Rainbow, Don't Drink My Love Potion!
B_25
“What are you going to do? Tell Princess Celestia on me?”
I could love and hate her at the same time. It wasn't hard to do and she made it easy for me. The things I hated her for were the things I loved the most. It didn't make much sense in my mind. Rarely did. Some feelings weren't supposed to be thought about too critically.
“I assure you, Rainbow Dash, I'll do much worse than that!” I said as I stood tall. “I'll tell Twilight Sparkle on you. Princess Twilight Sparkle.” I beat a hoof against my chest. “Who's me!”
“Just figuring that out now, Twi?”
“H-Huh? What? No!" I vehemently shook my head. "Dang it, Rainbow. I was trying to be intimidating!”
“Really?” On the other side of the dining counter, Rainbow tilted her head. Her hoof curled a round glass flask. “Because you just came across as a dork to me. A cute dork, yeah. But still totally a dork.”
I gritted my teeth. “I'm going to make you look like a dork! Now give me back that potion!”
“Hmm.” Rainbow tilted her head in thought, tapping a hoof against her chin. With a smirk, she then stuck out her tongue. “Nah! Mine now.”
“Give me back that potion!”
“What does it do?”
“I... don't have to tell you that!”
“That so?” Rainbow lifted the flask into the air, taking a step back when I took on forward, causing her to shake her head. “Nu-uh! If you don't want to spill the details—which would've been boring—then there's only one way to figure this baby out.”
“Don't you dare drink that potion!” Putting my forehooves onto the counter, I was preparing to jump her. “I worked hard on that!”
“All you did was mix two things!” Rainbow uncorked the flask. Its top hovered dangerously close to her furry blue lips. “I can do that easily. Wanna watch me make chocolate milk with syrup and milk?”
“Drop the flask, Rainbow!” My wings unfurled into the air. “Don't make me ask a second... fifth... umpteenth time!”
“What are you going to do?” Rainbow gave me that look of absolute smugness, made cute and sexy by her demeanor, all of which made my wings stretch a tad wider. “Tackle me if I don't—“
Bingo. Flying time.
I watched as Rainbow's eyes shot wide when my body shot towards her like a lavender blur. In a split-second, her hoof flicked in shock, the tip of the flask slipping past her lips. My body smacked into her, the impact sending us against the kitchen counter behind her.
“Ugh! Ha, t-there!” My body was pressed against Rainbow's chest and stomach. I held her up and against the counter, her body leaning against it. When I looked up the blue expanse of her chest, I saw something that made my pupils shrink. “Oh, no.”
Rainbow Dash's head was tilted back, her eyes still wide from the surprise, but quickly slipping shut as something coursed and consumed her body. Like how the thirsty close their eyes while they gulp down a bottle of water, Rainbow Dash did the same with the potion spilling past her lips.
After a few seconds, her body went limp against my own, her limbs falling over me, her head falling left. The flask slipped out from her lips, rolling in a circle on the counter until, finally, it stopped with its top pointing at me.
I gulped. Looking back at the mare I held up, I watched as her head twitch. My heart leaped. The potion hadn't harmed her in anyway I'd fear. In silence, I saw as her eyes slipped open, blinking twice, followed by a groan. Slowly, very slowly, Rainbow raised her head, caught sight of me, and did not question the position of me holding her up and against the side of a counter.
I was very happy she didn't question that.
“You have a face worth plucking feathers out for.”
I was very unhappy she had said that.
“If I pluck some feathers out for you, can I have your face all night?”
It was going to be a long day.
“I'm in love with you.”
“You are not in love with me.”
“Really?” Rainbow sat next to me on the couch. I had put her on the couch across from my couch, but she got up from that couch, came to my couch, and sat down on my couch. It wasn't my couch anymore. “You sure about that? 'Cause you totally got my heart beating quick.”
“How quick?”
“Like... very quickly?”
“How many beats per twenty seconds?”
“Why something like that important?”
I shook my head. “You drank an extremely experimental potion. You should be glad you're still coherent and talking right now.” I sighed. “But there might be a chance it's done something to—
“Twilight? It's a pick-up line.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah.” Rainbow was lying on her stomach, legs tucked against her stomach, gazing up at me. “Ponies get those from time to time. Super harmless. Not me though.” She then blinked. “All I wanna do is take your wings and—“
“You're sure nothing is wrong with your heartbeat?”
“Twilight,” Rainbow said, “the only things wrong with my heart is that you stole it. You can give it back anytime you like. A kiss would... wait a sec.” She blinked and tilted her head slightly. “If you're so worried about my heart exploding or whatever, why haven't you taken me to a doctor?”
