“So, that means our answer is what?”

Sonata knew she probably should’ve been listening. As much as she didn’t want to, she knew she absolutely had to do really well on this math test in order to even stand a chance of passing the class. Try as she might, though, she just couldn’t keep the numbers straight in her head. Even when focused, Sonata struggled to make sense of the various squiggles and lines that her teacher swore was simple math, and Sonata was far from focused today.

“Sorry, babe,” said Sonata, looking down in shame. “I got distracted…”

“It’s okay, jellyfish. Just try to stay focused,” said Twilight, with a measured patience to her voice. She had been tutoring her girlfriend for weeks now, and she knew how easily distracted Sonata could be. “Come on, just one more problem. Give it another try.”

“Uh…” Sonata scratched her head, trying to scrape together an answer. The numbers seemed to make less and less sense the longer she looked at them. “Maybe… seven?”

“Is it seven or is it maybe seven?” asked Twilight. Sonata pouted slightly at her girlfriend, but kept her groaning and moaning to herself.

“Definitely seven. For sure!” Sonata raised her fist above her head, brimming with a wholly artificial confidence. “Tell me I’m right!”

“You’re wrong.”

“Aww…”

“You’re close, though. The answer is actually negative seven,” explained Twilight. “See? Right here.” She slid her desk closer to Sonata’s so she could better see the worksheet and underlined part of the equation. “You forgot to change the signs while multiplying.”

“Why does that matter? It’s the same number!” Sonata crossed her arms over her chest, evidently peeved by her miscalculation. “Math is dumb.”

“Hm… You like tacos, right?” asked Twilight. Sonata looked at her as if she had sprouted a second head.

“Duh.”

“Well, let’s put it like this.” Twilight raised her hands to display seven fingers. “Let’s say you have seven tacos.”

“Awesome!” cheered Sonata. “That’s, like, the best lunch ever.”

“Of course,” chuckled Twilight. She dropped her hands completely. “Now, you have zero tacos.”

“Who the heck took my tacos?!”

“And now, you have negative seven tacos. Instead of you having tacos, now you owe me seven tacos.” Twilight chuckled at the truly aghast expression on Sonata’s face. The Siren looked as if Twilight had insulted her family name, totally disgusted by the prospect of somehow having less than zero tacos. “And that’s why it matters.”

“Oh… I get it,” said Sonata, nodding excitedly. “Thanks again for this, Twilight. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“It’s my pleasure! We still have some ways to go before you’re ready for the exam, however.” Twilight looked over her notes, a thick packet that resembled a professor’s lesson plan. “I have no doubt in my mind that you’ll make it, though. You’re working incredibly hard, Nata. I’m proud of you.” Sonata beamed, her smile infecting Twilight with its overwhelmingly wholesome joy. “But that looks like it for today.”

“Woo!” Sonata hopped over her own desk and leaped onto Twilight. Although the princess had been dealing with these sorts of Sonata shenanigans for a while, she was still surprised by the sudden movement; luckily enough, she managed to catch Sonata as she brought them both out of their seats and to the floor below. Despite the shock, Twilight giggled at Sonata’s antics, and leaned in to kiss her. The two shared a moment on the floor, just enjoying each other’s presence before Sonata’s eyes went wide.

“Oh geez! What time is it?!” Sonata rolled off of Twilight, digging in her pockets for her phone. “Oh no! I was supposed to be home 20 minutes ago! My sisters are gonna kill me!”

“Oh. You have to go, then.” Twilight stood up, grabbing Sonata by the wrist and helping her up. “Here, I can walk you home if you—”

“No, that’s fine. If I run, I should be able to make it before Adagio gets too mad at me.” Sonata leaned forward and pecked Twilight on the cheek. “Sorry to dash like this, Twi. Thanks for everything. See you tomorrow?”

“S-sure thing. See you tomorrow.” Sonata waved before grabbing up all of her stuff and sprinting out of the room. “Text me!” She wasn’t certain if Sonata had even heard her, because she was gone faster than Twilight thought it possible for a human being to move. Twilight let out a sigh, taking a seat on a nearby desk in order to figure things out.

Twilight wasn’t sure how she found herself dating Sonata Dusk, of all people. When she had heard that The Dazzlings remained in Canterlot City, the princess took an immediate trip to the human side of the mirror in order to keep an eye on them. While Aria and Adagio seemed to keep to themselves, staying busy with benign (as far as Twilight could tell, anyway) work and activities, Sonata saw fit to reintegrate into Canterlot High School.

Suspicion became intrigue, intrigue became friendship, and friendship soon became infatuation. Despite the two being about as different as any two people could possibly be, Twilight felt an odd connection to Sonata. Something about her free spirit and pure, childlike joy and whimsy was just so alluring to the princess. She couldn’t get enough, and so they transitioned from friends to study-buddies to a romantic relationship the likes of which Twilight had never experienced.

“Oh, good, you’re alone.” Twilight looked up to the door, where her fellow Equestrian was standing in wait. Sunset Shimmer looked exhausted from a long day of school, but she still managed to keep a lighthearted grin ready for her best friend. “I thought you and Nata might’ve been sucking face in here. Or worse.”

“Not exactly,” snorted Twilight. Sunset furrowed her brow, taking note of Twilight’s tone. “You ready to go?”

“Yeah, just had to finish this stupid paper with Rainbow and Pinkie,” sighed Sunset. “By which I mean I had to finish this stupid paper while Rainbow and Pinkie made out in the back of the library instead of helping me. So let’s go, we can walk and bitch on the way home.”

Twilight nodded, getting up from her seat and meeting Sunset at the door. The two departed together, leaving the school without much said. Twilight was too busy trying to figure out what to do about Sonata, whereas Sunset was trying to burn the image of two of her friends fused at the lip when they were supposed to be helping her with a history paper.

“So, what’s up with you?” asked Sunset as the two headed out into the street. It was getting late, and they’d need to hurry if they wanted to make it to Sunset’s place before dark. “You look bummed.”

“Not really ‘bummed’, per say. Just sort of… Frustrated, I guess.” Twilight stuffed her hands in her pocket, trying to get her words together. “I like Sonata, a lot. But I feel like she’s keeping like half of her life away from me. She doesn’t want me over at her place, or to meet her sisters. She can’t stay out too late with me, because of some sort of curfew.” She huffed in annoyance. “I feel like she’s trying to keep me at arm’s length for some reason, and it’s starting to get to me.” She looked up to her friend, who managed to remain silent. “What do you think, Sunny?”

“Uh… You do remember who you’re dating, right?” asked Sunset, cocking a brow. “Yeah, you’re currently dating Sonata Dusk. Remember, a magical, mind controlling fish monster with two bitchy sisters?”

“What’s your point?”

