Soul and Voice

by Daruqe

Rating: mature
Tags: Romance, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Rainbow Dash, Sex, Twilight Sparkle, Slice of Life, Sad
Length: 11710

Twilight Sparkle's telepathy spell malfunctions, and she and Rainbow Dash are stuck sharing each other's thoughts.

Twilight Sparkle's telepathy spell malfunctions, and she and Rainbow Dash are stuck sharing each other's thoughts. Things are heard that were not mean to be heard, and they are forced to confront each other.

Takes place mid-Season 2. Moar stream of consciousness because reasons.

AND YES, THIS IS MARKED "COMPLETE" FOR A REASON.

Published 2013-08-03 16:20:02 UTC
Last updated 2013-08-03 16:20:02 UTC

Chapter 1

Inspired by the episode “Attached” from Star Trek: The Next Generation, directed by Jonathan Frakes, and written by Nicholas Sagan.

Whitetail Wood swayed in the afternoon autumn breeze. The cool day tired as evening drew near. Bright red before deep blue, leaves danced lazily before a clear sky.

High above the treetops glided Rainbow Dash. She stood out as a bright blue form from above the red canopy, and as a dark silhouette from below the blue sky. She would loop back and around so her companion below could keep with her pace. Twilight Sparkle trotted along the forest floor below, her purple unicorn head stuck in a spellbook, and paying no mind to the swift pegasus shadow that swung back and around over her.

The two were hours out of their home in Ponyville. They could only hear the light rustling of leaves and the quaint chirping of birds. Not a soul would hear if they screamed.

Rainbow shouted, “HEY TWILIGHT!” She couldn’t tell if Twilight could hear her, so she started her dive toward her.

Twilight looked up to see a streak of rainbow falling to her. Rainbow Dash zoomed through the branches, sideslipping her way down. Twilight took some steps back away from Rainbow’s landing. Some feet from the ground, Rainbow Dash quickly pulled up—flapping her wings against the ground and blowing away a clearing of leaves on the forest floor. She then let herself fall casually to the ground, her hooves crunching quietly on the leaves. Rainbow’s gust having settled, Twilight lowered her hoof from her face, and the two approached each other.

“What’s up, Rainbow?”

Rainbow glanced around and back to see Ponyville far out of sight. “I dunno, I just didn’t think we’d be out this far.”

Twilight stuffed her spellbook back into her saddlebag. “How long have we been going for?”

“A couple of hours; I dunno.”

Twilight glanced around. “Oh wow, we are pretty far out, aren’t we?”

“Hey, I’m not the one who said we hadta be this far outta town.”

“I know, I know—it’s just much more convenient to test this spell out here away from town.”

“And you needed to see me in action for once! Just you an’ me! No distractions this time!”

“Well, it got me outside, didn’t it?”

“Hell yeah!” Rainbow gave Twilight a little nudge. “About time, you dork!”

Twilight blushed a bit. “It’s only fair, with me keeping you cooped up in the library and all.” Twilight retrieved her spellbook from her bags and started flipping through pages.

“Hey, you’re not keeping me cooped up anywhere.” Rainbow took a defiant stance. “I could stop coming whenever I feel like it!” An awkward pause. Rainbow looked back to see Twilight still engrossed in her reading. “But I don’t, of course.”

“Uh-huh.” Twilight didn’t look up.

“I mean, you got the only Daring Do collection in town, right?” No response. “And, y’know, hangin’ out with you is always pretty cool, so . . . ”

“Yeah, of course.” Half-heartedly.

“Are you even—”

“Alright then, I think we’re ready!” Twilight finally shut her book and went back over to Rainbow.

“Oh, right. So whaddo I have to do with this phycho-brain-thingy?”

“In English?”

“—and you don’t have to be doing much other than breathing really.”

“Well I’m pretty good at that.”

“All it means is that we’ll be able to talk to each other with our minds.”

“And you said this isn’t some mind-reading mumbo-jumbo, right?”

“Exactly. If this works correctly, then the only thoughts we will be able to hear are the ones we choose to send to each other.”

“So I won’t hear if something weird randomly pops up in your head.”

“Right.”

“I mean, unless you wanted me to hear it, right?” Rainbow chuckled awkwardly.

“Uhhh, right . . . And again, we’re only out here so we don’t get any interference from anypony’s minds.”.

“And so you can check out my awesome moves, right?” Rainbow added with a stylish pose.

Twilight assured her, “Of course, Rainbow!” She opened her spellbook again and briefly glanced at it.

Rainbow looked back to Twilight. She had her little nose stuck in that book again. Her horn jutted from that nerdy head of hers out of her mane—pointing to Rainbow. Twilight’s bangs hung long low and swung gently before her face—the little pinkpurple strands of her mane swaying before the little lights in her eyes—tiny dots like spittle twinkling and hiding the reflected words on the page of her book. All a malicious veil to hide the words of her mind.

“Alright!” Twilight shut the book. “Let’s get started!”

Rainbow shook herself to. “Uh . . . right!”

Twilight stepped forward toward Rainbow. Rainbow could feel herself blushing. Twilight shut her eyes and lowered her head—her horn started glowing. Rainbow figured she should shut her eyes too. For a moment, there was a true naturesilence—none of the clanking, clattering, muttering noises of the busy lives in Ponyville. Instead, a soft wind cooing in their ears. A bird tweeting somewhere. The leaves rustling above. A little stream trickling far off.

Finally, they heard the low hum of Twilight’s horn. Rainbow felt something—some sort of presence in her mind apart from hers was probing her—looking for something to latch on to. It prodded through her mind—poking into the tender folds of her consciousness. Suddenly, she felt a click—like the feeling of stumbling upon an idea—Rainbow sensed the once vague presence lock on to her mind and reveal itself as Twilight’s. Rainbow Dash and this odd sense of Twilight snapped together, and the rope tying their two minds together was pulled taut. She could feel Twilight’s presence in her mind like the feeling of looking into her eyes. This feeling lingered for a long moment of bubbly silence. It was the most intimate, yet so distant feeling—knowing her mind’s every curve, crevice, sound, and smell—yet knowing no thought, thirst, fear, nor fetish therein.

Snap! “GAH!” The two jumped when Twilight’s spell had finished.

Rainbow blinked. “Well, that was weird.”

“It certainly was interesting . . . ”

“So, how does this work, exactly?”

“Well, let’s see!” Twilight stopped to give it a try. “Um, Hello? Can you hear me?”

“Woah!” It was the most bizarre feeling. Rainbow Dash wasn’t hearing Twilight, but it somehow sounded like Twilight’s voice. Moreover, it was a voice in her head that she had no control over, and it was someone else’s voice coming from inside her, rather than outside. The voice didn’t seem to echo either, like she imagined it might—rather, it had a sharp, bright timbre and didn’t seem to reverberate at all.

“That was . . . awesome! I mean—it was weird, but—anyway, how do I do it?”

“Well, the book isn’t really clear . . . It’s sorta like . . . you think about saying something, but instead of actually saying it, you just think about it really hard. But you have to have the intention of me hearing it. Does that make sense?”

“Not really, but I’ll give it a shot!” “Um, hey there.”

“EEK!” Twilight almost jumped. Rainbow Dash laughed out loud. “That is weird!”

“Did I—” Rainbow was still laughing, “—did I freak you out?”

“No,” Twilight was panting now, “I was simply surprised, that’s all.” She could manage a smile.

“Man, that’s just awesome.” Rainbow tried to spook her some more. “Woooo! I’m in your braaain!” Twilight gasped but started giggling. Rainbow laughed again. “Wait, wait—check this out!” Rainbow Dash donned her best faithful-student-Twilight face, batting her eyes and everything, and thought in Twilight’s voice. “Oh dear, I forgot to write my report to my lesbian lover, Princess Celestia!”

