> Perspective
>  by Dreamscape
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Twilight’s eyes darted back and forth across the vivid green plains, great distant forests, and the jagged rock peaks ahead as the train first began its ascent to Canterlot. As her eyes turned up towards the sky, she saw the faint reflection of her friend’s messy rainbow mane, bright pink eyes, and the outlines of her coat which was nearly lost in the perfectly blue sky.

“Getting excited for the games, Rainbow?” she asked with a soft smile as she turned to face the pony whose head rested haphazardly against the cushion behind it. 

“Eh, I’ll start getting excited when I can actually see the Crystal Castle from the window,” Rainbow Dash replied with a halfhearted shrug. 

Twilight expelled a soft sigh as she too leaned her head back against the bench’s cushion. “I wish I was as good at keeping such a calm demeanor as you…and I wish I could be there with you when you do get to see the Crystal Castle.”

“Huh? Oh yeah, you get to ride from Canterlot to the Crystal Empire in a fancy chariot, huh, Princess Twilight?” Rainbow questioned teasingly, leaning forward in her seat as if to bow which caused the alicorn to roll her violet eyes.

“It’s not as great as you think, Dash. It may be quicker, but honestly, I’d prefer riding on this train with my friends.”

“Oh come on, Princess Celestia and Luna aren’t all that bad of company, are they?” Rainbow questioned, raising a curious eyebrow. “Besides, it’s for the better. I know I’m entertaining and awesome and all, but if you were still riding with us after Canterlot, you wouldn’t be seeing much of me. I’m gonna train with the team. The more training we can get in before the games the better…that, and I don’t think we’ll be training as much as we’d planned once we get there. New place, everypony’s excited and wants to explore; yeah, that normally means no training.”

“Well, darn,” Twilight said with a teasing pout. “It certainly would be a pretty boring ride without you to talk to. I guess the chariot’s the better option after all; but I agree completely. That’s a pretty smart plan you’ve got there.”

“Thanks, Twi…and hey, just think of it this way; we still have a ways to go to get all the way up to Canterlot,” Rainbow said with a grin. “And your most awesome friend is right here to keep you entertained.”

“You’re right, this is really great. It’s nice actually spending some time with you,” Twilight said with an almost nervous giggle, her stomach unsettled by a new sense of anxiety growing within her. Whenever the mare spent one on one time with the pegasus, this happened; and it annoyed her greatly. It was as if it was a not so friendly reminder of how badly she wished to be with Rainbow, but no matter how hard she pushed herself; she was unable to explain, or better yet, show her true feelings for her.

Expelling a deep breath and letting her eyes fall shut a moment, her ears seemed to amplify the sound of the machine’s wheels grinding against the metal beneath; and the wooden tracks giving way then returning to their place with a clunk each time they were passed over.

“Ya know, we always end up together in these sorts of situations,” Rainbow said with a lazy blink of her eyes. 

The alicorn’s eyes burst open as she turned her head curiously to her friend. “What situations?”

“Boring ones where we have nothing better to do than just sit around and chat. We need to change that. You’re pretty cool, Twi. I want to hang more, just me and you when we can actually do something fun for once.”

Twilight’s heart jumped excitedly and almost painfully against her chest as the statement filled her ears, and then continued to pound at a much quicker pace than it had been previously. Rainbow wanted to spend personal time with her, and thought she was ‘cool.’ Of course, personal time didn’t mean that the mare felt the same way as she did, but at least it meant their friendship was growing and she would be able to spend more time with her. Along with that, the pegasus rarely called her anything else other than ‘egghead’, so ‘cool’ was certainly an improvement. 

“Sounds like a plan…I’ve actually been meaning to spend more time with you. It’s definitely going to be busy, but maybe we could, um, hang, during the downtime at the games?” Twilight nearly had to force out, feeling her cheeks growing warmer by the second.

“Sweet! Sounds fun…and do me a favor; please don’t say ‘hang’ like I do. I know it sounds cool when I say it, but you, well, it just doesn’t really fit,” Dash said with a laugh and shake of her head.

Twilight expelled a single nervous laugh in response. “Sorry, haha…I won’t say it again. Anyways, then maybe once we return to Ponyville we could go for a fly, something longer than what we normally do?”

“Yeah, a relaxing fly sounds pretty nice,” the pegasus replied with a halfhearted nod.

“Well, maybe we can include a race or two for you,” Twilight said with a pleasing smirk.

“Really? Awesome!” Rainbow replied, actually using enough energy to sit up perfectly straight upon the bench. The alicorn couldn’t help but grin giddily, proud that her actions had caused the mare to become so excited and lively. 

“So, Rainbow, are you nervous for your relay competition at all?” she then asked, the grin still lingering upon her face.

“Nah, we got this one in the bag…” she started out saying in a smug tone, but then trailed off into a mumble, “and that’s a total lie…I’m nervous all right. We’re up against The Wonderbolts! Even an awesome team like ours could never beat the professionals,” she said with a frown.

“I’m sure you’ll do great. You’ve been practicing for months. Not saying that Fluttershy and Bulk are bad; they’ve certainly improved with your help, but you’re on the team. You’re a great flyer, Rainbow, as I’m sure you already know. With you, Ponyville can win,” Twilight responded with comforting and confident smile.

“Thanks, Twilight, but I don’t think even I’m as good as the Wonderbolts yet,” Rainbow let out in the form of a sigh.

“Wow…I don’t think I’ve ever heard you be so modest about yourself. Even if you don’t win, I’m sure you’ll get second; and if the Wonderbolts are as amazing as you believe them to be, that’s a pretty great achievement.”

“Thanks, and you’re right. This is why I like talking to you,” Rainbow said, giving off the slightest of smiles. The princess wasn’t sure if it was just the new hopefulness which had instilled within her, but it seemed as though she and her friend were growing closer and closer by the minute. Perhaps that hope was real though.

“Whoa!” Rainbow exclaimed, her hoof traveling in front of Twilight’s face as it pointed out of the window. 

“Huh, what?” the alicorn mumbled, the sudden statement followed by the equally sudden movement shaking her from her thoughts. She squinted her eyes at the glare of the sun as she gazed down onto the green fields far below, fields where she could see the definition of each passing stem of grass seemingly just a few moments ago. “I don’t see anything, Rainbow,” she said with a slight shake of her head.

The pegasus quickly explained with a laughing, “Gotcha!” as she gently pressed the mare’s head forward with her hoof, causing her muzzle to wrinkle against the smooth glass pane. Her warm breath produced a small circle of fog upon its surface, even though the day was warm and sunny. 

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight grumbled, turning to glare ferociously at her friend once her head was released. 

“I can’t help it, Twilight. You’re just so gullible,” Rainbow said as she continued laughing. “Just because I said you’re cool and that we can hang out more doesn’t mean I don’t still think you’re an egghead.”

Truthfully, Twilight couldn’t help but enjoy Dash’s teasing. She of course never let it show, but for the oddest of reasons, it pleased her more than anything, and even made her rather happy. “You’re just as gullible,” she then growled playfully and smirked.

“Oh, baloney!” Rainbow defended teasingly.

“Speaking of bologna, are you hungry? The snack cart is coming.”

At the thought of food, Rainbow’s stomach growled instantly as she traced her tongue around her lips in anticipation. “You know I am!” she exclaimed, ideas of what delicious treats the cart might contain filling her mind as she gazed up and down the aisle. “What the hay?” she mumbled confusedly as she realized the isles were empty save a few ponies wandering to or from their seats. “I think you’re seeing things.”

“Says the most gullible pony around,” Twilight responded with a laugh, raising her head proudly into the air.  The defeated pegasus huffed and crossed her hooves, realizing she had been fooled. “Gotcha!” the alicorn then sang, gently patting a hoof against her friend’s back. She felt rather guilty about providing the comforting hoof, due to the fact that its true intention wasn’t comfort at all. Instead, it was an excuse to move her body closer to that of the strong pegasus and feel her soft fur against the sole of her hoof.

“Nice one, Twi,” Rainbow said with a grin and then sighed contently, resting her head against the mare’s shoulder. She then let out a rather loud yawn. “You mind? All of this training’s sorta gotten to me.”

