//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: In the Clouds // Story: Shadow and Silver // by silversoul //------------------------------// “Do I look good enough? Am I to under-dressed?” Shadow Heart asked, looking herself over in the mirror for the fourth time that evening. She looked just like she always did; pitch black coat, horn and wings, white stripes over her back and legs, as well as her face with a white blaze down the middle. She also had a red and black mane and tail, and her cutie mark showed a heart pierced by two swords. Again Shadow, you look just fine," Silver Soul said, not even bothering to look up from his book this time as she shook his black and white mane from his eyes. He was a unicorn, and a certainly one that could turn ponies attention to him. Mainly because his coat really did look silver, shining if the sun ever hit it at the right angle. Besides that and a black and white mane and tail, though, there wasn't much unique about him. Well, except for his cutie mark, of course; it was a silver grey shield, the same shade as his coat shield a grey ring around the edge. In the middle of it was pale gold, four-pointed star burst, and what looked to be a larger, bright gold starburst was underneath the shield, the points poking out. “I don’t know, I just feel like I should do something, you know, special for tonight,” she said, running a hoof through her mane, trying to smooth it out. “I mean, it’s not every night I go out with some pony, especially some pony I kind of like.” This time, Silver did look up, gazing at his friend and roommate from across the room, “Shadow, this is the first time you’ve gone out with some pony. At least, in current memory.” “Oh come on, don’t look at me like that,” she pouted, floating a comb over and running it through her mane, trying to get it to go over her right eye in a sort of bang. “For all we know, I could have been out every night before whatever made us lose our memories happened. After all, kind of hard to find an alicorn who Isn’t royalty,” she stated. “Oh yeah, that’s it,” Silver said, sarcasm lacing his words, “Before we woke up in Ponyville General with amnesia, you were on the scene every night with mares on your left and right. Come on Shadow, you’re an eye catcher for sure, but you really don’t seem like that kind of mare.” She sighed, “Okay, fine, maybe I wasn’t. But still, I wanna look good for Rainbow Dash. I’m still surprised she even agreed to go out on a date with me.” “Yeah, about that,” Silver put down the book and stood up, moving over to his friend, “How exactly did that even happen? You’ve been kind of quiet about that since you came back.” Shadows cheeks grew a bit pink, “Well… promise you won’t laugh if I tell you?” The unicorn smiled at her, “Shadow, you’re my best friend. I think you can trust me not to laugh at you.” Shadow smiled back after a second, “Well, I guess. Okay, it was around noon and we were playing a game with Applejack…” ================================================================================ It was just past noon at Sweet Apple Acres, and with the morning chores finished and harvest season over, things were pretty quiet in the orchard. In fact, the only sounds right now were in the barn, where three ponies were wrapped in the middle of a rather heated contest. It had started out as a simple enough wager; Rainbow and Shadow, after having helped Applejack around the farm, were relaxing with her in the barn. But then, the farm pony had accidentally let slip about the Apple Families personal stash of cider, for their own personal enjoyment over the cold months. And it took only a matter of seconds for Rainbow to ask for a share of the sweet drink. Of course Applejack had protested, but Rainbow was quick to pull out the all too familiar challenge card. Needless to say things got out of hoof from there, the farm pony offering three barrels of the drink on a bet. And so here they were now, wrapped up, quite literally, in a game of Twister, Shadow manning the spinner as well as being the referee. Things had been going smoothly so far, but now the two mares were getting pretty mixed up on the mat, and things were heating up slowly between them. But Shadow was just trying not to laugh at the silly position they were in now, the two looking like a pretzel that had been twisted by a blind unicorn. Managing to keep a straight face, she gave another spin of the wheel. “Right back hoof green,” she said, watching as they both aimed for the same dot. Applejack touched it first, leaving Rainbow to lean back further, leaving her shaking slightly to stay up in such a tangled position. Applejack smirked at her, “Ya can always give up if ya got to, ya know.” Rainbow snorted, “Not a chance. That cider stash is good as mine! Keep spinning, Shadow.” “Well, if you say so,” the alicorn said, giving the arrow another spin with her hoof. “Left front hoof red,” she said, looking back up at them. It was rather surprising to her that Applejack seemed more flexible then Rainbow right now. Or maybe she was just better at holding herself up