Two Nights in Paradise

“We need to do something about Dad.” Rarity glanced at the dining room table to her right between sips of tea.

“It is getting rather irksome.”

Sweetie Belle's glaring was far less subtle, but it didn’t make much of a difference. The small silver ring between his fingers took all his attention. The mornings where he wasn't fiddling with it were few and far between. After a pitiable grunt, Sweetie was back to her glass of OJ.

“It’s stressing’ me out!” she grumbled, draining the entire thing in a few gulps. More than a little worrying considering how much vodka she mixed in. Rarity glanced over at him again and caught him raising it to the light. The pain behind his eyes was enough to make her wince.

“You should cut him some slack, Sweetie,” warned Rarity, shaking her head. “Imagine the stress he’s going through. Let’s be thankful we only have one drunken mess in this house.”

‘Whatever. We gotta do something.” Eyebrow raised, Rarity returned to Sweetie Belle.
“Any ideas, or did you just want to whine about it?” Sweetie scoffed, then fished in the pockets of her daisy dukes. Pulling her phone out, she tapped a few icons and pushed the screen in her face.

“Royal Bay Ocean Resort. Your one-way ticket to paradise.” Rarity took the phone from Sweetie Belle’s hand. “This place has got it all. Ocean view, five-star restaurants, tourism around every corner!” Sweetie crossed her arms over her chest with a smug look on her face. “Dad spends a couple nights here and he’ll forget about Mom faster than it takes my boyfriend to—”

“Did you call me, Sweetie?” Both girls flinched, then looked back at the dining room table. There sat something more like a zombie than a man. Eyes red and sunken from sobbing and sleeping troubles. An unruly beard covered his entire face for the first time in years. His hair was greasy and unkempt. Misery even oozed out of his body language as he slumped over the table. He scanned their expressions, then returned to the ring. “Guess not, then…”

“H-Hold on, Dad!” Rarity strode to the table, then laid Sweetie Belle’s phone down between them. “It’s been a… rough few months since the incident.” Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes as she approached. Rarity called it the incident in an attempt to soften the blow, but even that was losing its efficacy. “But Sweetie Belle and I—”

“And I.” Sweetie scoffed.

“We thought it would be a good idea to get out of the house for a bit and go on a vacation!” Hondo's ear twitched. He craned downward and scanned the virtual brochure in silence.

“Girls…" He shook his head squeezing the ring between his fingers. "I appreciate it... I really do. But I’ll be fine. I just need some time.”

“C’mon Dad, Mom left like 4 months ago.” Hondo winced, then huffed like he took a punch to the gut. Rarity figured a sharp elbow to Sweetie's stomach was an appropriate response. “Geez, what the hell? I'm just stating facts!”

“You'd do well to learn something called 'tact',” said Rarity, flashing her sister an angry glare. “Ignoring her comments... you should take as much time as you need. But this may not be the best place to heal. Surrounded by, erm... memories, and all.” Hondo looked again, eyes narrowed. She placed a hand on his shoulder and rubbed. "Couldn't hurt to try, right?"

“No... I suppose not.” The words barely left his mouth before Sweetie scooped up her phone.

“Perfect! I’ll set you two up with tickets now.” She turned away from the table, heading back to her glass on the counter. “You guys wanna go as soon as possible? Peak season is creeping up and you don’t wanna miss your chance.”

“Oh?” Rarity snagged the back of Sweetie’s shirt, keeping her from slipping away. After pulling her in, she narrowed her eyes. “This ‘you guys' seems to leave out an important person.”
“I have important business to attend to!” she cried.

"You don't even know when we'll be leaving," Rarity replied. "And last I checked, throwing parties is not considered 'important business'." She knew she had her sister's scheme solved by her agitated expression. "Not to mention the expenses. How exactly would you have paid for this?"

“Rumble’s loaded.” She flashed Rarity a smirk. “And he does whatever mommy says.”
“I wish I hadn’t asked…” She shook her head, then let Sweetie go. “I’ll put it to you like this. You’re going to be in that car when we leave. If you have a place to sleep when we get there, it's up to you.”

The ferocity of Sweetie's stank eye could kill an elephant. But it was useless in the face of Rarity’s authority. Their showdown continued for a few moments longer before Sweetie gave in with a huff. She turned on her heel, grabbed her glass from the kitchen, then stomped away. Rarity sighed, then turned back to Hondo. Again, he watched the ring, back and forth between his fingers.

The fury of a God bubbled up inside of Sweetie as she plopped down in her desk chair. There’s no way she’d admit it, but Rarity completely read her intentions earlier. There was no way she wouldn’t party with her two roadblocks gone for a weekend.

But there was no use crying over spilled milk. She knew that much at least. Revenge was already on her mind, but she didn't expect to stumble on a plan so quick.

It happened as she scrolled through the website to find herself a suitable ticket. Under the section advertising the many packages they offer. Sweetie meant to scroll through this when an interesting package caught her eye. She tapped it, bringing up the deal in all its embarrassing glory. Expensive, but all worth it if she managed to pull it off. A smile crept onto her face as her new scheme brewed.

"Oh, that's good...” She tapped through the screens and ordered the package. Once the confirmation message popped, she giggled. She set her phone down and savored the last few drops of her drink. “Looks like we'll all enjoy ourselves...”

