The Diamond in the Stars

Chapters

2. Sanctuary
3. The Nature and Philosophy of Dance
4. Anger Management
5. My Best Friend's Mare
7. Spontaneous Combustion
8. Absolutely Frazzled, Darling
9. AgCNO
10. A Conflict of Interests
11. Sins of the Mother
12. Happily Ever After, For Now
1. Standing in the Rain
6. Denial Isn't Just a River in Neighgypt

2. Sanctuary

I sat next to Twilight’s fire, a blanket draped over me as I stared at the steaming glass of hot cocoa Twilight had prepared for me. “Honestly, dear, you didn’t have to go through all this trouble on my account. I’m fine,” I said, shivering and inching closer to the fire.

“Rarity, you showed up at my doorstep at one in the morning, completely soaked, and barely coherent,” Twilight said, taking a seat opposite me. “Now, tell me what’s wrong.”

I sighed and took a deep breath. “It’s nothing, really, I just… I’m terribly sorry for waking you.”

She kept her eyes locked on me. “You didn’t, actually; I was reading through the proof copy of Introduction to Magical Theory, Eighth Edition, and looking for any errors.” She smiled for a second. “They had the chapter on Starswirl’s Fifth Law of Magic before his Sixth Law of Magic. Can you believe it?”

“Actually, Twilight, I’m not sure what the problem with that is. It seems like six should logically follow five,” I said, trying to push the conversation away from my faux pas.

“I suppose somepony might think that, but really, when you’re learning the rules, the sixth law informs the fifth law. Without an understanding of magical entropy, then the importance of magic absorption is completely lost on the introductory student, and…” She trailed off and frowned, her eyes snapping back to me. “Wait! That’s not important – what am I saying? Of course it is – but it’s not the most important thing right now. So tell me, what’s going on?” Clever. Of course I couldn’t distract her for long. Not right now, at least. Not when I was still soaking-wet and shivering in her library.

“It’s silly, really,” I said, trying to give her a smile. “Just one of my overreactions. I saw Applejack and Rainbow Dash together, and suddenly, I couldn’t stand another second at the Boutique.”

“Uh-huh,” Twilight said, nodding. “So… if I were to send you back to the Boutique right now, you wouldn’t have a problem?”

Of course, I wouldn’t. It was just a house. A house filled with memories of my sister and my former lover. Why would I have a problem going back there? “I… I would prefer not to,” I said. Treacherous tongue. Was it that hard to tell a sweet lie for Twilight’s peace of mind? “But you really needn’t concern yourself, Twilight. Given time, I’ll be fine.”

“I’ve been giving you time,” Twilight said, “and on a scale of one to ten, how fine are things now? Look, I get that it takes time to recover, but… maybe locking yourself up in the Boutique and focusing on nothing but work isn’t the best way of coping? I’m not saying you need to act like everything’s fine, but... I’m here for you, so... please, tell me what happened.”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Honestly, it was such a small thing…”

♦♦♦

And so I recounted everything that’d happened since I spoke with Twilight that morning. “It’s really funny,” I said with a small laugh. “I always imagined that – I mean, I’m…” The word “happy” caught in my throat. “...Pleased for Applejack and Rainbow Dash, of course. I just… I suppose I’d assumed the two of us would go back to dating once that silly two-year moratorium ended. I never thought she’d actually take my advice and find somepony else. Still, if they’re both content together, I wholeheartedly approve.”

“So… excuse me for asking, but why did you break up, exactly? I thought the constant fights had something to do with it, but at the same time, none of us really knew what happened. One day you were together, and the next you weren’t, and there wasn’t some big huge fight to end things like we were expecting. Pinkie and I had even planned out crisis-management teams for when you both did break up. Fluttershy and I would take care of you, while Pinkie and Rainbow Dash would work on Applejack. Of course, I’m happy it didn’t end in some huge fight, but… I’ve just always been curious, and now it sounds like you didn’t want to break up, but Applejack made it sound like it was your idea.” Twilight gave me a tiny smile and blushed. “Sorry, I shouldn’t pry.”

“It’s fine,” I said, taking a sip of my cocoa. It was still hot even after I told my story. Had Twilight enchanted her cups to retain heat? If so, I’d have to trouble her for the spell she used. “It was my idea, but I didn’t want to do it.” I took a breath. Not entirely true. “Objectively, I could see all the things wrong with our relationship, but I really only went through with it because Sweetie was entering into her troubles, and I thought that, perhaps, if I set a good example for her, she’d stop… I thought I could be a good role model for her, but it was too little too late. Then, she left, and I was completely alone.”

“You weren’t completely alone,” Twilight said, meeting my gaze. “You had me – us. You had the rest of the girls. You didn’t have to shut yourself up in the Boutique.”

“Yes, I did,” I said, breaking away from her eyes and looking at the crackling fire. “I ended things with Applejack. If one of us had to bow out of the group while things settled, it had to be me. It wouldn’t be fair to put that added strain on Applejack.”

“And what about us?” Twilight asked, a clip in her voice. I’d upset her. “We saw you hurting, and you wouldn’t let us help. Was it fair to us to put us all through that without asking?”

I shook my head and frowned, looking at her hooves. I knew the glare I’d see if I looked up, and it was something I’d prefer to avoid. Very much so. Tartarus hath no fury like an enraged Twilight Sparkle. The mare has battled gods and emerged victorious. If she ever put her mind to it, she could take over Equestria in a fortnight. Of course, she never would, not as long as Equestria was ruled by Celestia. “Perhaps, in hindsight, I can see how my actions would’ve been hurtful to you and the rest of the girls, but that wasn’t my intent, I just… I didn’t want to be selfish and hurt Applejack. If I needed to fall on my sword to help Sweetie, that was one thing, but to let that spill over and hurt the rest of you? That was unacceptable.”

Twilight sighed. “Well, anyways, I’m glad you’re here talking with me, instead of hiding in your boutique. You know, for a while, I thought I’d done something wrong and you were going out of your way to avoid me.” I looked to the castle’s ceiling to conceal my wince. There was, perhaps, more truth to her words than she realized. It wasn’t her fault, of course. Not her fault she got everything a mare as exceptional as her deserved. It was mine for being jealous. Would it kill me to be – Ugh! – happy when a friend achieves one of my dreams? Instead, I had that little nugget of resentment plop down in the pit of my stomach. Why does she get to be a princess and live in a castle? That’s your dream.

Such thoughts are, of course, completely unacceptable, and not feelings I should be harboring. “Rarity, what aren’t you saying right now?” Twilight asked, pulling me back to the mare sitting just a few hooves away from me. “You have that look in your eyes.”

“What look?” I asked, giving her my best innocent smile. “I was simply reflecting. Who was it that said that the unexamined life isn’t worth living?”

“True Knowing,” Twilight said without missing a beat. “And it’s the look in your eyes you get whenever you’re blaming yourself for something you shouldn’t.” Did I really have a tell for that? Of course, Twilight was naturally perceptive, but I thought I’d gotten better about masking my thoughts. “Also, you did wince when I said I thought you were deliberately avoiding me.” Yes, and there was that. The curses of having an observant friend.

“So I did,” I said, frowning and glancing at the fire. She hadn’t added a log since I started talking, but it was still crackling away. Another spell? Almost certainly; she is the princess of magic and friendship, after all. “It’s… I know it’s terribly petty and silly, and I wasn’t avoiding you because of it, I just – please don’t hate me for admitting this, Twilight, but I... in a way, I suppose I... resented you.”

“For what?” Twilight asked, looking at me like I’d just started speaking Prench. Actually, she’d probably understand Prench. Certainly, there must have been a few foreign language classes during her education at Princess Celestia’s Academy. “Did I do something, or...?”

“No, you were perfect. That’s why I didn’t speak with you as much as I used to. I didn’t want my own feelings to ruin our friendship, so I just sat on them and tried to work through them on my own. For a while, I’d be fine, but then I’d catch sight of your massive castle or some other thing, and be reminded of how you have everything I want,” I said, drowning my confession in apologies.

“You mean…” She sighed. “I didn’t want any of my friends to treat me differently because of the title. I thought we’d already gone over that.”

I tried to smile at her. “I know, Twilight. And I’ve been trying not to treat you differently, but you have to understand – growing up, being a princess/fashionista? That was my dream. Up until the Gala a few years ago, it was still a fantasy of mine, but then… Well, Blueblood rather thoroughly dashed those hopes, but even so, it hurt sometimes, seeing you living one of my dreams, even though nopony deserves it more than you do.”

Twilight gave a tiny laugh. “It’s really not all it’s cracked up to be. If I could choose, I’d definitely go back to being the town librarian, although flying is kind of nice. Unfortunately, there’s no historical precedent for an alicorn not being a ruler.”

That was her, wasn’t it? Power, prestige, fame, it meant nothing to her. Probably why she deserved her title. There was certainly no danger of her flying too close to the sun. “Well, like I said, I feel simply terrible for holding anything against you. I didn’t want to, but the heart is not a rational organ. If it were, Applejack and I wouldn’t have lasted a month.” My tiny smile vanished. “I hope you can forgive me.”

“It’s fine,” Twilight said. “I don’t like it, but it’s not like you acted on those thoughts. In fact, it was your desire not to act on those thoughts that almost strained our relationship…” She frowned. “You still want to be my friend, right?”

I nodded my head. “Very much so, Twilight. I was far more upset with myself for having these persistent feelings than I ever was with you.”

“Then I guess… Do you want to stay here for a few days?” She laughed. “One of the few perks of having a giant castle is that there are plenty of guest rooms. It could be like a giant sleepover. You’d get out of the Boutique for a few days, and maybe you’ll even get to see just how not worth it being a princess really is.”

I laughed at that last part. “I appreciate the offer, but I do have work to do. Plus, Opal’s probably already quite cross at me for not giving her her dinner. I can’t imagine she’d take well to me disappearing for a few days.”

“That’s easy enough to fix,” Twilight said. “We can move your dresses and Opal here. I’m sure Spike would love having the two of you around.” Well, he’d love having one of us around, and it wasn’t Opal.

“If you’re sure,” I said. “It would be pleasant to spend some time out of the house, and how could I pass up the opportunity to spend some time with you?”

“You mean that?” Twilight asked, her head perking up. “Even after you said you kind of resented me, you still want to spend time with you?”

“Of course,” I said, smiling tightly. “No matter what, you’re a dear friend, and perhaps spending some more time in each other’s company will help me move past those feelings.”

“Great,” Twilight said, getting up on her hooves. “Let me show you to your room, and I’ll get your stuff tomorrow morning. You just get some sleep, and when you wake up, everything will be here.”

“You don’t need to do that for me,” I said, floating the blanket off myself and getting up to follow Twilight. “I’m more than capable of taking care of it myself, and you’ve already been so kind, staying up to listen to my talking. I’m sure you’re exhausted.”

“Not really,” Twilight said, swinging the door to her study open. “It turns out that one of the other perks of being an alicorn is that I don’t need as much sleep. Three hours is enough to keep me rested for the rest of the day.” She smiled at me. “Anything more than that is just me being indulgent.”

“And I’m sure Spike is just thrilled about your new schedule,” I said as I followed her out the door and into the cavernous halls of her palace. “So, you really don’t like being a princess?”

She sighed and shook her head. “I like parts of it. I like being sent on our friendship missions, and I like having my own archives; but the palace is still so big, and I can’t go to Canterlot without having the nobility fawn over me, and I miss just being a librarian.” A pause. I could see in her eyes there was more she wanted to say, she just hadn't found the right words. I waited. "And Celestia just makes it all seem so natural." And there it was, complete with the unspoken fear that she wasn't living up to her idol's standard.

“Practice, I suppose,” I said, trotting to walk abreast with her. “And think, for a thousand years, she didn’t have a true confidant. You have us girls to lean on, if you so choose.”

“Careful,” Twilight said, looking back at me and smiling. “I might take you up on that offer.”

“And I’d honestly like nothing more,” I said. Well, reasonably. Of course, I’d like my sister’s safe return and to be back with Applejack more, but since both of those were off the table at the moment…

“Maybe tomorrow,” Twilight said, opening the door to a room that was roughly the size of my entire boutique, with a bed larger than my bedroom. A laugh of delight burst from my lips.

“Ah, Twilight, this is your guest room?” I asked. I could practically feel my eyes dilating as I took the sight in. “How come I didn’t see this when I was decorating?”

“You girls only decorated my quarters. You didn’t touch the main hall or the guest wing at all.” It was amazing how much space this castle was able to contain. If I didn’t know better, I’d say it was bigger on the inside. Is that even possible? Probably. Twilight could almost certainly give me a lecture on creating a pocket dimension, or distorting space, or whatever you’d have to do to make the castle be possible.

“Well,” I said, making a circle around my room. “If you’d like, I can certainly be persuaded to decorate the rest of the castle. It would be a wonderful project to make this place look more cheerful and less… imposing.”

“It’s fine,” Twilight said, trotting into the room. “I never really go in here, so I’d hate for you to put all that effort into a part of the castle nopony’s ever going to see. You’ve already done more than enough to make the castle feel like home.”

“If you’re sure,” I said, moving to the bed large enough to sleep a whole household comfortably. “I’d love the challenge, though.” I floated the sheets back and gently eased myself into them. The second my fur touched the sheets’ soft silk, I yawned and my eyelids turned to lead. It wasn’t fair something could be so lusciously decadent.

“Maybe,” Twilight said as she moved back out of my room. “Sleep well, and I’ll see you in the morning, Rarity.”

♦♦♦

I opened my eyes, and had no idea what time it was. Apparently, the Tree of Harmony didn’t think guests needed windows. Or perhaps this was the room for “guests” who weren’t free to leave. I stretched, reveling in the sensation of my muscles tensing and relaxing one by one. Did Twilight know this was less a guest room and more a gilded cage? Probably not, but on the other hoof, considering my rather… erratic behavior last night, I couldn’t blame Twilight for sticking me in the deluxe prison suite. I suppose it all depended on whether or not she locked the door last night. Getting up on my hooves, I trotted to the door, pulled the handle, and…

The door swung wide open. Ignorance it was, then. Twilight really had no idea about the intrigue of royal life, did she? Perhaps I could loan her a few of my books. Not necessarily historically-accurate pieces of literature, but they’d at least give her an idea of the type of scheming other nobles might engage in. Several members of the nobility had already commissioned houses to be built around her castle, and it was only a matter of time until the net closed. As soon as they moved here, they’d demand she hold court for them to vent their petty complaints and try to win her favor. She’d need to know how to use all the tools at her disposal by then, otherwise the nobility would trample her into the ground in the pursuit of her favor.

I trotted down the empty hall, the sound of hooves on crystal echoing. Carpets. She definitely needed carpets. I made a little note on my head to send a letter to my carpet supplier asking for enough carpets to tastefully decorate a castle. Obviously, there would need to be some exceptions. Areas where it would pay to hear nobles skulking about. And if nobles were going to be here, she’d need guards to keep them out of her private quarters, and if there were guards, there’d need to be a barracks. The little note in my head grew into an entire checklist. First item on the agenda was to speak with Twilight about it. Actually, I suppose the first item was to find Twilight. I closed my eyes and tried to remember the route we took to get to my room last night. Take a left at the “T,” trot past the large door on your right, take the second right after that, and then my room was the third door on the left, so I’d need to take a right at the intersection if I wanted to get back to Twilight’s study.

The route back was easy enough, if a little long without Twilight’s company to keep me occupied, but soon enough I was knocking on the door. “You don’t need to knock, Rarity,” Twilight said, levitating the door open. True to her word, my mannequines from the shop now lined one wall of the study as Opalescence glared at me from her spot on my favorite chaise. Twilight had even brought that over for me? How dear of her. “Well, unless it’s the bathroom door, but anyplace else, you absolutely shouldn’t knock.” Twilight gave a squeal of delight. “These next few days are just going to be so fun. What do you want to do first?”

I smiled at her as the door thudded shut behind me. Did they have to be so loud? I suppose it was helpful in case of intruders, but ponies might also like a good night’s sleep now and then. “I’m quite amenable to whatever you have planned; I only ask that you give me some time to work on my commissions. Sapphire Shores waits for no mare.”

“Oh, right,” she said, the smile on her face evaporating. “That’s completely understandable. Is it okay if I stay here and read my reports while you work? Or would that bother you too much?”

“It’s fine,” I said, looking through the duffel bag of supplies Twilight had had the foresight to bring with her. If I wanted to do any real work here, I’d need to bring over my bolts of fabric and gems. On the other hoof, I had what I needed to make some modifications to Sapphire Shore’s commission. Redoing a dress just because it hung a twelfth of an inch too low might have been a slightly drastic reaction. I closed my eyes and imagined all the stitches and modifications I had to make. Yes, this could work. I levitated my pair of ruby-red glasses out of my duffel bag and started working.

“So,” I said as I started my stitching. “What are these reports about? Anything interesting?”

“I don’t know,” Twilight said. “Do you think reports on water usage in Appleloosa are interesting? Because if so, maybe I finally found somepony to talk about them with.”

“Twilight, dear, you can speak with me about anything,” I said, automatically making my modifications to the dress. Dedicate your entire life to something, and after a while, it gets easy. No, the trick is the envisioning, seeing exactly what the client wants and giving it to them before they even know it’s what they wanted. I glanced at Twilight. Even if what they wanted and what they thought they wanted were occasionally very different things. “Although, in some cases, you might need to slow down and explain things. I’m afraid my intellect is no match for yours.”

“You’re smart, Rarity,” Twilight said. No mention of me being as smart as her, just smart. Of course not; Twilight wasn’t a liar, and I had no delusions about being a prodigious intellect. Spending time with an actual prodigious intellect quickly puts to bed such notions. “You know way more about me than fashion and social stuff. If I had to go to one of those high-society things, or a fashion show, I’d definitely want you at my side.”

“You know,” I said, my needle diving in and out of Sapphire Shores’ dress, “you really shouldn’t be so aloof when it comes to those high-society ‘things’. You were born into nobility and only managed to go up from there.”

“But…” Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Twilight lift her head up from her reports. “Please don’t hate me for saying this, but I don’t really care about all that stuff.” She bit her lip. “I mean, I care about the fact that it’s important to you, because you’re my friend, and I get that it’s kind of useful; but at the same time, anytime I ever had to do that stuff, I just wished I was back in my room doing research.”

I tapped into the magnification spell woven into my glasses and the section of the dress I was looking at appeared to double in size. “I can certainly understand the desire, yes. There have been a few times I was trapped listening to a particularly tedious client when I wished I could be on a beach far away reading the latest pulp romance.” And she was responsible for one of those occasions. Not that I’d ever tell her that, of course; I just never wanted to hear a pony talk about the differences between canis major and minor ever again.

“But how do you like all that elbow rubbing? I can understand the dressmaking, it’s a creative passion. It’s your cutie mark. I might not personally enjoy it, but I can see the appeal, and the books I read on the history of dressmaking were really fascinating.”

“Twilight, have you ever read a book that wasn’t really fascinating?” I asked, looking up from my sewing to her.

“Probably,” she said quickly looking down at at the report at her desk. “I can’t think of an example off the top of my head, but–”

“What’s that report you’re reading right now about?” I asked, putting aside my stitching to engage in a little repartee. The opportunity for banter was sadly lacking at the Boutique.

“Uhmm… This one’s about aberrant water fluctuations in Appleloosa, and a request from the buffalo to engage in a traditional rain dance,” she said, lifting up the red book so I could get a better view of it.

“And if you were to describe it in a word, what would that word be?” I asked, a tiny grin playing on my lip.

She sighed and looked down. “Fascinating, but it really is fascinating. The idea that the buffalo might be able to channel some level of weather magic could open up a whole new field of magical study. We need to send thaumaturgists down there to check for shifts in the magical field when they perform the ritual.”

I nodded at her. “And, Twilight, was any of that magical theorycrafting supplied by the report, or did you just see those connections while reading your average weather report with an addendum attached about buffalo rituals?”

“The latter,” she said, pouting. “But I’m not reaching for straws here; if you look through all the bureaucratic language, there’s something–”

“Fascinating?” I asked, arching an eyebrow.

“Fine, I think everything I read is fascinating – but is that a bad thing? I like learning. I like drawing connections. There’s nothing wrong with that,” Twilight said, drawing the report back to her.

“No, there isn’t,” I said, nodding my head and smiling at her. “It’s one of your best traits. I was just wondering if you ever read something that didn’t fascinate you.”

“Not a book,” she said, shaking her head. “I’ve been getting a lot of requests for me to endorse somepony’s product, though. Those… aren’t a lot of fun to read through. Actually, most letters addressed to ‘Her Royal Excellency Princess Twilight Sparkle’ just go into the trash now.”

That could be problematic. While I could understand her frustration, certainly, the idea of Twilight shirking her duty was uncharacteristic of her. Something to be brought up later, at just the right time with just the right touch. “And just why are you getting reports from Appleloosa anyways?” I asked, fixing my eyes on her, while the magic from my horn automatically moved the needle.

Twilight bit her lower lip. A confession, then. “You’re going to be mad.”

“Last night, I told you I secretly resented you. It’s hard to imagine you having a more scandalous revelation than that,” I said, carefully measuring my voice. I had to be calm, supportive, and nurturing, not making her fear for our friendship. That was the fastest way to get Twilight to lie.

“Alright… I… I… uhmm… I might be helping Princess Celestia administer all lands south of Canterlot that fall between Smokey and Foal Mountain. It’s nothing big; they just send me all their reports, I help them find solutions to their problems, and oversee their taxes. Nothing, really,” she said, all of her attention suddenly directed to a very fascinating patch of floor.

I closed my eyes and took a breath as my grip on the needle faltered. Losing my composure now wouldn’t help either of us. “So, in other words,” I said, metering my words. “You’re in charge of a substantial portion of Equestria.”

“No no no,” she said, slamming her book shut. “No, Princess Celestia specifically said I wasn’t going to be in charge, she was just delegating all high-level royal decisions to me on the condition I keep writing her updates. Oh, I also need to set up a branch of the tax department to collect, process, and redistribute all taxes collected by the end of the year.”

“Yes,” I said, nodding my head as the picture snapped into place. Sometimes, Twilight was as gullible as she was brilliant. “Tell me, did Princess Celestia approach you with an offer to take a royal demesne of your own that you rebuffed before she made you this offer?”

“She did,” Twilight said, looking down at her desk and chewing on a bit of her cheek. “But I told her I wasn’t ready. Then a few weeks later, she asked if I could help her by managing a small portion of Equestria for her. She’s done so much for me, I couldn’t just say no to her, and all I had to do was administer the lands in her stead. She wasn’t giving me the land.”

“Mmhmm,” I said, nodding my head. “You’re completely right. On an unrelated note, how come I don’t need a visa to travel between the Crystal Empire and Ponyville?”

“Oh!” Twilight said, her eyes lighting up. “Well, it’s because even though Cadance has a large degree of autonomy, the lands are still technically Equestrian and subject to Princess Celestia’s rule. She just trusts Cadance to execute her duties responsib–” Her eyes shrunk to pinpoints as the bit dropped. “She tricked me! Why would she trick me?”

“Because she knows you’re a perfectly capable ruler who occasionally lets her anxiety get the best of her.” Said the mare who’d had a nervous breakdown in the last twenty-four hours. “Do you remember your first Winter Wrap-Up here?”

“I remember it,” she said. “I remember you kind of having a freak-out about that birdhouse I made.” She smiled. “It was pretty bad, wasn’t it?”

“I’ve seen worse pieces of work,” I said, returning her smile. Even if such creations were normally confined to my nightmares. “My point, though, is that you excel in managing ponies. We’ve wrapped up winter on time every year since you came to this town. If anypony can manage this demesne, it’s you.”

Her purple cheeks tinged a complimentary shade of red. Twilight’s blushes really were a thing of beauty. Of course, if such displays of vulnerability were made public knowledge… She’d have to ward the palace against paparazzi. Another reason she needed guards. “You really think so?”

“I do,” I said, glancing back at my dress. So far, so perfect, it was a delightfully ostentatious gem-studded thing of rubies, emeralds, and of course, sapphires. The trick was making sure the weight didn’t prove to be excessively encumbering, or cause the fabric to bunch up. “You can do anything you set your mind to, Twilight.”

“But what if I mess things up?” Twilight asked, before taking in a deep breath and going into her breathing exercises. Very good, Twilight, inhale, exhale. “If I make a mistake, I could destroy an entire town. No, I could destroy entire towns.”

And she was still sprinting towards the ‘tardy’ zone. She needed some reassuring that I couldn’t provide. “You mentioned writing reports to Celestia, Twilight. Has she written back?” She nodded. “And just what did she say?”

“That I’m… exceeding expectations,” Twilight said, breathing returning to normal. Almost there.

“So if Princess Celestia, who spent a thousand years as the sole ruler of Equestria, thinks you’re doing an exceptional job, perhaps your fears of destroying a substantial chunk of Equestria are unfounded.” She could do it, of course, but she wouldn’t. “It’s good that you’re worried about making a mistake – every artist worries about the quality of her work, and it’s a good fear for administrators to have, as well. It means you want to do the best job you possibly can. The problem is when that worry keeps you from doing your job. The painter who never paints for fear of making a bad portrait is no painter at all. Am I making any sense?” I asked, tilting my head at her.

She nodded. “You’re saying that if I try my best, and don’t let the pressure of running a huge part of Equestria get to me, then I’ll probably be fine?”

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m saying you’ll be fantastic, darling. Are you feeling better, now?”

“I am,” she said, giving me a smile. “Thanks for helping me out.”

“Any time, dear,” I said before using my horn to roll up one of her reports and smack her on the back of the head with it. “Now care to tell me just why you didn’t tell the rest of your friends about your newest project? What reason could you possibly have for not wanting to share this wonderful news with your friends?”

“I… I didn’t want to mess with our relationship anymore than I already had,” she said, rubbing the back of her head. “First I became a princess, and you were all okay with that eventually – but then I got this castle, and the map started giving us missions, and I’m worried that eventually, something will change and you’ll stop being my friends. What if all the royal duties keep me from being with you girls? And there’s still the aging issue that isn’t sorted out.” Tears welled up in her eyes. “I don’t want to wake up in seventy years and realize that the most important mares in my life are gone. I don’t want to wake up and think of all the time I didn’t spend with you because I was too busy with my paperwork.”

Before she could say another word, my hooves were wrapped around her, her tears sinking into my fur. “Twilight Sparkle, we will never stop being your friends. Yes, things might change –, they changed between me and Applejack, they changed between Applejack and Rainbow Dash, but we’re still friends, and no force in Equestria is going to change that. Even with things being somewhat strained between us, if Applejack came to me tomorrow, hat in hoof, begging for bits so she could marry Rainbow Dash, I’d give her whatever she needed, because that’s what friends do. No matter how big or famous you get, we’ll be right there with you, offering whatever help we can. As for the age issue, well… I can’t give you the answer there, but I know we’ll stay with you for as long as we can; and that even after we’re gone, you’ll still carry us with you, and see us in the world we made.”

I pulled her tighter against me. “But I don’t think that will happen, Twilight. I don’t know why – call it feminine intuition, perhaps – but something deep down in my soul tells me that’s not the way our story ends. Separating the Princess of Friendship from the friends who helped her earn that title just seems too a cruel fate to be imposed by the Tree of Harmony. Whatever happens, I think it will happen to all of us, together.”

Something between a sob and a laugh burst from Twilight’s throat. “You know,” she said when her fit had quieted down, “you don’t really sound like a pony who secretly resents me.”

I smiled as I broke our hug. “Twilight, I think you’re right.”

Our tender moment was interrupted by the sound of claws clacking on crystal. (What crystal composed the bulk of this castle? It was obviously a single gem, but what type? It wasn’t sapphire; too dark for that. Amethyst, possibly? Of course, the Tree could have made up an entirely new type of crystal to compose Twilight’s castle, but that seemed… Oh, if she could just give me a few cuts, I could make some simply marvelous dresses.)

“What are you two up to?” Spike asked as he came into the room, door slamming shut behind him. He narrowed his eyes as he saw the tear stains on both our coats. “Are you alright?”

“We are,” I said, smiling at him. “Just indulging in a bit of ‘mare talk’, that’s all. But it’s very dear of you to ask.” I trotted over and patted him on the head.

“Thanks,” he said, smiling at me. “How have you been? I haven’t seen you in forever. I thought maybe… How have you been?”

“Just fine, Spikey-wikey. Have you seen that little dragon friend of yours in Fillydelphia lately?”

“Mina? Yeah, she’s great. It’s a bit hard getting to see her, but Twilight gives me time off whenever I want it. Plus, if you’re a princess’ personal dragon, you’d be surprised how much stuff you can get for free if they think you’ll get the princess to endorse their whatever.”

“Spike!” Twilight yelled, swivelling her head around to glare at him. “Is that why I’ve been getting so many letters lately?” She shook her head. “Of course it is. You know, the reason you have a salary now is so you can pay for things, right?”

“Yeah,” he said, rolling his eyes. “But you also said I should save my bits up for something I really wanted. I was just following your advice.”

“I meant you should save your money up and be responsible. I didn’t mean you should use your connection to me to get free stuff,” Twilight said. “No more promising ponies my endorsement in exchange for free stuff.” Well, that, and the interests of the average Equestrian would naturally turn to their newest princess, especially when her story so readily captured the imagination: A normal mare who rose to save Equestria multiple times through the power of friendship, and ultimately achieved the highest position in the land. A powerful narrative, even if Twilight was never anywhere close to ordinary.

“Fine,” Spike said, giving us a groan. “In that case, can I have a raise?”

Twilight took a deep breath. “We can talk about that later. Right now, don’t you want to talk with Rarity?” Unusual. Not the deflection; that was classic Twilight, redirecting the conversation to a less volatile topic while she thought up a way to handle the more pressing issue. No, the strange thing was how readily that deflection was at hoof.

“Oh, yeah,” Spike said, looking from Twilight to me. I glanced at Opal, sleeping soundly on my chaise. How I envied her, sometimes. “How have you been, Rarity?”

“You already asked me that. Three times, actually,” I said, smiling at him as Twilight edged herself towards the door next to her desk. Yes, this was all planned. How much more obvious could the two of them be? Honestly, my senses of subtlety and guile were positively insulted. “What’s on your mind, Spike?”

He looked down at his feet. “Well, it’s just, I’ve been spending a lot of time in Fillydelphia with Mina lately, and… I kind of like her.” Ah, yes, his little dragon friend he met when he was helping Luna with something or another in Fillydelphia. I can’t remember what exactly it was, but… yes, there hadn’t been any big romantic gestures on his part since then.

“That’s wonderful news, Spike. So, do you need my advice on how to ask her out?” I asked, imagining an absolutely darling outfit for him to wear on his first date. “I’ll admit, my knowledge of dragon courtship rituals is rather lacking, but surely the language of love is universal. You both enjoy comics, correct?”

“Yeah, she actually manages the store. I guess that means she’s a few years older than me, but… wait, you’re okay with this? I thought you’d be upset or something,” he said, frowning at me. We’d gone off his script.

“Of course I am, Spikey-wikey,” I said, patting him on the head. “You’re a very dear friend, and your infatuation was flattering, but I always knew it wouldn’t last. I imagined, sometimes, if we could make our relationship work, but the issues overwhelmed those dreams. First, you’re… Well, you’re not quite young enough to be my son, I suppose, but shave off a few of your years and add in some some rather unfortunate teenaged indiscretions on my part, and the math would work.” I laughed. “And now I’m old enough to have a teenaged son. Delightful. Anyways, beyond that, there was the species difference, which… Well, I’m not sure how a dragon-equine relationship could work.”

“You’d have to stand on your back legs, wear a brace, and then, depending on my size, we’d either have to–”

“Yes, well, I’m glad you researched it, Spike.” Glad, horrified, what’s the difference? “What I was trying to say was that beyond those issues was the fact that you could conceivably live to be ten thousand years old, while I’ll be lucky if I hit a hundred. You deserve someone who can spend that entire time with you.” Two conversations about death and relationships before I even had breakfast? Hopefully the rest of the day would bring me some lighter fare. “It could never have worked out, as much as we might like to imagine otherwise, and I’m happy you found somepony else.” Even if it meant I was now the only single mare in the group, unless I was grossly mistaken about something. “Or, I suppose, somedragon else. Although I’m a little confused about how Fillydelphia has an entire dragon enclave, when they were supposed to be these elusive migratory creatures.”

“Well,” he said, shrugging, “technically, they’re only half-dragons. I’m not sure what the other half is – drake, maybe? Anyways, they’re not full dragons. They won’t grow up to be super huge like that one dragon you fought, and they don’t have our hoarding instincts, but they do look like a lot like adolescent dragons. It’ll probably be at least a couple of centuries before I get much bigger than them.” Then there were still some logistics issues, but at least… Well, it worked out neater this way.

“Anyways,” he asked, looking up at me. “we’re good? I mean, if you really wanted to go out with me, I guess I could be convinced, but Mina’s just so cool and funny and you should see the way she talks about Princess Luna and–”

“It’s fine, Spike,” I said, putting my hoof over his mouth. “I’m happy for the two of you, and if you ever want to go gem hunting with me, I’ll help you arrange a gem bouquet. Is that a proper dragon courtship gift? It seems like it would be.”

“Cool,” he said, licking his lips. “Do you think, maybe, we could arrange two bouquets? Or at least get enough material for two bouquets.”

“That sounds delightful,” I said, nodding my head and turning back to my dress. “Just tell me when you want to go, and we’ll make a day out of it.”

I heard the click-clack of his claws on the floor. “Sounds great,” he said, the clacking fading away. A moment later, I heard the thud of the door groaning shut.

“You can come in now, Twilight,” I said, glancing at the door Twilight trotted out of. Just as suspected, it was still cracked open, and I could see one eye staring out at me. “And please don’t insult me by pretending you weren’t listening in on our conversation.”

“How did you know?” Twilight asked, trotting into the room. “I thought I was pretty subtle.” I tried not to laugh.

“You weren’t entirely obvious, no. I didn’t know you were listening in until I heard Spike shut the door. The absence of the sound when you left the room is what gave you away,” I said, smiling at her as she shut the door. “Really, a mare as well-read as you should remember her Sherlock Pones.”

“The Mystery of Silver Blaze,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “Right, the curious case of the dog in the nighttime. I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. Wait, how did you think of that?”

I glared at her as the implications of her words caught up with her. “Really, Twilight, I’m not some mouth-breathing philistine. I’ve more than a passing familiarity with the Equestrian-literary canon, and I dare say, my love for a good mystery novel is second only to my love of a well-plotted romance.”

“Really?” Twilight asked, her ears perking up as she trotted to me, her stack of reports momentarily forgotten. “I didn’t know you liked mysteries. I thought you just read romance novels, and the two don’t really seem like they have a lot in common. One is about love and stuff, and the other is about mystery and deduction, about cutting through lies to reveal the truth.” And it didn’t take a great detective to reveal where her preference lay. I suppose some books were more fascinating than others.

“Oh, but they have everything in common,” I said, laughing as I took a step towards her. “At their core, both stories are about intimacy, about two minds intertwining before ultimately coming together. The detective pursues his quarry the same way the romantic pursues her love.” I traced a slow circle around Twilight. “They dance and weave around each other, slowly drawing closer. They seek an understanding of their partner so perfect that they can predict their movement, and in that moment of sublime understanding, they become forever enmeshed. The detective captures his criminal, and the lovers merge together. The realization of love is the greatest revelation of truth imaginable, Twilight.”

“Okay, good talk,” Twilight said, coat tinged red. “I… I need to… I need to read the romances you’re reading.” She laughed. “Do you think you could maybe write me up a list of romances you recommend? I think you gave me a fresh lens to view them from. An analysis comparing a romance’s structure and a mystery’s structure could be... really fun.”

“Of course, dear,” I said, smiling at her and floating a quill and paper off her desk. “Where would you like me to start?”

Author's Note

New chapter titles ~~blatantly stolen from~~ suggested by EquesTRON.

3. The Nature and Philosophy of Dance

I stared up at Twilight’s cavernous, vaulted ceiling, the design for a dress swirling in my head. It was a green thing, inspired by nature, but not afraid to use bold lines. Minimalist, with a starburst of massive green blades of grass shooting out of it that sat on blades of grass of lighter green. Obviously, it wouldn’t utilize real blades of grass; the design was just supposed to evoke them. I closed my eyes and focused as the design clicked into focus. I needed to have three different shades of green, each lighter than the layer of grass above it. It would perfectly complement somepony with Fluttershy’s coloring, but… yes, it would go with enough coat and mane combinations to be a part of my spring line.

The green dress warped and twisted into an image of Twilight Sparkle. She needed regalia, didn’t she? What color should it be? Blue would look rather nice, but Princess Cadance’s regalia already made extensive use of the color. Was silver alright? Princess Luna’s shoes and torque made some use of the color, but the dominant color was black. Oh, dusky blue and silver would look so wonderful on Twilight, although her crown was already gold and purple, making it more in line Celestia’s torque. No, that wouldn’t do at all. She’d need a new crown, then. Silver with sapphire gems? It was all academic, of course – she’d never let me make her some appropriate regalia; in fact, she was doing everything she could to hide from the responsibility of her station. Probably why we’d been getting along so well the last few days.

“Hey,” Twilight said, her head jutting into my view and shattering my vision of her. “The two of us should get out of the house tonight. What do you think about dinner?”

“It sounds delightful,” I said, rolling over and pushing myself off the couch. “But are you sure? I wouldn’t want to take you away from your work.”

She laughed at that and took a step back as I got up. “It’s fine. I do most of my reports while you’re sleeping, and I’ve already read four of your romances today. They’re… I’m really enjoying evaluating them through the critical lens you gave me. I can’t believe I didn’t see the similarities until you pointed them out to me.”

“Well, I’m glad I’ve given you something to think about,” I said, trotting to the door. “Are you sure you want the two of us to eat out tonight? We’ll be meeting the rest of the girls in a few days, and with only Pinkie being in town right now…” It was amazing how Applejack and Rainbow Dash conveniently had business crop up at the same time. While I appreciated the effort to spare my feelings, it would also be nice not to be treated like a phenomenal idiot for once. Was constructing an elaborate deception really that hard?

“No, it’s fine,” Twilight said, following after me. “We can… I thought it would be nice to eat at one of the fancier restaurants that’ve been opening up in Ponyville lately. You know, we both kind of like that stuff, and the rest of the girls would probably be bored out of their minds there.” No, Twilight, I kind of like that stuff. You created a small scandal when the paparazzi photographed you devouring the entire menu of a Burger Princess. Heightened alicorn metabolism, my hoof.

“That sounds delightful,” I said, smiling at her. “Do you have a particular location in mind?”

“Gustaf’s is pretty good,” she said, nodding. Yes, in much the same way the sun was kind of bright, his restaurants were good. They were the standard to which culinary excellence was compared. His entrées usually ran around four-hundred bits, and a full-course meal could cost upwards of a thousand bits. “Plus…” She looked at the ground. “Promise you won’t get mad about this?”

I took a deep breath. “Of course not. Just tell me what’s on your mind.” Really, why would ponies even ask that question? And who can promise not to get angry before they know the news? It’s an invitation to lie, really.

“I have a private dining room in Gustaf’s reserved for when Spike’s away,” Twilight said. “Well, technically, it’s not reserved since it’s complimentary. It’s nice having a place I can eat without everypony gawking at me.”

My eye twitched. “So… just so I’m perfectly clear, you have complimentary dining at Gustaf’s? As in you can eat for free. Anytime you want.”

She nodded. “Yeah, sorry, I would’ve told you sooner, but his Ponyville restaurant only opened in the last few weeks, and then you were spending all your time in the Boutique, and that didn’t feel like the right time to mention it, and–”

I put my hoof in her mouth and leaned in close. “Twilight, it’s fine. I understand, and I’m willing to chalk your neglecting to tell me as a part of your anxiety about your friends treating you differently, as misguided as it was. I just have one question for you: Are we eating at Gustaf’s tonight?”

“Of course,” she said as I pulled my hoof away. “I mean, if you want to, I just thought it might be the type of restaurant you’d like eating at. If you’d rather…”

“No, no, Gustaf’s is fine,” I said, struggling to contain the pure unadulterated glee bubbling up in my chest as she resumed trotting toward the palace’s grand stairway down to the anteroom. “In fact, I think I have to insist upon it. Assuming you’re paying, of course.”

“Of course!” she said, turning around to look at me with those wide all-wondering eyes of hers. “What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t share the perks of being a princess with you? Oh! You are hungry, right? I probably should have asked you that first.”

I smiled at her as we descended down the stairs. “I’m positively famished.”

♦♦♦

“Welcome to Gustaf’s,” the bored griffon maitre d’ said, looking at his ledger. “How may I–” He stopped, looking up and seeing just who he was talking to. “Ah, Princess Twilight Sparkle, I’m so glad to see you’re joining us for dining today. Your little dragon helper is away?”

She laughed. “No, Spike’s home, I just wanted to eat out with my friend. Rarity, this is Gaston. Gaston, this is Rarity.” He looked at me, the arithmetic of power running through his head. Unknown mare, woefully underdressed for the venue (oh, why didn’t I think to change into something more suitable before we left?), but also a personal friend of the princess.

He gave me a curt nod. “Welcome, Miss Rarity.” And no noble title. Either a slight, or a test to gauge my social station.

I smiled at him and extended a hoof. “A pleasure, Gaston.” Was there any way I could artfully work in the fact that I’d helped save Equestria at least four times? Probably not.

He shook my hoof his talon. “Yes. Let me show you to your dining room, Princess Twilight. Gustaf is here tonight, and I imagine he’ll be up to pay his respects as soon as he hears you’re eating with us this evening.” He turned to take us through the main dining room, composed mostly of empty tables – for now. Once the nobles had all settled in, this place would be as packed as its Canterlot counterpart. Maybe we could talk about Twilight’s preparations for them tonight. The first manors were nearing completion, and it wouldn’t be too much longer until the nobility arrived in swarms, demanding an audience with her royal excellency. When they did, Gustaf would be there to feed them at Princess Twilight’s favorite restaurant, while his competitors were still scrambling to get building permits. Clever old bird, Gustaf.

We reached our dining room, a lavishly ornate thing filled with rich mahogany panelling, gold trim, and enough paintings to form a small museum. A large dining table sat in the middle of the room, with a small stage off to a corner. “The violinist will be in shortly, Princess Twilight,” Gaston said, placing the menus down. “Please enjoy your meal.”

“Violinist?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

She laughed nervously and took a seat at the head of the table, while I sat to the right, allowing both of us an ideal view of the stage. “Yeah, they… whenever I eat here, they take their regular musician and have her play for me.” Utterly brilliant. Is the musician not in tonight? Then Twilight must be eating in her private room. Better let your friends know so they can stage a ‘chance’ meeting with the princess. How utterly devious.

“So,” I said, floating the menu towards me and cracking it open. “What do you generally enjoy?”

“Oh, his braised portobello mushroom steak, definitely,” she said, flipping to the drink menu. “I don’t know what seasonings he uses, but it doesn’t taste like anything I’ve had in this world.” Was that a figure of speech, or did it taste like something she actually had in… wherever was on the other side of that mirror portal? The place with the hairless monkeys.

“Really?” I said, finding the item on the menu. Seasoned to perfection. Yes, well, I suppose when you’re the premiere chef in all of Equestria, you don’t really need to tell your customers just what’s in the food they’re eating. It’s enough to say it’s done to perfection. “It certainly sounds delicious.” I put the menu down. “So, Twilight what’s on your mind?”

“What?” she asked, ears perking up. “I… nothing’s on my mind. I mean, a lot of things are on my mind, obviously, but there was nothing I wanted to specifically talk with you about.”

I tried not to roll my eyes. I might have failed. “Twilight, you invited me to a restaurant you knew I’d love for a special occasion, and when I asked you the most basic of conversation starters, you tried to deny that there was a conspiracy on your part. If I hadn’t suspected ulterior motives before, I do now.”

“It’s nothing, really,” she said, tracing a hoof around the edge of her empty wineglass. “I’m just… I wanted to ask you something, but it can wait until after dinner. Do you want wine?”

“I’ll keep you from drinking alone,” I said, smiling at her. “And this thing you wish to talk with me about, it’s not important, is it? No more major revelations on your part?”

She shook her head. “No, nothing like that, just… I’m curious about something, and I thought a fancy dinner would make it go down easier.” Oh, Twilight, given time, you could be a master at playing the nobility’s games – but then, why would anypony ever want that? Her radiant innocence was far more precious a gem than a scheming mind. Still, she needed some help if she didn’t want to get devoured by the nobles. A line must be found, I suppose, between keeping what makes her so wonderful, and keeping her whole.

“The nobles are coming,” I blurted out. I don’t know why I did. There had to be a better way of breaching the subject, but instead, I charged in like a bull seeing red. “I’m sorry, I’m sure you know. You can see the houses building up around your castle just as clearly as I can, and you have to know that–”

“I know,” she said, running her hoof through her mane. “And I’m really trying not to think about that, so if we could just… You know what they’re like, and I don’t know why Celestia is so insistent that I hold court, but she is, and I’m going to have to start dealing with them, but I really just don’t want to. I know, it’s not very princess-ey of me, but give me the choice of going up against Discord or Tirek with you girls, or talking with ponies like Blueblood, and I know which one I’d pick in a heartbeat.”

“Me too,” I said, smiling at her as the waiter came in.

“May I take your order?” he asked. A few paces behind him, the violinist trotted in and took her place. I wonder if Octavia knew her. She hadn’t performed in an orchestra in a few years, but she must still have some connections. How esteemed a violinist was tonight’s musical accompaniment? I couldn’t imagine Gustaf skimping on any aspect of his newest restaurant.

“Yes, we’ll have the Nectar des Étoiles, and I’ll have the portobello steak,” Twilight said, not even bothering to look at her menu. Did she really just order a bottle of Nectar? That cost more than my pricier dresses, and she just said it like she was ordering something off the value menu at Burger Princess. But then, if it’s free, what’s the difference?

There was a lull as I realized everypony was looking at me. “Oh, yes, I’ll…” I glanced quickly at the menu. “I’ll try the sauteed scallion salad. That rolls off the tongue quite nicely, doesn’t it?”

The waiter, a brown stallion in a tuxedo, nodded his head. He wasn’t from here. “An excellent choice, madame. Is there anything else I can provide the two of you?”

“That will be all for me,” I said, smiling as the music started playing. “Twilight?”

“Oh, yes, I’m fine, thank you,” she said, looking at the waiter. He gave us one more nod before trotting to the door.

“Strange,” I said as the door clicked shut. “I thought Gustaf only hired griffons.”

“Nope,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “He uses ponies as waiters because griffons put us on edge too much. It doesn’t make for the ‘perfect culinary experience,’” she said, doing her best to impersonate his Prench accent. If he sounded anything like his brother Gustave, her impression was uncanny. Twilight glanced at the musician and dropped her voice to a hush. “I always feel so awkward, though. I’ve tried getting her to talk with me a few times, but she never says anything.”

“Yes, Octavia did tell me the nobility can be rather demanding with their musicians. Whenever she played for a noble house, she wasn’t allowed to speak at all. It ‘interrupted their ambiance’. I would imagine a restaurant that caters exclusively to the nobility would have similar policies,” I said, sparing the violinist a sympathetic glance. “Dear, if you’re ever out near Carousel Boutique and I’m around, feel free to come in and say hello. I’d be delighted to have you over for tea.” I caught the slightest of nods from the mare.

