//------------------------------//
// Regrets 
// Story: The Mysteries of Love 
// by MysteriousStranger 
//------------------------------//

Rarity's P.O.V.

I'm the worst person in the world! What was wrong with me?! All I had been thinking about the past week was Trixie. I could only think on how would it feel to be in a relationship with her. How would our dates be. I had been dreaming on Trixie telling me that she has romantic feelings to me. Why did I say no?!

The moment my dreams became true, I listened to the part of me that still refuses to admit that I have feelings for Trixie! All I had to do was embrace her and tell her that I felt the same way, but noooooo! Of course I had to blow it up. Trixie wasn't looking well. Nicely done, Rarity.

"I... Rarity, I... I need time... I-I'll talk to you later..." Trixie released my hand and ran away. I watched her leave, in silence. What else could I do? It was done. I probably ruined my only chance to date her. I'll give her the space she wants while I clear my mind. Maybe make a few calls. Sweetie Belle was really looking forward to the day Trixie and I dated. What am I supposed to tell her? Clementine... he trusted me, and I just sent him Trixie running to his arms in despair. I needed to go home and yell into my pillow.

I messed up. I messed up bad. My thoughts were driving me crazy. I should have told her the truth. I should have told her that I like her back, but part of me is still telling me that I'm straight. Trixie, please forgive me. If only you knew what I really see in you... but I couldn't find the right words at the moment... I'm so sorry.

"Sis, you're back! How did the date go?" Sweetie Belle was waiting for me at the entrance, but I ignored her. I walked straight to my room and jumped on my bed to yell into my pillow. I didn't stop the tears and sobs from coming. I needed to get all the pain out, but the guilt remained. This had to be the worst possible thing I ever did.

Only the sound of someone knocking on my door stopped my tears. "Rarity? Are you okay? What happened?"

My sister. Oh, my dear sister. She was so excited about this day as much as I was. How am I going to tell her what I did? I removed my head from the pillow and realized it got stained by my makeup. My face must be a disaster right now. I'll have to clean it later.

"Come in, Sweetie Belle..." I cleared my tears before my sister opened the door. She rested her back on the door to close it and remained there. Of course, she knew something was wrong. She looked worried.

"I'm sorry for the joke. I know you said it couldn't be considered one if only you saw it as a date..."

"No, it's not that." I sat on the bed and patted on it to ask Sweetie Belle to sit next to me. She walked towards me in silence and sat with her hands between her legs, looking down. The room was quiet. Only the sound of our breathing could be heard. I had to think on where to begin. Will my sister be disappointed of me for chickening out? "There has been... complications..."

"What kind of complications? Did you two argue again? She doesn't wants to be around you anymore?"

"No, no, no. It's... the complete opposite."

"I don't understand..." Sweetie Belle was confused and I was getting more and more nervous. Please, don't hate me...

"It turns out... Trixie has feelings for me. She likes me. She confessed to me today..."

"Really, she does?!" My sister grinned, but she quickly remembered I wasn't happy. "But... isn't that what you wanted?"

I nodded and looked at my sister. "Yes, it's exactly what I wanted. But she took me by surprise. Everything happened so fast, I panicked and... I-I rejected her... feelings..."

Sweetie Belle gasped. "You what?! Rarity, why? Why did you lie?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe because I assumed Trixie would never like me. Maybe because I wasn't prepared. I have only liked her for around a week. I'm still adapting. I... I hurt her. Surely, she won't talk to me and neither will you!" I covered my face and started to cry again. I wasn't lying when I told her I wasn't sure why I rejected Trixie's feelings. My mind was a mess!

Suddenly, while I was crying, I felt Sweetie Belle's hands around me. I moved my hands slightly to unblock my eyes and gaze at my sister. I couldn't see her face, but she was hug me. She didn't hate me?

"Sis... I won't stop talking to you. I still love you. I'm just... sad. You like Trixie so much and you said the opposite of what you wanted to say. You just made a mistake..."

