Well, this certainly could have been worse… Rarity thought with a sigh of contentment. Of all the places in Ponyville that she had suspected that her sister was going to lead them she had never even considered the Ponyville Spa, so when Sweetie had announced that she was going to treat them all to a session there Rarity had been surprised to say the least. After all, she thought as she stretched across the massage table, her stomach pressing against the plush robe and padded table top, there are a thousand other things that Sweetie could have suggested, and none of them would have been half as relaxing and enjoyable as the Spa!
Soothing music filled the fragrant air around her as the unicorn turned her head to her left, her chin pillowing against her outstretched front leg as she smiled at Octavia, who was stretched out on the massage table next to Rarity. The earth pony’s eyes were languid as she met Rarity’s gaze, her cheeks still flushed from the heat of the sauna that the three mares had enjoyed a few minutes before, and as the spa ponies gently massaged their backs Octavia let out a sigh of contentment.
“Do you do this often, Rarity?” she murmured, her voice flowing like warm silk as the mare named Lotus gently rubbed her back. Octavia let out a sigh and tilted her head a bit more so that the towel holding her mane up and out of the way flopped against her leg. “It’s wonderful…”
The unicorn nodded slightly as Aloe worked the muscles in her back firmly, forcing the knots she had felt earlier in the day to relax beneath her insistent yet tender onslaught. “I do, as a matter of fact. I come here once a week with my friend Fluttershy.” Her smile grew and she closed her eyes. “In fact, the girls here know exactly what to do when I come in, don’t you, girls?”
Without hesitation Aloe, Lotus, and the last mare named Vera, who was giving Sweetie Belle her gentle massage, all chimed in as one: “The Usual, Miss Rarity!” The unicorn couldn’t help but feel a surge of warmth inside her as she giggled lightly. There’s something about the way they say that with their Prench accents that makes me feel pampered, she thought, and if there was anything in the world that Rarity loved it was feeling pampered.
“That’s right! Because my sister loves the Ponyville Spa! It’s positively her most favorite thing to do in town – isn’t that right, Rarity?”
Rarity’s smile grew as she turned her head to her right, where Sweetie Belle lay across the third massage table in the room. The filly wore a white robe around her body and a towel to hold up her hair just like Rarity and Octavia, and as Rarity’s gaze fell upon her she was positively beaming.
“Without a doubt, Sweetie Belle,” confirmed Rarity as she stretched again, her hooves pawing at the air like a cat as she did so. “There’s nowhere else in Ponyville that I’d rather go for a healthy dose of dedicated ‘me-time’.” The unicorn stretched a moment more before melting back against the table into a pony-shaped puddle, her face a mask of bliss. This is the best day I’ve had in quite some time, Rarity thought as Aloe’s hooves moved down her body to her legs, and the fact that I get to spend it with both my marefriend and my sister makes it even more so.
“I don’t think there’s a more relaxing place in all of Equestria,” Octavia muttered dreamily. “If there is, I certainly haven’t found it…”
Rarity giggled softly under her breath. Oh my stars, she sounds so relaxed! I don’t think I’ve ever heard her so blissfully tranquil! She turned to face the earth pony once more, a coy remark on the tip of her tongue, but before she could deliver it to Octavia she heard Sweetie Belle giggle loudly.
“Well, that’s why Rarity loves it here! It’s so peaceful and relaxing that she can’t help but want to be here, I think.” She heard Sweetie shift on the table as Vera moved into her line of sight, indicating that her sister was finished with her massage. “It’s the most perfect place for the most interesting, special, and mature socialites here in Ponyville,” she said, and as Vera stepped out of the way Rarity watched Sweetie lift her hoof to her chin in a motion that was most certainly something that she had seen in a magazine. “So it’s where I want to be most of all, of course!” she finished in a haughty tone.
