Perspective

by Dreamscape

Chapter 5

Twilight burst through the entrance of the stadium and rushed a few feet into the pristine crystal hallway before skidding to a halt in front of the security gates as her hooves struggled to find any form of tread upon the smooth floor beneath. “Where are you off to in such a big hurry?” she asked, nearly crashing into Spike as he too slid to a halt before her.

“I’m gonna go ask Ms. Harshwhinny if there’s anything else I can do for the games,” he replied, nearly fumbling to the ground as the pony’s body pushed into his.

Twilight gazed down upon the dragon curiously. “Why? You practically just lit the torch.”

“No…you lit the torch,” he said with a depressing sigh. “I actually wanna do something myself, you know? I just really, really hope she’s got something for me. What are you galloping around for? You’ve still got a few minutes till the relay starts.”

“Exactly! I need to talk to Rainbow Dash before that.”

“Oh, you better get moving then, I think most of the teams are already out on the field getting lined up.”

“Oh no!” Twilight gasped desperately, tearing off towards the security gate, but coming to another sudden halt as a large hoof appeared in front of her face.

“I apologize for the inconvenience, princess,” said the suited stallion to which the hoof belonged as he bowed before her. “All magic must be disabled to prevent cheating, including yours. Please step through that gate there,” he explained, pointing a hoof at the golden structure, its center glowing with a magical blue hue. She nodded her head and quickly pushed through the substance which at first engulfed her as if it was a plasma, but then returned to its weightless state as she broke through. As she rushed forward once more, she barely had time to notice the spiraling magic sink into her horn.

The bright, freshly trimmed grass of stadium’s field tickled at the soles of her hooves as they finally touched down upon it after she jumped over the last few steps which led all the way back up to thousands of filled seats above. She was rather happy to be back on real earth. The previous fear of slipping upon the slick crystal or stumbling down the steps easily escaped her mind. It was easy to spot her goal’s bright cyan coat and colorful mane in the distance. A sight which encouraged her to move even faster. As she neared the small crowd of eager teams though, her pace slowed with hesitation. Rainbow was once again talking with Soarin’.

She suddenly felt like a complete idiot for rushing all the way out onto the field, just to say a few short words to her friend. Why had she believed that these few words would suddenly change the fate of everything; when in reality, she was most likely already too late. With a sudden and rather unexpected huff of determination, she stomped ahead towards her friend. It was not the time to hold back now, but instead act; something she had learned from Rainbow Dash long ago. If her goal was Rainbow, then of course she’d have to use some of the mare’s tactics.

“Rainbow Dash! I need to have a word with you,” she said sweetly, wrapping her hooves around the pony and literally pulling her away from the conversation she was having with her competitor.

“Jeez, you don’t have to drag me,” Dash said with a laugh, turning her eyes up to her friend as her hooves drug across the soft grass. “Sorry, but you gotta make this quick. I don’t have much time; so what’s up?”

Making sure they were at a distance far enough away from the other competitors that their voices couldn’t be heard over the perpetual roar of the crowd, Twilight spoke. “I-”

“Come on, Twi, I gotta go, like now,” Rainbow interrupted, quickly glancing over her shoulder at the teams who were in the process of flying up to their positions and readying themselves for the race.

“Ugh, alright, let’s just talk after the games today; when we’re not busy, okay?” Twilight asked, more as a command than a question.

“Sounds good, gotta go, see ya!” the pegasus blurted out quickly and nearly took off into the air, except a firm hoof came down upon her back.

“One more thing,” Twilight said as Rainbow turned back to face her. “Good luck out there,” she whispered, her cheeks lighting up as she leaned forward and placed a light kiss upon the mare’s cheek.

“Uh…haha,” Rainbow Dash mumbled nervously, her cheeks growing nearly just as bright as she scratched a hoof against her messy mane. “You’re so weird, Twilight…A good luck kiss?” she asked in a faintly teasing manner.

Twilight sighed and shook her head softly when her friend’s wings unfurled with a burst as she gazed up into the sky to her position for the race. “…The good kind of weird,” Dash added quickly, then took off into the air above.

***

Sighing with relief and then relaxing in her large purple throne, Twilight watched as Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy returned to her other friends, brandishing their newly gained silver medals. Although the relay had been rather exciting, especially how close Rainbow had come to winning for Ponyville in the final stretch with Spitfire, and the Cloudsdale anthem had been so incredibly awkward because of Spike; this simple matter was causing her more anxiety and emotion than any of that.

Seeing her speaking with Soarin’ briefly after the anthem, she was sure the two were bound to sit together for the next event. In this unexpected change of affairs, she realized that perhaps she still had hope after all. Not only had Rainbow Dash been pleased with the kiss, but now she had the chance to spend time with Soarin’ and declined.

Twilight wanted so badly to escape the metaphorical grasp of her throne, confidence flooding through her veins and encouraging her to push their relationship even farther; but she couldn’t. She was stuck in the comfortable prison for the rest of the events that day, and then she could finally tell Rainbow how she truly felt.

Event after event seemed to pass by at a dull crawl, mainly due to the fact that Twilight’s mind kept drifting off to the afternoon ahead, giving her little time to involve herself in the action. She barely even noticed the roars of the crowd as the intense unfolding of events kept them teetering on the edge of their seats. Surprisingly, it wasn’t the formation of a plan which occupied her mind this time, but instead intricate plot lines of how the situation may or may not pan out.

Along with that, she, on occasion, would relive the exact moment she kissed her friend on the cheek that morning. It certainly seemed like nothing special, but to her it was a major stepping stone. In those few short seconds she had broken the barrier of fear which prevented her from moving closer to Rainbow; and letting her lips press down upon the pony’s soft, furry cheek, was the perfect reward. The daunting task of admitting how hard she had fallen for her didn’t seem very daunting any longer. The act would be simple, no overly-planned romantic date beforehoof, no preparations at all, just speaking her mind.

Her eyes moved away from the field and up to the crowds in search of Rainbow’s distinct mane. After only seconds of scanning, the pony along with the rest of her friends were found. Although at such a distance, it was hard to make out exactly what she was doing, Twilight was sure she was simply watching the game and making a few remarks about how skilled certain competitors were. Even if the mare did happen to glance up towards her throne, she was sure it couldn’t be noticed.

Perhaps she wasn’t looking on purpose. Perhaps she was, once again, ignoring her as best as possible. Twilight let out a long sigh, filled with both frustration and a returning sense of anxiety. A sigh which caused the other princess to turn their heads at the rather distracting sound.

“Is something wrong, Twilight?” Celestia asked.

“Oh, no…just being impatient is all,” Twilight responded with a shake of her head, laughing for a moment. Taking a few deep breaths, she returned her attention to the action on the field below. She was overreacting as always. The span of a few short hours wouldn’t change the moment they had shared that morning. Seeing Rainbow act the way she did as she pulled away from the kiss was certainly a clue to her true feelings. Growing relaxed upon her throne, Twilight engulfed herself in the competition as much as possible, her eyes only darting up towards Rainbow Dash every few minutes to catch a glimpse of the amazing mare.

Comments

[Quiznak]

Ah, the cuteness is overpowering.