Feather raised an eyebrow much more noticeably. "Mail? All of your postage is delivered here to the hotel, and nothing addressed to you does not pass through my hands. There has been no mail since your arrival in this city."

Adagio's eyes widened as fear and panic shot through her heart like electricity, most of all for the connections she immediately made to Cheese Sandwich's 'fan gifts.'

He lied to me. Possibly twice. And I ate what he gave me both times.

While the awareness that she might have been poisoned jumped up and down at the back of her mind, saner thoughts held it at bay as she looked for more information. "Is it... is it possible that someone could just drop something off for me, or...?"

"With regard to certain incidents in the past, all deliveries are briefly inspected, documented, and reach their destinations only through particular channels, or they are to be rejected entirely. Security detail should see to it that nothing is simply 'dropped off.'"

So it probably wasn't fan mail. It was preposterous to think that Cheese Sandwich had something malicious in mind with his packages of sweets, and Adagio couldn't remember even feeling the faintest bit ill after ingesting anything he'd given her, but he didn't seem like the type to lie, either. This would require investigation.

"Miss Feather? I believe there's something else you can help me with..."


%%%


A well-dressed man and woman walked hand-in-hand under the lights of a long, scenic bridge in the early evening, moonlight glittering over the sea and well into the horizon.

"This has just been the most wonderful evening," said the woman, "I can't think of anything that would make it better."

Releasing her hand and taking a step backward, the man smiled tenderly. "I can."

Slowly dropping to one knee, he produced a small box from his pocket, holding it where the woman could reach as she looked on in awe. Hesitantly reaching out, she opened the box and gasped, tears of joy in her eyes and a smile splitting her face. The camera closed in on the contents of the box; many tiny, crisp rings of potato partially submerged in golden, gleaming fondue.

Poofy stepped into view during a shot of the two eating the rings on a bench together, sighing happily.

"Ahh, love." Then she turned to face the camera with a smile. "Try our new dipping rings; cooked potato with melted cheese! Only at Eezy-Cheezy!"




Eezy-
Cheezy!





%%%


Life was okay sometimes.

That was Aria's only, somewhat hazy thought as she stretched out on the recliner in the living room, her feet up and a calm, comfortable sense of ease settling over her muscles and leaving her just feeling all cozy.

Naturally, this was around the time that Sonata burst in with a particularly emphatic slam of the front door, startling Aria out of her calm coziness and into that full, heart-pumping, wide-awake, there's-no-chance-I'm-getting-back-to-sleep-any-time-soon feeling. Before she could loudly voice her complaints, however, Sonata marched around the corner, reflecting her anger right back at her as she held up a thin piece of folded, white cardboard bearing a picture of a beach on one side.

"Look at this thing!"

Sitting up, somewhat perturbed, Aria leaned forward to better examine the postcard that she quickly deduced was sent by Adagio when Sonata held it open. It contained a picture of their former leader along with a tall, dark, smiling woman, the two of them wearing swimsuits and sipping colorful drinks as they casually posed for the camera. On the opposite side was Adagio's handwriting.





Been having some fun out here, I even made a friend! 
How are you two? Have you found jobs yet? Because if not, 
I think we might be able to find something out here for you. 
I can't say what it would be or how long you'd be doing it, 
but I'm sure we could figure something out.

Contact me any time!
-Adagio






"Who the...? Hang on a sec."

Fishing her phone out of her vest pocket, Aria tried a few different search terms before finding an article about 'Poofy' hanging out with some actress labeled 'The Queen' at a water park. 'Article' was perhaps too generous a term, because it mostly contained pictures of the two in their bikinis, often zoomed in a little further than necessary, but she still got the sense that they were having a good time together as they splashed about in pools, shot down water slides, ate hotdogs, and just lounged on big, inflatable pool rings while wearing sunglasses.

Seeing all this, Sonata stomped a foot. "Rrrrgh! This is bullshit! She's living it up and rubbing it in our faces while we work and work and work and get nothing! I mean, maybe we're not doing actual jobs, but this is totally harder, so we should be getting more anyway!"

Aria began to form a response, but her attention was quickly drawn back to the pictures, particularly one in which Adagio and The Queen ('Chrysalis,' was apparently her name, though Aria didn't spend much time reading the text) sat on backless barstools as they sipped colorful drinks (possibly the very same ones in Adagio's postcard) together, the cameraman having made the most of angles and the lighting to get a shot of their backs, their wet, orange and dark-blue hair flat and shiny as it stuck to their still-glistening figures in the relatively dim light of the little indoor rest area by the pools. She vacantly noted that the two in the picture probably knew they were being ogled, because both were arching their backs just enough to make their-

"Hey!!"

Startled, again, Aria wasn't sure if that was the reason her face had gotten so hot. "W-what?!"

Sonata was giving her an especially annoyed look. "You could at least pay attention when I rant about stuff!"

Aria rolled her eyes. "If you paid attention more often, I wouldn't have to explain things so many times." She quickly drifted back to the pictures, particularly noticing the way Chrysalis's swimsuit rode up on her, only aided by her sitting position. "Y-y'know, maybe we've should've joined Adagio when she-"

Sonata smacked her on the back of the head. "We can get all the ass we want when we're super rich and famous too! Now let's go look through that spooky old house on the abandoned hill where legend has it there's a buried treasure somewhere in the desolate halls from which intruders are said never to return!"

Rubbing the back of her head as Sonata set off, probably without a clue of where she was actually going, Aria huffed. 

"Bet you'd wanna go if it was a cake in that slingshot..."

Noting that a cake in a slingshot bikini made no sense whatsoever and that it'd probably just be all squished by how the thing is supposed to be worn, Aria shook her head, decided that she needed to get laid, and got up to follow Sonata. 


%%%


"Any time, 'Dagi-O!"

And away went Cheese Sandwich, Adagio standing idly with a little bag of chocolate-and-cream rolls. She waited a solid minute after he was out of sight, then held the bag out to her side. "Miss Feather? Take this to my room, would you? I think I'll enjoy a few later this evening."

"At once, Madam." 

Adagio smiled to herself as Felt Feather took hold of the bag and left.

Once she's had his 'gift' properly inspected, I'll know whether or not he's drugging me with anything and move from there.

In the meantime, she had her other schemes to worry about, namely whether or not the Rainbooms were going to respond more openly to her trap and if Aria and Sonata would accept her invitation.

If just one of them comes, the other will inevitably follow, but it's been at least a week since I sent them that postcard and I haven't gotten so much as a text message.

The stupid, Rainboom-mocking commercials were even longer ago, but at least she saw some kind of feedback in the form of messages on those girls' social media. It pleased her to know that while the Rainbooms weren't quite laughing stocks, they were getting their share of mockery through bacon jokes and comparisons to the 'Rainbow Sugar Patrol.'

I might not be able to draw energy from it anymore, but their reactions in some of the comment sections? Delicious!

Short-tempered Rainbow Dash and Sunset Shimmer had provided the most entertaining material, but there was a special spice in the way Rarity desperately tried to keep her composure before proving to be no better. The others had a gem or two apiece, but those three were the ones whose pages she read with a bowl of popcorn.

By the time her fun was finished, however, she determined that, if the Rainbooms had any intention of taking their frustrations out on her, they never said as much online. The seven of them weren't exactly being taciturn with their feelings on the subject (though Fluttershy's reactions were... difficult, to place), which was how Adagio knew that they'd clued in on her little trap, having reminded each other on a few different occasions that their impotent (and hilarious!) rage was just playing into her hands. She'd pieced together from several separate posts that they must have worked out what she was up to, and despite their collective annoyance, feared that retaliation would end with all of them in prison.

Adagio took this to mean that their public stance was that they would let her be, but could still very well be convening in private to talk about taking action, so she concluded that the commercials, while amusing, had failed to give her closure on the subject. At least they were still leaving Aria and Sonata alone.

She chuckled to herself. One group of angry girls she wanted to fend off and ensure never came near her again with help from her wealth and good fortune, the other she tried to coax into rejoining her with help from her wealth and good fortune. She was sure that Sonata would have had something stupid to say about it, were she here.


%%%


"This shit'll make us rich!"

Aria would have rolled her eyes were she not so focused on fighting off the thick, choking stench of raw sewage as the two of them walked through the bowels of Canterlot. Not in the gross, mucky part, obviously, but the narrow, concrete paths at the sides. Not that that was much better in Aria's watering eyes, but it was either this or...

Wait, how did that idiot get me to go along with this?!

She remembered the plan that came just before this one, and how they'd had to comfort each other while sipping hot chocolate after hours of freaking themselves out and jumping at shadows in that stupid, old, creepy, treasure-free house, but not how Operation: Bumble Through Sewer = Profit came to be.

"We just gotta find some shinies," proclaimed Sonata as she valiantly marched ahead with a stolen metal detector, thoughts of wealth and luxury drowning out the odors that would stick to her hair and clothing for days to come, "and we'll be filthy, stinking, and rich!"

Oh yea, Aria thought as she forsook any notions of correcting Sonata, that's right; she came to me babbling about how she'd heard there was tons of gold in the world's sewer systems and practically demanded that we either go look for it, or I come up with a better idea, because it was that or going crying to Adagio for money.

Aria had her doubts every step of the way here, but now she knew: Her failure to come up with any, any alternative to sifting through gallons and gallons of vile sludge in the hope of finding discarded, golden necklaces or something flushed down the toilet by careless idiots was something she was going to regret for the rest of her life. 

It had all seemed so easy, just a couple days before Adagio left; she was sure she could wait until Adagio wouldn't be around to get in the way, go to the studio, seize total control of everything Adagio had, and be in charge from then on, nothing Adagio could ever do to get on top again because of some legal stuff she'd have worked out when they got there. Nothing had gone the way she hoped, and now she and Sonata were in deep shit. Literally, if they weren't careful. They owned the house (well, Adagio owned the house, but it wasn't like she was gonna charge them rent), but they barely had enough to pay the bills last month and in a few more weeks, they'd be flat broke. 

But... maybe it wasn't too late?

Her pride had fiercely protested the very idea of it even when confronted with all of their failures up to this point, but she couldn't shake the feeling that maybe they really should have accepted Adagio's offer (to join her in being famous, not working at a fast food joint, obviously) after all. They could call Adagio, tell her they'd come join her, get on their knees and beg forgiveness if they had to, and finally be living on easy street. 

Then they could dupe and double-cross her whenever they wanted instead of having to start from scratch!

Even so, she practically had to force the words. "...Hey. Sonata?"

Still waving the metal detector around, Sonata didn't look back. "Yea?

"I've... I've been thinking, we-"

Sonata's metal detector bee-wooped to life, drawing a big smile from its holder. "We've got a bite, let's go!!"

She charged ahead, the rest of Aria's sentence coming out as a dejected sigh before she moved to follow. They ran through the sewer trying to find something that might be made of metal other than various pipes and fixtures, Aria unwilling to say out loud that if they were looking for gold people flushed, they should probably be searching the muck, not the comparatively clean walkways in the hopes that a pile of riches would just be randomly lying around. She knew it meant they were completely wasting their time this way, but at least they wouldn't be wasting their time and soaked in excrement. Besides, Sonata would get hungry and give up eventually.

Running around a corner that was getting a particularly lively response from the detector, they saw a man in shabby-looking clothes and messy hair. He turned to face them with a faraway look in his eyes, as though trying to discern whether the two girls were even real.

"It's beeping at this hobo," Sonata said while pointing the detector at him, her expression turning sweet. "Hey mister, do ya think you could spare us some gold?"

If not for the air here, Aria would have gaped. 

The homeless man mumbled something under his breath as Sonata gently poked him with the detector, still using her 'innocent girl' voice.

"C'moooon, you probably live here, you musta found something down here by now, right? Just give us a little!"

Aria leaned over while the transient idly eyed the detector and scratched himself. "Sonata, what the fuck?! If he had gold, don't you think he'd at least upgrade to living in a box on the street or something?!"

"I'unno, hobos are dumb! That's why they're hobos!"

"You do realize that we're on the verge of becoming hobos here."

"...So?"

Aria didn't have time to decide on explaining the subtleties of the thing to Sonata or just smacking her upside the head before the man in front of them said something that wasn't words and reached into the pocket of his ratty jacket, drawing a knife.

Aria ran like the foul-smelling wind, and was relieved to hear (though the acoustics of the sewer made it a little hard to tell) Sonata's terrified wails and footsteps closer to her than the hobo's heavy steps and inane gibbering. She could have sworn she heard a heavy thud, but didn't do the stupid horror movie heroine thing of turning back to look, just kept running until she was out of breath. It wasn't until Sonata stopped beside her, hands on her knees as she panted the putrid air, that Aria dared turn around. She let herself breathe a sigh of relief, but a loud rumbling noise from nearby got her to whip around again.

Staring at the two of them was a massive, monstrous crocodile, easily six meters long and two across, making Aria idly wonder how it got into this sewer in the first place. Not confident that she had it in her to flee for her life again so soon, Aria felt a cold dread that seeped all the way into her bones. Then she heard a distant voice echo through the tunnels.

"There it is!!"

Unconsciously, she turned her head to see the Rainbooms, all dressed up in their fancy Hero gear (save Rarity in a form-fitting hazmat suit), Rainbow Dash pointing in her direction.

Oh, fuck me with a shovel.


%%%


Meanwhile, in Santa Monica, Adagio sat in the cozy chair of her hotel room, idly looking over her schedule for this last week in/near Hollywood. Across from her was Chrysalis, comfortably stretched out in a provocative pose on the couch, but Adagio got the impression that it was less another attempt to seduce her and more that just being her resting state.

At least she's wearing pants this time.

"Hey," Chrysalis asked with a little smile, "it's been a while since our outing at the water park, right? I still haven't seen those friends of yours anywhere." She blinked, a contemplative look on her face. "Or, at least I don't think I have. What do they look like, anyway?"

Thumbing through her phone, Adagio smiled. "I'll show you, they're riiight..."

She trailed off, worry increasingly clear in her eyes. Chrysalis sat up, watching Adagio's entire body slowly lock up before she stopped searching, looking back at her with an unsettlingly stiff, uneasy grin.

"...I have no pictures of them."

An awkward little quiet ensued, Chrysalis briefly needing to look away. "You girls never, er, took selfies or anything together?"

Adagio softly shook her head. She'd heard of the activity, took a picture of herself once, felt self-conscious over the tiny, immortalized version of herself, and re-did it eight times before giving up and deleting them all, but never had a reason to take pictures of the others when they were pretty much always within easy reach anyway.

Which meant that, should something happen to them, she would have nothing. The rational part of her was already smoothing over the cracks and ripples in her mind by noting that it was extremely unlikely that she'd need to hire a detective or anything to look for them and the tour was almost over, so she'd be able to take their pictures soon anyway, but the cold tingles through her chest persisted. 

Chrysalis, for her part, did her best not to look as uncomfortable as she was getting.

She lost in thought again? There's gotta be a way I can have fun with that, but this girl looks like she's about to cry.

"So," she said with a peppy smile, "you picked out what you wanna wear for the game show?" She already knew the answer, but could see in an instant that this had the desired effect of shaking Adagio out of whatever sad little bubble she'd gotten herself into.

"Eh, uh... Yes, the, Poofy outfit. I'm there as a mascot, not as myself, so I don't think tight, glittering dresses would be allowed for me."

"Tight, glittering, short dresses," she corrected with a playful wink. "We'll be sitting at little counter-top things the whole time, so no one in the audience should even be able to see our lower bodies."

"I'm guessing it gets warm?"

Her smile tilted towards predatory. "It does when your fellow celebrity guests see your lovely legs."

"Ah." Her face utterly passive, Adagio's attention returned to her phone. "Good tip."

Adagio didn't even notice Chrysalis's wry smirk as she read over the message from Felt Feather.



[Inspections are complete.]


> Chapter 7: Conflict Resolution
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not confident that she could outrun the giant crocodile and even less confident that she could outrun Rainbow and her super speed, Aria just froze when she came charging in her direction, fist raised and screaming. It was just as she wondered if they could sue the Rainbooms for assault now that Rainbow rushed past her, straight to the croc, and punched it in the nose.

The croc roared with booming, percussive force, which wasn't something Aria thought crocodiles could do no matter their size, sending her, Sonata, and Rainbow hurtling into a concrete wall. Battered and dazed, she shakily got to her feet to witness the Rainbooms going after the croc, not her and Sonata, which was kind of a relief. They shouted orders at each other, bantered a bit, threw their super powers at it, but nothing stopped the croc for long as it snapped its huge jaws at them. 

"Pinkie," Not-Princess Twilight shouted over the sound of Fluttershy pleading with the monster to calm down, "use the sprinkles!"

"I can't," Pinkie cried back, distraught, "what if he's somebody's pet?!"

"Pinkie," grunted Applejack as she strained to hold the croc back by its tail, "you've gotta be the only person in the city that has a pet gator, an' this one's tryin' to eat us!!"

"Then why is he wearing a collar?!"

Sunset Shimmer's head tilted. "Collar?" Taking a closer look, she noticed the thick, leather band around the creature's neck; filthy and encrusted with sewer grime, but definitely not part of its body. "She's right! Maybe we can find out what happened to his owner!"

Twilight looked like she was just starting to smell this place. "What?! No, we-"

"Rainbow, can you distract it while Rarity makes a ramp to its head?"

Rainbow quickly saluted, then darted around in front of the croc, keeping its focus on her as Rarity created a magic-crystal-glass-thing leading from the ground beside the croc up to the spot between its eyes, which Sunset quickly ran up, nearly slipped and fell down, then scrambled to get over as Rarity tilted it a little for her. Landing on the beast's head, Sunset knelt down and touched an open palm to its scales, her eyes glowing as she took in the information.

"It's... some guy in a suit!"

Pinkie beamed. "So he is somebody's pet!"

Twilight's eye twitched as she raised her hands in exasperation. "And what do we do with that information right now?!"

Standing on the croc's head, Sunset scratched her own. "Uhh-"

With a violent motion of the croc's neck, she was tossed off, Twilight telekinetically catching her and setting her down at a safe distance before seizing the collar in her magic, then finding and undoing the buckle to remove it. Almost immediately, the creature and its collar began to shrink, the former stopping when it was just a little bit bigger than Pinkie's pet Gummy, the latter giving off a bluish, ethereal glow as it landed in Twilight's hand. She smiled.

"Oh, good, it was the collar." She turned to her inquisitive friends. "If this wasn't the biggest alligator in recorded history, I figured the rogue magic deposit was either on his body, or in it." Her smile vanished. "I don't know what we'd have done if it was something he ate making him that big."

The Rainbooms were collectively startled by Sonata's sudden question. "I thought it was a crocodile?"

Remembering that the two sirens were present, Twilight shook her head. "Uhh... No, it's, actually an alligator. You can tell the difference by the way its teeth-" she pointed to the little reptile in question as he stood idle, blinking one eye and then the other, "point up and down as opposed to all pointing down, and the snout is much-"

"Hey dweeb," Aria interrupted, a tiny act of spite for being secretly proven wrong as she pointed at Twilight's hand, "you're holding a poo-soaked collar."

She, Sonata, and most of the Rainbooms snickered as Twilight made a comically disgusted face and dropped the collar, trying to wipe off the grime on her skirt as Sunset looked at the sirens, a hint of suspicion in her eyes. 

"So, what are you two doing down here?"

"We're-"

"Isn't it obvious?!" Rainbow stepped forward with a glare, stopping just a little too close to Aria for personal space considerations. "They must'a been behind the gator!"

"No," Aria replied with obvious contempt as she shoved Rainbow away, "we were, uh... we were just-"

There was no way they would believe that she and Sonata honestly hoped to find-

"We were looking for lost gold," Sonata answered casually, "but there's nothing but bad smells and murder down here!"

Fluttershy paled. "Murder?"

Sonata ignored or didn't hear her, turning Rainbow's suspicious stare right back at her. "And what are you all doing down here?"

"We were looking into what we'd heard about a giant gator in the sewers," Sunset answered. "If it was true, we figured it had to be magic, and if it was, we were the only ones that might be able to do something about it. And," she raised an eyebrow, "you're looking for gold in a sewer?"

"It's a cover-up," Rainbow cut in before either siren could reply, "they're working for Adagio in secret, starting the real plan to get back at us!"

"Oh, get over yourself, Crayola," scoffed Aria with an eyeroll, "you idiots haven't even been on our radar in months."

While uncertain whether it was the sentiment or the nickname that made Rainbow angrier, Applejack yanked her back by her shirt anyway when she snarled and tried to get physical again. "Then you two ain't seen them commercials?"

Aria raised an eyebrow. "What, 'Rainbow Sugar Patrol'? Yea, it was kinda funny the first seven or eight times, but we didn't do anything for 'em." Though she wasn't sure why, it annoyed her that the Rainbooms shared a confused look before Twilight With Glasses asked. 

"Why is that, anyway? Aren't the three of you a team?"

"If we still were, would we still be here while she's bumping fists with random celebrities?"

There was a contemplative pause.

"You could be," Rainbow offered weakly, "if she was scheming to do something back here with-"

"Save it," snapped Aria, "if you're just looking for an excuse to take your frustrations out on us like you tried with that gator, you're not gonna find it!"

"Yea," added Sonata, fist raised and a confident grin on her face, "and if you try anyway, we really will get to sue you!"

Rainbow's eyes narrowed. "Sue?! You really are up to something!" She turned to her friends. "Let's get 'em!"

"Um, no," a glowing-eyed Sunset immediately replied as she stood with one hand on Aria's shoulder and the other on Rainbow's forehead, "because she's telling the truth, on both accounts."

Aria immediately took a step back, nearly slipping off a ledge and falling in feces before looking at Sunset in horror. "What the fuck?! Did you just-"

"Aha," declared Sonata, now pointing at Sunset, "inappropriate brain-touching! That's totally sexual harassment!"

"Go back to sleep, Sonata!"

Uncertain as to whether or not the sirens had a legitimate case against Sunset's clearly unwanted glimpse into Aria's mind or if she and Sonata could afford a decent lawyer (or if she, Sunset, and the rest could afford the legal bill if it came to that), with or without Adagio's help, Twilight quickly moved things along. "Why are the three of you apart? Do your jobs not allow you to take some time off and even visit her, or...?" 

The especially icy glare she got for this said that this was a sensitive subject, prompting her to take a step back. Not enough to hide behind Applejack, but enough to keep the maneuver easily available!

"It looked like they chose to stay here even when Adagio was offering," Sunset casually answered, "but I didn't go deep enough to see why."

"Seriously," Aria said as her head whipped in Sunset's direction, "how have you not been arrested for doing that?"

"Because there isn't a law in this world about magic use?"

"Even when it's a matter of privacy invasion? Which I'm pretty sure is illegal?"

"...Uhh-"

"Right, I forgot," Aria said through a facepalm, "the Rainbow Sugar Patrol can do whatever they want and everyone else just better be okay with it, right?" A thought sunk in over the ensuing silence, deflating her irritation on the spot. "...Not that I should be judging. I mean, that's exactly what I wanted to use my powers for, so, glass houses. Good for you guys, really, you keep doin' your thing." She turned to walk away. "Let's go, Sonata."

Lacking anything to add to the stunned looks on the Rainbooms' faces, Sonata settled for sticking her tongue out, immediately regretting the taste of sewer air, and following Aria. This may have been just enough to spur Rarity into indignant action, because she scoffed, hastily marching around to block Aria's path. The squeaky sounds of her hazmat suit may have diminished the serious, imposing tone of her face and body language.

"Now wait just a minute! I'll admit that perhaps we aren't always subject to consequences when magic is involved, but we use our powers to help people, something I doubt the three of you ever even considered doing! Is it really that much of a leap that we might be afforded some leniency on account of the good we've done, not just the-"

Not really interested in spelling out that only occasionally abusing their power was still abusing their power, Aria glared at Rarity, grabbed the helmet/hood/thing of her hazmat suit in both hands, popped it off, and flung it over her shoulder.

Her pupils shrinking to pinpricks, Rarity gasped, immediately regretting it as the foul air assaulted her inside and out. She dropped to her knees with one hand extended dramatically to the ceiling, then fell on her side, choking, sputtering, and clutching at her throat as Aria stared at her in disdain before stepping over her and moving on, Sonata in tow.

Despite her friend's dismay, Sunset giggled. "I liked that movie too."

"What movie is that?"

Hearing the unfamiliar, adult male voice from behind them, the Rainbooms (bar Rarity) whipped around to see a filthy man in shabby clothes, holding the alligator in both arms as though it were a cat.

"Uh," Applejack began, "howdy. Who're you?"

Gently stroking the gator on the top of its head and drawing a happy chirp, he smiled. "My name is Rough Diamond, and I've been roaming these corridors in search of my beloved pet, Snappers."

Snappers moved his head to brush his snout against his owner's chin, drawing a chuckle as he again pet the little alligator.

Following a brief silence, Rainbow dared ask. "That's... your pet?"

"Yes, and my life had simply fallen apart without my Snappers, but now I can get back to my cold fusion research in peace."

Most of the Rainbooms gaped. Pinkie beamed.

"Oh," he added as he started toward the exit, "and you girls should be careful down here, there are some strange young women with a metal detector hunting for gold of all things. Took off and ran when I tried to tell them they were most likely picking up my granddad's lucky pocket knife."

His distant footsteps had ceased to echo by the time any of the Rainbooms made a sound again, in the form of Rarity scoffing as she got to her feet. "Really? Not one of you was going to help me?"

Applejack rolled her eyes. "We've been doin' fine without yer fancy 'full-body protection,' Rarity, it ain't gonna kill ya."

"But the smell will take WEEKS to wash out of our hair!!"

"More importantly," Sunset said with a smile, "we stopped the giant gator and reunited him with a loved one. Sewers, sirens, and questionable ethics aside, I'd call that a pretty good day, wouldn't you?"

Her friends smiled in kind. Maybe they weren't perfect themselves, but they knew they strove to do the right thing whenever they could, which, to them, was enough. 

Holding up a handful of sprinkles, Pinkie giggled. "Sooo glad I didn't need to use these; if I had to blow up an alligator, I might never have been able to look Gummy in the eye again!"

