Outside the room, Dinky is sitting by herself, feeling a bit unhappy about what happened. She really wanted Rumble to pay a bit more attention to her. She knows he has marefriend and all but she was there for him first, he could give Dinky some moments of his attention.
But then again, maybe it's no big deal, perhaps she's getting upset over nothing. He did say he would watch of course, but it's not like he meant to upset her.
She looked inside the room and saw Sweetie Belle trying another trick, though this trick involved her trying to write something using her magic. She figures to just go back in there, no use missing out on a magic lesson just because she was slightly annoyed by what had just happened.
Speaking of which, as she looked in the room, Rumble was barely paying attention to Sweetie Belle, instead looking a little confused. Dinky figures he probably feels terrible for what happened, she knows he doesn't like the idea of upsetting her. She figures she could go keep him company, besides she can't stay mad at him.
She trotted into the room and sat next to Rumble, getting his attention.
"Hey you're back," Rumble said, looking a bit happier.
"Yeah," Dinky said with a slight nod, then turned back to Sweetie Belle. "I didn't wanna miss the next lesson."
Rumble looked down a bit sadly, "I know you said you weren't mad, but I know you well enough to know that something's bothering you. I should have realized how big a deal it was for you to be able to teleport that stick a little, knowing how much trouble you had."
"It's nothing really, I'm not that upset," Dinky insisted. "But thanks for apologizing."
Rumble looked to her a bit concerned, "Is that really it? I know you feel more than that Dinky."
"Yeah, that's really it, don't worry about it," Dinky said with a fake smile.
Rumble didn't look too convinced, he knows when Dinky is faking something, the problem is that he has almost no clue what to do to really make it better for her. He could start by placing his wing around Dinky in a slight hug, hoping she really is calmer than before, "Well as long as you're alright, but if something is bothering you, please tell me, I don't like seeing you unhappy."
Dinky nodded with a small but more genuine smile, she knows that Rumble cares a lot for her, even if he has less time for her lately. Though she should have expected that, she knew for so long that of course Rumble is gonna give more attention to Sweetie Belle.
But why does it still bother her?
Moments later it was time for Dinky to practice her magic with Starlight. She had to do the same thing that Sweetie Belle was doing and write on some paper with the magic of her horn.
"Rumble, please try to pay attention this time, I need your support as well," Dinky said, looking to Rumble with some pleading eyes.
"Sure, I'll do that," Rumble said with a friendly nod.
Dinky approached the pen and lifted it up, she looked back to see if Rumble was watching. He was, though Sweetie Belle had started nuzzling against him. Dinky sighed a bit, knowing there was a good chance Rumble might lose focus again, but she should expect that.
She really has no idea why this is bugging her, knowing she herself had told Rumble she was ok with him giving Sweetie Belle more attention. She's the one who did everything she could to get them together.
Was she regretting it?
Dinky shook her head, she can't think like that, where is this even coming from all of a sudden? She was fine with it before wasn't she?
Dinky started to write on the paper, really carefully, trying to balance the pen, hoping not to make any mistakes. Her writing was a bit sloppy but she at least was able to get something in the paper.
"Wow, you're doing so great Dinky!" Starlight said.
Dinky turned slightly to see if Rumble was watching, though to her slight annoyance, he had turned away, he was kissing Sweetie Belle's face a little. Though as if sensing her gaze, he quickly turned to her and gave a quick smile.
Dinky returned the smile, though she did feel a bit irritated. She was grateful he at least tried looking again, she wonders how long it would last though. However due to her not looking as she was writing, she hadn't been concentrating on what she was doing, causing some trouble.
"Um, Dinky, the writing needs to stay on the paper," Starlight said, gesturing to the fact that Dinky was now writing on the floor.
The small filly was confused by that, though when she turned around, she was surprised and a bit embarrassed by her mistake. "Ah! Sorry about that!" Dinky quickly pulled the pen away. "I wasn't paying attention."
"That's fine, it's no big deal, but do try to focus, it's a key part of using magic," Starlight reminded.
"Yes Miss Glimmer," Dinky said.
Starlight blushed upon hearing that, "Um, just Starlight is fine, you don't need to be so formal."
"Is it me or do most grown ponies not like being called 'Mister' or 'Miss'?" Apple Bloom asked.
"True, Rarity tells me not to call her 'Miss Rarity'," Rumble said.
Tender Taps looked a bit glum, "Lucky you, she expects that from me."
"Rumble is dating her sister after all," Sweetie Belle said as she gestured to herself.
Tender Taps groaned, then felt Scootaloo place her hoof around him, "You won't have to worry about that with Rainbow Dash, she's not that formal."
Apple Bloom looked a bit jealous, so she moved in closer to Tender Taps, "Neither does mah sister."
