Flitter's Friday

"Flits..."

A whisper, or maybe a mumble, or maybe a far-off voice penetrated the calm warm veil sheltering her. With that perforation, light poured through, diluting the soothing darkness and letting other things in with it. Irritating things, like an insistent pressing and nudging against her collarbone, and a familiar voice.

"Flitter, yoohoo."

So it wasn't irritating per se. It was gentle and encouraging. She still blamed it for making her open her eyes and allowing the light of the morning sun to spill into them, washing away the relaxing residue of slumber and replacing it with vaguely defined shapes and colours. Even before the fuzzy purples and blues and whites came into focus, Flitter addressed her sister.

"Morning, CC..." she murmured at last, releasing an extended yawn in eulogy to her restful hours. The sight of Cloudchaser's smiling visage so near to her made her blink, and then naturally smile back, even as weary as she felt.

"There you are. Have a nice dream?" Cloudchaser asked, the edge of one of her lips turning up a bit. This gave Flitter pause. Had she had a dream at all? She could vaguely recall something pleasant in her attempts. It made her chest fill with a gentle warmth, and a subtle tingling spread around her ears and made her remember the taste of cinnamon.

"Yeah," She decided with a second, smaller yawn that it had been a good dream. Seeking Cloud's face, the pale indigo of her coat ringed by her as of yet unkempt mane, she found the light purple rings of her sister's eyes no longer fixed on her own. Instead, they had turned further along her form in the bed, where Flitter was shocked to discover the downy blanket strewn haphazardly about her rising like a proud mountain peak where it met her lap. With a sudden nicker of embarrassment, she twisted onto her side, hiding the impromptu peak amidst the soft blankets and sheets. Cloudchaser stifled an outright laugh into one of her snickers as her sister quickly explained, not for the first time, "It just does that!"

"Pfff, yeah, I know. It's nothing I haven't seen before," Cloudchaser was quick to recover, giving her flustered sibling one last encouraging nudge. "Don't think there's much time to deal with that, though. You got morning weather duty, right?"

"Ugh, that's right," Flitter groaned, the brief, hot bloom of embarrassment quickly supplanted by her memory of that particular obligation.

"Hey, it's not that bad. Up and at 'em! You don't see me complaining about formation drill today, do ya?" Cloud's voice was encouraging, as usual, but Flitter didn't want to let her think she thought so. Instead, she just groaned and flopped her head back onto the pillow.

"But you liiiike your drills," she whined, as fillyish as she could manage. Cloudchaser just rolled her eyes, earning a little smile.

"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, grab a shower and I'll get breakfast cooking."

Before Flitter had a chance to reply, her sister had moved off into the other room. The pegasus sighed and relaxed for a moment more, hesitant to relinquish the warmth of their sizable bed. Her gaze slowly wandered the features of their room, basking for a moment more in its soothing familiarity. They wandered over the framed photographs of herself, her sister, and their friends, starting on the left from a photograph of her proudly displaying her very first ribbon when they were still so young, along a short line rightward following their path together through life up to the latest, portraying her sister proudly displaying the uniform of the Wonderbolt Academy. That beaming expression behind the glass made her smile herself before her eyes meandered on, moving past their shared wardrobe to the bookshelf displaying an eclectic mixture of titles, 'History of the Wonderbolts', 'Entomology Equestria', and the latest Shadow Spade novel amongst them.

Finally, her gaze fell upon the trio of mesh butterfly enclosures sitting below the bedroom window. The verdant greenery within caught the morning sun, a small but vibrant display of nature that brought to mind the garden their mother kept when they were both still living with her. She strained her eyes for a moment for any hint of colourful wings amidst the leafage, before sighing. The last of the three Whitetail Swallowtail specimens she'd collected had yet to emerge from its chrysalis, making it later than its fellows by a whole two days. A little worry nipped at the back of her mind for a moment, and she considered wrapping herself up in a blanket cocoon of her own making, but both the sensation and the thought with it were dismissed by the sound of her sister's voice from the next room. "C'mon, Flits! I don't hear the shower running!"

"Yeah, yeah," she muttered defiantly in the knowledge that the other couldn't hear. She stretched and got to her hooves to make for the bathroom.

It took fifteen minutes for Flitter to wash off under the steaming water of their shower and another fifteen for herself and her sister to complete their shared morning ritual. After brushing their teeth, each thoroughly brushed out the fine blue hair of the other's tail and mane, and Flitter carefully combed and gelled and combed her sister's hair until it was satisfactorily swooshed. After a cursory inspection of herself in their bathroom's full-length mirror--and a suave wink to sell it--Cloudchaser returned the favour by adroitly tying her sister's ribbon into her long mane, forming a large pink bow.

Flitter took much longer to complete her assessment. She used her hooves to give the accessory a few tugs, this way or that, to make sure it was well secured, and she tossed her mane from side to side to the same end. Only once it was certain it would only be undone by persistent pulling at one of the loose ends did she move on. She turned around and lifted the blue cascade of her tail aside, craning her neck to inspect the rear view in the mirror.

