The motel room door flew open in a rainbow burst, revealing an unconscious Twilight, looking more shrunken than ever in the bedding that propped her up. On her lap and surrounding her were an assortment of screens, all showing different readouts or camera views. By the side of the bed were two power strips, a tower, a few hubs of cord connectivity, and a small fan blowing furiously on the entire assembly.
“We gotta git outta here,” Apple Bloom said. “Rainbow?”
Rainbow Dash didn’t even look up. She was already feeling Twilight’s forehead, checking her throat for pulse.
“I’m way ahead of ya,” she said. “Got a burner?”
Apple Bloom tossed her the disposable phone, and the blue woman caught it as she straightened.
“Awesome,” Rainbow said. “Get Twilight’s latest Cerebro into the car, wilya? Don’t worry about shutdown, just unplug and go. Pinkie, get the rest of her gear. I’ll handle Twilight in a second.”
While Rainbow Dash dialed, Apple Bloom began disconnecting the tower from its peripherals and Pinkie staggered about, grabbing and occasionally dropping flatscreens.
“Who ya callin’?” Apple Bloom asked.
Rainbow Dash grinned. “A friend.”
The place was posh. Looking around, Apple Bloom had to give it that. A ways out from the suburbs and far from downtown, Earthstopping was an upscale neighborhood of recent construction. There were plenty of houses with their For Sale signs still out, including this one. Zephyr Breeze wasn’t into real estate anymore, but he still knew people who were.
So, the Rainbooms had the rest of the month to use the place as a safe house, though they still needed to keep it on the DL. Vehicle in the garage, no leaving during the day, the usual.
He’d even loaned the Rainbooms his painter’s van for the time being. It had more room, and was much less conspicuous, than the Evade… which was probably headed for a chop shop somewhere. Apparently, Zephyr knew folks from when he was a mechanic, too.
At least, probably he’d been a mechanic? Apple Bloom hadn’t felt like asking questions just then. Neither had anyone else.
Now, they were just about moved in, not that that took much. The place had five upstairs bedrooms, a hot tub big enough to throw a party in, and a fridge stocked with champagne. There were even potted plants, for all that they were plastic. Lots of windows, which made Apple Bloom a little uncomfortable… but there were also blinds for privacy, which Zephyr closed while he and Rainbow Dash wandered the house, talking. Twilight’s computer and its extras were in the main bedroom, along with Twilight. They would set it back up after everyone had gotten some rest.
As Apple Bloom wandered back down the stairs, she could hear Rainbow Dash and Zephyr wrapping up by the front door.
“…there’s technically Internet,” he was saying, “so agents can have access while they’re closing the deal, but it’s slow as hell. Of course, knowing Twilight, she’ll figure a way around that. Oh, and I brought you a new burner, for when you ditch that one. I’ll recognize the number if you call. So, if you need anything…”
Taking the new phone, Rainbow smiled. “I know.”
Then, glancing towards the garage, she said, “So, you’re painting now?”
He shrugged. “‘Artistic interior décor,’ Last week I was working fossils into a law office’s walls. Before that, I was putting different flowers and plants on the walls of a spa’s rest rooms.”
“Yeah. So, you’re painting.”
Zephyr shook his head. “That’s just part of it. My main thing is taking real objects and sealing them against the structure, so it’ll have the texture of whatever the customer wanted. Then, I drybrush it to fit either the décor’s theme or suit the rest of the building.”
“Bet you’re making a killing.”
“Last week I made thirty grand in four days.”
Rainbow blinked. “Nice.”
Zephyr shrugged again. “Yeah, but now that I’ve got it down it’s gotten pretty dull. I got an offer to do some set design for a musical, and there’s an up-and-coming band looking for a special effects guy. So, I dunno.”
She grinned, shaking her head. “Man, you do you.”
He grinned as well. “Always.”
Then, both their grins faded. Rainbow Dash put a hand on Zephyr’s shoulder.
“Thanks, Zeph.” Her voice was quiet, her eyes serious.
He smiled a little. “Hey, anytime.”
They hugged, and then he gently closed the door behind him.
Re-entering the living room, Apple Bloom gave her a quizzical look. “Thought you couldn’t stand that guy?”
“Well, yeah, back in school. He was hitting on me, like, constantly.”
“Yeah, I remember. When’d he stop?”
“I dunno.” Rainbow shrugged as she locked the door. “When we both grew up, I guess.”
Rainbow Dash paused, considering the teen before her.
“Y’know, you were pretty good back there,” she said.
Apple Bloom started, then grinned. “‘Man, don' tell me how good I was. I jus’ got away with it because I had a hangover. I was too mad to be scared, and too sick to worry about it.’”
Rainbow Dash thought for a moment, then brightened. “El Dorado.”
“Best damn movie ever made,” Apple Bloom pronounced.
“I dunno, what about Star Trek II?”
Apple Bloom made a show of mulling it over. “Mmm. Close, but no cigar.”
“Casablanca.”
“Oh, now, that ain’t even fair,” Apple Bloom protested. “That there’s a class all its own, an’ everybody knows it.”
“Yeah, okay, point,” Rainbow conceded with a smile. Then, yawning, she added, “Listen, I’m gonna crash. Unless you can think of anything else we need to do?”
Apple Bloom shook her head. “Not me.”
“Good. I’m heading upstairs, then. You coming?”