“RAINBOW DASH!” Twilight started blushing hard behind an embarrassed smile.

“Let’s see here . . . ‘Dear Princess Celestia, Today I learned some blah-blah-blah about some bullshit and how friendship is truly forever! Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle. P.S. I hope my tardiness means I won’t get any action upon my next visit!’”

“Rainbow! You know I’m not into . . . that stuff!”

“What, chicks?”

“ . . . Yeah, I guess. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but . . . ”

“Whatever, dude.”

“Just because you’re into it, doesn’t mean everyone else is, Rainbow.”

“Hey, what makes you think I am?”

“Oh, nothing really . . . I’m sorry; I don’t even know why I said that . . . ”

“Well!” Rainbow put on a faux-shocked expression, almost channeling Rarity. “Quite frankly, I’m offended that one of my closest friends would make assumptions about my sexual preferences! If she really wanted to know, she would only need to ask!” She looked back at Twilight and gave her a crafty smile. Twilight smiled back and giggled.

“Alright, Rainbow, I won’t bring it up again.”

“Don’t resist the pussy . . . !”

“RAINBOW!”

“Hm?”

“Oh! I almost forgot! We need to test something else with the spell.”

“What is it?”

“Here:” There was a pause. If you can hear this, then I screwed up the spell.

“Huh?”

“Did you hear anything?”

“No. What’s up?”

“I had to test whether we could hear each other’s regular thoughts.”

“The stuff you said we wouldn’t be able to hear?”

“Right. And it looks like the spell worked perfectly.”

“Awesome! No weird shit!”

“Well, I respect your privacy, Rainbow Dash; I wouldn’t force you to share your private thoughts with me.”

“Meh, you wouldn’t be interested anyway.” Rainbow looked down disinterestedly, and kicked some dirt with her hoof. There was a brief silence—undisturbed by conversation or the sound of each other’s thoughts. Their conversation had changed endlessly over the past minutes, but the sounds of the forest were the same. A soft wind cooing in their ears. A bird tweeting somewhere. The leaves rustling above. A little stream trickling far off. The cloudless sky, in its rich blue, held gently the whole of the forest in a red stillness. The two friends had some sense that this stillness was just the way things were supposed to be.

“Anyway,” Twilight opened up her saddlebag, “I need to take notes on our experiment, so if you could just wait—”

“But first—” Rainbow interrupted while assuming a take-off pose, “—you gotta see my moves up there!”

“Actually, that’d be great! I need to test the range of this telepathy spell anyway, so—” but with a dash, Rainbow had thrust her legs off the ground and taken off—tossing up clouds of dirt and leaves on the forest floor. Dammit, Rainbow . . . Twilight puffed a sigh upwards, tossing up the bangs of her mane. She took out her notepad, quill and ink.

Dash heaved and beat her wings and shred through the sticks and leaves—while the wind zipped and flipped past her ears and through her mane. She tore past the red treetops—shot straight up—then let herself stall high in the afternoon blue. She hung there in the sun for a moment, then let herself tumble up and around over herself—only to get the lift back under her wings and soar onward, laughing and cheering.

Twilight, meanwhile, had been detailing the success in her telepathy spell. She looked from her notes, pondering for a second, tapping her quill to her pursed lips. Then she remembered Rainbow Dash.

“Hey Rainbow Dash!”

Dash was still whooshing above the forest, her hooves stretched forward. “What’s up, Twi?”

“Can you hear me from up there?”

Oh right, her stupid magic stuff. Dash rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I can hear ya just fine.”

“Great! Um, would you happen to know how high you are right now?”

Rainbow Dash looked down. “I dunno. About 200 feet?”

“Excellent! Thanks, Rainbow Dash!” Twilight turned back to her notes to record her data.

“Now that you’re done with that, you gotta check this out!”

“Rainbow w—” Twilight spoke aloud accidentally. “Wait a sec, Rainbow Dash—!” “Ugh!”

Dash was flying along, above the treetops, picking up speed. Her mind was elsewhere.

That time a couple of weeks ago. When I came over. ‘Oh hi, Rainbow Dash! I didn’t expect you this early.’ That big pile of books she had. ‘Sorry about the mess.’ Books everywhere. ‘Here, Dashie, I’ll get you something to drink—WHAA—!’ She trips. That plot in the air. Her legs spread out. I can see everything. That tight pussy. Almost right in front of me. Can’t say anything. Just laugh. She covers herself with her tail. She’s adorable. Later. That book. Spells for Sensual Satisfaction. ‘Strictly for research purposes, of course.’ She’s red.

That one night. ‘Y’know, I don’t mind you staying over this late, Rainbow. Things can get lonely around here after Spike goes to bed . . . No, I haven’t had a boyfriend, really . . . I’ve just been too busy for that kinda stuff, I guess . . . ’ She looks away. No one’s looking. I hug her. ‘Oh, Rainbow Dash . . . ’ She hugs back. ‘Always be there for me, will you?’

Rainbow dash was now tearing across the treetops, blowing away the branches in her wake. She took her path in a big circle so Twilight could still see. She brought herself lower and lower, until she could kick off on the tree branches and come back up. She did this again and again—bouncing up and down on the forest canopy.

“Rainbow, could you maybe fly a bit higher and tell me if you can still hear me?” Twilight had gone back briefly to her notes. Just for a sec. Surely she hasn’t started without me. Wait . . . “Rainbow Dash? Can you hear me?”

Dash was near top speed—then she pulled up—jerking her body backwards and heaving her wings back against her momentum—crashing through twigs and branches—until she took off near top speed again in the other direction—then upward—plowing through a cloud and dragging a trail of it in a huge downward spiral—back down to the treetops—and shooting straight up through the middle of the spiral—coming to a halt at the top.

Rainbow grinned, panting as she hovered in the high skies. The cool wind whipped about in her mane. She dripped from cloud water and sweat. She breathed it all in.

“Hey Twilight, you see that?”

Twilight had opened back to her spellbook. No, that’s not it . . . Oh! I hear her now. I’ll respond in a sec, just gotta record this . . .

Was she not watching? Maybe I went too high for the spell. Dash flapped herself lower—a bit closer to the ground. “Hello!? Twilight!?” Still nothing. She’s still ignoring me? Dash sighed with a little pout, and started her dive down to Twilight. Still calling her with her mind, Dash tried calling to Twilight aloud, “HEY, EGGHEAD!”

Oh, dear, gotta respond now . . .

No way she just said that—

Huh? “How—?” Twilight turned around to respond, only to take a tackle face-first from a pissed pegasus. They tumbled, Twilight plopping on her plot, Rainbow skidding skillfully behind her.

“What the fuck was that about!?” Dash demanded.

Twilight groaned, rubbing her head. “I should be asking you that!” Geez, Rainbow, that hurt . . .

“What’s with the dicky comments, then? And at least talk to me for real instead of your psycho brain shit.” Fucking nerd . . .

“Oh, well you’re one to talk, Rainbow.” Twilight struggled up to face Rainbow Dash. “Wait, what the heck? You just did the same thing!” Oh, I hope this isn’t a concussion . . .

“Pfft. A concussion? Well, serves you right, Egghead.”

“Wait, how—?” No way. “Oh God.”

Oh God. “No way.”

The mental link— “Something must have happened to our mental link. It must have happened when you were diving at me so fast. It’s somehow deepened, and now our minds are transmitting deeper brain activity—the activity we have less control over.” Not good . . .

Really not good . . . “So, you can really hear my thoughts now? Like, all of them?” Don’t think anything weird, don’t think anything weird . . . Crap, now I thought about thinking about it!

“That seems to be the case . . . ” Think, Twilight! There’s gotta be a fix . . .

“There better be a fix!”

