The girls took seats at the table with Rainbow Dash, waiting for their food to be prepared the engaged in idle conversation, the topics varied, but Rainbow’s appetite was on their mind.

“So, Dashie, what’s up with the food? Ya eat like you’re starving or something,” Pinkie asked as she bounced into her seat and looked intently at Rainbow.

“I’m not starving, I’m just hungry. The sauna really takes a lot outta a pegasi and I didn’t really eat breakfast and I need food ta heal, ya know.”

“Wow, you’re really taking a liking to Applejack’s accent, aren’t you?”

“Huh? Ah dunno what you’re talkin’ about, Pinks. All I know is I’m famished.”

Pinkie and Applejack snickered. “Yeah, she’s talkin’ a bit like me, sure ain’t eatin’ like it though, what’s with the fish? We’re vegetarians, afterall.”

“Well, I know ponies who eat fish and a couple who eat birds sometimes.”

Fluttershy inhaled sharply.

“Don’t worry, Fluttershy,” Twilight said smiling warmly, “she’s just joking. Ponies don’t eat meat.”

“Yes they do,” Fluttershy mumbled.

“What? That sounds disgusting, who’d stoop so low as to eat another animal?”

“Well, many ponies do, often in secret or to supplement their diet in certain circumstances,” Fluttershy responded, sulking slightly.

“Well, I know one kinda meat Twilight likes,” Rainbow shouted pointing a straw at her. Pinkie chortled right away while the others giggled.

“Hey…” Twilight’s mouth opened and closed several times at a loss for words before signing and lowering her head.

“Don’t be so direct, Rainbow,” Rarity chirped, “I do as well, as you know.”

“Yeah, yeah. Herd it up, ‘til then; you’re a cellist.”

Rarity did a spit take across the table and coughed as the others laughed.

“Rainbow, where’d you hear that wording?” Twilight asked.

“I read it in Daring Do and the Curse of the Midnight Diamonds. The leader of the cult of Vanra’a was a cellist and when I looked in the dictionary you gave me I knew I had to use that sometime,” Rainbow replied taking a sip of her drink.

“Well, you certainly got me,” Rarity said levitating several napkins from the nearby dispensary to the table, “however I am far from it. Why, most recently was a few weeks ago in Canterlot with a nice stallion who was… uhm, nevermind.”

“Woah now, Sugarcube, that sounds like a story Ah wanna hear,” Applejack said placing a hoof firmly on the table and leaning forward. Pinkie copied Applejack’s motions. “Now, spill,” she said with a wink.

“I-I don’t quite know it’s an appropriate location for such a tale, Applejack.”

“Hey, everypony, I haven’t had sex in almost two months,” Rainbow shouted, garnering the attention of every other pony in the restaurant. “There, now it’s a place to talk. My ears are ready,” she said.

“Oh, you’re impossible, Rainbow. Fine,” she said leaning closer to the table and lowering her voice. “The stallion was a friend of a friend who knew a very important pony who was in need of an expert seamstress. So, with a little time well spent, I got the client,” she grinned and leaned back, smirking with a hint of pride as the others looked at her in differing levels of shock.

“Rarity,” Fluttershy said leaning past Pinkie and speaking in a loud whisper, “y-you had sex for a client? I-isn’t that illegal?”

“Oh, pshaw, first, it’s business, second it was purely romantic and not related to the client, and lastly he said he’d write me soon,” she sighed in reflection, “and when he does we’ll have another amazing time.”

“Woah,” Applejack said as she leaned back and almost lost her balance off the bench, “Ah never thought you’d be the type ta let yerself get played like a fiddle.”

“Ain’t no doubt, Fritter, she’s usin’ sex to get business. That’s prostitution and, let’s face it,” Rainbow said looking to the service counter with anticipation as their trays were loaded with food, “she’s gonna have ta pay taxes on her business now. You know, Rarity,” she said with a wink, “Celestia has to get paid for your business getting filled.”

Pinkie giggled while the others rolled their eyes.

“Dashin’, drop it. Food’s almost ready, who’s hungry?”

“Me.”

“I say, I’m nearly famished.”

“I’m ready.”