Time briefly slowed for the other six Rainbooms as Pinkie moved her arm to chuck the sprinkles over her shoulder. Directly into the river of raw sewage.

"PINKIE, NOOOO!!"





























In the following weeks, Rarity had the tact not to say anything about hazmat suits.


%%%


With the Eezy-Cheezy tour bus/trailer/thing (Adagio still hadn't properly learned the name for such a vehicle) not in operation for the duration of their stay in Hollywood and Adagio having procured her own key for it long in advance (Plan D if the Rainbooms attacked her here was looking less and less likely to reach execution), it made for a nice, quiet meeting place. All Adagio had to do was walk out to the surprisingly spacious garage it was kept in, call Cheese Sandwich, politely ask him to meet her there, and wait. 

If Cheese suspected anything, he didn't show it, because he answered the call in his usual, cheerful tones, agreed to come see her without hesitation, and was climbing aboard within minutes. He didn't even ask how she got his number.

"Hey, 'Dagi-O!"

Sitting by the little table next to a window (that she knew Felt Feather, hiding in the garage, would be able to see), she offered a friendly little smile and gestured to the seat across from her. "Thanks for coming. Please, have a seat."

"I'd rather not, but I'll sure sit on it!"

Her outward expression unchanging, she pieced together what he meant as he sat down. "...Right. I just wanted to talk about the fan gifts you've been bringing me."

It was subtle, but she was sure his smile shrank a little. "Nothing wrong with 'em, is there? Does everything taste okay?"

Her own smile faintly grew. "They taste fine, Mr. Sandwich, not the least because there was no trace of anything the slightest bit unusual found in the most recent batch." As anticipated, that won a look of surprise, but she didn't stop smiling. "I won't bore you with the details, but when I learned that all of my mail was to be directed through specific channels, not just randomly dropped off, I couldn't help doing a little digging."

Having accepted that she didn't know Cheese Sandwich well enough to predict his next move, Adagio just waited. If worst came to worst, she'd hope her hands were quick enough to use the taser she'd been given and that Felt Feather was paying close attention.

To her surprise, he just sighed and frowned. "I'm sorry I lied to you." He took her own smile being replaced by an inquisitive stare to mean 'Why did you lie,' not 'why are you sorry about the lying,' so he answered the first one. "I've noticed it since the day you started at Eezy-Cheezy, but you don't smile a lot, not even now unless you're onstage, and you usually look, I don't know, not miserable, but, sad or maybe just wistful sometimes. I figured you might brighten up, and you might not, it wasn't really my business, but when you invited me along for this thing-" his smile made a brief, but strong return, "which has been a hoot, by the way! -I thought it was only fair that I try a little harder to make you as happy as me and Gouda about all this. I don't know if it's just that you've been missing your friends back home or what, but if my usual songs and pulling stuff out of nowhere weren't helping, I thought I'd try tasty stuff!"

His face grew guilty. "But, well, I know what it looks like when a guy gives a girl sweets, and I didn't wanna make you think I was being all-" he made a comically exaggerated 'suave' face in tandem with an exaggerated French accent here, briefly popping a fedora onto his head, "-'oh-hoh-hoh, I gave you DEE-LISH-USH food, now you have to go out with me!' or anything like that, but when you just say that, it looks like you're trying to reverse-psychology the other person into just that because then you've got them thinking about it and that wasn't gonna make you happier at all, so I lied and said it was just from random fans!"

There was a pause as Adagio went over his story in her head. Knowing what she knew of Cheese Sandwich, it certainly fit. He was always trying to get people to smile, always trying to string as many people as possible into celebrating every little thing, but...

She offered a faint grin. "Perhaps I should be apologizing too. I've seen you doing what you do, even with random customers back in Canterlot when you had the time, but I've gotten so... accustomed to people treating me a little differently, for one reason or another, that I don't think I even entertained the idea that you were just being nice. Trying to woo me was one consideration, yes, the other being that you had heard about me prior to my employment and had some kind of plan brewing."

He raised an eyebrow, confused. "'Heard about you'?"

So he didn't know. Or, at the very least, he's still pretending. If the latter, I can only guess why he would bother.

She'd come up with a few cover stories, a few feasible lies for things she might have been involved in other than the Battle, but if this whole situation sprung from not being forthcoming...? "I was the cause of a magical crisis at Canterlot High, and would have made adoring thralls of... well, at least a whole town, but probably a nicer one than Canterlot."

His eyes widened considerably. If she weren't so focused on his response, it might have even been comical. "You're one of those magic-from-another-dimension people I kept hearing about?"

"Well-"

He beamed. "That's awesome!! Can you ride a broom or cast Thundaga or turn into a big, honking dragon? Or even a non-honking one, which would probably be most of them! Oh, what about-"

"No," she interrupted, "I couldn't do any of those things even before I lost the bulk of my power."

The smile faded. "Aw, shoot." Then it came back. "Welp, maybe it'll come back some day? If it does, just lemme know, I can totally hook you up with a black, pointy hat, and a big ol' cauldron!" His levity receded a little. "You'll have to come up with the giant spoon on your own, though."

"That's, er, good to know, thank you." 

Actually, the hat thing gave her an idea, but now wasn't the time. He wasn't bothered by her being a magical monster, that was what she'd meant to find out. That and what he was up to with the snacks he'd been bringing her. She wasn't even going to need the recording she'd been taking of all this now. All she really had left was some idle curiosity, and a question she unwittingly indulged with a mild frown.

"Do I really look sad to you?"

"Yup." The immediate reply made her flinch, so he tried to make it better with a little smile. "It's not like, just-waiting-for-the-end-for-hollow-is-my-soul misery or anything, or, it doesn't look like that from the outside, but you should totally get help if it is, but, yea, if I were to look at you on any given day when you weren't Poofy-ing it up? I'd probably think you weren't super thrilled about life, which is weird for someone that gets to ride around on a party bus and be rich and famous!" He blinked, starting to sweat. "Uh, not that I'm trying to say that alone should make you happy or that I think you're shallow enough to be set for life with just fame and fortune, just that, you seem about as happy now as you were before, which isn't very much!"

Taking a moment to absorb all that, she snorted, devolving into quiet gigglefits as he hesitantly smiled back at her. 

"Did you really think I was trying to poison you?"

She gently shook her head. "Not at first, at least not until I knew that you were lying to me."

He looked back at her with a hint of guilt. "Ehh, yea, I can sorta see how you'd pin the tail on that donkey."

The urge was there to outline what else she'd thought up when guessing at his true intentions, like giving her plain, unaltered food several times to get her used to taking food from him, then poison or drug her when she least expected it, or just make her think she'd been poisoned in the hope that she'd rush off to the nearest source of an antidote and, given that unneeded antivenom can be just as lethal as venom in the right circumstances, unwittingly end herself by trying to counter nonexistent toxins, if not injecting herself with real, more lethal poison in the antidote arranged beforehand. However, even though Cheese appeared to be a much kinder person than she'd come to suspect, there was no need to give him such ideas. 

On that note, she still had something she wanted to say, and wasn't sure how.

...Being direct has gained me more progress in understanding him than all of our previous interactions combined.

Taking a breath, she was able to smile. "You're a very nice boy, Cheese Sandwich, but I feel I should say right now that there's no chance of anything happening between us."

He just chuckled, casually waving a hand. "Oh, don't worry about it, I'm gay!"

Adagio's jaw dropped. "Y-you're...?"

"Yup! As in 'happy' and as in 'likes men'!"

Smiling brightly, Adagio clasped her hands together. "Oh, that is such a relief! F-for a moment there," she said with a giggle she couldn't quite keep down, "I was worried how it would look if you knew inviting you along had been my idea, which I did because you helped me during that first commercial, and that it would look like we were getting closer with this little talk and then I'd have to go and sour the whole thing with that, but-"

"Nope!" 

It looked like Adagio was still trying to say something, but seeing her laugh like this just had him smiling from ear to ear, so he laughed right along with her! In the back of his mind, he knew that she'd probably be back to the usual, not-quite-frowny-but-definitely-not-happy-faced Adagio before long, but for now, this was something. 

Eventually, Adagio got a hold of herself, wiping away a tear as she reigned in her gigglefits. "Well, I... I think that was all I wanted to talk about. Thank you for coming, Cheese Sandwich."

He chuckled. "Any time, 'Dagi-O! Now if you'll excuse me," he said while donning a viking helmet, "I promised the guys at the dock a sea shanty, and the theme is Norse mythology! Catch ya later!"

Once more, Adagio watched as he got up and bounded off, away to make a nuisance of himself for all things bleak and depressing. 

Then it struck her what going to meet 'the guys' at a dock might have meant in the context of his last revelation to her, making her blush and giggle scandalously.

Well, she thought as she got to her feet, stretched, and started toward the bus door, it's not guaranteed that that's what he's up to, but I can hardly begrudge him his vices, can I? 

She had barely stepped off the bus when she saw Felt Feather, standing there waiting for her. "Hello, Madam. I trust that all went well with Cheese Sandwich?"

Giggling, she nodded. "Yes, I think so." Then a thought occurred. "Wait, weren't you nearby the whole time?"

"Yes, but you instructed me to keep an eye on the two of you through the bus window for the duration of your discussion. I could see, but not hear your conversation. Having me hide in the stall, under a seat, in an internal compartment, or otherwise obscured from sight, perhaps under a large blanket thrown over a few seats, would have offered the opposite scenario, had that been your wish."

Blinking twice, Adagio facepalmed.
> Chapter 8: Private Thoughts
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Then, it was all essentially a misunderstanding?"

Sitting in the hot tub in her hotel room (with Felt standing fully clothed by the door after having declined to join her) with her eyes on the horizon offered by the high window, Adagio giggled. "Yes! He wanted to repay me for the act that I was trying to use to repay him!" She shook her head a little. "Perhaps the worst part is that all of this could have been avoided if we'd just been open and honest with one another from the start." Looking over her shoulder, she gave Felt an apologetic smile. "Sorry I made you go through the trouble of testing that last bag for nothing."

As usual, there was little physical reaction. "It was not difficult. Truth be told, I am uncertain as to whether or not my methods were sufficient in determining the composition of the Swiss cake rolls."

"So that's what those things were called," Adagio muttered to herself.

"I first researched common date-rape drugs and other possible substances, found that you showed no symptoms since the previous delivered meal, procured another set of cake rolls from a local shop (they were not completely identical, which may mean that Mr. Sandwich made the ones he gave you himself), dissected one from each set, analyzed the color, texture, and scent, looked at samples of both under a microscope-"

"Where did you get a microscope?"

"I know a guy."

"...Alright then."

"In all my testing, I could not find anything out of the ordinary about Mr. Sandwich's gift. I even took the bag to a canine unit training facility, where the dogs did not react to it in the slightest." In response to her employer's very slow blink, she raised an index finger in a matter-of-fact manner. "I do not know what the most reliable methods of testing for drugs are, but we were able to proceed with the maximum possible level of confidence that Mr. Sandwich was not drugging you, merely dishonest when delivering free snacks."

Chuckling, Adagio nodded. "Apart from that, he's a good person. I don't even need to worry about things getting awkward, minor concern though that seems now, because he's not interested in women, meaning I don't have to worry about him pursuing me!"

One of Felt's eyebrows rose just enough to be perceptible in good lighting. "Had that been bothering you? You stated just a moment ago that he was a good person and your interactions with Miss Chrysalis indicate that you are interested only in the opposite sex."

Shrugging her shoulders, Adagio turned around to fully face Felt, leaning on the rim of the hot tub with her chin on her folded arms. "Yes, but, well..." She chuckled, a simpering smile on her face. "Feel free to sugarcoat it a little, but do I seem like a good person?"

There was a long, anxiety-stirring pause as Adagio waited for her stoic maid to tear into her not unlike Aria and Sonata had so many times, but the reply came as calmly and evenly as usual.

"I could not say so in those exact terms, because while you carry a faintly malevolent aura and, in my personal experience, have proven underhanded and calculating, you do not necessarily seem like a bad person either."

Adagio frowned. "I've done some terrible things, Felt Feather. Perhaps nothing I could be convicted for now, but terrible things all the same. Most recently, my first instinct was to scheme against Mr. Sandwich rather than confront him directly, and I tend not to fight fair when given half a chance."

Granted, knowing that they were up against the kind of power she'd seen from the diner window that night, there wasn't really much incentive, or possibility, to fight 'fair.' Much less when that same power ended up hitting them anyway through nothing short of a miracle or two. But still!

Felt tilted her head to one side. "If I may speak frankly, Madam?" She waited for Adagio to nod before actually doing so. "Don't make me laugh." 

Blinking in surprise, Adagio noted that if nothing else, Felt's perfectly straight face implied that laughter would not be an issue.

"I have worked for bad people before, Madam, and while I may not know all of your history, what I have seen does not remotely compare to the levels of greed, sleaze, and narcissism I have had to put up with and even cater to while employed by some of the wealthiest individuals in this part of the world. I bring this up because I believe it is not impossible that you may one day find a kind young man, not unlike Mr. Sandwich, with which to settle down. There may be many out there much kinder than you, but the same goes for countless people, and though, yes, I suppose I find my gratification in life through enabling such behavior, selfishness is extremely common, whereas sainthood is not."

Briefly at a loss for words, Adagio idly twirled a lock of damp, curly hair around a finger while studying the hotel decor. "You mean to say that while I'm not a very nice person, the awareness that there are worse people in the world and that people in general all have their dark sides is a... selling point of mine?"

"Perhaps not a 'selling point,' but not a detraction, and any man wholeheartedly in search of a pure and perfect maiden will be searching for a very long time. That in mind," Adagio wasn't looking at her, but the tiny curve of her lips carried into her tone, "I was hoping that you might consider extending my service, because even if I have only served under you for about a month now, I find myself with a balanced workload while never being asked to do anything criminal or demeaning, and-" there was a faint gleam in her eyes, "-what little questionable behavior you've asked me to partake in -the business with the rolls has been the peak, and even that had a substantial reason behind it- keeps things interesting, and it is very gratifying to work for someone that makes the most of my abilities."

Adagio snorted, amused, "Maybe we can renew your contract when the time comes. However, I probably won't be staying in this area for life, are you alright with moving somewhere less-"

"Yes."

The quickness of the reply and Felt's unwavering stare (though she was kind of always like that) caught Adagio off-guard, leaving them in silence for a moment. 

Maybe she has some personal reasons for not being attached to this place. Come to think of it, perhaps she got here by following an employer from somewhere and couldn't, or wouldn't, go back? I probably shouldn't pry.

"Well," Adagio said with a little smile, "I'm still looking at houses elsewhere, but-"

She was interrupted yet again, this time by a knock at the door. Adagio got out of the tub and grabbed a towel, Felt waiting until she was adequately covered before opening it with her permission.

"Hey, 'Dagi-O! I came to deliver Sorry For Being Kind Of Shady goodies without pretense this time!" Taking stock of the wet, towel-clad girl in front of him, he frowned and looked away. "Ooh, sorry, didn't know you were in the middle of a bath."

Stepping close enough to take the bag, she giggled. "It's fine, I'm only wearing a towel because I was in the hot tub and..." Setting the bag on a nearby dresser, she shrugged. "Well, suppose I don't really need this now, do I?"

She stripped the towel off and flung it onto a chair, drawing a rare blush from Felt Feather.

"Er, M-Madam, you-"

"It's fine," she giggled, enjoying the feeling of freedom, "Mr. Sandwich here doesn't even like girls."

It was when she turned to look at him that she noticed Cheese Sandwich's face, beet red and sharply turned away, the bulge of muscles in his neck saying it was taking considerable effort to do so. 

He coughed. "Er, I-I'm not, uh, interested in having a woman f-for a life partner, but have you seen your hips?"

Her eyes widening to the size of saucers as her pupils shrunk to pinpricks, Adagio froze in embarrassment, flushing even hotter when she heard a wolf-whistle.

"Well now," chuckled Chrysalis, leaning in the doorway with a bright, beaming smile on her face, "I'd hoped you would take our bare skin talk at the pool to heart! Feels good, doesn't it?"

Adagio didn't respond with more than crouching down and trying to cover herself with her own hair, mostly succeeding despite it being wet.

Still flushed, Cheese loosed an awkward chuckle as he scratched the back of his head. "I ran into her on the way here, she asked where I was headed, I told her, and she asked to tag along, and I kinda thought, 'the more the merrier!', so-"

He was cut off by Felt gently, but firmly grabbing him by the arm to drag him to the door and push him and Chrysalis out into the hall. The latter's complaints were ignored as she shut and locked the door on them, turning back to look at her mortified employer, who remained all but curled into a ball as she attempted to cover her luminous face with both hands. Felt paced over, bent down, and kept her voice soft and gentle.

"Chocolate or vanilla?"

She listened for a moment and was sure she heard a murmured "Chocolate, please."

Felt nodded, and heading off to procure a milkshake.

As I suspected; she prefers chocolate when stressed.


%%%


Dark carpets and bright lights were the first things they noticed as they stepped into the casino. The theme of the place was apparently 'Japanese,' which meant it was saturated with imagery of dragons, ancient weaponry, huge, Japanese-style writing on things, paper walls and doors, unintentionally spooky-looking geishas, and those rooftops made up of a bunch of curved plates sitting atop most of the slot machines.

Some relatively sexy outfits and a little makeup were enough to convince those at the door that Aria and Sonata were perfectly old enough to come in here, which had been Aria's main problem with this plan. Trailing closely behind it was the fact that the plan was to come in, gamble for a few hours, and walk out millionaires through Sonata Dusk's skill in that field. Even though she had come home bare-ass naked in the middle of the night last time. 

While reminding her of that had been fun, Sonata had managed to get her way by reminding Aria that they were running out of time, money, and ideas, so here they were two towns over at a casino in which Sonata hadn't been publicly humiliated. She'd insisted it was a feng-shui thing (Aria hadn't had time to Google whether or not that was the right word), that going somewhere she'd already had bad luck would just be more bad luck, but Aria was content not to be seen with a big, naked loser.

Aria didn't say a word as Sonata traded good money (just everything they had left) for chips at the front desk, and not just because coming here at all was a full, unspoken admission that she didn't have any better ideas. The only person who would have backed her up in arguing against this plan was off making people fat with dumb commercials and cholesterol, but Aria could already feel the smug satisfaction of getting up to her level through the means she'd specifically told them to avoid.

Was it just to spite her? Maybe a little, but Sonata sounded really, really confident when she proposed this, so Aria would do her best to be nothing but supportive as the dealer gave Sonata her cards. It was for the same reason that Aria bit her tongue when Sonata lost the first few hands, but Sonata had spent the whole trip over swearing up and down that she knew what she was doing, that she knew how to use her innocent face to get people off-guard and just had really bad luck last time. 

Aria being here meant that she could at least stop Sonata from betting her clothes if everything went south this time, too.

Despite not doing so well for the first forty-five minutes of card games, Sonata still looked pretty confident. About half an hour later, she had earned enough to be back where she started, which was when she picked up steam. An hour later, she had triple that amount, rarely losing hands at all. By the end of the third hour, Aria wasn't sure how much money the mountain of chips amounted to, but she bet it was more than Adagio'd be getting paid in a year. Watching the other players sweat and grimace at their cards, Aria chuckled.

"This is goin' pretty good."

Sonata grinned brightly over her shoulder. "Toldja I knew what I was doing!"

Still smiling, Aria playfully smacked Sonata on the back of the head, but before she could say anything about getting cocky, she saw the cards fall out of the fringe of Sonata's hair. From the way the rest of the table went dead silent, they all saw it too.

Smiling sheepishly, Sonata giggled. "Uh, 'ah-choo'?"

Everyone stood up, which was when Aria and Sonata bolted. The two barely made it out the door with security hot on their heels, sprinting down the street with none of their ill-gotten winnings as they shouted at each other.

"I thought you knew what you were doing!!"

"I did; nobody noticed last time!!"

"And you still lost?!"

"Oh, shut up!!"


%%%


That night, after having had to show some leg to get someone to drive them home and feed them, Aria lay awake in bed, mindlessly thumbing random apps on her phone in the vain hope that any of them could take her mind off of her constant stream of failures since Adagio left. They didn't even keep her from realizing that the record technically started that very same day, when she refused to just go with her at no cost to anything but her pride, which might just have been the single stupidest thing she'd ever done.

What about signing on with Adagio in the first place? That just went great all around, didn't it?

Well, yea, until she refused to flatten that stupid wizard. Wouldn't even let us do it, no matter what he threw at us.

It had made so much sense, back when they first got together. There was the three of them, their new, super-powered magic, and the whole world ahead of them. Hell, even after they got banished, things weren't that bad, because the daily scrounging for negative energy only took a few hours and they could pretty much do whatever with the rest of the day. Making money was a lot easier, and even if Aria never quite agreed with Adagio's "they pay insanely close attention to where money goes in this world" explanation as to why they couldn't just live in their own palace, they were comfortable.

Now she and Sonata couldn't pay the electric bill, had to discreetly charge their phones elsewhere to get by (flashlight apps were helpful, Aria had learned), and nearly every meal was literally fast food. Not that it was making Sonata any fatter, at least.

Her thumb stopped on the Phone app, which made her jaw clench for just a moment. Try as she might not to be, she was overwhelmingly aware that this predicament, facing poverty while Adagio was out walking red carpets and rolling around in big piles of money, was entirely her own stupid fault. 

It was only a matter of time (granted, this was in weeks, months, maybe even years) before Sonata figured that out too, which meant they'd argue again, Sonata would blame her for everything in the exact same way she did to Adagio right after the Battle, and either Aria would become the new Worst in their group, she'd have to bust her ass to support the two of them because everything was her fault, or she'd be on her own. Maybe she could convince Sonata that she'd be screwed if they split up, but there was no doubt in her mind that Sonata would go crying to Adagio about how bad life under Aria was, probably say she beat her or something, too, and shamelessly cozy up to the closest source of a safe, easy life she could get. Which would still leave Aria alone if she didn't do the same thing. The thought of it burned her eyes and brought a sour, sickly feeling to her mouth as she glared at the phone. 

Aria Blaze had two settings for dealing with this kind of stress; Rage and Tears, and she wasn't about to cry now. Tapping the phone app, she sat up, raring to tell Adagio off once and for all as she waited through the ringing noises. Maybe she could make sure she never even came back to find just how badly they had messed up the house.

Despite it being close to one in the morning, Adagio picked up, almost audibly shaking herself awake as she softly answered. "Hello?"

In a blink, Aria was distantly shocked to find all of her anger ebbing away, leaving her voice a decidedly unintimidating whisper. "Uh... hi?"

"Aria?" She could hear the hesitant grin in Adagio's voice, as though she were testing the waters. "You haven't called me since I left... Or answered my calls. E-everything alright? If I was just calling at bad times, you could have texted me ideal hours or someth-"

"It's not that," Aria again surprised herself by giggling, "just..."

Her mind blanked, but she couldn't have told the truth if she wanted to, so she changed the subject.

"How've ya been? Everything okay in TV Land?" She immediately winced at the hint of suppressed disappointment in Adagio's tone.

"Oh, yes, things are, er, fine... Champagne, caviar, et cetera. We're not physically old enough for champagne and I don't really like caviar, but it's around here somewhere if I did. What have you two been up to? Have either of you found work?"

Feeling herself sweat now, Aria spat out the lie before she could get her thoughts together. "Well, sorta, just, things didn't really work out for long anywhere and-"

"You haven't found jobs since I left?"

Rage bubbled up again with indignance at its back, but Aria kept a lid on both. "Not really, and things have-"

There was a special kind of dread that could come from hearing a tone as flat as the one Adagio used. "You're calling to ask for money."

Remembering her actual reason and sensing death, Aria opened her mouth to let loose everything she'd originally planned to say, only to be cut off by a suddenly worried Adagio.

"Wait, if you haven't been able to find lasting work, did you run out?! I left what I did with the assumption that you'd both be looking for jobs, but-"

Smelling opportunity, Aria jumped on it like Sonata on a plate of shrimp. "Well, we kinda needed a car for one job..."

"Oh! I didn't even account for- H-how much did-"

"And it turned out to be a dud," Aria added, smiling as her narrative came together, "broke down on the side of the road within a week, so we were out a job and a ride. But hey, at least we'd gotten it cheap!"

"Oh, sea spray!! Do you two have anything left?"

For a second, Aria thought about spinning a tale about how the house had been broken into and ransacked while they were out looking for work (which would explain the mess she and Sonata never cleaned from when they were desperately searching for more money stashes), but wasn't sure whether she wanted to save that one for when Adagio got back or not. "Some, but like... You know how the Rainbooms fuckin' own this town? At least as far as everyone unconditionally believing them over us because heroes can do no wrong? Ever?"

"Oh, dear."

"Yea. Getting work hasn't been easy, same as before you left, and moving would cost us a bundle, so-"

"I get it, I can set you two up with an account and mail you a card first thing in the morn-ooh, wait, maybe if I call someone now, I could-"

"Account? Wait, you finally knuckled down and-"

"Yes," Adagio admitted with a quiet sigh, an audible smile coming through the phone, "I found out that I couldn't exactly get away with stuffing all the money I accumulated into little hidey-holes when out on the road and such, so... Credit cards are handy, so long as you're careful, but for the record? I still don't like them."

Aria snorted in earnest amusement. "I'll bet. How much longer is the tour?"

"A couple weeks, but I'll be on the way home by the end of this week, and the card should reach you much sooner."

She knew she could ask exactly how much Adagio was giving them, but it felt safer not to. "Okay. So, see you when you get home?"

"Yes, I'll... see you!"

Beep!

"Heh," Aria muttered to herself as the call ended, flopping back down on her bed, "she sounded so happy."



































"...Oh, hey there, Guilt! Yea, I knew you were coming, but I didn't save a seat for you, so you'll just have to stand on my head."



%%%


"Hello aaaaaand welcome, to Tinseltown Rhombuses!!"

Even knowing that some of it was for her, the cheering of the audience was essentially white noise to Adagio as she, in the shoes of Poofy, sat in a little booth set in a wall of little booths, all facing the same direction and some stacked on top of each other to form some kind of giant game board, each booth framed in a brightly-colored rhombus. While perplexed that they hadn't gone with 'Tinseltown Diamonds,' which equally befit the shapes while casting a brighter, more glamorous image, the specifics of the game meant very little to her.