"A horrible mistake. I lied to the girl I have a huge crush on and I made her miserable. We should be hugging, not locked into our respective rooms! I will never forgive myself!"

"Maybe you can fix this somehow. I'm sure you will think on something."

You think so?" My sister smiled at me and nodded. I cleared my tears again before hugging her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." She grinned and kept staring at me. Maybe I could fix this mess, but I couldn't think properly right now.

"You might be right, Sweetie Belle, but I need to calm down first. I need a distraction."

"I will help you. I will tell you about what Apple Bloom and I did to Scootaloo when she fell asleep in art class yesterday."

"Oh, no. What did you do?"

"It was my idea. I painted fake eyes on her eyelids and whiskers. The fake eyes seemed to work, until she snored loudly. Miss Cheerilee gave her a warning." Sweetie Belle laughed after finishing her story, and I joined the fun.

"So, you're telling me that instead of waking her up, you decided to paint on her face?" Sweetie Belle nodded, still smiling. "My, my. That was so mean."

"I was going to wake her up, but she's the only person in the world who would sleep during art class, so I helped her to not fall asleep again."

"How?"

"I didn't tell her that I painted on her face. She realized on her own when she saw her reflection in the bathroom's mirror. Now she know she can't fall asleep in a room filled with kids with markers and brushes."

"The markers weren't permanent, right?"

"Of course not! She washed everything in like five seconds. She's my friend!"

"Just making sure, dear." I smiled at my sister and stroked her hair. Sweetie Belle made me company for a few hours. She really lifted my mood. She made me laugh, she kept me interested with many of her stories with her friends and we even did each other's hair. The guilt was still there, but I managed to clear my mind. "Thank you. I needed this."

"No problem, sis!"

"I'll try to think on something now. Would you be so kind to give me some privacy?"

"Of course! I'm going to call Apple Bloom and Scootaloo to see if they're available to do something."

"Don't you have homework?"

"I can do it tomorrow. It's not much."

"Sweetie Belle, I told you to do it yesterday so you could have the weekend free. Instead, you spent the entire afternoon with your friends in your room."

"They showed up..."

"Because you called them! Now, do your homework, then, you can go out."

"Aww!" Sweetie Belle left my room. I could hear her footsteps until she arrived to her own room. I shook my head with a smile before looking at my phone. I needed advice. I needed Sunset Shimmer. After looking for her name in my contacts list, I sighed and called her. She didn't answer at first, so I called her again. This time, she answered after a few rings.

"Rarity? What's up?"

"Sunset! Good, you picked up. I'm so sorry to interrupt. Are you busy?"

"No, I was taking a shower. What's going on? You don't sound like you usually do."

"I have a huge problem and I need your help."

"Do you want me to go over there?"

"I don't think it will be necessary, but thank you. Listen, it's about Trixie. I have made a terrible mistake."

"Oh? What happened?"

I gulped and sat before speaking again. "Trixie told me that she has feelings for me..."

"She finally did it?! Wow, I can't believe I'm saying this, but, I'm proud of her."

"Wait, you knew?!" I stood up as I yelled. I think I scared my friend because I heard her gasp.

"I-I... uhh... well, yeah... I... did... Y-You see... I discovered it the same day you told me about Fluttershy's crush. She dropped her phone and... she had a photo of you with hearts all around. That girl is crazy about you, Rarity. I don't know how she managed to hide her feelings for so long."

"R-really? You think so...?"

"Absolutely." Sunset's words put a big smile on my face. Trixie doesn't just likes me, she adores me! To think she felt this way ever since she first asked me to be her friend and I never noticed. Oh, Trixie... I'm so sorry... "Rarity... Rarity!"

"Huh? Wh-What?"

"I asked you what was your mistake? You told me that you had a crush on her. Aren't you two dating right now?"

Here it goes... my guilt returned. "I... I rejected her feelings... I lied to her. I told her I didn't like her back."

