To Find a Rainbow

Soft candlelight, sending flickering shadows dancing and playing on the walls.

Curtains pulled, blocking out all but the barest traces of silver moonlight.

A solemn silence, the sounds of our own breathing all but ignored as I gazed into the deep pools of a certain pair of rose-colored eyes.

I took a long draw from the wine glass in my hand, its sinfully sweet aroma gracing my senses as its gratifying warmth seeped across my abdomen. My belly was full of delicious homemade lasagna, as close to the recipe my mother used as I grew up as I could remember, minus the meat, of course. Tofu didn’t sit quite as well as I would have liked, but it was a concession I was willing to make for the mare sitting across from me.

She was dressed in a slinky black number that sparkled in the dim light which served to accentuate her brilliantly chromatic mane and set it alight. Speaking of, she even had her mane styled, primmed and pampered until it fell full and thick across her right shoulder, several strands falling sultrily across her eye. The look was topped off by a pair of sheer black stockings on her hind legs.

It was a rare sight to see Rainbow Dash dressed up, but damn could she look drop dead sexy when she wanted to.

Like I was, she sat nursing a half-full glass of wine, over whose rim she stared at me from across the small table between us. Even the span of just a few feet felt like they may as well have been miles. I could just barely make out her perfume: a light and airy thing, but with a cutting edge of something spicy hidden just under the surface.

She smiled an impish smile but said nothing to break the tranquil air between us. She didn’t need to. We’d had a lovely dinner, currently had lovely company, and would likely have a lovely evening before us. But Rainbow was not one to let things sit at ‘lovely’ when they could be ‘awesome’ or ‘radical’ instead.

With a single throaty chuckle, she stood, her hooves clacking on the tiled flooring. She cradled her glass carefully in the crook of her forehoof and sashayed around the table until she was by my side then, in a gracefully fluid motion I didn’t think her capable of, she slid herself onto my lap. Automatically, my hand went to her back to steady her as her free foreleg draped itself across my shoulders.

There she sat, her eyes locked with mine as her hindlegs crossed about my lap. She was so close I could almost taste the wine on her breath as she leaned in and nuzzled my cheek.

“Tonight was pretty great,” she whispered. Then she lightly nipped my ear.

“It wouldn’t have been half as great without you,” I whispered back.

That got her to laugh, something I felt through the rumble of her chest more than heard. But then she flashed me the ghost of that arrogant grin that looks so damn good on her. “Don’t you know it.”

She paused long enough to drain what was left in her glass. Considering it was still a quarter full, it was quite the feat. Her cheeks were flushed even through her beautifully blue coat as she turned back to me and gave a half-lidded stare.

“What do you say we make tonight even greater?” she purred.

I gasped as her hindhooves began teasing against my leg, one trailing circles around my thigh as the other wandered further north. By the time it reached the zipper of my pants my lips were locked with hers, her tongue fighting for control over mine and not gaining quarter. My entire world was filled with soft lips and the taste of strawberries and alcohol and so many other amazing things that I couldn’t begin to categorize but it didn’t matter because all that was really important was the mare in my arms and never losing the feel of her against me.

But neither of us could hold our breath forever and eventually we had to break apart, gasping for air and our chests were heaving together and her coat was brushing against my skin so wonderfully and yet it wasn’t enough. Her legs had long stopped their teasing and had gone to full-on stroking of my length through my pants while my hands, of their own instinct –or perhaps brilliance, it’s hard to tell– had found their way under her dress and tail.

“Will…” Rainbow whispered in between nips at my lips and gulps of air.

“Yes?” was all my addled brain could get out.

“Will,” she said more forcefully, yet without her hungry expression changing at all.

Why were we still in the kitchen? Why was she still trying to talk when we had a perfectly empty bedroom just waiting for the two of us to make use of it? It was almost painful trying to focus long enough to formulate any kind of response.

“What is it…? Rainbow?”

“William!”

My eyes snapped open as a sudden shout woke me, my arms and legs flailing to grab onto something to maintain my balance until I realized I was already sitting down. I was in the shade of a grand old oak tree that I often liked to use for napping during my breaks at Carrot Top’s farm. I tried to take in my surroundings as the hammering in my chest struggled to slow.

It was a bright and sun-shiney day, probably still early in the afternoon judging by the sun’s location with not a single cloud in sight. The weather team was really on the ball today, considering we’d had a storm last night and even this morning it had been overcast as I made my way to work.

Carrot Top’s quaint old barnhouse stood before me, with small flower beds lining every window and blooming red rose bushes to either side of the front porch. It was on top of a hill, as was the oak tree I was sitting against, and so it overlooked the entire farm from on high, as well as having a great view of Sweet Apple Acres to the southwest and Ponyville to the north. To my right should have been the field of carrots I had been working on that day, but the sight was blocked by a yellow earth pony mare glaring down at me.

