A Beautiful Night

by MrNumbers

Unicorns

Pinkie stood at a field halfway between Sweet Apple Acres and the woods. It was a clear night tonight, perfect for looking at the stars. She hadn't gotten bored of them yet; So much of her time was spent in the castle, underneath the oppressive branches of the Forest. Just because it was always night didn't mean she got to look at a clear, starry sky.

The ticket burned in a puff of green fire, and the smoke sucked towards Canterlot like a stormcloud's sneeze. There was a distant thunderclap, and a matching cloud of smoke burned back towards Pinkie, unfurling into a shiny golden ticket with her cutie mark on it.

That was pretty cool, actually. She hoped she got to keep it after, but that probably defeated the purpose of it. Maybe? She'd ask. It never hurt to ask.

She flopped her rump down on the soggy grass and stared up at the stars, waiting for whatever was going to happen now to happen.

Twilight taught her a lot about astronomy. Like, if a star was red it was a lot colder than a blue star. Which was weird, because red seems like the hotter colour. She only remembered the stuff Twilight taught her that seemed weird – which constellations were what were forever lost to her, but she'd always remember that the sun's surface was actually the coldest part of it, and there was something called a corona way above it that--

There was a chariot made of dark blue steels approaching, pulled by two batponies. Luna's royal guard! Pinkie was about to turn and run when the ticket in her hooves twitched up towards it. The chariot was empty.

Well, Rarity always had a flair for the dramatic. Seems like Pinkie wasn't going to be taking the train to Canterlot today. Applejack telling her to get the hay away from Sweet Apple Acres was definitely super understandable. Applejack didn't like bats very much.

The chariot landed in front of her, and neither of the batponies said a word. Pinkie showed them her ticket, but it was already obvious to them that she was who they had come for. So Pinkie just shrugged and climbed aboard.

“Hi! My name's Pinkie Pie. What's yours?”

The batponies tore off from the ground and charged towards Canterlot, leather wings ripping through the still night air. They didn't answer her, not even a not-going-to-answer-you answer. Just stoic silence.

Pinkie held the amethyst close to her chest. “You know, this trip's going to be a heck of a lot longer if there's no talking.”

There was no talking. At all. Not even a grunt of acknowledgement, even though they obviously heard her. At least on a train she could sit next to somepony interesting looking.

So even though the trip by chariot was way faster than the one by train, it felt like it lasted an eternity.

The entire time Pinkie watched the country below. The patches of blue and green glowing flowers, the flashes of gold and orange and red that caught the light just right. Nothing purple, none of the darker blues. And the 'natural' greens were way less so.

Twilight explained it to her once. Chlorophyl was green because it reflected green light, because that had the most energy in the colour spectrum, and plants couldn't handle it. But now that there was way less light to 'eat', they'd started eating as much of it as they could. So now the leaves were a lot darker, because they were 'eating' more light.

It made the trees look like even darker, more menacing shadows than they normally would.

Canterlot mountain was backlit by the moon, which put the entire front of it in shadow too. Which made it even more ominous and menacing than it should be. Canterlot's white, pearly exterior was just as black as everything else without anything to light it.

As the batponies made the last of their desperate dash toward it, it felt like Pinkie was about to get swallowed up by a giant hole in the world. But, again, Rarity always did have a sense of the dramatic.

They pulled the chariot up next to a spire near the royal hall itself. They didn't say a word, or even look back, but the chariot had stopped so Pinkie just assumed this was the place to get out. As soon as she had bounced off, the chariot tore off again, those same liquid sounds of leather ripping through the air.

“Pinkamena Diane Pie!”

Pinkie looked around. The spire had a little... rampart? Crenellations? Fortified stone walkway to the royal palace itself, and at the doorway inside was a smiling and waving white pony. Their hair was done up into a professional looking bun, and their tail was cropped short in a very fashionable way. They had shoes the same metal as the chariot's, and the same style as Nightmare Moons'. A blue silk shirt that matched her eyes, and a deep midnight tailcoat that framed her cutie mark.

They had Rarity's voice, and colours, and cutie mark, but they couldn't be Rarity, because they looked exactly like a bad guy would.

“Pinkie, dearest, come in out of the cold, won't you?”

“Uh, sure, Rarity. That sounds nice.”

Pinkie tippy hoofed across the walkway to the doorway Rarity waited next to, and Rarity opened the door for her and ushered her in. “Come in, come in, there's somepony I'd rather have you meet. There's actually a guest bedroom laid out for you, afterwards. It would be such a shame to fly you all the way out here, and then just fly you back home again for only an hour or two, wouldn't it?”

