Cocoa Crushes

The Savannah Queen truly was a marvelous performance. The musical numbers, Coco's incredible costumes, the scenery, the script...it was everything Rarity had heard it would be and more. Yet she just couldn't bring herself to be that invested in it- her thoughts kept wandering to her earlier behaviour...and the smiling friend sitting next to her.

'Argh! Why can't I stop thinking about this? Why did I act like such a fool back there?' She made sure to applaud politely at the conclusion of a song. 'Am...am I attracted to her? I...I don't even like mares in that way! My recent, highly embarrassing infatuation with Trenderhoof proves that. What is wrong with me?'

She inhaled deeply. 'Get ahold of yourself, Rarity! So, you had a moment where you thought she was endearing. That does not mean anything. Completely platonic friends can acknowledge each others appealing qualities, can't they? It doesn't necessarily mean anything!'

Satisfied that she had solved the mystery, Rarity returned her focus to the stage. This was the famous and controversially dark scene where the protagonist's mother, Queen Asili of the zebras, was betrayed and murdered by her nefarious and jealous sister,  Mabaya. Morbidly,  Rarity couldn't help but notice that in a way it was a macabre parallel to Celestia and Luna's situation long ago, though thankfully it didn't end quite like that.

The play successfully acquired her full attention after that. She marvelled at the fantastic scenery and costumes; giggled and tapped her hoof to the beat of the upbeat, catchy songs; suppressed her tears at the emotional, melancholic ones.  As a whole, the story was an odd mix between comedy and tragedy that blended surprisingly well.

The performance reached it's dramatic finale, and Rarity found herself applauding enthusiastically with the rest of the crowd, stamping their hooves on the auditorium floorboards in appreciation. Glancing to her side, she was treated to Coco's beaming smile, and her stomach did a somersault.

"Oh,  that was so good. " Coco whispered as the cast took their bows.  "I'd seen the dress rehearsals of course, but it simply doesn't compare to the live experience!"

"I absolutely agree dear, it was simply magnificent! And your costumes were stunning, as predicted. " Rarity replied, eliciting a bashful blush from her companion.

"Oh Rarity, it's really kind of you to say so. Hey, do you want to come backstage? The director said I could bring a guest with me after the performance. "

Rarity grimaced.  "I would love absolutely nothing more, but I'm afraid I can't dear. " Her heart sunk as she witnessed Coco's dejected expression.  "All this snow has wrought havoc with the trainlines, the only train I can catch tomorrow leaves at six in the morning and we've stayed up quite late as it is.  I am not a morning pony by any means, even at the more reasonable hours. " she sighed wistfully.  "I am sorry, Coco. "

Coco shook her head.  "It's okay- no need to be sorry." By now the stage curtains had closed and the lights restored, the audience gradually getting out of their seats and exiting the auditorium. "I know that you're needed in Ponyville for winter wrap up...I was just, hoping we'd have a bit more time to catch up."

"You could come back to Ponyville with me. " Rarity blurted unthinkingly. 'What are you saying, you dunce? Of course she can't! She has responsibilities here now!'

Coco perked her ears up and giggled a little. "Oh, I'm sure I could some other time, but right now I'm just so busy. I have to be close by in case there's a problem with any of the costumes. I'm afraid actors are particularly prone to damaging or losing them- you wouldn't believe some of the things they get to behind the scenes."

Rarity masked her disappointment behind an amused smile. "Something tells me I'd be happier not knowing." She glanced around at the now nearly empty hall and sighed. "We had best be leaving before the staff kick us out for loitering."

Soon the two mares found themselves in the chilly streets. Even at this late hour, the city was still bustling with all manner of ponies going about their business. It truly is the city that never sleeps, Rarity mused. It was a twenty minute walk back to the hotel she was staying at, and they undertook it in a comfortable silence. Occasionally Coco's side would brush up against her's, and she found herself shivering from more than just the cold.

Too soon, they were warming themselves in the grand foyer and Rarity felt her eyes begin to droop in tiredness. She turned to her companion, who was faring somewhat better. At least she didn't have to wake up at an ungodly hour the next day.

"Well, I'm afraid this is it, for now." Rarity said morosely. "I really do wish we had longer to catch up dear, but it seems fate has other plans."

Coco smiled softly. "Well, you are always welcome to visit me, Rarity."

"And the same goes for you." The two embraced briefly, and Rarity struggled to hide her rosy cheeks. "W-well, I'll see you around, darling."