“Why didn’t you get the mushroom steak, anyways?” she said, focusing her attention back on me. “I told you it was good, but instead you ordered the scallion salad, which is… also probably really good.”

I laughed. “Because you already ordered the mushroom steak. You can’t order the same thing somepony else in your party ordered, unless you’re part of a very large party. It’s not a major faux pas, but it’s still one I’d prefer not to commit.”

“Huh,” she said, looking down at her empty plate as our waiter reappeared, bringing bread and our bottle of wine. “Rarity, why do you care so much about all this nobility stuff? I just… my family’s noble, and I don’t know a fraction of the stuff you do. Well, I do, but it’s a very small fraction.”

“That’s half the problem, I suppose,” I said, smiling as she grabbed the bottle with her magic and opened it. “Your station was already so prestigious, there was no need for you to advance it further. It’s harder to rise higher than protégé to a princess.” But you succeeded.

“But I never wanted to win prestige, or anything like that. I just wanted to study magic,” she said, pouring my glass of wine.

“And I’m sure there are plenty of nobles that have their own pursuits, that don’t dedicate themselves to playing the game of Canterlot politics – but you’re not very likely to run into them, are you?” When the light caught the falling wine just right, it was a delightful shade of ruby red.

“Probably not,” Twilight said, moving to her own glass. “I wish I would, though. I’m not really looking forward to ponies just parroting back everything I say.”

“Well, that’s what we’re for, dear. I’m more than willing to disagree with you about all manner of things. For instance,” I said as she brought her glass of wine up to her lips, “you’re supposed to let your wine aerate before drinking.”

“Really?” she asked, lowering her glass. “Are you sure? I never heard that before.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“What? I don’t know everything. I don’t even know a lot of things, really. I can tell you a lot about magical theory, though. Do you want to hear about magical theory?” she asked, tilting her head.

“I generally prefer lighter dinner conversation,” I said, a smile playing on my lips. “I can’t believe you didn’t learn these things in Princess Celestia’s court.”

“Well, I didn’t spend a lot of time there,” she said, glancing between me and her glass of wine. “I kind of thought it was boring and pointless; I spent most of my time either in lessons with her, or in the library. If I wasn’t doing one of those, I was probably visiting my family, or being forced to talk with other students in the Academy... or as I called them, dum-dums.” There was a pause in our conversation. “I wasn’t super social before I met you girls. Anyways, you still haven’t told me why you care so much about all the nobility’s rules – and don’t say it’s for your career, because according to your business records, most of your clients in the past few years have been non-nobles.”

I stared at her, my face asking the question of just how she got my business records without me needing to say a word.

“It’s not a great story,” she said, looking away. “Mostly it involves me being curious while I was trying to familiarize myself with the ERS archives.”

“I see,” I said, biting my cheek. “You didn’t start poking around my birth certificates while you were snooping, did you?”

She shook her head. “No, should I have?”

I glared at her.

“Right, sorry, not funny. Anyways, I just saw all your business receipts, and I noticed most of the ponies you sold dresses to didn’t belong to a noble house, so–”

“Wait,” I said, shaking my head. “You know who belongs to what noble house?”

“If they’re three years younger than me or older, then yes,” she said, nodding. “It was one of the last projects I got into before I really started studying magic. My parents kept talking about how our family was related to this family or that family, so I pulled up Dad’s genealogy books and started reading who was who in our family. That eventually turned into me reading about every noble family and their living descendents.”

“And you remember all that?” I asked, my eyebrow lifting of its own accord.

“Mostly, I’ve forgotten a few names, but I think my parents kept those noble family trees I made. Maybe we can see them the next time we’re in Canterlot,” she said.

“We most certainly will,” I said, laughing. And while we’re there, I might make detailed copies of them to transport back to the Boutique – or wherever I’m staying at the time – for future reference. “But I still haven’t answered your question, have I?”

She shook her head. “You know how I wanted to be a princess,” I said. “I so badly dreamed of it, and I thought the best way for that to happen was by gaining status with the nobility. If I could catch the eye of a prince or princess… Well, what happened after that wasn’t important. What was important was that validation of status, to show that I was better than my ancestry would indicate. So I studied their games, and learned how to interact in their world. Mostly, I read books on the nobility – but I read them religiously, Twilight, and when I’d travel to Canterlot, I’d dress in the finery of the season, and see if I could pass myself off as somepony worth knowing…” I trailed off, searching for some way to properly end my tale. “Does that answer your question?” I could have done better.

“It does,” she said, smiling at me and floating a bread roll towards her. “And you’re somepony worth knowing, Rarity.”

“I know,” I said, closing my eyes and sighing. “But I wanted to be known by them. I wanted to be the kind of pony everypony should know. If I could do that, I was convinced I could become a princess. If I could wow either a prince or princess with my social graces and charm, they’d take me up as their consort, and then, how much further away could I get from... “ I trailed off.

“It was selfish of me, obviously,” I said. “I don’t really dream of that life anymore, and am more than happy to focus on my dressmaking and taking care of… I’m more than happy to focus on my dressmaking now. But for a while, ascending the ranks of the nobility was my monomaniacal obsession. You know, I even cultivated an accent to fit in better.”

“Really?” Twilight asked, leaning in closer, a bite of bread shoved aside to one of her cheeks. “Your… that’s not your real accent?”

“Does anypony in Ponyville sound like me?” I asked, tilting my head at her.

“No,” she said, wiping her mouth with one hoof and shaking her head. “But neither do the Apples, and they founded Ponyvile, so…”

I burst out laughing. “Yes, I suppose you’re right. I asked Applejack about that once, but she proved rather evasive on the topic. Maybe you can recruit Rainbow Dash to get the truth out of her. Anyways, no, this isn’t my real accent. It’s just an affectation, but I’ve been doing it so long, I can’t seem to shake it. If you want to hear what I used to sound like, try talking to my mother, if she’s ever around.” So, not likely to happen.

“Anyways,” I said, putting a piece of bread on my plate and starting to butter it, “I think that sums up why I’m so deeply fascinated with the lives of the nobility. Is that what you wanted to ask me about?”

Twilight shook her head. “Actually, it isn’t, it’s… good to know though. So, since you know so much, do you have any tips for me when I start hosting court?”

I tilted my head in thought. “I suppose I could be persuaded to share some of my wisdom. It might as well help somepony out. Here’s a tip I never got to use, since it required me to be a princess: Everypony is there for you. You are the sun and they’re all dancing around you. Grace one with a smile and her position climbs; yawn at somepony else’s story and their position falls. Do your best not to interfere directly with their political maneuvering and they should handle themselves. Be stingy with everything, and they’ll keep fighting amongst themselves for your favor. At least, that’s how it works in Canterlot.”

“But I don’t want it to work like that,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “I want… I don’t know, the nobility has all this power, but they don’t do anything with it. No, not even that; they waste it on stupid things. I’m sorry, but have you seen the Valiant? You know, that one airship? It’s insane how many bits were spent on it, and if it wasn’t for Princess Celestia turning it into a cruise ship, hardly anypony would get to see it. That doesn’t help ponies. That doesn’t make Equestria better. It just wastes money so somepony can show off to all their friends how rich they are.”

Twilight made an exaggerated gag. “Sorry, I… the nobility’s kind of a sore topic for me. The Dusk family, we’ve always taken the idea of noblesse oblige to heart. I want my court to reflect that idea somehow, not just export the biggest problem in Canterlot over to Ponyville.”

I floated the wine glass up to me and stirred it gently to help it aerate, a smile creeping into my lips. “A noble goal, Twilight. Do you have a plan on how to accomplish it yet?”

She shook her head. “I’ve been thinking about it. If I just had to hold court, it wouldn’t be a problem; I’d let common ponies air their grievances and try to help them. But you’re right, the nobles are going to want to take it over, and I’m not sure how to take care of it without upsetting ponies. You don’t have any ideas, do you?”

“Unfortunately, no,” I said, taking a sip of my wine and trying to keep my legs from buckling out from under me. It was as if I’d sipped Elysium, condensed into a bottle. The room swam around me, and a girlish giggle escaped my lips. “Twilight, this is wonderful. How could you keep yourself from guzzling the entire bottle when you opened it?”

“You told me to wait,” she said, smiling at me as she took a gulp from her own glass. Yes, gulping wine was horribly uncouth, but in this case, I could make an exception. Following the princess’s lead, I took a gulp from my own glass. “Plus, if you said aerating made the wine better, I figured it was at least worth a shot. It couldn’t make it worse, right?”

I shook my head and poured another glass for myself. Control yourself, Rarity. You don’t need to act like a ruffian just because drops of heaven are still on your lips. “No, it can’t make it worse. Twilight, how can you not drink this every day? I think you’ve ruined me for regular wine now.”

She laughed and took a sip of her wine. Yes, sips, Rarity. Wine should be savored, not greedily devoured. I tried to take a tiny sip from my second glass of wine and mostly succeeded. Give or take three sips. “You should see the castle’s wine cellar, then,” Twilight said, laughing and giving me a whiff of her wine-tinged breath. Could it be any more intoxicating? “I didn’t even have to buy anything, the castle came with a fully-stocked wine cellar. That’s… I don’t even know how it could do that. Either it ‘stole’ wine from other places in Equestria, or it just created duplicates. I hope it just created duplicates... Either way, I have an entire room full of wine, if you want to put those words to the test. Have you ever had Discordian-Era wine? It still carries traces of his chaos magic; take one sip and, it’s like nothing you’ve ever tasted. Take another sip, and it’s like everything you’ve ever tasted.”

“And you didn’t tell me about your secret wine cellar sooner because…” I trailed off, doing everything in my power not to pick up the glass of wine. I was not about to engage in the same kind of selfish hedonism that… I wasn’t going to make a fool of myself, even if nopony was around to see it.

She shrugged. “The subject just never came up, I guess. You’re the only pony in the group who really drinks wine... heck, I didn’t even drink wine until I suddenly wound up with a cellar full of the stuff, which kind of makes me wonder why the Tree of Harmony thought I needed a wine cellar. Not that I’m complaining, of course,” Twilight said, glancing from the bottle of wine to me. “Harmony works in mysterious ways, you know.”

I laughed until I snorted. “Twilight, you’re getting drunk after just a single bottle – a single glass of wine. Honestly, I thought alicorns were supposed to have a heightened metabolism. That’s what you told us all when you ate enough cake to make Pinkie Pie blush.”

“It’s... complicated,” Twilight said, rolling her eyes and pouring herself another glass. “I guess the shortest answer would be that for alicorns, fueling all three kinds of pony magic at once takes a lot of calories. But that doesn’t mean we metabolize everything faster than ‘normal’ ponies. I can get drunk just as easily as you can.”

“Still, we shouldn’t be getting tipsy from wine that’s…” I floated the bottle nearer to me, trying to keep it from wobbling in my magic. “Twenty-two percent alcohol?!” I yelled, slamming the bottle back down. “That’s…" I smiled and regained control of myself. "Rather a bit more than I'm used to.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s why it costs three thousand bits a bottle,” she said, bringing the bottle back to the center of our table. “If it was any cheaper, nopony’d ever be sober.”

“No, I suppose not,” I said, staring down at my hateful half-full glass. Drink it and risk the headache in the morning? Or abstain, and possibly have wine left over by the end of the night? I took another sip of wine.

The door behind me opened. “Ah, hello, your royal highness, it’s so good to have you with us tonight.” I looked back, and saw an aging griffon with a white head and silver body walking towards us, a tray of food balanced on one wing. “And we have the Lady Rarity as well, thrice savior of Equestria and Bearer of Generosity. A pleasure to have such distinguished ponies in my restaurant tonight. You know what the true mark of excellence is, yes?”

I smiled at him. “The company we keep, of course – and with the two of you around, I feel very distinguished indeed.”

He laughed and grabbed one plate with his claw, setting it in front of Twilight. “With a tongue as sharp as your eye, Lady Rarity, it is I who should be feeling distinguished. Not only do I have the pleasure of serving her royal highness tonight, but I get to match wits with the mare who took the Canterlot nobility by storm. Between the two of you, I’m nothing; just a humble artisan, plying his craft for giants.” Self-deprecating, flattering, charming, and very possibly sincere. I could see why the nobility loved his restaurant. “Oh, and I apologize for the disrespect my maitre d’ paid you. He is young, and full of fire; he wishes to be a part of the Griffonstone revival, instead of helping his papa run a restaurant. Children: so much love, but also so much frustration and heartache.”

“Very true,” I said, raising a glass. “And when they’re teenagers, it’s all the worse, I hear. Certainly, my Sweetie has proven that for me.”

“Oh,” he said, eyes going wide as he put my scallion salad down in front of me. It looked more like a noodle dish than a salad, with its strings of green and white, but… I took a deep breath and savored the panoply of competing smells. Was there anything better than seeing the creations of a master? “You speak like a mother, I did not realize–”

“I’m not,” I said before he could finish the thought. “No, I just spent the last few years raising my sister. A mother in all but name, I suppose.”

“Ah, I see,” he said, looking at me like I was an ingredient to be used in his dish. “Well, I know what it’s like to take care of a younger brother, too.”

“Oh, yes, how is the dessert business treating Gustave? I haven’t seen him since that train ride we took a few years ago. His éclairs were certainly a delight,” I said, steering the conversation back away from me and taking another sip of my wine. It wasn’t as exceptional as that first sip was, but then, how could it be? It was still completely marvelous.

Gustaf made an exaggerated spitting noise while taking great pains to not actually spit. “The dessert game is for children who care only about the sweet things in life. A true chef uses all tastes to distill the essence of life in his dish. Still, as desserts go, his are the best.”

I nodded, focusing on the glass of wine in front of me. “I agree with the sentiment, Gustaf. I know I can’t speak as a chef, but as a designer and dressmaker, I’ve always found myself drawn to more… unconventional design choices. I’m sure you remember that season the nobility were dressing themselves from head to hoof in hotel accessories.”

He laughed and patted me on the back, careful not to have his talons rake my coat. “Indeed, I do. You have my compliments for creating haute couture out of hotel keys and lampshades. Makes me think of that time I served boiled boot soup to a particularly grating customer. He walked away calling me the Neighcasso of Prench cuisine.”

“And I’m sure your boiled boot soup was a delight to taste, but I think I’ll stick with my scallion salad tonight. Maybe next time,” I said, winking at him. Was I so tipsy that I was winking at ponies now? That did not bode well for the rest of my night.

Gustaf took a step closer to Twilight. “Your highness, you have been quiet – did Gustaf do something wrong? If so, I shall make amends.”

She shook her head, a smile heavy on her muzzle. “No, you’re fine, I was just… enjoying the two of you bantering. Trying to make sure I understand the basics before the nobles start arriving.”

He nodded and looked at me. “Listen to this one, and she’ll give you a first-class education. The nobility, they will not be prepared for the two of you together. It would be like catching fish in a barrel.” He shook his head and looked to the door. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must go back to the kitchen to prepare for our other customers this evening.” Other clients? The restaurant was almost completely empty. As he trotted out the door, he gave a conspiratorial wink that only I could see. Wait, did he think this was–

“Oh, this is so good, Rarity,” Twilight said, shoving a slice of portobello steak in her mouth. “You want a bite?”

I smiled and floated my silverware over to her steak. “How can I say no?”

♦♦♦

I cleaned the corners of my lips with my napkin, and stared down at the empty plate. “Perfect” was too weak a word to describe what I’d just tasted. It was as if I had eaten an hour spent dancing in a Neighponese cherry festival. Indescribable bliss.

“How was your steak?” I asked, my whole body feeling slack. How could food be so good? I think there were actually tears in my eyes as I swallowed that last bite. Of course, I knew what the answer to my question was, I was just being polite.

“It was great,” Twilight said, a dream playing across her eyes. “I really… I know I don’t like a lot of the stuff the nobility does, but eating at Gustaf’s… I can see why they do that.”

“You see?” I said, pouring the last few drops of wine into my glass. “It’s not all bad, although I agree that most of it is. Still, what do they say about broken clocks?”

“Yeah,” she said, taking a sip of her wine and reaching for something under the table. “So, now that dinner’s over…” She pulled a notebook and pen out from under the table.

“Twilight, did you store that here in advance?” I asked. Why did I even ask? Of course she did. She probably had notebooks stashed all over town.

“I came over this afternoon,” she said. “I know I could probably remember everything you tell me just fine without taking notes, but I didn’t want to risk anything. Anyway, is it okay if I ask my first question?”

“First question?” I raised an eyebrow. “You said you wanted to ask me a question earlier. One, as in singular.”

“Well, I might have misspoken,” Twilight said, already starting her note taking. “I meant I had one thing I wanted to ask you about, but probably had a lot of questions related to that one thing. Is that still okay?”

“Fine, What did you want to ask me about?” I asked, using a dab of bread crust to mop up the residual dressing from my salad.

“Love,” Twilight said, and I stifled a cough. “Well, not just love, but also relationships, and I figured that out of all my friends, you probably had the most relationship experience.” For a certain definition of ‘relationship’, that was almost certainly true. However, if you were looking for actual relationships as opposed to just three-day flings, my relationship pool shrank down to just Applejack.

“I’ll answer whatever questions I can, but I’m not the expert you think I am,” I said, regaining my composure.

“But you read all those romance novels,” Twilight said. “Plus, you’ve had a couple of actual relationships, right?”

“So did you,” I said, tapping my hoof on the table. Knock. Knock knock knock. Knock. Knock knock. “Or did I hallucinate Brad from Humanland? Actually, you never did take me through the portal to meet him; are the two of you still–?”

Twilight shook her head. “You mean Flash? He decided he’d rather date my human counterpart since she was, you know, around. Not that I was completely blameless, I was focusing so much on my new responsibilities and I just didn’t make time for him.”

“That’s still no excuse for him to leave you for your counterpart. That must’ve been humiliating,” I rested my hoof on hers. “If you want to talk about it at all, you’ll always have my ear.”

“It’s fine,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “It was never anything more than a crush, really. Honestly, I feel kind of bad for not giving you the opportunity to vent about your relationship with Applejack ending. I know it’s been a year, but…”

A faint smile formed on my lips. “I’ll admit, it hasn’t been the best year for me, but it’s been looking better lately. Besides, at this point, I think there’s very little I could say about Applejack without repeating myself.”

“But it still hurts?” Twilight asked with all the subtlety of a surgeon wielding a sledgehammer.

“Yes, Twilight, it still hurts. Every separation leaves a wound, and some wounds run deeper than others. When I think about the good times we had together, it stings, knowing those times are over. It stings even more knowing she found somepony else who makes her happy the way I used to, even though I’m also happy she found somepony else,” I said, sighing and shaking my head, trying to think of a better way to describe my feelings. “I used to be the mare she came to talk about everything with, the mare she spent her nights with, the mare she shared her dreams with... and now, I’m not. Now, she’s found somepony else to do all those things with her, and yes, that hurts, even though I’m nothing but happy for her.” There really needed to be a better word in the Equestrian language, one that perfectly summed up that feeling of being happy for somepony but not at all happy yourself.

“Got it,” Twilight said, jotting my words down in her notebook. “Uhmm… thank you for sharing all this with me. So, next question–”

“No,” I said. “I’m happy to be your little science experiment, Twilight, but you have to tell me what piqued your sudden interest in romance and relationships. I’m almost positive I know the answer, but I want to hear it straight from your mouth.”

“It’s… All those books I’ve been reading made me realize how little I knew about a fundamental aspect of pony life. The closest I’ve ever been to a relationship was a little transdimensional crush... but you? You practically breathe romance. Even your speech has a romantic flourish to it. You’re probably the second-best pony I could ask about the subject, but Cadance is so far away, so... I thought I could do most of my preliminary research with you,” she said, pulling her eyes away from her notebook to look at me.

“Well, Twilight, the best way to understand love is to actually experience it. I could write a book of my experiences for you, but it wouldn’t be anywhere near as helpful as having a relationship of your own. You learn a lot about yourself when you share your life with another pony,” I said, smiling at her.

“Right,” she said. “Okay, experience a relationship myself, but… how do you know when you want to date somepony? For Flash, it was just this giggle of hormones that shot through my body, but your books describe something more. Is it like…” She trailed off in thought for a few seconds. “There’s this pit in you that’s always drawn towards wherever they are? Like a whole section of your mind’s been dedicated to them? Do you stay up at night trying to tease out every interaction you had with them during the day to see if they feel the same way you do about them? Does the thought of just getting to spend time alone with them make you feel giddy?”

I laughed. “You know, Twilight, I don’t think you really need me to answer that question for you. But in the interest of furthering your education,” I said, giving her a teasing grin, “there is one other aspect you neglected to mention, probably because it so frequently fails to appear in my usual books.” I closed my eyes and summoned those first heady days with Applejack to mind. “When an existing friendship turns into a relationship, there’s something else – it happens in regular romances too, just usually much later – there’s this feeling like something’s slotted into place. You don’t just feel the usual elation of infatuation; there’s also this dull, aching contentment, like they met a need you never knew you had. I’d experience it with Applejack for a few fleeting moments at a time, when our dueling passions reached some level of equilibrium. In that small little valley between lust and loathing, I think love sat. Of course, for us, it never lasted long, but I think it’s important in a relationship.”

She nodded and looked up from her notebook. “No, that… I think you put your hoof on the thing I couldn’t describe in some of your books. Yes, that makes sense. Okay, so what do you do when you have a crush on somepony?”

“That’s the ten-million-bit question, isn’t it?” I asked, giving her a tiny laugh. “In the past, I’ve played the part of seductress when I wanted a particular stallion to ask me out, but I haven’t done that in years. I suppose the last time I tried that routine was during the Grand Galloping Gala, and we all remember how lovely that was. After that, there was Applejack, and the time between us realizing we had feelings for each other and us acting on those feelings was negligible – so if you have any ideas, I’m all ears.”

“Yeah, it’s tough,” Twilight said, flipping the page in her notebook. “I mean, it sounds tough. In the books, there’s a lot of complaining, and then a big romantic gesture, and then the story just ends. Sometimes they get together earlier, but then they break up for contrived reasons, and then they get back together after another big romantic gesture. They don’t feel very instructional.”

“Well, they aren’t meant to be instructional, Twilight. They’re meant to entertain, and most ponies, myself included, would much rather read about the fiery, tumultuous beginnings of a deeply-flawed relationship than an actual healthy romance,” I said, draining the last few drops of wine from my glass.

“But isn’t that bad?” Twilight asked. “If all you read about are unhealthy passionate relationships, then won’t you kind of think relationships should be passionate, fiery, and tumultuous? You can see that model reflected in your relationship with Applejack, and–”

“I don’t know,” I said, putting the wine glass down as I mentally ran through my long list of past ‘relationships.’ “I’ve had those thoughts before, but I wasn’t intentionally modelling my relationship with Applejack on my books. Still, I suppose it’s possible. There’s certainly a strong parallel between the relationships in my books and my past relationships, and… yes, I remember thinking of each relationship in the terms of a romance book at some point. Blueblood was supposed to be a courtly romance, and Applejack was the all-consuming passion. I might not have intentionally styled them after my books, but I did borrow their language.”

Twilight’s eyes lit up as she scribbled. “Fascinating, so… what if there were more books written about healthy relationships? Maybe I should try writing one. No, that wouldn’t be fair, that would be ‘exploiting my position.’ Okay, last question, how do you keep relationships going after the initial commencement? Most of the books end before they get to that point, and I already wrote Mom and Cadance, but I thought it wouldn’t hurt if I increased my sample size.”

“Yes, well, I suppose to me, a relationship is like a dance. You can’t just have things your way all the time, and even when you’re leading, you still need to read your partner’s body language. It’s the give and take. Of course, none of my relationships ever actually played out like that – but a mare can dream,” I said, shrugging my shoulders.

“I don’t really see how that ties in with dancing at all, though,” Twilight said, frowning. “Dancing is just something you do when you hear music.” Yes, I suppose that was a poor choice of metaphor on my part. Twilight knew dancing like I knew advanced theoretical magic. The last time she danced in public, a doctor asked us if she had a history of epilepsy.

“Your dancing is another thing we’ll have to work on, I suppose,” I said, sighing. “And sooner would be better.”

“Why? I’m a great dancer,” Twilight said, with the confidence of the completely inexperienced and deluded.

“No. No, you aren’t, Twilight,” I said, shaking my head. “Please understand, I say this with as much love as I can, but your dancing could cause a diplomatic incident. At the very least, it would be the top story in all the papers. Here, allow me to demonstrate what you look like when you dance.”

I moved to the large empty space between the table and the stage and flailed my arms out to the side wildly, doing my best to imitate the jerky seizures that Twilight thought passed for dancing. “Not pretty, is it?” I asked, the mortified look on her face providing all the answer I needed.

“It’s not that bad, is it?” Twilight asked.

“Twilight, it couldn’t possibly be worse. Even if you weren’t a princess, I’d say you desperately need a dance instructor,” I said, trotting over to her and feeling lightheaded after my ‘dancing’ demonstration. Well, half a bottle of wine would do that to you. “But since you are, lessons need to start immediately.” And luckily for us, the violinist was playing something we could dance to.

“Come on,” I said, extending my hoof to her. “You’ll be fine, you don’t need to go home and read every book on dancing you can. Just follow my lead until you get the hang of things, dear.”

“Alright,” she said, taking my hoof as I pulled her away from our table. “And how did you know what I was thinking?”

I rolled my eyes as I wrapped my forehooves around her neck and barrel. “Because I know you, Twilight. Now, wrap your hooves around me like I did with you. If we’re dancing together, our back legs are going to have to support each other’s weight, and it helps if we have a good grip on each other.”

“Right,” she said, mirroring my movement. “So… uhmm… we’re pretty close, aren’t we?”

“If you’re going to learn to dance, it’s best that you start with a dancing partner. That way, you have someone whose lead you can follow,” I said, pulling the two of us to step to the side in time with the music.

“Wait... so I’m just supposed to do what you say? I thought you said this was supposed to be all about compromises?” she said, half a step behind me.

“Very true,” I said, as we moved back together. “But something interesting happens when you dance with somepony long enough. After a while, you can predict the other pony’s movements so well that nopony is clearly leading. Instead, the both of you are moving as the music wills you, perfectly in harmony.”

I nudged her to my left as I rotated around to the right. Instead of rotating, she sidestepped and brought the two of us to the ground in a tangle of limbs. I groaned and stared up at the ceiling. “In the future, I suppose that instead of talking about the nature and philosophy of dance, I should just tell you how to move,” I said, trying to push Twilight off me.

“Sorry,” she said, slipping her forehoof out of my mane. “I guess I’m really not as good a dancer as I thought.”

“No,” I said, looping my foreleg out from under her back leg. How did that even happen? “But you know how to get to Carneighgie Hall, correct?”

She smiled at me as we both got to our hooves. “I think I do, and thanks for answering all my questions, Rarity. I really didn’t expect such thorough answers from you. I know some of those questions weren’t the easiest for you to answer, so... what do you say I make it up to you with another bottle of wine?”

I really shouldn’t say yes. I was already tipsy – but on the other hoof, how often do you have the opportunity to try twelve-thousand-bit wine? Especially with such good company. “Well, one more glass of wine wouldn’t hurt, I suppose.”

♦♦♦

“A true true friend helps a friend in need,” Twilight and I yelled, two bottles of wine later, as we slammed the door to her castle open. “A friend will be there to help you see. A true true friend helps a friend in need to see the light…”

“See the light!” Twilight yelled as we staggered up the stairs.

“That shines!” I said, twirling at the top of the stairs and sprinting off to her study.

“From a true,” Twilight sang, sprinting after me.

“True true frieeeeeeend!” we sang in unison, drunkenly stumbling into her study and collapsing on my chaise. I really did need to get to my own room, but…

“Twilightey, is it okay if I just… rest my eyes here for a moment?” I asked, stretching myself out.

“Shure, it’s your couch, anyways,” she said, flopping on top of me. “But it’s my castle, sho I get to sleep here too.”

“But you have a bed in your other room, and… I’m not sleeping here, just wanna rest my eyes. You can sleep on that couch,” I said, trying to push her off me.

“You’re sho comfy, though, like a giant marshmallow,” Twilight said, still clutching on to me despite my best attempts to get her off me.

“Get off,” I said, pushing at her. She clung on tighter. “Why can’t I get you off? It’s not fair.”

“Because I don’t want you to get–” She finally rolled off the edge but brought me down with her. Luckily for me, a certain alicorn princess/best friend was there to break my fall.

“Not so fun now, is it?” I said from on top of her. “What will you do to get me off you?”

“Well, I could just teleport you away, or teleport you into your bed, but… I’m good, actually. Like, you’re a big nice comfy blanket that smells like Rarity. G’night,” she said, closing her eyes and resting her head on the big carpet that took up most of her room.

“Wait, Twilight, that’s not how this is… Hmph! Fine then, be that way,” I said, doing my best to make myself comfortable and nuzzling into the crook of Twilight’s wing. If she was going to be difficult, then I’d show her. I’d sleep here all night long, just to prove my point, which was… Whatever it was, it needed to be proven, and I wasn’t going to rest until it was. I yawned. Or more accurately, I was going to rest until I’d proven my point. I smiled, pleased with my inestimable wit as I sank deeper into the twilight of unconsciousness.

Author's Note

This is... well, I really liked how this chapter turned out. Rarilight are at their best when they're having long conversations, in my opinion.

Next chapter should be out around Saturday. See you in the comment section.

4. Anger Management

I smiled, relishing the feeling of my feather bed. Since when did I have a feather bed? I yawned and nestled deeper into the crook between the feather bed and my warm furry pillow. And pillows aren’t warm and furry. My eyes fluttered open to see a familiar shade of lavender. “Twilight?”

“Hey, you’re up,” Twilight said. I lifted my head up from the crook it had been resting on, to see Twilight lying on her back with a report and a romance novel floating above her. “I was wondering when that would happen. My wing went numb a couple of hours ago.”

“You could have woken me up,” I said, getting to my hooves and remembering my last minutes of wakefulness last night. “Or teleported me to my bed.”

“True,” she said, bringing her wings tight against her sides and rolling to the side. “But you looked so comfortable, I didn’t want to wake you up. Besides, it’s not like it’s the first time we shared a bed.” True, there were sleepovers where we’d had to double up – but we weren’t on top of each other then.

I stretched again and felt a crack in my back. “I don’t think I was that comfortable,” I said. “But thank you for letting me sleep. I’m sorry if that impacted your work.”

“Not really,” she said, moving to my chaise as Opal moved to rub herself against my legs. Yes, the poor dear was probably hungry. Had I remembered to feed her last night? I don’t think so. “I’m pretty used to reading by hornlight, so I just floated the books I had to read over to me and went to work. It was only slightly less efficient than usual.”

“Well, I’m glad to hear that,” I said, trotting over to the small bag of cat food Twilight had brought over from my house and floating Opal’s food bowl over with me. “So, what’s on the agenda today?”

“Nothing much. I’m almost done with work for the day; after that, I guess I’ll read a few romance novels and try to apply information gathered last night to them. Thanks again for being so helpful,” she said, trotting over to her desk.

“It’s utterly fine, dear, I’m the one who should be thanking you for treating me to such a wonderful dinner. Honestly, if answering a few unpleasant questions is what it takes to dine at Gustaf’s, it’s a price I’ll happily pay,” I said, pouring Opal’s less-than-exceptional food into her bowl.

“You know, we can go there again, but this time without the questions. Having you around gives me as good an excuse as any to dine out, and the food is really good,” Twilight said, making a few notes to her report. “Besides, it’s fun eating out with you. It’s fun eating out with the other girls too, but… Ooh, I hate saying I like spending time with one friend more than the others, but it’s nice having someone whose eyes don’t glaze over when I talk about magic or third-century unicorn history.”

“Well, I had to read some unicorn history just to talk with the nobles, so learning more about that is always a delight. As for the magic, I suppose I do have a bit more knowledge about spellcasting than the rest of the girls, yes,” I laughed. “Probably not much more, though, especially compared to you.”

“It’s alright,” Twilight said, her ears flattening against her head. “Thank you for listening to me ramble about stuff. I know it’s probably not that interesting to you, but it means a lot to me.”

“You’re making too big a deal about it, dear,” I said, putting Opal’s bowl down next to her water bowl. “Even if I had no interest in the subject matter, I could probably listen to you lecture about anything. Something about your delivery puts me into that same lovely, half-awake, yet focused state I get into when I’m making a dress.”

Twilight shook her head and frowned. “I’m sorry, but how can you be half awake and focused at the same time? When I’m focused on something, my head feels like it’s a firestorm of activity connecting everything to everything else.”

“And that’s how I feel when a bolt of inspiration hits, when an idea arrives with such creative force that I have no choice but to listen and act upon it – but those bolts are few and fleeting. When I’m actually designing the dress, I find my best work arises when I’m so focused on the task that my mind’s almost shut down.” I frowned, trying to think of a better way to describe the feeling. “No, that’s not quite right. It’s not that my mind has shut down, exactly; it’s just that the work has become so important and all-consuming that there’s no room for thought or critique. It’s a marvelous feeling, taking something that exists only in my mind and bringing it into existence, and I honestly don’t feel like I’m designing so much as I’m revealing. The dress was always there in the ether, I’m just translating it into reality... That sounds completely crazy, doesn’t it?”

“A little,” Twilight said, nodding her head as I trotted over to my latest dress-in-progress. “But I kind of see what you mean. Sometimes, when I watch you work, it’s like you’re not really there. You’re so focused on your work that you seem like you’re just a part of the dress.” She watched me work? Surely, stitching wasn’t that fascinating… to the outside observer, at least.

“Good, so I’m not completely crazy,” I said, putting my glasses on. “Anyway, when I listen to your lecture, it’s the inverse of that feeling. Like I’m just translating your words into my mind.”

“Ha, yeah…” Twilight said. “It’s nice not having my lectures described as tedious for once.”

I smiled at her as I grabbed cloth and scissors with my magic. “Well, perhaps we just have a higher tolerance for tedium than the rest of the girls, then. I suppose it’s a natural result from having jobs that require us to focus on one thing for hours or a time. Or, perhaps because we have a higher tolerance for tedium, we chose jobs that require us to focus on one thing for hours at a time.”

“Yeah, the chicken or the egg,” Twilight said, returning my smile before going back to her books. “Also, I just wanted to thank you for spending these last few days with me. It’s nice having somepony to talk with now that Spike’s coming into his own and spending more and more time outside the castle. I never knew how much I appreciated having somepony around, until I didn’t.”

“Happy to fill a need, I suppose,” I said. “Although, really, I should be the one thanking you for so generously sharing your castle with me.” There was plenty of castle to share, of course, but she was still giving me a place to stay for as long as I wanted with no strings attached. “Anyways, what do you want to do tonight?”

Twilight frowned in thought for a few seconds. “I really want to see the rest of the girls, but Applejack and Rainbow Dash won’t be getting back for a few more days. I guess we could just have dinner with Pinkie and Fluttershy, since she’s getting back today, and then when Applejack and Rainbow Dash get back, we can have our big dinner. If that’s okay with you, of course.”

“It’s completely fine. I’m a big mare, I can handle seeing an ex in a loving relationship without being consumed by jealousy,” I said, cutting the outline of my dress.

“Really?” Twilight asked. “Because the last time you saw them together, you spent the night wandering through town in the middle of a thunderstorm. That actually sounds worse than being consumed by jealousy.”

“I admit, I handled it poorly, but… you have to understand, one of the main reasons I broke up with Applejack, besides how terribly unhealthy the relationship was, was to set a good example for Sweetie. Of course, we had the intervention a few weeks later, and I wound up losing both of them. If I had just waited until after the intervention to break up with Applejack...” I trailed off, feeling sharp wet stings building behind my eyes. It wasn’t that I’d lost Applejack, just… remembering that time wasn’t a particularly pleasant experience.

“But you didn’t lose Applejack,” Twilight said, looking up at me. At some point during my speech, I’d stopped working on my dress and let the scissors clatter on to the floor. “She’s still your friend, she’s still in Ponyville, you just stopped being in an extremely unhealthy relationship with her. And Sweetie Belle will probably come back eventually. She’s not gone forever either.” No, just for another one year, two seasons, and fifty-eight days. Over halfway through the waiting. I’d need to write Scootaloo soon and see how she was doing.

“You know, Twilight, the sad thing is that my relationship with Applejack was probably the ‘healthiest’ relationship I’ve had. Yes, half the time, it was a terrible disaster, but the other half of the time it was wonderful. My other relationships might not have been as physically destructive, but they were still a poison to the soul,” I said. “Really, it’s no wonder Sweetie turned out how she did, considering the example I set.”

Twilight trotted over to me and rested a forehoof on my cheek, forcing me to look her in the eyes. “Rarity, you were a great sister to Sweetie. You did the best you could for her, and if there were mistakes made, it wasn’t like you wanted to make them.”

“And that somehow excuses them?” I said, looking down at the floor. “She was still my responsibility. I made mistakes, and they hurt her. If I had just been a better sister, then none of this would’ve happened. Instead, I gave her the rope to hang herself. I should have put a stop to that ‘herd’ of hers the moment it started. I definitely should have forbidden her from seeing Bright Lights sooner. But I allowed it, because I didn’t want to be a hypocrite. Who cares about being a hypocrite when you’re right? If I had just taken action sooner, I have to think things would have been better. They couldn’t have been worse.” But then again, apparently Sweetie had also orchestrated her fall for reasons not at all known to me. Did she share my masochistic streak?

“With hindsight, sure, you made mistakes, but you couldn’t have known any of this would happen. You did your best, you didn’t just neglect her,” Twilight said.

“No, that job went to my parents,” I said, the fangs of anger on the back of my neck. “How much damage could have been avoided if they’d just bothered to raise us? Instead, the minute we were old enough to–” I took a breath. “No, I’m not going to get into that again. Ruminating on their failings won’t fix anything. Anyway, thank you for listening to me vent, Twilight.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about it more?” Twilight asked. “I don’t think it’s healthy to sit on all that anger.”

“No, probably not,” I said, turning back to the cloth I’d mould into a dress. “But I’m exceptionally good at it. You learn to find little harmless outlets for it after a while.”

“Like fighting with Applejack?” I winced at Twilight’s words. Very astute today, Twilight.

“Yes, I suppose exactly like that. That’s one of the stranger things I loved about our relationship – it gave me an outlet that could bear the brunt of my frustrations, and then hit back. Oh, Twilight, our fights were marvelous things. Like prizefighters in the ring, working out our frustrations until neither of us could stand up. And then, when we were both completely spent, we’d kiss and make up,” I said, a tiny smile forming on my lips. “Is it wrong that I miss that?”

“I don’t know,” Twilight said. “I can understand missing a coping mechanism, but maybe…” She trailed off. “I have an idea. Come on.”

“Twilight, where are we going?” I asked, following her as she moved out of the study.

“It’s a surprise,” she said before opening the door to Spike’s room. “Spike, we’re going to be out for a few hours. Can you handle things here by yourself for a bit?”

He looked up from his letters. “Yep, just responding to all these ‘royal requests’. You sure you don’t want to endorse those snowblowers?”

“Yes, I’m sure. Why would I endorse a snowblower? I don’t even use snowblowers,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “And that response to the financial plan’s been sent to Appleloosa?”

“Yep,” he said, stamping the letter with Twilight’s royal seal. “And you’d endorse the snowblowers to get a free snowblower.”

“Spike, don’t start milking the princess thing to get as much free stuff as you can. You remember what happened the last time you tried that, right?” Twilight said.

“Yes, I turned into a giant town-destroying dragon. But it’s hard not to be greedy with ponies offering me free stuff all the time. At least, they do when they know I’m your assistant,” Spike said.

Twilight sighed. “No more free stuff, alright? I know it’s not easy, and it stinks that you have to be so disciplined all the time, but that’s how baby dragons grow up to be noble dragons instead of big greedy brutes.”

“I know,” he said, sighing and looking down at the letters that very nearly concealed the comic book he’d been reading. I wonder if Twilight noticed the corner of it sticking out from his pile of papers. “And yeah, I can take care of myself while you and Rarity are out doing whatever. See you for dinner?”

“You bet,” she said, smiling at him. “Whenever you’re done mailing my responses to the mayors of Appleloosa and Dodge Junction, feel free to take the rest of the day off.”

“I’ll get right on it then,” he said, pulling a few letters out of his pile of organized chaos. “Have fun on your day out.”

“Thanks, Spike,” Twilight said, trotting out of his room and over to the stairs. “You ready, Rarity?”

I nodded at her. “I am, although I do wish you’d tell me just what you have in mind. I was planning on getting some work done today.”

“It’ll just be a few hours, I promise,” Twilight said as we headed down the stairs. “Probably not even that much.”

“Very well,” I said as we reached the bottom landing. “I can’t wait to see whatever this surprise of yours is.”

♦♦♦

“Twilight, I feel patently ridiculous,” I said, trying to adjust my foam head-and-horn guards. At least I hadn’t showered yet; otherwise, all my beautification work for the day would’ve been completely wasted. “And what sort of ruffian do you take me for? A lady doesn’t box.”

“So that’s why instead of casting a spell at that manticore, you decided to punch it,” Twilight said from across me in the boxing ring. “And the changelings. And I’m willing to bet you had a plan to hoof-fight the Diamond Dogs if all else failed.”

“Fine,” I said, getting up on my back legs and taking a few tentative swings with my glove-covered forelegs. “I might throw a few punches when things get heated, but that’s hardly the same thing as beating up my best friend.”

“You won’t be beating me up,” she said, using her wings to balance perfectly on her hind legs. Cheater. “You’ll be punching my target mitts. It’s completely different. Once you get used to standing on your back legs, maybe we can start actually boxing. Did you know that beyond promoting general fitness, boxing is supposed to increase balance?”

“I can see why,” I said, falling back on my forehooves. Standing with my forelegs slightly longer than my back legs because of the gloves was… strange, to say the least.

“Okay, think of this like one of your fights with Applejack,” Twilight said. “Just grab on to that anger and don’t stop until it’s all gone.”

“Twilight, I spend a great deal of time not tapping into that anger. I can’t just access it at will,” I said, getting back up on my hind legs and tottering around. “Applejack had to absolutely infuriate me before we really got into it.”

“Fine, what can I say to upset you?” Twilight asked.

“I don’t know, I don’t exactly keep an itemized list of things that will send me into a boiling rage,” I said, struggling to stay upright.

“Hmm, okay, please don’t hate me for anything I’m about to say?” she asked.

I nodded my head.

“What happened to Sweetie was your fault.”

“I already told you I think that’s the case,” I said, moving to lean against the ring’s ropes. “You can’t upset me by using one of the arguments I’ve been using to beat myself up with already.”

“Okay, we’re definitely going to have to talk things out later, but right now… All your dresses are ugly?”

I laughed. “I’m an artist, darling. I’ve heard far worse criticism of my work. I believe one particularly harsh review said I had less talent than a blind quadriplegic.”

“Ugh, you know, I really didn’t think it would be this tough to upset you… Okay, I think I got it.” She narrowed her eyes. “The only good outfits you ever made were the five outfits we had you make for our first gala.” Yes, that would do it. There was being over-critical, and then there was being so cruel as to say those abominations were good. After our first fashion show, I’d had them burned in the backyard to appease whatever demons they’d almost certainly attract.

“Philistine!” I shrieked, throwing myself from the ropes over to Twilight and launching my hoof at her target.

♦♦♦

I panted and stared at the ceiling of the gym, sweat covering every inch of my coat as a throbbing ache radiate from my forehooves. If I could find the energy to move my eyes slightly to the left, I’d see Twilight leaning on her ropes for support.

Whump. Whump.

I could’ve stopped an hour ago. That’s when my body started to burn. I could have, but whenever I thought I’d finally gotten it out of my system, I saw their faces on my targets, and I couldn’t stop. Not as long as I could move.

Whump. Whump.

I let out a laugh. My body burned with energy and rage. My forehooves were starting to ache, but that’s what the gloves were for. I couldn’t stop now. My hooves lashed out again and again, as Twilight was forced up against the ropes. I kept going, blow after blow. If Twilight told me to stop, I would’ve in a heartbeat, but she didn’t. She kept the targets up, so I continued my assault.

Whump. Whump.

I was back on the mat, staring up at the ceiling, listening to the sound of my own heartbeat. My whole body ached and it felt wonderful. I tried to summon up some ghost of my frustration, but there was just a dull exhaustion where it used to be. “Thank you, Twilight,” I said. “This was…” I gulped down air, struggling to sate my burning lungs. “Exactly what I needed.”

“Yeah…” she panted. I could hear her slumping down on the mat. I somehow managed to loll my head over, and there she was, sitting on the ground and leaning against the ropes. “We… You really need to talk all this through with somepony… Maybe not me, but… somepony.”

“Very well,” I said, not even bothering to try and move my leaden limbs. “Not today, though. Today… Can we please go to the spa? I don’t think I’ll ever be able to… get this sweat off me.”

“Sure, Rarity,” Twilight said. “This is… Thanks for the workout. I’ve been meaning to… Go to the gym. Never had the motivation before. First, can we… Can we just sit here a bit?”

“I think… Can you move?” I asked.

“Maybe, but I really don’t want to,” Twilight said, lifting up one forehoof and letting it plop back down. “You?”

“No,” I said, taking another breath. “So… Stay here?”

She panted and sank deeper into the mat. “Yeah, stay here."

♦♦♦

I winced with every step I took. I’d bruised my forehooves more than I thought during my “therapy.” Still, I couldn’t help but smile as I walked into the spa. “Hello, Aloe,” I said, greeting the pink mare behind the counter. “Two deluxe packages, please.”

“Oh, Rarity, are you okay?” she asked, trotting over to me and inspecting my coat. “Pardon my rudeness, but you look a mess. Your mane is all clumped to your head, and you reek of…”

“Yes, I know,” I said as Twilight followed me into the spa. “That’s why we’re here, to clean ourselves up and enjoy a little pampering. I think we should start with the soak, though.”

“Agreed,” Aloe said, looking between the both of us. “Yes, you two must have had quite the day.” She winked. “Please, just take a seat in the bath, and we’ll get you your robes.” As she trotted off, she gave Twilight a small bow.

The two of us trotted through the double door connecting the foyer to the spa proper, and the first thing I saw as I entered was the beautiful bubbling hot tub in the center of the room. I think I might be in love. At the very least, my muscles certainly were. I let out a tiny squeak as I lowered myself deeper into the bubbling water.

“What was that?” Twilight asked, looking down at me.

“Get in the hot tub, and you’ll find out,” I said. How could a tub be so wonderful.

“Fine,” Twilight said, lowering a hoof into the tub. “I really don’t see…” She paused as her eyes rolled up into her head. “Ohhhhhhhhh…. Ohhhhhhhhhhhh…” She lowered herself into the tub as quickly as possible. “We’re going to the spa every time we go to the gym, aren’t we?”

I nodded.

“Yeah,” she said, sinking in so her head was just barely sticking out of the water. “I can live with that.”

Jets of warm water massaged our throbbing muscles, and we were both content in each other’s silence. “Thank you, again, Twilight,” I said. smiling as my aches dissolved in the water. “For giving me something I never knew I needed. I’ll make it up to you somehow.”

