Something About Sunset

by Krickis

1 – Something New

⠀
Mornings were hard. Twilight was not made for mornings, she was made for late nights filled with lots of caffeine as she worked on whatever project was her current focus. Of course, she was used to waking up for school. She didn’t like it, but it was important. However it was spring break, it was time for sleeping in and staying up late, and yet here she was, rising with the sun.

Twilight got out of bed as carefully as possible, doing her best to avoid waking Spike. She looked back once she was up, seeing that he was still sleeping peacefully. That made her smile a little.

Looking for something else to smile about, Twilight retrieved her phone from her bedside table. She opened her text message app, going to the first name on the list and typing, ‘Just woke up. Hope you slept well.’

From there, Twilight left her room and walked down the hall to the bathroom. A quick shower would help her wake up. But as she closed the door, her text message tone went off.

As expected, it made her smile. It was from Fluttershy, who sent a selfie of herself on her bed. She looked every bit as beautiful as always, and it was the best way to start the day. There was also a message that read, ‘I slept pretty well, but I wish you had been here with me. I’ll head out to get you in a little bit.’

The idea of cuddling with Fluttershy through the night sent a rush of endorphins through Twilight. They’d had the chance at the occasional sleepover with the girls, enduring the teasing for the chance to sleep tangled up together. That was just a taste of what was to come, and today was the first step on the road to something more.

Of course, before they took that step, she’d need that shower. Twilight turned on the water, then sent a quick reply to Fluttershy as it heated up. ‘Sounds good, I’ll be ready! Love you!’

As she undressed, she got a ‘Love you too’ back from Fluttershy, then she got into the shower. It was a big day, but it would be a good one. That much was certain.

Twilight surprised herself by remaining that positive for the duration of her shower. Everything was changing. They only had a few more months until graduation, and things weren’t going to be easy. Even so, she was happy. Excited, even. She had Fluttershy beside her, and that made everything okay. It always did.

It was probably getting close to when Fluttershy would be picking her up by the time she left the bathroom. She checked her phone, and sure enough, there was a message saying that she had left.

Since Fluttershy was driving, Twilight decided not to reply. It was for the best; not only would she just be distracting her girlfriend, but she didn’t want to be too clingy. With a sigh, Twilight simply made her way to her bedroom. At least Spike was awake when she walked in. “Good morning, Twilight.”

“Morning, Spike,” Twilight said cheerfully, shoving down her concerns about relationships. “Ready to spend some time with Winona?”

“You bet!” Even though the magic that had given Spike the ability to speak had also made him considerably more intelligent, he was still a dog, and a puppy at that. The idea of spending the day playing with another dog got him almost as excited as Twilight was about this whole thing.

With that in mind, she changed quickly and then called him to follow her as she left her room. They made their way downstairs and sat on the living room couch. The house was quiet – Twilight’s dad worked overnight and wouldn’t be home yet, and while her mom was home, she would be sleeping the morning away. Theirs was not a morning household.

As if to emphasize this point, Twilight let out a yawn while they waited. It was just her luck that both Fluttershy and Applejack were early risers. They had a busy day ahead of them though, and besides, Fluttershy and Applejack were going to be busy in the afternoon, so she really couldn’t argue with the decision to leave in the morning.

She passed the time by talking with Spike, who was sitting on her lap as she stroked his ears. He was finishing up telling her about a dream he’d had. “And then Angel Bunny kicked me in the face…”

Twilight couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Aww, Angel isn’t that mean.”

“Maybe not to you…” Spike grumbled.

“I’m sure you two will get along once you get to know each other a little better.”

“Maybe…”

Twilight hoped that was true. It would mean a lot to Fluttershy if Spike got along with her pet rabbit. She continued to pet him gently while they waited. “I had a dream too. I was dancing with… someone.”

“You don’t remember?”

More like she shouldn’t have said anything. “No, I don’t.”

“Well, it must have been Fluttershy, right?”

“Maybe,” Twilight said with a twinge of guilt for lying. But she didn’t need Spike bringing this up at the wrong time today, so it was best to let him think that.

And anyway, she heard a car pull into the driveway. “Sounds like she’s here.”

Spike jumped off of Twilight and ran to the door. Although she thought Spike was intelligent enough to not need it, she still attached his leash, as she always did when they went outside. Then she opened the door and shielded her eyes as she stepped out into the sunlight.