As Coco made her way out into the night, glancing behind herself briefly to give a cheery wave, Rarity wasn't feeling the winter cheer at all. Her head hung miserably as Coco turned the corner and out of sight. 'Rarity Belle, what is wrong with you?'

~~~

Bleary-eyed, frazzled mane, vacant expression. Under normal circumstances Rarity would have let out a chilling scream upon seeing her reflection, but as she gazed through the frosted train carriage window at the scenery blazing past, she could barely muster an annoyed frown. She had managed to get virtually no hours of sleep. A takeaway cup of tea was clutched in her hooves, providing much needed warmth. She couldn't bring herself to drink it- in part because then she'd be cold, and also because tea never tasted right from a foam cup. Proper tea came from a refined teacup, or at the very least a mug.

She wondered if she would have been better off getting hot chocolate instead.

Sighing morosely, she glanced around at the rest of the carriage. It was almost entirely empty, save for one or two commuters who looked just as exhausted as she felt. Naturally, she used that opportunity to pile her luggage upon the vacant seats. Usually Rarity quite enjoyed a solitary train ride, using the long period of peace and quiet to finish a good book or draft some new designs in her sketchpad. But today, she just couldn't find the motivation.

She turned back to the window forlornly. She was no stranger to crushes, of course. She'd had more infatuations and fleeting dreams of happily-ever-afters then she could count, all of which never led anywhere. But not one of them had ever made her feel quite this miserable.

'Because she's a mare' an insidious voice whispered in her mind.

Rarity had always considered herself an open-minded pony, of the opinion that ponies should never be judged for who they love. But it was one thing to be ok with it in theory, to be a supporter from afar, and quite another to experience it for yourself. What would happen if ponies found out? This was exactly the sort of thing that would cause a scandal of business-ruining proportions. She could see the headlines now: "Popular Designer From Ponyville's Secret Passions; Has Our Element of Generosity Fallen to Debauchery?" While the average citizen probably couldn't care less about same-gender romance, there was still a significant portion of ponies who clinged to old prejudices, and the higher up the ladder of society you went, the more they crept out of the woodwork.

Goodness, what her parents think? Would they be supportive? Or would they think she was some kind of...deviant?

Letting out a frustrated growl, Rarity rested her head against the glass. Why was she thinking so hard about this? It probably wasn't even a real crush. So, she thought her friend was cute. So what? You didn't have to be attracted to someone to acknowledge them as being attractive. If she had been feeling nervous, it was most likely simply due to the fact this was the first chance they'd really had to socialise. These feelings would probably fade away in a few days, and everything would return to normal.

For some reason, that thought failed to provide much comfort.

Rarity glumly started gathering her luggage as the train rolled into Ponyville Station, Fighting villains and saving all of Equestria didn't hold a candle to how much stress romance could cause, it seemed.

~~~

"Here she comes! Here she comes! Here she comes! Here she-mmph!"

"We heard ya the first time, sugarcube." Applejack chuckled as she removed her hoof from Pinkie Pie's mouth. The two of them plus Twilight, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were gathered on the station platform, decked out in a motley ensemble of festive sweaters that Fluttershy had knitted. They all had some kind of cute critter emblazoned onto them, much to Rainbow's disgust and everypony else's amusement.

"Did we all need to be here for this?" Muttered the pegasus, picking at a particularly saccharine bunny on her sweater as if trying to tear it off. "She's only been gone for one day. I don't see what the big deal is."

Twilight gave her a sideways glance. "Well, technically no, we don't all have to be here. But it just seemed like a nice thing to do. " She grinned a little guiltily. "And uh, I have some plans to go over and I was kind of hoping all six of us could be there this morning."

"Should have known. .." Rainbow mumbled,  folding her forelimbs across her chest as she hovered in the air.

Since Twilight had official become the Princess of Friendship (And also Magic) and moved into the castle created by the Harmony Box, several talks had taken place on what exactly that meant for the governance of both Ponyville and Equestria. After much discussion between the four Princesses, Mayor Mare and various other political officials, an agreement was reached; Ponyville and much of the surrounding area, including the Everfree Forest and Whitetail Wood, would become a realm under Twilight's direct jurisdiction. Much like the Crystal Empire, it was still considered a part of Equestria, yet governed separately. An Advisory Council was formed, consisting of the other five Elements of Harmony, the former Mayor (whose first name was revealed to actually be Primrose, to her unending embaressment) and other members of the previous Town Council such as Filthy Rich or Time Turner. For the most part all of them only needed to hold meetings for events or planning, so Twilight's friends could still manage their day jobs.

"Yes Rainbow, I know you find those sessions boring." Twilight smiled slyly as she spoke. "Though I suppose now I'll have to tell Spike that all those nachos he prepared as refreshments will have to go to waste..."