Despite the soothing music and tranquil warmth of the spa Rarity’s eyes narrowed at her sister, and the warning bells that had resounded in her mind earlier in the day returned with a vengeance. That most assuredly does not sound like Sweetie Belle, she thought, her lips pressing together into a scrutinizing line as she watched her sibling. The smaller pony slid to the side and hopped down from the table, her robe-clad form slipping from Rarity’s view as her diminutive figure dropped her low enough that she vanished beneath the edge of the table that Rarity was stretched across. What is that filly up to? Rarity wondered as she shifted her gaze back to her left, where Octavia was still stretched comfortably out on her own table. This has been a wonderful experience for the three of us, but that comment about the most interesting, special and mature of ponies coming here… The designer’s muzzle crinkled as she frowned, her thoughts sloshing around in a mire of relaxing scents and warm oils. She’s up to something.
“I’m happy to hear that you’ve come to enjoy the spa so much, Sweetie Belle,” said Rarity carefully, her mind doing its best to banish the befuddling mist that surrounded it as she sat up on her table. Her robe twisted slightly as she shifted, its cottony folds rubbing against her coat as she sat up onto her rump and placed her front hooves firmly onto the table before her. “In fact,” she continued as her gaze found her sister once more, “I must say that I’m surprised that your opinion of the spa has changed so much so… quickly.”
Sweetie’s hooves froze on the way to the dressing room and, despite still wearing her oversized robe, Rarity saw her stiffen all the way to the roots of her hair – an observation that made the unicorn smirk. Oh, I’m on to you, young filly! Don’t think for one moment that you can so easily pull the delightfully scented and blissfully soft spa towel over your big sister’s eyes!
“I… I’m not sure what you mean, dearest sister!” stammered Sweetie after a moment of awkward silence. The filly gave her head a sharp shake before turning back to face Rarity, her robe swishing around her hooves as she tilted her chin into the air as far as she could without the towel atop her head overbalancing her and dragging her to the floor. “I’ve always loved the spa! After all, what kind of well-mannered and extremely social pony would I be if I didn’t love coming here?”
Well-mannered? Who does she think she’s kidding with this nonsense?! Rarity smiled down at Sweetie Belle, and despite her desire to maintain a cool and nonchalant air during her questioning she felt the smile sharpen just a little at the edges.
“Ah yes, how could I forget?” She raised a hoof and touched it to the towel atop her head, patting it to ensure that it was still perfectly in place. “After all, we’ve been here so many times together, you and I…” Her eyes narrowed and she dropped her hoof back to the table as her smile melted away into a stern frown, her gaze skewering the smaller pony on an azure pike. “Honestly Sweetie Belle, what in the name of Celestia are you doing? We’ve come here together perhaps once, and you’ve never wanted to return.” The designer rose to all four hooves and leaped down from her table, her tail swishing behind her as she landed. “In fact, I recall that you complained loudly that all I ever wanted to do was come to this spa, as opposed to any of the ‘fun’ things,” Rarity raised her front hooves and bent them forward, accentuating the word fun before dropping them back to the floor, “that you and your friends would choose to do.” She took a step towards Sweetie Belle, her eyes narrowing even further as irritation flooded her mind like a crimson light through a soft morning mist.
“N-no, I never did anything like that!” squeaked Sweetie Belle, her eyes widening as she took a step back towards the dressing room. “I really do love coming here, a-and we do this all the time..!”
Now the light inside Rarity’s mind flared into a burning flame, and the unicorn felt her teeth grind together as she took another aggressive step towards her little sister. “That’s enough, Sweetie Belle! That is a blatant lie and you know it!” Rarity grasped her magic and used the sparkling blue aura to whip her towel from her mane, allowing its loose purple curls to fall around her face as she glared down at Sweetie. “This is unacceptable, young mare, and I shan’t tolerate it a moment longer! You are going to explain to me why you are lying like this, and you are going to do it now!”
To her surprise, Sweetie didn’t respond right away. In all of the years that Rarity had been in charge of looking after her younger sibling she could not think of a single scenario in which using that tone of voice did not draw the truth out of the docile Sweetie Belle, and as the seconds stretched between Rarity’s demand and Sweetie’s response the unicorn felt her anger grow hotter and hotter until she thought it would consume her. Of all the insolent, outrageous behavior, she thought, her eyes growing warm as her disbelief fanned the flames of her rage. If you’re going to lie to me, Sweetie Belle, then you are going to get a tongue lashing the likes of which you’ve never seen!!