Fluttershy popped her hand out from the window to wave at her, and Twilight waved back using the hand that held Spike’s leash. Well behaved as always, he stayed by her side without relying on the leash to keep him there at all.

Once the door was closed and locked, Twilight and Spike walked over to the car. She opened the back seat to let the dog in first, then took the front seat herself.

And of course, Fluttershy was waiting with a kiss for her girlfriend. She smiled as they pulled apart. “You still look sleepy.”

Twilight smiled as well, though not as effortlessly as Fluttershy did. “I am.”

“Applejack said she’d have coffee ready when we get there. And there’s a pair of sunglasses for you if you want them.”

“Thanks, you’re the best.” Twilight quickly put on the sunglasses, eager to filter out some of the intense light.

Fluttershy pulled out of the driveway and into the road. As they made their way to Applejack’s house, she talked brightly about how excited she was about everything, which mimicked how Twilight felt about the changes that were coming for them.

It lasted a few minutes, at least. “Uhm…” Fluttershy said, and Twilight knew what was coming.

“Something on your mind, Shy?” Twilight didn’t need to ask, but it was more polite than jumping straight into it.

“Well… it’s just a really big change…”

“Hey, it’ll be okay.” They pulled up to a red light, so Twilight took the chance to take Fluttershy’s hand in hers and give it a squeeze. “I know it’s a lot, but we’ll be together. And besides, living together has been our dream for the past year.”

“Yeah, I know.” Of course, Twilight knew Fluttershy knew. They’d talked about this extensively, starting shortly after they started dating. They clicked so well together, and they loved each other deeply. And with graduation around the corner, those plans were finally coming to a head.

“Fluttershy, I love you, and I’ll be there for you. And so will Applejack. You’re not doing this alone, you have us supporting you. It’ll be okay because we’ll make it okay.”

“I guess so…”

Twilight hesitated for a moment, during which, the light turned green. They started driving again. “Do you think maybe you should take your meds?”

Fluttershy shook her head slightly. “No, I’ll be okay.”

“You did bring them though, right?”

“Of course. If I get too anxious, I’ll take them.”

Twilight nodded. “Alright. Love you, Shy.”

Fluttershy smiled. “Love you too, Twily.”

Thankfully, Spike spared them from the difficult topic. “Do you think Applejack will have any of those dog treats for me today?”

Twilight giggled. “I’m sure she will, Spike.”

For the rest of the trip, they kept the conversation on lighter topics. It was obvious Fluttershy was still a bit anxious, though she held it together well. Still, Twilight looked forward to having Applejack with them. She always helped when Fluttershy was upset.

Internally, Twilight breathed a sigh of relief when they arrived at Applejack’s house. She unbuckled as Fluttershy parked and cut off the engine, but as she went to open the door, she noticed Fluttershy hadn’t unbuckled. She was just sitting in her seat, staring at her hands in her lap.

“What’s going on?” Twilight asked.

Fluttershy just shook her head.

“Come on, let’s go in and see Applejack.”

“Yeah…”

Twilight frowned. She wanted to help Fluttershy, but how could she when she couldn’t tell what was going on in her head? It wasn’t like Twilight didn’t have her fair share of anxiety issues. Out of all their friends, she was probably in the best position to understand what Fluttershy felt.

Or at least, that’s what she told herself. In truth, however, Fluttershy’s anxiety was vastly different from Twilight’s, and she was often at a loss for how to handle it. The things that worked for Twilight just didn’t seem to work for Fluttershy; while Twilight could be reassured and grounded, Fluttershy could spend days inside her head, thinking thoughts that neither Twilight nor anyone else could imagine coming from the sweet girl.

Slowly, Fluttershy moved. She unbuckled, but she didn’t leave the car immediately. Instead, she opened her purse and pulled out a prescription pill bottle. She twisted the top off and pulled out a single pill, which she popped in her mouth. She put the pill bottle back and took a bottle of water out of her purse, which she used to swallow the pill.

“We can wait inside until it kicks in,” Twilight suggested. “We should go let Applejack know we’re here, though.”

“I’d like that,” Fluttershy said, then opened her door.

Since Fluttershy was finally ready to leave the car, Twilight did likewise. She opened the door to the back seat as well once she was out, letting Spike out. Once they were around the front of the car, she held Spike’s leash in one hand and took Fluttershy’s hand in her other, and the three of them walked up to the house.

