Chapter 5
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Trixie hurried into the apartment, laughing, Spike right on her heels.
Sunset smiled as she walked in after the little girl, a few bags slung over her shoulder, each with Twilight’s Cutie Mark emblazoned on them.
“So... this is your apartment?” Twilight asked, stepping in after Sunset, also carrying a few bags with her Cutie Mark emblazoned on them.
Sunset nodded. “Yeah. It’s not big, but it’ll do.”
“Not big?” Twilight asked as they set her stuff by the couch. “This place is bigger than the dorm I had back at Crystal Prep!”
Sunset paused as she lowered one of the bags she’d been carrying, turning to glance at Twilight. “Wait, really? I’d have thought a school like Crystal Prep would have really fancy dorms.”
Twilight chuckled sheepishly. “Well... truthfully it only seemed small because of all the equipment I had set up there... especially after I started researching what I saw as unusual energies coming from Canterlot High..” She blushed, scratching behind her head. “When I get focused on a new project I kinda tend to stop thinking of much else.”
“So I’ve learned,” Sunset said, giving a knowing, understanding smirk, which just made Twilight blush harder.
“You don’t know the half of it,” they turned to see Spike walking up to them, with Trixie right behind him. “One time, she thought she’d discovered a new form of insect.”
“Spike!” Twilight whined, wearing an expression and renewed blush that told Sunset this was going to be juicy.
“At one point, Dean Cadance herself had to get Twilight’s parents to come over just to snap her out of “Examination Mode”,” the purple dog smirk. “She’d even lost several pounds because she’d forgotten to eat properly for almost four weeks.”
Twilight gave another whine and fiddled with her fingers.
Sunset blinked, before glancing at the lavender girl. “Is that true, Twilight?”
The girl just bowed her head, replying slowly, “Kinda. It... wasn’t quite how Spike worded it.”
The dog snorted. “Yeah. I was sugar-coating it. It was way worse.”
This just made Twilight’s face blush brighter.
Sunset chuckled, putting a hand on the girl’s shoulder. “It’s been a long day for all of us. Trixie, what’s say I get dinner started whilst you help Twilight get settled in?”
Trixie nodded, walking over to the other girl whilst Sunset went out into the kitchen to get dinner started. Considering how long it took to bring in all of Twilight’s things, she was just going to make a pasta dish. It was a spinach, feta sauce with chicken dish.
Sunset hummed the song she and the girls had sung at the Battle of the Bands to herself as she sliced the chicken and the pasta cooked in the pot. Sunset had the Flavour Stone cookware set, because it really brought out the flavours of the food and she didn’t have to use oil like with regular cookware.
With the chicken sliced into stripes, she tossed them into the frying pan, adding some spices and salt and pepper, letting it fry, stirring the pot with the sauce every few moments and checking on the pasta to see if it was soft enough.
About twenty minutes later, Twilight, Spike and Trixie came back, moving over to the living room.
Trixie hopped onto the couch, grabbing the TV remote and turning it on, Spike hopping up onto her lap and letting her pat him and scratch behind his arms as Trixie watched an episode of EC Plays Lift-Off on the Youtube feature of Sunset's TV.
Twilight came into the kitchen, looking uncertain. “Um, Sunset?”
“MmHm?” she asked, not looking away from the pots as she used a strainer ladle to scoop some of the pasta (fettuccine) into a bowl, before setting it aside and starting on another.
‘Can I help with anything?’ Twilight asked meekly.
Sunset glanced back with a smile. “Sure. You can set the table. Cutlery is in the first draw over there,” she nodded her head to a set of draw built into the kitchen bar.
Twilight nodded and went to the draw, taking out cutlerly for them and Trixie, then went over to the table and set places for the three of them.
“Glasses?”
“First cupboard next to the draw the cutlery was in,” Sunset said, having finished scooping the pasta into three bowls and now adding the sauce, which she’d added the chicken to, on top of the pasta in each bowl, before turning down the stovetop so the sauce wouldn’t burn.
She then put the rest of the pasta into a large strainer which she held over the sink, so the pasta wouldn’t get soggy.
Twilight got the glasses and placed them on the table, then went into the fridge and pulled out a bottle of Cottee’s raspberry cordial, setting that on the table too.
“Dinner!” Sunset called a few moments later, lifting hers and Trixie’s bowls, Twilight taking her own and heading to the table, placing their respective dishes in their places.
Trixie turned off the TV and she and Spike came over, Trixie sitting down in her spot.
“And we can’t forget about Spike,” Sunset grinned, placing a bowl with Spike’s name in front of him, filled with the chicken and sauce mix.
Twilight put a bowl of water, also with Spike’s name on it, next to the bowl with the food.
They all sat down and began eating.
Trixie’s eyes lit up as she tasted the sauce and eagerly ate more.
“Uh, Sunset?”
“Yeah, Twilight?” she replied, glancing to the girl as she slurped a bit of pasta through her lips.
Twilight looked down, scratching the back of her neck, fiddling with her food with her fork. “You said you used to be a pony, right?”
Sunset nodded.
“But... you’re eating an animal.”
Sunset glanced down at the chicken mixed in with her food and shrugged. “I know, but, after living as long in your world as I have, I just started doing it myself. Besides, technically speaking, ponies can eat certain meats too, like chicken and fish. Ponies in Equestria just don’t tend to do that is all, and, since I haven’t lived in Equestria for the last four years, I don’t see a reason why I shouldn’t eat meat like every other human that does in this world.”
Trixie looked up, frowning, going over that in her mind, before she nodded and returned to her meal.
When dinner ended, they all decided to watch a movie. Trixie asked if Sunset had Basil, the Great Mouse Detective, which she did, so they watched that, whilst enjoying some chocolate swirl ice cream with golden Ice Magic topping for dessert.
Once it had finished, Sunset took Trixie to have a bath, the little girl insisting on bathing herself tonight. After her bath, Trixie brushed her teeth, then went to Sunset's room.
Twilight and Sunset didn’t really feel like talking much after such a long day, so, decided to have their showers, and go to bed as well.
Twilight followed Sunset to her room, intending to have a small chat at least before bed. However, when they entered Sunset’s room, they paused, a small, warm smile coming to Sunset’s face.
Trixie was lying on top of Sunset bed, her eyes closed, sound asleep.
Sunset shook her head, sat down on the bed and placed a hand on Trixie’s head and stroked through her hair. “Last night, she slept with me because she was nervous about sleeping in a different place than she was used to, especially now she’s a child. I’m glad she feels comfortable enough to fall asleep on her own, even if in my room.”
Twilight gave a warm smile. “Aww. Sunset, that was really sweet of you.”
Sunset nodded, chuckling a little as Trixie reached out in her sleep, gripping Sunset’s arm. “I guess she feels safe around me, is all.”
They stood in silence for a few moments, both of them just watching how cute Trixie looked as she slept.
“Well, goodnight, Sunset,” Twilight said after a few minutes, smiling as she turned to head for the living room to sleep on the couch. “And... thanks again, you know, for... letting me stay?”
Sunset looked to her and shook her head. “It’s no problem, Twilight. I’m glad I could help you.”
Twilight nodded, then headed off, Spike following after her.
Sunset cautiously got under the covers, bringing Trixie with her and turned out the light, before laying down.
Trixie, sensing the warm body next to her in her sleep, snuggled closer, curling up in Sunset’s arms.
Sunset couldn’t shake the smile from her face and closed her eyes, letting sleep take her.