Sinking In
Guardian Angel
Chaper Six: Sinking In
The Golden Oaks library was quiet, warm morning light creeping over a sleeping lavender form. Twilight Sparkle simply continued to lay there, enjoying the warmth. This was the first time her thoughts didn't torment her all night. Deciding she'd laid there long enough, Twilight hopped out of bed and headed to take a shower.
Stepping in to the warm spray, Twilight gave a sigh of pure bliss. Yesterday and the day before, the hot water served to try and help clear her mind. Today was different, for once she could just enjoy the water. Feel the heat course through her body, breathe deeply and just have no worries. Well, almost, some things didn't go away that easily. With a shake of her head Twilight banished those thoughts to a corner of her mind.
Actually one thing had intrigued her.
Last night Rainbow had said that she had a beautiful voice. While most ponies could sing somewhat, to compliment one's singing voice was a real honor. The blush from yesterday returned, quickly being hidden by the heat in the room.
Picking up the shampoo with her magic, Twilight began to hum a tune to herself.
Rainbow Dash rolled out of bed, or more accurately off of her bed. Last night after helping Twilight, Rainbow had returned home. After attempting to fall asleep, and failing to do so, she felt the need to play her guitar.
The events of yesterday had left a spring in her step, an almost childlike energy. She'd ended up playing longer than she wanted to, and pretty much collapsed onto her bed at the end of her jam session.
Now she was paying for it. To Rainbow though it didn't matter. Totally worth it.
Shaking her head, Rainbow stood up and made her way to the kitchen for some breakfast. Stumbling slightly the mare settled into a quick trot.
Rainbow wasn't much of a cook. Sure she could make the basics, but most dishes evaded her culinary abilities. It was an unspoken rule that Rainbow Dash was not allowed in the kitchen to experiment unsupervised. Even Pinkie Pie wouldn't leave Rainbow alone in there.
Snickering to herself Rainbow put together an athlete's meal. Two daisy sandwiches, an apple and some orange juice. Taking a sip of the juice and savoring the taste, Rainbow moved the rest of her meal to the table.
Soon enough she finished her breakfast, the plates joining the others in the sink. With a sigh she noticed the sink was pretty much full. She moved some of the plates out of the sink and flipped the tap on. These infernal things had to be washed sometime.
Rainbow was glad she still had today off, work was set to resume for her tomorrow, some rain was needed later this week. The last few days were cloudless and sunny, Rainbow's skills weren't needed so she was given the last few days off.
Continuing the repetitive motions of cleaning dish after dish Rainbow Dash let her mind wander to yesterday.
Overall Rainbow was pleased with how yesterday turned out. She'd made her apologies to Twilight and helped the mare out. The heartfelt discussion left Rainbow mentally drained. While she'd do it again in a heartbeat for any of her friends, it still was a big event.
She also remembered the snack over at Twilight's place, the more cheerful topic. While leaving the messy details out Twilight explained to the baby dragon what she was going through. Rainbow had noticed the effect it had on Twilight's psyche, talking about the issue had definitely helped.
Now came the next part, what now?
An unspoken agreement had been made between the two, nothing would be kept in, but would never be forced. The only thing was to wonder about when to meet up. While Rainbow had extended the offer for an ear anytime, Twilight would probably want to have a schedule or timetable made.
She'd pop by Twilight's place later, right now she wanted to just fly. The last days had left her with little time to fly just for fun and she wasn't gonna let the rest of her day off be wasted.
Finishing with the dishes and leaving them to dry, Rainbow shook the clinging moisture and soap suds off of her hooves and made her way to the door.
After her shower and breakfast Twilight had busied herself in tidying the library. Spike was over at Rarity's so Twilight had the place to herself. She continued to hum barely having stopped today at all. Books found themselves magically replaced to their positions on the shelves, papers were sorted into piles for later segregation and filing.
Twilight was back in her element.
The only thing missing was a schedule for the next month. The last few days had left her no time to make a new one, all but a few feeble attempts. Twilight could imagine Rainbow commenting with a witty remark about how she was starting to feel better and was already back to work.
Truth be told, Twilight liked work. It gave her purpose and direction.
A Daring Do book passed by her face and Twilight paused. The book was the first in the series, and became all the more special before her trip to Canterlot. It was the same book that the Rainbow Dash and she had shared, and helped convince Rainbow to accept herself for who she was.
The two had soon agreed to meet once a week to read, first it started off as a way for Rainbow to get her Daring Do fix, but soon found Rainbow looking for some new adventure. Twilight had shown her various worlds and characters, each story more engrossing than the last. Rainbow found herself elated at all of these new sensations.
Then one day she appeared with a guitar on her back. Needless to say Twilight was surprised. She hadn't known Rainbow Dash had any interest in music other than as a backdrop for her shows. She'd seen the record passed over to the announcers at the Best Young Fliers competition, but really paid it no mind.
