Confession

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5

Chapter 1

Today was the day.

Rarity sat at the dining room table, eyes wide in intense thought, as she drank chamomile tea by the gallon. She looked into the tea cup, examining the contents and swirling them around, before drinking it down, quickly filling it up once more.

Today was the day.

To say that Rarity was calm, collected, and ready for what's ahead, it would be a blatant lie. Rarity was so nervous, it was affecting her magic. She had made tea earlier in order to calm her nerves, but instead of trying to focus on the cup in her magical grasp, she could only be worried about how her friends would react to her confession.

Today, after all, was the anniversary of that awful event.

The day she had killed somepony defending herself.

Well, two ponies to be exact.

The cup tinkered against the saucer as she thought. Would they still accept her as her friend? Would they never talk to her again? Worse yet, would they get the police to arrest her for her crimes? She would willingly let herself be arrested, of course, but... Oh Tarturus, what if Twilight got the princesses involved? Would they banish her? Still holding the teacup, she magically reached for the teapot.

"Rarity?"

At the sound of another voice in the room, Rarity jumped and screamed. "I don't want to go to Zebrica!" She accidentally sent both the tea cup and the pot, with plenty of tea still in it, flying straight up in the air. The tea cup and pot smashed upon the ceiling, shattering into several pieces, some of which were now embedded in the ceiling, as they dripped tea.

"Rarity, relax! It's me, Sweetie."

Upon hearing the owner of the voice's name, Rarity relaxed, as she exhaled a long breath. "Oh, Sweetie Belle, it's only you," She turned to her sister. "I'm sorry dear, but you severely startled me."

"I'll say," Sweetie trotted over to the other chair and sat down. "You jumped, like, five feet in the air and shouted 'I don't wanna go to Zebrica."

Rarity blushed in embarrassment. "Did I truly say that? Oh dear, now I feel foolish." She put her forehoof to her head, and sighed.

"You looked really nervous, what's wrong?"

Rarity looked up to her sister, as she sat across her from the table. She briefly entertained the notion of confessing to her sister, as well as her friends, about that day, but quickly decided against it. She's much too young. She thought. Maybe when she's older.

"I'm sorry, Sweetie, but today is a very important day," She said. "Let's just say... a secret that I've had for a very long time is finally coming out, and I'm scared of what my friends will think."

"Well, what is it?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you, darling." She said, sadly. "At least, not today."

"Aw." Sweetie complained. "You can tell your friends, but you can't tell me?"

"Exactly right," Rarity said, smiling. "Maybe when you're much older."

Sweetie Belle pouted and crossed her forehooves. "That's not fair." She muttered.

"Life is rarely fair, darling. Especially to little fillies who pout whenever they don't get what they want."

Sweetie stopped pouting immediately, causing the both of them to giggle.

"Now then, would you like some tea?" Rarity tried to grab the teapot, but was surprised when it wasn't on the table. "Where'd the teapot go?"

Sweetie Belle looked up, and, after a moment, so did Rarity. As soon as she did, she felt a drop on her nose. "What the..?" Upon seeing the smashed cup and pot, she sighed in frustration.

"Oh drat, that was my favorite set!" She stated, before she realized something. "Wait a minute, it's been dripping this whole time..." She brought a hoof to her hair. Sure enough, she felt the warm liquid.

"Ahh! I have to take another shower, quick!" She raced into the hallway and up the stairs, but not before stopping for a moment. "Sweetie, deary, could you please clean that up?"

"Sure thing." She said, as she grabbed some paper towels from the kitchen.

"Thank you so much!"

After a thorough cleaning in the shower, and making sure the ceiling wasn't dripping with anymore delicious tea, Rarity was out in Ponyville, trotting towards Twilight's crystal castle.

Slowly trotting.

Very slowly.

Because she was slowly trotting, Rarity was able to take in the sights and sounds of Ponyville during the midday. Truth be told, Rarity never really paid attention to Ponyville's hustle and bustle, mainly because their barely was any. But seeing as how she was trying to stall for time, she decided to watch ponies go about their business. It was fairly fascinating to watch. Derpy Hooves delivering mail, Big Macintosh selling apples at the market, the weather team moving clouds in for the scheduled shower later today.

