“This place is so awesome!”
Rarity looked confusedly at her multihued-maned compatriot.
“Darling, I know the King of Pranceshia mall is indeed a spectacular sight, but you’re acting like you’ve never seen a mall before. I thought at least you had been to one before.”
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Well, duh! I’ve been to the Cloudsdale mall loads of times. But was never as big or as awesome as this!”
“Well, that’s a pleasure to hear.” Rarity exclaimed. “I do enjoy the time I spend with my friends, but it was rather… difficult for Pinkie Pie and Applejack to adjust to their first time at a mall.”
Rainbow Dash burst out laughing. “I wish I’d been there!” she cried. “Seeing AJ going crazy would have been hilarious! I still crack up just thinking about it!”
“Well, all’s well that ends well.” Rarity said with a sigh. “I did end up having a rather pleasurable time with them both, despite Applejack’s vandalism and Pinkie Pie’s… Pinkieness. I trust that our time here shall be just as pleasant.” She turned and cast a curious glance at the azure pegasus. “Although I must say, this is rather unusual.”
“What is?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Well, you asking to come with me.” Rarity replied. “I would have asked you myself if I had thought you wanted to go. Frankly, I’m rather surprised that you are even spending so much time with me at all. We don’t really spend time together without our other friends.”
Rainbow Dash sighed and shrugged. “Yeah, well, you know I’d stick by you if you ever needed me, right?”
“Yes, of course I do, but… well, I do sometimes wonder if we would be friends at all, if it were not for the friends we share in common. I mean… we don’t have much else in common.”
Rainbow Dash gave her a deadpan look. “Um, hello? I’ve been friends with Fluttershy since we were fillies. You can’t really get much different than me and her.”
Before Rarity could reply, Rainbow Dash’s attention suddenly shifted.
“Hey! Soda machine! Sweet!”
Rainbow Dash shot off, inserting her bits into the machine and kicking it with exasperation when her soda didn’t come out instantly.
Rarity was about to sigh, but quickly caught herself. She had done far too much sighing during her last two trips to this mall. This time would be different. Rainbow Dash was experienced and street-wise, even if a little immature. This trip would not become the ordeal the last two had. What was there to worry about?
*********************************************************
“Darling, come on. Just one outfit.”
“No.” Rainbow Dash said firmly. “I am not having you stick me in some frou-frou dress. I have an image to keep up.”
Rarity sighed deeply with aggravation. She had expected this kind of behavior from Rainbow Dash, but it was still rather irritating.
“You would look gorgeous in this black ensemble.” she pressed. “The black would accentuate the colors of your mane.”
“I don’t care!” Rainbow Dash griped. “I’ll wear a dress for formal occasions, and that’s it! And I’ve already got those dresses you made me.”
Rarity shrugged. “Well, it was worth a try. But you at least must indulge me in picking out a perfume.”
“Oh, hay no!” Rainbow Dash replied, shaking her head vigorously. “I don’t need to go around smelling like some flower garden!”
Rarity gave Rainbow Dash a withering glance. “Darling, I don’t know how to break this to you, but you would benefit from some perfume.”
“What are you saying?” Rainbow Dash asked, glaring at Rarity.
“I’m saying that that sweaty odor you acquire from your exercises can be rather pungent at times.” Rarity replied curtly.
“It’s called the smell of hard work.” Rainbow Dash retorted. “And I am not about to wear some girly perfume, no matter what I smell like!”
Rarity frowned, but then a smile creased her face as an idea came into her head.
“Ooh, is that a Daring Do jacket?” she asked, pointing her hoof.
“Where?!” Rainbow Dash cried excitedly.
As she turned, Rarity levitated a sample perfume bottle into the air, spraying Rainbow Dash with a lovely jasmine scent.
Rainbow Dash whipped about. “Augh!” she screamed, sniffing herself. “I smell all girly!” She turned and glared at Rarity. Then a sneaky grin rose across her face.
Moving over to another sample table, she picked up a strongly-scented stallion’s cologne.
Rarity’s eyes widened. “Rainbow, now wait just a minute. Let’s not be hasty.”
