Somepony ought to mark a calendar and declare this to be officially the greatest day ever.
Trixie never thought she’d actually get this far. She’d only pushed for Dash and Fluttershy to make out as a flirty joke. A bit of teasing to make Dash squirm and Fluttershy blush. The immediate reactions were as expected, but imagine her surprise when they actually took her up on the suggestion!
What a show that had been.
At first, she suspected the pair of them were in cahoots to cruelly tease her as payback for her antics. That they’d dangle the promise of that wonderful dream in front of her and then snatch it away. Luckily, that wasn’t the case.
Maybe she could try and push her luck just a little bit further then?
“Ready?” Trixie asked Fluttershy.
Fluttershy was quiet for a moment, leaving Trixie to wish she had the ability to read the girl’s mind. This was a big day for her too. Between the confession and her signaling to continue the ‘tease’ a little more, she seemed intent to keep that assertiveness train rolling. However, there wasn’t any telling when she’d get spooked by the speed and pull the emergency brake.
“...Y-yes.”
Apparently not yet! Trixie’s smile would have widened, but she was pretty sure at this point that would mean tearing her cheeks. A glance toward Rainbow Dash revealed no objection.
She leaned in.
There was a moment’s hesitation from Fluttershy. It was almost enough for Trixie to back away, but then Fluttershy dramatically switched gears. Gone was any of the trepidation and restraint that she’d had a moment ago. Instead, she was surprisingly aggressive, taking Trixie completely aback.
Not that Trixie minded, though. Once the initial shock wore off, she’d already settled into letting Fluttershy take the lead. As alien of a concept as that was, this felt oddly familiar… kind of like...
Rainbow Dash?
Trixie’s eyes widened at the realization. Once she paid attention to it, it was obvious, a little clumsy, but obvious. Fluttershy was mimicking Dash for some reason. Perhaps she still felt self-conscious about the earlier comment about needing practice. Was she trying to copy what she’d seen the two of them do? Or rather, what she’d experienced just moments prior?
That’s adorable!
And more than a little exciting. There was something especially thrilling about the usually demure girl dominating her like this. It was too late to change the rhythm now, but she’d resolve to put up more resistance the next time and make her work for it.
Finally, Trixie was forced to break away for a breather. Noting, with a touch of annoyance, that the inexperienced and unathletic Fluttershy was no more winded than Rainbow Dash usually was. How was that even possible?
Rainbow Dash stirred her from her thoughts by speaking up. “So, uh...how are you two doing? That was way more intense than I figured it was gonna be. Kinda left wondering if I should be stepping it up.”
“Of course, your first thought is making it a competition.” Trixie rolled her eyes with a giggle. She should have expected as much. “Although, Trixie wouldn’t mind trying this again. Best three out of five? What do you think, Fluttershy?”
“Is, uhm, is it okay if we don’t know how we feel?” Fluttershy looked strangely contemplative, not meeting either of their eyes as she gingerly ran a feather tip along her lips. Perhaps the only one of them to be giving her feelings serious thought, as had been the stated intention.
How did she herself feel?
“That… is probably fine. To not know exactly. It’s complicated, right? Maybe it’s better not to try and put a single label on it. Like, Trixie enjoyed watching, but she also felt a little left out. Even though Trixie knew she was next. That’s weird, isn’t it?”
“Nah,” Rainbow Dash said. She slipped out of their embrace and off the couch, electing to pace about instead. Maybe the physical activity helped her think. “For me, it was cool in the moment, but it's kinda awkward before and after. Mostly when I had a second to wonder about what we looked like.”
Fluttershy took it as a cue to disentangle herself as well and pull back. “I, uhm, I thought this was about how we felt when seeing, y-you know…”
“Oh! Right.” Rainbow Dash looked between the two of them. “I kinda wasn’t paying attention to that. Do it again? I’ll keep track this time.”
Fluttershy eeped cutely and looked at Trixie, wide-eyed.
“As much as Trixie would love to perform an encore, just the fact that you asked is answer enough.” Trixie pointed out, making a note of the way Fluttershy relaxed when the pressure was taken off her. “So, we don’t have to… unless it’s something you’d like to do, Fluttershy?”
“I, uhm, oh…” Fluttershy struggled but there was a hint of a glare. She knew exactly what Trixie was doing to her. Taking away her excuses. “...It’s late.”
“Tired, mhm?” Trixie grinned. It had been a little much to expect Fluttershy to ask outright. Although, the implication wasn’t lost on her that the refusal only applied to today. “That brings up a good point… Dashie, wanna spend the night?”
Ah, she loved this. The way both of them jerked their heads toward her and then just as quickly tried to look nonchalant.
Not that the idea of spending the night with them didn’t have her nearly die of nerves herself, but she felt confident she held the reins here. A little teasing just made her feel more at ease.
An unexpected ally appeared at her side.
Fluttershy was siding with her, literally, but she wasn’t saying anything. Judging by the blush on her face, she was currently struggling through a dozen different ways she absolutely shouldn’t phrase asking Dash to bed and embarrassing herself in her own head. So nervous that her breath had even caught in her throat.
