A Balance of Fire and Light

by Stolenalicorn

5 A New Challenge

Rainbow Dash's bed was empty that morning as she walked around her home yet again, going between chastising herself and trying to even come up with an idea.

“How could I have been so dumb? Two weeks?! It's taken me years just to understand how I feel! How can I do in two weeks what I've been trying to do for years?” She whimpered to herself as she thought about her situation. “I can't possibly do this in two weeks!”

Her pacing once again brought her to her living room as she shifted back to panicked brainstorming.

“Maybe I can fake sick … Oh with swamp fever! That's super contagious. That could buy me … no time at all. Everypony has Zap Bee honey these days. I think I've still got those bandages … No, if I were that hurt I'd be at James' hospital. And he'd be checking on me constantly.” Rainbow Dash sighed, once again she couldn't come up with any stalling techniques.

Resigned, she shifted back to what she could do. “Okay, okay. What should I do? It has to be awesome. It has to let him know just how I feel.” She stopped and sighed again. “And just how in Equestria do I do that?”

She threw herself on the nearby couch and groaned. “And if I don't do this soon Starlight's gonna do it for me.”

She looked up at her ceiling and chewed her lip a moment. “Would it be so bad, though? At least I wouldn't have to do it.” With a sigh, she rolled her head to the side. “But she doesn't know just how I feel, and he needs to know that.”

As she looked around the room, her eyes focused on a picture of her and her friends. “If I were more like any of them this would be so much easier.” She scoffed. “I mean, Applejack would just walk up to him and say it. Pinkie Pie would (and probably does) have a party specifically planned for when she finds her special somepony. Twilight … would Twilight, okay maybe not everypony would have an easier time with this. Fluttershy too. She'd just squeak something and hide.”

“But Rarity … Rarity could get anypony she wanted to tell her they loved her. She likes all this mushy stuff, I bet she'd …” Rainbow Dash paused as an idea occurred to her.

***

A hooded figure slipped out of the photo studio, tightly clutching a package. Her hair and face were hidden beneath the hood and sunglasses, however Rainbow Dash could be easily identified by her distinct tail. Her desire to remain incognito drawing more attention than if she had brazenly made the trip otherwise.

It was nearing afternoon, the photo shoot had taken much longer than she had wanted. It wouldn't have taken as long if she had any idea what pose she wanted in the picture. When she realized that she let the photographer make the decisions, and now she had to choose what she wanted to use. There were a few pictures she liked, and others that she didn't just want to tear up but burn afterwords just in case somepony who liked puzzles found the pieces.

She looked around a moment, confident that she wasn't recognized (but wrong,) and took off quickly towards her home.

“Think, Rainbow Dash! I've got the pictures, now what else would Rarity do?”

Sneakily she ducked into her own front door. Only now, with the door shut and locked behind her, did she dare remove the hoodie and glasses.

Secure in her privacy, she spread out the pictures on a nearby table.

As she examined the pictures, one stood out to her. She particularly liked this one, but it was certainly not the one she was going to give to James. This one would go to Scootaloo, and she looked forward to seeing it framed at the next fan club meeting.

But that wasn't what she was looking for. She put Scootaloo's picture aside and went back to looking for one she would give to James. It needed to be special, as it was for someone special. Beside the pictures was some note paper filled with messages. Most of those messages were crossed out, some were scratched out and scribbled over as to be completely unreadable. Not that it mattered much, she knew James couldn't read Ponish.

With a sigh she slumped back and let her head drop before shaking it with a groan of frustration. “Why does this have to be so hard?!” She growled to herself. “Isn't there any easier way to do this? Some message or way to sign?”

She continued to grumble as she stood up and began to pace, growing more frustrated as she racked her mind over what she was going to do.

“What would Rarity do? Come on, think!”

Hoping for some kind of inspiration she turned back to the pictures. There were a couple she liked, but those didn't quite seem enough, and though she didn't like the others she was determined to see if they would be any better.

As her eyes moved from picture to picture her attention focused on one in particular. She blushed as she remembered the pose she had been put through for it: Leaning into the camera with puckered lips, as though her picture was meant to kiss him.