“Oh, I think I want to be hasty.” Rainbow Dash said, edging closer.
A cloud suddenly filled the air, and a high-pitched shriek filled the store.
*********************************************************
Rarity and Rainbow Dash both left the bathroom, having done their best to wash off the scent. Rarity quickly sprayed a bit of rose scent upon herself to try and mask the remaining cologne, and gave Rainbow Dash a glare.
“Hey, don’t look at me like that. You started it.” Rainbow stated.
Rarity merely gave a miffed sniff and began to trot off through the rest of the mall.
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Hey, why don’t we check this out?” she asked, pointing towards a sports store. “I’ll bet it has some great stuff in here I could use.”
Rarity didn’t reply, but merely kept on walking, her nose in the air.
Rainbow Dash sighed. “Okay, look, maybe we should just both apologize and get it over with.” she grumbled. “I don’t want to be stuck with a grump like you all day.”
Rarity stopped, and nodded at Rainbow Dash. “Well, if that is an apology, then I accept it. And I suppose my own actions were impolite. So I would like to apologize as well.”
“Great!” Rainbow Dash cried, hurriedly trying to change the conversation to something less awkward. “So, let’s go check out the sports gear! I wanna get one of those super-cool new thingies that tells you how fast your heart is going and how many calories you’re burning and stuff!”
She dashed into the store, with Rarity following at a more demure pace.
*********************************************************
“Wow! Check it out!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “Super UV protection sunglasses with glare resistance! Spitfire wears a pair just like these!”
She zipped over to another shelf. “And look at these awesome pegasi weather suits! Lightweight, cold and water-resistant, with added electrical protection! And it looks cool, too!”
Rainbow Dash quickly went over to examine yet another shelf. “Huh. Nice lightweight padding. I could use that if I ever have to work with Derpy again. And wing-exercising equipment. Always useful. And look at….” Rainbow Dash voice suddenly trailed off. She was looking at a large wall of shoes.
A sneaky grin crossed her face, and she reached into her saddlebags.
When Rainbow Dash had brought her saddlebags, Rarity had assumed that it was only to carry merchandise. She now realized that this was not the case, as Rainbow Dash already had a few items inside the bags. To Rarity’s curiosity, Rainbow Dash pulled out a small packet, ripping the top off and dumping a small amount of the contents into a couple of the shoes.
“Rainbow Dash, what in Equestria are you….” Rarity was suddenly silenced as Rainbow Dash put a hoof over her mouth.
“Shh.” the cyan pegasus ordered. “Here comes somepony.”
As Rarity watched with a mixture of trepidation and curiosity, a stocky, pale brown stallion with a black mane and a small beard trotted up. As he examined the shoes, he pulled out a pair and tried them on.
“What exactly did you put into those shoes?” Rarity asked.
“Wait for it.” Rainbow Dash whispered.
After a few seconds, the stallion began to shuffle. Then, he took off the shoes and began to scrape his hooves upon the carpet, gently at first, then vigorously.
“Augh! Why do my hooves itch so much?!” the stallion cried.
Rainbow Dash snorted with laughter as she watched the scene. Rarity simply rolled her eyes.
Rainbow’s laughter, however, attracted the attention of the stallion.
“Hey! You put itching powder in these shoes!” he shouted, pointing an accusatory hoof.
“What makes you think I did it?” Rainbow Dash laughed, not sounding in the least convincing.
“Oh, you think you’re funny, do you?” the stallion cried. Then he turned and bellowed in a loud voice. “Security! Security, there’s some wild teenagers causing trouble!”
“That’s our cue to go.” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, grabbing Rarity and zipping out of the store, as the angry stallion shouted after them.
*********************************************************
“What where you thinking?!” Rarity cried. “That stallion called security! On us! On me! They probably think I’m some sort of teenage ruffian causing mayhem!”
“Aw, relax, Rares.” Rainbow Dash replied. “It’s a big mall. Nopony’s gonna bother us. They’ll never even find us!”
Suddenly, Rainbow Dash stopped and looked at one particular shop.
