Equestria Girls: Bonds Forged of Friendship I (Love)

For the second time that morning, and not even an hour since the first, Rarity once again found herself laboring in front of the bathroom vanity. This time around, however, she was essentially running damage control—striving to repair the “fine enough” visage that had effectively been hosed away by her prior tears.
Of course her makeup still wasn't turning out as desired then, but she didn't have the luxury of time for several retries at it now. Then again, considering what this was all leading up to, surely her friend could stand to wait a little longer for her to adequately prepare.

Part of her still couldn't believe what she was ultimately preparing for.

Before they could carry on with their admittedly bumpy reunion so far, Applejack came up with an absolutely silly idea: tea for two, in person. She knew that a hot cup could always manage to calm her best friend's nerves, after all, and being face-to-face sounded a heck of a lot better than just chatting over the phone.
Soild reasoning, all told, but there were more than a few complications to her suggestion.

Firstly, Rarity highly doubted that Applejack had any tea readily available to her...

“Don't matter,” the farm girl responded nonchalantly. “Apple cider works plenty fer me.”

Secondly, it was still nighttime in Canterlot, and alongside not wanting to keep her friend up, Rarity also didn't wish to disturb the remainder of the Apple Family with their little colloquy...

“Like I said, been wide awake fer a while now. And don't y'all worry none 'bout my family. I'll just take this outside on the porch.”

Finally, there was the little issue that having “tea” in person might prove rather difficult when there was hundreds of miles of travel time between them!

Of course, Applejack only chuckled at that particular objection.
“Good thing we got video call, huh?”

Even with those many workarounds, Rarity was still hesitant to go along with such a production. She was already embarrassed from her little emotional meltdown earlier, and the thought of being seen immediately afterward just made her feel all the more vulnerable. But her friend's assurances were always worth her weight in gold, and she had to admit...there was something kind of...sweetly charming about the whole notion.
Eventually, she conceded to her friend's idea, with the condition that a brief recess be permitted so as to freshen up.

“Sounds fine to me. Hows 'bout I call ya back in half an hour? Plenty a' time fer prettifyin', right?”

And so, twenty minutes of prettifying later, Rarity put down her brushes and examined her newly revitalized countenance. The eyes were still slightly bloodshot, unfortunately, but everything else had been restored to its prior quality...or at least, she hoped so. This was going to be the first time that they had actually seen each other in so long...
Perhaps just a little bit more eye-shadow to—

“Oh, come now, Rarity!” she scolded her reflection, all the while still adjusting her hair. “You are fretting far too much over this! It's just Applejack! There's no need to be so nervous...especially now...”

With that, and following a few more flutters and puckers just to ensure that everything was in order, the young tailor departed from the bathroom feeling as aesthetically prepared as she possibly could. She then proceeded to brew herself a fresh pot of herbal tea, and even went so far as to procure some sweets for the occasion. What was teatime without a suitable finger-food, after all?
Finally, with a tray in hand and a phone fully charged, Rarity returned to the balcony and awaited her friend's call.

She actually couldn't have timed things any better then. Matter of fact, almost immediately after making sure that everything was arranged properly, her phone rang to the tune of Shake Things Up, and its screen displayed a photo of her and Applejack at the StarSwirl Music Festival. She might've been a bit messy and stubborn at times, but leave it to a hardworking farmhand, of all people, to appreciate the values of punctuality.

"...Alright," Rarity said, following one last deep breath—as well as just one more adjustment of her hair for good measure.
She then sat down, tapped on the video icon, and readied herself to finally see her best friend once again.

Seconds later, there she was.
It took a moment to get their phones in the right positions then, but Applejack was soon fully visible and sitting out on her porch, just as promised...in naught but her onesie pajamas!

“Howdy, pardner!”

“Applejack!” Rarity gasped. “You're still in your nightly attire!?"

"Yup!"

"But...what on earth happened to 'prettifying!?'”

“Never said nothin' 'bout myself with that. Did brush my hair a tad, though.”

The fashionista's cheeks puffed up then, and her lips gave a slight pout.
“And after everything I did to look presentable! You could have at least told me beforehand.”

