35.
Two days later, at five fifty, Redheart was looking at herself in the mirror trying to decide whether or not to have her mane be in a bun or loose. She had showered, given herself a good brushing, and put on a slight spray of a lavender and vanilla-scented perfume before spending the last five minutes standing in front of the mirror.
She had spent half that time thinking. She had never done this sort of thing for Caramel before. It was… something of a new experience, to feel like this. She’d done it twice before, once with Carmel and once with that mare at Trotsworth, but it felt like a new start with a new pony. But along with that came the apprehension, the feeling that maybe Twilight wasn’t entirely being truthful, that she was going to desert her again.
It was strange. The past two days had felt strange being able to return to her apartment. It was exactly how she left it: clean, neat, and organized, but also vacant, blank white, sterile. It was not like the warmth she had felt in Twilight’s home on the second floor of the library. It felt lonely and empty again. Even on a normal basis, Twilight at least always had her little dragon assistant and friend for company.
Eventually there came a knock on the door. Redheart went and picked out a red sweatshirt and put it on, deciding to leave her hair down.
Another knock came at the door. “Alright, alright, I’m coming,” Redheart called, straightening out the sweatshirt. She walked over to the door and opened it to find Twilight standing at the door. The lavender mare had worn nothing except for a small purple tie that put her mane in a ponytail. She looked kind of cute that way.
“Hey, Redheart.”
“…you came.”
“Of course I did,” Twilight said, looking confused while sounding cheerful. “I made sure to leave tonight free in my schedule. Something wrong?”
“No, absolutely not. I’m… happy you did. I suppose I just didn’t know what to expect.”
“Well, again, I have the whole night free. I have reservations for a little place by town hall. Limited seating, quite atmosphere, and a quartet is playing tonight. Are you ready?”
“Yeah. Just let me grab some bits.”
Redheart went and grabbed a small bag and put it in the pocket of her sweatshirt before following Twilight out the door. The sun was low in the sky and the first of the autumn breezes were beginning to come in and brought the night to an early chill. The two ponies walked side by side to the town hall and the little restaurant that Twilight had brought them to. They walked in to the warmly-lit place and up to the unicorn hostess in a black dress standing at the redwood podium in the lobby.
“Good evening, ladies,” the hostess said professionally with a hint of welcoming. “Do you have a reservation this evening?”
“Yes,” Twilight answered her. “It should be under Twilight Sparkle.”
The waitress flipped through her notebook for a little bit before nodding and making a check in it. She grabbed two menus from the shelf and nodded. “Twilight Sparkle, table for two. Come right this way, please.”
Redheart followed Twilight from the lobby into the restaurant. It was lit with a soft golden glow, lined with beige booths with green, red, blue, and yellow glass mosaic lanterns over the tables that cast brilliant patterns of color on the clean beige floor. A few deep brown oak and pine tables were arranged in the middle of the room, all covered by a pristine white table cloth that held two or three candles and a neatly-arranged place setting. On the far side of the room, a wooden stage set a foot or two off the ground held a four-piece quartet playing quiet tunes on a cello, bass, violin and a small piano.
The hostess laid down the two menus as Redheart and Twilight climbed into the booth, somewhere towards the middle of the room. It was a nice, quiet place that made Redheart feel calm though with a slight sensation of being underdressed. “I’ve never been here before,” Redheart said.
“I come here at least once a month,” Twilight said. “The other restaurants are good, but sometimes it’s good to be able to get away and find a nice quiet place to eat every once in a while. I almost always need a reservation though. Are you much of a wine drinker?”
“Actually… I usually prefer something harder. Apple cider, shot of whiskey, that sort of thing. Of course, if you had something in mind, I’d be willing to try something new.”
“Oh, good. This place sells an excellent peach moscato. You’ve got to try it.”
Redheart had never heard of a ‘moscato’ before.
The waiter came to the table. “Good evening, madams. I’ll be your waiter for this evening. Before you order, I’ll go over the wine specials: any wine tonight is ten percent off and we have the house chardonnay is only four bits per glass. Now, what can I get you to start off?”
“Ice water with lemon, please,” Redheart said politely.
“Can I get an ice water with lemon, too, and a carafe the Ravenswood peach moscato?” Twilight said confidently.
The waiter scribbled these down in his notepad. “Alright. Do you need a few more minutes to look over the menu?”