Her face grew hot as she remembered the photographer talking her into having that picture taken. It was just so embarrassing, but there was an idea there. “Yeah, I could see Rarity doing that.”

She groaned as she realized she'd need more help still with this. With a sigh she grabbed one of the less embarrassing pictures and flew out of her home.

***

The gentle rhythm of the sewing machine tapped away as Rarity focused her attention on the gown that was to highlight her line for the next season.

A warm, gentle breeze blew in through the open window, moving the thin, translucent layer that would soften the vibrant colors she was working with. It was a kind of day that made work easy

“Heyya!” Rainbow Dash happily said as she poked her head through the open window.

Rarity jumped forward with a shriek, completely ruining the seam she was on. Panic flooded her mind for a moment, dread that the entire dress had been ruined. She closed her eyes and took a moment to compose herself, reminding herself that she could fix the seam later and that this was her friend at her window. No matter how rude her entrance.

As casually as she spoke she entered through the window. “What's up?” Rainbow Dash asked as she came to land by where Rarity was set up.

“Just … working.” Rarity took a moment to let go of the work she had just seen ruined. “But I've always got time for you. Is there something I can help you with?” She politely asked.

Rainbow Dash's expression changed as she began rubbing her foreleg uncomfortably. Normally she'd be here to talk to her friend, or just hang out. But this was different. “Well …” She hesitantly said. “I was wondering if you could help me find some lipstick that looks good on me.”

All frustration from the ruined dress flew from Rarity's mind as she heard the request, and practically squealed in delight as it sank in. Rainbow Dash almost never wore makeup, and when she did she wore as little as necessary.

Rarity began to prance in place as she thought about the prospect. “Ooh! When we're done with this makeover you won't recognize yourself!”

“No!” Rainbow Dash said as Rarity's horn lit up, dragging Rainbow Dash over to a nearby vanity. “Not a makeover! Just lipstick!” However Rarity was fully committed and would not be swayed.

The drawers of the vanity opened and makeup flew out as dresses flew over from their racks. Rainbow Dash sighed as Rarity got to work. Sitting patiently as makeup was applied and removed, dresses thrown on and changed. The onslaught continued as Rarity examined every part of Rainbow Dash's new outfit, makeup, and hair.

“There, darling.” Rarity said, finally satisfied with the work she'd done. “Absolutely gorgeous. You should really consider doing this more often.”

Rainbow Dash looked in the mirror and couldn't help but groan. Her face felt caked in foundation and whatever was plastered on top of it. She hated wearing that much make up … but at least she was wearing the lipstick. Truthfully she did like the color, but it felt strange.

Carefully, she pulled out the picture she'd chosen and examined it briefly. She could have waited until she got home, and had originally planned on it, but she wanted all this makeup off as soon as possible.

“Doing a little comparison, dear?” Rarity asked with a smile.

“No.” Rainbow Dash said uncomfortably, before kissing the lower right corner of the picture. She hesitated a moment as she examined her work.

“Signing a picture with a kiss is a very personal, and meaningful, thing to do Rainbow Dash.” Rarity said, astonished at the overtly romantic gesture. She didn't have to think long about who it was intended for. “He's going to love it.”

Rainbow Dash blushed, not that anyone could tell under the makeup she was wearing. “I … just wanted to know what the color was so I could find it again.”

Rarity smiled as she put her hoof on her friend's back. “It's alright, dear. We've known for a while now.”

Rainbow Dash laughed uncomfortably for a moment. Her awkward smile faded as she realized Rarity was being completely serious. “Really?” She nervously asked.

“Of course. You've been obvious about it for moons now.” Rarity's tone saying just as clearly as her words that it was old news to her.

Rainbow Dash's voice squeaked as she backed away a step. “I have?”

In a sudden moment of realization Rarity understood that Rainbow Dash hadn't been intentionally obvious about a relationship and had only acted as felt natural to her. “Oh, I am so sorry Rainbow Dash, I thought you were just worried about your reputation. Dear, whatever you need I'll help you. That's a promise.”

Rainbow Dash shuffled uncomfortably. “Have I really been that obvious?”

