A Single Question
For a Friend
“Are you into mares?”
Twilight, having been busy levitating a mug of coffee up to her lips, froze for a few seconds with the cup half way to its destination. Slowly lowering the drink back to the table in front of the couch, she cleared her throat and asked in as calm a tone as she could muster, “What?”
Rainbow sighed, shifting around in her armchair to find a more comfortable position. “You know, like, would you go on a date with a mare?” she clarified, eyes wandering around the front room of Golden Oaks Library as though uninterested in the topic she'd just brought up.
“And... who is this for a again?”
Rolling her eyes, Rainbow once again shifted around until she was laying across the chair on her back with her head on one arm and her hind legs dangling over the other. “I told you; a friend. I'm asking for a friend. They'd rather me not tell you who they are.”
After pondering both the question and the possible reasons to desire secrecy, Twilight was pretty sure she knew exactly what this was about. “Well, you can tell your friend, whoever she is, that I'm bisexual, so I certainly wouldn't say no to a mare because she's a mare.”
Rainbow jerked upright suddenly, propping herself up with her forehooves. “How'd you know it was a mare asking!?” she demanded with a seemingly uncertain glare.
“Because it's not that hard to figure out what's going on here,” Twilight deadpanned with an unamused glare of her own.
“I-it's not?” Rainbow stuttered, turning and sitting properly in the chair for the first time since she'd first sat down in it.
“Of course not!” Twilight exclaimed with a laugh. “It's obvious that your friend, whoever she is, has some kind of crush on me, and wants to ask me out. I mean, why else would she ask you to ask me about my sexuality? She's just nervous about asking me, and wanted to make sure I was into mares before actually asking, right?”
Despite years of expert pranking and keeping a straight face under the most impossible conditions, Rainbow couldn't stop the relieved chuckle that left her mouth before she could say, “Yeah, yeah, you caught her. Still, she'll be happy to hear that.”
Twilight smiled as she added another mental tally to the number of puzzles she'd solved. “Well, you can tell her she can come ask me anytime she likes. Though... it would make it easier if you told me who I should be looking out for?”
Once again reclining in her chair, Rainbow sighed and said, “Look, I promised her I wouldn't tell you, so I won't.”
“Can you at least give me a hint?” Twilight asked again, pouting slightly as Rainbow shook her head. “Well... at the very least do I know her?”
Rainbow scratched her chin, looking up to the ceiling as though there were a cheat sheet glued there that would tell her how to answer the question. Eventually she relented: “Yeah, you know her.”
“Is she one of my friends?” Twilight pushed eagerly, leaning forward in her seat.
“Yeah, you could say that.”
“Is she-”
“Nope; no more!” Rainbow started abruptly, cutting Twilight off as she stood from her chair. “I can't give you anything else, and I'm on weather duty in twenty minutes. I'll see ya later, Twi!”
Twilight 'humphed' in annoyance, fully aware that today was Rainbow's off day and she was just using work as an excuse. “Rainbow, wait; just one more question!” she called, stopping the pegasus only a few steps away from the front door.
“Fine; just one more question, but I might not answer,” she warned, sitting back on her haunches as Twilight walked over to her.
“Why me?”
Rainbow cocked her head to the side in confusion. “Huh?”
“Why me,” Twilight repeated, motioning to herself. “Why does she want to go out with me? Did she tell you?”
Smiling, Rainbow chuckled quietly. “Yeah, she told me. And when she starts talking about you, she doesn't stop.”
“Well... what does she say about me?”
Rainbow hummed in thought, scratching the back of her head. “Well, basically she likes you because you're... well, you're Twilight Sparkle. She goes on and on about the little things no one else really notices about you, like how she's seen your eyes literally sparkle when you find a book you haven't read yet, or the look you get when you're trying to solve a puzzle. She's constantly talking about how dedicated you are to your studies, and she won't shut up about how smart you are. Not to mention she's mention quite a few times that you're not exactly hard on the eyes.”
Twilight blushed a deep crimson as Rainbow continued, not expecting anything so... detailed. They were some of the most flattering things she'd ever heard, and she wasn't about to cut her friend short at this rate.
“She could probably talk for days about how adorable she thinks your little mannerisms are, and-”
“Wait wait wait,” Twilight cut in, motioning for Rainbow to stop. “Do you even know what 'mannerisms' are? No offence, but you're vocabulary isn't normally so... robust.”
“Hey! I do to! Rarity told me after I was talking to her about yo- err. Never mind. Yeah, I know what mannerisms are,” Rainbow finished with a carefully-hidden blush and a discrete fake cough. “Do I need to keep going?”
