//------------------------------// // High Stakes Stakeout // Story: An Informal Study of Romance // by Jondor //------------------------------// Three afternoons later, Twilight had been through the entire romance section of the library twice. Unfortunately, the books that Rarity so often praised didn’t offer much advice applicable to her situation. If nothing else, Twilight wanted a word or two that she could attach to her emotional state. She’d found many potential candidates, but never having experienced any of them before now, she could not be sure they were the right ones. Off and on, especially during the first morning, she had considered writing to Celestia, or Luna, or even Cadance for help. She’d rejected the first two options almost without thinking. Writing to her long time mentor about her budding love life seemed incredibly awkward. Especially because Celestia had been such a strong supporter of her friendship with these same ponies. Despite her lack of definitive answers, she knew that what she was feeling was definitely beyond the bounds of friendship. In fact, she wasn’t sure which would disturb her more, Celestia being supportive of her making that leap, or finding her former mentor dismissive instead. Writing to Luna carried the same potential problem. Either through Luna assuming the letter was misaddressed, or out of concern for Twilight, the letter could all too easily fall into Celestia’s hooves. On the other hoof, she’d actually debated quite a while about writing to Cadance. Her sister-in-law was only a few years older than she was and much more approachable about personal issues, especially in matters of romance. She knew Cadance wouldn’t go straight to Celestia if Twilight asked her not to, but there was a completely different problem there; her brother. She was not eager to discuss her barely initiated romantic interests with her B.B.B.F.F. quite yet, especially when she couldn’t quite wrap her mind around it herself. To top it all off, Twilight herself was a princess, not to mention being a full grown mare. She was supposed to be mature enough by now to handle complicated situations like this on her own. So she turned back to the methods that had held her in good stead all her life; studying books and reviewing notes. At the very least, Twilight knew that she could be stimulated by close physical contact with another pony. In addition, she found looking into another pony’s eyes to be very stimulating, both mentally and physically. She was willing to stipulate, given the available evidence, that mares were most likely provoke these effects, but she also noted that the effect of stallions on her psyche was a relative unknown at present. There had been the incident with that one pegasus guard, but the circumstances at the time were so far out of the ordinary that he could hardly be counted as a reliable data point. To cap off her mental list of facts, Twilight could name three mares, three close friends, who had demonstrably stimulated both her mind and body. A thought niggled at the back of her mind that if she hadn’t been so curious to see how Applejack would accomplish her goal of courting Rainbow Dash, she would not be trying to sort out these feelings. However, before she could take that line of thought any further, one of those self-same mares crashed in through the library door. “Twilight! Twilight!” Pinkie’s sudden appearance and exuberantly sharp voice made her coat, mane and feathers all stand on end. “AJ just left the farm! She’s headed to Dashie’s place, come on!” And to make matters even worse for Twilight, not only had Pinkie just crashed into the library, but the subject of Applejack and Rainbow Dash was the first thing out of her mouth. Before Twilight could raise any sort of objection or make a move to hide her piles of reading material, Pinkie had hopped onto her back and gripped her withers without a word of warning. “Pinkie!” Twilight cried out. Her heart thumped against her ribs at the sudden physical contact; unwarranted, but not entirely unwelcome. “You have hooves too, you know!” She turned to glare at the pretty pink pony perched on her back, and quickly gave her head a little shake at the inclusion of that first P word. “Of course I do, silly filly,” Pinkie giggled. Her hind legs twitched a bit against Twilight’s barrel, eliciting a blush. “But we need to be quick and I’m all out of disguises, so I think we should watch from a cloud today. And you’ve got the only horn and pair of wings between us,” Pinkie belted out cheerfully, giving Twilight’s folded wing an innocent poke with a forehoof. Both feathered limbs immediately shot to attention. “Hi