Carrot Top, at first glance, looked like a very approachable pony. Her yellow coat was pleasant to look at and her bushy orange mane, often held down like it was today with a pale green bandana, was downright homely. However, her primary expression of bored indifference, backed up by her oftentimes prickly demeanor easily made her come across as quite antisocial and difficult to spend time with. Certainly, I had believed it the first couple weeks of working for her.

“Napping on the job, huh? Didn’t realize I had given you so little to do today,” she quipped.

Any frustration I had at being awoken from such a good dream quickly evaporated as it dawned on me that I was late getting back to my work shift. As well, I could still feel the after-effects of the dream; my pants were almost painfully tight. And as close as she was, I couldn’t hope to stand up without her noticing. Damn those ponies being waist-height. It was all I could do to shift uncomfortably, put my arm over my lap and hope that she wouldn’t notice.

It was the perfect storm of circumstances that I really didn’t want to deal with at the moment.

“Uh… heh. Sorry about that, Carrot Top, I must have dozed off after lunch. Am I too late? What time is it?”

“Oh, just a quarter ‘till four. So yeah, you’re a little late,” she deadpanned.

I felt my jaw drop. I was supposed to be back to work by one. I’d never been that late for anything before. “Shit! Carrot Top, I’m so sorry! I’ll– uh… I’ll stay late! I’ll work extra hours tonight to make up for it!” I winced inside even as I said it. Today was the day that I was supposed to be meeting Rainbow and Scootaloo in the park, and I didn’t look forward to missing it. But even Rainbow would agree –I hope– that keeping my job is more important than one flight practice.

“Please Carrot Top, I promise it’ll never happen again!” I pleaded.

She finally held up a hoof, waving my words away but still looking at me with that bored look that made it impossible to know what she was thinking. “Don’t worry about it,” she said with the same nonchalance one would use to discuss the weather. “I’ll let you off the hook this time.”

“Y-yeah?”

“Sure. I was actually coming out to send you home anyway. The Missus and I,” she said, pausing to turn towards the house and point to a small patio table next to the porch. It was the sort with a large umbrella built-in to shade to those sitting at it, which was currently being enjoyed by Carrot Top’s husband, a light grey unicorn stallion with a burgundy mane named Written Script. He was currently absorbed in his own world, poring over a stack of papers that was likely the next play script he was working on. He had the tendency to become completely oblivious to the world around him while he wrote, but he was a nice enough guy. Sweet, naïve and a little bumbling, but always well-meaning. How he’d gotten involved with the often dour Carrot Top I’ll never know.

I turned back to Carrot Top just as she continued speaking. “We’re going out to dinner tonight so we’re turning in early today. I need time to do my mane and… whatever it is mares do to get ready for going out.”

With the prospect of losing my job becoming less likely, I started to relax. “Is today a special occasion or something?”

She shrugged. “Just our anniversary.”

“Really? Congratulations! Which one is it?”

“The fifth,” she said, finally cracking a wry smile. I think it was as close as she could get to looking truly happy. “Anyway, you have any plans for the day?”

“Meeting some friends in the park here in a bit. Why?”

She shrugged again. “Just making sure you aren’t being a lazy sack of crap.”

“No offense, but why do you care how lazy I am? …Outside of work, at least,” I amended.

“None taken. But Writty keeps telling me I should take more interest in my employees’ lives or whatever. And by employees I mean you, since you’re my only one. I guess I’m supposed to care about you or something.”

“Since when do you do anything he tells you to do?”

“I listen to him all the time,” she said, turning her nose up at me.

“Didn’t you tell me you once spent a week on the couch because you wouldn’t apologize for throwing out his favorite tie?”

She sniffed. “It was a hideous tie.”

“Totally missing the point,” I said.

“Or just skillfully evading it,” she said, grinning. “But fine, do whatever you want after work. See if I care.”

Without so much as a ‘how do you do’ she turned and began walking away. It was so abrupt that even as I opened my mouth to speak, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to say. Carrot Top, however, managed to still beat me to it. She stopped, looking back over her shoulder.

“You’re welcome for not firing you. I’ll just dock your pay for the afternoon. And yes, I’ll tell Writty you said we should have fun tonight. That’s something you would say, right? Though, I’m also going to be telling him you meant it sexually.”

“But wait! I didn’t even-!” I tried to interject, but she was already walking away again. She trotted up to the door of her house, and just before stepping inside, I swear I saw an amused smirk on her face.

Well, I’m glad she found it funny, because I just felt sick to my stomach.

