What would be the best way to ask the ‘ol egghead out? Rainbow thought as she neared the outskirts of Ponyville. Looking over her shoulder, she saw the sun starting to make its way into the sky behind her, giving her a small modicum of relief from the wintery cold. The speed at which she flew made the wind bite at her muzzle, leaving her lips chapped and sore. She was chilled to the bone from flying at such a high altitude and speed, but the knowledge that she’d be home soon kept her going.
Her home came into view as she whipped over the tops of the houses. Wondering if Twilight was still asleep, she flared her wings to bleed some speed and stopped at a hover just outside of the library’s bedroom window. She wiped the window free of ice and snow as best she could, then cupped her hooves and peered inside, her eyes finally settling on the vague shape of Twilight’s bed.
Much to her surprise, it appeared to be empty. Rainbow landed on the part of the house connecting the two buildings together and, with a shaky hoof, pulled open the door, entering Twilight’s bedroom. Blissful warmth rushed upon her right after she closed the door, sending a delightful shiver down her spine. Rainbow fluffed her wings and shook the snow from them. Upon hearing Spike snoring coming from just down the hall, she noted to tread softly as she looked over at Twilight’s empty bed.
Heh, knowing Twilight, she’s probably already awake and eating breakfast downstairs. Rainbow thought as she crept out into the hallway, hoping to surprise her. Once she reached the top of the stairs, she peered around the corner and cocked her ear every which way. Nothing but the sound of the wind blowing past the library outside met her ears.
What if… Rainbow gulped nervously. What if she’s in my bed? Keeping that thought in mind, she made her way back up into Twilight’s bedroom and into her own house. She flew up the stairs and landed right before her bedroom door, which was cracked open just a little bit. It wasn’t like that when I left… With bated breath, she pushed the door open and walked inside.
Twilight was sound asleep in her cloud bed, an open Daring Do book laying just out of hoof’s reach on the edge of the bed. The blankets were tucked in tightly around her, rising and falling with each breath. Looking closer, Rainbow spied a tuft of purple hair sprouting from the edge of the sheets. A smile crawled onto her face as she watched Twilight roll over in her sleep, the sheets falling down around her midsection. A lump under the covers shifted against Twilight, then slowly made its way upwards until Scootaloo’s head appeared from under the top of the covers. As she watched on, Scootaloo laid her head against Twilight’s foreleg and tugged the covers up against her, a small smile on her face as she made herself comfortable. It wasn't long before she was fast asleep again.
Rainbow’s heart throbbed in her chest as she imagined Twilight agreeing to go out with her. Her tail flicking about in nervous excitement, she had half a mind to just walk up and lay a kiss on Twilight’s lips to wake her up, just like a brave prince waking up a sleeping princess would. As soon as she would have woken up, Rainbow would have asked her out on the spot. The other half of her mind screamed at her to not do exactly that, for fear of ruining their friendship and making things extremely awkward.
Ugh, why does romance have to be so hard? Rainbow thought, flicking her ears back. She imagined what life would be like if she and Twilight were together. Cuddling on the couch with mugs of hot cocoa, small random kisses throughout the day just to remind each other of our affection, the happiness that we would share just from being with each other… Rainbow shivered, not from the cold, but from the possibility of what the near future held in store for her. And forming a healthy and loving family for Scootaloo just makes everything so much better…
Rainbow plodded across the cloud floor until she stood by her bed. Taking care to not wake either Twilight or Scootaloo up, she pulled the blankets back up over the two of them, and once she was sure that they wouldn’t fall off of them, she walked out of the bedroom and carefully closed the door behind them. Hunger gnawed at her stomach, so she jumped over the edge of the balcony and glided into the kitchen. She pulled open her cabinets, one after the other as she searched for food. Much to her disappointment, she couldn’t find anything.
Letting out a groan, she thought to check to see if Twilight had any food in the library. Her hope restored, she quickly made her way down to the first floor of the library. Spotting the refrigerator across from her, she flitted over the table and yanked it open.
“Yes!” she said under her breath, glad that Twilight was smart enough to keep it fully stocked. Sure that Twilight wouldn’t mind if she ate some of her food, especially after all she’d done for her letting her live in her house and all, she grabbed some yogurt and plopped down on a cushion at the table. Though just as soon as she had managed to pull the wrapper off the top, somepony knocked at the library’s front door.