Now it was my turn to feel a twinge of pain. Scooting back on the couch, I stopped when my rump made contact with the plushy armrest. “Well, you know, you h-haven't exhibited symptoms that are...” I swallowed. “...doctor worthy.”
“Possible exploding heart isn't doctor worthy?”
“Not... until your heart shows signs of exploding.” I turned my head and looked away, wincing like I'd been pricked with a needle. “Look. I may or may not have already got in trouble with experimental testing on ponies. One more letter and Celestia will shut me down for good.”
“Pfft!” Rainbow Dash rolled onto her back, laughing. She pointed at me while closing her eyes. “So much for telling Princess Celestia on me! The doctor's already got you blackmailed!” Her laugh became softer as her eyes reopened. “And that means... I got you blackmailed too!”
“Rainbow Dash!” I glared at her with a flick of my head. “Don't joke about stuff like that! Do you know how much trouble I can get? Princess Celestia could take every potion I've ever made! Years of work gone in a night!”
“Yeah,” Rainbow said, rolling onto her side. She gazed up at me through the fringes of her colored mane. “Because that sounds totally worse than an exploding heart!”
“Your heart isn't going to explode!” I fell forward as well, tucking my legs underneath myself. “Look, if you really end up do feeling like something's wrong, then I'll take you to the hospital myself. But I doubt that will happen. Just in case, I promise to keep my eyes on you for the next twenty-four hours.”
“How about the next twenty-four years?”
“Raaaaaaaaainbow!” I sigh, dipping my head. “This is serious! You're going to have to stay with me—“
“I never planned on leavin'.”
“—until tomorrow morning. The effect of the potion should filter out of you by then.”
“Yeah, I guess something like that might happen.” Rainbow Dash rolled completely onto her stomach, hunched, looking like was about to pounce. “But I'm going to want your eyes on me for much longer than that.” She growled at me in a such a cute way. “For now, though... revenge!”
I didn't have time to yelp when she jumped at me. All I saw was a hundred perfect Rainbow Dash flying at me, not giving me enough time to even lift my hooves as she took me down, pinning me to the couch. “Got you!”
My heart pounded fast enough that I thought it might explode. I made an attempt to flare my wings out, but Rainbow was smarter than her recent behavior let on, allowing her legs to slip out to my sides, trapping my wings against myself. “Can't have you doing that! Payback time.”
“Rainbow! Let. Me. Go!” I struggled underneath her weight, which kept me in place, though it was pointless. Her thighs had me locked in place, and the pressure was enjoyable for whatever reason. “I... only jumped you because you were going to drink a potion!”
“Yeah,” Rainbow sat her flanks harder on my stomach, which impressed slightly, but felt nice. “Because potions that do nothing are all the rave now.”
“That potion did do something!” I cried and struggled and put on a little play. “Look at how you're acting! You're never like this! You drank a love potion and the first thing you saw was me!”
“Ya got that wrong, marefriend.” Rainbow Dash placed her forehooves over my own, bringing her chest against my own, her muzzle inches from my lips. “I've loved ya since the first sight, Twi. Gonna show that to ya too.”
“Rainbow! Let me go!” Rainbow's muzzle came closer and closer that made my heart beat harder and faster. She closed her eyes and her cheeks became pink. Everything became scary and I was tempted to just give in. “You don't want to do this! Think of how much you'll regret it until tomorrow!”
And then she did it. She did it and I never thought I'd see Rainbow do it. Bringing her muzzle to my own, she started to nuzzle at my cheek, giggling while she did so, planting small and warm kisses on my skin, brushing my fur with her lips.
It grew worse. Much worse. Rainbow's soft neck pressed against my face while her muzzle hovered by my horn, kissing its base for a few seconds, making it tingle. Then she withdrew, bringing herself below my muzzle, nuzzling underneath it.
“Cute and fluffy,” Rainbow murmured as she reached my collarbone, “you're my kind of mare, Twilight Sparkle. How do you do it? How do you keep being so you?” She slid her hooves underneath my back, having them still pin my arms as she held me. “I'm dying to know. I wanna make you mine, and I don't mind if I have to kiss every inch of you.”
“Kissing? Really!?” I tried to glare down at her but only felt my chin rub against her mane. “That's on the list of 'uncool' words that you made up! You're going to tell me that's not the fault of some potion? The real Rainbow Dash isn't like this!”
“Maybe you haven't been seeing the real Rainbow Dash.” Rainbow's lips pulled away from my chest, if only to rub her snout against a sensitive spot. “What's this underneath the fur? No way. Twilight, do you got a mole or something?”
