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                     A Life With Whom?                     
                       -by Lunatone-                       
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                    All They Never Knew                    
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All They Never Knew
For about half a minute, after Rainbow’s sincerious words, there was silence, and Rainbow could tell Twilight was thinking hard. She stood, dumbfounded, on the wooden floor while Rainbow smiled at her, and a part of her was unconvinced by her friend’s solicitude and claim. Eventually, Twilight spoke up.
“What do you mean by that?” Twilight asked.
“Twilight, c’mon, you’re smarter than that,” Rainbow said, nudging her friend’s face with a hoof.
“Really, I don’t know what you mean by that.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. Why are you just now telling me you like me? Is it because you pity me for not being able to be with somepony I really like and care about?”
In truth, Twilight did genuinely like and care for Rainbow. Throughout the time Twilight had spent with the pegasus, she had grown a fond admiration toward her. The way the pegasus smiled, the way she would tackle an extremely hard challenge, the amount of strength the pegasus had, physically and mentally, and, most of all, the way she would admit the faults she had within.
“What? No, no, no, I don’t pity you, Twi. Why would I? I’m just at fault for not telling you the truth.” Rainbow spoke with absolute sincerity, meaning every word. “You gotta believe me, Twilight.”
“This doesn’t make any sense. Why didn’t you tell me this earlier? Why now, immediately after I confessed my feelings for you?” Twilight asked. She sounded frustrated, almost angry. “Do you have any idea how many times I went to bed crying because I thought you would resent me if I told you how I felt about you? I even lost sleep at nights, and—”
“Twilight!” Rainbow said, her voice loud. “Let me explain before you get ahead of yourself.”
“Get ahead of myself? You’re telling me not to get ahead of myself?” Twilight’s projection was spiteful and angry, though the mind quickly came to reason.
Okay, you need to stop and listen to her. You’re suppose to be the calculating one, the logical one, not the irrational ‘I’m not going to listen one. Listen to your friend. I’m sure she has good reasons for doing what she did.
Maybe you’re right, Twilight thought afterwards.
Taking a deep breath, Twilight said, “I’m sorry for lashing out at you like that. I’m ready to listen.”
Rainbow nodded. “This goes way back when I was in flight school, in my late fillyhood, with my best friend Fluttershy. We met in grade one and spent a lot of time together, and we became so close that we treated each other like sisters. We told each other our secrets, and we went to each other when we had problems.
“Anyways, a little after I turned twelve years old, my mother and father told me that they needed to get something off of their chest since they considered me old enough to ‘understand’. When they sat me down to talk, they told me that…” A sniffle halted Rainbow’s speech, along with tears.
“They told you…?” Twilight said with a mournful expression.
Rainbow wiped her face and continued. “They told me that they weren’t my real parents, even though they had cutie marks like mine and looked like me. Then they went on about how I was a ‘failed abortion’, which is why my real parents gave me up for adoption. I didn’t believe it, but then they showed me proof that they weren’t my real parents after all.
“I was so angry at them for making me live a lie that I left them. That’s when Shy’s parents took me under their wings and gave me a home after they found out about my situation. I got letters from my parents asking me if I would ever come back to them, but I never wrote back. Eventually the letters stopped coming.
“Over the years, I sorta developed feelings for Fluttershy from the time I spent with her. I never felt anything like it. I don’t know what I was feeling. I think it was love. Dunno. All I know is that I wanted to be with her more and more every day.
“Eventually I told her how I felt, told her that I wanted to be with her. But she said no, told me that she wasn’t into mares. I cried every night until I accepted that Shy and I would be nothing more than friends. Ever since then, I’ve been scared of being rejected by somepony I like. I can’t deal with the pain again. When you’re rejected from somepony you love, the pain never goes away, but it gets better over time. I know that because it got better when I became friends with you. You make me laugh, smile, you name it. In a way, Twilight, you’re the Fluttershy I never had.
“And that’s why I didn’t tell you that I like you until now. I’ve never been the one to be open about this stuff. Hope you understand, Twi...”
For quite some time after Rainbow’s story, Twilight said nothing, tears of sympathy streaking down her face at how inequitable Rainbow’s earlier life had been. How her biological parents tried to abort their foal. How her adoptive parents lied to her for all those years, and how she embraced a painful rejection from the pony she once professed to love.
Twilight opened her mouth, pondering what to say. The weight and severity of her friend’s story was beyond her expectation. “Wow, Rainbow… I didn’t know. I’m so sorry.” No kidding. How could you? Twilight thought, vexed. “I can’t believe you went through all of that.”
“You have no idea how powerful the truth can be,” Rainbow said.
“I’m honoured that you trust me with all of this.”
“Twilight, I would trust you with my life.” Rainbow patted Twilight’s cheek.
“Why do you say that?”
“Because without you, we’d all be under Discord’s craziness. You’ve done so much for me, so how can’t I trust you?”
Twilight’s face reddened. “I guess this is our starting point for getting to know each other better, huh?”
“I guess so,” Rainbow said. “Just promise me you won’t tell anypony this.”
On instinct, Twilight rushed over and hugged her. “I promise. You didn’t deserve any of that. The way you were treated back at flight school, the rejection you got from Fluttershy, your parents not telling you the truth. None of it. It’s a shame that your parents lost the chance to see their filly grow up to be a beautiful, kind pony.” Twilight pulled back and looked at her friend. “Do you think you’ll ever forgive them?”
“I don’t know, Twi, I really don’t.”
“I’m sure you’ll do the right thing if you ever cross paths with them again,” Twilight said. “I know you will.”
Later that night, before midnight, Rainbow and Twilight accompanied each other on the living room sofa. They were snuggling up to one another, soaking in each other’s warmth. The night had taken an unexpected turn to say the least, and both ponies were slowly settling down with the chain of events that had taken place. Rainbow felt relieved, as did Twilight, that she finally had a chance to tell Twilight everything.
At this point, Twilight’s wings entwined around Rainbow’s body, pulling her closer for all her worth. Their muzzles touch each other, and they stared into each others' eyes. Eventually, Twilight pressed her lips against Rainbow’s, eliciting a dramatic pule from the pegasus. Soon, Twilight parted her lips, and embraced the pegasus, saying nothing. They succumbed to the brutal manifestation of sleep in each other’s hold.
And Rainbow knew she would have a lot to tell Fluttershy; for all of those nights in solitude were no more. And that was good.

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                         Progress                          
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Progress
The next morning was grim and overcast, with a drizzle of rain now and then; and the clouds became slightly heavier, albeit it was nothing extreme. The rainfall waxed in light downpour, and distant peals of thunder sounded from afar; sheet lightning occasionally shimmered aloft, yet it wasn’t enough to wake the sleeping ponies, exhausted from the previous night. They were too tired to actually transport themselves to Twilight’s bedroom, where a comfortable bed lay, so they slept on the cramped sofa.
With abrupt bustling, Spike entered the living room. He halted for a second, slightly jarred by the radical sight of Rainbow and Twilight embracing one another. Never had he seen something of this nature, but he knew they were close friends since they did spend ample time together in the past. In a way, he found it quite adorable. After a second, he shrugged, having been fine with the pair’s ardor.
Spike prodded Twilight on her left wing, not wanting to startle her, and said, “Twilight?” She responded with a muffled, incoherent response, resulting in vainness. “Twilight. It’s almost eleven o’clock,” he said, his voice louder, while he shook her.
Twilight stirred a bit, her weary eyes still closed, and said, “Rainbow Dash… please don’t go.”
Spike was bewildered to say the least, but he soon came to the realization that Twilight was dreaming about Rainbow Dash. “Don’t worry, Twilight. She’s right next to you,” he said. “She stayed the night with you on the couch.” He prodded her wing once more, evoking a vague sense of coherency.
Currently, Twilight was significantly more awake, and discerned what she had said in her sleep. Her facial nuances depicted that of an embarrassed look as she noticed Spike looking at her. “I’m sorry, Spike. I’m sure you weren’t expecting this—” she cocked her head to the sleeping pegasus—“so allow me to explain.”
“Not necessary, Twilight. You two like each other. Nothing wrong with that. Besides, you two are good friends, I get it.”
Twilight smiled at Spike’s friendly remark as her eyes focused on the resting pegasus. “I never knew half the things she told me last night. It was like I didn’t know her at all.”
“I’m guessing she told you about liking you or something like that?” Spike said as he picked up a fallen cyan feather that was right by his foot.
Twilight nodded. “Yes, everything.” She cleared her throat a little, ridding the built-up mucus in her throat. “She lost so much growing up, and she never said a thing. You think you know somepony really well until they prove to you that you don’t know them at all. And that’s the part that hurts.”
“Aww, it’s gonna be okay, Twilight,” he said.
“One could only hope.”
“Yeah.” For a moment, Spike was reticent at a topic that struck his mind; after all, Twilight was right up against Rainbow, and it could be a suggestion of erotic intimacy. Eventually, Spike spoke up. “So, did you two, you know… do it?”
“Spike!” Twilight said aloud, her voice uproarious enough to wake Rainbow. “No, we did no such thing. How could you even ask that?”
“I dunno, I was curious,” Spike said.
“Well, that’s a question you shouldn't be asking.”
“What are you two going on about?” Rainbow asked, rubbing her head. Her body was as stiff as a quebracho tree, and her mane looked like a bird nest. “Uh, Twi, could you let me out? I gotta stretch. This couch isn’t the most comfortable thing to sleep on.”
Twilight got off, as did Rainbow; then Twilight said, “Oh, nothing, you know how Spike and I get sometimes. Did you sleep well?”
With every extension from the pegasus, there came satisfying cracks of relief. “Aside from my body being all cramped, great.”
“I’m glad you stayed,” Twilight said with a smile. “Especially after everything you told me last night. I didn’t want you to be alone after all that.”
“Me, too,” Rainbow said, simpering back. She noticed Spike standing awkwardly and reticently as she and Twilight talked about last night’s events.
“Hey, Spike. I assume Twilight told you?”
“Yup,” he said. “I’m totally cool with it. I actually find it cute.”
“Aren’t you a good, sport?” Rainbow gave him a friendly nudge. “What time is it? I promised myself I’d go see Fluttershy today.”
“Almost noon,” Spike said. “Just in time for brunch.”
