//------------------------------// // Cutie Mark Crusader Date Spying! YAY! // Story: Luna the Matchmaker // by dlazerous //------------------------------// Luna the Matchmaker Chapter 3 "Cutie Mark Crusader Date Spying! YAY!” By Steven Little My Little Pony © Hasbro Luna didn't know how long she'd lain there sleeping. Her dreams were becoming more vibrant and expansive. She opened her eyes slowly, letting them adjust to bright morning light. She casually looked at the clock on the wall and saw that the morning had only just begun. "A good nights sleep was just what I needed." She said to herself. The Princess rolled out of the small bed and stretched her legs and wings luxuriously. Leaving her room, she walked down that short hall and into the family room. "Good morning Luna." Spike said smiling. "Did you sleep okay?" "Good morning Spike. I slept very well, thank you." She said. "Where's Rarity, I was hoping to speak with her this morning." "Oh, she's in the bedroom giving Garnet his morning feeding. She should be out a little later." Spike explained. "Is there anything I can do for you?" "Sorry Spike, it's a mare issue." "I see. Twilight's coming over in a little while to be fitted for a new set of socks." Spike told her. "I sure you could talk to Rarity then." "Socks? Why would Twilight be getting socks?" "I have no idea. Somehow Rarity convinced her to get them." He said. "To be honest I don't know what the big deal is. I mean ponies don't normally wear clothing so what's the point?" Luna's face grew hot as she imagined Twilight walking in front of her wearing a set of light purple, sheer, silk socks. Spike noticed the blush spreading across her face and chuckled. "So, how long have you had the hots for my big sister?" The blunt question snapped Luna back to reality. "What?" She asked shocked. " I don't know what you're talking about." "Oh come on Luna, it's written all over your face. I mention Twilight and socks and you turn as red as ruby." "Please Spike, don't tell Twilight.” “I don’t know. Some secrets shouldn’t be kept. I won’t tell her as long as you promise to.” Spike said. “I will Spike, I promise. I just want her to hear it from me first. If it's going to mean anything, it has to come from me." The princess said. "Okay but don’t wait too long. Twilight is going to figure it out eventually. She's your sister's premier student for a reason so the sooner you tell her the better. Wait, does she even know you're in town?" Spike asked her. "I don't think so." Luna hoped. A young white unicorn bounced happily into the front room. "Good morning Princess!" She said merrily. "Would you like something to eat?" "I'd love one of Applejack's apples if you have any." "We sure do! We have a whole entire huge bin full of them!" The over excited filly told her. Sweetie Belle bounced off to the kitchen with Luna in her wake. "She's sure wound up about something." Luna called back to Spike. "Not everyday you have a Princess staying at your house." Spike told her. Luna followed the filly into the kitchen and over to the apple bin. "Here you go Princess. All the apples you could want." Luna looked through the bin and selected two large red apples for her breakfast. "Thank you Sweetie Belle." Luna was hungry and ate both of the apples in three bites each, seeds, stem and all. "Mmmm, very tasty. Sweetie Belle, I wanted to talk to you about what happened last night before you go to school." "What's up?" "I just wanted to know how you're doing. Kind of a lot has happened." She said. Sweetie Belle sat at the kitchen table. "I don't know. It's all kind of weird. I mean this whole time Scooty was living there all by herself." "Scooty?" Luna asked. "Uhm, yeah it's kind of a nickname. Anyway, she's living with Rainbow Dash now so everything's okay right?" She asked. "Is it? Sweetie Belle you discovered one of your best friends has been lying to you for years and you're okay with it?" "I know, I know." She said. "I don't like that she lied to me and every pony but I understand why. She was afraid. She didn't want to go to one of those orphanages because she thought she'd get hurt there." "But that doesn't excuse the lies does it?" Luna asked her. "You're still mad at her aren't you?" Sweetie Belle slammed her hoof on the table making Luna jump. "She should have come to us! She should have at least told me and Apple Bloom. She should have trusted us to help her!" "Like you said Sweetie Belle, she was scared. She's been running for years, hiding her past." "I don't care.” The unicorn filly said, almost pouting. “After everything the three of us have been through, all our adventures; she should have trusted her fellow crusaders." "Sweetie Belle, I know you understand why she