takes place after S7 E26, (Shadow Play Part II)

Dash sighed impatiently, mindlessly flapping her wings and attempted to loosen the blindfold currently wrapped around her magenta eyes. Soarin had instructed her to fly straight, so that’s what she was doing. As soon as her first practice back after she was helping Twilight guide the Old Pillars of Equestria, Soarin had waited until nopony was around before grabbing her hoof and whispering something in her ear about a ‘miniature surprise’. It had caught Dash’s interest soon after, and she found herself being willingly dragged along with him. She could only trust they were higher in the sky to avoid too much suspicion.

“Are we there yet?” she groaned, flinging her arms into the air and waved them around the empty space.

She heard his chuckle, which only made her sigh. “Almost there, Crash. And then you can tell me all about Star Swirl the Bearded!” he exclaimed excitedly.

“Can’t wait,” she droned out, but smiled anyway. His excitement was kind of adorable.

“Your eyes are covered, not your mouth. I can see your smile,” Soarin teased, and almost instantly, her mouth shut, only allowing the little quirk of her lips to let him know she was listening and amused.

She didn’t have a reply, and when his hoof reached out and took hers, taking her to the left, the muscles in her body and the worries clouding her brain faded away.

After what seemed like forever, she could feel herself being lowered, the tips of her hooves brushing something soft and fluffy. It was cool to the touch and had the smoothness of Rarity’s silk sheets.

Dash knew what it was and didn’t spend any time expressing her disbelief. “No offense, Soar, but—”

She didn’t get to finish her sentence as the dark blue blindfold was whipped off her face in a fluid motion, and what settled before her eyes left her speechless.

Yes, the cloud was big and fluffy and white just like a perfect marshmallow, spread out so perfectly that there would be enough space for at least four ponies. It wasn’t really the cloud that had caught her breath though— it was the view. Celestia’s sun was slowly starting to set, and in the sky was a perfectly imperfect array of light blues blending into faint purples and pinks, bright and shimmery golds, and finally, the faintest hint of royal blues. There were few oher clouds in the sky, but down below, there were small mountains and large hills decorating the luscious green grass below. The air was cool and warm at the same time, bringing the perfect breeze over and through her body. It was beautiful. Dash swallowed back, tilting her head to the side as she landed gracefully on the cloud. “I c—”

“Yes!” Soarin cheered, raising a hoof in the air. “I made you speechless.” He smirked.

She swallowed again and rolled her eyes. “Not entirely, you interrupted me,” she interjected cheekily.

He gave her a small smile. “Apologies, continue.”

“What’s this place supposed to be?” she found herself wondering.

She watched as his cute blush grazed his cheeks. “Well, uh, you know, Ponyville is your place, HQ is the Bolts’, Cloudsdale is Pegasi’s… And so here,” he gestured to the cloud and its surroundings, “is our place.” Finally, he landed beside her. “Our cloud.”

Their cloud. Dash swore her heart melted right on the spot, and she desperately feared that she would turn into a puddle by the way her heart and stomach were doing flip-flops, the flush that rose all over her body, and the horrendously idiotic smile that was so close to stretching across her face. A smile that rivaled Pinkie Pie’s. “God, Clipper…” her voice trailed off. This really was one of the sweetest things anypony had ever done for her.

“I, uh, hope you like it,” he murmured, sounding suddenly very shy.

Dash snorted and walked to him until there was no more space between them. “It’s awesome.” And when she saw the look of relief and satisfaction in those emeralds, she allowed herself a partly dopey smile.

And finally, finally, he leaned in and kissed her.

Their mouths met halfway, right in the middle, and as soon as their lips connected, a small flame flickered inside her belly. The kiss was soft, light almost— perfectly gentle, but too much pressure to be called a caress. It wasn’t passionate or rough or lust-filled. Just sweet and tender, and a kiss that would put a giddy grin on your face and endless daydreams in your mind.

When they pulled away a few seconds later, Dash blew her bangs out of her eyes and smirked at him. “How long did it take you to find this?”

“Ah… ten days maybe?” He shrugged and became very focused on the cloud, stroking it with his left hoof.

She raised her eyebrows. “Days? Wow.” She blew out a breath. To be honest, she wasn’t sure how she felt about that. This was a fling. Friends with benefits, and feelings. Basically a relationship with no labels. But even though she already liked him, Dash was still scared of the feeling that could happen if he kept taking time to find things for her and laughing and smiling sweetly and kissing her and touching her the way he did.

Love.

“I know… And I also know you already have places, but if you ever need silence or whatever, even when I’m not there for you, you can come here.” He grinned suddenly. “Take your hourly nap.”

Her ears flicked up at his subtle teasing. “That’s it,” she said with a little shove, “no sex for you.”

His grin diminished into a pout. “What?”

She moved past him and swiped her tail under his chin. “You heard me.”

“Yeah, but I don’t want to accept it,” he snipped cheekily.

Dash whipped her head around, vibrant colours coming with her. “Accept it.”

Soarin rolled his eyes. “I’ll try.”

Dash sat down and yawned, smiling at him and patting the spot beside her. Quickly, Soarin joined her, the side of his flank touching hers. “I was joking, you know. I wouldn’t care if we didn’t… you know.”

How the hell did he manage to touch her heart multiple times? “Sleep together,” she stated bluntly, earning a small flush of his cheeks as a reaction.

“Yeah.”

She smiled, moving a little closer to his side. “I know.”

He turned and looked down. “Yeah?”

She confirmed it with a nod. “Yeah.”

After a moment, Soarin wrapped his left wing around her, pulling Dash into his chest.

Blushing, she began to speak. “This is incredibly cheesy,” she said, voice muffled.

He only chuckled and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. “I’ll hear about Star Swirl later,” he whispered.

Dash snorted. “Why, so I can take my hourly nap?” she asked sarcastically.

“You know you want to,” he teased.

It was all true, she felt a little tired, but mostly, she just enjoyed napping. “Shut up and let me sleep, you big baby.”

“But first, promise to tell me all about the Old Pillars and pony of shadows?”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, you’ll get your bedtime story.”

It was quiet, the faint sound of birds chirping and whistling wind in her ears. She closed her eyes. And he leaned his head on hers.