“Say, is that that candle shop Pinkie and AJ were talking about?”
Rarity stared at the shop, and made an uncomfortable grimace. “Yes, it is. But I don’t think you would be interested in a bunch of silly candles.” She gave a forced laugh, hoping that Rainbow Dash would be uninterested.
No such luck. Rainbow Dash began to head towards the store. Rarity groaned and followed reluctantly.
As they entered, the clerk behind the counter looked up, and gave them a sneer before turning back to her magazine. Rarity tried to pretend that she didn’t notice.
Rainbow Dash was looking at the candles, sniffing a few.
“Huh. Not bad.” she commented.
Rarity was surprised to see Rainbow Dash actually seeming to behave herself. She was also surprised that Rainbow Dash was taking any interest in candles. But she decided to just be thankful for this lull rather than question it.
She began to examine a few candles herself. A few relaxing scented candles could be nice to pair with a warm bubble bath. Of course, she had to find the right candle. She didn’t want any scents that clashed with the smell of her soap or shampoo. The lavender smelled promising, but then again this clean linen scent was quite refreshing. But there was also this lovely….
Her thoughts were cut short as Rainbow Dash trotted up to her, snickering.
Rarity’s peace was instantly shattered.
“Rainbow, what did you do?” she asked bluntly.
Before Rainbow Dash could reply, a couple mares walked into the store and went over to examine some of the candles near where Rainbow Dash had been standing. They each opened a candle, smelling it to test its scent.
With sudden force, they both sneezed at the same time.
And then they sneezed again.
And again.
Rarity turned to see Rainbow Dash turning away so that the ponies couldn’t see her laughing.
“Rainbow Dash, did you put sneezing powder into the candles?” Rarity asked accusatorily.
“Well, yeah.” Rainbow Dash replied with a chortle. “But only a few. Don’t worry, it’s harmless.”
Rarity looked at the two mares, who were looking warily at the candles. She saw the clerk giving an evil eye towards the giggling Rainbow Dash.
Rarity gave the clerk a forced grin, quickly trotting out of the store, using her magic to pull Rainbow Dash along.
*********************************************************
“Hey, I’m starved.” Rainbow Dash said. Her stomach grumbled in agreement. “Why don’t we grab some chow?”
“I suppose that’s a good idea.” Rarity admitted. “I could use some extra energy.” Beneath her breath, she muttered, “Celestia knows I’ll need it if you keep acting up.”
Rainbow drew to a stop outside the mall’s large food court.
“Nice selection here.” she stated, looking over the various restaurants. “Neighsian Garden, Hay-fil-a, Dairy Princess.” Her eyes turned towards a restaurant with a red-and-white checker scheme.
“Five Colts!” she cried. “I know what I’m getting!”
“I’m going to see about getting one of those wraps from Hay-fil-a.” Rarity stated. “I don’t enjoy that greasy food as much as you do. I have my ladylike figure to keep up, after all.”
The two ponies parted ways, each for their own restaurant.
*********************************************************
Rarity had been sitting at the table for ten whole minutes already. She sipped her iced tea in a bored manner.
“Whatever is taking her so long?” Rarity asked herself, looking over towards the Five Colts.
Sitting there, eating a few peanuts and tapping her hoof impatiently, Rainbow Dash was still awaiting her meal.
The cashier set a bag upon the counter, and Rainbow Dash looked up expectantly.
“Number… 43. Number 43.” the cashier said into a microphone.
“Oh, come on!” Rainbow Dash shouted, throwing her hooves up in the air.
*********************************************************
Another ten minutes later, Rainbow Dash finally walked up to the table Rarity was sitting at.
“Sorry about the wait.” Rainbow Dash apologized. “Those guys behind the counter are slower than Granny Smith… when she’s napping.”
Rainbow Dash lifted up the paper bag. “But it was all worth it.”
The bag’s bottom literally dripped with grease. As Rainbow Dash held it above the table, the soggy bag’s bottom suddenly ripped, dropping the sandwich and a small mountain of Prench fries onto the table with a small splash of grease.
Rarity felt vaguely repulsed. “Rainbow dear, are you actually going to eat all that?” she asked.