Sever it! That’s all! “Calm down, Rainbow. All I have to do is sever the link, and we won’t have any connection between our minds.” Twilight lowered her head and her horn glowed, sparkled sizzled and flickered.

This better work. This is getting really weird . . . Just don’t think about her; she won’t find out. No, there’s nothing to think about! I’m not into that! Gah, don’t think about it! Stop! Telling myself to stop may distract me enough. Maybe she’s too distracted to pay attention now. Like always. She’s taking a while—I hope it’s working . . .

Oh dear, I’m not sure about this . . .

Crap.

Twilight released her magic and raised her head panting.

“You still hear me, Twilight?”

I guess it didn’t work.

Crap.

“Yeah, I heard you. I guess you heard me too?”

“Yeah . . . Whad’we do now?”

“Well, just staying here won’t do anything . . . ”

“And you don’t know any spells that could fix this?”

“I don’t think so . . . ”

How could she not know any?

There’s always . . . “I do know of a spell . . . It’s a specific kind of despell for neural magic like this, but it’s back at the library . . . ”

“The library? You mean back in Ponyville?”

“I’m afraid so . . . ”

“That’s HOURS from here!”

“I know . . . ”

“Why can’t I just fly back myself and get it?”

That’d be great . . . “I’m sorry, I locked everything up before we left. We’ll just have to walk.”

“God dammit, Twilight!” This is all her fault. What a waste of a day.

“Rainbow, it’s the only way we’re gonna get outta this mess!” She’s the one who screwed up the spell.

“How is this MY fault!?”

“Rainbow, stop! Fighting won’t solve anything!”

“You expect me to just ignore what you say about me!?”

“I didn’t say it; I thought it! I don’t have control over that!” I think.

“Yeah,” Rainbow scoffed and turned her rear to Twilight with a flick of her tail, “right.” They stood for another silent moment. A soft wind cooed in their ears. A bird tweeted somewhere. The leaves rustled above. A little stream trickled far off.

Twilight sighed. “Look, unless you have any better ideas, making it back to Ponyville is our only solution.”

I want her to think of a better idea.

“So we need to get going before it gets dark.” Twilight replaced her notebook in her saddlebag. I’m not gonna give her any more attention. With that, she got her bearings, then started trotting eastward to Ponyville.

Rainbow looked back to Twilight as she left. She heaved a bigger sigh. “Fine.” She galloped her way to catch up with Twilight. Rainbow joined her on her left and the two went along their way east through the forest. Their little rumps bobbed up and down as they trotted along the forest path. They trod upon crunching leaves and snapping twigs, making their way under the red vault of a corridor of maples, away from the setting sun.

Author's Note

I actually told myself I prolly wouldn't write another fic. Then I churn out this monstrosity.

I only decided to split it into "chapters" when importing it here, so I'm not sure if Imma keep it that way. I just thought it'd be nicer for readers so they didn't have this monolith of text to read.

TELL ME IF NOTHING MAKES SENSE BECAUSE THAT IS LIKELY.

Also I had trouble tagging this, and I have no idea what groups it might belong to. Anyway. This has consumed my life for way to long, so yeah. Also I still don't know who my audience is.

Chapter 2

“Twilight, what’re you doing?” Rainbow Dash had caught Twilight in what looked like some deep-breathing exercise while they walked.

Twilight exhaled. “I’m just trying to calm myself down.” She inhaled. Figures. She exhaled. “There’s no point staying frustrated with you.”

“Whatever.”

“Why do you even ask? Can’t you just read my mind?”

“Hey, I’m not always paying attention to what’s going on in your head.”

If only we could just ignore each other this whole trip . . .

Rainbow overheard. “Yeah.”

“If I could just ignore your thoughts, Dashie, I would.”

Dash shot Twilight a glare. Yeah, you don’t do enough ignoring, I guess.

Oh dear, she really is still mad . . . She’s taken it real hard.

Oh, I’m just “taking it hard,” I guess.

Twilight winced. Oooh, my head . . . Dash hit me real hard.

Dash looked over to Twilight, concerned. C’mon, Dash, don’t feel sorry for her now.

Twilight glanced back at Rainbow Dash. Rainbow shot her glance away from Twilight, pretending she hadn’t been looking. She knows she can’t fool me, right?

Crap. Twilight looked away again. A silence. Rainbow turned back to her. “Look,” she sighed, “I’m sorry about crashing into you, alright?”

Twilight had her head down. She sighed. “You did hit me pretty bad. But, thanks anyway.” She tried a smile.

Cheer her up somehow . . . ? That could . . . it could be flirty too . . . Rainbow chuckled. “You looked real goofy when you landed on your ass like that.”

Oh, she’s trying to mess with me now. Wow, I can see her remembering what I looked like . . . Shoot, that did look silly.

“It was kinda cute.”

Twilight scoffed. “Yeah, thanks.” I’m not really in the mood.

Is that what she thinks of the—the whole being flirty thing?

‘What I think of it?’ What’s that mean?

Geez, she’s slow.

“Dash, I feel I should bring this up just in case things get weirder.”

“Weirder?”

“Well, um . . . Well, let’s be honest—ponies think about weird (sometimes inappropriate) things all the time, right?”

“Uh . . . ”

“I mean, be honest. We . . . we all do it, right? Sometimes we just don’t have control over it, right?”

“Yeah, I mean, I guess . . . ”

“Right. And if we don’t really have control over those things we think, it doesn’t necessarily mean anything, right?”

“Yeah . . . ?”

“All I mean is . . . so, if you randomly hear something weird that I’m thinking—or any of us is thinking, really—it shouldn’t really matter. All that matters is what we say out loud. Agreed?”

“Yeah, sure.” Whatever.

There has to be a way to make this trip more tolerable . . . “Y’know, you could always just fly your way back.”

She trying to get rid of me?

“Oh, it’s nothing personal Dashie! You just seem to enjoy yourself more in the sky.”

“Yeah . . . I guess I’m just a bit tired, is all.”

No she isn’t . . .

Dash elaborated, “And I guess I didn’t want you walkin’ home all alone or whatever down here. And we’ll still be able to hear each other even if I’m up there, right?”

“I guess you’re right.” That’s more believable, I guess. Doesn’t seem like she’s lying.

Good, she bought it.

‘Bought it?’ “‘Bought it,’ Rainbow?”

Crap. Oh, she wanted me to hear that. Crap. “I just meant you didn’t think I was hiding something or anything.”

Oh. “Okay, I see.”

“Y’know Twilight, doing the whole telepathy thing on purpose is really confusing when I can hear your brain anyway.”

Oh. Twilight chuckled. “Oops, sorry.” We’re in better moods now, I guess. “So, we’ve still got a ways to go. How should we spend the time?”

“Well,” Rainbow started while Twilight started laughing, “we’re definitely not playing Twenty Questions!” Twilight laughed harder. Wait— “Hey, did you hear my joke before I said anything?”

“Um,” Twilight was still giggling, “yeah, I did. Sorry, Rainbow.”

“Aw, c’mon!” She gave Twilight a little elbow to the shoulder. “That’s no fun!”

Twilight gave a couple of final chuckles then sighed with a smile. She swung her head up and looked around. How lovely! the leaves are all turned color. I guess I didn’t notice (how?). I haven’t really done any biological studies in Whitetail Wood. I guess I’m still a bit rusty on my taxonomy, but let’s give it a try . . . so the trees . . . check the leaves . . . now, the palmate venation and shape suggest maples—so genus Acer. Now the species . . . I’m tempted to say saccharinum—no, it’s rubrum—the three-pointed leaves—so it’s Acer rubrum—common name . . . red maple!—classification: Carl Whinnaeus. That seems right—wait, that tree’s leaves have five points . . . oh! must be a saccharinum—common name silver maple—also Whinnaeus. There are a lot of silver maples here actually. Are there any animals here to identify—?

