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// Chapter 7: Fresh Herbal Tea 
// Story: Rarity has Dyed 
// by Unwhole Hole 
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Night had begun to fall, casting Ponyville in twilight. The shadows grew long and eventually faded and grayed to nothingness as the sun finally set. The moon had already risen previously; apparently, Luna was impatient on this particular night.

Many of the stores throughout Ponyville had closed, but Rarity still made her way through the street. Her mane was covered, of course- -she did not want to shock anypony, after all, or to cause some sort of panic- -and, much to her chagrin, Applejack had been right. She had spent too much time in the refrigerated room preparing her perfume. The perfume had, as anticipated, come out splendidly- -but Rarity had also developed a severe cold in the process.

This simply would not do. The charity ball was in just over a day, and there was no way she could attend it properly while sick. Canceling was out of the question. The solution she had come up with, therefore, was to attempt to rest with some herbal tea to try to recover faster. Despite her growing fever, she desperately needed to acquire the appropriate tea, as she was currently out.

The streets grew darker and darker, and Rarity could feel her nose growing increasingly irritated. When she had nearly reached the tea store, she was suddenly overcome by a fit of sneezing. Since every sneeze needed to be perfectly crafted to be as elegant and mannered as possible, Rarity was so busy concentrating on them that she did not notice a large open hole in front of her. She stepped over the edge and fell directly in, immediately finding herself up to her neck in mud.

It was just as Fluttershy had warned her. In her surprise and panic, Rarity flailed about and attempted to swim to the other side. Then she dragged herself out, only to find that her perfectly clean coat had been stained with dirt, grime, and moisture.

Upon seeing this, Rarity gasped and launched into a tirade of the most unladylike language possible. She called upon the rumps, hips, and beards of every Princess known to ponies- -Twilight included. The insults and foul language would have continued for the better part of a half hour had Rarity’s voice not suddenly given out into a low croak. Her eyes widened as she fell silent. She had been afflicted by one of the most ironic medical condition that a pony could experience, second only to the trots: she had gone hoarse.

Tears welled in her eyes, and Rarity nearly collapsed there by the side of the road. The only thing that kept her from running away into the night was the knowledge that now that she had lost her voice the tea was an absolute necessity. The only thing that let her keep her resolve was the thought of sipping the warm liquid while sitting in an equally warm bath until she was clean and no longer feverish.

So, she continued down the block, despite the fact that she was beginning to wobble from stress and sickness, and that she was covered in dirt and mud. As horrendous as appearing in public like this seemed to her, the idea of missing such an important ball because of her own error was far more repugnant.

It was not a distant walk, but it went slowly. Rarity had hurt one of her knees as she had fallen in the hole, so she had to move with an unfortunate limp- -but she did eventually make it to the tea shop. To her great fortune, it was still open. When Rarity pushed through the door, she saw that Jasmine Leaf was just sweeping up for the end of the day. Despite this, she still smiled and trotted toward the entrance.

“Hello there!” she said as she passed the shelves. “I was just getting ready to go home, but if you’re here this late it must be a tea emergency! Are you looking for anything in particular, or maybe you need some chamomile- -”

She stopped when she saw Rarity closely. Jasmine Leaf was normally a rather unfortunate purple color that roughly matched either Twilight or Cheerilee. When she saw Rarity, however, her shade lightened almost to a Starlight or even Berry Punch.

Rarity stood there, covered in earth, swaying from her growing fever. She stared across the room with bloodshot, squinting eyes. Jasmine Leaf’s eyes widened and she took a step back as Rarity took a swaying step forward.

“Tea…” groaned Rarity. Having lost her voice, though, it just came out as a hiss. She paused, severely embarrassed, and tried to speak louder. Her next request indeed had the necessary volume, but it had lost any semblance of a real word; instead, it was like a nearly silent scream.

“N- -no! You can’t be here!” cried Jasmine Leaf, backing away. “I read the paper! You- -you’re- -”

“I’m sorry for coming so late. But I’m in desperate need of some Echinacea tea…” That was what Rarity attempted to say, at least. Instead, it came out as a growling hiss. Jasmine Leaf continued to back away. Rarity started to limp toward her; there was no way she could be heard unless she was closer.

Jasmine Leaf continued to try to escape until her rump touched one of the shelves behind her and she was forced to stop. By this time she was crying.

“Tea?” asked Rarity.

“Z- -z- -ZOMBIE!”

Jasmine Leaf suddenly burst into a sprint, pushing past Rarity and leaving behind only a puddle, hopefully of tears. She ran so haphazardly that she bumped into a wall, nearly knocking herself unconscious, before she managed to escape the shop entirely. Rarity watched her go, not understanding at all what the matter was.

“Well, I never,” she whispered. She reached up with her magic and took a box of the necessary tea off the shelve. “If I didn’t know better I would think she’s been smoking her tea instead of drinking it.”

Rarity then left in a huff, stealing the tea in the process.