“I do not have a mole!”
“And I'm not tryna fool ya right now.” She giggled before kissing the spot. “Mmhmm. See? Look how quickly we came to an agreement!” She kept nuzzling and kissing at my chest; I was sure she could feel my heart beating through my skin. “We're made for each other, Twilight. I can feel ya blushing too.”
The heck else was I supposed to do? It was wrong of me. I'll admit that. But c'mon! Who could blush when Rainbow Dash was giving you of cuddle fest with a pegasus! She was soft with all the right curves.
But this was wrong, all so horribly wrong.
“Rainbow, please listen to me, even just for a bit.” I breathed through my mouth in an effort to calm my heart. “I know you must feel drunk right now. Things seem weird but you're too dazed to really care. I know you're still in there.”
“In there?” Rainbow replied, and I already knew what was coming next. “Yeah right. You know the place I'm at is all over you.”
I did my best to ignore the rising heat in my cheeks. “That's not what I meant. Look, I won't force you to stop. But please just consider this.” I managed to close my eyes, hoping to block out the world only to feel more of her. “What if there was a chance you were under the influence of some potion? Would it be fair to take advantage of you while you were like this?”
“Hard to take advantage when I'm the one on top of you, Twilight.”
“Yeah. Sure. Say whatever you want.” I opened my eyes again, and this time, I was treated to the sight of her muzzle raised, her pink eyes set on me, glowing slightly. “But doing anything to you right now? It's wrong.”
“Something wrong with me?”
I shook my head. “Of course not. But there will be something wrong with me if I do anything.” I let my head fall back, submitting myself to her weight. “So do whatever you like. It's you who's going to regret it in the morning.”
“So you won't touch me?” Rainbow asked. Her head dipped and her eyes narrowed slightly. “Even though I'm totally asking for a nuzzle or two?”
How could she expect me to say 'no' with a look like that? Her eyes were open and glowing pink, her mouth smiling and slightly open. Her mane fell between her eyes, draping itself in the perfect frame of adorableness.
“I... that's not fair, Rainbow.” I pouted, wanting to cross my hooves but couldn't. “You already know I'm your best friend. What we have together is perfect! I'm not gonna throw that away because you decided to be stupid and drink a love potion.”
“What if I kept lovin' ya even the potion was over?”
“Then I would be impressed with that I was able to extend the duration.”
“Tch. Always an egghead.” Rainbow Dash soon slid off my body, sitting up a foot away from me. “Alright, fine. You need some space before we do this thing? Take as long as you need.” Rainbow smirked as she pointed to a clock on the wall. “We got an entire day to waste away in here.”
I gulped. Looking to the clock, it wasn't even the afternoon.
“You're trying to cook?”
“Yes.”
“You sure that's a good idea?”
I floated the knife down before I did anything rash. “And what does that mean?”
“It means you suck at cooking. Like, a lot.” Rainbow blinked. We were in the kitchen, standing before the counter filled with... an assortment of ingredients I totally knew how to put together. “And Spike sucks less at cooking. Wait.” I watched her peek past my shoulder at the hall behind us. “Where is the little dude anyways?”
“Helping Rarity.”
“Helping Rarity.” Rainbow shook her head. “Think the little dude has a chance?”
“Hopefully the growth spurt gives him one.” I glanced back at the stuff on the counter, losing any and all confidence I had at making us lunch. “For now? It's Rarity's call. She has to make a decision soon.. hopefully she'll make a decision soon.”
“What's that supposed to mean?”
“I-I... didn't mean anything by it.”
“Never said you did.” Rainbow pulled her head back and looked at me fully. She wore an expression of concern—something she didn't wear easily before. “But you obviously look hurt by something. C'mon, let your girl Rainbow Dash help ya out.”
I shook my head. “Not right now, Rainbow. You... you wouldn't get it at the moment.”
“Because of your potion that didn't work? Nah.” She smiled. “I'm loyal to a friend no matter what. If it helps, I won't come onto ya.”
“I... no, Rainbow.”
“Don't ya trust me?”
“Of course I trust you.”
“So you trust me by not trusting me?”
Rainbow had me there. What else was I supposed to say? That the potion was making her more sensitive than she normally was, and I didn't want to pray on a side of her that didn't fully exist? Never before was she this revealing. It was... it was part of the reason why hadn't gone for her yet.
“Alright.” I lifted my head. “Just promise not to get too mad at me tomorrow, alright? Whatever you say during this, it's not my fault, alright?”
“Just get on with it, will ya?”