“Twilight, is your brain always this boring?”

Oh, right. “Oh. Shoot. Sorry, Dashie. I’ll try to keep my mind on something else.”

“Thanks.” Shit, that mighta been too harsh . . .

Well, what do I think about now?

Can’t own up—I already said it . . .

Should we just talk? Like small talk? How do I not bore her?

Too late to own up now, anyway—

Wait, what’s she on about . . . ?

She doesn’t have to know I realized that was rude—SHIT—

“Dash—!” Don’t say anything—SHOOT—!

“Hm?” —Dammit, dammit—I can’t fucking think anything without—!

“Um,” . . . I don’t think I sounded too mean . . . “never mind, Dashie.”

—her hearing. Dammit. I can’t even be polite ‘cause she just reads my mind!

It looks like we’re both trying, at least . . .

Why can’t I be polite just ‘cause she knows what I’m thinking? That’s just stupid!

I guess we can’t be dishonest at all like this. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be polite . . . Courtesy doesn’t always involve deceit, does it?

This’d be a real awkward silence if we weren’t sharing a fucking brain . . .

Twilight heaved a sigh. Oh wow, she stinks.

Dash sniffed. Mmm, yeah I guess. “I kinda like the sweat smell, really.”

Twilight had her face turned away. “I can’t imagine.”

“You’re gonna have to get used to it if we’re gonna hang out!” Twilight chuckled behind her hoof. If she ever pays attention to me.

She’s still mad about that . . .

No shit, genius.

(Maybe I could get used to it . . . )

(Ha.) Is she ever gonna own up about the ignoring thing?

Oh, no. Change the subject.

She’s too scared to say anything. Of course. But what about back then? ‘Always be there for me, will you?’ Maybe I should say something. What should I say . . . ? ‘So when are you gonna stop ignoring me?’ Is that too rude?

She’s basically said it to me already.

Fuck. I have to say something now.

Kree! A hawk cried behind them. The two jumped and looked back. The hawk swooped down from high in the red canopy—sailing on her tawny wings through the air toward them. They spun their little heads round and ducked as she whooshed over them—soared past them into the setting sun. Kree! The hawk beat her wings and curved her path upward and rightward, finding her perch beside her mate in a high maple.

The two had started their walk again. Rainbow gave Twilight a smirk. “Pretty awesome.”

Twilight smiled back. “I’ll say.”

“See, that’s why you should come out here more often.”

“It was pretty cool.” Twilight gave Rainbow a light nudge. Rainbow’s pink eyes grew and she spun her head to Twilight. That felt weird.

Where did that come from?

Twilight cleared her throat. “By the way Dashie, that was a hawk.”

“Huh?”

“You thought it was an eagle, right?”

“Oh. Whatever. Same thing.”

“Not really. Well, I guess “hawk” and “eagle” are kinda polyphyletic terms. Still, I believe that was a Red-tailed hawk—Buteo jamaicensis I think—classified by J.F. Gmelin sometime in the late eighteenth century—”

“Twilight?”

“Oh. Ruining the moment. Sorry.”

They were walking past the tree where the hawks were perched. Their bubbling thoughts from their conversation had calmed. For a moment, the only thoughts their minds thought were of the scenery. The sun hung low before them in the sky wrapped in golden cloth. The forest sighed. The red maple leaves tired, and yielded their vibrancy to the coming night. Their minds remarked on the scenery, with no cause for reflection.

Fuck, gotta piss.

Oh. Right.

Crap.

I guess I do, too . . . The two stopped. They stood reddened for a moment. Rainbow broke the silence. “Um . . . ”

“Yeah, we can take a little rest-stop here if you need to. You can head behind the trees that way and I’ll go the other way.”

“We can still hear each other though, right?”

“Yeah, I guess there’s no avoiding that . . . ” They stood avoiding each other’s gaze for another moment. A songbird chirped in the distance. “We don’t have much choice, do we?”

“I guess not.” Rainbow took a shaky step back. “See you back here?”

“Yeah. It’ll be just a minute.” They went their separate ways.

It’s not like I’ll be thinking of anything embarrassing. (These trees are too small . . . )

That’s what I was thinking.

It’s not like ‘Oh, hey, time to piss—gotta stand here, let it out of my p—’ fuck. Dammit—embarrassing.

Oh.

Can’t unthink that, dammit. That sounded stupid.

“Don’t worry, Dashie, we all think stupid stuff, remember?”

And she heard. Right. Fuck.

Maybe shouldn’t have let her know I heard that? She had to’ve known. I rubbed it in, though.

Dammit, dammit, dammit—unthink it, unthink it, unthink it . . .

Gosh, now I feel bad . . .

“Don’t freak out Twilight, it was just stupid.” Stupid, stupid, stupid . . .

She wants to make me feel better; that’s good—she can’t be too mad at me. Well, she can’t be; I don’t hear any sign of her being mad.

“I’m just mad at myself, I guess.”

“It’s alright, Dashie.” Nothing else to comfort her with. All of this freakout just over something she thought . . . Need a way to make her feel better . . .

Rainbow found the backside of a tree large enough to hide behind. She looked back and saw no sign of Twilight’s purple. With a soft sigh, Rainbow positioned herself behind the tree. She needed somewhere else for her train of thought to be.

“Find a place?” Still kinda awkward.

“Mmhm.” A bit awkward.

Rainbow Dash felt a bit better. She sensed that Twilight knew this and was a bit reassured herself. Rainbow let out a more relieved sigh, spread her legs back, and relaxed herself. After a moment, her water came gently spraying out in a sparkling yellow stream, drizzling up a soggy muddy puddle.

“So, how’s it goin’ over there?” Definitely awkward.

“Oh, shut up.” Definitely.

I kinda liked that little bit of openness. Gives me a sorta adrenaline feeling.

No way . . . Well of course she would think that. I’ll grant her, there’s something to that feeling. Almost jealous she was more open than me and probably felt more of it than I.

I knew she liked it. But if she likes it, why won’t she open up more? Like then. ‘Always be there for me, will you?’

She wants me to open up more? Like, how? But . . . I don’t know. I . . . can’t.

She can’t?

I just can’t.

Rainbow let her mind flow through Twilight’s. Twilight was less focused on thinking now, and had moved her mind’s attention backwards—between her legs. Twilight was being frustrating. Rainbow didn’t have much respect for her privacy at that moment. Rainbow could feel the water flowing from Twilight with her. She could feel it as if it were her own body: the very place where Twilight’s piss fizzed and dripped over and through that tiny hole of sensitive skin. For a moment, Rainbow could savor the wonderful oneness with Twilight’s body.

Rainbow . . .

“Hm?”

Rainbow finished trickling. She shook her ass a bit and the last few drips dropped and plopped in the mud. She looked around. Still weird doing it out here . . . She shrugged and followed her way back to the path.

Twilight was just finishing up herself. She cleaned herself off with her magic and trotted back to the path.

Oh yeah, she has magic. That’s convenient.

Right. she can’t do much about that out here, I suppose. “Y’know, Rainbow, I could maybe . . . ”

Would she?

—no-no-no-no-no—I couldn’t do that—why did I even bring it up?

Dammit . . . Throw me a bone, will ya, Twi?

They found each other back on the path. They stared at each other.

To think she was just—

To think she was just—

Twilight gestured east on the path. “Shall we?”

“Yeah, gotta get home sometime.”

“It’s getting late.” They trotted along. The sun had set beyond the hills.

I can’t believe I almost offered to do that for her . . .

Me too, actually . . .

Wipe her off with my magic . . . And I think she wanted me to . . .

Well . . . (kinda) . . . I dunno.

Oh dear, I just . . . I don’t know . . . I can’t . . .

Ugh. She never can.

