“Race you to the kitchen, Sonata!” Aria leapt from the plushies and ran out of the room, hurrying towards the stairs once more. A giddy grin retained on her face the whole time, accompanied by little giggles that slipped out every so often. She had never felt this carefree since she was a little kid back home, yet lost herself fully within her new personality. Whether she could remember it or not, one thing was clear; she was happy for the change.

“Oh, it’s on, girl!” Sonata gave chase to her changed sister. The initial shock value had worn off and now, all that she thought about was trying to keep Aria under control while also letting her be free to be her new self. A part of her still wanted to keep everything in order, but she still tried her hardest to keep her old self as much as possible. That didn’t stop her from also letting a laugh or two slip out.

“It’s so strange.” Fluttershy walked after the two sirens, hand slithering across the bannister. “The way they’re acting, talking, doing things together, being happy, everything. It’s like they’re completely different people to the ones me and my friends remember...”

“No idea why the girls would want to tarnish these girls’ reputation, then. They haven’t done anything wrong after their visit to CHS.” Twilight scratched her chin as she went with her friend to pursue Aria and Sonata. “I think after we regroup with Sunset, we should give the others a good talking-to.”

“They might not listen, though. The girls were all pretty stubborn about this whole thing. Especially Applejack and Rainbow Dash.” Fluttershy turned her neck to face Twilight. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they argue with us until sundown.”

“One thing’s for sure, though. Sunset’s going to be the defining variable to swing the argument,” said Twilight in response. “She knows how to talk down both sides while showing absolutely no bias whatsoever. That’s commendable in and of itself.”

“I suppose so. But still, she’s gotta have an awful lot of patience for this kind of matter. After all, we are talking about the Dazzlings...” Fluttershy put her hands together. “After what they did at Canterlot High with the Battle of the Bands, I wouldn’t expect anyone to forgive them; least of all our friends.

“Sometimes, you just have to tell the argumentum ad populum to go away. Just because everyone says it because it’s true? That’s just the biggest bunch of bad baloney I’ve ever heard in my life.” Twilight rolled her eyes as she finally made it to the stairs, taking each step so lightly that barely any noise emanated from them. “One of the reasons why I didn’t get along at Crystal Prep was because everyone was quick to judge everyone, spiting those that did anything better than them or on their behalf. It got to the point where everyone was out to get everyone. I’m getting that same sense of hostility from your friends As I did back there from this whole Dazzling hate.” She locked gazes with Fluttershy again. “You’re not a Crystal Prepper, are you, Fluttershy?”

“No. Absolutely not. We’re much less crusty as them.” Fluttershy shook her head at that remark.

“Then don’t ever try and think like one. Don’t try and take the path where vilifying anyone for your own benefit is seen as acceptable. My friends are acting an awful lot like that with this whole facade; almost to the point where I’m imagining them in the outfits already...” Twilight, leading Fluttershy with her arm coiled around her friend’s back went into the kitchen. “Next thing you know, they’ll be chanting some mantra about wanting to win at everything...”

The kitchen, much like the rest of the mansion was a sight to behold. A large array of cupboards, tabletops, appliances, even a breakfast bar stood in a ‘U’ shape before Twilight and Fluttershy. The sink nearby was filled with used bowls and plates, sitting in soapy water, while the light jade counters stood mostly clean; albeit with some dried-in stains that had yet to touch. Looking out from the counters, a few steps lead down towards an expansive dining table, huge enough to seat much more than three souls. The titanic oval of a brown oak table—garnished with silverware, wine glasses, candlesticks, and flowers—ran from the steps all the way towards a pair of glass doors looking out onto the nearby pool. Sonata and Aria were standing by the aforementioned door, grinning from ear to ear as they saw Twilight and Fluttershy take the steps down towards the table.

“You ever see those movies where the rich people always eat at these stupidly huge tables?” Sonata asked, drifting her fingers along the polished, glossy woodwork. “If you have, you might as well take this place as a set from one of them.”

“You’d think that we’ve also got someone to make the stuff for us, like a butler or something,” added Aria. “Well, as fun as that would be, having someone do everything for us, let’s just say that Canterlot doesn’t really have a butler school at the moment. The market’s pretty dense on that front.”

“Still, take a look. This is all ours.” Sonata reached over for an apple that laid within a fruit bowl on the table, taking a huge chunk out of it with her teeth. “You don’t see people with these kinds of table every day now, do you?”

“I have to admit that I haven’t,” said Twilight taking another look at the fully laid out table. “The only time I’ve ever seen this kind of stuff was when me and my family went shopping. Even then, the price was an arm and a leg and it was a bit excessive for a family of four.”

“Ah. In any case, you’re welcome to stay for dinner if you want, girls. I’m sure that with Adagio’s smarts, I can cook up something halfway decent. As opposed to the times when I tried making chocolate-shell tacos with fondue.” Sonata twiddled her fingers as she let a small blush form on her face. “That’s the last time I make a mess in here, that’s for sure.”