“Mhmm… You don’t have to,” Twilight said, not bothering to open her eyes. “Friends help each other. I’m pretty sure there were at least a few friendship reports about that.”

“I still want to help you with something…” I trailed off, trying to think of some suitable recompense. “Your regalia – perhaps I could design that for you? If you want. What do you think of silver and blue as a color scheme?”

“Well, I appreciate the offer, but I have a purple and gold crown, and I’m kind of attached to it. It reminds me of my element,” she said, opening an eye a sliver to take a peek at me.. “Not that I like wearing my crown around, but I still like it.”

“Very well,” I said, throwing out my earlier design for her torque. “I was just thinking you might like a color scheme that was different from Princess Celestia’s.” Why I ever thought she’d want to differentiate herself from Princess Celestia, I had no idea. Purple and gold… Well, I could do something with the gold. Maybe dilute it slightly? There was something about Twilight’s crown that when it caught the light just right, it set the world on fire. If I could bring that quality into her torque… Yes, it would have to be a minimalist thing, not too ostentatious, so the focus of attention would be her natural beauty.

Actually, it was amazing how beautiful she was. Was I more beautiful than she was? When I was completely made up, possibly, but naturally? Absolutely not. She had some natural charm I could never in a million years hope to replicate. Yes, any designs I made would have to highlight that. That would be fun, though; I’d always wanted to work in the minimalist aesthetic, and this was the perfect opportunity. If we were going minimalist, then perhaps something closer in design to Princess Luna’s torque would be called for. Amethyst starburst in the center of the gold torque? Possible, but it felt heavy, like it would draw too much attention from her face. How could I make it lighter? Make the gold band thinner? Too much thinner and it might seem like a necklace. That wouldn’t do, would it? Unrelated note: Why did Princess Celestia’s torque look so much like my element? Same color scheme, same design. If my element’s band were a bit larger and the band thicker and less ornate, you couldn’t tell the two apart.

Ooh! That was a nice idea. Maybe I could make the band for her torque resemble the band for our elements! That way, it could tie into her past, and… Yes, Rarity, we can work with this. I’d have to find someone who could craft the band and set the gem, but… Yes, this could be good. Very very good. Of course, there was still the issue of what color her shoes should be, but progress was progress. I opened an eye to find Twilight staring at me. “What?” I asked.

“I was just… I was watching you think. I didn’t mean to, but I couldn’t help but notice how intently you were focused on something, and then it was kind of fascinating just watching your expression change and trying to extrapolate your thoughts. I’m guessing you had some idea for my regalia?”

“I did,” I said, nodding at her and smiling. “And I promise, you’re going to love it. Although… Did Celestia ever tell you why my element so closely resembled the design for her torque?”

“Huh, it does, doesn’t it,” Twilight said, leaning her head back and looking up at the ceiling. “Well, there is the possibility you could be distantly descended from…” Her eyes snapped open. “I need to check my library. Is there any chance you have your family’s genealogical records? Wow, how did I not think of this sooner? It’s so obvious.”

“What’s obvious?” I asked, looking at her. Twilight was very dear to me, but it would be nice if she’d explain what she was thinking when she had one of her brainstorms instead of just giving me half-complete statements.

“Nothing yet. Well, I don’t want to get your hopes up without having… You have to understand, Princess Celestia’s regalia isn’t really her regalia, it’s inherited. A unification gesture to appease the nobility. It was actually given to Princess Celestia by the great-granddaughter of Princess Platinum, the regalia’s original owner,” Twilight said.

My ears perked up and I leaned forward as much as I dared without upsetting my muscles. Was she saying that. “You think I’m related to…”

“Well, I would, but there’s a bit of a problem. Well, bigger than a bit. All of Princess Platinum’s descendents were either killed or swore a vow of celibacy a few hundred years ago, after one of Platinum’s descendents tried to overthrow Princess Celestia using her claim on the throne,” Twilight said.

I sighed and sank back into the water. “That does put a little damper on this fantasy of yours,” I said.

“Also, even if I was right, one of your parents would inherit the title, not you, unless they proved to be somehow unfit for it.” Well, I could think of several dozen reasons they were unfit for the title of parent, but princess was another matter. I laughed at the idea of my father suddenly becoming a Princess of Equestria.

“Sorry,” I said, smiling at Twilight. “I just imagined my parents suddenly becoming nobility. I don’t think Canterlot could handle such boorishness, and I don’t think my parents could handle such rigid formality. Are you still going to try and research this?”

“Of course,” Twilight said, sitting up and splashing the water as she gestured dramatically with her forelegs. “Do you have any idea how huge it would be if we found out Princess Platinum has living descendants? It would be big. Bigger than big. It might even be bigger than me ascending.”

“I highly doubt that,” I said. “Even if you’re right, which you already admitted is almost impossible, that would at best mean that I’m distantly related to somepony important, while you personally saved Equestria… how many times is it now?”

She frowned. “Between five and seven? But I don’t really think I saved Equestria at all, since I couldn’t have done it without you and the others. I guess I can understand the arguments for me playing a vital role in saving Equestria in at least five instances, but really, as much of the credit should go to you girls.”

Yes, very humble of you, Twilight, but you figured out how to restore the Elements, and you undid Discord’s magic on us, and you saved us from Tirek. We simply assisted you. A little pride in your work isn’t a terrible thing. “My point, Twilight, is that you are far more important to Equestria than I.”

“Rarity, you’re–”

“Twilight, I know what you’re going to say, and I appreciate the sentiment, but at the end of the day, Equestria could carry on without me. It couldn’t without you. That’s all I meant to imply,” I said.

“Because you’re importan–”

“Spare me the cliche, Twilight, and I know that sounds hypocritical, but can you honestly say I’m as important as you? We all exist in your shadow, and I’m okay with that, really, I am, just… Can you honestly say I’m more important to Equestrian society than you? Can you say that me suddenly being related to an admittedly stylish and important mare who lived over a thousand years ago is more important than you and all your accomplishments?” She frowned, practically deflating into the water, and I felt like the biggest bully in all of Equestria. Yes, I might’ve been right, but the dear was just trying to be kind.

I closed my eyes and sighed, rubbing my head. “I’m sorry, Twilight. I shouldn’t have taken my frustrations out on you, I just… I hate being pitied.” An unbidden memory came to mind. School children whispering about ‘poor Rarity,’ whose parents could never be found. Poor Rarity, living in a house all alone. Poor Rarity, such a sweet filly but so unmannered, doesn’t even know how to answer a question. Poor Rarity, sitting in her room, devouring all she can find about class and etiquette. Poor Rarity, rebuilding herself from the ground up as the mare other mares wish they could be. Poor Rarity, catching the eye of every stallion in Ponyville. Poor Rarity, rising star on the dressmaking scene. Poor, poor Rarity, eclipsing all her detractors. I swallowed it down. Twilight didn’t deserve any of that old business.

“You’re important to me,” she mumbled into the water. “I’m sorry, I just wanted to help you, and I don’t like hearing my friends beat themselves up.”

“I understand, Twilight, truly, I do. I just don’t see how me having some royal ancestry could be more important than you,” I said. Of course, I wasn’t overlooking the obvious implications of me being related to a princess, not in the slightest. This was massive for me if Twilight’s impossible theory was right.

“Oh!” Twilight said, slipping into lecture mode. “Well, it’s not immediately important, but it’s historically important. You know, most unicorns revere Princess Platinum, even though Clover the Clever was the hero of the piece and student to Star Swirl the Bearded, but Princess Platinum is seen as a symbol of unicorn sovereignty, so her having a living descendent would be… kind of huge for the unicorn nobility.”

“Ah, I think I see your point,” I said, nodding at her. “And again, I’m so sorry for snapping at you. You’re right, I do probably need to talk things through with somepony, and I… You’re very important to me too, Twilight Sparkle. I don’t know where I’d be without your friendship.”

“Well, if we weren’t friends, Equestria would probably still be trapped in eternal darkness, so… frozen to death. I think we’d all be frozen to death,” she said. “Promise me you won’t be so… Can I tell you a little story Princess Celestia told me when I was studying under her?” Twilight asked. It was good seeing her usual cheer and enthusiasm coming back after I’d so cavalierly trampled it.

“Of course,” I said, smiling at her. Apparently, Aloe and Lotus were letting us soak as long as we wanted today. I suppose they knew we needed it.

“Well, it’s not really a story, more a question. Who’s more important in Equestria? The farmer or Princess Celestia?” Twilight asked.

“Princess Celestia, obviously,” I said, nodding my head. The question almost certainly had a trick to it, but I couldn’t quite grasp it. “There’s only one of her, but hundreds of farmers.”

“That’s what I said too,” Twilight said. “Although actually, there are thousands of farmers in Equestria. There are a one hundred and seventeen within sixty miles around Ponyville, but that’s not the point. The point is, yes, Princess Celestia is vital to the functioning of Equestria. She’s led us for a thousand years in relative peace and ushered in a golden age for all ponykind. However! Who makes the food Princess Celestia has to eat?”

“The farmer,” I said, starting to see where her argument was going. “But–”

“Sorry, I think I know what you’re going to say, it’s what I said too. ‘What about the writers and the artists?’ Or for you, what about the dressmakers? They aren’t vital to Equestria. Is that about right?” she asked.

“A bit on point, but yes, that was the nature of my objection. I can see how a farmer can be as vital to society as a princess, but… yes, what about the dressmakers?” I said. “How can a dressmaker, in a society that generally eschews clothing, be as important as a princess?”

“I won’t forget what Celestia told me, I’m going to try my best to get this right, but I might mess up a few words, she said, ‘Twilight, nopony exists in a vacuum. Everything we do shapes the world around us in small ways. The bartender serves the playwright who has a drunken vision that leads to him writing the play that inspires the child to become a guard who saves the town. Remove one and the whole town dies.’ I remember that night, she gave me a poem to read, and I kind of memorized it. Do you want to hear it?”

I smiled and nodded at her. “I would like that very much, Twilight Sparkle.”

She shook her head. “Full name, why? Anyways, you’ve probably heard the first and last lines of it before, but I think the whole thing is beautiful.” She cleared her throat.

“No mare is an island,
entire of itself,
every mare is a piece of the continent,
a part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Equestria is the less.
As well as if a promontory.
As well as if a manor of thy friend’s.
Or of thine own were:
Any mare’s death diminishes me,
because I am involved in ponykind,
and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;
it tolls for thee.

“So that’s why I hate it when you start talking about how you’re somehow less important than me because you didn’t save Equestria. We’re so much a part of each other, and I could have never saved Equestria without you. Without any of you. You’re so fantastically important, everything you do creates ripples that shape the world. Every action you take adds a note to this grand symphony of Equestria, and without you, the symphony wouldn’t be as wonderful. Without you, I’d still be the grumpy misequinthrope who’d rather stay cooped up in her library than spend time with friends. All those moments of happiness you give would be gone. Every good you did to other ponies would be gone, and the good you inspired them to do would be gone too. Without you, a ripple of darkness echoes through Equestria, and inestimable light is lost. So please, promise me you’ll never say you’re less important than me again. Alright?”

I’d never loved her more than I had in that instant. She wasn’t just my dear friend, she was the living embodiment of friendship. She was a blinding light, and anything that diminished that light was a crime of the highest order. Warm tears stung my eyes as I wrapped my forelegs around her. Her world of interconnected lights shining and filling each other, driving each other to be brighter and better than before filled my mind as I closed my eyes. All of us burned together, shining as bright as the light next to us. With her star next to mine, my light could be like a second sun. “I promise.”

Author's Note

This was... I debated a long time on whether or not the ending was too sentimental for the story. Hopefully, it isn't, but I'm always interested in your feedback.

5. My Best Friend's Mare

I yawned and looked at the ceiling. It had been days since my talk with Twilight in the spa, but there was still this cool contentment sitting in my stomach. You are so fantastically important. I smiled as her words repeated in my head. It wasn’t just the words, though; it was the absolute sincerity she delivered them with. She didn’t just give me platitudes to make me feel better, she showed a part of her soul to me, a beautiful wonderful part I’d never forget.

Dinner with Pinkie and Fluttershy later that evening was fine. We talked, they asked how I was doing – my retreat from the Boutique was common knowledge now – I told them I was fine and asked how Fluttershy’s trip was, she said it was fine, Twilight made some delightful joke about something or another, and we enjoyed a perfectly nice meal together. Odd, I caught Pinkie and Fluttershy exchanging glances later in the evening when they thought I wasn’t looking. Why? What could have prompted that? Something I did with Twilight? I filed the thought away for future contemplation.

My smile only grew after I finished my morning ablutions and trotted to Twilight’s study. The room had certainly grown homier over the last week or so, and I couldn’t wait to see Twilight’s latest project. When I’d gone to bed last night, she was scouring her genealogies for information on Princess Platinum’s descendents. She really is a dear for looking into that for me, even though I’m almost positive it won’t amount to anything, I thought. At the very least, it allows me to fantasize about being royalty for a few days.

“Good morning, Twilight,” I said, trotting into her study and seeing a giant paper stuck against one wall. No tacks, was she using magical or regular adhesive? Knowing Twilight, it was almost certainly the former. “Did you sleep well?”

She smiled at me. “Great, you?”

“Very well,” I said, trotting over to look at the paper. It was a family lineage, and at the very top sat Princess Platinum. “You know, I keep thinking I’m going to get used to how comfortable your beds are; that one day, I’ll acclimate – but it hasn’t happened yet.”

“Yeah, it hasn’t happened for me either. I think the beds are enchanted somehow, but there are so many spells wrapped up in this place, I can’t really look at them individually. All I’ve figured out is that there’s a lot of magic tied up here, and that the castle is growing.”

“Now that you mention it, it does seem larger than when you first moved in here. I don’t recall there being a guest wing when we decorated,” I said, looking down the list of names. Platinum’s last descendent died out about six-hundred years ago. A name scratched out on the parchment caught my eyes.

“What happened here?” I asked, pointing to it.

“Oh!” Twilight said, smiling and trotting from her desk over to me. “That’s the really interesting thing. Everypony learns about Princess Platinum’s five daughters, but she actually had six. If you look at all the original records, you can see there’s a name scratched out or erased, and a few years later, there’s no mention of her – or him – at all. After the rest of her descendents died off, some unicorns took to telling stories about the lost scion of Princess Platinum. They said she left because she refused to accept Celestia’s rule, but considering that Princess Celestia didn’t come to Equestria until the time of Platinum’s great-granddaughter, that’s almost certainly not the case. If you’re descended from anyone, though, it’s probably her.” Twilight practically giggled with excitement. “Do you know how huge it would be if we discovered the name of Princess Platinum’s sixth daughter?”

I smiled at her. “Judging from your barely-bridled glee, I’d guess the answer is big.”

“Big? Big? That’s like saying the sun is warm. History books would be rewritten, Rarity. Our understanding of post-unification Equestrian society could change dramatically. I’ll need your help, though,” Twilight said, floating several notebooks to revolve around her.

“You need only ask,” I said, humming a few bars of one of Mocart’s symphonies to myself. If I thought about the idea of me being a princess too much, I’d be as manic as Twilight. I wonder, would I be able to imprison ponies? Issue decrees? Or would it simply be a symbolic title? It didn’t matter, either way, my wildest fantasy would be a reality. Ooh! Ponies would be lining up to court me.

“Does your family have a detailed genealogy?” Twilight asked, pulling me from my nascent fantasy.

“I don’t believe so,” I said, frowning. “I never really inquired too much. My mother’s side of the family, especially, is an enigma.”

“It’s fine,” Twilight said. “I can look up your official birth records when I visit the Canterlot archives.”

“No, no, you don’t need to do that,” I said, a tension springing into my chest. “I’m quite sure of my immediate family, no point wasting your time on things we already know.” I needed to check my safety deposit box soon, make sure everything was in its proper place.

“Well, I like to have complete records,” Twilight said, frowning and looking from me to the paper on her wall. “It never hurts to look through the stuff you think you know, because there’s always something you could’ve missed.”

“Twilight, I know who gave birth to me, believe me. I spent a year trying to see if there was any way my mother wasn’t. I know what the records say, and I can assure you there’s nothing important on those ones,” I said with far more confidence than I felt.

“Fine, if you really don’t want me to look through your records, I’ll just start with your grandparents if you know who they are,” Twilight said, sighing. I hated squashing her natural curiosity, but she really didn’t need to see those records.

“I do,” I said, trotting over to my collection of mannequines. “My father’s parents were Royal Flush and Red Cent. My mother’s were High Class, he was a teacher, and Golden Chimes.”

“Golden Chimes?” Twilight asked, mouth working silently for a second. “I think I can– Your mom’s name is…”

“Mother’s name is Cookie Crumble,” I said, sighing. “At least, that’s what she says. The one time I met my grandmother, she refused to acknowledge her by that name and stuck to calling her Silver Sound the whole time. Mother was quite incensed by the whole thing, and the next time I saw Golden Chimes was when we were lowering her into the ground.”

“Interesting, ponies have been known to change their names to better reflect their cutie marks, but rarely to the point of completely rejecting their old name. Do you have any idea why?” Twilight said, trotting over to her desk.

“Probably spite,” I said, shrugging as I stabbed a needle through the piece I was working on. “It seems to be a uniting trend amongst the mares of my family.” I ignored the look I saw from the corner of my eyes. “Yes, I did something, and no, I don’t want to talk about it at the moment. We will, just… later.”

“Fiiiiine,” Twilight said, stretching the word out as long as possible and making no effort to hide her exasperation. She made a clicking noise as her mind turned back to the problem at hoof. “Sweetie Belle, Golden Chimes, Silver Sound. You’re the only one whose name doesn’t play on metals or sound in some way. Traditionally, dynastic naming is indicative of a shared family trade or nobility. Is there any reason they broke convention with you?”

We were going to have to get into this, weren’t we? “They didn’t. My full name is Rarity Bell. No ‘e’ at the end. I dropped the last name partly to spite them and partly because I thought the mononym sounded better for a fashion designer.”

“Oh,” Twilight said. “Well, I think both your names sound great.” She made a note in her book. “It seems your maternal line has a strong history of dynastic naming, which is great. It will make my research a lot easier, and I’m liking the fact that precious metals figure heavily into the naming scheme.”

I nodded. Yes, that was– So far, it was just a coincidence. Just a coincidence. Don’t get your hopes up too high, Rarity, the last time that happened, you almost got charged with assaulting royalty. Not a mistake we’ll be making twice.

“Anyways, we can talk about this more once I’ve investigated the archives. Are you ready for tonight?” Twilight asked, putting her notebook away and taking a seat on the couch next to Opal.

“As I’ll ever be, I suppose,” I said. Actually, the idea of seeing Applejack and Rainbow Dash together… It didn’t strike me as that distressing right now. That could very easily change, but I was taking it as a good sign. Certainly, I was doing better now than I was a scant few days ago. “It’ll be nice to be with the rest of the girls again, It’s been so long since we were all together.”

“Well,” Twilight said as I took a seat next to her on the couch. “You did kind of shut yourself up in the Boutique for a while. That didn’t help.”

“Yes, thank you for reminding me of that lovely time in my life, Twilight,” I said. She was right, of course; I just couldn’t resist the opportunity to tweak her nose a little.

“Sorry,” Twilight mumbled, looking down at her chest.

“Twilight, dear, it’s fine,” I said, smiling at her and patting her on the back. “I was merely teasing. Yes, I made a proper mess of things, and that’s entirely my fault, but I’ve accepted it. Didn’t somepony say that progress is merely learning from our failures?”

“Probably,” she said, lifting her head up. “So you’re not mad at me?”

I shook my head. “Never.”

She laughed. “I’m sure you’ve been mad at me sometimes. I think everypony has.”

“Twilight, I honestly can’t think of a single instance where I was upset with you. Not to that extent, anyway. Yes, your monomaniacal zeal can be irritating at times, but you’ve never actually done anything which made me angry with you… Except, possibly, for when I made you your first Gala dress. That… Yes, I was rather upset about that one, but I think I was well within my rights to be, considering you almost ruined my career,” I said, laughing at the memory. Time the sanitizer, disinfecting even the ugliest memories and making them palatable. At least, it did with some of them. Others could still be knots of raw pain years later.

She smiled and scooted an inch closer to me. “I am sorry about that. I guess I should leave the dress designing to the actual dress designer in the future, shouldn’t I?”

“Well, I don’t generally tell you how to cast spells, do I?” I asked. She rubbed the back of her head and her cheeks tinged rose at that.

“No,” Twilight said, moving a hoof to stroke Opal. “So… anything you want to do before our dinner?”

“Honestly, I’ll be just fine working on today’s dresses while you…” I trailed off, not sure what she had planned for today.

“Research,” Twilight said. “I still want to find out everything I can about Princess Platinum’s daughters before I go to the archives. You sure you won’t be bored?”

“With you? Never.”

♦♦♦

Twilight and I trotted into The Princess’s Pick together. (Princess as in Princess Celestia, not Twilight. It was one of the old Ponyville restaurants.) “Good evening, girls,” I said, smiling at the other four. As expected, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were sitting together, and they were bookended by Fluttershy and Pinkie, leaving two spots for Twilight and me at the circular table. “I apologize for being late, we got carried away working in Twilight’s study and lost track of time. If Spike hadn’t been an absolute dear and reminded us about our appointment, I’m afraid we might still be there.”

Rainbow Dash laughed. “It’s fine, Rares. Kind of cool I wasn’t the last pony here for once. Can’t believe the two most on-time ponies in our group get late when they’re put together.”

I gave her a smile without eyes as I sat down. “And just why were you on time? I thought you’d be tired after getting back from… where did you go to?”

“Las Pegasus,” Rainbow Dash said, rolling her eyes. “Had to go to the big annual weather conference.”

“Silly me for forgetting,” I said, laughing to myself and looking to Applejack. Tightness gripped my chest. Keep it together. I took one of Twilight’s calming breaths. Air goes in; tension goes out. “Applejack, how have you been? It’s been so long since we…”

“Yeah,” Applejack said, looking down at the ground. “Sorry, Ah’ve been real busy down at the farm, and Ah know you’ve had a lot of work at the Boutique, and Ah guess we ain’t spent a lot of time together lately.” I followed her glance leading straight to Rainbow Dash. The farm isn’t the only thing you’ve been busy with, is it? Remember, Rarity, we’re happy for the two of them.

“It’s fine. Like you said, I’ve been busy too.” I looked at my four other friends. “I should apologize to you all, really. I’ve been so distant these last few months, and that’s… I have some issues I need to deal with, and I thought it was for the best if I didn’t disturb you all while I tried and failed to handle them. Can you ever forgive my foolishness?”

There was a chorus of ‘of courses’, and I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. Of course, they’d forgive me. They were my friends. And yet there’s only one pony in the room you’d even consider divulging your deepest secret to.

I shook my head, chasing off the strange thought. Maybe no wine tonight. “Rarity, you shouldn’t try to keep things from us,” Pinkie said, bouncing over the table and tackling me in a hug. “We’re your friends, we’ll do everything we can to help you. Ooh! I should throw a party. What do you think of a let’s-carry-Rarity’s-psychological-baggage party?”

“Perhaps a bit on the nose,” I said when she finally stopped squeezing the life out of me. “Besides, I think you might have more pressing parties to plan in the near future.”

“What do you mean?” she asked, finally ending the hug and letting me get back to my hooves.

I looked to Applejack and smiled at her. “If there are any secrets you’re keeping from the group on my account, don’t worry. I’m absolutely fine.”

“Really?” she asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

Strangely enough, I was. I’d expected the words to be a lie, something to make her feel better, but… when I looked between the two of them, saw the little glances they kept stealing, I was nothing but happy. Mostly. “Really,” I said, looking directly from her to Rainbow Dash to drive home the fact that I knew.

There was a long silence as Rainbow Dash and Applejack had a conversation using only facial expressions.

She knows, Applejack’s face said.

You sure? Rainbow Dash asked using only an eyebrow.

A nod from Applejack.

We should tell ‘em, Applejack’s glance to the rest of us said.

But then everypony’s gonna be all huggy and celebratey and it’s gonna be totally lame, Rainbow Dash said with a mix of sighs and glances to the ground.

Rainbow… Applejack said with a glare.

Fine, but you’re totally going to have to make it up to me tonight by– No, I definitely didn’t need to know the two of them were doing that. Maybe they could’ve had a slightly less expressive conversation.

Applejack turned to look at the rest of us girls and opened her mouth. “Alright, well, since Ah guess Rarity already knows, there’s no point in hidin’ it from the rest of you girls, anymore. Rainbow Dash and Ah’ve been seein’ each other for the last couple of months.” Hmm, that long? I replayed the scant few interactions of theirs I’d witnessed over the last few months. The way they suddenly started sitting next to each other all the time and their teasing remarks. It all seemed so obvious – but then, that was hindsight, I suppose.

Pinkie and Fluttershy both gasped, although Pinkie’s pantomime made me suspect she’d already figured out the truth. Beneath all her excitability and strangeness, the mare has a keen eye for relationships. Of course, I suppose the Bearer of Laughter would have to be good at reading a pony’s mood.

“Twilight knew too?” Rainbow Dash asked, smacking her hoof on the table. “Come on, I thought we were at least a little clever. I’ve read all those Daring Do books, I should at least be a little good at sneaking around now.” Dear, pardon me for saying so, but Daring Do sets off every trap in every temple she goes into. If she’s stealthy, then I’m Princess Celestia.

“Rarity told me,” Twilight said. “The first night she came to the castle. It was actually one of the reasons–”

I cleared my throat. Privacy, Twilight, my eye roll said.

Right, sorry, her eyes said as they glanced to the ground.

“Rarity told me when she came to the castle,” Twilight repeated to the girls. They were all staring at us now, and Pinkie was glancing rapidly between Twilight and me.

“What?” I asked.

“Should we tell them?” Rainbow Dash asked. The other three shook their heads.

“Tell us what?” Twilight asked for me, leaning forward to the table as the waiter filled our drinks. We’d been here enough, they didn’t even need to ask for our orders anymore. Sometimes, I think about requesting something different just to see how the staff reacts.

“Noooo-thiiiing,” Pinkie said in her sing-song voice before falling into a fit of giggles. They couldn’t think that– No, of course not, Twilight was just a dear friend. Maybe I understood her a bit better than I did the other girls, but only because we had similar interests. Well, not really, but we did appreciate each other’s interests. You appreciate the other girls’ interests too.

“Applejack,” I said, smiling at her, and chasing that thought away. “I’m very happy the two of you are together. I wish you both all the good things in Equestria.”

“Thank ya, Rarity,” Applejack said, returning my smile and allowing herself to lean into Rainbow Dash. Oh my, the two of them together were positively adorable.

“Yeah, it’s totally cool of you not being all crazy and jealous,” Rainbow Dash said with her usual tact, earning an elbow in the side from Applejack. Maybe the farmpony would rub off on Dash. Well, in more ways than just the most base one. A touch of tact and slightly more work ethic… It would be nice not to have a thunderstorm every other week.

I laughed and smiled at the two of them before taking a sip of my water. “Well, I do try, Rainbow Dash. Histrionics are all well and good when you misplace a hairbrush, but have no place when it comes to celebrating the happiness of friends.” I glanced at the nearest waiter. “Could we have a bottle of your finest champagne?” I asked. He nodded and trotted away. For a second, I’d considered ordering wine, but after the bottle from Gustaf’s… No, it’d ruined me for wine.

“Well, thanks for being so cool, Rarity,” Rainbow Dash said. “I totally thought things would go a lot worse and then there’d be a big fight between the two of us for Applejack’s love. I’d win, of course, but still, I thought things would be bigger and awesome-er…” She trailed off and glanced at Applejack. “Although not fighting a friend is pretty awesome too.”

I tried not to roll my eyes at her ludicrous fantasy. Honestly, between her and Pinkie, I didn’t know who was more likely to go off into madness. Well, okay, it was almost certainly Pinkie, but some days, it was close. “Yes, I prefer it this way too,” I said.

“Anyways, sugarcube,” Applejack said, taking the topic of conversation away from Rainbow Dash’s absurdity. “Why’d ya hole yerself up in the castle? Ya alright?”

“Just fine,” I said, smiling her. “I just needed some time away from the Boutique to refresh myself, and I thought Twilight could use some company in her massive castle.” It wasn’t completely a lie; there were certainly strong elements of truth in it.

“It’s been great having somepony to talk with the last few days,” Twilight said, backing up my almost-lie. “Of course, there’s always Spike, but he’s hit that age where he likes being in his room most of the time.” A wistful smile danced across her face. “He’s forming his own life and while it’s really great to see, it’s also… the castle’s going to be a lot bigger without my number-one assistant around.”

I smiled at her and resisted the urge to pat her on the back. While it would obviously just be a friendly gesture, it wouldn’t help whatever delusion the rest of the girls were laboring under. “Twilight, he’s not going to leave you. Yes, he might spend more time on his own, but I don’t think he’ll be striking off on his own anytime soon. Besides, if he does and you get lonely, you can just call on me or one of the other girls to keep you company for the night.” Applejack raised an eyebrow as I realized the possible… connotations of that last sentence. “I mean for a sleepover or a party. We’ll… I understand how daunting an empty house can be when you’re not used to it.” Damn them for making me stumble over every word looking for hidden meaning.

“Thanks,” Twilight said, smiling at me and either missing any other connotation my words might have held, or not finding them important enough to comment on. Either way, I could’ve hugged her – in a friendly, platonic sort of way, of course. I hugged all my friends, Pinkie was hugging me just a minute ago, and there certainly wasn’t anything romantic between us. “Like I said, it’s great having somepony over I can talk with while I work, so… any time you want to come over, my door’s always open to you.”

There was a short pause as I tried to ignore the glances the other girls were giving each other. Honestly, what in Equestria could compel them to think that Twilight and I... They weren’t right, were they?

“So, Rarity, how’d you know, anyways? Ah thought Dash and Ah did a pretty good job of keepin’ things secret,” Applejack said, breaking the lull and taking the focus away from me and Twilight and sleepovers.

I took a drink of my mineral water and gave a cracked little smile. “You walked past my front window the last time we had a thunderstorm, and Rainbow Dash had her wing draped over you. You don’t exactly have to be Sherlock Pones to make the connection.”

She laughed and elbowed her marefriend. “Ah told you Rarity’d see us. Her workroom has a perfect view of that street.”

“Well, how was I supposed to know that, AJ? It’s not like I buy dresses and stuff, and Rarity and I don’t really hang out on our own much. No offense, Rares.”

“Utterly fine, dear. You know you’re always welcome at the Boutique, and I’d have thought that you’d crashed in there often enough to know the general layout of my store,” I said. To her credit, Rainbow Dash didn’t blanch at all.

“Well, you know, my sense of direction’s kind of messed up whenever I crash through a wall. Besides, it’s been years since I made an uncontrolled landing,” she said, sitting up straighter and causing Applejack’s resting head to slip lower. Much lower and things would be obscene. Neither of them seemed concerned.

“Very true,” I said, smiling and tossing her a compliment. “Your flying has improved immensely since you came to town. And if you ever feel like apologizing for all those times you broke my walls, you could model some of my more avant-garde designs. They could really make your mane and coat color pop for those special occasions.” To drive my point home, I glanced at the mare leaning against her.

Rainbow Dash laughed. “I’d love to, but you’d have to move out of Twilight’s castle first. Or did you bring all your clothes with you?”

Not all of them. Mostly, I just brought my unfinished designs… and Opal. Technically, I didn’t bring anything; Twilight fetched them for me like an absolute dear. It was a perfectly friendly thing to do. Stop trying to find any romantic subtext between you and your best friend. I looked to Applejack. We know how that story ends.

“No, my clothes are still at the Boutique,” I said.

“Then I guess I can’t help you model them. Too bad, what a shame. Hey, whenever you do get back to the Boutique, just come to my house and let me know,” she said, knowing full well it was impossible for me to get to her house without wings and pegasus magic.

“I think I’ll just tell your marefriend,” I said, smiling at her at her as the waiter came back with six flutes of champagne and an extra bottle. The perks of being a loyal customer. “I’m sure if there’s anypony in Equestria stubborn enough to get you to model dresses for me, it’s her.” I grabbed all six flutes with my magic and brought them to the girls while Twilight grabbed the bottle.

“A toast,” I said as everypony grabbed their glass. “To Applejack and Rainbow Dash, may their relationship be as long as it is joyful. I wish you two nothing but the best for all the rest of your days.”

There was a chorus of “hear-hear’s” as glasses clinked, and we all drank deep.

♦♦♦

I nestled my head deeper into my pillows, luxuriating in the feeling of silk against fur. Tonight went better than expected. There was some tension, and Rainbow Dash seemed determined to butt heads with me whenever she could – which, really, wasn’t too different from normal. Maybe just slightly more obnoxious, but I could at least understand her drive. She probably saw me as a potential rival for Applejack’s affection, even though… Was I a rival? I thought for a minute. Thought of how they looked together. Thought of the good and bad times with Applejack. No, I suppose not. If they were happy, I was fine. And if they weren’t happy? If they broke up and Applejack came begging for us to get back together? Would I?

No answer came. Yes, our relationship was wonderful for… large periods of time, and our non-fighting evenings together were filled with passion; but if the two of them could have a stable, loving relationship, then wasn’t there hope for me too? The cynic in me wanted to say no, that I’d spent enough time looking for a fairy-tale romance and that it’d gotten me nowhere... but still, if other ponies could be in happy relationships, relationships not based on volatile and fickle passions…

Tonight had been far easier than expected, hadn’t it? The sight of the two of them together hadn’t provoked any stress at all. Why? An image of purple filled my mind. Yes, I suppose I’d felt somehow safer, knowing Twilight was there to offer me assurance if I needed it. Her presence tonight anchored me. That was it, right? Yes, I remembered feeling the heat of her sitting next to me, secure in the knowledge she wouldn’t abandon me in my hour of need.

And Applejack’s look? That one hinting that… Did I have feelings for Twilight? Certainly, she was a dear friend. I had feelings for all my friends. Fine. Romantic feelings, then? No, of course – wait, let’s not be hasty, Rarity. I remembered walking home with her – walking to the castle with her, after our dinner had concluded. The way the two of us staggered and bumped into each other as we walked. Tiny sparks of electricity racing up at me from each point of contact. Certainly, that had never happened with the rest of my friends.

“Thank you so much for coming out with me tonight,” I said, as we reached the castle door. “It meant a lot to me.”

“Well, thanks, but we were going together anyways. They’re my friends, too,” she said, pushing the door open with her magic. “Still, I’m glad things went well with you and Applejack.” She laughed, and I laughed with her. “For a minute there, I thought you and Rainbow Dash were going to get into a fight.”

“Then it’s a good thing I had you with me,” I said, leaning forward for half a second. No, I didn’t do that because… Oh dear. I was tipsy of course, but still, I don’t generally lean forward expecting a kiss with the rest of my friends.

I floated back to my bed. So, we were giving Twilight special treatment. Treatment that could generally be described as romantic. Did that necessarily mean I had some infatuation with her? I couldn’t, obviously. I’d dated a friend before, and our relationship was still strained because of it. Not only that, it had affected my relationship with Rainbow Dash, once the two of them got together. If the pattern held with Twilight, I’d only have one friend left… Well, not really, I still had Octavia and Fancypants, but out of all the Element Bearers, I’d only have one friend left. Best-case scenario, I’d have three ponies whom I didn’t have strained relations with. If things got too bad, we might not be able to properly channel the Elements, and it’d be my fault. Equestria would be doomed because I fell in love with Twilight Sparkle.

Did I mean that? Had I fallen in love with Twilight Sparkle or was I still falling? I imagined every inch of her: her smile that melted my heart, her eyes that held all the kindness in the world, her wonderfully curvy and aesthetically-pleasing backside, her insatiable desire to learn, her woefully-simple manecut that would seem abhorrent on any other mare, but just felt… right on her. Like a vital piece of what made her her. Then there was the cute upturn of her muzzle, and those lips that seemed so soft, inviting, and yielding.

Definitely physical attraction, but more than that, I loved how much she cared for everypony around her. She welcomed me into her castle with open arms. This last week, she’d been my constant support, bolstering me when I faltered. She was pure and radiant and beautiful. No other mare in Equestria like her. What would I give to sit by her for the rest of my life? To spend our days together in quiet conversation? To listen to her lecture about obscure magical theory? What would I give for just the pleasure of being with her for even an hour?

I couldn’t have a crush on Twilight. Nothing good could come from it – but there it was. All this time we’d spent together, it had been growing, feeding on our every interaction, and now it was birthed, fully formed and strong enough to–

Damn it, Rarity. You aren’t some fawning schoolfilly, you’re a grown mare running her very successful fashion line. So you have feelings for somepony. So what? You aren’t going to let it ruin you. You aren’t going to ruin your friendship with the most wonderful mare in Equestria– you aren’t going to ruin your friendship with Twilight, just because of some half-formed infatuation. Just spend some days away from her, and you’ll be fine.

I sighed, and got to my hooves. It was time for this dream to come to an end, and go back to the Boutique.

♦♦♦

I’d neatly packed up all my dresses and my mannequines were… well, they were as portable as they were going to get, which translated to ‘not very’. I grabbed a fleeing Opal with my magic and tried to force her into her carrier, while she twisted and contorted into every possible position to stay out.

“Rarity?” Twilight asked, trotting into the study and rubbing her eyes. “What are you doing?” Apparently, forgetting that you only need three hours of sleep each night, I thought sourly. Well, there went my plans for a quiet escape into the night. I was planning on leaving a note behind, of course; something about needing to finish a dress off at the Boutique, and properly conveying my thanks for all she’d done these last few days. Instead, it looked like we were going to have a confrontation.

I smiled at her, Opal and her carrier floating in the air between us. “I’m so glad I caught you,” I said through my teeth. “I have a dress at the Boutique that urgently needs to be completed, and I thought I’d head off and take care of it tonight. Thank you so much for letting me stay here as long as you have.”

“You can stay longer,” Twilight said, taking a step towards me. “I can go and get your stuff from the Boutique. Just tell me what you need.”

I twisted Opal and finally got her into her carrier. Before she could leap back out, I slammed the gate shut and locked it. “Thank you for your kindness, Twilight, but I’m afraid I must decline. I’m feeling like my old self right now, and I really must get back to the Boutique before business suffers any more.” I grabbed my things with my magic and trotted to the door.

“Wait!” Twilight said, teleporting between me and the exit. “You… you can’t leave, I… I need your help with court. Celestia just wrote and says she wants my court to be opened to the public by the end of the season, and you haven’t finished my torque yet, and I have to decorate the castle for guests, hire guards, and... there’s so much I have to do to be ready, and you know this stuff way better than me. What’s your average daily income?”

“On average… Between eight thousand and twelve thousand bits,” I said, frowning at her. Where was she going with this?

“I’ll pay you thirty-six thousand bits a day until my court starts if you stay here and help me get ready,” she said, desperation burning in her eyes. “I’m sure your customers will understand if you tell them you’re doing official business for a princess. Please? I need you.”

My heart thrilled at her words. I couldn’t stay; if I did, I’d almost certainly do something I’d regret. Flights of fancy would fill my head, and at the very least, my feelings would get worse. For the good of our friendship, I needed to get out of here.

But then I’d be turning down a friend in their time of need. How easy would it have been for Twilight to shut the door in my face that first night here? It’s the easiest thing in the world to be generous when it’s convenient. Yes, maybe it would be better for our friendship if I left now, but not better for Twilight. She needed me now like I’d needed her over a week ago, and who was I to turn down a friend in need?

I smiled and put down my things. Of course, I wasn’t about to take her money, so… I ran the numbers in my head. Yes, the Boutique could afford to be closed for a few more weeks. “Just tell me what you need, darling.”

Author's Note

So! The penny finally drops, and Rarity realizes she has a crush on Twilight. It only took her about 30,000 words to put it all together. Now to figure out just what she's going to do about it.

Also, this will probably be the last chapter until after BronyCon. Hopefully, I'll see some of you there, and I hope to see the rest of you in the comments.

Edit: Fixed Rarity's Mom's name to better reflect actual canon while still keeping the plot point intact.

7. Spontaneous Combustion

Twilight, Fluttershy, and I trotted off the train to Canterlot. “Thank you again for inviting me on your trip with you, Rarity,” Fluttershy said.

“Think nothing of it, dear,” I said, making sure my burgundy Victorian hat was tilted just so. “I’m sure Twilight will be wrapped up in her archives most of our visit, and I thought it’d be nice to have somepony to promenade with. You have my dresses, right?”

“Yes, but… do I really need to be dressed up the entire time we’re here?” she asked, fidgeting with her knee-length blue and green dress. (She really could pull off those spring colors just marvelously. What I wouldn’t give for her coloration.)

“Not at all,” I said while Twilight collected our (well, mostly my) bags from the conductor. “Obviously, I don’t expect you to wear my dresses while you’re sleeping, or when we’re in our suite, but clothing is more a necessity with the nobility than it is in Ponyville.” Which meant Twilight’s court was going to be an absolute gold mine for me. Would it be gauche of me to stitch “Designs by Rarity” in the corner of all my banners? Yes, absolutely. I couldn’t detract from the regality of Twilight’s court by crass advertising. Still, a part of me couldn’t help but laugh at the idea.

“But you never had me dress up any of the other times we went to Canterlot,” Fluttershy said. “Well, you do when it’s for the Gala, but the other times…”

“Yes, well, we’ll be in some of Canterlot’s most exclusive venues during this trip, and I just want you to look the part. Plus, this way I get to show off more of my hoofwork.” Everything I said was technically true, even if it might not have been the main reason I was making her wear a dress.

Fluttershy frowned as I grabbed half of the bags with my magic. “Alright, girls, are you ready?” Twilight asked, wearing the dress I’d made for her birthday some years ago that was honestly little more than a yellow tunic. Why she liked it so much, I’ll never understand.

“Of course, darling, and thank you for taking me on this little excursion of yours,” I said as we started our trot.

“Don’t worry, it is for you, after all. Plus, I thought it’d be fun if we had a few days of not having to worry about my…” She trailed off and glanced at all the ponies surrounding us. “You know.”

“Indeed, I do. I hope you don’t mind my inviting Fluttershy, but I thought it would be nice if the two of us could spend a little girl time together while you’re studying. I promise, we’ll spend our evenings together discussing whatever you want.” And when we weren’t, I’d be wishing we were. No, bad Rarity. Unrequited love is for schoolfillies and particularly tedious romances. Besides, you’ll be telling her your feelings soon enough.

Twilight frowned for half a second. “No, it’s fine. I get waiting around the castle all day can be kind of boring, and this is your vacation, too. I wouldn’t be a very good friend if I just expected you to sit next to me while I read through the archives.”

I sighed and rubbed my forehead, trying not to think about Spike’s earlier words on Twilight’s feelings for me. “Twilight, did you want me to spend time with you while you read through the archives?”

“No, of course not, that would be selfish of me,” she said.

“Of course,” I said, running through the directions to Fancy Pants’ estate in my head. “Whenever I’m in the castle, I’ll stop by to see how you’re doing.”

“Thanks,” she said, smiling and looking at the ground, while I tried to ignore the squeak coming from Fluttershy. It was nothing, Twilight just liked having me around to talk to while she researched. Of course, she did. I was a wonderful conversationalist. “Anyways, we should probably hurry up, I bet Princess Celestia can’t wait to welcome us.”

♦♦♦

The welcome was about as cordial and low-key as a welcome by the sovereign ruler of Equestria and bringer of light could be, but the entire time we spoke over tea, I could feel one of Princess Celestia’s eyes on me. She had to have known what Twilight was looking up. If Twilight was right, and I was distantly connected to Princess Platinum, would I have to swear a vow of celibacy? Did I still have a claim on the throne? Not that I’d ever press it, but I could understand why Princess Celestia might be wary.

“Are you alright?” Fluttershy asked the next day as we trotted over to Fancy Pants’ estate. “You’ve kind of been zoning out the entire walk.”

“Yes, completely fine, darling. Just thinking about all the work we still have to do at Twilight’s castle. As sweet as she is for coming out here, we really can’t afford a vacation.”

“Well, I think it’s very kind of you helping her plan court. I could never in a million years dream of taking on all that pressure, and dealing with nobles… I think I’ll just stick to my animals,” she said.

“Oh, Fluttershy,” I said as we reached our turn off of Canterlot’s main shopping boulevard. “While we’re in the neighborhood, do you think we could meet a friend of mine. I always like visiting him while I’m in the area. I promise, it won’t be more than a few minutes.”

“Oh… Uhmm, I suppose that’s fine. Is he nice?” she asked as we turned. At the end of the street, his private estate loomed, lit up like something out of a fairy tale.

“One of the nicest ponies I know,” I said. “I’m sure you’ll love him.”

We reached the gate and the doorpony opened the gate for us. “Nice to see you again, Miss Rarity,” he said, nodding his head at me and Fluttershy. “Fancy Pants is in the main building.”

“Oh, Fancy Pants?” Fluttershy asked as we strolled through Fancy Pants’ garden. Flutttershy’s eyes kept darting between various blooms. “From the garden party?”

“The very same,” I said. We reached the door and I gave it a quick series of knocks. It swung open a second later.

“Ah, Rarity, come in,” he said, ushering the both of us inside. “And… Fluttershy, is it?”

She nodded, glancing away from his gaze. “Yes, it’s very nice to see you again. We… We… uhmm… We met at the garden party, remember?”

He laughed as we stepped inside. “How could I forget? You and your friends left a very distinct impression on the Canterlot nobility. Oh, how differently things would have gone if they’d known a future princess and the Element Bearers were in their midst. Why, I’m sure your friend Pinkie would have been busy for days planning parties. Syncophants, the lot of them.”

“Surely, you don’t mean that,” I said, following him deeper into his mansion. “There are a few exceptions that are as kind-hearted as anypony I know.”

“Emphasis on few,” he said, leading us into his dining room. The view was spectacular. No matter how many times I’d seen it, I could swear we could see all of Equestria laid out before us. If I squinted, I could see the faint smudges of Cloudsdale in the distance. Next to me, Fluttershy’s mouth hung open and her knees were… not locked. Good. Impressed, not terrified. “But yes, they’re not all bad. It’s just that the ones who are, have a tendency to linger on like a foul odor you can’t quite place. Oh, lease, make yourself comfortable,” he added as he noticed we were still standing. “There are very few ponies I like making my home open to, but you’re on the short list.”

I laughed and took a seat at his dining table. “I bet you say that to all your guests.”

“Of course I do, but very seldom do I mean it,” he said, darting over to pull ingredients out of the joined kitchen. This was his casual dining room, the one he used to entertain friends. “So, Fluttershy, how are you liking my humble city? Stuffy? Pretentious? You wouldn’t be wrong. Frankly, I’m looking forward for the opportunity to spend some time in Ponyville. A change in scenery is just what I’ve been needing.”

Fluttershy was still staring at the vista outside his window. “It’s beautiful. How could you not spend all your time here?”

“Hmm?” he asked, looking over at us. “I suppose it does look rather nice, but after a while, the gilt tends to rub off. No, Ponyville has a genuineness to it, something very hard to come by. If you find it, do take care not to lose it.” An image of Twilight’s smiling face flashed at those words. I wonder how she’d like the view. Living in Canterlot, I’m sure she was desensitized to sweeping panoramic vistas by the time she could talk. No, I couldn’t imagine Twilight getting desensitized to something, especially since I’m pretty sure she never saw a view quite like this. Maybe I’d show it to her sometime. She might like that.

