It was raining outside. Rarity hated the rain. It would ruin her coat and mane if she were out in it for only a few seconds. The humidity and precipitation was harsh on her sensitive skin as well. No, the fashionista stayed inside, sipping hot tea and watching the rainfall.
Sure, she hated being out in the rain but she loved watching it. It was so simple. The water falls from the sky in random patterns and hits the ground to be destroyed and its brief life is ended. Rarity thought of it as a beautiful tragedy.
She brought the teacup to her lips and just as the hot liquid danced on her muzzle a thud was heard at her door. This startled the alabaster unicorn and she set her cup down. Her brow furrowed in curiosity over what hit her door. It could be a branch, but the thud was too dull for that. Rarity curiously made her way over to her door and lit her horn and opened it.
On the other side and caked in mud was the prismatic mane of a blue pegasus sprawled out on her welcome mat. Rarity raised an eyebrow; it was unmistakably her friend, Rainbow Dash.
“Rainbow dear, what brings you here?” Rarity asked as the pegasus got to her hooves. Her mane was disheveled, more so than usual. Twigs and mud were splotched over her body.
“Sorry Rares had a washout at home. You know how it is, sometimes the low pressure system forces the clouds to dissipate…” She trailed off as she saw a look of slight confusion cross the unicorn’s face. “Heh, well anyway I was trying to get to the Ponyville Inn for the night and the wind and rain picked up I kinda lost control. I’m sorry to bother you.” She stretched her wings out to take flight again. Rarity noticed a few feathers disheveled from her collision with her front porch.
“Rainbow Dash, your feathers…” She pointed out. Rainbow Dash looked at her wings and sure enough some of her feathers had been construed and not flight-ready without proper preening. The pegasus frowned, knowing that it would be awhile for her to fix her wings before flying any time soon.
“Come inside.” Rarity urged as the wind and rain picked up. For once she didn’t care about how her mane looked in the humidity of the air. She ushered the pegasus inside and shut the door. Rainbow Dash, having been scolded many a time, stayed on the mat by the door so as to not drag mud into the immaculate home.
“Rainbow did you say your house fell apart?” Rarity asked as she turned into her closet and shuffled around for something. Rainbow sheepishly looked away from Rarity’s flank sticking out of the closet.
“Yeah, it happens every so often. I just rebuild it after the storm passes.” Rainbow explained, forcing the blush from her cheeks as Rarity came out of the closet.
“What about your things?” Rarity asked as she brought over a towel for Rainbow to clean up. “Like personal possessions?”
“Oh that, well I just have a few Wonderbolt’s posters I keep at Fluttershy’s and my Daring Do collection is kept safe at the library.” Rainbow explained as she rubbed the towel over her mane and body.
“What about pictures, memorabilia?” Rarity was curious now. Being ever the gossip-pony she was intrigued.
“Don’t got any.” Rainbow responded as if she was talking about the weather. Rarity raised a fine-tuned eyebrow at that. “Hey, is it alright if I stay here until the storm dies down?” Rainbow Dash quickly changed the subject as she got the mud off of her hooves.
“Why of course! What kind of element of generosity would I be if I didn’t open my home to a friend in need?” Rarity gawked at Rainbow even asking such a question.
“I knew I could count on you Rares.” Rainbow smiled. “Good thing I crashed onto your porch.” She winked. Immediately Rarity felt a stinging heat rush to her cheeks. Rainbow didn’t notice and passed her and into the kitchen where she sniffed a bit. “What’s that smell?”
Rarity regained her composure and followed Rainbow Dash to the kitchen. “It’s tea. Care to try some?” Rarity asked, levitating over her kettle. Rainbow shook her head.
“Naw, it’s too…ladylike for me.” Rainbow chuckled at her own self-deprecating remark, this prompted Rarity to giggle a bit too.
“Well pull up a chair. I was just watching the rain.” Rarity smiled and Rainbow Dash sat in the chair next to hers that faced the window.
“Watching the rain? Why?” Rainbow Dash asked her eyes focused on the falling rain.
“I don’t know actually. I find it beautiful.” Rarity smiled. “Ever since we switched cutie marks awhile ago I found myself entranced by the rain.” She also looked outside.
“It is pretty cool.” Rainbow relented, shrugging her shoulders. “I guess I don’t see it, I make it all the time and it kinda becomes second nature.”
“I understand. Sometimes I make a dress and I think it is not up to par with my standards. Then I display it and ponies buy it for bits whereas I didn’t think it was all too special.” Rarity added, putting the cup of tea to her lips.
“I guess it’s seeing the little things.” Rainbow Dash muttered almost inaudibly but just enough, however, for Rarity to pick it up.
“Rainbow Dash, why don’t you have any photos or nostalgic things?” Rarity asked the question that was burning in her mind since she had brought it up. Rainbow bit her lip, obviously uncomfortable with the question.
“I don’t like to live in the past is all.” Rainbow Dash replied, her eyes never faltering from her gaze outside. However, as Rarity noted upon closer inspection, they seemed distant.
“But what about memories? Surely a photo album or treasured possession is a good thing.” Rarity nudged the conversation as her curiosity peeked. Rainbow’s jaw set.
“I find them to be too painful.” Rainbow let it slip, she immediately regretted it and clenched her jaw tighter. She knew Rarity wouldn’t let her leave even though she wanted to fly so far out of here as fast as she could. Now Rarity’s curiosity was at an all-time high. While the pristine pony connected fairly easily with Twilight and Fluttershy and more recently with Applejack, and no pony understood Pinkie Pie, she always found Rainbow Dash to be an enigma. A puzzle that no pony had ever tried to solve. Maybe Fluttershy held the cheat sheet but she kept it under lock and key.