on the ground then Rainbow Dash. After all, she spent her whole life on the ground and had the build to show it while it was clear Rainbow was at her best in the sky. A fact Shadow could easily vouch for. And it was this that proved to her strength in a game like this, as she was still holding herself easily while poor Rainbow was about to fall in the middle of this newest move. Or at least, it seem like she was. Just as her hoof was about to touch the dot, Applejacks nose thought it the best time to get a small tickle, which quickly got bigger before she let out a sneeze. Her body shook, but she managed to keep her hooves planted in place. However, she also managed to bump Rainbow at the key moment, causing the Pegasus to stumble and hit the mat, snagging Applejack and bringing her down as well. Rainbow was the first back up, and she didn’t look happy. She glared at applejack, “Why you little cheater! Why’d you knock me over?” “What’d ya mean?” Applejack asked, getting to her own hooves, “Ah didn’t do that on purpose; ah just sneezed. If’n ya didn’t know, ah ain’t a cheater, unlike some ponies ah know…” “Oh yeah, bring that up again why don’t you?” Rainbow growled, “I haven’t cheated in years, in anything! But I don’t think I can say the same to you, Miss Element of Honesty.” “Ah bumped ya on accident and ya slipped, and ya know it!” “You cheated! You just don’t want me to win your private cider is all and you made it look like a sneeze when you bumped me! “Oh yeah!?” “Yeah!” “Fine then, let’s hear from the pony who saw it best!” She rounded and looked at their friend, “Well Shadow, what’s yer call?” “Oh, ummm…” In truth, Shadow really hadn’t seen much; the two were so tangled up that she really couldn’t, honestly. But still, she had to give some ruling; she’d volunteered for this, after all! “Well… it looked like you really did sneeze, Applejack…” “Ha, told ya so,” Applejack proclaimed, sticking her tongue out at Rainbow Dash as the Pegasus took a seat, crossing her front legs and pouting. Trying to ignore how cute Rainbow looked at the moment, she continued, “But since it was accident, I really think we should start over.” Rainbow quickly got up, a grin on her face as she pumped a hoof in the air, “Aw yeah, I still got a chance baby!” Applejack wasn’t as willing though, it seemed. “Now wait jus’ an apple pickin’ minute! Ah didn’ bump her that hard. She was already slippin’, so ah ain’t really ta blame.” “Oh come on, now you’re just arguing semantics,” Rainbow shot back. “Don’t ya go usin’ yer fancy book speak to muddle the issue!” the farm pony growled, now nose-to-nose with her friend as they glared at each other. “Ah bet she’s just bein’ all nice to ya becaue’a her cr-“ Applejack was still speaking as she found herself tackled to the floor by her friend, pinned by a surprising bit of strength as a black hoof was planted over her mouth. She bent down and hurriedly whispered in her ear, “Applejack, please, I know you’re mad but you can’t say anything about that! I promise I’m not saying anything because of that, just please don’t tell her!” Rainbow, anger gone and fully replaced by confusion, looked down at her friend, “Um, Shadow? Any reason you just tackled her? And AJ, what were you about to say?” Before Shadow could offer an answer, she found herself bucked off of Applejack by the farmer’s powerful hind legs, ending up on her back. She stood up, snorting as smoke flowed from her nostrils. After a deep breath, she glared form Shadow to Rainbow, an idea slowly forming in her head. One that she could use to get them both back. She smirked a bit as Shadow stood up. “Never mind that, actually. Ah actually got an idea fer a better way ta decide this bet, one that ya can’t cheat at, no matter what,” she said slowly. “Fine, bring it on then!” Rainbow said, puffing her chest out proudly, “I’ll take any bet you can dish out!” In retrospect, Applejack didn’t really didn’t know what made her make the bet. Maybe she was just wasn’t thinking right from her anger. Maybe some part of her just wanted to get the secret she’d been keeping for Shadow out to the pony it focused around. Or maybe she was just trying to unhinge them to vent her frustration. Either way, Applejack’s smirk widened as she spoke, “Fine, then ya gotta go out on a date with little ol’ Shadow here.” She got just the reaction she’d expected. Shadow stumbled, and Rainbow gawked her like she was crazy, both their faces going bright red. “W-what!? Where’d that even come from!?” Rainbow asked. “I mean, I ain’t gay, AJ! I like stallions!” “Y-yeah, exactly! Why’d she ever ask a mare out?” Shadow asked. 