Problems, Progress, and Parents

by Spookyrus

1B. The "Welcome Back From the Griffinstone Summit" Party

There was a loud *boom* and an explosion of confetti, effectively declaring the arrival of the guest of honor. Pinkie Pie blew a party horn in Twilight's face, exclaiming, "Welcome Back From the Griffinstone Summit, Twilight!" which just so happened to be the same sentence written on the banner that hung overhead.

Rarity watched Pinkie and Twilight's exchange from a table not too far off. As usual, Pinkie had chosen Sugarcube Corner as the setting for the get-together. It was rather ridiculous that they needed an entire party to welcome Twilight home from her four day work trip, but then, there was no saying "no" to Pinkie Pie.

Rarity took a sip from the iced coffee that sat in front of her, baring an unnecessarily eccentric bendy straw in true Pinkie Pie fashion. Rarity had been the first to arrive, other than Pinkie of course, as she liked to make it a point to arrive to events exactly on time, whenever possible.

She looked around. Applejack and Fluttershy were having their own little conversation on the other side of the room. Rainbow Dash, on the other hoof, was nowhere to be seen.

Typical Rainbow Dash. She may have been the fastest flyer in all of Equestria, but she took her sweet time arriving at events that weren't explicitly about her.

Rarity shook her head. If Rainbow didn't show up soon, Pinkie was sure to flip out over it. That was an event that Rarity did not particularly look forward to sitting through. Dash had better get that colorful tail of hers over here. This was for her own sake as well. If she did show late (or worse, didn't show at all, but that was a world Rarity didn't want to live in), Pinkie would never let the poor girl hear the end of it.

"Well howdy there, Rarity!" The unicorn looked up to find that Applejack and Fluttershy had approached her, both smiling contentedly. "Mighty fine day fer a party, dontcha think?" AJ inquired.

Rarity smirked. "Applejack, darling," she replied, waving a hoof, "however true that may be, I think we all know that, were you to ask dear Pinkie Pie this question, she would tell you that any day is a 'mighty fine' day for a party."

Applejack chuckled. "Eh heh, that's probably true."

"How are you doing, Rarity?" Fluttershy asked. "I haven't seen you in a couple of days."

"Oh, I'm doing absolutely fabulously, Fluttershy, just as always," Rarity answered. "I've had a few orders to keep with, but it's nothing a master seamstress such as myself can't handle. Oh, and I've been looking after Sweetie Belle for my parents. The girl is absolutely ecstatic to be leaving school soon."

Applejack nodded. "Oh yeah, Applebloom's been pretty excited about it herself. She's been thinkin' about what she wants to study in, since the Crusaders' cutie marks are different an' all, and she told me she's considerin' carpentry!"

"Ooh, that sounds nice," commented Fluttershy.

Applejack pulled her hat over her chest and wiped a tear from her eye. "Oh, they just grow up so fast, don't they?"

"Indeed," Rarity concurred. She rested her chin on her hooves and thought back fondly, "It feels like just yesterday mother and father brought little Sweetie back from the hospital." She sighed. "I should certainly call it one of the best days of my life."

"Darn tootin'." AJ replaced her hat on her head. "But there's no sense livin' in the past. Jus' gotta go where the wind takes ya."

"Hi friends!"

Fluttershy stepped back as Pinkie bounded over to them, followed shortly by Twilight. "Thanks for coming everypony!" Pinkie exclaimed.

"No problem, Pinkie Pie," Applejack replied.

"I suppose it has been a while since we've all gotten together like this," said Rarity. "It's kind of nice."

"It's good to see you again, Twilight." Fluttershy and Twilight exchanged a friendly hug. "Are Spike and Starlight coming?"

Twilight shook her head. "Nope. Those two have been washing dishes on and off since yesterday afternoon." Her eyes crossed. "I didn't even know it was possible to make that much of a mess in four days."

"Oh, that's too bad," said Fluttershy. "Well, maybe you can at least bring back a slice of cake for them."

Twilight smiled, scratching behind her head. "Yeah, that's probably the least I could do for them."

"Okie dokie!" Pinkie sang, "I'll make sure there's a couple pieces left!"

Rarity took another sip of her iced tea. Fluttershy had gone on to inquire about the summit, and Twilight seemed happy to talk about it. Rarity would have gladly listened in, but her attention was rather drawn towards Applejack, who was looking around with a confused expression. The unicorn's expression flattened, and she considered saying something, but AJ beat her to the punch.