Oh look, there's Rainbow Dash. She thought, as she spied the sky blue pegasus pushing another cloud into place. Rarity watched, as Rainbow crossed her forehooves, obviously satisfied with the cloud's position. Rainbow passively looked around the town, and her eyes widened in recognition as they focused on Rarity. The fashionista waved hello, as Rainbow flew down to greet her.

"Hey Rares." Said Rainbow, as her hooves hit the dirt with a soft thud.

"Hello Rainbow," Rarity greeted back, as she looked around the sky. "Pardon me, but I thought we already had rain a few days ago. Why another shower so soon?"

"Eh, blame weather production for that," Rainbow shrugged her shoulders. "Some intern accidentally hit a lever on a precipitation machine, and now we have more rain clouds than we know what to do with," She paused for a moment. "Which reminds me, this isn't just a regular shower. It's a full blown storm."

Rarity raised her eyebrows in surprise. "A rainstorm? That seems a bit excessive."

"Exactly. The plan is to get rid of all the extra rain clouds in one go," She said, flapping her wings to take to the sky. "I gotta get back to work. Talk to ya later, okay?"

Before she got too far, Rarity called out to her. "Rainbow! When you're done, could you come by the Boutique around... 6 or 7? There's something I need to talk to you and the other girls about." She asked her. Rainbow furrowed her brow, but nodded. "Sure thing. See ya later Rares." She waved, going back to pushing the clouds into position.

There, it was now set in stone. Rainbow and the other girls were going to come by later, and hear her confess to an unsolved murder that she had committed when she was just a filly.

It was even going to happen during a dark and stormy night.

The universe must truly hate her.

Author's Note

inb4 "why aren't you working on Inner Rage?"

Because fuck you that's why.

Chapter 2

Rarity had wondered what she had done to anger the universe in such a way.

She was staring out of her window at the clouds above, which were beginning to rumble, their normally white color darkening into a gray. She had told the others to meet her at the Carousel Boutique before it began to rain, but the hours ticked by, and it looked like her completely normal story of confessing to murder was turning into some cliched Nightmare Night story.

She sighed, turning away from the window and trotting back into the kitchen. She looked up at the ceiling, noting the slight stain where her tea pot had crashed against it. She examined the stain itself, and noted how it almost seemed to look like some sort of amoeba, the curvatures of it reaching out in rounded appendages.

She was stalling. And she didn't even know what for.

She sighed again, this time in frustration. "Where are those girls? It's starting to rain!" She said, trotting back to the window. She thought she had heard the drips of rain landing against her window, but she had only imagined it, the clouds an even darker shade of gray, but not yet releasing their payloads. "Ugh, I'm going stir crazy." She said to herself.

Before she had even realized it, the front door had opened wide. Her eyes widened in surprise as she rushed to see who it was. "Girls! I-... Oh, hello Sweetie." She greeted, disappointed it wasn't any of her friends, but smiled at the sight of her.

"Hey Rarity." She said back, furrowing her brow a bit. "Expecting someone else?" She asked her, smirking a bit as she closed the door behind her.

"What gave you that idea?" She said sarcastically, trotting back to the window. "You didn't happen to see any of the girls while you were out?"

"Nope." She answered, trotting into the kitchen to grab something to eat. "Well, that's not entirely true. I saw Rainbow Dash flying around. Looked like she was pushing more clouds into place." She explained, grabbing an orange and peeling it.

Rarity cursed her bad luck, still staring out of the window for any sight of her friends. Sweetie trotted up next to her, eating her first slice. "Hey Rare... what's this secret you're so nervous to tell the others about?" She asked her, looking a bit concerned.

"I told you Sweetie" Rarity began, looking down to her sister with a firm gaze. "Not until you're older."

"I know..." Sweetie whined a bit, before adding. "But if it's about trust, I wouldn't tell anypony. Promise!" She said, hoping to convince her.

"It's not about trust, deary." She explained, her look softening with sisterly affection. "I know you, you'd never tell a soul. But... It's the kind of secret that changes how you view a pony. It would change how you would view me." She added, rubbing her sisters head. "And I don't want that to happen, not yet."

