“So, I imagine you have quite a few questions, Darling,” Rarity spoke calmly as she sat down in an elegant purple chair before an elegant white table. Twilight was already sitting in another chair across from her, with a pair of freshly-steeped cups of tea placed on the table by Rarity just a few moments ago, and the lights of the ‘dining room’ had been turned on, but due to the Thestral’s nature, they were somewhat dim. “But first, I really ought to start with my shop itself.

“You’ve no doubt seen the.. wares I have on offer,” She begun with some strain and worry in her voice, “And I’ll have to urge you now that they’re not something that should be talked about in public. Whether you wear them in public is rather up to you,” She added with a coy grin, “But my wares are quite private, even if they aren’t the sort that you’ve seen out there. Commissions, of course, can be anything from personally tailored to one’s desires... to simply a suit or dress for a formal occasion.

“I will add, though, that any orders I make for any creature are to be kept strictly between myself and them,” Rarity continued, keeping the other creature informed while letting her tea set for the moment, “Even in the case that it may clear up some problematic misconceptions, such as with what Rainbow Dash asked of me.”

After the Thestral finished her introduction, she lifted her cup and took a dainty sip of her tea, but Twilight didn’t do the same, as she was quite confused about what she had just been told. “I’m... not quite certain of the core of what you mean... You seem to imply that wearing those clothes in private is the way it should be. I only know clothes are meant for.. warmth and culture, but.. what those clothes would achieve in private, I’m not sure.”

Blinking as she registered the words, but keeping her cup against her mouth, Rarity seemed to think about the response in a state of.. uncertainty, if Twilight could call it anything. Soon enough, she did seem to partially settle on something, and set down her cup before looking more curiously at the Zebra and saying to her, “Apologies, I believe I assumed you knew what those clothes were, but... do you not?”

Twilight shook her head, still confused, but now more understanding that there was a gap in her knowledge to clear up and that Rarity was likely willing to do so, and she replied, “I do not know of those.. wares. I simply know they would cover very little hair.”

The Thestral inhaled deep through her nostrils and closed her eyes while nodding slowly in comprehension. “Ahhh... of course, of course...” She muttered, leaning back into her chair and letting her head fall back over its backrest, where Twilight could only see how she opened her eyes from the red of her irises. After some more seconds had passed, Rarity pulled her head back down and looked at the Zebra apologetically and responded, “Sorry, Darling; I shouldn’t have assumed you knew anything about lingerie, as you’re clearly a tribal Zebra and non-Equestrian. And...” She sighed, grimacing a bit as she looked off to side for a moment, “Well, I’m not going to explain that now. Quite frankly, it’s a whole thing that is quite expansive, nuanced, and not really my business to explain anyhow.

“Regardless of that in particular,” The Pony noted, waving the matter aside, “I do still need your assurance that you won’t speak of anything in here to anyone else. Obviously, I am a shopkeeper and would like to known about,” She added with tinge of sarcasm, “But I do still need you to be aware that discussing my shop as relating primarily to.. less than decent affairs will only shine it in a negative light.”

“Ah, of course, Rarity,” Twilight returned as she nodded in understanding, “I.. know little about your wares anyway. You have my word.. and I won’t mention this to others, as, I didn’t come here to cause problems or be a bother.”

Nodding in thanks, Rarity added with some exhaustion seeping in, “I appreciate it...” Taking another sip of her tea, she let it clack down onto the table before she sighed loudly, looking down into her tea in visible contemplation. After a couple seconds of slightly awkward silence, she laughed a bit to herself before looking back at the other creature and explaining, “It’s always a strange topic... everything in here. It may only be to protect my livelihood, but forcing others to keep silent... almost feels like some petty, elaborate payback for them forcing me into this business.”

The Thestral cleared her throat, pausing a further moment while Twilight was left somewhat baffled and waiting for further context, but Rarity started on an aside; “I feel like I need someone to vent to here—someone who isn’t as intimately familiar with my story as my friends, as this whole story would only be redundant...” Pausing again, she sighed at length, and then elaborated, “My business didn’t always relate to these things. It used to be open to all ages, though aimed towards the higher-class, as they’d be free to pay for any elaborate ballgown or dashing suit I may make. I did still like making things for other reasons, of course, like simpler wares for a normal creature during a formal occasion, or things that aren’t even clothes for some event, like banners or flags.

“But... I am still a Thestral at the end of the night...” She muttered, looking downward somewhat solemnly, with Twilight only able to give her a look of concern in response before the Pony continued, “And other creatures still fear me, like they always have, ever since the bloody founding...” She groused, a faint growl escaping her, “My business wasn’t all too attractive given who I am... but I did have something in the works for a while that wasn’t affected by that. In fact... I think me being so ‘scary’ only made this aspect more enticing.

“At some point in my business, I had decided to create some... less than child-friendly wares, and had them displayed in a back room,” Rarity spoke, sounding just slightly hesitant, as she were feeling the same trepidation that she must’ve back then, “And—well, you probably didn’t even see the door as we came in,” She interrupted herself, looking up at the other creature, who tilted her head in confused comprehension. “That’s because there is no door; the door is part of the wall itself that acts like a door. A testament to my secretiveness about those creations...” She said with a coy grin.

