Cuddling

by cooopercrisp


A Bell on the Door

Chapter 5: A Bell on the Door

Rainbow Dash awoke with Pinkie Pie hugging her tightly. As fun as it had been to spend time with her, Rainbow Dash needed to get going, so she nudged Pinkie Pie in the shoulder in an attempt to wake her. Pinkie Pie snorted and her eyes shot open.

“Sorry, Dashie,” she said, “you startled me.”

“Okay…” Rainbow Dash said. “Do you think maybe you could let me go? I kind of need to get out of here.”

“Do you really have to leave so soon?” Pinkie Pie asked, pouting sadly at Rainbow Dash.

“I don’t know,” Rainbow Dash said. “I usually don’t stay in one place too long.” Rainbow Dash didn’t really know why she was so reluctant to stay at Pinkie Pie’s. Perhaps it was because the pink pony had a tendency to cling to her friends, and sometimes her energy was too much for Rainbow Dash to handle.

“Dashie, are you my friend?” Pinkie Pie asked. Rainbow Dash groaned, hoping the Earth pony wasn’t trying to put a guilt trip on her.

“Of course I am, Pinkie Pie,” Rainbow Dash said.

“And don’t friends enjoy spending time with each other?”

“Yeah, but friends, even best friends, can’t spend all their time together.”

“Well, Fluttershy told me you had a sleepover at her place.”

“She did?” Rainbow Dash asked, realizing she had been backed into a corner.

“Uh-huh. You seemed okay spending all kinds of time with her. It makes me sad to think you like Fluttershy more than me.” Rainbow Dash was completely flabbergasted. This was starting to sound like the Pinkie Pie who had been talking to a pile of rocks and a bag of flour.

“All right, Pinkie Pie, we’ll have a sleepover.”

“We will?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“You’re the boss,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Hooray! This is going to be the super-duper most fantastic sleepover ever! So what do you want to do first?”

“I don’t know, Truth or Dare?” Rainbow Dash suggested.

“Ooh, can I go first?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Wait, does that mean you’re asking first or being asked first.”

“Asking first.”

“Okay,” Rainbow Dash said. “Go ahead.”

“Okay, Dashie, truth or—”

“Dare,” Rainbow Dash said.

“No fair, you didn’t let me finish!” Pinkie Pie complained.

“You should know better, Pinkie Pie. I always go for a dare!”

“Okay, I dare you too…sneak a batch of cupcakes from downstairs!”

“Wait, hold on,” Rainbow Dash said. “Don’t the Cakes need those cupcakes for their customers?”

“Oh, we’ll put them right back,” Pinkie Pie said. “I just want to see if you can pull it off!”

“No problem,” Rainbow Dash said. They left Pinkie Pie’s room and went to the hallway. Looking across the way into the nursery, they could see Mrs. Cake feeding the twins, meaning Mr. Cake was by himself manning the shop. Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash slinked down the hallway and to the stairs. They crept down a ways until they could see the shop. There were no customers in the shop, and Mr. Cake was busy wiping down the tables. There was a batch of cupcakes sitting on top of the counter.

“This is going to be easier than I thought,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Are you sure?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Totally,” Rainbow Dash said. “It’s all a matter of speed.”

“What do you mean?” Pinkie Pie asked. Suddenly, Rainbow Dash shot towards the batch of cupcakes, lifted it, and zoomed back up the stairs faster than Pinkie Pie could blink. Pinkie Pie hurried after her after recovering from the surprise of the sudden movement. Mr. Cake looked up from his cleaning and looked around the shop, but couldn’t find anyone.

“Hello?” he called out. When there was no reply, he returned to wiping down the tables.

Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were snickering back in her room, the cupcakes still sitting pristine in their tray.

“I can’t believe you pulled it off!” Pinkie Pie whispered.

“I can’t believe it either!” Rainbow Dash whispered back. They didn’t want Mrs. Cake from across the hall to hear what they’d done.

