"A few sips couldn't hurt."

Rarity couldn't help but think about how affectionate Twilight was under the influence, not to mention a generosity that rivaled hers when it came to compliments. She couldn't remember ever being called pretty so many times by one pony in such a small amount of time, drunk or not, but she just guessed that everyone had their own split personality that came out when they went too far, and this was just hers.

Rainbow Dash became even more of a mischievous prankster if you put enough hard ciders in her. Fluttershy turned into someone who...surprisingly had a lot to say about things she didn't like, and she did not hold her tongue on some of those topics, if many of the curses she threw around were any indication. She was almost positive that one of the words Fluttershy spoke was a slur of some kind. Apple Jack turned into a brawler and tried to fight everyone near her, and Pinkie, well, they tried not to talk about Pinkie being drunk. She shuttered, thinking about the railcar incident.

They continued walking down the corridors of Twilights castle, with Rarity occasionally glancing up at the towering walls they walked between. She could absolutely see why Twilight was doing everything she could to stay away from this place that one time, given how big this place was. They did what they could in the end though, and everyone seemed satisfied with the result. Especially Twilight, and that's what really mattered.

As Rarity said that last thing to herself, she noticed Twilight had begun to nuzzle once more. The poor girl has had to deal with so much these past few years. Maybe it all became too much, leading to her looking for a temporary escape. While she didn’t recommend Twilight do this often, or at all honestly, maybe she really needed this.

Rarity had a busy life herself, and while she played an integral role when it came to Equestria and it’s safety, the fate of the country rested more on Twilight’s decisions and actions for the most part when it came to the six of them. That’s got to be a somewhat different type of stress than what she deals with. Depending on how you looked at it, if she failed, she just became homeless or something. If Twilight failed, there wouldn't be a world to be homeless in. She wasn't sure if that last part was entirely true or not, given how it usually took all of six of them to save the world at times. She knew that Twilight was more than capable of handling things, but that didn’t mean that it didn’t come with its own set of hardships.

As these thoughts swirled around her head, she took a moment to shift her eyes toward the mare who had pretty much been attached to her for most of the evening. Twilight seemed so content, so at peace, as opposed to how she had seen Twilight in recent weeks. She’s had all of this thrust onto her at such a young age, and was handling it all surprisingly well.

The more she interacted with Twilight, the more she felt terrible for yelling at her, as well as treating her the way she did. Maybe she should have taken a moment to think about what she had been going through. She should’ve seen the signs, from being cooped up her your office, to constantly turning down invitations to go out with her and the other girls. Spike had mentioned that she hadn’t been talking as much when at home, as well as forgetting to eat. When she had finally agreed to come out with her, she...er, they were ecstatic. Now that she thought back on some of the night's events, she chuckled a little. Whatever was going on with Twilight, she definitely let it out at the party. Her thoughts were interrupted by another aggressive push into her neck from the absolutely delirious mare beside her.

“My Twilight, you sure are rather, eh, close to me this evening.” she said. Her blush had not left her ever since Twilight had attached herself to Rarity’s hip. She was no stranger to being this touchy with her friends before, so she decided the heat in her cheeks was just from how warm it was with Twilight on her. And she assumed the blush in Twilights face was from the alcohol still in her system.

“I just like being close to you Rarity...” she replied with a smile, followed by a small frown....“but, I’ve already upset you enough tonight, so if you want me to get off of you, I will.”

“No no, you’re fine darling, I don’t mind. Besides, y-you’re still a little tipsy, so I’m willing to help you stand on your hooves a little while longer.”

She had no idea why she was so quick to say that. Whatever the reason, Twilight responded by giggling and turning her head to bury her face into Rarity’s neck once more, causing the designer to stiffen a bit as her blush widened across her face once again.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way, Rarity.” Twilight said as they continued to the kitchen. She felt a strange relief when Twilight chose to stay close, then questioned why she did so. She went with the fact that it was pretty cool inside the castle, and just appreciated being close to someone warm.

The two walked slowly in silence for a bit, with Twilight humming contently as Rarity wore a smile that she wasn’t currently aware of. "Now, where is this darn kitchen? I should know where it's at, but it feels like we've been walking in circles."

