//------------------------------// // Datin' // Story: I'm Datin' a Demon // by ArtsyGum //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash walks into the bakery after Pinkie. “Hey, Mrs. Cake.” She leans a hoof on the marble counter, right next to the cash register. “Are ya’ open right now?” Mrs. Cake blinks a few times to clear her vision, hoping that the demonic figure in front of her might just be a figment of her imagination and disappear. Nope. She’s still there. “Y-Yes… we are. Uh... Wh-Who’s your friend?” She stutters with a cautious tone, shifting her body a bit behind the counter. Rainbow Dash gestures casually with her other hoof towards Pinkie, showing a laid-back expression. “Oh, her? That’s Pinkie! Yeah, she’s a demon. Cool, right? Don’t worry she’s chill.” Her hoof waves dismissively in the air. Pinkie smile meekly, stood on the wooden floor beside her. Mrs. Cake forces a calm grin and taps her hooves nervously on the counter. “O-Oh... my… Well, what can I help you two with…?” “I’ll take a chocolate cake slice.” Rainbow Dash turns her head to Pinkie. “Pinkie, whatchu’ want?” “Oh! I’ll have two slices of the same flavour, please.” Pinkie bears a kind smile toward Mrs. Cake. Her tail wags happily behind her. Rainbow Dash raises an eyebrow and cocks her head to the right at Pinkie. “Really? Y’know, those cakes are pretty damn rich.” She laughs aloud. “Hm? Oh, I’m not too worried. I’ve eaten a four-tier cake once all by myself!” Pinkie places a hoof proudly on her chest. “Damn girl! A competitive eater, or what? I’m impressed!” Rainbow Dash shakes her head with a smirk. Mrs. Cake is trying to keep her composure. She holds a forced professional and friendly expression. “I-I’ll return momentarily with your slices of cake. Please, find a seat.” She turns away from the counter and trots off into the kitchen behind her. “Alright, where shall we sit?” Her eyes drift across the mostly empty bakery attempting to find the perfect spot to eat. “Oh! Oh! Before we walked in I saw some seats on the second-floor balcony with a lovely view.” Pinkie flutters her wings excitedly. “Oh, yes, sweet idea!” Suddenly, Rainbow Dash lifts off the floor and glides swiftly in a rainbow blur up the staggered wooden stairs to the second-floor balcony. Pinkie flies on after her, hurriedly attempting to catch up. The couple at the table by the window are staring at the scene that just unfolded. On the table is a platter of biscuits dipped in chocolate, a warm steaming cup of tea on one side and a fizzing soda on the other. The white mare peers over the top of her shades, showing shocked magenta eyes, gawking at what she just saw. “Tavi, did ya’ see that!?” The grey-coated mare across from her picks up the cup of tea in her hooves and closes her eyes in disbelief. “For the sake of my own sanity, I’ll pretend that I never saw that.” Octavia takes a long sip from her cup. Pinkie arrives atop the stairs, exiting out onto the balcony. The moon hangs low in the deep blue sky, basking cool moonlight across the rainbow-maned pony in a cyan silhouette sat at the one occupied seat set by the railing. The air is still and calm; the atmosphere is quiet. Rainbow Dash flashes an inviting grin towards Pinkie, patting the seat next to her with her scarred hoof. “Come!” Pinkie cheerily flits over to the empty seat, setting herself down comfortably on a cream-coloured cushion. She wiggles in her seat. “Ooh, comfy!” Rainbow Dash chuckles at her. “Yeah, Sugarcube Corner is pretty cozy. A great place to chill.” They’re sat side-by-side at their table, right by the white icing-themed railing. A small rainbow sprinkle shaker and warm orange lantern are set in the middle of the pink cloth–adored tabletop, illuminating the couple’s faces. Around them sit collections of otherwise empty tables and chairs scattered across the lavender balcony, each with their own lantern light glowing around them. Pinkie takes a deep breath in, taking in the atmosphere. “It smells nice here. Do you visit here often?” Pinkie interrupts the moment with a warm smile pointed toward Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash raises and lowers her jacket-laden shoulders in a dismissive shrug. “Eh, on occasion I guess. The treats here are killer though.” “I bet! I can’t wait to try them!” Pinkie lets out a hearty giggle ending with a noisy snorts. Her face flushes red for a moment. Mrs. Cake is hobbling up the stairs with a tray clasped in her mouth. The sound of her hooves clattering on the oaken steps can be heard as she