Gel slowly wakes up, rubbing her eyes. "...Hngh...journal..." She grabs it, flipping through it carefully. "...I see..." She grins, bounding out of her room. "Today's the day!"
She rushes over to Rhino's door, pushing it open and entering. "Rhino! It's time to wake up!"
The stallion however, does not hear her call. He is sleeping on his side, facing the door with a small pillow held in his forehooves. His breaths come even and slow, out like a rock some might say.
She blinks at this, slowly approaching the bed. "...Rhino?" She gently pokes his cheek, confused. "...is he a heavy sleeper?"
His forelegs curl tighter around the small pillow, but other than that he doesn't react.
She grins, a blue flame coming off one side to reveal one of her wings. "...This might be fun." She brings the tip of it to his nose, tickling it teasingly.
His nose twitches at the tickling. After a moment indiscernible mumbles come from his mouth as one hoof sluggishly swipes in front of his nose. Said hoof lazily hangs over the edge of the bed after its exertions.
She moves the wing to his hoof, giggling happily. "...He's so cute like this..." She gently strokes his mane, smiling softly. "...so fluffy...I like it..."
A smile slowly grows on his face at the touch to his mane. His whole body seems to relax and deflate as he leans into the hoof.
She nuzzles his cheek, continuing to rub his mane. "...Definitely cute..."
Suddenly his hooves shoot out and wrap around her. He pulls her in close with one swift movement and nuzzles her cheek as he lets out a content sigh.
Gel squeaks, surprised at this. W-what is he doing?! She squirms, trying to get out of his grip while blue flames once again disguise her wing.
He frowns at the feeling of her pulling away. With a grunt, he shifts his arms to bring her against his chest. At the same time, he flicks the covers higher up over the two of them with a bit of magic. After a little more shifting, he settles down again, keeping her close to him.
She trembles, unsure of what to do. ...I suppose...this isn't all bad... She smiles, gingerly nuzzling his cheek. ...this means he at least thinks highly of me deep down...right?
The stallion freely continues the back and forth nuzzle fest, though his are slower due to his unconscious state. His tail coils around hers as one of his hooves starts trailing in little circles on her back as they lay in silence.
She sighs softly, looking up at him. "...Well..." She leans up, her cheeks burning with her blush. "...s-since we're like this..." She gently presses her lips against his, her heart fluttering in her chest.
Surprisingly, he pushes back with pressure of his own. His forelegs shift from the grip he had, to a more gentle hug. The two kiss for a short time until he breaks it, resting his forehead on hers afterward with a smile on his face.
On the other hoof, Gel has frozen from shock. ...kiss...h-he just...kiss... She laughs for a few moments and passes out, an ecstatic smile on her face.
Her sudden lack of means to keep herself on the bed, along with Rhino's loosened grip, results in her slowly but surely sliding off, landing with a thump. Said thump causes Rhino to grunt and blearily open his eyes, blinking slowly. "Gruh?"
She lays on the floor, her left hindleg twitching slightly from the impact.
He steps out of bed like he does everyday, only to trip and land on the floor next to the mare. He groans as his brain warms up enough to identify the white shape next to him. Once he does, he nudges her face with his nose. "Angel?"
She groans softly, holding her head. "...That hurt..." She turns to him, smiling softly. "...hey, Rhino...s-sorry for...w-well, being in here...I was just excited for today..." She sits up, leaning against his bed.
He remains where he is on the ground as he lets out a yawn. "You're a nice thing to wake up to after a nice dream..."
"...a nice dream?" She looks off to the side, blushing softly. "...Um...m-may I ask what it was about?"
His eyes look upward as he tries to recall. "The more I try to think about it, the more it slips away... It was soft, warm, there was cuddling involved... There might have been a kiss at the end, it's slowly becoming more and more blurry."
...That sounds perfect... She clears her throat, standing up and offering him a hoof. "...S-so...you ready for my surprise?" She grins playfully, a twinkle in her eye.
He takes her hoof, almost pulling her over whenever he gets up. After cracking his neck he looks at her with increasingly awake eyes. "Lead the way."
"First, let me get dressed!" She giggles, rushing out the room and into her own. I hope he'll like it!
Still slightly spaced out, Rhino sits down and plays with his tail as he waits.
Soon enough, the door opens, revealing a pony dressed in an all-black body armor suit, it looks to be made of a thick fabric with reinforcements on areas like shoulders, chest, and others. Their face is hidden by a smooth helmet. The pony waves excitedly at Rhino.
He blinks, not expecting anything remotely like this. He tries to crack a joke to cover for himself. "You do not look nearly as approachable in that getup."
The helmet lifts up, revealing the white mare's face. "...Sorry...I just thought you'd like one of my favorite pastimes..." She lowers the mask, pointing a hoof off into the distance. "Paintball!"
He laughs. "Really? Paintball? Alright, I officially did not see that coming. Wow... I haven't played paintball since high school..."