Every word that she could think of to describe Sweetie Belle’s behavior rose like fire in Rarity’s throat, ready to be unleashed upon the cowering mass that was her little sister… but as Rarity opened her mouth to expel a torrent of vitriolic commentary, the smaller filly’s eyes shifted from her own. It wasn’t much, just a simple twitch of Sweetie’s jade green eyes that focused over Rarity’s shoulder for the briefest of moments, but as the filly’s eyes came back to hers Rarity saw Sweetie’s face fall into an expression so full of defeat that her perfectly prepared verbal assault faltered on her tongue. Sweetie Belle’s muzzle wrinkled and, to Rarity’s surprise, tears gathered at the corners of her eyes as she took a shaking breath.
“I… I wasn’t… trying to lie,” she breathed, her words shaking like the last leaves of autumn. “I just… I mean…” She shuffled her hooves around beneath her robe, her ears drooping down until they lay flat against her mane. “I was just…” She trailed off into silence as a tear slid its way down her cheek, and with a deep sigh Rarity gave her head a slight shake.
“Then why did you lie, young lady?” she asked, making sure to keep her voice as stern as she thought was necessary. “I would like an answer, if you please.”
Sweetie’s eyes darted over Rarity’s shoulder once more and, before the unicorn could even begin to wonder what her little sister was looking at, Rarity felt a hoof grasp her shoulder gently.
“Don’t you think that’s enough, koishī?”
Octavia’s words, as soft as spring rain yet as cool as an autumn night, caused Rarity’s shoulders to tighten and her hair to stand on end as her frustration at her sister was suddenly doused by a wave of cold shame. She turned her head slowly as her stomach wrenched in horrified agony, and as she met Octavia’s unflappable amethyst gaze she truly thought that she might throw up. The gray mare’s gaze was not judgmental or condemning, but as she held Rarity’s gaze the unicorn started to wish that she could see either of those emotions darting through the eyes that she loved so much. Instead, Octavia’s eyes were cool, collected and, perhaps most damningly, closed to the designer – something that sank a brick of ice into her stomach.
“I… I was just…” Rarity began, but the words that had so quickly formed inside her when they had been aimed at Sweetie Belle abandoned her when met with Octavia’s gaze. Oh dear Celestia… was all she could think as Octavia dropped her hoof back to the floor and stepped around her, the brilliant white of her robe contrasting sharply with her coal black hair and deep gray coat in the spa’s soft lighting.
“You cannot coax a flower from its seed with fire,” said Octavia softly, her tail shifting beneath her robe so that the tip wrapped around Rarity’s hind leg. “It takes the touch of water and the embrace of the earth to bring forth the flower you seek.” She turned and offered the stunned unicorn a small smile, and Rarity felt her whole body relax as the emotion returned to Octavia’s eyes. “Be calm and breathe, koishī – I would like to speak to your sister.”
Rarity clamped her mouth closed and gave her marefriend a small nod before taking a deep breath in through her nose, expanding her lungs until they were full. She knows me too well, the designer thought as Octavia turned back to Sweetie Belle. She even knows exactly what I have to do to calm down… it’s almost frightening, sometimes. She exhaled slowly, allowing the air to seep from her lips rather than expelling it all in one massive gust as Octavia smiled at the filly.
“Now, Sweetie Belle… let’s talk.” She gestured to Rarity with her right hoof. “Rarity says that you have been here once and never again,” she moved her hoof to point at Sweetie Belle, “while you say that you come here with your sister often. There is clearly some kind of misunderstanding between you two, yes?” Octavia placed her hoof back onto the floor, and her smile became even softer, if that as possible. “Please, Sweetie Belle – could you tell us why this might be?”
The smaller pony’s eyes widened and, to Rarity’s surprise, her expression softened substantially in the face of Octavia’s soft words and calm demeanor. But why? Octavia’s giving her the same chance to explain herself that I did, thought Rarity with a purse of her lips as she took another deep breath. All that Octavia is doing is phrasing her demand differently…
“Well… i-it’s because…” Sweetie Belle swallowed audibly, her chin quivering. “It’s because… Rarity’s right.” She winced as she said it, as if the confession caused her physical pain. “I’ve only ever been here once before…”
Ah-ha! I knew that she was lying! The unicorn felt righteous anger blaze to life inside of her again and she lifted her hoof to take a step towards her sister, but before she could take advantage of the opening, Octavia’s hoof shot out and stopped her. Rarity blinked down at the offending appendage before turning an arched eyebrow to her marefriend incredulously. Octavia, for her part, simply shook her head before dropping her hoof back to the floor. Does she honestly not expect me to berate my sister for lying? Mother and Father would certainly do no less if they were here right now!
