Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash woke up and slowly opened their eyes. They laid there, looking into each other's eyes and smiling. Neither of them said a word and continued to enjoy the presence of each other. For a second, Fluttershy thought this was the moment that she gets to kiss her marefriend. Rainbow Dash broke eye contact and started to get out of bed. She let out a quiet sigh and sank deeper under the blanket.
"Hey, are you going to get out of bed? We got things to do together," Rainbow Dash said as she was stretching out her limbs.
"Oh.. what kind of things?" Fluttershy asked, slowly getting out from under the warm blanket.
"Well, I was hoping that we could go swimming again and do other stuff today," Rainbow Dash replied.
"That sounds like fun," Fluttershy said, standing up next to the bed.
Somepony starting knocking on the door. Fluttershy decided to answer the door for her marefriend. She opened it and was surprised to see all of her other friends with their saddlebags on. She panicked and her breathing was rapid. It looked like they were packed up and ready to leave.
"Oh my goodness! It's over already? I didn't know! I'm so sorry!" Fluttershy said and cringed.
Twilight reached over and rested her hoof on her shoulder. "Fluttershy, we still have a few days left here. We're about to go on a scenic walk through the natural springs in this area," she explained.
"Scenic walk?" Rainbow Dash asked from the back of the room. "You gotta be kidding. Why would you want to do something like that when you can just sit back and relax?" she said and sat in a chair.
"I learned much earlier of all the geothermal features that this area has. I always wanted to see geysers and hot springs up close for myself. Everypony should too!" Twilight said.
"I don't know, Twilight. I really wanted to spend more time with Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy said.
Twilight frowned. "Come on, Fluttershy. You two are going with. I promise that we will try to leave you two alone and not bug you or anything," she said and turned around. "Right girls?" she asked.
"Of course, Twilight!" Pinkie Pie said, bouncing in a little circle while the others nodded.
"Look, I-we went through the trouble of planning this out. Just wear a hat and pack some food and water in your saddlebags. You can go through the cooler in my room for that stuff. I would appreciate it if you two came with," Twilight said.
'There's no way out of this. I owe her for this wonderful vacation,' Fluttershy thought.
She turned around and looked at Rainbow Dash. "Please, Rainbow. We really do owe them. We can walk together the whole time if you want," she said.
Rainbow Dash sighed. "Okay, Fluttershy. Only if you promise something," she said and got up.
"What is that?" Fluttershy asked, feeling pretty curious.
"Nothing. Never mind. I'll do it then," Rainbow Dash quickly said and looked away.
"Are you sure? What's wrong, Dashie?" Fluttershy asked, showing concern on her face.
Rainbow Dash walked up to her and put her hoof on her shoulder. "I'm fine, Flutters," she said, blushing a little. "It was a dumb idea anyway. I'll get packed," she said.
Fluttershy nodded and pulled out her empty saddlebag from the dresser. She went through her own duffel bag and pulled out something that had her eyes drawn to it. It was the pink ball cap that Rainbow Dash had given her a long time ago. She put it on and went into Twilight's room to get food.
Like she had expected, it looked the same as theirs. She opened up the cooler that was in the middle of the room and searched through it. It was filled with all sorts of food and drink. There were bottles of apple cider, pre-made sandwiches in a plastic container, and much more inside the cooler. Fluttershy took out a few bottles of water and two of the pre-made sandwiches.
"Is that what I think you're wearing?" Rainbow Dash asked from behind.
Fluttershy turned around. "You remember?" she asked, her eyes widening.
"Of course!" Rainbow Dash said, rolling her eyes. " I gave that to you years ago as a gift," she said and smiled at Fluttershy.
"Well, I like it very much still!" Fluttershy said, smiling back.
Rainbow Dash awkwardly rubbed her foreleg. "Yeah.. you look nice, Fluttershy," she said.
"Aww.. thanks, Rainbow!" Fluttershy said and gave her a small hug. "Lets go meet the others. I'm done packing my saddlebag," she said and let go.
"Alright, Flutters," Rainbow Dash said, grinning at her.
They left the room and walked down the stairs and met their friends in the lobby. Twilight was busy talking with the receptionist while Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Rarity were sitting on a long sofa. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy approached them and sat on another couch together.
"Well if isn't the lovely new couple!" Rarity said, with a delightful smile.
"Oh my gosh! Does this mean you're going to get married?" Pinkie Pie said, twisting her head side-to-side.
Rainbow Dash turned a bright red. "I.. umm.. we only have been dating for a day, Pinkie" she said in a nervous tone, clearly embarrassed.
Fluttershy nuzzled her marefriend, trying to make her comfortable. "It's okay, Rainbow. She's just trying to be silly. You know that!" she said.
"Well, ah think it's pretty clear already that ya'll are perfect matches for each other," Applejack said with a warm look on her face.
Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy turned their heads and looked at each other.
'Her face is so pretty. I love her beautiful eyes so much,' Fluttershy thought.