“Oh, uh. Thank you, heaps, that's really nice of you?”

Rarity stopped, stood in front of the door just before Pinkie could enter it, and her smile tightened into the center of her face a little more, pulled into a worried frown. “You sound unsure. Is everything okay?”

Pinkie bit her lower lip. After the ride, and the palace itself, she was in no state of mind to play up a poker face. It would be better to tell an awkward truth than get caught lying, because she would get caught. Rarity always knew, even when she didn't let you know she knew. “You just look so...”

“Dashing? Rogueish?”

“Evil. All this looks so evil-y.” Pinkie admitted, awkwardly kicking at nothing, staring down at her hooves. “It's scary.”

Rarity looked down at herself in surprise and laughed. “Oh, if you're not used to it, I suppose it can look a bit that way. It's really more of a uniform, I wouldn't worry.”

Pinkie nodded, and let herself be relieved by that, but then remembered; “Wait, you designed it though, didn't you?”

“Which is why I make looking bad look so good.” Rarity flicked her hair with a hoof and gave Pinkie a wink, and Pinkie laughed a little. Okay, so Rarity was still kind of the same, and that was probably good.

They stepped into the dark halls of Canterlot, and everything was purple tapestries and candleabras. If Twilight was the Good Witch castle, this was a vampire's caste... just deep purples instead of blood reds. All the white stone was now dark grays.

“Cheery.” Pinkie muttered. Rarity waved it off as their hoofsteps echoed down the columned halls.

“No less gloomy than a bank, and ponies have to work there too. At least I get to have a nice garden instead of a few potted ferns to liven it up. Does wonders. These new flowers, ah! So inspiring.”

Pinkie took the opening to reassure herself her friend was stilll really there. “You still design dresses and stuff?”

Rarity sighed sadly, genuinely sadly, “Oh, if only I had the time. The Princess has me so busy doing everything, keeping all of Equestria from falling over. I still make ensembles when I'm truly inspired, when it all builds up inside me so much you could pop me with a sewing pin... but it's hardly even a hobby these days.”

“Oh. That's sad.”

“It is,” Rarity agreed, leading Pinkie down a left turn, this corridor lined with dark redwood doorways more like a hotel's, “But there's so much opportunity here, leading the new nobility. Can you imagine that opportunity, Pinkie? Not just being accepted by the elite, but getting to define what that even means?” Rarity was breathy and excited now, the steady sounds of her trot replaced by the more frantic clip of giddy skipping.

“Not really,” Pinkie admitted, “I can't imagine that at all.”

“It's nonpareil! And with the Princess off defending Equestria from that even-nastier King Sombra right now, I'm almost entirely in charge, left to my own devices. It makes a lady dizzy to think about.”

But Pinkie's attention had snagged on something. “Did you just say the Princess is nasty?”

Rarity rolled her eyes. “Pinkie please, we're alone, I assured of it. Well, alone but for the pony I want you to meet.”

They stopped at one of the doors in the corridor. Rarity pulled out a keyring the shimmered like a millipede, and flicked through it until she found one she was satisfied with. The door opened on what looked like the fanciest hotel room Pinkie had ever seen, four poster bed, dark red wooden furniture, black marble kitchen. Sitting in a deep purple armchair was a white pony in the most fabulous tailcoats, with a magnificent blue moustache and coiffed hair.

The breeze from the balcony caused the curtains to billow dramatically when they went into the room.

“Fancy Pants, it's always a pleasure.”

Fancy Pants took a sip of... port? Brandy? Fancy alcohol. The kind of drink that happened to other ponies. “I thought you said you were coming alone. I'm glad I brought my own sherry, I'm not sure I can trust these aren't poisoned now.”

Rarity laughed like it was a joke, but it didn't sound like one, and Fancy Pants wasn't laughing either. “There was a change of plans. My friend Pinkie Pie decided to out herself unexpectedly. She's been in hiding, goodness, at least two years now?”

Pinkie felt caught on the spot. But Fancy Pants was looking at her so expectantly, and it's not like Rarity was wrong. “About that, yeah.”

“Really then?” Fancy downed his glass and stood up, stretching. It was very slightly rude, but not rude enough that anybody could say as much, or pinpoint why it was rude. So he obviously did it on purpose. “Alright. I want to hear it from her. What have you been doing?”

“Ah, why me?”

Fancy Pants raised an eyebrow. He'd walked around the back of the armchair and was leaning over the top of it. “Just one way of being sure our mutual acquaintence here doesn't rush over herself giving you a convenient backstory.”

Rarity didn't laugh at that one. Sighed in a rather exasperated fashion and looked at Pinkie expectantly.