'Especially an average old mare like me,’ she added in her mind, giving an inward sigh at that thought. “Well then, ah guess ya don’t really want that cider as much as ya said,” Applejack said with a grin, knowing she had Rainbow. The Pegasus glared, knowing this as well. “Fine, but if you want me to do this, then we’re gonna up the ante.” “Well, guess that sounds fair,” Applejack said, “If she agrees ta go out with ya and ya can give me actual proof, a photograph, that ya both went out, and then ah’ll give you six barrels ‘o cider.” Rainbow grinned at the thought of half a dozen barrels of cider all to herself, but the grin deflated as her friend went on, “But if ya don’t, ya aren’t allowed to buy any cider the rest of this year, and all ‘o next year.” Rainbow hesitated for a moment, but only a moment, “Okay, you’re on!” She spit in her hoof and held it out, but Applejack didn’t move. Instead, she looked over at Shadow, who had slowly been slinking away towards the door in an attempt to get the heck out of dodge. “But it’ll only count if she agrees ta go out with ya,” she said slowly. She and Rainbow both looked at her as she froze on the spot, the latter giving her a glare that warned her to accept. Not that she needed it with the motive she’d had for months now. “Um… uh…” she mumbled, trying to find her voice. She finally did, and answered, a bit louder than needed, “Okay, I’ll go out with Rainbow Dash!” The chromatic mare grinned, “Great, then meet me at the edge of town, around sundown.” Satisfied now, Applejack spit in her own hoof and bumped it with Dashes. The Pegasus smirked at her as Shadow quickly excused herself from the barn. Once safely outside as the two worked out the finer details, she spread her wings and sped off towards home, hoping she wouldn’t die from the mix of fear, embarrassment and excitement welling up inside her. ================================================================================ “… and so that’s what happened,” Shadow finished. Clearly since then she’d settled down, fear being replaced by worry on how to make a good impression on her ‘date’. She looked at Silver, who, thankfully, did not seem to be showing any signs of laughing at the fact she’d been asked out on a bet of all things. “I know it technically doesn’t count as a real date, but…” Silver interrupted her, “The hay it doesn’t count. A date, even if it’s part of a bet, is still a date.” He smiled, his horn glowing as he floated over a nearby, decorative red flower and sticking it behind her left ear. He smiled at her, “There you go, something nice, and it matches your eyes perfectly. And also, when you see her, don’t be afraid to drop a hint or two that you might want to do this again sometime.” Shadow smiled back, giving her roommate a friendly nuzzle, “Thanks Silver, you’re a good friend.” The stallion smiled, returning the nuzzle, “Not a problem. Now you go out and have some fun tonight, and tomorrow I’ll even listen to your girl gossip on how it went.” He just chuckled as he gave him a solid shove to his shoulder. “Maybe, if I’m nice enough to tell you,” she said as she trotted towards the door. “But, thanks again,” she added quickly before stepping out. Silver kept smiling as he sat back down and brought his book up, “No problem at all, Shadow, no problem at all. Just make this count for your sake, old friend.” **************************************************************************************************** It was nearing sunset as Rainbow Dash sat on a cloud on the edge of Ponyville, scanning the skies over town for any sign of her ‘date’. It was a bit chilly out, but nothing she (Or most Pegasi for that matter) couldn’t handle. Being her fast self, the chromatic Pegasus had arrived at their designated spot almost 20 minutes early, and so had taken the chance to round up a few nearby stray clouds so that they might have something to do when Shadow finally showed, if she even would. In all honesty, Rainbow was more nervous Shadow wouldn’t show up at all more than anything. Of course, it wasn’t like Dash had any real feelings for her, despite the fact she couldn’t get the mare out of her head since the bet had been made. She was just worried about losing her wager with Applejack, and along with it any sweet apple cider for the next two years. After all, it didn’t mean anything if she enjoyed flying with Shadow. She was just the only pony in Ponyville who could even try to keep up with her. And it also didn’t mean anything if she might have liked being alone with her sometimes to play around; she was part Pegasus after all, and seemed much better with her flying then her magic. And it also didn’t matter if she really liked her mane; it was just a rare sight to see a pony that had one styled up like her own. And it also didn’t matter if she thought Shadow had a nice- “Boo!” a sudden but familiar voice right in her ear snapped Rainbow right out of her train of thought, but also caught her totally off guard. The cyan Pegasus actually squealed in shock, jumping a foot in the air and landing on her back on the cloud with a small ‘poof’, wisps of vapor rising and fading around her. Looking up, she saw Shadow Heart, rocking back and forth on her rump, fore hooves clutching her sides in laughter. “Oh man, that was to perfect! I knew you were too out of it to notice me!” she managed as her laughter began to fade. Rainbow grumbled as she sat herself back up, “I was not ‘out of it’…” “Yes you were,” the alicorn smirked, “I came up and you were just looking off into space, like you were in some kind of