"Good to know," Tender Taps said, feeling a little uneasy from their sudden attention, knowing this could get competitive.
Starlight placed two pieces of paper down on the floor, "Alright, now Sweetie Belle, come here a moment, I want to test something with the both of you.
Sweetie Belle and Dinky approached Starlight, both sitting down before the pieces of paper.
"What do you have in mind?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"You two are gonna do this at the same time, I'm gonna ask you to write out something so I can see how you two do side-by-side," Starlight said.
"Cool, now they're gonna race!" Scootaloo said.
"It's not really a race, just a comparison," Starlight corrected.
"So you're just gonna see how well they do at the same time?" Rumble asked.
"Exactly, and I want to state again that this is not a competition, I don't want either of you to feel inferior to one another," Starlight said.
"This would be a bit more fun to watch if it was a competition," Scootaloo said, earning a slight glare from her friends and Starlight.
"Not all things need to be competitive," Starlight said. "Anyway whenever you girls are ready."
Dinky and Sweetie Belle nodded and looked down at the paper.
"Good luck girls," Rumble cheered.
Sweetie Belle quickly trotted to Rumble gave him a nice kiss, leaving both in bliss. "Thanks, I do feel lucky now."
Dinky huffed angrily, then trotted over to Rumble and pulled him into an affectionate hug, "Now I feel lucky as well."
This surprised everypony in the room, especially Rumble and Sweetie Belle. Rumble is used to hugs from Dinky, but this one felt a bit different, like she really wanted to be close to him. Sweetie Belle almost felt a bit jealous, even if she's Rumble's best friend from before the two started dating, she didn't care for how quick she was to give him a hug like that.
The two went back to their papers, glaring at each other slightly as they lifted their pens with their magic.
Starlight wasn't sure what to make of this, so she just decided to begin the lesson. "Alright, go."
The two fillies proceeded to write on the paper. They wrote random words, mostly whatever objects happen to be around them. Starlight observed them, comparing both their progress to each other as they continued their writing. From the looks of things, Dinky was doing slightly better than Sweetie Belle, not that the fancy Unicorn wasn't doing good in her own right.
The other foals just waited, though Scootaloo looked a bit bored. She wants to be supportive of her friends, but she's too energetic to sit still in one place.
After about five minutes, Starlight instructed the two fillies to stop. "That should do it." She looked over both of their papers, comparing the detail and the speed. "Alright, looks like Dinky has a slightly better speed."
"Alright!" Dinky shouted gleefully.
Sweetie Belle pouted, but cheered up when Starlight spoke again, "But Sweetie Belle, you're very neat with how you write, you especially wrote Rumble's name pretty well I should say."
Sweetie Belle looked relieved, "Thanks, Rumble always makes me feel more confident after all." Sweetie Belle turned to Rumble with an affectionate gaze, "I always feel more confident when I'm around him."
Rumble sheepishly blushed, "Thanks Sweetie Belle."
Dinky rolled her eyes, though couldn't blame Sweetie Belle for what she said, knowing those words were very true. Rumble has been the foal that's always helped her feel confident in herself.
"Mind if I see Sweetie Belle?" Rumble asked.
Sweetie Belle showed Rumble her paper with her magic writing. "How does it look?"
Rumble analyzed the paper, liking what he saw, "Wow, you're so amazing and talented Sweetie Belle! The way you write is so lovely, just like you are."
Sweetie Belle blushed madly, trying to hide her face with her hair. "Oh Rumble, you're just so sweet!"
Apple Bloom and Tender Taps giggled at Rumble's response while Scootaloo gagged.
"Hey Rumble, how did I do?" Dinky asked, showing her paper.
"Pretty good," Rumble said, short and simple, a bit too simple for Dinky's liking.
"Gee thanks," Dinky said, feeling somewhat annoyed.
"Alright I think that's enough for now, I'll have to come up with new lesson for the both of you," Starlight said.
"We appreciate what you're doing for us, thanks for being our teacher in place of Twilight," Sweetie Belle said.
Starlight rubbed her mane a bit, "It's no trouble, I'm glad I get to mentor such smart young fillies."
"Beautiful too," Rumble said.
Sweetie Belle blushed again, though Dinky started to feel confused. Did Rumble also call her beautiful? Or was he just too eager to compliment Sweetie Belle again?
"Rumble you flatter me too much, it's kinda embarrassing," Sweetie Belle said, bashfully turning away.
"Seriously you do flatter her a lot, it's so weird to be around," Apple Bloom said.
Rumble nervously chuckled, "Sorry about that, I can't really help it."
"Hey! You don't have anything to be sorry for!" Sweetie Belle shouted, surprising everypony. "You are fully allowed to continue complimenting me for as long as you'd like, I am your princess after all, and you are my handsome knight."
