A Dazzling Flower Under the Moonlight

-Dash, are you there? It's Fleetfoot and Spitfire. We need to talk to you,” - Fleetfoot called, her voice projected with a hint of concern.

Opening the door, she was met by the familiar faces of Spitfire and Fleetfoot, her teammates from the prestigious Wonderbolts. At the sight of Dash, both mares' countenances lit up with a mixture of relief and joy. Evidently, they had been looking for her.

• “Rainbow Dash, at last, there you are!” - exclaimed a tired Spitfire, stepping forward - “We've been looking all over for you, we narrowly missed dodging the guards in this area.”

• “Yeah, can you believe how funny it was to knock on several doors and the one who opened for us wasn't you?” explained Fleetfoot with some laughter following his comment.

• “Well, that was more embarrassing than funny, Fleetfoot,” - Spitfire corrected her friend with a snort.

Dash chuckled and took a quick glance towards where the princesses were hiding. Luckily, they seemed to have gotten the message to stay hidden.

• “I see, and what do they have to talk to me about? Did something happen?” -questioned Dash, puzzled by the sudden presence of the two pegasus at that hour.

-"Well, actually, we just want to talk to you a bit, since we didn't have the space after the show” -suggested Spitfire with a more casual tone-.

-“Yes! And even worse when you were separated from our room,” - Fleetfoot added, - “So, shall we go for that walk?”

It had been a long time since she enjoyed one of those soothing and comforting night flights. Those where your wings seemed to have control of their own and gently led you through the most beautiful sights created by the underrated princess Luna and her beautiful starry night. Those special flights you didn't know you needed until you had them once again.

In the middle of the serene night, Spitfire was the first to break the silence of her placid air ride.

• “Dash, we were really worried about you today. We've noticed that you've been behaving strangely since we arrived at this place” - Spitfire said, with a mixture of concern and curiosity in her voice.

Dash exhaled a long sigh. Where to begin...? Recent events had been a real whirlwind, and she herself didn't have all the answers yet, indeed, she was in doubt whether or not to tell them about her torment.

• "Well, all in all, today was a... peculiar day, shall we say?” - she began her explanation vaguely, mentally preparing herself for the interrogation that would come with this opening of the subject.

Fleetfoot narrowed her eyes, unconvinced with that vague answer. - “Peculiar? Dash, you disappeared for hours over the face of this world and then magically appear in the dressing rooms, where were you all that time? How did you manage to get into the castle on your own? Or how do the members of the royal family know you?”

Yes, she knew - “Relax, it's no big deal what happened no matter how much it seemed so” - with her evasive answers, hopefully, she could get them to change the subject, she didn't want another dispute as it happened with Soarin's questions previously.

• “Well, if it was no big deal in your words, tell us what really happened” - insisted Spitfire with a persistent tone.

Dash admitted to herself that Spitfire was the most complicated to mislead when she latched onto a subject. She would have to come up with a partially true explanation, but omitting key details.

• “Well, I met the unicorn brothers in Ponyville, when I saved them from having an accident with a big billboard...” -began her tale as the three pegasus descended on a cloud so they could better converse face-to-face.

• “After that, I was invited to stop by the castle, as an honored guest at their gala. And well, since I had to be here for the show anyway, I accepted and that's that.” - She finished her modified story by swallowing her saliva. It was technically true, but she omitted and invented key details. Spitfire and Fleetfoot stared at her for a few moments, studying her.

• “By my calculations, if you arrived at the castle at the same time as the royal brothers, that doesn't explain why we didn't find you when we arrived or why, when we asked them, they themselves denied seeing you,” Spitfire stated insightfully.

Dash stirred uncomfortably at that sharp reasoning. She would have to think fast of a credible explanation.

-“Well, I was in the main hall the whole time, I don't know the reasons why they didn't tell you that from the beginning,” she replied with a shrug, - “But that's my version of events.”