“…Uh-of course not,” Twilight muttered, glad that Rainbow’s eyes were now closed, her cheeks surely glowing red from the sudden contact.  “You need all the rest you can get.” She couldn’t believe it, but once again, it was just something that good friends did. Rainbow Dash knew she had a shoulder to lean on, both figuratively and literally.

“Just make sure to wake me up when the food cart actually does come.” As soon as the last of the sentence expelled from her mouth, she grew completely still, all except the deep, steady breaths which escaped her half-open maw in the form of rasping snores.

Even though she knew Rainbow Dash so well, Twilight was still rather surprised at how quickly the pegasus could go from lively and laughing to dead asleep. Her mind now racing with thoughts and her heart pounding with loving excitement; she wished she too was such an expert in the art of sleep. She was absolutely sure now that she had never been this close to her friend, or any of her friends for that matter, before. She wanted so badly to tell the mare her feelings, and now, perhaps she’d feel the same; but what if she didn’t? Why hadn’t Rainbow Dash, who was normally so blunt when it came to things like this, admit the feelings she may possibly have?

As she nuzzled her cheek against Rainbow’s and wrapped a caring hoof around her shoulders, she wished that the pegasus was not lost in her sleep so that she could actually appreciate those loving actions. Yet, at the same time, she was glad the pony slept because she could never accomplish such tasks while she was awake without becoming utterly embarrassed. 

With the warmth of her friend’s body embracing her, the alicorn realized that she too was rather exhausted for indefinite reasons. Perhaps it was just the continuous quick and heavy motions of her beating heart. Trying as hard as she possibly could to push away the thoughts which filled her mind, Twilight’s eyes grew heavy and eventually shut as she too somehow lost herself in sleep. The continuous motion and sound of the train traveling across the tracks, along with the constant snores of her companion, worked as a rocking cradle and lulled her even deeper into her slumber which soon became filled with images of the pony whose head she rested against.
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	“Everypony, please stay seated so our Princess, Twilight Sparkle can exit the train safely and promptly!” the conductor of the train announced as a dark gray cloud of smoke hissed from the engine’s stack into the air above the Canterlot station. 

Twilight’s cheeks grew a deep shade of red as her head hung down in embarrassment. “I could have gotten off the train just as easily with everypony else,” she muttered angrily beneath her breath.

“Oh, come on Twilight, they’re just showing some appreciation,” Rainbow said with a smirk. “You deserve it.”

“Do I really?” the alicorn questioned as she brought herself to her hooves. 

Dash’s smirk transformed into a genuine smile as she replied. “Of course you do! You don’t have to be so modest all the time.”

“I guess you’re right,” Twilight sighed, turning to the aisle and then nearly crashing to the floor as her hooves fumbled to quickly turn herself back to her friend. “I know it won’t be for that long, not long at all really, a few hours at the most, but I’m going to miss you,” she forced herself to push out. “I…really had a lot of fun sitting with you, really…and um…” With her body shaking ever so slightly, the alicorn leaned for and wrapped her hooves tightly around Rainbow Dash.

“My pleasure, Twi. You kept me pretty entertained too. I mean, train rides are always boring, but you made it less boring,” Rainbow said, gently patting a hoof against the mare’s back. “See ya.”

“Bye, Rainbow,” Twilight responded with a glowing smile and slight wave of her hoof as she once again turned to make her way down the aisle. 

“Bye Twilight!” exclaimed the rest of her friends, who were seated in pairs in front of and beside her, in a synchronous tone, causing her to realize that she, and every other pony upon the train had been observing her rather awkward and extremely cheesy goodbye to Dash. Expelling a nervous giggle as her cheeks grew even redder, she gave another wave to the rest of her friends, and one more for good measure to Rainbow.

Politely nodding to the many ponies which bowed their heads as she walked passed, including multiple starry eyed fillies and colts who were headed to the games with their family, Twilight listened intently to the clacks of her hooves as they made contact with the floor. Besides that, all was complete and utterly silent in the cart. 

As she exited the train, Twilight felt rather relieved to be greeted by the hustle and bustle of the Canterlot streets. Letting out a sigh, she gazed up at the bright white spires of the castle and buildings which surrounded it, their patterned roofs glowing golden in the intense sun. Realizing that two stoic royal guards, outfitted in golden armor stood on either side of the train doors, she quickly nodded her head at both of the stallions in respect.

The gasp of shock which she then expelled indicated that she hadn’t yet noticed the smiling pink alicorn which stood before her either. “Cadance!” she burst out, rushing forward and wrapping her hooves around the mare’s neck. “What are you doing here in Canterlot? Shouldn’t you be in the Crystal Empire preparing for the games?”

“Luckily, almost everything is complete and ready to go. There are only a couple of minor changes I would like to discuss with you, and that’s why we’ll be riding together,” the princess replied, her smile growing into a gleaming grin as she broke the embrace and motioned for Twilight to follow. “Besides, the more time I get to spend with my sister-in-law the better.”

Much more comfortable with her passage to the distant empire now, Twilight grinned back, happy to see her longtime friend once more. As the two approached the elegant, gold plated chariot, another armored stallion opened its door and aided them onto their seats before taking his place next to the second pegasus so that they could pull off into the skies. Noticing that the other two princesses sat in the chariot ahead of them, Twilight smiled and waved a hoof.

“Where’s Spike?” Cadance asked worriedly, her eyes darting back and forth around the chariot in hopes of finding the small assistant which was almost always close by when Twilight was around.

“Oh, he told me he wanted to help with everypony’s bags, so he’s riding the train,” Twilight explained.

“Hmm, well, I guess I’ll have to wait till after we arrive for his answer.”

“Answer to?” Twilight questioned as the chariot was lifted graciously into the air and they began their steady ascent into the clear cerulean skies.  The constant chatter of the fashionably and expensively dressed aristocrats below was quickly replaced with the buffeting of a warm but forceful wind as the pegasi pushed ahead. 

“Because Spike hasn’t returned to the Crystal Empire since he helped save it, I’m sure both you and he are unaware of what a celebrity he’s become,” Cadance said with a vivacious grin.

“Spike...is a celebrity?” Twilight asked, raising a curious eyebrow.

“Well, of course he is. Without him, I never would’ve received the Crystal Heart in time. He’s a hero. Everypony knows him by name and we have even erected a crystal statue in his honor. That’s why I want him to light the torch at the opening ceremony. He will not only be the first dragon to ever do so, but my ponies will be very grateful that he is honored as well.”

“Wow, he’ll certainly love being famous and I’m sure he’ll say yes,” Twilight said with a chuckle.

“Glad to hear it. Now, I’m sorry to say this, but you won’t be sitting with your friends at the games. There are seats delegated to each of us along with other attending royalty.”

Twilight sighed in defeat as thoughts of a certain cyan pegasus once again filled her mind. How would she get to spend any time with her if she wasn’t able to sit next to her? “It’s okay,” she whispered painfully.

“Your throne is certainly not hard to find, but security will be there to lead you anyways.”

“Okay,” the alicorn mumbled almost inaudibly in response as she leaned her head back against the soft velvet surface of the cushioned seat. Gazing down over the chariot’s rim at the few thin, wispy clouds were passing by, Twilight attempted to plan an approach to spending as much time with her love interest as possible. She noted the beauty of the bright green landscape beneath and even wondered how quickly it would turn to snow, but had little time to admire it as she planned.


***


“Is everything okay, Twilight? You seem extremely quiet today. I hope you’re not nervous about the games. I promise you there’s nothing special you have to do besides sit in your throne and enjoy it,” Cadance said, breaking the wordless silence and shaking her traveling companion from her thoughts.

Twilight shuddered in sudden realization at how cold the wind had grown; and blinked in astonishment at the ground below which was, in fact, now fully blanketed in white. She began to wonder exactly how long she had been consumed by her thoughts. The problem of her shivering was quickly solved when Cadance’s horn lit up with a purple aura and a barrier, similar to that which protected the Crystal Empire, surrounded both their chariot and the one ahead of them which contained Luna and Celestia.

“I’m glad I decided to come along for the ride. It looks like you hadn’t planned for snow. These chariots have no protection,” the princess stated, allotting Twilight a few more much needed seconds of thought.

