//------------------------------// // The Chase // Story: To Risk One's Heart... // by HermitKlam //------------------------------// -0-0- “Here you are, Your Majesty; one ticket to Canterlot.” The clerk at the Ponyville train station slid a single ticket through the hole at the bottom of the window, his voice oozing professionalism; due to Ponyville now having its own resident princess, seeing royalty at the station had become somewhat of a weekly occurrence for him. The clerk’s calm demeanor slowly began to break down, however, as the pink alicorn before him showed not one iota of having heard him and instead continued to seemingly stare straight through him. Professionalism all but gone, the clerk nervously pulled at his collar, a bead of sweat rolling down the side of his face as the royal stare bore into him, causing his voice to squeak. “Uh, P-Princess?” Cadance blinked and came back to herself with a start. Drooped ears twitching slightly at the relieved sigh originating from in front of her, she half-heartedly attempted to pull herself together and actually managed a semi genuine half-smile. “Oh, I’m sorry. I have… a lot on my mind. Thank you for the ticket.” Encasing the train ticket in her blue magic, she began a sedate walk over to an empty bench situated on the far corner of the platform. Having just enough presence of mind to be thankful that the station was nearly empty, Cadance sunk despondently onto the bench. Tearing her eyes away from the happy couples she could just make out in the distance, she instead gazed at the ground in front of her and once again became lost in her thoughts. The day had started out so well… After accidentally outing herself to her two nosy aunts, and allowing them to convince her to finally follow her heart, she had made a few preparations before leaving the city. A few acquisitions were made in the city bazaar as well as a short trip yet frustrating trip through the royal gardens. Needing the time to compose herself – and finish a surprise for Twilight – she had deigned to take the train to Ponyville instead of arriving under her own power. After having arrived in Ponyville, she had quickly made preparations to surprise Twilight later on in the day before actually meeting up with the purple alicorn. The two of them had spent the early part of the day catching up in the library, before Cadance had convinced the younger pony to take a walk with her. That’s when Twilight began receiving the small gifts she had prepared beforehoof, all signed by ‘a secret admirer’. To Cadance’s rising glee, Twilight had seemed to love each and every one of her gifts. Playing ignorant as to who exactly her secret admirer was, Cadance had basked in the younger pony’s poorly contained giddiness at the well-chosen gifts, each of them having a deeper meaning to the purple alicorn than one might expect. Favorite chocolates, favorite flowers, a plushy companion straight out of the history books and a heartfelt poem… In fact, everything had been going splendidly – she had even begun gathering up the nerve to confess - when it all came crashing down during supper… ‘”Wow!” Twilight whispered as she gazed wide-eyed at the restaurant Cadance had insisted on visiting, taking in the elaborate decorations and cozy atmosphere. It was a setting she would have expected to see in Canterlot, not the smaller town of Ponyville. “I didn’t even know Ponyville had a restaurant like this.” Cadance giggled as she used a wing to close Twilight’s lightly gaping mouth, her giggles turning into a soft coo at the resultant blush on the younger pony’s face. Stretching her wing, she draped it snugly across the smaller alicorn’s back. Feeling Twilight’s slight jump at her actions, and seeing the blush on her face grow as she opened her mouth, Cadance swiftly averted her attention by elaborating on the restaurant. “This one has actually been here longer than you have, though it’s only known to a select group.” Pausing in her explanation, Cadance nimbly bypassed the waiter and pulled out Twilight’s seat, sending the confused yet grateful pony a winning smile in the process. Making her way to her own chair – which she allowed the huffy waiter to pull out – Cadance debated for a split second before ordering them an appetizer of bread sticks and rose wine while they waited for the meal that she had pre-ordered. As the waiter left the two alone, Cadance returned her attention to Twilight to continue her explanation only to come up short at the vision before her. Alit in the soft glow of the candles, Twilight’s soft coat shone and her large violet orbs sparkled enticingly. And when she smiled, Cadance was caught - her heart and soul ached to be closer to the vision before her, to the pony who was unequivocally – inside and out –the most… “Beautiful…” “Did you say something?” Twilight’s attention jumped from scanning the well-dressed couples dotting the restaurant – and fretting over the fact that she wasn’t wearing anything at all – to focusing