A tense silence hung over the three mares as Spitfire and Fleetfoot seemed to evaluate whether or not to believe their friend's words. Dash kept a passive expression, though inside her mind was working a thousand trying to foresee a possible counterargument.

• “Okay Dash, if you say so. Though admit that this whole situation looks pretty suspicious from our perspective.” - Fleetfoot indicated with hesitation and some hesitation even.

-“I agree with Fleetfoot, we were most of the time on the royal brothers' heels, not to mention we looked all over the room for you when the ball started, and you weren't there,” - Spitfire said, crossing her hooves, “But we'll respect your side of the story, at least for now.”

Dash nodded solemnly, feeling a slight pang of guilt in her chest - “listen, I've never had a bad intention in saying things that aren't, and I honestly appreciate that you care about me, but...” - what was she to do?

Her two friends looked at each other with a hint of renewed concern in their countenances - “but...?” - Spitfire urged her on, looking for her gaze to reassure her that she could trust them, and she found it.

• “But there are... factors involved that compel me to keep details in reserve for the time being.” - Dash wasn't quite sure she had said the right words, she wanted to speak, but a part of her kept her from blurting it all out, the events of the day were still fresh in her mind and she hadn't had the time alone to process it all properly.

-“Listen Dash,” - Spitfire began in a conciliatory tone, - “You know you can count on us for anything, right? If for some reason you're into something that's out of your hooves... just let us know.”

• “Yes, and you can be sure that we will help you get out of it, we are friends, right, and we would never judge you for expressing what you feel” - they both looked at her hoping that her words would have the effect of sensitizing the pegasus' feelings.

Those displays of sincere loyalty and unconditional support from her friends made Dash's heart swell. She gave them a genuine, if somewhat sad, smile as she reflected on all the whirlwind of craziness that had been unleashed in her life in such a short time.

-“Thank you for your support, you don't know how much I appreciate this space” - Her two friends nodded regretfully, though still with some distrust reflected in their gazes. They knew Dash would have a hard time letting go of her stubborn and self-sufficient nature, even when she needed help the most.

Still, they would respect their friend's decision for the time being. Deep down, they were confident that if things got really dangerous, the endearing loyalty they felt for each other would make Dash come to them without hesitation. At least they were pleased to feel that they were talking to the real Rainbow Dash after her strange behavior during that day.

• “Changing the subject, remember what you told me you'd tell me, Dash?” - A mischievous grin formed on Fleetfoot's face as he tossed the question into the air. Her eyes twinkled with a spark of mischief.

Rainbow Dash frowned, trying to recall. - “'Truth be told, Fleet, I don't remember.” - She tilted her head, her rainbow mane falling like a cascade of colors over her shoulder.

• “Oh come on, don't get clueless.” -Fleetfoot let out a chuckle. - “You told me at the after-show party that you'd tell me what happened with Soarin when the two of them came alone and were late for the meeting.”

Spitfire's eyes widened like dishes at the mention of the pegasus at her side. - “What?! that's why you were so late?” -A smile identical to Fleetfoot's broke out on her face. - “What were you doing?”

Dash now had the inquisitive eyes of the two mares on her. A slight blush threatened to cover her cheeks as she shook her head frantically.

• “But what are you insinuating? No, we didn't do anything.” -She rolled her eyes, remembering the altercation with the steed. - “We had a misunderstanding, that's all.”

• “Aaww, your first discussion?” - Fleetfoot let out a chuckle, as Spitfire raised a suspicious eyebrow with a low chuckle

-"First discussion? No, of course not, it wasn't an discussion” - Dash tried to repair with her ears lowered - ”It was a simple misunderstanding. He was talking to me about something, then he asked me something else, but as I wasn't paying attention to him he started asking me more questions and well, I got a bit irritated so I unintentionally answered him the wrong way and he got upset.”

• “You're not very good with word selection are you?” - A regretful deja vu hit Dash as Spitfire spoke. This stunned her at the remark, so similar to the one Blooming had once made to her.

