Sleepover at Apple Bloom's

Sweetie Belle felt herself being roused from a deep, wonderful sleep. Somepony was nuzzling her snout, and a sonorous voice was calling her name. She opened one eye and it slowly focused on Big Mac’s face. He was looking at her tenderly and smiling.

“Hey there, sleepyhead,” cajoled the big stallion. He lightly kissed her on the nose.

“Mmmmh,” cooed the little unicorn, in tones that conveyed that she was content, and didn’t want to be disturbed further. She rolled over in his arms and snuggled in. The rain outside had stopped, and now the only sound coming from the window was the clamorous singing of crickets and frogs.

Big Mac gently shook her by the shoulders. “You should go.”

“Mm. Wanna stay,” she countered.

But the stallion’s voice was firm. “I know. I want you to stay, too. But you should go. You don’t want your friends to miss you.” He escalated his rousing tactics and began tickling her sides.

Sweetie Belle giggled and rubbed her eyes. She gazed into Big Mac’s huge, green eyes, and grinned. She had never been happier, and she wished that she could remain right there, in his arms, forever and ever.

He allowed the moment to linger for a bit, and then gingerly lifted her into the air. He kissed her on the forehead, right below her horn, before setting her down on the floor. He gave her flank a nudge, pushing her slightly toward the door.

The little unicorn covered the short distance with a reluctance that bordered on theatrical. She paused at the threshold, and turned back with a pleading look and a small pout. Big Mac smiled sadly and shook his head. But then she had an idea.

“Next time Apple Bloom has a sleepover,” she paused in the hopes that the stallion would come to the same conclusion as her, “you’ll wait up for me, won’t you?”

“Eeyup,” he said. And his eyes said that it was a promise.

With that, Sweetie Belle slipped out of his room and back down the hall. She wasn’t sure how long she had been gone, but she guessed that it had been an hour or more. She was relieved to see that her friends were sleeping soundly—hopefully, her absence hadn’t even been noticed.

She took the opportunity to use the little filly’s room and drink a glass of water before heading back to join the others. She stopped and unplugged the white, holiday lights. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the near-darkness, and she tried not to disturb her friends as she climbed into bed and got comfortable under her blanket, but Apple Bloom stirred and looked at her.

“Did you get the blankets out for us?” she inquired with a yawn.

“Mm-hmm,” confirmed Sweetie Belle, and snuggled in next to her friend.

“Thanks,” Apple Bloom murmured. She opened her eyes again and looked at Sweetie Belle. “Ah had this weird dream that you were chasing Big Mac and trying to kiss him…”

The little unicorn panicked for a split second, fearful that her friend was making a clever, disguised accusation, but quickly realized that Apple Bloom was only talking on the edge of sleep, and didn’t mean anything by it.

“Yeah, that is weird,” coughed Sweetie Belle, playing along. “Your brother is pretty hot, though.”

Her needling had the desired effect, and Apple Bloom groaned and rolled over. She mumbled something involving “brother” and “ain’t”.

Sweetie Belle smiled to herself in the dark and stared up at the canopy over the big, four-poster bed. The crickets outside continued their singing as the minutes passed. Had she really just done all that? With Big Mac? The pony of her dreams? Surely it had been just that—a dream. An amazing, wonderful, spectacular dream. She looked at her hooves and tried to imagine them clutching at his chest. It had certainly felt real. Then she rubbed her nose, and she realized that her hooves still smelled like—him!

And with a happy heart, Sweetie Belle sighed and closed her eyes. He had said he would wait for her. Next time. There would be a next time. She drifted off to sleep trying to think of ways that she could persuade Apple Bloom to host another sleepover as soon as possible.