My Little Pony Equestria Girls: Rainbow Rocks/Transcript

(Opening shot: fade in to the full moon in a starry night sky. Tilt down slowly to street level, framing a city street corner where a restaurant stands. The brightly lit windows pick out the silhouettes of a roomful of customers, and their muffled, heated conversation is heard even at this distance. As the camera zooms in slowly, a set of female voices gradually makes itself heard, vocalizing a five-note phrase; dissolve to a booth inside, where a teenage boy and girl are arguing. Zoom out slightly and pan across other quarreling patrons to the tune of a second phrase, framing a greenish mist swirling at floor level, then cut to a long shot of a corner booth and zoom in.)
(The camera angle picks out one of the singers: a girl with pale yellow skin that bears a faint greenish tinge, her eyes closed and shadowed in a darker hue. She wears jeans and a sweatshirt whose hood is pulled up to cover her hair and cast her face in shadow, and her hands are raised as if to cover something on her chest as she rocks slowly back and forth. A second, similarly attired figure sits facing her; the table between them is the only one in the whole restaurant that is completely bare. As the voices repeat the two phrases, the camera cuts to an extreme close-up of the yellow girl’s chest; her hands partially cover a large red gem that hangs around her neck as a pendant. It glows feebly as the mist swirls up to it and is absorbed. A zoom out frames two girls sitting across from her—one with pale gray-violet skin, the other pale blue; each also wears eyeshadow in a darker tint of her skin color. All three have their hoods up and wear the red-gem pendants, and they rock in their seats while they sing.)
(The three jewels glimmer briefly as they fall silent; cut to the additional two girls’ side. The gray-violet one lowers her hood, exposing hair tied into two very long pigtails high on the back of her head with large star barrettes. Her hair is purple, shot through with streaks of light green. Two large purple eyes train themselves across the table as this girl—Aria Blaze—groans and speaks with a petulant, slightly congested tone.)
Aria: That was barely worth the effort, Adagio. (slumping down) I’m tired of fast food. I need a meal.
(During this line, the blue-skinned girl puts her own hood down, exposing a worried countenance marked by deep red-violet eyes and medium blue hair gathered into an equally long ponytail. Two streaks of dark blue run its full length, and her hairline is cut to descend from her temples to a low point over her nose. This is Sonata Dusk. Next the girl Aria has addressed, Adagio Dazzle, drops her hood to reveal a mass of fluffy orange hair marked by lighter highlights and held back by a spiked band, as well as eyes that are nearly the same shade as Sonata’s. Her voice is that of the girl who will brook no argument with her plans.)
Adagio: The energy in this world isn’t the same as in Equestria. (Zoom in.) We can only gain so much power here. 
Aria: (groaning loudly) I wish we’d never been banished to this awful place! (Back to Adagio.)
Adagio: (smiling, with fake perkiness) Really? I love it here. (She drops the act with a grimace.)
Sonata: (from o.s.) For realsies? 
(Her tone gives her away as probably not being the brightest bulb in the box; cut to her and Aria’s side again.)
Sonata: Because I think this place is the worst.
Aria: I think you’re the worst, Sonata. 
Sonata: Oh, yeah? Well, I think you’re— 
(Pan across to Adagio, who voices a fed-up groan and puts a hand to her forehead. A low rumble of thunder starts to build in the distance.)
Adagio: I’ll tell you one thing. Being stuck here with you two isn’t making this world any more bearable. 
(The end of this line comes through gritted teeth; after she finishes, a great flash of white light erupts behind the hills outside and gives way to a column of energy pouring up toward the sky. Adagio turns to the window, the reflection of this phenomenon playing across her eyes as she opens them wide in surprise; cut to just outside the restaurant’s front entrance. She rushes out to the sidewalk, a sudden wind blowing past her as Aria moves to follow; the light column has subsided to a glow behind the hills, from which a double helix of rainbow light lances up into the clouds. Adagio can only stare openmouthed as a beam of this multicolored power shoots straight and true from the high end, connecting with a flash against something behind the hills and ricocheting into the heavens.)
(Fade to white, then in to a close-up of Adagio’s pendant. It gleams briefly, the camera zooming out to frame all of her, and she looks up with a gasp.)
Adagio: Did you feel that? 
(Confusion gives way to a malicious grin; cut to frame all three girls now on the sidewalk.)
Adagio: Do you know what that is? (Shrugs and noncommittal noises from the others; she grabs Aria’s shirt.) It’s Equestrian magic!
Aria: (pushing Adagio’s hands away) But this world doesn’t have Equestrian magic. 
Adagio: (walking away) It does now. And we’re going to use it to make everyone in this pathetic little world adore us.
(Her comments and the light show tell what is on the other side of those hills—Canterlot High School, at the moment of Sunset Shimmer’s defeat near the end of Equestria Girls. On the end of the previous line, she stops and rests one hand on her hip, the others moving up on either side and adopting smiles of her own. Zoom in slowly on Adagio’s pendant, the background fading away to leave only the red gem against a black field.)
(Fade in to a quiet morning sky and tilt down to frame the exterior of Canterlot High. A steady buzz of conversation is heard as students make their way toward the entrance; dissolve to a busy hall inside and pan to follow a couple of students—one of whom is Featherweight—to the door leading to the gymnasium. Both of them carry in loads of supplies, and through the doorway, assorted groups of students can be seen hunched down on the floor, hard at work making signs and banners. Cut to inside the gym and zoom in slowly on the stage at the far end, set up with a drum kit, microphones, and amplifiers as for a band performance. Among the design teams are the Cutie Mark Crusaders and Trixie, the latter of whom is working with two other girls. A series of close-ups frames one group, then another, then Apple Bloom and Scootaloo adding their own touches to the Crusaders’ banner. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle trade an approving smile, the latter holding a small can of paint with a brush resting inside.)
(A hand attached to an arm in a dark gray sleeve reaches into view to pluck the implement away, much to both girls’ surprise, and the camera cuts to the possessor of said arm—Sunset Shimmer. Her demeanor is very much changed from the one she displayed in Equestria Girls, though, in that she has put on a genuine smile and a helpful tone.)
Sunset: Want some help?
Bloom: Uh, no thanks. We’re good. (The other two nod uneasily.)
Sunset: (deflated) Oh. Okay. (She returns the brush to Sweetie’s can.)
Pinkie: (from o.s.) SUNSET SHIMMER!!
(Cut to her, standing near the door and waving wildly, and zoom out quickly to frame Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, and Rarity working on a sign of their own.)
Pinkie: Over here! 
(The sight of the five brings a smile back to the former aspiring tyrant’s face, but as she crosses the floor, the grumbling whispers from the other participants lowers her mood again.)
Sunset: (groaning, as she reaches the five, now all standing) I had no idea the whole school would be here. 
(Fluttershy’s hand on her shoulder cheers her a bit; now Pinkie and Rarity trade a look and quickly hold up the group’s handiwork. Guitar, keyboard, drum kit, floating against a backdrop of night sky and stars with a musical staff and notes snaking across.)
Rarity: Quite the eye-catching advertisement, if I do say so myself.
(She pronounces “advertisement” in the British fashion, with the accent on the second syllable and a short I in the third.)
Pinkie: And it smells like cake!
Fluttershy: It does?
(As she sniffs in its direction, Pinkie demonstrates by shoving the sign up against her face for a moment, then backing o.s. It leaves freckles of glitter all over the yellow skin and a splotch of blue on the nose.)
Pinkie: (from o.s.) I used frosting instead of paste!
Applejack: Uh, Fluttershy, you’ve got a little somethin’, uh… (She points at her own nose; Fluttershy brushes a little glitter off her cheek.)
Fluttershy: Did I get it?
Applejack: Heh…not exactly.
(Sunset comes to the rescue, plying a cloth to get the mess off Fluttershy’s face, as Principal Celestia and Vice-Principal Luna enter the gym. The latter carries a book under one arm.)
Celestia: (voice raised; both crossing the floor) Good afternoon, students. I just wanted to tell you all how pleased I am that so many of you are going to participate in the first-ever Canterlot High School Musical Showcase. (Cheers from all sides.) This is a wonderful opportunity to raise money for all our after-school programs here at CHS. So keep working on those signs and posters. I think it’s going to be one of the most exciting events we’ve had at CHS— (Cut to the five friends and Sunset; she continues o.s.) —since the Fall Formal. 
(The yellow/red-haired girl gets a round of dirty looks from the rest of the gym, prompting her to blush and lift one hand to shield her face. She follows this up with a grimace and a slow slide down the folded-away bleachers against which she is leaning, so that she ends up in a huddle of insecurity that would rival Fluttershy or Twilight.)
(Dissolve to a closed set of double doors, seen from the hall, and zoom in slowly; one of the quintet’s signs is taped up here. A dissolve shifts the view to the other side, in a large music practice room. Those five are all here: Applejack resting a bass guitar vertically against the floor, Fluttershy looking on from one side, Pinkie at a drum kit, Rainbow with an electric guitar slung up, Rarity at a keyboard in the back corner. Sunset is present as well, sitting glumly atop a grand piano. Pinkie’s bass drum is marked with a horseshoe, a stream of rainbow fire and stars issuing from inside its curve.)
Sunset: (sighing, head in hands) I am never gonna live that down. 
Fluttershy: (getting a tambourine from a wall rack) You were pretty bad at the Fall Formal. (Cut to Rainbow and Sunset.)
Sunset: A demon. I turned into a raging she-demon. (Pinkie zips over.)
Pinkie: And tried to turn everyone here into teenage zombies for your own personal army!
(She emphasizes her words by briefly shambling around with arms outstretched, then finishes up with a big silly grin.)
Rarity: (from o.s.) Oh, darling… (Cut to her, now with a keytar slung up.) …you have us. And we’ve forgiven you for your past… (Clear throat.) …boo-boos. (All are now ready to play.)
Applejack: (tuning a string) To be honest, I’d say the whole experience brought everyone at Canterlot High closer than ever before. (Close-up of her on the end of this, then pan to Pinkie.)
Pinkie: (counting off with sticks) One, two, three!
Laid-back acoustic guitar/drum/bass melody with tambourine, bright 4 (D major)
Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity:
There was a time we were apart, but that’s behind us now
See how we’ve made a brand-new start, and the future’s looking up [oh, oh]
(The hall; students pass this way and that, one girl wearing the blue/yellow pony ears and tail given out to boost school spirit in Equestria Girls.)
And when you walk these halls, you feel it everywhere
(Two of the eco-kids put up a poster advertising the Musical Showcase and bump fists.)
Yeah, we’re the Wondercolts forever, oh yeah
Acoustic guitar out; electric guitar, synthesizer, full percussion in
(In the cafeteria, an athlete, rocker, and drama smile and wave to a techie getting her lunch; she gratefully moves to take a seat with them. The screen quickly tiles itself with vertical panels showing the five band members.)
Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity:
We are all together [oh, oh, oh-h-h, oh]
(Applejack’s hair elongates and braids itself and her pony ears appear, as they did during the face-off against Sunset in Equestria Girls, and Pinkie undergoes her own transformation as well.)
Now it’s better than ever [oh, oh, oh-h-h, oh]
(Rarity, then Rainbow, and last Fluttershy change, the last two of these gaining their wings.)
You can feel it, we are back
(under previous line)		[You…can…feel…it]
And I’m so glad that we’re better
All instruments out; tambourine shake
Better than ever
Other instruments back in
[Whoa-oh, whoa-oh]
Oh yeah, we’re better than ever [whoa-oh, whoa-oh]
(Cut to the rearing-horse statue on the front lawn and tilt down to its base. The Crusaders sit/stand on its top edge, a slightly puzzled Big Macintosh finds himself on the business end of Photo Finish’s camera, and Trixie and Snips look on with amusement. Trixie’s zip-up sweater has changed slightly in that the stars that were formerly on its elbows have shifted up toward the shoulders. A flash, and the view clears to show a quick sequence of four photos being stacked one on top of the other. First: Macintosh alone. Second: he smiles slightly as Bloom sits on his shoulders and Scootaloo and Sweetie gather in. Third the smile grows as Snips and Snails join the tableau. Fourth: Trixie inserts herself in front of everyone, partially/completely blocking them from view.)
(From here, cut to Sunset now smiling and bobbing her head in time to the beat.)
Electric guitar, synth out; acoustic guitar in
Rainbow:		There was a time we couldn’t see past the differences
Applejack:		That separated you and me, and it left us on our own
(In the hall, students talk and laugh as they go about their business.)
Pinkie: 		But now you walk these halls and friends are everywhere
(An errant hacky sack knocks the Wondercolt pony ears off Featherweight’s head so that they land on an athlete he is walking past; they trade a funny look, then both laugh.)
Electric guitar in
Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity:
Yeah, we’re the Wondercolts forever, oh yeah
Acoustic guitar out; synth in
(The music room again.)
Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity:
We are all together [oh, oh, oh-h-h, oh]
(Sunset jumps off the piano and grooves a bit.)
Now it’s better than ever [oh, oh, oh-h-h, oh]
Now that we are back on track
(under previous line)		[Now…that…we…are]
Yes, I’m so glad that we’re better
All instruments out
Better than ever
All instruments back in
(Fluttershy winks as she gives her tambourine a shake.)
Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity:
[Whoa-oh, whoa-oh]
(Applejack and Rarity lean in toward Fluttershy from opposite sides.)
Oh yeah, we’re better than ever [whoa-oh, whoa-oh]
(Sunset begins to clap along, now positively beaming.)
Oh yeah, we’re better than ever [whoa-oh, whoa-oh]
All instruments out
Oh yeah, we’re better than ever
Song ends
(As soon as they complete the last line, the pony features vanish to leave five more-or-less ordinary teenage girls. Pinkie twirls a drumstick as Sunset claps for the performance, and Rainbow removes her instrument, standing it upright on the floor.)
Rarity: (giggling) I still can’t believe that happens when we play. (She removes her keytar and props it against a piano leg.) Ooh! (pacing) I’ve got to look into some new accessories. Something that looks good in a longer ponytail. (Idea; she stops.) Ooh! Maybe some clip-on earrings for when I get those adorable pony ears.
(Cut to Applejack and Fluttershy, now sitting on the risers. The bass is supported by a stand.)
Applejack: I just wonder why it happens. Princess Twilight took her crown back to Equestria. Shouldn’t that mean she took all the magic back with her?
Rainbow: (laughing) Who cares why it happens? It makes my band totally awesome! 
Rarity: (offended) Oh! (turning to Rainbow) Your band? 
Rainbow: Duh! It was my idea to start the Rainbooms so we could be in the Showcase. (Pinkie wears one of her cymbals like a hat.) Plus I’m the lead singer and guitarist. 
(Comes now a string of knocks at the door; the cause is Flash Sentry, who lets himself into the room. He is a bit flustered, but regains his composure as he speaks.)
Flash: Uh…heard you outside. (walking in) You guys are sounding really tight. 
Rainbow: Uh, we’re getting there. Rarity’s still coming in a little late on the second verse, and Applejack’s bass solo could use a little work. (winking, crossing room) They’ll get it together in time for the Showcase. 
(She completely misses the nasty looks that Applejack and Rarity shoot at her and each other, and all three of them pay no mind to Fluttershy’s uneasy efforts to scrunch down behind the tambourine she still holds.)
Flash: (scratching head, smiling nervously) Uh, I-I don’t suppose any of our friends from, uh…out of town might come? (hastily) Uh, it being a special charity event and all. (Applejack crosses to Rainbow; Pinkie has removed the cymbal from her head.)
Applejack: Sorry, Flash. I don’t think Twilight’s gonna be back at Canterlot High anytime soon. 
Flash: (forcing a chuckle) Oh, yeah. Okay. I just, you know, thought I’d ask. (backing out toward door) Uh, keep on…rockin’ it!
(He misses the doorway, but not the wall next to it. One thump of spine against drywall, and he exits with a big dopey grin, a blush, and two index fingers pointed at the group. Cut to a worried Sunset and zoom out slightly to frame Rarity crossing to her.)
Rarity: (chuckling) Well, someone is quite the smitten kitten.
(She giggles to herself, but her words wound the three-time Fall Formal Princess noticeable. Rarity’s eyes pop as she realizes her misstep—that is, having so casually brought up the topic of Sunset’s ex-boyfriend as noted in Equestria Girls.)
Rarity: Oh, sorry. I always forget you and Flash used to be an item. 
Sunset: (trying to play it off) It’s okay. Flash is a great guy and all, but I never really “liked him” liked him. I was just using him to become more popular. (Now her eyes pop; she puts a hand to her forehead with a sigh.) The old me really was just awful, wasn’t she? 
(A round of varied assent noises.)
Pinkie: (over end of this) Yep! 
Applejack: (crossing to Sunset) But the important thing is that you’ve turned yourself around. 
Sunset: (smiling) Thanks, Applejack. (Smile fades.) But I’m not sure everyone else at CHS feels the same way. (The intercom beeps.)
Luna: (over speaker) Sunset Shimmer, please report to the main foyer.
Sunset: (walking to door) Gotta run. I volunteered to show some new students around the school. Thought it’d be good for them to get to know the new me before they heard all the stuff about the old me. 
(A last half-smile over her shoulder, and she is gone into the hall. Rainbow turns to the other four.)
Rainbow: We’ve still got a few minutes before lunch starts. What do you say we do “Awesome As I Wanna Be”? (Cut to Fluttershy, now holding a notebook.)
Fluttershy: Um, Rainbow Dash? (lifting it) I was wondering if we could maybe play the song I wrote?
Rainbow: (waving her off) Uh, we’ll get to it.
(Up with the instrument, down with both the notebook and the timid girl’s spirits.)
Fluttershy: Oh. Okay. 
(The wild-haired guitarist starts into a riff. Cut to Sunset, walking through the lobby with a hand raised in greeting.)
Sunset: Hi! Are you the girls I’m supposed to show around?
(The camera cuts to them—three in number: Adagio, Aria, and Sonata. They have shed their hooded sweatshirts and are standing in the partial shadows thrown by the light coming in through the front doors. Zoom out to frame all of them as they step into fuller light. Adagio: purple leotard-style garment with shorts attached and a short-sleeved, light violet shawl; purple boots with studded gold ankle bands; light violet fingerless gloves and matching tights, the latter marked with darker triangular patches; studded gold belt whose buckle is shaped like a large gem; each leg of her shorts set with a light violet treble clef and a yellow gem. Aria: pale yellow, fitted sleeveless top under an open, cropped green shirt whose sleeves have been ripped away; magenta tights with glitter down each hip; darker magenta boots and matching double belt with a star buckle; three bracelets in this color on each forearm. Sonata: short-sleeved, dark red-pink jacket with lighter-hued collar/cuffs/lapels and light blue front accents; pink skirt; knee-high boots in a lighter red-pink than the top with still lighter tops and toes; a spiked bracelet visible on the arm not held behind her back.)
Adagio: We are. (Long shot of the four; slow pan across the lobby.)
Sunset: Canterlot High is a great school. You’re really gonna love it. (She moves toward a side staircase; cut to the three.)