Since she was the one with a free hand, Fluttershy knocked on the door. After a moment, Applejack answered. “Howdy, y’all! And good morning to you, beautiful.”

Even with the anxiety attack, Fluttershy smiled a little. Then she gave her girlfriend a hug and a kiss, and for that second, it looked like nothing was wrong. Twilight stood off to the side and smiled, happy to see that Fluttershy was already starting to feel a little better.

Once they pulled apart, Applejack turned to Twilight and offered a hug. “Hey, Twi. Reckon you’d like some coffee to start the day?”

“That’d be great, thank you, Applejack,” Twilight said, returning the hug. She followed her girlfriend and her metamour into the house.

“Why don’t y’all get comfy and I’ll get us some coffee?” Applejack suggested as they passed through the living room.

“You’re not carrying three cups of coffee,” Fluttershy said. “I’ll help.”

“Suit yourself,” Applejack said, leading them into the kitchen.

While the others went to get the coffee, Twilight took a seat on the couch. She pulled out her phone to check the time. They had agreed to start apartment hunting bright and early, but they had a little time to wait for Fluttershy’s anxiety to come down.

While she had her phone out, Twilight opened her message app. It was still open to Fluttershy’s text, and she smiled again at the morning selfie. Then she backed out of it, noticing the name right below Fluttershy’s.

The second most recent text had been from Sunset. Although there were no new messages, Twilight opened it up anyway. They had been up too late talking, neither of them wanting to get off the phone despite Twilight’s early morning.

‘Shouldn’t you really get to bed Sparky?’

‘But you’re too fun to talk to…’

‘lol I’ll be here tomorrow, we can talk then’

‘Okay. Good night, Sunny <3’

‘Good night Sparky <3’

Twilight smiled at that, too. She sent another message, saying that they were at Applejack’s and would be heading out soon.

Then Fluttershy and Applejack returned with coffee, so Twilight set her phone on the table and turned her smile to them. “Mmm, that smells good.”

Applejack took a seat beside Twilight, handing her a cup of coffee. “This ought to wake ya up proper.”

Twilight took a small sip of it. It was still hot, but not too hot to drink. Meanwhile, Fluttershy just set hers down on the table to cool.

Even though there was no room for a third person on the couch, Fluttershy carefully sat between her two girlfriends. She leaned against Twilight while draping her legs over Applejack’s, so that she was lying on them more than she was on the couch.

Twilight used her free hand to stroke Fluttershy’s long pink hair, while Applejack rested her hands on Fluttershy’s legs and absent mindedly moved one hand back and forth on Fluttershy’s bare skin.

Fluttershy took a deep breath and smiled. The anxiety from earlier seemed to be passing, though Twilight knew better than to ignore it. “Shy’s been feeling pretty anxious about today.”

“Yeah, I kinda thought that she might be.”

“I took my meds when we got here,” Fluttershy said.

Applejack nodded. “Good. How are you feeling now?”

“A little better now that we’re all together.”

Twilight sipped her coffee. “We’ll just rest up here, and when you’re ready, we’ll head out. No need to rush.”

“Yeah…” Fluttershy looked off to the side.

She was greeted by Spike’s face popping up right in front of hers as he lifted himself with his front paws on the couch. “And you have me too, Fluttershy!”

Fluttershy giggled and scratched his ears. “Thank you, Spike. I’m glad. But uhm, I don’t think you can come with us today.”

“I know, Twilight says I’m staying here to play with Winona.”

“I think she’ll be happy about that,” Applejack said.

Twilight’s message tone went off on her phone, but she couldn’t reach it from underneath Fluttershy. “Can you get that, Shy? It’s probably Sunset.”

“Sure.” Fluttershy grabbed the phone, which had lit up with the message notification. Fluttershy’s mouth opened slightly when she saw it, then she pursed her lips. “It’s Moon Dancer.”

“Oh.” Twilight hadn’t expected Moon Dancer to message her. If she had, she never would have asked Fluttershy to get the phone. She pointedly kept stroking Fluttershy’s hair as she took the phone, but Fluttershy shifted position away from Twilight’s hand.

Turning her focus to her phone for the moment, Twilight read Moon Dancer’s message. It wasn’t anything too serious, just a simple ‘Hey, been a while. How are you?’ message.