“Yes, I think we will,” Twilight said. “And can you make sure the carafe is brought on ice?”
“That will be an extra five bits.”
“That’ll be fine.”
The waiter nodded and walked away as Redheart gawked at the prices on the menu. “I can see another reason you come here only once a month. I’ve never seen someone ask fifteen bits for a plate of pasta!”
“This one’s on me, Redheart,” Twilight said. “I get paid enough to indulge myself every once in a while, and I want to share it with you.”
Redheart might have been breathing, but it was cut short for a second. “Thank you…”
“Now, I suggest an appetizer of the spring rolls. They’re made with fresh vegetables and mild cheeses.”
“Alright. I suppose you know the place better than I do.”
The waiter returned a few minutes later and brought around the two ice waters along with a large round container filled with a sparkling, pale yellow liquid in a small bucket of ice and two thin wine glasses. The waiter took the orders and left to take the orders to the kitchen as Twilight poured a small amount of what Redheart assumed was the peach moscato into hers and Redheart’s glass, leaving half of it left.
“There’s enough for another serving if you want one,” Twilight said. “Go on and try it.”
Redheart picked up the glass and took a sip of it. The white wine was cool and refreshing and bubbly and tasted faintly of sweet peaches. “This tastes pretty good,” Redheart said. “I’ve always heard you have to have a taste for wine to be able to drink it.”
“Oh, I never go much more than this,” Twilight said. “My family tried to introduce me to the red wines the last time they came down and I couldn’t stand them. Blech! Too bitter for me.”
“This one tastes kind of sweet, though,” Redheart said, taking another sip as their waiter brought around a plate of warm bread. “Almost like a stronger fruit juice.”
“Funny you should say that,” Twilight said, her grin extending slightly. “I said the same thing about it when I first tried it.”
Redheart giggled as Twilight passed her a piece of bread. Redheart buttered it and took a bite of the soft interior with a lightly crispy crust. It was probably the best she had ever eaten, tasting fresh like it was just out of the oven.
After Redheart and Twilight had finished the first round of the moscato, the waiter returned bringing two small salads with dark-colored lettuce, slightly peppery arugula, shredded red cabbage and carrots, and small cherry tomatoes lightly covered in a sweet vinaigrette dressing. The spring rolls had mushroom, eggplant, caramelized onions, and a light white cheese that Twilight referred to as parmesan, all wrapped in a flatbread and seasoned with wild herbs. The wine was temporarily forgotten as Redheart and Twilight each took a few of the rolls and ate them while the music continued playing softly in the background.
“It’s been a while since I’ve been treated like this,” Redheart said. “I mean, I hardly ever get to go out. Work at the hospital just makes me so tired and takes up so much time I hardly get any time to myself.”
“Doctor Stable gave you a week, didn’t he?” Twilight said. “I can treat you a little bit.”
“I suppose you could. I mean, I don’t want to just have you spend frivolously and waste all your money on me with all these fancy meals.”
“I don’t feel like I’m wasting my money.” Twilight’s expression softened. “You seemed surprised that I came around to get you. Why’s that?”
Redheart sighed. “My last stallionfriend left me for someone else without saying a damned thing. I suppose I’m still a little bitter about that, not to mention that I have to start things all over again in terms of finding someone else.”
“So… you were thinking it was a joke?”
“To put it bluntly and simply, yes.”
Twilight smiled at Redheart. “Well, I’ll have you know I meant it. I’m not exactly, shall we say, knowledgeable in the field of dating, but if you weren’t opposed to it then… maybe we could spend a little more time together. Like this. Just us.”
Redheart nodded slowly. “No Rainbow Dash or Applejack or anyone else?”
“Just us,” Twilight repeated.
Redheart smirked. “Did you know I had a marefriend at Trotsworth?”
“So… that’s a yes?”
“Yes. Yes it is.”
The dinner orders came around shortly thereafter. Twilight had ordered a plate of angel hair pasta with simmered diced tomatoes, onion, garlic, and basil topped with a marinara sauce and lightly dusted with mozzarella cheese. Redheart had gone for a simpler marinara, browned butter, and mizithra cheese over angel-hair pasta with a side of broccoli. Twilight poured another glass of wine for the both of them to have with dinner. Redheart ate slowly but reasonably and enjoyed every bit of it. Twilight even let her have a taste of her ‘pomodoro’, which was almost as delicious as Redheart’s own meal; she offered a bite to Twilight who she thought may have had everything in the restaurant, only to find that Twilight had never had that before. There was a small, playful argument – “Yours tastes better.” “No, yours tastes better.” “But yours is richer.” “But yours has more flavors.” – which was quickly settled by them agreeing to order what the other had the next time they came.
