Cuori Intrecciati

“I know it’s expensive, but we have to at least give it a try.”

Aloe rolled her eyes as Lotus restarted their argument from breakfast. “No, we don’t, L.B. Our nearest competitor is in Canterlot. We don’t need to chase all the trends anymore.”

“But if one of our customers asks for it—”

“Then we can order it and charge their account directly.” It was the same thing every time some new ‘miracle’ product hit the market. Aloe picked up her pace. The sooner they got to work, the sooner they would be too busy for Lotus to keep arguing. “I don’t want to be stuck pushing another muzzle cream that costs three times what we already use and ten times what it’s worth.”

“It’s not that expensive.”

Aloe stopped, turning to face her sister. “Oh? And how expensive is it?” Lotus hesitated, her forehooves fidgeting, rubbing off a few cerulean hairs from her fetlocks. That was really all Aloe needed to see, but she still waited until Lotus quoted the price before reacting. “Not that expensive?” She snorted and continued toward the spa at an annoyed march. “We can’t even hope to afford enough to stock it.”

“Come on, Alley!” Lotus called, hurrying to catch back up. “We don’t have to get much.”

Shaking her head, Aloe intended to put her hoof down and end the argument once and for all. “If you want it so much, use your allowance. But we are not spending—”

The moment they turned the corner, Aloe cut herself off. Coming toward them from the opposite direction were the two most recognizable ponies in Ponyville. All of Equestria knew Princess Twilight Sparkle by now. It might have taken a few weeks, but her picture had circulated through every magazine and newspaper within Equestria and likely everywhere outside as well. Accompanying her, walking with far more grace and self-assurance, was Rarity, their number-one patron.

Panic snagged Aloe at the sight of them, throwing her heart into her throat and flinging her eyes toward the horizon. The Sun was barely peeking into view, still painting the sky in vibrant oranges and purples. A tiny faction of her worry abated; they hadn’t inexplicably lost track of time and showed up late to open the spa.

Unless they’d set up an early appointment. It wouldn’t be the first time Rarity asked them to work at odd hours. For the life of her, she couldn’t remember such an appointment. Swinging her eyes around, Aloe saw the same uncertain worry on Lotus’ muzzle that she imagined was on her own. A little more of her panic slid off, but it didn’t leave completely. One of their employees could have set it up without telling them.

Steeling herself for the worst case, Aloe quickened her pace to a trot with Lotus following at her side, both silently whispering prayers to Celestia and Luna that they hadn’t just left their most important clients waiting.

The two pairs reached the spa at nearly the same time, Aloe and Lotus falling into deep bows and making sure to speak Equestrian as they said, “Your Highness.”

Neither noticed Twilight’s eye roll before motioning them to rise. “Aloe, Lotus Blossom,” Princess Sparkle said, her tired voice a match for the sleepless state of her face, “we’re sorry for coming by so early. I hope it isn’t too inconvenient.”

True relief finally washed Aloe’s panic out in a sigh she couldn’t hold back. If Twilight or Rarity noticed, they showed no signs.

As Aloe rose, she got her first good look at the two mares. Rarity was, to no great surprise, as gorgeous and styled as always, with not a hair out of place. Twilight, on the other hoof, looked bedraggled, almost slept-in. She could see the last vestiges of styling in her mane and the remains of makeup in serious need of touching up. Most telling, though, were the bags forming under her eyes. No matter how little sleep her appearance said she’d gotten, Twilight was not lacking for energy. Aloe would almost call her ‘peppy’.

“No, not at all, Your Highness,” Lotus said, her accent lighter than Aloe’s.

Aloe bowed out, stepping back toward the door and allowing Lotus take the lead with the customers. Dipping her muzzle into her saddlebags, Aloe fished out the key and turned to the door. She fumbled through them with her tongue to bring the proper one to bear, almost dropping them in her haste. The entrance bell chimed in announcement of the door’s opening.

Stepping in first, Aloe flipped on the lights and held the door for the others. Lotus followed last, covertly nuzzling under Aloe’s chin. It was a small comfort, but an appreciated one that helped calm her nerves even more.

Aloe was still antsy, though. They weren’t ready for customers yet; they weren’t even supposed to open for another half-hour. All of their equipment was stowed and turned off for the night. The only services they could offer right at the moment required a personal touch, which meant either making them wait while they set up shop, or leaving everything as it was until they got a free moment.

“Will you be having the usual?” Lotus asked with more than a hint of hope in her voice, no doubt carrying the same thoughts as Aloe. The usual for Rarity started in the sauna. Though it would take a few minutes to get to proper temperature, they could safely tuck them in while it did so. Then, while they relaxed, Aloe and Lotus would be able to get everything else ready.

