Rainbow Dash paced back and forth nervously. It was midnight...again. Spike had long since ascended the staircase to his room, leaving the pegasus to her thoughts, but she had no intentions of sleeping until Twilight returned from her super-secretive meeting.
The bags under her bloodshot and dry eyes contrasted greatly with her light blue fur. Rainbow twitched every now and again in her pacing, jittery from the several pots of coffee she'd consumed over the course of the day. The pegasus had received the letter announcing Twilight's arrival back to Ponyville early, and as such, she hadn't slept the night previous either.
Sitting forcefully on the floor near the door, Rainbow groaned and held her head in her hooves. Gently massaging her temples, she recalled the wording of the letter. It was extremely short, and easy to remember offhoof.
Rainbow,
I'll be back on the midnight train tonight, so spread the word. Oh, and don't eat the last piece of cake in the fridge. Celestia's been eating cake all week, and she hasn't once offered the rest of us any. I'm dying for a piece!
Love,
Princess Twili
Twilight
Rainbow snickered at the cake bit. By the time she'd received the letter, she and Spike had actually already split the piece, but upon receiving the message, Rainbow had paid Pinkie Pie to bake an extra large cake covered in lavender frosting and magenta stars around its edge, along with the words, "Welcome back, Twi!" adorned across the top. It was some top bit craftsmanship, but Rainbow had quite a bit extra since joining the Wonderbolts Reserves.
Just as she thought about pulling the cake from the fridge, the lock on the door began to wiggle. Rainbow's ears perked at the sound. She watched intently as the knob was surrounded in a purple corona, and she shot up instantly when Twilight swung the door ajar. Rainbow flung herself at the alicorn, tackling her to the ground in a sloppy, happy kiss. "Welcome back!" she shouted excitedly, though her fatigue still crept its way into her voice.
Twilight ran a hoof across Rainbow's cheek and through her mane and sighed happily. She gazed deeply into Rainbow's ruby eyes and whispered in response, "It's good to be back," before planting a quick kiss on Rainbow's nose and wiggling herself out from under the pegasus and into a standing position.
Making their way into the castle together, Rainbow decided to bring up the one question on her mind. "So what took you so long?" she asked.
Twilight gave Rainbow a confused look. "What do you mean?"
"Yesterday you sent me a letter that said you'd be on the midnight train home that night," Rainbow explained, "So what gives? I stayed up all last night, waiting." Rainbow pouted. She seemed more disappointed than angry.
Twilight frowned. The couple laid down on a pair of pillows before the new fireplace, flames already blazing to life with the slightest touch of Twilight's magic. The alicorn reached out to stroke her marefriend's cheek. "Oh, Rainbow," she started, "I'm so sorry. I was trying to take into account Canterlot's sluggish mail delivery system when I sent that early. I didn't think about how much quicker they would deliver mail for royalty." Twilight gave her a sheepish grin, hoping that Rainbow would accept the apology.
In response, Rainbow elicited a small yawn and nuzzled her lover's cheek. "I love you, egghead," she proclaimed sleepily, "Even if you are a -yawn- egghead."
Twilight rolled her eyes and nuzzled Rainbow back. She reveled in the feeling of their furs rubbing against one another and gently intermingling, and she couldn't help but reach out and give Rainbow's ear the smallest of licks. The alicorn giggled at the small mewl that escaped her significant other's lips and gasped. "Speaking of eggheads," she started, pulling a book from her saddlebags, "I ran into A.K. on the train home, and she asked me to give you the first copy of the new Daring Do book. Do you want to read it with me?"
Excitement radiated from Rainbow. "You mean the one that's not even coming out for another four months? Heck yeah, I wanna' read it!" Another yawn escaped her lips and she cuddled in closer to Twilight. Blushing, she asked, "C-can you read it to me, though? I don't think I could keep my eyes open too much longer."
Twilight smiled and wrapped a warm wing around Rainbow's back. "Of course, hon," she cooed.
As Twilight began reading, Rainbow nestled more comfortably into her side. Their tails wrapped around each other, and Rainbow's head rested across her neck. It wasn't long before Twilight felt her heartbeat slow and breathing calm down to that of a sleeping mare. Giggling, she closed the book and placed it back into her saddlebags. "Silly filly," she whispered into Rainbow's ear, "I can't believe you stayed up so long just because you were excited to see me again. What am I going to do with you?"
Ever so gently, Twilight nudged the sleeping mare fully onto her back with her magic and lifted off the pillow. She extinguished the fire to the point of low embers and used the remaining light to find the stairs. This new staircase was not wooden, and therefore would not creak, but out of habit Twilight crept up them carefully. The last thing she wanted was to wake the snoozing pegasus on her back.
She continued to tread carefully as they made their way into her room. Pulling up alongside the bed, she slowly lifted Rainbow off her back and onto the bed below. When she too climbed into bed, she did so methodically, attempting to minimize the chance of jostling her marefriend.
Despite her efforts, Rainbow stirred awake. However, she did not wake angry. Instead, she did something she tried to do as little as possible, even in front of Twilight. Rainbow Dash was crying. She blindly reached out with her hooves, and Twilight graciously accepted the embrace.
As she snuggled into Rainbow, her tears saturated the fur at her breast. She ran a hoof through her marefriend's chromatic mane in an attempt to comfort her. "Shhhh," she shushed gently. "What's wrong, Rainbow? Why are you crying?"
Rainbow sniffled. Attempting to snub her tears, she spoke, "I-I was so worried when y-you didn't come home, Twi." Her whispers were still shaky with tears. "I-I know you're a t-tough mare, and you can take care of yourself, b-but I couldn't help it...I feel so stupid." Rainbow Dash turned away, unable to face her marefriend.
Twilight snaked a hoof across Rainbow's barrel and pressed her own to the pegasus' back. "You're not stupid," Twilight cooed in her ear, "Adorable, maybe, but not stupid." She reached up to give Rainbow a kiss on her cheek, but her head turned just in time to steal a quick kiss. As they broke away after just seconds, Twilight whispered once more, "Thank you for caring so much, Rainbow Dash," She nuzzled her mare, more on top of her now than behind. "It means a lot to me."
Rainbow smiled up at her and whispered, "Always," before pulling her into a much longer, more passionate kiss than before. Their hooves fumbled through each other's manes and over each other's backs. Their wings flared out so the feathers at the tips intermingled lovingly as they moaned and sighed into each other's mouths.
After what felt to them both like far too short a time, they broke away to breath, and Twilight rolled gently off Rainbow. The pegasus pulled her in with her wings, and Twilight used her magic to pull the comforter over them both. Minutes passed, and they both fell into a deep, peaceful sleep. A gold, heart-shaped necklace around Twilight's neck glinted in the full moonlight, a reminder that love can be found in the most unlikely of places.
Author's Note
Well, it turned out a lot shorter than Be Mine, but it is what it is.
This was written for my girlfriend, Ava, who loved Be Mine, and I hope she enjoys this just as much. 