"What?! Rarity, I don't understand. Why did you do that?"

"I think I panicked. If I said the truth, we would have started to date, and I wasn't ready! I still want to wait more time to make sure my feelings are real. If I said yes and my feelings faded, what would I do?"

There was a long silence before Sunset spoke again. "Rarity, you told me exactly how you felt. We spoke about your feelings the past few days too, remember? From everything I heard, it was obvious that your crush was becoming stronger. I could see it in your eyes and in the way you acted whenever you spoke about Trixie. Admit it, you're crazy about her, just as much she's crazy about you, maybe even more."

I sat on my bed again. Could it be true? Sunset had her reasons to think so. She was right about everything she said. I was having doubts with the last thing, though. Was I really... crazy about Trixie Lulamoon? Lately, she has been in my mind all the time, even in my dreams. I was always trying to hold her hand, her arm or hug her. The side of me claiming that I was straight made its move today. 

But after what Sunset said, it was losing strength. "You're right... you're absolutely right, Sunset... what have I done?! I pushed away my first relationship! I have to, no... I need to tell her the truth, now!"

"Wait!" I was about to hang up when my friend stopped me. "You can't do it now."

"Why not?"

"She's emotional, and so are you. She could think that you're only doing it to make her smile again. Wait until she calms down. You need to calm down too. Keep talking to her, try to cheer her up. You have many friends to help you to calm down. As far as I know, she only has you."

"Y-You're right. Yes, I'll try to do that. Thank you." Again, Sunset was right. Why was she always right?

"I'm glad to hear that. I'm sorry for what happened but don't blame yourself too much. Everyone makes mistakes. I'm a living proof of that."

"Speaking of love mistakes... have you finally decided to fix yours?"

Sunset sighed. "I knew it was too much to hope you would forget."

I giggled. "Darling, you know that will never happen. Come on, tell me. You said  I needed to calm down. Distract me."

"You want to forget about your love issues by talking about mine?"

"That's correct! Helping you with Fluttershy will make me feel better."

"Alright. Yes, I have thought on a way to tell her... eventually. I have sent her something."

"Really? What did you send?"


"She's your best friend. I'm sure she will tell you. I will say no more. Wait until she decides to speak."



"I know that I must not push her. You're terrible, Sunset. Do you know how anxious I will be until Fluttershy tells me?"



"I know, but at least I told you something! Besides, I think it's better if she tells you. You will know why."



"Okay... I'll be patient."



"Thank you. Is there anything else you need? I promised Pinkie Pie that I would help her with something and I have to go soon."



"No, that's all. I won't hold you anymore. Thank you for listening, Sunset."



"You're welcome, Rarity. Bye, and good luck!" She hang up and I placed my phone on my desk. The situation was still bad, but at least now I knew what to do. I'm going to talk to Trixie on Monday. Hopefully, I could still accompany her to the bus stop.



I went to the bathroom to remove my makeup before walking down the stairs, to the kitchen and served myself some apple juice. When I was pouring the juice into a glass, someone rang the bell. "I'll get it, Sweetie Belle! You focus on your homework!" I placed the rest of the apple juice in the fridge and walked towards the front door as I took a sip from my juice. Fresh and delicious. It was one of the perks of having a farmer as a close friend. I opened the front door once I reached it. A bright smile appeared on my face when I saw who the visitor was. "Fluttershy, darling! It's so good to see you."



"H-Hello, Rarity. I'm sorry for coming without announcing myself, but I need to tell you something." My best friend spoke with her usual quiet tone.



"Sure! Please, come in."



"Thank you." I noticed that she was holding a piece of paper when she walked in. I didn't pay too much attention to it and I closed the door. None of us said anything until we sat down in the living room.



"I'm all ears. Speak whenever you're ready."



Fluttershy nodded. She looked around before taking a deep breath and releasing it. "I... found this note in one of my books today." She said as she gave me piece of paper I noticed earlier. I took it with both of my hands and read it.