intently at her companion. “I-” Cadance hesitated briefly, not having meant to speak her thoughts aloud, before exhaling deeply. Closing her eyes for a moment, she gathered her courage before opening them and fixing her gaze on the lightly confused alicorn before her, a warm smile on her lips. “I said that you were beautiful.” “Wh-what?” Twilight’s cheeks flushed as Cadance’s smile grew. Studying the mare before her, Twilight was unable to find any hint of deceit or teasing on her face, causing the younger pony to avert her gaze shyly. “What are you taking about? I’m not even wearing anything…” “You don’t have to wear anything, Twilight; you shine with an inner beauty, one that can be seen by all even without clothes,” Cadance earnestly contradicted the modest pony, her own reservations disappearing in the face of Twilight’s low view of herself. “Especially without clothes…” Twilight wrung her hooves together and ducked her head, allowing her mane to cover her flaming cheeks. She had never found herself particularly beautiful- oh, she was aware that she wasn’t exactly homely, but she had never thought of herself as attractive. However, as she took in the words Cadance spoke and the tone she spoke them in, Twilight couldn’t help but feel… odd. It was – after a few moments of reflection - a good odd, but still odd all the same. Cadance opened her mouth to continue, some unknown need to make sure that Twilight knew she was speaking the truth urging her on, only to be interrupted by a hesitant cough. Blinking, Cadance turned towards the disturbance with a start only to espy a nervously smiling couple. “Hello?” “Ah, Princess…es.” The nervous stallion quickly smiled at the purple alicorn before turning his attention back to Cadance. “Good evening. My wife and I were just dining and we couldn’t help but notice the two of you here. We were wondering, if it wouldn’t be bothersome, if you would consider-” “What my husband is trying to say, Your Majesties, is that we were hoping that the Princess of Love wouldn’t mind signing our wedding book.” The mare nudged her husband aside lightly as she smiled hopefully. “It would mean a lot to us.” “Wedding book?” Cadance tilted her head lightly, a confused smile on her face. “Er, ‘honeymoon book’ would be more correct, though it doesn’t roll off of the tongue like ‘wedding book’ does…” The husband added bashfully as he rubbed the back of his neck with one hoof, a medium sized book clutched under his wing becoming visible as he shifted. “We, um, got married last week. We’re on our honeymoon trip across Equestria.” “Oh! How lovely,” Cadance grinned at the bashful couple, not needing her magic to tell her that the two made a lovely pair. “Of course I’ll sign. Do you have a quill?” “Thank you!” The mare practically squealed as she fished a quill out from a hidden pocket within her dress. Cadance took the quill and opened the book that had been set on the table onto a blank page. About to press the quill to paper, she paused as a thought came to her. “Who should I make it out to?” “Kites and Lilly Bloom, Princess,” Lilly Bloom smiled cheerfully as her husband draped a wing across her back. “Alright then; ‘To newlyweds, Kites and Lilly Bloom…’” Unbeknownst to Cadance, Twilight had gotten curious and had peered at the page. Watching as Cadance’s flowing script appeared, the gears in her head began turning as her eyes narrowed. Leaning back in her seat, Twilight slowly pulled the poem she had received earlier out of her bag and covertly unfolded it on the table before her. Gazing at the writing, Twilight blinked slowly as her suspicions were confirmed. Cadance finished up and gave the quill and book back to the happy couple before bidding them farewell. Turning back to her own companion, Cadance was about to continue where she had left off only to notice that Twilight seemed troubled. “Are you alright, Twilight?” Not even receiving a blink or twitch in response, Cadance frowned lightly before trying again. “Twilight?” Twilight slowly moved her gaze from the piece of parchment she had been staring blankly at to the pink alicorn across the small table, an odd look on her face. “Are you feeling well, Twilight?” Cadance asked worriedly. Twilight’s mouth worked with no sound before she lightly cleared her throat. Shifting uncomfortably, she hesitantly met her elder’s eyes before speaking. “Cadance… can I ask you a question?” “Of course you can Twilight,” Cadance blinked in surprise. “You can ask me anything.” Twilight nodded slowly. Silence reigned for a few long minutes before Cadance gently jostled the younger alicorn from her thoughts. “Twilight?” “I’m not sure if I should ask…” Twilight mumbled, a slightly helpless look in her eyes. This was not a situation that she had ever found herself in before, and so she was feeling uncomfortably out of her depth. “It’s okay, Twilight,” Cadance reassured the pony before her softly with a smile. “Like I said, you can ask me absolutely anything.” Twilight nodded again and