“Umm...” Twilight blushed a few shades redder than she had been. “It... couldn't hurt.”
Rainbow chuckled again and nodded. “Well, she says you're beautiful, and she likes how you never treat her like she's stupid, even though she's nowhere near as smart as you – even if you like to point out when ponies use 'big words',” she added in tone of heavy sarcasm, shooting a glare at the now beat-red unicorn, who giggle guiltily.
“She says she likes how positive your outlook on life is, and that she could listen to your lectures for hours, listening to your voice but never hearing anything you say. I-she loves how you don't mind when she doesn't understand a word you say, and how you just laugh and explain it in simpler terms. She-”
“Th-that's good...” Twilight muttered, feeling as though she'd burst into flames any second. “Didn't you say you had weather duty?”
“Yeah, yeah, I should get to that,” Rainbow said, shaking her head and knocking loose whatever had jammed. “I'll see ya later, Twi.” With that the pegasus did what her name would imply she did best and dashed out of the library, leaving nothing but and gently-swinging open door and a rainbow trail in her wake.
Twilight blinked, surprised at her friend's rather sudden departure, only half wondering why she'd felt the need to leave so quickly. “That was...weird,” she noted, staring out the door into the early morning light slowly waking up the residents of Ponyville. “Anyway... Spike!”
After waiting a few moments without a response from her no-doubt sleeping assistant, Twilight sighed and walked back into the main room of the library, grabbing her cup of coffee from the table a taking a sip – an action she regretted immediately as she quickly spit the liquid back into the cup. “It would be cold...”
-_-_-_-
“And you're going... where exactly?” Spike asked uncertainly, balancing a rather light stack of books in his arms and walking along a shelf in search of their rightful home.
“Just... out. I have to go talk to my friends about something,” Twilight said quickly, taking her own small stack of books and putting them where they belonged in a glow of magic. “Rainbow came by this morning and asked me something, and I want to go talk to them about it.”
At the mention of the pegasus mare, Spike stopped is work and turned to Twilight with a smirk. “Rainbow asked you something? What did she ask?”
Twilight opened her mouth to respond, then suddenly stopped when she saw the rather... knowing look Spike was giving her. 'It... couldn't be... could it? Spike? No. Nononononono! There's no way; Rainbow said it was a mare, and he's... he's Spike! But... it's like he knows what she asked...'
“Um... nothing really, just something for a friend,” she answered slowly, carefully gauging Spike's reaction.
The dragon did indeed react; a barely contained snort of laughter caused him to nearly drop his stack of books. “Wait, she said she was asking 'for a friend'? Just what did she ask you?”
Quirking her head to the side, Twilight gave her assistant a skeptical look. “My... preferences when it comes to romantic partners... why is that funny?”
Spike froze perfectly still for nearly a whole second, before very calmly walking the rest of the way down the shelf, putting the books where they belonged, and coming back to stand in front of Twilight. He placed a claw against her foreleg, and instantly doubled over laughing.
“You... she... for a friend! Hahahahaha!” He choked out between wheezes and gasps for breath, his laughter filling the library and bringing a curious frown to Twilight's face.
“Spike?”
“For a friend!” Spike cried, losing his grip on Twilight's foreleg add falling all the way to floor. “She asked for a friend!”
“Spike?” Twilight repeated, a little louder as the dragon started rolling around on the floor, clutching his stomach.
“You... go ahead and leave, Twilight; I can handle the library...” he managed to sputter out before once again losing the battle and laughing uproariously.
“Uh... alright... I'll be back sometime this afternoon,” Twilight said, slowly backing away from the now unresponsive dragon until she got to the door. With a final look over her shoulder, she quickly left the library, closing the door behind her. “What was that about?”
Twilight pondered for a few moments before sighing and starting her way through town, now late enough in the day for ponies to be out and about. “I'll ask him when I get back, but he definitely knows something,” she though aloud. “First though, I need to go to Rarity.”
With a destination in mind Twilight set off towards the home of her fashionista friend. Today was all about finding the mare who asked Rainbow to ask about her references, and although she doubted Rarity would use such a tactic, the romantic-minded mare would come in handy in tracking down the one that actually did have a crush on her. Of course, there was always the chance it was Rarity – Rainbow had said the mare was her friend too, and she only had 4 close friends besides Rainbow Dash herself. Or it could be any one of the other mares around Ponyville she talked to from time to time. Perhaps it was the mare she bought her lettuce from? Or that one carrot farmer she'd talked to from time to time on her way to Sweet Apple Acres? Or maybe it was Applejack herself?