Adorable.
Trixie smiled at her, appreciating what she was at least trying on her own. In that case, she could pitch her a softball as a reward. She turned back to Rainbow Dash. “Another sleepover, but with more sleep and less over, Trixie supposes. If Fluttershy is alright with that?”
“I…I’d...” Fluttershy started and then quieted down again. She wasn’t calm. Her chest visibly thrummed. “I’d...l-like that. If you don’t mind that is?” The question was directed at Rainbow Dash.
Proud of her star pupil, Trixie casually gave her a little side hug squeeze. Equal parts reward and a reminder to resume breathing as Fluttershy squeaked.
“I didn’t bring a sleeping bag or anything.” Rainbow Dash hesitated when that didn’t seem to discourage either of them. If anything, Fluttershy blushed a little deeper. “Alright, what did you have in mind?”
“W-well...”
The bed wasn’t wide enough to comfortably fit three ponies.
Trixie wouldn’t have minded squeezing together. It was a great excuse to cuddle, but even she had to concede it was a bad idea to sleep like that. Not without some extra pillows on the floor for the inevitable fall or something to that effect.
They’d nearly given up on the whole venture.
Fortunately, Fluttershy had struck upon an idea. It took a bit of doing, but they’d managed to take a small cloud and stick it to the left side of the bed, extending so the space available was nearly twice as much. The catch? Now half the bed was only suitable for pegasi. Trixie had lost her claim to the middle spot!
Rainbow Dash had taken it instead. Originally, she was on the cloud, but Fluttershy had a hard time getting comfortable on the intersection of bed and cloud. It didn’t seem to bother Dash in the slightest, though. But then again, she was notoriously good at sleeping.
Conveniently, the blanket was so huge it still covered all of them and then some.
“Everypony comfy?” Trixie asked while snuggling up to Dash, laying one hoof over her chest.
“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash answered, but she felt tense.
It didn’t worry Trixie. If anything, it was an amusing thought. She remembered feeling nervous the first time she shared the bed with Fluttershy. It had to be twice as bad for poor Dashie. She’d have that same vague sense that maybe she was actually supposed to do something.
“Mhm,” Fluttershy mumbled a quiet assent. She hadn’t reached out and simply curled up on the cloud facing away from them. It had been a long day for her. Still, it was a little strange, given that she’d gone out of her way to make this happen.
She made a note to deal with that tomorrow.
For now, she poked Rainbow Dash in the chest and mimed a grabbing motion. The look of hesitation she received in turn had her roll her eyes. She repeated the motion, then pointed toward Fluttershy.
That did it.
Rainbow Dash looked unsure but rolled over onto her side and reached over to Fluttershy. Halfway through, she looked back for confirmation.
Trixie nodded and draped one hoof over Dash’s waist, scooting a little closer behind her. It was as much for her own benefit as to demonstrate.
Rainbow Dash followed her example, drawing a gasp from Fluttershy.
A simple spell snuffed out the lights.
“So, how’d you know she’d like that?” Rainbow Dash asked, stretched out in the grass.
It was amazing what some good company could do. Everything about the morning was just a little better than usual. Breakfast tasted better. The animals were more well behaved. Even the sun felt a little warmer and less blinding than usual as they enjoyed a well-earned day of relaxation.
“Pretty obvious, isn’t it?” Trixie enjoyed the slow rise and fall of her favorite ‘pillow’ beneath her head. “If she didn’t want to be touched, she wouldn’t have suggested extending the bed. There’s no reason to get us so close together otherwise. It’s just that she lost her nerve at the end there.”
“Huh… I guess that’s one way to look at it.”
It was just too bad that Fluttershy had left to check up on Rarity, but it did afford Trixie a chance to talk privately with Rainbow Dash. They’d have gone together, but Fluttershy insisted that she was just being silly and they should stay and just relax.
“But you’re still worried you’d take it too far?”
“Any one of us, really.” Dash shifted underneath to cross her forelegs underneath her head, staring up at the sky. “You and I have been together for a while. Fluttershy is playing catch up. I don’t want her to overextend herself.”
“Trixie doesn’t either, but wouldn’t it be better to encourage her to explore? Sure, at some point she’ll probably stumble into something she’s not ready for. Whether that’s her ‘catching up’ or one of us doing something she doesn’t know how to reject in the moment.” Trixie noticed Dash’s breath quickened, clearly distressed by the idea. She reached a hoof back to caress her neckline and cheek. “But when that happens we’ll be there for her won’t we? To give her a hug and assure her it’s gonna be okay?”
“Yeah...” Rainbow Dash didn’t respond further, just mulling it over in her head. At least she seemed to calm down some, but the tension hadn’t left her even as she shifted slightly to lean into Trixie’s strokes.
Trixie bit her lip, she had an idea of what was bothering Dash but she wasn’t certain. “...The same goes for you, you know.”
“What?”
“You said you were confused on how this is supposed to work. You might mess up. Probably will… Trixie probably will too.” She folded her legs closer to her body, curling up. “But, as long as we understand that, Trixie has to believe we can work through anything that happens, you know?”