“Oh, ponyfeathers, I shoulda been long gone. I’m gonna have to take a rain check on that, Spike.”
“No worries. Spike and I have some work to do, anyway,” Twilight said. “Spike could you give us a minute?”
“Yup,” he said, having an idea of what they wanted to do. “I’ll be right outside.” He left.
Thereafter, when the two ponies were alone, Twilight, entirely on instinct, embraced her friend. Rainbow didn’t hesitate to return thence, nor was she hesitant to take things a little further. Pulling back, Rainbow then pushed her lips against Twilight’s, which invoked a moan from the unicorn; and despite their lips locked in, neither of their tongues met, for they knew it would ruin the pureness for one another. When they severed their connexion, a tangible chill coursed through their bodies.
Rainbow smiled positively at Twilight—and the taciturn unicorn only stared at her. Never had Twilight thought that Rainbow would be the sentimental one, for she was the one who always regarded herself as a confident plate, not readily showing her emotions, but Twilight saw it with her own eyes; and it came as a surprise to her, though, in a way, she had known Rainbow had a profound side to her. Everypony did.
As time continued to run its course, Twilight stirred for something to say, but her tongue was denser than a vial of mercury, and, as a result, she couldn’t coin the words she wanted to say. She felt an intense feeling of respect, and something profoundly deeper, toward the pegasus, something that scorched hotter than molten glass. In actuality, there was only one thing to be said here, if she was being honest with herself and with Rainbow.
“I love you, Rainbow Dash.”
“I love you, too, Twilight,” Rainbow said, her voice quiet. Neither spoke under false pretence as the words they shared had pure sinceriority and truth. Oddly enough, both of them knew how soon this was, how rapidly they had progressed within not even one day, and it was extraordinary since, more often than not, feelings like these do not manifest themselves overnight, for only time could form the earnest quality of love. But, then again, love pays no attention to the clock or anything… only the things that want it; and that was something they truly wanted.
This time, without the passionate aggression to stimulate the feeling, they pressed their lips gently and tenderly, both taking their time with it. Soon it came to an end when Rainbow pulled back, smiled, and said, “You don’t know how bad I wanna stay here, but I gotta get going. We can finish this up later if ya want.”
“I’ll be here,” Twilight said, a smirk apparent on her face.
“All right, I’ll see you in a bit.” Within a second, Rainbow zoomed out, and a distant click came from the front wooden door of the library.
Better get a move on today’s task before Rainbow gets back, Twilight thought.
As Twilight made her way out to the main section, she noticed a purple tail sticking out from the corner. “Spike is that you?” she asked, moving closer.
“Um… maybe,” he said.
Twilight’s eyes met his and she said, “How much of that did you hear?”
“Enough to know that you’re in love with Rainbow Dash.”
In a way, Twilight’s pores desired to seep molten lava, yet they also wanted to freeze over with ice. “You know, since you are my number one assistant, I may just ask you to do everything around here while I sit and watch.” Tittering built up in Twilight’s throat, and it lead to a quiet peals of laughter.
“Hey, no, fair.”
“But in all seriousness, Spike, do you promise not to tell anypony about this? I would rather have our friends hear it from Rainbow and me.”
“Sure thing,” he said. “You can count on me!”
Twilight caressed his cheek with her own. “That’s my little brother. Now, shall we get to work?”
§
The Ponyville weather team struggled with weather patrol duties when Rainbow Dash took an outstanding vacation from work. Although they cleared most of the rain clouds from the morning’s rainfall, a few scattered clouds hung over Ponyville, but the sun remained dominant with its sunlight shining on the land.
Despite Rainbow being on her well-deserved vacation—considering that she would often be left with most of the workload through insurmountable excuses of either sickness or lateness from her co-workers—she had the heart to quickly assist her team; after all, she was their captain.
A little while later, Rainbow could be found making her way to the cottage—just east of the town. It had been a while since she and Fluttershy spent any time together—time where all they did was talk to one another about the eventful things that were going on in their lives; and even though they saw each other on a regular basis, it wasn’t as special as it was when they were the only ones within each other’s presence. Rainbow knew Fluttershy would appreciate the sincerity and grace upon her unexpected arrival.
By the time Rainbow had passed the bridge in front of Fluttershy's cottage, the clock had struck noon, which would be more than enough time for Rainbow and Fluttershy to catch up; yet, notwithstanding the desire to tell her everything she wanted, there was uncertainty in the pegasus, appraising her that it would be unwise to do so. But it mattered not, for Rainbow told Fluttershy everything—since the day they became best friends—and knew she could confide with Fluttershy all her secrets and confessions.
Upon reaching the doorstep, Rainbow knocked on the door, eliciting a small squeal from the other side. “Who is it?” came a quiet, humble voice.
“Fluttershy, it’s me, Rainbow Dash. Can I come in?”
“Oh, why, of course,” Fluttershy said. The door unlatched, and the modest pegasus greeted her guest. “Come right on in, Rainbow Dash.”
Rainbow welcomed herself in and said, “I thought I’d drop by for a visit. Just to catch up and stuff. Hope ya don’t mind.”
“Oh, no, no, of course not. I’m actually glad you stopped by.”
“Yeah, me too,” Rainbow said, hugging the shy pegasus. “It’s been a while.”
Fluttershy returned the hug. “It has been, hasn’t it?”
“Mhmm,” Rainbow said, letting go. “Missed spending time with my best gal.”
As always, Fluttershy couldn’t help but laugh aloud, which made Rainbow smile. Rainbow spoke, her voice positive, though it soon became hoarse and raspy through a dry throat, threatening to cease speech at any moment. “Hey, Shy, can I have a glass of water?”
“Why of course. Anything for you, Rainbow. I’ll be right back.” Fluttershy left.
Having been left alone in the living room, Rainbow motioned herself to take a seat on the green sofa, but as she walked toward it, an impressive array of framed photographs—standing on a wooden ledge right above the fireplace—caught the corner of Rainbow’s eye.
Is that what I think it is?
Go and see for yourself.
Upon reaching the ledge, Rainbow picked up a frame, and her eyes scanned every inch of it. The printed images depicted her days in flight school with Fluttershy, specifically their graduation. Rainbow hadn’t seen her school pictures for quite some time, all for good reason. Seeing these photographs again was enough to rekindle the thoughts of the past, which only brought on an onset of anger, pain, and sorrow; and despite Rainbow’s efforts, she couldn’t help but recollect everything that had happened to her during those years, and how it changed her life forever.
Stop it, Rainbow thought as she put the glass frame down. Don’t go there. It’ll be like last time, only worse since you’re remembering it.
The smell of precipitation had always been overpowering after a day of inhaling normal, fresh air. The smell of rain had filled the entire cloud home as if it were a noxious mist. Some of the walls absorbed its pungent odour, but still the odour bit the back of every breath the filly took when she came home. Through her years of growing up, she learned to tolerate the aroma after being absent from home for a long duration.
When Rainbow went inside and yelled her return, she was immediately called to the living room. As she made her way there, Rainbow heard some commotion from thence, and her mind generated awe. When she entered, she saw both her parents standing next to each other with disarrayed expressions.
“What is it?” Rainbow said, her voice suddenly frantic.
“Your mother and I have come to an agreement that you should know the truth,” Rainbow’s father said. “Please, will you sit?”
“No, I’m fine. What are you talking about? What do you mean by ‘truth’?” Rainbow’s voice projection staggered, and her body began to shake in awe.
“What your father is trying to say is that we believe you’re ready to know the truth about something we’ve been keeping from you for a long time,” Rainbow’s mother said.
“I don’t understand. What could you possibly keep from me that I don’t already know about you? I mean, you are my parents,” Rainbow said.
“That’s the thing,” he said. “You see, Rainbow… we aren’t your real parents. You’re adopted.”
Rainbow tittered, then said, “Of course you are. You’re my real parents and you always will be.”
“Rainbow, honey,” her mother said, “we’re not your biological parents. We adopted you at the adoption centre when you were about seven months old. Your biological parents gave you up because they were the ones that didn’t want a filly. They even went as far to have you aborted, but the procedure failed.”
An insufferable pang of toxic sorrow struck Rainbow’s hardening heart, and the mind refused to believe everything that was being said. Eventually, the filly spoke up. “Is this a sick joke? Because if it is, it’s not funny, and you gotta stop lying to me. Just tell me that you’re my real parents.”
“I wish we could, sweetie,” her mother said. “But we’re not.”
“Is it true?” Rainbow asked her father.
“I’m afraid so, supergirl,” her father said.
“I don’t believe any of you,” Rainbow said. Her voice was breaking, tears pooling in her eyes.
“You have no idea how powerful the truth can be, Rainbow,” her father said. “I’m so, sorry, Dashie. It kills me to tell you all of this.” His eyes began to tear up, as did her mother’s.
“I don’t wanna believe the truth.” Rainbow was trembling, snot and tears mixing on her face.
“Shh,” her mother said as she pull her daughter close, wrapped her hooves around Rainbow’s shaky little body.
Rainbow’s voice was muffled against her mother’s chest, but the panic in it was lucid. “I want proof. I want to see if you’re telling me the truth.”
“Look at the table next to you,” her father said, his voice soft.
Rainbow withdrew from her mother’s grasp and glanced at the table. On it, there was a piece of paper that had what looked like paternity test results. She picked it up and read it to herself, eyes reading every line of text. That was when the surrealism of everything sank into the mind. It was true. Everything they had said to her was true.
Rainbow let go of the paper and said, “I need to go. Just… leave me alone.” She ran off.
Rainbow Dash shook her head violently, clearing the memories that had unloaded themselves upon her. Her cheeks were damp, and she attempted to deflect the past from entering her mind any further. “It’s over, it’s over, don’t think about them,” she said quietly to herself.
Shortly after, Rainbow’s reverie was interrupted by Fluttershy.
“Here you go, Rainbow,” Fluttershy said, holding a glass of water in her hoof. “Is everything all right?”
Rainbow accepted the offering and took periodic sips while she continued to look at the array. Eventually, she spoke up. “Don’t worry about me, Shy,” Rainbow said, a sniffle coming shortly after.
Fluttershy detected that Rainbow must have been enduring some disturbing matter. “Were you… were you crying, Rainbow Dash?”
