The sun is still high in the sky as Aria comes roaring down the dusty roads outside Butterscotch's homestead. She has a better hang of the huge car already. She manages to slow down so she approaches the cottage at a decent speed rather than like a bat out of hell.

Just as she turns onto the property, she spots something different in front of the cottage. A car. Shining white, clean and fancy. Who could that be? She calls upon her knowledge of the Rainbooms and quickly deducts that it is probably Elusive. The fashion-man. She knows him only very briefly.

From what she has seen and heard, he is quite different from the others. He seems very concerned with both gossiping and finding out truths. At least she gathered as much from quickly looking through all those messages in Applejack's phone. He is probably here sniffing about, trying to find out what happened to Butterscotch. He is undoubtedly looking for information on Applejack and herself.

Aria parks Applejack's truck at the very edge of Butterscotch's vast garden and carelessly strolls up towards the cottage. She has no real plan, no real excuse to be here. Sure, she now has enough of a relation to Butterscotch to actually be here but explaining that to someone else will be hard. Hard but not impossible. She figures the challenge will keep her sharp. During her little walk, she runs a few things through in her head.

Why is she here to begin with? Does she even know that herself? Yes. Partially. She needs to poke and prod Butterscotch a bit and see what comes out. It is probable that she is not the only one with such thoughts. She can only hope that she is the first one to attempt it. It seems unlikely that Butterscotch would hold up under any extended interrogation.

Aria comes close to the front door. No movement or sound from the inside. She hovers by the door for a short moment, listening. When nothing shows itself, she taps the knocker a few times. Another moment of silence, then she can hear hurried, light steps approach. The footfalls end but the door remains closed. Aria leans in to listen and right then, the door opens. She manages to think that she is happy it does not open outward.

Butterscotch slinks out from the crooked doorframe and quickly closes the door behind him. He looks her up and down with wild eyes and then half-hisses, half whispers.

"What are you doing here? Where's Applejack?"

Aria keeps a cool head and a cold expression. She looks deep into Butterscotch's eyes. His nervous gaze does not linger long on her. He glances back at the door as if it could suddenly disintegrate and leave him defenseless. Aria reaches her hand up and snaps her fingers, right next to Butterscotch's ear. This gets her his full attention. He gives her an anxious but steady look.

"Oh, Applejack is resting. I just came by to look for my phone, I think I left it somewhere... I figured we got close enough for it not to be..."

She leans in close and lets her breath brush against the side of his face.

"... Weird."

Butterscotch flares red and she can hear his breathing shift. She lingers close for as long as she can, not really taking any other steps. Butterscotch's mind races at the speed of light. He cannot for the life of him think of an excuse not to let her in. Her in there is of course a scenario he would rather avoid. Yet it seems the only way. What would he ever say to Elusive? How would Rainbow Blitz react?

Just as he teeters on the brink of full-on panic, the door opens. Out peeks a blue face, surrounded by wild, cascading rainbow. He has a certain intensity in his eyes and his smug smirk only gets more intolerable as he spots Aria. Actually as he spots the entire situation, with Butterscotch looking like he's choking and the smoking hot troublemaker ridiculously close to him.

Rainbow holds back a snicker and opens the door more. Aria raises a brow, more in surprise than anything else. She did not expect the rainbow kid to be here, there is no chance in any Hell he drove that white thing.

"There you are! With the chick of the moment none the less. Come on, dude, Elusive just got off the phone!"

He throws a quick look down Aria and then pokes Butterscotch in the shoulder. Aria looks unimpressed while running things over in her own head. Going in there with all of them could definitely ruin her plans. At the same time, leaving them alone with Butterscotch and more new questions could spell the same disaster.

"Bring her too, this is gonna be awesome..."

Rainbow trails off as he turns to step back into the cottage. Before Butterscotch can do much else, Aria invites herself as well. Butterscotch is left standing in front of his own home. He remains frozen for a moment, then, at the realisation of what is about to happen, he bounds after Aria.

Butterscotch catches up to Aria and gives her a desperate, questioning look. She gives him nothing in return but a purposeful stride into the living-room. She stops as soon as she notices Elusive. The purple-maned young man simply gives her a long, strangely neutral stare as she walks into the room. His ever phone-gripping hand lowers slowly as Aria stops. His face has an expression of dumb awe for just a second. Elusive glances to Rainbow who is standing leaned against the wall, observing the spectacle with a grin on his face.