Twilight weighed her options. Did she say that was all it was? Or should she ignore it and hope that Fluttershy did the same? Did she want Fluttershy to ignore it? She’d been hoping Moon Dancer was something the two of them could talk about, but that look Fluttershy gave wasn’t very promising…

“So how is she?” Fluttershy asked, her voice cold.

Well, that answered that dilemma. “I don’t know, she was just asking how I am.”

“I see.”

Twilight didn’t send a reply. She could always talk to Moon Dancer later, during Fluttershy and Applejack’s afternoon date. Texting Moon Dancer back and forth while she was spending the day with Fluttershy apartment hunting would only raise her girlfriend’s anxiety.

‘Of course, I wouldn’t care if it were the other way around…’

“Might wanna sit up so you can drink your coffee,” Applejack said, clearly taking a stance of avoiding getting involved in the couple’s issues. It was, in a way, easy for her. Applejack didn’t mind sharing Fluttershy with Twilight, but she had no interest in being with anyone aside from her one girlfriend.

Twilight, though? Well, when they had agreed to a non-monogamous relationship, Twilight had expected that would work both ways…

Still, she didn’t say anything. Not now, it wasn’t the right time. Of course, it was never the right time, but that was beside the point…

In any event, Fluttershy sat up a little, which made it easier for both Twilight and herself to drink their coffee. They were still squished tightly in the two-person couch, which felt a lot less comfortable all of a sudden.

In her place, Spike climbed onto the couch and sat on Twilight’s lap. He gave her something else to focus on as she absentmindedly stroked his fur while the three girls sat silently and drank their coffee.

The silence grew to be too much, so Twilight turned to Fluttershy. “So how are you feeling? Still anxious?”

“A little,” Fluttershy said, although she still sounded irritated. “I think the meds are kicking in.”

Twilight smiled, choosing to focus on Fluttershy’s words more than her tone. “Good. Think you’ll be ready to go by the time we finish the coffee?”

“I think so, yeah.”

Content with that answer, Twilight continued drinking her coffee.

Before too long, Applejack stood up. “Well, how about we get you and Winona set up out back, Spike?”

“Okay!” Spike stood up and wagged his tail excitedly. “Can I have a treat too?”

Applejack laughed. “I dunno, have you been good?”

“You bet I have!”

Twilight laughed and helped Spike off the couch. “He has been.”

“Well, alright then.” Applejack walked into the kitchen, and Spike followed. Twilight heard the sound of Applejack pulling the jar of dog treats from the top of the fridge, and she could imagine Spike’s excited face as he ate it up. Then she heard the sound of the back door opening and closing.

She heard all of this because she and Fluttershy didn’t say anything. They sat in silence, no doubt both of them still dwelling on Moon Dancer’s unfortunately timed message. Of course, Twilight could try talking about something, but what? The day ahead of them caused Fluttershy to have an anxiety attack in the car, so that wasn’t something to discuss.

Eventually it was Fluttershy who broke the silence. “Spike sure does like it here.”

There, that was a good conversation. “Yeah, he does. Probably because Applejack spoils him so much.”

Fluttershy nudged Twilight. “Oh, like you don’t? He’s put on a few pounds, and I think someone has been feeding him people food again.”

Twilight laughed. “Well, it’s hard not to when he can talk. His begging has gotten a lot harder to ignore.”

“Hmm, like you weren’t always a softee with him.”

“And you’re not?”

“Not as bad as you.”

“I guess that’s fair.”

Fluttershy placed an arm around Twilight, and the worries slowly started going away. They always did when Twilight was with Fluttershy. “Love you, Shy.”

“Love you too, Twily.”

Twilight placed her hand on Fluttershy’s head to pull it closer, then kissed her pretty pink hair. She leaned her forehead against Fluttershy’s head, and things felt okay again.

“Hey, Shy?”

“Yeah?”

“Will you sing for me?”

Fluttershy pulled away from Twilight and blushed. “Right now? With Applejack’s family around?”

“They’ve heard you sing before,” Twilight pointed out.

Fluttershy shook her head. “Not just by myself though. Maybe later?”

“Yeah, okay.” Twilight grinned. “How about a kiss then?”

“Hmm, I can manage that.” Fluttershy leaned in and kissed Twilight. Then she put her arms around Twilight’s neck, and she kissed her again.