lied to you and hid her past and I know that isn't what's really bothering you?" The Princess asked her. "This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with Scootaloo's comment last night when she was half asleep?" The young white unicorn suddenly had a splash of pink across her face. "Yeah, that was a little different." Sweetie Belle said. "Do you think she was dreaming or does she really, you know, like me?" "She wasn't totally awake so I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't remember saying it." Luna smiled at the filly. "I have to ask. If she does like you, how does that make you feel?" "I don't know. It's hard to picture Scooty as a filly fooler…" "Sweetie Belle, I'd rather you not use that term around me." Luna said, cutting her off. "Sorry. What I mean is, I don't know what to do. It's weird isn't it; for a mare to like other mares?" "Not at all. It's more common than you'd think." Luna informed her. "Did you know there are about four times more mares then there are stallions in Equestria? With that kind of discrepancy between the genders it's bound to happen." "So, what do you think I should do?" Sweetie Belle asked her. "I think you need to go talk to her about it and both of you need to talk to Apple Bloom. She deserved to know what happened last night. You can leave Scootlaoo's comment out of it." Princess Luna looked at the clock on the wall "Sweetie, I have to go or I'm going to be late with my plans, could you let Spike know that I'm going to be very busy today and most likely wont be back until late." "Sure Princess I'll go tell him right now and thanks for talking with me. I’ll try to see Scooty today and get her to go with me and talk to Apple Bloom." Luna smiled at the filly as she trotted off. Luna opened the large sliding glass door leading out to the balcony and took off into the bright morning. Princess Luna arrived in Cloudsdale two hours after leaving the Boutique. Standing on a cloudbank overlooking the city she searched for he quarry. The city itself sat atop a massive cloud. The Princess scanned the city from the Cloudaseum to the weather factory but it wasn't until she looked towards the outskirts of the city near Equestrias primary mail processing center that she found it, the Wonderbolts headquarters. The Wonderbolts, an elite team of pegasus, were flying above the city performing their morning work out. These pegasi were the best of the best, some of them hoof picked by Princess Celestia herself. They mostly flew in stunt shows or entertained guests at major functions like the Grand Galloping Gala but from time to time their real function came to bear. These ponies were the front line against any attacks on Equestria. Needless to say they were not used in that fashion often. Luna flew to their headquarters to wait for them to finish. The team commander saluted smartly as the purple alicorn landed in front of her. "Princess Luna this is an unexpected surprise." Good afternoon Commander Spitfire. How's the promotion treating you?" She asked. "It's taking a little getting used to. Last month I was captain of the team and now I'm the unit commander. It's hard ordering my friends around but they seem to understand, it's not personal, just the job." She said. "What brings you out today?" "I'm here to talk to one of your fliers, could you bring them in?" "Sure thing." Spitfire flew up into the sky and a moment later came back down with the Wonderbolt squadron with her "Form up! Let's show the Princess that we're not a sloppy bunch of new recruits!" The elite pegasi all snapped to attention and saluted smartly. Luna returned the salute. "At ease." She said in a powerful commanding voice. "Lieutenant Soarin Stormcloud. Front and center." The light azure pegasus with a navy blue mane, stepped out of formation and walked forward. The blue flight suit he wore was formfitting and impressively showed off his trim muscular frame. All the blue he wore along with the color of his mane and tail served to accentuate his striking green eyes. As he walked to the head of the formation nopony else in the squadron would dare move a muscle but all eyes were on Soarin. All the Wonderbolts had one question on their mind. What had he done to upset the Princess? "Your Majesty?" "Attend me Lieutenant. I would have words with you." Luna said. "Oh, and leave you uniform here, you won't be needing it for a while." Luna led him to an office at the end of the hanger. She allowed him to enter first and then closed the door behind them. The office itself was not overly large. It was an old administrator's office and was furnished as such. The desk took up most of the center of the room with a single chair behind it and two in