Pinkie gulped. “Ah, I've been kind of helping Twilight Sparkle figure out... stuff. I don't want to say more though. I promised I wouldn't. But!” She reached down to the amethyst resting against her chest and showed it off proudly, “She made me this? It's really powerful magic, so I guess that should be a kind of proof?”

Fancy looked at it, and he had the same kind of thinking face Twilight did when you asked her if she wanted dessert or not after a big dinner. Finally, he said, “Do you mind if I look at it? As a unicorn, I mean, plainly I can see it from here, you needn't step any close, my fair lady.”

“Oh! Uh, sure, I guess? Just be careful with it; it's fragile you're really not supposed to break it.”

The amethyst lifted off her chest. Fancy's eyes went wide, and he walked more into the center of the room, closer to the doorway. Rarity took that as a prompt to enter properly herself, and Pinkie followed as the chain dropped its slack around her neck again.

“It is as you say. I apologize, lady Rarity, for my cautiousness. It's the way of the times, I fear.”

Rarity waved it off, business-faced. It's like poker-faced, but you know what cards everyone else is holding too. “I understand, Fancy. Pinkie Pie, Fancy Pants has been leading the Canterlot branch of the resistance for a while now, I believe. At least since Shining Armor left?” Fancy Pants was stoically silent. Rarity went from exasperation to annoyance. “I understand trust is hard to come by, but I obviously already know. And instead of guards, I give you a sort of asylum here, where you could have done all sorts of damage by now.”

Fancy looked back at Pinkie, who felt so uncertain about all of this. But Fancy was part of the resistance? “How did a pony like you end up in charge of the resistance?” She asked, earnestly, then clapped her hooves to her mouth. “I didn't mean 'like you' in a bad way, I just mean...”

“You're used to thinking of soldiers, and grizzled freedom fighters, I suppose?” And at that Fancy Pants did smile, and he almost laughed, and he extended his hoof for a shake because they were close enough now. “We all play their part. Mine has been money, connections, organizational skills and, I've been told, a certain charisma. I'll let you decide that for yourself.” There was a mischevious twinkle of his eye.

His smile was genuine, and self-effacing. He was embarassed about boasting, but confident enough to not be corrected for it. He also had a really cool moustache. If that wasn't charisma, Pinkie didn't know what was. She smiled and shook his hoof enthusiastically. “I sort of know what you mean. Twilight might be the one doing all the magic, but she needs someone else making sure she doesn't work herself too hard.”

Fancy Pants nodded. “We all play our parts as best we're able. How is she doing? We haven't had contact with her in months.”
“She's been busy. Right now the plan is apparently find an artefact with enough Harmony magic in it, whatever that means. I think she worked out a way to make them do what the Elements should have.”

Fancy Pants turned and hustled back to his sherry, chuckling in such satisfied delight. He poured himself a glass, passed the glass to Pinkie Pie, then poured another for himself. Pinkie stared at the glass she had been given. She was about to take a sip from it, but Rarity gently took it from her and gave her a sidelong expression.

It seemed like sherry was still a drink that only happened to other ponies then.

Rarity walked over to the sitting area by the dramatic curtains sat down for herself, gesturing for the other two to sit down as well. “It sounds like we have something interesting to discuss then?”

“You were right to invite Pinkie Pie. I apologize again for my-”

Rarity waved it off. “Enough, enough, I understand, I'm a very dangerous pony to admit this to. But I want the same thing everypony else wants, which probably means you should keep talking to her. Like you said. Some ponies just try to help by organizing things. And is the idea of a mole so unreasonable? Rainbow Dash is as deep undercover in the Shadowbolts as a mare can get.”

“Really?” Pinkie squeaked out.

Rarity blinked. “Dearest Pinkie, I thought you knew?”

She did know. She just didn't know that Rarity knew. She didn't say that though.

“Hrm. You should talk to her sometime. But yes, Fancy, continue with anything but the apologies.”

“The Crystal Empire returned. Did you know?”

Pinkie shook her head, and Fancy nodded to himself. “I didn't suppose you would, given your circumstances. King Sombra-”

“Ooh! Rarity, you said that name before.”

“Yes, dear, now don't interrupt ponies, it's rude.”

Pinkie blushed, and looked down at her hooves instead of up at Fancy. He continued.

“King Sombra distracting Nightmare Moon is just the start. The Crystal Heart, at the heart of the Crystal Empire, might have enough Harmony magic to defeat both Sombra and Nightmare Moon together, if we could get it to Twilight Sparkle, but there's a hitch in that plan...”

“You don't have it?”