I sighed. Here I went. “Look, Spike has liked Rarity for a long time now. Like, a really long time. He doesn't expect anything out of it, though. He helps because he wants to. And that makes me happy. Or well, it made me happy until his growth spurt.”
Rainbow giggled. “Yeah, he did get a nice bod out of that. Not really type, though.”
I decided to drop that comment. “And I'm not sure if he's Rarity's type either.”
“Why does that matter now?”
“Because now he actually has a mare asking for him.” I closed my eyes, doing my chest to smile. “I love Rarity like a sister, but I also love Spike like a brother. Heck, he pretty much is! It's fine and all if he wants to keep on helping her, but if he's holding himself back from finding anyone...”
“I think I get what ya mean.” I opened my eyes to Rainbow with a hoof on her chin. “Since baby boy become a better boy, he's finally able to do well for himself. But... no point to all that change if everything stays the same, eh?”
“Pretty much.” I'd been on edge while I talked, expecting Rainbow to do... something! But she stood next to me, listening, just being there. It felt nice. “And you wanna know the worst part? It's not my place to say anything! It's their lives! They can do whatever they want.” I let out a heavy sigh. “But just standing around makes me feel like I'm doing something wrong.”
“Nah. I think I get what you mean.” Rainbow came directly next to me, and I felt her coat rub against my own, almost making me want to groan at the trick—until her foreleg slide over my neck, bringing me close against her. “Tough to see ponies you like in a tough position. You ain't wrong for wanting to step in. Gotta be careful on how you do it, though.”
I fought against her at first, not trusting the contact, but after the seconds and silence, I could feel myself giving away as I laid my head against her shoulder. I'd needed something like this for quite a while.
I knew it was wrong. I shouldn't have been taken advantage of my friend while she was in a more sensitive state, but really, it was me who couldn't help herself. I hadn't had a friend to talk this through, or somepony else to comfort me, tell me I'm not crazy, and just... help work through the problem.
I didn't mind Rainbow's teasing one bit... so long as I had somepony to lean my head on when times got tough.
“Gotta be careful the way you go about it, though.” Rainbow sighed, feeling her hoof drape over my chest. “Come on too strong and they'll call you out on the spot. They'll attack you instead of your points.”
“You mean an ad hominem?”
“Call it whatever ya like.” Rainbow tugged at me for that, which made me lightly giggle. “Still means the same thing. You can't give any vibes of wanting to control the situation like you normally do.”
“Hey!” I rolled my head along the back of her neck, looking up at her from behind her mane. “I do not come across as controlling!”
“Sorry Twi, but controlling is kinda in your nature.” She rolled her eyes playfully. “It's a good thing! We wouldn't have gotten out of a few sticky situations without it.” She exhaled. “But I can bring up some examples if ya like or, you know, how you made a love potion.”
I flicked her leg with a hoof. “Words can hurt, you know.”
“And the wrong words can hurt them. Trust me, I'm used to saying the kind all the time.” Rainbow shook her head, sending strands of mane over my muzzle, tickling my fur. “Sometimes though, in tough situations, ponies need a call to start actin' right. Don't get me wrong: they can perfectly do it themselves. Only they won't, 'cause ponies suck sometimes.”
“They do?”
“Yup. They suck until they choose to stop sucking.” She raised a hoof to her neck, scratching at it as she turned away. “I sucked a whole lot in Cloudsdale when I was a filly. Watched bullies bully without doing a thing. Knew I should. Decided to keep sucking anyway.”
It occurred to me to say something, if anything kind, to get her to stop speaking. I wasn't sure if this was the kind of thing Rainbow Dash would reveal on her own, but I was so drawn by it that it kept my mouth shut.
Did that make me a bad pony? Listening to things that ponies wouldn't reveal any other time? It made me feel horribly special. It made us feel wonderfully imitate. It was all absurd, and yet, I didn't care at all.
I merely listened.
“And then, on one of my days of sucking, I saw something that sucked more than me.” Rainbow lifted her muzzle, and from the corner of her muzzle, I saw a tiny smile. “Fluttershy was there getting bullied by those ponies and I... I don't know. Probably wrong of me to say, but it was like she was calling for someone to save her. For me to save her.”
I smiled, rubbing my cheek along her neck. “And we both know how that story went?”
“And we also know that story might not have happened.” Despite her words, Rainbow Dash flicked her head, treating me to a side of it. Her one eye glowed brightly and her mane flew from the movement, her lips smirking. “If Fluttershy hadn't kicked me into gear, who knows what would have happened?”
