Setting the Record Straight
“So Rares taught you about generosity, did she?”
I was in the middle of my workout, counting wingups on a cool autumn day. I looked up to Rainbow Dash, who lounged on a tree limb with a pillow under her head. She liked to look lazy when I was training for flying lessons. I think it was meant to goad me on? Never did figure that out.
“Yeah,” I huffed between pushes. “Twenty-three. It turned out—twenty-four—a lot cooler than—twenty-five—I thought. Twenty-six.”
Rainbow smirked at the leaves over her head. “Yeah, Rarity’s pretty cool when she wants to be.”
I would have smirked too, but I was paying too much attention to my breathing. Still, I managed to huff out “But not—thirty—as cool as you—thirty-one—right?”
“Kid, nopony’s as cool as me.”
“Right!” I was always willing to help Rainbow with her ego. After all, she’d earned it. Plus she was giving me flying lessons. Aaand maybe I was still a little star struck in those days. Not as much as I’d been back when, say, Discord was a bad guy, but still a fan.
Rainbow continued as I worked my tiring wing muscles. “But boy, could I tell you some stories about her. Rarity’s been in all kinds of trouble, almost as much as me.”
I cast a glance at her, curious. I was supposed to meet Rarity later that day for some ‘special project’ that I really hoped didn’t involve modeling. I did agree to do that kind of thing in the future, but only because I was still thinking about the whole generosity thing and thought I’d try it out myself. I’d already regretted it twice in the month since then.
“Got any—thirty-seven—embarrassing stories—thirty-eight—I can use to get out—thirty-nine—of her shop if I need to?”
Rainbow laughed. “You bet I do! I ever tell you about how much she loved your Gabby Gums columns?”
My ears lowered at the reminder of that old moniker. Not something I cared to remember, but still… “She did? Forty-two.”
“Heck, yeah! She was all ‘you’re overreacting, dah-lings.’ ‘It’s just harmless gossip.’ ‘Who doesn’t love a little dirt every now and then?’ Totally didn’t care about our feelings, y’know?”
That was… not the Rarity I’d come to know. Wasn’t she the one who convinced Sweetie Belle to call it quits, which in turn got Bloom and me to quit too? “But she came to her senses, right?”
Rainbow gave me her I’ve-got-the-best-prank-ever-and-you’ll-never-see-it-coming grin. “Only when she became a target. Everypony else was fine, but her? You should have seen the look on her face. Priceless!” She kicked her hind legs, making the branch wobble with her giggles.
So Rarity didn’t do the right thing because it was the right thing, but because she’d suddenly become a target? That didn’t sound generous. I thought about all the things Rarity had told me a month ago, struggling to put that image together with the one Rainbow had just shown me. It didn’t work, like trying to use a screwdriver to tighten a nail.
Why would Rarity do something like that if she was supposed to be the bearer of generosity? I didn’t think she’d lied to me, especially after how much work we’d done together learning about her element. But if she hadn’t lied, where had this ‘other Rarity’ come from?
I already had a hero, but Rarity really impressed me that day. What if everything she’d shown me really had been a lie? Maybe it had been nothing more than a scheme to boost her image. She doesn’t have to attend parties or take any pubic credit because, let’s face it, everypony knows what she does. When you go through so many ponies to achieve your goals, your activities aren’t a big secret.
The thoughts left me feeling strange. A… hollowness settled in my chest. Was I nothing more than a naïve filly being duped? Rarity had to be a good pony, though. Heck, Sweetie adored her!
But what if Sweetie was being duped, too?
“Hey, I don’t hear any counting!”
“S-sorry!” I went back to my wingups, but the problem wouldn’t go away. I needed answers, but I couldn’t trust Rarity to give them.
Who else could I turn to for such things?
Applejack wiped the sweat from her brow before turning to me. “Stories about Rarity? What the hay are you wanting those for?”
I pulled my helmet off and hopped from my scooter. “I’m just curious. Rainbow told me a story, and I wanted to see if the rest of Rarity’s friends had anything interesting.” It was… mostly the truth. That made it okay, right? I wasn’t about to lie to Applejack. That’d be like telling Luna the moon is made of cheese.
