Ace of Hearts

by blowngasket

Dolore

Chapter 18: Dolore

The alarm clock began its usual cycle of ringing, though that didn't really matter to the individual in bed. She glared at the device, dark circles under her eyes, as if it was taunting her, making fun of her because she didn't get any sleep to begin with. She reached for the alarm clock, the little guy still chiming away blissfully, happily letting the poor tired girl know her entire night of rest was wasted and she still had work to do today.

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The sun was shining nicely as it rose above the clouds, staring its way towards the world. Ark, sitting outside of Rainbow's house, really had nothing better to do than watch it. Rainbow had made it all too clear she didn't want him in the house, or even looking through the windows at that. It didn't really phase him, and so he remained vigilant in case something did happen. He kept his hood down over his head, yawning slightly, being tired from a lack of sleep, though it was nothing new to him.

Ark perked up slightly at the sound of an alarm clock, most likely belonging to his charge, and stood up from his spot, stretching. He looked up towards the window the sound was coming from, wondering if she was ever going to turn the annoying little thing off. Sure enough, his question was answered as he watched it fly through and out the window, noisily sailing through the sky and towards the ground. Ark sighed, running and quickly catching it before it made a decent towards the land below them. It was surprisingly still working, despite the abuse, so Ark gave a quick smack to the top button and flew back towards the house, using his wings to ascend towards Rainbow Dash's now broken window.

"Miss Rainbow Dash?" Ark asked, speaking up slightly as to be heard, though keeping his face away from view. There was no answer, prompting Ark to slowly reach for his sheathed knife. "Miss Rainbow Dash, is everything alright?" He asked again, getting no response. With a possibility of an attack, Ark's mission came before Rainbow's wishes. He quickly flew through the broken window, knife drawn and ready. He glanced around the room, looking for any threats. He noticed Rainbow firstly, still in her bed, sitting up, and possibly sleeping. She had her eyes closed, her back against the headboard of her bed, snoring gently despite Ark crashing through the window. Ark stared for a few seconds, looking over at Rainbow, his eye twitching slightly from the sight. He stared back at the window and sighed. "This isn't worth it..." Ark was in the house, so no sense in actually leaving now. He still smelled of blood and death, so a quick shower shouldn't be a problem.

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Rainbow's eyes quickly shot open when she felt a cool breeze hit her skin. She looked around quickly to see what was amiss. Her weary eyes widened when she noticed the broken in window. She starting to look around franticly for the one responsible.

"Oh...no..." Rainbow quickly got up and, being wary of the glass, looked out the window. He wasn't there. "A...Ark?" She called out meekly, a combination of being tired and nervous affecting her usual confident persona. Nothing, the last thing she wanted to hear. She slowly made her way towards the bedroom door, taking care still to not cut herself on the broken glass. Opening the door, she could see her bathroom light on from the cracks under the door. She slowly made her way towards the door, knocking a few times, not wanting to surprise the possibly dangerous man.

The door started to open a crack, half a face peering out towards the mortified Rainbow Dash. His blond hair was matted against his face, soaking wet, and his eye, a bright golden hue, stared coldly at her, providing an odd contrast of gentle and frightening. Not wanting to stand there and stare any longer, Rainbow said the first thing to some out of her mouth. "You jackass! You broke my bedroom window!" She yelled at him, starting to get angry. "And what the hell are you even doing in my house?!"

Ark stared for a few seconds, his gaze unchanging. "You're stupid...aren't you..." Ark stated.

"What are you talking about?! I'm stupid?! YOU'RE STUPID!" Rainbow said, yelling back.

"Are you twelve?" Ark asked, sighing slightly. "You threw your alarm clock out of the window." Ark said, speaking plainly. Rainbow took a few seconds to mentally check what she did. Somewhere in her tired mind was the inkling that she did do such a thing to the poor defenseless device.

"You didn't have to bust through the window!" Rainbow said, bringing up the main issue again.

"You didn't respond when I asked for you. In case the alarm clock was to defend against an intruder, I did the rational thing and entered swiftly." Ark calmly stated the facts, his voice barely rising above flat and boring.