I smiled as I looked down. “So you're saying I need to be the one to call them both into action?”
“You gotta be their call, and after that, leave them be.” Rainbow brought her head down to my muzzle, her face filling my eyes. Her mouth parted in a wide smile. “But, for now, how about you give that pizza joint a ring, hey?”
She'd been complaining well into the early evening.
“How could you not have gotten dip?!”
“I never get dip!”
“How do you never get dip? Who eats pizza without dip?”
“I do!”
We were back on the couch again. Two trays of pizza sat on the coffee table. While we waited for it to come, we ended up putting ingredients away. That was it. For an hour we cleaned up. She made passes and flirts, but other than that, having Rainbow help clean up was actually fun. She hardly complained.
Until now.
“What other food do you have where you can dip the way you do with pizza? Fries?” Rainbow shook her head, lying back into the sofa. “Best you got is ketchup. Anything else and the taste is set outta whack. But pizza? Pizza goes well with almost any dip.”
I crossed my hooves over my chest. “And I happen to think that pizza tastes fine on its own.”
“Look, no one is denying that pizza doesn't taste great on it its own. But, like, eating it on its own should be a last effort thing, ya know?” Rainbow sighed heavily—of all the things to get to her, this was the topic dear to her heart. “Like when you run out of dip, or the pizza is too wide to dip, or there's cheese in the crust and you don't want to ruin that.”
“What!” I leaned up a bit as rage helped raise me. “So I can't enjoy pizza on its own without being mocked, but when there's cheese in the crust, suddenly it becomes okay for all?”
“There's something sacred about cheesy crust, Twilight.” Rainbow dipped her muzzle. “A mare like you wouldn't understand that. You're too busy focusing on logic instead of the feeling. Life's more enjoyable my way.”
“Oh yeah, how's that?”
“You and I would already be in a bed snuggling right now, that's that.”
My blush crept up to my cheeks. I did my best to show no sign of my disturbance. From how close we'd gotten in the kitchen, I'd almost forgotten the potion was still controlling her. In a way, things felt like they always did, only we... were a tad deeper.
I sighed. I had to be careful not get myself mixed up in something I shouldn't.
“Ya already know that I think you're a purple fluffy beast needing to be conquered,” she said from the other side of the sofa, snapping me from my thoughts. “And I'm Rainbow Dash. Not much more too it than that.”
“I'm also a princess.”
“And I'm also Rainbow Dash.”
“I've saved Equestria more times than you have.”
“And I'm also still Rainbow Dash.” Rainbow giggled. '”See? We can go on for all night! Wanna know who would keep winning? Wanna know why?”
“Because you're Rainbow Dash?”
“Because I'm Rainbow Dash the Wonderbolt!” She flicked a hoof in my direction from off her chest. “That beats being a princess anyway. I save lives and you inflict taxes.”
“Those taxes keep our civilization from crumbling.”
“And my tricks keep ponies from being bored.” Her hoof dropped back on her chest. “Wanna wager on who they respect more?”
I pouted and turned my head. “You're no fun.”
“You know I didn't mean a word about it,” Rainbow said before she paused for a second. “Except for that feeling stuff. We would make an awesome couple. You know it. Our work puts us closer together anyway.”
“How many time do I have to tell you 'no', Rainbow Dash?”
“Is there something about me you don't like?”
“Wait. What?”
Rainbow Dash let herself sink to the right, falling against the armrest. “Out of all the mares I gunned for, Twilight, you're the one that's rejected me the most. It's cool. I'm used to it. Gotta keep trying until the game over screen comes up.” She sighed, letting her head dip. “But because there's a change in hardware, suddenly you don't want to play.”
“Rainbow Dash, I don't play games.”
She didn't move her head, but her eyes came and settled on me. “What I'm sayin' is that you don't want to give this a try. You say it's because I'm on some potion or whatever, but another part of me feels like you're tryin' to save face.”
“I wouldn't do that to you, Rainbow.” My words caught my mind for a second. What was I supposed to do? Lie about not liking her? It would make her happy later, but make her hate me now. Tell the truth about liking her? It would make her happy now, but make her hate me later... among other complications.
I'd worked out all the components to make a love potion, but apparently, not the moral ambiguity of creating one.
“So, what?” Rainbow eyes were partly hidden underneath her bangs. “Ya liked me before then? Ya worried that I don't actually like ya back? What's the deal here?”
What the heck was I supposed to do? Sometimes I could hate how direct Rainbow could be. At least she got to the point of things. It was a good quality to have against my rambles. But she needed an answer that either hurt me or hurt her.
