Twilight Sparkle woke up feeling stiff all over, sore in places she did not know she could feel, and feeling happier than she knew she could have. Especially from something physical and not science (or magic) related.
She had done it.
Twilight Sparkle had actually had sex.
Admittedly, it was not like she had imagined. Although, in her defense, what she imagined was based on basic sexual education, some of the romance novels Rarity had, and Twilight's "research," which had wound up her watching pornographic videos and reading some graphic stories. So it was not the mind-blowing, earth-shaking, world-changing experience some stories made it.
Well.. it was world-changing. Just, not solely from the moment of the first climax.
Still, she had enjoyed it, and if asked, would say it had been great. True, it was her first time, but there was no way that something that felt that good could possibly have been bad.
As her hand reached out and groped around, Twilight realized that she was in bed alone. She felt the mattress, the sheets, the pillow, but no Gilda. No rough skin, no hint of motor grease, no firmed, toned, muscle, and no heat.
"Gilda?" Twilight said, voice heavy with sleep. Sitting up, she reached out to grab her glasses. Her eyes opened as she put them on, looking around as the world came into view. She looked around, checking to see everything. There were the things she always had in her room, and a few extra clothes on the floor.
But no Gilda.
The sheets were tossed aside as Twilight got up. She was dressed in nothing but Gilda's tee shirt, which came down to mid-thigh. It had been a fun thing to wear when they decided to finally go to sleep. Now, however, in the light of day, it felt... kind of naughty. All she had to do was lift her arms, and she would expose herself for anyone to see. Her eyes drifted toward her underwear draw. Maybe she should...
No. Twilight shook her head, deciding against it. This entire thing was supposed to be fun, and a little naughty. Besides, the only other person who would see anything was Gilda.
And considering that Gilda's jeans were on the floor, she was not wearing much more herself.
Plus, it turned out that it made using the bathroom a lot easier.
As she made her through the house looking for her girlfriend, Twilight caught the smell of something burning. Taking it as a clue, she made her way toward the kitchen. The smell of burnt food grew stronger as she approached, and she heard a familiar voice shouting out a few colorful phrases.
Once she reached the entrance to the kitchen, she peaked in.
Gilda stood at the stove, wearing her tank top and panties. She had moved the trash can from its normal spot to right beside her, and was currently turned toward it, putting her back to the entrance. There grumbles of something, and a scraping sound.
"Everything okay?" Twilight asked.
Gilda noticeably jumped at the voice, holding up a spatula and turning to glare at the doorway. At the same time, there was an audible thump of something falling into the trashcan. Golden eyes going wide, she turned back around, swearing again as she reached down to grab it.
Twilight walked up. The smell of melted plastic now mixed with burnt food. She watched as a frying pan was pulled from the trash. The inside of it was covered in the blackened remains of something, and on the outside was a spot where the heat had melted the trash bag against the surface.
With an annoyed sigh, Gilda took the pan over to the sink and set in one of the basins. She moved and opened a cabinet, grabbing another pan.
While Gilda did that, Twilight turned her attention to the stove. Next to it was a large glass bowl filled with batter. Correction: had been filled with batter. It was thick enough that it stuck to the sides, but there was only a small amount left in the bottom. There were spatterings of the same batter around the burner that Gilda had been using, ranging from raw white to burnt black.
Twilight then looked into the trashcan.
"Pancakes?" she asked.
Gilda froze, standing a few moments. Once she turned around and headed for the stove, her cheeks were a bright red.
"Yeah," she said as she put the new pan on the burner. "Since it was your house and all, thought it would be nice to make breakfast. Figured I would make pancakes. Thought it would be easy." An annoyed laugh escaped her as she reached for the bowl. "Can see how that's working out."
Twilight chewed her lip as she watched her girlfriend pour the last of the batter into the cold, ungreased pan.
"Haven't you ever made pancakes before?" asked Twilight.
The batter stopped pouring from the bowl, the last of it hanging from the lip and slowly dripping down.
Grabbing the spatula, Gilda scraped at the bottom of the bowl. She pushed it down and toward the lip.
Gilda let out a small curse. Barely audible, but Twilight caught it.
"Gilda?"
The glass bowl slammed against the counter.
"Gilda, what's wrong?" Twilight asked, taking a hold of Gilda's arm.