It could be any mare in town, and that thought unnerved Twilight to no end. The knowledge that any one of the mares she was passing one her way to Rarity's boutique could be getting good news from Rainbow at any point throughout the day. But, at the same time, when she remembered how Rainbow said the mare had talked about her...
Twilight blushed as she caught site of a mare smiling lightly at her and giving a wave of greeting. Her gentle canter turned into a trot and before long the identifiable clothes shop came into view at the end of the street. Her trot sped up even more as another mare bid her a good morning as she passed.
“Rarity!” Twilight called, flushed and panicked as she slammed the shop's door closed behind her. Glancing around the front room, she quickly deduced that Rarity was not there.
“Twilight?” An elegant voiced asked, floating down from the upper floor. “What are you...? Never mind. I'll be down in just a minute!”
Taking a deep breath to calm herself – an action the was completely negated by looking out the window at a passing group of ponies – Twilight replied, “Take your time; I just need to talk to you about something.”
Take her time Rarity did. By time the she came down the stairs Twilight had done just about everything she could think to do to past the time, which was mostly just worrying about her current situation. Eventually, as Rarity found out upon entering the front room of her shop, Twilight had slumped back on her couch, and at some point fallen asleep.
“Twilight?” Rarity called gently, smirking as the unicorn remained soundly asleep.
“Twilight?” She called again, eliciting a snore from the unconscious pony on her couch.
Grimacing at the rather loud and definitely un-ladylike sound, Rarity lit her horn, and with a small burst of telekinetic energy pushed against Twilight's shoulder.
“Huh?” The purple mare muttered blearily, glancing around the room until her eyes fell on the pearly white pony she'd come to see. “Oh, Rarity!” Suddenly realizing she'd fallen asleep, a light blush burned on Twilight's cheeks. “Sorry, guess I dozed off...”
Rarity shook her head, walking over and joining Twilight on the couch as she set about magically making tea in the kitchen, keeping a careful eye on everything through the open archway between the two rooms. “Don't worry about it, darling; you're not the first and you won't be the last. You just caught me in the middle of my morning rituals, as it were, and you did say it wasn't important.”
“Oh, right!” Twilight perked up, shaking the remnants of her recent nap from her body as Rarity levitated a kettle, two cups, and a tray of crackers from her kitchen. “I need to talk to you.”
“So you said. But first, would you be a dear and heat this up for me? I'm afraid I haven't quite gotten the hang of that heating spell you taught me,” Rarity asked, motioning to the cold kettle on the table.
“Of course,” Twilight said with a smile and a nod, casting the relatively simple spell and bringing the water to a near-instant boil. Rarity took the kettle and poured the steaming liquid into to cups, placing a small teabag in each.
“Thank you. Now, what was it you needed to speak with me about?”
Twilight fidgeted nervously, the possibility that Rainbow might have been asking for Rarity suddenly filling her mind, as improbably as the logical part of her knew it was. “Well, it's actually about Rainbow Dash,” she admitted slowly, keeping a careful eye on Rarity's reaction.
Suddenly, in a bout of what could only be described as Pinkie Pie-level energy, Rarity's face split with a grin, her eyes wide and sparkling, as she said, “Rainbow Dash!? Did she finally ask you!?”
Twilight couldn't stop her jaw from dropping as she stared at the excited mare. “R-rarity? You!?”
Completely ignoring Twilight's befuddled question, Rarity veritably squealed in excitement. “Oh, this is just wonderful! I've been bugging her to ask you for weeks! Now that she finally- wait.” Rarity paused, quirking her head to the side. “Did you say something about me?”
“It was you!?” Twilight asked again, eyes wide and uncomprehending. “She was asking for you?”
Rarity frowned, her excitement fading as she regarded her lavender friend carefully. “Asking for me? Twilight, dear, I believe there's been some kind of misunderstanding. What exactly did Rainbow Dash ask you?”
Twilight blinked, unable to understand what was going on. “She... a friend of hers asked her to ask me if I was romantically interested in mares, and-” She never got to finisher her explanation as Rarity interrupted her with a loud guffaw of laughter.
The ever-ladylike mare quickly regained her composure, though it was clear she was struggling to hold back giggles. “She asked that for a friend?”
Nodding slowly, Twilight said, “Yeah, apparently a friend of hers has a crush on me and wanted to make sure I was into mares before asking me out. I wanted to talk to you today to see if you could help me figure out who she is so I can make it a little easier on her.”
Rarity coughed into her hoof – a cough that sounded suspiciously like a laugh – and cleared her throat, taking her cup in a shaky magical grasp and taking a large drink. When she set the cup back down, she took a deep breath, and gave Twilight a deadpan expression. “Twilight, did you ever think that she might not have been asking for a friend?”