As preoccupied as she was, Twilight didn’t even hear Applejack walk in. She only found out her metamour was there when she pulled away from Fluttershy and saw Applejack standing in the kitchen doorway.

The country girl grinned at the two girlfriends. “Y’all ready to head out, or you need a minute?”

Fluttershy blushed, but she laughed too. “We’re ready.”

Twilight quickly finished the last of her coffee, then Fluttershy took their mugs into the kitchen. Applejack walked with her, so Twilight was alone for a moment. She pulled up her message to Moon Dancer and sent a quick reply. ‘Busy day today, can you talk this afternoon? I should be free then.’

Before she got an answer, Fluttershy and Applejack returned. Twilight led the way out, with Applejack bringing up the rear. As they left the house, Twilight’s message tone went off, and she resolved to wait until it was safe to check it.

Instead, she got into the front passenger seat of Fluttershy’s car, buckling up once she was in. She checked the message as Applejack got in the back and Fluttershy got into the driver’s seat. ‘Sure, just message me when you’re free.’

Twilight was content with that answer. As much as the two friends enjoyed talking – and Twilight suspected Moon Dancer enjoyed Twilight’s company just as much as Twilight enjoyed hers – Moon Dancer was always understanding of Twilight’s busy schedule. It was part of what made Twilight think that the two of them could make a relationship work, even in spite of the fact that Moon Dancer lived so far away.

Of course, that was a landmine of a situation… Twilight looked towards Fluttershy as she started the engine, then back out the window while they pulled away. She couldn’t address that now, so she just put it from her mind.

“So first stop is that new apartment complex downtown, right?” Applejack asked.

Twilight put away her phone as she answered. “Yeah, I heard they’re offering good deals to new tenants because they’re new. A lot of empty apartments to fill.”

“Makes sense.” Applejack turned her attention to their girlfriend.  “How ya feeling, Fluttershy?”

There was never any telling how Fluttershy would feel about their plans at any given moment, but this time, she smiled. “I’m excited. It’ll be so nice to have our own place, just the three of us. It feels so surreal that this is really happening.”

It was great to hear Fluttershy wasn’t letting her anxiety get to her. Twilight put her hand in between them, and Fluttershy took hold of it, keeping her other hand on the steering wheel. “Summer can’t come soon enough,” Twilight said.

Fluttershy giggled. “It’ll be like a permanent sleepover with my two favorite girls. Love you both.”

“Love you too,” Twilight and Applejack answered at the same time, which caused Fluttershy to giggle again. She always did respond well to having both of her girlfriends around.

“Bet Pinkie will be excited,” Applejack said. Twilight glanced at her in the rearview mirror and saw she was smirking. “She’ll get to throw us a housewarming party.”

Twilight turned to actually see her face to face. “Remember, our budget isn’t very big, so our apartment will probably be on the smaller side. I don’t know how much of a party we’ll be able to throw.”

“I know, I know. But try telling that to Pinkie.”

“She has a point, Twily.” Fluttershy cast Twilight a quick glance. “You know there’s no reasoning with Pinkie when there’s a party on the line.”

That was true… “I guess if it’s just our close friends, that should be okay…”

They kept talking about stuff like that. Parties with friends, staying up late together, having fun and being silly, just the three of them. Twilight suspected they all knew living on their own would mean a lot of work too, but it was nice to focus on the positive aspects.

The conversation lasted long enough for them to get them to the apartment complex. As always, trying to find a place to park downtown was tough – tenants got assigned parking spots in a special parking lot, but they didn’t have many spaces left for non-residents.

In the end, they parked about a block away. It wasn’t too much of a walk, but it was something to keep in mind. Twilight brought it up once they were all out of the car. “This is what the girls will have to do when they visit us.”

“Yeah, that’s a shame,” Applejack said. “Wonder how many parking spaces we’ll get with our apartment?”

“I’m sure they’ll give us at least two,” Fluttershy said as they started walking towards the building.

Applejack nodded. “That’ll do us alright unless Twi gets a car.”

“We’ll just have to put that in for consideration too.” Twilight took hold of Fluttershy’s hand as they walked. Fluttershy turned to face her, and they both smiled at each other.

Not to be outdone, Applejack took Fluttershy’s other hand. As always, Fluttershy’s happiness to have both of them spread to Twilight. She had to wonder how long it would last when they all lived together and this was their normal. Sure, it was special now, but when they spent every day together?