• “Aamm... I guess I wasn't in my best mood at the time” - she finally admitted, remembering that she had planned to talk to Soarin after that to patch things up. She would have to postpone it again.

• “Have you apologized to him yet?” - Fleetfoot asked with a glint of curiosity in her eyes.

• “No, I didn't have time after that and I'm not close enough to his suite to have gone tonight” - Dash justified herself, although now that he thought about it it wasn't a very convincing one.

• “Excuses, Rainbow” - declared Spitfire shaking her head resignedly - “Typical of you to go around procrastinating that sort of thing.” - And yes, she knew her well enough to know it was true.

• “I know you have a lot on your mind, Dash,” - Spitfire began, her voice softer now, but with her typical essence - “But even the slightest misunderstandings need to be talked out, if you hang around waiting for the snowball to take shape, it might be too late.”

Dash ascending, feeling the weight of her words. -"You're right. I'll talk to him tomorrow, besides, it was a very small thing compared to other bigger situations.”

The tension of the subject slowly faded, giving way to a lighter atmosphere. Fleetfoot, ever the teaser, took advantage of the change in tone, Spitfire smiled knowingly. - “You'd better, Dash. Because if you don't, I assure you, we'll make you do it.” - Now her friends were finding amusement in poking a little fun at her situation with Soarin.

• "Hey!” - Dash felt a blush tinge her cheeks. She shook her head in resignation, a smile peeking through her lips. - “Alright, alright. Let me deal with this my way, will you?”

-"Well, that's enough talk for today. What do you say we head back to the suites?” - she indicated as they got up from their places to return to their flight - “Do you coming with us Dash?, yours is too far away and I doubt you'd want to go back.”

-“Good idea,” - Fleetfoot replied - “Dash, how about coming to my suite? That way you don't have to go back to yours alone.”

Dash accepted the invitation and the three pegasus took flight to that area of the castle. On the way, her friends told her about their day and how they had had to dance with the royal family to find her, Dash couldn't help but laugh at their perspectives of anecdotes she knew all too well.

As they flew carefree, unaware of everything, the Blooming and Shining sisters watched them in the distance. Thanks to the spell that allowed them to walk on the clouds, they had heard the entire conversation, which generated a mixture of confusion and concern, and while they couldn't decipher all the details, they managed to catch slightly clearer mentions of Dash's life.

The sisters looked at each other, exchanging a look full of unease. On the one side, they felt reassured to have evidenced that Dash, on her own, had not revealed anything of what had actually happened that day. However, they were concerned that at some point she might do so, especially considering the closeness she seemed to have with her flying friends. In addition, they began to get uneasy when they noticed that Dash and the celestial steed, Soarin, apparently have a close relationship, and from how they had seen them that day, they suspected that he might be an indirect rival, capable of influencing Dash's feelings. Although they still didn't have much information about those speculations, the situation generated some discomfort and suspicion in them.

They decided to withdraw in silence, with doubt etched on their countenances, aware that they would have to be attentive to future movements, and even more so to present challenges thanks to these new dynamics.

It didn't take them long to reach the area of the castle where the suites destined to house the team were located. The three pegasus exchanged a few brief words and said their goodbyes for the night. Spitfire headed to her suite and Dash followed Fleetfoot, who still remained talking about whatever was on her mind. Dash tried to give her the attention she needed, but her tiredness and thoughts were active in her mind, slowly claiming her energy. Despite this, she would give her friend gestures or nods that indicated she was listening to her, just as she and Spitfire took the time to go find her and listen to her.

She felt grateful, immensely grateful, to the point of believing she didn't deserve it. She had stopped feeling like she was in the body of a stranger, her words and movements belonged to her again. She stopped feeling alone and ignored thanks to her friends. But what did she do in return? She continued to keep everything to herself, without thinking about how this affected them, Soarin and the team as well.