"Just look at the way you two are blushing!" Rarity commented.
Rainbow Dash got off the couch and looked away. She ran a hoof through her mane and tried to hide the blush on her face. "I'm not, Rarity. I would never do something so uncool," she said, facing away from her friends.
"Hey, why didn't you two tell me you were here?" Twilight asked. "We need to do this scenic walk as soon as we can. It gets really hot outside in the afternoon," she said, walking over to the exit. "Come on, you guys.. lets go."
"Whatever," Rainbow Dash said and followed Twilight. Fluttershy got up and tried to keep up with her. The others rose to their hooves and followed after her. She couldn't stay up with Rainbow Dash's pace and fell behind next to Applejack. Fluttershy let out a long sigh that caught Applejack's attention.
"Rainbow Desh!" Applejack called out. "Are you really going to leave your marefriend behind like this?" she asked in a stern voice.
Rainbow Dash groaned and stopped walking until Fluttershy was right next to her. Fluttershy's expression was sad and confused. Rainbow Dash put a hoof on her shoulder and whispered in her ear.
"I'm sorry, Flutters. I just.. look, I guess I kind of lost my cool. I'm really sorry!" she whispered and then planted a little kiss on Fluttershy's cheek.
Fluttershy blushed and affectionately nuzzled Rainbow Dash. "It's okay.. just promise.. that you won't leave me behind. I'm sorry that I can't keep up to you," she whispered back.
They continued to walk on a path that was leading out of town. "What? What do you mean?" Rainbow asked in a quiet voice. "It's fine, Fluttershy. I won't leave you behind. I promise," Rainbow Dash said.
Now they were out of town and walking on a dirt path. Soon, the grassy hills were replaced by dry patches of un-vegetated dirt. Pine trees surrounded the area in the background. They came across a small bubbling pit of mud similar to what Fluttershy had seen while on the train. Everypony had an expession of curiosity while Twilight was leaning over the path, watching the uninteresting bubbles of mud pop.
"Are you trying to see if you can stick your head in that?" Rainbow Dash sarcastically asked Twilight.
Twilight shot a glance at her. "No! That would be a terrible idea! This is more than boiling hot, Rainbow Dash. After all, this whole area is above a hotspot," she said.
Fluttershy lifted a hoof up and backed up. "Hotspot? What does that mean? Are you sure we should be here?" she asked, feeling worried.
"It's nothing to be worried about, Fluttershy. You see..." Twilight started to drone.
As everypony zoned out while Twilight went into detail about geology, Fluttershy couldn't help but feel uninterested in what Twilight had to say. There were more important things to think about now. She was convinced that Rainbow Dash had insecurities which she never could share. She also had a few insecurities of her own. Fluttershy felt that she could trust Rainbow Dash with her heart but she didn't know if her marefriend felt the same way.
"So, that's why the area is like this," Twilight said, smiling and nodding her head.
Everypony simply nodded their heads and said 'Oh,' or just stared back. They kept on walking and looking around at the scenery. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash kept their distance from the others. Fluttershy needed to spend some peaceful quality time with her marefriend.
Rainbow Dash yawned and stretched out her wings. She let one of her wings drape over Fluttershy in a loving matter. Fluttershy was a little surprised by her act. Something like that is considered a very romantic gesture. It was a pretty sappy thing for somepony like Rainbow Dash to do. She responded to this gesture by giving her marefriend a gentle nuzzle. Rainbow Dash let out a little giggle and did the same thing.
"I must be dreaming. I always wanted her to be so loving and caring,' Fluttershy thought.
They continued walking past pits of bubbling mud. Eventually, they were starting to feel hungry for lunch. The air was hot and everypony was starting to sweat a little. Pinkie Pie pulled out a large picnic blanket for them to sit on. Fluttershy had packed food and water for Rainbow Dash too. It seemed pretty quiet for while.
"I have to admit, Twilight, this heat is starting to get unbearable," Rarity commented.
"Well, if we hurry up we can get back to the hotel and relax in the pool," Twilight said, nibbling on a sandwich.
Applejack put down her apple fritter. "Wait, there's a pool? Why didn't ya tell us earlier?" she asked.
"We thought you guys would look around on your own," Pinkie Pie said.
"Actually, we have been in the pool yesterday," Fluttershy said and finished her sandwich.
"Really? I bet it was nice! We should totally get a move on then!" Pinkie Pie said and got up.
Nopony else could argue. They finished the last bits of their sandwiches and moved on. The path was fairly long and the heat was making it feel worse. Soon, they starting passing by the hot springs. Fluttershy looked at all the pools of boiling water. Some of them were multicolored while others were just a dull red. Rainbow Dash was eyeing everything with Fluttershy.