“I suppose we should put these back now,” Rainbow Dash said, but as she was getting up she noticed Mrs. Cake leaving the nursery.

“Wait!” Pinkie Pie said to Rainbow Dash. “Let’s see if she notices they’re gone!”

“Do you think she will? Mr. Cake didn’t.”

“She’s much more aware of her surroundings than her husband is!” Pinkie Pie said. “Come on!”

They crept back down the hallway, Rainbow Dash carrying the cupcakes with her. After they heard Mrs. Cake’s reaction, she would return the cupcakes and apologize for taking them. They crept down the stairs and saw Mrs. Cake looking around the shop, frowning.

“Carrot, honey, what happened to that batch of cupcakes I had sitting on the counter?”

“The what?” Mr. Cake asked. He turned to the counter and was startled to find the baked goods missing.

“Goodness gracious, I have no idea where they went!” he said.

“You mean you let a thief walk in here and walk out with thirteen delicious cupcakes without paying for them?”

“We have a bell on the door, honey,” Mr. Cake said. “I would have heard somepony come in.”

“Well, did you notice anything unusual while I was feeding the foals?” Mrs. Cake asked.

“I heard a whooshing noise earlier, but whoever made it was gone as quick as the noise died down.”

“Well that was probably Rainbow Dash, honey,” Mrs. Cake said. “You know how fast a flyer she is.”

“Rainbow Dash is still here?” Mr. Cake asked.

“Yes, dear, did you see her leave?” Mrs. Cake asked.

“No, I didn’t, but I don’t seem to be paying very much attention to details today.”

“You really aren’t,” Mrs. Cake said.

“Okay,” Rainbow Dash said to Pinkie Pie, “I think the jig is up. Mr. and Mrs. Cake!” she called, floating down with the cupcakes in hoof.

“You took the cupcakes?” Mr. Cake asked.

“It was a dare from Pinkie Pie,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Way to sell me out, Dashie!” Pinkie Pie said, following her pegasus friend into the shop.

“Well, as long as a thief didn’t walk out with anything, I suppose there’s no harm done,” Mrs. Cake said.

“We’re sorry we took the cupcakes,” Rainbow Dash said.

“That’s okay,” Mr. Cake said. “But maybe you shouldn’t do any more dares today.”

“But…fine,” Rainbow Dash said. “Let’s figure out some other way to spend this sleepover, Pinkie Pie.”

“Did you say you were having a sleepover?” Mrs. Cake asked.

“Yes,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Oh dear,” Mrs. Cake said. Pinkie Pie was about to object to this less than welcoming reaction, but Rainbow Dash held her back.

“What seems to be the problem, Mrs. Cake?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Well…nothing,” Mrs. Cake said.

“Nothing?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“See, Dashie? She said nothing’s wrong. Now let’s go!” Pinkie Pie said, but Mrs. Cake stopped her by raising her hoof.

“It’s not that we don’t like your friend Rainbow Dash here,” Mrs. Cake said, “but you two can get awfully…rambunctious, and we don’t want to disturb the little ones when they’re supposed to be sleeping.”

“Aw,” Pinkie Pie said, “we promise we’ll be quiet.”

“Maybe you can stay at Rainbow Dash’s place,” Mr. Cake suggested. “Then you can be as loud as you want.”

“But Rainbow Dash lives on a cloud, and I can’t walk on those,” Pinkie Pie whined.

“Oh. Then I don’t know what to tell you…” Mr. Cake said.

“It’s okay, Pinkie Pie. We’ll do this some other time,” Rainbow Dash said.

“I guess…” Pinkie Pie muttered. “Oh well, it was nice to spend time with you, Dashie!”