makes her way up. On the tray are two ceramic plates with the slices of spongy two-layered cream-filled chocolate cake dripping with rich decadent chocolate icing across the top of each. One plate holds a single slice, the other holds two. Slowly and carefully she trots up the stairs. Rainbow Dash spies Mrs. Cake entering from the top of the stairs. She immediately lifts up from her seat and glides right over to her. “Lemme get that for you, Mrs. Cake!” She takes the tray in her hooves while in the air, carefully gliding back to their table and sets it down. “Oh… Thanks, Rainbow. Y-You two enjoy now!” Mrs Cake gives an uneasy smile toward the pair, still a little shaken. She heads back downstairs to tend to her other duties. Pinkie looks down with wide eyes at the slices of cake in front of her. She flutters her wings excitedly in her seat, her skeletal tail swaying from side to side. Her hooves clap happily together. “Oooh! This looks delectable!” Both Pinkie and Rainbow Dash lick their lips. They catch each other’s gaze in a brief pause before bursting into joint laughter. “Alright, let’s dig in!” Rainbow Dash uses her right wing to pick up her spoon, digging right into her cake. The poor confectionery crumbles to pieces from the single scoop. Pinkie nods as both of her pointed horns begin to glow in the colours of a sunset: from orange, to yellow, to a warm pink. The spoon begins to levitate within the glow. It delicately scoops a modest amount of the chocolate cake and brings it up to her muzzle for a bite. “Mmm! So good!” She presses her eyes closed in delight. Rainbow Dash’s eyes go wide. Her spoon is stopped in front of her agape mouth, her pierced bottom lip dropped low, as she gawks at Pinkie’s glowing magic. “Woah! So that’s what your magic looks like!” Her open mouth morphs into a more curious grin. Pinkie’s spoon still levitates within her magic in midair. Her eyes turn to Rainbow Dash. “Hm? Oh, yes, it is.” She brings a hoof to her mouth in a giggle at Rainbow Dash’s reaction. Rainbow Dash waves the spoon in her wing thoughtlessly from side side. “Sooo, what’s it like in Vulcano-land, anyway?” She digs the spoon into her cake slice again for another bite. Pinkie giggles again at Rainbow Dash. “It’s Vulcænium, silly! Well, I live in a castle made of igneous rock surrounded by large tall pointed rocks upon pointed rocks.” She raises both of her hooves high into the air, each hoof just as pointed-looking as the rocks must have been. “Much larger than the buildings here.” “Woah! That’s crazy! What’s it like to live in a place like that?” Rainbow Dash leans both of her hooves on the table in interest. “Well, my family and I live luxuriously in our castle.” Her happy expression fades, “But everyone else is far from as lucky…” Her tone is somber and distant. “Any of those that question his rule will be severely punished. These punishments range from torture, banishment to the dungeon, or even death.” Pinkie’s voice becomes deeper and seems to echo with a distorted vitriolic tone. Her mane begins to flow on its own, like a stoked heated fire, although no wind is blowing. Rainbow Dash leaps into the air and bangs her hoof harshly down on the table in a loud clatter of cutlery. “The fuck!?” Pinkie jerks back suddenly in shock. “This dude needs to be stopped!” Pinkie calms her voice and looks up at Rainbow Dash with more gentle eyes. “Dashie, please, calm down!” Rainbow Dash blinks several times in a row, still hovering in midair. “Uh… ‘Dashie?’” She chuckles a bit and scratches the back of her head with a hoof. “Nopony’s, uh, ever called me that before.” Pinkie issues another giggle-snorts. “Really? But it’s such a cute sounding nickname!” “Well, maybe that’s why nopony has called me that before.” Rainbow Dash laughs to herself again. “I’m too cool for that kinda’ stuff.” She lowers from the air and leans back into her seat. “So, do you live in a huge castle as well?” Pinkie changes the subject. “Pfft, basically. I have a pretty huge cloud house in the sky. I can show ya' around sometime!” She drapes her left hoof over the back of her chair. “I’d like that very much!” Pinkie exclaims. The couple chat long into the night while the stars twinkle like scattered lanterns in the dark blue canvas around them and the moon journeys across the sky. Time is lost as the two share stories, laughs, and each other’s company with the hours that pass. Late into the night amidst chatter and laughter Rainbow Dash’s voice can be heard. “Y’know, Pinkie, we should totally hang out more!”