“She’s trying to protect you, duh. Sonata’s not the type of chick with any sort of shame or reservations or anything.” Twilight glared at Sunset, at which point she quickly amended. “Shoot, not that I mean she should be ashamed or anything. She’s kinda dating up, I think. Honestly, I don’t know at this point, I think my standards are all out of whack, cause Snips and Snails are dating upperclassmen, yet somehow I can’t find one dude who’ll date me after the stupid ‘try to take over the school thing’, and—”

“Not to be rude, Sunset, but what does that have to do with me and Sonata?” sighed Twilight. Sunset shook herself firmly, trying to loosen the salty, bitter, buttmad spirit from her body.

“Right, sorry. What I mean is that Sonata would never try to hide you or keep you away for her benefit. She doesn’t work that way,” explained Sunset. “If she’s keeping you away, then it’s because she thinks it’s best for you. Can’t say I blame her. If I was dating the girl that thrashed me and my sisters and foiled our plan for world domination, I wouldn’t want you to meet the fam either.”

Twilight would’ve responded, if not for the sudden ringing of her cell phone. She quickly yanked it from her pocket, thrilled to see that it was exactly who she thought it was. Sonata was fond of FaceTime, as it allowed her to see who she was talking to and emote with them better, and it wasn’t uncommon for Sonata to FaceTime her girlfriend after school. Twilight quickly answered the call, holding the phone up to see Sonata.

“Hey, babe!” Twilight couldn’t help but grin at the light, bubbly, joyous voice on the other end of the call. From what Twilight could tell, Sonata was just getting into her room, as she had to flick the lights on before she flopped onto her bed. “Sorry about dashing like that.”

“It’s okay, I understand,” said Twilight with a slow nod. “You got home pretty quick. You hitch a ride?”

“Mh-hm. Turns out, Dagi was already out to grab some dinner, and I saw her when she drove past. So she picked me up.” Sonata squinted at her screen, trying to make out something just over Twilight’s shoulder. “Ooh, is Sunny with you?”

“Yeah, I’m here,” said Sunset as Twilight tilted the phone so the camera could pick up on her. “Hey, Nata. How’s it goin?”

“Things are great! Twi is helping me study for this dumb, lame math test, so I don’t fail and have to take the class over,” said Sonata with a playful pout. “Bet that sounds like a good time to you, huh, babe?”

“Hey, some people happen to like solving difficult equations,” remarked Twilight.

“Yeah, we have a word for those sorts of people,” said Sunset.

“We call ‘em nerds!” Twilight rolled her eyes as her best friend and her girlfriend shared a laugh at her expense, although she wasn’t exactly upset by this. She couldn’t really deny her nerdom, nor was she ashamed of it. Plus, she had to admit that their comedic timing was on point.

“Nice, Nata,” chuckled Sunset. She raised her palm to the camera. “High five.”

“Yeah!” Sonata matched the gesture with such a genuine, warming joy that Twilight couldn’t help but smile. “So, you two heading home?” The two girls nodded. “Cool. Hey, look, I’m gonna have to miss school tomorrow cause I gotta go to the lame-o dentist, so I might not see you til Friday.”

“Shoot, actually, I think I’m busy,” said Twilight. “I have to pop back home on Friday to make sure no one has set my castle on fire.”

“Actually, no you’re not busy,” said Sunset, quite out of the blue. Both Twilight and Sonata turned their attention to Sunset, who had a strange, devious smirk. She elbowed Twilight out of the way, grabbing the phone out of her hand. “I’ll shoot the girls a message with the book to let them know to hold down the fort a little longer, but you two have a date.”

“We do?”

“You do now! Nata, Twilight hasn’t met your sisters yet, has she?”

“No…” For the first time, Sonata seemed a bit uneasy at the direction this was going in. “I don’t know if they’d approve of me dating anyone, so I haven’t really introduced them. Why?”

“No time like the present. You should have Twi over for dinner on Friday, so you can properly introduce your girlfriend to the family!”

“G-gee, I dunno,” said Sonata timidly. “I don’t know if meeting my sisters is a—”

“Who’s meeting us?” Another voice from somewhere off-camera. Sonata’s eyes went wide as she looked from her phone to the intruders who had entered her room. “Dinner’s ready, by the way.”

“H-hey, Dagi. What’s up?” Sonata didn’t dare hang up, lest her sister get even more suspicious. Unfortunately for her, Adagio Dazzle was a very savvy, keen-eyed individual, and she saw through Sonata easily.

“Don’t dodge the question,” said Adagio. “Who’s meeting us?” Twilight reached for her phone, to hang up and preserve her and Sonata’s little secret, but Sunset batted her away easily.

“You’re meeting Twilight!” Sunset made sure to shout so that Adagio could hear her. Twilight visibly panicked, scrambling for her phone that Sunset managed to keep just out of her reach. “Yo, Adagio! Your sister is dating my best friend and she’s too chicken to introduce her! You should have them over for dinner on Friday!”

“No, no, that’s okay,” said Twilight meekly. “I’m sure that the Dazzlings are very busy, and it would be rude to—”

“Not at all! I’d love to meet you formally, Twilight Sparkle.” Adagio let out a chuckle that Twilight could only describe as sinister in nature. “I’ve been quite curious as to who has my baby sister so gaga. We’ll see you… How does 5 sound?”

“Sounds perfect, she’ll be there.” Sunset chuckled, tossing Twilight her phone back. “Just gotta get her ready, you know?”

“I can only imagine… So, Sonata, are you coming to eat or not?”

“I’ll… I’ll call you later, Twi,” sighed Sonata, thoroughly defeated. Twilight meekly waved goodbye, and the line disconnected. She returned her phone to her pocket, turning her sights to the smug, satisfied grin on Sunset’s face.

“You’re welcome,” said Sunset simply.

“You know, I would’ve thought that a pacifist, peacenik, friendship ambasador like you would be the one to keep her hands to herself,” grumbled Sunset, gingerly rubbing her freshly-punched shoulder. She took a seat on her couch, slinging her backpack to the floor. The visibly peeved princess sat beside her, doing very little to contain her fury.

“You’re right, you’re right, violence isn’t always the answer,” said Twilight dryly. She punched Sunset’s other shoulder, just as hard as she had the first time. “It’s a pretty good guess, though.”

“Ow! What’s your deal, Sparks? I just did you a huge favor!” Twilight shifted on the couch, and Sunset immediately brought her hands up to protect herself. Luckily for her, Twilight had no intention of hitting her again (at the moment, though that could change at any moment), and instead began her nervous habit of pacing the room like a caged animal.

“I’m not ready!” exclaimed Twilight. “Not enough time has passed since the Battle, her sisters are gonna hate me, and then they’re gonna say I can’t be with Sonata, and—”

“Dude, chill out, okay? I know being a spaz is kinda your gimmick, but be real now.” Sunset stood up cautiously, her hands still slightly raised in case Twilight decided to take a few swings at her. “Adagio already knows that you’re going out with her sister. If she really hated you, I’m pretty sure we would’ve heard about it by now.”

