//------------------------------// // Chapter 10: Colors // Story: A Grand Journey // by willow_whistle //------------------------------// ACT 2 Rarity had never been a particularly “normal” pony, as far as she was concerned.  As much as normal was-- of course-- a relative term, Rarity knew that she didn’t fit the descriptor.  For starters, she possessed rainbow colored hair, of which she was incredibly proud! Her mane cascaded from canary yellow, to sunset orange, to salmon pink; and her tail from lime green, to electric blue, and a deep violet.  She had so very much pride in these colors she bore, as did her older sisters Rainbow Dash and Toola Roola.  With two thriving and successful artists to model herself after, Rarity couldn’t help but be a little eccentric.  This eccentricity and pride, however, meant high-highs and low-lows.  Unfortunately for the filly, this day was shaping up to be downer. Since tumbling into the poison joke on saturday, as the result of a spectacular roller-skating accident, Rarity had kept herself holed up in her room to hide her shame from her friends and, in spite of their best efforts, her family.  She spent this time curled up in a blanket on her bed, cuddling her stuffies and daydreaming of the (from her perspective) far-off day that she could go outside and play again.  Nopony would stop her if she tried to, she was well aware-- indeed, there would be celebration-- but she couldn’t bear to show so much as her muzzle out the door of the bedroom she called her sanctuary.  She was roused from her present bout of self pity by a knock at the door. “Rarity, please come out,” the nasal and perpetually drowsy-sounding voice of Toola Roola rang out, “It’s time for school, sis.” “For the last time, NO!”  The pink-coated filly shouted in reply, “they can’t see me like this, I’ll never live it down!” “Rarity, darling,” Rainbow Dash’s sonorous voice began, “I am certainly no stranger to how cruel other children can be.  I haven’t been shy around you about my own experiences as a filly, have I?” “N-no, but…” Rarity felt she might cry.  “I just can’t!” “There’s no way it’s that bad, hon.”  Toola stated as if there were no alternative.  “Can you please let us in, so we can at least talk about it?”  There was a long pause, and Toola added, sounding a bit choked-up, “Please, Rares?” Rarity considered for a moment, and wordlessly rose from her bed.  Cloaked in a fluffy, bubblegum-pink duvet, she slumped over the edge of her bed, and focused her magic on twisting the doorknob.  An aura, the same shade of green as the stripe in her tail, appeared, and with some effort, pulled open the door to her room.  Her sisters both looked as though they might cry, and greeted her with concerned smiles.  Rainbow Dash zipped immediately towards Rarity, and wrapped her forelegs around the filly in a very tight hug. “I’m so sorry you aren’t feeling well, darling.” Rainbow offered, visibly straining not to cry., as Toola Roola strode towards them and joined in the group hug, and Rarity did cry.  Her two elder siblings gave her a few minutes to just let it all out, and did their best to make sure she felt comfortable and safe. “Th… thank you.”  Rarity sniffled, and nuzzled her snout up under Toola’s.  “I’m.. s-s-sorry…” “Shhhhh, no-no, Rarity, don’t be sorry.”  Toola said, and hugged her tighter, “Just, please, tell us what’s got you so upset?” Rarity paused for a moment, forced a determined expression, and pulled away from her sisters.  She shook the blanket off her, and revealed the obvious source of her anguish:  her beautiful mane and tail’s hues had been changed to earth tones!  Olive drab, dirt brown, and granite gray, where there ought to be a whole spectrum of vibrant color.  “Here,” she choked, “this is the problem…” Toola and Rainbow both were astounded to see this, and did a very poor job of hiding it. “Oh, it’s not that bad, darling…” Rainbow dash said, trepidatiously. “I dunno, sis, it’s pretty bad.”  Toola Roola said, with complete sincerity.  Rainbow looked back at her with a surprised scowl. “I KNOW!” Rarity bellowed, and buried her face in her pillow. She surely said something else on the matter, but neither of the other ponies could understand it through the muffling of the pillow. Toola Roola patted the filly’s back with a hoof, and tried to reassure her. “Well, Rares, what I mean is that it’s bad if you think you can only pull off having a rainbow mane.  There are plenty of ponies with earthier tones!  Like Applejack: she’s got sort of dirty-blonde colored hair.” Rarity lifted her face from her pillow, sniffling, eyes red.  “That’s easy for you to say, TooRoo.  Yours is still perfect...” “Oh, darling,” Rainbow Dash dismissed, “Toola’s mane is far from perfect, it seems to me like she barely remembers to get the clumps of dried paint out more than maybe bi-weekly.”  Toola Roola replied with a sneer, and Rainbow fluttered her eyelashes innocently. Rarity seemed to brighten at this-- even permitting herself a little chuckle-- so Toola Roola decided to let Rainbow have this one.  She was technically right, after all.  Toola Roola hugged Rarity again, and Rainbow Dash joined in it. “I love you guys…” the filly said, and her sisters reciprocated.  “But… Do I still have to go to school today?”