"First up," announced the host, some permanently-smiling man in a tasteful suit after introducing the two contestants, "we have the coin-toss!"

A digital, impossibly shiny coin rendered in high definition was flipped on a big screen to decide which contestant would go first; a middle-aged-looking woman as indistinct as any member of the audience.

"Contestant #1, who is said to have turned everything they touched into gold?"

The contestant, in line with the rules of the game, had to ask someone in one of the booths, and with a smile, selected Poofy in one of the top corners.

Smiling brightly, Poofy immediately twisted the question into a sales pitch. "Our cooks at Eezy-Cheezy!"

As anticipated, this won laughs from the audience, contestants, host, and her fellow celebrity guests in other booths, which she waited through before answering in earnest.

"King Midas."

The contestant accepted her answer, 'scoring' Poofy's rhombus, and ending Poofy's part in the game. There were plenty of other guests, Iron Will, Sapphire Shores, and some Adagio didn't recognize among them, but the only one that got her attention was Chrysalis, sitting in the booth next to hers.

"Not bad," she said away from her microphone, "gave a funny answer and no doubt pleased the corporate overlords."

Adagio smiled a little. "Thanks. Try to keep your answer clean, would you?"

The older(?) woman chuckled, a sharkish smile on her lips as she eyed the young man filling in as Contestant #2 today. "But of course..."

She probably could have gotten a laugh in listening to Chrysalis and other celebrity guests' answers, but her thoughts were more occupied with events just a few days prior. Felt Feather had provided drinks to go with the sugar cookies Cheese had brought her, which certainly helped her calm down after her mortifying mistake with the towel.

Felt really had proven indispensable to her recently, and not just for fetching refreshments. The woman seemed to be defined by her work, not happy unless she was doing something for someone. This was in stark contrast to Aria and Sonata, who would (often begrudgingly, in the former's case) follow orders exclusively for the benefits of success, which wasn't unreasonable, just... different. Felt was very different from those two.

Different from most people, in fact. While Adagio could see the benefits of such dedication, she recognized another difference in that most people (more like Aria and Sonata) worked specifically towards an end, not for the work itself, and being so absorbed in working toward one's goals that one never actually got to taste the fruits of their labor was self-defeating. She didn't want to become that kind of person herself. She had certainly seen enough of this world to conclude that people did that all the time; committing more and more hours to their jobs while feeling fewer and fewer benefits, all in the hope that it would pay off later. That "later" might be pushed back years, even decades, to the point that all the work accomplished might even feel like a waste, but there had to be a balance between the Felt Feathers and the Q. Chrysalises of the world, and the closest link she could find was that-

"Speak up, Maggot," boomed Drill Sergeant Spitfire from one of the middle-row rhombuses, her face presented on the big screen on which the coin had been flipped, "you're on national air!"

Contestant #2, who had apparently dawdled in selecting which rhombus he wanted to attempt to claim, straightened up, stuttering out his choice of Spitfire's rhombus. 

After Spitfire barked out an answer to a question Adagio didn't hear, she noted the tiny hint of a satisfied smirk on the officer's lips as the contestant went with her answer. 

The closest link, she thought, was that Chrysalis and Felt Feather enjoyed their work, in both the journey and the destination, the end goal and the steps to get there, and it seemed to her that the problem lay in working far past one's tolerance for their labor. It seemed like a safe bet that Chrysalis could be pushed to take enough roles and act out enough scenes that she would inevitably burn out, and surely there was only so much Felt Feather could be tasked with before wearing down, but how many people had the option of working just enough to be satisfied?

She couldn't say, but she could keep her own limits in mind when going about her own occupation, and making time to reap the benefits of it all when she could. It was something she hadn't really done so much when they had the gems; always hoarding as much power as possible for the biggest possible payoff, only to have it all taken away when her long-awaited opportunity came. Nor before the Eezy-Cheezy's first commercial, months in which she eventually lost track of just how long she'd spent hiding in the back room by herself when she had the chance, hours of-

It didn't matter now. The tour would bring them back to Canterlot as part of a 'humble beginnings' thing at the original location, and then it would be over. She'd probably still be making commercials here and there, be asked to make appearances as Poofy, but she'd be free to finally buy her house and live, and after months on the road, it would be good to see Aria and Sonata again.


%%%


"Lemonade! Get'cher cold, sweet, yellow lemonade!"

Aria chuckled as Sonata's contagious enthusiasm got to her. A lemonade stand was about as far from glamorous work as they could get, but their humble, wooden storefront just outside their house, a pitcher, cooler full of ice cubes, basket of appropriated lemons, and a few other supplies were enough to make them about sixteen dollars so far.

Giggling as their most recent customer walked off with a plastic cup of refreshment, Sonata sat down beside her. "I know we're not using it right now, but man, it's great to have electricity again!"

Still smiling, Aria rolled her eyes. "We only went without for like a week."

"Yea, but that week totally sucked! We should'a asked for money way sooner!"

"And we'll get it," nodded Aria, skimming over the implied failure on her part, "but right now, we gotta have something that looks good for when Adagio gets back."

Sonata looked up at their sign, particularly the post they'd needed four nails to keep in place. "This looks good?"

"It looks like we're trying, something we can point to to say we did all we could to find work and all that. You remember the plan, right?"

Smiling playfully, Sonata lightly shoved her. "You don't have to check every five minutes."

Aria returned the gesture in full. "Humor me."

"Hehe! Okay, okay, we wait until she gets home, say we got robbed like a week before, tell her how we tried so hard to get by when the whole world was against us, and she'll pick us up, bring us to her mansion (I hope she picks that one with the big pool and the balcony on the third floor, the one we saw when we were practicing for the swim thing? Yea, you remember), and we live the good life from then on?"

"She probably won't let us be total freeloaders, so we'll have to come up with something when we get there, but yea."

Not wanting to be a leech stuck to someone bigger than she could ever be was part of it too, but part she'd learned to quit bringing up around Sonata Shameless Parasite Dusk. Adagio would probably hook them up with her new Hollywood friends and they could find high-paying stuff with their pretty faces alone, so she was sure that part would work out. Unless Adagio wanted to get some petty revenge by forcing them into something less glamorous, maybe even hard labor for the first several months, however long she was stuck doing the waitress thing while they shared their thoughts on her outfit, but if they still got to live in her big, fancy house with all the luxuries it offered, even that would be bearable.

Whatever happened, Aria knew she'd need to get hold of some good money if things ever went sour with Adagio again, either by swiping some valuables Adagio had lying around (rich people decorated their houses with priceless crud, something she hoped was just a universal fact) or getting in with some of Adagio's big, billionaire buddies. Billionaire buddies that didn't necessarily like her that much and wouldn't sell Aria out to her in a blink if it came to that. 

It was cold, but she knew she had to make room for herself before she could think about helping Sonata do the same, because while she wasn't about to say it out loud, the biggest danger to this plan was still Sonata saying/doing something really stupid and blowing it for both of them. Maybe she'd reach out once she had her own feet on solid ground, and maybe Sonata would have sold Aria out by then, completely abandoned her dignity, and sucked up to Adagio for all she was worth, in which case it wouldn't matter anyway.
> Chapter 9: Reunion, Part 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nostalgia was a strange thing to feel for a place that one had spent so many hours dreading the thought of inhabiting, but that was what Adagio found somewhere in her heart as she sat in the original Eezy-Cheezy. She, dressed as Poofy, was there with Gouda Will and Cheese Sandwich, along with a film crew as they watched the latest commercial on a big screen that had been brought in specifically for this where-things-began event. 

The commercial was the last they'd shot in Hollywood; Poofy in a witch costume of the Eezy-Cheezy's color scheme as she flew around on a broom, singing a slightly modified line of the lyrics to 'Cheezy Love' as just the kind of jingle to get stuck in people's heads. Her song, in the commercial, turned spoiled and otherwise unappetizing food into items from the Eezy-Cheezy menu, which was absurd, but Adagio hadn't been sure how much she could nudge those in charge without arousing suspicion and "she sings to bewitch people" was going to sound just as ridiculous now as it would have if she'd been allowed to direct the whole commercial herself. If the Rainbooms were planning anything of the sort, she was as sure as reasonably possible that they'd be laughed out of the room for it.

Adagio had actually dared think they might really have decided to just leave her alone now that she was finally within their reach again, but sure enough, she caught sight of security detail moving in the corner of her eye. When the camera wasn't on her, she turned her head as though idly reminiscing about her old stomping grounds. There was nothing out of place in the building itself, closed for the day while they did this, but she only had to look out a window to see a visibly plaintive Rainbow Dash being held up by the arms, Fluttershy apparently pleading with either her or the guard holding her (it was impossible to hear from where Adagio was sitting) and two more unamused-looking men talking to a sheepish Twilight Sparkle(?) and apprehensive Sunset Shimmer, the remaining Rainbooms standing by looking worried.

She didn't know where security took those girls until filming was done, but she did a good job of answering the 'what was it like?' questions and demonstrating her abilities as a waitress for the camera until her part was done.


%%%


Am I still the villain here? I mean, I suppose I kind of have to be, because it's certainly not going to be them no matter what anyone says or does, but this... just doesn't feel the same.

Even so, she was seated at a table before seven girls who were forced to stand (the back room was big enough for all of them, but there were only a few chairs) while three large men essentially hired to do her bidding stood by, one next to her, two behind the Rainbooms. She had seen a few dozen movies in her time here, and the parallels were clear as day. The only thing missing was a cat in her lap.

Apparently, the Rainbooms had come to 'just check on her' (an excuse Adagio had not been happy to hear again) by peeking through the windows while hiding in the bushes outside. Security noticed them, asked them to leave, told them to leave when Rainbow insisted that they get to talk to Adagio, and a window was cracked in the attempt to make them leave. Surprisingly, a stray comment by a member of the security team toward Rarity (evidently centered on her hair) was what led violence. While the Rainbooms were being detained and the police nearly contacted, this world's Twilight had somehow negotiated that they be able to talk with Adagio if she was willing to see them, which, after Adagio assured Gouda Will and the rest that she would take care of this personal matter, was what brought them all to this room.

"...So," began Adagio, "first question..." She pointed to Pinkie Pie, whose hair stood unusually puffy and possibly singed in a few places. "What happened to her?"

Pinkie beamed. "I was tazed! Super painful, but totally fun!" She twitched twice.

A business smile on her face, Adagio chuckled. "Of course." Not looking away from the Rainbooms, she talked out of the corner of her mouth to the nearest security guard; a dark-grey bald man that never took his sunglasses off. "Was that strictly necessary?"

"We told her to hold still," he answered in a deep, baritone voice, "and playin' leapfrog ain't really holdin' still."

"Ah." She cleared her throat, looking at Twilight just on the off-chance that it would annoy Sunset if she treated someone else like they were the leader. "So... You wanted to talk?"

"Uhm, yes," answered Twilight, being exceedingly careful not to make any sudden moves, "or, more accurately, my friends wanted to talk, I don't really know you, personally, but I'm here to support them." Following a brief pause, she showed all of her teeth at once in a very wide, forced smile. "Please don't have us arrested." Nearly destroying the universe was one thing, but she could not afford a stain on her official record if she wanted to get into a respectable college!

If only to let her sweat on the prospect, Adagio didn't reply to that last part. "Very well, friends," she turned to Rainbow, whose smouldering glare promised the best reaction, "something on your mind?"

"YOU SHOULD-" Getting sharply elbowed in the ribs from both sides, Rainbow wheezed, hunching over as she looked back and forth at Applejack and Rarity in pained betrayal. "...Why?"

Rarity at least looked a little contrite. "Sorry, Darling, I didn't know Applejack had it covered."

"Y'all swore ya just wanted to swing by an' see what they was up to," Applejack whispered with a stern, if regretful look, "an' now look at us. Just this once, wouldja please swallow yer pride an' keep quiet?!"

Rainbow hung her head. "I said I was sorry..."

Delightfully amusing though the scene was, two things occurred to Adagio as the other Rainbooms watched Applejack and Rainbow whisper about trust and foolhardy ideas and such.

First: She had nothing to really gain in seeing these girls broken up and arguing anymore, as evidenced by the lack of a single green whisp in the air around them.

Second: Rainbow's friends apparently served to hold her back from doing stupid, reckless things, and that likely applied mutually for the others.

The two thoughts combined made her realize that, while it might be very satisfying to see how much trouble she could stir up for these girls, maybe get them blaming each other and even trying to sell one or two of their number down the river to save their own skin, it probably wouldn't be smart. Even if she somehow splintered their group, there was no guarantee that their magic would stop working, and an embittered Rainbow Dash with super speed might do a lot of damage before she was locked up for good, to say nothing of the others. 

Plus, there was no chance she'd be able to get them permanently jailed for damaging a window, especially if they pleaded that they were just fans looking for her autograph or something. Thinking about it now, she wondered if she ever had a chance to permanently disable them from the start.

That in mind, she gave them a pleasant, but not overly friendly smile. "Yes? I should what?"

"You should not worry too much about what she says," answered Sunset, "and we really do have some questions for you, but, uh..." She glanced backward at the two men awaiting orders to haul them off to the nearest police station or something. "Could we, a-and I know this might be a stretch, but could we talk to you without these guys around?" Adagio's face didn't change, but she detected a distinct air of 'Haha, no,' to which she responded with a pleading smile. "With our solemn promise as good guys to behave?"

Applejack glared out of the corner of her eye. "Somebody already broke a promise t'day."

Looking away, Rainbow scowled. "Wasn't a Pinkie promise."

Applejack elbowed her again.

"Ow!"

"If you're thinking that we'll, uh, attack you, or something," Twilight verbally meandered, "please don't worry, I think all of us get that violence won't get us anywhere," she turned to give Rarity an especially emphatic look, "right?"

Her head down, Rarity silently nodded, the rest of the group waiting in quiet anticipation as Adagio mulled it over, refraining from any outward signs of irritation. 

On the surface, she felt like the rational thing to do was to insist that the police be called without another word, put on a hurt, terrified routine to validate getting them locked up for as long as possible, and procure a restraining order against all seven of them. That was what she wanted, and right now, it looked like she could really do it, but with no one hurt and nothing more than a window damaged, it was doubtful they could be put away for more than a week, if that long, even if they didn't just bust out (likely incurring no legal wrath whatsoever, because magic) and Hero their way to a perfect ending for themselves.

Even if the Rainbooms had taken her bait, it wasn't more than a fleeting nibble, and she didn't have what she needed to be rid of them.

Perhaps if I had waited until I was on the way back to make those stupid commercials about them?

Frustrating as it was to have them in her grasp and still be unable to crush them, she knew that they still didn't have solid grounds to go after her, either, same as before. Her fear when she set out was that they would come for her at some point during the tour or when she got back, but if this was the result, maybe she'd been worrying over essentially nothing all along? That in mind, perhaps, as with Cheese Sandwich, the solution was to be as plainly honest as possible, answer their questions, and get everything out in the open? It had to work better than any attempt at threatening them or trying to have them all put away for life.

Still smiling, she turned to the guard at her side. "I suppose we could catch up a little, but...?"

Nodding, the head of Gouda Will's hand-picked security team thumbed over his shoulder for the other two to leave, took a tazer, pepper spray, and a whistle from his belt, placed them on the table in front of Adagio, and walked out.

She waved after him. "Thank you, Lead Weight!"

The door closed. Then it opened again, Lead walking right back in, bending down to whisper into the fluff by Adagio's ear. "Felt's waitin' out there. Says if she don't hear your voice for two minutes, she comin' in."

Ah, someone must have called her when they heard. 

"I see, thank you."

"She got boxin' gloves."

"I suppose that's an improvement over the axe."

Feeling pretty secure, Adagio smiled in earnest when she was alone with her arch enemies. She refocused on Sunset, who took her cue to speak.

"Okay, so... Might as well just ask; has anything weird been happening with you? Anything magical?"

"No."

"Yea, I fig-" she blinked, "-wait, 'no'? You haven't seen random bursts of colorful energy shooting across the sky, haven't found any suddenly-enchanted objects, nothing?"

"Why would you assume I had?"

Sunset narrowed her eyes. "How are you singing again?"

"Believe it or not, ponies aren't the only creatures in existence to have magic of their own."

Sunset grit her teeth. "I know that, but-" She was stopped by a slightly shaky Twilight putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Calm, Sunset, calm, they might still press charges!"

Lightly pushing her away, Sunset rolled her eyes. "You're telling us that it's just your own magic you've got now? Nothing like before? You've gotta understand where we're coming from in asking."

Adagio snorted, amused. "Yes, yes I can." She hadn't intended to win a smile out of anyone, but Sunset looked genuinely glad to hear it. "And since we're being direct with this, am I going to need a restraining order against you girls, or will future windows be safe?" Not that she had much faith that the law alone would keep them away from her forever.

Though keeping her indoor voice this time, Rainbow practically snarled. "Oh, don't act like you're all innocent! You made those stupid commercials just to badmouth us!"

"I made commercials to make money, it's kind of in my job description."

"You know which ones." Only because Fluttershy was present did she not say the rest of what she wanted to say.

Adagio chuckled. "I do. On that note, please, be honest: Are you mad at me because you think I've done something wrong, like I did at the Battle, or because I hurt your fragile ego?"

Rainbow didn't look any less angry as her cheeks colored. "You wouldn't even have this job if not for us, or any of the money and fame that came with it!"

"If not for you, I might be ruling over my own personal army of adoring thralls with much more power than this job -which I got on my own, mind you- could ever grant me." She did love stunned silence, but it was quickly ruined by Rainbow's sputtering.

"Y-you were...!" She felt her face flush hotter at the sight of Adagio's smug, eyebrow-raising face, as if to say 'Yes? Go on.' "...Screw you!"

Adagio giggled. "Afraid I don't swing that way, even if you do look like a boy." 

Rainbow's face was cherry-red now, but she scoffed and folded her arms. "Like I've never heard that one before." 

She knew, from multiple conversations with her friends, that she shouldn't really care, that their friendship meant more than all the fame and riches in the world, but she didn't want to have to go home without some kind of win over the bitch who spit on that same friendship and humiliated all of them. 

"So this is just gonna be your life now? Bein' a corporate whore until you're too old to do anything fun anymore?"

Adagio was still smiling. "Interesting in your choice of words. 'Corporate whore.' Ignoring the fact that 'Poofy' isn't my creation to begin with and no artistry is being sacrificed on my part in depicting her, do you mean to say that it's wrong or shameful to make money doing something you like because big companies are involved?" It annoyed her a little that only a few of the girls across from her seemed to understand the question, and none were the girl who prompted it. "I very much enjoy my performances, enjoy playing the part I was given, and while I feel that they could stand to let me sing other songs for a live audience a little more often, I like my work overall. I may not be keen on everything I'm asked to do, but please, enlighten me; what occupation in this world entails only doing what one wants to do?"

Predictably, there were no answers, only shocked, silent faces. Well, other than Fluttershy, who looked back at her with...

Um... That's, an interesting smile... That look in her eyes, she kind of reminds me of some of the, er, bolder fans Security have had to drag away from me.

Felt Feather was waiting outside the room, but that knowledge didn't shake the sense of building, permeating unease that continued to seep into her soul as she found herself unable to look away from Fluttershy's eyes. There were self-defense measures right there on the table in front of her, but reaching for any would be a definite sign of weakness. She did have good reason to be afraid of these girls, perhaps, but showing it openly wasn't something she wanted to-

Adagio jumped with a start when she heard a sudden hiss, but found the source to be Rarity, who seemed to be suffering some embarrassment-by-proxy.

"Fluttershy," she loud-whispered, "Fluttershy, Darling, stop staring, it's most unbecoming! And besides that, I believe you're freaking her out!"

Adagio felt herself redden, but before she could spit out a half-baked denial (thankfully), Pinkie giggled.

"Hey," she loud-whispered back, "she's not the one who flipped out and broke a window today."

Rarity tensed, growing even rosier as she gave Adagio a sheepish smile. "Err... Haha, have I mentioned that your, ehm, outfit is, very unique?" Her eyes flickered downward. "How far up do the holes in those stockings go?"

At this, Adagio's eyes widened in surprise, immediately narrowing again as she tightly closed her legs.

Quickly connecting what that sounded like, Rarity flushed almost as bright as Rainbow had, holding up both hands in defense. "N-no, no, that, I-I wasn't, th-that hadn't even crossed my- I asked for purely fashion-forward reasons!!"

Firmly holding her skirt down with one hand, Adagio was sorely tempted to reach for the pepper spray. "Likely story."

She was showing weakness right now, that they had gotten to her, but they knew she was essentially powerless anyway, right? 

Sunset tentatively raised her hand. "It, um, is a likely story, Adagio, she works with clothes pretty much all day." Adagio barely turning her head to glare at Sunset out of the corner of her eye was an unnerving sight, to which she responded with what she hoped was a disarming smile. "S-scout's honor?"

Rainbow tilted her head. "Like you're a scout?"

"Shh!!"

Adagio silently conceded that yes, the tailor of their group probably would ask a question like that for chaste reasons.  Slowly retaking a regular sitting position, she sighed irritably. "Is there anything else you girls wanted?" Pinkie Pie raised her hand, which Adagio answered with an inquisitive eyebrow, which was met with a smile.

"Hi! Um... Well, I guess I'm kinda-sorta wondering; what are you planning to do? I mean, I remember your thing was all 'We! Will! Be adored~!' before, and I know you've got tons and tons and funs of fans now, but, if they're under your spell oh-woah-oh," she was tickled that this won a tiny, if very begrudging smile out of Adagio, "as Poofy, then doesn't that mean they don't actually like you?"

Adagio shrugged, her face passive. "They don't. What of it?" Sunset actually looked like she felt sorry for her.

"Wouldn't it mean, uh, that they don't actually like you for who you are, that you can't be loved for being yourself, making it all kind of pointless?"

She chuckled, a deliberately condescending smile on her face. "Right, because ignoring that I outright brainwashed people into liking me before, everyone has just been all over the real me with love and affection since then, haven't they?" As anticipated, there were just more looks of surprise. "I have never been adored for who I am, personally, because it's never been my personality that drew a crowd. 'Poofy' is a lie, but 'being myself' around most people brings me nothing but grief," she directed a hand vaguely in their direction, "present company especially, so being loved by a crowd for 'being myself' was impossible to begin with."

Even all the way back in her home sea, those listening to her songs didn't like or know her personally, they liked her work, same as now. And that was before she tasted power. 

The Rainbooms continued to surprise her today, because she had anticipated a much more vocal reaction than the mix of surprised, saddened, and disapproving stares (even Fluttershy had snapped out of her unnerving fangirl trance) she got instead. She smirked.

"Go on, say it. I know you want to. It's on the tip of your tongue." 

None did, but her grin remained.

"It's alright, you want to say that it's because I'm such an awful person in the first place, right? I'm not contesting that, go right ahead."

Rainbow folded her arms. "Well you are a total bitch."

That some of the other Rainbooms looked at Rainbow in admonishment drew a chuckle from Adagio, but she didn't comment on it. "I see. And what would you have me do?"

Even if not all at once, the girls across from her seemed to realize that she was leading them into a verbal trap, but probably not that it was one of their own making. Just the same, Applejack spoke up, idly scratching the back of her head.

"Well, ya could stand to be a little nicer, Ah reckon."

"To change my behavior, you mean? To not be my regular self? Because I'd say that's exactly what I'm doing with Poofy."

Brow furrowed, Sunset crossed her arms. "There's a big difference between putting on an act and really changing yourself."

"And what difference does it make if you can't 'be yourself' either way?" Seeing Sunset flinch, she allowed her smirk to spread further. "You in particular should know; which is more important? Being true to yourself, or having people love and accept you? To maintain your personal integrity, or to appeal to those around you? For the rest of these girls, it's probably easy, being "good" and unthreatening as they are, but look me in the eye and say you haven't compromised any part of yourself since the Fall Formal."

Predictably, Sunset looked away with a sad, uncertain expression, and while the rest of the group clearly took offense with Adagio for this, that not one of them had anything to say in response sounded like confirmation to her. "Case in point," she said while gesturing to Fluttershy, who was startled by the sudden attention, "would I be mistaken in saying that you're an Eezy-Cheezy fan?"

"Uhm, w-well, no, I am, but..."

Adagio smiled patiently. "But?"

"...But I like the songs, some of the menu, and-" she smiled sheepishly for just an instant, "-your cute little outfit."

"And thus," continued Adagio, not the least bit surprised, "not a fan of mine, your fondness for the brand has nothing to do with me, personally."

"Well... No, I guess not." She smiled hopefully. "But, if y-you were to, um, be nicer some day, maybe I'd be a fan of yours too?"

"Mmhm. And what difference would it make from where I'm standing?"

Thinking about it, Fluttershy frowned. "Um... n-none, I guess..."

Adagio nodded, grinning cheerfully. "So we have it that, with regard to my public persona, I don't need to do this your way to be happy. Isn't that right?"

And that's ignoring that I can still 'be myself' all I like off-camera.

Again, there was a long, uncertain, somewhat resentful pause, broken by a hesitant Twilight. "Well, yes, I, it sounds like you can, but does it feel like a stretch to say it might be even better with our way? That, even if your public persona goes unchanged, you could have an easier time making friends off-camera?"

"Which brings us back to the question of whether or not it's important to be 'true to oneself.' Should I put up a facade? Should I really force myself to change for the approval of others? Or, can I just accept myself as I am?"

"Ah," she muttered dejectedly, "right."

Adagio giggled, standing up. "So, if there are no further questions...?" Silence. Sweet, resentful, defeated silence. "Good. So long, girls, and may we never meet again."

She didn't spare them another look as she gathered up Lead Weight's self-defense measures and walked out the door. They definitely still hated her, but as she hadn't begged their forgiveness, perhaps that was inevitable. She'd probably have to make sure any future security that worked for her knew these girls' faces and go ahead with the restraining orders just so she'd have something to punish them with if they got close, but she'd need to look up exactly how all that worked first.