“Well... I wouldn’t mind having one of your Triple Choco-tastic Tacos, Sonata. I mean, that is if you want to risk messing up the kitchen again.” Aria fluttered her eyelids.

“I never really threw the stuff out, so it’s plausible. But it’s a very complicated snack to make.” She turned to Twilight and Fluttershy again. “What do you think, Fluttershy, Not-Twilight? Do you both wanna have some of my tacos?”

“I think I’ll pass.” Twilight held up a hand. “I’m trying to watch my figure right now. It does sound delicious, don’t get me wrong, but I just don’t want to become fat from eating too much, or from overdosing on chocolate.”

“I wouldn’t mind tasting one.” Fluttershy was the next to ascend her hand; but unlike Twilight, a smile was plastered onto her face. “The dish sounds like something Pinkie Pie would make in all honesty. Maybe you should share it with her someday.”

“Yeah. When she stops being a meanie to me, I’d gladly make my Triple Choco-tastic Tacos with her.” Sonata waltzed over towards the counter, pulled out three of liquid chocolate—one milk, another dark, and the third white—from one of the cupboards along with a base that looked akin to that of a taco’s base. “Honestly, the only real challenge is finding something that looks like it can hold everything in once you start solidifying the chocolate. Then, the rest of it is a cakewalk. You can make it savoury like most of the ones I’ve had before, or you can make it sweet. A risk to your teeth, but still sweet."

Fluttershy walked over to the counter and watched as Sonata filled the base with milk chocolate, then stuffed it in the freezer. It took some time for it to fully solidify, but as soon as the chocolate-filled base froze over to form a solid taco shell. She then repeated the same process with the other two layers, separately making layers for all three of them until the final result was three taco shells frozen onto each other; each with a different type of chocolate for each layer.

"Now that's done, we've gotta choose what we're gonna fill it with." Sonata went over to the other cupboards within the kitchen. She swung them open wide, revealing a stockpile of food and other ingredients, then proceeded to swing the fridge door open as well. "What are you a fan of, Fluttershy? Vegetables? Candy? Whatever you can think of? The extra stuff really down to what you want to fill the taco with."

"You could, if you wanted, have a Triple Choco-tastic Taco filled with cheese, lemons, salsa, curry, even chips if you really wanted to go down that path," Aria spoke from the table. "I mean, not that I've ever seen anyone want all that stuff in a taco, but you never know. There are some people who genuinely like that kinda mish-mash of stuff." She clasped her hands, growing an innocent smile for herself.

Fluttershy's face contorted, her mouth lifted at one corner as her brows lifted and her hands raised themselves as if they were on strings. "I... I wouldn't really say that sounds like a good combination. Especially with what you used for the base, girls."

"Suit yourself. Personally, I think it'd be fun if people experimented more with this human world food. It's way more interesting than the yucky soul-stuff we had to eat whenever we sang. That, and you can physically eat it with your teeth and head."

Sonata popped the finished creation out of the mould that was holding it, then filled it once more with the chocolates, freezing and re-freezing with each new level added to it. "As much fun as I do enjoy the originals, who says that I can't branch out? Just like with this whole magical singing power razzmatazz, I don't just want to have to keep living off of making people angry to be happy with myself." Sonata sighed as she set her product into the freezer one last time. "What's so fun in making people love you when all they do is hate and fight over us?"

Fluttershy let the moment sink in, unable to talk or think about anything other than Sonata's words. To hear that exact statement come out of her mouth; out of one of the mouths of the trio who nearly threw the foundations of CHS's friendship and good vibes into the deepest pits of despair and fury all for their own personal gains spoke volumes. If that was not a sign that Sonata wanted to repent for what she had done, she couldn't fathom what was. Fluttershy's body seemed to tense up, joints feeling like they were turning to stone and breath thinning out as she tried to regain some semblance of control over herself. Could it all be as if she had walked into some alternative world? A crazy dream caused by unconsciousness, perhaps? In any case, she gave herself a pinch to ensure that it wasn't some fantasy playing out in her mind. When nothing around her changed, it solidified the fact that she had indeed heard Sonata Dusk of the Dazzlings willingly and openly admit that the way of siren magic was flawed.

"Then... why did you want to do it in the first place?" Fluttershy asked, finally rebooting herself after the shock to the system she had gone through. "Why did you and your sisters want to try and take over the world?"

"The world? What kind of crazy ideas did you think we had?" Aria spoke up. "Well, I mean, granted, you do have us there with the fact that our singing can make absolutely everyone and everything do what we say, but that's beside the point. Also, we were meanies back then. We did meanie things. Now, we're not meanies anymore so... yeah. Perspective change." She splayed her arms across the table. "We had to eat magic to stay alive. And yours was just what we needed to stay alive for a good while at least."

"Back then, we took all of our orders from Adagio. Her and her big, poofy ball of golden hair. She was like a mother to us, and we were like her two daughters. Which, kinda sounds weird when you consider that we're all biologically sisters, but... take that however you will." Sonata filled her finished taco with lettuce and cheese shavings. She topped it with sour cream and sprinkled in some marshmallows as well. "Without her, we'd be lost up a creek and arguing all the time, seeing as how old Aria was nothing like the new Aria."