Adagio: Oh, yes. (They follow.) We really sense there’s something…magical about this place. 
(All three smiles shift a few notches toward “sinister” with frightening speed. Dissolve to a hall, into which the four emerge from the upper end of the stairs. Both of Sonata’s wrists have the spiked bracelets, and the toes of her boots can be seen as white in full light.)
Sunset: (gesturing about) That’s the science lab…computer lab is in there…oh!
(She runs ahead and o.s.; as she continues, cut to a close-up of a Musical Showcase poster.)
Sunset: (from o.s.) We’re having a big musical showcase this weekend. (Zoom out to frame her; Adagio and company step up.) The whole school is pretty much rallying around it. 
(Cut to Adagio, who gasps in fake surprise and glances toward her two colleagues.)
Adagio: A…musical showcase? (All three trade scheming grins.)
Sunset: (from o.s.) I’m sure since you’re new— (Back to her.) —Principal Celestia would let you sign up if you’re interested.
Aria: (bored sigh, inspecting fingernails) We have been known to sing from time to time.
Sonata: Hel-looo? We sing, like, all the time. It’s how we get people to do what we want.
(Mild grimace from Aria, total shock from Sunset, and a threatening snarl and “cut it” gesture from Adagio. The blue-haired teen remains completely oblivious to this colossal slip-up.)
Sonata: (shrugging) What—what’d I say?
(Now Adagio’s footwear can be seen in full detail, framing the gold studs that run up each of her boot heels.)
Adagio: What you meant to say was that being in a musical showcase sounds like a great way to meet other students.
Sonata: (laughing) Oh, yeah! What she said I meant to say, that’s what I meant. To say. (Big grin.)
Aria: (sighing disgustedly) And what you would have said if you weren’t the worst.
Sonata: (needled) You are!
Adagio: (to Sunset) You’ll have to excuse them. They’re idiots.
Aria, Sonata: Hmph!
(Their tour guide stares at them for a long moment, not sure what to make of this most unusual exchange, then leans forward as something catches her eye. Cut to her perspective of the three girls, framed from chin to waist; she has gotten an eyeful of their pendants, and the camera pans slowly from one to the next. Adagio fingers her gem idly as a gleam runs across all three. This shot frames a detail not previously seen in full near the right lapel of Sonata’s jacket: a blue eighth note with a jagged stem, overlaid on a pink heart.)
Sunset: (chuckling weakly) Those are pretty. (Back to her and Adagio; she reaches out toward it.) Where did you—
(Almost faster than thought, one hand in a fingerless glove flashes up to seize her wrist and prevent her from making contact. Adagio lets go a moment later, managing a sheepish laugh as Sunset massages the joint—evidently that grip has some steel to it.)
Adagio: Sorry. These pendants mean an awful lot to us. We’d just hate for anything to happen to them. 
(Away she goes, Aria following; Sonata stays put, smiling at Sunset until the boss reaches back into view to grab a wrist and yank her away. The entire encounter does not sit at all right with the brain under the wild mass of red/yellow hair, if the facial expression attached to the front of that brain is any indication.)
(Dissolve to the cafeteria in the throes of the lunch rush, and pan slowly across the tables before cutting to a close-up of Applejack chowing down. The side of Rarity’s head is just visible to one side, and she looks to the empty chair on her other as Sunset sits down in it, without a tray.)
Applejack: So? How was the tour? 
Sunset: (propping head in one hand, elbow on table) I don’t know. I mean, these girls, they were…
(Long shot of the table, seen from one end; all five are seated with her and eating lunch.)
Sunset: …there was something off about them.
Pinkie: Like, off like this? Or off like this? Or, oh, oh! Like—
(On the first “this,” she pulls a tuft of her own hair around to cover her face like a beard and mustache. For the second one, she switches to a pair of lettuce-leaf eyebrows and two carrots shoved up under her upper lip like tusks. Rainbow’s next words cut her off before the masquerade can get any sillier.)
Rainbow: Maybe we should just let her tell us? (One carrot falls back to Pinkie’s tray; cut to Sunset’s side.)
Sunset: That’s just it. I can’t put my finger on it. They just acted sort of…strange around me. (slightly alarmed) Maybe someone already talked to them—told them about what I did. (sighing) So much for making a good first impression.
(Head on table; concerned looks from all others except Pinkie, who is out of frame.)
Fluttershy: (suddenly smiling) Uh-huh. (Those looks transfer themselves to her.) Oh! That’s probably not it.
(Her fumble and lousy recovery do nothing to assuage Sunset’s gloom or get the rest of the gang off her case, so she slowly slumps down to leave only the top half of her face visible above the table’s edge. Cut to Adagio, Aria, and Sonata standing outside the cafeteria doors.)
Adagio: This is it, girls. The moment we’ve been waiting for.
Sonata: (eagerly) Lunch?
Adagio: (groaning wearily, hand to face) The chance to get our true Equestrian magic back.
Sonata: Oh. Right. 
(As Adagio continues, cut to her perspective, looking through the doors’ glass panels and panning slowly across.)
Adagio: Our voices are just strong enough to make them want something so badly, they’ll fight to get it. (Back to her; zoom out to frame the others on the start of the next line.)
Aria: So we’re just gonna do what we always do? Stir up some trouble and then feed off the negative energy? (Adagio scowls at her.) Some plan, Adagio.
Adagio: It won’t be the same as the times before! (thumbing over shoulder toward doors) There is Equestrian magic here. (Zoom in slowly to an extreme close-up.) Their negative energy will give us the power we need to get this entire world to do our bidding. 
Sonata: (from o.s.) But we can get lunch after, though, right? 
(The narrowed red-violet eyes pop in surprise; cut to Sonata, who is absolutely mooning over a poster announcing that…)
Sonata: It’s Taco Tuesday! (Adagio gets in her face.)
Adagio: Just follow my lead.
Aria: Or my lead.
Adagio: (to her, menacingly, grabbing shirt front) My lead!
(That puts a good scare into the pigtailed upstart, but she quickly shifts back to her usual dissatisfied look upon seeing Sonata’s big dopey smile. Adagio, meanwhile, moves o.s. toward the doors; cut to inside the cafeteria as these are thrown open. The three girls stroll easily among the tables, vocalizing the same pair of five-note phrases as in the prologue, but with chord harmony and a bit of counterpoint added to establish the key as C minor. Pinkie has removed the rest of her vegetable disguise. Table after table turns its collective attention to the triumvirate. After two repetitions of the paired phrases, the melody begins.)
Simple, eerie electric guitar line, slow 4 (C minor)
Aria, Sonata harmonize behind lyrics; each line echoes slightly
Adagio:		We heard you want to get together
(Sonata passes Flash, caressing the guitar slung on his back to draw the focus of both him and his table-mate.)
We heard you want to rock this school
(Adagio lets her fingers run along the heads of several students, entrancing them.)
We’ve thought of something that is better
Something that changes all the rules
Bass, closed hi-hat cymbal in; echoes stop
(Aria draws a few more eyes to herself.)
Adagio: 		Why pretend we’re all the same
(All three gather, back to back to back, and circle slowly; their pendants start to burn red.)
When some of us shine brighter?
Aria, Sonata:		Shine brighter
(Fade to red, then zoom out slowly to show it as a reflection in Featherweight’s eyes; she leans over the back of his chair.)
Adagio:		Here’s a chance to find your flame
Are you a loser or a fighter?
Bass drum in
(The math geek smiles thoughtfully to himself, and the singers gather near the doors again and point around themselves.)
Adagio, Aria, Sonata:		
Me and you, you and me, why don’t we see who is better?
(Cut to a red/violet split screen, with Aria and Sonata leaning in toward other from these respective sides. They turn and face forward, their faces merging to form a single one split down the middle.)
We don’t have to be one in the same thing
(The halves slide apart to make room for Adagio against an orange ground; this image splits and slides away to show a rocker and eco-kid starting to eye each other with distrust.)
Oh, what’s so wrong with a little competition?
(Cut to Sonata, sitting on a chair by the windows with legs crossed, and zoom out to frame the other two posed the same way. One by one, they uncross their legs and give a thumbs-down.)				Are you afraid of failing the audition?
Drums, synth in
(The image dissolves to an extreme close-up of Trixie’s star-shaped hair clip, which floats away from the camera to land in its usual place on her head. Zoom out; Adagio has made her way over to lift her chin.)
Adagio:		You’re a star and you should know it
(Aria and Sonata take Adagio’s arms and lift her onto a table; she walks it like a runway.)
Yeah, you rise above the rest
(Kneel; stroke and flick a boy’s chin, making him forget his lunch altogether.)
It doesn’t matter who you hurt
(Back to the floor; she sashays down an aisle, away from the camera.)
If you’re just proving you’re the best
All instruments out except for a swelling synth chord (G major)
Adagio, Aria, Sonata vocalize a rise through its tones for two bars
All instruments back in afterward; harder rock edge (C minor)
(Sonata shoots a fist skyward, and Aria points at one knot of students to egg them on.)
Adagio, Aria, Sonata:
Battle, you want to win it
(Adagio raises a fist of her own.)
Let’s have a battle, Battle of the Bands
(Now Aria pushes her way through the Crusaders, Snips, and Snails.)
Let’s have a battle, we’ll go all in it
(Close-up of Sonata; her image shrinks away to make room for a panel containing Aria. Both recede to make way for Adagio’s panel in the center before the view cuts to an overhead shot of the three and zooms out.)
                               	Let’s have a battle, battle, battle, Battle of the Bands
(The next line falls on the last beat of the preceding one.)
Adagio, Aria, Sonata:		Battle
Student 1: I can beat you!
Adagio, Aria, Sonata:		Battle
Student 2: Ha! You wish!
Adagio, Aria, Sonata:		Battle
Trixie: I so want this!
Adagio, Aria, Sonata:		Battle
Student 3: Not if I get it first!
Adagio, Aria, Sonata, Students:		
Me and you, you and me, why don’t we see who is better?
(Cut to Adagio against a red field; the arms of Aria and Sonata wave from behind her head, and they step out to either side.)
We don’t have to be one in the same thing
(The view slides away as three vertical panels to show a lot of dirty looks going back and forth—and the same greenish mist from the restaurant flowing around the students’ ankles. Flash and an eco-kid are nearly ready to come to blows.)
Oh, what’s so wrong with a little competition?
(Cut from one fired-up kid to another, the mist thickening visibly. Among them are Trixie, Snips, Octavia, and Diamond Tiara. The third of these is the counterpart of the gray earth pony mare who has made occasional appearances as a cellist in a classical music ensemble.)
Students:		I’m going up and winning the audition
D minor
(All are on their feet and pumping fists toward the ceiling—all, that is, except Sunset and her friends, as seen when the camera pans/zooms out to frame them. Their table is the only one not shrouded in the mist.)
Adagio, Aria, Sonata, Students:
Battle, we want to win it
(Sunset throws a hard sidewise glance across the table.)
Let’s have a battle, Battle of the Bands
Let’s have a battle, we’ll go all in it
(Cut to Aria, panning to Sonata and Adagio in turn; their pendants are glowing again and absorbing the energy.)
Let’s have a battle, battle, battle, Battle of the Bands
Song ends
(Zoom out slowly down the main aisle; on both sides of it, students have lined up and are shouting challenges and derogatory remarks at each other.)
Pinkie: Ohhhh! They’re that kind of off!
(Cut to the lobby; the six enter from a side hall and cross, Rainbow messing with a soccer ball and Pinkie skipping merrily along as other students while away the moment.)
Sunset: Those three are definitely in possession of some kind of dark magic. (Now they are in a hall leading away from the lobby.) How else could you explain what happened back there? 
Applejack: Don’t worry, y’all. We let Principal Celestia know all about this, and those girls’ll be kicked to the curb in no time. Last thing she needs is another CHS event almost ruined by some power-crazed lunatic.
(Too late she realizes that she has let honesty veer into tactlessness; she turns to a mildly irked Sunset.)
Applejack: Uh, no offense.
Sunset: (sighing) None taken.
(Seen in a head-on shot, she advances toward the camera as the view fades to black. The darkness splits horizontally, exposing the narrowed, deep pink eyes of Celestia on the other side. Her thumb and index finger hold the gap open—a set of window blinds.)
Celestia: (very skeptically) Dark magic? I find that very hard to believe.
(On the second half of this, the camera pans slightly to follow her sidewise glance toward the six girls gathered at a short distance behind her. Cut to inside the room, her office; standing at the window, she lets go of the blinds and turns toward them. Luna stands off to one side.)
Celestia: (crossing to her desk, sitting behind it) Those girls came into my office earlier and were absolutely delightful. (Luna lets off a mild scoff.)
Luna: Perhaps Sunset Shimmer is just eager to make someone else out to be a bad element, so that her actions at the Fall Formal will become old news.
(On these last two words, cut to an incredulous Sunset.)
Sunset: (nervously, scratching back of neck) I could see why you might think that, but— (Rainbow leans over in front of her and across the desk.)
Rainbow: That’s not what’s happening. We saw all of this go down in the cafeteria too!
(Neither of the two officials is buying it.)
Celestia: Yes, but isn’t your band supposed to be part of the Musical Showcase?
(Back to the blue rocker on the end of this; she grimaces mightily at this bit of truth.)
Rainbow: (reluctantly) Yes?
Luna: Perhaps you’re all just worried that the Dazzlings will steal your spotlight.
Applejack: (puzzled) The Dazzlings?
Celestia: It’s the name of their musical group. That’s why they came by my office earlier, to sign up for the Showcase. (Her perspective of the girls, panning slowly across.) Even sang a little song to Vice-Principal Luna and I.
Applejack: They did? (Close-up of Celestia; zoom out slowly to frame Luna standing alongside.)
Celestia: Yes. And we think having a Battle of the Bands instead is a marvelous idea.
(All four eyes briefly flash pale green as she finishes, leaving the girls visibly unnerved and at a total loss for words. Dissolve to the upper reaches of the statue on the front lawn and tilt down to the sound of Rainbow’s soccer ball being kicked. They are all here: Applejack pacing and thinking, Fluttershy standing and staring at one side of the base, Pinkie lying on her back atop the base and letting her head hang over the edge, Rainbow knee-kicking her ball in place, Rarity sitting near Fluttershy and painting her fingernails, Sunset standing slumped against another of the base’s sides near Applejack.)
(Close-up of Fluttershy, a flying ladybug lights on her index finger.)
Fluttershy: I can’t believe they got to Principal Celestia and Vice-Principal Luna too. (Zoom out slightly; Rainbow balances the ball on her head.)
Rainbow: They’ve gotten to everybody! (Shift it back to her feet.)
Pinkie: (cheerfully, turning toward Applejack and Sunset) Not everybody! (She yanks her head up and o.s.)
Applejack: Pinkie Pie’s right. We were there when the Dazzlings were singin’, and we weren’t affected. It was like we were protected somehow. (Cut to Rainbow, ball on head.)
Rainbow: So let’s take them down! It’s not like we haven’t tangled with dark magic before and totally whupped its sorry butt.
(She flips the ball away as she finishes, catching it in one hand, then realizes that she has made the same colossal faux-pas that Applejack committed in the hall.)
Rainbow: (to the o.s. Sunset) Uh, no offense. (Pan quickly to her, slightly miffed.)
Sunset: (sighing) None taken—again.
Fluttershy: (from around corner) But that was when Twilight was here.
(The camera tracks slightly around the base to frame her and Rarity as Sunset turns in their direction.)
Fluttershy: There may be some kind of magic inside us— (The ladybug on her finger flies away.) —but it only comes out when we play music. (Overhead shot, zooming out as she watches it go and Rainbow knees her ball again.) I sure don’t know how to use it to whup anybody’s butt. 
(The insect flits o.s.; back to ground level. Rarity voices a heavy sigh as she eyes one hand and keeps using the polish.)
Rarity: If only we could get a message to Twilight. Maybe she could tell us how to break the spell the Dazzlings have cast on our friends. 
Rainbow: (catching ball) Well, that’s not gonna happen. (throwing it) The portal’s closed.
(Cut to Fluttershy and Rarity on the end of this. The fashion-conscious teen has just enough time to gasp and duck before the sphere collides with the smooth stone surface and bounces away. However, the sudden disruption has caused her to paint a streak of nail polish along her arm; she gasps in horror at the slip, dropping her brush, as Rainbow catches the ball.)
Rainbow: And I get the feeling they don’t exactly have cell phones where she’s from.
(One or two wheels start to turn under Sunset’s red/gold coiffure; she scratches a temple for a moment’s hard thought, then snaps to with a smile. As she speaks, zoom out to frame all six.)
Sunset: I may have an idea how we can get in touch with Princess Twilight! 
(Cut to a scatter of items in a small, very dimly lit enclosure. The presence of a bag lunch and a couple of hung-up articles of clothing indicate that this is the interior of a locker, and the clank of a latch being pulled and the opening of the door—directly in front of the camera—confirms this. It is Sunset’s locker; she peers intently inside, then rummages through a box as the others gather behind. Cut to the hall; she stands up, holding a book bound in faded brown leather with her red/yellow sun cutie mark on its cover and brass accents on the spine.)
Sunset: (a bit hesitantly, turning away from locker) When I was Princess Celestia’s student back in Equestria, she gave me this.
(Close-up of the tome on the end of this. She reaches into view and brushes a hand across the cover, the faded brown yielding under her touch to a deeper shade—a layer of dust being wiped away. As she raises it slightly, the camera tilts up to follow it and stops just behind her shoulder, facing the others. The smear of polish on Rarity’s arm is gone.)
Sunset: Even after I abandoned my studies, I held on to it. (holding it close, now clean; head-on view) Deep down, I guess I knew I was making a big mistake— (smiling, flipping pages) —and I wanted to still have a way to reach out to her.
(Cut to her perspective on the end of this; she passes the last used pages and stops at a couple of blank ones, running a hand gently over the unmarked surface. Back to her.)
Sunset: Maybe it still works. 
Rarity: (from o.s., dismissively) That’s a book, darling. (Sunset deflates; cut to her.) What do you mean, “maybe still works”? 
Sunset: (smiling again) It used to be that if I wrote something here, it would appear in the pages of a book back in Princess Celestia’s library. (Close-up.) I get a message to her, then she can get a message to Princess Twilight. 
Rainbow: (from o.s.) So what are you waiting for? (She holds a pen into view.) Get to writing!
(Sunset’s perspective of the five, including one blue athlete with writing tool in hand whose challenging smile turns into a warmer one that matches those on the others’ faces. Close-up; Sunset regards the item with wide-eyed puzzlement for a second, then takes it and lets a very large measure of trepidation play across her face before voicing a sigh.)
Sunset: Been a long time since I’ve written these words. 
(Extreme close-up of the upper section of the blank page on the left; she brings the pen down and starts to write.)