Sweetie furrowed her brow. 'A secret that would change how I look at Rarity? What does that even mean?' She thought to herself, before noticing something in the window. "Hey, there's Twilight!" She pointed out, the purple alicorn trotting down the way to her home.

"Oh...Oh no." Rarity said inadvertently, dreading this moment. She turned to her sister, clasping a hoof her shoulder. "Sweetie, could you please go to your room?" She asked her, a silent desperation in her eyes.

Sweetie looked up into those blue pools, not finding the strength to fight back. "Okay. Love you, Rarity." She said, giving her sister a hug. Rarity smiled warmly, hugging her back. "I love you too, Sweetie Belle." She said with genuine affection, letting her go.

She watched her sister trot up the stairs, shuddering slightly when she heard a knock on the door. "Okay Rarity. Breathing exercises." She said, breathing in through her nose and out through mouth, going to the door and opening it with her magic.

"Hey Rarity!" Greeted Twilight, a wide smile on her face as she hugged her dear friend.

"Hello, darling." Rarity replied, smiling all the same as she hugged her back, letting her go to let her into her home. "Now, you wouldn't happen to know when the other girls will be showing up, will you?" She asked her, taking a peak out of the window to see if the other girls happened to be close by, frowning slightly when she didn't see them.

"I'm afraid not." Answered Twilight, cocking her head a bit at Rarity's peaking. "Antsy for them to get here?" She asked her, a slight smile on her face.

"You have no idea." She said, turning back to her. "I asked for them to get here before it started raining. Now it doesn't seem like that will be possible." She added, looking down to the floor a bit.

"Don't worry, Rarity!" Said Twilight, trying to cheer her up a bit. "I'm sure they'll get here before you even know it!"

Rarity let out a nervous chuckle, the inner turmoil of them showing up vs. them not showing up was strong within her mind. "Well, while we wait for them to come by, would you like some tea?" She asked her, trying to appear less nervous.

"That would be great!" She said, happy to have a drink as she trotted to the table.

Rarity nodded, making her way into the kitchen and warming up the kettle, placing the ingredients inside. Once she was finished, she trotted back to the table, sitting across from Twilight. "So, how have things been?" She asked her, making idle chatter.

"Things have been great!" Said Twilight, happy to go into detail.

Twenty minutes had passed by as the two of them made idle chatter, talking about this and that. Every now and then however, Rarity would get distracted by that stain, hanging just above Twilight's head. She couldn't help but examine it as Twilight went on about something or other. She cocked her head to the side, furrowing her brow. It almost looked... familiar.

"Rarity?" Twilight called out, trying to grab her attention. She snapped back to attention, looking to Twilight with wide, attentive eyes. "I'm sorry dear, I was distracted for a moment." She explained herself, placing a hoof on her chin and sighing. "It looks like the girls won't be coming over after all."

"I'm sorry Rarity. I'm sure they would have come by if they were able too."

"No, no. I don't blame them at all." She said, flicking her hoof. "I... guess it just makes this a bit easier to talk about."

"What does?" Asked Twilight, looking somewhat confused.

"Well, why I asked you here in the first place." She said, nodding as if she was confirming it with herself. "I have a... confession to make to you. And the others if they were here. You see-" Before she could even begin, there was another knock on the door.

Rarity sighed in frustration, standing up. "I'm sorry dear, but it will have to wait." She quickly went over to the door, opening it wide. "I'm sorry, but- Oh, hello Rainbow!" She greeted, happy to see her friend, quickly letting her inside.

"Hey Rares." Rainbow replied. "Sorry I was so late, the last few clouds needed to be placed... eesh, looks like I'm not only one running late." She said, looking over to Twilight and seeing that she was the only one here.

"Yes, but I'm sure they'll arrive before it starts rai-" With the suddenness of a bullet, a lightning bolt had struck, illuminating the whole house as the resulting thunder soon rumbled.

"..." She looked over at Dash with a frown, who shrugged a bit guiltily. "Like I said, blame the intern."

Chapter 3

Rarity, Twilight and Rainbow were all sitting at the table, conversing with one another over their day. Well, Rainbow and Twilight were conversing in Rarity's presence, as she was too busy examining the stain on the ceiling.

