//------------------------------// // Final Exam: First Dance // Story: Three Dates and a Prune // by MagnetBolt //------------------------------// “You look beautiful in those silks.” Twilight made a noise, distracted. “Are you alright?” Emir Ali ibn Arabia asked, finally getting Twilight’s attention. “Hm?” Twilight looked up from her food. “Sorry. It’s just been a hectic week.” “I was afraid your meal was sitting poorly with you,” he said. “Your Equestrian food is, and I mean no offense, quite bland to my taste. Perhaps soon I will be able to host you in my own home and you can enjoy the many flavors of my land.” Twilight smiled weakly. “I’d like that. I’ve had some Saddle Arabian food, but I’m sure it’s not nearly as good as an authentic experience.” He nodded. “You’re right, Princess Sparkle. There’s nothing quite like the real thing. Perhaps you have heard of the philosopher Jaunty al’Star?” Twilight perked up. “You’ve read al’Star?” “Of course. Saddle Arabia has a long history of scholarly pursuit. When Discord drove Equestria into chaos, it was our honor to preserve the culture and learning of the world. To this day the oldest and finest colleges are in our borders.” “As I remember, al’Star wrote about authenticity as a philosophical concept. He railed against ponies that acted in what he called ‘bad faith’, which he defined as acting the way they thought they should, like playing a part, rather than how they would act on their own.” “Indeed.” Ali picked up a canape. “This food is made to look pretty, but it’s empty at its core. Food to look good on a buffet, rather than something you could eat every day.” “Yeah…” Twilight frowned. For a moment she’d seen something on the dance floor. A flash of white, purple, and gold. “Did you see that?” “Hm?” “I thought I saw… There!” She pointed. “A rather attractive mare. A friend of yours?” “I’ll be right back. Hold this.” Twilight gave Ali her drink and made her way onto the dance floor, ducking through the slowly twirling ponies until she reached her goal. “Oh, Twilight, I was wondering when you’d notice me,” Rarity said. She let go of her partner. “Thank you for the dance, darling.” Her partner bowed and vanished into the crowd. “Was that…?” “Twilight, we had a conversation just two days ago about how it’s improper to discuss other mares when you’re on a date.” She offered her a hoof. “Come along, we’ll make a scene if we stand still.” Twilight blushed and took Rarity’s hoof, letting her lead as they danced among the crowd. “Why are you here? How are you here? The tickets sold out months ago!” “I happen to know some very important ponies,” Rarity explained. “You got a ticket from your clients?” “Oh no, I had to crash the party. I just wanted to remind you that I’m well-connected! It was far too last-minute to actually get a ticket. After all, I had to resize this dress to fit!” She winked. “I’ll have to refund her deposit but it was worth it just to see the surprise on your face.” “You crashed the Gala?!” Twilight hissed. “You didn’t leave me much choice.” The music changed. “Ah, good. This is our song, darling.” Twilight’s ears perked up. “This is a tango. Rarity, you never taught me how to tango!” “Don’t worry, this is an excellent time to learn.” Rarity swept her into a spin. “After you left, I realized you would never make the right decision unless I came here myself.” “And what is the right decision?” Rarity dipped Twilight and kissed her. “Oh.” “Darling, I don’t have tickets for the Gala, but I do have two for what I’m told is an excellent show in Las Pegasus.” Twilight bit her lip. “If we leave now, we can catch the late train before it leaves.” “What about Ali ibn Arabia?” “I thought I wasn’t supposed to talk about other ponies when I was on a date?” “You did learn something.” Rarity smiled and pulled her back to her hooves. Twilight’s horn glowed softly, and they vanished between the beats of the song.