The noise of the door closing finally caused Written Script to stir, and as he looked around our eyes met. He gave me a smile and a wave which I awkwardly returned. Thankfully he went back to work without feeling the need to speak to me and make me feel uncomfortable, too.

I don’t need this stress right now.

And so with my job still secure but my life at risk from jealous husbands, I felt it was time to hightail it out of there. At least as soon as I could stand without having an embarrassing bulge in my pants. With Carrot Top gone, the remaining traces of my dream came back to the forefront of my mind. I’d never had a dream like that before, leastways not about a pony and certainly not Rainbow Dash, but now I was finding myself strangely interested in it.

I wondered what an actual date with Rainbow would be like. Who knows? Maybe it was time to find out.

A short half-hour later found me standing outside the gates to the Ponyville Community Park. I had swung by my cottage after leaving Carrot Top’s just long enough to shower and change into a pair of clothes that didn’t smell like stale sweat. I’d also remembered to grab the clunky old camera I’d borrowed from Princess Twilight. I figured watching Rainbow and Scootaloo flying was going to present at least a few opportunities for some good shots.

But being very much an indoor kind of person, I had found very little reason to ever visit the park. I knew where it was, of course –the town wasn’t that big– but I’d only gone inside a couple of times, including the day we had the picnic where I met Rainbow for the first time.

What that meant was that as soon as I got to there, I had no idea whereabouts one might go to practice their flying. Granted, it wasn’t exactly the sort of park that you could actually get lost in, so I figured I’d just walk around until I saw a familiar flash of blue or orange.

Eventually my ‘plan’ worked out as I saw the two mares I was looking for congregated under an old willow tree atop a hill, the same place we’d had that picnic all that time ago. They didn’t appear to be doing any practice yet, instead they were just standing around and laughing about something. Rainbow was leaning casually against the tree trunk trying to look cool while Scootaloo stood leaning slightly forward, hanging off of Rainbow’s every word. Even from here I could see the star-struck look on her face, and I imagined Rainbow telling some likely exaggerated tale of her past accomplishments.

As I began the trek up the hill to them, Rainbow finally noticed me and gave a nonchalant wave of her wing. Following her gaze, Scootaloo caught sight of me as well, though unlike her sister, she didn’t reign in her excitement. She broke out in a beaming smile and waved to me both with a wing and a foreleg.

“Hey girls,” I said as I finally reached them.

“Hi, Will!” Scootaloo said. Rainbow settled for an aloof, ‘Yo.’

“You ready to watch us tear up the skies?” Scootaloo asked.

I couldn’t help but laugh at how excited she sounded. “Hell yeah I am!”

“Good,” Rainbow suddenly barked, standing upright and marching away from the tree. “’Cuz we’re already getting a late start ‘cuz of you.”

Her harsh words were undermined by the smirk on her face and the hipcheck she gave me as she passed.

“Sorry,” I said, sticking my tongue out at her behind her back. Scootaloo caught me and laughed, causing Rainbow to whirl around, glaring at me suspiciously, but I had already resumed a neutral expression. Rainbow searched me for a moment, looking for signs of my betrayal before hmmphing and striding away, her nose in the air. As she and Scootaloo took up positions a little way away to give them room to stretch and move, I took a seat against the tree trunk. I’d have to move once they got in the air if I wanted to get any good pictures of them, but for now at least I could relax.

They started with simple aerobics, the kind any sort of athlete might do to warm-up, though most involved use of their wings instead of their legs. Jumping jacks, push-ups and standard stretches designed to loosen up the muscles, but all done with their wings. It was pretty cool to watch, just seeing the differences between how a human would limber up and how a pegasus does. But of course, a pegasus has different needs than a human, so it shouldn’t have been surprising.

All the while as they were stretching, they bantered back and forth, sometimes simply killing the time, other times prodding each other onward and sometimes still just teasing each other. I couldn’t hear a lot of what they were saying as far away as they were, but I could hear their bouts of laughter and see the grins they supported.

After they’d stretched, they both rose and stood side by side. Then they began angling their wings out, one up and the other down, then both level, then the reverse. Every time, however, they were always in sync. It took me a moment, but I eventually realized they were probably going through different wing positions they would use for various air conditions or something like that. Struck by the sight, I decided to grab a few pictures, just for the sake of it.

It didn’t hurt that Rainbow had stood with her haunches to me. And the way she was positioned with her head held low like that? It made for quite the sight.

Just when staring at even Rainbow’s beautiful behind began to bore me, they finally broke away from each other and got into take off position. Wings extended, heads down and hooves pawing at the ground for traction, the two mares stared each other down. On Rainbow’s count of three, they both took off and finally, tore into the sky.

