//------------------------------// // The Park and the Snap // Story: Third Wheel Trouble // by King Ice //------------------------------// The two mares reached the park in no time, just as they had anticipated. It was exactly as Twilight expected—peaceful and serene. Ponies strolled by, savoring the scenic surroundings, much like Twilight herself. The melodic chirping of birds filled the air, providing the park with its own delightful soundtrack. The park had a reminiscent charm of Canterlot Palace's garden, albeit on a smaller scale and with less opulence. Despite that, it boasted a charming fountain and a few statues of the princesses, including one of Twilight. She vividly remembered the process of posing for that particular sculpture, as the sculptor was determined to capture every detail accurately. Despite the park's serene and picturesque atmosphere, it failed to uplift Twilight's spirits. After all, her day had been nothing short of a disaster so far. She couldn't shake the feeling that something else would inevitably go wrong. Reflecting on the events of the day, Twilight realized that the only friend she hadn't encountered yet was Fluttershy. She hoped to avoid running into the gentle pegasus, but given her luck thus far, she wasn't particularly optimistic about it. “You were right, Twi! This place isn’t too bad! I always flew above it but never thought of checking it out,” Rainbow commented while walking beside Twilight and looking around. “It is pretty nice… Too bad the sun’s setting soon, so we won’t get to enjoy it,” Twilight mumbled, barely hiding her displeasure. “I think I’ll rest my legs on that bench a little,” She added before unfolding her wings and flying to the nearest bench, closely followed by Rainbow. “But we didn’t even walk that much,” Rainbow pointed out in confusion but didn’t insist more than that. She already knew that Twilight wasn’t in a good mood and that there was something wrong. “I guess I just want to admire the view a bit. The offer to nap on me is still open if you’re interested,” Twilight suggested with a small smirk as she sat on the bench and folded her wings again. “Maybe when we’re someplace more private,” The pegasus chuckled before joining her marefriend and sitting wing to wing. The rainbow-maned pony’s eyes drifted around the park until they landed on a statue depicting Twilight. “Woah! They even got a statue of you here?!” She exclaimed. “It was even the first one they sculpted. Probably because I’m the one princess who lives in Ponyville. It was embarrassing at first, thinking there’s a statue of me somewhere, but you get used to it eventually,” Twilight shrugged while Rainbow stared at her with a suggestive smile. “What?” The alicorn asked only for Rainbow to remain silent. “What?” “I was just thinking they got your flank right!” She snickered as Twilight blushed. “Oh, shut up, you!” She playfully hit her marefriend’s shoulder, then leaned on her. Maybe she could actually relax now. “So, Twilight… Seriously, what’s wrong? I know you told me you were fine, but you can tell me anything,” Rainbow suddenly said, making Twilight sigh. “I…” She started as she gave the pegasus some space. What would she even say? What if Rainbow wouldn’t like hearing her say that she thought their friends had been annoying all day, and that Twilight slowly descended into madness until the thought of burying the others alive until the date was over crossed her mind multiple times today? Rainbow certainly seemed to have fun unlike her. And she didn’t even seem bothered by everyone else. Actually… Everyone thought this was perfectly normal! “I’m fine… Really,” It was as if she was the only sane pony in this town! Or was she the crazy one? Are relationships supposed to be like that? No! She refused to accept it! There was no way she was insane for thinking she would like to spend some time alone with her marefriend! But she already knew how that would go! Everyone would think she was going crazy! It sure would be fun to see if they would think she was crazy after trapping them in Tartarus! Or better yet, she could banish them to the moon for a day! While she was it, why just her friends? When she could do that with all of Equestria?! That way, she would be certain that no one in the world will bother her on her date! Perhaps she could try that time loop spell again… Sure it nearly shattered the flow time, and that was because of a silly reason; making sure she wouldn’t miss her mother’s birthday. But this time, it was for a good reason! So no one would ruin her date! The next pony that comes and ruins things… Was a goner. She didn’t know what she would