Diving Head First

Twilight rose from a dreamless sleep, preceding Celestia’s sweet sun due to her early retreat to bed last night. As such, Spike was still curled in his basket, which she now noticed was beginning to look a bit small for the baby dragon. While he grew considerably slower than compared than an average pony, he still did grow. She resolved to add ‘Get Spike a new bed’ to the list of tasks today. She considered also adding ‘Make sure Spikes clothes still fit,’ but resolved that such a task be reserved for another day. Neither of them really wore clothes that often anyways.

Quickly scrawling the new task on the list, Twilight yawned and began to go through her morning routine. ‘Make bed? Check. Ensure bedroom is still clean? Check.’ Heading downstairs, she crossed the library to the bathroom … only to be stopped by something odd in the corner. Backing up a few steps she looked out the window. ‘What’s a cart doing out front?’

Trotting out the front door she examined the two-wheeled contraption and noticed apple carvings in the wheels. That meant it was probably one that belonged to Sweet Apple Acres. But why was it here?

A blue feather that had remained caught in the pony-hitch answered that question. But why hadn’t Rainbow Dash taken it back when she left? Had she forgotten? Did she intend to come back for it later? Or had she-

Twilight’s eyes widened at the new question and found herself running up the stairs to her study. Carefully turning the handle, Twilight winced as the door squeaked open to reveal the cyan pegasus, sprawled out on the floor, snoring, effectively dead to the world. Twilight found herself banging her head against the doorframe. ‘Why?’ she pleaded. ‘Why does she have to still be here?’

What in the wide world of Equestria possessed her to stay after what happened last night? It looked like she’d hardly moved from where she’d been tied up just hours before.

Twilight sighed, ‘I don’t want to DEAL with this right now.’ She hadn’t had a chance to think about it. And trying to do so now almost made her skin crawl, so she didn’t really even want to think about it.

Twilight took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. ‘Okay,’ she told herself, ‘think about this logically. She stayed behind yesterday because she wanted to apologize and I wouldn’t let her. So … that’s probably what this is.’ The only issue now was whether she should let her friend continue sleeping, or if she should wake her. On the one hand Twilight wouldn’t feel right just letting Rainbow Dash continue sleeping on the floor, but on the other she didn’t want the awkward discussion about what happened last night. However, judging from how tightly the pegasus body was curled she was obviously cold.

Guilt override her own personal wishes and she found a comfortable middle-ground. Levitating a blanket from her bed Twilight approached the blue bundle of fur and feathers. If she woke from the act Twilight would oblige whatever Rainbow Dash had to say, if not then such discussion would wait until later.

Twilight bit her lip as the blanket was draped over the sleeping form. The mare stirred as the new heat source allowed her body to relax, but she did not wake. Twilight sighed and turned to leave, but paused as she heard a murmur. ‘Is she … talking in her sleep?’ she wondered, leaning closer. She’d read books on pony sleeping patterns and various nighttime occurrences such as sleepwalking and the like but never had a chance to study first-hand.

Unfortunately, nothing discernible seemed to emanate. Twilight sighed, “Well that's too bad,”

Rainbow Dash’s ear perked at the sound. “Mmuh ..wha?” Her eyes fluttered open to see Twilight’s snout, mere inches from her own. “BAH!?”

“GAHH!” Twilight shouted, leaping back.

Rainbow Dash tried scrambling to her feet, but the combination of a right hindquarter fallen asleep, only partially functioning brain, and the blanket getting caught under-hoof caused the pegasus to fall face first right where she’d started. The only difference being that the blanket now covered her face as she groaned out an, “Owwww.”

Twilight winced sympathetically, “Sorry.”

“G’morning to you too,” she said half-heartedly. “It is morning, right?”

“Almost.”

Rainbow Dash lifted the blanket from over her eyes. “What were you doing?”

“Nothing … I just …” Twilight realized how saying ‘nothing’ sounded more like ‘something bad’ so tried approaching the subject at a different tack. “I didn’t realize you stayed till I saw the cart out front. So I brought you a blanket and you … you … woke up.” She decided stating her passing interest in Rainbow Dash’s sleep behavior wasn’t the best thing for the situation.

“Oh.” The weathermare tried to scrutinize the explanation, but her tired mind wasn’t up to speed yet so she let it go. “Okay, I guess … Thanks?”

“Yeah.” Twilight scratched her mane awkwardly, looking to the study door and trying to calculate the best exit strategy. “So … I’ll just … let you get back to sleep?”

Rainbow Dash stretched and yawned. “No, I’m good,” she said, standing in hopes she could keep her friend from running out again. “Actually I … well … I wanted to talk with y-”

“N-no” Twilight interrupted. “I’m sorry. I-i just … I wasn’t thinking … or paying attention … and I … I just … got carried away. I didn’t mean to … umm … make you-”

“Yeah,” Rainbow interjected, not quite wanting her to say the word. “It’s just with being tied down … and my hooves being so sensitive … and you getting all,” she swallowed, trying to calm her quickening heart-rate, “being all alpha-mare. It’s just something I’ve always pictured somepony … er … some stallion doing for me.”

Twilight gaped at the sudden confession. Sure, everypony had their own personal fantasies. She just never expected anypony to come out and tell her about them. “I’m sorry, I didn’t … I mean I don’t … I’m not a…” she found her eyes shifting back and forth to check that nopony could hear her whisper, “a fillyfooler.”

“You … you’re not?” Rainbow Dash immediately realized how that question made her sound. “I mean, of course you’re not.

“No”

“I didn’t even...”

“I mean, I see how you might think-”

“and even if you were-”

“-it’s not like I’ve been out with anypony else.”

A tense silence filled the void between the two mares as they finished their hasty explanations; each hardly even registering what the other was saying.

“So,” Twilight was the first to break the silence, “breakfast?”

“Breakfast!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash, thankful for a topic that didn’t involve awkwardness. “Breakfast sounds awesome.”