“Why, you want some?” Rainbow Dash asked, offering her a hoofful of fries.
“No!” Rarity exclaimed, shrinking back from the grease-dripping fries. “I mean, it’s just that I fear it would go to my hips. It does look rather… fattening.”
“Hey, when you’re an awesome athlete like me, you burn all this stuff right off!” Rainbow Dash cried, taking a huge, dripping bite of the vegetarian burger. Grease soaked down her chin, and she chewed with her mouth partially open.
Rarity tried to look away, but only saw the disgusted looks of the other shoppers as they passed. A couple looked a little bit green.
Rarity sighed. “Perhaps you could try to finish up a bit quicker, darling.” she suggested, eager for Rainbow Dash’s embarrassing eating habits to cease. “We still have quite a bit to see.”
Rarity instantly regretted saying that, as Rainbow Dash proceeded to shove the entire sandwich into her mouth in one bite.
“Teh secuws faat.” she exclaimed with a grin, displaying her chewed-up food.
Rarity stared, her own mouth agape, before she remembered her manners and closed it.
“Let’s… just go.” she stated, moving on as Rainbow followed behind her, carrying her large cup of Prench fries and her soda.
*********************************************************
Rarity tried to ignore the slurping and munching sounds beside her as Rainbow Dash finished her drink and fries.
“Oh, look darling! This place looks more your style.” she exclaimed. She pointed a hoof towards an Old Neighvy, which displayed a wide variety of sporty, stylish clothes.
“I dunno. I don’t really need any new clothes.” Rainbow Dash replied.
Rarity rolled her eyes. “Darling, apart from your Wonderbolts uniform and those dresses I made you, most of your wardrobe consists of old Nightmare Night costumes. You should have something to wear in case you want to look stylish.”
“Why would I care about looking….” Rainbow Dash’s voice trailed off as she saw a poster in the window. A model was wearing a stylish outfit which looked very attractive. But it wasn’t the outfit who caught Rainbow Dash’s attention. It was the model.
It was Spitfire.
“Hey, you know what, you’re right. Let’s go get me a new outfit!” Rainbow Dash cried excitedly.
As Rainbow Dash zoomed into the store, Rarity looked at the poster and shook her head with a grin.
“Ah, the power of advertising.” she sighed to herself, trotting in behind Rainbow Dash.
*********************************************************
Had somepony told Rarity that morning that she would be discussing fashion with an avidly interested Rainbow Dash, she would have thought that they were crazy. Even now, Rarity thought it was rather odd that the cyan tomcolt was asking for her opinion on fashion of any sort.
“So, which of these outfits looks more Wonderbolt-y?” Rainbow Dash asked, holding up a pair of outfits.
Rarity scrutinized the outfits carefully. “Well… the navy blue jacket does look more like one of Spitfire’s outfits, but the black seems a little more like Soarin’s casual dress style, plus it sets off your colors so well.”
“Black it is.” Rainbow Dash said, placing the other jacket back on the rack. “Hey, check out those pants! Those look like the ones I saw Surprise wearing to that get-together.”
Rarity raised an eyebrow at a pair of tie-dye shorts. “Darling, there’s a reason that Surprise is the only Wonderbolt without any license deals for clothing.” Rarity exclaimed. “I would recommend these.” She held up a pair of slim jeans. “Durable, and they look good with almost any outfit. Plus, I’ve seen Misty Fly wearing these in her off-time, and they look absolutely fabulous on her.”
“I’ll take ‘em!” Rainbow Dash cried, grabbing the jeans. “Okay, now let’s get to the counter. I have to buy these.”
“Oh darling, don’t trouble yourself.” Rarity said casually. “It’s my treat. After all, it isn’t every day that Rainbow Dash shows an interest in fashion.”
Rainbow Dash gave Rarity a grin. “Thanks Rares. You’re the best.”
*********************************************************
As Rarity stood in the check-out line, she noticed Rainbow Dash standing near a few ponequins, snickering to herself. As she drew back, Rarity saw that the ponequins had been drawn upon with a black marker, leaving them with silly faces and moustaches. Rarity rolled her eyes, hoping nopony would notice and cause a fracas.
