//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: A Heart For 2 // by solsticebrony888 //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash flew into her bed cloud almost hard enough to break it. She yelled in agony, the thought of what she had just done, and the guilt of how much she enjoyed it ate at her conscious viciously. She flopped her head into her hooves and sighed loudly. It hurt her to know she betrayed the pony she's been with for nearly 4 months, and hurt even worse to know she felt a bigger connection with a mare she met the same day, than with Soarin. "How could I do this.." She vented out-loud, "I'M THE ELEMENT OF LOYALTY! And I couldn't even be loyal to a Wonderbolt!" "He's never able to do anything with me! All he does is work! The only thing we've done together is a parade!" She rationalized, though in Vain. She had a change of heart, the subject of he anger now was herself ,"Don't try to give a reason why you cheated on him! Nopony deserves that!...Especially a Wonderbolt, I'm the worst pony I know!" She shrunk into nearly a fetal position. She knew she had a lot of thinking to do. For comfort, she kept speaking out loud to herself. "Ok, Rainbow Dash. You've gotten out of worse things than this. what can I do? It was just a little kiss, wasn't it?" She thought for a second "It wasn't just a little kiss...We kissed twice, and for a long time, and... I loved it! LOVED IT! What's wrong with me?! I kissed a mare and I loved it...Never though I'd say that!" She turned over in her bed "I need somepony to talk too...BUT WHO? It has to be Fluttershy and Applejack..." No other pony could help more, than two of her best friends, who went through similar struggles. She sat up, and sighed. "I'll fix this..." She darted into the chilly night, avoiding the clouds she hadn't cleared to save time. A few minutes of flying and she quickly made her way to Fluttershy and Applejack's home near Everfree forest. Completely unrelated to the task at hoof, a thought popped up in her head 'Why does Fluttershy live so close to a forest she's so afraid of...? "Pleasebeawakepleasebeawakepleasebeawake!" She whispered silently to herself as she approached the door. No matter how much she wanted to be, she knew this wasn't the time to be cool about everything. She knocked on the door lightly, consciously trying not to disturb the animals she knew were near. The door opened slowly to reveal Applejack squinting to see who it was. "R-Rainbow? What in tarnation are ya doin' here? Shouldn't ya be at the party?" Applejack said with her head cocked sideways in confusion. "I should...but something happened, and you two are the only ones I think i can talk too about this." Rainbow Dash responded, her eyes pleading for them to agree to help her. "Sure, come on in, Make yerself home, We'll try an' help as much as we can, Ah hope it ain't nothin' too bad!" The orange pony said to the relief of the blue Pegasus. Rainbow glided over to the couch and sat, as Fluttershy was walking down the stairs. "Oh, um, hello Rainbow Dash! Why are you here?" "You know this hard for me to say, because I usually solve my own problems, but something happened at the party after you left and you two are the only ponies I think I can confide in" "Well, what happened?" Applejack questioned, as she and Fluttershy sat down next to each other. With a sigh, she confided in her friends, telling them the whole story from when she and Vinyl Scratch first met, to the rising tension between each time they found each other during the party, to her flying away leaving the unicorn alone, a block from the party. The understanding ponies before her calmed her nerves considerably. She knew she went to the right place. "...And that's when I decided to come here...you guys would understand more than anypony," Applejack nodded ,"Ah knew us and Lyra and BonBon couldn't be the only ones," The orange pony mused, trying the shed light on the situation. However, it didn't phase the stressed Pegasus that lay on the couch before her. "All I know is, I just met her, and I can't just end something I have with Soarin...too many reasons why," "Seems to me, yer thinking more about eventually ending everythin' with Soarin' and startin' something with Vinyl Scratch than trying to fix things with Soarin'" "What I felt with her, I've never felt with Soarin'! And I just met her today..." The pony felt incredibly uncool for expressing her feelings so openly, but still she bit her tongue, knowing it was her only option. "The thing is...If I ended everything with Soarin, my chances of becoming a Wonderbolt, everything I've lived for! Practically ruined! And even if I did become one, I can't imagine the awkwardness," "Golly, Rainbow, Ya sure got yerself into a pickle,"The orange pony said, as she eased into a more comfortable position on the ground ,"Think of yer future, If ya truly don't want to be with Soarin, and you stay with him, if and when ya become a Wonderbolt, You'll spend day an' night with em'! That sounds worse than takin' a