Fifteen by Five

by Cynical

A Wedding (TwiPie)

Twilight looked at herself in the full-length mirror. Rarity had outdone herself yet again, dressing her in swirling silks of pure white and navy blue, creating a dress fit for a princess. She wouldn’t have dreamt of letting anypony else design it either. A perfect dress for a perfect wedding with the perfect partner.

It had been amusing if she was honest, when she’d finally gathered up the courage to finally ask her special somepony the special question. And then there was her smile as she’d answered a resounding yes. If Twilight hadn’t known better, she’d have said a second sun had shone for a few hours afterwards.

She spun around in front of the mirror, admiring Rarity’s work. She’d thrown her all into this, that was for certain. Her mane had simply been washed and straightened into its normal style. She remembered Rarity saying, ‘There’s no point changing it if it already looks wonderful, dear.’

A quiet knock at the door broke her out of her reverie. Turning around, she called across the room, “Come in.” The door swung inwards slightly to reveal Rainbow Dash poking her head around the door, looking worried.

“Rainbow?” Twilight asked, surprised.

Rainbow smiled briefly before her face dropped. “Hey Twi, listen… Rarity would kill me if she knew I’m doing this, but… we need your help.”

Worry immediately flooded through Twilight as she thought of all the possible scenarios. “Oh no, no no no. What’s wrong? Is she having cold hooves? Please tell me she’s not getting cold hooves; please tell me she’s not having second thoughts.”

Rainbow frowned, stepping through the door and closing it behind her. “No, it’s nothing like that. She’s just becoming a little… antsy.”

“Antsy?”

Rainbow nodded. “For the same reason as before… you remember?”

Twilight nodded grimly. “Alright… do you know where Rarity is? I really don’t want her overcomplicating this.”

Again, Rainbow frowned. “Sorry, I have no idea.” she paused before her eyes lit up and her mouth stretched into a smile. “Hey… why don’t you just teleport over there, it’s you she wants to see, not any of us. I’ll keep Rarity from knowing you’ve ever gone.”

Twilight beamed at Rainbow. “That’s brilliant, I’ll be back as quick as I can, thanks Rainbow!” she rushed out, her horn already lighting up as she prepared her teleport, disappearing and leaving the last syllable hanging in the air.

---

There was a flash of light and Twilight appeared, blinking rapidly in order to get rid of the spots dancing before her eyes. She took a moment to look around her surroundings. She’d teleported into the corridor across Canterlot Castle, the one where she knew Pinkie Pie was having her own dress seen to.

Thankfully there was no sign of Rarity, their wedding planner, anywhere and Twilight wasted no time knocking on the door in front of her. Within moments, the door had been twitched open to reveal a single blue eye, framed by bubble-gum pink hair.

“Oh, thank Celestia you’re here, Twilight,” Fluttershy mumbled out, glancing back into the room quickly before turning to face Twilight again and opening the door to let her in.

Twilight nodded her thanks and hurried inside, letting Fluttershy close the door behind her as Twilight got a look inside the room. Pinkie Pie, in a silken dress as elegant as Twilight’s own, was stood in the middle of the room, facing away from the door. Applejack was stood next to her with a hoof on her shoulder, murmuring something quietly to Twilight’s fiancé.

Applejack glanced up, meeting Twilight’s eyes once and offering a weak smile before she spoke up, “Hey Pinks, someone’s here to see you, we’ll be outside if you need us, ‘kay?”

Twilight thought she saw Pinkie’s head bob slightly. Applejack nodded and turned away from Pinkie, her expression grim, “We’ll be outside, sugarcube. If Rarity turns up we’ll try to buy you some time.” Applejack muttered under her breath as she passed Twilight.

“Thanks Applejack,” Twilight said absent-mindedly, already stepping towards her fiancé and not noticing the door open and close somewhere behind her.

She drew up next to Pinkie, rubbing her head along Pinkie’s neck before turning and kissing Pinkie’s cheek. “Hey there Pinkie, how’re you feeling?”

Pinkie shuddered slightly before whispering, “S’not right…” She turned her sorrowful eyes towards Twilight. “It’s not fair… Rarity isn’t the party planner, that’s me, that’s my talent.”

“But this is your party, Pinkie, a party for you and me to celebrate and be happy,” Twilight soothed, smiling slightly, “Let Rarity bear the brunt of the work for once.”

Pinkie just pouted, mumbling, “But what if she forgets something, what if she forgets that Mr Standard is allergic to nuts, or if she forgets that Mrs Cake is on a diet, or maybe- Mmmph mph, mph-”

Twilight cut Pinkie off, pressing her mouth to hers and waiting until she stopped trying to speak.

Once she was sure that Pinkie had calmed down, she withdrew her head and chuckled softly. “I’m sure she’ll have done everything she could possibly do. She’s been more worried about this than her shop of late.”

“But what if-”

“Pinkie,” Twilight interrupted calmly, “Rarity volunteered to organise the wedding for us and you agreed. I’m sure that she will come through admirably and that this will be brilliant.”

Pinkie stayed silent, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath instead. “You’re right…” she murmured after a moment, “You’re always right. I’m sure she’ll do her best.” Pinkie opened her eyes, smiling weakly at Twilight, “Thanks Twily.”

“You know you’re one of the few ponies I’ll ever let me call that, right?”

The corners of Pinkie’s mouth curled upwards momentarily. “Yeah…”

Just as Twilight was congratulating herself on another averted disaster, Pinkie’s eyes widened in shock and she let out an almighty gasp.

“Twilight,” Pinkie started, her voice much quieter than before, “What are you doing here, Rarity is going to kill you if she finds out!”

Twilight breathed out a sigh of relief before she spoke, “Relax… if Rarity comes looking for either one of us, our friends will stall her for a little while.”

As soothing as her words were, it did little to console the worry in Pinkie’s eyes. “But if it makes you feel better, I’ll get back to my room.”
Pinkie nodded anxiously.

“Alright,” Twilight started, her horn starting to glow. “I’ll see you at the altar, and by the way Pinkie… You look beautiful.”

There was a flash, and Pinkie was alone in her dressing room.