A Date with the Stars
Aria’s POV
The time flew. Days became weeks and weeks became months. Before I knew it, June arrived. Twilight’s school was about to close for the Summer, and I was feeling optimistic. Just a week ago, I went to the job interview Cadence got me, and for once, I feel like I made a good impression. I didn’t feel awkward, I could answer all of the questions properly and when the interview was finished, they smiled genuinely when they shook my hand. Even if they don’t call me back, I think my mood won’t be ruined.
This good mood will be useful today. I’m about to go on a date with my beautiful girlfriend and I’ll need all the smiles I can get. I looked over at Cynthia and approached her to pet her head a little as if it were a real dog. I wonder what it would be like to have a wolf as a pet?
“Watch over my room while I’m gone, yes?” I kissed her forehead, imagining that I was kissing Twilight, as usual, before finishing getting ready.
Just after I got dressed, there was a knocking on my door. “Come in!” I said before turning around towards the door. Since Sonata was at work, it could only be Adagio. She walked in, gasping when she saw me. I noticed that she was carrying Ham Ham. She put a hand on her chin and nodded approvingly as she took a closer look at me.
“You’re looking good, my dear sister. Very good.” she said looking me over. “Special occasion?”
“Not really, I just wanted to look presentable today.” I said. “Besides, on where we’re going today, I can’t wear the usual.”
“Oh?” My sister smirked. “Look at you, worrying about your outfit being out of place. My good taste is finally rubbing into you.”
I let out a snort giving my sister a scowl. “Don’t get your hopes up, Adagio. It’s just because of where we’re going. I’m not going to care how I look every day.”
Adagio sighed. “Oh, well. It’s still a small victory at least.” My sister put the hamster on her shoulder before crossing her arms. “Where are you taking her?”
I smirked as I wagged my finger. “I’m not taking her anywhere. She’s taking me to grab a bite and then we’re going somewhere which, according to her, is quite romantic, so I thought I could look more appealing.”
“Well, doesn’t that sound lovely?” Adagio smiled. “She’s picking you up, then?”
“She is. In around ten minutes.” I said as I walked out of my room to sit on the couch and turned on the T.V. to start killing time.
My sister joined me a few minutes later, with her sketchbook in hand. Ham Ham jumped from Adagio’s lap to mine. I picked up the little furball and started petting him as I peeked out of curiosity. She had crossed out all of the designs from the page she was currently drawing on. She was uninspired. “Still out of ideas?” I asked.
My sister groaned loudly. “Yes… it has been a week and I can’t come up with anything! I’m losing my patience!” She said the last as she crossed out yet another of her designs and turned the page of her sketchbook, furiously scribbling in it.
“Have you told Rarity about this? Maybe she was uninspired at one point too and could give you advice.” I said.
“I have told her, yes.” Adagio put her pencil down and looked at me. “She said that a change of scenery sometimes helps, but I’m not sure where to go since I have no idea what I want to design next. Should I do pants? A skirt? How about a skort? Not just that, I need to choose colors, a pattern… ugh! My mind is completely blank. I hate it!” Adagio threw her arms into the air before starting to massage her forehead. I placed a hand on her shoulder to catch her attention. When she looked at me, I smiled a little.
“Summer is a week away. Isn’t there anything Summer themed you could do?”
“I-I suppose...” My sister sighed. “I could go to the beach and see if inspiration hits me.”
“Now we’re getting somewhere.” I smiled at my sister before turning to the T.V., only to look back at my sister a moment later. “Wait, what’s a skort?”
“It’s a mix of a skirt and shorts. Quite comfy, actually. Shall I get you one?” Adagio replied with a smirk. Meanwhile, I felt like throwing up.
“It wasn’t enough to have them separated and now you’re telling me that a combination of the two exists?! Hard pass.”
My sister shrugged. “Suit yourself.”
I laid back on the couch and kept watching T.V. until there was a knock on the door. I grinned, knowing that it was Twilight. “I’ll get it.” I said as I passed Ham Ham to Adagio. I opened the door and crossed my arms, smirking at my beautiful girlfriend on the other side. “Hey.”
“Hi.” Twilight smiled and walked in, placing her arms around my neck and closing her eyes to give me a sweet kiss. I gladly returned the gesture, but when I saw her eyes up close I noticed that, for some reason, they were somewhat red with heavy bags under them.
“What happened to your eyes?” I asked, concerned. “You look tired.”
“What do you mean?” Twilight said, blinking confusedly.
“Your eyes, they’re red.” I rubbed her cheeks.
“Oh...” My girlfriend stepped away and removed her glasses for a moment to rub her eyes with her arm. “I just had a nightmare last night and couldn’t sleep well. It’s nothing to worry about.”
“Are you sure?” I tried to reach for her face, but Twilight backed away more.
“Yes, I’m sure.” Twilight put her glasses back on again and gave me an awkward smile. “Really, I’m fine.”
I wasn’t convinced, and I even felt a little hurt, but I didn’t want to keep pushing her. She was clearly uncomfortable talking about it, and I trust her. I know she’ll tell me eventually. I chose to give her space for now. Sighing, I placed my hands in my pockets. “Okay, umm… shall we go?”
My girlfriend nodded and smiled more genuinely helping to raise my spirits. “Yes. I just want to go say hi to everyone real quick.” She headed into the living room with me right behind her.
Twilight saw my older sister sitting on the couch with Sonata’s pet hamster on her lap. She was cradling him in her hands using one index finger to rub little circles on his fuzzy head. The little hamster lived getting his head rubbed and rolled over to get his side rubbed when Adagio saw us enter.
“Hello, Twilight! How are you?” My sister stood to hug my girlfriend.
I felt a twinge of jealousy when that happened. When they broke apart my sister patted Twilight’s shoulder. “Make sure that Aria is back by dinner.”