deep thought.” The two shared a quick laugh at that one. However, a playful smirk suddenly grew on Shadows lips, “You weren’t fantasizing about me, were you Rainbows cheeks quickly turned bright red. “Hehe, yeah right, imagine me thinking deep. That’s for eggheads, just ask any pony,” Rainbow said quickly, a slightly nervous smile on her face. Of course she hadn’t been fantasizing. She was just too into waiting for her friend to arrive and had started going over memories of the times they had hung out together. Still, she quickly changed the subject, “So, anyway, good to see you at least showed.” Shadow smiled, “I wouldn’t miss this even if there was a storm tonight, RD.” She suddenly fumbled a bit, “I mean, I-I don’t want you to lose the bet so easily.” “Oh, yeah. That’s cool. Thanks,” Rainbow said, trying to shake the image of Shadow and her in the rain from her head. “Anyway,” she said, a bit louder than really needed, “Since I got here a bit early, I gathered up some clouds so we could play together. Since, that’s what ponies do on dates. They play games with each other, and spend time with each other, right?” Despite the fact she was clearly nervous, Shadow couldn’t help but giggle, “Yeah Rain, that’s what ponies do on dates.” Rainbow cocked an eyebrow at the nickname, “Rain?” Shadows cheeks went a bit red and she gave a nervous smile, “Well, I figured, since this is a date, maybe I could call you something I thought was, I don’t know, cute… But if you don’t want me to, I totally won’t.” “O-oh, no, it’s cool,” Rainbow blurted out, her own cheeks going red, “It was just, I don’t know… out of nowhere, I guess.” “Well, sorry then,” Shadow said, looking away from the Pegasus and up at the surrounding clouds. Trying to get rid of the awkwardness that was quickly filling the air around them, she put on a grin, “Anyway, let’s stop just sitting around and talking. You obviously wanted to fly, so let’s fly.” She pointed to a random cloud, a good distance away, “Last one to that clouds a rotten egg.” Rainbow Dash looked over at the cloud then back to shadow, a smirk on her face now. Her wings flared out and she stood up, her ‘date’ doing the same, “You’re on. 3, 2, 1, GO!” **************************************************************************************************** About two hours of flying around later, the two mares were laying on one of the smaller clouds in the sky, which by this point had drifted over the edge of Ponyville. Both were on their backs, wings spread out on the fluffy surface as they stared up into the sky. Most of their time together had been spent racing through the clouds and playing tag and things the like. For now though, the two were flied out. Or at least, Shadow was; Rainbow had built up some impressive endurance over the years, and looked like she could go on for at least another hour before she started to get tired. But the two were simply relaxing at this point. Finally though, Shadow turned and smiled at Rainbow, “This has been a lot of fun, Rainbow. I know we hang out a lot, but there’s usually somepony else around. Right now though, it feels… nice, being alone and having fun. Like, it’s just natural to be doing this.” “Yeah, this was pretty fun, actually,” Rainbow said, looking over at her as well, their eyes meeting. She smiled, thinking how Shadow had actually managed to outwit her in their game of tag and lead her to crash into a cloud and get stuck until she pulled her out. Normally she’d have felt with humiliated, but with Shadow, it didn’t seem as bad. She knew she could trust her friend… her date, not to laugh at her. “So, Rainbow…” Shadow started, suddenly turning her eyes away from the Pegasus, her cheeks going red, “Look, I know this really wasn’t supposed to count as a real date or anything, but… but, I mean it when I say I had a lot of fun being with you. And, well…” “Yeah?” Rainbow asked, her own cheeks going red. “I, um… well, I think you’re kinda… cute,” Shadow squeaked, looking everywhere but at the Pegasus in front of her. “And, uh, awesome,” she quickly added. For a minute, Rainbow said nothing, just looking at the small alicorn and letting her words sink in. Shadow Heart thought she was cute? Her, Rainbow Dash? The fastest Pegasus in all Equestria? She really thought she was cute? She let that sink into her brain. And it made her feel great, like she was speeding along, despite lounging on a cloud. It made her feel amazing, better then she’d felt since managing to do a Sonic Rainboom on command for the first time. … Okay, so maybe she DID like Shadow just a little bit. “Shadow…?” was all she said, just barely audible. The mare finally looked back at her at the mention of her name, and Rainbow leaned over, giving her a quick peck on the cheek, both of their faces going red as tomatoes. Despite this though, Rainbow smiled, “Thanks. You know, you’re kinda cute, too. And you’re pretty awesome yourself.” “T-thanks, Rainbow…” was all Shadow could manage, her head spinning from the display of affection the athletic Pegasus had just shown. Not once all evening, or ever, for that