“If that is true, then why did you lie?” asked Octavia softly, her words as soothing as anything the spa had to offer. “Please tell us – you will not be in any trouble with us.”
Rarity’s eyes narrowed. Speak for yourself, she thought vehemently.
Sweetie Belle’s eyes darted from Octavia to Rarity and back again once, then twice before she made any move to speak, and when she did she directed it to Octavia solely, her gaze locking onto and never leaving Rarity’s marefriend.
“Well… when Rarity told us that you were going to be coming to visit, I got really excited… I mean, my sister finally has a very special somepony to call her own, and… and I thought she really deserved one. She’s been alone for a long time, and… well, I was really, really happy that she had somepony who made her so happy… but…” Sweetie’s words trailed off into silence, and the filly seemed to fold in on herself. She hunched down into her robe far enough that it billowed up around her, making it look like her neck was slowly shrinking.
Octavia’s brow furrowed slightly. “But?” she coaxed, and her tone was so gentle that Rarity was vividly reminded of Fluttershy trying to get closer to a skittish animal.
Sweetie squeezed her eyes shut tightly, and after a few moments of silence she spoke again, though Rarity had to almost strain to hear her words. “But then I started thinking about… what it meant for Rarity to have a marefriend…” The filly sniffled loudly, and Rarity felt her anger at Sweetie start to fade as a tear trickled down her cheek. “I remembered all those trips that she’s taken to Canterlot… and I started to think that… she’s going to spend more and more time there until-…” Sweetie’s voice cracked and the filly shook her head vigorously, sending some of her tears flying from her face as she sobbed softly into her robe.
“Oh Sweetie Belle,” Rarity whispered, but once again Octavia was on top of the situation. She took a step towards Sweetie and sat down onto her rump, her long tail pooling around her as she leaned forward until her head was almost level with the filly.
“I think I understand,” she said with a nod.
Sweetie Belle hiccupped, and after a moment she opened one moist green eye so that she could peer at Octavia through the curls in her bangs, which had worked their way free of her towel. “Y-you d-do?” she stammered, her small form jerking as she did her best to stifle her sobs.
“I believe so,” confirmed Octavia, her smile sliding to the side until it became the half-smile that Rarity knew so well. “You are afraid of losing your sister.” Sweetie Belle flinched as if she had been physically threatened, but after a moment she nodded slowly.
Rarity’s jaw dropped open. “Afraid of losing me?” she asked incredulously. “Whatever are you talking about, Sweetie Belle?”
“I’m talking about losing you!” the filly cried, her tears quickly returning as she turned her eyes to Rarity. “I’m talking about you getting closer and closer to Octavia and getting further and further away from me!” She sniffled loudly, but after a moment she pressed on, her brow furrowed in a mask of determination. “I know how this works, y’know! I’m not stupid, even though that’s probably what you think of me now!” Sweetie shifted in her robe, poked her front hooves through her sleeves and held them up in front of her. “You get together with Octavia,” she said, moving one hoof to the other, “then the two of you get closer and closer…” she moved the hooves farther away from her, “and then you end up spending all of your time with her… and anypony that the two of you don’t like, you don’t spend time with…” She sniffled again and dropped her hooves back into the massive robe around her, her eyes slowly sinking from Rarity’s until she was gazing at the floor. “I just… I had to make sure that Octavia liked me… that she saw a little sister who was refined and interesting… so I thought…” she wiped a foreleg across her eyes, and her lip quivered. “…so I thought that if we did the things that you would like today, and I said that I really really liked them too…” She trailed off again as a sob hiccupped its way out of her throat.