“Anyhow...” The Thestral went on, her smile fading, “Those clothes and other tools I made seemed ever more profitable than the normal wares I made, so I begun to focus more on that... and they slowly became more and more essential to my business until I finally switched to making them the primary aspect of my shop here. Which, well, proves to be quite ironic,” She muttered, irritation returning to her voice with a bit of a mad smile, “Considering the entire reason I started selling fancy clothes in the first place was to escape other creatures’ fear of us Thestrals, so that perhaps we could be more well-accepted!”

Twilight blinked at her in a wary sort of confusion, which was mainly due to the unexplained fear the other creature’s whole tirade was about, but given her emotions at the moment, the Zebra wanted to let some time pass before asking it. Looking down at the table, she saw the cup of tea she hadn’t yet drunken any of, and so tentatively picked it up and took a sip while Rarity sighed and hung her head down, definitely seeming to need a moment to calm down.

The tea was... odd, to Twilight’s senses. Her own tea, and those she’d had between any other Zebra, including Zecora, were a familiar sort of exotic to her, but this cup felt... precise, was the only word she could think to describe it. It was as if any unique personality was drained from it, turning into a standardized thing that was bereft of the usual oddities and imprecision that came with the homebrewed tea that she was so used to. It was all too easy to tell that this wasn’t something created by Rarity herself, only purchased by her from larger group that had it in their best interests to keep everything consistent, and so Twilight wasn’t going to actively hold it against the Pony herself.

The Zebra could see Rarity’s tension had waned, though she still hung her head, but now it seemed more out of contemplation that irritation. With the question still on her mind, Twilight set her cup of tea down and voiced it to the Thestral, “May I ask... why exactly is it your kind is so feared? I can’t imagine it’s.. simply that you’re fanged and bat-eared.”

A slow, deliberate inhale came from the Thestral before she lifted her head to look at the other creature, her crimson eyes a bit brighter, though not out of rage—moreso just a deep-seeded annoyance, which only became clearer as she spoke, “Well, we are certainly nocturnal, which in and of itself causes some fear in those that are afraid of darkness... but most of it is related to our diet.” Licking her lips, likely in an intentional show of her forked tongue, she begun methodically, “Many of the beliefs about out kind are myths; such as needing to feed off the blood of others to survive. However... we are still capable of leeching blood from living creatures in order to sustain ourselves, and in fact it is not a poor idea given our dietary needs require more of what is found in blood... as well as meat.

“We are omnivores, Twilight,” Rarity stated in calm manner, keeping her words slow as if to portray that she wasn’t going to eat the other creature where she stood, but her pacing and blood-coloured irises only made it more creepy. “While we could survive purely off of things that are grown—and other products, of course—meat is better for our bodies, and I personally do quite like the taste of it.” Her face split in a grin, her fangs showing prominently as her eyes roamed up and down the Zebra’s body, making her gulp and pull back in fear...

But then, Rarity sighed heavily and her face fell. “But of course, that really only makes herbivorous creatures fear us more than anything. A fellow Thestral here in Ponyville—one Vinyl Scratch—actually had hidden her nature as a Thestral for a while, and back when she was in Canterlot, I could hardly have blamed her for it. I’ve been there myself a few times before, and I’ve always faced some ridicule by those damned Unicorns...” She growled out a sigh, closed her eyes for a second, “Though we do tend to face scorn wherever we may go.”

Twilight watched the mare as she opened her eyes, her expression annoyed and contemplative while she raised her cup back to her mouth to another drink of it, this time much more than just a simple sip. “I was... under the impression Equestria was quite welcoming to all...” The Zebra started, letting the other creature finish her cup and set it back down before continuing, “And now, you seem to say that for some, it is like a wall. I’ve... talked with some creatures of this place, and, only a few seem all that perturbed by my race. Is this... just for your kind alone, or.. is there more here than I could’ve known?”

Rarity’s eyes turned down towards the table for a second, but then looked back over and spoke slowly, sounding deliberate and uncertain, “Well.. every corner of Equestria has different culture, some of them more accepting than others. Here in Ponyville, we try to be as accepting as possible, but even in the rest of Equestria, seeing many other creatures is completely normal, and thus most of them tend not to be bothered by them... but, I won’t say that it’s just that simple. It’s easy to clash with other creatures, primarily due to the different cultures they come from, but a lot of it comes from misunderstandings...” She trailed off for a moment, pausing in thought before asking, “To make a point; I don’t suppose you have seen many Hippogryphs around, have you?”

Pulling her thoughts inward for a moment in recollection, Twilight knew she had seem many different creatures within Ponyville as well as on her way to it, but... “Only very few in number... Perhaps... Equestria doesn’t mesh with their culture?”

“Perhaps,” The Thestral replied with a half-hearted smirk, “But, I’d like to ask; what do you think they are usually like?”

