Caught In The Rain

by Bad_Seed_72

Rating: everyone
Tags: Raindrops, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance, Slice of Life, Thunderlane, Roseluck
Length: 4669

Raindrops isn't the most popular pegasus. Most ponies don't like getting caught in the rain, no matter how much she loves creating it. One day during a particularly strong storm, Raindrops meets a mare who does.

Raindrops isn't the most popular pegasus. Most ponies don't like getting caught in the rain, no matter how much she loves creating it.

However, there is one mare who does. After all, what rose can bloom without a little rain?

During a particularly strong storm, Raindrops meets the mare she's been waiting for.

Third-place winner of the The Fillyfoolers' shipfic contest.

Thanks to Skeeter The Lurker for editing.

Rated Everyone.

Published 2013-09-23 00:00:07 UTC
Last updated 2013-09-23 00:00:07 UTC

Raindrops On Roses

Raindrops On Roses

"We are all a little weird and life's a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love."
—Dr. Seuss

~

"Raindrops! Are you paying attention?!"

"Huh?" Raindrops blinked and shook her muzzle a few times, snapping herself to attention. Hovering in the air, she decreased the speed of her wingbeats and turned around. Putting her forehooves behind her back, she mustered a sheepish smile and an awkward chuckle. "Er, sorry, Rainbow Dash."

Dash rolled her eyes and face-hoofed. "Did you hear a word I said?"

"Erm..." Raindrops looked around. Together, she, Dash, and about a dozen other pegasi soared, glided, and hovered high above Ponyville. The sun was shining brightly, as it always did in the middle of spring. In fact, she had just been admiring the wildflowers on a grassy hillside below when she'd been so rudely interup—

"Argh!" Rainbow Dash face-hoofed again. Throwing up her forehooves, she groaned and huffed as she exclaimed, "Well, it's obvious that you weren't!"

Rose-red humiliation blooming on her cheeks, Raindrops looked away, watching some of the other pegasi begin to gather clouds. "S-sorry, Rainbow Dash..."

Ignoring the apology, Rainbow Dash joined Raindrops' side and forced the pegasus to look into her captain's eyes. "Look. Ponyville hasn't had a rainstorm in almost a week now, and the crops need water. I'm gonna need you to kick up a real big storm for us today."

"Oh... a rainstorm?" Twirling a strand of mane around her forehoof, Raindrops asked, "Er, how big do you mean?"

Rainbow Dash nodded towards a few of the other pegasi. "See how Thunderlane is out today?"

"Yea, but—"

"I'm talking a big storm, Raindrops. Lightning soaring through the sky!" Dash shot into the air, one forehoof oustretched. Shooting back down, she said, "Thunder roaring over the mountains! And, most of all..." She threw a forehoof around the timid mare's shoulders. "A waterfall from the skies. Sweet Apple Acres needs all of their orchards and fields watered, along with everypony's gardens."

Giving her an encouraging nudge in the shoulder, Rainbow Dash zipped around, facing Raindrops muzzle-to-muzzle. "You gonna be ready to do that for us, Raindrops?"

Looking past Dash, Raindrops saw that the pegasi's gentle arrangement of clouds had blossomed into a full-blown corral of the white critters. Thick, puffy white clouds—which were currently withholding every single drop of their rain—hung over the quiet town below, threatening to drench Ponyville and flash lightning in her skies. Thunderlane and Blossomforth jumped from cloud to cloud, kicking them with their hindhooves. Their own special brand of pegasi magic transformed some of the white clouds to gray, thunder and heavy rain brewing within.

Raindrops glanced at her cutiemark and swallowed. Feeling the narrowed, impatient eyes of her supervisor drilling into her, she looked up and nodded quickly. "Of course, Rainbow Dash!" She gave a weak salute. "You can count on me."

Rainbow Dash grinned and beat her wings happily. "Good! You know, Raindrops, you may never have come close to beating me in a race, or any kind of stunt flying, but you can always brew up a big storm."