“I reckoned the surprise was just too good to miss. Looks like I was right, too.”

“Hmph! You're simply the worst sometimes, you know that?”

"Yeah, sometimes. Heh heh."

Rarity was almost determined to hold a grudge there, partly for the jape and partly because Applejack could still somehow look so good even with such little effort. However, one glance at her friend's mischievous little smirk caused her to giggle away most of that animosity.
Applejack joined in on the laughter then, grateful to see her friend cheering up a bit after all of those heartwrenching sobs from earlier. Truth be told, she spent the last half-hour worrying that Rarity might've been too disheartened to really help right now. But when she finally saw her friend then—as pretty and gussied up and hilariously prickly as always—it felt just like old times. It felt like she was back in her element now, and like she could surely bring Rarity back into hers.

“...Feelin' any better?”

“A little, I suppose... Thank you for your concern, darling.”

“Heh, don't mention it. What kinda tea did y'all go with?”

“Hmm? Oh, just a light blend of ginger. Nothing too fancy. And how about you? Did you settle on apple cider?”

“Yup! Got it right here," she said, raising her bottle and popping off the cap with a quick flick of her thumb.

Rarity took hold of her own drink then and brought it close to her chin, allowing the earthen aroma to gently drift up her sinuses for a few seconds. Before she could take her first sip, however, the fashionista noticed how her friend's bottle of cider was inching closer into view, and how it stopped just short of bumping against the screen. The farm girl allowed it to dangle from her fingers then, and gently waved it to and fro like a bell as she spoke.

“Cheers! To best friends!”

It took Rarity a moment to catch on then, as well as an extra one just to chuckle at her friend's corny little gesture, but she wasted little time in responding when it all sunk in.

“To best friends, indeed,” she said warmly, lightly tapping her cup against the phone.

With that lovely little toast, the two best friends shared in some hearty sips and lost themselves in the tranquility of it all for a while. It had been so long since either of them had simply basked in the other's company, after all—perhaps even longer than before this whole incident—and neither girl was in a rush to bring that to an end anytime soon. Honestly, between looking up at a stunning sunrise and down at her friend serenely swigging some cider, Rarity would've been content just to do this for the rest of the day.
Sadly, however, though Applejack would've agreed wholeheartedly with that sentiment, she was never one to ignore responsibilities for too long...especially to those whom she cared about the most.

“...So," the farmer said, following a satisfied gasp, "where were we before?”

“Ah...yes,” Rarity replied wearily. “Discussing this whole vacation... Are you absolutely certain that you wouldn't rather just tell me about your escapades with the girls? I'm sure they're far more worthwhile than my own...”

“Nice try, but I ain't completely clueless. I know there's more to y'all feelin' down than just us arguin', and I aims to help ya any way I can.”

“That's very sweet, Applejack, but... W-Well, it's...it's probably all just silly...”

“Hey,” she encouraged softly, “it's alright, hun. There ain't nothin' silly 'bout how ya feel. An' y'all can tell me anything. Okay?”

The farm girl had leaned in then, her face reflecting equal measures of both concern and assurance as she spoke. It was amazing how, even though her expression grew more intent, she still somehow retained that same warming aura as always. At that moment, Rarity knew that there was nobody on earth whom she could depend upon more for this.

“...Alright,” she sighed, “...I'll tell you... But before that...I suppose I should preface this with... Well, I'm sure that we've all been considering what to do after graduation for a while now, but...”

For almost an hour, Rarity recounted her whole experience at MUST thus far, including the expectations, the preparations, and the realizations.
With ornate whimsy, she painted an image of this quintessential institution, casting its very buildings as the ivory towers upon which so many striving young minds and artists were housed and hoisted. With technical finesse, she elaborated on the many facets of her plan to make an impression on her future colleagues, including the painstaking efforts that went into her choice of vesture. And with a deflating heart, she juxtaposed her every infallible hope against the unpleasant realities that arose throughout her actual time here on the campus.