Sunset: (from o.s., dictating) “Dear Princess Celestia…”
(The ink briefly flares pink/white as it first touches the page, the camera zooming in to an extreme close-up of the ballpoint and through the spot beneath it. The view gives way to a hurtling zoom through a tunnel of swirling pastel colors—and then emerges at the far end into a long overhead shot of the Ponyville town square. It is a beautiful day in the neighborhood, and the camera roves slowly over the village toward its far edge where Twilight’s tree-styled crystal castle stands—the end product of her fight against Tirek in “Twilight’s Kingdom.”)
*** Until the end of this act, all characters appear in pony form. ***
(From here, dissolve to the closed double doors to the throne room, seen from inside. These open to reveal a delivery stallion hauling a cart piled high with books. Cut to the central area and pan slowly across; the violet Princess sits in the center of the floor, a stack of books and envelopes alongside as she reads from a document held in her magic. Rarity has taken a seat on her own throne, resting on her belly as she telekinetically polishes one arm with a cloth; the copy of her cutie mark set into its upper portion is glowing blue. The edge of Spike’s head can be seen beyond the side of his own smaller throne; he is reading something, revealed as a Daring Do novel when the camera changes angles to frame him head-on. Applejack and Fluttershy push a very large crate across the floor with head and hooves, respectively, and another new angle picks out Pinkie blowing up a balloon while seated on a vacant throne. An overhead shot and slow zoom show that she is using Applejack’s rather than her own for this work, while Rarity shifts her polishing cloth to the high back near the three glowing gems. The stallion pulls up at the circle of thrones; ground level, his forelegs stepping into view.)
Delivery stallion: Excuse me, Princess. (She glances up; head-on view of him.) Where do you want all these books from Princess Celestia?
Twilight: The library.
(Her perspective of him and Pinkie. As she points off to her left and he follows the gesture with his eyes, the topmost book on the cart begins to emit pulses of light and jitter in place.)
Twilight: Third door on the left.
Delivery stallion: (glancing up at it) Even this one that’s glowin’ and vibratin’?
(Tilt up to it, then cut back to Twilight. She looks up in alarm, the paper before her dropping forgotten to the floor, and the camera zooms out overhead to frame the anomalous volume—whose cover is emblazoned with Celestia’s cutie mark. She floats it down from the pile, the camera cutting to ground level as the other four mares take notice. Applejack and Fluttershy step a bit closer, while Pinkie floats off Applejack’s throne on her giant balloon. The book quiets down once Twilight opens it and riffles the pages; something she sees causes her to stop and stare popeyed, and Fluttershy is first to cross to her.)
Fluttershy: What is it, Twilight? (Pinkie peeks from behind, off her balloon, then Rainbow from above.)
Twilight: It looks like…a message to Princess Celestia from my friends at Canterlot High. (Longer shot; all six are now gathered around the book.)
Rarity: How is that even possible? 
Twilight: I have no idea, but… (shocked) …it sounds like they need my help!
(Cut to a dimly lit extreme close-up of a row of books on a shelf, seen from behind. One is floated away in a magical grip, giving a view through the resulting opening of a well-lit expanse of library shelves across the way. The sliver of green tree-patterned window beyond this tells that the room is in the castle.)
Twilight: (from o.s.) The way Sunset Shimmer described them…
(A slight rotation frames the gold unicorn-head decoration on the cover—this is the reference guide she and others have consulted on a number of occasions. Cut to a table at the center of this large room; all six mares and one dragon are gathered here, and Twilight brings the book in.)
Twilight: …I think these new girls sound an awful lot like… (Cut to the other mares at the table; it thumps down and she continues o.s.) …the Sirens.
Pinkie: (freaking out) Not the Sirens! (aside, to Fluttershy) I don’t actually know what that is. (Back to Twilight, magically opening/flipping pages.)
Twilight: The Sirens were three beautiful but dangerous creatures—
(As she speaks, the view dissolves to an illustration of three finned fish/dragon beasts, with horses’ heads and forelegs, sitting on a rocky outcropping amid ocean waves. One is red-orange, one violet, one blue-green, and each has a large red gem embedded in its chest. Tilt up slowly as they raise their heads to sing, streams of magic issuing from their mouths.)
*** All lines marked with one asterisk (*) are delivered as a voice over. ***
* Twilight: —who had the power to charm ponies with their music. (They float over a seaside village; slow pan as the residents argue.) But to maintain this power, they had to feed on the negativity and distrust of others.
(Close-up of two ponies butting heads, then zoom out slightly to frame the three Sirens behind them and tilt up to follow the wisps of green haze that stream up to them.)
* Twilight: The more of this negative energy they consumed, the stronger their voices became— (Another stretch of land, panning across; they float over many squabbling equines.) —and the farther they could spread their dark magic.
(Back to the library table, panning slowly across the unnerved onlookers.)
Fluttershy: I don’t think I like this story very much.
Twilight: (from o.s.) If the Sirens had their way, they would have divided and conquered all of Equestria. But a certain Starswirl the Bearded wasn’t having it.
(On the end of this, dissolve to a storybook picture of the eminent unicorn mage, seen from ground level just in front of his front hooves, and zoom in on the cottony expanse of his beard. Once a single spiraling tuft of white hair fills the screen, it begins to rotate and then gives way to a swirling black vortex. Zoom out from this as the Sirens are slowly drawn into it, circling helplessly in an attempt to break loose.)
* Twilight: Rumor has it, he found a way to banish them to another world. 
(The zoom continues, revealing that the entire phenomenon has shrunk to perhaps grapefruit size and is floating before Starswirl’s stern eyes.)
* Twilight: One where he believed their magic power would be lost.
(It winks out of existence in a brilliant flash; dissolve to the edge of the table opposite Twilight and tilt up to frame her eyeing the book worriedly.) 
Twilight: That world must have been the one where my Canterlot High friends live.
Applejack: But Starswirl musta sent them there ages ago. How come they’re just surfacin’ now?
Twilight: I don’t know. (warming up horn) But if my hunch is right— 
(Close-up of one page showing Starswirl’s picture; her magic flips to one of the Sirens.)
Twilight: (from o.s.) —and it is the Sirens who’ve come to Canterlot High— (Zoom in.) —this spell they’ve cast is just the beginning. (Cut to frame the whole group; she closes the book and turns away.) My friends need me. I have to get back to them. 
(She gets only a couple of steps away before Rainbow flies over the table to intercept.)
Rainbow: I hate to burst your bubble, Twilight, but the connection between their world and Equestria will still be totally cut off for a super-long time. (Pinkie zips up between them.)
Pinkie: Okay. First of all, if there was bubble blowing going on, why wasn’t I told about it? And secondly, if the connection is totally cut off, how was Sunset Shimmer able to get a message to Twilight? 
(The egghead mulls this over for a split second, then voices a gasp as inspiration strikes.)
Twilight: (galloping away) Pinkie, you’re a genius!
Pinkie: (nonchalantly) Yeah, I get that a lot. (She yanks Rainbow over, suddenly irate.) Now about those bubbles! 
(Any further tirade is forgotten when the two catch sight of Twilight trotting back the way she came, levitating several pieces of mechanical/electrical equipment in her wake. The others are equally dumbfounded at her return, but she pays no mind and gets to work, directing her magic back and forth to hook up the components. She finishes by levitating a wooden panel toward the camera to black out the screen.)
(Fade in to a small holder topped with light bulbs on poles and attached to a curved rail that runs between two large antennas, which are in turn fixed to the upturned ends of a wooden frame. Tilt down slowly to the sound of Twilight’s voice; the rig is mounted on an upward-angled arm, part of a complex arrangement of machinery and antennas that would fit perfectly into the laboratory of any self-respecting mad scientist. She comes into view on the end of the following, standing next to the heart of the entire system—the magic mirror, last seen in the Crystal Castle, that she used to travel to the human world in Equestria Girls.)
Twilight: (from o.s.) And the interval between the two points is defined as the square root of the sum of the squares of the separation between the points along three spatial dimensions.  
(A cut/pan across the others reveals that almost every one of them has gotten completely lost in her verbiage—which happens to be a long-winded and entirely accurate way of stating the Distance Formula in coordinate geometry. The one possible exception is Pinkie, whose smile suggests that she either has managed to follow perfectly or is entirely oblivious.)
Spike: Say what now?
Pinkie: Duh! She’s gonna take the magic in here and put it in there.
(She points at Celestia’s book and moves over to indicate the mirror on “here” and “there,” respectively. The following, delivered at slowly increasing tempo, is accompanied by a cross to the book; flipping it up onto its edge with her forelock; turning cartwheels past the mirror; standing on the book; stretching toward the glass; pointing at the book; putting her nose up against the reflective surface; moving behind the book; lounging at the mirror’s base; and finally a cut back to the others.)
Pinkie: That’ll make the portal open up so that whenever she wants to, she can go from here to there. There to here. Here to there. There to here. Here to there. There to h—
Applejack: We get the idea.
(The pink goofball, having sprawled out on the base, snaps upright and trots placidly away from it as Twilight crosses to her newly built setup.)
Twilight: Now to see if it actually works.
(Her magic field maneuvers the book into the elevated holder; the sun on its cover flares white as the bulbs above it energize. That blinding spot floats into the air and bursts into two ribbons of electric charge that stream into the antennas, which in turn take more charge from the leather cover and begin to crackle with sparks, reaching an eye-searing brightness. Cut to Twilight’s five friends and Spike.)
All but Twilight: Oooooh!
(The power sparks and spits its way down through the conduits available to it, eventually pouring into a box with two pistons protruding from its top. A side panel glows brightly and the pistons begin to cycle, producing a sheet of energy that snakes from the base and through a set of rollers before disappearing into a hopper. Two vertical panels slide into view from opposite sides of the screen, each showing a different area; crackling power works its way along the cables as the two views separately pan away from the centerline separating them to frame two antennas that come to scintillating life.)
(These two panels are pulled vertically away in opposite directions to frame the entire apparatus, the book holder lost in a glare that could fry a retina over easy. As Twilight watches closely, this channels itself into the mirror and the glass becomes a fitful rippling of white wave fronts against a magenta ground. She shields her eyes an instant before one last flash of white fills the screen and subsides; now the mirror’s surface has calmed down to a steady swirling pattern, and she smiles broadly.)
All but Twilight: Ahhhhh!
Applejack: Don’t suppose we could join you this time around?
Twilight: Better not. It could make things pretty confusing if Canterlot High all of a sudden had two of all of you.
(Cut to the others, mildly surprised, on the end of this. All but Spike nod and voice a range of agreement.)
Spike: But I still get to go, right? There isn’t another one of me at Canterlot High, and you never know when you might need your trusty assistant. 
(Big placating smile; zoom out slightly as Twilight looks him over.)
Twilight: (nodding) Mmm-hmm. (She walks past…)
Spike: Yes! (…and over to the others.)
Twilight: We won’t be gone long. 
(She is soon caught up in a six-way group hug and a round of warm goodbyes; as it breaks up, Rarity’s words come through most clearly.)
Rarity: And don’t forget to dress well. 
(Pinkie is the last to let go, giving a big squeaky grin, and Twilight steps over to her number-one assistant.)
Twilight: Ready, Spike?
(Crack his knuckles. Blow out a breath. Drop to a three-point stance, stretching his legs out to full extension one at a time.)
Spike: Ready! 
(The Princess hunches down determinedly, and both rush toward the mirror. Spike plunges through its swirling aura, then Twilight, a brief flare of white hiding them from view as they make contact.)
Act Two
(Cut to a close-up of one of Fluttershy’s hands being held up by Rarity so she can apply polish to the nails. The scene has shifted back to the human world. In a longer shot, the two girls are seated a short distance from the school’s statue. Tilt up from them, past Rainbow and Sunset sitting by the base—the latter reading the old entries in her magic journal—and stop on Applejack and Pinkie, seated atop it and playing cards. The apple farmer gazes levelly across at her opponent and lays down her cards—four aces—whereupon Pinkie smirks triumphantly and spreads out four jokers on top of them. Her ear-to-ear smile prompts a very funny look from Applejack as if to say, “You may be playing with a full deck, but what the heck is it full of?”)
(Back at ground level, Rainbow idly tosses her soccer ball from hand to hand for a moment, but knocks off with a bored sigh.)
Rainbow: I’m starting to think she’s not coming.
(The side of the base behind her promptly flares white, and one violet-skinned girl and one lighter violet dog come flying out headfirst as if shot from a cannon. They hurtle o.s. in a split second, but this is long enough to pick out the clothes Twilight is wearing—the same ones in which she first entered this strange world. Rainbow drops her ball, and all six are quick to take notice and perk up.)
All but Twilight and Spike: Twilight! 
(Sunset runs toward her; in close-up, the new arrival sits up and rubs her head, her back to the camera.)
Twilight: (weakly) Ooh… (turning around) …I’m back. 
(Pan slightly to frame a yellow-orange hand being extended toward her; she regards it with clear unease and suspicion, the camera zooming out to fully frame both Spike and Sunset alongside. After a short internal argument, Twilight allows herself a small smile and lets her past nemesis pull her upright. Within seconds the other five girls have swarmed in for a hug, Sunset backing off.)
Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity: Oh, Twilight! 
Twilight: And I’ve got some bad news about those new girls.
(Assorted expressions of dismay. Dissolve to the exterior of the coffee shop that serves as this world’s equivalent of Sugarcube Corner, zooming in slowly, then cut to the gang at a table inside. Twilight and Rarity are seated on a couch; Sunset on one of its arms; Applejack/Fluttershy/Rainbow in chairs; Applejack sitting backwards on hers and Spike on Fluttershy’s lap; Pinkie bringing over a couple of drinks. On the next line, she sits down next to Twilight and gives her one, keeping the other—a chocolate milkshake—for herself. Rainbow already has a beverage of her own, and a cup of tea sits before Rarity.)
Rarity: Oh, I do hate that you’ve had to return in a time of crisis. (Close-up of Twilight and Rarity.) We have so much catching up to do!
Applejack: (from o.s.) For starters… (Cut to her.) …a certain blue-haired guitar player was just askin’ about you. (To Twilight.)
Twilight: (excitedly, blushing, playing with hair) Flash Sentry was asking about me? 
(A zoom out frames the knowing expressions on the faces of Rarity and Sunset, as well as Pinkie’s “tell me more” look around her straw. Twilight clears her throat and does her best to recover her poise.)
Twilight: Isn’t that nice? (She slurps hastily at her drink; Rarity lifts her teacup.)
Rarity: Perhaps you could give us just the slightest bit of gossip from your world? (Spike holds up a dog biscuit.)
Spike: She’s got an official title now. (Mimic a trumpet fanfare with the treat.) The Princess of Friendship! 
Sunset: Wow, that’s really impressive. Guess you really were Princess Celestia’s prize pupil. 
Spike: She’s even got her own castle. 
(Rarity leans toward Twilight with gusto, startling said Princess into spilling her drink on herself.)
Rarity: A castle?!? You have your own castle?!? (catching herself) Uh… (Clear throat; grab a napkin and clean Twilight off.) …ooh, uh, lovely.
Twilight: What’s new here? I mean, besides your school becoming the target of dangerous magical creatures from Equestria. 
(Cut to her perspective on the end of this, panning from Applejack to Fluttershy and Rainbow. DJ P0N-3 strolls past behind them, music blaring in her headphones.)
Rainbow: (setting her drink down, pulling out/tapping at a cell phone) Yeah, so that isn’t exactly the only strange thing that’s happened since you left. 
(She holds it toward the camera; on its screen is a video clip of herself playing guitar and undergoing her half-pony transformation. Cut to a close-up of a gobsmacked Twilight as the phone is pulled away.)
Rainbow: (from o.s.) Pretty sweet, huh? (The three girls in chairs again.) It happens to all of us when we play. (She pushes back and puts her feet up.)
Twilight: Hmm. (She sets her drink down.) My crown was returned to Equestria— (Rainbow’s feet come down.) —but some of its magic must have remained here at Canterlot High. Now that we’re all back together, we can use that magic on the Sirens, just like when we were able to use it on Sunset Shimmer when she turned into that horrifyingly awful winged monster!
(Everyone else latches on to her sudden loss of tact; after a beat, she smiles sheepishly and addresses herself in Sunset’s direction.)
Twilight: No offense.
Sunset: (grumpily) None taken. (Chuckle.) I’m used to it. (Rainbow stands up.)
Rainbow: They’ll never even know what hit ’em!
(A quick string of strikes at the air culminates in an extreme close-up of a fist flying across the room—and a tanned hand catching it. Zoom out to frame Applejack on the receiving end.)
Applejack: We’ve got nothin’ to worry about now that Twilight’s back. 
Fluttershy: Oh. I’m pretty sure I could find something to worry about— (smiling brightly, hugging Spike) —but it won’t be the Sirens! (Close-up of Twilight.)
Twilight: The sooner we do this, the better. (Zoom out slightly, framing Rarity and Sunset.) Any idea where the Dazzlings might be? 
(A shake of the purple-haired head, a shrug of the leather-jacketed shoulders, and Pinkie’s hand reaches into view to tap one of Twilight’s. Pan to the party-lover’s end of the couch; now on her feet, she waves frantically while sucking on her shake, then backs off and sits down to finish it off before speaking.)
Pinkie: (fishing ice cream glob from cup with straw) There’s a big party tonight for all the bands who signed up to be in the Showcase. That would include the Dazzlings. 
(She eats the dab of sweet stuff, not noticing that a bit of if has landed on her cheek, and smiles pass between Twilight, Rarity, and Sunset.)
Twilight: (wiping Pinkie’s face with napkin) Looks like we’ve got a party to crash. 
(Big squeaky grin from her frizzy-haired friend. Dissolve to the school gym, now filled with twos and threes of students who are keeping their distance from each other and shooting plenty of nasty looks. The big seven are standing near a refreshment table at one side; Fluttershy is no longer carrying Spike. Featherweight and a couple of his techie friends throw a hairy eyeball across the way, a quick pan framing Trixie’s trio on the receiving end, and another pan shows the Crusaders in an equally sour mood, throwing squint-eyed glares at a passing student. As Pinkie stuffs her face, a cut to the area in front of the stage and slow pan frame more aspiring rock stars: a trio led by Photo, Snails throwing his arms down at them and being thoroughly ignored, and Snips posturing in front of an irked Flash as if to say, “What you got?” The blue-haired guitarist pulls an arm back past two of his rocker buddies as if to throw a punch—and then whips it forward, snatching up a drink cup.)
Flash: (groaning, walking off) I’m gonna get more punch.
(Neither he nor Twilight is paying attention to where they are going, and the resulting collision dumps both their cups across the floor and leaves her supported by one of his arms.)
Flash: (flabbergasted) Twilight? 
Twilight: (blushing, laughing nervously) Bumped…into…always…doing? (He stands her up.)
Flash: What are you doing here? You came back for the big competition, right? 
Twilight: Something like that.
Flash: Heh. Not that there’s gonna be any real competition. (pointing to himself) No one here wants this as bad as my band does. 
