I placed the cooler on the floor of the kitchen after making sure that the door was closed. The girls had all rushed ahead of me as I carried the cooler up from the beach. I had arranged the assortment of shells I had collected precariously atop the cooler, and keeping them safe was my first priority. As I picked up the first of the shells, I felt a small surge of pain run up my arm, grimacing for a moment as I rubbed it. I laid out the shells on the small island in the kitchen before I turned my attention back to the cooler, and the contents within.

I was still nursing my arm by the time I finished putting away all the recliners and the last of the leftover food. Applejack can hit quite hard when she wants to, and I think that I did deserve something for my little quip. Perhaps a light punch...

But instead, of course, Applejack chose to go with an arm shattering blow.

I slowly closed the fridge as I stood, the last of the melon safely stowed within the chilly confines of the modern marvel. I didn’t take as long as the girls did to get dressed, but I still took some time to make sure that I looked at least semi-presentable.

The walk to the master suite was a brief one, and soon enough I was stripping off my swimming trunks and heading into the bathroom in order to wash off the salt that had built up over my body. As I passed by the mirror I paused for a moment, looking back at the person who was looking out at me. While it was the same face that I had looked at not so long ago, it was also different. When I looked the first time, I had been the son of a famous inventor, now I was the son of a famous inventor about to discuss why my father had stopped inventing. Not exactly the most apparent change, but one that I could see.

Without giving myself any time to dwell, I hopped into the shower, savoring the flow of warm water along my body. I didn’t take longer than I needed to in order to get myself clean, and before I knew it I was getting out, taking advantage of the towel I had brought in with me. After that I returned to the master bedroom and started laying out some clothing that would be suitable for the evening fare.

I wasn’t too sure how fancy the place where we were eating was, but I could recall Rarity mentioning that the required dress wasn’t too strict. I mean, as long as you had clothes on you were okay, so I had plenty of room to… express myself. After spending a few minutes in deliberation I finally settled for a casual white collared shirt, short sleeved – of course – and a pair of jeans. While the island was hot during the day it could sometimes get just a bit chilly at night, hence the long pants.

As I finished buttoning up the shirt a few knocks sounded at my door, drawing my attention away from the mirror I’d been looking into. There weren’t many options for who was at my door, but I was curious. All of them were probably still getting ready, so I didn’t really have any way to narrow it down.

Rarity, it turned out, was the one who knocked. Having been around them for quite some time I had grown to ignore their bodies... Well, for the most part, anyway. She was wearing a pair of lacy panties, as well as a matching frilly bra. It must’ve taken a bit too long for me to respond to what Rarity was saying, since she had to prod me in the chest before I actually started listening to her.

“Icarus, I was in a bikini all day, and now you decide to stare?” She let out a small sigh and she rolled her eyes before she continued. “Anyway, I came by to get your opinion on which of these two dresses looks better on me.” It was only now, when she drew my attention to them, that I noticed that Rarity had a hanger that was supporting a dress in each hand. “They’re both flawless, but I can’t quite decide which is more perfect.” She put each dress in front of her body as she spoke, looking at me expectantly.

All I could do was look on in amazement. “Do you really think that I’m qualified to tell you – the fashion expert of Ponyville – which looks more refined? I mean, I can barely put myself together when it comes to getting dressed up.” It was true, sadly. I don’t see the point in wearing fancy clothing very often. “I mean, I’m flattered, but I just –”

“Icarus, you do yourself a disservice. You’re perfectly capable of putting together nice outfits when you try. Why, the last time we had a formal gathering you looked quite dashing in that suit you wore. The black suit you wore was almost perfect. It was the patterned tie that brought the whole ensemble together.” She put the white dress before her frame once more before looking at the other dress she held. “I really would like your opinion, Icarus. As poor as you may claim you are at this kind of thing, I’d like to know what you think.”

