Time in Equestria

by Fox-Sama


Chapter Nine- Schemes

Chapter Nine - Schemes

The clouds of Equestria serve many functions, from transporting water across the lands, offering shade on a hot day, to beds and homes alike, and, on occasion, a convenient perch for ponies to spy on others. A certain cloud hung above Sweet Apple Acres, where Spitfire lay on her belly peeking over the edge at a particular earth pony going about her morning chores.

“Great, now I’m acting like one of my stalkers,” she muttered to herself, not appreciating the irony. She shivered.

“You know I wasn't going to say anything, but yeah, you kinda are.” Spitfire sent a glare at the pony who had spoken, but Rainbow simply rolled her eyes in response.

“Yeah, coming from you of all ponies? Real funny, Dash.”

“Hey! I’ve never stalked you, or any of the other ‘bolts!” Rainbow said defensively.

Spitfire looked over her shoulder with a raised brow. “Really now? And what do you call that little drop-in at Soarin’s birthday?”

Laughing a little, Rainbow rubbed the back of her head. “Umm... happy accident?”

Now taking her turn to roll her eyes, the captain of the Wonderbolts looked back over the cloud’s edge, a heavy sigh escaping her as her gaze fell back to the farmer below. “Goddess, I hope she’s not one of those closed-minded ponies.”

“Just relax, I already told you that AJ has never done anything to tell me she hates ‘foolers. Heck, she was one of the first ponies to congratulate Lyra and Bon Bon. She even helped make all the food for their coming-out par-” She stopped mid-sentence, an idea growing.

An uneasiness stirred in Spitfire’s stomach as a horribly avid grin grew to dominate her companion’s visage. There was a roguish glint in Rainbow’s eye as she continued, “That’s it! I’ll make my move tonight at Twi’s slumber party, and then you can see how AJ takes it! That way you won't have any reason to not ask her out!”

Spitfire mulled it over, but she could not find any obvious faults in the plan. “You know Rainbow, I like the way you think, but what about Twilight? Will it be okay with me coming along uninvited?”

“Are you kidding me? Twilight loves spending time with her friends. If I know anything about Twi, it’s this, trust me, she’ll be cool with it.” Dash said proudly as she stuck out her chest.

Smiling at the chance to take the conversation off of her and Applejack, Spitfire moved around to face her multichromatic friend. “Speaking of everypony’s favorite unicorn, how are you going to to - and I quote - ‘Make your move’?

“Well I was going to do it tonight and surprise her and the others. After I have my fun, of course,” Rainbow shouted delphically, diving off the cloud and wings spread for town.

“Fun? Dash, wait!” Spitfire flew after her friend.” Why do I get the feeling I won't like this idea as much as your last?”

“Hey, it’s fine, I’m just going to play a few pranks and flirt with her a bit before I ask.”

“Rainbow, I don't think this is a good idea. You know Twilight likes you, why not just ask her out? I'm sure it will be a dream come true for her,” Spitfire suggested as she flew alongside Rainbow Dash, zipping about the mid morning sky.

“If It was anypony else I would. But this is too good to pass up! I’ve had my own crush on her since day one, and before I had a chance to ask her out we had to stop Nightmare Moon and then I found myself friendzoned. Not that I minded too much, you know, but now I learn that she’s got the hots for the Dash! I am going to milk this for all its worth.” Dash spoke with a cocky grin as she barrel rolled over some birds. “Besides, how often do you get to make your best friend’s dream come true? I want Twi to remember this always.”

“It just seems like a lot can go wrong,” Spitfire answered, letting out a sigh. ”I just don't want to see this blow up on either of you - I owe her big time.”

“It’ll be fine, if worst comes to worse I’ll just get her a new book.” Dash angled her wings and started to dive, leaving Spitfire in the clouds. “Now if you’ll excuse me I have a library to crash into! Later!”

“I hope she’s kidding.” Shaking her head and laughing to herself Spitfire turned around and started flying back to Cloudsdale to make sure her schedule was free that evening, and maybe get a little grooming done as well. Looking her best certainly couldn’t hurt.

XXXX

At the other end of town Twilight Sparkle was getting ready for her sleepover, and that meant only one thing. A checklist. Floating over her clipboard and quill she looked down the list with a satisfied grin. “Snacks, check. Books of ghost stories, check. Extra bedding?” Using her magic Twilight opened her closet and levitated out a generous amount of blankets and bed rolls. “Check.”