do exactly, but they wouldn’t see the light of day again. “You don’t have to lie to me, Twi. I know you, and I know you’re really not feeling great. I can literally see you in your face,” Rainbow insisted as Twilight finally broke out of her thoughts. “W-What do you mean?” “That’s the look you get when you’re plotting something. And when you’re plotting something, it’s usually because of something that bothers you. See? I know you. So please, tell me what’s wrong. And I promise you I’ll help in any way I can! I’m even ready to go to Tartarus and kick Tirek’s butt!” Rainbow Dash replied, making Twilight’s face light up. “R-Really?” She asked with a hope-filled tone. “I was ready to do that when we were best friends, so you bet I am now that we’re dating! So if what’s bothering you is a pony… Just tell me who they are and I’ll bash their face in right now!” She insisted as Twilight nearly got teary-eyed. “Oh, Rainbow… That’s why I love you,” Twilight blurted, making her marefriend blush. They didn’t say the L word a lot to each other since they haven’t been dating for that long, but Twilight always had an easier time saying it than Rainbow. Not that the pegasus loved her less. She was simply unused to this. “You’re right. I should have told you sooner, but I was afraid that… That I would be a jerk or a killjoy. I don’t even know! But I guess staying quiet didn’t make things any better. So here we go. Ever since I woke up, I wanted to spend time with you alone and relax. I-I wanted us to do something romantic in an everyday setting! But every time I thought we…” Twilight started explaining as Rainbow listened intently, focused on every one of her words. “Watch out!” Someone suddenly screamed a warning, making Twilight raise an eyebrow and turn to look in the scream’s direction. “Huh?” She muttered before being slammed by something huge, covered in white feathers and green scales. “Twilight!” Rainbow shouted as the bench was torn in half and sent flying along with Twilight and the thing that slammed into her. Sliding several meters, leaving behind a trail the size of her body on the ground, the alicorn winced in pain. The creature that had knocked her down stood back up, only to dart off in a different direction. As Twilight glanced up, the first thing that caught her attention was her marefriend standing by her side. Meanwhile, the monstrous entity continued its rampage through the park, uprooting trees and scattering ponies in a frenzy of fear. “Is that… A cockatrice?” Twilight asked out loud while the cockatrice screeched as if to answer her. “Hey! Hey! Twilight? You okay in there?” Rainbow shook her a little as Twilight focused her attention back on Rainbow. “Y-Yeah. It didn’t hurt that much,” Twilight reassured her. “You sure? It slammed into you so hard I would bet a regular pony would have been blown to bits!” Well, it certainly felt like what Rainbow described. It was a miracle she didn’t break anything! Even if her ribs felt like they were broken… “Oh, my… Are you ok, Twilight?” Someone interjected, whose voice Twilight immediately recognized, which was enough to nearly make her forget about the cockatrice. “Fluttershy. You’re here. What a surprise,” Twilight commented with her right eye twitching. “I’m sure you can give a perfectly logical explanation as to why a cockatrice is here,” “Yeah! What’s the deal with that?! I thought it killed Twi for a second!” Rainbow added with her wings unfolded. “I was trying to befriend him. That poor little cockatrice was so lonely and had no friends. Apparently, he caused some havoc in the everfree forest and the other animals wanted him out,” Fluttershy began explaining while Twilight was nodding along, keeping a wide smile on her face. “Poor little thing was so sad… I couldn’t just leave him like this. So I thought about bringing him back home, but he… Uhm… Went wild,” “Oh! That explains everything!” Rainbow Dash replied with a satisfied smile. “Oh, yes! It explains everything!” Twilight added, still holding her wide (and a bit crazy) smile. Even the park? Even that place wasn’t safe? Alright… Now that was so close to being her last straw. So very close. Well, time for someone to die. She did say she would kill someone. Her last straw would actually be something far worse than murdering someone, but that would be for another time. “Ka cow!” The cockatrice screeched before launching itself at the three ponies. Twilight pivoted on her hooves, a determined expression etched across her face, as she ignited her horn with a brilliant glow. Within her, a fiery surge of hatred coursed through her heart, fueling her gaze as she locked eyes with