Oh God, this is so awkward . . . make it stop . . . all that stuff she heard me think—that I

heard her think—

Damn, Twilight . . .

—I can’t hide anything from her! “Rainbow Dash, are you sure you don’t wanna just fly the way back?”

Without her—?

No, that won’t help—

“Twilight, I can still hear you when I’m up there, remember—?”

“I know, I know! I just . . . I dunno if I can take this anymore . . . ” She was slowing her pace.

“Me neither.” Rainbow stopped and looked back. Twilight had stopped behind her. She had her head down, shuddering.

Help me . . .

This isn’t right. She’s stronger than this.

No, I’m not . . .

She always keeps it together.

I can’t . . .

‘Always be there . . . ’

. . . So she—

Rainbow marched over to Twilight. She planted a hoof on her shoulder.

. . . Thank you. Twilight looked up at Rainbow. Rainbow grinned. Twilight chuckled before Dash spoke.

“C’mon ya dork.” She eased Twilight back onto their path. “We can pull through this easy. Look, we’ll keep going until dark—”

Ohhh . . .

“Chill out, chill out—”

“I’m sorry; keep going.”

“—then we can set up a camp for the night.” And then, maybe we’ll— “We won’t have to deal with each other when we’re asleep, right?”

I guess . . .

“We can set up a camp, right?”

Twilight looked up. “Of course. If we can just find some wood, I can start a fire with magic.”

“Yeah! See? Piece a’ cake!”

“We’ll still have to walk back in the morning, though.”

“Yeah, but . . . ” Didn’t really think about that.

I had a feeling.

I could always go ahead in the morning—no, her place is locked . . . What if—

I could do it—wait, no—

“Perfect! You can go!”

“I—I take it back.”

“Huh?”

“Rainbow Dash, I’m not gonna leave you out here by yourself.”

“Hey, I’ll be fine!”

“What’ll you do if a bear comes in the night? You might not have time to fly away.”

“There are bears out here?” Dash looked around.

“I mean, most likely.”

That is kinda scary . . . “Well, anyway I’ll be fine. You know me!” We’ll just stay away from any bear caves . . .

“Rainbow,” Twilight put her hoof on her shoulder. They stopped on the path. “I’m not leaving you out here.”

Twilight . . . does she . . . ?

Wrong message . . . ?

They hugged. Dash gave her an extra squeeze.

Did she think I meant more . . . ? I . . . I really didn’t . . .

She had to. She’s fooling herself.

They let go.

Dang, she had my mind distracted from this for a bit, too—talk of bears and stuff—the camp—

Right— “Alright, Twilight.” They started moving again. “Let’s just keep going till dark.”

“What about morning?”

“We’ll see!”

“No plan?”

“Nah. We’ll take care of all that later. We just need some shut-eye first. A break, ya know? Then we’ll be outta the woods in no time!” She gave Twilight a nudge. “Am I right?”

Twilight smiled. Geez. I’m supposed to be the leader, Dashie.

“Things are just different right now, y’know? Sharing a brain and all.”

It’s certainly not the way it should be.

She’s been mushy like this before, though . . .

. . . Right . . . “Um . . . Rainbow Dash . . . ?”

“I sorta already know what you’re gonna ask me about.”

“Oh. Right.” Twilight looked up. “So, that one night? When I was talking about being lonely?”

‘No, I haven’t had a boyfriend, really . . . ’

‘Things can get lonely around here . . . ’ “Right.”

She read into it too much . . .

Of course. She ‘just can’t.’

“That was . . . I’d had a bad day, I guess . . . I was under a lot of stress . . . I just got a bit emotional.”

Don’t do it like this . . . “Yeah, so?”

“I didn’t want you to get the wrong idea is all.”

“Wrong idea?”

“I mean . . . ” Don’t make me be the one to say it, Dash; you know what I’m talking about . . .

Not gonna listen— “It’s alright if you thought you got too personal, Twilight. I don’t gotta hear everything that’s on your mind. But we’re still friends, and I’m still gonna be there for ya.”

Dash, do you think you can fool me?

Dammit, I’m gonna try.

She can’t keep it bottled up forever.

I won’t. (Tonight—when we make the camp—)

Oh no.

Fuck. (‘I can’t fucking think anything without her hearing—’)

She’s gonna try to make a move . . .

Gotta change the subject— “Hey, Twilight?”

“Hm?” Yes, please change the subject.

“Um . . . ” Shit, whaddo I talk about?

It’s almost dark—

Bears? That eagle?

This is too much for us—

It’s so hard not thinking about stuff—

It’d be weird, but I could try—

Huh—?

“Hey Rainbow! I’ll race ya!” Twilight galloped on ahead—over clouds of dust—into the darkening woods.

Huh? “Twilight?” Twilight kept running. “Twilight!?”

C’mon. “C’mon, Dashie!”

I’m supposed to be the one—aw, she’s getting away— Dash smirked. “Oh no you don’t!” Dash darted on after her. “Race me where!?”

“Does it matter!?”

“How’m I gonna know when I beat you!?”

“Well,” Twilight was panting, “till it’s dark, I guess!” She looked back at Rainbow. “Or till we can’t run anymore! Whichever comes first!”

“Oh, you’re on!” Dash bore her head down in the wind and chased her friend through the trees—into the pinkening twilight.

“Pacing yourself won’t work this time!”

Twilight laughed. Running of the Leaves.

That was here, wasn’t it . . . ‘You tied!’

‘For last!’ ‘LAST?’

‘ . . . but I did fifth place, which is rather good considering I’ve never run a race before.’

“Ha ha ha!” Twilight still galloped ahead of Rainbow.

That little . . . “Come back here, you!” Rainbow plowed on behind Twilight.

Ha. She likes this.

“I like beating you, twerp!” The laughed as they ran. Rainbow was closing the gap.

“What’s wrong Rainbow! I didn’t get too much of a head-start, did I?” Keep it up. It’ll be dark soon.

“Just you wait!” Rainbow was just behind Twilight now. Twilight’s pinkpurple tail swung out and dragged through the air behind her—it nodded and bobbed—skipped and jerked with her galloping hooves—exposing the tight plump folds of plum plot—that fat, shiny skirt of skin over sweet pink— Crap crap crap—look away—forget—can’t—CRAP—That night—she trips over the books—Then today—‘You looked real goofy when you landed on your ass like that . . . It was kinda cute.’ God that sounded stupid—!

What’s she—oh no—I don’t believe it. Rainbow . . .

Fuck—! She knows—!

Twilight started to turn her head back, but stopped herself. Does she always do this—? A hoof of hers tripped on the ground, but she caught her balance.

—Can’t pretend she doesn’t know—gotta get out— Dash plowed ahead Twilight. “See you up ahead, yeah?” She gave Twilight a smirk then raced on. —Get out—get out—get out—get out—

Dash’s nethers showed as she ran—dark blue folds of skin—tight—taut between toned muscles of rump—big plumps over her strong running legs. Twilight turned her head away. Stop—! What’s gotten into me? Maybe she’s getting to me— Dash was running out of sight.

—Get out—get out—get out—C’mon, sun! Move already! Dammit, Celestia—

—I can’t get that image out—!

They carried terrible images of each other as they ran. They racked their brains—they warped their thoughts—bending—breaking—beating their own minds to expunge those images from them. Their minds fed off each others desperation. They sought some untouched crevice in themselves—some privacy—but their minds flowed just as freely through each other’s. The dizziness—the nausea—it grew, like a suffocating cloud in the coming dark they ran through. The glowing pink of the sky had given way to a dark blue, as the great black basin of night settled upon the world.

Chapter 3

Rainbow Dash came upon a clearing. The first few stars of night were poking through the firmament. Venus shone bright behind her. It’s so dark already. Not night yet. Close enough. We can set up here. We can’t go on anyway.