Time-consuming though it all might've been, the clothier spared no expense when it came to the finer details of her recounting. She was determined to take her friend through as intimate a tour of MUST as possible, and she also took this opportunity to vent some of her pent-up frustrations along the way.
Meanwhile, for the most part, Applejack remained relatively silent as her friend carried on with said tour, only occasionally interrupting to pose a quick question or clarification. She also managed to maintain a pretty steady poker-face throughout as well, though it began to fold by around the halfway point of this tale. Still, credit given, she held up a lot better than one would've assumed as the twists kept on coming.

The initial meeting with a seemingly harmless Suri? That only lightly stoked a jealousy that she was all too familiar with.
The school-grounds being filled with standoffish and rude students? That only slightly made her brow furrow in irritation.
The snobby interviewers paying Rarity with a veiled insult? That only partially amplified the flare of her fuming nostrils.
The realization that Suri was a snake in the grass? That only incrementally reddened her complexion by a couple shades.
The story ending with Rarity utterly humiliated and in tears? That only barely failed to push her rage past its boiling point.

But the cowgirl ultimately managed to restrain herself from interrupting, intent on only commenting once the narration had actually finished. Thankfully, that happened right before steam could start spewing from her ears like a kettle.

“WHY, THAT NO-GOOD, TWO-BIT, CROOKED-SHOOTIN' LITTLE... I got half a mind to mosey on over to that school right now an'—”

“Applejack...”

“Ain't bad enough she roped that poor other gal in on her dirty lil' schemes, but then she goes an' tries to piggyback offa you!?”

“Applejack.”

“Let's see her steal the design offa my boot AFTER I INTRODUCE IT FIRSTHAND TO HER—”

“APPLEJACK!”

Rarity's objections did little to actually quell her friend's anger, but at least the farmer had simmered down long enough to take another gulp of her cider then.

“What's done is done, darling,” she reasoned. “If such practices really are that common—and from what I've been reading up on, that certainly seems to be the case—then there's no point in ruining perfectly good footwear on somebody's...posterior.”

“Yeah, I know,” Applejack grumbled. “Don't make it any more pleasant to stomach...”

With that said, she hastily chugged down the remainder of her drink. Either those last few gulps seemed especially fizzy, or the cider was boiling over as it drained down her fiery chest then.
Just the thought of this Suri character... It was enough to make her muscles tensen and her forehead tighten. Of course, Crystal Prep students had a spotted history, in general, but most of them proved to be rather friendly and upstanding folk after that whole debacle with the Friendship Games had subsided. Sadly, Suri must've escaped that particular change of heart.
Truth be told, that little wench probably could've kindled Applejack's anger for a while still, but the cowgirl's flames started fading at the sudden sight of her friend. Of course, it wasn't uncommon for Rarity to wallow when things weren't going her way, but to see her curled up in that chair then...looking so downtrodden and tired... At that moment, it spurred the cowgirl to shove aside all of her ire in favor of more nurturing instincts.

“So...that's what's got ya all blue?”

Rarity nodded solemnly.

“Well...shoot, hun... Maybe I'm just too simple-minded fer this sorta stuff, but... Y'all do know that ain't really yer fault, right?”

“...Yes.”

“An' seems to me like yer designs were pretty well-liked. That's mighty important too, ain't it?”

“Yes. Sweetie Belle said just as much, and you're both correct.”

“So...what's the matter?”

“Applejack,” she sighed. “You know that it's been my dream to be a fashion designer for as long as I can recall—to share my visions and help others to shine as fabulously as possible with them. This place was supposed to give me a glimpse into that very dream.”

“Makes sense.”

“Well, a glimpse is exactly what I caught...and it terrified me. Suri, the university, the entire city; it's all mired in such...hideous selfishness. And I deluded myself into thinking otherwise...”

“Hey, even the shiniest apple might have a worm in it. Never know till ya get up real close an' inspect 'em. An' ya can't let just one bad apple spoil the whole lot a'—”

“But that's just it, darling! What if this is simply what it takes to make it in the industry!? I always believed fashion to be a thing of pure beauty, but perhaps it's all just dominated by greedy, self-centered individuals...similar to how I've been acting.”

“Rarity! I thought I told ya once already, y'all—”

“I appreciate that you don't view me in that light, Applejack. Truly, I do. But that doesn't change how I view myself now, especially not after how I treated you. And I'm afraid that I don't see much of a difference between my conduct and what passes for acceptable around here!”

