The warmth of the water engulfed Rainbow, she could feel its swirling
encapsulate her; capture her, even more so than the vapour did.
Now?
The once warm, oppressive vapour was now like fresh air, for Rainbow.
Now it was the water that was clingy, effortlessly smothering her body,
she was in its grip.
“Rainbow, you’re looking awfully stiff!” Twilight was stating the obvious for her. “Why don’t you lean back and relax?”
Yeah, relax. Right.
If only she could stop thinking about the current situation. Twilight and herself, in a bath, together.
It was all far too exciting.
Rainbow sighed, melancholically; she couldn’t let Twilight know that she was even remotely
into fillies. Plus, it wasn’t like Rainbow lusted after each and every
filly; it was just the select couple: Twilight, and that other filly, but somehow, that made it worse.
Still, she had to make it look otherwise, after all, there were reasons Rainbow hadn’t told anypony about these feelings.
She had to play it cool.
“Rainbow, if you lean up against me, I can clean up your-” Twilight’s voice panged with a twinge of guilt. “Injury.”
There goes that innocence again. Does Twilight not see the intimacy in that position?
‘Play it cool, Dash. Play it cool.’
With her newly devised internal mantra, Rainbow tentatively shifted backwards, the film of the water ever-clinging to her body.
Her
back made contact with Twilight’s belly, its warmth sending shivers
down Rainbow’s spine. It was odd, warmth giving her the shivers, but she
was more shocked at how Twilight’s warmth differed from that of regular warmth.
The warmth of a living, loving pony.
Not the warmth of a cold, inanimate object.
Rainbow
laid back into Twilight, overcome with emotions, deciding that focusing
on her mantra was more important than keeping bodily composure.
“Ah, good. Rainbow, you don’t mind if I touch your forehead, do you?”
Yes, right, that’s why she was here, so Twilight could help her clean up.
“N-no, it should be fine, Twi’”
‘Great, I’ve stuttered,’ Thought Rainbow, ‘and on top of that, I accentuated her name a bit too much…’
“Okay, just tell me if it hurts, okay?”
Rainbow
juddered her head, ever so slightly, to show the affirmative. It was
the reaction that used the least amount of concentration; she needed it,
after all. She needed it to keep on top of her mantra. She needed it to
keep her wings down.
“Are you still going to Pinkie Pie’s party tomorrow?”
Twilight
spoke nonchalantly, as if this was no different to a regular
conversation. As if there was nothing that hung in the air; only
vapours.
“Y-“
Rainbow
began to answer, but Twilight’s manoeuvres caught her off guard.
Twilight leant forwards, pushing into Rainbow, their bodies locking
together, in an unintentional embrace, becoming one.
Rainbow felt Twilight’s hoof; tracing along her shoulder, moving
towards her face, carefully brushing her mane away, to reveal her tender
wound.
“Pardon, Rainbow?”
Wow, Twilight really was clueless. It was clear from her voice; there were no quiet, husky whispers, just stark, everyday voices.
This made Rainbow feel a bit more at ease.
“Yes, Twilight, I should make it.”
Rainbow
was glad she’d managed to get the words out this time, she’d show
Twilight just how confident Rainbow Dash; Equestria’s best young flier
could be!
“Good, I shall look forward to seeing you there.” Twilight’s voice was still normal. “I’m going to clean your wound now, okay?”
Twilight
brought her leg up to Rainbow’s forehead, with flannel in hoof. She
brushed across the cut, slowly, tentatively. It hurt, but Rainbow didn’t
mind; she could feel the affection Twilight was putting into her care,
and it was like anaesthesia.
Rainbow
closed her eyes, to divert her feelings; both the pain and the blush
threatening to coarse their way across her forehead. She thought about
Twilight and herself; how had they ended up in this situation?
“Rainbow, your head is all cleaned up!”
Rainbow
opened her eyes, and looked down. The water was contaminated with red.
Red, watered down from her blood, but it didn’t look sinister, it was
more reminiscent of love.