(On the end of this, the door opens—on the opposite site of the room and behind his back—and the Dazzlings enter the gym. Rainbow is first to register dismay at their appearance; almost faster than thought, one light blue hand whips out to pluck a chocolate chip from the cookie Pinkie is eating. She takes careful aim and flicks it neatly across the gym, lodging it in the hair covering the back of Twilight’s head; the latter flicks it loose, turns to look back the way it came, and sees the athlete cock her head ever so slightly to one side. The bookworm’s irritation gives way to surprise once she spots the trio at the door; their move across the floor spurs her to address Flash again.)
Twilight: Can you excuse me for just a minute? 
(She ducks o.s., Flash turning away with annoyance writ large across his features, and all of the other girls except Pinkie step off from the snack spread. This last one hangs back long enough to get a cookie in each hand to go with the one still in her mouth; she lodges the two extras in her hair and hurries after the others, only to have them fall right back out. The Dazzlings stop in the middle of the floor, Adagio smugly running her eyes over the collection of bad vibes, and the camera cuts/pans here and there to show just how much disunity has taken hold.)
Adagio: (from o.s., mock dismay) Oh, no! No one’s mingling! (Close-up to her, smiling nastily.) It’s like there’s some kind of underlying tension that could bubble to the surface at any minute. 
(On the start of the next line, zoom out slightly to frame Aria and Sonata behind her; the ponytailed airhead is holding a cup and eyeing it worriedly.)
Sonata: It’s the fruit punch, isn’t it? (briefly lifting a bottle of apple juice) I knew I used too much grape juice! (Aria rolls her eyes wearily; Adagio slumps on her feet.)
Adagio: (hand to forehead) It’s not the fruit punch, it’s us!
Aria: (to Sonata) But the punch is awful too.
Sonata: (brandishing cup) What do you know about good fruit punch? 
Aria: (knocking it aside) More than you. 
Sonata: (lightly slapping Aria’s nose) Do not.
Aria: (mussing Sonata’s hair) Do too.
(She smirks as her partner in villainy pats her bangs back into place and Adagio leans over to both of them.)
Adagio: This is just the kickoff party, girls. (All smile.) Imagine what a tizzy they’ll be in by the time the Battle of the Bands starts. 
Twilight: (from o.s.) There isn’t going to be a Battle of the Bands!
(Three surprised Dazzlings look toward the sound of her voice; pan quickly to Twilight and her original five human friends, Pinkie ready for a scrap even with that last cookie still in her teeth.)
Twilight: We’re gonna make sure of that!
(Sunset smirks in the trio’s direction, and Twilight takes Rainbow’s hand.)
Twilight: All right, girls. (She takes Applejack’s.) Let’s do this.
(Now Applejack and Fluttershy…Rainbow and Rarity…and then a close-up of Twilight, zooming out to frame the six past heroes as she speaks. All have joined hands to form a rough line and are bracing themselves.)
Twilight: (dramatically) Friendship is magic!
(The result: a sudden hush over the entire crowd, a round of extremely puzzled looks from the intended targets, and a very large amount of absolutely nothing else. Sunset cringes mightily at the embarrassing misfire, and someone’s cough echoes loud and clear in the dead silence. The girls hold their formation, eyes squeezed shut and muscles tensed to channel the power that simply will not come. After a couple of seconds that feel like a month, Rainbow opens her eyes in close-up and leans toward Twilight. The next four lines are delivered in whispers.)
Rainbow: Uh, weren’t there rainbows and lasers and stuff last time? 
Twilight: I don’t understand. (Zoom out to frame all six; Pinkie’s mouth is full, crumbs on her chin.) We’re all together again. Why isn’t this working?
(Cut to a slow pan across the puzzled/indignant onlookers, including the cruelly smiling Dazzlings, then cut to a badly unnerved Twilight. Spike climbs up onto her shoulder.)
Spike: You, uh, really need to go ahead and do that whole “magic of friendship” thing now.
Twilight: I’m trying, Spike. I thought the six of us standing together against the Sirens would bring out the magic we needed to defeat them. That’s what happened before. 
(Zoom out to put Adagio in the fore.)
Adagio: (loudly) Talk about throwing down the gauntlet! This group is obviously serious about winning. (crossing gym) A little cocky, though, aren’t they? Claiming there won’t really be a battle. Seems they think they’ve already got this thing all locked up. 
Trixie: (full ham mode) Not if the Great and Powerful Trixie has anything to do with it!
Flash: Whatever, Trixie! (pointing to himself) We’re the best band at CHS!
Bloom: No! The Crusaders are gonna win!
(This shot reveals that Pinkie has swallowed her mouthful and wiped her chin. Cut to an overhead shot of the not-so-magical six and zoom out as they wince among the quarrels that have broken out all over the gym. Clouds of green negative energy course all around the gang at floor level, the Dazzlings relaxing and letting it soak into their pendants as they stand amid the raging discord. All three gems start to glow, the camera zooming in to a close-up of Adagio; once the flow stops, she seizes hers in a fist and looks across the room with sudden surprise. Cut to a slow pan across Twilight and her compatriots.)
Adagio: (from o.s.) I think we may have found what we’re looking for— (Back to her.) —or rather, it found us.
(Zoom out to frame Aria and Sonata. She grins evilly at the former, who does likewise, but the latter just stares with a look of hopeless confusion, then shrugs and shakes her head when Adagio glowers at her. Aria slaps a hand to her own forehead in disgust as Adagio rounds on Sonata.)
Adagio: Magic! Don’t you see? (Their perspective, panning across the gym.) Everyone else has fallen under our spell.
(Pan quickly to the seven immune girls slipping out the door.)
Adagio: (from o.s.) But not these girls. (Twilight, in the rear, pauses briefly before leaving.) These girls are special. 
(Cut back to the trio, now all smiling menacingly at the unrest they have fomented, and zoom in slowly. From here, dissolve to the escaped septet on the front steps: Twilight standing out front, Pinkie perched on a rail, the others sitting on the steps. Spike is with them.)
Twilight: It doesn’t make any sense. (pacing) I should have been able to create the spark that would help us break their spell. That’s how it worked before! 
Sunset: But to defeat me, you drew magic from the crown I was wearing. (thinking hard) The Sirens’ magic comes from their music, so maybe you have to use the same kind of magic to defeat them! (Cut to Twilight on the end of this, then back.) Or maybe not.
Twilight: (from o.s.) No. (Zoom out; she leans over to Sunset.) I think you’re on to something. 
Sunset: (smiling) Really? 
Twilight: (to the others) It’s when you play music that you transform now, right? 
Applejack: (gesturing to head, back) Yep. Ears, tails, the whole shebang.
Twilight: (smacking fist into palm) So maybe the way to use that magic to defeat the Sirens is by playing a musical counter-spell!
(This shot is the first to include the sky, now the pink/orange of late afternoon.)
Fluttershy: (brushing hair back from face) You mean, like a song?
Twilight: Uh-huh. And in order to free everyone who’s been exposed to the Sirens’ spell, we’ll need them all to hear it. 
All others: Hmmm… (Rarity gasps and gets to her feet.)
Rarity: The band competition! That’s the next time we can be certain everyone will be in the same place at the same time! (Applejack and Rainbow stand as well.)
Applejack: (hand to Rainbow’s shoulder) Guess the Rainbooms are the band to beat.
Rarity: (holding out hand) And I believe you, Twilight— (Her perspective of Twilight.) —just became the Rainbooms’ newest member.
(That piece of news catches the two-legged magical prodigy completely flat-footed, and her face twists itself into an expression of horrified surprise. The other five band members rush off the steps, all talking and laughing at once—and completely missing the deflated dismay that has taken hold of Sunset. Before the celebration can go too far, Pinkie bulls her way to the center of the knot.)
Pinkie: So, what do you want to play?
(She zips back o.s., then reaches into view holding a…)
Pinkie: (from o.s.) Triangle?
(…which she shakes to make it jangle a bit before pulling it away. Now she leans in close, toting a…)
Pinkie: Sousaphone?
(…and letting off a foghorn blast that blows Twilight’s hair back. Away she goes, returning this time with a…)
Pinkie: Theremin?
(…and demonstrating its otherworldly tone by running her hands over the top and side antenna attachments.)
Pinkie: (very relaxed) So magical.
Twilight: (shrugging, working fingers around) I might take a little too long to learn how to play something with these. I’ll just sing. (Rainbow whips over and rests an elbow on her shoulder.)
Rainbow: Like, as in “lead singer”? ’Cause that’s usually my gig. (smiling; hand across shoulders) This being my band and all. (Here comes Applejack.)
Applejack: (needled) It’s our band. (pulling Twilight to herself) And of course, as lead singer. (Sunset has now joined the group.) She’s the one with the magical know-how to help us pull this thing off.
Rainbow: Okay, yeah, that’s cool. (smirking, miming guitar fingerings) I’ll just use this as a chance to hone my already insanely good lead guitar skills.
Twilight: It’s only temporary. (shrugging) And we don’t have to win the Battle of the Bands. (Her perspective of all others but Rainbow, panning across.) We just have to perform during the first round of the competition. (The missing girl leans into view.)
Rainbow: So let’s get to learning that musical counter-spell! (Back to Twilight.)
Twilight: Well, that’s just it. I don’t know any.
(The others’ enthusiasm evaporates in less time than it takes them to voice a collective, dejected sigh; back to her, getting her best reassuring smile back in place.)
Twilight: (shrugging again) But I’m sure I could figure out how to write one. 
Spike: (from o.s.) Totally! (Ground level; he runs up to her feet and pats one.) Twilight can write a spell like it’s nobody’s business. (He sits up and crosses his forelegs.) That’s pretty much how she got to become a princess in Equestria. 
Twilight: Technically, I helped finish a spell— (pointedly) —and there was a little more to it than that, Spike.
Spike: Yeah, whatever. 
Twilight: I’ve got this. (picking him up) Come on. (She heads toward the school entrance.)
Applejack: Where are you goin’? (Stop on the first step.)
Twilight: Well, last time we were here, Spike and I spent the night in the library. (Pinkie flashes up to her.)
Pinkie: Are you crazy? (hugging her and Spike) We’re besties now! (hoisting them off the steps) Slumber party at my house!
(An idea that sits very well with the rest of the bunch, judging from their faces. Wipe to a slow pan across a bedroom whose yellow walls have clusters of balloons and stars painted onto them—Pinkie’s room at home, no doubt. The seven girls are arrayed about in various sleepwear: two-piece pajamas for Twilight/Fluttershy/Sunset, one-piece “footie” pajamas for Applejack, nightgowns for Pinkie and Rarity, a long cloud/lightning-bolt T-shirt and sweat pants for Rainbow. All but Applejack wear slippers. As for activities: Twilight sits on the bed, writing in Fluttershy’s notebook; Applejack and Rainbow are playing video games; Fluttershy pets Spike; Pinkie types at her laptop; Rarity checks her cell phone while Sunset watches.)
Pinkie: Status update—“okey-dokey-lokey”! 
(As Fluttershy and Sunset gather in close around Rarity, she taps her phone and aims its screen toward the three of them. A flash, and she has snapped their picture—herself and Fluttershy smiling, Sunset sporting a broad grin, and Spike half-winking and holding up a dog biscuit in the background. Zoom in slightly on the shot, then cut to the three girls; Rarity grimaces mightily upon taking a good close look, then aims an icy glare in the canine’s direction as the other two snicker silently. Pan quickly to him, smirking as best he can around the half-chewed biscuit in his teeth.)
(Meanwhile, the video game showdown continues apace; even without being able to see the screen, it quickly becomes clear that Applejack has gained the upper hand. Rainbow’s frustration builds to the point that she smacks the console, instantly breaking the connection and clearing the screen. This last shot frames the box for their game, displaying a human version of the Mane-iac—the wild-haired villain that the Equestria crew faced in “Power Ponies.”)
Applejack: Hey! I was about to beat you!
Rainbow: (twirling controller) I doubt it. So, Twilight, how is that counter-spell coming? (Twilight, having zoned out, snaps back in close-up.)
Twilight: Huh? (riffling pages, clasping book to chest) Oh, uh, good. Great. (addressing herself o.s.) Thanks for letting me use your notebook, Fluttershy. 
(Zoom out to frame the animal lover, who is now stroking a stuffed alligator doll.)
Twilight: I really like the song you wrote for the Rainbooms. 
Fluttershy: (cuddling doll) Thanks. (aside, with a sigh) Hopefully one day we’ll get a chance to play it. 
(A bray of laughter from the o.s. Rainbow; pan to her, having snatched away Applejack’s controller and holding it out of the incensed farm girl’s reach.)
Applejack: Hey! (Rarity hops up to sit next to Twilight…)
Rarity: Twilight… (…who quickly hides the notebook behind her knees.) …I think I speak for all of us when I say— (arm around shoulders) —I don’t know what we would have done if you hadn’t come back to help us. 
Applejack, All other girls but Twilight: Darn tootin’!/Uh-huh!
(The sound of the doorbell gets Pinkie on her feet in a tick.)
Pinkie: Pizza’s here! 
(In less time than it takes to say “chow down,” there is a massed rush out the bedroom door that leaves Twilight alone on the bed. Zoom in on her; she glumly lays the notebook on the blanket, open and face down, and lets her legs drop over the side. After a moment, she picks it up for another look and the camera cuts to her perspective, tilting down along one page. It is covered with musical notes and staves, some scratched out, a few other random scribbles—and a doodle of herself singing lightning bolts toward Adagio. Back to her, sighing heavily and lowering the book; a clatter of running footsteps interrupts her blue funk just before Pinkie leans back into the room. A slice of pizza is clamped between the teeth of the slumber party hostess.)
Pinkie: (garbled) Don’t you want any pizza?
(That gets a smile and nod, but the burst of enthusiasm lasts only until Pinkie has dashed back out into the hall. Another dispirited glance at the pages, and she opens a nightstand drawer to put the notebook away. A partially eaten donut, a lollipop, and several candies and jellybeans can be seen inside before she closes the drawer again and walks out.)
(Dissolve to the window in the now-darkened bedroom, the camera positioned somewhere below its sill and angled to point through it. Night has fallen, and a crescent moon hangs large and bright. Soft snoring drifts up from floor level as Twilight sits up, looks cautiously around herself, and gets up to vertical. The other girls are sprawled out everywhere, on the bed and under sleeping bags, Fluttershy nestling Spike, and she has a real chore to tiptoe her way to the nightstand without stepping or falling on any of them. Applejack still wears her hat, and Rarity has curlers in her hair and a sleep mask over her eyes. Close-up of the drawer; Twilight eases it open and retrieves the notebook, pulling it toward the camera to black out the screen.)
(Fade in to the kitchen. A single overhead light casts a pool of incandescence over the sleepless spell-weaver, who has taken a seat at the central “island” counter and is poring over her notes. Tellingly, she has her pen clamped between her teeth and is holding the notebook open under her fists—an adaptation of the way in which a non-unicorn in Equestria might use mouth and hooves for this purpose. She scrawls a little something, eyes it critically, then lets disgust run over her whole face and shakes her head vigorously. The pen is spat off to one side.)
Twilight: (propping head on forearms) No, that’s not gonna work. (She rubs her eyes.)
Sunset: (from o.s.) Hey, Twilight.
(That startles her back to the present moment; pan quickly to her former rival lounging at the kitchen entrance.)
Sunset: (walking in) You’re up late. (Twilight hastily covers her scribbles.)
Twilight: Just looking over the counter-spell. (Zoom out slightly as Sunset steps up across from her.) We only get one shot at this. It has to be perfect. 
Sunset: (opening refrigerator) We really are lucky you’re here. 
(The shelves are packed with aerosol cans. Cut to Twilight, downcast.)
Twilight: (glumly) That’s what everyone keeps telling me. (Zoom out to put Sunset in the fore.)
Sunset: (puzzled) Who could possibly need this much whipped cream?
(Close-up of the open fridge on the end of this; the shelves on the door prove to be loaded down just as heavily.)
Sunset: (with slight bitterness) Must be nice to have everyone always looking to you for answers to their problems… (getting a can, squirting cream onto a finger) …instead of waiting for you to cause a problem. (Close-up of the notebook, tilting up to Twilight’s face.)
Twilight: Just because everyone expects something from you, doesn’t mean it’s guaranteed to happen. (Back to Sunset.)
Sunset: But that doesn’t stop them from expecting it. (To Twilight.)
Twilight: Which only makes things harder because the last thing you want to do is—
Twilight, Sunset: —let everybody down.
(On these last three words, zoom out to put both girls in view, each mired in gloomy thoughts of what her past has brought upon her in the here and now. They look up as one, seeing each other’s wide-eyed surprise, and trade a pair of lopsided smiles—common ground between the one-time adversaries at last. Sunset puts the whipped cream can away and closes the fridge, no longer with a glob on her finger; the door’s movement exposes the edge of a figure standing a short distance behind her. When she pivots to face across the room, the newcomer is fully exposed—it is the human counterpart of Pinkie’s stolid older sister Maud, dressed in a plain white T-shirt and dark gray shorts. Sunset cries out in shock and recoils from the unexpected sight, but Maud’s deadpan expression and monotonic voice remain firmly in place as she holds up a small gray rock.)
Maud: Boulder was hungry. 
(Recall that her pony self had a pet rock by this name as well, as seen in “Maud Pie.” Reaching up to open a cupboard, she brings out a box of crackers and proceeds to pour the contents over Boulder, “feeding” it. Sunset backs gingerly up to the island, and she and Twilight watch uncomprehendingly as Maud walks off, still dumping and scattering the food. The next two lines are delivered in whispers.)
Sunset: I still can’t get over the fact that she’s related to Pinkie Pie!
Twilight: (smiling) You and me both.
(The older sister has left the kitchen by this time. Twilight and Sunset trade big smiles, after which Sunset yawns hugely.)
Sunset: I better get some sleep. Good luck with the counter-spell— (walking off) —not that you’ll need it. (Close-up of Twilight; she continues o.s.) This must be nothing compared to the stuff you’re expected to deal with as a princess in Equestria. (Brief pause.)
Twilight: Sunset Shimmer? 
(The other girl stops at the doorway and looks back, but Twilight can get no words out; instead she stitches on a big smile and waves herself off.)
Twilight: Never mind. It’s not important. 
(The smile she gets in return is perhaps a bit strained, and she watches the red/gold-haired figure recede into the darkness beyond the kitchen doorway.)
Twilight: (thumping fists onto countertop) No. I have to be able to do this. I have to.
(Zoom out slowly from her determined countenance, then dissolve to a close-up of her standing at a microphone with Fluttershy’s notebook under one arm. She is back in her school clothes, as will be everyone else when seen next.)
Driving rock melody with electric guitar/bass/drums, fast 4 (D major)
Twilight’s vocals are not quite on key or in time, and sound very unsure
Twilight:	Hey, hey, listen
(She winces at a squeal of feedback.)
We’ve got a message for you
(Cut to a slow pan across her and the other Rainbooms, set up and playing in a small room. The apple pattern on the stained-glass panel above the window points to this location being part of this world’s equivalent of Sweet Apple Acres. None of them are feeling the groove. Spike sits on top of an amplifier; Sunset squats alongside him.) 