Twilight giggled. “Don’t worry, I will. Oh, hi, Ham Ham!” My girlfriend leaned against the couch to pet Sonata’s hamster. “Are you having fun with your aunties?”
“Sonata’s at work, so we thought that we should give some company to the little guy.” I said as I crossed my arms.
“That’s a cute idea.” Twilight smiled at me before giving Ham Ham a kiss. “Okay, we have to get going.” My girlfriend walked back towards me. “Bye, Adagio! Bye, Ham Ham!”
“Have fun you two!” My sister waved at us as we walked out. Once outside, I took Twilight’s hand. Thankfully she didn’t pull away like she did earlier and that put my mind at ease that I wasn’t the cause of her discomfort when she first got here. My girlfriend looked at me and gave me a small smile. Only now I noticed that she was wearing the same outfit as when she invited me to her home to eat pasta, including a purse which matched. I smirked. Rarity’s doing, surely.
“So, cub… what’s the plan?”
“First, we’re getting something sweet.”
My eyes widened in joy and I spoke excitedly. “‘Sweet Enchantments?!’”
Twilight giggled softly. “Not today. This time I’m taking you somewhere I have been wanting to go for a while now.” She said before glancing at me. “We’re going to where my friends and I hang out almost all the time. ‘Sugarcube Corner.’”
“Oh?” I blinked, feeling a little confused. “I suppose we can. A change can’t hurt.”
Twilight smiled. “I still love ‘Sweet Enchantments’, but I met ‘Sugarcube Corner’ first and I get along with the owners Mr. and Mrs. Cake. Plus, Pinkie will be working there today.”
“Really?” I frowned. “Won’t she interrupt our date like the previous times?”
My girlfriend shook her head. “No, don’t worry. When she’s working she’s able to focus on her job.”
“Oh, like Sonata?” I asked. Twilight nodded. I then shrugged and smiled. “Then I guess we can give it a try. At least this time we know we’ll come across her.”
Twilight giggled again and put her arms around mine. “True.” We locked eyes and she grinned. “I promise, you’re going to love it there. Lúcio bakes delicious pastries, but Pinkie bakes the best cupcakes in town.”
“Yeah, I remember their taste.” I smirked. “You don’t need to keep convincing me, Sparks. If you promise me sweets, I’m on board.”
Twilight kissed my cheek before resting her head on my arm. “You’re so cute, Aria.”
She then poked my side, her finger sinking barely into me, tickling me slightly. I pulled away and she giggled. “You keep eating like that and you’ll end up getting fat.”
I chuckled. “As long as you don’t say that in front of my sisters, I agree.” As we walked, my mind was focused on just one thing… Twilight’s red eyes. This had to be something else other than simple tiredness, I had a suspicion it might be magic related, but without my powers it was hard to tell. They have me worried and Twilight completely dodged the subject no matter what I said. Though to be fair I barely pushed the subject. I really hope you’ll talk to me about whatever is bothering you, cub…
After a bit of travel we eventually came up to Sugarcube Corner at a busy intersection. It was a clever touch that the shop was on the “corner” of the street and had a corner in the name too. It might not be Sweet Enchantments, but if it has good sweets and good people running it, I’m not complaining.
We entered and the place wasn’t very busy. Twilight waved to two individuals. The first was a tall lanky man with hair stubble on his face and a kind smile. Next to him was a slightly shorter stout woman with pink swirly hair and a smile that was warm and motherly.
“Mr. and Mrs. Cake, hello!” Twilight greeted the owners.
“Hello, Twilight! Good to see you again.” The tall lanky man, who I figured was Mr. Cake, smiled at us. “I see that you brought a new face.”
“This is my girlfriend, Aria.”
The two looked over at me and smiled and I gave a very casual wave at Mr. Cake, “Hey, nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you too.” The man nodded at me.
“Aren’t you two adorable?” Mrs. Cake smiled happily at us. “Sit wherever you want. Pinkie will be with you right away.”
“Thank you.” Twilight said as she led me to a nearby table by the window.
We sat on opposite sides of the small round table. I saw that the menus were already on the table along with some wrapped up silverware. I looked around, checking the place. It doesn’t look bad, not at all. It’s located around the area I used to avoid until I met Twilight, which is why I have never been here before. The few times I was around I never came in I was just passing through. When I looked back at my girlfriend, I noticed that she pulled out a piece of paper and was writing on it with a pen.
“What are you up to, Sparks? Last minute homework?” I raised an eyebrow. “That’s not like you.”
My girlfriend giggled softly and looked at me. “No. In the last week of class before Summer vacations, I always like to write thank you letters to my teachers for all their efforts through the year.”
I smirked, thinking how nerdy that was but in a cute way. “That’s soooo you.”
Twilight smiled widely and returned to her letters and I started to study the menu. It didn’t take long for Pinkie Pie to show up.
“Hello, Twily! And you too Ari! I’m super duper happy to see you!” The pink one wore a huge grin, as usual. Did she just call me Ari? That sounds… weird.
“Hi, Pinkie!” My girlfriend greeted her friend. “I’ll have the usual.”
Pinkie Pie nodded. “Sure thing!” Twilight’s friend wrote down her order before turning to me. “If you have any questions, feel free to ask, Aria.”
“I’m good, thanks.” I said before glancing from the menu to Pinkie Pie. “I still remember your cupcakes. They were delicious.”
The waitress blushed by the compliment and nodded. “I’m glad your tummy enjoyed them!”
“I’ll have three. One filled with smooth caramel, another one with cream filling and the last one of pure chocolate. To drink… umm… ” I scanned through the menu again. “Just a latte.”
“Okie dokie lokie!” Pinkie Pie wrote down my order. “I’ll be back with your orders as soon as they’re ready!”