“What do you mean?” Twilight asked with a frown. This entire day was getting weirder and weirder; first Spike and now Rarity laughed at her when she explained what was going on. Was there some kind of comedic aspect to this she was missing? It certainly wouldn't be the first time; logically analyzing things often ruined the comedy of situations. It was a problem she had been working on since meeting the pranking duo of Rainbow and Pinkie.
“Exactly what I said, dear; what if she wasn’t asking for a friend?” Rarity repeated.
“Well that doesn't make any sense! For one, why would she lie about something like that? I've known all you girls a long time, and aside from Applejack, Rainbow is probably the best candidate for the Element of Honesty. She's not the type of pony to lie about serious matters,” Twilight ranted, going into her lecture mode that everypony in Ponyville knew to avoid as she sat back on the couch. “For another, if she wasn't asking for a friend, who would she be asking for? A stranger? I doubt it. Then the only possibility would be her asking for herself, which would mean that she's interested in dating me. That's just ridiculous; the whole 'opposites attract' thing only works like that in cheesy romance novels, and even if she did, I already told her I was into mares; why wouldn't she have just asked me this morning when she was at my house?
“Beyond that, even,” Twilight continued, not even paying attention to Rarity, who was once again beginning to lose the battle with her desire to laugh at her friend's obliviousness. “Why would she like me? I mean, she's... well, to take a page from her book, 'awesome', and in her own words, I'm a nerdy bookworm. It's not something I'm ashamed of, but it's true and she wouldn't be interested in that. I mean realistically, what could I add to a relationship with her? Explaining to her why she can to a Rainboom? Like she'd even be interested in that. Besides, she may be many things, but Rainbow Dash isn't shy. If she wanted to, I have no doubts she'd march right up to me and ask me out without tip-toeing around the subject.”
“Twilight, darling, I'm sure you're just over thinking things. Perhaps you should just wait at home for whoever Rainbow was asking for to come to you?” Rarity suggested.
“I can't. I was trying to do that all morning and it just kept bugging me,” the unicorn sighed. “I wish Rainbow Dash was the one who had a crush on me; it'd make this day so much easier. She'd have just asked this morning and I wouldn't have to walk through town thinking every mare who smiles at me is interested in me.”
Rarity shook her head lightly. “Don't worry about it; whoever it is will come to you soon enough. Though, if you don't mind me asking, when this mare does come to you, what will you tell her?”
Twilight shrugged. “Depends on who it is. I was thinking about that on the way over here. I mean, I'm not going to flat out reject anypony; they at least deserve a chance. But... there are some ponies I just don't see myself with. Though I have to admit, this is the first time a pony has ever actually showed any interest in me, so I'm... a little excited,” she admitted with a light blush of embarrassment.
Raising an eyebrow, Rarity asked, “Really dear? This is the first time? I find that hard to believe; surely there were at least some colts in Canterlot that gave you a few looks?”
“Really? Before you girls I wasn't even interested in making friends, and I was even more of a bookworm when I was in school. Do you really think I'd have attracted the attention of anypony?” Twilight deadpanned.
“Is it possible you just didn't notice any attention like that?”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “I'm not totally oblivious, Rarity.”
Rarity couldn't stop herself from letting out a small giggle at the sentiment, but covered it quickly. “I'm sure whoever it is will come find you soon, but it would be best if you just waited at home.”
“Sorry, Rarity, but I have to find out who's interested in me as soon as I can. Can you at least give me an idea of who you think it might be?”
“Well, if I had to guess,” Rarity muttered, faking a thoughtful tone as she rubbed her chin. “It would have to be somepony pretty shy to ask through Rainbow Dash, and it would have to be a friend of hers for Rainbow to actually agree to it, so-”
“That's it!” Twilight shouted suddenly, bolting off the couch. “Thanks for your time!” The unicorn called as she rushed out the door.
Rarity shook her head slowly, smiling lightly at Twilight's untouched tea. “You better hurry up, Rainbow Dash, or she's going to end up asking somepony else out.” The mare looked to her own half-finished tea and sighed. “I need to go get rid of a certain farmer who's too honest for her own good.”
-_-_-_-
Twilight galloped quickly through town, no longer paying attention to the ponies milling about the street. She had a pretty good idea who it was, and none of these ponies were her. It was so obvious now! How had she not seen it earlier? Both shy and a friend? It had to be Fluttershy.
Though her discovery left her with a bit of a dilemma; she liked Fluttershy. The shy yellow mare was sweet and kind, but not exactly a pony Twilight had any sort of interest in dating. When she had been considering her answer, Twilight hadn't even thought of her friends, but now that she had to it was seaming less and less likely that she would say yes to Fluttershy.