"Ugh... now where in the hay is Rainbow Dash?"

Pinkie's ears perked.

Rarity facehoofed.

Twilight and Fluttershy exchanged glances. "She told me yesterday that she was coming..." Fluttershy said.

"Oh, you know Rainbow Dash!" Rarity intervened, chuckling nervously. "Always... fashionably late." She slid her drink a couple inches away from herself and set a forehoof against her temple.

"Well, 's mighty rude a' her not ta show up on time," AJ grumbled.

"It's not like it's anything new for Rainbow," Twilight said.

Rarity glanced to Pinkie, who was grinning, much to the unicorn's relief. "I'm sure that Dashie is just busy practicing her stunts!" the pink mare exclaimed. "She'll come when she's all finished!"

"Ah'd be surprised if she even knows what time it is," Applejack scoffed, and Rarity observed Pinkie's ears flatten.

Rarity stepped off of her chair and approached Pinkie, setting a hoof on her shoulder. "Now I'm sure that whatever Dash is doing, she hasn't forgotten about your invitation." Pinkie stared at Rarity expectantly. "It's possible that there's something holding her up. Or, who knows, she may be on her way here at this very moment. We just won't know for certain until--"

In that moment, Rarity was cut off as the door to Sugarcube Corner was slammed open, and in zoomed Rainbow Dash, skidding across the room and bumping against the counter. The others watched her push up to her hooves and shake herself, dusting her shoulders off. "Have no fear!" she shouted, her wings lifting her very slightly off of the ground. "Rainbow Dash is here!"

"Dashie!" Rainbow was immediately pinned back to the ground as Pinkie pounced on her, nuzzling the pegasus's colorful mane. "You came!"

Rainbow Dash laughed and stood up again, lifting Pinkie up with her as the earth pony tightened her hug. "Of course I did!" Dash cried, making a movement to playfully toss Pinkie off. "Nopony in their right mind would ever miss a Pinkie Party! Even if it is a small one."

Rarity let out a sigh of relief, observing Pinkie hop up and down with a big grin across her face. An excited Pinkie was infinitely better than an upset one.

"Mighty kind of ya to show up, Dash," said Applejack as Rainbow and Pinkie walked over to join the group's circle.

Rainbow shrugged. "Well, I was just a little..." She gritted her teeth. "...preoccupied."

"Preoccupied doing tricks without bringing a watch?" Fluttershy assumed, causing Dash's ears to flatten.

"Maybe." Making to change the subject, Rainbow extended her hoof towards Twilight. "Hey, Twi."

"Hi, Rainbow." Twilight knocked her hoof against Dash's, rolling her eyes in the process.

Well, Pinkie was contented and everyone seemed to be in a generally good mood, so Rarity decided it was probably her turn to get the ball rolling. "Well then, now that we're all here," she said, gaining the attention of the five ponies around her, "I see no reason for us to to just stand around chit-chatting any longer. What do you say, Miss Pie?"

Pinkie's eyes lit up, before she leaped backwards in an impressive backflip and landed on top of her party cannon. "Okay, ponies! Let's get this party started!"

"Hooray!"

---

It hadn't taken long for Rarity to find herself once again sat down at a table with her iced tea, this time with a bit of entertainment. Rainbow Dash had somehow managed to get roped into a game of "pin the tail on the pony", and she looked kind of hilarious in a blindfold. Pinkie was encouraging the pegasus from the sidelines, shouting loudly whenever she turned in the wrong direction.

"A little to the left, Rainbow Dash," Rarity suggested, and Rainbow bumped her head on the table she was sitting at. "No, your other left, Rainbow Dash."

"You can do it, Dashie!" Pinkie squeaked.

Rainbow Dash gave a nearly inaudible grumble through the brown "tail" held in her mouth, taking a few uncertain steps in the direction of the crudely drawn pony on the wall. Pinkie let out an exuberant gasp as Dash placed the "tail" on the drawing, only to re-inhale it upon realizing that it was on the pony's forehead. "Eh. Close enough."

Rainbow removed the blidfold from her eyes and readjusted her gaze, looking upon her rather embarrassing work. She snorted. "Pfft. I could have done way better than that if it weren't for Rarity's 'advice'."