Fancy Pants leaned back in his soft chair and winked at Pinkie. “Not yet. That would be up to the Lady Rarity.”

Rarity nodded. “Thank you, gentlesir, but I'm not quite sure I understand what you mean?” Fancy Pants raised an eyebrow. Rarity stared back in confusion, then something clicked. “Wait. You mean, the guarded envoy from the Crystal Empire, that's what that is?”

Fancy seemed surprised. “You didn't know?”

“Of the specifics? Hardly. I had thought it was an important hostage.” Rarity scoffed, blowing some fallen fringe out of her eyes, “I suppose she doesn't really trust me as much as I'd like. Wise of her.”

Fancy frowned, rapped his hoof twice against the table. “Then it would be out of the question for you to move its route, or hand it over upon delivery?”

“I can't think of anything. However, I can make sure the guards are pre-occupied when you make your move. I have plans for that, at least.”

“Is that the most I can get from you?” Fancy asked with the tone of someone who already knows the answer isn't the one he wants.

“There's only so much I can do without drawing too much attention to myself. This?” She drew a gestured line between them, “This is already a risk. I regret not being able to do more.”

Fancy sighed, and his hoof went from standing firm and attentive on the table to relaxed, resting. “Right. I suppose I need to give you a time for your distraction, then?”

“That would be helpful, yes.” Rarity agreed.

Fancy turned back to Pinkie. “Will you pass this on to Twilight Sparkle, as well? Or at least arrange a meeting place.”

“Are you doing this soon? I could probably just sneak it back myself. Or show you guys the way, if the Crystal Heart's too big to sneak. How big is it?”

“It's a crystal, smaller than a pony but larger than a foal. It's also fragile and quite heavy. I expect, as much as you seem quite the capable young mare, it might be a bit much for you to handle.”

Pinkie smiled at the compliment. “Well, I can guide them back anyway, since I'm all the way out here anyway. How are you going to do it? Knock a train over?”

Fancy shook his head. “It was-”

Rarity cut him off. “It's being flown by pegasii non-stop to the castle itself. Shadowbolt teams stationed at go-points, passing it off like a relay baton so it never stops, or goes below the cloud cover. I organized the security details myself, I just wasn't told what was being transported.”

Fancy Pants twirled his moustache with a hoof, grinning wide. The sherry seemed to be hitting him now, but he seemed happier for it. “The final handover at the castle walls is the weak link in the chain, we think, and with Nightmare Moon fighting Sombra, we have a golden opportunity.”

Pinkie was curious now. “So what are you going to do? Bribe the guards? Sign a fake delivery slip? Because I don't think you can wear a fake moustache.”

Fancy giggled. “That would look quite silly.”

Rarity was far sterner though. “So what did you have in mind?”

Fancy Pants shifted awkwardly in his seat, like he had a rock in his shoe all of a sudden. “This would be where the 'grizzled' freedom fighters and soldiers come in, I'm afraid. Not everything can be peaceful.”

Pinkie gulped. “Oh. So, dangerous mission then. Lives at risk and stuff?”

“It's unfortunate, but I'm afraid it seems necessary. I'm not young anymore, or I'd join them. I can't stand to send other ponies to go in my place...”

“Needs must?” Pinkie offered, what she hoped was helpfully rather than rudely, “That's what Twilight says, anyway.”

Fancy nodded again. “Needs must.” He agreed, “A good way to put it, thank you.”

“Pinkie, do you mind if I look at that gem you brought, again? It’s quite interesting, and you do know how I feel about gemstones.”

Pinkie thought really hard for a second to think of a good reason to say no, before she finally just nodded, taking it off from around her neck and letting Rarity hold it up to her eye.

“I used to love searching for gems like this around Ponyville. These days the caverns under the castle leave me a little spoiled. That Twilight risk getting this for you? You’re probably quite valuable to her. If you were to be captured, smuggling the Crystal Heart back, do you think she’d try to come to your rescue?”

“Uh,” Pinkie thought about that. Would Twilight really risk saving all of Equestria just to save her if- oh, right, yeah, she absolutely would. She basically said those exact words. “Probably. Why?”

“It's something to consider, it makes you as much a high-value target as Fancy Pants himself.” Rarity warned them both, grim. “And the walls have ears.”

Fancy Pants' ear flicked at that. He jumped out of his chair and ran for the door. Rarity winced as his chair fell backwards and thudded against the carpet, offering Pinkie Pie an apologetic frown as she slowly stood up.

“No tunnels this time, I'm afraid, or revolving bookcases. I was rather impressed by that one, and your literary selection was absolutely lovely. You have a good taste in literature.”