There was a pause.
Trixie didn’t mind the stillness, but something felt off. Different somehow than a moment ago. The pattern to Dash’s breathing changed. A little quicker at first then much slower, as though deliberately forced.
“That’s not the first time you said that. The ‘work’ bit, I mean.” Rainbow Dash sat up, sliding Trixie’s head from her stomach to her lap in the process. She looked down, meeting her eyes. “You also worked with Fluttershy to make this happen, behind my back. Everything we did last night, I’m realizing, was something you suggested or encouraged, something you worked to make happen.”
“Is that bad?” Trixie asked. “You can suggest something next time.”
“No, it’s not bad, and that’s not the point.” Dash shook her head. “You’ve been putting in a lot of effort and… and I guess it has me wondering… We didn’t ever work on anything when it was the two of us. Why are you so invested now?”
“Trixie was always invested.” Trixie averted her gaze. “Sorry if you didn’t feel that way.”
“I didn’t mean it that way.” Rainbow Dash sighed and leaned back a little, stretching her forelegs behind her in the grass. “I get that we worked on things too, like being more direct with each other, but… I dunno. It feels like you are putting it all on yourself.”
“Maybe Trixie just has a lot of free time to think about this stuff,” Trixie offered.
“Maybe.” Rainbow Dash conceded. “I ended up having some time to think too, didn’t get much sleep last night. Turns out it’s not easy to sleep next to another pony, especially ones you like. Apparently, you can get used to that, though.”
Trixie kept quiet, letting Dash talk. She was building toward something, but she didn’t sound angry. Weary? That could just as easily be the lack of sleep she mentioned.
“I had this weird feeling. A bunch of those things I mentioned kept bugging me. How come those two can sleep? What got into Fluttershy that she’d suggest something like joining us? Why is Trixie trying so hard to make it work?” Dash used a wingtip to brush along Trixie’s mane. “...Was it your idea?”
It wasn’t an accusation so much as a genuine question. However, it was hard to estimate how Dash was going to react to the answer. Would she see it as manipulation? Trixie didn’t think of her as volatile anymore, but she’d probably be right to get angry.
It might be easier to deny and act ignorant.
After a moment, Trixie nodded, brushing her cheek against Rainbow Dash’s fur in the process. “Maybe that’s why Trixie’s been trying harder, because if she lets this fail, and… and loses you… Trixie’ll kick herself forever for gambling like this…”
“Then why did you?” Dash’s voice cracked. Her hooves pressed through the grass and into the dirt. “That. That’s the part I can’t figure out. I guessed some of the stuff you said already. That you put the idea in her head. That you wanted this to work. The part I don’t understand is why you wanted Fluttershy too… was I not enough?”
Trixie felt her chest tighten. Dash sounded so pained, but she was clearly trying to keep her cool. It was as if she fully trusted Trixie to say something that would make all of this make sense if she just gave her a chance.
If only Trixie had that much trust in herself.
She had to think this through. What was really the problem? Dash hadn’t given her any sign the previous evening that she was against the idea of their trio, quite the opposite. When Dash believed Fluttershy had initiated it, she’d easily gone along with the idea. It was only after confirming that it was Trixie’s plan that she had a problem with it?
A flicker of anger danced along her brow. It wasn’t fair that she was getting questioned like this.
Why did it matter how the idea had gotten started, anyway? Did Dash think she’d manipulated ‘poor gullible’ Fluttershy? Maybe that wasn’t entirely inaccurate, but Trixie had gone out of her way to make sure it was something Fluttershy wanted! Not that she could explain that without sounding like a manipulative witch for much of it.
Was that a bad sign? No, wait. Focus!
Dash was asking specifically about why she wanted Fluttershy, but that didn’t seem to make any sense. Even if she explained Fluttershy’s attractive points, it wouldn’t solve the problem. Trixie was absolutely sure Dash wanted Fluttershy too. She couldn’t be mad about something they both had in common.
There had to be something different between her and Dash. Something that was only a problem if Fluttershy didn’t arrive at the idea independently. Something that Dash had picked up on. What if she thought about it in reverse?
What if Rainbow Dash had raised the idea of expanding their relationship by adding Flutte—
“Gah!” Trixie sat up with a sudden force. She couldn’t even finish the thought before a bolt of blind panic pierced her chest. It was different.
Rainbow Dash only narrowly managed to escape getting headbutted in the chin. “Trixie! What the hay?!”
Trixie grabbed her before she had a chance to get any further away. “Sorry!” She shared a panicked look with Dash before hiding her face in Dash’s chest fur. “S-sorry for making you feel like you weren’t enough. You are! More than anypony.”
After a painfully long moment, Rainbow Dash wrapped Trixie in a hug. Whether it had taken her that long to realize she should or to decide that she would wasn’t clear, but Trixie was grateful for it all the same.
“It’s fine,” Rainbow Dash whispered.
Trixie shook her head. “It’s not. If you’d done the same, Trixie would’ve been so scared that she was getting soft replaced with somepony you preferred. It’s just… Trixie knows she loves you so much more than anything that Trixie never stopped to think you could feel insecure too. That was stupid, and Trixie’s so sorry. She should’ve taken the time to talk to you properly.”