stared at her hooves for a long moment to gather her nerve before glancing up at her companion. “…Are you my secret admirer?” Cadance froze. Her mouth opened and closed soundlessly before she was finally able to force her words out in a croak after a few long moments. “Wh-why would you ask that?” “I compared the penmanship on the poem I received earlier to what you just wrote in that couple’s book… they were identical,” Twilight hesitantly stated in a quiet voice, her gaze never wavering from Cadance’s face. At this point, she deduced that she didn’t even need verbal confirmation, due to the mounting evidence before her, however… “Are you?” “I-I-yes.” Cadance forced out stumblingly with a slight wince. This was not how she had planned to confess at all. A few minutes passed in silence. Then a few more. Cadance’s hoof jittered nervously underneath the table as she waited for Twilight to respond, however the awkward silence only stretched on as Twilight stubbornly evaded her gaze by focusing on the table. Her earlier concerns, those that were barely banished by her aunts, started to trickle back into the forefront of her mind as the time continued to pass. Finally, Cadance could take the silence no more and desperately pleaded for Twilight to say something. “Twilight…?” “I’m sorry,” Twilight murmured before lifting her gaze and meeting Cadance’s. “I’m sorry, I just… I just don’t-” “It’s okay, Twilight,” Cadance interrupted the younger alicorn, a false smile adorning her face to go with her barely chipper voice. “I expected this; really. It’s… this was a bad idea. I really should- you should stay and enjoy the food; it’s already paid for, but I forgot that I have somewhere that I need to be. I should- I should go.” Standing up abruptly, Cadance ducked her head down and quickly made her way out of the restaurant, leaving her heart lone at the table.’ A self-deprecating chuckle bubbled up unbidden from Cadance’s throat as she thought about Twilight’s last words. ‘I’m sorry, I just… I just don’t…’ Slumping further into her seat, Cadance glumly decided that her aunt’s would be supplying her with the many tubs of ice cream she would undoubtedly need to compliment her heartbroken wallowing before sighing. “What could go wrong indeed…” -0-0- “Twilight?” Spike questioned the purple alicorn as she walked by him without a word, her expression quite clearly troubled. Not even hearing Spike over her own loud and jumbled thoughts, Twilight slowly dropped the take-out containers of food she had absentmindedly carried around with her for the past half-hour next to one of the book shelves, her troubled thoughts still churning around what had transpired earlier at the restaurant. ‘“Twilight…?” “I’m sorry,” Twilight murmured before lifting her gaze and meeting Cadance’s. “I’m sorry, I just… I just don’t-” “It’s okay, Twilight,” Cadance interrupted the younger alicorn, a false smile adorning her face to go with her barely chipper voice. “I expected this; really. It’s… this was a bad idea. I really should- you should stay and enjoy the food; it’s already paid for, but I forgot that I have somewhere that I need to be. I should- I should go.” Twilight watched, conflicted, as Cadance stood up and made a hasty retreat not once looking back at the confused pony she had left behind. “…I just don’t understand why you’d be interested in somepony like me…”’ Twilight slowly ambled forwards on autopilot, actually making it half-way up the stairs on the way to her bedroom before her steps faltered. Freezing with one hoof in the air, mere inches away from reaching the last step, she bit her lip and hesitated. Slowly, feeling that she owed at least this much to both herself and her former foalsitter, she allowed her mind to push past the slight awkwardness that had clung to her since finding out who her secret admirer was and looked at the past few hours objectively. She was gifted throughout the day with some of the staple gifts of Hearts and Hooves; chocolates, flowers, a plushy, and a poem. On the surface, being gifted these things spoke of unoriginality on the part of the admirer; looking closer, however, showed a much different story. The sweets she was given were white chocolates with bits of caramel toffee in them. The flower was of her favorite species, one which only bloomed in a specific, restricted, area of the Royal Gardens. The plushy was a lovingly hoofmade replica of Starswirl the Bearded’s underappreciated and widely unknown companion, Bamboo the Panda. Her favorites. All of them her favorites. And the poem… the poem was simply beautiful. Though it was a freestyle poem that followed no rhyme nor meter, it more than made up for that with the emotions it carried. It was a poem written from one heart to another, and Twilight felt a touched smile stretch her lips once more as she thought of the fact that somepony felt that way about her – plain old, slightly neurotic, egghead Twilight. Taking in a deep breath, Twilight closed her eyes and let her mind