Twilight:	We’re not all alike
But our friendship is true
(More feedback sends the dog diving for cover, while the girl tweaks a knob and claps hands to ears.)
Yeah, we’re really different
(Fluttershy begins to showboat a little, but stops playing at a sidelong look from Rainbow.)
But we still get along
So hey, hey, listen to our song
(The tambourine starts up again at Rainbow’s frantic wave. Applejack and Rarity start to manifest hints of their pony ears, but more feedback wipes these out and makes them wince. Pinkie has gotten so bored that she stops playing and balances one stick vertically on a fingertip.)
Drums/tambourine drop out during next line
You may think you’re in control
But we’re here to prove you wrong
(She resumes upon finding green- and blue-eyed glares fixed on her.)
Drums/tambourine back in
(On the start of the next line, cut to outside this building—the barn next to the house on the Sweet Apple Acres property, its doors open to frame Applejack within. The music becomes muffled once this transition occurs, and Granny Smith walks past, stuffing an apple core into each ear to block out the noise.)
Twilight:	In the friendship of our music
(Inside, she tries to sing into her microphone while squinting at the notebook and Fluttershy cringes at the result.)
With the power of our song
(Rainbow stands up into view for a solo; one pony ear begins to emerge.)
Gonna stomp our feet, clap our hands
With the magic of friendship
(Neither Pinkie, nor Applejack, nor Rarity is enjoying this.)
Gonna stop your evil plans
Song ends with a guitar riff
(Now the six-string slinger’s other pony ear peeks out from the wild multicolored hair; she looks around, gets nothing from the other five, and sullenly lets the last note die out and the ears wink away. Cut to Spike and Sunset.)
Spike: (hesitantly, trying to smile) Uh…that sounded way better than the…last five times you played it.  (Chuckle; Macintosh passes outside the window, carrying a basket of apples.)
Macintosh: Nn-nope. (Spike les off an unsettled little whine.)
Rainbow: I think it’s pretty obvious what’s going wrong with this counter-spell. (Cut to Applejack and Rarity, both good and sore.)
Applejack: You’re turnin’ what should be the chorus into a five-minute guitar solo? (To Rainbow.)
Rainbow: I have to pick up the slack somehow! Are you guys even trying? (Fluttershy slips in behind her.)
Fluttershy: I’m trying. 
Twilight: (from o.s.) It’s fine. (Pan to her, holding up the notebook and laughing nervously.) It’ll be fine. (with renewed fire) One more time from the top!
(Her big grin is matched by exactly none of the other five instrumentalists. Rarity has put down her keytar.)
Rarity: (stepping past Applejack, pushing bass aside) Or, perhaps we could take a short break—try on some of the wardrobe choices I’ve put together?
(She reaches o.s. on the end of this, wheeling a rack of bagged garments in front of herself, and rummages among them.)
Rarity: I’m particularly fond of this one.
(A shove sends the rack away and exposes the hot pink drum-major jacket she has put on, with gold braid and trim; the tails flare out to make room for her skirt.)
Rarity: Uh, of course we could always go with something a bit more modern. (Cut to Applejack.)
Applejack: We’re tryin’ to save our school here. Enough with the costumes!
(A longer shot frames Rarity in a new outfit: a yellow full-body jumpsuit, edged in dark gray at sleeve/pant cuffs, with black gloves and a helmet that covers everything from the neck up except for her hair streaming out the back. Her face is hidden by an electronic screen that displays a scrolling pattern of the three diamonds from her skirt. She utters an incredulous little scoff, her voice slightly amplified/distorted by the helmet’s sound system.)
Rarity: You can never have enough costumes! (Cut to Pinkie.)
Pinkie: She just wants to make things fun. (grouchy, slumping over drums) Isn’t that what being in a band is supposed to be? (She plays a sting.)
Sunset: You don’t have time for any of this. (thumbing toward outside) You’re supposed to check in at the Battle of the Bands in fifteen minutes!
(Varied gasps and exclamations from the six musicians, followed by a disorganized rush toward the door. Rarity is out of her jumpsuit. Only Twilight keeps her feet rooted to the floor.)
Twilight: But… (Pinkie yanks her microphone away; zoom in slowly.) …but it’s not ready! If we play the counter-spell in the first round and it doesn’t work, the Sirens will know what we’re up to and make sure we don’t get a chance to play it again!
(Everyone slams on the brakes and turns back to face her. A long pause; then Applejack smiles.)
Applejack: Then we’ll have to buy ourselves some time so you can keep workin’ on it.
Rarity: And how do you propose we do that?
Rainbow: We compete in the Battle of the Bands for real. I take over lead vocals again, and we stay alive until the finals. We unleash the counter-spell then. (Cut to an uneasy Twilight; she continues o.s.) You’ll have figured it out by the finals, right? (Ground level; Spike trots over next to the argyle-booted legs.)
Spike: (patting one) Of course she will. Twilight Sparkle’s never met a problem she couldn’t solve. (addressing himself upward) Right, Twilight? (Tilt up to her.)
Twilight: (forcing a big grin) Right! 
Rainbow: Then let’s go win us a Battle of the Bands!
(The rush out the door picks up right where it left off, leaving one magical prodigy waving goodbye and one dragon-stuck-in-a-dog’s-body smiling confidently after them. Zoom out slowly as Twilight glances fearfully down at Spike and puts on a panicked grin, then fade to black.)
(Fade in to a long shot of the stage in the Canterlot High gym and zoom in slowly. Hushed murmurs of conversation float through the room, and the area immediately in front of the stage has been cleared to make room for a table and two chairs facing the setup. The camera is placed just above/behind the heads of the first row of the audience. Celestia speaks into a microphone, her voice amplified by the sound system.)
Celestia: Welcome to the first-ever Canterlot High School Battle of the Bands! (Close-up.) I believe I speak for everyone when I say it is by far the greatest thing we have ever done here at this school! (Cheers from all sides.) We are so glad our three newest students encouraged us to turn this event into something exciting!
(On this last sentence, she gestures off to one side and the camera cuts to the Dazzlings lounging at the top of the bleacher seats. The camera then cuts back to the stage, where Luna takes the mic.)
Luna: But as this is now a competition, we can only choose one winner. (Cut to the crowd; she continues o.s.) Who is it going to be?
(Angry grumbles fly here and there and several close-range face-offs erupt; all the while, the eddies of green bad-mojo mist swirl through the room and make their way toward the Dazzlings. Just as at the kickoff party, they relax and let it flow into their pendants for a few seconds.)
Adagio: You feel that, girls? Our true power is being restored. 
(Aria and Sonata giggle venomously as the gym doors open to admit the Rainbooms, including their newest member, along with Sunset and Spike. A gesture from Adagio cuts off the merrymaking; cut to a slow pan across the ill-at-ease ensemble. Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, and Rarity have their instruments out and ready to play, Pinkie carries her sticks, and Twilight clutches Fluttershy’s notebook to herself.)
Adagio: (from o.s.) And that’s before we’ve tapped into the strongest magic here.  (Cut to Aria.)
Aria: But the Rainblossoms, or whatever they’re called, aren’t under our spell. (Zoom out to frame Adagio on the end of this.) How exactly are we supposed to get to their magic?
Adagio: The Rainbooms are just as capable of falling apart as anyone else. (smiling) They just need a little push in the wrong direction. (Overhead shot of the band, walking in; she continues o.s.) I have a feeling everyone here is going to be lining up to give them a shove.
(Back to the scheming trio on the end of this; all three smile down toward the nascent brouhaha at floor level. From here, dissolve to a long overhead shot of the stage. The lights in the gym are down except for two spotlights that pick out Snips and Snails, both dressed as 1980s-era rappers: sunglasses, baseball cap turned backwards for Snips, do-rag tied over Snails’ hair, baggy sweatshirts and pants. Celestia and Luna are seated at the table in front of the stage, and all of the Rainbooms except Rarity are gathered off to one side with Spike and Sunset. As Snips does a beatbox rhythm, the camera zooms in slowly and cuts first to an impassive Celestia and Luna, then a close-up of the stage. This latter shot picks the alarm clock hanging on a gold chain around Snips’ neck, as well as the fact that his shades have a louvered design to their lenses. Snails’ do-rag has a snail centered on the forehead.)
Snails: Aw, yeah! Snips and Snails in the house, yo!
Snips: 		They call me MC Snips, and it ain’t no lie
My favorite food is, like, pumpkin pie
Snails:		I’m DJ Snazzy Snails, I like whales
When I go to the beach, I always bring my pails
(Cut to Sunset, Spike, and the Rainbooms in the wings. Pinkie grooves to what passes for the beat, but none of the others can believe this crime against all things hip-hop. Another short spell of beatboxing from Snips before he starts his next verse.)
Snips:		Everybody knows my favorite color is orange
(He jumps ahead into a squat and leans out over the front edge of the stage.)
My rhymes are so fly, you better…uh…um…
Snails:		Than an orange, yo
Snips:		Yeah!
Snails:		Yeah!
Snips:		Represent!
(More beatboxing, which fails to get any favorable reaction from Celestia, Luna, or quite a few other contenders. The next two lines overlap.)
Snips:		What do we…what do we do now?.…no, no
Snails:		How do we get off the stage? I’d like to leave right now
(Cut to the Dazzlings up in the bleachers. As Snips does some more beatboxing, Adagio and Aria stifle a guffaw and Sonata bobs her head to the sloppy rhythm.)
Snips: Bam! That just happened! (Next two lines overlap slightly.)
Snails: Aw, yeah! We out!
Snips: Snips and Snails outta here!
(They finish by standing back to back, holding their microphones out at arm’s length with heads down, and dropping them onto the stage. The impact sends up a shrill whine of feedback that sets the crew in the wings to wincing and covering their ears.)
Celestia: (icily) Please do not drop the microphones. 
Snails: Yeah! (He high-fives Snips.)
Snips: Bam!
(The two hopelessly inept rappers pick up the dropped items with a laugh and clear off the stage, passing the Rainbooms and company.)
Snips: In your face, Rainbooms! (Cut to Applejack, Rainbow, and Sunset.)
Applejack: (to the others) ’Least we know one group who won’t stand in the way of us gettin’ to the finals. 
Rainbow: Let’s get ready to rock!
Pinkie: (from o.s.) Wait! (Longer shot, framing all.) Where’s Rarity? (The missing member’s yelp is heard.)
Rarity: (from o.s.) Here! I’m here!
(Zoom out to put her legs in the foreground as she steps into view and away from the camera with a relieved sigh, accompanied by a metallic jingling sound. Seen from behind, she has changed into short, light brown platform shoes; the material of her skirt is purple, its hem a lighter shade, and covering it is a long, light brown coat whose hem and sleeves are hung with small metal strips. The shoes are similarly adorned. She has traded her usual gold bracelets for a pair with small studs. Cut to a close-up of her feet and tilt up; the shoes are actually sandals, and she has added a gold pendant and a light brown headband to the outfit. The only “regular use” item visible is her light blue blouse. A toss of her head is met by dumbfounded stares from the others.)
Rarity: (irked) We will be performing in front of an audience. (running hand down one sleeve’s decorations) I’m not going to wear something fabulous? Hmph!
(Applejack just groans loudly and pinches the bridge of her nose to express her supreme frustration. Clock wipe to a slow pan across the gym floor, framing the muttering participants and onlookers. Among them are the Crusaders, who have adopted the outfits and hairstyles used by their pony counterparts in “The Show Stoppers.” From here, cut to the stage, where the Rainbooms are set up and ready to do their thing.)
Twilight: (to the others, covering her microphone) Remember, we have to be good enough to make it through, but not so good we let the Sirens see the magic within us. (Cut to Applejack/Pinkie/Rarity; she continues o.s.) They could realize we plan to use it against them. (Pan to Rainbow.)
Rainbow: Got it! (winking) Be cool enough to win, but not so cool that we end up showing off the whole ears-and-tails-and-rainbows thing. So…about twenty percent less cool. 
Pinkie: (counting off with sticks) One, two!
Quiet electric guitar melody, fast 4, with bass drum/tambourine on 2 and 4 (D major)
Rainbooms:		We’ve just got the day to get ready
And there’s only so much time to lose
(Close-up of Pinkie’s thumping bass drum, then cut to Rainbow and zoom out to frame all six.)
Because tonight, yeah, we’re here to party
So let’s think of something fun to do
Synth, bass, additional percussion in; tambourine out; intensity builds
(Photo and her two bandmates sneak onto the catwalks above the stage, the latter girls each holding up a long string with a magnet on one end and a crossbar grip on the other.)
Rainbooms:		We don’t know [we don’t know] what’s gonna happen
We just know [we just know] it’s gonna feel right
(One magnet is tossed over the railing, attracting the metal strips on Rarity’s right sleeve and pulling her arm up with them; the other catches her left.)
All our friends are here, and it’s time to ignite the lights
Tambourine and full percussion in
(Photo takes great delight in manipulating the two crossbars to work the hapless keytarist like a marionette; Applejack is thrown off by the spectacle.)
Rainbooms:		Shake your tail, ’cause we’re here to have a party tonight	
[Shake your tail, shake your tail]
(A flick of Rarity’s arm knocks Applejack’s hat off, depositing it on the head of her bass; she quickly puts it back on.)
Shake your tail, ’cause we’re here to have a party tonight	
[Shake your tail, shake your tail]
(Pinkie looks up from her kit with concern; out on the floor, the crowd is decidedly unimpressed and the Crusaders have fallen asleep on their feet, leaning against each other for support. Bloom wakes up.)
Percussion drops back to bass drum/tambourine 4-beat pattern; guitar, bass out
Twilight:		So what, you didn’t get it right the first time
Bloom: (under previous line) Boring!		
(The frizzy-haired drummer kicks her floor tom so that it swivels on its mount. Once it has stopped with its open lower end pointing up at an angle toward the crowd, she stomps a kick pedal to launch a salvo of confetti, similar to her pony version’s party cannon.)
Pinkie:		Laugh it off, no one said it is a crime
(The drifting paper bits have Twilight/Fluttershy/Rainbow worried; Applejack keeps glaring at the out-of-control Rarity.)
Rarity:		Do your thing, you know you’re an original
(She is slung sideways against Applejack, who kicks her out of the way.)
Applejack:		Your ideas are so funny that they’re criminal
(As Twilight sings the next line, she gets a piece of confetti stuck in her throat and breaks into a coughing fit, relieved only when Fluttershy whacks her in the back with her tambourine.)
All instruments in for next line
Rainbooms:		Oh-h-h, ah
Same instrumentation and style as at start
Rainbooms:		We’ve just got the day to get ready
(Flash and his two buddies throw them a disgusted look and walk out.)
And there’s only so much time to lose
(Snips and Snails slip onto the catwalk.)
Because tonight, yeah, we’re here to party
(Snickering, they get hold of a spotlight.)
So let’s think of something fun to do
Snips: Awesome! 
Snails: Yeah!
Synth, bass, additional bass drum beats in; tambourine out; intensity builds
(The beam picks out Fluttershy, who freezes like a deer caught in the high beams and dodges to one side before taking cover behind Twilight and then running across the stage.)
Rainbooms:		We don’t know [we don’t know] what’s gonna happen
We just know [we just know] it’s gonna feel right
(Applejack pivots away to keep Fluttershy from crashing into her bass; then has to get out of the way when Rarity swings in from the other side.)
All our friends are here, and it’s time to ignite the lights
Tambourine and full percussion in
Background lyrics are shouted by Applejack and sung by other members
(Photo’s trio, Snips, and Snails keep up their dirty tricks as Fluttershy desperately scrambles for any cover she can find.)
Rainbooms:		Shake your tail, ’cause we’re here to have a party tonight	
[Shake your tail, shake your tail]
(She cowers behind the drum riser, Rarity tries to pull free of the magnets, and Pinkie’s bass drum vibrates the scattered confetti.)
Shake your tail, ’cause we’re here to have a party tonight	
[Shake your tail, shake your tail]
(Applejack grimaces at the chaos as Rarity finally rips herself loose—falling on her face, losing her coat sleeves, and voicing a shocked gasp once she fully takes in this indignity.)
Shake your tail, ’cause we’re here to have a party tonight	
[Shake your tail, shake your tail]
(Instantly she bursts into a flood of tears that sets her mascara running; the four still in view soldier on, while Fluttershy timidly taps her tambourine from behind the riser.)
Shake your tail, ’cause we’re here to have a party tonight	
[Shake your tail, shake your tail]
A cappella
Shake your tail, ’cause we’re here to have a party tonight
Song ends with one final cymbal note
(Rarity’s crying comes through all too clearly in the silence following the end of the song, which is broken only by vigorous applause from a beaming Celestia and Luna. Their faces are the only ones in the place not showing some degree of disapproval. Once they stop clapping, they jot notes on the sheets in front of them; cut to Sunset holding Spike as Rarity stumbles down off the steps, still in hysterics.)
Rarity: Ruined! Absolutely ruined! (Applejack comes down next, propping her bass up next to Sunset.)
Applejack: Rarity— (Longer shot; all but Fluttershy have stepped down here.) —were you tryin’ to make us lose out there?
Rarity: (stammering indignantly) This was not my fault! (The two go face to face; hers is now clean.) This was an act of sabotage!
Applejack: Yeah, well, whoever did this couldn’t-a done this if you didn’t insist on dressin’ like—like—this! (Cut to a dismayed Sunset and Spike; she continues o.s.) We need to sound good. (Twilight steps over on the following.) Is there some reason that concept seems to escape you?
(Cut to Pinkie, who has backed down in the face of a very angry Rainbow and the scrap of confetti clutched in the blue fingers.)
Rainbow: And what was with the confetti, Pinkie Pie? (throwing it down) How am I supposed to shred if there’s paper stuck in my frets? (Fluttershy crosses to them.)
Fluttershy: It was pretty distracting. (Pinkie rounds on her with a scoff.)
Pinkie: Said the girl who was running from a light the whole time! A light! 
Sunset: You still sounded much better than most of the other bands. I’m sure you’ll make it to the next round— (Close-up.) —but it won’t matter if you don’t have that counter-spell ready!
(Pan to a badly shaken Twilight on the end of this, then cut back to her stepping toward the stage entrance.)
Sunset: You all find a place to practice where the Sirens can’t hear you. I’ll keep an eye on things around here.
(As she speaks, Derpy Hooves and two other girls emerge onto the stage from the other side. In close-up, the cross-eyed blonde perches on a stool and begins to play a saw by drawing a violin bow across the edge. One of the others taps a triangle, while the third girl strikes a cowbell with gusto.)
(Wipe to the Rainbooms walking down a hall, instruments and drumsticks in hand, with Spike leading the way.)
Twilight: I don’t think we should use a classroom. 
(They approach Flash, but do not notice until she runs into him from behind. Her blush and embarrassed giggle are met by a very hairy eyeball aimed along the neck of his guitar.)
Twilight: We really need to stop bumping into each other like this. 
(Longer shot; his bandmates are nearby, leaning idly against the lockers, and he addresses them as if the girls were not even present.)
Flash: Uh, you guys hear something? (Next two lines overlap.)
Drummer: Uh-uh.