By the time they got back, it was already late in the afternoon. They all wiped off their sweat and took a dip in the pool. Fluttershy decided to relax in the hot tub. It seemed like a silly idea to get out of the heat just to sink into an even warmer source. However, after stepping in it didn't matter anymore. Fluttershy was comfortable now in the bubbling water. Rainbow Dash joined her, slowly sinking into the hot waters.
"Hi, Rainbow," Fluttershy warmly greeted and let out a sigh of relief. She had been very sore from walking and the jets in the hot tub were melting away the sore aching muscles in her body.
"Hey, pal! You just hanging out here?" Rainbow Dash asked and put a hoof around on her shoulder.
"Yes.. and it's very relaxing," Fluttershy said in a lower voice.
Rainbow Dash chuckled. "You're thinking like me! It's all about kicking back and relaxing!"
She let out a loud sigh and stretched out her hind legs. Fluttershy put her left hoof around Rainbow Dash. They both sank a little lower in the water and closed their eyes for a little while. After ten minutes of relaxing, Rainbow Dash tapped Fluttershy.
"Huh? What is it?" Fluttershy asked in a groggy voice.
"Um.. would you be up for an early dinner?" Rainbow Dash asked. "I might have made just a few little arrangements with that receptionist and the unicorn who runs that restaurant," she said.
'An early dinner? Why would she be eager to eat soon?' Fluttershy thought.
"Well.. um.. okay. Uh.. right now?" Fluttershy asked, feeling reluctant to leave.
"Yeah.. you wouldn't mind.. would you? I.. wanted to do some special for you," Rainbow Dash said.
"No! I guess.. not," Fluttershy said, feeling unsure.
Rainbow Dash got out and so did Fluttershy. They dried off while the others were still splashing and yelling in the pool. She led Fluttershy into a empty ballroom that looked like that it hasn't been in use for a while. She motioned to Fluttershy to sit at an empty table while she went off to pick up their food.
'Why is she doing this? What's so special about this?' Fluttershy wondered.
Fluttershy looked around the room. It was very elaborate looking with a beautiful polished floor. Oddly enough, only the floor and the table she was sitting had been dusted and cleaned.
Rainbow came back in less than five minutes carefully holding two plates full of spaghetti and wheatballs. She placed it down on the table and sat on the other side of Fluttershy. Music started playing from speakers built into the walls. Fluttershy didn't know that Rainbow Dash was this cheesy.
"Wow!" Fluttershy said and looked down at her pasta. "I love spaghetti!" she said and looked up at Rainbow Dash, who was blushing.
"Heh, I knew that you liked spaghetti," Rainbow Dash said, smiling at her.
Fluttershy looked down again and started eating a strand of spaghetti. Normally, this was a food eaten mostly by unicorns because of how magic made it easier to eat it. For non-unicorns, eating it was a little messy so it was generally avoided. Rainbow Dash starting eating too. Something about the pasta made it taste so good. The sauce must have been something special. Before they knew it, they were done eating.
"Um.. do you want to dance, Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash asked.
Fluttershy's heart skipped a beat. "I.. don't know, Rainbow. I never danced with anypony before," she said in a nervous tone.
Rainbow Dash got up and lead Fluttershy to the middle of the room, which was an empty square specifically for dancing. She faced Fluttershy and got up on her hind legs.
"Just stand on your back legs like this and use your wings to keep balance," Rainbow Dash said and tried to help Fluttershy up on her hind legs.
She wobbled a bit but quickly got the hang of it. "Now what?" Fluttershy asked.
"I put my hooves on your waist like this," Rainbow Dash said and placed a hoof on each side of her waist. "Now, rest your hooves on my shoulders," She said.
Fluttershy had her hooves on Rainbow Dash's shoulders and was looking into her eyes. Rainbow Dash started to slowly sway from left to right and back. The music was very similar to what they played at prom when they were going to flight school. Fluttershy came to see if she could find a mare who would dance with her but she quickly lost all her courage and left spending the rest of the evening alone at her dorm.
They swayed back and forth, their eyes focused on each other's face. This was bliss. Rainbow Dash had a wide smile on her face and there was this look in her eyes. It wasn't just sheer joy. Fluttershy could swear it was love in her eyes. The way those magenta eyes looked back at her.
Rainbow Dash brought her face closer and Fluttershy caught on. She moved her head closer and closed her eyes. Their lips met and their hearts stopped for a second. Rainbow Dash's lips were sweet as her heart. Fluttershy never felt something as wonderful as this. After a minute of kissing, they finally broke away, both blushing a bright red.
Fluttershy rested her head against Rainbow Dash and they continued to dance. They went on for an hour until she started feeling tired. All that walking and this dancing had exhausted the shy pegasus. Her legs felt weak and she started to shake a little.
"Rainbow.." she said in a low drained voice. "I.." she tried to say.
"Shh.. I know, Flutters. I got you," Rainbow Dash said.
Before Fluttershy knew it, she was being carried in Rainbow Dash's gentle hooves. She closed her eyes. Sweet dreams fell over her as she fell into a peaceful sleep.