It loomed over everyone's heads like some kind of silent death knell, the moment that anyone else but Rarity noticing it marking the end of any pleasantness that once was. It also didn't help that the shape of it seemed familiar, but she couldn't place it. The basic rounded shape, the jaggedness of certain edges. It almost looked like...

"Rare?" Rainbow had gotten her attention, looking at her with a raised eyebrow. "You a million miles away over there?" She asked her, a smirk on her face.

Rarity blushed at the accusation, but smiled to hide any embarrassment. "Sorry dear, but I've been so distracted today." She made an excuse, waving her hoof.

"Yeah, I noticed the stain on the roof too." She said, chuckling slightly. Twilight furrowed her brow, looking up and widening her eyes in surprise. "Hey, there is a stain on the ceiling!" She said, looking back down to Rarity, silently waiting for an explanation.

Rarity sighed, a deeper sigh than she had realized. "It... it's a long story, girls." She said, hoping that would be enough to dissuade them for the moment. Rainbow shrugged, popping a few joints in her neck.

"Whatevs. So, what did you invite us over for, anyway?" Asked Rainbow, curious about this meeting in the first place. Twilight smiled patiently, waiting for her to continue what she started before Rainbow had arrived.

"Aah, yes. That." She began, a slight sadness in her tone of voice. "Well, today is the anniversary of something. Something that I had done a very long time ago, when I was just a filly. Something... that I deeply regret, every single day of my life."

Rarity and Twilight both watched her with interest, Twilight taking the moment to assure her friend. "Rarity, you can trust us." She said, placing her hoof on Rarity's in a show of friendship. "Whatever you did, we're here for you." Rarity looked over at Rainbow, who was smiling in confidence, relaying the same message.

Rarity nodded, her voice shaking but continuing on. "Thank you, dear. Well, it all starts during my first day of school..."

Rarity was happy. Rarity was beaming. Rarity was the most carefree filly in the world!

That was, until she had met those three.

Dug, Kicker, and Annie.

They had made her school life a living hell. Even with her good friend Cheerilee at her side, there was nothing that the three of them had done to her that didn't make her cringe at the memory.

However, it was Annie that was the worst, in terms of verbal abuse. Boys know where to hit to cause the most damage. Girls know what to say.

One day, Rarity had had enough of her abuse. During recess, when Dug and Kicker were either home sick or during one of their numerous suspensions, Rarity didn't remember which, she had gotten up, trotted her way over to her, just out of her line of sight, and cold cocked her across the jaw.

Rarity had to stop her story for a moment, as Rainbow Dash was laughing too hard to focus on it.

"You? Just going up to another filly and punching her!?" Rainbow tried to confirm what she had heard through fits of laughter. Twilight herself couldn't stop from letting out a giggle or two, even though she desperately tried too.

Rarity cleared her throat, nodding. "Yes, that's correct Rainbow. I went up to Annie and knocked her out like a light."

It was a solid minute before Rainbow began to calm down, almost falling out of her chair as she took deep breaths. The threat of bursting into another fit was prevalent before she had relaxed. "Phew... I almost wouldn't believe it if you didn't sound so serious about it earlier." She said, smiling warmly.

Twilight lowered her cup of tea that she was using to hide her giggle fits. "It's okay Rarity. We all lose our temper." She said, blushing at the memory of the time she had gotten so angry. "I remember when my brother had stolen Smarty Pants away from me in some sort of stupid game. I got so mad at him that I called him a 'big plothead'" She explained, blushing and taking a sip of tea. "We both got in trouble that day." She said, giggling.

"Jeez, that's the worst you've done?" Rainbow asked her, smirking. "I did what Rarity had done. Anyone give me grief 'POW' right in the kisser!" She said, mimicking the motion of punching someone. "I think that's why only boys ever tried to bully me."

Rarity smiled, before shaking her head slightly. "That's all well and good, but that's not the thing that I regret. Mainly because I never regretted it." She said with a smirk, taking a drink of her own tea. "Yes, I had gotten a scolding from the principal, a scolding from my parents, and a suspension to wrap things up. But I never regretted it for a moment. After she was back in school, she never said another word to me, or anything hurtful to any other student." She said, before cocking her head slightly. "I wonder where she is now..."

