Amor

Chapters

Philía
Éros
Agápe

Philía

Philía is a brotherly or friendly love. It is the love felt between people who care about each other without much intimacy.

“Well Miss Dash, it looks like you’re clear to leave. We’ll see you back in three weeks to see those casts taken off.”

The pegasus looked up at the doctor with a surprised look on her face. “You mean I’m not stuck here for forever?”

He glanced back down to his handy clipboard, then shook his head. “We’ve done all that we can, and it’s best that you recuperate at home. Your bones have gone through too much magical healing as of late and they need to heal naturally. We’ll even loan you a wheelchair for the time being.”

Rainbow Dash sat up in the bed, wincing slightly at the pain shooting through her left side. “But I live in a cloud house.”

“As I am well aware. You’ll need to find a friend to stay with. I do not want you flying on that wing, do you hear me?”

She grumbled and started to roll her eyes, only to notice the glare she was getting. She ruffled her intact wing’s feathers and looked away. “Alright.”

Rainbow clambered out of bed awkwardly, trying to avoid as much pain as she could. She regretfully lowered herself into the offered chair, then waved off the help of the nurse. “I’ll be fine. Just give me some painkillers and I’ll be right as rain.” The doctor gave her another glare, but she was already on the move, wheeling her way down the hallway to the elevator. The hospital staff followed her, with the doctor rambling on and on about what she needed to do and not do, but she paid them no mind.

”Ugh, no flying at all? I wonder if Fluttershy would let me” Rainbow let out a groan as she realized that her go-to friend was sick. And as much as she would offer to help, she cared too much to force Fluttershy into caring for her. Applejack? No, she’s got a farm to run. I wonder if Twilight would be willing to let me crash there.”

Her side gave a twitch at the word crash, reminding her of the freak wind that had blown her off course and caused her to smack into the side of a building. The bruising on her right side was enough as is, but the hit stunned her so much she simply fell. The fall had broken her left wing scarily close to the joint, snapped her left forehoof, cracked two ribs, and dislocated her hindleg. Not to mention gave her one doozy of a headache, barely escaping a concussion on top of everything. She could still feel the bruise on the side of her head and body, the medicine staving off the pain. It hurt to walk, as all her limbs wanted to fight her every motion. But she wouldn’t complain in the slightest.

A ding signaled that the entourage had arrived in the lobby. Rainbow held up a hoof, pausing the medical staff in mid-sentence. “Thanks doc, but it looks like I’m free to go, right?”

“You didn’t hear anything I just said did you.”

“Nope!”

He wearily rubbed his scalp with a hoof, knocking his glasses askew. He then ripped a stack of papers from his clipboard, scribbled something barely recognizable as a signature, floated a bottle of painkillers over with it, and dropped it all into Rainbow’s lap. “Read those if you get a chance. Or don’t, and come back in a week complaining about pain because you didn’t listen to what I said. Until then Miss Dash.”

“Thanks for the care doc!” Then, completely disregarding all of the advice she received, she got up out of the wheelchair and limped out of the door. The doctor started to raise a hoof to stop her, then just turned it into a shooing gesture. She tucked the papers and pills under her unwounded wing as she walked out into the warm spring air. The breeze carried the scent of flowers to her, the grass gently fluttering in that same wind.

With every step a twinge of pain shot through her, but she simply gritted her teeth and powered through it. Despite the cyan cast wrapping around her front hoof, she continued to walk on the limb. There was no way she was going to use a wheelchair to get around everywhere. I may have been taken out for a while, but there’s no way I’m gonna wheel around like some old pony.

The path before her was well trodden and rather flat, easy ground for wheels to traverse. But it was her own four hooves that walked across it, completely by herself. Her friends hadn’t even known she was in a crash. And why would they know? She messed up, so she headed to the hospital like she had so many times in the past year. She’d walk in, get zapped with healing magic, and walk out. She might have had to pay a bit more than the average pony for the country-wide insurance, but pegasi already had to do that. ”But now I’ve actually got to wait. So long sick days.”

Walking the rest of the way into town took longer than she would have liked, and the sun was beginning its downward crawl towards the horizon. She walked into the central circle of town, glancing away at all the eyes seemingly turned towards her. She tried to hide her limp as best she could and tilted her head to obscure the bruise she knew was on her face. It didn’t take long before she found shelter in the well-kept, but small office of the Ponyville Weather Team.

“Hey Blossomforth, I’m going to have to cash in a few of my sick days.” The mare wasn’t at her desk, instead standing with her back to the door while sorting through files.

“Ya sound fine boss, what’s up? I can’t just give you sick days unless you’re sick.” She glanced back around and, in no time, saw how badly she was injured. She couldn’t help but chuckle a little at the sight. “Crash again? Eh, it happens to the best of us. Let’s see...” her voice trailed off as she turned back to the shelf of files. “Dash, Dash, aha!”

She pulled out the folder and rolled over to the desk, plopping it down and opening it. “Dang, you’ve got a pretty full record.”

Rainbow watched as the pages flicked by her upside down, medical records and broken records and all other kinds of records flipping over as Blossomforth searched for what she needed. “Looks like you’ve got sixty-five days.” She looked up at Rainbow again, curious. “Have you ever taken one day of sick leave?”

She shrugged and went to rub the back of her neck with a hoof, only to wince in pain. “Umm, I don’t think so?”

“Well, you’re more than covered. Rest well boss, see ya in three weeks.” She wheeled back to put up the folder, leaving Rainbow to head out the door.

“Make that two!” She corrected, then walked out into the less crowded plaza. Her eyes flicked around, trying to figure out where to go for Twilight’s house. Ugh, how do ponies even navigate on the ground?

Eventually, she spied the barest hint of a tree poking over the roofs and started to head in that direction, limping her way along. She scowled at each street that appeared in her path, forcing her to take side alleyways and cut between houses to go directly to her goal. Finally, she arrived at Twilight’s front door, panting slightly.

She bumped the door open and stepped in, looking around for the librarian. “Twilight! You here?!”

“One moment!” came the reply, sounding from the upstairs portion. The lavender alicorn appeared at the top of the staircase and looked down and Rainbow curiously. “Shouldn’t you be at work?” The pegasus opened her mouth to reply, only to be interrupted by a gasp and a flash of light as Twilight teleported to her side.

“Rainbow, your wing! And leg! What happened?”

She sighed and fluttered her free feathers, then took a small step away. “Just a crash, that’s all.”

“You crashed again?! Why didn’t you tell us?” Her voice continued to be filled with worry, not diminishing at all.

“I was just blown into a building by some freak wind. And then I kind of fell from there. No biggie.” Even as she played it off, the pain came back to her, the pain of laying on the ground during the storm, with wind howling around her and pouring rain soaking her to the brim. Wing, broken. Breathing, difficult. Legs, barely functioning. Eyes, half blind from dizziness. It was a bad crash, she knew that much, but it was over, right? No reason to dwell on the past. She’d recover, it would become history, and she’d forget it.

“By the looks of things, it was more than just a little crash. How are you even walking? Didn’t the hospital give you a wheelchair?” Her voice was still frantic, filled with worry over her friend.

”Why can’t Twilight see that this really isn’t a big deal?” “They gave me one, but I don’t need it. I can walk just fine. I walked all the way here, right?” She gave a small chuckle, trying to defuse her friend.

Her eyes squinted a little and her horn lit up with its lavender aura, scanning her friend. Then she gasped in shock and levitated Rainbow off the ground, holding her secure in her magic. The papers and pills she had been holding fluttered out of her wing at the movement, hitting the ground in front of Twilight.

“Hey! Twilight, what’s up?!” she shouted, scrambling to find some purchase in her sudden flight.

“What’s up is that you’ve been walking on that hoof far more than you should be. Because you shouldn’t be walking on it at all!”

“I’m fine!” she shot back.

“Really?” She pulled the papers from off the floor in front of her and began flipping through them. “It says here that you shouldn’t put any weight on it for at least a week, and after that only light exercise.” She glared at her levitating friend, anger and worry radiating from her. “Your wing not used for a week and a half minimum. Your hind leg has recovered from its dislocation, but that still should be treated lightly. No strenuous exercise because of your cracked ribs. Not much walking either because of them and your hooves. And you’re extremely lucky you didn’t fracture your skull with the size and severity of that bruise. A miracle you didn’t get a concussion.” She continued to scan her medical records, looking for any other signs that Rainbow was ignoring her doctor’s orders.

“You know, you’re not supposed to be looking at—”

“I’m a Princess, shut up.”

Her mouth opened and closed like a fish for a few seconds, then she sighed and hung her head in defeat. There wasn’t much else she could do with her wing out of commission. Soon Twilight would find the—

“And what’s this I see about being unable to heal with the usual spells?”