Fancy was staring down the peephole lens of the door. He shouted and jumped back as the door was kicked open by a royal guard. He turned and ran, jumping back over his armchair as he ran past Pinkie and Rarity for the balcony, and didn't hesitate for a second as he lept over the railing.

He was a unicorn, and they were really high up, and he just jumped!

“We heard everything, Mistress Rarity. We recorded it, just as you said. I still don't understand the need for all of this,” he groused.

Pinkie stared at the guard, then Rarity, then the guard, open-mouthed. “This was a setup?”

“Yes.”

Pinkie could feel her heart break. She fell back onto her butt as her wobbly knees got swept away by the butterflies in her tummy. “But I trusted you!”

“Yes,” Rarity agreed, gesturing at the other guard to help Pinkie back up, “which is why it was an effective setup.”

“Why?” The question Twilight had wanted her to ask.

Rarity sighed, and gave Pinkie a look like she was a dumb kid, “Because I've gotten to a very comfortable, very successful position in the Court and you're trying to ruin that for me? Because you're risking the lives of innocent guards who are just following orders. Because Twilight Sparkle is inconvenient, and I'm sick of devoting resources to finding her. I don't get to take my accumulated vacation days until I have her, you know.”

“That's not a funny joke.”

“What? Pinkie Pie, spa holidays are nothing to joke about.” The worst part was that Rarity sounded offended and it didn't sound like she was acting or playing it up. “Do you know what all this palace intrigue and viziering is doing to me? My back is all in knots. Utterly dreadful.”

Pinkie shouted, “You said you wanted the same thing everypony else wants!”

“Yes.” Rarity stared incredulously, like she was honestly surprised by Pinkie's confusion, “To win.” Rarity looked at the amethyst, and hummed in thought as the guard stood impassive in the doorway. Not threatening her, but their existence implying threat. Pinkie panicked as Rarity held the gemstone up to her eye to admire it.

“No! Stop! Twilight says it's really powerful magic, and if it gets broken... bad things will happen!”

Rarity rolled her eyes. “Well, now, I suppose this doesn't take a genius, does it?” She dropped it to the carpeted floor and smashed it with a hoof, grinding it down with a few back-and-forth twists, looking at it with... disappointment? Disgust? “Such a pity, to destroy something so beautiful. It was just my colour, too.”

The idea of Rarity wearing the necklace Twilight had made for her made Pinkie's stomach churn.

There was a sound like a fire cracker going off in an empty oil drum, and a bright flash of purple light. Then Twilight was standing there, in the middle of the room between Rarity and the guard, blinking in surprise.

Pinkie was surprised too. Twilight looked really different. Knee high boots with tight laces over fishnet stockings. Dark, dark red lipstick, a lot of eyeliner and a brushed mane. Black microskirt and a leather corset, done up as tight as the boots.

The butterflies in her stomach roared up again as Pinkie realized what a little birdie must have told her. “OWLOWISCIOUS, YOU ABSOLUTE GOSSIP QUEEN!”

Comments

[Georg]

"Darling, that outfit suits you so well..."

[Darkstarling]

Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!

Twilight in Dark Magical Girl colors...oh my. Now if only they can get out of this alive and free. I hope Nightmare Moon really is off in the North.

Whatever happens next, I do dearly hope the onomatopoeia "scaTHOOOOM!" is involved.

So yeah, unless Rarity is playing a two-or-more layered game here? She's why the elements didn't form. Selfishness. If everything is at it appears, she needs a good zorching. Or, if Twilight isn't up to killing anyone, a really nasty scarring pox. With pus.

...It occurs to me actually. We know their pasts roughly line up but has Pinkie actually described their cutie marks yet? Is this a Starlightverse? Am I barking up the wrong tree here?

I REALLY hope Fancy knows how to teleport.

[Ri2]

Fuck you too, Rarity!

[Chillean]

I think most of us can agree that Rarity is just the worst..
Also, everyone else saw this coming.

[Falkner]

I'm kinda hoping this is just a straight up betrayal and not some n-dimensional plot.

[Lurks-no-More]

Since canonical Rarity is the Best Pony, it makes sense for her to be the Worst Pony in this story.

[Bahamuttone]

keyring the shimmered like

that

We all play their part.

our

[hypervelocity]

God dammit Rarity

[Hyper Star]

RARITYYYY!!! DONT FALL TO THE DARKSIDEEEEEE!!!!!
Seriously though, BUCK YOU TOO RARITY! AJ WAS RIGHTT

Also, Fancy straight up 'suicide-ing' off the balcony was... very unexpected.