ho, Twilight!” Pinkie let out an excited whinny, giving Twilight’s barrel a squeeze with her hindhooves. Instinctively, Twilight’s wings beat the air, propelling her out the library door and into the evening sky. Pinkie perched on her back, forehooves on her withers, giggling as she steered them toward Dash’s cloud home. Twilight laid herself flat against the cloud, her wings giving the fluffy mass a gentle push as soon as Rainbow took off from her front porch. As the cloud drifted lazily out from behind Dash’s home, Pinkie’s tail gave an excited flick beside her. She was laying against the cloud as well, thanks to the cloud-walking spell, and her head was already poked ostrich-like though their latest hiding spot. She apparently appreciated the view. Twilight closed her eyes and held her breath as she stuck her own face through the fluffy mass. She didn’t mind the drier outside of the clouds, but she never really cared for the feeling of the moist insides. Twilight opened her eyes and breathed in again when she felt cool air take the place of wet cloud against her muzzle. The sight she saw nearly startled her right off her perch. If Rainbow and Applejack had looked beautiful three days ago, tonight they were absolutely stunning. Twilight’s eyes drifted over both of them, taking in their styled manes and groomed coats. She’d seen Dash wearing that same mane style for the Grand Galloping Gala, the hair on her crest pinned up in a flowing ponytail. But whatever shampoo she’d used on her mane and tail tonight smoothed them out and gave them a voluminous, flowing look, where they were usually flyaway and a bit unkempt. She’d preened her wings just as before, but her feathers had a slight shimmer to them tonight, and Twilight couldn’t help wondering what sort of product she might have used on them. Her own wings gave a twitch at the sight, causing the cloud to drift some more. Applejack was even more striking. Her tail was in the same sort of braid as last time, but her mane was split in two smaller braids, one draped over each shoulder. And instead of her hat and her usual red hair ties, her braids were bound by pink ribbons that matched the large pink bow in her hair, probably borrowed from her sister. Finishing off the effect was a touch of blue eyeshadow that matched Rainbow’s coat. Even the shock of seeing Applejack wearing makeup and a pink hair bow by her own choice failed to give Twilight pause as she took in the gorgeous sights below. “Hey there, good lookin’.” Applejack gave a grin before leaning in closer to Dash. Twilight could feel her heart start to race as Applejack nuzzled against Rainbow, her lips forming soft, but still audible, words against her ear. “If you’re tryin’ ta impress me tonight, it’s already workin’.” Rainbow stomped a hoof and nickered in response to Applejack’s advances. Twilight watched Dash’s flight muscles flexing; she was clearly fighting to keep her wings folded. Her own wings gave a spasm and her ear flicked as she imagined feeling the warm breath of another pony tickle her. Twilight fought to make a mental note of the situation for later study, cursing her current lack of parchment and quill. Her face was heating up and for once she felt grateful for the contrast of cool cloud wreathed around her neck as the fluffy mass began to jiggle softly against her. A quick glance showed Pinkie shaking with suppressed giggles. Twilight shook her head as she caught herself imagining that the fluffy cloudstuff shaking against her was instead Pinkie’s fluffy tail and told herself to remember that as well. “So, where’re we goin’ tonight?” Applejack had backed up a pace, giving Rainbow, and Twilight, a chance to calm down. “Got us tickets to a movie,” Rainbow said after fishing in her saddlebag for a moment. She held up the tickets for Applejack to see, receiving a bewildered look. Twilight couldn’t blame her. The movie theater in town was less than a year old, and while she knew of movies from her fillyhood in Canterlot, she suspected that most native Ponyvillians had never even heard of movies until the theater came along. “Ain’t never been on a date to see a movie before.” Applejack’s face was still a mask of confusion, but Twilight was almost positive she was ticking the idea over in her head. “Me either, but it’s Daring Do, there’s no way it can’t be awesome!” Rainbow reared up, pumping her forehooves in the air. Twilight smiled to herself, momentarily distracted from her other cares, as she watched Rainbow’s excitement for the action icon. Ever since Dash had given in and read the first book, she just couldn’t get enough Daring Do. Applejack seemed to feel the same way, an amused