Out in the hall, she found Felt Feather, doing what Adagio could only call a boxer impression as she hopped in place, punching the air with a look of fierce determination on her face. It would have been comical if she wasn't sure that the padded boxing gloves Felt was wearing were the only thing that would keep her from breaking bones. Regardless, she smiled.

"Are you winning?"

Felt stopped, turning to face Adagio with her arms at her sides. "I did not have an opponent."

"Good, then you can join me at home. Shall we?"

Felt nodded, following just a little behind her.

"Are you certain you do not wish to be driven home?"

Adagio giggled. "Feeling a little nostalgic, to be honest. The new house is almost ready, so I thought I'd make this walk one last time."

It was a good thing Adagio would be leaving this town for good soon, because she didn't want to have to explain to anyone why she was walking around with a maid wearing boxing gloves in the early evening.


%%%


Back in the room Adagio had just left, the Rainbooms remained in uncomfortable silence for a moment.

"So," Rainbow eventually offered, "she's totally wrong. Right? About everything?" No response. She crossed her arms and frowned. "C'mon, guys, I know we don't rehearse this stuff, but this is the part where we're supposed to say something friendship-y and feel better about ourselves."

"From a practical standpoint," Twilight thought aloud, "I guess there's not much reason for a celebrity to try to connect with all of their fans on a personal level. She wants praise from them, they want Poofy from her, so it works."

"Well," Rarity thought aloud, "the downside of donning a mask to wear at all times comes from not liking the mask, no? To force oneself to conform to a more agreeable outlook even when one doesn't wish to? But she likes the Poofy mask, and probably takes it off when she's drinking imported spring water in her trailer."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "Imported spring water?"

Rarity shrugged. "What would you be drinking?"

"Apple juice!"

"Of course, how silly of me."

"I definitely changed a lot after the Fall Formal," admitted a downbeat Sunset, "because 'who I really was' back then was an awful, selfish, egomaniacal bully. Thing is, I don't regret the ways I've changed, because I know I'm a lot happier now than I would have been had I decided 'be true to yourself' was the lesson that mattered most. I mean, people change through life anyway, don't they? I know Fluttershy has gotten at least a little bolder since I first showed up."

Fluttershy smiled brightly, knowing that before, she'd have probably blushed and folded in on herself.

Pinkie raised an index finger. "Which means Adagio doing the Poofy thing," and the one on the opposite hand, "while not the same as really being Poofy in her heart," then crossed her arms, "is fine for her because of who she is," she pointed the first hand to one side, "but not fine for making friends," the second hand pointed straight down, "but that's fine for her too because she's not Poofy," both hands pointed up again, "but if she were to change, she'd be happy, we'd be happy, and everyone else would be happy?"

Sunset still wasn't smiling. "It's not exactly as easy as Press Button, Get New Personality, Pinkie."

"You changed a whole lot."

"Over the course of five months, with constant pressure from the entire student body to do so." Not everyone said something out loud, but the looks she got said more than enough. Not that anyone seemed to care how much she changed until she helped save them.

Pinkie looked at Twilight, which the others followed. Twilight blinked, then raised her palms defensively. 

"Don't look at me, all I did was quit being a borderline sociopath about getting what I want." She got a few odd looks from the others, drawing a sigh. "I've had a lot of time to think about exactly what I did that day, and placing higher priority on learning about magic than the pain and endangerment I could clearly see I was causing wasn't a very ethical way to conduct my research."

Taking sudden interest in the floor, Applejack adjusted her hat. "'Dagio is like an actor now anyway, right? Gonna be actin' out a bunch'a diff'rent parts if she keeps at it? She probably won't be playin' Poofy forever, so it probably don't matter if she ain't 'Poofy' deep down. Heck, even if she starts not likin' it, acting's her job."

"She's not an actor," Rainbow said with a mild scowl, "she's not in movies or anything!" She huffed, muttering the rest to herself. "We should be the ones in movies." Shaking the thought out of her head (for now!), she looked to the others with a pleading frown. "No, seriously, nothing on the feel-better stuff? It worked great right after we talked to the other two."

Sunset's eyes shot open. "Oh, crap!! Aria and Sonata, I forgot to ask her what's going on with them!!"

Without waiting for a response, she darted out the door, sprinted through the empty restaurant, slowed down to carefully open the glass doors to the exit (there would not be forgiveness next time...), quickly looked around-

Which way did she go, whichwaydidshego?!

-and jogged down the street after the distant, orange puff (and... a maid?!) she saw moving under the streetlights. When she caught up to them next to some dollar store on a random street corner, she could hear Adagio speaking.

"-thought for sure that if they were going to try to ambush me, it would be at the hotel or our house."

The maid nodded. "Even so, I wish to accompany you directly from here on."

"Fair enou-" She turned when she heard rapid footsteps, tensing and reaching for the pepper spray when she saw Sunset.

"Wait, w-wait," gasped Sunset as she came to a stop, "just a couple things I forgot to ask, promise!" To her relief, she was neither reminded what it felt like to be maced nor given a face full of rubbery mitts (she would exclude "What's with the maid outfit?" and "Why is she wearing boxing gloves?" from her short list of questions) as she was allowed to catch her breath. "I wanted to ask, um..."

About Aria and Sonata, but since I'm probably not gonna get another chance at this...

She scratched her head. "Well, uh, that B-Bacon-head commercial, was that supposed to...?" Adagio just raised an uncertain eyebrow at her. "I was kinda wondering if you meant to say something with that one."

"Yes," Adagio said flatly, "I thought it was obvious."

Why is she turning red? Is it possible that she hadn't caught the sentiment of 'I hate you' in that piece?

Sheepishly, Sunset averted her eyes, idly brushing a hand along her neck. "Oh. Well, I'm, um, f-flattered, but, I don't really feel the same." She kind of figured that the sirens of all people wouldn't take rejection well, but hadn't expected Adagio to glare at her as though she were human garbage.

"Sunset Shimmer. Perhaps pony brains are even smaller than I would have guessed, but it was only five minutes ago that I thought it was made abundantly clear that we are not friends."

"I don't know what you were hoping for, but you can't just start with more than that out of nowhere, that only happens in trashy rom-"

Somehow, Adagio looked even more disgusted with her. "'More than that'? We stand at magnitudes less, you idiot! Do you think prolonged talks with anyone automatically put you in their good graces? Is that how your magic works?"

"What? No, I'm talking about you fantasizing about me!"

"Fantasizing about what?!"

Still blushing, Sunset scowled. "Oh, come on, 'Bacon and Cheese'? The commercial even ended with me on top of you!"

Connecting the dots to Sunset's interpretation, Adagio blanched, practically gagging as she spit out the words. "Th-that... I. AM. STRAIGHT. The commercial was meant to sell, SELL, that thing commercials do, a product; a bacon and cheese sandwich!"

"But it was your commercial!"

"It was my idea as directed by those in charge of actually making the damn things! Do you think I alone control our entire marketing department?! That they'd have just let me air 'Rainbooms suck, lol' if I'd asked?!"

Her mouth hanging open, Sunset had no reply at the ready, but before she could construct a comprehensible way to say she was straight too, the maid pointed a boxing glove at her.

"Madam, there are more of them." And they made the tactical failure of not sending any of their number around the other side of the store for a pincer attack, she noted.

Sunset whirled around to see her friends' faces peeking out from around a corner, all simultaneously adopting looks that said 'busted!' before disappearing behind the wall.

"Uh... Hi, guys."

Pinkie was the only one to call back to her. Loudly. "SORRY, IS THIS A HEART-FELT CONFESSION OF LOVE? WE CAN COME BACK LATER!"

In Sunset's mind, the call seemed to echo through the streets before she heard Twilight's voice. "She just said, shouted, that she was straight, Pinkie!"

"Yea, but maybe Sunny isn't! Have you seen the way she eyeballs you when-"

"Oh-kay," wheezed a hoarse, neon-red Sunset as she turned back to Adagio, "so..." She managed forced, sheepish smile. "...honest mistake?"

Red in the face herself, Adagio groaned. 

A pig! I should have asked them to make Bacon Head a fat, dirty pig with bacon-hair!

Though that probably would have made things a little more disturbing than just the idea of a person with meat growing out of their head. She took a deep breath through her nose before glaring at Sunset as though she had just broken her gem all over again, hissing her question through gritted teeth. "Was there anything else...?"

"Unfortunately..." Sunset cleared her throat, doing her best to hold on to the tattered remains of her dignity. "We've all kind of been wondering; why did you leave while Aria and Sonata stayed here?"

Adagio folded her arms, the "Because they chose to stay."

While she had been horribly mistaken about Adagio's signals with the bacon commercial, Sunset had no misgivings about the look she was getting for that question. Whatever was going on between them, it was clearly a sensitive subject and Adagio was already in a foul mood, so Sunset quietly settled on aborting the conversation by averting her eyes. "Oh."

Unfortunately, Adagio caught this sudden shift, raising an eyebrow. "'Oh'? Just what do-" 

Wait, that look on her face... is that... guilt?

Adagio tried to present her searing, hateful stare of moments ago. However, without knowing what had happened between Aria, Sonata, and their greatest enemies (or whether or not she would be able to find any evidence, anything at all she could use to implicate the Rainbooms to the police if the others were hurt), couldn't keep the worry from her eyes or the light tremor from her legs as a treacherous chill ran up her spine. 

"What... what did you do to them?"

Again, Sunset clued in to her thinking right away, raising both hands defensively. "Nothing!"

Come on, quit looking at me like I stomped on your puppy, you're making me feel like I'm the bad guy threatening your friends here!

And then she considered this situation from Adagio's viewpoint. To her, it must have looked like her only friends chose to stay behind (because according to Aria, they weren't really a unit anymore) in the same town as the people they probably hated more than anyone rather than go with her, meaning they were having some kind of quarrel. Was it possible that those mocking commercials weren't just to lure Sunset and her friends in for the kill, but an attempt to win back Aria and Sonata's approval? Reaffirming their bond by attacking a common enemy? Was that how the sirens saw her group now? As a monster to be fended off until it could be trapped and killed?

Sunset frowned. "Adagio... are you, afraid of us?"

Adagio clenched her teeth. "Would I have bothered dealing with you if I weren't?!" She didn't know why Sunset (and the other Rainbooms, still peeking around the corner) looked genuinely surprised to hear that, they must have felt some measure of the same thing from her. "Have the lot of you not been worried I would hurt you somehow?"

"Well," commented Rainbow, who had sped out to stand next to Sunset, "you did sorta make us laughingstocks."

Seeing Adagio's eye twitch, Sunset took a guess. "Uh, Rainbow? Don't you think having magical super powers, ones that no one else in the world really seems to care that we have or attempt to limit use of in any way, shape, or form, is a bit more threatening than indirectly making fun of people on national television? Because I guarantee no one outside our local area has any idea who the 'rainbow sugar patrol' are supposed to be."

Rainbow visibly struggled with the question. "...Nnnoo...?" Sunset's flat look said that was the wrong guess, but that Adagio looked like she was about to duck behind the maid cosplay lady for protection said she really was scared! "You don't, like, really think we'd just...?"

The glare she got back said 'Yes, you would, and I bet you'd enjoy it,' which poked something in her guts. 

She frowned. "Is that what it's been like for you? Just, thinking we'd kick down the door and beat you to a pulp any day?"

Pinkie popped up next to her. "You did say you wanted to do that, remember?"

Adagio's eyes widened in fright. "Felt-!"

"Yes, Madam." 

The maid stepped in front of Adagio, head down and boxing gloves raised, but Rainbow surprised them both by taking a step back, shaking her head.

"Woah, woah, hang on here! I'm not a bully, we're not bullies, and, yea, I might've kinda-sorta said something like that, but I was just mad about the 'sugar patrol' thing!" She leaned to one side in an attempt to look Adagio in the eye, but the maid leaned along with her, gloves still raised. That, combined with the fact that Adagio standing behind her made it look like the maid was wearing a really fluffy, orange cape, would have looked ridiculous if she weren't focused on what she had to say. "Have you seriously just been living in fear of us ever since the BeeOhTeeBee?"

That she didn't get an answer poked something in her guts with a really cold, pointy stick. Remembering the scared look on Aria's face when she first saw them back in the sewer added a drop of lemon juice to it, and remembering that the first thing the sirens did after losing their powers was to run away added a whole glass. 

"Look," she said despite not being able to make eye-contact, "I know we aren't friends, but we're not gonna hurt you, and we haven't done anything to the other two, either. It feels great to win and be the heroes, but that doesn't, we wouldn't just-..." 

She remembered life under the old Sunset, how, not that she was afraid or anything, but everyone else just kept their heads down and stayed out of her way, how the only way to get by was to hope she didn't want to start something with you. It sucked, and the thought of doing that to someone else, even on total accident, sucked more. 

"I'm sorry, okay? Whether you are or not, for anything you've ever done, I'm sorry you felt like you had to keep looking over your shoulder for so long, and I don't expect you to believe me, but as long as you never do anything big, evil, and magical again, I promise we won't bug you anymore. Okay?"

Slowly, Adagio peeked out from behind Felt, doubt clear in her eyes as she beheld all seven of the Rainbooms now standing together. Almost as if they intended to attack as a unit, a voice in her head reminded her. Despite this, she dared move just a little further from the closest thing she had to a real shield (poor Felt Feather was, she thought, only human, and wouldn't last long against these girls in a direct confrontation) in this situation. "As I said before, I haven't had any contact with whatever's been afflicting this town, have no power beyond what you've seen, and no magic to do any such thing even if I wanted to." Rainbow surprised her by offering a little smile.

"Cool, feel free to pass that on to the other two when they're not busy gold-mining in a sewer." The totally lost look on Adagio's face told her she might have just said the wrong thing.

"Gold-mining in... what?" Seeing the Rainbooms trade worried, uncertain glances flicked on a little warning light in the back of her head, one that said they were pulling some kind of con, trying to trick her somehow, but it was possible that they weren't all very convincing actors and instead were just as confused as she was. She abandoned what little cover Felt could offer to get a better look at their faces. "What are you talking about? Did they pick up jobs as sewer workers, or...?"

"Umm," Twilight began uncertainly, "they didn't, er, tell you what they've been up to? Because we've asked around a little and heard some perplexing things." Sunset had also used her geode without asking a few times, but Adagio and her lawyers didn't need that tid-bit.

She had wondered exactly what they had been doing since her departure, so while maintaining awareness that this was the perfect chance for the Rainbooms to trick her, she allowed herself to ask anyway. "What have you heard...?"
> Chapter 10: Reunion, Part 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Okay," Aria asked for the fifth time in the last hour, "she walks in the door, we're just chilling out in the living room like always, you say...?"

Sonata smiled brightly, her tone just as cheerful. "Welcome home, Cheese-Head!"

Aria smiled too. "And," she said while gesturing to the mess around them; the furniture that had been cut or busted open in search of money bundles and the resulting debris all over the trashed house, "when she asks what happened in here?"

"We were robbed," Sonata exclaimed with a hurt, scared expression, "when we were out looking for work last week, somebody broke in and ransacked the place!"

"And when she asks how much we've got left, I'll tell her we made about thirty bucks with the lemonade stand out there, she'll see how this whole town was against us from the start and it's not our fault we ended up like this, and whisk us away to her golden, cheesy palace."

Sonata victoriously pumped a fist. "And then it's smooth sailing for all of us!"

Aria chuckled. "Right." Catching sight of a big, fluffy mass moving on a distant sidewalk through the living room window, she quickly gestured to the couch. "And here she comes, let's do this!"

Wondering why Adagio wasn't riding home in a limo or anything, Sonata obeyed, taking her place and flipping the TV to a random channel.


%%%


The sight of her old house gave Adagio another rush of that bittersweet feeling she'd gotten just thinking about walking back here, the odd blend of warm familiarity and bracing awareness that it would be the last time. 

The lemonade stand, however, was new. The Rainbooms hadn't mentioned that in their gossip about what Aria and Sonata had been up to. 

Thinking back to that whole discussion, especially what followed when Sunset came running after her, she quietly groaned. She'd really wanted to present a strong front to those girls, to look powerful and in control, and thus out of their reach, but any shred of it she'd had left by then crumbled away when they directly asked a question she'd have only looked foolish for lying about. It didn't help that she she outright cowered behind Felt when given half a reason, either.

Still, if their word meant a damn thing to them, they wouldn't come after her again before she left Canterlot for good. That should give her enough time to, at long last, have a night on the town with her two oldest companions, to call a high-end cab (or even a limo service if they could get one in this part of town), go to the nicest places in Canterlot, and have their fill of whatever they wanted, the sort of thing they hadn't done even when they had the gems. Then, they'd pack their bags, set off for the airport, and ride first-class to their new (if relatively modest, by the standards she'd seen of other celebrities' massive, extravagant houses) home. It wasn't a tower or a penthouse, but it was relatively close to Hollywood and overlooked a lovely beach from atop a high cliff, so she was sure the others would love it too.

When she seized the doorknob, Adagio stopped, taking a deep breath. "Felt. I'd like to introduce you to my friends, but would you mind waiting out here for a while? I'd like to talk with them in private first."

"As you wish, Madam."

Nodding gratefully, Adagio opened the door and walked inside, quietly shutting it behind her.

"Welcome home, Cheese-Head!"

She smiled, walking in to find them in the same seats as always. Then she noticed that it looked like a bomb had gone off in the house, raising an eyebrow as she scanned the mess of scattered, trampled objects and even some damaged furniture. "Girls...?"

Glancing around, the two shot her apologetic smiles, Sonata making the effort to be especially cute and innocent as she muted the TV. "Um... we were kinda robbed? Like, somebody broke into the house while we were looking for jobs last week and..."

"We didn't have tons of cash left over anyway," Aria continued for her, "but all the non-credit-card money is gone."

Adagio slowly nodded. "I, see... did they take anything else? Electronics, valuables? I see the TV and laptop are still here."

Aria felt the hole in her story like a puncture wound, but it wasn't a big hole. "No, uh... I think they just wanted the money."

Finishing her survey of the damage, Adagio looked back at them, her face passive. "They really tore the place apart, so... I suppose if they'd just been after anything valuable, they wouldn't have needed to look for something that could fit in their pockets." Looking back at them, she frowned. "Do you know if they got the gem fragments?"

"You kept those?" Aria asked quickly, and only because she knew that them knowing about the broken pieces would be proof that they peeled up that floorboard under Adagio's bed.

Adagio answered with a slightly bashful smile. "Well, I was still holding mine when we fled, and... sentimental value, I guess." She glanced toward her room. "Maybe they're still there?" 

Aria kept any reaction from her face, not daring to look at Sonata and risk swinging Adagio's attention toward their weakest link. The truth was that she'd pawned the pieces for $20 before that night they spoke on the phone, but if Adagio didn't bring them along, they couldn't have meant that much to her.

"So, other than the card, do you have anything left?"

Aria returned a little smile of her own. "Didja see our little lemonade stand out front? Made thirty-two bucks!"

"I see," Adagio answered with a chuckle that ended in a wry grin. "And where did you get the supplies for that?"

Aria's smile only grew. "Not important!"

"Right," Adagio said through a giggle, "good answer."

There was a long moment in which no one said anything, Adagio just looking at their faces as they visibly scrutinized hers, both wearing unchanging smiles. Of all things, somehow it was that that felt like confirmation.

"So, what were you two doing at the local studio?"

They shared a look, one Adagio told herself they couldn't have rehearsed as Aria answered with confusion. "Studio?"

"The one you went to while pretending to be my mothers. Dressed in full business attire, if I remember right."

And like that, something fell over and died in Aria's head. The jig was up, Adagio probably knew what they'd been doing, but damned if she was gonna go down without a fight. "What? Who told you that?"

"Herman, the man who works the front desk, and whom I called to ask on the way here. I was doubtful that it could be you two, but the physical descriptions really didn't leave anyone else." At this point, her own smile was strained, but she wanted to hear an answer. "Girls? What's going on? What have you been doing since I left?"

"W-we've been working," Sonata answered with a big, pleading smile, that, to Adagio, sang only of guilt, "really hard! At all kinds of stuff!"

Adagio forced herself to humor her. "Like dancing on tables in public? Or pestering local attorneys?" The looks of shock were expected, but she reminded herself that she didn't necessarily have their side of this yet. "So... again... what's going on here?"

Aria was halfway through putting a positive spin on what they'd been up to when Sonata, just as she'd most feared, tried to save her own skin, standing up and pointing an accusing finger her way.

"It was all her idea! I tried to tell her it'd never work and you'd be mad but she never listens to any-"

Getting to her feet, all Aria could do was fire back. "You went along with me every step of the way you fat sack of sh-"

"-and she made me be a camwhore with her for creepy randos on the internet and-"

"-wasted all our money at that casino and we had to hitchhike back here-"

"-got me tazed by some fat mall-cop while she sat back and laughed about it-"

"-trudging through sewers on a goose-chase that almost got us both killed-"

"-even sold your gem for like five bucks-"

This time, it was Adagio who reacted without thinking, the anger and hurt plain in her voice. "You sold my gem?! Then lied to me about it?!"

Silence reigned for a long, tense minute. As they traded glares, the myriad of harsh, prickly feelings that had swarmed around the room settled into a quiet sting as something tore between the three of them. 

Looking at Adagio in her fancy mascot-cheerleader outfit, knowing how good she had it in the lap of luxury while she struggled to keep herself and Sonata afloat, Aria's rage bubbled up first.

"So what if I did?! You can afford any rock you fucking want now with all that Hollywood money, but we've been scraping by on whatever you deign to throw us!" Guilting Adagio had worked once, but she'd have to lay it on thick. Luckily, despite the break in their unity just a moment ago, Sonata either recognized this routine well enough to back her up, or was driven by her sheer, child-like selfishness.

"Yea," she said while turning her accusing finger and scornful look at Adagio this time, "why should we get table scraps when you're eating turkeys and cake every night?!"

"If not for us," Aria continued while taking a step closer as Adagio stared back at them in a daze, "you never would've made it this far! Is that the thanks we get for saving your life?!"

"And then you got us stuck here without any magic! You owe us big!"

A vile feeling churning in her stomach and coating the back of her throat, Adagio's voice nearly cracked as she shrieked back. "Owe you?! I, owe you?!" In all the time she had spent sucking up negative energy, never had she come so close to feeling over-engorged with it as she did now, but even the distant possibility of her major organs shutting down wouldn't have stopped her from unleashing it. "You two have depended on me ever since we started working together, even up to this moment, and I am the one who owes you?!"

Seeing her oldest "friends" staring at her in stunned silence, she shook her head, tears falling free as they slid down her face. "I knew you were st-still angry at me, when we talked over the phone? I tried to ignore how hostile b-both of you were until Aria's call the other night, but that wasn't my fault, and I ref-fuse to just take the blame for that too!" Trying in vain to rub her eyes clean with a forearm, she sniffled. "Yes, the two of you saved me from that altar, stopped the offering and risked your own lives to thwart my abductors, and I couldn't have turned their power against them without your help. I was grateful to you both, that's why I shared, split the power with you in thanks before we set off, the entire world practically ours for the taking."

Sniffling again, she failed to take a perfectly steadying breath. "Do you remember? How the two of you once suggested that I decide what we should do? How after I weighed in on our next move a few times, you trusted my judgement? Aria, you even used to say that I was cleverer than either of you, said it was fun letting me chart our course before you grew to resent me. Then we suffered what amounted to our first defeat when the wizard threw up his portal."

A faint ghost of a smile on her lips, she barked out a humorless laugh. "And you know what? Sure, I get that it's hard to give me any credit for our all but beating him into the dirt for our first several matches when he ultimately won out, to blame me for the fact that we couldn't get home after that," the smile receded back into a miserable, tearful grimace, "but you two have blamed me for everything ever since! I could take that, I could take that if not for my refusal to kill him, we wouldn't be here, same with the Rainbooms, but as I've worked tirelessly ever since trying to get us back, or at least secure the best lives we could hope for in this situation, while you two have gone out of your way to tear me down? I don't owe either of you a goddamn thing!!"

The crying hadn't stopped, but with her anger flaring up again, her red, watery eyes held them with pure contempt. "And let's just forget the fact that you two willingly followed me throughout until I offered for you both to come with me on the fucking tour that you're angry at me for enjoying now, the one you refused to come along for! It's only my fault what happens to you, no matter your own parts in it all or what comes out of nowhere to ruin our efforts; all benefits for you when it goes well, all consequences on me when it doesn't!" She tried to take another breath, only getting another ragged sob before she hissed through tightly-clenched teeth. "You know what? If that's all I've ever been to you, if I'm just your free pass to life in general? You're on your own."

With nothing that mattered to her left in that house, Adagio turned and stormed through the front door without so much as a parting glance over her shoulder. 

When her employer's shoes hit the concrete outside, Felt immediately turned to follow. Nothing had been asked of her, but with the visible tension in Adagio's considerably agitated body language, she would have been compelled to extend an offer even if she hadn't heard every word of the exchange in the house. "Madam," she tried softly, "is there anything you need at this moment?"

No verbal answer came, and the slight movement of a few fingers on one hand did little to communicate an effective order. If that was a nervous twitch, it may have been a sign of some nutrient deficiency. Vitamin B12? An incoming stroke seemed unlikely, but perhaps an ambulance was what the situation called for. It was while she waited for further warning signs that Adagio stopped walking to deliver a verbal answer after all.

"Cab... Airport."

Nodding affirmatively, Felt drew her phone from an apron pocket and began the process of summoning local transport.


%%%


Back in the living room, neither Aria nor Sonata said a word, the room returned to silence apart from the distant ambiance of town flowing in from the front door, still hanging ajar from Adagio's dramatic exit. Aria was half-considering a joke about their former leader having been raised in a barn when she looked at Sonata, but their eye-contact was short-lived. Not that it mattered; the second or two before Sonata ran to her room and shut the door restated to Aria just how badly the situation had deteriorated. The confused, saddened, hurt look on her face had said it all, probably without Sonata even meaning it to, and for once, Aria couldn't argue back.

"You're the worst."