Shut up. It made sense in my head, okay?
Lifting a full basket of apples onto her back, Applejack ambled to a nearby wagon. “Couldn’t ya just get them stories from the mare herself?”
I flinched, but recovered without getting caught. “I’m more interested in the stories she’d rather not share.”
“Huh.” Dumping the apples into the wagon, Applejack screwed her eyes up in thought. She trotted to an unharvested tree and set the basket down. At last she turned back to me with her trademark you-dirty-varmint-I-like-your-thinking smile. “You want something you can use to get out of modeling for her later, right?”
“Yeah, that’s it exactly!” Definitely not a lie, that one. Anything to get out of wearing pink and purple dresses for an hour. I didn’t realize until later how bad the excuse was.
“I dunno.” Applejack lowered her hat, hiding her eyes from me. “I got stories, yeah, but I’m not sure I should spill. Sounds kinda like some bad gossip.”
“Oh, come on.” I trotted a little closer and gave her my best is-this-the-face-of-a-liar? smile. “Please? I’m just curious.”
She didn’t resist for very long. Applejack’s lips twitched into the tiniest of smirks. “Y’all promise not to give up your source?”
I went through the proper motions of the sacred Pinkie Promise.
Eyes shifting about in search of eavesdroppers, Applejack let her smirk build. “Well, alright, but only because it amuses the apple juice outta me. You remember the dragon that took a nap up on the mountain?”
I bet my eyes shined brighter than the sun. “How could I forget? Rainbow Dash bucked it in the snout!” Coolest. Pony. Ever.
Applejack chuckled and rolled her eyes. “Stupidest dang thing she ever did. But before she did that, Rarity went into the cave to charm the dragon. That worked out about as well as two three-legged frogs in a six-legged pony race.”
“A what now?”
“Hush, this is the funny part.” Applejack nudged me playfully, then pulled me in close as if to share some dirty secret. “When that dragon chased Rares out of the cave, she was irked something fierce. Y’know what she said?”
I leaned a little closer. A part of me really hoped it was something good.
Doing her best to imitate Rarity’s fancy way of talking, while also sounding profoundly irritated, she said, “I was this close to getting that diamond.”
My heart sank. “Diamond? Weren’t you there to get rid of the dragon?”
Chuckling, Applejack nodded. “Not Rarity, apparently. She got one look at that dragon’s hoard and bam, her priorities changed faster than her clothes.”
That was most decidedly not the kind of good I’d been looking for. Now I knew Rarity was a greedy pony on top of being shallow. Generosity didn’t sound as awesome as she’d once painted it out to be.
“Now, that’s a story we’ve kept between us, so again, don’t tell her I said nothin’.”
“Huh? Oh, right.” I tried to smile for Applejack. “Thanks for the story. I bet this’ll be a good way to get out of modeling dresses, huh?”
She must have bought my smile, because she only giggled and went back to work. She offered to tell me other stories, but I didn’t stick around. If that was the kind of thing I’d get from Applejack, I’d just have to ask another of Rarity’s friends. Surely somepony had something good to say about her.
If anypony had something great to share about Rarity without prompting, it would be Fluttershy. She was Rarity’s best friend, they hung out all the time! Even go to those, ugh, spa dates. They’ve even got Rainbow doing it. It’s like the buclopic plague or something, it infects everypony. I hope I’m immune. But yeah, nopony could have a more glowing opinion of Rarity than Fluttershy, of this I was absolutely certain.
Which explained why I was gaping at her like I would at Pinkie on… well, any given day, I guess. Y’know, that wide eyed did-I-really-just-hear-that? gape. “Jealous?”
Fluttershy was feeding her critters in the middle of her living room. “Oh, positively green with envy! I didn’t know it at the time, but she eventually confessed.”
What the hay? Did nopony have a positive outlook regarding that mare? I was starting to feel ill, and kinda like a dupe. “So Rarity can get jealous. But, like, only a little jealous, right?”
Landing near her dining room table, Fluttershy rolled her eyes to the ceiling in thought. “Well, I can’t say for sure. I mean, I spent that entire time modeling, so I didn’t see how jealous she got first hoof.”