Understanding he will get no help from his friend, Elusive composes himself. A quick glance to Butterscotch instantly assures him of a few things. This was not a planned visit and there is definitely more to all of this than he originally thought. Either that or his usually spot-on sense for these things is suddenly off. It has never, ever been off before.

"What a surprise! Butterscotch said nothing of other guests."

Aria haphazardly fakes a look around the room and then spends quite the moment of pondering before even bothering with some kind of answer. She fixes her uninterested glare on him again and raises a quizzical brow.

"Oh, you are here..."

She shrugs and turns to Butterscotch, now paralysed in fear behind her. Leaning in close, she whispers, very faint.

"What do we tell them, huh? We had a quiet little movie-night and the phone's probably in the sofa... Or could it be in the bed?"

Butterscotch twitches slightly and puts a hand on Aria's shoulder. He does not want her to explain anything. He does not even want her to talk. He slips his arm around her shoulders and leans in close to whisper.

"What are you doing? Just... Just find it and go. We can talk later."

Just as he finishes, Elusive speaks up again.

"Oh come on now, let's not be rude. Let's get to know each other! I was going to invite you and Applejack to my little soirée tomorrow evening... Now that you showed up, I need not wait."

Aria tilts her head to the side and cocks a sculpted eyebrow. Invite her? She keeps her attention on Elusive and simply waits to see if he has something more to say. They stare at each other for a moment, Elusive taking a little more defiant stance as Aria just glares at him. Finally, she speaks.

"What kind of party is it?"

Her upper lip twitches momentarily, beginning a grin but soon dying off into uninterested apathy.

"A stale, boring fancy dinner?"

Aria's and Elusive's eyes are burning holes in each other when suddenly, they are both thrown off by a rainbow blur. Rainbow Blitz steps in like a referee would to separate two stubborn boxers. He is wearing an annoying grin and is apparently more than happy to answer.

"It's a kick-ass backyard party! Get off Elusive's dick or you're gonna start tasting it."

He is quick. Walking, spinning and waving his arms while talking. Aria feels a cold tingle down her spine. A venomous hate bubbling up. This rainbow tornado will be her downfall some day. For now, all she can do is gather herself and keep a stern face.

Rainbow gets right up in Aria's face with a big grin. Butterscotch has since retreated, quietly and desperately searching for a possible lost phone in the sofa. Aria sighs while locking eyes with Rainbow.

"I challenge you to... Heck, I dare you to come. Elusive ain't the party master here. Me and Bubble Berry's got this."

Elusive throws his hands up.

"Hey!"

Rainbow Blitz throws a glance over his shoulder before spinning around and sauntering past Elusive. He slaps the purple-haired boy on the shoulder, his grin unwavering. Just as he passes, he reaches up to quickly rip through Elusive's hair.

Elusive yelps and shoots Rainbow daggers with his eyes. He only just manages to keeps his cool. Gritting his teeth while maniacally fixing his bangs, he takes a deep breath and looks to Aria again.

"Well, there you have it. I do hope you can come. Now, excuse me, I've got a Rainbow hooligan to teach some manners."

Elusive goes after Rainbow just as Butterscotch gives up the sofa. Aria watches the circus as Rainbow easily gets away from Elusive's grasping hands and Butterscotch gets in the way. Is this really what happens behind closed doors? Is this really how these boys behave on a regular basis?

Aria finds herself grinning. If these idiots are the only thing that stand between her and world domination, she might yet get what she wants.

Butterscotch shoos Elusive off and steps over to Aria. Rainbow has already sprinted out the back door. Elusive goes after him and Butterscotch finally seems to relax a little. Aria gives Butterscotch an unimpressed look.

"I can't believe you're having all this fun without me."

Butterscotch just shakes his head slowly, eyes closed. He takes a deep breath and looks at her.

"Look, you... I don't... I need you to go, okay? I mean, we can talk later or something. Just... Please go."

A thump from out on the veranda makes Butterscotch twitch. He looks at Aria with pleading eyes. She contemplates things for a second. This is not an opportunity calling, this is something else. A warning perhaps? A flash in her mind. A sour thought. If the goofballs are having a party of any size, that means all of them will show up. Even the one Adagio was chatting up. For all she knows, this could be the arena for the next decisive battle.