“Thank you, Pinkie!” Twilight said as we watched her friend skip to the other side of the counter. When I returned my attention to my girlfriend, she was focused on her letters again.
“You were right. She can focus on her job.”
Twilight nodded. “Yeah...” She said before abruptly looking at me. She seemed worried. “Wait, is it okay that I’m writing these during our date?”
“Yes. Don’t worry, I don’t mind.” I smiled at her. “It has its perk. I get to see your cute focused face.”
My girlfriend blushed and smiled back. “O-Okay, then.” She said before returning to her letters again. “I’m glad because I couldn’t get around to finish them yet.”
“I can be silent if you want.”
“Oh, no, please don’t.” Twilight looked at me and quickly reached out to take my hand. “I want to hear your voice. It will motivate me more.”
Now it was my turn to blush. I still have to get used to these public displays of affection. The feeling seems to come and go but I don’t mind too much. “W-Well, umm... ” I cleared my throat. “Our VCR got busted a few days ago. We had to get a new one. Fortunately, the video store from across the street works with an electronics shop in downtown who sells VCRs.”
“Oh! Did you happen to meet Mr. Richards?”
I raised an eyebrow, surprised. “Uh, I did, actually. He was the owner of the store. I take it you’ve already been there?”
Twilight nodded happily. “Yes, I’m a regular customer. Everything he sells is excellent quality! I always find parts and stuff I need there.”
I smiled. “I should have known.”
My girlfriend giggled cutely and focused on her letters once again. “Mr. Richards is a nice man. Sometimes I lose track of time while talking about electronics with him, and he has to remind me of an errand or experiment I had in the making.”
I chuckled. that's my cub. “Now I’m imagining a group of customers complaining behind you.”
Twilight laughed softly. “I always make sure there’s no one else before going into full geek mode!”
“Oh, yes.” I put an elbow on the table and supported my chin with my hand. “When you start saying a lot of things I don’t understand, but I love how passionate and happy you get.”
Twilight blushed again and smiled. “Th-Thank you, Aria.”
I slid my free hand across the table towards my girlfriend. Twilight looked at it before placing hers on mine. I squeezed her hand and when she looked at me, I blew her a kiss and winked. Her blush deepened and sharply returned her eyes to the letters and started to write more quickly. I smirked and stroked her hand with my thumb. Looks like I just gave her an inspirational boost because she started writing quicker and more intently than before.
Minutes later, Pinkie Pie returned with our orders.
“Here we go! Tea with milk for Twily with coconut cookies.” The party girl said as she put the plates and cups in front of us.
“Thank you, Pinkie.” My girlfriend smiled at her friend.
Pinkie Pie grinned and turned to me. “And for you, Ari, your latte and your cupcakes! Enjoy!”
“Thanks.” I offered her a weak smile and she giggled in return before skipping back behind the counter. When I turned to Twilight, she was putting her tea bag inside one of the pots Pinkie Pie brought. “Is tea seriously your usual, cub?” I said with a smirk.
Twilight shrugged. “I love milked tea and the cookies here are delicious! Do you want to try one?”
I frowned. “Really? But it has ‘nut’ in the name.”
My girlfriend giggled, offering me one. “Don’t worry. Coconuts are fruits. They’re completely harmless to you. Trust me.”
I was about to make a joke about how trusting her once led me to the hospital, but I decided not to since it’s still a touchy experience for her. Instead, I accepted her offering in silence. I took a small bite to taste it, but then I ate the whole thing when I saw how delicious it was. The coconut flavor with the soft cookie texture was a fine blend. Twilight giggled and I glanced at her. “I’m definitely keeping an eye out for more coconuts in the future.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Twilight said as she winked at me, squeezing my hand. I smiled at her and blushed. In the end, I ended up focusing more on how she wrote and didn’t talk that much. The beauty of her expressions left me too dazzled to care.
When we left Sugarcube Corner, Twilight immediately clung onto my arm. I always found that adorable, especially with that cute little smile of hers.
The food and drinks we had were delicious! I still prefer ‘Sweet Enchantments’, but this place was not bad at all. Mr. and Mrs. Cake were very friendly and I liked them. I even got to like Pinkie Pie more since she didn’t speak too much and respected our space. In small doses she’s bearable.
“So...” I broke the silence after enough time passed. I have no idea where Twilight is taking me, after all. “You really won’t tell me where we’re going? Not even a clue?”
My girlfriend shook her head and smirked at me. “You’ll get no clues whatsoever. You’ll have to trust me.”
“I trust you, Sparks. I’m just a little curious. Come on, just a small clue.”
“Nope.” Twilight shook her head again, smiling.
“What if I try to guess?” I smiled too.
“I won’t tell you if you get it right or not.”
“Are we going to the library again?” Twilight kept her face forward, completely ignoring me. “Or are we going to the cinema? Oh! Are you taking me to the arcade? That would be cool since I need to practice a couple of games in which Rainbow Dash beat me-”
“Aria, I mean it, I won’t say a thing.” Twilight glared at me, but she wasn’t angry. She was actually half smiling.
“Aww…!” I pouted and looked away, pretending to be upset. My girlfriend giggled and bumped against me playfully.
“Look at that. The all mighty siren is making cute pouts because she’s impatient.”
I chuckled and glanced at Twilight. “Careful, cub. Remember who’s the alpha here.” I said proudly.
Twilight smirked and booped my nose with her index finger. “I know my alpha loves me and can’t really get mad at me for this.”
I frowned at Twilight but then quickly smiled. “You make a good point, Sparks. You’re just lucky you’re so cute.”
Twilight giggled as I pulled her closer to kiss the top of her head. I didn’t try to guess where we were going again. I can be patient… I think.
After minutes of walking blindly, my girlfriend turned to me and smiled. “Close your eyes, please.”