drift to her not so secret admirer. Pushing any preconceptions she may have from her mind, she thought of Cadance – not as her old foalsitter or as a good friend, but as a mare who had romantic feelings for her. She pictured the slightly larger pink alicorn in her mind’s eye, and her breath caught in her throat. She had always known that Cadance was beautiful, inside and out, but she had never really allowed herself to really dwell on that fact. Again, she stubbornly pushed away the awkwardness that began creeping up on her for mentally checking out one of her dearest friends. Objectively, Cadance was very attractive, in both personality and looks – and it also helped that Twilight already knew that they got on well and that they had a lot in common – but the real question was, could she be attracted to the older alicorn in that way? Twilight took the plunge and conjured up a mental image of herself right next to Cadance. Anxiously, she watched as Cadance slowly walked up to the Twilight in her mind, her eyes and smile filled with a soft warmth, before she leaned in and- “Uh, Twilight?” Spike spoke up again as he began slowly backing away, his snout scrunched up in a mild disgust. “You’re not going to get all mushy on me again, are you? You’ve got that same look on your face- like that time you all talked about how you got your cutie marks and you made me write that cheesy letter to the Princess.” Twilight blinked as Spike’s words finally tore her from the mini fantasy playing in her mind. Turning her slightly dazed face towards him, she distractedly asked him to repeat himself as she attempted to straighten her suddenly ruffled feathers. She still wasn’t one-hundred-percent certain of which course of action she should take, or how exactly she should react to this unexpected bit of news, however there was one thing she knew for certain; she cared too deeply for Cadance to just let her run away. “What was that, Spike?” “What’s going on with you Twi?” Spike questioned confusedly as he peered at her peculiar expression. “You’re acting all weird.” “Nothing’s going on with-,” Twilight began only to freeze, her eyes widening to epic proportions as her wings puffed up in shock. “Going! I’ve got to go! I’ll be back later, Spike. Don’t wait up!” Spike stared at the quickly retreating alicorn with a deadpanned expression before he threw his claws up into the air and muttered to himself in exasperation. “Mares.” -0-0- Twilight half ran half flew out the library door and down the darkening street, her eyes flittering frantically from pony to pony in an attempt to spot her fellow princess. Wings flapping awkwardly in an attempt to give herself a speed boost, Twilight quickly and systematically passed by all of the town’s more popular haunts. Becoming more frantic as time slipped away from her and the street lights began turning on one by one, she came to a hovering halt in front of Sugarcube Corner. Mane and tail frazzled and feathers ruffled uncomfortably, Twilight began muttering to herself as she tried to think of where else the pink alicorn could have gone. “I checked there, and there and there. She wasn’t there- though I have no idea why I thought she’d be there in the first place- and I haven’t seen her on the streets. Oooh! Where could she be? It’s only been an hour, she couldn’t have gotten that far…” “Heya, Twilight!” Pinkie grinned cheerily from her upside-down position in front of the purple pony, a rope being held by her puffy pink tail leading to her second story window. “Whatch’ya doing?” “Not now Pinkie, I’m busy at the moment. I’ve got to superimpose a grid over Ponyville in my mind, while also compensating for the fact that Cadance could switch into a zone I’ve already searched.” Twilight muttered distractedly as her eye began to twitch, numbers and equations chaotically zooming through her mind at high speeds. “My best bet would be to search the whole of Ponyville instantaneously, but for that I would need a foci the size of an average pony with less than zero impurities, a mirror the size of Ponyville itself, and enough chalk to fill the library three times over…” “Ooooh, sounds like a super-duper-splendiferous fun time!” Pinkie giggled as her tail let go and she landed head-first on the ground, her mane cushioning her fall and making a slight boing sound as she bounced. “Way more fun than just going over to the train station to catch her before she leaves.” “Pinkie!” Pinkie blinked as she suddenly found herself enveloped in her friend’s pink magic and suspended inches from Twilight’s face, though her ear-splitting grin never faltered and actually seemed to grow impossibly wider. “That’s me!” “How do you know- never mind, that’s not important,” Twilight cut herself off as she gazed intently at the smiling party pony before her. “This is really important Pinkie- did Cadance say she was taking the next train?” Pinkie began explaining at high speeds. “Princess Cadance came in earlier all gloomy and down so I whipped her up