chance with somepony new, ya know, especially if ya felt such a connection wth her? And Ah'm sure you can get into the Wonderbolts either way. Knock that nonsense out of yer head," "It's situations like these that kept me from gettin' into these lovey-dovey type stuff in the place.." She then took in what Applejack had just said ,"W-when I was around her, I felt like I needed to impress her, I was so, AWKWARD!. For no reason! But when I first really got to know Soarin, I tried to impress him more because he's, well, a Wonderbolt!, not because I really liked him more than a friend..but... I do love him now..it's just not the same as what I felt with Vinyl, not even close," Fluttershy smiled, and spoke calmly ,"um, Rainbow, I think this would be something that you would regret someday if you didn't take a chance..we did, and I'm happier with Applejack than I've ever been..." The orange pony smiled proudly, nodding in agreement. "Blech. I feel so vulnerable. I'm not used to sharing feelings and whatever. But you guys have cleared a lot up for me. You two are life-savers," "Anytime, Rainbow. I understand why ya came to us, and ya can again if ya need too, juss maybe not this late next time, alrighty?" The orange pony gestured towards the clock on their wall, it showing 15 minutes past 10. "Well, I can't determine when I'm gonna need a problem fixed, this more than big for me..." She took a deep sigh, sinking into her hooves ,"I kissed a mare...twice...N-not that there's anything wrong with it, I just know either way, I'm losing something huge in my life," Applejack and Fluttershy stood silently, letting her vent her feelings. "M-maybe it's because she's almost as cool as me? I don't know!" Her voice rose sharply with a crack ,"WHY ME?" The shy pegasus, laying on the ground spoke up ,"Look, Rainbow...I think you need to remember this before making these decisions. um, if you're the best flyer, and you are, I mean, You DID do the Sonic Rainboom twice, and nopony else has even done it ONCE! I'm sure whatever you have with Soarin' won't um, effect them letting you in.." Her logic broke a barrier in the rainbow Pegasus' insecurities about her situation. "That's a good point...but what if I end it all with Soarin, and then the thing with Vinyl Scratch was only a one time thing? Or what if she found somepony new? I'll be left with nopony!" "Since when did Rainbow Dash need somepony to BE somepony? Ya ain't even soundin' like yerself. These ponies gotcha all twisted like hay," "Hmmm...," Applejack's statement seemed to spur an epiphany for Rainbow Dash ,"You're right Applejack!" Exclaimed the pegasus, flying into the air idly above the couch ,"I think I know what to do now!" She flew towards the door, but Applejack jumped up before she left ,"Now Rainbow, don't think yer gonna leave without tellin' us what yer plan is!" The pegasus reluctantly flew back onto the couch ,"Alright! Alright! Guess ya two deserve to know, since you helped me and whatever," With the expectant eyes of Fluttershy and Applejack upon her, she explained her plan ,"I ain't gonna end things with Soarin yet, but I am gonna spend time with Vinyl, I need to know if what I feel for her is real...I won't do anything more than hang with her, I can control myself, I hope...If things seem better with Vinyl, Then I'll do what needs to be done, if things seem better with Soarin' then nothin needs to change, if both just ain't workin' out, then this pony will be a lone wolf!" The excited Rainbow Dash finished triumphantly, considerably in a better mood about the conundrum she had gotten herself into. "Well, good luck with that Rainbow...I hope everythin' turns out better fer ya. Maybe now you can understand me and Fluttershy's feelings for each other better than ya did before all this," The earth pony said, hinting to the pegasus that they knew she treated them differently since they've been together. "W-was I that obvious about it? I'm sorry" Said the pegasus, disappointed in herself. "Um, just a little...but it's ok I guess" "How'd I make it so obvious?" She changed positions in the couch to better the face the two. "Ya juss seemed, well, different around us ever since we told everypony 'bout us..but it's nothin' now. Ah mean, ya came to us first...that means more than anything," Reassured the orange pony, with an agreeing nod from Fluttershy. "It's getting late, I'm sure you guys want some alone time, I have a lot to think about, and a lot to do. Whatever I was thinking before about you two, I was wrong. I never realized how perfect you two are for each other..." The Rainbow Pegasus squeezed out a compliment to make sure her past judgments on the couple were somewhat forgotten. "Thanks Dash, Ah couldn't agree more with ya," Said the orange pony with a loving glance to her partner beside her, "Goodnight!" "Goodnight!" Said the Rainbow Pony as she exited, but with no intention to go to sleep anytime soon. Launching herself into the cold night air, she once again set her sights on the party at Sugarcube Corner.