“Hey Twi?”
Sure, she could give it a shot, like she had originally intended, but it was possible for that to end even worse than flat out rejection. Fluttershy was a very... delicate mare, but she wasn't irrational. She may be hurt by a negative response, but in the end everything would go back to normal. Eventually. Or at least Twilight hoped.
“Yo, egghead, you in there?”
But even with saying no, she was risking the chance that she might actually enjoy dating Fluttershy. It was always a possibility. She hadn't exactly dated before, so aside from some less-than-factual books, she had relatively little idea what she should actually be looking for in a marefriend. She knew the basics, of course, but-
“Oof,” Twilight grunted as she walked face first into something light blue and soft. She scrambled back a few steps and looked up to see a familiar pegasus smirking down at her.
“'Bout time you stared paying attention,” Rainbow snickered, lowering herself back to the ground in front of Twilight.
“Rainbow Dash? What are you doing here?” Twilight asked, resuming her trot towards Fluttershy's cottage with her unexpected obstacle falling into step beside her.
“Looking for you, actually. I need to talk to you about something,” the pegasus started, frowning when Twilight actually sped up her pace.
“Can it wait? I need to go see Fluttershy,” Twilight answered distractedly.
Rainbow raised an eyebrow, taking to the air and following just above Twilight's head. “Fluttershy?”
Groaning in annoyance, Twilight stopped and glared up at the mare floating above her. “Yes, Fluttershy. You could have saved me a lot of time if you'd just told me it was her in the first place!”
“I... what?” Rainbow scratched her head.
“Ugh, never mind. I'll come find you later when I have some time, okay?” Without waiting Twilight once again took off at a brisk pace, the pair having already reached the outer limits of Ponyville. Fluttershy's cottage could be seen on the top of a hill not too far in the distance.
“Uh...” Rainbow watched Twilight go with a mixture of curiosity an annoyance. “Sure... I... guess it can wait...” she muttered to herself before turning and flying back to the skies above town, searching for a cloud big enough to sleep on while she waited for Twilight to finish doing... whatever she was doing.
Twilight, meanwhile, was crossing the bridge to Fluttershy's cottage. With a few more steps she was at the door and already knocking gently upon the surface. It didn't take long for her to get a response, and the shy yellow mare opened the door just a crack and peaked around the corner.
“Oh, Twilight,” Fluttershy said softly, opening her door all the way. “What are you doing here? If you don't mind me asking.”
Sighing, Twilight shoved the notion of simply asking Fluttershy if she was the one who asked Rainbow out of her head. No matter how sure of herself she was, there was a chance she was wrong, and she knew she couldn't be completely tactless even if she was right. “I need to talk to you about something, could I come in?” she asked, keeping a calm smile as Fluttershy nodded and stepped aside, allowing entry into her humble abode.
Twilight trotted through the door and turned right, into the living room of the rather small cottage. She saw the usual assortment of woodland creatures, running about the many paths Fluttershy had strung up along the walls and over the middle of the room, all chattering quietly with each other. She heard the door close and the yellow pegasus joined her in the room a moment later.
“Would you like some tea? I just boiled a kettle for Harry,” Fluttershy offered, motioning to said kettle, sitting on her coffee table.
Suddenly realizing she hadn't actually drank any of the tea Rarity had given her, and that she was rather thirsty, Twilight nodded, thanking her host as she was passed a steaming mug with a gentle aroma. Fluttershy motioned to the couch, and the two mares sat down in silence, the chattering of animals a surprisingly peaceful backdrop when added to the soothing smell of fresh tea that permeated the room.
“So,” Fluttershy started quietly, “you said you needed to talk to me?”
“Yes, it's...” Twilight trialed off, unsure how to start the conversation she wanted to have. She couldn't just dive headlong into the issue, but she wanted this over with as quickly as possible. “Well, Rainbow asked me something this morning, and-”
“Oh that's wonderful!” Fluttershy interjected suddenly, smiling brightly.
Twilight had to suppress a cry of victory; Fluttershy was the only one that made sense, logically. “Well, I-”
“Wait... if she finally asked you, why are you talking to me about it?” She asked curiously, cutting through Twilight's half-formed explanation.
Frowning, the unicorn did what came naturally to her when asked an illogical question. “Huh?”
“We've all been encouraging her to do it for weeks. For a while we thought she'd never get it done. But... oh, I'm so happy for her! Still though, why are you here talking to me?” Fluttershy clarified, frowning in thought as she regarded the obviously confused mare. When Twilight didn't say anything in response, Fluttershy's face shifted from one of confusion to one of fear. “Oh dear... Twilight, what did Rainbow ask you this morning?”