Despite being herself again, she didn't feel authentic. The day wasn't over yet and a sense of emptiness came over her, again.

They finally arrived at Fleetfoot's suite. Dash let out a long sigh, her eyelids feeling heavy. Her friend looked at her with a sympathetic smile.

-“Thank you for everything you've done for me today, I really appreciate it,” - she said quietly. - “I know I haven't been the best company, but I promise I'll be better tomorrow.

Fleetfoot turned to look directly at her. - “You're welcome, you know you don't have to carry everything alone, Dash.” - With that said they entered the suit - “Now, I think we'd better get some rest. It's been a long day.” - With a final smile, both pegasus settled into their beds, letting the quiet of the night envelop them.

The hours passed torturously slow, Fleetfoot slept peacefully beside her and Dash tossed and turned between the sheets, unable to give in to sleep, her thoughts and memories were forcing them to debate with herself and would not leave her alone if she did not give in.

She relived the moments of that afternoon, in Ponyville, the moment she prevented a sign from falling on the royal family, an act of courage that she did not regret having done, however, the confession of the Blooming sisters and Shining a few hours ago had sowed doubts in her mind, now she wondered if that had really been a plan to find someone to tie up, and although their intentions were not malicious, their ways of executing them were questionable.

In the castle, the exact place where her body began to disobey the orders of her brain, she felt a chill as her mind led her there, with the constant fear, helplessness and rage of losing herself again in that spell had accompanied her every second, as if someone was lending her own life, claiming it at convenient times.

She had come so close to losing the chance to participate in the aerial performance, something that meant so much to her, and the thought of losing all that to an external manipulation was unbearable. And how could she forget the permanent anguish of seeing her friends looking at her and treating her like a stranger while they worriedly searched for the mare they had present in front of them, there were many things about that spell she still didn't understand and Dash couldn't help but feel used by her innocence and ingenuity.

Then there was Soarin... The discussion over a silly thing that had resulted in a major misunderstanding still rattled her, she feared she had let him down in some way, and she hoped she would have a chance to repair that situation in the morning. Although she had to admit that this initiative had come about thanks to the conversation with Fleetfoot and Spitfire, she still had her friends' giggles in her mind as they made fun of her “closeness” with Soarin, the mere idea made her heart race a little, causing an involuntary smile. Dash felt confused by her own emotions, wondering if there was actually more going on between her and Soarin than it seemed at first glance. Those jokes of her friends, rather than annoying her, seemed to have awakened a warm feeling inside her, one that she didn't quite understand.

To her regret that feeling did not last too long, at that moment, Dash felt invaded by a deep sense of revulsion, the weight of the agreement with the royal sisters hit her again...

'You see Dash, we believe that, if you set out to meet Aster and let everything blossom between you, that selfless romantic bond would be the ‘loyal union’ that the curse demands.'

A lump formed in her throat.....

'But if Aster doesn't have the slightest idea about all this, only the three of us know about it. For him, this will be just a tour next to Moonflower.'

She began to feel a pain in her stomach.....

'As we said, the dark sorceress stated that only an ‘act of absolutely selfless surrender and union of a pure and loyal soul’, meaning you would have to be willing to selflessly offer an act of pure and loyal love towards Aster, expecting nothing in return other than to break the curse.'

The tension was rising in her chest....

'It is our only hope...Please Rainbow, try. Open your heart to my brother. I'm sure, with your willingness and the purity of your soul, you will succeed. '

'All right, I accept the deal'´

...

Dash sat up with a start, her breathing hitching. Doubts and fears swirled in her mind, a few tears began to escape her eyes as she headed to the bathroom to wash her face.

She felt caught between two worlds, between her own desires and the expectations of others. Sleep eluded her, but at that moment, in the stillness of the night, all she could do was keep breathing and wait for the next day to bring some clarity, waiting for the uncertainty to face the consequences of her actions.

When had it all gone off her hooves? What had she gotten herself into?