Their first step onto the resort's ground felt like stepping into the brochure itself. The heat screamed July despite it being March. The calming salty scent of the sea drifted with the breeze and through her hair. She closed the door of the car and peered through her sunglasses down the parking lot. At the end was a large structure planted right on the beach: The Royal Bay’s main building.

“We got here early. Check-in isn’t for another 45 minutes.” Rarity looked behind her as Hondo closed the driver’s side door. The wind blew through his typical Hawaiian shirt and khaki shorts. Without a pair of sunglasses, he had to squint to see past the blazing sun.

“It shouldn’t be a problem.” Rarity tapped her knuckles on the window of her door. “Come on, Sweetie. You’re getting out too.” A muffled groan turned to a full one once Sweetie stepped out of the car. With her door shut, Hondo locked the car and popped the trunk. “Oh, please. Only you could get so annoyed over a resort vacation.”

“You wouldn’t be so hyped if you had to pay for a trip you didn’t want to go on.” Rarity shook her head and sighed.

“I’ve offered to reimburse you plenty of times on the way here.” Hondo moved past her to the trunk, hoisting their luggage out. Rarity joined his side, pulling the other bags out and over her shoulders. “Anyway, let’s get inside. Need any help with those, Dad?”

“No... I’ll manage." He clutched their suitcases close and headed toward the building. Despite her best efforts, Rarity couldn’t keep the worry from showing through on her face. He’d cleaned himself up for the trip, but there was still something off. Darkness still brewed over him, like a raincloud, no matter how much he shaped up. Rarity shook her head, then took a deep breath. It was fine. This is what they were here to fix.

The trio met a refreshing blast of frigid cool air blowing from an AC right above the door. The lobby was large and lavish, but empty. High-quality furniture, chandeliers, big windows shiny granite tiles. A classy location for sure, one Rarity could enjoy. At the far end was the reception, their destination.

“Good morning.” Rarity approached the nearest clerk. A woman whose left breast pocket name tag read “Prim Posy''. She had a cool demeanor about her, amplified by the resort’s fancy blazer uniform. “We’re here to check in, though we may be a bit early.” Prim gave them a friendly smile.

“Of course.” The computer on her left booted to life as she tapped it. “Reservation number?”

“Yes. Right…” Rarity tapped her pockets, finding nothing on either side. She fished into her purse and found the same. She hummed, then looked behind her. “Looks like I left my phone in the car… Dad, do you have the number?”

“I think I took a picture of it...” Hondo pulled out his own phone and soon found it. He handed it over to the receptionist, who copied it in a few high-speed taps.

“Thank you.” She tapped on her keyboard for a second longer before she came to a quick stop. Her eyes flicked between the screen and the pair standing in front of her. Blinking a few times and clearing her throat, she continued. “Rarity and Hondo Flanks?”

“Correct,” chimed Rarity, happy their reservation didn’t have any problems. Prim scrolled down the page she was looking at before comparing what she saw on screen to the real deal.

“P-Pardon me asking, but… you two are father and daughter, yes?” Rarity raised an eyebrow.

“Yes…” This time, her confusion was obvious. “Is there a problem?”

“No, no, there’s no problem,” she cleared her throat again. “It’s just… the suite you reserved is for—”

“Hey, if this reservation is going to take all day, could I at least get a drink first?” Sweetie Belle’s rude interruption managed to throw the receptionist off guard. Rarity glared at her but found a sly smirk looking back at her. “I hear your bare stocks like a million different cocktails. I’m gonna need every single one of them.”

“Doesn’t sound too bad,” said Hondo. Rarity bit her lip, then shook her head.

“It does sound that bad,” she said, all but growling at the little menace. “We’re going to enjoy this vacation in a healthy way. So no midday drinking.” Rarity turned back to Prim, her determination shocking the poor woman. “If everything is in order, we’d like to get going, please.”

“Of course…” After a few more seconds of tapping, she slipped a pair of keycards over the desk. They were simple, cheap bits of plastic, but they looked nice. Their pair came with plenty of hearts bubbling up from the bottom. Rarity thought little of it as she shoved it into her purse and handed her father his copy. “We hope you enjoy your stay…”

“I’ll take your bags for you.” The voice came from their side, a young man wearing the same clothes as Prim. Another person game to assist, accepting the suitcases that Hondo handed to them. The only exception was Sweetie’s who had yet to check in.

“Finally…” Sweetie Belle slipped past the pair and showed Prim her phone. Like before, she began tapping away on her computer as she searched for the reservation. “If you two need me, I’ll be at the bar.” Rarity sighed, then shook her head.

“I’d appreciate it if you could keep her on a short leash, please.” Prim looked between the two sisters, then nodded. “Then that only leaves us to have a bit of fun, then!” Rarity tapped Hondo on the back, then wheeled him out to the entrance. “How about a stroll on the boardwalk? I hear there’s a café with madeleines to die for!” Sweetie watched without a word, that smug smile still plastered on her face. Once they were gone, Prim's typing came to a slow stop.

“Are those two…” Sweetie Belle chuckled, then shook her head.

“They’ve got no idea,” she answered. “They made me come along on this trip, so I pranked them with their reservation rooms.” She chuckled again. “Can’t wait to see the look on their faces.”

“What a prank idea…” Prim took a deep breath, seeming more relieved than before. “I suppose I should expect a room transfer by tomorrow?”

“Yeah, probably.” She leaned in, her smirk turning a little more devious. “Now about those cocktails…”