When nopony answers the door, they’ll just go away… Rainbow thought as she started eating her breakfast. The pony at the door knocked again, making her pause again. “Can’t they see that the library is still closed?” she muttered as she cleaned out the first yogurt. Moving onto the second one, she waited for the pony at the door to knock again. After a minute of silence, Rainbow shrugged, figuring that they had left.
Rainbow quickly finished off the other yogurt. After throwing away her trash, she went back out into the main room of the library. Flicking her ears in the direction of the stairs, all she heard was Spike snoring. Heh, that ‘ol egghead probably stayed up late reading with Scootaloo… Might as well tidy up the library.
And tidy up she did. She dusted all of the shelves, figured out how to find the proper places for books that had been returned, and had swept the floor. All the while, she had thought about different ways to ask Twilight out. She had thought of numerous situations, each one crazier than the last, until she had given up. Figuring now was as good a time as any, Rainbow flipped the ‘Closed’ sign to ‘Open’ and unlocked the front door.
Satisfied with a job well done, she couldn’t wait until Twilight woke up to her little surprise. It was still a little early in the morning, so as she fought back a yawn, she trotted back into the kitchen and started making a pot of coffee for whoever wanted some.
A couple minutes later, she sat down on the couch in the main room, a steaming cup of coffee in her hooves. Looking down at the mail strewn over the coffee table, Rainbow picked up an official-looking envelope. It was a light blue color that had the Crystal Empire’s wax seal on the back. Rainbow knew it was rude to intrude, but because of her boredom, her curiosity got the best of her. She set her coffee down and pulled the letter out. Unfolding it, she quickly read the short message:
Dearest Twilight,
Believe it or not, but I was able to find some time off! I have to take care of some things in these next couple of days, but as soon as I’m done, I’ll pack a bag and jump on an overnight train. If you aren’t awake by the time I get to Ponyville, I’ll find someplace warm to kill some time. Maybe I’ll try out that Sugarcube Corner place you keep talking about. Anyways, if all goes to plan, I’ll see you bright and early on Friday morning!
With lots of love,
Cadence
Huh… today is Friday… Rainbow took another sip from her mug, then nearly choked as she realized her mistake. Oh ponyfeathers, that was Cadence knocking at the door a while ago! Quickly finishing off her mug, she placed the letter back inside the envelope then put it back where she found it. After throwing her mug in the sink, Rainbow trotted to the front door and walked outside, wincing as the door slammed shut. Yeah… that probably woke them up… she thought as she quickly took to the air.
Since Sugarcube Corner was right down the street, it took her about ten or so seconds to land in front of the door. Rainbow pushed the door open and found Princess Cadence sitting at the farthest table from the door, deep in conversation with Pinkie Pie. The bell above the door chimed, making the other two ponies look at her.
“Oh, hey Rainbow! What’s up?” Pinkie said with a friendly wave. She looked at Cadence and as she trotted to the back of the bakery, she said, “Gimme a sec, Princess, and those muffins will be right out!”
“Princess,” Rainbow said as she bowed, wondering why Pinkie was acting so friendly towards Princess Cadence.
“Rainbow!” Cadence said, pulling her into a hug. “How’re Scootaloo and Twilight doing?”
“They’re, uh… they’re fine,” Rainbow faltered a bit, unnerved by the lack of formality. I guess that explains why Pinkie Pie is being so chill around her… “Those two sleepyheads are still in bed, and I kinda read your letter you sent to Twilight the other day, so… yeah,” she finished lamely, silently wishing that she had something better to say. “If you want, we can head back to the library. They’re probably awake by now because I kiiiinda slammed the door shut without meaning too…” she trailed off with a nervous giggle.
Cadence just stared at her, a smug smile on her face. “Er… or we can stay here if you want,” Rainbow said, unable to hold Cadence’s steely gaze. It had felt as if she was staring directly into her soul, making her wonder if she could sense her affection for somepony.
“Oh, that’s all right; I think we can head back there,” Cadence said, then looked towards the back of the store. “Pinkie!” she called out, waiting until the other pink pony poked her head out from around the door frame. “Rainbow here is going to take us back to the library. It was nice seeing you again, and I’ll have to take a rain check on those muffins.”