The camp! Something else to think about! Twilight still ran behind, out of sight of Rainbow Dash. “Did you find a place?”

“Yeah, this should work. I’ll just wait for you here” Did I spoil it? Any chance now?

She’s still thinking of making a move . . .

I can’t really be subtle about anything . . .

I can’t believe it Rainbow Dash . . . Why me . . . ?

She’s gonna say no . . . She’s gonna make us talk, and she’s gonna say no . . . She’s been putting this off . . .

We’ve come so far without breaking down . . . I don’t wanna ruin it now . . .

Why should I take what her brain says seriously? She could just be lying to herself. She has to be interested.

Right before we set up camp, go to sleep, then fix this whole business tomorrow morning . . . How is anything gonna go back to normal after this?

How could it go back to normal? Either she stops lying to herself, or she’ll never speak to me again.

‘She can’t keep this bottled up forever.’

‘I won’t.’

How am I gonna handle this? Talking with her? Talking talking with her? I’m so bad at this stuff.

She’ll say yes. She has to. I can still play it cool.

Twilight saw Rainbow Dash standing in the clearing ahead of her. Twilight’s pace fell. She trotted up to Rainbow. Rainbow glanced back, then returned to looking around the clearing.

“Looks like I won, Twilight.” Dash gave her a quick smirk. Twilight panted hard through her nose. Her expression was blank. Dash turned her rear to Twilight, looking around. Her tail flicked back and forth. “So should we go grab some wood and start setting up camp?”

“Rainbow Dash, we need to talk.”

Keep it cool . . .

Be gentle with her . . .

Dash pretended to still be looking around. She had her front hooves crossed and showed off her rump. “Mmm, yeah? About what?”

“Dash . . . Don’t try to fool me . . . ”

That would only end one way. Dash had an image. An image of herself conceding to Twilight. Of Twilight in command of her, voicing a stern “no.” Of herself kneeling at Twilight’s feet. Of herself in defeat. Dash’s heart raced as she heard those canned lines bubbling in Twilight’s mind:

‘—Dashie, I really appreciate your friendship—’

‘—I just don’t think I’m really interested in girls—’

‘—I could maybe help you find someone else—’

‘—Maybe we need some time away from each other—’

‘—Maybe we should stop hanging out—’

Is she okay?

“No . . . ” Dash took a step back. “No! NO!” She dropped her body to the ground and threw her hooves over her head. I won’t let her say no to me.

Oh my God. “ . . . Dashie . . . ” Twilight took a couple of steps toward her. Rainbow was quivering under her hooves. She wasn’t like this earlier . . . “Dashie, look, we made it! We made it till dark without a breakdown. We found a clearing. We just need to set up camp and get to sleep! We’ll be outta the woods, like you said!”

Someone, make it stop . . .

Twilight kneeled before Rainbow. She put a hoof on her little rainbow head. Dash flinched. She peeked up at Twilight. Twilight stared into her eyes. “I promised you I wouldn’t leave you out here. We will make it back home. Together.” She touched her horn. “I’m gonna fix this,” she touched Dash’s head, “then we’re gonna fix this.”

Dash hid back in her hooves. She needs me to comfort her more . . . How can I, without . . .

“Dashie, this is my fault. I’m the one who dragged us both out here. It was my spell that screwed up, and I don’t even know why. And I didn’t even watch you fly. I’ll never forgive myself for today.”

This doesn’t help . . .

Twilight sighed. She smiled. Dash looked up at her before she spoke. “Y’know, if I could’ve shared a brain with anypony, I’m glad it was you.” Dash stared at her, her little mouth open. Her face was so close.

What’d I just say?

Did she—?

The forest sizzled with silence, yet their minds boiled—steamed with wild, disjointed, contorted thoughts. Their gazes froze one another—their eyes poured vicious, scalding thirsts into one another. Their chests emptied—turned to steam—and their minds burned. Dash inched her head, shaking in the scalding air. Twilight’s head quivered its way down, starting and stopping. Their minds boiled together as one. Their thirsts walked their little heads together. Their eyes closed. Their lips met. Cool water poured through their souls, splashed all around, and their thoughts steamed away—the forest danced around them—the stars jingled above like little bell-lings—sparkles rained from the sky and dashed in circles around them—colorful splashes of magic glowed and burst everywhere.

Twilight . . .

It’s so . . .

. . . there’s so much of you . . .

. . . so sweet . . .

Rainbow opened her mouth and eased her tongue through.

No . . . no—no, wait—I can’t—

Twilight—

Twilight pulled her head away. Dash half-opened her eyes. Her little tongue still hung out.

Please . . .

That was stupid. Twilight stood up and turned away. Dash moaned.

It’s over now—she’ll never speak to me again—

What can I do now? “We need to set up camp. I’m gonna go out to look for some dry wood. You can go the other way if you want.”

‘ . . . if you randomly hear something weird I’m thinking . . . it shouldn’t matter.’

‘What’s gotten into me?’

‘I just can’t.’

Dash grit her teeth. She dug her hooves in the dirt and pushed her body off the ground. “No! You bitch! You’re just a fucking TEASE!” It’s all she’s ever done.

Rainbow . . .

Oh, wow. That really hurt her. Can I really hurt people that bad . . . ?

“Rainbow Dash, if you don’t want to talk seriously about this, then I have no reason to respond to you.”

There’s no chance of anything now, now that we’re both pissed.

“I’ve heard the shit you’ve been thinking all this time! I know you’re into this!”

“Rainbow, you remember what I said about that—”

“So? Why should I only care about what you say aloud? You only say that stuff because you’re too scared to say you like me!” I’m so right. (But I never really told her I liked—)

. . .

“I’m going now. You can look too if you want.”

“FINE! I’ll be needing my own fire, since it looks like I won’t be sleeping with you anyway!” Dash spun around and stormed off in the other direction. She glanced back briefly—just in time to see Twilight marching away from the clearing. Twilight’s tail was twitching in frustration, enough for Rainbow Dash to get a another glimpse of her nethers—the dark skin of Twilight’s pursed lips barely peeking out from between her two plump purple plot cheeks. Rainbow savored that image, then turned back to her path and marched into the woods.

I’ll just let her get rid of that image—surely she just saw that on accident.

Yeah, I feel like pissing her off.

No . . . no, she’s trying to remember it!

“You bet that ass I am.”

“RAINBOW DASH!”

“That’s my name.”

“That is MY body! You can’t use me like that!”

“Well this is MY head! Why don’t you just get out already!?”

“Forget it, or I’ll make you forget it. You know I could if I wanted to.”

Mmm, such a sweet ass—.

“RAINBOW, STOP!” Oh no. Gonna cry now . . . I’m alone, but she’s gonna find out.

Serves her right. Wait—oh God. I can’t do that to her. I could. Wait, please, Twilight, don’t . . .

Rainbow, this isn’t you—“Just stop!”

She can see what I see. She knows what I deal with looking at everyday.

And she could see it all, too—embarrassing—don’t look—forget—get it out—

“Yeah, look at what you tease me with everyday!” Not cool; can’t let her know I’m crying—don’t think about it, don’t—

No, I can’t be guilty just for hanging out with her. The way she feels around me isn’t my fault. What does she even see in me?

Loot at me—on the ground sobbing like a doofus.

Someone just make this stop . . .

I don’t care if she knows what I’m doing anymore. And I dunno why.

I was the one who screwed it up in the first place . . .

Twilight, please—. I l—I dunno—I want you—.

How long . . . have you, Rainbow Dash . . . ?

I need you—someone—.

I—I dunno . . . what I want . . .

—I could do it here—I need it—

Rainbow, don’t . . .

I don’t care if she knows what I’m doing anymore.

