//------------------------------// // 141. Rarity Has the Worst Taste in Dudes // Story: Azure Edge // by Leaf Blade //------------------------------// Shortly after Rarity and Rainbow Dash had departed their boat and arrived in the small fishing hamlet of Windsoar nestled into the mountains near Neighagra Falls, they had heard something rather curious; apparently they weren’t the first Slayers in the area who had tasked themselves with ridding Windsoar of its sea serpent problem. “You super sure about this Rarity?” Rainbow grumbled for what must have been the millionth time as the pair strolled through the charming dirt roads of the humble fishing village. “I really don’t think we need the help to take down one sea serpent.” “It never hurts to be prepared, Rainbow Dash,” Rarity harrumphed, aghast at Rainbow’s impoliteness. “And besides, it seems like the only decent thing to do when two pairs of Slayers are in the same area is to introduce one’s self! It’s polite!” “I guess?” Rainbow shrugged. “I just think it’s too much effort that we don’t need to bother with.” “You never were one for decorum, I suppose,” Rarity hummed. “That’s right!” Rainbow grinned, as if that were something to be proud of. “Or perhaps,” Rarity bore a catlike grin and stopped in her tracks, turning on her hooves and putting her fingers just beneath Rainbow’s chin, “are you just worried that these new Slayers will steal all of my attention away?” “Please,” Rainbow scoffed, taking hold of Rarity’s hand and pulling her ever so slightly closer, “you know nopony else could possibly outshine me. You couldn’t ignore me even if you tried.” “I love your confidence, darling,” Rarity beamed, her hand finding itself on Rainbow’s chest. “But for now, let’s focus on the task at hand!” “Fine, fine,” Rainbow sighed and let go of Rarity’s hand, putting her own hands in her coat pocket. “I’m in a better mood now anyway.” It didn’t take long to find the other Slayers; it was hard to miss them what with the crowd of ponies gathering around to coo at them. “Geez, showoffs much?” Rainbow groaned, and Rarity had to stifle a laugh at the irony. Most Slayers tended to conduct their business in private, more or less. It didn’t usually do to make a big scene, but sometimes it was easier to blend in than others, and even Rarity and Rainbow with their comparatively modest gear stood out in this sleepy, out of the way town, so she imagined a pair of Slayers even a smidge more ostentatious than them would naturally gather a lot of attention. Rarity was not prepared however, to be so easily swayed into the cooing masses once she set eyes on the Slayers. There were two of them, both stallions, and they both looked fit and strong like any good Slayer would; one was an older gentleman, with suave but gently mussed graying hair that contrasted his sky blue man. He was dressed in fine clothing that was accentuated by a bold dusty brown bomber’s jacket, and an ivory scarf tied into a loose slipknot. The other was a blonde man with a long mane that looked like it shimmered in the winter wind, his luxurious mane complimenting his pearly white coat, and his beautiful shining golden armor being impossible for Rarity to take her eyes off, or at least it would have been if his soft facial features weren’t so easy on the eyes. Rarity let out an awkward laugh and smiled like a smitten schoolfilly, a rather embarrassing juxtaposition that didn’t escape Rainbow’s notice. “Like what you see, Rarity?” Rainbow snickered. “Sh-shut up,” Rarity stammered, limply slapping at Rainbow. “Come on, go introduce yourself.” “What? Why me?” Rainbow griped. “I don’t care about these—oh wait.” “Hm? Something the matter?” Rarity asked, curious by Rainbow’s sudden change in demeanor. “I know that guy!” Rainbow exclaimed, pointing at the two Slayers, which didn’t make it easy to tell which guy Rainbow was talking about. “The guy in the bomber jacket, that’s Wind Rider! He was one of Luna’s guys back when I was training under her. Damn I used to really look up to him.” “’Used to’?” Rarity asked nervously. “Did something happen?” “Not exactly,” Rainbow groaned and rubbed the back of her neck, “but you know how it is. Stuff with Luna didn’t end great, and now it’s like— well you know.” “We don’t have to talk to them if you don’t want to,” Rarity turned her back on the Slayers to look Rainbow Dash in the eye; she needed to make it clear that Rainbow’s comfort and emotional wellbeing were Rarity’s top priorities, even above things like decorum and politeness. “Nah, I’m over it,” Rainbow shrugged. “You can go flirt with those guys if you really want to.” “F-flirt with— who said anything about flirting?!” Rarity laughed awkwardly, her voice peaking into an embarrassingly shrill octave, and she was sure her face was painted a ghastly shade of red. “I was just going to talk to them!” “What’s this about flirting?” a man’s voice spoke from behind Rarity, and if her face was red before, now she was certain it had drained into a ghostly pale as Rarity turned around to see the blonde man standing right behind her. “Because I have to say, if a pretty mare like you is offering to flirt, I’d have to be an absolute dunce to turn you down.” “W-well, aren’t you the forward one?” Rarity cleared