"Y-yeah..." Raindrops rubbed her neck, smiling weakly. "Big storm."

"Anyway, I've got to check and make sure our other preparations are in place! See ya around!" Rainbow Dash propelled herself into the skies with another mighty flap of her wings. Quickly blending into the skies, becoming a cyan blur shooting up and over the clouds, Rainbow Dash left Raindrops to her own crestfallen contemplation.

Another rainstorm. Another. Sure, it was her special talent, but it didn't feel very special most days.

Reluctantly flying over to the cloud cover, Raindrops glanced down at Ponyville, unpleasant memories surfacing to her consciousness like a rising tide...

~

It was a beautiful, sunny spring day in Ponyville. Birds serenaded passing ponies in the town square, merchants and vendors peddled their wares, and not a frown could be spotted amongst the entire populace. A wonderful spring day indeed...

The young weather pegasus eagerly stacked a host of clouds on top of each other. It was the first spring of her new career, and today marked the first scheduled storm she'd help brew. She practically shook with excitement, flapping her wings as she hovered up and down.

A strong, black stallion with a two-tone blue mane flew up to her. "Hey, Raindrops! Ready for the big storm?"

"You betcha!" she chirped, grinning like a schoolfilly. She watched in awe as a single kick of his hindhoof shifted the cloud's color from snow to ash. "I wish I could do that!"

He laughed. "Well, I wish I could kick up as much rain as you! With you on the weather team now, Raindrops, Ponyville will never see a drought."

"And with you, Thunderlane, we'll always have a spectacular lightning storm."

Kicking another cloud, he shrugged and sighed. "Wish I could find a mare that enjoyed the thunder and lightning, though. It scares most of them away." The stallion trailed off, eying the weather-mare with interest. "Say, Raindrops, are—"

"Oh!" Raindrops held up a forehoof and shook her head. "Er, sorry, Thunderlane. You're just n-not, my, erm, uh..." Blushing, she looked away, pawing a forehoof at the cushy cloud below her hooves.

Thunderlane caught a bolt of his own mental lightning and grinned. "Oh, ho ho," he teased, darting over to her side of the cloud cover and slinging a forehoof around her shoulders. "So... somepony kicks for their own hoofball team, do they?" He wiggled his eyebrows and chuckled.

"Uh... um—"

"Alright, everypony! Time for the rain!" shouted Rainbow Dash, blowing her whistle. The shrill noise startled Thunderlane, offering Raindrops an easy escape. She squirmed out of his grasp and bolted over to one of the gray clouds.

Raising her hindhooves, she brought them down with a mighty buck, releasing a torrent of rain onto Ponyville below. Feeling ancient pegasi magic pulsing through her hooves, Raindrops kicked again, throwing back her mane and smiling to the sun. She continued, kicking each and every cloud, mustering a torrent of raindrops, crashing down to the welcoming ground and bringing life to the plants.

The pegasi had not hidden Celestia's sun today, and so, Raindrops knew, soon would come a rainbow. Sun and rain! Such a beautiful, delightful combination. Such a—

From beneath her blanket of white-turned-gray, Raindrops heard sudden shrieks of surprise and dismay. Curiously, she poked her head through the fluff and glanced about.

Frantic vendors scurried through the streets, closing up their carts and stands and struggling to get out of the rain. Outdoor cafes closed their doors, soaked waiters turning up their muzzles in disgust. Mares, stallions, and foals alike, their manes rain-drenched and frazzled, hurried to their homes, muttering curses and cries of irritation.

"Where did this storm come from?!"

"I thought it was supposed to be nice today!"

"My new manecut is RUINED!"

"Ugh, I hate the rain!"

Confused, Raindrops pulled her head out of the cloud cover and looked at Thunderlane. She frowned, uneasiness settling like a thick ball of ice in her stomach, spreading through her. "Th-Thunderlane... look..."