"My sincerest apologies if you can't tell right from left, Miss Dash," Rarity retorted.

"I can too tell right from left! Just... not when I'm dizzy."

Rarity cocked an eyebrow, making Rainbow scrunch her face at her. "Ugh! This game is stupid!" Dash complained. "Let's do something different, Pinkie."

"Okay!" And Rainbow Dash was dragged away before another word was said.

Rarity couldn't help but chuckle. Those two certainly had some interesting chemistry, to say the least. It was always amusing to watch them together, the way Pinkie would hang on Dash's every word and Dash would get excited over Pinkie's insane schemes. Of course Pinkie would deny any accusations that she had a closer relationship with one friend than the others, but Rarity could see it clearly, even if Rainbow Dash couldn't.

She hopped out of her seat, levitating the iced tea along with her, and trotted over to see what Twilight and the others were talking about.

"...so I'll probably be gone for about a week," Twilight was finishing.

"An' when is this again?" Applejack inquired.

"June 12th," Twilight answered.

Rarity raised her ears. "Oh, what is this we're talking about now?" she asked.

"Sunset and the others in the human world are going to be graduating in June," Twilight answered, "and they want me to attend the ceremony."

"Oh, that's wonderful for them." Rarity placed her mouth on the bendy straw again.

"Is Sunset going to come over before then?" asked Fluttershy.

Twilight shrugged. "She hasn't decided yet. They're still finishing up testing right now, and she doesn't think she'll have any time for a vacation."

"Oh, that's too bad," Fluttershy said. "I would have liked to see Sunset."

Twilight's expression brightened. "Well, after the graduation, she'll have all the time in the world." Grinning widely, she added, "We'll get to see her here then."

"Well, are ya'll gonna go over there to see her?" AJ questioned.

Rarity noticed Twilight brush a hoof through her mane. "Well, maybe..." the alicorn answered. "I'd have to ask Sunset if it's okay." The hoof that had passed through her hair was now held against her other foreleg.

"I bet she'd be really happy to see you," Fluttershy noted, "especially with all of the testing she's doing. She must be really stressed..."

"Oh, I'm sure she's fine." Twilight's right ear twitched. "But... yeah, I'll ask her."

Rarity held a hoof up to her chin in thought. Though these thoughts weren't so much about Twilight, her actions had prompted several ideas about Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash. The white mare glanced around to try and figure out where the two had gone off to. Oh... there they were. Rainbow was talking about something and Pinkie was hopping up and down. Rainbow Dash made a short inquiry, Pinkie's response to which was to nod furiously. And then Rarity made a sudden realization. She glanced at Twilight, whose hoof was now nervously held to her mouth, and then back at Pinkie, whose gaze was eagerly affixed to Rainbow Dash. Of course! Rarity knocked a hoof against her head. How had she not seen it before? It was as clear as the Crystal Empire!

"Hey Pinkie, can you get me a milkshake?"

"Sure thing, Dashie!"

Rarity watched Pinkie bound behind the counter, and then pop back up with a blender. The unicorn set her iced tea on the nearest table and trotted over to the bar.

"Hiya, Rarity!" Pinkie exclaimed, dumping some milk into the blender.

"Yes, hello Pinkie Pie." Rarity pulled up a stool and sat herself down. "Now Pinkie, there was something I was hoping to talk to you about."

"Okay!" Pinkie whipped a tub of neapolitan ice cream out of the ether and plopped three hearty scoops into the blender. "What is it?"

"It's about Rainbow Dash," Rarity said.

"I like talking about Rainbow Dash!" Pinkie replied.

Rarity's brow lowered. "Yes, so I've noticed." She glanced to the side, using her magic to lift a menu out of a holder and pretending to read it. "More specifically, I wanted to talk about..." The menu lowered slightly. "...your feelings for her."

Pinkie cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean?"

The smirk from earlier reappeared across Rarity's muzzle. "Oh, Pinkie, Pinkie, Pinkie..." she teased. "You don't have to pretend that you don't understand. I've seen the way you look at her, the way you follow her every whim. The way you greet her with more enthusiasm than you do any of us, how you simply loathe even the prospect of her ignoring you. You're clearly head over hooves for her." She cast her gaze to the side, brushing a strand of hair away from her eye. "Honestly I rather envy you. I remember when I used to think like you, Pinkie Pie, those were very special times indeed. The difference is that you actually have a chance."