“Me? Crying?” Rainbow’s voice was defensive and abrupt. The truth of the matter could not be concealed, so Rainbow gave in. “Oh, screw it, what’s the point? Yeah, I was crying.”
Fluttershy’s heart sank. “What’s the matter, Rainbow Dash? If you don’t mind me asking that is.”
“Shy, it’s okay.” She took a sip of water, then said, “I was just thinking about my parents, and how they told me I was adopted. And how I was a failed abortion.”
“You remember all that, don’t you?” Rainbow asked, sipping her water.
Fluttershy nodded. “How could I forget? I wouldn’t be a very good best friend if I forgot about all that, now would I?”
“Hehe, I guess you’re right. You were always there for me when I needed ya, Shy. I appreciate it.” Rainbow smiled.
“I wasn’t always there for you,” Fluttershy said as she hid behind her pink mane.
“Huh?”
“When you told me you liked me… I wasn’t really there for you.” Fluttershy concealed more of her face.
Rainbow put her glass down on the ledge, gazed at her friend, and raised Fluttershy’s chin with a wing. “Hey, none of that was your fault. Besides, I was the one who should’ve known that you weren’t into mares.”
Despite Fluttershy’s farouche and somewhat guilty motion, she withdrew from hiding and said, “I just feel so awful for making you feel pain. All because of me.”
“Hey, don’t be so hard on yourself, Shy,” Rainbow said. “Like I said, it wasn’t your fault.”
“Thank you, Rainbow Dash.”
“Anytime. Here, come sit with me. I have something to tell ya.”
When they were seated on the green sofa, Rainbow said, “So, I’m seeing a certain somepony now.”
“I see,” Fluttershy said, giggling, not feeling inadequate for her bashful nature. “Who is it?”
“Guess,” Rainbow said. “You won’t believe it.”
“Is it somepony I know?”
“Yup.”
“Hmm… Cheerilee?”
“Nope.”
“Is it a him?”
Rainbow shook her head. “It’s Twilight.”
“As in Twilight Sparkle?” Fluttershy asked, her mouth agape shortly after her question.
“The one and only,” Rainbow said.
“How did you two—”
“I was helping Twi out in the library yesterday, and I found her diary. Had some really… let’s just say that it was all about me. Anyways, I was so surprised that she liked me that I had to tell her how I truly felt about her. It was the right time and place, you know?”
Fluttershy nodded with a smile. “That is so adorable!”
“Hehe, thanks, Shy,” Rainbow said, rolling her eyes.
“Why, though?” Despite the question, her smile never faltered, only gained momentum.
“Isn’t she… um… a bit too bookish for your liking? I was thinking more along the lines of you having a crush on Applejack or an athletic pony, no?”
“Eh, Applejack really isn’t my type. She is a great friend, don’t get me wrong, but I can’t see myself being with her. Besides, she isn’t into mares.”
“Not your type? A pony that is as athletic as you isn’t your type?” Fluttershy looked unconvinced.
Rainbow got up and took another sip from her glass of water that sat on the ledge, then said, “Oh, believe me, Twilight is definitely my type. And you do know why.” Rainbow winked at Fluttershy.
“Oh. Oh!” Ken synced in Fluttershy’s mind, remembering the secret Rainbow had told her during the years at flight school. “It’s because you have a thing for unicorns, right? With their horns and all?” Fluttershy couldn’t help but giggle after what she had just said.
“Well, yeah, but that’s not the only reason why I like her.”
“Why then?” Fluttershy asked.
“You gotta admit, the eggheadish personality is kinda of adorable, almost sweet. And she’s very bold. Remember that time she saved Ponyville from that Ursa? That kind of thing. She’s brave and thoughtful… if it weren’t for her, we’d be under Discord’s craziness. And besides, who couldn’t resist that smile of hers?”
Fluttershy shrugged. “I’m guessing you can’t.”
“I guess I can’t,” Rainbow said. “Twi and I are gonna be spending a lot more time together now, but I’m kinda worried that I’ll rush things like I always do.”
“Oh, Rainbow Dash, I’m so happy for you.” Fluttershy moved herself over to Rainbow and hugged her tightly. Then she pulled back. “If you’re worried about rushing things with her, talk to her about it. I’m sure she’ll understand since you two are good friends.
“Either way, I’m sure she’ll make you very happy. Something I couldn’t do for you.”
“Yeah, maybe I will talk to her about it later tonight,” Rainbow said. “And, hey, you being my friend makes me happy. Stop being so hard on yourself.”
Maybe she’s right. Maybe I am too hard on myself, Fluttershy thought, mildly frustrated. I can’t let my past get in the way of my friendship.
“Thanks for letting me spend time with you today, Shy. It was really nice.” Rainbow smiled at her friend. “We should do this again sometime.”
“Oh, it was my pleasure. And I would like that.”
“I better get goin’. I promised Twilight I’d stop later today.”
“Oh, okay,” Fluttershy said as she gave her friend a last hug before her departure. “Come by anytime you like, Rainbow Dash. I’ll always be here for you. Oh, and don’t forget to tell me what happens with you and Twilight. I wouldn’t mind hearing the adorable parts.”
“I’ll keep ya posted,” Rainbow said, tittering building up in her throat. She made way to the front door with Fluttershy behind her. “I’ll see ya soon, Shy.” Rainbow opened the door stepped out, and prepared herself for launch, only to be halted by her friend.
“Um, Rainbow Dash.”
“Yeah?”
“I won’t be so hard on myself about you anymore. I’ll take your word that it wasn’t my fault.”
Rainbow couldn’t help but smile. “I’m glad you will. Smell ya later.” She took off into the evening-lit sky, destined to go see her mistress for the rest of the day.

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              Their Night is A Field of Glass              
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Their Night is A Field of Glass
The evening had taken its toll on Ponyville, and the sunlight worked its way through the scattered clouds, set ablaze by thence. Ponies were closing their shops, getting ready to go home after another strenuous day of work. Of these ponies, Twilight, too, was included. Twilight and Spike had finished their gruelling tasks for the day, which consisted of reorganizing the newspaper archive in the basement; and in doing so, she stumbled across an old article, published at least four years ago, about two ponies who told their story of how they regretted trying to abandon their filly before birth and after birth.
When Twilight read the article, she had vague suspicion that it was indeed Rainbow’s biological parents, but she had no physical evidence of it being so, despite the low probability of two other ponies being in a similar situation. In spite of the inadequate corroboration, Twilight yearned to tell Rainbow, but her conscience told her it wouldn’t be wise. In the end, Twilight decided it would be best to shew the pegasus the article when the time was right.
Twilight and Spike could be found heading up the stairs to the main library room. When they reached the top, Spike asked, “So when will we read the next chapter of Daring Do? I wanna see what happens next.”
“Are you really sure you’re up for that, Spike? You look exhausted from all the work you’ve done today,” Twilight said just after she helped Spike over the last step.
“Me? Tired? No way. I’m full of energy,” he said, a yawn escaping his mouth shortly after. “Let’s go read—” Another yawn left the baby dragon, and his bodily form nearly crashed to the floor, but he was recovered by Twilight’s magic.
“Whoa, whoa, easy there, Spike. I wouldn’t want my number one assistant to tire himself more than he has to,” Twilight said. Her magic was balancing Spike to his feet. “You should go to bed.”
Spike stretched his enervated arms and said, “Twilight, I’m fine. Can’t you just read one chapter to me? Pretty please?” His eyes were that of a newborn canine asking for forgiveness.
“Oh, all right, I guess so. But only one.”
Despite Twilight’s insistence that Spike go to bed and get some well-earned rest, even though the sun hadn’t set yet, she couldn’t say no to him, not only because if his superlative work ethic today, but also because he didn’t ask for much from Twilight. Once in a while, however, he would ask if they could go to a Wonderbolts show, or a play showcasing in Canterlot; and more often than not, she would say yes to all of his requests, so why shouldn’t she say yes to this?
When they were in the living room, seated on the sofa, Twilight picked up the book from the nearby table and began to read chapter two. “‘Out of all of the tombs and pyramids I had raided, none of them compared to the horrors of this temple. Although the interior structure appeared normal, they were far from it. Strange objects occupied the place, and the bricks seemed lively by the sounds they made. Yes, the bricks were making noises beyond my comprehension. Centipedes would crawl through the cracks in the walls, which closed shortly after, and I wondered how they could manifest such power.
“There was a library, if I remembered correctly, filled with maddening rows of bookshelves, along with thick cobwebs that made it impossible to fly and walk through. And, sometimes, everything would shift, out of place, and not be in the original spot they were found in prior.
“As I walked down the dimly-lit corridor, accompanied by red torches and empty cells barred up with steel poles, I heard a muffled click beneath my hooves. I stopped, scrutinized my surroundings. A moment later, I jumped back and ducked down, my stomach flat against the floor, as a laser beam emitted from a statue’s eye, burning every object it touched. When the laser shut off, I stayed low and examined the trip mechanism that activated the laser. I threw pebbles at it, and even beyond, and the laser tripped again. Lucky for me, though, the laser wasn’t controlled, so I could easily slip by.
“When I bypassed the statue, I found myself in the same room I started in. Curious, I went to where I had found the library, and lo and behold it was in the same place. I rushed to the corridor and looked straight ahead, only to see that statue once again. None of this made sense to me. Never in my adventures had I ever had a sensation of déjà vu. Or was this something other than déjà vu? I didn’t know.
“After pondering for several minutes, an odd power dragged me to the library, and, once I was in, a book animated by an unknown force opened right in front of me, and a deep voice read the page aloud: ‘Only those who are worthy will make it to the throne room, where the master of the temple rests. To make it thence, you must past the Trials of Aluzra which will test your inner warrior. Cowards evade and bypass puzzles they do not understand, while true warriors solve them, no matter how difficult or impossible they may be, with intelligence, patience, and time. The current master cheated its way through the trials, and, thus, is a coward.
“‘By passing the three tests that await for you, you will become an Aluzrian Warrior and you must defeat the wrongful master resting in the throne room to attain the title of Aluzrian Champion; that is when you will be awarded with the prized Stone Heart. Go now, and prove yourself worthy. The statue awaits.’ The voice faded and the book vanished into thin air.
And that was when the Trials of Aluzra began for me. And when I would finally banish Ahuizotl for good.’”