“…that she would see that you’re like me, and since she likes me that would mean that she would like you, too,” Rarity finished for her softly, a ghost of a smile touching her lips as sadness welled up inside her like a rising tide. “Oh Sweetie Belle, you silly thing… is that what you were worried about?”
Sweetie nodded from her robe, the towel atop her head finally giving in to gravity and falling away from her tousled dual-tone mane to drape around her neck and shoulders, further hiding her from Rarity’s sight. “I just don’t want to lose you, Rarity,” she whispered through her tears. “I… I want you and Octavia to always want to be around me, a-and I thought that this would be the best way to… to do that…” She brought her front legs up and pressed them against her eyes as her tears came on in earnest, her tiny frame clenching into a ball as she began to sob wholeheartedly.
I never knew. It was the only thought that would form itself in Rarity’s mind as she watched her little sister cry, and somehow that single thought brought more sadness to the designer’s heart than she’d felt in years. Every sniffle and sob from Sweetie stabbed her in the heart and sent waves of sorrow and remorse pulsing through her whole being until her vision began to blur with tears of her own. I never even thought about how she would react to this… I just assumed she would be fine, no matter what… Her throat tightened, and as she felt her lips begin to tremble she hurried forward and did the one thing she could think to do:
She wrapped her hooves around Sweetie Belle and hugged her as tightly as she could, burying her face into the filly’s mane and nuzzling her firmly. Sweetie sniffled louder as her front legs darted out and wrapped themselves around Rarity’s left leg, pulling Rarity closer to her as she cried.
“Sweetie… I’m so sorry,” she whispered, her voice hoarse and her words soft. “I should have talked to you… I should have listened to you…” She shook her head slowly, her muzzle rubbing firmly against the smaller unicorn’s soft mane and coat as tears made their way down her cheeks. “I’ve been so stupid… a-and I want you to know that I am never, ever going to stop spending time with you… ever.”
Sweetie’s grip on her left leg tightened. “D-do you promise?” she muttered, her words muffled by the thick fabric of the robe.
Rarity pulled her leg free from Sweetie’s grasp and used her left hoof to pull the filly’s face out of the mass of robe and towel, her gaze meeting her sister’s again as she gave her a shaky smile. “The biggest promise that I can make,” she whispered. “I won’t leave you behind… or forget about you.” She turned her gaze to Octavia, who stood a few feet away, watching the whole exchange closely. “And neither will Octavia,” she said a little louder. “Isn’t that right, darling?”
The gray mare nodded and approached the pair, pausing only long enough to wipe her own eyes before sitting down next to Sweetie Belle on her other side. “Of course it is,” affirmed Octavia. “I love your sister dearly, Sweetie Belle, but I would never think to come between her and her family; in fact, I would say that it is my love for her that encourages me to make certain that she does spend time with her other loved ones.” Her amethyst eyes met Rarity’s again, and the unicorn felt her tears return at the love she saw in Octavia’s eyes. “It is part of being together,” she whispered. “You must make sure that both ponies are whole.”
“So…” Both mares dropped their gazes to Sweetie Belle, who looked up at them expectantly as she poked her front hooves together in front of her nose. “…does that mean that you don’t… hate me?”
Octavia laughed, a bright, beautiful sound that gave Rarity goosebumps and caused Sweetie’s smile to return. “Of course not, little one. In fact, I’m pleased to finally meet the real Sweetie Belle.” She leaned down and wrapped her front legs around the swaddled filly, her hooves crossing over Rarity’s as she hugged Sweetie. “I hope that you’ll find me as fun and interesting as I find you,” she said softly, her eyes sparkling as she bumped noses with Sweetie Belle.
The filly giggled. “I think I will,” she agreed, and Rarity felt her heart leap into her throat as Sweetie extricated her hooves from her robe and wrapped them around Octavia’s graceful neck, pulling her into a tight hug.
I wish this had been where we’d started this day, the designer thought as she wiped a hoof across her eyes, but better late than never, as my father would say. She returned her leg to the intricate hug and squeezed both ponies for all she was worth, her heart soaring as she shared time with two of the most important ponies in her life. She squeezed her eyes shut and smiled happily. This is exactly what we needed…
“So… hugging is really super great and all…” Rarity opened her eyes as Sweetie released Octavia and turned to face her, a sheepish smile growing on her lips. “But is anyone else, like, really really hungry?”
