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// 1 A Secret Revealed 
// Story: A Dash of Rarity 
// by Bronyxy 
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The day was warm and butterflies frolicked to an accompaniment of casually orchestrated birdsong.  The bees buzzed a happy tune while they zig-zagged randomly from flower to fragrant flower, pausing a moment at each as if admiring a work of art, turning to better appreciate the individual subtlety of each from myriad different perspectives.

There were no clouds, but high up in the crystal azure sky there was a dot, silhouetted dark against the brightness of the summer’s day.  Following obediently behind the dot, shadowing every twist and turn was a trail comprising the colours of the rainbow.

“Wow!” gasped the orange pegasus filly, her purple tail flowing out behind her “This is awesome!”
“Ain’t seen nothin’ yet, Squirt” said Rainbow Dash “Hold on tight!”
With that, the young protégé gripped tighter and her mentor tipped over into a death defying dive, hurtling toward Equestria laid out below them.  Anypony else would have been scared by the fearsome way in which the lake beneath them was racing up to meet them, but not Scootaloo, who knew no fear when she was with Ponyville’s favourite Wonderbolt.

At the last minute, she pulled out of her dive, gliding at frightening speed just above the surface of the lake, causing a rooster tail of water to rise up behind them due purely to the aerodynamic force under her wings.  As her speed began to bleed off, Rainbow climbed imperceptibly and dipped a wing so that the tip just touched the water and she banked to her left leaving a crisp curling wake in the water that followed them through their turn, her passenger whooping for joy.

Rainbow pulled up again and began to climb once more but saw something, or rather somepony unexpected by the lakeside. Sat on the grass close to the water’s edge was a pony of the purest white with a purple mane.  She only knew one pony who looked as good as that, and aborted her climb to glide down gracefully next to her friend, landing with the merest bump in spite of the extra weight she was carrying.

“Rainbow, you looked magnificent” praised the fashion designer.
“That’s nothing!” interjected Scootaloo “You should feel what it’s like up there!  It’s amazing!”
“You work hard at Junior Speedsters Flight Camp and you’ll be doing it in no time” encouraged the daredevil flyer.
“Oh, thanks Rainbow Dash, you’re the best!” she enthused.

Rainbow made a quick assessment of Rarity’s body language and turned her head to the orange filly:
“Now have a practice yourself and give me and Rarity a little time, OK Squirt?”
The starstruck filly trotted off happily flapping her wings, dreaming of the day she could perform a sonic rainboom, or even a double rainboom.

“What’s up Rare?” asked the cyan pegasus “I can tell something’s on your mind.”
“Oh Rainbow” gushed the white unicorn “I’ve just broken up with my stallion friend.”
“What, the art critic?” asked Rainbow.
“Yes, yes, darling” fussed Rarity, her beautiful blue eyes tearing up “It turns out he only wanted me to show off as a trophy at public events, you know, to make him look good.  I feel so stupid!”
The cyan pegasus looked concerned.  No pony had the right to do this to her friend, or any of her friends for that matter.  Especially this one.
“Oh, Rainbow” cried Rarity as she leaned over and buried her muzzle in Rainbow’s neck “I … I … I feel so used!”
With this she burst into long held back tears and draped a forlorn foreleg around her friend’s neck, Rainbow responding and moving in closer to give her a reassuring hug.
“You’re so strong, Rainbow” she wailed “Always so confident, so self-assured, always with a different stallion.  I on the other hoof, fall in love too easily and always get hurt, so hurt.  How do you do it darling?”

There was a pause while Rainbow considered the circumstances that had made her who she was, whether it was right or wrong, and how much she should say.  She looked around to make sure nopony else was close and checked to see that Scootaloo far enough away not to hear:
“I had my heart broken once, Rare” she began.
“Not the great Rainbow Dash” sniffled the fashion designer “Who could possibly do such a thing?”
“Yeah, well it was a long time ago” the pegasus sighed “Somepony really special too.”
“Nopony ever gets the better of you, surely?” consoled Rarity.
“She did” came the reply.
Rarity stopped in her tracks:
“She?” she enquired “But you always date stallions; I’ve seen you often enough.”