”Celestia, please spare me from the wrath of your student.” “The doc said that my bones weren’t going to be able to be healed with magic this time.” She shrugged her shoulders, trying to wave the whole thing off. “I don’t know why, it’s always worked in the past.”

Twilight bit her bottom lip, took a deep breath, and exhaled it slowly. Even a completely oblivious pony could see the bubbling pool of anger just beneath her skin. “Rainbow, do you know how many times a bone has to be broken for medical magic to no longer work as effectively?”

“Um, five times?” she ventured, knowing the answer was wrong and steeling herself for the response.

“Thirty-one times. A bone can be broken a total of thirty-one times before healing magic begins to lose its effectiveness. At forty-two times it becomes better for the patient to heal naturally than through magic.”

Rainbow swallowed down the fear she was starting to get from Twilight’s reaction. She was facing a cold anger, one made of ice and surrounded with worry and genuine care for a friend in need. She had absolutely no idea what to make of the situation, and it frightened her more than a little bit.

She was levitated a little closer to her friend, almost nose to nose with her. When they met each other’s eyes, Twilight saw the fear in them and froze, realizing what had just happened. Her eyes widened in shock at her own actions and her magic cut short, dropping both Rainbow and the medical report to the ground. The pills clattered alongside it, rolling gently to a stop in front of her nose. She went cross-eyed staring at it, then looked back up to where Twilight stood with breath coming out noisily.

“Umm, Twi, you alright?”

She let out another deep breath, then smiled and looked down at where Rainbow lay on the floor. Twilight’s eyes showed nothing but care and worry now, all the anger and annoyance gone in a snap. “I’m so, so sorry for that Rainbow. Can you forgive me?”

“Of course!” she replied without any hesitation. She pushed herself to a sitting position with her unbroken hoof, then reached down for the bottle in front of her. She cracked it open using her wing with practiced ease, slid out a pill, and popped it back. She swallowed it dry, not even batting an eye in front of Twilight.

“But you’re still not leaving this building until you’re either healed or in a wheelchair.”

“Wait, what?” Her head shot up, a look of disbelief flashing across it. “Twi, I just came to ask for a place to stay. I can move around fine on my own.”

“No, you can’t. Your front hoof is broken in two places and fractured in a third. And while the cast has done a remarkable job of holding it together considering you walked all the way here on it, the pieces have slid ever so slightly apart. They won’t heal correctly unless I or Doc Stable fixes them.”

Rainbow started to get to her hooves, blinking at the lack of pain as the new medication quickly took effect. Twilight used her magic to push her back onto her rear, then held her with a gentle pressure on her shoulders. “Where were you going?”

Dash looked back in confusion, tilting her head to the side. “I was going to go see the doc so he can fix the cast.”

Twilight threw her hooves up and let out a short scream of frustration. “Did you not hear anything I said?! You. Are. Not. Walking. On. That. Hoof.” Each word was punctuated by a jab of her hoof.

”Why is she still overreacting? I told her I’d be fine!” “Twilight, I’m tough enough to handle it. It’ll be a breeze.” Again, she got up and headed for the door.

Then, Twilight showed the full force of her magic.

The door slammed shut even tighter than it had before, the current deadbolt slamming into place and a brand new one joining it. Rainbow was plucked up in her magic without a second thought, quickly soaring into the air towards the library’s guest bedroom. The lavender aura dropped her onto the bed, then a chain of the same color wrapped itself around her unhurt hindleg and bound her to the bed. The librarian came stalking up the steps a few seconds later, every step showing her emotions.

“Rainbow Dash, you are hereby under house arrest until such a time that I deem you fit to venture forth from this building. As you are unable to reach your own home, you will be kept here. And such a time will not come until you are fully healed and not walking around like a mare who is in one piece. Your legs are fractured and wounded and I don’t care what kind of pegasus you are, your body cannot take it any longer.” She took a deep breath and her voice softened, looking with much kinder eyes at Rainbow. “I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t care about you. Your body needs you to heal from this instead of running off to make it hurt worse.”

“Twilight, I’m fine!” she declared emphatically, crossing her hooves across her chest. “I don’t need to be locked up like some foal,” she said, shaking the bound leg. “It was just a minor crash and I’m tough enough to take it.”

Twilight let out another sigh, this one more pitying of Rainbow. “Have you even seen yourself lately?” She floated over a mirror, letting the pegasus see just what a state she was in.

Her rainbow mane was dirty. That was the first thing she noticed. Then she saw the ugly bruise extending from below her ear to just under her eye and brushing along her cheekbone. It was a manner of different colors, ranging from purple to blue to a rather sickly yellow-green. Her other hoof touched it delicately, then she hissed in pain, despite the medication. A number of scratches crossed her face as well, tiny things that the doctors didn’t even bother with. She tilted her body, getting a better look at her left side.

The bruising continued down, concentrated around her rib cage. She pressed her hoof there too, then gasped at the surge that went through her. It was all she could do to not search around for that bottle of pain meds. The bruise made a rainbow of colors appear all along her side and flank, coating over half of it with its discoloration. Her front hoof was surround by hard casing, protecting it from external damage, but not from the pressure she would put on it. It went from an inch or two above the end of her hoof all the way up to just below where it met her torso.

Her wing too, was partially in a hard cast. That went from where her wing met her body to her first wing joint, trapping the break in between them. But her feathers were still in disarray and had a dirtier look to them than she would have liked, evidence of how she had been unable to clean them with her injuries.

Tilting her body back the other way, she saw that her right side was a massive bruise as well, evidence of where she hit the building. Her whole situation suddenly came crashing down on her and she fell back into the bed, all resistance against Twilight gone. “I’ve really gone and bucked this one up, haven’t I?” she said in a voice barely above a whisper.

Hesitantly, her friend nodded. “Rainbow, it’ll be okay.” She moved forward, sitting on the bed and wrapping a comforting hoof and wing around the pegasus.

Rainbow looked back at Twilight, finally meeting her gaze. “Yeah. It will.” A small smile crossed her face and light twinkled from a tiny teardrop under her eye. “I suppose I should be fixing all of... this.” She waved her hoof in front of her, widely gesturing to her whole body.

“I’ve always found a bath to help clean me up.” Her horn glowed in response, already turning on the water to get it warm.

“Thanks Twi.” She started to move off the bed and got as far as one hoof on the ground before she was once again enveloped with magic. She opened her mouth to protest, then shut it and gave a short nod. “No walking. Right.”

“Silly Dash,” she responded, then started to skip down the hall with the grumbling pony floating behind her.

“I’m not silly!” Rainbow protested, her old spirit flowing back in abundance.

“Riiiiiiiight.”

The door in front of them swung open on perfectly oiled hinges to reveal the rather modest bathroom within. While Rarity had added a few special touches she claimed were becoming of a princess, it was largely the same room as it had been when she moved in. Twilight walked over to the side of the almost full tub and poked a hoof in, then smiled in satisfaction at the temperature.

“In you go!” she chirped cheerfully and lowered the squirming Rainbow down into the tub. As she did so, she cast another spell to make doubly sure that the casts would be fine. In short time, Dash had been dunked completely into the water, only her head still above the surface. She gave Twilight an amused look, chuckling at how much fun she was having.

That smile disappeared in a flash when the alicorn started to get into the bath with her. Rainbow stopped her with a hoof, biting her lower lip as she did so. “Um, what are you doing Twi?”

“You can’t wash yourself with your injuries. I was going to do it for you.”

“Twilight, I can wash myself. I’m not a foal.”

“Then stop acting like one and let other ponies help you.”

The logic made her voice falter, then she remembered how she had been carried into the room. “Well why can’t you use your magic? Do you have to actually get in the tub with me?”

Twilight shifted awkwardly, half in the bath and half out. “Well I suppose I could, but I don’t want to take any risks with your injuries. I could hurt you and not know it.”

Rainbow barked out a laugh and smiled wide, though her uninjured wing fluttered slightly. “I’m tough enough to handle it. Don’t worry about me Twi.”

“But you don’t have to be,” she pressed on. “I’m your friend and I’m here to help you.” Then ignoring all of her protest, she finished getting into the tub right behind Rainbow. The warm water soaked Twilight’s coat to the belly, but it was a pleasant enough temperature that she didn’t mind.

Dash started to scoot to the front on instinct, only to realize that it would be futile in such a small space. “You sure you still want to do this?”

“Yes. Unless you tell me specifically why you don’t want me to.”

Rainbow’s mouth opened slightly, then closed without a peep. Her shoulders relaxed and she even leaned back towards her friend. “Just get it over with then.”

She felt Twilight’s hooves brush over her back, now coated in a fine layer of soap. She winced when they touched one of her bruises, but she largely just sat there, large and immobile in the bathtub. Those hooves wandered all over, as much as they could reach. Her back already felt fresher, better. She turned around to allow Twilight to wash her front side, but flipped back as soon as she could.