front. A filing cabinet sat against one wall with a set of large window on the other, looking out into the hangar. Soarin was visibly shaking no matter how hard he tried to keep up the facade of proper decorum. "Is there something I can do for you Princess?" Luna sashayed past him and sat behind the desk. "Yes, I'm hoping there is. Lieutenant, I need your help with a very personal matter. Do you think you're up for it?" Soarin's face was flush. "I'm not sure what's going on here. If I have upset you in any way, I profusely apologize." He said. "But if this is what I think it is; Princess I'm flattered but I'm interested in somepony else." Luna started to laugh loudly. "Soarin, relax. I'm not mad at you; I simply needed to get you away from the others. To be honest, I hate acting like that but I need to talk to you and this way, no one will ask questions." She said. "And I'm not coming on to you for that matter either. Soarin relaxed. "Oh thank goodness. Not that you're not attractive or anything, far from it! It's just, I mean, what you said back there and then what you said in here, I thought…" Luna chuckled. She could see why Rainbow liked him. "Soarin. It's okay; relax. I wanted to talk to you about Rainbow Dash." "Rainbow Dash?" He asked frantically. "Is she okay? Did something happen?" "Calm down. Rainbow is fine. I just wanted to talk to you about her. More specifically, I wanted to talk about you and her. I have it on authority that you're quite infatuated with her." "Wha... I, er, well I..." Soarin fidgeted nervously. "Lieutenant; you have no need to pretend or be embarrassed around me. My sources are very trustworthy and not prone to lying." The Princess told him. "Please, be honest, you do like her don't you?" "I, I'm not to sure where you get your information but, uhm yeah, I guess, yes, I like her." Soarin admitted. "If I may ask, how long have you had these feelings for her?" Luna inquired. "Please pardon my rudeness Princess. But why are you so interested in this." "Soarin, Rainbow Dash and her friends are very special to me. I owe them all a debt that I can only hope to repay one day. To that extent I feel I must do whatever is necessary to help them in any way I can. Now please, answer my question." "A little over four years." Soarin admitted reluctantly. "The day she saved my life at the young flyers competition at the Cloudaseum." "My sister told me about that. It was quite a feat." She said. "Are you kidding? She could have died! I know she was really doing it for her friend Rarity, but she risked the extra time to save me, Spitfire and Sunshade. At the speed she was going after her sonic rainboom, she could have very easily crashed to the ground and killed herself. Princess Luna, she risked her life for ours, for me." Saorin was pacing the room. "How do you talk to sompony after that?" "Have you tried?" Luna asked him. "Yeah, at the Grand Galloping Gala that year. Spitfire was talking to me and I dropped my apple pie. Rainbow Dash sped over and caught it just before it hit the ground and the only thing I could say was, thanks." Soarin plopped down in one of the chairs at the head of the desk. "She must think I'm a complete loser." "I assure you, she does not." Luna told him. "She idolizes you and the other Wonderbolts. Let me ask you something. When you were a little colt, you wanted to be a Wonderbolt more than anything didn't you?" "Yeah. The Wonderbolts were so cool! I practiced everyday to become the best flier I could be. The first time I took the entrance test I failed but I tried harder and harder and harder and the next time I took the test I passed with flying colors!" The Pegasus excitedly explained. "Sound like somepony you know?" Luna asked with a knowing smile on her face. "Gosh, it does sound like Rainbow Dash doesn't it?" Luna could see the internal conflict within him. "But what if she says no? Worse, what if she thinks I'm using my rank and position in the Wonderbolts to try to take advantage of her? She'd beat the feathers off me!" "Soarin, you are a Wonderbolt. Where's your confidence? Luna asked. "Ask me to fly into a tornado, no problem. Want me to fly a starburst formation through a lightning storm, piece of cake. When it comes to that mare though, I feel like a colt with a crush on the class beauty." Luna placed a hoof on his shoulder and looked into his green eyes. "Soarin. There are things in this world that are worth the risk. Tell you what, I'll go with you and hide in the clouds. That way you won't be alone when you talk to her and Rainbow will never know." Soarin's face lit up. "Thanks Princess. I think I could do it knowing I had a wingstallion, uhm mare, uhm Princess; friend?" "Well, friend let's get