Rarity bit her lip a moment before carefully answering. “Well, it's just that you act differently around him.” She chuckled before continuing, “Of course, I notice these things. After all, how long has Spike had a crush on me?”

Rainbow Dash couldn't help but shrink back further as she realized she'd been as obvious as Spike. “So, everypony knows?”

It wasn't until this conversation that Rarity realized everything to this point had just been what felt natural for her friend. And now that the news was out, Rarity could only reassure her friend. “Darling, we love you. And we think it's wonderful that you've found somepony, or rather, someone that makes you happy. Even if it's a little unusual, we all support you.” With a gentle smile she came forward and hugged her friend. “Nopony would ever think less of you for falling in love.”

Rainbow Dash wiped away a mascara laden tear as she listened to the reassurances. “Thanks, Rarity. … Now can we get this stuff off?”

“Of course.”

***

Back at her home, Rainbow Dash washed her face one last time. Rarity had been thorough in removing the makeup, but she still felt as if there was more there.

She tossed the towel aside as she walked back into her bedroom where the picture lay on her nightstand. It looked exactly like she wanted it to, yet somehow it didn't seem right. With a sigh, she shoved the picture into the drawer, this wasn't how she could start a serious relationship with James. She needed to find something more … right.

Before she closed the drawer a flash of light caught her eye. Inside, she found the golden bracelet that James had given her. At a glance it was unassuming, but it was an omnitool that had been specially designed to be used by ponies.

After James faced questioning for his involvement with Equestria, and Rainbow Dash had defended him, he began finding little things to give them or do for them. This being one of the grander gestures for how advanced the technology was.

She quickly fished the bracelet out of the drawer with her wing before slipping it over her hoof. In moments the projection of the tool blinked to life. The light changed to an icon informing her that she had a message. She was normally on top of her messages, but she'd left the tool behind the other day for the competition and hadn't thought about it since.

She easily opened the messenger application and waited a moment as the message was translated into Ponish. But even before the translation finished she could tell that it had been Lucca who sent it.

Hey, if you're worried that I'll be upset, don't be. I was blindsided last time, and worried that it had been happening without my knowing. I needed to know I could still trust both of you.

And I do.

If you want this, I've got your back and so does Tali.

P.S. Actually, Tali's wanted this to happen for a while now.

Don't hold back for our sakes.

She sighed as she closed the application and turned off the device, asking herself just how obvious she had been if everybody knew already.

She turned away from the drawer and walked out of the room. “Maybe Rarity has a point … if everypony already knows, why shouldn't I just ask for help.” With a nod she decided she'd get to asking her friends for help … first thing tomorrow.

***

Rainbow Dash couldn't help but follow the scent of fresh made scones in Twilight's castle as she flew through that morning. The thought of a hot, hoofmade, breakfast made her stomach growl and quickly pushed all other plans from her mind. Surely her friend wouldn't mind sharing. With a quick flap she flew towards the beckoning aroma.

The meal spread out on the table in Twilight's dining room looked no less appealing than the smell that led her here. There were the scones she had smelled from the entrance, a light green salad, omelets, muffins, toasted oats, fruit, fresh hay, and a large pitcher of orange juice.

Sitting around the table were Twilight, Starlight, Spike, Sunburst, and a dark red mare with a short cream colored and pink striped mane and tail. Rainbow Dash could only assume that this was Velvet from Starlight's description. Though she was certainly prettier than Starlight had made her out to be.

“Wow.” Rainbow Dash said, staring unblinking at the food.

“Oh, Rainbow Dash.” Twilight smiled as she noticed her friend approaching. “Going for breakfast with James again?”

As quickly as the smell of food had pushed the thought of her visit from Rainbow Dash's mind, the mention of James brought it back. “Not really,” she carefully said. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you.”

Velvet smiled wide as she looked to Rainbow Dash, always happy to have more ponies around to talk to. “You should join us.” She eagerly said, gesturing towards an empty chair.

Twilight looked on as Rainbow Dash happily took a plate and share of the food. “So what did you want to talk about?”

