//------------------------------// // Scene 6 // Story: Rarity's Warming Eve // by Silver Letter //------------------------------// Rarity’s eyes cracked open. She had to tug as if the rims of her eyelids were made of ice. Makeup into black ice. She crawled at first then stood on her hooves. She looked outside. The clouds were so thick that it looked like smoke. The light added a blue haze to everything and her breath could easily be seen against it. She knew the fire was dead. Her tea had frozen over and the steam had turned into a layer of ice that coated the top shelf and the countertop below, gleaming like glass. She stumbled into the parlor. The whole place was otherworldly like she had gone to sleep for a thousand years and the whole world had forgotten warmth and love. She remembered that Sweetie was gone. She rushed to the window and rubbed the condensation off to look outside. The filly was nowhere to be seen. How could she do that to her? Run off in such weather? Her frustration waned as she saw the ferocity of the winds. Even the trees bent from its immense power. She had never seen such an extreme winter since she went to the Crystal Empire. And her sister was out there, doing something foolish as usual. She should have done something to stop her instead of wallowing in her selfish pity. There was no time for that now. She bucked the door and it groaned. Two more and it snapped off its hinges. She jumped out into the dense snow. A wave of icy wind flowed against the ground, slapping her hard. In the first five seconds, she barely dodged her own mailbox which was uprooted and flung across the yard. She focused and concentrated her magic into her horn. She smelled something unique and refined. The gem her sister wore around her neck. Her special talent can find gems anywhere but not just through sight but smell too. Like Applejack can tell her what kind of apple she is holding behind her back, Rarity can track gems even at a distance. She can tell exactly where her sister went even without the aid of tracks. She threw herself into the thick of the storm. She could barely see beyond the first hill but she didn’t need to. It all looked the same now. The roads were gone with nothing but fence posts sticking over the growing field of snow. She panted and it seemed even that release of heat was enough to melt some of the ice that clung to her fur. She could tell that the smell was taking her away from the road. Coco must have gotten lost. Caught in the sudden blizzard. It means they could be anywhere. She threw a grim glance at the distant forest. The trees seemed to wave like reeds. She hoped that Coco would be smart enough not to venture in there. Doing so would do little more than to teach her that the cold isn’t the only thing that can bite. It wasn’t too late to turn back. She’s sure that Twilight would find some wisdom in it. After all, it was nearly impossible to see and all she had going for her was a faint scent leading her into places unknown. But she also knew that there was little place for wisdom in what she was doing. It was about two things: her family and if she’s lucky enough, the friendship she hopes still exists. She gallops to the end of a long field. She slid down a bank and dropped onto a road. It curved around a hill and she came to a secluded bridge with a darkened canopy above it, an awning of bare wood. Between the streaks of light, two ponies leaned against the railing and peered into the frozen stream below. Rarity walked slowly, letting her rhythm of her heart return to normal. Coco and Sweetie weren’t talking. They looked like they were counting the flakes of snow which drifted on the ice below. A part of the railing was devoid of it. It looked to have been swept aside. As Rarity walked around to the bridge, she saw a hole in the ice. Her sister watched her walk close. “Rarity? What are you doing here?” she asked. “I was just worried about you….both of you”. “You didn’t have to come here. I had this handled on my own” Sweetie replied, a flair of her independence making itself heard. “She’s safe with me. You know that”. Rarity had been in such a rush that she barely knew what to say. Was Sweetie right? If her generosity was truly a burden then she needed to hear it for herself. She needed to know if part of her entire life had been a lie. What other possibility could there be? “I didn’t have to come but I needed to, Sweetie”. “What do you mean”? Rarity made sure that her words could be heard clearly even though it wouldn’t be hard with the trees and canopy naturally slowing the wind. She wanted them to reach Coco even if she pretended not to listen. “Because being by a friend’s side is more important than anything else. Didn’t you learn anything in Manehattan? Maybe it was different than what I took with me. Maybe you just forgot it. I was like that once because it’s easy to overlook it when we’re alone. I won’t deny it now. If it wasn’t for my friendships, I wouldn’t be the mare I am now, standing in the middle of a snowstorm”. “You’re right. I did forget” Coco said. Her face looked conflicted as if two sides of her had been pulling her in two different directions. “After you helped me get that job with the theatre, I was at the highest point in my entire life. Suddenly ponies that wouldn’t have wanted anything to do with me before were giving me the kind of attention I never had. Everypony wanted to be my friend and I guess I just forgot the value of it. I slipped into a familiar pattern, only much worse than before. I desired more than I could even handle. Honestly, I thought I could do the same here. That’s why I really came”. Rarity frowned. “And I was just trying to help, maybe teach you what I knew”. “I know now. Your sister found me here. We talked for a while”. When she looked at the filly, it was as if the Manehattan mare changed somehow. The cold of Ponyville, instead of insulating her from friendships and empathy, had brought out the purity that was just kept frozen inside. Sweetie blushed but flashed a brilliant smile. “You can’t deny yourself, Rarity” Coco continued. “You’re not just a friend. You’re a teacher too. It’s the generous nature that shines within you. Never give that up”. Rarity flicked a tear from her eye before it would fall and freeze on her cheek. “Thank you, Sweetie Belle”. She put a hoof around the filly, holding her close. “I’m sorry for what happened” Coco said. “You’re not Suri and neither am I. There’s no reason why we can’t be close. Don’t you still have much to teach me”? “Well yes, but only on one condition” Rarity declared. “Our friendship must always come first”. Coco grinned and sat next to her. “I am certain of this more than ever”. The three of them shared one huge hug and they talked and laughed for an hour until the wind died down and they walked through the snow back home. It was the best trek through an icy field that Rarity has ever had. Sometimes when two ponies, even if they’re friends, try to work together, they might not see eye to eye even when it seems they’ll be a perfect fit. It doesn’t always work out in the end. Some friendships don’t even survive when two ponies start to see each other as rivals. I’ll never let that happen between me and my friends. I’ll always be willing to give as well as take. Because that’s who I am. “Rarity! C’mon”! Rarity turned around and saw Coco wave her over as she pushed a row of costumes into the building where the Hearth’s Warming Eve play was to be held that evening. Sweetie was telling the workers where to take the armor. They had done it with no time to spare. It was just like she imagined it would be. She put a new marker into the friendship diary and hurried backstage where her friend was waiting. THE END