Rainbow led the way, wasting no time in taking them both through their paces. Loop-de-loops, spirals, dead falls; every cool thing I could imagine seeing a pegasus do in the air and then some were woven before me like a beautiful tapestry. And that’s what it was, really.

Watching Rainbow in the air is like watching a painter at his easel. Each movement: every minute adjustment to her wings, every contortion of her body, every flick of her legs is all carefully measured to pull off her stunts exactly as she wants. Each rainbow trail she leaves in her wake is like the stroke on some giant painting that from the ground I only see a tiny fraction of. But what I do manage to see?

It’s a masterpiece.

But there was something different in the way she was flying today. Her movements were… hesitant, unsure. There was a cautiousness in her demeanor that I had never seen in her before. It was safe. And if I were perfectly honest? It wasn’t very exciting. Don’t get me wrong, it was still more impressive than what I’d seen from any other pegasus in town, but compared to how Rainbow flew solo? It didn’t quite hold up.

Rather than a Picasso, she was creating one of those anonymous things you’d see on the wall of a hospital. Not unpleasant, but lacking in anything that could make it great.

Shortly after they began, I rose from my seat and walked out from under the tree branches so that I could be ready to catch some good shots. I doubted anything today would be as memorable as that first time I watched her fly, but it was my first chance to get her and Scootaloo together. I snapped a few pictures of some of the more interesting stunts, like the two of them back-to-belly only inches apart as they both did a loop-de-loop and another where they did a dead fall together hoof-in-hoof.

It was only as they began a sprint from one cloud to another that the reason for Rainbow’s strange behavior dawned on me. Halfway there, she turned in midair and started flying backwards, yelling something I doubt I could have heard even if I were right next to her back to Scootaloo, who I only noticed then was struggling to keep up. It must have been a joke or a tease or something, as both laughed and Scootaloo put on an extra burst of speed, putting them on the cloud together at the same time.

Rainbow had been slowing down for Scootaloo.

I don’t know why that came as such a shock to me. Rainbow was supposed to be training Scootaloo how to fly, so of course she’d go at the pace that she could handle. Yet, still I was left feeling… off about the whole thing. The idea of the headstrong, arrogant, ‘nothing can stop me because I’m so amazing’ Rainbow Dash willingly going at a pace less than her best just felt wrong.

Yet, she was doing it for her little sister. Sacrificing her own enjoyment, her own chance to push herself to new heights to include another who couldn’t manage what she could. All to spend time with a pony she loved.

But that wasn’t really it either, was it? Rainbow was laughing and doing the thing she loved most with the pony she loved most. I could see the burning glimmer of happiness in her eyes even from way down on the ground. She wasn’t sacrificing anything at all.

Just when I thought I had her figured out, she still surprises me.

I came out of my musing just in time to see the perfect moment. Rainbow and Scootaloo, both panting and sweating –though the latter noticeably more than the former– basking in the adrenaline of a successful training lesson, pulled one another close and hugged. They hovered there, wings flapping in sync as they held each other.

Rainbow was grinning like a fool all the while, and as they parted, she pulled Scootaloo into a headlock and gave her a thorough noogey-ing. I could hear her bravado calling for the need to break the mushiness from here.

I’m just glad I managed to get a picture of both. Now those would be keepers.

So maybe it wasn’t a Picasso, but it was a pretty solid Kincaid, I think.

But eventually they alighted down about ten feet from me, laughing out loud about something or other. Just as they came to a stop, Rainbow shoved Scootaloo, sending the filly tumbling to the ground where she ended up a sprawled pile of giggles and feathers, still gasping for breath after the hard work-out.

“Alright Squirt, time for cool-down stretches. C’mon, up on your hooves ya layabout,” Rainbow said as I approached, trying to pull a suddenly lethargic Scootaloo to her hooves. When she finally made it to her hooves, they fell in line next to each other and repeated their stretches from earlier.

“So, how’d we look? Awesome? Radical? Radical-awesome?” Rainbow asked, waggling her eyebrows.

“Amazingly radical-awesome of mindbending super-coolness?” Scootaloo chipped in.

Rainbow paused in her stretches long enough to tap her chin in thought.

“Nah, trying too hard. You’ve gotta brush up on your ‘coolness’ vocab, Squirt.”

Rainbow and I both chuckled while Scootaloo gave an overdramatic groan.

“Well, regardless of what you want to call it, you both looked pretty great up there!” I said. “It looks like Rainbow’s teaching you right; you’re really good, Scootaloo!” A little harmless flattery never hurt anyone.

She waved off my praise, quite the feat with wings that were shaking and twitching like they were straining to even stay up. “Heh, you must not watch pegasi fly very often then. I suck.”