He flattened his ears and rushed over. Alighting on one of the clouds, he poked through the cover and examined the unfolding scene below. Folding his wings at his sides, he pulled out of the cover and took a step back, a perplexed expression in his muzzle. "What's the problem, Raindrops?"

She pointed towards the hole in the cover. "Everypony is—everypony's so unhappy! So unhappy to see the rain!"

He tapped his chin. "Hmm. That's weird. I thought we sent out a message to everypony that there was a big storm scheduled for today."

"But—"

Bringing a forehoof to his mouth, Thunderlane shouted, "Hey! Rainbow Dash!"

Rainbow Dash sliced through the air and joined them at the cloud cover. Crossing her forehooves over her chest, she hovered and demanded, "Yeah? What is it, Thunderlane?"

"Everypony on the ground is acting like they didn't know there was going to be rain today. Did somepony send out the letters about today's storm?"

"Of course!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, her nostrils flaring. "Of course I had somepony do that! I had Derpy—"

Her countenance falling, Rainbow Dash suddenly went silent. She hovered there for a moment, looking not at Raindrops or Thunderlane, but some far-off nothingness in the blank distance. Then, she shouted, "DERPY!" and rocketed into the sky, churning her wings as fast as they could carry her.

Thunderlane laughed and turned to Raindrops. "Heh, that explains it. Don't worry, Raindrops. It isn't your fault. Looks like Derpy probably mixed up the letters or something."

"Oh..." She paused, looking at the shouting and distraught ponies below before turning back to the stallion. Raindrops sighed. "I thought they just didn't like my rainstorm."

"Well, to be honest... nopony really likes rain," he admitted. "But!" Thunderlane held up a forehoof. "They like thunder and lightning even less. It scares them. Rain's just... inconvenient, I guess."

Raindrops shuffled her hooves. "I always thought it was beautiful."

"Heh. Well. Maybe to some, it is. But anyway... you've got a better chance of scoring a mare who loves rain than I do of finding one who loves lightning." Offering her a hopeful smile, he urged, "Now, chin up, Raindrops. You're doing great. Just keep kicking the clouds and checking them to make sure they're still going. We've got a lot of ground to cover today."

Pushing her disappointment and hurt aside, she nodded, and continued her work.

~

Shaking the memory away, Raindrops glided over to the current patch of cloud cover. Her fellow weather-pegasi had doubled their efforts, blanketing the sky above Ponyville with a vast expanse of cumulonimbus. Foam on top of the blue ocean of skies, the clouds turned to dark gray, one-by-one, the hooves of Thunderlane and those like him cursing them.

Settling on a cloud, Raindrops stretched her wings and hooves, preparing for her work. It doesn't matter what anypony else thinks, anyway. I still love the rain. I don't care if nopony else does, she thought bitterly, gritting her teeth as she stretched a particularly tense hindleg. I've been kicking up rainstorms for practically a year now, and I'm the best rain-brewer in town! Maybe even Equestria!

"Hey, Raindrops!" Thunderlane shouted across the expanse. "You ready yet?"

"Just give me a few minutes!" she grumbled, stretching her wings. A pleasant breeze tickled her feathers. She shuddered, knowing that today, some of the other pegasi would be amplifying the wind as well. Today was not a day for sun and rain. Today was a day for gray skies, torrential rainfall, booming thunder, and ear-splitting lightning.

While she finished her preparations, more members of the Ponyville Weather Team gathered clouds to blot out the sun, darkening the skies over the town. Thunderlane and other thunder-brewing pegasi painted white to gray with the brushes of their keratin. Rainbow Dash circled around her crew all the while, making sure not one feather was out of place.

Blood rushing through her awakened muscles, Raindrops flew over to the first cloud, and, along with a few novice rainmakers, gave it a swift buck. At the same time, Thunderlane and his squad kicked their own clouds.

BOOM!