I looked between the two dresses for a moment, desperately trying to fight down the dirtier thoughts that were running rampant through my mind.

Focus, Icarus. Pay attention and remember, but focus.

As she switched the dresses once again I made up my mind. “Go with the white one, Rarity.” She had put the other one before her body while I spoke, and she raised an eyebrow as she looked over the white one once again.

“Are you sure? It’s just so… plain. It lacks any real statement, and I’d normally only wear it if I was going to be accessorizing quite a bit.” She opened her mouth to speak again.

I decided to cut her off. “The white dress draws the eye to your face and legs, two of your better aspects. The red dress, conversely, draws the eye to your chest. While I won’t say that that’s an unfavorable outcome, it’s probably not something that you’d appreciate in a social setting.”

At least not this kind of social setting.

I quickly continued before my mind could drift about the... appropriate types of settings for that manner of attire. “Also, I just think that you look better in white than pretty much any other color. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to finish getting ready.” A smile appeared on Rarity’s face before she looked me once over, and stepped back into the hall.

“Of course, Icarus. Do let me know if you need help with anything.” As she turned to start heading down the hall, I closed the door. As I looked at the now closed door I felt a massive shudder run through my body. I turned and leaned back into the door before sliding down to sit on the floor. This wasn’t the first time something like that had happened, but it was the first time that she’d looked at me with such intensity. Her glance down south was... a bit much.

Still, I had a few things left to get before I was ready to go, so I pushed off the door as I went over to the small bedside table that I had put my few important belongings onto. My wallet was quickly stuffed into my back pocket, my watch strapped onto my wrist, and then my small keyring was deposited safely into my pocket. The keyring was the most important of all those items because without it we wouldn’t be able to get back into the house. As I looked myself over one last time I smiled at my reflection. Without further ado I opened the door to my room and I headed downstairs to the living room, taking care not to make much noise outside the girls’ rooms. It wouldn’t really do for any of them to accost me for more fashion advice.

Just as I planted myself on the large sofa I heard a fairly loud, and incredibly aggressive, shout come from upstairs. I immediately recognized the voice of Rainbow Dash, but I knew far better than to try and intervene.

Dash and her looks... I’ll just stay here and let this whole thing blow over.

As was the norm for Rainbow, she made sure to take advantage of her colorful vocabulary, using terms that were, until just recently, outlawed in most towns. Moments later I heard a door open, and then moments later, a door slam closed. Probably one of the girls going to talk to Dash, or, as was a bit more likely, Dash going to talk to one of the others.

About fifteen minutes after Dash’s outburst, I heard one of the girls coming down the stairs. I didn’t look to see who it was, since I was fairly sure that she would come into the living room before doing something else. As if to spite me, she refused to come where I could see her. When she spoke, though, I was able to identify the speaker as Twilight.

“Ready a bit early, Icarus?” Her voice carried from the kitchen, and I nodded.

“Yeah, a bit. I didn’t really need that long, anyway.” A few minutes later and Twilight came into the living room, a small glass of water in her hand. She looked quite nice in her skirt and slightly frilly blouse. Her hair was done up in a small bun, with a few smaller locks left to flow down into her face, effectively framing it. She decided to wear a pair of high heeled sandals as well, and they made her normally good looking legs seem even better than normal.

“Wow, Twi. You look really good...” I took another moment to appreciate how she looked. “And I like what you did with your hair.” She just blushed a bit as she took a small sip of her water. As she drank I noticed that her lips were a shade darker than normal, and so I looked at her face more intently. She was wearing some makeup, something she did only rarely, and it certainly worked to draw the eye. It was only after a moment that I realized I was staring, and so I quickly looked away, trying to find a way to keep from looking back at her for a moment.

Several more minutes passed before the sound of more people coming down the stairs was heard. I turned to look this time, and I saw Fluttershy and Pinkie both coming down. Shortly after, both Rarity and Applejack came down. Rainbow Dash came down last, her hair nicely brushed and styled. I raised an eyebrow when she looked my way, and she just glared at me for a moment. I chuckled softly as she went over to sit on the couch opposite the one that I was on.

