Nightmare Moon's Tiny Adversary

by CommanderX5

Trials - Rarity of Generosity

Twilight Sparkle was brooding.

She had her first encounter with a sea serpent just a moment ago. Not quite what she imagined it to be, but at least she hadn’t gotten herself eaten twice in the same evening. Instead, the serpent proved to be a great help in crossing the massive river, which wasn’t completely necessary, but certainly helpful. The hurdle was passed with little incident, and there should have been no reason to continue to think about it.

And yet...

Twilight turned to Rarity, or more specifically, the little brush of tail that was left after she had cut the rest off to soothe the serpent’s shattered composure, and frowned. This whole time, she thought that she understood Rarity, but now she was having serious doubts. Showing false compassion in order to curry favor was fairly common among the nobles, but to offer something so personal to her to a sea serpent the size of a small tower with no bargaining, no threats, and no sly requests for repayment was another story. She had done nothing except… give.

Twilight flopped down on Applejack’s back, resting her head against the orange fur as her ears drooped a bit. Had I jumped to a false conclusion about Rarity? Now that I think about it, she doesn’t have much to gain from coming with us. If anything, she’s put herself in real danger against the manticore only a while back.

Twilight drew in a deep breath and pushed herself to her hooves. I wish I could find out what she’s thinking without asking her, but I need to know somehow. “Miss Rarity, would you mind if I ask you a question or two?”

Rarity stiffened at the tiny mare’s voice before putting on an obviously forced smile and turning to her. "C-certainly, Twilight. What would you like to know?"

“Well, you see… After our first meeting, I got the impression that you cared a lot about appearances, and yet just a moment ago, you gave up your entire tail to a stranger. Why?”

Rarity tossed back her curls and raised her chin with pride. "Why, to help that poor creature, of course! He goes out of his way to warn the Royal Guards about the dangers further in the forest and what does he get? He gets half of his magnificent mustache shaved off by the sword of some ungrateful soldier. Whoever that guard was who attacked him like that should be ashamed, striking such a handsome, young sea serpent as if he was a savage beast. Oooh, the nerve! I should give that callous brute a piece of my mind. Royal Guard? More like a royal pain," she said, snorting in derision before turning back to Twilight.

The tiny mare simply raised an eyebrow, looking at the fashionista as if she had gone a bit crazy.

Rarity cleared her throat. "Oh, and I thought it might expedite our trip across the river as well, dear. It seemed a bit unfair to make the three pegasi in the group carry everypony else over, so when the opportunity presented itself, I took it. I suppose I may have gone a little overboard, but there were principles at stake."

Twilight blinked. “Well… I’m really surprised, actually. I would never expect a noble from Canterlot to help out a giant serpent, let alone somepony who aspires to be a noble like you,” she said, looking away apologetically. ”I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have judged a book by its cover.”

Rarity let out a giggle. “Oh, darling. Surely any noble from Canterlot would help out a pony—or in this case, sea serpent—in need. They are, after all—”

“You've never spent time with the nobility at all, have you?” Twilight Sparkle interrupted.

Rarity seemed startled by the question. “Well, not for nearly enough time. I've never been invited to one of their parties, but from what I've been able to see, they always seemed to be the very picture of elegance and grace. I could only wish to become as inspiring as they are and use my position to help those in need, like how I helped our serpent friend.”

Twilight let out a groan, burying her face in her hooves and trying to decide whether laughing or crying was the more appropriate response. "Rarity, I could count all of the nobles in Canterlot who are as benevolent as you described, not including Princess Celestia, on my hooves. Without sitting down." Well, technically, I’d have to balance on a single hoof if I count Blueblood, Fleur, and Fancy Pants, but it works.

Rarity blinked in confusion. “Whatever do you mean, dear? Are you not a noble yourself? You seem like a kind and gentle pony to me, so willing to assist those in need.”

Twilight let out a snort. “My family may be lesser nobility, but it does not make us any better than ponies from the other classes. House Sparkle has always been focused on self-improvement and magical development rather than social foolishness. My parents worked for the respect they have in the community, and that's something you can't get by just throwing money around."

Twilight turned to Rarity, who had gone silent, and asked in a soft tone, “I need to know, Rarity. Why did you give me all those gifts when we first met?”

Rarity rubbed her neck nervously, a drop of sweat sliding down on her forehead. “To apologize, of course. I have never met any of the nobility in person, but I always thought that it was important to treat higher class ponies with respect, so when I found out that I had treated the princess’s protege like filth, I had to make amends somehow,” she said, lowering her head with a sigh. “To be honest, I never thought the nobility could be anything less than perfect. I just thought they were all like you: brave, kind, and a true example what it means to be a member of a high class society.”

The fashionista looked up, taking in a deep breath. “I want to apologize, Twilight Sparkle, and not just for how I treated you when I thought you were a… mouse.” Rarity said. A hint of a grimace showed on her face briefly before she caught herself, giving Twilight a look of admiration. “I wanted to become friends with you, impress you, because I thought you were everything I wanted to be. I thought that if I befriended you, I could learn from you and so advance on my own path into greatness and nobility. The thought of gaining a friend from Canterlot was… thrilling, but my approach was less than tactful, and for that I would like to ask for your forgiveness.”