Thunder roared and crackled, the voice of the Heavens announcing the arrival of spring's first rainstorm. Raindrops grinned to herself and kicked again, unleashing the rain trapped within the cloud with her magic. Although reluctant to start a storm, once she was in the swing of things, she wouldn't stop for anypony.

BOOM! BOOM! CRACK!

A bolt of lightning slashed through the skies after the third roar of thunder. Laughing to herself, Raindrops jumped to the next cloud, kicking it for all she was worth. Rain flowed freely from this one to the Earth below, a waterfall of suppressed, life-giving precipitation.

"Keep going!" encouraged Rainbow Dash, flying from one group of weather-pegasi to the other. "More thunder! More lightning!"

On her orders, Raindrops bucked the clouds harder, channeling her frustrations into each swift kick of her hooves. Been a year... an entire year since I've moved here from Cloudsdale...

BOOM! CRACK!

She stomped angrily, sweat rolling down her forehead and neck. An entire year, and I can't work up the courage to go on a single date with any mare! I can't even find it in myself to ask one out...

"That's it, everypony! Keep kickin'! Ponyville needs this storm!"

Her hooves began to burn, but Raindrops worked through it, leaping from cloud to cloud and draining them of their rain. Because what would I tell her if she asked about me? "I make the rainstorms that everypony hates"? Every single one! No matter what the month or week, no matter if they know it's coming or not... they hate it.

"Hey! You alright, Raindrops?" Thunderlane looked up from his cloud.

The enraged mare's sapphire eyes were afire, gritty determination locking her jaws in place. "I'm—" she bucked another cloud, then shot herself to another with a few strong flaps of her wings— "fine, Thunderlane! Focus!"

Biting his lip, he shrugged, sighed, and turned back to his work. He'd long since given up trying to convince her that his earliest remarks to her had been, for lack of a better word, wrong. Single himself, he had no hope to offer her. The stallion furrowed his brow and smashed the thunder free.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

On opposite sides of the cloud cover, Thunderlane and Raindrops did what they did best, stirring the thunder to roar and drawing the rain from the stormclouds, while other pegasi brewed up strong gusts of wind and continued to darken the skies.

BOOM! CRACK! BOOM! CRACK!

Soon, Ponyville's sunny spring day had all but disappeared, replaced with a righteous storm, rain cleansing the town below, thunder and lightning barking a warning to anypony who dared to venture out in the tempest. Raindrops stomped every single cloud, stomping and kicking and bucking until her hooves felt like they were melting, long past hearing the rumble of the thunder.

Rainbow Dash soared into position above her team and blew into her whistle at the top of her lungs, snapping a sea of muzzles towards her.

"Alright, everypony!" Dash shouted over the wind. "We've got the storm going! The brewers can take the rest of the day off!" She looked over her shoulder where another group of pegasi waited, dodging the wind, rain soaking their feathers. "Come on up, maintenance crew! Let's make sure this storm continues for at least a few more hours!"

At her command, the exhausted team of brewers hovered up off the cloud cover. Sweat and rain drenching her mane and clouding her vision, Raindrops took a series of deep, heaving breaths. Rubbing her eyes, she carefully glided up off the cloud cover and towards a fluffy, unused white cloud.

Collapsing down onto her belly, Raindrops plopped onto the cloud and wrapped her forehooves around it. "Hah... g-geez.... Got a lil' carried away there," she mumbled, fluttering her wings. Stretching her hindhooves, she buried her muzzle in the cool, silky cloud, closing her eyes to rest.

By now, the steady rhythm of the thunder and the interspersed flash of lightning couldn't faze her in the slightest. Another good storm... Raindrops opened one eye and looked down at Ponyville. Sure enough, the streets were deserted. A few ponies darted through town square, unlucky to be caught in the rain. Raindrops groaned and squeezed the cloud. Well, I think it's good. She frowned. Even if nopony else likes my storms, I still do.