grin on her face as she slid up beside Rainbow. A moment later, however, her aggressively sensual tactics returned as she wrapped her tail around Dash’s and leaned in close to her ear again. “Sittin’ in the back of a dark theater? I can see how that’d be fun. Lead the way, sugarcube.” Between her own emotions and the tickle of moving cloud against her neck, Twilight’s ear gave another involuntary flick. Her wings fluttered as well, causing the cloud to drift still more. As Applejack and Rainbow Dash finally started a slow walk into town, Twilight’s attention of the retreating couple was broken by a gentle poke in the ribs. She pulled her head out of the cloud with a pop and turned. “Come on, Twi! Get those wings going so we can follow them!” Pinkie’s eyes twinkled. Before Twilight even had a chance to flex her flight muscles, Pinkie had already pulled a paper fan from her mane and stuck it to the end of her poofy tail. She beat at the air ineffectually, attempting to waft the cloud along. “Pinkie, maybe we should let them go on their date in peace tonight.” The words left her mouth before she had a chance to really think about them, but deep down she knew that her entire emotional state had been caused, and was still being caused, by spying on Applejack and Rainbow Dash. “Nuh uh.” Pinkie said firmly, bouncing forward and pressing Twilight’s cheeks between her hooves. “Dashie and AJ are our friends. It’s our duty as their good friends to make sure they have a good time together. Don’t you agree?” Pinkie’s eyes were twinkling, but unusually serious. Her reddening cheeks squished against Pinkie’s hooves and she could not tear her eyes away from Pinkie’s stern gaze. After a moment of stunned silence, Twilight gave a small nod. Pinkie had a point; they were still her friends, no matter what kinds of confusing feelings might be cropping up. And a part of her was still curious about AJ’s plan. “I guess you’re right,” she conceded. “Okay, let’s go.” Pinkie flashed her a smile and released her face, giving her a pat on the head. Twilight gripped the cloud with her hooves, spreading her wings and powering the cloud along with soft beats. Pinkie stowed her fan and hopped excitedly to the leading edge, peering down as they caught up with their targets. A pair of passing pegasi looked annoyed for a moment as the commandeered cloud passed, but they shrugged and said nothing after catching sight of the driver. Being a princess did come with a few perks after all. Twilight was wary of following close enough to hear any conversation, still marvelling at the fact that she had not been caught by Applejack’s eyes tonight. They simply followed the route into town in relative silence; only the soft beating of alicorn wings and the gentle hiss of the air brushing past the mass of the cloud were audible. She was glad of the momentary calm, though her wings did skip a few beats when Rainbow draped a wing over Applejack’s back and pulled her close part way into town. Twilight’s attention was so fixated on the couple again, and Rainbow Dash finally being the one to take action, that she failed to notice Pinkie tossing a small sack of bits to Lyra and Bon Bon hiding behind a bush beside the road. When they finally reached the theater and their marks had disappeared safely inside, Twilight propelled the cloud toward the ground, allowing Pinkie to hop off. She dithered about what to do with their stolen conveyance, finally deciding that attaching the borrowed cloud to an existing cloudbank nearby was the most expedient course of action. By the time she returned to the ground, Pinkie had already purchased two tickets to Daring Do and the Sapphire Statue and started ushering Twilight inside. Twilight cringed involuntarily at the change in title from the book, not even bothering to argue as Pinkie drove her on. Cautiously, they poked their heads into the dark theater, searching for Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Pinkie spotted them in the middle of the very back row, pointing a hoof as her mouth twisted into a frown. They ducked back out. “It’s going to be really hard to spy on them without being seen,” Pinkie muttered, tapping a hoof against her forehead as she tried to think. “Maybe this is a sign that we should leave them alone?” Twilight mumbled, her words lacking conviction. Logically, a small corner of her mind said, she knew she should leave them be. And that if she had just done so from the very beginning, she would not be agonizing over nor trying desperately to keep track of her mental state. Her wings twitched and her heart thudded in her chest as she thought about the couple alone in the back of the dark