It was already five p.m. Friday was slowly coming to a close, and Rainbow had gotten home tired but eager to go to the sleepover at Rarity's. Although Rainbow had argued before with her mother about going, Rainbow's mother caved, allowing her sixteen-year-old daughter to go.

Rainbow grabbed her backpack and was just getting to the door when she stopped and looked back to see Scootaloo sitting on the couch playing a video game. Her little sister didn’t look happy at all, but, being in a hurry to get out the door, Rainbow simply shrugged it off.

Opening the door, Rainbow was a little surprised to see her childhood best friend Fluttershy standing outside, about to knock on the door herself. Looking over the other girl's shoulder, Rainbow saw Fluttershy’s mother sitting in her family's car, waiting to take both girls to Rarity's for their sleepover.

“Are you ready for the sleepover, Rainbow?” Fluttershy asked with a pleasant smile on her face. “I think I have everything that I need for this.”

“You bet I am!” Rainbow punched the air with her fist. “I am so ready for this. This is gonna be great. I can’t wait to show off my awesome new dance moves to Sunset.”

“I bet you two will look really cute dancing together.” Fluttershy blushed when she saw a shocked look on her friend's face. “I mean, you like her, don’t you, Rainbow?”

Rainbow chuckled lightly, handing her bag to her friend as the two made their way to Fluttershy’s mother’s car. Scootaloo stopped playing her video game and went outside. Rainbow was just getting inside the car when she saw her little sister standing on the front step of her home. Shutting the door and walking back over to her sister, Rainbow knelt down, laying a gentle hand onto Scootaloo’s shoulder. “Hey, Scoots, I know you're still a bit upset with me, but I promise I’ll hang out with you on Sunday.”

“Okay, Rainbow, but you better keep your promise to me this time, got it?”

Rainbow smiled, ruffled Scootaloo’s hair a bit, then headed back to the car, calling back to her as she opened the door to get in, “Don’t worry. I won’t let you down again. I really will be there this time, kid.”

Rainbow got in the car, and Fluttershy’s mother backed out of the driveway. An hour later, the two friends found themselves standing in front of Rarity's house. Rarity was inside, making the last preparations for her friends' sleepover.

Sweetie Belle was upstairs doing her homework when she heard, “Sweetie Belle, dear, have you seen my diamond earrings lying around anywhere?”

“I think they're in the living room, Rarity,” Sweetie Belle called back.

Rarity headed into the living room and looked around while her sister came downstairs, also helping to look for her sister's earrings. While they both looked around the living room, they both heard the doorbell chime. Rarity looked up from the couch she was searching under as a look of shocked fear came over her face. Sweetie Belle was already at the door ready to open it.

“Sweetie Belle, don’t you dare--”

Sweetie Belle opened the door before Rarity could finish her sentence, allowing Fluttershy and Rainbow into the house. Seeing her two friends standing in the foyer of her home caused Rarity to look completely aghast at her little sister. Sweetie Belle noticed the look on Rarity's face and started to laugh, while Rainbow and Fluttershy both set down their bags. Rainbow looked from Sweetie Belle to Rarity, who stood mortified like an deer caught in headlights, as her friend stammered on her words to her sister.

“S-Swieetie Belle! How could you open that d-door when you knew I-I wasn’t ready?”

“What do you mean you're not ready? It's not like we're going to go dancing tonight or out to a fancy restaurant,” Rainbow said, slightly confused.

“Well, Rainbow, a lady always makes herself presentable, even if her friends are just coming over for a sleepover.”

“Speaking of friends,” Fluttershy chimed in, “Are Sunset, Applejack and Pinkie here yet?”

“Uh, no. I thought they were with the two of you,” Rarity replied, trying to crack a half smile.

Rainbow and Fluttershy exchanged glances as they both looked back at Rarity, who exclaimed while throwing her arms up into the air, “I don’t believe this! I go to all this work to get this place ready, and I even get us a nice dinner at my favorite resturaunt, and those three don’t bother to show up!”

“Dinner? What dinner? What resturant?” both Fluttershy and Rainbow replied in unison.

“I got us a nice dinner at Le Cheval D'or."

