Rarity paced around the room continuously, her brows furrowed in deep thought. Although it would cause hectic lines and damage to her face, she cared very little for the effects of her deep brooding. It had been a couple days since the trip to the spa, where Rarity had let Pinkie's secret slip through the cracks. It was also where she learned Sombra's secret, one she could only dream of forgetting.
'How am I going to keep their secrets from one another?' she thought, looking up to the ceiling for an answer. She had been asking herself this once Sombra made her Pinkie Promise never to tell of his attraction to Pinkie, who was oblivious to the fact her feelings were requited.
Rarity cringed as she remembered how Sombra had taken the news of Pinkie's admiration towards him and she mentally slapped herself for spilling the beans. Of course, she had kept Pinkie's less than proper dream a secret, but the fact she had let only a portion of the covert truth out bothered her to extremes.
"Why do I have to be such a loud mouth?" she asked herself, facing the mirror on her vanity with renewed disdain. She began to envy her shy pegasus friend for her discretion and modesty, whereas Rarity was known for her unintentional gossip. Although, she wasn't nearly as bad as Roseluck, who more often than not shared everything she heard from "The Grapevine", as she called it.
The Grapevine consisted of Roseluck's friends and herself, oftentimes sharing their gossip in their knitting circles or gardening clubs. Rarity had excused herself from both groups once she found out that it didn't actually revolve around their respected purposes and instead was a escape for their juicy gossip.
Rarity sighed and eyed the makeup on her vanity with interest. She knew that the chances of getting costumers today were slim, but she knew that if she allowed herself to keep from looking her best, she would always regret it. She picked up her favorite blue eye shadow and began to brush it on.
'Aloe and Lotus are no better,' she admitted, the twin spa sisters popping up in her head. After gazing at her reflection for a few scrutinizing moments, she gasped loudly, causing herself to poke the brush into her eye.
"Ow!" she exclaimed, grabbing her eye. After a brief moment of wiping her watering eye, she returned to her original thought that caused her accident.
'What if Aloe tells somepony what she heard?' she thought fearfully, the idea of which frightening her. Pinkie would without a doubt be furious with her and she bet even Celestia didn't know the full extent of breaking a Pinkie Promise. Another horrifying thought reached her, causing her drop her brush altogether.
What if Aloe overhead Sombra telling Rarity his secret? Her heart began beating like a kettledrum and she fanned herself as her breathing became erratic while her eyes widened in pure shock and horror. Once she managed to get her breathing under some control, she put her hooves to her face as she screeched like a banshee.
Meanwhile, at the library, Sombra was reading his book in his cot, while Spike was reorganizing the books on the shelf, like he always did. Sombra's ears pricked upwards as he heard a high pitched whine resonate around them, then looked around to find the cause of it.
"Do you hear something?" he asked Spike, quirking a brow. Spike looked down at him from the top of the ladder and shook his head.
"I don't hear anything," he said. Sombra thought about finding it's source, then shrugged his shoulders.
"OK, then," he said, returning to his book.
Back at the boutique, Rarity continued to scream, but it lowered in intensity and it was soon reduced to small squeaks. After taking calm, steadying breaths, she put her hooves down on the ground to steady herself.
"Oh, Opal, what if she tells?" she cried, swaying while holding a hoof to her head dramatically. Opalescence looked up from her spot on Rarity's shelf, then let out an irritated mew as she jumped down. After her cat exited the room, Rarity stood up straight and screwed her eyes shut.
"Of all the things that could happen..." she began, standing on her hind legs while clinging to her smeared face. She took a deep breath as she paused for dramatic effect. "This is the..."
She hunched down as she paused again.
"Worst..."
She lowered herself, her knees almost touching the ground.
"Possible..."
Her knees slammed into the ground as she pulled her hooves down her face in horror.
"Thiiiiiiiiiiiing!"
Her scream echoed throughout Ponyville once again, the library not being an exception. And, once again, Sombra's ear perked up at the sound of the familiar whine. He flattened his ears against his head in annoyance and groaned.
"Alright, I know I'm not imagining that," he said, looking out the window of the library in hopes of finding an answer as to who was making the noise.