Then, she felt her wing slowly pulled out by Twilight. It was all Rainbow could do to not flee right then and there. She hated her wings being touched. A moment or two passed and she felt the oils drip along her wing and feathers being straightened, though she still stared straight ahead. Slowly, the tension in her uncoiled, and she realized that she could actually trust Twilight with her wings. She wasn’t going to mess them up, wasn’t going to make it so she couldn’t fly. Rainbow let out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding and leaned back against the mare.

“Hey Twi, anypony ever tell you that you could give a killer wing massage?”

She giggled, pausing in her cleaning for a moment. “No, but I’ve never touched somepony else’s wing before.”

Rainbow sighed in relaxation, the tingles of pleasure aiding her in that. “Well you could give Aloe a run for her money.”

Neither of them felt the need to say anything more after that. The mood had changed from frosty to the temperature of bathwater, and both of the mares felt it. It was just a peaceful moment between the two, and it didn’t stop when Twilight started washing that prismatic tail.

“So is this dyed or what?” she asked, half losing herself playing with the vibrant colors.

“That’d be telling,” Rainbow teased, giving her head a little shake and splattering the alicorn with water. Some shampoo went into her mane, smelling faintly of lavender. It was the same scent Twilight used, but that just made her enjoy it all the more. Those wonderful, wonderful hooves returned to her skin, gently massaging her scalp to help the soap work.

After it was all done, Twilight sat back and admired the soapy-haired Dash, relaxed and gazing forward at the bathroom walls. “Alright, just dunk your head and we’re done!” Rainbow did as she was asked, submerging her head and muting the gentle bathroom sounds she had already gotten used to. She flicked her head back out of the water, spraying the mare behind her with as much as she could.

Her mane dripped water back into the tub, now fully clean. It felt better than it had in ages, every single possible tangle carefully removed by Twilight. Her coat felt smooth and fresh, making her feel like a whole new mare almost. And still she could feel the close proximity of her friend, making sure she hadn’t missed anything. It would be over in seconds, and, surprisingly, Rainbow didn’t want it to end.

“Hey Twi? Do you still want to know why I didn’t want you to wash me?”

Those hooves that had been unknowingly brushing over and against her flank paused, and she felt a trickle of water hit her shoulder as the alicorn tilted her head. “If you don’t mind.”

“Well, when I was a foal, my mom used to wash me at the end of every week just before bed. I’d return the favor. At least as much as I could. She had to work so hard during the week, and what little free time she had she chose to spend doing that. It was us time. Special. And then one night after doing that, she vanished. Poof.” There was a little splash of water behind her from Twilight’s hoof flying to her mouth, but Rainbow ignored it.

“Bathtime together was the last memory I had of her. They told me later that there was some work accident, but they never found the body. I still don’t know if she’s really dead or just ran off. I probably won’t ever know. But that doesn’t matter.” She chuckled again, then twisted her head back as much as she could. “Until today, I hadn’t taken another bath. Cloud showers were it. Usually cold. But I wouldn’t mind doing this again sometime.”

“Good, because you’ll be getting one every day for the next three weeks.” With that, Twilight started to step out of the tub sopping wet. Then, in a quick flash of magic, her coat was dry and her mane had been restored to its previous condition. “You ready?”

“I suppose. I’ll be fine in two though.” ”Though I think I might miss those baths,” Rainbow thought. A stern look from Twilight made her glance up from the soapy surface of the tub to meet her gaze. “What?”

“Three weeks.”

“Two.”

“Three.”

“It’ll be two and you know it.”

“It’ll be two before you can even walk again, three before you can do light exercise on that wing.”

“Pegasi recover faster.”

“Already accounted for.”

“You can use magic.”

“Your bones are too magically susceptible. The chances of them shattering into a thousand pieces are too high.”

Rainbow paused and blinked a few times, then twitched her ear to make sure she heard that right. “That’s what would happen?”

“Yes, causing excruciating pain and turning your leg or wing into jelly that would take a year to fix. Three.”

She bit back another retort and resorted to putting a hoof on the edge of the tub. Before she could do anything more, she was lifted out of the water and dried. Her coat turned fluffy instead of sleek, and she couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of herself in the mirror. So long as she didn’t look at her injuries. A memory of her mother bandaging a cut on her leg flashed through her mind, but she shook it aside with a toss of her head. ”Don’t think about it Rainbow. Just don’t think about it.

Twilight proceeded to carry her down the hall and back into the guest bedroom. The sheets were pulled back, a pegasus deposited, and sheets pulled back up over her. “Go ahead and get some rest Rainbow, you’ll need it.”

Instead of relaxing and going to sleep, she started to sit up and throw off the covers. Twilight let out a sigh, then drew up her magic again. Rainbow collapsed back onto the bed, snoring almost before she hit the mattress. The sleep spell was a simple one that she felt a tiny bit of remorse for using, but it would have taken a lot longer to Dash to settle down.

She walked over to the side of the bed and straightened the rumbled sheets, her OCD allowing for nothing else. Then, some instinct came over her and she bent down to give Rainbow a little kiss on her forehead. She walked back to the doorway, dimmed the lights, and looked back. “Get better soon Rainbow.”

Three ponies watched as Rainbow took her first unaided steps in three weeks across the tile floor of the doctor’s office. Her leg was free of its cast, the fur still pressed down and slightly damp with sweat where it had been. Both her wings fluttered next to her, also free from the bandages. Fluttershy let out a happy cheer and clapped her hooves together. Twilight merely smiled and the doctor looked on grudgingly.

“I trust that this experience will have caused you to be more careful with how you fly and treat yourself?”

“Not a chance doc,” she replied, beaming all the while.

He sighed, then looked back down at his clipboard. “And five bits to Redheart.” He added another note, scrawled some other thing unintelligible, then handed the paper to Twilight. “Those are her discharge orders. Make sure she follows them.”

“What, you don’t think I can do it myself?”

With perfect timing, Twilight and the doctor looked her dead in the eye. “No.”

Rainbow let out a chuckle and looked over to Fluttershy. “You got an opinion Flutters?”

“Um, well, I’m going to go with the doctor on this one. He is rather smart.”

“Your words have wounded me!” she cried, then went lock legged and fell over onto her back. An oof came from her as she realized that not all of her bruises were gone, then Rainbow looked up at the other ponies with a grin on her face. “I swear I’m fine.”

Twilight merely rolled her eyes, a small smile still on her face. She had gotten used to the constant antics over the short weeks, understandable considering how much she had to be kept up and resting. “I think she’s telling the truth this time.”

“Then she’s obviously well enough to leave. Miss Dash, do try to be a little more careful next time.” With that, he swung the door open with his magic and gestured for the trio to leave. Rainbow confidently strode out first with Fluttershy bringing up the rear.

It didn’t take long for them to navigate the west of the way through the hospital, only stopping to pick up Rainbow’s new prescription. They left through the wide double doors leading in, then Fluttershy bade them farewell. She had wanted to be there if Rainbow wasn’t strong enough to stand, but even she had a job to do back at her house.

Twilight and Rainbow strolled through the pleasant path of trees back to Ponyville proper, with only the occasional limp to mar her step.

“I suppose you’ll go and stay at your cloud house now.”

Rainbow tossed a smile her way, then continued to focus on appearing to walk fine. “Why, wanting to get rid of me?”

“No!” she shot back, a faint blush touching her cheeks. “I really liked having you over actually.”

“Maybe I’ll do it again. See if I can drag Applejack into a sleepover.”

”I’d rather it just be us two,” she mumbled, barely audible over the sounds of their breath.

“What was that?”

“Nothing! Just running through a checklist.” Upon saying so, she ran through her plans for the rest of the day and came upon a massive blank spot in her calendar. Dinner. ”Oh yeah, Spike took the day off to go with Sweetie Belle and her family on a trip.” She stole another look at the mare beside her, trying to figure out what she’d like best.

“Hey Rainbow, do you want to go out to dinner tonight? To celebrate your recovery,” she clarified, with just a hint of nervousness in her voice.

“Why not? Where do you want to go?”

”Think Twilight Sparkle, think!” Her mind ran through a list of all the places in town, trying to find the perfect one. “How about that new Cavallino place?”

“Heh, you know I’m always one for pasta and sauces. Wanna go invite the rest of the girls now or later?”

“Actually, I was thinking just the two of us would be fine.”

Rainbow almost tripped on a conveniently placed tree branch in the road, only narrowly swerving around it. “Are you asking me on a date?” was the only response she could come up with, asking the question point-blank.

“Yes?” came the response, timid and hesitant.

“Then of course I will egghead.” Then, on impulse, she leaned over and planted a kiss as best she could on Twilight’s forehead, just as she had received on every night for three weeks.

Both her response and the kiss stopped Twilight in her tracks, a surprised look on her face. “Really?”

