//------------------------------// // Drammatico // Story: Ace of Hearts // by blowngasket //------------------------------// Chapter 8: Drammatico The day began like any great day. A great day for action, adventure, and becoming the best. Stretching out, Rainbow Dash got out of bed, wearing an official Wonderbolt's adult pajama set, with built in wing holes for those that had them. She looked outside of her puffy cloud window, towards the bright sunrise. Smiling with content, she proceeded to the kitchen to tame the hungry beast that was her stomach. Opening her ice box, she took out what she needed. Eggs, eggs, and more eggs. A proper breakfast makes the athlete. The usual ten egg breakfast smoothie. Rainbow had been drinking these for breakfast as long as she could remember, one a week. Today was the day, as she took the eggs, shell and all, and threw them into a bowl. Next came the beating, as she whisked at them vigorously, trying her best to get the shells as small as possible. After about ten minutes of this, she took the slightly toxic looking concoction and poured it into a large glass. Taking a deep breath, she quickly drank down the entire glass in a few gulps, gagging slightly at the end. Success didn't come without sacrifice after all. After another round of vigorous teeth brushing to get the horrid taste out of her mouth, Rainbow jumped into the shower, bathing herself so that way her body was ready in every sense of the word for anything the day could throw at her. Ten minutes of hot water, soap, and shampoo, and Rainbow was now even more set to go than before, though going out now would most likely incur several law violations, so there was one more thing to do. Finally in her usual daily outfit, she was undeniably ready for the day. Nothing would stop her now. She was psyched, fed, and all around excited. Day's off from the weather team were the best days for her. She could do what she wanted, to an extent, and even beyond. She walked out into the world ready for anything that the day could bring to her, as nothing was possibly going to stop her, nothing at all. ---------- ---------- ---------- Rainbow was not ready for this. She could not have been ready for this. No amount of preparation and morning rituals could have prepared her for this. It was supposed to be a casual random morning secret visit, but it turned into something more. Much more, beyond more. She simply stared through the window, watching a figure close Twilight's door and walk downstairs. She couldn't believe, out of all the people, it was Twilight, the nerdy bookwork, that did something like this. She watched the male figure walking down the stairs into the kitchen. She couldn't have been prepared for it. Catacomb, of all people, walking half naked through Twilight's house, after coming out of her room. Should she tell anyone? Who would believe her that Twilight and Cata had spent the night together, doing who knows what, and waking up later in the day than normal people. The look on Rainbows face was of nothing short of dumbfounded astonishment. She was unsure of anything anymore, as she decided to learn more. Her days mission was now different. It was no longer training followed by relaxation, but a spy mission to uncover the truth of the secret lovers. She would find out one way or another. ---------- ---------- ---------- Five minutes earlier... Catacomb knocked on the door, still slightly groggy and partially wet from using the shower, something that Catacomb desperately looked forward to. "Umm...come in." A voice on the other side of the door spoke. Catacomb opened the door, and looked over towards Twilight, waving to her. She was sitting up, still half asleep herself, and blushing slightly. "What do you need, Cata?" She asked, slightly annoyed. "I was wondering if you would like something to eat. It would be the least I could do for letting me stay the night. I am no slouch in the kitchen, so it will be good." Catacomb said with pride. "Don't...don't worry. Spike usually handles the breakfast." Catacomb stood there, slightly concerned. "Twilight...you did actually sleep, right?" Catacomb asked, concerned for the tired looking Twilight. "Of course I slept!" She yelled out, blushing slightly. "Who said my stupid dreams kept me awake!" "Well, for starters, you just did." Catacomb said, sighing slightly. Twilight blinked a few times before Catacomb continued. "And Spike is still resting up in the hospital, so unless you can cook, I got this." "Oh, he is, isn't he." Twilight said, chuckling slightly at her little error there. How did she manage to forget that. Most like the magnificent four hours she had managed to sleep thanks to her overactive imagination. She thought about cooking herself. The Canterlot Fire Department had already labeled me a grade five kitchen hazard, so I should give the shirtless, handsome, wet... She smacked herself in the head