The two had ended up going to Horseshoe Valley, there Rainbow began to play. It was almost unbelievable. Rainbow had sat down on a rock, her wings hanging loosely, guitar cradled comfortably. She looked almost angelic, free of any worry.
That night Rainbow shared some of her insecurities. How growing up she had kept an image, how she didn't want to be seen as "weak" for having a soft side. She talked about how Gilda had influenced her, changed her.
It wasn't all bad though. Rainbow had also talked about how her guitar play allowed her to express herself without words. How special the wooden acoustic guitar was. The significance of the cutie mark etched into the rosewood.
That night had helped Rainbow become more confident in who she was.
With a satisfying thump the last book had been sorted, the task done. A checklist magically hovered over, the quill placing a small check mark beside the task. Twilight's eyes wandered down to the next item. Write a letter to Princess Celestia. The task had eluded her yesterday, and now that she had a clearer head, she could write out her thoughts better.
Moving over to her desk, Twilight settled in and pulled the partially started letter over. The only thing written on the paper was a greeting. Dipping her quill in the ink pot, she began to write.
Dear Princess Celestia,
Over the past few days I learned an important lesson. You should trust your friends to be there for you, even when you think they can't understand the things you are going through. Recently I have had a big lesson in life, and was deeply hurt and confused by the events.
I had fallen for another, a special somepony. We started dating, and had a great time. Soon our differences began to emerge. We started seeing less and less of each other. An attempt to reconcile our differences was made, but the problems persisted. We went our seperate ways.
After returning to Ponyville, I didn't know what to feel. This was all so new to me, the emotions were running rampant inside me. I kept holding it in, now I see that it was destroying me. I kept it from my friends, who all tried to help console me. Then one day it reached a breaking point. I had to clear my head and I set off for a nearby valley for a change of scenery.
It didn't help. Sitting there, I began to sing a song. Apparently during my song Rainbow Dash had shown up. She'd been looking for me, and had deduced where I'd be. That was when she said some of the most beautiful words I'd ever heard. She was there to listen, to be a friend and a shoulder to cry on. We talked for hours, my troubles, and feelings. Rainbow offered her advice and helped sort out some of my inner turmoil.
If I had been more open with my friends, would some of this trouble and turmoil have been avoided? Maybe, maybe not. What I've learned is that sharing your problems with a friend can be one of the biggest gestures of trust between ponies.
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle
The quill returned to it's rightful place, the nearly empty ink pot was corked and placed off to the side. A ribbon floated over and wrapped itself around the letter, her seal soon was on the ribbon. Spike would send it later when he returned.
With that task done, Twilight moved on with her duties.
It was later in the afternoon, Rainbow was currently sitting on a cloud, panting heavily. She'd been training heavily for the last few hours. A sheen of sweat covered her, her hair matted and slick.
Rainbow Dash hadn't flown like this in a while. Most practice days had her flying for two to three hours, today she'd gone for over five. She'd perfected a few of her tricks, shaved some time off the Buccaneer Blaze, and improved the new one.
The Twilight Sparkle.
A situational trick that worked best when performed at dusk, the colors of the setting sun playing with and affecting her rainbow contrail in a dazzling manner. Dazzling, the word sounded like something Rarity would say.
It was a difficult trick, a sharp understanding of flying physics and grace was needed. It actually reminded Rainbow of Twilight, the bookish mare had a razor sharp mind needed for complex magical theory, and yet she could beatifully read poetry. Thus the trick had been named after her.
Rainbow knew she'd have to approach Twilight about the tricks real meaning sometime.
Pushing that thought aside, Rainbow had decided to see Twilight about Daring Do Night. While Daring Do wasn't the only book read anymore, the name stuck.
First though she needed a shower, and a meal. Rainbow set off again for home.
A freshly showered and satisfied Rainbow Dash had flown over Ponyville. It was now late evening. Landing with the grace of a pro athlete, Rainbow knocked on the library door for the second time in two days.
"Come in, the library's open."
Twilight's voice could be heard from within, and Rainbow opened the door. Stepping in the library she immediately saw that Twilight had been busy. Former piles of books were sorted into their proper spots, loose papers neatly piled. A letter bearing Twilight's seal lay on the desk.
Twilight herself was sitting on a beanbag near a crackling fireplace. The beanbags were a recent addition, part of Pinkie's attempt to cheer Twilight up. At first Twilight didn't see the allure of the large soft objects, but now she loved the things. They were perfect for long reading sessions.
Rainbow quickly made her way over to the adjacent one. Settling in she took a look at Twilight.
Twilight Sparkle looked a lot better today. Her eyes held a shine, the bags underneath mostly gone. Her hair was slightly disheveled, doubtlessly due to all the work done today. The way she was curled up on the cushion was just plain cute.
Cute!? Where the hay did that come from?
Rainbow dismissed the thought. Opening her mouth to speak she was cut off by Twilight.
"Hey Rainbow, I'm glad you dropped by."
