Prism

Prism

Chapter Four

The two mares locked gazes for a moment. Rainbow Dash panted heavily, a small trickle of sweat ran down her forehead. They didn’t maintain eye contact for long, as Rainbow’s eyes jumped around the room restlessly. Her mane was dishevelled by the wind, and her coat messy. She looked shocked.

Before Rainbow could comprehend that she was face to face with her marefriend, Twilight bolted to her own room, slamming the door behind her. She ran and threw herself into the warm embrace of her bed. She couldn’t face her marefriend now. She saw what Rainbow had done with Applejack; the nuzzle. The unicorn saw them slowly head to the barn right before Pinkie appeared.

What happened in there?

Twilight was dying to know, and judging by the state Dash was in, something must have happened. But she knew that she couldn’t ask Rainbow, or her lie about going to Canterlot would see daylight. The unicorn cringed when she realized the weight of the situation. She lied to the pony she loved the most. A small tear slid down her cheek. Lying was something that the unicorn hated above anything else. She still remembered an important lesson Pinkie once taught her. The pink pony’s voice echoed through her head.

Losing a friend’s trust is the fastest way to lose a friend. Forever!

Immediately she felt regret for her stupid decisions. Rainbow was more than a friend to Twilight; she was her marefriend. She didn’t want to lose her forever. The unicorn buried her head in the pillow, shedding more tears. This wouldn’t have happened if she just went to the festival with Rainbow. She would have stuck to her marefriend the whole night and not let Applejack do anything.

The thought of the orange pony brought new tears. What was happening in her head when she nuzzled Rainbow? Twilight gritted her teeth in sudden anger. Applejack surely couldn’t just forget that Dash is Twilight’s marefriend!

She was brought back to reality with a loud bang on the door. Rainbow must have climbed the stairs, and now was trying to get in. Twilight didn’t know what to say, so she just tried to calm down and listen. She knew that from Rainbow’s perspective she didn’t have a reason to act like that. She was supposed to be in Canterlot with the princess. She felt her stomach twist as she realized the horrid truth: no matter how hard she will try to cover up the lie, Dash will eventually know.

Twilight heard hoofsteps on the stairs. She supposed that Dash was going to sleep on the couch tonight. She sighed, relieved that she she won’t have to have a hard conversation with her today, but still anxious. She laid her head on the pillow and stirred for a while, trying to find a comfortable position. She stared into the darkness as long minutes slipped by, the weight of her troubles preventing her from sleep.

-«<♦>»-

Warm sunrays crept through the slit in the window drapes and landed squarely on Twilight’s face. She slowly raised her hoof to block them and crack opened her eyes. They burned for a while. The unicorn sat on the bed and looked around, rubbing her eyes. Dash wasn’t laying next to her, crushing her sweet hope that maybe all of this was just a dream.

Twilight stole a glance at herself in the vanity mirror on her way to the door. Her mane had seen better days, and her eyes were slightly red from the lack of sleep. She doubted if she even had a mere hour of sleep; she spent most of the night thinking about all of the possible things she could say when she faced Rainbow. Unfortunately, she hadn’t managed to come up with anything sounding good.

She held her breath and unlocked the door, stepping out and immediately looking to the couch. It was empty. Twilight released the air, took a few deep breaths, and walked down the stairs. A small part of her was relieved that facing Dash was postponed yet again. The look of the couch confirmed that somepony was sleeping on it. A creased blanket was laying on the floor. The only question was where the mare went.

An idea started to form in her mind. Suddenly it seemed so obvious. She didn’t need to ask Rainbow or Applejack to know more about what happened at the party. All of her other friends had been there too. She just needed to ask one of them. Twilight pondered for a while who would be the best to go to. Somepony comforting, dependable and sure not to give her secret away.

-«<♦>»-

Twilight knocked on the cottage door lightly, startling various critters and making them race to their nests. The door soon opened, revealing a yellow pegasus.

“Good morning, Twi—” She stopped mid sentence, gasping at her friend’s mane. “Oh my, come in!”

Twilight made a flat face, but followed the pegasus inside. Before she could say something, she heard someone sprint down the stairs.

“Twilight!” Spike yelled, taking a corner and charging at the unicorn. She was embraced by the dragon’s small but strong arms. Twilight barely managed to recover from the mental shock. She completely forgot that Spike was staying at Fluttershy’s cottage and helping her with all of the animals seeking shelter before autumn. This saddened her, but she made her best effort to act happy.

“Hello, Spike,” she said.

“What’s wrong, Twilight?” He asked, his smile fading slowly. He noticed her messy mane and coat.

The unicorn sighed. She really wanted to keep the young dragon out of her problems, scared that they might overwhelm him. Twilight remained silent, her mind trying its best to come up with an answer. Before she could say anything, Fluttershy spoke.

“Spike, go outside, would you kindly? It’s still warm, but not all of the animals are tended to.” She asked.

Twilight couldn’t help but shiver at her friend’s tone of voice, and the look she gave Spike made her heart skip a beat. She realized that it was more of an order than a question.

They stared at each other for a moment before Spike turned and exited the cottage, barely a word spoken. The unicorn followed her assistant with her gaze until the door closed behind him.

“I’m sorry, Twilight...” Fluttershy apologized looking back at her friend. It took Twilight a moment to respond.

“It’s... alright...”

“Come and sit down,” Fluttershy invited, sitting on the couch, making place for Twilight. “I won’t ask what’s wrong...” She paused.

This made the unicorn raise a surprised brow as she sat down.