repeatedly, receiving more odd looks from the confused Catacomb. "Go ahead and surprise me!" She quickly yelled out. Catacomb nodded and walked out of the room and down to the stairs. Twilight sat in her bed, flopping back and shoving a pillow over her face. This was by far a bad idea, and the lack of sleep failed to help remedy the situation. After this, she needed some good old fashioned time alone to get back into her normal thinking patterns, but until then, she would just try and deal with it like a professional adult. She got up and went into the bathroom to get herself ready for the day. Catacomb, now in his normal garb, was scrounging through the kitchen, looking for whatever he could find to make the best possible breakfast. "Wow, she has almost every kind of spice imaginable..." Catacomb said to himself, looking through her spice cabinet. His ears twitched slightly, meaning only one thing. A woman was taking a shower in the very building he was in. Some would call that a useless sense, but to Catacomb, it was more than enough for him. Now the big question on Catacomb's mind was a simple one. To peek or not to peek. On one hand, he had not had any interesting encounters of such since the day before, but the other hand, she was his friend, and student of Celestia, her younger brother was a dragon child that could grow up seeking retribution in a few years, and her older brother could seek retribution immediately. The cons had outweighed the pros, and so with a sulk and a sigh, Catacomb went back to work preparing breakfast. Twilight walked into the kitchen, following the scent of something beyond her understanding. She decided to go more casual today, a simple long purple skirt and white short sleeved blouse. Cata looked over gave a wave, though her eyes were not on him. He chuckled and walked over to her. "Eggs benedict, using poached egg whites on a whole wheat equish muffin, served with a side of a light fresh fruit melody in homemade whipped cream, and for the finisher a creme brulee, seasoned to taste like fresh pancakes." Catacomb smiled as she stared in awe. "You...you made all of this?" Twilight asked, astonished. "YOU?!" "Well, no one else here." Catacomb said, acting peeved. "How?! When?! Where?!" Twilight asked, still staring. "With food, while you were getting ready, in your kitchen. Anything else or are we going to eat." Twilight just nodded and sat down at the spot set for her. She looked over everything, almost too beautiful to eat. Almost. She started to eat, taking one bite, her eyes went wide. She looked down at the food, and back up to Catacomb, who was casually eating the food. She repeated this process several times before just accepting the delicious truth and continued to eat. ---------- ---------- ---------- Rainbow secretly watched the meal from the kitchen window. She watched the entire scene of him cooking the meal, from searching for the spices to the final flare, literally, when he pulled out two shells and set them against the weird pudding thing after he coated the top in sugar. The effect was a quick burst of fire, causing the top of the pudding things to turn brown. He was going through all this effort to make a fantastic breakfast. Apology, or maybe because they were all lovey dovey, he felt the need to do something special. Twilights reaction said it all, though. She was more than ecstatic to see the meal in front of her, she looked like she was speechless, having a hard time forming the words. Even more was the way she kept staring up at Catacomb, like he was something else. Rainbow needed more information though, before she could come to the final conclusion. ---------- ---------- ---------- Twilight finally finished the meal, staring happily at the empty plates. "That was delicious. Why did you do so much though, it was just breakfast." "I didn't really do anything than I would normally do." Catacomb said, smiling as he started to lean back into though. "I like to cook every once in a while. Making one thing look completely different just comes naturally I guess, though I did spend alot of time in the castles kitchens. The chefs were really nice about me watching them work." "So, this is something you just do?" Twilight said, astonished. "Kinda, don't you folks usually pride yourselves on having special talents of the like. You even get special marks for figuring out what you are best at." Catacomb said, taking a sip from a mug in front of him. "Well, that is true. So what would yours be if you had one." Twilight asked. Catacomb shrugged, shaking his head. "Dunno, guess I never put thought into that. I can have anything for the mark I want, so I never thought to wonder." Catacomb sat back and started to think. Besides being another person, what was his special talents. He could do many things well, but what really did set him off from others. Moments like this had a tendency to make one concider