“Look out below!”

Without removing her eyes from her checklist Twilight used her magic and opened a window, just in time for to spare it from a rocketing Rainbow Dash. The pegasi in question darted through window causing no harm to neither herself nor property. ”You're starting to get pretty good at that, Twi.” Rainbow circled the room to slow herself down before coming to a stop next to her friend.

“Well, as much as I love to re-shelve the books it tends be rather tedious doing it every time you decide to pay me a visit, Rainbow.” Twilight directed in a somewhat accusatory tone, before returning to her checklist.

Rainbow leaned over Twilight's shoulder, brushing her cheek with her own, causing the purple unicorn to color a fine shade of red. “You don’t have much for entertainment, Twi.” Rainbow had to suppress a smirk as she felt Twilight tense under her touch, and rubbed the unicorn’s cheek a little bit more before walking away.

“W-what do you mean?” Twilight shook off her blush and put on a serious expression as she read down her list. “I have ghost stories, truth or dare, board games - I even have extra pillows for the pillow fight.” Twilight looked over her list yet again to see if she had missed anything.

“No, your list is fine... It’s just that whenever we play truth or dare we always dumb it down, play it like foals. It’s just a little lame - don’t get me wrong, I love seeing Applejack in a dress as the next pony, but it after so many times it starts losing its novelty. A pillow fight is only fun for a short time, and we can’t do that more than once. I just think we need to think of something more, is all.”

“I guess see your point...” Twilight frowned at her list, annoyed that she wasn’t as prepared as she imagined she was. “You wouldn't happen to have any suggestions, would you?”

“Well...” Inwardly, Rainbow celebrated. Twilight was playing along right to her tune. “...we can always spice up truth or dare... you know, asking better, more embarrassing questions and more outrageous dares. Like we can ask Applejack if she’s ever fantasized about anypony, or dare Pinkie Pie to kiss the first pony she sees... stuff like that.”

“Rainbow!” Twilight wanted to chastise the other pony but she was too busy laughing. “You’re not serious, are you?” Her friend only offered a deadpan expression. “Well, maybe we can spice up truth or dare a little, but remember we can’t just turn Pinkie loose, and we can’t forget about Fluttershy. You know how sensitive she can be.”

“Yeah, I know, but just think how much fun it would be. Isn't there anything you ever wanted to know about us? Or wanting to see us do something embarrassing?”

Twilight looked thoughtfully at her crush before a wry expression crossed her face. “Maybe... I’ve always wanted to see you play dress-up with Rarity.”

Rainbow pulled a face at the idea. She had been dolled up by Rarity before. It had been thoroughly unenjoyable. She quickly masked it a smirk. “I’m glad to see you getting into the spirit of things, but remember one thing, egghead - I can be your most intimate ally, or your most bitter enemy.”

While talking she had been approaching her prey, and now Dash was dangerously close to Twilight, almost nose to nose. Twilight shifted uncomfortably, placing a little more distance between them. Twilight became anxious with every step Rainbow took but tried to suppress any wayward thoughts and took a step to the side to add a little distance between them.

“Duly noted, Rainbow. So, does my most... i-intimate-” She stuttered and colored a magnificent shade of red as she said the word, much to Rainbow’s amusement, “-ally have any more ideas?”

Taking a few steps back Dash sat down on the rug. “We can always play poker.”

“Oh. I’ve never played poker before.” Twilight lowered her head and let her ears drop down a little.

“Don't worry, knowing you, I would bet my Wonderbolt collection that you have a book or two that you can study, and I can always teach you if you want me to. Lyra, Bonbon, Colgate and I used to play twice a month, before Bon opened her shop, and Colgate moved to Manehatten.”

“That does sound like fun, I never had a chance to really play cards before, I always just made castles and forts out of them with Spike. Thanks, Rainbow.”

Rainbow feigned meandering towards the bookshelf across the room, taking care to brush against her friend. “Don't worry Twi, I got you covered,” Rainbow said as she passed.