Twilight glanced away so the other’s wouldn’t see her frown. Why couldn’t she just be happy? Was it so hard to just shut her brain up and enjoy this feeling while it lasted?

They stopped at a crosswalk and checked for traffic before crossing it. It gave Twilight an excuse to look at Fluttershy’s face, which got rid of her frown. That was a face she could never get tired of, even if she spent every day with it.

They walked hand in hand all the way to the apartment complex, only separating when they walked into the building. As they entered, they were greeted by a yellow woman with red poofy hair.

“Hello, there!” she said. “Welcome to Lotus Springs! My name is Strawberry Sunrise. How can we help you today?”

“We’re looking to rent an apartment,” Applejack said. As usual, she took point of the conversation, being the most outgoing of the three of them.

They went through some basic information – names, ages, income, co-signers – and eventually came to what apartments they qualified for. “It’ll be a little tight on your budget, but with your co-signers, you do qualify for some of our two-bedroom apartments.” Strawberry printed off a guide to what apartments they qualified for, which included amenities and prices.

Applejack looked it over, then looked up at Strawberry. “Two bedrooms would be nice, but we were thinking of saving money and getting a one bedroom for now.”

Strawberry blinked. “One bedroom for three of you?”

“As long as it can fit a king size bed,” Twilight pointed out. “That’s my parents’ housewarming gift to us, they’re buying us a bed that fits all three of us.”

“Wow, you three must be really good friends.”

Fluttershy blushed and looked down. Twilight glanced away as well, not really sure what to say about it. Applejack, at least, just laughed and said, “Yeah, you could say that.”

Thankfully, the Strawberry didn’t hound them for more information. “Alright, well if you look over here at our one bedroom rates, I think you’ll find them very agreeable.”

Before too long, they picked out the apartments they wanted to take a closer look at, then Strawberry stood up. “Come on, let’s go show you three what we have to offer.”

Applejack looked back and smiled at the others, then the three of them followed Strawberry to see what their potential new home was going to be.

“Hmm, bathroom’s kinda small,” Applejack pointed out.

“Yeah, the other place had a full size tub,” Fluttershy agreed. “I would hate to shave my legs in a standing only shower.”

“I agree,” Twilight said. “But this place is a hundred dollars cheaper. So we’ll have to weigh that into things.”

The three girls left the bathroom, returning to the man who was showing them around. This was their fourth apartment complex visit of the day, and their last. It had been a tiring day, and Twilight was sure hers wasn’t the only head spinning with all the options.

“I think we’ve seen everything we need to,” Applejack said.

“Great!” the guy said with a grin. “Then shall we start printing up some papers?”

Everyone looked at each other. Again, Applejack was the one to answer. “Er, we’re gonna talk it over amongst ourselves, but thank ya kindly for showing us around.”

“Of course, of course. Here, let me give you my card.”

Twilight internally sighed with relief, glad he was going to let them go. Although the price here was good, it did lack some of the things they liked about other apartments, and they had the budget to get something better. They’d have to talk it over, of course, but this wasn’t likely to be what Twilight voted for.

Applejack accepted his card, and then he led them out of the building. He walked with them as far as the front reception, then he stopped before going back to his desk. “Sure I can’t do anything else for you?”

“No, but you’ve been great.” Applejack tipped her hat. “We’ll be in touch.”

“Alright, I’ll be looking forward to hearing from you!”

They waved him off, then left the building. At least this place had a spacious and easily accessible parking lot that would allow their friends to visit easily. It didn’t take them long to get to Fluttershy’s car.

“What do you think?” Fluttershy asked as she unlocked the doors.

Twilight got in the back – she and Applejack had been taking turns in the front. “I like the area, and the price is good. But… it’s pretty small.”

Applejack buckled up as she answered. “Yeah, even if we’re sharing a bedroom, there are three of us.”

Fluttershy buckled up as well, then started the engine. “I still like the first place. The on site laundry room was really convenient, and it’s the best price for what it offers.”

“Even with the parking?” Applejack asked. “They only give us two spots.”

Fluttershy sighed. “You’re right, that would be a pain…”

“The one with the lake was nice,” Twilight pointed out.

“I think that’s my favorite,” Applejack agreed. “A bit expensive, but it’s in our budget.”