“Of course. Now come on, we’ve got a date and we don’t want to be late!”

Author's Note

Cavallino is Italian for pony. Because Italian food is delicious.

Éros

Éros is the love of passion, usually involving romance or sex. In all cases, it is intimate.

The cool, crisp, and clean air nipped at Rainbow’s coat as she stood at the doorstep to her house. Her wing twitched with an old pain when she ruffled it to try to muster a bit more warmth. She glanced at the letter in her hoof again to make sure she had the time right, then tossed the scrap back into her cloud house and shut the door.

”I wonder why Twi was so insistent I stay in my house until now.” Then, as she trotted out to where the clouds dropped off, she looked out and saw why. Down below her, a flame burned brightly against the falling night. A full moon shone overhead, but the fire was still clearly seen against the ground. It hadn’t been there hours earlier after she had seen Twilight, so she must have done something. It didn’t take a genius to know it was for her.

Rainbow spread her wings and gave them a test flap, judging how the wind would affect her flight. “Alright then, let’s go see what my marefriend has in store for me tonight.” Taking a step forward, the pegasus let her body tip over the edge and go into free fall. She hurtled to the ground below, speeding up with each passing second as she let out a whoop of happiness from the thrill shooting through her. Too soon, she had to flare her wings and slow her body down just enough to land without incident. The flame flickered, but stayed lit.

Stepping forward to take a better look at what exactly she had before her, she saw a long piece of wood stuck into the ground, with a bundle just above her head topping it off. That was on fire, providing the illumination of the area around her. Unlike what she might have expected, it was a very real fire, not just some magical image. The light it cast reflected off a pane of glass laying at the base of the torch, flashing into Rainbow’s vision.

She knelt down to look closer, only to find it was a picture frame with a scroll rolled up beside it. And the picture captured inside was one she knew very well. She rubbed her left hoof unconsciously as she saw herself in a bathtub with Twilight, both of them laughing and soaked with an equally wet floor all around them. Her wing and front hoof were bandaged in a cast, but the ugly bruising that had covered her body had all but disappeared. Their last bath together when she was injured.

“I wonder what this has to do with anything,” she wondered aloud, eyes flicking over the ground around her to try and find the alicorn. She failed to spot any sight of another pony, so she looked at the scroll instead, hoping it would give her clues. Her hooves carefully opened it, only to notice that it was one of Twilight's journal entries. Dated about a year ago.

What is love? That question has been spiraling around my head for the past week. I've read almost every book on it in the library by now, but even working through the romances doesn't give me much to go on. And yet everypony talks about it. My parents love me, and so does my brother and my friends. But this... this feels different. Rainbow doesn't feel quite like a friend anymore. I look to the future and see that, in a few short hours, she'll be back to her house and we won't see each other every day. I can barely stand the thought of it. Some might call her brash or uncaring, but there's no denying how happy she makes me. And when she goes, I don't know if I can cling onto that happiness. The obvious solution is for her to not go, but how could I do that? Which brings me back to love. I've always heard the old adage "If you love something, let it go. If it comes back, it's yours." But what if I'm letting something go before I know if I love it? Do I love Rainbow Dash, or am I just confused in my feelings? I don't even know what to think.

Wow, the Princess was quick on that letter. I decided to ask her opinion and all she said was three words. Go for it. So I've made up my mind. I hope Rainbow likes Cavallino.

Rainbow sat down on her rear, staring at the piece of parchment she had just read. She had read several of Twilight's journal entries, but never this one. If only she had known then what was going through that brilliant mind of hers. "Well at least I said yes." Rainbow shifted on her hooves, trying to decide what to do with the objects. "Should I fly them up to my house?" she wondered, only to have her problem resolved for her. Another flame sprung up in the distance, no doubt containing similar artifacts. Glancing up again at the orange fire, she left the journal and photo, assuming that whoever extinguished the torch would collect it. She took to the sky once again and flew to the next area, this time lit by a strange green fire.

“Come on out Spike, I know you’re here somewhere,” she called. She didn’t expect a response and she didn’t get one. Odds are the little dragon was already running to light the next torch, wherever that was. ”Alright Twi, I have no idea where you’re taking me, but I trust you.” Instead, she looked down to see what was waiting for her. Instead of a single picture, there were two, both instantly recognizable scenes. Each had a scroll loosely taped to it.

The first was of the two of them once again laughing with each other, only in a different setting. The pasta in front of them and the sauce smearing Rainbow’s cheek told her it was their first “date” at the restaurant. They still got the same table whenever they went. Rainbow had even carved their initials under the table one night. It was a place full of good times. She had a sneaking suspicion of what the letter would contain, but she still opened it and carefully read every word within.

~~A DATE! I HAD AN ACTUAL DATE!~~ I can't remember all that just happened, but all I need to know is that I am happy. Rainbow said yes and loved the restaurant (note that). The food wasn't even important, though it was quite delicious. What mattered is that I got to spend a few more hours with Rainbow. She's actually asleep behind me. I should tell the princess about this!

Congrats. What kind of princess just writes congrats? Maybe I should send her a message when it isn't two in the morning. But how can I sleep when Rainbow said yes! We're dating! I get to be around her as much as I want. Wait, am I supposed to do that? I think so? To the dating section of the library!

Upon finishing the significantly shorter entry, Rainbow laughed to herself. She had actually read this one already, as it had been laying on Twilight's desk when she woke up. The owner of said desk had been downstairs, passed out among so many books on dating. She hadn't even woken when Rainbow carried her to bed and left for work.

Dash refocused on the present and looked down at the other photo and journal, remembering that event just as fondly. A Pinkie Pie party. Not just any party, because there were too many to remember. But this one was the one she had insisted on throwing after finding out Rainbow and Twilight were now a couple. There hadn’t been much they could have done do to dissuade her, but it was nice to just be able to talk about such things freely among friends. Now she was eager to read what Twilight had written about the party, hastily unrolling the scroll and causing a tiny tear in it.

Why are all of these journals written late at night? And they tend to be written with a slumbering pegasus behind me as of late. Not that I'm complaining; every second with Rainbow is a second of ~~awesomeness~~ ~~wonderfulness~~ awesomeness. That party was a crazy one, even if there were only six of us. Seven, counting Spike. Honestly, I was scared at first. I didn't know what they would think of me being a... fillyfooler. I hate that word, but it works. Rarity and Applejack were the ones I was most concerned about, but, as Princess Celestia always tells me, my worries were unfounded. Which makes me glad. Pinkie just leapt at the opportunity to throw the party. Fluttershy gave us some chocolates and a smile. Applejack simply had a laugh with Rainbow, happy for the both of us. And it should come to no surprise to anyone that reads this that Rarity was dramatic. There wasn't a fainting couch this time. But they all accepted us in their own way. I'm happy I don't have to loose my four closest friends in exchange for one marefriend. Because I don't know who I'd choose.

A smile touched Rainbow's lips as she set down the journal entry. Getting these tiny glimpses into the life of a mare she knew so well already was something special. it sent her on a path of nostalgia too, though not quite as in depth. "I wonder if I should start a journal." Rainbow gave a chuckle at the thought, then searched the plain in front of her. She wasn’t surprised to see the next torch ahead flare up with flame. Green again, evidence of a frantic dragon running along the path. Rainbow took pity on him and Twilight and walked towards the next location. ”If I outrun him, Twi will never let me hear the end of it.”

Even with the slower pace, she was moving faster than usual in an attempt to figure out the mystery of the night. The walk turned into a jog as she tried to reach the torch as fast as she could. It almost felt like a Daring Do book, travelling from torch to torch to find a hidden treasure. In short time, the area around her was lit by the torch in front of her. She tried to find the picture at this place, but there wasn’t one to be found. Instead, a feather lay on the ground. A blue feather, shimmering with a special lacquer, and hung onto a silver link chain.

”What? What? Twilight, what is this leading me to?” She lifted the necklace with a hoof and ran the tip of her other one along the ridges and crests of the feather. The day she plucked the primary out of her wing to give to Twilight was fresher than all the other memories, partially due to the pain, but mostly because she still couldn’t think of any greater thing to show her love for Twilight. And in return, the alicorn hadn’t taken it off since, not to shower, not to exercise, not even to attend a meeting of Canterlot nobility. And yet it lay in her hoof right now, and Twilight Sparkle was nowhere to be found.

She bit her lip, trying to decide what to do. She took a step forward, then felt a slight crunch underhoof from crushing parchment. Wincing, she realized that she had forgotten to even check for anything more. She opened the coiled paper, hoping for something, anything that might ease her racing heart. The writing inside was messier, not Twilight's usual tight and neat writing. Ink spots dotted the paper as well, more numerous than before.