Rainbow Dash nodded slightly, which Trixie more felt than saw. Most importantly, the tension was slowly draining from her, as the vice-like grip melted into a tight embrace. A small, but crucial difference. “So, what would you have said?” she asked in a tone that suggested she was now less seeking an explanation and more fishing for a compliment.
Trixie couldn't begrudge her that. She curled against her insecure girlfriend. “That Trixie loves you above all else, and nopony is going to change that. Not even cute soft-spoken girls. That’d be a good start, right?”
“Heh. It’s a start.” Rainbow Dash chuckled, then added. “Same, by the way.”
It was funny how much better that simple statement made her feel.
“What else...” Trixie drawled while she considered what she really wanted to convey. “Trixie knows Fluttershy has feelings for us, that unrequited they pain her, that they are... mutual… Trixie’s okay with allowing all of us to explore those. So long as we’re clear it’s in addition not instead. We can share the stage as a trio, but Trixie will not let anypony steal the show.”
“Yeah, you probably should’ve led with all this.” Rainbow Dash gave her a little bonk on the head. “Though, I guess… I guess I’m kinda glad it happened the way it did.”
“You are?” Trixie craned her head up to catch sight of Dash’s dumb smile.
“If I knew it was your idea from the start, I might have been more hesitant. Hey! Let me finish!” Dash huffed as Trixie pulled a face. “You were pushing Fluttershy last night, and I guess you also did it earlier to get her to agree to this, right?”
Trixie hesitated and Rainbow Dash noticed. She hated being on the backhoof like this, but she hated the idea of looking for ways to manipulate Dash in this situation even more. It wasn’t the same as playing with her, that Trixie could do all day and feel energized by the end of it. “...Trixie wouldn’t say she was pushing her. It was more like just a nudge. That, that sounds dumb, but it’s different. Really. It was her own choice.”
“Just a nudge?” Rainbow Dash repeated with a serious expression. It sounded even dumber when she said it. On the plus side, Dash hadn’t gotten angry at all. Rather, she was mulling it over. “How about you give me a nudge then?”
“You?” Trixie blinked.
“Yeah. I wanna know what it’s like.”
“Trixie’s not sure there is much to nudge.” She shrugged. “You already pretty much do whatever you feel like.” And it wasn’t that hard to make Dash want something, but that would only distract from the topic.
“Why does that matter?”
“It’s not like telling somepony to go do something, that’s pushing. A nudge is more like… if you knew a friend really wanted to paint their room purple with stars but they haven’t quite managed to get around to it. Maybe they are a little scared of change, or maybe they worry guests wouldn’t like it as much as they do.”
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “That’s dumb. Just paint it.”
“You would say that.” Trixie smirked. “But maybe that’s what your friend needs to hear to go through with it. You know, a nudge.”
“And that’s all?” Rainbow Dash raised a skeptical eyebrow. “I don’t think that would really work.”
“Sure, it does. A little encouragement goes a long way. Just because you never needed any extr—Oh!” Trixie perked up with a grin. Finally! She had what she needed.
“I know that face. What?”
“What about with Fluttershy? Mhm? You were scared to reach out last night till Trixie gave you a ‘nudge’.” Trixie poked Dash in the chest, driving her point home.
“T-that’s different,” Rainbow Dash protested, batting her hoof away.
“Come on. She’s not as fragile as her namesake, you know. You can touch her.” Trixie couldn’t help but giggle as Dash blushed. “Do try to be careful with her, though. Like you said, she’s still catching up, but if you feel like being a little rougher… Trixie’s right here to get it out of your system.”
“You’re messing with me.” Rainbow Dash regrettably regained some composure at the realization.
“Only a little,” Trixie admitted. “Offer still stands.”
Teasing Rainbow Dash really was addictive. There was a long pause while Rainbow Dash contemplated. For a moment, Trixie thought she would take the offer, only for Dash to break eye contact.
“Okay, look… I think I kinda get what you’re doing and… I guess if this is what you mean by a ‘nudge’, I don’t mind. It might be a good thing.” Rainbow Dash sighed then met her gaze again. “If we screw up, I guess we’ll work on it, huh?”
“Of course.” Trixie flashed a smile and received one in return.
“Good. Now then,” Rainbow Dash cast a searching look down the path to Ponyville then turned back. “About that offer...”
Trixie hoped Fluttershy would have fun with Rarity for a good while longer.
Fluttershy smiled as she ran a brush over the adorable cat’s fine coat. The soft content purring was at least twice as soothing to her as the brush was to Opal. Caring for animals came naturally to her, there wasn’t much she had to think about. It was simple. Unlike seemingly every other aspect of her life.
“She never lets me do that...” Rarity lamented from across the little kitchen table, pinning for the same simple action. “I’d be simply covered in claw marks by now.”
“Uhm...I’m sure that’s just because she’s more comfortable around you, Rarity.”
“Quite.” Rarity scoffed.
