Friendship cannot be taken. It's a gift to receive and give back.

//

pat reon.com/blacklares

Huh...This chapter...was a bit unexpected. I just let my thoughts flow into the paragraphs and I like what I got. Sorry for the slight delay but I have a lot of headaches with my studies plus there's a bunch of fanfics that keep me up at night, a certain HP translation with over 300 chapters being one of them haha. Sweet Celestia, those translated novels are all so trashy, but at least this one is mostly decent, with no young master stuff and only a single "courting death" that I found so far XD

But Anyway, hope you like it and like always EEEENJOY!!!

//

The magic in the air was practically tangible as small sparkles permeated the surroundings, enveloping the cross-legged mare in the middle of a Runic circle as she slowly exhaled her breath.

Little Strongheart couldn't not get enraptured by the sight in front of her as she walked into the room at the top of the Library. It was just so... mystical...

Her eyes swept over the blue Pegasus as she quietly meditated, no distraction disturbing her nearly trance like state.

But before long, something changed...

Her beautiful rainbow coloured mane ruffled as if by a a stray gust of wind, while the, until now, peaceful particles of magic stirred and coalesced on her large, strong wings giving them an ethereal shine.

Her following moves were slow...calculated. Her wings gently spread. Her posture changed... She was ready....

*WHOOSH*

With no warning whatsoever, Rainbow Dash exploded towards the sky through the large opening in the ceiling, which was usually used for the Library Telescope.

A trail of colourful particles left in her wake as she streaked through the night sky like a falling star.

Little Strongheart couldn't help but watch her in awe. She was so fast! It was so cool!

________

Rainbow Dash could feel the magic passing through her wings, accelerating her speed as she slipped through the air with barely any resistance.

She was so excited! Never would she have thought that one day she would be able to achieve speed of this level with barely any effort!

... Well there was the part of figuring out all this magic stuff with her favourite eggheads, plus a lot of training...BUT...It was working!

She could feel that if she only flapped a bit harder she might even achieve a Sonic Rainboom without the support of high altitude and gravity! It might have been just a temporary boost, thanks to the magic formation that Starfall set up for her, but in time she could hopefully turn it into her own power...

The pressure at the tip of her front hooves slowly increased as the familiar sight of a colorful semi-liquid magic substance began coalescing in front of her.

It tempted her to push even harder, but she knew it was not something the ponies in the town would have appreciate no matter how awesome it would have surely looked.

After all it was already past midnight...

With a hint of regret but still very satisfied with her little stunt, Rainbow decelerated as her wings slowly guided her back towards the Library.

She was surprised however, to find a very excited Little Strongheart, waiting for her while slightly reminding her of a fanfillying Scootaloo...

__________

The Petite Buffalo was almost jumping on her small hooves in excitement, her eyes Sparkling in unspoken excitement as Rainbow Dash descended.

And what a descent it was.

Her wings usually beautiful, now shone with colourful particles, that were slowly dispersing as she left them behind. Her front hooves painted in rainbow colours almost up to her calves, seemed to slowly loose it's mysterious colouration in a similar manner to the energy released by her wings, leaving behind a trail of light slightly similar to fast moving sparklers lit up in a dark room.

And as the mare finally landed, her every step left behind a colourful hoofprint, which then promptly disappeared in a few seconds, most likely releasing a small amount of magic into the atmosphere...

"Woah! That was so cool Rainbow! You looked so Awesome! And your Wings! They are so pretty like this!" Little Strongheart exclaimed as she approached the other mare who smiled at her friend.

"I know, Right?! It not only feels awesome! It also looks awesome, and makes me fly at speeds I only considered a dream until some time ago!" Rainbow replied in excitement as she showed her wings in all their glory as the magic slowly faded, having run it's course for tonight.

She could feel that she had Improved slightly in both the amount of magic she could wield as well as in control, but it didn't change the fact her training was also mighty exhausting. She wasn't going to make a fly like this for a while without proper rest beforehoof...

But first she needed to show off to a certain Buffalo she so adored...

She and Applejack really enjoyed including Strongheart in their occasional sport competitions, even if they had to go easy on her sometimes because of the baby...

The thought of her pregnancy, made Rainbow Dash feel quite weird to be honest... She was very much happy. Yes...But she was also both slightly jealous and relieved at the same time... did it make sense?...

She shrugged of her thought quickly as the look of admiration in Little Strongheart reminded her of where she was.

"So what brings you here Lily? are you here to admire my wings or is there any other topic you wanted to talk about? It's like, One in the morning after all..." Rainbow said in amusement walking over to the petite buffalo that snapped to reality remembering why she came here in the first place.

She looked at Rainbow a bit sheepishly.

"Oh right..

I actually wanted to ask you if you'd like to come with me to Appleloosa tomorrow...or is it today?...Well anyway, it's just, my tribe was planning on organising a celebratory party for the passing of winter. It was quite a while since we didn't suffer a casualty during the colder seasons, and we were always quite a close knit community, so they thought it was a good reason as any to celebrate..." She explained before looking down slightly worried.

"I'll understand if you don't want to..."She said with a slightly sad tone.

Rainbow Dash didn't make her wait long for an answer though.