“Well…I’m not going to lie and say everything’s fine, and you’re certainly the right pony to tell,” Twilight finally pushed out. “And no, it’s not about the games.”

“Then what is it about, Twilight?” Cadance asked in a comforting tone, her attention fully directed upon the pony beside her.

“Do you remember Rainbow Dash?” the alicorn responded, a weakness in her voice.

“Of course.”

“Well…I, sort of, like her…as in, I’m interested in her romantically. I’ve felt this way for a very long time, Cadance; but I just can’t seem to muster up enough courage to tell her,” Twilight stuttered out, her face growing warm and damp with perspiration, even with the torrent of cold white beyond their protective barrier.

“It’s nothing to be ashamed of. I actually think you two would be really cute together; the classic ‘egghead and athlete’ setup that you always read about in romance novels,” Cadance said with an eager, yet caring smile. “You know, I had to ask your brother out, rather than him asking me. I think it might have to do with genetics,” she then said teasingly.

“Well, that’s exactly the problem. I feel like Rainbow and I have been growing closer and closer, especially after the way she acted around me today…that’s what brought about this whole situation. The problem is, she’s normally so blunt about things like this; so it’s bothering me that she hasn’t said anything,” Twilight said with a longing and frustrated sigh.

“Well, if she’s returning the affection, but not admitting that she has developed feelings, maybe she’s just as nervous as you are?” Cadance suggested with a slight shrug.

“Rainbow Dash, nervous? Are you joking?” Twilight expelled with a huff, rolling her eyes.

“Twilight, you have to understand that love is completely different,” Cadance responded, placing a hoof upon the pony’s shoulder. “Even if Rainbow is normally brave in the face of danger, it doesn’t mean she can’t be afraid when it comes to love.”

“Or she just doesn’t feel the same,” Twilight said in a near whimper, lowering her head and gazing down at the empty floor beneath.

Cadance rubbed her hoof gently back and forth against the fur of her sister-in-law’s shoulder. “Twilight, if she isn’t interested in you, then why would she be acting so affectionate towards you like you say? Besides, who wouldn’t be interested in a pony like you, an intelligent, brave, friendly, caring, strong hearted and headed, and all around amazing mare?”

Twilight blinked as her vision grew blurred with warm tears. “Because we’re so different, that’s why. I’m not even close to being athletic, and could never fly as fast or be as good at flying as she wanted me to. I’m an ‘egghead’.”

“So what? Are your brother and I that similar? We’re completely different ponies. Every single pony is an individual, Twilight. Our differences are what make us who we are, and relationships don’t mean we have to find somepony like us. It is a bond between two ponies in which we learn to love both each other’s similarities and differences. It also helps us realize that our partner’s flaws are complemented by our perfections, and that our flaws are complimented by his or her perfections. It’s what makes two ponies one.” Finishing her small speech, the princess removed her hoof from Twilight’s shoulder, placed it beneath her chin, and raised it up so that both of their purple eyes met. “If you want this to work, you have to believe in both yourself and the relationship which you are creating.”

“I understand, Cadance,” Twilight said, her lips still turned downward in a frown. “But how does all of this start?”

The alicorn responded with a confident nod before she spoke. “If you truly want this, and Rainbow Dash won’t step up to make the first move, you’re the pony that has to express your feelings first. You have to be brave.”

“Do you think the games would be a good time for this…or should I wait?” Twilight questioned, with an unsure shake of her head.

“The sooner the better, although I’m not sure how much time you’ll be spending with her,” Cadance said as she wiped away the remnants of tears from the mare’s eyes before lowering her hoof. Then turning away from her traveling companion, Cadance’s sitting position became slack with relaxation. “Thanks for telling me this, by the way. I’m glad you know that I’m always here for you when you need something.”

“I hope you know I’d do the same for you,” Twilight said, giving the princess a smile filled with love and adoration.

“Of course,” Cadance replied with a joyful laugh before growing quiet. 

The silence and newfound confidence allowed Twilight to admire something which she hadn’t in a very long time, the nearly weightless snowflakes beyond the magical barrier. The seemingly endless droves of bright white specks streaked through the only slightly darker white skies before peacefully touching the purple aura of the barrier and then continuing on their way. She thought it odd that in the center of all this soundless, frigid white, there was a beautiful, warm, lively,  and sunny utopia where one of the biggest and most celebrated events in Equestria was about to take place.

“So how’s life been going in the Crystal Empire anyways? How’s Shining?” she then asked, breaking the silence and allowing passage for a new and upbeat conversation to take place.
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Sitting on a patio chair, Twilight gazed down at the reflection of the magnificent crystal city in the seemingly pristine crystal sidewalk beneath. The lowering sun still shone brightly against the structures of ice blue, purple, and pinkish-red, continuing to warm the entire city and its inhabitants; who were all eager and busy as they prepared for the games which would begin the coming morning. Once again, the alicorn was lost in her own world of thought as she attempted to find the perfect route to admitting her feelings to the pegasus who rested in the chair beside her. Her thoughts rushed away when a dish of food was placed in front of her with a soft clank, and one in front each of her friends. 

“I’m starving. This is gonna be so awesome!” Rainbow exclaimed pleasurably and rubbed her hooves together with a fierce hunger and excitement.

“It does look pretty good,” Twilight added with a smile, admiring the meal before her which looked to contain a variety of sautéed vegetables covered in a creamy crystal corn sauce.

“Why the hay aren’t you having any?” the pegasus then questioned, turning to the small dragon who sat across the table from her.  

“Well, I sorta ate one too many gems at the castle. I couldn’t eat another bite…of anything,” he explained painfully, patting a claw against his bulging stomach.

“Treating you like a king, huh?” Dash asked with a laugh before diving muzzle first into the delicious food beneath.

Twilight let out a soft giggle in response. “He’s certainly taken a liking to it.”

“So, you ready for the big day tomorrow? I heard you’re lighting the torch for the opening ceremony now,” Rainbow said as she gulped down another bite, and Twilight began working on her meal.

Spike sat up proudly at this, and gave the pegasus a confident smile. “It’ll be a piece of cake. I’m more than ready. What about you? Are you ready for the relay?”

“…As ready as I’ll ever be,” Rainbow replied, shrugging in an attempt to make the event seem much less important than it really was.

“Oh, I’m sure we’ll do just fine, even great,” Fluttershy said with a warming smile as she looked up from her food.

“You’ve got the first competition of the entire games; and I’m sure you’ll keep everypony exhilarated and on the edge of their seats for its length. Oh, what an absolutely perfect way to start things off!” Rarity squealed with delight.

“I’m so nervouscited, I could just explode!” Pinkie yelled happily, her entire body shaking within her chair.

“Whoa there, Pinkie, don’t be goin’ and explodin’ on us before the games even start,” Applejack said with a laugh.

“Well, duh! I was just joking around. Besides, I’d totally wait till after the games if I was gonna do that,” the bubbly pony explained with a gleaming grin.

“Speaking of being prepared, are you going to be doing anymore practicing tonight?” Twilight asked curiously after swallowing a rather large amount of food and turning to her rainbow maned friend.

“Nah, we gotta have some kind of break. Don’t wanna wear ourselves out before the big day, you know? And I definitely need some time to relax and unwind a little,” Rainbow said as she moved in for another bite.

“Then maybe you and I could just take a nice little tour around the city and see a few of the sights? Walking or flying, it’s your choice?” Twilight asked, hoping that her perfect plan would now fall together with ease. In a recent travel guide upon the Crystal Empire, she had read that the city was quite a romantic spot for many couples; and considering the fact that the sun would soon be setting, she was sure it would make it even more romantic. Her little outing with her friend could turn into something much more.

“We were already planning on doing that, silly! Why don’t we all just tour together?” Pinkie suggested, nearly tipping over in her seat as she leaned forward.

Twilight huffed, both in defeat and due to the fact that she had not considered that all of the girls would want to go along with them. “Well, I sort of…wanted it to…be just…” her words trailed off into a nervous laugh before she quickly bent forward and shoved another load of vegetables into her mouth to form a barrier which protected her from speaking.

“Pinkie, darling, I think what Twilight is trying to say is that she’d like to spend some personal time with Rainbow Dash,” Rarity explained to both the relief and sudden embarrassment of the princess.