Mid bite, Rainbow Dash paused. She reminded herself that her friends already knew about this despite her best efforts, but she wasn't comfortable bringing it up around Sunburst or his new girlfriend. She finished her mouthful, and with a nod uncomfortably answered. “Uhm, let's talk about that later. In private.”

The mood raised again quickly as they talked and laughed while eating breakfast. More than once Rainbow Dash looked to Starlight and found that she wasn't the only uncomfortable one. Though to Starlight's credit, she seemed to genuinely be happy for her old friend.

Rainbow Dash felt that she should try something to help Starlight, but what that could be she had absolutely no idea. All she could think was how relaxed and happy Starlight seemed the other day as they played games with James, and that maybe some more time with her other friends could be good for her.

After, Twilight walked off with Rainbow Dash to talk in private, leading her towards the library. “So what did you want to ask?” Twilight asked once they were alone.

Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head and she readied herself to admit to somepony other that Starlight that she had feelings for the strange creature that had come into all of their lives years ago. “Did you … uhm … know about James and I?”

Twilight chuckled a moment as she nodded. “I wasn't sure for a while, but yes, I figured it out. Why?”

Rainbow Dash took a breath as she got ready to explain what she was asking. “You see … that's the thing: he doesn't yet. I want to tell him how I feel, I just don't know how.” Rainbow Dash said as they walked. “You're an egghead, I figured you would have a ton of ideas.”

Twilight took a moment to let the egghead comment pass before she answered. “You had a good idea there, why not just tell him?”

Rainbow Dash sighed. “Because it's not awesome. We've kind of been together for years, even if we weren't really a couple. But this is going to make the whole thing official, you know. Like, make it real. It's supposed to be amazing, and right now I can't come up with anything that isn't lame.”

Twilight giggled as she shook her head. “You know James pretty well Rainbow Dash. If anypony can come up with an amazing way to do this, it's you.” Twilight said as they got to her library. “I think you need to relax a bit. It doesn't need to be something big to be special.”

“Ugh. But I want it to be awesome. I want to show him just how much I care.”

Twilight smiled and turned to her friend. “You already have. And he'll love whatever you do.”

“But that doesn't help me figure out what to do.” Rainbow Dash groaned.

This is Rainbow Dash, whatever it is, it's going to be big and public, Twilight reasoned. So why not go as big as she can. “Well, what about getting help from the Wonderbolts?”

Rainbow Dash gasped as the suggestion gave her the idea she was hoping for. A big aerial display with impressive tricks and focusing on them. “That's perfect! I knew you could think of something. Thanks, I'll get working on that right now.” Without waiting for a reply from Twilight she flew off to plan and practice tricks.

***

This is going to be the best, most awesome routine I ever design. Rainbow Dash told herself as she began to work. She needed lots of room to try out some of the maneuvers she wanted in the unique routine, and had set up in the center of town. Not too unusual for her as she would sometimes practice on her own, giving the ponies of Ponyville a free aerial show.

She chewed the end of her pencil as she evaluated the spiral she imagined at that point in the sequence, eventually drawing it on her board as she tried to visualize it.

“Hi-i-i-i Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie Pie called, breaking her friend's concentration.

No stranger to interruption, Rainbow Dash readjusted quickly and turned to her friend. “Oh, hi Pinkie. What's up?”

“Just enjoying a super fantabulous day. What'cha doin'?”

“Just designing a routine.” Rainbow Dash smiled as she looked over the plans again. “You know, it's been a long since I designed a routine for myself. And I must say, I've still got it.”

Pinkie Pie walked up and examined the routine plan as she listened to her friend speaking, excited to know more about it. “Ooh. A Sunrise Ascent followed by an Triumph Arch with a Spiral Weave of silver and emerald, leading into an inverted Rainbow Smoke Bridge with a shaping strafe to turn it into a heart and a Sonic Rainboom finisher, bursting through the center of the heart.” Pinkie exclaimed quickly, reading every step of the routine as it was so far. “This is a ton for just one pony!” She said, excited to learn what all the effort was for. “Is this for Cadence and Shining Armor's anniversary?”