"Are you kidding! I'd love to go with you Lil!" She exclaimed putting a hoof on her shoulder.

"Really?! You mean it?!"Asked the buffalo, perking up at her response.

"Of course! I'd never miss a party with one of my friends! I'm just confused why you're asking me in the first place? Wouldn't you rather go with Starfall?" Rainbow pointed out, to which Little Strongheart looked slightly embarrassed.

"Ehehe....well, the thing is...The ponies and buffalos in charge of the celebration decided to organise a competition for pairs of friends...and I...I thought I'd ask my best friend..." She whispered looking to the side and giving off a very realistic impression of Fluttershy...

Rainbow Dash was slightly stunned by her words, but after a moment her grin widened and she hugged the petite buffalo who was surprised by the sudden display of affection and squeaked in surprise.

But it wasn't long before the two girls stopped the hug, and began to giggle at eachother which they followed with animated talks deep into the night...

Soon the two went to bed in one of the rooms that Strongheart took as her own. Their friendship had raised to a new level tonight and the two soon fell asleep in eachother's embrace... /Nothing lewd, just wholesome friendship here.../

They needed the rest if they wanted to win the competition after all...

Somewhere else in a different part of Ponyville, a certain mare with a cowpony hat, felt a sudden need to deepen her friendship with Rainbow Dash. Somehow, she felt as if she was... falling behind?...

_________

Rarity looked at the two Sisters in deep thought. Something...There was just something about them that sparkled her artistic soul. She just needed an...an inspiration...

She pushed the first sister closer to the bed, while setting up the second to stand by the window. A box of gemstones, flew out of a drawer in the corner of the room, as she threw the differently coloured stones around, hoping that one of them might give her the missing spark she so urgently needed.

"Rarity love..maybe we could-" Luna started speaking from beside the window, keeping her posture still, despite the feeling of discomfort already present all over her body.

They've been helping Rarity for over half an hour, having yet to find this "inspiration" She was so desperate for.

"Hush darling! I'm so close I just need something!... Something like...A shine!" Rarity exclaimed in passion.

"A shine?" Midnight asked from the other side while keeping her slightly awkward posture over a red sofa.

"Yes! A shine! Like...Oh! Yes! IDEA!" she intoned in excitement as her horn glowed, lifting up a buch of mostly blue and white coloured gemstones that she vowed into the hair of the two mares before making them light up.

Her eyes sparkled in excitement as a completely new line of Dresses started to form in her mind, the more she looked at the two beautiful princesses.

"Oh yes! I can see it! Magnificent! A new early spring collection! I'll call it...New moon!...No...The Duality Of Moon!...Uhh... We'll think of a name later. Now it's time to work! Come, come! No time to waste! Fashion Calls!" Rarity dashed out of the room with three notepads floating around, each already being filled with a buch of different designs...

The two royal sisters looked at each others and sighed in relief as they could finally forgo their awkward poses and take a bit of rest...

"Darlings! Where are you!? We've got work to do!" Rarity called out excitedly, and the two mares looked at eachother awkwardly before sighing in resignation and standing up.

What they wouldn't do for a friend...

"You think she'd ask us for more posing?"Midnight asked in a whisper.

Luna shuddered at the thought.

"Oh dear sister, I sure hope she doesn't..." She said back and Midnight couldn't help but snort.

"I thought you enjoyed your evening hangouts with Rarity. What happened sis?" She teased and Luna rolled her eyes.

"Don't even start..." She replied to her clone, who smirked at her reaction.

"And...It's not really that bad...I actually enjoy helping Rarity, I just hope she doesn't ask us to act the "Inspiration" part again for a while." She added with a hint of humor as they approached the doors to Rarity's workroom.

"Hahaha...True. I love Rarity, But Sweet Night, let's hope she doesn't make us do that again, haha!" She laughed alongside Luna.

But as they walked through the doors, they were surprised by what they found on the other side.

Rarity was standing by a canvas, a bunch of pictures already stuck on the walls, filled with ideas for the new collection, and a budding picture of a pair of beautiful dresses slowly taking form on the larger sheet.

But what grabbed their attention was the table in the middle of the room filled with a bunch of sweets and a very elegant tea set.

"Ah you're here! Do come in! I'm so grateful for your help today. It really means a lot to me! I prepared a small tea party for us, I hope you can enjoy yourself." She said, quickly giving the two a heartfelt hug, and freeing them from the bits and pieces of gemstones and garments she put on them to help her find an inspiration.

The two royal mares looked at everything Rarity did for them and couldn't help but feel warmth in their chests.

In the beginning, Rarity was a bit reserved and overly polite in their relationship, but she soon truly warmed up to them and showed the two mares her honest to heart generosity and friendship, which the two couldn't help but love from the bottom of their hears.

It was yet another moment to remind the two, why they always returned for another tea party.

It was because despite everything they did and who they were, Midnight and Luna didn't have to act differently around any of their friends. They accepted them as they were, and made them feel like they truly belonged in the family.

So it wasn't long before all the three sat around the table, exchanging gossip, and stories about the lates fashion in Canterlot, with Luna trying to sneakily influence Rarity into trying out some video games...

Day like any other...But it made them all happy...