“So, are we all ready to go, girls? Or is there anything still keeping us here?” After a moment they all let me know that there was nothing to keep us from going now, and so I stood up, taking the initiative. I walked over to the door, and, with a gesture, motioned for them all to go before me. “Ladies first.” They all filed through the opening, and I made sure to close the door as I went through.

Conversation flowed freely as we walked, and no single topic managed to hold our collective interest for very long. While I knew that the walk would take about fifteen minutes to make, it seemed like a much shorter amount of time, simply because the lively conversation kept us all from focusing on the walk. We were still early for our reservation, made in advance by Princess Celestia, so we decided to simply stroll through the small town, taking in the sights.

Much to Rarity’s unending delight, there were a plethora of different clothing stores. We had to keep her from rushing into some of them, since we all knew that once Rarity started she’d keep going until she either ran out of money, or all the people that she had carry her bags were no longer physically capable of lifting the loads. Sadly, given Rarity’s rather successful business, it was more likely that she’d buy more than we could carry before she’d run out of money. Not really sad, actually. Though when even Applejack complained about the weight that she was carrying, everyone knew there was a problem.

As we found ourselves at the restaurant it seemed that there was something here for all the girls to do, and even I had found some small diversions that I would be able to amuse myself with. We strolled into the restaurant just a few minutes before our reservation was set for, and I quickly explained to the maitre'd who we were. Within moments he had seven menus in his hand and was leading us to our table. I noticed that there was a small sign on the table when we got there, but the maitre’d swept it away before I could get a good look at it. I knew that the reservation for this restaurant was made by Celestia, so I don’t know whether she had requested the table, or whether it had simply been fortune. Either way, whether it was Celestia, or just luck, we had a phenomenal view from our table where we could watch as the sun slowly set.

The waiter didn’t leave us waiting for long. He quickly rattled off a list of some specials, as well as a selection of some wines before he told us that he would return promptly. I mulled over my choices for a few minutes before I settled on a selection of different foods that I would be enjoying. When I looked up from my menu I saw that the girls were all still busy looking over their own menus, so I simply looked out the window until they were done.

I was just about to look for the waiter when he walked up to the table, a smile on his face. “So, monsieur et dames, have you all decided on what you’d like for the evening?” His gaze roamed over each of the girls until he finally looked at me.

“Yes, actually. I’d like a bottle of spiced wine, and seven glasses.”

“We have many spiced wines, monsieur.” His tone was slightly cocky, mocking-like -- almost like I was just another person trying to be fancy. “Which one would you like?”

“Tamika’s West Weald Wine. The one spiced with juniper berries, 869 vintage. Make sure that it’s a bit chilled.” The waiter frowned at my display of knowledge before he gave a quick nod and wrote down the order on his small pad. The waiter turned and strode off to the kitchen while the girls all looked at me after they placed their orders, and I offered a sheepish smile. “Hey, I do hang out with some other people in Ponyville, and I happen to pay attention to Berry when she talks about liquor. She’s really quite knowledgeable.” Some light laughter met my little explanation, and a few moments later we had descended into yet another conversation, this one just as lively as the last, and just as entertaining too.

The entire meal seemed to fade into a blur of food, drink, and laughter as the night progressed. Spike was actually a topic of conversation for quite some time, and I dropped some subtle hints about what I thought he was doing back home. Neither Rarity nor Applejack were at all pleased with the implications of what I was saying. The rest of us started laughing at the idea of what I was suggesting. The laughter proved to be contagious, and soon enough Applejack and Rarity joined in. Since Spike and the ‘Crusaders’ were all of age it really wasn’t any of our concern.