In spite of the tender moment they had just shared, Rarity couldn’t help but roll her eyes as Octavia giggled. “A perfect bookend to a wonderful moment, my dear Sweetie Belle,” she muttered, but despite her words she gave her sister another gentle squeeze. “But yes, I am quite hungry, now that you mention it.”
Sweetie leaned over and nuzzled Rarity’s cheek before smiling up at her happily. “Well, let’s go get lunch then! I made reservations at the bistro yesterday!”
Rarity smirked and sighed. “Anything for you, Sweetie Belle.”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“…and that was when Twilight walked in.” Sweetie Belle shivered despite the warm sunlight that poured over the trio of ponies as they sat at the open air table outside the Bistro. “We tried to tell her that the jam wasn’t supposed to explode like that, but she just stared at her books and kept muttering under her breath… it was kinda scary.” The small unicorn’s horn lit up and she levitated her drink to her, the condensation on the glass of lemonade glistening in the sunlight. “After she noticed that we were still there, she made us clean up every speck of jam from the library… it took a really long time, but she eventually let us go home.”
“As I recall, you were there almost three whole days before she’d let you go,” said Rarity with a knowing smirk. She leaned towards her sister and propped her chin atop her right front hoof before arching an eyebrow at her. “And what did you learn from all of that, dear Sweetie Belle?”
Sweetie took a long draw from her lemonade, her brow furrowing as she stared up into the blue sky. “Well,” she said, setting the glass back to the table, “I guess I learned that if you’re going to experiment with zap apples, unrefined liquid rainbow, and a tiny bit of lightning, you should probably do it outside.”
Rarity’s eyes narrowed, and from her left side she heard Octavia stifle a giggle. “And what about asking permission before entering another pony’s home?” she prompted, her eyebrows rising expectantly.
“Oh, Scootaloo says that only counts if you don’t know the pony,” said Sweetie with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “Twilight’s our friend and friends don’t mind if you commit a misdemeanor now and again.”
Rarity’s eyes narrowed and her ears slanted back towards her mane as Octavia lost the battle against her mirth, the warm music of her laughter pouring out across the table as Sweetie levitated her lemonade glass to her and took another sip without breaking eye contact with Rarity. She’s getting far too good at sarcasm, the designer thought as her lips pursed indignantly. A filly shouldn’t speak to her older sister in such a fashion – I’m certain I didn’t do that when I was her age. She allowed her hoof to drop back to the table and turned away from Sweetie Belle sharply enough that the curl of her mane bobbed between them, hiding her eyes from the smaller pony.
“Well if that’s how my little sister is going to live her life, I suppose you’ll just have to get used to the idea of living in the Ponyville Jail.” She winked at Octavia from behind her curl, and the gray mare’s hooves darted to her mouth as she struggled to stave off another round of laughter. The unicorn felt a grin spread across her lips. “And we, her loving family, will just have to visit her whenever we can… well, on holidays, at least…”
“Hey… you’d only come visit me on holidays?”
Octavia snorted into her hooves as Rarity turned back towards her sister, her grin becoming a broad smirk. “Well, I can’t spend all of my time at a prison, now can I?” she huffed haughtily. “I have my reputation to consider!”
Sweetie Belle sighed loudly and rolled her eyes. “Oh fine… no more misdemeanors for the Crusaders,” she conceded with a dramatic shrug. “I guess I’ll just have to put off trying to get my cutie mark in cat burglary…”
“My dear, you exploded three gallons of jam in the last home you invaded.” Rarity reached out and placed a hoof onto Sweetie’s shoulder, her smile softening sarcastically. “I’d say that such an experience is all that you need to know about your prowess as a cat burglar.”