Hah;
Twilight, if only you knew, my head is far from clean, inside. It’s as
convoluted as the pink, swirling around in the empty, clear water. But
you won’t know; you’ll never know.
I can’t tell you, it wouldn’t be cool.
“Thank you, Twilight.”
At least she was still confident in her speech, if not in mind.
“Anything to help out a friend!”
Rainbow
felt Twilight’s body relent for a second, a cool rush of air in place
of where their pelts pressed together. Rainbow sighed for a second,
relieved, but then she felt Twilight once more, her fore-legs snaking
under her own, almost caressing her body, closing around her front,
pulling their bodies together once more. Twilight softly laid her head
upon Rainbow’s shoulder, and brought her mouth up to Rainbow’s ear.
Rainbow’s heart was pounding; this was what it was like, that time before, with that other filly, before she’d confessed to her. That was like her, to do something as brash as that- but not like Twilight. It wasn’t like Twilight at all.
“Oh,
Rainbow,” Twilight’s voice was quiet, husky, whispery. It was just how
Rainbow had imagined, not only moments ago. It sunk into her, like her
stomach had been sinking; twisting and turning with each of Twilight’s
seemingly blasé touches. “I’m so sorry…”
Rainbow felt warmth on her shoulder, but not like the warmth of life, or
the warmth of something inanimate. It felt cold. The cold of sorrowful,
regretful tears. This wasn’t what she’d imagined at all. Intimacy like
this was supposed to be joyful, that’s what she’d learnt, anyway.
“Twilight?”
Rainbow could feel her compassionate sadness, against Twilight, as one, reverberating with each tear, each miniscule movement. Their bodies jolting, juddering, with each wave of emotion.
“I just… I j-j-just didn’t mean to hurt you s-s-s-“
‘I have to calm her down.’ Rainbow thought, ‘I can’t bear to hear her like this, to feel her like this.’
“Twi’, It’s fine.” Rainbow put her most affirmative voice on. “Didn’t I tell you it was fine?”
Rainbow could still hear Twilight in her ear, snorting, choking on sorrow, ungainly.
“I’m so s-“
“Twilight, just…” Rainbow was lost for words, not sure how to comfort Twilight.
Rainbow
picked her legs up, from her sides, and moved her hooves to Twilight’s,
still clinging to her. Rainbow prised them apart, exhaling slightly,
and moved slightly forward, away from Twilight.
She felt Twilight’s head leave its place on her own shoulder, and Twilight’s hooves leave her own, withdrawing.
Rainbow
dipped her forelegs back into the water, and using them to steady
herself; she twisted around, as fast as the ever-clinging water would
let her, to face Twilight.
“Just… don’t be so hard on yourself,”
Rainbow
sliced through the water’s resistance with her right foreleg, to
connect with Twilight; hoof to hoof. Rainbow saw their hooves meet,
tentatively yet firm, within the swirling translucent red of the water.
Rainbow
was studying Twilight’s face, she had a delicate air about her, her
lavender somewhat contrasted by the blood red Rainbow had left upon her.
Twilight
was looking down into the water, dejected. Rainbow picked her left hoof
out of the water, dripping. She brought it up to Twilight’s chin, and
slowly, ever so slightly, brought Twilight’s gaze up to her own.
“Okay?”
The edges of Twilight’s frown faltered, twitching into the faintest of smiles. Delicate.
Subtle.
But definitely there.
“Yes…”
Twilight’s voice was still quiet, still incurred upon with undertones of moroseness, but with a hint of affirmation.
Rainbow
stroked her hoof up from Twilight’s chin to her cheek, slightly
ruffling the thin, downy pelt that coated her. Rainbow looked into her
eyes; they were coy, yet forlorn. Rainbow could see that the thin purple
irises were not as definite as they could be, blurred by tears and a
red bloodshot presence. This didn’t stop them from being pretty, yes,
the melancholy shimmered through, but that somewhat made her eyes seem
all the more vivid, all the more real.