I only realized just how late it had become when I looked out the window once again, marveling at the impressive display Luna had put on with the stars and the moon. As the meal wound down, and our conversation came to an end, the waiter returned to the table with a small booklet in his hand, a smile on his face. Rather than put it in front of anyone, he simply placed it on the table and backed away.

Twilight was the first to grab it, and so she quickly opened it and smiled. “It seems that Princess Celestia has this meal covered. The rest of what we do, though, is on our own money.” She pulled out a small note from the booklet, showing it to all of us as proof.

Just a few minutes later and the seven of us were walking out of the restaurant, our bellies full, and our spirits high. Unwilling to head back to the house just yet, though, we strolled about the town some more, conversation flowing a bit more freely now that we had all had some alcohol. It wasn’t really all that much liquor, but it was still more than some of us had had in quite a while. Fluttershy seemed to be dealing with her partial inebriation the worst, since she was acting fully out of character. Her voice had increased in volume, and things that would normally embarrass the shy pegasus only egged her on further.

Things came to a head when we started up a dirty joke contest. Twilight was the first to drop out, her blush far more telling than her embarrassed mutterings. Applejack dropped out shortly after Twilight, not out of embarrassment, but simply because she had exhausted her ammo. Rarity surprised me with her amazingly good jokes, but she was the third to fall. I was confident that I’d take the win, though. I knew a dirty joke that put others to shame. A dirty joke that made others seem clean in comparison. Still, I didn't want to have to resort to using that one.

Pinkie was the next to drop out, albeit by choice, rather than by force. She claimed that she still had tons of jokes at the ready, but that she didn’t feel like using them all, since there’s always another time to use them. As the house finally came into view I decided that I’d finally settle the whole contest, and win this one. However, it was Fluttershy's turn, so I looked to her expectantly, and she surprised us all with her little joke...

“By the Creator, Fluttershy! That’s awful!” I had to fight back the urge to hurl as I comprehended the implications made by the joke she told. The girls were all expressing similar sentiments, and Fluttershy just let out a small giggle, the alcohol in her system preventing her from experiencing any of her characteristic embarrassment. When we arrived at the house the girls were all still expressing their disgust about Fluttershy’s joke, while I had finally managed to see the humor behind it, and so I was chuckling softly as the girls all went inside.

I walked in the house as soon as I had managed to quell the last of my giggles and I was greeted by Dash and Pinkie sitting in the living room, a bottle of wine with two wine glasses sitting on the table. “Don’t you think you’ve had enough?”

“Nah. I’m good for another few drinks.” Dash was quick to stand and headed to the kitchen as she spoke. Pinkie motioned towards the couch opposite her, so I walked over before settling in. Dash came back just a minute later with a wine glass in her hand. Once she filled the glasses with some wine I picked mine up and took a small sip. It wasn’t quite as good as what they had at the restaurant, but it still had a flavorful taste and a pleasant aroma. Dash continued as I drank. “Anyway, Pinkie and I weren’t ready to head to bed just yet, so we figured that we’d see what Celestia has stowed away in the wine cellar. I picked this bottle at random, though.”

I simply nodded and drank a bit of my wine.

Pinkie was quick to fill the silence that followed Dash’s explanation. “Dashie and I were talking about what we could do tomorrow, since heading to the beach is fun and all, but we’ve got a whole island to explore.”

I finished my first glass before I voiced my opinion. “Well, how about tomorrow we take the time to walk along some of the paths that were carved through the jungle? I remember reading on the boat trip here that there’s almost a hundred miles worth of trails, and, hidden inside the jungle, there are scores of scenic spots to find.” I paused for a moment as I considered all the people whose company I was in. “Although I don’t think that Rarity would be likely to enjoy much of the wilderness. She just doesn’t seem like the sort.”

“You got that right, Icarus. Man, when we went camping that one time, she had more stuff than I even own! And that’s including my Wonderbolts stuff.” I raised an eyebrow at that last comment, and Rainbow Dash just smirked at me. “Okay, if we don’t count the posters, then she had more than I own. Happy?”