With Adagio there. Aria shakes her head and blinks the thought away as Butterscotch touches her carefully. He gives her a concerned look, then does what he can to usher her towards the door. She hardly fights him, she mostly just drags her feet. Butterscotch throws concerned glances over his shoulder as he follows her to the door.

"Whatever deep thoughts you have... Just please, have them somewhere else. Please?"

Well by the door, Aria nods once and gives Butterscotch a very brief smile. He seems to relax a bit more right away. She is leaving without any further fuss.

"Your friends are weird. I'm looking forward to that party."

She brushes up close to Butterscotch and rests her arms on his shoulders. She puts her forehead against his and finishes the move with a quick kiss on the lips. Butterscotch instantly burns up with a blush. He hesitantly accepts the kiss before realising what he is doing and attempts to manouvre out of her loose embrace.

Aria lets him go and turns her attention to the door, entirely clueless that they were just observed. A certain rainbow hooligan caught a perfect little peek of their kiss through the windows to the back porch.

Butterscotch watches Aria leave with part relief, part sorrow. The sway of her hips has him spellbound for a good few seconds before he is startled by a noise from behind. The back door. He closes the front door and spins around, eyes wide. Even through the clutter of the cottage, he has an unobstructed view. Rainbow Blitz stands casually leaning in the doorway. Elusive is nowhere to be seen.

The rainbow boy is uncharacteristically quiet. The particularly worrying smile he wears is no comfort either. Butterscotch just stands there, dumbfounded. His head is reeling and his body immovable. His teal gaze mingles with Rainbow's rose. Rainbow examines Butterscotch for a while, then is torn from the moment as Elusive comes up behind him.

The purple-haired boy asks Rainbow what is going on. He gives no answer. Instead of attempting to coax further, Elusive turns his attention to Butterscotch. He gets in past Rainbow and quickly steps over to the shy boy.

"Oookay... I see the situation has... Transformed. What is going on now? Why is Rainbow giving you the stare-and-smirk? Is it because of Aria? Does he know something that I don't?"

He bathes Butterscotch in a cold waterfall of questions. The shy boy just does what he can to try and shrink away. Elusive is relentless, as usual. He does not get too up close but his eyes are intense as he searches for any information that Butterscotch may reveal.

Butterscotch fidgets for a bit, avoiding eye-contact from everyone in the room. He breathes in for some half-assed excuse that never makes it passed his lips. Rainbow has stepped in with his usual speed and soon sweeps Butterscotch along with him into the kitchen. Elusive groans loudly and follows. It seems getting anything out of Scotch is going to be a world-class headache.

During the few steps it takes to get to the kitchen, Butterscotch just stares at Rainbow with confusion and panic. What is he doing? Why did he interrupt Elusive? A rescue? If so, why?

Rainbow can barely contain his curiosity and enthusiasm as he speaks in a hissed whisper.

"I know you know I saw. Dude! Where did your sudden balls of steel come from? Applejack would crush you and she's not even your type!"

Butterscotch wheezes out a vague response and shakes his head, letting his long hair fall around his face.

"It's not what you think..."

Rainbow stops Butterscotch just as they enter the kitchen. He suddenly looks serious if only for a short moment before going back to grinning like a lunatic.

"I don't know... I can think of a whole lot of things."

With Rainbow's last word, Elusive catches up. He is furious but only shows it in his usual measured grace. At least that is what he thinks. Rainbow has been rattling him all day and now with secrets right under his nose, he is beginning to get a bit twitchy.

"Come now, gentlemen, don't be all secretive. We should be open with our feelings and troubles."

Butterscotch sits down on a chair with an almost inaudible sigh. He has nothing to add. He does not even know what Blitz might be plotting now. He is very happy that he did not say anything right now. Then again, he has a nagging feeling this will be a bombshell later.

Rainbow snickers hoarsely and gives Elusive a mind-numbingly smug grin before finally speaking up.

"Nah, trust me. You're gonna enjoy this much more if I tell you at the party."

Rainbow steps away from Elusive with a bit less of a smirk and goes to the fridge to fish out an energy drink. Butterscotch sits dead silent, desperately trying to form any kind of plan for whatever future reveal Rainbow has in mind.

"We've still got planning to do. When's Dusk and Sundown gonna get here, anyway?"

Elusive goes from grumpy to shining up as Rainbow reminds him there are more people arriving. Surely someone will back him up in puzzling together what is going on. They might even help him with dragging secrets out of Butterscotch or Rainbow.