theater. Logic, the rest of her replied, could go to Tartarus. Right now she wished she knew an invisibility spell. “We need something,” Pinkie pondered, her eyes scanning from side to side, completely ignoring Twilight’s feeble protest. She spent several long moments of contemplation with her eyes fixed on Twilight’s horn before moving on. As her eyes passed over the view of the street through the windows of the theater lobby, her tail whipped from side to side and she gasped out loud. “Got it! Stay here, I’ll be right back!” Twilight watched, her head cocked at an odd angle, as Pinkie rushed outside. A flower vendor had just rolled her cart up in front of the theater and Pinkie made a beeline for it. Her lips moved, saying something to the cart’s owner while she pointed emphatically down the road. While the flower vendor craned her neck and gazed intently into the distance, Pinkie retrieved the black catsuits she had stashed in that same cart three days previous and zipped back to Twilight’s side, leaving the flower vendor in a state of utter bewilderment. “Hurry up, Twilight!” Pinkie shoved one catsuit into Twilight’s hooves and started wriggling into her own. “The movie’s about to start! We’ve got to get in there!” Twilight’s hooves shook slightly as she pulled the black fabric over her body. Her eyes travelled over the darkening street outside, watching the flower vendor sell a delicious looking bouquet to a couple. Over top of the loud thumping of her heart, Twilight’s brain urged her to just trot away through the glass doors and leave the couple inside before things got any worse. She licked her dry lips, still staring at the flower cart as her mind formed a hasty plan. “I’ll just go and get us some snacks.” Twilight took a shaky step forward, willing herself to focus on her mind’s goal. Her hoof had barely touched the floor again when a pink and black blur took over her vision and spun her around to face the theater door again. “No time! I’m hungry too, but we could be missing important stuff in there!” Twilight no longer offered any resistance as Pinkie urged her bodily through the door again. The theater was almost completely dark except for the flickering light of the movie reflecting off of the screen, but she and Pinkie had no trouble spotting Applejack and Rainbow Dash still sitting in the same seats in the back row. Pinkie plunked Twilight into a seat near at the end of the row, hopping over her to take the next one in. With their tails covered and Pinkie blocking the view of Twilight’s wings, their black suits rendered them nearly invisible in the dark. A quick glance showed that they almost needn’t have bothered. Rainbow had the same sort of glassy-eyed expression she’d had earlier beneath her cloud home, but magnified. Applejack had leaned close, clearly whispering in her ear again. But Twilight couldn’t help noticing also the flickering light of the movie illuminating Applejack’s pink tongue as it traced along Dash’s ear. She could see Rainbow’s wings flexing quite hard against her seat back, eager to advertise her feelings in spite of being pinned closed. Twilight, leaning forward to see around Pinkie, was not as lucky. Pinkie turned around to shush her at the sound of rustling feathers, and found a red-faced Twilight desperately trying to fold her wings back to rest. Shooting nervous glances back and forth between Twilight and the couple they were spying on, Pinkie pressed on Twilight’s wings, trying to help as quietly as possible. Her efforts soon proved to be both unnecessary and completely in vain. All of Applejack’s attention was focused on Rainbow and fiddling with the armrest between them. Within moments, Applejack was cuddling Dash, a foreleg slung across her shoulders. And a few more moments later, the two unwitting marks had each other’s complete and utter attention, all else forgotten. Rainbow leaned in and pressed her lips firmly against Applejack’s. A small rock setting off an avalanche. Twilight’s wings stuck out straight, stiffer than ever and vibrating like a plucked guitar string as Pinkie let them go. Her wide purple eyes were unable to look away from the kissing couple, and any ambition she’d had to keep mental notes tonight instantly evaporated. Pinkie turned in her seat and leant forward to watch the show. Her poofy pink tail twitched as eagerly and excitedly as Twilight’s wings as they both paid rapt attention to the couple wantonly making out in front of them. Twilight was barely aware of the motion of her body as the warm and slightly stuffy air of the theater was replaced by the cooler and fresher air of the street outside. Her wings twitched against a light