After shutting the front door, she dragged herself back to the couch, sinking into it as everything came around at once; everything she had done since they were banished, how she'd held onto her disappointment over not getting to be a magical, untouchable super-being until it festered into a near-permanent bad mood. And, yea, she blamed Adagio, because it wasn't like she could blame Sonata, could she? And, more importantly, they could have won if she wasn't so squeamish, so it only made sense that it was Adagio's job to make it better! That's why she harped on her for results all the time!

...So why did she feel like a complete tool? 

Maybe it was because of the way she leaned hard on Adagio to make life easier for herself (and would have happily done the same to Sonata, had she been able to reliably hold a job), but she wouldn't have needed to do that if Adagio hadn't lost them even more power after the Battle!

Of course, that probably didn't apply for when Adagio struck dripping, greasy gold with her mascot routine, since she got rich, famous, and kind of invited them along to join her, but... 

Well, maybe if she hadn't paraded her success and her restored voice in front of them all the time, not to mention keeping it a secret (Aria never bought 'it just came to me') how she got it back in the first place! Would it have killed her to help them out a little?! It was her fault that they lost those talents in the first place!

So that justified trying to take it all back. When she seized total legal control over everything Adagio was doing, she'd have gotten her to cough up the secret, then lived however she wanted with all that fast food blood(pressure) money. It was only what she deserved after losing so much.

She hadn't done anything wrong. She only resorted to trying to trick Adagio at the end because the whole world was apparently against them and they were running out of options. She had to look out for herself. She was only doing what she had to do.

These and other lies were the things Aria thought about as she curled into a ball on the couch and cried herself to sleep.

%%%


First Class. It was the only way Adagio had ever ridden a plane, this being the second time, but try as she might, she couldn't distract herself with thoughts of having been spoiled by it already. Even the restroom she used to finally change out of her Poofy outfit was more spacious than she'd have guessed.

This was fine. It was just what she always wanted, really; finally rid of those useless ingrates, the idiots that had made her life miserable for at least a few years now. She had gotten sick of their nonsense ages ago, and the only reason she never stole their gems to use for herself was that it probably wouldn't have worked anyway. They were leeches, shameless, soul-sucking leeches content to drain her dry and still demand more. That was all they were to her now, and she was better off without. Not happy, perhaps, but better off, because she damn sure wasn't happy with them, either.

Although, she thought before she could stop herself, the lump again building in her throat, I thought we were once...


She had been given multiple tips by older actors and people in show business when she was in Hollywood, but never did she need any of it until she was trying to compose herself before the taxi arrived. Letting Felt do the talking may have helped hide her red, puffy eyes a little, but she was sure they were getting more attention than she wanted right now on account of her familiar, fluffy curls. It probably didn't help that one of them was wearing an elegant maid outfit. She again went through one of the quiet breathing exercises to hold together now, which did not escape the notice of Felt, sitting next to her.

"Are you well, Madam?"

"Yes, just..."

While Adagio struggled to find the right words for her difficult emotional predicament, Felt leaned a little closer, her voice soft and nurturing. "Forgive me if I sound at all impertinent, but I am capable of offering support in more than fetching refreshments and drop-kicking molesters." As hoped, the reminder of that incident at the Chinese theater injected sufficient levity into the situation to draw a tiny smile from her employer. "While not extensively so, I am trained in caring for other human beings, so you may confide in me with anything you wish, if you are adequately comfortable."

Truth be told, Adagio wasn't totally comfortable, but nor was she certain she could hold it all in for the whole flight and however long it took to get from the airport to the house. The thought cropped up in her head that even if they were here with her and magically on good terms again, she probably couldn't have opened up to Aria or Sonata, either. This did nothing to help her keep it together, but with her heart already threatening to spill over, it wasn't likely that she could have shared these painful thoughts with perfectly dry eyes anyway. Felt already heard most of her exchange with the others, didn't she?

"...We were together for a long time, you know? I used to think it would be for life. They used to- I mean, I thought they used to count on me, as the one leading us from place to place, but... knowing that I did so much for the three of us, even working a job I hated for their benefit, and I was still never really that close to either of them?" Her voice cracked. "It hurts."

Felt nodded, delicately stretching an arm across Adagio's back (without disturbing her hair too much) to rest a comforting hand on her shoulder. "How long were you together?"

"I don't know exactly, but... almost ten years, I think. We met in-..." 

She doesn't know I'm from Equestria. Or, she probably doesn't. Do I have anything to lose at this point by asking?

Even if Felt freaked out and ditched her the second they were off the plane, it wouldn't hurt nearly as much as what Aria and Sonata just did to her. That in mind, she turned to look Felt in the eye. "I never told you where I came from, did I?"

When Felt shook her head, Adagio explained to her as she had to Cheese Sandwich, again feeling that relief of lifted weight that apparently accompanied just telling people things without any hidden agenda or pretense. There were a few questions (one of which was again whether or not she could turn into a dragon, curiously, albeit not of the honking variety), a moment in which she had to look Felt dead in the eye with a perfectly straight face, clarification on what her connection to the Rainbooms was, and what the gems she kept mentioning were for, but Felt seemed to accept that she was working for a former magical menace.

"...And, Aria and Sonata. They were such creatures as well?"

"Yes, at least after they saved me. We met in a grand lagoon on a tropical island, far out at sea, the popular grounds for an annual festival enjoyed by land and sea creature alike." Even if the years had tinted it with bitterness and loss, the memory still brought a little smile to her lips. "There was art, food, philosophy, magic, and of course, song. I was mostly there for that last one, having been given the chance to perform a solo-act for all the nice festival-goers. Aria and Sonata were two of the only other hippocampi there, we got to know each other a bit, and then I was kidnapped."

The smile faded as quickly as it came. "I never found out what it was I did wrong, who I must have angered to wind up where I did; chained to a stone and used as a living offering to something we didn't even have a name for."

"The altar you mentioned?"

"Yes. In short, I was taken in the night, carried around to the other side of the island, and held as a living sacrifice for some evil entity I'd never heard of by lunatics that seemed to think it would make them gods."

Felt watched as Adagio's face shifted from disgust towards her captors to what may have been a quiet, but very warm pride as she leaned back against the headrest.

"Aria and Sonata noticed I was missing, came after me using the trail my abductors left in the sand, and managed to get me free while avoiding deadly spells. They could have just told someone else and let them deal with it, or ignored it altogether, fled the island, and let it be someone else's problem, but instead, they rushed in to save me." She chuckled, a faintly wry grin on her lips. "Of course, they could have probably stood to recruit help from the festival peace-keepers, then come after me, but the two of them were always more brave than smart. When I was freed, I was able to channel the dark energies that were meant to consume my body and soul and turn them against our enemies, scattering them like a school of startled fish."

"And the gems were borne of this same magic?"

Adagio turned to look at Felt with an impressed smile. "Yes! How'd you guess?"

"It seemed a logical connection, based on the given information."

Still smiling, Adagio nodded. "So, once things had settled down, I was surprised to find the gems were still working, channeled all of the energy into three of them, and gave two to my saviors in thanks." And then her voice shifted back to tearful. "We'd been together ever since."

In the effort to keep her employer smiling, Felt tried her best to find the line of discussion supported primarily by happy memories. "And in mutual thanks, they made you their leader?" Adagio sniffled once, but did not sob. Relative success.

"Sort of. As I said, neither of them were especially bright, so the role naturally fell to me. Of course," she muttered as her mouth twisted with a bitter grimace. "had I known how high their expectations were, what they really wanted out of me, I'm sure I'd have never bothered."

"Where exactly would you say things changed for the three of you? From happy days to not?"

"When we met the wizard, I suppose. Or, at least a few days after. Initially, there was nothing he could do to stop us; no spell he could cast was powerful enough to undo ours or pierce our scales, so for the first several rounds, we barely needed to bat him away. Eventually, I suppose he figured that if nothing he could do could stop us, none of his magic could match ours, then he'd just let us be someone else's problem. If I had known he could just rip through time and space to send targets to other dimensions, I'm not sure what exactly I'd have done, but... I didn't know, so we wound up here."

Felt raised an index finger matter-of-factly. "Extend one extremity toward his vital areas with considerable force?" To her surprise, Adagio looked back at her in shock and horror. 

"I don't kill people!!"

Genuinely curious, Felt raised an eyebrow. "Was this person not making several attempts on your life? It seems unlikely that when met with repeated failures, more extreme measures would not cross his mind, up to and including termination." This won a shiver out of Adagio.

"M-maybe, but... I can't kill people, alright? I'll admit that it's not for the 'sanctity of life' or anything like that, just..." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "The night I was almost sacrificed, I was a sobbing, screaming mess until they broke me free, and even when I seized control of the magic, I was mostly acting out of panic. I had nightmares about it for weeks, and even now, the thought of being helpless as someone ends my existence is still so terrifying that-" 

A gentle squeeze of her shoulder reminded her that she was being held, so she focused on that and the warm feeling it brought rather than where her mind had been going. She quietly cleared her throat. "So... That's why I couldn't just stomp him and be done with it. It's not for any of the 'good' reasons, I just can't stomach the thought of it."

"Is it possible that this wizard, in gratitude for sparing his life, may be willing to allow you a return trip home?" She was hopeful when Adagio snorted with amusement, but it quickly became clear that this was more of a sad smile.

"I'm afraid it doesn't really work that way, Felt. I learned about a portal to my homeworld long after losing the rest of my power, but even if we were allowed back, we'd be powerless there now, and being without magic in that world is like being without any money in this one. That's... part of why we stuck with the dark magic in the first place, you know? It was like being a millionaire."

That, and, fresh from her near-death experience, she firmly decided that she never wanted to be in that position again. If everything boiled down to the powerful doing as they wished with the helpless, she knew where she wanted to be. If any one reason to start feeding on negative energy, to start hurting people for personal gain, had taken precedence over any other, it was that one, at least for her, personally.

"So... once we had our own means to make our way in the world, impose our own rules, that was what we did. We mostly tormented creatures on land because none of us wanted to make a mess of our home seas and land-dwelling species usually had denser populations anyway, which was good for energy harvests and finding crowds to lavish us." She chuckled dryly before looking Felt in the eye. "Would you laugh if I said I was evil now?"

"Perhaps." She almost laughed at the utterly bewildered face she got for saying that. "Because now, you are employed as a singing, dancing-" she very gently ruffled Adagio's hair, which was met with minimal resistance, "cheezy-cheerful fast food mascot."

Wriggling free of her grip, Adagio pulled away and crossed her arms with a 'Hmph,' but the little smile that accompanied this action informed Felt that her employer would not spend the remainder of the trip in tears.


%%%


The next morning (or at least, whenever the sun was up), Aria was roused from her slumber by the sounds of Sonata. She had to groggily sit up and rub her eyes before she could identify the noise as the closest thing she had to a friend stuffing things (mostly snacks) into a bookbag. It was probably from that plan they scrapped a few weeks back, something about infiltrating Crystal Prep. She shook herself awake.

"Sonata? What're you doing?"

Sonata, wearing what appeared to be a red slingshot bikini under a tiny, white tube-top and matching miniskirt with thigh-high boots, looked over her shoulder with surprisingly fierce determination in her eyes. "I'm striking out! Adagio left and took all the money with her and you're a total deadbeat, so I'm gonna get my act together and fly solo!" Zipping up the bag, she turned to face her in full, even striking a dramatic pose and donning a confident smirk. "And I'm gonna be a hit, because from here out, it's the Super Cute Sonata show!"

Not caring what insane delusions Sonata was under to think she'd be a big star this time, Aria shook her head. "No, look, Adagio was right, we've gotta-" She was a little surprised and a lot irritated that Sonata stomped a foot to cut her off.

"No! I'm gonna make my debut and leave you and her behind, cuz', see this?!" She held up a partly-torn poster depicting a silhouette of someone holding a microphone under a spotlight. The brightly-colored text read Chance to Prance Competition. "It's a music contest, all you need is an original song and a hot dance routine! I'm gonna win it, get the cash prize, and then get picked up by some big-time record company!"

"...There's so much wrong with that plan that you should slap yourself upside the head."

"Whatever." Slinging the bag over her shoulder, she started toward the door. "Have fun on your own in Loser-ville!"

Brow furrowed, Aria shouted after her. "That stupid outfit's gonna snag on something!"

That something proved not to be the front door, which slammed without impediment. Aria didn't pursue, because she knew Sonata, and that idiot would be back here before the day was out, most likely hungry, tired, and with some stupid pitch for why Aria should take her back. Then, she hoped, they'd be able to talk a little about how they'd make up with Adagio. For now, she tried calling her, just hoping her and Sonata's numbers weren't blocked.


%%%


As hoped, the bed in Adagio's new house was every bit as soft and sprawl-able as the one in the Santa Monica hotel, as she found when she sprawled out upon it after she'd finished unpacking. The same was true of the beds in those other two rooms, the ones that were prepared before she could've known she wouldn't need them, but this was the one she knew she'd be sleeping on.

Maybe I can use those as guest rooms. As long as those 'guests' aren't just using me for a free bed for the night. Or maybe Felt would like one of them? I don't know if they're any nicer than the one she's in now, but if she asks, I have no reason to refuse. Hell, let her have both, she can store her weird collection of weapons in one for all I care.

Rolling over onto her back, she idly looked around her room again. The moving company really did an excellent job, none of the fancy furniture she ordered even looked scratched or banged up or anything. It was a nice place; two floors of finely-crafted wood, tiles, glass, and soft carpets, a pool around here somewhere, everything she'd need to remind herself that she would never need to worry about money again. It was missing that lived-in feeling and various objects accumulated through one's adventures, like pictures, carnival prizes, novelty items, and other momentos, but she'd gather those anew. By herself. 

Do I want to decorate any amount of my house with Eezy-Cheezy memorabilia? I feel like I should at least get one of those Poofy cardboard cut-outs, if only to gauge my growth as this body gets older. Then again, will I just end up going straight to bad memories every time I see it? Maybe if I make more memories in the role, I'll think of those before-

She was startled by her phone ringing, and on the topic of bad memories, there was Aria's number. She glared at the screen, but even with the bile again churning through her innards, she couldn't muster the enthusiasm to shout something obscene at the caller, so she just let it ring. When the ringing stopped, she stared at the ceiling for a quiet minute, then got up, paced over to the vanity, sat down, and started arranging the make-up like it was in her other dressing rooms.

I'm definitely not 'done' as Poofy, Gouda still wants me promoting his products for a while yet, but I wonder if it's too soon to be 'washed up.' I have everything I could want now, plenty of fans who'd most likely lavish me even if I never sang again, food, shelter, and even transportation covered if I ever feel like going somewhere, so I might get away with living as a rich shut-in if I tried. 

...

Stardom as Chrysalis does it probably isn't an option for me unless I do something about my hair, because no one is going to see me on the big screen, no matter what role I take, and not think of the singing cheese mascot. Would I still be allowed to perform in front of a crowd if I took to the management side of things, or would I be stuck making money for money's sake?

When the little boxes, bottles, and tubes were arranged to her satisfaction, she looked idly around her room again. She didn't need to come up with a plan any time soon, it wasn't like anyone else would be affected by her decision, or that she needed to consider the attitudes and abilities of anyone else in where she wanted to go.

Was this my fault? Accepting all the blame was my problem right after the Battle, but... Could I have just told them exactly how I got my voice back? No. They didn't deserve it, and still don't, still haven't earned it like I have, and is it so much to ask that just once, they come to me? I gave them enough, and they only ever took more and more and-...

There was a time in which the three of them got along better, in which even Aria could be outright affectionate towards her, but it was clear to her now that even that much had only been for as long as she could get them what they wanted, keep them powerful and living easy under her guidance, above the mediocre lives they'd been living before they met her. 

There must have been something I could have done to bring us back to those times, some way I could reach out to them and fix things between us before they deteriorated so badly, but if that's true, the same goes for them, doesn't it? I don't remember either of them trying to make things better with me until they wanted something.

"...does it feel like a stretch to say it might be even better with our way?"

Was this what they meant? If I had been closer and friendlier with them, if we had what the Rainbooms did with each other, I'm sure this wouldn't have happened. Were they trying to warn me?

...No, definitely not, or they'd have just come out with it, most likely delivered with the most sanctimonious lecture possible, but I bet it's true anyway. Their argument was that I'd be unhappy if my fans didn't know the real me, nothing was said about personal acquaintances. Maybe they were just applying what they knew about that kind of relationship to all relationships everywhere?

Not that it mattered, because even if she'd directly asked the Rainbooms to dictate her entire personal life for her, it was far, far too late for the three of them by then. Even with that bitter thought in her head, there was one other nugget from the Rainbooms that echoed in her mind.

"And," Sunset had said after Adagio had heard everything they knew about what Aria and Sonata had been up to, "one last thing?"

She had really just wanted to leave, to finally get home and debunk everything they had just told her, but the earnest looks of concern, concern for her in their faces, had kept her rooted in place.

"Whatever you end up doing, however things go with your friends, don't give up hope of being happy without an act. Even if it isn't scores of people, someone will love you for who you are."

She said it because Adagio had said earlier that she had never been loved for who she was, that at best, it was her performances that people flocked around to cheer for. Thinking about Sunset's last sentiment now, she'd have laughed if it didn't make her so sick.

Why did the Poofy routine ever work on anyone at all? Because it was cute, soft, friendly, unthreatening, cheerful, even when at its heart, it was a lie to trick them into forking over their money or wheedling something out of them. 

Never once had she made that face, used that voice, without an ulterior motive, only when she wanted something. And people ate it up. The general public rarely saw her outside her persona, but most of those she worked with and talked to normally didn't seem to see her as anything but the act.

Just like Aria and Sonata only saw me as their free ride. How long before everyone else shows their colors in the same way?

She sat there in silence for a while, as if hoping to drill the answer out of her reflection's eyes. Looking around her otherwise empty room one more time, Adagio flickered the lights on her vanity to see if they all worked (they did), stood up, and walked out to see if breakfast was ready.
> Chapter 11: Post-Underground-Corridor Illumination
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As much as she'd have thought she was getting used to it by now, Aria still hated to admit when she was wrong. As much as she'd have thought she'd have gotten used to it a long time ago, the cause of her annoyance was Sonata, who still hadn't come back even as the sun was going down. If she wanted to make things right with Adagio, it'd probably be easier if she had Sonata there with her, so sighing with irritation, she finally settled on going to look for her.

It was while getting dressed and preparing for what could be a long night on the town that she noticed the credit card was missing, making her hunt feel much, much more urgent.


%%%


Thankfully, tracking Sonata down wasn't hard, because it took less than an hour of searching to happen across a poster with her face on it. Apparently, Sonata fancied herself an overnight pop idol, setting up what was supposed to be her own one-song concert at the same outdoor-theater... place... at which they'd held the Battle of the Bands. 

The exact same place at which they'd lost their powers, their singing voices, and any hope of reaching their dreams of life-long worship by lesser creatures. That was where Sonata wanted to try her luck.

So much for 'bad feng-shui' or whatever, you fucking idiot.

Maybe even more surprising was the fact that people had actually shown up, Aria able to see at least a few dozen people out in front of the stage, waiting for the show to start. This, apparently, was what Sonata had wanted the card for, because the set-up of lights, props, and people working various equipment she saw backstage (Sonata having understandably skimped on any kind of security detail) looked a lot more extravagant than the cardboard-level budget either of them could easily afford. Sonata probably blew most of the money Adagio had given them on this, which renewed Aria's feelings of frustration with both in full.

This was right about the time she found Sonata, still wearing the stupid, flashy get-up in which she'd left the house, looking back at her like she was the one who stole the last of their money and spent it on something stupid.

"What are you doing here?"

"Looking for the idiot that swiped my-" She caught herself too late, but still forced a deep breath in an attempt to calm down. "We gotta talk, this-"

"Nuh-uh," Sonata said while holding up a hand in a manner suggesting that Aria should make conversation with it, "I'm not doing anything you say, you're an even worse leader than Adagio ever was! I'm gonna make my debut here, and when I get super famous, you're gonna be-"

Anger quickly moved in again. "How do you plan to sing without a singing voice, stupid?!"

"Pfft," scoffed Sonata, looking at Aria with a pitying smirk, "with the recordings I took of myself way before the Battle!"

"What?!"

"I've got it all figured out; if I can't sing, I'll just lip-sync to my own voice, which is pretty much the same thing, get a recording of me being awesome, and get my own golden mansion with all the money I make!"

"...Okay. One: I thought this contest of yours said it had to be an original song. I know for a fact that you don't know how to write one."

Adagio was the big music star the day they met, she and Sonata had just been there to have a good time.

"So? I recorded myself singing Adagio's songs way back when, and since nobody else knows about those, I can just say I wrote 'em!"

"And when Adagio catches wind of you using her songs illegally?"

A proud grin on her face, Sonata crossed her arms. "Uh, big-time super star versus fast food clown, my word against hers. I win."

Sonata's newfound arrogance was clearly doing nothing for her reasoning ability, but given that she was sure this wouldn't get far enough for Adagio to have to prove she wrote the songs (however she'd do that, nevermind the massive assumption Sonata was banking on that she'd get bigger and have more clout than Adagio before the latter could do anything), Aria was content to move things along. "Uh-huh. And, why do you have recordings of yourself singing Adagio's songs? Which you never mentioned prior to now?"

At this, Sonata turned away with a scowl, an unmistakable bitterness in her voice. "Like I'd tell you." She started walking away. "I've like, got a show to put on, so if you wanna hang around, you can go get ready to throw money and roses with the rest of my fans." 

Not moving, Aria called after her. "And what are you going to do when you run out of recordings?!"

Not turning back or slowing down, Sonata dismissively waved a hand at her. "I'll get my real singing voice back somehow before that happens, duh!"

Watching the idiot go (with a vague imitation of Adagio's most swingy, queen-of-the-world walk, the one she hadn't actually seen her doing in several months now), Aria seethed. There was no way this was going to work, no way Sonata would get anywhere by pretending to have talent, no way she would get away with leaving Aria behind even after she always brought Sonata along with her.

There was no chance, and being there to see it all crash and burn was the only reason Aria hung around as Sonata started her show.

Nobody cheered as Sonata walked out on stage, but she definitely had their undivided attention as the music started and Sonata launched into her dance routine. To her credit, it wasn't as sloppy as Aria had expected it to be, though Sonata was clearly out of practice (and a little out of shape), putting emphasis on thrusting her boobs, butt, and thighs toward the audience as often as possible to make up for her sluggish movements.

Oh of course, she's using one of Adagio's 'sexy' songs.

Once the first chorus started, the stage crew, a bunch of people in black pants and t-shirts, started pulling ropes and moving stuff, making big, painted, hot-pink hearts and blue, jagged music notes glide around the background of the stage as Sonata "sang." It was all very flashy, but simple in its presentation, which definitely felt like the kind of show Sonata would put on, so that wasn't what surprised Aria about the whole thing.

What surprised her was that the audience was getting into it.

Looking into the meager crowd from where she stood just offstage, Aria could see a few smiling faces, heads bobbing, and feet tapping. People were actually going for this. It was working.

What Aria didn't notice was one member of the audience in a light-blue hoodie drawn up to cover her face. Staying in the back of the crowd, this person watched the spectacle for a minute, determined that while it was weird and confusing to see another of the sirens somehow singing again, she at least didn't see any magic, nobody was acting like zombies, and there was no sign that anyone needed to get up in arms about anything going on here. It was safe.

That in mind, she stepped away from the crowd, kept a normal walking pace until she could step out of sight, then sped away, gone in a blink.

Still looking at the rest of the audience, Aria's jaw clenched. It wasn't anywhere near the amount of people that were here the night they lost everything, but Adagio's first music video hadn't had a huge crowd either, and more importantly, if people could go for this now, it meant however many people saw this stupid contest might go for it too. Sonata might really take off and leave her behind with this. 

As if to mock her thoughts, it was at this point that Sonata, aided by some thinly-visible wires, lifted off the ground, floating in the air among her flat hearts and music notes as she got into the fourth stanza, where the beat really picked up. 

Aria wanted to scream, to throttle Sonata then and there if she could have reached her, or even to just drop to her knees and cry, but she'd never give Sonata the satisfaction. Instead, hands balled into fists and burning eyes tightly shut, she turned and kicked the nearest thing to her. The impact hurt her foot even through her boot, but the sudden, mechanical whirring snapped her back to her senses. On the ground in front of her was some kind of rope-and-pulley thing, now spinning out of control as it rapidly fed a rope to... somewhere. None of the stage crew seemed to notice that she had kicked it and no one was even looking in her direction, the noise from Sonata's song reverberating much louder than anything the pulley was doing. 

And that was when things started to go wrong.

Suddenly, one of the big, floating hearts that had been swinging around the stage lurched off in a direction it wasn't supposed to, banging against a quarter-note that nearly snapped free of its ropes, bending and twirling in the air until it smacked into another heart at the other side of the stage. That heart went off-course too, nearly slamming into Sonata as she stopped "singing" to kick her legs in the air to dodge it, the recorded song still playing all the while. This motion sent her whirling around, the wires holding her up quickly entangling her arms as the stage crew frantically waved instructions at each other, pulling levers and pushing buttons here and there in an attempt to reign in the unfolding chaos. 

It was difficult to say whether or not this helped or hindered matters, because one of the hearts picked up speed, knocking hard enough against another to send it swinging upwards toward the walkways on which a stage crew member desperately fiddled with controls. The impact against the railing made the crew member jump in fright, inadvertently hitting something that screwed up the sound system. Sonata's recording got stuck on a single syllable, revealing her deceit to the audience in perfect detail. Just in case the fact that her mouth had stopped moving wasn't enough of a hint.

Still trying to free herself from the wires as most of the props either broke off their systems or were reigned in enough to stop moving, Sonata arched her back while kicking her legs, narrowly missing a jagged, blue eighth note as the top glided an inch from her spine, snagging her red, slingshot swimsuit as it passed.

Sonata's eyes bulged in shock and pain as the eighth note finally came to a stop, leaving her hanging front and center above the stage, suspended by her swimsuit. 

A silence settled over the crowd as they took in the scene. Then they pointed and laughed.

Aria's first instinct was to join them, but she heard some of the stage crew frantically whispering to each other nearby.