Fluttershy, I'm writing to you to confess that I'm in love with you, but I don't have the courage to tell you personally yet. I'll ease your worries. I'm not a stalker. I don't want to hurt you. I just happen to like you very much. I wanted you to know that there's someone who admires you. Who wants to hold your hand. One day, I'll reveal myself and hope that you like me back. But for now, I'll be quiet.


                                                                                                                            Signed: A secret admirer.



I recognized the handwriting. It was undoubtely from Sunset. I looked at Fluttershy when I was done reading. Her blush was clear as day. "Fluttershy, this is huge. How do you feel?"



"I-I don't know..." She had more problems than normal to talk. "I... I don't know who wrote it. What if it's a joke? Besides, I already like someone. I don't know this... secret admirer."



I was surprised that Fluttershy didn't recognize Sunset's handwriting. "You don't know Twilight either." Fluttershy looked away, hiding her face with her hair. "Darling, you have to consider the possibility of realizing that your crush on Twilight is temporal. If she's too different from the one we know, your crush might disappear."



Fluttershy moved her head to look at me. She seemed worried. "Rarity, why are you saying that...? I-I don't understand. First, you supported me, and now you're telling me that it might not be a good idea..."



"I know, and I apologize, but I got to think about it after you told me your secret. I only want what is best for you. I'm trying to help." Fluttershy dropped her head and stared at the floor. I sighed before speaking again. "Listen, I might be right, I might not. All I want is that you think about it. When love is involved, you must be absolutely sure of what you feel before saying anything. It's not pleasant making a mistake with love." The more I spoke, the worse I felt for breaking Trixie's heart. How could I say this the same day I lied to my crush? But Fluttershy needed to hear it. I don't want her to make mistakes like me. I didn't want my best friend to suffer like me.



I remained silent after I spoke. I was waiting for Fluttershy to say something. But she didn't move at all. I was patient and kept waiting. Eventually, Fluttershy raised her head again. "Th-Thank you, Rarity... you're always there for me..."



"I care about you." I put my hand on hers as I spoke again. "Trust me, all I want is to see you happy. If you're happy, I'm happy. Keep the note, don't throw it away. "



"I'll do that." Fluttershy gave me a small smile and I returned it. "I'm glad you were home. I have no plans today and I feared that you did."



My smile disappeared and I quickly looked away. "I... wanted to do something with Sweetie Belle, but I found out she didn't do her homework."



"Oh, that's too bad..."



"I know!" My smile reappeared and I faced Fluttershy again. "Let's go shopping! Just you and me."



"I would like that! But... I didn't bring any money."



"We'll stop by your home first. I'll get my purse!" I ran upstairs, towards my room. Once Fluttershy couldn't see me, I groaned. "Keep it together, Rarity! Don't let guilt ruin Fluttershy's day too. I can't even tell her why I'm upset. Enjoy this day, keep hating yourself tomorrow." I walked towards the purse Trixie bought me. The gift that started it all. I got on my knees to take the purse with my hands. Ever since she asked me to be her friend, I had been happier. I was always happy to make a new friend. I couldn't believe that I took so long to realize I was slowly falling in love with her.



Oh, no. Tears again. I used a hand to clean my tears. Fluttershy will see that something's wrong if she notices my eyes turning red. Looking down at my purse, I felt a strange sensation. It obviously reminded me of Trixie. Just thinking about her, I calmed down, and even smiled.

That's it! All I had to do was to think on all the good moments I had with Trixie! All I did was to think on how I blew everything up. I spent months building our friendship. The best of my life. My friends and family were everything to me. The only thing I was missing was a relationship. I needed Trixie.



How long has I been in my room? I need to go back with Fluttershy! I ran downstairs but stopped before getting into the living room to catch my breath before smiling and casually walking in. "Sorry for taking so long. I couldn't find my purse anywhere. I'm ready." Fluttershy giggled in response. "Sweetie Belle, I'm heading out with Fluttershy!"