Rarity nodded. “But of course. Do you even need to ask?” Aloe couldn’t help but smile at that, barely suppressing another sigh of relief. “Put it on my—”

“My tab!” Princess Twilight interrupted quickly. Before Rarity could protest, she added, “It’s the least I can do for all your help.”

Aloe suppressed a grin, knowing full well what was about to occur. A shared glance and Lotus bowed out, trotting toward the basement to get the heating system up and running, while Aloe waited patiently for the two friends to decide who would be paying. The longer they argued, the longer the pipes had to heat up, after all.

“Really, Twilight, it—”

“Rarity, please, I’m too tired to argue.”

“Nonsense…”

She was, honestly, half tempted to waive the charges. After all, Rarity nearly kept them open on her own, and the Princess was directly responsible for the large influx of new customer over the past two years. They were on the verge of needing to hire even more help.

Aloe shook her head, refocusing.

“... issue a royal decree!”

Rarity frowned, but finally acquiesced to Twilight. “Oh, all right, but next time…”

Twilight turned to Aloe once more, a long suffering, but triumphant smile on her lips. “As I said, please charge this to my account.”

“Of course, Your Highness.” Aloe bowed her head and motioned toward the linen closet and changing screens. “If you will follow me, we can get you ready.”

Receiving an acknowledgement from both, Aloe led the way toward the shelves and hangers where they kept the towels and bathrobes. It wasn’t a changing room so much as a changing area. A small linen closet held the clean towels on shelves with a number of bathrobes beside them on hangers. Three separate privacy screens were set up, for those so inclined, as Rarity was.

Aloe retrieved Rarity’s monogrammed robe and a towel before leading her behind the first privacy screen.

“As you were saying,” Rarity prompted as she joined Aloe.

“Oh, right. Well, I’d just finished going over our itinerary when we arrived at the convention. I admit, I was still a little nervous at first, but she was so… calm and… regal.”

Aloe’s ears perked, tilting toward Twilight as she flung the bathrobe over Rarity’s withers, helping her slip her forelegs into the sleeves. “But of course she was! After all, she is—”

“I know that, but it was still so different. Princess Celestia and Cadance have always been so warm and open, but she… she’s so much more distant, like, like a matron.”

The towel, a light purple, almost pink color, came next. Aloe expertly wrapped it around Rarity’s mane, a sly smile on her lips all the while. “A matron? Darling, that’s not exactly a flattering comparison.”

“No, that’s not… I mean, she exudes this stoney confidence, like she’s always in complete control, daring anypony to challenger her. It was a little intimidating at first, I admit. But, at the same time, standing next to her, I couldn’t help but feel the same way. Her self-assurance became my self-assurance.”

Rarity sighed dreamily and stepped out. “Like you could take on the world if only she would always be at your side.”

“Yes, exactly!” Princess Twilight exclaimed, already wearing one of the complimentary bathrobes.

With both mares ready, Aloe could think of no way to delay them further. Instead, she led the way once more. With vertical wood paneling, the sauna stood out in stark contrast to the soft, relaxing colors of the rest of the decor. Aloe held the door open as both mares stepped inside, jumping up onto the bench that lined the walls.

Turning around, she spotted her sister coming out of the back room, a tin bucket with water held between her teeth with a small ladle sticking out. The bucket changed mouths in a swift, practiced motion, a hint of cherry diffusing the taste of the tin cross-bar as Aloe brought it into the sauna.

“She created quite a stir too,” Twilight was saying, settling down beside Rarity. “Everypony was really excited to see her there. It was as if A.K. Yearling showed up unannounced to a Daring Do convention.”

Holding a hoof over the rocks, Aloe could feel the heat already wafting off of them. Dropping a ladle of water on the stones filled the air with a burst of steam, sizzling instantly. More followed, one ladle’s worth at a time, until the whole sauna was filled with steam.

“I was afraid it would be the Gala all over again, all greeting ponies and not getting a chance to spend time with just the two of us, but she put a stop to that right away.”

“Oh?” Rarity asked. “How did she do that?”

“Well first, she got everypony’s attention with…”

Aloe didn’t stick around for long, no matter how much she would have liked to. With the sauna steamed up, she slipped out, leaving them to relax in privacy as she went to help Lotus put the spa in order.

She found her at the mud baths, breaking the thin crust that had formed overnight and refreshing the mixture of mud, minerals, and ash.

Aloe walked behind her, bumping their flanks playfully as she passed. Lotus’ tail whipped out in kind, lashing her across the cutie mark. With a smile on her lips, Aloe went straight to pulling out massage tables and setting out the other tools of their trade. In the most casual voice she could manage, she said, “That’s five more points for me.”