“No, really. I’m sure Opal knows you’d love her no matter what, so she doesn’t mind letting you know, in her catty own way, what she really thinks. But she’s not so sure I’d keep coming back, so I get a little more leeway from her.” She stroked Opal along one ear and the sweetheart rolled over onto her back, showing her invitingly soft stomach. She knew better than to touch it, though. “Even so, there are lines that if I crossed them, she’d give me a piece of her mind like—”
“Aw.” Rarity cooed as she reached over to give Opal a belly rub before Fluttershy could stop her.
Like a sprung trap, Opal clamped shut, digging the claws of all four paws into Rarity’s foreleg.
Rarity pulled back with a start. Long thin lines of angry red were left as a reminder, not so deep as to be dangerous, but enough to sting and even draw a drop or two of blood. Rarity tsked with remarkable composure. The kind that only came from enduring dozens of such warnings in the past. She looked more disappointed than shocked. “You see? It’s a setup I tell you. How can anypony resist that fluffy tummy?”
“Mhm”, Fluttershy affirmed with a gentle nod.
Fluttershy didn’t really think of herself as having strengths. Even her affinity to animals often felt like such a hollow praise. Wouldn’t everypony be able to get along with animals? Their behavior was so straightforward. Most ponies just had better things to do than sit around paying attention to them, unlike her.
Even so, moments like these gave her a little spark of confidence that maybe she did have something at least a teeny little bit special. The alternative after all was to suggest that Rarity was lacking something and that just felt mean. It was nicer to think this way.
“Have you done something with your mane?” Fluttershy knew this to always be a safe question to ask Rarity. Good for ten minutes of conversation where she’d only be expected to listen and nod. It was almost as soothing as the brushing. Simple enough to allow herself to relax.
“Ah! Leave it to you to notice, darling. Why yes, actually.” Rarity began her story in earnest. A new conditioner applied just so. An old method of rinsing that she ended up disliking at first. A classic style parted just a tad more to the left. So much more.
As expected, it bought her a long peaceful reprieve. A moment to gather her own thoughts on how she was going to approach the issue. Well, two issues.
“Goodness. It’s really working for you. It looks so soft.” Fluttershy reached out toward Rarity’s mane.
“Ack!” Rarity batted the hoof away in abject terror and leaned back.
“Ouch.”
A look of guilt came over Rarity’s face as she saw Fluttershy nurse her hoof. “Ah, s-sorry. I was just surprised. I’d really rather you didn’t.”
“Aren’t you showing it off so I can touch it?”
Rarity looked at her with sheer bewilderment. “I… what? No. Look but don’t touch. I’d think that goes without saying. I’m sorry, what is going on? I know you should know this. Wait, did something happen?” she asked with clear concern.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you.” Now Fluttershy felt guilty. “I just thought you’d, uhm, understand Opal better this way.”
Rarity took a moment to mull the answer over, shifting back to her more relaxed pose from before. “So, just because she’s showing off does not mean she’s asking to be touched? I suppose I wouldn’t have even questioned that if it had been another pony. Thank you, dear.”
“Thank you. I’m glad you thought it was helpful.” Fluttershy smiled. It felt nice to help her friend, even if her hoof throbbed a little now. She probably deserved that.
If a slap on the wrist was her only consequence for betraying Trixie’s and Rainbow Dash’s trust, she’d be getting off lightly even. What was she really hoping to achieve? To keep up pretending to be in a relationship with the both of them until it was true? It felt dishonest. It also felt a little like what she wanted. That in turn felt wrong.
Thinking about it in the opposite direction wasn’t any better. Play along for a week then apologize and withdraw? She’d leave them hurt and confused, wondering what they could have done better but she’d know there was nothing. Things wouldn’t go back to normal, though. Maybe the awkwardness of it would drive them away from her and she’d be alone.
Or worse, what if they fought over it? Blamed each other? Broke up? It would be her fault. She’d be guilty, but… it would be a chance, in the long run, to try again. A hopeful thought, but one that made her feel worse for thinking it. It was just one more desire that felt wrong.
Everything always felt that way. Downward spirals no matter what she did. It was exhausting. She wished she had a fraction of the confidence Dash and Trixie so effortlessly oozed all day, even when they made mistakes it didn’t seem like they let it bother them. If that sort of thing could rub off on a pony, surely it would have by now.
Was it really the confidence she admired? Or did she just want to be able to do bad things without feeling bad for it? One more item on the list of things she doubted about herself.
“...Are you sure nothing happened?” Rarity asked gently, shaking Fluttershy from her thoughts.
“Huh?” Fluttershy snapped to attention. “What do you mean?”
“Well…” Rarity briefly paused, no doubt searching for the right words. “It is not like you to misremember when Opal goes to the groomer and yet you show up a week too early to escort her. It leaves a lady to wonder if you are distracted… or distraught. Is something going on? You can tell me.”
Of course, Rarity had figured it out. It had been a weak excuse to meet with her again so soon. Still, Rarity had invited her in to see Opal and have a chat over tea for her trouble. Perhaps that had been worded that way on purpose. Rarity expected there was trouble. Probably expected that somewhere during the conversation she’d tell her. If she was asking now that had to mean she’d lost patience with her.