“You’re
a fantastic pony, Twilight.” Rainbow’s confidence had left her, and in
its place, there was careful heartfelt speech. “No; you’re a fantastic friend. “
Twilight
looked very pretty; there was no two ways about it. Rainbow studied her
face a bit closer, leaning in. No, wait, she couldn’t find Twilight that pretty; she wasn’t into fillies. It was just something about her, something alluring.
‘Well, whatever,’ Thought Rainbow ‘I suppose Twilight can be cool sometimes too.’
Rainbow
felt her hind legs bump against Twilight’s, leaning in closer. Rainbow
weaved her legs over Twilight’s, the water now putting up little
resistance, pulling their bodies closer, chest to chest, haunches
brushing together, then resting upon one another, diffidently.
All
the time, Rainbow was peering upon Twilight’s face, examining every
last detail; how the edges of her mouth slowly petered out into a smile,
how her endearingly innocent dolefully joyful eyes darted around, as if
looking for an answer, where her pink streak of mane slowly faded out,
into deep purple.
Rainbow
took her hooves back from Twilight, and placed them around her back,
pulling them the last couple of intimate inches together; closing the
indefinite gap of vapour between them, becoming one, once more.
Rainbow
felt Twilight’s arms join around her own back, brushing just above her
wings. With this touch, Rainbow realised that her wings were doing that ‘thing’ again. Though she didn’t care, she was beyond that now, it didn’t really matter what was cool or not. Not with Twilight, anyway.
Rainbow
slowly moved her face towards Twilight’s, now seeing every detail upon
her. She could see each hair, each impurity, every part of her intricate
prettiness. Well, Twilight could never be just pretty, could she? She’d even have to make that complex too, wouldn’t she?
However,
instead of continuing to move face to face, Rainbow drifted her head
over to Twilight’s side, making a move for her ear. Rainbow’s mouth was
closing in, almost touching; when she adopted the huskiest tender voice
she could;
“Twilight, you deserve so much more…”
Rainbow
slowly retracted her head back, brushing her lips across Twilight’s
cheek, for a bit longer than what could be described as a fleeting
accident. Rainbow regained eye contact with Twilight, which was
accompanied by another flush of warmth across her own face. This was
fine though, she just knew Twilight would be feeling the same way.
“Ah… Uhm… Rainbow, I, I don’t know what to say…”
Twilight
was cut short, by Rainbow, leaning forwards the last couple of
millimetres and bridging the gap between them, in a clumsy, ineloquent
kiss. She bashed her teeth into Twilight’s, but she didn’t mind,
something that trivial couldn’t ruin the sweet couple of seconds they’d spent connected.
Rainbow
pulled away, just by a fraction, parting from Twilight’s lips, but
still almost touching. As Twilight’s eyes opened, they gave way to a
look of confusion, which quickly subsided into longing.
The
gaze was all the confirmation Rainbow needed; she was sure that words
weren’t necessary at this moment in time, which was what she’d heard in
stories, anyway. She closed her eyes once more, and moved in the short
distance between herself and Twilight.
Again,
they made contact clumsily, Rainbow missing Twilight’s mouth by a
fraction. She righted her mistake, (albeit enjoyable), and brought their
mouths together. At first, their kiss was only skin-deep, lips to lips,
but Rainbow pushed forwards, opening up, deepening.
Rainbow thought, as she explored with Twilight, it was as if they were closer, not only in body, but in minds.
Rainbow
slowly eased her tongue forwards, in a tentative sway, dancing across
Twilight’s teeth, and then onwards, coercing Twilight’s tongue to join
the dance, to share the ecstasy.
Within
their intimacy, it was really as they truly were together, not just in
mere physicality, but within minds. Rainbow could feel a flood of
emotions, emotions she’d never felt before, emotions that belonged to Twilight.
Rainbow
broke the ring she’d formed around Twilight with her legs, in favour of
expressing her self further. She brought her left hoof up to Twilight’s
mane, tracing its way up her back, as she went, stroking.
