"But, mom!"
"No buts!"
"But, but, but, but, but!"
"Pipp!" Queen Haven sat at one of her many golden jeweled thrones that could be found throughout the palace of Zephyr Heights. "Your wings are completely ruffled again," she said while pointing.
"They're only ruffled a tiny little bit, mom. Please, please, please!"
"Pipp..."
"But, mom... I just don't wanna! It'll be, like, the third or fourth time this week. There was the commercial that I did for that awful smelling perfume, and then there was the photo shoot, and now this. Can't we just-"
"No, Pipp... Please understand... I want you to be looking your absolute best for this spectacular performance. You are the star of the show, after all."
The young pony drooped her ears in defeat. "Fine," she said snootily while sighing.
She then briskly turned around, and saw none other than her modest sibling, Zipp Storm. She was standing by one of the red, glimmering curtains, and smiled at Pipp while holding onto the handle of a brush by her maw. She obviously didn't say a word, and instead just stared for a moment, and waited for Pipp to lead the way.
"Oh, you're just loving this, aren't you?"
Zipp released the brush, and held onto it with her hoof the rest of the way there. "I am," she confessed. "I'm loving every single moment that goes by..." She chuckled some more before saying, "You're practically already freaking out. What exactly is it with you and getting your wings preened?"
"I just..." Pipp rolled her eyes, and slowed down as she came up to the door. "I'm ticklish... okay?"
They entered, and just as they did, Zipp sarcastically asked, "You don't say...?"
Pipp laid down onto her bed reluctantly, and proceeded to spread her lush and pink wings. "Zipp, let's just... get this done, okay?"
"Make sure your phone is silenced, by the way. We don't want there to be any interruptions during our private preening time."
Pipp gently placed her phone aside while saying, "Better yet, I'll just turn it off completely for the time being. We don't need this turning into a preen-stream or something."
Zipp then cockily asked, "Oh, you're not gonna livestream this to your adoring fans after all, huh?"
She replied with a rhetorical question of her own. "When do I ever stream this?" Pipp scoffed, and pleaded, "Stop wasting time, and stop trying to embarrass me."
Zipp shrugged, and got onto the bed as well. She stayed mostly on her right side, and slowly, she used a hoof to assist her sister with spreading them out that much more. "There we go," she instructed. "Look, sis... You don't have to feel embarrassed or anything while I'm doin' this."
"I know that already," Pipp fussed. "I just... I can't he- Eheh... Ahaha!"
Zipp leaned up to say, "I've barely touched you!"
"I can't help myself, Zipp," Pipp replied. "Would you just... pretty please, hurry this up, and get this over with?"
Zipp told her sister before she began, "Actually, mom's the one who told me to do a good job." She heard her sister groan. "You'll thank me when I'm done... You always do."
She clamped her teeth back down, and onto the wooden part of the brush, and just before beginning, she heard her sister say, "Let me thank you now, a-actually..." There was a moment of silence that followed. "You're actually a... pretty awesome sister to have, so... even though I hate to get preened so very, very often, at least you're the one who does it for me... Zipp...? Thank you so much."
Pipp innocently readjusted herself, and luxuriously rested upon her golden hooves while waiting. Meanwhile, Zipp remained motionless, and she just blushed. She had never heard her sister be so appreciative. Slowly, she brought the bristly end ever closer towards her sister's many pink and white feathers. She gulped silently before giving Pipp the usual warning, and mumbled, "Uh... H-here I go, Pipp."
She heard the pony in front of her voice, "Yep, go for it, Zipp. D-do your worst!"
It ever so slightly touched the wing, and an unchecked giggle followed without fail. As Zipp motioned downwards, even more chortles escaped, and then, Zipp discovered a visible knot within one of the middle feathers.
"Gah! N-no ho-ho! Zipp, that... I can't... A-already?!"
She loosened up, and grabbed hold of the brush with her hooves. "The feather was sticking out," she told Pipp while tightening her grip.
Pipp gasped sharply, and nervously asked, "It doesn't h-have to come off, does it?" Zipp breathed in before hastily and strategically brushing yet again. "Gah-haha! Whew, that was a good one," Pipp complimented.
"I've straightened it out... I'm going to start moving my way up, and then to the other one, alright?"
Pipp instinctively buried her smirking muzzle more and more into her shiny hooves. "Mmhmm..." Zipp resumed her work, and the more rigorous her brushes became, the more Pipp laughed, and cutely cackled, "N-no, no, no! Stop!"
"I'm almost done with this one, and then I can get the right wing. C'mon, just... I got it!"
She yanked, but she was careful with her actions. The brush slid serenely, and caused even more problems for Pipp. "Che-hehehe!" She breathed for a moment, and then said, "Chill, Zipp! You're being too rough again."
"I'm just trying to finish this up, like you asked me to."
Pipp then snatched hold of a nearby pillow, and promptly used it to cover up the rest of her face. Zipp could still hear her sibling laughing uncontrollably from underneath, but she did her best to ignore it, and just kept on going. The pink pegasus received very little mercy that day.
"I'm nearly finished now, so hold still for just a little bit longer, sis. I can’t get all of the knots out if you keep squirming."
"Hee-hee! B-but Zi-hi-hi-hipp! It t-tickles!"
With the preening session slowly coming to an end, Zipp soon found herself chuckling a few times, too. "Oh-ho kay, Pipp... I, ahah... I think that's enough..." She squirmed, and tried to remain serious, but her sister was no help whatsoever.
Sounds of Zipp's and Pipp's joyful laughter soon filled the air. Despite this, Zipp still managed to do a miraculous job with caring for her sister's wings. "Ahah! Ah... Oh, Zipp... That was..." Pipp cleared her throat before saying, "You're finished already?"
Zipp asked while smiling, "You're alright if I keep going?"
She snuggled closely to Pipp, and Pipp seemingly snuggled back. "Nopony's watching us, so..."
Zipp nodded, and started to say, "Yeah, you're right, I guess."
She then narrowly glanced up for a second to look at Pipp's phone, and saw a small, flashing red light. Even though the screen itself was pitch black, it all of the sudden visibly vibrated.
"H-how long has that thing been on?" Zipp asked.
"Huh? What're you talking about?" Pipp asked.
"That light..." Zipp pointed at it with a shaken hoof. "Doesn't it mean that the phone's recording something right now?"
Pipp released a dramatic, and shocked gasp. "I must've accidentally locked the screen by mistake! We were being watched by everypony?"
At that moment, there was a light rapping on the door, and Queen Haven could be heard questioning them from the other side, "Are the two of you at all aware that you've been streaming the entire time?"