“Rarity, have I ever told you just how wonderful you are?” Twilight asked out of nowhere.

“Well, you have been calling me pretty all night.” she giggled.

“Yeah, because you are of course, but all it does is compliment your inside beauty. From your looks, all the way to your personality and generosity, you’re everything that anyone could ever want and more. Out of everyone that could’ve been with me tonight, I’m glad it was you, Rarity.”

“Oh, Twilight, I don’t know what to say.” said Rarity. Sober or not, that genuinely felt nice to hear, even though she had been hearing things like that all night. It’s like she was slowly being worn down by Twilight’s seemingly endless stream of compliments.

“It’s okay. We don’t have to talk anymore if you don’t want to. I just wanted to get that out because, after everything, you’ve taken such good care of me. You could have just dropped me off at the door and left, but you stayed.”

“And what in the world makes you think I’d do that, Ms. Sparkle?”

“I don’t know, I made you pretty mad earlier so I thought you wouldn’t wanna see me again.” she finished, making Rarity gasp softly.

“Twilight, drunk or not, I can’t believe what you just said! I stayed because I wanted to make sure you were alright.” she said. “Because we’re friends.”

“Best friends!” Twilight added, once again smiling happily and nuzzling her softly.

“Yes Twilight, best friends.” she said with a short laugh.

“Y’know Rarity, I wouldn’t mind if you stayed forever.”

“Oh, is that so?” Rarity asked, not taking Twilights little comment too seriously.

“It is so. Waking up to such a beautiful face every morning? Not to mention she does everything to make sure you’re ok. She’s such an amazing pony, and I think the world is an amazing place just by her existing.”

Once again, Twilight managed to hit that tried-and-true soft spot Rarity had for being complimented, and she couldn’t help but feel great joy from her friend's choice of words.

“Aaaaw Twilight, that was incredibly sweet of you! Where did that come from?” she asked, nuzzling Twilight slightly in return.

“I don’t know, but I mean it.” she said with a content sigh. “I mean, they are the reasons I fell in love with you and all.”

Rarity stopped dead in her tracks as her mind froze almost as fast as she did. What did Twilight just say?

“T-Twilight, what did you say? Just now?” Rarity asked with slightly wide eyes.

“Huh? What do you mean? I just said that I love you Rarity. You’re the bestest friend I could have ever asked for.” said Twilight, stopping shortly after Rarity did and turning to face her with a smile.

Rarity wasn’t exactly sure what Twilight meant by that. Was Rarity overthinking it and Twilight was just saying that she loved her as a friend? It was how she said it that caught Rarity off guard. Of course, she loved Twilight in return, but not like that, right? That shouldn’t have bothered her as much as it did, but here she was, blushing, nonetheless.

“Oh, well I, love you too darling.” she replied nervously, still a little shaken by Twilight’s words.

“How much?” Twilight asked. Rarity had no problem telling Twilight just how much she loved her, but Twilight was giving her a stare that Rarity used to give to ponies when she wanted a discount on something at a shop, so now she wasn’t sure how to respond.

“W-well, as much as you love me, I guess.” she responded nervously, still slightly shaken up from Twilights earlier statement.

“Really?” Twilight asked, as she got closer to Rarity.

“U-um, of course, darling. You’re very close to me.” she said, as Twilight gave her one more aggressive nuzzle, causing Rarity to let out a very quiet yelp in surprise. “Yes, v-very close indeed.” Now that Twilight said that, the close contact felt a little different.

As different as it felt though, it seemed that every time that Twilight nuzzled her, the longer Rarity didn’t mind letting it go on for. She wasn’t sure how to feel about getting this comfortable with her antics, so she figured she should put a little space in between them, even though that thought made her a little upset for some reason.

“Twilight, as nice as this is, we should really get to the kitchen.” she said, pulling away slightly, causing Twilight to pout a little before attaching herself to Rarity once again.

“Why, what’s the rush?” Twilight replied, as she began circling a now-sitting Rarity while still nuzzling her, like an affectionate cat does to their owner, another fitting choice of words considering how Twilight had been on Rarity ever since arriving at the castle. If only Opaline was this affectionate, she thought.