As if in an automatic response to not getting her way, Pinkie’s lips pursed together in the form of a pout. “Aww, but the more ponies the better! It’ll be so much more fun with all of us together, Twi. Besides you two spent, like, half the train-ride together. Why do you need even more time?”

The realization of how long the train-ride actually was caused Twilight’s cheeks to flush brightly with red. “Well…I…um, like spending time with her, I guess?”

“That doesn’t mean you can neglect your other friends,” the pink mare whined, her aqua eyes growing wider and wider by the second.

“Ugh, Pinkie! I’m not-” Twilight’s growl came to a halt as Applejack tapped a hoof loudly against the table to gather everypony’s attention, most importantly, Pinkie’s and Twilight’s.

“Now, Pinkie, ya can’t just be thinkin’ about yourself. If Twilight and Rainbow want ta spend some time together, we’d be in the wrong for stoppin’ um. It’s their choice, not ours.”

“Hold up!” Rainbow exclaimed, finishing up her plate with a few final licks. “Twilight, trust me, I really wanna spend some time with you; but I don’t wanna disappoint these guys either,” she said with a hopeless shrug. “Can’t we just stick together and be a part of their group or something?”

After a long moment of silence, the alicorn finally expelled an, “I guess,” followed with a false smile for her friend.

“Awesome!” the pegasus exclaimed, rising up from her seat and then hovering herself above the crystal ground beneath with a few soft motions of her wings.

“Rainbow Dash, not everypony has finished,” Rarity scolded, scowling at her eager friend. “Besides, don’t you want desert?”

“Uh…no!” Rainbow growled in her raspy voice, her hooves hitting the ground with a smack as her wings snapped back to her sides.

“You don’t want crystal berry cake, or a crystal berry pastry, or crystal berry cheesecake, or crystal berry ice cream, or a crystal berry shake, or a crystal berry pie?” Pinkie questioned, listing every item off of the desert menu which she had somehow managed to memorize in the short amount of time she laid eyes upon it.

Thoughts of the many delicious berry flavored treats filled the drooling pony’s mind. “Well, those all do sound-”

Her words were quickly interrupted by familiar voice which she hadn’t heard for some time. “Did somepony say pie?”

“Oh, hey Soarin’, what’s up? And yeah, you heard right. Guess this place serves crystal berry pie,” Rainbow said with a grin, turning and gazing at the stallion’s tired, green eyes and almost perfectly trimmed face. 

“Sweet! …I was just coming over to say good luck tomorrow. It’ll be good to see you out there,” Soarin’ replied.

Dash couldn’t help but smile. “Thanks, same to you. I hope you’re ready.”

“I’ve been training all day. How about you?”

“You bet your flank I’m ready, Soarin’!” Rainbow said with a confident and teasing smirk. 

“I also heard you got into the reserve. Congratulations, I knew you’d make it as part of the Wonderbolts. Actually, it’d be nice if we could talk about that a little. I was headed down to the markets because I heard they had a ton of cool stuff; so if you wanna tag along?” Soarin’ asked almost innocently as a slight smile appeared upon his face.

Rainbow’s lips curved downward into a frown for a quick moment before transforming into a sudden and eager grin. “Sorry girls, if you don’t mind, I’ve gotta go, Wonderbolts business and what not.”

“Sorry if I’m interrupting anything, ladies,” Soarin’ quickly added, and then bowed to the rather perturbed Twilight Sparkle. “Princess.” He then turned to make his way to the sliding crystal door entrance of the restaurant. “I’m gonna get a slice of that pie for along the way…or two.”

The alicorn was almost unable to hold back the rage which suddenly instilled within her and then nearly exploded as the stallion gave his bow. This time her face grew warm with anger rather than embarrassment. She wanted to lash out at the poor pony right then and there, but knew it would be wrong. Soarin’ was a truly good stallion in her eyes, especially when compared to his fellows. If he had known what she was trying to do, she was sure he would have never even approached Rainbow Dash. Yet still, a deep hatred for the stallion took over. 

“Whoa, did Soarin’ just steal your date?” Spike asked from across the table, breaking the lengthy bout of silence which had allowed the two to walk away in peace.

“Date?” Twilight questioned defensively, a look of shock overtaking that of anger.

“That’s why you wanted to be alone with her, right?” the dragon replied with a halfhearted shrug.

“Darling, it’s alright. I’m sure we’ve all seen the signs of your budding relationship and pieced them together by now,” Rarity said with a soft giggle. “It’s been quite entertaining and adorable if you ask me.”

Twilight’s new found embarrassment was relieved, for a moment, with a sense of comfort and relaxation. She couldn’t believe that they had discovered her true intentions so easily, although she had been acting much more forward about them that day. Along with this, the lack of shock and complete acceptance of the situation made her feel completely at ease with it herself. She should have realized this sooner. They were her friends. Why wouldn’t they be so accepting?

The only actual shock came from her rather clueless pink friend. “Relationship who, what now?” Pinkie blurted out, tilting her head and perking her ears as she intently awaited the answer.

“Twilight is interested in Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy explained softly, turning her eyes up at the heated but still utterly frozen alicorn.

“Well, we’re all interested in that one. She’s crazy!” Pinkie said with an approving smile as she crossed her eyes and made a circular motion around her ear with a hoof.

“No, not like that,” Rarity said with a slight shake of her head, her perfectly done mane barely moving from all the hairspray within it.

“She wants ta date her, Pinkie,” Applejack said bluntly, then nodded.

“Twilight wants to date Rainbow Dash? Oh my gosh, that’s amazingly adorable!” The bouncing mare’s delightful grin quickly turned into a heart wrenching frown. “But Soarin’ just came, and now she’s with him, not you…” she whimpered.

Twilight’s new found comfort was then overtaken by a painful burst of realization and sadness. Her entire body shook from the whimpers which grew within it, and she expelled an aching gasp.

“Oh, it’s okay, Twilight…just forget about those two sillies for now. You can always go on our little tour with us. Let me tell ya, it’s waaaay funner with your wonderful tour guide, Pinkie Pie,” the princess’ friend said in a desperate attempt to both comfort and cheer her up.

Barely giving her enough time to await any sort of reply, Twilight disappeared with a sudden and rather violent burst of magic before the welling tears in her eyes could fall.


***


With an already well-used box of tissues resting upon the bedspread before her, and a neatly stacked pile of the used papers beside her, Twilight sat in the silent darkness of her hotel room. One which she had decided to stay in rather than the castle to be with her friends. Although it was growing dark outside, she had still closed the blinds for a better sense of aloneness. 

There were two certain aspects of the entire situation with Soarin’ which had hit her so hard, ones which involved Rainbow Dash rather than the stallion. Firstly, her friend had tried her best to avoid just the two of them spending the evening together, but when it came to Soarin’, Dash shrugged both her and her friends off with ease; and her friends were the exact reason she had excused herself from spending personal time with a certain alicorn princess in the first place. Secondly, if the rest of her friends had noticed her outwardly, but inadvertently, expressed feelings towards the pegasus, then why hadn’t Rainbow Dash? Or had she? Perhaps she was purposely ignoring them.

Using one tissue to wipe away the tears which continued to stream down her face then soak into her fur, and using another to expel the clear, liquid snot from her nose with a ferocious huff, Twilight realized that her anger should instead be directed towards the mare rather than the stallion. It was as if Rainbow Dash had purposely pulled her closer that day, and then cast her aside once she found her ‘perfect’ stallion. She knew she liked Soarin’, it was just the way she acted around him that told her everything. Along with that, he was certainly everything she ever wanted, strong, fit, a fast flyer, and of course, a Wonderbolt. No wonder she had abandoned her for him.

A sudden burst of what to Twilight seemed to be blinding light filled the room, casting away her thoughts for a short moment. The squinting alicorn turned her aching head towards the door and gazed upon the silhouetted pony which stood in its open frame. The large cowpony hat upon its head immediately gave away exactly who the figure belonged to.

“There ya are, sugarcube. We’ve been lookin’ all over for ya,” Applejack said softly as she flicked the light switch with her hoof, and gently closed the door once the room had been illuminated. “How’re ya holdin’ up?” she then asked as she made her way over to the bed and wrapped a hoof around Twilight’s shoulders, taking a seat beside her.

