by Perdita Finn
No one said anything for a moment. They were too embarrassed. Here was Sunset, who supposedly didn’t know anything about friendship, explaining to them how to get along with one another.
Twilight Sparkle was particularly disappointed in herself. She was the Princess of Friendship, after all. “I can’t believe all this tension was happening right under my nose, and I didn’t realize it. I’m supposed to be the one with all the answers, and all I’ve done since I got here is let you down.” She hung her head in shame.
But Sunset had come to understand many things over the past few days. She knew exactly what it was like to think you were the best, the one and only, the top of the top. It was a very lonely place. “I don’t think anyone is supposed to have all the answers. But you can count on your friends to help you find them.”
Her wise words filled Twilight Sparkle with joy. “I think you already have found the answer,” she said to Sunset Shimmer. “Come on! We need to get out of here.”
One more time, the girls rushed to the door, desperately pulling at it. But it was no use. It was still locked. How were they going to get out?
That was the exact moment when the door miraculously opened. Standing there were Spike and DJ Pon-3, holding a crowbar in her hands. She’d pried the door open!
Twilight hugged Spike.
“Sorry I took so long,” he apologized. “I had to find somebody who wasn’t under the Sirens’ spell to help me get you out.”
DJ Pon-3 waved at all the girls.
“Why isn’t she under their spell?” wondered Twilight out loud.
“Never takes off her headphones!” said Spike, pointing at them.
DJ Pon-3 smiled and gave the girls a thumbs-up sign. They all laughed out loud with relief. But not for long. They had work to do. Grabbing their instruments, they ran out of the cellar toward the parking lot, where DJ Pon-3’s car was waiting.
As DJ Pon-3 raced toward a nearby hillside, the girls were frightened as the sky turned darker and darker red. The Sirens’ evil spell was spreading! Even from the car, they could hear the hypnotic music.
The girls got out of the car when they reached the landmark overlooking the whole town. They were ready to play the counterspell. But there was only one problem. They had nowhere to plug in their instruments.
“How are we supposed to play over them from up here?” Rainbow Dash cried.
DJ Pon-3 noticed the girls looking around and figured out what the problem was immediately. Good thing she had a pair of enormous speakers in the trunk of her car! She never went anywhere without them.
“Sweet!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed when she saw them.
“Come on, y’all, time to prove we’ve still got the Magic of Friendship inside us,” said Applejack.
Twilight Sparkle stepped forward. At last, she knew the counterspell. “And there’s only one way to do it.”
“We’re getting the band back together?!” squealed Pinkie Pie.
“We’re getting our band back together,” said Rainbow Dash.
The girls shared a sweet smile. They were a team again.
“Just one question,” asked Rarity. “Which version of the counterspell are we going to play? You had us rehearse quite a few versions as I recall.”
“All this time, I thought I had to be the one to come up with a musical counterspell. I thought I had to do everything. But I don’t think it matters what song we play. As long as we play it together. As friends.”
An idea lit up Rainbow Dash’s face. “In that case, I know just the song.”
Applejack was just starting to roll her eyes when she realized what Rainbow Dash was suggesting.
“Fluttershy’s written a really great song,” said Rainbow Dash.
Fluttershy beamed with happiness.
“I know just the song you’re talking about,” said Twilight. She’d seen it in the notebook Fluttershy had loaned her.
“Just one last thing,” said Applejack. “We’re about to save the world here. Personally, I think we should do it in style. Rarity, I don’t suppose…?”
Rarity was delighted. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Battle of the Bands
The Dazzlings heard it before anyone else—music with a magic more powerful than theirs. It was easier to listen to and more fun. It made you want to find a friend and dance, not gaze into space like a zombie. Already people in the audience were responding to it. They were smiling more naturally and saying nice things to one another.
Adagio Dazzle looked all around the amphitheater, but she couldn’t see the Rainbooms anywhere. That’s when Aria Blaze pointed to the distant hillside.
“So the Rainbooms want to turn this into a real Battle of the Bands?” Adagio was steely-eyed with determination. “Okay, then. Let’s battle!”
The Dazzlings’ pendants glowed brighter for an instant, and the girls used their wings to take to the sky. They swooped over the crowd and headed right toward the Rainbooms. Beneath them kids were pointing and shouting, but the Dazzlings weren’t listening. They were going to defeat their enemies.
The Rainbooms were ready for them! They had one another, and they had the Magic of Friendship. They were in full pony mode and ready to use their cutie marks in their defense.