“Nah, I’m still too wired from everything. Gotta unwind first, I think.”
“Cool enough. Good night.”
“Night.”
Apple Bloom sat in the huge overstuffed chair, feeling herself slowly decompress…
Then, her head snapped up.
Wait. Am I… Am I what now?
Apple Bloom replayed the exchange in her mind several times. She had to have misunderstood.
Rainbow Dash didn’t just… she couldn’t… could she? No. Shoot, no! But then, what…?
Eventually, confused and full of questions, Apple Bloom crept up the carpeted stairs again. The master bedroom door was open. Inside, partially illuminated by the hall light, she could see the other young women tangled under the covers. All of them, sound asleep.
At first, she just stared.
I am not seein’ this! she thought. Not in a million years!
Then, as she looked, she realized.
This… this ain’t sex.
They looked, at second glance, like kids at a sleepover. Or like kittens in a pile, maybe.
But that wasn’t right, either.
The Rainbooms had always shared a special bond. Well, not always… but ever since Princess Twilight had come into their world, and Sunset had turned herself around, they had. And as that bond had grown, for a time Apple Bloom and her fellow CMCs had been downright jealous of what was happening between their older siblings.
Not one of her prouder moments, she admitted to herself.
But now, Apple Bloom remembered why she’d been so jealous. She’d always been close to Applejack; her sister had all but raised her. But over time, AJ and her new friends had steadily become even closer. And that had been hard to take.
And even then, Apple Bloom realized, she’d never understood just how tight a bond they’d had. Not until now.
Because those three weren’t sisters, or lovers, or whatever else. Their connection ran deeper than that. Deeper than anything Apple Bloom had ever seen.
While Apple Bloom watched, Pinkie Pie made a noise in her sleep, her shaved head showing clearly the cords tensing in her neck. Then, the violet arms around her squeezed a little more, and her tension subsided. A moment later, Twilight murmured something, half-frowning in the dim light. Sky-colored arms curled around her from behind, and she relaxed again.
It made sense, Apple Bloom realized. Twilight and Pinkie Pie tangled together, supporting one another, even as Rainbow Dash spooned them both.
Because they weren’t just sleeping.
They were healing.
Apple Bloom stood in the doorway, uncertain. Then, she took a tentative step into the threshold.
She’d been invited, she reminded herself.
Then again, maybe Dash had meant upstairs to another room. Or she might have just misspoken. God knew they were all tired enough.
And even then, what if the others just didn’t want her there? Images of Twilight, half-awake and confused at her presence, swam before her mind.
Apple Bloom hesitated, half in shadow, aching.
From behind the other two women, Apple Bloom heard Rainbow Dash sigh.
She considered the other bedrooms in the house. There was certainly nothing wrong with any of them. And having her own door she could close, that was the kind of thing that by all rights she should have been embracing right then.
But the thought of being alone with her nightmares, even just one more night…
Later on, she couldn’t remember crossing the room. She just remembered slipping under the covers, even as Pinkie Pie rolled over in her sleep, reaching out and pulling her in while Apple Bloom embraced her in kind.
Exhausted, Apple Bloom fell asleep at once.
The dreams were as bad as ever. Things she’d seen. Things she’d done for revenge, or even just to survive. Other things, things she’d tried to forget. But this time, even in sleep, she could feel the others around her.
It didn’t make it any less painful, or any less terrifying. Not really. But somehow, their presence helped just the same.
Apple Bloom woke several times throughout the day. But when she saw the others still sleeping, it just seemed right to close her eyes and let herself drift back again.
It was night when they truly awakened, more or less all at once. With the blinds all pulled the women could turn on a few lights. Zephyr Breeze had been by while they’d slept and stocked the kitchen with supplies, so Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie decided to make breakfast. But then one thing led to another, and next thing Apple Bloom knew those two were in a cook-off.
Twilight had just managed to prop herself up against the pillows when her three friends re-entered the bedroom, bringing in a seemingly endless assortment of serving dishes, platters, and bowls… along with some plates, eating bowls, and cutlery.
What followed was part bedroom picnic and part smorgasbord, with all four of the young women eating, talking, and even laughing until the sun had once again started to rise. It had seemed to Apple Bloom that there had been enough food to fill a dozen people, easy. And Twilight still wasn’t eating much. But afterwards, surrounded by dirty dishes, she had to admit that none of it had gone to waste. It reminded her of the parties they’d used to throw years ago, before everything had changed. Or the jamborees her kin had gathered for, years before that.
And then, when for no damn good reason at all the tears started coming and Apple Bloom just couldn’t keep them in any more, suddenly she was caught in an embrace by three sets of arms. She clung to them like she was drowning, kneeling by the bed where Twilight lay, whispering apologies the whole time.
Finally, the storm in her heart passed, leaving Apple Bloom wrung out and exhausted.
“There’s nothing to apologize for,” Twilight said at the end.
“Yeah, we’re cool,” Rainbow Dash agreed. “It’s kinda why we’re here.”
“Well, yeah, that and cupcakes,” Pinkie Pie added.
Then, looking at Rainbow Dash, she let out a gasp of horror.
“Oh, my god! Dashie! We forgot to make the cupcakes…!”
Laughing again through her tears, Apple Bloom reached out and hugged them all again, just as fiercely.
It had been a long time. But it was good to have family again.