Lotus glanced up from the mud baths, her ears perked a little in surprise. “What? Why?”

Relishing the feeling of being in control, Aloe held off on answering, finally saying only two words. “Twilight Sparkle.”

Lotus’ stirring paddle fell from her mouth, clattering on the floor. “No.”

“Yes.”

She shook her head. “I don’t believe you.”

“That’s why they are here. Twilight went on a date… ” Aloe let the unspoken question hang in the air, smiling devilishly at her sister, before finishing, “with a mare.”

Lotus snapped up the paddle once more, roughly scrapping it clean at the bath’s edge and grumbling under her breath. “I was so sure she was straight.”

“Total fillyfooler,” Aloe chuckled mostly to herself, not really wanting to rub it in too much… yet.

With the mud baths finished, Lotus joined Aloe in prepping the rest of the spa. They worked quickly and in relative silence. Lotus probably didn’t want to talk, and Aloe was distracted by thoughts of their scoreboard back at home, tallying up all the points she’d saved and imagining all the ways she could use them.

“Who’s the lucky mare?” Lotus finally asked, halfway through counting stock.

Aloe shrugged from behind the counter where she was sorting bottles. “I’m not sure, but she sounds famous. Probably some noble.”

“Of course. Twilight is a princess, and you have to be a noble to court a princess.”

Popping her head over the counter, Aloe smirked at her sister’s pout. “This coming from the mare who thought she was straight.”

Lotus turned to face her, glaring over the edge of her clipboard. “Just because I thought she was straight doesn’t mean I wanted her to be. Tell me you don’t think she’s cute.”

“You know I can’t do that.” Aloe dropped back behind the counter, counting the bottles of conditioner. I still think Rarity is a far more likely prospect.”

“Rarity? If ever there was a straight mare.”

“A straight mare who turns to putty under my hooves. A few glasses of wine is all it would take.”

“You’re incorrigible.”

“And you’re a hopeless romantic,” Aloe said, popping back up and throwing a glare at her as she received the same in kind. They held each other’s gaze for a heartbeat, only to simultaneously blow raspberries at each other and fall into giggling fits.

The buzz of the sauna’s timer cut off any further revelry.

Setting the rest aside, they returned to the sauna together. Aloe knocked twice on the stained-wood door before peeking inside. Twilight and Rarity faced her from the other side, their cheeks flushed, whether from embarrassment or simply the heat, she could not tell.

“Are you ready to move on, or would you like to stay in for another five minutes?”

After a quick dunk in the cold water pool, both gasping from the sudden temperature change, Rarity and Twilight were ready for their pony-pedies. Climbing onto the pillow laden platforms, they laid out on their sides. Aloe and Lotus moved in to apply a thick, green coat conditioner to their muzzles and hid their eyes behind cucumber slices before pulling out the horn and hoof files.

“Our next stop was the art room,” Twilight said as Aloe inspected Rarity’s horn, looking for the small imperfections that she would be removing. “The moment we stepped inside, her eyes just lit up. I don’t think she expected to find so many artists that drew inspiration from the night sky.”

Still half listening, Aloe focused most of her attention on Rarity’s horn. Made of keratin, the outer layer of a unicorn’s horn never stopped growing. If improperly cared for, they could develop irregular bumps and, in the worst cases, cracks and splits. At the same time, the quick at the center was very sensitive and an inattentive hoof could cause a fair amount of pain.

“One of the artists had a painting of Princess Platinum’s battle with Cancer. I… I don’t remember too much about it,” Twilight said, ears quivering in mild embarrassment. “Every time I tried to look at it, my eyes kept drifting back to her. When she asked what I thought, I wasn’t really paying attention and said, ‘You’re beautiful.’.

“Thankfully, I must have mumbled it, or something, because all she did was turn toward me with a questioning look. That’s when I realized what she’d actually asked me. I was so embarrassed; I couldn’t do anything but turn away and stammer out some line about the use of color theory, despite how there was no way for the sun to be rising in what was obviously the northern horizon.”

Rarity shifted to face Twilight, ignoring the cucumbers on her eyes, and forcing Aloe to pull back until she resettled. “You know about color theory?”

“Yep. She taught me.”

“My, my, Twilight,” Rarity tutted, grinning slyly, “perhaps you don’t need as much help as you thought.”

“What do you mean?”

“Why, using knowledge that she imparted to you, darling. There is no finer form of flattery.”

“Oh.” Even through the thick green conditioner, it was plain as day that Twilight was blushing.

