//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: I'm Lookin' Out For You, or: When You're Off Track, I've Got Your Back // by SecondPrances //------------------------------// Sunny awoke to a face full of fluff. Soft, lilac fluff to be exact. Her eyes slowly opened as she stirred awake and for a brief moment, she struggled to make out what it was. Something was grabbed onto her, she was wrapped snuggly in blankets, and her face was pressed into the warmest pillow she’d ever seen. Memories flooded back to her, of the night before. Of being busted by Hitch, of snuggling Izzy to sleep. Her brain fit the pieces together and she calmed, nuzzling further into Izzy’s chest. A hoof stroked her back and she heard a sound. Her ear flicked.  “Heh,” Izzy mumbled to herself. Sunny peeked an eye up, shifting away from cozy warmth to look. Izzy had her head on the pillow, her mane a mess, and was peering down at Sunny. How long had she been awake? “You’re cute when you sleep.” Izzy whispered, “You know you twitch your ears? It’s adorable.” Sunny blushed and buried her face again with a low groan, a twinge of embarrassment seeping in. Izzy only chuckled, reached out, and kissed Sunny on the forehead.  “It was nice sharing my bed with somepony for a change. That was the best sleep I’ve had in forever.” “Mmh.” Sunny muttered, burying her face and trying to block out the cruel sun from hitting her eyes. Cuddles were better than waking up and facing the day. “Ooh, sorry. You’re still sleepy, huh? I’ve been up for a while, but you’re too cute to wake.” Izzy tucked the blanket a little more around Sunny and held her tight. Sunny yawned, unable to stifle it any longer, the loud sound erupting her peaceful moment, her mouth opening wide as she let out a sound. When she was finished and she pushed her face back into Izzy, she saw the unicorn grinning down at her. “Super cute.” Sunny pushed her face in deeper, wiggling her hooves under the covers. It was a chilly morning; she’d taken for granted how much colder it was in Bridlewood than back home. Izzy squeezed her. Downstairs, the clattering of pans and hooves clopping on the floor let them know someone was in the kitchen. The sound of the stove followed not long after; it must have been Hitch making breakfast, as promised. Sunny tried not to think about food yet, as that would mean getting out of bed. Sunny was content with the silence between them and Izzy must have been, too, for neither said anything. Their hind hooves grazed under the covers until they were rubbing against one another. Sunny’s hoof found Izzy’s rump and her haunches and amused herself with tracing where she imagined her cutie mark to be. Izzy’s hoof stroked Sunny’s mane and swept it away from her face. Closing her eyes, Sunny felt the weight of sleep and almost started to drift off again. She was just too comfortable, too warm and snug and feeling perfectly safe. Voices echoed up from downstairs, along with the pleasant smells of Hitch’s cooking. The sisters were up and about, chatting with Hitch. He was bragging about his skills in the kitchen but Sunny couldn’t make out much more than that or which one of the pegasi he was talking to. “Did you mean it, what you said last night?” Izzy spoke for the first time in what felt like forever.  “Mh. Which part?” Sunny was a little out of it still, flitting in and out of sleep, content to just straddle the line between lucidity and not. “When you said you loved me.” Izzy whispered, “It’s just that, ponies say it a lot after their first time. I wanna know if you still mean it.” This brought Sunny back to consciousness instantaneously, the question catching her off guard. She stopped to think but didn’t need long to know her answer. “I love you, Izzy.” Sunny whispered, peeking up at her, her nose just barely poking out of the blankets. Izzy leaned down and hovered away for a half-second, then kissed. At the top of the stairs, just a few feet away from them, somepony gasped. Sunny’s ears shot up and she disconnected, lifting herself partway up, propped up on her hooves. Pipp was standing there, her cheeks red—but not nearly as red as Sunny’s. “S-sorry! I didn’t mean to interrupt. Hitch wanted me to wake you to tell you breakfast is ready, but I can see you’re already up.” Pipp blinked and looked between them, then turned around and trotted right back down the stairs, leaving Sunny in stunned silence. Izzy squeezed Sunny’s hoof as if to tell her it was okay. Her hoof still on Sunny’s back, she stroked along her spine. “Don’t worry,” Izzy reassured. Reluctantly, Sunny lifted herself up and out of bed. There was a tinge of doubt but she brushed it away. Things were going to work out and she was a strong pony, and with Izzy at her side, she told herself she could do anything. As the blankets fell away and she stood in the middle of the room the shrill morning air seeped in more than it had ever before, and Sunny shivered. Izzy had rolled out of bed around the same time and brushed their bodies up against each other to give Sunny some much-needed warmth. They looked at each other wordlessly and descended the stairs. In the kitchen Hitch was frying pancakes and had a big stack waiting on the table, steam still coming off of them. Zipp was diving into a plate of four or five while Pipp, returned to her seat, delicately chewed through a singular one. She gave Izzy and Sunny a glance as they approached, and smiled, a glint of knowing behind her eyes. “Morning, Sunny. Morning, Izzy.” Hitch nodded to them from over his shoulder. “I hope you don’t mind, I had to go searching for the syrup.” “Course not! That’s from Bridlewood trees!” Izzy grinned as she and Sunny took their seats at the cramped little table clearly not meant for the current number of guests in her house. They were practically smooshed up together. “It’s…Mmmn…delicious!” Zipp declared between bites, her plate dripping with Syrup. She happily took another pancake and used it to soak up the remnants. Sunny’s stomach grumbled and she realized for the first time just how hungry she was. She hadn’t eaten properly since Zephyr Heights and that was mostly just a snack from the bowl of fruit left in their dungeon cell. Izzy was already piling her plate high and adding fruit while Sunny grabbed a couple. Hitch had finished at the stove and came over with his bounty, sitting opposite. “So, how’d everypony sleep last night?” Sunny asked, hoping to make conversation to break the silence.  “The beanbag was a little uncomfortable, and I kept being woken up, but it was fine.” Hitch gave Sunny a look of disapproval. Since they were foals, he was always firm about his beauty sleep, and being interrupted was not something he was fond of. Sunny felt a twinge of guilt. “Heh, well…s-sorry…” Sunny started to stammer, but Zipp cut her off. “I slept great!” “It’s peaceful out here, away from the city.” Pipp admitted, then looked at Sunny with a smirk, “Probably not as well as you two.” Hitch chortled and Zipp snickered. Sunny deadpanned, realizing that it must have been so obvious, that they probably hadn’t been quiet last night at all. She scanned the three faces, looking for any sign of judgment or anger. She studied so intently that she didn’t feel Izzy shift beside her. The unicorn leaned over and kissed Sunny’s cheek. “Yep! We were comfy and warm. Best sleep I’ve had in ages.” Izzy grinned wide. Zipp rolled her eyes and Hitch gave a sigh of defeat, while Pipp let out an ‘Aawww’ sound.  Suddenly, everything was alright, and when she looked around Sunny only saw friends around her. Friends who supported her no matter what, even her crazy schoolfilly Unicorn crush.  “Yeah,” Sunny smiled, “Slept great.”