"What the Hell went wrong?!"
"I dunno, something must'a been loose somewhere!"
"Well what do we do?!"
"Waitwaitwait, I've got an idea... She paid upfront, right?"
"Right."
"Cool... Bail!"

And then they scattered. 

Stuck hanging with the worst wedgie of her life, a flush-faced Sonata grimaced in both pain and frustration, another ruined plan down the tubes. She was just about to start telling off the jerks laughing at her when she heard Aria's voice.

"Okay, okay, that's enough!"

Her heart rose when the crowd actually stopped laughing, gratitude and relief flowing in like a cool breeze as her oldest friend came to her rescue!

...Only, when she walked out on stage, Aria was pushing a shabby-looking fruit stand with her, one that smelled like old lemons. It almost looked like their old lemonade stand, just with the 'Lemonade' part of the sign crossed out!

"If you really wanna let her have it," Aria announced with an ecstatic grin, "ya gotta do it right! Just two bucks a lemon!" Her smile turned smug and malicious as she glanced up at Sonata, whose jaw had dropped and face paled when she registered what awaited her. However, to her surprise, someone in the audience chose now to develop any kind of empathy.

"Hey, that's not cool, making a profit off someone's misery!"

There were a few affirmative sounds from the others, to which Aria responded with a raised eyebrow. 

"But it's fine to sit there laughing at them, adding to that misery? I don't see a single one of you moving to help her down."

The first speaker was heard muttering. "W-well, yea, but... um..." He quickly glanced at those nearby. "Charging two bucks a throw is too much, let's get her!"

The cheer of "Yea!" was much more unanimous this time, sending a chill up Aria's spine before she tore off running, the angry mob in hot pursuit. 

As much as Sonata wanted to laugh at her or cheer them on, she was still stuck, arms tied and hanging painfully by her swimsuit.

"Is anybody gonna get me down...? Hello...?"


%%%


Meanwhile, at Rarity's place, the Rainbooms struggled with the conundrum of the Shadowbolts (minus Indigo Zap, apparently) having stolen their act for the Chance to Prance contest, and the idea bucket was running pretty dry. Rainbow waved to the others as she walked in, sighing with some kind of relief as she lowered her hood.

"Okay, I scoped it out a little, and... I think we're good."

Sunset hesitantly smiled. "That's good to hear. No magic, no mind-control, nothing?"

"Nothing," Rainbow confirmed, "just cheap boob-shaking stuff to snag the drooling idiot crowd. Maybe that was how Adagio did it at first too?" She was startled by an angry Fluttershy materializing in front of her, sharply pointing an index finger just under her chin.

"Poofy is a very wholesome girl and would never resort to something so base! Her product is cheese, not cheese-cake, because the Eezy-Cheezy is a family restaurant and does not cater to the appetites of that nature, only those seeking delicious, carefully-made meals; everything you could think of with extra cheese!"

Her correction delivered, Fluttershy stopped to catch her breath, noticed the whole room staring at her in shock, then turned red, hid in her hair, and quietly slunk off to the corner.

Rainbow scratched her head. "So, anyway... Sonata's not a threat either, and if we see posters of Aria all over town next, we probably don't even need to check it out."

"Reckon that's good to hear, at least," Applejack thought aloud, "'cuz we don't really have room for another crisis right now."

She turned her head to see Rarity, knee-deep in another dramatic episode as rocked back and forth in the fetal position. She didn't know what they were going to do about this contest or the thieving snakes from Crystal Prep, but she hoped something came up soon.


%%%


Later that night, Sonata sat on the edge of the abandoned stage, her head in her hands as she sighed. 

All day spent going around and paying people to do stuff for her, all for nothing. There wasn't even enough for a sandwich on the credit card now, because she'd spent every cent she could just in case Aria swiped it back, but now it was like she'd snuck out to steal it in Aria's sleep for nothing!

Even her sexy swimsuit was ruined, and that was the only slingshot bikini she had! That was the kind Adagio's hot new friend was wearing in those pictures, so she was sure even Aria would drool over her!

Not literally though, because like... yuck!

That skimpy thing was technically her underwear, now hanging from the stage in shreds, so she was kinda going commando right now, but even that tiny thrill didn't make her feel any better about being totally screwed. 

Maybe I can still dress up like a poor, lost orphan and try to get Adagio into pity-taking-me-back, only this time with no stupid Aria to mess that act up. But, I'd need money to get to wherever she lives now, and I don't wanna carry the smelly old hat I'd be keeping the money people gave me in all the way to her place! Oh, and, where does she live now?

Ooh, maybe I could go to the Rainbooms, tell them that I was always the good one, accept Rainbows as my savior, pig out on cupcake communion, and get them to rainbow-beam Aria and Adagio to death for me! Then I'll inherit Adagio's fortune and-

Footsteps snapped her out of her fantasizing, making her look up with a hint of dread to see a bruised Aria coming toward her in torn clothes. Sonata's first instinct was to yell 'Rape!', but there wasn't any of that strangle-you-with-your-own-kidneys look on her face, just a tired, I'm-too-old-for-this kind of stare as Aria casually came closer, hands in her pockets like she just didn't care about anything. If sexy, stare-at-my-butt-like-it's-the-only-thing-in-the-world hip-swinging was the Adagio Walk, this was the Aria Walk. 

The Aria Walk turned into the Aria Sit when she stopped next to Sonata on the edge of the stage, sitting with one leg hanging over the side and the other bent to prop up an arm that just kinda hung there like she was supposed to be holding a cigarette. "Hey."

Sonata noticed that Aria wasn't looking at her, but maybe it was because of the black eye. "...Hey."

"I'm sorry."

Uppercut to the feels!!

Sonata did not expect that! But then there was more!

"We'll be out here all night if I go in order, but like, tonight, and everything that came before? I'm sorry." 

"...Everything?"

"Yea." She winced when Sonata punched her arm. Not because it was done hard enough to really hurt, just, it hit one of her bruises!

"Take it back."

"Huh?!" She turned to see Sonata with an angry, hurt look on her face.

"I don't want it to be everything, take it back!!"

When Sonata pulled back a fist, Aria raised her hands in defense. "Okay, okay, not everything!!" At that, most of the malice in her long-time partner vanished, the fist falling to her side. "Sheesh."

Sitting in silence for an awkward minute, Sonata felt like she'd been asked to explain herself without anyone actually saying it. "...If it was everything, that'd have to mean the big party, too. I'm not sorry for anything about that, and you shouldn't be either."

"'Big party'?"

"Yea. Y'know, where we met Adagio?"

"Oh, the solstice festival!"

"Solstice?"

"Or something like that, I know it had to do with seasons or whatever." Then the thought sunk in, drawing a smile. "It'd really bug you if I was sorry for that?"

"For inviting me! I had a really good time that day, even before she brought us on stage for her big encore!"

"Inviting...? Ohh, yea..."

Anyone who could make it there was free to attend and do whatever, but staying in the luxury tents was a ticket-only kind of deal, and Aria had won two in a bet. Not having anyone else to bring along, she gave the extra to the first dork that agreed to carry any prizes she won like a pack whale. 

This proved to be an easy job for Sonata, because Aria won no prizes, but they had fun anyway.

That thought, of course, led Aria right back into her guilt. "You know why I always give you a hard time?"

"Because hanging out at a huge, three-day super-party is one thing, but working together is another and between the three of us, there was a Best, Worst, and Not-Worst, and with Adagio all having her act together all that time, that left Worst and Not-Worst, and you didn't wanna be the Worst either?" Aria's jaw dropped, so she smiled and shrugged. "I know I'm not smart, but I feel stuff, and I felt like you felt that way too."

It took Aria longer than she wanted to admit to swallow that Sonata already understood her so clearly. But, maybe that meant she already knew this too. "...When we, after the Battle, when Adagio was having her little breakdown, it was easy to finally make her the loser of the group, right?"

"Totally," Sonata answered without a hint of mirth, "and like, it felt good. 'I'm the boss now, bitch, so get used to it!' I never said anything like that to her, but that was the feeling; being bigger and stronger than somebody who's normally better than me."

"...We still sorta fought over who was 'Best' after, but, even when she took back control, she was still pretty much working for us." At least in the sense that she was doing a job to fund their take-it-easy-until-we-find-work-that-doesn't-suck lifestyles. "With how things had been going, I thought it just felt right." She again winced as Sonata lightly shoved her, agitating another bruise.

"You were the one that said it was all her fault, when we got booted here and when the gems broke, and when she started crying, I thought it had to be true."

Trying a page from Sonata's book (a sign of desperation if ever there wa-), Aria took a guess. "And her blowing up at us yesterday got you thinking too?"

"Uh-huh. When she was in charge, we did what she said, she took care of the hard stuff, and everything that went wrong had to be her fault. That worked great for me, so I went with it, but..." Her eyes misted. "It didn't feel true, and I didn't wanna think about why."

"But you did anyway?" Somehow, this won a tiny, if sad smile, Aria responding with one to match.

"Hehe, yea. I was making a list, in case she ever wanted to switch things around and make us work while she watched TV, and when I hit 'It's her fault the Rainbooms broke out somehow!', I felt like I bit into a cookie with raisins instead of chocolate. Then I kept finding more raisins, but like, I wanted them to be chocolate, so I just kept chewing and telling myself it tasted like chocolate, but they were still totally raisins! You know what I mean?"

"...Somehow, I think I do."

Sonata nodded. "It was all her ideas, but every time we had a good thing going because of those ideas, something pretty much came outta nowhere, and if somebody got mad at me for stuff I couldn't have seen coming, I'd just wanna kick 'em in the junk, so..."

99% sure that it was an act of solidarity, Aria put a hand on Sonata's shoulder. "We've gotta make up with her."

Sonata looked her in the eye, the question already clear in her wide, regretful eyes. "How?"

At least this time, Aria could admit it. "I don't know."

Things stayed quiet for a moment. Aria had kind of hoped they'd get an epiphany to fix everything right then, but maybe it was too much to hope for that kind of freebie at this point. She glanced backward at the ruined props. "Seriously though, why did you have recordings of yourself singing stuff Adagio wrote?"

Sonata chuckled. "I used to take those so I could listen to them later to pep myself up, to prove to myself that I wasn't totally worthless and my singing sounded great even when I wasn't singing with you guys. Adagio'd have never let me sing with you otherwise, right?"

Aria slowly nodded. "...Sorry we made you doubt your worth by being so much better than you."

Sonata scowled, reaching out to pinch Aria's backside as hard as she could.

"OUUCH!! K-kidding, I was kidding!!" Sonata let go, huffing and turning her head away as Aria winced and rubbed the sore spot. "Dammit, that's gonna be another bruise!"

"When Adagio left, I ran to my room to think about stuff, and it wasn't just what she said. I was the one that broke first and tried to throw you under the bus, so I figured you were gonna kick me out the next day, so I had to do something."

Glancing at the stage, the shot at stardom that she might have helped destroy, Aria managed to fend off Guilt this time with one of her earlier observations. "Even if this had gone well, do you really think you'd have convinced people that you wrote her songs? Because even if you learned and got good at writing songs fast, I bet the difference in styles would show enough to expose you. And that's if she didn't do something sneaky to end you even sooner."

Sonata shrugged. "I was desperate, okay? You try thinking straight after hours of psyching yourself up that you're totally gonna pull off something huge by yourself." She glanced at Aria. "Like taking on forty people on your own."

Aria snorted. "Nah, I'm pretty sure most of that mob don't exercise, because only four or five kept up until I was cornered and then it was just a matter of blowing off steam. Totally fun," she said while stretching out an aching arm in a punching motion, "try it some time!" 

"Heh, I'll pass." She frowned. "Really though, what do we do now? We've got not money, no jobs, no friends in this town, nothing but a messy house and maybe a sob story."

Still lacking ideas, Aria looked out over the empty seating area, wondering if the film crew ever bothered to shut off the camera. And then it hit her. "You paid for a recording for your little show, right?"

Blushing, Sonata scoffed and folded her arms. "Yea, don't remind me."

Aria smiled a little. "Let's see if we can get that footage..."


%%%



One week later...



%%%


"Aaaand that's five, hundred, thousand views!!"

Sonata was much less excited about what the laptop was showing them, even if the video title was 'Hot Girl Gets Tied Up,' because that hot girl was her! Her face stayed beet red for every second of the video's runtime as her failed, one-song concert fell to pieces onscreen, mostly centered on the wedgie. "You know," she growled through gritted teeth, "you suck."

Aria was all smiles. "It ain't gonna last forever, but we're making pretty good income off this ad revenue stuff. Good thing your outfit was just modest enough that we didn't get demonetized, huh? This should keep us afloat until we can both get solid jobs."

"Yea, but-"

Aria kept her sweet smile, but her tone held a cold edge. "It recently broke even with the amount somebody spent by herself to pay for the video with all of our money, so we're actually turning a profit! Neat, huh?"

Grumbling, but knowing it really was her fault that they were flat-broke after her show, Sonata quietly accepted that being an internet laughingstock (at least until something else came along) was the price for nearly dooming them on a stupid flight of fancy. Again.

"Hey, at least you didn't have to run home naked this time, right?"

Sonata flushed an even brighter shade of red than the stretched swimsuit onscreen as she squawked in indignance. "Gawd, shut up!!"
> Chapter 12: Hindsight
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The situation was serious.

No, Felt Feather would dare say it was dire.

It was unclear how much time was left, or the severity of the consequences should nothing be done, but she knew she had to act. Regrettably, the only avenue presented to her was one with which she was utterly unfamiliar, but if there was the faintest chance that this would be the route through which to make repairs, she knew she had to take it.

That in mind, she picked up the microphone, pressed the button to initiate her selected song, and sang.

Adagio and Chrysalis, the only two other people in the karaoke den of the former's home, quietly enjoyed Felt's rendition of a soft, soothing melody. It wasn't especially passionate or soulful, but it definitely had more emotional impact than they'd have anticipated from Felt, and her agreeing to sing for them in the first place was nice all the same.  When the song ended, the two of them clapped, Adagio giggling a little as Felt topped off her performance with a textbook stage bow.

"Alright," she said while getting to her feet with a bright, determined grin, "I'm up next!"

Felt took Adagio's seat next to Chrysalis while Adagio got ready, receiving a whispered question almost immediately.

"So is this what a normal day is like here? Singing a few songs in your down-time?"

Felt answered without turning her head. "More commonly, it is only the lady of the house who sings. I normally spectate." Despite minimal visual contact, Felt could still effectively see the lascivious grin.

"Nothing... else? Just the two of you in this big, secluded house together?"

"You have had this confirmed multiple times: Madam Dazzle possesses no inclination to physically survey fellow women."

Chrysalis's lewd smile gave way to a pout. "I know, I know, but everyone is bi-curious at least once, aren't they?!" She gave Adagio another look, faintly begrudging the way that long, fluffy hair obscured the view as her song started up. The tone of the tune wasn't necessarily dark, but it carried a clear ring of sadness, pain, and even rage. "...Really though, what's with her lately?"

Eager to accept any potential back-up she could secure, even from a decadent louse such as Chrysalis, Felt answered without hesitation. "Personal crisis. You recall the two friends she has alluded to?"

"Mmhm?"

"We visited them at Madam Dazzle's former residence in Canterlot. It did not go well. She has yet to fully recover, demonstrating a strained capacity for human interaction and a reliance on her Poofy persona when that limit is reached. Even when not engaging the act, she is prone to somber facial expressions and the occasional heavy sigh."

"Is that why she seems a little extra spacey lately?" Leaning her head back on the couch, Chrysalis let out a long, beleaguered sigh. "Craaaaap, personal drama!"

Felt's eyes narrowed. Of course this self-obsessed layabout would lose interest the moment-

"I don't know how to fix that."

Eyes wide open again, Felt turned her head in shock, seeing a worried, uncomfortable frown on Chrysalis's face.

"I know how to have a good time, not undo the damage after a really bad one. Getting all heart-to-heart and being a tear-sponge is not my thing."

Determining that she was mistaken about the old (older than her employer, at least) actress, Felt made an attempt despite the implication of futility. "How do you cope with your own tragedies?"

"I bury them, as far and as deep as I can," a hint of a smirk returned, "usually under glistening, naked bodies."

"Would you have her do the same?"

Chrysalis held silent as she mulled it over, then frowned again, gently shaking her head. "No. Don't let her be like me. I don't think that's what she really wants." She looked at the maid when there was no reply, getting back subtle curvature of the mouth and eyebrows that suggested she felt sorry for her. "Don't get me wrong, what I've got works for me and I wouldn't change anything now, but it might not be too late for her, you know?"

Felt nodded, but to her surprise, The Louse Chrysalis had another question.

"Since you're asking for help, I get the vibe that you're not great with the touchy-feely stuff yourself, even when you want to be. Am I right?"

"Yes."

"She's mentioned before how she used to sing with those two. Is that why...?"

"Yes."

The two listened in silence for a moment, and judging by the way Adagio continued with her passionate chorus of wishing pain and grief on a false-faced loved one, they silently concluded that Felt's song had less than the desired effect.

Noting that maybe it really was a dark song, Chrysalis gave Felt a worried glance. "...We might be up a creek here." Seeing Felt's shoulders sag, she tried a smile. "Too bad Snack Boy isn't here, hmm? Maybe a bag of sweets every so often would do the trick."

Felt's eyes widened as the realization dawned on her, many lines connecting at once to complete a picture she should have seen much sooner. "Cheese Sandwich. What became of him at the conclusion of the tour?"

"No clue, I only met him a few times, but I know he was with their group since the start. Maybe the fat man would know?"

Gouda Will. Felt had heard nothing about him since he settled into his corporate office not far from a large dairy farm. Adagio would surely have his contact information somewhere.

When the song ended, Felt stood up. "Splendid rendition, Madam." She and Chrysalis both took it as a good sign that Adagio responded with a happy blush and a girlish giggle.

"Thanks!"

"I must now make the necessary arrangements for your upcoming appearance on the situation comedy program, please excuse me." With a little curtsy, she left, having supplied the perfect excuse for if she was seen in Adagio's paperwork room. 

Truly, that Adagio had dedicated a period of hours to naming each and every room of the house had been a worrying sign all its own.

When it was just the two of them, Adagio glanced back and forth between Chrysalis and the door before extending the hand holding the microphone. "Would you like to go next, or...?"

Smiling, Chrysalis patted the sofa seat next to her. "Let's just take five. Who knows, maybe she'll come back and we can get her to do a Tango!"

Chuckling, Adagio sat next to her. "I wouldn't hold my breath on that."

Chrysalis's eyes sparkled with mischief. "Here's the plan:..."

By the time Felt came back, the two had forgotten their scheme entirely, but a fun time was had regardless.


%%%


The camera slowly rose along the rocky exterior of a mountain in a distant land, panning up to reveal Poofy climbing the rocky surface. A particularly slow shot was used to show her dressed in a beige outfit consisting of a short-sleeved, midriff-baring blouse and white shirt, short shorts, black, fingerless gloves, and knee-high boots as she went. 

The next shot briefly featured her higher up the mountain with the camera angled from below, then another from the side as her curls blew in the wind, one of her sitting on a ledge as she peered over a map with a curious look on her face, a top-down shot of her climbing with a determined grin, a side-view of her standing with the sun in the background as she drank from a canteen, and finally her approaching the massive, wooden doors to an ancient temple. 

Inside, she reverently approached a massive, stone pyramid of stairs, the large, flat area at the top containing a wooden stool next to a single cow.

"Moo."

Smiling, Poofy sat down, humming the chorus of Cheezy-Love as she milked the cow. A moment later, she had a jug of unrealistically clean, sparkly milk as she smiled at the camera.

"And now we wait!"




Eezy-
Cheezy!





%%%


With the conclusion of the latest Eezy-Cheezy ad, a slightly perplexed Rarity withdrew her phone from the middle of the table in Sugarcube Corner. "Well," she said with a disdainfully raised eyebrow, "assuming this wasn't her idea, I see they've worked out that their mascot happens to be a voluptuous young woman and have set right to work in seeing what they can get away with."

Pinkie shrugged. "The camera sure spent a lotta time around her tushie. Maybe they are selling cheesecake?"

Most of the table blushed, but Sunset dismissively waved a hand. "Anyway, did you guys notice how those other ads have stopped airing? The ones she made to make fun of us?"

"Most of the older ones cycled out too, eventually," noted Fluttershy, "but I don't know if those two went away any faster than normal."

"They might've," mumbled Rainbow as she looked away from the others, "if she was scared. The last time I saw one of those was a couple days after she was in town."

Applejack frowned. "Are ya still hung up over what she said? We ain't bullies, and we never were."

"Maybe not never." 

The rest of the table turned to look at Twilight, who, head lowered, elaborated quickly.

"When I first asked you all about the sirens, you shared the detail of stopping in to Adagio's work place to check on her, which included several comments and laughter at her expense. Even if you didn't mean anything by it, do-"

"I know, I know," groaned Rainbow, "that's the kinda thing I'm talking about! And until we talked to her, I was ready to do way worse!" She looked directly at Sunset. "You know why I never just broke your nose back when you were a total bitch?"

Sunset answered casually. "Blackmail?" She and the others giggled as Rainbow turned red and sputtered. 

"N-no! It's because I used to hang out with someone and, long story short, we kinda ended up acting like jerks in middle school. Sure, at first it was just fighting back against even bigger jerks and going after those who had it coming, but eventually? We were really just pushing people around because we could. I swore off that crap, swore I'd never go that far again." 

Elbows on the table, she held her head in her hands, a miserable expression on her face. "Then the other Twilight came along, got us together to stop Sunset, and I got to feel like a hero again, and we just kept winning against people that had to be stopped ever since. When Adagio was making fun of all of us, I took it as an attack on me and my friends, and to me, that made her the bad guy again, made her okay to hit back until we won again. I remembered the part about only going after people who deserved it, but forgot that even that has to stop somewhere. And that she only did it because she was scared of us?" She sighed. "Feels gross. Feels really, really gross."

An awkward, introspective silence settled over the table. At least until Rarity looked at her phone, smiling brightly at Rainbow.

"I think I know what'll cheer you up: Have you ever been on the set of a movie before?"


%%%


Returning to one's residence was supposed to bring with it feelings of security and relief, the homestead being where things were most familiar and comfortable. For Felt Feather, returning from a day out with her employer, this was not the case.

"Would you like a drink, Madam?"

"Sure thing! No need to worry about the large fries though," she giggled in a perfectly-rehearsed imitation of laughter, "just as long as it's here in 30 minutes or less!"

Just as in today's recording sessions and the trip to the pet store (for better or worse, Madam Dazzle had decided against adopting those two hamsters in the end), 'Poofy' did all of the talking, controlled most of the facial expressions, and retained a rigid control over body language even several minutes after they had shut and locked the front door. For such a deliberately light-hearted and harmless act, the insistence upon that facade was unsettling, even after weeks of exposure to it. She understood the reason, but there was nothing she could do on her own.

Ding-dong!

Which was why she called for help.

She accompanied her manic master to the door, opening it to reveal Cheese Sandwhich dressed in a Hawaiian shirt, hula skirt, sunglasses, and a head accessory giving the appearance that he'd sustained an arrow wound through the head. 

"Hey, 'Dagi-O! How's the high life treating you?"

"Uh..." 

Felt took it as a good sign that she didn't immediately default to the Poofy persona.

"I'm, doing alright... what brings you here?"

"I'm glad you asked! I'm still working out the song for it, but in short, coming along on that tour was the best thing that ever happened to me! I never knew how much I'd like traveling the world and partying with new people all over the place, so I took some of the money I made doing it and got a party-bus of my very own!" He thumbed over his shoulder, indicating a van that looked like it'd been painted by splashing random colors on the surface sitting on the driveway. 

"It's not really a bus-bus, at least not yet, but I'll get there! Or not, but I'm sure it'll be a blast anyway! I know I already said thanks for inviting me, but now I wanna say it again in a I-know-what-I-wanna-do-with-the-rest-of-my-life kinda way!" 

Adagio actually felt an odd little pang of nostalgia when he grabbed and rapidly shook her hand, lifting his shades and offering her an earnest smile.

"Thank you, Adagio. You changed my life."

It was a good thing she knew he wasn't interested in women, or that might have made her heart flutter. "Yes, well," she answered with a hesitant smile, "you kind of changed mine first."

"Maybe," he said while taking a step back, "but I still gotcha some thank-you sugar!" 

This time, she wasn't even surprised when he reached behind his back and pulled out an entire cake with a great, big smiley-face made of frosting on top. "Felt, could you...?"

"At once, Madam."

As Felt took hold of the cake, Cheese wore a somewhat regretful smile. "Drug-testing time?"

Adagio blinked in surprise, then connected the meaning, letting out a sheepish giggle. "N-no, just, taking it inside... Would you like to come in?"

Her fears that that question was reserved exclusively for girls with spicy plans for the boys it was said to were quashed when Cheese smiled like he usually did. "Sure!"

Moments later, they were seated in the living room, Cheese letting out a whistle that echoed against the far walls and distant ceiling, reminding Adagio how much quiet, empty space there was. "Maaan, this place is huge!"

"...Yes, it is. How did you get all the way here from Canterlot? The gas money alone had to be considerable."

"Oh, easy! I've been doing my Party Person thing in every town I stopped at! I don't have much of a name for myself in that yet, but it usually only takes one song before people are willing to pay top dollar for the necessary supplies I need to set 'em up, and I'm making a bundle!" A somewhat restrained smile on his face, he winked. "Not that I'm expecting that alone to make me happy."

It was only for a split-second, but Cheese witnessed the flash of pain in her eyes, the ghost of a grimace there and gone in an instant before it was replaced by a bright, peppy grin. 

"Of course not, for that you'd need at least one tray of nachos, cheeseburgers, pizza, or, -hehe!- anything from our Cheezy menu!"

Cheese's smile didn't go away, but he didn't laugh, either. Remembering that failure to just come right out with things had only made a mess before (and not even the fun kind!), he decided to do the coming right out with it. "Did something happen? I hate to pry, but you kinda give the vibe that you're more unhappy than last time."