Twilight frowned; she obviously recalled one Hippogryph in particular, and she could see where this was going. “I see the point you wish to say, where I reply that they’re all free and gay. I can imagine.. that Rainbow is an outlier among them, and that I shouldn’t judge, based upon one so dumb. However...” She paused for just a moment in further thought, “Other creatures likely are not the same. They will speak... and act without thought or shame. They simply see something.. different than what they know, and with no respect for others, they just.. want them to go.”

A more genuine smile came on Rarity’s face at the full understanding, but it was tinged with sorrow as she replied, “Well said. To answer your question, though... Thestrals do tend to be more feared than other creatures, all down to being uniquely nocturnal. Dragons and Gryphons are feared more than Zebras due to being omnivorous, and Zebras more than other Pony races due to simply living apart and having different magics... It’s complicated, really,” She uttered with a shrug, “And I know it’s different for each race, and indeed, each individual creature. There are those, like myself, that try to be as welcoming as possible, and then there are those who reject all other creatures at every opportunity.”

“...Like those Apple Ponies I’ve seen,” Twilight then responded after a moment of recollection, getting a slow, almost solemn nod from the other creature, “Do you know.. why they are so mean?”

Opening her mouth, Rarity didn’t immediately respond, instead pulling her eyes away for a second in though before closing her mouth to further debate in her mind. Eventually, she looked back and spoke carefully, “‘Mean’ isn’t quite the best word to describe them, Darling... I won’t say it’s untrue, but...” She sighed and flitted her eyes away again before continuing hesitantly, “It’s a complicated matter, and one that can only really concern them and their family...”

As the Thestral kept her gaze away from Twilight, the Zebra herself couldn’t help but draw some conclusions from that, and while it did seem to be a private manner that indeed didn’t concern her that much, she still was a bit perturbed... “Did some creature...” She begun ever so slowly, not seeing the other creature look her way, but able to see her ears twitch as she registered the noise, “...Harm them in some way?”

Rarity sharply turned her head towards the Zebra at that, a look of surprise across her face, but she quickly closed her eyes and collected herself before shaking her head with a guilty smile and replying, “No no no, nothing like that, Darling. I.. should’ve been more careful about how I said that. No, it’s...” She tilted her head to each side, seeming to debate on how best to say it, which Twilight was thankful for after being surprised herself at the misunderstanding, “...More related to their business.. really.

“I—er...” The Thestral muttered, her eyes flitting about as she tried to collect her thoughts, “I.. only said their family as both that and their business are quite related. Their grandmother founded this town, you see, and farming apples was a great part of that, so... the rest of the family gets born into it and continues to carry it out. What I meant was that other creatures pose a potential risk to this business that’s been so important to all of their lives.

“..I take it you don’t know much about economics, do you?” Rarity asked after a slight pause, getting a confused look and then a head-shake from Twilight, which let her explain, “Well, this whole matter is related to that. This whole town begun with just them, the Earth Ponies, and so when other types of creatures arrived, with other capabilities, such as flight, levitation, and everything else... they could tell those types of magic may allow for those creatures to possibly do their job of farming apples better than they could. They could’ve either had their own farms to compete the Apples out of a job, or taken over and replaced the Apples themselves, so either way, the Earth Ponies felt threatened by all the other creatures, and reacted by forcing them away. They’ve continued to do that even now, as you must know by this point, and given the clout they have in this, I’m surprised that it’s really only them that are so against other creatures. Thankfully they’ve mostly kept to their own these days...”

That was an odd concept for the Zebra to behold; where the idea of diverse types of creatures that could help each other out could somehow be seen as worse... “I don’t understand how farming better could be bad, is this.. a real fear, or are the Apples simply mad?”

A bit of a grimace came from Rarity, and she replied with some guilt, “Sorry, I really suppose I shouldn’t be expecting you to understand much of economics, Darling. I... won’t say that their fear is entirely realistic, but at the same time...” She sighed and looked with a genuine fear of her own in her eyes at the other creature, “I know I’d certainly be put out of business if a bunch of other clothiers moved to Ponyville.”

The Thestral could clearly see the confusion still present on Twilight’s face, and so she took a deep breath and explained, “Imagine, if you would, that, amongst the entire group of creatures you live with, that you are the best-known one for creating a specific thing. It doesn’t matter what this thing is—for me it is clothing, and for the Apples it is, well, apples.” Twilight recalled her tribe, as well as her role in it as shamaness, the keeper of alchemical knowledge and was to be responsible for sharing it carefully, and so she nodded to let Rarity continue, “Now imagine that many other creatures arrived at where you live, and they are capable of creating this same thing, and some could do it better than you.” An odd comparison with the metaphor in Twilight’s mind, but if other Zebras were promoted to shamans and shamanesses, then the knowledge could be more widespread and kept less safe than in her hooves, but if some were better than her...

“Oh...”

“Mm,” Rarity grunted in agreement, “Now you get it, don’t you?”