“Wow,” Rainbow said, gazing at Twilight, who had a surprised expression on her face as did Spike. “That was totally awesome. Can you read more?”
“How long have you been standing there, Rainbow?” Twilight asked with a smirk.
“At least ten minutes. I walked in when you got to the part where Daring Do tripped the laser. I wonder what’s gonna happen next.”
“Yeah, me, too,” Spike said, “but Twilight said I have to go to bed since I worked really hard today.” A yawn escaped the baby dragon’s mouth.
“And was I wrong?” Twilight said. “C’mon, let’s get you to bed, Spike. Excuse me, Rainbow.”
“Nada problem. I’ll be here…reading,” Rainbow said, sitting. “Take your time.”
The sun was half-way below the horizon, and everything in the sky was silent, almost lifeless.
When Spike and Twilight were upstairs, Twilight escorted Spike to the hallway closest, Spike’s bedroom. Ever since Twilight had expanded the storage space in the basement, she decided on transforming the closet into a bedroom for him, considering that he had a lack of privacy with his bed being right next to Twilight’s. Inside there was his bed and a small bookshelf with all his favourite books. Once he was tucked in, Twilight pecked him on the cheek and said, “Goodnight, Spike.”
“Goodnight, Twilight.” In a flash, he was fast asleep.
When Twilight closed the door, she turned around, only to see Rainbow in front of her. “You really care for him, don’t ya, Twi?” Rainbow said, already knowing the answer to the question.
“I do, very much,” Twilight said.
“He’s lucky to have you for a mother. A real one.”
After hearing those words, Twilight’s heart sank into the sympathetic abyss, curious as to what life would be like without solicitous parents. Unable to avoid the question at hoof, Twilight asked, “Are you insinuating something regarding your parents, Rainbow?”
“I guess you could say that. But that’s not why I’m here. I wanna talk about us.”
“We can certainly do that. Shall we?”
§
Usually Rainbow and Twilight spent time together in the living quarters, but never anywhere else in the library; and it was mystifying to the pegasus since the library had more than three floors. Fret not, though. Twilight had insisted that Rainbow join her on the wooden balcony—illumed by the brilliant white moon and the star-painted sky—where they could both endure the spectacular night together and talk about the thoughts that were on their mind.
When the two ponies reached the balcony, only one had a surprised mark on the face: Rainbow. There was a large blanket overtop a pad, neatly laid out, a bottle of sparkled water, and two empty glasses, all courtesy of Twilight.
“Surprised, much?” Twilight said.
“You planned this whole thing, didn’t you?” Rainbow said. “Since when were you the one for surprises?”
“Oh, I can be very surprising. Shall we?” Twilight directed her friend to take a seat.
Once they were situated on the pad, Twilight poured two glasses of the carbonated water and handed one to her friend. Earlier in the day, when Twilight and Spike were on lunch break, Twilight had buzzed on over to the Carousel Boutique and sought out Rarity’s prime recommendations for a non-alcoholic, flamboyant beverage. Lucky for Twilight, though, Rarity had, on hoof, the perfect bottle of carbonated water that was both luxurious and excellent, exactly what Twilight wanted.
Having tasted the water, Rainbow said, “You know, you didn’t have to go out of your way and do this for me.”
“Nonsense. You deserve every bit of it,” Twilight said, putting the glass down. “So you wanted to talk about us?”
“Yeah, I do.”
“What’s on your mind, Rainbow? Are you having second thoughts on being with me or something?”
“What? No, no, no, it’s nothing like that. It’s just…I’ve never been in a serious relationship before, and I’m worried that I’ll rush things between us and screw everything up.”
“That makes two of us. If anything, I should be the one to blame if it doesn’t work between us.”
Rainbow put her glass down, moved closer to Twilight, then said, “Why do you say that?”
“Because, Rainbow, for so long, all I’ve ever wanted was to have you, please you, and make love to you. That kiss we had today…”
“What about it?” Rainbow asked. Her heart thumped rapidly and violently as she waited for Twilight to complete her sentence.
“I wanted it to escalate into something more.”
“You mean?”
Twilight nodded. “I wanted to make love with you today, but I didn’t. I didn’t because I assumed that you weren’t ready to jump that far ahead, especially since you and I just started this relationship. I don’t want my lust for you to get in the way of us. Losing you is what I’m scared of most right now.”
Twilight felt frightened for telling Rainbow all of this, yet she also felt elated. She knew where her fear came from: it came from her inexistent choice but to love this pony, Rainbow Dash, in all things, and her elation came from doing it.
After a while, Twilight lay down on the pad. Eventually, Rainbow joined her and said, “I never knew that you wanted me that badly, Twi.”
“Well, now you do,” Twilight said, moving closer to the pegasus. “So do you understand why I would be the one to mess up us?”
“I do. But you don’t have to worry about screwing things up. I won’t let you. We’ll do it together. And even though I said I don’t want to rush things with you, doing it with you will always be special.” Rainbow snuggled her head into Twilight’s chest, her hoof overlapping thence.
Twilight shivered and said, “You promise me?”
Rainbow looked up at Twilight’s eyes. “I promise.”
It was then when Rainbow pressed her lips against Twilight’s, eliciting no hesitation form the unicorn. Twilight caved in, not feeling her heartbeats inside, or her eyes closing gently; and every part of her body was numb, for it shattered like ethereal glass. As the shock dwindled, Rainbow ran her hooves through Twilight’s ornate mane and pulled her close for every bit of her valuable worth.
Twilight succumbed to relaxation as Rainbow’s hooves stroked her back, sending electric chills through Twilight’s body and extremities; the tension and nerves left the unicorn’s body, and confusion replaced thence. Rainbow lowered a hoof right down to Twilight’s cutie mark, which provoked Twilight to break it off. Pulling back from the passionate kiss, Twilight said, “Hold on. Are you sure you’re ready for this? I mean, I know you don’t want to rush things, and—”
“I know what I said, Twi,” Rainbow said, pinning Twilight down in a friendly manner. “But I can’t help but take you right now. I love you, Twilight.”
“Oh, Rainbow Dash.” Twilight rekindled the heated moment by pressing her lips against the pegasus’s; and even though Twilight was uncertain that this was something Rainbow genuinely wanted, she couldn’t say no to her.
Once more, however, Twilight broke the kiss and, using her magic, lifted the blanket from underneath them and covered their bodies, leaving only their heads exposed. Resuming the moment, Twilight dived on in by planting kisses all over Rainbow’s neck, though it was particularly arduous given the position she was in; so she switched positions with Rainbow, lying atop her now.
Taking control once again, Twilight kissed the pegasus hard, and Rainbow didn’t seem to mind the passionate, heated aggression the unicorn had in store for her; for she reciprocated with the same amount of passion, same amount of love, and same amount of commitment. Rainbow evoked periodic moans as she felt Twilight grinding against her body—whilst she kept osculating her lover—lest she avoided a particular area below the equator.
Changing it up, Twilight withdrew from Rainbow’s lips and turned her attention to the sensitive nerve endings on Rainbow’s neck, pecking her endlessly, sucking the skin, all of which slackened the pegasus—her head twitching back as tender warmth coursed through her body. Soon, Rainbow began to feel Twilight’s rubbing in a more delicate location of her body, and a loud moan escaped both ponies’ mouths as they felt each other’s warm and wet vulvas in contact. Although none of them said anything about what was about to happen, they stared into each other’s eyes smiling.
Her true loveliness I never knew, until she smiled at me, Twilight thought to herself as she continued to move around.
Rainbow felt as though her body had been entirely paralysed by lightning, almost blinded by the sheer factor that she was making love to best thing that has ever happened to her. She kissed Twilight and rolled her over, taking charge, then placed a tense kiss into the unicorn’s neck while slowly moving up her face. Eventually, she gave into a final course of action and licked Twilight’s horn, albeit it was incredibly short because of Twilight’s extreme twitching from the intense jounce of pleasure that made her go everywhere.
Because of Twilight’s violent and volatile reaction, her grinding became erratic and faster, resulting in near closure of what was to come. At this point, both ponies were panting heavily, but it was nothing they couldn’t recover from, considering that they were outdoors; evidently, both ponies were nearing to their ultimate wave of pleasure, and all they could do was stare aimlessly into each others’ eyes, pull each other in for a hug, and kiss each other on the lips.
And then it happened: their interior muscles contracted tightly and, as they continued to grind against each other’s vulva, a wave of juices released from thence, and electrifying arcs circulated through their bodies, making them react violently and sporadically. They moaned and groaned at the sheer intensity of it all, eventually breaking apart and going their separate ways on each side of the pad.
Rainbow turned over to face Twilight and said, “Twilight…”
Twilight was panting, unable to speak for a few moments. In the meantime, before she caught her breath, she motioned closer to the pegasus and pulled her in for cuddles. Eventually, she spoke up. “Yes, Rainbow?” A faint sigh of happiness, tranquility, and calmness projected from the unicorn as she waited for Rainbow to speak again.
“You were my first, Twi. And I’m glad you were.” Rainbow kissed Twilight’s muzzle as she scrunched in closer for warmth.
“You were, too. I’m honoured that you were my first.”
From the angle Rainbow was lying at, she could see a faint, illumed speck in the distance, and it unknowingly made her curious as to what that might be. But before she went to see what it was for herself, despite her not wanting to leave the unicorn’s warmth behind, she said, “You know, we didn't do too bad, considering that we had no idea what we were doing.”
Twilight giggled. “You seemed to know what to do quite well. Especially with what you did to my horn. That really did it.”
“Hehe, yeah. I have a thing for a unicorn’s horn, not gonna lie.”
Twilight’s face reddened out of embarrassment. “I never knew that. I guess you like my horn, then?”
“You bet. Yours is the best. Anyway, I wanna check something out. Come with me.”
Twilight reluctantly got up and followed the pegasus to the left railing on the balcony; and as they gazed upon the fascinating site that was in front of them, none of them could render worthy words to describe what they were seeing.
“Is that what I think they are?” Rainbow asked, narrowing her eyes for a better view.
“It’s a swarm of fireflies,” Twilight said.
In the wide open field, a large swarm of fireflies danced in the air, illumining everything around it, casting a yellow ray of dim light in all directions. It appeared as if it were specks of shattered glass flying through the air while being refracted by the sun’s light.