“No … actually … it's for James.” Rainbow Dash was still uncomfortable admitting this, but she had to get used to it as it would be part of her life soon. And she wasn't going to hide this from her friends. “I guess everypony thinks we were already a couple, but the thing is … I haven't actually told him that I like him.” She got more bold as she turned to her plan. “And I'm going to tell him with this!” She proudly announced.

“Oh.” Pinkie said much less enthusiastically.

Put off by Pinkie's clear disapproval of the plan Rainbow Dash turned to her friend. “What? It's an awesome routine.”

“Ye-e-ea-a-a-ah,it's and awesome routine, but this puts all the focus on James. Even if it's just for him, all this is too much.”

“Oh come on, he'll love it.”

“Eeh, yeah. He'll love it, but that's because it's from you. Come on.” Without waiting for any kind of response Pinkie rushed around behind Rainbow Dash and began shoving her towards Sugar Cube Corner.

***

Rainbow Dash readily recognized Pinkie Pie's Party Planning Cave as Pinkie pushed her over to the central table, where there were several files laid out alongside plans for Lyra's upcoming birthday.

Pinkie rushed off and opened a blue filing cabinet, rooted around with her muzzle to eventually come back with a file in her teeth, slapping it down on the table and opening it. In the file Rainbow Dash saw several pictures of James in various forms, curious statistics about him, and a list of his likes and dislikes along with variables that apparently change what he likes at any given time. It was a mess.

“Wait. You never learned when his birthday is?” Rainbow Dash asked, her eyes fixating on the blank area.

“Nope. And you know I did everything I possibly could. I talked to his brother and everything. He's just happier with nopony knowing.” Pinkie scoffed and rolled her eyes. “He's so weird.” With a giggle she pointed to his dislikes with her hoof.

“See? Right here, he's uncomfortable with big gestures like that. While amazing, a big public routine would definitely not be appreciated enough.”

Rainbow Dash groaned and dropped her head onto the table, her wings dropping limply beside her. “Then what am I supposed to do?”

Pinkie hummed a moment before speaking up. “What about a party. It won't be about you and him, and you can tell him there and have tons of fun.”

“I don't know Pinkie. A party would be fun, but I want to do something awesome just for him. I want to show him how just how awesome he makes me feel.”

Pinkie blew a quick raspberry and rolled her eyes. “Rainbow Dash, you don't need some big gesture for that. You can show him by something simple, nice, and personal.”

Rainbow Dash sighed. “I guess it's back to the drawing board.”

***

Three days in and Rainbow Dash was no closer than when she had started. And she unfortunately had to juggle this with her duties in Twilight's school.

She sighed as she left the school. Most of the day was gone already and she still had nothing. Tomorrow wasn't looking good either … or the day after that.
Her first idea was small personal and special, but didn't express her feelings. Her second idea was awesome, encompassed everything she wanted to show him. To let him know just how she felt. But Pinkie shot that down idea because James gets uncomfortable with big gestures like that.

She flew to Sweet Apple Acres, hoping that Applejack might have some kind of idea that would help. Or she could ask Big Mac, he played Dungeons and Dragons with James and Spike, he might have an idea.

All Rainbow Dash knew for certain is that she needed something personal, meaningful, and would show James just how much she cared.

In the distance she watched as all the apples fell from a tree, it was either Applejack or Big Mac bucking trees, so her odds were good it was somepony she wanted to talk to.

As she flew overhead she could tell right away that it was Applejack she had zeroed in on. “Heyya AJ.” Rainbow Dash called as she approached her hard working friend.

“I wish I had time Rainbow Dash.” Applejack said as she moved to another tree while Apple Bloom got herself ready to catch the bucked apples. “But we're running behind right now. James is coming by tonight to help pick up the slack but we've still got a lot of work to do.”

“Why didn't you say so. You know we'd come to help you.” Rainbow Dash complained. As much as Applejack had gotten used to asking for help, she still overworked herself far too often.

“I know, I was gonna ask in a bit. I just didn't know how behind we were until now.”

Rainbow Dash sighed and shook her head. “Well, I'll help out right now, and maybe you can help me with something.”

“What do you need help with?” Apple Bloom eagerly asked.

“Oh, just something between James and I.” Rainbow Dash awkwardly said.