“Hey, that’s not true!” Rainbow said, rounding on Scootaloo with narrowed eyes. “You’ve made tons of progress since we started! And you get better every week! Hell, you’re already better than most of the lazy pegasi in this town!”

“You really think so, Rainbow Dash?”

“Hay yeah, I do!” Rainbow said, regaining her boisterousness. “You’re faster than any of the ponies on the weather team, barring Thunderlane and Cloudchaser. And they’re Wonderbolt Reserves like me! You’re plenty good, Squirt. Don’t beat yourself up for nothin’.”

Scootaloo cracked a grin. “Thanks, Rainbow Dash.”

As they both fell silent, I realized it was my chance to ask Rainbow if she wanted to do something together. A rumbling in my stomach made me decide lunch would be a good idea. But I couldn’t figure any way to ask Rainbow while Scootaloo was still there. I didn’t want to say it was a date since I didn’t even know if she and I were dating, but inviting Rainbow and not Scootaloo would be rude. I’d just have to deal with it and hope for a chance to talk to her on her own afterward.

“So Will, do you want to get some lunch or something? I’m starving,” Rainbow asked, cutting through my thoughts.

I blinked.

Well, fine. That’s how today was going to be, I guessed.

“Sure Rainbow, I was just about to ask you the same thing,” I said.

“Oh, do you mind if I tag along?” Scootaloo asked, smiling back and forth between us with the kind of adorable puppy I would have expected more from Sweetie Belle. “I haven’t eaten yet, either.”

Rainbow gave a slight flutter of her wings as she looked at the filly. She must have been as taken by those eyes as I was. She gave a slight shake of her head before answering. “Aw, of course you can, Squirt. You’re always welcome to tag along!”

For half a second, I thought there was the smallest falter in Scootaloo’s smile at Rainbow’s words, but then it was back and so bright and happy that I questioned whether I’d even seen anything. I must have still been somewhat groggy from sleeping all afternoon. Why would Scootaloo ask to join us and then be less than happy when we said yes?

When Rainbow didn’t seem to notice anything amiss either, I knew I was just seeing things.

Eventually, Rainbow had us settled outside some little café I’d never gone to before, and from where we sat at an outside table on what may as well have been kindergarten chairs didn’t seem to have a name. At least the building had no billboard or anything of the sort on its front. It actually looked hardly different than any of the cottages in the town, mine included. I wondered if it was just somepony’s home who made and sold food. It made sense seeing as how there were only four tables outside.

Rainbow and Scootaloo had led us straight to one of the tables, still chatting about their flight practice, and just when I wondered if we needed to find a waiter, an apron-dressed earth pony mare sidled up to us, pulling out three menus from her apron pocket with her mouth and passing one to each of us. She was somepony I’d seen around town before, but I’d never had the chance to meet her or learn her name. She had a bright pink coat and a lime green mane with a pair of white flowers for a cutie mark.

“Afternoon everypony, welcome to Daisy’s. Can I get you something to drink while you look at the menus?” she asked.

Rainbow and I ordered non-alcoholic ciders while Scootaloo got a grape soda. By the time our waitress brought them out, we were ready to order. A berry summer salad for me, a lettuce and tomato sandwich for Rainbow, and an order of chili cheese hayfries for Scootaloo. When she left to place them, I turned to my companions.

“So, how was your days?” I asked.

“Boring and lame!” Rainbow said, dramatically flopping to the table. “I spent all day doing paperwork because somepony in the Cloudsdale HQ decided to completely wreck the schedule I’d made for next month.”

“Ouch, that sucks. What happened?” Scootaloo asked.

“The Weather Factory in Cloudsdale can only put out so many stormclouds within a certain time period, right? So if too many are requested at once, the schedules have to be shifted around. Well, the Manehattan team needs a flash flood like, right now because their manager screwed up their schedule and they’ve been having a drought the last few weeks.

“It’s going to use almost everything Cloudsdale has on hoof, which normally wouldn’t be too bad, but immediately after that’s taken care of, Canterlot needs the rest for a big storm they have scheduled. Which means the light shower I had planned for next weekend is going to have to be put off for at least two weeks.

“By then, the farms are going to be running pretty dry and so I had to increase it from a light shower to a moderate rainstorm. Which of course then meant I had to rewrite the next few weeks after that to even things out. Writing the schedule once is enough of a headache on its own, having to rewrite it is the worst.”

“Damn,” I said, reaching across the table and patting her hoof. She lifted it to return the gesture but kept her forehead to the table. “So what about the other guy? Did he get canned or reprimanded or something?”

She looked up at that. “Who, the manager? Nah, it was just a mistake. They happen. Hay, I’ve screwed up my schedules a few times. It can be pretty challenging to get right. So no, just because she made an annoying mistake doesn’t mean that she deserved to get punished or anything.”