"You're probably just hearing things," Spike told him, books piled high in his arms. Sombra let out a small huff and went back to reading, his ears flattened against his head in preparation for another annoying sound.
Rarity sprung up from her spot on the ground and landed on her fainting couch, which she used her magic to bring up at the last moment. She put her hoof to her head dramatically as she let out a small cry of anguish.
"Oh, woe is me!" she projected, "I am such a fool! Celestia knows what'll happen when they find out!" She sat up abruptly, wiping away her smeared tears, a hopeful look taking over her features. "Perhaps she didn't hear! Perhaps she kept it to herself!" Rarity turned her head away and her face contorted into rage.
"Of course she told!" she exclaimed at herself, "Aloe is such a gossip!"
"But, she knows that it was a Pinkie Promise!" Rarity said to her counterpart after turning to the right. She snorted and turned to the left again.
"Oh, like she cares!" she snapped, "She'd tell everypony in Equestria if she had the chance!" Rarity gasped and put her hooves to her face as her eyes watered. She let out a wail of despair and fell back onto her couch as she sobbed.
"Oh, Pinkie, forgive me for my insolence!" she cried, holding a hoof up, as if reaching for the heavens. She rolled over and covered her smeared face as she wept. "Oh, and Sombra, dear Sombra!" she said dramatically, "How angry you'll be! I hope you find forgiveness in that black, black heart of yours!"
She heard the bell at the entrance of the boutique ring and she sat up from her pool of self misery.
"Hello?" asked a voice, "Is this place open?" Rarity leaped over the couch and covered the distance between the couch and the door in less than two bounds.
"Read the sign!" Rarity exclaimed, shoving the unfortunate pony out the door. It was Lemon Hearts, a friend of Roseluck's, the thought of which causing Rarity's anger rise exponentially.
"But, it says--" Lemon tried to say, but Rarity already shoved her out.
"We're closed until further notice!" she screeched, slamming the door hard enough to flip the OPEN sign over to the CLOSED side. Lemon Hearts frowned and her ears flattened against her head in annoyance as she slouched. She brushed herself off and gave a small huff.
"Yeesh," she muttered, stalking off down the road, "wait until Rose hears about this!"
* * *
Awkward; the only word to describe the meeting between Pinkie and Sombra as they came together for their afternoon walk. The silence between the two of them was practically deafening and only grew worse as they made they're into town.
'Come on, Sombra,' Conscious encouraged, 'say something! I'm sure she's dying to talk to you!' Sombra resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
'I honestly doubt that,' he replied. He snuck a glance at Pinkie, who appeared to be doing the same thing. They looked away simultaneously, both embarrassed. Pinkie's cheeks turned red and she looked down at her hooves, trying to avoid Sombra's gaze.
'What's stopping you?' Conscious asked, 'You know that she likes you!'
'Liking somepony can mean a lot of things,' he argued, 'it could just mean she has a simple crush. She'll get over it.' He looked at her again, only to see her blush disappeared. 'They always get over it.'
As they continued to walk together, they kept receiving strange looks from everyone around them. Whenever they passed by, ponies would whisper and let out hushed giggles, the reason beyond the couple's knowledge.
"Why is everypony giving us such strange looks?" Pinkie asked Sombra, the first thing she had said to him all day. He shrugged his shoulders.
"I have no idea," he told her, turning to look at two giggling mares. One of them stopped laughing and prodded her friend, nodding towards Sombra and Pinkie. Both mares backed away, whispering to one another while still giggling.
"Are they whispering about us?" Pinkie squeaked, her face turning red. She had been very aware of the rumor going around town that she and Sombra were an item, which seemed to have spread after Pinkie had publicly kissed him on Hearts and Hooves Day, the memory of which making her turn a darker shade of crimson.
"No, there's no way that they're--" he stopped talking when he saw a passing mare gave them a knowing look. Sombra's eyes widened and he looked around them, seeing that almost everypony was looking at them and whispering to one another.
"Why, hello, you two!" called a familiar voice. Both Sombra and Pinkie turned to see Berry Punch coming towards them. Pinkie's abashed face returned to it's normal color as she felt a flicker of anger spark within her; she had yet to forgive and forget about Berry's flirting with Sombra all those months ago.