"Oh? You've played before?" She tilts her head to one side, somehow bumping the helmet against the wall with a 'bonk'. She flinches, rubbing the spot that was hit. "...I should be more careful..."
"Well, that's what the umm..." he gestures to her outfit, "...armor is for. I've only ever played twice though, and I have never seen this full outfit before."
She titters nervously, rubbing the back of her neck. "...W-well, I really like paintball...s-so I bought the best armor I could find...don't want to get hurt playing, right?"
Rhino winces. "True, my friends and I only played with helmets... had welts for weeks."
"Don't worry, Rhino." She walks over to him, playfully bumping his side with hers. "I'll be sure to buy you a set once we get there!"
He shakes his head. "You don't have to do that, I can buy it myself. No sense in you wasting your bits."
"...A-are you sure?" She fidgets slightly, turning her head away. "I-I mean, I'd be happy to buy it for you...really, it's no trouble..."
Seeing how much this means to her, he relents. "Alright alright, you can buy it... No more sulking though, it kills me every time you do that."
"Deal!" She giggles, trying to nuzzle his cheek, only to bonk their heads together. "...oops...s-sorry..."
His rubs the injured cheek with a hoof. "It's fine, might as well start getting the pain tolerance up now. So umm, do we just head out? Do you already know where it is?"
"I sure do!" She heads over to the door, looking over her shoulder at him. "It's in a clearing in the Everfree!"
Rhino smiles while muttering under his breath. "Oh joy..."
***
The two arrive at the relatively isolated clearing on the outer edges of the Everfree. Gel has a spring in her step and a rustle in her armor while Rhino simply walks along smiling at her antics. They head toward the only building in the area, the mare taking the lead since this is her world.
"This is the place, Rhino!" She motions a hoof towards the building. "That's where you'll get your armor." She moves on to the area around them. "And this is the place where we'll be playing. By the way..." She tickles his nose with her tail, giggling softly. "...I've never lost."
He blushes and zones out a moment from the tail, before shaking himself out of it. "Well, that works out nicely then, I've never won." He looks at the building warily. "So... do I just go in or...?"
"Go on in. I'll buy your outfit once you're ready." Good thing stallions enjoy a shy mare. I should be able to afford anything he'd want to buy! "I'll wait out here for you." She sits down, looking around to see who else is there.
Rhino nods and heads inside.
After a few minutes, a semi-familiar voice calls out to Gel. "Hey, AJ!" Rainbow Dash swoops in while clad in every piece of the armor but the helmet, a rainbow stripe down the side. She hovers in place before noticing the helmet has room for a horn. She looks closer at the yellow tail sticking out of the suit before her eyes drop slightly. "Oh, you're not Applejack..."
...Well, we do both have blonde tails. I can understand how she got confused. Gel lifts up the helmet, smiling kindly. "Hey, you're that mare from yesterday, right? The one that gave me directions to Carousel Boutique?"
Recognition flashes in the pegasus' eyes. "Oh yeah, huh, didn't peg somepony going to Rarity's one day would be one I'd see here the next. You play?"
"Of course!" She giggles, waving a hoof nonchalantly. "It's a great way to unwind."
"I hear that, sister. It's a shame more ponies don't play regularly, usually I have to bring a pony so I can play one on one." She motions over to a dark grey pegasus with blue mohawk talking to one of the employees.
She glances at the stallion before looking back at Rainbow, confused. "...Is he your coltfriend or something?"
"Thunderlane? He wishes. Nah, he's just a friend." She looks in the immediate area around Gel. "What about you? Here with somepony?"
"Yeah." She gestures towards the building. "He's inside getting some armor at the moment." She glances at the stallion, frowning slightly. ...Strange...I can certainly feel some love in the air...but I can't tell where it's coming from... She shakes her head, dismissing the thought. "So, you going to win against him?" She grins playfully, motioning towards Thunderlane.
"Of course, nopony beats Rainbow Dash!" She puts a hoof to her chest in pride, before cracking an eye open and looking at the stallion. "He does get closer than most though, but it's difficult to bring out his competitive side."
...There's an idea... "Hey, maybe you'd like to do a two-on-two type game?" She giggles, tilting her head to one side. "I know you have plans with him, but I figure it'd be more fun with more ponies, right?"
Rainbow thinks about this for a few seconds. "Sure, sounds awesome! Bigger groups are always more fun. Let me just go tell Thunderlane that the plan's changed." She turns and bolts off with her final sentence trailing behind her. "Meet us by the field registry okay?"
"Sure thing!" This will be interesting. She lowers her helmet to hide her smile, heading over to the building. I'd better tell Rhino as soon as possible.
Inside the building, Rhino has just completed his quest to find the parts of the outfit in his size and with colors he likes. His outfit is basically the same as his roommate's, with the addition of a green stripe down the sides and a green 'V' on the visor. The additional bulk of the getup along with his height make for an intimidating appearance when you can't see the expression on his face.