Between her hind legs was the perfect seeming of a vulva, dark purple in colour and as puffy and round and plain as any other mare's. She sighed in relief, but nonetheless took the extra two minutes to shift left and right, up and down, and even moved one of her hooves back to press it experimentally up between her haunches. Even with the phantom brush of the truth against her limb, the image in the mirror didn't so much as shimmer at the edges. Smiling, she took a few more moments to simply admire the sight of herself, giving her tail a few emphasizing sways from side to side.

Cloudchaser watched quietly until Flitter seemed comfortable enough to flaunt at her reflection. The sight made her smile, and she reached out one of her hooves, brushing its leading edge against the three dragonflies marking the softest part of Flitter's hip. Flitter inhaled, and Cloudchaser winced apologetically. "Still feeling sore?"

"Just a little," Flitter exhaled.

"Alright," the older twin said, flashing a white grin. "Well, if you're done ogling yourself, let's finish up and grab breakfast before we're late."

"Just a few more minutes?" the younger twin giggled in reply, already moving aside to allow them both to wash their faces in the low sink. Instead, they spent those minutes applying the light makeup their respective duties as pegasi would allow. Each took it in turns to lean in close to the other, applying the lightest touch of foundation, and then more carefully still the waterproof eyeliner and mascara the other sister preferred. By the time they'd finished, Flitter had a slight, warm tingling in her ears, and the last of her sleepiness had been wiped away.

Ready to face the day, the pair finally moved on. The kitchen and the living room of their shared one-bedroom home blended freely together, offering a reasonably spacious room that neither could provide alone. The keepsakes of both sisters also blended freely. A smattering of Cloudchaser's medals from school were framed above a colourfully illustrated poster displaying a few of the rare chromatic species of dragonflies that were found only in the Everfree. A small collection of potted plants soaked in the light of one of the room's windows, while the light of another caught the red and pink and yellow of the Ponyville Township Team banner that hung in its sill. Photos dotted the walls, mostly from their life in the lively little town.

"Sliced fruit again?" Flitter sighed as they sat down together at the low table that centered the living room portion of the space. Turning her gaze from where the assorted fruit lay colourfully at the bottom of a shallow white bowl, she reached for the pair of pills next to it. She quickly swallowed them, and then drank down the clear silvery contents of the small tincture that had flanked them. Somehow, the tasteless potion always managed to make her eyes water.

"Hey, fruit is good stuff! Healthy and solid energy, and most importantly easy to make," Cloudchaser assured. Flitter rolled her eyes, but was glad for the sweet taste of the peach and melon as it soothed the intangible aftertaste of the medicine.

"Mmh," the barely younger mare affirmed with a swallow, "but I still wouldn't call it 'cooking'." Flitter checked the old wood-backed clock near the door while Cloudchaser vigorously chomped at her own mouthful. "Weather team is doing another picnic today, starting around three."

"Agh, that's right," the elder equine groaned, doing her level best to look dissatisfied by the obligation. "I guess if you're going, I have to show up." Flitter smiled around her breakfast. Cloudchaser tapped her chin, then asked, "Your appointment is today too, right?"

"That's right," Flitter echoed. "That's earlier though, so shouldn't interfere. At one-fifteen. Though Doctor Trotter is usually running a little behind."

"Guess I'll see you at the picnic, then," Cloudchaser said resignedly, but Flitter knew it was a promise. Their quick meal complete, Cloudchaser wiped her lips with the back of a leg and glanced down at the table to find the pair of tubes standing beside the empty bottle. "Balm?"

"Mm-hm!" Flitter answered, already a step ahead. They leaned in close, nearly muzzle to muzzle, and holding the little tube carefully between her lips she smoothly applied the glossy substance to the ring of her sibling's presented mouth. The spicy scent made her heart race.

Quickly completing her part, Flitter set the stick aside and presented her own soft lips as Cloudchaser's face neared with the other stick, its sweet vanilla fragrance already filling her nose. As first contact was made, though, both ponies jumped at the sudden sound of a 'thump!' against the edge of the table. Cloudchaser's muzzle wrinkled as she struggled to choke back her laughter and avoid dropping the lip balm. All the same, she managed to shakily carry out her duty. Flitter's ears pinned back against her head and she had to shut her eyes for the duration.

"Still all worked up, huh?" Cloudchaser smirked her way, ingratiating and irritating all at once.

Flitter sighed and admitted, "Yeah." Four violet eyes checked the clock.

"'Fraid it'll have to wait 'til later," Cloudchaser said, apologetically.

"Yeah," Flitter repeated more quietly. Still, she smiled as she saw her sister's near-identical features drawing closer again, and pursed her lips. Cloudchaser playfully evaded them, planting her kiss instead on Flitter's nose.

Another, smaller, thump resounded.

"Jeeze, Flits. Well, hopefully nothing a morning's weatherwork can't distract from, hm?" Cloudchaser teased, only answering her twin's glare by giving her a short nuzzle at the base of one of her ears. "Love you, sis."

Flitter huffed, but had no choice but to reply, "I love you too, CC."