Rainbow's eyes widened, and her tongue almost lolled out of her mouth in delight. "Heh...you don't say?" She lowered herself to the ground, shuffling her wings against her back. "Did I ever mention how much I just love political meetings?" Especially when Spike is there. He's uh...a great contribution to the uh, debate and stuff." She nodded sagely to herself as the others rolled their eyes.

"Do these 'plans' happen' to cover Winter Wrap Up?" Inquired Applejack with her trademark drawl. "''Cos it might be mighty nice for everypony celebratin', but this extra long Winter isn't exactly pleasin' those with crops or orchards to run. And I 'aint just talkin' about me or mah family, either."

"Um...the animals are also overdue...to come out of hibernation..." Fluttershy chipped in, in her usual reserved manner.

Twilight nodded. "That is one of the things to discuss, yes. Don't worry guys, Winter is coming to a close."

"Awww, but we haven't had an enormous snowball fight yet!" Pinkie complained with a pout.

Twilight made to reply, but was cut short as the train grinded to a halt at the platform. After a few seconds, the door closet to them sprung open, and Rarity walked out.

"Rarity!" She shouted excitedly as the group walked over to greet her. "How was your...trip..." She trailed off as she took in her friend's appearance. Her mane was unkempt, her eyes sunken, and her face sullen. "Erm..."

"Holy horseapples Rarity, you look just plain awful this mornin'!" Blurted Applejack unthinkingly, before being smacked on the back of the head lightly by Rainbow Dash. "Ow! What in tar-" She tilted her head to see the pegasus's pointed glare. "Er...what ah meant to say is...are you doin' ok, sugarcube? You don't look so good."

Rarity's ear twitched. "I'm...I'm doing fine, thank you for asking. I'm just...I have a lot on my mind right now  darling." She sighed. "And Twilight, my trip was lovely. Almost perfect in fact!"

"Then why the looong face?" Pinkie asked, eyes wide.

Rarity's head hung low. "I...it's hard to explain. I just..." She tried to ignore her friends confused and concerned stares. "I...I think it would be best if I got back to work." She pushed past her still-stunned friends, levitating her luggage overhead. "Don't worry girls- I'll be alright once I've had time to get my focus back. Farewell!" She exclaimed with all the false cheeriness she could muster.

The five perplexed ponies watched her go, still in shock.

"What...just happened?" Asked Fluttershy, eyes wide.

"I've never seen Rarity so upset!" Pinkie's mane, normally poofy, was hanging slightly limp. "Not even including that time she ate 20 tubs of ice cream while sobbing!"

"And whatevers got her mane in a twist, she doesn' want us to know about it." Applejack mused, her eyes narrowed as she watched Rarity's form gradually shrink into the distance and out of sight.

"Well, I say we get to the bottom of it!" Rainbow yelled, and took off at speed- only to yelp as she was pulled back by a magenta aura. "Ow! Hey!" She scrunched up her face in annoyance. "What's the big deal, Twilight? I just wanna help Rarity!"

Twilight sighed, and released her magical hold on her friend, causing her to fall onto the station platform with an 'oof'. "I know  Rainbow, but I think this situation calls for a more...tactful approach."

"I can be tactful...when I want to..." Rainbow pouted.

"So um...is the meeting off, then?" Fluttershy ruffled her wings nervously. "It wouldn't be right to be there and leave Rarity alone when she's so upset, after all." She ducked her head. "Um, at least that's what I think..."

Twilight nodded, and then sighed. "Yes, this is more important right now. We're going to find out what's troubling Rarity, and help her if we can." She glared at Rainbow Dash. "And we are going to do so...tactfully."

Rainbow chuckled nervously. "Didnt you know? 'Tactful' is my middle name! Rainbow Tactful Dash!".

Applejack scratched her head in confusion. "Ah thought it was 'Danger'?"

"I thought it was 'Professionalism'" Offered Fluttershy.

"According to Ponyville's Register of Residents, it's 'Elizabeth'." Twilight corrected absently.

Applejack's laughter could be heard all the way to Canterlot.

"Yeah yeah, laugh it up AJ" The pegasus in question muttered in annoyance. Her eyes suddenly widened. "Hang on, where's Pinkie Pie?!"

"You can't just change the subject that easily, Eliza-"

"No seriously, where is she?" The group paused and looked around. Sure enough, Pinkie was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh goodness...she must have gone after Rarity and we didn't even notice." Fluttershy said worriedly

"Er...maybe she's gone to help...tactfully?" Twilight suggested with a nervous grin. The blank stares of the others was all the confirmation she needed. "Yeah, I didn't think so either..." She sighed. This was going to be a long day...

~~~