Twilight certainly did, as if there were even a single Zebra in her tribe that could do her job far better than her, then it would be quite possible that Twilight would be ousted from her own position—even if the logic of how it would all come to be may not be as coherent as the other creature may have expected. However, a thought then occurred to her, and she couldn’t help but speak it; “Wait, but the creatures that move here aren’t, that unique, and I can tell that you.. aren’t repulsed by them as though they reek. They certainly wouldn’t have the skills you do, so.. of course they would not make you rue. The Apples.. don’t seem to think the same, and they’re eager to place on all creatures that blame.”

Slowly nodding as she processed the thought, the Thestral hummed for a moment, then replied thoughtfully, “Well, I suppose the difference comes down to what those creatures can do. Most of them are hardly clothiers, as you mentioned, but... farming apples hardly takes that level of finesse or knowledge, so...” She trailed off, letting Twilight nod in understanding. “However,” She soon amended, getting a curious look from the Zebra, “I will say that the way they treat other creatures still is rather rude, despite the misgivings they may have about us. As I said, they do mainly keep to their own, but... they really ought to realize that they shouldn’t fear us; we’d rather not upend their business and are more than okay with staying on our own turf, so to speak.”

That.. was a rather familiar sentiment to Twilight—how fear can drive creature to make incredibly foolish decisions—and she took some time to recall the conversation she had about it some days ago... “Fear is a very strong motivator...” She uttered, feeling the passion and anger that flaming creature had when she spoke of this, “Too often, terrible decisions are made from this.. terror.” Looking more pointedly at Rarity, who looked quite intrigued by the words, she continued, “I suppose I shouldn’t expect.. the Apples to act with reason, as this fear.. drives them to not consider another creature’s emotion.

“I should add.. that could only have this thought, because of a Longma that knew quite a lot,” She added after a moment, but her elaboration was cut off from a gasp by Rarity.

“A Longma?!” The Pony asked in surprise, which got look of confusion from Twilight, who did then nod after a second. “There’s no way they’d be in Equestria just randomly, Fluttershy made that abundantly clear...” She mumbled to herself, looking away as she contemplated it, but when the other creature cleared her throat, Rarity’s attention was brought back to her, where she apologized, “Oh, sorry, Darling... You, um, said the Longma spoke to you...?”

Nodding in affirmation, Twilight did also recall said Longma’s reasoning for being in Equestria, as well as her misgivings about the nation, and relayed them; “Yes, and she, explained that she was ‘on forced leave’, as apparently she was holding herself to tightly to her duties. She did say she did not like this nation, and even then.. she was hardly here on vacation. She wished to.. check on Fluttershy, the Kirin, who was of concern, given their kinds’ relation.”

“Ahh, I suppose that makes sense...” Rarity muttered, nodding to herself. “Fluttershy is a dear friend of mine, actually, and she has mentioned the Longmas before on some occasions... as well as their general distaste for Equestria,” She said, sounding a bit conflicted, “I believe it had something to do with Equestria being... too ‘relaxed’ and ‘free’... though I will say, it would be right to take issue with nepotism. Passing down leadership through bloodlines alone...” She scoffed and shook her head.

“Yes, she did say this nation... was full of cowards and fools...” Twilight replied tentatively, looking down at the table as to help recall the creature’s precise words, but in doing so saw the tea which had been steaming hot and had now become lukewarm. “They get driven away from what’s right.. or even just following rules... all because, they don’t want to trust others or admit their flaws, and.. due to that, so many more problems are caused.” Slowly moving her hoof to grab ahold of the cup and intending to take another drink of it, she suddenly paused as she recalled how she had arrived at this position, and she uttered out, “Much like with Rainbow Dash...”

An inhale could be heard from the Pony as she understood the revelation as well, and seemed to ponder it for some time before saying, “That bloody fear, hm... I suppose I should’ve known by now...”

Lifting her head to return her attention to the other creature, Twilight, feeling as though she was missing some context, questioned, “How exactly, do you mean? Do you know why.. it’s this way she’s been?”

Perking up, Rarity seemed to realize that the Zebra was, in fact missing some context, and nodded before explaining, “Well, she’s always been quite brusque, Darling, but it has gotten quite a bit worse in recent months. I do know the event that caused it and how it would relate to her, especially with how no doubt afraid this event would make her... though I suppose I’ve just been putting it on her ego, too afraid myself to ever give her the benefit of the doubt that she would have a reasonable reason for being that way...”

“I... think it would be your anger, would it not?” Twilight asked in return, trying to figure through what she now knew about Rainbow, “And, nor can I blame you for having those thoughts. If.. she was always quite rude, then the blame would be still on her, not you.”

Rarity paused for a moment in thought at that, but then a smile slowly crept up on her face. “Ah, I suppose that would fair, Darling. She was quite a nuisance even before that bloody thing, and never gave me much of a reason to suspect that she was anything but a rascal. Still...” She sighed, her face falling into a self-disappointed frown, “I do think I could’ve taken a guess given what I learned.”