“That’s not helping!” snapped Twilight.

“Look, Sparky, I know you pretty well by now,” sighed Sunset. “You’re smart. You’re clever. You’re brave, and charming, and pretty hot to boot. Dudes put chicks on a scale of 1 to 10, and you’re 13, easy.”

“Oh. Thanks, Sunny.”

“You’re also a stubborn, anxious mess who’s too scared to cross the street without looking both ways and checking traffic stats.” Twilight glared, but Sunset stood her ground. “And I’m not saying that to be mean. I’m saying it so you know that I know that you sometimes need a little push.”

Twilight groaned, dropping to sit down next to Sunset, burying her face in her palms. She knew that Sunset was right, but that didn’t necessarily make things easier on her. This was a big step, with massive ramifications for her relationship with Sonata. She was scared, terrified of doing something that could jeopardize her and Sonata.

“I know…” muttered Twilight. “It’s just… It’s hard, you know?”

“Yeah, I know. That’s why you’re lucky you’ve got a best friend like me.”

“Mature and romantically experienced?”

“Well, I was going to say ‘lonely and bitter, only capable of experiencing happiness vicariously through her friends’, but your thing sounds less pathetic.” Sunset smiled as Twilight laughed, finally loosening slightly. She scooched across the couch, giving her friend a gentle squeeze. “Lemme make you a deal, Sparky. How about you take your hands off of the wheel, and let your Auntie Shimmy guide you through this dinner? And, when things go well and the Dazzlings love you just like I know they will, I’ll… Uh…”

“You’re telling me that you started that sentence with no particular wager in mind?” asked Twilight, her brow arched suspiciously.

“Well, normally, I make bets with AJ, RD, and Pinks, so my wager is to do their homework for a week.” Sunset shrugged. “But, like, you actually like that, so… Eh, I’ll shave my head clean.”

“What do I possibly have to gain by having you shave your head?”

“Some cheap laughs, mainly.”

Twilight pondered this point for a moment, finally letting out an affirmative hum when she realized that, yes, that would be hilarious.

“Eyebrows too,” she said. Sunset rolled her eyes, but shook Twilight’s hand and accepted her deal nevertheless.

“Alrighty, then. Let’s get to work.”

Twilight slowly approached the house, glancing down at her phone to ensure that she hadn’t somehow misread the address. But, just as she thought, she was exactly where she was supposed to be: 1388 Rondo Road. This was the Dazzling household, and it was not at all what Twilight had been expecting. A very nice, if moderately sized, house, with an immaculately well-kept lawn and spacious yard space. It looked like a suburban home straight out of family sitcom, and certainly not a place that Twilight would imagine a trio of displaced, formerly evil fish monsters turned high school girls would be able to afford.

“Focus, Twilight.” The princess shook herself firmly, trying to keep Sunset’s advice in her mind. Be calm. Don’t fuss over the little details. A little embarrassment wasn’t the end of the world. And, perhaps the most difficult of Sunset’s instructions, confidence. Twilight pulled out her phone and used the front-facing selfie camera as a makeshift mirror, looking herself up and down. She had let Sunset dress her in a simple, but well-designed sweater and skirt outfit (she’d need to remember to thank Rarity at a later date), and nice, plain black flats. She was never one for makeup, it being something that didn’t really catch on in Equestria, but Sunset had talked her into some faint blush and very light eyeliner, just enough to make her eyes “pop”, whatever in Celestia’s name that meant.

“‘Hello, Adagio, I’m Twilight Sparkle.’” Twilight stopped in front of the door, going over her lines one last time. “‘I suppose we’ve met before, but it’s nice to officially meet you. I’m—’. Wait, I said met and meet in the same sentence. That sounds weird, no one talks like that! I’m going to make a fool of myself, I can just feel it! Oh, this is going to be a disaster!”

Twilight’s phone buzzed, indicating a text message. Curiously, she opened up her messenger to view the text. She didn’t have very many contacts, and she already had her suspicions. Sure enough, the message was from Sunset Shimmer.

Good luck, Sparks! Gentle reminder to be calm and not to fuss too much about every little detail! A little embarrassment is okay, not the end of the world!

“Well, at least she didn’t feel the need to remind me about my confidence…” murmured Twilight. Almost before she could finish her thought, her phone buzzed again.

Oh, and don’t forget: Confidence! Don’t chicken out on me! I’ve got the clippers ready!

Twilight sighed. Once again, Sunset was right. She was stressing herself out, stalling until she could eventually convince herself to call an Uber and bail on this whole thing. She couldn’t do that. It wouldn’t be fair to Sonata. Twilight glanced at her phone one last time, the wallpaper displaying a photo she had taken of Sonata adorably napping in class, and returned it to her pocket with a slight, confident smile. She took in one last deep breath before approaching the door and giving the bell a ring.

“Oh, just a second! Aria, would you please get the door!”

“Ugh. Fine!”

Twilight froze, mortified at how scatterbrained she had been. Somehow, despite almost constant reminders, she had entirely forgotten about Aria! She had nothing prepared to meet her, no talking points or introductions ready. But that was okay, Twilight reminded herself. That was a little detail that she shouldn’t fuss over. It was a rather big little detail, but a little detail nevertheless. Just keep going, and things would work out fine.

The door swung open, stealing Twilight’s attention from her own mental peptalk. Standing in the doorway was the oft-forgotten and overlooked third Siren sister; Aria stood taller than Twilight by a good few inches, her height coming together with the rugged, intimidating style of her torn jeans and denim jacket to make for a very formidable figure. Worst of all, she didn’t seem happy to see Twilight, scowling at the princess who could do nothing more than give a weak smile in return.

“H-hi. Aria, right?” said Twilight nervously. “I’m Twilight Sparkle. But, er… I suppose we’ve—”

Before Twilight could get more than a couple of words in, the door swung shut, stunning the princess. She was expecting a lot of things to go wrong tonight, but they always assumed she’d actually get in the house first.

“Who was it?” called Adagio’s voice from somewhere in the house.

“Jehovah’s Witness!”

Twilight’s mouth gaped slightly, her soul floating from her body at Aria’s reply. Being an expat from another dimension, she wasn’t especially well-versed in certain concepts and ideas of the human world, but she was familiar with Jehovah’s Witnesses. She had been eating dinner with Sunset when a gaggle of them knocked on the door, which very much so irritated Sunset. Twilight didn’t know exactly what they were or what they did, but Sunset did describe them as “the most annoying fucking people on the planet”, and Sunset wasn’t known for her hyperbole. Whatever they were, Twilight wasn’t happy with the idea of Sonata’s sister thinking her to be annoying in any capacity.

“At this hour? That doesn’t sound… Aria! You’re being rude!”

Twilight stood up a bit straighter as she heard more movement on the other side of the door. Once again, it swung open, bringing with it the other Siren sister. Adagio Dazzle stood a bit shorter than Sonata and Aria, but was no less intimidating as a figure. She had an almost motherly figure, complete with apron, a tired smile, and eyes that said to the world that she needed a vacation and plenty of box wine.