"Then what the hell are you doing in my bathroom?!" Rainbow asked, calming down once she had a chance to process the information.

"Taking a shower." It wasn't a lie, but Rainbow would have preferred a more defining answer to her question.

"Fine...but you're paying for the window!" Rainbow said, pointing a finger at Ark.

"No." Ark said, closing the door, leaving Rainbow fuming.

"What the hell do you mean 'No'?" There was no response. "You're a guest in my house, you pay for the things that you break!" The door slowly opened, Ark standing there, his gaze piercing her and a subtle scowl planted on his face. He was wearing a white tee shirt and his jeans, no longer covered in blood, but looking slightly red from leftover stains. His wings were casually folded against his back, his hooded jacket tossed over his shoulder.

"You broke the window...I only made the hole bigger. Still would need to replace it if I didn't." Ark stood still, watching Rainbow try to find fault in his logic, but so far not succeeding. She furiously rubbed her hands through her head, messing up her already messy hair more.

"...I...uh...and...I give up. You are impossible!" Rainbow yelled flailing her arms up before dropping them to her side. "I got work soon, so I need to get ready."

"I think you're late then." Ark said, looking over at her.

"What are you talking about, it is only like eight thirty." Rainbow said, looking over at him. He sighed and reached towards the sink grabbing the clock he had saved from imminent doom earlier. Rainbow looked at the thing, than back at Ark, and then back at it.

"I'M LATE!" Rainbow yelled, quickly flailing about, dashing through her house, collecting a fresh set of cloths. She quickly ran inside of the bathroom, completely ignoring Ark, and started to strip down, jumping into the shower. Ark, keeping his back turned, noticed a pair of Rainbow's undergarments fly into his peripheral vision. He sighed, not bothering to look, and walked out of the bathroom, shutting the door on the way out.

"Stupid..." he said, a slight blush on his cheek.

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"Why are you following me?!" Rainbow Dash asked as she sailed through the skies on her wings, Ark soaring quickly behind her.

"My job." Ark responded coldly, maintaining the speeds necessary to keep up with Rainbow. He wasn't fast, but he lacked the erratic movements she had. She flew around with boastful strides, as if to say yes, I am that awesome. His strides, however, were stable and unmoving, giving him an edge in flying a simple straight path. Even in situations like this, Rainbow's desire to show off made it difficult to actually lose him, though she has tried before on several occasions. Even when she outflew him, he always seemed to be able to find her without any trouble at all.

Rainbow couldn't stand his way of using logic against her. It was like a bad combination of egghead and maniac, possibly a serial killer type of person for all she knew. Just being near him made her nervous. "Well do your job somewhere else. You're gonna cramp my style. I have a reputation to keep." Rainbow stated, going faster as to ditch Ark. He watched her zoom away, not bothering to try and catch her. Figuring it would be easier to do his job, he decided to remain unseen instead.

Rainbow looked behind her, cheering in her mind at her victory. She had left him in her dust, and could finally enjoy the day, for what being two hours late was worth being enjoyed. "From the frying pan into the fire." Rainbow said, sighing. She quickly made her way to weather management headquarters, steeling herself for the ear lashing of a lifetime. She landed on the soft support cloud for the structure and walked towards the office door quickly. Opening the door, she got a few stares from her co workers, who waved and went back to whatever busy work they were doing. Rainbow walked over to the managers room and knocked on the door.

"Come in." The gruff voice of the manager said through the closed door. Rainbow gulped and opened it, immediately shooting her mouth off.

"I am so sorry I didn't sleep and there is this weird guy and I broke my bedroom window and I overslept and..."

"Rainbow, calm down!" He responded, looking at her from behind his thick glasses. He wore a casual brown suit with a red tie, and brown hair cut short. His image screamed 'I am in charge' and he surely acted the part, speaking in a demanding tone. Rainbow instantly silenced herself, not wanted to be scolded again. He looked down at his desk, picking up a folder and opening it, reading its contents. "Says here you're off today." He glanced up. "You forget your schedule again?" He asked, his tone half condescending half concerned. Rainbow looked mortified. She could have slept in, instead she sped to work unnecessarily and now there was no way in hell she could get sleep anytime soon with all the adrenaline pumping through her.