The Zebra was going to ask what precisely that was, but Rarity already seemed intent on it; tapping her hoof on the table for a second, she turned her head to the main doorway of the dining room and called out, “Sweetie Belle! Can you please bring that newspaper about Surprise and the Wonderbolts over here!”

Somewhat thrown off by that, Twilight wasn’t sure what to make of it before she heard a quiet, squeaky voice call back from another room, “What! Why?!”

“I wish to discuss it with a friend of mine!”

“That weird Zebra lady? How do I know she won’t try to eat me!?”

Sighing, Rarity looked over at Twilight to give her a heavily guilty grimace, then called out again, “Watch your tongue! And Twilight here helped ensure Rainbow won’t yell at you again!”

After some seconds, during which Twilight was left very confused, the voice called back, “Fine!”

Taking a deep sigh, the Thestral kept her gaze on the doorway for a few more seconds before turning back to Twilight and explaining, “That was my younger sister, Sweetie Belle. She’s... not good with strangers, what with us Thestrals being treated with trepidation, scorn, and... worse.” Her eyes falling away, her expression fell as well, becoming somber as she said, “The first thing I did when pushing past that brute was check on her, and apparently Rainbow had startled her and shouted at her about her order, which... is just further evidence of how rude she’s been lately.”

The other creature could understand the Pony’s priorities, as well as how taking care of her sister made her take longer than would be expected to get back outside, but Twilight also recalled when Rarity mentioned that ‘Sweetie’ name when they were heading back, though only after dealing with Rainbow did she now understand truly why Rarity was so worried about her.

Soon, some soft hoofsteps could be heard from the doorway, and Twilight could see through it the form of another Pony peeking inside. “Oh, come in, Sweetie,” Rarity called out the Pony with a roll of her eyes, prompting her sister to, after a couple more seconds of trepidation, move into view trot inside. With the lighting of the room, dim as it was, Twilight could make out the white colouration of the smaller Pony’s fur, as well as the bat wings on her sides as well as a curly pink and purple mane on her head, which helped frame her pink eyes that stared back with visible fear.

“Sweetie, this is Twilight,” Rarity introduced, gesturing towards the other adult, clearly eager to break up the tension between the other two creatures, “She’s a Zebra, and will be working at the library. She’s quite new to Ponyville, but is very nice and knowledgeable, so please show some respect to her, okay?”

Sweetie Belle didn’t immediately respond, only continuing to watch the striped creature for some more time, but eventually stuttered out, “H-how do I know you’re not g-gonna eat me..?”

The other Thestral heaved out a sigh, then looked over at Twilight herself, who was more confused by the odd accusation than perturbed by it, and so Rarity opted to explain, “There’s been some foal’s tales going around about a Zebra that lives in the Everfree and eats young foals... I do believe I’ve seen the Zebra myself, and.. if I recall, you mentioned that you knew her as well?”

“Yes, she is a close friend.. to me,” Twilight returned with an assured nod, “And she does live out in that Everfree. She, is quite safe from it, though.. and you shouldn’t consider her your foe. ..Zecora is her name,” She then added after a second of thought, “Though.. she does not want any fame. She is a shamaness and master of potions.. quite like that one that stopped Rainbow’s motions.”

“Ah, that would be quite useful, now wouldn’t it...” Rarity murmured to herself thoughtfully, but then looked back to the Zebra in the room with her and added, “Especially in that dreadful forest, too!”

Sweetie was more skeptical though, and still looked very uncomfortable with Twilight’s presence, but seemed to fidget with something held in one of her hooves, which Twilight didn’t notice when she entered. Eventually, she managed to look back over at her sister and ask of her, “Um, I was gonna ask if I could go and play with my friends...”

Rarity raised an eyebrow and looked pensive for a second, but then shrugged and replied, “Oh, sure. Give me that paper and you can go—but,” Her tone turned more stern, “Still, you must be back her before 9 AM, alright?”

“Okay..!” The filly nodded happily, but her emotion toned right back down when she looked over to Twilight again. Keeping her eyes on her, she moved over to the table and tossed the stack of papers she was holding onto it in front of her sister, before then quickly dashing out of the room, and not even a few seconds later, the main door could be heard opening, and then slamming shut.

Rarity sighed at that, clearly a little disappointed her sister was still so afraid of the Zebra. “Hmm, I probably should have reminded her to keep herself clean out there too...” She then muttered to herself, though her voice easily carried through the otherwise silent room.

“I... imagine that happens more than it should?” Twilight tentatively asked, though with how the other creature slowly turned her eyes back to her, she didn’t seem surprised that she was overheard. “Coming back here.. spraying dirt even as she stood?”

Laughing a bit to herself, the Thestral replied, “Oh, you have no idea, Darling. She gets up to a lot of crazy things with her friends, and yet somehow, nearly every single time, they end up covered in tree sap by the end of it. I’m thankful they only have so much time together each day, lest they get up to even worse things...”

That was an odd statement, but given the nature of the type of creature both Rarity and her sister were, Twilight had a hunch; “Her friends are not like you, right? They.. would be awake during sunlight?”