“Ah, ahem, I can eat a whole tray myself.”

“Order forty seven, you’re food’s ready, uh, Miss Dash,” a mare called as Twilight looked over. Her horn glowed a light purple and the trays levitated high and to them, lowering to the table.

“Oh, lookie, lookie, Rainbow has a whole tray to herself!” Pinkie said as she grabbed her items expertly and unwrapped one, taking a bite.

A mare in uniform came over to their table with a small tray of assorted sized glass cups in her magic. “Your drinks, ladies,” she said levitating the cups to the table, “help yourselves,” she said turning away.

Rainbow licked her lips and began unwrapping everything, but stopped at the fish. She moved that to the front and opened it’s parchment carefully. A puff of steam and aroma escaped the packaging.

Rainbow sniffed and inhaled the steam deeply with a hum. “Oh yeah, this’ gonna be worth it,” she said opening the paper all the way to look at the fish.

A simple enough headless, tailless, boneless fish filet lay in the parchment.

Leaning down Rainbow ignored the silent looks of the others and nipped a tiny bite, letting its flavors and texture slide across her tongue. With a quiet swallow she looked around and panted.

“I-it’s really good, gals. Wanna taste before I eat it up?”

Hesitantly the others shook their heads while Rainbow took in their answers with a stoic position before she inhaled and fell, muzzle first, into the wrapper and gobbled the fish up.

“My word, she’s like a carnivore suddenly,” Rarity whispered to Twilight.

“I don’t know why, but I think she’s hiding something. This could be stress eating,” replied in kind.

“Well, I have that from time to time, as you know, however it’s never a good thing in the long run.”

“Okay, I’ll ask her,” Twilight said as she sat back up and took a bite of her burger before taking another sip of her tea to wash the food down.

Rainbow had torn into her burger and taken several sloppy bites of all her food while the others took more sensible bites.

“So, Rainbow,” Twilight said after her first bite, “we couldn’t help but notice that you’re eating an awful lot lately.”

“Well duh, I’m eating for two~...” she looked wide eyes to Applejack who stopped mid bite to stare at Rainbow, “-meals. Yeah,” she gulped and wiped her mouth on her foreleg, reaching for her shake, “I totally missed breakfast, yeah, so, I’m, like, uh, catching up?”

Twilight raised her eyebrow as she took a bite of her first potato fry. Her pupils shrank as she looked to the small box they came in.

“Twi-Twi? Ya okay?” Pinkie asked between slurps of her hot chocolate.

“Th-this is one of the best things I’ve ever tasted in my life… Why aren’t these everywhere,” she said breathily as she slowly took another in her magic to her mouth and ate it with a quiet giggle.

Pinkie reached over and took one of Fluttershy’s, tossing it into the air and catching it on her tongue, balancing it for a second before lunging forward and chomping it in one bite.

Rainbow leaned over to Applejack. “I bet she’s really good at using her tongue for other stuff too.”

Applejack shoved her shoulder into Rainbow with a smirk, sending the pegasus back to her sitting position.

“Holy shmoly on the poley! That’s the most yumtastical thing I’ve eaten in weeks,” Pinkie shouted lunging like a ravenous dog toward Fluttershy’s fries.

With a sharp look from Fluttershy, Pinkie stopped midair and looked intently into Fluttershy’s eyes before reversing her lunge and returning to her sitting position with a grin. “Flutters, may I have a fry, please?”

“Yes, you may,” Fluttershy responded hoofing a couple in front of Pinkie, “now, if you’re going to act like an animal-”

“Nope, not today, I’m a good filly,” Pinkie said as she picked up and examined a fry before eating it with a shudder and giggle.

Fluttershy looked at Pinkie with a content smile and nodded. “Yes, you are. Now,” she said taking a bite of her burger with a smile. “This’ really good.”

Rarity nudged Twilight abs motioned her head towards Pinkie’s tail, which was wagging quickly.

With a glance Twilight looked and rolled her eyes, mouthing to Rarity. ‘It’s Pinkie.”

Rarity looked to her food and bit her lip in apprehension.

Next Chapter: Home Alone (part 3) Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 15 Minutes