"Nothing," Gilda replied. "It's nothing. It's... it's stupid..."
With a gentle tug, Twilight turned her girlfriend around to her. She then reached up and placed her hands on Gilda's face, stroking her cheeks while making her look at Twilight.
"It's not 'nothing,'" Twilight declared. "You're clearly upset about something." She leaned in. "And whatever it is, It's not 'stupid.' Because feelings are never stupid. So whatever it is, I'm here to listen."
After a second, Gilda shifted. Taking a hold Twilight's hands, she pulled one down while she brought the other to her mouth, giving the palm a kiss.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
"When I was little," Gilda said, "my dad would make us pancakes ever Saturday." A small smile tugged at her lips. "It was kind of a whole ritual. We would get up on Saturday morning, he would make pancakes, I would 'help,' as kids do, then we would sit down in the living room, eat them, and watch cartoons." Her arms wrapped around herself as she let out a small chuckle. "I remember this one time, he told me that when he was growing up, the only way to watch cartoons was to wake up early on Saturday mornings."
The smile faded.
"Then... he got deployed. Just before he left, he promised he'd teach me how to make pancakes when he got back."
Her voice cracked on the last word.
Gilda pulled in on herself more, back hunching as she rubbed at her arm.
"I... didn't touch pancakes after... Grandpa even made them once or twice but I refused to eat them." She rubbed at her face. "I was, like, ten. I didn't completely understand... or didn't want to believe... I don't remember anymore. I just..." She let out a cough to clear her throat. "I thought that if I didn't eat pancakes until he came back, he would. That he would come and... Sat... Sat.."
Twilight stepped forward and hugged Gilda tightly. She felt those toned, strong arms wrap around her weakly, the entire tall, muscular form shaking with sobs. Hot, large tears fell onto her shoulder, soaking the borrowed shirt.
Twilight held Gilda. And kept holding her, rubbing her back. Admittedly, it did feel a little awkward to have the larger girl pressed against her, crying. Even when Gilda had opened up in the past, there was always something hard and sturdy about her. Seeing her so emotional, so vulnerable, was kind of surprising. At the same time, the analytical part of her mind told Twilight that this was a good thing. In more ways than one. It was good on a relationship level, because it meant that, even if she did not intend to, Gilda was willing to open up and share more of herself than she had before. At the same time, it was good for Gilda on a personal level, because this must have been something she was carrying for years. Kind of like draining a wound to allow it to heal properly.
After the sobs turned to gasps and hiccups, Gilda broke the hug and pulled away.
"Sorry I snotted all over your shirt," she said as she turned to the sink, her voice raw and scratchy.
"It's your shirt, actually."
"Oh. That's okay then."
Gilda turned on the water and leaned forward. She splashed her face, and then rubbed it. When she turned back around, her face was wet, and her eyes red, but she seemed calmer. A small cough escaped her.
"Anyway, when I woke up this morning, I wanted to make you the best breakfast I could." One shoulder lifted in a half-shrug. "Guess I remembered those Saturdays better than I realized, because my head went straight to pancakes."
Her eyes suddenly snapped to the pan.
"Shit!" Gilda cried out. She lunged across the kitchen to the stove, turning off the burner. One hand grabbed the panhandle as the other grabbed the spatula. With a sigh, Gilda turned to the trashcan, and scraped the half-raw half-charcoal pancake directly into it.
"So much for that idea, though," she huffed, dropping the pan onto the stove top.
Twilight looked at her girlfriend, still processing all that had happened. It had been a lot to take in. And how was she supposed to react? Gilda did not look like she needed a hug anymore. She could say, "I'm sorry," but it did not really seem appropriate.
Then it came to her.
"Gilda, do you mind if I invite someone over?"
Gilda turned to face Twilight more, raising an eyebrow.
"I guess not. Why?"
Twilight smiled, stepped forward and gave Gilda a kiss on the cheek.
"Because I know the perfect person to help teach you how to make pancakes," she declared. "And when that's done, we're going to watch cartoons!"
She shifted.
"But it does mean we'll have to get dressed."
Gilda reached out and grabbed Twilight.
"Well, in that case," she purred, "let me have a moment to enjoy this, first." Her hands slipped down to grab Twilight's bare bottom as she leaned down, kissing Twilight on the mouth.