matter, would she have expected Rainbow to kiss her! “I thought you were calling me Rain?” the Pegasus said, her smile still there, though it looked just a bit shy now. “I kinda like that, too…” she mumbled, though loud enough Shadow could hear. Finally snapping out of her shocked trace, Shadow smiled back at her, “Well, I was just a bit surprised is all. I mean, it’s not every day I get a kiss from the awesomest Pegasus in Equestria.” She giggled a bit as Rainbows cheeks went pink, “And modest, too, I see.” “Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Rainbow said, waving a hoof and trying to dismiss Shadows comments, but to little success. “So, since we like each other,” Shadow said, rubbing her front hooves together a bit, “I was wondering, if you didn’t think it was too lame, could we… c-cuddle?” Rainbow looked at her for a second, “Cuddling, seriously Shadow?” “Um, s-sorry for suggesting it. I guess you don’t wanna…” Shadow mumbled, her cheeks red as she pulled off a perfect imitation of Fluttershy, making Dash laugh a bit. “Don’t be,” she said with a smile. She sat up, piling the cloud up into a make-shift back rest to lean on, enjoying the surprised look on the alicorns face. Rainbow beckoned her with a hoof, “Come on then. We did what I wanted, so I guess we can do what you want to now.” Shadow grinned, a small squee accidentally escaping her, “Thanks Rain. Now you’re even more awesome.” Without getting up, she tucked her wings in and inched along the fluffy surface and up to Rainbow Dash, sitting up a bit and laying back against her belly, head on her shoulder as Rainbows wings wrapping around her gently. Rainbow smiled down at her, nuzzling her, “No problem, Shade.” The alicorn looked at her, “Shade?” Rainbow grinned, tapping her on the nose, “If I get a nickname, so do you, missy.” The two snickered gently, their gaze turning back to the starry sky. “You know, this is all kinda funny when you think about it,” Shadow said after a few minutes of silence. “Really?” Rainbow asked, looking at her. “Well, it’s just, I’ve liked you for a while now, to be honest, and it was some crazy bet that ended up letting me tell you how I felt,” she said with a small chuckle. “I never thought a way to tell you my feelings would just fall into my lap, so to speak,” she smiled at Dash, their eyes meeting, “But I’m glad it happened.” Dash smiled back, and a second later, the two’s lips were connected, their eyes closed as they kissed under Luna’s stars. Shadow was the first to pull away, in need of air, “So… if you’re not too busy later this week, you want to do this again?” Rainbow just grinned, “Wouldn’t miss it even if there was a storm out. But still, it kinda stinks we can’t get Applejack any proof about this. I totally forgot I don’t even have a camera.” “Seriously!?” Shadow looked up at her, shock written over her face. Rainbow looked back at her, “What’s up? So I don’t have a camera. What, you got one?” “Well, no, but still, you’re just being so… calm about it! I’d have thought you’d be upset about losing all that cider?” Shadow pointed out. Rainbow just grinned, “Well yeah, Sweet apple Cider is one of the greatest things in my life. But, to be honest…” she bent down, locking her lips with Shadows again. They stayed locked for over a minute until she pulled away, “I think I got myself something way better than some cider, and it lasts.” Shadow looked at her for a few seconds… and then she laughed, “Wow Rain, that was the sappiest thing I’ve ever heard come out of your mouth.” The Pegasus mares face went red, visible even in the dark, “Yeah yeah, but if you tell any pony I said that, I’ll make ya pay.” Shadow giggled, “Your secrets safe with me, Rain. And besides, even if you do lose, Applejack didn’t say anything about me buying cider for you.” She gave her date a mischievous wink, to which she grinned in response. “… Thanks Shade, you’re the best,” she said, nuzzling the Alicorns neck as the two floated by over the town. As they did, however, neither of them noticed the flash of light from nearby, along with a familiar click! **************************************************************************************************** Silver couldn’t help but chuckle as he watched the small cloud continue to drift onward from the living room window. He floated the picture in front of him as it dried, smiling as an image of Shadow and Rainbow cuddling together came into view. “Way to go, Shadow. I knew you had it in ya,” he said, looking down at the picture, “So I think I can at least do this for you and your new marefriend.” Still grinning, he left the photo on the Shadows bedside table before heading into his own room, unable to feel prouder of his best friend then he did right now. ________________________________________________________________________ A/N: Special thanks to my very good friend Torri-Chan on Deviantart for letting me use her OC, Shadow Heart, and for being an awesome friend! Thanks also to Mr.RealityTheBrony for editing this. And heck, you for taking time to read my ideas I come up with after the sun goes down. :D