Did Rarity feel Fluttershy was being a nuisance? She hoped not. Thinking about it, it made sense for Rarity to be concerned. They’d been talking for a while and they’d not touched on Rainbow Dash or Trixie beyond a brief mention of where they were and that everything was fine. Rarity was sharp enough that she’d pick up on something like that. Doubly so when she was undoubtedly on pins and needles to hear how it all played out.
Maybe she should have talked about them more, and avoided making Rarity suspicious. Or maybe it was a chance if she wanted somepony to talk to about her feelings, good, bad, and confusing. Who knew how Rarity would react, though. Fluttershy knew she’d been so terrible. Maybe she valued the company more.
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Fluttershy forced a smile. “We didn’t get a lot of sleep last night.”
“Ohhh?” Rarity’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “I’m so glad you brought that up, darling. How did it go?”
A simple misdirect, Trixie would have been proud of her. The only issue was now she’d locked herself into what was easily the most embarrassing topic. Her one solace was that Rarity would have pressed her for it eventually anyway, so she was just getting it over with sooner.
“We, uhm… K… w-we did the…” She averted her gaze and shielded her burning face with a wing. It was incredible how she was more embarrassed trying to say the word ‘kiss’ than she’d been about actually doing it. “y-you know. The first thing?”
A little squee escaped Rarity as she clapped her hooves together. “Oh, that is too precious! Which one? How was it? Tell me everything!”
Fluttershy tried her best to direct her focus back to Opal. She’d heard about therapy dogs. The cutest of all professions. Cats apparently also worked a little. At least it gave her something to do as she combed the shedding out of the tail fluff.
“Well, uhm… M-me and Rainbow Dash at first… I think.” Fluttershy noticed Rarity’s glee double. She’d already worked out that meant it hadn’t ended there. “I was so surprised, I didn’t know what to feel. Mostly disbelief? Is that a feeling? It didn’t last very long…”
Fluttershy bit her lip. It was probably best if she didn’t mention the part where Rainbow Dash had shoved her away and panicked. Especially not how that had made her feel. So inadequate, so angry. Enough that she’d decided then and there to go through with one of the bad thoughts.
“Your first kiss together! Heavens, I do wish I’d been there to see it myself.” Rarity sighed as she leaned back. “You only get that first time once, usually.”
Fluttershy stiffened. The way Rarity let that sentence linger for a moment, it brought Fluttershy’s attention back to what she’d actually come here for.
“A-about that. T-there is one thing, but… It’s a little… did you, uhm, r-record us?” Fluttershy suddenly realized how accusatory it sounded to just ask if Rarity had secretly recorded them. In fact, now that she said it out loud, she’d been a little overly paranoid. “I-I’m sorry. That was si—” She froze.
As she spoke Rarity had looked over to the stack of packages that had served to stall for time. Of course, she knew they’d been there for much of it, just as planned. But, for a fraction of a second, Rarity’s eyes darted to the area a little further away where Fluttershy had her emotional discussion with Rainbow Dash after she’d attempted to escape.
Their eyes met.
A cold chill ran down Fluttershy’s spine as she stared wide-eyed at Rarity. She knew! Fluttershy wasn’t sure exactly how, but Rarity knew they’d moved away as well as where to. And now, Rarity knew she knew.
Rarity regained her composure first with a thin smile. “I would never, but suppose that I did… would there be anything on there you’d like to explain?”
Fluttershy swallowed but her throat felt just as dry. “L-like what?”
“Like… why did I come back to find one of my precious mannequins scattered into pieces?” Rarity asked with a hint of concealed amusement. It very nearly put Fluttershy at ease, had Rarity’s face not fallen as she began the next question. “And… Why did you ask Rainbow Dash to choose at first?”
“I, uhm… ” Fluttershy bit her lip and put all of her attention into brushing Opal. She could at least avoid eye contact for a little while like this.
Did Rarity really know or was she guessing? They knew each other well enough that it wasn’t impossible. No, the accusation was too specific. Why did it even matter? Was she really planning to lie to one of her best friends?
“Well?” Rarity pressed her.
“I… shouldn’t have done that,” Fluttershy said so softly that she could barely hear it herself. “C-can we keep that between us, please?”
Rarity sighed and leaned back, resting her hoof on the bridge of her nose like she was nursing a headache. “Fine, I won’t be telling them any of this.”
“Thank you.” The wash of relief that came over her was surprising. She’d expected that at least some small part of her would have wanted the truth to come out. If only so she could stop lying to everypony else.
“Because you will.” Rarity pointed a hoof at her with a touch of smugness to her smile.
“W-what?” Fluttershy stammered in protest. Fear gripped her chest as she even briefly considered the consequences. Not just how Rainbow Dash would think of her for it, but how much pain she’d be inflicting on Trixie after everything they’d been through. “I can’t do that! It’ll ruin everything for them.”