ones life choices. Catacomb, on the other hand, was just lost. "I got nothing." "Don't worry Cata, you'll figure it out sooner or later?" Twilight said, smiling at the stumped Catacomb. He nodded an leaned back in, getting up to grab the dishes. Twilight shot up and grabbed his hand before he could. "Don't worry, you did all of this, I can handle the dishes." "Well, chivalry isn't a talent of mine, so you won't see me complain." Catacomb said, laughing slightly. They just stood there for a few seconds before Catacomb spoke up. "Ummm you can let my hand go now, Twi." Catacomb said. Twilight turned a bright shade of red and quickly let go, scurrying around to gather the dishes. He sat back down and watched her run about, trying to get everything cleaned and avoid contact with him all at the same time. ---------- ---------- ---------- Rainbow continued to spy from the bushes outside of the kitchen, watching as everything unfolded. They looked like they were having a nice conversation, and everything was looking normal until Twilight out of nowhere decided to hold his hand. The way she blushed as she did that means that her fears were true. She still couldn't believe that they were together now. She was confused and concerned. Was Catacomb the right man for her, did they work as a couple. Catacomb didn't seem like a bad guy, but they had barely gotten time to know him. She continued her watch intently, not noticing the figure creeping up behind her. "Boo." Rainbow quickly covered her mouth to muffle her screams, not wanting to get caught. She turned around to find none other than Perry, standing next to her and laughing quite hard. Rainbow blushed in embarrassment, glaring at him. "You jerk, you almost blew my cover!" Rainbow said quietly. "Your cover, what are you doing that needs to be secret." Perry said with his head tilted slightly. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, dude." Rainbow said to Perry, who only became more curious. "Rainbow, I was secretly an assassin for the royal court, I doubt there is much I would disbelieve." Perry said. Rainbow stared for a second before nodding, and scooted over, making room for Perry. He looked through the kitchen window, watching Twilight finish doing dishes while Catacomb sat at the table. "So this is were Catacomb went so early in the morning?" Perry asked. "Oh no! He looked like he was here the entire night. I started watching as soon as I had seen him walk out of Twi's room shirtless." Rainbow said. "He looked all wet, and I think that he and Twilight...Perry are you ok?" Rainbow looked at the oddly silent man for a few seconds. She jumped slightly as the masked slightly cracked around his right eye. "Rainbow, please tell me this is another one of your pranks..." Perry said, his glare, even masked, putting the fear of death into her. "I saw what I saw, man. I don't know what is going on either." Rainbow responded. She looked behind Perry, a new startling sight no making its way into her list of confused thoughts. "Hey Pinkie, what's with the frying pan?" "Perry, I know Rainbow can be a meanie sometimes, but you shouldn't want to hurt her, you're better than that." Pinkie said, trying to negotiate. She stood behind Perry, the frying pan at the ready should he try anything. Rainbow stared at Pinkie, trying to figure out this new bit of confusion thrown into the mix. "Umm, Pinkie..." Rainbow said to her friend. "I don't think he wants to hurt me." She looked over at Perry, who remained silent, just sitting there. "You don't want to hurt me right?" She asked, slightly worried. "Of course not, Rainbow. You didn't do anything wrong. No, I got my eyes set on someone else, so if you don't mind I will be on my way." He got up and turned around, looking at Pinkie Pie as she stood there with the frying pan. "You be good, boss. Stay here while I go kill my friend." He casually walked off towards the front entrance of the library. "Okie dokie!" Pinkie said, waving. "Wait, your just going to let him go?" Rainbow asked. "Yup! It is how he shows his friendship to his friend, by trying to kill him." She said. "I learned that the other day." Today was a great day. The sun was bright, the breeze was perfect, and she was off of work, so how did things go so horribly confusing for Rainbow Dash. She threw her arms up into the air. "I'm done. Those men are nuts, and I just can't figure them out. If anybody needs me I will be taking a nap." Rainbow said as she walked away. Pinkie stared slightly and decided to do the spying now. She jumped into the bushes, and within seconds, jumped out wearing a fancy suit, with white shirt and pink tie under black coat and pants. "The name is Pie...Pinkie Pie..." She giggled and went to watch the outcome of Perry's friendly killing. ---------- ---------- ---------- "Catacomb, thanks again for breakfast." Twilight said, as he got up and started towards the door. "Thanks