“Of... course I liked you before this. You're my... you're my friend.”
“That's not an answer and you know it.”
“Then I'm not sure what I'm supposed to feel!” I raised a hoof only to let it drop from the air. “Do I like you? Of course I do. Do I like you as a mare? Yes, yes very much. Could I see us dating? I'm not sure, and neither are you. Anything we do here... it's you while you're not you! It's not fair. It's not right.”
“And there you go off worrying about logic and stuff.” Rainbow sat up onto her flanks. “Who cares about what happens tomorrow? Tomorrow us, that's for sure. Right now, without a doubt, sharing a kiss with you would be leagues above fine with me.”
I shook my head as I sat up as well. “And how about tomorrow you? The you that you'll be for the rest of your life?”
“She would be chill with it too.” Rainbow placed a hoof on her chest. Just above where her heart was. “Sure, maybe I wasn't crazy about you a few days ago. But spending some time together was kinda nice. Just you and me. One on one. It's a good time.”
I nodded my head slowly, feeling my heart make the rest of my body cold. “I agree. I... really do enjoy spending time with you, Rainbow.”
“Shouldn't that be all there is to it?” Rainbow said, starting to lean forward. “All we wanna do is have a good time. Is making out until we pass out really going to change much between us? I've done worse than you, Twilight.” She smirked. “And that's only easy to say 'cause it's you I'm talking about.”
“I... what do you want me to say, Rainbow?” Again my heart was making me feel cold and there was nothing I could do about it. It felt so wrong and so right at the same time. Like I was going somewhere I shouldn't have gone but very much wanted to try out. “You're breaking me down here. It's getting harder and harder to say no to you.”
“Then try saying 'yes' once in your life.” Rainbow giggled into her hoof. In a moment, she was crawling across the sofa, body low but behind high, letting her flanks sway and her tail flick. “Ya gotta enjoy yourself every once in a while, Twilight.”
“Rainbow... what should I do?”
“Don't think.” With my heart pounding and cooling at its worst, Rainbow was up on me again and, this time, I made no struggled to fight her. Her hooves lightly came on my chest, pushing me down on the sofa, keeping—but not pinning—me there. “Give that mind of yours a rest. You've drained yourself enough.”
“I like you, Rainbow,” I said without thinking, feeling the tension leave my body. “I've liked you for a long time now, but I...”
Rainbow lowered her muzzle to my ear, exhaling. “But you what?”
“I never knew you had this kind of side to you.” I nuzzled underneath her muzzle, appreciating the softness of her fur and the warm of being in her intimacy. “If we were to date, I... I didn't know how it worked out. I just always thought it wouldn't work out well? You'd do something you, and I would yell at you for it. We'd fight. I'd go to bed alone and—“
“You think too much.” Rainbow lowered her muzzle to my own, hovering above me, gazing down at me. “ The last thing I wanna do is go to a bed without you in it. Not when I know I can get you there in the first place.” She let her eyes come closed while her muzzle came closer to my own. “And to think, I was right about us.”
I didn't have time to question what she'd said. Even now, with her lips against mine, I couldn't speak even if I tried. The kiss filled me on impact. Sensations returned to the rest of my body, drained from holding back, filled by giving in to temptation.
And I enjoyed it. I enjoyed it more than I should have been allowed. It wasn't my first kiss, but even a few seconds in, it was one of the best I'd ever had. Her lips were soft with a layer of fur, which brushed wonderfully against my own, urging me to take more of her on.
And I did. During our kiss, I could feel Rainbow let more of her body come against my own, giving up holding herself up. She laid against me while she kissed me. We didn't have to say anything as our hooves went to the other's bodies, I feeling down her side while she ruffled with my mane.
After a few moments, left without air or choice, we ended our kiss. We breathed heavily and stared heavily at each other. I wondered how I take more of her against me. How someone as small and slim and sexy as Rainbow Dash could belong more to me.
And then I realized she may have been right about my need for control.
“Everything,” Rainbow started, slipping the words in-between her breathing, “you were hoping for it to be.”
“Better than that,” I replied. “We're going to regret this in the morning, aren't we?”
Rainbow giggled. “That's for you to decide!”
We spent the evening making out, that was, until Rainbow reminded me that we had yet to shower.
“Why are you wearing a towel? I've already seen your flanks.”
“Rainbow!”
“What? Your rump has no right to be that good. You do, like, hardly any excerise.”
“That's not fair and you know it.” We walked into the room with our manes wet and, for one of us, a towel wrapped around my barrel. My tail was still too wet for my liking. “Royal duties take priority everything else. Our adventures give me enough running around to do as is.”