Sweetie’s green eyes narrowed, but only for a moment before mirth washed over her face like a burst of sunlight from behind a cloud. Her cheeks puffed out as a laugh exploded from her chest, and it took mere seconds before the formerly calm and collected Sweetie Belle was all but rolling on the ground with laughter. Rarity’s smile became a true one as she heard Octavia’s laughter join her sister’s, and the warmth of her own laughter rose in her throat to be added to the mix. It’s so good to hear her laugh like this, she reflected as Sweetie swiped a hoof across her eyes, her smile broad and bright. THIS is what I wanted this day to be like…
“Oh… the exploding jam story… it feels like an eternity since I first heard about that.” Rarity’s gaze turned to Octavia, who was wiping her own tears of mirth away as her eyes moved from sister to sister. “Although I must say that hearing all of the details from Sweetie Belle made the story much more… entertaining.”
Rarity nodded and turned back to the table, where the empty plates from their lunch sat neatly stacked in the center of the table. “I’ll say that she can certainly add a unique aspect to any story she tells,” she agreed as she reached out and grasped her own glass of lemonade in her hooves. She brought it to her and sipped it through the straw, its tangy sweetness blossoming on her tongue like liquid sunshine. “And the fact that it actually happened to her doesn’t hurt,” she added with a wink at Sweetie as she placed the glass back onto the table.
“Yeah… that was fun, but it was scary, too,” she admitted, her ears drooping to her mane once more. “Twilight was super mad, and I think it was the first time I ever heard her yell at us. She was pretty scary… Kinda like you were earlier, Rarity…” she muttered softly.
Rarity felt her heart squeeze, and with a sigh she turned to face her sister once more. “Ah, yes… I am… sorry about that, Sweetie Belle.” She reached out and placed her hoof over Sweetie’s smaller one, and as Sweetie’s eyes met hers she felt her throat tighten at the open sadness that she saw there. “I truly didn’t mean to get so angry,” Rarity said softly, “and… even though you lying to me did make me very, very angry… I shouldn’t have yelled at you as I did.” She offered Sweetie a gentle, pleading smile. “Can you forgive me for making you scared?”
Sweetie’s right hoof settled over the top of Rarity’s right. “Only if you forgive me for lying to you in the first place,” she whispered. Rarity’s smile grew slightly, and after a moment she leaned over and placed a soft kiss on Sweetie Belle’s cheek.
“I’d say you have a deal,” she whispered back. Sweetie’s grin returned, and she nodded happily as Rarity shifted back into her own seat. I have to remember that there are better ways to deal with conflict like we had earlier, thought Rarity as Sweetie’s hooves extricated themselves from her own and darted to a small menu that was sitting at the empty side of the table. She’s not a child anymore, and as she gets older I’m going to have to change how I talk to her… Sweetie pulled the menu to her and began flipping through it, her green eyes so bright and intent on what she was reading that Rarity couldn’t help but smile. …because she’s getting to a point in her life when she doesn’t have to see me anymore… and I don’t want to lose her because of some stupid fight.
“All right, it’s dessert time!” declared Sweetie Belle as she closed the small menu decisively. She slapped the laminated paper down onto the table and turned her gaze to Octavia, her brow furrowing and her muzzle scrunching. “Octavia… I have just one question for you.”
The musician’s lips quirked into a smile, but she met Sweetie’s gaze evenly. “You may ask me one question,” she replied, her voice matching Sweetie’s gaze for seriousness.
“Do you like…” Sweetie pointed a hoof sharply at Octavia, “…sundaes?!”
Octavia’s eyes narrowed. “Only if they have…” she placed a hoof over her face, hiding half of it from view, “…cherries on top,” she finished coolly.
Rarity rolled her eyes. Oh dear Celestia… and I thought I was the dramatic one…
“All right then, I’ll be right back!” Sweetie Belle’s grin returned and she practically leaped from the table, her mane and tail bouncing as she hurried away towards where the waiter stood. Rarity watched her go before turning her gaze back to Octavia.
“Your sister is wonderful,” the gray mare said, placing her hoof back to the table with a broad smile. “I haven’t laughed this much since I was a filly back in Neighpon.” Octavia’s amethyst gaze moved from Rarity to where Sweetie Belle stood conversing with the waiter. “She reminds me a great deal of Maple Flourish, my younger sister… though Sweetie is, admittedly, a bit more energetic than Maple.”