"Okay!"



Fluttershy and I walked out and headed towards the mall.







"So? What are you going to buy, darling?"



"Well, I have been thinking on getting new clothes. I'm going to try new outfits."



"Really? You're going to change your appearance?"



My best friend nodded. "When you changed yours, I thought that I could do the same. What do you think...?"



"What do I think? I think it's a wonderful idea! Fluttershy, I'll help you to find the perfect attire for you. You are in good hands."



"Th-Thank you. I'm glad you were free today. I didn't want to go on my own. None of our friends know about clothing like you."



"Yeah. It's not Applejack and Rainbow Dash's thing. Pinkie Pie could find something, but probably nothing that matches. And Sunset..."



"I didn't think on her. I think I said something I shouldn't to her..."



"Huh? Why do you think that?"



 "Because whenever I look at her, she looks away. When I try to talk to her, she avoids looking at my eyes and she seems distracted when we're alone. I tried to apologize to her, but she says she has to go."



"Oh..." Sunset Shimmer, seriously...? I needed to talk to her about this. "Strange. Don't worry, Fluttershy, I'll ask her what's wrong, but I'm sure it isn't you. You're very kind. It's impossible that you offend anyone, not even by accident."



"But what else could it be? She seems to be fine with everybody else. Except Last Saturday, in Piazza."



"She looked at you in the eyes when she talked to you?"



Fluttershy nodded. "Yes, and she even made jokes." My friend laughed softly all of the sudden.



"What's so funny, darling?"



"I just remembered one of Sunset's jokes." Fluttershy sighed happily. "It was a nice day. I had so much fun, I didn't dare to ask her why she has been acting strange, fearing that things would get awkward."



"I'm sure there's an explanation. Don't worry, I'll get to the bottom of this."



"Thank you, Rarity." We changed the subject. I asked Fluttershy about the animal shelter she's helping. While I listened to her, I kept thinking about Sunset. I know she liked Fluttershy, but I didn't think she would avoid her this much. On top of that, she acted like if nothing happened while they were at Piazza last week. Sending mixed signals won't work.



We arrived to the mall in around half an hour. I didn't live far from it. I simply adored this place! It was so big, it had so many stores, I never got tired of this place. It had three floors and a large fountain in the center of the main floor. But what I most loved about this mall is that my favorite clothes shop, Chemise,  had a store here, and only here. There weren't any other stores in the entire city.



This was our first stop. The owner, Chemise, didn't live in this city, but she sometimes came to check on the store. I hoped she opened more stores here, but she won't do it unless she made more sales. Luckily for me, I knew one of someone who has a part time job here that told me everything about her boss' plans, in secret, of course. In fact, we came during her shift!



"Rarity! It's so good to see you! Oh. You're looking fantastic with that new outfit you're wearing.



"Why, thank you." I smiled by the compliment before looking at Fluttershy. "Listen, Coco, my best friend, Fluttershy, wants a change, and you were my first option."



"Is that right?" Coco Pommel smiled at my friend. "Go ahead. Browse all you want. You know where to find me."



"Thanks, Coco." I took Fluttershy's arm and guided her to one of the racks after talking to the shop attendant. "See anything you like, darling?"



"You know that I like everything, Rarity. Unless it's made of fur or leather. I need you to choose an outfit for me."



"Okay. Just let me pick a few possible candidates... let me see, blouses, T-shirts, jeans, skirts... alright, I have some. Let's go to the changing room so you can try these on. I won't know for certain which of these outfits will suit you more until I see you wear them."



Fluttershy nodded and walked inside the changing room. I handed her one of the outfits I chose and she closed the curtain. She opened it again when she finished changing. "How do I look...?"



"Hmm, spin, please." she did what I asked. "No, I'm not convinced. Here, try this one."