going. Can't sit around here talking all day." "What, right now?" He asked shocked. "No time like the present. Plus if you ask her now, you'll have something to look forward to all day." She encouraged him. "That, and I want to make sure you don't chicken out." "You're right Princess. Let's go!" Both ponies walked out of the hanger and took flight. Soarin looked as though he was taking his time flying to Rainbow's house. "Is everything all right Soarin?" The Princess asked him. "Just fine, I just don't know what I'm going to say." He confessed. "Why don't you ask her to go for a moonlit flight tonight? I'm sure Rainbow Dash would love that." Soarin smiled and sped off towards Rainbows house. Luna struggled to keep up. She wasn't a bad flyer and normally would not have any problem keeping up but for some reason she felt weaker than usual. Soarin came to a sudden stop at Rainbows front door. Luna took a little time to catch up. Breathing heavily, the Princess outlined her plan. "I'm going to be down here hiding in the cloud. You do your thing and remember. I'm right here." Luna dropped out of site but made sure to stay within eavesdropping range. Soarin gulped and cautiously knocked on Rainbow's front door. Rainbow Dash heard the knock from the kitchen where she was making lunch for Scootaloo and herself. "Hey Scoot, could you get that for me?" "Sure thing Dash." The orange pegasus filly opened the door to see Soarin standing on the other side. "Hello." "Hey there, I think I might have the wrong house. Does a pegasus by the name of Rainbow Dash live here?" "Yeah, she's here, I'll go get her." Scootaloo closed the door and walked back to the kitchen. "Hey Rainbow, there's somepony at the door for you." "Okay squirt, chop those carrots up for me, I'll be right back." She said walking to her front door. Opening the door, she stuck her head out. "Ya?" Rainbow felt something against her nose. She looked up into Soarin's green eyes. "Oh my gosh!" She shouted as she pulled her nose away from his and slammed the door in his face. Rainbow was sitting on the floor of her cloud home stunned. "Why is, he, here?" She asked herself quietly. Her face had gone from cyan to a more distinctive reddish shade. "Hey Rainbow, what's the matter?" Scootaloo asked her as she ran from the other room. "Soarin, Soarin Stormcloud from the Wonderbolts is at the door." "What?" She yelped. "But how can you tell, he wasn't wearing a uniform or anything." "Trust me squirt, it's him." Rainbow Dash assured her. There was another knock on the door. "Hello?" "Miss Dash? Can we talk for a moment?" Soarin asked. "Sure, what can I do for you?" Soarin bonked his head against the door. "Could you open the door please?" Rainbow Dash slowly opened the door and poked her head out. "Yes?" "Would it be okay if I came in?" He asked. "Sure!" Sccotaloo said as she opened the door further. Soarin walked in behind the filly, leaving Rainbow standing there in stunned silence. 'Scootaloo, what the heck are you doin?' She thought to herself. "So kiddo, what's your name?" He asked. "Oh, my names Scootaloo, uhm, I'm uh Rainbow Dash's cousin, yeah, I'm her cousin and by the way, she really likes you." A blush spread across the face of both Rainbow Dash and Soarin. Luna shifted her position inside the base of the cloud to stay within hearing range Rainbow heard what she said and knew what she was doing. "No she's not." She told him, touched that Scootaloo would try something like this for her. "Soarin, Scootaloo is my adopted daughter. I signed the papers this morning. Scoot here was trying to get you to ask me out and she thinks guys don't like mares with kids." "Actually, that's why I came here." Soarin scuffed the cloud beneath him with his hooves. "I was wondering. If you're not busy or anything if maybe you might want to go flying with me tonight?" The blush that spread across Rainbow Dash's face had turned her cheeks completely red. "Sure." "Okay. Pick you up here around ten tonight?" "No problem." She said quietly. "Okay well, I should really get back to the squad. I'll see you later." Soarin walked outside and flew off heading back for the hanger and was shortly joined by Luna. "I don't think it went so well." He said a little defeated. Luna's ear perked up. "Are you so certain of that?" "YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES!" Rainbow Dash's shouts could be heard from a mile off. "I think she's pretty excited. You be good to her now. She and the rest of the elements are very special to me." "You have my word Princess." Soarin said throwing her a quick salute. Luna returned the gesture and allowed him to return to his squadron. Back at Rainbow Dash's house she was still trying to get a grip