“Ah, Twilight… Welcome, it’s very good to see you.” Adagio’s words were nothing but calm and peaceful, yet her tone and general presence made Twilight very uneasy. She had the demeanor of a predator, toying with her prey before she pounced and ripped their throat out with her teeth. “You’ll have to forgive my sister, she’s… There’s no nice way to say it, she’s a complete buffoon.” Adagio sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Anyway, please, come in. Dinner will be ready in about fifteen minutes, which gives us plenty of time to get to know one another.”

“Thank you for having me,” said Twilight, stepping into the Dazzling household. It was a very nice foyer, with some classy paintings lining the walls. Twilight followed Adagio cautiously, stepping into the living room. It was simply decorated and furnished, with a nice sofa and a large TV that was currently playing some war movie that Twilight had yet to see. “You have a very nice home.”

“Why, thank you. Please, make yourself at home.” Adagio gestured to the sofa, where Aria was sitting, bubbling with a fuming rage. “I'll just go fetch Sonata.”

Twilight thanked Adagio again for her hospitality, cautiously taking a seat, about as far away from Aria as she could manage while still remaining on the sofa. She watched as Adagio all but vanished up the stairs to collect her youngest sister. This left Twilight alone with the angriest, arguably most threatening, of the three Siren Sisters.

And, for about a minute and a half, it was completely silent, save for the sounds of gunshots and explosions from the TV.

“Hi. I think we may have gotten off on the wrong foot,” said Twilight. She turned to face Aria, and regretted it almost immediately; Aria was beaming an almost tangible wave of fury that Twilight wasn't sure she could dispel if she tried. “Could we… Maybe start over?” She slowly extended her hand, as if reaching into a viper's den. “I'm Twilight Sparkle, and it's nice to finally meet you formally. I—”

“No.” Twilight stopped in her tracks, unable to process such a simple word. It took her by surprise, so much so that she half believed that she imagined it.

“Er…” Twilight tilted her head in confusion. “I beg your pardon?”

“I said no. We can't start over,” elaborated Aria. “I don't care if we've met before, and I don't care about meeting now. So just kiss up to Dag until she realizes how much you suck and then stay the hell away from my sister.”

“Ari!”

Both girls turned to the steps, were a very annoyed looking Sonata Dusk stood, arms crossed over her chest and an angry pout on her face. Despite the situation she found herself in, Twilight couldn't help but smile internally at her girlfriend. Sonata was beautiful, wearing a long black skirt and a very trendy silver top. Sonata always managed to look fashionable, even when she was as upset as she was now. Just behind her was Adagio, who seemed intent on simply observing.

“What?” Aria peered over to her sister, keeping one eye on Twilight at all times.

“You always do this! You're always so mean to all of my friends!” grumbled Sonata. “Quit it!”

“Whatever. Dag, when's dinner?”

“Just a bit longer. In the meantime, I've got the kettle on.” Adagio seemed more amused by her sister's antics than anything. “Twilight, how do you take your tea?”

“Just a bit of sugar is fine, thank you,” said Twilight. Adagio nodded, once again disappearing from the room to leave Twilight to contend with Aria almost entirely on her own.

“Heya, babe,” said Sonata, smiling at Twilight. “Thanks for coming.”

“It's my pleasure, jellyfish. You look great, by the way,” said Twilight, matching her grin. “I love your top. I—”

Aria let out a loud, blatantly artificial cough, her obviously fake hacking stopping the rest of Twilight's sentence in her throat. Sonata glared at her sister, strolling around the couch to take a seat next to her girlfriend. Aria silently grabbed Sonata’s wrist and pulled her to the right, simultaneously shimmying to the left and positioning herself between Sonata and Twilight. Sonata glared, but slowly sat down regardless.

“So, you find the place okay?” asked Sonata, awkwardly leaning forward so as to talk around her sister.

“Oh yeah. I thought I might have been at the wrong house for a second,” said Twilight. “I guess I was expecting an apartment.”

“So what? You don't think we could afford a house?” snarled Aria. “Where do you stay, huh?”

“Oh, I didn't mean it like that, not at all!” Twilight was starting to panic. She always had a habit of putting her foot in her mouth, and her nerves did nothing to help that. “I just thought… well, see, we're teenagers in this world, I just thought it would be difficult to buy a house. I can't even own property in this world, Sunset lets me sleep on her couch when I'm here!”

“Unbelievable. You don't have a place of your own and you think you're good enough for my sister?”

Twilight froze, surprised by Aria's response. She thought that Aria was being sour in her because of the Battle of the Bands, but the real reason seemed to be much simpler. She didn’t think that Twilight was worthy of her sister. It was sweet, in a way, even though Twilight would vastly prefer not to be on the receiving end of Aria’s fury.

“Aria! Don't be stupid!” Sonata punched her sister on the shoulder; given her noodly frame and Aria's relatively sizeable stature, she barely noticed. “Don't you know that Twi is a princess?! She has a whole castle back home!”

“So what? She thinks she's better than us?”

“Terribly sorry about the wait!”

Adagio Dazzle entered the room, that same sly, predatory smile on her otherwise stern and unflinching face. She carried a tray of tea, setting it down on the coffee table. She doled out the cups to the very grateful Twilight and Sonata. Adagio herself sat in the nearby loveseat, crossing her legs and taking a sip of her tea.

“So, Twilight Sparkle.” Once again, Adagio’s tone was laden with an almost sinister amount of amusement, despite her words conveying nothing but polite hospitality. “It has been quite some time. Let me just say now, as far as the Battle of the Band goes…” Adagio's chuckle made Twilight freeze, paralyzed by the apparent wickedness. “Water under the bridge. No hard feelings, regardless of what my boneheaded sister has been making you believe.”

“Bite me, Dag.”

“I’m… I’m glad you feel that way,” said Twilight carefully. “I was afraid that our… past interactions… They might make it difficult to form a friendship now. I truly am sorry that my friends and I had to destroy your gems.”

“Pah. Turns out, we didn’t need them here anyway,” said Adagio with a shrug.

“Not like you knew that when you tried to kill us…” grumbled Aria.

“So, Twilight, what I want to know is how did you and Sonata happen into each other’s lives? Just when did you start dating my sister?”

Twilight froze, her lips to her mug and her brain going into emergency shutdown mode. That was a very simple question, and one that Twilight definitely should’ve expected. So, of course, she wasn’t expecting it, and she had no good answer ready. The truth of the matter is, Twilight couldn’t even remember exactly when she started pursuing Sonata romantically. The days just blurred together, given the nature of them as friends before they became more than that.