Rarity gave a bit of a smirk in appreciation of the other creature’s intelligence and affirmed, “That is correct. Those two friends of hers are diurnal, with Scootaloo being a Hippogryph, one that loves to follow that crass Rainbow Dash around, and the other, Apple Bloom, being an Earth Pony like the rest of her family. Which...” She paused for a moment, seeming to acknowledge that family in particular, “...Does cause some tension between them, as you can imagine.”

Twilight nodded in understanding, but with another moment of silence, she glanced back over to where Sweetie had left, and asked hesitantly of the other Thestral, “Sorry.. if this is odd, but may I ask why your sister’s eyes are pink? Thestrals’ eyes are all red.. or so I’ve been made to think.”

“Oh, that’s a common misconception,” Rarity returned, seeming just a bit exasperated by the question, “Red is just simply the most common colour of eyes for us. It’s far more common than others, and even then, many of them are red-adjacent, which you can see with Sweetie.

“Anyhow...” The Pony went on, picking up the ‘newspaper’ and looking over it for a second, them flipping it around and placing it on the table before Twilight, allowing her a moment to take in the front page: right near the top was in large, bold lettering, ‘Surprise Denounces Wonderbolts at Grand Galloping Gala’, and below that was a coloured image of a group of ten creatures on a stage within... what looked like Canterlot, given the white walls and stained glass windows behind the stage. Nine of the creatures were clad in a matching blue suit with yellow lightning bolt highlights, and they surrounded the final creature in an arc, all in varying degrees of anger, betrayal, and disbelief at the white pegasus with a curly yellow mane in the middle, who was holding what looked like a ripped-up suit that matched the other creatures’.

It was easy to tell that this ‘Surprise’ character was the pegasus in the center, and the ‘Wonderbolts’ were the creatures around her, angry that she had ‘denounced’ them, but without context, Twilight had no idea what to make of it. Thankfully, Rarity already seemed quite aware of that and, as the Zebra looked back up to her in intrigue, she begun with a question, “Tell me, Darling, does something seem... off about the group of creatures you can see here?” She gestured to the newspaper, clearly indicating the image on it.

Confused, Twilight looked back down at that image and at the creatures in particular..... After a few seconds, she tilted her head and replied tentatively, “Ponies make up most of this team.” That was a glaring issue now that she noticed it, and it raised a great many questions about these ‘Wonderbolts. “Nine Pegasi and one Gryphon... quite biased, it would seem.”

“Indeed,” Rarity confirmed, letting the other creature turn her attention back up to her, “And that was what Surprise wanted to call out there—or, rather, that was just a part of it. The Wonderbolts, it seems, are quite corrupt as of late, with this discrimination among the recruiting system being one major aspect of it. Based on what she has said, and what else has been dug up in investigations, the system was inherently biased towards Pegasi...

“I... don’t imagine you’ll understand the entirety of this, being unfamiliar with the team and unable to fly,” The Thestral spoke cautiously, “But the training and flight patterns the Wonderbolts go through generally revolve around quicker, sharper paths that are easier for Pegasi to perform, compared the larger forms of Gryphons and Dragons.” Twilight nodded in understanding after a moment, recalling seeing those creatures before and understanding how momentum worked, which let Rarity continue, “Those two races, as well as a few others, also are at the disadvantage of having claws, which can easily tear through the thin suits that are standard for the team. Just between you and me...” She spoke more quietly, almost conspiratorial as she leaned forward, “That was why Rainbow was here earlier; to get her suit stitched back up, with how easily those claws of hers tear it.”

That felt peculiar to the Zebra, even despite how little she knew of Equestrian business; “Do they truly have to do that..? Make these suits.. so delicate?”

“Mm, yes, it’s rather petty, isn’t it?” Rarity uttered back with an annoyed sigh, leaning her forelegs on the table while she looked down at the newspaper. “Apparently this is a ‘budget’ thing, despite how much the Wonderbolts makes in profits at all their shows. ...I believe Surprise only knew that it was cheap, and could be better,” She added after a moment, seeming thoughtful, “But I have other sources that elaborate on that. I... won’t say who they are, just to protect their privacy—nothing to do with yourself, I assure you,” She turned her eyes up to focus on Twilight, giving her a reassuring, though not all that happy smile.

“And there is far worse than just these matters as well,” The Thestral further continued, now with a more dour tone, “The Wonderbolts are used by the Equestrian military for assistance in certain events—no battles are fought with them, thankfully, but some evacuations are led by their rallying cry, scouting parties, which are more in tune with their actual speed and agility, taming out-of-control storms, and more that they are hardly properly trained for. And,” She continued, making Twilight cringe at the rapidly extending list of issues, “There has been some... unsavoury practices in regards to the team’s business practices.

“For context; they hold their shows at certain locations with various businesses helping provide for these events, boosting money gained for the business, and in turn, money is given to the Wonderbolts for their assistance.” Twilight nodded in comprehension, having a vague idea of a ‘business’ as a ‘group of creatures working together and producing a specific thing to make money’, which let Rarity keep going, “But, the team has generally partnered up with specific businesses repeatedly at these events, and with the profits generated for those businesses, it’s difficult for those businesses’ competitors to keep up, which ends up damaging the economy. Which is.. a similar idea to when I described other creatures taking over the Apples’ business.”

