//------------------------------// // Part One: But - // Story: Misconception // by Drizzle Quill //------------------------------// Misconception By Drizzle Quill Part I But – She was reading the letter wrong. She had to be reading the letter wrong! The elegant white unicorn Rarity skimmed the letter clutched in her light blue aura again, azure eyes going wide as she realized she most certainly had not read the letter wrong. Her violet mane was disheveled and dusty, but at the moment, Rarity didn’t care. She was currently in possession of the time bomb ending her life. Tick…tick…tick… It would go off on Father’s Day, as stated in the letter. Rarity the unicorn, bearer of the Element of Generosity, would unceremoniously die of embarrassment. “Dearest Rare, I hope you’re looking forward to tomorrow’s meal, because I sure know I am! A special Father’s Day, just you, my shining diamond, me, your bumbling father, and your…friend. Now, Rare, about this friend: in your last letter, she seemed to be of great importance to you. You seemed quite eager for me to allow her to tag along on our visit – one, I must remind you, that was intended to be shared between you and me, father and daughter. After contemplating your letter, I have realized what must be going on. Oh, my little Rarity. You have a crush on another mare? It’s fine, of course; perfectly normal for a fine young filly your age. But this Applejack! You were raving on and on about how she simply had to come with us. You really wish me to meet your young lover, don’t you, Rare? Yup, this got a chuckle out of your old dad. Rarity, once just a little filly entranced with jewels, all grown up and bringing her marefriend to her Father’s Day brunch! Well, don’t you worry your pretty little head – I’m fine with it. More than fine, in fact. Can’t wait to meet this “Applejack” character! Excited to be seeing you – and your ‘friend’ – tomorrow, Your loving daddy, Magnum.” Just reading the letter caused Rarity’s face to flush with a bright pink burn that just couldn’t seem to go away. How did this even happen? She had made it perfectly clear Applejack was coming for an entirely different reason, right? …right? Now that she thought about it, what had Rarity written on that letter she had sent concerning bringing Applejack along? “Dear Father…I am excited for the luncheon we shall be partaking in on Sunday’s evening…hmm…I will be bringing along a very good friend of mine…” Rarity’s voice dropped quieter and quieter as she realized just what she had indeed said. “…it is incredibly important to me that she comes along…” Slowly her words died out. “…and that she meets you,” the unicorn breathed, a little less than a whisper. No, no, no, no, no! That wasn’t what she had meant to imply! Face burning like it was on fire, Rarity quickly rolled up the letter using her magic and summoned a saddlebag to carry it in. Strapping the bag on, she quickly glanced around, making sure no one was watching, and cantered out of the door as fast as she could. Rarity wasn’t sure how she would stop the upcoming disaster, but she had to stop it, soon. The only thought running through her head as she raced to Applejack’s farm was: This wasn’t supposed to happen. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No, it wasn’t supposed to happen. It had started on Friday, the day Rarity had sent the letter to her father. The bearers of the Elements of Harmony were helping Applejack harvest the newest crop of Red Delicious apples. Pinkie Pie bounced about the top of the trees, light blue eyes shining as she knocked down apples with each spring. From there, the juicy fruit landed in a bucket carried tentatively by Fluttershy and her animal friends, though perhaps she wasn’t the right pony to do the job – she squeaked and leapt backward each time a new target landed in the container. Rainbow Dash zoomed throughout the trees, allowing the wind caused by her speed to knock the apples down, where Rarity and Twilight would levitate them into various buckets. Applejack used no fancy technique – she just simply applebucked like she had been trained to do almost her whole life. The topic of Father’s Day was brought up by Twilight. “Are any of you going to visit your fathers on Sunday?” “You bet!” Pinkie squealed, jumping out of the tree and landing in front of the shocked princess; Twilight yelped and stumbled backwards into a tree as Pinkie continued to chatter aimlessly. “My dad is gonna come, and so are my sisters, and my mom, so really it’s more of a Father-Sister-Mother-Day or maybe it could be called Family-Reunion-Day and we’re going to eat at Sugarcube Corner so the Cakes and I can throw them the biggest Father-Sister-Mother-Family-Reunion-Day-Party