Twilight continued talking as Aloe and Lotus finished with their horns and moved on to their hooves. She kept slipping into tangents, diverting away from the date itself, only for Rarity to reel her back in before she could stray too far. By the time Aloe and Lotus had finished polishing their hooves and horns, Twilight and her date had moved to the roof, joining a large number of other ponies observing the night sky through some of the most powerful telescopes that ponies could own in their homes, all for sale apparently. Yet another topic which Rarity saved them all from learning the intimate details of.

Story time paused as Aloe and Lotus took their hooves, helping them down and leading them toward the massage tables. Once Rarity and Twilight were stretched out on their stomachs, the sisters climbed up after and standing over them, feeling along their backs to find where they carried the most tension.

Rarity started to prompt Twilight into continuing, only for Aloe’s hooves to begin their work, turning whatever she’d been about to say into a primal moan. Twilight’s own mewls followed, and for the next fifteen minutes not a single coherent word was shared between them.

Aloe’s hooves worked over Rarity’s pristine coat from shoulder to dock, finding every last tight bundle of muscle and coaxing them to relax. By the time she was through, Rarity was like Lotus after her third round, barely able to stand and shaking all the while. Twilight was no better, finally succombing to her late night by napping lightly under Lotus’ expert ministrations.

Once they were done, it was time to prepare them for the mud baths. So, while Lotus cleaned the cream from their muzzles, Aloe brought out the seaweed wraps.

She hated them. Covered in slime and tasting of ocean water, Aloe didn’t understand how Rarity could stand having her body wrapped up in the stuff. Then again, she didn’t have to get any in her mouth. Still, it was what she wanted, and she was willing to pay what they asked for it, which was a lot.

Twilight, thankfully, did not care for it any more than Aloe. Once they finished tightening the last knot for Rarity, Aloe and Lotus were free to leave for the next thirty minutes as their guests soaked in the rejuvenating mud.

“So, darling, where were we?” Rarity asked as she settled in, Aloe and Lotus turning to leave.

“Uhm…” Twilight dithered. Aloe could imagine her tapping at the bottom of the bath in thought as she walked through the door. “Oh. Right. Luna and I—”

Aloe tripped over her own hooves, stumbling out of the room before she could make a scene.

“Are you alright, sis?” Lotus asked as the door closed.

“Princess Luna,” Aloe choked out. “She went out with Princess Luna.”

“No!” Lotus said with an exaggerated gasp. “I don’t believe it.”

“I know! That—”

“Of course it’s Princess Luna,” Lotus snarked.

“But that’s—”

“Completely unsurprising?”

“But—”

“Honestly, Alley, it would be more of a shock if it wasn’t her.”

Aloe pouted. “Thanks for raining on my parade.”

“What are sisters for?” Lotus asked before leaning in to peck her on the cheek. “Come on, we still have work to do.”

“You know, I was going to be nice, but now I think I’ll be cashing in all of my points tonight.”

“All of them? But that’s—”

“Sixty.”

Lotus swallowed, her eyes flicking as she ran through their list, trying to figure out what Aloe was planning. She tried to pry out any kind of hint, but Aloe wasn’t talking, only giving up once Quake showed up for work. After that, things got quiet until it was time to fetch Twilight and Rarity.

“ … Glimmer’s panel,” Twilight was saying as she stepped out of the bath. “We didn’t want to interrupt anything and tried to sneak in without being seen. That went about as well as you might expect.”

With Twilight and Rarity standing beside the baths, Aloe and Lotus started to wash them down, cleaning off the mud and spraying it back into the baths. Rarity’s seaweed wrap came next, flopping to the floor with a wet squelch.

“Everything came to a stop the moment Luna stepped inside. Professor Glimmer even invited her to join him on the stage. I think it was only a perfunctory invitation, though. She only had to decline once for him to drop it and allow us to take our seats at the back.

“It took a minute or so for everything to calm back down, but soon enough Professor Glimmer was the center of attention again… well, mostly. Anyway, he started his talk. I never realized how little we knew about the stars, Rarity. From the moment he started talking, Luna was whispering in my ear, pointing out all the little inaccuracies… inaccuracies that, up until that moment, were the same things that I had been taught and believed for my entire life.”

Finished with the rinse, there was only one more step before Rarity and Twilight would be done for the day, a thorough brushing. The mares stood stock still as Aloe and Lotus began working them over, drawing the stiff-bristled brushes through their manes, tails, and coats. While it was not something that required any great amount of skill, the sisters prided themselves on making it as much of an experience as the rest of the treatment.

“Whatever do you mean?”

“It’s so embarrassing! Even with all the time we’ve been spending together, I never thought to ask about them.”