“I believe Fluttershy is talking about the view, dear,” I said, glancing at Fancy Pants. “Honestly, I’m not sure if she’s heard a word we’ve said since she saw it.”

“No, I’m fine,” Fluttershy mumbled. Fine, maybe she heard every other word

“Yes, it is quite the view, isn’t it?” Fancy Pants said, trotting over to us, his horn glowing. Back in the kitchen, a knife cut slices of bread. “One of the few things that will keep me coming back to Canterlot, I’m sure,” he said.

Fluttershy nodded. “When the birds migrate, do you get to see them fly by from here?”

“Oh yes. If I threw a net out the window, I could probably catch half a flock,” he said, his eyes darting to her cutie mark. “You like animals, then?”

Her eyes lit up. “Oh, yes, do you have any? I couldn’t help but admire your garden on the way in. Your flowers are very pretty.”

“I’m glad to hear it. Do you know most of my guests don’t even notice them? You’d think–”

I cleared my throat. “Excuse me, Fancy Pants, do you think I could have a word with you in private?”

“Right away, Rarity,” he said as I trotted to the hallway. “We’ll be back in a second, Fluttershy, just make yourself comfortable.”

We were silent until the door to the dining room-kitchen clicked shut. “Yes, Rarity?” he asked.

“Fancy Pants, I understand that you’re charming and charismatic, I know you’re a master of glib conversation, but Fluttershy is a very dear friend of mine. Now, obviously, I think the two of you might get along, that’s why I’m introducing you, just… be genuine with her,” I said, deciding to not to go with my planned line about distributing his body parts between all the different deserts in Equestria if he was just using her.

He winked at me. “Oh, of course. I wouldn’t dream of hurting your friend and facing the wrath of at least one princess and quite possibly more. I just want to get to know her, and if we both get along, then I’ll consider a proper courtship. I swear, I’ll be a proper gentlepony, like from gallant tales of old.”

I smiled. “Good, I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page. You know how disastrous some misunderstandings can be.”

He nodded and opened the door, laughing. “I’ll be sure to pass that message on if I see him,” he said, nodding at me. “Now, who wants watercress sandwiches?”

♦♦♦

“Hello, Twilight,” I said, trotting around the stacks of books that threatened to envelop her. “How’s the research going?”

She turned around to beam at me. “Great, I’ve traced your family all the way back to an estate just south of Northgait. It’s not a strong link to nobility, but your family did live on a small, rocky, barren estate at one point. Of course, they could have been the shoe shiners, but…”

“Thank you for going through all this trouble for me,” I said, resisting a sudden compulsion to hug her. Yes, hugs could be platonic, but this didn’t feel like that. Of course it didn’t, how could anypony not want to– Not the time for that thinking, Rarity. Once Twilight starts her court, then maybe we can broach the subject with her. She doesn’t need any added pressure right now. “You really didn’t have to, but–” I looked at the genealogy she’d drawn. “–I do appreciate having a maternal family history.”

“It’s no problem,” she said, closing the book she’d been reading. “Unfortunately, I can’t find any pre-Discordian records for your family. We could… Well, we could go to your family’s old estate and see if there are any records buried there. Ooh! I’ve never led an archaeological expedition before; this could be so much fun.”

I smiled at her. “I’m sure it would be, but there’s really no need to go through all that trouble on my expense. Especially not when you have your first court date so rapidly approaching.” Yes, it was terribly romantic, me being the lost scion to one of Equestria’s greatest lineages, but… it was so unlikely, and the last time I’d indulged in fairy-tale thinking had led to, well, Blueblood. Romantic thinking was fine in the books, but not so much in real life. Still… Twilight had given me a nice daydream, at least. Actually, she’d given me several.

“Don’t worry about it,” Twilight said. “You’ve done so much to help me lately, this is the least I can do. Oh! How was your day with Fluttershy?”

“Fine,” I said, trotting to take a seat next to her. Thankfully, the Archives didn’t have a no-talking policy. I suppose when only a few select ponies have access, there’s no real need. “We had lunch with Fancy Pants, and I think the two of them really hit it off. They spent a whole lunch talking about the Canterlot Botanical Gardens and Fancy Pants’ conservation efforts.”

“Oh?” Twilight asked, “I didn’t know he’s involved in conservation efforts. I thought he was more about land development, which is… kind of the opposite of conservation.”

I rolled my eyes. “He only had a passing familiarity with wildlife conservation when lunch started, but by the end he was talking about converting one of his estates into a wildlife sanctuary.” Yes, unlike the rest of the nobility, Fancy Pants was suave and charming, but a part of me couldn’t help but feel that I’d just offered Fluttershy to the kindest wolf in the pack. Well, she’d dealt with wolves before. I smiled at the image of her subjecting the entirety of the nobility to her stare. Yes, she’d be fine. If she wasn’t, I’d just have to kill Fancy Pants.

“Wait, are you saying he and her are... “ Twilight asked, tilting her head. “That’s just… so unexpected. I thought if he was going to date anypony, it’d be you.”

“We… I thought about it, to be sure. He’s the closest you can get to being a prince without actually having royal blood, and unlike Blueblood, he’s actually charming, but… After your birthday party, I realized I really didn’t want to live in that world. Not like he did. Of course, I’d visit, I’d cater to them with my business, and more than gladly take their bits, but I’d much rather stay in Ponyville and live with you girls than live in Canterlot.” I laughed. “Although, I suppose with Canterlot coming to Ponyville, I might have to rethink that. I can spend the days with my friends and then dance the nights away with the nobility.”

“Well, I’m glad you decided to stay in Ponyville. I don’t know how I would have gotten by these last few weeks without you,” Twilight said. Was it just my imagination or did she lean incrementally closer to me? No, she couldn’t have. I was just looking for things that weren’t there to justify my feelings.

“Yes, me too,” I said, smiling at her and ignoring the electric tingling coming from my side closest to her. A few inches closer and we’d be touching. “I can’t imagine spending so long without seeing you girls, and I know Sweetie would have hated being away from her friends.”

Twilight tilted her head. “Wouldn’t she have just stayed with her parents?”

Yes, of course, she would’ve. What was I thinking? “How often are my parents around, Twilight? Not nearly enough to raise a filly, and… believe me, I’d know. She’d have either stayed in Ponyville without somepony around to raise her properly or been separated from her two closest friends in the world. Either situation has its problems, and me staying in Ponyville allowed her to avoid both of them.”

“You’re a good big sister,” Twilight said, smiling at me. “I know, you’re going to object to that because of… what happened, but you always tried to shield her from the bad things in Equestria. My brother did the same thing with me.” She laughed. “It might’ve been annoying sometimes, but my days were always brighter thanks to him. I can only imagine how much harder that job was for you without parents to help.”

I pursed my lips. “Yes, it wasn’t an ideal situation, and…” My expression softened. “Thank you for saying that, Twilight. Sometimes it’s nice to hear about the good things I’ve done. Definitely better than the voice that’s constantly chastising me.”

“You really feel that way?” Twilight asked.

“Sometimes,” I said, shrugging and closing my eyes. “It’s all too easy, with hindsight, to see how much better things would’ve been if I’d just done this or that differently. Things have been better lately, though.” Since I came to the castle. Since I had you to show me how ridiculous my fears are and make me feel wonderful.

“Anyways, I’m going to do some more digging through the genealogies. Do you want to stay with me?” she asked, floating a book down from the top of one of her stacks. “Some of this stuff is really fascinating.”

“Then I’d hate to distract you from it,” I said, smiling and getting to my hooves. “I’ve actually planned to do a few meetings today, just so I don’t have as much work waiting for me when we get back to Ponyville. Would you care to join me?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m going to be doing more than enough listening to ponies talk soon. I think I’m just going to savor the quiet time I have with my books while I have it.”

“You didn’t seem to have any problem inviting me to sit and talk with you just a moment ago,” I said, turning back to look at her.

“You don’t count,” Twilight said, laughing. “Listening to you talk while I’m reading is more relaxing than anything. Anyways, I’ll see you tonight?”

“Of course.”

♦♦♦

“Thank you for accepting my invitation to tea, Rarity,” Princess Celestia said, stirring her cup of tea from across me. “It’s been so long since we last talked. Are you sure Fluttershy can’t join us today?”

I grabbed some sugarcubes with my magic and shook my head. “I’m afraid not. Fancy Pants invited her to lunch today to talk about his conservation plans, and she was more than eager to see him again. I think the two are becoming fast friends.” Or more, quite possibly.

“I’m glad to hear it,” Princess Celestia said, bringing the teacup up to her lips. “I’m always happy to hear when a noble breaks out of his or her insular little bubble. I was hoping something like this would happen, once you and your friends started taking up more of the nation’s attention.”

“And thank you for hiding us from the public’s attention the last few years. A lot of Ponyville’s old timers aren’t happy that the town’s no longer Equestria’s best kept secret,” I said, raising up my own teacup and taking a sip. It was pure unadulterated bliss, but then, I suppose the Princess’s personal tea stash would be.

“Of course,” she said, wearing her usual serene benevolent smile. “It would have been cruel of me to thrust you girls on the national stage without giving you time to prepare. Do I look cruel to you, Rarity?”

I shook my head. “Of course not, Princess. Your generosity and kindness are the thing of legends. Perhaps you’re… a bit intimidating, but that’s only because of your reputation.” Well, the fact that she was twice as tall as anypony else in the room might have something to do with it, too. “It’s not every day you meet the pony who raises the sun and could end your life with a word to her guards.”

“Yes,” she nodded and closed her eyes. “Sometimes, I hear the rumors ponies tell about me, and I have to wonder just how they get started. I’ve done nothing but rule with Equestria’s best interests at heart for a thousand years, but to hear the talk on the street, I’m either a tyrant, an incorrigible prankster, or some sort of depraved…” She shook her head. “It confuses me, sometimes.”

“To be fair, Princess, you did invite Discord to the Grand Galloping Gala, so I can at least see how one of those rumors started,” I said, preparing for some sort of backlash. Yes, I probably wouldn’t get banished, but she might very well–

She laughed and shook her head, her ethereal mane not moving at all. “Yes, I admit I am a bit of a prankster, but I’m not incorrigible. I just dislike all the decorum of court life. After a few centuries, you’d start valuing levity, too.”

“I suppose so,” I said, smiling and putting the tea down. It was wonderful, but it wouldn’t do if I guzzled it.

“Rarity, I wanted… Twilight asked me to speak with you about your sister. She thought I might be able to offer some insight, considering our similarities.”

Similarities? Did she mean? I thought of the first princess I met, a midnight-blue alicorn who’d just been saved from being a terrible nightmare monster. Yes, that would be the commonality then. “Really, you don’t have to Princess, I’m fine.”

“Of course you are,” Princess Celestia said. “You have to be. You might want to wallow in misery and despair–” Yes, that’s what ponies wallowed in. “–but ponies depend on you, so you keep going on. You do what you have to do to keep the sun moving and focus on your work and wait for the day she might come back. You’re fine, but then, one day, you’re not. It’s a tiny crack, and suddenly the dam bursts and a thousand painful memories come pouring out. Regrets, things you could’ve done differently, the good times you lost, the good times you could be having. All of a sudden, you’re not fine. There’s this thing burning through you from the inside, and when it fades, you’re nothing more than a husk.” She didn’t even have to ask if her description was correct. Of course she didn’t, she knew.

“It’s okay to have bad days, Rarity. It’s okay to have days where you’re not fine. If you’re lucky, you’ll have somepony to go through them with you.” She smiled at me. Not her usual one, this one felt sincere. Less practiced. “And do you know what, Rarity?”

“What?” I asked, ignoring the lump building in my throat.

“I think you’re a very lucky pony. So is Twilight, actually. She told me how much you’ve done to help her prepare for court. How you’ve been dealing with the nobility for her. You’re her shield, keeping her insulated from the worst of high society. She doesn’t know how much that means, she doesn’t even know what you’re doing, but I do, and… thank you.”

My cheeks felt flushed at her praise. “It’s really nothing, Princess. Just happy to do my part.”

“Oh, it’s more than that, I think,” she said, taking another sip of her tea. What did she know? “You know, I was glad when Twilight said she was bringing you with her for this trip. I was wondering just why Twilight would write me at three in the morning saying she wanted to start her court at the end of the season, and I think I know why now.”

Wait. Twilight did what? But that would only make sense if… Three in the morning, presumably the same morning she’d convinced me to stay in the castle with her. Why would she tell a lie just so I’d– Oh. A shiver of excitement ran up my spine as the realization clicked into place. How do you know when you want to date somepony? Twilight’s words from our dinner were thrown back at me. How could I have missed it?

Because I wanted to, obviously. Because it was easier to keep things like they had been than acknowledge something so big and massive and important and obvious. So painfully obvious. Everypony else had seen it. Even the other girls had glimpsed it during our dinner. Why did so many important things happen while we were eating? Either that or they happened in her study. What had she said about liking watching me work? Oh yes, I was a very great idiot.

And all that meant… I tried not to giggle at the news, but my composure might have cracked ever so slightly. She liked me. If I asked her out tonight, she’d probably say yes. That invited a whole host of other problems, but what had I told Spike about doing the impossible? No, no, what are you thinking, Rarity? This is a terrible idea. Remember how your last relationship with a friend ended? It ended because it was terribly unhealthy and you knew there had to be something better out there for both of you. Applejack’s dating Rainbow Dash, and the two of them seem fine. I giggled as I got to my hooves and downed my tea in front of a Princess. It burned on the way down, but I didn’t care. Madness. This was the epitome of romantic insanity. “Excuse me, Princess Celestia, I have to… I have to do something.” Something very very foolish.

She smiled, her eyes twinkling. She knew exactly what she’d done. No, not an incorrigible prankster at all. “Of course, Rarity. Oh, when you’re talking with Twilight tonight, tell her to look up the name Tarnished Silver if she has time tomorrow. If I’m not mistaken, I believe she’s mentioned in Princess Platinum’s will. I can’t remember all the details, of course; that was a bit before my time.”

I nodded, not properly listening as I floated out of her chamber. This was so reckless and stupid and almost certainly going to end in tears and heartbreak. I couldn’t be more excited.

♦♦♦

I sat in Twilight’s room, filled with a nervous manic glee that threatened to tear me apart. Every second was a struggle not to burst into dance, to sing in exaltation the song of love, a tearing ululating sort of thing that threatened to rip a hole in the world and devour us all. When was the last time I was this excited? The Gala? Maybe the first night with Applejack, but with less fighting and heartbreak. Float much higher and you’ll asphyxiate. This was new. More than a crush, I think. Yes, it had to be, but even if it wasn’t, how could I resist? She liked me. For whatever reason, Twilight felt the same way about me that I did about her. Did that even make sense? It doesn’t have to, not right now. This is a terrible idea. Words could not even begin to describe how stupid what I was about to do was.

But you’re still going to do it, right?

Of course.

Everything was going to be perfect. She’d walk into her room, she’d ask what I was doing here, I’d take a step forward and, in my best sultry voice, say “I know.” She’d look confused, but then a look of understanding would pass between our eyes. We’d laugh and hug and talk about how long we’ve felt this way, and she’d say she felt so silly about making up the story about court to get me to stay, and I’d say I was only wanted to leave because I was terrified of getting close to her and that it was dreadfully foolish of me. I laughed. I felt effervescent. A cloud rising up in the atmosphere, expanding as it rose. Yes yesyesyes. Yes.

Calm down, Rarity. What will Twilight think if she comes in to her room and sees you dancing around like a schoolfilly. I feel like a schoolfilly. Shush. We have to be adult. We need to approach this in a mature responsible way to make sure nopony gets their feelings hurt. She literally fell asleep on top of you, and you didn’t realize she had feelings for you until today. More laughing. She did, didn’t she. Blind. We were blind. Looking at the ground instead of what was right in front of us.

What had I done to deserve this? Who cared? I had it, and I wasn’t about to forfeit it. Lose and lose, but sometimes life gives instead of taking. Today, it gave. Oh, did she have to spend so long reading her books? Of course, she did. She was Twilight, her bookishness was wonderful, but right now, it was getting in the way of this big romantic moment. Why are you so excited, this can’t end well. But it can! Yes, it hasn’t before, but with Twilight… If it can end well with anypony, it will end well with her. Love loves to love love. It was pure nonsense, but right now it was gold. Here you sit, struggling not to prance around like a schoolfilly because some mare has a crush on you. I know, isn’t it marvelous?

The door opened. Twilight trotted in. Beautiful. Resplendent. Surprised. “Rarity, what are you–”

We kissed. Me touching her. Strong, passionate, drawing into each other. She kissed back, inexperienced tongue banging against the gates of my lips. For her, they yielded. Our tongues embraced. She leaned into me, back leg kicking the door shut. Not a mistake. She kissed back. No drawing away, no shock. Eager acceptance. We kissed. The world kissed with us.

I pulled away, tittering as I realized just what I’d done. “I’m sorry, Twilight, I just meant to talk with you, but…”

“No, I’m…” She smiled at me, wings popped out and her face looking flushed and feverish. “Glad you did. I didn’t think that was how my first kiss would be, but I’m not going to complain.”

Oh no no no. Rarity, you great fool, you just took Twilight’s first kiss. It should be this grand romantic thing, something perfect, and instead you just stole it away. Snatched it in your very first instant together. “I’m sorry, Twilight, if I’d known it was your first kiss, I’d have... “ Well, I was planning on waiting anyways, but when the moment came, impulse beat conscious thought. “I’d have tried to do things differently.”

“It’s fine, Rarity. It was my first kiss, but it was a great first kiss. Actually, since the invention of the first kiss, there were five first kisses that were rated the most pure, the most passionate. This one left them all behind,” she said, moving to sit next to me, flank brushing against mine as she sat.

I smiled at her. “You’re going to misquote The Princess Bride? To me?! Are you mad? Who’s spent the last three Nightmare Nights dressed as the Dread Pirate Rarity? I’ll give you points for playing to your audience, but to butcher the ending like that is simply unforgivable.”

“Hey,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I wasn’t butchering anything, I was paraphrasing. I thought it worked better if we were just talking about first kisses, since that way it allowed for better kisses in the future.”

“Oh, and I appreciate that,” I said, struggling with the urge to lean in to her. Was it too soon? Sure, we’d just had our first kiss, but… I leaned in and the day went to the bold. “But Little Miss Eidetic Memory switched the words pure and passionate. Philistine.”

She laughed and snorted. “Okay, you’re right, I totally messed that up. I guess having a pretty good memory can’t make up for watching the movie twenty times.”

“More than twenty,” I said, smiling. The conversation trailed into silence.

“So…” Twilight eventually said. “I guess we have some things to talk about. First of all, how did you figure out I had a crush on you? You did figure it out, right?”

“Princess Celestia told me you wrote her asking to start court at the end of the season. From there, I could put two and two together pretty easily,” I said as Twilight draped a wing over me. This felt right. Natural. “Do you know why I tried to leave in the middle of the night?”

“Because you had to do some work at the Boutique?” she asked, tilting her head.

“That was the pretext, Twilight. I had to leave because I realized my own feelings for you, and I was afraid I’d do something to jeopardize our friendship. You’re too dear for me to lose,” I said, closing my eyes and drinking in the sensations of the moment.

“You too,” Twilight said. “That’s why I kind of tricked you into staying. I just liked having you around so much, and I thought if I could get you to stay a little longer, I could figure out some way to tell you how I felt. Sorry about that.”

A slow sleepy smile spread on my face. “It’s utterly fine, dear. Considering what it led to, I can’t find it in me to be too terribly upset... although I suppose we should figure out just what exactly this is.”

Twilight’s voice pitched. “I was about to ask you the same thing. I’d feel a lot better if we could quantify and define exactly what we’re doing, instead of just guessing. Are there rules? Protocols?”

“Every relationship has its own unique boundaries, things that are and aren’t acceptable, and they’re all based on what we want from our partner,” I said. “I used to be rather demanding about what was and wasn’t acceptable.” That would be putting things mildly. If a pony wavered even for a second from my predefined notions of what a relationship should be, they went to the curb. “These days, not so much.”

“Okay,” Twilight said, nodding her head. “So… how do we figure out where we are? Normally, I know there’s supposed to be this ‘getting to know you’ thing at the start of a relationship, but I’ve known you for seven years, and I’ve spent the last few weeks living with you. You’ve already met my parents and my brother. I’ve never met your parents, but that’s…” My body tensed, and she noticed. “Not important. And then, we kissed before we told each other how we felt; the whole relationship timeline is messed up!”

I nuzzled her neck to take the rising panic from her voice. “It’s fine. Yes, we should generally get to know each other before kissing, but as you pointed out, we have already spent several years getting to know each other. What we’re doing now, is exploring how we work as a couple, as we transition from friendship to relationship.”

“Okay,” Twilight mumbled to herself. If I strained my ears, I could hear the gears in her head turning as she mulled over what I’d just said. “So what about dating? Dating’s usually an important part of the getting-to-know-you process, but since we already know each other, it’s lost that role, but I’d still really like to go on a date with you. Can we do that if we already know each other?”

I nodded, careful not to poke her with my horn. Horncaps might be worth investing in for the two of us.“We can, Twilight. Going on a date isn’t just about getting to know a pony; it can also be about trying new things, or just spending an evening making your partner the most important thing in your life.”

Twilight let out a happy little sigh. “Great, I was hoping we could. I’ve been reading about dates in your books, and they sound really fun.” Of course, she’d never gone on a date before. She wouldn’t have had time when she was in human-land, and… Yes, her first date would have to be perfect. I’d make sure of it. Would she like a royal chariot ride by moonlight? So far above the clouds, she’d have a much better view of the stars. Hmm… What else? A picnic? She liked picnics, generally, and they could be romantic under the right circumstances. I made the planning of our first date my highest priority.

“Still, as much as I’d love going on a date with you, I don’t think we can take any more time off from preparing for your first court since a certain somepony said she’d have it by the end of the season,” I said. “Meaning we have a little more than a week to get everything ready.”

“I know,” she said, “and we won’t be getting back to Ponyville until tomorrow night, so… basically just a week. Still, it was for a good cause.”

“As long as you’re hoofing the bill for my weekend at the spa after all this is over, I won’t complain too much,” I said, smiling at the heat radiating from her body. She was warmer than other ponies. Did alicorns have a higher body temperature than regular ponies? It wouldn’t surprise me. Either way, it felt nice, like a heated bed I could just sink into.

“Only if I can go with you,” she said. “I think after a few days of being surrounded by ponies vying for my attention, a weekend with you will be just what I need.”

“That sounds delightful,” I said. “I suppose we’ll have to have our first date before spending a weekend together. It’s only proper.”

Twilight laughed. “Rarity, we’ve spent the last month together, I don’t think spending a weekend at a spa will be that much worse.. Plus, I’m a princess, I can just issue a royal decree saying something’s proper if I want to.”

“Yes, Twilight,” I said, nodding my head and sinking deeper into her fur. I needed a name for her that was ours alone. “Dear” and “darling” were classics, but they’d been co-opted by my everyday speech. “But we weren’t together while we were living together. Not officially, at least, although I suppose all of our friends were speculating. Now, we’re…” Dating didn’t seem the right word. “We’ve declared our feelings for each other privately. That changes things. Plus, I think you were planning something a little more intimate than our usual two-room affair.”

I felt her gulp. Well, you’ve stepped in it now. Everything was fine, and then you had to allude to something she wasn’t ready for. Not everypony is as bold as you. “I’m sorry, Twilight, I didn’t mean to imply anything. We’ll cross that bridge when you’re ready for it.”

She shook her head. “No, it’s fine. I… was kind of thinking about when we were going to do that. You know, it’s… all the books make it sound so wonderful, and I… I’m curious and eager, but also a little afraid. Does that make any sense?”

“Perfect sense,” I said. “Everypony’s first time is a confusing mess of conflicting emotions. I’ve never been of the belief that it makes you an adult, but it is something important. Something you’ll think about in the years to come, so I think it should be absolutely perfect. You don’t want to look back on it with regret.”

There was a lull as I listened to the sound of Twilight’s breathing. “Rarity, can I… can I ask you a personal question?”

I nodded, already suspecting her question. “Twilight, dear, you can ask me anything, but I reserve the right not to answer.” She’d want to know. She was insatiably curious, and I had pieces of the latest puzzle she wanted to solve.

“What was your first time like?” Voila. There it was, delivered with all the subtlety and tact of a sledgehammer to the knee.

“I regret it immensely,” I said. “It was done for all the wrong reasons: to prove I was an adult, to prove I wasn’t some social pariah, to cement my position as the queen bee, and to revel in the power of having somepony lusting for me. Honestly, I regret all the times before Applejack, save one.”

A silence stretched between us as Twilight weighed my words and doled out judgment. “Wow,” she finally said. “That… it doesn’t sound like you.”

“That’s because you didn’t know who I was back then. I was… like my parents: Selfish. I thought it natural, of course... look at who raised me. I always thought those other ponies with whom I went to school, with their happy families... I thought it was just an act. A charade they played out to feel better about themselves. This was all back when I was… before I was Sweetie’s age, actually. Then one day, mostly to spite my parents, I decided to do some charity work. I can’t remember what foundation it was for, something about babysitting seniors and bringing meals to them – but seeing their smiles, seeing how much such a simple act of kindness meant to them, something inside me clicked. I felt like I’d discovered my cutie mark all over again. Amazing how something so good could come out of something so selfish,” I said. There it was, she knew a… well, not my whole past, but a large portion of it. Enough to realize she made a mistake.

“That’s amazing,” Twilight said. Not exactly the reaction I was expecting. “To be so– I don’t want to say ‘bad’, because I don’t think you were ever really bad, but to be so unlike how you are now, and to rebuild yourself into this incredible mare. You’re even stronger than I thought. You went from being selfish to the Bearer of Generosity.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at the memory. “Yes, I was actually rather shocked when you said I represented generosity back at the castle. I was almost positive we were all going to die because of that little mistake.” There was another lull in conversation. “Still, I wouldn’t say I’m strong, just... able to see my failings and fix them, perhaps.”

Twilight squeezed me with a wing. “To me, the ability to rebuild yourself by sheer force of will, to turn from what you were into one of the greatest mares I know, all while running a business and raising a sister? I’d say that’s close to the definition of strength. Maybe not like Hermules was strong, but…” She trailed off. “Maybe I’m just biased when it comes to you.”

“You most certainly are, Twilight Sparkle,” I said with a laugh before kissing her cheek. “But I very much appreciate it.” I yawned. “And with that, I think it’s time for me to go to bed. We’ll talk more about us when we’re back at your castle, unless you feel like telling Fluttershy we’re dating before we even had our first date.” I got up to my hooves and headed for the door. “Thank you for the lovely–”

“Wait!” Twilight said as I grabbed the door handle with my magic. “Don’t leave, do you think… Could you stay the night?”

I turned around and smiled at her. “Twilight, you’re very sweet and dear, and I promise we will cross that bridge when you’re ready for it, but I don’t think we should spend our first night as a…” I tasted the word before speaking it. “Couple together. You only have one first time, and I want it to be perfect for you.” I might even be able to put my… experience to good use.

Twilight’s cheeks burned red. “No! Not like that, I mean… I agree, we should both wait for that, I just… I always dreamed of having a special somepony I could fall asleep next to. Somepony I could talk with while I drifted off to sleep. It’s…” She looked at me with big saucer eyes from her seat at the foot of the bed, like a puppy begging for a treat. “It would mean a lot to me if you said yes. I promise, I don’t want to do anything more than talk.” With anypony else it would have been a patently obvious lie, the type that even the densest schoolfilly could see through.

“Alright,” I said, trotting to lie down on the bed, careful to get under the covers without disturbing the sheets too terribly. “I’ll stay, but nothing more than talking and some light cuddling’s happening tonight, is that clear?”

She beamed as she leapt into bed, instantly undoing all my fastidiousness. Why did I even try, sometimes? “Thank you so much, Rarity. I promise, nothing’s going to happen. I mean, some things will happen, but they won’t be…” She expertly snaked an arm between my body and the pillow and rested her head on my chest. Had she been practicing? I made a note to look at how Twilight arranged her pillows when – if – I saw her room. “This is all I want,” she said, making herself comfortable.

“And I’m happy to provide it,” I said, idly stroking her mane with one hoof. Hopefully, she’d let me style it before her first court date. Oh, with the right styling, she’d be magnificent. Or… more magnificent. Her mane was wonderful in its simplicity, but a little styling never hurt anypony, especially if they were about to appear before a large portion of the nobility. “How was your research today?”

Her breath slowly exited her body as she deflated into me. “Good, I’m sorry I haven’t found anything linking you to Princess Platinum, but I’m almost positive you’re matrilineally descended from nobility, so you should still have a direct claim on your family’s titles. Actually, it’s really interesting, your family only ever had one daughter in a generation. They’d have as many kids as it took to get a daughter, but that was it. Your mom was actually the first pony in your lineage to have two daughters.”

“Yes, well, I don’t think either of us knew about that particular tradition. I understand that my grandmother moved around a lot in her youth, so perhaps she lost it or forgot to tell my mother about it,” I said, ignoring the sudden tightness forming under where Twilight rested her head.

“Well, it’s pretty lucky they had that tradition, because it makes for a neat succession. I can’t tell you how many noble families have fallen into infighting over a title. Actually, I can. Thirty-seven major families and one-hundred-sixteen lesser families,” Twilight said, reciting the numbers like they were right in front of her.

“You really don’t have to go through all this trouble on my part, Twilight. I’m quite happy right here; I don’t need a claim on nobility,” I said, adjusting myself so I wasn’t crushing her foreleg. Yes, it would be nice to have a title – but then, I might be getting a title anyways. No, best not to think about that, it was a long way away, and it might not happen at all. The key thing was this moment right now, her drifting to sleep resting on my chest. What was a title compared to this?

She nuzzled into my fur. “I know, and I’m really impressed. I thought you’d start freaking out the second I said you might be descended from a princess.”

“Twilight, a lady must never freak out. At all times, she is to epitomize poise and grace. Besides, I’m trying not to get my hopes up, so they aren’t crushed when this proves to be a dead end,” I said, giving another yawn and struggling to keep my eyes open.

“Poise and grace,” Twilight said, nodding her head. “So that’s what you’d call ambushing me with my first kiss.”

I swatted playfully at her ear. “Hush, Twilight. Would you rather I take it back?”

She shook her head. “Just wanted to point it out. Surprise kissing me wasn’t very ladylike.”

“Well, naturally, there are situations where any reasonable pony would be forced to break her composure, to give in to the emotion of the moment. A lady may be allowed to slip from time to time, when the occasion is momentous enough.”

“Got it,” Twilight mumbled into the fur of my chest, her voice sending tiny vibrations up and down me. “So… just so I’m clear, finding out somepony likes you is more momentous than discovering you might be descended from a princess.”

“No, Twilight, discovering you like me is more important than discovering I might be a princess,” I said. For a long time, the room was silent except for the sound of our breathing in time with each other. Nothing more needed to be said.

“Oh, how was your talk with Celestia?” Twilight asked. I smiled at the sight of her head rising and falling with my breaths.

“Good for a myriad of reasons, the most important of which should be obvious at the moment,” I said, lighting my horn up and playing with her mane. She might look nice with Rainbow Dash’s mane cut. Bed-head was very chic these days, although probably not in court. Still, I could do what I wanted with her mane while she slept. Call it the cost of sleeping on my chest. “Still, I should thank her for the advice she gave immediately before that, and…” I vaguely recalled her comment before I bounced out of her room. Ooh, I’d have to apologize for my behavior tomorrow. “She said something about you looking up Silver Something in Princess Platinum’s will.” Which… Did that mean she thought Twilight was on to something? No, that would be silly. Probably. Maybe. A giggle lived and died in my throat. I didn’t need to disturb Twilight.

“Smart,” Twilight mumbled. “Hitting a dead end with your family, might find out more by looking through…” She yawned. “Princess Platinum’s personal documents. Maybe they weren’t vandalized like... were.”

“Get some sleep, Twilight. There will be time to research in the morning,” I said, ruffling her mane. Oh yes, she was positively adorable with bed mane, but that could be our little secret.

“But… Not tired… Swear,” she mumbled, her breathing getting deeper. She really was perfectly comfortable falling asleep on my chest like that. I was perfectly comfortable to let her.

I yawned, my horn lighting up one more time to switch the lights off as my limbs grew heavy. Her weight heavy and natural on my chest, I smiled as my eyes closed. “Sleep well, Twilight.”

Author's Note

This is... absolutely one of my favorite chapters. I'd like to write more, but I'm so exhausted that I don't even trust myself to edit competently. Anyways, hope you all enjoyed this one, it's nice seeing Rarity let her guard down and just be happy for a while.

Edit: And after 500,000 words, I finally have my first heterosexual ship. Whether or not that was the deciding factor in me keeping this subplot will remain unanswered.

8. Absolutely Frazzled, Darling

I awoke not in increments, but all at once, intensely missing the weight on my chest that had become so familiar these past seven days. Of course it wouldn’t be there, Twilight only needed three hours of sleep, while I needed twice that at the bare minimum – although if I didn’t get my full nine hours, I was liable to be snippy throughout the day. I lifted myself out of her bed (much smaller and less decadent than mine, a shame) and checked her nightstand to scout for remains of her morning project: a copy of Princess Platinum’s will, a text on translating Old Equestrian to Modern Equestrian, and a map with my family’s old estate circled. No points for guessing what she spent her earliest hours working on.

“Twilight,” I yawned, stumbling into her study. We still had a few hours; I could make myself presentable by then. “You really shouldn’t be focusing on my family history; you have your court in…” I glanced at the clock. “Two hours. Have you looked through today’s docket?”

“Checked, double checked, and triple checked. You know, I am a princess, I think I kind of know what I’m doing,” she said, lifting her head up from her book. The Law Code of Hammareabi. Feeling rather draconian today, was she?

“Please tell me you aren’t going to resort to a several-thousand-year old text when you’re making your judgments. I don’t want you to blind ponies on your first day,” I said, sitting next to her. “I know, it might be tempting with some of the nobles, but we really don’t want to start off with the type of reputation that would incur.” Oh, the tabloids would have a field day with that. Actually, depending on which noble she blinded, it might increase her popularity. “Remember, Fancy Pants is just here to pay you homage and greeting. He’ll give you some obscenely decadent gift, wish you a long and prosperous reign, and ask for your assistance with one of his charities. You’ll agree, and–”

“I know what I have to do, Rarity. I’ve read the docket,” Twilight said, rolling her eyes and kissing my cheek. “And thanks for going over it again.”

“Yes, well, if anypony starts going off script, give the signal, and your guards will escort them out. They’ve been prepped, they know who’s allowed through, who isn’t, and what they need to say. The gallery will be stuffed with ponies sympathetic to you – and don’t worry, we’ve rehearsed all this. Today is mostly about ceremony, swearing fealty, that sort of thing. There are a few softball issues about land management and property disputes, but those should be easy for you to sort out.”

“Are you sure you can’t just be sitting next to me for today? We can bring in a little throne for you and everything. Actually, the castle will probably know and just magic a throne next to me.” Yes, the castle was rather disturbingly good at that. We’d gotten back from Canterlot to find the entire castle had rearranged itself. My room had connected itself to her study, a new private kitchen had sprouted, and the guest quarters had grown even larger. Impossibly-large and possibly-sentient castles weren’t nearly as fun as they sounded.

“Unless you want to propose, I’m sure. There are protocols, and only an official princess-consort can have a seat next to a princess. Well, I suppose a prince-consort could too, but that’s hardly relevant to us at the moment,” I said, magically opening a chest sitting in one corner of her study. “Now, Twilight, dear, I’m dreadfully sorry about this, but it’s time we start dressing you up.”

“But we still have–”

“I know, we still have about two hours until court officially starts, but I want to play with your mane a bit.” I kissed her to soften the blow. “I love the librarian look, but I think we should have something a bit more regal for your court.”

Twilight just sighed and nodded.

♦♦♦

An hour and forty minutes later, Twilight looked every inch the princess. The torque I’d designed sat on her chest, amethyst starburst exploding onto a field of gold, and her slippers of the same amethyst shade added an extra inch to her height. Her crown sat just behind her horn, and her mane was…

I nodded at my hoofwork. I had been sorely tempted to go with something elaborate, but that would have clashed with her regalia’s minimalist aesthetic. Instead, I’d opted for what I’d dubbed Librarian Plus. The front was its normal simplistic self, while the back swooped and parted to frame her neck, one side angling to end in a cute upward point, and the other showcasing the lovely stripe in her mane while rounding out the harsh angles of her old mane style.

“How do I look?” Twilight asked, fidgeting in her shoes. She wanted to run a hoof through her mane, I know she did – but fortunately for my hard work, the shoes made that impossible.

“Perfect,” I said, floating the mirror over to her. “Of course, I tend to think that anyways, so I’ll let you be the judge.”

“I look…” Twilight let out a tiny laugh. “I look like a princess.” She twisted herself to get a better look at herself in the mirror. “Wow, I didn’t think I could look this good.”

“You look as good as you normally do,” I said, smiling and leaning up to kiss her cheek. “The only difference is that now you look regal. I promise, once court is done, we’ll put you back into your librarian look.”

She blushed. “Thanks, Rarity. So, what are you going to do today while I’m in court?”

“The usual,” I said, smiling. “Attempt to mollify the nobles who couldn’t get an appointment with you today, offer them seats in the gallery, and try to direct them towards doing something charitable without directly telling them so.” I sighed. “You know, if I recall, I’m supposed to be a dressmaker, not your royal scheduler.”

Twilight sat and leaned into me. “I promise we’ll find somepony else to deal with the nobility. But you’re just so good at it, I don’t know who could ever replace you.”

I laughed and stroked her side. “Hopefully, nopony, but it would be nice to have some assistance now and then. I swear, if I have to listen to somepony blather on about how your refusal to see them is an insult to their pedigree and breeding, I’ll kill somepony”

“Please don’t kill a pony,” Twilight said, tensing. “I could probably issue a royal decree exonerating you for murder, but I don’t think it would go over very well.”

“Well, I suppose I’ll have to not get caught then,” I said as she nestled into me. “I certainly wouldn’t want to tarnish my princess’s reputation.”

“Ooh, could you say those last three words again?” Twilight asked, her ears perking up.

“My princess’s reputation?” I said, unsure where she was going.

“Right, now… just the first two words?”

“My princess,” I said. I felt a thrill of something run up her spine at the words.

“That’s it, I... “ She paused in thought. “Is it okay if I ask you to call me that occasionally? I know it probably makes me sound bratty, wanting to be called a princess, but you’re the first to call me that, and it feels like… those are your words, meant for me alone, and it makes me feel special.”

“As you wish, my princess,” I said. It didn’t roll of the tongue as well as some possible pet names, but if it made Twilight feel happy, I could work it in now and then.

“You’re the only pony who gets to call me that,” Twilight said. I glanced at the clock, we still had time to talk. “It’s just for us. Nopony else.” Well, ponies might refer to her as their princess naturally, but I’d defer to Twilight’s judgment on the matter. She was my princess, after all.

I ran the words over my tongue a few more times. “Oh, no!” Twilight said, bolting up and away from me. I sighed at the loss of contact. “The nickname– title– pet name– pet title? The words, I just realized they could have possible subservient connotations, and I don’t want you to feel like you’re a lesser partner in this relationship, we’re equals.” She trotted in place, glancing from me to the floor.

“Well, I can see your argument,” I said, nodding my head and trying to think of some way to calm Twilight’s worries. Of course, I could tell her that the phrase would only have the connotations we gave it, but she’d keep worrying over potential implications even if she said she agreed. I’d have to out-language her. “But, I’d argue that the use of the word ‘my’ takes away those implications. It implies some level of ownership and intimacy. You’re not just a princess, lording her position over me; you’re my princess, unique and mine alone. It allows for a singular, intimate bond that just the title ‘princess’ wouldn’t.”

The tension melted from her as she sat back down and leaned back into me. “Right, I’m yours.” She laughed a little at the words. “Yours alone. Your princess.” The conversation lulled. “I like the sound of that.”

I smiled and looked at the clock. Time was up. “Me too, Twilight, and we can talk more about who’s whose tonight – but right now, we have a court to get you too. I’ll be in my office all day, so if you need me, just send a guard and I’ll drop everything to be there.” I gave her a quick kiss as she got to her hooves. “But I know you won’t, because you’ll be wonderful. You’ve spent the last month getting ready for today; you could probably hold court in your sleep.”

“Thanks,” she said, smiling as she trotted to the hallway connecting her quarters to her private entrance to her court. “I’ll see you when court’s over?”

“Of course,” I said as she trotted out the door. The second it clicked shut, I was on my way to the office. What did I have to do today? What didn’t have to do today? There was what I’d told Twilight; plus, I needed to finish my dress and make sure everything was ready for our surprise first date tonight. (Well, it would be a surprise for her.)

“Spike,” I said, poking my head into his side office. “Could you write Princess Luna and see if everything’s ready for tonight?”

“Yeah,” he said, pulling out his quill and parchment. “I wish you wouldn’t keep me in the dark about what you’re planning, though.”

“It’s a surprise date, Spike. If I tell you, you might tell Twilight. Maybe not intentionally, but it’s less of a risk this way. I promise, I’ll make it up to you by going gem hunting with you soon,” I said, looking back in my office at the mannequine in the corner and the half-finished dress on it. I needed it to be finished so I could wear it by tonight. Her first date had to be perfect. The dress was a revision of one of my earliest (and slightly horrendous) designs. Its original form was an absolute mess, and wound up making me look more like a Las Pegasus showmare more than anything else – but the color scheme of purple, amethyst, and light blue? That, I could work with. Plus, if the gems were put in just the right spots, they’d make a marvelous representation of the night sky.

Nopony else in my office. Probably all trying to catch a glimpse of Twilight. My Twilight. That should distract them for an hour or so. Plenty of time to work. I pulled the needle and thread from my dress and went to work. The dress was longer than its inspiration. It had to be; a short dress was not what you’d wear on a first date with a princess. Plus, it might be cold where we were going. Layers, then. Ooh! A light-blue and amethyst dress with a purple cloak. That could work.

More fabric floated from out of my desk, and I quickly cut the pieces to size. It had been such a pain sneaking the materials into my office, but I couldn’t work on it in the study, and this way I could get some work done in between work. Amethysts went on the turquoise fabric, and sapphires went on the lavender. The dress was starting to shape up; just a few more hours, and–

Knock. Knock. Knock. My ear twitched. “Come in,” I said, masking my frustration as I turned to my other duties.

“Miss Rarity,” a charcoal-grey stallion in guard armor said, giving a bow. I tsked. How I’d forgotten to design unique armor for Twilight’s guard, I have no idea. Instead, they were forced to use the Solar Guard’s armor. I needed to fix that as soon as I had free time. The gold was fine; maybe I could just change the blue to a royal purple? That could work, and would be a quick, easy modification. “We have a small issue. An interloper was caught in the private quarters, and… we’re not sure what to do with them.”

I blinked. Who was this? Iron Greaves? Yes, that was right, Captain Iron Greaves. “Well, what did you usually do with interlopers back at the Princess Celestia’s castle?”

“We threw them in the dungeon until we could figure out what to do with them, and that’s the problem,” he said.

“Of course,” I said, rubbing my forehead. The castle didn’t have a dungeon – at least, it didn’t at the moment. “Where’s the prisoner now?” Prisoner. I was in charge of figuring out what to do with a prisoner now. This was not in the wheelhouse of skills I’d developed as a dressmaker. There are no prisoners in fashion... although I suppose there are prisoners of fashion. I’d certainly sold more than a few dresses to them.

“In one of the smaller guest quarters. I have two of my men keeping an eye on her, and she’s shackled, but the room isn’t secure,” he said, voice even. Good stallion, he came up with a workable temporary solution before seeing me.

“Alright, come with me,” I said, trotting out of the office. “It’s a shame this castle doesn’t come with a proper dungeon for us to hold intruders,” I said to Captain Greaves, raising my voice so anypony nearby could hear me. I felt a rumble come from several floors below me in answer.

“What was that?” Captain Greaves asked, body tensed, ready for combat. Oh, yes, we hadn’t mentioned the castle’s tendency to rearrange itself during orientation, had we?

“That would be the solution to our problem,” I said, taking the stairs down. It would probably be in the basement, right? Yes, that would be the place for it, and the castle was usually good about giving itself an intelligent layout. “So, do you know what the intruder was doing?”

“We can’t speak officially at this time, but it’s suspected she’s Flash Surprise with the Daily Journal. We’ve confiscated her camera and will be properly interrogating her soon. Will Princess Twilight Sparkle be issuing judgment?” he asked as we reached the ground level.

“She will,” I said, sighing. And she’d want to do it today, which meant we had to modify the docket. I glanced up to where she was holding court. So far, I hadn’t heard anything, so that was something. Only seven more hours to go. “We’ll put it at the end of the day.” We reached the stairs leading down to the cellar. Unlike the grand staircase leading up, these stairs were… shabbier. Thankfully, the castle had the good sense to put them out of the way so visitors weren’t assaulted by them. “Will that be enough time to interrogate her?”

He nodded. “She doesn’t seem hostile, I think she just wanted to out scoop her competitors.”

“Then I suppose that’s good,” I said as we reached the landing. “Do the two guards know their job for tonight?”

“They do, we’re polishing the chariot right now,” he said. There it was, a door that hadn’t been there before. I trotted towards it.

“Wonderful,” I said, opening the door and revealing a corridor full of cells. Well, I certainly hope we don’t need a dungeon this big, but I suppose it’s better to be safe than sorry. Honestly, there were enough cells here for a dozen ponies. “Is this sufficient for you?” I asked, smiling at Captain Greaves. His jaw was on the ground.

“But… how… we checked, this wasn’t here before,” he stammered.

“Yes, well, the castle has a way of rearranging itself when it feels like it. I suppose it realized a proper castle needed a dungeon, so it built itself a dungeon.” I shook my head. “Honestly, I think the castle’s just going through a growth spurt, right now. Twilight’s taking on a lot of new duties, so it has to grow to reflect that.”

“That seems…” Captain Greaves closed his mouth and nodded. “I’ll let the men know that the castle can rearrange itself by its own volition. We wouldn’t want anypony to start an alarm over nothing.” Yes, not mentioning that sooner was something of an oversight on my part.

“Very much appreciated,” I said as we headed back upstairs. “I’m sure if you search the room, you’ll find keys to the cells. My guess would be that they’re in a desk or hanging on a wall somewhere. Is there anything else I can do?”

“No, ma’am. Thank you for the assistance, and I’m sorry for disturbing you,” he said. We climbed the stair leading from the ground level to the main level, and as we neared the top, the door to Twilight’s court room swung open. A gaggle of nobles were marched out by the two members of the guard watching Twilight’s court. And the day just got better.

“What happened?” Captain Greaves said, asking the question for me.

“We… Princess Twilight was hearing the Julep Family’s request for a larger rain allotment, when he –” The guard speaking pointed to a brown pony dressed in a red velvet suit. Oh dear, what decade did he think this was? “– started an altercation, saying that the Princess shouldn’t be wasting her time on such ‘drivel.’ Several nobles loudly agreed, we escorted them out of the room like we were ordered to do, and then we saw you two.”