“...because I know.” She finished quietly. All of Twilight's muscles tensed as she heard this. What does she know? Her secret? How much does she know? Before Twilight was able to voice her concerns, Fluttershy spoke again.

“I’ve known that there are problems between you and Rainbow... I saw what she and Applejack were doing during the festival. I saw them nuzzle.”

“How... how did you know?”

“It was going on longer than you probably realize.” Fluttershy continued, “Just the way Applejack looked at Dash, and acted around her for the few past months.”

Twilight could feel her heart drop. She was suspecting it before, and now it turned out to be the truth. Applejack had feelings for her marefriend. She felt angry, but she fought against it with all her might, closing her eyes and taking a few deep breaths. “Does anypony else know?”

“Rarity. You know about our weekly spa trips, and she just loves every last bit of gossip, even about her close friends. We kind of... figured Applejack out. It wasn’t hard.” The pegasus finished, looking guilty.

Twilight gulped as the most important question still wasn’t answered.

“Do you know what happened at the barn?” Twilight didn’t manage to bite her tongue fast enough. Her eyes widened in fear. Nopony was supposed to know that she saw them head to the barn. Everypony was supposed to think that she was in Canterlot! Hear heart raced a million miles an hour.

Fluttershy read her friend like a open book. “I know that you didn’t go to Canterlot, Twilight.”

The unicorn suddenly felt light headed. Two ponies already knew. Her muscles relaxed involuntarily as two warm hooves wrapped around her body, supporting her. She felt Fluttershy’s mane brush against her face, strangely calming her.

“Don’t worry, I’m the only one to know.” Fluttershy said, stroking Twilight’s mane.

No, you aren’t! The unicorn screamed, feeling vulnerable and weak. All of her secrets were lying right in front of her friends.

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell anypony, not even Rarity.” Fluttershy continued comfortingly. When she was sure that Twilight won’t topple over all by herself, she let go.

“Twilight, I’m afraid that I don’t know much about the barn...” She said, her ears dropping. “I saw one thing though, a while after they went in, Rainbow bolted out, nearly smashing the door. She looked shocked, she ran as if her hooves caught fire. That’s all I saw.”

Twilight felt her heart sink again. She wished that she hadn’t gone to Fluttershy at all. She hadn’t learned anything valuable or new. Well, except for the fact that more ponies knew her secrets than she thought.

-«<♦>»-

Dash looked into the distance, squinting from the sun rays that hit her face, despite a protective hoof held in the air. She looked at the vast apple orchard, and at the red barn. She lowered her hoof and slowly laid down on the soft fabric of the cloud. Her head pulsated with pain as the sun was more glaring than usual.

She just couldn’t get herself to work. She was supposed to prepare a small storm for tomorrow, but the combination of her headache and still hazy mind prevented her from doing anything but lay on the cloud. She vaguely remembered waking up and leaving the library before Twilight. A cringe crossed her face as she remembered the party and Applejack.

The pegasus couldn’t help but raise her heavy head again, looking at the orchard’s sea of green. She knew that Applejack was hidden deep, somewhere among the trees. Dash didn’t know what to do. She punched the cloud she was sitting on in frustration, making a small hole in it.

She loved Twilight, she was sure. Each hug, kiss and night they spent in each other's warm comfort was testimony enough. But Applejack set off a train of emotion that the cyan mare couldn't hope to stop. It was almost like Applejack precisely knew what Rainbow’s reaction would be.

She went back in time to the party, recalling the events. Alcohol buzzes in her brain, dulling her senses and impairing her judgment. Applejack comes up, and tells her to follow. They both slowly head to the barn, and go inside. Rainbow remembered laughing at something, having no clue what was about to happen. She opens her eyes to see the orange mare slowly inching closer to her, but partly due to her drunkenness, she doesn’t move away. Before she can do anything, two powerful hooves seize her by the head. She gasps as she is pulled in right into Applejack, lips to lips. She feels her jaw open as Applejack slides her tongue in. Dash moans as the world around her twists and disappears, leaving only them both in an embrace. Rainbow picks her own hooves from the ground and places them firmly upon the farmer’s head and back, knocking her hat off. She pulls, letting their bodies touch, her tongue venturing deeper into Applejack. She feels the sweet pain of breathlessness, but wants nothing more than this moment to last forever.

Suddenly, the universe shatters around her, like a glass bottle thrown to the ground. Rainbow’s eyes go wide as she pulls out of the kiss violently. Applejack jumps, shooting her a surprised glance. Her heart is racing as her mind tries to comprehend what she just did. Her bliss is now completely gone. She spots the barn door in terror, and without a backward glance shoots out of it with speed.

Rainbow is on the cloud again, feeling her hurting temples. What was Applejack thinking when she kissed her? A shiver came down her spine when she remembered the exact moment of the kiss again. She wanted to be mad at the orange mare, but somehow she couldn’t. Rainbow didn’t want to admit it herself, but she kind of liked what Applejack did to her. The feeling of having somepony new was overwhelming her. She repeated to herself that she loved Twilight, but the words rang more and more hollow each time. Every time she closed her eyes, even for a moment, she couldn’t help but envision Applejack slowly moving towards her, her strong hooves embracing Rainbow’s head.

-«<♦>»-

Author's note - Hey readers, sorry for taking this ridiculous five month hiatus. I was kind of busy, putting emphasis on was. In the upcoming months I'll hopefully have more time to complete this story. I hope that people haven't completely lost interest in this!