Bassist: Uh, nope:
Twilight: (raising her voice) I said, “We have to stop—”
Flash: There it is again. So annoying.
Twilight: Why are you acting like this? I thought we were friends. (He pulls in a scornful breath.)
Flash: Yeah, and then you decide to come back here just so you can beat me in the Battle of the Bands. I want this, Twilight, and you’re trying to take it from me! Some friend.
Twilight: That’s not why— (Applejack stops her with a hand on her shoulder.)
Applejack: Come, on, Twilight. (The other Rainbooms move out.) We’ve got things to do. (She ushers Twilight after them.)
Flash: (calling after Twilight) You really think you’re gonna help them? Heh! I bet you have no idea what you’re even doing!
(The lower lip she catches in her teeth, and the tears welling up in her eyes, tell just how close to home those words have struck. She wipes them away as the camera pans back the way the group came, the sound of Adagio’s low chuckle cutting in. Stop on the Dazzlings a short distance back, loving every minute of this drama.)
Adagio: Tears already? This is only the first round.
(Aria and Sonata break into vicious giggles, but stop at a beep from the intercom. On the start of the next line, pan quickly to a close-up of the speaker mounted high on the wall.)
Celestia: (over speaker) The next band to take the stage will be Trixie and the Illusions.
Adagio: Better head back. (walking past; others follow) We’re supposed to go on after Trixie.
(Cut to an adjoining hall as they round the corner into it. A sudden gesture from Adagio stops them in their tracks; cut to just behind them, framing Sunset leaning against the wall in the shadows near the double doors at the hall’s end. She is not at all amused, and she pushes off from the wall to give the three a good look at her expression.)
Sunset: You’re never gonna get away with this. 
Adagio: Why? Because you didn’t?
(In close-up, the species-switched unicorn’s ire melts into doubt and a decent bit of fear at record-breaking speed at this reminder of her own thwarted scheme.)
Adagio: (circling slowly around her) Oh, we know all about you, Sunset Shimmer. You’ve got quite the reputation at Canterlot High. (Aria starts to circle as well.)
Sunset: I’ve changed! I’m in a much better place now!
Aria: Waiting in the wings while your friends have all the fun? 
Adagio: Oh, yes. You girls are so tight, and yet…they didn’t ask you to be in the band.
Aria: Probably afraid no one would want to see them play if she was in the group.
(Only after both girls have backed o.s. does Sonata move in close to offer her own opinion.)
Sonata: Too bad. (Duck away, then back in from another angle.) So sad. (Away again.)
Adagio: (from o.s.) If it’s any consolation— 
(Cut to just behind Sunset, framing the three.)
Adagio: (as they walk toward her) —no one is going to remember you at all by the time we’re done. 
(They pass Sunset, Adagio nudging her roughly toward Sonata, who bumps her right back the other way. The girl in the leather jacket glowers after them and rubs her shoulder moodily.)
Act Three
(Dissolve to a long shot of the stage with curtain lowered, zooming in slowly, then cut to Celestia and Luna at their table. Younger sister glances over at the notes in the elder’s hands; after a few seconds, both face front. Behind the curtain, the Dazzlings stand ready, each holding a microphone; zoom in slowly on them.)
Adagio: Remember, girls. We want to save the good stuff for when our full power has been restored.
(Their pendants gleam in the dim light, but settle down by the time the curtain opens. Three spotlights flick on in a cluster to hit each of the malevolent singers as they step slowly toward the edge of the stage.)
Jangly guitar line with minimal percussion, moderate 4 (D flat minor)
Dazzlings:		Oh, whoa, oh, whoa
You didn’t know that you fell
Oh, whoa, oh, whoa
Percussion out
Adagio: Now that you’re under our spell
Guitar out, minimal synth in with bass drum beats
(They start to sway to the rhythm.)
Adagio:		Blindsided by the beat
Clapping your hands, stomping your feet
You didn’t know that you fell
[Aria and Sonata vocalize a harmony line.]
Slightly more percussion
Now you’ve fallen under our spell
(Celestia and Luna watch, entranced.)
[More harmony.]		
(Extreme close-up of a large blue question mark on a white field, zooming out. It stands at the center of an elimination bracket diagram with sixteen entries, each marked by a different symbol to represent the competing bands. They are arranged in two groups of eight, one on each side, with the blanks for the finalists connecting to the question mark.)
Guitar in; synth out; percussion strengthens again
Dazzlings:		We’ve got the music, makes you move it
Got the song that makes you lose it
(Zoom in quickly on one pair: a pair of scissors and a snail painted on a brick wall, against a winged barbell. Two vertical panels slide in—Snips and Snails throwing down on the right, Bulk Biceps playing a violin on the left. The beefed-up teen wears a light gray jersey marked with a barbell, dark gray pants, and a gray/white baseball cap with tiny wings protruding from the sides.)
Dazzlings:		We say “jump,” you say “how high?”
Put your hands up to the sky
(Full-screen view of the duel; a bubble of red energy has formed around Bulk, and it blasts outward to send the hip-hop fools flying. Their symbol gets a slash of red ink across it to mark their elimination, and the one for Bulk advances into the next round.)
Synth sneaks back in
Dazzlings:		We’ve got the music, makes you move it
Got the song that makes you lose it
(On the other side is another duel—the planet Earth overlaid on a flower and the recycling logo of three arrows bend into a triangle, versus a two-tone blue shield marked with yellow lightning bolts and a speaker beneath a row of spotlights. Two horizontal panels slide in: an eco-kid trio with acoustic instruments on top, Flash and his two buddies on bottom. Seen next in fullscreen, the blue field around the rockers bursts out to hurl their opponents off their feet.)
Dazzlings:		We say “jump,” you say “how high?”
Guitar out for next line
Put your hands up to the sky
All instruments in with full percussion
(The diagram; the losers are marked out and the logo for Flash’s band slides ahead.)
Dazzlings:		Oh, whoa, oh, whoa
You didn’t know that you fell
(Aria and Sonata drift past from opposite directions, the background changing to show Twilight furiously scribbling in Fluttershy’s notebook.)
Oh, whoa, oh, whoa
Now that you’re under our spell 
All instruments out except for minimal synth and bass drum beats
Aria and Sonata vocalize harmony after each of Adagio’s lines
(Dissolve to a close-up of Adagio and cut to Aria and Sonata in turn.)
Adagio:                   	Listen to the sound of my voice
(Kids start to sway in their seats, absolutely mesmerized; close-up of Adagio, zooming out to frame all three.)
                               	Soon you’ll find you don’t have a choice
Guitar in; percussion strengthens
(Cut to a slow pan across the Rainbooms, set up onstage and trying mightily to get their groove back as they play. Rarity has changed back into her usual outfit.)
Adagio:                   	Captured in the web of my song
(Pan quickly to Octavia, seated under a lone spotlight and bowing her cello with drive. Vertical split screen, showing the two competitors, then a fullscreen view of both. The red field around the Rainbooms sends Octavia flying toward the outfield when Rainbow hits a riff.)
                               	Soon you’ll all be singing along
(Extreme close-up of a pair of hands moving across a piano keyboard, then pan quickly to a second pair doing the same. These twenty digits turn out to be attached to Bon Bon and Lyra Heartstrings, playing a duet on the same piano and singing into one microphone.)
Dazzlings:		We’ve got the music, makes you move it
Got the song that makes you lose it
(Across the way are Trixie and her two partners, collectively the Illusions. She has changed into a two-tone blue long-sleeved dress and matching boots accented with jewels and starred bands across the insteps, and she has donned a starry wizard’s hat and cape such as those worn by her pony self. The other two wear similar hats, but in a different color; one is marked with stars, the other with crescent moons. Trixie plays a “Flying V” guitar, while the others each have sampler consoles slung on straps around their necks. Trixie jumps forward to slide across the stage on her knees, hitting a chord that sends Bon Bon and Lyra sailing.)
Dazzlings:		We say “jump,” you say “how high?”
Put your hands up to the sky
(The brackets again; the duo’s mark—a lyre and a stretch of piano keys surrounded by wrapped candies—gets crossed out, and the moon/star logo for the Illusions continues ahead.)
Dazzlings:		We’ve got the music, makes you move it
Got the song that makes you lose it
(Dissolve to five of the six Rainbooms, now arguing heartily among themselves, and tilt down to Twilight and Spike sitting on the floor. She continues to scrawl in the notebook.)
We say “jump,” you say “how high?”
All instruments out
(Cut to a long shot of three hazy silhouettes standing in a cloud of smoke, with red laser beams shooting out in all directions, and zoom in quickly. The figures resolve into the Crusaders, a flash of light turning them back into silhouettes and leaving only their eyes blazing.)
Put your hands up to the sky
All instruments in
(Fade to white, then in to the arguing Rainbooms. Spike watches despondently from the floor, while a resigned Sunset stands with her back to the group and her arms crossed, letting her head droop.)
Dazzlings:		Oh, whoa, oh, whoa
You didn’t know that you fell
(Dissolve to a close-up of Adagio, features barely visible under the spotlight glare; Aria and Sonata step up on either side.)
Oh, whoa, oh, whoa
Now that you’re under our spell 
(Fade to white, then in to a close-up of Trixie and Flash in a heated argument. Zoom out; they and many other performers exchange cross words amid a knee-high green haze of negative vibes.)
Oh, whoa, oh, whoa
You didn’t know that you fell
(The view fades to red and in to an extreme close-up of Adagio’s pendant; zoom out to frame the entire gym awash in the energy, which is pouring into all three girls’ gems.)
Oh, whoa, oh, whoa
Now that you’re under our
All instruments out for final word
Adagio:		Spell
Song ends
(Her devious chuckle rings out over the silence as the view fades to black.)
(Fade in to an extreme close-up of the logo for Flash’s band on the elimination brackets. Luna reaches into view with a red marker to cross it out; zoom out to show her moving the Dazzlings’ token—three red gems and a collection of musical symbols—to the finalist’s slot on the right side. She steps away, exposing the semifinalists on the left side: the Rainbooms and the Illusions. The other thirteen acts have already been knocked out.)
(Cut to Flash standing in front of the diagram, which is mounted on a rolling whiteboard; he shakes his fists in silent anger as his bandmates glare from a few steps back, then stalks away. A wipe shifts the scene to the Rainbooms backstage; Pinkie has her sticks, Twilight the notebook, the others their instruments. Sunset stands with them, smiling with fierce confidence.)
Sunset: This is it. Last round, and you’re in the finals— (to Twilight) —unless you think the counter-spell is ready to be played now.
(The amateur songwriter huddles miserably into herself.)
Applejack: Don’t worry, Twilight. (Cut to a slow pan across her and the other four.) Finals aren’t until tonight. We’ll get in a little more practice before we’re supposed to hit the stage. We won’t let you down. 
(Nods and sounds of agreement from the others, but Twilight just turns partly away from them in close-up.)
Twilight: (to herself) You won’t let me down. (Zoom out slightly; Sunset is looking on with concern.)
Fluttershy: (from o.s.) Um, I was just wondering. (Cut to her and Rainbow.) We haven’t played any of my songs yet, and…
Rainbow: (touching her shoulder) It’s the semifinals. (punching it gently) We gotta do “Awesome As I Wanna Be.”
Fluttershy: (crushed) Don’t know why I even asked.
Reggae-like guitar/synth line fades up, with electronic drum track
Leisurely 4 (A minor)
Trixie sings lead, with the other Illusions providing backing vocals on certain words
Illusions:		I got tricks up my sleeve
(Dissolve to the trio onstage, mid-performance.)
See me dominate ’cause I’m powerful and great	
Song ends
(The spotlights bathe the girls in a blinding glare, to the sound of cheers; they strike a final pose and Trixie throws her guitar pick toward the crowd. It lands on the table in front of Celestia and Luna, who smile and applaud, Celestia laughing as well.)
Celestia: Fantastic!
(The spots are switched off, restoring normal illumination, and the Illusions straighten up. Cut to the Rainbooms waiting backstage; Trixie steps over to face down a decidedly unimpressed Rainbow with a contemptuous little laugh. She has shed her guitar.)
Trixie: You’re never gonna top that performance, Rain-goons. (accusingly) You shouldn’t be allowed to, when you have such a big advantage over the rest of us.
Rainbow: My superior guitar playing and off-the-charts awesome singing voice?
Trixie: Oh, don’t be ridiculous. (pointing to one side) I mean her!
(Pan quickly to follow her gesture and stop on Twilight, who blushes mightily and scratches at the back of her neck.)
Trixie: (from o.s.) If you were really all that, Rainbow Dash— (Cut back to her and Rainbow.) —you wouldn’t have needed to bring in some magical ringer to have half a chance. Everyone’s talking about it.
Rainbow: Hah! Puh-lease. I could win this thing as a solo act, and everybody knows it.
(Cut to a pan across the rest of the band on these last four words, resentment taking hold on every face except Twilight’s. A disdainful little cough from Trixie; cut back to the pair.)
Trixie: Sure you could.
(She throws something to the floor; it explodes in a cloud of pale blue smoke that fills the screen. The view clears to the sound of everyone else’s coughing, revealing that the egomaniacal would-be wizard has managed to clear out. Close-up of Pinkie.)
Pinkie: She’s gone! (Long pause; she stares into the distance.) Oh, wait.
(Cut to the drum riser; Trixie is hunched down behind it, but her head is still in plain sight.)
Pinkie: (from o.s.) There she is. 
(But only for as long as it takes to leap to her feet and sprint away.)
Celestia: (over sound system) Next up, the Rainbooms.
(The six plod toward the stage, leaving Sunset behind; Spike is now with her.)
Spike: Knock ’em dead, Rainbooms!
Sunset: I’ll be here… (losing steam) …just…watching.
(Her face crumples into a half-grimace as the view fades to black.)
Driving rock melody with electric guitar/bass/drums, fast 4 (D major)
(A silhouette of Pinkie at her drums appears in the near-total blackness, a spotlight flicking on to light her up. One by one, other spots pick out the rest of the band members, with Rainbow getting lit up last as she runs to the microphone. None of the others are particularly enthused.)
Rainbooms: (shouted)	Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
Rainbow:			Awesome as I wanna be
(A close-up and tilt up from her guitar frames a disgruntled Fluttershy as well.)
Rainbooms: (shouted)	Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
Rainbow:			Awesome as I wanna be
(She bounds across the stage and drops into a slide on her knees, popping up next to Twilight.)
First you see me riding on a sonic boom
Got my guitar, shredding up the latest tune
There is nothing you can do to beat me
(She shows off to Applejack and then Rarity, vexing both.)
I’m so good that you can’t defeat me		
(The light flicks on and off, alternately casting the screen into complete darkness and showing her in various rocker poses.)
Rainbooms:			Yeah, I’m awesome, take caution
Watch out for me, I’m awesome as I wanna be
(A noticeably ticked-off Pinkie leans sideways behind her kit, lackadaisically tapping out the beat with one stick.)
Other five: (shouted)	 	Yeah!
Rainbooms:			Yeah, I’m awesome, take caution
(Zoom in past Rainbow to Sunset in the wings, the blue-green eyes widening with sudden panic.)
Watch out for me, I’m awesome as I wanna be
(The axe mistress launches her body to the front of the stage and her fingers into a wild solo. All of the spotlights train themselves directly on her, leaving the other five stewing in the dark.)
Rainbooms:			Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
(Sunset’s panic grows as a spot of light begins to glow under Rainbow’s hair, followed by the emergence of one pony ear, then the other.)
Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
Music gradually degenerates into chaos during the following sequence
(The lead guitarist/singer/jerk gets blindsided with a flying tackle from Sunset, propelling her into Twilight…who topples over, dragging her microphone and getting caught up in Rarity’s keytar…knocking her over so that one booted foot flies up and kicks away Applejack’s bass…which goes flying and embeds itself, head down, in one of Pinkie’s tom-toms.)
Song ends abruptly
(Zoom out from her to frame the total wipeout. Only she, Applejack, and Fluttershy have not wound up sprawled on the stage, and Fluttershy is the only one still holding a completely undamaged instrument. Full lights come up on the stage; the clunk of the switch being thrown is the only sound to break the deafening silence. Fluttershy pitches her tambourine over her shoulder and runs crying off the stage, an instant before shocked murmurs surge throughout the crowd. Rainbow slowly recovers her senses, the pony ears fading away and her normal ones reappearing, and glares daggers at the one who derailed their performance. The prone girls slowly get upright, Sunset being the last and looking desperately to Celestia and Luna for help. However, the principal hunches down to take notes while the vice-principal glares back toward the stage with not a whit of leniency. Flash stands up from his seat in the bleachers.)
Flash: (pointing) Now that’s the bad girl we love to hate! (Tumult.)
Octavia: I knew she was still trouble!
Voice: The real Sunset Shimmer is back! (The Rainbooms trudge off the stage.)
Sunset: (softly) No. It…it’s not like that.
(She follows the others away. Cut to the Dazzlings and zoom in slowly as they trade satisfied grins, then cut to the Rainbooms in the wings—all without their instruments—and Spike.)
Rainbow: What was that? (To Sunset.)
Sunset: You were showing them your magic! I—I didn’t know what else to do! (Scoff from Rarity.)
Rarity: Close the curtains? Unplug her amp? Give us a chance to deal with the situation?
Sunset: I’m sorry. I just wanted to help.
Rainbow: Yeah, well, you didn’t. (Applejack pushes her back.)
Applejack: None of this would’ve happened if you weren’t tryin’ to show off—as usual. (Point-blank stare-down.)
Trixie: (from o.s.) Good show, Rain-brooms. 
(Cut to her, strolling up next to Sunset without her hat and cape.)
Trixie: (throwing arm around Sunset’s shoulder) I especially liked the part where Sunset Shimmer, in a fit of jealous rage, knocked out Rainbow Dash mid-guitar solo!
Sunset: (blushing angrily, backing her down) It wasn’t a fit of jealous rage!
(Her friends cringe at this outburst, and she aims two mortified eyes toward the floor as Trixie stands smugly up to full height again.)
Trixie: If you say so. (She turns away with a smile.) Ooh!
(Cut to just behind her, framing Celestia and Luna standing in the wings at the opposite end and eyeing the clipboard in Celestia’s hands.)
Trixie: Looks like they’ve already decided who’ll be moving on to the finals.
(Zoom in on the two as she finishes, then cut back to Trixie and Sunset. The cocky performer pulls out a makeup compact and uses its mirror to assist in touching up her hair.)
Trixie: I’m guessing it wasn’t too difficult a decision.
(Comes now the sound of the fire doors at the two sisters’ end being opened. The Dazzlings sidle in and around them, singing the five-note phrases from the prologue and cafeteria. Both adults’ eyes briefly flash green as they did in Celestia’s office during Act One—the trio’s magic is taking hold again—and the lids half-close dazedly. Close-up of Sunset.)
Sunset: (to herself) Hmm?
Rarity: (from o.s.) What can we do? (Cut to her, Applejack, and Rainbow; the Dazzlings fall silent.) There isn’t gonna be another opportunity for us to play— (whining) —and I had the most gorgeous outfit for the finals!