She grabbed a rather elaborately made salad, complete with a cherry on top, and set it in front of a very happy looking Angel Bunny. I couldn’t help but wonder what made the little furball worthy of such a feast when the other animals were getting seeds and such.
“Come to think of it,” Fluttershy said, giving me a concerned look, “I do remember her saying she wished my modeling career would fail and the audience would laugh at me.”
I could feel my eyes getting big and my stomach doing another flop. “That sounds terrible.”
Fluttershy shrugged. “She was just being honest. I mean, yes, it was traumatizing, but Rarity didn’t mean it. If anything, I feel guilty for making her jealous. Hmm…” She glanced at her refrigerator. “Maybe I could make something to make it up to her. I know it was ages ago, but I never did apologize.”
She wanted to apologize to Rarity? I was starting to get a firm grasp of just how deep Rarity’s spidery tendrils dug into the minds of everypony around her. I could just see her, a nasty white spiderpony with a purple web that stretched all across Ponyville. Maybe even Equestria!
As I forlornly watched Angel destroy his salad, I wondered how deep this rabbit hole went.
“Rarity’s done all sorts of crazy things, because that’s Rarity, crazy fashion pony!”
My cheek was pressed against my hoof as I watched Pinkie dance around the kitchen of Sugarcube Corner. I hadn’t said a word since arriving. Somehow, Pinkie had already known why I was there and had just started… talking.
“Like, you remember that time when Fluttershy was all Flutterguy—”
She grabbed a trio of eggs with her tail and slapped them against the counter.
“—and sang for Big Mac behind the curtains but then—”
She flung her tail, sending the eggshells into the trash can and the egg yolk into the mixing bowl in a single smooth motion.
“—the curtain came down ‘cause she was all ‘woohoo, I’m singing and it’s so much fun!’ and she bumped the curtain rod—”
A bag of flour flew across the room, flipping upside down just long enough to deposit exactly the right amount of flour into the mixing bowl before flipping again and landing neatly on the counter.
“—and she was all ‘this is my own personal worst nightmare!’ and we had to chase her home—”
Her tail mixed the batter while the bowl spun on the tip of her nose.
“—but for some reason Macky didn’t make it which is weird because he definitely left with us but anyway—”
Still tail-and-nose-mixing, she lightly kicked the wall, which made a cake pan drop from an overhead cabinet into her outstretched hoof.
“—I remember before all of that happened I was trying to encourage Fluttershy to sing by reminding her how great it is—”
Her free forehoof lathered the pan with baking grease from… wherever she’d grabbed it from.
“—because I thought it was the kind of thing she’d love to know if she was gonna be in the spotlight again—”
The mixing spoon flew into the sink and the batter poured into the pan simultaneously. The baking grease container was MIA.
“—and I thought I was doing a great job but then Rarity bopped me with a rolled up poster and told me I wasn’t allowed to be ridiculous—”
Her tail audibly snapped over to open the oven by the handle. The pan went in, the timer was set.
“—which I swear is like the meanest thing anypony could say to me because seriously asking me not to be ridiculous has got to be the cruelest thing ever!”
She turned to me and plopped a chocolate chip cupcake on the table in front of me.
“Cupcake?”
I heaved a long, slow sigh. “Yeah. A cupcake would be great right about now. Thanks.”
“And of course I, the Mighty Spike, charged forth upon my noble steed Twilight to save my lady from the cruel clutches of the Diamond Dogs!”
Spike had grown a lot this year. Got some muscle on him. I was kinda envious about those, considering he didn’t have to do anything to get them. Apparently, dragons just ‘grow’ muscle, lucky jerks. Not that Spike is a jerk, or that I don’t like his muscles. They're actually nice.
Kinda. Just a little.
…
Er, moving on.
“Twilight wasn’t exactly eager, but for the sake of rescuing my lady, I—”
“Spike?” I leveled him with my best glower. “I thought this story was about Rarity.”
He grinned and spread his arms wide. “It is! I just gotta get to the rescuing bit first. You know, before she robbed all those chumps blind.”
I groaned and let my face impact the cutie map. “Great, that’s all I wanted to hear.”
“So, as I was saying—”
Twilight’s lecturing tone cut him off. “I don’t think this is the kind of thing Scootaloo came here to talk about, Spike.”