She handed the cashier her bits and trotted out of the store, a snickering Rainbow Dash in tow.
“Hey, thanks again for buying those clothes for me.” Rainbow Dash said gratefully.
“Not a problem at all.” Rarity replied. “I’m glad to see you taking a few steps towards being fashionable.”
As they were walking, they passed a fountain which stuck up form the first level all the way up to the second level where they were walking. Rainbow Dash eyed the fountain with a sneaky grin, and began to pull out a bottle of bubble bath from her saddlebags.
As Rarity turned to chastise Rainbow Dash, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a pony couple standing below them, a couple which she unfortunately recognized.
“Rainbow Dash, don’t do it!” she hissed in a whisper.
Rainbow Dash quickly hid the bottle of bubble bath behind herself. “Don’t do what?” she asked with a not-so-innocent expression.
“That’s Jet Set and Upper Crust down there.” Rarity pointed out. “ I don’t want them to see me!”
“You mean those two ponies who were real snobs to you?” Rainbow Dash asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Yes, that’s them.” Rarity replied. “They probably own half of the businesses in this mall.”
A sly look came across Rainbow’s face. Sliding the bubble bath back into her saddlebags, she pulled out a small, round object with a piece of stiff string sticking off of it, and a small box of matches. Striking a match, she lit the string on the small ball.
“Rainbow Dash, what are you doing?!” Rarity hissed in a whisper.
“I just thought it’s time those snobs got their comeuppance.” Rainbow Dash replied with a sneaky grin.
“Rainbow, no!”
Rainbow Dash tossed the small ball, which landed right between Jet Set and Upper Crust. As the wick burned down, suddenly a huge cloud of noxious smoke filled the air, enveloping the two elite ponies, who began to cough and gag at the sulfurous stench.
Rainbow Dash was clutching her sides and lying on her back laughing, but Rarity was mortified. She tried to hide herself behind a support pillar.
“Oh, please don’t let them see me.” Rarity muttered. “That would be the… worst… possible… thing!”
As it turned out, Rarity was wrong. There was something worse. And as the smoke from the stink bomb floated up towards the fire alarm, Rarity quickly found out what it was.
Suddenly, the air filled with a blaring siren, and sprinklers began to go off everywhere.
“FIRE! There’s a fire!” somepony screamed.
Suddenly, bedlam broke loose. Ponies were screaming and running in all directions, slipping on the wet floors. Rarity tried to find cover, but the water was spraying all about her, pooling around her feet and running along like a shallow river.
Beside her, Rainbow Dash had her hooves pressed against the sides of her head in panic.
“Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!” she cried, looking around frantically at the growing chaos.
Small items were beginning to float by as Rarity futilely struggled to get away from the downpour. She slipped on the wet tile, landing on her stomach but still sliding along at the same momentum. She slid into a store, knocking over a display of perfume, which crashed and landed all about her. Getting to her hooves again, she proceeded to slip and land on her face, gliding into another store and a large pile of boxes, which crashed down all around her. Rarity managed to protect herself with her magic, but she still very nearly got knocked by a falling box.
As she got to her hooves once again, she suddenly noticed that a great deal of ponies in firefighter outfits were running about with giant hoses.
“Rarity!”
Rainbow Dash shot up to her, her colorful mane hanging limply, her wings splashing water about as she hovered in the air. She wore a very distressed look on her face.
“Rarity, are you okay?” she asked, landing beside the soaked white unicorn.
Rarity glared at Rainbow Dash, but before she could respond, one of the firefighters pointed towards Rainbow Dash.
“That mare’s mane is on fire!” he cried.
“What?!” Rainbow Dash cried. “No, it’s natural coloration!”
Her cries fell on deaf ears as Rainbow Dash and Rarity suddenly found themselves staring down the barrel of a fire hose.
Suddenly, they were hit by a powerful stream of water which blasted them across the floor. They suddenly found themselves cascading down a staircase, which had become a churning waterfall now. Rarity shrieked, trying to fight the powerful current, but it dragged her down the stairs, thumping her against railings and bumping her against stairs.