"Hey, Rhino!" She rushes in, stopping in her tracks when she sees him. "...Um...w-wow..." She rubs the back of her neck, turning her head away. "...y-you look amazing...m-more so in the suit, I mean..." Stop being distracted by the sexy. Tell him the news, already!
He chuckles. "Thanks, it took a small bit to get it all on, but I do like the feel of it." He smiles bigger as something occurs to him. "You know, this is looking like when I first saw you in your uniform, though the roles are reversed."
"...I-I suppose it is..." She shakes her head, looking up at him. "A-anyways, Rainbow Dash and her friend are going to be playing with us. Or should I say against us, considering?" She puts a hoof on her chin, thinking about this for a moment.
"Oh, well that's good. I was worried we might have to fight each other... would not have enjoyed that..." He looks over himself. "I guess I'm mostly all set, I still need the actual weapon though. Do they rent those or something?"
"No need, I have three of them." She opens her saddlebags, pulling all of them out with her magic. "Do you want the blue one, the black one or the green one?"
He raises an eyebrow at her. "Take a guess."
She quietly gives him the green one, glad her helmet hides her blush. "...T-there you go...a-and here's your extra ammunition..." She floats a bottle of paintballs over to him.
He smiles. "Thank you. Let me guess... you're going to use the... blue one?"
"Both, actually." She lifts up her helmet, grinning at him. "I'm an expert with these things."
"In that case..." He salutes her, "What are your orders, Captain?"
"Colonel." Her eyes widen before she slams her helmet back on, hiding her panicked expression. Why did you say that?! He didn't need to know that! You're going to blow your cover! Not to mention you're thinking in second pony. Stop that now. "J-just be careful out there, and don't be afraid to use that teleporting spell if you need to."
"Ma'am yes ma'am." He says with a casual air and a cheeky smile.
"Let's go register then." She turns to leave before turning towards the register, nervously giggling. "A-after I pay for your outfit, I mean." She rushes over to it, embarrassed.
Rhino simply smirks as she pays for the outfit before they make their way out to the field registry. The two pegasi are waiting for them, fully geared except for having their helmets off and held with one wing.
Rainbow waves as they get near. "There you are! Okay, I've got it all straightened out with the workers and we have the field to ourselves for the next two hours. Sound good?"
"Sounds great!" She giggles, turning towards the pegasus stallion. "Are you excited?"
The mohawked stallion smiles. "Sure, sounds like fun. I hope you're alright with losing though." He jerks his head in Rainbow's direction. "Dash here gets a bit competitive."
Gel looks at Rainbow, eyes narrowed behind her visor. "She does?" I'd better be careful around her. I don't want my winning streak tarnished.
Dash turns to Thunderlane, frowning slightly. "I am not compe-" She breaks herself off, laughing. "Okay, I couldn't say that with a straight face!"
The group chuckles together at the pegasus. After a moment, Rhino turns to the other stallion. "I don't think we've been introduced." He holds out his hoof. "Rhino. Nice to meet you."
The pegasus bro-hoofs him. "Thunderlane. Likewise."
"Sweet name, Rhino!" The pegasus mare glances at Gel, smirking playfully. "Does your marefriend have a name like that?"
She squeaks, shifting awkwardly. "...w-we're not...I mean..." She holds out a trembling hoof, lowering her head. "A-Angelic Grace. N-nice to meet you, Miss Dash."
Rainbow bumps hooves, shaking her head at this. "Same. Don't call me 'Miss', though. It's not a cool name."
Rhino raises a hoof. "Since I'm fairly certain I'm the newbie here, mind if I ask if there are any general rules or specific rules for our battle that I need to know?"
"Hit others, don't get hit yourself, and anything goes." The chromatic pegasus shrugs, grinning as she puts on her helmet. "The first team to have both players out loses. Once we get to our sides, it's time to start!" She waves a hoof, turning her head away. "Hey, I'm feeling generous today. You choose where you wanna have us fight first."
Gel nods, starting to walk over to the area with a labyrinth-like layout. With the glass ceiling over the top of it, it's the perfect place to ambush pegasi. Anywhere else is open to aerial attacks. That, and the angular pattern requires almost constant turning, making sure they can't run or fly fast inside.
The two unicorns walk into the maze and find their way to one of the larger spaces inside. They begin making final checks on their armor and weapons. Rhino looks around at the mossy stone walls before his gaze lands on Gel.
With a final 'click' he finishes preparations and walks over to her. "Any final thoughts you want to share before this goes down?"
"Don't let your guard down, and feel free to walk around as you like." She turns to look up at the plexiglass, a fire in her eyes. I will not lose! Bring it on, Rainbow Dash! She turns to him, nodding a bit. "Good luck, Rhino. Not that you'll need it, right?"
He looks away coyly. "Well, I guess I can trade out my usual luck for support instead." He gives her a knowing look. "I'll do my best."
A voice echoes through a megaphone from outside the arena. "The match will start in ten seconds."
Gel nods, checking her guns one last time to make sure they're working. Perfect.
"Five. Four. Three. Two. One."
Let's do this.
BZZT.