By the end of the meal, Redheart and Twilight were both full and quite content. The wine had gone perfectly with the meal and the bill had come quickly. Twilight paid for the meal and left a tip for their waiter, who kindly escorted them to the door and out into the cool night.
“How about we head around to my place for coffee?” Redheart asked.
“Considering I’ve never seen the inside of it,” Twilight said, “that sounds like a good idea to me. And I’d really like to get out of this cold.”
The two walked a short distance to Redheart’s apartment. The doors and windows were closed and Redheart turned the heater up a degree or two before starting a pot of coffee. Twilight looked around at the pristine apartment with hardly a speck of dust.
“It’s so… clean,” Twilight said, almost in awe. “It’s almost like the interior of a hospital room.”
Redheart laughed. “I suppose it kind of is. I always liked things being neat and orderly.”
“I guess hospital work was a perfect line of study for you, then,” Twilight commented as she sat down on the sofa.
Redheart nodded. “I do kind of want to make things a little lighter around here. I have lavender curtains on the windows and thought about painting the walls a mellow yellow or something like that. Maybe even just some tables and other furniture with a nice gold or red wood.”
“Probably would be better for you mood, too,” Twilight said as the coffee finished and Redheart poured two cups. “Wouldn’t make you so stressed after a day at the hospital.”
“Alas, can’t have any serious remodels here, so the painting is out of the question. I could always sell the furniture and get some new stuff with brighter colors.”
“Certainly would help to lighten the mood around here,” Twilight said, taking a sip of her coffee. “I’ve always loved how the sun shines on the oak of the library and makes everything seem so golden. It’s like a sanctuary in there, a little safe haven. Even when I’m alone in there, it doesn’t feel like it.”
“Certainly a contrast from here,” Redheart said. “Every time I think about it too much, this place always has too much empty space.”
“You need a change of environment,” Twilight said. “Heck, I could pick a color or two and have Rarity help with picking a color scheme to go around it. Something nice and warm and natural, like yellows and golds and softer reds.”
Redheart smiled. “I think I’d like that sometime.”
Twilight finished her coffee and Redheart rinsed out the two cups.
“Well, it’s been a nice night,” Redheart said. “Thank you for taking me to dinner.”
“It’s no problem,” Twilight said. “I wanted to let you know I was serious about wanting to still see you and, judging by your reaction, I’d say you’d have no problem with that.”
“None at all,” Redheart said. “I’d be nice to see another soul around this place every once in a while.”
Twilight smiled and kissed Redheart on the cheek. Redheart felt her cheeks get warm and she gave out a little giggle.
“Well, I suppose I’d better head on back home. It was nice being able to get together again outside of me being in a hospital.”
Redheart nodded.
Twilight opened the door just a crack. Redheart waited for her to open the door the rest of the way, but she didn’t. Instead, she closed the door. “It’s kind of chilly out there,” Twilight said, turning around.
Redheart nodded as though it wasn’t interesting, but her voice said otherwise. “Do you… do you want to stay the night.”
“If I may ask… why?”
“I don’t know,” Redheart said. “I suppose with how much stress I’ve had recently, you’ve been able to calm me down more than anything. You don’t have to if you don’t want to, but… I don’t know how to put it.”
Twilight came up and put a hoof on Redheart’s shoulder.
“If you want me to stay, I will. Maybe… maybe it will help you if I stay to calm you down so you’re not stressed.”
Redheart smiled. “Maybe it will. But there’s only one bed.”
“Do you hear me complaining?” Twilight smirked.
Redheart nodded, amused. “In a little, I won’t be hearing a thing.”
A few minutes later, Redheart and Twilight had gotten into Redheart’s bed. Twilight wrapped her hooves around Redheart and their lips touched. Redheart was no longer in Ponyville; she was soaring in the skies as she rode on Twilight’s wings, letting the cool night air flow through her without ever feeling cold, as Twilight made her feel warmer than ever before.