“It isn’t nice to keep a lady in suspense.”

“I’m sorry, it’s just… The stars aren’t a work of art. Well, they are, obviously, but that’s not what they are.”

“I don’t think I understand.”

“It’s like… like a dress!” Twilight exclaimed, her face lighting up. “All of your dresses are beautiful works of art.”

“I do try,” Rarity said coyly.

Twilight didn’t pause to notice in her downhill gallop of an explanation, “But they serve a purpose beyond that, they are dresses too. Well the stars are like that! Yes, they are a beautiful display, but it’s more than that; they tell stories. They are the oldest records of pony history. Before unicorns were writing in books, they wrote on the night sky.

“The constellations carry with them the ancient myths of ponykind, written into their magic and design. Anypony who knows what they are doing can reach up to the stars and read them like a book. One of the last ponies who could do so was Starswir—”

“That’s all terribly fascinating, darling, really. But I’m far more intrigued by Princess Luna herself. You’ve been dancing around it all morning. What did you two do?”

“We spent the entire night together, just talking and having fun. It was really nice,” Twilight said a little defensively.

Rarity rolled her eyes. “I know that, and I am glad that you and she enjoyed yourselves. Only, you had to have done something a little more romantic than all that, yes? Did you share any food or drink?”

“We had… well, not exactly lunch, together.”

“That’s a start. What about holding hooves, hmmm? Touching wings?”

“Well, not really,” Twilight said morosely, only to brighten as she added, “but we did sit side-by-side during all the panels.”

“Stare longingly into each other’s eyes?”

“Well, no.”

“Oh, dear. Twilight, you did kiss her goodnight, did you not?”

“No!” Twilight gasped to the simultaneous wincing and tutting from everypony else. “I don’t see what that has to do with anything.”

“Oh, Twilight, Twilight, Twilight. Whatever am I going to do with you?”

—————————————

Luna watched Twilight’s chariot disappear over the ramparts, carrying her back home to Ponyville. Once it was out of sight, she let out a tired sigh, an equally sleepy smile on her lips. All-in-all, the night had not been nearly as bad as she’d worried.

Spreading her wings, Luna gave them a few experimental beats before jumping and throwing most of her remaining energy into gaining altitude, rising up among the parapets. Her strokes were far from efficient once she reached the apex of her course, the long pause between flaps leaving her to dip as she flew toward bed. The exhaustion was as more mental as it was physical. Hours of talking and listening, having to re-educate the supposed experts on the reality of what the stars were had drained her considerably.

She was already halfway through the heavy curtain, staring at her sparse surroundings in confusion, when she realized that she’d flown to Celestia’s room instead of her own. If she’d been more awake, she might have found it all amusing, or perhaps heartwarming, if not hopelessly sappy. As it was, she was simply too tired to care.

In deference to the sleeping lump on the massive bed, she tried to be quiet, but didn’t do a particularly good job. Celestia’s dress stand already carried her golden regalia and held no room of Luna’s. Instead, she dropped hers on the area rug, each piece clunking dully against the thick fibers.

Celestia’s room lacked the excessive carpeting of Luna’s, and she couldn’t summon the energy to keep her naked hooves from sounding against the stone floor as she plodded toward the bed and her sister.

Laying on her side, facing away from the balcony, Celestia’s barrel rose in the steady rhythm of sleep in defiance of the noise Luna made. Her mane still moved, though more like a lazy river than its normal wind swept pendant, pooling on the mattress, the ends dangling over the edge like a rainbow fall.

Out of both weariness and a desire to let Celestia sleep, Luna took her time mounting the bed. Each hoof rose one at a time, her weight shifting slowly, barely compressing the thick mattress of cloud stuff. For the first time, she thanked Celestia for having such a stiff mattress as opposed to her own, for all the good it did.

By the time she was slipping under the sheets, Celestia stirred, sleepily whispering, “Welcome home, Love.”

Luna sighed, half annoyed and half delighted that Celestia had awoken. No longer worried about disturbing her, Luna slipped a foreleg under Celestia’s torso, snuggling into her back as she drew the covers over the both of them. Without really knowing why, she licked at her sister’s neck, grooming a small patch before nuzzling into it and closing her eyes.

Celestia shifted a bit, making herself comfortable, and pulled Luna’s hoof up to her muzzle, kissing the fetlock and nuzzling. “Did you have fun at the Convention?”

Luna hummed, nodding against Celestia’s neck. “‘Twas an enjoyable evening.”

Celestia yawned deeply, letting Luna’s hoof go. “That’s good.”

Luna just hummed again, holding her love close and letting herself drift off to sleep.