“I understand if you don’t want to talk about it.” Rarity said what Rainbow Dash was hoping to hear, and Rarity knew that. It was a tactic she used quite often to bleed ponies of unwanted information. Act coy and pretend it’s not an issue and usually the pony will spill their guts.
“It’s not that…” Rainbow stated, her magenta eyes finally turning to meet Rarity’s deep blue ones. “I just don’t have any pony to talk to.” Rarity was awestruck.
“Pardon?”
“Well, Twilight and I are pretty cool but she’d go all “psycho-analysistical” on me.” Rainbow twirled a hoof by her head to signal “crazy”. “Applejack would probably laugh or shrug it off, Pinkie Pie would try to throw an “I’m sorry” party. Fluttershy would probably blame herself even though she had nothing to do with it. And you…” Rainbow stopped her tirade there.
“Me?” Rarity asked.
“You wouldn’t understand.” Rainbow Dash turned her head away once more. “Forget I said anything.” She muttered.
“You know I simply cannot do that.” Rarity said. “Try me. I’ll listen.” Rainbow slowly raised her head and faced the unicorn.
“Well, it’s just that, I’m alone.” Her voice cracked as it sometimes does. Rarity raised an eyebrow at the statement. “I don’t mean like “no friends poor me” type of thing. I mean…” Rainbow was searching for words. “Ok look, Twilight has Princess Celestia, Spike, her brother and her parents right?” Rarity nodded her understanding. “Applejack has Granny, Applebloom, Big Mac and the whole Apple family at her beck and call.” Again, Rarity nodded, starting to see where this is heading. “Pinkie Pie has the Cake family and her own if need be, Fluttershy has her animals, you have Sweetie Belle and your parents, me? I have nothing.” Rainbow Dash sighed in defeat.
“What about us? The weather team? Scootaloo?” Rarity offered.
“Scootaloo? I can’t burden the poor filly with this kind of stuff. She has her own problems. The weather team is just my job. And you all wouldn’t understand, it’s all harmony for you.” Outside the storm picked up, lightning lit the sky momentarily.
“Care to elaborate?” Rarity brought the teacup to her lips and let the warm aroma waft into her nose before taking a sip. Rainbow Dash sighed in exasperation.
“I don’t know what to elaborate on.” Rainbow Dash responded. Rarity needed to get to the bottom of this. She’d be damned to Tartarus if she didn’t.
“Well, you said we all have either other family or friends, what about your family? Surely they are proud…” Rarity was cut off by a snort from the pegasus.
“I wish.” She spat bitterly. Rarity was taken aback by Rainbow’s words. Rarity’s silence beckoned for Rainbow Dash to continue. “Look. Some of us don’t live a pampered life Rarity.” She went on the offensive suddenly that threw Rarity through a loop.
“I think it best not to judge a pony by what they appear to be.” Rarity stated before putting the cup to her lips again, but this time did not drink.
“I know.” Rainbow hung her head. “Everything I do, every little thing is to impress him.” She wasn’t talking to Rarity as much as she was explaining things to herself. “Every stunt I pull, every cloud I bust is to show him I am somepony.” Rarity could guess whom the “him” was Rainbow talked about as she had never mentioned her family in front of her friends. Rarity’s silence prompted the pegasus yet again. This time the pegasus faced her, looking into her eyes with a pain that Rarity could feel in her own chest. “I mean, what am I supposed to do? Become like Twilight and grow a horn? I can’t do that! I’m not smart.”
“But Rainbow, you are…” Rarity tried to reaffirm but Rainbow snorted again.
“Tell that to him. I’m sure he’d believe you.” Rainbow spat sarcastically. The tone of her voice stung Rarity and it hurt physically.
“Well, what about your mother surely she…” Yet again Rainbow Dash cut off Rarity. This time it was with a taught laugh.
“She’s dead. Been dead for awhile.” Rainbow Dash explained, her gaze drifting to the window again.
“Oh Rainbow I’m sorry I didn’t know.” Rarity held a hoof out to put on the pegasus’ shoulder, in which the latter immediately shrugged off.
“It was a long time ago.” She stated, her voice hallow. She shook her head.
“Like I said, you wouldn’t understand.” She stood and started walking towards the front door. She’d walk to the inn if she had to.
“I understand more than you think.” Rarity called from her seat in the kitchen. This prompted Rainbow Dash to stop in her tracks and turn to face the unicorn. Rarity stared into her teacup, the tea starting to get cold. “While not exactly the same. My life isn’t as…pampered as you might say.” Rarity set the cup down and stood as well, walking over to the pegasus. Rainbow’s eyes held a glint of curiosity. “Growing up we had very little. My parents are working ponies don’t get me wrong. They’re good ponies, they just didn’t get a grip on money.” She explained. “They often spent bits they didn’t have. Since I was little we were in debt. They’d go on lavish trips leaving me to watch Sweetie Belle.” Rainbow was silent, letting Rarity speak. “Every month I send them a check to help pay off the debt but I know they spend it on more things they don’t need.” She sighs.
“And Sweetie Belle?” Rainbow’s voice was soft.
Rarity shook her head. “She doesn’t know.” She replied and Rainbow Dash felt her heart sink to her stomach.
“I’m sorry Rarity, I didn’t know…” She hung her head and let her ears fall flat, she felt terrible for accusing her friend of not understanding.
“That is quite alright Rainbow.” Rarity nuzzled Rainbow Dash in what she would classify as a vague attempt to get closer to the pegasus on an emotionally intimate level. To Rarity’s surprise and joy Rainbow Dash nuzzled her back.
By now the storm clouds had parted and the sun began to shine through. This (as any weather pegasus would tell you) was prime condition for a rainbow to appear. And appear one did in the sky. The two mares, however, didn’t notice it.
Author's Note
I don't know what this is. It took me longer to do the cover art than to write this.