“Yes. Yes I am.” Dash just downed another glass of wine in response, and then she leaned back on the couch, sprawling out and taking up as much room as she could. “Anyway, Dash, how are things going for you? We haven’t been able to talk that much since just after the Crystal Kingdom incident. I mean, with the weather, and the Wonderbolts training program, you’ve been quite busy over the past few weeks. Other than that one brief attempt at the morning runs.”

“Tell me about it! My napping time has been seriously cut down! Not to mention time I want to spend with all of you. I even missed the release of the latest Daring Doo book.” She quickly looked at Pinkie and then at me before she continued. “If either of you tell Twilight I will end you. She won’t stop pestering me about books now that she knows I like Daring Doo. But if she found out that I’m upset about missing the release...”

I leaned back in my seat some at that remark, a big smile coming to my face. “I’ll ‘forget’ that little confession if you ‘forget’ about those drawings that you found.” Dash’s face turned a deep shade of crimson at that little remark.

Pinkie just looked between us for a moment before she spoke. “What’s he talking about, Dash? What drawings?”

“Can you keep this a secret, Pinkie? Like, Pinkie Promise?” She quickly nodded, running through the motions quickly. “Good. Now that that’s out of the way, and since Dash already knows...” Dash’s blush came back in full force. “Well, Pinkie, I often have to do fairly detailed drawings in order to make sure that my creations are accurate. A few people around Ponyville found out about my artistic talents, and so they asked for me to do some drawings for them. One thing led to another, and, well... I was asked to do some provocative art for Lyra.” I smiled at Pinkie for a moment before I continued. “As word spread through town, well, I discovered that I’m actually pretty good at drawing people. This led to me trying to do pictures from memory.”

“I think I see where this is going, Icarus.” Even Pinkie was blushing by this point.

Before I could finish Dash jumped in. “But why me? Why not Rarity, or Fluttershy? They’re both way better looking, and I’m pretty sure that Rarity would’ve been flattered. At least, after she got over the initial shock of seeing a picture of herself naked.”

“To be fair, I drew that shortly after spending a day hanging out with you. It was a spur of the moment kind of thing. And it’s not like I do anything with those pictures.” I let out a small sigh as I looked at the liquid sitting in my glass. “They just wind up sitting in a folder, gathering dust. Hell, Dash, you were the first person to see anything that I wasn’t asked to draw.” No one knew what to say to that, and silence followed my words.

Dash was the first to stand and leave. Her muttered wishes for a good night seemed to linger for several minutes as Pinkie and I watched her leave and head upstairs. Just a moment after Dash escaped my view I stood, and grabbed the wine and glasses; taking them to the kitchen. After putting the glasses in the sink, I managed to stuff the cork back into the wine bottle before I put it on the counter, resolving to take care of it tomorrow.

When I walked back into the living room I noted that Pinkie had left, so I shrugged before turning off the lights. With the room plunged into darkness I had to take my time crossing the room, the idea of stubbing one of my toes once again acting as a deterrent to increased speed. As I mounted the stairs I noted absently that the doors to all the girls’ rooms were closed. Light was only coming from a couple of the rooms, so I didn’t worry too much about making that much noise.

I was soon within my own room, the door to the balcony open to allow a gentle breeze that kept the room nice and cool. I quickly changed out of my clothes and into a pair of boxers and a pair of jeans. They were a really old pair, so they were probably the most comfortable pair of pants that I owned. I walked out onto the balcony, the shimmering reflection of the moon on the water catching my eye. After a few minutes I looked away from the moon, my eyes roaming over the jungle, looking for the namesake of the island. Just as I spotted the first yellow flash of light a knock came at the door to my room.