“Uh…” Twilight blinked firmly, trying to keep herself from freaking out yet again. “I… Hm…”

“Third period math, bae,” said Sonata gently. “Remember? I gave that report?” Immediately, the memory came flooding back to Twilight, and she had to fight to hold back her laughter. It was probably the funniest, silliest, most “Sonata” thing Twilight had seen in a long time.

“Right! We have Algebra together, and one day we had an exam that Nata was late for,” giggled Twilight. “She comes into class when most people were about halfway through their test, and she looks exhausted, just dead on her feet. And, while everyone else is trying to remember the quadratic formula, she just lurches to the front of the class, whips out a stack of papers from her backpack, and starts reading off her history report!”

“I forgot what class I was in, okay?” Sonata matched Twilight’s giggles, and even Adagio gave the pair a good-natured chuckle. Aria, however, just glowered at Twilight, as if hoping to send her packing with her mean look alone.

“And about halfway through, Ms. Harshwhinny realizes what’s going on, and tells Nata to sit down, that she’s not in History, and Sonata just blinks before asking if she could finish reading it anyway, cause Cheerilee is offering extra credit to people who read their reports to the class!” Twilight smiled at Sonata, silently thanking her for jogging her memory. Sonata always had an eye for those sorts of things, remembering “moments” in life rather than dates or times like Twilight often did. “We had been friends before that, but that was when I decided that she definitely wasn’t evil anymore.”

“We were never evil,” said Aria flatly. “We were hungry.”

“Oh, no, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean… I just meant, you know. From a certain perspective.” Twilight took a deep sip of her tea, hoping that Aria’s burning fury would have been redirected by the time she was finished. She was severely disappointed. “So! You three are sisters, right? Triplets, I imagine?”

“Kinda sorta,” said Sonata. “Sirens work a little differently than humans and ponies.”

“Our lifespans are rather long compared to most other mortal species,” explained Adagio. “So our lives, even our births, happen a bit slower than usual. Our mum carried us all at once, but we were born at different times. Me being the strongest, prettiest, smartest of the bunch, I would naturally become the leader of the pack and was born first. Aria was born a few days later, and Sonata was something of the runt of the litter. Oh, she was so tiny, I think I still have the photos around somewhere. Aria, have you seen the photo album anywhere?”

“Dagi, shouldn’t you check on dinner or something?” said Sonata, blushing profusely. Twilight giggled at the strangely wholesome display, her eyes immediately darting to Aria. To her pleasant surprise, she didn’t seem angry for the time being, wearing a small smirk at her sisters’ antics.

"You're right, actually. The roast should be ready," said Adagio, standing up. Sonata's eyes went wide, which put Twilight in edge. Sonata was usually a "roll with the punches" kind of girl, but something seemed wrong. "Aria, dear, you can help serve while Sonata and Twilight set the table. Sound good?"

"I'd love to," said Twilight, a genuine excitement in her voice. Time for dinner, and she hasn't done anything too horribly embarrassing yet. Maybe she would make it, after all.

"Don't call me dear," grumbled Aria, although she stood up nevertheless. The three followed Adagio into the next room, a lovely dining room with a kitchen separated by a median. While Adagio and Aria entered the kitchen, Sonata and Twilight began to set down plates and silverware.

"Sorry about Aria," whispered Sonata. "She can be, like, the worst sometimes."

"It's okay. Can't say I really blame her for disliking me," said Twilight. "I think she's warming up to me, though." It got quiet for a moment, save for the gentle clinking of plates against the table. "Adagio is a lot more… Mature than I expected."

"Yep! She's been in charge since we were kids, ever since our mom died. She takes good care of us." Sonata smiled a small, bittersweet smile, melting Twilight's heart. She couldn't recall hearing Sonata talk about her mother before. Twilight could only imagine how hard it must've been on all three of them, to lose their mother at such a young age. "She's always doing what's best for us. She's awesome."

The two older Sirens entered with their hands full of hot dishes and, in Adagio's case, a large crockpot. They set down the food, Adagio unveiling a beautiful pot roast while Aria began spooning peas and potatoes onto plates for them to enjoy.

"Dagi…" Sonata buried her face in her palms as she sat down. Twilight tentatively sat down beside her, watching her girlfriend with concern. "Why…?"

"Hm? Is something wrong?" asked Adagio, adding the delectably juicy, tender roast to the plates and distributing them to the others. Once the plates were all served, she and Aria sat down, watching the couple with confusion and, in Aria's case, annoyance. "I thought you liked this recipe."

"I do, but I told you the other day! Twilight can't eat this, she's vegetarian!"

Finally, it all clicked in Twilight's head. As she wasn't particularly familiar with human cuisine, she didn't exactly know what a pot roast was. Now, she could see it was some sort of meat, which made her slightly uneasy.

"Oh my God, I completely forgot!" Adagio pinched the bridge of her nose, shaking her head firmly. "I'm so terribly sorry, Twilight, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"No, it's okay. I'm not really vegetarian in the way that you probably think," said Twilight. "It's just that meat doesn't really exist as a foodstuff in Equestria. I've actually never had… Sorry, this is… from a cow? Beef, I think?" Adagio nodded, at which point Twilight gulped nervously. The idea of eating beef unnerved her quite a bit. Some of her best friends were cows. "Right. Well, I've never had beef before, but I'm more than willing to try it."

"Are you sure? We can figure something out, if you can't.”

“No, no, this is fine. I’ve always been curious about meat.” Sonata snickered, which confused Twilight greatly. What was so funny about having a meat curiosity? “What?”

“Nothing, babe,” said Sonata through her fit of giggles. “I’ll tell you later. Anyway, if you’re sure you’ll be okay… Let’s dig in!”

Twilight nodded, although she still wasn’t sure what the joke was. She turned to her plate, looking down at the thick, juicy hunks of beef on her plate. It smelled odd to the traditionally herbivorous princess, but not necessarily unpleasant. After watching the others begin to eat, she cautiously stuck a piece of meat with her fork. It oozed its juices as the tines of her fork entered it, which Twilight found to be decidedly unpleasant. Still, she didn’t want to be rude or make things difficult for Adagio, so she took a healthy bite.

The beef was salty, moist, tender, and, most of all, utterly bizarre. Twilight chewed slowly, her brain screaming at her to spit it out. It didn’t taste bad, rather, she was having a hard time with the idea of what she was eating. She had spoken to cows before, made friends with them, and now she was eating one. It took a lot of reminding herself that things were different on this side of the mirror, and that cows here were nowhere near as sapient as they were in Equestria, just for Twilight to even get a bite down.

“You okay?” asked Sonata softly. Twilight seemed to fall back to earth, unaware that she had been staring blankly for a moment. She blinked firmly, surveying the landscape of the table. Luckily, it didn’t seem that Adagio had noticed Twilight’s mini existential crisis, although Aria was still leering at Twilight as if she had said something nasty about her behind her back.

“I’m fine,” Twilight assured her. “I just… I’m not sure what I expected.”

“You know, it really is okay if you don’t like it.”