Captain Greaves looked at me while I tried to ignore the throbbing pain behind my eye socket. “Since you’re here, mind telling us how you want this situation handled? For future reference.” Obviously, I wanted them all locked up for daring to disrupt Twilight’s first court, but… Twilight probably wouldn’t approve. No, I’d handle this situation like she’d want me to.

I narrowed my eyes at the ringleader. Him first. “Take his name, banish him for a year, and I’ll write a letter to Princess Celestia detailing his unbecoming behavior. If he refuses to give his name, banish him for two years and grant one of the other troublemakers an audience with Princess Twilight if they know his name.” A few pairs of eyes lit up at that. Good, that was handled, then. “Take down everypony else’s name and give them a warning. If they cause trouble again, do the same thing to them you did to the ringleader. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I really do need to get back to work.”

♦♦♦

Another pony was sitting in my office when I got back. Clearly, my door needed a lock, or a sign saying ‘Please Wait Outside’, or both. I smiled at the young, yellow-maned white mare sitting opposite my spot at the desk. “Hello, how can I help you?”

She smiled at me. Well, that was refreshing. Most of the ponies who came here thought scowling was the best way to win my favor. “Hello… Rarity, is it?” I nodded. “Hello, I’m Alabaster Cream, and I was hoping I could get an appointment with Princess Twilight. If not, that’s okay, but I’d really like it if she’d look over my family’s claim to some land outside Ponyville in Quarry Canyon. I have the documents with me – well, not with me, but they’re in my hotel room. Is it… I’m only in town for a week, would it be possible for me to meet with her before I leave?”

I frowned and went through the calendar in my head. She seemed sincere, was polite, and I didn’t recognize her name from any of the great families. It sounded like the dear actually needed help, and wasn’t just trying to earn prestige. “We might be able to, but why didn’t you bring up this little problem with Princess Celestia?”

“Oh, I want to, I’ve been scheduled to have an appointment with her for the last few years, but my name keeps getting bumped down the list for some reason. I thought maybe, since Quarry Canyon is in Princess Twilight’s demesne, that she might be able to help me,” she said, still smiling as I took my seat.

“Yes, I think I can get you a meeting with her. How does tomorrow at noon work?” I asked.

“Really?” she asked, voice soaring. “You can do it that soon? I thought I’d be shuffled around on some wait list and I wouldn’t be able to get an appointment with the Princess until I was my parents’ age.”

“Well, if you have as strong a claim as you indicate, Princess Twilight would want to help you as soon as possible. Either way, I think we can all agree that the sooner we resolve the situation, the better,” I said. Plus, Twilight had four slots reserved for noble appointments each day, and only about three nobles had impressed me enough to earn an appointment with her so far. Hopefully, that would change soon, but until then, we had the time.

She laughed and gave me a hug. My whole body tensed at her touch as I tried to squirm my way out of her embrace. This was not behavior becoming of a noblemare. “Oh, thank you so much, Miss Rarity. I can’t tell you… My parents will be so happy to hear this. They’ve been dying to build a home there for decades, but could never seem to… Thank you.”

“It’s fine,” I said, giving a small smile to her as the hug ended. “Just doing my job.”

“Well, it means a lot to me,” she said, going back to her seat. “Oh my goodness, what am I going to wear, I need… I need something fancy if I’m going to be meeting with a Princess.” Her eyes fell on my half-finished dress in the corner. “Ooh, who designed that dress for you?”

“I did,” I said. “I’m supposed to be a dressmaker, but I’ve been having less and less time for that lately. Still, Twilight needs somepony to manage the nobility for her, and I’m more than happy to be that mare.” I smiled at her. “If you’d like, I can sell you one of my dresses.”

“No, I couldn’t ask that, you’ve done so much for me already, and I probably couldn’t even afford something so nice, anyways. Still, thank you for offering,” she said. A noble who wasn’t rich and who didn’t have an estate? I didn’t know such things existed.

“I assure you, my rates are very reasonable. Most of my dresses usually sell for between three thousand and five thousand bits, but I might have a few I could part with for a mere thousand bits,” I said, thinking of the dresses I had up in the study. “Just… Come back with a thousand bits, and I’ll have a dress ready for you.”

“Thank you, again,” she said, getting to her hooves. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” The door clicked shut. I gave her enough time to leave the hall, then got to my hooves, trotting back to my – to Twilight’s study, running through the list of dresses I had and matching them with Alabaster’s colors. Yes, there was a nice, simple jade piece that would work with her complexion, and I could part with it for a thousand bits.

“Ah, Rarity, just the mare we’ve been looking for,” a stallion – I racked my brain for his name. Count Genteel Touch? – said. “How fortuitous we see you now.”

I winced. Whatever this was, it almost certainly took precedence over Alabaster’s dress. “Let’s move to my office,” I said, turning around. “I’m sure we can work out an agreeable solution to whatever your problem is.” I checked back at the nobles. None of them were involved in the earlier incident. A whole fifteen minutes earlier. Something told me this day wouldn’t end easily.

“There can be only one agreeable resolution,” Genteel said. “You resigning, and abolishing your position as Twilight’s gatekeeper.” Oh, was that all? Well why didn’t he just say so? I opened the door to my office and ushered them all inside.

“Yes, well, I don’t think that will be happening,” I said, smiling at him. “Especially since Princess Twilight doesn’t have a gatekeeper. I’m just in charge of scheduling appointments.”

“And you’ve been doing a wonderful job denying the nobility access to the Princess. That’s why we all banded together and formed Nobles for Equal Access to Princess Twilight. We will not rest until we are on equal hoofing with the peasantry. It’s intolerable that they have easier access to the Princess than the cream of Equestria,” he said to a chorus of nods. I fought the urge to strangle somepony.

“Well, I’m sorry you feel that way,” I said, giving him my best diplomatic smile. “But Princess Twilight issued a decree on how many nobles she wanted to see each day, and gave me the parameters for selecting them. I’m just an instrument of the Princess’s will.” Some of your compatriots are figuring out how the new game works, why can’t you?

“But one of the major articles of the Equestrian constitution states that, and I quote, ‘No noble may be denied access to the Princess for any reason whatsoever.’ You’re in violation of the law.” Yes, a law that was written when Equestria only had one princess.

“Yes, I can understand your frustration, certainly, but you know as well as I do that that law was written to apply to Princess Celestia. Has your access to her been denied in any way?” I asked. He shook his head. My smile grew. “Then it sounds like we’re not in any violation of the law. Besides that, we’re still allowing nobles in to see Princess Twilight. Lord Fancy Pants had an appointment with her just this morning to discuss a proposed charity with the Princess.” Hint hint.

“But–”

“No ‘buts,’ Count Genteel. Twilight is in charge of her own court. If you disagree with the way she conducts her affairs, you’re more than welcome to retreat back to Canterlot and tell all your friends how the Princess refused to see you. However, I’ll have you know that it’s not actually all that difficult to get the meeting you want. Show some humility, display some interest in helping ponies, and you’ll almost certainly get your appointment.” I’d seen children less petulant than some of these nobles.

He stared at me, I stared back. One of us was going to break, and it certainly wasn’t going to be me. The seconds shifted into minutes, and we both stood firm. He might have been willful, but I was Twilight’s shield from the nobility. Ponies like him would never speak with her. Finally, he glanced away, and movement flooded back into the room. “If that’s all, Count Genteel, I do have work to do. I’m sure you understand.”

“Yes, well… You’ll be hearing from me again,” he said, turning to look at the door.

“Oh, I’m sure I will,” I said, still smiling. “And I hope the next time we speak, things are a bit less tense. I do always welcome productive talks with the nobility.” He trotted to the door, and several of his followers traded uneasy glances with each other. Their confidence in their mighty leader was shaken, and maybe now some of them might listen to reason. It really wasn’t that difficult to get an appointment. They didn’t even have to engage in philanthropic efforts, really; if they were humble and polite, I’d probably give them their appointment. Baby steps, right?

The nobles filed out, several of the laggards looking back at me as they left. My gut told me I’d be hearing from them before the day was out. Once they were gone, I made my way back up to the study.

♦♦♦

Nopony bothered me as I made my way to the study to pick up my dress, but by the time I made it back to the office, several more ponies were waiting outside. Well, at least they hadn’t let themselves in. “Are you here to see me?” I asked. They nodded. “Wonderful, just give me a minute, and I’ll speak to you individually.” Maybe one day, the castle would give me a waiting room so nobles didn’t have to wait in the hallway. Not that I was too terribly distraught, either way.

The ones who’d been in with Count Genteel came in, feigned politeness, and talked about how they wanted Twilight’s ideas on how they could help Equestria. They walked away with an appointment. The ones who didn’t… Well, they’d figure it out sooner or later. I sighed when the last one left and rested my head on the desk just in time for somepony else to knock on the door. “Come in,” I said, sitting upright and putting on my best smile.

Alabaster Cream poked her head in the room, “Oh, I’m sorry, is this a bad time? I just… I had my bits, and was wondering if you still wanted to sell me that dress. If not, that’s completely fine, you’ve already done more than enough for me.”

I shook my head and pulled the box out of my desk. “No, it’s fine, Lady Cream.” I opened the box. “Will this work for your needs?”

Her face lit up. “Oh, it’s lovely. I can’t believe it only costs a thousand bits. Thank you so much.” She reached into her saddlebags and floated out a bag of bits. “Here you go, Miss Rarity. I promise, I’ll tell everypony I know about what a wonderful dressmaker you are.”

“You really don’t have to,” I said, shaking my head. “Although I do appreciate the thought.” She grabbed the box and gingerly fitted it into her saddlebags.

“Oh no, I insist,” she said, smiling at me as she trotted to the door. “I hope it’s okay if I stop by to visit before I leave? Right now, I have to prepare my arguments for tomorrow.”

“Any time, Lady Cream. Speaking with you was an utter delight,” I said, letting out a sigh as the door clicked shut again. And waited. And waited. And waited. No more knocks? Good, then perhaps now, I could do some actual work. I turned and went back my dress. I still had just enough time to finish my dress before court let out. A knock from Spike’s door. Of course.

“What is it?” I asked, turning around to the door, thread and needle still floating in my grip.

“Uhmm… It’s three o’clock. I’m supposed to remind you to go to Gustaf’s at three,” he said, looking at me. Was my mane getting frazzled? It was certainly possible, I hadn’t styled it since– Oh no, I hadn’t styled my mane at all today. I’d been so focused on helping Twilight this morning, that I’d completely forgotten about myself. And then I’d spent the entire day talking with nobles. They probably thought I was a complete mess. It’s fine, Rarity. Everything’s fine. You just need to go style your mane after getting food from Gustaf, and then finish designing your dress. Nothing could be simpler.

“Thank you, Spike,” I said, nodding at him. “If you could just tell any guests that I’m temporarily out of the office...?”

“I got it,” he said. “It’ll be nice to get a break from writing all these letters, anyways,” he said, gesturing to the pile of letters at his tiny little dragon desk. It was so cute and– “Oh, I heard back from Princess Luna, she says everything’s ready for tonight.”

Well, at least the most important thing for Twilight’s date was handled. Now, I just had to make sure the picnic and the chariot ride was ready. And finish the dress. And listen to whatever other demands the nobles wanted to inflict on me today. Oh, and clean myself up.

“I’ll be back as soon as possible,” I said, trotting out the door. “Try not to have too much fun while I’m gone, Spike.”

“Don’t worry,” he shouted back. “I definitely won’t.” I stifled a laugh as the door clicked shut. He’d been such a hard worker the last few weeks. We needed to make it up to him somehow. Maybe the castle could create an underground tunnel connecting the cellar to the nearby gem mines.

♦♦♦

“Hello,” I said as I trotted into Gustaf’s. “I’d like to speak to Gustaf, if that’s alright.”

“And you are?” the griffon maitre d’ said. Really? Yes, it had been a few weeks since I’d been here, but I was with a Princess when I came.

“I’m Rarity,” I said, doing my best to keep my smile up as I ran a hoof through my mane. Oh yes, it was definitely getting stressed. I was definitely getting stressed. “I came here with Princess Twilight the last time she was here.”

The griffon laughed. “Oh, yes, you looked different then, put together.” He raised an eyebrow as I tried not to growl. “Having a lazy day today, then?” Kill. Kill the griffon. I took a calming breath.

“On the contrary, I’m doing my best to get ready for my date with Princess Twilight this evening while also making sure her first court date goes off without a hitch, so if you could please just let me speak to Gustaf, I’d be greatly appreciative,” I said through clenched teeth. The minute I mentioned my date, the smug grin on his beak vanished. Ha!

“He’s in the kitchen,” the griffon said, pointing a claw in the general direction of the kitchen. I nodded my head and gave him my sincerest thanks.

“Ah, Rarity,” Gustaf said as I trotted into the kitchen. “To what do I owe the pleasure? It has been so long since I last saw you, and… isn’t Twilight having her first court today?” He knew good and well she was.

“She is, and that’s part of the reason I’m here. I’m planning a special picnic with the Princess after her court tonight, and I was wondering if you could provide the dinner. It would mean a lot to both of us.”

His eyes lit up. “A picnic for a Princess? Yes, I’d be happy to lend my culinary expertise. There will be no picnic finer in Equestria,” he said, giving a dramatic flourish. Well, that wasn’t going to be true, but there was no need to ruin his little dream. “What dishes will you be having?”

“I’d like it if we could have the same dishes we had the last time we were here and… could you do a couple of those bottles of wine? Nectar of the Stars or something like that?” Definitely fitting, considering my agenda.

“But of course,” he said. “I’ll have one of my unicorn chefs cast a preservative spell on the meal, so it will taste like it just came out of my oven when you take your first bite.” He smiled at me. “You go on back to your castle, I’ll send somepony to deliver the meal when it’s done.” And then every noble at the castle would see that Twilight was ordering private meals from Gustaf. Clever, Gustaf, very clever.

“I very much appreciate it, Gustaf,” I said. “Just… I’m trying to keep this meal a surprise from Twilight, so if you could just have it delivered to my office at the castle, I would be greatly appreciative.”

“Anything for you and the Princess,” he said, giving a small bow and turning to one of the ponies working in the kitchen. “You, fetch the things I need for the portobello steak and the scallions. If I don’t have them in two minutes, you can get out of my kitchen.”

Well, he was a bit abrasive – but then, what artist wasn’t when they were working on a deadline? Speaking of which, I had to have a new line of clothing ready for Hoity Toity in a few weeks. I absolutely needed to start work on that tomorrow. I nodded at Gustaf, satisfied the situation was well in hoof. Mane, chariot, appointments, dress. Four things left. Giving another sigh, I trotted back to the castle as quickly as I could without breaking a sweat. At least the first day of autumn wasn’t too unbearably hot.

Yes, Rarity, everything’s going to be fine. Fine. Fine. You have a couple of hours until court’s over, and then you can take a few hours getting ready. But… No, Twilight will almost certainly want to spend time with you when she’s done to blow off steam, and we can’t deny her that. Just get through today and you won’t have as much to do tomorrow. Maybe you can even sleep in.

I laughed at that idea. Probably not. I rubbed my mane. If Twilight had feelings for me, she could have just told me instead of… Well, we can’t fault Twilight for not being open with her feelings. I reached the castle, and moved to the back where I knew the chariot would be. “Yoo-hoo,” I said to the two pegasi who were just finishing polishing the chariot. “You know your route for this evening?”

The brown one nodded at me. “Yes, ma’am. Scenic route to Canterlot Castle, making a slow loop around Canter Mountain to show off the landscape. We need to be at the castle no later than 10:00.”

“Wonderful,” I said, smiling at him. “I’m going to be coming back in an hour with a picnic basket. Is there any way you can conceal it so Princess Twilight isn’t aware of it?”

“I believe so,” he said, trotting into the purple and gold chariot and opening a compartment at its base. “This big enough?”

“It should be,” I said, nodding my head and getting the compartment’s measurements. About two hooves tall and three hooves wide. A basket containing two bottles of wine and two meals could fit in there easily. The question is… I didn’t have a basket. No no no, I had– I had a basket at the Boutique. “I’ll be back in just a few minutes,” I said before sprinting off.

Sweat wasn’t important. Time was running out, and I needed that basket. Without it, I’d just have a collection of items rolling around in a storage compartment, and if that wine broke… I couldn’t bear to lose such good wine.

I barreled into the Boutique, ignoring the thin layer of dust that had accumulated over everything, grabbed the picnic basket from the storage room with my magic, and sprinted back out of the Boutique. We could clean it later, when we weren’t struggling to get a thousand things done by dinner.

Rarity, Rarity, what are you going to do? I ran through the streets of Ponyville, picnic basket behind me. A thousand things in the fire, and not nearly enough time to give them the attention they deserve, Rarity. You can’t keep all these plates spinning. Great, Rarity, now you’re mixing metaphors. What would Twilight say? Rarity? Rarity?

A dull whump imploded in my chest, and I found myself on my back, a pair of moderate cerise eyes staring down at me. “Hello, Rarity?” Rainbow Dash asked. “I tried calling you, but you just kept running.” She rubbed the back of her head. “Sorry for tackling you.”

A hoof went to the ache on the side of my chest. That was almost certainly going to bruise, but I didn’t think anything was broken. “Well, at least you apologized,” I said as she got off me. “Now, would you mind telling me just what’s so important that you had to tackle me?” I glanced at the picnic basket that crashed next to me. “Actually, don’t. I have so much to do today, that as much as I’d love to listen to whatever it is you want to say, I really need to get going.”

“Great,” Rainbow Dash said as I rolled on to my hooves. “I can run with you. It’s… It’s kind of urgent.”

“Before we go much further, Rainbow Dash, I assure you that I’m completely fine with you and Applejack dating, if that’s what this is about.” I rubbed my forehead and looked at my side. Dust clung to my coat, and there were even a few grass stains. Wonderful. Cleaning just went higher on the priority list, I suppose.

“Yeah, thanks for being so cool about that,” Rainbow Dash said as I took my first steps towards the castle and grabbed the picnic basket with my magic. “I was actually hoping I could talk to you about… romance stuff.” What? Really?! She was going to ask me for relationship advice about Applejack?

I sighed. Why did everypony think I was some sort of relationship expert? Yes, I read a lot of romances, but my actual real life relationships were hardly laudable. “What’s... the problem, Rainbow Dash?” I asked between breaths

“We… We kind of got into a fight, and I was wondering what you did when the two of you had a disagreement,” she asked, easily keeping pace with me.

“We yelled until we couldn’t stand anymore and then we had…” I looked around to see if any foals were around. None. “We had sex until we couldn’t stay awake anymore. The winner of the fight was the last pony to apologize, and the winner of the make-up was the pony who made the other or–”

“Okay,” Rainbow Dash said, cutting me off. “Why did I think asking you was a good idea? Although that last thing… that sounds kind of fun.”

“It was, and…” The castle loomed larger. “Why are you asking about our fights?”

She briefly looked away as we continued our brisk trot. “We kind of had a fight. She wanted me to go to her family reunion with her, but I had Wonderbolt Reserve duty that weekend, so she got upset and said I cared more about the Wonderbolts than spending time with her great uncle whatever. I told her I totally did, and things got… bad.”

I winced. There was that famous Rainbow Dash tact. The dull throbbing that had been building behind my horn all day suddenly had a sharp spike in severity. “Rainbow, beyond the fact that her family is immensely important to her, she wants you to meet her family. Do you understand how important that is for her? In all our years of on-again off-again dating, she never invited me to one of her big family reunions.”

“So… you’re saying I shouldn’t do the Wonderbolts thing?” she asked, tilting her head. “Because I’m pretty sure they’ll kick me out if I don’t go.”

“No, Rainbow Dash, you shouldn’t have to give up your dream for Applejack, she’d hate it if you did. You just need…” I trailed off as we approached the castle’s front door, the throbbing still building. I couldn’t let it get to me now. Still so much left to do... “Spend some time with the Apples, let her know her family is important to you too, and offer to go on a road trip to meet some more of her family after the harvest is over. That seems reasonable, right?”

“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash said, nodding her head. “Hey, Rares, how come you didn’t do stuff like that when you were dating her?”

“Because I’m much better at giving good advice than I am at taking it, apparently.” I glanced at the basket. “Here’s hoping that doesn’t prove true for my latest endeavor, though.”

She looked between me and my basket and understanding quickly snuck into her eyes. “Oh, you and Twilight are finally dating? Cool. When did that start? Just wondering, because the rest of us girls kind of had a pool.”

“Can you please ask me later, Rainbow Dash? I only have a few hours left to get everything ready, and I have to finish work, groom myself, and finish a fabulous dress before her court lets out,” I said, blinking my eyes in an attempt to dispel the pain in my head.

“Really?” Rainbow Dash asked, glancing at the sun mockingly low in the sky. “Isn’t that in, like… thirty minutes?”

I screamed and threw the basket at her as she jumped into the air and spread her wings. By the time my basket hit the ground, a prismatic trail led from the castle to the apple orchards. Anything else? Did Equestria have some other nuisance it wanted to throw at me today? Maybe Fluttershy could come to me with her relationship problems, or Pinkie could drag me to some secret surprise party, or Scootaloo could appear with something about – No, that would be worth it, whatever it was. I glared at the world, daring it to throw something else at me. Satisfied when no challenges appeared, I stomped to my office.

“Hello,” a unicorn mare standing next to my office said, a tray floating next to her. “I have–”

I floated my picnic basket right in front of her muzzle. “Put it in the basket, bring it to the guards out back next to the chariot, and I’ll pay you four hundred bits tomorrow, alright?” I said. She took a look at me, nodded, and a second later, she’d vanished, taking my picnic basket with her. Wonderful. Quality service was rare to find these days.

Inside my office, four nobles sat in various states of agitation. “Alright!” I shouted. “Who here wants to rant about what an indignity it is that I’m denying them an audience with Princess Twilight?”

Three hooves shot up. “Wonderful, then allow me to save us all some time and say it won’t happen with that attitude. Now, get out before my very frustrating day becomes your very frustrating day.” The four of them all made for the door, and I grabbed the one who didn’t raise her hoof before she could leave. “You. Do you have a legitimate problem or grievance, or are you just fishing for an audience with the Princess? If it’s the former, talk to me now. If it’s the latter, talk to me tomorrow. If it’s the latter and you say it’s the former, then I can assure you, you will never see Princess Twilight for all the remainder of your days. Which is it?”

“Uhmm… the latter,” she squeaked. I released my grip and she bolted out the door. I slammed it shut and locked it. I shut my eyes and took a series of deep breaths, trying to get the pain in my head to go away. Not tonight. Everything had to be perfect tonight. Satisfied that the pain wasn’t debilitating, I turned to my dress. My dress… Twilight probably wouldn’t care so much if it wasn’t perfect, but I would. Yard by yard, always stressed. If she could have a single complaint about today, I’d failed completely and utterly.

The dress finished, I brought it off the mannequine to try it on and – Oh no, I couldn’t put it on now, I was a mess; my coat was dirty, my mane… I floated a pocket mirror out of my desk to inspect myself, and recoiled. No wonder those nobles fled so quickly. I looked like a nightmare; my mane was frazzled and frayed, my cheeks were flecked with dirt and grass, and… was there a stick sticking out of my tail? I bolted out of my office towards my bathroom.

“Spike!” I yelled as I fled the office. “Under no circumstances are you to allow Twilight into my room, understand?”

He mumbled something as I slammed my door to the office and locked it, magically moving the tumblers. Twilight could unlock it if she set her mind to it, but most likely she’d see it as a sign that my office was currently off limits. I took the stairs up to her private quarters two at a time. I needed a shower. Preferably, a nice long shower where I could scrub every last trace of dirt, sweat, and filth from my body, but we didn’t have time for that. Her court was empty now, and the fact she hadn’t been by to check up on me while I was finishing the design of my dress was a small miracle. I ran through her bedroom and locked myself in the bathroom I’d been using the last few days.

“Rarity, are you in there?” Twilight asked, knocking a minute later as the water heated up.

“I am,” I said in my best sing-song. We were so close, I just had to finish showering, get back to my office, put on my dress, come back up here, and take Twilight on her date. No more interruptions, no more annoyances. I winced. Except for the pain in my head. We could worry about that tomorrow. “Just cleaning up after work. I’ll be out in a bit.” I glanced out the window in her bathroom. The sun burned red in the sky, I had maybe an hour until the stars started coming out. “How long has court been out?”

“A couple of hours. Did you know some paparazzi pony tried to break into the castle today?” she asked.

I nodded for nopony’s benefit as I stepped into the shower. “I think I heard something about that. Can we talk more after I finish cleaning up?”

There was a pause. “Sure, do you think you’ll be long?”

“Under an hour, I promise,” I said. She didn’t like it. She wanted to talk all about her court, and I was more than happy to listen, but we could do that once we left. What else was – “Oh! I’m taking care of dinner, so don’t go sneaking down to the kitchen while I shower, all right, Twilight?”

“Fine, but could you hurry up? My stomach’s starting to growl,” she said.

I smiled, luxuriating in the feel of hot water seeping into my coat. “I’ll move as fast as I can, I promise.”

♦♦♦

An unprecedented thirty-seven minutes later, I stepped out of the bathroom, clean from mane to hoof. An undressed Twilight lounged on the bed, head hanging off the edge and her hooves pointing in the air. It was utterly adorable and I couldn’t help but trot over and give her a quick kiss.

“What was that for?” she asked as the kiss ended. “Not complaining, just curious.”

“Do I really need a reason to kiss my marefriend?” I asked, tilting my head at her. “She’s completely wonderful and adorable, and sometimes, apropos of nothing, I feel like letting her know how much she means to me.”

She smiled, a big lazy smile hanging upside down on her face. “Thanks, and…” she tried to lift her head up to kiss me, but couldn’t quite reach. I humored her and bent back down. The second I did, she wrapped a hoof around the back of my head and drew me closer. My mouth parted, and her tongue tried to wrestle its way around mine. I breathed a contented sigh into her throat. What my princess lacked in experience, she more than made up for in enthusiasm.

Both of us wore the biggest, stupidest smiles on our faces as she lowered her head back down from the kiss. “So, what do you have planned tonight?” she asked. “I’m thinking maybe Gustaf’s would be nice.” She was absolutely right, but not how she imagined.

“Perhaps,” I said, trotting to the door. “Give me about fifteen minutes and then meet me in the back of the castle.”

“Wait, why?” Twilight asked, rolling on to her hooves. “I thought we were going to talk about court today. I have so many stories to tell you.”

“And you’ll get to tell me all of them in due time,” I said as I left the room. “But right now, I have to get ready for your surprise.”

“Surprise?” Twilight said, hopping off the bed. “Rarity, what sur–” The door clicked shut, and I heard Twilight growl with frustration from the other side. The suspense wouldn’t kill her.

♦♦♦

I stood a few hooves in front of the chariot, the two guards already hitched in, garbed in my finery. I looked… Well, tonight was ultimately about Twilight, but she’d appreciate me looking my best, and I certainly looked that way tonight. I smiled as I stood, immaculate and waiting for my marefriend to round the corner.

And waited. How long did it take me to get ready? She wasn’t so upset with me for slamming the door on her that she decided not to come, was she? No, Twilight would never let annoyance overcome her natural curiosity. Yes, she’d come. Probably just distracted by something else. What could distract her? Well, that kiss was – No, she wouldn’t, would she? I’d never seen her do it or allude to it, but then, she had to have at some point, right? Of course, up until a week ago, she hadn’t been kissed before, and tonight was her first date ever, so maybe, but then again, it wasn’t unprecedented for the quiet ones to have the more… vivid imaginations.

Are we really analyzing our marefriend’s sexual habits? You know, if we asked, she’d probably just tell us. I glanced back at the guards. But probably not right now. Decorum, and all. Well, let’s go over what we do know, she did dream of sleeping with us, but that was so far adorably platonic. No, not platonic, but certainly not sexual, just romantic. Something like what I would have dreamed up back when I was younger and pining for my prince. But that does prove she has some romantic fantasies. But what about other types of fantasies? Everypony had them, right?

Why is this so fascinating to me? If she does it, she does it, if not, that’s fine too. Still, it would be at least a little odd if she didn’t, wouldn’t it? A mare has needs...

Twilight finally rounded the corner, and I put those thoughts to bed. A war of expressions warred on Twilight’s face as her mouth opened. Surprise won the day. “Rarity, what’s… what’s going on?”

I smiled and gave her a bow. “Twilight Sparkle, it’s time for your first date.”

“Wait, what?” she asked. “But I haven’t planned anything, and you look so beautiful, while I’m not wearing anything.”

“That’s fine,” I said, turning to the chariot. “Everything’s ready, and you don’t need to do a thing. You worry so much about planning everything, I thought it would be nice if you had a night off.” I trotted up and kissed a cheek. “So, I’ve taken care of everything. Just relax and enjoy yourself.” I nuzzled her cheek. “Hopefully, that won’t be too difficult.”

She smiled as I pulled away and looked at the chariot, tension draining from her face. “No, I think I can manage. What do you have planned?”

I trotted to the back of the chariot and opened the back gate for her. “I thought we could, perhaps, start the evening off with a leisurely flight, and after that…” I grinned. “Well, that’s a surprise.”

Twilight hopped into the back of her chariot, a giddiness in her steps. “I can’t… I can’t believe it, I’m having my first date, and it’s with you.” She twirled around to wrap me in a hug before I could respond. “I can’t tell you how excited I am. This is… Ooh, I’ve had so many dreams about this day! Thank you, Rarity.”

“Well, I hope it lives up to the expectation,” I said, trotting into the chariot and latching the door behind me. “It was a small scramble getting everything ready for this evening, but I think it turned out alright in the end.”

“Really?” Twilight asked, tilting her head as the pegasi pulling the chariot moved forward. “Was today that bad? Oh my goodness, I haven’t even thought to ask how your day was, you must think I’m–”

I kissed her. Kissing had established itself as the fastest way to calm her down once her mind started running away from her. I’d need to reassure her once the kiss ended, but that could wait for a minute, couldn’t it? I savored the sensation of her on my lips and was savored in return.

“It’s fine, Twilight,” I said as the kiss ended and tried not to laugh at the vacant look in Twilight’s eyes. It wasn’t every day I got to see her in such thoughtless contentment, and the look would only last for a few seconds, at best. “My day was all right, a bit hectic in a few places, but nothing out of the ordinary. Tell me about your first day of court.”

She beamed at me, what little glassiness remained in her eyes after our kiss vanishing. “Oh! Right, it was crazy. Well, not crazy, actually, it was pretty much what you trained me to expect, except for the nobles I had to kick out and the paparazzi pony. Apparently, she was caught trying to sneak into my private quarters. Did you know the castle had a prison?”

I smiled and felt the wind whipping against my face and mane. I could tell her, but she didn’t need to worry about all the work I’d done today, not today. Tomorrow, maybe, but today was all about her. “I do seem to recall Captain Greaves mentioning something about that over lunch, yes.” A lunch I hadn’t actually had. My stomach growled at the reminder. That probably wasn’t helping my headache.

“How was that? Are the guard rations okay? We really need to hire a chef for the royal kitchens, and offer fresh food for the guards,” Twilight said. Even on our date, she was still finding things to worry about.

“We can think about that tomorrow,” I said, leaning into her. “Tonight’s all about you, Twilight.”

“Us,” Twilight said, and I could hear the frown in her voice. “It’s about us, not just me. That’s what a relationship is, right? Two ponies sharing everything with each other. That’s what I want with you, at least.”

“Of course,” I said, closing my eyes and nestling into the crook of her neck. Outside of us, the chariot continued its climb. We’d be getting above the clouds soon. “I just thought that since tonight was your first date ever, the focus should be on you.”

She sighed and stroked my mane with one hoof. “Thank you, but it’s not just my first date, it’s our first date, and that’s what makes it so special.” Yes, well she had me there.

“True, but this is your first first date. You’ll only ever get one of those, and it seems a sin to me if it’s anything less than perfect,” I said, smelling her coat. “If it makes you feel better, you can make me the focus of our next date, although I suppose that means there will have to be a second date.”

“I suppose it does,” Twilight said, laughing. “And my first date’s with you, so it can’t be anything but perfect.” A wave of warmth flooded through me. It still amazed me how simple and sincere she could be. I nestled deeper into her as she wrapped a wing over me. Between my dress, coat, and her wing, I wasn’t in any danger of going cold tonight.

“So court wasn’t too terrible? Beyond the one outburst, the nobles weren’t a chore to deal with?” They’d better not have been; if they were, I’d make sure they never saw a princess again.

“They weren’t bad,” she said. I opened my eyes. One saw nothing but purple, and the other saw the stars flying by above us as we made our way over the Equestrian country side. “Fancy Pants was nice; he had this great idea to fund a series of secondary schools in towns across Equestria, so ponies have options available if they want a post-primary education.” I could hear the giddiness in her voice. “Imagine it, Rarity, ponies will be able to learn about the classics for free, soon. They won’t have to be a unicorn or be accepted into Luna’s academy if they want a higher education, they can just get one. Why hasn’t anypony thought of that before?”

“I don’t know,” I said, the pain in my head fading at the sound of her voice. “I wonder how things would have been different for me if I’d gone to school for a few extra years after graduating, instead of just dedicating myself to dressmaking?” I frowned. “I don’t know if I would have taken that offer, though. I was so focused on becoming a fashionista, I ignored anything that got in the way of that goal, sometimes to my detriment.”

She nodded. “It is a bit of a problem,” Twilight said. “Ponies are so focused on their special talent once they discover it that they ignore the rest of their life. I know I did the same thing, but… How can I say ‘no’ to educating ponies?” She couldn’t.

“I’m sure there will be ponies interested in the big cities, and older ponies who’ve mastered their talent could be interested in rounding themselves out,” I said over the sound of the wind.

“Right, adult education,” Twilight said, nodding. “I’ll pass that on to Fancy Pants and see if that will make a better focus for our schools. Thanks, Rarity.”

“Think nothing of it, dear.” I looked up at the night sky. “Aren’t the stars lovely tonight?”

“They are,” Twilight said, pointing a hoof at one constellation. “See that one there, that’s Canis Major.” I shuddered.

“Twilight, if you could go the rest of your life and never mention that particular constellation to me again…”

“Right, sorry,” she said, “I just like pointing it out because Sirius is one of my favorite stars. Did you know it’s the brightest star in the sky?”

“I thought the sun was the brightest star in the sky,” I said, trying to conceal my smile. Plus, I could see at least one other star in the sky that looked brighter than Sirius.

“Fine, Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky, although there’s a lot of debate on whether or not the sun is an actual star. Astronomers know they work off the same principle, but their size is so wildly different, plus the sun is the only star we know of that moves. Well, the stars might move too, but they all move together, We’re still working on explaining how the night sky shifts with the seasons,” Twilight said. I suppose that’s what I get for trying to correct her on something. “For a while, we thought the stars were in a fixed sphere around Equus, but recent images from the Pegasus Observatory have confirmed just how insanely huge the universe is and how weird our system is.”

“How so?” I asked. “Assuming there are other worlds like ours out there, that is.”

“Statistically, there have to be, and some stars have smudges on one side that indicate… Well, that’s the thing, we can’t get a really good view on Equus, but it looks like systems with other worlds have the worlds revolve around the sun. Equus is a huge anomaly, and no astronomers have any idea why. Celestia hasn’t said anything on the subject, either.”

I smiled and took a deep breath. Something told me she’d be talking about the night sky for the entirety of our flight.

♦♦♦

An hour of conversation later, we finally landed in Canterlot Castle, where Princess Luna was waiting for us. “Ah, I’m glad you two made it. Are you ready?”

“We are, Princess Luna,” I said, bowing before her. “Although Twilight doesn’t quite–” I stopped and trotted back to the chariot, pulling our basket out of the compartment. “Now we are, although Twilight doesn’t exactly know what we’re ready for.”

Princess Luna smiled, her horn glowing. “Well, I’m sure she’ll love it.” I felt a prickle of magic run down my body, spreading from my muzzle to the rest of me. Next to me, Twilight shivered, feeling the same magic I was. “I’ll be back in a few hours to pick you both up.”

“Wait,” Twilight said as the tingle of magic grew. “Where are we–?”

The world around us crackled and dissolved, and instead of standing in Canterlot Castle, our hooves dug into a fine, powdery white chalk. Up above in the night sky hung a blue and green circle marred by white streaks. “Rarity, are we–?”

I nodded. “We are, Twilight. I thought you might appreciate stargazing for our first date, but then thought that was rather cliche. Well, maybe cliche is the wrong word for it, but I wanted to make stargazing on our first date special. So I packed a meal, made a request of Princess Luna, and here we are.” I opened my picnic basket, and… Yes! We had a blanket. Wonderful, the dear who’d packed our meal had remembered a picnic is nothing without a blanket. Six hundred bits, then. I went about spreading the blanket over the face of the moon. “How many ponies can say they had a picnic on the face of the moon for the first date?” I pulled the food and drink out of the basket as well, setting them down on the blanket. “Especially when Gustaf did the cooking.”

She sniffed at one of the plates as her stomach grumbled. “Did you… did you get one of the portobello steaks?”

“Well, I wouldn’t be much of a marefriend if I didn’t get your favorite meal from Gustaf’s, would I?”

Her forelegs wrapped around me and a flurry of kisses landed on my face. “Thank you, you’re the best marefriend ever.” She stepped back from me and twirled around on one hoof. “I’m here! On the moon! To watch the stars and have dinner my marefriend! I haven’t been here since…”

Her face fell. “Oh. Is being here alright for you? I kind of forgot what happened the last time we were here.”

I shrugged and went about setting up our meals. “If I avoided every place where I regretted doing something, I’d never leave your castle. Besides, Luna assured me the moon is much safer these days.”

“You really have that many regrets?” Twilight asked, popping open her container.

“More than most, I suppose,” I said, looking up at Equus. From here, it looked so small and peaceful. Also, how could it look so bright without the sun shining on it? I looked around. Where was the sun? It had to be somewhere, right? “Twilight, what happened to the sun?”

She looked around. “Huh, so it completely vanishes when Celestia sets it. I always wondered about that.” She shook her head. “We can talk about that later. Right now, we’re talking about you.”

“I don’t know,” I said, uncorking the wine and pouring us two glasses. “Yes, I suppose I do have more regrets than some. Ponyville is full of them, Canterlot and Manehattan have a few between them, and the moon has one big one. It’s not really that big a deal. Everypony has regrets.”

“Not me,” Twilight said, frowning. “There are things that I might not want to do again, but I don’t regret them because they led me here, to this moment, and without any of them, I wouldn’t be here.” She sat next to me and started cutting into her steak. “And right next to you’s a pretty nice place to be.”

“Yes, I suppose it is,” I said, passing her her glass. “Still, you have to regret that time you almost destroyed the town, right?”

“Nope,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “I learned from it, became a better pony, and nopony got really hurt. Besides, based on who I was at the time, I wouldn’t have done anything differently.” She tapped a hoof against the glass as she waited for it to aerate. “Okay, I know one of your big regrets is what happened to Sweetie, and I know you’d do things differently if you could, but that’s only because you know what happened after. At the time, you did what you thought was right.” She took a bite of her dinner.

I chewed on her words while she chewed on her steak. “Yes, maybe I did what I thought was best, but that doesn’t change the fact that what I did was wrong. Sweetie suffered because of my poor decisions. She’s still suffering, I think.”

“Then why aren’t you doing anything?” Twilight asked, tilting her head. “You could go to Manehattan, track her down, and tell her how you feel, right? Maybe she wouldn’t listen, but it’s not like the situation is unfixable. We could go together.” She rubbed her head against me, and I tried not to notice how the smudge of steak on the corner of her lips rubbed off onto my coat. Right, she didn’t know about the letter.

“Because there’s already a plan in place,” I said, looking up at Equus. If I strained my eyes, I could just make out where Manehattan was. “Sweetie, she… According to Scootaloo, she drank an intelligence potion that also allowed her to see the future. Sweetie couldn’t remember what she did under the potion’s effects, but she wrote a letter to Scootaloo and had it delivered to her after they had a fight. It gave Scootaloo a date, time, and location, and told her to be there.” Save me. “It’s hard to trust in a master plan when nothing but ill’s resulted from it so far, but I’m trying to keep my faith up and counting down the days.” One year, two seasons, and thirteen days.

“Oh,” Twilight said, looking at me. I could see her curiosity about how Sweetie became clairvoyant burning behind her eyes, but thankfully, she decided not to ask. “Well, then…”

“I trust Scootaloo, and I think I trust the Sweetie Belle who wrote the letter – but again, it’s hard to keep my faith, sometimes,” I said, taking bites from my salad and sparing her from searching for platitudes. “Now, if I recall, this is supposed to be our first date, and it’s no fun for anyone if I just talk about my problems.”

“But, I want to hear about them,” Twilight said between bites of steak. “I’ve been wanting to hear about them since you came to the castle, but you only ever give me little glimpses of what’s going on inside. This is a date. We’re supposed to be finding out about each other, and there’s this whole side of you you never show to anypony. I want to see it.”

I chewed on my lip and glanced at my wine. Could it properly aerate on the moon? I took a sip. Still divine. “And if that side of me pushes you away?”

Twilight’s lips were against mine, and I leaned back against the blanket. For a second, I thought she’d hop on top of me to continue the kiss, but it ended just before my head could hit the ground. “Rarity, this is you,” Twilight said, gesturing to encompass the picnic blanket. “You’re the mare who’d go crazy to try and give me the perfect first date. I know who you are and who you’re trying to be. Your pain won’t scare me away.”

The three words caught in my throat. Too soon. Or was it? We’d known each other for years. I sighed. “Fine, you want to know all about me? I suppose you deserve it more than anypony.” I leaned up and kissed her cheek. “Tonight, my princess, I’m an open book. I’ll tell you everything you want to know.” Almost everything.

♦♦♦

One meal and two bottles of wine later, we sat and stared up at Equus, Twilight’s head in its new favorite home. “You’re different than you were when we first met,” Twilight said.

“Good different or bad different?” I asked, yawning.

“I think… good different,” Twilight said, breathing into my coat. “Maybe a little bad, but more good.”

“Care to enlighten me on just how I changed?” I asked, licking the last remnants of wine off my lips.

“You just… you are. I used to think you were this kind of silly romantic who just cared about fashion and stuff I didn’t like, but then I got to know you. Maybe you haven’t changed. Maybe I just saw you better. Maybe I stopped seeing the mare I thought you were, and started seeing the crazy beautiful mare you really are.” She laughed in her ramblings. “You know… on the inside. I already knew you were beautiful on the outside.”

I smiled and stroked her mane. “Why, Twilight Sparkle, you do know how to flatter a mare’s ego. Go on.”

She giggled into my coat. “Good, you still have a little bit of that old vanity. Definitely better than you being so harsh on yourself.”

“Ugh, haven’t we talked about that enough, Twilight? Honestly, we can only comb over all my problems for so many hours before it becomes tedious, and I think we’re well past that boundary,” I said, kissing the top of her head just to let her know I wasn’t too terribly upset.

“Sorry,” she said, her ears flattening. “I… Right. Well, I kind of like your vanity, because I think you deserve it. You… I had pretty much everything growing up. My parents gave me every opportunity they could, and I like to think I used them well, but I know I wouldn’t be where I am now without them. But you… You didn’t have any of that, and you still turned into this amazing mare. You’re hard-working, you’re passionate, generous – obviously; you’re way more at home with the nobility than I am... and deep down, even though I know you’re trying not to admit it, I know that romantic heart’s still beating inside of you.”

I laughed. “Twilight, you’re right about a great many things, but I’m rather confident that whatever romantic streak I possessed in my youth has been thoroughly beaten out of me.”

“Nope,” Twilight said, giving her head a little shake without actually bothering to lift it up. “You know how I know?” There was a pause as she fidgeted to make herself more comfortable. “You kissed me. Back in Canterlot, back when you learned I liked you, you just kissed me. Only a romantic would’ve kissed me that night. Those moments when you can just be completely happy, you’re the most beautiful thing ever. It’s like when the sun hits the atmosphere and clouds just right to paint the whole sky.”

“And the rest of the time?” I asked, raising a hoof up to stifle a yawn. It was… probably late on Equus, and a bottle of wine sloshing in my stomach didn’t help matters much.

“Still beautiful,” she said. “But… Like a dandelion.”

“A weed?” I mumbled.

“No, I mean… You know, it’s pretty, but hardy. Some flowers, if you step on them, they’ll die – but a dandelion, they can get trampled, but they’ll keep growing and being beautiful in their way. Sure, your stem might be bent and you might be mashed into the dirt a little, but you’re still growing. That’s beautiful to me,” she said. Her comment sank down into me, and on the precipice of wakefulness and slumber, something shifted.

I yawned and closed my eyes. There were more words in me. Words that needed to be said. Such a long day, but I needed to get them out. She needed to hear them. I needed to hear them. The three words bubbled up like a fountain, giving life to everything around. “Twilight, I…”

Her echo was the last thing I heard.

Author's Note

Well, we have four more chapters left, but I'm going to hold on publishing them until they're all absolutely in their final draft. Things get kind of intricate, there are a few big changes I need to make, and I don't want to change something that creates a continuity error.

Also, I figure this makes a nice enough stopping point. There are no immediately pressing issues, and Twilight and Rarity are sleeping soundly under the stars and Equestria. Not a bad way to spend your time.

9. AgCNO

I woke up, and the world had shifted beneath me while I slept. My head sank deeper into my pillow as memories from last night played in my head. Why wasn’t I still on the moon? That seemed… Twilight’s head still rested on my chest as sunlight pierced my eyelids. I struggled to remember the end to last night. We were staring up at earth, a bottle of wine in each of our stomachs, and I was as close to passed out as I could be without actually being asleep. Then, I’d said…

My eyes snapped open and I saw my marefriend sleeping on my chest. Why was she still here? Shouldn’t she be working or… “Twilight?” I love you. The words from last night echoed in my head. Why had I drunk so much? Of course I’d say something completely regrettable around her; I just had to step my hoof in it once things started going well.

“Hey, you’re up!” Twilight said, whipping her head around to look at me. “I was starting to worry I’d have to go to court before I could talk to you. How are you feeling?” I love you, too. Wait? Had she…

“Twilight, last night, did I… Did I say that I love you?” I asked. Maybe it was a drunken dream. Maybe everything was fine? Of course, if it was, I’d ruined it now.

She frowned, looking at me like I’d just told her Santa Hooves wasn’t real. “Yeah…” she said, voice wavering. “Did you not mean it?”

“Yes, of course, I did,” I said, sitting up in bed to rub my forehead. Twilight lifted her head up instead of letting it fall onto my lap. “With every fiber of my being, I meant it; I’m just worried I spoke too quickly. A relationship is like a dance, and those three words should be… not the culminating incident, but they can’t be rushed.”

“But… you meant it, right?” Twilight asked, staring at me. “Because I meant it, too. That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Well, one of the things. I also kind of made some progress on translating Princess Platinum’s will.” She pushed herself up into a sitting position. “Actually, let’s talk about this first, because right now, I’m eighty percent positive that you’re a princess. Listen to this.”