I wasn’t convinced. “Still, causing that much extra work for so many ponies sounds like it warranted something. Maybe a ‘stern talking to,’” I said, doing a crude imitation of my old man. I’m not sure why I did it considering neither of them had met or would ever meet my dad, but it amused me at least. And apparently it amused Scootaloo, too, as she laughed aloud.

“My dad’s always saying that. ‘Now you listen here young lady!’” she said, trying to look stern through her amused giggles as her voice went deeper in what I assume was an imitation of her own. “’If you don’t make it back by curfew, I’ll be giving you a stern talking to!’ Half the time, I don’t even know if he’s being for real or not. It’s just too goofy to take seriously.”

Rainbow barked a laugh despite herself. “That’s nothin’. My dad always said that if I didn’t follow the rules he’d tell my mom. Now that was when things got scary!” She paused, rubbing the top of her muzzle with a hoof while her shoulders shook with silent mirth. “I remember for my eighth birthday, my dad had bought me a replica Wonderbolts uniform. But h-he made me promise not to wear it until the weekend when my mom would be home, right? So he’s standing there, giving me the tenth degree when, wouldn’t you know it, Mom walks in the front door. Somehow he didn’t notice and asked if I promised not to wear it. Out of nowhere, Mom barks, ‘Prism! Promise not to wear what?’”

She had to stop for a moment because she was losing it so hard. “Turns out, he had promised her that he wouldn’t tell me what my present was until the weekend so they could give it to me together! When he heard her voice behind him, I swear! I have never seen Dad so close to pissing himself!” Another round of laughter burst out there, this time with Scootaloo and I joining in. By the time we calmed, Rainbow had to wipe tears from her eyes. “He was always doing stuff like that. Buying me things, randomly taking me out for ice cream; you know, just trying to spoil me. I think he did it because Mom wasn’t around very often.”

“Oh? Why wasn’t she around?” I asked. Scootaloo seemed to deflate a little as I asked, but Rainbow seemed unaffected, giving a shrug.

“She was a drill instructor at the Wonderbolts Academy, so she had to spend a lot of time on the campus, training new recruits, keeping the grounds working smoothly, stuff like that. It’s not like she was gone for weeks at a time or anything, but there were a lot of times she wouldn’t make it back before my bedtime.”

Scootaloo snickered. “The idea of you having a bedtime is great!”

A playful shove nearly sent her toppling off her seat. “Shut up! Even I was little once!”

“I can just imagine a little Rainbow, dressed in little footie pajamas and clutching a big teddy bear being tucked into bed by Daddy! Aww, she woulda been so cute!” I cooed dramatically, earning a scowl from across the table. It was all fun and games until her hoof collided with my knee hard enough to send a shock down to my toes. Scootaloo laughed harder than ever as I rubbed my aching leg, the traitor.

“So what about you, huh jerk?” Rainbow asked. “I bet you’ve got some embarrassing family stories!”

“Oh!” Scootaloo gasped, snapping out of her uncontrolled laughter. “Will, you should tell us about your family! Give us a story about your sister!”

My breath caught. Across from me, Scootaloo was giving me this huge hopeful smile, like there really was nothing in the world she’d like more than to hear about my family. About some woman she’d never meet. Even Rainbow looked vaguely interested, but the look was diminished by a brow wrinkled in confusion.

“You have a sister? How did I not know that? And how did you?” she asked, rounding on Scootaloo, who shrank in her seat.

“He just mentioned her last Saturday before I went home. I just thought it would be cool to hear some stories about growing up with a big sister. You know, since… Since I didn’t have one, before…”

Suddenly, Scootaloo’s interest made much more sense. She was just a girl that found her big sister so late in life, and wanted nothing more than to make up for lost time. It was adorable and a big part of me just wanted to give in and tell her everything she could ever want to know just to make her happy. But another part of me…

How could she expect me to want to remember?

But then her words from that morning came back to me. About how I shouldn’t give up. The fervor she spoke with. Was that what I was doing? Was trying to avoid a little bit of pain really giving up? I just didn’t know if I could stand it.

I was scared.

Rainbow and Scootaloo were both looking at each other, the big sister ruffling the little sister’s mane with a hoof. They weren’t going to be distracted forever. Any moment, they were going to expect me to say something. Sure enough, they both turned back, giving me their full attention and any words I had in mind vanished. A half-second of silence passed, and Rainbow’s smile began to falter.

She knew something was up. She was going to ask. Her mouth opened and she took in a breath…

“Alright, everypony!” came an unfamiliar voice from my left.

I nearly jumped out of my seat as our waitress seemed to materialize next to our table, a tray laden with food balanced upon her back. In no time, she had each of our plates before us and after making sure we didn’t need anything else, she excused herself and left us again.