“Oh, okay!” Pinkie said. “Don’t forget about tomorrow night, alright?”
“I won’t!” Cadence said as she started walking away. Glancing down at Rainbow, she asked, “You ready?”
Rainbow nodded back. As soon as they made it outside, Rainbow asked, “Um… what did she mean about tomorrow night?” She felt a shiver run down her spine as a particularly cold gust of wind hit her flank.
“Oh, that.” Cadence let out a small giggle. “Pinkie wanted to throw a party just because there were two princesses in town, but I managed to convince her to have a New Years party at Sugarcube Corner instead.”
“Ah, alright.” Rainbow let their conversation die away as she returned to her thoughts. I sure hope Twi’s not angry at me for waking her up… It didn’t take them long to return to the library, and as she held the door open for Cadence, Rainbow heard noises in the kitchen. Closing the door behind her, she trotted forward and spotted Twilight sitting at the table, her head hidden behind the morning’s newspaper. Rainbow motioned for Cadence to stay quiet. “Hey, Twilight! You wanna guess who’s here?” she asked as she trotted into the kitchen, leaving Cadence behind her.
Twilight set down the newspaper and gasped, a wide smile threatening to break her face in half. “Rainbow, you’re back!” She got up from the table and pulled her into a fierce hug.
“Sheesh, Twilight, I was only gone for a couple of days…” Rainbow said, her cheeks flushing. The warmth emanating from Twilight’s coat soothed her, warming her from the cold outside. She relaxed in Twilight’s embrace as she felt her friend’s hoof tighten around the back of her neck, making her reciprocate in kind. She still felt a little awkward about public displays of affection, and she didn’t really feel all that comfortable with Cadence standing just around the corner, hearing everything. However, that didn’t stop her from giving Twilight a small nuzzle as they released each other.
“Yeah I know, but I kinda missed snuggling with you,” Twilight said, blissfully unaware that Cadence was standing just out of sight. She shuffled her wings and flicked her head, trying unsuccessfully to get some bedhead out of her face. “Scootaloo had another nightmare last night, by the way. I heard her crying in her sleep, so I brought her back to your room, read her some of a Daring Do book, and before I knew it, she was fast asleep under my wing.” She sat down and levitated her cup of coffee up to her lips for a quick sip. “That poor filly… I think I may have to write to Luna about this if she keeps having nightmares…”
“Yeah, that would probably be a good idea,” Rainbow said, shooting a glance back at Cadence. She nodded for her to step forward, and as she did, she said, “Anyways, there’s somepony here to see ya!” She stepped back and allowed Cadence to walk into the kitchen.
“Cadence!” Twilight said with a smile, pulling her sister-in-law into a brief hug. “How was your trip?”
Rainbow smirked as she silently noted that Twilight seemed a lot happier to see her rather than Cadence. Their hug had lasted a lot longer than the brief hug that she had given Cadence, and they hadn’t even nuzzled each other.
“It went well, thanks,” Cadence said. “So, before we get things started, what’s the best hotel in town? I’d like a place to put my bags.”
“Don’t be silly, Cadence!” Twilight peered around her, a puzzled look upon her face. “Um… where are your bags?”
Cadence grinned. “Well, you remember how I said that I had a couple of things to take care of before I left?” Twilight nodded and cocked her head to the side, her ears facing forward. “I was doing some research on long-lost spells from the Crystal Empire, spells that hadn’t been used for generations. I thought you’d like to learn them with m–”
Twilight’s eyes went wide at the prospect of learning spells few ponies knew about. “Are you kidding? I’d love to! Gimme a few minutes to get the basement ready!” At that, she darted towards her desk and grabbed a bunch of blank scrolls, quills, and several jars of ink. Without wasting a moment of time, she trotted down the stairs leading to the basement.
Rainbow couldn’t help but let a giggle slip out of her as she watched Twilight’s antics. She’s so adorable when she gets like that… Ugh! I still don’t have a way to ask her out… As she started trying to come up with a good way to go about the act, an exciting idea popped into her mind. What if I ask Cadence if she can help? I don’t want her to know right off the bat, so I’ll just say that I’m asking about a friend’s problem… Hehe, that’s totally gonna work! “So, uh… Cadence?”
“Yes?”