As I turned away from the view to look at the door, the little confidence I felt at the beach vanished in an instant. I silently hoped that there wouldn’t be a second knock and that Pinkie had simply gone to bed, rather than coming to see me. A second knock did come, and I let out a small sigh. “Come in...” I quickly turned back to the view as my softly spoken call prompted the opening of the door.

Soon enough there was a presence at my side, and I glanced over to see Pinkie looking out towards the view. After looking out over the jungle and enjoying the flashes of the fireflies as they signaled their mating calls, I pushed off the balcony railing, heading back in towards my bed. I sat down on the edge, resting my hands on my knees, the floor holding my gaze.

Pinkie came in a few minutes later, a leap taking her fully onto the bed where she stayed sprawled out over the covers, her limbs splayed out at all angles. “Start at the beginning?” I glanced at Pinkie to see her nod, and so I just smiled at her. “That’s what I figured.” I fell back onto the bed with a small sigh before I started.

“My father, Daedalus, is one of the greatest inventors in Equestria -- yet his name is poorly known, even among the people who use his creations the most. Much like myself, he simply created whatever came to mind, rather than focus on a single field of work.

“For instance, the steam locomotive was made far more efficient thanks to a small device that he created. Not that he’d ever take credit for it. He’d just brush it off, and then rant about some obscure problem that affects less than a handful of people.” I gestured wildly into the air. “But there was one invention that he’d been working on for months. Years, even. One that would make life for pegasi easier. Or, at least, for the pegasi that thrive on flying fast. You see, when a pegasus goes fast enough, their wings will eventually start creating as much drag as they do thrust, creating a top speed for the pegasus.

“My father’s invention would remove that barrier through some clever use of magical fields. By channeling the air around the wing it would, theoretically, remove the barriers to high speed flight.”

Pinkie shifted position as I spoke, and soon she was sitting next to me, looking down at me. “You tested it?”

“Yep,” I said, nodding quickly. “All the math was right, but there’s always some variables that no one thinks to look for when testing out a prototype. There are things that are so basic, so obvious, that we never even think of them. Things like the air. Tell me, Pinkie, how often do you really think about the air that we breathe?” Pinkie seemed to sink into thought for a moment before she shook her head. “My point exactly. And that’s the mistake that my father made.

“At sea level, or right around it, the air is of a certain density. As you go higher it gets thinner and thinner. That’s what caused the mistake my father made to become such a big deal. See, when I tested the system I had to reach my top speed, and then go just beyond that. An easy enough task to reach my top speed, but I need quite a bit of room to do it. So, it became logical for me to increase my altitude so that I would have plenty of room.” I paused as I recalled the events of that flight. “It all started out so simple. I just flew faster and faster until I hit my natural top speed.

“Then I engaged the system, and I could feel the change immediately. My speed increased by leaps and bounds, and I was having the time of my life. It felt like there was nothing holding me back at all. Faster and faster I went, and higher and higher. Until, with a searing flash of pain, I stopped accelerating, and started falling.” I felt a tingle on my back at the mention of the pain.

Pinkie cocked her head as she looked at me. “But, what happened to your wings?” She looked down at me with equal parts confusion and concern. “Dashie’s been in tons of crashes, some of them pretty serious, but she didn’t lose her wings.”

“That’s because Dash didn’t have magical fields pulling her wings apart. See, as the air grew thinner the magical field had to work harder to move the air as fast as it did. This caused it to grow narrower until it started touching my wing. Once that happened... Well, the field couldn’t tell the difference between the air and my flesh. Turns out that my desire to push myself with the system was my downfall. I flew too close to the sun, literally, and I paid for it with my wings.” I rolled onto my belly so that I didn’t have to look at Pinkie any longer, and just a moment after doing so I felt Pinkie’s gentle touch run along the scars on my back.

“Did your dad carry you down after you started crashing?”

“No, he couldn’t keep up with me once I got going. Some of his friends were members of the guard in town. He asked a few of them to hang out ‘just in case.’ One of them carried me down, and to the hospital. By the time I woke up I had already been operated on, and they had sewn the wounds on my back closed.” Pinkie’s hand pressed down gently on the right scar before her other hand came down on the left one.