“I’m starting to wonder if there’s a pony in the whole world who could match Sweetie for energy,” admitted Rarity with a chuckle. “But, between you and I?” She smiled over at her sister. “I wouldn’t change her for anything in the world.” She watched Sweetie gesture broadly with her hooves and shook her head before turning back to Octavia, and to her surprise the other mare was looking at her intently, her brilliant purple eyes shining in the afternoon sunlight.
Rarity met her gaze with a loving smile, but after a moment she felt a cold spot blossom in her heart. I wonder if I should talk to her about the fight Sweetie and I had earlier, she thought. I don’t suppose it was a wonderful thing to see… She looked down at the table, her warm contentment cooling slightly as the thought of bringing the whole mess up again threw shade across her inner landscape. I know that we’ve fought before, and I’m certain we will again, but it’s different when you see the pony you love fight with their family… it can change the way you see a pony, and I can’t help but think-,
Without a word, Octavia’s hoof looped itself around Rarity’s own and gave it a gentle squeeze. The unicorn blinked as the simple touch freed her from her reverie, and as she brought her eyes back to Octavia she felt the shadows of uncertainty inside her heart evaporate. Octavia’s eyes shone with love, their amethyst depths sparkling in the sunlight as she favored the unicorn with a broad smile, something that Rarity had come to accept as an extremely rare occurrence. She squeezed Rarity’s hoof tightly in her own, and after a moment Rarity reciprocated, squeezing the earth pony’s hoof as tightly as she could.
“I love you, Octavia,” whispered Rarity.
“As I love you,” answered Octavia, and the four simple words from the gray mare filled Rarity with more confidence than any reassuring conversation ever could have. The unicorn smiled happily before leaning over and kissing Octavia delicately on the cheek.
“Aishiteru wa,” the unicorn whispered, her voice carrying only far enough for the earth pony to hear. To her delight she felt Octavia’s grip on her hoof tighten even more, and when she pulled away the gray mare’s cheeks were flushed deep crimson.
“Rarity…” she gasped, her eyes alive with emotion. “You... you’ve been practicing your Neighponese?”
“Only the phrases that I feel are worth saying more precisely, chéri,” she said softly. “And if there is one thing that I love about the Neighponese language, it is that it allows me to be very, very specific.”
Octavia bit her lip alluringly, but before she could respond Sweetie Belle’s voice split through the silence, her tones bright and happy.
“All right, here it is: dessert!” Rarity broke her gaze away from Octavia’s just in time to see a huge sundae easily three times the size of her head sail over the edge of the table and settle itself into the center, its base brushing the empty dishes of their lunch out of its way. The magic around it went dim, and a moment later Sweetie Belle emerged from behind it, a thin sheen of sweat upon her brow. “I didn’t know what kind of ice cream you liked, Octavia,” she admitted as she panted lightly, “so I just went ahead and got a little of everything!”
Rarity’s eyes swept the mountains of ice cream, their peaks and valleys overflowing with chocolate and raspberry sauces, all crowned with a half dozen brilliantly red cherries that nestled delicately in perfectly peaked whipped cream… and in spite of herself, the unicorn felt her mouth start to water. A socialite I may be… but never let it be said that I could ignore a perfect scoop of ice cream.
“Sweetie Belle… how in Equestria did you get this made?” she asked, her voice breathy with wonder.
“Oh, y’know… I know ponies.” Sweetie’s magic lit up again, and a pair of spoons slid into place in front of Rarity and Octavia. The unicorn’s eyes rose to her sister, who hefted her own spoon with a broad smile. “This is to my sister and her marefriend!” she declared happily. “I hope that we’ll all be good friends!”
Rarity’s smile returned, and as she grasped her spoon with her hoof she heard Octavia clear her throat.
“Actually, Sweetie Belle, why don’t you dedicate this ice cream to what we are…” Sweetie Belle arched an eyebrow over the peaks of her sundae creation, and as Rarity turned to Octavia the earth pony lifted her own spoon high. “…your sisters.”
Rarity’s smile quavered, and it took all her strength not to tear up. Oh Octavia… She sniffled and turned back to Sweetie Belle, who didn’t even try to hide the tears that welled up in her eyes.
“O-okay…” she sniffled happily. “To my sisters!”
Octavia giggled, and without further ado the trio turned their spoons and dug in.