Rarity began to wonder just how far she was willing to let actions like this go on for before deciding it was too much. That was the thing though, she was mysteriously getting used to this new Twilight, and that’s what was starting to worry her a bit, and she couldn’t figure out why exactly. Probably had something to do with how her drunk friend had been getting more and more intimate with her as the night went on, and not only was the unicorn not stopping it, but she was sort of becoming more welcoming towards it.

Very rarely has she been on the receiving end of such an affectionate, albeit drunk pony, especially one who has been as intense as Twilight has. Maybe because their friendship was already so strong, she didn’t mind this much contact. As long as it didn’t go too far in “that” direction, she decided to let Twilight do as she liked. Is it really such a bad thing that Twilight is so close? As long as nothing crazy happens, right?

“Well, aren’t you still thirsty dear?”

“Oh, I’m thirsty alright.” replied Twilight, giving Rarity a sultry stare.

Upon hearing that, she was immediately reminded that Twilight was just saying anything she fancied because of the drunken state she was in. She also decided that she was just thinking too hard about things, and would just let Twilight be her drunk self until she got it out of her system. Rarity knew that she had been this way enough times to know how ponies get when drunk, even though Twilight was being a little more emotionally aggressive than most ponies she's seen act this way. She was going to give herself a headache with all of this overthinking, well, more of a headache. She needed to relax she told herself, as she sighed quietly.

“Aaaand you have officially used up your last raunchy joke for the evening Ms. Sparkle.” she said, pulling away from Twilight and walking a bit further ahead, as Twilight quickly caught up to walk beside her.

“Raunchy? Oh no, I can show you raunchy Rarity, if you give me that chance.”

“I think not, Twilight Sparkle. I think you’ve had enough fun for tonight, and I don’t get that close with just anyone you know?” she said, causing Twilight to don her signature pout.

“Hey, I’m not just anyone Rarity. I’m your princess, and you’re my prince, aaand my best friend. I think I should get special privileges.”

“Twilight, I’ve probably let you touch me more tonight than I have any other pony in my entire life, other than my parents and dear sister. You are well within your “special privileges”.”

“So, what you’re saying is that you wouldn’t let any other pony touch you like I have before?” said Twilight with a smirk. “Besides, a prince and her princess can do much more than just hug each other y’know?”

“No Twilight, that’s not what I *pfft* that’s not what I meant you naughty little girl, and you know that.” said Rarity, as she tried to stifle a laugh, then fanning her face. She forgot that a drunk Twilight had her funny moments, however crude and inappropriate her words were.

“Well, what do you mean, “darling”?” Twilight mocked as Rarity rolled her eyes and waved a hoof at her.

“Twilight, did I not become your prince no more than a little while ago? I think it’s a little too soon to get that close, don’t you agree?”

“No, I don’t agree. I wanna touch you how I like, whenever I like.” Twilight said with her nose in the air. Rarity wasn’t sure if that was a little aggressive sounding or not, but laughed it off anyways.

“My word Twilight, there’s a name for ponies like you, y’know that?” she giggled.

“What? I’m just trying to show you how much I looove you.” Twilight sung, making Rarity laugh nervously for some reason. Rarity had to remind herself again that Twilight was just drunk.

“There are plenty of other ways to show your love other than having your way with me my dear.”

“Hmmm, okay, how about this then?” Twilight said, stopping in her tracks, as Rarity did the same. “I wanna show you how much I love you, but you don’t want me going too far. I think I have an idea.”

“Twilight, I swear if you ask me something else ridiculous...”

“Nonono, I think you’ll like this one.” she said, as Rarity sighed.

“Okay, I’m listening.” she said, sitting down in front of Twilight to listen to her proposition.

“Alright, so, get this. I wanna see just how comfortable I can get with you before you get uncomfortable.”

“Okaaay?” she said, raising aneyebrow.

“So, I get closer and touchier with you, and you tell me when to stop.”

“Twilight, you’ve been all over me all night. How much closer do you plan on getting?”

“Well, that’s for you to decide.” Twilight said with a chuckle.

Rarity knew Twilight was up to no good with this game, but she oddly thought it to be a fun little idea, so she decided to play along. After all, the rules were clear. She got to tell Twilight when to stop.