“I didn’t mean to ruin your fun just because I wasn’t having any,” Twilight let out shakily. “You should’ve went on the tour without me, not gone looking for me.”

“Now, Twi, we’d much rather be helpin’ each other out then goin’ on some silly tour. You don’t have to be sorry for nothin’,” the country pony said, giving her friend a soft but strong pat upon her back. “Just because Rainbow’s spendin’ some time with Soarin, it doesn’t mean they’re goin’ on a date or anything.”

“You’re supposed to be honest, AJ…I know how much Rainbow Dash loves Soarin’ and I’m sure he likes her just as much, because she’s Rainbow Dash!” Twilight snapped back in irritation. “Face it, I’m already too-”

“Ah am bein’ honest. Sure, Rainbow into stallion’s like Soarin’ and heck, ah’m sure the reason he asked her to go along with him is because he feels the same; but that doesn’t mean it’s gonna work out all willy nilly. It just means ya gotta try harder and tell her how ya feel as soon as ya can.”

“Why should I even bother?” Twilight asked with a weak sigh. “It’s not like Rainbow’s interested in me anyways.”

Applejack could barely stop herself from rolling her eyes at the statement. “Come on, sugarcube, how do ya know that?” 

“One,” the alicorn stated, smacking her hooves together for emphasis, “all of you know I’m interested in her romantically. That means, she does too. She’s purposely ignoring my advances.” She smacked her hooves together once more. “Two, she avoids spending time with me on purpose and makes excuses not to. Three!” she yelled, slamming her hooves together much more harshly in a release of all her pint up emotions. “She could have spent her evening with me, but instead is spending it with Soarin’. The way she’s acting, I don’t even know if I want to be with somepony like that anyways.”

“Whoa there,” Applejack said, giving the mare a tight squeeze to both regain her attention and hopefully shake away some of the delusional thoughts which the anger had caused. “Just simmer yourself down. It’s hard ta think straight when you’re angry…and you’re sorta bein’ a little over dramatic there. This evenin’ was the only time ah’ve ever seen RD ‘avoid’ ya. She purposely sat down next ta ya on the train. Ya can’t judge something when it only happened once. As for her ignorin’ your advances, ya sorta just started really showin’ um today. It’s gonna take a little time for her to let that kinda thing sink in. And Soarin’, well everypony has a dream stallion or mare. Ah can’t blame her for goin’ for what she wants; but trust me, there’s a time when all of us realize that our dream pony is just too perfect and something like that isn’t gonna work out. Even though you’re mad, ya still love her, right? Just tell her how ya feel. It’s not too late.”

Twilight nodded her head, but said nothing. Applejack had managed to not only cause her to begin rethinking everything which had built up in her mind, but also left her hopeful of what was to come. To get what she truly wanted, she had to be determined and take action. 

“Now, ah gotta go round up the others and tell um you’re back here. Go ahead and take some time ta think about what ah said. Looks like ya already are,” Applejack said softly and comfortingly as she took her hoof away and stood up to head for the door. After a few muffled clunks of the pony’s hooves against the finely carpeted floor, and the quick unlatching and re-latching of the door as she left, all was silent once more.
> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The true reason why she had left Twilight and her friends was now forgotten, but thoughts of the purple alicorn lingered awkwardly in her mind. Barely looking at the stallion beside her, who was in the process of swallowing down his first piece of pie, Rainbow tried her best to focus on the present. 

As they walked towards the fancily pattered tents of the market which were lined up on either side of the street, she watched the bustling of the many ponies who still lingered there, even as the sun grew lower and lower in the sky. Some were buying, some were just there to pass the time, and the busiest of all were the ponies within the tents. Their yells of what products they had for sale resonated off of the closest crystal buildings and then echoed back as they frantically struggled to exchange said product for bits and help the next customer in line. It was easy to distinguish the tourists and competitors there for the Equestria Games due to their coats which were rather lackluster in comparison to those of the gleaming crystal ponies. 

“So what Wonderbolts stuff did you wanna talk to me about anyways?” Dash finally asked, turning her eyes up at Soarin’, whose entire face seemed much livelier than it had before the pie. “Jeez, you really like pie don’t you?” she then said with a laugh, noticing a few smears of the purple filling around his lips.

“It’s sooo good! You want my second slice?” he asked with a smile, licking his lips.

“Sure, you’re too sweet…and cute,” she replied with a teasing smirk, causing the stallion’s cheeks to flush ever so slightly as he placed it in her outstretched hoof. “And you never answered my question.”

“Oh yeah, right, I just wanted to say it’s good to finally have you on the team. I know you’re gonna be a great asset. I mean, seriously, you’re already just as good a flyer as any of us, if not better. Just sucks that you’re on the reserve instead of out there with us, but I understand that you gotta have time for your friends and everything.”

Rainbow Dash downed a piece of the gifted pie with a load gulp before speaking. “How’d you know I like compliments,” she said with a teasing wink. “Anyways, that’s it, that’s all you had to say?” She shook her head in disbelief and raised an eyebrow as she first gazed at his strong chest, then moved up to his emerald eyes.

“Yeah, sorry about taking you from your friends…I just wanted to, well, to spend some time with you is all,” he said with a sheepish smile, watching as she easily finished the rest of the pie in a few large bites.

“Oh really, and why would somepony like you wanna spend time with somepony like me?” Rainbow asked smugly, a smirk once again appearing on her face.

“I-” Soarin’s mouth was quickly covered with a hoof before anything else could spill out from between his lips.

“Yeah, I get it, you think I’m pretty awesome, huh? And you think I’m hot, and you sort of have a thing for me?”

“Was I really coming off that strong?” he asked as her hoof lowered back to the ground, his eyes growing wide with surprise.

“Nah, I was just saying how I felt and assuming you felt the same,” the mare then said with a shrug. “Looks like it was a pretty good guess.”

“Really good,” Soarin’ replied before taking the leftover paper plate from the pony’s pie and throwing it in the nearest trash bin. “So…how do you feel about that?”

“I’m totally cool with it, but that doesn’t mean we’re dating or anything...yet. I barely even know you. Kinda need that in a relationship,” she said with a laugh.

“Then, now’s as good a time as any. I actually wasn’t planning on getting this far, but I guess we just hang out here and look at the stalls if you want?” the hopeful stallion asked, brushing a hoof through his blue, windblown mane.

“Eh, sure, got nothing better to do,” Dash said with a sigh, but in reality there was something much more important that she wanted, and almost even felt like she needed to do. Thoughts of her friend, Twilight filled her mind to her frustration as the two moved from stall to stall, briefly discussing the pointless but novel items which were displayed. Dating a Wonderbolt, specifically Soarin’ had been a dream of hers for quite some time. She was unable to comprehend why it felt pointless now, and even wrong. Instead of being overjoyed with the chance to put her moves on the stallion, which she was completely confident would work, she instead was thinking about the mare she seemed to be growing closer and closer to every day.

It made no sense. She had always dreamed of finding a stallion or mare who was strong, confident, fun, and athletic like her. So why was she now fumbling to think of anything to say to her perfect date, and instead wanting so badly to be elsewhere with Twilight, nearly the exact opposite?  An image of earlier that day when she rested her head upon the pony’s shoulder for a quick nap, along with the warm sensation which it had instilled within her, took the forefront of her mind. Then the sudden sound of Twilight’s distinct laugh echoed through her ears. 

Rainbow was completely and utterly confused. It made no sense why she was falling for her friend, and had been for some time. They were truly great friends, but what would it mean to be more? In a way, she wanted this just as badly as it seemed Twilight did; but at the same time, she felt as though it wasn’t real because of its utter senselessness. Her eyes suddenly caught hold of a purple book on display, its cover resembling the Crystal Empire’s flag. A Brief History of the Crystal Empire Collection she read from the sparkling silver text imprinted upon its surface.

“From Pre-Sombra all the way up to modern times,” said the young mare running the stall.

“Bet Twilight doesn’t have that one in her collection…yet” Dash said with a grin as they moved with ease to the next stall, the previous droves of ponies in the crowd beginning to thin.