“Why?” I asked, confused. “Are you going to make me trip?”
“No, of course not!” Twilight stood in front of me and held both of my hands. “The place we’re going is around the corner and I want to surprise you when we’re at the front doors.”
“What if I stare at the floor instead? I can be clumsy when I can’t see where I’m going.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll guide you.” My girlfriend said as she squeezed my hands. “Please? Just cover your eyes.” She fluttered her eyes after saying the last, making my heart skip a beat and my face turn all red. I just… I just can’t say no to those eyes I love so much… It’s a good thing that she had her glasses on. Otherwise, I could have passed out.
“O-Okay...” I sighed and smiled at her. “I trust you, Sparks.”
“Yay!” Twilight clapped cutely as she cheered. Is she trying to kill me?!
I smirked and covered my eyes with a hand. Twilight didn’t waste any time to take my free hand and guide me to our mysterious destination. I don’t like not being able to see where I’m going, especially on the streets, but Twilight kept her word by guiding me safely to our destination. I felt people walking around, but none of them touched me.
"Almost there…" Her voice alone was all I needed to smile. "Step, step, step, aaaaand, stop! We're here!" I was about to remove my hand from my eyes when Twilight stopped me. "Wait! Stare at the floor first."
"Why?" I asked, confused.
"For dramatic effect!" My girlfriend is such a dork. I sighed, but followed her lead. I leaned my face down at the ground and removed my hand from my eyes, opening them at last to stare at the floor.
“Okay, I’m ready.”
“On my mark.” I could already hear her excitement. How cute! “One… two… three! Look up!” I did as asked and quickly gazed at the sky.
I saw a few fluffy clouds and blue sky. It was very underwhelming.
“Wow… clouds. Exciting.” I said dryly.
Twilight giggled. “Don’t be silly!” She said before cupping my face and making me look at the building in front of us. I gasped when I read the sign.
“The Planetarium…?” I glanced at my girlfriend. She nodded energetically and had her hands clasped together on her chest level. Not being able to hold myself, I grinned and hugged her tight, lifting her off the floor. Twilight placed her hands on my shoulders for support. “Oh, cub, you DO love me!”
Twilight giggled even more. “Of course I do!” I set her back on the floor, where she wrapped her arms around my neck. “I have been meaning to bring you here for a long, long time.”
“What are we waiting for, then? Let’s go in already.” I said, smiling at my girlfriend. Twilight nodded and gave me a soft peck before taking my hand and pulling me inside. I chuckled and enjoyed watching her excitement. I’ll never get tired of that smile of hers.
My jaw dropped in awe the moment I stepped inside. Just at the entrance there were a lot of cool things to see. The place was decorated with stars and planets. Some cool photos were hanging on the walls nearby and I could see a corridor in the distance. But what caught my attention right away was a statue close to where Twilight and I were. It looked familiar. Holding my girlfriend’s hand, I approached the statue and was shocked to see who it was. I almost stepped back. It’s… Starswirl the Bearded!
“Yes, it’s Starswirl.” Twilight said as she squeezed my hand. She knew I wasn’t happy to see him. “But it’s the human Starswirl. He lived hundreds of years ago and was a great astronomer and inventor. I… admire him.”
I glanced at my girlfriend, raising an eyebrow in confusion. She hesitated. Why? “Are you ashamed of admiring him?”
Twilight widened her eyes and quickly shook her head. “N-No. He accomplished extraordinary things during his life and his inventions are still used today, although modified, of course. But… I understand if you don’t like him, given what his pony counterpart did to you and your sisters.”
That was true, I didn’t care much for the pony Starswirl, but then again I couldn’t hold that against his human counterpart. If that were the case, then everything the other Twilight did I would hold it against my Twilight, and I’d never do that. I smiled and stroked her head, making her look at me. “I’m glad that you worry about my feelings, but this man isn’t the same foe we faced. To start off, my enemy was a Unicorn, not human. They only share the looks.”
“So… it doesn’t upset you?” Twilight asked, still looking and sounding a little worried. How can she be so adorable? To calm her, I kissed her forehead and cupped her cheek.
“It doesn’t. Don’t worry.” My girlfriend grinned and hugged me tightly. I hugged her back while my eyes focused on the statue of Starswirl. I might have hated the unicorn who brought us here, but in the end… I got to meet my little Twilight. Can I still despise someone who allowed me to meet true happiness?
After breaking the hug, Twilight placed her hand around my arm and we started to explore, starting with the photos on the wall. I have seen these planets before, but in a book. The photos here were bigger and looked much more detailed.
“How does Mercury even exist?” I commented. “It’s so close to the sun. Shouldn’t it have melted or something?”
“Actually...” Twilight said as she accommodated her glasses. “Venus is hotter than Mercury.”
“Wha-? Really?” I glanced at my girlfriend, widening my eyes. She nodded and smiled. Oh, yes. She’s about to share facts!
“Venus is almost 100ºC hotter than Mercury. This is because the carbon dioxide traps most of the heat from the Sun. The cloud layers also act as a blanket, resulting in a ‘runaway greenhouse effect’ that has caused the planet's temperature to soar to 465°C, hot enough to melt lead.”
“Huh, look at that.” I said as I looked back at the photo of the hottest planet. “Well played, Venus.” Squeezing Twilight’s hand, I moved to another part of the room, but I spotted a couple of familiar faces. Not far from where we were standing were Shining Armor and a woman which I’m sure I saw somewhere before. They seemed to be on a date too because the woman had an arm around Shining and he had the goofiest smile I’d ever seen.
Twilight’s brother noticed me and Twilight as he looked over the exhibits in our direction. He waved at me excitedly as soon as he recognized me. I waved back. My girlfriend saw me and looked in the direction I was waving to see the couple heading towards us.