I couldn’t see him with my face full of North Luna Ocean, but I could imagine his disappointed expression pretty easily. N-not that I think about Spike’s face a lot or anything, I’ve just known him that long. “What do you mean? I was just getting to the good part!”
“The good part will have to wait. Why don’t you go help Starlight with her studies? I’m sure she’d love to hear about Sir Spike, the Brave and Glorious.”
“Well, if you say so. See ya, Scoots. I’ll finish the story for ya later.”
I raised my head just enough to watch him go out the corner of my eye. Yeah, he’s gotten a little bigger and stronger lately, but he still waddles. It was kinda—nope not going there that’s not what this story is about anyway back to Twilight and stop looking at me like that.
“Scootaloo?” I turned to find Twilight frowning at me. “Why the sudden interest in Rarity?”
I glowered at the cutie map. “I could ask Spike something similar.”
“Hmm?”
“I-I mean… No reason.” I made to escape, but when I met Twilight’s gaze I found myself rooted to the chair. Not by any magic, no, but by her eyes. Twilight’s got some amazingly evocative eyes when you pay attention. Right then I saw so much in them: concern, a desire to know more, a need to respect my privacy. Worst of all, I saw pain. Was it because she thought I didn’t trust her? Or maybe because she thought I was hurting and she didn’t know how to help. Twilight’s sentimental like that. Princess of Friendship and all.
I realized then that as much as I didn’t want to talk about it, I sorta did. When I thought about it, I couldn’t imagine anypony more trustworthy than Twilight for this kind of thing. Still can’t. It was frustrating at the time. Twilight’s… ‘Twilight’-ness melted through all my defenses, and she didn’t even have to light up her horn. It’s kinda scary, how she does that. I don’t know if anypony could really say no to her when she gets that why-won’t-you-let-me-help-you? look.
So… I spilled the beans. I told her about how I went to Rarity a month ago asking about the nature of generosity and her awesome answer. Then I explained my day, how Rainbow revealed Rarity’s selfishness, and how I went to all their friends hoping my doubts weren’t true. But they were, and worse! Rarity wasn’t just selfish, she was greedy and prone to jealousy and manipulative and insensitive and… and so many bad things that didn’t jive with the pony I talked to a month ago!
“And now I’m worried everything she showed me was a big lie,” I concluded, unable to meet Twilight’s gaze. She’d not said a thing the entire time. “I’m all confused. I’m supposed to meet with her soon for some ‘favor,’ but I don’t know if I even want to anymore. Now when I think of her, all I see is some jerk who lied to me and makes me feel like a chump.”
Twilight, sitting on her throne apart from the one I was sitting in (Rainbow’s, of course), didn’t speak at first. Maybe she was waiting to see if I’d continue, but I’d burned myself out telling the story. It was… a relief. I hadn’t realized how badly I needed to tell somepony.
At last, she spoke up. “It sounds to me like you’ve been either misinterpreting the stories or, perhaps, been told all the wrong ones.”
“What do you mean?”
She smiled and turned her gaze to the Cutie Map. “Nopony is perfect, Scootaloo. We all have to grow up, to make mistakes. Rarity has grown a lot since I first met her. In many ways, I’d say she’s a better pony than I am.”
Yeah, my jaw hit the Cutie Map. “Better than a princess?” I knew Princess Twilight was humbler than before she got the wings, but this seemed a bit extreme. “After everything she’s done?”
“Better than a princess.” And I was amazed to see that Twilight meant every word. I guess my confusion was obvious, because she giggled and added, “I think I better explain.”
I picked my jaw up off the map. “Yeah, explaining would be nice.”
Leaning back in her throne, Twilight brought her eyes to the roots of the Golden Oaks Library above us. “I don’t mean to belittle my own achievements, but not everything that makes me special was acquired by my own merits. This castle, my knowledge of friendship, my place in Equestrian society, even my crown, all of those things were attained with help. I needed other ponies to get where I am.”
My uncertainty only grew with what she’d said. She didn’t make it sound like a bad thing, but at the same time, she was making it sound like a weakness. “So… that’s bad?”