Every time Pinkie Pie hit her snare drum, her bass drum would fire balloons just like a cannon. When Fluttershy slapped her tambourine against her leg, butterflies miraculously emerged and swarmed around the Dazzlings, confusing them. Every thump of Applejack’s bass let loose a barrage of apples. Rarity’s keytar exploded with diamonds whose sparkling surfaces momentarily blinded the Dazzlings. Rainbow Dash’s guitar shot rainbow-shaped bolts that sent the Dazzlings diving. Balloons, butterflies, apples, diamonds, and rainbows—in the right hands and with plenty of teamwork, they were a powerful defense.
Still, despite being conked in the head and spun around and confused, the Dazzlings kept on fighting. Their scarlet pendants created a laser light show with flashing beams of color that hurt the Rainbooms’ eyes. They couldn’t keep playing in the glare. It was making them dizzy and disoriented.
Twilight Sparkle was desperate. “Sunset Shimmer! We need you!” she called.
Sunset stepped close to her friend and began singing the chorus to Fluttershy’s song. Her voice was clear as a bell and beautiful. She knew every word. She hit every note. The more she sang, the greater the magic became. She felt her ears arrive first. Next, her tail began swinging back and forth, and then she sprouted wings! She could pony up, too!
Even better, she had her own special powers just like the Rainbooms. From her voice came swirling suns that encircled the Dazzlings and trapped them!
Sunset Shimmer sang and sang. But she was no longer singing alone. Voices from the amphitheater and all around town joined her song. Fluttershy was singing. Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash were singing. Everyone was singing. Everyone was experiencing the wonder of harmony.
As the song reached its crescendo, an ethereal Alicorn appeared in the sky like a royal constellation. Her graceful unicorn horn pointed to the stars. Her magical wings wafted an unearthly perfume across the land. All of a sudden, white light shot out of her unicorn horn toward the Dazzlings. It blew them right across town, right back to the stage. They were nothing more than ordinary teenage girls again.
The crowd went wild as the Rainbooms and Sunset Shimmer lifted into the air. As they gently landed on the stage beside the Sirens, they played the final notes of Fluttershy’s oh-so-special song.
Curtain Calls
The Sirens were cowering. Their arms were over their heads. They didn’t know what was going to happen next, but they were pretty sure it was going to be bad. After all, if they had defeated the Rainbooms, they would have been just awful to them.
But Sunset Shimmer mostly felt pity for them. She reached down and, one by one, removed the red-jewel pendants from around their necks. The Sirens scrambled to their feet, still trying to regain the adoration of the crowd.
Th
ey began singing, “You will adore us. This much we know is true. You will adore us. Before this song is through.”
Every note was off, and the Sirens were so completely tone-deaf that the crowd began to boo them off the stage.
Sunset Shimmer looked at the pendants in her hand. “Guess that explains why these were so special to them.”
“Without those pendants and the magic you brought here from Equestria, they’re just three harmless teenage girls,” said Twilight Sparkle.
Just then, Twilight Sparkle was reminded that she was also a teenage girl—at least for the moment.
Flash Sentry, freed from the Sirens’ enchantment, was running over to the stage. “That was amazing! Rainbooms rule!” he said. He bounded up beside the girls and wrapped Twilight in an embrace. She blushed three different shades of pink.
Trixie was glaring at her. “You may have vanquished the Dazzlings, but you will never have the amazing, showstopping ability of the Great and Powerful Trixie.” She waved her arms and conjured a poof of smoke. When it cleared, the girls could see her running out of the amphitheater. Rainbow Dash wanted to fly after her and tell her to behave herself, but Twilight stopped her.
“Someday she’ll learn,” said Twilight in her most princesslike voice. “She just needs to be given a chance.”
Her eyes met Sunset Shimmer’s. People made mistakes, but they could also change for the better. And friends understood that. Sunset found herself in the center of a group hug with all her best friends—Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie.
“You know, Twilight is going back to Equestria soon,” said Rainbow Dash. “The Rainbooms could really use someone to help Fluttershy on backup vocals.”
Sunset Shimmer was glowing. “I also play the guitar!”
“We’ll see,” teased Rainbow Dash, grinning. But Rainbow Dash had learned a lesson, too. If she was really going to lead the band, she was going to have to recognize and celebrate everyone’s special talents.
Rave Reviews for the Rainbooms!
The next day was filled with music and celebration. Finally, the girls got to sit down with Twilight Sparkle and share a few months’ worth of gossip. Rainbow Dash told her about soccer and basketball games. Rarity gave her a fashion show. Fluttershy introduced her to her newest pets. And Pinkie? Pinkie Pie just laughed with happiness to have all her friends together.