She floated her notes from her nightstand over to her. “To my youngest daughter, Tarnished Silver: For your crimes, may your name be eternally lost to history. Freezing in your rock, abandoned to the north, may your dynasty forever ruminate on the sins they committed against our family. For your attempts to sell your sisters into bondage, I have no choice but to disinherit you – but because, even at the height of your villainy, you refused to kill, I allow you to stay in your exile. To you, I leave only a hope and a promise. You and your dynasty are to forever be barred from the nobility until you learn to think beyond yourselves. Only when the virtue of generosity takes root in your daughter’s heart will the schism between our lineages be mended. Only then will you be allowed to reclaim your birthright.” Twilight stopped her reading and looked up at me.

“It goes on for a while about how Princess Platinum just wants Silver’s children to be able to call themselves Platinum’s granddaughters, but… Rarity, I’m really–” She blinked. “Rarity, why are you laughing?

“Wa-hahaa!” I very possibly cackled. All this time… How many years had I dreamt of being a princess? Years spent dreaming of my prince? Now, only after I’d completely abandoned those hopes... My mind raced with long-forgotten images. Get a hold of yourself, Rarity. Twilight wants to talk with you about your relationship, that’s as important as – that’s far more important than the fact that you might be a princess, even if – Yes, Twilight’s more important. My potential title isn’t going anywhere. “Oh, Twilight,” I said, finally getting a hold of my mad laughter. “Depending on what time we fell asleep last night, this is the best thing I’ve heard all day. Of course, it could also be a very distant second.” I leaned forward to nuzzle her cheek. “Thank you for going through all this trouble on my expense. You really didn’t have to.”

“I think I did,” Twilight said before giving me a little kiss. She was a more affectionate marefriend than I would have suspected, although I wasn’t particularly upset by the development. Each one of those little touches she gave left me tingling all day. “You’re my marefriend, and you’ve done so much for me, I thought I had to make it up to you somehow.”

“Twilight,” I said, lying back down so she could rest her head back on my chest. “We don’t do things in a relationship to even the scales. We do what we can to make the other pony happy.” I frowned, replaying my words in our head. “That’s not saying our only purpose is to make the other happy, that leads… That leads to a different type of toxic relationship, like poisoned honey dragging you into oblivion. You don’t need to experience one of those. It’s more like… If I see you’re suffering, I’ll help you. Not because I expect you to pay me back in the future, but because I want to see you smile.” I smiled at her. “Besides, I am the Bearer of Generosity, so you can’t really be expected to keep up with my largesse.”

In truth, I could probably spend the rest of my life helping her, and it wouldn’t be anywhere near what she’d given me these last few months, even if we weren’t counting the potential princesshood. Twilight laughed. “Good point.” She nestled up closer to me. “So, what do we do now? We both love each other, does that mean we should–”

“Only if you want to, dear. I want your first time to be special. Something you’ll be able to cherish for the rest of your life, even if things don’t end up working out between us.” She frowned and I hastily amended my statement. “Not that I expect that to be the case, of course, but if the worst should happen, I’d like it if you didn’t wind up filled with regret. I want to make this relationship perfect for you.”

“Whatever we do for our first time, I know it will be perfect, but… no, I don’t want it to be right now. In the morning before work feels a bit weird. Not that I’m against it, I’ve read about it in some of those books of yours, but it never seemed really big and romantic.” She closed her eyes and hummed to herself. “Hey, Rarity, what do you want to do with the Boutique?”

I frowned. That particular issue had been simmering in the back of my mind the last few weeks. I was already essentially living at Twilight’s, and as long as we were dating, that wasn’t going to change. So… what? I wasn’t going to abandon my life’s work for Twilight, was I? But I definitely didn’t want to abandon Twilight for my life’s work. The issue turned in my mind. “I’ll need to spend some time thinking about that, Twilight.” I pushed myself up and got out of bed. “For the moment, though, I have to get ready for the parade of nobles. I do not want to have another day where I’m disheveled before the ‘cream’ of Equestria.” I laughed at that. No, not particularly funny, but it was better than thinking about how many bad impressions I’d made yesterday. “Oh! I met a perfectly lovely mare yesterday, who wants you to look over her family’s claim near Quarry Junction. I scheduled her to speak with you around noon.”

“Got it,” Twilight said, following me up onto her hooves. “Is she on the docket?”

I nodded. “She should be. Yesterday was… a bit frantic, but I’m pretty sure I gave the guards the revised docket. If not, just tell them to pick it up from me at my office.” I gave a little laugh and shook my head. Maybe after work, I could stop by and open the Boutique for a few hours. Wasn’t the Boutique supposed to be my work?

“Anyways,” I said, trotting to my the bathroom, “can you get yourself ready for court?”

Her horn lit up and a second later, her mane restyled itself. Yes, I suppose that's one way of taking care of it. Maybe I could teach her how to– Wait. Did she style her mane before she showered? “Twilight, please don’t tell me you plan on going to court today without showering.”

“Well, I just thought it would save time. I didn’t want to be late,” she said, frowning and looking between me and the bathroom. “Plus, with you using the bathroom, that would mean I’d be even later.”

I rolled my eyes. “Twilight, dear, we can use the shower at the same time. It’s one of the perks of being a couple. Would you like that?”

She nodded so hard, her neck was at risk of breaking. I tilted my head to the bathroom. “Then come on”

♦♦♦

Several hours later, I hummed at my desk between appointments, reveling in the sensation of being completely and utterly clean. Granted, it had been rather strange to shower with a pony and not doing anything, but I’m sure Twilight appreciated the pragmatism. When she was ready, I’d show her the other things we could do while showering together.

I took a break from my musings to glance at the clock. Almost one. Alabaster Cream’s appointment should have just wrapped up. How did that go? I looked back down at the loose approximation of a schedule sitting down in front of me. Probably better than this was. Why did I take it upon myself to do Twilight’s scheduling when she was such a natural at it? Right, because this way, I was protecting her from the nobility. Dreams of princesshood flickered through my head. If Twilight was right, and I must not let my dreams get ahead of myself, but if she was right, we could split the load between us. I could spend the days dealing with nobles, while she dealt with regular ponies.

My humming was interrupted as the door slammed open and a white and green comet with a yellow tail moved to tackle me. I was comparing things to comets now? Definitely Twilight’s influence. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” it said as I landed on my back. “I don’t know what you did, but thank you.”

“I’m not sure what I did, either,” I said, identifying the blur trying to squeeze the life out of me as Alabaster. Maybe I needed a guard stationed outside my door to keep ponies from just rushing in. “But either way, you’re welcome. Now could you please get off me?”

“Oh, of course,” she said after tumbling off me and getting back on her hooves. “I just wanted to thank you. Twilight acknowledged my family’s claim and gave us some bits to build a house and develop the land. Oh! And she really liked my dress.” She gave a dramatic swish for me. Not that the dress was supposed to be swished like that, it wasn’t very stately, but I couldn’t fault her enthusiasm.

“Really?” I asked, getting up on my hooves. That could be… either very good or bad. No, they couldn’t have known I made that dress. “Did you happen to tell Twilight just who made the dress?”

“Of course not,” Cream said, shaking her head and letting her curly gold mane bounce. “I thought she already knew. I did tell all the nobles who asked me about it on the way here, though.”

A vision of an oncoming tsunami filled my mind’s eye as cash registers cha-chinged in the background. This wasn’t bad, this was the very opposite of it, in fact. Yes, we could grow our business. Maybe I could cut back my office hours and dedicate more time to dressmaking. My appointments weren’t usually that long; I didn’t need to be here the entire time Twilight was in court.

Somepony knocked on the door. And that would be the wave breaking. “Come in,” I sing-songed as Cream gave me one last thank you and an offer of dinner the next time I was in Canterlot before scurrying out of the room.

“Ah, hello,” a stallion said, marching into the room, head held high. “A little bird told me you’re a tailor of some renown, and I was wondering if I could commission a suit from you.” He gestured to the immaculate tuxedo he was currently wearing. “This old thing’s starting to get a bit frayed, and I thought I might hire Ponyville’s onl– best tailor. You know, support the local artisans and such. Now, I know you mostly make dresses, but fashion is fashion, right?”

“Of course,” I said, pulling out quill and parchment. I’d made… maybe twenty suits in my whole life, but it’s not as if they were that hard. Besides, as long as he could say it was by me to all his noble friends, what would he care about quality? “Just give me a name and what you’d like, and I’ll whip up a few sketches for you to look through by tomorrow evening. Alright?”

♦♦♦

I stared at the pile of papers in front of me. Thirty-eight. Thirty-eight nobles came in wanting to commission a dress, and I had to turn all of their notes into sketches by tomorrow evening. I’d definitely have to cut down on office hours, then. Maybe I’d make it so I’d only accept commissions on Monday, finish sketches by Tuesday, and then spend the rest of the week designing dresses. I could have office hours from ten to noon. That could work. I shuffled the papers into my satchel and trotted back to Twilight’s study. The long walk felt a little shorter each day.

Strange though, if that was actually the castle shrinking the distance. It usually did things in big climactic shifts, not tiny incremental changes. Familiarity perhaps? I mulled it over as I made my walk. “Twilight, I’m home,” I said, opening the door and moving to my usual spot amidst my dresses. Twilight looked up from her books on female equine anatomy and… the Camel Sutra. Oh dear, she was going about our first time with the same… dedication she went about everything else. If I looked around, I could probably find a notebook filled with her ‘ideas.’

“Hey,” she said, smiling at me like her reading material was the most natural thing in the world. “So, something weird happened at court today.”

“Oh?” I asked, tilting my head as I trotted to my chaise. The moment I sat down, she was moving to join me.

“Yeah, after I talked to Alabaster Cream, a bunch of nobles left their gallery. Did I do something wrong?”

“You complimented her dress,” I said, floating my papers out of my satchel and looking through the requests. “So they decided to hire her dressmaker.”

Twilight nodded, seeing the ripple of her actions spreading through the nobility. “Are you alright? Can you deal with all that work? I mean…” She glanced at the bundle of papers as I floated them out of my bags and onto my chaise. “That seems like a lot of dresses.”

“More than some,” I said. I filled her in on my plan to reduce my office hours, and she gave her approval.

“So! What are we going to do tonight?” she asked, kissing my neck. “I’m reading… stuff, but I can do that later. Another date? Should we do dinner? No, we did that last night. Of course, we have to do dinner every night, so that’s maybe not as big a deal as I thought. What do you want to do for dinner? It would be nice if we could get a full-time chef to feed the guards… and us. But mostly the guards; I can cook for myself.” She most certainly couldn’t. Her cooking was… Well, it wasn’t Sweetie Belle bad, but it was certainly in the same neighborhood, and with Spike having more and more on his plate, he couldn’t exactly be counted on to fix all our meals.

“I’ll cook,” I said, before my dropping my voice down to a conspiratorial whisper. “In fact, as long as you promise not to tell anypony, I’ll fry the two of us some eggplants.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Wait, you fry things? I thought that was–”

“No, it’s not exactly haute cuisine, I’ll grant you that, and I’d certainly never order anything fried at a restaurant, but I do have a something of a weakness for…” I remembered the way a certain prince had described it. “Carnival fare. Just… like I said, I’d prefer it if we kept this as our little secret. Well, ours and Spike’s, I suppose.”

She smiled as we moved down to the kitchen. “Sure thing, Rarity. Is fried eggplant as good as it sounds?”

“Darling, it’s better.”

♦♦♦

Twilight’s books on romance continued to multiply on her desk. From a few sources, she’d created a veritable mountain of books on equine relations, most focusing on relations between mares. Honestly, I didn’t know there were so many of those… types of instruction manuals in existence. She hadn’t broached the topic with me though, and I hadn’t quite figured out how to delicately mention to it to my marefriend, so a little agreement had been reached where we both decided not to mention her collection.

That changed today. I looked up from my latest dress and took a deep breath. “Love–” The word rolled off my tongue like water from a duck, and had quickly become my preferred appellation for her. “Have you considered that perhaps all this research is… Well, that you’ve gained as much value from your readings as you can?”

She shook her head. “No. Well, I’ve considered it, but I haven’t. I still don’t know everything there is to know about sex, and if I don’t know everything, I might mess up our first time. After all the trouble you went through for our first date, I can’t mess this up, and you already know so much…” She took a deep breath, and I tried to take her last words as a compliment. “I need to be an expert.” I could have kissed her for not making some lame pun about being a ‘sexpert.’ Actually, why wasn’t I? She was my marefriend, wasn’t she?

A few seconds later, our lips finally parted. “Twilight, you don’t need to drive yourself crazy worrying about our first time. If anypony’s going to worry, it should be me. It’s your first time ever, after all.”

“But that’s exactly the problem!” Twilight said, leaning against the one small fraction of her desk that wasn’t covered in books. “It’s my first time. You have so much more experience than me, and I don’t want to mess it up. What if I’m bad? What if I’m so bad that you don’t want to be with me anymore?” If she hadn’t been so sincere, I would have been offended by her “experienced” remark.

I sighed. “Twilight, it will be fine. We’re all rather inexperienced when we start out, and we’re all inexperienced at different things. If it makes you feel any better, you’ll only be the second mare I’ve ever been with, so I don’t have a particularly large pool to compare you with.” I leaned in and nibbled at her ear. “Besides, how do you get to Carneighgie Hall?”

Twilight giggled. “Practice. And… we’ll have a lot of practice?”

“Most certainly, Twilight. I imagine one day shortly after our first time, we’ll dedicate an entire weekend for… practice,” I said. Twilight nodded along in thought.

“Do you think…” She frowned. “Could we have a few practice first times before our actual first time! You know, rehearsals? Is that even a thing we can do?”

Well, it was certainly unorthodox, and by most reasonable definitions, wasn’t possible, but Twilight was my princess. Who was I to deny her? “As you wish.”

“Great!” she said, humming to herself like she’d just solved one of her magic problems. “I’d still like to wait for the right moment to start practicing, if that’s okay. Sorry for making you wait so long.”

“It’s absolutely fine,” I said, sitting next to her and resting on her side. “Like I said, you’re in charge of determining the when.” I smiled as I felt the heat radiating from her. “Besides, if I ever get too agitated, I have ways of relieving the stress.”

“Can I watch?” Twilight asked, whipping around to look at me, her eyes sparkling. “I… uhmm… I’ve been curious. I never really had the opportunity to… you know, because I was sharing a room with Spike, and then after a while, I’d just gotten used to it. Plus, I never really had a pony to think about, but then after doing all this reading the last few days and kissing you, I’ve been thinking… Can I watch? It could be instructional!”

That was… Twilight’s intensity could latch on to the strangest things. “Yes, I suppose that would be fine, although I hope it would be more than just instructional. Perhaps even recreational.”

“Wonderful!” Twilight said, clopping her hooves together. “I’ll just get my notes and–”

“Absolutely not,” I said, my voice going icy. “Twilight, I adore you. I love you, and I want to share this with you, but I don’t want to feel like some research project.” I softened and kissed her cheek. “I know it’s comforting for you to act like a scientist when you’re entering into uncomfortable territory, but I promise, I’ll be here to guide you.” She nodded her assent, and I checked to make sure the doors were closed and magically latched them before moving to my chaise, floating my papers off so I’d have the entirety of it to myself. “Just tell me when you want me to start, my princess.”

♦♦♦

Having Twilight watch me was… more enjoyable than I expected. I’d never really done anything like it before, but having a mare focused so intently on my every action while I tended to... well, while I tended to delicate matters myself, it added another layer of excitement to the whole thing and turned it into something of a performance piece. A very private performance piece, meant for only one pair of eyes.

And like any good performer, I felt the need to top my previous performances. Soon, costumes and character work were brought into the mix. I think Twilight enjoyed those little creative flourishes. At the very least, I did, and judging from her reactions… She was a very quick study.

“Rarity,” Twilight said one night, her breath heavy as she rested her head on my chest. “I want to go up north this weekend. To investigate your family’s old estate. I think we’ll find the last piece of evidence we need to prove you’re Princess Platinum’s descendent. I’ve… We’ll just go to scout it out, see if I can find anything promising. If not, I’ll get a proper dig team to go over it later, but… what do you say, it could be a nice romantic weekend for the two of us.”

“Weren’t we supposed to have a nice romantic weekend at the spa once your first week of court was over?” I asked, frowning as I looked out through her balcony at the stars fixed overhead. In the past month, I’d learned more about them than I ever thought possible. Twilight had taken it upon herself to describe for me the story of every last star in the night sky. It was… I could listen to her talk until every star went dark.

“We were! We are! We’re going to, I’ve just been so…” She sighed. “I’m sorry, I was so focused on my reading and stuff, and you had your dresses, I just thought it could wait until later. We can do that instead this weekend, if you want.”

“Oh no, it’s fine, I’d much rather spend the weekend camping near Equestria’s northern border digging through some archaeological ruins instead of being pampered in a spa,” I said.

Twilight kissed my stomach and a back leg kicked at the air. She’d spent the last few weeks learning all the places I liked being kissed and had was putting that knowledge to good use. There was only one place left for her to kiss, but she was saving that particular first time for later. “Thanks, Rarity,” she said as the kiss ended. “I promise we’ll do your spa thing soon.” I swear, as smart as she was, she had to try to act this obtuse. “I’m glad you’re going with me. Sleeping in my tent wouldn’t be anywhere as near as fun without you.” Wait, was she hinting that–? No, she’d been completely quiet about that for the last few weeks. Apparently, our current routine was enough for her right now.

“Yes, well, I suppose if you’re going on an expedition to prove I’m a princess, I can stand to rough it for a few days,” I said, smiling at her and resting my eyes. Besides, it would get me a few days away from the neverending deluge of commissions. Maybe taking a few days off work wasn’t the most productive use of my time, but I needed some time off to recharge my creative energies, and a weekend with Twilight was just what the doctor ordered.

“Great,” she said. “I’ll get all our stuff packed up, and all you need to do is come with me. This is going to be the best weekend ever.” Yes, well, I very much doubted that, but if it made Twilight happy, I could grin and bear it for a few days. Besides, it wasn’t as if she was asking me to go digging around in the dirt and snow with her.

♦♦♦

I squeezed through a half-open passageway in the wall, centuries-old dust scraping against what areas of my coat weren’t covered by my cloak. Apparently, Twilight thought I’d make a wonderful research assistant, and that meant trekking through every nook and cranny in this warmth-forsaken castle with her. “You’re doing really well, Rarity,” Twilight said from her position a few hooves in front of me. “We should be reaching the library soon, and from there, I should be able to find something that will link your family to Tarnished Silver.” She let out a little laugh that didn’t make her sound like a mad scientist at all. “We’re about to rewrite the history books.”

“Wonderful,” I said, biting my tongue as my horn caught a cobweb. I stifled my scream and ignited my horn, lighting the web up in a brief burst of flame. How had Twilight’s horn not scraped against the web? She was taller than I was by a few inches, and I hadn’t seen her duck. I growled. Maybe this old castle was sentient too, and just liked tormenting me. Considering how many times I’d had to deal with spider webs today, that seemed most likely. “I think I’ll just wait for them to be rewritten in our tent.”

“Come on, Rarity, we’re in the middle of your family’s ancestral estate, fallen into disrepair after centuries of neglect, searching for proof you’re royalty. It’s like something out of a Daring-Do book,” Twilight said, twisting around a sharp turn in the warped passage, while I hopped over a rather prominent crack in the floor.

“You do know I’ve never read those books, right? I was never really a fan of adventure stories. More than enough of it in my personal life, I think,” I said, keeping my hoofing on the slanted floor. “And I’m with you, I just need to do a little complaining to cope with the fact that I’m in a castle so dirty it makes the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters look pristine.” At least whoever built that castle believed in design aesthetics. This castle looked like the twisted musings of a mad mare. Which, on reflection, it probably was.

“Well, I think this is our room,” Twilight said, moving through an opening in the hallway, brass hinges the only reminders of the door that used to be there. I followed her in, and there it was, a library lined wall-to-wall with books. On one shelf, lodged between a collection of what looked to be journals, sat a glowing green orb. “It’s amazing these books are so well preserved. Maybe they cast a preservation spell on them?”

“Uh-huh,” I said, taking a step towards the orb. What was it made of? It looked to be a single polished sphere of… I wanted to say malachite. Maybe jade. “What do you think that is?” No, it couldn’t be malachite, there were clouds moving inside it. Something else, then? Whatever it was, it would make a lovely paper weight for my office. I reached a hoof out for it.

Twilight’s eyes darted to the sphere, her horn glowing, and her face scrunched up. “Rarity, don’t, there’s someth–”

My hoof touched the orb and the world burned away, leaving me standing in a black haze. Several hooves in front of me, a grey fog started to solidify into a pony. “So, my dynasty finally returns to me. Tell me, girl, how many generations removed are you from me?”

“At least a thousand years,” I said, tilting my head at the dull-grey mare with faded brown and silver streaks in her mane, and trying to ignore the fact that her back half was a mass of shadow that blurred into the void surrounding me. “Tarnished Silver, I presume?”

She stomped her hoof into the “ground” and for a second the black haze flashed red. “The name mother gave me when she stripped me of my birthright. The name given to me for daring to have ambition. For daring to dream of being more than the youngest daughter of a princess.” Her face twitched. “But yes, the name is what the history books most certainly know me as.”

Well, this was fun. I got to speak with my great-to-the-nth-degree grandmother. Of course, she was a crazy old bat who’d tried to stage a coup over a thousand years ago, but I was used to dealing with disappointing family members. “Actually, the history books don’t mention you at all. Somepony went through great expense to expunge every mention of you from the historical record. Now, how would I go about getting out of here?”

She laughed. “I wonder who it was? Gold Heart? No, too kind. Maybe one of her daughters? Yes, they had a trace of cruelty in them. Either way, they’re gone, and I’m still here. Barely.” She narrowed her eyes at me. “And why is my granddaughter so eager to leave? She just got here.”

I took a step back from her and tilted my head. Diplomacy, Rarity. “Oh, you know, I was just looking through the estate to find some evidence I’m descended from you. Our lineage has faded into obscurity these recent generations, and I’m trying to raise us up back to nobility.”

“Nobility?” she spat. “We were once in line to the Equestrian throne, and now my descendents live as commoners?” Well, wasn’t she nice. She’d probably fit right in with today’s nobles. “This legacy isn’t worthy of me. Why should I help a pony as worthless as you?”

“Because helping me is the only way you’re going to get your name remembered,” I said, staring at her and standing my ground as a black tendril formed out of the mass behind her and drifted towards me. No, not terrifying at all. “Just let me out of here, and I’m sure I can find something linking us in your library.”

She nodded and tapped her chin. “I suppose I could do that, but…” Her eyes narrowed. “Your cutie mark, so much like Mother’s seal. How long has it been since we birthed a daughter with a bearing as regal as yours? You could restore our house to glory. But how can I be sure? Why should I trust you with a mission so important?”

I bit my lip. I could tell her I was dating a princess; that might soften her disposition somewhat, but on the other hoof… What if the news just enraged her? Could she try to take my body over? I definitely didn’t want to tell her I was the Bearer of Generosity. She’d probably see it as some sort of weakness. And if I told her that the rest of Princess Platinum’s descendents had died out... That did seem like the type of thing that might make an insane centuries-old unicorn try to take over my body, if such a thing was possible.

“It most certainly is,” Tarnished Silver said, tendrils of darkness forming around me as my hooves got stuck to the floor.“And I think that’s a very good idea. Thank you for suggesting it.” She tilted her head. “Also, you shouldn’t think such things about your ancestors. You’ll never know when they can hear you.” Oh, because of course she could read minds. Why not? We were in some strange mental plane, so why couldn’t she just read my thoughts? My mind burned trying to think of some way out.

She laughed, the tendrils inching closer. “We’re nothing but minds, here. I can hear your thoughts just as surely as I can hear your words. Anyway, I’m not going to hurt you, just borrow your body for a while. I’ll even let you stay in my orb while you wait. I promise, once we have an appropriately aged-daughter, you’ll be back to you in no time.”

Oh, absolutely not. I grit my teeth and steeled myself with thoughts of the mares I loved most in the world. “No. You’re not,” I said, speaking the words with the utmost conviction. I summoned every memory of Twilight’s brilliance I could, and broadcast them to her. “My marefriend, Princess Twilight Sparkle, is the most intelligent mare I know, and I daresay she knows me better than I know myself.” Memories of Twilight solving a mystery on a train. Restoring me to my right mind after Discord’s escape. Unscrambling our cutie marks. “If I start acting strangely after I touched your orb, she’ll put two and two together... and if you think being trapped in this orb is bad, I dread to think what will happen when Twilight’s done with you.”

I took a deep breath as the tendrils recoiled, a frown forming on Silver’s face. Another idea entered my head. Possibly very stupid, but… Well, why not throw everything at the wall in the hopes something sticks? Of course, she knew that now. How did she keep herself from voicing all her thoughts? “Besides, I don’t think… A thousand years ago, you refused to kill your siblings in your attempted coup. You could have, but you refused. I think… I think family’s more important to you than you care to admit.”

She sighed and the tendrils collapsed back into nothing. “Equestria’s changed too much since my day. You’re right, I’d probably make a mistake, and ruin my dynasty’s chance to claim mother’s title. You, on the other hoof… You can go and fulfill my dream. That’s better than nothing.” A white door appeared between us. “The orb only reacts to ponies of my blood. It might not be official proof, but I’m sure between you and your marefriend, you’ll find the evidence you need.”

There was a pause as she sat down. “Generosity… Was that the key? I discarded it as a weakness, but you… You used it to achieve greatness. You’ve given me something to think about, granddaughter. If you ever feel like coming by again, I promise I won’t try to take over your body.”

“And I’d trust you... why?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

She laughed at that and gave me a look I’d seen all too many times in the mirror. “Beyond the fact that I’m letting you go, you know just as well as I do that a lady always keeps her word. I might have lost… much, but I still try to hold myself to a code of conduct. I just forget, occasionally.” She shrugged. “Besides, I’m sure the next time you visit, you’ll have taken some precautions. Now go, before I decide your company is too good to pass up.”

I decided not to say anything smart and trotted through the white light to find–

–myself lying on a sleeping bag next to Twilight Sparkle, who was too busy staring at the orb to notice I’d opened my eyes.. “Did I miss anything?” I asked, yawning and stretching my forelegs, as I tried to ignore the dull ache in my side and head.

She pounced on me and brought a deluge of kisses down. “You’re alright!” she said, briefly lifting her head up. “I was worried that– What happened? You touched the orb, then completely collapsed. I brought you back here as quickly as I could, but I… um... might have bumped you against the wall a few times.”

I winced. That would explain the aching, then. “The orb… is it possible to seal a pony’s mind in one after death?” I asked.

“It is, but it’s completely illegal and Princess Celestia wiped out almost all knowledge of the spell when she came to power. I only found out about it in some very classified books.” I was about to ask her why, but Twilight saw the look in my eye before I could. “A pony who knew how to cast the spell could trap any pony’s soul in any object of their choosing.”

Ah, that was as good a reason as any. “Then I suppose that must be what happened. I touched the orb, and it trapped my soul so I could have a talk with my great-to-the-power-of-somethingth grandmother.”

“Wait!” Twilight asked, looking from me to the orb for a second. “You’re saying Tarnished Silver’s soul is in there? Really? And you talked with her? How did that go?”

“I’d say it averaged out as okay – and strangely enough, she’s not the worst mare in my family.” Those last words clicked into my head, and a wave of elation built up inside me, rising through my back legs and climbing ever higher. It bubbled up, and I struggled to keep it from gushing from my mouth. The orb only worked on her blood, which meant– Which meant– I was– I was a–

“Wahaha-haaaa-haaaahaha…”

♦♦♦

“Rarity,” Twilight said, “you’ve been laughing for almost ten minutes. I’m starting to get worried.”

“...hahhhaaaaaaahh-haaa-haa-wahaaa…”

“Great, she’s started her laugh over again.”

♦♦♦

“Still laughing?” Twilight asked, poking her head back into the tent and bringing a collection of books with her.

I shook my head. “I think I’m fine for–” I was a princess. “Wait, no. Wahahahaaaa-hahaha…”

♦♦♦

My laughter subsided and Twilight lifted her head from one of her books. “Are you good? Or should I just plan on not sleeping tonight?”

“I’m good,” I said, my whole body sore from laughter. Who knew several hours of uninterrupted laughter could become painful? “I’m sorry, it’s just… I’m a princess. An actual royal princess. Not a princess-consort, but a princess. I–” A smile broke out on my face and I trotted over to kiss the most wonderful mare in Equestria. “None of this would have ever happened without you.” Another kiss, this one lingering for several seconds as I savored the tenderness of her lips. “I don’t know how I can ever make it up to you.”

She shrugged before wrapping a forehoof around my neck and nuzzling my cheek. “It’s like you said, you don’t do things in a relationship because you want to keep things even, you do them because you want to see the other pony happy.” Another kiss. “I just wanted to see you happy for a few minutes, and it was totally worth it, even if your laughing went on… just a bit longer than I expected.”

I gave a brief nervous laugh, and felt my cheeks burn. “Sorry, Twilight, but it’s not every day my wildest dream comes true. You’ll forgive me for being a little…” I trailed off as I noticed a bottle sticking out of her saddlebag resting in the corner of our tent. “Twilight, what’s that?” I asked.

“Champagne,” she said, floating the bottle and two champagne flutes out and setting them up on the little folding table she’d brought with her. “I thought if there was good news, we might want to celebrate, and this sounds like good news to me. Sure, we can’t prove anything yet, but at least we both know.” She popped the cork and poured our glasses. “What should we toast too?”

I lifted my glass. “To you, Twilight Sparkle. Without you with me these last few months, I don’t know where I’d be.” Her cheeks tinged scarlet as we drank our toast. She poured us both another glass.

“To Rarity,” she said. “My best friend, my marefriend, the first thing I see when I wake up each morning, and the last thing I see at night. The only mare who can listen to me lecture for hours on end and ask for more. My constant companion and the rock I can lean on when things get tough–” She’d been rehearsing, it seemed.

“Twilight, stop, you’re embarrassing me,” I said, feeling flushed from her words. “You don’t need to–”

She silenced me with a kiss. “But I want to, Rarity. I want you to hear how incredibly important you are to me before I do…” She downed her glass of champagne in a gulp. “Before I do this.” Her hoof slid down my body towards– We were doing this now?

“Twilight, if you don’t want to–”

She shook her head. “No. More than anything else, I want to, and I want to do it now.” She smiled at me as she slowly angled me towards our shared sleeping bag. “I’ve been struggling to make sure our first time is perfect. I spent weeks watching to figure out what you like – well, that was one of the reasons…” She laughed to herself. “But I still couldn’t figure out how to make sure it was absolutely perfect. Then I thought, what could be more romantic than the two of us in a tent, huddled together for warmth after you discover you’re royalty? We’d celebrate, we’d drink, and then it would just click.”

I felt her breath burning down my neck and warming my entire body as she leaned in to nuzzle me. “But that stupid orb, it almost ruined everything, and then… looking at you, I realized how much you absolutely meant to me, and if I’d lost you, if I never got to share my first time with you… When you woke up, I don’t think I’ve ever been happier. It has to be tonight, Rarity. I don’t want to risk us not having this.” She guided me down to the sleeping bag. “Please tell me you want this. Please tell me this is the right time, because if it’s not, I don’t know when it will ever be better.” She let out a nervous little laugh. “I mean, I can’t make you a princess again.” Well, she could, but she’d have to marry me for that to happen..

Her eyes pleaded to me. I smiled, and lifted my forehooves up to wrap around her neck and draw her down to me. “Twilight Sparkle, if relinquishing my claim to nobility was what I had to do to be with you this instant, I’d sign it away with a smile.” Before she could say anything, our lips were against each other, and we melted into each other. She breathed her joy into me, filling me to bursting.

It’s strange. I was freezing in Equestria’s northern wastelands, only an inch or so of padding keeping me from the dirt, with a mare who, while adept in theory, was completely lacking in practice... but that mare was Twilight Sparkle, and that made all the difference in the world.

Author's Note

Sorry about the dreadfully long delay. I didn't want to start uploading these last four chapters until everything was edited, but there's been a small situation, and my usual wonderful editor just hasn't had the time to look through my stories. While that's perfectly understandable, it also means I'll be looking for another editor to help make my stuff look pretty. If you know anypony or would like to volunteer yourself, send me a message. Expect a more formal blog post about this tomorrow.

10. A Conflict of Interests

“Here’s your dress, Viscountess Valley,” I said, pulling a box from behind the counter of my old bedroom and current workroom. Once the castle was sure I’d be spending my nights with Twilight, it had taken the liberty of redesigning the bedroom to resemble the Boutique’s storefront. How it knew what the Boutique’s workroom looked like… was, perhaps, a question best left unasked.

“Oh, thank you, Rarity, and you can just call me Val,” she said, smiling as if we were firm friends as she took the box from me. Things had reached a lovely balance the past few weeks; I spent a couple of hours each morning taking appointments for Twilight, and the rest of my work day designing more dresses for my new clients. “So, did Twilight appreciate my donation to her school foundation?”

“She did, and if you’d like to stop by her court some time tomorrow – around noon, let’s say? – she’d be more than happy to personally commend you.” The nobles were even starting to understand the system. They do a little charitable giving, and Twilight thanks them in court. If they thought buying one of my dresses expedited that process… Well, I wasn’t going to shatter that illusion.

“Ah, that’s wonderful. Really, though, I didn’t do it for the recognition; I did it so everypony who wants to can have an expanded education.” Of course. She just happened to develop an interest in education after Twilight made her own interest clear. Just like how she suddenly realized how chic my dresses were after Twilight complimented them in court. Well, I wasn’t about to complain. Progress was progress, and any step in the right direction was welcome.

Imagine how much better things will be once they know I’m a princess. A smile played on my lips. We– I’d decided not to make that bit of information publicly known until after Sweetie Belle was restored. She didn’t need the extra attention right now. What really mattered was that Twilight knew my title and liked calling me by it while we were... Enjoying our more intimate moments. “I’m quite sure,” I said, nodding my head at the viscountess. “Well, unless there’s anything else, I really should be getting back to my dresses. Deadlines and all that.”

“Of course,” she said before turning to the exit. “Well, I suppose I’ll be seeing you around the castle then; we really should do lunch some time.”

“I’d be delighted,” I said, training my smile on her as she trotted out of the room. As soon as the door closed I let out a sigh and moved over to one of my mannequines. “Oh, Opal, she didn’t even look at my dress after I passed it to her. She doesn’t care, as long as she can tell her friends it was personally designed for her by me.”

“Mrow,” Opal said, rising from her bed and stalking over to rub against my legs. I glanced back at the rather large bag of bits still resting on my counter.

“No, I’m not complaining about the business; I’d just like it if some of my customers would appreciate the artistry that goes into each dress, instead of just buying it for the name.” I closed my eyes for a second. “I would kill for a commission from Hoity, or Sapphire Shores, or anypony who actually appreciates what I do.” I tilted my head. “On the other hoof, the bits and prestige are certainly nice.”

And it’s not as though my work was actually suffering. I was designing beautiful inspired dresses and selling them to ponies who couldn’t care less about that. Commercial success married with – or at least not in conflict with – artistic vision. It was a choice complaint to have. I smiled. Except for one obvious caveat, everything was coming together. Certainly, better than it had been these last few months. What could–

A knock on the door. What was it Octavia said about tempting fate in Ponyville? That it was an open invitation for the sadistic forces in the universe to toy with you? Yes, that sounded like her. “Come in?” I asked, a note of trepidation in my voice that I quickly squashed.

“Hey, Rares,” Rainbow Dash said, trotting into my work space. “Nice digs you got here. Think you’ll ever head back to the Boutique? Or is Twilight’s bed too nice to leave?”

“I’d be hard pressed to find a bed as comfortable,” I said, smiling at her. “Although I’d like to think any bed shared with Twilight would be absolute bliss.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Rainbow Dash said, shaking her head. “Spare me the mushy stuff. That’s one of the nice things about Applejack, we can talk about ‘us’ without getting all ‘Oh, sharing a bed with you is absolute bliss, darling.’” I rolled my eyes. I sounded nothing like that. “Still, it works for the two of you, and that’s great. Real happy for you. And, since you’re happy with Twilight, I figure you’d be cool with me popping the question to Applejack, right?”

“Of course,” I said, fighting a frown. It wasn’t that I wanted Applejack back, just… I was surprised. “Isn’t this a little fast, though? You’ve only been dating for little more than two seasons, haven’t you?”

She shrugged. “Sure, but we’ve known each other for five years. It’s not like she has some big world-destroying secret in her closet. I know pretty much everything about her, and that’s the mare I want by my side as I do all my awesome stuff. If I know all that, why wait?” She laughed. “Besides, my middle name is Fast.” And here I thought it was Danger.

“Yes, I suppose I can see your logic,” I said, nodding my head. “So, I assume you’re here to make sure I won’t ‘freak out’ when I hear you proposed to Applejack?”

“Basically,” Rainbow Dash said. “I figure since you and Twilight are so–” She literally nudged and winked at me. Even when she was trying, she was still as subtle as a brick. “It wouldn’t be that big a deal, but I wanted to check first. I’m going to do it anyways, but I can at least check.”

“And your consideration is always appreciated,” I said, smiling. She was at least trying to be courteous.

“Yeah, so, when should we be expecting the next royal wedding?” Dash asked, and I thanked my stars I wasn’t drinking something.

I took a breath to calm my nerves. “Well, we just started dating less than a season ago, so probably not any time soon.”

“Yeah, but you were already living together when you started dating, and you’ve been best friends for years. You know everything about each other. What’s left?” Rainbow Dash asked, narrowing her eyes at me. Well, technically, Twilight didn’t know everything about me. Ninety-eight percent, maybe even ninety-nine percent, but that last percentage point… I shook my head. How had Dash made this about me?

“We can’t all be as bold and daring as you, Dash. For us to get properly married, Twilight has to formally announce her courting of me, then there will be at least a two-season courtship period, and then she has to propose marriage in front of the nobility. They’ll be given the option to object, and only then can we get married. After suitable arrangements are made, of course,” I said, reciting the list from memory.

“Wait, the nobles can keep you two from getting married?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. “How does that work?”

I sighed. Yes, that was the over-plump elephant in the room, wasn’t it? “It’s an almost archaic rule the nobility made up to prevent noble blood from being polluted by common stock. Twilight doesn’t think the nobles will officially object because doing so would be to court a princess’s displeasure, but she is expecting some pushback.” Pushback that would evaporate once a few key details about my ancestry were verified. One year, one season, and fifty-eight days.

“Right, so why not just get it out of the way if it’s such a big deal?” Dash asked. “Better to get it all done so you can get married when you want than have to wait half a year. At least do the intention to court stuff.” Yes, although… Would that affect Sweetie? She’d been rather reclusive since she got herself set up in Manehattan. Would she hear the news in her current state? Would she care?

“Yes, I suppose I can bring it up with Twilight tonight,” I said, stitching one of my dresses in the background while focusing on Rainbow Dash. “Is there anything else you want to discuss?”

“Nope,” she said, running a hoof through her mane. “I’ll leave you to all your dressmaking stuff before you try to convince me to model one of them for you.”

“As much as I’d love to, I’m afraid I don’t have any dresses that are designed for a pegasus. The drawback to courting the nobility, I suppose. Anyways, yes, I promise, you’ll hear no objection from me when you propose to Applejack. I wish the both of you all the best.”

“Thanks,” Rainbow Dash said, wearing a genuine smile instead of her usual cocky brash thing. “I’m sure it would mean a lot to Applejack to hear you say that. Maybe we should double-date some time.” No. No, we wouldn’t. As dear a friend as Applejack was, the idea of two exes double dating just seemed like an invitation for catastrophe.

“We’ll see,” I said, smiling at her as she trotted out of my room. “And do feel free to come over any time, Rainbow Dash. I’m sure if you insist, I can find something for you to wear.”

I’d never seen somepony vanish so quickly. That went as well as could be expected. Octavia was wrong; noticing how idyllic my life was didn’t mean some terrible calamity was headed my way. Something to talk about at our next lunch. Ooh! I could double-date with her and Vinyl, that would be fun. I turned back to my dresses and hummed to myself and turned my mind to what the seasonal lineup for Tiara’s store would look like. Maybe I’d write her a letter soon, just to see how she was doing. She really was a sweet mare in the end. Just a bit too happy to help Sweetie.

♦♦♦

Twilight nuzzled into me as we both looked at the night sky out above her balcony, the both of us radiating heat. “Twilight, love,” I said after catching my breath, “I had a very interesting conversation with Rainbow Dash today, and she said something that’s been bouncing around my head ever since.” Two things, actually, but I wouldn’t be very good at keeping a secret if Twilight knew I was keeping a secret from her.

“Oh, what?” Twilight asked, looking up at me, the stars reflected in her eyes. “Was she… She wasn’t mad at you about something, was she?”

I shook my head. “Of course not, Twilight. What reason could Rainbow Dash possibly have for being upset with me?”

“Well, she was kind of belligerent when you told her you knew she and Applejack were dating,” Twilight said. “I’ve always worried that would come back up later and cause a friendship problem.”

“No, we’re fine, we smoothed things over weeks ago. We were both talking today about our respective relationships, and she suggested you declare your intention to court me,” I said, brushing the tangle out of her mane with one hoof and a fair bit of magic.

“Wait, she knew about that?”

“I had to tell her first, dear. She asked when we planned to tie the knot, I pointed out that we’d only been dating for a less than a season, and she argued that didn’t matter as much since we were already living together and had been best friends for years,” I said. “Then, when I explained all the hoops we had to jump through to get married, she suggested you declare your courtship intentions now. I admit, the idea has some merit.”

“Alright.” Twilight nodded. “I’ll do it tomorrow morning. Oh! Wait, you’re usually working in the mornings, and you need to be there to hear and accept. Does after lunch work for you?”

“That’s utterly fine,” I said, kissing her just above the base of her horn. “But you’re okay? I was expecting… slightly more pushback from you.”

“Why?” she asked, stroking my cheek. “She’s right. We love each other, we live together, and my parents have been bugging me about when I’ll find somepony to settle down with. I don’t really see any reason not to declare my intentions, I just didn’t know how to bring it up with you. I thought you’d think we were moving too fast.”

“Twilight, our relationship is already antithetical to anything resembling proper pacing, and I couldn’t love it more for that. Besides, it’s not as if we’ve taken any pains to hide our relationship; you just haven’t made it official. Do you want to spend tonight looking through your script for tomorrow?”

She shook her head, and I felt the weight on my chest shift back and forth. “I memorized that the day we got back from Canterlot. I was… I was pretty excited.” I didn’t have to see her to know she was blushing.

“In that case, I think everything’s taken care of,” I said, a laugh bubbling up from my throat. “How should we celebrate?”

She crawled up to me and placed a lingering kiss upon my lips, allowing it to seep deep down into my soul. “I can think of a few ways,” she said as she magically closed the doors to the balcony.

♦♦♦

I stood a few hooves away from Twilight Sparkle as we both stared down at the assembled nobility. My heart thudded in my throat. Keep it together, they can’t object now, it’s just a declaration of intention. You only have to say five words. I glanced to Twilight. She was resplendent as usual, and I was clad in my best dress. A few nobles shuffled in the court, unsure of why the docket had been changed. The rest stood firm in their balcony as the common ponies whispered amongst themselves. Twilight flared her wings and snapped her head to stare at the nobles. “On this, the 44th day of Autumn, I, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship and overseer of all lands between the Smoky and Foal Mountains, announce my intentions to court Lady Rarity Bell–” Oh, why did tradition dictate that she use my full name? Now some clever noble was going to be differential and call me Lady Bell, and I’d have to yell at him. Sometimes, tradition could be more irritant than comfort. “Bearer of the Element of Generosity, twice-savior of Equestria. Lady Rarity Bell, what say you?”

“I hear, and I accept,” I said, bowing my head to her as a brief murmur came from the crowd.

“And do the nobility in assemblage here today hear and accept?” she asked.

“We hear, and we accept,” the crowd answered back, some nobles more enthusiastic than others. Something told me I was about to have another spike in dress orders.

“Then it’s decided. May the light of the sun shine eternally on all assembled today,” Twilight said. Hmm, that wasn’t very fair to Princess Luna, was it? We’d have to change that later and style it for Twilight.

“May the light of the sun shine eternally on Princess Twilight Sparkle and Lady Rarity Bell,” the crowd echoed back. The guard moved to bring in the next petitioner as I made my way out using Twilight’s private entrance.

♦♦♦

The next morning, I was front-page news in the Canterlot Times, the Ponyville Gazette, and the Manehattan Globe. Everypony in Equestria was reading about Rarity Bell, and I repressed the urge to scream at every mention of Miss Bell or Lady Bell. Really, what was so difficult about just using the mononym ‘Rarity’? I wasn’t exactly a private figure before the announcement.

Her sister, famed Bridleway actress Sweetie Belle, could not be reached for comment.

I suppose that’s about what could be expected, although my intuition told me Bright Lights would trot her out to say something generically pleasant and then squirrel her back away in that penthouse to do... whatever they did. The few things I’d seen in the paper or heard from Scootaloo were hardly reassuring. One year, one season, and fifty-six days. I shook my head. We were close. Over halfway there, Rarity. Soon, your Sweetie will be restored.

Twilight trotted up behind me as I sat at my breakfast cereal and wrapped a foreleg around me. “How does it feel to be front-page news?” she asked, leaning over to rest partly against my back, head poking over my shoulder.

“It would feel better if the papers didn’t all insist on referring to me as ‘Rarity Bell’,” I said, flipping away from my current page. “And it doesn’t feel anywhere as good as going to bed next to you every night.”

She laughed and swatted at me. “You’re just saying that to get on my good side,” she said, pushing herself off me and trotting to pour a bowl of oats.

“Mhmm, perhaps, but if I did want to get on your good side, would I really have to try that hard?” I asked, folding away the newspapers and taking a sip of my orange juice. Applejack and I once got into a fight because I didn’t stock any apple juice in the fridge. Such a frivolous thing, but it sparked a fight lasting four hours. The only fights I had with Twilight were the ones we had in the ring. We’d had disagreements, of course, but no raised voices or throwing things.

“You’d have to try harder to get off it,” she said, pushing off me and pouring her milk. We had our own chef now, but most mornings we chose to break our fast in the small personal kitchen we had for Twilight’s late night snacking. Oh, that mare could snack, but at least she didn’t bring any of it to bed.

“So, what do you want to do today?” Twilight asked, sitting next to me with her bowl of cereal and glass of milk. Behind her, I floated the carton and the cereal box back to their respective locations.

“Hmm, I thought we could see the girls,” I said, leaning into her. “I’m sure Pinkie’s already planning our surprise party. Maybe do something with Spike, first.”

“Board game?” Twilight asked, stroking my side. “That could be fun. We haven’t had a good board game night in ages.”

“Do you think we can have the board game night tomorrow?” I asked, looking up at her. “Not to be rude, but the board games you enjoy tend to take all day, and I’m sure Pinkie will be knocking on our door any minute now with our party invitations.”

“Fine,” Twilight groused. “But we are playing Settlers of Cat-an at some point this weekend, and you’d better not try to get out of it.”