Oh no. That image of me again . . . and the one from before . . .

If she won’t give it to me—.

She’s still sobbing . . . me too . . .

—It’s like she’s right next to me—

Now she’s getting to me—oh no . . .

—I can see her—

. . . Her hooves are down there . . .

—Oh God, Twilight—

. . . I can’t . . . no way—not here . . .

—take me—kiss me—

. . . Rainbow, I never . . . I . . . don’t know . . .

—I need your mouth, Twilight . . .

. . . I can see the two of us together—we’re . . .

. . . mmn . . .

. . . What am I doing . . . ? I . . . this isn’t . . .

—lick me all over, Twilight—

. . . Rainbow, slow down . . .

—I need you—now—

. . . hold on . . .

—oh God, lower—

. . . no . . . (yes) . . . no, wait . . .

—c’mon, you want this, Twi—

No! . . . I . . .

—o-o-O-OHH—!

. . . She’s got me licking her now . . . OH—!

—yeah, tease my clit—like that—

. . . I can see us so clearly . . .

OH—! Mmm, yeah—

. . . it’s like I’m the one imagining it . . . mmm . . .

—oh FUCK—your tongue’s so GOOD—! —Don’t stop—

. . . Ohhh, I can’t stop . . .

—Oh, fuck—I’m almost there!

. . . Oh no, she’s really gonna . . . not while I’m here—

—Mnnnnnf—! Oooohhh—wait for it—

. . . She stopped . . . ?

—Not until she’s there—

. . . I can’t go all the way . . . but—OHH . . . !

—Yeah, keep going—

. . . Dash, it’s like you’re watching . . .

—Run those hooves all over—

. . . Oh God, I’m so wet . . .

—Mmm, yeah—we both are—we’re so dirty—

. . . OHH—talking to me like that—

—You like it—?

. . . My clit’s so hard . . . the wind blowing on it . . .

—Fuck, me too—

. . . God, I need more—

—A spell—?

. . . Mmm, bigger . . .

—Oh, shit—she’s fucking herself with magic—

. . . Unh! Unh! Unh! . . .

—It’s like a big dick—

. . . Even bigger now . . .

—Damn, she’s tight—mmm—so hot—

. . . Oh, Dashie . . . !

—Yeah, it’s like I’m fuckin’ you, huh—?

. . . No . . . —but—mmm, yeah—give it to me—

—Tell me you want it—

. . . I can’t . . .

—Oh God—I’m close—!

. . . Unh . . .

—Twilight—

. . . Unh . . . !

—Twilight, I love you so fucking much—

—Fuck me—!

—Ohhh—I’m there! Oh God! I’m cumming—!

. . . Oh God, she’s cumming—

Dash stood on her knees—her hooves glued to her pussy—wet—burning—squishing—her hips convulsed and thrusted—her tongue drooled out—mixed with her sticky juices—she fucked her hooves—

—OHH—Ah—Mmnnnnnnn—ohhHH—! Oh fuck—!

—I can feel her—

—Ohhh—! (Yeah, feel this, Twi)—ohhhh—! Mmmmnn—

—her wings twitching—the moaning—squirting—

Mmm . . . Mmmmmm . . .

“oOOOHH!” Dash heard Twilight cry out in the night. Twilight laid on her back—mouth gaping open—she pulled her hoof away from her clit—her horsecock spell glowed and throbbed—shooting warmth all through her—she bucked her hips upward—her skin electrocuted all over—her hair stood up—her pussy leaked sticky globs of juice everywhere—running down her ass—she moaned and cried little sweet calls for Rainbow to hear.

Rainbow felt it all—like it was her own body—she was at it again—on her back now—Twilight bent over her this time—fucking her deep—with something—something big and veiny—warm—throbbing—she was so full—white, silky, glowy feelings of flesh feeling and filling her—big, leathery—it kissed her inside—her pussy kissed it back and sucked on it—she looked up at Twilight—her purple lids were low and she wore a smirk—enjoying Dash’s show—Dash submitted herself to Twilight’s gaze and let Twilight rule her—

—Oh, fuck, Twilight—take me—

“Ahn, ahn—AH—! OOHHH!” Twilight laid on her back panting when Rainbow cried out far away. The trees stood pale in the dark; stars shone in the great black, and they watched the two give themselves totally—to no one—there in the cool autumn night.

Rainbow Dash fell on her side, panting big puffs of air. She laid there in a circle of trees, stretched out in the open, covered in dirt, leaves, and sweet, globby juices. Her big eyes felt heavy. She closed them and smiled. She heaved in a big breath of air, smelling the cool night air, the leaves, the soil, and the sweet smell that danced around her thighs and hooves.

The moments were at once unreal and dreamlike, and then real and vivid. Everything drowned in itself—everything real became fountains of darkness and stars—thoughts became void—nothingness filled everything—the universe swirled—and entered a dreamless sleep—

and then—

A grey appearing in dark before her—clouds—a dream?—eyes—hers—she had fallen asleep—the ground—dirt—grass—cool air—the forest—the fight—the—then the . . . — . . . Twilight. It had been real.

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes. It was still dark. She was laying on her right side with her hooves curled up beside her. Her thighs were sticky and she still reeked of her scent. She arched her back and looked around. She tossed herself to her other side.

The spell.

“ . . . Twilight . . . ?”

. . . Rainbow. “ . . . Rainbow? Are you awake . . . ?”

“Twilight, where are you?”

“I’m at the library. I wanted you to know where I am before I undo the spell.”

She actually went ahead? “Wait—now?”

“I’m doing it right now.”

“Twilight, wait . . . ”

“Just make it home okay.”

“Twilight, stop!”

“Rainbow, I’m sorry.”

“Twilight! . . . Wait! . . . Stop!

“ . . . Twilight . . . ?”

The forest stood in silent stillness. Around her, the silence numbed the air. Grey trees peered pale from the blackness. High above, the black stars rained nothingness.

Globs of tears had clouded her eyes. Her little lip quivered. Rainbow Dash collapsed on the dead ground. She curled up her little head to her hooves and sobbed as she was drenched and suffocated in emptiness. This is all my fault. Hiccups bubbled inside her—she sniffed and blubbered. She wailed out to the nobody that would hear. Her cries echoed off nothing and back to no one. The loneliness made her sick. It shrieked and howled, clanging and banging a deafening racket in her bleeding ears. She’ll never speak to me again. Rainbow imagined her magical friend cuddling her warmth with her, singing for her. But they would be no closer than they were now. She only sobbed harder. She had cut herself open for her—spilt blood, ripped apart her bones, thrown out her flesh, torn out her heart and given her her soul—and Twilight didn’t want it. It was nauseating. The world was spinning. She wallowed in the terrible everything.

“Come back . . . ”

No one heard.

Tweet-tweet! A little songbird chirped in the trees. Rainbow covered her ears. She shuddered. Tweet! She buried her head in the ground. Tweet! Rainbow squeezed her watery eyes open. Tweet-tweet! Rainbow heaved her head up, spitting out dirt. She still had a few more whimpers in her. She looked up and around. The bird was nowhere to be found—hidden beyond branches and darkness.

Rainbow rolled onto her back. She gazed into the dulled black nothingness. There was so much of it out there. The terrible distances and wides—fars and breadths—they stretched the black void through time and space. She would be lost in the nothingness forever. It was an empty chaos created by no one simply so she would be the smallest thing in it.

Rainbow Dash hoisted a hoof high. She pointed to the stars. She jerked her hoof around in random, jagged patterns. Then she found herself pointing to stars, making shapes out of them. She drew the pointed stars of Twilight’s cutie mark. She shuddered imagining its shape there. Her lip curled. She jerked her hoof back and forth across the sky, erasing the shape of the sparkled cutie mark. Her hoof tired and fell next to her. She laid there for a moment. Sprawled out on the dirt ground, looking into the sky. The shapes had gone.