Though Rarity showed surprise at the sudden outburst, she most certainly wasn’t as taken aback as she was letting on. She’d seen Rarity surprised, and her eyes weren’t as wide as they should’ve been.
With the exception of Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy had known Rarity the longest of all their friends, but even so it was difficult to tell what was going through her head now. The squint Rarity was giving was something she’d have associated with one Rarity had when she was looking over a roll of fabric. Was Rarity evaluating her? Going through designs in her head? Deciding where to make the first cut?
She shivered.
Rarity seemed to take that as her cue. “It’ll ruin it for them because they’ll find out that you don’t really want to be there?”
The sting of the accusation hurt but not as bad as the certainty with which Rarity had stated that she didn’t want it. It hadn’t been a question, just a statement of fact. “I’m not sure I don’t… It’s all so confusing. I don’t know how to feel or what to do.” She gave Rarity a pleading look, but she didn’t dare ask for help. She didn’t deserve any.
“Don’t you give me that look,” Rarity chided. Her voice was a little harder than before. “I aided you last time only to find out you were lying to me! Oh, you certainly meant to confess to Rainbow Dash, you just neglected to mention you intended to cut Trixie out! How dare you make me complicit in that?”
Fluttershy flinched as each word bucked her straight in the chest, driving home with painful clarity that she’d messed up far more than she’d thought. How had she not even considered that she had betrayed Rarity’s trust?
Rarity’s eyes were fierce, like they could bore right through her. She had every right to be angry, to be hurt.
“I’m sorry,” Fluttershy whimpered and slunk underneath the table in a vain attempt to just escape the stare. She quickly shook her head. “I-I swear I wasn’t planning on it! I just… I… it was a spur of the moment thing. We had our special moment, finally. Y-you only get one, like you said. Then she broke it off early and shoved me away for Trixie and… and I just got so angry. I knew it was wrong. So wrong… I was selfish and jealous. I hate that I was. T-that I still am.”
To Fluttershy’s relief, Rarity softened up a little again. “Darling, I want to believe you, really. I was so shocked to see you act out like that. You aren’t like that. The Fluttershy I know would never do something so vicious. I spent half the night trying to make sense of it and the other half assuring myself I must have imagined the whole thing.
"When you showed up on my doorstep today I was all but certain you wanted to come clean and get some advice. I was so relieved, but… then you dodged every opening I gave you and started fishing for what I knew and… well, it dawned on me you weren’t here to make anything right, you were just checking to see if you were in trouble.”
Staring down at the tabletop to avoid having to meet Rarity’s eyes, Fluttershy cringed as she discovered the one thing worse than having Rarity angry at her. She sounded so disappointed. “...I’m sorry.”
“And I’m sorry I have to resort to base blackmail, just to get my friend to tell me what is going on with her.” Rarity heaved a heavy sigh.
So, that’s what the threat of telling Trixie and Rainbow Dash was truly about. Rarity never actually wanted her to tell them, she just wanted to construct a scenario that was so scary that Fluttershy would rather invent a third option and voluntarily confess in a bid for sympathy to avoid it.
Were all unicorns this cunning? Or was it just her luck that Rarity and Trixie were so much better practiced at it? She’d at least been lucky that neither of them were interested in using their guile against her, but now she had a taste of how close she was getting to that. Or was that just what it was like when she wasn’t afforded the benefit of the doubt as much as she was used to?
It was a scary thought.
She briefly considered whether it would do her any good to try and confront Rarity for spying on them during such an intimate moment, but she dismissed the idea. Two wrongs didn’t make a right. She should know, she’d been piling wrong upon wrong for a while now.
“It’s O-okay… I should have come to you weeks ago.”
“This has been going on for weeks?” Rarity asked with genuine surprise.
Fluttershy just nodded.
Silence stretched on for a minute or two, making Fluttershy more nervous as she chanced a peek at Rarity.
Curiously, Rarity was now wearing her glasses, but Fluttershy didn’t think she’d put them on consciously. No, more likely she’d floated them over out of habit as the look on her face was one of deep thought, her brow knit together in a wrinkle that Rarity occasionally complained about.
“So,” Rarity suddenly met her gaze. “This wasn’t the first time you acted out like that, right? I remember Trixie mentioned she figured out your feelings due to a bit of petty jealousy on your part… She thought it was endearing, but then… she didn’t know who you were jealous of, did she?” She spoke softly as if she could barely believe she’d cracked the case.
Fluttershy nodded so faintly it was a miracle Rarity even saw it. She really didn’t want her to either. “I… She assumed and I panicked...”
“I knew it! I knew you were uncomfortable at the spa!” Rarity slammed her hooves on the table in vindication.
Fluttershy rattled as easily as the tea set
“Oh, Celestia. Why didn’t you say anything? In fact, why did you go along with any of this?” Rarity rubbed her temple.
“If I did, then Trixie would know those shameful things I did were to hinder her, and I didn’t want to hurt her feelings. I know that’s not a good reason, but, but I thought I could just pretend for a little bit and then break it off, or make her break it off…” Fluttershy would have thought Trixie would have given up sooner, especially when they hadn’t done anything in weeks, but Trixie had been so patient with her all that time, respecting her boundaries. It was equal parts infuriating and infatuating. Ironically, it took Rainbow Dash to break them up, however short-lived that was. “It almost worked, but Trixie is really good at pulling rabbits out of hats, and… I like rabbits?”
