//------------------------------//
// Love Games 
// Story: Timed Ramblings 
// by Midnight herald 
//------------------------------//

	The knocking on the library door was too fast, too happy to be anypony but Pinkie Pie. Twilight initialled off another sub-addendum and scanned the next paragraph of new tax code on the off-chance it wasn’t related to the last fifteen clauses and would be a good place to stop. The knocking continued.

“With you in a minute!” Twilight hollered, wading through sticky layers of legal subtext to make sure the new laws wouldn’t further some shadow-pony’s agenda. After a third reading, it cleared her inspection, and she added a crisp T.S. to Line 246.a.a. A pink hoof waved in front of her eyes impatiently and she marked her spot with a quill end and sagged quite happily into Pinkie’s lap.

“I waited a minute and let myself in,” Pinkie admitted, her wonderful blue eyes sparkling with a playful pride.

“And just in time to save me from another twelve pages of semantics, too,” Twilight teased, tickling Pinkie’s tummy with the point of her horn. “My hero.”

Pinkie sniggered and wrapped her forelegs around Twilight in a secure snuggle. “You won’t believe what happened on my lunch break,” she began, and from the manic joy that tingled through her voice, Twilight knew this was what had brought Pinkie over to the library half an hour early.

“Alright, I’ll bite. What happened?”

“Rarity told Applejack she loved her and then Applejack said she loved Rainbow Dash and then Rarity said she was open-minded and patient and then Fluttershy said that she and Rainbow were kinda-sorta-maybe-dating right now and you know that totally means they are and then …”

Twilight held up a hoof for silence and shuffled around to face Pinkie. “Hold up for a second, Pinkie,” she said. “Could you run it by me a little bit slower?” Pinkie nodded brightly.

“Rarity said she loves Applejack. Applejack said she loves Rainbow Dash. With me so far?” Twilight nodded. “Rarity said she was open-minded…” Pinkie’s grin became a little less innocent.

Twilight smirked. “Making note of that for later uses?” Pinkie nodded unabashedly before clearing her throat.

“So then Fluttershy walked over and said…” Pinkie drooped the slightest bit. Twilight waited patiently for Pinkie to get into character. “Umm, Applejack? I didn’t mean to listen in on your conversation, but, well, the thing is, Rainbow and I are kind of … trying out dating each other right now…” Pinkie threw some switch in her head and popped right back to her normal, easy joy. “And then they all started talking about boundaries, and they mentioned that they’d all be talking to Dashie tomorrow, since it’s her off-day.”

Twilight blinked. “Wow.” She thought for a little bit longer, her lips moving silently as she worked through Pinkie’s retelling again. She shoved Pinkie playfully with a wing, smiling in disbelief. “You’re really good at this, Pinkie,” she half-chuckled. “Crazy good at this.” Pinkie’s sunny grin only grew wider, until Twilight almost shaded her eyes against it.

Twilight forced her lips into a frown, although she knew it was the fakest thing ever. “That’s the last time I wager against you on love stuff,” she grumbled. “What do I owe you?”

Pinkie leered and leaned in close. “Later,” she whispered, and Twilight shivered slightly in giddy anticipation.