As soon as she left I started in on my salad. The blueberries were deliciously sweet and went well with the cheese and what I think were chopped walnuts. There were even daisy petals in it –something that shouldn’t have been surprising from a place called Daisy’s– which, to my surprise, I quite liked. I don’t know what Earth daisies taste like, but these were sweet, almost like honey.

I didn’t bother looking up until after a couple of minutes had passed, and luckily enough, Rainbow and Scootaloo had both forgotten about what we were talking about and had dug in as well. Though a large part of me was relieved at having dodged the conversation all together, another part of me felt guilty. I couldn’t help but feel like I’d let Scootaloo down, even if she didn’t seem to think anything was amiss, the way she was gorging herself. She had managed to get specks of cheese and chili all around her lips and even some on her nose. It smelled delicious, though I doubted my stomach would appreciate me eating hay.

As I reached to take a drink from my cider, Rainbow’s brow furrowed. “Hey Will, you alright?”

I almost froze again, unable to look her in the eye. “Uh, yeah… I’m fine. Why?”

“Your hand’s shaking,” she said, pointing at the offending limb. Sure enough, my hand was shaking bad enough to even rattle the ice in my glass. I willed it to stop, but it was too late. Rainbow was still looking me over. “You’re pale, too. Was it something you ate? Do you need me to go get a doctor?!”

Her hooves hit the table and her wings flared out behind her. She seriously looked like she was about to take off and head straight for the hospital. I shook my head and waved my hands, trying to get her to sit back down.

“Rainbow, I’m fine. I promise! I just… I didn’t sleep very well last night and I hadn’t eaten anything today. I just felt a little faint for a moment. Once I get some more food in me, I’ll be right as rain!”

To punctuate my words, I made a show of taking another big bite of my salad. She looked me over for a moment before apparently deciding I was right and, with a shrug, returned to her food as well. Unfortunately for me, however, Scootaloo wore a frown and had a knowing look in her eyes, and I knew that she had seen right through me. I thought she would say something, but instead she just gave a nod and went back to her food as well.

Thankfully, the air between us didn’t seem to suffer because as our plates began to empty, the chatter picked up again. Rainbow complained more about work and Scootaloo mentioned doing particularly badly on a recent language test, prompting scolding from her big sister. Scootaloo, however, immediately countered by bringing up how Rainbow had talked about doing poorly in school as well, quickly shutting her up. The good natured teasing quickly had me feeling much better, and by the time we were finishing up, I was joining in with quips of my own.

In a show of near-omniscient timing, our waitress strode back outside exactly as we were putting aside our empty plates. She gathered them all back up on her tray and after ensuring everything was to our satisfaction, promised to bring out our check. Rainbow insisted we split it to Scootaloo’s frustration. She wanted to pay for her share, but considering she was the only one without a job, neither Rainbow nor I would have it.

After leaving our bits on the table, we stood a walked a short ways away and come to stop, standing around and looking at each other. We were at that point where it was time to part, but none of us were quite ready. Especially since I still really wanted to talk to Rainbow alone. I hoped I’d get the chance after Scootaloo left.

“So, it was pretty cool you came out to watch us today, Will. You should come along more often!” Scootaloo said, ruffling her wings. She almost looked like she wanted to get back in the air already.

“Yeah, I will have to! You two are pretty cool in the air together. I’d love to join you again,” I said. On a whim, I decided to poke her forehead, sending her cross-eyed for a moment before she brushed a hoof across her face and laughed.

Suddenly, her eyes went wide and she broke into a huge grin, her entire body practically vibrating in excitement.

“Oh, Will, I know what you need to do! If you think watching me fly was cool, you haven’t seen nothin’ yet! You have to come watch me ride my scooter sometime! I can do all kinds of cool tricks and jumps and stuff, and I even have some ramps set up in my backyard that let me get some sick air! It’ll be so cool, you have to come see!”

While she babbled, she began hopping in place in front of me, her wings flapping so fast they made an audible buzzing sound. Next to me, Rainbow had a hoof across her mouth, her shoulders shaking with restrained laughter, but eventually the dam broke and a snort got out. Somehow, Scootaloo managed to pause in mid-air, her eyes wide in shock. She immediately scrabbled to stand in a more casual pose, nonchalantly inspecting a hoof.

“You know; if you want to, that is. Just sometime you’re free or whatever.”

“She is pretty good, you know,” Rainbow said. “Of course, it’s her special talent for a reason.”