Rainbow Dash gave me one of her primary feathers. I don't even know what to say right now. When she had given it to me, i didn't quite know how special it was, but a quick bit of research and a letter to Princess Celestia remedied that. I could barely breathe when I read what it meant. I already committed it to heart, but writing it down will just help me remember it better.

Pegasi gifting their primaries to one another is a practice that stretches all the way back to the time of Commander Hurricane. If a soldier wearing the primary of someone they loved died, then they could identify the body and return it to the family. When the warfare was over, the practice continued with a slightly altered meaning. Because soldiers were no longer dying, it was given as a token that meant the giver always wanted the recipient to return to them. It was meant as a token of undying love, particularly when given its past use. Another aspect is the pain the giver goes through in order to give the feather. Plucking a primary is excruciatingly painful, due to the nerves that run along the wing. And even after that, the missing primary makes flight slightly more difficult.

As a test, I tried to pluck one from my wing. The pain that shot through me forced tears from my eyes before I could even get a decent grip on it. While it might have been the place I pulled, I cannot imagine someone willing to go through that for me. Rainbow did it for me. She purposely put herself in pain so that I could have a special gift. I don't even know how to say thank you.

"And I still don't regret it," Rainbow added as her own afterthought.

A flicker of light in the corner of her vision made her turn to see the new torch. It was off to her right and at a higher elevation, almost as if it was on the side of a hill. She slipped the chain over her neck, tucked the scroll under a wing, and dashed off, more determined than before to run the path she had been set.

She skidded to a stop in front of the glowing green flame, and looked down. Again, there was no picture. Not even a scroll this time. Instead a simply flower greeted her. A white lily to be precise, the same one she had given Twilight earlier that day when they parted. Her favorite. It was perfectly preserved, not a single blemish on the gentle petals. Without a second thought, Rainbow scooped it up and tucked it into her hair, just behind her ear.

Eyes scanned the landscape around her, looking for the next location to be revealed to her. ”Wait, I was going forward in time. And this flower was only from today, so Twi’s gotta be around here somewhere.” She opened her mouth to yell, only to stop short when, above her on the hillside, four torches lit up with orangey fire. From their light, she could see the unmistakable shape of Twilight sitting in between them. The sight of her made Rainbow leap into the sky and fly as fast as she could, sliding to a halt just in front of the pony.

“Well hiya Twi. Lovely night out here.” Then, without giving her a chance to respond, Rainbow ducked down and gave her a quick smooch on the cheek. “I’ve got something of yours.” She slipped the feather from her neck and gave it back to her marefriend, Rainbow tickling her under the ear as she put it on. She giggled, losing the calm demeanor she had maintained all through her wait.

“Glad to see you finally showed up. Care to join me?” Rainbow raised an eyebrow at how nervous her voice sounded, but the other joined it at seeing the old-fashioned phonograph, complete with elegant brass bell.

“Only if you tell me why you dragged that thing all the way out here,” she gestured with her head at the music player, her mind still completely stumped as to why Twilight was acting the way she was. A path reminding her of past memories together? A night under the stars and full moon? A phonograph for doing Celestia-knows what?

“I thought we might dance!” she chirped, a stronger smile crossing her face and the nervousness changing into eagerness for a moment.

”There’s the Twilight I know.” Rainbow walked over to the device, tilting her head at it. “Dance? What kind of dancing?”

“Um, partner dancing. I can’t really do it by myself.”

“Well duh, it’s called partner dancing for a reason.” She flicked the needle down onto the record and gave it a spin. Classical music started to come out of the device, violins, harps, and a number of other instruments filling the quiet night. “Reminds me of when I couldn’t take a bath by myself. Now I don’t mind.”

Twilight let out a giggle, a bit more forced than normal. Or at least that was how it seemed to Rainbow. “I guess it does. Do you want to get started?”

Dash dismissed her marefriend’s odd attitude for the moment, focusing on just having a fun time. She swept over to Twilight’s side, and gave her a rather large—and slightly too-tight—hug. “Mmm,” she hummed, burying her nose into the mane in front of her. It smelled different, like Twilights had used a fancier and scented shampoo. Lavender, if her nose could be trusted. “I suppose partner dancing will involve me holding on to you?”

Carefully pulling herself out of the pegasus’s grasp, Twilight backed up a few steps. “Yes,” she replied, smiling at the thought. “The first thing we have to do is get on our hindlegs.”

“Like Scootaloo does for ballet!” With that, Rainbow focused and pulled herself off the ground, standing up almost completely stable. She started to walk around a little, moving in little arcs and circles as she did so. “She taught me a few things about it.”

“Well I never learned how to ballet, so I’m afraid you’ll have to help me.”

“Aww, an excuse to help a damsel in distress? How could I resist!” Laughing, she walked back over to Twilight and pulled her up on her hindlegs. As she did so, she couldn’t help but notice that something was once again amiss with Twilight: her legs were shaking and had a tiny, tiny layer of sweat on them. ”What is she hiding?”

Soon, the pair stood facing each other, one leaning against the other more than standing on her own. The music played sweetly behind them as they tried to figure out what they were even doing. But in the close proximity, a certain mischievous pegasus took the opportunity to kiss Twilight on the nose, laughing as she went cross-eyed to stare at it. “So, Twi, teach me how to dance.”

“The first thing is to wrap our hooves around each other so it’s harder to fall over.” A simple twist of their hooves and that was done, entwined in each other’s embrace even more. “We have to step in perfect harmony or we’ll stumble and fall over.”

“Step how?” Twilight blushed at the question, bringing another smile to Rainbow’s face.

“Um, you just kind of step. Like this.” She demonstrated by half-sliding a hoof along the ground, then moving the other so that she was in the same position. The movement was awkward and stiff, as if she wasn’t used to doing it. Rainbow completed the motion with her, then looked up to meet those perfect purple eyes.

“You have absolutely no idea how to dance, do you?”

It took all her strength to not burst out laughing at how red Twilight’s cheeks turned. She opened her mouth to argue, then simply closed it and shook her head. A tear started to form in the corner of her eye and panic shot through Rainbow at the sight. ”Oh no. Don’t freak out Twilight don’t freak out Twilight don’t freak out Twilight.”

“I just wanted to make tonight special! I did my best and I had this dancing idea and then I was going to—” A hoof at her lips shushed her.

“Tonight’s already special. I get to spend it with you. As for dancing, well, if you haven’t learned how to dance on four hooves, I doubt you’ve figured out how to do it on two wings.” Leaving Twilight mystified, she stepped back, dropped down to four legs again, and scampered over to the phonograph. “Jazz, jazz, there has to be some jazz here,” she muttered under her breath. Finally, the pegasus found what she was looking for and held it up triumphantly. “Jazz!”

“Jazz?”

“Yup! And it’s even one I know! Moondance was one of my dad’s favorite songs. And I know just the mare to share it with,” she added, giving Twilight a wink. “There couldn’t be a better night for it.”

“But what does jazz have to do with dancing?” she asked, still uncertain of the turn the night had taken.

“We dance to it. Duh.” She set the record on the phonograph, hit the needle to play it, then flew over and dragged Twilight into the sky. She let out an eep, then remembered to flap her wings. The first notes of a piano began to play as they looked at each other in the starry night.

Well, it's a marvelous night for a moondance

With the stars up above in your eyes

“What do I do?” she asked, still confused as to what Rainbow was doing. Her plans had been messed up and she had no earthly idea of what was going on.

“Just relax and feel the music. Jazz isn’t about being all flowy or elegant; it’s about having fun.”

Spotting that Twilight was still just flapping her wings in confusion, Rainbow grabbed her by the shoulders, hooked onto her front legs, and spun the two of them around in the air. She started to sing along with the song, not caring who heard her.

A fantabulous night to make romance

'Neath the cover of October skies

The sound of that sweet, totally Dash voice made Twilight smile and she began to lose track of time, only focusing on her marefriend, the music, and a little gift she had tucked away behind the phonograph.

All too soon, the music disappeared and she found herself back in Rainbow’s hooves, not even flapping her wings. She looked up to meet that gaze, those magenta pools of love staring back at her.

“Have fun?” she asked, chuckling as she did so.

“Can we do that again?”

“Any time you want. But you’re probably a bit tired right now with how much you had been dancing. Looks like you knew all along.” Rainbow gave Twilight a little kiss on her forehead, despite it slightly glistening with sweat. The sight reminded her of how nervous she been acting earlier, even back to how she had arrived. It was too odd for Twilight. Something was off still, but she couldn’t place what it was.

“Heh, I guess I did.” Twilight’s gaze dropped from Rainbow as she glanced back over to the sound device. ”Is now the right time?” she wondered, biting her lip as she struggled over the choice.