Somewhere, in a graveyard not too far from Ponyville, there was a mare, dressed in black. She was slowly trotting through the rows of gravestones, making her way to the graves of two dear friends that she had made, when she was just a filly.

"Hey Dug. Hey Kicker." She greeted, a melancholy smile on her face.

She stood there silently for a few moments, nothing needed to be said. If no one else were going to visit them, she would make the effort, no matter the weather.

"Goodbye Dug. Goodbye Kicker." She said, quickly making her way out of the graveyard.

Rarity shrugged, before sitting up straight. "So, like I said, that's not the end of the story." She said, but before she could continue on, there was a knock on the door.

"Oh, could that be the rest of the girls?" She wondered, quickly standing up and trotting towards the door, opening it with her magic. Her smile widened when her suspicions were proven correct. "Girls! Lovely to see you here at last!" She greeted, smiling widely.

"Hey Rarity!" Greeted Pinkie, smiling as she squeezed Rarity in a tight hug. "Sorry I was so late, we had this huge order that needed to be done today and we all worked our butts off making sure it was finished!" Pinkie Pie explained, hopping in the room. Applejack followed her, Applebloom on her back. "Hey Rare. A few sheep had wandered off durin' the storm, so we had to wrangle em' down before they went and hurt themselves." Applejack explained, before motioning up to her little sister, who had hopped off. "And Applebloom wanted to talk to her friends about something or other, so she came along" She said, trotting inside.

Fluttershy was the last one in, who was followed closely by Scootaloo. "Um, I was making sure all my little animal friends were nice and safe before I left." She explained shortly, giving Rarity a soft hug of her own. "I'm sorry if I made you wait too long..."

Rarity was internally screaming, but made no sign of any distress as she smiled, nodding with their stories. With a quick explanation that Sweetie Belle was up in her room, watching the two of them trot up the stairs, she sighed as she made her way back to the table.

Just as she closed the door however, there was another lightning strike. This time, it seemed to hit something important, as all of the power in the boutique suddenly went out, plunging the store into darkness.

A couple girls let out a shriek, Fluttershy's being the softest as she hid under the table. "Don't worry girls, I have candles!" Rarity stated, quickly making her way into the kitchen to grab them. Placing one on the table, she lit the wick, illuminating the faces of everyone present, save for Fluttershy.

She scowled at Rainbow Dash again.

"Listen, if it makes you feel any better, he was fired on the spot."

Author's Note

inb4 "Why no Annie murder?"

Listen, I don't think she deserved murder. Dug and Kicker absolutely did, but Annie was just a bitch. A punch in the face was what she needed.

Chapter 4

If there was one thing that Rarity hated about this exact moment, it was that blasted stain on the ceiling.

Once candles had been properly placed throughout her home, Rarity and the other girls decided to take the conversation to the living room. They had relaxed once they got used to the darkness, laying on their sides as they chatted amongst themselves.

Rarity however was the only one who wasn't talking, looking up at the stain. She had remembered why the stain looked so familiar.

Under this lighting, it looked like a blood splatter.

"Rarity?" Surprisingly, it was Fluttershy who had spoken up, her soft voice breaking her out of her trance. "Are you okay? You look really... Sad."

Upon this revelation, the other girls looking over at her with concern. 'Well... No use trying to make some excuse now' Rarity thought to herself, as she cleared her throat.

"Girls... I'm sure you're all very curious as to why I asked you to be here today." She began, sitting up. "As I told Rainbow and Twilight before you got here, today is the day that I had done something so... horrible, that I wouldn't blame any of you if you were too never associate with me again."

The girls' looks of concern seemed to only deepen, as Rarity continued on.

"When I was a filly..."

Scootaloo had slumped against the ground, wailing out in boredom. "I'm bored!" She yelled out.

"Me too." Agreed Sweetie Belle, laying next to her.

"Me three." Apple Bloom said, also laying down next to them.

They had heard the girls talking amongst each other down stairs, before things had gotten eerily quiet.

"Whaddya think they're talking about?" Asked Apple Bloom, furrowing her brow as she tried to listen.