"I'll...go...then..." Rainbow said slowly, backing out of the office and shutting the door. A few of the people who were there to witness the display tried to hide their chuckles, not paying any heed to her as she stormed out of the building.

She closed the door behind her and frowned. "And my day has gotten worse..." she mumbled, Ark standing off to the side. "Stalker...I'm hungry...you're paying..." Rainbow said with a scowl, walking past him without a second thought.

"Why?" Ark asked, following after her.

"Because even if ya didn't break my window, ya didn't make it better." Rainbow responded, going back to the broken window ordeal.

"Fine..." Ark agreed reluctantly, just wanting her to shut up about the stupid window.

"What do ya eat, anyways. And please don't say anything creepy like people or something." Ark gave Rainbow a look that basically screamed 'really' and shook his head. "Well what do you want then. I'm up for just about anything." Rainbow said flatly, the uncaring attitude of her appetite easily making its way out.

Ark took a few seconds to think, deciding to go with his personal favorite. With his cold uncaring tone, he simply asked "Do you like muffins?"

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"Hello, how can I help you?!" Pinkie asked a costumer as they walked in the door. She was dressed in her usual vibrantly pinkish outfit including an apron that had several balloon designs on it. She stood behind the counter, smiling happily. The customer, an old man, smiled at her as he walked towards the counter.

"Good afternoon Pinkie." He said to her with a cheery tone. "Just a slice of carrot cake please."

"One carrot cake coming right up!" She said skipping into the kitchen. His eyes followed her, or more a lower part of her, when he came across Reader, looking over at him funny. He was seated in one of the booths, not really doing anything.

"Umm can I help you?" he asked, not really sure what to think of the strange looking robed man.

"No thank you, sir. I don't think your assistance would be necessary, but thank you for your consideration anyways." Reader responded, giving a nod and going back to doing nothing. The old man looked at him, puzzled, before shrugging and ignoring him. Pinkie finally came back into the main room holding a triple layered carrot cake slice, wrapped up and ready to go. The old man smiled, watching her walk towards the counter. He heard a groan from Reader, though chose to ignore him.

Reader had been, for the most part, listening in on the thoughts of all of the customers that came in, making sure none of them had any ill intent towards Pinkie, as for his task in protecting her. It didn't help that the woman was so friendly, that she would practically get into the personal space of any costumer that walked into the store. Even worse were all of the perverted thoughts he had the displeasure of dropping in on. It wasn't something he wasn't used to. You practice in mental magic, you pay for the price of knowledge, which in the case of old men and Pinkie, their thought became ones he wished he could forget. He doubted any would act on their impulses. At the very least, he was glad that she wasn't doing it on purpose.

Pinkie, that was a whole topic in of itself. He couldn't really get a read on her. It wasn't that she was trying to keep him out. With her it was different. She had no real inhibitions, no limitations on what she said. What she was thinking generally made it's way out with no need for a person like Reader to try and understand. She was so simple to read, that it confused Reader to no end. Honesty may have been Applejack's element, but to Reader, Pinkie could, even without trying, give Applejack a run for her bits.

"Here you go, Mister Breezy. That will be one bit!" Pinkie said, handing him the wrapped paper plate with the cake on it. He took out the gold coin and dropped it on the counter, the coin bouncing off and falling to the floor, rolling behind Pinkie.

"I'm sorry, it slipped out of my hand." He said apologetically.

"It's okay. I got it!" Pinkie turned around and bent over, the man gleefully enjoying the sight in front of him. Not a second later, he heard a large thud. The man turned his gaze to the source of the sound. Reader, letting out a low groan, looked as if he smacked his head against the table. He stared for a few seconds, but Pinkie popping back up brought his attention back to her. "You are all set. You have a nice day, and come on back!" Pinkie said happily, clearly clueless to what just happened. Breezy smiled and waved walking towards the door, narrowly avoiding Rainbow and Ark as they entered the shop. Rainbow looked around, almost not noticing the mass of pink flying right at her. Pinkie dive tackled Rainbow into a hug, squeezing the air from her lungs. "Hiya Rainbow!" Pinkie said happily, clinging to her friend for dear life. Ark, on the other hand, stared slightly at Reader and his current position.