breeze as the visions of her two friends lip-wrestling filled her conscious mind. “Twilight.” She continued to stare blankly ahead. The sound of the movie earlier had faded to white noise in her ears as she had watched Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s makeout session. Once she had begun to gawp at the sight, none of the shouts, booms, rumbles, or other loud sound effects from the movie had any effect on her brain. “Twilight!” One of her ears twitched. She wondered if she had just heard her own name in the movie. Twilight slowly reasoned that it could have just been a piece of dialog, but the inflection seemed a bit too forceful for it to have been simply a random word in a sentence. Another gentle breeze caught her feathers and seemed to waft away the image before her eyes of her two friends wrapped in each others’ forelegs, trading saliva as if their lives depended on it. “Twiiiiiiiilight!” Twilight Sparkle shot straight backwards, yelping as she collided with the outer wall of the theater building and collapsed in a dishevelled heap on the ground. Just for a moment, as she regained her senses, she’d had a vision of Pinkie’s face in close up. Pinkie had been close enough to kiss her if she’d been so inclined. Or close enough for her to kiss Pinkie, Twilight couldn’t help tacking on as an afterthought. A sudden escape had seemed prudent, until the pesky wall had stopped her cold. “Geez, Twilight. You’re acting like you’ve never seen two ponies kissing before,” Pinkie giggled as she trotted over. “Though, I’ve never seen anypony kiss for quite that long. Woof!” Twilight just mumbled nonsensically as Pinkie dragged her back to her hooves and dusted off her catsuit. “The movie’s almost over, so we gotta hurry. Where’d ya put our cloud, Twilight?” Twilight gave her head a shake and craned her neck, looking around to reorient herself. When she was sure of the direction, she scanned the sky, but failed to find the cloudbank that had been above the theater two hours previous. “It’s gone.” She pointed a hoof at the empty sky. “The weather ponies must have cleared it away.” “Foiled again.” Pinkie gave a snort, tapping a hoof against her chin. “Well, we still have our catsuits this time. We’ll just have to stake out the entrance and follow them on hoof. Let’s go!” Pinkie bounced away, zipping straight toward a row of bushes in front of a shop across from the theater. Twilight followed, partly out of habit, but also because there didn’t seem to be much point in protesting. She repeated Pinkie’s words to herself, trying hard to sort out her thoughts. “Dashie and AJ are our friends. It’s our duty as their good friends to make sure they have a good time together.” She was close enough with Applejack that her friend had trusted her with her feelings about Rainbow. Dash was a great friend as well; between flying lessons and their shared passion for Daring Do, they’d spent quite a lot of time together recently. Rainbow had let that show at the party; she’d hugged Twilight more fiercely than anypony else, save Applejack. They were both wonderful friends and she lo—she wasn’t sure exactly what she was feeling now, but that was no reason not to support them. Twilight’s mind churned over the possibilities. It was already pretty late, so they’d probably just go to dinner and then call it a night like last time. After all, this was only their second date. Applejack had been determined to get past this point successfully, so there was logically very little chance she would do anything unusual. As she crouched down next to Pinkie Pie behind a particularly large bush, the vision of Rainbow Dash and Applejack passionately kissing each other bubbled back up to the forefront of her mind. Applejack had been the one to initiate the cuddling, but Rainbow was the one who had escalated it into kissing, and both of them had kept it going for nearly the entire length of the movie. That did seem a little unusual for a second date, at least according to her research. As if replying to her thoughts, the ponies in question emerged from the theater right at that moment. Dash once again had her wing cuddling Applejack’s back, and their bodies were most certainly pressed closer together now than they had been on the walk into town. Twilight’s knees shook; logic and romance were clearly not compatible concepts. “Enjoy the movie, sugarcube?” The husky sound of Applejack’s voice broke in on Twilight’s thoughts. She turned her attention back to the stakeout in time to catch Applejack nuzzling against a grinning and dazed-looking Rainbow. Before the latter could say anything coherent, there was a rumble of empty stomachs. “Y’all