Applejack moved over to a nearby tree and got ready to buck. “What, is your anniversary coming up? Come on Apple Bloom, I need you to get ready to catch the apples.”

Rainbow Dash's wings stood out straight at the comment and she looked around briefly. “Anniversary? We're not together. At least, not yet.”

“Yet?” Apple Bloom asked, getting more excited as she listened.

“Apple Bloom, please, we've got work to do.”

Rainbow Dash walked off, collecting a nearby basket and pushing it over to a tree that had yet to be bucked.

“What do you mean you're not together yet? Y'all've been together for years.” Applejack asked as Rainbow Dash bucked a nearby tree,

“What? No.” Rainbow Dash insisted as she adjusted herself to buck the tree once more. “I mean, we've been close friends since the prank, but we weren't together. … But that's actually about to change.”

“You're going to ask James to be your boyfriend?!” Apple Bloom was prancing in place as she guessed where Rainbow Dash was going.

“Yeah.” Rainbow Dash blushed as she admitted what she was thinking, bucking the tree again and knocking a few more apples from it's branches. “But I need an awesome way to do it.”

Apples spilled from the basket Apple Bloom had balanced on her head as she virtually vibrated with excitement. “We'll help you!” She announced. “We helped Big Mac and Sugar Belle get together. I'm sure we can do the same for you.”

Applejack gave her little sister a sidelong glance. “The way I heard it was that the three of you used ideas from story books. And that it was Big Mac's idea that finally worked.”

“Oh … right.”

“I've got to admit, this makes the massage less weird now. But if you really want to let James know how you feel: just kiss him. He's not so dense that he won't understand that.”

“Where's the fun in that?” Apple Bloom whined. “This is supposed to be amazing, and romantic.”

“That'll just confuse things.”

Rainbow Dash cut the two off before it developed into an argument. “Thanks, but that's just not awesome enough.”

Applejack turned and bucked the nearby tree. “Nope. But it's clear.” The apples fell as she spoke, though distracted as Apple Bloom was, she missed nearly every one of them. “Come on Apple Bloom concentrate.”

Rainbow Dash grumbled to herself briefly, knowing that she had promised the rest of her day and would likely have nothing to show for it.

***

Rainbow Dash hadn't felt this anxious in years, she was ready to just give up and hide away in her home for the rest of her life.

By now she had to admit that she had no good ideas. Over the last week and a half she tried baking, and predictably failing. She'd gone back to her airshow plan, only to give up again because of what Pinkie had told her.

She'd gone to Zacora for advice, only to be told that she should trust herself and do what felt right. That clearly wasn't going well so far.

She'd asked Fluttershy, hoping that her relationship with Discord could give some clue as to what she could do. Unfortunately, Fluttershy's stance was that all Rainbow Dash's ideas were equally good.

Discord offered to put her and James into a situation where James would be helpless and she would have to save him. She shot that idea down right away. Lady Seto had already risked their lives once to kick start the relationship.

And there was no way she was going to the Wonderbolts for help. They gave her a hard enough time when it was just a prank. Not that they would believe her after getting caught up in the prank last time.

One by one the days steadily ticked away, eventually she had holed herself up in her home, desperate to not have to tell James she wanted a relationship.

Now she was completely out of time and had absolutely no idea what to do. As much as she wanted to avoid this, she knew she had to do something, anything, because tomorrow Starlight would tell James herself and she couldn't let that happen.

Reminding herself what was at stake, she slowly stood up from where she was curled up on the floor and looked out the window. It was afternoon, James would be asleep by now, but she couldn't put it off any longer.

With a resigned sigh she took to the air and began flying to Twilight's castle.

***

She knew that a visit at this time wasn't ideal, but this was too important to wait any longer.

“I shouldn't have waited this long.” She told herself as she slowly flew through the halls. Every memory of their times together coming to mind, playing out like a private movie and reminding her why she wanted this.