At the body contact Twilight let slip an appreciative sigh, before realization took place and she tried to cover it up with a feigned coughing fit, taking advantage of the time it brought her to shaking her head clear of any romantic thoughts. “Y...Yeah I know, thanks Rainbow.” Twilight turned away from the pegasus, unwilling to give her body the chance to betray anything more.

Dash felt no shortage of pride at the strength unicorn’s reaction, but she was worried that she might have pushed her friend too hard. “Oh, Twi, I almost forgot; I flew into Spitfire earlier and I was wondering if I could bring her along tonight?”

“Oh, she’s in town again? Must be thinking of a way to ask Applejack ou-” Twilight’s eyes shot wide with panic as the words on the tip of her tongue died. It had only been a few days and she already almost blew Spitfire’s secret. “... ask AJ about a food contract for the Wonderbolts... their shows. Selling food at their shows, yes.”

Pausing at the door, Rainbow looked back at the unicorn, who was now avoiding any and all eye contact. ‘Gee, and I thought AJ was a bad liar.’ “Whatever you say Twi. Y’know, I bet she’s here to ask me to join the Wonderbolts! This is so awesome!” To illustrate her point she flared her wings up before flapping them excitedly.

Twilight was at a loss for words. She knew Spitfire wasn’t in town for that reason, but she couldn't tell her friend why, not without revealing what she swore not to keep secret and dashing Rainbow’s hopes. “I... is that what she told you? I mean, do you really think she would take such a roundabout way in inviting you to the Wonderbolts? Wouldn't it be more practical if sent you a letter or something?”

The prismatic pegasus let her wings retract and let her body relax a little. “Yeah, I guess you're right, but that doesn't mean I can't impress her while she is in town, right?” With a proud smile she shot out the window. “Later!”

Twilight watched her crush leave out an open window, and shook her head as she muttered to herself. “Why is she so cute?”

“I don’t know, maybe you're just weird,” Spike remarked as he walked by with a stack of books.

“Spike, don’t you have to be at the train station?” Twilight asked in an sickeningly sweet tone, though Spike was too busy sorting a few books to note the underlying insinuation.

“Nope, the train to Canterlot won't arrive for another twenty minutes.” He placed the top book on his pile back on its shelf before looking at his caretaker with a hint of pride. ”And I’m already all packed, so I have plenty of time.”

“Good, then you won't mind leaving early.” Both Spike and his suitcase vanished in a flash of light, the books that he had been carrying tumbling to the floor with a rustling of pages. “That will teach him for being a smart aleck. Now, where was I?” Twilight began to adding some revisions to her list when the library's front door was yanked open, only to be slammed shut again a moment later. “Dash! How many times do I have to tell you not to-”

“Sparkle!” cracked a voice that might have sounded imperious, were it not for the sheer panic that colored it.

Twilight whirled around to see a wide-eyed unicorn. “Trixie? What in the world are you doing?”

Trixie was pressed up against the door as though bracing against forces unknown, panting as if she had just run a marathon. “You have to hide Trixie, that crazy pony won't leave her be!” the magician blurted when she had caught her breath.

“What are you talking about? Who’s after you?” Twilight asked. There was a loud knock at the door. “Trixie, what did you d-”

Trixies silenced Twilight by locking a magical band over her mouth, before moving in close, whispering, “No time, you never saw Trixie.” With that she zipped up the stairs, the magical muzzle disappearing with her.

Shaking her head, Twilight craned her head up the stairs where Trixie had vanished.

“Some ponies...” Shaking her head again, this time in disapproval, Twilight opened door and was suddenly confronted by dual purple reflections of herself.

“Sorry to bother you, but I’m looking for a sexy looking blue mare that came running in here, do you think you could point me in the right dire- Hey, you’re Twilight Sparkle!” the white unicorn in the threshold pointed a hoof at Twilight as her smile grew wider. “Thanks again for the work at the Iron Pony. I’m still trippin on how many bits you paid me for it.”

“You earned it Vinyl, not only did you supply the music, but with all your extra help in the announcers’ booth; a little pay raise was the least I could do.” Twilight stepped away from the door, letting her guest in, the smile on her face never wavering.

“Speaking of announcing and my co-announcer...,” Vinyl wiggled her eyebrows before looking around the room, “where that spicy little filly?”

“Oh... I think she’s kind of busy?” Twilight suggested with shrug.

“That’s cool. I’ll wait.” Vinyl walked past Twilight and started perusing the shelves of the fantasy section.