I don't need anypony else, anyway. Sighing, Raindrops closed her eyes again.

Her thoughts quickly drifted to her dream mare, as they were oft to do. In Raindrop's mind, it didn't matter whether said dream mare was an Earth pony, a pegasus, or a unicorn. Hay, she could even be a Zebra or a Buffalo. Race didn't matter to her. All that mattered was that she would be beautiful, and love her storms...

"Like that'll ever happen," Raindrops mumbled.

A cough from behind her yanked Raindrops from her thoughts. She rolled over on her back, then rolled her eyes. "What is it, Thunderlane?"

"You sure you're alright, Raindrops?" he asked, frowning. Steadying himself against the wind, Thunderlane hovered and said, "You seemed pretty mad earlier."

"That's just me getting into the storm," she replied nonchalantly. Raindrops rubbed her muzzle. "I'm fine, really." Flashing him a plastic smile, she added, "I'll be alright. I'm just tired. I'm just going to take a nap."

"Out here in the storm? By yourself?"

"I'll be fine. I've done this before."

Thunderlane coughed. "Well, yes, I know, but—"

"You should really get that cough checked out, Thunderlane," Raindrops dismissed. Rolling back onto her stomach, she nuzzled the cloud and sighed, letting her wings fold against her back. "I'll be fine. Really. You should just head on home."

Thunderlane hesitated. He stared at her for a while, but the mare didn't open her eyes or roll over to face him. With a heavy sigh, he simply flew off, leaving the stubborn mare to her solitude.

Raindrops snorted and settled into her cloud. Sheesh. He's a decent friend, but he worries too much. I'm fine! I don't need anypony else. I've got a great job, some good friends, a home, and enough bits to buy myself nice things. That's all I need, and—

This time, a different sort of noise pricked Raindrops' ears.

Laughter.

Curious, Raindrops opened her eyes, rose up on her haunches, and looked down at the ground. "Who could possibly be laughing right now?" Squinting through the wind and rain, she peered down at Ponyville, and, for only a moment, spotted a flash of cream and red against the grassy hillside and its myriad of wildflowers.

Confused, Raindrops spread her wings, jumped in the air, pushed her forehooves forward, and began to dive down to investigate.

As she flew closer and closer towards the grassy hillside, she realized that the blur was a mare. And not just any mare.

Roseluck, the flower vendor who lived in the heart of Ponyville, was laughing and rolling around in the grass, her mane and tail sopping wet. Her eyes slammed shut, she laughed and laughed as she rolled through the lush, green grass and bunches of red, yellow, pink, blue, and orange wildflowers.

Landing softly on her hooves, Raindrops stared at Roseluck, eyes wide and jaw agape. While she had never interacted with the flower merchant beyond pleasantries and an occasional purchase—Thunderlane had been pretty sick with the Feather Flu last year—she couldn't help but admire her. From snout to tail, Roseluck was beautiful, with enchanting green eyes and soft, smooth fur, and a merry laugh that tickled her ears, and—

POMF!

Oh, horseapples!

To her immediate humiliation, Raindrops wings shot straight up into the air and at attention. Blushing madly, she took a few hoofsteps away from the mare, hoping Roseluck hadn't heard her...

Rolling onto her side, Roseluck opened her eyes and gasped, staring straight at Raindrops.

Oh, HORSEAPPLES!

"Gah!" Raindrops exclaimed, backing up as fast as she could. She tried to make her wings go down, flexing her muscles and willing them to close. Her wings were as stiff as a board, refusing to give, displayed high and proud for all to see. Her muzzle growing hot and red as Roseluck's mane, Raindrops stumbled, "S-sorry! I didn't mean to—uh, I mean, I was just... uh—"

"You're—you're that weather-pegasus, aren't you?" Roseluck asked gently, rolling onto her stomach and then standing up to all four hooves. Shaking some rain from her mane, she started to trot towards the humiliated mare, a blush on her own on her cheeks. "Sorry! I didn't mean to gasp at you like that! I was just surprised, that's all."