“Does it hurt?” Her voice came out as a whisper, but in the relative silence of my room it was easily audible.

“When you do that? No. In fact, they don’t ever hurt, really. Only if I stretch too far, but it’s rare even then. Anyway, when the mayor found out what happened to me, he decided to get involved. Even though I was an adult, he decided that it’d be in his best interest to take the legal proceedings into his own hands. Over the course of a month they launched half a dozen investigations into my father’s work, coming up with all sorts of ludicrous claims about how he was a terrible father, and that I should be removed from his care. Mind you, I was there by choice, not by force.

“After everything was said and done, with next to no input from me, I was told that I had been given a generous stipend from the government, and a new place to live. And that my father was being given a new place to live. Some weird government facility or something, working with the massive hulking monsters we call Minotaurs.”

Pinkie had started rubbing my back in an attempt at a massage while I spoke, and she kept at it for several minutes before she spoke. “And why are you so reluctant to talk about this? You made a mistake, just like anyone else would.”

“Because I cost my father so much. I cost myself so much. I messed up not only my own life, but my dad’s too, simply because I thought I was better than the stages of testing that my father had thought up.”

“Did your dad ever say that he was disappointed in you?”

“N... No.”

“Do you regret what happened because of your choices?”

“I regret losing my wings.”

Pinkie flipped me over before she looked down at me. “Do you regret anything else that happened? Coming to Ponyville? Meeting us? Spending time with us? Celebrating with us through the good times, and weathering the bad times as well?”

“No, Pinkie.” I gave a gentle shake of my head. “It’s not that simple.”

“Why not?” I started to respond before I stopped myself. Again, Pinkie asked a simple question to provoke a deeper level of thought. “Why can’t it be that simple? You’re happy now, and you’ve got tons of friends who care for you. What more do you want?”

“Aside from my wings, Pinkie...” I hesitated as I thought about what to say. “Aside from my wings, Pinkie, there’s just a few things that I want. And those are things that I’m still looking for.”

Pinkie gave a knowing smile. “I’m pretty sure that we both know what at least one of those things is.” As she looked down at me, her smile grew a bit wider. I felt a blush come to my cheeks. “Anyway, you can’t just sit and wait for those things to come to you. Sometimes you need to go out and find what you want in life.”

Before I could respond Pinkie leaned down and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. Still looking down at me, the blush on her cheeks was nearly as intense as my own. “Think of it as motivation, Icarus. And think about what I said, too. Sometimes the things you’re looking for are right in front of you, just asking to be noticed.” As Pinkie finished speaking several loud knocks sounded at my door. Before I could form a response the door burst open, with Rainbow Dash toppling in just behind it.

“Icarus...” She looked over at me, her eyes squinting as she tried to focus on me. “I was just thinking that it’d be great if we went for a run tomorrow...”

Please let her be buzzed enough to not know what’s going on...

“Sure, Dash. Just... Uh... Just come and get me tomorrow morning.” Pinkie was about to speak when I put a hand on her mouth.

“Sounds good, Icarus.” Dash started walking out the door when she stopped and looked back at Pinkie and I over her shoulder. “Oh, and Pinkie, this doesn’t count. You cheated.” With that, she turned and walked out the door, not even closing it as she left. I slowly let my hand drift away from Pinkie’s mouth, and she let out a little giggle.

“I suppose Dash is right. Although there wasn’t anything keeping her from doing this.” I opened my mouth to inquire, but she shook her head and giggled once again. “Just a little something between us girls.” She paused for a moment as she thought about what to say, but then she gave a shrug before she continued, her smile growing wider. “Nothing for you to worry about.”

Author's Notes:

Well, that's chapter two. I hope you enjoyed it, and that you're still looking forward to more.