Applejack: (sarcastically) Yep, ’cause that’s the real tragedy here, Rarity—that you won’t get to play dress-up!
Rarity: You know perfectly well that is not what I meant! (Rainbow shoves them apart.)
Rainbow: You guys want to keep it down? They’re about to announce who’s moving on! (Zoom out to frame Fluttershy nearby.)
Fluttershy: Who are you kidding? You know it isn’t gonna be us.
(Celestia and Luna step to center stage and are greeted by near-total silence from the crowd; Celestia, no longer carrying the clipboard, brings up a microphone.)
Celestia: The band that will be joining the Dazzlings in tonight’s finals… (Cut to Trixie and Sunset; she continues o.s.) …the Rainbooms!
(Trixie finishes with her hair and puts her compact away, an ear-to-ear grin settling firmly in place—and then the last two words wipe it out as they find a purchase in her brain.)
Trixie: What?!?
Rainbooms: Huh?/What?
Pinkie: Did they just say “the Rainbooms”? (Trixie stomps past them, boiling mad.)
Trixie: This isn’t over!
(The disbelieving band advances slowly onto the stage.)
Celestia: Congratulations, girls. You deserve it.
(Rainbow opens her mouth to express gratitude and/or brag like mad, but Pinkie’s words stop her.)
Pinkie: Seriously? We didn’t even finish our s— 
(Rainbow elbows her hard, cutting her off, and grins hugely; the Dazzlings emerge from the other end.)
Adagio: (mockingly) See you at tonight’s big show, Rainbooms. We’re really looking forward to it. (They turn toward the exit.)
Rainbow: Yeah, well, not as much as we are!
(Hearty booing from the crowd; cut to Photo’s trio out on the floor. One backing player holds a pair of cymbals, the other a triangle, and both sound off under the next line.)
Photo: This never should have been you, Rainbooms! 
(The round’s unlikely victors take a walk of shame past Celestia/Luna and through the audience, heading out the door and into the hall. Trixie observes the unrest with indignation.)
Trixie: This is a travesty! (falling backward, hand to forehead) A travesty! (Adagio steps over to steady her, hand to shoulder.)
Adagio: (faking sympathy) It really is! The Rainbooms don’t deserve to be in the finals— (smiling) —not when your band was so much better in the semis. 
(Zoom out slightly; Aria slips up on Trixie’s other side.)
Aria: And wanted it so much more.
Adagio: Alas, this is the way it’s going to be. Dazzlings versus Rainbooms. (Sonata joins them.)
Sonata: Unless, of course, the Rainbooms don’t manage to make it to their set— (Trixie’s eyes pop; Adagio and Aria smirk her way.) —or are held up for some reason. 
Trixie: (thoughtfully) Hmmm…
(Zoom in to an extreme close-up of her face, which rearranges itself into a smile that broadcasts bad intentions loudly enough to register a mile away as a twisted chuckle escapes her throat. From here, dissolve to a long shot of an outdoor amphitheatre and zoom in slowly. The Rainbooms are setting up their gear on the stage; cut to a close-up of them.)
Rainbow: (into microphone) Check, one, two, testing, testing…
(A tap on its head points out that it has no power; cut to Sunset, at a soundboard off to one side. She slides one of the fader controls up to its maximum setting, and Rainbow tries the mic again.)
Rainbow: (amplified) Testing…
(The boost turns her voice into a souped-up chorus of echoes accompanied by a deafening feedback whine that sets the entire band’s eardrums and teeth vibrating—not to mention the stage. Grinning sheepishly, Sunset brings the fader all the way down again to break off the cacophony. Cut to Fluttershy spinning her tambourine on a stand and making an adjustment with an Allen wrench.)
Fluttershy: This doesn’t make any sense. (Sunset steps into view.) We were awful! 
(Twilight has laid the pink-haired girl’s notebook on the stage and has knelt among the others to look it over.)
Fluttershy: Doesn’t anybody else think it’s strange that we’re the ones that made it to the finals?
Trixie: (from o.s.) Very strange.
(All look toward her voice; cut to the Illusions at one end of the stage, ready for a scrap. Trixie has changed into her regular school clothes, and the other two do not wear their hats and mobile consoles.) 
Rainbow: What are you doing here, Trixie? (smiling mockingly, pointing toward seats) Pretty sure the losers are supposed to be up there in the cheap seats. (Close-up of Trixie.)
Trixie: (full ham mode) The Great and Powerful Trixie is the most talented girl at Canterlot High. (pointing to her own eyes) It is I who deserve to be in the finals—and I will not be denied!
(On these last two words, she snaps her fingers and the camera pans to her bandmates, one of whom has seized the end of a lever protruding from the floor. One good hard yank opens up a large trapdoor under the seven, dumping them screaming out of sight and leaving Applejack’s hat and a couple of loose pages of notes to flutter down after them. A fabric chew toy tumbles into view from behind a stack of speakers at the far edge; zoom in on this as Spike jumps out to worry it. Simple pleasure quickly gives way to slack-jawed shock, the toy falling from his jaws, when he sees what has just transpired.)
Spike: Uh? 
(Cut to the area underneath the stage, where the Rainbooms and Sunset have fetched up in a sprawl of instruments and bodies. The hat lands neatly in its proper spot on the blond head as the loose notes drift lazily to the floor. Up onstage, Trixie cackles madly over her sneak attack, and Spike glares toward her and scampers off. Cut to just below the trapdoor, the camera pointing up at her, hunched down at the edge.)
Trixie: See you never!
(The flaps swing shut over the indignant/scared/freaked-out captives to black out the screen. Snap to the far end of an aisle leading toward the stage through the amphitheatre seats; Adagio and Sonata step into view, their backs to the camera. A head-on shot shows that Aria has joined them, and Adagio chuckles menacingly between the others’ confident smiles.)
Adagio: Told you someone would give them a shove.
Sonata: (puzzled) She didn’t shove them. She pulled the lever. (Aria groans and rolls her eyes; Adagio claps a hand to her face.)
Aria: Go back to sleep, Sonata. 
(Dissolve to a stretch of star-filled night sky and tilt down to the amphitheatre.)
Same melody/key/tempo as in Illusions’ semifinal performance, but without guitar
Trixie sings lead, with the other Illusions providing backing vocals on certain words
Illusions:		You’d better believe I got tricks up my sleeve
(Stop on a long shot of them, performing onstage under a row of multicolored spotlights. All three have their wizard’s hats on and Trixie her cape; she does not use her guitar, but the others have their consoles slung up.)
And I captivate ’cause I’m powerful and great, yeah, yeah [whoa, oh]
(Zoom in slowly on the band. Trixie has traded her previous outfit for one with a pleated purple two-layer skirt cut high in the front to show off a pair of star-spangled yellow boots, and she has styled her hair into a long corkscrew. The other two have spiffed up their threads as well.)
You’d better believe I got tricks up my sleeve
See me dominate ’cause I’m powerful and great, yeah, yeah [oh, oh]
(On the end of this verse, the camera continues its zoom but shifts direction slightly, approaching the drapes hung from the front edge of the stage, and the view dissolves to the demoralized Rainbooms and Sunset trapped underneath. When this transition occurs, the song continues in a greatly muffled tone. Pan slowly from one end to the other, then cut to a closed door as Rainbow throws her full weight against it. This tactic gets her nothing but a sore shoulder, and she groans in mingled pain and frustration.)
Applejack: (from o.s.) Give it up, Rainbow Dash. (Cut to her.) You’ve been tryin’ at this for hours. It’s not gonna open. (Rainbow glares at the door.)
Twilight: (softly) Maybe it doesn’t even matter that we’re trapped down here. I don’t think the counter-spell would’ve worked anyway. (Applejack turns to her with a smile.)
Applejack: ’Course it woulda worked, Twilight… (pointedly, in Rainbow’s direction) …assumin’ a certain band member didn’t try to hog the spotlight the whole time we were tryin’ to play it!
Rainbow: Hey! If you want to tell Twilight she’s getting a little too caught up trying to be the new leader of this band, you don’t have to be all cryptic about it. (Twilight backs fearfully away.)
Rarity: She was talking about you, Rainbow Dash! (Cut to Rainbow.)
Rainbow: Me? I’m just trying to make sure my band rocks as hard as it needs to.
Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rarity: (from o.s.) OUR BAND!!
(Delivered with enough force to blow her hair back on her head. The guitarist with the hog-wild ego glowers at this outburst; cut to Twilight, now sitting in a pitiable huddle.)
Twilight: But why wasn’t it working? I should know what to do! How can I not know what to do? How can I have failed like this? 
(Pan slightly to frame Sunset watching her on the end of this, after which Twilight buries her head in her knees as if wishing she could sink through the floor. Sunset looks away with a panicked grimace; on the start of the next line, cut to Applejack and Rainbow facing off.)
Applejack: It might have been your idea to start a band, but it’s not just your band, Rainbow Dash! 
Rainbow: I’m the one who writes all the songs! (Cut to Fluttershy and Rarity.)
Fluttershy: I write songs! You just never let us play any of them!
Rarity: I had the most perfect outfits for us to wear!
Applejack: Again with the costumes! No one cares what we’re wearin’!
Rarity: I care, Applejack! So sorry if I enjoy trying to make a creative contribution to the band! (Now Pinkie stands up between the two pairs.)
Pinkie: Hey! Anybody here remember fun? (shrilly, arms flailing) I’ll give you a hint! It’s the exact opposite of being in the Rainbooms! (Cut to Rainbow.)
Rainbow: I wish I’d never asked any of you to be in my band! (Pan quickly to Rarity.)
Rarity: I wish I’d never agreed to be in it! (Applejack and Fluttershy flank her.)
Applejack, Fluttershy: Me neither!
(There follows a lively five-way argument, none of whose participants notices the wisps of varicolored greenish energy that begin to emerge from the group and drift upward. Sunset can only stare in mute terror as the verbal barbs keep flying and the power rises toward the underside of the stage. Dissolve to the Illusions topside, the audio becoming clear again.)
Guitar in
Illusions:		You’d better believe I got tricks up my sleeve
See me dominate ’cause I’m powerful and great
Song ends
(Zoom out to a long shot of the stage; fireworks bursting at low altitude overhead to the sound of hearty cheering. Cut to the Dazzlings backstage, seen from the knees up and tricked out in a new set of outfits for the finals. Adagio: short, pleated purple skirt over a light violet under-skirt; sleeved purple shawl; light violet top with the same triangle pattern as her earlier leggings; spiked bracelets in place of her fingerless gloves; same gold belt as before. Aria: gray/white-striped arm warmers; sleeveless dark purple top with a pattern of white lines, light yellow-green skirt cut high in front to expose white/purple-striped tights. Sonata: short-sleeved, off-shoulder blouse striped in two shades of magenta; light blue belt; short, dark magenta skirt set with the heart and eighth note from her jacket; matching arm warmers and necktie, the latter secured with her pendant. Adagio’s face is set in a smirk, Aria’s in a scowl, Sonata’s in a big giddy grin. The Illusions walk offstage past them.)
Trixie: Try to top that.
Adagio: (with mock fear, to Aria/Sonata) Oh, gosh! I don’t know if we can!
(By this time, Aria is smirking right along with her; all three end up giggling maliciously after she finishes. A gesture from the boss hushes them up pronto; cut to a close-up of one edge of the trapdoor the Rainbooms fell through. Their energy is seeping up through the crack and forming a foggy layer on the stage, as seen when the camera zooms out to frame the Dazzlings looking on with wonderment. Aria and Sonata both wear boots similar to the ones they have used up to this point, while Adagio’s boots are now light violet, with the same triangle pattern as her top, and darker purple soles and starred ankle bands. A round of nasty smiles and grins passes among the three exiles from Equestria.)
(Cut to a few students in the front rows.)
Thumping, ominous dance beat with drums/bass/synth
Slow; alternating bars of 7/8 and 4/4 (B minor)
(The spectators find themselves bathed in an eerie green glow; up onstage, the Dazzlings emerge from the greatly thickened miasma, their pendants glowing at their throats. They step slowly forward to stand in line, moving their arms in a sinuous, snakelike fashion, and vocalize a unison line that splits off into harmony as their gems pull in the aura surrounding them.)
(Cut to an overhead close-up of Sunset, staring wide-eyed toward the camera as the sounds of the Rainbooms’ quarrel come through all too clearly. The onstage music becomes muffled at this point. Zoom in slowly on her, then cut to frame all seven girls.)
Sunset: Stop! You have to stop! (All fall silent; she rushes over to them.) This is what they’ve been after all along! 
Song fades until barely audible
Sunset: They’re feeding off of the magic inside you!
Applejack: How can they be using our magic? It’s the magic of friendship!
(Twilight, still sitting miserably on the floor, trades a scared look with Sunset before the latter finds her tongue again. Pan slowly to put Twilight out of view.)
Sunset: Ever since you started this band, you’ve been letting little things get to you. I never said anything ’cause I didn’t feel like it was my place—not when I was so new to this whole friendship thing. I still have a lot to learn. (Her perspective of the chastened five, panning slowly across.) But I do know that if you don’t work out even the smallest problems right at the start— (Cut to Twilight, thinking carefully; she continues o.s.) —the magic of friendship can be turned into something else.
(Now, at long last, the egghead gets to her feet and steps up to stand with her opposite number.)
Twilight: 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— (hanging head) —and all I’ve done since I got here is let you down. 
(Sunset lifts a hand, hesitates, then rests it on Twilight’s shoulder with a gentle smile.)
Sunset: I don’t think anyone is supposed to have all the answers— (gesturing toward others; cut to her perspective of them, smiling, as she continues) —but you can count on your friends to help you find them. 
(It takes Twilight a second to get this through her head, but she comes out of it with a smile.)
Twilight: I think you already have. (with renewed determination) Come on! We need to get out of here!
(She is first to throw herself against the locked door, followed by the other six a moment later, but they have as much success as Rainbow did—that is to say, none whatsoever. They bounce back, all but Fluttershy tumbling to the floor in a heap, and cannot believe their ears when a knock sounds from the other side. The door swings inward to reveal Spike at the threshold, a glow from the stage lights spilling in around him. One light violet, purple-eyed face breaks into a joyous smile.)
Twilight: Spike! (She sweeps him up into a hug.)
Song fades up slightly
Spike: Sorry I took so long. I had to find somebody who wasn’t under the Sirens’ spell to help me get you out.
(That somebody chooses this moment to peek in around the doorframe—it is DJ P0N-3.)
Twilight: (puzzled) Why isn’t she under their spell?
Spike: Never takes off her headphones. 
(They are indeed firmly in place over the unruly, two-tone electric blue hair, and their wearer grins and gives a thumbs-up.)
Applejack: Come on, y’all! Time to prove we’ve still got the magic of friendship inside us!
Twilight: And there’s only one way to do it.
Pinkie: We’re getting the band back together?
Rainbow: We’re getting our band back together.
Pinkie: Whee!
Rarity: Ooh, which version of the counter-spell are we going to play? (Close-up of Twilight and Sunset.)
Twilight: I don’t think it matters what song we play, as long as we play it together—as friends! (Zoom out to frame Rainbow.)
Rainbow: I know just the song! 
(Concerned glances pass between Twilight, Applejack, and Sunset; cut to a downcast Fluttershy as Rainbow crosses to her.)
Rainbow: Fluttershy’s written a really great one. 
(Those words split the yellow face in a huge squeaky grin.)
Applejack: We’re about to save the world here. Personally, I think we should do it in style. Rarity?
Rarity: (beaming, pulling a rack of dresses into view) I thought you’d never ask!
(The six garments on the rack are sleeveless, in assorted bright and vivid colors, and five of them sport patterns based on the cutie marks of all but Twilight. The centerpieces of the last dress are a pair of eight-pointed stars, gold at the neckline and silver at the waist. Cut to the Dazzlings onstage.)
Song heard clearly
(As they dance from side to side, the camera cuts to a slow pan across the front row, every occupant utterly captivated by the unfolding spectacle.)
Harmony vocalization continues under the lyrics
Adagio:		Welcome to the show
We’re here to let you know
Our time is now
Dazzlings:		Your time is running out
Vocalization continues
(Long shot of the amphitheatre, a hilltop just visible in the fore. A foot clad in a light-blue, lightning-bolt-marked platform shoe and yellow tights plants itself on the grass, and a head-on shot frames it as one of Rainbow’s. She and the rest of the Rainbooms are standing here, Twilight and Pinkie holding microphone and drumsticks, respectively; the other four have their instruments ready. All have changed into the dresses Rarity provided and donned platforms in various styles and colors, as well as tights in a different color for each leg. Applejack has traded her usual brown cowboy hat for a red one in a slightly different style. Every last one is greatly daunted by the sonic subterfuge unfolding before them. A wind blows across the hilltop, toying with their hairstyles and doing little to cover the Dazzlings’ singing.)
Rainbow: How are we supposed to play over them from up here? 
(The sounds of a car horn and approaching tires catch them off guard, and they turn to find DJ P0N-3 rolling up in a light blue convertible with darker trim and the top down. Heart-shaped musical notes adorn the door, bright blue lyres mark the hubcaps, and a rearing-pony hood ornament is front and center. Sunset and Spike are now here as well; the former now wears a top in the shade of shocking pink as her usual shirt, but no longer marked with her trademark yellow/red sun. DJ P0N-3 produces and clicks a remote to shut off the engine and headlights, but the device triggers many more effects in the bargain. The front bumper flips up to expose an equalizer panel and a row of lights; lava lamps pop out ahead of the front wheels; speakers swing out from both sides and up from the rear end, the latter accompanied by a bank of multicolored laser emitters to add a light show. The whole car ends up mounted on a framework that has folded out from beneath the undercarriage. Sunset smiles at the radical change-up, and the six performers add their own exclamations of delight.)
(Cut to the stage and zoom out; waves of red energy radiate from the Dazzlings and wash over the crowd.)
Meter shifts to 4/4; harmony vocals continue under lyrics
Dazzlings:		Feel the wave of sound as it crashes down
(The enchantment takes hold; a flash from the pendants, and the three begin to rise off the boards.)
You can’t turn away, we’ll make you want to stay
(The gems burn red, throwing rays in all directions. Now visible only as white-outlined black silhouettes, they each sprout the same pony ears and hair extensions that previously manifested on the Rainbooms.)
Dazzlings:		We will be adored, tell us that you want us
We won’t be ignored, it’s time for our reward
(Zoom out from the trio. A flash, and their normal colors are restored, with two changes: sparkles on the outfits, and translucent fin-like wings on each of the three backs.)
Unison
Dazzlings:		Now you need us, come and heed us
(Zoom out to a very long shot.)
Nothing can stop us now
Drum fill, followed by electric guitar/bass/drum rock melody with tambourine accents
Synth sneaks in
Same tempo (D major)
(The abrupt style change catches them flat-footed—or at least as much as they can be, given that they are still floating above the stage—and Adagio grimaces mightily once she gets her eyes turned in the direction of Aria’s pointing finger.)