In a torrent of water, she and Rainbow Dash were washed out from the bottom of the stairs and were carried through the store, sliding to a stop beside the fountain’s side.
Amidst the cascading spray from above, Rainbow Dash turned towards Rarity with a very awkward grin upon her face.
“Er… oops, my bad?”
Rarity got to her hooves, her face growing red. She snorted angrily as her face slowly contorted from shock into one of pure rage.
“You… YOU!” she shouted. “This is all your fault! You and your stupid pranks!”
“But I….” Rainbow Dash excuse was quickly cut off by Rarity’s rant.
“You ruined my mane, you ruined my day, and you ruined our trip! Pinkie and Applejack at least just caused trouble by accident, but YOU! You went out of your way to cause trouble!” Rarity roared. “I’m sick and tired of your stupid, foalish tricks getting other ponies in trouble! Were you trying to ruin my day?! Were you trying to ruin everything?! Why the hay did you even come if all you were going to do was ruin everything?!”
Rainbow Dash looked taken aback, and for once, somewhat meek.
“I… I’m sorry.” she said softly. “I… I just did it for you.”
Rarity paused, looking confused. “Come again?”
“Well, you said those ponies had been real snobs to you and hurt your feelings.” Rainbow Dash explained. “I just thought I’d get ‘em back with that stink bomb. I wouldn’t have done it if I knew all this would have happened.” She spread her hooves towards the surrounding water chaos.
“Seriously, I didn’t mean to really bother you with my pranks.” Rainbow Dash went on, getting to her hooves. “I was just having a little fun. I didn’t know it really bothered you so much. I… I just wanted to have fun with you.”
Rarity’s face softened a little. “You… wanted to spend a day in my company?”
“Yeah.” Rainbow Dash stated, nodding her head. “I mean, if I had just wanted to come to the mall, I could have been here in ten seconds flat. I asked if I could come with you because I thought we could find things we both liked here. So we could actually have fun together.” She sighed, plopping down on her rump. “I guess I failed at that.”
Rarity walked forwards, gently putting a hoof on Rainbow Dash’s shoulder.
“I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash.” she said softly.
“You’re sorry?!” Rainbow Dash cried. “I’m the one who caused this whole mess and ruined everything!”
“Well… yes. But it was an accident.” Rarity stated. “And I am touched that you would stand up for me, even if your attempt was rather… uncouth.”
“But you were right! I did ruin everything!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. She held up the bag of clothes Rarity had gotten her, now thoroughly soaked.
Rarity looked at the clothes. Slowly, a smile spread across her face as she remembered helping Rainbow Dash pick them out.
“We did manage to have fun.” she said, helping Rainbow Dash to her hooves. “And I think we still can.”
“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!”
Rarity and Rainbow Dash whipped about to see Princess Luna, trotting through the water.
“We were not aware that this was what malls were like nowadays.” the moon princess stated. “This place resembleth a water park.”
“Er… there was a minor problem, your highness.” said a firefighter, trotting up. “Apparently there was a fire scare, and some of our colts just got a bit overexcited.”
“Verily?” Princess Luna asked, looking a bit surprised. “And what, pray tell, caused this scare?”
“It was me, princess.” Rainbow Dash stated, awkwardly stepping up. “I threw a smoke bomb and it set off the fire alarm.”
Princess Luna raised an eyebrow. Rarity looked surprised as well. Rainbow Dash owning up to her mistake, and in front of Princess Luna, no less? Wonderbolt training had obviously had a much greater effect on Rainbow Dash than Rarity had expected.
Princess Luna raised an eyebrow. “Oh. We expected Twilight Sparkle.”
“Wait. What?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
Luna laughed. “You and your friends art indeed a troublesome bunch! Thou remindest us of our self in our youth. Though verily, thou hast wreaked less havoc than our earlier mistakes.”
“But… I ruined all this stuff.” Rainbow Dash stated, confused at Luna’s cheery demeanor.
Luna shook her head. “Nay! This is but foal’s play to set right!”