the menacing cockatrice. With fervent determination, she harnessed all the emotions and experiences that had consumed her throughout the day, channeling them into the power emanating from her horn. Without giving the cockatrice a chance to respond, she enveloped him in a captivating lavender aura. With a forceful spin, she propelled the creature into the heavens with such velocity that it shattered the sound barrier. A final screech escaped the cockatrice's beak before he vanished into the direction of the sun. As the adrenaline coursed through her veins, Twilight's breaths came in heavy gasps, her face radiating sheer elation. A maniacal grin spread across her features, leaving the two onlooking ponies utterly astounded, their jaws hanging in shock. “T-That was scary… But it kind of turned me on? I have conflicting feelings about this…” Rainbow Dash muttered, voice filled with uncertainty. “T-Twilight! What have you done?! Oh, my Celestia!” Fluttershy stammered before tears streamed down her cheeks. “Y-You k-killed him!” She shouted with her wings and hooves covering her eyes. “H-Hey, now!” Rainbow Dash woke up from her stupor and rushed to the other pegasus’ side. “I’m sure the cockatrice is fine! These guys are tough! And he can fly, too!” She attempted to reassure her. “R-Really?” Fluttershy sniffed as Twilight walked up to them. “Of course! I didn’t even try to hurt him! I thought about what you said and sent him to a nice farm with other animals he can play with! He is probably having a lot of fun right now!” Twilight smiled warmly. She looked so sincere while saying this that it almost scared Rainbow Dash… among other things. “T-Thank you, Twilight! I knew I can always count on you!” Fluttershy hugged the alicorn. “Can I go see him?” Twilight laughed in response before patting Fluttershy on the head and turning her attention back to her marefriend. “Go home and dress up. Night should fall in an hour, which is the perfect time for our dinner,” Twilight ordered before walking away without even waiting for a response. “That… Was something,” Rainbow mumbled while Fluttershy was humming happily. Meanwhile, in the Crystal Empire… Shining Armor breathed in satisfaction as it was another tranquil day. No changeling invasion. No Sombra return. No Tirek or Discord. It was peaceful. Now that was a job day he could get behind! “Captain!” Another guard came running outside, making Shining furrow his brow and grumble in annoyance. He talked too fast, didn’t he? “Something’s wrong?” “It’s Princess Cadance!” Now that was enough to make Shining take this matter seriously. “Is she okay? What happened?!” He quickly inquired, getting more panicked as seconds passed. “She’s okay… But… It appears that a giant fried chicken crashed through her window… and the wall. That’s what she told me, at least,” He explained as Shining paused, confused. He opened his mouth and closed it again, unable to find the words. “I-Is that code for something? Is she trying to tell me something?” He asked the guard who reported it only for him to shrug. The white unicorn turned to another guard, who seemed just as confused as he was. “Junior, you’ve been married longer than me. That makes any sense to you?” “Nope, sorry, sir. It doesn’t,” “Well… I suppose I’ll check this out myself, then,” An hour later, Twilight was facing Rainbow Dash. Both wore a variation of the dresses they wore at the previous Grand Galloping Gala, and both couldn’t help but check out the other. “I forgot how gorgeous you look in that dress…” Twilight blushed as she complimented her marefriend. “T-Thanks. You’re pretty cute, yourself,” Rainbow replied as Twilight brushed her wing against the pegasus’. “So? Ready to go?” Twilight inquired with bedroom eyes. “Ready as I’ll ever be! So what was that restaurant about again?” The pegasus asked as they walked toward the entrance. Simply by looking at it from the outside, it was as clear as day to Rainbow that it was a fancy one. She supposed that was the reason they wore dresses like these. It was outdoors, but they had great decorations. Lanterns emitted a dim light, bright enough so ponies could see each other. Although, they weren’t even needed thanks to the moon’s light. They even had a statue of Luna there. “As you can see, the specialty of that restaurant is that you eat outside. It opens in the evening, so that way everypony can stargaze while they have dinner. Luna actually helped them open by sponsoring it. She was really happy that ponies would come to eat here just to admire her sky, which is magnificent by the way. And their food is great too, from what I heard from the ponies that came