Rainbooms:		Oh, whoa
(Long shot of the group on their hilltop, backed by the mobile sound/light show. Sunset and Spike keep their distance, backed off to one side.)
I’ve got the music in me
Oh, whoa
(Guitar lick by Rainbow.)
Twilight:		Don’t need to hear a crowd cheering out my name
(The students start to come to their senses and glance toward the band.)
I didn’t come here seeking infamy or fame
Rainbooms:		The one and only thing that I am here to bring
(Smiles spread through the crowd.)
Is music, is the music, is the music in my soul
(A burst of white light envelops the group, and one by one, a wave of objects matching the cutie mark of each girl. tumbles across the screen to give a close-up of her undergoing her half-pony transformation and her clothes beginning to sparkle. Applejack: red streak appears in hair. Rarity: pink/blue streaks in hair. Fluttershy: streaks of yellow and dark pink as she twirls in place. Rainbow: sliding forward on her knees to strike a chord. Pinkie: two-tone blue streaks in hair. Last is Twilight, whose six-pointed pink star expands to fill the screen; from here, snap to her as streaks of light blue and pink trace down the full length of her hair and she catches a microphone thrown to her.)
Rainbooms:		Gonna break out [Out!] and set myself free, yeah
Let it all go [Go!], just let it be, yeah
Harmony vocals under next two lines
Find the music in your heart, let the music make you start
To set yourself apart
(All but Pinkie end up floating high above the improvised second stage.)
Original ominous style (B minor)
(Close-up of Adagio.)
Adagio: So the Rainbooms want to turn this into a real Battle of the Bands? Then let’s battle.
Harmony vocals under lyrics
(Zoom out slowly to frame the other two.)
Dazzlings:		What we have in store, all we want and more
(The crowd falls under their influence again; close-up of Adagio, eyes burning red.)
We will break on through, now it’s time to finish you
Guitar chords over thumping drum beat; intensity builds into a discordant melody
(A pulse travels from her pendant to those of Aria and Sonata, the eyes of these two going crimson as well, and a blast of red/white magic pours outward from the stage to turn the sky a lurid crimson. One by one, each gem sends up an apparition matching the image of the equine/reptilian Sirens in the book Twilight showed her friends before she made the jump from Ponyville to Canterlot High. One is yellow, one violet, one blue—from Adagio, Aria, and Sonata, respectively—and each has a gem embedded in its chest. The Rainbooms stare wide-eyed at this new turn of events, and the three specters rocket out toward the hilltop.)
(They circle the Rainbooms, looking for an opportunity to strike and forcing all but Pinkie into a tight defensive circle. DJ P0N-3 adjusts a setting on the turntables built into her car’s dashboard, Pinkie cranks off a high-speed drum riff, and the speakers throw out a sound wave that scatters the Sirens’ avatars.)
Rainbooms’ song takes over (D major)
(Rarity’s fingers race over her keys, sending a blast of lozenge-shaped jewels to disrupt the attackers; Fluttershy adds to the offensive with a tambourine shake that unleashes a torrent of butterflies.)
Twilight:		Whoa, whoa
(The entire vicinity shakes in response to her amplified voice, and a rush of white six-pointed stars pours forth. Cut to a profile of a furious Adagio, then dissolve to her Siren avatar, which lets go with an even higher note and a wave of red magic that overwhelms Twilight all too quickly. She is slowly pushed back by the counterattack, one platform sole grinding into the dirt, but gets herself stabilized and sends up a glare of the clearest, purest anger.)
Discordant guitar/drum melody (E minor); tempo gradually accelerates
(All three Dazzlings join forces and voices now, uncorking a full-volume vocal battering through their avatars that pushes the Rainbooms off their feet. The microphone goes flying out of Twilight’s hand in slow motion, brushing against one of Pinkie’s cymbals as it tumbles past…)
Song ends abruptly
(…and arcs gracelessly through the empty space. Normal motion resumes with a cut to a close-up of it rolling to a stop at Sunset’s foot; she picks it up, the camera zooming out to frame Spike looking on. She regards the device as if it were a hand grenade with the pin pulled out, then huddles herself slightly over it. As the Dazzlings advance slightly from the stage, mouths set in truly frightening grins of impending triumph, Twilight looks in Sunset’s direction.)
Twilight: (rising partway off her knees) Sunset Shimmer! We need you!
(The red/gold-haired girl’s face broadcasts the titanic struggle that rages through her mind at this request. It ends with the brows drawing down over the blue-green eyes in steely determination; cut to Twilight and company still crumpled on the hilltop as her boots step to the fore. Tilt up to frame her, microphone in one hand, shucking off and throwing aside her jacket with the other. A studded bracelet encircles each wrist, and her upper-body garment is now fully exposed as a sleeveless top. As the wind blows through her hair, DJ P0N-3 works her turntable controls and starts a record spinning, bringing the front-end equalizer panel back to life.)
Lively, driving drum rhythm (fast 4)
Sunset’s vocals establish the key as D major
Sunset:			You’re never gonna bring me down
You’re never gonna break this part of me
(She helps Twilight to her feet.)
My friends are here to bring me ’round
Not singing just for popularity
Electric guitar in
(They each get a hand on the microphone, holding it between them.)
Twilight, Sunset:		We’re here to let you know that we won’t let it go
Bass, tambourine in
(Pinkie sits upright at her kit, the others stand up, and all start to play.)
Our music is a bomb and it’s about to blow
(The specters rush toward the band.)
And you can try to fight, but we have got the light
Rainbooms, Sunset:		Of friendship on our side
Synth in
(Close-up of the pair, zooming out to frame the entire band. A ball of white light appears behind the two singers and grows in intensity, with a secondary focus in the free hands that they lift over their heads and touch together. A pastel-rainbow shock wave tears outward from the group, hurling the spectral Sirens away and nailing the real ones dead on. Its passage shakes the students out of their daze and rattles Adagio so badly that the infernal red glow fades from her eyes in close-up.)
Rainbooms, Sunset:		Got the music in our hearts
We’re here to blow this thing apart
And together we will never
Be afraid of the dark
(Now Sunset finds herself slowly floating free of the ground, yellow light and sparkles blazing around every inch of her form. Two yellow-orange pony ears emerge from within the wild tumble of hair, and one midair pirouette later, the locks reaching down her back have elongated into a tail secured by a studded band that matches her bracelets. The energy surrounding her surges out in a wave of red/yellow sunbursts to fully reveal the transformed Sunset—sparkles on her clothing and boots, and a large sunburst on her skirt. Her face displays a smirk, but it is one of confidence rather than malice.)
Rainbooms:			Here to sing our song out loud
Get you dancing with the crowd
As the music of our friendship 
Survives, survives
E major
(The other six rise up behind Sunset, each wreathed in a glow of her own; Pinkie’s drum kit stays on the ground. A new rainbow flashes upward from them and into the sky, but this one has seven colors rather than six once a vivid scarlet streak rises in the middle due to Sunset’s involvement. The beam pours into a bank of gray clouds swirling overhead, which disintegrate to reveal a gigantic, white-glowing sphere unfurling a pair of translucent blue-white wings.)
Rainbooms:			Got the music in our hearts
We’re here to blow this thing apart
And together we will never
Be afraid of the dark
(Students all over the place start to get down on it.)
Rainbooms, Students:	Here to sing our song out loud
Get you dancing with the crowd
(The Dazzlings glower down at them, the red light gone from all three pairs of eyes, then glance upward with real fear. What the band has unleashed is a colossal winged unicorn whose body seems to glitter with stardust from one end to the other. Its streaming mane/tail display all the colors of the rainbow that formed it, and its eyes and the tip of its horn burn purest white. This apparition stands at least three times as tall and broad as those conjured by the Dazzlings.)
Rainbooms, Students:	As the magic of our friendship
Survives, survives, survives
(Here comes the pitch: a wide beam that angles downward to strike both high and low. The ghostly Sirens crack and shatter into fragments, and in a three-way split screen of extreme close-ups, the gems in the Dazzlings’ pendants do the same. Fade to white.)
Song ends
(Fade in to a long shot of the stage, to which the Dazzlings have fallen hard amid a few last dissipating wisps of green negative energy. The sky has returned to its normal nocturnal hue. A close-up frames them rubbing their heads, their wings, clothing sparkles, and pony ears/tails gone; the remains of their red jewels lie before them, still glowing feebly—but only for a moment. As the last glimmers of light fade away from the broken baubles, Adagio is first to regard hers with a popeyed stare; she scoops up those shards and hastily gets to her feet. Up come Aria and Sonata as well, all three glaring toward the crowd, and they take a deep breath to sing again—but this time, not a single one of them is in any recognizable key.)
A cappella, no key (slow 4, loose tempo)
(The sudden loss of their mesmerizing vocal ability throws a bucketful of sand into their mental machinery. The crowd is not amused.)
Dazzlings:		We will be adored, tell us that you want us
(losing steam)		We won’t be ignored, it’s time for our reward
(The end of their second line is lost under a hearty round of booing, which is in turn followed by a barrage of thrown food items that sends the trio running for the wings. Cut to an extreme close-up of the gem fragments and zoom out; Sunset reaches into view to pick one up, and the view cuts to a close-up of her as she stands upright to inspect it. Her pony ears and tail are gone, and she has put her jacket back on.)
Sunset: (to the approaching Twilight and Rarity) Guess that explains why these were so special to them.
(These two have returned to normal as well. On the start of the next line, cut to frame all seven girls, also changed back, and Spike at their feet.)
Twilight: Without those pendants and the magic you brought here from Equestria, they’re just three harmless teenage girls. 
Flash: (from o.s.) Rainbooms rule! (He races onto the stage and grabs her up in a hug.) That was amazing! 
(Caught completely off guard, she glances toward her bandmates with the barest hint of a blush; they just giggle to themselves, and the purple and blue eyes turn toward each other for a long moment. A glance away, a blush on both sets of cheeks—and then Trixie butts in to split the two maybe-lovebirds apart.)
Trixie: (full ham mode) You may have vanquished the Dazzlings, but you will never have the amazing show-stopping ability of the Great and Powerful Trixie!
(Just as she did backstage during the semifinals, she throws down something that explodes in a screen-filling blast of pale blue smoke. When the view clears, all seven girls, one boy, and one dog are coughing out the last fumes and Trixie is nowhere in sight.)
Pinkie: She’s gone! (Running footsteps from o.s.; she glances toward them.) Oh, wait.
(Cut to a long shot of the fleeing upstart, caught in the process of climbing over the wall that runs behind the very back rows of seats.)
Pinkie: (from o.s.) There she is.
(Zoom in as Trixie loses her balance and tumbles over the edge, dropping out of sight.)
Trixie: (from behind wall) Trixie’s okay! (Back to Twilight, Rainbow, and Sunset.)
Rainbow: (to Sunset) You know, Twilight is going back to Equestria soon. (Twilight nods at this.) The Rainbooms could really use someone to help Fluttershy on backup vocals. 
(Close-up of the girl in the leather jacket on the second half of this line. A glance to one side discloses a “Flying V” guitar leaning up against an amp; she quickly slings it up, produces a pick, and uncorks a fast riff. Just as quickly, the pick goes back where it came from.)
Sunset: I also play guitar.
(Pan from her to Applejack/Fluttershy/Pinkie/Rarity/Spike, none of whom can immediately wrap their heads around this out-of-left-field display of musical prowess. All five pairs of eyes turn toward the o.s. Twilight and Rainbow; cut to these two, the former smiling calmly, the latter with her mind also blown. It takes a second for her to get her brain and tongue wired back together.)
Rainbow: We’ll see.
(Twilight grins hugely and Sunset—having set the axe down—allows herself a bashful smile, which gives way to complete shock and then a bigger smile as she finds herself at the center of a full-band group hug. Spike gets into the act by hugging one of Rarity’s ankles.)
(Dissolve to the front lawn of Canterlot High the next morning and zoom in on the statue, where all eight have gathered by its base. The girls are all back in their school outfits, including Sunset’s original sun-marked shirt.)
Applejack: Sure wish you could stay longer.
Twilight: Me too. (Pinkie peeks out from behind her.) But I have responsibilities in Equestria that I have to get back to.
(Unnoticed, the pink goofball turns to the base, pokes at one side to set it rippling and glowing—the portal to Equestria is open—and shoves her whole face through.)
Twilight: Its citizens need me. 
(Pinkie backs out, dazed and with hair disheveled; cut to Fluttershy and Rainbow.)
Twilight: (from o.s.) But now, I can go through the portal whenever I need to. (To Applejack/Rarity/Sunset.) This isn’t goodbye. (Back to her.) It’s just goodbye ’til next time. (to the o.s. Spike) Ready? (Cut to him.)
Spike: Ready! 
(He trots forward and through the portal; the others—including a recovered and cleaned-up Pinkie—wave to Twilight before she steps in a moment later. Dissolve to the sun in a peaceful sky and tilt down to the amphitheatre stage. The original five Rainbooms are warming up on their instruments, while off to one side DJ P0N-3 is readying her turntables and Sunset sits writing in her magic journal. Zoom in on these two.)
Sunset: (voice over, dictating) “Dear Princess Twilight: Missing you already, and hope you’ll be back soon.” (Close-up.) “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.” (She closes the book.)
Rainbow: (from o.s.) You ready or what?
(Cut to center stage; Sunset runs over, guitar slung up.)
Sunset: Ready!
Pinkie: (counting off with sticks) One, two, three, four!
CLOSING CREDITS
Upbeat acoustic/electric guitar melody with bass drum beat, bright 4 (C major)
(The jagged red line of a sound wave signal pulses across the screen as a background for the credits and accompanying visuals. Rainbow strums her guitar, Pinkie lays down a beat, Sunset gets her strings going, and all six play on a brightly colored stage setup with three elevated platforms above the drum kit. Rainbow and Sunset at center; Rarity at stage left, Applejack and Fluttershy at stage right. The marks of all six girls—collectively referred to as “the Rainbooms” from here on in—are on display in the backdrops. They are in their performance attire and have grown their pony ears and tails.)
Electric guitar out; snare drum in
Harmony vocals behind first/third lines
Applejack:		Once upon a time
You came into my world and made the stars align
Rarity:		Now I can see the signs
You pick me up when I get down so I can shine
Electric guitar, bass, synth in
(Pencil drawings of first Applejack and then Rarity, tinted respectively in orange-tan and purple; Applejack carries a crate of bottled cider, while Rarity has donned her reading glasses to stitch up a bow. Normal clothes and appearance have resumed.)
Rainbooms:		Shine like rainbows
Shine like rainbows
(Sunset walks down a hall in Canterlot High, an open backpack on her back and her journal slowly sliding free of it. It glows and vibrates with an incoming message, causing it to fall out, but Bloom hurries in to catch and return it. The other two Crusaders soon arrive on the scene, and all four walk off together in high spirits.)
Electric guitar out
Rainbow:		Friends, you are in my life
And you can count on me to be there by your side
(This world’s equivalent of pony Fluttershy’s rabbit Angel sits on a high wrought-iron railing, sticking his tongue out in close-up at Sunset’s futile grabs at him. Zoom out to frame both her and a distraught Fluttershy; the former gets a real surprise when Bulk arrives to hoist her up and put her within reach of the little fuzzball.)
Electric guitar in
Sunset:		And when the music comes alive
We sing our songs to lift us up so we can shine
(Vertical panels showing Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie slide in from the top and bottom of the screen, each tinted in its girl’s color. They are looking in various directions, but turn their eyes upward after a moment and smile, their normal colors returning. After these images disappear, the same occurs for Rainbow, Fluttershy, and Sunset.)
Rainbooms:		And the sound that we hear in our hearts
It’s a crescendo
And the light that ignites in the dark
It makes us all glow
All instruments out except bass and minimal percussion
(Two more pencil drawings: a very happy Pinkie skipping along with a bunch of balloons, then a grinning Rainbow with a soccer ball under one arm. Pink and blue, respectively.)
Rainbooms:		And shine like rainbows
We shine like rainbows
Other instruments sneak in over next four lines, adding horns and strings
Harmony vocals under next four lines
(Two panels appear at top and bottom and slide toward each other, showing the entire band onstage, transformed, and performing in their stage outfits. Top panel: Applejack/Rarity/Sunset. Bottom panel: Fluttershy/Pinkie/Rainbow.)
Rainbooms:		Together we stand 
As the rain begins to fall
(The panels drop off the screen and are replaced by one in which the six step forward and raise their eyes and hands to the sky.)
And holding our heads up high
As the sun shines through it all
(A flare from one of the overhead spots fills the screen and clears to show another set of pencil drawings: green-tinted Spike, back in dragon form and slightly embarrassed at having been caught eating from a bag of dog biscuits…then the Crusaders having big fun; Bloom is drawn in red, Scootaloo in purple, Sweetie in blue…DJ P0N-3 working her decks, drawn in blue-green…Derpy, blue-gray, holding a muffin…a yellow Fluttershy watching a butterfly perch on one index finger while the other arm holds a rather grumpy Angel close to her side…a red-drawn Sunset grinning cockily…a violet Twilight holding an open book. All of the girls are back to their non-pony appearances and clothing.)
(This last image recedes from the camera and moves to the center of the screen as those of the other members of the magnificent seven come in from either side. The sketches form one line that stretches all the way across the screen before sliding up to make room for the final credits.)
Rainbooms:		And the sound that we hear in our hearts
It’s a crescendo
And the light that ignites in the dark
It makes us all glow
And shine like rainbows
We shine like rainbows
Shine like rainbows
We shine like rainbows
We shine like rainbows
Song ends on one last bass note
(The sound wave signal dies away to a flat line and is pulled off the right edge of the screen as the credits stop rolling to leave the final copyright information. However, it soon emerges from the left edge, the text sliding out of view ahead of its leading end, and becomes a scrolling, jagged signal to the faint hum of machinery and the scratch of a pen. Behind it, the background fades to white as the camera pans slightly left to frame a stylus marking down this signal—it is a strip chart. The jagged peaks soon die out, the paper roll stopping as well, and the camera zooms out to an overhead view of this recorder.)
(A light violet hand in a long white sleeve reaches into view to tear the readout away, whipping it past the camera; once it is gone, a bulletin board can be seen, covered with notes and chart readouts. At the center of this jumble is a photograph of Canterlot High, with several strings leading to it and secured dead center with a thumbtack. The latest strip chart is stuck up among the lot, and the camera zooms out to frame a figure in a lab coat eyeing it all intently. Even though this individual can only be seen from behind for the moment, the skin and hair colors mark it as a dead ringer for Twilight. The hair is rumpled and tied back at the nape of the neck in a bun with a pencil stuck into it, the collar of a light blue turtleneck peeks over the coat, and eyeglasses with thick black frames are in evidence as well.)
(Head-on view of her, hair slightly disheveled, a dog who looks exactly like Spike eating food from a bowl in the background. The next words mark these two as the ones who are native to this world.)
Human Twilight: No doubt about it, Spike. There’s definitely something strange going on at that school.
(Dog Spike barks in reply. Fade to black.)
Category:Transcripts