Fluttershy pulled out of the parking spot, and Twilight prepared herself for a big discussion of pros and cons. She wished she had taken notes while they were out, but they had taken pictures, so she pulled out her phone.

Fluttershy noticed. “Texting Moon Dancer?”

Twilight frowned. It wasn’t that Fluttershy had sounded upset, but that was always a minefield. “No, I was just going to look over pictures of today.”

Fluttershy turned back around as she shifted from reverse into drive. “I, uhm… I think I’d like to talk about something else, if that’s okay.”

Twilight blinked. She had been the one to bring up Moon Dancer, and now she was saying she wanted to talk about something else.

Applejack seemed to understand better than Twilight, though. “Of course, today was a lot. We’ll weigh our options tomorrow.”

Oh, right, that was what Fluttershy didn’t want to talk about.

“You, uhm. You should probably let Moon Dancer know we’re done for the day. I’m sure she really wants to talk to you.”

“Oh, that can wait until I get home.” Twilight regretted the words as soon as she said them. Fluttershy and Applejack were going on a date, and Fluttershy didn’t need a reminder that while she was busy, Twilight would also be doing something with someone she cared about.

But surprisingly, Fluttershy giggled. “I remember when you were texting her all the time. I’m surprised you can wait that long.”

“Well, I mean…” Twilight couldn’t finish that thought. She wanted to make some sort of lighthearted joke to go with Fluttershy’s comment, but no words came to mind. She couldn’t very well point out that Fluttershy was part of why Twilight didn’t talk to Moon Dancer as much as she used to.

“I think you and I were just as bad,” Applejack said. She rarely intervened in this discussion, but maybe she thought it was safe because Fluttershy was in a good mood with it. “Before we started dating, we were on the phone every other day.”

“I remember.” Fluttershy was smiling contently, but it quickly faded. Only for a moment, however, then she was back to smiling. “So… when are you going to ask her out?”

Twilight blushed. “I… er, what?”

Although she kept the smile going, Twilight wondered if it was forced. “I mean, you want to, don’t you?”

“I… I don’t know, I mean, that is…”

“You’re scaring her, Shy,” Applejack said.

“Alright, I’ll stop teasing,” Fluttershy said.

Was that all it was? Teasing? Fluttershy was just trying to get a reaction from Twilight?

Because if that’s all it was, then Twilight wished she would tease about a different topic. Any other topic.

Because Moon Dancer? She should already be Twilight’s girlfriend. Well, assuming she wanted to be, of course. But then when Twilight tried to talk to Fluttershy about her crush…

Fluttershy had always had anxiety issues, topped with low self esteem. She seemed to think Twilight would use her as a stepping stone to a better relationship, and that Moon Dancer might be the end of them. She saw how similar Moon Dancer and Twilight were, and worse, she saw how happy Moon Dancer made her.

She did not seem to see how happy Fluttershy herself made Twilight, on the other hand. She would get mad at herself for creating an unbalanced relationship by dating Applejack and not granting Twilight the same freedom, but that didn’t change the fact she clearly loathed the idea of Twilight dating another girl.

As always, Applejack was quick with another topic. She talked about their upcoming date, which was great, because it gave Twilight an excuse to not chime in at all. She was able to stay quiet for the rest of the ride to Applejack’s house.

“Think Spike tired himself out?” Applejack said as they pulled into the driveway.

“Doubt it.” Twilight forced a smile. “He’ll still have plenty of energy when we get home, trust me.”

“Yeah, he’s still a pup.” Applejack led them into the house, where Fluttershy and Twilight waited in the living room for Applejack to fetch Spike from the backyard.

While they waited, Twilight turned to Fluttershy. “How are you feeling?”

“Okay,” Fluttershy said. “I’m just a little anxious from everything. But I’m okay. Thanks to you and Applejack.”

Twilight smiled. “I’m glad.”

Fluttershy smiled at her for a moment, then turned away. “You should, uhm, talk to Moon Dancer. If you want to.”

“Fluttershy?”

“I… didn’t mean to tease you. I was serious. If you want to.”

“Oh.” Twilight wasn’t sure what to say. This was what she wanted, but… “Are you sure? It doesn’t bother you?”

Fluttershy was quiet for a moment, then she smiled. “I’ll get over it.”

“I don’t want you to have to get over it.”