“It must be pretty cool being friends with a princess,” Soarin’ said thoughtfully. “Not many ponies can say the hang out with royalty on a daily basis.”

“Yeah, she is pretty awesome, but not because she’s a princess or anything. She’s always been that way since the day a met her, really smart, like genius level, great with magic, kinda weird, but fun at the same time, awkward but in a good way, and ya know, a major egghead,” Rainbow said with a chuckle. “She’s really cool…uh, not that my other friends aren’t or anything. I’ve just been hanging out with her more recently and stuff.”

“I wish I had friends like yours,” Soarin’ mumbled with a sigh, his lips forming a slight frown. “You really got it going for you, Dash.”

This caused the mare’s heart to skip a beat, they were great, especially Twilight, so why was she avoiding them? I sudden realization of why she had left them in the first place caused her to freeze in her tracks. Her escape originally wasn’t due to the fact that she was about to go on a ‘date’ with the stallion of her dreams, but instead because she was afraid. She of all ponies was afraid, of what? Falling for somepony who didn’t seem to fit her standards. Somepony who she truly cared for. If she did love Twilight, then what was the point of falling back on some dream standard which she had developed when she was a filly? Things had changed since then, and perhaps Twilight was the new dream…or perhaps it was just false. No matter what the case, she was no longer comfortable being in the position that she was. Escaping from it once more seemed like a bad choice considering the fact that it had already made things more complicated, but at the moment; escaping was the quickest and easiest way out.

“I-I gotta go!” she blurted out sheepishly, turning her eyes to the ground below which reflected her befuddled face back up at her.

“Huh…why?” Soarin’ asked, his mouth dropping open in what seemed to be astonishment from the sudden outburst.

“I…just do…er, I mean, I gotta get some rest. Big day tomorrow and stuff,” she mumbled, quickly turning to escape the curious gaze of the stallion.

“Uh…goodnight then, see you at the relay tomorrow, I guess,” Soarin’ said, standing completely still as he watched the pony disappear into the remaining crowd.

Rainbow Dash’s first destination was not her room back at the hotel, but instead something much closer. “Hey wait!” she yelled pushing her way through a small group of tourists and rushing to a red tent where the young salespony went about packing up her stall and placing her left over goods in boxes. She looked up as she heard the rasping yell, rather surprised to see who it came from. “Is there any way I could still buy something?”

“Let me guess, the book you were admiring earlier?” the crystal pony said with a soft smile.

“Yeah, the History of the Empire or whatever it was called,” Rainbow expelled quickly as the salespony opened one of her boxes and retrieved the familiar purple book. “That one, yeah…anyway I can still buy it?”

“Of course, a sale’s a sale, even if I am nearly closed up. That will be fifteen bits,” she responded, once again with a soft smile upon her face.

Dash couldn’t help but grin with joy. “Aww, sweet! Thanks!” she exclaimed, pouring a pile of bits from a bag which she had previously stashed beneath her wing, onto the counter. “You just made me and a certain really adorable egghead very happy.”

“Well, I’d say it’s what I do, but I’m just a simple merchant,” the mare said with a nod as the pegasus turned to make her leave.
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


***


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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“Is something wrong, Twilight?” Celestia asked.

“Oh, no…just being impatient is all,” Twilight responded with a shake of her head, laughing for a moment. Taking a few deep breaths, she returned her attention to the action on the field below. She was overreacting as always. The span of a few short hours wouldn’t change the moment they had shared that morning. Seeing Rainbow act the way she did as she pulled away from the kiss was certainly a clue to her true feelings. Growing relaxed upon her throne, Twilight engulfed herself in the competition as much as possible, her eyes only darting up towards Rainbow Dash every few minutes to catch a glimpse of the amazing mare.
> Chapter 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	As she pushed her way through the colorful and noisy sea of ponies making their way down the hall towards the exit, Rainbow Dash jolted at the sudden sensation of a hoof falling down upon her back. She let out a sigh of relief as she turned to see a familiar and comforting face.

“Great job today, I almost thought you had us beat,” Soarin’ said with a grin. “I would’ve come over and sat with you and your friends afterwards like you asked…but Spitfire had other plans. I’m sorta trying to, I guess you could say, sneak away from them right now.”

“Sneak away?” Rainbow repeated with a smirk, motioning for the stallion to follow as she began to move forward once more, realizing they were actually aiding in slowing the flow of ponies.

“Yeah…I wanted to make up for last night. It was pretty bad for a first date. I was gonna make tonight more official if you’re up for it. My team’s having a celebration later which is great and all, but right now, you’re more important. I mean, unless you want to go to the celebration with me?”

Rainbow gulped inaudibly as she came upon the exit and trotted out into the warm, glaring sun. She hated herself for what she was about to do, but knew, or at least hoped it was the right decision. She had always followed her dreams, and this could be no exception. The happy hum of thousands of ponies along with the subtle background music of songbirds did little to calm her nerves.

“Don’t worry about last night. That was all on me. I guess I got nervous. Weird for somepony like me, right?” Dash asked with a chuckle. “You don’t have to take me out to a fancy dinner or anything like that to please me. I thought you would’ve figured that one out by now. So yeah, if you wanna go celebrate, then let’s do it.”

“Sweet! We’ve still got a while till the party starts, so if there’s anything you wanna do to pass the time until then?” Soarin’ asked nearly jumping with joy. 

“Yeah, something I shoulda done last night,” she said, quickly latching a hoof around his own and dragging him away from the rapid torrent of the crowd towards the side of a few tents which had been set up to sell merchandise. 

Soarin’ gazed down at the pony expectantly, sure he knew exactly what she meant. “Bet you never would’ve guessed, but I’ve dreamt about going out a date with you for ages,” she said with an air of complete confidence as she wrapped a hoof around his neck, drawing nearer to his muzzle.

“Whoa, really? I’ve had a crush on you for a really long time too; I mean, who couldn’t?” As Soarin’ spoke, Rainbow could feel his heartbeat quicken, its heavy pulses creating a miniature shockwave which traveled throughout his entire body.

“I’ll admit it, okay?” she said cutely, gently stroking her hoof up and down the fur of his neck. “You’re my dream stallion.” 

“I…am?” he asked curiously, examining the pony’s every move. For him being her dream pony, she certainly didn’t seem to be portraying any displays of head over hooves love for him. Something seemed rather off about this moment between them, but he quickly shrugged it off as she spoke once more.

“Yep. So, are you gonna kiss me, or not?” Dash asked in a smug tone. Soarin’ gave a quick nod of his head, closed his eyes, and eagerly puckered his lips as he leaned in. He was rather intrigued as the mare’s lips wrapped around his own with full force, but soon realized that this too was off. He gladly kissed back with an equally excited manner, but it felt as if Rainbow was trying too hard. It was as if she didn’t appreciate the kiss, but wanted him to feel as though she did. Feeling her tongue pushing forcefully at his lips, again caused him to shrug off such a notion. Widening his mouth slightly, he met her tongue with his own and blushed deeply as they fought back and forth.

Twilight had been searching for Rainbow Dash for quite some time now, and grew worried when she discovered that she, along with her friends, hadn’t seen her once the games had come to a close for the day. She had simply disappeared. She was sure Rainbow understood how urgently she needed to speak with her, but where was she?

Twilight let out a gracious gasp of relief as she noticed the end of Rainbow’s unmistakably bright tail jutting out from behind one of the busy souvenir tents. “There you are, Rainbow! I’ve been looking all-” her words came to a sudden halt as she turned around the corner and froze with complete and utter shock at the sight before her. Considering how infatuated with the heated kiss both Soarin’ and Rainbow seemed to be, Twilight found it rather unexpected that they had even noticed her presence. 

“Twilight!” Rainbow gasped with shame as she broke the kiss and quickly pushed herself away from the stallion.

The princess who she referred to gave little response, and perhaps hadn’t noticed the gasp at all. Still frozen in place, her jaw slowly lowered in the form of a gape. All of the silly notions that she had convinced herself to be false, suddenly exploded in her face with full force, showing her that her worries were, in fact, real.

“I-” Dash muttered quickly, but it was too late. As tears began to stream down the dejected pony’s face, she once again made her escape in the form of a bright explosion of light as she cast her well used teleportation spell.