Scootaloo’s face flushed under the praise and wasn’t able to stop a smile breaking through her act. She turned slightly, giving a proud look back to the cutie mark on her flank. It looked like something halfway between a butterfly and a wasp, its maroon body ending in a sharp point with beautiful yellow wings elegantly fluttering behind it. I’d not paid a huge amount of attention to it before, what with cutie marks sometimes being really abstract. Like Rainbow’s, for instance. I would have guessed a lightning bolt meant her special talent had to do with weather, not flying.

“Oh, is that your special talent? Cool, then it’s all the more reason I’ll have to see you perform sometime! Maybe I can show off some of the pictures I took today,” I said.

Scootaloo blinked. “You were taking pictures?”

“Pffft, he’s always taking pictures. Can’t take him anywhere without him bringing that camera along. Speaking of, did you get any good shots?” Rainbow asked.

The image of Rainbow and Scootaloo, floating in the air hugging came to mind. “Eh, I got a couple decent ones.”

“Oh, you got something good, didn’t you?” Rainbow asked. “It was totally me during that last deadfall, wasn’t it? Or at the top of that backwards-spiraling loop-de-loop? That one was pretty awesome!”

“I didn’t look dumb in any of them did I?” Scootaloo asked. “I never take good pictures…”

The way she looked up at me with those big purple eyes and her ears laid back made her look downright pitiful. I couldn’t resist reaching over to scratch behind her ears. It was something that I had done before with Rainbow and she always seemed to enjoy it. Scootaloo did as well, if the way she leaned into my hand and gave a happy groan was anything to judge by.

“Nah, you looked totally cool in all of them, I promise. You both did. Once I get them all developed, I’ll give you guys copies if you want any.”

“Cool. Wouldn’t mind having a couple more of me and the Squirt,” Rainbow said.

Scootaloo was still too busy enjoying my fingers running through her mane. “Now those are cool. It’s like a brush, only waaay better!”

“You haven’t felt nothin’ yet,” Rainbow said under her breath. I glared at her, to which she only stuck her tongue out, but luckily Scootaloo didn’t seem to hear.

It was only as I pulled my hand back that Scootaloo seemed to join us back in reality with an embarrassed grin.

“Well, anyway… I kinda promised Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom that I would hang out with them today, so I should probably be going. When do you think you’ll be free, Will?” she asked.

I scratched my chin, thinking through my schedule for the next several days. Thankfully it was pretty empty. “Well, I’ll have to take these photos to Shutterbug’s on Monday, and it usually takes a couple of days to get them back, but I’m pretty much free any time after that. I don’t have a lot going on.”

“How about Thursday? You can come over to my place and see the sweet set-up I have! And you can meet my dad. He’s actually pretty cool as far as parents go; I’m sure you’ll like him!”

Even if I’d had anything planned, I doubt I could have found it in myself to turn her down. She just looked too damn excited. “Thursday night it is, then.”

“Cool! I’ll see you then, I guess. Well, I should head out so… I’ll see you guys later!” she said. With a wave of her wing, she turned and trotted off with a noticeable bounce in her gait. I watched her go, a swelling feeling in my chest growing at the thought of how happy she’d looked. I wouldn’t say I was an antisocial person back on Earth, but having a friend that was that excited just to spend time with me was a pretty fantastic feeling.

A weight suddenly smashed into my leg, nearly knocking me over. As I regained my balance, Rainbow hovered in the air in front of me, an evil smile plastered across her smug face.

“Aww, isn’t that adorable! She’s already taking you home to meet Daddy! Looks like the Squirt’s got a crush!” she sang, making sappy kissy-faces in the air. I responded to such childish behavior by poking her on the nose.

“Come on, leave her alone, Rainbow. She’s just excited to have a new friend to show off to. Just like another pegasus I happen to know was when we first met.”

She looked nonplussed. “You know other pegasi in town?”

I rolled my eyes as laughed at her little joke. She thinks she’s much funnier than she actually is.

“So, Rainbow, I was wondering… Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?” I asked once she’d calmed down.

“Nope. Did you have something in mind?”

“I thought we could go to my place. Just hang out a while.”

“Sure. I have nothing better to do,” she said, shrugging. “I kinda need to fly home real quick, though. I need to check my mail and stuff. You know. Oh, I should probably check on Tank, too, and make sure he has enough food to last until tomorrow afternoon. I won’t get the chance tomorrow morning.”

“Oh? Why’s that?”

“I don’t plan on going home tonight,” she said simply. Then with merely a waggle of her eyebrows, she took off into the sky. Just before she was out of earshot she called back. “Go on ahead, I’ll meet you there!”

I was left in a stunned silence as she disappeared into the sky. With a chuckle, I began the lonely walk back to my cottage. I wasn’t annoyed that Rainbow had essentially invited herself to stay the night.

I hadn’t planned on making her leave, anyway.