for letting me stay the night. Not a fan of walking around when I am tired. I tend to go into the wrong house and well things get crazy from there." Catacomb sighed, noting this from first hand experience. "Why didn't you just fly though?" Twilight asked. "It would have been easier for you then, right?" "Not really, I have to use muscles that I rarely ever use to fly, so I would have worn myself out in a minute." Catacomb said, nodding. "So I say it again, thank you for your hospitality." "It was my pleasure. Thank you for your incite into how changelings work." Twilight said, smiling. "I'll finish up another time, the offer from before still stands." Catacomb grinned. Twilight stared a bit before chuckling. "In your dreams, Cata." She blushed, remembering last night, and the irony of her statement. "Maybe next time I will tell you how we feed." He continued to grin as he opened the door. He went to turn around, only to jump at coming face to face with a white mask. "Oh...sup Perry?" Catacomb chuckled slightly, though Perry just stood there silent. "Hi Perry!" Twilight said from behind Catacomb. Perry quickly grabbed Catacomb by the collar and chucked him out the door, shutting it. Catacomb laid where he landed. "What...just happened?" Catacomb said to himself. Pinkie walked up to him from the bushes by the kitchen window, still wearing her suit. "Well, him and Dashie were spying on you and Twilight from the kitchen window, and Rainbow must have said something, because my Pinkie sense said that Perry was out for blood. Cupcake?" She pulled a cupcake out of her pocket, surprisingly still intact and handed it to Catacomb. "No thanks, had a big breakfast." Catacomb said, sitting up. "I wonder how much of it...Pinkie...if I die today, I want you to throw the best funeral for me that anyone has ever done." "It would be my pleasure, but why do you think your going to die?" Pinkie asked. Catacomb quickly got up and ran towards the door, afraid for his very life, but knowing that this had to be taking care of as quickly as possible. He practically busted the door down and jumped into the library. "I SWEAR TO CELESTIA THAT I DID NOT SLEEP WITH TWILIGHT!" He yelled, not really looking first. When he finally did notice, Perry and Twilight were sipping tea and chatting, before being interrupted by the loud declaration. "I know, Cata. Twilight told me what happened." Perry said, sipping his tea through a bendy straw. Twilight chuckled as well. "Rainbow can have a bit of...well an overactive imagination." Twilight said, looking over at Catacomb. "Don't get me wrong, seeing what she had seen, I would have been suspicious of us too." She laughed, Perry laughing as well. "Well...this was a bit anticlimactic then...hmmm..." Catacomb said. He looked out the open library door. "Scratch the need for a funeral, Pinkie! It's all good!" he yelled to the woman outside. She quickly walked in and sighed. "And I was looking forward to doing it, too. Not the whole Catacomb dying part, that would have been sad. I had the whole thing planned out in my head and everything!" Pinkie said, flailing slightly as she expressed her disappointment. "Pinkie, we can still do that. I can see it now..." Perry started. "Bright lights, soft but fun music, and in the center of the room will be Catacomb's coffin. A pre-death funeral party. A bit morbid, but it will still be fun if done right." "That's a great idea! Come on, Perry! We have work to do!" Pinkie said. Perry shot up and started to follow her as she walked out. "It will be the best party since the last!" he declared as they walked away. Both Twilight and Catacomb stared as the two walked away, the light breeze slowly closing the library door for them as they made their way down the street. Twilight turned to Catacomb slowly. "Hey, Cata?" "Yes, Twilight?" "What happened?" "I guess I died." Catacomb shrugged. "Well, it has been...interesting to say the least. Thanks again." Catacomb said, chuckling. Twilight returned the sentiment, laughing as well. "It definitely has. I have to go get Spike anyways, so you take care." She walked towards the door and opened it, holding it for Catacomb as well. He nodded at the gesture and walked out, Twilight following shortly after. They waved goodbye as they went down separate paths, and continued into the days events. ---------- ---------- --------- "Catacomb and Twilight, what an odd couple. I guess it works, though." Rainbow said as she drifted through the sky on a small cloud. She had given up her plans for the day, and decided to just let herself be taking away on the cloud for a while, trying to get the weird mental pictures out of her head. "Maybe I just got the whole thing wrong, and it is just one big, huge mistake, and it was so much more simple than that." Rainbow continued to speak to herself, just trying to make sense of the morning. "No way, that would be way to convenient!"