on the moment. "Way to go Rainbow!" Scootaloo cheered. "Thanks kiddo, I appreciate what you tried to do back there but I don't want you to ever be ashamed or lie about who you are okay?" "Okay Dash but hey, you got a date with a Wonderbolt!" "I know, this is gonna be so awesome! Wait wait wait, what am I doing? I can't go out with Soarin." She said. "I can't leave you here by yourself all night." "It's okay Rainbow, I'll be fine. It's not like it's the first time I've been on my own." Scootaloo said, trying to reassure her. "No, you've been on your own long enough and I'm not going to leave you here by yourself. Wait, Pinkie is babysitting the Cake twins while their parents are celebrating their anniversary." "I'm too old for a babysitter." The orange filly said with a pout. "I know that, but maybe you'd like to help Pinkie out tonight? The twins have become quite a handful." Rainbow said. "Lets go over to Sugar Cube Corner and find out. Besides, it'll be extra flying practice for you." "Yay!" Scootaloo shouted as she ran outside into the late morning air. Luna was happy that everything was working out so amazingly well. Just for fun she performed a few light acrobatics in the air. She wanted to feel the wind in her wings. Half way through a loop, Luna stopped and slowly descended to the ground. The Princess found it hard to keep her balance. Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo had already arrived at Sugar Cube Corner and were informing their friends Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie about her date. "That's great Dashy! I hope you have a great time and Scootaloo, if you want to hang with me tonight and help with the twins, that'd be awesome!" "Thanks a lot Pinkie.” Rainbow Dash said. “Hey, was that Princess Luna? I think I just saw her land behind the store." The ponies gathered at one of the back windows. They saw the Princess leaning against the backside of Sugar Cube Corner. Her stomach heaved, bringing up the small breakfast she'd had earlier. They watched Luna stagger down the road. "She doesn't look so good, I think we best help her y'all." Applejack told them. Princess Luna's vision had begun to blur. Luna could barely make out the fountain in the middle of town. 'The library, Twilight.' She thought. 'Must get to Twilight.' She turned left heading toward a large tree with a sign of a book out front. Her strength finally failed her and collapsed on the ground. In her delirium her legs kept moving trying to get to the library. Mercifully, Luna blacked out. She lay there, nearly motionless as five ponies raced to her side. Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie finally caught up to the Princess. Applejack knelt beside her and put a hoof to Luna's brow. "She's got a terrible fever y'all we need to get her to the hospital." "Not the hospital, we need to take her to Twilight, she knows more about alicorns than anypony else in Ponyville." Pinkie Pie said. The seriousness in her voice was unmistakable and strangely uncharacteristic. "Rarity go home and get Spike, then get to the library. Scootaloo, go get Big Mac and Fluttershy; we may need them." Rainbow Dash ordered. "Right away." Rarity said as she ran off. Scootaloo sped off in the opposite direction toward Sweet Apple Acres. "Come on girls we need to get her to Twilight. Pinkie, run ahead and let Twilight know we're coming, Applejack, you get the front and I'll get the back." Rainbow Dash said. It took some doing but they soon had Princess Luna lying across both their backs. They knew that if ponies saw the Princess in this state, it would do nothing but cause panic. With that in mind, they took the back road to the library that would insure the fewest ponies possible would see them. Twilight Sparkle was engaging in her most favorite of past times, reading and research. The subject of her research that day was dreams. For some time now her dreams had been plagued by the thoughts of a certain pony that she hadn't seen or even had the courage to write to for a year. The emotions these dreams brought out were not unpleasant, quite to the contrary, but Twilight was determined to understand why she was having these rather explicit dreams and the emotions they elicited. Pinkie Pie barged into the library, disturbing the lavender unicorns train of thought. "Twilight, oh thank goodness you're here. We need your help, Princess Luna is really really sick and nopony knows more about alicorns than you." Pinkie said. "Dashy sent Scootaloo to get Fluttershy. I sure hope she gets here soon." "Where is she Pinkie?" Twilight asked in a panic. As if on queue, Rainbow Dash and Applejack came in carrying the Princess. "Oh my goodness she bleeding so much. Lay her down