“Royal duty? Is that what you're calling it?” Rainbow went over to the bed, sitting down on its side. “I like the original name for it. You know the one? 'I just wanna lock myself in a room all day and read books'.”
“Hey!” I cried back, approaching the bed. “They're good books.”
“Never said they weren't.” Rainbow went to say something more, but opened her mouth wide enough to yawn, curling her forelegs into the air while she did so. “I don't know about you, but I'm in the mood to cuddle and pass out for a few days.”
I glanced at her, then at the bed, then back at her. “And cuddling is all we're going to be doing, right? Nothing more.”
“You're worried about regretting this after today.” Rainbow cracked her head left and then right, then letting her body fall back onto to the bed. Her limbs stretched out, exposing her fluffy stomach and belly. Her wings flared unsightly, sprawling across the bed. “We'll keep it cool while we're cuddling.”
I came over the bed, and even though I was smiling, I was holding something back from Rainbow. It was an idea that came to me while we were making out, one that caused me to feel guilty... but also made me feel better about what could be—or what would happen—after the night was over.
“But don't tell anypony we cuddle or anything.” Rainbow Dash covered her face with a hoof, keeping an eye on me as I sat down on the bed. '”Because that would be totally uncool. Y'know?”
“Wait.” I laid down next to her, smiling as her hoof reached out for mine. “So things are inherently uncool? They only become uncool when other ponies find out?”
“Totally.” Rainbow rolled her head over, smiling at me. “Who's going to call me uncool when we're alone? I'm allowed to do as many as uncool things as I like when I'm with you.” She scooted over to kiss me on the cheek, giggling as she pulled away. “You're always such a dork. It's because of that I can feel cool doing the uncool.”
“I'm going to take a photo of us and give it to all your fans.”
“Ha!” Rainbow turned her head back, looking up. “Like you would have the courage to do that.”
I sighed, rolling my head as well, looking up alongside her. “You got me there... which brings me to something I wanna try out.”
Rainbow looked at me. “What do you mean by that.”
I sighed. Sitting up, I let my horn charge with magic, and in a flash, I had a flask floating in my aura. Similar in design to my love potion... though with almost the reverse effect. “This... this is something I think you and I should drink.”
Rainbow Dash sat up from the bed, looking at the flask. For a second, her eyes lit up in recognition, causing me to giggle. “Don't worry, Rainbow. It's not another love potion.”
“That so?”
“It's... you won't like this.”
“Try me. You've already did in the shower.”
I tried shaking the blush off from my cheeks. It didn't work. “It's... a potion to wipe your memories.”
“Oh?” Her eyes settled on the label on the flask. “That so?”
“Yeah.” I dropped the flask into my hooves, feeling my magic fade away. “Nothing permanent. But enough to wipe away what happened today.”
“That mean you didn't enjoy what happened?”
“Trust me, Rainbow, I enjoyed today.” I looked up from the flask and at her, smiling as hopefully as I could. “And I'd like to enjoy more days like today. I like you. I like you a lot. But how this all started? I can't take you while you're like this, no matter what you say tomorrow.”
“And what's your plan?” Rainbow asked, her voice raising. “Give up on... this?! Because things got revealed the way you liked?”
“I... I know, Rainbow.” I swallowed and did my best to keep my eyes dry. “It's not the best solution I have, but it's the only one I got.” I looked over at Rainbow, staring as deeply into her eyes as I could manage. “I have no right to ask you to do this, Rainbow, but I'm begging. If... if we were meant to be, then you'll find me again, like this.”
Rainbow sat there for a long while. She was thinking about it. Every passing second stabbed at me. At the moment I was most hurting her was when I needed her the most. To hold me, to care for me, to say everything was alright despite her being against everything I wanted to go for.
But she nodded her head, smiling. “Alright. I'll do this, but you'll owe me one.”
“Owe you what?” I said. “You won't remember this.”
“But I'll have some time after this, right?” Rainbow leaned over to me, taking the flask out from my hooves. She held it to her lips, using her teeth to pull out to cork out, spitting it. “If that's the case, you owe me. My last time with you should be spent with all the you I can get, no?”
I laughed, looking down. “You still wanna do that... even after this?”
“I do.” Rainbow brought the flask to her lips, starting to close her eyes. “No matter what happens next, we're cuddling together in that bed all night. Deal?”
I looked to her and, wiping a tear from the corner of my eye, I nodded. “Anything for you, Rainbow.”
Rainbow looked forward again. She pressed the flask against her lips, taking the contents into her mouth. She didn't swallow at first—even when she had emptied the flask. Then she turned around, lunged herself at me, her hooves wrapping around my back while her lips pressed against mine.