Rainbow looked around again, double checking where Scootaloo was before replying:
“There was one filly, she's a mare now.  Nopony could ever replace her, and so I date stallions to combat the loneliness I’ve been feeling ever since.  We never actually do it, if you know what I mean, because I’m not that way” admitted Rainbow frankly “But I could never have a marefriend as good as her, so I don’t even try dating other mares.”
“Oh darling, that’s so much more sad than my selfish little indulgence” said Rarity, making a real effort to pull herself together and extending a comforting forehoof towards her friend.  Rainbow reached out and took her hoof in hers.
“Who is this mare, darling?  I’m sure I could do something to bring the two of you together.”
Rainbow turned towards her with a look in her eyes that Rarity had never seen before and opened her mouth to speak.

Just then, Scootaloo came bounding in:
“Hey Rainbow Dash!” she bubbled with excitement “I think I can really fly!  Come and watch, oh please come and watch me!”
The tender hoofhold was broken and the two friends looked into each other’s eyes just a little longer than friends, even good friends generally do, before Rainbow was pulled away.

Rarity sat and watched as the two pegasi trotted away from her.  Rainbow did make a fine mentor; Scootaloo was very lucky indeed.  Then she got to thinking, and a collection of random thoughts started to coalesce.
“She can’t have meant …” she thought to herself “No, surely not …”

Scootaloo tried really hard to repeat what she believed she had just accomplished a few minutes beforehand, but for whatever reason, it didn’t happen and she started to feel downhearted.
“Come on Squirt” said Rainbow with a cheery expression “Climb up and we’ll put a smile back on that face, then we’ll take you home.”
“Aw, must we go back so soon?” whined the orange filly.
“Yes we must” said Rainbow “But I never said it had to be boring, now did I?”
Scootaloo giggled, anticipating further fun in store and held on tight once more as they leapt into the air, the broadest smile across her face.

Rarity trotted back to the Carousel Boutique with so much more of a spring in her step than she could have imagined when she had left for a moment of quiet and solitude by the lake earlier.  She had been so close to finding out who Rainbow’s mystery fillyfriend had been, and she had started to develop a funny feeling that she may know this mare just a little better than she would have otherwise guessed.

“Surely not …” she said to herself for the umpteenth time since her meeting with Rainbow.  The dressmaker had only ever dated stallions and had never even considered dating another mare.  There were many happy same sex couples in Ponyville for sure; Lyra and Bon Bon for example, and they were always very happy, so there was nothing to say it was wrong – nothing at all.  It was just that she had never considered it for herself.

“Surely not …” she said again, although the more she said it, the less farfetched it seemed.  But what if she was wrong?  She could make a dreadful fool of herself and their friendship would never be the same if she had misjudged it.  She stopped the stitching she had been half-heartedly toying with and went to her bedroom and threw herself onto her bed, not to cry, but to lay on her back and giggle like a filly.  Could she be falling in love again?

“Surely not …”

With a mare?

Maybe …


Rainbow wasn’t the easiest of ponies to engineer an opportunity to bump into.  She kept the sky clear as resident weather pony and wowed crowds regularly as a member of the Wonderbolts, and if she wasn’t practising her latest flying stunts she would be napping on a cloud somewhere. She even lived in a cloud house for goodness sake!

Rarity couldn’t shake the thought from her mind that Rainbow had fallen for her, but now instead of being shocked at the prospect found herself actively pushing to the corner of her mind the possibility that she may be wrong.  She played over the scenarios that could happen when they next met and rehearsed some witty comments that suited every possible eventuality so she would not be caught off guard, but would appear charming, sophisticated and available, but without looking desperate; she wasn’t that way inclined after all.  Or was she?  Even she didn’t know any more.  Dating a mare could hardly be less rewarding than dating a stallion if her recent experience was anything to go by.

She forced herself to start thinking about things other than her love life and recalled that Sweetie Belle would be home soon and she simply had to go shopping unless they were going to starve, so went downstairs and prepared to go out.  She stood for an inordinate time in front of the mirror with her hairbrush trying different styles with her mane in a way she hadn’t done since she was a filly – just in case she should bump into Rainbow, although she would deny that allegation immediately if any pony had the temerity to suggest it.  Even if it was true.  She put her mane right one more time, just in case, then left for the shops.