“Hey Twily, and Aria!” Shining Armor said as soon as he was close enough.
“Shining, Miss Cheerilee?” Twilight giggled. Oh, Miss Cheerilee? Yes! I remembered her now! She must be the teacher whose class I interrupted when I confessed my feelings to Twilight months ago.
“What a nice surprise, finding you here today.” Cheerilee said as she waved shyly at us. I suppose teachers can feel odd when talking to students outside school.
“I didn’t know you guys would be here today.” Twilight said before glaring at her brother. She even crossed her arms while still holding my hand looking quite cross. “Why didn’t you tell me when I called you yesterday, Shining? I thought that you were my BBBFF.”
“I’m sorry, Twily. It slipped my mind.” Shining Armor said, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. “But in my defense, you didn’t ask either.”
“You know, he got you there, Sparks.” I said with a smirk.
Twilight gasped and slapped me softly on my arm. “Aria! You’re supposed to take my side.”
I chuckled. “Sorry, cub, but he’s the one with the taser.”
“Very wise.” Shining Armor said as he nodded approvingly. I watched as Cheerliee nudged his side and he silently nodded.
Twilight groaned in frustration, but I knew that she wasn’t really angry. Her brother knew too, because he patted her head and smiled at her. “Don’t be pouty. Listen, Cheerilee and I have to go. We were actually on our way out.”
My girlfriend smiled. “And Aria and I are on our way in. Talk to you later?”
“I’ll call you if you don’t.” Shining said with a wink. Before they started to walk away, I elbowed Twilight.
“Hey, Sparks, the letter you were writing earlier... don’t you want to give it to her now?”
“Oh! Good idea, Aria!” Twilight grinned before looking for the letter in her purse and giving it to Cheerilee.
“What’s that, Twily? Trying to steal my girlfriend? Don’t you already have one?” Shining Armor teased his little sister, making her blush in embarrassment. I just chuckled.
“N-No… it’s just a thank you letter for Miss Cheerilee for all her efforts to educate her students.”
Cheerilee smiled and took the letter. “Well, this is certainly a first. No one ever wrote me a letter of appreciation before.” She said before putting away the letter. “Thank you, Twilight. I’ll make sure to read it as soon as I get home.”
With the letter delivered, we said our goodbyes and continued into the Planetarium while Shining Armor and Cheerilee walked out. I glanced at Twilight and saw her smiling brightly. Seeing her brother and teacher sure made her happy.
We went down the corridor, which eventually led us to… “Woah...” It’s all I could say. The room we entered was big! The surrounding walls had scale models of the sun and every planet from the Solar System, alongside their moons and with information surrounding it. It was organized from closest to the sun to the farthest.
“So… what do you think?” Twilight asked, smiling at me. My jaw was still dropped in awe, but I did manage to meet her gaze.
“I-I think I’m in love... ” My girlfriend smirked and took both of my hands, raising them between our chests.
“With me or with this room?”
“Can’t it be both?” I smiled.
Twilight giggled and squeezed my hands. “If you’re already loving this, I wonder, how will you react to my surprise?”
“Surprise?” I blinked, dumbfounded and then smiled widely. “What is it, Sparks? What is it?!”
“Ah, ah, ah.” Twilight wagged her index finger. “You’ll know in due time. Besides, it’s not ready yet. We need to kill time here first.”
“Then let’s get to it!” I said with excitement as I dragged my girlfriend to the sun model.
“A-Aria!” She giggled and let herself be dragged. We mostly read the information signs around the models and made some comments here and there testing each other on our trivia of the known universe. Eventually we came to one of the planet models and I looked at the plaque.
“Hello again, Venus.” I smirked. “So, you decided to give Mercury the middle finger and become the hottest planet yourself, huh? You’re trying to be cool? Well, you’re succeeding at it.”
“Not quite.” Twilight said as she rested her head on my shoulder. Both of her arms were around mine. “It’s the opposite of cool. Venus is on fire.”
I chuckled and kissed her head, making her sigh happily. “I knew that Venus was huge-” I said as I turned back to the Solar System. “But seeing it here compared to Earth… that planet doesn’t mass around.”
Twilight giggled before smiling widely. Damn, I love that smile. “I know. Imagine if it was at the same distance as our moon.”
“That’s… something I can’t imagine.” I said, frowning in thought. ”I think it would take over the entire sky.”
“I once saw a photo manipulation showing how that would be.” Twilight smiled at me. “I can look it up and show you.”
“Please do.” I said, smiling back. Before moving to the other planets, I smirked at her. “But you’re forgetting an important fact about Venus.”
“I am?” My girlfriend blinked in confusion. “What is it?”
I leaned in and kissed her. She was taken by surprise, so she didn’t kiss me back right away. When I pulled away, I touched noses with her. “You forgot to mention that it’s the planet of love.”
Twilight blushed deeply, which made me smile widely. “I-I knew that, b-but… I thought it would be too… cheesy.” She said fidgeting.
“So?” I smiled at her. “I don’t mind corny stuff when I’m alone with you.”
“Really?”
I nodded and smirked. “Really.”
Twilight smiled and avoided my gaze. “Well… I have been doing research on some pick-up lines...”
“Oh, yeah?” Now she had my full attention. “Go ahead then.”
“Okay.” My girlfriend cleared her throat and started to draw circles in my arm as she gave me a seductive look. “Look at you. If I were at the library, I would totally check you out.”
That was… so… cheesy for sure, and cute. But I can make it even cuter. I widened my eyes and looked away. “Oh, that...” I cleared my throat. “That might have been too much...”
Just as I planned, Twilight turned red again and covered her face with both of her hands. “A-Aria!” Yup! Even cuter than before.
I chuckled and put an arm around her, kissing her head. “I’m just messing with you, Sparks.” My girlfriend didn’t move. She kept blocking her face. “Cub?”