here. Rainbow, go get my sewing kit from my room, in the dresser, second drawer on the left." Rainbow Dash flew off the grab the kit. "Is she going to be okay?" Pinkie Pie asked. "I don't know first we need to stop the bleeding from these cuts then I can try and find out what happened." Spike, Rarity and Fluttershy charged into the library. "Oh my, I hope I'm not too late." Fluttershy said. "Not at all, I can really use your help. Did you bring your first aid kit with you?" Twilight asked. "Yes, as soon as Scootaloo told me what was happening, I flew over as fast as I could. The others will be here soon." She said. "Spike, could you send a letter to Princess Celestia, let her know her sister is sick and where she is." Twilight asked him. "Way ahead of you big sis." Spike said as he blew green flame at the rolled up scroll he had just finished. Rainbow Dash returned with the sewing kit while Fluttershy unpacked her supplies. Twilight used her magic and levitated a multitude of first aid materials. "Okay Fluttershy, I'm not as good at this as you are, what do I do first?" Princess Luna slowly opened her eyes finding herself face to face with little Garnet bopping her nose with his tiny hoof. "Hello there little one." She said weakly. Rarity trotted over to the bed and picked up her child. "You need to leave the Princess alone. She's very ill." "No, it's okay. I'm fine." Luna said as she tried to sit up. Collapsing down back to the bed she found it hard to catch her breath. Perspiration beaded up across her brow. "Oh dear. I'd best get the others. Luna, please lay still, you need to save your strength." Rarity said as she left the room. Alone, Luna had a chance to look around the room. 'This isn't my room at the boutique.' She thought. Books and scrolls covered every imaginable space. The walls themselves were little more than large curved bookcases. She appeared to be in a bed with purple sheets, a bed much larger than the one at the boutique. The bed sat atop a balcony looking over the rest of the room below. A small set of stairs curved around the right wall from the door to the balcony area. Elusive at first a scent began to build in Luna's nose. 'I know this scent.' "Twilight." She said softly. Burying her nose in the pillow she breathed in deeply. Luna was rewarded with the smell of lilacs after a spring shower. There was only one conclusion. Luna realized she was indeed lying in Twilight Sparkles bed. Luna snuggled down between the sheets. 'It's like I'm wrapping myself in Twilight. I never want this to end.' She silently wished. The aforementioned pony entered the room backed by five others. Each of them had a look of concern on their face. Luna could not tell if she was blushing or if her fever had gotten worse. "Good evening Princess Luna. How are you feeling?" Twilight asked. "I'm just a little tired is all. I've been feeling a little weak lately but it's nothing I haven't dealt with before. I just need some rest." Luna said "This has happened before?" Fluttershy asked. "Yes, a little while ago but it went away, I'm fine really. What happened?" "Pinkie, Dash, Rarity and me were in Sugar Cube Corner havin’ a late lunch. Rainbow was telling us about a date she had tonight when we saw you land behind the shop." Applejack explained. "Yeah and you went all barfy back there. Then we watched you walk wobbly down to the road." Pinkie added in. "You turned towards the library after you passed the fountain and then you went crash, right into the ground. But I think you didn't know because you looked like you were still walking but you were lying down." "You cut up your right side pretty bad." Rainbow Dash concluded. Luna looked down along her body. Her entire right side was covered in bandages. "Could I maybe talk to Rainbow, Applejack and Rarity alone for a moment?" Luna asked as calmly as she could. "Of course your majesty." Twilight said. "Let's go Fluttershy, you too Pinkie." As soon as Twilight exited the room, Luna looked almost pleadingly at Rainbow Dash. "Don't worry Luna. I didn't say anything to her." Dash reassured her. "But she told us everythin'." Applejack informed her. "Why didn't y'all say somethin' when we spoke yesterday?" "Yes." Rarity added in. "I could tell that you wanted to talk about something when you came to the shop with Sweetie Belle the other day." "I'm sorry. It's still not that easy for me to express my feelings." Luna apologized. "I don't normally have anyone but my sister to talk to. The rest of the ponies at the palace tolerate my presence but they don't really talk to me. The six of you and my sister are the closest thing to friends that I have. I'm sorry I couldn't trust you with my secret. I wasn't sure how you'd react." "Well, if it's any comfort to you, Twilight was plenty worried bout you. You should have seen her fixin' you up when we brought you here. She was like a pony possessed. I'd never seen her magic controllin' so much at one time." Applejack told her. "She insisted on doin' everythin' herself. Fluttershy was directin' her when it came to sewin' up some of your cuts but she wouldn't stop or take a break till she was finished." "Really?" Luna was starting to tear up. 