“Oh, no, not at all.” She gave me that sheepish I-said-something-silly-again-didn’t-I? smile. “There’s nothing bad about it. I’m just pointing out that I couldn’t have got where I am on my own.”
I nodded slowly. “Okay. What’s that got to do with Rarity?”
“A lot more than you might think.” Twilight hopped off her seat and began to pace, talking as she went. “Rarity is wealthier than all her friends combined. Yes, even me, but only because I spent so much filling the castle library – I’ll catch back up in a few months.
“She’s always been a business owner, but now she’s graduated to national status with boutiques in Canterlot and Manehattan, and I’m sure more are on the way. That didn’t come from friendship, it came from constant hard work. Ever since I’ve known her, Rarity regularly pulls all-nighters. She has to meet deadlines, review accounts, maintain a social network, come up with new designs, manage her managers, study ongoing fashion trends, attend interviews, the list goes on and on.”
Twilight turned to me, face beaming with pride. “Rarity’s the epitome of the self-made mare. The only pony in town who matches her for sheer work ethic is Applejack, and it can be argued that Rarity’s been far more successful. And she did all of it – is still doing all of it – on her own. At the rate she’s going, I calculate she’ll be among the top 100 businessponies of Equestria within the next three years. It’s inspiring, really.”
Okay, I had to admit that sounded impressive. “But what does any of that have to do with generosity?” I asked, dropping from my seat to get closer. “Being good at business doesn’t mean she’s a good pony, does it?”
“No, it doesn’t.” Twilight sat before me, and there it was: the gooey look of a pony who thinks what she’s about to say is… what’s the word? Point ant? Hold on.
…
Poignant.
Yeah, poignant. Anyway, I braced for something sappy, fully prepared to not be convinced. I mean, since when was a businesspony ever good? Everypony knows that doesn’t happen.
Then Twilight said this: “Rarity is still here. She could have moved to Canterlot or Manehattan for business. It would have been the smart thing for her career, but she didn’t. No matter how busy she is, she’s still attending Pinkie’s parties, still going to our social gatherings, still spending quality time with her sister.
“When the Cutie Map calls, she’s there and eager to help. She donates her time and talents to keep the Ponytones going, and even took time out of her precious schedule to give Fluttershy the encouragement she needed to participate. When one of her friends needs help, like Rainbow needing to clear her name or Spike coming to terms with his race, Rarity volunteers without a second thought. She’s giving when there’s no need, more so when there is.
“She has a spa date with Fluttershy every week, rain or shine. When Applejack’s overdoing it, Rarity will help her relax. When Rainbow had a learning problem, Rarity produced period-accurate clothing on the spot in an attempt to help. When I’ve been cooped up in my research too long, she gets me to see daylight again.”
That last one with a bit of blush. I would know. She had my full attention at this point.
And Twilight knew it. With a gesture of her hoof, she brought my attention to the throne bearing Rarity’s cutie mark. “Rarity does all of this and more, and she’s still an incredibly successful businessmare. She’s the single most capable pony I have ever met, and I know Princess Celestia.”
The amount of information, new and forgotten, was overwhelming. It certainly sounded like Rarity took on more than I’d have ever wanted to. It also sounded too good to be true, especially after all the negative stories I’d heard.
Apparently reading my thoughts, Twilight used her hoof to tug on my chin, making me meet her eyes with my own. “But Rarity didn’t get there overnight. She had to make mistakes. She had to do bad things, silly things, dumb things. She learned from those events, Scootaloo. That’s one of the big differences between a successful and an unsuccessful pony. Rarity has done some things she regrets. She still does.”
She sat up tall and gave me a smug smile. “We all have. Isn’t that right, ‘Gabby Gums?’”
That might as well have been a buck to the gut. A well-meaning buck, but still a buck. I found myself thinking of all the stupid things I’d done as a Crusader, things that made me a better pony today. I thought of rigging a parade float to crash, creating a love poison, and falling down a waterfall in the middle of the night. Nopony thought I was a terrible pony for my mistakes, did they? I don’t get mad at Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle for their past bad decisions. Why should I hate Rarity for such things?
It’s about that time I started feeling like crap. I bowed my head as I looked to Twilight. “You’re right. I guess I got so worked up, I forgot about my own mistakes.”