What a dumb thing to say. Had her brain just short-circuited for a moment?
“Right… I see.” Rarity was looking at her like she was an idiot as well. “So, you’re happy with your current ‘arrangement’ then?”
“I don’t know.”
“Mhm. You did say that, but other than one moment of weakness, you haven’t been sabotaging them anymore, right?”
“Uhm...” Fluttershy bit her lip.
“Seriously?” Rarity groaned exasperated and motioned with her hoof to continue. “What else did you do?”
Fluttershy hesitated, tears welling up in her eyes. “I… can’t… I don’t want to tell you. Please.”
“Why not?” There was tension in Rarity's voice that Fluttershy couldn’t place.
There wasn’t anything really keeping her here. Rarity wasn’t likely to stop her if she just ran away. What would happen then? Fluttershy could guess Rarity would inform Rainbow Dash and Trixie. They’d be angry with her. Maybe even so angry they’d never want to see her again.
One quick clean break away from everything. Was that better than where she was now? Tangled up in her own web of lies so messy that she wasn’t even sure anymore how she truly felt. If she let it all be torn down she’d fall to the ground hard, but at least she’d know where she was. Even if it was alone.
Fluttershy tried to focus on Opal but the feline evaded her, hopping gracefully down to the ground. Then, as if to taunt her, Opal began grooming herself. It wasn’t personal, probably. It was just the tension in her body.
Animals were sensitive to things like that… but it felt like a petty jab right when she couldn’t take one and it brought one thing into sharp focus. She didn’t want to be alone.
Then, her only option was to explain herself to Rarity. No matter how difficult that was.
“Okay…” Fluttershy sighed, slumping forward to lean onto the table. She rested her head on the countertop, defeated. “I did so many petty, jealous things… I even thought about doing worse sometimes, n-not that I did, but… I already hate myself for just thinking about it… I-If I tell you, will you hate me too?”
There was a pause as Rarity considered her own answer. That wasn’t a great sign, but at least it indicated she was seriously thinking it over. “You’re scaring me a little, Fluttershy. Listen, if you honestly tell me what’s been going on with you… I’ll help you, okay? Whatever that might look like.”
Fluttershy nodded weakly. It was more than she could have asked for.
She briefly ran Rarity through a few of the easy ones. The ones that had backfired on her were still bad but came with their own retribution. Among them was the time she tried to delay a date only to have it happen sooner. And when she’d tried to curb their flirting in her living room only for them to take it outside for far longer.
“That’s when I figured out Dash didn’t know so I took that chance to tell Trixie I’d withdraw and… and, I suppose now I’m watching them m-make out in my living room… N-not just watching either,” she mumbled quietly. ”So, that didn’t work out as planned at all...”
“No, I suppose not.” Rarity snickered then cleared her throat as she regained her composure. “While the cascade of failures is amusing enough to take the sting out of these… There’s still more isn’t there?”
“You already know about the big ones, like what I said to Rainbow Dash, o-or that I led Trixie on...” Fluttershy felt relieved that she’d already covered the worst things she’d done. There wasn’t any reason to go into things she’d considered doing, like one dark moment where she’d given thought to telling Twilight Trixie did have the book. Those were horrible, but she hadn’t done them.
She rattled off the more petty things she’d done that hadn’t done much. Like giving Trixie garlic breath before she went to see Rainbow Dash. Lying to her about the destruction of her favorite cloak to keep it a surprise, when she could have picked something less distressing. That one time she moved her saddlebags out during cleaning and ‘neglected’ to put them back, though she didn’t mention her underlying intention. That one time she left early without a note, knowing Trixie would stress for a little bit.
“That was more because my voice was so deep suddenly and I wasn’t really thinking straight. I just thought… Uhm, Rarity?” Fluttershy had been avoiding looking at her, but she sensed something amiss and looked up. It had been too quiet for a while now.
Rarity’s face was blanched, mouth slightly agape. Once their eyes met the spell seemed to break. A brief moment of bewilderment ended as Rarity glared at her with the same intensity as before.
Fluttershy froze.
“You! You!” Rarity stood up from the table and jabbed a hoof at her. Then she looked away and pulled back as if she’d decided on a different tact and trotted around the table, causing Fluttershy to cower, but she walked right past her and toward the front door. Rarity was already partway through it when she turned around and glowered at her. “You stay right there until I can stand the sight of you again!”
Rarity could have launched every pin and needle in the boutique into her chest simultaneously, and it still wouldn't have been as sharp a pain. “W-what?”
“Do you think I don’t know what those saddlebags were for?” Rarity asked through clenched teeth as if it was taking all her effort not to yell. “Trixie all but told me. She was with me that evening, you know. I spent half of it just talking her down from running away and then you go and pull something… Something like that!”
Fluttershy paled.
Before she had a chance to respond, Rarity slammed the door shut behind her.