“I wish Fluttershy could see this,” Rainbow said. “She loves fireflies.”
“Who doesn’t?” Twilight said. “It is beautiful, but not as much as you.”
“Aww, c’mon, Twi, I’m not that pretty.”
“Yes, you are.” Another yawn left the unicorn’s mouth. “Shall we go to back to the pad and go to sleep? I’m tired and all I want to do is hold you, Dash.”
“Absolutely.”
When they were snugged tight under the blanket, on the pad, and in each other’s grasp, all they could do was hope for pure happiness that was to come.
“Goodnight, Twi.”
“Goodnight, Dash.”
The two fell asleep in an instant.

//-------------------------------------------------------//
                    A Temporary Goodbye                    
//-------------------------------------------------------//
A Temporary Goodbye
It was the next day, the early morning wearing agilely onwards. Twilight and Rainbow Dash—both still euphoric from last’s night’s events—had been up since sunrise, though it had taken the best of Twilight’s patience to awaken the sleeping pegasus from slumber. Twilight couldn’t blame her though, and that was the obvious part; she knew that Rainbow felt safe, secure, and harmonic when she was with her. And having just that was enough for the pegasus to have morning apathy.
Currently, Spike, Rainbow and Twilight were sitting together at the dining room table, eating away at the small breakfast which consisted of fruits, juice, and toast Spike had prepared for them. Being the early-bird he was, he had gotten up—before sunrise but not too far away from it—and scouted the place for Twilight and Rainbow, only to find them sleeping on Twilight’s balcony; when he had gazed upon the site of the two ponies resting peacefully, he failed to resist a smile out of happiness. And then he had thought it wouldn’t hurt to surprise them with a breakfast.
Chomping away at the slices of honeydew melon, amongst other fruits, Twilight and Rainbow kept looking at each other in a way that Spike couldn’t understand. Smiles also marked their faces as they stared, and, sometimes, quiet peals of laughter would leave their mouths. Eventually, Spike spoke up in question. “Um, what is going on between you two?” He took a drink shortly after asking.
Rainbow couldn’t control herself, and, soon, caved into an outburst of laughter. “Oh, Spike, you’re too funny sometimes.”
“What’s that suppose to mean?” He looked confused and distraught.
Twilight started to laugh as well, albeit with more self-control. “Spike…you have a banana peel on your head.”
“What?” He motioned his hand to his head, only to feel that of a fleshy material. Taking it off his head, he then said, “How’d that get there?”
“Dunno, but either way it was funny as hay,” Rainbow said. “So, what do you two have planned for today?”
Twilight swallowed the last of her juice, then said, “Nothing in particular. Spike and I have finished everything that needs to be done here as of late. But knowing me, I’ll probably find something to do. You’re welcome to stay the day if you’d like.”
“I’d love to, Twi.” A smile marked Rainbow’s face.
“Great. But I have a question I need to ask. Don’t you have weather patrol duties to take care of?”
Rainbow shook her head. “Nope. I took a month’s vacation off. Work with the weather has been rather stressful lately, and I just needed some time off.”
“I can get used to that,” Twilight said, leaning over to give Rainbow a peck on the lips.
Spike winced. “Guys, c’mon. I’m right here.”
“Sorry, Spike. I almost forgot you were there. My apologies.”
“It’s fine.”
“So what are we gonna do?” Rainbow asked.
Shortly after she asked her question, a knock came from the front door.
“I’ll get it,” Twilight said.
“I’ll come with,” Rainbow told her.
Upon reaching the front door, Twilight unlatched the door and opened it; the pony that was on the other side was no other than Derpy, the mailmare. “Hey, guys,” she said, her smile graceful.
“Oh, hey, Derpy. How’s it goin’?” Rainbow asked.
“Oh, nothing new, same as it ever was, et cetera. Just delivering the mail.” She reached into her mailbag and handed Twilight a letter. “Here you go, Twilight.”
Twilight took the missive from Derpy. “Thanks a lot.”
“It’s my job. Rainbow Dash, I think I got something for you, too. Let me see.”
“Take your time, Derpy,” Rainbow said. “Say, did you have a hard time getting around the weather in the past few days?”
“Uhh, not that I can think of, no. Why’d you ask?” Derpy was searching through the endless set of mail that was situated in her bag—but she seemed to know how to go about doing it without messing up the order of the addresses in Ponyville.
“I took a small vacation from weather patrol, and I wanted to know if everything has been going smoothly.”
“Oh, yeah, the weather has been great. Just sun today,” Derpy said, still digging through her bag. Eventually, she found it. “Ah, yes, here you go, Rainbow Dash.”
Rainbow took her mail, then said, “Thanks, Derpy.”
“No need to thank me, guys.” She closed up her bag before leaving. “Well, it was nice to see you. Gotta go now.”
“Later,” Rainbow said.
Once Derpy lanced into the sky and disappeared into a faint speck, Twilight closed the door and made her way back to the dining room, hoping to continue their conversation before it was interrupted. Rainbow followed by flying low to the ground, but her speed significantly slowed down as her eyes read the fine print that was on the envelope she was holding. It had the official Wonderbolts logo on it, as well as the addresses to the academy.
Taking action, Rainbow stopped in her tracks, opened the letter, and read it to herself. It read like this:
Dear, Rainbow Dash,
We at the Wonderbolts Academy have summoned you to partake in routine drills, lectures and tests to keep you updated with the material that the Wonderbolts teach new recruits. This process will take approximately two weeks to complete. During those two weeks, you will be training, learning and staying with lieutenant Soarin Winters. A suite has been provided for you at the Academy, by which you will be accompanied by him.
Below this letter is the date stamp by which you must sign in at the Academy, otherwise you will be considered for termination from the Academy. We apologize for any inconvenience and hope to see you there.
Sincerely,
The Wonderbolts Academy.
“Why me? And why now?” Rainbow said to herself.
By the time Rainbow had stepped foot into the dining room, Twilight had already taken a seat at the table, and Rainbow’s once happy smile transformed into a frown of disappointment. Twilight became aware of this contrast, as did Spike, and it was only in her nature to ask her marefriend what was wrong.
“Hey, Dash, why the frown? Is something the matter?” Twilight got up from her seat and headed on over to Rainbow to see what had made her so distraught. “Hey…you look like you got the most devastating news ever. What’s wrong?”
Rainbow sat down on the wooden floor, her ears drooping down like a withered plant. “I just got called in to do some work at the Wonderbolts Academy for two weeks. I leave tomorrow.” A vexed sigh crept past her mouth, and a hoof clenched out of frustration. “Well, looks like my vacation is going down the drain.”
“Hey, just because you’ll be working at the Academy for two weeks doesn’t necessarily mean that your vacation is over. You’ll have plenty of time to relax when you get back,” Twilight said, raising Rainbow’s chin with a wing. “Besides, when you do come back, you can come back to me. Then we can spend time together. How does that sound?”
Rainbow—her frustration and anger dwindling—grinned and grasped Twilight’s hoof with her own. “I like the sound of that, Twi.”
“Besides,” Spike chimed in, “look at it this way: you got the whole day to spend with us since you don’t have to leave until tomorrow.”
“Spike’s right, Rainbow. We still have today to do something together before you depart.”
“I guess you’re right,” Rainbow said. She sounded almost relieved and contented now. “What do you guys have in mind?”
“Actually, I just remembered something,” Spike said, leaping off his seat. “I gotta go and meet up with the Cutie Mark Crusaders today. They want my help with something.”
“Oh? Can’t you stay though?” Rainbow asked. She sounded almost sad that he had to leave.
“I would, but I promised them I would help out with whatever they plan on doing.”
“Aww, ponyfeathers.”
“Look on the bright side, Dash,” he said, “you get to spend more time with Twilight alone.” He gave Rainbow an impish wink, insinuating something that he shouldn’t be, yet he did so in a way that showed he was being both kind-hearted and selfless. “I’ll be back later, Twilight. See ya guys around.” He left.
“Well, that was weird,” Twilight said, raising an eyebrow out of suspicion.
“In what way?” Rainbow asked.
“Did you see the way he was acting just before he left?”
“Yeah, why do you ask?”
“He was just…never mind that. So is there anything you would like to do today?”
Rainbow took Twilight in an embrace and pulled her closer. “Oh, I have a few ideas in mind…” Rainbow kissed Twilight on the lips, then moved to her sensitive neck, then back to her lips. Pulling back, she then said, “How does that sound?”
Twilight writhed around in pleasant comfort. “I like the sound of that…”
“I hear a but coming.”
“But… as much as I like making love to you, we should really do something else, together, before you leave tomorrow.”
“Oh, all right,” Rainbow said. “How about we go back to my place for a bit. I wouldn’t mind getting a head start on a bit of packing for my trip. Then we can go out to lunch.”
“You know, I am liking the sound of that. Let’s go.”
§
Although Twilight had been in Cloudsdale multiple times, she never had been in a home made of pure, white cloud. Lucky for her sake, though, being an alicorn certainly had its advantages. One example was being able to stand on a cloud without falling through it, something she was never able to do in the past unless she conjured a spell for such ability.
“This is quite the place you got, Rainbow,” Twilight said, examining the swirly staircase made of cloud. “It’s fascinating how pegasi can manipulate clouds and make use of them for architecture.”
“Wow, even outside of the library, you’re still an egghead,” Rainbow said, laughing, while she made her way upstairs. “You comin’, Twi?”
Twilight shook her head, escaping the leeching trance. “Huh? What? Were you saying something?”
“I said are you coming upstairs with me?”
“Oh, yes, of course. Sorry,” Twilight said, picking up the pace. “It’s just that I’ve never been in a home constructed by cloud. This is all fascinating to me.”
“It’s pretty simple, really,” Rainbow said, floating above the fluffy white cloud stairs. “We have to use certain clouds, otherwise the place won’t hold.”
“Oh? By the looks of it, it looks like ordinary clouds to me,” Twilight said.
“Well, they aren’t.”
The upstairs hallway in Rainbow’s home impressed Twilight to say the least. On the corridor’s walls, there were paintings held up by enchanted cloud screws that floated in the air, and it almost seemed impossible as far as Twilight was concerned. In all the years of knowing Rainbow Dash, Twilight never thought she would have an impeccable taste for the slightly abstract arts. Eventually, the alicorn spoke up. “You have quite the paintings here, Dash. I never took you as one to be artsy.”