"Hay, Berry," Pinkie greeted, plastering a fake smile on her face, "how's it going?" Berry giggled, then looked from Pinkie to Sombra to Pinkie again, a sly grin on her face.
"Oh, it's nothing compared to you two," she replied, giggling again. Both Pinkie and Sombra exchanged horrified looks, their eyes wide with shock.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Sombra asked, eyeing her suspiciously. Berry ceased her giggling and she looked at Sombra fearfully.
"I meant no disrespect," she said quickly, "I was trying to be funny!" At the word "funny", Pinkie jumped at the mare and leaned in close to her face.
"There's a big difference in being funny and being disrespectful," Pinkie hissed, uncharacteristically angry. Berry gulped and backed away from Pinkie, whose neck was stretched out from leaning in so close. Sombra pulled Pinkie back, attempting to be the voice of reason between the two.
"Would you mind shedding some light on as to why everypony is whispering about us?" Sombra asked, trying to be polite. Berry, glad to see that Pinkie was restrained, nodded.
"Well, it's just," Berry started, looking around to see if anyone was listening, "Rose told me that you two were..." She leaned in and whispered, "...sharing a stable." Sombra gave her a blank stare, whereas Pinkie looked absolutely mortified.
"Beg pardon?" Sombra said, flabbergasted. Berry blinked and quirked a brow upwards.
"You know, like, sitting on the same saddle?" she suggested. Again, Sombra gave her a blank stare, causing Pinkie to smack her hoof to her face. She wrapped her foreleg around his neck and jerked him down to where he was her height, then whispered something in his ear while Berry watched in confusion. As she pushed Sombra back to upright position, his face was frozen in shock, his cheeks turning bright red.
"What on... I can't even..." he sputtered, then shook his head, "Who in the name of Tartarus told you about that?" Pinkie's face turned completely red while Berry gaped at him.
"So it's true?" she breathed, causing Sombra to freeze, "I thought Rose was kidding!" Berry looked at Pinkie, then put a hoof on her shoulder, then nodded her head at a still shocked Sombra. "Nice job landing that, Pinkie!" she said, patting Pinkie on the back before walking away.
Both Pinkie and Sombra sat there, completely shocked and flabbergasted, their jaws still agape in pure, unadulterated horror. Sombra was the first to recover from his shock, to which he grabbed Pinkie's hoof and attempted to drag her with him.
"We have to find Rarity," he told her, narrowing his eyes, "something tells me she's involved." Pinkie fell down face first as Sombra attempted to pull her with him.
"They know... about that night..." she whispered, her face still frozen in shock. Sombra sighed and picked her up, then slid her onto his back, earning a few more strange looks from ponies around him. He began to trot around, then realized he didn't know where anything was in town, despite all the time he had spent there.
"I don't have time to drag you around town," he said, "just tell me where Rarity's shop is and I'll take us there." Pinkie shook her head vigorously and pulled her head up from Sombra's side. She positioned herself to where she was sitting on his back while her head and hooves resided on his head.
"Take a right at the bakery, then make a left when we get to the furniture store!" she said, pointing her hoof forward. Sombra sighed again and began to walk, following Pinkie's directions. After catching a few more curious and strange stares from passing ponies, he had had enough.
"Are you going to get off?" he asked, feeling irritable. Pinkie giggled and nuzzled her head into his mane.
"Nopey dopey!" she exclaimed, "It's fun up here! I feel tall!" He groaned as she stood on his back and put her weight into her forelegs that resided on his head. "I'm queen of the world!" she cheered, earning a few giggles from passing ponies. After finally making the left at the furniture store, Sombra recognized the boutique in which Rarity lived.
"Finally!" he shouted, running towards the boutique. Pinkie let out a surprised holler, but began laughing as she clung onto Sombra's mane.
"Wheeeeee!" she called. Sombra burst through the doors of the boutique, completely disregarding the sign that read CLOSED. After sliding in, he sat down abruptly, causing Pinkie to slide off his back. He winced as he heard her crash against the ground.
"I'm OK!" she exclaimed, holding a hoof up as assurance. Sombra ignored her and walked around the abandoned shop, hoping to see Rarity somewhere.