“Okay Twilight, I’m game.”

“Yes! Okay, so I’ll start slow.” Twilight said, while sidling up to Rarity until their coats were touching. They sat there for a few seconds as they both shifted slightly as if trying to get comfortable.

“So Rarity, how ya feeling?” Twilight asked, as Rarity looked at the both of them, looking around, then laying her eyes back on Twilight.

“Hmm, well...I feel quite okay. I can't exactly complain. How about you darling?” Rarity said, Twilight donning a grin in response. Seeing that, Rarity knew the princess was about to say something heinous.

“Oh, I feel amazing Rarity. And by amazing, I mean I'm-”

“Twilight, I know what naughty thing you were about to say, and I swear, I will end this game and you will go to bed thirsty.” she said while trying to sound serious, but started to giggle near the end of her sentence.

“Oooooh I think I like this game better Rarity. You can be my mom any day.” Twilight said, playfully pushing Rarity, causing the unicorn to fan her face for a second. Twilight was being so shamelessly flirtatious that Rarity couldn’t hold her laugh in anymore. She must've been taking pages out of Rarity's book.

“Twilight, you are unbelievable. Have you no shame? I can’t believe what I’m hearing from you!” she laughed, as Twilight wrapped both hooves around Rarity’s waist and put her cheek on hers.

“Oh I’m not that bad Rarity. By the way, how’s this?” she asked, referring to how she was now holding Rarity.

“This is nothing compared to what you’ve already been doing darling.

“Oooh so you think I don’t have any more surprises for you?” Twilight said in a high pitched tone.

“Twilight, don’t get any funny ideas. I don’t believe your surprises are of the innocent variety, so I’m afraid to answer that.”

“Hmm, so, would...tickling, be considered a funny idea?” Twilight asked with a mischievous grin, as Rarity frowned and immediately tried to get out of Twilight’s grasp, which had suddenly become a death grip after saying that. Curse her newfound alicorn strength.

“Twilight Sparkle...”

“I mean, it seems pretty innocent to me.”

“I swear to Celestia, don’t you dare.”

“Hey, you said I was well within my special privileges.”

“That’s not what I meant Twilight, and you know th-” Rarity said, before she was cut off by Twilight’s hoofs digging into her sides.

Rarity would have originally been furious if Twilight just started tickling her out of nowhere, but now that they were off the streets and safely between the walls of the castle, she was calmer and more relaxed. Besides, she had slowly been warming up to this newer version of Twilight, so it's not like she was having a terrible time or anything.

“Twilight! Twilight you evil little girl, get off me this instant!! Ahahaha!!” she screamed, as she flailed around.

“If I remember correctly, a certain someone said I could do whatever I wanted once we arrived safely here.” said Twilight, momentarily pausing her tickling of the white mare.

“I can’t believe you remember that! If, If I knew you were going to take advantage of me saying that, then maybe I would’ve left you at the front door!” yelled a laughing Rarity, causing Twilight to back off her and don a frown.

“Do, do you really mean that?” Twilight asked, her sad expression causing Rarity to feel her heart drop a little.

“Oh, Twilight, you know I didn’t mean it like that darling.” she said, still trying to catch her breath. Almost immediately after those words left Rarity's mouth, Twilight looked down for a second, then looked back up at Rarity with another mischievous smile.

“Now you’re really gonna get it!” she exclaimed as she prepared to leap.

“Twilight! Twilight no- AHAHAHA!!” Rarity pleaded, but Twilight was on top of Rarity once more, tickling her sides twice as vigorously, while blowing into her neck, causing Rarity to screech at the top of her lungs.

“Twilight! You are absolutely foul, tricking me like that!” she yelled, her laughing seeming to echo all across the castle. “I’m so gonna get you back for this!!” she yelled as Twilight pulled back to look her in the eyes.

“You’ll have to escape from me first, Rarity!” she said, before going back to blow more raspberries into her neck.

“Oh, I will! You will rue this day Twilight Sparkle, I swear!” she yelled between laughs and gasps for air.