I blinked in confusion but didn't refuse the kiss. It was strange and I took it anyway. Her tongue prodded at my lip, and my mouth parted out of reflex, liquid spilling into my maw. Not enough to fill my muzzle, but just enough for a decent gulp.
And then suddenly, it all made sense. We kissed. We felt each other. We loved each other like it was the last time because this was the last time. Rainbow didn't want to go out alone. She didn't give me the reason why. She didn't have to.
Two mares in love, one genuine and one artificial, both wiped away by a single case.
It was tragically romantic.
We pulled away after some time. Our mouths were still puled. She looked at me and I looked at her. Without words but with a nod, we both swallowed at the same time, closing our eyes. Everything we had, everything we felt... all to be wiped away.
Would we find each other again? Would I allow myself to fall for a mare like Rainbow? Could she show herself to be as sensitive as was today again? Would she actually love me even when the spell was over? Did she even like me before? Would she ever like me again?
These thoughts clouded my head, all except one, which cleared my mind.
“Wait a second.” My eyes reopened. “My potion wasn't supposed to taste like that.” I pressed a hoof against my lips. “That tasted like... like... w-water?”
I looked over at Rainbow, and the thing I saw, the thing that filled me with rage was her face. Bright and beautiful wearing the biggest grin I'd seen in my life. At once, she fell back, pointing a hoof at me while laughing her rump off.
“You fell for it!” Rainbow laughed the words out. “You actually fell for it! The prank worked! The prank worked!”
“Rainbow Dash!” I yelled. “What did you do!?”
“Oh! Nothing huge.” She rolled onto her side, like she had done earlier today, not laughing but still giggling. “Just swapped out some of your potions with liquid. Did I get ya? Huh huh?”
I could feel something break in me. My left eye twitched. “ You mean... all of this was made up!?”
“For the most part.” Rainbow sat up on the bed, closer to me than she should have. She was within strangling distance. “Me being doped up on some potion or whatever? Totally made up. Enjoyed playing a character though.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat, trying to decide if I should let rage or sadness just take over my body. I couldn't believe she had done this to me. “And every that happened. All that talking... all those feelings... the cuddling... the k-k-kissing...”
I couldn't finish my sentence because the tears came on too strong. I cried. I cried harder than I should have. The mare I needed to look the strongest in front of just so happened to make me the weakest.
“W-What! Of course not!” In a second, Rainbow lunged at me, taking me into her embrace. She hugged me tightly and guided my head to her shoulder. I should have tried to fight her, but I was too weak and drained to do anything. “All of that happened was real, Twilight. I'd never pull a prank like that on ya.”
I continued to sob without saying a word.
“If... if it helps you out at all, I only did all this because I was scared.” I felt her hoof stroke down my mane, sometimes going down my back. “Felt like you had a crush on me, but I couldn't be scared. To be honest with ya, doing uncertain adventures are great, but... asking a mare out? Absolutely scares me.”
I sighed, feeling my tears die down. With a sniffle, I raised my hooves, throwing them around Rainbow Dash, holding and hugging her as tightly as I could. I wanted to feel more of her, as much as I could.
“So I got the idea to make to mess around with your potions.” Rainbow giggled, holding me tightly for a second. “You made it easy. Flasks with titles. Little notes by the desk. I was able to swap out the two I thought you might use.”
I actually giggled. “So when I summoned the potion...”
“Recognized it straight away,” she replied. “Was kinda scared you would have figured it out right away.”
Rainbow Dash pulled away from me, still holding me, but enough so we could see face to face. She gazed at me, eyes still glowing, lips still smiling. “Everything that happened today... you know that was for real, right? Me being cute and sensitive? Also real, but don't tell anypony else. I'll have to kill ya if you did.”
I also smiled, still feeling the tears on my cheeks. “Not if I k-kill you first for pulling something like this.”
“Hey! It was a win-win either way.” Rainbow lifted a hoof back, wiping my cheeks. “Either you had feelings for me, and we cuddle, or you don't, and I get to be close for you for a little while, before pretending like nothing happened. No matter what, you got free pizza out of it.”
I shook my head, hiccuping. “You're... really lucky I love you.”
'Trust me.” Rainbow leaned in and kissed my cheek. “I know.”
And that was how my night ended. Rainbow and I together, holding each other, shuffling underneath the sheets of the bed. We held each other, cuddling closely, as we let our eyes closed and our minds fill with each other.
All toward a future without guilt.
At least for one of us.