Rainbow grasped onto her chest painfully with her hoof as the image of her miserable friend imprinted itself upon her mind. She had single-hoofedly caused the pony the most pain she had ever seen her in for the entire time the two had known each other. To make matters worse, a new sensation poured over her. Even though she had only seen Twilight for a few short seconds, the feeling of love for her actually instilled a tingling and somewhat nauseous sensation within her. 

These feelings for her friend were both real and true, unlike the false sense of love she shared with Soarin’. It was in this moment that she realized the path she had chosen was wrong, and the one which she was meant to follow shone more brightly than ever. The choice which was so utterly confusing just moments ago, the choice which had even instilled fear within her, was now not even a choice at all. Though this singular path which she was so determined to follow was now, perhaps, a dead end, all because of her mistake. It simply meant she had to pave the way herself.

Letting out a sigh as she turned back to a rather confused looking Soarin’, she spoke with pure resolve. “You’re a really great stallion and all, Soarin’, but things change and dreams aren’t always true. You’re not the one for me. Trust me, there’ll be plenty of other mares out there. Like I said, you were my dream stallion, and I’m pretty sure a lot of others feel the same way I did. Just remember something, sometimes real life is even better than your dreams.”

“It’s fine,” Soarin’ responded with a defeated sigh. “I knew something was up. You’ve been acting really off around me. If doing this makes you happy and you know she’s the one, then go get her.” For a few short seconds, his deep frown turned into a soft and confident smile. “I’m sure I’ll find somepony else someday, but for now I’ve got my pies.”

“Jeez…didn’t have to go make it so depressing at the end there,” Dash said with a silent shake of her head.

“I was just kidding, get out of her already and find your princess,” he said, shooing her with his hoof.

“Find my princess,” she repeated with a soft chuckle before she disappeared into the air with a prismatic streak. 
> Chapter 7
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Rainbow grew more and more desperate in her search as she flew through the city, her eyes darting back and forth across the fast moving land below, searching for anything lavender. Although her heartbeat quickened with hope each time something purple streaked past her vision, she slowly began to realize that such a search was becoming more and more hopeless by the second. So intent on the ground below, she barely noticed the hard wind ruffling her mane and fighting her back with its powerful force.

She had already checked the hotel room, only to find a moping Spike who said he hadn’t seen the pony all day except earlier that morning before the relay. Along with that she had nearly searched every single location within the city, even places that she was sure Twilight had never even been to. Was her magic actually powerful enough to transport her all the way back to Ponyville? Twilight would never be one to neglect her duties, even if they were just sitting in a throne while she watched the games; but perhaps something as extreme as this would drive her to do something equally as extreme. 

As her wings began to push more weakly against the currents of the wind, her pace slowed drastically. The strong winds too slowed to gentle and rather warm breeze; something which would normally be quite soothing as it tickled at her face. Now, it simply signified defeat. She was never one to give up easily, and she certainly hadn’t. Twilight was nowhere to be found, and she had traveled from one end of the city to the other multiple times in her desperate attempts.

If it weren’t for her turning her eyes ahead rather the below in search of a cloud to rest upon, she would have never seen such a beautiful, but heart wrenching sight. Twilight rested upon the cloud ahead and to her right. Her beautiful, deep violet eyes gazed forward into the distant, bright green landscape which consisted of plentiful rolling fields and large snowcapped mountains even further beyond. There was a certain shimmering quality within her thoughtful eyes, and although quite the sight to behold, it only caused Rainbow more pain when she realized it was created from the tears which still streamed down her face. Licked by the breeze, her smooth, silky mane moved in beautiful waves. Although she looked at peace, the pain which resided within her could be seen by the slight downward curvature of her lips and the weakness of her eyes.

Not sure exactly how to begin, Rainbow landed softly on the near weightless vapor beside her friend. “What are you doing up here, Rainbow?” Twilight asked weakly after calming down from the initial surprise. “You’re a really great friend for coming up here and checking on me, but you should get back down there with Soarin’. It was pretty stupid and ignorant of me to think that you felt the same way about me as I do about you. I was too busy dreaming to realize how little sense us being together actually makes. Somepony like you would never want to be with somepony like me. I should have been focusing on the facts like I always do,” she said with frustration, shaking her head methodically as she went. “We’re good friends, and that’s all we’ll ever be. Please, I’ll be fine on my own for now. I think I finally have this all figured out.”

“No, Twilight. You were right all along,” Rainbow said softly as she laid down closely beside her friend, the warmth of their bodies radiating against each other. “You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m the one who screwed up.”

“How did you screw up?” Twilight asked curiously, busy sifting her hoof through the white vapor in front of her.

“Because, Twilight,” Dash said as she unfurled her wing and draped it carefully over the mare’s body, “I’m in love with you.” Freezing for a moment as her cheeks hued a bright pink and her heart beat with hope once more, Twilight sniffled and turned her attention away from the cloud, up into Rainbow’s determined and equally hopeful eyes. “That’s right, I’m an idiot for not accepting it right away.” she then said with a heartfelt sigh. “Is there any way you can forgive me?”

“Of course I can,” Twilight muttered, her breath seemingly disappearing with the sudden shock. “But what happened with you and Soarin’.

“That was one of the biggest mistakes I’ve ever made,” Rainbow admitted painfully. “To be honest with you, even though I barely know the guy, I thought he was the one, like, the one. Actually, being with a stallion like him has been my dream since I was a little filly. When I started liking you, I was really confused. It made no sense. You know me, I always follow my dreams, so when all of the sudden I was falling for you instead of what I thought I wanted, I was scared, Twi, really scared. I didn’t know how to react or what to do. I sort of tried to ignore it, but the harder you tried for me, the harder I fell for you…Soarin’ was just sort of a way to escape that, and I feel really bad for using him the way I did. That’s why I told him it wouldn’t work out when I saw you there staring at us and realized something, dreams can change, and in reality, you’re a major part of mine. So, if you don’t hate me for everything I did, how about you tell me something I know you’ve been wanting to say for a really long time, and something I really wanna hear,” she said with a genuine smile, her cheeks growing a deep shade of crimson.

Before she spoke, Twilight sucked in a deep breath of air as she inched even closer to the pegasus and then placed a hoof on top of hers. “Rainbow Dash, I’ve thought of you as more than a friend for a really, really long time now. I’ve just been too afraid to say it; but now that I know you feel just as strongly about me, there’s something I need to ask you. Oh wow, this is really cheesy,” Twilight expelled with a shaky laugh, her pounding heart leaving her nearly breathless. Rainbow couldn’t help but chuckle as a large smirk grew upon her face. As an act of both reassurance and love, she turned her hoof over so that she could wrap it around the princess’. “Would you be interested in going on a date with me?”

“That would be totally awesome!” Rainbow exclaimed with a grin, grasping Twilight’s hoof tightly. “I’m free all night, what’d you wanna do and where’d you wanna go?”

“I actually think we might be in the perfect spot already,” Twilight said, nodding her head at the scenic view before them, slowly tinting with orange as the sun lowered in the sky. “I know it’s not anything fast paced or exciting, so I hope you’re okay with it.”

“It’s perfect, Twi,” Rainbow said with a loving sigh as she gently nuzzled her cheek against Twilight’s. “So let me ask you something. What made you think we could never be together…you know, besides the fact that I was acting so stupid about it?”

“Because, Rainbow, you’re strong, brave, athletic, cool, and so determined. I’m none of those things.”

“Yeah right,” Rainbow said, mocking Twilight by performing her signature eye roll. “I think the only thing on the list you mentioned that didn’t describe you, is athletic. You’re definitely determined, brave, strong too, and cool. You’re way more than cool. You’re awesome. Yeah, not gonna lie, we are pretty different when it comes to most stuff, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have similarities. Besides, the reason I like you so much is because you’re you. I love everything about you, you big egghead,” she said, sticking her tongue out teasingly.

“I love everything about you too…even if you are always so cocky,” Twilight teased resting her head against Rainbow’s strong chest. “It keeps things…well, interesting. Cadance was definitely right when she said a pony’s partner compliments their flaws and the pony then compliments their partner flaws, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, we do make a pretty great team after all,” Rainbow said with a laugh.