Earlier, she was wondering what the others may think of the two mares acting like this, but now, that was one of the furthest things from her mind. She was enjoying herself far too much right now to worry about such things. These were one of the moments she always imagined having with her partner, when or if she found them. She hadn’t laughed this hard in a while, or had this much fun for that matter. Maybe this was the stress relief she needed as well. She was having so much fun in fact, that she almost didn’t notice Twilight had stopped blowing into her neck and tickling her.

As her breathing steadied and her laughter died down, her eyes remained closed as she felt Twilight slowly going up and down the side of her neck with her nose, then eventually feeling soft pecks on her neck, cheek, and bottom of her chin. Whatever Twilight was doing now, it no longer felt ticklish, but instead quite pleasant. It felt...so...

Rarity suddenly stood up and stumbled backwards a few steps before falling on her hindquarters, slightly startling Twilight. She sat there for a second with a flushed face while breathing heavily.

“Twilight, you were kissing me!” Just now!” Rarity exclaimed, making Twilight chuckle.

“I sure was, and by the way you moaned, you seemed to be enjoying it.” she said with a sultry grin, causing Rarity to blush so hard that her whole body threatened to turn red.

“I was what?!” Moaning?! Huh?” she blurted out.

“I’d be more than happy to give my gorgeous prince some more if she’d like?” Twilight suggested. Rarity was still trying to process what had just happened, but at the same time, she was curious about something.

“Twilight, when did you start doing that?”

“Well, almost as soon as I stopped tickling you. You didn’t stop me immediately, so I....thought you were ok with it.” she said, slowly noticing the expression on the flustered unicorn's face, as a frown started to show on her own. Rarity honestly had no idea Twilight had gotten that intimate with her without her noticing. Was she still drunk herself or something?

“I was...enjoying it...she said? How did I not notice anything until the last minute? She was very comfortable to be near, sure. Her head leaning into my neck, her wonderfully soft kisses going up and down my face like-”

Rarity blinked multiple times, in disbelief at what she was saying to herself, what she was feeling. She had to take a moment to think, with that moment turning into a whole twenty seconds of her just staring at Twilight.

“Rarity?”

Rarity’s thoughts were interrupted by Twilight, who she had almost completely forgotten was there while she was stuck in her own head. She looked up and, for the hundredth time that night, Twilight was on the verge of tears.

“It’s...clear that you didn’t like me doing that to you. I hope I didn’t cross a line or anything. I...I’ve been wanting to do that for a while and, we had gotten so close and...I couldn’t help myself I guess.” she said, starting to sniffle a little.

There it was again. The look that made Rarity’s heart sink, but at the same time, there was something oddly captivating about a teary-eyed Twilight, and she couldn’t put a hoof on it. Not that she reveled in the mare’s misery or anything, and she wanted to do everything she could to help her be happy again, but for some reason, she just...found her to be somewhat beautiful when she cried.

Her mane ruffled like she just got out of bed, glistening tears streaming down her cheeks, her lowered ears, the red that had never left her face the entire night she was with her. Rarity had watched Twilight cry almost all night, so why was she just now thinking about how she looked when sad?

They were spending a lot of time together, and Twilight had been so open with her feelings, even though they probably weren’t real, and just the by-product of her inhibitions being lowered from her heavy consumption of alcohol. If Rarity was being honest, she was enjoying Twilight’s company, and the way Twilight was basically battering her with compliments. Yeah, she remained in a drunken haze, but the things most ponies said when drunk were based off real feelings a lot of the time, at least in her experience. Was this still the case for Twilight right now? No, couldn't be. Where did that thought even come from?

“This isn’t Twilight. It’s just the alcohol talking. Twilight’s a shy bookworm, who is easily flustered by the smallest of compliments. A pony who tells lame jokes, then laughs at them like there’s no tomorrow. Her adorable snort when you manage to make her laugh at something silly, the way her...her half-lidded eyes scan each page as she reads them. The way she comforts me, even over the silliest things, and deals with my antics. And her hugs, gods, Twilight gave the best hugs, and how she nuzzles you with each one when she notices you’ve had a long day, and assures you everything will be okay. Her naturally well sculpted curves, her deep purple eyes you could get lost in, and-”

Rarity paused her thoughts to blink rapidly again and don a subtle look of shock and disbelief. As much as Rarity tried to gain control of her own mind, these intrusive thoughts continued to bubble forth.