a batch of my patented Gloom Be Goo Gone- get it? Because the goo in the middle is so yummy and sweet that it chases away even the most toughest of tough frowns- and she said that they were really good, but maybe I didn’t make them strong enough because she still seemed kind of-” “Pinkie!” Twilight shook the pink pony lightly in her magic, her voice slightly strangled. “Cadance. Next. Train?” “Yeppers!” Pinkie nodded cheerfully, accidentally whipping Twilight in the face with her dangling hair in the process. Looking at her foreleg, she hummed thoughtfully before showing Twilight the ticking watch that the alicorn would have sworn before Celestia wasn’t there before. “You’d better hurry up with your super-duper fun plan though - the next train boards in five minutes.” Eyes widening in mounting dread at a deadline almost passed, Twilight unceremoniously dropped Pinkie Pie as the magic surrounding the pink pony fizzled out. “Thanks Pinkie, I owe you one!” “No you don’t silly!” Pinkie called from her sprawled position on the ground. “Just let me throw the party!” “Sure Pinkie,” Twilight called back distractedly as she gave up the idea of running or flying – or the odd mixture of both she had accomplished thus far - and decided to resort to a tried and true method. Not seeing the almost manic gleam that came into Pinkie’s eyes at her words, Twilight lit up her horn and teleported away in an audible crackle of pink magic. Making a series of short jumps across the town to conserve her energy and minimize the chances of a miscalculation, Twilight finally blinked into existence just to the side of the embarking platform with mere seconds to spare, having been unfortunately delayed – by an angry couple and a pickle barrel of all things - between her teleports. Quickly scanning the dwindling crowd, she finally spotted her target about to board the train at the far end of the platform. Heart in her throat and panting lightly, Twilight rushed forward and lit her horn up once more. Cadance sighed as the conductor yelled ‘all aboard’ for the fifth time, intent on giving the stragglers one last warning before closing the doors. Posture slumped, she slowly walked up to the quickly dwindling line and took her place at the back. Raising a hoof to enter the train car, Cadance let out a gasp of surprise as she was simultaneously blinded by a bright flash and bowled over by something solid yet soft and warm. Rolling off of the edge of the platform and onto the springy lush green grass, Cadance rapidly blinked the bright spots out of her eyes before looking dazedly down at the pony clutching tightly to her chest. Squinting only slightly, her eyes widened as she recognized the bedraggled form. “Twilight…?” Twilight, for her part, just lay there clutching the older pony as she panted for breath. Heart pounding at her mad dash across town, she scrunched her eyes shut and buried her face in Cadance’s neck and kept quiet. Though she had made it this far, she hadn’t planned on what to do next, and so was practically paralyzed by her nerves. She really wished that she would have had time to read Lockheart’s The Art of Emotions before actually confronting Cadance. “Twilight?” Cadance tried again, this time softening her voice until it was more soothing than startled, steadfastly pushing away her own mixed feelings at their encounter so as to give Twilight her full attention. “What’s going on? Are you alright?” Biting her lip as Twilight nuzzled closer and her breath lightly tickled the sensitive fur on her neck, Cadance raised a hoof and lovingly rubbed small circles on the purple alicorn’s back. Barely registering the sound of the train departing, Cadance winced slightly as she shifted her wings out from beneath her and gently wrapped them around the precious bundle atop her, her wince turning into a tender smile as the smaller pony reflexively melted more fully into her embrace. “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong, Love?” Blushing at the term of endearment, Twilight squirmed embarrassedly for a moment before attempting to burrow deeper into Cadance’s neck in an effort to conceal her flaming cheeks. She nodded slowly in affirmative, before quickly shaking her head to the side. Huffing slightly, she finally gave a small noncommittal shrug of her shoulders in response. She wanted to tell Cadance – it was the sole reason she had chased the other pony across town after all – but she simply didn’t know how to. Cadance hummed thoughtfully as she continued her soothing ministrations, not at all aware of her slip of the tongue nor Twilight’s pleased yet shy reaction to it. “Perhaps you’d like to continue this conversation elsewhere?” Twilight bit her lip and nodded once more, this time clearing her throat before speaking shyly. “Come… um… Come back to the library with me?” Heartstrings effectively tugged at the soft pleading voice that escaped her beloved, Cadance smiled and responded the only way she could. “Of course I will, Twilight.” -0-0-