“Rarity...”

“...When Coco said that she didn't wish to be a part of this kind of world, I was still in shock. But now...I find myself agreeing with her. Maybe that's why I haven't come up with a single design in days. Maybe I'm just so disillusioned with this profession, and with myself...... And if this is really what being a fashion designer is all about...then maybe I'm simply not cut out for MUST...or fashion at all...”

For a second then, Applejack could only watch as her friend burried her face within her knees.
Once again, she didn't know exactly what she was feeling. She didn't even know what to say...but she didn't care in the slightest. Seeing Rarity so saddened and doubtful then...her lurching heart refused to accept it, and demanded that something be done.
Something to make everything right... Something to help the young woman whose generosity had long ago changed her life for the better ever since.

For the promise that bound their lives inexorably together...
For the sake of their friendship...
For Rarity...

With all of that pushing her forward, Applejack simply trusted in her feelings, lifted up her phone, and led with the most powerful phrase known to the Apple Family.

“...Nope.”

“Hmm?” Rarity said, raising her head slightly. “What was that?”

“I said nope!" she replied, blindly rushing forward with whatever popped into her head then. "I don't believe it, not even fer a sec!”

“B-Believe what, darling?”

“I don't believe y'all ain't cut out fer fashion! An' what'd I tell ya earlier 'bout all this self-pity!?”

The fashionista was a bit surprised by her friend's bluntness, but she found herself compelled to answer nonetheless.
“Applejack... B-But I—”

“No buts!” Applejack snapped. “Now listen up, lil' missy! Who here made an entire line a' clothes fer a buncha poor lil' crabs lookin' to be adopted!?”

“I...W-Well, I did, but—”

“An' who made sure CHS was plenty prepared with outfits fer the Friendship Games!?”

“...Me.”

“An' who keeps the Rainbooms stocked with WAY too many costumes to ever keep track of!?

Rarity gasped at that one.
“First of all: me! And second: you can never have too many costumes!”

“Ya see!? With attitude an' talent like that, what in tarnation makes y'all think ya weren't born fer this!?”

What exactly was happening then? They were raising their voices and snapping at one another, but this didn't feel like one of their typical fights. The stern but almost proud look on Applejack's face. The demanding but almost protective tone in her voice. It was all so...captivating...and inspiring.
Without even realizing it, Rarity had snapped out of her defensive posture and was leaning forward, all the while holding her own phone up just as close as her friend was.

“I-I never said that I didn't have talent, darling! But so do all of these other aspiring designers, I'm sure! And unlike my own, their attitudes are clearly far more in-line with the fashion wor—”

“That's a load a' horse apples that I ain't buying neither! Listen! Y'all might've had a run-in with a buncha hoity-toity snobs, but that don't mean all fashion folk are like that! At least some a' them are creative, bighearted, awe-inspirin' people who're as beautiful on the inside as they are out!”

“AND HOW WOULD YOU KNOW THAT!?”

“CUZ THAT'S EVERYTHING YOU ARE!”

The second that declaration was out in the open, both girls recoiled in shock, their expressions mirroring one another as blushing cheeks and widened eyes underlined the silence. Of course, tiny screens and limited resolutions couldn't properly convey every detail then, but for a moment...it was almost as if the phones had disappeared entirely...and their faces were but a few inches apart...
The illusion was broken, however, when Applejack suddenly put down her phone and walked away, much to Rarity's confusion. Half a minute later, she returned with another bottle of cider in one hand...and her hat in the other.

“Applejack?”

The farm girl took a giant swig from her new drink then, before angling the stetson so that its silver-lined brim was plainly visible.

“See this? Y-Y'all prolly don't recall, but...when we was just lil' tykes, there was this incident with my hat. I had it figured fer ruined, but—”

“I sewed it back together.”

“...You... You remember that?”

Rarity almost took offense to that question.
“Of course I do! I'd recognize my handiwork anywhere! And besides...that was the first time that you and I spoke. Frankly, darling, I'm surprised that you still recall this work. What I did truly wasn't all that—”

“Don't y'all dare say what ya did ain't important!" Applejack snapped. It was her turn now to be a little offended, but she used that leeway to instead make her point.