“Rarity, what is wrong with you? Get ahold of yourself. You’re not thinking clearly. You’re just... still not sober apparently, that’s it, and you need to get a grip! Get your mind out of the gutter! Twilight is just an amazing friend, and that’s all! Sure you find her amazing and everything but, you don’t like her like that.”

“Rarity, you’re scaring me...you’ve been quiet for a long time. Did...did I mess up that bad?” she asked.

As Rarity continued to stare at her still tipsy friend, the mare seemed to change right before her very eyes. Nothing had really changed with her physically, but she still managed to radiate somehow. Her watery eyes were closed halfway as she had a hoof up to her chest as if it hurt. Her wings were draped halfway over the front of her body, her tail lay in front of her, as her ears laid flat against her head while a strand of her hair fell across her face. She just looked so...

That’s when Rarity felt it. Her heart skipping a beat. It skipped, it jogged, then ran so hard it felt like she was going to lose it.

“Oh, oh my...” she said, putting her hoof over her chest, as if to keep the organ that kept her alive from bursting out of her.

“Rarity, please say something.” Twilight pleaded.

As Twilight’s words finally brought her back to the real world, with her face redder than ever, she managed to get some words out, even if they didn’t come out like she wanted them to.

“No no, darling! You’re fine, I...might’ve overreacted, or maybe not, I don’t know...I just. You can’t just...I mean...” Rarity was a blubbering, flustered mess. She seemingly couldn’t put more than a few words together without fumbling the whole sentence, all the while looking everywhere but at the mare who was making her act like a smitten school filly. There were ponies out there who would pay good money to see the usually lady-like and composed Rarity reduced to this.

“Rarity.”

When Rarity finally mustered up the willpower to lay eyes on the alicorn, she saw that the princess was just about face to face with her.

“Rarity, if you’re upset with me, then I understand. I apologize for my actions tonight. My mind is just, so jumbled right now. I can’t think straight, and for some reason, it gets harder to control myself when I’m near you. My mind goes blank, and my body just does what it wants. I don’t know what’s wrong with me...my head hurts, everything feels foggy...and I just...Oh, I ruined everything, didn’t I? I’m sorry...” Twilight trailed off as she started to let the tears flow once again. Twilight has probably never been this wasted before, so her mind is probably in more of a whirlpool of emotions than Rarity could imagine.

Rarity wasn’t sure how to react, other than bringing Twilight into another deep hug that Twilight quickly melted into. As if a mother consoling her child, Rarity rubbed her back and nuzzled the top of her head, with Twilight resting hers under Rarity’s. She’d worry about her new feelings later. Right now, she wanted to tend to Twilight.

“Nooo, no Twilight. I’m sorry darling, I might’ve overreacted a bit. I hope you’re not upset with me.” she said as sweetly as she could, quickly getting out of her flustered state from earlier.

“I could never be mad at you Rarity.” she said, relaxing even more into Rarity’s warm embrace.

“That’s good dear, and you’re alright, I promise. You’ve just had a lot to drink, and a glass of water and a good night’s rest will have you feeling better.” she said as she rubbed Twilight’s back slowly.

“I’m so sorry for being a mess like this Rarity.”

“Oh Twilight darling, I’m not worried about anything like that. All I care about is you feeling better.” she said back.

“But I’m still sorry. I never meant to cause you trouble. I just….well…..things have been so stressful lately Rarity. In my life I mean. I saw my chance to have a little fun, and I let it get out of control. If I had just been more careful, we wouldn’t be here.” she spoke between sniffles, as Rarity’s expression softened even more upon hearing this.

As she suspected before, Twilight really was just trying to blow off some steam. Seemed like the stress really had caught up to her. Rarity sort of knew how Twilight felt, given her own profession and all with tailoring and trying to keep her fashion businesses up and running, but Twilight wasn’t a dress maker. She was one of the leaders of an entire nation, head mare of a school, as well as many other things. There was no telling how much pressure she was truly under and not telling anyone.

“That might be so Twilight, but you act as if this was the worst night of our lives, when that couldn’t be any further from the truth. I’ve enjoyed myself just as much as you have, quite frankly.”