“Can we talk, er… in private la–later?” Rainbow stammered. She took a few short breaths and fluffed her wings. “There’s something kinda personal I want to talk about.”
“Of course, Rainbow,” Cadence said, a knowing glint in her eye.
“Oh–okay, thanks!” Rainbow said a bit nervously, looking everywhere but Cadence. As the silence started to drag on into awkwardness territory, Rainbow cleared her throat and stood up. “Alright, well, since you two are gonna go play with some old spells, I’m gonna see if I can get some work done with the weather patrol.” She didn’t wait for a response as she took to the air, quickly flying across the library and out of the front door.
After a couple of hours getting everything set up down in the lab, Twilight sat down across from Cadence.
“So yeah, you can just sleep in my bed in my old bedroom,” Twilight said as she unrolled a piece of parchment. She used a quick spell to flatten it out then dipped her quill in the ink pot. “Since the courts deemed my library an unsuitable place to raise a filly, especially one in her condition, Rainbow came up with the awesome idea of combining our two houses together through the balcony outside my bedroom.”
“But what about you? Where are you going to sleep?” Cadence asked as she mirrored Twilight’s actions. She lit her horn and opened a small portal, then levitated a few thick tomes out. The portal winked out of existence with a small pop.
“Oh, Rainbow and I share her bed now; we’ve become pretty good snuggle-buddies. It sure beats a cold blanket on these cold nights, right?”
“…Yeah, it does,” Cadence said slowly, her eyes running over Twilight’s face inquisitively. She passed one of the thick books across the table and pulled one over in front of her. As if they were perfectly synchronized, they both opened the books at the same time and started reading.
The next several hours passed in silence. Every so often, Cadence sensed a small pulse of love emanating from Twilight, but she paid it no mind. Over time, the pulses grew in strength until she felt them every couple of seconds. At that point, Cadence knew that Twilight was in full daydream mode; there was no way that she could be studying with that much love flowing from her.
Clearing her throat, Cadence noted the page number she was on and closed the book. “So Twilight…” she said slowly, a sly grin forming on her face as she propped her head up on her hooves.
Twilight jumped a little, slightly startled by Cadence’s voice in the still air. “Y–yes, Cadence?” she asked, giggling nervously.
“I think it’s about time we take a break and have a little talk, you and I…” Cadence said. “About love…” she said, her smile growing wider as she watched Twilight start fidgeting more.
“Um… what are you talking about?” Twilight rubbed the back of her neck.
“You know how easy it is for me to sense those kinds of feelings, Twilight; nopony can hide them from me.” Cadence played with the tips of her mane for a few moments and asked, “Sooo… are you interested in somepony?” Twilight blushed and looked back down at her book, trying to avoid the question. “Is it a handsome stallion?” she asked, and when Twilight stayed silent, she decided to move onto the next question. “Orrrr, is he a she?” Twilight’s cheeks flushed a deeper shade of crimson. “Aha! So you have feelings for a cute mare, huh?”
“Y–yeah,” Twilight whispered, barely able to speak from sheer nervousness. Why am I so nervous? I wasn’t nearly this nervous when I told Rarity…
“It’s Rainbow, isn’t it?” Cadence asked out of the blue.
“What?! How’d you know? How could you possibly know that?” Twilight closed her eyes briefly, realizing that she’d already revealed too much. Trying to recover, she said, “I mean, no… yes! I, we–” She glanced back up at Cadence and saw her smirking at her. Well, since the cat’s out of the bag… “Yes, it’s her,” Twilight whispered so softly that she barely heard herself speak.
“What was that, dear? I didn’t hear you,” Cadence said, praying her ears weren’t playing tricks on her.
Twilight cleared her throat. “Yes, it’s Rainbow…” she said, her blush deepening as she let a smile form on her face. “It’s just…” Twilight sighed. “I didn’t even realize I had real feelings for her until Rarity spelled it out for me the other day. I can’t help but feel so close to her, especially when she holds me at night…” Her shoulders drooped a little bit. “I would absolutely love it if we could be together, but I’m afraid that it’d make things really awkward if she said no.” She looked up, a hopeful look upon her face. “Could you… could you help me figure out a way to ask her out?”
“Twilight, Twilight, Twilight…” Cadence said, walking around the table. She laid a wing around her and said, “Of course I can help you! So here’s what you have to do…”