“Are you kidding, Twi? I love the arts. It’s just that not many ponies know about that,” Rainbow said.
“Fascinating…”
Once the two ponies were in the destined bedroom, Rainbow couldn’t help but motion her friend to her cloud bed, which sat reticently and harmonically. Then the pegasus spoke up. “Twi, I wanna lie down with ya for a while before we do anything.”
“But I thought you wanted to get a head start on your packing,” Twilight said, stepping one hoof closer to the bed.
“Packing, backing. Packing can wait. You can’t. I promise, we’ll only be ten minutes at the most. Besides, you haven’t experienced the awesomeness of being on a cloud bed.”
She does have a point you know. Think about it. Lying down on a bed, made from the softest material known to exist, with the pony you love. Can’t get any better than that, Twilight’s mind told her. Besides, she’ll be gone for two weeks, and you should make the most of what time you have with her before she leaves.
It’s tempting, and maybe you’re right, Twilight responded back to her mind.
Then do it.
“Oh, all right, just for you, Dash.” Twilight vaulted up on to the bed, joining her marefriend; and that was when she had experienced, for the first time, an infinity of awesome. “Whoa…this is—”
“Soft, right?” Rainbow said, inching closer to the lavishing pony next to her. “I knew you’d like it. It’s a shame that earth ponies and unicorns won’t ever know how awesome this feels.”
“I bet,” Twilight said.
The two lay there, staring and smiling with pure gayety at each other, almost muzzle to muzzle, though Twilight knew if she were to move forward with what was on her mind they would never be able to go out and enjoy the day. Rainbow had an impish grin, while Twilight undertook her best efforts to render a fearful yet inspiring glare; though it wasn’t working, as evidenced by Rainbow’s sinewy hoof trailing up and poking Twilight’s nose.
“Boop. Gotcha, Twi,” Rainbow said, her voice low.
“Oh, you’ll get it this time,” Twilight said. She sounded sharp and fierce, though, despite her friendly seriousness, she failed to resist a smile.
“Oh, yeah? What you gonna do?” Rainbow drew Twilight in closer for cuddles, and the alicorn had no ulterior motives to deny it.
“This.” Moving practically, nervously, Twilight leaned forward and kissed Rainbow, her lips tender and dubious. Rainbow requited the kiss with powerful passion and meaningfulness, glad that—for the moment at least—Twilight didn’t seem to insinuate anything rash. The pegasus drew Twilight in even closer, so she could wrap her wings around her love, essentially breaking their moment whilst doing thence. “I love you so much, Twi, ya know that, right? We may have only been together as a couple for a few days now, but I really do mean it when I say that.”
“Yes, I know, Rainbow. I love you, too.” She pulled the pegasus in for another brief yet long kiss, then giggled reticently. “You know, it’s been over ten minutes. Maybe we should head out for lunch?”
“Aww, but I’m so warm and fuzzy. But I guess good things have to come to a temporary end,” Rainbow said, unwrapping herself from Twilight.
Twilight did the same and got up from the cloud bed, then said, “When did you become so wise?”
“Filly, I’m always wise.”
Twilight laughed in a low monotone again. “So where do you want to go?”
“I heard of this new place that opened not too long ago. It’s called The Ponyville Athletic Club. Wanna check it out?”
“I don’t see why not,” Twilight said. “Sounds like a fancy place if you ask me.”
“Yeah, that’s what I’ve heard.”
“So, shall you lead the way?”
§
The bright daylight worked its way through the very few clouds in the sky, and the sun illumed the town, rendering a bit of warmth to the local residents. Notwithstanding the sun, though, the weather was chilly from a cold current of wind that gusted from the northwest, making the stroll to lunch rather unpleasant for both ponies.
As Twilight and Rainbow walked abreast, Twilight noticed Rainbow wavering from the cold; so, while they were in motion, the alicorn nervously took the liberty of casting a force barrier spell, designed to ward off wind and other natural elements, around herself and the pegasus. The pegasus—relishing a sincerious act of affection—smiled at the sincerity of her lover’s gesture, which, ultimately, made her lean in closer to the alicorn—feeling her lively motion.
It was then that the pegasus experienced a sense of genuine, pure, and true jubilation; and yet she was unable to believe the powerful truth of reality, how it was able to mould into an unexpected turn of events. And as they continued down the cobblestoned streets of Ponyville, right then and now, neither of them cared about their overt display of affection in the public domain.
“So,” Twilight said, generating conversation, “what do you have to do at the Academy?”
Rainbow’s blissful woolgathering quickly came to an end as she heard her friend ask a question. “Huh? Oh, what am I doing at the Academy? Just Wonderbolt stuff.”
“Oh, c’mon, give me the details.” Twilight nuzzled Rainbow’s and gave off suppressed peals of laughter.
“Oh, all right. I gotta go in for routine drills, boring lectures, and silly tests. Apparently, I’ll be staying with Soarin Winters. I’ll be training with him, too.” Rainbow stopped speaking for a brief second, looked at Twilight, and saw she had a look of discomfort on her face. “Something the matter, Twi?”
Twilight shook her head. “What? No, no, of course not. Why would there be?” She was in denial.
They were about halfway to the Ponyville Athletic Club, though their speed had dwindled slightly as they picked up on conversation.
“Dunno. You just seem worried,” Rainbow said. She fondled the alicorn’s face with her nose, eliciting a hint of dying anxiety, albeit it wasn’t enough for the pegasus. “You can tell me if something’s wrong, you know.”
Well, that’s just brilliant. Just brilliant, Twilight thought.
Twilight sighed then said, “Yeah, there is something bothering me now. But can we talk about it when we’re at the restaurant? I’d feel more at ease when I’m sitting down.”
“Absolutely,” Rainbow said, followed by a lucid smile. “Anything for you.”
They continued their stroll until they reached the athletic club.
§
The Ponyville Athletic Club almost seemed too good to be true for it to be in a mid-class town, and its presence here disproved just that. Towering with more than five floors of hotel rooms, along with private banquets for special occasions, the place certainly felt like it belonged in Canterlot or Manehattan. A revolving door was its mode of entry, and, immediately after entering, the eye would see a large dining room and a bar with all sorts of high-end alcoholic beverages. To the right of the entrance there was a staircase leading to the five-star suites. The interior side of things was heavily constructed with dark, polished wood, giving it a classy style to the place.
When Twilight and Rainbow had first stepped into the club, their ears had immediately sensed the soft melody of a piano playing in the distance, setting an even higher class of mood; they were also greeted by the doorstallion, who graciously directed the two ponies to a table.
Currently, Twilight and Rainbow were seated at a circular table—covered with a white tablecloth—which had two glasses for each pony, along with the various silver cutlery.
“So…this is quite the place then,” Twilight said, gazing aimlessly around the restaurant.
“It totally is,” Rainbow said, eyeing the menu. “Rarity would totally freak out if she were here.”
“It wouldn’t surprise me. This place is really…elegant and luxurious. I wonder why somepony would put this kind of place in Ponyville.” Twilight viewed the menu in front of her. The amount and kind of items on it were exquisite and unfamiliar to her. Regardless, she had an idea of what to get.
Rainbow shrugged, then closed her menu. “Beats me. Who cares, though. this place is totally awesome.”
“Yes, it is. Maybe this should be out—”
“Ahem, excuse me, madams, may I offer you two some sparkle?” a beige unicorn stallion asked, levitating a glass bottle. He wore a black vest and a monocle.
“Sure, we’d love some,” Twilight said, trying to mimic something Rarity would say in this situation.
The beige unicorn poured them their two glasses of sparkle, then he asked, “Are you ready to place your orders?”
“I believe so,” Rainbow said. “You ready to order, Twi?”
Twilight nodded, then said, “I’ll have the mirepoix, please and thank you.”
“Excellent choice,” the beige stallion said. “And for you, madam?”
“Uh…I’ll have the onion soup.”
“A fine choice. I will be back with your dishes soon. Please, enjoy your stay.” The beige stallion left.
“So…” Rainbow began, “what’s bothering you? I won’t stop asking till I know.”
Twilight was taking a sip of her water. Then she spoke up. “Well…it’s just that…”
“Go on. Don’t be scared, Twi. Tell me what’s bothering you…please.”
“When I heard you say that you’ll be working with Soarin, I thought you would…”
An instinctual pang of horror struck the pegasus in the heart, leaving her speechless for a moment. Eventually, she recovered and spoke up. “Seriously? You thought I would have my way with him on my trip?”
“I mean, you always talked about how attractive he is and how much you’d like to be with him. I just thought—”
“You thought what? Thought that I’d ruin the best thing that I have going for me right now? No way. Twilight…” Rainbow took a hold of Twilight’s hooves with her own and stared at her mesmerizing form. “Don’t be blind. I love you and only you. I promise, you have nothing to worry about.”
Twilight let out a sigh of relief, but then said, “Do you promise me, Dash?”
“I promise you, Twi.”
A broad smile marked Twilight’s face, and she squeezed the pegasus’ hooves with her own. Getting all caught up in the moment, Twilight lunged forward and planted a kiss on the pegasus’ lips, not caring that she was expressing her affection publicly. The only basic, fundamental aspect Twilight cared about—right there and now—was that she didn’t have to fear for the worst. No longer did a false perception blind her; for she could see the perceptional truth.
Pulling back, Twilight then said, “I won’t be blind anymore, Dash. I know you want me, and only me. And I believe you’re telling the truth.”
“Of course, I am, Twi. Remember? You have no idea how powerful the truth can be.”
“Words of wisdom, right there.”
§
By the time they had finished their lunch, the clock nearly struck three, though it felt later because of the sumptuous repast they had eaten. To them, their lunch was like dinner, and neither could explain the amount of awesome that was in their food. Then again, the place was considered a five-star quality facility.
When the cheque had come to the two ponies, the price was outstanding, though both could easily pay it. Rainbow had insisted that she pay her fair share toward the bill, saying, “Hey, it’s only fair if I chip in, too.”
Twilight had rolled her eyes, then had said, “Dash, it’s okay, I got this.”
“But—” Rainbow had been cut off midway because of Twilight’s hoof. It was then when Rainbow had no motives to deny the unicorn from doing something Rarity would approve of.