got dinner lined up for us?” Applejack’s cheek was still pressed against Dash’s. “Yeah, just down the street.” As Rainbow led Applejack away, Pinkie motioned for Twilight to follow and sneaked forward herself. They took refuge behind a newspaper box, a produce stand that was closed for the night, and finally a line of planters filled with colorful flowers outside of Horte Cuisine. “Mighty fancy place you’re takin’ us to. Ya sure that’s Rainbow Dash in there an’ not a changeling?” Twilight’s jaw dropped at the casual mention of changelings. While she pondered just how relaxed and euphoric Applejack must be to be so sedate on the subject, Twilight failed to notice Pinkie accept a hoofful of bits from a passing unicorn. “Yeah, it’s me. This was my backup plan in case you didn’t like the movie. We can go somewhere else if you want.” “Nah, sugarcube. Betcha got reservations an’ all. Be a shame ta waste ’em.” Twilight felt a sense of deja vu. It was a different restaurant and a different day, but she found herself stripping out of her catsuit alongside Pinkie, getting ready to sneak in to spy on Applejack and Rainbow Dash having a dinner date. At least this time she was not being forced to wear a fake beard. As everything that had happened since Rainbow had first hugged her at Pinkie’s party flashed through her mind, Twilight couldn’t conclusively decide which of the four ponies in question was most at fault. She simply let out a soft groan of exasperation at the direction her life had taken for the past few weeks. “Hmm… This won’t be quite so easy as the other night.” Pinkie tapped a hoof against her chin, staring at the restaurant’s door. “I didn’t expect Dashie to pick a fancy restaurant.” ‘I don’t think we need to follow them anymore, Pinkie. They definitely seem to be having a good time,’ is what Twilight wanted to say. Her lips parted slightly, forming the first word, but all that came out was a yelp as Pinkie dragged her away. “Shh, Twilight. I have an idea, just follow my lead.” Pinkie pushed and pulled Twilight around to the restaurant’s service entrance, stopping in front of the plain, handleless metal door. “I gotta open the door. Turn around for a minute.” Pinkie twirled her hoof in front of Twilight’s face. Twilight shook her head, her eyes focusing as she parsed Pinkie’s request. “There’s no handle, Pinkie. I don’t see how you’re going to open it.” “That’s why you have to turn around.” Pinkie continued twirling her hoof, her eyes fixed on Twilight. A sigh escaped her lips as Twilight finally turned around, sitting on her haunches. “I still don’t see how this supposed to h—” She spun around, her eyes bugged out as she heard a click and the sound of softly creaking hinges behind her. “How did you do that, Pinkie?!” “Magic!” Pinkie gave an extremely toothy grin before pulling Twilight through the open door. “Come on! We need to find the laundry before somepony catches us.” Twilight’s legs shook as she followed Pinkie out into the restaurant’s dining room. Her wings and tail twitched, trying to escape the poorly fitting busser’s uniform Pinkie had forced her into a few minutes ago. Her horn glowed continuously, holding up the bus tub as she scanned the room for her targets, as well as a dirty table nearby. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Pinkie happily fulfilling the role of a waitress, apparently unconcerned about the chance of being spotted. Twilight reached a hoof up to adjust her hairnet, hoping that it would hide her distinctive striped mane. As she lowered her hoof, she heard a familiar voice, and soon found the ponies she was looking for. “Need a little pepper, sugarcube? All ya had ta do was ask.” Applejack’s distinctive accent reached her ears from a few tables away. She barely registered the blank look on Rainbow Dash’s face as she looked desperately for a dirty table close to theirs. Twilight had barely taken two steps forward when she froze at Rainbow’s reply. “AJ, why are we dating?” Twilight could feel her heart start to beat faster. The image of Dash leaning in to kiss Applejack flitted across her mind. She had been so sure in that moment that Applejack had broken through Rainbow’s dating trepidation. “What do ya mean, sugarcube?” Twilight began to shake. She had no idea what had caused such an abrupt change to come over Dash, but she did know that she didn’t like it and didn’t want to hear any more of it. “Come on, you know what I mean. You didn’t ask me out, you just dropped it on me. And then you kept me distracted being all touchy-feely.” Twilight bolted. A few of the other customers had looked up at the sharp tone of Rainbow’s voice, ogling both the spatting