"It was to me! An' what you do now matters to plenty of other folk, as well! It makes people feel good; it helps 'em to see AND bring out the good in themselves!"

"W-Well...I-I mean, I suppose, but—"

"Listen... I may not always understand it, but that dream a' yers is beautiful, an' when I see all the hard work ya pour into it, I realize just how amazin' fashion can be! That's all on account of you, Rarity...an' it's proof that bein' a designer is yer callin'!”

“A-Applejack...” she whispered, the blush returning and intensifying across her face yet again. With what little defiance that remained, her eyes shifted away as she mustered a weak frown and a weaker deflection.

“T-Then clearly I'm in the minority...”

The farm girl chuckled gently then, breaking away from her stern tone. She knew that her message had just about been received, and there was only one truth left to tell.

“An' since when was that such a bad thing?"

"H-Huh?"

"Y'all have always been more of a trendsetter than a follower, ain't ya? An' that's plenty true when it comes to how amazin' of a person ya usually are.”

“I..I-I...”

Applejack leaned forward one last time.
Maybe it was the crack of dawn shining just the right amount of light behind her then, or perhaps it was the dim glow of the phone reflecting off of her at just the right angle. Regardless, and for whatever reason, the proud smile that she wore then was more enchanting than anything Rarity could recall laying eyes on as of late.
And it just made what followed all the more striking.

“Y'all think ya ain't cut out fer them highfalutin city-slickers, but they ain't cut out fer you...cuz you got just as much talent an' vision as any one a' them, AND you got a more beautiful heart than they could ever dream a' havin'... Simple as that!”

Silence... A lengthy silence...
From Applejack's limited perspective, Rarity was practically frozen in time then, staring unflinchingly forward for what seemed like minutes on end. For a moment, the farm girl wondered if her phone was broken again, though a gentle breeze keeping loose strands of indigo aloft quickly put that concern to rest.

Eventually, and without any warning whatsoever, the fashionista took a deep breath...closed her eyes tightly...and pushed her phone over, giving Applejack a sudden and lopsided view of the Manehattan skyline. Before she could even question what that all meant, the farm girl was confronted with an unpleasantly familiar sound: her friend desperately choking back heavy sobs.

“Gah! R-Rarity!? W-What's wrong!? Aw shucks, w-what'd I say!? I'm sorry, I—”

“Ohh!” Rarity squeaked between sniffles. “...And I just...reapplied my makeup so—so you wouldn't see me like this! Honestly, Applejack, what were you thinking!?”

“I-I-I didn't mean to insult ya!” Applejack said in a panic. “I-I thought I—I wasn't really thinkin' when I—I'M SORRY!”

“YOU SHOULD BE!” Rarity snapped, grabbing her phone so as to finally give the farmhand a clear shot of her faux-indignant face.
Tears, mixed with eye-shadow and foundation, steadily rolled down her flushed cheeks, and her lips and brows quivered in the fight to hold back vastly greater amounts of crying then. What Applejack noticed the most, however, were Rarity's eyes—these deep cerulean pools that overflow and shimmered not with anger...but affection.

“T-That was...the s—the single nicest compliment...that anyone's ever...ever given me... W-WHY WOULD YOU SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAT!?”

“...Cuz it's the honest truth, sugarcube...” Applejack said, a humble smile forming along her own increasingly heated cheeks.

“Besides," she grinned playfully, "y'all wear too much makeup, anyways.”

“OH, APPLEJACK!” Rarity shouted, tightly hugging her phone as she burst into tears then. But these weren't the frustrated and painful cries from earlier. They were whiny, overly dramatic, and—ironically enough—a sign that she was actually relieved...and happy.
Applejack knew as much, and though she tried to calm her friend down, she was content in allowing Rarity to just let it all pour out for the time being. She only wished that she could be there in person then...to embrace the seamstress, and comfort her in any way possible.
But there would be plenty of time for all of that later.

For now, another silly little idea began to hatch in the farm girl's head...and maybe after this teatime wrapped up, she would check to see if her friends could help make it happen.

Next Time: An Extracurricular Intermission