Currently, the two ponies were walking back to the library after doing some packing back at Rainbow’s cloud home. Rainbow didn’t have much to pack, though, which only gave the two an advantage for spending the rest of the day together alone and in harmony.
§
The night was balanced with chaos and harmony, and its presence still grew. Owls and wolves howled from afar, and other cries of nightly creatures resonated in the air. In the library, however, the atmosphere was calm and relaxed, unlike the natural environment. As of now, Spike could be found resting in his room whilst Twilight and Rainbow were lying down together on Twilight’s bedspread. When the two ponies had come back to the library, they couldn’t resist the temptation of lying in bed, together, for the rest of the day.
Currently, Rainbow fondled Twilight’s mane with a hoof, swirling it round and and round. They stared at each other, not saying a single word. Eventually, Rainbow instinctually drew Twilight closer, which provoked her to tangle her hooves around Rainbow’s body without precision. Their lips met again, for the meaningful, boundless time, but, this time, they had no intention of breaking apart. Their eyelids were open, and they witnessed each other’s gaze as their tongues gyrated in passion and love.
Everything was silent between them, and the world might as well have fallen or dwindled away into nothingness. Twilight knew that she would be back in Rainbow’s hooves again upon her return; and all the fear and worry she had was no more. And that was the truth of it all.

//-------------------------------------------------------//
                        First Steps                        
//-------------------------------------------------------//
First Steps
The Ponyville bookstore was crowded, to say the least. Ponies waited in line for the newly released Daring Do novel, The Search for the Stone Heart. Filled with rows of bookshelves, along with a multitude of loquacious and querulous ponies, it was a rather uncomfortable place to be in, and Rainbow Dash loathed being in a straight environment like this because her wings and joints got stiff from the lack of active movement. Luckily, she was next in line to get her copy of the novel.
Rumour had it that this novel would feature a small biography on A.K. Yearling, and how she came up with fantastic ideas for her novels, but Rainbow knew it was a mindless pretence that the fan base created to generate speculation. Rainbow and her friends were really the only ones who could expose the absolute truth about A.K Yearling, though it would be in their best interest if they didn’t.
When the stallion ahead of Rainbow branched off, she approached the counter, her smile widening at the pile of paperbacks on the floor, and said, “Pre-order for Rainbow Dash.”
The bookseller, a blue stallion with an unkempt beard, looked down at a piece of paper, scribbled with unorganized text and markings, and traced the list with his hoof until he got to the bottom. He glanced up at Rainbow and said, “I’m sorry. I don’t see your name on the list of pre-orders.”
Rainbow’s facial nuances twitched in confusion and vexation. “Can you repeat that again?”
“I don’t see the name of ‘Rainbow Dash’ on the list of pre-orders,” he said.
Rainbow’s euphoric smile had dwindled to a dissatisfied expression. “But how? I ordered it a month ago.”
“I don’t know. Another employee might’ve tossed it out. Didn't you get a receipt?”
“No, I didn’t,” Rainbow said, facehooving. “Check again.”
“Why?” he asked. “Your name isn’t on the list.”
“Just do it.”
“No, I won’t,” he said. “Are you going to purchase this book or not?”
“I didn’t bring any bits with me,” Rainbow said.
“Well, I’m sorry, but you can’t be holding up the line anymore if you can’t make a purchase. Now scram.”
“But, I….”
“You’re holding up the line,” the bookseller said, glaring. “Scram!”
“Hey, there’s no need to be rude,” Rainbow said.
“Next!” the bookseller said.
A faint grunt built up in Rainbow’s throat, and she said, “Just you watch, pal. You’ll get what’s comin to you.”
And with that, she stormed out of the bookstore.
§
A half an hour later, Rainbow could be found fluttering lowly above the cobblestoned streets of Ponyville near the city hall, where indecipherable loquacity resonated through the air. Rainbow paid zero attention to the outside world, for there was a fierce, internal battle that thundered inside her. Every time she closed her eyes she saw the imprudent look of the bookseller, heard his impertinent words echoing through her head, and remembered the audacity he had.
Great. Just great. Should have known he was a bozo.
Why didn’t you stand your ground with aggression? Tell him who’s the boss.
I did.
No, you didn’t. You gave into a humiliating defeat.
“Shut up!” Rainbow said aloud, stopping in her tracks, her furious voice travelling into the distance. The outburst of anger disrupted nearby ponies, and they stopped to stare at her, pondering whether or not she was addressing them. Some of them glared intensely at her for the cause of disturbance, whilst others had a genuine and sincere expression of concern.
Embarrassed by her eruption, Rainbow’s cheeks reddened, and a grin marked her face. “Hehe, sorry about that guys. Don’t mind me, I was just leaving.” Flaring her wings out, like an enraged dragon about to take charge, Rainbow lanced into the sky, leaving the perplexed ponies behind; and as her elevation increased, the sight of the entire town swam into Rainbow’s vision.
At the centre of Ponyville, the library stood reticently, away from the in-town distractions, despite it being surrounded by the tiny dots of individual entities that continued on with their daily lives.
Maybe Twilight has a copy of the new Daring Do book.
Making up her mind, she made her descent in order to visit the library in hopes that her friend had a copy of The Search for the Stone Heart.
§
The library was brightly lit by the sunlight beaming through the open shutters. In the main room, books covered the floor, nearby tables, and even wooden stools. Ever since the season of spring came into the Equestrian calendar for the year, Twilight thought it would be beneficial for her to do some significant spring cleaning, along with rearranging the books alphabetically; and although spring had come two weeks ago she fixated on getting everything perfect, resulting in multiple attempts to do so. Twilight, adjacent to Spike and near the bookshelves, stared intuitively at the pile of maddening books.
“Okay, Spike,” Twilight said, paying full attention them, not aware that Spike had slunk away. “You collect all the books that start with A so I can organize them together. Then we’ll do the same with the B’s and so on.” She looked where Spike had been less than a few seconds ago.
“Spike!”
“Yup?” Spike said, looking at Twilight from the windowsill. His hand was on his cheek, and his face depicted glum boredom. “Twilight, can't we just read the new Daring Do novel? I really wanna see what happens to Daring Do.”
“I already told you, Spike, we need to get our work done before we relax. Now, let’s get back to work.”
Spike leaped off the windowsill and said, “Fine.”
Being Twilight’s assistant for many years had its advantages, as far as Spike was concerned. The years of repetitive work in the library had trained him to do any library work without any impediments or bewilderment; but even then Spike had his off days if he didn’t get a good night's sleep. He gathered all the books with haste, then piled them up, one by one, until he had collected all the A’s.
“Here you are, Twilight. All the A’s,” he said next to the impressive stack.
“Thanks, Spike,” Twilight said. A purple aura surrounded the reading materials, and they started to orbit around her as if she were committing a force of dark wizardry and witchcraft with evil tomes. “Okay, now gather all the B’s.”
“Will do.” Through the disarranged and chaotic place, Spike piled up the books one by one, until a book within Twilight’s magical orbit accidentally hit Spike in the back of the head, knocking him off his feet. “Ouch! Be careful!”
“Sorry, Spike, it’s just that there are a lot of books that need to be put back precisely. You know how important it is to have an organized library.”
Spike recovered and got to his feet, continuing to pick up books with haste, and said, “I guess so. I still don’t know why we have to do this a third time.”
Twilight’s face reddened out of embarrassment. “You know how I am with my over-obsession with getting everything perfect.” A wide smile then marked her face.
“I guess so,” he said as soon as he picked up the last book that started with B. “All right, I’m done with the B’s now.”
“Great. Now onto the C’s.”
For the next ten minutes, with persistence and accuracy, Spike and Twilight managed to get to the S’s; and yet, throughout their juncture, there had been a peculiar doubt inside Twilight about the organization. But Spike assured her that everything would be fine, and that everything would be in place alphabetically. Twilight knew that she could get carried away aimlessly with things when the time called for it. And this was one of them.
As they continuously worked, a muffled creak resonated from a circular window, letting a light breeze in. In the window way, Rainbow’s head poked inside to see her friends working away on the shelves. Oddly enough, however, neither Twilight nor Spike took notice of Rainbow’s presence as, by the looks of it, their drudgery had consumed them entirely, draining them of their senses. On the contrary, Twilight had felt the breeze blow itself on her, but she didn’t take any notice.
Rainbow crept her way in by flying and said, “Busy much?”
When Twilight heard Rainbow’s voice, the orbital objects around her stopped, froze in time, and, after a brief second, crashed to the ground. This caught Spike off guard, resulting in him falling on the towering stack of paperbacks. Rainbow’s facial nuances altered to an abashed expression, jarred by the sight she had caused.
“Uh, sorry about that, Twi,” Rainbow said, quietly, not looking at Twilight’s eyes, feeling ashamed. She felt terrible for being the cause of disruption, and a sentimental part of her was apologetic and sincere, but Twilight sensed something aching within the pegasus.
“Dash, it’s okay,” Twilight said, her voice stopping midway in her sentence. “What’s up?”
“The better question is what the hay is going on in here?"
“Major spring cleaning,” Spike said, crawling out of the mountain of reading material. “I’m gonna take ten.” He left.
Twilight hinted a grin at Rainbow. “I was just, you know, doing some spring cleaning, as Spike said.” A nervous giggle came from her thereafter.
“Right, so listen, I have something to ask you.”
“What is it?”
Rainbow finally looked at her friend. “Do you have the new Daring Do book? I just came back from the store, and I got screwed over getting it. The salespony was a total bozo. He said I wasn’t on the order list, and then he told me to scram.”
“I’m sorry, Dash,” Twilight said. “Is that why you’re so upset? And to answer your question, I do have it.”
“It’s partly because of that, yeah. I should’ve told him off right there in the store, but I gave up too easily. Anyway, don’t worry about me. I’m fine,” Rainbow said, a faint, genuine smile marking her face, enough to convince Twilight that she was being honest. “Can I have it for tonight?”
“I promised Spike I’d read it to him as soon as we finish organizing the books here.” Twilight focused her attention to the chaotic mess. “And, as you can see, we still have a little while to go.”
“Oh, okay. Sorry for bothering you,” Rainbow said. “I’ll just be on my wa—”
“You’re welcome to join us later.”