"Aww, thanks, Sonata. Kissies!" Aria kissed into her hand and blew it towards Sonata, who reached up and caught it in the midst of her chocolate taco garnishing.

"So, what decided to make you change your minds like that, girls?" Twilight asked, while also trying to fight back a swoon with how adorable the gesture was of Aria sending a kiss to Sonata.

"Guess it's the fact that we've been taken out of those old personalities, for one." Aria, fist-pumping with Sonata's catch a success turned back to Twilight and coiled her fingers from her right hand over the gaps in her left hand. "When we were teenagers with singing powers, we kinda lost ourselves in the thrill of singing to eat bad vibes. But now that I feel super giddy as a kiddy, all that seems to have just gone."

"Giddy as a kiddy? If Rainbow Dash were here, she'd probably have something to say about that." Fluttershy rolled her eyes as she reached over to the vegetables corner of the fridge and filled her own chocolate taco with tomatoes, lettuce and cucumber. She took one bite out of the concoction that she made and felt a surge rush across her tastebuds. An anomaly of three different sweetnesses and vegetables, correllating and dancing in her mouth. At first, she wanted to spit it out, but found that she couldn't as she chewed more and more; forming what she could only describe as mud in her mouth if it had at least some form of flavour to it.

"Yeah. The first try can be a bit of a bodyshock, especially when you take into consideration that the thing is three different chocolates for a base," said Sonata, munching away on her own. "But you'll learn to acclimate to it. Besides, if anything, it's an adventure in and of itself to even be trying one of these tacos."

Fluttershy, after many chews of the taco eventually swallowed the gungy mass that she had made for herself, feeling a small shiver as the concoction sped down her throat, landing in her gullet. It was one of the most peculiar things that she had ever eaten in her life, and she had tasted some of Pinkie's chilli-chocolate confections. She was about to call out the culinary faux-pas, but when she saw Sonata enjoying the meal that she had made for herself, Fluttershy couldn't bring herself to say the words. Maybe it was the fact that Sonata wanted to change, or the fact that she was just now receiving independence from the past that she lived, but she could tell that she was on the road to recovery, and didn't want to damper it with a bad critique of her Triple Choco-tastic Tacos.

"You know, girls, I'm actually really glad that you've willing to give us a second chance." Sonata finished eating the taco that she had made, then went to the sink to clean her chocolate-stained hands. "After the Battle of the Bands, I thought that you'd never want to see us again and say that we're horrible people for doing this kind of stuff to you and your friends. But now... you're really beginning to open up to us and that just makes me one of the happiest little sirens in the world."

"Whatever happened in the past happened. We can't let that dictate who we are as people deep down. Sunset never let the past get the better of and take control of her when she moved forward with the Magic of Friendship, and now she's never been happier to have us as friends." Twilight clasped her hands together as well, looking into Aria's eyes as Sonata came over to her side as Fluttershy returned to Twilight's. "If you girls really are sorry and really want to change, me and Fluttershy will do everything that we can to make sure that the two of you get reintegrated into society as people; instead of spending the rest of your lives dehumanised by the rest of the Rainbooms.

"Well... truth be told, we could really use a friend, right now." Sonata widened her eyes as she fluttered her lashes. "Things have been a bit... rough without our powers. Kinda weird for us to say now that we actually have our crystals back, but we could use some friends to help sort our lives out for real this time. No having to sing people down to get our way, but to do it with our own hands and legs.

"I mean, yeah, it's a cool little party trick to have, but it kinda gets old after all this time. I kinda want to live like a human now that we've been shown just how mortal we are." Aria looked down at her hands, wriggling them around on the table. "If we're gonna be stuck here with no way back home, we might as well get used to it. And if humans don't use magic to get their ways, that's a step we're gonna take together."

"I promise, girls. With the two of us fighting your corner, you won't have to worry about the other girls saying mean and nasty things to you anymore." Fluttershy reached out for Sonata and Aria, extending her hand out as a gesture of peace. "Friends?"

Sonata and Aria looked at the hand for a few moments, causing the smile on Fluttershy's face to falter for an instance. Then, Sonata decided to grab Sonata's hand and shake it. "Friends," she said.

"Friends," Aria added, giving Fluttershy her own handshake.

"Guess that settles it then." Twilight pushed her glasses to her eyes once more, walked around the table, and wrapped her arms around the girls. Fluttershy quickly joined her, and soon, the two of them fell into a deep cuddle with Sonata and Aria, closing their eyes as they cocooned their new friends in their adoration; not earned from any twisted songs of any kind.

Aria and Sonata fell into the cuddle, letting all of their worries about the other girls melt like butter. Though they had only now become friends, they could tell that these two girls were going to be some of the best that they and ever had. Magic or no magic, the sirens cracked a smile as they turned around and returned the hug to their generous guests. It was the least that they could do to start the foundations of a new bond between them.