//------------------------------//
// Chapter Four: Old Habits 
// Story: Weekend in Pearis 
// by Fleur de Lis 
//------------------------------//

	Rarity stepped onto the train platform, glancing around for just a few seconds before locking eyes with a smiling Fleur, walking toward the her lovely grace.
Fleur stepped in to greet her with a kiss on the cheek, "Bonjour, Rarity! You're just in time, darling." she exclaimed.
Rarity's face burned a bright red at the peck. She knew it was only customary, but couldn't help the thought of there being more behind it than simple compliments.
"Fleur, I wouldn't miss this for the world!" Rarity smiled brightly, "I hope you've enjoyed Ponyville while you were here. I know it's a small town, but admittedly it is quite cute, isn't it?"
Fleur giggles softly, a feature about her that always made Rarity's heart soar at it's charm, "I did. I even stopped by the local spa and was quite impressed, I can see why you stay here."
Rarity chewed softly on her lip, glancing to the train quickly before looking back to Fleur, "Are you ready?"
She gave a soft glance before nodding, "Oui; Our car will be toward the front."
Rarity's head was pegged with the notion. Car? She booked a private car for just the two of us? There are only so many ways that I can imagine this situation playing out in my mind and only a handful are strictly platonic.
The girls boarded the train and made their way to the second car. Rarity didn't know how she felt anymore. Her emotions were rampant between lust and anxiety. What's worse is that it appeared to have no tangible correlation to the situation at hand. With a slight swallow, she suspended her feelings temporarily to reconsider the facts.
Once they had arrived at their car, Fleur slid open the door and took the initiative inside, silently beckoning Rarity to follow into her rather spacious quarters. Rarity noticed a long bench on one side of the cart, decorated with mixtures of pink and black textures that gave the whole room a very sharp feeling.
That wasn't what caught her attention, however. The centrepiece of the space was a wide, twin-sized bed with extravagant posts reaching from the four corners of the soft-looking mattress.
Without missing a beat, Fleur slumped onto the bed in an alluring fashion, shooting a look at Rarity, "Drink?" she motioned to the small bucket of ice with a few bottles of what Rarity can only assume is some kind of spirit.
Rarity thought several moments, her initial reaction was one of reluctance, but she knew that with a trip this long, she was bound to get thirsty sometime. She decided to seize the moment and nodded, smiling, "Of course.~ You know how much I can't resist a good moscoto."
Fleur turned over and rummaged through the bucket, pausing for a moment and then pulling out a smaller wine bottle, "Well, you have a good eye, no? I didn't know they normally stocked moscoto," she flashed a smile of embarrassment.
Rarity knew better. You don't have to lie, Fleur. You know it's my favourite. But she managed to keep her thoughts to herself.
The question lingered on her tongue for what seemed like a millennia: Why? Why now is Fleur suddenly interested in her again? Why is she being so closed off and secretive? It rang in Rarity's mind like a gong, repeatedly crashing over and over to the point of intolerance.
Fleur poured the two a glass and looked up at Rarity with a soft, loving expression. As if by clairvoyance, she could read Rarity's mind, she spoke up.
"I'm just... so fed up with being alone," she breathed in almost a depressed manner.
Rarity's ears perked up and she returned a caring glance, "Fleur, what do you mean, darling? I thought someone like you would have ponies constantly about their presence. Why do you feel so alone?" taking a glass with her magic, sipping the sweet wine slowly, never breaking eye contact.
Fleur shrugged obviously, "You would think so, but unfortunately the glamour only goes so far. A fling here, a buck there, it gets old," she looks up to her friend, "I just need something... somepony with more substance," she smiles.
Rarity shook her head, "I just don't understand why. Why now? Why did you never write to me or stop by?" she felt deeply hurt the more she brought it up, beginning to pace. "Why would you leave me alone with no idea of where you were or why you were away for so long? Why did you push me away?" she managed the last sentence with a soft quaver to her voice.
Rarity felt her cheeks grow hot and batted her eyes more, trying to maintain her composure, of which there was little left. She turned, looking out the window as the last vestige of Ponyville was past and they were fully on their way to Pearis.
"Why did you come back?" Rarity huffed shakily.
Fleur slowly moved from her roost on the bed and gave Rarity a soft hug from behind, nuzzling into her neck softly. Her guilt was obvious and she didn't raise to defend herself on any of the accounts laid claim by Rarity.
The next words rang home like a thousand arrows for Rarity, the welling tears couldn't be held back any longer after Fleur's statement, only a rekindled fire that was bent on never being extinguished again
Fleur managed a soft chuckle, "I guess..." she lead, pausing for one too many seconds, "old habits die hard."
Rarity locked Fleur into a deep kiss and shoved the mare back onto the bed, throwing herself to her and the world.