her throat and twirled a strand of her mane to try and fight back against her nerves. “I will admit, I couldn’t help but notice that the other Slayers in this town were rather pleasant to look at.” “The feeling is more than mutual,” the man said, biting his lip as he looked Rarity’s body up and down, a gesture that Rarity might have been mildly offended by if she hadn't been giving him the exact same look. “My name’s Blueblood, by the way. Prince Blueblood.” “Oh, where are my manners?” Rarity laughed, holding out her hand and shaking Blueblood’s. “My name is Rarity, and my partner here is Rainbow Dash.” “Hey,” Rainbow said casually. “Hmm,” Blueblood hummed and gave Rainbow a smile that was just the right mixture of polite and thirsty to make Rarity chuckle, “your partner is—” “Don’t try, buddy,” Rainbow cackled, “I’m gay.” “Well, uh,” Blueblood cleared his throat, “well I guess that’s good news for the other women in your life.” “Nice save, bro,” Rainbow rolled her eyes. Rarity couldn’t help but laugh at Rainbow’s casual dismissal of Blueblood, but then suddenly Rarity realized she was still holding Blueblood’s hand and it was very warm and soft and Rarity was very gay. Wait, actually she wasn’t gay in this case, but she was so rusty when it came to flirting with men that she forgot for a sec. She was very bi. “So what’s this about you being a Prince?” Rarity asked with intense curiosity. “Well,” Blueblood puffed up his chest and spoke proudly, I—” “You giving girls the old prince line, Blueblood?” Wind Rider said as he joined the conversation, poking his partner in the side with his elbow. “’Line’?” Rarity asked drearily, her curiosity deflated. “It’s not a line!” Blueblood huffed at Wind Rider, who just rolled his eyes with a wry smile. “Prince is just his first name,” Wind Rider explained, “but he likes to play it up when he’s nervous around a pretty girl.” “Sh-shut up!” Blueblood shouted, his face turning beet red, which probably wasn’t helped by Rarity struggling to stifle a laugh and Rainbow Dash cackling wildly behind her. “Oh?” Rarity perked up and took a step closer to Blueblood; he was a mite taller than her—in fact he was almost the exact height of a certain lavender— or rather, his height was very familiar to Rarity, but she tried to push that out of her mind. “Do I make you nervous, Prince?” “W-well,” Prince Blueblood took Rarity’s hands in his and looked down into her eyes, and she felt like she was looking right into the doorway to heaven or perhaps some other hyperbolic thing cuz she swore she had a little devil on her shoulder chastising her for flirting with someone other than Twilight and needling her that oh she was probably only really interested in this guy because it gave her a distraction from Twilight and STARS she wished she could stop thinking about that little purple bastard for two seconds so she could enjoy flirting with a hot guy for a moment. Rarity blinked. She suddenly realized her internal monologue had drowned out whatever Blueblood had just said to her, and now she was standing— her hands still in his— awkwardly in silence while everyone stared at her. “I’m sorry? Come again?” Rarity said, her cheeks feeling like they were being pressed against a road of hot coals. “I’m afraid I spaced out for a moment.” “Captivated by Prince’s beauty no doubt,” Wind Rider said with a cheeky smile aimed at Blueblood, who merely rolled his eyes in annoyance. “No doubt,” Rarity said with an awkward chuckle. “He was just saying that you’re hot,” Rainbow said as she threw her arms around Rarity, “but you already know you’re hot and we got stuff to do, so let’s stop wasting time here already!” “Oh, uh, alright I guess,” Rarity said, still feeling a bit dazed after her little mental spiral just a second ago and not bothering to resist Rainbow Dash dragging her away. “We’ll see you bros later,” Rainbow snarked at Wind Rider and Blueblood, “after we’ve taken care of the sea serpent. Honestly you guys are just redundant now that we’re here.” “Now hold on a second,” Rarity said, shaking Rainbow Dash off of her. “Actually, could you gentlemen wait here for one moment?” The two men nodded and Rarity pulled Rainbow off to the side for a second. “Did Blueblood say something weird when I zoned out?” Rarity asked anxiously. “Is that why you’re so eager to leave them behind?” “What? No,” Rainbow balked. “If Blueblood said something sketchy, you know I would’ve just clocked him or something. He really did just say some generic crap about you being pretty. I don’t think he’s a creep or anything, just boring.” “Oh okay,” Rarity sighed in relief, hand over her chest. “You had me worried for a second!” “Sorry,” Rainbow ruffled her mane and gave an adorable apologetic smile, “I’m just chomping at the bit to get going, y’know?” “That’s fair,” Rarity said, stealing a glance at Blueblood and Wind Rider and biting her lip. “But you know, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if he worked w—” “If you wanna keep flirting with that guy, I’m not gonna stop ya,” Rainbow rolled her eyes playfully. “Okay good,” Rarity beamed, “cuz I really, really do!” “Honestly, Rarity,” Rainbow shook her head and gave Rarity a positively bewildered look, “you have like the worst taste in dudes.”