“You’re lying Rarity, you’re just trying to make me feel better, like earlier.” said Twilight. “If I messed up, just tell me. I can take it.” she said. Something told Rarity that Twilight would not be able to handle being told that she had been a nuisance all night. It didn’t matter though, because Rarity didn’t feel that Twilight was a nuisance anyways. Well, not since arriving to the castle at least. She was going to deal with Twilight and her shenanigans all night no matter what, so that's all that mattered.

“Oh Twilight, I’m not lying, I just...” Rarity looked up and around as she tried to think of something that she could tell Twilight to deliver her from her emotional state. Then she suddenly thought of something. She leaned down and gave a long and loving kiss on the side of Twilights head. In response to this, Twilights ears perked up as she turned to look at Rarity, who smiled at how Twilight seemed to switch moods because that small gesture.

“I don’t know how to convince you Twilight, but I’ll say this. I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be right now.” she said, causing the mare to smile at Rarity with eyes that the unicorn couldn’t look away from, even if she wanted to.

“I know things are hard Twilight, but you’re doing an amazing job. No one could have done what you have so far, and you’re only going to do greater things from here on out. You have friends Twilight, don’t forget that. We’re here for you, remember?” she said before pausing for a second to look away, before looking back at Twilight. “I'm here for you.” she finished.

She didn’t blink, nor did she look away for even a second as she said those words. Twilight blushed heavily in response. The two just stared at each other, until Twilight finally got off of Rarity, then proceeding to sit there in front of her for a second as Rarity stared back at her in return, waiting to see what would happen next.

“Rarity, am I actually as amazing as you say I am?”

“What? What do you mean, of course you are darling.” Rarity said. Her rapidly beating heart would absolutely agree as well.

There was another pause before Twilight spoke again.

“Well Rarity, *sniff* I think you’re pretty amazing too.” she said with a smile as Rarity smiled back, happy to have her sudden new crush happy again.

“Actually, I think you’ve always been amazing.” said Twilight suddenly leaning in towards Rarity, who slightly surprised herself by not moving away, but welcoming the close proximity.

“I know I’ve been saying things like that all night but, you can’t comprehend how much I really appreciate your company Rarity, how much I’ve always appreciated you being around. From listening to you happily hum when making dresses, to how you always think of others first, your insatiable drive to be the best, all the while remaining as generous as can be.”

“Twilight’s still drunk...right?” Rarity asked herself while feeling her heart beat faster and her face grow redder. Compliments felt twice as amazing when they came from someone whom you’ve just discovered a new type of fondness for. Her thoughts came to a halt as Twilight was so close that she could feel her breath on her lips.

“I’m sorry for doing what I did earlier, and being so close to you all this time. I just haven’t been able to control myself around you lately.” she spoke with half-lidded eyes. She looked down before looking back up at Rarity, who was still wearing a slightly shocked expression on her face. “You’re so caring, and loving, and thoughtful. Whatever flaws you have, they are heavily outweighed by all of the good things about you. You’re amazing overall, Rarity. Always have been.”

A lot of thoughts came to Rarity’s mind. There are a lot of things you shouldn’t do with someone who seemed to not have complete control of themselves. Rarity would never take advantage of a pony in a way such as this, or that’s what she told herself anyway. But here she was, letting Twilight kiss her, while she did nothing but sit there with wide eyes, that soon fluttered halfway, then fully closed as Twilight kissed her with a passion so fiery that it felt like it could heat a thousand homes, with Rarity somewhat uncontrollably returning the kiss with the same amount of intensity.

Rarity was thinking how she should really be pushing Twilight off of her, telling her that she doesn’t know what she’s doing. What would Twilight think of this in the morning? Would she even remember? Twilight was drunk, but what would Rarity’s excuse be? Could she get away with saying that she was drunk too? She should stop this but, her stars, was this nice. The slight taste of liquor that remained on Twilight’s lips did nothing to dissuade Rarity to stop, but it had to stop soon. It wasn’t right, and she felt she was taking advantage of her, even though Twilight kissed her first, so she figured she would end this.