“I’m not talking to you anymore.” She huffed, hiding her face in my shoulder and using her hair to cover herself. Her voice came out muffled and I had to suppress a laugh.
“Are you mad at me?” Twilight nodded cutely, which made me smirk. Aww, don’t do this to me, Twilight! “Come on, Sparks, it wasn’t so bad. It’s just you and me.”
“Oh, is that an echo of my girlfriend I hear?” My girlfriend said as she gave me her back and crossed her arms. Oh, Twilight, that only makes you even cuter. What I’m about to do is entirely your fault.
Smirking maliciously, I started to poke on her back and waist. Twilight tried to keep my hands away by taking huge steps away from me. I kept the distance closed between us and kept my poking assault as she laughed.
“Aria, no! I’m trying to look mad!”
“I’m sorry, Sparks, but you failed.” Twilight turned around, still laughing by my poking, and I decided to step it up. I started to tickle her. Her beautiful laughter increased.
But to avoid getting kicked out for all the noise we were making, I stopped soon afterwards to hug her. She didn’t hesitate to hug me back, nuzzling her head against my chest. We made eye contact and I gave her a peck on her lips before continuing our planet tour. There’s so much to learn about space, and I’m eager to hear Twilight sharing facts with each other.
We ended up exploring most of the Planetarium by the next hour. Unfortunately, some rooms were closed today. As it turned out one of my favorite planets wasn’t a planet anymore! I was very sad to see the Pluto exhibit closed for the time being and as we passed I paid my respects for Pluto. “Farewell little dwarf planet on the edge of the system, we barely knew you.” I said with Twilight at my side.
Once we finished we continued onto a few other exhibits. After some time I started to wonder what to do next, Twilight started to guide me somewhere.
“Where are we going, Sparks?” I asked with curiosity.
My girlfriend looked at me, smiling widely. “It’s time for the surprise I talked about earlier. Follow me.”
She took us to a closed door. She approached it and glanced at both sides as if to check if no one was around. After checking, she knocked on the door in a certain way, as if it was a code. I chuckled at how dorky she was being, but then, the door opened. My girlfriend grinned before taking me inside, where we were greeted by an employee of the planetarium.
“Thank you again for doing this, Mr. Hugh.”
“You’re welcome.” The employee smiled at us. “You have an hour, as I promised. I’ll knock on the door to let you know the time’s up.” Twilight nodded and Mr. Hugh waved at us as he walked away. I waved back and turned around to walk, but it was so dark that I crashed into something.
“Ow!” I stepped away from whatever I crashed into and managed my hurting knee as Twilight put her arms around me.
“Are you okay?” She asked, concerned.
“I’ll be.” I smiled at her. “I wish I could see, though. It’s so dark in here.”
“Give it a second.” Twilight said, smiling back. Sure enough, the room lighted a few seconds later, although not completely. Some lights remained turned off, making the place look kind of romantic. I glanced at whatever I crashed into to see that it was a chair, but I still had no idea where we were.
“Sparks… What's all this? Where are we?”
“Oh, it’s nothing.” Twilight shrugged. “I just wanted some alone time with you, away from anyone else.” My girlfriend smiled and slowly walked closer to me. “The auditorium isn’t open at this hour, which makes it perfect for us to watch the stars alone.”
“The… stars?” I raised an eyebrow, confused. I could see the ceiling of the dome. It was completely solid, no windows. Not to mention that it’s still not night time.
Twilight nodded and turned around, pointing dramatically with her index finger to somewhere I couldn’t see. “Cue in the star projector!” Just as she said that, there was a clicking sound and a light came from a small room on the other side of the Auditorium. The light projected itself on the ceiling, where now what looked like a night sky could be seen. My jaw dropped as I gasped in awe. It was beautiful, not on the same scale as the real thing, but it was a close second.
“Left you speechless, huh?” Twilight said as she stood right next to me, crossing her arms and gazing into the ceiling. I smirked and placed an arm around her shoulder, making her lean her head against me.
“You sure keep reminding me why I love you every day.”
“Well, we can all use some reminders.” She commented as she looked up at me. I met her gaze before planting my lips on hers for a soft peck. “Do you want to sit? Just try not to kick the chair this time.”
“Oh, har har.” I smiled and we sat down on the nearest chairs, leaning her head against my shoulder and gazing at the projected stars. “Do you recognize any of the constellations, Aria?”
“Hmm...” I narrowed my eyes to help me focus and scan the different constellations. There were some I recognized. One especially caught my eye. I smirked and pointed at it. “Wait, is that… Lupus?”
Twilight nodded excitedly and grinned. “I knew you would find it!”
“How could I miss it?” I said before gazing into my girlfriend’s eyes. “It’s the constellation you talked about when you confessed to me. I did some research after that night to know exactly how it looked.”
Twilight blushed deeply, but kept her eyes on mine. “I never felt so much courage as I did that night. And here we are, months later...”
I started to caress Twilight’s hair. “It’s a shame that the whole ‘Alpha’ and ‘Beta’ nicknames didn’t stick.”
My girlfriend giggled. “It felt a little odd using those names.” She said before leaning into the hand I was using to caress her hair. “You said that you did some research. I only told you about the two brightest stars and where you could see Lupus. What else did you learn?”
“Well...” I gazed into the constellation again. “I know that it’s bordered by six different constellations, although one of them, Hydra over there, just barely touches at the corner. The other five are Scorpius, Norma, Circinus, Libra, and Centaurus.”
“Very good.” Twilight said before kissing my cheek. “You earned it.”
I smiled. “Why didn’t you say that I would get a reward?”
My girlfriend giggled. “There’s more if you repeat this performance.”