Pausing in thought, the woefully-out-of-her-depth Zebra managed to figure that the ‘competing businesses’ would be like the Apples in the previous metaphor, going out of business because of stronger opponents. Focusing back on Rarity to let the Pony further continue, “Some charities—which are groups formed without intention of making money, as they only serve to help creatures in need—also partner with the Wonderbolts on occasion, where all of the money generated at that specific event is to go to the charity, and even a single lost bit out of that is a high crime. Despite that, bits often do go missing at these events to facilitate after-parties for the team. Though... I will say, this seems to happen more out of failed business sense and lack of understanding on how to properly distribute funds than outright greed... but still.”

Twilight needed some more time to process all the information as the other creature left the thought hanging, and she eventually asked to confirm, “Correct me if I am wrong here... as all of this talk is horribly weird. But... these ‘Wonderbolts’ are mainly for show, and.. the problems come when they do things not on their own. They are, out of their depth in relative war, and.. they aren’t suited to work with businesses any more.”

“..I’d say that’s right, Darling,” Rarity returned tentatively, letting the silence breathe for a few seconds before she reached a hoof over and pointed at the picture, specifically at the center Pony, where she begun again, “But now, Surprise. This image doesn’t show her as she usually is; the jovial and excitable creature that loves having fun and hates making others sad, but... it all comes from her heart. This was a great sacrifice to make on her part—she’d been in the Wonderbolts for quite some time, as the forth longest-standing member of those in the team when she quit, in fact. The three above her, though?”

Leaning more forward, the Thestral pointed to specific Ponies in the image and described them: the first, a yellow mare with a fiery orange mane, and who looked especially angry at Surprise; “Spitfire, the Captain. She’s quite the firecracker, with a testy temper and goals of furthering the team’s fame.” The second was a stallion, very light blue with a dark blue mane, and he looked... scared; “Soarin’, the second-in-command. He’s rather calm and goes with what he’s told... for better or worse.” The last one was a cyan mare with an off-white mane, who looked bewildered; “Fleetfoot, a trusted friend of Spitfire, and who helps manage the team. She’s very relaxed and easy-going, and isn’t the best at upholding rules.

“Each of these three had a part to play in all the problems plaguing their team,” Rarity continued grimly, leaning back to let Twilight keep looking at the image, “Spitfire does most of the training and sets up the regimens, so she’s no doubt behind that aspect, which Surprise brought great issue with. Soarin’ managed the events they set up at, and given how he doesn’t act well on his own, it’s no surprise the business issues came from that. Fleetfoot keeps track of the team’s money, so the ‘budget’ issues with the suits and stealing from charities is at least partially on her.

“It’s one Tartarus of a conspiracy,” Rarity grumbled out, “And the only reason Surprise wasn’t inducted into it was because of her heart. Spitfire knew she couldn’t be trusted with, what she called in interviews, ‘managing the needs of the team’, citing Surprise’s general obliviousness to issues around her, which... I cannot entirely blame her for. Make no mistake, a very large reason—perhaps the main reason—why Surprise was kept in the dark was because of these crimes, but I don’t believe Surprise would’ve been good at managing a team like this, especially with how this whole thing slipped under her nose for so long... but when she did learn about it, she made sure to wait for months until the most creatures possible could be made known of it, and even quit the team and ripped off her suit there, just to make damned clear how bad these problems truly were.”

Twilight nodded as she understood the Pegasus’s mindset, and she soon found herself with a bit of a smile, even through the disgust pointed at the Wonderbolts. “That was.. quite brave of her,” She spoke with admiration, and looked up to Rarity, who also showed clear respect for the Pony in her eyes, “And very unlike her keepers. I... may never understand all the consequences that came of speaking out, but I know she must’ve lost a great amount.”

“And if only everyone else could have that conviction...” Rarity muttered in return, looking away for a second pensively. “To bring this conversation back to where it all began, with Rainbow Dash... She was, to put it lightly, furious at the news, and lashed out against anyone and everyone around her.” She heaved a sigh, no doubt able to recall how horrible the Hippogryph must’ve acted back then. “At first, her ire was directed towards anyone that spoke ill of the team, so utterly in denial of it... but with the mounting evidence from further interviews and some legal interrogations, as well as pressure from her friends—mostly Pinkie and Fluttershy—she di—”

“Wait, Fluttershy?!” Twilight interrupted in shock, the reserved and apologetic Kirin she encountered seeming so utterly opposed from the reckless and loud Hippogryph she had just dealt with.

The Thestral started a bit at the sudden outcry, but soon understood what it was about; “Yes, that did surprise me quite a lot, too. Apparently Fluttershy had just recently gotten to Ponyville at the time, and Rainbow was looking for a friend of hers when she happened upon the Kirin... Their first meeting did not go all that well,” She muttered morosely, “And I do believe Rainbow still has some burn scars from that under her fur, but...