"Me too, what are you reading?"
Twilight blinked, quickly responding with the books title and a brief summary. It was a fantasy novel, one they had read together at one point in time. She'd expected a question about Daring Do Night.
"I suppose you're wondering about Daring Do Night?"
A nod from Rainbow answered that question.
"We're still good for this week." A beaming Twilight now held up a calendar, Daring Do Night circled in a bright cyan color.
"I've already got a new schedule planned out."
Rainbow Dash had to facehoof at this. The way Twilight could be excited about a schedule had eluded Rainbow Dash for months. She still had no clue as to what was so special about it.
"Actually Rainbow, I've got a request."
"Shoot Twi."
"I'd like you to bring your guitar next time."
Rainbow's expression turned to one of surprise. She could see that this was weighing heavily on Twilight. Knowing that her friend needed this, Rainbow quickly agreed.
"Alright Twi, I'll bring it. For you."
With a quiet thanks, Twilight set her book down. A bookmark magically inserted itself and the book was discarded nearby.
"I thought about what you said yesterday. About my singing." The blush had returned, visible on both mares faces.
"I meant it Twilight, you really do have a beautiful voice."
It was the plain truth, but why did Rainbow feel so funny saying it?
"Thanks. As I was saying it got me thinking. I'd really like to do something special."
Now Rainbow was intrigued. Although her curiosity had been piqued, but she realized she wasn't getting anything more out of Twilight. Rainbow knew when Twilight wanted to keep something secret.
Stifling a yawn, Rainbow saw how truly late it was. Waking up late had skewed her daily clock. Seeing the yawn Twilight had to ask.
"When did you go to sleep last night?"
A sheepish Rainbow responded with a meek "Past midnight, I kinda lost track of time."
Twilight shook her head. Rainbow could be so silly sometimes. What had she been doing that made her lost almost all sense of time?
"You really should get some more sleep tonight."
Rainbow agreed and with a quick goodbye, Rainbow Dash was on her way home. She was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable with how she was feeling. She needed time to think.
Softly closing the door Twilight turned around and went back to her book. Her mind continued to go over her surprise for Rainbow. Refining and planning.
Yes, it would be perfect.
Stats
Page generated in 0.021 seconds
Total duration
1,003 users online
303,950 hits today, 2,004,447 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Good chapter!
looks good, well paced, the emotions seemed right
twi's reaction to talking about things was great
Dang, you got these last two chapters out quick (certainly not a complaint) Loving the story so far, especially the idea of a musically talented Dashie
1957018
Well I DID have today off. Also confessions was posted just after midnight here. I really enjoy writing this. It's great fun. Thanks for the review.
Thanks for all the kind words everyone. Don't hesitate to point out mistakes and the like. I'm open to learning and improving. Your comments and positive words definitely fuel me.
~Nuuk.
Loving it so far!
"…her curiosity had peaked…" I believe "her curiosity had been piqued" is the phrase.
1958047
I do believe you're right. Thanks for pointing that out. It has been fixed.
~Nuuk.
I know there are a bunch of different songs that could go with this story (a great story by the way, I really enjoyed this chapter), but I just happened to be listening to this song while reading and it seemed to fit (for me, at least). Can't wait to see where this goes!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=uK6mSbi5CFs]
ow ow! this was beautiful, i can barely bring myself to write a 1000 word chapter XD
Continues to be quite good. You'd do well, though (as pretty much everyone would) to run it through an editor or two. There's several groups with people happy to do that sort of thing, and it almost invariably brings up the quality of a story. They can offer advice, criticism, and catch the mistakes you miss. Keep up the good work, and you'll continue to improve.
A couple things of note that you might want to look out for are that you don't use commas quite as often as you should, and have a bit of a tendency to repeat words in quick succession. The easiest way to deal with the former is to read it aloud to yourself. Where there's a natural pause in the sentence, there should be a comma. The latter is mostly a matter of giving it a couple re-reads and looking for it, varying it up a bit when you can.
I don't want to come off too harsh, because you are doing well. I just want to offer what advice I can to help, in some small way, your continuing improvement.
Edit: Forgot to note, you might also want to watch out for breaking up ideas too much. Don't be afraid of having longer paragraphs. For example:
A couple minor grammatical errors, but the bigger problem here is splitting off the first sentence of the second paragraph, though in reality the whole thing should be part of the first paragraph. "Almost, some things didn't go away that easily." is troublesome because you're splitting off "almost" from the last sentence, and it doesn't make sense on its own. I get what you're saying, of course, but it's a fragmented sentence. This can be fixed in a couple ways, either by separating "almost" and turning it into its own sentence (something akin to "Well, almost no worries.") or by including it in the previous one (perhaps along the lines of "...breathe deeply, and just have no worries--almost.").
I'm rambling now, so I'm gonna cut myself off. Like I say, an editor/pre-reader or two would really help for stuff like this.
Very good chapter.