Meanwhile, Rainbow was content to just be holding her marefriend in her arms, slowly flapping up and down in the refreshing air of the night. It had been a while since she had gotten to just cut loose and dance, but it was definitely something she would have to do again soon. Her eyes unfocused and she looked up at the stars above, marveling at how beautiful they looked tonight. She couldn’t remember a more perfect night: completely cloudless, a gentle night breeze, a sparkling full moon, and a beautiful mare in her hooves.

A faint tingling noise and a tickling against her skin caused her to look back from where her gaze had wandered. Twilight’s horn had lit up with magic, levitating something up to them. She turned to look at the alicorn, a question on her lips, but she was beaten to the punch.

“So I know you’re probably wondering why I set all of this up. The torches and the memories and the dancing and, well, everything.” Twilight chewed the inside of her cheek in thought, but Rainbow was content to let her take her time, knowing that whatever she was going to say would be important. “I just wanted to make tonight really, really special so that you would remember it forever.” She took a deep breath, then continued.

“Rainbow Dash, the past year that we’ve been together has been without a doubt the best year of my life. Through the ups and the downs, the Pinkie Parties and the evil villains, and the lonely nights and lazy summer days. Nowhere was too far for you. And you wanted nothing more than to have me at your side every step of the way.

“And just you Dash! How do I even start? You can be a little brash at times, perhaps a little headstrong—”

“That’s a tiny bit of an understatement.” They shared a laugh, then Twilight continued.

“Okay, perhaps a lot headstrong, but you’re also an incredibly caring pony. I’ve never seen a better leader among ponies when it comes to you and your weather team.”

“You’re biased.”

“Probably. But it doesn’t change my opinion. When you had that crash last year... well, the moment I saw you injured I realized I'd do anything to stop it from happening again. Maybe that was just being a good friend. But then when you stayed with me for those three weeks, I didn't have a single down moment. I was happy the entire time, and I didn't want that to stop. I didn't want to give you up. I can’t even put it into words how awesome you are. I feel like the luckiest pony alive to be in a relationship with you. And, well, you’re also rather hot.”

They both laughed, though both of them also had blushes visible from miles away. “What I’m really trying to say is that I love you Rainbow. I absolutely love you. With all my heart. I can’t even fathom not loving you anymore and I don’t want to go on through my life without you.”

“Twilight?” Rainbow asked, having a suspicion of where it was going, but still not certain.

“Rainbow Dash,” she said, levitating out the small box she had levitated up to them. She snapped it open, revealing a shimmering golden band designed to go just above a hoof. “Will you marry me?”

Not one thing made a peep in that moment. At least, not until Rainbow’s arms wobbled and weakened too much to hold up who she was carrying. With a squeak, Twilight fell out of her grasp and hit the ground, then began to roll down the side of the hill before she could stop herself. Rainbow fluttered gently to the ground with wings working on instinct and eyes off into the distance and focusing on nothing.

“Yes,” came the whispered response, then she blinked and looked around. “Twilight! Where’d you go?!” Knocked out of her reverie, Dash flew up in the air again, only to spot the figure of her marefriend—no, fiancée—at the bottom of the hill near the torch. “I’m coming!”

She reached her in seconds, opting not to pick her up like she had already done. A slightly achy Twilight looked up at her, nerves returned in full force. “Was that a no?”

Not caring about how shell-shocked she was still, Rainbow scooped up the alicorn into her arms and spun into the air with her. One set of lips met another in a passionate, no-holds-barred kiss. They broke it after a few moments, the biggest smiles of their life plastered on their face. “No Twilight, it was a yes. An absolute yes.”

Agápe

“For goodness sake Rainbow, can’t you hold still?” Rarity complained, trying to make sure the last bit of fabric was the proper length.

“You keep poking me! How am I supposed to be still?” Rainbow shot back, shifting again as she did so.

“Well you’re the one who always talks about how tough you are.” The tape measure snapped shut and floated over to a bag filled with different tools for making dresses. “There. I’m done. Now if you excuse me, I have to go and sort out Twilight’s dress. And don’t even get me started on the bridesmaids’ dresses.”

Rarity lifted her bag in the air and started to trot out the door, only to pause at the exit. “Fluttershy, you will make sure she’s ready on time, won’t you?”

“Of course!” she replied, nodding her head eagerly from where she sat in the back of the smallish room.

Fluttershy gently clicked the door shut, turning around to look at Dash with a soft smile. “Rainbow, today is very stressful for her. Perhaps you could be a teeny bit nicer next time.”

“Stressful for her? I’m the one getting married! In a dress!” Rainbow flew up to the ceiling, circling around it and lazily drifting through the room. She had refused to put on anything until the last minute. How else could she fly around otherwise?

“A dress she had to make,” Fluttershy pointed out, staring up at her friend from the floor. “And you know that she wouldn’t have even let you step out of this room unless you were wearing a dress.”

Rainbow grumbled to herself in discontent. “Yeah, well, I don’t get why I have to wear one. Twi didn’t date me just for looks.” She opened her mouth to respond, then thought the better of it. It would have just gone in the same cycle as their previous discussions on the matter. If Twilight hadn’t directly intervened, it might not have ever gotten anywhere. “It’s just for one day at least. I just don’t like wearing dresses! They’re too immobile.”

“Rainbow,” Fluttershy said softly, flying up to Rainbow’s height and slightly behind her to start brushing her mane back with a hoof, smoothing it out and flattening it. “It’s okay to be a little worried about today.”

“I’m not worried! Or stressed!” Rainbow’s voice cracked, “It just all seems really unnecessary. I get why Cadance and Shining Armor got married here in Canterlot, but she was a Princess! I dunno why we couldn’t have just had it in Ponyville.”

Fluttershy giggled to herself. “You know, Rainbow, Twilight is a Princess too.”

The disgruntled mare looked back at Fluttershy, considering her point with another grumble. “Oh. Right. But Ponyville’s got a castle now too, ya know!”

Yellow flitted into Rainbow’s vision as her friend hovered in front of her, hooves crossed across her chest. “Rainbow...”

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Rainbow said, rolling her eyes almost dismissively, until Fluttershy gave her a faint yet scolding glare. A brief frown crossed her face, as she slowly settled back down to the ground with Fluttershy following her. “It’s just a big step, ya know? I’m happy about it, I really am. It just seems to have happened so fast.”

“It’s been eight months since Twilight proposed to you. And a lot has happened since then.”

“Eight months, two weeks, three days, fourteen hours, and some minutes. Dunno the exact number.” Fluttershy gave her a surprised look at the unusually specific statistic. Rainbow chuckled, then looked towards the door. “Twi’s been saying it for weeks. Even had a countdown on the wall of her room.”

“Well let’s not wait until a minute before to get ready. I’m sure the dress won’t be that bad. It certainly looks lovely.”

“Oh alright. Do your fancy clothing stuff.”

Rainbow stood still, facing away from the mirror while Fluttershy did her best to get her into the wedding dress. All in all, it wasn’t terrible extravagant. She had asked Rarity for something simple and, despite the protest, her friend has delivered. Instead of ridiculous amount of lace, it was one mostly streamlined piece of cloth designed to emulate her passion for speed. Light, billowy transparent cloth draped off the back and ran along the ground for only a few inches. Whenever Rainbow moved, it would momentarily fluff up around her, giving her the appearance of a wispy cloud. Lightning bolts and clouds were carefully stitched all along the hem in golden thread, and the outline of her cutie mark was embroided where the cloth met at her chest. It covered her wings, something she was displeased about, but she’d manage.

She went about barehoofed, as the one and only attempt by Rarity to get her into dress shoes ended up with the boutique earning itself a never-ending thunderstorm until she relented on the matter. The slim, golden engagement band on her left hoof was the only decoration she had, and she hadn’t removed that since she put it on eight months, two weeks, three days, and fourteen hours ago.

Her mane and tail remained the way they were, albeit neatly brushed. Around her neck she wore a necklace identical to her Element of Loyalty. It might not have been the real thing, but she wore it proudly anyways, like a military medal. Finally, a slim golden circlet sat atop her head. Celestia had given it to her when they arrived in Canterlot, saying that she was a Princess by marriage now. Whatever.

Fluttershy tucked a white lily behind Rainbow’s ear, then stepped back to view her little bit of handiwork. “Alright, what do you think?”

She turned around, glancing at herself in the mirror. All in all, she looked like a slightly prettier Rainbow Dash in a rather stunning-but-simple white dress.

“Fluttershy, what is the reason for all the white again?

“White is the color of purity, birth, and hope,” she said, stepping around to make sure everything was perfectly in its place. “It’s supposed to symbolize a new beginning for the married couple, with hope that they’ll last forever.”

“Oh. Well that’s cool I guess.” She got lost in thought for a minute or so, looking into the mirror at herself. Finally, she shook her head and returned to the metaphorical ground. “You need help getting into your dress?”

A giggle came from behind her. “You’re a little late Rainbow.”