"Oh, heh, um..." Nearly tripping over her hindhooves, Raindrops caught herself, swaying on her hooves. Stop. Walking! She already saw you, anyway! "Um, that's okay, um..." Gah! She's just so pretty! And I was staring at her! Watching her... oh, Raindrops, this isn't good!

"Are you alright?" Roseluck asked, taking a few more steps towards her. She tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. "It's okay! I just didn't expect somepony to... see me doing that," she mumbled, stopping in her tracks. Roseluck nibbled on her forehoof and averted her eyes.

If Raindrops hadn't been able to close her wings before, they weren't going anywhere now. That's just too—gah!—cute! Stammering, she managed, "Uh, um, that's okay. Uh, n-no problem."

"Heh. I'm just a little embarrassed, sorry," Roseluck said, biting her hoof again. Sighing, she put it back down, splashing it in a puddle. She looked shyly up at the pegasus. "Heh. I just love a good rainstorm! Can't help but come out and just embrace it... feel the rain rolling down my coat, and see how the wildflowers perk up in the storm..."

What? There's no way! Impossible. "Oh... you... like the rain?" Raindrops asked, each word requiring far more effort to utter than it should in any sensible world. Not that this whole exchange made much sense, anyway.

Roseluck nodded and smiled softly. "I sure do." Sitting down on her haunches a few feet from Raindrops, Roseluck extended a forehoof. "I don't think I've ever really introduced myself. I'm Roseluck."

Shaking, Raindrops extended her forehoof and shook hooves with the beautiful mare. Oh, Celestia, even her hooves are soft, and warm, and beautiful, as if that were even possible... "I'm R-Raindrops."

"Pleased to meet you, Raindrops." Roseluck flicked her mane of rain and chuckled nervously. "Again, I'm sorry you, er, saw that earlier. I get a little carried away. I really loved this storm, you see."

Raindrops ears perked up. This is the third time you've told me you liked the rain, yet, the entire time I've lived here, nopony has done anything but run or hide from it. Am I just hearing things? Did I get struck by lightning? Have I finally lost it? Am I dead? "Th-this one? Why?"

Wrapping a strand of red mane around her forehoof, Roseluck hummed before answering, "Well... rain always brings good things! It cleans the air, it fills the lakes, streams, and rivers, and it helps flowers bloom, of course. And this one was a particularly strong one, so the flowers will come out soon in even more beautiful blooms." Roseluck placed her forehoof on the grass and looked into Raindrops' eyes. "I'm not sure how much you know about me—"

Far too much. Far too much, you—

"But my special talent is growing roses! And no rose can grow without the rain!" Roseluck finished, a mirthful grin spreading across her muzzle.

Beautiful mare, even your teeth are perfect, and here I am, standing like a creep in the middle of a storm, watching you... Argh! Why did I get myself into this?! I should've just taken a nap like I always do!

"Oh," was all Raindrops could muster, bringing a forehoof to her face to hide her blush. Roseluck glistened here even in the dim light of the storm, mane and tail drenched and straight, cream-colored coat shining with raindrops. Raindrops again tried to tuck her wings back in, meeting firm resistance. Great, just great.

Roseluck's grin soon turned impish. Rising from her hooves, she approached the pegasus slowly, raising an eyebrow. "So... I hope you don't mind me being so forward, but considering..." She paused, as if to steel herself, then asked, "What's your special talent, cutie?"

Cutie?! Her jaw going slack, Raindrops struggled to formulate a response. She thinks I'm cute? She thinks I'm CUTE?! Some creeper pegasus standing here with a huge—

Mere inches away from her, Roseluck brought a forehoof up to her mouth and giggled. "Whoops! Maybe that was a bit too forward. But you don't need to answer. It looks like you think I'm cute, too."