Luna’s horn flashed, and suddenly the sprinklers stopped, and all of the water dried up. Luna’s magic quickly straightened the stores up, putting everything back together. And not a speck of water damage was to be found.
Luna turned towards the firefighter. “Your services are no longer needed here.” she stated.
“Um… y-yes, ma’am!” the firefighter replied with a salute. He and the other firefighters galloped off, before Luna could find out about their slightly exuberant use of the fire hoses.
Luna turned towards the bedraggled figures of Rainbow Dash and Rarity.
“Rainbow Dash, as this was unintended, thou shalt be let off with a warning.” Luna stated firmly. A slight smile crossed her face. “We know well about unintended mistakes. In fact, that is why we are here. And please… do not tell Twilight Sparkle we expected it was her.”
“Consider our lips sealed.” Rarity exclaimed.
Luna nodded, and gave a wink.
“Very well. Now, we must go to apologize to the owner of a toy establishment here, and inform him that he is exonerated of all accusations of assaulting the royal person and practicing dark magic most foul.”
*********************************************************
Rarity and Rainbow Dash both sat in the mane salon, their heads beneath mane dryers. Rarity was leafing through a fashion magazine, while Rainbow Dash was looking though a Wonderbolts magazine.
“I guess some good came of that soaking.” Rarity stated with a small grin. “I doubt I would ever have gotten you into a mane salon otherwise.”
“I just needed to dry off.” Rainbow Dash replied, hiding her face behind the magazine and looking rather embarrassed to be in such a place.
Rarity grinned, flipping the page of her magazine. “You know, I think that we should do this more often, Rainbow Dash.” she stated. “Apart from that little fiasco, I did have quite a few moments where I sincerely enjoyed you company. I believe you are more of an… acquired taste.”
“Heh. You too.” Rainbow Dash chuckled. “I guess you’re pretty cool, even if a bit prissy.” She gave Rarity a punch on the shoulder.
Rarity grinned and punched her back.
*********************************************************
As the two ponies walked through the mall, Rainbow Dash suddenly stopped for a moment and looked at one area, which was filled with blinking lights and noise.
Rarity sighed. “Do you want to go into the arcade?” she asked.
“Um… well, whatever you want is fine.” Rainbow Dash said with a forced grin. “I kind of owe you for all that trouble earlier.”
Rarity rolled her eyes. “Go on.” she said, waving a hoof.
“Really?!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “Thanks, Rares!”
Rainbow Dash zoomed inside, looking at all the games. “Oh, which one should I try first?!”
After looking about, she settled on Dance Dance Marevolution. Stepping up onto the platform, she inserted her bit. Beside her, another pony strode up and put her bit in the adjacent machine. Rainbow Dash turned with a cocky grin, about to challenge this newcomer, but as she turned, her eyes widened in surprise.
“Rarity?!”
“Well, you didn’t think I was just going to wait outside, now did you?” Rarity asked with a smirk.
“I didn’t think you would like games like this.” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
Rarity raised an eyebrow challengingly. “What’s the matter? Afraid I’ll beat you? I’m quite an accomplished dancer, you know.”
“Oh yeah?” Rainbow Dash chuckled. “I could beat your fancy dance moves any day!”
Rarity smirked. “Oh, it is ON!”
As the music began to play, Rarity began to move like a pop star, tossing her mane. Rainbow Dash flashed her a challenging look, and began to perform her own street-style dance moves.
As the two friends danced together, Rarity smiled to herself. Sure Rainbow was a pain to be around at times. But she was a lot of fun, and the most loyal friend one could ask for. So Rarity figured that she could forgive her, and try to see that she really meant well. After all, that’s what friends do.
Author's Note
And so ends another trip to the mall!
It occurred to me that Rainbow Dash and Rarity don't really seem to hang out a lot together except when they're with their other friends, so I thought it would be interesting to explore their friendship a little more. Rainbow Dash might not have been as naïve as Pinkie and Applejack were in the earlier stories, but let's face it. RD is a troublemaker. A nice one with a good heart, but a troublemaker nonetheless.