“You got it!” I grinned and quickly began to look for another constellation. Let’s see, I have to recognize another one… Oh, I found the perfect one! I pointed at the ceiling to make Twilight look. “Over there. That’s the Big Dipper. It’s formed of seven bright stars of the constellation Ursa Major, six of them are of second magnitude and one, Megrez, of third magnitude. Four define a ‘bowl’ or ‘body’ and three define a ‘handle’ or ‘head’. It is recognized as a distinct grouping in many cultures.”
“That’s correct!” Twilight said before kissing my cheek again. “But you’re forgetting something...”
“I am?” I raised an eyebrow, confused.
Twilight nodded and smiled. “It’s the constellation found in a very specific rod.”
I gasped, now knowing what she’s talking about. “Of course! Sparkling Voiture’s rod that Hikari has in our favorite book! The Sparkling Rod!”
My girlfriend nodded excitedly and extended her hands as if she was holding an imaginary rod. I followed her lead and we both exclaimed with determination at the same time. “Sparkling Arc! Ha!” After a moment of silence, we started to laugh at our silliness.
When the laughter died, Twilight smirked at me. “Let’s raise the prize. Can you tell me another constellation? This time, the reward will be a kiss on the lips.” She winked at me after saying the last, making my heart skip a beat and blush.
“S-Sure!” I smiled before focusing on the ceiling again. With the stakes high, I must make sure to choose carefully. I took my time gazing at the stars, until I finally found one, I remember reading before.
“I can see Scutum there. It’s a small constellation. Its name is Latin for… spear. It lies partially in the southern celestial hemisphere and its four brightest stars form an arrow shape. I turned to my girlfriend, smiling widely. But I lost the smile when I realized that she wasn’t returning it. “That’s not correct?”
Twilight shook her head. “I’m afraid you got some facts mixed up.” She said before gazing at the constellation in question. “Scutum is Latin for shield, not spear. The constellation lies entirely on the southern celestial hemisphere and the four brightest stars for a narrow diamond shape, not an arrow.”
“Oh…” I looked away, ashamed. I got so excited to get a kiss that I spoke out before thinking carefully on what I was saying. I felt Twilight placing her hand on my shoulder, so I looked at her. She offered me a small smile.
“Don’t feel so bad. We all make mistakes once in a while.” I smiled a little and scooted closer to her.
“Why don’t you do the talking now? I always love to hear you talk with all that passion you have.”
I saw Twilight blush. “Gladly.” She said before gazing at the ceiling while I rested my head on her shoulder and held one of her hands. I might have lost the kiss, but I can still get to listen to her beautiful voice without interruptions, and that’s almost as good.
An hour and a half later, we left the Planetarium. Hand in hand, Twilight and I walked towards my house to end our date. We talked about what we saw until we arrived at our destination. We turned to face each other, holding both of our hands.
“Thank you, Twilight. I had a wonderful day today.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” My girlfriend caressed my hands with her thumbs. “I wanted to do something big since I’m going to a Summer Camp in a couple of weeks and I won’t see you for a while. I’m already getting busy gathering what I’ll need and helping my friends.”
“Don’t worry.” I smirked. “I’ll find a way to keep myself busy.”
Twilight grinned. “And I have something to help you with that.” She said before starting to look for something in her purse. Moments later, she pulled out a wrapped gift and gave it to me.
“A gift too?” I said as I took it. “You really want to spoil me, don’t you?”
Twilight smiled and shrugged. “You only hang out with your sisters besides me, and my friends will be at the camp too. I know you’re just starting over and maybe you wouldn’t have given them a call. Anyway, I’m digressing. I don’t want you to miss me too much, so I worked on a new invention just to be able to give you this, and more to come after I get back.”
I widened my eyes, amazed. She invented something… for me?! “Wait...” I said as I started to unwrap my gift. Inside, there was a box, but not any box. A VHS box. The cover was of a movie that sounded familiar, but I never saw it at the video store. ‘Protectors of the Cosmos’. “I’m confused...” I said before looking at my girlfriend.
Twilight took a step closer before speaking. “It’s a recent movie, Aria. This movie is about a group of criminals who become heroes to save the cosmos. It’s one of the many released in a huge cinematic Universe, alongside ‘Mayor States’ and ‘Steel Man’. I know you can’t afford a DVD player yet, so I found a way to convert DVDs to VHS. The quality isn’t the same, of course, but-” I didn’t let her finish because I hugged her tightly.
“Thank you so much, Twilight! I’ll watch it as soon as I can!”
“You liked it, then?” My girlfriend hugged me back.
“I love it!” I moved my head to look at her. “And I’m sure I’ll love it when I watch it. It’s about space heroes. What’s not to like?!”
Twilight giggled and gazed into my eyes for a few moments before turning to the door. She lost her smile. “I have to go now. I don’t want to, but I have things to do.” She said before turning to me again, cupping my cheeks with her hands. “I’m not sure if we’ll be able to see each other again until I come back.”
“I’ll keep my fingers crossed.” I smiled at her. Still with her hands on my cheeks, she pulled me to her lips to give me a long passionate kiss, followed by two soft pecks.
“Something to remember me by.” She said, smiling a little. I chuckled.
“Twilight, you’re just going to a camp out of town for a week, not visiting another country for a month.”
Twilight giggled and hugged me, wrapping her arms around my neck. “Still, I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you too, Sparks.” I said before pulling away and smiling at her. “Call me, okay? I’m not sure what you will be doing so I’ll probably not call you.”
“I’ll call, I promise.” My girlfriend said as she booped my nose with her index finger. “I’ll think about you every day. I might also bring you something if I find anything.”
“Okay.” I said as I smirked maliciously. Twilight blinked in confusion, unaware of what I was about to do.
“Aria, what… aaaah!” All of the sudden, I lifted her into the air and spun around with her. After the initial shock, she started to laugh. She kept laughing as I put her back on the floor. “Not that I’m complaining, but what was that for?”