at the opening yesterday!” Twilight replied with delight. Now was finally the time her day would get better. “The Stellar Bites,” “Wait, that’s the name? That’s what the restaurant is called?” Rainbow raised an eyebrow as Twilight frowned. “I’ll let you know that coming up with names is already hard enough, so guess how annoying it is to come up with a name for a restaurant!” “Woah! Okay! I get it! I didn’t you would take it so personally, Twi. I’m sorry,” Rainbow Dash backed away in surprise as Twilight chuckled nervously. “I-It’s okay! I don’t know what came over me,” Twilight apologized as they reached the Stellar Bites. “Oh! Princess Twilight! Welcome to our fine establishment. It is an honor,” A male unicorn standing at the front door welcomed them. “The honor is mine! This is Rainbow Dash, we would like a table for two,” Twilight smiled, which nearly made Rainbow beam. She seemed in a much better mood already. “How could I not know Miss Rainbow Dash, one of Equestria’s heroes?” The unicorn mused as Rainbow chuckled proudly. “I know. I’m pretty hard not to recognize,” “Pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Breeze Horn, and allow me to be your humble host tonight,” He bowed his head as Twilight nodded. The two ponies were quickly led to a table at the far end of the restaurant, where they were fewer ponies, but the view was just as good. The waiter likely figured they were less likely to be swarmed by fans that didn’t originate from Ponyville. Just as Twilight was about to reach for her chair with a magical grab, Rainbow flew behind it and pulled it for her while grinning. “Thank you, Dashie,” Twilight nuzzled her cheek before sitting. Seeing that Rainbow was about to reach for her chair, too, she lit her horn and pulled it before she could. “Hey! I was supposed to be gentlefilly here!” Rainbow teased as she sat down while Breeze watched the scene unfold with a smile. “You two make quite a cute couple, princess,” He complimented them, which made Rainbow so embarrassed she blushed. “Thank you, sir,” Twilight thanked him. She was delighted to finally see someone with manners! Someone that likely wouldn’t bother her while she wanted to enjoy a nice alone time with Dash. “I will bring you your menus at once, but if you already have a drink in mind, I am all ears,” Breeze said as Twilight and Rainbow looked at each other. “I dunno… What do you want, Twi?” “I think we’ll both have wine,” Twilight decided, making Rainbow breathe in relief. “I will bring it right away, along with the menu, your majesty,” He bowed before walking away. “Thank you, I thought it would be weird if I ordered an alcoholic drink on our first real date,” The pegasus revealed as Twilight snickered. “I didn’t think you would care so much about something like this, Rainbow. Usually, that’s my job,” “What can I say? I’m learning from you,” She chuckled as Twilight’s face almost melted. She loved hearing her laugh so much… Now that she paid attention, she also realized there was quiet music playing. Looking around, she noticed Octavia nearby playing her cello. Now that she remembered, Octavia did get a job in this restaurant as a musician. The other clients were minding their own business and were even talking quietly to avoid bothering the rest. There were no clouds in sight. Only Luna’s gorgeous jeweled night sky with stars shining brighter than they ever did. It honestly felt like a dream. And maybe she would have thought it was if not for the disaster of a day she had. However, now that she thought about it… It didn’t seem so bad. If she could get this night in return, then it was worth it. “Twilight? You’re spacing out again. You’ve been doing that a lot today,” Rainbow commented, bringing her back to reality. “By the way, you didn’t finish talking about what was bothering you,” “Rainbow… I…” Twilight started, breaking into a smile while staring into her marefriend’s eyes. Her worries, her disappointment, and anger were slowly washed away. “I’m fine now. I think. I’m happy we get to be together like this. Sometimes, it feels like we can’t talk… Either because somepony might be listening or because it’s… Just not the right time. Every moment I spend with you makes me so happy, and you can’t imagine how much. Honestly, I never thought I would feel this way before coming to Ponyville. I thought I would be a loner forever,” Twilight chuckled at the memory. It seemed so long ago. “Then I came here and you girls taught me about friendship. Then… Love. Romantic love. Sure, Cadence and Shining or my parents tried doing it with words, and they could never really make me grasp the concept. But you