In a state of complete joy and bliss, something which just minutes ago, she would have thought unable to reach in such a depressed disposition, Twilight turned her eyes to the stunning landscape before them. To her, it was amazing to think that beyond those orange cream colored skies and past the reach of the Crystal Heart’s protection, was a world of white and frigid cold. Even further was the rest of Equestria. Yet, here she was in a perfect sanctuary of her own, snuggled up against the ‘most awesome pony in Equestria,’ without a worry in her mind save sitting through more competitions and events the next day. Although this perfect world would only last another day, till the games reached their close, Twilight was sure such a sanctuary would follow her home in the form of the mare beside her.

I sudden but gentle touch of a hoof against Twilight’s chin pushed these thoughts away, and her head was raised up so that she gazed directly into her lover’s eyes once more. As her face grew heated and caused her cheeks to hue a deep shade of pink, she couldn’t help but admire Rainbow’s hasty, unkempt, but naturally beautiful look. It reflected the pony’s personality almost perfectly. The shadowing effect caused by the lowering sun created a deeper definition upon Dash’s face, better showing off the shape of her rather cutely rounded face. The fierce pink stare of her eyes perfectly displayed her more competitive and speedy side; and her bedraggled mane, it’s already messy styling unaffected by the breeze ruffling its way between her hairs, displayed her fun, carefree attitude. 

As Rainbow’s mouth widened into a gleaming grin, Twilight responded by doing just the same. The pegasus then brought her other hoof up to the beautiful eyes before her and gently wiped away any remnants of her crying. Twilight’s heart then pounded quickly as the lips before her puckered and those eyes which were so fierce just moments ago became completely relaxed before falling closed as Dash leaned forward. Following her lead, the princess nervously pursed her lips, tilted her head slightly, and closed her eyes as she brought forward her snout.

If asked to describe the sensation which overcame her as she felt Rainbow’s slightly roughened lips wrap around her own, Twilight would be unable. All she knew was that such a sensation was one of the most amazing feelings she had ever experienced in her entire life. It certainly wasn’t just the kiss that caused this, but the realization that she and Rainbow were finally together as one. Something she had begun to believe would only ever be a hopeful dream. The care which Rainbow Dash had put into brushing away the tears from Twilight’s eyes was ruined as another stream of the warm liquid trickled out of her eyes and down over the crease of her muzzle. These tears were different though, ones caused by extreme happiness, rather than sadness.

After what only seemed like a few seconds in which Twilight was barely able to kiss Rainbow back, the pegasus broke away, her cheeks glowing with red. “I don’t think you know how badly I wanted to do that to you this morning when you gave me that ‘good luck’ kiss on the cheek.”

“Well, I do now,” Twilight said with a giggle, stroking her hoof against Dash’s while she used the other to dab away her tears. 

“I really wish I would’ve too,” Rainbow said with a sigh. “Would’ve made things a lot easier.”

Twilight smiled smugly. “What’s done is done, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make up for it now,” she whispered, leaning forward and locking her lover into another kiss, enjoying every single moment of the feelings and sensations which it caused. Letting out a warm, ecstatic breath into Rainbow’s mouth as she broke away, Twilight rested their foreheads together, her eyes still tightly shut.

After a few moments of silence, Rainbow gently lay down upon her side and patted the moist vapor beside her, motioning for Twilight to do the same. The alicorn did exactly that, and lay down with her back facing her marefriend so that their bodies cradled perfectly together. 

Wrapping her hooves around Twilight’s rounded chest, Rainbow Dash pulled herself up against the pony. The princess let out a soft but pleasurable sigh as Rainbow’s fur along with her solid, but sleek frame pushed up against her back, engulfing her in warmth. All that was left now, was to watch the sun lower behind the distant hills and mountains as their shadows grew longer and longer until they were fully engulfed by the night. For this, Twilight had the perfect seat, wrapped in the strong and loving embrace of who she believed to be the most amazing pony she had ever met.
> Chapter 8
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	A smile formed on Twilight’s face as she looked up to the two rows of seats where her friends and marefriend sat. Making her way up the wide path of stairs between the two sections of seating on either side of her, she was rather grateful for the continuous and colorful explosions of fireworks which lit her path in the darkness of the night. 

“Glad you finally made,” Rainbow Dash said eagerly as she took a seat beside her, the silver medal around her neck brightly reflecting the colors of each explosion in the sky. “I was getting worried you’d be stuck in that throne the whole time again.”

“Well, I at least wanted to be present with the other princesses during the first part of the ceremony,” Twilight said with a contented sigh. “It’s certainly good to be over here now though.”

“I got something for you…I sorta bought it the first night we were here, but ya know,” Dash said with a sheepish smile as she pulled up a large purple book which rested against her side.

“A Brief History of the Crystal Empire Collection,” Twilight read aloud as she took the book in her hooves. “Oh Rainbow, how did you know I wanted this?” she asked with a pleasurable gasp.

The pegasus replied with a shrug and then wrapped a hoof around Twilight’s shoulders. “Because you didn’t have it in your collection. You want, like, every single book that’s ever published.”

“Rainbow,” she grumbled with a teasing glare. “I don’t want every single book that gets published, but it is probably close to that amount.”

“Yeah, I know, I know. I just thought you’d like it because its history and you’re always jabbering on about how you don’t know enough about the Crystal Empire.”

“Wow, you were actually listening to me when I went off ranting about books?” Twilight asked sweetly, resting her head against Rainbow’s and then stroking a hoof gently across her chest after setting the book aside. Dash smirked as if to say ‘yes.’ “I’m sure you’re going to hate me for saying this, but you can be a real sweetheart sometimes. Now I have nice big book to keep me entertained on the ride home.”

“How could I hate you? Besides, I kinda like it when you call me sweet…” Rainbow said quietly, “but only you,” she quickly added. “And wait a second, you’re gonna read instead of talk to me?” she then asked with a huff.

Twilight rolled her eyes and gave a smug smile. “I meant the chariot ride to Canterlot.”

Rainbow couldn’t hold back the small frown which suddenly appeared upon her face. “Oh yeah…I forgot…” she said with a sigh. “I thought the whole point of the chariot ride was to make a grand entrance for the games. Do you really have to make a big return to Canterlot too? Can’t you just come with me…er, I mean us?” she pleaded.

“Well, you do make a good point,” Twilight replied, nuzzling her cheek against Rainbow’s. “I’m sure I won’t have to, and I’d much rather be with you anyways.”

“Aww, I just love happy endings!” Pinkie exclaimed cutely. This caused the two to realize that the pops and crackles of fireworks were, in fact, still ringing loudly through the cool, night air around them, and that they were still surrounded by their friends who watched them talk as if they were the subject of a film. “Spike saves everypony from a ginormous ice ball and now is finally all happy, Ponyville wins with the most medals, and you two lovebirds are totally lost in your lovey, dovey, wuviness for each other!”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Rainbow said with a grin. “I am happy, really happy. You wanna hear something else, something I’m in no way afraid to admit?” she asked turning to face Twilight whose features were lit up each time another firework exploded high in the sky above. “I love you, Twilight Sparkle,” she said confidently, although by the slight tint of pink upon her cheeks, it could be seen that it was quite difficult for her to let out.

“I love you too,” Twilight said with a soft giggle, blushing deeply.

“Well now, that certainly escalated rather quickly, don’t you think?” Rarity asked, enjoying the affectionate display before her. “Go on now, Rainbow Dash, kiss her.”

“Well, Rarity, I can’t leave you hangin’,” Rainbow replied, closing her eyes and planting a deep kiss upon the princess’ lips. Twilight smiled and kissed back lovingly, letting out a small but joyous moan. Their small audience then grew silent as they broke away and embraced one another, turning their attention to the fireworks above along with their starting point in the field below.

“It looks like Spike learned a lot on this trip,” Twilight said, pushing her body up closely against Dash’s as she gazed down towards the barely perceptible dragon on the field. “I actually learned quite a bit too.”

“Yeah, me too, definitely,” the pegasus replied before lightly touching her lips against Twilight’s cheek. “We’re still gonna go for that fly you promised when we get back, right?”

Twilight smiled softly in response. “Of course, and don’t forget about the racing.”