Fluttershy shook her head. “Just… do it. I don’t want to hold you back.”

Twilight shifted uncomfortably. This might be a breakthrough for them, but at the same time, she couldn’t act on it right away. What would happen the next time Fluttershy’s anxiety spiked? Maybe she meant it now, but things could change so quickly with her.

“Hey, Shy? I love you.”

Before Fluttershy could answer, Spike came running up to Twilight’s legs. “Twilight! How did it go?”

“It was good,” Twilight answered. “I’ll tell you about it later.”

“I love you too, Twily,” Fluttershy said, though she bent down to scratch Spike’s ears.

“Well, we ready to head out then?” Applejack asked. “Dinner reservations and all that.”

“Yeah, I know.” Fluttershy stood up. “I’m ready.”

“Come on, Spike.” Twilight led them back to the car, with Spike falling in step beside her. She looked at Fluttershy, looking for some indication of what they had talked about, but it was already gone.

So Twilight put it from her mind as well. She was good at that. Good at not thinking about things that might be problems, focussing things away from them. Even if sometimes, away from a problem did not mean towards a solution.

Like now. She didn’t think ignoring this was the right thing to do, but it was the easy thing to do, so it’s what she did. She opened the back door of Fluttershy’s car, helped Spike get inside, then climbed in herself.

They all got into the car, buckled up, then pulled out onto the road. As they went, Twilight pulled out her phone. Fluttershy had asked to not talk about the apartment hunt, so she’d fill Spike in on it later.

Instead, she opened her texting app. Moon Dancer was at the top, but Twilight wasn’t ready to open that door yet. Instead, she went to someone else’s name. Someone who she really couldn’t stop from messaging these days.

‘Okay. Good night, Sunny <3’

‘Good night Sparky <3’

Twilight smiled reading over those words, and then she typed new ones. ‘Apartment hunting went well. Maybe after you’re off work we can talk about it. I’d like to go over the details if you don’t mind.’

Although she knew Sunset had to be getting ready for work, she got a message within moments. She tried to hide the smile at her excitement over talking with Sunset, lest Fluttershy pick up on it and get the wrong idea.

‘I’d love to, glad to hear it went well. I’ll call when I get off.’

‘That sounds nice. Thanks, Sunny!’

‘No problem Sparky’

Twilight knew she should let Sunset go so that she could get ready for work, but instead, she sent another text. ‘I hope it’s not too bad at the mall today.’

And even though she should be getting ready, Sunset still replied. ‘Spring break, so you know, it’ll be packed’

‘I’m sorry, I hope it’s not too bad.’

‘It’ll work out. I can talk to you on my lunch break right?’

‘Of course! I’ll look forward to it!’

Okay, now Twilight was going to let Sunset go. Or at least, she would, except Sunset seemed determined not to. ‘Kinda wanna drive to your house on lunch’

‘Sunny, you get half an hour. It takes ten minutes to get to my house, don’t waste it.’

‘Spending ten minutes with you can make my whole day though Sparky’

Twilight couldn’t hold in the grin anymore than she could hold in the blush. She glanced to the front to see that Applejack and Fluttershy were both preoccupied, then she returned to her phone. ‘You’re too sweet.’

‘Nah, just being truthful’

They exchanged texts until Sunset really had to go, which was right around when Fluttershy dropped Twilight off at her house. She hadn’t even noticed how quickly the time passed on the drive.

“I’ll let you know when I’m home,” Fluttershy said as Twilight got out of the car. “Have a good day, Twily.”

Twilight picked up Spike, deciding to just carry him inside. “You too. Love you, Shy.”

“Love you too.”

“Bye, Applejack!” Twilight waved, and Spike mimicked her.

“See you two later!” Applejack said with a wave.

Twilight turned and made her way inside. There was no one in the living room, and although she wanted to talk to her parents about the day, that could wait. For now, she made her way upstairs and into her bedroom.

All the way there, she thought of Sunset. There was something about Sunset, a short conversation over text could leave Twilight smiling for hours.

“It must’ve gone pretty well if you’re smiling that much,” Spike observed as Twilight walked into their room.

She set him on the ground, then collapsed in her bed. She opened her text message app, and clicked Sunset’s picture. It pulled up bigger, so she could see her friend as more than just a little icon.

“Yeah,” Twilight said, her mind still on Sunset and their conversation. “It was really nice.”