--

Aria drives slowly, the opposite of how she dominated the road earlier. Many things rustle around in her head. So little time to prepare. She has to fish for information from Adagio and she is very much not looking forward to it. On the other hand, she has Applejack waiting in her bed and hopefully she gets to tell him the news. A whisper in his ear as she gets a few more handfuls of that taut body of his.

She sighs the daydream away and pushes a little speed. While she is in no actual hurry, the thought of having Applejack help her pick an outfit excites her more than it feels like it should.

The drive home is uneventful and she soon barges into the apartment, not knowing or caring the situation inside. First, she notices that her door stands slightly ajar. Then she hears voices. Someone she does not really recognise along with Sonata and Applejack. She makes her way to the livingroom. The sight that meets her is not something she would ever expect. Applejack is nursing a cup of coffee, normal enough. In the other sofa is Sonata, cuddled up close to a very, very pink figure.

The pink boy perks up as soon as Aria enters the room. Applejack notices and instantly gets up to greet Aria with a big, strong embrace. Aria and Sonata spend a short moment murdering one another with their eyes and then turn their full attention to their respective guy.

"Y'all can imagine mah confusion when I woke to a familiar voice..."

Applejack gestures to Bubble Berry. Aria takes her attention off of the enormous cowboy for just a second to look at the pink boy. He looks like he is about to burst. Tangled in Sonata's busty embrace but still looking like he needs to run around the room a hundred times. He gives her a big smile and a little wave. Sonata looks disgustingly content. Aria makes a mental note to verbally abuse her later. She focuses back on Applejack and nods in the direction of her bedroom.

"Can I talk to you, alone?"

Applejack raises an eyebrow in no real confusion. He then just nods and steps thataways. Aria sticks close but waits until they are behind a shut door to talk.

"I went to Butterscotch's place... I lost my phone... Anyway, Elusive and that Rainbow... Thing was there. Apparently there's a party tomorrow... Something the boys are throwing together."

Applejack nods slowly at her words, ignoring the comment about Rainbow. Aria almost looks hopeful for his response so he mulls it over for a bit before answering.

"Well, we're a thing now, I hope... So..."

He reaches out and takes her hands in his. She gives him a dismissive, yet rather transparent look. She is going to have a million problems soon. The longer she can keep Applejack on her side, the better. Besides, little things like him taking her hands like this makes her feel uncomfortably warm and fuzzy.

"If we can dance in public, we can dance aroun' mah friends. Will y'all gimme the pleasure o' that?"

Applejack puts on his angelic smile and squeezes her hands softly. He is satisfied with how the invitation or question or whatever managed to get posed. Bubble Berry had begun ranting about the party as soon as he stepped in the door. He did not even know Applejack was in the building. Then again, Applejack himself had no idea Berry was running with Aria's sister.

Aria looks up into Applejack's eyes for a nearly uncomfortable amount of time, nodding all the while. She then switches gears to deal with the current situation.

"I'd like that... Now, I guess we gotta go listen to my idiot sister and your friend make baby noises at each other..."

Applejack barks out a short, loud laugh.

"Nah. In all honesty, I think I've 'ad just 'bout enough o' that for today. How 'bout we jus' plan for t'morrow?"

Aria creeps up close to Applejack and embraces him with genuine warmth.

"My saviour. What did you have in mind? Wanna help me dress accordingly?"

Applejack runs his hands down her back and gets greedy with her behind. He looks very pleased with her idea.

"I could dress y'all up like the lil' doll ya are"

She scans his face. He looks mischievous. Aria responds with an evil smirk. She has an idea that might make the afternoon even more fun than, well, the fun she is already having.

"I'd like nothing better than to put on a show for you. Just... Not here... Not with those two in the other room. Why don't I let you buy me a new outfit?"

Applejack nods. Not that he is particularly interested in shopping for clothing but he has a big, hard feeling finding an outfit is not the only activity in their future.

"We ain't goin' to Elusive's shop, are we?"

Aria sharply raises a sculpted brow.

"Oh, by the powers, no. I didn't even... Elusive has a shop? You know what, don't answer that. I've got this. Let's just go."

Applejack leans down to kiss her on the lips while reluctantly letting go of her butt.

"Alright then. I'm drivin' though."

Aria huffs loudly and drums her fingers against his chest.

"You wish."

Author's Note

I wonder what could ever happen next...