Rarity took a few deep breaths to calm down. As she did so, Fluttershy said while looking at the ground,“R-Really?” Fluttershy began to look a bit flustered. “That's very n-nice of you, Rarity. Uh, just one question. How is Sunset going to join us when she can’t, well, dance?”
Everyone looked to Fluttershy, who suddenly became very embarrassed.

“What the heck do you mean Sunset can’t dance, Fluttershy? That's crazy.”

“Rainbow Dash, she told me should couldn’t dance after the Fall Formal. It was a week after the Formal, after I forgave her about how she treated me. She decided it was time to share a few things about herself, and one of those things was the fact that she doesn’t know how to dance.”

Everyone fell silent as Fluttershy looked down at the floor, a soft sigh escaping her lips. Rarity placed a gentle hand, onto her shoulder, saying kindly to her timid friend, “Then, it's simple. We will teach her how to dance on Saturday morning so that way by the evening, she will at least have learned a few steps.”

“I think that's a wonderful idea, Rarity.” Fluttershy looked up, beaming.

“Now that that matter is solved, darling,” Rarity looked at her two friends and at her sister, “does anyone know why they are not here yet, let alone why Sunset--the guest of honor at this sleepover--is late?”

“Rarity, Pinkie is more than likely on her way now.” Sweetie Belle began fidgeting with her shirt. “I thought I told you before we got home that Applejack headed off earlier today towards the park. She said something about needing some girl time with Sunset.”

“She better not be trying to steal Sunset from me! I swear, that is so not cool!” Rainbow said.

All eyes suddenly fell to Rainbow, who, once she realized what she had said, went as red as a tomato. A very uneasy silence fell upon the four standing in Rarity's living room. Trying to break the tension, Fluttershy said, “H-how about we head upstairs, put our things away, and then, Sweetie Belle can show us any new fashions she has?”

“Alright, that’s cool with me. Come on, Rainbow, or should I call you Love-bow instead?” Sweetie Belle teased playfully. “I have all sorts of stuff to show you two. Come on, it’ll be fun.”

Rarity shook her head as Rainbow grumbled to herself while following Fluttershy and Sweetie Belle upstairs. Once the three got to Rarity's bedroom, Sweetie Belle opened up Rarity's closet and took out a green dress with a blue bow on the front of it. She held it up for her friends to see. Fluttershy’s eyes went wide as she looked at the dress, while Rainbow just shook her head, saying, “Your sister will never get me into something like that, Sweetie Belle.”

Looking from the dress, then to Rainbow, Sweetie Belle laughed. She put the dress back into the closet and shut the door. “That was the most beautiful dress that Rarity has come up with. Don’t you think so, Sweetie Belle?” Fluttershy asked, letting out a soft whistle.

“Yeah, it was pretty cool of her to make it for me. Anyhow, how have you been, Fluttershy? Any new animals at the pet shelter?”

“Huh? Oh, yes, we got an injured hawk and hurt kitty this morning. I'll be taking care of them on Sunday. Then, on Monday, they go up to the main care center for further treatment.”

Fluttershy sat down on an armchair that Rarity had in her bedroom, while Sweetie Belle sat down on her sister's bed. Rainbow took a spot near Rarity's TV and flipped it on with a remote she found next to it. Sweetie Belle watched as Rainbow clicked through a few channels before picking one about soccer. While Rainbow got into the game on the TV screen, Fluttershy said to Sweetie Belle, “Tell me what you and your two friends have been up to, lately, Sweetie Belle.”

“Well, lets see.” Sweetie Belle tapped her chin a couple of times. “Oh, yeah, Apple Bloom told me she's excited about learning how to ice-skate this year.”

“Are you going to learn how to ice-skate as well, then?”

Sweetie Belle thought for a few minutes before replying as she watched the game on the TV screen play out, “Hmm, not sure. I mean, it sounds fun and all, but I don’t know if it's something that I really want to do. I mean, spending the entire winter on my butt doesn’t sound all that fun.”

“So you don’t think you’ll be good enough to keep from falling over, then?”