"Rarity?" he called out, "Are you here?" It was silent for a brief moment, then Sombra heard rustling originate from behind one of the shop's many curtains.
"Sombra?" Rarity replied, sounding hollow, "Pinkie?" She stepped out, her appearance shocking both Sombra and Pinkie. Her mane was disheveled and her face was smeared, tears streaking her cheeks.
"Rarity, what happened?" Pinkie asked, rushing over to her unicorn friend. Rarity held up a hoof to her head as she let out an exaggerated sigh.
"Oh, Pinkie, I have failed you!" she cried dramatically, "How I've failed you, dear Pinkie!" Sombra's eyes widened and he began to shake his head behind Pinkie, who was oblivious to his actions.
"What do you mean?" Pinkie asked, concern lacing her tone. Rarity grabbed Pinkie's shoulders and looked into her eyes intensely.
"I told him, Pinkie," she whispered, "Sombra knows." Pinkie froze for a brief moment, her jaw agape. She closed it as her lower lip jutted out and her eyes began to tear up.
"You broke a Pinkie Promise," she said, her voice becoming very low.
"Darling, I didn't mean to--" Rarity was cut off by the hard slap across her face. Sombra's jaw dropped as he watched Pinkie's hair begin to deflate and become flat. Her bright blue eyes became dull and lifeless, her gaze turning icy. Pinkie's eyes began to leak tears as she snarled at Rarity.
"Nopony..." she growled, leaning towards Rarity's cowering form, "...breaks a Pinkie Promise." Before Sombra could react, she ran out of the shop, her flat mane flying behind her. Rarity began to sob and put her hooves to her face as she did.
"I'm sorry..." she whispered, collapsing to the ground. She gave Sombra pleading look and pointed her hoof at the door. "Go after her," she begged, "you have to stop her before it's too late." Sombra was about to argue, but she shook her head as she stood up.
"Go," she said firmly, "I'll get Twilight while you deal with Pinkie." He nodded and rushed out after Pinkie, but only to see that she had disappeared.
'Which way do I go?' he thought, beginning to panic. He pried his mind for Pinkie's prior directions, hoping to remember.
"Take a right at the bakery, then make a left when we get to the furniture store!" he heard her chipper voice echo in his head. He began to run, nearly bumping to several passing ponies as he did.
'That means I need to take a... right!' he thought, rounding the corner. The bakery came into view, in which he saw Pinkie's tail disappear into. At the sight of her, he ran even faster, bursting through the doors. Mrs.Cake was there, a look of horror taking over her features.
"Where did she go?" he asked frantically. The shop owner pointed to the stairs, still in shock. Although he felt bad for her, he had little time to worry about anything but Pinkie at the moment. He bolted up the stairs, skidding to a stop as he reached the door to her bedroom. After attempting to turn the knob, only to find that it was locked, he rammed his shoulder into the door.
"Pinkie, open the door!" he exclaimed, slamming into the door again. When he heard no reply, he rammed into the door a third time, causing it to burst open. Pinkie stood there, looking feral as she growled at him ferociously.
"She told you," she snarled, "she told you and you didn't say anything!"
"She didn't mean to tell me," he said defensively, causing Pinkie to cease snarling, "it was by accident." She looked into his eyes and for a moment, he thought she was going to revert back to normal. But, instead, she went back to snarling and slammed her nose against his.
"Why should I listen to you?" she snapped, causing him to flinch, "I've heard a lot of things from you; is it just a coincidence that they all turn out to be lies?"
"What are you talking about?" he shouted. She turned away from him, flicking her tail angrily as she did.
"That you think I'm beautiful," she hissed, walking over to her mirror.
"That you care about me," she spat, whipping around to face him. She leaned towards him, her nose mere inches from his. Her eyes bore into his, icy and cold beyond comprehension.
"Pinkie, I--" he tried to say, but she put a hoof to his mouth. Her eyes narrowed and she shoved her nose into his again.
"That you want to be near me," she whispered, her voice breaking near the end of it. Her anger dissipated and was replaced by sadness as she slumped down, her flat mane covering her face like a veil. Sombra looked down at Pinkie's slouched form, trying to figure out a way to break through to her.
"Pinkie, I..." he started to say, "...I didn't know keeping it a secret would hurt you." He held her face up with a hoof as he looked into her tear filled eyes.