But it couldn’t stay like that. Twilight Sparkle had a kingdom back in Equestria, and the ponies there needed her. Besides, now that she had reopened the portal, she could visit from time to time. This wasn’t good-bye forever. But it was still hard.
In the afternoon, all the friends gathered around the Wondercolt statue.
“Sure wish you could stay longer,” sighed Applejack.
“Me too,” said Twilight Sparkle, “but I have responsibilities in Equestria that I have to get back to. Its citizens need me. But this isn’t good-bye. It’s good-bye until next time.”
All the girls hugged her. Sunset gave her a special embrace. There were tears in her eyes. She had learned so much from Twilight Sparkle, and her life was so different now.
Twilight picked up Spike. “Ready?”
“Ready.”
The two of them stepped into the portal.
White light flashed while streaks of vibrant color stretched and squashed and bent Twilight Sparkle and Spike back into a pony and a dragon. With a final burst of light, they arrived in Twilight’s library in Equestria.
Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity—Twilight Sparkle’s favorite ponies—were waiting for them.
“Tell us everything!” said Rainbow Dash, trotting over.
“Whatja see?” asked Applejack.
“What did you do?” asked Fluttershy.
“What did you wear?” said Rarity.
But Pinkie Pie, as always, asked the most important question of all. “What did you learn?”
Twilight took a deep breath, thinking of all the events from the past few days. “I learned that I still have a lot to learn. I’m the Princess of Friendship now, and lots of ponies are going to be looking to me to solve their problems. But it was foolish of me to think that I should have all the answers.” She looked into the eyes of each of the ponies and smiled. “What I do have are good friends who will always be there to help me find them.”
Rarity whinnied. “Well then, I think we should get started right away. You’ve had quite a bit of mail since you’ve been gone.” She pointed at an enormous mountain of bags filled with letters.
Seeing them, Pinkie Pie took a flying leap right into the middle of the pile. She emerged a moment later, flipping through envelopes. “From Las Pegasus, Baltimare, Fillydelphia…”
There were so many letters and so many responsibilities. But Twilight Sparkle was ready, thanks to her friends at Canterlot High and thanks to Sunset Shimmer. Once they had been enemies and now they would be best friends forever, wherever they were.
Far away in another world, Sunset was thinking about Twilight. She was writing to her in the magic journal while she waited in the music room for the girls to arrive.
Dear Princess Twilight, Sunset Shimmer wrote. Missing you already and hope you’ll be back soon. Things are definitely looking up for me here at Canterlot High, but I know I still have a lot to learn about friendship. Hope you don’t mind if I write to you for advice when I need it. Your friend, Sunset Shimmer
Sunset closed the journal and put it in her backpack as Rainbow Dash and the other girls bounded into the music room. “You ready or what?”
“I’m ready!” Sunset laughed, grabbing her guitar.
Fluttershy picked up her tambourine, and Rarity strapped on her keytar. Rainbow Dash and Applejack got ready to jam, and Pinkie Pie settled in behind her drum kit.
“One… two… one, two, three, four!” called out Pinkie Pie, cueing all the girls.
The Sonic Rainbooms were ready to rock!
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CONTENTS
COVER
TITLE PAGE
WELCOME
DEDICATION
CHAPTER 1
All the Wrong Notes
CHAPTER 2
Pitch-Perfect Ponies
CHAPTER 3
Sunset Shimmer’s Blues
CHAPTER 4
Music to Their Ears (and Tails!)
CHAPTER 5
Out of Sync
CHAPTER 6
Devilish Divas
CHAPTER 7
Facing the Music
CHAPTER 8
In the Key of Princess
CHAPTER 9
Rainbow Road Trip
CHAPTER 10
Reunion Rhythms
CHAPTER 11
The Band to Beat
CHAPTER 12
Pajama Jam
CHAPTER 13
Princess in Peril
CHAPTER 14
Backstage Backbiting
CHAPTER 15
Friendship Unplugged
CHAPTER 16
Star Power
CHAPTER 17
Dis-Chords
CHAPTER 18
Off the Charts (and Under the Stage)
CHAPTER 19
A Rainbow Reunion
CHAPTER 20
Battle of the Bands
CHAPTER 21
Curtain Calls
CHAPTER 22
Rave Reviews for the Rainbooms!
COPYRIGHT
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
HASBRO and its logo, MY LITTLE PONY, EQUESTRIA GIRLS and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. © 2014 Hasbro. All rights reserved.
Cover design by Steve Scott
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First ebook edition: October 2014
ISBN 978-0-316-32094-8
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