Reticence

Last Moments of a First Date

Two ponies, locked together at the foreleg, darted through the quiet Canterlot streets. The nighttime air nipped at their coats as it breezed passed. Their running was undeterred, however, fueled by enough panic to ignore chilly winds.

"Are we late?" Marble's hoof was jittery, even with Minuette holding it. "I don't want to miss the train; Limestone will get mad." She swallowed. "Unless she already left! She wouldn't leave me right? Even if she was going to miss the train? Oh Celestia, I'm going to miss the train!"

Her pace picked up, to the point where she was nearly dragging Minuette. The rough sounds of horseshoes on concrete mixed with the uneven clip-clopping of frantic hooves as her marefriend struggled to keep up.

Her marefriend... Marble's heart was somewhere between fluttering and soaring when she just thought about it. To go from a guaranteed break-up to a fully fledged and official relationship over the course

It had taken some time for them to separate from their embrace. Only Minuette's concern that Marble would miss her train had done the trick, and had sent her into a frenzied state in the process.

After all, how long had they cuddled back in the park? It could've been hours for all Marble knew. Time just seemed to slip away when she was with Minuette.

"What am I going to do? Do you you think I can hitchhike back home? But that might make Limestone more upset if I take a ride from strangers... But then she'd get mad at herself for leaving me and forcing me to do that, and when Limestone's mad at herself she can get really—"

A giggle slipped past Minuette's lips, probably because she could never stop finding Marble's worries to be cute. "Calm down, Shy Pie. Limestone would never leave you behind."

"Then she's going to be so mad," Marble squeaked. Her teeth found her lower lip and bit down. Hard.

"She won't be mad," Minuette assured her, giving her hoof a gentle squeeze. "We're not even late yet."

"How can you tell?" Marble squeezed back, loving the feel of Minuette's hoof in her own.

Minuette nudged her head forward, directing Marble's attention up and over. The approaching train station came into view, its bright windows a beacon in the  dim expanse of Canterlot's horizon. The faint outlines of train steam lifted above the roof of the building, signifying the presence of a train.

"It's still open," Minuette answered. "And your train's one of the last, so I figured we're right on time."

Marble just nodded. Somehow, Minuette had been paying closer attention to the train schedule than the pony who actually needed to use it, and that was only very embarrassing.

"Though, I am sure Limestone and Lemon Hearts already beat us there," Minuette said. Marble stiffened. "I mean we spent a lot of time just—"

"Uh... Minuette?" Marble cut her off.

Her marefriend looked back with an inquisitive look. "Yeah, Shy Pie?"

"I think Limestone's going to be really mad when we get there."

Minuette's brow compressed. "Really? What makes you say that? I mean, besides the obvious."

"Well..." Marble didn't have a good way to say this. It was only just now that she had really considered what it meant for those two to be alone together.

Limestone, who had gone on this double date for her sake, and Lemon, who had come with the hopes of wooing Limestone. And all throughout the night, Limestone had either been ignoring Lemon's feelings or been ignorant of them. But with the two being alone, and Lemon being particularly persistent...

Images of explosions flashed across Marble's vision, but even that wouldn't encapsulate the depths of her sister's rage if she were the find out that she'd been set up on a real date without knowing.