"Why?" she whispered, "If you knew I liked you, then why didn't you say anything?" He pulled her into an embrace, holding her tightly as she cried. After a few moments of deep thought, he pulled away from her and looked into her eyes again.
"Because I didn't know if it was true," he admitted. She gaped at him for a moment, in complete shock. "Because, to be honest... I wasn't sure how to deal with my own feelings. Towards you, I mean." She gasped as she realized what he was implying and her face went bright red.
"Are you saying that...?" she breathed, while he nodded. Seconds passed and nothing was said or done between the two of them. Sombra pulled her into a hug, then rested his chin on top of her head, much like how he did the last time he was here with her.
"Sombra..." she whispered, pulling away from him. He gave her a questioningly look, but once he saw the blush on her face, he knew what it was she wanted. He felt a blush of his take over his cheeks, but it didn't stop him from doing what he had to do. He leaned towards her and his nose brushed against hers.
"You realize we've been through a lot toda--"
"I don't care," she interrupted, leaning toward him.
"And that this could just our emotions running wi--"
"Just shut up and kiss me," she breathed, grabbing his face with her hooves. Their lips met instantly, the contact sending waves of exhilaration through them both. They both leaned into the kiss, wrapping around one another as it grew in intensity.Pinkie's mane had returned to it's original craziness, meaning that she was enjoying the kiss, the realization making Sombra grin.
"Sombra, Rarity told me to come here as soon as-- Oh, my Celestia!"
Pinkie and Sombra pulled away from their kiss to see Twilight at the door, at a complete loss for words. Her wings were outstretched as a dark blush covered her cheeks and nose, her right eye twitching.
"I'll come back later," she said, backing out of the room awkwardly.
"Close the door on the way out," Pinkie said, causing Twilight's blush to deepen. Despite her obvious discomfort, she did as told and closed the door behind her, causing the room become dark. Twilight dazedly walked down the stairs, where Rarity and Mrs.Cake were waiting.
"Well?" Rarity breathed, her eyes wide in anticipation.
"She's alright, for now," she told her, causing both mares to relax. What she didn't tell them was that Sombra had been the one to "comfort" her.
"Where's Sombra at?" Mrs.Cake asked, looking around the room, "Didn't he come in after you?" At the mention of Pinkie's possible-new-coltfriend, her face became red with embarrassment.
"Er..." she stammered, then cleared her throat awkwardly, "He's still upstairs." Rarity rose a brow in confusion as she eyed Twilight suspiciously.
"But why is he...?" she trailed off when she saw Twilight look down in shame. Both mares gasped and their jaws dropped collectively.
"Oh dear..." Mrs.Cake breathed, then laughed lightly, "I better warn Carrot so he doesn't walk in on them!" Twilight nodded in wholehearted agreement.
"Probably a good idea," she told her, laughing herself. All three mares joined in laughter, their discomfort fading as they dissolved into hysteria.
Meanwhile, back in Pinkie's room, Sombra and Pinkie were listening to the laughter that originated from below them.
"I wonder what they're laughing about?" Pinkie mused aloud. Sombra nuzzled his nose into her neck, causing her to blush.
"All I'm wondering is if you're ticklish..." he whispered, earning a weird look from Pinkie.
"Ticklish? What are you-" she stopped talking as she was overcome with giggles from Sombra kissing her on the neck.
"I'll take that as a yes," he purred, kissing her again. She shoved at him playfully, her cheeks red from laughing.
"Sombry!" she teased, "You're so silly!" She managed to free herself from his grip and began to tickle his sides. Sombra gasped and attempted to bat away her hooves, but failed to do so once the tickling caused him to start laughing.
"Pinkie, stop!" he called out between laughter, "I hate being tickled!" She giggled and ceased her tickling, only for him to resume his tickling.
"Hay, no fair!" she called out as he nuzzled her neck again. She turned around and landed a kiss on his nose, surprising him. While he tried to process what just happened, Pinkie giggled while she cheered, "I win!" After that, she tackled him to the ground and hugged him.
"Pinkie Pie, you are so random!" he called as she giggled.
"And don't you forget it!" she told him, planting another kiss on his nose.