Dim daylight was just pouring from the east. The stars still filled the sky beyond the light of daybreak. The sky seemed to brighten every time she blinked her moist eyes. As it came, the morning brought nothing.

She shuddered. She lifted her hoof again. She wobbled it around, drawing a random curve. She found her hoof at the edge of a tree she could see from below, and drew a bouncing motion off it. Her hoof bounced back and forth along the edge of the canopy. She found it resting at the edge of a tree again, then lifted it off into the empty sky, like a take-off motion. Her hoof shot straight up—then fell back toward the edge of the trees. It swerved back into the sky before hitting the trees and waved around the sky—flying back in forth—in loops—up and down—around—. Rainbow Dash brought her other hoof into the sky, and braced them both forward into the wind. She stretched her wings and beat them behind her. She shut her eyes. She was flying. Everyone was watching her. Dash could feel the wind rushing in her face—through her colored mane—it matted her fur—met her lips—caressed her mane—it held her—explored every curve—crevice—

then let her free—!

And they were cheering her name.

Dash opened her eyes and her hooves dropped. She lifted her hoof again to draw in the stars—but this time, spelled out her name, in big capital letters. When she finished the final H, she went back and drew her cutie mark in the stars on top of the letters. She let her hoof draw a big circle around her work for a bit, then let it fall for the last time. She laid sprawled out for another moment in that circle of trees, under those white lights.

Tweet!

Finally, she heaved a shaky sigh and pulled herself up. Her legs wobbled. She gazed into the darkness around her. Twilight was gone. Dash blinked her foggy eyes again and smiled sadly to herself. She missed this heady feeling of freedom. She yawned, stretching her legs and wings, then stared off into space—pondering for a moment. She thought of herself on the ground moments ago. An echo of that feeling came back. Absolute terror. Dread then despair. She just noticed the soft stringing of crickets that had been filling the night. It had been settled over her this whole time.

Dash came to. She was standing ahoof. Alive yet. She threw her head up. She set her sights east, and galloped off toward the pale blue morning light.

Along the way, Rainbow Dash spotted a cloudling from beneath the trees and flew up to it. She perched on it, ripped off and heaved an armful of wet fluff from the cloud, and cleaned herself with it—washing away her sticky mess and smell. The cloud’s moisture spent, she stood and shook herself dry, then dove down, tearing through the cloud, back into the forest to continue on her path.

At last, Rainbow Dash found the houses of Ponyville resting before her. All was still. A light fog was settled over the town. The lamps were still lit. A faint golden glow sat on the horizon—the sky a lovely lavender. No one had yet woken.

Rainbow Dash breathed in the chilly autumn morning air. She shivered. She sighed. She smiled at the familiar buildings as she strolled into town.

Thought I’d never get back here. She looked around town to make sure nopony was up and about. She wandered around, headed nowhere in particular. Her mind was racing.

Whaddo I do? I wanna just fly home, right now, and sleep the rest of the morning in. That’d be nice, and I need the sleep. But I dunno if I’d even be able to sleep. I woke up so early back in the forest—I’ve been up flying—walking for a while . . . And Twilight’s in that library somewhere. She’s so close. She could be crying in her bed somewhere. Maybe she told the whole gang and they’re there right now. Then everyone would hate me . . . Or maybe she doesn’t care about me at all and she just went back to bed. I mean, she did ignore me all day. How did she sound when she last talked to me? ‘Rainbow, I’m sorry.’ She could just be humoring me. ‘Just make it home okay.’ Same thing there. ‘I wanted you to know where I am before . . . ’ And there. But I thought she sounded pretty worried when she said it . . . She didn’t have to say those things. She coulda just left me there in the woods (but she kinda did) . . .

I gotta fix this. How? Howhowhowhowhow . . . ? I was such a bitch to her . . . ‘Yeah, look at what you tease me with!’ ‘Why don’t you just get out already!?’ And then I made her do that with me. She didn’t want to do it. I was just kidding myself. Maybe she did. I don’t care. I was still wrong. How will I be able to talk to her again? How will I be able to look at her again? (I haven’t even seen her face since then . . . ) ‘Serves you right, Egghead!’ ‘—psycho brain shit—!’ ‘You’re just a fucking TEASE!’ No wonder she hates me now.

Hates me? .’ ‘Don’t worry, Dashie.’ ‘ . . . don’t think I sounded too mean . . . ’ ‘I’ll race ya!’ And all those times she laughed with me. She liked me then . . .

‘Just make it home okay.’ ‘Twilight, stop!’ She just left me. Alone in the woods. But we couldn’t hide anything from each other. We both couldn’t stand the spell anymore. She had to go ahead . . . The spell! Maybe it isn’t my fault! None of this would’ve happened if it weren’t for that dumb spell! But . . . he spell didn’t make me jack off to her though (did it?) . . . God, I’m such a cunt.

Dash started pacing through the empty streets. She lowered her head and brow, thinking. C’mon, Dash! That shit’s already happened. How do we fix it? ‘At least talk to me for real instead of your psycho brain shit.’ ‘If she really wanted to know, she would only need ask.’ I kinda wanna just punch her in the face now. Stupid spell. And she never even saw me fly. I should just go to her place and giver her one—right in the kisser! If she’s even awake . . . (Maybe if I snuck in—) No. She’d get Celestia to exile me outta Ponyville if I did.

‘At least talk to me for real . . . ’ ‘I didn’t say it; I thought it! I don’t have control over that!’ ‘All that matters is what we say aloud.’ When was the last time we actually talked? Like, mushy-talk talked? About our feelings an’ shit? Kinda lame, I guess . . . Kinda really lame. ‘So when are you gonna stop ignoring me?’ ‘Rainbow, we need to talk.’ ‘Always be there for me, will you?’ Would she even talk back? ‘I . . . can’t.’ ‘I just can’t’ She’d never listen to me now anyway. If she’s even awake . . . I’d just feel like slugging her anyway.

Rainbow Dash stopped. She stood before Twilight’s treehouse library. It was a menacing silhouette behind the morning light. I can’t. I just can’t. I should just go back to bed. But I left my book at her place . . . No. It’d just make me think about her anyway. I can just take a long nap and forget about all this shit.

I really wanna finish that Daring Do book though . . . No way I could get it from her. I can’t sneak in. No way.

Twilight . . . why did this shit have to happen to us?

Fine, I’ll . . . I’ll just ask her.

I’ll just ask her.

Rainbow Dash grimaced. She trudged on up the path. Her head hung low, glaring at the trimmed grass beneath her hooves. Each blade cast a long, pointed shadow toward her. She came under the treehouse’s giant shadow. Her pace slowed briefly, but picked up again. Dash looked up. None of the lights was on. She kept going. She dropped her head low. She looked up again. She looked around. No one else was out. She looked ahead again. In the morning light, one final star sparkled through the branches of Twilight’s house.

Rainbow bumped into a door. She hadn’t been looking. She looked around again. No one was out. She backed away from the red library door. She stared at the candle pictured on the door. The black handles jutting out at her. The paint was peeling. She looked behind her again just to make sure. She turned back to the door. She heaved a sigh. She raised a hoof. She knocked once. Twice. Thrice. She held her hoof there for a second. She let it fall and took another step back. She heaved another sigh. Birds chirped somewhere in the distance. The leaves of the treehouse rustled.

Hooves. Slow. Rainbow heard them approaching behind the door. The handle clicked. The door swung open with a rush of air. Twilight was there. Rainbow’s breath caught. Twilight was wet from showering. Her expression was blank. Her eyes looked tired.

Rainbow’s mouth was hung half open. “C-can . . . I think I left—”

A bird chirped.

Rainbow took a deep breath. “Can we talk?”