“I think you know what she asked,” Twilight said slowly, shoving Fluttershy's.... odd statement to the back of her head. She just needed to get the mare to admit she'd been the one to ask Rainbow, then this could all be dealt with so much easier.
“I think I do, but if I'm wrong it's really not my place to say,” Fluttershy said nervously. “What did she ask you?”
Twilight was thoroughly confused. First Fluttershy was excited her question had been asked, then she started acting like she didn't know what the question was? Something was going on here. “She asked... wait, did you say that 'you all' have been encouraging her to ask? Who has?”
“Oh dear... I think I may have said too much. If you're this confused then she didn't ask the right question,” the shy mare muttered, hanging her head a little lower.
“No, no,” Twilight said quickly, “She asked the right question; she asked if I was interested in dating a mare for a friend of hers. Didn't she tell you my answer yet?”
“Why would she...” Fluttershy trailed off, her eyes widening suddenly as it dawned on her. “Oh... she was asking for a friend, and you thought... it was me?” Fluttershy finished quietly, more so than her normal speech.
Twilight nodded slowly. “Was... was I wrong?”
“Twilight...” Fluttershy sighed, shaking her head. “I think it would be best if you just waited for her to come to you instead of trying to find her.”
“That's exactly what Rarity said!” Twilight huffed in annoyance, slumping back on the couch and crossing her forelegs. “I thought for sure it was you; since you're... well, no offence but you're really shy, and a friend of Rainbow's so she'd be willing to ask a question like that for you.”
Fluttershy smiled kindly. “None taken. But no; I'm not the one who asked Rainbow.”
“What was all that about you encouraging her to ask though? Do you know who actually asked her?” Twilight asked. Now that she thought about it, Rarity had said the same thing. Did all her friends know who had a crush on her?
“I'm sorry, but it's really not my place to say. She'll come to you; just wait,” Fluttershy advised calmly.
Twilight sighed, realizing she wasn't going to get any more help out of her visit. “I would, but it's been driving me crazy all morning. It's almost noon now, and she still hasn't come to me, and I've been out around town pretty much all day. Thanks for your time,” she said, standing from the couch and walking to the door.
“Try not to worry too much, okay, Twilight?” Fluttershy called after her.
“I'll try,” Twilight responded before leaving the small cottage, shutting the door behind her.
Fluttershy shook her head sadly. “You're not going to be able to take your time forever, Rainbow. Oh dear!” The pegasus shouted suddenly, standing and racing to the window looking out over the town. “I'd better go make sure Pinkie doesn't let anything slip...”
“Hey Twi!” Rainbow called as Twilight shut the door behind her. The unicorn jumped at the sudden voice, whipping her head around.
“Rainbow! Were you just waiting for me out here?” She asked accusingly, giving the mare a glare.
Rainbow chuckled nervously. “No, I was napping up on a cloud and I just woke up. I need to talk to you.”
“So you said last time,” Twilight muttered, beginning her walk back into town. “But I really don't have time right now; I need to talk to...” she trailed off, unsure who exactly she wanted to go see next.
“Ugh, really? Look, it'll take two minutes,” Rainbow insisted.
“Applejack!” Twilight shouted suddenly. “If you all know, she'll never be able to lie!” Grinning at her perfect plan, Twilight lit her horn an disappeared in a bright flash of light.
“Applejack now?” Rainbow murmured, looking at the spot Twilight had been standing seconds before. “What is that pony up to today?”
-_-_-_-
“So Applejack was a bust...” Twilight sighed, hanging her head low the the ground as she followed the dirt path back into town. Not only had the farmer been nowhere in sight, but nopony on the farm knew where Applejack had gone. It was her best chance to get the truth too. If anypony was going to be honest it would be Applejack.
“Maybe they were right,” Twilight said, looking up at the bright blue sky, the sun beginning its journey back down towards the horizon. “Maybe I should just wait at home...”
“Wait at home for what?” Rainbow Dash chirped, flying quietly behind the downtrodden unicorn.
“Oh for crying out loud!” Twilight shouted, whirling around and glaring daggers at the pony who had started it all. “What do you want!?”
“Whoa, jeez, easy there Twi,” Rainbow sad, holding up her hooves defensively. “I just need to talk to you.”
Twilight ground her teeth together. “You have been telling me that all day!”
Rolling her eyes, Rainbow shot back, “Yeah, and you kept telling me you were busy.”
“Because I am!”
With another flash and a pop Twilight was gone, leaving Rainbow alone in the middle of a dirt road. “What's got under her feathers?” She asked herself, flying up and back into town, keeping a keen eye out for Twilight's unique shade of purple.