“It’s not that. Honest. It’s more of a mental thing.” Twilight took another bite, which she had a bit less trouble getting down. “It’s like an out of body experience. We don’t have anything like this in Equestria.”

“Right, right, you ponies don’t eat meat or fish,” said Adagio with a nod. “It’s been so long since we’ve been back home, it’s easy to forget how things work over there.”

“Do you miss Equestria?” asked Twilight. “I’ll admit, you three have taken to this world so well, I honestly have trouble imagining you as anything but humans.”

“Well, thousands of years of banishment will do that,” said Aria flatly.

“Aria Blaze. Manners.” Adagio glowered at her sister before turning back to Twilight. “Sorry about her… In any case, we’ve been here for quite a long time. I don’t think any of us really think about Equestria too much. Home is more than where you live, I believe. I do miss swimming, though. The way we used to.”

“Well… If you’d like…” Twilight pursed her lips, thinking things over the logistics of what she was about to say as she spoke. “I could bring you over to Equestria for a visit. I mean, I’d need to figure out a safe way of getting you from the portal in my house to the ocean without you suffocating, but I think I could—”

“I appreciate the gesture, Twilight, but I don’t think that is a good idea,” said Adagio, her voice and demeanor stiffening slightly. “This world is our home now, for better or for worse, and I don’t know if returning to Equestria would do anything good for us.”

“Plus, you and your friends destroyed our only way of sustaining ourselves in our true form,” added Aria. “We’d probably die immediately.”

“Oh. I’m sorry, I didn’t think—

“Whatever, Sparkle.” Aria stabbed her food angrily. “It’s whatever.”

“Regardless, I’ve grown rather fond of this strange little world,” said Adagio. “This shape we took is so bizarre, but also very comfortable, if that makes sense. Plus, we’ve probably been here longer than we were in Equestria.”

“Main thing, though, is they don’t have fast food and hotties like you in the ocean, Twi” said Sonata with a grin. Twilight blushed, unsure of where to look. Sonata’s grin would make it impossible to keep her head from catching fire, and something told her that Adagio and Aria weren’t much better. Finally, Twilight settled on staring directly down at her plate.

“Well, suffice it to say… They don’t have girls like you in Equestria, either,” murmured Twilight, melting with embarrassment. She poked at her plate before partaking in another bite of the meal Adagio had prepared. It was actually beginning to grow on her.

“And that actually leads quite well into my next question.” If Twilight thought Adagio sounded sinister before, now her tone was downright diabolical. “What are your intentions with my sister?”

Twilight just about choked on her potatoes.

“Dagi!” Sonata’s face was burning red, like a sunburned tomato.

“What?” asked the eldest Dazzling innocently. “I just want to know where her priorities lie. Surely it must’ve come up in conversation between you two at some point. Assuming you’re still in the ‘conversing’ phase, of course.”

“As opposed to… what, exactly?” asked Twilight, barely recovering from her coughing fit. When she saw Adagio’s sly grin, she wished she could take it back.

“As opposed to being in the ‘doing’ phase. Come now, no need to be embarrassed. We’re all adults here, we can have a mature discussion.” Adagio leaned forward, resting her chin in her hands as she propped herself up against the table. “So… Do you intend on having sex with my sister?”

Twilight was, for all intents and purposes, a supergenius. She knew advanced calculus, ancient spellcasting, rocket science, and countless other subjects like the back of her hand. There were very few things that she did not have at least a passing knowledge and understanding of.

Twilight very much so did not know the correct answer to that question.

“No! Of course not, no, no, no! I would never even consider…” As the words left her mouth, it occurred to her that she was saying the absolute wrong thing in the situation.

“What’s wrong with my sister, huh?” demanded Aria. “She’s not good enough for you or something?”

“No, that’s not what I meant! Just… I don’t really think about… That.” Twilight could feel her stomach knotting in on itself. “Sonata is the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen in my life, and I… That is to say… Oh dear…”

“Twilight doesn’t think that way, Dagi,” said Sonata, rolling her eyes. “She’s a really straight-laced, goody-two-shoes, awkward nerd kinda girl. It took her ages to be comfortable enough to even kiss me! Not like Aria and her boyfriend.”

“Hey, don’t talk about Kayden!” For once, it was Aria who found herself blushing. “There’s nothing wrong with him!”

“Why do you think Adagio even asked about Twi’s ‘intentions’? It’s cause she remembered when she caught you and Kay in the living room when you thought we were still out shopping!”

“You said you’d be gone for like two hours!”

“Do you two ever stop fighting?” said Adagio. She pondered things for a second. “She’s right, though, Aria. I only think to ask that question because I caught your boyfriend with his—”

“May I use your bathroom, please?” said Twilight suddenly, her face (her entire body, really) radiating heat and embarrassment.

“Hm? Oh, yes, of course. Up the stairs, first door to your left.”

Twilight nodded and murmured her thanks before all but running from the table. She hurried up the stairs, quickly locating the door that Adagio had directed her to. Twilight slid into the bathroom, locking the door behind her before turning on the lights. She paced across the room, trying to no avail to calm herself. On the far side of the bathroom was a window, which Twilight quickly slid open to get some air.

“Wow, you look awful.”

The only thing that stopped Twilight from shrieking in fear and surprise was the sudden introduction of her own hands to her mouth. When she was done screaming into her palms, and once she was able to confirm that her heart was, indeed, still beating, Twilight peered out of the now open window to try and make sense of what she was seeing.

“So? What’s going on?” Somehow, for some reason that Twilight could not currently fathom, sitting on the thick branch of a tree in the Dazzlings’ yard, was Sunset Shimmer. She was in some sort of improvised ghillie suit, her clothing covered in twigs and leaves in an attempt to blend into nearby foliage.

“What are you doing here?!” snapped Twilight. “Were you following me?!”

“Duh. I really thought you were gonna bail, figured I’d tag along to keep you honest,” said Sunset with a shrug. “It looked like things were going okay there, once you got in the house. So, what went wrong?”

“I can’t believe we’re doing this…” Twilight pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. “Long story short, Aria hates me and Adagio thinks I’m with Sonata to… You know…”

“Hide the sausage?” The almost tangible amount of burning embarrassment radiating from Twilight was all the confirmation Sunset needed. “Well? Are you?”

“No! That’s the farthest thing from my mind!” said Twilight. “I don’t even know how we’d do it! We’re both girls, we don’t have the… compatible equipment.” To Twilight’s great annoyance, Sunset began to laugh.

“That’s adorable, Twi. Seriously, you’re so cute sometimes,” she chuckled. When she realized Twilight was not only not laughing, but very clearly furious, Sunset decided to actually be helpful. “Look, I’ll show you plenty of videos and fanfiction to give you ideas, but that’s not pressing right now. Right now, you need to figure out how you’re gonna answer.”

“I kinda screamed ‘no’ as if the idea of having sex with Sonata was the most horrific thing I could imagine…”

“Oof.”

