*SPOILERS* On Today's Chapter · 4:45pm Sep 30th, 2015
So, there was a decision made in today's chapter, that I'm expecting to generate some... discussion. That would be the polite way of putting it. There's a very long story about it, which is what this blog post is meant to cover, but if you haven't read the chapter, you should probably go read it here, and then come back to read my explanation and tell me how terrible I am.
Are you back? Welcome back. So, Rarity is Sweetie's mother. That's been... actually, I've been hinting at it since chapter seven of The Unbearable Lightness, but let's dive in to how I arrived at this decision.
First, for the germ of it, we go back to BronyCon 2014, where I was talking with someone who used this angle in one of their stories. At the time, figuring out what the hell to do with Sweetie's parents was a major damn problem for me, because I just couldn't think of anything I wanted them to do, so something about the idea just rattled around in my head for a few weeks. Eventually, I decided to go ahead with it, but I did it for the wrongest reasons. Originally, it was going to be a reveal to cause a bunch of damned drama in Sweetie's life, but the magnificent as always EquesTRON pointed out that Sweetie had more than enough drama in her life, so I cooled off on the idea, but I didn't scrap it completely. Instead, I decided it would just be something that was hinted at, and if readers picked up on it, then they got marks for being a close reader.
Flash forward to me outlining this Rarity story, and here's where things get tricky. All the guilt she's been feeling is directly because of her actions with Sweetie, she isn't just atoning for being an aloof big sister during those early years, she's atoning for giving her daughter to two ponies she knew would neglect her. That guilt is literally driving her crazy, and if she's going to have a happy ending, she has to deal with that damn problem. If I committed to this story, it would need to be addressed at some point during it.
So there it was, I had a twist I'd been foreshadowing for 150,000 words finally coming to light, and I decided that the best way to deal with it was to make the reveal a source of healing instead of a source of drama. Rarity doesn't go more insane, she finally deals with an issue she's been denying for years and overcomes a lot of the guilt that's been plaguing her since... for a very long time.
Ultimately, I decided I could only do this twist if the revelation of truth was a source of healing and empowerment for Rarity and not just a cause of cheap soap opera drama. I hope that was reflected in this chapter, and I hope it's reflected in a future chapter of Your Own Worst Enemy. Now that you've heard all my justifications, feel free to tell me why you don't like it (or maybe you do like it, what do I know?)
Heh heh. That's always sort of been my headcanon, although I don't think I used it in any stories.
It's alright. But I think Twilight react too kindly with this news, especially the animosity Rarity has toward her parents
I guess my only issue with it is the timeline. How old Rarity was when she had Sweetie and how old she is now.
I'm guessing from the chapter Rarity is 30-32 years old.
3432953 Well, Rarity's not quite thirty, but ponies develop faster than humans, so a 13 year old pony would be treated like a 16 year old human. That's why it was fine for the 13/14 year old Sweetie to move off to Manehattan.
I haven't read the chapter yet - but, I called it :P (Mentally at least)