"How should I know?" Answered Scootaloo, before suddenly getting a bright idea. "Hey, let's go find out!" She said, hopping up onto all four hooves and making for the door.

"Wait!" Sweetie called out, stopping her dead in her tracks. "Rarity told me to stay in my room..."

"Fine, then don't come." Offered Scootaloo, smirking as she used reverse psychology on her. "I'm sure they might be talking about some lost, ancient treasure and where to find it. Buuut if you're sister said to stay..."

Apple Bloom scowled at her for that. "Scootaloo, that's just plum stupid." She said, not one to mince words. "If they was talkin about some treasure, I'm sure they would've found a better time to talk about it. And if they really needed treasure, they'd probably just ask Rarity for some of her gems."

Sweetie Belle spoke up at that. "Rarity's gems are mostly worthless. That's why she uses them in her clothes." She pointed out. "The only gems actually worth any money would be diamonds, and she doesn't have any of those."

"Well, if you have any ideas on what they could be talking about, I'm all ears." Scootaloo said, still intent on going downstairs to eavesdrop.

Sweetie bit her lip, before sighing. "Rarity said that... she was confessing to her friends about some really big secret."

"See!? It could be where she keeps all her diamonds!" She stated, opening the door. "And when I get the treasure first, I'll be keeping them all to myself!"

"Hey, that's mean!" Apple Bloom said, chasing after her.

Sweetie Belle furrowed her brow, debating whether or not to join them in spying. Her own curiosity won out, as she ran out the door. "Hey, wait up!"

After repeating the story of punching Annie in the face (And waiting for the giggle fits between Rainbow and Applejack to die down), Rarity began. "Hitting Annie may have ended her abuse towards me, but it only made things worse once Dug and Kicker had gotten wind of it. They stepped up their efforts to torment me, saying such... Hurtful things. Not to mention the physical things they would do to me. I dread to say it, but they were smart, never doing enough damage to draw blood, or even bruise. Any time they were caught and punished, they would just make sure to play it safer next time."

The girls had listened to her story with an increasing amount of surprise and sadness, especially from Rainbow Dash, remembering her time as a filly and the bullying she had suffered from Hoops, Dumb-Bell, and Score.

"It had gotten to the point where I had dreaded going to school, the very thought of it putting in a depressed slump." Tears were forming in her eyes as she continued. "...I had even wanted to kill myself."

That had thrown Rainbow for a loop, looking to Rarity with wide eyes. As bad as those three meatheads were, they were never that horrible.

It was too much for Fluttershy to bear, suddenly getting up and nearly tackling her friend in a tight hug, tears streaming down her face. "I'm sorry!" She repeated over and over, hugging her friend like she was afraid of letting her go.

"F-Fluttershy..." Rarity, began giggling a bit but crying as well, hugging her just as close. "What are you apologizing for?" She said, rubbing her back as they cried together.

The other girls had all joined in the hug, crying but smiling warmly as they comforted her friend.

The three fillies had used the darkness to their advantage, silently watching over the girls from the stairwell.

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo looked to each other guiltily. "I-I don't think this is about treasure, Scoot." Said the yellow filly.

Scootaloo said nothing, as they both glanced over at Sweetie Belle. She was on the verge of crying, tears welling up in her eyes as she desperately wanted to join the group hug, telling her that she loved her.

Apple Bloom rubbed the back of her head, already regretting this.

Once they had all calmed down, Rarity informed them that she wasn't done with the story. They had all gone back to laying on the ground, watching Rarity continue.

"Anyway... Once it was clear that they were going to make my life a living hell, I had snuck away after school, just to be anywhere but there. I found this little creek by the Everfree forest. It was a beautiful little area, absolutely serene. It was there I would vent out all of my hate and anger on a nearby tree. Hitting it, kicking it, throwing rocks at it. That's when I discovered I was really good at throwing rocks."

Rainbow didn't know if the others could sense it, but she didn't like where this was going.

"I would throw those rocks with such power and precision that they'd cut large gashes into the tree. I was... It made school somewhat bearable to endure, over the months." She said, a small smile on her face as she thought back on the memories... before biting her lip. "Then, one day... They had followed me there."