“I panicked! How was I supposed to know Adagio would ask that?!” demanded Twilight. Sunset opened her mouth to answer, stopping when she saw the fire in her eyes. “If you answer that, I will push you out of your tree. Just help me!”

“Right, sorry. Well, luckily for you, you’re freaking out over basically nothing,” said Sunset. “As usual.”

“How do you figure?”

“Aria hating you isn’t all too surprising. Aria hates everyone. And the more Aria dislikes you, the hotter you look to Sonata,” explained Sunset. “She’ll come around sooner or later. As for Adagio… She’s the leader, right? Takes care of the others?”

“Mh-hm. She’s kinda like their mom,” said Twilight with a nod. “And you think, what? That she wants me to… With Sonata?”

“Well, I don’t think she’s really thinking about it that much. More like she just wants Nata out of her house. You’re not a bad girl, and no one with two brain cells to rub together will think that you are. Adagio is smart, she’s just trying to figure out where your head is at. Namely, if it's between Nata’s thighs.”

“Okay, thank you, Sunset, you can go home now.” Twilight buried her face in her palm.

“Yeah, you’ve been here for too long anyway. They’ll start to think something might be up,” said Sunset. She gave Twilight an enthusiastic thumbs-up. “Anyway, I got your back, Sparks. Don’t worry, you’re doing great. Just focus on getting on Adagio’s good side.”

“Thanks, Sunny,” sighed Twilight. “This is a lot harder than I expected…”

“Nothing worth doing is ever easy.” Sunset grinned sinisterly. “Just like—”

“I swear to Celestia, I will scream.”

“Sorry, couldn’t help myself. Go get ‘em, Sparky!”

Twilight watched with disbelief and confusion as Sunset shimmied along her branch, disappearing in the shadowy leaves of the tree. She blinked firmly, the entire encounter so bizarre that Twilight wasn’t entirely sure that it had even happened. Maybe the stress of this dinner was getting to her more than she expected.

After closing the window and splashing some cold water onto her face, Twilight felt ready to return to dinner. She took in a few deep, steady breaths before exiting the bathroom and making her way back down the stairs. The scene at the table hadn’t changed much, save for the clearing of plates and the replacement of the previous dishes with a beautiful looking blueberry pie.

“Sonata said you were done, so I thought I’d move along to dessert,” said Adagio. “Hope that you don’t mind.”

“Not at all. That looks fantastic, by the way,” said Twilight, returning to her seat. Adagio smiled at her before cutting into the pie and serving each plate before her with a generous slice.

“So sorry about earlier, Twilight. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” Adagio returned Twilight’s plate, the princess almost too distracted by the smell of the delectable pie in front of her to notice that Adagio was speaking to her at all. “I was just teasing, really. I figured it wouldn’t be a real ‘dinner with her family’ if I didn’t give you a hard time.”

“Oh, it’s fine,” chuckled Twilight nervously. “Considering how I imagined tonight going… Well, I didn’t think I’d make it to dessert before I somehow made a fool of myself.” Adagio gave a good-natured chuckle, and, for the first time that night, Twilight laughed along with her.

“You were fine, dear. Truthfully, I’m just relieved that Sonata finally likes someone who has their head on straight. Let me tell you, some of the crushes this girl has had in the past…”

“Let’s not,” said Sonata, sullenly taking a bite of her dessert. “Seriously, you can’t even make one bad decision in this house without everyone remembering it forever and ever!”

“The first girl you told me you liked ended up in jail the next day,” droned Adagio. “Trust me, Sonata, I’m not overprotective because it’s fun. It’s because, if I’m not, you’ll end up dating an arsonist.”

“I can assure you, outside of a few isolated incidents of magic going wrong, I am not an arsonist,” promised Twilight. Adagio chuckled, and Aria didn’t seem to get any angrier (which was progress, in Twilight’s book), which put the princess at ease. She dug into her pie, her eyes going wide at the taste. “Oh my word… This is incredible. You’re quite the baker, Adagio.”

“While you are by no means incorrect, I actually cannot take credit for this one,” said Adagio. She pointed her thumb to her right, where Aria was pouting and crossing her arms over her chest. “Aria actually made this. From scratch, too. Didn’t know she had it in her.”

“Oh. Well, Aria… My compliments. This is really good.”

“Buttering me up isn’t gonna make me like you all of a sudden, Sparkle,” grumbled Aria. Twilight shook her head, unable to stop herself from taking another bite.

“No, I mean it. This is really good. Reminds me of my mom,” said the princess. The Siren sisters appeared intrigued, so Twilight continued. “Well, my mom isn’t particularly capable in the kitchen, that was always more of my father’s wheelhouse, but if there’s one thing my mom could do, it was bake. She would make these blueberry pies and tarts every Sunday if I did well in class that week. Her mother had passed down the recipes, who had gotten it from her mother, and so on. According to my mom, her pie recipe technically predated the founding of Equestria.” Twilight chuckled, reminiscing of her mother’s passion for history, especially as it pertained to their family. “I think that’s probably hyperbole, but it makes for a good story, right?”

“A very good one, I say,” agreed Adagio.

“Are you still in touch with her?” Aria looked as surprised to hear the words come out of her mouth as Twilight was. “Your mother, I mean.”

“Yeah. We trade letters all the time, and I try to see her as often as possible. Life has been getting in the way lately, though.” Twilight wasn’t sure what had changed with Aria, but she suddenly seemed less antagonistic than before. “I’m actually quite jealous of this world for their cellphones and the internet. You guys have access to each other instantly, at all times. It’s like your family is always around.”

“Yeah… I guess we’ve got it pretty good, huh?” said Aria.

“Family is really all we have now,” said Adagio. “All we need, too. It’s been just the three of us for so long, though. It feels nice to let someone new in for a while.” Twilight blushed, but, for the first time that night, it wasn’t in embarrassment. “You know, I can tell why Sonata likes you.”

“You’re kinda like Mom.” Again, no one looked more surprised to hear these words than Aria herself. “She was really smart, too. Stickler for the details. Had a stick up her butt the size of the Mariana Trench.” Aria sighed, then, when she realized what was happening, quickly shook herself free of the memories. “Whatever. Thanks for saying you liked the pie, even if I think you’re full of shit.”

“Language,” said Adagio firmly. Aria murmured something that Adagio seemed to interpret as an apology. “You are remarkably like her, from what I can tell. I think you might be just what my baby sister needs. Someone with some sense and practicality to keep her on the straight and narrow.”

“Hey! I have sense and practicality!” pouted Sonata. “And I don’t know if you noticed, Dagi, but I don’t think Twi is going to be good at keeping anything ‘straight’, if you catch my drift.”

“Funny,” droned Twilight.

"It's not my fault you're such a useless lesbian, babe." The table shared a laugh at Twilight's expense, even Aria cracking a small smile. "But I love you anyway!"