Princess Twilight wouldn’t be Princess Twilight if she held it against me, I guess. She did her Celestia-impersonation smile and set a hoof to my shoulder. “That’s okay, Scootaloo. It’s an easy mistake to make. I’m sure Rarity would understand.”
And that’s when I remembered my appointment. “Shoot, I’m gonna be late!” And I ran out of there on my scooter in a blur!
…
Okay, I might have stuck around long enough to give Twilight an unsolicited hug. Maybe. But I didn’t get all sappy about it, alright? I didn’t! I just felt a little guilty, okay? Now, the story’s over, I’ve got things to do. Don’t look at me like that. Don’t! What? You wanna know about…
Ugh, fine. I hate telling this part. You owe me a milkshake or something.
So, yeah. It was about an hour later and I was trapped in Tartarus, or at least something pretty close. Rarity had me standing in front of a mirror with this ~~cool~~weird reddish-orange getup. It was, like, a more feminine version of a stallion’s suit, y’know? With the buttons on the sleeve and a too-small top hat that was more a decoration than an actual hat, tilted too far to the right and held in place by a headband hidden in my mane. It even had a tie that tucked into some sorta vest under the jacket. Oh, and a skirt. What do they call that boxy-foldy design? Uh… pleated!
…okay, okay, it was a pretty awesome dress. I’m allowed to like a dress. Sometimes.
Don’t you dare smile.
Anyhow, I remember I was at the mirror, definitely not admiring the dress, while Rarity did her dressmaking thing. I don’t know the details, I just know she had measuring tape and a notepad. And was humming a lot. She seemed pretty happy, more so than usual. I thought that she just really liked the dress.
It didn’t matter, because I had more important things on the mind right then. From my high spot I could look in the mirror and see most of the boutique. There were so many dresses, and I reminded myself that there were two more shops in other parts of Equestria just as full of them. Were they all made by Rarity? And I remembered what Twilight told me about how much work went into keeping a business like that running.
Then I looked at Rarity herself. Smiling. Humming. Happy. And how often did I see her around Ponyville, visiting friends or just taking a stroll? Once I stopped to think about it, I realized just how much of a local she is. Er, that makes sense, right? You know, that feeling that somepony really belongs somewhere, and if she weren’t there it would feel weird. That’s Rarity in Ponyville.
But she was still here. All that crap she’s gotta do, and she’s still Rarity of Ponyville. That meant a lot more to me than I expected. Ponyville without Rarity would be like looking at the sky above Ponyville and not seeing Rainbow Dash. And that thought was a shocker; I never thought I’d ever find a way to agreeably compare Rarity to Rainbow.
“Is everything alright, Scootaloo?”
I looked up at her, and for the second time in my short life, I felt like I never appreciated Rarity enough. It was worse this time. It… really hit me. I felt all these strange and uncool emotions. Mostly guilt.
“I’m sorry.”
I guess she realized how worked up I was getting, ‘cause she set her tools aside to give me her full attention. Still looked confused, though. “About what?”
“I’m just… sorry.” And I hugged her, because it just felt right. I’m not even embarrassed to admit it. I think it was something I really needed to do.
She didn’t get it, but she hugged me back anyway. Rarity’s cool like that. “Is it something you want to talk about?”
“Nope. I’m good.” And I meant it. I was. Because I’d figured it out, and while the guilt was still there, I felt a lot better just being there and letting her know I cared. It’s the simple things. She let me hold on as long as I needed, and when I finally had the sap out of my system, we went about the rest of the fitting.
I never thought I’d be so happy while caught in her fabricy clutches.
Of course, it was about that time that Spike showed up to do Rarity a favor and saw me in that ~~awesome~~stupid dress, and I got all embarrassed by it, and he just kept staring, and a much-too-happy Rarity with a I-totally-planned-this-and-I’m-not-even-remotely-sorry smile told us she had a dinner reservation but would have to cancel because of work and oh, why don’t we go instead, on her, but it was a nicer place and Spike needed a suit and she grabbed one that was suspiciously just within hoof's reach and…
Yeah.
But you don’t wanna hear that story.
Right?