"Please, I'm sorry!" She yelled out, tears streaming down her face as Dug and Kicker slowly approached her.

"I bet it felt good, didn't it?" Asked Kicker, wearing a sick smile. "To hit her like that?"

Rarity furrowed her brow, thinking back to the moment. She had to admit, she loved the feeling she had over her, looking down at her as she just laid there on the ground. For a brief moment, Rarity was scared that she might have killed her, but not as scared as she should have been.

She cut back to the two bullies, getting closer to her. She backed up against the tree that had so many gashes in the bark. "No, I hated it!" She lied, hoping that maybe they'd see reason. "I-I wish I could take it back!"

"Don't you lie to me, you rat!" Kicker retorted, as the both of them surrounded her making sure she couldn't get away.

"I-I'm not lying!" She pleaded, shutting her eyes and trying to wake up from this nightmare. "Just leave me alone, please..."

"You hurt our friend, you bucking rat!" Dug screamed, getting ready to pounce on her. "I'm gonna beat your face in!"

"No! PLEASE!" She desperately looked around for anything she could use to defend herself, noticing the rock that she liked to throw. She picked it up with her magic.

Dug leapt at her, and Rarity swung the rock as hard as she could against his head. He fell over without a sound, not even so much as a whisper as he landed on the grass with a thud.

Time seemed to slow down to a crawl, as both Rarity and Kicker looked over at Dug's motionless body. "...Dug? ...Buddy?" Kicker called out to him, scared at how quiet he was being.

Rarity was breathing slowly and methodically, unsure that what she just did was even real. She felt... she didn't know what she was feeling at the moment, as she watched Kicker approach Dug's body, shakily lowering his head to his barrel to hear a heartbeat.

"...No." Kicker suddenly said, sitting back up. "Dug, no, you can't be dead!"

'Dead? Dug was dead..?' Rarity thought to herself, looking at the slowly forming pool of blood, leaking out of the wound on the side of his head. Rarity suddenly figured out what she was feeling. The need to puke. And that she did, turning her head to the side and hurling.

"...YOU!" Kicker suddenly called out, tears falling from his eyes as he turned to Rarity, who was wiping the sick from her lips. "YOU KILLED DUG, YOU RAT!"

Rarity had just enough sense to dodge him as he leapt towards her, rolling to the side towards the creek. "Kicker, I didn't mean too!" She pleaded, the fact that she had killed him was threatening to make her throw up again.

Kicker was too far gone in sorrow and rage to see reason, charging at her again. Rarity picked up the rock, repeating the same motion, this time with less power to try and not kill him. However, it seemed fate had other ideas, as she was successful in only knocking him unconscious, but the speed and power behind his run hastened his downfall, as he slid right into the river, sinking to the bottom.

Rarity hung her head in shame, having fully admitted her secret sin to her dearest friends.

"Rarity... you..?" Twilight couldn't even bring herself to finish her sentence.

Rarity couldn't look at her, as she sighed. "Yes, Twilight. When I was 8, when I was trying to defend myself... I had killed two of my classmates."

It was at this moment that a lightning strike illuminated the whole house.

Chapter 5

Time seemed to be at a standstill for Rarity, as her friends were absorbing what she had just confessed to them. The air was thick with tension, Rarity begging for someone, anyone, to say something.

"...I forgive you."

Rarity had barely heard the words, but it was unmistakable who spoke them, her eyes wide with fear as she snapped her head towards the direction it came from.

"S-Sweetie, I thought I-!" Rarity began, but was interrupted when she felt her small hooves wrap around her barrel, hugging her tightly as if she was a life preserver.

"I forgive you, Rarity." Sweetie repeated, her hug staying true as she spoke them. "Those ponies... they sounded like horrible people. I forgive y-you." She said, her breath hitching a bit as she was getting close to sobbing.

Rarity couldn't believe what she just heard. Her older sister had just confessed to murder, and she just.. forgives her, right then and there?

Rarity bit her lip, suddenly wrapping her hooves around her little sister and hugging her tightly. "Sweetie Belle... I-I didn't want you to hear this.

Sweetie Belle continued to hug her tightly, her grip not wavering as she pulled away slightly, looking up to her sister. "I know, Rarity. B-But I couldn't help myself." She told her, her voice wavering a bit. "I... I love you, no matter what."