“Well, Rainbow Dash is quite persistent,” Rarity continued with a hint of exasperation, good-natured though it was, “And she saw how Fluttershy got easily stressed out whenever she was in Ponyville proper, so she wanted to help the dear out with that terrible anxiety of hers. Believe it or not, she used to be quite a bit worse than she is now, jumping at her shadow and burning up whenever someone ever dared to harm her little animal friends.”

That sounded almost comical, how bad the Kirin’s fear was, but given what she had heard about the creature, she didn’t want to make light of such circumstances. Though, that all was dependent on words alone—her actual experience with Fluttershy was a far cry from that. “I suppose I cannot judge.. how she acts all that well, as when I spoke to her, her anger was impossible to quell. She was quite irate, at the time, and I did not help, nor did my rhymes.”

“Oh...” Rarity murmured in response, her tone dripping with concern, “I-I’m so sorry about that, Darling. I did say she used to be rather bad at controlling her emotions, but even now, it still can be difficult to reign that Nirik side of her... She.. didn’t hurt you, did she?”

The Zebra shook her head, recalling those cursed flames nearly singing her, “No... but she was closer than I’d like. Thankfully.. that Longma I spoke of stopped her without a single strike. Fluttershy... went back home, crying in sorrow, but the Longma said we should wait to confront her until tomorrow.”

Rarity closed her eyes and nodded in understanding, clearly still sorry about what Twilight had to deal with, but now trying to calm back down. “Sorry once again, Darling... as much as Rainbow Dash has helped the dear out, she’s still quite dangerous to be around, both for her and whoever else it may be...

“Regardless...” She uttered with a sigh, pushing past the topic, “Yes, Rainbow has been a close friend of hers for some years now, and both of them are better off for it. But even dear Fluttershy needed quite a while to get through to Rainbow that her favorite team was anything but perfect. However, without that ideal to live up to, and with the betrayal still stinging at her, she started caring far less about the consequences of her actions.”

Smiling to herself a bit wryly, Rarity then added, “As hard as it may be to believe now, a while before that news broke out, Rainbow had been considered for the weather team captain due to her strong charisma and leadership ability, even though Raindrops was the one to get the job, as she’s far more careful and respectful.”

That was quite difficult to believe for Twilight, but it sounded sincere... and if true, it really proved how greatly she was impacted from that news. But, that only brought a question to the forefront of her mind; “If Rainbow was so hurt by.. what the team has done, then why does she still.. find the idea of joining them fun?”

“I believe...” The other creature returned, putting a lot of emphasis on that term, “That she wishes to right their wrongs. The Wonderbolts have cleaned up their act somewhat since then, and have checkups making sure there isn’t any further under-the-table activity, but it’s difficult to properly deal with all of their issues. The Pegasi bias is more fundamentally baked into them, with the whole way they perform tricks being built upon the high agility of Pegasi... and they can always fall back on that response—of tuning their cadets towards high-agility, which has the side effect of neglecting other species. A lot of other jobs have that sort of bias baked into them as well—Earth Ponies are still good at farming with their type of magic, and the precision of a Unicorn or Kirin horn helps one apply into academia, so what the Wonderbolts are doing isn’t wrong, per se... but the intent of does still seem quite narrow-minded and driven by some level of discrimination.

“And that’s not even addressing the pettier aspects, like with the suits, which...” She groaned out a breath, “You cannot even blame money on that. Not only do they have a lot to go around, based on the high-class apartments the Captain and her close subordinates live in, but I’m rather sure the cost of just.. investing in better suits from the start would more than outweigh the cost of all the bloody replacements they have. Now, I can’t fathom how Rainbow Dash would plan to address those issues,” She rolled her eyes with a smirk, “But I do respect that goal. I do suppose she does stand a better chance now that she isn’t so... maddeningly reckless, but still.”

Twilight slowly nodded in return, “It took her quite some time to deal with her own fears... so I can only imagine how long it will take to help out her peers. I believe.. it was only how you spoke to her.. eyes blood red and tone filled with anger, that ended up, showing her how bad her actions were, though I don’t know if the others.. have the same sympathy as her.”

“They may not...” Rarity uttered back, then took a deep breath, gave a wry smile, and finished, “But I suppose we’ll have to hold out some hope for them. Quite a lot of young fliers’ hopes and dreams are riding upon it, after all.”

Author's Note

Wow, I did not mean for this one to be this long.
It’s just with all I meant to address, and how I kept getting other stuff pulled into it... I do hope this chapter does still come across as coherent.

I did mean to address some other stuff about Ponyville, like Rarity’s other friends, as well as about Equestria in general, primarily that of Celestia and Luna, but they seemed little more than passing mentions that were unrelated to the main topics, so I left them out.
I do still mean to discuss those later, but not right now.

Next chapter... well, there’s one more of the Mane 6 we need to really address, and we’ll see a lot of her there.
Plus, that TFH tag ain’t for just one character, and they’ll be popping up there too! They probably won’t take too well to it, though...