Although Rainbow preferred to read by herself, given the amount of distractions in public or elsewhere, she liked to read with Twilight, despite her habit of turning back to previous pages for reciting. To Rainbow, the positive enthusiasm Twilight had for reading books made it almost impossible to say no to, because it was always humorous to see how Twilight would react to something unexpected, or how something absurd would be deemed as true. And, after all, Twilight, really had introduced her to the world of the entire Daring Do series.
Without any thoughts, Rainbow nudged Twilight’s cheek, making it redden, and said, “I’d love to, Twi.”
“Great,” Twilight said, returning the gesture. “Now, Spike and I have work to do, and—” Twilight’s speech was interrupted by the intervention of Rainbow’s hoof.
“I’m gonna stick around and help you two out,” Rainbow said, lowering her hoof. “After all, I did cause this mess.”
“Since when were you the one to take responsibility?”
“Are you kidding? I always take responsibility for my actions.”
“Right…you always are,” Twilight said, her tone sarcastic. “All right, let’s get to work now.”
Rainbow went to the scattered paperbacks, then she glanced at Twilight. “Where do we start?”
“Hold on. Spike!”
Within half a second, a small bodily form charged through the front door, and, to Rainbow’s astonishment, Spike stood in front of them, ready to resume the job. “Here,” he said as he, once again, started to pick up the fallen materials.
“Rainbow, could you move the scattered books to Spike, so he doesn’t have to go back and forth?” Twilight asked, her magic putting Spike’s recent pile into an orbit.
“I’m on it!” Rainbow quickly motioned to the distant array of books, but was cautious not to knock down Spike’s work. As she worked away, collecting them into a singular pile for Spike to get, an anomalous book, whose colour was brown and bound by binding rings, escaped from Rainbow’s grasp, and it fell to the ground, exposing its pages to the eye. Twilight didn’t seem to take notice of the eventful action as she was too occupied with the job at hoof. And neither did Spike.
The exposed pages were blank, but, for some reason, there was a vague oddity that made Rainbow curious as to why a blank notebook would be on the shelves, considering that the library was a public place. She picked it up and turned to previous pages, eventually revealing Twilight’s writing. The copy was dense and voluminous, but it was still legible regardless.
As Rainbow read the lines of cursive text, her mouth went agape, and the mind created this fantastic wonder of whether or not this entry was true since this was something least expected by Twilight.
Once Rainbow’s eyes met the folios, she closed the journal, and hid it in an open crevice beneath the bookshelf adjacent to her. A part of her wanted to pretend that she never discovered her friend’s personal secret, but another part of her wanted to learn more about it; and all she had to do was read another page of Twilight’s diary. Brutal temptation seized Rainbow’s mindset, but her loyalty and willpower quickly dispatched it before it made Rainbow do something she could regret.
I gotta talk to her about this later tonight. Hopefully she can tell me everything.
§
A while later, Spike and Twilight managed to complete their day’s work, with Rainbow’s help of course. Evening had taken its time into the day, and the sun continued its natural course to the horizon. Motes of light radiated through the windows, and they faintly illuminated an amber glow on the methodical shelves, the way Twilight liked it. All thee of them stared at their arduous work, relieved that they could finally read Daring Do, The Search for the Stone Heart.
“What are we waiting for?” Spike said, breaking the silence. “Let’s see what Daring Do gets herself into.”
“Hold on, Spike,” Twilight said. “Could you brew up some fruit punch before we start? I think we could all use a little drink after all that work.”
“Sure, I guess,” he said. “Be right back.” He left.
“Rainbow, come join me in the living room,” Twilight said, motioning to her friend. “Make yourself at home.”
Twilight was already walking over to the living room. Rainbow also started following her.
The living room was bright, illumed by the setting sun to the west, which certainly indulged Twilight to a beautiful vista everyday. Twilight took a seat on the silken cushions, as did Rainbow. A peculiar, yet obvious, motive inspired Rainbow to blurt out everything she had read earlier, but she didn’t seem too certain that this was the right place and time despite her aloneness with Twilight. Never had she thought that such a discovery would put an onerous pressure over her, but after reading the explicit entry in her friend’s diary it was enough to do just that. And despite the serious matter weighing the pegasus down, Rainbow snickered aloud, mostly out of nervousness than humour, but it quickly dwindled into suppressed tittering.
Twilight, levitating a book from a distant shelf, deviated her attention from thence and glanced at Rainbow. “What’s so funny?”
“Oh, it’s nothing,” Rainbow said. “Is that the book?”
“It certainly is. We just gotta wait for Spike before we can start. Anything you want to talk about before he gets here?”
Of course she asks that question.
Well, duh, it’s only the two of you right now. She’s making conversation.
Thank you, captain obvious.
Better say something, she’s looking right at you.
“Um,” Rainbow said under her breath. “How about them Ponyville Nex? They really know how to knock the ball out of the park, eh?”
“Not sure. I don’t follow the local sports,” Twilight said. “Besides, sports aren’t really my thing. Lately I’ve been writing a lot more than I have before.”
“About what?” Rainbow was curious as to what Twilight would say.
“Writing about something. Something that I’d rather not talk abou—”
“Okay, I made the punch, and I cut up some fruit,” Spike said as he placed the eatables on the coffee table. “Can we read it now?”
“Absolutely,” Twilight said, her gaze drifting away from Rainbow’s bodily form. Twilight opened the front cover, the spine making the most satisfying crack as she opened it, habitually skipping over the table of contents and author’s forward. Her eyes scrutinized the text awaiting to be read.
“For the last four days, I had been roaming the San Palomino Desert—by walking since a scorpion stung my wing leaving me unable to fly—seeking a temple named Aluzra, where, I believed, a primeval artifact lies inside one of the many chambers found within the temple. But this wasn’t an ordinary temple. Because this temple possessed a strange power to change its location sporadically, but only within the boundaries of the desert, making it almost impossible to find. And yet I had taken the risk of never returning home in search for this temple, because, I knew, I could get lost here, very easily.
“As I continued down my path, distant screeches of desert vultures startled me, and I knew what that meant: whenever there were scavengers somewhere, there was usually edible salvage for them to feed on. I rushed to the source of the sound, my hooves digging into the hot sand; every step burned my lower body, but my forceful determination wouldn’t let me give up that easily.
“After reaching the desert vultures, my eyes fixated on a dead, male corpse, that of a pony, being torn to shreds. My attention was so fixated on the corpse that I didn’t even realize what stood in front of me. A giant stone structure with a pointed roof, two towering pillars, and a long staircase leading to a wide entrance. Its condition was in ruin, but it appeared sturdy enough for exploration.
“I climbed the steps, one by one, until a thought came to my mind. That corpse didn’t just magically appear there. It was left for dead; and there could only be one explanation: Ahuizotl. His name was written all over this, even after putting him in ruin. I didn’t make that mistake again.
“End of chapter one.” Twilight closed the book without apparent reason to Spike, but Rainbow had a hint as to why she did what she did.
“Why’d you stop?” Spike asked. “Aren’t you gonna read more?”
“If it were up to me, Spike, I would read you this entire book. But right now, you need to go to bed. It’s late.”
“Wha…what?” He looked outside the nearby window, only to see the night sky, painted with stars, along with the luminous moon shining its light on the land. “How’d it get so late?”
“Time flies when your mind is in a book,” Twilight said, giggling. “We’ll read chapter two first thing in the morning. I promise.”  
“Okay,” Spike said, his expression low.
“I wouldn’t want my number one assistant to be lacklustre tomorrow.” Twilight caressed Spike’s cheek with her own. “Now go on, I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Good night, Twilight and Rainbow.” And off he went.
“I better head off, too,” Rainbow said, getting up to stretch her stiff joints.
What are you doing?
Going home?
Ask her about the diary.
Oh, right.
“Actually wait. I gotta ask you something, Twi.”
“What is it?”
“Come with me.”
§
A little while later, Twilight and Rainbow were in the main library section. There was little to no light inside, so Twilight lit the candles that were on her desk, ultimately illuming the place.
Once Rainbow’s eyes adjusted to the change, she made her way to the cubbyhole where she had hidden Twilight’s diary and pulled it out from its silence. Then she placed it on Twilight’s desk, right in front of her, and an instinctual pang of horror struck her at the sight.
“So, while I was helping you out today, I found this,” Rainbow said, opening to the first page. “Care to explain?”
“I, umm….” Twilight was in a lava pit, and all she wanted to do was run the other way and never come back. “It’s….” Her voice trailed off.
“I’m not gonna make this hard for you, Twi. Just be honest with me. I won’t hate you for it, and I won’t tell anypony else,” Rainbow said sinceriously. “I promise.”
An assured smile marked Twilight’s face, and she said, ”Everything that’s written in there is how I feel about you.”
“How long have you been keeping this a secret?”
“A little over a year,” Twilight said, her smile still intact.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Rainbow asked, her expression slightly vexed. Her harsh tone was unintentional.
It was then when Twilight’s smile faded, and a dubious sigh crept past her lips, and she said, “Because I care about the friendship we have all too much for me to jeopardize it. And for what? Something that’ll probably never happen?
“Becoming friends with you and the girls was the best thing that happened to me. I can’t lose that. I didn’t tell you because I was scared to lose you.” A doleful mien marked her face, and her eyes, staring into Rainbow’s, began to water. “I hope you understand, Rainbow Dash.”
Rainbow was in a void, unable to speak or move, with an insufferable yet splendid quality that chilled through her body. She remembered the years she had spent with Twilight, as her friend, quite well, but never had there been a hint or sign of her friend having deep and erotic feelings toward her, not in the usual sense at least.
Twilight stood in front of Rainbow, her expression pleading for her comprehension. At that moment, Rainbow understood Twilight’s reasoning for not telling her: it wasn’t because Twilight was afraid that the pegasus would say no, leaving her hurt, but rather because she feared that it would ruin their friendship altogether.
Twilight cast around for something to say, wanting to tell Rainbow that she would understand if she didn’t want to be her friend anymore, considering the explicit entry that featured Rainbow as her mistress. She failed at producing the proper words, glanced down at the floor with tears streaking her cheek.
“Forget about my forgiveness.” Rainbow wiped the tears on Twilight’s face, and she raised Twilight’s chin so she could look at her friend. “I like you too, Twilight. So no more tears, Twi. Just happy thoughts. With me.”