For a moment, he saw 'Poofy' winding up another sales pitch, but reflected in Adagio's eyes was awareness of the same thing he learned that day. It took a minute, but the pinata cracked, spilling out a sigh and a wretched, heart-stabby frown.

"I don't want to talk about it, okay?"

"Do you wanna lock it up and let it fester instead?"

She was almost startled by how quickly that reply came, masking it with a huff and crossed arms. "It's not festering, I'm moving on at my own pace." Only because he had stopped smiling did she not take his reply as an insult.

"Must be a slow one if it's chained to your ankle, and that sounds like a long, painful trip."

She clenched her jaw. "What do you want from me?"

"The same thing I always want," he said with a small, hopeful smile, "I want everyone to be happy, and I think the best way for you isn't to just drag your heavy feelings around until you get used to the weight, but get a helping hand from some friends or-"

"I tried that," she shrieked, jumping to her feet, "and they both stabbed me in the back!!" 

Internally, she was confused and terrified to lose control so easily, but once the shell had been pierced, there was nothing she could do to stop the contents from spilling out.

"I trusted them once," she seethed as the tears spilled down her face, "always made sure they had everything I did, that we reaped the rewards of our efforts together, but I guess it wasn't e-goddamn-nough! The less I had to offer, the more they wanted, and blamed me when it didn't just fall from the sky! No, no, they'd get their share of the jackpot with every gamble, but whenever they had a say in the matter, I alone paid if fortune left us! That's all I ever was to them; a big piggy bank they could take and take and take from without ever giving anything back!"

Stopping for several breaths, she fell back into her seat. Maybe he had been right. Maybe that had been festering for a while. That it would reach that kind of level just weeks after she had let everything out back in Canterlot spoke of how bad it must have been after all.

Cheese, for his part, had no idea who "they" referred to or what exactly happened between them and Adagio, but he'd do his best to help anyway! "I don't see anyone else around here, so I'll bet they aren't with you now."

Still trying to wipe away tears with the back of one hand, Adagio shook her head.

"Do you miss them?"

Responding in a low growl, she managed a weak glare. "What does that matter?"

He smiled a little. "Easy: I don't know what happened between you guys, but if they could still mean that much to you after hurting you this much, there must have been something special there, don't you think?"

"What," she spat, "like Stockholm Syndrome?"

He winced. "Well... You tell me?" Now was not the time to say that Adagio had a GREAT surprised face, but he already couldn't wait to throw her a surprise party, "What I mean is, you must have felt like you wanted to be around them at some point, right? When did that start? When did it stop?"

Shortly before she invited them onstage with her and shortly after they got to this world, respectively. No, it wasn't that she convinced herself that they were more than just partners with a common goal, it was that things were pleasant between them once, and went sour. And now, she was firmly convinced that they didn't care about her at all, because as much as she'd dared entertain the fantasy that Aria's occasional attempts to reach her by phone weren't just to get more money out of her, she and Sonata were nothing but parasites.

But if that were true, why didn't they join her on the tour when she first offered?

She needed time to think. Alone.

"Thank you for coming, Mr. Sandwich," she said as gently as possible, "but I would like some time to myself now."

An understanding smile on his face, he stood up. "Sure thing, Dagi-O, great seeing you again."

She nodded, even if she didn't feel the sentiment enough herself to enunciate it, but when he reached the door, he called to her over his shoulder.

"Whatever happens with your old pals, I hope you find somebody you can have a good time with, because no party is fun when you're alone. Who knows," he added with a wink, "maybe you already know a few people."

And then he was gone, his statement emphasized by how it briefly reverberated through the room. She'd have set Felt to housework or something, but it looked like she had anticipated that order, because she was nowhere to be seen. With that taken care of, Adagio headed to her room, flopping down on the bed and settling comfortably atop the soft, silken sheets as she resumed her thoughts.

Aria and Sonata were worthless, unrepentant parasites. They decided that saving her life meant she owed them everything forever, and that made it okay to exploit her at every opportunity. That was what she determined the last time they spoke. 

If that were the case, why didn't they just accept her offer to come along for the tour? They wouldn't have even had to work like she did if they didn't want to, and even that much would depend on finding something they could do while they were with her. She could only guess what they had in mind with posing as her parents not long after she left Canterlot, but if they didn't tell her, or just call and ask her for whatever it was they wanted, their plan clearly wasn't in her best interest, meaning they were almost definitely plotting against her at the time. And, if that was why, it most likely meant that all of their following shenanigans, whatever they were, followed similar lines.

They spent months trying to accomplish something behind her back, and as she wasn't greeted with anything resembling a pleasant surprise when she got home, she had to conclude that it wasn't for her sake. Given what she'd heard from the Rainbooms and the snippets she picked up when they turned on each other, it sounded like they lost all of the money she left them to those stupid schemes, one of which, if she heard right, was gambling all of it away.

I warned them. Serves them right. Idiots.

Were they homeless now? No, no, she bought that house, long before they lost the gems, rent wouldn't be an issue. So they were still living in her home, her property, which they trashed in search of her money stashes. Could she charge them rent? Maybe, but they'd probably abandoned the house by now for exactly that reason. But then, where would they go? Aria's text messages made it sound like they were still together, but not answering a single one of them meant she couldn't quite ask about their living conditions.

Getting off-track here...

If the two of them were just parasites, driven only by the thought of what they could drain from someone else, why would they stay home to put in the effort necessary for whatever they were scheming? Why skip out on a meal like what she offered them, no strings attached? Did they not trust her? Assume the offer must have been a trap to get back at them for the months that had come before that first commercial? She hadn't told them the real reason she'd regained her musical prowess and even Sonata might have been able to tell, so it was feasible that they might even expect that kind of falsehood from her. 

Did they start hatching their own scheme because they assumed I had one in store for them? That I'd bring them along for a few miles, make them my clowns, put them through some miserable, but tastefully ironic ordeal before throwing them out on the road?

For a few minutes, she honestly tried to think of it in more optimistic, more Rainboom-esque terms, but couldn't begin to convince herself that they stayed home to hatch schemes behind her back, which included selling the remains of her gem, because they cared about her on any level. The only thing she could think of to even approach justifying such a betrayal was that she hadn't shared the full details of how she regained her voice. Perhaps, to them, that was reason enough?

Not that they needed the excuse to make themselves comfortable while I worked a job I hated.

No, the more she thought about it, the clearer it became; she was better off without Aria and Sonata, because whatever they once had together, both of them cared more about their own comfort than they ever did about her. If she really was feeling lonely, she'd known all along that Chrysalis, Felt, occasionally Cheese Sandwich, and a few other faces with whom she'd established a good rapport would all make for better company, and even if they didn't, she could form whatever personal relationships she wanted with her new peers in Hollywood. 

The best thing for her to do was forget about those ingrates, to let them rot wherever they were now, and move on with her life without ever sparing them another thought.
> Chapter 13: Stitches
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

She still missed them.

It didn't take another minute to determine that; their good times together, even a few from this world, still stuck in her mind. If it were possible, she knew she'd have loved to have them with her again, the three of them making use of their talents to make a name for themselves, build a lasting impression in the hearts and minds of a few million fans, and enjoy all the perks that entailed for as long as they lived, precisely as she'd envisioned when extending her invitation the first time.

She had to roll over onto her back to be able to see her phone, scrolling through messages Aria had sent her since she left Canterlot.

I suppose not just blocking their numbers was proof enough that I don't want to shut them out forever. I could make excuses that they'd just call me from different phones or start sending letters or something, but all it would take was pressing a few buttons.

Looking through her Sent messages, she found that she had called or texted Aria and/or Sonata over a dozen times over the course of the tour, and the few times she got a response, it was in the form of anger and bile. They were upset with her, acted as though she was the one doing something wrong, even as they plotted against her, while living in the house that she owned.

The thought of it made her consider seeing if she could have them evicted, maybe whip up a scheme of her own to get them locked away for life, but despite the two having hurt her more than anything the Rainbooms ever could have done, this feeling lingered. Thumbing over Aria's contact information and pressing Call, she conceded that the Rainbooms must have been right about something.

Beeeeep...

Beeeeep...

Be-

"...Adagio?"

"..."

"Hello?"

A quiet panic built as Adagio struggled for a reply, for once not having thought of what she wanted to say before calling. She heard Aria sigh on the other end.

"I swear, if the last thing we ever hear from you is a bum-dial, I-"

"I gave you both a chance to come with me and have it easy," she hissed in a far colder tone than intended, "and you refused. Why?"

"...Uh... Like, back before your trip started?"

"You two complained that I was 'eating turkeys every night' while you were 'scraping by,' even though I invited you along more than once." Ignoring that she left them with plenty of money if they didn't spend frivolously. Which they did. Idiots. "If that bothered you so much, if you wanted to join in, why didn't you?"

She knew Aria might just lie to her again anyway, but at the moment, she didn't have much to force the truth out of her. Maybe she could call Sonata in a few weeks, ask the same question, and see if her story matched Aria's, because it wasn't likely that she'd remember a lie she'd been told to share by then.

Aria, despite instinct screaming at her to sell Adagio a story and wheedle her way back into her good graces, without Sonata this time, answered honestly. If the past few weeks of complete radio silence meant anything, this might be the last time she ever spoke to Adagio, and she didn't want to carry that memory the same way she did their previous phone-call. "Well... y'know how you'd been in charge for a really long time and how that changed after the battle? Even when you took it back?" She took the silence on the other end to mean 'yes.' "...I didn't wanna go back to that."

More silence. It struck Aria that Adagio would probably be ten times more intimidating with a mask on, because not being able to see her face at a moment like this was tortuous. Only because it might be less painful than waiting for a response to that, she decided to elaborate. "Part of it was like, 'if we got away with the crap we pulled back then, what'll she do to us when she actually has power again?' Because I know if I got treated like a free ride everybody made fun of and had the chance to pay 'em back, I wouldn't hesitate to-" She was rapidly making this worse for herself, she realized. "-um, do that."

Adagio's tone hadn't gotten one iota warmer. "Is that why you two used me the way you did? You thought I wasn't giving you enough? Treating you like-"

"No, no, it wasn't- I know you let us in on everything you got, and- well, maybe Sonata doesn't, but I'll get to her, -and it's not like you were pulling the 'boss perks' thing to get more for yourself, but..." Feeling a lump building in her throat, Aria took a deep breath. She wanted to stop feeling like scum, and anything less than honesty at this point was scummy. "I wanted more. When they broke our gems, I knew I wouldn't be getting any of what we were after when we had 'em, knew we'd be living with a lot less power, and I dealt with it by taking it out on you. When Sonata joined in, I pushed harder, figuring that having no magic and being in charge had to be better than just having no magic. You probably remember how that turned out."

"You stayed so you could be 'in charge' without me around? To enact a bunch of doomed, ill-planned, get-rich-quick schemes? It wasn't that you just didn't trust me not to pull something once we'd set out?"

Aria scowled, but didn't let it carry into her voice. "Well I didn't think they were doomed. But, no, after finally getting a taste of what it was like to be the boss, I guess I was just too proud and scared to go back to how things were after all that'd happened. I mean, even when you got fed up with my ideas, it never felt like we had to do what you said, at least until things picked up at your job."

"...Then, you preferred to come to power through your own machinations this time, rather than take the easy road by joining me again?"

She winced, desperately wishing that had been her actual reason. "Nnnnno, not exactly...?"

Adagio sounded earnestly perplexed. "Then why?"

"I was dumb, okay? I thought for sure my first plan would work, that it wouldn't be all that hard and leave me with way more to gain than if we just stuck to you the whole time, and I pressured Sonata into staying with me so I wouldn't have to go it alone." She felt a chill when it sounded like Adagio was clenching her jaw.

"'Pressured'?"

"...Sh-she probably would have gone with you, always wants the biggest p-piece of the pie she can get and all that, but it was me that got her to stay home in the first place. I wouldn't be surprised if she just doesn't remember that part, which is probably why she blamed you so easily. And before you hang up-"

That part caught Adagio off-guard, because she was probably seconds away from doing just that.

"-I'm sorry. For everything." She remembered her talk with Sonata. "Er, everything but the day we met, I mean, at least the festival and saving-you stuff, I'm not sorry for that! But, the rest, especially since the battle? I really am sorry, and I think Sonata is too."

Again waiting in silence, Aria at least managed not to make any noise as she tried to rub the tears off her face.

...So, Adagio recounted, I was right; they had absolutely no good intentions for me, it was pure selfishness and stupidity from both of them. 

Well, no, there's one other thing in there.

Oh, questioned the part of her that wanted to do things no one would ever adore her for, and what was that?

Regret.

And for a moment, she felt nothing. The lingering doubts, the boiling rage, the crushing heartache, the dancing nostalgia, all merged together to give way to a quiet emptiness in her being. If they never cared about her, if it was all about what they stood to gain from-

Maybe she only regrets that she didn't get a better deal than this.

But her remorse had sounded real, and she knew Aria; she wasn't a good enough actor to feign that kind of feeling.

As I found out the first time I asked her to play the part of a wounded girl to lure a gaggle of griffons into a camp of yaks.

It was on the same day that she learned that Sonata was the one with a penchant for crocodile tears. Which was most likely what she was trying to do that night in Canterlot when she broke down and started blaming Aria for everything.

If she wanted to sway me, wouldn't Aria have just handed Sonata the phone, told her to say she wasn't home and had her play up her act?

Maybe Sonata wasn't near her at the time, but regardless, it felt to her as though there was some part of Aria, and likely Sonata as well, that missed their time together too.

"I'll-..." She didn't know. "I'll talk to you later."

Beep!

To Aria's great, secret pride, she did not cry.

At least not until later that night. Then she cried. She cried a lot.


---


Early the next morning, Felt Feather was alarmed not to find Adagio in her bed, and though she briefly struggled with indecision as to whether or not to make it (she ended up doing so), she soon set off in search of her employer.

The search ended with the very first room she checked.

"Morning, Felt!"

Sitting at her desk in the paperwork room, Felt came closer to find Adagio looking... not, cheerful, but perkier than she had been in recent weeks as she busily penned what appeared to be a letter.

"Good morning, Madam. You are up early."

"I had something I forgot to take care of," she said while pointing to a thin stack of papers with her free hand, "do you think you can drop a few things off at the post office for me today? I'll be meeting with the Frenchmen for that article until late this afternoon."

"Of course."

Briefly scanning the top-most paper, Felt found that it had something to do with... home ownership?


---


Responsibility was kind of a mixed bag, if you asked Aria. 

Yea, sure, the benefits of getting stuff done and all that were great, but it only took one day of sorting magazines for some book shop to remember why she'd been content to sit back for days on end and let Adagio take care of all that pesky 'working for a living' business. That wasn't an option anymore, but even if it was, she liked to think she'd matured enough to keep showing up to work every day, staying there the whole time, and actually doing what she was getting paid to. She and Sonata both had to keep at it, because the money from that video was already drying up and they were reminded a few days ago that any employment they found wouldn't necessarily be permanent. Granted, Sonata getting fired from that sweets shop for helping herself by the handful during her shift was her own fault.

Idiot could have at least waited until no one was watching, then lined her pockets.

But still, Aria was earning her own good money for the first time in at least half a year, not counting that lemonade stand they only bothered with for half a day, and that felt pretty good! Working together to pay their bills (in the sense that they were pooling money, at least) had her and Sonata even closer than when they were plotting to overthrow Adagio together, too, so that was kind of nice! 

That in mind, she felt she'd earned some time to kick back in the big, cushy chair in their living room, get comfortable, rela-

The front door flew open with a bang, making her jump before Sonata charged in with the mail in hand and a panicked look on her face as she held up a paper she'd already ripped out of its envelope.

"It's from Adagio!!"

Begrudgingly kissing her comfortable slouching position goodbye, Aria sat up, taking the paper and skimming through it herself. It'd been a few days since that talk on the phone (Sonata briefly expressed dismay that Aria hadn't gotten Adagio to send more money or anything, but she let it go pretty easily), so she'd wondered how/when they'd hear from her again.



Dear residents,



Kinda cold, Adagio.



In light of changes to my career and lifestyle, I have long ceased to inhabit a building in my ownership. As such, I have opted to sell the property-



Crap!!



-to the first applicant meeting the required sum-



Double crap!!



-for the house. However, in my last visit to my abode, it came to my attention that considerable damages had been inflicted on the building itself, lowering property value considerably. Rather than pursuing legal action,-



A chill ran up Aria's spine just thinking about it.



-I have opted to simply reduce the original price for the building to... Oh, I don't know, $32?

That should be fair for the condition you idiots left it in. 

~Owner,
Adagio Dazzle



Slowly, cautiously connecting the dots, as though afraid that some insidious trap would spring out at her, Aria began to smile.

"That. Freakin'. Bitch."

Truth be told, the house was still kind of a mess, but they'd cleaned up most of the clutter, taped over some cracks, nailed a bit of plywood over some holes, and made the place feel just a little bit more livable again. There were no broken windows or bug infestations or anything, it was just a kind of looked like there'd been some sort of epic fight scene in the house. One that didn't smash any windows. Still, she recognized what was happening here, turning to Sonata with a little grin.

"You know what this means?"

"We're gonna be homeless," wailed Sonata, "somebody's gonna buy the place in no time because that's super cheap even for a total garbage shack and the new owners are probably gonna make us their slaves and dress us like gnomes to stand out on the lawn to scare off door-to-door salesmen and-"

She was silenced with a hand over her mouth, Aria still smiling all soft and peaceful (which was freaky for her, if one asked Sonata).

"No, you dope, it means she's being merciful. We're the first applicants, she's giving us a chance to buy the house from her cheap so we'll have somewhere to live that's totally ours."

There was a quiet moment as Sonata's brain spun around chasing its tail. "...Oh." She held up a few folded legal documents from the same envelope. "I guess that explains these other papers."

Still smiling, Aria shook her head. "You got a pen?"

Despite the cleaning they'd already done, it took twenty minutes to track down a writing implement. 


%%%



One week later...



%%%


With a hint of trepidation, Aria picked up the phone. "Adagio?"

"I got your mail."

She smiled a little. "And?"

"Everything looks to be in order. Congratulations, you're now the proud owner of the house you've been living in for the past few years."

Given the lack of enthusiasm in Adagio's tone, she feared that something was missing. "And...?"

A long, worrying moment of quiet passed, but Adagio replied with an audible smile.

"...How did you find them again?"

Aria allowed herself one triumphant fist-pump before answering. "Easy; lucky for me, nobody'd bought them yet." Her smile receded. "Jerk at the pawn shop charged me one and a half times what he paid for them, though, said they had been 'taking up valuable shelf space' when I pointed out that they had just been sitting there since I sold them to him." It came back when she heard Adagio giggle.

"Diplomacy never was your strong suit. And, thank you."

As much as she wanted to reap the Good Girl points presented, Aria again defied instinct as she sighed and shook her head. "Don't thank me for that, if it wasn't for me, you'd have been able to pick 'em up when you came home." Adagio didn't respond, which she took to mean agreement. "...So, I've been doing some thinking, and the amount you charged us for the house- which, I mean, thanks, seriously, there's no way in Hell we'd have found a better deal elsewhere, but anyway -was thirty-two bucks. The exact same amount I told you we made selling lemonade. Knowing you, I don't think that was a coincidence, so like... what does it mean?"

Adagio sounded a little disappointed. "I thought you said you'd been thinking."

Aria made a face. "Yea, but that doesn't mean I got it, and I wanna be sure about this!"

The reply was much gentler this time, a faint ring of amusement carrying over the line. "I see. Humor me with your best guess?"

This part was easy too, because she had only made one guess. "Well... Even though you had given us some money yourself and knowing that we'd already torn the place apart looking for your stashes, you only asked for the amount I mentioned that didn't involve any of that. Was it because it's the money we earned, not what we got from you or anyone else?"

There was a hint of pride in her voice now. "Precisely."

Unfortunately, Aria had hit the end of her rope with that. "...So, I'm just gonna ask; what would it take for you to forgive us?"

Silence.

"Adagio?"

"Oh, sorry, I, er... I'll admit, I was hoping you'd work that out too, but what is speech for, hm?" She cleared her throat. "What I would like to see from the two of you is only what I myself demonstrated: dedication under duress." Her voice hardened little by little as she went on. "I spent months working at the first Eezy-Cheezy while you two-... Well, you remember. I want to hear sterling reviews from your employers and from whatever customers your workplaces have, for the two of you to put wherever you're working on the map, to work like you alone are working to support three people. I know I didn't have it exactly that way, but given that I won't be around to beleaguer you two on a daily basis, I think raising the bar a little is fair, because unlike me, you'll at least have respite at home."

Seeing that the wounds were still tender, Aria winced a little as a knot of guilt tightened in her gut. Of course, she knew that if Adagio weren't still mad at them, she'd be inviting them back already. "Okay."

"...Good luck."

Surprised, Aria snorted in amusement. "Yea, thanks. I guess I'll talk to you lat-"

"Wait! There's one last thing!"

Though internally afraid and annoyed at the prospect of one more hurdle on top of the rest, Aria wasn't in any position to argue. "Uh... yea?"

"If you want your singing voices back, just find someone to sing for and do it to enjoy the performance. That was how I regained mine; I remembered what it was like before the gems, how I loved to play for an audience, and I suspect something similar may work for you. Maybe it's singing for its own sake, maybe it's just having that kind of attention while you do, but find whatever first made singing important to you and aim for that."

This time it was Adagio who waited in silence.

"Aria? Did you get all that?"

Stunned, Aria could barely slap herself awake enough to force a response. "...Why are you telling me this?" That not having come out at all the way she meant it, she bit her lip when Adagio sighed.

"Now that, I insist that you figure out on your own."

That startled a laugh out of her. "S-seriously?" She could almost hear Adagio taking up a haughty pose.

"I'm a Hollywood diva now; whimsical requests are one of the perks."

Still coming to grips with the prospect of getting her singing voice back, and of breaking the news to Sonata, she chuckled. "Sounds like a sweet gig."

"...Maybe you'll find out some day. Keep in touch?"

"Yea," she answered with a genuine grin, "talk to you later. And, call Sonata some time too, okay? I think she'd like to at least hear from you herself."

"I'll keep that in mind. Take care, Aria."

Beep!

Taking a steadying breath as she hung up, Adagio idly wondered which of the two would be able to tell her why she'd share the information about their voices first. The reason, of course, was that she didn't want the possibility of regaining their voices to be even part of why they would go through the trouble of proving they understood what she'd been through with the two of them, didn't want to one day welcome them to her home only to find that they still didn't care about her. She still didn't believe they'd earned it, but this meant more to her.

Even now, it was still possible that they'd only strive to prove themselves to her for a shot at fame and fortune, but if the day came that she'd welcome them back, that they'd sing together again, she wanted to have as little doubt as possible. She was paranoid and untrusting by default, she would always look for ulterior motives in others' actions and what they stood to gain, she'd accepted that about herself by now, but if she couldn't slay that beast, she could do her best to leave it weak and starving. 

As long as she did that, maybe there'd be room for something else?


%%%


Meanwhile, in a theater room of Canterlot Cinema, the first local showing of the Daring Do movie was finally ready to be played on the big screen. Seven girls in particular were excited for the parts they'd gotten to play in that very film, bit-parts though they were, with one being secretly pleased for what might not have been the best reason. So what if Sunset said that having specifically asked to be included in the movie wasn't great form and her 'unprofessional, fangirlish, and downright irritating' behavior on the set meant their chances of being invited to star in any other movies were slim to none? They all had a pretty good time of it anyway, and now they'd get to enjoy the results! 

For like thirty seconds out of the whole movie, but still. 

As a fun little bonus, they'd be getting something even a certain mascot character wouldn't; their faces shown in movie theaters across the nation!

Then shock, horror, and denial set in. While the seats around them were still being filled in and the rest waited for the movie to start, a commercial for the Eezy-Cheezy chain played, Poofy's face and voice serenading the room with a catchy little jingle about some cheesy, pocket-friendly product being offered in the lobby. One voice was heard throughout the building.

"Oh, come the fuck on!!"
> Chapter 14: Five years later
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"And we're back!"

Fanfare accompanied the cameras returning to Prince Blueblood, who greeted them with a bright, earnest smile. He had really settled into this job in the past few years, and it showed in every broadcast, from his cheerful news commentary, to oddball events he'd never have been able to do when he took himself so seriously, to welcoming old friends back to the show.

"Joining us tonight is a face you may recognize if you ever binged on nachos at three in the morning; Adagio Dazzle!"

Sitting across from him, Adagio smiled and waved at the audience. She wore a simple, blue dress that hugged the ample curves of her adult body, her hair now hanging loose without ribbons or spiked headbands, cut such that while it still hung to her waist, the bulk was no wider than her shoulders, one side of her face mostly obscured by curls that hung down in typical 'femme fatale' fashion.

Which was weird, because she hadn't even played any 'bad girl' roles yet!

"Thank you, Blueblood."

"My pleasure. How have you been since the last time we saw you?"

"No changes in the last hour or so."

"Right," Blueblood replied over a quiet ripple of laughter from the audience, "and since the last time we saw you here?"

"Oh, yes! I'm due for a part in some kind of pirate adventure as a sea-witch," she happily clasped her hands together, "and I've been aching to play some kind of villain!"

"Chrysalis really has rubbed off on you."

"She's been a good friend, even since before I got here."

"When you started in commercials, you mean?"

"Mmhm." Shrugging, her smile faded. "They don't really let me play Poofy anymore since, well, you know."

"I seem to recall a certain salsa ad getting a little spicier than the product it was advertising."

"That might have been the start of it. With the superbowl coming up and limited air-time, it was our first time working with that company to advertise both our brands at once and their director took things in a... slightly different direction than what Poofy normally did."

"I remember that one, it was a little risque for selling shredded cheese."

Adagio winced. "We got some complaints." She smiled sheepishly as the audience giggled. "I had already been hearing whispers that I wasn't 'cute' anymore, but that thing in France was how we figured out that my days playing Poofy were done."

"You know that in some places, fondue was marketed as an aphrodisiac in the following weeks?"

A faint blush on her cheeks, Adagio facepalmed. "Don't, remind me." 