“Since we won’t be able to go on dates until you get back, I just had to do it.” I said as I patted her head. “See you, and take care, okay?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.” Twilight said before giving me one last peck. “Let me know if you liked the movie when you watch it, okay?”
“Will do. I’ll watch it now. Thanks again.”
My girlfriend smiled widely. “It was my pleasure.” She said as she started to walk away and wave at me. “Bye!”
I waved back and watched her until she turned around the corner. She blew me a kiss before disappearing from view. After she was gone, I walked into my house.
“I’m back!” I exclaimed as I closed the door behind me. Adagio’s voice came from her room.
“Welcome back, Aria! I’ll be there in a moment.”
I didn’t get a chance to reply to her since my phone started to ring. I picked it up and saw that the caller was a number I didn’t immediately recognize but it did seem familiar. “Hello?”
“Good afternoon. It’s Tree Hugger. You had an interview with me and my cousin a week ago.”
“Yes, I remember.” I said, starting to feel a little anxious. She must be calling for a good reason… right?
“Oh, good, good. Listen, after reviewing all the candidates, we decided to hire you. Congratulations!”
“I-I am… really?” I couldn’t believe it! After so many interviews… so many rejections… I finally got hired! “W-Wow… I don’t know what to say...” I said as I sat down. “Thank you so much for this opportunity! I won’t let you down.”
“You’re welcome!” Tree Hugger said. “I have a good feeling about you, Aria Blaze. I got a warm fuzzy feeling and good vibes from you. I could see during the interview that Cadence was right to recommend you to us. My cousin is dealing with so much lately and she needs positive vibes to help realign herself.”
“You can trust me, don’t worry.” I smirked.
“Come here in a week for some basic training. I’ll give you more details tomorrow. For now, feel free to celebrate!”
“Thank you. I will. I’ll be waiting for your call tomorrow.”
“Excellent! Goodbye for now.”
“Goodbye.” I hung up after she did. As soon as the call ended, I started to jump and cheer. Shortly after, Adagio walked into the room, looking extremely confused.
“What’s gotten into you?!”
I stopped jumping and ran to hug my sister, confusing her even more. “Tree Hugger called. I got the job! I got the job!”
“You did?!” My sister’s confused face turned into a grin. “Congratulations, Aria! See? I told you that you had to keep tainting your luck!”
“I don’t know what tainting means, but yeah!” I pulled away from the hug. “I can’t wait to tell Sonata when she returns! Oh, and I should thank Cadence too. Wait, I don’t have her number.”
“Worry about that later.” Adagio clasped her hands and smiled. “How about we celebrate by dining out when Sonata returns? You pick where.”
“Cool!” I started to walk towards my room but then I had a thought. I turned to look at my sister. “I might regret this, but… will you help me to get dressed properly for the job? I’ll wear anything you see fit.”
My sister gasped in awe and placed her hands on her cheeks, completely overjoyed. “Anything?!” I frowned in terror. Oh, no… what have I done?!
I'm so sorry this update came much later than usual, but I had some schedule problems 
This update is a special one because it's the beginning of the end of this fic. That's right, we have reached the final arc! 
Most of this arc will happen at the Everfree Camp. It won't go exactly as in the special itself, of course. I hope you like what we have prepared! 
I want to thank Windsor and Zalla661 for proofreading and revising this chapter before its release. I also want to give a special thanks to Quantum Logic for giving it the final revision 
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Now that was a fun and very sweet chapter! I remembered going to the Planetarium once and it was a cool experience! Very thoughtful of Twilight to take Aria there!
And of course, their date was adorable!
Sweet! Aria got the job! Things are looking up for her!
10515668 Thanks! It was a date that had to happen
Indeed she did! She never gave up
First off, this chapter was amazing. Their date was absolutely perfect, and Twilight's gift was just really sweet.
Second, I'm really happy that Aria got hired for the job.
You only have yourself to blame, Aria.
10516186 Thank you! Writing the date part was really fun
And things are really looking up for Aria
10516190
I can seriously bet. I'm just a little concerned about Twilight's eyes. I really hope she explains what's wrong to Aria soon.
And I can certainly tell. My only question is what's the job? My bet's on either flowers or....medicinal herbs.
10516197 The answer to the first question is patience. For the second too, but it will be revealed sooner than the first
10516230
Sometimes I think you're doing this on purpose.
10516234 I do
HA! I knew they would go on a date at the planetarium since that first time of them enjoying watching stars. Took longer than I thought, but better late then never
10524065 It had to be perfect and meaningful, that's why it took them this much
10524071
good point
Theres gonna be mentions of sex or shomthing its okay it theres nothing just askin
Sorry for bad inglish
10524793 Sorry, but no. I don't write make that happen with underaged characters. Twilight will be a young adult at College for when they do it for the first time.
So the whole Everfree Camp thing is coming up now, huh?
Wonder if Midnight is gonna come up when twily gets back. That‘d be interesting
10524879 Yeah, I was saving it for the end
There has been hints about her already
10524800
Its okay i only ask beacuse i was curios
Sorry for bad inglish
10524914
Question theres gonna be a sequel or is gonna be all a single story, I'm fine with both just askin
Sorry for bad inglish
10525587 I would like to write a sequel one day, but I have other projects
10525596
Ok neat
Ugh! I so know how Adagio feels on this one.
Being stuck sucks so much.
10549314 Yeah, tell me about it
Before i read the next chapter i gotta ask, did you kill off timber cause hes a love interest for twilight cause for some reason i find that hilarious
10566486 You could say that, yeah. Also, I don't consider Timber a character at all. Timber serves no purpose in the special nor the show at all. If anything, Timber not existing would have made the show better because Twilight was going through too much and it was not the time to have a crush.