Rarity had lost all feeling in her body, even as she was sitting down. The world was spinning and turning in a blur. Everything was happening too fast, and in some ways too slow. The sun was beating down on her, and she wish it would just go away. Her white hoof shook lightly whenever she lift it. She tried to think, but something inside her wouldn’t allow that. She closed her mouth tightly to hold herself back, but she was going to erupt sooner than she thought.
“Rarity,” somepony said. “Are you okay?”
She came back to reality. Rarity found herself sitting in the outside court of a restaurant. She remembered how she got there; Twilight invited her. She took a deep breath, rubbed her head. “I’m fine,” Rarity said, not exactly sure of herself.
Twilight wasn’t sure if Rarity was telling the truth. Ever since they arrived she kept looking around, her eyes up to the sky then at the table. She watched her lips twitch and quiver, her hoof covering her mouth.
“Rarity, I know something is on your mind. You can tell me. Please?”
She closed her eyes. Rarity opened her mouth to say something as a waiter came with their orders. A plate of salad for Rarity and a daffodil sandwich for Twilight. The waiter smile, nodded, then went away. The two mares gazed at their plates. Nopony made the first move. A lavender aura surrounded the sandwich. Twilight took small bites of the sandwich. She noticed that Rarity wasn’t eating her salad, but she didn’t want to say anything.
“... I went to Fluttershy’s today,” Rarity said in a low voice.
“You did? How is she?”
“I don’t know. I knocked on her door, but there was no answer. I called her name several times. Angel answered, but from the look of his face it didn’t seem she wanted any visitors… “
A blue aura engulfed the knife and fork. Rarity held the salad with the fork and sliced it into small pieces with the knife. She took a small pile of it and held the fork to her mouth. Then she place the utensils down. Rarity was lost in her thoughts, she looked at nothing in particular. Her hoof was covering her mouth.
Twilight placed her sandwich on her plate. Rarity shook her head slowly, as if an unpleasant thought disturbed her. With her hoof covering her mouth Twilight didn’t know she was quietly mumbling.
“Twilight…” She paused. She lowered her head. Her eyes hid under her blue mane. “I feel exhausted. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I haven’t slept for days.” She continued to have her head lowered. Her voice was cracking. Rarity raised her head again, wiping the small amount of droplets from her eyes. “I’m weak, physically and emotionally. It’s like I’m living in a nightmare… I don’t know when I’ll wake up. And if I do wake, I’ll be trap in another nightmare.”
She put her hooves on her face, whimpering and holding back her anguish. “I can’t eat, I can’t breath, I can’t dream… I can’t even run the shop. My soul has given up.”
Twilight pushed her plate away. She said Rarity’s name, but she couldn’t think of anything to say. The waiter returned and refilled their water glasses. Rarity tried to compose herself so he wouldn’t look frightened.
“Everything has happened so suddenly,” Rarity said. “One day everyone of us was laughing together on this very spot, and now… I don’t know if I can go on. Rainbow Dash’s death has taken away my peace of mind. I’m so afraid, Twilight, so very afraid. I’m frightened that this nightmare will never end.”
Twilight watched Rarity slowly break down. She was afraid that she might do something horrible to herself, and another tragedy will land on their hooves. She couldn’t let that happen. Then a thought came to her.
“Rarity,” Twilight said. “The other day, Pinkie told me that she was leaving town for a while. I was thinking… maybe we should do the same.”
“What do you mean?”
“Rainbow Dash’s death has taken a tremendous toll on all of us. And for that reason Pinkie said she was going to visit her family and do some soul searching. It would probably be a good idea if we do the same.”
“I don’t think leaving town will fix anything. Not of this magnitude.”
“It might not,” Twilight said. “Rarity, the well-being of my friends is more important to me than anything. I don’t want anything to happen to you, or anypony else. Going away may not fix our problems, but we can gain our peace of mind again, even for a short while.”
Rarity looked down at her plate. Her salad was still there. She wasn’t sure about leaving town so suddenly. It didn’t seem right. The more she thought it sounded like Twilight was suggesting to run away. Besides, she had a business to run.
“I don’t know,” she said.
“Please Rarity,” Twilight said. “You need this. Like you said, you’re weak - physically and emotionally. I am too. Every night I search my books, desperately trying to find out what happened to Rainbow Dash. I can never find anything helpful. I feel like I failed to save her somehow. Spike would find me on the floor, crying, screaming. He had to stay up with me all night just to console me. We need this.”
Rarity didn’t know what to say. Her mind was in a blur that she couldn’t think straight. Her hoof was shaking again. Time seem to stretch. Twilight was gazing at her with pleading eyes.
“... My family is going on vacation,” Rarity said. “In a couple of days as a matter of fact. They’re going to Jovial Province, a town just north of Manehattan. I wasn’t planning on going, but… I guess they can make room for one more.”
“That’s good. I’m sure Sweetie Belle will be excited.”
“Where will you go?”
“I going to visit my brother and Princess Cadance. I’m bringing Spike with me.”
Twilight held Rarity’s hooves into hers. She looked at her intently. “Rarity, we’ll get through this. I promise things will be better for all of us.”
“Are you sure, Twilight?”
Honestly, she didn’t know. Twilight didn’t answer, but she tried to smile at her anyway. Rarity wanted to smile as well, but then another thought came to her, and she was frightened once more. “What about Fluttershy? We can’t just leave her here alone.”
The little smile vanished from Twilight. “I’ll think of something.”
The waiter was approaching their table. Rarity gained his attention and told him that she didn’t have much of an appetite. She paid him and left a tab anyway. Rarity was still skeptical about taking a vacation, but she knew she couldn’t handle the stress any longer. If she stayed here any longer then the stress will overtake her, and then what? Then she thought about Sweetie Belle. She couldn’t leave her alone in this world. Now the decision was final - she will go.
“Ponyville will be quiet without us,” Rarity said.
“Maybe a little silence is needed."