Twilight scrutinized Rarity carefully, taken aback by her words. It took a moment, but eventually, a smile creeped onto Twilight’s face, and she nodded happily at the white mare.

Applejack, however, turned to Rarity with a suspicious glare. “Ya' say a lot about how much ya' respect th’ nobility, Rarity, but ya' can’t seem to think of farmers and workers as anythin’ other than ruffians, do ya'? Be honest here.”

The white mare turned to Applejack with a guilty grimace. “That is… not far from the truth. I find you and your family’s manners to be absolutely appalling. You don’t even care about trying to look half presentable, walking around like that with dirt and sweat everywhere. Why, you could do so much with a mane like that if you would just get it washed, conditioned, and styled, possibly swept back over a shoulder with a few ribbons, green perhaps to go with your eyes, and then your tail would look just ravishing with a few…”

She cleared her throat quickly when she realized the other ponies were staring at her uncomprehendingly. “Beg pardon. Just a little aside there, so where was I? Oh yes, I remember now. Your accent. It’s just so rough and uncouth. I swear there’s just a touch of a Manehattan upbringing in there, but you cover it up so crudely. You remind me of everything I abhor in my own parents.”

Applejack frowned, furrowing her eyebrows as she maintaining eye contact.

Rarity let out a sigh. “Even if I think a lot about you could be refined, that doesn’t mean I don’t respect what you and your family do. Your apple trees are incredibly important to Ponyville’s future, and it’s not fair of me to call you a ‘ruffian’ when you need to tend to them. As much as it’s worth, I would like to apologize for my behavior towards you as well.”

Rarity lowered her head respectfully as she waited for an answer from Applejack, but she didn’t have to wait long before the farm mare drew her into a brief hug with a foreleg, grinning. "Ahh, that's all right. Tain't nothin’ to forgive, and besides, Ah ain't none too appreciative of ponies wastin' their time with pointless appearances and fancy stuff when there's work to be done."

Applejack released Rarity, drawing herself up and sweeping her hat down over her chest with a graceful motion. "As for my accent,” she said in an accent that would have been at home in any sophisticated function, “when I visited Manehattan as a filly, I was educated in the ways of proper deportment and behavior by my aunt and uncle, but I find such behavior to be supercilious in a rural environment."

Rarity blinked.

Applejack cleared her throat and put her hat back on her head. “S’not exactly somethin’ I publicize.”

Rarity waited just a little while longer before she ventured, "So... no hard feelings?"

The farm mare simply shrugged. "Ya' may act all high and fancy, but yer always polite an’ fair to everypony s’far as Ah’m concerned."

“Applejack’s right,” added Fluttershy. “You always do your best, and I've never seen anypony come out of your shop unhappy. Even if they don't have many bits, your customers always seem to find what they want for a price they can afford, and that's not counting the gifts you give away.”

“Whoawhoawhoa, she gives away gifts?” Twilight asked in surprise. “I thought that she showered me with clothes because I was the princess’s student.”

“Naaaaaah,” Pinkie added, jumping in front of Rarity. “She gives every new pony a gift, kinda like how I throw a ‘Welcome To Ponyville party’ for everypony.”

Rarity started to say something, but Twilight cut her off with a wave of a hoof. “No, that’s enough, Rarity. I judged you unfairly and even suspected that you had hidden motives when you risked your own life to fight the manticore. I’m ashamed of my own foolishness, so this time, I would like to be the one to ask you for your forgiveness.”

Rarity turned red, caught off guard. “W-why yes, of course I do, as long as you can forgive me as well.”

Twilight smiled and nodded. “Sounds good for me. Let’s start with a clean plate.”

“So does that mean that you’ll—”

"I'm still going to pay for my clothes. No discounts, and no trying to find a workaround," Twilight insisted sternly before turning conclusively to look ahead. “But I’d love to see a few of your wares. When we get the time, of course.”

“Hey, Rarity,” Overwatch butt in with a wide grin. “I know Twilight may not want any free, pretty dresses, but I’d be happy to take any gifts you’re willing to offer.”

Steel Blade turned quickly to his fellow guard with a frown. “Oh come on, Overwatch. Really? At least use a bit of subtlety when you’re trying to mooch free stuff off of other ponies,” he said, before his expression turned curious. “But I never expected that you’d be interested in dresses, nevermind your own appearance besides that scarf you wear all the time.”

“What are you talking about, Steelie?” Overwatch said with an alluring look. “I am all about appearances, something you should pay more attention to, by the way. You look pretty sharp in a suit when you actually do dress up.”

“Something you force me into, half the time,” Steel Blade grumbled.

“Umm, I don’t mean to interrupt or anything but umm…” Fluttershy said meekly, noticing a pause in the conversation, “there’s a really big chasm ahead, and I think the bridge is falling down it right now.”