Rarity kind of felt like her own love life had been dropped in that blender of Pinkie's. Every crush she'd ever had had turned her down, and she'd broken up with her most recent coltfriend barely a month ago upon discovering he was only interested in her successful business. Perhaps things would be easier for Rarity if she thought like Pinkie and Twilight, but alas, you can't help how you feel, and Rarity didn't feel that way about mares. But it didn't matter. She just knew there was a perfect stallion waiting for her somewhere out there, and someday they would find each other, and it would be the best day of Rarity's life. But this wasn't about Rarity. This was about Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie dropped a couple of chocolate chip cookies in the blender, giggling as she did so. "Silly Rarity!" she said, causing the unicorn to look at her in confusion. "Dashie is my bestest best best friend! Of course I look at her funny."

Rarity frowned. "No..." she sighed, setting the menu down. "No, Pinkie. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

"Sure I do!" Pinkie replied, her smile unwavering. "You're saying that I have an enormous crush on Rainbow Dash!" She ducked under the counter again, this time returning with a bottle of chocolate syrup. "But I don't! Like I said, Dashie is my bestest best best friend! Why would I want that to change?"

Huh. If that was truly the case, then perhaps Rarity had too soon jumped to conclusions? Then again, Pinkie Pie could be a perfectly capable liar at times. But she could also be a perfectly incapable liar at others. What to do? Rarity knew that there were signs to be observed when a pony was lying, but unfortunately she wouldn't know where to look for them. It seemed that there was only one option: investigate further.

"Well then, Pinkie Pie, if you were to ask for my opinion on the matter--"

*whirrrrr*

"Sorry! Blender running! Can't hear you!"

Rarity recoiled at the sound, and when it stopped, Pinkie whipped out a cup, poured her sugary concoction into it, slipped in a straw for good measure, and jumped over the bar before Rarity could say anything more.

"Here ya go Dashie! On the house!"

"Awesome! Thanks, Pink."

"No problemo!"

Rarity scowled. That was just too suspicious to ignore. But she couldn't confirm her suspicions just yet, she didn't have enough intel. Sure, it wasn't right to be messing with the personal lives of her good friends... but Rarity couldn't help it. She had found herself a mission, and she was going to go through with it, for Pinkie and Dash's sake.

Author's Note:

"So, Pinkie sees you come here often? Yes."
Okay, here's the plan!
I have a lot of stories that I want to tell in this, at least one for each character. However, I never decided what order I wanted to tell the stories in, and frankly, I don't think it really matters. So, here's the deal:
After each chapter, I want you to tell me which character you want to see next! I can't guarantee that your choice will be the very next, especially if you suggest someone outside of the main cast, but I can say that your choice will eventually show up (unless it's a really obscure background pony), and it will really help me decide.

Comments

[Damocles23]

I smell silly sheaningans were Rarity tries to get Pinkie and Rainbow together and I'm ok with it.

[Wandering Eye]

hmm. we've got a lot of potentials on this table. id like to see whacha have for Fluttershy, myself. looking quite forward to the stuff with Sunset when it comes as well.

[HarmonyRapids]

MOAR PINKIEDASH!

[Snowdrifter]

All this party's missing is Discord, and maybe Luna. And a visit from Trixie just as Twilight needs to go though the mirror. And Celestia sending a prank letter to Fluttershy asking her to reform Tirek and/or Sombra (which may well be a fake from Discord...)

And then Time Turner drives up in a battered yellow roadster... Nah, that would just be silly!

[Mister Morden]

Good chapter! I liked Rarity's inner monologue here.

For the next chapter, I would like to see Pinkie Pie 's perspective. Yes.

[nobody dreamer]

Ah, matchmaker Rarity is on the case then. And looks like she'll certainly have a lot to work with, the way things are shaping up. Personally I'm hoping for more Sunset, or maybe to see if the human Rarity has also started to pair up people too. It would be a bit hard for Rarity to ship people across dimensions, she needs some sort of local contact. Looking forward to seeing where things go from here.

[Crimson Dawn]

More of the PinkieDash. Right now Pinkie would make a lot sense unless you want to have Rarity go through Dash in which case Dash would be a good choice.

[OmniFox]

Pets 6.

[brisa_mlp]

how do they know what a June is

Also love is in the air.