“Well, I--”

“Oh, come on, Sweetie Belle, you're totally graceful. I know someone like you can learn how to skate in no time flat. If you like, I can teach ya how to do it. Who knows, you might be as good as me, and it might only take you, oh, say twenty-five lessons, give or take a lesson or two,” Rainbow chimed in, not taking her eyes off the screen.

Fluttershy and Sweetie Belle both looked at Rainbow, then back to each other, before Sweetie Belle switched the conversation from herself to Scootaloo.

“So, um, Rainbow, how's Scootaloo doing?”

“What? Oh, umm, she's doing well, I guess.” Rainbow still didn’t take her eyes off the TV screen, something that was beginning to annoy Fluttershy. “I left her playing a video game before being picked up by Fluttershy's mom, and I--”

Fluttershy got up out of the arm chair, walked over to the TV, picked up the remote control, and with a push of the power button, turned the TV off. Rainbow’s eyes went wide when the TV shut off just as the team she was rooting for were about to score.

“HEY!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms up into the air. “What did you do that for, Fluttershy?”

“You're a guest in your friend's home, and you're not even paying attention to your host, Rainbow Dash. Now stop paying attention to the TV and start acting like a good friend and pay attention to your host.”

Fluttershy stared coldly at Rainbow, who looked from her to Sweetie Belle as Sweetie Belle started to laugh. As Fluttershy started to argue with Rainbow about the TV and proper manners while at someones else’s home, all three heard a loud ringing coming from downstairs. Rarity picked up her phone, answering it in her usual manner, “Hello, darling. How are you today?” Sweetie Belle stopped laughing, got up, and headed downstairs to see what was going on.

Getting downstairs within a minute, she heard her sister say, “Of course that won’t be a problem. You just show up when you're ready, dear.”
Hanging up the phone, she looked at her sister, who had a confused look on her face.

“That was Pinkie. She will be here in about an hour,” Rarity stated while slipping on her coat. “Now, I want you to get your homework done and be good for Rainbow and Fluttershy while I am out, Sweetie Belle. Do you understand me?”

“Yes, I understand, but where are you going?”

“I am going to go to the park--the one that is a few blocks past school--to get Applejack and Sunset.” Rarity looked at her watch, then back to her sister. “I am sure they have solved whatever issues they had earlier today by now, and besides, this sleepover is supposed to be for Sunset. It would be terrible manners for me to have a sleepover for her and not have the guest of honor show up, now. Don't you think so, Sweetie Belle?”

“Oh, yes. I’ll go let Rainbow and Fluttershy know that you're heading out.”

Rarity hugged her sister good-bye and left, while Sweetie Belle headed back upstairs, taking a seat on her sister's bed. Fluttershy looked out Rarity's bedroom window and saw that she and her mother where driving away from the house. Confused, she looked to Sweetie Belle and said, “Uh, Sweetie Belle, where is your sister going?”

“What? Oh, she's going to go pick up Sunset and Applejack from the park. I don’t know if Applejack called her or not, but that's where she's going.”

“I see.” Looking from Rainbow, then back to Sweetie Belle, Fluttershy said, “Don’t you have homework to do, Sweetie Belle?”

“Oh, come on, Fluttershy. She can do it on Saturday. Fridays were made for goofing off!” Rainbow exclaimed, throwing her arms up into the air.

“Well, uh, if you say so. I just don’t want her to get into trouble, is all.”

“She’ll be fine. Besides, what's Rarity gonna do, ground her for life just because she wants to hang out with us?”

“Uh, guys, I think I better go get my homework done. I really don’t want to get in trouble.”

Sweetie Belle hopped off the bed, headed into her bedroom, sat down at her desk, and took out her homework. While getting it done, she began to think that maybe Rainbow was right about putting it off until Saturday. She quickly dismissed the thought as she heard Rainbow in the next room turn the TV back on and switch it to another sports channel.

Fluttershy knocked on Sweetie Belle's door and entered her room, saying as she looked at her young friend sitting at her desk, “Would you like some help, Sweetie Belle? I don’t really like the program that Rainbow's watching, so I thought I'd come in and help you out.”

Next Chapter: Girl Time (Edited by and Titled by Icecreammac) Estimated time remaining: 20 Hours, 55 Minutes