Now it was Rumble who was blushing, "Well I love being your knight, you make me so happy."
Apple Bloom groaned, "Ok, enough with the mushy talk, it was cute at first, now it's just annoying."
Sweetie Belle huffed, "Don't be jealous, I bet if you found another pony to make you feel this way you'd be just as happy as I am."
"Watch yer attitude Sweetie Belle," Apple Bloom warned while glaring.
"I myself can't really blame Rumble," Tender Taps said. "If I had a filly that I was dating, I would make her feel special as well, and I would love it if she were that sweet to me."
"I hope you find somepony soon Tender Taps, you really are a nice colt," Sweetie Belle said.
"I think so too," Rumble said. "You have a charm to you that I wish I had."
Tender Taps looked confused, "Huh? I do? I always thought you had a certain charm that I didn't have."
"I personally think you're very mature, you do have a really calm mind. I wish I could be that calm about certain things," Rumble said.
"I'm not that calm, just ask Apple Bloom. Personally I like how energetic you are when you're happy. Also it's easier for you to talk about your emotions without feeling shy about it," Tender Taps said.
"I can be pretty shy myself though, you've seen that for yourself. Besides I think you can talk about your emotions just fine," Rumble said.
"Everypony has something special about them, you two could probably learn from each other," Starlight said.
Apple Bloom nodded, "That's a great idea, maybe you two can bond a bit."
The two colts looked a bit surprised.
"Me and Rumble? Bonding?" Tender Taps asked.
"Funny, I never thought to get friendly advice from another colt, aside from my big brother. Most ponies I admire the most are mares," Rumble said.
"You two would make such nice close friends, yer both more similar than you think, but you both have something to learn from the other," Apple Bloom said.
"Plus it would help if I knew you had a friend to keep you company if I ever wanna do something with just Apple Bloom and Scootaloo," Sweetie Belle said.
Dinky glared at Sweetie Belle for that comment, "Hey! Did you forget that Rumble and I were already friends before he even met you!?"
"I know," Sweetie Belle said. "But he could use more friends aside just you."
Dinky groaned at that, "Oh sure, whatever you say Sweetie Belle."
Rumble trotted over to Dinky, getting her in a brief nuzzle. "Don't worry, I haven't forgotten that you're my friend, you're still very special to me."
Dinky felt relief, she pulled Rumble into an affectionate hug, "You're special to me as well, I just hope neither of us forget that."
While the other ponies found that cute, Scootaloo again looked annoyed, "So much sappiness." She looked towards Tender Taps, still remembering what he had said a moment ago. Feeling curious she approached him, "Hey, Tender Taps. Before when you said you would like a filly to be sweet to you, what would you consider sweet?"
Tender Taps looked up in wonder, "Just being nice I guess, I mean I don't need a bunch of compliments, I just need to know she cares about me."
"Oh, ok then," Scootaloo said.
"Why do you ask?" Tender Taps asked, even if he already had somewhat of an idea.
"No reason," Scootaloo replied.
Tender Taps gave a stern yet gentle look, "Scootaloo, if you ever wanna try starting a relationship with me, I'll be willing. I know how you feel about me."
"Thing is, I'm not sure what I feel, there's certain emotions I'm still trying to figure out," Scootaloo said, glancing quickly toward Rumble for a second.
Tender Taps folded his forelegs, "Alright, but remember, Apple Bloom might ask me as well, I don't wanna turn either of you down, but I do want to give both of you a chance. I'll let you figure it out."
"That's fine, you don't have to keep Apple Bloom waiting because of me," Scootaloo said.
Tender Taps nodded, "That's kind of you, and like I said, I want both of you to have a chance. I don't wanna have to pick, I don't have it in me to make that decision."
"Well you foals can get going, I'll of course be staying here and keeping this place tidy, or tidy as I can keep it," Starlight said.
"Aren't you gonna feel a bit lonely staying in this castle by yerself? You can always come over to mah farm if ya like, I'll ask Big Mac and Granny if it's alright," Apple Bloom said.
"Thanks, but I'll be fine," Starlight said. "Come by again tomorrow and we'll do more fun stuff."
Apple Bloom nodded, "Alright, but if ya chance yer mind, just come on down to Sweet Apple Acres."
"I'll do that, thanks," Starlight said.
One by one the foals started going home after saying 'bye' to Starlight, though on his way out, Tender Taps brought Starlight in for a hug.
"I'll be here as soon as I can, big sis," Tender Taps said.
Starlight returned his hug, "I look forward to that, little brother."
After that, Tender Taps had gone with his friends as they each made their way home, Starlight watching them all leave. She hopes she can be the best teacher she can be to them, and a good pony for them to look up to. Especially considering how much Twilight already values them.
Starlight can potentially create a new harmony of friends.