EVER!” “Pinks, I think we get it,” Rainbow groaned and rolled her eyes, alighting on the ground with surprising ease, considering just a minute ago she had been practicing daredevil moves. “Well, I intend to spend the day with my father as well,” Twilight smiled nervously, clearly still worried that Pinkie would get back up in her face again. She had nothing to worry about, really – the pink earth pony was busy indulging a Red Delicious apple, grinning. “Are you going to Canterlot to meet him, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked nervously, slowly getting into a sitting position on the cool grass. The lavender alicorn nodded. “We’re going to my favorite restaurant, and we might even get to talk with the Princess!” Her violet eyes sparkled at the prospect of talking with her mentor again. Rainbow nudged her in the side with one elbow. “But you’re a princess now too, Twi!” Twilight blushed and said nothing more, so Rainbow, Pinkie, and Fluttershy began to converse about how they would be spending that Sunday. Eventually Twilight couldn’t seem to keep out of the conversation any more, and burst in. Rarity, waiting for a spot in the talking where she could speak, sat there, watching and listening with a drab smile on her face when she noticed their farmer friend off to one side. Applejack looked downhearted; she was slowly taking bites of one of the apples, but with no enthusiasm, and her posture was slumped, like she didn’t care about what she was doing. Rarity, who had always been the kind of unicorn who couldn’t bear to see a friend in need of good posture, scooted over by her side. “Applejack, darling,” she asked in a quiet voice. “Whatever is the matter?” “Aw, it’s nothin’, Rare,” the orange earth pony said, managing a small smile. “Ah’m okay.” “No, you’re not.” “Yes, Ah am!” “You’re the Element of Honesty, Applejack,” Rarity said, lifting an eyebrow. “You’re an absolutely terrible liar.” Staring into the unicorn’s eyes pleadingly for a few seconds more, AJ finally lowered her head. “Okay, okay. Yah got me. Ah’ll tell you.” The comforting look returned to Rarity’s face. “Good. Now, dearie – what’s on your mind?” Applejack sighed. “…Ah won’t have anypony to visit with on Father’s Day,” she mumbled, eyes looking straight down at the ground and nowhere else. Rarity gasped; Applejack looked as if she was going to cry, which meant this had to be a very notable occasion to her. The white unicorn had hardly known her farmer friend to show any displays of hurt, let alone start crying. “Darling…are your parents…?” She couldn’t get the last word out, but the earth pony clearly knew what she meant, as she gave one firm nod and let a single tear fall. “…and my dad and I are gonna go flying,” Rainbow Dash boasted next to them, oblivious to her friend’s obvious hurt. Applejack visibly winced and Rarity placed one hoof over her shoulders. “AJ,” the elegant unicorn whispered in the other pony’s ear. “I…I wish there was a way to help you.” “Shucks, Rare…I don’t need any help.” “Yes, you do…ah-ha-ha!” The last note was high-pitched and sudden, causing Applejack to stare in shock at Rarity, whose eyes had lit up like lights on a Hearth’s Warming Eve tree. “Idea!” “What?” Applejack asked, obviously confused. The unicorn turned to look at her, eyes glowing. “You can come with my father and I to the Daisy Days Café - you know, the restaurant near the middle of Ponyville? - with us! You’ll be welcome – I’ll make sure he lets you come.” Rarity was practically glowing. Applejack blushed. “Aw, shucks, Rare. You don’t have to do that!” “No, no, no! Not another word!” Rarity got to her hooves and smiled. “I’d be happy to write a letter explaining!” But apparently it didn’t explain enough… --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Whipping around the corner, Rarity flew towards Sweet Apple Acres, eyes wild as she tore up dirt with her hooves. Panting slightly, the unicorn slid in front of the barn – – only to run right into Applejack, who was pulling a cart of apples past, humming a tune as she trotted along. “Well, howdy, Rares. What’s going o—” “READ THIS!” The earth pony started as a light blue letter was shoved in her muzzle. Green eyes skimmed the parchment – the parchment containing Rarity’s life, in her mind. The unicorn closed her eyes, waiting for the bomb to go off. Applejack would yell at her. She wouldn’t take her act of generosity and come to brunch – and frankly, Rarity didn’t want her to anymore. Rarity waited for the screams. The anger. The explosion. The “I’m not going with you anymore” speech. What she got instead entirely surprised her. Applejack did not scream, or yell, or explode. Applejack burst out laughing.