"I love you too, jellyfish." Twilight smiled, a sense of relief washing over her when Adagio gave her a nod of approval. "And thanks for having me over. It was nice to sit down with you all like this."

"Speaking of sitting down with us…" Adagio grinned a dastardly grin, putting Twilight on edge once again. "Would you be a lamb and text your cute friend? In fact, you could just give me her number, if you think she'd be okay with that. I imagine she'd enjoy a seat after hiding in my tree all night."

It took Twilight several seconds to properly process what she had just heard, which seemed to visibly amuse her host. Adagio smiled innocently, cutting into the pie again and serving a slice onto a plate that Twilight hadn't noticed before. It was only then that Twilight realized that the table had been set for five, not four,.

"I… How?" Twilight struggled to gather her thoughts into a coherent sentence. "How did you know she was here? I didn't even know she was here!"

"Call it a hunch. Truth be told, Sunset and I have been… corresponding for quite some time now," chuckled Adagio. "Now seems like a good enough excuse as any to have her over. We can get to know each other over some pie…"

"Ew! Stop being weird, sis!" Sonata all but dry heaved at the thought of Adagio and Sunset "getting to know" one another, a sentiment apparently shared by Aria.

"Seriously, don't be gross, Dag," said Aria with a shake of her head. Just when Twilight was about to open her mouth in a misguided attempt at making sense of the situation, she felt her phone buzz.

Meant to ask in the bathroom. Has Adagio mentioned me?

Twilight rolled her eyes, unsure whether to smirk or groan. Of course this was part of the plan. How could she have thought any different?

"I'm sure she'd like that a lot," sighed Twilight, quickly texting Sunset an invitation.

"Excellent," said Adagio with a devious grin. "I'll go make some more tea."

"So… Do you think she liked me?"

Twilight genuinely couldn't tell if Sunset was joking or not. On one hand, she seemed deadly serious, as one was likely to be given her position. Given the fact that her easily irritated friend was currently holding a very sharp electric razor just a few inches from her head, it would be unwise for Sunset to intentionally annoy Twilight. Yet that was the very reason why the princess was suspicious.

"I can't believe you followed me. I can't believe Adagio knew you followed me," groaned Twilight, giving Sunset's hair one last brushing, almost as a farewell to the fiery locks. "I can't believe you set this whole dinner thing up just so you could get Adagio to ask you out!"

"You don't give me enough credit, Twi. I didn't set this up just to get with Adagio," promised Sunset, unable to shake her grin. "I genuinely care about you guys, and I want you two to have the best relationship you can have, which meant meeting Sonata's family. Bagging a coffee date with her hot sister? That was just a bonus. Call it my fee for helping you out there."

"You didn't do anything!"

"If that's the case, gimme back my flats and perfume."

Before Twilight could take back what she said (she actually quite liked the shoes Sunset had loaned her), there was a knock at the door. Sunset hopped to her feet, crossing the apartment to get it. To Twilight’s very pleasant surprise, it was none other than Sonata on the other side of the door. The Siren carried herself with a bright, bubbly, joyous energy, clutching a bouquet of roses in each hand.

“Jellyfish!” Twilight was incredibly surprised to see Sonata, especially at this hour. It was nearing 6, which normally meant Sonata would be back home for fear of her sister’s wrath. It looked like dinner with Adagio had changed things dramatically. “Come on in, we were just about to order pizza.”

“Hiya, Twi! I got these for you.” Sonata held up one of her bouquets, then grinned as she offered the other to Sunset. “And these are from Adagio.”

“Rad! Make yourself at home, Nata.” Sunset grabbed the flowers, then stepped out of the way to let Sonata into the apartment proper. “I’m gonna go see if I have a vase somewhere for these…” While Sunset hurried to a closet to dig through her veritable mountain of junk in search of a new home for her roses, Sonata skipped across the room and leapt into Twilight’s lap. The two giggled like schoolgirls, just overjoyed to be in the other’s presence, then shared a kiss.

“Dagi wants to know when you can come over for dinner again,” giggled Sonata. “I think you made a good first impression.”

“You really think so? I’ll admit, I was pretty nervous for a while there,” said Twilight. Sonata just laughed again, poking Twilight’s nose before diving in to kiss her again. Just then, Sunset returned with her vase, rolling her eyes at the display of affection.

“Come on, kids, keep it PG,” teased Sunset. She quickly filled her vase and set it on the counter before returning to the couch. “You’re just in time to see Twi shave my head.”

“Awesome! I wanna see bald Sunny!” Sonata jumped to the side, settling down on the couch next to Twilight, snickering mischievously. Sunset chuckled, returning to her seat on the floor.

“Don’t get too excited, Nata,” chuckled Sunset. “She’s just gonna give me a little buzz, like Amber Rose.”

“Oh, no. You said ‘clean’, that means all of it.” Twilight slyly pulled a can of shaving cream and a razor from behind her back. Sunset’s face fell, finally shaking her head in defeat.

“Well, damn. Fair enough. Let’s get this over with.” Twilight smirked, then turned the electric clippers on high, slowly bringing the buzzing razor to Sunset’s hair. “Man, I’m starting to think this wasn’t worth it…”

“Dagi is into short hair,” said Sonata simply, which seemed to change Sunset’s stance on the matter. “So… If you and Dagi start dating, does that make you my sister-in-law?”

“How would that work?” asked Sunset, watching as a large clump of her scarlet hair dropped into her lap. “Aww… This is kinda hard to watch…”

“Cause she’s my sister, and she’s dating my girlfriend’s best friend, which has to make us related somehow!”

“I’m not sure that’s how that works,” chuckled Twilight, taking an evil sort of pleasure at the idea of Sunset losing her hair. Serves her right for all of the teasing. “Although, that does raise an interesting question. My father has a brother, who coincidentally married my mother’s sister. The family tree there has always been kind of strange.”

“Oh, that reminds me…” Sonata turned, giving Twilight a wink and a smile. “When do I get to meet your family, huh? I bet they’d love me!”

“Hm. I don’t know. I’d have to find some free time in their schedules, and then I have to bring them here, rather than have you come to Equestria.” Twilight pursed her lips, putting her shaving of Sunset’s head on pause for a moment as she thought things over. “It kinda just occurred to me that my parents have no idea.”

“They don’t know that you’re seeing someone?” asked Sunset. Twilight chuckled weakly, shaking her head.

“They don’t know that I’m a lesbian.”

Sonata stared at Twilight, as if trying to figure out how her genius girlfriend could be airheaded enough to forget to mention something that important. Still, she was confident, as evidenced by her smile and the excited gleam in her eye.

“No sweat! All we gotta do is cut my hair and dress me like a boy, they’ll never know the difference!” said Sonata. Twilight and Sunset shared a look, neither of them entirely sure if Sonata was joking or not. When it became clear that Sonata meant every word of what she had said, the two shrugged.

“Well, I’ve already got the razor ready…”