She opened the door, hearing the friendly tinkle of the bell and spared it a happy smile as she floated out into the street, her hooves barely touching the ground.  She hadn’t gone far when Starlight approached her wearing a beaming smile.
“Well hello Rarity” she greeted warmly “You look particularly happy today!”
“As a matter of fact I am” replied Rarity cheerfully “I can’t help thinking that something nice may come my way.”
“Trixie looks lovely in that new outfit you made her” said the lilac unicorn “Thank you so much; you really showed her off to perfection.”
“That was the aim darling” said Rarity “She really does have a simply divine figure to work with.”
“I know” replied Starlight wistfully “She’s very lucky.”
“And so are you, darling” responded the dressmaker.
At this, the lilac unicorn blushed.
“I … I didn’t think anypony knew” she stammered.
“Really darling” said Rarity with a coy smile “The way you looked at her during the fitting?  Actually, I found it most liberating.”
“After what she did to you when she had the Alicorn Amulet?” asked the lilac unicorn “You truly are most generous.”
Rarity gave a gentle “tsk tsk” before adding with another smile “But I confess I‘ve never used that shade of brown again!”

“Tell me” said the lilac unicorn “What would you like to dress Rainbow Dash in?”
It was now Rarity’s turn to blush; not just a little bit, but bright red, and the more she fought it, the worse it became.
“Oh, I see ...” said Starlight, any further questions she may have had now firmly answered.
As Rarity scrambled to regain some dignity, Starlight hit her with the punchline:
“Because she’s right behind you!  See you later Rarity - have a nice date!”

Rarity turned her head quickly behind her and sure enough, there was the cyan pegasus walking toward her carrying a bunch of flowers in her mouth.  Her well-rehearsed ad lib lines all grew wings and took flight, leaving her to turn an even deeper shade of red.  Worse, her polished sophistication evaporated into steam as she tried desperately to claw it back and failed, leaving her staring dumbfounded as Rainbow gave her head a slight nod.

“Oh … Oh, of course” she stammered taking the flowers in her magic.
“Hey Rare” she said “Hope you like them.  I just kinda … well, found them and thought that pretty things belonged together, so brought them along for you.  I thought they were a few shades pinker than your coat, but you do look kinda redder than I remember …”
“Found them, huh?” said Rarity regaining some composure “The wrapping alone tells me they came from Lily Valley, Daisy and Rose.  Tell me, are they still bemoaning the end of the world?”
“Yeah, quite probably” said Rainbow “But I’ve never paid them much attention.”
“I’m flattered darling; thank you.”
“You know, don’t you?” said Rainbow stopping to focus on the beautiful pure white unicorn and staring deep into her blue eyes.
“I worked it out” whispered Rarity, praying she was right, as she leaned in, closing her eyes and puckering her lips.

Finally, after all the years Rainbow had waited, she drew close to the mare of her dreams and felt their lips touch gently.  She had played this fantasy over and over in her dreams so many times she had lost count, and now as her dream came true she felt her legs start to tremble with excitement the like of which she had never known.

The ponies bustling around them melted away as if they weren’t there, while they shared this one precious, tender moment.  When they finally gently pulled apart, they both had learned something about themselves; Rarity had lost any lingering doubts about dating a mare, especially this one, whilst Rainbow was still in shock that her long-standing dream had come true and that it was even more consuming than she had ever dared believe.

“Come on darling” breathed Rarity hoarsely “I think we’re causing a scene.”
Rainbow was rooted to the spot, still processing what had happened, and just happy to lose herself in her friend’s beauty.  This felt so right, she just knew it had to be right.

Rarity pulled back a little, still looking lovingly into Rainbow’s eyes and then turned with a giggle to trot playfully away, looking back over her shoulder with an unstated but obvious “chase me” request.  Rainbow was still stood with her eyes wide and her mouth open.  She had dreamed about the kiss for years and could still not quite believe it had happened for real, but the fact that this sublime moment of intimacy had ended and Rarity was still there in front of her coaxing her on seemed too good to be true.  She still felt she was dreaming, but then realisation hit and washed over her like a tidal wave and she launched into the air spinning in a climbing corkscrew, shouting “best day ever!”

Rainbow dived down and fell in behind Rarity’s flank as she took her cue to entice the cyan pegasus in a teasing chase, giggling playfully, leading her away to a secluded little spot she knew where they could enjoy some privacy.