“Sure. And it’s always fun hanging with you, Pinks.” Pinkie Pie beamed and waved goodbye as Rainbow Dash headed out of the shop. Although the time she had spent with Pinkie Pie had been fun, Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Okay, that’s three friends down, Rainbow Dash thought, two more to go. Now, who do I want to try first? Convince Applejack to do something she most likely can’t stand, or talk to Rarity and have things get…awkward. Rainbow Dash was really uncomfortable with awkwardness, so she took off for Sweet Apple Acres.

Rainbow Dash arrived in almost no time, and she hadn’t had time to make a convincing argument to get Applejack to cuddle with her. Hoping she was worrying for nothing, Rainbow Dash knocked on the door to the farmhouse. An energetic Apple Bloom answered.

“Oh, howdy, Rainbow Dash! What brings you all the way out here?” she asked.

“Hi, Apple Bloom. Where are your friends?”

“Sweetie Belle’s helping Rarity at the boutique today and Scootaloo’s doing…something. Actually, I don’t know what she does when she doesn’t hang out with us. She never talks about her home life…”

“Okay…” Rainbow Dash said. “I was actually hoping to talk to your sister Applejack.”

“Ah’m right here, Rainbow Dash,” Applejack said, suddenly trotting into view.

“Applejack, how long have you been standing there?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Ah just finished up workin’ the fields today,” Applejack said. “Just got back to the house and ah saw Apple Bloom standin’ at the front door, so I sauntered on over here.”

“Do you have some time to, I don’t know, hang out?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Not for too long, but ah suppose ah have a few minutes before dinner.”

“Good. Can we talk somewhere private?” Rainbow Dash asked, trying not to look at Apple Bloom, who was now seething.

Come on up to mah room,” Applejack said, stepping away from the door and inviting Rainbow Dash inside. This is going to be easier than I thought, Rainbow Dash said to herself. She followed Applejack up the rickety stairs and into her room, where the two of them sat on the bed.

“So what’s too sensitive for mah sister’s ears?” Applejack asked.

“It’s maybe kind of weird,” Rainbow Dash said, “but I’ve already tried it with Twilight, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie, and I figured I’d try it with you next.”

“You’d better get on with it,” Applejack said.

“Right, sorry,” Rainbow Dash said. “Um, have you ever thought about…I don’t know…cuddling with your friends?”

“What?” Applejack deadpanned. Uh-oh, Rainbow Dash thought.

“You know,” Rainbow Dash said, “just lying with your friend on the bed and…snuggling close to each other.”

“Ah know what you meant, ah’m just wonderin’ why you would even ask,” Applejack said.

“Well, I thought you’d be willing to—”

“What kind of pony do you take me fer?” Applejack asked.

“Um…an open-minded pony?” Rainbow Dash suggested. Applejack scoffed at her.

“What you suggested, it’s just plain unnatural,” Applejack said. “Ain’t no way yer ever gonna see me cuddlin’ up with another pony, ’cept maybe a cute stallion. Now you take yer crazy ideas and you get out of here. I’ve gotta freshen up fer dinner.”

“But Applejack—”

“No buts!” Applejack interjected. “Ya asked what ya came here to ask, and ah gave you an answer. Now skedaddle.”

“Fine!” Rainbow Dash said, louder than she had intended. She was hoping not to betray the hurt she felt in her heart. She flew out of Applejack’s room and let herself out of the farmhouse.

When she flew home and collapsed onto her bed, she started to wonder if she had been all wrong about cuddling with her friends. Twilight and Fluttershy, they had been socially isolated and didn’t really know what was normal, and Pinkie Pie was…well, Pinkie Pie. It seemed painfully clear to Rainbow Dash that she shouldn’t have relied on those experiences to form her analysis of the idea.

But why did it feel so right if it was so wrong? Was Applejack just too close-minded, or was she right and this desire to cuddle with her friends was unnatural? Rainbow Dash couldn’t figure it out, and so she decided that her best bet was to go to sleep and mull it over in her subconscious mind, which Twilight Sparkle had once told her about.

Yeah, maybe with some sleep this will make more sense, she thought as she began to drift off.