did. You taught me that,” “Twi…” Rainbow whispered, getting all emotional, too. “I-I’m getting sappy, I know. It might sound crazy since we haven’t been dating that long, but I can’t imagine myself with another pony. I’m not even just talking about this lifetime! I could live for a thousand more years, and I still wouldn’t imagine myself with somepony else!” Twilight insisted as her marefriend snickered. “And you think I would? It doesn’t sound crazy at all, Twi. I’m actually happy you feel the same way… I thought I was the only one,” She rubbed the back of her head embarrassingly. Twilight nearly teared up while looking at and listening to Rainbow Dash. This was it, wasn’t it? The perfect moment for their passionate kiss. She wasn’t lying when she said that to Rainbow. She already imagined the next countless nights they would spend together, entangled in each other’s hooves and wings. When they would have more free time, they would even go on trips or visit each other’s families. She couldn’t wait to have a family dinner with Rainbow. She could bet that her parents would love the pegasus. Would they… Would they get married? That was the next step, wasn’t it? She would wait a couple of more years before proposing, but still. A nice thought. She was a princess, had great friends, and an amazing marefriend. What could she ask for more in life? She did it! She achieved the goal of all living creatures in life! Happiness! “Rainbow, I…” Twilight started before stopping herself as the waiter arrived with the wine and the menus. “Here are your drinks, ladies. And the menu,” Breeze said. “Thank you, sir,” Twilight replied as the waiter smiled while looking at her, making her raise an eyebrow. “Now, your majesty. I was recently informed by some ponies that… You were glum and that you’d had a hard day. I am sorry to hear that but know that many ponies love and care about you. That is why they have decided to show you that love and care in a special way,” He explained as Twilight’s heart started beating faster. “W-What are you talking about? What are you saying?!” Twilight barely kept herself from shouting. “How do you know about that, buddy?” Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow while the waiter simply smiled. Suddenly, loud music started playing. “What is that music?! Where is it coming from?!” Twilight started hyperventilating while looking around. The other customers couldn’t help but overhear as they turned to look at the commotion. “No, no, no! Everything was perfect! We… We have to run! To fly away!” She shouted as she rose from her seat under Rainbow’s worried gaze. “Lady! Careful!” Breeze warned her but was too late to intercept the glass of wine that fell on her dress when she hit the table. “Twi! Calm down! Nothing’s wrong! See?” Rainbow caught her to reassure her before pointing at the entrance. “Everything is wrong…” She muttered. “Surprise!” Pinkie and every one of her friends, followed by many of the town ponies shouted at the top of their lungs while carrying party items. Confetti, balloons, and party hats. A banner that said ‘Get well, Twilight party!’. “That’s awesome!” Rainbow exclaimed while Twilight remained focused on the arriving ponies. “Give it up for Twilight, everypony!” Pinkie screamed as the other ponies clapped. “I made a cake just for you, Twilight!” “The others told me you weren’t feelin’ good, so I brought some apple pies just for ya, sugarcube!” Applejack added while widely smiling. “See, Twilight? Whatever it is, we’ll help you with it! And what you need now, dear, is some cheering up!” Rarity grinned with Spike on her back. “You should have told me you weren’t feeling good, Twilight!” The small dragon said. “You helped that poor cockatrice even if you were feeling bad yourself… I’m sorry for not noticing it, Twilight,” Fluttershy apologized as the other ponies started talking at the same time, all trying to cheer her up with kind words. “Seeing that an entire town loves its princess so much is beautiful, your majesty!” Breeze exclaimed while getting emotional. “They sure know how to cheer somepony up, right, Twi?” Rainbow laughed as she looked at her marefriend. “Twilight?” “Twilight!” “We love you, Twilight!” “Twilight!” Twilight. Twilight. Twilight. That was all she was hearing. Her teeth clenched as the unbearable screams of the ponies around her drowned Rainbow’s voice. Her mane slowly started rising while she let out a low growl. All the accumulated anger built up inside her since the start of the day was waiting to be released. Everything was so perfect. And everything was ruined. Something broke inside her. That was the last straw.