couple and the fleeing figure of Twilight, but she paid them no mind as she ran. Despite Pinkie’s assertion that they had a duty to make sure things went well for their friends, Twilight couldn’t help running from the sound of Rainbow calling her date into question. Tears filled her eyes, clouding her vision; she blinked them back. Being logical was always so much more predictable than being emotional, and since emotions had gotten her into this mess, she needed some logic now more than ever. She kicked herself, knowing that ever since Pinkie had shown up at the library, she should have just stopped to think. That thought stopped her in her tracks, only a few paces outside the front entrance of the restaurant. Running wouldn’t help her, nor would it help what was going on inside. Before Pinkie had shown up this afternoon, she was studying and thinking. That was her. That was Twilight Sparkle; a thinker. Applejack had confided in her, and only in her, all those weeks ago and she lo—and she was one of her best friends. She felt the same way about Rainbow, especially after hearing about all of her bad luck in dating. Pinkie had been right that she had a duty to help if she could. Not only that, but she wanted to help them be successful. She lo—They were two of her best friends, and they deserved it. Twilight turned back to face the main window of the restaurant, pressing her muzzle to the glass. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were still seated and talking, at least. She wished she could hear what they were saying, especially when Dash pressed her face into one of her forehooves, looking pained. Memories of Rainbow and AJ had been coming unbidden to Twilight for the past three days, but now she summoned them willingly, searching for anything she knew that might be of help. She thought back, past tonight’s date, and the date three nights ago; past the afternoon at the library and the late night conversation with Applejack, all the way back to the party itself. She could hear Dash’s voice in her mind, as clear as it had been that night. “It’s so hard to tell you, AJ. Every time you get near me, I go all fuzzy. Can’t think straight, can’t fly straight. You’re so hot, it’s drives me nuts.” Then Applejack’s voice came back to her from later on that night. “I got some hope; I think we can make it work if we just get past the first date an’ have a good run on the second, but that don’t mean I ain’t still a mite scared.” The pieces were starting to fall into place for her. Applejack’s biggest concern had been finding a way to make sure Rainbow didn’t find the date awkward. Twilight thought back, remembering each time that Applejack had touched Dash and the effect it had on her. Twilight blushed, remembering the effect it had had on her as well, but she shook her head, trying to concentrate. To her great relief, Twilight watched her friends grin and chuckle at each other. She took a deep breath, intending to calm herself, but her relief was short lived and her breath caught in her throat. As Pinkie bounced by behind her, a large and jingling sack of bits held in her mouth, Twilight watched Rainbow make a sour face at a very worried looking Applejack. Her heart beat hard against her ribs, using up the lungful of air she could not breathe out. Her eyes watered as she watched and waited in suspense. After what felt like an eternity of silent facial expressions, Twilight exhaled in sharp relief. Rainbow had favored Applejack with a big smile and slid her chair around the table to wrap a foreleg around her and hold her close. Twilight lifted a hoof to her cheek, wiping away a tear as Rainbow leaned in to give Applejack a nuzzle. Her heart still racing, she took another deep, calming breath. Before she could finish though, it too caught in her throat. Applejack had pressed her snout into the crook of Dash’s neck and both of her bright emerald eyes, lids slightly narrowed, were staring straight at Twilight through the window. She fought to swallow the lump in her throat as she stood, frozen by Applejack’s gaze. Twilight felt certain that the busser’s uniform she was still wearing would not fool her friend. As Applejack continued to lock gazes with her, she felt her heart start to beat faster and her head going fuzzy just the way Rainbow had described happening to her. As memories and emotions swam in her head yet again, Twilight finally admitted to herself the word she could unequivocally attach to her state of mind. Love. There was no getting around it, no denying it, and no point in studying to try to find another explanation. Twilight Sparkle had fallen in love. And that presented a big problem.