The pegasus spun around, only to beam as she saw Fluttershy standing demurely in her light blue, almost white dress. It was tinged with cyan, just enough to compliment Rainbow’s coat. Much to Rarity’s dismay, it had to accompany Rainbow’s rather simple outfit. Both dresses had stitching on the border and at the neck, though Fluttershy’s instead showed flowers, butterflies, and a whole host of animal creatures. It was light and breezy as well, a style well suited to them both. However, she wore sandals that seemed to be made of flowers, twining up her legs almost like live vines growing.

Just then, a knock came at the door. Applejack poked her head in, dressed up but still wearing her hat.

“You two ready? Rarity wants y’all to go ahead and come down.”

“We’ll be right along AJ. You look nice, by the way.”

“Right back at ya Rainbow.”

The door swung shut with a click, and the two pegasi looked at each other and grinned. “You ready to walk me down the aisle?”

“Oh yes. I’m still surprised you picked me.” They headed out the door and down the steps from their prep room, still casually talking.

“Why wouldn’t I? You’re the closest thing I’ve got to family with my mom gone and, well, you know my dad wouldn’t count anyways. If he shows up I’ll be surprised. ”Not like he’d pull his head out of the bottle long enough to even notice I’m getting married,” she mumbled, pulling away from Fluttershy’s side.

“Aww, it’ll be alright. Who knows, maybe he’ll be here after all. But even if he’s not, you’ve got all your friends here.” She bumped Rainbow’s side, the action as close to a hug she could give all dressed up.

Rainbow bumped her back, and, smiling, they gently bumped each other back and forth down the stairs. They were to the point of knocking each other into the wall—in Dash’s case, at least—when they arrived at the bottom, Applejack stifling a laugh. “Y’all two done?”

“Why yes, oh so noble knight.”

“Save the sass. We’ve rehearsed this enough, so ya know what to do, right?”

“Yeah, yeah. When Celestia calls us, Flutters and I are going to walk out that door while Twi and Shining do the same on their side. We meet in the middle and blah blah ceremony, Spike brings up the rings if he hasn’t eaten them, oaths, we tie the knot, cake!”

Before anypony could respond to her rather brusque view of the events, a slightly frazzled Rarity appeared around the corner. “Applejack! Thank goodness you’re here. They already started! It’s almost our turn!”

“Well I know that Rarity, that’s why I’m standin’ here. I was startin’ to wonder where you’d gotten off to.”

“Apologies. I had to finish getting myself in order.” She smoothed down a few stray hairs and straightened her dress. One deep breath later, she stood next to Applejack in an image of calm perfection. “Pinkie and Cadance are in their places, Twilight and Shining Armor are ready, you and I are here, Rainbow and Fluttershy are there, Celestia and Luna are already beginning the whole process, and the crowd is ready.”

A voice called through the door for them and the Royal Guard soldiers on the other side opened the door, allowing the two to step through. The last thing Rainbow saw was the tip of a Stetson to the crowd before the ornate doors slammed shut again.

“Are you ready Rainbow?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

A minute of silence passed, then the entrance opened again and they stepped through to the applause of those gathered within.

Long, red carpet stretched out in front of them, leading to the middle of the room and a raised dais on the right. On the left side, the crowd was assembled. The first row was all the family and friends of Rainbow and Twilight, at least those not involved. Theoretically, the side Dash entered on should have only had ponies she knew, but after the second row it descended into chaos. That might have been because a certain miniaturized draconequus saw it his duty to narrate the whole scene from Fluttershy’s shoulder, but weddings were chaos even without his help.

“And the crowd goes wild as Fluttershy enters the scene! The flowers! The praise!” Small daisies and tulips grew up out of the floor from nothing after each step the quiet pegasus took. Others fell down from the sky onto the pair, at least until Rainbow blew one into Discord’s face. “Oh, and there’s some other mare with her too.”

“Discord, give her this day at least.” Fluttershy chided, only sparing a glance at her shoulder.

“Oh alright. I’ll make up for it later.” With a snap of his fingers, he exploded into a shower of white roses. When the flowers cleared, Rainbow could finally see across the hall to where the object of her attention entered.

Twilight looked as beautiful as ever, but that was because she always looked perfect. She had let Rarity go all out with only minimum input from her; no pony wanted a repeat of the Gala. Lavenders and purples—as well as magenta to match Rainbow’s eyes—served as accents to the much more lavishly created white dress she was wearing. It trailed behind her, but still not quite as long as Cadance’s. Her mane was done up rather fancily, making it look like she had much more hair than she actually did. Small gemstones sparkled in the light of the room as she slowly walked forward. Her head lay bare despite all of the Princesses’ protests; she had made it quite clear that this was a day for her. Instead, a necklace identical to Rainbow’s hung around her neck with the six pointed purple star as its jewel.

Rainbow was so focused on her wife-to-be that she didn’t even notice the ponies she was passing until Fluttershy bumped into her.

“Look left,” she whispered, her voice barely carrying through the crowd.

When Rainbow Dash turned her head to the left, her heart stopped and she almost tripped on nothing. For standing there, in the place of honor directly next to the aisle in the front row were two ponies she hadn’t seen in over a decade. Her mom and dad stood watching her walk down the row.

Time had weathered them significantly, but they were still without a doubt her parents. Her dad’s periwinkle coat and tri-rainbow mane were unmistakable, despite the fact that somepony had managed to get him into a suit. He looked uncomfortable about the whole process, but still he stood there smiling as best he could. As for her mom, she looked significantly worse off, but even happier. A black eye patch covered her left eye, and the tissue around it was scarred. One of her front hooves was wrapped in a bandage and splinted, making it difficult for her to stand, but she did so anyways. The joy on her face couldn’t have been clearer if it was written on her permanently.

Rainbow was still frozen in time, and it wasn’t until a nudge from a certain spirit of chaos that she began moving again. She stumbled her way down the aisle, passing the place Fluttershy stopped, and finally met Twilight in the middle.

“Did you see your parents?” she whispered, grinning.

“Wha- How?! How did you get my mom here?” Rainbow shot back, gasping in disbelief.

“I’ll tell you later. We kind of have to get married now.”

“But—“

“Wedding. Now.” She gently pushed Rainbow forward, causing her to stumble a moment before regaining her footing. She gave Twilight a look, but couldn’t help but grin after a few moments. It was just impossible to stay mad at her; even being slightly annoyed didn’t work. They proceeded up the steps together, pausing in front of Celestia, who simply smiled at the two of them. Fluttershy came up behind Rainbow to stand next to her, just as Shining Armor did for Twilight.

“Ponies, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash.” Any mention of Twilight being a princess had been dropped today. Today she wanted to be a regular pony getting married to her love, not some high status royal figure.

Rainbow let her mind start to wander away from the ceremony. It was just a bunch of words anyways. She had already proven her love for Twilight over and over again through her actions. Saying vows on a day with a fancy ceremony and dresses was meaningless unless it had the actions to back it up. But even as pointless as she thought the words were, the day was undoubtedly special.

She came back down to earth when Twilight poked her with a wing, giving her a glare. She tuned back in in time to hear that it was almost time for the vows. Her soon-to-be wife knew her too well.

“And on today, I couldn’t be happier for Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash. Their dedication and love for one another is a light to us all. But let us wait no longer! Rainbow Dash, if you would.”

Her voice rang out through the hall, loud, proud, and strong. “Twilight Sparkle, today I join my life to yours, not merely as your wife, but as your friend, lover, and confidant. Love was once just a dream to me, one that you made real. You give lift to my wings and make my heart flutter. There’s no one else I’d rather spend the rest of my life with. So, Twilight, I promise to love you forever, cherish you always, and stay with you no matter the turmoil.” She held her hoof up into the air, knowing what would happen next without a doubt. A purple frosted cupcake appeared in her hoof, whether through chaos or... whatever Pinkie was, she’d never know and knew not to ask. “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” Rainbow, much to Rarity’s displeasure, squished the cupcake into her face, smearing it with purple icing and cake that just so happened to be the exact hue of Twilight’s coat. She grinned at her marefriend, tongue flicking out to lick a stray piece of cake.

Everyone chuckled, then Twilight straightened the already perfectly straight dress and cleared her throat. A notecard poked out of the corner of her dress, but a glare from her mentor made sure it stayed there. “Rainbow Dash, today I join my life to yours, not merely as your wife, but as your friend, lover, and confidant. Long ago you were just a dream of mine, a relationship I never thought I’d get to experience with you. The only thing that makes more happy than I am today is knowing that I get to spend every single day for the rest of my life with you. Rainbow, I promise to love you forever, cherish you always, and stay with you no matter the turmoil.” With a sly look at Rainbow, she held out her hoof as well and a cupcake spontaneously appeared, this time topped with cyan icing. “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.” As she crushed the baked good against her eye, the two of them giggled, then turned back to look at Celestia expectantly.