“I wish she would just leave me alone; she's caused me enough problems for one day,” Twilight ranted to herself after getting her bearings from her impromptu-teleport. She had only one friend left to find, and there was only one place she would realistically be.
A happy-sounding bell grated on Twilight's nerves as she walked through the door to Sugar Cube Corner. She doubted highly Pinkie of all ponies would know anything about her current predicament, but it was worth a shot. The mare could be as loose lipped as Applejack if she hadn't Pinkie-promised, and at this point it was Twilight's last hope.
“Ah, Twilight dear, how are you today?” Mrs. Cake asked, smiling sweetly from behind the counter.
Burying her frustration beneath a smile, Twilight replied, “Fine, thanks. I'm actually just looking for Pinkie. Is she here?”
“Yepperoony!” The exuberant pink mare in question called, bouncing jovially down the stairs from her room. “But you shouldn't be! You need to get home fast.”
Twilight frowned. “Pinkie, what are you talking about? You don't even know what I want to talk to you about!”
“I do too,” Pinkie shot back in her usual sing-song tone. “But you should definitely be getting home. Like, now.”
“Is this some weird Pinkie-Sense I didn't know about?”
“Nope!” Pinkie stopped bouncing suddenly, leaning in and whispering conspiratorial in Twilight's ear, “I have sources.”
Twilight drew her head back, giving the pink mare the look that she always gave Pinkie Pie as she started bouncing again. “Pinkie, what are you-”
“C'ya later Twilight!”
“Twi!”
Twilight felt her eye twitch as she turned and saw a light blue annoyance standing in the doorway. “Yes, Rainbow Dash, I know; you need to talk to me!”
“Yeah, I do, so would you stop running all over town and give me thirty seconds?” Rainbow asked accusingly, glowering at the unicorn as she walked over.
“No, because the last time I gave you thirty seconds you started all this! Now if you'll excuse me I need to start asking random mares on the street until SOMEPONY admits it was them!”
Rainbow blinked as Twilight ran out the door. She glanced over to an equally stunned Mrs. Cake and a helplessly-giggling Pinkie Pie. “Do you guys know what she's talking about?”
“You shouldn't have said it was for a friend!” Pinkie sang through her ever-present giggles, bouncing back up the stairs.
“Would you like to by something dear?” Mrs. Cake asked sweetly, her inability to comprehend the scene she'd just witnessed making her default to what she did best. It was a habit she'd adopted ever since Pinkie had started working in the shop.
Rainbow just stared at her.
-_-_-_-
Twilight hadn't been lying when she stormed out of Sugar Cube Corner; after working her way through the mares on Dash's weather team, she'd broken down and started asking whoever she could find. Eventually she dropped all formalities, simply walking up to ponies and asking them “did you ask Rainbow Dash to ask me if I was gay?”. She'd gotten more than a few strange – and some disturbed – looks at that point, but she didn't much care anymore. She could always explain or make up for it later, but she had to find out who it was.
Unfortunately, she had failed in her only purpose. She was pretty sure she'd asked almost every mare in Ponyville, and at some point she'd just started asking everypony, regardless of gender. Though she never found Applejack, which was both frustrating and concerning. She made a mental note to check at the farm tomorrow and make sure she was okay.
It didn't help that after every couple ponies Rainbow Dash would show up and pester her. Couldn't that pegasus tell she was a little too busy too deal with whatever trivial thing she wanted to talk about? If it would only take a minute, it wasn't that important.
As she drudged her way along the path back to her library, moon rising into the sky, Twilight heard the all-too-familiar and irritating sound of fluttering wings.
“Hey Twi!”
“Rainbow Dash,” Twilight greeted shortly, not even lifting her head from her hooves.
“Listen, I-”
“Need to talk to me,” Twilight cut in. “I know. You've told me that at least a dozen times today.”
“Yeah well maybe if you hadn't kept running off I wouldn't have had to!” Rainbow huffed, folding her forelegs across her chest as she followed Twilight down the path. The giant tree in the middle of town was in sight at the end of the road.
“Well go on,” Twilight sighed, thoroughly defeated from her day. “What did you need to say that was so important it couldn't just wait until tomorrow?”
“Well I just wanted to ask if,” Rainbow started, only to pause when Twilight didn't so much as lift her head to acknowledge that she was talking. “Never mind for now,” she said, landing next to the unicorn. “What's up with you, Twi? You're normally more... less-depressed-looking.”
Finally, Twilight lifted her head, turning and looking to her friend as they turned and walked up to Golden Oaks library. “You know, Dash, I spent all day trying to find to your friend.”