She knows what my wings mean! Oh, Celestia, please kill me now. Forgetting how to breathe, Raindrops coughed and rubbed her neck, wishing on every star she'd ever seen that her cursed wings would go down. "Um, well, I, uh, you—"

"I don't bite, Raindrops," Roseluck said sweetly. She sat down next to her and put a forehoof on her shoulder, sending chills through the pegasus's spine. "So, I'm curious. What is your special talent, if you don't mind me asking? I just have never seen a cutiemark like yours before."

"I... I m-make rain," Raindrops managed at last, all but giving up on her traitorous wings.

Roseluck grinned. "I thought so. I've seen you around, kicking up those clouds like you've got a vendetta against them or something."

Swallowing hard, Raindrops laughed. "Well, um, I just really enjoy my, uh, job—"

"Me too." Roseluck's breath was hot on her ear, her confidence building. "You're very attractive, Raindrops."

"Um... t-thanks? Uh..." "You too!" Say "you too"! C'mon, brain! Say it! Say it! Brain! Vocal cords! Tongue! Mouth! Something!

Roseluck winked. "You really were watching me, weren't you?"

"Uh—um—I—"

"Did you like what you saw?"

All mental processes ceased to exist in the strange contraption of mishmashed gears and belts that was Raindrop's poor, blood-deprived brain. Sweat soaking her coat far worse than the rain ever would, her cheeks redder than any rose that could grow in Equestria, and only able to muster tiny whimpers and squeaks, Raindrops couldn't even nod.

Roseluck, ever the sly mare, however, knew exactly what she liked, and leaned in to kiss her.

By some fortunate stroke of Fate, Raindrops came back down to Equestria, and kissed back, losing her breath at the caress of Roseluck's warm lips upon her own. Although her wings were unresponsive, her forehooves were not, and she wrapped them around the waist of her dream mare made flesh.

Whether it was a few seconds, a minute, an hour, or forever, Roseluck pulled away at last, a blush as deep as Raindrop's on her muzzle. "I've al-always thought you were beautiful, Raindrops, but I never could say anything," she confessed, smiling meekly. "I guess... knowing you create one of my most favorite things in the world... I couldn't help myself. I'm sorry if I—"

Panicking, Raindrops quickly exclaimed, "No! No!" Please don't go! "It's alright, Roseluck, I—"

"You can call me 'Rose' if you want."

"Rose. No, um, I—you're beautiful," she blurted, words out-galloping her brain. Oh, Celestia, I did just say that. Please, oh please, oh—

Roseluck smiled wider, then wrapped her forehooves around her neck. "So... what was a beautiful mare like you doing out in this rainstorm? And spying on me?"

"Uh, well, I um..." Raindrops gulped. "Iheardyoulaughinganddidn'tknowhoitwasthenIsawitwasyouandIkindofdidn'tknowwhattodobecauseyou'resoprettyand—"

Roseluck cut her off with another kiss, this one softer and sweeter than the other. "Well," she said as they broke the caress, "I'm glad you came off your cloud to investigate." Forcing a laugh, she remarked, "Most pegasi aren't into Earth ponies, you know. Being on the ground and such..."

Gathering her courage, Raindrops said, "It doesn't matter to me if you're an Earth pony. I've just never met anypony who liked the rain."

Roseluck tilted her head. "Oh?"

"Yes, most ponies run from the rain, or complain about it." Raindrops sighed, frowning. "The first rainstorm I brewed, everypony screamed and ran away, I felt so bad about it... I thought I'd never meet a mare who'd enjoy the rain. Who'd enjoy what I do. What I was..." She smiled. "Born to do."

Gently taking one of her forehooves in between two of hers, Roseluck said quietly, "Well, today, you met somepony who loves getting caught in it.

"Would you mind going to dinner with me sometime, Raindrops?"

Warmth soaring up in her chest, warming her drenched fur and feathers, Raindrops folded her wings to her side and smiled, embracing Roseluck tightly.

"I'd really like that."