Fluttershy tried all the outfits I chose for her one after another, but I didn't think any of them suited her. Before giving up, I decided to return to the racks one more time. I examined the clothes closely. "There has to be something...!"



"Rarity, don't worry. Maybe don't need to change my outfit..."



"Let me... one more time... wait..." I moved my eyes to one of the mannequins. The outfit it was wearing... it was perfect! "Coco, please, come one second."



"Yes?" Coco Pommel walked towards me.



"These clothes... are they new?"



"Oh, actually yes! It's Chemise's new creation! I have a few in stock of all sizes."



"Good, bring me one for my friend. I believe this is the one."



"As you request!" Coco Pommel ran towards the stock room as I returned to Fluttershy. She wasn't sure how to feel.



"D-Do you really think it's for me?"



"Absolutely, darling. Trust me, you'll fall in love with it when you try it on."



"O-Okay..."



The shop attendant returned five minutes later. "Sorry for taking so long. I almost thought we didn't have one of her size, but I searched again. Here, it's the last one."



"Marvelous! Thank you, Coco!" I took the outfit and gave it to Fluttershy, who walked into the changing room one last time. Coco Pommel stayed with me until Fluttershy finished getting dressed.

My best friend didn't come out for a while, but I remained patient. Waiting felt like an eternity, but when she did come out, it was worth it. The outfit consisted on a yellow blouse, a dark green skirt and black short boots, all animal fur free. My eyes shined when I saw her. Fluttershy turned around to allow me to see the entire outfit.



"S-So?" Fluttershy was nervous, but I could see her smile slightly. She liked it.



"I knew it! It's perfect! What do you think, Coco?"



"I think she looks magnificent. Really. Those clothes were made for her."



"We'll take them!" I pointed a finger to the ceiling as I said the last.



"Great choice! Follow me to the cash register."



"We'll be there in a second." I turned my head to look at Fluttershy. "I could see it in your face, you liked them, didn't you?" I said as I walked into the changing room Fluttershy used to take her old clothes.



My best friend blushed and nodded slowly. "I-I do."



"This turned out to be a great idea, Fluttershy." I noticed that my friend was taking her wallet from the purse. "Put it back. Allow me to pay. It will be a gift."



"I can't let you do that. These clothes are expensive."



"More reasons for me to pay. You can't afford them."



"Then I can't accept them..."



"No, we're taking them. Fluttershy, darling, it's fine. I want to pay for you. Please, don't say no. You look amazing. It will be a shame to take the clothes back." I didn't let the argument to continue. I took my credit card from my purse and headed to the cash register.



"Will you let me to give you a 20% off this time?" Coco Pommel asked after taking my credit card.



"Coco, please, I told you it's not necessary."



"You convinced me to leave my old job back in Manehattan. My boss was awful, but I didn't have the courage to quit until you showed up. You didn't know me but you still stood up for me."



"It was nothing, really. I can't stand ruffians and you were at the edge of crying. I couldn't just walk away."



"Rarity, I will keep offering the discount until you say yes. It's the only way I can repay my debt. I promise, I won't give you any more discounts unless you get items on sale."



"But what about your bosses? Won't they find out?"



Coco Pommel shook her head. "They won't. I'll charge you the full prize and give you the discount in secret. I'll the pay 20%."



"It's too much, Coco, I don't know."



"I can pay for it. Please, accept."



I was about to decline again, but at this point, she was begging me to accept the discount. It would be impolite to say no again. "Alright, I'll accept the discount. I can't keep arguing about the same thing every time I come."



"Oh, thank you, thank you!" I'm so happy that you're finally allowing me to return the favor!



After paying, I put Fluttershy's old clothes in a bag and we headed to an ice-cream stand. It has been a while I had quality time with Fluttershy alone, so I spent the rest of the day with her. Hopefully, the rest of my friends won't have plans tomorrow. I couldn't wait to show everyone Fluttershy's new appearance!