PASTEDOWN
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692 4.04 KB 40
692 4.04 KB 40
>Time stops.
>It wasn’t a slow crawl, it was as abrupt as a dragon crashing into a mountain.
>One minute, you’re lounging on a checkered blanket beneath the dappled shade of a tree, stealing glances at the unicorn you’ve had your eye on the moment you stepped hoof in Ponyville.
>There sits Rarity, her coat catching sunlight like fresh snow, drawing admiring looks from every direction — stallions and mares alike.
>But for you, it’s beyond her looks — it’s the way she tosses her perfectly coifed mane, the gentle lilt of her delicate laughter — little things that make your face burn hotter than the roaring fires of Tartarus itself.
>You’ve always averted your eyes when she catches you staring, terrified she’ll read everything in your expression, see right through to where her sapphire eyes have carved their permanent place in your dreams.
>Those same eyes are now inches from yours, wide with surprise, while something impossibly soft presses against your mouth and sends lightning down your spine.
>This kiss — this impossible moment you’ve imagined countless times — her scent like vanilla and jasmine, her breath warm against your skin — is perfect.
>If only it were actually your doing.
>The pressure of hooves shoving your head forward snaps you back to reality.
>Rarity jerks backward, alabaster cheeks flushed a deep crimson.
>Not as bad as yours, you’re sure.
>Before words form, she grabs her things with a frantic magical aura, turns on her dainty hooves, and gallops off toward her boutique, her tail streaming behind her like a banner of retreat.
>Only one pony orchestrated this disaster.
>And only one pony can be so tactless.
>”Huh, that went a lot better in my head…”
>”Rainbow!”
>As Applejack scolds Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy hovers nervously at your side.
>”Um, Anon, are you okay?” she murmurs.
>But you ignore her and whip around to the source of your misery.
“What in Tartarus were you thinking?!”
>”Anon-!” Applejack starts, but Rainbow Dash cuts her off.
>”Sorry somepony finally gave you a push! If I’d left you two alone, you’d still be making awkward eye contact come Hearth’s Warming!”
“A ‘push’?! You call what you did a ‘push’? You practically tackled us into a public spectacle, you featherbrain!”
>Your shouting draws the eyes of nearby picnickers. They begin to drift away, whispering and glancing back over their shoulders.
>If Rainbow Dash feels the sting of your words, she hides it behind a cocky, unrepentant sneer.”Looks like it only took a featherbrain to see how much you two like each other! You know how long Rarity’s been waiting for you to finally grow a spine?”
>You can’t even process the implication — Rarity, waiting for you? — because you’re too busy fuming, emotion boiling your blood.
“That wasn’t your decision to make! You think you’re helping, but you just made things ten times worse! Rarity was mortified!”
>Rainbow snorts, “She’ll get over it. She needed this — you both did! Unless you want to spend the rest of your life pining for Rarity with your tail between your legs!”
>You clench your jaw. Every word grinds like sand between your teeth.
“It’s not your job to decide if, when, or how anypony does anything. Maybe you should mind your own business!”
>”My business is my friends! And you two are my friends, so yeah — it kinda is my business!”
>By now, the rest of your friends are holding both of you back, trying to prevent further escalation.
>Applejack and — to a lesser extant — Fluttershy coax you to calm down while Twilight Sparkle and Spike do the same for Rainbow. Pinkie Pie stands frozen, tears welling in her eyes as she watches.
“Then I’m no longer your friend!” you snap.
>Everypony falls silent, even Rainbow Dash. Their eyes go wide.
>”Y-You don’t mean that…” she stammers, her bravado finally slipping.
>But you don’t care.
>You yank free from their grip and stomp away from the tree.
>All you hear behind you is the thrum of wings flying off in the opposite direction.
by ilkTone