"Pinkie...air...breath..." Rainbow gasped out. Pinkie, realizing what was going on, put Rainbow down so she could breath. Rainbow drew in several large gulps of precious oxygen.

"Sorry, I am just always happy to see you." Pinkie said, smiling. She walked over to Ark, who watched from the corner of his eye for any sudden movements that he would rather avoid. "Hiya mister tall, dark, and gloomy. How are you doing today?" Pinkie asked, smiling blissfully. Ark, shrugged, not really bothering to confirm or deny anything. "Are you playing the quiet game? Fluttershy is really good at that game! She has told me once that she is the world champion!" Ark raised an eyebrow slightly, barely noticeable from under his hood. "I better let Flutters know she has got some new wicked competition in town now." Pinkie said, with what Ark could pick up was genuine awe. Rainbow couldn't watch anymore, the awkwardness between the two would overwhelm anyone with a sane mind.

"Say Pinkie, do ya think you could get us something to eat?" Rainbow asked, drawing attention away from Ark. Pinkie smiled, quickly bounced towards Rainbow.

"Of course! What do you want, Dashie?" Pinkie asked, staring at her while waiting for an answer.

"Umm...just get me and Ark a muffin. Hey dummy, what kind do you want?" Rainbow's gaze shifted towards him, though not really enticing any physical reactions from him. She could tell he was thinking over his choices.

"Blueberry..." Ark said quietly, Rainbow barely able to hear him. Pinkie frowned slightly, shaking her head.

"I am soooooo sorry. We sold out of blueberry an hour ago. I can make some more though, if you guys are willing to wait." Pinkie said, an apologetic smile on her face. Rainbow shrugged.

"Well I don't know if he's..."

"We can wait." Ark said, interrupting Rainbow. She looked over at him, shrugging again. Rainbow looked over at Ark, who gave an adamant look about waiting.

"I guess we are waiting. Let me guess, you had sold out to Ditzy again?" Rainbow said, chuckling.

Reader's head shot up, startling everyone, his eyes fixated on Ark. He stared back at Reader, sending him a glare which would turn a gorgon to stone, causing him to shrink back somewhat.

"You okay there baldy? You don't look to well. Oh my gosh, you're not trying to read Pinkie's mind are you. I don't think that is very safe. " Rainbow said, looking a bit concerned.

"Do not worry. I am indeed well. Just...a bad dream." Reader said, smiling nervously.

"If ya say so. Thanks again, Pinkie." Rainbow turned back towards Pinkie, who was just as baffled as she was.

"No problemo, Dashy. I'll get on those muffins right now! Sorry for making you wait, Arky. I promise that these will be the best muffins in the history of best muffins in history" Pinkie said, dashing into the kitchen. Rainbow stared as she left, trying to wrap her mind around what Pinkie just said, barely able to make sense of it.

Reader continued to stare at Ark. He hadn't been able to get a good read on him, his mind usually closed tighter than a safe inside a safe behind a concrete wall, only putting his defenses down when necessary, and only by a certain amount, never letting Reader have complete access to his mind. Something slipped out this time, though. Ark, again letting his defenses down just enough to hear his simple mental message. The message was strong, though, and Reader could feel every emotion behind it, causing him to cower in fear for the first time since his accident. A slip up, and he felt he really would be dead.

"If you say a word about her to anyone, I will slaughter you...

Comments

[Luna Secret Stallion]

Ark and Ditzy? Am I missing something?

[blowngasket]

2876994 Nothing as of yet.

[Black TearsWolf]

I'm thinking older sister.

[The Feline Bard]

My bet's on Ark;s stray thought involving a certain prismatic flyer.