At that, Rarity broke down, tears falling from her eyes as she hugged her sister tighter. Not a sob was heard between them, but tears were flowing between the both of them. After a moment, Rarity felt another pair of hooves wrap around her, surprising her.

"I forgive you too, Rarity." It was Twilight, who had a small smile on her face. Rarity's eyes widened, looking her over like she was a ghost.

"You were defending yourself from someone about to attack you. For all you knew, a filly, scared, all alone... he was about to kill you." She said, her logical mind explaining it so simply. "Who knows what they would have done to you, if you didn't fight back."

Before Rarity could even process it, another pair of hooves was around her. "I forgive ya too, sugarcube." Applejack said, that accent of hers unmistakable. "We Apple's have a sayin'. Back when an Equestrian police force was more of a fancy idea, and frontier justice was the law of the land. A rotten apple's gotta be thrown away." She said simply.

"A-Applejack." She said with a gasp, a bit shocked at what she said

"I know, it ain't exactly kosher." She said, looking a bit with guilt. "But it's just what it was back then. An' while I don't know if they could'a turned out better once they grew up, I ain't really feelin' like they didn't deserve it, for what they did to you." She said, as her hug got tighter around Rarity. "So yeah, I forgive ya."

Another moment, and another pair of hooves were around here. "I-I forgive you too." It was Fluttershy, and while her hug wasn't the tightest of them, Rarity felt it's genuineness all the same.

"F-Fluttershy, you..." She tried, her voice hitching a bit, as the pegasus bit her lip. "I'm... shocked... appalled, even." She told her, causing Rarity to wince slightly. "...But, if I were backed into a corner, with no way out, much like you were..." She trailed off, not wanting to say more on that line of thought. "A-Anyway, you're my friend, Rarity. No matter what. So, while we'll have to talk about this a bit more later... yes, I do forgive you." She told her, smiling warmly as she continued to hug her.

"Same." Pinkie spoke up, as she joined in the group hug, wrapping her hooves around the seamstress. "I forgive you too." She clarified, her voice not as high pitched, but still bubbly with energy. "I don't have a fancy speech as to why though. I just do, so accept it, will ya?" She said simply, a small giggle escaping her lips.

Rarity couldn't believe it. She had just told her friends and her sister about an unspeakable crime she committed, and yet, they all had forgiven her, as if it was just... a simple mistake. She couldn't be happier, smiling a bit as she took in the warmth of the hug.

Before realizing that Rainbow Dash was missing.

"I..." Rainbow began, as Rarity noticed the look of confliction on her face, looking away from the group hug and towards the front door. "...I need a minute to think about it." With that, she suddenly took off, Rarity hearing the door opening and closing.

Rarity bit her lip with fear, the one thing she hoped her friends wouldn't do after tonight, she just witnessed Rainbow do.
She had always imagined that, once she told her secret, her friends would have never forgiven her or wanted to see her again. But she would have accepted it, at least that way, the weight of her terrible deed would be relieved by some margin. And that was the best possible scenario her mind would come up with. Right now, what was happening had blown away whatever "best possible scenario" she had imagined out of the water.

But Rainbow Dash knew, and she had neither forgiven her, nor cut her out of her life, simply walking out of the house, and into the rainy night.

That was what scared Rarity the most. Not that Rainbow knew.

But that she didn't have an answer for her.

And with that, as if fate acknowledged Rainbow's exit from the house, the lights would suddenly come on, casting away the darkness.

"...Don't worry, Rarity." Twilight said, trying to reassure her. "I'm sure she'll..." She said, but couldn't finish the sentence, biting her lip.

"I-It's alright, Twilight." Rarity said, putting on a brave face. "Rainbow will talk to me when she's ready. Whatever her decision will be... it will be her decision." She said, before turning to the girls. "Now, you wouldn't mind hugging me a little longer, would you? I feel like I might start crying again at a moments notice."

The girls didn't need any further reason too, their hugs getting tighter around her body.

Rarity smiled a bit, as she found herself glancing up at the tea stain on the ceiling.

It was a tea stain. And nothing more.

Author's Note

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