“Pass up the chance to be soundly trumped by you?” I said, kissing her cheek. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”

♦♦♦

Our Pinkie party was as marvelous as could be expected, and Spike and I were trumped by Twilight the next day. And then we were trumped again. And again. Then we mutinied and forced her to play Mareopoly, where I managed to squeak out the narrowest of victories.

I lifted my head up from the delirious haze of dresses that had consumed my life and took a deep breath. Everypony wanted one of my dresses. Every day, there were more and more requests, a mountain of designs that could crush me at any moment – but when I peeked into Twilight’s court and saw a sea of nobles wearing my designs, it sent a thrill up my spine.

I glanced at the clock. Almost time for Twilight’s court to be over. I needed to wrap things up so I could meet her at the study. A knock on the door. I winced. I really couldn’t take on another commission. Well, I suppose I could if I wanted to start eschewing petty things like sleep and spending time with Twilight. “Come in,” I sing-songed.

The door opened, and a grey stallion wearing purple sunglasses trotted in. “Hoity, how good to see you again. What brings you here?”

He smiled and sat down as a dull-grey mare followed him into the room, a scroll on her flank. “Rarity, I’d like you to meet my lawyer Iron Clad, and…” He looked around. “Is Princess Twilight with you?”

“Not yet,” I said, frowning. Why did he bring his lawyer? “She’s still in court for a few more minutes. Why do you ask?”

“To pay my respects to the happy couple,” he said, smiling. “And also discuss a few tiny legal matters. Nothing of major importance, I assure you.” Why would he want to talk with me about legal matters? Was he wanting an exclusivity contract? Something like what I had with Tiara’s, but for a different fashion line? “We’ve cleared our schedule and are more than happy to wait, though.” I glanced out the window, clouds were building on the horizon. Were we really having another storm? I could wring Rainbow Dash’s neck, sometimes.

“Of course,” I said, nodding my head. “Is it okay if I work on one of my commissions while we wait?”

“You might want to hold off on that,” he said, looking around at all my mannequines. “How many nobles would you say have come requesting a dress from you in the past few weeks? Over a hundred?”

I laughed. “It feels like I can get a hundred a day, sometimes. The last few days have been absolutely mad; I’ve gotten so many orders, I don’t know how I’ll finish them all on time.”

“Mhmm, yes,” Iron Clad said, entering the conversation and staring at me. “Have you noticed a similar uptick in sales from Tiara’s? Are you aware that your dresses are now being sold at all Barnyard Bargains and Rich’s Clubs as well?”

“N-no,” I said, frowning. This… this didn’t sound like a conversation I wanted to be having.

“Calm down, Iron,” Hoity said. “No need to frighten the poor mare.”

“You’re right,” she said, nodding her head. “Please, make yourself comfortable, Miss Bell, we’ll speak with you more when the Princess is here.”

“Please, call me Rarity,” I said, doing my best to keep my smile up. “And I’ll just go wait outside Twilight’s chambers so I can fetch her as soon as she gets out. Will the two of you be fine waiting here while I’m gone?”

Iron Clad nodded and pulled a few documents out of her saddlebags. “Your proposition is acceptable. I hope to see you shortly.”

♦♦♦

“What’s wrong?” Twilight asked as I caught her outside the private entrance to her court.

“Is it that obvious something’s wrong?” I asked, looking around the tiny hallway for any potential eavesdroppers.

“Well, I think I kind of know my marefriend’s moods, and you always get that smile on your face when something’s wrong, but you can’t show it,” she said.

My smile broke. Yes, I didn’t need to keep up a false smile for her. “You’re right,” I said, peeking my head into Twilight’s court and seeing how it was emptying out. There were still a few stragglers hanging on, but most made their exit the instant her court was done for the day. “Hoity Toity is here, and he brought his lawyer. He didn’t say what it was about, but I don’t think it’s for anything good.”

“Oh,” Twilight said, frowning. “I think I might know what they’re here for, and… you’re right, it’s not good, but… maybe it’s not what I think it is. Maybe he just wants to buy some of your dresses.”

“Don’t patronize me, Twilight,” I said, trotting back into her throne and heading for the mane exit. This route was substantially shorter, but carried the downside of letting ponies gawk at their princess. “Nopony comes to visit and just happens to bring their lawyer with them, especially not if she has a name like Iron Clad.”

“You’re right,” she said, trotting next to me as a few ponies glanced in our direction. “But maybe it’s not as bad as I think it is. What are the odds they’re here about a seven-hundred-year-old rule?”

“I suppose that depends on how important the rule is,” I said. From the throne room, it was just a few hooves to my work room. Much better than running up to her living room and taking the hidden path down to the private entrance to her court. “For instance, murder’s been illegal for a very long time, but most ponies are familiar with that little rule.”

“Well, it’s not ‘murder’ bad,” Twilight said as I threw the door to my workshop open. She shot a glance at Hoity. “Is it?”

“Not at all,” Hoity Toity said. “Before we get to the messy order of business, though, I’d like to congratulate the two of you and wish you a long prosperous relationship.”

“Thank you,” Twilight said, nodding her head at him. “And I assume you’re here about the Consort Edict?”

Iron Clad nodded. “I’m here representing the Dressmaker’s Union against Rarity Bell, regarding violations of the Public Servant Act and the Consort Edict.”

“Wait, I’m sorry, since when has there been a Dressmaker’s Union?” I asked, frowning. “I certainly never heard of it.”

“That’s because it arose as a direct result of you and Filthy Rich’s monopolistic and exploitative practices,” Iron Clad said. “Or do you deny rewarding clients who purchased your dresses by granting them an audience with Princess Twilight Sparkle?”

“No! No, of course not,” I said, looking at Twilight. “I rewarded ponies who gave charitably by letting them meet with Twilight, but the two of us discussed that in advance. Twilight, I swear I never denied ponies an audience with you because they refused to buy one of my dresses.”

“I believe you,” Twilight said, nodding her head. “But pretty much every noble who’s met with me the last few weeks has been wearing one of your dresses.” She smiled at me. “I’d recognize your designs anywhere.”

Well, I appreciate the sentiment, Twilight, but you’re not helping my case at the moment. “Exactly,” Iron Clad said. “Whether or not you meant to engage in monopolistic and exploitative practices is irrelevant. Because of your connection to the princess, everypony’s clamoring for your dresses. Dressmakers and sellers who don’t have access to your designs are struggling. Therefore, we deliver this ultimatum: Either sever your connection to Princess Twilight, or cease and desist all dress designing and manufacturing.”

I blanched. I could actually feel all the blood leaving my face. “Could I…” No. No no no. I couldn’t choose between them. Dressmaking was my passion, and Twilight was my love. Without either of them, I was a shade of myself. You’ve recovered from worse. You lost Sweetie, and now you’re almost fine. Yes, well, let’s not go through that again. I narrowed my eyes at Iron Clad and my betrayer. “And if I fight?”

“You’ll merely delay the inevitable. The law’s very clear in this instance: any princess-consort who practices a trade must relinquish her trade, and if you take this to court, we’ll be forced to pursue legal action against Princess Twilight for giving you unfair advantage,” Iron Clad said. Oh no. No, I couldn’t do that to her, she was… It wasn’t fair she suffer because of my ambition.

“Could I have time to think?” I asked, braving a smile for Twilight’s sake.

“That’s agreeable. We’ll give you one business week to think things over, as long as you refrain from selling dresses for the duration,” Iron Clad said, getting to her hooves. “A pleasure to meet you, Princess.”

“I’m sorry things came to this, Rarity. If there were any other solution…” Hoity said as he followed Iron Clad to the door. “You must understand, I hold you in the highest regard, and I wish you and the Princess all the best – but I have to think about my own interests, too.”

I gave him a curt nod as he exited. Of course he did. That’s why he immediately involved a lawyer and tried to– To even think of bringing Twilight into this. They knew that’d keep me from fighting back, and it worked perfectly.

“I’ll send your things to the boutique,” Twilight said, dispelling the silence that sat fat and oppressive in the room, her whole body slumped. “I’m sorry, I should’ve told you about the Consort Edict – but it was made so long ago, I thought maybe nopony but me would remember it, and I knew if I told you, you’d break up with me, and… I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” I said, trotting over to nuzzle her neck. “If I’m forced to choose, if the week elapses and I’ve failed to think of a solution to this little dilemma, I know exactly what I’ll choose – and it won’t be dressmaking.”

“But being a famous dressmaker is your dream. I can’t ask you to give that up for me,” Twilight said, her ears still flat against her skull. “At least this way, maybe we can still be friends and you won’t completely hate and resent me.”

I pulled away and glared at her. “Twilight Sparkle. We are not breaking up, do you understand that? I can find outlets for my creative energies without selling dresses. I can start redecorating your court. I can design our dresses for all the formal events we’ll almost certainly be invited to. There are options. What I cannot give up is you. Call it a selfishness on my part, but I can’t go back to how things were before. Being with you these past few months has been… Well, it might be a touch hyperbolic, but it’s been a restorative for my soul. This is true love, Twilight – You think this happens every day?” Her ears lifted up and a spark of hope entered her eyes. I threw my forelegs around her and leaned close. “As long as you’re next to me, I think I can bear almost anything.”

A small laugh bubbled up from somewhere inside her. “Another Princess Bride quote? You know, there are other movies.”

“Heresy,” I said, pressing my lips against hers. “How could you even say something so absurd?”

“So… we’re really not going to break up?”

“Really.” I nodded my head. “I’m not happy about having to give up dressmaking, but I can endure it. Although I do wish you hadn’t hidden the Consort Edict from me.”

“Sorry,” she said, ears immediately going flat. “I just thought if I told you the truth, you’d break up with me or we wouldn’t even start dating, and I really wanted to date you. Sorry.”

“It’s… fine,” I said, a slight frown creasing my lips. Would I have gone out with Twilight if I’d known about the Consort Edict in advance? I thought of the giddy delirium that filled me as I trotted to Twilight’s room in Canterlot. The way Twilight leaned into me. How absolutely ecstatically happy I’d been when I learned she liked me. How long had it been since I felt that way? Yes. Yes, without a doubt. “I understand why you didn’t tell me, but I think… I think I would’ve gone out with you regardless.”

She blushed, and an instant later, I felt her lips on my cheek. “Okay, from now on, no more secrets, alright?” There was a laugh. “I can’t think of anything that could even begin to compare to this.”

I smiled at her and lied, my mind going to the safety deposit box that could smash my life to tinders. There were some things that just couldn’t be thought of, let alone said aloud. “Alright, Twilight, no more secrets.”

Author's Note

Here we are, the last three chapters coming at you in pretty rapid succession. Hope the long wait wasn't too interminable. See you in the comments.

11. Sins of the Mother

Piece by piece, we put the Boutique in boxes. I stared at Sweetie Belle’s room. Everything else had some place in my castle, but… Everything here was just as she’d left it. How could I move it? I sniffled and flipped open her doll box. There were dolls for all of us, dolls she’d spent long hours forcing to kiss each other. How long had it been since I’d been back here? Since I’d even stepped hoof in her room? “Well, Rarity, you’re going to have to think of something. If we’re selling the Boutique, we can’t just leave her things here,” I said to myself.

“Are you alright?” Twilight asked, trotting up behind me and resting a wing over my withers.

“I’ve been better,” I said, leaning into Twilight. “Just figuring out what to do with all of Sweetie’s things.”

“Well, do you think her parents could–?” My glare silenced that thought.

“My parents have done more than enough,” I said. “There’s no need to request their aid.”

“Right, sorry I brought it up,” Twilight said, magically massaging the tension from my shoulders. “Should we go to the gym when we’re done here?”

I laughed. “Twilight, I think packing up the whole of the Boutique will do a fine job of exhausting me. If I’m still… sore about the topic tomorrow, we can go then.”

“Got it,” Twilight smirked. “So we’ll be going tomorrow, then?”

“Really, Twilight, you make it sound like I’m perpetually angry at my parents,” I said, grateful she was here to pull me away from thoughts about Sweetie’s room.

“You mean you aren’t?” she asked.

I harumphed at that. “Not at all. When I’m not thinking about them, I’m perfectly fine. Now, do you have any suggestions on what we’re doing with Sweetie’s room?”

“We could always give her one of the rooms at the castle. It’s full of empty bedrooms, and I guess I could give one of them to my marefriend’s sister. You know, considering she’s living with me and all.”

My cheek nuzzled against her neck. “You’d go through that trouble on my expense?” I asked.

“Of course,” Twilight said, stroking my side with her wing. “The castle’s still full of empty rooms – and besides, she’s important to you, which means she’s important to me.”

I leaned up to kiss her. “You’re a wonderful mare, Twilight Sparkle. Now… where is that camera?”

“Camera? What do you need a camera for?” Twilight asked as I slid out of her hold.

“To take a photo of Sweetie’s room so I can properly reconstruct it in the castle. I want it to be exactly like she left it when she gets back,” I said, trotting out of the room. “I think there should be one downstairs. Hopefully, you haven’t packed it yet.”

“I don’t remember packing any cameras,” she said. “You know, I’ve got a pretty good memory, I can probably just remember what her room looks like.”

“And so could I,” I said, stopping to look back at the room. “Celestia knows, I’ve seen it enough. I just… I want to make sure every little thing’s preserved when she comes back, just like she left it. It’s the least I can do.”

“Rarity, what makes you think she’ll want most of this stuff? I’m not saying you should throw it away, but I don’t think she’ll care if the bed’s an inch closer to the door than it used to be, or if her dolls changed positions. Besides, her room in the castle’s probably going to be bigger than her room here, so it won’t be identical, anyways.”

“Yes, I know,” I said. “I just feel like… I’m sitting here, spinning my wheels, and there has to be something I can do for her while I wait. If not for that letter, I’d have spent the last two years in Manehattan.”

“Glad you didn’t,” Twilight said, smiling. “And hey, there’s a plan in place. I’m sure when the day comes, you’ll be right next to her.” She trotted over and stroked my cheek. “And if you want, I’ll be right next to you.”

“I think I’d like that,” I said. “At the very least, you’re coming to Manehattan with me so I have somepony to lean on if things are… as bad as I fear they might be.” I pulled away from her and trotted to the stairs. “Now, if I’m not mistaken, we’ve got quite a bit of packing to do, so no point dilly-dallying and talking about things that are still a year away. There will be time for that later.”

“Alright,” Twilight said, following after me. “But we are talking about this. I don’t want you bottling things up like you did before.”

“And I’m not,” I said as I moved down the stairs. “I think we had a very productive little discussion, but right now, I don’t want to think about Sweetie or my parents.” There was a knock on the door. I looked out the front door window and– Why? They’d been gone for so long, and now they were just standing in front of my door, Father wearing his usual dull smile. I stepped downstairs, took a breath, and opened the door. “Mother. Father,” I said, giving each of them a short glance. “To what do I owe the… pleasure?”

Twilight reached the bottom of the stairs and looked between me and my parents. “Oh, hi, Crumble, Hondo.” She bit her lip and looked at me. “So… How are you?”

“Oh, we’re great, thanks for asking, Twila,” Mother said. “It’s okay if we call you Twila, right? You already feel like part of the family.” Ah, there it was. The answer to the million-bit question. They came back because they read the papers.

I cleared my throat. “It’s Princess Twilight Sparkle, actually,” I said, shutting the door behind them and most certainly not slamming it.

“They don’t need to call me by my title,” Twilight said, giving a little laugh and rubbing the back of her head. “It is kind of formal and–”

“Oh, I think they do,” I said, interrupting her and doing my best not to shout profanities. No point in being rude, Rarity. They don’t deserve your anger. Really? If not them, who?

“You know, I’m going to go put some tea on,” Twilight said, trotting to my kitchen. “Uhmm… Teapot still in the usual place?”

I nodded.

“Uhh… well, Rarity, you’re really bringing the welcome wagon out for us,” Father said. He looked around at all the boxes. “Goin’ somewhere?”

“Yes,” I said. “So, me dating a princess is all it took for you to come back to town? You know, I was sure you’d be back for Sweetie’s last Hearth’s Warming, or after receiving the letters where I was begging for your help.” I laughed. “But if I’d known me dating Twilight was what it would take, I’d have done it years ago.”

“Oh, Rarity, are you still going on about Sweetie?” Mother asked, dismissively waving a hoof. “I don’t know what the problem is. Last time we visited her, she was doing fine. You make it sound like something terrible happened to her.”

Because something terrible did happen to her, and… They visited her? Without even telling me. Without even… They visited her! After everything they’d done, they thought they could just jaunt off to Manehattan to say hello. And she let them? She’d never even responded to my letters. No, I just got a note from Bright Lights saying how happy Sweetie was. Deep breaths, Rarity. We can’t explode in front of them now. A lady must keep her composure. “Ah, well, I’m glad the three of you had a pleasant visit.”

“You know, we’re so proud of the both of you. You’re dating a princess, and Sweetie’s a big-time Bridleway actress,” Father said, plopping his fat flank down on the floor like he owned it.

“Oh, I know,” Mother said, sitting on one of my moving boxes. “You’re both doing so well, we must have done something right, even though Rarity won’t admit it.”

Something inside me cut loose from its moorings and I laughed. “You know, that’s the funniest thing I’ve heard in ages. Are you sure your special talent isn’t comedy? I’ve spent the last year trying to clean up some of the emotional wreckage you caused, and I’m sure I’ll be paying for years of Sweetie’s therapy when she returns to her senses, but yes, we’re both doing so well.”

“Well, if you bothered writing to Sweetie, you’d know she’s already seeing a pony who keeps her prescriptions filled,” Mother said, her voice cooling to match my own. “You know, she’s incredibly hurt that her sister hasn’t even bothered to write her in over a year.” What?! I was going to take the first train over to Manehattan and kill Bright Lights.

“I did write, but that little snake Bright Lights must have kept her letters, and… how dare you judge me for being negligent?” I said. “I did everything I could for Sweetie.”

“So did we,” Father said. “Sure, we spent a lot of time on the road, but we made sure you girls had everything you wanted. Or did I dream up all those birthday and Hearth’s Warming gifts?”

“Yes, you made sure we had everything a filly needs growing up. Everything but loving parents,” I said, facade of civility crumbling away. “But really, who needs that?”

“That’s it!” Mother said, face going red slamming a forehoof on the carpeted floor. “You make it out like we’re some sort of monsters, and maybe you’re right, but at least we claimed you as our own. I didn’t just pawn you off on my mother and pretend you were my sister. I owned my mistake.”

My jaw worked noiselessly as I struggled to find words. Any words. Any defense. “Rarity?” Twilight asked, standing at the door to the kitchen. “What is she talking about?”

Mother was right. It was my mistake. All my mistake. A scared, selfish filly making a deal with the ponies she hated most in the world. Stupid filly, we treated you like an adult, and this is how you repay us? Your father’s career will be ruined if this scandal comes to light. I knew what would happen to her. Deep down, I had to have known, but I did it anyways. To save my career, I gave them my daughter.

My daughter. She. Was. My. Daughter. I laughed – cackled, really, but who was paying attention? “You’re right. I did make a mistake. I was stupid and selfish and scared, and I took your offer so we could all save face instead of accepting my responsibility. Instead of accepting my daughter.” Now that the seal was broken, that word ripped through my mind like a meteor. A word I’d kept from myself for fifteen years. Fifteen years of denial. Not a sister. Not a daughter. Nothing. Just Sweetie. Not anymore. “I regret it every day. If I could go back and change things, if I could go back and yell some sense into my stupid younger self, I’d do it in a heartbeat. But I can’t, and I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to Sweetie.” I narrowed my eyes. “But you? Get out of my life. If you want the boutique you gave me as payment for my mistake back, you can have it, but I wash my hooves of you.”

“But we just wanted to–”

“To what? To cozy up to me now that I’m dating a princess? To…” I growled. “Get out!” I stomped my hoof and magically slammed the door open. “And if I ever hear of you going to see your granddaughter again, I’ll do everything I can to destroy you, even if I have to go down in flames with you, understand?”

They nodded, I bellowed “Out!” and they scurried out the door, moving fast enough to keep up with Rainbow Dash. The door slammed shut, and I slumped down, fury evaporating. My daughter. What had I done?

Tears ran down my cheeks. Mother was right; I’d failed Sweetie just as surely as they had failed me. A few years of trying to be a good big sister couldn’t make up for giving her to them. And now, here you are, enjoying your life, while she lives with the wolves. Feathers brushed against my side; a reassuring gesture that offered me very little succor at the moment. “You want to talk?” It wasn’t a question.

I sniffled and lifted my head up to look at the mare staring down at me. “I suppose… Yes. I do. You’re not upset with me?”

She tilted her head. “Why would I be mad at you?”

“The other night, we agreed we weren’t going to keep any secrets from each other, and the fact I have a daughter…” I gave a failed smile. “As secrets go, that’s... rather up there, I should think.”

She shrugged and moved to sit down next to me. “It is. But I love you, and you’re hurting.” There was a long pause as she tapped a hoof and hmmed. “Did you even tell yourself?”

I shook my head. “I tried not to think about it,” I said as she continued to stroke my flank with her wings. “She was just Sweetie, nothing else.”

“Okay,” Twilight said. “So, what happened?”

“The broad strokes are rather obvious, I should think, but… Sixteen years ago, I had an ‘encounter’ with a stallion. We’d broken up by the time I found out I was…” The word stuck and I struggled to dislodge it. “Pregnant. When I told him what’d happened, he packed his things the next day. When I told my parents, they were... upset. They yelled at me for being so irresponsible. Said if word got out, it could hurt my father’s career. Mother had a plan, though. I’d go to a retreat for a year, Mother would tell everypony I’d been accepted as an apprentice dressmaker in some town or another, she’d leave with Father for a few weeks on one of his hoofball-coaching tours, write back that she was pregnant and would be spending some time at a private resort while Father finished off his tour., Then, when I gave birth, she’d take Sweetie back to Ponyville, I’d spend a few more months at the retreat so I could finish my ‘apprenticeship,’ and when I got back, everything would be taken care of. They even offered to buy a store for me if I played along,” I said, wiping a tear away with a hoof.

“I don’t regret Sweetie, not for an instant. Without a doubt, she was the best thing to happen to me – You’re a very close second,” I added hastily, “but–”

“It’s fine,” Twilight said. “I can live with being second to your daughter. I’d be kind of more worried if I wasn’t.” She leaned in to whisper in my ear.”Besides, it is a close second, right?”

“Very.” I leaned into her. “Some days, I might even say it’s a tie.” Yes, calling it a tie felt better than having them compete. “Definitely a tie. Anyway, I don’t regret that a single instant. What I do regret, though, is taking my parents’ offer. I regret spending so many years being a negligent ‘big sister’ because I didn’t want to sacrifice my career and ambitions.” I laughed. “Funny – all these years later, I’m faced with a similar choice. Last time, I made a mistake. I know that now, and I’m not keen to repeat it.”

Another touch, and I drank the warmth from her body, drawing on it for comfort. “Sorry, I’m not really sure what to say,” Twilight said, stroking the back of her head. “I can’t think of anything I can say to fix this or help you.”

“You don’t have to say anything, Twilight. Just having you here to listen to me is more than I could’ve hoped for. More than I had,” I said, my breaths becoming deeper as something resembling calm returned to me. “You know, back then, I don’t think I had to choose between the two. It was a…” I gestured with my hoof and made small circles.

“False dichotomy,” Twilight chimed in.

“Yes, exactly. I could’ve been the mother Sweetie deserved and worked on my dressmaking career. It might not have been easy, but I could’ve made it work,” I got to my hooves and moved to my safe behind the counter, unlocking it and pulling out one of my bottles of bourbon.

“Really?” Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow at me. “You drink bourbon?”

“I picked it up from Applejack, and it’s better than wine when you’re lamenting your lot in life,” I said as I floated two tumblers in my magic field. “Not that I’m regretting choosing you, it just makes my choice all those years ago hurt more. Sacrificing Sweetie for a career I’m going to lose anyways.” I poured a glass for Twilight. “Drink?”

“Sure, I’ve never really drunk bourbon before. Hey, did Applejack know?” she asked, taking her glass with her magic.

I shook my head. “Me, my parents, him, and the doctor. Those are all the ponies in the world who know I’m a mother. Only my parents and I know about the switch – well, and you, now, but I suppose the rest of them could figure it out.”

“Got it,” Twilight said before taking a sip of her whiskey and making a face. “How can you drink this?” she asked, retching.

“It’s an acquired taste,” I admitted, taking a sip and savoring the burn. “I shouldn’t have chosen. I could’ve made it work.” I’d made it work those last few years. Performed admirably, even. I’d still failed, but maybe she wouldn’t have… done what she did if she knew she had a mother who loved her. A mother who’d have done anything for her. But she hadn’t, because I was weak and scared and selfish. Another pull from my bourbon. Something told me we’d be going through the bottle tonight.

“Okay,” Twilight said, nodding her head and stepping towards me, leaving her bourbon on one of the packed boxes. “I get it, you’re upset, but… you don’t need to beat yourself up over it now. You made a mistake, okay, but you can make up for it. In a year, whenever Sweetie comes back, you can tell her the truth and make things up to her. If she wants to spend some time in Ponyville, she’ll have her own room in the castle, and the… uhmm… upside of not having a business to take care of is that you can spend a lot of time in Manehattan with her. We can spend a lot of time with her in Manehattan. I don’t think anypony will complain if I cancel court for a few weeks. If they do, I can just banish them.”

I laughed. Like Twilight would banish anypony. No, that would probably be my job. On her orders, of course. Actually, if I was a princess in my own right, could I banish ponies? Like, theoretically, my parents? No, I wasn’t that petty. And what do they say? The best revenge is living well? Well, I could certainly arrange that. “Thank you, Twilight. You really are a dear, you know that?”

She nodded. “You’ve said it a few times since we’ve been dating. So… you’re really okay giving up dressmaking?”

I shook my head and took another pull of my bourbon. “I’m okay with a lot of it. I’m okay giving up the business side of things, but I’m still loathe to give up my creative outlet. Yes, I can find other outlets, but it won’t be the same.” Then why do you have to give that up? An interesting idea. The Dressmaker’s Union was upset that the market was weighted unfairly in my favor, but if I… Maybe I didn’t have to choose. Once we got back to the castle, I’d need to draft my counter-proposal. Nothing was guaranteed, but just maybe it would allow me to find the happy medium I’d sacrificed all those years ago.

“I’d like to show you something,” I said, getting to my hooves and trotting to the stairs. “Just stay here, and I’ll be back before you can say ‘where are you going?’”

“Where are you going?” Twilight asked. I rolled my eyes, not even bothering to see the little smug satisfied look on her face. Yes, Twilight, you’re very clever taking a figure of speech so literally. I smiled. How nice of her to give me a brief pang of irritation to break from the melancholy.

“Yes, you’re very funny,” I said, moving up the stairs and out of sight. To my bedroom, to the secret safe behind a painting. Cliche? Quite possibly; but most likely, any potential robbers would focus on the very obvious safe in my counter and not check for another. It swung open, and there they were, just like I’d left them. The secret compartment nopony knew about, holding my most valuable possessions. I grabbed the books with my magic and trotted back downstairs.

“Books?” Twilight asked perking her ears up as she swiveled her head to stare at the collection floating next to me. “Hmm… I don’t recognize the covers. What–”

“Scrapbooks,” I said, positioning them so Twilight could get a better look. “All the little scrapbooks I’ve made about Sweetie Belle over the last few years. I was wondering… would you like to look through them with me?” I floated a bottle of wine for her out from the rack. “I promise, I won’t make you drink any more bourbon.”

Twilight laughed and took the bottle with her magic. “I can’t think of anything better.” She did a quick count of my scrapbooks. “Wow, you… Ten books all about Sweetie?”

I nodded. “It’s even worse when you realize that one book covers the first nine years of her life.” I frowned, not wanting to say why one book had to cover nine whole years. Twilight knew anyway.

“So, you made nine scrapbooks to cover four years?” she asked.

“Hardly, Twilight,” I said, sitting next to her. “I made nine scrapbooks to cover six years. These last few are all newspaper clippings and the playbills for her shows. I think I have every word about her that’s been printed since she left home.” I pulled the most recent book out of the stack and flipped it open to show a playbill and a review. “You see, this one is from her time on The Book of Luna.” Certainly funny, but maybe not a show I’d like to see my daughter perform in.

I scanned the stack of books, seeing the memories they contained. Oh, yes, that one could be fun. I floated another book from the stack. “Ooh, this is a good one. It’s us on our second Sisterhooves Social.” I pointed to a picture of a beaming Sweetie holding up a trophy next to a crushed Scootaloo. “We actually managed to beat Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo in the obstacle course. We didn’t let them hear the end of it for weeks.” I smiled and flipped the page to a photo of the both of us stuffed with flecks of pie filling around our mouths. “And the pie-eating contest. We… didn’t win that one. I don’t think anypony can put away more apple pie than Applejack.” Certainly, that was the case when we had our own private contests. Twilight was putting up a good showing these days, though. We’d break Applejack’s record any day now.

“Ooh,” Twilight said, leaning deeper into me and pointing to a photo of six mares covered in mud. “What happened here?”

“The Crusaders thought pig wrestling might be a good idea, and the results ended… utterly predictably. What do they say about wrestling with pigs?” I smiled. “Yes, well, I think Sweetie proved it true that day.” I flipped the page. “And this was the Sisterhooves dance. We somehow managed to get clean enough to put our dresses on before it started, and Sweetie’s just a vision, isn’t she?” Twilight just mumbled her assent as I pattered on and took her through the rest of the day and the days following.

♦♦♦

I sat in Twilight’s empty throne room. She sat on her big throne, and I sat on the slightly-smaller chair the castle had spawned recently, and we both did our best to look regal and imposing. “Thank you for letting me have this meeting in the throne room,” I said, wishing our chairs were just slightly closer. I suppose the castle didn’t want us to do anything unbecoming of a princess in public, though.

“It’s fine,” Twilight said. “It’s not during court hours, and you do have your own throne, now, which… how great is that? Now you can be right next to me in court whenever you want.”

“It is rather unorthodox, though, considering we’re only dating,” I said, frowning. “Ponies will talk.”

She shrugged. “Let them. I’m a princess; if I want you to sit next to me in court, you’re sitting next to me in court. Besides, in a year, you’re going to be a princess too. Ooh! You could have your own court.”

I tapped my chin. “I have been giving that issue some thought. Perhaps we could divide things up so the nobles would speak with me, and the working ponies could have an audience with you. Plus, I’ll get to plan out all our fun little soirees. What do you think of us having our own version of the Grand Galloping Gala? Obviously, the two events wouldn’t compete with each other, so we could do something for the spring and autumn equinoxes.”

“You want to do something for both equinoxes?” Twilight asked, her face momentarily paling.

“But of course, there are two of us, it would only be right,” I said, glancing to the door and waiting for our ‘guests’ to arrive. I rested a hoof on the stack of papers that sat on one arm of my throne. My throne. A giggle escaped me before I could regain my composure.

“Uh-huh,” Twilight said, nodding her head. “And this wouldn’t have anything to do with you getting to plan two fancy balls a year instead of one, right?”

I sniffed and looked up at the ceiling. “Why, Twilight, I have no idea what you’re getting at.”

The door swung open and a guard trotted in, followed closely by Hoity and Iron Clad. “Announcing Mister Hoity Toity and Miss Iron Clad to Her Majesty Princess Twilight Sparkle and Miss Rarity, Bearer of Generosity.” Well, my title didn’t have the same ring as Twilight’s, did it? Oh well, I was the one sitting on a throne, and they weren’t.

“You really didn’t need to have us meet in the throne room, Rarity,” Hoity said, trotting to the base of Twilight’s elevated platform and bowing. “So, I assume you’ve reached a decision.”

I nodded. “I have a counter-proposal for the both of you that I think all parties will find agreeable.” I tried not to glare at Hoity. If he’d just come to me without a lawyer, I would have been happy to brainstorm a solution with him. Instead, he tried to push an ultimatum on me and threatened my Twilight if I refused to cooperate. That was… How could I forgive that betrayal? To go after me is one thing, but Twilight is another thing entirely.

“Oh?” he asked, tilting his head. “I’m all ears, truly.”

“From this point forward, I shall agree to only accept commissions from clients I had before I moved in with Princess Twilight. Further, I’ll only accept one commission per client, per year – with the exception of Sapphire Shores, who would obviously require more frequent commissions for professional reasons – and any other designs I may come up with will be raffled off to Equestria’s retailers. This way, every retailer in Equestria has an equal opportunity to profit off my connection to Princess Twilight, and my ability to make dresses for the Canterlot nobility is dramatically limited.” I could create my dresses and keep my relationship with Twilight.

Iron Clad nodded her head. “Your proposal is… interesting.” She tapped the floor. “I’ll bring it to the Dressmaker’s Union for deliberation. I can’t speak for them, but your proposal should nullify their major objections.” She spared Hoity a microscopic glance. “And may I say, it’s a pleasure dealing with you, Rarity. The union led me to believe you’d be far more obstinate. Hopefully, when we next meet, I’ll have an agreement ready for you to sign.” She got to her hooves. “I do have to ask that you don’t sell any more dresses until everything’s formalized, though.”

“It’s utterly fine,” I said, smiling at her and feeling the documents under my hoof. “Oh! Before you leave, please take my client lists with you. It contains the names of everypony I accepted commissions from, and the date they made their order. Anypony on there before autumn of this year is a pre-existing client.” I floated the papers over to her, and she stuffed them in her courier bag.

Hoity almost turned to go but stopped himself. “Rarity, I… thank you for being so reasonable, and I want to apologize for my actions.”

“Oh?” I asked, tilting my head. He was going to apologize now? Once I had the upper hoof, now he decided to admit he was in the wrong? I raised an eyebrow and prepared a dose of vitriol to force down his throat. He’d threatened Twilight. Everything else was excusable, but not that.

“I’m… I never wanted to do any of this. The union was out for blood, and I thought that… if perhaps I went with Iron Clad, I could soften the blow,” he said. “No matter what I did, they’d give you the ultimatum, and I thought that perhaps it would be better for all parties if I attended. It was the lesser of two evils, I admit, but sometimes those are the only choices open to us.”

Yes. Yes, they were. My anger towards him deflated. We’d all had to make choices we regretted. How could I blame him for his? “You threatened Twilight,” I said. Yes, I could forgive him, but I still had trouble forgiving that.

“Well, to be fair, I did hide the Consort’s Law from you, and… that was my mistake. I should have trusted you with the truth from the start, instead of hoping everypony would just forget the law existed.” Twilight smiled at me. “Sorry, I guess it’s true that love makes you kind of crazy.”

I laughed and returned her smile, forgetting the other ponies in the room. “Yes, I can certainly attest to that. And it all worked out in the end, I suppose. I’m fine, you’re fine, no legal charges for any of our actions will be forthcoming…” I looked to the two other ponies in the room for a second and they quickly nodded in agreement. Good. “So there’s really nothing to worry about.” I turned to Hoity. “And yes, I understand how it feels to be stuck between two untenable options, so consider yourself forgiven. Oh! Miss Clad, one more little term to our deal. In the future, if the union has any more problems with my actions, they are to send Hoity to help me work out a peaceful solution before resorting to threats of lawsuits, is that understood?”

“It is, and I hope they’ll agree. And thank you for being so agreeable, Miss Rarity. It’s rare in my work to deal with civil ponies,” she said, opening the doors.

“Yes, a pleasure seeing you again, Rarity. A shame it couldn’t be under more pleasant circumstances. The next time you’re in Canterlot, we simply must catch up,” Hoity said, trotting to the door.

I opened my mouth to voice my assent, but before I could, one of the guards was in the throne room, eyes meeting mine. “Miss Rarity,” he said, trotting closer to me. “While you were having your meeting, the mailmare came with an envelope for you. She said it was urgent.” He reached into his armor and pulled it out. I floated it towards me, and – My heart paused. I’d recognize that writing anywhere. I tore the envelope open, and the letter was in my hooves before the envelope’s remains could hit the floor.

Love you, Mom.

Smartie Belle

P.S. You and Twilight make a totally cute couple. I’m happy for you. Sweetie will be too.

Author's Note

So! That chapter! That twist! A few of you saw it coming, but I hope you still enjoyed the way it was executed. For those of you who want to ~~yell at me about my terrible decision making skills~~ talk about it, there's going to be a blog post going up... here. Note: I added the link a few seconds after the chapter and the blog post went up, so if its not showing up for you, just reload the page and it should be there.

12. Happily Ever After, For Now

Twilight and I cowered in the dark, listening for hoofsteps outside. The sounds of muted breathing surrounded us as the steps got closer. Closer. Closer. A rusty door squeaked open, and–

“Surprise!” we all shouted in unison as Applejack and Rainbow Dash trotted into the Applejack’s farmhouse, two gold pendants hanging around their necks. The one hanging around Applejack’s neck had a cerulean lightning bolt in its center, and Rainbow Dash’s contained an amber apple.

“Congratulations!” Pinkie said, cartwheeling up in front of the two shockingly unsurprised ponies as streamers exploded all around us. I’d be picking them from my mane all night. Joy. “I’m so excited for you two. Are you excited? I hope you’re excited. I mean, how could you not be excited? You’re engaged!” She looked between the two of them. “You are engaged, right? My little birdies didn’t lie to me?” A look at Applejack. “You didn’t say no, did you?”

“Nope,” Rainbow Dash said, sidestepping around Pinkie. “Like she could say no to marrying the coolest pegasus in Equestria.”

“Gotta have somepony keepin’ ya down to earth,” Applejack said, rolling her eyes. “Otherwise, you’re liable to be the first mare in space.” Well… No. All six of us had been in space, actually. Plus, there was Luna, and... and Twilight’s bookish tendency to take figures of speech literally was rubbing off on me, apparently.

“Yeah, yeah, I love you, too, Applejack,” Rainbow Dash said, looking around at the ponies assembled. There were the four of us, of course; and Fluttershy had brought Fancy Pants, and… Discord. Why? Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom stood closer to the door, and Pinkie had even managed to get Rainbow Dash’s parents to attend. I’d probably be officially meeting Twilight’s parents soon enough. It was a small miracle they hadn’t caught the first train down here when the papers broke the story. I spared a glance from the happy couple to smile at my marefriend.

“Like an old married couple,” I whispered to her. She giggled and tried to pass it off, unsuccessfully, as a cough.

“Shush,” she said, tapping me on the shoulder. “If I start laughing, you’ll have to tell them why.”

“But you already started laughing,” I said, looking back to the happy couple, now engaged in conversation with Fluttershy. “Do you think that’ll be us one day?”

“No, we’re unicorns; we’d use horn rings, not pendants. Unless you wanted to,” she said, before shrugging. “Besides, we’re not them. When you propose to me, it’ll be completely different.”

“Oh?” I said, raising an eyebrow and looking back at her. “And just why am I supposed to do the proposing?”

“Well, you are the romantic, aren’t you?” she asked, bumping playfully against me, her touch lingering for several seconds. Her hair was still made up like she was about to go to court. Over the last few weeks, the look had somehow turned into her default. I wasn’t complaining, possibly because she still liked having me style it for her every morning, even though she knew how to do it herself. “If you do the proposing, I know it’s going to be perfect.”

“As you wish,” I said, taking a step over to congratulate the couple and keep an eye on Fluttershy.

“And I’m pretty sure I’m not the pony with several scrapbooks on her dream wedding,” Twilight said. “I figure getting married to you should be the easiest thing in the world. I just say ‘Yes, I’ll marry you,’ and then a few months later, I say ‘I do.’ You’ll take care of everything else.”

I laughed. “You mean you don’t want to micromanage every facet of our wedding to death?” I asked, lowering my voice so we weren’t overheard by everypony at the party. “You’ve spent the last few mornings taking a complete inventory of the larder just to make sure everything is in the right place. You know, we do have a chef for that sort of thing.”

“I trust you,” she said before leaning in close to whisper in my ear. “You don’t have any more secrets, right?”

“I can’t say that I do,” I said, before turning to look at Applejack and Rainbow Dash. “Congratulations, you two. So, Rainbow Dash, tell me everything about the magic moment.”

Rainbow Dash blinked from me to Twilight and back in less than a second. “Gee, I’d love to, but I’ve got to talk with Twilight about the latest Daring-Do book. Can you believe that Ahuizotl is actually–”

A purple hoof lodged itself in Rainbow Dash’s mouth. “Spoilers, Dash. What if somepony in the room hasn’t read the book yet?”

“Fine,” Rainbow Dash said, sighing. “Kitchen?”

Twilight nodded. “That sounds fine, Rarity?”

I smiled and kissed her, much to Rainbow Dash’s disgust. I drew the kiss out a little longer. “You go on without me. I’ll be trying to draw every last detail about the proposal from Applejack. Can I use your dungeon?”

“Rarity, it’s our dungeon, and no, you can’t,” she said, turning to trot with Rainbow Dash to the kitchen.

“Man, I want a dungeon,” Rainbow Dash said. “How cool would that be? I could be like a Daring-Do villain. All I’d need is an evil-sounding name and a plan to take over Equestria.”

“Of course!” Twilight said, before falling into a fit of laughter at the reference I didn’t understand at all.

“So, Applejack, how are you–”

“Yes, yes, time for that later,” Discord said, snaking between me and Applejack. “Right now, I have to pay the future blushing bride – one of the future blushing brides – my condolences.”

“Congratulations,” I corrected, glaring at him.

“Yes, that too.” He waved a talon at me. “Toodle-oo!”

I growled before turning back to Fluttershy. “Is there anything you can do about him?” I asked. “Or is he going to be completely insufferable all party?”

“Oh no, he’s promised me that he’ll leave as soon as his cameo is over,” Fluttershy said, smiling at me. “I’m not really sure what he meant by that, but he also promised he wouldn’t cause any trouble.”

“So, Fluttershy,” I said, looking at Fancy Pants. “How have you been lately?”

“Simply wonderful,” she said, a dreamy smile plastered on her face. “I’ve been helping Fancy Pants convert part of his estate into a nature preserve, and… you should see some of the critters they have out there. He has fire mites and grolar bears and shoggoths–”

“Shoggoths?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. “I don’t believe I’m familiar with–”

“They’re very rare,” she said, still smiling. “Most of them live at the bottom of the ocean, but he has one that lives in his little lake. You should see it when it comes out, it’s just the cutest little mass of tentacles and eyes ever.”

“That sounds like a rather narrow superlative, but if you’re enjoying yourself, I’m happy for you. And you, Fancy?” I asked, turning to look at him. Behind me, Applejack and Discord were talking about – Had he actually reversed their speech so I couldn’t eavesdrop? Not that I would have, but I’d at least like to overhear a few choice words. To make sure my friend was alright.

“I’m having the time of my life,” he said, looking from me to Fluttershy, and was that… Yes, I think that was a look of actual affection. “Dealing with someone so lacking in ulterior motives is refreshing, and it’s nice doing something to help the environment.”

“Yes, well, just remember what we discussed,” I said, nodding at him.

“Your words might as well be carved on granite, my dear Rarity – and how could I ever oppose somepony who has the eyes and ears of a princess?” He laughed. “You should have heard the commotion in Canterlot when Twilight announced she was courting you. Quite a few noblestallions – and mares, for that matter – had words to say about the princess’ taste in partners. I was there to remind them that they likely owed their lives and sanity to you.” He tilted his head towards Discord at those last words.

“And I’m sure they’ll be equally disappointed when they hear you’re – Have you introduced Fluttershy to the nobles yet?” I asked, tilting my head.

“Oh no,” Fluttershy said, fiddling with a long strand of her mane. “I’d prefer… I’m sure they’re very lovely ponies, but I’d prefer it if… We’ve only had a few dates, anyways, but…” She squeaked.

“It’s alright, Fluttershy,” Fancy said, patting her on the back. “I have no intention of bringing you to meet the nobles until you’re ready. Besides, like you’ve said, we only had a few dates.”

I nodded my approval. He seemed sincere enough. Wasn’t trying to use her to show off with his noble friends, and was comfortable keeping their relationship mostly secret for now. “Well, I’m glad to hear the two of you are getting along. Who would have thought your chance meeting would be so… fortuitous.”

“Funny how that works out, isn’t it?” Fancy said, laughing. “But sometimes, things work out so perfectly, you can’t help but think everything was planned out.” And how much of it was planned out, in my case? Smartie knew I’d be living with Twilight, among other things. Was her invisible hoof at work here, too? I shook my head. I could spend my whole life asking that. The important thing was that things were… for the first time in a long time, things felt right. I hadn’t felt the need to step in the ring with Twilight since the meeting with my parents, and Twilight was wonderful as always. In a bit more than a year, I’d have my daughter back, and I might actually be able to use the word ‘perfect’ to describe my life. Like something out of a fairy tale. A very strange and sometimes dark fairy tale, but then, all the best were.

“Very,” I said, smiling to him and myself.

Discord popped into existence behind Fluttershy and Fancy and gave a nod. “Well, that was fun. What do you say we go create a beach in the middle of a blizzard?” he asked, ushering the two ponies out of the room. “Oh, but before I go–” He snapped a claw and two glasses of cider appeared next to me and Applejack. “Ciao!”

“Ya know, Ah think Ah liked him better when he was a lawn ornament,” Applejack said, picking up her glass. I laughed in response.

“So, Applejack, darling, unless I’m gravely mistaken, our two years are almost up. Are you...?”

“Nah, Ah’m good, sugarcube. Likin’ things jus’ the way they are right now. You?” she asked as I picked up my glass and swished it around.

“I’m afraid I wouldn’t take you back even if you begged me to,” I said, picking up her pendant with one hoof. “This is a really lovely cut. I’ll have to ask Rainbow Dash what jeweler she used.”

“Sure is,” Applejack said, smiling with pride. “Darn featherhead won’t admit it to anypony, and she’ll probably kill me if she knew Ah told you this, but she can be just as romantic as you when she wants to.”

“Ooh, I’m sure. Now, Applejack, tell me everything about the proposal,” I said as the sound of excited laughter came from the kitchen. Something told me Twilight would have several interesting Daring-Do theories to share with me on our walk home.

“Sure thing, sugarcube. Well, it started out like…”

♦♦♦

It was a perfectly lovely story. Rainbow Dash challenged Applejack to a race this morning after she finished her chores, they ran all across the countryside, and when they reached a nice little meadow, Rainbow Dash knelt down, gave a wonderful speech that Applejack ordered me not to repeat on pain of death, and brought out Applejack’s pendant from behind a conveniently positioned rock. Applejack was right, Rainbow Dash was a terrible romantic. If only I could tweak her nose about it a little.

“Anyways, I never got the chance to thank ya proper, so… thanks, Rarity,” Applejack said when she finished her story.

“For what, dear?” I asked, tilting my head at her. What in Equestria were Twilight and Rainbow Dash doing in that kitchen? Could you really talk about a Daring-Do book for – I glanced at a clock – only fifteen minutes. Well, that wasn’t too terrible, I suppose.

“For endin’ things back when ya did. Ah was mighty upset with ya for a long time, but now… Ah’ve cooled off enough to see ya were right. There was somethin’ better out there for both of us, and we never would’ve found it if we just stayed. Ah’m guessin you ain’t had any fights with Twilight like we did?” she asked, smiling at me.

I laughed. “Applejack, darling, I don’t think anypony has, had, or will have fights like we did. I dare say that we set the bar. Couples for generations to come will compare their fights to ours and find themselves lacking. I suppose that’s a good thing for equanity in general.”