'Is it possible? Could she care for me that much?' she thought to herself. "I swear Luna, you're just like Twi." Rainbow Dash said. "She's so busy helping others that she rarely makes time for herself. That's why we decided to move your things from Rarity's over here." "You did what?" Luna asked shocked. "Call it tough love and payback for not tellin' us what you were up to." Applejack said smiling. Garnet began crying. "It's time for his feeding. I should be going anyway. Have a good time girls. Luna I hope you feel better soon." Rarity closed the door behind her. "So you're not mad at me? Messing with your personal lives?" Luna asked a little afraid of the answer. "Heck no Luna. You got Soarin to ask me out. And you gave me the courage to accept. If it wasn't for you, I don't know what would have happened." Rainbow said. "And on top of that, you gave me Scootaloo. We've only been together for a day but already I can't imagine life without that little filly. Thank you." "Shoot Luna. I owe you a lot. Caramel hasn't broken or lost anythin' all day. And now he's taking me to the Sunflower Café for dinner. I can't thank you enough." "You are both most welcome." Luna said. Apple Bloom came running into the room. "AJ, come quick. Big Macintosh is sick." "Calm down Apple Bloom. Now, what's goin' on?" Applejack said, trying to calm her down. "Big Macintosh is sick in bed. He says it was somethin' he ate and he feels really bad." "Big Mac's a big pony, I'm sure he can take care of himself." Rainbow Dash said. Although unexpected, Princess Luna saw an opportunity. "Apple Bloom, come over her for a second." Luna told her. Apple Bloom climbed up on the bed and sat next to the Princess. Luna whispered into her ear for a while. When she was finished Apple Bloom was blushing and lit up in a big smile. "Is Sweetie Belle here?" "Yeah. You want me to get her?" Apple Bloom asked. "Yes. Good luck on your mission Crusader." "Thank you Princess. I'll do my best. "What did you tell her?" Applejack inquired. Luna smiled a little through the pain in her side. "Nothing of too much importance. Now, I want you both to have a good time on your dates. Don't worry about Macintosh, I've just seen to it that he will be well cared for." Luna noticed the little white filly that had just entered the room. "There is something I want you both to remember. What happens tonight and every night after is up to you. All I did was give you the opportunity. It's up to you to seize that opportunity and make the most of it." The two mares where smiling. "We understand Luna and thank you." Applejack said. Rainbow Dash and Applejack left the room to get ready for their dates, leaving Sweetie Belle alone with Luna. "What can I do for you Princess?" Sweetie Belle asked, her front hooves resting on the edge of the bed. "I have another important mission for you my little crusader. I need you to follow Applejack and report to me everything that happens on her date with Caramel. Can you do that for me without being seen?" "You can count on me Princess." Luna smiled as she hurried out of the room. Twilight Sparkle was almost knocked over as Sweetie Belle rushed by. The light violet unicorn walked up the stairs to her bedroom. "Well, everyone has gone home. So it should be quiet, which is good because you should really try to get some sleep." "Twilight, do I make you nervous?" Luna asked her. "Heh heh. What makes you say that?" She said. The lavender unicorn swallowed hard. 'Calm down Twilight you've been around her before, it's no big deal. Just check in on her and go.' "You're fidgeting. You keep shifting from hoof to hoof constantly. You seem to be breathing rapidly and your ears are hanging down." "Can you read all ponies like that?" Twilight asked nervously. "No, not all ponies but a good few of them." Luna explained to her. "Please Twilight calm yourself. I'm not the monster you met those six years ago." "I, of course you're not a monster. I would never think that about you." She said quickly. "Then why has your pulse quickened and your knees started shaking?" 