She couldn't count how many times she'd come through these halls, not just during the prank but after as well. This place had become as much her home as Ponyville

She flew past the den where she and James had talked about how to deal with her parents assuming that they were a couple. She wanted clarify that they weren't, but, much to her frustration, he instead embraced her parents' narrative. When she had confronted him about it he argued to her that it would be less stressful for everyone if he were to just play the part of her boyfriend. Her parents would be happy, and she didn't have to do anything different.

Even then she knew that part of her wanted it. Wanted to embrace it not as a story for her parents but as reality, and had agreed to the idea with barely an argument. She remembered that strange feeling at the suggestion, and also how she had pushed it away. Telling herself that the feeling was wrong, and that she was just confused. But now, when she felt it again, she knew what it was.

She remembered that there was a time during the prank where Scootaloo had avoided being around both of them, feeling as though she was being pushed out of Rainbow Dash's life for James. Rainbow Dash hadn't even noticed at first, it was James who brought the problem to her. From then on, she and James had made a determined effort to include Scootaloo as much as they could.

Scootaloo had been hesitant to come with her to visit James at first, but eventually the three of them were like their own little family. James would always be with them while Rainbow Dash was taking care of Scootaloo. And she'd go to James when Holiday and Lofty started asking him to take care of the young filly too.

She clearly remembered when she started thinking that it was possible that she could have a family with him. One with foals of their own … somehow. And she had done the same thing with that thought that she did every time these feelings came up. She had chastised and berated herself. But the thought persisted, no matter how much she tried to rid herself of it.

Ultimately, what surprised her most wasn't that she had grown so close to him, but that the thought of this life somehow felt good to her. She'd never considered having her own family before, yet with this strange creature it felt like a goal she some day wanted to reach.

Her memories were interrupted as she approached James' bedroom door. She'd woken James up many times and, while not proud to admit it, had sneaked in during the day and gotten comfortable in his clothes before too.

He'd even caught her wearing his robe once, and his only reaction was to tell her it was his favorite. He hadn't even mentioned it when she tried pushing her luck and had worn it for the rest of the day, only taking it off because she couldn't fly while wearing it.

Carefully she reached out her hoof and opened the door. Even in the darkness she knew the layout of James' room and easily came to land on his side of the bed. “James, I need to talk to you. Right now.” She urgently said, louder than she would have liked.

James' eyes snapped open and he focused just as quickly. “What's wrong?” He asked, not worrying about how loud he may be. Rainbow Dash flinching as she realized her mistake.

“Is it Scootaloo again?” Lucca asked, more groggily but still concerned.

Rainbow Dash sheepishly rubbed her foreleg. “Oh, no. Sorry.”

Curious about her sudden change in tone James' eyes narrowed. “This is an emergency, right? You sound upset.” His tone had softened and he spoke calmly, but his voice still held it's concern.

“Not really, but also like, the biggest ever!” She didn't want to sound so worried, but she couldn't help herself. There were so many ways she had wanted to do this, but now all she had was desperation.

“Personal crisis. Gotcha. James, go with her.” Lucca said as she lay back down and rolled over, taking the covers with her.

Rainbow Dash blushed and turned as she saw James, occasionally glancing back as he collected his robe from the bedpost. Once it was tied closed around him he stood and walked towards the door.

“Come on, let's go to the bar. I'll get you some cider.” James offered.

They moved quietly through the halls towards the familiar darkened room, James shielding his eyes as he flipped the light switch, bathing them both in low, atmospheric light. Rainbow Dash flew over to a nearby stool as James walked behind the bar, collecting two drinks from the replicator. He smiled as he placed the mug of Cider in front of Rainbow Dash, walking around to take the stool next to her as he sipped his coffee.

After a couple seconds his eyes were more alert and he focused on the mare still uncomfortably looking to him. “So what's the emergency?” He calmly asked.

Rainbow Dash couldn't help herself, the moment she opened her mouth the words came out in a torrent. “I love you!” She said suddenly, “I have for years, I don't know why. It's insane, I thought I was insane. We're just so different, and from completely different worlds. I mean, how could this even happen? I never even wanted to fall in love. But here I am, and there you are. You know so much about me, and you really care. And I don't even know what I'm thinking about right now. All I know is that my feelings are real, they're intense, and I can't fight them any longer. I just want to …” Rainbow Dash paused a moment and growled in frustration at her own inarticulacy.