“Yeah, Ah don’t think Equestria could handle many couples like us. Think there were some times we were darn close to leveling the town,” Applejack said, taking a sip of her cider. As much as we drank, our glasses never seemed to get lower. I might actually have to thank Discord for something.

“Indeed,” I said, nodding my head with her. “Still, it wasn’t always terrible. There were times when–”

“There were times when things were mighty pleasant,” Applejack said, interrupting me. “Not gonna deny that, but Ah’m glad to be out of it. Glad to have mah little egotistical rock to lean on.”

“And I finally found my princess,” I said, raising my glass. “To healthy relationships, happy lives, and good friends.”

Applejack mirrored my movements and a look passed between us as the last spectre of our relationship withered and died, leaving behind two friends who could discuss their past without pain or embarrassment. I smiled at my friend as the mare I loved snuck up from behind me and wrapped her forelegs around me. “There you are,” Twilight said. “Were you two planning on running off together?”

“Furthest thing from my mind,” I said, smiling and turning around and letting my lips linger on hers. I considered going further with our kiss to irritate Rainbow Dash, but I wouldn’t want to be uncouth. On the other hoof… I drew her tighter as our lips formed a seal that could keep out the rest of the world. My tongue slid inside her mouth to embrace its counterpart. My laugh escaped into Twilight’s throat as I heard Rainbow Dash retch. “You know I wouldn’t dream of disappointing my princess.”

“You better not,” Twilight said, eyes heavy and lidded. “Otherwise, I’ll have you sent to my dungeon, and you can make it up to me there.”

“Okay, gross,” Rainbow Dash said. “If you’re going to do really weird kinky foreplay stuff, could you please talk about it outside?”

“Aw, what’s the matter, Dashie,” Applejack said, sidling close to her fiancée and stroking her chin with a hoof. “Ah thought you loved that stuff.”

Rainbow Dash’s cheeks went as red as the stripe in her mane. “In private. With you. I don’t like watching my friends make out with each other and talk about all the stuff they’re going to do in their dungeon to each other.”

“You’re just jealous that we have a dungeon and you don’t,” I said, letting Twilight bring her wing out to blanket me. “Ask nicely, and maybe we’ll let the two of you borrow it some time. Just as long as you clean it up when you’re done, of course.”

“Ugh,” Rainbow Dash said. “You know, it’s really hard to be cool with you all as friends. Not that I’m complaining, you’re the most awesome friends out there, just… Come on, this is my–” She got a jab from Applejack. “Our engagement party. You can talk about that stuff at yours.”

“Deal,” Twilight said, nodding her head. “Rarity, what do you think about inviting them to the study so we can tell her about everything we got up to in that room?” I smiled at her. Truthfully, most of what we ‘got up to’ was working and reading books aloud to each other – Twilight reading her poetry and me reading my romance novels – but there was no reason to dispel the illusion for Rainbow Dash.

“Sounds wonderful,” I said, nuzzling against my marefriend. “And congratulations again to the two of you. I can’t wait to attend the wedding. Have you picked somepony to design your dress?”

“Ah had a few ideas,” Applejack said, smiling and kissing a flustered Rainbow Dash on the cheek. “What do ya think about Coco Pommel? She seemed to know her way around a sewin’ machine.”

I smiled and took a drink of my cider. Yes, things were good.

♦♦♦

When we got home, Twilight and I collapsed into a pile of limbs on her bed that eventually sorted itself out into our usual position. Me lying back, head propped up by an exorbitant collection of pillows, while Twilight was content to rest her head on my chest as she lectured me about all the stars in the sky. We’d been dating for over a season, and I was still learning new things about night sky. “Those two,” she said, pointing to a giant star shining brilliantly in the night sky. “Those two are my favorite, I think.”

I tapped her playfully on the horn. “I think you’ve had too much to drink, Twilight. You’ve repeatedly and emphatically told me your favorite star is Polaris, and more importantly, there’s only one star where you pointed.”

She shook her head, strands of her mane flying everywhere. “Uh-uh,” she said. “And I can change what my favorite star is. Right now, the Lovers are my favorite. If you squint hard enough, you can see it’s actually two stars, but they’re so close to each other that they just look like one.” She was definitely drunk, then. She only started thinking metaphorically when she was suitably tipsy. Still, I liked where this metaphor was going.

“Oh, and why are they your favorite?” I asked, smirking.

“You know why,” she said, lobbing a pillow at me as punishment for my sarcasm. “And it’s… I love their constancy.”

I squinted, and… yes, I could see just the faintest separation between the two. “You’ll have to explain what you mean for the sake of the astronomically impaired,” I said, finally getting her mane back to looking like something decent.

“They’re... “ She raised a hoof and let it drift down as she thought. Definitely drunk, and she didn’t have the excuse of an eternally-refilling cider glass. “You know, the stars, they move around in the sky a lot, but they’re always the same to each other. No matter how much the sky shifts, those two stars will always be right next to each other, and I… I like that. Makes me feel…” She drifted off into a snore before she could finish the thought. She didn’t have to.

I smiled and spent the rest of my night staring at the stars that claimed her interest. It was silly – cliche, even, to think two stars in the night sky were just for us, especially when they were called the Lovers. Couples throughout history had probably looked up at the night sky and seen themselves reflected in the pair. It was the absolute height of silly romantic thinking... but as I looked up at the two, shining together like a single brilliant diamond in the night sky, I couldn’t help but call them ours.

Author's Note

So, that's about it for The Diamond in the Stars, and before you ask, I had the final image in my mind before I came up with the title, believe it or not. This wasn't just shoehorned in to make the title fit better.

So, Your Own Worst Enemy. Maybe it's gauche to talk about your next story in the author's note of your old story, I'm not sure, but I'm doing it anyways. Here's what needs to happen before it can go live: The first few chapters need to be edited (up to chapter five has been written and finished, chapter six is in construction), the cover art needs to be finished (I'm having it commissioned by the wonderfully skilled RinNathe whose work I'll be plugging at every opportunity), and I need to write the short and long description for the story.

I'd like to see updates start coming out this next week, but it won't be done until it's done. Until then, just remember that every day you go without an update is another day I add to my backlog of stories. Also, I might cut down on writing for the next few days because I have a big exam on October 14th, I think, and I really should study for it.

1. Standing in the Rain

I stuck close to the sides of Ponyville’s streets, struggling to stay out of the worst of the storm and keep my mane and tail looking somewhat presentable. I failed on both accounts. What was I even doing here? I could be back home at the Boutique–

No, I couldn’t. Not now. There were too many empty places there. Too many things missing. Above me, thunder cracked, and the rainfall somehow managed to get even thicker. While I admit, the weather was certainly appropriate, a starry night would have made this walk far more enjoyable. I sighed and shook my head, rain seeping deeper into my coat. Where was I going? Not back home. I couldn’t. I–

I kept walking off into the dark.

♦♦♦

Only friendship and love can sustain a soul.

My words to Sweetie echoed in my head. She was falling, and what kind of example was I setting? I turned my attention back to the dinner I’d spent all afternoon preparing. The table was set perfectly, the apple pie was in the oven, and my grape-apple salad looked simply divine. Maybe I should cancel our dinner, or–

No, no putting it off, Rarity. We must lead by example, and a relationship that’s as likely to end with a major remodelling bill as a romantic evening is not something Sweetie should aspire to, even if–

Enough, Rarity. Enough pitying yourself and bargaining. We know our proper course, and even though what comes next is going to hurt immensely, we must do the right thing for Sweetie’s sake. Anything I can do to take her away from this thing that’s consuming her is well worth it. She needs a role model, and that means doing the mature thing. Who else is going to teach her the right way of doing these things? Certainly not my parents. No, they’d be completely fine if she just moved out on her own. They probably wouldn’t even notice.

Besides, it’s only a matter of time until your fights with Applejack end in somepony getting hurt. Maybe not soon, but if you keep going like this… Sweetie’s not the only pony who could benefit from a healthy relationship.

But, you love her. Yes, that’s true. Very much so, but we can’t… somepony will get hurt, or a line will be crossed eventually, and it’s better we end things before then. Right?

A knock came from the Boutique’s front door and I ducked beneath the windows. I could just tell her I was sick, or that I had an emergency trip to Manehattan, or– The candles I’d lit all around the room flickered. She could see them from a window, there couldn’t be any excuses. This had to be done, Rarity. Besides, we’ll– I got to my hooves and wrapped the doorknob in my telekinetic aura. We’ve been dating for two years and still haven’t managed to hit the three-month anniversary. She deserves better than that.

“Come in, Applejack,” I said, smiling at my marefriend and kissing her cheek. “I just finished preparing dinner.”

♦♦♦

“Alright,” Applejack said, shoveling thirds into her salad bowl. “You ain’t even touched your fancy salad, and I know you ain’t on one of them crazy diets of yours, so tell me what’s botherin’ you.”

I sighed. Time to face the music. No more putting it off, Rarity. “It’s about Sweetie Belle,” I said. giving her a smile that wanted to apologize for what was about to happen next.

“I know it’s been tough for you, Rares, but I think you’re doin’ a real good job tryin’ to set the right example for her. You’ve been tough on her, but you’ve been fair, and I think that’s startin’ to get through to her,” Applejack said before shovelling in another mouthful of salad.

“Thank you,” I said, nodding at her. There were three pints of ice cream in my freezer. Tomorrow, I’d need three more. Maybe more. Probably more. “That’s actually why I invited you over tonight. Applejack... we need to talk.”

Applejack blanched. Of course she would, nothing good ever followed the phrase “we need to talk.” That phrase was the death knell of happiness, and we both knew it. “I’ve been thinking for a while about this, and it’s been an agonizing decision, but–”

Don’t confuse adoration with friendship.

Don’t confuse passion with love.

How was Sweetie to listen to me if I couldn’t even follow my own advice? Hypocrisy, thy name is Rarity.

“You’re breakin’ up with me?!” Applejack said, narrowing her eyes. “What’d I do this time? Not appreciate your frou-frou home cookin’ enough?”

“First of all,” I said, feeling my voice raise, “I cooked this meal just for you, so a little gratitude would be nice, and second–” I caught myself and took a deep breath. Our tempers can’t rule us for this. We must be calm. Rational. Civil. If we fall into our usual fights, nothing will get accomplished and we’ll make up in less than a week. We both know the pattern too well. “This is precisely what’s been on my mind,” I finished, the perfect model of elegance and decorum.

“Your cookin’?” Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow at me. I had to stifle a laugh. Perfect; even now, she was trying to inject some levity into the proceedings. This was no time for that, though.

“No, Applejack, our fighting. We’ve been dating for years, but we can never seem to hit a three-month anniversary. Don’t you get tired of it?” I asked, keeping my eyes on her. Cool and calm, that’s how it had to be. There’d be plenty of time for tears once we were done here. “Don’t you ever want what everypony else has?”

For a moment, she said nothing and scrutinized every inch of her plate. “Sometimes, Ah reckon,” she said, rubbing the back of her head. “Sure, Ah wonder what somethin’ else might be like, but everypony does that from time to time. Ah like where we are now, and Ah figure one day, we’ll run outta things to fight about, and then it’ll be smooth sailin’ for us. Most of the time Ah’m with you, Ah feel great; who cares about the other bits?”

I sighed. It wasn’t going to be easy. I didn’t think it would be. I fixed the image of Sweetie Belle in my mind. For all our sakes, but hers most of all. “But you deserve someone you feel great around all the time, darling. Can you tell me, honestly, that you don’t want a relationship like your parents had? Like everypony but us seems to have?”

“So what if we ain’t got what everypony else got? That just makes us extra-special. We manage to make it work,” she said. She wasn’t answering the question directly. She couldn’t. She had to.

“Applejack, look me in the eyes and tell me the fights don’t bother you at all. Say that in your heart of hearts you don’t wish for a less volatile relationship, and I’ll drop this issue entirely – but be honest. Not just with me, but with yourself.” With her, I shouldn’t have to add the last part, but the heart can twist our better natures against us. Besides, is it lying if you believe what you’re saying?

She looked away. I’d won. There was no going back now. “We can work through it, though,” she said, still avoiding my gaze. “We could go back to that therapist you were so gung-ho about, I’m sure there’s something we can do to get rid of the fightin’. We can make it work.”

“We’ve tried making it work, Applejack. For two years, we’ve struggled and done everything to make it work, but we just can’t. Celestia only knows how many thousands of bits we’ve spent repairing damages to the Boutique and Sweet Apple Acres by now. Every fight seems a little worse than the last, and it’s only a matter of time until…” I trailed off, not wanting to complete the thought. “As much as I’d love it to be otherwise, we can’t keep doing this. Instead of finding somepony to serve as our verbal punching bags, perhaps we should try finding ponies who take away our need for a punching bag. Don’t you think that’s at least worth trying?” Her eyes were watering, but she was holding back the tears. Neither of us would cry in front of the other. Later, though, the dam would burst. It was a good thing Sweetie was off with Diamond Tiara tonight. Not the best, of course, but better than leaving her alone with the other one. The one who had Sweetie’s ear. Is it wrong for me to hate a filly? If Sweetie saw me spending the whole night sobbing... Actually, would she even care? I don’t know the answer anymore.

“Ah reckon it is,” Applejack said, blinking back. “But what if we don’t find anypony else? Ah like us.”

I smiled at her. The consolation. The distant promise to make the present more palatable. “If, in a couple of years, if we’re both single and think rekindling things would be a good idea, I’m certainly open to it, but for right now, let’s do our best to break out of this cycle of fighting and reconciliation we’re trapped in.” I tilted my head. “Agreeable?”

She nodded, and I could practically hear her neck groaning in protest. “Reckon so.” She returned my smile. “Besides, two years can go by lickety-split. We’ll be back together before either of us know it.”

♦♦♦

The wind gusted outside the Boutique, but I kept my eyes firmly trained on the dress in front of me. The ensemble for Sapphire Shores’ latest tour needed to be absolutely perfect. It had to be. Everything had to be perfect. My eyes went from the mannequine to the sketch and back. It didn’t hang right. Oh sure, it looked fine, but any discerning eye could tell that the dress hung a twelfth of an inch lower than it should. The whole thing was ruined.

Yes, that was it. I just needed to–

The shop bells jingled as somepony trotted in. “Can’t you see the sign says I’m closed?” I asked, turning around to look at the intruder. The lavender mare was immediately recognizable for possessing both a pair of wings and a horn. Only four ponies in Equestria had that unique combination of features, and out of those four, only one of them was a friend to me before she was a princess. I smiled at her in apology. “Oh, I’m terribly sorry, Twilight, I’ve just been under so much pressure lately, and… you know I’d never be short with you, right?”

Twilight smiled. It was a beautiful small little thing. Utterly and completely sincere without a trace of guile or duplicity. A smile that said you were the most important thing in the world. “It’s fine,” she said, shrugging as the door shut. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay. None of the girls have seen you in a while, and Pinkie’s trying to figure some way to lure you out of the house. She’s convinced we have another fashion show situation on our hooves.” I should take offense that my friends had a shorthoof for my… occasionally unfounded fits of histrionics; but then, I had shorthoof for their foibles as well. Twilight’s was “tardy.”

“No, nothing so terrible, I’m afraid,” I said, giving another glance to the mannequine. If I restarted now, I could maybe have it finished by dawn, and I’d still have three days left to tweak it as needed before the deadline. “Just work.”

Twilight just stared at me, and I could practically hear what was going on in her mind. Are you sure, Rarity? You’ve barely left the boutique this last year, and when you do go out, your mind is always somewhere else. If you want to talk about your sister, I’m here for you.

Yes, I’m sure you are, I’d say in our theoretical conversation. But I’m fine, really, just killing time until Scootaloo can follow some instructions my sister gave her when she briefly became omniscient, because apparently every terrible thing that’s happened to her in the past year has been part of some master plan if you can believe it. I certainly can’t.

“Rarity, are you alright?” Twilight asked. “We’re all just worried about you.” Always dancing around the issue, so concerned with my feelings. Out of all my friends, she was the one most concerned with tact. The rest… well, they could speak plainly, directly, and honestly, but never artfully. Twilight and I could hold a conversation about things we didn’t say.

“I appreciate the thought, Twilight, but I’m fine. I’m sure in…” One year, two seasons, and sixty-three days until Sweetie Belle returned. Two seasons and eighteen days until Applejack and I could get back together. “I’m sure things will be back to normal soon enough. It just takes time, you know.”

“Well, do you want to get dinner some time?” Twilight asked, rubbing one foreleg and glancing away. Why so self-conscious now? “I’m a good listener, and maybe it would help to get some things off your chest. Not saying anything’s bothering you, but I know you haven’t had anypony to talk with lately, and I don’t know where I’d be without Spike to talk to, so… if you’re up for it, dinner maybe? Or it can really be whatever you want. I just thought you might like somepony to talk with.”

What could she say? What could I say that I hadn’t already heard before? I’d sobbed, I’d binged on ice cream, and I moved on as best I could. We were masters of moving on in my family. I smiled at her. It was nothing like Twilight’s smile. “That sounds lovely, Twilight. I’ll let you know when I have a date in mind. Perhaps after I’m done with this order.”

“Alright,” Twilight said, turning to look back at the door. “Is there anything I can do to help out? Maybe you need a model?”

“While I appreciate the thought, Twilight, you don’t quite have Sapphire’s build, plus wings, so… If I need anything, I’ll let you know,” I said, my mind turning back to the dress. This conversation was already over, now it was just the formality of wrapping up. Why had the dress hung so low?

“Promise me,” Twilight said.

“What?” I asked. No, this wasn’t how the conversation was supposed to go at all. She was supposed to say ‘Alright, are you sure?’ and then I’d say ‘Yes, absolutely,’ and the whole thing would be resolved so I could get back to work. I needed to work, it was the best thing for it, really. My productivity had never been better. Why, I’d practically done nothing but work this last year.

“Promise me that if you need anything, you’ll tell me,” she said, taking a step closer to me. “We’re all worried about you, and we just want you to be–” She almost said ‘happy.’ Thank Celestia she didn’t, I’d heard the word enough for several lifetimes. “Okay.”

“Very well, Twilight,” I said, turning back to the clotheshorse. “I promise if I need anything–”

“Anything at all,” Twilight interjected.

“Yes, anything at all, I’ll let you know. Now, as much as I’d love to continue this conversation, I really do need to get to work,” I said, waiting for the sound of the door shutting.

♦♦♦

It was such a small thing. If I was a betting mare – and I must stress the fact that I am not – I never thought a little tableau observed from the Boutique’s window would’ve been the thing to send me over the edge. But then, it’s never what you expect, is it?

I had been so diligent. I’d placed all of Sweetie’s things in her room, and done my best to put her out of mind. Obviously, I hadn’t completely succeeded, but I had compartmentalized. The wound was sealed away, and life continued. I had expected if anything would break me, it would be something related to Sweetie. Perhaps an interview in one of those magazines or… something.

But Applejack… No, I’d never considered. I’d just assumed she was as miserable as I was, and that at the end of my silly two-year moratorium on us dating, we’d continue as if nothing had ever happened. Oh, if only I’d known then how doomed my efforts with Sweetie were… If I hadn’t wanted to ‘set a good example.’

Foolishness, I know, but I never thought Applejack would actually take my advice and find somepony else. I suppose there’s a first time for everything. I was looking at the sky, chiding Rainbow Dash for putting off the rain until we needed to have a thunderstorm to make up for it. She wouldn’t have to work so hard if she didn’t put everything off until the last minute. Listen to me, I sound like – well, no, not my father, but certainly somepony’s father. Just a few more years away from complaining about fillies these days, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash is just a few years younger than you.

Then, who should appear out my window but the blue devil herself. Not to say she’s an actual devil – no, despite my current thoughts on the matter, Rainbow Dash most certainly is not a devil – but you know how the saying goes. The first fat raindrops were falling, smacking against my window – that’s what prompted me to look up – and there she was, walking on the far side of the street, her wing draped over Applejack to form an impromptu cloak. A tender action, to be sure, but I could have rationalized it away as Rainbow Dash having a rare moment of softness, if not for what happened after. As they hurried past my window, Applejack looked back over her shoulder, concern in her eyes. Rainbow Dash contracted her wing and pressed my marefriend – my ex-marefriend – against her. The way Applejack leaned against Rainbow Dash. The way she leaned against me during our few tender moments. There could be no doubt.

A tidal wave of memories came bearing down on me as realization struck. Our nights spent tearing my house down, the days spent rebuilding it. A metaphor for us, I suppose; a perpetual cycle of creation and destruction. We’d build something together, and when it was finally good, we’d demolish it with a sadistic glee, throwing every bit of frustration in our professional and personal lives at each other. Then, when it was over, when we were both so physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted that we couldn’t even keep our eyes open, we’d fall asleep in each other’s hooves and spend the next day making it up to each other. I suppose those days were just as destructive in their own special way.

I remembered our biggest fight. The one about Sweetie. The one that almost completely demolished the store. Holes were punched in the wall, and it’d taken a full day to patch things up. If I looked in the supply closet, I could still see the dent in the wall from when I threw the mannequine at it.

At that moment, I wanted nothing so much as to burn the whole Boutique down.

No, let’s not do that again. The rain would make it almost impossible anyways, and if I was being completely honest with myself, I’d probably regret it in the morning. Almost certainly. Still, I couldn’t stay here tonight. Not in the house we’d torn apart and rebuilt. I couldn’t go out the front door, either; they’d see me then, and then we’d have to put words to the truth.

I trotted to the kitchen. The back door it was, then. How many times had I slipped out here for a rendezvous with Applejack while Sweetie slumbered? No, not thinking about that. The dress hung a twelfth of an inch too low. Better. The whole thing would have to be scrapped, but think of this as an opportunity, Rarity. A chance to make an even better dress, one sure to impress Sapphire Shores. Yes, this wasn’t setback at all, it was a golden gift. One that–

The rain came pouring down and washed away whatever delusions I had left. I was out in the deluge, unable to avoid the truth any longer.

The two most important mares in my life were gone.

I was alone.

♦♦♦

I stared at the giant golden doors to Twilight’s castle, a knocker the size of my head ensconced in my magic.

Clang.

Each bang of gold on gold was a wave, managing to sweep the world away for a second before fading.

Clang.

Some odd hours of wandering in the rain later, and here I was, rain seeping into every inch of me. I’d have to be wrung out and hung out over a fire if I ever wanted to be dry again. I saw a letter of complaint being sent to the head of the Ponyville weather team in the very near future. Something asking just why we even bother creating a weather plan if we’re just going to let it fall to the side until we need a big earth-shaking thunderstorm to get caught up. I swear, the mare goes out of her way to force as many storms on us as possible.

“Hello?” Twilight said, the doors to her castle swinging open. “Who’s–?”

She froze when she saw me. I couldn’t blame her. I must’ve looked positively ghastly. My soaked mane hung down almost to my hooves, and my tail had been dragging through the mud since the storm started.

“So,” I said, trying to smile at her. “Is now a good time for dinner?”

Author's Note

Are you happy now Tchernobog? Are you? I killed my favorite ship for you (and also because it complemented the themes of my larger narrative, but mostly you)!

6. Denial Isn't Just a River in Neighgypt

My sewing machine jammed, and a quiver full of very unladylike words loosed from my lips. From her spot in the study, Twilight laughed. “And just what is so funny?” I asked, turning from the banner I’d been sewing to look at her. The last few days certainly hadn’t done anything to diminish my feelings for her, but we’d both been so busy I hadn’t had the time to dwell on them. Still, there were those moments at the end of each day, when the both of us had finished our work and we sat talking about some little thing that had captured our interests, where I was made acutely aware of my feelings. Sometimes, cold showers are a mare’s best friend.

“Nothing,” she said, still giggling. “I just didn’t think you’d have the worst language out of all my friends.”

My face twisted into mock shock. “Twilight Sparkle, I’ll have you know my language is impeccable. I can weave beautiful tapestries out of the foulest and basest words in the Equestrian language. How much better could my language be?”

She smiled and put down her quill. “So that’s what you call swearing: ‘weaving a tapestry.’ I think you could give Applejack and Rainbow Dash a few lessons.”

“Like I said, it’s an art form, Twilight. I spent years practicing how to speak properly, and during that time, I also learned how to speak very improperly. What’s the saying? ‘In order to talk like an angel, you have to swear like a devil,’” I said with a little laugh.

“You just made that up,” Twilight said, shaking her head.

“Did I?” I asked, shrugging and taking a few steps towards her. I’d spent the last four days sewing banners for her court; a few minutes for friendly banter wouldn’t be the end of the world. “Well, it should be a saying. The point is that in order to know what’s good, you also have to have a detailed understanding of what isn’t. Plus, in the world of the nobility, every statement has to be layered in meaning. If you want to insult a pony, you need to give them just the right compliment.”

“Right,” she said. “I kind of got that. I heard stories when I was in Celestia’s court, but I thought most of them were just exaggerations, and I really didn’t care either way.”

“Well, it’s something you’ll have to get used to,” I said, trotting to her desk. “And speaking of political intrigue, how is your docket looking?”

“Oh! I finished that a while ago, it’s probably been my easiest project so far. I just cross-referenced the severity of the request with the time the request was received, so if somepony had a big problem, they’d get seen earlier than the pony who was upset by my court’s colors who submitted the request at the same time as them,” she said, while I looked over the docket she’d passed me. Her system was certainly clever, and in a perfect world, it was absolutely fine. Unfortunately, the world of the nobility was anything but.

“Now, pardon me for asking a silly question, but what would you do if somepony came in with an urgent request minutes before your daily court started?” I asked, finishing my reading of the docket. It was, to be polite, a mess – perfectly egalitarian, but still a mess.

“Well,” she frowned. “I suppose if their request was really urgent, I’d move them to the front of the day’s docket. At the very least, I’d make time for them at the end of the day.”

“And if twenty ponies came to you with ‘urgent news’ at the start of court?” I asked, floating her quill over and making notes in the margins.

“Then…” She frowned in thought as the bit dropped. “You’re saying I’ve incentivized the system to reward ponies who over-exaggerate the nature of their problem,” she said, grabbing a sheet of paper and scribbling. “Thank you; I need to completely redo my criteria for determining appointments. Should I just institute a first-come first-served policy, or–?”

“What about this,” I said, sitting down next to her and trying to contain my thrill at being so close to her. Professionalism, Rarity. “We keep your policy in place for regular ponies, since I doubt they’ll have the resources or inclination to game your court, and we’ll only allow four or so nobles to meet with you a day, with appointments to be determined by your assistant.”

She nodded and tapped her hoof. “Okay, but… could you be my assistant? At least until I can find somepony else. You’re so graceful and poised, and I’m sure nopony else will be able to handle the nobility like you can. You’re really the only pony I know who can do the job.”

I smiled at her. “I was about to suggest the very idea to you, Twilight.” Well, no, I wasn’t. At all. Taking tea with nobles to discuss their needs was hardly my idea of a good time these days. But perhaps it wouldn’t be too intolerable. “Although that’s only if the position is temporary. I do want to re-open the Boutique some day.”

“Of course,” Twilight said, floating a volume of the Equestrian tax code over. “And if you can take care of this for me, then I can devote more time to understanding all the potential legal nuances and ramifications of my rulings. Obviously, I’m not going to break the law on my first – or any – day of court.”

“Yes,” I said, sighing and imagining her nights spent obsessing over the potential implications of some half-forgotten decree issued eight-hundred years ago when applied to another half-forgotten decree issued three-hundred years ago. Princess Celestia had many strengths, but a millennium of rule had led to a legal code that was a confusing mess of contradictory rules on the best of days. Honestly, if not for the ‘recency rule,’ nothing would be illegal in Equestria save murder. “Well, are there any factors you wish me to weigh when determining who gets an audience with you? The nobility will find out about them, and try to exploit them in the future.”

Twilight’s eyes lit up. “Rarity, that’s it!”

“What’s it?” I asked, tilting my head. I hadn’t said anything particularly insightful, just that the nobility excelled at manipulating rules to their favor.

“You said earlier that the nobles will want to somehow win my favor for their personal prestige, and I complained that maybe they should do something useful instead. Well, I’ve kind of been thinking about that since then, and you just gave me an idea. If you were to reward nobles who engaged in philanthropic efforts or were patrons of the sciences and arts with an audience, then maybe they’ll compete with each other by doing things that are actually useful. It’s… do you think it could work?” she asked, looking up at me. She was so close, I could smell her. Not perfumed, like most ponies, but her scent wasn’t bad. There was something so unmistakably Twilight Sparkle about it. She smelled like an evening curled up next to the fire reading a book.

“It certainly could,” I said, nodding my head. “At the very least, it’s worth attempting. It’s not as if you can make the nobility worse.” Well, I suppose she could. They were incompetent, vain, and self-deluded, but they weren’t particularly malicious or sadistic. Still, Twilight’s idea didn’t seem as though it would be likely to nurture those qualities.

“Great,” Twilight said, jotting down her new policy without bothering to look away from her book. “Imagine how great it will be if this works. The nobility might actually turn into leaders of Equestria, like they’re supposed to be. Can you imagine it? Ooh! I should create a record noting the changes in the nobility’s behavior as my experiment continues. Maybe in a few generations, they’ll start naturally selecting for altruism.” And just like that, she’d turned the whole thing into an experiment. Then again, I suppose everything was an experiment for her.

“If that’s it, then, I’ll just look through the list of nobles requesting an audience with you, and write informing them they need to speak with me at their earliest convenience,” I said, moving back to my sewing machine and warming my horn up for the mending spell I’d have to cast to undo my mistake.

♦♦♦

I resisted the urge to sigh as I stared across the desk in my office at the pink mare with white mane sitting across from me. If I squinted, she reminded me of Diamond Tiara before Sweetie helped her. Which reminded me, I needed to write and see how she was doing. Whatever part she may have played in Sweetie’s downfall was small and unintentional, certainly far smaller than my own role. Besides, her store was one of my top dress sellers. Ooh, I needed to finish my fall line soon.

Where was I? Yes, sitting across from the single most tedious mare in Equestria. What was she saying now? “...And I’m sure Princess Twilight would’ve greeted me sooner, but one of her underlings, like yourself, must have lost the paper and didn’t realize just what an important pony I am…” You are a viscountess who ‘owns’ some undeveloped prairie, and you’re speaking to a mare who helped save your tiny unimportant patch of land and the rest of Equestria at least three times. I probably had at least five more minutes until I had an opening to deny her request.

Oh yes, I had an office now. The day after I agreed to help Twilight arrange her meetings, the castle sprouted a brand new wing of administrative offices, and even had the courtesy to engrave my name next to one of the doors. We also had royal kitchens, a barracks, and servants’ quarters, all freshly spawned by the Tree of Harmony. I wonder if the Tree could start catapulting ponies out of my office. How many nobles could I launch through a window before it started getting boring? Fifty? At least fifty.

Once I was done with today’s appointments, I had to get Twilight’s torque from the jeweler, then I had to make five more banners to stay on schedule, and prepare for tomorrow’s meetings. Why had I agreed to help Twilight, again? Right, because she’s a friend and needed the help. That’s really all there was to it. Still... One day all this will end, and you can go back to living alone in the Boutique. Oh, speaking of living alone, you need to choose Twilight’s guard roster. When court starts, she’ll absolutely need somepony to keep the nobles from harassing her at all hours.

I smiled at Viscountess Fertile Valley. How many children did she have? With a name like that, you’d expect at least a few. What were her parents thinking? Even if her name dream was literally nothing more than an image of a fertile valley, there had to be at least some better names they could come up with. “Yes, I’m sure this was all just some massive misunderstanding, Viscountess. Unfortunately, Twilight Sparkle can’t see you for the next few seasons at least. How does next year look for you?” I asked, slipping into my script and pulling out my calendar.

“No! I’ve waited long enough, I demand–”

My eyebrow shot up. Ah, she was going to argue with me. That was nice, far better than the stuffy posturing and vapid assurances. “Oh, you demand? Well, that certainly does put the matter in a different light entirely. I’ll just go to the princess and tell her that you demand an audience with her, then? I’m sure that will endear you to her. Unlike Princess Celestia, Twilight Sparkle has no obligation to see you. A meeting with her is a privilege and should be seen as such.”

But common ponies don’t have this trouble getting a meeting with Princess Twilight, she’d say if she was following the same script the rest of the nobility were using.

“But I heard from my friend, the Viscountess of Desert Bluffs, that commoners don’t have this trouble getting an audience with her,” she said, adding a bit of improvisation to her line.

I smiled my best conciliatory smile. “I understand, Viscountess Valley – but you must understand, Princess Twilight Sparkle’s reputation as the common pony’s princess is very dear to her, and she wants them to always have a voice in her court. Obviously, she wants to see the cream of the nobility as well – but she must apportion her time, and there are far more common ponies than there are gentry. Of course…” Give her the bait.

“What?” she asked, going back on script and biting the hook.

“Well, like I said, Princess has a deep and abiding interest in the common ponies, and wishes for nothing more than their betterment. Perhaps if you were to display a similar interest, she’d be interested in meeting with a kindred spirit. Obviously, I can’t make any promises–” Even though I’m one hundred percent in charge of determining which nobles see Twilight on what day. “–But it can’t hurt your chances. Besides, I’ve heard generosity is its own reward.”

A spark of dull recognition lit her eyes up. It was going to become an inferno in a few seconds. “Oh, yes, generosity… doesn’t she live in this town with the rest of them?” I do so love being reduced to just my element.

“Indeed she does. Why do you ask?” I said, smiling at her. I knew exactly what her motives were, but we had to keep up the pretense for a few more seconds.

“Well, I was thinking that perhaps she could help me come up with some ideas to impress Princess Twilight Sparkle. They are friends, aren’t they?” she asked. Even though I’d had this speech with about thirty nobles by now, they never told each other just who Twilight’s assistant was. I suppose it’s harder to hold a faux pas against somepony if all their peers committed it as well. Twilight had her work cut out for her.

I smiled. The look on her face was going to be priceless. At least, it would be if I hadn’t seen it thirty times before. “Yes, I suppose I could be persuaded to offer some assistance in that regard.” I extended a hoof to her. “I’m Rarity, the Element of Generosity, and it’s very lovely to meet you, Viscountess Valley.” Petty? Possibly, but also immensely cathartic. Sometimes, you just need to see a pony’s look of abject humiliation when they realize what a titanic all-devouring ass they’ve been. “Please feel free to make an appointment if you ever want what advice I have to offer.”

She didn’t say a word as she scurried out of my office, and as the door shut I slumped down into my desk. “Spike!” I called a minute later. “I need you.” The side door to my office swung open and the tiny dragon click-clacked in.

“Heh, could you have told me that before I met Mina?” I glared at him. “Anyways, what’s up?”

“Do you have the list of guard candidates?” I asked. “We have a few minutes before my next appointment, right?”

“Uh-huh,” he said, nodding and sprinting back into his side-room. “Got it all right here, and you’ve got about half an hour before your next appointment. You really want to look through the guard stuff now? We can do it later.”

“Yes, but if I get it done now, then later I can take a nap, or design one of my dresses, or talk with Twilight. If we get it done now, I’ll be done with work that much sooner,” I said, levitating the folder from his claws.

“I guess that makes sense,” he said, hopping onto the desk. Something told me Twilight wouldn’t approve, but it was faster than him dragging his stool in from his office.

“One day, Spike, we’re going to hire ponies to do all this work for us, so we can take a well-deserved vacation.” I flipped open the folder and leafed through the pages. “Anypony here stand out to you?”

“Uhmm… one pony does,” he said, his claw darting into the folder and pulling out a paper with an orange pegasus on it. Flash Sentry. An invisible vise squeezed my lungs.

“You know, Spike, perhaps it would be for the best if we didn’t choose a pony Twilight had a previous romantic entanglement with. It could compromise her security,” I said. That made sense, didn’t it? Yes, if they got together and broke up, it would be foal’s play for him to be turned against Twilight.

“But they don’t have a romantic... whatever. That was with human Flash. I don’t think Twilight and pony Flash have said more than a few words to each other,” Spike said, narrowing his eyes. “Besides, I thought you’d like the idea of Flash guarding Twilight. Don’t you have a whole shelf of books about princess-guard romances?”

“It’s not an entire shelf,” I said, “although I admit, with the wedding of Shining Armor and Princess Cadance a few years ago, the number of such romances has soared. Anyways, my point is that while such things are all well and good in stories, we can’t just apply story logic to Twilight’s safety and hope things work out.”

“Uh-huh,” Spike said, still staring at me. “So you weren’t applying story logic when you were gushing about how romantic Cadance and Shining’s wedding was?” When did he get so sharp? He was probably too old for me to distract him with a gem, wasn’t he? Yes, almost certainly. Plus, I didn’t have any gems in my office.

“That was different,” I said, struggling to come up with justifications. “Flash’s human counterpart has proven to be unreliable, and considering how close our similarities are with our other selves, I feel bringing him here would only be inviting disaster and risking Twilight’s safety.”

He raised a scaly eyebrow at me. “Oh, I get it. You like Twilight. Kind of obvious when I think about it. You two talking in her study until early morning, all the glances you’ve been giving her, the way you hang on her every word when she’s lecturing about something. You don’t want Flash here because you’re afraid of the two of them getting together.”

“I– I–” I stammered, struggling to find an argument that could adequately capture just how wrong he was. I failed. He wasn’t. “Oh, Spikey-wikey, would it be so terrible if you were right? Yes, Twilight’s very dear to me, but… I can’t keep Flash from her just because I’m jealous. If he’s one of the best candidates for the job, then we’ll contact him.”

“But how can you contact him if we never got his application,” he said, ripping Flash’s application to pieces. “Whoops, clumsy me.”

“Spike, that’s…” Incredibly immature. Not that I was any better at the moment. “Why did you do that?”

“Because Twilight’s been way happier since you started living here.” Well, I didn’t think I was living here, just… Yes, I suppose I was living here, but he made it sound like it was some sort of permanent thing. “And you haven’t seen the way she looks at you while you’re working?”

“Spike, don’t be silly, Twilight just sees me as a dear friend,” I said, pulling my attention back to the file of potential guard candidates and sorting them into two piles. No. Yes. Yes. No. No. Certainly not. So much work to do to get ready.

“Whatever you say,” Spike said, not bothering to conceal his eye-roll. “You should tell her how you feel.”

“And just what would that accomplish?” I asked, keeping my attention on the folder. No. No. No. No. “I’ve already damaged one friendship, and I have no intention of repeating my mistake. Once is an accident, twice is malice, isn’t it?”

“I don’t think that’s what that saying means,” he said, stamping the “no” papers with a big red REJECTED. Well, at least this way, we won’t have to worry about the rejected applicants being confused with the accepted. I’ll have to come up with a nice form letter to let them down easy. “Besides, you can’t just not tell a pony how you feel because you’re worried about messing up your friendship. We turned out okay, didn’t we?”

“We did, but we also never acted on anything. There’s a small difference between acknowledging an infatuation and dating for years,” I said. He winced. No, that wasn’t my nicest moment, but still, the situation was completely different.

“Why are you being so difficult about this? Applejack moved on, and you were the one who dumped her. If you like Twilight, that’s cool and you should totally go for it. But… at the very least, you should tell her how you feel. Things might go better than you expect,” Spike said, and it was my turn to wince. Yes, Applejack was fine now, wasn’t she? She had her nice perfect little life, and I still felt like I was one bad push from crumbling in on myself. Applejack, Sweetie Belle... I couldn’t add Twilight Sparkle to the list.

“Because, I just… I am. It’s easy to rush into love when you’re young and the whole world is opening up for you – but when you’re older, as the scars start building up, you stop seeing what you’ll gain, and start seeing what you’ll lose. For Twilight, the cost is too high for me to risk it.” Give him a few centuries, let him see how it feels. No, what am I saying? I wouldn’t wish time upon anypony, certainly not a dear friend. “Spike, when I’m with Twilight, I feel better than wonderful, like I can do things never thought possible, and I’d love to date her – but at the same time, I can’t lose that feeling, and I don’t exactly have a sterling relationship track record.”

“I guess I get it,” he said, sighing. “Between Blueblood and Applejack, you do have a pretty bad romantic history, so I can kind of see why you don’t want to try. But maybe with her next to you, you can do the impossible.”

“Very clever, Spike,” I said sighing. When did he learn how to use rhetorical flourishes? “I promise, once all this – once Twilight’s court has started, I’ll tell her how I feel. But if things go as poorly as I fear, you’re in charge of getting me my ice cream.”

“Fine, sure, and if it starts raining chocolate milk, I’ll carry your umbrella,” he said. Of course, that wasn’t likely to happen... not until Pinkie’s next birthday party, anyway.

Twelve names. I had twelve names. Six from the Solar and six from the Lunar guard. There was a wonderful symmetry to that. Equidistant between night and day sits twilight. Ooh! I could give her court that duality theme, but… No, much better to having Twilight existing in her own space, and not defined by her relation to the sun and moon. “Spike, write the captains of the Solar and Lunar guard and let them know I want to speak with these ponies,” I said, smiling at him. “And no, I’m not trying to change the subject. You have my word that once court starts, I’ll speak with Twilight. But for now, I need to focus on my–”

“Knock-knock,” a familiar voice said from the doorway. A white stallion with a blue mane and mustache strode in, wearing his signature tuxedo and monocle. “I do hope I’m not intruding by being so early, but I was in the neighborhood, and thought I might visit my good friend Rarity before my appointment.”

I smiled and sat up straight. How strange an old crush appears now, while I’m thinking about… Yes, strange. Fortuitous? A sign? I searched for some ember of that flame, but only saw flashes of purple. “Oh, no problem at all, Fancy Pants. I’m always happy to see you. How’s Fleur?”

He laughed and sat down as Spike hopped off the desk and out of the room. “Sissy’s as good as can be expected, I suppose. Back visiting our mother’s family in Prance, and by all accounts, having a wonderful time. So, what do I have to do to pay my respects to the newest princess and wish her luck in court? I hear it’s rather exclusive.”

“To some, perhaps,” I said, pulling out my schedule. “She wants to give common ponies a voice, and that translates to less focus on the nobility.”

“And it’s about time, too,” Fancy Pants said with his characteristic cheer. “You know, my father’s father’s father, or something like that, was a commoner. Lifeblood of Equestria, they are, but you won’t hear most nobles acknowledging that. So, how are they taking not having unfettered access to Princess Twilight?”

I sighed and shook my head. “They’re not pleased. I believe I’ve been referred to as ‘an overstepping ingrate with no respect for authority’ at least a dozen times now. Those ponies will not be getting their desired appointment with Twil– Princess Twilight anytime soon, no matter how many charities they found.”

Fancy Pants raised an eyebrow. “Ahh, so that’s why seven new charities were founded just in the last week, and my own foundation suddenly has more donations than I, frankly, know what to do with. Very showy donations, too. Lots of posturing for the papers. Still, more money means we can start more projects in the Badlands.”

“Oh?” I asked, making a note. “I didn’t know you ran a charity.”

“Well, I don’t particularly enjoy advertising it. So many ponies try to speak for the good they do instead of letting the good they do speak for them.” His eyes twinkled. “What is it they say about generosity?”

I laughed. Still, I wasn’t unhappy to see him. It was like having a visit from an old friend. “Oh, I have no idea – but you know, I hear the Element of Generosity lives in town. Maybe you could ask her.”

“You know,” he said, adjusting his lapel. “I think I just might do that. Word on the street is she’s a ravishing beauty, and has the ear of Princess Twilight. Maybe I should try talking to her about getting an appointment instead of you.”

“Oh, something tells me you won’t have a problem with that,” I said, writing his name down in my schedule. “In fact, how would you like to be the first noble to pay their respects to Twilight? It might give the rest of them a model to aspire to.”

“Well, I certainly won’t complain, if that’s what you want,” he laughed. “But, and I’m asking this between friends, do you think you could arrange something a little more intimate between the two of us? I’d very much like to get to know her without the rest of the court around.”

My heart froze. Intimate? No, he couldn’t mean… No. No, he couldn’t. “Well, I’m afraid I’ll have to ask your intentions, first.”

“Oh?” He laughed. “Did I mishear the rumors? Is it Princess Twilight’s eye you have and not her ear? My, that would be marvelous. So many nobles coming to stake their claim, and you’ve already beaten them to the punch. Well, good on you, she’s a damn sight better looking than Prince Blueblood, and I hear her personality’s better to boot.”

I shook my head as my cheeks reddened. Did he think I was some sort of title chaser? I mean, I was, but not anymore. “No, nothing like that, just looking out for my friend’s best interests. She’s… she lives in a much better world than ours, and I want to keep her there. The further she is from a life of court intrigue, the better.”

“And so you volunteered for the rather thankless job of being her gatekeeper,” he said, nodding. “Well, your intentions are admirable. Innocence is all too rare a thing these, and so easily trampled under hoof. No, to answer your question, your friend left quite the impression when I met her on her birthday, and I wanted to see if all the stories about her are true. Aside from that, I thought we might talk about our charitable efforts. Princess Luna’s Academy has sparked a renewed interest in scholasticism, and I thought we could build some centers of secondary education. Ponies should know how to do more than just their special talent, don’t you think?”

“I do, and I’m sure Twilight – excuse me if I drop the honorific – will be very interested in hearing your idea. Just draft up a written proposal, and I’ll see she reads it before your meeting,” I said, making another note in my planner. Either Fancy Pants knew exactly what to say, or he was genuinely interested in Twilight’s causes.

“Capital,” he said, getting up on his hooves. “Well, that went far faster than I expected. Please, feel free to stop by my Ponyville or Canterlot address any time. I’m always happy to talk with friends.”

“Of course,” I said as he trotted to the door. “The same goes to you whenever I resettle in the Boutique.”

“Actually, there is one small favor I’d like to ask before I leave,” he said, stopping in his tracks and turning around to look at me. “I know I’ve already made a few requests, but this one is… of a personal nature. You see, I’ve decided it’s about time I settle down and give the family life a try... but the number of mares I know that I could consider spending five minutes – let alone the rest of my life – with is dreadfully short, so I thought perhaps I could recruit your aid? You’ve made a habit of surrounding yourself with mares of quality, and I thought, if it’s not too much trouble, and you know a mare who might be interested in a yacht ride by moonlight, you might consider putting in a good word for me?” He looked at me, eyes reading my every movement.

I smiled at him. Of course, I knew mares of quality, but only one who might be single besides myself and Twilight. “I’ll see what I can do,” I said as the door shut.

That was… My thoughts turned to past encounters with Fancy Pants, the time he came to my Boutique before it burned down. We’d danced around a relationship before, but it was never the right time. If I’d wanted to… he’d given me the perfect opportunity to salvage the situation with Twilight, to keep me from doing something I’d regret. A life with him wouldn’t be so bad, and that way I could keep my friendship with Twilight unchanged. I shook my head. That wasn’t fair to Fancy Pants, was it? Dating him just to avoid my own feelings for Twilight struck me as a recipe for unhappiness. Besides… I closed my eyes. I promised Spike I’d tell Twilight the truth. I’d have to find somepony else who might be interested in Fancy Pants – but who?

Author's Note

Next chapter, we have a change in scenery as we get these two lovebirds out of the castle and into a... slightly bigger castle? Maybe? I'm not sure how Canterlot Castle compares to Twilight's Castle, especially considering that Twilight's Castle has some... anomalous properties.