The rush of emotions was hard, for Rainbow. Although it was beautiful, it was just so… Intense. She’d only experienced emotions like that once before, during her times with that filly.
With that filly…
A wave of guilt came over Rainbow, overcoming the new, intense emotions.
Rainbow
pulled away from Twilight, prising her tongue from its lustful dance,
bringing her hooves back in check, breaking Twilight’s embrace, and
finally, prolonged by Twilight’s eager leaning forwards; Rainbow broke
the kiss.
For
a moment, a thin, delicate string of saliva connected the two fillies,
glistening, only to be shattered by Rainbow’s drive to look down, into
the void filled by reddened water, where they once connected so
tenderly.
“I’m, so sorry,
Twilight.” Rainbow spoke to the water, in a tiny voice. Her words were
absorbed, without a reply. In an even tinier, almost inaudible tone, she
continued; “but I have to go…”
Rainbow
got to all fours, and dripping blood-tinged water back into the bath,
she flapped her already-erect wings, and flew out the door; spraying red
back into Twilight’s bemused, disconcerted eyes.
She
found the library front door easily, and threw in open, but in her
frantic haste, Rainbow neglected the idea of closing it behind her.
As
the cold night air whipped past her in the sky, chilling her sopping
wet pelt; Rainbow couldn’t care less, she just repeated the same
hysterical thoughts around in her head:
“Oh, Celestia; I’ve betrayed them both, I’ve been disloyal. And I’m supposed to be the element of Loyalty…”
*****
The
bath water had long since become frigid, yet Twilight still remained in
the reddened mixture, beginning to wrinkle, but still in the same
position that Rainbow had left her in. However, Twilight didn’t care
that she was cold and wrinkling, or rather, she didn’t notice.
She
was too busy desperately trying to piece together what’d just happened.
There had to be a reason, she knew it; things didn’t just happen.
There was always cause and effect, as science would have her know.
Also, if she looked into her magic studies, she knew that Rainbow would
never leave like that, not if she didn’t have good reason to, she was the Element of Loyalty, wasn’t she?
Even so, Twilight would have liked to have had an explanation for the whole thing.
She’d been enjoying her time with Rainbow, even if it was unexpected,
she’d thought they were just sharing a bath out of necessity, like
Twilight used to when she was small. She’d been taken aback, but it
seemed like the right thing to do, after all, she was here to learn
about the magic of friendship.
Twilight
sighed to her self, and stood up on all fours, mirroring Rainbow’s
image, and levitated the same towel that she’d used to clear the mirror
to her. With a sinking feeling within her stomach, Twilight thought to
herself;
“Why does friendship have to be so… Complicated?”
Tears came back to Twilight, involuntarily, delicately, leaving sorrow behind, slowly diluting the reddened water.
*****
Rainbow
was tired, even after just ten minutes of flying, but she attributed
this to the mach speed at which her brain was whirring at; not how the
evening had taken its toll on her athletic body.
“I’m supposed to be loyal; I’m supposed to be loyal.”
As she landed, Rainbow felt a small pang of bittersweet satisfaction; she’d made it this far.
Rainbow’s eyes were dimming, now, out of exhaustion, but she could still focus on what she’d come for.
She hesitantly crept forwards, towards the window she’d come for. It was open a crack, like a small glimmer of hope.
Rainbow
brought her hoof up to the window, and pushed it open, the pane of
glass sliding silently into the dark stillness of the room. She timidly
hauled herself over the windowsill, landing in the room with a silent
clop.
There were shadows, all of unnatural, unnerving shapes, carved by moonlight, not dissimilar to that of Twili- Of the library’s shadows.
Nevertheless, Rainbow did her best to ignore them, and honed in on a
more toned, natural looking shadow, laid on top of what seemed to be a
bed.
“I need to talk to you…”
Rainbow’s voice was ghostly, diminished in the dead of the bedroom.
She
sighed, with a tint of frustration; she’d have to be louder. Rainbow
brought her voice up to a loud, firm, important tone, and with a hint of
apprehension, announced:
“I need to talk to you; Applejack.”