'Darn it! Calm down.' She cursed to herself. Twilight was suddenly interested in the floor. "It's not fair to read me like that." "Life isn't fair Twilight Sparkle. Answer my question, please?" "I'm sorry Princess Luna. I guess I am a little nervous. You are royalty after all. You're also hurt and sick. I can't get in touch with Princess Celestia. Spike has already sent her a letter but we haven't heard from her in over two hours." "I wouldn't worry too much about it Twilight. Celestia loses track of time when she gets busy. I'm sure she thinks you and your friends can handle things." Luna shakily got to her feet. “And I'm not that sick. I'll be fine." "Princess, please lay down you shouldn't be up and around." Twilight said Luna tried to walk off the bed but only made it half way when Twilight blocked her way. "I'm fine Twilight and besides it's getting late. I'm sure you want to get to sleep. It's not right for me to take your bed from you." Twilight tried to push the Princess back onto the bed "Princess, please, I would not be a good host or a good friend to let you become worse because I wanted to sleep in my own bed. I can sleep on my sofa in the other room." Twilight started to fall into one of her old habits and began lecturing the dark purple alicorn. "Whether you want to believe it or not, you are sick and you need your rest. As a matter of fact, you should probably stay in bed until I can figure out what's wrong with you." "Nonsense." Luna said. "There's nothing wrong with me I'm just fine, just a flu I'm sure." She started to push against the unicorn mare when she was struck with a dizzy spell. Had Twilight not been there to catch her, Luna would have fallen to the floor Twilight gently pushed Luna back onto the bed and pulled the covers around her. "There now, please get some rest." Luna raised a hoof to stop her. "No Twilight. Please I don't want to intrude upon your hospitality." "Princess Luna, this is silly. The bed is more than big enough. If it okay with you Princess, we can share it." Luna was blushing from tip to tail. "Would you get some rest then?" "Uhm, I guess that's okay. If you insist but only if you stop with that Princess twaddle. I want ponies to refer to me simply as another pony, not a title to be feared and obeyed." "If that is what you wish Luna, but please lay down and relax, you need to rest." Luna settled down in the bed. Twilight climbed into bed next to the Princess, tucking her legs in under her she settled down on the plush mattress. Turning the lights out with her magic, Twilight called back behind her to Luna. "Goodnight Luna. I hope you feel better in the morning." "Goodnight Twilight." Luna lay her head down and drifted off to sleep. It was later that night when Luna stirred. She felt something warm pressed against her. Looking down, she found Twilight curled up next to her, nuzzled close under her wing. Luna's heart rate went through the roof. 'Could this be true?' She thought. 'Could the mare of my dreams really be cuddled up next to me?' Luna carefully lifted her wing and gently brushed Twilight's mane. 'This is real!' As much as Luna didn't want to leave she knew she needed to. It was almost midnight and she wanted to check up on Rainbow Dash and Soarin. Luna concentrated hard on Rainbow Dash's house. There was a flash and Luna was teleported to a cloud next to Rainbow's house. She had missed everything. Soarin and Rainbow were talking outside her house. Luna could barely hear the conversation but knew it was coming to a close. "I had a great time Soarin, thanks for asking me to go flying with you." "I'm glad you had fun Rainbow. I did too. I was wondering if you and Scootaloo wanted to have dinner with me tomorrow? My treat." Soarin asked hopefully. "Really? You wouldn't mind if Scootlaoo came too?" Rainbow asked. "She may not be your blood but she is your daughter if only by law. I wouldn't want to come between you two especially since you're both starting out." Rainbow smiled. "Instead of dinner, I have a better idea." Dash wrapped her wings around him and gently kissed his lips. "How about breakfast?" She asked, pulling him into her house. Luna didn't need to hear everything to know what was about to happen in there. "Good job Rainbow Dash, I'm proud of you." She said to herself. Concentrating hard, Luna willed her teleporting power to send her back to the library and back to Twilight. It was taking more of an effort to gather the energy but at last she had it. There was the telltale flash of energy but something went wrong. Instead of sending her back into the bedroom, she appeared outside of the tree, fourteen feet in the air. Luna opened her wings quickly but the muscles controlling them faltered and would not hold the wings steady. Luna plummeted to the ground landing in a heap; her wings bent at odd angles. Above her, a single light in the library’s master bedroom had come on.