“So how long do you plan on waiting?” Twilight shut the door and went back to her preparations for her slumber party.

“Well, I’m not too sure. I guess till I get bored or you tell me what room she’s hiding in. Hey, do you have any comics? Those things are great for passing the time.”

“We have a few, but Spike likes to hide them away for himself. I can go look for them if you like.”

“Nah, that’s cool, but if you can tell me about Trix that would be great! Like what sorta food does she like to eat, the music that gets her hooves movin’, are her mane and tail actually silver, or does she dye it?” Vinyl asked loudly to the entire library, knowing that a certain azure mare was listening in.

“I’m sorry, but I don't really know Trixie all that well, so I don't know what sort of food or music she likes, but I know she takes tremendous pride in her performance as a showpony as well as the quality of her work, so you both have the spotlight in common,” Twilight stopped and brought a hoof up to her chin. ”And now that you mention it, her mane is a little odd. I know the Mayor dyes her mane and tail. It’s possible that Trixie could too.”

The thunderous sounds of hooves trampling down stairs echoed through the library. “Enough! Trixie will not stand by and let you spread slander and mistruths about her!”

Now at the library floor, Trixie turned an icy glare onto the two other mares. Twilight looked a little surprised, but Vinyl stood there with an infuriatingly smug grin painted on her face. “Oh good, looks like you're finished. Now, about that date you owe me....” She trailed off, amused expectation dripping from every word.

Trixie began sputtering in disbelief. “What? Trixie means that she, no, I mean... You never told Trixie you were serious! How can you expect her to go through with this!?” The flustered unicorn looked around the room for help but only saw a nervous looking Twilight Sparkle. “And I am a mare!” she shouted, forgetting to speak of herself in third person.

Vinyl pushed up her glasses and inspected Trixie for a moments. “Yes, that is something that I have observed about you.”

“And you're a mare!”

Vinyl nodded slowly. “Yes, I am. Thank you for noticing.”

“Then you asking me out that makes you a...” Trixies swallowed hard and spoke in a low whisper. ”You're a fillyfooler?”

Vinyl looked to Twilight and shrugged. “You know, I think she’s finally starting to get it.”

“But, but it’s- I mean, I neve...” Trixie struggled to articulate from across the room.

Seeing where this was going, Vinyl stopped Trixie’s rambling with a hoof to her lips. “I know what you're going to say: it’s wrong, it’s weird and it’s unnatural - a blight on the world of the goddesses. Well guess what what? It’s not, there’s no law saying a mare can’t lay with a mare, or a stallion with another stallion. Are there ponies out there that think it’s wrong? You bet your last bit shivering at the bottom of your purse there is, but there are those who support it too. At her own wedding I heard right from Princess Cadence’s own mouth, ‘You cannot lay shackles on who loves whom. Love is an unexpected thing - you never know when it will find you, but when it does it’s your job to never let it go.’

“Now I asked you out because I find you interesting, funny, and honest - you're not afraid to speak your mind - and let’s face it, you are just all kinds of sexy. Now if you want to go out for dinner tonight go home and get ready, and if you don’t want to, well... I hope we can still be friends.” Vinyl spoke with a solemnity that few had ever heard from the rambunctious unicorn.

Trixie stared at the musician, dumbfounded, her mouth hanging slightly open in a rather undignified manner. Eventually she shook herself out of her shock. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out hissing between her teeth. She made her way towards the library entrance, opening the door. As she stepped outside, she turned to look at Vinyl.

“Trixie will expect you to pick her up at seven, and you better show her a good time, or she will have to saw you in half at her next show.” With that, the door clicked shut behind the magician. A perfect quiet held the room for a moment or two before a rich, throaty chuckle sounded from Vinyl’s throat.

“Scrach old girl, you still got it.” She danced in a little circle giggling to herself before remembering there was another individual in the room. Twilight was standing there, a mix of surprise and deep contemplation written across her face. “Hey, you okay there Sparks?”

Twilight looked at Vinyl with envy and sighed before falling to her hunches. “How do you do it? How can you speak so openly about being gay with such confidence? How can you ask somepony out without even knowing their sexuaity? Without fear of anypony hounding or hating you for it?”