“Mares and gentlecolts, I present to you Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash!”

Rainbow Dash shifted nervously back and forth on her hooves, glancing at the door every few seconds. It was just them and their friends in the reception hall at the moment, after the wedding party had filed out. All of the guests—including her parents—had yet to come in. Twilight wrapped a comforting wing around her, but even she knew better than to try and distract her from this. Fluttershy hung around close by as well, but both her and Discord kept their silence.

“What’s taking her so long?!” She exclaimed after one too many looks at the door.

“Rainbow, by all rights she should be in a hospital, not here. But she insisted and wouldn’t take no for an answer. She also refused to let any magic near her.”

“You still won’t tell me what happened.”

“She insisted on telling you herself.” She shrugged her shoulders, then pulled in the stiff pegasus for a hug. “It’ll be okay, Rainbow.”

Just as she said that, the doors opened and guests started filing in. Rainbow’s eyes searched the crowds for that one pony she hadn’t seen in ages, wings longing to take to the sky to find her. The room slowly filled up with ponies, many of them heading straight towards the newlyweds to congratulate them, stopping them from actually moving across the floor more than a few hoofsteps. Twilight met and talked with them as politely as possible even though Rainbow was still looking around and craning her head, totally oblivious to anypony else.

Finally, a soft tap on her shoulder made her spin around to find Fluttershy looking at her. Without a word, she first cleaned off the purple cupcake on her face with a cloth before backing up and clearing her throat. “Um, Rainbow, your mom’s over there.” She pointed with a wingtip towards a pillar where a pegasus leaned heavily against it, waving off two concerned royal guards. Her dad was nowhere to be found, likely being staved off from the bar. Without a second though, Rainbow lived up to her name and dashed through the throng around her, inadvertently smacking the envoy from Prance in the face. But she didn’t care much about that.

She slid to a stop in front of her mother, eager to talk to her, yet feeling slightly awkward. “Mom! Where have you been?”

The older mare gave a tired sigh, then met Rainbow’s gaze. “It’s not a story for your wedding. I wouldn’t want to sully your day.”

“No! I don’t care about the reception, where did you go? Why did you leave me and dad?”

The only response she got was a chuckle and shake of the head. “I should have figured I wouldn’t be able to deter you in the slightest. Still, I’d rather not say it with all these ponies around.”

“There’s the garden outside.”

“I suppose there is.” She groaned and steadied herself on all four hooves, then proceeded to start walking towards the door that led to the Canterlot gardens. She was shaky on her hooves, but staunchly pushed away anypony’s offer of help. Still, Rainbow matched her pace for pace until they both felt the cool of grass under their hooves. A few more steps and they had escaped most of the noise.

“Know first that I did not leave you by choice,” she began, slowly sitting down on a nearby bench. “Had you ever thought about why I would have chosen to marry an alcoholic and not tried for somepony better?” A subtle shake of the head and her mom continued. “I thought not. And, as much as I might have wished it to be so, I did not marry him with the intention of stopping him, though that was a bit of a side effect after I... left. You see, Rainbow, your dad and I weren’t ever the best of ponies. Which is why it makes me so happy to see that you have turned out better than anyone I know despite it.”

“Rainbolt got drunk when he was depressed. I gambled away what little we had remaining. And gambling leads to debt. Debt with the wrong ponies.” Her eyes glossed over slightly, remembering back years and years. “I dug myself into a hole too deep to get out of. I didn’t want them to come after you, so I did the only thing I could and removed myself from the equation. It was tricky to fake my death, but it appears to have worked on most everyone. All but the few I was trying to escape. It took them a matter of months, but eventually they tracked me down. Did you know that some of the Diamond Dog cities and towns keep slaves? I certainly didn’t. Not until I lived it as one. I was locked underground and had almost given up all hope of being found, given up hope of seeing the sky again.

“And then, a week ago, the Royal Guard breaks down the gates to the city and, with the aid of your new wife, set free every pony in that wretched place.”

“Twilight said she was going shopping for a dress last week! She invited me to come along, but, well—“

Her mom chuckled, shaking her head. “You haven’t changed much then. Now, since you know what happened to me, will you go back in there and enjoy your wedding day?”

Shooting a glance back at the reception to see what was going on, Rainbow grinned at seeing the dance floor slowly start to clear out as Twilight trotted around and talked to each guest. “C’mon Mom, my parents still have to dance with me!” Before she could reject, Rainbow gently pushed her mom’s shoulder with her head to get her moving. A minute later and they were both back inside, both to find their spouses.

As Twilight was talking to the Prench ambassador, Rainbow popped up at her shoulder and gave her a peck on the cheek, instantly making her blush. Most of the cupcake had been wiped off, though it was still smeared through her fur slightly. Waiting for a gap in conversation, Dash threw a hoof around Twilight’s shoulder and dragged her off to center of the room. “Dance, remember?” She waved a hoof at Vinyl Scratch to start up the music they had selected, and, as it started playing, a circle of ponies formed around the duo.

Hoof in hoof, they began to dance across the floor to the mostly classical music: Twilight slightly cross at the interruption but smiling wide regardless, and Rainbow acting falsely oblivious.

“So Twi, read any good books recently?” she whispered, cracking her signature goofy smile.

“Yes, it’s called “How Not to Interrupt a Conversation.” Might loan it to you after I’m done with it.” Rainbow faltered in a step, but recovered with the graceful ease of a practiced flier, wings fluttering beneath her dress.

“Eh, it’s just a country. You’re the important one tonight.” She took advantage of the close quarters to peck her on the nose again. “You ready for the switching?”

“No, but I’ll do it anyways.”

The music changed slightly, and Nightlight stepped out of the throng watching and taking pictures, half dragging Rainbolt with him. Partners swapped and both mares found themselves dancing with their fathers.

Twilight stumbled in the transition, only to be caught be the strong hooves of her dad. He gave her a kiss on the forehead and swept them across the floor, leading the dance. “How’re you holding up?”

“It just doesn’t feel right now, like something happened that I never thought would happen,” she whispered back.

“If it makes you feel any better, I thought you’d just end up marrying a book, so this is a vast improvement.”

“Daaaad,” Twilight groaned, prompting a chuckle from her partner.

Across the floor, Rainbow and her father tried their best to not show off all of their moves. As dancing was one of the only ways Rainbow could get her dad to put the bottle down for a while, they had had much more practice together. Still, there was a tense silence between them, one that neither tried to break. They danced in silence, both stealing jealous looks over at the other duo, but neither making an effort to form the same relationship.

After half a song, it was the mother’s turn and the father’s were paired up for a time. A Royal Guard was trying to help Rainbow’s mom onto the floor, but being shunned was the most response he got out of her in that regard. The crowd watched as it continued its idle chatter, waiting for Firefly to start to dance. She winced at each step place on her hoof, but she was determined to not hobble across like an infirm.

“Well Rainbow, I’m here to dance.”

It was nothing complex, but beautiful in its simplicity. They simply circled each other while Twilight and her mom went around closer to the crowd.

The dancing took forever, at least so it seemed to Rainbow. A dance with her mom, with her dad, with her new mom and dad, with Fluttershy, with Shining Armor, a dance with Celestia, another with Luna, a third with Cadance, an awkward and relatively interesting one with Discord, and finally a last one with her best friend and love, Twilight. More and more couples joined the floor after the family dances started until the majority were out on the floor. The music got livelier and less classical, food was broken out, and it became more of a party and less of a formal event. Rainbow dragged Twilight off the dance floor and back out into the garden, flopping down onto a bench with her.

“Well that was certainly something.”

“Was? I know you wish it was over, Rainbow, but we’ve still got—“ she glanced up at the sky to see the moon, “two hours before it’s over.”

“Two hours?! I’ll never make it.” Twilight leaned over and kissed her on the lips lightly. “Okay, I think I can make it another hour.” And another kiss. “Hour and a half. C’mon Twi, diminishing returns.”

Twilight started laughing harder than she probably should have before resting her head in the space between Rainbow’s neck and shoulder. It’d mess her hair up some, but Rarity could just deal with it. “Seems like you were listening to my rants.”

“I always listen to your rants! I might not always actually learn something, but I listen. But diminishing returns is a common thing with exercise. It’s easy to get up to a certain level, but it gets harder and harder to improve just that last little bit. You put in the same time and effort to take off five seconds on a lap as it took to take off thirty before you started practicing.”

Twilight giggled, stealing a glance back at the party. “And you still say you’re not a geek?”

“Oh shaddup.”

“Yes, Mrs. Sparkle.”

“Nah, you’re Mrs. Dash.”

“Twilight Dash, Rainbow Sparkle. I get to spend the rest of my life with you, so I don’t care.”

“I love you Twilight.”

“I love you too Rainbow.”