As Rarity pulled away, Twilight quickly closed the distance between their lips again, to which Rarity responded to by pushing Twilight away slightly.

“Twilight, I can’t darling, I...” she tried to finish, but was cut off by another aggressive kiss from Twilight. With each kiss, Rarity found it harder and harder to push Twilight away. There was so much emotion in this kiss, how could she possibly pull back this time? Time seemed to stop and the space around her seemed to disappear.

All there was in that moment was Twilight. Her wonderfully soft lips, her wings that were now wrapped around Rarity’s back, and her forearms that found their way around her waist, as Rarity’s own forearms found their way around Twilight’s waist in return. Rarity felt so safe and loved in this moment. The castle could crumble around them and Rarity might honestly pay it no mind. Rarity knew this was wrong, she really did, but she couldn’t stop. She didn’t want to. She’d deal with the repercussions of her actions later, but right now, she’s never been kissed like this before. She wondered when Twilight had become such a good kisser? Knowing her, she might’ve researched it.

The kiss that seemed to last a lifetime, finally ended when both mares pulled back, seemingly out of breath. Rarity panted heavily as a blush remained on her face.

Rarity was, simply put, looking at her “friend” in a very different light now, and she wasn’t entirely sure what to make of this new situation. She was also thinking of everything that led up to these events. It started with Twilight drinking herself into oblivion, a drunken journey back to the castle, and the drunken antics that followed once they were within the castle walls. It wasn’t soon after that that Twilight became more affectionate than a rescued kitten as the night went on.

As if the realization of what she had done had finally hit her, Twilight’s eyes went slightly wide as her ears drooped down.

“I, I definitely went too far that time, and I didn’t stop when you pushed me away. I...I broke the rules of my own game. I’m sorry...”

Rarity was still somewhere between utter shock and pure bliss. A subtle red still tinged her muzzle as her eyes remained half lidded. She took a few seconds before responding to Twilight.

“No dear, It’s okay, and...I did say you could do anything once we arrived at the castle, and what kind of mare would I be if I went back on my word?” Rarity said. Twilight stared at Rarity for a second, looked around while sighing nervously, then back to Rarity.

“Uum, in that case, could I...could we... do that again? I really enjoyed it.” Twilight asked shyly as her own blush spread.

“Don’t you dare Rarity Belle! You need to make the mature decision and say no! Say! No!” Rarity yelled to herself mentally as she continued to stare at Twilight with a calm expression.

“Of course, darling.” Rarity replied. “A deal’s a deal after all.” she said, having not broken eye contact with Twilight since the last kiss had ended.

“Rarity Lucille Belle, you are a lost cause, and a disappointment! You should be ashamed of yourself! You..! You...”

Rarity’s inner voice trailed off as Twilight once more pushed herself onto Rarity, as the unicorn let herself fall victim to Twilight lips once more.

This kiss lasted for a good ten seconds before Rarity felt Twilight’s lips leave hers, to her slight disappointment. She assumed that Twilight had had enough and decided to pull back...

...and pull back she did.

When Rarity opened her eyes, she saw an unconscious Twilight lying on the ground and snoring softly. Rarity just stared at the soundly sleeping alicorn for a few seconds before letting out a tired sigh.

“Guess her exhaustion finally caught up to her.” She said, not entirely there mentally. Once she had a moment to think to herself, her entire face immediately turned red, as her eyes widened a bit.

“Oh my goodness, what was I thinking?! How could I do that with an intoxicated pony, and my best friend at that!? There’s a name for ponies like me, and it’s not a good one! I usually have more self-control than that, I’m usually thinking more clearly but, but all of that vanished, went right out the window when it came to...” she trailed off, as she once again looked at the sleeping Twilight. Her chest slightly heaved in and out, as she donned a very small grin on her face.

Her heart began to race again. She put a hoof up to her chest as she continued to stare at the princess sleeping before her, who looked just as mesmerizing in her peaceful slumber. All the events of the night had played again in her head. All the compliments, all the touching, the hugging, the laughing. Watching the ridiculously adorable bookworm that was Twilight Sparkle, enjoy herself, and seemingly enjoy Rarity’s company so much.

“I....I think....oh dear...” she said quietly.