Vinyl took off her glasses and sat next to Twilight, offering a warm smile. “You haven't told anypony have you?” Twilight shook her head, letting a few tears drip down her cheeks. “I know it’s not easy in the closet. Always hiding who you are, how you feel, worrying what your friends and family will say. But you know what?” Twilight looked up into the DJ’s eyes and thought how much they reminded her of Dash’s. “The stress from coming out, and whatever ridicule you’ll get is nothing compared to the stress and self-loathing you feel in hiding.”

“You make coming out sound so easy,” the librarian whispered.

“Now there’s a joke. Coming out to my dad was the hardest thing I have ever had to do. He took it kinda hard at first. Shut himself up at work for weeks. I thought he would never speak to me again.” By this point Twilight looked even worse than before. ”But then dad came home from work, and it turned out he was just trying to close a big deal or something, he was never mad, or disappointed in me at, and he was sorry for letting me think so in the first place. He was so sorry he even tried to set me up with a client's daughter.”

Twilight brought her leg up to her mouth to help stifle her laughter at the bit of news. ”You're kidding.”

“I wish. I never felt so awkward. But the point is it’s not easy. I was lucky with my dad, but that first week, it was hell Twilight. And I did lose a lot of my friends, even my job at the time. But I never regretted it, not for a second.”

“But what if?” Twilight’s horn started to glow and floated over a photograph of her and all her friends. They were all in the library standing in front of a beautifully decorated Hearth's Warming Tree. “What if they reject me? I care for them so much, I don't think I could live knowing they hate me.”

“If they truly are your friends, and love you as much as you love them, then you have nothing to worry about. But if any of them to turn on you then you know who your true friends are.”

Vinyl was taken back when she felt two hooves wrap around her in a gentle hut. “I can name at least one right now. Thank you Vinyl. I think I’m going to tell her tonight.”

“Anytime, Sparks. Anytime.”

Pulling away from the hug Twilight gave the DJ a questioning look. “You know, I was at that wedding, and I never heard Cadance say that about love.”

The blue maned pony snickered. “Busted. Truth is, my manager payed some writer to whip up Tavi and me a script for a press release about our ‘relationship.” Vinyl rolled her eyes at the word.

“Who’s Tavi?” Twilight inquired with a tilt of the head.

“Oh, well you may have heard of her real name, Octavia. She plays first cello in the Canterlot Orchestra. We’ve bee-.”

Vinyl was interrupted when Twilight stood up, and glared angrily at the other unicorn. “Wait, you’re dating Octavia Philharmonica and you still asked Trixie out?! After your whole thing about love her and saying she was interesting, and why? Did you think it would be funny?”

“Okay, calm your horn Sparks, before you go off on me and start saying how I am the worst kind of pony- first off, Octavia and I been friends since we were blank flanks; second, and you can't go around repeating any of this...” Vinyl pointed a hoof at Twilight who simply nodded her head. “... second, Tavi is not gay, she’s bi, and she likes stallions a lot more. This whole thing with her and me was cooked up by our managers to boost publicity. And it worked great; nothing gets a little media attention like a little controversy. But Tavi is getting upset with it, not that I blame her. I mean do you know how hard it is to pretend to date your best friend and be a celebrity at the same time?”

“So you're not really dating her?”

“Off the record, nope. As for Trix, I am interested in her, and I will be telling her all about this thing with Tavi tonight. So don't worry your cute little flank over it. If there’s one thing you can count on, it’s that Vinyl Scratch is... Well no. I’m not always honest,” she laughed, replacing her glasses onto her face. “Well, I guess I should be going now, I’ve got a date to prepare for and I’ve intruded on your hospitality long enough.” She moved for the door.

“Vinyl, I...” Twilight started before settling on a smile, “Thank you.”

“No problem.” Flashing one last brilliant grin, Vinyl left, the door gently closing behind her.

Twilight was alone in the library. She looked at the list she still held suspended and sighed.
“Tonight, then...” she whispered.

Note


Yes, yes after so long I’m back from my banishment! and I am back with a new chapter for all thoes that have waited. I hope its up to your standards! so you know the Drill Leave a comment saying how great I am, and thanks for reading!

PS if you like this story check out my ‘new’ story Twists and turns!

Thank you to my Beta/proof readers for all their help, without them this would not be possible:

Salacar

Homegirl