Rainbow frowned. “Friend? What friend?”
Grunting in annoyance, Twilight threw her front door open in a purple haze. “The friend you asked if I was into mares for! The one who has a crush on me! I looked all day for her. I'm pretty sure I've asked every mare in Ponyville. I've probably asked some married mares! I just can't find her. Our friends laughed when I told them you asked for her! They laughed like they knew who it was, and none of them would tell me!
“So please,” Twilight sighed, falling back to her flanks and looking at Rainbow with large, pleading eyes. “Just tell me who she is.”
Twilight was expecting and preparing herself for many things; perhaps a tired sigh and a rejection of her request, or maybe even just a simple 'sorry, but no'. She was even hoping for a name. Instead, Rainbow Dash stared at her for a second. Then two, before promptly falling over onto her side and laughing as though the punchline for the world's greatest joke had just been read aloud. Twilight wasn't sure what the joke was, but she was fairly certain she was the butt of it.
“Not you too!” She shouted, jumping back to her hooves. “What's so funny!? Almost everypony was laughing today, and I want to know why!”
“Sorry, sorry, I-” Rainbow struggled to say before cutting herself with another gale of laughter.
Twilight just glowered down at the pegasus as she slowly regained control. After a few moments of laughter she rolled over onto her hooves and pushed herself up. “Now then,” Twilight grumbled, “would you tell me why this is so funny?”
“Twi, I seriously thought you knew who I was talking about this morning,” Rainbow started, scratching the back of her neck sheepishly. “But I should have known you'd trust me.”
“What do you mean?”
“I wasn't asking for a friend; I was asking because I wanted to know if you'd be willing to go on a date with me.”
Twilight found herself unable to control her jaw as it dangled uselessly down to the ground. “I... but you... is that what you wanted to talk to me about all day?”
Rainbow nodded. “Yeah. I thought you knew it was me and that you just wanted some time to think about it before you answered. I didn't expect you to believe me and run all over town to try and find a mare that I made up,” she admitted, a little guiltily. “If I'd known you didn't get it, I'd have told you this morning before leaving, but... well, you kinda kicked me out.
“I kept finding you today to see if you were ready to give me an answer, but every time you ran off and said you had to talk to somepony else. I didn't know what was going on and I started thinking you were just trying to avoid me because you wanted to say no without hurting me – not that it would hurt me or anything; I knew it was a possibility.”
“I...” Twilight just kept staring straight ahead, looking at Rainbow Dash but not really seeing her as her mind connected dots it didn't even know was there for most of the day. Everything suddenly made sense to her, but she still had questions. “What you said this morning... was that true?”
Rainbow tilted her head. “What do you mean?”
“When...” Twilight swallowed thickly, fighting down a blush at the memories swimming through her mind. “When I asked you why the imaginary mare had a crush one me, what you said... was that just an imaginary character too?”
“I thought that was what gave me away,” Rainbow admitted with a blush and an uneasy chuckle. “But uh.... no, that was all true. I actually did say those things about you... and I meant them when I told Rarity.”
“You told Rarity!?” Twilight gasped suddenly.
“Uh... yeah. I'm pretty sure all our friends know about how my... er... my crush, I guess.”
“And that's why they all laughed when I said you asked for a friend...” Twilight trailed off into silence as the moon continued rising into the sky. Neither one looked at the other, one in deep thought and one simply too nervous.
“So, uh...” Rainbow cleared her throat to get Twilight's attention. “You uh... are you interested? In a date with me, I mean.”
Pulling herself from her mind, Twilight looked up and into the cerise eyes of her pegasus friend. What she saw before her was everything she knew her friend wasn't; the mare held a timid posture, eyes looking at anything other than what they really wanted to, and a slight shake ran through her body as Twilight drew in a breath to answer the question.
“You know,” she started, glancing behind her to the warmly-lit library interior. “I thought about that question all day, and that was when I didn't even know who was going to ask it. I really do feel like an idiot, and I have a feeling a lot of concerned ponies are going to explanations and apologies tomorrow.
“But... yes, Rainbow Dash, I'll go on a date with you. And... um...” Twilight paused, taking in another breath of chilled night air. “I'd like to start tonight. After the day I've had, I think it would be the perfect way to end it. So, I'm going to go make some tea. Would you like to join me?” She asked ass she turned and stepped into her home.
Rainbow Dash looked up from her hooves with a smile on her face. “Tea's not really my thing...” she noted as the threshold of Golden oaks library passed by beneath her hooves. “But I'll give it a shot. For you.”
In a magical glow the door was closed, blocking out the light from inside and once again bathing the empty street in darkness.