The audience giggled, but they really had been pushing their luck with those commercials back then, and the spikes in revenue showed that the gambles paid off every time. It was just as well that Gouda agreed to finally let her go, because while nothing damaging ever came of it, the rumbles associating the Eezy-Cheezy name with something sleazy ("Sleazy-Cheezy!") had been getting louder until the borderline sexualized commercials ceased. They got a girl in a heavy wig to replace her, as expected, but to her secret pride, the popularity of the brand was never quite what it used to be after that.

And that was when Chrysalis's people swooped in.

"Still, it was once all that had passed that your acting career picked up, wasn't it?"

"No starring roles yet, but yes."

"I don't know about that, your part as the innocent sacrifice at the climax of Missing In The Swamp last year was certainly... memorable." Frowning a little, he raised an eyebrow. "And worryingly convincing."

"It was a horror movie, and I don't like being tied up, so..." She sighed. "I can't say I had a good time of that scene, but from what they told me afterward, the guys playing the cultists didn't enjoy themselves either. The part where my character kicks one of them square in the solar plexus during her panicked flailing? Not in the script. He was a stuntman and shook it off in seconds, but still."

"Was that the worst of the injuries on-set?"

"The worst I caused, at least physically. The one who held my wrists as the protagonist showed up called me to let me know that my screaming finally stopped echoing in his dreams a few months after."

Those who played cult members had all assured her that things were fine between her and them, but the 'I'm sorry and thank you for putting up with me' gift-baskets did not feel like enough. Admittedly, once the movie came out, her abundant compensation came in, and there was time for the general public to absorb the material, the many jokes she saw on the internet about 'Protecting The Poof' and 'How Not To Grill Cheese' made her feel better about that scene.

That memory helped her to grin. "Other than that, the rest of my roles have been a lot of fun so far!"

Blueblood smiled in kind. "On that note, your new style has been getting some media attention."

Smiling, Adagio rolled her eyes. Not that the audience could tell she was rolling both. "Yes, based on a recurring suggestion, I finally caved, tried this look out, and..." Blushing a little, she shrugged. "I kind of like it so far. I don't know what'll happen the first time I go swimming, but it can't be any worse than what came before."

Quiet laughter rippled through the audience, Blueblood briefly advertised the upcoming pirate movie she was involved with, and they went to commercial, Adagio's part in the show finished. At least until the next time she was invited along!


---


While she easily could afford to take a limo everywhere, she felt it lost some meaning when she was only out on business, so she didn't even own one of those vehicles for personal use. Being driven around as opposed to driving herself, however, was a luxury she was happy to indulge, and her driver never complained about her choice of a sleek, black, thin car of which she never learned the model name.

Possibly because the thing was easier to drive than a limo. She might never know for sure.

Regardless, that was the car to bring her home today, giving her plenty of time to text Felt Feather that she would be there soon. When she reached the front door, Felt, as had become curiously common for her on days that she didn't join Adagio at work, opened it seconds before Adagio could grip the handle.

"Welcome home, Madam."

She smiled, quietly relishing the feeling of going through a door without needing to physically touch it. "Thank you. Anything exciting happen today?"

Closing the door, Felt followed along after her. "Nothing thus far."

Adagio chuckled. "Does that mean you are expecting someth-"

As the two stepped out of the foyer and into the main hall, the lady of the house was startled by many simultaneous shouts.

"SURPRIIIISE!!"

Blinking twice, she looked away from Felt to see many familiar faces gathered around a huge cake positioned under a big, colorful banner that immediately told her who was responsible.

"Hey, Dagi-O! Happy 23rd I-Would-Have-Done-This-Sooner-But-It-Takes-A-While-To-Get-Around-The-Planet-In-A-Bus-Without-Rockets-But-Now-That-I'm-In-Town-I-Guess-We-Might-As-Well-Because-Better-Late-Than-Never Party!"

Grinning with amusement, she cocked her head at Felt. "Wanted to stay home to clean the pool, did you?"

While the faint movement of her lips may not have signified much to most people, Adagio knew her well enough to recognize it as a genuine smile. "In my defense, I did clean the pool today."


%%%


The party hadn't been going long when Adagio jumped with a start at the familiar feeling of a hand snapping against her behind, whirling around to see Chrysalis's smiling face.

"Back from the Bahamas," she nearly cheered, garbed in sunglasses, a Hawaiian shirt, long, grass skirt, and probably nothing else, "and actually on-time for once!"

A soft smile on her face, Adagio chuckled. "Good to see you too, Chrysalis. Any new scandals to share?"

"Yes," she answered with an impish grin, "but they're not about me this time. Meet me in the Jacuzzi later?"

Grinning wryly, Adagio crossed her arms. "Only if you promise to wear something this time."

Chrysalis winked playfully. "Spoilsport."

The two giggled, but Chrysalis really had gotten pretty casual in her sexual harassment since they met. Adagio had come to accept it partly because she'd gathered that despite her cheerful demeanor, Chrysalis had trouble expressing her feelings and playful touching was her favorite way to show affection, and partly because, on balance, she suspected that Chrysalis had actually been doing her a favor all these years.

Ever since her debut in show business, she'd gotten plenty of lingering stares, but very little unwanted contact, and, to her own surprise, not one illicit offer from anyone with which she was professionally involved, not even when she started formally acting. No one had suggested that she sleep with them in exchange for career advancement of any kind, and she had seen more than enough hungry pairs of eyes to know it had crossed some minds, but none dared act on the impulse, and she was almost certain that, if such arrangements were common here, Chrysalis was shielding her from them. If her hunch was right and it really was a regular thing in the rest of Hollywood, Adagio didn't really know how to thank her for that, or even broach the subject, but she figured that putting up with the occasional slap or fondle was a start.

I tried to get her to see a psychiatrist, but that just ended up going the usual route with her. At least she had a good time.

Adagio had just opened her mouth to ask if the scandal Chrysalis witnessed involved anyone she knew when she was scooped up in a pair of muscular arms, though they and the attached, hairy chest were concealed under a shirt and heavy jacket this time.

"Happy Birthday!!"

"First," Adagio replied with a wry grin and crossed arms, looking up at Iron Will as he held her in the traditional princess-carrying fashion, "it's not my birthday, and second, must you pick me up every time we meet?"

Raising an eyebrow, he didn't answer the second part. "It's not?" Then his eyes narrowed, briefly scanning the rest of the party before locking onto Cheese Sandwich, who was in the middle of juggling bowling pins for the amusement of Gouda Will, who came dressed in an absurd, yellow, cheese-themed pirate outfit complete with a huge, tri-corner, swiss-cheese hat. Iron Will gently set Adagio down, muttered "'Scuze me, Miss," and marched toward Cheese. "Chicken Boy! I gotta talk to you!"

Stopping where he was (the pins, eerily enough, briefly pausing in mid-air), Cheese quickly looked at Iron Will with pupils the size of pin-pricks, smiled sheepishy, and ran off, the pins landing in a perfect triangle by the time the smoke cleared. They were immediately cleared in a strike as Iron Will marched through in his pursuit.

Adagio gave Chrysalis a curious look, but only got a shrug back.

"Mr. Will was lured here by the assurance that your birthday had come," Felt explained from Adagio's side, "evidently due to scheduling difficulties that would have made his presence here unlikely otherwise. I am sure Mr. Sandwich will be forgiven when that is explained."

"Ah. Well, it was nice of him to make the time."

"Speaking of which, would you mind terribly accompanying me to the door? There are more guests here to join the festivities."

Glancing over the party, Adagio guessed that Cheese himself wouldn't be able to do that for a while. Besides, she was technically the host here, so maybe it was her job anyway. Accompanying Felt to the door, she let her maid open it, then smiled.

"You're late."

Shoulders sagging, Aria let out a beleaguered sigh. "Seriously? We come all this way and that's the first thing you say to us?" 

Sonata pouted. "Harsh, Dagi."

Aria looked much the same as she had the last time Adagio saw her; two long pigtails, a sleeveless shirt, and tight pants, but somewhere along the line, she had traded her heels for black, shiny boots. Sonata, however, wore an almost entirely different look, her hair tied into two braids that stopped halfway down her back, wearing a simple, white shirt, dark, knee-length skirt, and simple sandals.

"Had you arrived on time," she quipped with a familiar smirk, "I might have said something else. Now come on," she said while turning back toward the main hall, "you might have already missed the giant dessert item."

"W-what," Aria sputtered in disbelief, "you're not even gonna-"

"Felt, lock the door."

"Yes, Madam."

"Hey!!" Aria jumped to brace the door the second it started to close. "Okay, okay, we're coming!"

Adagio giggled airily as Felt let them in, even doing a little twirl on her way back to the main room. She'd half-expected Cheese to have everyone rounded up again and another banner ready to welcome Aria and Sonata, but instead she saw him in the middle of some kind of break-dancing competition with Iron Will, a shirtless Chrysalis (she was, it turned out, wearing a coconut bra under the Hawaiian shirt) jumping up and down in rhythm with the beat. The sound of Aria clearing her throat drew her attention.

"So, hey," she said in surprisingly timid fashion, "you're not like, still mad at us for last time... right?"

Complicated feelings stirred as Adagio took in Aria's genuinely contritious expression (which happened to take the form of a very nervous frown and puppy eyes!), but she firmly settled on the plain truth. "After last time, I wouldn't let either of you near the property if I were still angry."

"We're sorry," said a similarly regretful Sonata, "but that was right around the time the Rainbooms were super famous, and it really sucked seeing them get everything when we were stuck at a fish company. I know that doesn't make trying to trick you okay, but like-"

"It was hard seeing them get everything you two wanted," Adagio continued for her, "becoming pop stars through the attention they gained doing their Magical Girl routine on social media while you were working for a living. I can understand the feeling, but-"

"But we still shouldn't have tried to trick you," Aria finished, "and sending fake reports and fudged numbers just to get to join you sooner was low."

A faint smile on her lips, Adagio let out a quiet sigh. "I'll admit, I wasn't sure back then that I'd ever speak to you again, but once you'd gone back to Canterlot and I'd cooled off, I had some time to think about it." She winked at Aria. "Telling me yourself as opposed to waiting until I gave in to doubt and investigated for myself was a plus."

Not helping at all was that she'd believed part of the lie was her own fault. She'd wanted them to come back to her too, after all, hence not even asking Felt to confirm their story before inviting them. That was around two years ago, and now...

"I totally thought we were screwed when the fish company wouldn't let us have our old jobs back," giggled Sonata, "what with walkin' out on 'em and everything, but we really struck gold at the stri-ow!" An elbow from a blushing Aria made her remember the 'polite company' word for it. "Uhh, gentleman's club in the nicer part of town."

It had blown Sonata's mind back then that not all strip joints were just dim, smokey rooms full of drunken fat dudes groping at crack whores and skinny girls with student debt to pay off, so it was cool finding a place with security and OSHA compliance. Still not their first choice, but with their options thin, it worked in a pinch.

And then they made it work!

"Two years of working there," groaned an embarrassed Aria, "and I still can't believe we got Canterlot famous for having one of the nicest... those places... in the country."

Adagio smiled gently. "I did tell you that we were extremely attractive in this world, after we'd settled in. I'm surprised the manager let the two of you go."

Sonata beamed with pride. "We might've been the two hottest asses in the place, but with how much money we'd already made him, he couldn't say no!"

"Helped that we already had replacements lined up," shrugged Aria, "but yea, mission accomplished." Folding her arms, she snickered. "Hope the Rainbooms enjoy their home-town having that reputation, now that their fifteen minutes are up." 

Felt had kept Adagio well-informed about her old enemies. Apparently, once their popularity took off, they were pounced on by the cruel and exploitative music industry, many aspects of which put a strain on their all-important Friendship™ and shortened their musical careers considerably. Felt couldn't bring her every detail, but rumor was that while a few of them could handle the high demands of stardom, the rest struggled greatly under the pressure, and being pushed and pulled this way and that by their corporate handlers, egos colliding as some members of the band proved more popular than others, and merchandise deals conflicting with their principles drove the Rainbooms to take a stand against it all.

And then they got the boot.

Chewed up and spat out by their record label, the seven of them went back to the Magical Hero lifestyle in Canterlot. Feeling a little bad for the girls who generally got whatever they wanted at the end of the day, Adagio sent them gift-cards. 25% off an Eezy-Cheezy double cheeseburger each!

I had been sure they would buy a lavish house or three around here, actually, but from what Felt gathered for me, it looked like they owed considerable debts to various people for outstanding damages, their high school principal in particular.

Well, she thought with a faint smile, here's hoping they enjoy the relative peace of their 'normal' lives. I'm sure that if I'm ever going to be able to live my own life in leisure, I'll need to cycle out too at some point.

She was, for the first time in quite some time, startled awake by Cheese grabbing her hand, immediately whisking her away.

"C'mon, 'Dagi-O, the birthday may not be real, but the not-birthday girl still has to cut the not-birthday cake!"

Though not resisting as they went, Adagio wore a wry grin. "By that logic, couldn't anyone here cut the cake?"

"Of course not, silly, they're all not the birthday girl, not the not-birthday girl!"

"Of course."

Felt turned to look at Aria and Sonata, who stood perplexed and perhaps afraid as they watched Adagio accept a massive butcher knife from Gouda Will. "Hello again."

Looking back at her, Aria blinked once. "Uh... Yea. Hi. Still wearin' that thing, huh?"

"It is my chosen uniform." She leaned in closer, having to bend down a little to be at eye-level. "I will cut to the chase: Your apologies were sincere?" She got two slightly fearful nods. "Reparations have been made to Madam Dazzle's fullest satisfaction?" The two looked at each other uncertainly, then back at her. Standing straight again, she smiled. "Correct; you are not truly in a position to judge that. As such, while no one will force you to work yourselves to the bone, I dearly hope that you will strive to be better than you were previously. There will not be another chance."

"Heh," replied Aria with a self-effacing smile, "I'd say 'don't worry about it,' but I get why you would anyway by now. That's why we're just gonna have to show you that we're not just gonna hang on anybody's coattails anymore. We learned our lesson, we'll pull our own weight, and we're not gonna hurt her again."

"Yea," cheered Sonata with a fist in the air before reaching back to grab and present her twin braids, "I even started doing this stuff to remind myself to be all diligent and junk!" And because it helped her pull off the schoolgirl look on the job, but that wasn't important. "We're totally in this for realzies now!"

Smiling softly, Felt leaned in again to hug them both. "That is what I hoped to hear."

Neither really knew how to respond to that, but a voice drew their attention before it got awkward. 

"Heeey, you never hugged me like that!"

Breaking the hug, the trio turned to see Chrysalis, dressed in a bathrobe now as she leaned against a wall with crossed arms and a petulant expression. 

"And I've been working on my own since before she even got famous!"

"You did not undergo considerable development as a person," Felt replied coldly. "In fact, I would say that you have not developed in any way since the day you hired me."

Sniffling, Chrysalis buried her face in her hands. "You're, s-so cruel sometimes!"

Over the sounds of her undignified sobbing, Felt calmly turned to Aria and Sonata again. "I would suggest a tour after the party, but the building has not changed since last you were here. Please enjoy the festivities, and I am sure Madam Dazzle will be with you again shortly."

With a curtsy, she left to aid her master in her not-birthday girl cake-cutting/serving duties, leaving the two with the older, crying woman. At least until said actress peeked through her fingers, the sounds of her grief stopping in an instant as she huffed.

"If Adagio ever has kids, I hope she hires someone else as the nanny." And not just because Chrysalis would never get a chance to teach them anything fun otherwise! "Anyway," she said while sauntering over to Adagio's oldest friends, extending her arms outward and smiling brightly, "welcome! I've heard so much about you two!" She glanced over the purple one, whom she was gratified to note was doing some glancing over of her own. "Aria, right?"

Snapping her eyes upward, Aria couldn't help a blush as she spat out a reply. "Y-yes ma'am!"

Chrysalis smiled, and not just because Felt had already played Bad Cop by delivering the you-will-pay-dearly-if-you-hurt-her-again bit for her. After hearing what happened during their last visit, while Chrysalis was out of town, she knew that she wouldn't have had it in her to forgive something like that were she in Adagio's shoes, but with the personal drama sorted out, it was off to the races! "And, Sonata?"

This one didn't even pretend to look away from her chest. "Yup?"

She chuckled darkly. "I've been dying to talk to you two..."


%%%


A few hours later, watching as Felt happily swept up the aftermath of the party, Adagio was approached by Cheese one more time.

"Hey, 'Dagi-O! Enjoy the party?"

She smiled. "As always, Cheese, thank you."

He giggled. "Great! Been a while since the last one, how's life been treating you?"

"Quite well! Acting work is more fun than I thought it'd be and I can't remember the last time I so much as broke a nail!"

"No crying in the back room?"

"Eguh-!" Making a sour face, she folded her arms, glancing around as though afraid someone were listening in. "...No, no crying in the back room."

Scratching the back of his head, he chuckled, a hint of regret in his smile. "Back then, I never knew if you were just working too much, or something was wrong at home, or what."

She shrugged. "I used one to escape the other, essentially, but I grew to prefer the workload."

"I don't think that's a good thing, Adagio," he said with a frown, "and I don't mean to tell you what you can and can't handle, but-"

"While workaholism sounds like a great ideal on paper, it usually does more harm than good to everyone but those making a profit at the top?"

"Well, that, and it's kind of messed up that anyone would feel like they have to actively run from their own personal lives, especially doing it like that. It's like, pain all the time might make you numb to it, but that doesn't mean it doesn't still hurt, and even the toughest, saltiest sea-dog just sinks eventually!"

"I told you," Adagio growled with an angry pout, "I'm a sea-horse!"

"I was thinking about pirates that time."

"Oh."

A long pause followed. Cheese coughed. 

"But, seriously-"

"No, yea, I got it."

"Oh, good."

Another quiet moment. Both idly looked around the main hall.

Turning his body, but not his head, toward the door, he beamed. "Welp, seeya the next time I'm in town, 'Dagi-O!"

She smiled. "Try to stay out of trouble, I'm pretty sure you're still wanted in Peru."

Mirth turned to confusion. "How did you know about that?"

Brushing another mound of confetti into a dustpan, Felt almost started to smile.

Adagio giggled. "Take care, Cheese."

When he was gone, she took another look around the mostly empty main hall, guessing that Aria and Sonata were still in the pool with Chrysalis and that mariachi band.

Now, she thought to herself, let's see what kind of work we can find for them...


%%%



One week later...



%%%


"Phew!" 

Aria flopped down onto her bed like a sack of sweaty potatoes. She was glad when the moving truck finally got here, but unpacking had taken all day! Even with the moving guys to bring everything into Adagio's (our?) mansion, she and Sonata still had to move everything around the place themselves, and re-installing the practice poles was even more of a hassle than the first time when they still had the manual. 

It was nice of Adagio to give us a room for that, but did she have to label it? Or, label all the rest of the rooms in the house?

At first, she'd assumed the 'Empty Room' was just a room with nothing in it at the time, which wouldn't really call for a designation. What she hadn't considered was that Adagio would seriously set aside a room with nothing in it just to convey the feeling of emptiness. If it meant getting rid of that, Aria could live with the place she and Sonata would keep their skills sharp being openly labeled as the Poledancing Room.

Maybe we won't be shaking our asses for a living anymore, but it's still good exercise, dammit. Kinda fun, too. I wonder if Adagio would join us for-

She was startled by the sight of a tall, black creature with piercing, green eyes looming over her, a monstrous smirk on its-

Oh, wait.

She sat up. "Hey. What're you doing here?"

Chrysalis chuckled. "Just dropped by to say hello, catch up a lit-"

"Adagio and Felt aren't home."

And Chrysalis pounced.


%%%


An hour later, Aria was soaked in sweat while lying on her bed for completely different reasons.

"So," mused Chrysalis, who lay next to her in nothing but the bedsheet, "about what we discussed last time."

"She's not gonna go for it, straight as a rail, remember?"

Aria hadn't had a lot of interest in this idea before, but that was before Adagio's boobs got bigger. And her butt got bouncier. And her legs got longer. And curvier. The hair-covering-an-eye part did weird things for her too.

"There's a sort of loophole we can play with, and for once I don't mean the kind with actual ropes." She giggled as Aria turned red again. "Here's the plan: We wait until she's cozy enough with a man to experiment a little, get a spicy ménage à trois going, and once she's comfortable with having another woman in her bed...?"

Aria's eyes widened. "You're a genius."

"Yes, and that's why I'll be getting first dibs on that fateful night."

An amused smile on her lips, Aria lightly punched her arm. "You suck."

"I didn't hear you complaining about that before." She cackled as Aria's jaw dropped. "Ohh, you girls are so cute. I'll need you and Sonata not to imply or suggest anything in the meantime, by the way."

Aria glanced around. "Where is Sonata, anyway?"

"She was asleep when I checked her room."

"Oh."

Realization. Aria scowled.

"Wait, you went to her first?!"

"So sorry," she purred with puppy-dog eyes and an exaggerated pout, laying her head on Aria's shoulder, "am I in trouble?"

"Eh, uh, n-no," stuttered an increasingly red Aria, "it's cool."

Chrysalis fixed her with a deadpan stare.

"...Oh! Um, can I like, grab a drink first? I'm pretty sure I'm on the verge of dehydrating here."

"Great idea! Where's the key to the wine cellar?"

"Water! I mean water!"

"Oh, fine."


%%%



A few weeks later...



%%%


"Take four, action!"

A cannon fired, its human projectile, garbed in a tight, leather bodysuit and her head wrapped in a black cloth, smashing into a cardboard representation of a castle wall, which still hurt a bit at eighty miles an hour. Then she slid down, landing on a conveniently-placed hay bale.

"Cut!"

Getting up with a quiet groan, Aria took off the head-wrap and called out to the director. "Was that better?"

"Perfect! We can do the CG magic later, but I'll have my people call ya if we decide on that human fireball cut, okay?"

"Haha, o-okay."

Rolling off the hay bale, Aria stood up straight, wincing at every little crackling sound her bones made. Being a stuntwoman wasn't easy, but the pay was better than she thought it'd be and... well, apparently her 'acting skills' weren't up to snuff. Chrysalis was happy to offer tips and maybe someone to go to for lessons, but part of that included dressing up to look like what a certain part required, one thing led to another, and now Aria got to do sweet action sequences in place of wimpier actresses without all that pesky line-remembering, pose-and-face emoting junk. 

Pretty good deal if you ask me.

"Okay," called the director, "up next; the scene where the heroine falls in the moat full of giant lobsters!"

Aria gulped.

Most of the time...


%%%



A few more weeks later...



%%%


A tiny part of Adagio worried that, with how often she'd let Felt open and close doors for her these days, there'd come a time when Felt wasn't with her, she'd come to a door, and then stand there like a dolt as she tried to remember how to operate its mechanisms herself. Even so, she silently nodded her appreciation as they entered her lovely abode. They hadn't even gotten to the main hall when they heard Aria's uproarious laughter from the living room.

"What do you think," she asked Felt with a sigh and an amused smile, "something good or something bad?"

"Knowing the two of them, I'm afraid I cannot guess."

"Too true. Shall we?"

"After you, Madam."

They headed to the living room to find an angry, red-faced Sonata standing over Aria as she rolled on the floor, clutching her sides and giggling like a loon.

Sonata stamped a foot. "It's not funny!"

"Dagi," wheezed Aria, reaching out toward her as though asking for help, "Dagee-hee-hee-heeee!"

Relieved that no one was apparently hurt this time, Adagio smiled, tilting her head a little. "Yes?"

Stopping for a long, gasping breath, Aria managed to get to her feet. "Sonata finally got a call."

Adagio's expression brightened further. "And?"

"They want her for a commercial for chafing lotion!!"

Aria again laughed so hard that she hardly felt Sonata kick her in the shin, the latter surprised to see Adagio just standing there with the same calm smile the whole time.

"Sorry," she said with a shrug, "I don't see the joke."

"Nor I," added Felt, raising one hand.

Pulling herself together, Aria drew her phone from a pocket. "Let me pull up the video."

"HEY," cried Sonata, aghast as she reached for the phone herself, "you said you took that down!!"

"I told you I set it to private, big difference."

"EAT A DICK!!"

Watching the two of them carry on as they struggled for the phone while calling each other names, Adagio just sighed. She wasn't sure now how many things had changed in their group since the day they met, but various levels of bickering felt like a constant. It still annoyed her more often than not, but right now, it just had her feeling nostalgic again.

"Whatever you end up doing, however things go with your friends, don't give up hope of being happy without an act. Even if it isn't scores of people, someone will love you for who you are."

With all the time she'd spent with Felt, Cheese, Chrysalis, her idiots, and a few others, the shared moments of friendly conversation, of laughing together, of confiding in one another during weaker moments, and even just cuddling closely on a couch to watch a program together, Adagio had a clearer idea of what Sunset meant by that now. Even if not all of her friends were without ulterior motive, that didn't mean that was all they had for her.

Aria and Sonata might have stood to gain from being a close friend of hers (not that their careers as some of the world's greatest strippers couldn't have opened doors for them), but that didn't change how much she knew they cherished her, or her them. Chrysalis was still giving her those I-Will-Bed-You looks sometimes, but they didn't enjoy each other's company any less. Felt may have been content to do just about anyone's bidding, but she had sensed a kind of shared understanding between them almost since that first month. And Cheese was... well, who knew? It was still pleasant whenever he dropped by.

She couldn't say whether things would stay this way for years to come, if life would get in the way, if any of them would grow apart, or anything else, but she knew that she'd enjoy what they had for however long it lasted.

The two still grappling each other, Sonata briefly paused in her efforts to chew Aria's arm off. "Uh... Dagi? You okay? You look sorta..."

She didn't finish the statement, but Aria turned her head to see Adagio wearing this peaceful, borderline angelic smile. The only things missing were white, feathery wings and a light shining down on her from above.

"I'm fine, thank you," she answered with a giggle before turning away. "Best of luck in that commercial, Sonata, I'm sure you'll do wonderfully."

And away she went, Felt in tow.

Neither knowing what that was about, Aria looked at Sonata, smirking. "You have to do it now."

Scowling, Sonata gave Aria a wedgie.