With a grunt she shook her head. “I wanted to do this in a totally awesome way. Something everypony could talk about. Something that would be super special, because that's how you make me feel. But what I want more is … is …” Rainbow Dash paused a moment to take a breath. As she looked to James she saw that he was smiling gently at her.

The moment stretched on as she took in just what she was seeing. His dark eyes looked soft as he smiled his usual half smile. His hair was tied tight behind him as he had just been sleeping, a habit Rarity had taught him years back. His beard was trimmed to it's usual shadow making his kind face look rough. He had turned on his stool to face her, giving her his full attention. She felt more desperate as she looked at him, but also felt more certain than ever that this is what she had been hoping for.

“ … you.” She said a split second before leaping off her stool, throwing herself against him and knocking them both to the stone floor below, pressing her lips to his as they crashed. She could taste the coffee on his breath as they kissed. She didn't care for how James drank his coffee, too bitter, but right at this moment the taste was amazing.

She felt his hands run gently over her wings and stop at her shoulders. Hands that she knew the feeling of so well from the years of massages and friendly touches. Now those same hands held her firm against him.

As they kissed, she became more aware of the just what she was experiencing. His scratchy beard brushing against her muzzle, the pressure of his fingers on her shoulders, the tickle as his breath came out his nose. And with these sensations came a kind of relief and happiness, feelings she had once denied, repressed, and tried to bury. She knew what they were now, and welcomed them. She wanted to feel them, to finally allow herself to enjoy them. Uncertainty had caused her to miss out on so much, and had only given her stress in return.

She didn't know how long they lay on the floor, and she didn't care. She felt connected to him in a way she had never even considered possible before. She felt so many things in those moments, scared, desperate, happy, and relief to name only a few. Her head swam as she allowed herself to be lost in the sensations. She had finally done it, and she was happy.

Eventually she realized that they had stopped kissing and she simply lay on top of him, his arms both resting easily across her back. James smiled as he gently ran his fingers through her mane.

“How's that emergency?” He asked quietly.

Rainbow Dash smiled as she looked her boyfriend in the eye. “Handled.”

“Did I do well?” He chuckled.

“You did awesome.” She laughed a moment before giving him a quick kiss.

His smile seemed to grow as he joked, “I like these kinds of emergencies.”

Rainbow Dash sighed as she continued looking at James. “I guess I should let you get back to sleep.” Her tone making it more than clear that she didn't want to leave.

“Nah, I'm awake now. Let's enjoy this time we've got together. Just us.” James held onto her as he stood up, placing her back on the stool she leaped from and righting his stool before sitting back down. “You said you wanted to do this differently? What were you thinking?”

“Yeah, I wanted to do something awesome to show you just how much I care.”

“You did,” He easily said, “and it was great.”

Rainbow Dash cocked her eye, confused as to what he could mean. “Uhm … I just broke down and freaked out.”

“You trusted me enough to come, even though this was difficult for you.” James explained, never moving his eyes from her face. “You deliberately came and showed me a part of yourself that you usually hide from the world. Because you care that others think you're cool and tough. Was it your greatest moment: No, not by a long shot. But you let yourself be vulnerable to me. And that means a lot.”

“Like I haven't done that before.” She commented offhanded as she looked away.

James gave her a quick kiss on the lips, focusing her attention once more on him. “This time you're trusting me with something far more important than your reputation. You're trusting me with your heart, and I'll do everything I can to live up to that trust.”

“But I wanted to show you how much I cared, and how much you mean to me.” She said as she turned away again, disappointed that she hadn't been able to come up with something suitable in two weeks.

“And you did.” James quietly said as he reached his hand out and guided her face back to look him in the eye. “Though I guess this really doesn't change much between us.”

Rainbow Dash shook her head as she began to smile again. “No, this changes everything.”

“Well, I guess we both have a lot to look forward to then.”

Author's Note:

Don't worry, I'm not going to subject you all to much more of that. I just wanted to take a bit and try my hand at writing something like this.
That being said, it is still important to the story (but not the focus) so I did have to at least address it.